Seize the opportunity

I went out to lunch the other day with a friend.  While we were talking, we overheard the waitress say to people who were leaving in the booth behind us that, if they didn't mind, she was going to give them "an encouraging word" - a business card with a scripture printed on it.  We were impressed, so when she came to our table we commented on it.  This sparked an entire conversation with her.  She asked us if we went to church.  I told her yes, and it turns out that we went to the same church!  I suppose that's one of the side effects of going to a large church - you can run right into a fellow parishioner and never be the wiser.

So anyway, our waitress - her name is Marlene - gave us each a scripture card, as well.  Mine was John 14:1, which says "Do not let your hearts be troubled.  You believe in God; believe also in me."  It was a very timely verse to me, since I've been working double time to not let my heart be troubled about my impending flight.  Marlene then asked me if she was going to see me at church this Sunday, to which I said no, I was going to be leaving the country on Friday.  So I told her a little bit about my trip, and she promised that she would pray for me when she got home, and then she went back to work, and that was that.

Well, a few minutes later, she popped her head around the corner again.  She said, "you know, I was planning on doing this when I got home, but I just really feel called to do it with you now.  Can I pray with you?"  Of course I said yes, and so she scooted into the booth with me, and the three of us held hands, and she prayed for me, right there in the middle of Longhorn's steakhouse.

I was so touched.  I really don't think that Marlene will ever know how much she touched me that day because she wasn't afraid to share her faith.  And it made me wonder: how many opportunities to touch someone else's life like that have come my way and I've missed them?  How many times have I let fear or self-consciousness or even just plain busyness get in the way of me showing Jesus to someone?

So my prayer today is that God would make me more like Marlene - sensitive to the Holy Spirit, and willing to tell others about Jesus, no matter what the situation.  That I would seize the opportunity to make His name known, no matter where I am or what I'm doing.  Now I know, from being on the receiving end, that there's no telling how much a simple little expression of Christ's love can affect someone.   

John 14:1-4

 ¹ “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. ² My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? ³ And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. ⁴ You know the way to the place where I am going.” 

Don't forget

I like to keep a travel blog to document my adventures around the world.  It’s been over six months – since I got back from studying in Spain – since I’ve updated it.  Well today, in honor of my imminent departure to a far-flung country, today I decided to write another entry in that blog.

I wasn’t writing, however, about my adventures in South Korea.  I was writing about my adventures here, on my home turf.  I wrote about the fun I’ve had with my friends and family, and what I’ve done to get ready to leave, and most importantly about the provision of my God.  As I was writing, I began to mourn for the many years of my life that passed in silence, without a single word written to remember them with. 

I know that there are so many things that I didn’t write about when I was young that are lost forever now.  My fears, hopes, triumphs, and struggles – they are lost to memory forever.  That’s why it’s so important to document what happens in our lives.  And not just the big things – it’s the summation of the little things that makes a life worthwhile. 

God wants us to do the same thing with Him.  He has told us to tell what He has done to our children, so that we don’t forget.  Humans have notoriously short memories.  If we don’t write down what He has done in our lives, and tell to others how He has blessed us, we will forget.  Don’t forget.  Keep God always in the forefront of your mind, so that you will always remember how much He has blessed you, how He has always looked out for you and, most importantly, how incredibly much He loves you.

Deuteronomy 4:9

Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them slip from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them.

He makes my paths straight

I had the most vivid dreams last night - abnormally vivid.  It was even stranger because I almost never dream.  I'm told all the time that everybody dreams, but I can count on one hand the number of dreams that I've actually had any recollection of by the time morning dawned.  But last night, I dreamed that I got accepted to all sorts of prestigious organizations in the United States - for graduate study, research, work, whatever.  Looking back, of course it was silly and unrealistic.  Most of those things I had never even applied for.  But I was convinced that it was happening - I even had to check my email accounts this morning to make sure that I really did not receive or send any of those messages that I thought I had.

But I also woke up with the refrain of a song based on Proverbs 3:5-6 repeating in my head.  And I realized that there was a huge conflict going on in my head.  The dreams were what I wanted - the song is what God wants.  My bags are all packed, my affairs in order, my friends said goodbye to, and I'll be leaving the country in T-minus 3 days.  But honestly, I don't want to.  I want to stay in my little bubble, happy and comfortable and safe.  I want to stay near to my friends and family and the life that I know.  It's easy, and I know it well.

But God hasn't called us to an easy life.  He's called us to a life of faith, a life of trust.  Notice that Proverbs 3 does NOT say that if we trust in the LORD, He will make our paths easy.  It says that He will make our paths straight.  But that doesn't mean that our path will be flat, and we that we will be able to see our future all the way to the horizon.  It will go up and down.  We won't always have a clear view of what's going to happen next.  But God has a bird's eye view - bumps and hills in our lives don't phase Him.  He still sees the big picture.  So trust Him.  He won't lead you into a dead end. 

Proverbs 3:5-6

 ⁵ Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;
⁶ in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.

Finding the balance

This past weekend we've been remodeling our kitchen.  We're tearing out kitchen cabinets and reinstalling new ones, replacing tiles, pulling out moldy sheetrock and insulation and putting in fresh materials, the whole shebang.  It's quite an undertaking.

It reminded me of Martha in the story of Mary and Martha in the book of Luke.  Although I haven't been busy cleaning the house and cooking meals and entertaining all of my guests, I've still been busy doing things around the house.  And I've been enjoying it, too.  I like working on projects....and cooking, and entertaining, and even cleaning on occasion.

But there's a balance to be found.  God has called us to be good stewards of what He has given us, and to take care of those less fortunate than us.  But there are also times when He just wants us to sit at His feet and listen, to drink in His teachings and wisdom, like Mary did.  He wants us to "be still, and know that He is God" (Psalm 46:10).  One thing that I've learned about life....it's so easy to miss the forests for the trees.  We can get so busy and wrapped up in God's creation, that we forget about the Creator.

So here is today's challenge: take 10 minutes out of your day today, and sit at the feet of Jesus.  Talk to Him.  Tell Him about your problems and worries and concerns and hopes and joys and plans.  But also listen to Him.  Learn from Him.  Let Him refresh your soul and renew your mind.  God wants to have a dialog with us, not be on the receiving end of a monolog.  He is neither Santa Clause nor a genie, and He does not exist to supply our laundry list of desires.  He wants to teach us and fill us with His spirit.  That is what's best, and if we choose that, it will certainly "not be taken away from us."

Luke 10:38-42

 ³⁸ As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. ³⁹ She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. ⁴⁰ But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”
   ⁴¹ “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, ⁴² but few things are needed—or indeed only one.  Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

The "Christian" thing to do

Having grown up in the church, I learned from an early age that there are alot of hurting people in this world.  My church was constantly organizing food drives, and days at the soup kitchen, and community cleanup days, and Vacation Bible School day camps, and mission trips....pretty much anything you could think of, somewhere in town someone was encouraging you that, as a Christian, you should help.

And for a while, I did just that.  VBS, Key Club, volunteering at senior citizens' homes, fundraising, camps, teaching ESL, making costumes for church plays, working the sound and light booth during Sunday morning services, visitation, Sunday School....you name it, I did it.  And I was absolutely exhausted.  Some time between my young formative years, and my graduation from college, I realized that, although we are called to be world-changers, we are NOT called to save the entire world.  We are called to save our world.  

So often Christians get "guilted" into doing all of these great things because it's the "Christian" thing to do.  They think that they have to do all of these things because they're good things to do, and if they don't do them they won't be a good influence and their testimony will suffer.

God has called us to "do everything to His glory."  But taking on the role of Superman or Wonder Woman is not part of our job description.  It is not a good testimony if we are stretched so thin that we cannot give our full attention to anything.  It is not a good testimony if we take care of others, but neglect our family.  It is not a good testimony if we are never home because we are always at church.

As hard as it may be to hear, but I really don't think that God wants us to serve in every opportunity that comes our way.  He wants us to serve in every opportunity that He directs us to, and to decline the others.  This does not mean that we have an excuse to never serve, saying "Oh well, I just don't feel called to serve."  But we are called to take care of our family and yes, ourselves, first.  If you and your family are not where they are supposed to be, then you will not be able to serve God and others effectively.  That's the REAL christian thing to do.

1 Corinthians 10:23-24, 31-33

 ²³ “I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but not everything is constructive. ²⁴ No one should seek their own good, but the good of others...³¹ So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. ³² Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the church of God— ³³ even as I try to please everyone in every way. For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved.

Once upon a time

When I was little I had this book of fairy tales that I would read all the time.  I loved that book.  It had a thick, luxurious cover, gilt-edged paper, and beautiful pictures on every page.  I would sit there for hours, admiring the beautiful women, gasping at the bravery of the knights and princesses, and just drinking in the general splendor of the entire experience.  I still have that book and, although nowadays it is more for nostalgia than anything else, I still from time to time will pull it off my bookshelf, dust off it's well-worn pages, and travel back to my childhood and the lands where everything starts with "Once upon a time," and ends with "And they lived happily ever after."

Well, then I started growing up, and was always hearing about how important it was to read the Bible every day.  And I tried, I really really did try.  But I never could be inspired by those words.  Instead of vibrant stories that came alive in my mind, the stories in the Bible always seemed like dry dusty tomes that had no life in them.  I mean, Leviticus and Numbers?  Who wants to read chapters and chapters of laws and lists of names??

I remember one day when I was about 14 years old.  I was over at a friend's house who was quite a few years older than me.  He was sitting on the couch reading his Bible and I asked him if he wanted to borrow a magazine that I had brought with me if he wanted to read.  He politely declined, explaining that he much preferred to read the Bible.  I couldn't fathom that.  I really couldn't.  Try as I might to read it regularly, it just seemed so lifeless to me.

I laugh at myself now as I pen those words, because my Bible is now my favorite book to read, like my friend from long ago.  The Bible is really just a big collection of stories - stories about real people, real situations, real problems, real miracles, and a real God.  It is the ultimate "Once upon a time."  Even those long lists of names and laws - they are about people; they are not just dead lists.

The Bible is one of the most exciting books that you will ever come across.  It has romance, and drama, and battle, and intrigue, and uncertainty, and miracles, and anything else that you can think of.  But we will only fully understand it if we let God open our minds and explain it to us.  Let Him explain it to you.  This is one "once upon a time" story that you don't want to miss.
 

Mark 4:10-13

¹⁰ When he was alone, the Twelve and the others around him asked him about the parables. ¹¹ He told them, “The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you. But to those on the outside everything is said in parables ¹² so that, “‘they may be ever seeing but never perceiving,  and ever hearing but never understanding; otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!’” ¹³ Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable? ¹⁴ The farmer sows the word. ¹⁵ Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. ¹⁶ Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. ¹⁷ But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. ¹⁸ Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; ¹⁹ but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. ²⁰ Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop—some thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times what was sown.”

Life's little roaches

I've never been a squeamish girl.  Snakes, spiders, bugs, ants, whatever....they've never really bothered me.  I don't like them and we'll never be best friends, but I can handle them.  But one bug that I've never been able to handle is cockroaches.  Their beady little eyes, their squirmy little bodies, the way they splatter when you squish them....everything about cockroaches completely freaks me out.  I turn into a helpless, pathetic wuss every time I see them.  If I wasn't so terrified of them, my reaction might even be considered amusing because of the sheer disparity between the size of my problem and the fear of it.

Well last night, I was watching a movie in my house with a friend.  The movie had just ended, and we were just sitting around talking.  All of a sudden, in my peripheral vision, something caught my eye.  It was a roach.  Actually, not just a roach.  Not even two roaches.  Three cockroaches had invaded my living room.  And I was a wreck.  I alternated between whimpering in fear, nervously looking around me, and running out of the room while my friend bravely killed all of the offending intruders. 

I thought that I'd finally started to be at peace with going to Korea - and then I woke up this morning.  This is my last Friday in the States...and so begins my week of "lasts".  I always hate the last week, no matter where I'm going, and this week looks like it will be no exception.  I woke up with heart pounding and stomach flopping, thinking of nothing in the world other than that plane ride next Friday.

But then I realized....how different was that reaction to my reaction to the cockroaches in my living room last night?  Although my problems might be overwhelming and terrifying to me, to God they're no bigger than cockroaches.  So this morning, my heart doubly pounding both because it's my last Friday, and because of my terrifying encounter last night, I turned to God.  I cast my anxieties on Him, because I know that He cares for me.  Even if I'm being silly and freaked out over something as insignificant as a cockroach.

Proverbs 3:24

When you lie down, you will not be afraid;
   when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet. 

Deuteronomy 33:12

  “Let the beloved of the LORD rest secure in him,
   for he shields him all day long,
   and the one the LORD loves rests between his shoulders.”

 Psalm 112:6-8

 ⁶ Surely the righteous will never be shaken; they will be remembered forever.
⁷ They will have no fear of bad news; their hearts are steadfast, trusting in the LORD.
⁸ Their hearts are secure, they will have no fear; in the end they will look in triumph on their foes.

Stories

My youngest brother is a voracious reader, much as I was when I was his age.  All day today, as we've been running around cleaning and sewing and doing errands, he's followed a few feet behind us, with his head in a book.  I completely understand his passion for reading.  Reading books is a poor man's airplane.  Those stories take you to other places, peoples, and sometimes even worlds.  Literature allows the average man, woman, boy, or girl to meet kings, talk with Pharaohs, work with spies, and party with rock stars.  It lets them time travel to the future, or visit the long-lost wonders of the ancient world.  It opens their minds to a whole new life, a whole new way of thinking.

Stories do not just stimulate our creative juices and imaginations.  They change us.  Daniel Taylor said that "We are all, in fact, the products of our stories." But stories are not just limited to classic fiction, or even history.  Jesus told stories, too.  In fact, every page of the Bible is a story.  And every page in the Bible has the power to change you, a little bit at a time, into the man or woman that you were called to be.

I heard this beautiful song at church the other day by Bellarive called Stories.  I wanted to share some of the lyrics here.  The best part about Jesus' story is that His story is true.  It is real.  And it truly does bring freedom.  I challenge you: get to know the King of Kings.  If you miss all of the others in the world, His story is one worth knowing. 

There are stories of a Man who walks on water
There are stories of a Man who washes all our shame away
The rumors go to say His words bring freedom
I believe it for my eyes have seen the King

There are stories of a Man who dines with angels
Could heaven come down to make room for the least of these? 

The rumors go to say that He is the remedy  

I believe it for my eyes have seen the King

Matthew 13:34-35

³⁴ Jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say anything to them without using a parable. ³⁵ So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet: “I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter things hidden since the creation of the world.”

He's crazy about you!

I've been reading a book by John Piper called "Don't waste your life."  The basic premise of the book is just that: that we were meant to live lives wholly committed to serving God, and anything other than that is a wasted life.  At Bible study last night, we were talking about chapter 4, which is entitled "Risk is right - better to lose your life than to waste it."  One thing that we talked about last night was how God often waits for us to take a leap of faith before He'll show us more of the puzzle of our lives.

While that is most certainly undeniably true, I think that God also will send us more if we truly need it.  He is not interested in tormenting us just for fun.  Throughout the entire Bible study, I couldn't stop thinking about the big looming risk in my life - I leave for South Korea in just a little over a week.  And I was simply overwhelmed by what God has given me to encourage me in my decision to go, before I've even gotten there.

I can easily think of a dozen instances off the top of my head that God orchestrated to calm my worries.  One woman that I didn't even know who had taught in South Korea for several years contacted me and asked if she could help because she read an article about me in the local paper.  I was invited to a dinner of the Korean-American Friendship Society because the founder of the society just happened to also be a member of the Board of Trustees at my school and he invited me after he found out about my plans.  The dinner with the family I mentioned on June 18.  Even at the Bible study itself last night, people kept sharing stories of how God had blessed them when they took risks for Him, and it was just so encouraging to hear stories of people "on the other side."

God knew how much I needed encouragement before I left.  And so He gave me just that.  But I wonder how often He sends us encouragement, but we miss it.  We write it off as coincidence, or not really applicable, or unimportant.  But take it from someone in the throes of one of the biggest changes that anyone will ever go through - God is taking care of you.  He's crazy about you!  He wants nothing more than to bless you beyond belief, encourage you in everything, and grow you daily.  Stay in His word, and listen for Him speaking to you.  Don't miss what He wants to tell you and show you.  You have no idea how much you may really be missing.  It's so worth it to pay a little more attention and hear what He has to say.

Luke 12:22-31

 ²² Then Jesus said to his disciples: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. ²³ For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. ²⁴ Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! ²⁵ Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life? ²⁶ Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?
   ²⁷ “Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ²⁸ If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you—you of little faith! ²⁹ And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. ³⁰ For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. ³¹ But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.

Trees

I'm starting to realize just how fast life can change.  You're going along in your life, not expecting anything different to happen, not really even WANTING your routine shaken up, when all of a sudden, out of nowhere, God hits you with a curveball.  He throws something into your life that just totally shakes up your expectations of normality.  His curveballs can be situations or people, good or bad, but the one thing that they all have in common is that you weren't expecting them.  How do you deal when something blindsides you, something that you weren't expecting?

That's why I'm glad that "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever" (Hebrews 13:8).  He never changes.  And yet, beautifully paradoxically, His mercies are "made new every morning" (Lamentations 3:22-23).  His love and provision for us will never change, but the way He provides for our needs will change as our needs change.

I think that's one of the reason I love trees so much.  Especially huge, old, wrinkled trees; trees that have stood guard to untold numbers of stories.  Trees that give sparrows and squirrels rest in their branches, and little schoolchildren rest in their shade.  Unlike God, they haven't always been there, but they've been around as long as we have.

But, although their existence in our lives has been constant, our needs and how they fill them have not.  When we were young, we would crawl in their shade and sit in the carpet of leaves at their base.  As we grew older, we started clambering up their branches, exploring our surroundings, searching for an ever higher view from which to see our world.  They gave us fruit when we were hungry, and a willing tablet on which to write our love notes to our school crushes.  Then, when we were older still, they held up our hammocks and let the wind whisper sweet nothings into our ears through their leaves as we again rested in their shade.  Later on in life, perhaps they even served as a backdrop for the day that we married the love of our lives.

Old trees, to me, are a beautiful picture of who God is.  He is always there for us, however we might need Him.  Of course, our perception of our need may be very different from our reality.  But He is there nonetheless.  And when we call on Him, He will ALWAYS answer.

Ezekiel 17:22-24

 ²² “‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I myself will take a shoot from the very top of a cedar and plant it; I will break off a tender sprig from its topmost shoots and plant it on a high and lofty mountain. ²³ On the mountain heights of Israel I will plant it; it will produce branches and bear fruit and become a splendid cedar. Birds of every kind will nest in it; they will find shelter in the shade of its branches. ²⁴ All the trees of the forest will know that I the LORD bring down the tall tree and make the low tree grow tall. I dry up the green tree and make the dry tree flourish. “‘I the LORD have spoken, and I will do it.’”

By His bruises

This morning has been a fiasco, and it's not even 8 o'clock yet.  Last night my little sister couldn't sleep, and kept coming into my room asking if she could sleep with me.  Well then this morning, I wake up to her with a high fever, and my brother throwing up all over the house.  It has been a difficult day already, one that leaves me wondering how on earth I will make it until evening.

So I turned to my Bible for comfort, to the Great Physician.  He has the power to heal all of our illnesses; in fact, He's already done so.  I find it interesting that it was only after I prayed with and for my sister last night that she was finally able to go to sleep for the rest of the night.  Of course it made sense, but then it also made me wonder why I hadn't thought of it before 4:00 in the morning!

But God doesn't just heal physical diseases - He heals spiritual ones, as well.  There was a time in my life when I looked as healthy as an ox (I've never really understood that expression), but inside was a completely different story.  So today will be both a prayer and a praise for me.  I will pray for healing in the lives of my siblings - that their sickness will pass, that their strength will return, and that God will make them whole again.

But I will also praise God for how He has healed my heart and my soul.  He has given me a new lease on life.  I feel rather feline - except He's given me many more than 9 chances, and every time He does it's more wonderful than the last.  Praise God for His mercies that are made new every morning!

Isaiah 53:4-5

Surely he has borne our infirmities and carried our diseases; yet we accounted him stricken, struck down by God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the punishment that made us whole, and by his bruises we are whole.

Exodus 23:25

You shall worship the Lord your God, and I will bless your bread and your water; and I will take sickness away from among you.

Be bold

At church this morning, my pastor spoke of an interview with a preacher in Asia.  When the interviewer asked the man what he wanted them to pray for, his answer was that God would send them more persecution.  He said that Christians in his country had gotten too soft, and had stopped living by faith.  He asked us to pray for forgiveness, not for themselves, but for their grandparents, who had not lived out their faith boldly enough during their time, and now their children were paying the price of living in a society of tolerance and relaxed morals.  And then my pastor said something that arrested me: he said, "what if the society that our children have to live in is our fault?"

Religion is not a private matter.  God has called us to lead lives of faith, not fear; of conviction, not compromise.  And when we don't do that, then God will send judgement like that found in the beginning of Habakkuk chapter 1.  I was so convicted this morning.  My preparations for going to South Korea have been marked by almost nothing else other than fear.  But God has called me to something higher than that.  I don't want my silence to be responsible for the decay of a nation.  I can't let my fear of the unknown to rob me of God's calling on my life.  So here's today's challenge: live out your faith loudly.  Don't let fear take hold of your life.  Be bold!

 Habakkuk 1:2-4

² How long, LORD, must I call for help, but you do not listen?
Or cry out to you, “Violence!” but you do not save?
³ Why do you make me look at injustice? Why do you tolerate wrongdoing?
Destruction and violence are before me; there is strife, and conflict abounds.
⁴ Therefore the law is paralyzed, and justice never prevails.
The wicked hem in the righteous, so that justice is perverted.

Hospitality

I had dinner tonight with one of the most incredible families that I've ever met.  They are Americans, but lived as missionaries in Asia for 20 years - 12 years in South Korea, and 8 years in China.  We had a mutual friend who got us connected when she learned that I was heading to South Korea.  So last week, I got a call from them, inviting my entire family to dinner.  So we all went to a complete stranger's house for the evening.  And I was absolutely blown away by their hospitality and love for people.

Aside from one of the best meals I've ever had, they were full of stories and suggestions for living in Korea.  They gave me books, and dictionaries, and food, and contacts information of friends in Korea, and even a suitcase when they found out that mine was looking for a retirement home.  And apologized that they could not do more.  I left completely humbled and absolutely blown away by their love for others.  And they didn't even know us!!

The most astounding thing to me, however, is that she has been fighting brain cancer for years.  They came back from Asia after they found the second tumor.  But she never complains about it; never even mentions it unless someone asks her about it.  She is always looking for ways to serve other people, asking others how they are doing and what she can do to help them.

God has called us to serve others.  And tonight I realized just how far I have to go before I can really say that I do just that.  If I have even just a little cold, I don't want to help anyone else - I want to stay in bed and nurse my sickness.  But then this woman with brain cancer spends the entire evening cooking for and talking with and serving and entertaining six strangers.

South Korea is a very giving society - the way she put it tonight, "it's impossible to outgive Koreans."  So I pray that in this next year, God will teach me to be a little more like South Koreans.  I pray that I will learn to think of others more and of myself less.  I pray that I will put their needs and desires ahead of my own, and that God would grow and stretch and refine me, so that every day I will be a little more like Him.

Matthew 25:34-40

  ³⁴ “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. ³⁵ For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, ³⁶ I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
   ³⁷ “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? ³⁸ When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? ³⁹ When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
   ⁴⁰ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

To say my God has never failed

I went to visit my grandparents a few days ago for a week and change.  It had been years since I had seen them, and while it was wonderful to catch up, I was daily struck by just how old they were.  Not just old, either, but frail.  Tired.  Worn out.  They shuffled through the house, and were constantly hacking, and often even had to take oxygen.  It was very hard to watch.

And then I realized: someday that will be me.  Someday my body - all of our bodies - will break down and fall apart and die.  And my main thought when I think of that is this: what kind of life will I have led when my hair is gray and my body frail?  Will I look back at my life and be satisfied, knowing that I have led a life with God at my center, a life that He will be proud of?  Or will I be filled with regret, knowing that there was so much more I could have done?

There's a beautiful passage in Isaiah that talks about getting old.  God is speaking to the descendants of Jacob, talking about how He has been with them for their entire lives, and takes care of and sustains them in everything they do.  What a testimony that must be!  To have lived your whole life dependent on God, trusting in Him for everything, and to come to the end of it and be able to breathe with a sigh of relief, that you have lived well.

That's the kind of testimony I want.  When my body wears out and fails me, I will be able to say with joy that my God has never failed me.  That's something that no person, or event, or even time itself can ever take away from me. 

Isaiah 46:3-4

³ “Listen to me, you descendants of Jacob, all the remnant of the people of Israel,
you whom I have upheld since your birth, and have carried since you were born.
⁴ Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you.
I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.

Treasures

I have this really cool hat that sits in a place of honor on my bookshelf.  It's made completely out of paper, but yet can be formed into several different-shaped hats, depending on the wearer's preference.  My grandparents gave it to me years ago, and I treasure it.  Well yesterday, my little sister broke it.

After I got over the initial phase of anger and loss, and then made all of the requisite hugs and kisses and assurances that it was ok, that I still loved her, I started thinking about that hat.  Really, when it comes down to it, that hat is a curiosity, something to sit on the shelf and collect dust, nothing more.  In the many years that I've owned it, I've probably put it on my head maybe 3 times.

If I were to be honest with myself, my sister has gotten far more joy out of that hat than I have.  She plays with it, and stretches it, and puts it on her head - or sometimes her dolls' or brothers' heads - and all in all just has a ball.  And if I were to be even more honest with myself, when I die I will almost certainly not even remember that hat.

In fact, most of the things that we treasure now, we will not really care about them when we are on our deathbeds.  That's why Jesus says to "lay up for ourselves treasure in Heaven."  He knows that we have to have something to treasure, something to lay value in - that's how we were made. More importantly, He knows that where we put our value is where we place our hearts.  I challenge you today...start finding value in things that will last.  Invest in God's kingdom, and I promise you that your investment will not return void to you.

Matthew 6:19-21

    ¹⁹ “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. ²⁰ But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. 

Semantics

So often we get stuck in "church lingo," but we don't really understand what we're talking about.  For example, the verse from yesterday says that "to live is Christ, but to die is gain" (Philippians 1:21).  I've heard that verse quoted so many times I've lost count.  But what does that really mean?  How can the definition of life be a person?  How can our death benefit us?

We were created to glorify Christ Jesus.  That is our purpose; that is what all of our actions and goals should ultimately strive for.  That is what "to live is Christ" means.  He is not a part of our life; He IS our life.  The purpose of our life should be to honor God in everything we do.

But, for that matter, what does it even mean to say that we're "glorifying" something?  Oftentimes glorify and magnify are used synonymously.  There are 2 ways to magnify something: either you can make a small thing big, like a microscope does, or you can make an inestimably large thing understandable, like a telescope.  Our lives should be like a telescope, making God understandable to others. 

After figuring out what the first part of the verse means, it's a little bit easier for me to comprehend the second part.  God is life.  He's it.  So, while we experience a taste of Him here on earth, when we die we're going to see Him face-to-face, experience Him personally every single day for the rest of eternity.  I think, if we can actually comprehend that fact, that all the hustle and bustle and noise of this world will be much easier to ignore.

Don't waste your life

Does it ever strike you that there seem to be periods of your life when God is on a "kick"?  When He keeps teaching you the same thing, over and over again, until you finally 'get it'?  It certainly strikes me.  In fact, I seem to be in the middle of one such kick right now.

Today I started reading "Don't waste your life," by John Piper.  The purpose of this book is to remind us that we were created for God's glory, and any life that accomplishes something other than that is a wasted life.  But the cool thing to me is that a purposeful life does not necessarily mean that you must become a clergyman or nun.  Like I said yesterday, basically anything that we do, any hobby that we enjoy, any talent that we possess can be used to glorify God.

But just because they can be used to glorify God doesn't mean that they always are used.  John Piper gave a moving illustration about an old man who finally found God at a revivalist's tent meeting.  As he stood there, basking in his Savior's love while he sorrowfully looked backed at all those years he lived without it, he was crying as he cried out with regret, "I've wasted it!  I've wasted my life!"

I shudder when I hear that story.  As a young woman with her whole life ahead of her, I still think that I would rather die young than come to the end of my life and realize that it had all been a waste.  But how do we not waste our lives??  What can we do that will actually matter, in the grand scheme of things?

Philippians 1:21 says that "To live is Christ, but to die is gain."  So, it looks like a life-filled existence means one that lives for Christ.  But how do we live for someone we don't know?  Just to make sure that you don't spend too much time scratching your head and trying to come up with an answer to that question, I'll go ahead and tell you: we can't.  Living for someone, completely submitting your will to theirs, requires that we know that person.

So the secret for a meaningful existence?  Get closer to Jesus - and do what He says.  It may not be the traditional "American dream," but it sure will be a wild ride!!

The glory of God

Iranaeus, a second-century bishop, once said that "The glory of God is a human being fully alive."  As someone raised in the church, I find this a very interesting concept.  To me, glory has always had some sort of mystical connotation; we give God the glory, we laud His glory, we pray that His name be glorified....but we never really define what it IS.  At least, I didn't.

But we were created so that our lives would glorify Him.  And, because of that, life itself should be able to do just that.  I think about the people in my life who are fully alive.  Their vivacity, their zest for life, their care for others and love for God nearly takes my breath away.  And now I start to understand what Saint Iranaeus meant.

There are so many people who let life slip by them while they stand on the sidelines, watching.  In his classic book Walden, Henry David Thoreau said that "the mass of men lead lived of quiet desperation."  God has given so much to us - so much to enjoy, to experience, to do.  But most of us don't even recognize it.  That is why it is so encouraging, exciting, glorifying when we see someone squeezing every drop out of life that he can.

It is such a rare thing, but God meant it to be the norm.  So often we let fear of the unknown or avoidance of the difficult keep us from enjoying God's best for us, keep us from truly living.  So my question today is this: am I fully alive today?  Are you?  Are our lives glorifying to God?

John 17:1-5, 20-24

 ¹ After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. ² For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. ³ Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. ⁴ I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do. ⁵ And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began..... ²⁰ “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, ²¹ that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. ²² I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— ²³ I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. ²⁴ “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.

Honoring Him with our art

This past weekend I went dancing in Atlanta.  Not just for an evening, but for basically 2 full days and nights straight, I danced my heart out as much as I could.  On my way home, I was thinking about the ways that I spend my time - my arts and talents and hobbies.  I have on occasion been criticized for my chosen hobby of dancing, being told that it's not a very "Christian" hobby. 

As Christians it's easy get into a mental rut, thinking that the only things we should listen to, or watch, or even really associate with, are those that are "Christian"; and by that, I mean those that expressly mention God in them.  Anything other than that is "wrong."  But I believe, rather than expecting us to give up anything that doesn't explicitly have crosses or names of God in it, God wants us to bring our passions to the world.

He created us as we are - a result of becoming saved should not be to stifle our creative ambitions, but rather to flourish them.  WE should be the "Christian" things in our lives, not the things that we create.  They are simply a product of our walk with Christ.  As such, the longer we love and learn from Christ, the more our art will come to mirror Him.

But the beautiful thing about that is that God does not have just one side.  There is more than one way to mirror Christ.  The athlete can reflect God in his sport, without ever saying a word.  The poet and the playwright can infuse Christ in their works without ever uttering His name.  I can honor Him when I dance.

God-honoring art is not limited to liturgies and paintings of Jesus as a baby or on the cross.  Our entire lives were meant to be a living, breathing symphony in honor of Him.  So my question is this: how is your life a poem, a play, an opera, a ballet, a painting that honors God?

Exodus 35:20-36:1

 ²⁰ Then the whole Israelite community withdrew from Moses’ presence, ²¹ and everyone who was willing and whose heart moved them came and brought an offering to the LORD for the work on the tent of meeting, for all its service, and for the sacred garments. ²² All who were willing, men and women alike, came and brought gold jewelry of all kinds: brooches, earrings, rings and ornaments. They all presented their gold as a wave offering to the LORD. ²³ Everyone who had blue, purple or scarlet yarn or fine linen, or goat hair, ram skins dyed red or the other durable leather brought them. ²⁴ Those presenting an offering of silver or bronze brought it as an offering to the LORD, and everyone who had acacia wood for any part of the work brought it. ²⁵ Every skilled woman spun with her hands and brought what she had spun—blue, purple or scarlet yarn or fine linen. ²⁶ And all the women who were willing and had the skill spun the goat hair. ²⁷ The leaders brought onyx stones and other gems to be mounted on the ephod and breastpiece. ²⁸ They also brought spices and olive oil for the light and for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense. ²⁹ All the Israelite men and women who were willing brought to the LORD freewill offerings for all the work the LORD through Moses had commanded them to do.
 ³⁰ Then Moses said to the Israelites, “See, the LORD has chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, ³¹ and he has filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge and with all kinds of skills— ³² to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, ³³ to cut and set stones, to work in wood and to engage in all kinds of artistic crafts. ³⁴ And he has given both him and Oholiab son of Ahisamak, of the tribe of Dan, the ability to teach others. ³⁵ He has filled them with skill to do all kinds of work as engravers, designers, embroiderers in blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen, and weavers—all of them skilled workers and designers.
 ¹ So Bezalel, Oholiab and every skilled person to whom the LORD has given skill and ability to know how to carry out all the work of constructing the sanctuary are to do the work just as the LORD has commanded.” 

Anti-religion

There's an interesting passage in Acts 17.  Paul is addressing a group of people in Athens, telling them about Jesus.  He starts off his speech by stating that he knows that the men he is speaking to are very religious...and then goes on to say that they are off the mark.  They are giving mere objects their affection and worship, when it should be going to God.

A common comment about Christians is that they are very religious people.  But that is a tricky thing.  It is obvious here that "religion" is not what matters to Paul.  Jesus, in fact reserved His harshest criticism for the religious people of His day - the Pharisees, Sadducees, and the like.

The men of Athens had gold and silver and stone images for all kinds of gods - they even had an altar to an unknown god!  Nowadays, too, we often see altars erected.  Not the silver and gold kind - modern altars are much more subtle than that.  But I still see altars every day - altars worshiping money, lust, drugs, selfishness, appearance, pride...the list goes on and on.

But God has called us to more than just religion.  He has called us to a relationship.  In Him we live and move and have our being.  A relationship takes alot more work and commitment than simply going through the motions.  But in the end, it's also infinitely more rewarding.

Acts 17:22-31

²² Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “People of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. ²³ For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. So you are ignorant of the very thing you worship—and this is what I am going to proclaim to you.
 ²⁴ “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. ²⁵ And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. ²⁶ From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. ²⁷ God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. ²⁸ ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’
 ²⁹ “Therefore since we are God’s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by human design and skill. ³⁰ In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. ³¹ For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead.”

Words have power

Today's blog comes from The One Year Daily Grind, by Sarah Arthur.  There's no way I could have said it better, so I'm just copying it here.

We humans are made in the image of God, which means we're created to make things, just as our Creator does.  We're made to play.

Many of us have some kind of hobby or creative medium, such as playing the guitar or dancing or oil painting.  My hobby also happens to be my vocation: creative writing.  Unlike many hobbies, which are expensive, the great thing about creative writing is that words are cheap.  In fact, most of the time, they're free.  If you can speak, read, and write, then you can do this hobby anytime, anywhere, without having to purchase, say, 250 pounds of words the way my friend Catherine, a potter, has to purchase 250 pounds of clay.  Words are cheap, which is why it's so easy to treat them casually.  It's easy to write emails and text-message each other without really paying attention to the words we're using.

But we must never forget that words also have power.  In ancient times, to know the name of something was to have power over it, which is why Adam could name the animals in Genesis 2:19-20 but Jacob was no told the name of the angel who wrestled with him in Genesis 32:22-30.

One of the ways we try to have power over things is by labeling them with adjectives: poor, rich, smart, slow, geeky, hot, black, white - including the word Christian.  For some reason, we think that if we can discern whether or not something is "Christian," then we've got it figured out, then we know whether or not it's "safe."  This is true for things like "Christian" music, "Christian" clothing, "and yes, even "Christian" books.  But take it from a word-geek:

The word Christian isn't meant to be an adjective.  It's a noun.  So inanimate objects aren't Christian.  We are.  How does this change the way we use that word?

Praise the Lord

The first three words of Psalm 111 say simply, "Praise the Lord."  It doesn't say to praise the Lord only when you're happy, or successful, or without pain.  It doesn't say to praise the Lord if you feel like it, but if not, then don't worry about it.

God's word commands us to "praise the Lord"....period.  Regardless of whether we want to or not.  Regardless of if we feel blessed.  Regardless of whether we're happy and comfortable, or sad and in pain.  He sees us through it all, and our only job is to love Him for what He's done for us.

On days like today, when I am grumpy and tired and sore and upset and just all-around not in a very charitable mood, I don't want to praise the Lord.  It's quite honestly one of the farthest things from my mind.  But it's comforting to know that God is not flaky like I am.  God is ALWAYS gracious and compassionate, and I know without a question that if I praise Him, He will take care of me.  What a beautiful constant in a world of constantly shifting truth and reality.

Psalm 111

¹ Praise the LORD.  

I will extol the LORD with all my heart in the council of the upright and in the assembly. 

² Great are the works of the LORD; they are pondered by all who delight in them.
³ Glorious and majestic are his and his righteousness endures forever.
⁴ He has caused his wonders to be remembered; the LORD is gracious and compassionate.
⁵ He provides food for those who fear him; he remembers his covenant forever.

⁶ He has shown his people the power of his works, giving them the lands of other nations.
⁷ The works of his hands are faithful and just; all his precepts are trustworthy.
⁸ They are established for ever and ever, enacted in faithfulness and uprightness.
⁹ He provided redemption for his people; he ordained his covenant forever—
   holy and awesome is his name.  ¹⁰ The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; 

all who follow his precepts have good understanding.  To him belongs eternal praise.

The bare necessity

I've spent this week helping my father get some work done on one of his home repairs that he's working on.  The heat is absolutely unbearable, the bugs merciless, the hours unending, and the work unpleasant.  It is easy to complain about the unpleasantness of the situation; in fact, it is difficult not to.

So I was very much convicted today when I opened my Bible to Philippians 2.  It says in that chapter to "do everything without grumbling or arguing."  What a tall order that is!  Sometimes I think that we as human beings believe that complaining is part of our natural birthright and responsibility.  We complain about anything and everything that we can think of, anything that is even remotely unpleasant.

So I thought to myself, "if grumbling is such a common human characteristic, how can God expect us to not do it??"  But read further.  It says that we will shine because of our lack of complaining - as we hold to the Word of life.

God doesn't expect us to be perfect.  He expects us to hold to His Word.  That is, in a nutshell, the "bare necessity" of life.  And once we've got that down, we can expect God to make a habit out of doing the impossible in our lives.  Like, for example, making content people out of natural complainers.

Philippians 2:14-18

 ¹⁴ Do everything without grumbling or arguing, ¹⁵ so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.”  Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky ¹⁶ as you hold firmly to the word of life. And then I will be able to boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain. ¹⁷ But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you. ¹⁸ So you too should be glad and rejoice with me.

The joy of my heart

So I was reading in Psalm 119 today, and I stumbled across a jewel of a verse.  Psalm 119:111 says that "Your statues are my heritage forever; they are the joy of my heart."  Which made me wonder....what is the joy of MY heart?  Is it truly God and the commandments that He has given me for my life?  Or do other things take priority?

I have many passions in life.  I love to dance, read, my family and friends, sports....the list goes on.  But whether you have many passions or just a few, it's so easy to let the physical things that you love overtake your life and crowd out the most important thing in life.  I've always struggled with putting God first.  It's so easy to let the physical here and now supersede the spiritual.

But God wants us to put Him first in everything we do.  He wants our joy to be found in obeying Him.  I don't know about you, but that's a tall order for me.  But the more I learn about who He is, the more I realize that we are not expected to do it on our own.  As we fall more and more in love with the Lord, He will fill us and guide us and teach us to love His laws.     

Psalm 119:105-112

¹⁰⁵ Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.
¹⁰⁶ I have taken an oath and confirmed it, that I will follow your righteous laws.
¹⁰⁷ I have suffered much; preserve my life, LORD, according to your word.
¹⁰⁸ Accept, LORD, the willing praise of my mouth, and teach me your laws.
¹⁰⁹ Though I constantly take my life in my hands, I will not forget your law.
¹¹⁰ The wicked have set a snare for me, but I have not strayed from your precepts.
¹¹¹ Your statutes are my heritage forever; they are the joy of my heart.
¹¹² My heart is set on keeping your decrees to the very end.

A season for everything

I went to a wedding last night of two dancer friends that I had made from Berry.  It was beautiful.  They are the cutest couple, absolutely made for each other.  The ceremony was lovely, the weather perfect, the food delicious, the catching up with old friends sublime, and the dancing enchanting.  But through it all, I just kept thinking about how many people are getting hitched these days.

June is a season of weddings.  Everywhere you look, there are people getting married.  Every commercial break on TV has ads for some sort of bridal merchandise.  Hardly a week goes by that I don't receive a wedding invitation in the mail.  And every day, I think about the season that I'm in.  I'm going off on my own, to the other side of the world, for an entire year.  Wedding bells are not on my horizon anytime soon.  But oh, I want them to be.

So the Lord gently reminds me that there is a season for everything.  He has placed all of us in the situations that we are in for a reason.  Even if we don't like where we are or want to be there, that's where He wants us.  I don't want to go to South Korea.  I don't want to be alone anymore.  I DO want to be married.  But God has other plans for me.  And, if past experience serves as any indication, then I know that following God's seasons for my life will always be the better choice.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

¹ There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:

² a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot,
³ a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build,
⁴ a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance,
⁵ a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, 

a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
⁶ a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away,
⁷ a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak,
⁸ a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.

The stars are talking

I remember when I was little I would take a blanket out to the backyard at night and lie down on it to look at the stars.  On a clear, cloudless night, you could see thousands of them.  As I studied them and learned more about them, I began to recognize them.  I took comfort in the ability to recognize my old friends, the constellations that always looked over me while I was sleeping.

But then I started traveling, and one night I looked out my window again.  All of my old friends had disappeared.  The stars were still there, but I could not recognize them.  It was as if I'd stepped into another planet.

That's what God wants us to be like with Him.  As we study Him and learn His word, we will become comfortable with His and able to trust Him.  But there is always more to discover about God, and when we travel forward in our walk with Him, He will reveal new facets of His personality to us - something we've never seen before.  That's one of the many things I love about God - I'm never bored by Him.  He can always surprise me.  And, just like the sparkling, winking, mysterious stars that look over my bed every night, He never ceases to captivate my interest and attention. 

Psalm 19:1-6

¹ The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
² Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge.
³ They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them.
⁴ Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun. ⁵ It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber,
like a champion rejoicing to run his course. ⁶ It rises at one end of the heavens
and makes its circuit to the other; nothing is deprived of its warmth. 

Giving credit where it's due

On more than one occasion, I've had people tell me that I've accomplished more in my short 21 years than many people do in their entire lifetime.  I was thinking about that statement today.  It's true that I have done more after 21 years than most people do.  But I can't say that it was I who accomplished it. 

I think of a little girl, scrawling in paint and playdough, who proudly says that she made the ugly, primitive drawing that she presents to her father.  She did it, true, but it is nothing to be proud of, and her father accepts it only because his daughter was the one who did it.  But then, years later, when she stands before her magnum opus, she cannot rightfully say that SHE was the one who accomplished it.  If her father had not encouraged her, enabled her, and loved her through her failures, she would have never gotten to where she is today.

That's how we are with our heavenly Father.  We cannot offer Him anything of value, but He takes it anyway, and turns our feeble efforts into something beautiful.  I cannot claim credit for graduating with a 4.0 GPA, having many, many opportunities to study, travel, and live abroad, the many accolades and awards that I have received, or even the fact that I am now a Fulbright scholar.  God is the reason for everything good that has happened in my life - everything.

I do not deny that I am blessed - but I DO deny that it is because of my hard work, my brilliance, my persistence, or anything of the sort.  It is because God loves me and blesses me far more than I deserve - and because I love Him back.  Ezra 8:22 says that "The hand of our God is upon all them for good that seek Him; but His power and His wrath is against all them that forsake Him."  Jeremiah 9:24 admonishes us to "'Let him that glories glory in this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the LORD which exercise loving-kindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight', says the LORD."  

Luke 11:9-10 clearly states that if we "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asks receives; and he that seeks finds; and to him that knocks it shall be opened."  If I have any success at all, it's because I simply believed God's word and did what it said.  I kept asking, and He kept giving.  What a wonderful God we have, who is both able and willing to keep a promise such as that.

God's recipe for contentment

It's so easy for us to forget how truly blessed we are.  We complain about the weather, our family, the fact that we can't afford all of the nice new things we want.  But we forget that there are people whose lives have been destroyed by the weather, whose families are dead or abusive, or who can't even afford to eat, let alone buy that new iPhone they've been eying. 

We truly are a blessed people.  "But," you say, "you don't know how badly I've got it."  That's true, I do not.  But you're alive and well enough to argue with me, and that right there is a blessing in itself.  I know a woman who is dying of brain cancer, and I've never heard her utter a word of complaint about her situation.  She's always smiling, always joyful, always praising the Lord and asking about your life, how she can help you.

That's the kind of contentment that a life with God should infuse.  I want to be so wrapped up in God, that the stuff of this world fades away....it shouldn't matter if I don't have a fancy car or a nice house, or even if my health is failing.  All that matters is that Jesus loves me, and I love him back.  Everything else is just icing on the cake.

But, on that topic, Jesus certainly does like alot of icing.  Sometimes, as my departure date for Korea marches steadily closer, I lament my acceptance of the scholarship, wishing I didn't have to go.  And then I slap myself, reminding myself what an incredible opportunity God has blessed me with.  Other times, like this week, which I've been spending visiting my grandparents in New York, my family annoys me to know end, and I find myself counting down the time until I can get away from them.  And then God gently chides me, reminding me of how blessed I am, in a world of abusive, neglectful, and broken families, to have one that loves me and helps me and provides for me.  They put up with all of my flaws...the least I can do is do the same for them! :)

Don't spend your life wondering what the grass is like on the other side, trying to keep up with the Jones, or wishing away this period of your life so that you can move on to the next one.  Every season has its ups and downs, and there is a time for everything.  Count your blessings, and learn to be content in the knowledge that the Creator of the universe loves you and IS looking out for you, even if it doesn't look like it.

John 1:16

From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another.

Romans 15:29

I know that when I come to you, I will come in the full measure of the blessing of Christ.

Proverbs 10:22

The blessing of the LORD brings wealth, and he adds no trouble to it.

1 Peter 3:9

Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.

Sky and clay

Psalm 19:1 says that "the Heavens declare the glory of God."  As I look out at the beauty outside my window, I cannot help but agree with that statement.  But it's so easy to get caught up in His creativity, and forget about His sovereignty.  Isaiah 64:8 says "Yet you, LORD, are our Father.  We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand."

Just like nature is always moving and changing - plants bloom and grow, cloudless skies eventually bring rain, and summer always morphs into fall - God wants us to move and change as He desires.  We were not made to be brittle iron, hard and unmoldeable.  Rather, we are clay - soft, pliable, and flexible.  When is the last time that you listened to God's gentle whisper in your heart?  When was the last time that you allowed Him to mold you?

Psalm 19:1-6

¹ The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
² Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge.
³ They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them.
⁴ Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.
⁵ It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, like a champion rejoicing to run his course.
⁶ It rises at one end of the heavens and makes its circuit to the other;
nothing is deprived of its warmth.

The testimony of Spring

Spring is in the air.  Spring in the south is an incredible thing.  Everything around me is bursting with new life.  The baby birds are peeking out of their nests, calling to their mothers to bring them food.  Chrysanthemums, roses, lilacs, tulips, and more peek out of their winter hiding places, eager to show the world their finery.  Occasional fluffy white clouds scuttle across the brilliant blue sky.

It's times like these when I am reminded to "be still and know that He is God."  God can be found everywhere, if only we take the time to look for Him.  In the new life all around us - He is there.  In the brilliant beauty - He is there.  In the meticulous care and detail that this world was created with - He is there.  Look for God in your world today.  After all, if you can't see Him in the physical world all around you, how will you see Him in the invisible spiritual world?

Psalm 104:24-31

²⁴ How many are your works, LORD!  In wisdom you made them all; 

the earth is full of your creatures. ²⁵ There is the sea, vast and spacious, 

teeming with creatures beyond number — living things both large and small.  

²⁶ There the ships go to and fro, and Leviathan, which you formed to frolic there.

²⁷ All creatures look to you to give them their food at the proper time.
²⁸ When you give it to them, they gather it up;
when you open your hand, they are satisfied with good things.
²⁹ When you hide your face, they are terrified;
when you take away their breath, they die and return to the dust.
³⁰ When you send your Spirit, they are created, and you renew the face of the ground.

³¹ May the glory of the LORD endure forever; may the LORD rejoice in his works.