You are good when there's nothing good in me

You are good, You are good when there's nothing good in me.  You are love, You are love on display for all to see.  You are light, You are light when the darkness closes in. You are hope, You are hope. You have covered all my sin.  You are peace, You are peace when my fear is crippling.  You are true, You are true, even in my wandering.  You are joy, You are joy, You're the reason that I sing.  You are life, You are life. In You, death has lost its sting.

I am learning to look not to myself and all the lack there, but to look to the Lord and His abundance.  Instead of saying, "there is nothing good in me, woe is me, I'm so terrible, blah, blah, blah," I am to turn my eyes to Jesus and say, "You are good."  When the darkness closes in, I am to say, "You are light."  When my fear is crippling, I am to say, "You are peace."  When I am happy and feel like singing, I am to say, "You are joy."  

I'm running to Your arms, I'm running to Your arms, the riches of Your love will always be enough. Nothing compares to Your embrace. Light of the world, forever reign.

How am I able to do this?  How am I able to look not to myself, my lack, my darkness, my fear?  I run to His arms.  The riches of His love will always be enough.  I don't need to do more or be better.  The riches of His love will always be enough.  So, I run to His arms, and I tell Him all the lack I see, I tell Him how I feel inferior and not good enough, I tell Him all the ways I feel hurt and unloved.  Then I let Him love me. 

Peace

This was an easy project (which I found on Pinterest) using just canvases, paint, scrapbook paper, and hot glue. Here is a link to the tutorial.

I've been told multiple times that  blog posts are more interesting when they contain pictures, and while I don't blog to entertain people, I figured it couldn't hurt to add a picture now and then.  This is a picture of a project my roommates and I worked on this week and is now hanging in our living room. 

The word peace has been on my heart to put on the wall in our living room for a while.  I pray that our house would be one of peace, that when people come in, they are invited to enter into the peace and rest of God.  In the past week or so I have thought of the idea of being an ambassador of peace.  The thought is of going out from this house that I desire to be one of peace, carrying that peace with me.  An ambassador is a messenger or representative.  I desire to be a messenger or representative of God, that carries His peace with me and offers it to others. 

Spiritual Warfare in the Life of the Church

I would like to share this part of a writing by T.A. Sparks.  It is entitled Spiritual Warfare.

We meet spiritual antagonism in seeking to win souls for Christ, because it is only in this way that the Church is born. When, however, the full thought of God is brought into view, then the greatest challenge of the forces of evil is registered. This is because it is in the Church and in relation to the Church's destiny that the whole kingdom of Satan is to be met and overthrown. Hence, of course, the tremendous significance of corporate life. Even by small and seemingly insignificant means, moodiness or trifling disagreements, Satan breaks up the flow of fellowship among the saints. It seems strange that the vital power of the Church should be weakened by the moods and temperaments of God's people but so it can be. If the Devil cannot succeed by such simple methods he has many other ploys and complex strategies, all aimed at the destruction of the relatedness of God's people. So spiritual fellowship becomes a real battleground.

Some think that fellowship is a kind of picnic, a religious festival. We praise God for all the joys of fellowship, but the matter is more serious than that, and is so important that it can become a matter of real battle. The exercise and preserving of true heart fellowship with all other Christians - not just with those whom we like but with all - is a field of constant conflict. Fellowship is not just something that happens. We must fight for it. It is a great factor in the spiritual battle.

The whole article can be found here.  

Brothers and sisters, this is key.  Spiritual fellowship is a real battleground!  Let us open our eyes.  It's important to realize that there is something real, something important, something vital about corporate life, about the fellowship of the saints.  And the enemy knows that, so he WILL come against it.  A HUGE thing here is forgiveness.  Fellowship is hindered, I would venture to say vitally hindered, by unforgiveness.  So, let us let go of every little thing we're holding against our brothers and sisters, for the sake of the church.  I certainly know as well as anyone how easy it is to let Satan break up the flow of fellowship among the saints by my mood.  But I must make a decision that what the Lord is building (His church!) is more important than my mood or whether I feel like loving a certain person at a certain time.  

 

Brothers and sisters, when was the last time you read the book of Matthew?  We think we know everything that's in there from Sunday school.  But I bet you never heard these passages (things Jesus Himself said) in Sunday school:

"Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves. But beware of men, for they will had you over to the courts and scourge you in their synagogues; and you will even be brought before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles." Matthew 10:16-18

"Do not think I came to bring peace on earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.  For I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and a man's enemies will be the members of his household.  He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me.  And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.  He who has found his life will lose it, and he who has lost his life for My sake will find it." Matthew 10:34-39

"But do not be called Rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers.  Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.  Do not be called leaders; for One is your Leader, that is, Christ.  But the greatest among you shall be your servant.  Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted." Matthew 23:8-12

We must take the words of our Lord literally.  Perhaps you have heard these words explained away by religious leaders.  Perhaps you have found yourself explaining them away.  Are you willing to be scourged in the synagogue (the religious gathering place of Jesus' day)?  Do you love father or mother more than Jesus?  Do you seek to be called teacher, Father (in terms of religious leadership), or leader?  Do you call others these things?  Do you recognize that we have one Teacher, one Father, one Leader and that we are all brothers?

People pleasing

"Stop regarding man, whose breath of life is in his nostrils; For why should he be esteemed?" Isaiah 2:22

Am I the only one who struggles with trying to please people?  I always want people to be happy with me.  I always want people to agree with me.  But guess what?  People are fickle.  Trying to please people will leave you tired and unfulfilled.  Because you are never going to please everyone all the time. 

Brothers and sisters, I have been very much impressed by the fact that we MUST let go of our people pleasing.  A time is coming and is already here in which we will have to choose between pleasing God and pleasing men. 

Jesus said, "A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a slave above his master. It is enough for the disciple that he become like his teacher, and the slave like his master.  If they have called the head of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign the members of his household!" (Matthew 10:24-25).

Let us ask our God to rid us of needing to make people happy with us because that is detrimental to our walk with God.  Because my identity is still somewhat tied to what people think of me, when they accuse me of whatever they're going to accuse me of (I feel like we can pretty much expect it, based on Jesus' statement), I feel wrong and confused.  Maybe no one will accuse us of having a demon.  But maybe they will.  Or maybe they will accuse us of being "too radical."  Or maybe they will accuse us of being judgmental or closed-minded.  Whatever it is, it will happen.  The question is how will we respond when it does. 

Thoughts

There have been a lot of thoughts running through my head over the last few days.

First, I have been thinking more about how we were designed to function within a body.  There are certain qualities I do not possess that I see in brothers and sisters.  For example, there are certain brothers and sisters I fellowship with that tend to operate in the gift of discernment much more than I do.  For all of my years following the Lord, this has caused me much distress.  I think, "What is wrong with me?  Why did I not immediately sense that what that person said was not from the Lord?"  Then I hear my brother Paul saying, "If the whole body was an ear, where would the sense of smell be?"  If what God was after was a bunch of individuals who could seek Him perfectly separately, it would not make sense for there to be different gifts.  But, if what He is after is a body that is built up by what each part supplies, it is perfect for each of us to fulfill a different function.  So, now I see that I was designed to be in fellowship with believers who operate in the gift of discernment.  And so, just as a hand submits to what the ear hears when someone warns, "Don't touch that, it's hot," I submit to my brothers and sisters who are seeking the Lord and hearing from Him. 

Another thought in regards to being designed to function within a body is that we each have our own tendencies in certain ideas.  It has really been bothering me lately how brothers and sisters that are seeking the Lord have differing opinions on certain things, even important things.  For example, I have noticed that people seem to either know more of grace and love or more of holiness.  While both would agree that we are saved by grace and nothing we can do is good and God loves us and accepts us and that sanctification is a process, one talks a whole lot about how God only has love and compassion for us and the other talks a whole lot about how God hates sin and living a holy life.  For a while I was very concerned about this seeming discrepancy.  However, I have come to see that this is another reason we were designed to function within a body.  Again, if God were after a bunch of perfect individuals, I believe He could not let us have these differences.  But He has designed us to balance each other out.  The closer fellowship these two believers have, the more they realize the other is absolutely right, and they each are moved to the center, where the Lord would have them be.

And my last thought is "How do we guard ourselves against becoming religious, following a certain form or certain rules rather than the person of Jesus Christ?"  I believe the best, and perhaps the only, way is spending time in the secret place, alone with God.  As we gaze upon the face of Jesus and meditate upon the truth in His Word, we are transformed, and we will accept no cheap imitations.

I'm a control freak

The Lord has been speaking to me this morning on being controlling.  I have to have things my way in my time or I freak out.  I have to control every little detail so that the result is perfect.  This is often seen when I cook a meal for people.  I have to start it at exactly the right time, I have to have all the ingredients, it has to be perfect.  I also try to control my life.  I plan out my day, and I feel off-balance if things don't go as I planned.  I get frustrated when I can't get everything done.  I feel like a failure if dinner is 15 minutes late, I forgot something, or I didn't get around to everything on my mental checklist. 

The Lord is calling me to let go of this need to control everything, to make everything perfect, to be prepared for any possibility.  It is exhausting.  But letting go of it is terrifying. 

I read this verse this morning, "For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, 'For this very purpose I raised you up, to demonstrate My power in you, and that My name might be proclaimed throughout the whole earth.' "  Of course, in this case the Lord was speaking to Pharaoh, not His children, but the same is true for us.  The Lord desires to demonstrate His power through His children.  And He uses weak vessels to make His power known.  But it those weak vessels keep insisting on looking strong, His power is not as clearly shown. 

So, even though I feel like if I let go everything will fall apart, I choose to believe that God can and will demonstrate His power through me when I am willing to be weak and out of control. "He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?"

We are His

Isaiah 43:1-4 "But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel: 'Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; You are Mine.  When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.  When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you.  For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I gave Egypt for your ransom, Ethiopia and Seba in your place.  Since you were precious in My sight, You have been honored, and I have loved you; Therefore I will give men for you, and people for your life."

First of all, the Lord created you... formed you... redeemed you... called you...

Then, He promises to be with you... to protect you...

You are precious... honored... loved...

What a precious promise, that He will be with us.  And isn't that what He wants?  For what other reason would He give us His Spirit?  Jesus came so that we could have true fellowship and communion with God again. 

Brothers and sisters, hard times will come, persecution will come.  We will pass through the waters and the rivers and the fire.  But the Lord our God will be with us, and the rivers WILL NOT overflow us and the flame SHALL NOT scorch us.  Let us stand firm and believe our God.  Let us not fear for we are His. 

Now Then Go

Take a look back at the scene at the burning bush (Exodus 3-4).  God is sending Moses to bring the Israelites out of Egypt.  And Moses, remembered as a man who spoke to God as to a friend, immediately said, "Yes, Lord," right?

Not exactly.  As you read the passage, you can just hear this timid man say, "But, but..."  He says, "Wait a minute, I don't even know Your name, how are they going to believe me if I don't even know Your name?" 

After answering his question, the Lord says, "They will pay heed to what you say..." (3:18).  But Moses still isn't sure.  He says, "what if they will not believe me or listen to what I say?" (4:1).  God continues to bear with him in grace and gives Moses the power to do three signs that will prove he has heard from the Lord. 

As we read Exodus 4:10, we hear Moses say, "No God, You just don't understand."  He says, "Please, Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither recently nor in time past, nor since You have spoken to Your servant; for I am slow of speech and slow of tongue."  I hear an echo of a prayer I also have prayed in this verse: "God, I'm not perfect yet, neither recently nor in time past, nor even right now as You speak to me, I have lots and lots of flaws and You couldn't possibly want me to do this thing You seem to be calling me to."

The Lord gives Moses another chance.  "The Lord said to him, "Who has made man's mouth? Or who makes him mute or deaf, or seeing or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now then go, and I, even I, will be with your mouth, and teach you what you are to say" (4:11-12).  I don't know about you, but I think when the Lord says to you, "Now then go," it's time to stop arguing and get going.

But we know that's not what Moses does.  You know how this part goes.  Moses says, "No, speak through someone else."  God gets angry.  God uses Aaron, Moses' brother to speak.  But that is not God's full thought.  Why did He want to use Moses?  Why did He want to speak through a man who is "slow of speech and slow of tongue"? 

I believe we can find this answer in 2 Corinthians 12:9: "And He has said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.' "  God delights in making His power known through weak vessels. 

Let's look at God's answer to Moses again, "The Lord said to him, 'Who has made man's mouth? Or who makes him mute or deaf, or seeing or blind? Is it not I, the Lord?"  Who has made you?  God says, "Is it not I?  Do you think I messed up?" 

I am reminded of the passage when Jesus' disciples ask Him why a man was born blind, if it was because of his sins or his parents' sins. "Jesus answered, 'It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents; but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him' " (John 9:3).  I believe God made Moses slow of speech so that the works of God might be displayed in him.  What weaknesses do you and I have that are for the express purpose of bringing God more glory?

There is a clear challenge here for us.  Let us believe the Lord when He speaks.  Let's not spend the better part of two chapters arguing with God.  When God calls us to something, let us not act as if we know better than God, saying, "No, I am not fit for this or that.  Call someone else."  We label this humility, but it is not, it is straight from hell.  It is the voice of the enemy that says, "Does God really want you to do that?  No, He can't possibly, you're not good enough."  Since when does God call us to be good enough?  Never.  He is the only One who is good.  And if you have been born again, He lives in you.  He will display His glory through your unique weaknesses.  So, if God is saying to you, "Now then go," GO!

All Who Are Thirsty - Vineyard Music

Jesus said, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. Whoever believes in Me, as the scripture has said, 'Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.' " John 7:37-38

Cultivating faithfulness

I have a tendency to get a bit antsy.  This week I've been asking the Lord, "WHERE DO YOU HAVE ME?  WHAT AM I DOING WITH MY LIFE?"  Just like that, in all caps.  The Lord has placed desires in my heart that I know He will one day fulfill.  One of those desires is to bring His love and light to children in Latin America.  And because I don't see any progress toward that desire being fulfilled I think I'm doing something wrong.  The Lord spoke to me these verses:

"Trust in the Lord and do good; Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.  Delight yourself in the Lord; and He will give you the desires of your heart.  Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him and He will do it... Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him...Do not fret; it leads only to evildoing." Psalm 37:3-8

My calling is to trust in the Lord.  Period.  Jesus is my Lord and I will follow Him.  So, right now, what I'm doing with my life is trusting in the Lord and doing good, dwelling in Dahlonega, Georgia and cultivating faithfulness while working on the Chestatee River.  I am to love my roommates, love my coworkers, and do my job to the glory of God.  It's no big thing... But actually it is because it is cultivating faithfulness.  Cultivating an attitude that says, "Yes, Lord" to whatever the Lord brings, whatever the Lord calls me to. 

I love light!

I went on an adventure with some friends last night.  Hiking after 9pm is not usually my thing, but I was in a rare adventurous mood so I went for it.  I had a borrowed head lamp, but it didn't really work.  So, I feel like I should have some deep, spiritual analogy, but I don't.  I just realized how very scary and dangerous it is to walk around in darkness.  Whenever I got too far from my friends who had headlamps on, I would begin to stumble on the numerous rocks on the path.  I would then wait for the light to come back, and I literally announced, "I love light."  As much as you try, it is impossible to walk carefully in darkness.  Lord Jesus, shine your light on us, allow us to walk in the light as you are in the light.  And make us lights to those stumbling around in the darkness.

"In [Christ] was life, and the life was the Light of men.  The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it." John 1:4-5

We will see Him just as He is

Several weeks ago, a sister and I were discussing 1 John 3 and agreed to spend the next week studying it and asking the Lord to open it to us.   In our first look at it, we were a bit caught up on verse 6- "No one who abides in Him sins; no one who sins has seen Him or knows Him."  That seems harsh and in some ways contrary to the unending mercy and grace we know we have in Christ Jesus.  After all, in 1 John chapter 2 we see that "if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous."  I certainly have not figured it out nor do I have a sufficient answer, but I thought I would share what the Lord opened to me as I spent the following week meditating on this chapter of scripture.

"Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be.  We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is.  And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure." 1 John 3:2-3

Here we see a connection drawn between seeing Jesus and being like Him.  This is speaking of seeing with our spiritual eyes, of having revelation of the character and person of Jesus Christ.  This makes me think of 2 Corinthians 3:18 which says,

"But we all with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit."

As we behold the glory of the Lord, we are transformed from one degree of glory to another.  This is a continual transformation.  As long as we are looking at the Lord Jesus, the Holy Spirit is transforming us into the same image, to look more like Jesus.

We also see in 1 John 3:2-3 the idea of maturity.  Now we are children of God.  We don't yet know what we will be, except that we will look like Jesus.  In 1 Corinthians 13, Paul is talking about this same issue of maturity.  In verses 11 and 12, he says,

"When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things.  For now we see in a mirror dimly but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known."

As I thought on this, the Lord asked me a question, "What if, as a twenty-four-year-old adult, you came home from work each evening, went into your bedroom and started playing with dolls in a dollhouse in your apartment?"  That would be absolutely STRANGE.  It was perfectly normal for me to play with dolls twenty years ago, when I was four.  But there would be something wrong if I never moved on from there.

It would not be good to take 1 Corinthians 13:11 and 12 out of the context of the rest of the chapter.  I believe verse 8 gives us more light on this issue of maturity.

"Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away."

All these things that we prize will be done away, but LOVE NEVER FAILS.  I surely believe that growth in maturity will be accompanied by gifts of prophecy, tongues, and knowledge.  But the true test of maturity is love. 

So, back to 1 John 3:3, "...everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure."  As we begin to see the Lord Jesus for who He is, we are transformed, we are matured.  And as we grow up, we put away childish things.  Just as when we grew up physically, it was natural to set certain things aside, it is normal for us put away sinful attitudes and behaviors as we grow up spiritually.

I am convicted that often I read scripture and even if I truly see something in it, I don't let it transform me.  I choose to let go of my stubborn ways.  I long to be transformed into the image of my Lord.

Let us choose to grow up.  Let us ask the Holy Spirit to reveal more of Jesus Christ to us so that we would be transformed, become more mature, more like Jesus.  And may we come to prize love above all gifts.

I give up

"For it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure." Philippians 2:13

I was reminded of this verse this morning.  It is good news.

Also, some sisters introduced me to a new song this week.  It is called Abide by Jenny and Tyler (look it up on YouTube, it's good).  Here's the first verse:

You strive, o man, and you strive again, your heart too proud to rest
You labor on, singing those songs, to cover your weakness
Do you fail to recall who you really are and Who caused you to be?
Return o man; return and rest, to a burden light and yoke easy

I continue to feel burdened and conflicted, but I choose to believe that it is God who causes me to will and to desire to do His will.  So, I must also believe that He will be the One to cause me to work for His good pleasure.  I choose to stop striving.  I choose to return.  I choose to rest.  So, in a sense, I give up.  I give up trying to manufacture that which the Spirit must produce in me and through me.  I give up trying to be the "good Christian."  The labor of God is to trust in the Son.  So, I choose to wait on my God, knowing that He will prompt me to do what He wants me to do when He wants me to do it.

Praise Him for the help of His presence

A song was shared last night, and I wanted to share the last verse.  It says:

Build me, Lord, with other saints,
Independence ne'er allow,
But according to Thy plan
Fitly frame and join me now.
In experience not my boast,
Nor in gifts would be my pride;
For Thy building I give all,
That Thou may be glorified.

Just another reminder that God is building something.  May we give all to be fit as a living stone into a holy temple, a building, a house for the Holy Spirit to dwell in.  No stone is bigger or more special or more important.  May we lay down our pride and our boasting in our experience and our gifts to be cut to the shape and fit together with the other saints.  Let us remember that this is ALL to the end that God may be glorified.

I am also enjoying Psalm 42 this morning. 

"Why are you  in despair, O my soul?
And why have you become disturbed within me?
Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him
For the help of His presence. 
 O my God, my soul is in despair within me;
Therefore I remember You from the land of the Jordan
And the peaks of Hermon, from Mount Mizar." (verses 5 and 6)


When our soul (our soul can be defined as our mind, emotions, and will) becomes disturbed within us, let us not just accept it or dwell on the bad or whatever.  Let us tell our soul, "Hope in God!"  Let us praise Him for the help of His presence.  Let us not dwell on circumstances or how we feel.  It's easy to praise Him for His blessings (though I know I don't do that enough).  But let us praise Him for His presence even when we can't see the blessings.  Let us remember the character of our God.  He is good, ever-loving, ever-compassionate.  AND HE IS WITH US.  


I praise You, Lord, for the help of Your presence!

Some Thoughts on Devotion to God

If you have kept up with my blog over the last year or so, you'll notice a pattern.  I won't blog for a month or more, then I'll post several posts at once.  Well, what often happens is I'll have something on my heart to write and for one reason or another I never post it.  And it's not until I realize it's been a really long time since I've blogged that I realize I was supposed to post what was on my heart a month ago.  So I do that and usually several more things will just flow out.  So, that explains why this is my third post this morning.  Perhaps it will be a bit shorter than the previous two.  Perhaps...

First of all, I've been working at the Appalachian Outfitters tubing on the Chestatee River this summer, and though Memorial Day weekend was quite busy, the following week was super quiet.  So, in the past three days I've read half a book just while I was at work (and that's quite an accomplishment for me, I'm a slow reader and I get bored easily). 

The book is called The Heavenly Man by Brother Yun.  I read it a couple of years ago, and let me tell you it is SO good.  It is an autobiography by and about the life of a Chinese Christian who has preached the gospel throughout China, was a leader in the Chinese house churches, was persecuted greatly by the Chinese government, and spent years in prison for his faith.  I highly, highly encourage you to buy it.  But let me warn you, it will rock your world. 

As I was reading it at work yesterday, I contemplated the devotion to Christ that is evident in the life of Brother Yun.  And not just in that he never denied Christ in the face of persecution.  One thing that I remember being huge to me the first time I read this book was when Brother Yun was only sixteen years old, when he had just come to know the Lord, he wanted to know more about Jesus and he knew Jesus' teachings were recorded in the Bible.  So, he fasted and prayed and asked the Lord for a Bible.  He says:

"I went home, and every morning and afternoon I ate and drank nothing.  Every evening I ate just one small bowl of steamed rice.  I cried like a hungry child to his heavenly Father, wanting to be filled with His Word.  For the next one hundred days I prayed for a Bible..."

On the hundredth day, the Lord miraculously provided him a Bible.  And so I feel that I can no longer in good conscience ask why I've seen so few miracles.  It has become clear to me that I do not have the dedication or devotion that this dear brother had even at sixteen years old.  I am grieved by this.  I know that there is no condemnation.  I can honestly say that I know that I am loved by my God. He accepts me and adores me and delights in me because I am His daughter.  But I desire to be useful to Him, to be one used to advance His kingdom on this earth.  May He increase my capacity and increase my devotion to Him.  And may my devotion to Christ be from a place of loving Him with my whole heart.

Proverbs 31:10-31

I've wanted for a long time to write something on Proverbs 31:10-31, so here goes.  First of all, read it.  I don't know how widely accepted this view is, but I've heard several times that this passage makes women feel guilty, like they're not good enough, like they'll never measure up to this mysterious "Proverbs 31 woman."  Instead of looking at this as a woman to measure up to or a list of requirements to make one a good woman or a good wife, let's take it for what it is, a rare biblical picture of what a woman in whom Christ dwells looks like.

First of all, in NASB, verse 10 reads, "An excellent wife, who can find?  For her worth is far above jewels."  In KJV the word "excellent" is translated "virtuous."  According to Blue Letter Bible, the Greek word means:

1) strength, might, efficiency, wealth, army

      a) strength

      b) ability, efficiency

      c) wealth

      d) force, army

It is translated 56 times in the Bible as "army" and 37 times as "man of valor."  And this is the word used to describe an excellent wife, a woman of strength and might, a woman of valor. 

Let's go back to that first verse of the passage, verse 10, "An excellent wife, who can find? For her worth is far above jewels."  Far from making us feel guilty, this should give us hope.  If there was ever a statement of the worth of women, of wives, here it is.  Far above jewels.  We get caught up in the whole, "wives submit to your husbands" and "wives are the weaker partner" stuff, we miss out on the fact that we are given great worth in fulfilling the role God has called us to as women.  Also, remember that marriage is to be a picture of Christ and the church (Ephesians 5:22-33).  The husband represents Christ and the woman represents the church.  Though I am not married, that does help me with the idea of submitting and being weaker and all that.

It seems to me that verses 13 through 24 are practical examples of how the life of Christ is worked out in the life of a woman.  They are not rules.  "She rises also while it is still night" is not meant to make you feel guilty for sleeping in.  An excellent wife is not afraid of hard work.  She takes care of her family.  She cares for the poor and needy.

"Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she smiles at the future.  She opens her mouth in wisdom and the teaching of kindness in on her tongue.  She looks well to the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness." (verses 25-27)

These are some beautiful ways the Holy Spirit can work through a woman.  It's not really that she is strong and has a lot of dignity.  These are her clothing.  She puts them on.  She puts on the strength and dignity of Christ.  She is not worried about the future for she has put her trust in God.  May we always open our mouth in wisdom and may the teaching of kindness be on our tongue.  Oh, how I am afraid of one day being a contentious wife.  But Christ lives in me, and He is infinitely wise and kind.  He is able to make the teaching of kindness be on my tongue rather than the nagging or complaining I fear to be on my tongue.  She looks well to the ways of her household.  She works hard because she loves her family and she loves Christ.

And I believe it is all summed up in this:

"But a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised."

I view this passage as similar to New Testament passages such as Galatians 5:22-23: "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law" and 1 Corinthians 13:4-7: "Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things."  Certainly I do not look at those passages and think, "Yes, according to this checklist I'm perfect."  I think, "Oh, in my flesh, I can do none of these things, but this is what Christ looks like."  So, as I ask the Holy Spirit to form more of Christ in me, I ask Him to form these things in me.  I ask Him to form love, joy, peace, etc in me.  It's the same with Proverbs 31.  If we see that we often open our mouth and something other than wisdom and the teaching of kindness comes out, we ask the Lord to manifest Christ in us more in our speech.  And we trust Him because He alone is the One who able to keep us from stumbling (Jude 1:24).

So, my sisters, whether we are married or single, let us be women of valor, women whose clothing is the strength of God.  If you are married and have kids, fight for your family in prayer.  A dear sister has shared with me on several occasions that she prays daily for her children because she knows so many kids raised by godly parents who have strayed from the Lord.  Prayer is the best way you can defend your children against the enemy and the world.  If you're single, be fully devoted to God and fight in prayer for those in your sphere of influence, especially those you live with.  Let us not eat the bread of idleness.

Christ Who is Our Life

This is a quick intro.  I've used the words exhort and exhortation before on this blog, but I realized that a year ago I didn't know what the word exhortation meant, so I figured it would be beneficial for me to define it for those who, like me, didn't know what it means.

The dictionary.com definition for exhortation was "the act or process of exhorting" (very helpful, right?).  Here's one of the definitions for exhort: "To give urgent advice, recommendations, or warnings."

And one of the Blue Letter Bible definitions is: "Persuasive discourse, stirring address- instructive, admonitory, conciliatory, powerful hortatory discourse."  One brother explained it as saying "stop doing this and start doing this."

So, now that I've explained that, I'm sure you're super excited to hear what is coming next.  In case you haven't caught on, it's an exhortation.  I don't know how persuasive or stirring it will be, but it will certainly be very hortatory (whatever that means).

The main thing I want to get across is that JESUS CHRIST = LIFE. Speaking of Jesus, John wrote, "In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men" (John 1:4).  Jesus said of Himself, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me" (John 14:6).  Jesus said, "I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.  The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly" (John 10:9-10).

It is not just that Jesus is your ticket to eternal life.  HE IS YOUR LIFE.  Here and now.  Paul says in Galatians 2:20, "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me."  I could go on and on listing verses about Jesus Christ being our life, but I think I've sufficiently backed up this concept.

So, here's my urgent advice: examine yourself.  Ask yourself honestly, "Is Jesus Christ my life?  Is He my source?"  This sounds strong, but it's true: if there is a part of you that says "no," do not tell it, "That's silly, I've gone to church for this many years or I read my Bible every day or I lead a Sunday school class" or anything else, because Jesus said, "Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?" (Matthew 7:22).  Or perhaps some will say, "Lord, Lord, did we not teach Sunday school in Your name?  Was I not a youth pastor in Your name? Did I not read the Bible in Your name?  Did I not lead people to Christ in Your name?"  And to some He will say, "I have not known you."

Jesus is not an addition to your life to make it better.  He does not add on to what you already have, make you a better person.  He makes you new.  He puts His Spirit within you.  He puts His life within you.  It's not about what you do for God.  It is a matter of LIFE or DEATH.  It's not about being a busy church-goer.  It's not about how many Bible studies you've done.  If His Spirit is not in you, you are not His.

"The one who loves his brother abides in the Light and there is no cause for stumbling in him.  But the one who hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going because the darkness has blinded his eyes" (1 John 2:10-11).  God is love, and if God lives in you, you will love people.  Look back at 1 Corinthians 13 for a refresher on what true, godly love is.  Patient, kind, doesn't keep a record of wrong...  This is truly a supernatural love, a love our flesh cannot muster up.  Do you see that love in yourself?

This is not to say those in whom Christ dwells will be perfect all the time.  We still have a flesh to deal with.  But it's a good idea to ask the Lord, "Where is my source?  What am I drawing life from?  Day by day, am I abiding in Christ?"  It is only when you abide in Christ, remain in and with Him, stay close to Him day by day, that you will be drawing true life from the true Vine.

Jesus told the Samaritan woman at the well that if she asked He would give to her "living water" of which she could drink and never thirst again and this living water would become to her "a well of water springing up to eternal life" (John 4:7-14).  I exhort you, if you feel the Lord calling you, if you are convicted that the life of God is not in you, if you have strayed from living by the Spirit, stop making excuses, stop putting off coming to Jesus, simply ask Jesus for living water.  He will certainly give it to you, and you will truly experience what Paul means when he says, "To live is Christ."

Our confidence

"Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is His flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.  Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful." Hebrews 10:19-23

Our confidence in entering into the holy place of God's presence is based ONLY on the blood of Jesus.  He who promised that we could come to the throne to receive grace to help in time of need is faithful to extend grace to us every single time.  He is faithful to sanctify us, to form Christ in us.

The One who lifts my head

Psalm 3:3 "But You, O Lord, are a shield about me, My glory and the One who lifts my head."

The other night I heard a song based on Psalm 3, and I really enjoyed it.  The part that really stuck out to me is that the Lord is the One who lifts my head.  I have been struggling to not walk by my feelings for some time now.  After hearing this song, I asked the Lord to lift my head.  And even as I felt the feelings of heaviness and the temptation to disengage from what was going on around me, I knew the Lord was lifting my head.  Lifting my head to look on things heavenly and eternal rather than my feelings that are earthly and temporal. 

May the Lord ever be a shield around us.  May He be our glory.  And when we are down and feeling trapped in the circumstances we find ourselves in, may He lift our heads.  May He gently tug our chin up until our eyes are fixed totally on Him and not the situation around us.

The Whole Armor of God- A Prayer

I was reading one of my journals from India, and I came across this prayer from back in November, and I thought I would share it.

"Right here, right now, I choose to put on the whole armor of God.  The armor David had on when he defeated Goliath.  I choose to gird myself with truth.  I am loved.  I have been chosen.  God the Father delights in me.  He wants me.  I am wanted.  I have a purpose.  To my Father, I am of great worth.  I put on the breastplate of righteousness.  By the blood of Jesus Christ, I am seen as right before God, the only true judge.  I put on the helmet of salvation.  I take up the shield of faith.  I transfer my faith from myself to Jesus Christ.  I take up the sword of the Spirit, the word of God.  Show me how to fight.  Strengthen my hands for battle so that I can bend a bow of bronze.  *Ting*"

May we choose to put on the whole armor of God each day, so that we may stand in the evil day.  Brothers and sisters, let us put on truth, the truth of what God thinks of us.  Let us put on the breastplate of righteousness, not our righteousness, the righteousness of Jesus Christ.

Isaiah 40

“Speak tenderly to Jerusalem.  Tell her that her sad days are gone and her sins are pardoned..." Isaiah 40:2 (NLT)


If you haven't read Isaiah 40 lately, I suggest you do so.  The Lord used it this morning to encourage me so so much.  Here are the verses that stuck out to me the most.


"He will feed his flock like a shepherd.  He will carry the lambs in his arms,holding them close to his heart.  He will gently lead the mother sheep with their young." Isaiah 40:11 (NLT)  


What a beautiful picture.  I feel like the Lord Jesus is holding me in His arms today, speaking tenderly to me while He renews my strength.


"O Jacob, how can you say the Lord does not see your troubles?  O Israel, how can you say God ignores your rights? Have you never heard? Have you never understood? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth. He never grows weak or weary. No one can measure the depths of his understanding." Isaiah 40:20-21 (NLT)  


It is a dark place when you think the Lord does not see your troubles.  The Lord revealed to me a couple nights ago that I was believing the lie that He didn't care about me.  As I reject that lie I can see the the Lord is the everlasting God and He loves His children with an everlasting love.  He never grows weak or weary.  He never gives up on me.


"He gives strength to the weary, And to him who lacks might He increases power. Though youths grow weary and tired, And vigorous young men stumble badly, Yet those who wait for the LORD will gain new strength; They will mount up with wings like eagles, They will run and not get tired, They will walk and not become weary." Isaiah 40:29-31 (NASB)  


He gives strength to the weary.  That is a promise I need right now.  Those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength.  So, it may not be in our timing, we will have to wait on Him.  But He WILL give us strength.  He delights to give His strength to the weary because we know it's not us, we don't have any strength of our own, we are fully dependent upon the grace of God to strengthen us.


I think that is my new theme: I am absolutely fully dependent upon the grace of my God.  I am empty.  I am weak.  I am weary.  But in my God is fullness, strength, and rest.  I praise Him that He can do much with an empty vessel.

What have you been eating?

"But He answered and said, 'It is written, "Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God." ' " Matthew 4:4

"My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to accomplish His work." John 4:34

"Jesus said to them, 'I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will not thirst.' " John 6:35

As I read these three verses, a question comes to mind: "What have I been eating?"  For real, what do I receive sustenance from?  What do I live on?  Where do I go when I'm hungry?

So, for me, these verses have been an exhortation to feed on Christ who is the bread of life.  I would like to extend the exhortation.  Brothers and sisters, let us live not on bread alone, let us live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God (there's a whole lot of them recorded for us in that leather bound book we carry around all the time).  Let us receive life from coming to our Lord, listening to Him, and doing His will.

I shall be whiter than snow

“For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.” Psalm 51:3

I feel like this is the one verse in Psalm 51 that I most relate to, especially in the last several weeks. My mind so often wanders to all the sins I have committed and all the nastiness in my flesh. However, as is true in most cases, it's a bad idea to take this verse by itself. All of Psalm 51 is excellent, but here are a few of the verses that stick out the most to me:

“Purify me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.” Psalm 51:7

Perhaps it would be helpful to keep in mind as we read these verses that God answers prayers that are according to His will. And the purification of His children is certainly according to God's will. So, as I cry out to the Lord, I am assured that He will indeed purify me. He will indeed wash me. And I will be clean. I will be whiter than snow.

“Make me to hear joy and gladness, let the bones which You have broken rejoice.” Psalm 51:8

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” Psalm 51:10

“Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and sustain me with a willing spirit.” Psalm 51:12

“I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who lives, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” Galatians 2:20

“For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.” Romans 8:2

About a month ago, the Lord revealed a ton of sin and ways I have been walking according to the flesh. This conviction led to brokenness. And that is good. However it has also led to a lot of condemnation which is not good (check out Romans 8:1, it's good news). So, brokenness good, condemnation bad. We'll come back to condemnation. As I cry out to the Lord to purify me, to wash me, to create in me a clean heart, I can also ask Him to make the bones which He has broken rejoice. Because this brokenness, while painful, is excellent because it shows me that in my flesh no good thing dwells (Romans 7:18). It brings me to Galatians 2:20. It brings me to complete and utter dependence upon Christ for everything. Not a single bit of goodness can come from my flesh. The only good thing in me is Jesus Christ.

As I have struggled with condemnation, the Lord has led me to Romans 8:2. It is the law of the Spirit of LIFE in Christ Jesus that has set us free from the law of sin and of death. As I meditated on this verse, the Lord brought me to John 8:1-11, the story of a woman caught in adultery. This woman was guilty and she knew it. She deserved to die and she knew it. I can just imagine the weight of the law of sin and death that weighed upon her. She was literally about to be stoned. But Jesus set her free. I often feel that weight of the law of sin and death. You know, you sin you deserve death. I know that I have sinned, and I know that I deserve to die. So as I continue to see sin in my life, even though I know the price has been paid by Christ, I still feel like I should die. But as with the woman caught in adultery, I have been set free. I am no longer bound by the law of sin and of death. Instead, I am bound by the law of the Spirit of life.

Do not lean on your own understanding

Proverbs 3:5-8 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding.  In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.  Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the Lord and turn away from evil.  It will be healing to your body and refreshment to your bones."

I have been struggling this past week with conviction turning into condemnation.  The conviction was real and from the Lord.  But the enemy took opportunity by it to speak to me that I should just shut down, not even try anymore because everything I do is calculated to bring myself glory.  If I were to lean on my own understanding, I would listen to the enemy because everything I see is my terribly ugly flesh trying to exalt itself.  But I am called not to lean on my understanding, but to trust in the Lord with all my heart.  I am called to turn away from evil.  I do not just sit there, look at the evil in my flesh, and cry about it.  I turn away from it.   In this I find healing and refreshment.  I acknowledge Him, cry out to Him, tell Him I can't do anything without Him, and He makes my paths straight. 

I am thankful anew today for Christ.  For His righteousness.  For His love.  For His faith.  I am thankful that Christ lives in me, and therefore I have been given His righteousness, His love, His faith.  I am thankful that there is no penance needed, that I simply must turn from the nastiness of my flesh to the beauty of Christ.  That in Christ I have the ability to act righteously, to love without thought of myself, to stand firm in faith.  So, praise the Lord!

The heavens are Yours, the earth also is Yours

I am praising the Lord for His patience and unending grace toward me.  Yesterday I got into a really bad place of feeling unloved, and I was pushing everyone away.  My two good friends Rachel and Jesse didn't let me get away with it.  I praise the Lord for them because as they talked to me and prayed for me the Lord was able to pull me out of that mood and remind me of His love.  How awesome is it that the Lord doesn't leave us where we are even when we want to be left?

I am also very thankful that all things are in the Lord's hands.  I enjoyed these verses this morning, "The heavens are Yours, the earth also is Yours; the world and all it contains, You have founded them... You have a strong arm; Your hand is mighty, Your right hand is exalted. Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne; Lovingkindness and truth go before You." (Psalm 89:11,13-14)  I had been getting overwhelmed earlier today, and I was reminded that the heavens and the earth and the world and all it contains are the Lord's.  His arm is strong.  He is able to help us in all things.  Righteousness and justice, lovingkindness and truth are God's character, and what He does is good.  I was walking back and forth on a baseball field earlier and as I talked to the Lord I started saying, "You are good.  I love You.  And I will not be offended."  Even though things aren't in my timing, it is good because God is good.

Thank the Lord for Revelation

I am thankful for revelation from the Lord.  I am so so thankful that He does not leave us where we are.  I am so thankful that He is gentle and loving in His correction. 

His Grace Toward Me Did Not Prove Vain

 "But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me." 1 Corinthians 15:10


Earlier this week, I read a little book by T. Austin-Sparks (actually it's more like an article and it can be found at http://www.austin-sparks.net/english/000447.html ) called “Attaining Unto the First Three” about David's mighty men and specifically those that were referred to as the first three. Brother Sparks emphasized that there is clearly some level to be attained in our usefulness and effectiveness for the Lord. It's really good, but I'm not going to go into the details of it. I just want to tell a little of what the Lord is teaching me through it.

I feel like I've been seeing for a while that God has a thought, a desire on His heart. I can't exactly express it, and I know I need more revelation of what His heart is. I know He wants Christ to have the preeminence in all things. I know He wants a pure bride for His Son. I know He wants a body that is joined and knitted together in love by what each joint supplies that is in submission to the Head who is the Lord Jesus.

So, I've seen that there is a desire on God's heart that has not yet come to fulfillment, but now I'm seeing that I am to partner with Him. I am to give myself to bringing about this desire, this full thought of God. David's mighty men saw that God's full thought was not for Saul to be king. They had a vision of what God's desire was: David. These men did not simply think about how God wanted David to be king, they did not help David when it was convenient for them. They gave themselves to this.

Brother Sparks brought out that Paul had this “spirit of the first three,” and that made me think of this verse in 1 Corinthians: “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me.” It is absolutely only by God's grace that I can do anything. But I MUST recognize that it is possible for His grace toward me to prove vain. Paul could say that he had labored even more than all of his companions. This was not said in competition or in pride. He had clear revelation that in his flesh was no good thing. The grace of God with Paul enabled him to do what he did, but Paul had to make a choice. He had to say yes.

I so often am consumed with selfishness. What is going to make me feel good? What is going to make me look good? And too often I put that on the Lord. I begin to think that His goal is to make me happy, to make me feel good. But that is CERTAINLY NOT His goal. He loves me, He is for me, He chose me, He wants me. He desires for me to agree with these truths, but He has more that He is looking for. I am seeing that it is important for me to agree with the truth so that I can walk confidently in the good works He has planned beforehand for me. But all of this is to the end that the Father and the Son would receive glory.

Brothers and sisters, I exhort you to seek the Lord and ask for a revelation of His heart, His full thought, His desire. And as you receive vision of what the Lord is looking for, give yourself to it. May we not be a people who God's grace proves vain toward. Spend your time, money, and energy to see God's desires fulfilled.

Give Thanks to the Lord

Today I am thanking the Lord for Christ in my brothers and sisters.  Last night I came out of agreement with the truth and let my worth once again be dictated by something other than my God.  I discussed this at some length with a sister last night, and as she spoke truth over me, I could feel my heart softening.  It was one of those, "oh yeah, I forgot that was true" moments.  Then a little later the Lord used two sisters who didn't even really know what was going on to minister to me and lift my spirit.  So I praise the Lord that He speaks through my sisters in the Lord.

A Grateful Heart I Give

"It is good to give thanks to the Lord and to sing praises to Your name, O Most High; To declare Your lovingkindness in the morning and Your faithfulness by night... For You, O Lord, have made me glad by what You have done, I will sing for joy at the works of Your hands.  How great are Your works, O Lord! Your thoughts are very deep." Psalm 92:1-2,4-5

If I were to describe myself, I would not use the word thankful.  And that saddens me.  How do I express what is in my heart in a way that will not sound cliche?  The "I AM," the only good Being ever, the God of the universe sees me and loves me and desires to walk with me daily.  Is that not enough to make me a thankful person?  Is the sacrifice of Christ and the life of Christ in me not enough for me?

It is good to give thanks to the Lord.  It is good to declare His lovingkindness and His faithfulness.  So, as a discipline for myself and as a way to declare and share how good our God is, over the next several weeks I intend to write a short post each day about what I am thankful for that day.

So, today, I am thankful for our God's BEAUTIFUL creation.  I went for a walk this morning at the wonderful park nearby (which, by the way, I am thankful for also).  I was walking and praying and thinking about what I was thankful for and I looked up and realized I certainly could not overlook the beauty of Spring that is starting to make itself evident once again.  I love that God chose to make nature beautiful, and I love that it is a reflection of His beauty.  And I can't wait to see what the new earth is like when creation is "set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God" (Romans 8:21).

Tell the Story of Grace

Yesterday morning I heard a song on the radio called "Do Everything" by Steven Curtis Chapman.  I'm about 7 months behind on the whole music scene, so forgive me if they've been playing this forever, but I heard it for the first time yesterday.   I like the whole concept of the song, but one line in particular stuck out to me.  "Tell the story of grace with every move that you make."  Hmm, "the story of grace"... BEST STORY EVER.  Jesus Christ gave up His very life to bring many sons (and daughters :) ) to glory.  This is the story of grace.  "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9).  Grace is the gift that cost the Giver everything, but cost the recipient nothing. 

Do I tell the story of grace with every move I make?  Or do I tell the story of selfishness?  What story does my complaining tell?  What story does my trying to justify myself tell?  The story of grace is one of forgiveness, of giving without thought of getting anything back.  My complaining speaks of an attitude of entitlement, of "I don't deserve this."   But think of Jesus, the author of the story of grace.  He clearly didn't deserve the cross, but instead of complaining about it, He endured it for the joy set before Him (Hebrews 12:2).  To bring glory to His Father and to become the firstborn among many brethren (Romans 8:29). 

So, let us ask the Lord how to tell the story of grace with every move we make.  Something as simple as taking someone's plate, acting as a servant, tells the story of grace, of giving of yourself without a thought to what you will get for it.  Baking cookies for a friend.  Extending forgiveness, free of strings, free of conditions.  Emptying your bank account to meet the need of a brother or sister in the Lord.  Christ lives in us.  Let us ask Him first to reveal His grace to us, and once we have a true revelation of how undeserving we are of this grace, we will desire to extend this grace to others.

A day to celebrate God's love

More and more over the last few years, I have been enjoying using Valentine's Day as an excuse to celebrate God's love.  Here are two facebook notes I wrote a couple years ago that I think fit this theme.  May we dance with our Beloved, knowing He delights to lead us.

Dancing

I got most of the ideas for this from the book Do You Think I'm Beautiful. I just decided to summarize/extend this metaphor a bit.

I close my eyes and picture myself in a beautiful ballroom. I have on a beautiful dress. I sit near the wall watching all the couples dancing and having fun. I've resigned myself to drinking punch, tapping my foot to the music, and people-watching when I see Him walk across the room straight to me and offer me His hand. He looks into my eyes and asks, "May I have this dance?" I, speechless and unable to think straight, just nod, take His hand, and follow Him into the middle of the dance floor. He is an amazing dancer, and I'm afraid I'll step on His feet, so I keep looking down trying to concentrate on getting the steps exactly right. He smiles down at me and gently lifts my chin so I meet His eyes. His strong arms hold me tighter, and He whispers into my ear, "Just follow my lead." So I relax, melt into His arms and keep my eyes locked onto His. When the song is over I smile, thank Him, and start to walk back to my rightful position as a wallflower, but He asks, "Don't you want to keep dancing?" My smile widens as I return to His arms. One of my friends tells me later that I looked amazing out there and asks where I learned to dance like that. I tell her the only thing I can. I don't have any idea what I'm doing, I just follow His lead.

That's the way it is with life. We don't have to have it all figured out. In fact, when we think we do have it figured out, when we ask God to follow our lead, even if we have it planned out perfectly, it will never, ever be as good as if we had just followed. So many times I've been afraid to put myself out there, afraid I'll make things awkward, afraid I'll make a fool out of myself. So I keep my head down and when God asks me to dance with Him, to step outside my comfortable wallflower position where people can see me, I respectfully decline. I say, "You can sit over here with me and we can chat," or "Maybe next song," or probably most often, "I can't dance. But there are hundreds of other girls here who can. Ask one of them." But when I do say yes, when I focus my attention on Him and let Him lead, it always turns out good. He doesn't ask us so that He can make a fool out of us or laugh at our incompetencies. He makes it so those incompetencies don't matter. Things aren't always going to be easy, but I guarantee you that it will be so much better to live your life dancing with the One who invented the dance than with your eyes fixed on someone else or just sitting and watching.

Zephaniah 3:17

I want to be known. Inside and out. I want to be desired. I want somebody to know what will make me smile and to go out of his way to do it. I want him to be able to tell when I'm upset, sad, or angry. I want him to know when to hold me in his arms and when to give me space. I don't want to just know he thinks I'm pretty, I want to take his breath away. I want him to know my struggles and accept me as I am. Not to deny my flaws or to try to fix me, but to love me anyway, while calling me to a higher standard.

Zephaniah 3:17- "The Lord your God is with you, He is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, He will quiet you with his love, He will rejoice over you with singing."- Delight. I LOVE that word. And it give me chills when I am told that God, the same God that created the heavens and the earth, delights in me. He doesn't delight in some romantic idea He has about me. He knows every hair on my head, He's seen me every time I've fallen, every time I've deliberately ignored Him. And He takes me into His arms and tells me that He loves me anyway. He tells me I don't have to cry anymore, He quiets me with His love. When I finally lean into Him and say, "You've saved me. How can I thank You?" He rejoices. He sings. How many times have I seen a cheesy chick flick and secretly wished I was the one being serenaded? And I ignore the songs of love and joy and delight that my God desires to sing over me.

God fills every desire of my heart. Maybe someday He will bless me with a man who fills some of the desires I listed above, but for now I will be content to serve with my whole heart the One who delights in me just as I am, the One who knows me, the One whose love for me is beyond knowledge (Ephesians 3:19).

Back in the States!

So, guess what? I'm back! I really want to put together a good long post that captures what happened in the last six months of my life, but I'm kind of at a loss for how to start.

One way of summing up my trip is to share two words sisters in the Lord shared with me last week. The first told me that when she was praying for me the Lord showed her a puzzle and the last few pieces were being put in, and though she couldn't make out the picture, she said she could tell that it was beautiful, that the colors were radiant. The second told me the Lord was saying that He had given me freedom in this season and that He wanted me to walk in that freedom as I return to the States and to guard my heart against being timid about having received freedom. So as I walk back into life in the States, I have the challenge of believing that I have been made whole and walking in freedom. Whom the Son sets free is free indeed. But even someone whose chains have fallen off can choose to stay in the same place. My challenge is to move, to pick up my mat and walk.

Let's see... Life in India was fun, hard, freeing, awesome, scary, and an adventure every step of the way. My favorite part was campfire worship and fasting prayer nights. I loved the openness fostered to hearing the Lord's voice. And I loved how the kids all the way from when they are small are encouraged and challenged to step out and share when they think they are hearing God's voice. The hardest part was being away from everything familiar and especially from the fellowship I was used to. However, this ended up being a blessing as it pushed me to run to Jesus when I needed comfort or help or support. I have come to know Him more intimately because I had this season of going only to Him with my problems and to process culture shock and just being so far from home.

Well, that's all I can think of at the moment. As I continue to think about and process my time, I will post more. But for now, that's all I've got.