Archive | Life Outside the Tomb RSS feed for this section

The God of More . . . Much More

3 Sep

The post today is going to be a little strange and full disclosure, more than a little lengthy.  It’s going to mix parts of the present with the recent past and even merge parts from years ago when we met Joni and Ken Tada at family retreat.  My clumsy attempts to summarize the events of the last few days by recounting the present and pointing to the past will be intermingled with the voice of one of the most godly, courageous women I have ever encountered.   All of this back and forth confirms for me and I hope for you too that no event ever happens in isolation.  The activity of God cannot be confined by time and not a moment of your life escapes His attention.

To give a little context, I am sitting on our couch bandaged tightly across my entire abdomen so the air in my right lung will not escape through the hole left by the chest tubes that recently took up residence there. For some unknown reason, this part of my body decided to take a vacation and interrupt the one we had planned to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary.  It’s been a rough weekend to say the least.  Complication after complication has reared its challenging head but God has met every one with the supernatural resolve to fight for me and show Himself mighty.  I found it to be “so God” that He revealed Himself to me with the following thought right before I visited the doctor and this situation began to unfold:

“Trials rip away the façade of self-sufficiency and make way for God’s miracles.  I praise Him for His constant attention and affection toward me.” — posted on FB in the a.m. Aug 30

facebook

The staff at the hospital was kind enough to let me call Britt and tell her what was going on before they doped me up for the procedure.  Her little heart was breaking (she’s 20 but it’s still a “little heart” to this Momma) and I so badly wanted to make it better for her.  But I couldn’t.  It was time to find out if I would believe God for her comfort.  I totally trusted Him for me, no matter the outcome, but I didn’t know if I had the tenacity to trust Him for her and for Brett.  The next few days presented that question over and over again.  Each time,  I said aloud, “I trust you Lord” and I repeated the verse from Psalm 28 I had started memorizing two days before . . .

“The LORD is my strength, my shield from every danger. I trust in him with all my heart.  He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy.”  Psalm 28:7 NLT (written on an index card the a.m. of Aug 29)

indexcard

Each time He was true to His Word. I love how He is always preparing us to face the next trial.  Always revealing Himself to be the One we can turn to and reminding us that everything has a purpose.

I was nervous about the medication I was getting because I knew that I would soon lose the ability to monitor what was spewing from my mouth. I never know what might come flowing out if I leave this tongue unattended and I didn’t want to be bossy or say something unfiltered.  The  E.R. Crew listened patiently as the drugs started having their relaxing effect and I explained that  “I needed them to ignore anything I might say under the influence because if I ever got to talk Jesus with them in the future, I didn’t want this to be what they remembered.”  Luckily, the jibberish I spoke wasn’t anything that threatened my sanctification!  I did quote a contorted version of Proverbs 21:9 to the three men hard at work preparing to help me begin breathing again:  Better to live on the corner of a roof than to have a nagging wife.  Hmmm . . . . . is this really the last bit of wisdom my brain wants to impart.

So I had gotten to talk to my Girl and, as the surgeons prepared to sedate me further and insert the tube that was supposed to reinflate my lung, I remember looking over at Brett and seeing such a mix of love and concern on his face.  I wrote later in my journal, “If her voice was the last thing I heard and his face the last thing I saw on planet earth, what a sweet send off it would have been. Lord, thank you for being Love to me through them.”  My God really is the Giver of all good gifts.  I don’t think I had any doubts left about that, but if I did watching my parents, my husband, and my sweet night shift friend do faithful vigil at my bedside certainly dispelled them.   He is today and has always been the unchanging God James describes.

My condition was very serious and the measures to correct it would not fall under my personal definition of the word pleasant.  The tube they originally inserted between my ribs was very large and they had to pry my bones apart to secure it.  As a result, it was painful all the time.  I was relieved when the surgeon said it could be removed and I looked forward to having that pain gone.  But when they took it out the diameter of the tube left a gaping hole and my lung began to spurt air and collapsed again.  There was no time to administer any kind of pain medicine so I received stitches and had a large needle for aspiration inserted without any numbing medication.  Youch!  To keep my mind from the events transpiring around in me I recited Psalm 15 which God had planted firmly in my memory the previous week over and over again.  I said the final line with particular gusto as the assisting nurses held my hands tightly . . .

“He who does these things will not be shaken.”  Psalm 15:5b (put in my memory folder Aug 20)

The following day one of the nurses asked me “What was that Psalm you were saying yesterday?” and I got to speak a good Word about the LOVE of my Jesus and He who IS FAITHFUL.  He always has a good work set aside for us to do and HE always gives us the equipping and strength to carry it out.  He never ceases to be active in our midst.

And while all of this is going on my Sweet Girl in Florida is declaring that “she believes God to restore the health of her Momma” for all the heavenlies to hear and is praying big, ambitious prayers on my behalf.  The circumstances may have looked bad from the outside, but Sister, does it get any better than that?  Well, the answer is yes because we are loved by the God of More. . . . Much More.  And blessedly, He allows us glimpses of the “More of Him.”

So this is the point when I must begin moving forward and backward in time. The things that transpired in between the moment above and my being released continued to show the glory of God.  I was blessed by my Sisters in the Faith rolling in one after another with blessing after blessing.  Funny that I had just written about our need for the Body and resting in the garage. God knows that simply knowing something very rarely results in it becoming a part of who I am and I praise Him that He will go to any length to make certain that I have fully embraced the Truth He has uncovered.

Here’s the flash back:  This link is to the full blog post the excerpt below, written by Joni Eareckson Tada, was taken from.  I had read it on August 29th and prayed to be that kind of an encouragement to my man.

Ken opened wide the front door so I could wheel out to the van.  For a long moment I sat squarely in the door frame, staring and taking it all in:  the shade tree dappling our brick path, blossoms bobbing on the crepe myrtle, and patches of sunlight on dewy grass.  It was the freshest of mornings.  Oh God, I breathed, If only I could feel as fresh.

After more than four decades of quadriplegia, I’m tired.  Please don’t think I’m a veteran or a professional when it comes to living in a wheelchair.  I’m not an expert.  MY BONES ARE WEARY AND THIN FROM BATTLING EVERYTHING FROM PRESSURE SORES AND PNEUMONIA  (I added the capitalization for emphasis there because it so screamed my man’s name to me)—to stage III cancer.  My question these days is never “Why God?”  It’s most often “How?”

How do I keep on going? How do I care about others when I’m consumed with my own physical challenges? How can I be kind and civil when pain wracks me? How can I find the strength to face this day?That morning, Ken had the answer.

“Why aren’t you out by the van?” he asked when he came from the kitchen with my lunch bag. Staring at the splendorous morning beyond the door, I answered him with a deep sigh. “Wait here,” he said, “I know exactly what you need.”

Soon he was back with a yellow post-it note. With a thick Sharpie, he had simply penned on it the letter ‘C.’

I gave him an odd look.  “It stands for Courage,” he said, “The courage of Christ. I can see it in your eyes, Joni, and you can do this. I know you can!” With that, he pressed the post-it on my shirt, right above my heart.

There is more and I urge you to follow the link and read the observations Joni shares, but this is the point in the blog where I stopped and prayed through tear filled eyes, asking God  to please give me the heart vision to notice when Brett is having a “deep sigh day” and the wisdom to know how to lift him up. I told Brett about Joni’s words and how they had made me think of his daily struggles and I hope I encouraged his heart with words of admiration for all he perseveres through.

The flash forward piece of the puzzle brings us to yesterday when I was released and allowed to come home with severe limitations. Brett had watched all that had happened from an unfamiliar vantage point.  See, he is very used to being the one in the bed but the other side of the rail is territory he’s not visited too often. It was hard on him.  It took courage to push through and do all that he needed to do.  But my Nehemiah Man, the guard posted on my wall, persevered yet again. Oh, he loved me ferociously through it all.  And while I’m familiar with the feeling of being helpless but never hopeless on the “other side of the rail” I wondered what it looked like through his eyes.

I didn’t need to wonder for long because as I settled into the recliner I will be calling home for the next few weeks my man wheeled toward me with his glasses on his head and tears at the corner of his eyes. Unbeknownst to me, he had read the blog I had chatted with him about–the one that made me think of him and the courage of Christ that he displays every day–and on his knee was a purple post-it note with the letter “C” written in black Sharpie marker.  (Since Brett has no finger function this was a very intentional labor of love on his part.)

With me sobbing and tears in his own eyes, he pressed his finger down on the post-it note until it stuck to his hand and held it out to me.  I pressed it on my chest and I felt the total love of the redeemed man sitting in front of me.

couragec

Oh yes, Beloved, my God is a God of More.  More than I can possibly conceive or imagine.  My God is faithful and trustworthy.  Not a single moment of my life escapes His attention or His affection.  He is the Giver of all good gifts and will never let His children settle for less than the More He has set aside for them.

The same is true for you.   Do not believe for a moment He has abandoned you in the trial Sweet One.   Your God would not take you there or allow the challenge if He did not have More for you on the other side.  You hang on with faith.  You pray big, ambitious prayers and you wait expectantly for your God to bless you. Listen to Him when He tells you not be afraid and consider Joshua 1:9 to be your personal post-it note straight from the heart of the Holy One. Press it on your chest Girlfriend, count on Him to do what He says He will do, and be confident that the God of More is with you.

“Be strong and courageous.

Do not be afraid;

do not be discouraged,

for the Lord your God

will be with you wherever you go.”

Joshua 1:9

Tags: , , , ,

Life on the Open Road Requires Some Time in the Garage!

28 Aug

“Sitting in the garage won’t make you a car,

and going to church won’t make you a Christian.”

car3

This is a popular quote I’ve seen posted all over facebook and used in different devotionals lately.  I tried to track down who originally said it, but it was attributed to so many people I wasn’t comfortable assigning an author.  So give credit to whomever it was you heard it from first and know that it did not originate in the mind of Marilyn Biddinger.  I’m not that clever.

As clever as it is, there’s something about those words that have made my heart a little uncomfortable each time I have read it.  I think I get the point —simply parking in a pew will not transform you into something you are not. But I sometimes wonder if as the Body, in a very sincere and good-hearted effort to distance ourselves from empty religion, we’ve gone too far and cast the meeting together of the Body of Christ as an unnecessary part of Kingdom life. An optional part of our relationship with Jesus.   If we have, we’ve unintentionally done ourselves and a watching world a huge disservice.

Please don’t hear me promoting empty church attendance as a way of doing life with our Savior.  But . . . the person sitting in that pew is much more likely to hear the Truth preached there than sitting on their couch every Sunday.  And since it is the Word of God that comes with the promise (Isaiah 55:11) it seems to me that we should encourage them to come park in that pew and find a little shelter from the elements outside any day of the week.  And, at what other time will a person who just wants to be good for goodness sake or do the right thing because it’s just the right thing to do, have a chance to be loved on by so many who have LOVE living inside them.

Doing life with the family of God, even though it can be a messy business, is absolutely essential to having a full and complete relationship with Jesus.  It’s where we have the opportunity to live life the most excellent way and where the world sees believers do life differently.  If it wasn’t essential why would the Apostle Paul tell us not to give up meeting with one another as some have done and why would the New Testament spend so much time telling us how to relate to one another.

And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works,

not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some,

but encouraging one another,

and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

Hebrews 10:24-25

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. John 13:34

 Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.  Romans 12:10

Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty (snobbish, high-minded, exclusive), but readily adjust yourself to [people, things] and give yourselves to humble tasks. Never overestimate yourself or be wise in your own conceits. Romans 12:16  (Sometimes I just have to go with the Amplified because it drives it home and leaves me no wiggle room.)

For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. Galatians 5:13

Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.  Ephesians 4:2

These are just a few of the one anothers.  And guess what?  To do the “one anothers” there has to be others.  It’s the others that God often uses to change and refine us.

As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another. Proverbs 27:17

It’s true that sitting in the garage won’t make you a car.  It won’t make you a car because that wasn’t what you were created to be.  I don’t think even a car would be content with just sitting in the garage all the time if it could choose.  And if it could talk, I think it might say something like “Hey, put some fuel in my tank, put the top down,  let’s go for a drive.”  That car would be itching to fulfill its purpose. Never leaving the garage wouldn’t even be an option.  It would ache to get out on the open road and do what it was made to do.  So while the purpose of that car is life on the open road, running 24/7 without coming back to the garage for a little rest and respite just isn’t going to cut it.  The road grime would build-up, the windshield would be smeared, and the fuel gauge would soon hit empty.  Balance is required for that car to do its job.  Even though it rightfully calls that garage home, it simply can’t do what it was it was created to do if it spends all its time just sitting there.  But . . . it can’t fulfill its purpose if it spends all its time on the road either.

Isn’t it the same for we who are called to be members of the Body of Christ?  You were created to complete the Body, to edify the Body, to encourage the Body and they were created to do the same for you.

 For as in one body we have many members,

and the members do not all have the same function,

so we, though many, are one body in Christ,

and individually members one of another.

Romans 12:4-5

We need one another to wipe away the road grime, help clean the windshield, and fill our tanks.  It’s what we were created to do – love one another. Sometimes it’s good to be on the road alone and just let the Spirit blow your hair back.  Other times, you need to look over and see another driver headed the same direction.  It encourages the heart and spurs the soul to know we aren’t alone.  God gives us other road warriors to strengthen us and help us navigate all the twists and turns life throws at us.  We can’t dismiss the benefits of fellowship and meeting with the body of Christ.  The Truth won’t allows us to. Sisters, if we do we will miss out on the fullness of the abundant life God has planned for us. And so will those who long to see us.  I’m speaking from experience on this one.  Brett and I haven’t had the opportunity to physically enter our Church and worship with our Body in over a year.  As much as we enjoy having Believers here in our home, there’s just nothing like joining together with hands raised high and coming before the Throne with one voice.

And as for the one who pulls into their appointed parking space each Sunday . . . Well, do you remember the last time you met a whole slew of cars on their way to a classic car show?  The smile just creeps across your face as you meet car after car.   Shined and polished.  Buffed and beautiful.  You get all anxious waiting to see what the next one might look like and you start chatting with everyone else in the car about how awesome all those cars are as they keep rolling past you. Even if you aren’t a car enthusiast, there’s just something about seeing those cars, one right after another, that grabs your attention.   And when they arrive at their destination and they’re all lined up for the world to see, it is simply spectacular.

Spend a few minutes wandering among those beauties and you’ll soon be hearing story after story from their owners.  “Yeah, she was a wreck when I got her, but look at her now!”  “You wouldn’t have believed the shape she was in!”  Pretty soon your attention isn’t on the car anymore.  Nope.  Pretty soon, your focus is on the owner.  The one who poured all those blood, sweat, and tears into making that car what is today.  Same for us.

When Love congregates all in one place, it grabs people’s attention.  When we share the truth of the wrecks we were and let the Glory of the One who poured His Blood, Sweat, and Tears into us do the talking – well, Girlfriend, we are beautiful.  So you pull out onto that highway with the top down and the engine roaring the Good News, but don’t you forget that time in the garage is necessary.  And Sister, when we all line up, shined and polished, doing what we were created to do – we are absolutely spectacular.

car1

Tags: , , , , ,

Unchallenged = Unchanged

25 Jul

Rather you are personally acquainted with the residents of Biddinger Boulevard or you have only peeked in through the window of this blog, you have to agree that they have faced some things on this planet.  Some challenges have come about of their own making and others, well, not so much.  But this is what I know as I prepare to write this post today:  Faith unchallenged is faith unchanged.

If I’m consistently praying for growth and asking God to increase my faith, and on my good days I am, then I have to expect opportunities to stretch my new faith muscles.  Times when I get to see if it’s just talk or if I’m willing to lace up my walking shoes and really step the thing out.  Today is just such a day.

Over the last few weeks I have been inundated with the truth of who God is and so desiring to have faith that can move mountains.  I’ve shaken off some chains that have shackled my feet forever and began believing Him in an area I was totally holding back.  I don’t want to overstate because I’m having to claim Scripture over it daily, but the point is, that I am believing Him for the victory.  I’m desiring to be obedient right now not when it is more comfortable for me or better timing.  I read somewhere recently that to truly experience the Comforter we have to be willing to leave our comfort zones.  There’s some truth to that for me because I have a tendency to become complacent after a while.

You’d think that with all we have gone through, just in the last year let alone the last 20 years,  that I would have been challenged enough for a lifetime.  How in the world could I have an unchallenged, complacent bone left in my body?  I’ve seen Him be BIG, HUGE, and FAITHFUL so often.  And yet, there are still places in the back of my brain that wonder, “But will You be faithful to me in this?  Will You be my refuge if I go there?  Will You protect me from that?”  I don’t want those back-of-the-brain places directing the feet of my faith.  But, unless I hit a challenge that makes me act, I will never know if I am truly living, moving, and finding my being in Him.  See what I mean?

I have to be grateful for the chances He gives me to know where my faith is at and to see the fruit of the growth He has prompted in me.  Did you catch that – “the chances He gives me to know . . . and to see”–?  Let it sink in a minute.  He already knows the depth and the breadth of my faith.  He knows what I will trust Him for and what I will believe of Him.  So who needs to be strengthened by it?  Who needs to see progress and have tangible proof that my faith walk is moving forward?  Oh my goodness Girlfriend – I do!  And so do you!

I need to know that there is fruit in my life of His Presence.  You need to look at me and see Him making a difference in my life.  It’s the same for you and the people who peek into your life.  You are the way that God has chosen to make Himself known in this generation among these people.  Every faith challenge you come up against is a new opportunity to shine like a star in the universe.  And don’t you know that Glory always shines brightest against a stormy background?

God does NOT need my growth or yours.  Does He desire it? You know He does. God does NOT need my faith to increase. He does NOT need your faith to increase.  But does He long for it?  Beloved, you can be certain He does.

The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands.  And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else.  Acts 17:24-25

He doesn’t NEED a thing from us.  But oh, how He longs to see us consumed by our NEED FOR HIM. He knows that only when we are consumed with Him will we be complete. Now, we’ll not get there this side of glory, but we can continue, by His grace, moving closer.  And so He lets us see the tangible proof we need to keep fighting the good fight.  He spurs us toward more.  That’s who He is.  That’s His goodness.  That’s His compassion.  That’s His LOVE on display to you and through you.

See, your God is ALL about you.  And that means you don’t need to be.  You don’t have to worry about what’s coming down the pipe because He’s got it. So, if something comes into your life that challenges you, and I don’t mean to sound trite, but Sister, rejoice in it.  I’m not minimizing whatever you’re going through at this time, LIFE ON PLANET EARTH IS HARD!  But our God has set His Face like flint and He will not withdraw from the challenge or let His children settle for a less-than, untested, unchallenged faith.  Oh Praise His Name, He loves us enough to call us to more.  To cause us to draw nearer.  To lean in closer.  To listen harder and to look more intently.

So Sister you let your talk become your walk and you move ahead with confidence.  Whatever obstacle, whatever dark cloud, whatever difficulty you have staring at you, look right back at it with eyes of belief, and know, to the bottom of your soul, that your God is about to break out of that storm and shine like the noonday sun.  And then Girlfriend, you better grab your sunglasses cause life is bright that close to Glory!

Tags: , , , ,

A Giant Love Story

7 Jul

I love reading the Old Testament.  I always have.  My Aunt Shirley used to have these children’s Bible books at her house that were filled with the Old Testament accounts of the larger-than-life events God chose to record from that period of History.  I can still bring the artist’s rendering of the scenes to my mind and feel the pages that recounted the mother of Moses placing him in the basket of reeds to escape death.  I can see the book lying open on the floor of her living room that drew me into the life of Hannah and made me feel so sad when she left Samuel with Eli. And I can recall the drawing of Delilah as she tried to coax Samson’s secret from him.  I doubt Aunt Shirley had any idea of the impact those children’s books would have on me, but I am convinced that they are one of the things God used to stir my heart at that young age.  Know what? I still love reading about those faith giants.

Noah laboring to build the ark.  —  Genesis 6

Abraham faithfully walking up the mountain. – Genesis 22

Jacob wrestling with God. – Genesis 32

Moses standing on Holy Ground.  – Exodus 3

Rahab dropping the scarlet cord.  – Joshua 2

Gideon fighting with a few.  – Judges 6

David choosing the stones.—1 Samuel 17

Elijah pouring the water. – 1 Kings 18

And the list goes on and on and on.  I am just as enthralled with them all now as I was when I was small.  But now when I read about the events in their lives, I’m reading the Book that gives the full account.  Not just the beautiful shining moments but the ones tarnished by human nature as well.   So not only do I know that Abraham was a man who trusted as he walked up the side of that mountain with Isaac at his side,  I also know he was a man who lied and slept with a slave girl.  I know now that the same Moses who rose to lead the Israelites was a murderer who ran away to avoid the consequences.  And David, who stood to face the giant, was an adulterer and a murderer who wanted to hide his sins from God in the worst way.

All of the giants of faith, every single one of those everyday people, led insignificant, messy, imperfect lives. And yet, He chose to display His love, His grace, and His power through them.  Apart from Him, their stories would have gone unchanged, been unremarkable.  Jacob would have remained a deceiver, David an obscure shepherd, and Rahab a prostitute. It was God who made them different.  It was God who wrote the extraordinary excerpts of their ordinary stories.  He was the Author who penned their significant moments and transformed their lives.  It was all Him—because the story, the history of it all—is His.  It’s His story.

Girlfriend, it’s still all Him and it’s still His story, but may I ask you to believe today with everything you are that His pen has not gone dry?  He is still about the business of writing the most extraordinary excerpts on the pages of ordinary lives – OURS.   Our imperfections do not scare Him.  Our insignificance does not deter Him.  And our messiness will not dissuade our God, who does not change, from swooping down from heaven and transforming our lives.

Now, from our chronos perspective in this very messy, very imperfect world, His story is still unfolding and we may find ourselves wondering where the giants of the faith have gone.  But make no mistake Beloved, they are here.  Oh, they are here.   I know this to be true because I see them every day.  I see them marching out to their mission fields in nursing scrubs, company shirts, and work uniforms.  I see them mowing a sick neighbor’s lawn and bringing a meal to lighten someone’s load.  I see them coming alongside a grieving family, offering comfort, and holding a hand. And yes, I see them putting Old Testament story books into the hands of small children and planting seeds of faith.

I see His wonders.

I see His miracles.

I see His LOVE.

And Sweet Sister, don’t you know . . . . it looks just like you.

Yep, you’re the one.  You’re the giant of faith He has raised up for this place and this time.  He has written His Name across your heart.  He has chosen you to display His grace and His glory.  Don’t you doubt for a moment that His story has always included you and it has always been one Giant Love Story. You know I used to tell my students that “authors always write to be read.”  Thinking about that now,  I don’t think “The Author” is any exception.  I might go so far as to say that the concept is absolutely Biblical.

Your very lives are a letter that anyone can read by just looking at you.

Christ himself wrote it—not with ink, but with God’s living Spirit;

not chiseled into stone, but carved into human lives—2 Corinthians 3:3 MSG

Tags: , , , ,

Love Speaks . . . Through You

29 Jun

Oh Sisters in Christ, how I love you.  Ones I know and ones I don’t.  I love you because you are fighting the good fight in your homes, in your communities, and in your churches.  I love you because you aren’t perfect but you keep plugging away, confident that God will see to completion the good work He has begun in you.  I love you because no matter how hard-pressed on every side you may be, you cling to the knowledge that you are not crushed and your God has not abandoned you.  I love you because you aren’t afraid to be honest with your God about how hard it can be on this planet while simultaneously thanking Him for the very messy life you lead.  You carry so many loads.  You are responsible for so much.  Your to-do-list never becomes an I’m-done-list.  But you still press on.

So in case no one has told you lately, you are admired.  I’m in awe of all you do, amazed at the love you share, and I know it makes a difference in the lives of others.   I know it seems sometimes as if no one sees you.  No one recognizes all the love you pour into life.  So may I just assure you that not only does the One who has declared you to be the apple of His eye see you, those around you see you too.  Please forgive us for the times we fail to tell you how amazing we find you to be.  Please forgive us for not taking the time to give voice to love.

I know there will be those who read this and want to remind me that if we are doing things for the glory of God it really won’t matter who sees, who mentions, who takes the time to notice.  And I wholeheartedly agree that God sees and is enthralled when we live life for Him; when we love wherever we are in His Name. But, I also wonder if one of the ways God chooses to spur us forward might be through the encouragement, confirmation, and kindness of those around us.  I might even ask you to entertain the idea that there is Biblical exhortation to do exactly that.

  • After the reading from the Law and the Prophets, the rulers of the synagogue sent a message to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have any word of encouragement for the people, say it.” Acts 13:15
  • And Judas and Silas, who were themselves prophets, encouraged and strengthened the brothers with many words. Acts 15:32
  • Therefore encourage one another with these words. 1 Thessalonians 4:18
  •  For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him.  Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.  1 Thessalonians  5:9-11
  • And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. 1 Thessalonians 5:14

Every one of those verses, and there are many more on both sides of the Covenant Line, exhort us to tangibly love.  Even the word admonish, which might sound harsh if not investigated a bit, is an exhortation to love through instruction.  It means to appeal to the mind with spiritual substance, to exert positive pressure on someone’s logic, and to urge them to choose God’s best.

It seems to me based on the Truth of Scripture that I need to be looking for opportunities to notice and affirm those around me.  False flattery?  No, not ever, no.  That’s the enemy’s deceitful twist on building one another up—ingratiating for gain—Satan’s counterfeit.  But honest encouragement, honest appreciation, honest strengthening. . . done for no other reason than to say to your Sister, “I see you and I esteem you so.”  Girlfriend, this is more than just a good idea.  It’s essential to our doing life together as believers.  It’s what distinguishes us from the dog-eat-dog emotional environment so many women we know are devoured by.

See, here’s what I think.  If you and I were to begin to make a concerted effort to give voice to all the wonderful things we see the Sisters in our lives being and accomplishing, it would draw attention.  If you and I were to make an effort to express appreciation every time we see a fellow Sojourner going the extra mile, others would sit up and take notice.  If we were to come along side one another and celebrate the choices we see our sweet Friends making to serve others instead of being served, heads would turn. Why?  Because only a woman who has been changed by the Unchangeable One lives like that—no one does those things, no one gives voice to genuine love— UNLESS THE VERY PRESENCE OF LOVE IS LIVING IN THEM.

Do you get it Girlfriend?  The love you pour out on others spreads His fame and strengthens His Kingdom. It says to the world that He will not be contained and His LOVE will always change things, even the deep self-serving things that keep us from building up those around us.  Yes, only He can revive hearts and encourage souls, but what if you were the way He chose to do it?  What if Love chose to speak through you?  Doesn’t the idea of it make you almost giddy?  Oh, how I pray you walk away today being encouraged to give voice to love and your path crosses a heart that needs to hear it.

But I’m not stopping there.  I’m also going before the Throne with one more request. I’m asking Him to send you someone to speak the voice of love straight to your heart. To encourage you. To strengthen you. To  esteem you.  And may I just exhort you Sweet Friend to receive His message with full assurance of His Love and His desire to revive your heart because while I may not know you, I do know Him and I have no doubt, Daughter of the King, that you possess the affection of your Father’s heart and He finds you to be worth every word.

Tags: , , ,

Girlfriend, You ARE the Miracle!

15 Jun

LAZARUS HAS BEEN RAISED FROM THE DEAD!

LAZARUS HAS COME TO LIFE!

JESUS HAS PERFORMED A MIRACLE!

Imagine the resurrection of Lazarus occurring in our no-holds barred tell everything social media society.  Oh, how the twitter birdie would be singing and the hashtags flying. . . . .

  • Martha warns of stench.  Jesus is not deterred! Lazarus lives!#stenchovercome #Christunafraid
  • Jesus frees Lazarus from the tomb!  Death clothes peeled! #rollingstones #outfitchanged

Not to mention the status updates that would be popping up on facebook pages all over Bethany . . . .

  • He seems better than before and I sure didn’t notice any smell! 🙂 –feeling happy
  • Saw Lazarus and Jesus today.  Both seemed in good Spirit. –with Mary and Martha

Funny thing is that even though the internet was still far off, news of the miracle spread!  It must’ve been all the buzz at the market place, at the synagogue, and around every Jewish supper table.  We get our information from the Apostle John and it’s guaranteed to be truth so we don’t even have to visit snopes.com to see if it’s myth or urban legend.  In fact, the passage in John 11 and 12 is so chocked full of truth that there is absolutely no way to look at it all in this small little blog entry.  So as always I’m encouraging you to go and read the whole thing and count on God to show your heart more and more.

When I’m leading a Bible study and I have a lot of stuff I want to share, I quite often tell the sweet Sisters who are with me what “I won’t be talking about” that night.  So if we were actually sitting face-to-face with the Bible in our hands, I might say something like “I was really torn tonight.  I thought about pointing out the way the Scripture specifically tells us how much Jesus loves Mary, Martha, and Lazarus before it notes “So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was.” At a cursory read we might think the two verses don’t fit too well together. But might it be that His love for them was the very thing that prompted Him to give these three dear friends, the ones He held in loving esteem, the opportunity to believe Him more and take part in glorifying the Father?  Could the same be true of us?  Might it be that the purpose in the wait from time to time is so that we might have a part in pointing the eyes of those around us toward heaven?”

Or I might have chosen “not to talk about ” Christ, who was about to raise a man from the dead, having those around Him roll away the stone and remove the death clothes binding Lazarus.  He could’ve just pointed at the stone and told it to move.  He could have disintegrated those linen strips with a Word.  Instead, He chose to let others be involved in shining the light into that very dark tomb and give them a role in setting the dead man free.  Sister, what kind of a privilege would it be to be known as a “stone roller” in the lives of those around us?  And how honored would we feel if we were given the assignment of peeling away the death linens so our friends, family, and neighbors could walk freely in the Truth?

And, of course the last thing that wouldn’t be discussed is Jesus calling Lazarus to life by NAME.  Oh, don’t you love to entertain the idea of what it must be like to hear LOVE say your name.  Maybe we’ll hear that very thing when we finally look Grace in the face.  And maybe it will sound something like this

“Fear not, for I have redeemed you;

I have summoned you by name;

and you are mine.”

Isaiah 43:1 NIV, 1984

Dear One, I so pray you take Him at His Word.  This is personal to Him and it’s meant for you.  Hear His heart . . . “Don’t be afraid Bunny.  I have rescued you and called you out of your sin.  You belong to me.  I won’t let you go.”  Now, you do it:

“Don’t be afraid _________.

I have rescued you

and called you out of your sin.

You belong to me.

I won’t let you go.”

Doesn’t that give you glory bumps?  Hear Him speaking right to you?

So if these are all the things we wouldn’t be chatting about, what in the world would we be considering?  Well, it would be those tweets and those status updates that would have our attention.  It would be the news spreading from ear-to-ear that would be at the center of our discussion.  Why?  Because people of all kinds are going to hear about the miracle Jesus performed in your life.  They will be absolutely a twitter about the new life that they see in you.  You will be modern day evidence of the miracle.  Living proof that Christ still raises people from the dead.   Indisputable confirmation that the Author of Life still revives hearts today.

The change in you, the transformation from walking dead to abundant life, will be beautiful.  Your entire life will be a testimony to His power, just like the life of Lazarus.  So, what of Lazarus the man brought to life in full view of those who believed and those who did not?

When the large crowd of the Jews learned that Jesus was there,

they came, not only on account of him

but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead.

So the chief priests made plans to put Lazarus to death as well,

 because on account of him many of the Jews

were going away and believing in Jesus.

John 12:9-10 (ESV)

That’s right.  The last mention we have of Lazarus in the Bible is under the heading “The Plot to Kill Lazarus” and the truth is, the headline over your life, if you are a believer, is similar.  Beloved, don’t you dare think for one moment that your enemy does not notice the difference you are making in the world around you.  Don’t you let yourself believe for an iota that living out the miracle every day is of no significance.  You may not be under the threat of flogging or crucifixion but the battle that rages is real.  The arrows slung in your direction may take the form of isolation, cruel words, and intimidation, but believe me when I tell you based on God’s exhortations to be aware, to be suited for battle, to be alert that they are part and parcel of “The Plot to Kill the Miracle.”  There is no doubt that your enemy, the devil prowls like a lion looking for someone to devour.  That’s truth, flat out.

But Girlfriend, here’s the bigger truth– the One who redeemed you, the One who called you by name, is not about to let you go.  FEAR NOT, the will of the Lion of Judah will prevail.  The Miracle will live!  And live to the full. He has summoned you by name, and YOU ARE HIS!

And just as certainly as the news of new life could not be contained in Bethany, news of your transformation will spread like wildfire.  I find that to be worth a status update.  Maybe even a change in my relationship status ♥– feeling loved.

Tags: , , , ,

The Most Excellent Way

25 May

If you’ve had prior occasion to visit the blog, you know that God seems to be driving home the need for me to love people exactly where they are at in life.  Despite the circumstances they place themselves in.  Despite the poor decisions they may make.  And perhaps most importantly, despite my desire to just give up on them.  I think there is somewhat of this current to love others running through the Church right now.  I fully concede that I might have “pregnant woman” syndrome –when you’re pregnant you see other pregnant women everywhere—but it seems that many of the things I read or hear of late center around reaching out in love.  I think it’s great.  I think the world needs to be loved with an unchanging, unconditional, secure, steady love.  What a contrast to the fleeting, up-and-down love roller coaster so many who live apart from Christ are trapped on.  I so support every believer who is following Christ to live out loud in love …first in their Jerusalem, then Judea, Samaria, and then unto the ends of the earth.

 But you will receive power when

the Holy Spirit has come upon you,

and you will be my witnesses in

Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria,

and to the end of the earth.”

Acts 1:8 (ESV)

I pray God’s blessing all over those Christ followers who, filled with the Spirit, display the love of the Savior in their communities, their state governments, their country and the nations around the world.  Indeed, wherever God has placed us as stewards of the Firstborn’s inheritance, let us be faithful.   Let us walk boldly in His Name and love beyond ourselves. We want those who are wandering lost, feeling isolated, and even the ones who don’t know they need His grace, to see a difference and feel welcomed by His love. But I have to wonder how that happens if we are engaged in subtly tearing one another apart.  How can we reach out to love those who have chosen another path if we can’t even love those who are walking the trail with us?  And, I fully confess, that I have kicked dust in the faces of the saints traveling by my side on far too many occasions.

I read a blog this morning encouraging believers to consider practicing the spiritual disciplines.  The author didn’t profess to be an expert on the subject.  He just presented some things worth challenging our minds and hearts with.  I scrolled down to the comments fully expecting to see believers encouraging one another to examine their hearts on the subject.  What I found instead was sniping at the author over ONE quote that had been included in the piece.  Further down in the comments, the author explained that since posting he had removed the quote because of the uproar.  He was defensive about the thing and I probably would’ve reacted the same way.  I might’ve thought to myself “Really, all of that and this is what you’re choosing to focus on? ”  I wonder if the pastors and teachers in our midst often feel that way—“Really?”.  And I wonder more, how often that kind of critical spirit has flowed from MY heart and straight out of MY mouth.

At the beginning of every Bible study, I encourage the ladies who are participating to be Bereans and search the Scriptures for themselves to be certain the teaching is sound.

Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character

than those in Thessalonica,

for they received the message with great eagerness

and examined the Scriptures every day

to see if what Paul said was true.

Acts 17:11 (NIV)

But might it be that a worthwhile commitment to confirm the unifying Truth of Christ Jesus can become distorted and slide too quickly into divisive, self-exalting legalism?  Don’t misunderstand, we must be on guard against false teaching.  The Bible couldn’t be more clear about that subject.  We must be alert and we must man the watchtower.  However, from my perspective there is a huge difference between willful deception and a poor choice of words.  So might it be that as the Church is experiencing a renewed desire to reach out and love on God’s most prized creation, that we are forgetting to show gentleness and love to one another?  A house divided against itself simply will not stand and oh, don’t you know that it must make the enemies of the Cross absolutely giddy to watch the Bride devour herself.

We often hear 1 Corinthians 13 read at wedding ceremonies. Truth is, it wasn’t written in the context of temporal marriage, but it was written so the Bride, the Body of Christ, would know what love looked like to the Bridegroom. Under Divine inspiration, Paul calls it “the most excellent way” and goes on to provide the ultimate description of the love the Body is called to lavish on one another.

If I can speak in the tongues of men and even of angels but have not love, that reasoning, intentional, spiritual devotion—the kind that is inspired by God’s love for and in me—then I am only a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.

And if I have prophetic powers, the gift of interpreting the divine will and purpose, and I understand all the secret truths and mysteries, and possess all knowledge and if I have sufficient faith so as to remove mountains, but have not love, God’s love in me, I am nothing, a useless nobody.

Even if I dole out all that I have to the poor in providing food and if I surrender my body to be burned or in order that I may glory but have not love, God’s love in me, I gain nothing.

Love endures long, is patient and kind; love never is envious nor boils over with jealousy; it is not boastful or vainglorious and it does not display itself haughtily.

It is not conceited, arrogant, or inflated with pride; it is not rude, unmannerly, nor does it act unbecomingly.  Love, God’s love in me, does not insist on its own rights or its own way, for it is not self-seeking, it is not touchy, or fretful or resentful.  It takes no account of the evil done to it nor does it pay attention to a suffered wrong.

It does not rejoice in injustice and unrighteousness but rejoices when right and truth prevail.

Love bears up under anything and everything that comes, it is ever ready to believe the best of every person; its hopes are fadeless under all circumstances, and it endures everything without weakening.

Love never fails, never fades out, becomes obsolete or comes to an end.  As for prophecy, it will be fulfilled and pass away.  As for tongues, they will be destroyed and cease and as for knowledge, it will pass away, it will lose its value and be superseded by truth.

For our knowledge is fragmentary, incomplete and imperfect and our prophecy, our teaching, is incomplete and imperfect.

But when the complete and perfect total comes the incomplete and the imperfect will vanish away, become antiquated, void and superseded.

When I was a child I talked like a child, I thought like a child and I reasoned like a child; now that I have grown I am done with childish ways and have set them aside.

For now, I am looking into a mirror that gives but a dimmed, blurred reflection of reality, as in a riddle or an enigma, but then  . . . . . . .  1 Corinthians 13 (AMP)

You are going to have to go to your Bible to read the rest because this is as far as I have memorized –for now.  See, if this thick headed woman has learned nothing else in her pursuit of Life outside the Tomb, she has learned that without a doubt, left to her own devices she is a critical, sharp-tongued woman with a desire to puff herself up by making others feel less than.  The only hope I have of living the lovelife, of imitating God, is to have a total heart transformation.  Only His truth will change me.  I must treasure what He treasures and see His children from His perspective.  I have to be filled heart, soul and mind with Him so that what flows from my mouth is love.  It cannot be simply what I know, it has to become who I am. . . LOVE . . . because it is who He Is.  And it must flow first to the warriors who fight the good fight and run the race beside me –those whose faces I know and cherish and those I will not meet this side of Glory.

The world doesn’t need to see another fractured family living out a dysfunctional existence.  They need to see a family acting like their Dad and following His example. They need to see us doing life together, honoring our commitment to one another, and loving each other despite our glaring imperfections.  I have to believe that when we love each other the way He loves us, when we live and love the “most excellent way,” it’s going to draw some attention.  Attention that will give us the opportunity to explain why we love the way we do.

Sisters, let’s be gracious today to the family we share eternal blood with.  Let’s be committed to believing the best of them.  Let’s give the same grace and understanding to the Body as we do to those who have not yet answered the call of Grace.  Let’s live the “most excellent way” so the world can see the most Excellent One.

Tags: , ,

You are When You are and . . .It is Good!

20 May

Not only are you where you are by His Divine Hand, you are also when you are by His appointment.  Think about that.  The One who always has been, is today, and will be forever has chosen this place and this time for you to shine like a star in the universe.  You didn’t end up here by chance and your appointed days were always intended to be specific to this dispensation of time.  I don’t know about you but I find that to be comforting, motivating, and scary all at once. There’s just something so absolutely huge in considering that the One who proclaimed His creation to be very good felt that this point in history would be better if I were here.  Ponder it for a moment.  The Creator of the universe heart-picked you for the right here and the right now– not because He needed you, but because He WANTED you.

The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands.  And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else.  From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth, and HE DETERMINED THE TIMES SET FOR THEM AND THE EXACT PLACES WHERE THEY SHOULD LIVE.  

Acts 17:24-26 (NIV 1984)

See!  Straight from the mouth of God.  He put you here and He put you now.  The Omniscient God who decided when and where Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob would set their feet on planet earth made that same decision concerning you.  And Sister, I’m declaring to you today based on the authority of His Word that you are every bit as precious to Him as those men were.  I know this to be true because your God does not play favorites.  He did specific works—huge works, good works— through those imperfect men and He desires to do the same through you.

For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in the advance for us to do.

Ephesians 2:10 (NIV 1984)

Now you may be throwing arguments at me in your head at this moment that explain to me why, in all of creation, in the entirety of the world timeline, you are the one exception.  You are the one God cannot possibly want to do specific, huge, good things through.  After all, God raised them up to be men of renown, known as heirs of the promise and the blessed recipients of an unbelievable inheritance.  He even allowed them to participate in building a nation.  Without a doubt, these things are true.  God had big things set aside for those guys.

But an argument always has two sides.  So what I’m going to ask you to do is to read through those Acts 17 and Ephesians 2 verses set side by side from the Amplified Bible*.

26 And He made from one [common origin, one source, one blood] all nations of men to settle on the face of the earth, having definitely determined [their] allotted periods of time and the fixed boundaries of their habitation (their settlements, lands, and abodes).  10 For we are God’s [own] handiwork (His workmanship),  recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us [taking paths which He prepared ahead of time], that we should walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live].

Acts 17:26 and Ephesians 2:10

With that fresh in your mind, let your heart travel to your work place.  Let it drink in the family that visits your home, strangers you welcome with a smile, and the faces of your dearest friends.  Now stare into the eyes of your children, linger there and soak them in—woman of God, this is your nation.   You are an heiress, fashioned for this very purpose and filled with the Spirit of God, to point those entrusted to you toward the Promised Land.  Yes, Beloved, the boundary lines have fallen for you in a pleasant place and a pleasant time.  Surely, you have a beautiful inheritance.

Sister, you have been anointed and appointed by God to do things –specific things, huge things, good things!  Don’t doubt for a moment that you are here and you are now for a reason.  . . And it is good.

Acts_17-26

*The Amplified Bible utilizes multiple English word equivalents to each key Hebrew and Greek word clarify and amplify meanings that may otherwise have been concealed by the traditional translation method.

Tags: , , ,

A Day in the Caboose!

14 May

We’ve looked at some pretty heavy stuff the last couple posts and, to be truthful life itself has been quite heavy since the last writing, so what I really feel the desire to do today is just roll around in His goodness.  Some days you just have to pull a little closer to Glory and ride there for a bit.  What say we leave the temporal worries and anxieties, the hurts and the can’t-do-a-thing-abouts sitting on the curb for this day and ease out into the freedom lane with the Spirit?

I know Facts are the engine of my Faith and Feelings aren’t always accurate indicators of the spiritual reality, but for this particular moment I’m giving myself permission to get swept up in the Godness of Him and simply enjoy feeling like He is with me. These kinds of days are necessary for me.  I need times when I can indulge my emotions and let myself feel lavished in His love.  Times when I can look past the urgent of this planet and imagine life from a heavenly point of view.   Times when I can entertain what it will feel like to walk in Glory.  In other words, I need days when I can just be the caboose!

I have a wonderful friend who is married to a gentleman with a penchant for her, God’s truth, and a whiteboard. One of his favorite illustrations depicts a train engine marked Facts, followed by a car with Faith written on it, and finally, a caboose with the word Feelings.  The idea of the drawing is that we can’t let our feelings dictate our faith or diagnose our spiritual condition.   It’s right on the mark and I love them for their team teaching efforts to make this knowledge part of my freedom walk because it has given me the tenacity to stand firm in truth many times when I didn’t “feel” like it. But just for today I’m going to hang off the back of the caboose, wave my arms around, and drink in the Sonshine.

Lessons from Kim and Rod

Lessons from Kim and Rod

I’m going to let the wonder-if-I-did-that-right thoughts all slip away and replace it with being thrilled that my obedience brings Him joy.  I’m not going to fret about what will come from the maybe-I-should’ve-said-that-differently moments or let myself be weighed down by the hope-I-didn’t-overstep-my-boundaries-there conversations.   Instead, I’m going to let my heart dance at the idea that the One I have my eyes fixed on never takes His eyes off me.  I’m going to celebrate the notion that the One I find too beautiful for words is enthralled with my beauty.  I’m going to get all caught up in the absolute giddiness I feel when I picture Him as my Mighty Warrior and myself as the chick with a sword at His side.

I could gush on and on, and believe me I’m totally fighting the urge to do so.  It feels so good to have the smile spread across my face and my eyes crinkle for no other reason except I am thinking of Him.  It’s been too long since I have thrown off everything that hinders and just run with the Spirit.  Yesterday in my devotions, I was reading about Hagar who was facing some massive challenges in her life to say the least.  She had been sent away from her home with a young son, some food strapped to her back,  and a canteen of water.  As they wandered in the desert, the water ran out and she was certain her boy was going to die.  I can’t imagine the helplessness and despair she must of felt as she placed Ishmael under that shrub to die.  Imagine how gut-wrenching her sobs must have been as she sat down a distance away from him and just waited for the inevitable.  And then . . . God intervenes.  The One she had called El Roi (the One who Sees) at another well in the desert had never taken His eyes off her.

Abraham got up early the next morning, got some food together and a canteen of water for Hagar, put them on her back and sent her away with the child. She wandered off into the desert of Beersheba. When the water was gone, she left the child under a shrub and went off, fifty yards or so. She said, “I can’t watch my son die.” As she sat, she broke into sobs. . . .

Just then God opened her eyes.

She looked. She saw a well of water.

She went to it and filled her canteen

and gave the boy a long, cool drink.

Genesis 21:19 (The Message)

See the sweetness of Him?  He opened her eyes to see His provision.  He gave her exactly what she needed, right when she needed it, and He gave her eyes to see the blessing.  There is so much more in that passage to look at.  Such significance in the well.  Such parallels between Hagar the slave girl and the Samaritan Woman who felt the unconditional love of Christ in the Gospel of John.  But those are for another day.  Today, we’re just loving being with Him.

Yes Sisters, let’s enjoy our day in the caboose.  But here’s the truth of it.  A day of celebration in the caboose would go nowhere without that engine. No hair would be flying around in the wind of the Spirit.  No cool breeze of freedom would blow across our souls.   There would only be sitting at the depot feeling erratic gusts of air now and then. Only the engine, the absolute TRUTH of who He is and the LOVE He lavishes on us, will get that caboose moving.  And only feelings that match the truth of His character are worth celebrating.

I came to the train station years ago with more baggage than I can describe.  I stood on the platform with all my sin stacked around me.  God met me in my need and said, “I see you child, get on board.”  He’s not left me unattended once.  He has never taken His eyes off me.  And when I have days filled with challenges, and maybe even despair, He opens my eyes and shows me the well of His goodness.  He fills my canteen with the truth of His blessings, invites me to the caboose, and lets me enjoy a long, cool drink.

Girlfriend, He will not be bothered a bit should you choose to hang off the back of the caboose in celebration today. And if you’re just not “feeling” like it, ask Him to open your eyes and show you the well.  The Fact is that our Faith in the One who is the Living Water will never leave us Feeling thirsty!  Oh, how I love that His well will not run dry!

Some Interesting Information:

  • El Roi: wonderful expansion and exploration of the Title — http://www.preceptaustin.org/el_roi_-_god_who_sees.htm
  • The Message:  The goal of The Message is to engage people in the reading process and help them understand what they read. This is not a study Bible, but rather “”a reading Bible.”” The verse numbers, which are not in the original documents, have been left out of the print version to facilitate easy and enjoyable reading. The original books of the Bible were not written in formal language. The Message tries to recapture the Word in the words we use today. http://www.biblegateway.com/versions/Message-MSG-Bible/

Tags: , , , ,

The Engraving of God (Part Two)

28 Apr

As you come to him, the living Stone

—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him—

you also, like living stones,

are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood,

offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 2:4-5

Baby Dog

Baby Dog

Well, we have taken some time to consider our God being God in both the Old and the New Testaments.  We have seen Him reveal Himself to be the Holy Engraver of the stone tablets as well as the Living Stone so that His children on both sides of the Covenant line could see His perfect holiness, perfect freedom, and perfect love.  Isn’t it funny how we always return to the fact that our God does not change?  Are you beginning to appreciate the security in His unflappable Godness?  That’s one of my prayers for you all.  I want you to know that to your bones because grabbing a hold of that particular truth changed my faith dramatically.

I have to wonder what you have been thinking in the time that has passed between this posting and the Engraving of God (Part 1).  Might it be that in this time of consideration you have thought to yourself, “Kinda cool, Bunny, but how does that apply to me? And . . . what in the world does your dog have to do with anything?”  I find both of these to be good questions.  I hope to give you answers, based on the authority of God’s Word, which will show you that for believers in Christ this particular Old Testament/New Testament parallel could not be more significant.  Having God be true to His promise to show those who seek Him great and hidden things has convinced me that part of my destiny, and may I suggest part of yours as well, is to be a chip off the Almighty Rock.

It’s not hard for us to wrap our minds around God carving each character into the stone tablets until His perfect message was completed and presented to His children.  It’s tangible and concrete.  But grasping the carving Christ underwent might be more difficult for us because of the abstract nature of it.  It’s my feeling though that the etching Christ endured was every bit as real.

Consider our Jesus, hungry and thirsty after fasting 40 days, doing battle in the desert with Satan.  How deeply do you think coming face-to-face with evil, especially in such a vulnerable state, would have cut?  Imagine the heart of perfect compassionate being confronted with a sea of sickness and need, knowing that this was not the time for physical restoration to come to all.  How might that have etched His heart of Love?  And what of the engraving He experienced as all the disciples deserted Him and He heard Peter say, “I do not know the man.”  Perhaps we could picture the very real marks He bore across His back and the blood that ran from His head as the thorns carved their way into His temples.  And the ultimate etching of the nails in His hands as He willingly surrendered to the Cross.  Yes, our perfect Savior, fully human underwent the pain of being engraved for our benefit.  Remember, Jesus was perfect.  His character was flawless and He knew that He needed no refinement, no engraving.  His Father knew it.  And yet, Father and Son joined together to complete the carving.  Why?  For whom did the Father allow His Son to go through such agony?  Who did Christ find worth the suffering?  Who needed to see Him triumph over every obstacle and endure every etching?  WE DID.

We, who are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another, needed to see the Living Stone emerge in victory from the sadness, pain, and difficulty of life.  It was essential for those who are destined to be conformed to the likeness of the Son to witness the purposefulness of the carving as well as His triumph.   We needed to see Him come through as the Conqueror displaying the message and glory of the Father because as those who are “like living stones” I fully believe we can expect to go through the engraving process too.   There is a purpose to the hurt and loss of this world just as there was a purpose to the suffering of Christ. For me, this truth began to wear my name at the passing of our sweet little cocker spaniel.

Britt and Baby

A Special Gift

Baby Dog had been a part of life on Biddinger Boulevard for a long time.  Britt got her for a birthday present when she was just a little girl but truth be known, Baby , without a doubt, placed herself above Britt in the family hierarchy.  And our Puppy Girl was definitely absent the day the memo announcing that she was a dog circulated.  She ran the house and had her little black nose poked into everybody’s business.  There wasn’t one thing in life that she didn’t leave her paw print on.  So after she was gone, there was just this immense hole in everything.

Baby died in September of 2012 and her death was kind of like the exclamation point to a lot of other loss that had taken place for me.  It started with Britt leaving for college the previous year, and though I don’t want to dramatize what is a very natural part of life, I honestly felt physical pain in my heart when I watched her pull out of the garage and leave for Florida.  Like a chunk of me was cut away.  Several other things took place and then, a sweet Sister and warrior Friend completed her race and went home to be with Jesus.  It was painful to say goodbye even though you knew her faith had become sight.  In August of 2012, Brett began battling these new health issues and it took so much of his independence.  It was like watching the accident steal his freedom all over again. … and … and…and it all hurt.  And when I looked around at the people I have the honor of doing life with, so many of them were walking through absolutely agonizing situations.  The hurt of a sick child.  The pain of lost health.  The grief of a lost home.  The uncertainty of aging parents.

So when Baby Dog passed away, the floodgates opened and I began to cry.  I swept up dog hair and I cried.  I got Brett’s breakfast but not her Beggin’ Strips and I cried.  I pulled out of the garage and saw the freshly mounded dirt in the yard and I cried.  I am still crying, even in the card aisles at Walmart.

And the loss didn’t stop with Baby.  It continued to roll through the Thanksgiving Season when a sweet friend was taken from us far too soon.  I can’t describe the pain I saw on his Momma’s face and his sister’s face.  It was anguish I haven’t seen up close and personal before.  And I hurt for them and I grieve the loss myself.  And it feels like another trench has been etched into my heart.

I would look around and think to myself as I watched people hurt and grapple with pain, “How are they getting out of bed in the morning? I didn’t even want to face losing the dog.”  Everything I saw people go though would come back to the pain of doing life without Baby Dog and I would think,  “What in the world is that in comparison to . . . losing your home? . . . losing your Mom? . . .losing your son?”  And  the things people were enduring and walking through was almost unbearable to me and that is when I really began to weep.  To weep for their hearts and their hurts and their loss.  God used that little dog, who brought me such joy, to carve out my heart so that I could begin to love other people.  To understand in a small way the loss in their lives, the need in their lives, and the hurt in their lives.  I have experienced loss and hurt before but never have I seen it produce fruit in my life.  This time was different.

The death of the Dog brought every cut, every mark, every engraving to the surface.  It brought me closer to reflecting His character and made me want to look more like Jesus–no matter the cost, no matter the carving.  I care more now.  I try to listen better.  I hope I comfort more and that I do so abundantly.  I pray I LOVE like I never have before in my life and I absolutely ache to be filled with the LOVE of Christ so I can love those around me like they don’t deserve to be.  That wasn’t a mistake.  I meant to say that.  I want to love others like they DON”T DESERVE TO BE because that’s the way HE LOVES ME!

I want my love for them  to depend on my love for Him, not their personality, not their status, not their faith profession.  I want love to be all that is left because everything else has been stripped away.  I want to transformed to the image of the Son.  I want to be an imitator of God.  I want Life Outside the Tomb to be marked, engraved, and shaped by Love.

Don’t you want that?  Don’t you ache to bear the marks of Christ so vividly that the unmistakable message of God will be clearly seen and understood by others?   We, who are like living stones,  cannot be afraid of the hurt – it’s the very thing that will enable us to do what we say we want to do.  Sister, embrace the engraving.  Cooperate with the transformation.  Fulfill your destiny.

You, Baby Dog, continue to be a good gift to me!

Tags: , , ,

← Older Entries
Newer Entries →