Whoever has ears, let him hear

I remember when I was younger, I used to dread the question, "so what has God been teaching you lately?"  I grew up in the church, and all of my friends were Christians, too, so it was a very natural question to come up in my normal, day-to-day conversation.

But I hated it.  I hate it because I knew that I should have an easy answer to it - but so often, I didn't.  I should have been able to tell what God was teaching me - but far too frequently, I didn't have a clue.  And so that question was always associated in my mind with a stricken conscience and feelings of guilt or inadequacy.

But these days, I don't dread that question anymore.  Perhaps it's because I've finally learned to listen.  All of those years I read the words of the Bible, I heard the sermons of the pastors....but I didn't really understand.  They weren't sinking in like they were supposed to.  But nowadays, it all seems to make so much more sense.  And I don't dread that question anymore because I actually AM learning things from the Lord.  I can answer it now.  It's amazing what can happen when God opens your eyes.

Mark 4:9-12

 ⁹ Then Jesus said, “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”
 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!’”

The battle is not ours

Do you ever feel like you're in a battle?  Not a spiritual one, although all of us are in a spiritual battle.  No, I mean a real, physical, day-to-day battle, a struggle to stay alive and to keep afloat?  All of us have had situations in our lives that have threatened to overwhelm us.  And usually, they are not 1 big thing, but rather daily small battles that build and build and build until you feel completely overwhelmed.  It could be a chronic illness, or stressful job, or problems with your marriage, or insolent and sullen children....whatever the cause, you feel overwhelmed, overtaken by the battles raging in your life, and under equipped to handle them. 

But the wonderful thing is that God tells us in His word that the battle is not ours to handle.  In 2 Chronicles we find the story of King Jehoshaphat, and the Israelites' defeat of the Ammonites and Moabites.  Their enemies were bigger and stronger than them, and I'm sure the Israelites felt overwhelmed, helpless, and hopeless.  It seemed a lost cause - it was impossible for them to defeat the Ammonites and Moabites!

But the battle is not ours, but God's.  And nothing is impossible for Him.  So, as the Lord told King Jehoshaphat, take up your position!  Stand firm and see the deliverance that the Lord will give you.  Because He will give it to you.  He is faithful, even when we are not.

2 Chronicles 20:15-17

 ¹⁵ He said: “Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the LORD says to you: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s. ¹⁶ Tomorrow march down against them. They will be climbing up by the Pass of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the gorge in the Desert of Jeruel. ¹⁷ You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the LORD will give you, Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you.’”

What can you learn?

Whew!  Do you ever have those times when you feel like God is beating you up?  Over and over again, He keeps pounding the same things into your head, until eventually, at long last, you finally learn the lesson He wants to teach you.  Yeah, this is one of those times for me.  I was talking to a friend today about my homestay issues (an ever-present topic of conversation).  And she said to me, "I know that this situation is not the most ideal for you, but sometimes God puts us in uncomfortable situations for a reason.  Our job is to figure out what that reason is."

It's true that my homestay is a very very difficult situation.  All of the complaints that I have about them are true.  But that doesn't legitimize complaining about them.  Just because your situation is rough, doesn't mean that you can't glorify God through it.  Heck, Paul and Silas were thrown into prison, and they still managed to bring God glory!  When you look at it like that, it makes my complaining about my host family seem quite superfluous and silly, really.

So the next time you're in a rough spot, try this.  Don't focus of the negative aspects of your life; instead, purposefully look for ways where you can do good and honor God.  I'm not denying the hardships in your life - trust me, I am just as familiar with them as the next person.  But good can come out of anything - even really crappy situations.  So instead of complaining about your life, ask yourself, "what does He want me to learn and teach others from this?"

Acts 16:25-34

²⁵ About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. ²⁶ Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose. ²⁷ The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. ²⁸ But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!”
 ²⁹ The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. ³⁰ He then brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
 ³¹ They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.” ³² Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. ³³ At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his household were baptized. ³⁴ The jailer brought them into his house and set a meal before them; he was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God—he and his whole household.

Learn from the children

I had a pretty humbling moment today.  All of my classes were cancelled, which I did not find out until AFTER I had already gotten to school.  So rather than go home immediately, I spent most of the day editing papers that my honors students had written for my class.  Now, when I say most of the day, I am not exaggerating - it literally took me the majority of the day to edit 10 papers.  It was difficult, frustrating, and at times overwhelming.

But then I got to Hanna's story, about halfway through the stack.  The title of her paper was "The Best Experience of my life," and it was about the time that she spent in the Philippines studying English a few years ago.  She talked about how difficult it was to integrate herself into the culture, how hard it was to speak English all of the time, how lonely she felt at times - all things that I could certainly relate to from living here in Korea.  As I was reading it, though, I started wondering to myself, "why is this her best experience?  It sounds like she was miserable."  And that's when the tone of her paper changed.

She said that, as hard as it was to speak English, as unsettling as it was to not understand what was going on around her, she finally realized that she just needed to speak, just needed to get out there and do it.  So she bought herself a Korean-English dictionary, and brought it with her everywhere, and just made mistakes and started speaking.

And it hit me, while I sat there at my desk, surrounded by English essays written by Korean students from all walks of life and levels of English, and dreading going home to my host family, that perhaps I need to do exactly what she did.  When I first got to my homestay, I made an effort to try to talk to my host family.  But now that I feel so unwelcome, I've kind of stopped doing that.  But perhaps that's what I'm missing?  God wants us to put ourselves out there.  We cannot expect other people to give if we are not willing to give, ourselves.  The Bible says that we should follow children's example.  It's true, that verse is referencing faith, not willingness to approach people who are different from ourselves.  But I think there is a lot that we can learn from children, if we're willing to listen.

Matthew 18:1-3

 ¹ At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”
 ² He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. ³ And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. ⁴ Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. ⁵ And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.

In everything...

The eighteenth century theologian and preacher John Wesley once said that we should "do nothing on which you cannot pray a blessing - it becomes not a Christian to do anything so trivial, that he cannot pray over it."

Reminds me of a verse that I read, only yesterday in fact.  1 Corinthians 10:31 says, "whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God."  Isn't it interesting that the example that we are given of when we should honor God is eating and drinking, the most basic of our daily actions?  In my mind, it's hard for me to think of how I can honor God while I'm eating lunch.  Isn't that just something that you do??

But in God's book, nothing is just "something that you do."  Everything that we do has meaning - whether good or bad, there are consequences to our actions.  So don't trivialize your life by convincing yourself that what you do doesn't matter, that you can't glorify God in the small things.  As John Wesley said, it becomes us not to do something so insignificant that we cannot pray over it.  I wonder what would happen if we actually took his advice and really did pray a blessing over everything that we did. 

1 Corinthians 10:23-33

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.
 ²⁵ Eat anything sold in the meat market without raising questions of conscience, ²⁶ for, “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it.”
 ²⁷ If an unbeliever invites you to a meal and you want to go, eat whatever is put before you without raising questions of conscience. ²⁸ But if someone says to you, “This has been offered in sacrifice,” then do not eat it, both for the sake of the one who told you and for the sake of conscience. ²⁹ I am referring to the other person’s conscience, not yours. For why is my freedom being judged by another’s conscience? ³⁰ If I take part in the meal with thankfulness, why am I denounced because of something I thank God for?
 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.

The path of least resistance

 People often comment on my enthusiasm.  "You're so full of energy!" they tell me.  "You've got such big things coming in your life....you're going to do so much for God's kingdom!"  But so often, the image that I get of myself is not that of a mighty warrior, but rather a caged gerbil.  Sure, I've got lots of energy - especially in the morning (I'm the bubbly morning person that you always wanted to strangle in your 8 am college classes :]).  But energy does not equate with productivity.  It is not synonymous with might.  And something I wonder if I focus my energy on the wrong things.  Do we ever hide behind the familiar checklists of "spirituality" to avoid having to do the hard things, like ministering to the poor and giving of ourselves?  Don't settle into the path of least resistance - we were made to forge new paths.

Path of Least ResistanceBy Bo Bandy

 Take the shortcut; no hurdles straight ahead.

Go with the flow downstream, don't fight the current.

Follow the wood's grain; tear apart neatly at the seam.

With a trampled road to traverse on, why would anyone beat a new path?

Because the well-traveled road soon ends

But the self-paved road will last.

Luke 18:18-23

¹⁸ A certain ruler asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

   ¹⁹ “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. ²⁰ You know the commandments: ‘You shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.’”
 ²¹ “All these I have kept since I was a boy,” he said.
 ²² When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
 ²³ When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was very wealthy. ²⁴ Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! ²⁵ Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”

1,000 gifts

I must confess, I've been having a bit of a pity party lately.  I'm still completely voiceless, I woke up today with a migraine, and I still had to go in and teach four classes.  It only added insult to injury that I actually wanted to teach - I really enjoy it - but I couldn't (couldn't even say hello to my students), so I was forced to show movies all day.  And honestly, it was really, really getting to me.  I felt helpless and invisible.

But then I read an article this afternoon about counting your blessings.  It encouraged its readers to look at their lives and find 1,000 gifts that the Lord has given them.  So I started counting....the first few were easy.  I have a wonderful family, great friends, and amazing opportunities.  But then I started thinking....what about the bad things?  Is it possible that they, in a way, could be considered blessings, too?  I don't believe that God sends hardship into our lives...but I do believe that He uses it to shape us and mold us into the kinds of people that He wants us to be.

So instead of complaining about all of the trials that come into our lives, perhaps we should, like Paul, be grateful for them.  Perhaps they'd be easier to bear if we look at them as a gift, not a curse.  They are, after all, what will make us who we are.  

2 Corinthians 7:4-7

⁴ I have spoken to you with great frankness; I take great pride in you. I am greatly encouraged; in all our troubles my joy knows no bounds.
 ⁵ For when we came into Macedonia, we had no rest, but we were harassed at every turn—conflicts on the outside, fears within. ⁶ But God, who comforts the downcast, comforted us by the coming of Titus, ⁷ and not only by his coming but also by the comfort you had given him. He told us about your longing for me, your deep sorrow, your ardent concern for me, so that my joy was greater than ever.

Listening and doing

I decided to flip through my Bible today and see what caught my eye.  I don't do that very often, but sometimes it's kind of cool to see where God takes me.  Well, today my Bible just happened to fall open to James 1:19, the title of which is called "listening and doing."  I love God's timing.  I don't believe that there is such a thing as "coincidence" when the Creator of the universe is orchestrating your life :).  Here I've been having a pity party all weekend for myself because I cannot talk.  I cannot communicate anything at all beyond simple gestures, and it's sooo frustrating.

But God's word says that we should be quick to listen and slow to speak.  That we should be doers, not just sayers.  That the tongue is the most dangerous weapon of all.  So I have to ask myself, as I'm begrudgingly sitting here in silence, forced to hear the conversation of everyone around me and unable to participate in any of it....is it possible that I have forgotten how to listen?  

James 1:19-26

Listening and Doing

 ¹⁹ My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, ²⁰ because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. ²¹ Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.  ²² Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. ²³ Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror ²⁴ and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. ²⁵ But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.
 ²⁶ Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless.

Listen

I lost my voice again today.  It was horrible.  This weekend I had a conference for all of the teachers on my program.  It was supposed to be my solace, my respite from the stresses of my homestay, my time when I could just kick back and swap stories and vent with all of my fellow teachers and friends and for just a few days, not worry about anything.  But instead, it turned out that I wasn't able to swap any stories at all.  I wasn't able to vent, I wasn't able to share advice or suggestions, I wasn't able to say anything at all. 

And honestly, it really got to me.  It was quite stressful.  This weekend, which was supposed to be my respite, my time away from my all my problems.  But instead, my voice wasn't working.  And so I was forced to simply listen, no talking involved.  But what I love is that sometimes God doesn't expect me to talk.  He just wants me to listen.

Isaiah 30:19-21

 ¹⁹ People of Zion, who live in Jerusalem, you will weep no more. How gracious he will be when you cry for help! As soon as he hears, he will answer you. ²⁰ Although the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, your teachers will be hidden no more; with your own eyes you will see them. ²¹ Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”

Keeping rhythm

A parade came through town today.  As I was watching them, I started thinking about the technique and rhythm required of the marchers in the band.  It was fascinating to watch, as each one of them filed past me, every step perfectly in sync.  What would happen if one of them got out of step?  Even if they were only a little bit out of line, they would throw off the rhythm of everyone else in the parade. 

So how does this apply to us?  In our society, "marching to the beat of your own drum" is considered a good thing, not a bad thing.  But what if the rhythm keeper is the Holy Spirit in the parade of our lives?  What if the only way to stay in step, to go where we need to go when we need to go there, is to listen to the directions that He is speaking into our lives?  You're likely pretty good at doing your own thing - we all are.  But how good are you at keeping the rhythm?

Galatians 5:16-26

 ¹⁶ So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. ¹⁷ For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. ¹⁸ But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
 ¹⁹ The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; ²⁰ idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions ²¹ and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
 ²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. ²⁴ Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. ²⁵ Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. ²⁶ Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.

When to get serious

I had a conversation with a fellow English teacher yesterday.  She was telling me about a discussion she had with one of her students, a very good English speaker, incredibly intelligent...and also shockingly jaded at his young age.  A good portion of his comments were directed in the form of criticism against his own culture of Korea.  At one point he even went as far as to call his fellow students "monkeys" for their playful, silly behavior.

That got me thinking.  By his definition, most of us would be considered monkeys.  I certainly would be.  I enjoy to clown around and be silly and laugh and have fun.  And my friend's student would certainly not be the only one to criticize me for my apparent childishness. 

But you know what?  I'm pretty sure that Jesus had an inner child, too.  In fact, He reserved His harshest criticism for the most serious people in His life - the pharisees.  There is a time for everything - including both being serious AND cutting loose.  It's ok to be silly and have fun.  The trick is knowing when to be serious again.

Mark 2:18-28

¹⁸ Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. Some people came and asked Jesus, “How is it that John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees are fasting, but yours are not?”
 ¹⁹ Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? They cannot, so long as they have him with them. ²⁰ But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them, and on that day they will fast.
   ²¹ “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse. ²² And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins.”

Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath

 ²³ One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain. ²⁴ The Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?”  ²⁵ He answered, “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry and in need? ²⁶ In the days of Abiathar the high priest, he entered the house of God and ate the consecrated bread, which is lawful only for priests to eat. And he also gave some to his companions.”
 ²⁷ Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. ²⁸ So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”

Ugly Ducklings

Living in another culture is hard.  You try so hard to fit in, but you never really do.  Some days are better than others, some times you don't feel quite so isolated as you do in other times; but there is always a feeling, underneath it all, that you don't belong.  There's always some underlying sentiment that you are, in effect, an ugly duckling.

Sometimes that's a literal feeling - cultural images of beauty vary vastly, and while you may be considered lovely in your own culture, it's quite possible that you are just the opposite in another one.  But more often you become a figurative ugly duckling - a misfit, an outcast, someone who does not belong here.  Misunderstandings and poor communication abound.  The feeling of isolation and loneliness can sometimes be suffocating.

God's word is full of ugly ducklings, too.  But the beautiful thing is that they're not really ugly ducklings.  They are kings, queens, warriors, and conquerors.  They are the ones that the history books are written about.  Perhaps that's why God emphasizes the communion of saints so much.  No matter where you are, you can always feel at home.  In God's kingdom, there are no ugly ducklings - only beautiful swans.

Jude 1:24-25

 ²⁴ To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— ²⁵ to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen. 

God's empowerment....

The day of Pentecost has always had a bit of a mysterious aura associated with it for me.  God comes down in a whoosh, leaves tongues of fire hovering over His disciples, and just like that, they are empowered to preach His gospel all over the earth.  Things like that just don't happen anymore, right?

So I was reading in Acts 4:23-31 today.  Verse 31 says that, "After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken.  And they were filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the Word of God boldly."  And I started wondering to myself: has God changed, or have we?  The Bible says that He is the Unchanging One; if that is the case, shouldn't He be able to visit the Holy Spirit upon us just as easily today as He did during the days of the early church?  So, if God hasn't changed, then what HAS changed?  Why is a visitation of the Holy Spirit no longer considered a blessing, but rather a concoction of a deranged mind?

Is it possible that God is just as capable - and willing - of showering us with His presence now as He was then?  What if the only difference is that the believers of the early church ASKED for it?  Here's a sobering thought: have we ever really asked God to empower us?  Or are we too afraid of what might happen if we did?

The grace of the unexpected

It's hard to understand what it's like to live in a foreign country, day after day, until you are there.  Your brain is constantly on overdrive, but yet the harder you push the pedal, the less you seem to understand.  Everything is strange and foreign and difficult.  Restaurants, streets, post offices, habits, even bathrooms.....everything is different. 

Sometimes it's bearable.  But then, there are other times when all you want to do is to be able to understand.  Times when any comment, any incident, however trivial, is monumental.  Living in a foreign country, humor is one of the first casualties.  Humor doesn't translate through a language barrier.  I can't tell you how many times I've been the only one not laughing among a group of Koreans.  Likewise, when I crack jokes there is silence.

The big tragedy is that, while humor is often the first to go, it's one of the most important things to keep.  That's when God sends His grace in the form of the unexpected.  You know what I'm talking about....when someone says or does something completely unexpected, and it makes us bust out laughing.  We all need laughter in our lives.  So when the stress of life is getting to you, ask God to help you loosen up.  Stop taking yourself - and everyone around you - so seriously.  Learn to actually enjoy life again.

Ephesians 6:21-24

 ²¹ Tychicus, the dear brother and faithful servant in the Lord, will tell you everything, so that you also may know how I am and what I am doing. ²² I am sending him to you for this very purpose, that you may know how we are, and that he may encourage you.
 ²³ Peace to the brothers and sisters, and love with faith from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. ²⁴ Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an undying love.

A Psalm of Life

I went to Hwacheon this weekend, a city in South Korea that is only a few miles away from the DMZ, one of the most hotly contested national borders in the world.  The city itself was lovely, but it's location naturally meant that it was also swarming with soldiers.  In fact, I think that it would be fair to say that I saw far more soldiers in Hwacheon than ordinary citizens. 

It reminded me of Longfellow's poem, a Psalm of Life.  Life is real, he reminds us.  It is a battle, true, but we do not have to be the victims.  We can be the heroes!  Act in the living present, with God guiding you.  Do not be afraid - He will take care of you.

The Psalm of Life

By Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Tell me not, in mournful numbers, Life is but an empty dream!--
For the soul is dead that slumbers, And things are not what they seem.

Life is real! Life is earnest! And the grave is not its goal;
Dust thou art, to dust returnest, Was not spoken of the soul.

Not enjoyment, and not sorrow, Is our destined end or way;
But to act, that each to-morrow Find us farther than to-day.

Art is long, and Time is fleeting, And our hearts, though stout and brave,
Still, like muffled drums, are beating Funeral marches to the grave.

In the world's broad field of battle, In the bivouac of Life,
Be not like dumb, driven cattle! Be a hero in the strife!

Trust no future, howe'er pleasant! Let the dead Past bury its dead!
Act,--act in the living present! Heart within, and God o'erhead!

Lives of great men all remind us We can make our lives sublime,
And departing, leave behind us Footprints on the sands of time;

Footprints, that perhaps another, Sailing o'er life's solemn main,
A forlorn and shipwrecked brother, Seeing, shall take heart again.

Let us, then, be up and doing, With a heart for any fate;
Still achieving, still pursuing, Learn to labor and to wait.

Isaiah 40:9-11

⁹ You who bring good news to Zion,
   go up on a high mountain.
You who bring good news to Jerusalem,
   lift up your voice with a shout,
lift it up, do not be afraid;
   say to the towns of Judah,
   “Here is your God!”
¹⁰ See, the Sovereign LORD comes with power,
   and he rules with a mighty arm.
See, his reward is with him,
   and his recompense accompanies him.
¹¹ He tends his flock like a shepherd:
   He gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart;
   he gently leads those that have young. 

Tent-making missionaries

Many of us have this misguided view that pastors and missionaries have a "higher" calling than the rest of us "normal" Christians.  They are the ones who have been called to the mission field; it is their job to tell others about Jesus, right?  We just have normal jobs, we shouldn't be expected to witness, should we?

Of course we should!  No matter what our occupation is, we are ALL called to the mission field.  There is even a term for that, derived from the life of Paul, who supported himself during his ministry by working as a tent-maker.  It's called a tent-making missionary.  And it's something that each and every one of us is called to do.

So what exactly is a tent-making missionary, you ask?  In effect, it's someone who seeks to spread the gospel with those around them, no matter what their profession actually is.  It's someone who tries to let others see Jesus, no matter where they work.  So often we use our professions as a crutch for not sharing Jesus to others. "Well I'm not a pastor....I wouldn't know what to say...It's not my job...I'm too busy," we say.

But, to put it bluntly, God doesn't care what we do.  Or, perhaps a better way to say that is that He cares infinitesimally - so much so, in fact, that He though it was of ultimate importance to place us in the job that He gave us.  Not as a pastor, not as a missionary....as an average lay-person.  The church and far-off exotic places are not the only places that needs Jesus to be shown to them.  So do the industrialized nations.  So do the big companies.  So does your very office.

Mark 16:14-20

¹⁴ Later Jesus appeared to the Eleven as they were eating; he rebuked them for their lack of faith and their stubborn refusal to believe those who had seen him after he had risen.
   ¹⁵ He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. ¹⁶ Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. ¹⁷ And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; ¹⁸ they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.”
   ¹⁹ After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God. ²⁰Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.

Do you really believe?

The other day, I was bluntly asked, "How can you sleep at night?  If you really believe in heaven and hell, how can you live among people who are going to hell and not tell them about Jesus?  How can you say you care about them, and yet weeks, months, or even years go by without telling them about what He's done for them?"

It was definitely a convicting question.  While Christianity is not a religion of wrath, but rather of love, it does make it clear that everyone who doesn't know God will die and spend eternity in hell.  We have not been called to simply be nice and kind and pleasant to other people.  In fact, if that is how you choose to show your faith, if all you do is show kindness without ever telling them about Jesus, what you are really doing is saying with a smile, "Go to hell."

Strong statement, isn't it?  Which, I suppose, is what prompted that question that was asked of me.  Do I, as a Christian, really believe what I am preaching or not?  Do I really think that the people with whom I live, work, and play are going to spend an eternity in hell?  If so, why do I not say anything?  Am I really willing to sit back and watch them die?  What do you really believe?  And what are you going to do about it??

Romans 6:20-23

²⁰ When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. ²¹ What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! ²² But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. ²³ For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

Complacency

I'm so dead right now.  Just...stuck in a rut.  I feel like I do the same thing over and over again, and there's never any variety.  I get up, have some fermented cabbage (or dried anchovies if I want to mix it up), bike to school (the same route every single day), teach class (the same class over and over and over again), say hello to my students (they ALWAYS answer with, "I'm fine thank you, and you?"), have lunch, lesson plan, write some emails, bike back home, spend some time tutoring my host sister in Spanish, maybe go out for a bit, and then go to sleep.

Life is good, but in danger of becoming monotonous.  What I really need is some excitement, some flavor, some change to spice up my life.  Have you ever been where I am?  Do you ever feel stuck in the same old same old?  It doesn't have to be a bad rut - we can be in a rut because we have accomplished much, and are now content to sit on our laurels, to revel in the fruit of our labor.

The Bible has a word for this.  It's called complacency.  Webster defines complacency as self-satisfied or unconcerned.  That's not what I generally think of when I think of complacency - in my mind, it usually just mean laziness.  But that's not really what it means.  The ancient Romans, who built the most powerful nation in the world at their time, were certainly not lazy.  But it was their complacency, their sense of comfort, that ultimately destroyed them.

Beware of getting complacent, of getting stuck in a rut in your life - whether it be good or bad.  Stay constantly in the Word, praying that He gives you fresh insight every single day.  Complacency, if you give it enough time to take hold in your life, will destroy you.

Proverbs 1:32-33

³² For the waywardness of the simple will kill them, 

   and the complacency of fools will destroy them; ³³ but whoever listens to me will live in safety    and be at ease, without fear of harm.”

The daily grind

Have you ever found it hard to keep doing the same thing, day after day after day?  Ever gotten worn out by repetition?  That's how I feel sometimes - even with writing this blog.  Sure, it's supposed to be a form of worship to the Lord; sure, it's supposed to be a good thing to commune and spend time with Him every day.  But let's face it - I'm just as human as the rest of you.  There's nothing super-spiritual about me.  And while sometimes, it's wonderful and lots of fun and I love doing it, sometimes it feels more like a chore than a blessing.  Sometimes I would rather do almost anything else in the world than to sit down and read my Bible.

But it's those times when it's hard, those times when I don't want to do it, that's it's all the more important to actually do it anyway.  God doesn't say that the life of a Christian would be easy.  In fact, He says just the opposite.  The gospel of Luke says that we must take up our cross daily and follow Him.  Whenever I hear this verse, I always think of the graphic images from Mel Gibson's movie, "The Passion of the Christ."  Taking up His cross was not an easy thing to do.  It was not pain-free or costless.  It required a sacrifice.  But Jesus loved the Father - and us - so much, that it was worth it.

It is worth it to you?  How badly do you want to get to know your Savior?  Do you love Him enough to spend time with Him, even when you don't want to?  Love is a verb, and true love always costs us something; are you willing to make that sacrifice?

Luke 9:23-26

 ²³ Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. ²⁴ For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. ²⁵ What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self? ²⁶ Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.

Humanity

"I don't want to think about the future or an afterlife," my friend told me.  "I just want to eat and drink and enjoy the now, enjoy my humanity as it comes."  An interesting sentiment, and one that I'm sure many people share, in various mutations and permutations.

This weekend at the retreat, the pastor addressed that very subject.  "Isn't is interesting," he said, that the very thing that so many humans deny is the very thing that makes them human?"  He went on to explain further.  Animals eat and drink their full, never worrying about the future.  Sometimes they will prepare for the next year, such as when squirrels collect nuts or bears hibernate, but for the most part animals live in the now.

So how are we different?  What is it that makes us human?  What makes us human is, quite simply, our capacity to know and commune with God.  It's what sets us apart from the other species.  But the tragic thing is that, by asserting our own humanity, so many of us have lost sight of what it truly means to be human.

God made us to be with Him.  The animals He did not.  That's the beauty, the wonder, the incredible thing about being human - we were not made to just exist, we were made to be with Him.  To ignore that is to disregard our essence, the very thing that makes us human in the first place.  Don't settle for just existing.  He made you for so much more.

Genesis 2:15-19

¹⁵ The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. ¹⁶ And the LORD God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; ¹⁷ but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”
 ¹⁸ The LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.”
 ¹⁹ Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. ²⁰So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals.

The Amazing Race

I love the Amazing Race.  If you ask me if I'm addicted to television, I could quite honestly say no - I watch it very, very infrequently.  But the Amazing Race?  Yeah, I'm addicted to it.  The reality show is exactly what it sounds like - a race around the world, in which teams have to complete physical and mental activities that reflect the culture of whatever place that they have travelled to.

I've been hooked on the show ever since its very first season.  When I was younger, my whole family would sit down as a family and watch it together.  When I went away to college, we would watch it in our respective cities and simultaneously videochat with each other, so that we could still tell each other our reactions to what was happening on the show.  Even when I started travelling, and watching it live became impossible, I would watch it later on YouTube and then talk about the exciting twists and turns with my family afterwards.  The thrill of the race, the drama and the tension and the intrigue...I love every second of it.  For years, I have wished that I could be on that show, that I could be a part of that race.

But I forgot something very important.  I AM a part of a race, a much bigger race than could ever be conceived for a TV show.  Hebrews 12 says that we are in a race, and that we are called to run it well - with "perseverance."  I'm not a runner, so I can't make that comparison, but watching the Amazing Race reminds me of what running a race really means.  It's long.  It's tough.  It's exhausting.  Sometimes it's stressful.  But it's worth it in the end.  So let me ask you...how's your race going?

Hebrews 12:1-3

 ¹ Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, ² fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. ³ Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Where is your home?

I learned a lot at the retreat this past weekend, so please excuse me if several days' worth of blogging references the same event.  One of the main messages was centered around James 4 and John 17, in which we are called to be in the world but not of it.  This is a very hotly discussed issue within Christian circles.  What does that mean, exactly, to be in but not of it?  It's so easy to be either too far entrenched into the world, or far too disconnected from it - and both are dangerous places to be.  Where is that line?  How do you find the delicate balance that we have been called to find?

Living in Korea has offered me a unique perspective on what Jesus meant by saying this.  I am certainly living here - I have a home, I have a bike, I have friends, I know the transportation systems.  But I am also equally certainly not "of" Korea.  No matter how long I live here, no matter how fluent I become in Korean, no matter how well I get to know the city, I will always be a bit of an outsider.

So I've had the opportunity to really witness first-hand what it means to live somewhere, but not "fit in," per se.  I don't buy permanent furniture, I don't look for a nicer house, I'm not making plans to live here forever.  I still invest with others, I still work hard to make a fulfilling life for myself...but it's all done with the knowledge that this isn't my real home.  In the background, I'm always yearning for something else - home.  My real home.

C.S. Lewis said it beautifully when he said that "When I have found a desire within myself that no experience in this world can satisfy; the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world."  Where is your home?  Are you comfortable and satisfied here?  Or do you long for something more?  Of course, He doesn't want you to go through life miserable or standoff-ish to the people He brings into your life.  But He also doesn't want you to get too comfortable or to accept too little.  God has created you for so much more.  

James 4:4-10

 ⁴ You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. ⁵ Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us? ⁶ But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says:
   “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.”
 ⁷ Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. ⁸ Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. ⁹ Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. ¹⁰ Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.

Revival

I went to a retreat with my church this past weekend.  It was a great time, a time of refreshment and reconnecting with the Lord.  I got to commune with other believers, I got to spend time meditating on the Lord, and I was able to have a bit of a reprieve from the stresses I've been experiencing at home.

But one thing that struck me particularly hard while I was there was how many people God has placed into my life who desperately need Him.  I have had more talks about God in the past 2 months than I probably have had in my entire life before Korea.  And most of those talks have not been with like-minded Christians, but rather with unbelievers.

The valley of dry bones that is mentioned in Ezekiel 37 was referenced at the conference, and I haven't been able to get that imagery out of my head since then.  What a powerful picture that paints!  A valley full of dead bones, long removed from any trace of life, their cold, lifeless shapes scattered across the earth, gleaming dully in the moonlight.  There is absolutely no way that they will ever come to life again; they are without hope.

But God begs to differ.  He sends Ezekiel to prophecy over them, telling them to rise up and live again.  The greatest thing about this story, however, is not that the bones actually did live again; it's that people can live again, too.  God does not only send revival to dead, dry bones; He sends them to the barren wastelands of the hearts of people who are completely dead, at least spiritually.

Many of us would say that our cities are sick, our states are lamentable, and our nation is dying.  Indeed, even many families find themselves in unenviable spiritual states.  But nothing is too big for God.  If He can bring dry bones back to life, He can bring our families and our communities back to life, too.  He can do it...do you want Him to do it??  Wherever you are, whatever your stage of life, pray for a revival to break out in this city. 

Ezekiel 37:1-10

¹ The hand of the LORD was on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the LORD and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. ² He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. ³ He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?”
   I said, “Sovereign LORD, you alone know.”
 ⁴ Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! ⁵ This is what the Sovereign LORD says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. ⁶ I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD.’”
 ⁷ So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. ⁸ I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them.
 ⁹ Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’” ¹⁰ So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army.

Consider Job

Yesterday's Bible verse was from Job, but I thought that it might be a good idea to expound upon the subject of Job, since I didn't really do a very good job of that yesterday.  The book of Job is really quite an interesting read.  Throughout the chapters, the reader is given a bird's eye view of what's going on.  We see that Job is being tested, that God is proud of him, that Job's wife and friends are confused and not giving him good advice, and that Job really is a godly man.

But that is NOT the perspective that Job saw.  All that Job saw was ruin and destruction.  In the blink of an eye, he lost his wealth, his health, his family....everything.  And then, to top it all off, he had friends constantly deriding him for his lack of faith, his godlessness, his sin - surely that must have been what caused all of this trouble, right??  Of course we know that that wasn't true, but I can't help but wonder about Job.  Did he ever wonder if they were right?  Did he start to doubt himself, doubt his integrity, wonder what he had done wrong, question why God was punishing him?  Of course he did....how could he not have?

When I read Job, I am always reminded to stick it out.  Because God really was there.  Although life seemed hopeless, God never left him, and was always in control of the situation.  Perhaps Job realized God's provision after his wealth and family were restored to him; perhaps he didn't fully understand until he died and went to heaven.  But he didn't have to.  He trusted in God, regardless.  Wow.  There's a lesson that we all would do well to take to heart.

Job 1:6-12

⁶ One day the angels came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came with them. ⁷ The LORD said to Satan, “Where have you come from?”
   Satan answered the LORD, “From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.”
 ⁸ Then the LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.”
 ⁹ “Does Job fear God for nothing?” Satan replied. ¹⁰ “Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. ¹¹ But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face.”
 ¹² The LORD said to Satan, “Very well, then, everything he has is in your power, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.”
   Then Satan went out from the presence of the LORD.

Take Him at His word

Today I found some things that I had written during the first few weeks of my stay in Costa Rica.  I had forgotten how absolutely miserable I was there when I first arrived.  It was good, I think, to remember, because now it is my absolute favorite place on Earth.

So that gives hope to me, that my entire year with my host family will not be as bad as it has been recently.  It's true that I never really got super close to my host family in Costa Rica, but we got along just fine, and that's what I'm hoping for here in Korea, too.  I cannot decide if I should move or not - as soon as it gets to be really bad, they do something really nice, and then I'll all confused again.

That's why it's so important to remember.  So often, whether intentionally or unintentionally, we tend to gloss over the details of things as time passes.  If you ever ask me about Costa Rica, I will have absolutely nothing but good things to say about it.  But good things, in fact, were NOT the only thing that happened to me.  And I made it through, I came out OK, and was a better person because of it.  I think that God was reminding me that He's still in control, and that no matter how bleak things look right now, He WILL work things out in the long run.  We just have to have patience and trust in Him.

Have patience and trust in Him.  It's so easy to say those words, but so incredibly difficult to actually do it.  That's when it's time to go to His word.  His word is what will get us through the hard times, the times when we can't hear His voice and it doesn't seem like He cares for us.  But, regardless of whether it seems like He cares or not, He does care, and His word is proof of that.  So take His, quite literally, at His word.  Read about the stories of other people who have also gone through painful situations.  And remember how He was always there for them, even when they couldn't see Him.  You are no less cared for than they were.

Job 42:10-17

¹⁰ After Job had prayed for his friends, the LORD restored his fortunes and gave him twice as much as he had before. ¹¹ All his brothers and sisters and everyone who had known him before came and ate with him in his house. They comforted and consoled him over all the trouble the LORD had brought on him, and each one gave him a piece of silver and a gold ring.
 ¹² The LORD blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the former part. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen and a thousand donkeys. ¹³ And he also had seven sons and three daughters. ¹⁴ The first daughter he named Jemimah, the second Keziah and the third Keren-Happuch. ¹⁵ Nowhere in all the land were there found women as beautiful as Job’s daughters, and their father granted them an inheritance along with their brothers.
 ¹⁶ After this, Job lived a hundred and forty years; he saw his children and their children to the fourth generation. ¹⁷ And so Job died, an old man and full of years.

Free thought

I went on a bit of a rant yesterday.  I was talking with a friend about people who classify themselves as "free thinkers," and how warped their perspectives can be sometimes.  Many of them will call themselves free thinkers, accepting, and open-minded in a heartbeat; and yet, the instant that they meet someone who calls themselves a "Christian," they instantly assume that the person is radical, illogical, unintelligent, and close-minded.  Where is the free thought, the accepting nature that they were so proud of??

Unfortunately, many people have this instantaneous dislike for Christians because we have the same attitude towards them.  We are supposed to be the ones who show Christ to the world; and yet, how often are nonbelievers met with disdain, haughtiness, and judgement from other Christians?  As much as it breaks my heart and yes, even angers me to see people who pride themselves on being open-minded be so close-minded and judgmental of my faith, it breaks my heart even more because I know that we are the reason that they think that.  Because of our own judgements and close-mindedness, we have caused the world to hate Jesus.

God doesn't want us to accept sin.  But He does want us to accept sinners.  How can they ever see God's love if we never show it to them?  How can they ever notice something different about Christians if we refuse to associate with them?  Peoples' knee-jerk reaction when they hear the name of Jesus should be to run towards Him, not away from Him.  Don't be someone who causes those around you to hate the name of Jesus. 

Romans 12:9-21

 ⁹ Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. ¹⁰ Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. ¹¹ Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. ¹² Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. ¹³ Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.
 ¹⁴ Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. ¹⁵ Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. ¹⁶ Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.
 ¹⁷ Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. ¹⁸ If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. ¹⁹ Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. ²⁰ On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him;  if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”
 ²¹ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

What's in store...

I started reading "Simply Salsa," by Janet Eckles, today.  It is a book about letting God teach you how to love life, no matter what it throws at you.  Early on in the book, she spoke about how God changed her after she lost her vision.  "But God whispered, 'Seek me first, love me first, long for me first, and fill your heart with me first; then you'll see what I have in store for you."

Tomorrow I'm going to begin the process of finding a new homestay family to live with for the duration of my time here in Korea.  My current one has become unbearable.  I don't know what He has in store for me.  It's scary and overwhelming and more than a little sad.  But I take comfort in the fact that God knows, and He's looking forward to showing me.  But He also wants my priorities to be in order, and until I'm focused on Him, He will not take me to the next phase in my life.

"Seek me first, love me first, long for me first...."  I love the fact that the woman who penned these words wrote them in reference to her experience with sudden blindness.  God offers comfort even in the worst of times.  And goodness gracious, if He can comfort her in the loss of her eyesight, He can surely comfort me in my time of transition.  I mean, at least I still have all of my senses! :)

Psalm 55:22

²² Cast your cares on the LORD
   and he will sustain you;
he will never let
   the righteous be shaken. 

Paying attention

With my recent homestay problems, my morning devotional today was especially poignant.  It really hit home.  I can't think of a better way to say it than verbatim.  Today's devotional comes from "The one year daily grind," by Sarah Arthur.

It's curious to me that in the English language the act of attending to somthing or someone outside of ourselves is difficult to express without using the metaphor of personal sacrifice: we give attention, we pay attention.  In other words, to focus on anything other than our own little lives costs us.

Prayer, as the authors of The Spiritual Life wrote, is a "disciplined dedication to paying attention."  It, too, requires sacrifice.  It costs us our selfish inner ramblings; it requires us to concentrate on someone outside of ourselves - often many someones, if we include intercessory prayer in the equation.  In fact, all aspects of prayer require us to pay the price of attention.  For example:

• In praise and adoration we take our obsessive thoughts off of ourselves, for once, and pay attention to the amazing attributes of our loving heavenly Father.  
• In confession we put the spotlight on those things we'd rather not pay attention to: we know we're expected to give them up.  
• In thanksgiving we take our attention off of all the things we don't have or the things that  have gone wrong, and instead we pay attention to the details - itemized one by one - of all that God has given us.  
• In supplication we let go of our frantic anxieties, our petty problems, our secret sins and obsessions, and deliberately, intentionally place them at the feet of Christ.  Then we no longer give them our attention.  We let God attend to them.  And as we fix our eyes on Him, we learn what it is He wants us to do with those things, one at a time.  
• In intercession we fix our attention on the other peopl ein our lives who need healing, forgiveness, grace, or mercy, or to feel the love and presence of God.

 Prayer, at heart, is the discipline of paying attention - giving, fixing, focusing; and thus it costs us something - time, energy, pride.  No wonder we're so reticent to begin!

Psalm 119:65-80

 ⁶⁵ Do good to your servant
   according to your word, LORD.
⁶⁶ Teach me knowledge and good judgment,
   for I trust your commands.
⁶⁷ Before I was afflicted I went astray,
   but now I obey your word.
⁶⁸ You are good, and what you do is good;
   teach me your decrees.
⁶⁹ Though the arrogant have smeared me with lies,
   I keep your precepts with all my heart.
⁷⁰ Their hearts are callous and unfeeling,
   but I delight in your law.
⁷¹ It was good for me to be afflicted
   so that I might learn your decrees.
⁷² The law from your mouth is more precious to me
   than thousands of pieces of silver and gold.

   י Yodh

 ⁷³ Your hands made me and formed me;
   give me understanding to learn your commands.
⁷⁴ May those who fear you rejoice when they see me,
   for I have put my hope in your word.
⁷⁵ I know, LORD, that your laws are righteous,
   and that in faithfulness you have afflicted me.
⁷⁶ May your unfailing love be my comfort,
   according to your promise to your servant.
⁷⁷ Let your compassion come to me that I may live,
   for your law is my delight.
⁷⁸ May the arrogant be put to shame for wronging me without cause;
   but I will meditate on your precepts.
⁷⁹ May those who fear you turn to me,
   those who understand your statutes.
⁸⁰ May I wholeheartedly follow your decrees,
   that I may not be put to shame.

Be gracious with your patience

A friend of mine sent me a verse today from 2 Corinthians 9.  It says, "And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work."  This verse is meant to apply to money, but I took it to mean other things, as well.

I've been having lots of issues with my host family recently.  So when I read the passage below, the first thing that I thought of was time.  What if God doesn't just want us to invest financially in His kingdom, but also to give of our time and emotions?  What if He expects us to invest sacrificially in other people, even the difficult ones, even when it's hard?

The Bible says for us to be generous with our money.  But I think this passage is also saying that we should give freely of our time, and be gracious with our patience.  It may be hard, it may seem impossible....but the finale is what matter.  "God can bless you, so that you have all that you need in all things at all times."  Even in a foreign country.  Even when you're living with an impossible host family.  Even when life seems dark and dreary.  Be generous with the gifts He's given you, and He will bless you.  End of story. 

2 Corinthians 9:6-8

⁶ Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. ⁷ Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. ⁸ And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. 

Success

A friend of mine posed the question today, "What is success to you?"  It's a good question, one that certainly makes me think.  The easy answer would be something along the lines of, "Success is getting a high-powered job, earning an advanced degree, achieving fame and fortune..."  But when I look at the numbers of failed marriages, suicides, bankruptcies, drug and alcohol addictions, you name it, among the so-called "successful" people in the world, I have a hard time accepting that as a valid measure of success.
As his gift to me for my college graduation, my brother made a beautiful video in which he taped members of my family saying words of encouragement or advice to me for my big day.  I'll never forget what my mother said.  "It's true," she said, "that you've overcome a lot of challenges to get where you are today.  But I'll tell you, if you hadn't done any of it, I still would be proud of you, because you have a relationship with the Lord.  And Lauren, I just want you to keep in perspective that although you've gotten a lot of honors and applaudits and approval from the world, that really none of it, in the eternal sense, matters.  I just want to make sure that you keep that in perspective that the most important thing ever, that will matter, is your relationship with the Lord."

So what is success to you?  The Bible says that success is to do what the Lord commands.  By that token, Jesus was a great success.  Of course as Christians we automatically assume that of course Jesus was a succees, but by the world's standards, He was a huge failure. 

Which tells me something about success.  You're going to have to choose what kind of success you want, who's standard you are going to be judged by, because often they won't coincide.  Sometimes, of course, they will - there are plenty of wealthy Christians who are in God's will - but often they won't.  So choose today, as Joshua did, whom you will serve.  As for me, I will serve the Lord.

1 Kings 2:1-4

¹Not long before David died, he told Solomon: ²My son, I will soon die, as everyone must. But I want you to be strong and brave. ³Do what the LORD your God commands and follow his teachings. Obey everything written in the Law of Moses. Then you will be a success, no matter what you do or where you go. ⁴You and your descendants must always faithfully obey the LORD. If you do, he will keep the solemn promise he made to me that someone from our family will always be king of Israel.

Proverbs 16:3

Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.

Be still

I am a very active person.  I enjoy keeping my schedule full and busy.  I usually load it up with classes, and volunteering, and work, and extracurricular, and friends, and sports, and anything else I can think of.  There is so much to learn and experience about this wonderful world we live in, and I want to milk my life for everything it's worth.

So periodically, I have to remind myself to slow down.  Constantly going a million miles a minute will make us in danger of missing the forest for the trees.  So many times, the journey really is the most important part of the trip.  But when we are always running, we may not hear His still small voice, whispering to us how very much He loves us.  He wants to teach us; he wants to comfort us; He wants to draw us ever closer to Him.

The following poem by Sarah Arthur is a gentle reminder to us to stop and smell the roses every now and then.  I pray that the Prince of Peace will calm your soul with these words as He did with mine.

Dusk on the shore.  Long shadows melt into gathering darkness,

a warm, cozy gray that smells of sweetgrass and sand and campfire.

The lights across the lake glitter strong and safe;

crickets' rhythm steady by the white birch and tall pine.

Water curls against the sand, whispering against the red dock,

while a sailboat, pale and slender, bobs gently, turning in a slow dance.

The world is still, sleepy.

A man walks there at the end of the road,

past the birch and the red dock along the sand.

His bare feet gently move amid the ebbing ripples.

He is young, and terribly old,

stepping out from the sand He rolled into being with His fingertips.

He walks on the water that He made.

He is the very Prince of this night, the Prince of all peace

that now settles on the water in the air and along the sand.

All nights in His kingdom are so.

John 14:26-27

²⁶ But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. ²⁷ Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

Courage

Yesterday was the opening night of Courageous, the fourth movie written, directed, and produced by my home church.  A friend of mine sent me a link this morning to the main song, written and performed by Casting Crowns specifically for the movie.

There's a line in that song that really struck a chord with me.  It says that "the only way we'll ever stand is on our knees with lifted hands."  What powerful words.  So many times we think that courage is a willingness to do scary things, or to "put yourself out there."  We think that it is an outward expression of inward strength.

And I suppose, in a way, that it is.  But not in the way that we think.  Courage comes from the Lord.  So, like Casting Crowns said, the only way that we can stand and be courageous is by being humble and coming to the Lord in prayer.  It's funny how everything in life seems to come back to prayer.  I guess that makes sense, though.  How can we expect God to be with us if we don't even know who He is?

 Courageous
By Casting Crowns

We were made to be courageous, we were made to lead the way
We could be the generation, that finally breaks the chains
We were made to be courageous, we were made to be courageous

We were warriors on the front lines, standing unafraid
But now we're watchers on the sidelines, while our families slip away
Where are you, men of courage? You were made for so much more
Let the pounding of our hearts cry, we will serve the Lord

We were made to be courageous, and we're taking back the fight
We were made to be courageous, and it starts with us tonight
The only way we'll ever stand, is on our knees with lifted hands
Make us courageous, Lord make us courageous

This is our resolution, our answer to the call
We will love our wives and children, we refuse to let them fall
We will reignite the passion, that we buried deep inside
May the watchers become warriorsLet the men of God arise

Seek justice, love mercy, walk humbly with your God

In the war of the mind, I will make my stand
In the battle of the heart, and the battle of the hand

Joshua 1:7-9

 ⁷ “Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. ⁸ Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. ⁹ Have I not commanded 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.”