Another Opportunity to Grow

Big or small, the things that challenge us are allowed in our lives for probably more reasons than we can imagine or even will know about until glory. We don’t say for nothing that “God works in mysterious ways.” In our twenty-first century Western World, many of us enjoy mostly carefree childhoods without much awareness of the word “trial.” However, sooner or later, and sooner for some, suddenly our visions of perfect worlds and fairy-tales are shattered by the hard truth of life: trials happen –and they shake everyone. For some, financial distress rocks their boat while others face mind-blowing illness or tragedy. Many face seasons of life they do not particularly like: a job they need but detest; seemingly endless lack of friendships; sacrifices for diligence in a career, degree, family, or goal. Anything can be a trial for someone under the right circumstances –and trials vary from person to person and have different appearances. Yet, all can be for the glory of God and can serve as opportunities to know Him more, become more like Him, and spread His Word.

How shall we then approach this life reality that like a vicious, merciless disease, affects us all at one point or another? 

As believers, we should view trials as opportunities –not as get-rich-quick-schemes but as beautiful stories of redemption and victory by the blood and name of Jesus Christ. Hebrews 12:1-15 is just one passage from God’s Word that illuminates us on this reaction to trials.

Lay aside every weight and sin (v.1) –we don’t often realize how out of shape we are unless we start exercising or preparing for a physical goal of any kind; only then we begin more diligently eliminating certain negative dietary practices. I believe the same concept in life applies too: we do not necessarily notice our lack of spiritual endurance or discipline until trials come our way. A major part of seeing trials as opportunities is recognizing our need to cast some things out of our lives or adopt new ones. I find it interesting that the writer of Hebrews seemed to make a distinction between a “weight” and a “sin.” This suggested separation leads me to believe that a “weight” is probably typically not a sin –just something bogging us down in growth or endurance in our faith. Weights can be difficult to admit or give up…

Run with patience (v. 1) –oh, patience, the “mother of all virtues,” no wonder! One of my best friends and I often clamor about how easily patience has become a mother.
When we think of a patient person, we often envision a very positive, emotionally strong individual, full of grace and joy. That’s who we are supposed to be, even in trials. A definition I found on patience included the following: “state of endurance.” This description brings to mind a need to pace ourselves, to train –and to be sacrificial. Ouch. Maybe that’s why we struggle so much with patience!

Looking unto Jesus (v. 2) –this is one of my favorite parts of this passage. Verse 2 calls Him the “author and finisher” of my faith. This is so powerful: He is not only the One who has saved me from my sinful nature and destructive self –but He is also going to accompany me during the rest of my journey, transforming me one trial at a time. After all, “I am sure of this, that He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ” (Phil. 1:6). I AM SURE. He is absolutely faithful when He calls (I Thess. 5:24). Not only is He our Author and Finisher, but He is also our ultimate example for perseverance through trials: He endured even the cross (Heb. 12: 2-3) because He had the long-term, eternal goal and reward in mind (Phil. 2:8).

Remember who you are: a child of God (v. 4-10) –He punishes and refines those who belong TO HIM. Whether your trials are your punishment or not, they are always there for your refinement (v. 11-15). Only, you have to choose to let them be just that. You can literally become better (more like Jesus) or bitter (v. 15). This reassurance reminds me a lot of Jeremiah 29 where the Jews were in captivity because of their sin; yet God encouraged them to continue LIVING, while they waited for their deliverance. This same concept still applies: make the most of every season, even those of trial, called or uncalled for. Our trials can yield to great transformation but we must look to Jesus for this (James 1:2-5). In fact, we can even GLORY in them because of how God can use them in our lives (Rom. 5:3-5) –and because even just going through them brings us closer to the One who went through the cross (Rom. 5:6; Heb. 12:2-3; Matt. 16:24; Phil. 2:5-6; etc.). We will thus be in the will of God (Rom. 12:2), which is “more important than life itself” (B. Hughes), as displayed so powerfully in Christ’s sacrifice on the cross to offer eternal deliverance and immediate joy (Matt. 26:36-46).

So I leave you with this:

“Lay aside every weight, and the sin that does so easily trip us, and let us run with patience the race that is before us, looking unto Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1-2). 

Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité

Some of you may know that I take frequent trips to France. Every journey is different: even if I visit the same places, they always hold different observations, challenges, and perks. Yet, they usually never fail to bring a more enlightened view of the Gospel and its impact on life. Frances J. Roberts explains this phenomenon so warmly in Come Away My Beloved: “[God] deepens you in the furnace of affliction, and purifies your soul in the fires of pain.” It amazes me how He similarly also speaks too through the more mundane instances of life or even the small joys. He reveals so much when we are looking for it and letting Him speak.

Perhaps strolling through France reminded me of scenes from Les Miserables; or the movies I had been watching with family were emphasizing similar social strives. But while walking along the beach yesterday, I kept thinking about a famous historical phrase: “Liberté, égalité, fraternité.” This philosophical and political motto invigorated France so powerfully for years, decades, and maybe even a couple centuries. But why was it so captivating? Why in countless countries around the world do people strive for these words or similar mantras?

Because we were created for freedom -we were created to crave liberty, equality, and fraternity.

I love to study politics, especially as an attempt to understand their philosophical foundations, their human justifications, and their results on society. However, in this post, I am not going to dive into the contradicting thoughts and opposing factions of eighteenth century France. What I want to focus on is our innate desire to be free, to embrace equality, and to live with others as a family.

I attended a Catholic Christmas mass about a week ago or so and was stricken by how many people seemed to be there simply by tradition, hoping that somehow fulfilling this festive practice would make their year conclude better and bring about a fortunate new one. Communion was welcomed, something to be done for a blessing, a reminder of days of old, or a warmth in a dark, cold world. The partakers seemed to look towards each other with a hope for brotherhood, a yearning for unity. They were all looking for the same thing: freedom from the awfulness of year 2014 and the worry towards 2015; freedom from the burdens they were carrying; freedom for their souls full of strife, mistakes, and pain. They wanted all to be equal in this unfair world, equal, loved, and free.

Because that’s what they were created for.

Last Sunday, I visited a local evangelical church for the first time in the area. When the service concluded, I was left with joy, reminded that I had what so many across France and the entire world craved and yearned for: freedom, equality, and fraternity. My freedom comes from my salvation in Jesus Christ. Because I believe, He frees me from everything unholy and daily renews my heart, mind, and soul when I turn to Him. I stand equal before God, as any other human being does because He has created us all in His image and is ready to accept any of us into His kingdom of sons and daughters if only we believe. Finally, I can experience a beautiful family experience with all other believers. Constantly the book of Acts opens my eyes to what the Church should really be: one big united family in the truth of the Gospel.

Dear France, dear world –you can have Liberté, égalité, et fraternité. You were created for it. You were created for Jesus Christ.

Just a Typical Girl

This morning, I finished a little study on ten different women mentioned in the Bible. None of these ten had what we would consider “perfect lives.” They were all going through a typical woman’s life: child-bearing problems and fears; war; emotional abuse or suffering; widowhood and the care of bitter elderly; death of a loved one; national crisis; family threat; tough choices; tests of faith and lessons of letting go; consequences from sin or poor choices. Their imperfections and weaknesses, along with the world’s sinful impact on them, brought them to places of lowness and fear, senses of failure and abandonment, and temptations to despair and to bid farewell to dreams or their promises from God.

My dear reader, do you recognize yourself yet?

These events all sound like typical things we women still go through today. These Bible characters were clearly all typical women. They were like you and me.

Yet what made them different was their faith –faith that the Lord is Sovereign God, faith that Jesus and His plan are enough, and faith that He is faithful, Keeper of His promises. What made them different was what they believed and their resulting choices. What made them worthy was their intentional decision to believe; and what gave them their lasting legacy was taking a stand for what they believed. This is the Gospel. Nothing worthy or outstanding comes from ourselves, but everything falls together beautifully in the name of Jesus when we respond to the desire He puts in us to crave and follow Him.

Because He loved us first. 

Sarah. Deborah. Hannah. Ruth. Mary. Esther. Miriam. Rahab. Jochebed. The woman at the well. They were all typical, dream-filled girls who turned into typical women struggling and fighting for those dreams. But these typical girls discovered a radical truth and experienced the God Who held everything they could truly delight in forever: His Word, His plan, and even His nature. Simply, they could delight in Him.

So, ladies, I don’t have to tell you twice that we are not worthy and that our sandcastles are quickly washed away by the clock. You already know that. Sin and the effects of time are no strangers to you; we have all quickly become acquainted to them. 

But the hope that comes from Christmas can last the entire year once you realize that God turns typical girls into worthy dream fulfillers and conquerors of His plan upon realization that He is the true delight of our hungry hearts.

Boldness for Joy: She Waited for Him

“Beauty is often displayed through sacrifice and bravery through acts of humility.” This is how Rachel Wojo describes Mary of Bethany, the woman who is now famous for anointing Jesus’ feet with expensive perfume. Not only did Mary sacrifice financially, but she also faced heavy criticism from those around her. Taking this risk for Jesus made her beautiful. But where did this courage come from? It seems so easy to fear, to stay locked in our old ways, to yield to bitterness, especially when those around us have tasted the poison and so readily share it. Where did she find this boldness for joy?

John 11:20 reveals two different reactions between the two sisters. Martha ran to Jesus, and Mary sat. The Bible does not make very clear statements to describe Mary’s thought processes at this point, but my commentary suggests she was meditating on His already proven goodness and power: “You keep [her] in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You, because [she] trusts in You. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock” (Isaiah 26:3-4). Knowing Mary’s track record up to this event (Luke 10:39), this thought choice is highly possible for her.

Regardless of her state of mind in reaction to Lazarus’s death, John 11:28-29 stands out to me: “The Master is come, and calls for you. As soon as she heard that, she arose quickly, and came unto Him.” You didn’t need to tell Mary twice. She might wait on the Lord, but she was always ready to go when He called.  She would soak in all she could from Him and worship, risking being accused of being lazy, of wasting time, of not serving enough –the list can go on; we are so familiar with it…the attacks come daily. Mary knew what the most important part of the journey was and so can we. In order to properly serve, she needed His bread first. She needed His energy, His insight, His strength, His light. Without that, she would burn out. But when she heard His call, she was up on her feet, energized and ready to go.

She waited for Him, even in His seeming silence and absence. And when He came, she fell down at His feet, broken-hearted, yet revealing her child-like faith that was still limited by a human heart and mindset: “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died” (John 11:32). Then Jesus showed her in a whole new way just how His ways are not comparable to ours. He rose Lazarus from the dead.

Spending time with Jesus is essential to combat a woman’s typical struggles. Sitting at His feet is crucial for service…and for life. It is the very breath of joy (Neh. 8:10) and of a gentle and quiet spirit (I Peter 3:4) that does not meddle (I Pet. 4:15), gossip (Prov. 20:19), worry (Matt. 6:25-34), or control (Ps. 55:22 & Rom. 12:19 –see previous post on Sarah). He makes us free from this world and makes us beautiful and brave. 

“I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me” (Phil. 4:12-13).

So Let Us Laugh

 Blessed is the [woman] who remains steadfast under trial (James 1:12).

In Genesis 18, we see the narration of life –a woman given a promise from God, one that is extremely laugh-worthy (like most dreams from God) yet that motivates her to try to make it happen in her own way (ex. Genesis 16). She is a typical woman: she worries about her ability (Genesis 18:12) perhaps because she had already tried to rely on it to attempt to control God’s plan by “helping Him out.” We women like to fall to the lie that God needs our help. Of course, we are to do our part –but we would benefit greatly if only we learned to discern between doing our part and usurping God’s place (Let It Go, K. Ehman). Yet, despite her error, God reiterates His promise in Genesis 18. Maybe that’s why Sarah laughed. Why would God still choose to use her to create a nation?

It’s not until Genesis 21 that the promise has begun to be fulfilled. Somehow, between Genesis 18 and 21, God changed Sarah’s heart. He filled it with faith, perhaps rekindling a faith she used to have. After all, she had accompanied Abraham throughout his whole journey, valleys and mountain tops. She had followed when he left all behind to pursue the one true God; and she had watched her husband deny their marital bond yet discover God protect her fully –not once, but twice (Genesis 12 and 20). She had come to know a God who remains faithful, good, and sovereign. Because of what God had allowed in her life, she could only conclude God’s steadfastness.

And isn’t that the goal for us all?

This is the story of the redeemed woman: God transforming a control-freak, conniving, doubtful soul of a woman into a mountain-building, dream-believing, nation-establishing giant featured in the “faith hall of fame” of Hebrews 11. God is faithful: He changes our hearts and fulfills His promises. “Knowing this, that the trying of your faith works patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that you may be perfect and whole, wanting nothing” (James 1:3). Jesus and His work are everything –that’s what a woman should realize as she waits, as she endures, as she perseveres. It’s all about the heart change as He works because our story should be about how He gets us from Genesis 18 to Hebrews 11: “that the trial of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it be tried by fire, might be found unto praise and glory and honor at the appearing of Jesus Christ” (I Peter 1:7). 

Not just Sarah's heart changed; her laughter was transformed too. Once touched by the redemption of God, her mocking snicker turned into a victorious, confident chuckle because "strength and dignity [became] her clothing, and she laugh[ed] without fear of the future" (Proverbs 31:25). Her God was faithful. And He still is. 

So let us laugh.

*verse outline & connection between Gen. 18 & Heb. 11 from Women of the Bible -Beautiful and Brave by Rachel Wojo

Seeing. Waiting. Worshiping.

Seeing.
“Open up my eyes to the things unseen…Break my heart for what breaks yours.” So goes an often relied on song for today’s contemporary worship services. God wants us to see the world as He sees it: a group of individual lives all in need of a Savior –in need of salt. Throughout Colossians, Paul reminds his readers of this calling: “Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time. Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt…” (Col. 4:5-6). Our ministry –the fulfilling of God’s call for us- is everywhere around us. It is where God places us. He may choose to move us at any time, and we must follow, keeping in mind that every role and season is significant and brings Him praise and glory. From translating the Word to another language to fulfilling the gift of motherhood to moving to the next season of life with grace and praise, we are to see our ministry around us –or move to where it is. Every role is necessary in the work of the Lord –and each is just as glorifying to Him if embraced with the right attitude.

Waiting.
A lot of times we see the need before we hear the calling. Especially those eager to embrace the sorrow of the world and attempt to provide the solution must be careful to remember their specific call must come straight from the heart of God. Colossians 4:17 states that this ministry is received…IN THE LORD. One of my friends in foreign missions could not stress enough how important it is to “wait on His call and His leading for ministry,” to quote her exact words. “Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him: fret not yourself because of him who prospers in his way, because of the one who brings wicked things to pass” (Psalm 37:7-9). Waiting can be just as glorifying to God as going. God can have us see a need in the world for a variety of reasons and still ask us to wait to serve it. So we must seek Him carefully.

Worshiping.
When Jesus asked Peter to walk on water, Peter’s mistake was to focus on the task rather than the One who had called him. How guilty am I of this… When I walked by the harbor this morning, I was reminded of Peter’s brutal awakening to this struggle so frequent in a believer’s life. In Matthew 14:28-31, Peter begged Jesus to let him come to this place of faith: walking on water right alongside Jesus. Jesus indeed called Peter to this, but then Peter focused on “the wind boisterous”…and was swelled by fear. Whenever we realize the depth and danger of our call, our hearts, minds, and souls should return to and remain in the One we so eagerly rushed to and begged to give us His call initially. We are called to worship –to solely, completely, purely focus on Him alone. As poignantly stated by Oswald Sanders, “Paul could afford to take lightly the comments and criticism of others, for his heart was owned by God.” So should be said about you and me. Our HEARTS are OWNED by our GOD. 

Norfolk Notes

We like to think that we can’t live without something, and as a result, we put restrictions on the will of God for our lives because we don’t think we could be in a certain place or without a specific convenience. I remember beginning to explore this falsehood and its opposing truth almost two years ago now (see December 2012 posts), but God thought it crucial to remind me this morning in a new, refreshing way.

On a business trip to Norfolk, VA, I had a few minutes for some leisure time. Of course, my sense of adventure refused to lock me in my room and encouraged my legs to take my heart to follow its pursuit: exploring the down-town waterside harbor. Engulfing the morning wind and eaves-dropping on the conversation of seagulls, my soul soared, reflecting on the words I had read earlier in the morning: “let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer everyone” (Col. 4:6). That I may KNOW –so much confidence and power in that five letter word! Whatever conversation I would be placed in during this trip, my key to success would be consistently filling myself with His truth and trusting Him to speak for me if I let Him. And the same promise would apply to any future trips.

As I continued to walk along the wooden paneled dock, the fresh air revived me. It’s so easy to become confused and conflicted in this world, its cares, its pressures and expectations, and thus forget the Source of life. My mission here is not to be comfortable or within my limits; and it may not consist of always choosing whom or how I serve. Sure, God places preferences on my heart but I cannot let those dictate where I go. He, and He alone, must lead. And as He leads and I follow, He provides my soul with what it truly needs. If I commit to be fed by Him, He will provide my soul the refreshment it needs. Cities can overwhelm a country spirit like mine; yet Norfolk’s treasures show me that God provides me with what I need to find my solace.

Walking back to my hotel, I realized not only I had found the fresh air my body craved but so my soul had been refreshed too, grown closer to my faithful Leader and providing Creator.