I have thought so very much about prayer in the last couple of weeks. Thought of what it looks like in my life, of what God calls it to be in our lives, of what it accomplishes and what it doesn't. I am nowhere near a finite explanation of any of these things but the pondering has opened up some new places in my mind and led me down unexplored paths. Today I'll share just one of the many.
I found myself telling someone recently that we must pray. That we must pray and that we would beg God on our knees. As those words left my mouth I realized that I had more to say, that the sentence wasn't complete. So I continued on. We must beg God...on our knees...for His will...to match our desires.
You see, I am so very human. In the humanity, I long for things here on earth. There is healing I so hope for, souls that I long to be saved, earthly things that I still desire. Yet in my prayers, I tend to go one of two ways. Either I ask only for His will to be done. Or I ask only for my desires to be fulfilled. If I'm to choose, the first is where I'd rather land but the truth is that I believe that God is not just a God who gives the bare minimum to His children. Rather, I believe that He gives abundantly, heaping blessing upon blessing in our lives when we deserve absolutely nothing.
I don't want anything other than what God wills for my life or for the lives of others. That is the one thing I desire above all others. Yet, I also long for other things, some more 'holy' and some more temporary. So in this recent discussion of prayer, I found myself realizing that it's ok to have a desire and to bring in to the One who is sovereign and fulfills every need and watches over every care. Yet in the bringing, I want His will and His glory to be my first goal, my primary hope, the one thing that I want above everything else.
Sometimes though, there is such a sweetness in seeing the places where His will intersects my deepest cries. Those are the moments when I fall, yet again, in amazement and awe and worship, before the God who not only listens, but who cares enough to orchestrate our desires to match His when we give ourselves up fully to the opportunity. These are the moments that leave me ever more in love with my Lord and ever so much more willing to trust Him with all things in my life and the lives of those around me.
For He is faithful and He loves. That, friends, is the very best that life has to offer!
Showing posts with label God. Show all posts
Showing posts with label God. Show all posts
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Monday, April 19, 2010
Blessed
Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord and has made the Lord his hope and confidence.
~Jeremiah 17:7
~Jeremiah 17:7
The hour is late and my eyes are growing heavy as I sit under the solitary light in a cold office on the second floor of this Boston church I've grown to love over the last several years. I am here in this room because I'm supposed to be studying, preparing for an exam that I must take soon and for which I'm not currently prepared. Yet my thoughts are not on these expected actions. I don't care right now about what I'm supposed to be learning.
Instead, I'm drawn by the words on a simple plaque. They are written in gold, shimmering under this soft light: Jeremiah 17:7. I love these words because their truth is so simple and full of abundance. There's no promise of worldly gain or perfect lives or really any specific things save one: that we should be blessed.
Think of that! The blessing given by the hands of a mighty loving God. Is is not enough that we should be able to trust the Lord at all or that He should be worthy of our hope and confidence? These things alone should be abundantly satisfying for any of our moments. Yet God is not a detached character, leaving us to fend for ourselves and asking us just to trust Him with no action on His part.
No, He promises that we will be blessed. Not only is there such peace in actually trusting Him but we're also promised that there is blessing to be found in the doing of such things.
I know I'm tired. I know that it might be a miracle if I pass this test. Yet somehow all of these things and many more pale in comparison to the beauty and peace and joy that is my relationship with Jesus. For He is truly good and He has blessed me beyond comparison. His blessing fully outweighs any cost that I might pay in following or trusting or hoping in Him. What an amazing equation, based on the abundant love of a faithful God. I am overwhelmed.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Love
I ask him that with both feet planted firmly on love, you'll be able to take in with all Christians the extravagant dimensions of Christ's love. Reach out and experience the breadth! Test its length! Plumb the depths! Rise to the heights! Live full lives, full in the fullness of God.
~Ephesians 3:17-18 (The Message)
~Ephesians 3:17-18 (The Message)
Here I am on day 9 of the 90 day challenge and I'm still keeping up. I find myself right now in the middle of Leviticus, where I'll stay for another day before moving on! :) I'm amazed at the words and stories that I'm reading every day. Stories of an unfaithful people and a faithful God. Day after day I'm incredibly overwhelmed by the amount of love shown by the Lord.
At first I was calling it patience. Saying that God was so patient in not giving up on the people He created. So patient in not walking away from them every time they just made a royal mess of things. So patient in not kicking them to the curb as they so rapidly sinned against Him or argued with Him or doubted Him. I thought of it as patience.
Then I realized that I was wrong. This wasn't just patience. This was LOVE. It wasn't the picture of someone who just forced Himself time and again not to just call it quits and succeeded in pressing on just because He had amazing self-control. No, it was instead the picture of love, a love so deep and abiding and persistent that out of it flowed a patience that I can't even fathom.
No, God is not just patient. God is in love. In love with me and you and all who have come before and all who will follow. God shows what love truly is and in so doing we see so many other things, things like compassion and patience and faithfulness and tenacity and mercy and grace. Yet it's not these things alone that drive God's actions. What defines every other characteristic is His love.
Oh that we may all understand what love He has for us. What love He has for all of His creation. For that's where everything else comes from.
This is a treasure I've found from these first nine days. I can hardly wait to see what else He will show me. Pretty sure though that this is a big one...in fact, the one that the whole thing hinges on. Such a great reminder to me and I see it ever so much more clearly by seeing the history of the saints in such rapid progression. Awesome!
Seek Him. Know Him. Be loved. By Him.
Monday, January 18, 2010
90 Days: A Challenge
When she first mentioned it my initial response was one of hesitancy and distance. Really? 90 days to accomplish this task? Doesn't that seem a little intense, a little too much, a little too hard, a bit unnecessary? I remember my first comments of how I couldn't take in that much information that quickly, that I had so much other stuff going on, that I was probably too busy.
Funny how God sometimes won't let a thing go.
Mere weeks later, I'm poised to begin the task, to tackle the challenge, to stop with the whining and excuses and complaints. Will it be hard? Certainly. Will it require me to give up some things that I'd rather do? Absolutely. These things are completely true but they're not the real questions I should be asking. These are the questions that have made me agree to the task:
When I found myself answering yes to these questions, I knew that I needed to do it. Not because it's a requirement, not because I had to, not because I'd feel left out if I didn't join but because when you find something that has the potential to do everything in the questions above, you must at least give it more than a passing glance.
This is something that I want to do. Something that I probably need to do. Something that, with God's grace and my discipline, I will do.
So, 90 days. It's going to be quite the journey.
Thanks for the invitation, friend!
:)
Funny how God sometimes won't let a thing go.
Mere weeks later, I'm poised to begin the task, to tackle the challenge, to stop with the whining and excuses and complaints. Will it be hard? Certainly. Will it require me to give up some things that I'd rather do? Absolutely. These things are completely true but they're not the real questions I should be asking. These are the questions that have made me agree to the task:
Will it push my faith and reliance on God?
Will it refine my character and realign my priorities
to be a better reflection of what's important to Him?
Will it open up opportunities to more greatly
reflect on His character and understand who He really is and has been and will be?
Will it make me more like Jesus?
Will it refine my character and realign my priorities
to be a better reflection of what's important to Him?
Will it open up opportunities to more greatly
reflect on His character and understand who He really is and has been and will be?
Will it make me more like Jesus?
When I found myself answering yes to these questions, I knew that I needed to do it. Not because it's a requirement, not because I had to, not because I'd feel left out if I didn't join but because when you find something that has the potential to do everything in the questions above, you must at least give it more than a passing glance.
This is something that I want to do. Something that I probably need to do. Something that, with God's grace and my discipline, I will do.
So, 90 days. It's going to be quite the journey.
Thanks for the invitation, friend!
:)
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Where It Goes, Only God Knows
I don't know what the remainder of my days will look like. I don't know where I'll live or if I'll marry or if I'll have a family of my own. These things are yet unknown. However, in the midst of my life right now, God is working on some dreams, some dreams that right now seem impossible to me and yet I know they are reflections of His heart.
I don't know what happens down the road but God does. These ponderings may be the seeds of something that changes the world or maybe just the seeds of something that changes me. Either way, this video speaks a great deal to where God is working on me right now and perhaps, He's working on you there too!
I don't know what happens down the road but God does. These ponderings may be the seeds of something that changes the world or maybe just the seeds of something that changes me. Either way, this video speaks a great deal to where God is working on me right now and perhaps, He's working on you there too!
Monday, January 4, 2010
Go!
So perhaps I decided to take a couple days off and start the new year up when I returned to work. Perhaps! :)
It's here though, this brand new year. It's four days old and I'm already loving so many moments and also already wondering at various things that God is showing me and working on in me. Oddly enough, exactly the same things that were going on a week ago!
I do have some thoughts about what I hope this year will hold though, thoughts that I'm willing to put out here for my two readers to know! :) Some might call these goals or resolutions but I look at them more as areas of focus, things that I want to purposefully draw my attention towards in the days to come. None of these is some new, lofty pursuit but rather things that God has been working on in me for months, sometimes years already!
First, I want to work on being faithful in all of the things that God has placed in my life today. In relationships and jobs, in stewardship and time management, in all of the areas of my life where I've at times become lazy and inattentive. I want to live out Luke 16:10, which I am taking somewhat out of context but which I believe is applicable for all areas of life. It says, "Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much." I want to reflect faithfulness in the smallest of areas so that I might be further refined for whatever God needs of me in the future. It is one of my desires for this year.
Second, I want to practice compassion towards all. I want my actions and attitude to be one of love towards all I encounter, not just the lovely or those who are dear to me. I want to be thoughtful of the way that I bear His light in this world and seek to live outside myself much more often.
Third, I desire that prayer would become an area of focus in my days. I have found myself guilty of not allotting much time to the spiritual disciplines and I desire for my life to be defined by my time with the Lord pursuing Him in prayer, study, fasting, and other disciplines. Prayer particularly is an area that I want to grow more diligent in but each of these disciplines deserves more of my time and effort so that God might show me His character and change me to better resemble it.
Fourth, I want to purposefully cultivate my artistic abilities and my imagination by spending time taking pictures, reading, pulling out my instruments, writing and other such things. I want to aim for depth in my thoughts and writings and I want to allow God to develop big dreams for my life and my days.
Fifth, I want to be very purposeful towards relationships in my life. I want to be intentional, diligent, and willing to invest my time and energy into those around me. I have become ever so aware that this life is not about me and that if I choose to live in solidarity I will one day have no one to turn to when I am in need of encouragement or help. Friendships are a huge blessing given by the Lord and I want to especially be faithful with those He has given.
Sixth, and probably the one I like the least, is that I want to practice living a life of risk. Not in stupid ways or dangerous ways but rather embracing the idea of learning to let go and allow control to be beyond my grasp in order to learn a greater dependence on the Lord. I don't like not being safe and even though I've grown in this in a lot of ways over the past couple of years, it is still something that I struggle with. I like things to be defined and calculated and safe and while I experience dependence on God, I feel as though I limit His capability to move in my life as I continue to hold on to what feels comfortable. In my head I know that risk is important to life but when it comes down to action, I am not always able to let go of the line and fall into His arms completely. I desire growth in this area even though the acknowledgment of the desire opens me up to the reality of having to truly embrace it and go in places that are hard.
These are six areas that I know I want to continue to focus on in the coming months and now seems like as good of a time as any to identify them and write about them. I'm certain that you'll see these concepts revisited in the days to come and I'd love for you to challenge me and call me out if you see that I'm falling short in these (or really any other area).
I also want to take just a moment to push you. Take some time and identify where you sense God challenging you and calling you to bigger things. Sit down and think about your life, look at those areas and see what you might be able to focus on in the months to come. In all reality, January 1st is just another day but sometimes it's good to sit down and seek out what God might be doing in your life that needs a bit more of your attention.
Finally, in closing what is a really long post here, I want you to know that this is my prayer for you this year:
May we gather next year and recount what God has done in our lives as we passionately pursue Him and His heart and allow Him to daily refine us to be better bearers of His name!
Go in peace into 2010 and may God rule your every moment!
It's here though, this brand new year. It's four days old and I'm already loving so many moments and also already wondering at various things that God is showing me and working on in me. Oddly enough, exactly the same things that were going on a week ago!
I do have some thoughts about what I hope this year will hold though, thoughts that I'm willing to put out here for my two readers to know! :) Some might call these goals or resolutions but I look at them more as areas of focus, things that I want to purposefully draw my attention towards in the days to come. None of these is some new, lofty pursuit but rather things that God has been working on in me for months, sometimes years already!
First, I want to work on being faithful in all of the things that God has placed in my life today. In relationships and jobs, in stewardship and time management, in all of the areas of my life where I've at times become lazy and inattentive. I want to live out Luke 16:10, which I am taking somewhat out of context but which I believe is applicable for all areas of life. It says, "Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much." I want to reflect faithfulness in the smallest of areas so that I might be further refined for whatever God needs of me in the future. It is one of my desires for this year.
Second, I want to practice compassion towards all. I want my actions and attitude to be one of love towards all I encounter, not just the lovely or those who are dear to me. I want to be thoughtful of the way that I bear His light in this world and seek to live outside myself much more often.
Third, I desire that prayer would become an area of focus in my days. I have found myself guilty of not allotting much time to the spiritual disciplines and I desire for my life to be defined by my time with the Lord pursuing Him in prayer, study, fasting, and other disciplines. Prayer particularly is an area that I want to grow more diligent in but each of these disciplines deserves more of my time and effort so that God might show me His character and change me to better resemble it.
Fourth, I want to purposefully cultivate my artistic abilities and my imagination by spending time taking pictures, reading, pulling out my instruments, writing and other such things. I want to aim for depth in my thoughts and writings and I want to allow God to develop big dreams for my life and my days.
Fifth, I want to be very purposeful towards relationships in my life. I want to be intentional, diligent, and willing to invest my time and energy into those around me. I have become ever so aware that this life is not about me and that if I choose to live in solidarity I will one day have no one to turn to when I am in need of encouragement or help. Friendships are a huge blessing given by the Lord and I want to especially be faithful with those He has given.
Sixth, and probably the one I like the least, is that I want to practice living a life of risk. Not in stupid ways or dangerous ways but rather embracing the idea of learning to let go and allow control to be beyond my grasp in order to learn a greater dependence on the Lord. I don't like not being safe and even though I've grown in this in a lot of ways over the past couple of years, it is still something that I struggle with. I like things to be defined and calculated and safe and while I experience dependence on God, I feel as though I limit His capability to move in my life as I continue to hold on to what feels comfortable. In my head I know that risk is important to life but when it comes down to action, I am not always able to let go of the line and fall into His arms completely. I desire growth in this area even though the acknowledgment of the desire opens me up to the reality of having to truly embrace it and go in places that are hard.
These are six areas that I know I want to continue to focus on in the coming months and now seems like as good of a time as any to identify them and write about them. I'm certain that you'll see these concepts revisited in the days to come and I'd love for you to challenge me and call me out if you see that I'm falling short in these (or really any other area).
I also want to take just a moment to push you. Take some time and identify where you sense God challenging you and calling you to bigger things. Sit down and think about your life, look at those areas and see what you might be able to focus on in the months to come. In all reality, January 1st is just another day but sometimes it's good to sit down and seek out what God might be doing in your life that needs a bit more of your attention.
Finally, in closing what is a really long post here, I want you to know that this is my prayer for you this year:
But you, dear friends, carefully build yourselves up in this most holy faith by praying in the Holy Spirit, staying right at the center of God's love, keeping your arms open and outstretched, ready for the mercy of our Master, Jesus Christ. This is the unending life, the real life!
~Jude 1:20-21
~Jude 1:20-21
May we gather next year and recount what God has done in our lives as we passionately pursue Him and His heart and allow Him to daily refine us to be better bearers of His name!
Go in peace into 2010 and may God rule your every moment!
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Get Set...
It's coming, very soon now: the end of one year and beginning of another!
I know in my head that tomorrow is just another day, that things that are happening today will happen tomorrow and that stories that are currently being revealed in my life will continue on with the dawning of a new day.
I know it in my head. My heart kind of disagrees.
My heart is excited by the magical turning of a calendar page to a clean slate, to an empty book of pages, to the symbolic meaning behind January 1st. I am perhaps a romantic at heart but I love the idea of a wide open road that's as yet unknown but that is within reach. It just makes me giddy!
So, I'm poised on the brink of a new year. I'm thinking through resolutions, I'm searching for a 2010 verse and a song, I'm making preparations for the anticipated but undefined!
Lest anyone not know, I must tell you that this anticipation comes from the Lord. It's not something that has always come naturally to me but it's a place where I've seen God refine and grow and push me in. I look forward with hope and optimism not because I am so great or my circumstances are so great (although I honestly can't complain either) but because my God is so great! Whatever may come in the next 365 days is not a surprise to the sovereign God who loves me in ways I can't begin to comprehend. The more I realize this, the more I'm excited and not just with the passing of another year but with the passing of each and every day! With the realization that He is constantly, sovereignly at work in my life and in me I grow to rejoice in every new morning that He gives.
So the new year is wonderful in its newness and promise. But at the same time, every single day that I live and breathe on this earth is infused with the same joyful anticipation because the God who reigns in my todays will reign in my tomorrows and that's far and away the best thing to get excited about!
Until He comes, let us praise Him with our lives!
A most happy and blessed new year to all!
I know in my head that tomorrow is just another day, that things that are happening today will happen tomorrow and that stories that are currently being revealed in my life will continue on with the dawning of a new day.
I know it in my head. My heart kind of disagrees.
My heart is excited by the magical turning of a calendar page to a clean slate, to an empty book of pages, to the symbolic meaning behind January 1st. I am perhaps a romantic at heart but I love the idea of a wide open road that's as yet unknown but that is within reach. It just makes me giddy!
So, I'm poised on the brink of a new year. I'm thinking through resolutions, I'm searching for a 2010 verse and a song, I'm making preparations for the anticipated but undefined!
Lest anyone not know, I must tell you that this anticipation comes from the Lord. It's not something that has always come naturally to me but it's a place where I've seen God refine and grow and push me in. I look forward with hope and optimism not because I am so great or my circumstances are so great (although I honestly can't complain either) but because my God is so great! Whatever may come in the next 365 days is not a surprise to the sovereign God who loves me in ways I can't begin to comprehend. The more I realize this, the more I'm excited and not just with the passing of another year but with the passing of each and every day! With the realization that He is constantly, sovereignly at work in my life and in me I grow to rejoice in every new morning that He gives.
So the new year is wonderful in its newness and promise. But at the same time, every single day that I live and breathe on this earth is infused with the same joyful anticipation because the God who reigns in my todays will reign in my tomorrows and that's far and away the best thing to get excited about!
Until He comes, let us praise Him with our lives!
A most happy and blessed new year to all!
Friday, December 18, 2009
Mercy Remains
A thousand times I fail
Still your mercy remains
And should I stumble again
Still I'm caught in your grace
Thank you Hillsong for yet again using this song to speak truth into my life.
Right now I'm in a season of a lot of failings and stumblings and just trying to keep my head above water when the combined stress of work and school and life are threatening to take me under. If there's one thing I hate about my job it's the stress that it brings to the Christmas season. It makes me so much less of the person I want to be and truthfully, right now, I just miss my time with Jesus so badly that I could just cry. I know that this season will pass and my schedule will relax and my classes will end and my program will be delivered. Yet in the middle of it, I'm just so very sad that I don't have the time to just sit and be still and reflect and engage and celebrate. Instead it's rushing and organizing and long hours at a computer.
In these days, I feel like I'm just stumbling...constantly.
I needed to hear that mercy and grace still hold me close. Even when I am feeling frustratingly overwhelmed. God is still good. Someday, I pray my life won't look like this in December. For now though, I'm just going to rest for just one moment (because it's all I have) to remember that God still catches me when I fall and carries me when I can't go another step. He's truly the best.
And now back to work...
Still your mercy remains
And should I stumble again
Still I'm caught in your grace
Thank you Hillsong for yet again using this song to speak truth into my life.
Right now I'm in a season of a lot of failings and stumblings and just trying to keep my head above water when the combined stress of work and school and life are threatening to take me under. If there's one thing I hate about my job it's the stress that it brings to the Christmas season. It makes me so much less of the person I want to be and truthfully, right now, I just miss my time with Jesus so badly that I could just cry. I know that this season will pass and my schedule will relax and my classes will end and my program will be delivered. Yet in the middle of it, I'm just so very sad that I don't have the time to just sit and be still and reflect and engage and celebrate. Instead it's rushing and organizing and long hours at a computer.
In these days, I feel like I'm just stumbling...constantly.
I needed to hear that mercy and grace still hold me close. Even when I am feeling frustratingly overwhelmed. God is still good. Someday, I pray my life won't look like this in December. For now though, I'm just going to rest for just one moment (because it's all I have) to remember that God still catches me when I fall and carries me when I can't go another step. He's truly the best.
And now back to work...
Friday, December 4, 2009
Reminder
First song of the morning: "From The Inside Out"
First lyric that I really heard:
Your will above all else
My purpose remains
The art of losing myself
In bringing you praise
This life can't ever be about me. If I allow it to become so, I fail in realizing the purposes of my days. I may not understand all things (ok, I don't understand all things...how ridiculous would that be) but I do know that my life has to be completely wrapped up in the purposes of my Lord in order for it to work at all.
Good reminder for me. One I don't think is coincidental today.
Oh, and a most happy December to all! Thoughts on the coming of our savior, prayer, and much more coming up soon.
First lyric that I really heard:
Your will above all else
My purpose remains
The art of losing myself
In bringing you praise
This life can't ever be about me. If I allow it to become so, I fail in realizing the purposes of my days. I may not understand all things (ok, I don't understand all things...how ridiculous would that be) but I do know that my life has to be completely wrapped up in the purposes of my Lord in order for it to work at all.
Good reminder for me. One I don't think is coincidental today.
Oh, and a most happy December to all! Thoughts on the coming of our savior, prayer, and much more coming up soon.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Proclaiming Him
1 The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
2 Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge.
3 There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard.
4 Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens he has pitched a tent for the sun,
5 which is like a bridegroom coming forth from his pavilion,
like a champion rejoicing to run his course.
6 It rises at one end of the heavens and makes its circuit to the other;
nothing is hidden from its heat.
7 The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul.
The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy, making wise the simple.
8 The precepts of the LORD are right, giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes.
9 The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever.
The ordinances of the LORD are sure
and altogether righteous.
10 They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb.
11 By them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward.
12 Who can discern his errors? Forgive my hidden faults.
13 Keep your servant also from willful sins;
may they not rule over me.
Then will I be blameless, innocent of great transgression.
14 May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.
~Psalm 19
A week ago we studied Psalm 19. The next day I flew to Indianapolis. The beauty in the pictures reflects so perfectly the concept of God being glorified by the very earth, of it calling out in His honor. At the same time, when my temporary eyes can see this reality how much more weight is carried by verses 7-14 as they point back towards the power in the Word; the life-giving, life-sustaining, God-pleasing power? My faith is bolstered as I tie both ends of this Psalm together and see a magnificent God physically reflected in nature and spiritually connected through His Word.
AWESOME!
2 Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge.
3 There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard.
4 Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens he has pitched a tent for the sun,
5 which is like a bridegroom coming forth from his pavilion,
like a champion rejoicing to run his course.
6 It rises at one end of the heavens and makes its circuit to the other;
nothing is hidden from its heat.
7 The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul.
The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy, making wise the simple.
8 The precepts of the LORD are right, giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes.
9 The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever.
The ordinances of the LORD are sure
and altogether righteous.
10 They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb.
11 By them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward.
12 Who can discern his errors? Forgive my hidden faults.
13 Keep your servant also from willful sins;
may they not rule over me.
Then will I be blameless, innocent of great transgression.
14 May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.
~Psalm 19
A week ago we studied Psalm 19. The next day I flew to Indianapolis. The beauty in the pictures reflects so perfectly the concept of God being glorified by the very earth, of it calling out in His honor. At the same time, when my temporary eyes can see this reality how much more weight is carried by verses 7-14 as they point back towards the power in the Word; the life-giving, life-sustaining, God-pleasing power? My faith is bolstered as I tie both ends of this Psalm together and see a magnificent God physically reflected in nature and spiritually connected through His Word.
AWESOME!
Friday, August 28, 2009
The Learning We Do
Unlike many of the blogs that I read I'm not snapping pictures of my cute kiddos and putting them on a bus or dropping them off at my local school. Rather, I'm the one headed studiously back to the classroom yet again and you'll find no pictures of me sporting cute school gear! :)
It's been one week and so far things are going well. I'm only taking one class (yes, it's a relatively easy semester after last year's insanity) and I think I'm going to enjoy it. It's Anatomy and Physiology, Part II and while I've never really excelled at biology in the past, I'm realizing that there's something completely amazing about it. What I'm finding is that every single day, what we discuss makes me think about God.
Truly, I have absolutely no idea how I ever sat through all of my biology classes before without being totally captivated by the creativity of the Lord as reflected in creation! The way that the human body fits together is completely mind-blowing. I could go on and on about how the muscles work with the bones and the calcium and the food we eat and the way our organs function...but seeing as how I've probably just lost most of you, I'll leave it at that! :)
Sufficient (or perhaps more accurately, insufficient) to say, our God is a creator of magnificent proportions. It's not just in mountains and galaxies but in the way you are able to cross the street and the fact that you can smell a yummy cookie baking to perfection! God is everywhere, from the smallest to the largest, and for me, my classes are a privilege that allows me to put more pieces together in seeing His incredibleness*!
There you go, school and God. Sounds about like a day in my life! :)
*No, it's not a word but I think it should be! :)
It's been one week and so far things are going well. I'm only taking one class (yes, it's a relatively easy semester after last year's insanity) and I think I'm going to enjoy it. It's Anatomy and Physiology, Part II and while I've never really excelled at biology in the past, I'm realizing that there's something completely amazing about it. What I'm finding is that every single day, what we discuss makes me think about God.
Truly, I have absolutely no idea how I ever sat through all of my biology classes before without being totally captivated by the creativity of the Lord as reflected in creation! The way that the human body fits together is completely mind-blowing. I could go on and on about how the muscles work with the bones and the calcium and the food we eat and the way our organs function...but seeing as how I've probably just lost most of you, I'll leave it at that! :)
Sufficient (or perhaps more accurately, insufficient) to say, our God is a creator of magnificent proportions. It's not just in mountains and galaxies but in the way you are able to cross the street and the fact that you can smell a yummy cookie baking to perfection! God is everywhere, from the smallest to the largest, and for me, my classes are a privilege that allows me to put more pieces together in seeing His incredibleness*!
There you go, school and God. Sounds about like a day in my life! :)
My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,
your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!How vast is the sum of them!
Psalm 139:15-17
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,
your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!How vast is the sum of them!
Psalm 139:15-17
*No, it's not a word but I think it should be! :)
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Well
Today I was sitting at my computer and the hymn "It Is Well" began playing through the speakers. I've always loved this hymn and part of the power is knowing the story that the hymn writer walked through prior to penning the words. Yet today that wasn't what brought tears to my eyes.
Instead, it was the reality that it truly is well with my soul. Come what may, through good and bad, no matter the path, it is always always for eternity going to be well with my soul.
Not because of anything I have to offer but because of a payment made on my behalf by a God who was not obligated to me or enchanted by any charms that I may possess. Rather, in spite of my sins and my pathetic attempts at goodness, He still chose to give His life so that I may be redeemed.
At the cross I received the ability to sing and to know that it truly is well with my soul. Incredible.
Instead, it was the reality that it truly is well with my soul. Come what may, through good and bad, no matter the path, it is always always for eternity going to be well with my soul.
Not because of anything I have to offer but because of a payment made on my behalf by a God who was not obligated to me or enchanted by any charms that I may possess. Rather, in spite of my sins and my pathetic attempts at goodness, He still chose to give His life so that I may be redeemed.
At the cross I received the ability to sing and to know that it truly is well with my soul. Incredible.
He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
2 Corinthians 5:21
2 Corinthians 5:21
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Quiet
I have nothing pressing to say, no profound wisdom to offer, no crisis to dissect or celebration to herald. I suspect that's why so many days pass without me finding words to write on these 'pages'. It's a funny thing, when life becomes quiet, the need to share becomes less important.
It's not that things aren't good. In fact, I would venture to say that these have been some of the most wonderful days I've ever walked through. So maybe it'd be just the opposite. In the good, there's not always much that's exciting and that makes me less prone to share!
And now, while I didn't plan to have anything deep to share, I see a correlation that I'll just point out. Often, this same mindset drives my relationship with the Lord. I run to Him when things get rough and I don't know which way to turn. I'll press in, finding security and peace and joy through that relationship. Then, eventually, the pressure eases and I take some steps on my own, not holding on quite so tightly as I did before.
I will never understand this mindset in me. I will never get how I can believe for a moment that I can walk through my life without hanging onto the Lord. Yet I do it time and again and then something happens and I run back to Him.
If this cycle does not reflect only my great unfaithfulness and God's great faithfulness then I've missed the mark completely. That He continues to welcome me back, hold me close, and restore me is utterly amazing. In my pride and self-sufficiency, I deserve no grace. Yet at every turn, I am shown grace.
I hope that I never cease to be amazed.
It's not that things aren't good. In fact, I would venture to say that these have been some of the most wonderful days I've ever walked through. So maybe it'd be just the opposite. In the good, there's not always much that's exciting and that makes me less prone to share!
And now, while I didn't plan to have anything deep to share, I see a correlation that I'll just point out. Often, this same mindset drives my relationship with the Lord. I run to Him when things get rough and I don't know which way to turn. I'll press in, finding security and peace and joy through that relationship. Then, eventually, the pressure eases and I take some steps on my own, not holding on quite so tightly as I did before.
I will never understand this mindset in me. I will never get how I can believe for a moment that I can walk through my life without hanging onto the Lord. Yet I do it time and again and then something happens and I run back to Him.
If this cycle does not reflect only my great unfaithfulness and God's great faithfulness then I've missed the mark completely. That He continues to welcome me back, hold me close, and restore me is utterly amazing. In my pride and self-sufficiency, I deserve no grace. Yet at every turn, I am shown grace.
I hope that I never cease to be amazed.
Monday, May 4, 2009
Detours
There is some funny irony in the fact that I wrote about taking risks on Friday and later that day I decided to do something I normally might not and ended up in the emergency room. No major problems but I'm not going to be running marathons anytime in the near future! :)
The thing is though, even though the result wasn't what I would have chosen, I still kind of think that the risk I took was probably worth it. It was a bit of a freak accident but I was having fun up until it happened and I really do believe that God will use even my current situation for good. I know that it is pushing me out of my chosen comfort zone and forcing me to evaluate, yet again, what I truly find my identity in. Funny how lessons I think I've learned often show up in different forums as I move through life! It's also showing me how truly blessed I am with the relationships I have in my world and how amazing it is to yet again see the body of Christ working together!
I'm not going to say that it's been all roses (and my deepest apologies to anyone who has had to deal with me being grumpy) but I do know that there are lessons to be learned even in the challenges. Sometimes it's good for me to be pushed down a bit so that I can truly put into practice those things that I tend to talk about a lot. This journey isn't coming to a quick end I'm afraid but I hope that through it all I can find ways to minister to others while allowing them to minister to me. Sometimes it's hard to not want to throw myself a pity party but I'm really going to try to avoid it (and feel free to call me on it if you see me going down that road). I'm finding silver linings and working through what is really only a very small detour in a path that I don't even see clearly most of the time!
Oh yeah, and if anyone wonders, it's not as if this is a surprise to God so I'm quite certain He'll use it for His purposes if I don't become a big sourpuss! God's just cool like that.
So, I still say that you should take risks. I might recommend you don't fall off a wall though! :)
The thing is though, even though the result wasn't what I would have chosen, I still kind of think that the risk I took was probably worth it. It was a bit of a freak accident but I was having fun up until it happened and I really do believe that God will use even my current situation for good. I know that it is pushing me out of my chosen comfort zone and forcing me to evaluate, yet again, what I truly find my identity in. Funny how lessons I think I've learned often show up in different forums as I move through life! It's also showing me how truly blessed I am with the relationships I have in my world and how amazing it is to yet again see the body of Christ working together!
I'm not going to say that it's been all roses (and my deepest apologies to anyone who has had to deal with me being grumpy) but I do know that there are lessons to be learned even in the challenges. Sometimes it's good for me to be pushed down a bit so that I can truly put into practice those things that I tend to talk about a lot. This journey isn't coming to a quick end I'm afraid but I hope that through it all I can find ways to minister to others while allowing them to minister to me. Sometimes it's hard to not want to throw myself a pity party but I'm really going to try to avoid it (and feel free to call me on it if you see me going down that road). I'm finding silver linings and working through what is really only a very small detour in a path that I don't even see clearly most of the time!
Oh yeah, and if anyone wonders, it's not as if this is a surprise to God so I'm quite certain He'll use it for His purposes if I don't become a big sourpuss! God's just cool like that.
So, I still say that you should take risks. I might recommend you don't fall off a wall though! :)
Friday, May 1, 2009
Risk
I saw this video last night and it really struck a chord with me. The truth, and something I've mentioned before, is that I can so easily let myself be paralyzed by fear instead of boldly stepping out into new situations. It's something that I know I need to always allow God to work in and it's also a place where I feel like I've made progress through the years. Yet I still find myself shying away from situations that make me feel as though I can't succeed or that require great risks. I recognize that it's really silly for me to fear when I'm backed up by the God of the universe but I still find myself doing it.
All that said, this video reminds me of why I always need to be pursuing risks when God opens doors. Life is never about just being safe. There's nothing that I can do to add to or take away from the number of days that He has ordained for me. Regardless of how scared I might be to jump, I can do so knowing that God goes before me and when my primary pursuit is Him then I'm freed to live with arms truly wide open. I want Him to look at my life and be proud of the way I grasped things He placed before me. I want to learn to both succeed and fail boldly.
Risks are sometimes meant to be taken. That's where you'll often find God holding you!
All that said, this video reminds me of why I always need to be pursuing risks when God opens doors. Life is never about just being safe. There's nothing that I can do to add to or take away from the number of days that He has ordained for me. Regardless of how scared I might be to jump, I can do so knowing that God goes before me and when my primary pursuit is Him then I'm freed to live with arms truly wide open. I want Him to look at my life and be proud of the way I grasped things He placed before me. I want to learn to both succeed and fail boldly.
Risks are sometimes meant to be taken. That's where you'll often find God holding you!
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Generosity
The world of the generous gets larger and larger...The one who blesses others is abundantly blessed; those who help others are helped.
~Proverbs 11:24-25
It's so easy to hang on to our treasures, believing that they'll do us better by remaining in our possession. God calls us to such a different mindset though. He challenges us to hold all with open hands, giving to those in need and seeking always to offer to others what we might want to keep for ourselves. This isn't an easy task sometimes, regardless of what is actually being given. Yet in the most excellent manner of God, He abundantly blesses when we choose to let go.
Whether it's time or money or possessions or space or your heart, know that in the holding loosely and giving to others you will be blessed in ways far beyond what you can imagine. I've seen it happen in my life and in the lives of many others. It's just how our God works! Backwards from the world but ever so beautiful to those who experience Him!
~Proverbs 11:24-25
It's so easy to hang on to our treasures, believing that they'll do us better by remaining in our possession. God calls us to such a different mindset though. He challenges us to hold all with open hands, giving to those in need and seeking always to offer to others what we might want to keep for ourselves. This isn't an easy task sometimes, regardless of what is actually being given. Yet in the most excellent manner of God, He abundantly blesses when we choose to let go.
Whether it's time or money or possessions or space or your heart, know that in the holding loosely and giving to others you will be blessed in ways far beyond what you can imagine. I've seen it happen in my life and in the lives of many others. It's just how our God works! Backwards from the world but ever so beautiful to those who experience Him!
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Alabaster Boxes
3While he was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of a man known as Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head. 4Some of those present were saying indignantly to one another, "Why this waste of perfume? 5It could have been sold for more than a year's wage and the money given to the poor." And they rebuked her harshly. 6"Leave her alone," said Jesus. "Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. 7The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me. 8She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial. 9I tell you the truth, wherever the gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her."
~Mark 14:3-9
Today is the third day of Passion Week, the days leading up to the celebration of Christ's resurrection. This past Sunday so many years ago, Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, knowing for certain that the appropriate time had been reached for Him to offer up His life as a sacrifice for all. Today finds Him at the home of Simon, spending time with those He loved and continuing to teach them about the reality of what He came to do. In the midst of a discussion with the men, we find this story about a boldly courageous woman and her actions.
Here's what I'm struck with as I read this passage: this act was an enormous risk for her to take. She was a woman approaching a group of men, preparing to pour oil over one of them. I can only imagine the courage that it required for her to take that box and go to the house, to grab it from where she'd placed it when she entered, and to approach Christ as He sat with the others. Huge risk!
Yet, huge reward!
She took a chance; pushed herself to take action when prudence called for her to avoid it. Her love of the Savior eliminated her fear and drove her to leap off the cliff of safety and into the land of risk. She had to know that the outcome was uncertain but she also knew there was no choice for her in that moment but to express her adoration of Him with action. That He so vocally affirmed her simply reflects the depth of His compassion and love for those who pursue Him. For her, it was an outcome unknown and yet, in the risking, she received a beautiful new experience with her Savior.
I envy this woman. I so often fear and struggle to step out in total faith to the places where I'm uncertain and scared. Risky love frightens me and it is hard for me to be moved toward boldness. I am fearful at times to dump out the contents of my heart upon the Savior and discover what He has for me. Yet there are also moments when the imperfect love I have for the God who saved my soul drives out fear and I rush off the cliff into whatever He has called me to with arms open wide. Moments when I am so fully and completely aware that what I have in God is worth any rejection or ridicule that I might face from the world as I follow Him. Those are the moments that I love!
As I reflect on the action Mary took with her alabaster jar, I hope that I will grow ever more willing to follow the Lord completely with exuberance and the total faith that He will never fail and therefore I can risk when He calls me to do so. I want to be led by the Savior and open to taking chances even if they seem to be in places where the risk is too high. I want to break my very heart over the feet of Jesus and be willing to follow to whatever new places that action opens up before me.
I desire to live a life defined by following Christ above all fears. To know that when He calls, there is no risk so great that it outweighs the benefits of running after Him. He is always bigger than the risks. Now to just act!
~Mark 14:3-9
Today is the third day of Passion Week, the days leading up to the celebration of Christ's resurrection. This past Sunday so many years ago, Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, knowing for certain that the appropriate time had been reached for Him to offer up His life as a sacrifice for all. Today finds Him at the home of Simon, spending time with those He loved and continuing to teach them about the reality of what He came to do. In the midst of a discussion with the men, we find this story about a boldly courageous woman and her actions.
Here's what I'm struck with as I read this passage: this act was an enormous risk for her to take. She was a woman approaching a group of men, preparing to pour oil over one of them. I can only imagine the courage that it required for her to take that box and go to the house, to grab it from where she'd placed it when she entered, and to approach Christ as He sat with the others. Huge risk!
Yet, huge reward!
She took a chance; pushed herself to take action when prudence called for her to avoid it. Her love of the Savior eliminated her fear and drove her to leap off the cliff of safety and into the land of risk. She had to know that the outcome was uncertain but she also knew there was no choice for her in that moment but to express her adoration of Him with action. That He so vocally affirmed her simply reflects the depth of His compassion and love for those who pursue Him. For her, it was an outcome unknown and yet, in the risking, she received a beautiful new experience with her Savior.
I envy this woman. I so often fear and struggle to step out in total faith to the places where I'm uncertain and scared. Risky love frightens me and it is hard for me to be moved toward boldness. I am fearful at times to dump out the contents of my heart upon the Savior and discover what He has for me. Yet there are also moments when the imperfect love I have for the God who saved my soul drives out fear and I rush off the cliff into whatever He has called me to with arms open wide. Moments when I am so fully and completely aware that what I have in God is worth any rejection or ridicule that I might face from the world as I follow Him. Those are the moments that I love!
As I reflect on the action Mary took with her alabaster jar, I hope that I will grow ever more willing to follow the Lord completely with exuberance and the total faith that He will never fail and therefore I can risk when He calls me to do so. I want to be led by the Savior and open to taking chances even if they seem to be in places where the risk is too high. I want to break my very heart over the feet of Jesus and be willing to follow to whatever new places that action opens up before me.
I desire to live a life defined by following Christ above all fears. To know that when He calls, there is no risk so great that it outweighs the benefits of running after Him. He is always bigger than the risks. Now to just act!
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Vision
Be Thou My Vision
Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art.
Thou my best Thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.
Be Thou my Wisdom, and Thou my true Word;
I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord;
Thou my great Father, I Thy true son;
Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one.
Be Thou my battle Shield, Sword for the fight;
Be Thou my Dignity, Thou my Delight;
Thou my soul’s Shelter, Thou my high Tower:
Raise Thou me heavenward, O Power of my power.
Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,
Thou mine Inheritance, now and always:
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art.
High King of Heaven, my victory won,
May I reach Heaven’s joys, O bright Heaven’s Sun!
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all.
Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art.
Thou my best Thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.
Be Thou my Wisdom, and Thou my true Word;
I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord;
Thou my great Father, I Thy true son;
Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one.
Be Thou my battle Shield, Sword for the fight;
Be Thou my Dignity, Thou my Delight;
Thou my soul’s Shelter, Thou my high Tower:
Raise Thou me heavenward, O Power of my power.
Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,
Thou mine Inheritance, now and always:
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art.
High King of Heaven, my victory won,
May I reach Heaven’s joys, O bright Heaven’s Sun!
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all.
I just heard this hymn sung and it resonated deep within me. I so want my life to be always and forever caught up in the pursuit of God so that I'll find Him constantly to be my everything.
I feel like the stories that God is writing in my life right now are some of the biggest ones that I've ever walked through. My days are testimony after testimony of the greatness of the Lord and His never-ending compassion towards me, His child, and those around me. I stand amazed, completely overwhelmed, in awe of this One who gave all for me even knowing how often I would fail.
Jesus truly is everything. How I wish everyone understood the truth in that. Everything else is temporary but He will always be. Always. It honestly doesn't get any better than that!
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Happy Trust
Do not let this happy trust in the Lord die away, no matter what happens. Remember your reward! You need to keep on patiently doing God's will if you want him to do for you all that he has promised.
~Hebrews 10:35-36 (TLB)
No
Matter
What
Happens
This means always. This means that the situations and circumstances and joy and pain are not capable of eliminating our trust in the Lord. There is nothing outside of us that can force us to lose hope in our God.
Yet in all things we have a choice. We are able to decide that in our case, God can not handle things. We can choose to believe that He is incapable of meeting our needs or hearing our cries or loving us regardless of our sin. We can decide this but our circumstances can't force us to make that decision.
On the flip side, we can also choose to do as this verse says. To focus on what is to come and the promises that await and the eternal hope that God provides. We can choose to align ourselves with this truth and disregard those voices that tell us that God isn't who He says He is. It's not always easy. Our lives are hard. I would never disagree with that, never.
We're not without hope though. We're not without faith. We're not without trust.
May my every moment and conversation and relationship reflect that I believe this to be true with everything I have. Then my happy trust is based on the one thing that will never let me down and my joy is abundant and sincere.
And that's what living can look like.
It's your choice and mine.
~Hebrews 10:35-36 (TLB)
No
Matter
What
Happens
This means always. This means that the situations and circumstances and joy and pain are not capable of eliminating our trust in the Lord. There is nothing outside of us that can force us to lose hope in our God.
Yet in all things we have a choice. We are able to decide that in our case, God can not handle things. We can choose to believe that He is incapable of meeting our needs or hearing our cries or loving us regardless of our sin. We can decide this but our circumstances can't force us to make that decision.
On the flip side, we can also choose to do as this verse says. To focus on what is to come and the promises that await and the eternal hope that God provides. We can choose to align ourselves with this truth and disregard those voices that tell us that God isn't who He says He is. It's not always easy. Our lives are hard. I would never disagree with that, never.
We're not without hope though. We're not without faith. We're not without trust.
May my every moment and conversation and relationship reflect that I believe this to be true with everything I have. Then my happy trust is based on the one thing that will never let me down and my joy is abundant and sincere.
And that's what living can look like.
It's your choice and mine.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Hunger
There are people in the world so hungry,
that God cannot appear to them except in the form of bread.
~Mohandas Ghandi
that God cannot appear to them except in the form of bread.
~Mohandas Ghandi
Today, March 11, 2009, is Global Food Crisis Day.
I suspect that everyone who is reading this blog is doing so without feeling the effects of hunger. You're not worrying about whether your child will make it another day without food and you're not so very hungry that you can focus on nothing else. You've probably awoken today, had something for breakfast, and then began another day of work or whatever keeps you busy.
The life that you and I live is something that is completely foreign to many around the globe. In the time that it takes you to read this blog, 10 children in the world will draw their final breaths because of hunger-related issues. Tonight 1 in every 7 people will go to bed hungry.
This is truth. This is reality. This is life.
This is not your life but it is the life of those that you share this earth with. You might not be able to change the world but you can look for ways to change parts of it. Don't let today pass by without thinking of what difference you could make. Push yourself to connect with those who hunger. Acknowledge that they are husbands and wives and children and grandparents. They are very real people hurting in very real ways.
If you're looking for a way to make a difference, I encourage you to visit Compassion's Global Food Initiative website (or click the link on the right). They are actively engaged in reaching the least and loving them with the love of Christ by tangibly meeting their needs. You can join them in being Christ's hands and feet!
Remember the words of Jesus, "From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked." (Luke 12:48b) We have been entrusted with much and we must not close our eyes to those who desperately need help!
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