I was listening to Psalms today while I did the dishes and it occurred to me that a lot of Christians treat their Christianity like they are a super hero. It's this thing that they don't pull out except in extreme circumstances, something that they don't talk about, that they sort of protect and hide. It's like a secret identity.
I don't mean this as a pointing fingers type of thing. It's something that I've done a lot - mostly unintentionally. That is, I believe, one of the Christian's biggest problems - being unintentional. Being reactionary, instead of purposed. Coasting. I hate coasting. I do it, and I hate that I do it, and it's something I'm really working on. But we do this. We shut out mouths. We answer questions in the way that's least likely to bring up our Savior instead of most likely to. It's our secret identity.
And one of the ways this comes out is not telling people what you are about. If someone asks me, "what does your husband do?" they're probably asking what his work-a-day job is, right? But how would we answer that question of the Apostle Paul? We know that he was a tent-maker. It was his work-a-day job that paid the bills and kept him fed and clothed. But that's not what I would say he did if someone asked me. I would say he was a missionary or a preacher. I would characterize him by the thing that was the most important - to me and to him.
So what really does my husband do? Well, he preaches, and he's in training to become an elder. He's a musician. What am I? I'm a musician and a writer.
What are you doing? What's your job in God's workplace? What's your post in His army?
Sunday, October 18, 2015
Monday, August 31, 2015
Expect; Attempt
"Expect great things from God; attempt great things for God."
This was the sermon of William Carey's that started so much of world-wide missions. I've been reading his biography and it is simply beautiful. He was such a gifted man, and he used his talents so well. Not for himself at all, but for his Lord. Oh, the riches he is enjoying now!
We are on the cusp of a different precipice today. In Carey's day, slavery was being defeated. In our day, we are looking for the end of abortion. These things are great ends of themselves, but they are also perfect diving boards, if you will. Why do we abhor the buying and selling of people? Why do we abhor the murder of thousands of babies every day? Because we love the souls of Men.
Over and over and over, as I read this book, I read how much they prayed. There was great growth going on. The people were being challenged to live holy lives, to put away their sins. Church discipline was regular - not to the point of ex-communication always, but regular, nonetheless. And they had a renewed interest in prayer. Prayer had become vital to them. Private prayer and corporate prayer.
How much are we praying? They fasted and prayed.
I can't tell you how much I want to be done nursing my son so that I can fast and pray. I want to do that. I want to give it up for a day, maybe a day every week. I want to sacrifice something for the cause of ending abortion. Do you WANT that? Are you looking for something to do?
Carey donated the first money toward the formation of the mission society. He wanted it so deeply, he GLORIED in being able to give something. It was like Christmas morning to him. They didn't even have a society yet, but Carey pledged all the proceeds of a pamphlet he'd authored to the cause. Do we glory in being able to give something?
Are we looking for ways to give? Where is our focus? Are we praying? I haven't prayed enough. I haven't been expecting great things from God, and my effort has reflected that. I have been sorta, kinda hoping. EXPECT great things from God. Faith always precedes works. Always. Expect great things from God and the work is not hard. Giving is joyful. Sacrifice is glad. There is never enough you can do when God is doing great things.
In his own country, Jesus didn't do any mighty works - because of their unbelief. Expect great things from God. Will you listen to the Holy Spirit? Will you let Him move you? Carey carried the burning desire to send the gospel to the nations for eight years before he saw anything. Even after his great sermon that called the church to repentance and growth, they were going to walk away. Again. The pastors were going to hedge and hold back. They weren't going to jump in. Until Carey seized Fuller by the arm and pleaded with him desperately. Then the Holy Spirit did great things.
Carey had expected that He would. If he had expected nothing to come of his sermon, nothing to come of the meeting, he would not have pleaded with Fuller and things would have continued on. But Carey was flabbergasted. He was shocked and beside himself.
Expect great things from God. Attempt great things for God.
This was the sermon of William Carey's that started so much of world-wide missions. I've been reading his biography and it is simply beautiful. He was such a gifted man, and he used his talents so well. Not for himself at all, but for his Lord. Oh, the riches he is enjoying now!
We are on the cusp of a different precipice today. In Carey's day, slavery was being defeated. In our day, we are looking for the end of abortion. These things are great ends of themselves, but they are also perfect diving boards, if you will. Why do we abhor the buying and selling of people? Why do we abhor the murder of thousands of babies every day? Because we love the souls of Men.
Over and over and over, as I read this book, I read how much they prayed. There was great growth going on. The people were being challenged to live holy lives, to put away their sins. Church discipline was regular - not to the point of ex-communication always, but regular, nonetheless. And they had a renewed interest in prayer. Prayer had become vital to them. Private prayer and corporate prayer.
How much are we praying? They fasted and prayed.
I can't tell you how much I want to be done nursing my son so that I can fast and pray. I want to do that. I want to give it up for a day, maybe a day every week. I want to sacrifice something for the cause of ending abortion. Do you WANT that? Are you looking for something to do?
Carey donated the first money toward the formation of the mission society. He wanted it so deeply, he GLORIED in being able to give something. It was like Christmas morning to him. They didn't even have a society yet, but Carey pledged all the proceeds of a pamphlet he'd authored to the cause. Do we glory in being able to give something?
Are we looking for ways to give? Where is our focus? Are we praying? I haven't prayed enough. I haven't been expecting great things from God, and my effort has reflected that. I have been sorta, kinda hoping. EXPECT great things from God. Faith always precedes works. Always. Expect great things from God and the work is not hard. Giving is joyful. Sacrifice is glad. There is never enough you can do when God is doing great things.
In his own country, Jesus didn't do any mighty works - because of their unbelief. Expect great things from God. Will you listen to the Holy Spirit? Will you let Him move you? Carey carried the burning desire to send the gospel to the nations for eight years before he saw anything. Even after his great sermon that called the church to repentance and growth, they were going to walk away. Again. The pastors were going to hedge and hold back. They weren't going to jump in. Until Carey seized Fuller by the arm and pleaded with him desperately. Then the Holy Spirit did great things.
Carey had expected that He would. If he had expected nothing to come of his sermon, nothing to come of the meeting, he would not have pleaded with Fuller and things would have continued on. But Carey was flabbergasted. He was shocked and beside himself.
Expect great things from God. Attempt great things for God.
Friday, July 31, 2015
We Cannot Hide
More and more, I've become convinced that part of the reason that abortion has lasted so long is because Christians are hiding behind our emotions. We don't want to feel sick about these things. We don't want to mourn. We don't want to be saddened. We don't want to think about it. We've basically given up.
We've have to get into it. We have to watch these videos. We must immerse ourselves in the truth of what is happening so that we can accurately rebut the arguments that are coming out against it. We cannot take someone else's word for it. We have to experience this for ourselves. Or we will wane again. We will give up. AGAIN.
I just finished watching the three videos of the undercover people from the Center for Medical Progress where they were speaking with the leaders of PP. I feel sick. I feel dirty. I feel disgusted and sad.
If you are at all able, watch them. If you have to watch and listen through tears and nausea, watch them. We CANNOT hide from this anymore. We must KNOW.
Watch the videos. Please. For the sake of the babies who are being executed right now, watch the videos.
http://www.centerformedicalprogress.org/blog/
You can find them all here on this page. Please, let your soul be vexed with their unlawful deeds, so that you are unable to forget the atrocities that are happening around us.
We've have to get into it. We have to watch these videos. We must immerse ourselves in the truth of what is happening so that we can accurately rebut the arguments that are coming out against it. We cannot take someone else's word for it. We have to experience this for ourselves. Or we will wane again. We will give up. AGAIN.
I just finished watching the three videos of the undercover people from the Center for Medical Progress where they were speaking with the leaders of PP. I feel sick. I feel dirty. I feel disgusted and sad.
If you are at all able, watch them. If you have to watch and listen through tears and nausea, watch them. We CANNOT hide from this anymore. We must KNOW.
Watch the videos. Please. For the sake of the babies who are being executed right now, watch the videos.
http://www.centerformedicalprogress.org/blog/
You can find them all here on this page. Please, let your soul be vexed with their unlawful deeds, so that you are unable to forget the atrocities that are happening around us.
Thursday, July 30, 2015
If Life Didn't End
I've been thinking a lot about how impatient I can get, with the kids, with myself, with my husband, with the dog.... It's so easy to do. I've heard jokes that you should never ask God to teach you patience, because the only way to learn it is to go through something very hard
But what if we weren't dying? What if we lived ninety years, and like everyone always says, life was too short - so we just lived longer? What if we didn't die?
Think about all the things that would be obsolete if we never died. You wouldn't have to rush to learn anything or do anything. There is no such thing as a deadline. You have forever! You wouldn't have to focus on one interest at a time; you could learn a little about all of them every week. Your time would never run out. Instead of thinking, "what do I want to do more - crochet or read?" I wouldn't really have to pick, because there's no constraint. I WILL get to the other one some day. Because there's always another day.
Today's post is a challenge. Try living like that. Live like you will have all of eternity for the things that are good and enjoyable. Don't hang on to "me time" because you're afraid if you don't take it, you will never get it. Give your time freely because you have an unlimited supply of it.
When we trust Him, God gives us forever. We don't need right now.
But what if we weren't dying? What if we lived ninety years, and like everyone always says, life was too short - so we just lived longer? What if we didn't die?
Think about all the things that would be obsolete if we never died. You wouldn't have to rush to learn anything or do anything. There is no such thing as a deadline. You have forever! You wouldn't have to focus on one interest at a time; you could learn a little about all of them every week. Your time would never run out. Instead of thinking, "what do I want to do more - crochet or read?" I wouldn't really have to pick, because there's no constraint. I WILL get to the other one some day. Because there's always another day.
Today's post is a challenge. Try living like that. Live like you will have all of eternity for the things that are good and enjoyable. Don't hang on to "me time" because you're afraid if you don't take it, you will never get it. Give your time freely because you have an unlimited supply of it.
When we trust Him, God gives us forever. We don't need right now.
Thursday, July 23, 2015
Ye Shall Seek Me
The following verses come from John chapter 8:
21 Then said Jesus again unto them, I go my way, and ye shall seek me, and shall die in your sins: whither I go, ye cannot come.
22 Then said the Jews, Will he kill himself? because he saith, Whither I go, ye cannot come.
23 And he said unto them, Ye are from beneath; I am from above: ye are of this world; I am not of this world.
24 I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.
25 Then said they unto him, Who art thou? And Jesus saith unto them, Even the same that I said unto you from the beginning.
There are a great many people out there who once identified as Christians but reject God now. Part of the argument that they make is what great Christians they were. They knew their Bibles. They sought God. They prayed. They went to church faithfully. They did everything they were supposed to do. How could it possibly be that what they did was not enough? They MUST have been as much a Christian as anyone else. And now they've grown beyond that; they know better now.
I don't know that they ever really read John 8. It quite plainly states that there will be those who are seeking, but not finding. You can seek God without God saving you. He's not under obligation to you just because you looked for Him. We don't think about this very much. We don't hear it from our pulpits (I haven't, at any rate). It's good to seek God, but it's not enough.
Seeking God is a nebulous thing. It doesn't define what a person believe about God, or who they believe Him to be. Believing that Jesus is God isn't really enough anymore either because there are so many different gods that have been called Jesus. Seeking the Messiah is not enough. Seeking a Savior is not enough. Seeking God is not enough.
They will seek for Him, but they will die in their sins. Why? That's why we have verse 24: because they don't believe that the Jesus in the Bible is God. Because they think that the God of the OT is a different God than Jesus in the NT. They see division where there is none. They see contradictions, and instead of trusting, they reject. They can't believe that the God Who IS love is also the God that exterminates whole people groups because of their wickedness. They can't believe that Jesus Who lived perfectly was also the Captain of the Lord's Host Who told Joshua to be courageous and utterly destroy Jericho (with the exception of Rahab). So completely that they couldn't even touch the stuff! The people weren't just polluted - everything they owned was polluted!
You will seek Him, but you will die in your sins because you don't believe. They may argue, say that they did believe, that they believed for a long time, but how much did they really believe? Because something came to light that changed their mind. Something was strong enough to make them say, "Eeeehhh, I don't believe THAT much." Either they just didn't think about the "contradictions" until they were older (easy to do when it's a family affair), or they never knew who Jesus really was so they were unable to believe in Him. It's possible to believe a lot of things ABOUT God without ever trusting Him to be your All.
And now they're not seeking because they think they've had it. When you're convinced that you've tasted milk and you hate it, you will never try it again. Why would you? But imagine that the only milk you ever tasted was sour milk, and you had it over and over. That's the only milk you've ever come in contact with. It looks the same as what everyone else is drinking and enjoying, but it's not. You kept trying it and it just made you sick! It was disgusting! How does someone with good, fresh milk convince you that the stuff you had before was not right, and that there really is good milk to be had?
It's not possible with men. I can't convince anyone. I can write and I can pray, but only God can give the increase.
21 Then said Jesus again unto them, I go my way, and ye shall seek me, and shall die in your sins: whither I go, ye cannot come.
22 Then said the Jews, Will he kill himself? because he saith, Whither I go, ye cannot come.
23 And he said unto them, Ye are from beneath; I am from above: ye are of this world; I am not of this world.
24 I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.
25 Then said they unto him, Who art thou? And Jesus saith unto them, Even the same that I said unto you from the beginning.
There are a great many people out there who once identified as Christians but reject God now. Part of the argument that they make is what great Christians they were. They knew their Bibles. They sought God. They prayed. They went to church faithfully. They did everything they were supposed to do. How could it possibly be that what they did was not enough? They MUST have been as much a Christian as anyone else. And now they've grown beyond that; they know better now.
I don't know that they ever really read John 8. It quite plainly states that there will be those who are seeking, but not finding. You can seek God without God saving you. He's not under obligation to you just because you looked for Him. We don't think about this very much. We don't hear it from our pulpits (I haven't, at any rate). It's good to seek God, but it's not enough.
Seeking God is a nebulous thing. It doesn't define what a person believe about God, or who they believe Him to be. Believing that Jesus is God isn't really enough anymore either because there are so many different gods that have been called Jesus. Seeking the Messiah is not enough. Seeking a Savior is not enough. Seeking God is not enough.
They will seek for Him, but they will die in their sins. Why? That's why we have verse 24: because they don't believe that the Jesus in the Bible is God. Because they think that the God of the OT is a different God than Jesus in the NT. They see division where there is none. They see contradictions, and instead of trusting, they reject. They can't believe that the God Who IS love is also the God that exterminates whole people groups because of their wickedness. They can't believe that Jesus Who lived perfectly was also the Captain of the Lord's Host Who told Joshua to be courageous and utterly destroy Jericho (with the exception of Rahab). So completely that they couldn't even touch the stuff! The people weren't just polluted - everything they owned was polluted!
You will seek Him, but you will die in your sins because you don't believe. They may argue, say that they did believe, that they believed for a long time, but how much did they really believe? Because something came to light that changed their mind. Something was strong enough to make them say, "Eeeehhh, I don't believe THAT much." Either they just didn't think about the "contradictions" until they were older (easy to do when it's a family affair), or they never knew who Jesus really was so they were unable to believe in Him. It's possible to believe a lot of things ABOUT God without ever trusting Him to be your All.
And now they're not seeking because they think they've had it. When you're convinced that you've tasted milk and you hate it, you will never try it again. Why would you? But imagine that the only milk you ever tasted was sour milk, and you had it over and over. That's the only milk you've ever come in contact with. It looks the same as what everyone else is drinking and enjoying, but it's not. You kept trying it and it just made you sick! It was disgusting! How does someone with good, fresh milk convince you that the stuff you had before was not right, and that there really is good milk to be had?
It's not possible with men. I can't convince anyone. I can write and I can pray, but only God can give the increase.
Saturday, July 18, 2015
Identity (Part 2)
Last time, I wrote about the more in-depth reasons that what I write here might be worth your time. I wrote about the fact that I struggle with sin and can understand the hardships that others are going through. I also wrote about my duty as a child of God, to spread His good news, and how this job He has given me makes me qualified to speak.
I realize though, that there will be those who have been within the arms of Christianity, who claimed it once, who have departed without looking back. And it occurs to me that those might not care for my first two qualifications very much. So, this is a different list, a foolish list.
I have been a Christian for 22 years, professing Christ since the age of four, baptized at the age of seven. I first finished reading through the Bible when I was 14 years old, and have read it through in a year several times (one year, I read it twice). I've been serving in my local church for 15 years, playing the piano, hosting small groups, chauffeuring people to doctor's appointments, visiting the elderly who cannot get out, serving on the mission's team. As a child, I memorized several passages of the Bible, and I continue to memorize Scripture - earlier this year I memorized five chapters. My grandfather was a pastor, my uncles are pastors, my parents are teachers, my father-in-law is a pastor, and my husband is a preacher!
Are you a Christian? I am more!
Like Paul said, I speak as a fool. Anyone can do those things; they mean nothing without Christ behind them. You don't need the Holy Spirit to have a good memory. You don't need the saving love of Christ dwelling within you to visit the people from church that are basically your grandparents. You don't need the Holy Spirit helping you understand the Bible in order to read the Bible. You don't have to be God's child to be hospitable.
But if you think you know it all because you grew up there, because you read the Bible, because you were a pastor's kid, because, because, because - it doesn't mean anything. They're merely facts. So I refer you back to the previous post. I am qualified, not because of my track record, but because of who I am. God made me His emissary.
I realize though, that there will be those who have been within the arms of Christianity, who claimed it once, who have departed without looking back. And it occurs to me that those might not care for my first two qualifications very much. So, this is a different list, a foolish list.
I have been a Christian for 22 years, professing Christ since the age of four, baptized at the age of seven. I first finished reading through the Bible when I was 14 years old, and have read it through in a year several times (one year, I read it twice). I've been serving in my local church for 15 years, playing the piano, hosting small groups, chauffeuring people to doctor's appointments, visiting the elderly who cannot get out, serving on the mission's team. As a child, I memorized several passages of the Bible, and I continue to memorize Scripture - earlier this year I memorized five chapters. My grandfather was a pastor, my uncles are pastors, my parents are teachers, my father-in-law is a pastor, and my husband is a preacher!
Are you a Christian? I am more!
Like Paul said, I speak as a fool. Anyone can do those things; they mean nothing without Christ behind them. You don't need the Holy Spirit to have a good memory. You don't need the saving love of Christ dwelling within you to visit the people from church that are basically your grandparents. You don't need the Holy Spirit helping you understand the Bible in order to read the Bible. You don't have to be God's child to be hospitable.
But if you think you know it all because you grew up there, because you read the Bible, because you were a pastor's kid, because, because, because - it doesn't mean anything. They're merely facts. So I refer you back to the previous post. I am qualified, not because of my track record, but because of who I am. God made me His emissary.
Thursday, July 16, 2015
Identity
Who am I?
I occurs to me, at the beginning of this blog, that there may be those who will ask, "Who do you think you are?" Who am I to judge? Who am I to place responsibility and call others to action? What kind of authority do I think I have?
You know how only comedians who are something can make fun of that thing? It's bad form to mock a culture that you aren't a part of, right? (I feel like there was a Seinfeld episode about this. Someone kept converting so that they could keep expanding their stand-up material.) It sort of goes the same in real life - things are taken differently depending on who is saying them, not depending on what is being said.
This just happened to me. My husband had been trying to explain something to me, but I couldn't grasp it because it was him telling me. My brother told me the same thing, and I had no issues believing him. It's not that I trust my brother over my husband; it was just the nature of the thing.
So, let me identify who I am. I am a sinner. Not, I WAS a sinner. I am one. Right now. I struggle; I fail. I'm not very public with my struggles, because in all of my life I haven't seen one good thing come of me airing the specific wickedness that lives inside of me to the world. I will reveal things to certain people when I think that it may be pertinent, but not everyone needs to know the harsh, disgusting reality of what it is to be inside my heart and my head. Suffice to say, anything you've done, I've done the same or the equivalent. You've stolen? Me too. You've lusted? Me too. You've hated? Me too.
I'm not exaggerating here. Anything you have done, I have done the same or the moral equivalent.
Now you might be thinking, why would I listen to you?? What can you possibly say, you're worse than I am! I might be worse than you are, that's true. Thank God, we have the Bible. And the Bible says that God chose the poor things and the foolish things. Why should anyone listen to me? Because I'm saying what the Bible says, what God says. I am not judging; I am declaring God's judgment that's in the Bible. I am not holding people accountable; I'm warning them that God holds them accountable.
Who am I? I'm God's daughter and His emissary.
It's really hard for me to write this because I know far too well that I do not have even the slightest hope of helping someone. It's what I long to do - help people. I love helping people. Since I was a little kid, it's what I love. And I know without a solitary doubt that I am incapable of that. I have tried my whole life to be helpful and most the time I fail miserably.
I've finally come to the place where I trust that God really can do ANYthing. He can use even me. He can use my words, not just the words of pastors and elders, not just the words of those who've been to seminary. He can use me. And I've realized something else. It doesn't matter if He chooses to use me to help people or not. That's His business, not mine. If people aren't helped, that's not my job. My job is to communicate; only God can give increase.
Why do I have the right to speak into anyone's life? Because God tells me be a light and to be salt. It's not just my right, it's my duty. Why should you listen? Because I know your struggles, and I know the God Who has the answers.
I occurs to me, at the beginning of this blog, that there may be those who will ask, "Who do you think you are?" Who am I to judge? Who am I to place responsibility and call others to action? What kind of authority do I think I have?
You know how only comedians who are something can make fun of that thing? It's bad form to mock a culture that you aren't a part of, right? (I feel like there was a Seinfeld episode about this. Someone kept converting so that they could keep expanding their stand-up material.) It sort of goes the same in real life - things are taken differently depending on who is saying them, not depending on what is being said.
This just happened to me. My husband had been trying to explain something to me, but I couldn't grasp it because it was him telling me. My brother told me the same thing, and I had no issues believing him. It's not that I trust my brother over my husband; it was just the nature of the thing.
So, let me identify who I am. I am a sinner. Not, I WAS a sinner. I am one. Right now. I struggle; I fail. I'm not very public with my struggles, because in all of my life I haven't seen one good thing come of me airing the specific wickedness that lives inside of me to the world. I will reveal things to certain people when I think that it may be pertinent, but not everyone needs to know the harsh, disgusting reality of what it is to be inside my heart and my head. Suffice to say, anything you've done, I've done the same or the equivalent. You've stolen? Me too. You've lusted? Me too. You've hated? Me too.
I'm not exaggerating here. Anything you have done, I have done the same or the moral equivalent.
Now you might be thinking, why would I listen to you?? What can you possibly say, you're worse than I am! I might be worse than you are, that's true. Thank God, we have the Bible. And the Bible says that God chose the poor things and the foolish things. Why should anyone listen to me? Because I'm saying what the Bible says, what God says. I am not judging; I am declaring God's judgment that's in the Bible. I am not holding people accountable; I'm warning them that God holds them accountable.
Who am I? I'm God's daughter and His emissary.
It's really hard for me to write this because I know far too well that I do not have even the slightest hope of helping someone. It's what I long to do - help people. I love helping people. Since I was a little kid, it's what I love. And I know without a solitary doubt that I am incapable of that. I have tried my whole life to be helpful and most the time I fail miserably.
I've finally come to the place where I trust that God really can do ANYthing. He can use even me. He can use my words, not just the words of pastors and elders, not just the words of those who've been to seminary. He can use me. And I've realized something else. It doesn't matter if He chooses to use me to help people or not. That's His business, not mine. If people aren't helped, that's not my job. My job is to communicate; only God can give increase.
Why do I have the right to speak into anyone's life? Because God tells me be a light and to be salt. It's not just my right, it's my duty. Why should you listen? Because I know your struggles, and I know the God Who has the answers.
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