We have had the rainiest summer I can remember this year and consequently, it is hard to keep the grass mowed. Every time Michael plans to mow, it rains or has just rained and is still too wet. Every time we have a dry day, we have other things that have to be done. We are just very busy right now and much of the time, it feels like we are being pulled in way too many directions.
Anyway, Michael had youth group tonight, so I decided to surprise him while he was gone and mow the yard. I have sneaked and mowed the yard before and he always does that whole manly, "Why did you do that? You shouldn't be out mowing the yard!" thing, but I know he appreciates it, so I like to try to surprise him. I mowed the small strip of grass we have on the left side of our driveway and started on the main front yard. I had finished one strip, when our neighbor (who I have known pretty much my whole life since we live in my childhood house) walked over and asked if he could mow the yard. I said, "Oh no, I'm just fine. My husband just hasn't had time with the rain, so I thought I'd help him out." He kept insisting and said that's what neighbors are for, so I finally let him do it (since he had a riding lawn mower that took much less time than my push mower).
Now, I can't even explain how much I appreciated the gesture. I didn't have to push the mower around the yard in the muggy heat and I know it took a lot of stress off of Michael when he saw that the grass was mowed. We were both so thankful! You don't see neighbors doing things like that for each other much anymore. My neighbor is a nice guy and I know he knows the Lord, but I wonder if he knows that God used him tonight.
I was thinking, later, about how God uses people.
He can use us to do great things in people's lives. He can use us to change people's lives. God used Jesus to change lives while He was here on this earth.. Think of all the miracles He did--He healed people, he fed a huge crowd with a little bit of food, he turned water into wine, provided the disciples with a large catch of fish....all very practical things. People realized that He cared about their needs, that He cared about the things they cared about. Those kinds of miracles are the kind that change lives, that bring lasting change.
Today, some people say that God is doing miracles in the form of sending gold dust raining down on certain churches, or people finding gold teeth in their mouths. Some people see "orbs" that they consider to be angels, or claim to see religious statues crying, and really all manner of wild sounding things. I can pretty freely say that I don't consider those things to be signs of the one, true God. They also don't create lasting change in the people who supposedly see these things. Memorable, yes. Hype inducing, yes. Life changing, no.
We can let God use us to change lives and to turn people to Him. Do you know what a person who is dying of thirst wants the most? They want a cup of water. What about a person who is hungry? Or sick? Or needs clothing and shelter? Or maybe someone who simply needs their yard mowed? God cares about even that seemingly small thing.
We can give people food, water, clothing, shelter. We can lay our hands on them and pray for them to be healed. We can give someone a shoulder when they need to cry. We can pray for someone who really needed prayer right that minute. Those are lasting miracles--when God guides us to the right person just in the nick of time and uses us to take care of a need. Those are the kind of miracles that make people thankful and grateful to a God who cares enough to take care of us. The kind that make people think, 'Hmm....if God cares about me that much, I want to get to know him.' Those are the kind of miracles God did through Jesus.
I want God to use me....to show me the need and help me to take care of it. I want to be His hands and feet. I want to see Him change lives for forever!
Sunday, August 11, 2013
Monday, May 20, 2013
Living under grace
It's another Monday! The first day of the work week after (hopefully) relaxing a little bit on the weekend. Or maybe working hard on all of those home improvement projects we couldn't do during the week. It's tempting to write Monday off and spend it recovering from Saturday and Sunday, instead of hitting the ground running. (As I write this, I am taking a break on the couch.)
I feel like we, as believers, sometimes treat our lives like a whole string of Mondays--except, instead of using the excuse that today is Monday, we use the excuse that we are "under grace". Any mistakes we make or anything we do that we know we probably shouldn't, we kind of pat ourselves on the back and say, "It's ok. We're under grace. God's got it covered." In doing that, we tend to cheapen grace. How, do you say? Well, think of it this way. Let's say you wanted a new computer, but you needed to save up the money first. So, you worked hard, maybe did some extra jobs, scrimped and saved--and finally you purchased that new computer. On the other hand, let's say you wanted a new computer and someone bought it for you as a gift. Which computer would you treat the best? Would you abuse the computer that was a gift--would you drop it and let your children pull all the keys off the keyboard and spill coffee all over it and say, "It's ok. It was a gift, so it doesn't matter" or would you treat it just as precious (or even more so) as the computer you worked hard to earn the money for.
Before Jesus came, we had to earn our salvation. We had to work hard and do every little thing just right. Then Jesus came and gave us this wonderful, free gift (if we accept it). So, the question is this--do we take his free gift and keep doing whatever we want and treat his sacrifice like it doesn't even matter, just because it was free? Or do we treat it with the respect and reverence it deserves? To do this, we have to live holy lives. We have to live purposefully. We can't just live mediocre, aimless lives and think that grace is going to cover it. We have to be intentional in every little thing that we do. We have to read His Word and know how He wants us to live.
So, after that pep talk to myself, I'm going to get back up and continue my Monday--serving Him and showing Him how thankful I am for His grace. Will I mess up? Probably. Inevitably. But I pledge to not use grace as an excuse for living my life the way I want to, instead of living it the way He wants me to. Who wants a life full of Mondays, anyway? ;)
I feel like we, as believers, sometimes treat our lives like a whole string of Mondays--except, instead of using the excuse that today is Monday, we use the excuse that we are "under grace". Any mistakes we make or anything we do that we know we probably shouldn't, we kind of pat ourselves on the back and say, "It's ok. We're under grace. God's got it covered." In doing that, we tend to cheapen grace. How, do you say? Well, think of it this way. Let's say you wanted a new computer, but you needed to save up the money first. So, you worked hard, maybe did some extra jobs, scrimped and saved--and finally you purchased that new computer. On the other hand, let's say you wanted a new computer and someone bought it for you as a gift. Which computer would you treat the best? Would you abuse the computer that was a gift--would you drop it and let your children pull all the keys off the keyboard and spill coffee all over it and say, "It's ok. It was a gift, so it doesn't matter" or would you treat it just as precious (or even more so) as the computer you worked hard to earn the money for.
Before Jesus came, we had to earn our salvation. We had to work hard and do every little thing just right. Then Jesus came and gave us this wonderful, free gift (if we accept it). So, the question is this--do we take his free gift and keep doing whatever we want and treat his sacrifice like it doesn't even matter, just because it was free? Or do we treat it with the respect and reverence it deserves? To do this, we have to live holy lives. We have to live purposefully. We can't just live mediocre, aimless lives and think that grace is going to cover it. We have to be intentional in every little thing that we do. We have to read His Word and know how He wants us to live.
So, after that pep talk to myself, I'm going to get back up and continue my Monday--serving Him and showing Him how thankful I am for His grace. Will I mess up? Probably. Inevitably. But I pledge to not use grace as an excuse for living my life the way I want to, instead of living it the way He wants me to. Who wants a life full of Mondays, anyway? ;)
Sunday, April 14, 2013
Are you for real?
Being authentic. It's one of today's mantras for life. The world says that being authentic means being true to yourself. Being real. "I need to FIND myself." Being whomever YOU want to be. Saying whatever the heck pops into your head. Wearing whatever you want to wear. It's all about you.
To us, as believers, being authentic means being who God has called us to be, instead of who we want to be or who the world wants us to be. When we give our life to Jesus, our life is no longer our own. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 says, "You are not your own, for you were bought with a price." Now, some people might think that sounds really unattractive. 'We've been bought?! Like slaves?!' Yet before we were bought by God, we were slaves as well--to a much different master. Romans 6:16 says that we are slaves to whatever we obey, whether it be slaves to sin or slaves of righteousness. Romans 6:23 says, "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." I would much rather be a slave to righteousness and take God's free gift.
If we're doing whatever we want to do with no consideration for what God wants, we're not being authentic. We might think we're being true to ourselves--being who we're "meant" to be--but we're not being who God meant us to be. It's kind of like if I started dressing up like Batman everyday. I could go around all day, saying, "This is who I really am! I feel so free because I'm being who I'm supposed to be. This is the real me." Everyone else realizes it's just a costume, just a cover up. It's not authentic at all. That's why there are all these people going around dressing alike, acting alike, talking alike. They think they're being authentic, but they are really just being like everyone else.
God hasn't called us to be like everyone else. He's called us to be different. As believers, we're still unique from each other. We all have different gifts, different personalities. He made us that way. What counts is that we use what He has given us for the kingdom of God. And THAT is being authentic--taking all the things He has given you and using them for His glory. Being exactly who He's created you to be. The way we dress, the way we talk to others, the things we say, the music we listen to, the things we watch, what we spend our money on, where we spend most of our time....it all matters. And since your authentic self is found in Christ (Philippians 3:8-9), you won't find it unless you spend time with Him and get to know Him. Only when you find yourself in Him will you be real. Only then can we be authentic.
To us, as believers, being authentic means being who God has called us to be, instead of who we want to be or who the world wants us to be. When we give our life to Jesus, our life is no longer our own. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 says, "You are not your own, for you were bought with a price." Now, some people might think that sounds really unattractive. 'We've been bought?! Like slaves?!' Yet before we were bought by God, we were slaves as well--to a much different master. Romans 6:16 says that we are slaves to whatever we obey, whether it be slaves to sin or slaves of righteousness. Romans 6:23 says, "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." I would much rather be a slave to righteousness and take God's free gift.
If we're doing whatever we want to do with no consideration for what God wants, we're not being authentic. We might think we're being true to ourselves--being who we're "meant" to be--but we're not being who God meant us to be. It's kind of like if I started dressing up like Batman everyday. I could go around all day, saying, "This is who I really am! I feel so free because I'm being who I'm supposed to be. This is the real me." Everyone else realizes it's just a costume, just a cover up. It's not authentic at all. That's why there are all these people going around dressing alike, acting alike, talking alike. They think they're being authentic, but they are really just being like everyone else.
God hasn't called us to be like everyone else. He's called us to be different. As believers, we're still unique from each other. We all have different gifts, different personalities. He made us that way. What counts is that we use what He has given us for the kingdom of God. And THAT is being authentic--taking all the things He has given you and using them for His glory. Being exactly who He's created you to be. The way we dress, the way we talk to others, the things we say, the music we listen to, the things we watch, what we spend our money on, where we spend most of our time....it all matters. And since your authentic self is found in Christ (Philippians 3:8-9), you won't find it unless you spend time with Him and get to know Him. Only when you find yourself in Him will you be real. Only then can we be authentic.
Friday, November 2, 2012
You and I were made to worship...
I am a worship leader at church. Basically, what that means is that I lead the congregation in worship via music. What I have realized more than ever recently is that worship doesn't equal music and music doesn't equal worship. Music can be a form of worship to God, but it can just as likely not. And it's not just a matter of the state of our heart. I have been so aware lately of the words I use when worshipping Him. I think sometimes we think as long as we're singing something that sounds good to us, we're worshipping Him.
I wrote all that just to say--we were made to worship God, but much of the time, we worship him the way we want to worship Him and not necessarily the way He wants to be worshipped.
Worship is so much more than what we sing; it's how we live our lives.
Let me tell you a funny (or not so funny) story. So, we can honor God by giving financially, right? Well, before Michael left his job last month, his hours had been cut way down, so we didn't have much extra money. Well, I decided one month that as part of our giving, I would buy two huge packs of hot dog wieners for the church picnic. (Ok, go ahead and laugh while i cower down and blush) God later gently showed me that yes, that was nice, but it was not exactly His definition of giving. Also, slightly amusing (but not really) was the fact that God's original law forbade eating pork (and I'm sure also all the mixed nasty stuff that is in hot dogs). If you think about it, God gave the Israelites that law for their own good, considering that pigs are not the cleanest animals in the world and He was trying to keep them alive and healthy in the middle of the desert.
We like to take things and say, "Hey, God, I know You don't particularly like this, but I'm going to take it and turn it into worship towards You. You're going to bless it, right? You know I have good intentions." And He says, "Um, I'm not going to bless it when I know that You know better." It's not always just the thought that counts.
Oh, by the way, while I was writing this, God stepped ALL over my toes by showing me something that I do that is exactly like the above paragraph. *sigh* Our bodies are supposed to be temples of the Holy Spirit, but more often than I care to admit, I sit in front of a plateful of food that is terrible for me, whether I were to eat it in moderation or not. I bow my head and say, "God, bless this food to the nourishment of my body" and the whole time, in the back of my mind I'm thinking, 'I know this is bad for my body.'
If we're going to worship Him, we should worship Him the way He tells us to. We have to read His Word to find out how. Otherwise, we might be worshipping Him wrong and never know it. We have to put effort into this relationship.
And while worshipping God isn't just about our good intentions, it's not just about our outward acts, either. If we're doing the things God wants to do, but doing them out of obligation or pride, or anything but a pure heart, it's not really worship. I want to worship Him with my whole being!
Praise God for His mercy and grace, but also for the strength and wisdom to live our lives and to worship Him in the way He desires!
I wrote all that just to say--we were made to worship God, but much of the time, we worship him the way we want to worship Him and not necessarily the way He wants to be worshipped.
Worship is so much more than what we sing; it's how we live our lives.
Let me tell you a funny (or not so funny) story. So, we can honor God by giving financially, right? Well, before Michael left his job last month, his hours had been cut way down, so we didn't have much extra money. Well, I decided one month that as part of our giving, I would buy two huge packs of hot dog wieners for the church picnic. (Ok, go ahead and laugh while i cower down and blush) God later gently showed me that yes, that was nice, but it was not exactly His definition of giving. Also, slightly amusing (but not really) was the fact that God's original law forbade eating pork (and I'm sure also all the mixed nasty stuff that is in hot dogs). If you think about it, God gave the Israelites that law for their own good, considering that pigs are not the cleanest animals in the world and He was trying to keep them alive and healthy in the middle of the desert.
We like to take things and say, "Hey, God, I know You don't particularly like this, but I'm going to take it and turn it into worship towards You. You're going to bless it, right? You know I have good intentions." And He says, "Um, I'm not going to bless it when I know that You know better." It's not always just the thought that counts.
Oh, by the way, while I was writing this, God stepped ALL over my toes by showing me something that I do that is exactly like the above paragraph. *sigh* Our bodies are supposed to be temples of the Holy Spirit, but more often than I care to admit, I sit in front of a plateful of food that is terrible for me, whether I were to eat it in moderation or not. I bow my head and say, "God, bless this food to the nourishment of my body" and the whole time, in the back of my mind I'm thinking, 'I know this is bad for my body.'
If we're going to worship Him, we should worship Him the way He tells us to. We have to read His Word to find out how. Otherwise, we might be worshipping Him wrong and never know it. We have to put effort into this relationship.
And while worshipping God isn't just about our good intentions, it's not just about our outward acts, either. If we're doing the things God wants to do, but doing them out of obligation or pride, or anything but a pure heart, it's not really worship. I want to worship Him with my whole being!
Praise God for His mercy and grace, but also for the strength and wisdom to live our lives and to worship Him in the way He desires!
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Weird Wednesday
I've been doing weird things around the house today--cleaning the inside of cabinets, scrubbing the inside of my washing machine, touching up paint in the kitchen, putting handles on a refurbished dresser. These are things that aren't seemingly vital to the working of our household, but for some reason I felt like I needed to do them today.
Honestly, I usually only do the obvious things when cleaning-- laundry, bathtubs, toilets, sinks, dusting surfaces, vacuuming, mopping. I make sure everything is clean and presentable, but I don't go seeking out dirt or extra little jobs that need to be done. I mean, if I can't see the dust on top of the ceiling fan, does it really matter?
As I was scrubbing and looking for the right sized screws, I thought about all the hang ups and dark corners we have in our hearts. When we lie or steal or murder or commit adultery, we know (hopefully) we've messed up. Those are obvious sins, obvious messes. We clean them up by asking forgiveness and doing whatever we have to do try to make things right. What about all those "little" sins that we never even think about asking forgiveness for--hatred toward someone, lust (without action) toward someone, putting things/other people in front of our relationship with God, and many other seemingly small things that other people may not even see or know about. Maybe we don't even know they're sins.
Psalm 119:105 says, "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path." God's Word illuminates our path. It shows us the way to go. In its light, we can see even the darkest corners of our heart and life, the cobwebs we didn't even realize were there. The more we read His Word, the brighter that light shines inside of us and the farther it reaches, because we learn Who He is and what pleases Him, what is sin, and how to praise Him. In the light of His Word, our sin is exposed for what it is. And when we are able to see it and know it for what it is, we can rid our life of it. Then, there is only light!
Scrubbing the inside of a washing machine seems kind of silly (to me), but if we want clean clothes, we should have a clean washing machine. Having no handles on our refurbished dresser hasn't messed up our life (it's been that way for 9 months), but without handles, we haven't been able to use the dresser.
God wants us to to have everything we need in order to function in the kingdom of God. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 says that Scripture is designed to make us complete and to fully equip us for the work of God. We need to be clean and we need to be functional in order to do God's work.
My prayer is that through reading His Word, I realize not only the "big" things He wants from me, but all the "small" things as well! Thank You, God, for showing me the Truth through everyday life!
Honestly, I usually only do the obvious things when cleaning-- laundry, bathtubs, toilets, sinks, dusting surfaces, vacuuming, mopping. I make sure everything is clean and presentable, but I don't go seeking out dirt or extra little jobs that need to be done. I mean, if I can't see the dust on top of the ceiling fan, does it really matter?
As I was scrubbing and looking for the right sized screws, I thought about all the hang ups and dark corners we have in our hearts. When we lie or steal or murder or commit adultery, we know (hopefully) we've messed up. Those are obvious sins, obvious messes. We clean them up by asking forgiveness and doing whatever we have to do try to make things right. What about all those "little" sins that we never even think about asking forgiveness for--hatred toward someone, lust (without action) toward someone, putting things/other people in front of our relationship with God, and many other seemingly small things that other people may not even see or know about. Maybe we don't even know they're sins.
Psalm 119:105 says, "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path." God's Word illuminates our path. It shows us the way to go. In its light, we can see even the darkest corners of our heart and life, the cobwebs we didn't even realize were there. The more we read His Word, the brighter that light shines inside of us and the farther it reaches, because we learn Who He is and what pleases Him, what is sin, and how to praise Him. In the light of His Word, our sin is exposed for what it is. And when we are able to see it and know it for what it is, we can rid our life of it. Then, there is only light!
Scrubbing the inside of a washing machine seems kind of silly (to me), but if we want clean clothes, we should have a clean washing machine. Having no handles on our refurbished dresser hasn't messed up our life (it's been that way for 9 months), but without handles, we haven't been able to use the dresser.
God wants us to to have everything we need in order to function in the kingdom of God. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 says that Scripture is designed to make us complete and to fully equip us for the work of God. We need to be clean and we need to be functional in order to do God's work.
My prayer is that through reading His Word, I realize not only the "big" things He wants from me, but all the "small" things as well! Thank You, God, for showing me the Truth through everyday life!
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Putting it into Practice...
As soon as you speak something out, the devil always tries to test you on it (Jesus never tempts us to sin-James 1:13). I'm tempted and tested everyday, but here's an example that just happened (literally, like, 5 minutes ago)
I was cooking some carrots on the stove and I heard something spill. I turned around and Kade had spilled his whole, entire drink on the table and floor. It was dripping from a puddle on the table to a puddle on the floor. I felt anger bubble up in the very pit of my stomach and then, something said, "Stop!" I stopped and in that moment, I heard a line from a song that was playing on the radio. It said, "The Enemy, he has to leave, at the sound of Your great name". The Enemy was the one who wanted that anger to bubble up and come spewing out--over a cup of tea! A ridiculous cup of tea that could easily be mopped up. I immediately felt all of that anger leave me. I went and got a towel and helped Kade clean it up. And you know what he said when he finished and handed me the towel? He said, "Mom, I love you", he hugged me, and that was that. Thank you, Jesus, for your patience and grace.
I'm glad that when I make messes, He's there to help me clean it up, cover it with His blood, and then forget it, forever. He doesn't look down, throw up His hands and say, "Are you kidding me?!? You made that mess again?!?" There's no mark left, not even a sticky residue (like the spot on my floor right now), nothing. Thank You for being so patient with me, God. Help me to make fewer messes! I love You!
I was cooking some carrots on the stove and I heard something spill. I turned around and Kade had spilled his whole, entire drink on the table and floor. It was dripping from a puddle on the table to a puddle on the floor. I felt anger bubble up in the very pit of my stomach and then, something said, "Stop!" I stopped and in that moment, I heard a line from a song that was playing on the radio. It said, "The Enemy, he has to leave, at the sound of Your great name". The Enemy was the one who wanted that anger to bubble up and come spewing out--over a cup of tea! A ridiculous cup of tea that could easily be mopped up. I immediately felt all of that anger leave me. I went and got a towel and helped Kade clean it up. And you know what he said when he finished and handed me the towel? He said, "Mom, I love you", he hugged me, and that was that. Thank you, Jesus, for your patience and grace.
I'm glad that when I make messes, He's there to help me clean it up, cover it with His blood, and then forget it, forever. He doesn't look down, throw up His hands and say, "Are you kidding me?!? You made that mess again?!?" There's no mark left, not even a sticky residue (like the spot on my floor right now), nothing. Thank You for being so patient with me, God. Help me to make fewer messes! I love You!
Saturday, September 29, 2012
Oh, to be 3
Oh, to be 3!
So stylish!
So full of energy,
And spunk,
And sass!
At least we can say, he gets it all from his aunt.
So stylish!
So full of energy,
And spunk,
And sass!
At least we can say, he gets it all from his aunt.
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