[faith; part I]
But without faith, it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
By faith Noah...moved...
By faith Abraham obeyed...
By faith Sarah herself also received strength...because she judged Him faithful who had promised...
"These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland.
And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had opportunity to return.
But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them."
[Hebrews 11:6, 7, 8, 11, 13-16]
FAITH:Confident belief in the truth, value, or trustworthiness of a Person or plan.
[faith; part II]
It seems that faith is steadily declining as the years go by, and that love is quietly growing cold. It seems like back in the day, whether in Biblical days or the 1700's, people had so much more faith, because they needed faith--- they depended so much more on the Lord. These days, we are so much more "wise in our own eyes", whether we're Christians or not.
We have much pride, much self-sufficiency. We depend on technology & money & position & social standing. Yet when we have world disasters and economical decline, it is obvious that our faith in such humanized things is ridiculously fickle & unstable.
When we have money & means, we seem to think we're fine on our own...we think we can make it. But as soon as we're broke or unemployed or alone or met with an unsuspected turn of events, we're grasping for God & crying out to Him, because we see the state that we're in and how desperately we need Him. God deserves our trust ALL the time.
He deserves to be called Faithful & to be hoped in, because He remains faithful even when we are faithless. He is stable, He is unchanging, He is powerful and mighty to save.
"Faith is prepared for God's seeming delays in answering prayer. Faith does not grow disheartened because prayer is not immediately honored" [E.M. Bounds].
"Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."
[John 14:27]
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Integrity.
"A Little Longer" by Jenn & Brian Johnson
What can I do for You? What can I bring to You?
What kind of song would you like me to sing?
'Cause I'll dance a dance for You,
Pour out my love to You,
What can I do for You, beautiful King?
'Cause I can't thank You enough
'Cause I can't thank You enough
What can I do for You? What can I bring to You?
What kind of song would you like me to sing?
'Cause I'll dance a dance for You,
Pour out my love to You,
What can I do for You, beautiful King?
Oh, 'Cause I can't thank You enough
I can't thank You enough
All of the words that I find,
I can't thank You enough
No matter how I try
I can't thank You enough
Then I hear You sing to me,
You sing "You don't have to do a thing,
Just simply be with Me
And let those things go
'Cause they can wait another minute
Wait... this moment is too sweet.
Would you please stay here with Me?
And love on Me a little longer?”
“I'd like to be with you a little longer
I'd love to be with you a little longer
'Cause I'm in love with you”
I believe that if I were to try to describe my heart right now, I could not describe it more specifically than what this song says. I have heard this song several times before, but I never knew all the words. Yesterday morning, as I was praying & reading, I remembered some of the words, and wanted to know the rest, so I found it online. That was the beginning of one of the most challenging, convicting, & heartbreaking conversations I think I have ever had with Jesus.
Something that I find amazing is how the Lord meets us. So many times, I wish I could just see Him, touch Him, hug Him, or physically lean on Him. I wish I could behold Him with my physical eyes, not just my spiritual eyes. What the Lord has shown me so clearly over the last year is that, while seeing Him physically would be amazing, it is not necessary. The means He has given us to know & experience Him are sufficient!! He has given us His word to know Him by, to know His heart and His mind and His character and His example. I think I will always want to hug Him, and will always hope for that, but Jesus said, "Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe." We will see Him one day, and we will be able to hug, love, & worship Him in His presence, and it will be unbelievable!!! But, for now, Jesus is able to speak so clearly & gently, yet powerfully through His word, as long as we are still before Him and LISTEN.
That is what happened to me that morning. When I listened, He spoke. He used this song to speak to me about my own perception of pleasing Him.
The very first time I heard this song, I thought, "Oh my gosh, that's what I think! That's what I ask!" referring to the part that says:"What can I do for You? What can I bring to You? What kind of song would You like me to sing?'Cause I'll dance a dance for You, pour out my love to You, what can I do for You, beautiful King??"
I feel like I'm constantly asking God, "What do You want me to do? What do You want me to say? What do You want me to pray? How can I do more? How can I help? How can I be useful? What should I get involved in? How can I use my energy?"
These questions, in and of themselves, are not wrong. How can we please God unless we know what pleases Him? We need to seek His will through His word & much prayer & by being open and flexible to whatever He answers.
Still--- in all of my desires to please God and to do this and that and the other for Him.... I realize that I've forgotten to just spend as much time with Him as He wants. To spend time in the morning with Him is great, and to spend time in prayer & give Him some time before bed is great, right? Isn't that the answer?
Have I come to believe that giving the Lord an hour in the morning & 30 minutes before bed is sufficient? What is that??? An hour and a half set aside for God, but the other 22 and a half hours are spent on whatever I believe I need to do? Jesus is so much more than a morning devotion or a time of prayer or Sunday morning, Monday evening, Wednesday evening meeting. He is not a ritual, and I should set aside however much time HE wants, not the time I think He should have.
Since I have been in California, I have been so restless. I just want to DO something already, to be involved in something, to work, and to be useful. I was so busy when I was in Mallorca, and I loved it. I loved what I did. and I loved "work" though it did not seem like a chore. There was so much to enjoy about working at MBS, and about serving where I could at SPCC [the church]. I loved visiting Marge and baking for Sunday mornings & everything else. I loved getting to know students and helping them with classes, grades, or papers, and working alongside the staff and helping where I was needed.
Now, being in California, all of those things I loved so much are no longer possible. Now the opportunities are different, and fewer. There have been several times where I have felt completely useless, or where I have wondered, "What am I doing here? I should be doing so much more; I should be so much busier!" Oh my goodness. That is where this song comes in, and that is why I feel that my heart has broken, for Jesus. To even think of Him saying,
"You don't have to do a thing. Just simply be with Me,
And let those things go, 'cause they can wait another minute.
Wait...this moment is too sweet,
Would you please stay here with Me?And love on Me a little longer?"
Why is it that when my life has finally slowed down some, I try to busy myself with things to make me feel "more useful"? How can I be of any use to the Lord if I am running around doing things that He has not required of me, in an attempt to make Him proud of my productivity? The most useful my life will ever be is when I am fully abiding in Him, resting in Him, delighting in His presence. And I do...to a point. I am not perfect by ANY means, and I am not a super-Christian who pleases the Lord in everything she does. I wish I could say that was true but sadly, I know it isn't.
I know there are many times where the Lord has to tell me to slow down and rest in Him, because I can become so over-eager in "doing" that I forget that He is the One who needs & wants to do things through me--- I can be so carried away with my plans, and my ideas, and run off in a direction that He isn't leading. He is teaching me to allow Him to lead me by the hand ALWAYS, not just sometimes, or even the majority of the time. With a God who has given me everything, how can I do anything but give Him everything in return? He made the greatest sacrifice for me--- for us!--- by giving His only Son to be killed for the sins of the very people He created to give Him glory. His mercy is so great, His grace is given to us in abundance, and His love is so indescribable, because its like nothing we've ever known! With that measure of love given to me, I should never think it is acceptable to give God the majority. No, He deserves ALL of it: every area, every minute. Every aspect of my life, what I do, speak, think, hear, look at; how I spend my time, what I do or don't do, every thought, idea, motive, reaction, opinion, strength or struggle. All of my life, all of who I am belongs in His hands.
Instead of trying to make Him proud by showing Him what I can do for Him, I now realize that He simply wants me to be with Him. He wants to be with me. To rest in Him, abide in Him, and let every joy of mine be found in spending time with Him. He created us for His glory, to please Him, and to be His chosen generation, His royal priesthood.
Of course, if He says "Go" or "Do" we must go and do whatever it is He has called us to. But when He says, "Stop. Wait. Rest. Don't rush off yet to that next task, to that next appointment, to that work shift, to that opportunity [even ministry!]. Just simply stay with Me & let those things go...they can wait another minute." In order to do anything that brings Him glory or joy [ANY work, any ministry, or obligation], we must first be filled by His Spirit & allow Him to equip us. How can I be filled by Him or experience His love if I don't listen to that still, small voice that tells me when to stop & wait and when to move & act?
Of my own strength, I have nothing to give to Jesus. I am prideful by thinking I have anything to offer the Lord, anything that would impress Him or make Him love me more. If I think I am good and I think He should be pleased with me by giving Him offerings and sacrifices He hasn't required, I'm a fool. The only thing I can give to Jesus is my life, in entirety, holding nothing back. Everything else He has in store for me: every plan, every path to walk in, every area to minister in, only He can do. He will do it through me, but He has to do it, because there is nothing good in me; there is nothing I have to offer.
He desires for me to be an empty vessel, so He can fill me to overflowing with Himself, with His mind, with His characteristics. When I am constantly trying to fill myself with things that He has not placed there, I am only getting in the way of what He wants to do. I am hindering the work, and wasting precious time. A good friend of mine once said, "You have only one life to live--- don't waste it!" It's crazy to think that even filling my life with "good" things can be wasteful, if it is something that I am not meant to do.
I need to be so focused on Jesus, so attuned to Him, so familiar with His voice and His word that I am not easily carried away by my plans and ideas.
I can't please God in my own strength but, thankfully, I don't have to!
He has given me His Son, who has made me acceptable in the sight of God.
It is His strength that is able to do the impossible through me, because He knows that my great weakness requires His greater strength.
And even though my weakness is so great, and my imperfection is so much, His strength and His perfection are SO MUCH greater that I am no match for Him! Praise God!!!
Wow. All that to say: spending time with Him should not be a ritual, because it is not a chore to serve Him!! God is unchanging and He is a God of order, but He is also a God of uniqueness and newness. All of the energy I can muster up is still nowhere near enough to do all the things He has in store for me, so I just need to let Him fill me with Himself.
I want to delight in His presence so much that nothing else is enticing enough to distract me from Him. I don't know if that will happen while I am alive on this earth, but I think its a pretty good goal to have, as long as I don't try to do it in my own efforts. It is an honor, a pleasure, and the biggest and BEST gift to know Him, to hear His voice, and to read His word.
The greatest joy I will ever have is to understand and experience Him, to have a deep, personal relationship with Him. He is the One who sustains me! I want to live a life of integrity that reflects these words; not just to say them with good intention, but to have my life changed by His ability.
Integrity:
1) the state of being whole, entire, or undiminished.
2) the quality or condition of being whole or undivided; completeness.
3) an undivided or unbroken completeness; totality with nothing wanting.
"Whom have I in heaven but You?
And there is none upon the earth that I desire besides You.
My flesh and my heart fail;
But God is the strength of my heart and my portion FOREVER."
-[Psalm 73:25-26]
What can I do for You? What can I bring to You?
What kind of song would you like me to sing?
'Cause I'll dance a dance for You,
Pour out my love to You,
What can I do for You, beautiful King?
'Cause I can't thank You enough
'Cause I can't thank You enough
What can I do for You? What can I bring to You?
What kind of song would you like me to sing?
'Cause I'll dance a dance for You,
Pour out my love to You,
What can I do for You, beautiful King?
Oh, 'Cause I can't thank You enough
I can't thank You enough
All of the words that I find,
I can't thank You enough
No matter how I try
I can't thank You enough
Then I hear You sing to me,
You sing "You don't have to do a thing,
Just simply be with Me
And let those things go
'Cause they can wait another minute
Wait... this moment is too sweet.
Would you please stay here with Me?
And love on Me a little longer?”
“I'd like to be with you a little longer
I'd love to be with you a little longer
'Cause I'm in love with you”
I believe that if I were to try to describe my heart right now, I could not describe it more specifically than what this song says. I have heard this song several times before, but I never knew all the words. Yesterday morning, as I was praying & reading, I remembered some of the words, and wanted to know the rest, so I found it online. That was the beginning of one of the most challenging, convicting, & heartbreaking conversations I think I have ever had with Jesus.
Something that I find amazing is how the Lord meets us. So many times, I wish I could just see Him, touch Him, hug Him, or physically lean on Him. I wish I could behold Him with my physical eyes, not just my spiritual eyes. What the Lord has shown me so clearly over the last year is that, while seeing Him physically would be amazing, it is not necessary. The means He has given us to know & experience Him are sufficient!! He has given us His word to know Him by, to know His heart and His mind and His character and His example. I think I will always want to hug Him, and will always hope for that, but Jesus said, "Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe." We will see Him one day, and we will be able to hug, love, & worship Him in His presence, and it will be unbelievable!!! But, for now, Jesus is able to speak so clearly & gently, yet powerfully through His word, as long as we are still before Him and LISTEN.
That is what happened to me that morning. When I listened, He spoke. He used this song to speak to me about my own perception of pleasing Him.
The very first time I heard this song, I thought, "Oh my gosh, that's what I think! That's what I ask!" referring to the part that says:"What can I do for You? What can I bring to You? What kind of song would You like me to sing?'Cause I'll dance a dance for You, pour out my love to You, what can I do for You, beautiful King??"
I feel like I'm constantly asking God, "What do You want me to do? What do You want me to say? What do You want me to pray? How can I do more? How can I help? How can I be useful? What should I get involved in? How can I use my energy?"
These questions, in and of themselves, are not wrong. How can we please God unless we know what pleases Him? We need to seek His will through His word & much prayer & by being open and flexible to whatever He answers.
Still--- in all of my desires to please God and to do this and that and the other for Him.... I realize that I've forgotten to just spend as much time with Him as He wants. To spend time in the morning with Him is great, and to spend time in prayer & give Him some time before bed is great, right? Isn't that the answer?
Have I come to believe that giving the Lord an hour in the morning & 30 minutes before bed is sufficient? What is that??? An hour and a half set aside for God, but the other 22 and a half hours are spent on whatever I believe I need to do? Jesus is so much more than a morning devotion or a time of prayer or Sunday morning, Monday evening, Wednesday evening meeting. He is not a ritual, and I should set aside however much time HE wants, not the time I think He should have.
Since I have been in California, I have been so restless. I just want to DO something already, to be involved in something, to work, and to be useful. I was so busy when I was in Mallorca, and I loved it. I loved what I did. and I loved "work" though it did not seem like a chore. There was so much to enjoy about working at MBS, and about serving where I could at SPCC [the church]. I loved visiting Marge and baking for Sunday mornings & everything else. I loved getting to know students and helping them with classes, grades, or papers, and working alongside the staff and helping where I was needed.
Now, being in California, all of those things I loved so much are no longer possible. Now the opportunities are different, and fewer. There have been several times where I have felt completely useless, or where I have wondered, "What am I doing here? I should be doing so much more; I should be so much busier!" Oh my goodness. That is where this song comes in, and that is why I feel that my heart has broken, for Jesus. To even think of Him saying,
"You don't have to do a thing. Just simply be with Me,
And let those things go, 'cause they can wait another minute.
Wait...this moment is too sweet,
Would you please stay here with Me?And love on Me a little longer?"
Why is it that when my life has finally slowed down some, I try to busy myself with things to make me feel "more useful"? How can I be of any use to the Lord if I am running around doing things that He has not required of me, in an attempt to make Him proud of my productivity? The most useful my life will ever be is when I am fully abiding in Him, resting in Him, delighting in His presence. And I do...to a point. I am not perfect by ANY means, and I am not a super-Christian who pleases the Lord in everything she does. I wish I could say that was true but sadly, I know it isn't.
I know there are many times where the Lord has to tell me to slow down and rest in Him, because I can become so over-eager in "doing" that I forget that He is the One who needs & wants to do things through me--- I can be so carried away with my plans, and my ideas, and run off in a direction that He isn't leading. He is teaching me to allow Him to lead me by the hand ALWAYS, not just sometimes, or even the majority of the time. With a God who has given me everything, how can I do anything but give Him everything in return? He made the greatest sacrifice for me--- for us!--- by giving His only Son to be killed for the sins of the very people He created to give Him glory. His mercy is so great, His grace is given to us in abundance, and His love is so indescribable, because its like nothing we've ever known! With that measure of love given to me, I should never think it is acceptable to give God the majority. No, He deserves ALL of it: every area, every minute. Every aspect of my life, what I do, speak, think, hear, look at; how I spend my time, what I do or don't do, every thought, idea, motive, reaction, opinion, strength or struggle. All of my life, all of who I am belongs in His hands.
Instead of trying to make Him proud by showing Him what I can do for Him, I now realize that He simply wants me to be with Him. He wants to be with me. To rest in Him, abide in Him, and let every joy of mine be found in spending time with Him. He created us for His glory, to please Him, and to be His chosen generation, His royal priesthood.
Of course, if He says "Go" or "Do" we must go and do whatever it is He has called us to. But when He says, "Stop. Wait. Rest. Don't rush off yet to that next task, to that next appointment, to that work shift, to that opportunity [even ministry!]. Just simply stay with Me & let those things go...they can wait another minute." In order to do anything that brings Him glory or joy [ANY work, any ministry, or obligation], we must first be filled by His Spirit & allow Him to equip us. How can I be filled by Him or experience His love if I don't listen to that still, small voice that tells me when to stop & wait and when to move & act?
Of my own strength, I have nothing to give to Jesus. I am prideful by thinking I have anything to offer the Lord, anything that would impress Him or make Him love me more. If I think I am good and I think He should be pleased with me by giving Him offerings and sacrifices He hasn't required, I'm a fool. The only thing I can give to Jesus is my life, in entirety, holding nothing back. Everything else He has in store for me: every plan, every path to walk in, every area to minister in, only He can do. He will do it through me, but He has to do it, because there is nothing good in me; there is nothing I have to offer.
He desires for me to be an empty vessel, so He can fill me to overflowing with Himself, with His mind, with His characteristics. When I am constantly trying to fill myself with things that He has not placed there, I am only getting in the way of what He wants to do. I am hindering the work, and wasting precious time. A good friend of mine once said, "You have only one life to live--- don't waste it!" It's crazy to think that even filling my life with "good" things can be wasteful, if it is something that I am not meant to do.
I need to be so focused on Jesus, so attuned to Him, so familiar with His voice and His word that I am not easily carried away by my plans and ideas.
I can't please God in my own strength but, thankfully, I don't have to!
He has given me His Son, who has made me acceptable in the sight of God.
It is His strength that is able to do the impossible through me, because He knows that my great weakness requires His greater strength.
And even though my weakness is so great, and my imperfection is so much, His strength and His perfection are SO MUCH greater that I am no match for Him! Praise God!!!
Wow. All that to say: spending time with Him should not be a ritual, because it is not a chore to serve Him!! God is unchanging and He is a God of order, but He is also a God of uniqueness and newness. All of the energy I can muster up is still nowhere near enough to do all the things He has in store for me, so I just need to let Him fill me with Himself.
I want to delight in His presence so much that nothing else is enticing enough to distract me from Him. I don't know if that will happen while I am alive on this earth, but I think its a pretty good goal to have, as long as I don't try to do it in my own efforts. It is an honor, a pleasure, and the biggest and BEST gift to know Him, to hear His voice, and to read His word.
The greatest joy I will ever have is to understand and experience Him, to have a deep, personal relationship with Him. He is the One who sustains me! I want to live a life of integrity that reflects these words; not just to say them with good intention, but to have my life changed by His ability.
Integrity:
1) the state of being whole, entire, or undiminished.
2) the quality or condition of being whole or undivided; completeness.
3) an undivided or unbroken completeness; totality with nothing wanting.
"Whom have I in heaven but You?
And there is none upon the earth that I desire besides You.
My flesh and my heart fail;
But God is the strength of my heart and my portion FOREVER."
-[Psalm 73:25-26]
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