Like a Little Baby

 

Recently I have been called to repent of some sins that are fairly “run-of-the-mill” and “respectable”.   You may understand what I’m talking about, those sins that seem to run rampant among most people and often go unchecked because they are small enough that life tends to move along in spite of them.  Maybe it’s a quick and harsh reply to another person’s question; maybe it’s squabbling with the siblings; maybe it’s just looking out for Number One instead of putting another’s interests first.  Yes, these sins were evident in my children as well, but many of their sins are mirrors of my own (or my husband’s).  The call to repentance needed to start with me and then we could exhort our children to do the same.

After this call to repentance, the action part began.  I knew that it was not enough to merely say “I’m sorry, please forgive me, I’ll never do that again”.  But, there was now a need to live this repentance out.  How do you just begin changing ugly old habits? 

By completely and utterly depending on the One who has the strength and power to transform you!

Since the call to repentance, I’ve literally awakened each morning saying “I can’t do this, God.  I need You to completely work through me…all day long.”  It gets a bit overwhelming when I think of doing this every day for the rest of my life; however, God keeps reminding me to just take this one day at a time and not worry myself over tomorrow.  (Oh, the bible references just whiz all over my head when I say this…….Exodus 16–collecting just enough manna that was needed for that day; Matthew 11; James 4, just to name a few)

I find it particularly difficult to respond in the Spirit rather than in the flesh when I’m feeling under the weather.  So, wouldn’t you know that the first full week of living out my repentance, not only did I get a bad cold, but I also had the challenge of having all four children home all day long (more opportunities for squibble squabbles!).  I knew this would be hard, so I prayed all the more.  As I was praying I thought of a visual that helped me greatly.  Here I was praying for dependence and the picture of a baby came to my mind.  A baby needs her mama all the time–for feeding, for comforting, for changing a diaper, for moving around.  Complete dependence.  So, knowing that I would be tempted to respond out of the flesh, I imagined myself as a baby in God’s arms.   I did not want to attempt to do anything outside of Him.   Instead of reaching for my old tools of comfort (criticism, anger, avoidance), I reached for God instead through prayer.  And, guess what?  Oh, yes.  God is good.  No doubt about that!  I praised Him every evening as I recalled the day and how He strengthened me to respond in kindness rather than rudeness while schooling with my son.  He worked in me to respond in patience rather than flying-off-the-handle-impatience when a fight began between brothers.  I could see God working in a variety of ways all throughout the day!

By the end of the week, though, I stumbled and fell and have felt miserably about that, yet I know I can persevere as Christ strengthens me to do all things through Him.  I hope to learn quickly from my errors so that I can get back into the business of acting like a little baby, dependent upon my Father for every single need I have. 

For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit.  For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

Romans 8: 5-6

What to do about Haiti?

My dear friend, Julie Park, has such a burden for the people of Haiti.  She wrote this heart-felt letter and wanted to get the word out to many.  Please read and pray about your part in helping those in such great need.  Thank you!

 

This is long but please read.   Please don’t turn a blind eye to those in need in Haiti. They are suffering in ways that are unimaginable. Lately, the Lord has been stirring our family’s heart toward those who are in need – namely, the poor, the hungry, the naked, the blind. Our initial motivation to help was to appease our guilt or some similar reason, however, as we read the words of Christ, I cannot help but see his compassion and concern for those who suffer in poverty.

LUKE 14:12-14

Last week, I listened to these verses read in Luke 14:12-14 where Christ tells his audience to not serve those who are able to pay you back but to bless those who are “poor, crippled, lame, blind, and you will be blessed, since they do not have the means to repay you; for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”

PUT YOUR MONEY WHERE YOUR MOUTH IS

I plead with my fellow believers, for the love of Christ, to put feet to our theology and have compassion on those who are helpless and unable to ever repay you. Your reward will be great in heaven! I read this indictment against Israel, and wonder how much this applies to me.

Ezekiel 16:49 “Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had arrogance, abundant food and careless ease, but she did not help the poor and needy.”

I ask myself, Did God place me in one of the most prosperous nations in the world only to pad our retirement funds, stuff our waistlines, adorn our houses and divert our attention to pleasure? I really don’t mean that saving money and eating etc. are sinful. But we can forget that the Lord has equipped some to be able to jump in when necessary to minister to those who can’t help themselves. I do believe that if you are able, now is one of those times. Praise the Lord that He is merciful and abundant in His provision to us! What happens in the next few days are critical as they will need equipment to move large debris that will save people trapped under collapsed buildings, they need the basics – food, water, shelter, and medical supplies – so that those who survived the earthquake will survive the elements and injuries they’ve sustained. They need money to mobilize aid in the places that are needed most with the supplies that will be most helpful. If you can, I would urge you to take two minutes and make a donation to any of these organizations that I have listed below. If you know of others that are respectable and honorable in their ministry, please post them here.

DO MORE THAN PRAY: SPREAD THE WORD

Of course, we will pray. We will not forget that the God of the universe, the Sovereign Lord hears and answers prayer. However, another thing you can do is spread the word. It’s another world out there, one that doesn’t touch us. Look at those images and see if your heart doesn’t get stirred by the suffering. We can lift up prayers and open our eyes in response to the gospel that Christ preached. But we can do more than pray.

* Copy this and post it on your own facebook notes. Tag as many people as possible.

* Take one day and encourage others to take a few minutes to pray and make a small (or large) donation!

* How about challenging people to give up one night out and donate the money saved to Haiti?

* Wouldn’t it be surprising if we opened the news and there were no headlines drawing our attention to the disaster? How about giving up your status update for one day to remind our friends that there’s more to life than the errands we ran that day?

* I’m not writing this as an indictment. Just a heartfelt plea to come out of our comfort zones for just a little and take a good, hard look at what people are suffering right now!

TEACHING COMPASSION TO OUR CHILDREN

I have some ideas of what we’re going to do with the children in order to give my children opportunities to extend compassion and aid. I’m really bad about this as I’ve taught my kids the opposite!

* I’m putting up a little map of Haiti in our kitchen.

* Print out the page on Haiti from Operation World and start praying for this people group http://www.operationworld.org/country/hait/owtext.html

* Get a roll of quarters and let your children do extra chores, etc. and give them money to put into a donation jar. Let them watch you make the donation on a website.

* Read verses that speak of Christ’s compassion.

* Sell some items (toys, books, clothes) and raise some money to donate. * Let your older kids get exposed to some of the photos that vividly show what happened. I think we shield our children too much sometimes. Shield them at your discretion, however, let them see some of the nightmare that these children in another part of the world live through.

* Fast through one or two meals. Every time they feel hunger, have them put a coin into a donation jar.

* One person wrote that she’s making bread and baked goods to sell to raise money. Great idea!

ORGANIZATIONS

Children’s Hunger Fund http://www.chfus.org/en/educate/programs/other-programs/319-haiti-earthquake-response-.html

Samaritan’s Purse http://www.samaritanspurse.org/index.php/Relief_and_Development/Emergency_Relief/

Compassion https://www.compassion.com/contribution/giving/disasterrelief.htm

Sovereign Grace Ministries Disaster Relief http://www.sovereigngraceministries.org/About/FinancialSupport/DisasterRelief.aspx

 Feed My Starving Children http://www.fmsc.org/Page.aspx?pid=415

Northwest Haiti Christian Mission https://www.denarionline.com/DonorServices/TEMPLATEPAGE.ASPX?OMP_REF=_NWHAITI%20%20&CONTENT=GOSOLG&DS_GO_REF=811B5E8E6D

World Vision http://donate.worldvision.org/OA_HTML/xxwv2ibeCCtpItmDspRte.jsp?funnel=dn&item=1958776§ion=10324&go=item&

World Relief http://worldrelief.org/Page.aspx?pid=2364

Spinning My Wheels

…for without Me you can do nothing.   John 15: 5

 

My scheduled day to drive my son’s school carpool collided with a mild snowstorm.  I do not enjoy driving in bad weather so I took things very cautiously that morning.  The ride ended up being smooth, albeit snow-covered and slow.  Then, as I was turning off of the highway and onto the city street, my car swerved and slid.  My tires were spinning, but not getting me where I wanted to go.  Fortunately it was a minor snafu, but the feeling of spinning my wheels in the middle of the intersection stuck with me.

Perhaps you know the feeling–you’ve been pressing forward but nothing is really happening.  In my case, I’ve been wanting to be hospitable, have a clean house, submit to my husband’s leading and raise godly kids.  But somewhere in these noble ventures I must have taken the reins and started doing these things apart from Christ because the wheels are turning, but “we ain’t gettin’ nowhere”.

It’s a fine line–one that’s easy to miss in the busyness of life–but the line where we rest in complete dependency on Christ, our All in All, and where we say “thanks, God, I’ve got it from here”.

I stopped living out of the overflowing thankfulness from God’s grace and started living instead out of the need to “do this and do that” in order to be a godly woman.  This is the pit I always seem to stumble in to.  Rather than having my heart be changed and having that lead to outward changes, I was trying to make all the outward changes be the catalyst for inward change.

Spinning my wheels.

My reaction was fairly subdued when I had the little spin-out on the way to school.  But, I’ve had worse scenarios on snowy roads before and I remember those reactions–intense fear, screaming, feeling completely out of control.

Strangely, those have been some of the same reactions I’ve been having as I’ve been ‘trying to live a godly life’!

The lastest life ’spinout’ has gotten my attention.  As a result, each day I’ve had to wake up and purposefully empty myself so I can be completely dependent upon God for all things.  If I get frustrated teaching and re-teaching fractions to my child, I have to empty myself of my ‘old man’ (anger, frustration, criticism) and allow God to do His work in my heart.  Submitting to this work has reaped kindness, patience and peace.

Pursuing holiness is our goal, but when we put the cart before the horse then we end up making a beautiful and grace-filled work into an ugly legalistic mess.  If you tend to “drive” like me and find yourself spinning the wheels, examine your heart in prayer.  Have your goals become like an idol?  Has the need for a clean home surpassed your need for utter dependency on God, for instance?  Has my need for kids to behave and act right surpassed having a loving relationship with them that faithfully leads them to the Cross when they sin?  If there is fruit of the natural man (Galatians 5) evident, then chances are you are “spinning your wheels”. 

Devoting myself to God, depending upon Him like my baby daughter depends upon me for her needs—this is where it all begins.  The rest all flows outward from this bowed heart.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean no on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct your paths.  Proverbs 3: 5-6

Mary’s Submission

Let it be to me according to your word.  Luke 1:38

(This was first written in January 2007.   I wanted to share this with friends who may not have read this back then.)

When I was preparing for a Sunday School lesson during the Christmas season, I re-read the passage in Luke 1 where the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary to announce that she was chosen by God to conceive a Son, Jesus.  God’s Word was certainly alive and powerful as I was reading this very familiar passage because His Spirit gave me a fresh understanding that I carried with me through the rest of the holiday season.   Here are some highlights…

When God called upon Mary to be the vessel that He would use to bring His Son forth into this world in human form, she was:

• willing to be used.  We can’t underestimate the sheer shock that Mary must’ve had when an actual angel appeared to her, let alone the message he was carrying!  But, Mary was willing–”let it be unto me according to your word.”
• empty or surrendered.  Mary didn’t respond to the angel with a list of better ideas or contingencies.  She would’ve known the implications of becoming pregnant out of wedlock.  She would’ve known that this would be a very difficult and lonely road to take.  But, she submitted to God’s plan fully.  I think there must’ve been a tremendous amount of faith and trust involved to do that.
• full of praise!  Mary’s magnificat in Luke 1: 46-56 shows us Mary’s response to the amazing news she had received.  She responded with awe, praise and worship.

We are so blessed to be used by God in His work here on earth.  He certainly doesn’t need us, yet He chooses to use us.  And in that process we grow closer to Him, get to know Him more and get the honor of advancing His kingdom here on earth.  When we are chosen by God for a particular task, we can reflect upon Mary’s response–one that was willing, surrendered and full of praise.  Sometimes we consider a ‘particular task’ to be a big ministry, but as I let these words sink into my heart I am reminded of how God uses me on a daily basis at home with my husband and children.  I pray that I can be more open and willing, more surrendered and more worshipful as I live out the plan God has for me in this life.  I encourage you, too, in this journey as you depend upon God to do the same.

Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for reaching out to us.  Thank You for Your grace and mercy.  Thank You for the ministries in our homes, churches, workplaces and beyond.  May our senses be fine-tuned to Your voice as You lead us in Your will.  We echo Mary’s words that were spoken many years ago when we say that You are mighty and have done great things for us!  Holy is Your name!  Your mercy is on those who fear You from generation to generation!  In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.

Happy New Year!

From “A Valley of Vision:  A collection of Puritan prayers & devotions” by Arthur Bennett

 

New Year

 

O Lord,

Length of days does not profit me except the days are passed

     in thy presence, in thy service, to thy glory.

Give me a grace that precedes, follows, guides, sustains,

     sanctifies, aids every hour,

  that I may not be one moment apart from thee,

  but may rely on thy Spirit

     to supply every thought,

     speak in every word,

     direct every step,

     prosper every work,

     build up every mote of faith,

     and give me a desire

          to show forth thy praise

          testify thy love,

          advance thy kingdom.

I launch my bark on the unknown waters of this year,

     with thee, O Father, as my harbour,

              thee, O Son, at my helm,

              thee, O Holy Spirit, filling my sails.

Guide me to heaven with my loins girt,

                                                    my lamp burning,

                                                    my ear open to thy calls,

                                                    my heart full of love,

                                                    my soul free.

Give me thy grace to sanctify me,

                  thy comforts to cheer,

                  thy wisdom to teach,

                  thy right hand to guide,

                  thy counsel to instruct,

                  thy law to judge,

                   thy presence to stabilize.

May thy fear be my awe,

                  thy triumphs my joy.

 

Immersion 2010

With the new year approaching, you may have begun thinking about some goals to achieve in 2010.  While weight loss, exercise and more organized homes are worthy goals, I believe the most important thing we can do in the coming year is to immerse ourselves in the Word of God.

Especially because we desire to be Women of the Word, we must know the Word first.  I can see a visible difference in my thinking and my living when I am immersed in the Bible than when I’ve become distracted and barely get a chance to even open it or get beyond the “obligatory” reading for the day.

We are hardly lacking for bible reading plans.  In fact, I’m sure you could share a few ideas with me!  But, I will share two here and hope that you will comment and leave more possibilities for the women reading this.  Regardless of your reading plan, just do it.  Know the Word.  Prioritize it in your life.  As we make time to improve physically (i.e. 30 minutes on the treadmill), make time for this.  Actually, a better example would be:  as I make breakfast, lunch and dinner to nourish myself and my family, I must first nourish my very soul with the Word of God.  I want to do more than just nibble at it; I want to devour it!

Check out these two reading plans and then…BEGIN!

http://www.facebook.com/l/00e8f;www.havenministries.com/schedule.pdf

www.bibleplan.org/mcheyne.htm

Taking it Seriously

Recently I’ve had the spiritual blahs and when I’m not in a state of  total apathy, I have been trying to analyzing what is causing this.  Yesterday in Sunday School something was said that hit me square between the eyes and I share that here with you now.

When we read the Bible and find something in there that we can’t swallow, oftentimes we come up with amazing justifications for why we do not need to follow that command.  In an effort to avoid God’s ways, we become skilled inventors of new systems that are full of loopholes to help us in our endeavor to disobey.  Instead of reading, believing and obeying…we read, doubt, mistrust and lean on our own understanding.  We think:  Surely God couldn’t mean what this says here in Romans; Clearly this applied to the people of Ephesus in that culture and not our own; This problem was just never experienced in the Bible times; etc.

But, in the wise words of Christian speaker, Julie Barnhill, ‘we need to stop dinkin’ around!’  We need to take the Word of God seriously, gals.  We must stop justifying our sin. 

Do not merely listen to the Word, and so deceive yourselves.  Do what it says.  Anyone who listens to the Word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.  But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it–he will be blessed in what he does.

James 1: 22-25

We must be *wise* and not foolish as we hear the Word.  The wise person sees herself when sin is pointed out and is convicted; the fool justifies, points to others (THEY sure have a problem with THAT sin), and deceives self with being okay with the filth of sin in her life.

How often do I read the Word of God and not let it penetrate my heart?  I allow myself to become distracted by other things so that I don’t have to come face to face with the sin in my life.  I do not take God nor His Word seriously.  When I choose to yell at my kids, when I’m impatient and easily frustrated, I’m not taking Ephesians 4: 2-6 seriously.  I’m not leaning on God’s wisdom, but rather my own understanding (“I must yell or this child will never understand”).   I read “be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love” and think I have the option whether or not to follow it.  Or I think “oh, that’s good advice”, but then allow my own emotions to ignore that advice and let my anger rule. 

If I’m not taking the Bible seriously, I’m not taking my sin seriously…and of course my relationship with God is going to suffer as well as my relationship with other people! 

When you read the Word of God, how are you taking it?

Long Lines

Have you ever had the pleasure of waiting in a long line?  Many of us would emphatically say “no”.  In this fast-paced, instant-gratification world that we live in we are constantly striving for the short line, the express lane, the fast track. 

 

But, this past month I opened up the door and saw a very long line going into a room where my dear friend, Beth Rarey, was being honored.  I’ve written about Beth before (see June 6, 2009 post).  She was a friend who honored God during her 49 years of life, including  her year-long battle with brain cancer.  I knew how Beth had blessed me during our friendship—she was an encourager, a prayer warrior, a Woman of the Word, a gentle and loving mother and MiMi (grandmother).  She perservered in circumstances beyond her control; she diligently trusted God and believed that He would provide all of her needs.  We walked through this Christian journey together, both being refined by Jesus as He sanctified us each day.  I looked forward to her regular emails, especially after I had moved away and did not get to visit with her in person.  Her transparency was challenging to me and I was blessed by her faithfulness.  These are just the things that blessed *me*…I had absolutely no idea how much she had blessed others.

 

Until I saw that line.

 

That’s the way to live a life!  Reaching out to others, giving of yourself, praying passionately, loving others, sharing the Lord, laughing, crying, trusting…

 

I can only pray for long lines one day because that will mean that I’ve given all that God’s given me!

 

“Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints.”  Psalm 116: 15

The Name Above All Names

Studying the book of Acts this year has been such an encouragement and challenge to me.  I love being reminded by Peter’s sermons of the work that Christ accomplished on the Cross.  It’s interesting to note the reaction to Peter’s sermons by the Pharisees and Sadducees, though.

 

What shall we do to these men?  For, indeed, that a notable miracle has been done through them is evident to all who dwell in Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it.  But so that it spreads no further among the people, let us severely threaten them, that from now on they speak to no man in this name.  So they called them and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus.  Acts 4: 16-18

 

Can you imagine how it must’ve been for the opponents of the gospel?  These were the very men who rallied the troops and condemned Jesus Christ to die.  There were so many reasons for their actions: jealousy, power struggle, guilt.  But, they thought they had taken care of the “problem” (Jesus) by having Him crucified.  How in the world did this problem persist?!?!  Now this Man’s followers were performing all sorts of miracles, gathering up many believers in this new church, and preaching and doing all these things in the name of Jesus!  I’m sure the religious leaders must’ve been extremely angry, but perhaps they were fearful as well.  They must have considered that this Man was possibly…the Messiah?  Could those rumors be true of Him resurrecting from the dead?  And being seen by over 500 people?  If that were true, oh, the religious leaders probably couldn’t even bear to consider the implications or consequences for them.  This would mean they killed the Messiah.  This would mean their theology–their very belief system- was wrong (as the Sadducees denied resurrection altogether). 

 

No wonder the religious leaders were all up in arms about this early church.  They saw power and miracles from this Man’s name—the same Man they thought they had ’snuffed’ out of the picture. 

 

This Name, the Name above all names, is Jesus and He is the same yesterday, today and forever.  The power and might is still present in the Name of Jesus!   How often do we pray and close–really quickly and quietly–with the obligatory final phrase “in Jesus’ name, Amen.”?  Are we believing that there is power in this name?  Are we believing that the One we are praying to is hearing our prayers?  Are we believing that He can accomplish all that we pray and ask for in His will? 

 

As we pray in Jesus’ name, let’s remember the miracles and the conversions and the power that the early Church exhibited in this very same Name…and go forward in this mighty power and advance the Kingdom of God!

 

 

Consider Your Tongue

My son, Alex, gets ready for school very early each morning.  Being a homeschooler for six years, “early” would have been 8:00 am; 6:00 am is quite a change.    Needless to say, I like getting up and reading the Word and praying with him before he leaves for his day. 

 

We are currently going through scripture while being guided by the Doorpost (www.doorposts.net)  book “Plants Grown Up:  Projects for Sons on the Road to Manhood”.  I’ve been getting a lot of ideas and scripture as we discuss various things that are important to being a godly leader.  This morning we continued our discussion of self-control, with the focus of controlling the tongue.

 

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.  Ephesians 4:29

 

As we were discussing the importance of building others up, rather than knocking them down, I was reminded of the house that is being built down the road from us.  That is a *construction* area—bit by bit, we are watching something grow from a hole in the ground to a foundation to a frame to a house.  Piece by piece every day the builder adds something to this structure–roof shingles, siding, brick, windows–that creates a home. 

 

If the builder decided to bring in a crane with a wrecking ball attached to it, he could destroy this work he has made fairly quickly.  I’m sure you’ve watched “Extreme Makeover:  Home Edition” before; it’s always amazing how quickly a home can be brought down with one of those giant steel balls. 

 

So, with this visual in mind, we consider our tongues.  Building or destroying.  Purposefully placing words of growth, encouragement, joy and hope versus carelessly throwing out steel wrecking balls of a tongue that strike down our listeners with a swoop of a criticism or a drop of an angry reaction. 

 

As I pray about all of this this morning, I know that I cannot pull up my bootstraps and just try harder.  I will grow weary too quickly.  In fact, I would daresay that this task is just plain impossible (James 3:8).  So do we give up and destroy everything in our path?  NO!  We turn this impossible task over to the only One who can accomplish it…and we turn it over and we turn it over again. 

 

Praise God that ‘with Him all things are possible’!