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Psalm 148
Praise the Lord !
Praise the Lord from the heavens!
Praise him from the skies!
2 Praise him, all his angels!
Praise him, all the armies of heaven!
3 Praise him, sun and moon!
Praise him, all you twinkling stars!
4 Praise him, skies above!
Praise him, vapors high above the clouds!
5 Let every created thing give praise to the Lord ,
for he issued his command, and they came into being.
6 He set them in place forever and ever.
His decree will never be revoked.
7 Praise the Lord from the earth,
you creatures of the ocean depths,
8 fire and hail, snow and clouds,s
wind and weather that obey him,
9 mountains and all hills,
fruit trees and all cedars,
10 wild animals and all livestock,
small scurrying animals and birds,
11 kings of the earth and all people,
rulers and judges of the earth,
12 young men and young women,
old men and children.
13 Let them all praise the name of the Lord .
For his name is very great;
his glory towers over the earth and heaven!
14 He has made his people strong,
honoring his faithful ones—
the people of Israel who are close to him.
Praise the Lord !
What more can I say? Our vacation was glorious. If there had been a way to consume the tropical, flowery scents around us, I would have eaten until I burst. As it was, I stood on the shore, taking in the majestic scene as far as my eye could see, and I shivered with awe. It was our last evening, and I expected that I would feel sad about leaving. Instead, I told my daughter that this was one of those moments that we try to take a picture with our hearts. I will engrave that sunset on my memory — may it ever serve as a reminder of the glory, majesty, creativity and splendor of the Creator!
Yet….
Every single day in that paradise had storms. Tropical raindrops are bigger and wetter than the ones that usually fall on us in North Texas. Even the rain smells like salt. Salt water is corrosive, and residents must be very vigilant to keep rust at bay. Everywhere on the carefully maintained resort was evidence of past furies; Hurricane Charley devastated the region in 2004 with such force that the shape of the coast itself changed, and a new island was born. The peaceful lushness of the island is bought with a price.
Just as my peace with our Lord was bought with a price.
To experience myself the way God made me to be, I must also endure storms that make my legs grow heavy and whip my hair into my eyes so that I cannot see clearly. Then, at those moments of helplessness, I find that the Lord is right there leading me through. He does not shield me from the furies of the world, but He never leaves me alone.
I was highly anxious about making this trip. Planes are not my favorite modes of transportation. I was so weary from the noise of travel that I wished my husband would turn off the radio once we got into a car. I craved silence. Instead I got the heavy pounding of fat raindrops on the roof. We traveled through such a heavy wall of rain that light literally could not penetrate. There were islands just offshore that our eyes could not see due to the rain. My eyes traveled the horizon, looking for waterspouts and other such anxious monsters. But we persevered. My husband kept driving. We kept trusting. And the reward we received was this:
Whatever storm may be pounding you, rest assured that it will pass by. I’m left with a peaceful realization that the storms the Lord is allowing in my life are shaping me, just as Hurricane Charlie shaped the coastline of Captiva. To my Creator I am an expanse of sand just waiting to be made into something that glorifies Him.
Today was one of those days when the sun seemed too bright. The bird songs outside my window were irritating, and I felt a strong inclination to drop kick the bunnies into next week when I discovered — again — that they had resumed setting up housekeeping right underneath the strawberry patch. Piano lessons today were sour, not sweet, as I stumbled and fretted over Amazing Grace. I feel guilty that my husband still has a job and we have a house compared to those who don’t, I want to help the poor but don’t know how, and I’m madder than a wet hen that my attempts to be self-sufficient failed when last night’s freeze totally wiped out the sweetly green seedlings in our garden . I spied my old dog’s collar tucked away in our closet and lost it as I caught a whiff of his Shiner smell. I’m out of trash bags and paper towels, desperately need a haircut, and my husband has been gone on a business trip since Saturday. (cue the violin, please)
Whine, whine, whine, right?
I actually started a post earlier today that compared the state of my heavy heart with King David’s in Psalm 68, but the LORD must have had mercy on me and allowed the computer to freeze up and erase my 650 words before I had a chance to post them. David was a King who had real enemies pursuing him, ridiculing him, gunning for him…um, quite a bit more than the silly stuff on my plate.
A glimmer of sunshine kept the darkness at bay, though. That’s one of the blessings of my inheritance with the Lord. I might be in a funk, but He is still there, still the same, steady rock. So as I wallered in self pity today, the old hymn, It is Well With My Soul kept springing to mind, in between my fusty ruminations. I have only the Holy Spirit to thank for that! So tonight I did a search on YouTube and found a version of the song that I absolutely love by The Newsboys!
If you are going through a rough patch and are a child of THE King, drink in this song and let its truths fill your soul.
Man! After listening to that reminder, it really IS well with my soul, thanks to Jesus…(cue the sunshine, bird songs, and bunnies, please!)
It is with great joy that I introduce the newest member of our “family.” Zulma is a beautiful ten year old girl who lives in Guatemala. She has two brothers and two sisters and lives with her mom and her dad. Her dad is an agriculture worker, and her mom stays home to take care of the family.
Recently our family took the step of sponsoring a child — Zulma — through World Vision. Those who have been following this blog know of our trouble to have more children and our struggles with should we or shouldn’t we adopt (me wanting to, my husband not ready yet). Zulma is one answer to our prayer! We will be supporting her financially each month, but more importantly, we’ll be establishing a relationship with her through emails, letters, photos, and prayers. My daughter has always wanted a sister; now she has one. My husband and daughter are already dreaming up a time when we can go visit her.
Why World Vision? Well, for starters, our church partners with them. For another, 87% of all donations go directly to the children. One of my dear friends, Holly, told me about child sponsorship over a year ago. I never forgot her shining eyes as she described the children she and her family support — and a little voice inside my head told me to get off my hind end and do something.
But what to do? When I mentioned it to my husband, he sort-of brushed off the idea. There are stories he’s heard of sponsorship companies that use most of their money to pay their executives and very little to the children. And then there are all the needy children in America. Wouldn’t it better to support “one of our own?”
In the end, it was our daughter’s curiosity and desire to help a child her age in need that turned the tide of our indecision. She and I looked at the website together. She picked Guatemala as the country because we have a dear friend who is originally from that country, and then we searched for a girl around ten years old. It was heartbreaking to see photos of so many children in need who fit our search criteria! I wished I could have selected every last one of them. But we prayed that God would show us the one girl he wanted us to love. As soon as we saw her picture, we both knew. Zulma is in our hearts forever. Just look at her smile!
It wasn’t until this weekend, however, that any of us understood the true need behind our sponsorship. Saturday there was a welcome packet from World Vision in our mailbox. Included in the packet was a DVD that did a great job explaining what it is exactly that World Vision does to support needy children and their communities.
Seeing the conditions in which others in our world live takes my breath away. Literally.
In Zulma’s part of the world, homes are made of clay bricks and tin sheets or with bamboo cane and straw roofs. Her entire house would probably fit inside one of the bedrooms of my house. The whole village shares a water faucet. Just yesterday at church I fussed at my daughter for drinking out of the water fountain at church. (My obsession with germs, you know. There’s a bug floating around at church that just won’t leave. I’m convinced it’s the kids putting their mouths around the fountains. But that’s another story.) My face burned last night as I watched a woman in Africa dipping water from a muddy seep hole in the ground into a large bucket. She came for water like this three times a day. Somehow, that tiny three-foot in diameter puddle provided water for six families…water that often gave them diarrhea, or worse. My germophobic tendencies are stopped in their tracks when I consider the way of life so many people across the world face every day. My standard of “clean” is something they would never even imagine.
So we began today with a different outlook on our lives and a new appreciation for what we have been given…and a new appreciation for the words in 1 John 3:
Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence whenever our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything.
I will post updates as I hear from Zulma. If our story is touching your heart and you’d like to learn more about how you can help, visit World Vision for yourself.
One of my dad’s favorite snacks are Fig Newtons. I never understood his love of them; I prefer the Newtons that are filled with apples or some other fruit. I never did “get” the taste of figs. Then again, I didn’t grow up in the Middle East. Jesus apparently liked figs, just like my dad.
There is one story about a fig tree that has always fascinated me because I never quite understood it. I know there’s a point to it somewhere, but so far it’s one of those elusive – maybe – God – will – tell – me – about -it – when – I -get – to – heaven stories.
Have you ever cursed a plant before? Last spring and summer I tried to grow vegetables. The garden was beautiful for a very short time…and then nasty beetles swarmed in and took up residence in the roots of my squash plants. I wanted to curse the beetles…but not the plants themselves!
Jesus cursed an actual fig tree. The very next day, it was dead.
The surprising thing about the story is that the disciples acted like they were surprised! Maybe they woke up every morning thinking that they had already seen every miracle that was possible. I also always wondered why Jesus cursed the tree to begin with. It turns out you have to know a little about fig trees to understand his frustration.
Usually, a fig tree’s fruit develops right along with the leaves. When the leaves are full and leafy green, the figs are ready to eat. But this tree was a facade. It was a sham tree. It was just pretending to be “all that.” Its leaves were full and promising, but there was no fruit in them. Its leaves were full before their time — it was too early in the season for figs, but since the leaves broadcasted their apparent presence, hungry Jesus went to look.
Jesus’ frustration was probably like mine when I have my mouth set on a cold bottle of water only to find that the Dasani cold drinks machine is sold out. Maybe it still has cokes and lemonades and sprites…but the water that it advertises so boldly on the outside? Missing.
That’s kind of how I am feeing about my faith lately. Like the fig tree, I feel like a sham.
I go to church. I smile and respond to people’s questions about me and make small talk. But on the inside, I am plastic. Hollow. Empty. My faith hasn’t gone anywhere, but I feel as if I have left my faith, if that makes any sense. My mind still knows the truth…but my heart just isn’t with it these days.
My mother-in-law’s father had open heart surgery today. Maybe it’s still going on — I haven’t heard. But she called me yesterday to ask me to pray. She seems to think that I have some kind of telephone line from me to God — once, when their house wouldn’t sell, she asked me to pray that it would sell. I prayed. It sold. Within two weeks. I tend to believe God allowed that to happen to increase her faith…not to show that I have any sort of higher chance of having my prayers answered. But I still prayed and am praying still for the surgery to go well…for the doctors to have wisdom…for his recovery to be amazing…for God’s glory to be displayed. I believe the Lord can do all these and more than we can even understand, if he so chooses…
Yet I’m frightened. What if…what if I am so separate from God right now that he turns his back on my prayers? Surely he wouldn’t do that, because he’s not a God of spite. And I have found I am in good company when it comes to feeling this way. In Psalm 38, David writes:
I am bent over and racked with pain.
All day long I walk around filled with grief.I am exhausted and completely crushed.
My groans come from an anguished heart.You know what I long for, Lord;
you hear my every sigh.
My heart beats wildly, my strength fails,
and I am going blind.Do not abandon me, O Lord.
Do not stand at a distance, my God.
Come quickly to help me,
O Lord my savior.
But I still have hope…and a glimmer of faith still lingers. God was faithful to David. He rescued him. And I know he will rescue me from this angst. He will fill me with peace. He will strengthen my faith…and I will have a stronger character for having gone through the fire. I do not know why I continue to be plagued with anxiety. I do not know why I continue to feel so empty inside or why I feel like becoming a recluse. But I know. I do know that one day I will be able to join David and say, as he did in Psalm 40:
I waited patiently for the Lord to help me,
and he turned to me and heard my cry.
He lifted me out of the pit of despair,
out of the mud and the mire.
He set my feet on solid ground
and steadied me as I walked along.
He has given me a new song to sing,
a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see what he has done and be amazed.
They will put their trust in the Lord.
Today, I will wait for the new song he’s giving me to sing. I know it will come.
My daughter is a ham. She loves performing, especially for God. We dance and sing at the beginning of each of our homeschool days, and it helps us put our minds in the right place — on the Lord. (This is especially important before math! Not for her, but for me!)
A couple of weeks ago she went to the first choir rehearsal for a kids performance at church. During the rehearsal, she asked our worship pastor if she could do a piano solo. At this point in time, she did not have her Christmas music “nailed” yet. But she was bold and knew she could get it! He told her to bring her music to the next rehearsal and he’d let her try out.
She worked her tail off getting that music just right, and then she played it flawlessly for him. The end result is that she played her song for nearly 1000 people (total, during two worship services). I am so proud of her — and of the Lord — not just for giving her talent but for giving her boldness in asking! What I forgot to mention is that first she asked me if she could ask the worship pastor for a piano solo. My first response was NO. I didn’t want her to be disappointed, and I knew she didn’t have the song down yet. But a little whisper inside me — the Holy Spirit — told me to let go and watch her spread her wings.
Watch her fly!
I will leave you with the words to this beautiful Christmas hymn…Hark the Herald Angels Sing!
Hark the herald angels sing
“Glory to the newborn King!
Peace on earth and mercy mild
God and sinners reconciled”
Joyful, all ye nations rise
Join the triumph of the skies
With the angelic host proclaim:
“Christ is born in Bethlehem”
Hark! The herald angels sing
“Glory to the newborn King!”
Glory indeed!
A little over ten years ago when I was pregnant with my daughter and battling severe nausea, I found one of those “relaxation CDs” called Mountain Streams. The sound of rushing water was overlaid with gentle instrumentals, and I played that CD into the ground because it helped me relax and remove my focus from that which caused severe anxiety (the nausea) to that which caused peace (God’s creation). Even today I find the sound of rushing water soothing to my soul. I think God must have created a waterfalls and streams, ocean waves, chirping birds and other beautiful sounds because they pleased him. They please me, too, and listening to them gives me a measure of peace.
One of the most profound moments in my spiritual walk happened when I was in high school. Our pastor gave a sermon about peace…about truly experiencing the peace that passes all understanding…and, for a time, I really GOT it. I wrote those words on my heart and thought about them as I walked the halls of a very loud, clamorous high school filled to the brim with teenage energy. They sustained me as I prepared to perform in plays, as I struggled through pre-cal, as I tried to figure out where I fit in the great, big world before me.
Now I am in the great big world, and it seems that the older I get, the scarier it becomes. Why is this peace so elusive? Why do I insist on taking on the worries of the world when I already know my place in the story…I already know how it will end?
I am re-reading a favorite book by Francine Rivers. It’s book one of a three-book series called Mark of the Lion. As the story opens, we find Hadassah, a young teenaged girl living in Jerusalem around 70 AD, caring for a dying mother. Her father is the man who Jesus raised from the dead as told in Luke 7:
Soon afterward, Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went along with him. As he approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out—the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the town was with her. When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, “Don’t cry.”Then he went up and touched the coffin, and those carrying it stood still. He said, “Young man, I say to you, get up!” The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother.
In Rivers’ story, this man went on to become a devout follower of Christ after his life-after-death experience. He was ridiculed and in danger in volatile Jerusalem, but he knew that was where God wanted him to share the news of Christ. One day he did not return, and Hadassah and her family are near death with starvation. Hadassah hates Jerusalem because it seems nobody there wants to hear about Christ. She’d rather be serving where the news of Christ is welcomed…and one day she asked her father about her lack of faith. Here is their exchange:
Why can I believe at home, Father, but not here?”
“Because the enemy knows where you are most vulnerable.”
Then the character goes on to recount the story of King Jehoshaphat. He was scared to death to hear news that the armies of three nations had declared war on him. It goes without saying that PEACE was not in his vocabulary at that moment. He did turn to the Lord, though, to seek guidance, and he ordered his people to begin fasting. His prayer is recorded in 2 Chronicles 20, but some of his words could be yours and mine in the battles we are facing:
We can cry out to you to save us, and you will hear us and rescue us. O our God, won’t you stop them? We are powerless against this mighty army that is about to attack us. We do not know what to do, but we are looking to you for help.”
Help — and peace — came in a very unlikely way. The Bible says that God’s spirit came upon a man named Jahaziel who cried out:
“Listen, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Listen, King Jehoshaphat! This is what the Lord says: Do not be afraid! Don’t be discouraged by this mighty army, for the battle is not yours, but God’s. Tomorrow, march out against them. You will find them coming up through the ascent of Ziz at the end of the valley that opens into the wilderness of Jeruel. But you will not even need to fight. Take your positions; then stand still and watch the Lord’s victory. He is with you, O people of Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid or discouraged. Go out against them tomorrow, for the Lord is with you!”
How could they possibly win a battle against three armies without a fight? If we look closer at the story, we’ll see that their victory happened for very specific reasons. Let’s first see the end of the story:
Early the next morning the army of Judah went out into the wilderness of Tekoa.
The first thing they had to do was to MOVE. They went out. Now, if it had been me about to face three armies, I’d have been kicking and screaming. Not Jehoshaphat!
On the way Jehoshaphat stopped and said, “Listen to me, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Believe in the Lord your God, and you will be able to stand firm. Believe in his prophets, and you will succeed.”
They had to BELIEVE. The Hebrew word he used for “believe” is ‘aman. It means much more than just believing in something…more than a child believing in Santa Claus or the Tooth Fairy. It means to stand firm. To trust. To be certain. To be confirmed, established, and secure. The connotation is of a child being securely carried in the arms of a nurse. God, Jehoshaphat was saying, is securely holding Judah in the crook of his arm just as a nurse holds a baby.
After consulting the people, the king appointed singers to walk ahead of the army, singing to the Lord and praising him for his holy splendor. This is what they sang:
“Give thanks to the Lord;
his faithful love endures forever!”
Then they began singing and praising God — for his holy splendor. For what he was about to do. For who He is, and for the love he has that endures forever. Before they were in victory, they acted AS IF they had already won the battle. Can you picture how confident they must have been? There is story after story in the Bible of the Lord honoring the praises and songs of his people — as we’ll see next, there is REAL power in praise.
At the very moment they began to sing and give praise, the Lord caused the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir to start fighting among themselves. The armies of Moab and Ammon turned against their allies from Mount Seir and killed every one of them. After they had destroyed the army of Seir, they began attacking each other. So when the army of Judah arrived at the lookout point in the wilderness, all they saw were dead bodies lying on the ground as far as they could see. Not a single one of the enemy had escaped. When all the surrounding kingdoms heard that the Lord himself had fought against the enemies of Israel, the fear of God came over them. So Jehoshaphat’s kingdom was at peace, for his God had given him rest on every side.
What lessons in peace can we take from the story of Jehoshaphat? How can we find peace in the middle of a battle? I sure would like for the Lord to give me rest “on every side,” don’t you? Maybe it’s a financial battle. Maybe it’s a battle with depression…or with a person who has deeply hurt us. Maybe our battle is within ourselves. Or maybe we’re running on empty today, all tired out from shopping, wrapping, cooking, and decorating. Whatever it is, can we learn anything about achieving rest and peace?
Taking a page from Jehoshaphat, there ARE some things in our control that we can do to achieve rest:
- Bring the battle and the trouble to God in prayer and with fasting.
- Look for and expect an answer.
- March on. Keep going forward.
- Believe with an ‘aman belief in God’s loving care of you. Picture yourself as a child being cradled in his most capable hands.
- Praise him with everything you’ve got!
- Show up for the battle and watch the enemy fall away.
- Relish the rest…and the peace.
Like Hadassah, the enemy knows exactly when I’m most vulnerable. He knows just when to attack and prowls around like a lion, waiting for a chance to get at me. But it’s encouraging to realize that I DO have tools at my disposal to deal with his attacks even — especially — when I’m most vulnerable. Jehoshaphat was extremely vulnerable to attack and actually had three declarations of war against him — but God is showing me that the battle is HIS. It’s not mine to fight.
I’m not always going to have a relaxation CD at my fingertips or on my ipod, but I will always have the ability to follow Jehoshaphat’s example. On a closer inspection, the verse that brought my first real sampling of peace, Philippians 4:6-8, is all about what Jehoshaphat did. He went to God. He had the singers sing praises with thanksgiving. God’s peace filled their hearts as they believed God, and their hearts and minds were protected from thoughts of defeat. They set their minds on the Lord, on all that is lovely and wonderful about him. Then…God fought their battle for them and brought them peace.
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.
I am overwhelmed with gratitude this day. Our country is unique in our graceful and peaceful transfer of power…as our leaders pass the baton according to the votes of the American people. There are no rioters in the streets on this day after the election. Those of us who supported McCain now turn our hearts to the good of our country and acknowledge that God’s plans are higher and loftier than anything we can possibly fathom.
President Bush’s speech this morning was one of the best examples of the beautiful American spirit that I have ever heard. Regardless of your personal feelings about him as a leader and about his legacy, I hope you will take a few moments to hear and see what he had to say this morning about passing on the office:
Now, I will be praying for President-Elect Obama and his family. It will not be an easy road by any means, and any person who choses to walk such a stressful life in service to his country must get some kudos from me. I am grateful to be living in such a country as this, where the transfer of political power is gracious, and for a short time at least, our leaders transcend their political parties and unite as Americans. What a privilege and honor it is to be living in times such as these!
I will thank you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all the marvelous things you have done. I will be filled with joy because of you. I will sing praises to your name, O Most High. Psalm 9
I just realized that the calendar on my wall is still turned to September. In a blink of an eye, everything changes, doesn’t it?
Blink. I was ten years old and couldn’t wait to grow up.
Blink. I was twenty years old and couldn’t wait to get married.
Blink. I was thirty years old and couldn’t wait for my four-year-old to be able to tie her own shoes.
Blink. Six years later, I watch and listen as my own nearly-ten-year-old child professes her desire to be all grown up.
Today I find myself wandering around in a depressing funk. I told my birthday-boy-husband (Happy Birthday, sweetheart!) that I felt as if a dark cloud had parked itself right over my head, shadowing my every thought and dampening my mood. The thrill I felt yesterday at the sight of a broad, blue, wind-swept Texas sky was replaced today with gloom at the sight of brown leaves falling to the ground, leaving bare branches stark against the sky.
Most of this gloomy outlook is just that: it is a furrow that my mind chases around and around again. I dislike the winter, and today I feel it coming. I feel it in the very middle of my bones. When I was eleven, I broke my ankle in such a bad way that surgeons had to piece it back together. Now I can tell anyone with about as much accuracy as the National Weather Service when a cold front is approaching the region because there is a distinctive aching sensation radiating from my joints. I can’t claim that this is what getting older feels like because I began experiencing it when I was eleven.
Back to the furrow in my mind. In my Dalmatian’s younger days, he ran and ran incessantly around the back yard. Eventually the grass right around the fence stopped growing due to the trail he made every day. That is what my mind feels like today. I have a dog trail going round and round.
Why? For every reason and for no reason. The election. The condition of my heart. The condition of Amercia’s hearts. A sweet friend of mine just lost a job. Some unmentionables. Depression because we can’t seem to make up our minds about adoption. And for some reason today, especially my sweet Dalmatian…I fear he won’t make it to Christmas this year. The winters are so hard on his old joints. With this marginally cooler weather, I can already tell a difference in him. He will no longer chase after the tennis ball. For those of you who know him, you must know this is a huge sadness. This was a dog who would forgo food (and he LOVES food) for the chance to chase after a tennis ball. Now if I throw it for him he looks at me as if to say, “YOU go get it!”
He barks at nothing. He howls at sirens he must be hearing in his mind. He wanders the house sometimes as if he is confused. He’s looking for something but isn’t quite sure what that something is. So I drag a blanket over to the floor and sit with him. He can’t climb on the couch most days anymore, so he settles down beside me and likes me to cover him with a soft blanket.
There’s another change in him. We used to joke about having to put all our drinks in the center of the coffee table because he wagged his tail so ferociously that it whacked any glass within reach, spilling whatever contents there may have been all over the floor. Now he holds his tail at an odd angle…just between his legs. The only time I see him wag it anymore is if someone comes to visit or right after I put food in his bowl. The old dog is growing more frail every day. It hurts to watch.
But today is hubby’s birthday! And that surely is a reason for praise, and I will dwell on the blessing he is in my life. Always ready with a goofy joke that cracks me up, he is the north to my south. We are as about as opposite as we can be. He’s very tall…I’m very short. He’s great at putting people at ease…I get panic attacks in some social situations. He loves to travel…I hate to travel. He’s very athletic…I’m athletically challenged. But we love each other more than life itself. I know he’s got my back, and I’ve got his, and today of all days I thank God for bringing us together and for being the glue that holds our marriage strong. Yes, time is flying by so fast…but when you get right down to it, that must mean that we’re having fun!
As always when I feel troubled, I look to the Psalms, and I find much comfort there…especially today, as I sit here troubled by the passing of time. Sometimes I wish I could just grab my hubby, my little girl and my old doggy friend and keep them right where they are in this moment of time. Of course that isn’t possible, so I take snapshots with my camera and with my heart. I wonder if God looks at time the same way we do? I found some comforting verses in Psalm 90…I share them with you today.
Lord, through all the generations
you have been our home!
Before the mountains were born,
before you gave birth to the earth and the world,
from beginning to end, you are God.For you, a thousand years are as a passing day,
as brief as a few night hours.Teach us to realize the brevity of life,
so that we may grow in wisdom.O Lord, come back to us!
How long will you delay?
Take pity on your servants!
Satisfy us each morning with your unfailing love,
so we may sing for joy to the end of our lives.Let us, your servants, see you work again;
let our children see your glory.
And may the Lord our God show us his approval
and make our efforts successful.
Yes, make our efforts successful!
That is my prayer this day, Lord…that you will make our nation’s…our church’s…our family’s…our individual…efforts successful, and that they will be pleasing to your sight.
My washing machine has more features than my car! I can do a second rinse, a soak, and a prewash. I can do laundry for light, medium, or heavy soil levels, and I can wash it cold/cold, cold/warm, warm/warm, and hot/cold. There’s a button on there that gives the clothes an extended spin. I can select Normal, Delicate, Handwash, Jeans, or Heavy Duty.
Trouble is, I pretty much use one setting, all the time. I always like our clothes washed in HOT water because I like the illusion of all the little germy germs getting washed away (although I know the heat from the dryer is good for that, too). I don’t own anything delicate, our jeans get thrown in with the towels, and everything is pretty much Heavy Duty.
What’s the point of washing “Normal” when you can have “Heavy Duty?” Who wants to dry their clothes on Air Dry when they can just hang them outside? No, give me 85 minutes on High Heat anyday.
Most days I do sort out the darks from the lights; rarely do I have an entire load of whites, so they get thrown in with the lights. I try to get through two loads of laundry a day just like I try to get in my quiet time every day.
And then when crisis comes, sometimes the two-loads-a-day gets thrown out the window. It might be a little crisis, like a newsletter deadline. Then I walk into the laundry room and grieve at the sight of a zillion loads of laundry piled on the floor, piled on top of the washer, and even in the sink. It literally stretches from wall to wall. Have you been there?
When that happens, I’ve found the best thing to do is to just get started without any expectation of being finished today. I sort the clothes, start a load, and close the door. Then in a little while I check back up on the progress, and, finding that load clean, I put it away and start another load. Sock by sock, t-shirt by towel, finally I get to the bottom of the pile without losing more than three socks. Success!
There are times when I ask the Lord to examine my heart that I really don’t like what I see. Old issues and new ones, fears, materialistic greed and strongholds have piled up again from wall to wall in my heart. And, like the real laundry room floor, the sight of all my shortcomings and sins grieves me.
With the state of my heart, I’m finding that the best thing to do is to just ask God to get started and to do my part without any expectation of being finished today. It’s so nice to know that I am a work in progress and that God doesn’t have to worry about which button to push in my life to get me going. He made me. He stitched me together and knows all about how much hot water I can stand. He knows when I need a cool, refreshing rinse, too. Perhaps the best part of all about my Jesus is that because of him, I am already clean…even when I’m not. When I get all grubby from my sinful old self, I just need to climb into his big old washing machine, confess, and then I emerge miraculously refreshed and clean.
But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.
1 John 1:9
Ah, to be cleansed from all wickedness! To be freshly washed, wrapped up in a clean, toasty towel, sweet smelling and relaxed…
I set out to write this blog with nothing on my mind but the laundry. Isn’t it cool what God does with our words? All glory to you, my God, the God of this city, of this world, of this universe. I praise you and lift up your name, for you are mighty and able to save. Thank you for the saving grace found in the blood of Jesus. When our clothes get soiled with blood, we quickly wash them to remove the stain…but with your blood, we want it washing over us always and forever. It turns our clothes white…it removes the red from us like bleach removes stains from our clothes.
Let us not just have a reputation for being ‘Christian’ in this world. Let us BE Christians!
“I know all the things you do, and that you have a reputation for being alive—but you are dead. Wake up! Strengthen what little remains, for even what is left is almost dead. I find that your actions do not meet the requirements of my God. Go back to what you heard and believed at first; hold to it firmly. Repent and turn to me again. If you don’t wake up, I will come to you suddenly, as unexpected as a thief.
“Yet there are some in the church in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes with evil. They will walk with me in white, for they are worthy. All who are victorious will be clothed in white. I will never erase their names from the Book of Life, but I will announce before my Father and his angels that they are mine.
“Anyone with ears to hear must listen to the Spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches.
Revelation 3:1-6
Today in church we revisited the hard-hitting book of James. Our pastor called us out — in a nation where 82% of the people profess to be Christians, how much of that profession is true? True faith occurs when we start acting like we believe what we say we believe. We are God’s workmanship — we are the pottery he created — and he has a special purpose for each one of us. If we keep on living the way we were living before we were saved — if there is no discernible change in the way we behave Monday through Saturday, then James has some eye-opening words for us: our faith is dead.
What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?
So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.
You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God.[f] Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror. How foolish! Can’t you see that faith without good deeds is useless?
Don’t you remember that our ancestor Abraham was shown to be right with God by his actions when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see, his faith and his actions worked together. His actions made his faith complete. And so it happened just as the Scriptures say: “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.”[g] He was even called the friend of God.[h] So you see, we are shown to be right with God by what we do, not by faith alone. Rahab the prostitute is another example. She was shown to be right with God by her actions when she hid those messengers and sent them safely away by a different road. Just as the body is dead without breath,[i] so also faith is dead without good works.
This is not to say that we are saved by our deeds — no, we learn from the Bible that our salvation is a GIFT from God, and we receive it through our faith. What James is talking about is this:The evidence of our faith is in what we do when no one is looking as well as when everyone is looking. For example, if I say that I believe John McCain is the right leader for our country and then I go and vote secretly for Barak Obama, then I am not backing up my belief with my actions. If I say that I believe that Chevrolet makes the best automobiles in the world but then go and purchase a Subaru, then I am not backing up my belief with my actions. One could assume that I did not really believe in McCain or Chevrolet. Likewise, if I say I believe in Christ as my savior but then continue to allow myself to be conformed to this world, then I am not backing up my belief in Christ with my actions…and those looking on at my life…and they are looking on, could assume that I do not really believe or have faith in what I say I believe in….Christ.
As Jesus said in Matthew 5:
You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house.
What does my light look like to the world? Is it bright? Is it dim? Is it one of those bulbs that has so much dust and grime built up on it that the light has a hard time penetrating the outer layer of muck?
It was one of those convicting services where the Holy Spirit nudged my heart. I have been so caught up in the politics of this day that I look more like the world than like my Jesus. And that is so not my intent!
Our pastor reminded us that instead of trusting in man, it is time to put our actions where we say our faith is: in God. It’s time to trust Him, no matter what. It is our duty as Americans to go vote…but then we are to step back and TRUST. Trust that God…
- Is sovereign
- Turns the hearts of the king, as stated in Proverbs 21:1:
The king’s heart is like a stream of water directed by the Lord;he guides it wherever he pleases.
The king spoken of in that verse was not David. It was an evil king. All kings are in the hands of the Lord, just as we all are in the hands of the Lord.
- Causes all things to happen for our eventual good. All things. For a Christian McCain supporter, that means even an Obama victory. For the Christian Obama supporter, that means even a McCain victory. In Romans 8 we learn that:
And we know that God causes everything to work together[m] for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.
I often remember the struggles of young Joseph who was his father’s favorite son. Because of his father’s sin of favoritism, his brothers hated him to the point of death. They sold him into slavery. But Joseph kept God first in his heart at all times, and God had a plan for his life. He knew that one day he would put Joseph in a leadership position almost as high as Potiphar’s himself. Yet Joseph had to go through some horrible trials. Thrown in a well and left for dead. Sold into slavery. Falsely accused and thrown into prison. But God in his perfect wisdom orchestrated all of that not just for Joseph’s eventual good, but for the good of his entire family and his nation.
In the same way, God is at work in our nation. Godly people are bowing in prayer even as I write these words, lifting words of praise and petition. God hears our prayer. He is the God of This City…of my city, of your city, of our nation.
We sang this song today, and I felt my spirits rise to the heavens as the words reminded me once again that our God is a GOOD God! He has our back. He is on our side. We already know the last chapter. The battle has already been fought…and won!
I leave you with these beautiful verses from Paul in his letter to the Romans. Read them. Believe them. Live like you believe them:
What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else? Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for his own? No one—for God himself has given us right standing with himself. Who then will condemn us? No one—for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and he is sitting in the place of honor at God’s right hand, pleading for us.
Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”[n]) No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.
And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,[o] neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Amen and Amen!
