Belieber! Fame, Faith, and the Heart of Justin Bieber by Cathleen Falsani (Worthy Publishing, Sept 2011). He’s a household name if you have teenagers around or are tuned into the world of pop culture at all. His amazing voice, and heart for God and others has garnered him the attention of 11.3 million followers on Twitter, and another 3.3 million of Facebook. His influence on his generation is both undeniable and unprecedented.
“The way Justin uses social media and new technology to create and maintain relationships with his fans (and friends) is emblematic of the way in which his generation views and engages with the world. “
But where did this desire to build relationships via social networking come from? Could it be that God is honoring his number 1 desire: “to express to his fans more than anything else that God loves them.”
Falsani says, “Justin has a message beyond what many critics quickly dismiss as ‘puppy love.’ But it is about love—God’s love for everyone. And his fans are listening.”
Young people his age are still seeking an authentic connection with God—whom the vast majority believes exists. Many also believe in life after death, heaven and hell, angels, and even in miracles.
Justin is from a small town in Ontario, Canada. He committed his life to Jesus Christ when he was just six years old.
What’s his life like now? Justin prays before every concert, takes a Christian chaplain with him on tour, has a Christian tutor, and takes time for a Bible study every Sunday.
The kind of celebrity status Justin has achieved has many blessings, according to the author, “Financial prosperity, a rarified kind of influence on the world, privilege and access to experiences and people—President Obama has his cell phone number—which the rest of us only dream about. But there are drawbacks to Justin’s fame as well. His life as a private person ended when he was fourteen. He’s followed everywhere he goes by paparazzi, their camera, and videophones pointed at him, waiting for him to make a mistake.”
According to author Falsani, “He is sometimes painfully aware that his behavior—good or bad—sets an example for millions of fans around the globe, and he hates to disappoint them. That said, we—should be careful not to try to make him into some sort of Christian superhero. He is just as imperfect and vulnerable as the rest of us. The only difference is that his starlight shines a bit brighter than most of ours.”
Justin Bieber is never afraid to talk about his faith. In a video interview with AP in Los Angeles, November 1, 2010, he said: “I’m a Christian. I believe in God. I believe that Jesus died on the cross for my sins. I believe that … I have a relationship with him and I’m able t talk to him. And really, he’s the reason I’m here. So I definitely have to remember that. As soon as I start forgetting, you know, I have to like, click back and be like, ya know. This is why I’m here.”
This is a fun informative book for anyone wanting to know all the facts available about Justin. The author certainly did her homework in scanning every type of media to uncover the background, history, and current events in the life of this superstar. My granddaughter will be receiving it this month for her 14th birthday.
Saturday, November 5, 2011
Friday, November 4, 2011
Preparing My Heart for Grandparenting
Preparing My Heart for Grandparenting: For Grandparents At Any Stage of the Journey by Lydia E. Harris (AMG Bible Studies). www.PreparingMyHeart.net
“Grandparenting is filled with joy and tears. During our times of tears, Jesus treats us with compassion. If we follow His example and act with compassion toward our grandchildren, they will be attracted to Jesus and us. And that brings us joy.”
Looking forward to becoming a Grandma is both exciting and challenging. We are aware there will be challenges, but little do we know about the ways we are to be prepared to instill in our grandchildren the virtues of a Christ-like character.
In five weeks of guided but interactive Bible Study Lessons, Lydia has thought of it all and leads us through a biblical study to:
Prepare for a New Role
Prepare to Pray
Prepare to Model a Godly Life
Prepare to Invest in Their Lives
Prepare for Joy and Tears
Prepare to Make an Eternal Impact
Not only for new grandparents, but also a great refresher and pick-me-up for weary grandparents that aren’t sure how to face or work through all of the challenges they’ve been presented. When you’ve used up all your “entertain them and do it together” ideas, you’ll find a helpful selection of new activities in the “Celebrate! Holidays and Ordinary Days” section of this book.
Also helpful are the tips on: establishing traditions with the grandkids; taking them on memory making trips; and regardless of how many grandkids you are blessed to have – making each one feel special (on birthdays, recitals, school programs, sports events, and anything that is especially meaningful to that child).
And most important is the emphasis on praying – not only for our grandchildren but with our grandchildren. An old saying is “More is caught than taught.” And this is certainly true of teaching grandchildren to pray.
When my five grandchildren are gathered around our dining table and we ask, “Who’d like to say the blessing?” It is normally a race to see who can answer first – and much of the time it’s a tie and two children pray for the meal and the day and all that concerns them.
Lydia says, “We touch God’s heart and impact lives through prayer.” She also reminds us, “God promises to go before us: ‘I will go before you and will level the mountains’ (Isaiah 45:2). Whenever we come to a new day or a new problem, God is already there.”
This would make a great gift for yourself, a friend who needs help and encouragement in their grandparenting role, or someone about to welcome their first grandchild.
“Grandparenting is filled with joy and tears. During our times of tears, Jesus treats us with compassion. If we follow His example and act with compassion toward our grandchildren, they will be attracted to Jesus and us. And that brings us joy.”
Looking forward to becoming a Grandma is both exciting and challenging. We are aware there will be challenges, but little do we know about the ways we are to be prepared to instill in our grandchildren the virtues of a Christ-like character.
In five weeks of guided but interactive Bible Study Lessons, Lydia has thought of it all and leads us through a biblical study to:
Prepare for a New Role
Prepare to Pray
Prepare to Model a Godly Life
Prepare to Invest in Their Lives
Prepare for Joy and Tears
Prepare to Make an Eternal Impact
Not only for new grandparents, but also a great refresher and pick-me-up for weary grandparents that aren’t sure how to face or work through all of the challenges they’ve been presented. When you’ve used up all your “entertain them and do it together” ideas, you’ll find a helpful selection of new activities in the “Celebrate! Holidays and Ordinary Days” section of this book.
Also helpful are the tips on: establishing traditions with the grandkids; taking them on memory making trips; and regardless of how many grandkids you are blessed to have – making each one feel special (on birthdays, recitals, school programs, sports events, and anything that is especially meaningful to that child).
And most important is the emphasis on praying – not only for our grandchildren but with our grandchildren. An old saying is “More is caught than taught.” And this is certainly true of teaching grandchildren to pray.
When my five grandchildren are gathered around our dining table and we ask, “Who’d like to say the blessing?” It is normally a race to see who can answer first – and much of the time it’s a tie and two children pray for the meal and the day and all that concerns them.
Lydia says, “We touch God’s heart and impact lives through prayer.” She also reminds us, “God promises to go before us: ‘I will go before you and will level the mountains’ (Isaiah 45:2). Whenever we come to a new day or a new problem, God is already there.”
This would make a great gift for yourself, a friend who needs help and encouragement in their grandparenting role, or someone about to welcome their first grandchild.
Cinderella Campaign Rapidly Gains Strong Support
According to the investigative report, human trafficking is the world's third most lucrative illegal commercial activity, generating an estimated annual profit of $8 billion dollars. About 27 million live in slavery worldwide, and nearly every country is involved in trafficking activities as a country of origin, destination, or transit.
Salem, Ore. — The tale of Cinderella is filled with magic and awe. Little girls often dream about meeting their own princes after seeing the beloved tale.
For most women and children being trafficked through prostitution and other forms of slavery, however, the Cinderella life doesn’t end with a happy marriage. Instead, they find themselves in a world of pain, abuse, drugs, and violence.
In response, Corban University in Salem, Ore. has launched what it’s calling the Cinderella campaign.
The University has announced plans to donate part of its profits from a two-weekend run of “Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella” to anti-human trafficking ministry Shared Hope International based in Vancouver, Wash.
Corban’s “Cinderella” musical director Tamara McGinnis and David Sanford, Corban’s director of communications and public relations, urge anyone producing the show in 2012, 2013 or later to donate part of their proceeds to a 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to eliminating the suffering caused by human trafficking.
In only a week, the Cinderella campaign already has garnered strong support from influential leaders across the U.S. As of Friday, Nov. 4, supporters include:
· Linda Smith, founder, Shared Hope International, http://www.sharedhope.org/
· Hannah Farver, Texas, author, blogger and speaker, http://www.hannahfarver.com/
· Jocelyn C. Green, Iowa, award-winning author, http://jocelyngreen.blogspot.com/
· Penny Carothers, Washington, social justice editor, http://www.burnsidewriterscollective.com/
· Valerie Sjodin, Oregon, author, artist and workshop facilitator, http://www.valeriesjodin.com/
· Carma Lee, M.D., Oregon, physician and anti-human trafficking advocate
· Michael Tso, M.D., and Emily Tso, New Hampshire, director of training, His Mansion Ministries, http://www.hismansion.com/
· Ann Dunagan, Oregon, author and speaker, co-founder of Harvest Ministry, founder of Daring Daughters, http://www.harvestreport.net/
· Sheri Mueller, Illinois, co-founder of Growthtrac.com, currently working on her MBA at Olivet Nazarene University, http://www.growthtrac.com/
· Jane Kirkpatrick, Oregon, bestselling novelist and mental health professional, http://www.jkbooks.com/
· Suzie Slonaker, Washington, advocate for HIV/AIDS children and families
· Ginny Mooney, Florida, Emmy-award winning television producer and writer specializing in issues of faith and culture
· Joni Eareckson Tada, California, author, speaker and advocate for disabled persons, founder and CEO of Joni and Friends, http://www.joniandfriends.org/
· Traci Deis, Minnesota, author and editor who has been dubbed a "free agent abolitionist" by fellow anti-human-trafficking advocates in the Twin Cities, Minneapolis/St. Paul
· Clara Ruffin, Connecticut, National Christian Educator of the Year, co-founder of Ministry of the Open door, co-founder of Hartford Friendship Kids’ Camp
· Martha Bolton, Tennessee, Emmy nominated television writer, New York Times bestselling author, playwright, http://marthabolton.com/
· Julie Woodley, New York, author, speaker and founder of Restoring the Heart Ministries, http://www.rthm.cc/
· Alice Gray, Arizona, speaker and platinum bestselling author
· Jayne Schooler, Ohio, author, adoption educator, and international child welfare advocate, http://www.jayneschooler.com/
· Nancie Carmichael, Oregon, popular speaker and bestselling author, http://www.nanciecarmichael.com/
· Lindy Lowry, California, editor of Outreach magazine, http://twitter.com/lindylowry
· PeggySue Wells, South Carolina, author of a dozen books including co-author of The Slave Across the Street, http://peggysuewells.wordpress.com/books
· Tina Jacobson, Texas, mother of two daughters, advocate for innocent girls sold into slavery in India, and CEO and president of The B&B Media Group, Inc., http://www.tbbmedia.com/
· Shannon Niquette Ratliff, Indiana, fashion model, http://shannonstewartmodel.com/
· Rev. Ruth Tuttle Conard, South Carolina, founder and pastoral director, Designed To Be Pillars, http://www.designedtobepillars.org/
· Rita M. Nussli, Washington, associate director of Soul Formation, www.soulformation.org
· Lacey Hanson, District of Columbia, media rep for International Justice Mission, http://www.ijm.org/
· Tabitha Plueddemann, North Carolina, anti-trafficking activist and literary agent for God in a Brothel
· Tamara Park, author, speaker, and producer at the Halogen TV network, http://www.halogentv.com/, which frequently addresses the global human trafficking pandemic
· Elaine Wright Colvin, Founder/Director of WIN India for Jesus, which supports dozens of orphaned children whose parent(s) are dying of HIV/AIDS, http://writersinfonetwork.blogspot.com/
NOTE: To add your name to this list, please contact David Sanford at http://webmaila.juno.com/webmail/new/5?session_redirect=true&userinfo=90d27f7de9e785eaca7aeaf05ac6bdee&count=1320459728&type=no%2Dmagic&userinfo=90d27f7de9e785eaca7aeaf05ac6bdee&count=1274161721&randid=925571334.
#####
Corban University is an independent Christian university in Salem, Ore., and Tacoma Wash. with more than 50 majors and programs of study including professional, liberal arts, and ministries. Along with traditional and adult degree completion programs at the undergraduate level, Corban offers post-baccalaureate teacher licensure and graduate degrees in education, business administration, and counselor education. Corban’s mission is to educate Christians who will make a difference in the world for Jesus Christ. For more information go to http://www.corban.edu/ or call 503-375-7005.
Salem, Ore. — The tale of Cinderella is filled with magic and awe. Little girls often dream about meeting their own princes after seeing the beloved tale.
For most women and children being trafficked through prostitution and other forms of slavery, however, the Cinderella life doesn’t end with a happy marriage. Instead, they find themselves in a world of pain, abuse, drugs, and violence.
In response, Corban University in Salem, Ore. has launched what it’s calling the Cinderella campaign.
The University has announced plans to donate part of its profits from a two-weekend run of “Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella” to anti-human trafficking ministry Shared Hope International based in Vancouver, Wash.
Corban’s “Cinderella” musical director Tamara McGinnis and David Sanford, Corban’s director of communications and public relations, urge anyone producing the show in 2012, 2013 or later to donate part of their proceeds to a 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to eliminating the suffering caused by human trafficking.
In only a week, the Cinderella campaign already has garnered strong support from influential leaders across the U.S. As of Friday, Nov. 4, supporters include:
· Linda Smith, founder, Shared Hope International, http://www.sharedhope.org/
· Hannah Farver, Texas, author, blogger and speaker, http://www.hannahfarver.com/
· Jocelyn C. Green, Iowa, award-winning author, http://jocelyngreen.blogspot.com/
· Penny Carothers, Washington, social justice editor, http://www.burnsidewriterscollective.com/
· Valerie Sjodin, Oregon, author, artist and workshop facilitator, http://www.valeriesjodin.com/
· Carma Lee, M.D., Oregon, physician and anti-human trafficking advocate
· Michael Tso, M.D., and Emily Tso, New Hampshire, director of training, His Mansion Ministries, http://www.hismansion.com/
· Ann Dunagan, Oregon, author and speaker, co-founder of Harvest Ministry, founder of Daring Daughters, http://www.harvestreport.net/
· Sheri Mueller, Illinois, co-founder of Growthtrac.com, currently working on her MBA at Olivet Nazarene University, http://www.growthtrac.com/
· Jane Kirkpatrick, Oregon, bestselling novelist and mental health professional, http://www.jkbooks.com/
· Suzie Slonaker, Washington, advocate for HIV/AIDS children and families
· Ginny Mooney, Florida, Emmy-award winning television producer and writer specializing in issues of faith and culture
· Joni Eareckson Tada, California, author, speaker and advocate for disabled persons, founder and CEO of Joni and Friends, http://www.joniandfriends.org/
· Traci Deis, Minnesota, author and editor who has been dubbed a "free agent abolitionist" by fellow anti-human-trafficking advocates in the Twin Cities, Minneapolis/St. Paul
· Clara Ruffin, Connecticut, National Christian Educator of the Year, co-founder of Ministry of the Open door, co-founder of Hartford Friendship Kids’ Camp
· Martha Bolton, Tennessee, Emmy nominated television writer, New York Times bestselling author, playwright, http://marthabolton.com/
· Julie Woodley, New York, author, speaker and founder of Restoring the Heart Ministries, http://www.rthm.cc/
· Alice Gray, Arizona, speaker and platinum bestselling author
· Jayne Schooler, Ohio, author, adoption educator, and international child welfare advocate, http://www.jayneschooler.com/
· Nancie Carmichael, Oregon, popular speaker and bestselling author, http://www.nanciecarmichael.com/
· Lindy Lowry, California, editor of Outreach magazine, http://twitter.com/lindylowry
· PeggySue Wells, South Carolina, author of a dozen books including co-author of The Slave Across the Street, http://peggysuewells.wordpress.com/books
· Tina Jacobson, Texas, mother of two daughters, advocate for innocent girls sold into slavery in India, and CEO and president of The B&B Media Group, Inc., http://www.tbbmedia.com/
· Shannon Niquette Ratliff, Indiana, fashion model, http://shannonstewartmodel.com/
· Rev. Ruth Tuttle Conard, South Carolina, founder and pastoral director, Designed To Be Pillars, http://www.designedtobepillars.org/
· Rita M. Nussli, Washington, associate director of Soul Formation, www.soulformation.org
· Lacey Hanson, District of Columbia, media rep for International Justice Mission, http://www.ijm.org/
· Tabitha Plueddemann, North Carolina, anti-trafficking activist and literary agent for God in a Brothel
· Tamara Park, author, speaker, and producer at the Halogen TV network, http://www.halogentv.com/, which frequently addresses the global human trafficking pandemic
· Elaine Wright Colvin, Founder/Director of WIN India for Jesus, which supports dozens of orphaned children whose parent(s) are dying of HIV/AIDS, http://writersinfonetwork.blogspot.com/
NOTE: To add your name to this list, please contact David Sanford at http://webmaila.juno.com/webmail/new/5?session_redirect=true&userinfo=90d27f7de9e785eaca7aeaf05ac6bdee&count=1320459728&type=no%2Dmagic&userinfo=90d27f7de9e785eaca7aeaf05ac6bdee&count=1274161721&randid=925571334.
#####
Corban University is an independent Christian university in Salem, Ore., and Tacoma Wash. with more than 50 majors and programs of study including professional, liberal arts, and ministries. Along with traditional and adult degree completion programs at the undergraduate level, Corban offers post-baccalaureate teacher licensure and graduate degrees in education, business administration, and counselor education. Corban’s mission is to educate Christians who will make a difference in the world for Jesus Christ. For more information go to http://www.corban.edu/ or call 503-375-7005.
Sunday, August 21, 2011
God's Timelines For Us
Christian Retailing magazine (August 2011) reported on the opening session at this summer's ICRS in Atlanta. Quoting popular author and researcher George Barna (Tyndale House), he said: "We are entering a new golden era for books. We are not seeing the death of books; we are seeing the renaisance, the redefinition and the expansion of books."
Although technology and cultural shifts are dramatically redefining traditional publishing as we've known it for the past 25 years; most retailing practices have had to change; and authors and readers are doing things differently; that can point to new exciting times ahead. "All new things are born in the midst of chaos," Barna said.
If you are feeling displaced in the new era of e-books, agents, marketing decisions over editorial decisions, and making videos and peer analysis/ endorsements part of your marketing/media package, don't turn and run threatening to get out of this industry that you love. Instead, adjust!
Find the new place where you fit, where you have a way to address the "felt needs" of the audience that God has given you a message for. Find the place that God has appointed for you.
This weekend our church had the privilege of hearing messages from John Paul Jackson. (Listen to the audio online at the Island Church website: http://www.islandchurch.org/.) Don't Miss: "God's Timelines for Us." It will give your life new meaning as your digest the truth that God predetermined the times set for you -- and precisely the dates you would live (Acts 17:26). And no one in history can do what you can do. You are here at this time and in the exact place that He chose for you: "For such a time as this."
This gives a whole new meaning to "I must be about my Father's business." And it brings into a much more serious focus the prayer, "God, what do I need to do to serve your purposes that you selected I should do?"
God spared you. God protected you. God provided for you. You haven't missed God's timeline. Believe that God has a purpose for you, right now.
One more thing to think about: "Treat those you meet with respect and dignity no matter how insignificant they may seem. You never know how God will use them to help you or haunt you, depending upon your response to them" (1 Samuel 39:11-15 Life Application Bible Note).
Although technology and cultural shifts are dramatically redefining traditional publishing as we've known it for the past 25 years; most retailing practices have had to change; and authors and readers are doing things differently; that can point to new exciting times ahead. "All new things are born in the midst of chaos," Barna said.
If you are feeling displaced in the new era of e-books, agents, marketing decisions over editorial decisions, and making videos and peer analysis/ endorsements part of your marketing/media package, don't turn and run threatening to get out of this industry that you love. Instead, adjust!
Find the new place where you fit, where you have a way to address the "felt needs" of the audience that God has given you a message for. Find the place that God has appointed for you.
This weekend our church had the privilege of hearing messages from John Paul Jackson. (Listen to the audio online at the Island Church website: http://www.islandchurch.org/.) Don't Miss: "God's Timelines for Us." It will give your life new meaning as your digest the truth that God predetermined the times set for you -- and precisely the dates you would live (Acts 17:26). And no one in history can do what you can do. You are here at this time and in the exact place that He chose for you: "For such a time as this."
This gives a whole new meaning to "I must be about my Father's business." And it brings into a much more serious focus the prayer, "God, what do I need to do to serve your purposes that you selected I should do?"
God spared you. God protected you. God provided for you. You haven't missed God's timeline. Believe that God has a purpose for you, right now.
One more thing to think about: "Treat those you meet with respect and dignity no matter how insignificant they may seem. You never know how God will use them to help you or haunt you, depending upon your response to them" (1 Samuel 39:11-15 Life Application Bible Note).
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Doing Good
God's good is no ordinary good.
It calls us to forgive rather than retaliate.
It calls us to serve instead of furthering our own goals.
It calls us to community rather than to individualism.
It calls us to holiness rather than compromise.
It calls us to participate in the kingdom of God rather than to build our own systems and institutions.
It calls us to work for change in the world so that it will reflect God's values of justice and mercy.
"Therefore, whenever we have the oportunity, we should do good to everyone--especially to those in the family of faith." (Ephesians 6:10 NLT)
--Charles Ringma in Resist the Powers with Jacques Ellul
It calls us to forgive rather than retaliate.
It calls us to serve instead of furthering our own goals.
It calls us to community rather than to individualism.
It calls us to holiness rather than compromise.
It calls us to participate in the kingdom of God rather than to build our own systems and institutions.
It calls us to work for change in the world so that it will reflect God's values of justice and mercy.
"Therefore, whenever we have the oportunity, we should do good to everyone--especially to those in the family of faith." (Ephesians 6:10 NLT)
--Charles Ringma in Resist the Powers with Jacques Ellul
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Prayer for Writers and Speakers
"You proclaim your truth in every age by many voices. Direct those, we pray, who speak where many listen and write what many read; that they may do their part in making the heart of your people wise, its mind sound, and its will righteous."
-- from The Prayer for Those Who Influence Others
"It is not exactly news that a person who spends his life writing books, or trying to (some days a decent paragraph seems beyond me), would love books. It is not astonishing to think that books would have affected me so. What is surprising, to me at least, is not that they had so much to do with my writing life. It is that they have had so much to do with my praying life." -- Robert Benson in Living Prayer
-- from The Prayer for Those Who Influence Others
"It is not exactly news that a person who spends his life writing books, or trying to (some days a decent paragraph seems beyond me), would love books. It is not astonishing to think that books would have affected me so. What is surprising, to me at least, is not that they had so much to do with my writing life. It is that they have had so much to do with my praying life." -- Robert Benson in Living Prayer
Thursday, May 19, 2011
When Did You Last Display Love In Action?
Nothing impedes a person's ability to change more than the idea that nothing can improve your present situation, and that your social strata is scripted by destiny. Nothing brings hope to the poor except realizing God is the great change agent who invites the poor to well-being and deliverance.
"Why is it that we keep giving dimes without daring to look into the face of the beggar?" asks Henri Nouwen
There is poverty all around us – in the First World as well as in the Third World.
There is poverty of spirit, of relationship, of community. There is spiritual poverty where worship and prayer have become absent from people’s lives. There are the permanently unemployed, the disabled, the alcoholic, and the drug addict.
But the question is: Are all of these living in poverty just strangers to us? Have we ever shared a cup of coffee or a meal? Offered true companionship? Stopped long enough to sit with them and hear their heart cry?
There must come a time when “companionship” becomes the call to integrity. It means we clasp the beggars hand, break bread together, and join one another in the journey toward wholeness. (Charles Ringma)
“If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don’t love, I’ve gotten nowhere. So no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I’m bankrupt without love” (1 Cor. 13:3 Message).
Everywhere there are opportunities and challenges to love, to care, to give. “The poor you will always have with you” (Matthew 26:11). Have you become blind to the needs?
As Mother Teresa said, “The needs are always greater than our ability to meet them.” Her work in Calcutta was among the poorest of the poor, including lepers and abandoned children. Throughout India, the needs defy counting. The challenges are staggering.
Love in action gives us the opportunity to help and bless others. This often opens the way for sharing the good news of the gospel. “The deeds of the gospel make way for the words of the gospel.” – Charles Ringma
And isn’t this our Calling: the call to care for, proclaim good news to, and advocate on behalf of those who are needy. “And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased” (Hebrews 13:16).
Reflection: Giving opens us to mysterious graces because it brings us in touch with the heart of God. – Charles Ringma
"Why is it that we keep giving dimes without daring to look into the face of the beggar?" asks Henri Nouwen
There is poverty all around us – in the First World as well as in the Third World.
There is poverty of spirit, of relationship, of community. There is spiritual poverty where worship and prayer have become absent from people’s lives. There are the permanently unemployed, the disabled, the alcoholic, and the drug addict.
But the question is: Are all of these living in poverty just strangers to us? Have we ever shared a cup of coffee or a meal? Offered true companionship? Stopped long enough to sit with them and hear their heart cry?
There must come a time when “companionship” becomes the call to integrity. It means we clasp the beggars hand, break bread together, and join one another in the journey toward wholeness. (Charles Ringma)
“If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don’t love, I’ve gotten nowhere. So no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I’m bankrupt without love” (1 Cor. 13:3 Message).
Everywhere there are opportunities and challenges to love, to care, to give. “The poor you will always have with you” (Matthew 26:11). Have you become blind to the needs?
As Mother Teresa said, “The needs are always greater than our ability to meet them.” Her work in Calcutta was among the poorest of the poor, including lepers and abandoned children. Throughout India, the needs defy counting. The challenges are staggering.
Love in action gives us the opportunity to help and bless others. This often opens the way for sharing the good news of the gospel. “The deeds of the gospel make way for the words of the gospel.” – Charles Ringma
And isn’t this our Calling: the call to care for, proclaim good news to, and advocate on behalf of those who are needy. “And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased” (Hebrews 13:16).
Reflection: Giving opens us to mysterious graces because it brings us in touch with the heart of God. – Charles Ringma
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Do Your Mind, Soul, and Body Need Helping?
The only resistance to Satan and the doubts and questions he dogs us with is to flee – flee to Jesus; flee to that place where we find protection and help; flee to the crucified. Flee to Christ for His purging, protection, and empowering.
With these thoughts I knew I needed a vacation. I booked a plane ticket for a short get-away trip to Hawaii, where I envisioned sitting on a beach, watching waves and sunsets, and visiting with good friends I knew were at the University of the Nations (YWAM).
The day of my trip, I prayed the words of Charles Ringma: “Lord, I come to You acknowledging my weakness and vulnerability. I pray not only for your protection, but more particularly for your strengthening and transformation. Amen.”
Running deep in my thoughts was the theme: Learning to live well.
It had been a week of too many losses (my cousin at age 57 from brain cancer; an acquaintance in his 70s, and a favorite 95-year-old man at our church from a stroke). I remembered the Scripture, “Oh! Teach us to live well! Teach us to live wisely and well!”(Psalm 90:12); and earlier in the same Psalm we’re reminded: “We live for 70 years or so (with luck we might make it to 80), and what do we have to show for it?”
On my way to the airport, I’d stopped by the doctor’s office for results of recent xrays – only to learn that I needed to make some tough decisions that could have long-reaching effects on my quality of life. And this too was feeding my thoughts.
“Lord, how long do we have? How do you want us to spend our remaining days for your Kingdom glory? What’s important to you – the one who has numbered all of our days?”
Arriving in Hawaii and settling into my hotel room, I again asked God for a specific word before going to speak to a group of authors seeking marketing tips for their new books. Although I sometimes wonder in my heart, my head knowledge tells me that God is simply waiting for us to ask – and He will meet us at our point of need. But this time, the directness of His answer in my devotional book blew me away:
“I come, I come. You need Me. Live much out here. My sunshine, My glorious air, My presence, My teaching. Would they not make holiday anywhere for you. Sunshine helps to make glad the heart of man. It is the laughter of Nature. Live much outside. My medicines are sun and air, trust and faith. Trust is the spirit sun, your being enwrapped by the Divine Spirit. Mind, soul, and body need helping. Welcome my treatment for you. Draw near to me. Nature is often My nurse of tired souls and weary bodies. Let her have her way with you.” (A. J. Russell in God Calling, August 17)
It is in these times when we know we have heard from God that we can say with David the Psalmist: “He has never let you down, never looked the other way when you were being kicked around. He has never wandered off to do his own thing; he has been right there, listening” (Psalm 22:24 The Message).
With these thoughts I knew I needed a vacation. I booked a plane ticket for a short get-away trip to Hawaii, where I envisioned sitting on a beach, watching waves and sunsets, and visiting with good friends I knew were at the University of the Nations (YWAM).
The day of my trip, I prayed the words of Charles Ringma: “Lord, I come to You acknowledging my weakness and vulnerability. I pray not only for your protection, but more particularly for your strengthening and transformation. Amen.”
Running deep in my thoughts was the theme: Learning to live well.
It had been a week of too many losses (my cousin at age 57 from brain cancer; an acquaintance in his 70s, and a favorite 95-year-old man at our church from a stroke). I remembered the Scripture, “Oh! Teach us to live well! Teach us to live wisely and well!”(Psalm 90:12); and earlier in the same Psalm we’re reminded: “We live for 70 years or so (with luck we might make it to 80), and what do we have to show for it?”
On my way to the airport, I’d stopped by the doctor’s office for results of recent xrays – only to learn that I needed to make some tough decisions that could have long-reaching effects on my quality of life. And this too was feeding my thoughts.
“Lord, how long do we have? How do you want us to spend our remaining days for your Kingdom glory? What’s important to you – the one who has numbered all of our days?”
Arriving in Hawaii and settling into my hotel room, I again asked God for a specific word before going to speak to a group of authors seeking marketing tips for their new books. Although I sometimes wonder in my heart, my head knowledge tells me that God is simply waiting for us to ask – and He will meet us at our point of need. But this time, the directness of His answer in my devotional book blew me away:
“I come, I come. You need Me. Live much out here. My sunshine, My glorious air, My presence, My teaching. Would they not make holiday anywhere for you. Sunshine helps to make glad the heart of man. It is the laughter of Nature. Live much outside. My medicines are sun and air, trust and faith. Trust is the spirit sun, your being enwrapped by the Divine Spirit. Mind, soul, and body need helping. Welcome my treatment for you. Draw near to me. Nature is often My nurse of tired souls and weary bodies. Let her have her way with you.” (A. J. Russell in God Calling, August 17)
It is in these times when we know we have heard from God that we can say with David the Psalmist: “He has never let you down, never looked the other way when you were being kicked around. He has never wandered off to do his own thing; he has been right there, listening” (Psalm 22:24 The Message).
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Surprised by A Friend's Question
It was about five-years ago when out-of-the-blue, a friend said, "God has asked me to wash your feet. May I wash your feet?”
Yes, I was shocked. Although I knew about and had watched foot-washing services, it had not been a part of my Baptist upbringing. It was something I always associated with either more liturgical or Pentecostal churches.
The experience was life-changing. A sign-post on my spiritual journey. For me, it was an example of someone being so sold-out to God they were willing to do anything, no matter how awkward or unusual. It also sent a very clear message to me that God knew my deepest needs and heart-cry and He was indeed anointing me for further service as I would soon be making my mission trip to India.
John 14:13 The Message, says: “So if I, the Master and Teacher, washed your feet, you must now wash each other’s feet. I’ve laid down a pattern for you. What I’ve done, you do.”
Before the Passover meal, Jesus demonstrated how Christians are to love one another through humble service. Jesus said, “Let me give you a new command. Love one another. In the same way I loved you, you love one another. This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—when they see the love you have for each other.”(John 13:34-35 Message)
This commandment to love one another came as a precursor to the very manifestation of the "mandate" —as Christ allowed Himself to be tortured and crucified as a sign of His total obedience unto God the Father and His love for all people.
As we bow down like humble servants, we learn the obedience of Christ that ushers in the kingdom of God’s love. Symbolically washing someone’s feet is a way of restoring them to their best for the Lord and others. By our love, we encourage people to rise above their shackling circumstances and enable them to walk upright in their anointed Calling.
How wonderful that our own difficulties need not prevent us from doing good, that in spite of our own pain, we can still bring encouragement to others!
“It is clearly not true that we have to be perfect before we can help another person. Frequently a ‘wounded healer’ is used to bring hope and well-being to another, which results in growth well beyond that experienced by the giver. Sometimes the wounded healer can bring to the other the very blessing and healing for which the healer himself or herself is seeking.” – Charles Ringma
Henri Nouwen reminds us that frequently one “must look after his own wounds, but at the same time be prepared to heal the wounds of others.”
The practice of washing another’s feet reminds us of the biblical principles of servant-hood, humility, and forgiveness. Foot-washing is symbolic and reminds us that we are called to serve others—for the glory of God.
Many churches practice foot-washing ceremonies as part of their Maundy Thursday services, but how much more life-changing when foot-washing happens anytime just because of the Holy Spirit’s leading, friend-to-friend.
Yes, I was shocked. Although I knew about and had watched foot-washing services, it had not been a part of my Baptist upbringing. It was something I always associated with either more liturgical or Pentecostal churches.
The experience was life-changing. A sign-post on my spiritual journey. For me, it was an example of someone being so sold-out to God they were willing to do anything, no matter how awkward or unusual. It also sent a very clear message to me that God knew my deepest needs and heart-cry and He was indeed anointing me for further service as I would soon be making my mission trip to India.
John 14:13 The Message, says: “So if I, the Master and Teacher, washed your feet, you must now wash each other’s feet. I’ve laid down a pattern for you. What I’ve done, you do.”
Before the Passover meal, Jesus demonstrated how Christians are to love one another through humble service. Jesus said, “Let me give you a new command. Love one another. In the same way I loved you, you love one another. This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—when they see the love you have for each other.”(John 13:34-35 Message)
This commandment to love one another came as a precursor to the very manifestation of the "mandate" —as Christ allowed Himself to be tortured and crucified as a sign of His total obedience unto God the Father and His love for all people.
As we bow down like humble servants, we learn the obedience of Christ that ushers in the kingdom of God’s love. Symbolically washing someone’s feet is a way of restoring them to their best for the Lord and others. By our love, we encourage people to rise above their shackling circumstances and enable them to walk upright in their anointed Calling.
How wonderful that our own difficulties need not prevent us from doing good, that in spite of our own pain, we can still bring encouragement to others!
“It is clearly not true that we have to be perfect before we can help another person. Frequently a ‘wounded healer’ is used to bring hope and well-being to another, which results in growth well beyond that experienced by the giver. Sometimes the wounded healer can bring to the other the very blessing and healing for which the healer himself or herself is seeking.” – Charles Ringma
Henri Nouwen reminds us that frequently one “must look after his own wounds, but at the same time be prepared to heal the wounds of others.”
The practice of washing another’s feet reminds us of the biblical principles of servant-hood, humility, and forgiveness. Foot-washing is symbolic and reminds us that we are called to serve others—for the glory of God.
Many churches practice foot-washing ceremonies as part of their Maundy Thursday services, but how much more life-changing when foot-washing happens anytime just because of the Holy Spirit’s leading, friend-to-friend.
Friday, March 25, 2011
I Have A Dream
[“…there will also be some who are the visionaries, who can see new possibilities and who call for change.” --- Martin Luther King Jr.]
Yesterday, my business lunch date, an editor from a nearby city newspaper and author of several books, excused himself to go to the restroom. I watched him walk from the table and when I turned back to my soup bowl, I was shocked to find a young lady kneeling beside my chair.
“Excuse me, I’m sorry, I don’t mean to interrupt,” she stammered. “But I couldn’t help but overhear the words you were saying, ‘writing, God, India, orphans.’ Who are you and what do you do? These are not words I usually hear around here.”
We talked fast as I tried to give a brief explanation of what she had heard: who I am and what I do. She was totally overwhelmed because her God had been leading her to believe she is to go to India for at least a year and work in an orphanage.
“We have so much here and they have nothing. I can afford to go. I want my life to count for something. But my friends don’t understand and they think I’m crazy. I really don’t know anyone in India and I’m just starting my search for connections.”
I was more than happy to give her my business card, along with a few serious warnings about being very careful as to whom she goes to work for. There are plenty of horror stories of USA college-age girls being taken advantage of when they go to work for some of the orphan businesses (unfortunately many are in it for the money you can bring them).
I could hear the wistfulness in her voice. I saw the excitement and yearning in her body language. I felt her heart motivation to help the poorest of the poor. I am looking forward to getting together with Tracey soon and learning more about her heart-call to India.
As Charles Ringma said in “Let My People Go With Martin Luther King Jr.”: “Discontent may be the first glimmer of light. It may lead to a growing hope that things could be different. And hope may lead to an emerging vision of what is possible. To say to the oppressed that they should not be discontent is to condemn them to the dark night of subexistence. Rather, discontent is the harbinger of hope.”
I also heard clearly that still, small voice saying, “Elaine, this is what I mean by being salt and light. How can I use you in my harvest field right here in your hometown if you are always stuck in your office at your computer? I need you to be a witness here on your island. I need you to bloom right where I’ve placed you – and then I can bless you in all the traveling you want to do.”
“Seek good, not evil, that you may live. Then the Lord God Almighty will be with you, just as you say he is. Hate evil, love good; maintain justice in the courts” (Amos 5:14-15 NIV).
Yesterday, my business lunch date, an editor from a nearby city newspaper and author of several books, excused himself to go to the restroom. I watched him walk from the table and when I turned back to my soup bowl, I was shocked to find a young lady kneeling beside my chair.
“Excuse me, I’m sorry, I don’t mean to interrupt,” she stammered. “But I couldn’t help but overhear the words you were saying, ‘writing, God, India, orphans.’ Who are you and what do you do? These are not words I usually hear around here.”
We talked fast as I tried to give a brief explanation of what she had heard: who I am and what I do. She was totally overwhelmed because her God had been leading her to believe she is to go to India for at least a year and work in an orphanage.
“We have so much here and they have nothing. I can afford to go. I want my life to count for something. But my friends don’t understand and they think I’m crazy. I really don’t know anyone in India and I’m just starting my search for connections.”
I was more than happy to give her my business card, along with a few serious warnings about being very careful as to whom she goes to work for. There are plenty of horror stories of USA college-age girls being taken advantage of when they go to work for some of the orphan businesses (unfortunately many are in it for the money you can bring them).
I could hear the wistfulness in her voice. I saw the excitement and yearning in her body language. I felt her heart motivation to help the poorest of the poor. I am looking forward to getting together with Tracey soon and learning more about her heart-call to India.
As Charles Ringma said in “Let My People Go With Martin Luther King Jr.”: “Discontent may be the first glimmer of light. It may lead to a growing hope that things could be different. And hope may lead to an emerging vision of what is possible. To say to the oppressed that they should not be discontent is to condemn them to the dark night of subexistence. Rather, discontent is the harbinger of hope.”
I also heard clearly that still, small voice saying, “Elaine, this is what I mean by being salt and light. How can I use you in my harvest field right here in your hometown if you are always stuck in your office at your computer? I need you to be a witness here on your island. I need you to bloom right where I’ve placed you – and then I can bless you in all the traveling you want to do.”
“Seek good, not evil, that you may live. Then the Lord God Almighty will be with you, just as you say he is. Hate evil, love good; maintain justice in the courts” (Amos 5:14-15 NIV).
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
He's Listening! He's Really Listening!
As part of my personal journey during Lent, I went to my bookshelves and pulled down a book I've owned for years but never carefully read. (I have thousands of books that would fall into this category.) The book God led me to is: SEASONS OF PRAYER: Rediscovering Classics Prayers Through the Christian Calendar by Donna Fletcher Crow (Beacon Hill Press, 2000).
Today the chapter I read "The Dark Night of the Soul: Good Friday" resonated deeply. But it is this particular story which Donna tells that so many of us can identify with. Donna is asking her friend, Saundra, who has nine children: What do you do when your baby won't sleep through the night? Saundra's response was:
"I get up with them. You know, you don't really lose that much sleep and sometimes that's the only time I have in the whole day to be alone with that baby and cuddle it. But you can spoil them. I did that with Travis. He was getting me up at 5:30 every morning for a playtime. It was my fault, but he had to suffer for it when it came time that we had to cry it out.
"I lay in the next room listening to him and cried right along with him. But you know, the Lord showed me something really special--Travis didn't know I was in the next room suffering with him, but I was.
“Sometimes I don't know where God is when I have a problem, but He's right in the next room crying with me."
And so must God the Father have cried when His Son was alone on the Cross, abandoned to our sins. But God was faithful.
Easter morning followed Good Friday. Morning sunrise follows the dark of midnight. Springtime flowers burst forth after the coldest winter. God is always faithful. No matter what despair we may experience, we can rely on God's faithfulness (pages 67-68).
And once again God pointed me to His confirmation of this truth in Psalm 22:24-27 New Living Translation):
For he has not ignored the suffering of the needy.
He has not turned and walked away.
He has listened to their cries for help.
The poor will eat and be satisfied.
All who seek the LORD will praise him.
Their hearts will rejoice with everlasting joy.
The whole earth will acknowledge the LORD and return to him.
People from every nation will bow down before him.
For the LORD is king!
He rules all the nations.
“Thank you, Jesus, that you haven’t left us to cry alone. That you do bring deliverance to which we can give public testimony. God, thank you that you come to us in the quiet moments when we are hurting. Because of your compassionate faithfulness, we are assured that you are listening and will come to our rescue."
Today the chapter I read "The Dark Night of the Soul: Good Friday" resonated deeply. But it is this particular story which Donna tells that so many of us can identify with. Donna is asking her friend, Saundra, who has nine children: What do you do when your baby won't sleep through the night? Saundra's response was:
"I get up with them. You know, you don't really lose that much sleep and sometimes that's the only time I have in the whole day to be alone with that baby and cuddle it. But you can spoil them. I did that with Travis. He was getting me up at 5:30 every morning for a playtime. It was my fault, but he had to suffer for it when it came time that we had to cry it out.
"I lay in the next room listening to him and cried right along with him. But you know, the Lord showed me something really special--Travis didn't know I was in the next room suffering with him, but I was.
“Sometimes I don't know where God is when I have a problem, but He's right in the next room crying with me."
And so must God the Father have cried when His Son was alone on the Cross, abandoned to our sins. But God was faithful.
Easter morning followed Good Friday. Morning sunrise follows the dark of midnight. Springtime flowers burst forth after the coldest winter. God is always faithful. No matter what despair we may experience, we can rely on God's faithfulness (pages 67-68).
And once again God pointed me to His confirmation of this truth in Psalm 22:24-27 New Living Translation):
For he has not ignored the suffering of the needy.
He has not turned and walked away.
He has listened to their cries for help.
The poor will eat and be satisfied.
All who seek the LORD will praise him.
Their hearts will rejoice with everlasting joy.
The whole earth will acknowledge the LORD and return to him.
People from every nation will bow down before him.
For the LORD is king!
He rules all the nations.
“Thank you, Jesus, that you haven’t left us to cry alone. That you do bring deliverance to which we can give public testimony. God, thank you that you come to us in the quiet moments when we are hurting. Because of your compassionate faithfulness, we are assured that you are listening and will come to our rescue."
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Why? Why? Why?
“Life is hard and full of deep valleys that we walk, run, or even limp through to the best of our ability. Sometimes we simply don’t know why we’re there. Sometimes we don’t know why stinky things happen. Sometimes we don’t know why God doesn’t show up, why our prayers don’t get answered, or why he doesn’t fix our problem.
“Sometimes a surrender is necessary for us to continue in faith … By admitting that we don’t understand everything and by simply trusting God that somehow in some way, and at some time, everything that has happened or is happening in our lives is going to come together for a good purpose.” (A.J. Gregory in Silent Savior, Revell, 2009)
The Message says it well, “We can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good” (Romans 8:28).
This kind of faith is just plain hard to maintain when our life, the evening news, the events swirling around us keep calling out “WHY?” And those of us who by calling or choice are writers, reporter-types, seem to be born with a higher than natural dose of “need to know.”
Haven’t we all wanted to ask: “Where is God at a time like this?”
We asked it after 9/11; we ask it today as we sit glued to the news of the tens of thousands of people lost in the earthquake and Tsunami in Japan; we’ve asked it this last year as too many friends and loved ones were taken from us too soon; and I ask it tonight after learning the brilliant young Assembly of God pastor and Bible teacher died of the horrible ALS disease.
Frederick Buechner wrote vividly expressing our doubts: “Whether your faith is that there is a God or that there is not a God, if you don’t have any doubts you are either kidding yourself or asleep. Doubts are the ants in the pants of faith. They keep it awake and moving.”
“No matter where we are in our individual journeys of faith, the Voice in our soul continues to call us to move out, to go deeper, to explore further, to widen our horizons — to move, ultimately, into a more intimate relationship with God.” (Penelope Stokes in Faith: The Substance of Things Unseen, Tyndale, 1995).
And so it is during this season of Lent 2011, I have chosen to create times of solitude and study “faith” – as much to articulate it for myself as to try and help anyone else understand it. For who can improve on Hebrews 11:1: “The fundamental fact of existence is that this trust in God, this faith, is the firm foundation under everything that makes life worth living. It’s our handle on what we can’t see” (The Message).
Eugene Peterson reminds us: “Our main and central task is to live in responsive obedience to God’s action revealed in Jesus. Our part in the action is the act of faith.”
“Sometimes a surrender is necessary for us to continue in faith … By admitting that we don’t understand everything and by simply trusting God that somehow in some way, and at some time, everything that has happened or is happening in our lives is going to come together for a good purpose.” (A.J. Gregory in Silent Savior, Revell, 2009)
The Message says it well, “We can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good” (Romans 8:28).
This kind of faith is just plain hard to maintain when our life, the evening news, the events swirling around us keep calling out “WHY?” And those of us who by calling or choice are writers, reporter-types, seem to be born with a higher than natural dose of “need to know.”
Haven’t we all wanted to ask: “Where is God at a time like this?”
We asked it after 9/11; we ask it today as we sit glued to the news of the tens of thousands of people lost in the earthquake and Tsunami in Japan; we’ve asked it this last year as too many friends and loved ones were taken from us too soon; and I ask it tonight after learning the brilliant young Assembly of God pastor and Bible teacher died of the horrible ALS disease.
Frederick Buechner wrote vividly expressing our doubts: “Whether your faith is that there is a God or that there is not a God, if you don’t have any doubts you are either kidding yourself or asleep. Doubts are the ants in the pants of faith. They keep it awake and moving.”
“No matter where we are in our individual journeys of faith, the Voice in our soul continues to call us to move out, to go deeper, to explore further, to widen our horizons — to move, ultimately, into a more intimate relationship with God.” (Penelope Stokes in Faith: The Substance of Things Unseen, Tyndale, 1995).
And so it is during this season of Lent 2011, I have chosen to create times of solitude and study “faith” – as much to articulate it for myself as to try and help anyone else understand it. For who can improve on Hebrews 11:1: “The fundamental fact of existence is that this trust in God, this faith, is the firm foundation under everything that makes life worth living. It’s our handle on what we can’t see” (The Message).
Eugene Peterson reminds us: “Our main and central task is to live in responsive obedience to God’s action revealed in Jesus. Our part in the action is the act of faith.”
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Running From The Loneliness
No abundance of friends, no number of different marriages, no quantity of moves to new cities can ever take the loneliness away.
"Jesus experienced the loneliness of being misunderstood immediately after giving a series of discourses regarding his identity. He had explained that he was the bread of life, the source of living water, and the light of the world. In addition to all this teaching, Jesus had lived among the people, walked their roads, healed their sick, and fed their hungry. But even after all this, the people still asked him, 'Who are you?'" -- M. Craig Barnes (Sacred Thirst)
"Each of us has a deep-seated need to be significant, unique, connected, and enjoying a powerful relationship with God that is relevant to our everyday life. We have an unquenched hunger to understand and to be understood. ... Loneliness disguised as incompatibility and generated from failing to be understood is the enemy of many marriages. The pain of having no one with similar beliefs, convictions, and choices of recreation leaves both spouses feeling isolated." -- John D. Carlson (Passion for His Presence--Entering His Gates)
Mother Terresa said it well: "Suffering, pain, sorrow, humiliation, feelings of loneliness, are nothing but the kiss of Jesus."
It is our loneliness, our "suffering that so often causes us to see our need. It is our suffering that makes us cry out to God." -- Charles Ringma (Wash the Feet of the World)
"God has not forgotten about our dark nights of restless sorrow. Only when we discover God in the darkest moments of life will we believe that he can and will make the sun finally rise and the new day dawn.
To stand alone in the presence of God is to stand in a place of transformation. There our lonely hearts are reformed and transformed with deep emotions such as joy, love, and compassion for those around us.
It is only in solitude with God that we discover the sufficiency of a God who also yearns for us--so much so that in Jesus Christ he came looking for us.
So instead of running from the loneliness, stay with it. Stare it straight in the eye, and turn it into a prayer of confession. It is the only way to hear the word of the Lord: I HAVE NOT LEFT YOU ALONE." -- M. Craig Barnes (emphasis mine)
Loneliness drives us to aloneness. Aloneness drives us to solitude.
Henri Nouwen reminds us, "Solitude is the way in which we grow into the realization that where we are most alone, we are most loved by God. It is a quality of heart, an inner quality that helps us to accept our aloneness lovingly, as a gift from God."
The Heart can only be satisfied by the One who created it. The yearning is for God.
"Jesus experienced the loneliness of being misunderstood immediately after giving a series of discourses regarding his identity. He had explained that he was the bread of life, the source of living water, and the light of the world. In addition to all this teaching, Jesus had lived among the people, walked their roads, healed their sick, and fed their hungry. But even after all this, the people still asked him, 'Who are you?'" -- M. Craig Barnes (Sacred Thirst)
"Each of us has a deep-seated need to be significant, unique, connected, and enjoying a powerful relationship with God that is relevant to our everyday life. We have an unquenched hunger to understand and to be understood. ... Loneliness disguised as incompatibility and generated from failing to be understood is the enemy of many marriages. The pain of having no one with similar beliefs, convictions, and choices of recreation leaves both spouses feeling isolated." -- John D. Carlson (Passion for His Presence--Entering His Gates)
Mother Terresa said it well: "Suffering, pain, sorrow, humiliation, feelings of loneliness, are nothing but the kiss of Jesus."
It is our loneliness, our "suffering that so often causes us to see our need. It is our suffering that makes us cry out to God." -- Charles Ringma (Wash the Feet of the World)
"God has not forgotten about our dark nights of restless sorrow. Only when we discover God in the darkest moments of life will we believe that he can and will make the sun finally rise and the new day dawn.
To stand alone in the presence of God is to stand in a place of transformation. There our lonely hearts are reformed and transformed with deep emotions such as joy, love, and compassion for those around us.
It is only in solitude with God that we discover the sufficiency of a God who also yearns for us--so much so that in Jesus Christ he came looking for us.
So instead of running from the loneliness, stay with it. Stare it straight in the eye, and turn it into a prayer of confession. It is the only way to hear the word of the Lord: I HAVE NOT LEFT YOU ALONE." -- M. Craig Barnes (emphasis mine)
Loneliness drives us to aloneness. Aloneness drives us to solitude.
Henri Nouwen reminds us, "Solitude is the way in which we grow into the realization that where we are most alone, we are most loved by God. It is a quality of heart, an inner quality that helps us to accept our aloneness lovingly, as a gift from God."
The Heart can only be satisfied by the One who created it. The yearning is for God.
Monday, February 21, 2011
Don't Look Back
DON’T LOOK BACK
By all means, Jesus cautions us: Don’t look back. It will only make the journey harder.
If we are going to follow him, our lives are going to keep moving and things and people keep changing around on us. Why?
Why must we keep saying good-bye to people we love?
Why must we keep growing and changing and maturing?
Why do we have to keep losing things along the way—our health, our families, and our dreams?
One of the greatest temptations to look back comes from all the hurt we have left behind, hurt that still screams for our attention. Maybe it is hurt we caused; perhaps it is hurt someone else caused. Or it may be a hurt caused simply by the volatility of life.
No one ever continues to learn without recalling the past to some extent. Jesus is not taking the past away from us—but he is making it painfully clear that LIFE always takes us down the road. We must keep moving in order to get there, and allow him to hold the past for us in his loving hands.
There is a reason why we bury our dead. It is, after all, a way of placing them into the arms of God so he can carry them and we can move on. It can be hard to leave behind the life we have enjoyed and to keep moving—unless we really can see Jesus along the way.
The New Jerusalem comes at the end of the story. So, for now, we will always be clearer about what Jesus is asking us to give up than about where he is taking us. Along the way to Jerusalem, Jesus may take us places where we would rather not go. He may bring gifts into our lives we would rather not have.
Each year of our lives, he will invite us to drop some of the things we are carrying, because these things are becoming too heavy. They weigh us down, and we’re holding them too tightly. Jesus does all of this simply to get us into the new holy Jerusalem, where our salvation becomes clear and perfect.
This is why we put our hands to the plow and do the work we’ve been given to do today. It’s all a way of seeing Jesus. And we’ve got to keep our eyes on him, or we’ll never make it to the Holy City.
Christians equipped for right living are prepared for losses, crosses, changes, and conflicts. They bow low, walk tall, and fight hard all the time. No matter how dark the days we face, we must make it our continual practice to acknowledge God’s sovereignty over our world.
Let’s tell Him regularly how grateful we are that He has the final word.
“Look straight ahead, and fix your eyes on what lies before you. Mark out a straight path for your feet; stay on the safe path. Don’t get sidetracked; keep your feet from following evil” (Proverbs 4:25-27 NLT).
(Some of these thoughts are adapted from M. Craig Barnes in Sacred Thirst: Meeting God in the Desert of Our Longings)
By all means, Jesus cautions us: Don’t look back. It will only make the journey harder.
If we are going to follow him, our lives are going to keep moving and things and people keep changing around on us. Why?
Why must we keep saying good-bye to people we love?
Why must we keep growing and changing and maturing?
Why do we have to keep losing things along the way—our health, our families, and our dreams?
One of the greatest temptations to look back comes from all the hurt we have left behind, hurt that still screams for our attention. Maybe it is hurt we caused; perhaps it is hurt someone else caused. Or it may be a hurt caused simply by the volatility of life.
No one ever continues to learn without recalling the past to some extent. Jesus is not taking the past away from us—but he is making it painfully clear that LIFE always takes us down the road. We must keep moving in order to get there, and allow him to hold the past for us in his loving hands.
There is a reason why we bury our dead. It is, after all, a way of placing them into the arms of God so he can carry them and we can move on. It can be hard to leave behind the life we have enjoyed and to keep moving—unless we really can see Jesus along the way.
The New Jerusalem comes at the end of the story. So, for now, we will always be clearer about what Jesus is asking us to give up than about where he is taking us. Along the way to Jerusalem, Jesus may take us places where we would rather not go. He may bring gifts into our lives we would rather not have.
Each year of our lives, he will invite us to drop some of the things we are carrying, because these things are becoming too heavy. They weigh us down, and we’re holding them too tightly. Jesus does all of this simply to get us into the new holy Jerusalem, where our salvation becomes clear and perfect.
This is why we put our hands to the plow and do the work we’ve been given to do today. It’s all a way of seeing Jesus. And we’ve got to keep our eyes on him, or we’ll never make it to the Holy City.
Christians equipped for right living are prepared for losses, crosses, changes, and conflicts. They bow low, walk tall, and fight hard all the time. No matter how dark the days we face, we must make it our continual practice to acknowledge God’s sovereignty over our world.
Let’s tell Him regularly how grateful we are that He has the final word.
“Look straight ahead, and fix your eyes on what lies before you. Mark out a straight path for your feet; stay on the safe path. Don’t get sidetracked; keep your feet from following evil” (Proverbs 4:25-27 NLT).
(Some of these thoughts are adapted from M. Craig Barnes in Sacred Thirst: Meeting God in the Desert of Our Longings)
Sunday, February 20, 2011
We Live In A War Zone!
Do you feel like you’ve been doing hand-to-hand combat this week? Are you waiting for the other shoe to drop, the next bad news to come, the next emergency to hit the deck? Does trouble always seem to find its way to your doorstep?
You’re not alone. It’s that way for a lot of us from time-to-time. We live in a world encompassed by fear, worry, anger, heartache. It’s easier to sink to the bottom of the barrel than it is to lift up our eyes and begin praising.
Moses had a whole crowd of people that needed reminding that God goes before us in our daily battles, preparing the way and overcoming the barriers. God helps us regardless of the problems in our path. No matter how insurmountable the obstacles seem, it is well to remember God is Sovereign and He will keep His promises.
There are a ton of promises we can claim when we’re in the midst of the battle:
“Do not be afraid of him, for I have given you victory” (Deuteronomy 3:2 NLT).
“After you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast” (1 Peter 5:10 TNIV).
“For the Lord your God has blessed you in everything you have done. He has watched your every step through this great wilderness. During these forty years, the Lord your God has been with you, and you have lacked nothing” (Deuteronomy 2:7 NLT).
We need to remember the blessings. We need to remember to praise. We need to remember that He’s never failed us. Praising Him helps us look to our God and Savior, not just look for the signs and wonders he produces around us. But when He is the center of our world, more signs and wonders swirl around us more often.
“He rescues and saves his people; he performs miraculous signs and wonders in the heavens and on earth” (Daniel 6:27 NLT).
Our encounters with Jesus always occur “along the way” in life. The Bible is full of stories about ordinary people, like you and me, doing ordinary things, but “along the way” they encountered Jesus—and nothing was ever ordinary again. (Remember Paul on his way to Damascus; James and John on their way fishing; the Samaritan woman on her way to a well.)
Jesus can find us while we are on the way to the top or the bottom; on the way to a great career, a terrible divorce, or bankruptcy.
We may believe we are on the road up or on the road down, but once we start following Jesus along the way in life, we discover that we’re always on the road to Jerusalem.
“It is never about what we do; it’s always about receiving what God is doing.”
(Some of these thoughts are adapted from M. Craig Barnes in Sacred Thirst: Meeting God in the Desert of Our Longings)
You’re not alone. It’s that way for a lot of us from time-to-time. We live in a world encompassed by fear, worry, anger, heartache. It’s easier to sink to the bottom of the barrel than it is to lift up our eyes and begin praising.
Moses had a whole crowd of people that needed reminding that God goes before us in our daily battles, preparing the way and overcoming the barriers. God helps us regardless of the problems in our path. No matter how insurmountable the obstacles seem, it is well to remember God is Sovereign and He will keep His promises.
There are a ton of promises we can claim when we’re in the midst of the battle:
“Do not be afraid of him, for I have given you victory” (Deuteronomy 3:2 NLT).
“After you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast” (1 Peter 5:10 TNIV).
“For the Lord your God has blessed you in everything you have done. He has watched your every step through this great wilderness. During these forty years, the Lord your God has been with you, and you have lacked nothing” (Deuteronomy 2:7 NLT).
We need to remember the blessings. We need to remember to praise. We need to remember that He’s never failed us. Praising Him helps us look to our God and Savior, not just look for the signs and wonders he produces around us. But when He is the center of our world, more signs and wonders swirl around us more often.
“He rescues and saves his people; he performs miraculous signs and wonders in the heavens and on earth” (Daniel 6:27 NLT).
Our encounters with Jesus always occur “along the way” in life. The Bible is full of stories about ordinary people, like you and me, doing ordinary things, but “along the way” they encountered Jesus—and nothing was ever ordinary again. (Remember Paul on his way to Damascus; James and John on their way fishing; the Samaritan woman on her way to a well.)
Jesus can find us while we are on the way to the top or the bottom; on the way to a great career, a terrible divorce, or bankruptcy.
We may believe we are on the road up or on the road down, but once we start following Jesus along the way in life, we discover that we’re always on the road to Jerusalem.
“It is never about what we do; it’s always about receiving what God is doing.”
(Some of these thoughts are adapted from M. Craig Barnes in Sacred Thirst: Meeting God in the Desert of Our Longings)
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Spiritual Warfare -- Fact or Fantasy
"'Did the gun go off?' I asked myself. It hadn't. I could still feel the barrel in my hand. ...
"All of a sudden there is a mighty "swooping" sound as angels charge into the room.
"Immediately, a shapeless black glob, about three-feet tall popped up from the floor and the battle is on.
"Each time an angel swooped in, one of the black things pops up and they begin exchanging blows. ...
"The angels were hitting and going at it as the black things struck back. The fighting was intense. They were fighting a fight to end all fights.
"The three-foot black things were all over the room. Whenever another angel swept into the room, they'd pop up and start fighting.
"The army of angels filled the room. I was beyond astonished."
This scene sounded unbelievable to me. Nothing like what I'd been taught as a good little Baptist girl. And I'd not read such a powerful description of spiritual warfare since Frank Peretti's THIS PRESENT DARKNESS hit the bestseller lists.
But its a true story. It really happened. And it is only a small part of the incredible chapter "Motel Warfare Fight: September 16, 1997" in Dudley Perio's new book releasing February 18: LIVING IN GOD'S GLORY: HEARING & RESPONDING TO GOD'S VOICE, as told to Paul & Lynn Crawford (New Sound Media; www.OneInThe Spirit.tv).
My first questions to Paul & Lynn when they asked me to edit the book were: Is this true? Is it verifiable? Are there witnesses? "Yes, Yes, and Yes" were their responses.
This is only one of the amazing stories of "The Supernatural Experiences of Dudley Perio" -- well known in Texas oil fields for his designs and inventions, as well as for 30 years as an oil rig engineer.
If you are a Christian writer or speaker or trying to do anything significant for God, you will also have times when you feel under attack or in a spiritual warfare battle.
Scripture has already warned us to be on guard: "But the Lord is faithful; he will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one" (2 Thessalonians 3:3 NLT).
Beneath the surface of the routine of daily life, a fierce struggle among invisible spiritual powers is being waged. Our main defense is prayer that God will protect us from the evil one and that he will strengthen us.
GUIDELINES FOR PREPARING FOR AND SURVIVING SATANIC ATTACKS:
1. Take the threat of spiritual attack seriously.
2. Pray for strength and help from God.
3. Study the Bible to recognize Satan's style and tactics.
4. Memorize Scrpture so it will be a source of help no matter where you are.
5. Associate with those who speak the truth.
6. Practice what you are taught by sound spiritual leaders.
(Life Application Bible Notes)
"Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God's armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, agains mighty powers in this dark work, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places" (Ephesians 6:10-11 NLT).
Demons are not fantasies, they are very real. We face a powerful army whose goal is to defeat Christ's church.
Although we are assured of victory, we must engage in the struggle until Christ returns, because Satan is constantly battling against all who are on the Lord's side.
We need supernatural power to defeat Satan, and God has provided this by giving us his Holy Spirit within us and his armor surrounding us. (Life Application Bible)
Don't try to do God's work without putting on your armor -- you never know when the attacks will come, but they will come. For further reading about our armor for spiritual warfare, read Ephesians 6:10-19.
"All of a sudden there is a mighty "swooping" sound as angels charge into the room.
"Immediately, a shapeless black glob, about three-feet tall popped up from the floor and the battle is on.
"Each time an angel swooped in, one of the black things pops up and they begin exchanging blows. ...
"The angels were hitting and going at it as the black things struck back. The fighting was intense. They were fighting a fight to end all fights.
"The three-foot black things were all over the room. Whenever another angel swept into the room, they'd pop up and start fighting.
"The army of angels filled the room. I was beyond astonished."
This scene sounded unbelievable to me. Nothing like what I'd been taught as a good little Baptist girl. And I'd not read such a powerful description of spiritual warfare since Frank Peretti's THIS PRESENT DARKNESS hit the bestseller lists.
But its a true story. It really happened. And it is only a small part of the incredible chapter "Motel Warfare Fight: September 16, 1997" in Dudley Perio's new book releasing February 18: LIVING IN GOD'S GLORY: HEARING & RESPONDING TO GOD'S VOICE, as told to Paul & Lynn Crawford (New Sound Media; www.OneInThe Spirit.tv).
My first questions to Paul & Lynn when they asked me to edit the book were: Is this true? Is it verifiable? Are there witnesses? "Yes, Yes, and Yes" were their responses.
This is only one of the amazing stories of "The Supernatural Experiences of Dudley Perio" -- well known in Texas oil fields for his designs and inventions, as well as for 30 years as an oil rig engineer.
If you are a Christian writer or speaker or trying to do anything significant for God, you will also have times when you feel under attack or in a spiritual warfare battle.
Scripture has already warned us to be on guard: "But the Lord is faithful; he will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one" (2 Thessalonians 3:3 NLT).
Beneath the surface of the routine of daily life, a fierce struggle among invisible spiritual powers is being waged. Our main defense is prayer that God will protect us from the evil one and that he will strengthen us.
GUIDELINES FOR PREPARING FOR AND SURVIVING SATANIC ATTACKS:
1. Take the threat of spiritual attack seriously.
2. Pray for strength and help from God.
3. Study the Bible to recognize Satan's style and tactics.
4. Memorize Scrpture so it will be a source of help no matter where you are.
5. Associate with those who speak the truth.
6. Practice what you are taught by sound spiritual leaders.
(Life Application Bible Notes)
"Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God's armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, agains mighty powers in this dark work, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places" (Ephesians 6:10-11 NLT).
Demons are not fantasies, they are very real. We face a powerful army whose goal is to defeat Christ's church.
Although we are assured of victory, we must engage in the struggle until Christ returns, because Satan is constantly battling against all who are on the Lord's side.
We need supernatural power to defeat Satan, and God has provided this by giving us his Holy Spirit within us and his armor surrounding us. (Life Application Bible)
Don't try to do God's work without putting on your armor -- you never know when the attacks will come, but they will come. For further reading about our armor for spiritual warfare, read Ephesians 6:10-19.
Friday, February 4, 2011
Keeping A Clear Focus & Steadfast Direction
With the myriad of daily distractions around us, it is easy to lose our way. Our goals become fuzzy, our achievements seem unimportant, and our creativity lags.
Isn't that just like the enemy of our souls to keep us from enthusiastically using the gifts and talents that God has given us. So many times I've heard the words from fellow writers: "What's the use?" "Seems like a waste of time?" "Who's really going to notice or care?"
Do we need a cheerleader team cheering us on? It would seem so or else tweeting, blogging, and facebooking wouldn't have risen to the numbers they have in such a short period of time. Since the beginning of time everyone has asked at one time or another: Does anyone know my name? Does anyone care about what I am doing?
The Good News is that we have a heavenly host of witnesses cheering us on, led by the King of Kings himself. It is to Him that we are accountable for "finishing well the job he gave us to do."
So how do we Keep Clear Focus and Steadfast Direction?
1. Ask: "Ask me and I will tell you some remarkable secrets about what is going to happen here" (Jeremmiah 33:3 TLB).
We all want God to speak to us directly and he is trying to do just that through our inner convictions, visions, or dreams. Most often he speaks through Scripture--leading us exactly to the verses we need to read. Sometimes he speaks through another person, or preaching, or worship.
We must embrace the challenge of struggling with our own life issues and we must take the risks involved in making important decisions that will help us stay on the straight and narrow path designed for us. Ultimately, we have to walk that road by ourselves. (Charles Ringma, Life In Full Stride)
2. Believe: "O Lord God! You have made the heavens and earth by your great power; nothing is too hard for you. You have all wisdom and do great and mighty miracles; for your eyes are open to all the ways of men, and you reward everyone according to his life and deeds" (Jeremiah 32:17,19 TLB).
We must seek God's participation and empowerment for the task. "Activism should not only be sustained by prayer. It also should be born out of prayer. In prayer we listen to God's heartbeat and seek his will. In prayer we commit ourselves to do God's bidding, no matter how difficult or challenging that may be. In prayer we seek the specifics of our action in the world." (Charles Ringma, Seek the Silences with Thomas Merton)
3. Covenant: "And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, promising never again to desert them, but only to do them good. I will put a desire into their hearts to worship me, and they shall never leave me" (Jeremiah 32:40 TLB).
What possesions/gifts we have are not simply for ourselves. "All we have comes from God's beneficence. God entrusts these good gifts to us in order that we might worship our Creator and Redeemer, bless those within our sphere of responsibility and care, and share with others, particularly those in need." (Charles Ringma, Whispers from the Edge of Eternity).
The future is not ours. It is God's. But God has called us to freedom. In freedom we can hope, pray, and work in relation to what lies in front of us. Freedom and hope open us to the surprises that will be coming our way from a loving God who only wants the best for us.
Isn't that just like the enemy of our souls to keep us from enthusiastically using the gifts and talents that God has given us. So many times I've heard the words from fellow writers: "What's the use?" "Seems like a waste of time?" "Who's really going to notice or care?"
Do we need a cheerleader team cheering us on? It would seem so or else tweeting, blogging, and facebooking wouldn't have risen to the numbers they have in such a short period of time. Since the beginning of time everyone has asked at one time or another: Does anyone know my name? Does anyone care about what I am doing?
The Good News is that we have a heavenly host of witnesses cheering us on, led by the King of Kings himself. It is to Him that we are accountable for "finishing well the job he gave us to do."
So how do we Keep Clear Focus and Steadfast Direction?
1. Ask: "Ask me and I will tell you some remarkable secrets about what is going to happen here" (Jeremmiah 33:3 TLB).
We all want God to speak to us directly and he is trying to do just that through our inner convictions, visions, or dreams. Most often he speaks through Scripture--leading us exactly to the verses we need to read. Sometimes he speaks through another person, or preaching, or worship.
We must embrace the challenge of struggling with our own life issues and we must take the risks involved in making important decisions that will help us stay on the straight and narrow path designed for us. Ultimately, we have to walk that road by ourselves. (Charles Ringma, Life In Full Stride)
2. Believe: "O Lord God! You have made the heavens and earth by your great power; nothing is too hard for you. You have all wisdom and do great and mighty miracles; for your eyes are open to all the ways of men, and you reward everyone according to his life and deeds" (Jeremiah 32:17,19 TLB).
We must seek God's participation and empowerment for the task. "Activism should not only be sustained by prayer. It also should be born out of prayer. In prayer we listen to God's heartbeat and seek his will. In prayer we commit ourselves to do God's bidding, no matter how difficult or challenging that may be. In prayer we seek the specifics of our action in the world." (Charles Ringma, Seek the Silences with Thomas Merton)
3. Covenant: "And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, promising never again to desert them, but only to do them good. I will put a desire into their hearts to worship me, and they shall never leave me" (Jeremiah 32:40 TLB).
What possesions/gifts we have are not simply for ourselves. "All we have comes from God's beneficence. God entrusts these good gifts to us in order that we might worship our Creator and Redeemer, bless those within our sphere of responsibility and care, and share with others, particularly those in need." (Charles Ringma, Whispers from the Edge of Eternity).
The future is not ours. It is God's. But God has called us to freedom. In freedom we can hope, pray, and work in relation to what lies in front of us. Freedom and hope open us to the surprises that will be coming our way from a loving God who only wants the best for us.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Happiness is Temporary; Joy is Lasting
Yikes! It is the end of the first month of a New Year. This year was going to be different. This year we had plans and goals that we knew would head us in the direction we wanted to be going.
What were you seeking in this first thirty days of the New Year? Perhaps it was happiness, success, new relationships, meaningful work -- our lists are undoubtedly different and probably quite long. But whatever was at the top of our list, we realize how far we have yet to go.
J.I.Packer reminds us, "The paradoxical truth is that to seek pleasure, comfort, and happiness is to guarantee that you will miss them all. ... These subjective states become heart realities only as by-products that come from focusing on something else, something perceived as valuable, invigorating, and commanding." (Hot Tub Religion, 64-65)
The Reality is: Happiness is a by-product of loving God.
In the end, we must agree with David, who for all his failures, mess-ups, and griefs knew that joy is found in a life lived in companionship with God. "You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever" (Psalm 16:11).
The Life Application Bible reminds us: True joy is far deeper than happiness; we can feel joy in spite of our deepest troubles. Happiness is temporary because it is based on external circumstances, but joy is lasting because it is based on God's presence within us ... As we understand the future he has for us, we will experience joy. Don't base your life on circumstances, but on God."
So what has gone wrong for you in January 2011? Perhaps you are doing the most important work of your life -- and the enemy knows it and has stepped in with some direct shots of spiritual warfare. Perhaps you are grieving the death of a loved one or the loss of an important relationship you thought would last forever. Perhaps the news from your doctor is worse than you are prepared to accept. Perhaps your finances have taken a big hit -- and in this economy its hard to see how you'll ever dig yourself out of the pit.
Do you think any of your problems have caught God by surprise? No, definitely not. And he has not left us unprepared or unarmed. In fact, his instructions are very specific. Read them with me in Deuteronomy 30:6-11 New Living Translation:
"The Lord your God will change your heart and the hearts of all your descendants, so that you will love him with all your heart and soul and so you may live! ... The Lord your God will make you successful in everything you do. The Lord your God will delight in you if you obey his voice and keep the commands and decrees written in this Book of Instruction, and if you turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and soul. ... This command I am giving you today is not too difficult for you to understand, and it is not beyond your reach."
And you can proceed confidently on the biblical promise found in Joshua 1:8-9 NLT: "Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do. This is my command--be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go."
Okay, its a brand new month and we get another chance. To be successful, we must follow God's words to Joshua. We may not succeed by the world's standards, but we will be a success in God's eyes--and his opinion is most important (LAB note).
What were you seeking in this first thirty days of the New Year? Perhaps it was happiness, success, new relationships, meaningful work -- our lists are undoubtedly different and probably quite long. But whatever was at the top of our list, we realize how far we have yet to go.
J.I.Packer reminds us, "The paradoxical truth is that to seek pleasure, comfort, and happiness is to guarantee that you will miss them all. ... These subjective states become heart realities only as by-products that come from focusing on something else, something perceived as valuable, invigorating, and commanding." (Hot Tub Religion, 64-65)
The Reality is: Happiness is a by-product of loving God.
In the end, we must agree with David, who for all his failures, mess-ups, and griefs knew that joy is found in a life lived in companionship with God. "You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever" (Psalm 16:11).
The Life Application Bible reminds us: True joy is far deeper than happiness; we can feel joy in spite of our deepest troubles. Happiness is temporary because it is based on external circumstances, but joy is lasting because it is based on God's presence within us ... As we understand the future he has for us, we will experience joy. Don't base your life on circumstances, but on God."
So what has gone wrong for you in January 2011? Perhaps you are doing the most important work of your life -- and the enemy knows it and has stepped in with some direct shots of spiritual warfare. Perhaps you are grieving the death of a loved one or the loss of an important relationship you thought would last forever. Perhaps the news from your doctor is worse than you are prepared to accept. Perhaps your finances have taken a big hit -- and in this economy its hard to see how you'll ever dig yourself out of the pit.
Do you think any of your problems have caught God by surprise? No, definitely not. And he has not left us unprepared or unarmed. In fact, his instructions are very specific. Read them with me in Deuteronomy 30:6-11 New Living Translation:
"The Lord your God will change your heart and the hearts of all your descendants, so that you will love him with all your heart and soul and so you may live! ... The Lord your God will make you successful in everything you do. The Lord your God will delight in you if you obey his voice and keep the commands and decrees written in this Book of Instruction, and if you turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and soul. ... This command I am giving you today is not too difficult for you to understand, and it is not beyond your reach."
And you can proceed confidently on the biblical promise found in Joshua 1:8-9 NLT: "Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do. This is my command--be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go."
Okay, its a brand new month and we get another chance. To be successful, we must follow God's words to Joshua. We may not succeed by the world's standards, but we will be a success in God's eyes--and his opinion is most important (LAB note).
Friday, January 21, 2011
Are You Measuring Up to Your Calling?
How often have we felt like praying Jeremiah's prayer: "I know, Lord, that our lives are not our own. We are not able to plan our own course. So correct me, Lord, but please be gentle" (Jeremiah 10:23-24 NLT).
Hudson Taylor gave us a wise perspective on life when he said: "I used to ask God to help me. Then I asked God if I might help Him. I ended up by asking him to do His work through me."
If we run the race set before us, engaging in duties God-appointed and not self-chosen, and bestowing all our energies, and that cheerfully, on the God-appointed tasks and sorrows, then may we rest in full assurance that our strength shall never fail, that our fruit shall remain, that our life shall, though apparently fragmentary, be complete, that we shall reach the end, and be counted faithful in that day. -- Adolph Saphir
This summer I was able to sit under the teaching of my favorite author at Regent College in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. This humble man of God's writings have impacted every part of my life--he practices what he preaches. He believes that "what I do and achieve cannot be the core of what I am. While God calls me to partnership with Him in changing the world, He first of all loves me for who I am. In fact, He loves me in all my vulnerability and need. ... I am an amazingly loved person by the God of all grace and mercy, and as such I can confidently live to fully please God in all that I do." -- Charles Ringma (Resist the Powers with Jacques Ellus)
Ringma goes on to remind us, "while we may celebrate the work of our hands as God's gift, we should never depend on it. For it is God alone who sustains us and He ought to be the focus of our adoration."
Hudson Taylor gave us a wise perspective on life when he said: "I used to ask God to help me. Then I asked God if I might help Him. I ended up by asking him to do His work through me."
If we run the race set before us, engaging in duties God-appointed and not self-chosen, and bestowing all our energies, and that cheerfully, on the God-appointed tasks and sorrows, then may we rest in full assurance that our strength shall never fail, that our fruit shall remain, that our life shall, though apparently fragmentary, be complete, that we shall reach the end, and be counted faithful in that day. -- Adolph Saphir
This summer I was able to sit under the teaching of my favorite author at Regent College in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. This humble man of God's writings have impacted every part of my life--he practices what he preaches. He believes that "what I do and achieve cannot be the core of what I am. While God calls me to partnership with Him in changing the world, He first of all loves me for who I am. In fact, He loves me in all my vulnerability and need. ... I am an amazingly loved person by the God of all grace and mercy, and as such I can confidently live to fully please God in all that I do." -- Charles Ringma (Resist the Powers with Jacques Ellus)
Ringma goes on to remind us, "while we may celebrate the work of our hands as God's gift, we should never depend on it. For it is God alone who sustains us and He ought to be the focus of our adoration."
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Making A Difference
We all want to do something effective in this world while we are here. The key is being faithful to what God lays on our heart.
What dreams, plans, and thoughts about the future has God given you?
What is He asking you to do to prepare yourself for this call on your life?
"Nothing compares with knowing that you are doing God's will! ... Pleasing God by doing what He asks becomes the chief joy of life." -- J. I. Packer (Knowing God's Purpose For Your Life)
Jesus speaks to those who would hear: "I am bringing you into a new ministry. The former shall be enriched and made fuller and more meaningful. I am not undoing anything. I am adding. I shall be enriching your own soul and bringing about your sanctification. Each time you launch out into a new ministry you bring new life and strength and health-building forces into operation within your own soul." -- Frances J. Roberts (Come Away My Beloved)
When God speaks to us about future ministry, we must respond in faith and take appropriate steps of preparation, awaiting the fulfillment of God's perfect timing. The Holy Spirit will give us the strength, wisdom, resources, and power we need to do what God has called us to do. -- YWAM Study Notes (Christian Growth Study Bible, NIV)
Are you a little timid at stepping out in faith? For further study it is good to remind ourselves of these Bible stories and promises: Judges 6:11-16; Luke 4:18-21; and Acts 13:1-4.
There is a universal desire among people today: to make a difference, to have a purpose for our life. The biggest roadblock in finding "where" we can be most effective is not knowing our purpose and our calling.
When we make a decision to seek God's wisdom it will mean:
(1) Getting to know God better so we can apply His wisdom in all our decisions;
(2) Waiting patiently for God to open and close doors as He engineers our circumstances;
(3) Doing what is closest at hand that we know is God's will.
For example, God's concern for the poor is evident in nearly every book of the Bible. Central to following God is seeing that the poor and oppressed around us are treated fairly.
When we cultivate a compassionate spirit, we mirror God's love and concern for a needy world.
God has given each of us a purpose for living, and when we are serious about wanting to know it and faithful to obey what He shows us, we can trust Him to guide us into that place of His perfect will. -- Elaine Wright Colvin (Treasury of God's Virtues)
What dreams, plans, and thoughts about the future has God given you?
What is He asking you to do to prepare yourself for this call on your life?
"Nothing compares with knowing that you are doing God's will! ... Pleasing God by doing what He asks becomes the chief joy of life." -- J. I. Packer (Knowing God's Purpose For Your Life)
Jesus speaks to those who would hear: "I am bringing you into a new ministry. The former shall be enriched and made fuller and more meaningful. I am not undoing anything. I am adding. I shall be enriching your own soul and bringing about your sanctification. Each time you launch out into a new ministry you bring new life and strength and health-building forces into operation within your own soul." -- Frances J. Roberts (Come Away My Beloved)
When God speaks to us about future ministry, we must respond in faith and take appropriate steps of preparation, awaiting the fulfillment of God's perfect timing. The Holy Spirit will give us the strength, wisdom, resources, and power we need to do what God has called us to do. -- YWAM Study Notes (Christian Growth Study Bible, NIV)
Are you a little timid at stepping out in faith? For further study it is good to remind ourselves of these Bible stories and promises: Judges 6:11-16; Luke 4:18-21; and Acts 13:1-4.
There is a universal desire among people today: to make a difference, to have a purpose for our life. The biggest roadblock in finding "where" we can be most effective is not knowing our purpose and our calling.
When we make a decision to seek God's wisdom it will mean:
(1) Getting to know God better so we can apply His wisdom in all our decisions;
(2) Waiting patiently for God to open and close doors as He engineers our circumstances;
(3) Doing what is closest at hand that we know is God's will.
For example, God's concern for the poor is evident in nearly every book of the Bible. Central to following God is seeing that the poor and oppressed around us are treated fairly.
When we cultivate a compassionate spirit, we mirror God's love and concern for a needy world.
God has given each of us a purpose for living, and when we are serious about wanting to know it and faithful to obey what He shows us, we can trust Him to guide us into that place of His perfect will. -- Elaine Wright Colvin (Treasury of God's Virtues)
Saturday, January 8, 2011
A New Self Can Emerge
"We too may live a new life" (Romans 6:4 TNIV).
"In the midst of change, where previous certainties and securities slip away, a new self can emerge. While we may grieve over what we have lost, we can also rejoice in the new things that we are discovering about ourselves." -- Charles Ringma (Dare to Journey with Henri Nouwen)
"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future" (Jeremiah 29:11).
God's plan may not take you in the direction you were expecting. It may not "fit" the dream you've seen of your life. But when you trust him and take the next step of obedience according to his will, you can be assured he is working out the plans for your life.
God has said, "I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them. I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them" (Isaiah 42:16 TNIV).
"There are many events in our lives over which we have no control. However, we do have a choice either to endure trying times and press on or to give up. The secret of survival, whether or not we question God's presence or His ability to help us, is remembering that our hope is in the fairness, goodness, and justice of God. When we put our trust in the character of a God who cannot fail us, we will remain faithful. Our trust and faithfulness produce the endurance that sees us through the "tough stuff" we all face in this life." -- Elaine Wright Colvin (Treasure of God's Virtues)
God, you're leading me.
With confidence I face my day,
Every duty and interruption
are appointments
you've sent my way.
--Elaine Wright Colvin
"In the midst of change, where previous certainties and securities slip away, a new self can emerge. While we may grieve over what we have lost, we can also rejoice in the new things that we are discovering about ourselves." -- Charles Ringma (Dare to Journey with Henri Nouwen)
"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future" (Jeremiah 29:11).
God's plan may not take you in the direction you were expecting. It may not "fit" the dream you've seen of your life. But when you trust him and take the next step of obedience according to his will, you can be assured he is working out the plans for your life.
God has said, "I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them. I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them" (Isaiah 42:16 TNIV).
"There are many events in our lives over which we have no control. However, we do have a choice either to endure trying times and press on or to give up. The secret of survival, whether or not we question God's presence or His ability to help us, is remembering that our hope is in the fairness, goodness, and justice of God. When we put our trust in the character of a God who cannot fail us, we will remain faithful. Our trust and faithfulness produce the endurance that sees us through the "tough stuff" we all face in this life." -- Elaine Wright Colvin (Treasure of God's Virtues)
God, you're leading me.
With confidence I face my day,
Every duty and interruption
are appointments
you've sent my way.
--Elaine Wright Colvin
Friday, January 7, 2011
God is Preparing You for the New!
"God is preparing YOU for a prepared place, a prepared ministry, and for a prepared people that He wants to reach. He knows how to perfectly prepare you for what He has ahead." -- Roy Lessin
In the economy of God, nothing He allows to touch our life is ever wasted. Sometimes God has to slow us down and remove us from our busy world in order to give us the time to gain new direction and inner renewal.
Henri Nouwen said, "to reach the inner sanctum where God's voice and direction can be heard and obeyed is not easy if you are always called outward [to be and do with lots of people]." (The Road to Daybreak)
We must stop repeating the same mistakes and establish new priorities that lead to our spiritual growth and Kingdom service.
Let us begin the New Year by putting first things first in our life. And what are these first things?
"Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things [what to eat and what to wear] will be given to you as well" (Matthew 6:33 TNIV).
It is good to remember that the "tough stuff" of preparation is for the greater end result: That we may love and serve more purposefully.
In the economy of God, nothing He allows to touch our life is ever wasted. Sometimes God has to slow us down and remove us from our busy world in order to give us the time to gain new direction and inner renewal.
Henri Nouwen said, "to reach the inner sanctum where God's voice and direction can be heard and obeyed is not easy if you are always called outward [to be and do with lots of people]." (The Road to Daybreak)
We must stop repeating the same mistakes and establish new priorities that lead to our spiritual growth and Kingdom service.
Let us begin the New Year by putting first things first in our life. And what are these first things?
"Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things [what to eat and what to wear] will be given to you as well" (Matthew 6:33 TNIV).
It is good to remember that the "tough stuff" of preparation is for the greater end result: That we may love and serve more purposefully.
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Beginning A New Journey
"No one walks our journey for us and no one else's pace is appropriate for us. It is our journey. We walk through life as unique persons created by God." --Walter C. Wright (Mentoring)
When we're still and hear the voice calling us to take on new challenges, it can be very unsettling. It may cause us to struggle knowing that we'll have to face the pain of letting go of old friends, places, and things in order to embrace the new calling.
What it boils down to is a matter of trust. Do we trust a Sovereign God enough to believe he always has our best interests in mind? Do we believe he has a perfect plan for our life? Do we really understand that in the center of his perfect will for us is the only place we'll find lasting peace and joy?
And it is this joy which comes from God that gives us the strength to do whatever he ask, to go wherever he calls, to endure and embrace whatever comes our way.
As we go out on our new journey with the joy of the Lord, we will be able to affirm to others: "Surely he has done great things! Do not be afraid ... be glad and rejoice" (Joel 2:21 TNIV).
When we're still and hear the voice calling us to take on new challenges, it can be very unsettling. It may cause us to struggle knowing that we'll have to face the pain of letting go of old friends, places, and things in order to embrace the new calling.
What it boils down to is a matter of trust. Do we trust a Sovereign God enough to believe he always has our best interests in mind? Do we believe he has a perfect plan for our life? Do we really understand that in the center of his perfect will for us is the only place we'll find lasting peace and joy?
And it is this joy which comes from God that gives us the strength to do whatever he ask, to go wherever he calls, to endure and embrace whatever comes our way.
As we go out on our new journey with the joy of the Lord, we will be able to affirm to others: "Surely he has done great things! Do not be afraid ... be glad and rejoice" (Joel 2:21 TNIV).
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Being In The Place To Find New Direction
"We cannot become what we need to be by remaining where we are." -- Max DePree (Leadership Is An Art)
Where can we go that we will not hear the old and familiar call to do more, to give more, to be more? Where can we hear God's voice and know what he thinks about our life's direction, priorities, and endless activities?
Where can we go that we will be able to hear what our heart is saying? What are the heart changes God is bringing into your life--into my life?
Learning to listen carefully to the inner movements of the spirit and struggling with the question: How do I follow Jesus all the way? -- is a prerequisite to change.
"This is the struggle to hear what we may not wish to hear. It is groping toward an openness that may cause our life to be turned around. Yet hear new things we must! For we cannnot simply continue to plunge headlong into the incessant round of activities that are no longer part of God's direction for our lives and that no longer express our creativity and our central concerns," says Charles Ringma (Dare to Journey with Henri Nouwen).
I believe we can all hear God speak, we can be aware of his still small voice, and we can recognize Holy Spirit nudges. He is more anxious for us to know his will for our lives than we are ready to listen. He is more anxious for us to understand our gifts, calling, and place than we are to change, leave our nets, and follow him.
In that day when we hear "the call to the new" may we answer with the words of Samuel, "Speak, for your servant is listening" (1 Samuel 3:9 TNIV).
God is not looking for us in a certain place, position, or posture to receive guidance and direction. But he is looking for hearts that long to hear his voice and are truly open when he bids us to "come and do my will." And often we will hear that "still small voice" when we least deserve or expect it. It is God's surprise confirming that he is here for us when we so urgently need him.
"...and he will tell you what is yet to come" (John 16:13 TNIV).
Where can we go that we will not hear the old and familiar call to do more, to give more, to be more? Where can we hear God's voice and know what he thinks about our life's direction, priorities, and endless activities?
Where can we go that we will be able to hear what our heart is saying? What are the heart changes God is bringing into your life--into my life?
Learning to listen carefully to the inner movements of the spirit and struggling with the question: How do I follow Jesus all the way? -- is a prerequisite to change.
"This is the struggle to hear what we may not wish to hear. It is groping toward an openness that may cause our life to be turned around. Yet hear new things we must! For we cannnot simply continue to plunge headlong into the incessant round of activities that are no longer part of God's direction for our lives and that no longer express our creativity and our central concerns," says Charles Ringma (Dare to Journey with Henri Nouwen).
I believe we can all hear God speak, we can be aware of his still small voice, and we can recognize Holy Spirit nudges. He is more anxious for us to know his will for our lives than we are ready to listen. He is more anxious for us to understand our gifts, calling, and place than we are to change, leave our nets, and follow him.
In that day when we hear "the call to the new" may we answer with the words of Samuel, "Speak, for your servant is listening" (1 Samuel 3:9 TNIV).
God is not looking for us in a certain place, position, or posture to receive guidance and direction. But he is looking for hearts that long to hear his voice and are truly open when he bids us to "come and do my will." And often we will hear that "still small voice" when we least deserve or expect it. It is God's surprise confirming that he is here for us when we so urgently need him.
"...and he will tell you what is yet to come" (John 16:13 TNIV).
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Becoming Who We Are To Be
We are becoming who God created us to be.
I believe that my life is more likely to be assessed in the long run by the relationships I invested in than by the success of the organizations and writers conferences I have led, books I have written or edited, or money and things I have accumulated.
I believe you and I have more to do in our lifetime. If God was through with us working for him here on earth, he would call us home.
God is calling us--perhaps to go into new unknown territory this year. And with fear and some anxiety we wonder: Am I ready? Am I prepared for this? Am I walking into deep water that will be way over my head?
We may feel like Moses and need to remember: God's mighty hand will be holding onto us on each step of our winding path on our new journey.
Moses and God had a conversation about the new journey Moses was to take:
Moses said to the Lord, "You have been telling me, 'Take these people up to the Promised Land.' But you haven't told me whom you will send with me. You call me by name and tell me I have found favor with you. Please, if this is really so, show me your intentions so I will understand you more fully and do exactly what you want me to do. Besides, don't forget that this nation is your very own people." And the Lord replied, "I will personally go with you, Moses. I will give you rest--everything will be fine for you." Then Moses said, "If you don't go with us personally, don't let us move a step from this place"(Exodus 33:12-15 NLT).
This year we will learn new things and have new opportunities we've never experienced before. God has many ways of leading and guiding us into his perfect will.
Our growth in Christian character and service for him will likely include: new relationships, new places of ministry, new ability to pray, new avenues of praise, new adventures of faith, new steps of obedience, and new ways of expressing his love to others.
May we in all our ways submit to him--and then he has promised to direct and make straight our paths (Proverbs 3:5-6).
I believe that my life is more likely to be assessed in the long run by the relationships I invested in than by the success of the organizations and writers conferences I have led, books I have written or edited, or money and things I have accumulated.
I believe you and I have more to do in our lifetime. If God was through with us working for him here on earth, he would call us home.
God is calling us--perhaps to go into new unknown territory this year. And with fear and some anxiety we wonder: Am I ready? Am I prepared for this? Am I walking into deep water that will be way over my head?
We may feel like Moses and need to remember: God's mighty hand will be holding onto us on each step of our winding path on our new journey.
Moses and God had a conversation about the new journey Moses was to take:
Moses said to the Lord, "You have been telling me, 'Take these people up to the Promised Land.' But you haven't told me whom you will send with me. You call me by name and tell me I have found favor with you. Please, if this is really so, show me your intentions so I will understand you more fully and do exactly what you want me to do. Besides, don't forget that this nation is your very own people." And the Lord replied, "I will personally go with you, Moses. I will give you rest--everything will be fine for you." Then Moses said, "If you don't go with us personally, don't let us move a step from this place"(Exodus 33:12-15 NLT).
This year we will learn new things and have new opportunities we've never experienced before. God has many ways of leading and guiding us into his perfect will.
Our growth in Christian character and service for him will likely include: new relationships, new places of ministry, new ability to pray, new avenues of praise, new adventures of faith, new steps of obedience, and new ways of expressing his love to others.
May we in all our ways submit to him--and then he has promised to direct and make straight our paths (Proverbs 3:5-6).
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