God Moments

 

“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

 

Have I told you about the church’s Parable Project? Just in case I haven’t Oakwood is the midst of a crazy mission where someone gave the church $5000 to be handed out to 50 people. Everyone who stepped up got $100 and it was up to them to grow that money. We have people making lotions, raising money for a young lady in the hospital, making dolls for kids who are sick, teaming up with Habitat for Humanity, doing can drives in schools, starting new college scholarships, and so much more. This has been an extremely exciting time in our family of faith. Gabrielle and I went up for this mystery assignment. I had no idea what we were going to do until I saw a homeless guy on a bike by my work and I knew: bikes. Our small part of this huge Parable Project was going to have something to do with bikes.

 

Greg and I, mostly Greg, have begun the process of reconditioning and fixing up three bikes. I had no idea who to give these bikes too but I know there are a lot of people who are trying to get back to work, have no transportation, or just need a break but where do I start? We take the bikes to Rasmussen’s in Altoona when we need more extreme care done. We went there a couple weeks ago to pick up a tire and a bike that had been worked on. Part of this bike idea is that I would really love to host a Parable Bike Ride/Walk. I have never tried to set up a huge ride before so I asked the clerk how to do it. We kind of explained what we were trying to do. The guy working the counter happens to work for the Iowa Workforce Development and knew of at least one person who could really use a bike and thought that several others would probably be candidates as well. I am very excited!

 

God is so good. He came down and met me exactly where I was. I knew that bikes were our focus but I didn’t know how to get from point A to point B and who to give them too. Now, we are going to try to work with Iowa Workforce Development and figure out what the process of giving them the bikes would be so they could give them to the people who need them. I am still floundering about the bike ride but we’ll get there. I was reminded, in the most simple way, that I do not need to come up with all the answers and not every solution can be found in Google®. God will guide me and show me the way!

 

“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.” (Roman 8:28)

Despite Everything

 

“Because of the miraculous signs Jesus did in Jerusalem at the Passover celebration, many began to trust in him. But Jesus didn’t trust them, because he knew human nature. No one needed to tell him what mankind was really like.” (John 2:23-24)

 

I don’t remember ever reading this verse, although I am sure I have over the years. Maybe it just pops out now as I am working so hard to reconcile myself with God. God really knows what mankind is like. God really knows what I am like. If I truly believe that God is all things all the time then there is nothing about me that He doesn’t know. Like David, there is no hiding, which is probably why I can grow so resentful to confessing sometimes because it’s all stuff He already knows. In fact, He knows more about me than I do! But then I feel humbled, I feel my pride and arrogance flake off of me, and I know that Jesus, my Savior, is still with me despite all that I am.

 

His perfect love surrounds me and I can find peace.

 

I can feel him changing me.

 

Jesus gives me hope.

 

Our Lord challenges me to move beyond what I think is possible.

 

He does all this with the sinner that I am.

 

Please don’t ever leave me Jesus!

 

“Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and then Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28: 19-20)

I want to Live a Verb

“I love you, Lord; you are my strength. The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior; my God is my rock, in whom I find protection.” (Psalm 18:1-2a)

 

I am a nerd. Actually, I am the nerd of my entire family. Being a nerd I like schedules, budgets, numbers, and routines. However, I don’t do so well with commands and rules because I am also defiant and a little mischievous (go figure). For example: I like to wake up in the morning to pray and read my Bible. I don’t read my Bible and pray because God commands it though. I do those things because I love the Lord and I want to know Him better. I love going to service on Sundays. I don’t go because it’s the law but I go because it’s incredible to worship the God of the universe and be surrounded by so many people who are in love with Him as well. I enjoy teaching and serving on Wednesday nights but it’s not because Jesus requires acts of service. I go in to my classroom on Wednesdays because I want to encourage a great group of awesome kids to be excited and in love with Jesus.

 

I want to live the verb of being in love with Jesus. I want my faith to be moving and living. I never want to sit down for a second.

 

+        I want to reach out into the community

+        I want to love the people in my life unconditionally

+        I want to give and then give some more

+        I want to trust and know that I am free

+        I want to be a good wife, mother, daughter, and friend

+        I want to live running and basking and all these things with God in the center of me because I love my Lord….because I love Jesus.

 

I want to bring God with me everywhere I go. Sometimes I leave Him here in this seat after I get done with devotions and for that I feel terrible. He doesn’t want just my mornings. Our Lord wants our everything and I want to give it to Him. I have let go of me and let God in and some days that is hard.  Walk with me, please, as I endure this challenge not because of some rule or ritual but because of  love and devotion to our Father.

 

“Praise the Lord! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns. Let us be glad and rejoice, and let us give honor to him.” (Revelations 19:6a-7a)

Your Red Sea

“The Moses raised his hand over the sea, and the Lord opened up a path through the water with a strong east wind. The wind blew all that night, turning the seabed into try land. So the people of Israel walked through the middle of the sea on dry land, with walls of water on each side!” (Exodus 14:21-22)

 

I was walking with my brother-in-law to McDonalds®. My sister had finally been placed in a room after her stroke and everyone else had left. Troy and I were hungry and ironically enough, a renowned heart hospital has McDonalds® on its ground floor. On our way down I told him that I would have the entire state of Iowa praying by the end of the night, that I would have friends across the country praying and even prayers being lifted from England by the next day. On the short walk down he mentioned that he had thought about getting back to church. He had been thinking life would get easier if they were going to church. I couldn’t help it. I laughed out loud. I said that is the inside joke of Christianity. For some reason the people looking in think that Christians have this easy cake-like life. However, the reality is life gets harder when you decide to walk the narrow path. It was then he remembered doing an alter call in his teens. “It was like as soon as I did that the girls flew down on me.”

 

God brought the Israelites to a new destination in an incredible way. They may have been free from 400 years of slavery but that didn’t mean that the rest of their lives were a picture of leisure and ease. It was hard. It was long. Many didn’t make it through. It brings me to the testimony I am giving this weekend. I had an amazing experience, a God-moment if you will, and I was refreshed, renewed, on fire, and alive in a totally new way (that is the jest testimony if you aren’t going to make it to church this weekend). I kid-you-not, within two days my world was crashing around me. I was on my knees and I didn’t know how I was going to get through.

 

We all have some sort of Red Sea in our lives. It’s that moment when we are walking with God and we reach a point where it seems impossible to break through or cross over. God is telling us to trust Him and to put one foot in front of the other and know that He will provide the dry ground. His Word is our staff and our church family, friends, loved ones, prayers, the sermons we hear, missions we are involved in, and circles we live in are His pillar of fire and smoke guiding us and pulling us forward. We know that He will always bring us through. We may not understand it. We may not see it. But we know that our Heavenly Father loves us and will us guide us Home.

 

“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

Be a Part of It

“The people of Israel had lived in Egypt for 430 years. In fact, it was on the last day of the 430^th year that all the Lord’s forces left the land. On this night the Lord kept his promise to bring his people out of the land of Egypt. So this night belongs to him, and it must be commemorated every year by all the Israelites, from generation to generation.” (Exodus 12:40-42)

 

The Israelites were being guided by God. And I know we are guided by Him everyday but He was right there walking with them as they were able to turn their backs on Egypt. He was a pillar of smoke and fire leading the way. He most definitely had their attention. However, further into the story, they showed their human impatience and any moment they did not feel God’s presence they turned away and became disparate. (Exodus 32:4-5)  We have to learn that even on days when we may not feel God is near He is still guiding us and we need to continue to walk toward Him.

 

Today, I cannot see a pillar of smoke or fire in front of me. I hear a lot of angry people. I see a country tearing apart at the political seam. I watch as people become more angry, more disenfranchised, and more desperate for help. I am awed as people are either opening their arms to our new government or turning their backs. But here is the thing: people are paying attention now. People are listening. People are watching to see what comes next. Some people are waiting for their hope to arrive and some are using their hands and feet to realize their own future. It’s like we are all sitting at the bottom of the summit, regardless of our position, waiting to see what will happen. There is a loud rumble in the crowd as both sides lash out at each other. But look, we are all right here together.

 

We are all right here together. We are sharing this small place in space and time in history. We are all a part of it. And “it” is life. And regardless of where you sit on the political bench God is here. No matter if you rich or poor, black or white, employed or unemployed, sheltered or homeless, married or single, the perfect citizen or the hardened criminal God is here. When everything else in the world is distracting us, bringing us hope, and demonstrating pain, God is here. The true opportunity of changing the future comes from what God has given each of us. He has given us the ability to make the world around us and as more people step up to that call we will see more communities helped, more people fed, more children with shoes and school supplies, more abused women in shelters, more help for drug addicts changing their lives, and more opportunities to show the world the hope and joy that we are given by God. So go and be a part of it. Figure out what you can do and do it. Don’t wait for someone else to take care of your neighbor. Don’t think you are not good enough. Be a part of it and you will be filled with the hope that you are looking for.

 

“God blesses those who are poor and realized their need for him, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs. God blesses those who mourn, for they will be comforted. God blesses those who are humble, for they will inherit the earth. God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be satisfied. God blesses those who are merciful, for they will be shown mercy. God blesses those whose hearts are pure, for they will see God. God blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called he children of God. God blesses those who are persecuted for doing right, for the kingdom of God is theirs.” (Matthew 5:3-10)

Couch Cushion

“Since we have been united with him in death, we will also be raised to life as he was. We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin.” (Romans 6:5-6)

 

I have to thank biblestudypodcasts.org for helping me find a verse for this morning. There is nothing like having an idea of what to write, knowing that there are verses, but not knowing where to find them. Biblestudypodcasts.org  is an excellent podcast that dives deeper into God’s Word, helping people understand the nature of God and how to apply Biblical principles to our lives today. Besides, what is so amazing is that I am visiting on a topic today that the host, Toby, has been speaking about for a while now: sin. So, it’s all good.

 

I have discovered something really neat about my couch. See, we don’t have a well placed table in our living room for me to be able to sit here and work and have my coffee close by. One night I decided to try an experiment. The cushions of this couch are not connected to each other. I had myself on one of the cushions and texts books piled up on the other. So, I thought I would try to put my coffee on a closed text book and see what happens. The cup, I believed I used a commuter mug for safety reasons, balanced quite easily. I did a tiny little wiggle on my side of the couch to see if the coffee reacted and there was nothing. So, I did a little bounce; nothing. Then I kind of hopped up and down in my seat (must have looked interesting) and still nothing. I can do all kinds of things in this seat and my coffee will stay right in place on the other cushion. I ended that evening quite proud of myself and felt like I was getting away with something sneaky.

 

But our lives cannot work the same way. There are times when we may feel like we have two different cushions we live on: the world and church. However, we don’t. We can’t bounce back and forth between worldly things and godly things. We have to understand that everything around us is God’s sanctuary and that the people are His church. The expectations that He has do not go into effect only when we are in the doors of a church building. We have to learn to comfortable in our faith skin and realize how full life is and that, choosing to walk this path, doesn’t mean you will or will not enjoy life as much as the next person. However, it does mean that you will be able to find joy and hope in everything. It means that you will never walk alone. It means that you know the end of the story and the author of Creation.

 

Stop trying to make two different worlds go together. Balancing coffee on a text book is a lot easier than trying to balance two different worlds within one person. Turn to God and let Him guide you and you will find your balance.

 

“Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to sinful desires. Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life.  So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God. Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under freedom of God’s grace.” (Romans 6:12-14)

We are the Circus

“Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.” (Ephesians 3:20)

 

We saw the Cirque de la Symphonie on New Years Eve. It was an amazing night and a neat way to introduce a different genre of music to our kids. The music was beautiful, the acrobatics were shockingly amazing, and the talent was breath taking. I was torn between watching the faces of my family as new things flashed across the stage and watching the stage itself. How incredible that so much talent can be displayed in one night and on one stage.

 

Two women, in two completely different songs, demonstrated a strength and flexibility that had the crowd “oohing” and “awing” in sync. The juggler was amazing and my youngest happened to mention, at the exact moment I thought it, that it looked like that funny little clown had three arms whenever he was juggling because he moved so quickly. Another guy came out and had a hollow 3-D box that he twirled that may not sound too exiting but it had the effect of a laser show and I couldn’t keep my eyes off the box as it whirled around the guy. The “strongman” act was a true demonstration of strength as these two guys showcased a level of discipline and strength I have never seen before. And let’s not forget the music: it was fabulous! The Des Moines Symphony really out did themselves. Our youngest was quite impressed that they remembered to play a StarWars song for him. They also had a 13-year old come out and play a song on the piano and he will a rising star; I am sure of it. It was a night of beautiful talent and I am glad that we decided to go.

 

God gives everyone different abilities. If all the people in the Cirque de la Symphonie did the same thing, equally talented in exactly the same talents, the show would have sucked (honestly). We are the circus, my friends. God has given us beautiful talents and abilities and when we work together we can produce amazing things through our differences. Some of us are good at juggling, some of us are able to contort ourselves to make things work, some our strength and ability to work on teams gets mighty mountains of ministry moving, and still, some of us are that star that will move people and show them the beauty of life. We are the circus….we are the church and it’s time, everyday, to get the show on the road. Pray about what God is asking you to do and fix your eyes on it now. He’ll walk you through it and see you safely to the other side.

 

“Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and  strength belong to God forever and ever! Amen.” (Revelation 7:12)

The Stare

“Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him.” (Matthew 2:2)

 

The wise men, or magi, were looking for the new King they didn’t talk about how they would be filled or blessed by the experience. These wise men didn’t go looking for social interaction or networking. The magi didn’t go for the treats or the Bible study. The wise men simply wanted to worship the new King: Jesus. This entire journey was for Jesus. The gifts were for Jesus. The worship was about Jesus. With this thought in mind I have wanted to be sure that when I am in service that I am not focused on how the words are making me feel but how the words lift up and praise our Savior and our King.

 

With this in mind, focusing on Jesus, yesterday during service I was trying my best to put everything into practice but something in me kept wanted to focus on how the praise music moved me or the words of the sermon touched me. So, then I would rewind my brain and remind myself that this wasn’t about me it’s about Him. On that note my thoughts took me to a book that I read where a very gifted child could see colors radiating out of people as they praised and worshipped. The color-thing, for some reason, made me think of CareBears™ and their ever-so powerful CareBears™ stare. When ever there was an enemy their little tummies would light up and they would shoot light at them and win the fight. Well, God isn’t our enemy put something in me imagined our songs of praise radiating beams of light from everyone and the light was going straight to the cross that hangs at the head of our sanctuary and the more we made our focus about God the more powerful the beams were. Then I really wanted to give everything I had in my praise because I wanted our lights to be so bright and so pleasing to God.

 

I realize this is a very odd story and, silly enough, it is also a very true tale of the different paths my brain took yesterday. You know, Christmas is supposed to be this special time of year when we are in remembrance of this beautiful gift that God gave us 2000 years ago that He had promised 2700 years ago (Micah 2:5). But the rub is it’s hard for me to go through this season because I am excited about Jesus nearly every day of the year. Consequently, this Christmas I have felt like something is wrong with me because I am not moved anymore than usual today, however, I qualify that by sharing that I feel moved everyday and new in His mercy and blessings everyday.  So, I am going to put on my “stare” today and focus on our glorious Savior as much as I can and pray, that even though there are days when I wallow too long, that I can show Him how much I love Him and how very thankful I am for eternity.

 

“I will exalt you, my God and King,  and praise your name forever and ever.” (Psalm 145:1)

Worship

“Sing praises to God, our strength. Sing to the God of Jacob. Sing!  Beat the tambourine. Play with sweet lyre and the harp.” (Psalm 81:1-2)

 

I love worship. I realize worship is supposed to be about God but I really do love it. I like the music, the music, the reflection, and the sermon. Recently we have even start a small prayer group so after service is all over we stand beneath the cross and pray some more! At my church our kind of worship is just my cup of tea. However, I realize that what our worship is to me may not be what it is to you.

 

I know there are different kinds of churches out there. I grew up going mostly to Catholic mass occasionally but I had no one to go with so I stopped. When I met my husband his parents invited me to their church and I loved it (and I stayed).  But I have gone to services in other churches. At one church the songs and praise time was amazing but I didn’t agree with the theology of the speakers. At another church I had trouble because they prayed in a way that made me uncomfortable, not wrong but different then what I do and what works for me. There are things that I miss from the service our last pastor led and there I things I love about our new service format but I understand that it’s not for everyone.

 

Everyone needs to find the church where they feel comfortable with the worship style. Just because people aren’t jumping up and down and falling to the ground does not mean that sanctuary is not filled with the Holy Spirit. And when people are physically enthusiastic for God, performing healing services, and praying to no end we should thank God that so many believers have that kind of enthusiasm and faith. My point is that I do not want you to be weighed down by feeling judged on the way you worship in your Christian family. Do not think you are any more or less spirit filled if you silently worship in the pew or if you are up front crying out to God with your arms lifted and tears rolling down your face. It’s your heart that our Lord is in love with and He is the one who made you. So, worship gladly, prayerfully, with great adoration, and love and it won’t matter what kind of church you are sitting because anywhere you go you will be sitting with God.

 

“Since we believe that Christ died for all, we also believe that we have all died to our old life. He died for everyone so that those who receive his new ife will not longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died on was raised for them.” (2 Corinthians 5:14b-15)