Christmas 2016 is now a thing of the past, and we face a new year. Over and over this Christmas season I was reminded of the Truth that the Light of Christ dispels darkness.
There is a constant battle, the darkness attempting to invade my heart, attempting to overshadow any good in this present world, often attaining the focus of attention as if "the dark side" always wins. But God's Word is the Truth that brings Light to the surface. Christ in me can shine brightly wherever I am. I am the one that chooses to hide it under a basket (Matthew 5:14-16). The Spirit of God makes sure the Light of Christ's presence is made known in this world until Christ returns (John 16).
"Their words (the prophets of Scripture ) are like a lamp shining in a dark place." 2 Peter 1:19
That lamp, the light of God's Word the Bible, illumines the dark recesses of my heart. The Light exposes the fears and doubts, the hidden resistance to His plan for me, the anger and impatience, whatever sin is lurking in the dark places. When I respond in faith, resting in His love for me and grace extended to me, the Light brings me back to that simple utter trust in a great Savior and I abandon myself to His loving care.
And I bask in that Light.
Looking forward to a new year can bring a bit of angst. So much can change so quickly. My husband and I are facing uncertainties that were not at all expected this time last year. But with the Lord lighting the way the future is bright. There is excitement as we wait to see all that He brings our way.
No need to fear "the dark side"!
Friday, December 30, 2016
Monday, November 28, 2016
Thanksgiving 2016, In the Past
Thanksgiving 2016, over and done. But not really.
Thanksgiving has long been my favorite holiday. I love Christmas, and my birthday (hehe), but there’s just something about having a season set aside to devote to gratitude. It’s not natural you know, to just be thankful all the time. In fact, it most often has to be cultivated because it’s much easier to be critical, to complain, to be discontented. Why do you think toddlers will throw temper tantrums when they don’t get their way? Or why is it that “mine”, or “more” are often their first words. They have to be taught to say “thank you”. The Scripture reminds us often to be thankful, perhaps for this very reason...we’re naturally not. Gratitude becomes a reality when, and only when, we understand and appreciate the value of all of life’s gifts. And every gift has value because it comes from God.
“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of Lights.” (James 1: 17)
Here’s where it gets tricky. Who decides what “good” is? Well, it can’t be us. Because our idea of good and someone else’s idea of good would not be the same, or what we might see as bad, God may view otherwise. No, God, the authority on “good”, gets to decide. That means it may not always appear to be good, or feel very good. But God can be trusted. If it comes from Him, it’s good, or, He can bring good from it or make it good.
As Thanksgiving approached this year, my husband and I found ourselves in a different situation than we have been in for a while. Through a series of circumstances we could never have seen coming, by the end of September we were both unemployed for the first time in twenty years. He still pastors a small church, but this other job together with mine made up over half our income. And just three short years ago we purchased a 25-acre farm and began raising alpacas and rabbits. Our son and his wife and 6 children live with us and are a huge part of the operation. We also took on the responsibility of my mother-in-law that lives in her own home on the property. And we still had not sold our other home. None of this was without the confidence that God was directing in all of this. We stood on this very property surrounded by our children, grandchildren, parents, siblings, and close friends on our 35th wedding anniversary and recommitted ourselves to each other and the God that had brought us to this point, knowing in our innermost being that more change was in our future. Coming to the farm had just been the first step. It had all seemed so crazy, how it all had happened. But there was no doubt it was a “God-thing”, and we wanted nothing more than to see Him continue to do great things...the kind of things that leave you somewhat dazed at His grace and goodness and power and involvement in our lives!
Losing our jobs was not part of that plan! Being three years at the farm without being able to sell the other house was not part of the plan! Our plan that is. But God’s plan, yes! There was the initial shock when the change came so unexpectedly, a great deal of hurt and betrayal over how things played out (this was not just a job to us, it was a ministry we loved dearly), anger and then questions about what next? But in a matter of days praying and looking to the great God we serve and staying in His Word for wisdom to make decisions, strength to keep trusting, comfort to experience healing, direction to know what to do next, encouragement to praise Him in the loss, and power to forgive and move on, well, God was working.
He is still working. He is providing and opening doors and enabling us to manage. By the end of October our home was under contract, and it was quite obvious to both parties that God had been saving this home for this couple at this time! We couldn’t help but be excited for them. They spent their first Thanksgiving together in their own “nest” (from a verse of Scripture this couple shared with us that confirmed to them this was the home the Lord was providing...Psalm 84:3, “Even the sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself.”). A company, with info from the local tax office, called and has surveyed our property for timber they wish to purchase. And as of today, we are moving forward with plans to expand our own business with the opening of a shop, blown away by how the opportunity has presented itself and the steps that are quickly falling into place.
I read yesterday morning from Psalm 126:
“When the Lord brought back the captivity of Zion, we were like those who dream. Then
Our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing. Then they said among the nations, ‘The Lord has done great things for them.’ The Lord HAS done great things for us and we are glad.”
Like a dream, I can imagine exactly how the children of Israel felt because that’s how I feel. And I can’t help but be “glad”, and filled with laughter and yes, singing! Because I have been there before and seen God do those exceedingly abundant things....Ephesians 3:20, “Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us”. It is part of what has cultivated this humble heart of gratitude, seeing God do what only God can do, seeing Him as the faithful God that He is. Seeing Him take something that can be so devastating and bring beauty from it. Not all of those times were pleasant either. They brought hardship and a time of doing without. We didn’t always have the latest and greatest, or the newest or the most fashionable. But our faith was made stronger. Our relationships as a family were made stronger. Our boys cultivated a personal faith in God of their own that has given them a solid foundation for their own families and futures now.
So I look back, and I thank God. I look forward, and I thank God. It has not always come easy, but I know it is His will to be thankful*, so in obedience I verbalize it until it becomes a swelling, solid reality in my heart and life. I have made it a habit over the years...to lay hands on the washing machine and say “thank you Lord that our family has clothes to get dirty and that I can wash; thank you Lord for this jalopy of a car that gets us where we need to go; thank you Lord for my precious grandparents that I will miss dearly, but I know they are with you; thank you Lord for the chance to lead that child to Christ…” and the list goes on. Any and every chance, throughout any given day God has taken that gratitude, and changed me.
I don’t know where He will take us from here, but I know it will be His good. Thanksgiving Day is over and done for another year, but the thanksgiving continues. Some things take some time, and are harder to be thankful for. But His grace is powerful and available when I fail to direct a thankful heart to Him. I can only pray He will enable me to always do so and I will always let Him help me…
...simply be thankful.
*I Thessalonians 5:18, “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”
Colossians 3:17, “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”
Wednesday, October 19, 2016
A Greater Deliverance
“...for I am with you, declares the Lord, to deliver you.” Jeremiah 1:19
Deliverance, it’s a weighty word. And biblically speaking, it packs a powerful punch. It begins the moment we breath that prayer of a needy heart heavenward. Christ steps in and delivers our soul from the grip of sin, changing our eternal destiny. He then opens a whole new world to us through His Word and His Spirit that comes to live in and through us.
But the deliverance promised the believer is more than that. It’s a daily thing. It’s the work of a moment, it’s the work of a lifetime. It’s an eternal work. It’s about not crumbling in defeat, being crushed by despair, being desperate without hope, lost in uncertainty. It’s food on the table, the bills being paid, not being overcome by sickness, not being swallowed up in hurt and anger and bitterness when you are betrayed, or left to wonder what went wrong in a relationship….and, it’s waves of grace while enduring these very things, waiting to see what God will do. With Jesus there is hope for deliverance, and He is all about hope. Deliverance is in Jesus, not just from Him.
Confusion and disillusionment with God comes when we try to orchestrate just how and when God will deliver. After all, we know what the situation demands, what the immediate need is, right? We are the ones dealing with the magnitude of the moment, so it only stands to reason that if God would just listen to me and meet me where I am, changing my situation, removing my unmovable mountain, everything would be fine and I could get on with my life. There stands the stark difference between our ways and God’s ways, our thoughts and His thoughts. There, the reality of faith meets the mind of human reasoning and a battle is waged. Why would God not do something to intervene and keep me from my struggle? The short and simple answer? I’m not God. And God defines deliverance, not me. Scripture addresses a number of reasons why God does what He does, and believe me, He is good at what He does. And when I am willing to step back and see things from His perspective, I gain a greater awareness of a world beyond my own that He is vastly interested in and intimately involved with.
First, He has an eternal purpose in mind. We hold so tightly to this life. It’s what we know. We operate in the realm of the tangible, the physical, the material. But Christ calls us beyond that. We just have to reach past our own purposes and consider the greater work of a great God, and how our situation may be fitting into His plan and purpose, an eternal one. That means something beyond what I may be experiencing at the moment. Something weightier, something that impacts not just life as I may know it right now, but that projects into the eternal existence. Our situation may change, it may not. But if we see God clearer, know Him more intimately and trust Him more fully, deliverance is no less real, regardless.
Scripture in John 11 says that Jesus is brought news that his dear friend Lazarus is sick. But Jesus “when he had heard therefore that he was sick, he abode two days still in the same place where he was”’ (vs. 6). What was Jesus doing? The disciples didn’t understand why he would deliberately choose to stay where he was rather than scramble to get to Lazarus before he died, sparing the family the terrible ordeal that death is. He then even said to the disciples, “I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the intent you may believe” (vs. 15). Believe what? They were so confused, but they followed Jesus to Bethany to Lazarus’ home. Things were no different there. Mary and Martha didn’t understand either, and they both expressed their strong feelings to Jesus imploring Him to explain why he didn’t come sooner. They both exclaimed, “If you had been here, my brother would not have died!” But He did die, and Jesus had allowed it. In their minds the only deliverance was Jesus keeping Lazarus alive. They had their own thoughts about how Jesus was supposed to handle their desperate situation. But He wanted them to see and understand that HE was the resurrection and the life and that whoever believed in Him, even if he left this life, would still live!! Jesus wept to see Mary and Martha grieving so, but bringing them to the realization of Who He was and what He was capable of was the greater deliverance. Jesus then went on to explain that “if they would just believe, they would see the glory of God.”
The glory of God, that’s an eternal purpose. We don’t see it because we don’t believe. We don’t value believing in Jesus above how we might feel at the moment, or what we might have to endure in a lifetime. But the eternal purpose is that we would “just believe”. He is worthy of that, and it changes everything.
Second, our great Savior, the Creator God, always acts with our best interest in mind and in a way that will show that He is a great God that deserves worship and adoration. But once again, we often try to prescribe just how that best should happen. Sometimes, He doesn’t “come through for us” in the ways we expect. What does that mean? Where does that leave us? Forsaken? Abandoned? Fools for believing in such nonsense? How is He glorified in my life when wrong seems to win? When I have to face situations, sometimes difficult, sometimes desperate, and He seems to be nowhere around! Why should He be honored when I am hurting? How do I even reconcile being allowed to experience pain with His love for me?
Hebrews 11 details some mighty acts of deliverance, different times throughout history that faith in a great and powerful and loving God brought divine intervention. Men and women saw kingdoms conquered, justice enforced, promises obtained...the mouths of lions were stopped, the power of fire was quenched, death by sword was escaped and armies were put to flight. Women received their dead raised back to life again….but then the chapter takes a turn. “And others were tortured, not accepting deliverance (rescue), so that they might rise again to a better life. Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated----of whom the world was not worthy, ----wandering about in deserts and mountains and in dens and caves of the earth.” “All these people earned a good reputation because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised. For God had something better in mind for us, so that they would not reach perfection without us.” (NLT) Did you catch that??? Regardless of the outcome, regardless of the magnanimous faith, whether they received their dead back to life, or they were tortured...whether they put armies to flight or wandered in caves. It was not just about their dire circumstance in the moment. And it doesn’t mean God doesn’t care. It means He cares very much! But He keeps the big picture in mind...ETERNITY...and how we fit into it. “For God had something better in mind for us.” He always does.
Consider Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. In Daniel 3, they were faced with death by fiery furnace unless they were willing to bow in worship to a golden statue as dictated by their king. Boldly and respectfully they declared, “If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.” They were confident that 1) God was able to deliver them; 2) God would be worshiped, and 3) deliverance was theirs either way. They believed. They were delivered.
A greater deliverance is realized in trusting God with His eternal purposes. A greater deliverance is realized when we understand that He always acts with our best interest in mind and in a way that glory will be ascribed to Him. We are each a stone in a huge monument of glory being built down through the ages. Mine will be etched with a different story than yours. But in eternity it will all be magnificent and glorious and significant. EVERY STONE WILL HAVE ITS PLACE. His great work, His great plan, His great love will be so evident, and we will see He has included us in it and it is amazing! For some, deliverance will be quick and immediate, for others it will come over time. Still others, eternity brings the greater deliverance. So don’t doubt His deliverance.
Let faith help you find it.
Wednesday, September 7, 2016
“The Lord has told you what is good, and this is what He requires of you; to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8
Yes, God requires something of His children.
To do what is right. To love mercy. To walk humbly with Him, our personal God. I cannot require or even expect this from others, even other believers. But I can yield myself completely to One that will reward what He requires; who will equip for what He expects. I can commit to living out this Biblical mandate, and be emboldened and empowered by His grace to actually be able to do it.
To do what is right. This is not “right” according to me. This is “right” according to a holy God. Scripture, in the book of Judges, records the chaos and darkness of a people that “did that which was right in his own eyes”. When one is left to determine what is right for himself in any given situation, we are on a collision course to destruction. In other words, somebody always gets hurt. And it is often the believer that suffers, the one that has a whole-hearted desire to fully follow after God, the one that truth and integrity and honesty and kind consideration really matters to. And that’s often enough to discourage some, making them question the God they serve. Why?? That’s the question when wrong gets the upper hand. It’s a tough pill to swallow when wrong appears to win. And it’s not a new question.
“You have said terrible things about me, says the Lord.
But you say, What do you mean? What have we said against you?
You have said, What’s the use of serving God? What have we gained by obeying His commands…?” Malachi 3:13-14
But the child of God does not need to struggle with these questions. The faithful servant that has embraced grace, has experienced the reality and unrelenting love of God, the one that loves and serves Him because He first loved them, that child can throw themselves into the open arms of a great Savior that confirms over and over again that He is enough and there is everything to gain in Christ. Jesus, in all His tender compassion, His forgiveness, the acceptance and belonging that is found with Him, the sweet comfort of knowing He will never leave or abandon His own, the overwhelming peace that is often impossible to explain but is very, very real...He is enough. And He has revealed himself through His Word, the promises are true and relevant. So never back away from doing right.
“For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” (Philippians 1: 21)
“In His favor is life; weeping may endure for night, but joy comes in the morning.”
(Psalms 30:5)
To love mercy. This is a tough one, but again, nothing He requires is beyond His enabling grace to accomplish. Why is this so tough? Because mercy defined means it is extended to the undeserving. It demands that we relinquish the right, even the desire to retaliate, to wish that those who wrong us suffer accordingly. When everything in you is screaming “you should pay!” it means giving that too, to Jesus. And believe me, He can be trusted to do right by His children.
“He [Jesus] did not retaliate when He was insulted, nor threaten revenge when He suffered. He left His case in the hands of God who always judges fairly.” (I Peter 2: 23-24)
Jesus left us this example and the rest of I Peter is full of encouragement and reminders of God’s faithfulness in providing for, comforting, blessing, those that “suffer for right’s sake” and do not return evil for evil. He will hold you until the hurt heals. He will bring you to the place that you LOVE mercy, because you are reminded often that He extends it to you on a regular basis. He is full of mercy...unfailing love...and we can abandon ourselves to that unfailing love because it is eternal. And, to take it a step further, we can love others this way because of Him. Love Mercy!
Walk humbly with your God. There is no other way to walk with God. We can know God. We can know about God. We can talk the God-talk. But to walk with Him? To have a vibrant, intimate, personal relationship with Him that alters our egos? To live as Jesus lived? “To cast down every imagination and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ”?? (2 Corinthians 10:5) We are so often so full of ourselves. What we want, how we feel, what we need...our future, our friends, our reputation, our...our...our..; me, me, me!! Stop for one moment and say with John, “He must increase, I must decrease” (John 3:30). Jesus will never be who He can and should be in your life until you are not the most important person in it. Stop living for yourself. Start living for Him! And remember, it’s not just about “walking humbly”, but walking humbly WITH YOUR GOD.
“Pride and arrogance, and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate.” Proverbs 8:13
He has shown you what is good. To live a life this way...doing right, loving mercy and walking humbly with God, this is the good life. We don’t have to question or debate what “good” is. He has graciously explained it, made it known. It is no mystery, it’s simplicity is just not always appreciated. And the fact that it is required? We’re the better for it. It’s the better way.
By His grace, no regrets. None.
Tuesday, August 23, 2016
The Best Days of My Life
“Are the best days of your life behind or in front of you?”
Our Daily Bread’s writer for Aug 1, 2016, suggested that “when we’re younger, we look ahead, wanting to grow up. And once we’re older, we yearn for the past, wanting to be young again.” I’m sure that is true for many, and in fact I know many both young and old that even as I write, are experiencing these feelings. But that has not been my experience so far.
As a teenager, one afternoon in particular, I was in our kitchen sweeping the floor after cleaning up the dishes. I remember stopping, looking out the window, and thinking about what it would be like when it was my own home I was cleaning, my own family I was caring for. That had been a dream of mine since a very young age. I wasn’t “itching” to grow up, or wishing I could hurry up and be there, just pondering the future. In fact, there were more days that I saw the challenges my parents and other adults faced daily and thought it would be nice if I did not have to “grow up”. Now that I’m older though, I can say with all honesty..neither have I looked back, yearning for the past or wanting to be young again! I know some that have, but that has never been something I contemplated or even actually wished for. There are plenty of days that I feel old, but other days, I’m not even sure I know what that is! When I was 12, 25 seemed old; when I was 25, fifty seemed old. And now, that I’m past that, well...90 seems old!!
Lately though, I have found myself saying out loud to my husband things like, “at our age, I thought we’d be slowing down some”, “at our age are you sure we’re up to that?” or, "at our age should we be taking on a new venture?” While I’m not looking back saying, “Oh to be young again!”, I guess I am feeling my age, and it’s not 25!
Two years ago on our 35th wedding anniversary, Roger and I decided to renew our wedding vows. We sensed very strongly that our lives would be taking some turns. We had purchased a 25 acre farm a few months prior, and that one huge decision “at our age” would be just the beginning of change. The following spring we moved Roger’s mom to the farm into a second house on the property. That meant four generations were now living and working together. Then, Roger and I were approached about a change in our job situation, to make the move from being houseparents to 10 teen boys (this was a live-in arrangement for 5 days) to roles in the office. So, after nearly 9 years of only coming home a couple of days a week, and sometimes not even that often, we were able to come home every evening. Because of the daily commute the change would involve, if we hadn’t made the move to the farm we wouldn’t have considered it. We were now strategically halfway between the church he continues to pastor, and our jobs at the children’s home. It has all served to make me even more sure that the season of change is not over, and that all of this is just preparation for the next stage God is moving us to.
Our family farm is now an operating business, Hope Springs Farm. Roger and our son Dan and his family have worked hard over the last 3 years to build from 8 alpacas that were gifted to us as a rescue, and a rabbitry of just a few breeders. There are now over 40 alpacas, and a rabbitry of over 100. Mine is primarily a support role. I am often keeping the younger children while they are caring for the animals, or maybe riding along with Dan to the processing plant for the rabbits. As the business grows, time is stretched even thinner as we try to balance the church and our jobs at the ranch with keeping the farm steady, with Dan still working full-time as well. Steph homeschools four of their six children, while chasing the two toddlers around, and keeps the pantry stocked with everything from mint tea to apple butter to sell at the farmer’s market. I look at all they do and then think, “but they’re young, they can handle it! I’m exhausted! At our age how much longer can we keep up the pace?”
Roger had gotten off the tractor one evening after being out in one of the pastures and was coming across the yard. Mom was on our front porch and called out to him, “Roger, you’re working yourself to death!” He said, “No, mom, I’m working myself to life!” And that is the key. It’s all a matter of perspective. Roger challenges me daily with his zest for life, his go-getter spirit. But I also see how little he sleeps, and how tired he is on so many evenings. Yet, there is joy and purpose. While there are many nights lately that rest alludes us and I question “how long?” our great God guides us and directs us to keep moving forward. The long-term purpose in all this, and where it might all take us from here is not so much the focus, as is the opportunity to daily just walk in the path He opens up for us.
The devotional was encouragement to consider that “when we walk with God, whatever our age, the best is yet to come!” I have never been more convinced that this is true. I understand that age brings its own unique challenges my wonderful husband and I will inevitably face, and some will likely be hard and even painful. But as grateful as I am for the life we have right now, I believe our best years lie ahead.
It will be our choice.
What about you? Looking back, wishing for a younger, fitter, slimmer you? Looking ahead, wondering if you’ll ever be financially stable, settled, or satisfied with where life has you? May I suggest, just enjoy life right where you are! Don’t be constantly looking back wishing for what’s not, or wasting the precious here and now trying to relive what’s supposed to be in the past. And certainly do not let your age hold you back or make you doubt life’s possibilities. And if you’re on the younger side looking forward? Enjoy the journey, but don’t try to “hang on to your youth for as long as you can”, because, if you’re walking with God, the best years of your life are ahead of you. Trust God with His great plan for you to have an abundant and blessed life. You’ll be able to live a contented life, with no regrets.
It starts right now.
Wednesday, February 3, 2016
Where is God when I need Him?
Exodus 17:7 “Is the Lord here with us or not?” (NLT)
You begin a new venture, confident of the Lord’s direction. You make some serious decisions, a change in direction, and it is awesome to see how God works even in the details, putting it all together. He used His Word to open your eyes and heart to something new or different that He wanted to do in your life. As you prayed and sought clarity and peace, He made it so clear through circumstances, counsel, and a dozen other ways, that He was leading. Yes it would be a jump, a dive into the deep end so to speak, a leap of faith. But you were going with God, so it would be ok! You head out, and God is doing some pretty cool stuff!
Then, you hit the first snag, the bump in the road. Things start to get hard, a little cloudy. Before you know it you’re experiencing a full-blown storm, a dark and turbulent time.
LET ME ENCOURAGE YOU. Don’t let the first question of your hurting heart be, “Is the Lord here with us or not?” This is a faith walk, a journey of trust. And believe me, God is right there.
This faith walk was something new for the children of Israel. Moses definitely had his hands full leading this bunch out of Egypt. They had seen the greatest works of God this side of creation, “God’s mighty hand” at work on their behalf; He delivered them from their bondage, heard the cries of their hearts, the woeful prayers for help. But after a short stint in the desert heat, they were lamenting before Moses that they would be better off having stayed in Egypt (as slaves, being treated horrendously!). They were without water. It was a serious dilemma. They would most definitely die without it. So naturally they wondered...and verbalized expressly to Moses...WHERE WAS GOD!? If He had truly led them out of Egypt, performed all those great and powerful acts, for them, then where was He now? Would He rescue them from injustice, cruel mistreatment, slave labor, and certain death when Egypt’s army pursued them, hold back the waters of the Red Sea making a pathway of escape, just to allow them to perish in the desert for lack of water?
Maybe they didn’t follow that same thought process. Maybe all they could think about was the present reality. The need was real. The immediate circumstance was pressing in on them so all thoughts of the future and a purpose in their problem may have left them. They needed a reminder that He was in fact there. And God showed Himself very real and very powerful and very present, again. He provided water, in the desert, from a rock.
God help us not to shrink in the shadows of uncertainty, not to abandon all thoughts of your goodness and greatness when we can’t see You, can’t feel You, can’t understand what or why. Help us never to doubt your sweet presence, your powerful presence. Remind us how clear things were in the beginning, how strong the sense of direction and decision. Help us trust you completely, and calmly wait while you work, until once again there is no doubting this was a God-thing!
Where is God? He’s right where He has always been...where you are.
Tuesday, January 19, 2016
it's just like God
It’s just like God to do what He says He will do. It’s Who He is; it’s His character. He is faithful; He can be trusted.
When the Lord Himself visited Abraham, as recorded in Genesis 18 and told him that Sarah would bear him a son in his old age, Sarah had trouble believing it. And she heard it first hand! She was inside the tent and overheard the conversation. Her reaction? She laughed. It was one of those “are-you-kidding-me?” kind of laughs. It didn’t make sense! First, she couldn’t see herself at her age, with Abraham, at his age, “having pleasure”. And even if they enjoyed the intimacy of husband and wife “at their age”, she was well past the age of child-bearing. She was 90, and Abraham 100 years old.
We can all relate to Sarah. After all, it was a pretty incredible, hard-to-believe promise. But it was a promise, a promise from God no less! But our reactions are often like hers. You read in God’s Word to forgive. Well, that’s fine and good, but does He really expect that in “my situation?” And He promises to forgive us if we forgive others; He promises His peace and strength if we do. But really? It doesn’t make sense. How does forgiveness free me, heal me, make me stronger? You’re right. It doesn’t make sense. No more than a 90 year old woman having a baby. It doesn’t make sense. It’s just true.
I read in the Word to give, and not just give out of my abundance but to give beyond my ability to see how, if I give what I really need for myself, how my own needs will be met. It doesn’t make sense. No, it’s just true. And then there’s the “love your enemies” thing. How in the world does showing love to someone that I know hates me make any difference at all? What does it change? It changes me. It changes my perspective. I am the better and stronger person for it. But that doesn’t make sense either. It’s just true. And the rewards are real, just like God promises.
“And the Lord visited Sarah as He had said, and the Lord did unto Sarah as
He had spoken.” Genesis 21: 1
In other words, God did just what He promised. Sarah did indeed get pregnant, and she had Abraham’s son, Isaac, the son of promise. “Is anything too hard for the Lord?” the messenger asked in Genesis 18. No, nothing is too hard for the Lord. It’s just too hard for us to believe sometimes. But’s that’s ok. The fact that we may have difficulty believing doesn’t change God’s faithfulness to His Word. It may keep you from benefiting from the blessing of believing His promises if you can’t just take Him at His Word, but He won’t fail in the reality of those promises.
So the next time you come across a promise in God’s Word and the reality of it just doesn’t make sense, just ask for help to accept it as the Truth it is. Start living it out. Put it into practice and see what God does with it. It may seem laughable at first. But Sarah saw God’s incredible promise fulfilled. So can you.
Because it’s just like God to make good on a promise.
Thursday, January 14, 2016
Weeds
They had been blooming all summer and into fall, and they were pretty. At least I thought they were, even if no one else did. Especially when they were smaller, with those bright purple petals and darker purple and yellow centers. But now they were large and growing on both sides of the steps down from the porch. It was now December, in southern West Virginia, and they were still blooming! But they were weeds, starting to look more like weeds, kinda scraggly, thin and faded, and taking over the bed. And to Makenzie, my 11 year old granddaughter, the fact that I had let them grow to this size without removing them from the flower bed, well, it raised some questions in her mind.
I was coming back to the house after being out in the pasture helping my hubby with some fencing. Makenzie was coming out. “Why haven’t you pulled up these weeds, Grammy? she asked. “They’re like monsters now.” “WelI,” I answered, “I thought they were pretty, and they didn’t seem to be bothering anything.” After discussing the situation a few more minutes, I decided with her help to go ahead and pull them out, a fairly simple task that shouldn’t take long. Well, that was before I started tugging at the roots and realized they went down pretty deep. But it had to come out now. I had made such a mess. So I bent over, gripped with both hands, dug in my heels and pulled even harder, and then it gave way. The next thing I knew I was tumbling backwards over the large rocks that defined the bed, landing on my backside, feet up in the air, dirt flying. Kenzie was trying to decide if I was really hurt, and having trouble not laughing.
No, I was not terribly hurt. A couple of scrapes, moderate bruises, and I was a bit sore the next morning, but I’d live. And the weeds had been taken care of. But the process had been a bit painful, and I got dirty.
I faced a hurt this week that brought this little tussle with a weed to mind. Hurts can cause a root of bitterness to start its descent into the depths of the heart, and I knew what the Scripture says about a root of bitterness. It can find a place in the heart, and like those weeds, if it is not taken care of can do damage both to one’s self and others. Things might look pretty good on the surface, but down deep, the longer the root remains, the stronger the grip grows. Before long, if not dealt with, it will hinder positive growth all around. Your relationship with God and with others will suffer, keeping you from having the close, loving relationships with others you should have. Peace will escape you, and worst of all, it will keep you from experiencing God’s grace. God’s grace will always be available, but a root of bitterness will keep you from being able to know it’s reality at work in your life.
“Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many.” Hebrews 12:15
I don’t know about you, but I need God’s grace at work in and through me...lots of it! Amazing Grace...it’s not just a song. His grace gives me a reason to get out of bed and face myself in the mirror when I have failed miserably. His grace comforts me and pulls me out of the pit of sadness when all I want to do is cry. His grace woos me with song, and builds joy back into my soul, when I just want to hide away. His grace gently reminds me that Jesus has been in the pit, and He endured it for me! He loves me (when others may not). He accepts me (when others may not). He has a purpose for me on a daily basis (when others may make me feel insignificant or dispensable), and that great purpose is to know Him and love Him more. It’s to live to honor Him. He is worth it, and makes my life worth it. So when the bitterness tries to creep in, I go to Him with a resolve to rid myself of it. I don’t want anything to keep me from “receiving the grace of God” when I would need it most. So I give it to Him and I commit to doing what He says I must do in order to see the root destroyed…
forgive;
pray;
confess;
make changes;
love unconditionally, like He does.
Digging that root out can be painful, but grace unfettered awaits! I’m not saying it will be easy; you might just end up on your backside in the dirt!
But it’s so worth it.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)