Considering It Pure Joy

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete not lacking anything." (James 1:2-3)

Our natural tendency is to apply scriptures like the James verses mentioned above to ourselves--to our own  life.  But I want to take this verse one step further beyond us. Can you see this verse applied to your spouse's life, your parent's life, or what about even your children's lives? We don't seem to think of our children's trials as beneficial to their spiritual lives. Instead we try to intervene, we try to make things easier for them.

This world is fallen. Not only did man spiritually die the day Adam and Eve rebelliously ate what wasn't theirs to eat, but the earth and all its inhabitants suffered as well. Consequently, there is sickness, there is sin, there is death for us as well as our children.

We have a child who has some ailments. A year and a half ago, I spent a great deal of time crying, begging God to heal her. I felt helpless. My hands were tied and I couldn't save her. I couldn't spare her from what she was going through. "Why?" came to my mind frequently.

The Lord listened to the cries of this mother's heart. I felt His strong arms carrying me through those deep waters. I knew His strong arms were carrying her as well. One thing He spoke to my heart was that she was His daughter first and foremost. I was her earthly mother. I was chosen to raise her up. I was chosen to teach her His ways, His precepts, His love. At the end of my time with her, God would be with her. He is with her always.

God will guide her through the trials. Even her trials are considered pure joy. He is maturing her. How dare I try to intervene in her maturing process. How dare I try to take away her testimony of God's faithfulness in her life. How dare I try to take away a stone of remembrance.

In the book of Joshua there is an account of the Priests carrying 12 stones from the Jordan River. Each stone symbolized one of the tribes of Israel. Joshua had the Priests lay the stones down together. He then gave the orders that when their children asked what these stones were, the people would tell the story of God's faithfulness as they traveled across the Jordan River on dry ground just as they had crossed the Red Sea on dry ground.

Joshua concludes his speech in chapter 4 by saying, "that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the Lord is mighty, so that you may fear the Lord your God forever."

As we travel through this life, all of us--even our children--we are given stones in the form of trials. As the time comes to set those stones down, we can say that we have seen the mighty hand of the Savior. Then we can look back over those stones in years to come and know that the Lord has been faithful.

This last year and a half has been peaceful. Of course, there have been times of frustration. I have still asked "why" from time to time. Regardless of my emotions, I know that God is protecting and providing for my child. I can step back in confidence and know that her journey is sweet and the Father is walking with her every step of the way. One day, she will look back at this season and see God's faithfulness.

Go in peace today, knowing that He has you. He has your children and your spouse and your parents. Regardless of the outcome, God will be glorified. He will be remembered as a faithful God. Healing always comes. It may not look how we think it should, but healing always comes.

Umbrella

As a couple, my husband and I have sought out other couples that we love and respect who are a further on the journey than us to "mentor" us. Currently, the Lord has directed us to this wonderful couple rich in wisdom.

This last week we were all sitting in our living room talking about heavenly things when the topic of marriage came up. The wife shared the most profound word picture of submission that I have ever heard. She said, "I am safe when I am standing under my husband's umbrella."

Imagine if you will a raging thunderstorm complete with sharp lightening and cracks of thunder. You, dear married friends, are safe from the storm when you are standing under your husband's umbrella. He will keep you dry, protect you, and care for you. What a picture of love.

Seeing submission in this light, as a wife being cherished by her husband and she respectfully choosing to stay under his leadership by submitting to him, is the perfect picture of Christ and the Church. He is the protector and provider of the Church. She is safe when she stands under the cross. He will keep us safe from the accusitive arrows that the enemy hurls at us much like bolts of lightening.

Have you wandered outside of Christ's leadership? His umbrella is huge and there is always room for you to choose to submit to His will for your life. Come back to the safety and love of Christ. He will keep you safe from the enemy's arrows. The storm rages on, but you will find peace and contentment standing under Him.

Going Home

There will come a day when my body will stop. My heart will stop pumping, my lungs will stop breathing, and my mind will stop thinking. When that day comes, I will not care what legacy I have left for those still living. I will not care about heritage, or posterity, or ephitaphs.

 My soul will delight in the presence of the Almighty God and Creator of the Universe. My single focus will be His face. My only desire will be to worship Him. For Him alone do I walk this life, daily groaning with all nature for the return of the Everlasting.

May we live in the eternal reality that we are His. We belong to Him alone--not to this world. May our lives be grounded on the Word of God and surrounded by the presence of the Holy Spirit. May we wake early to be with our Love and fall asleep to the sweet lullaby of His song over us. Allow His grace to sweep over you. Turn your ear to heaven to wait on Him. He is worthy. Amen.

Manipulating Promises

"That's not what I thought it would look like." This is typically my response to anything I draw. My imagination has a beautiful sketch in mind and what my hand draws can be best described as chicken scratch. I must have a disconnect between my brain and hand. Either way, the end result is pen to paper, but the design is drastically different.

Sometimes I know there must be a disconnect between me and God. See, I think I know how something should happen or when it should take place. However, God will get to the same result but by a much better route.  The journey will be drastically different depending on who is steering the course. I have learned that it is much better to let God lead the way than to have me lead the way.

Take for instance, Sarah. God gave a promise of a son to her and her husband, Abraham. Well, she decided God's plan was taking too long so she resorted to Plan B--her plan. The end result was the same--God gave Abraham and Sarah a son, Isaac, but the journey was drastically different.

Have you ever stopped to think what would have happened if Sarah hadn't manipulated the promise and waited on God to bless her and Abraham? Life would have been much simpler. She wouldn't of had to worry about "another woman",  she wouldn't have had to worry about another child in the mix. nor would she have had such a contentious relationship with Abraham.

Sarah's story is in scripture for a reason. She shows us that waiting on God is difficult. It isn't easy to long for something so badly that has been promised to you. Some of us having been waiting for a child like Sarah, while others of us have been waiting for a spouse or for a circumstance to turn around. Regardless of what we have been waiting for--waiting is tough!  However, we must wait. If we choose to step ahead of God or His perfect timing, there are very real and difficult consequences.

Moreover, Sarah's story isn't unique. She isn't the first or the last person to try to plan out how God is going to work. Her picture of what that promise would look like fulfilled verses how God fulfilled that promise were two very different pictures.

She used her human logical brain to solve the problem of a barren woman and her husband being promised a son. God didn't need for her to use that logical human brain because the glory was all His and not her intellect. See, sometimes God takes us to the end of our resources so when a promise that He gives is fulfilled, we will know that it was Him that worked the miracle and not us.

Sarah shows us that waiting on God, although it is excruciating at times, is more fruitful and peaceful than trying to make something happen outside of God's perfect timing.

The next time you want to rush ahead of God and get to the good stuff right away--stop and think what could be learned in the waiting and how much easier life will be if you wait. He knows the best route to get you to the destination. Trust in His leading and He will grant you patience.

Reflection Questions 

If you are in waiting, what lessons is God teaching you? What aspects of His character is He showing you in this season?

Has God fulfilled any promises in your life? Can you look back at those seasons and see His hand working contrary to how you thought it should work? Did it look different than how you thought it would look?

Remembering When

This morning I was thinking back to when I had little kids. Now, I have kids but they wouldn't be happy with the use of the adjective "little".  Honestly, those where tough years for me emotionally. I used quite a bit of help from Elisabeth Elliot and the Ezzo's of Babywise fame to get this frazzled mother to the elementary school age.

Elisabeth Elliot wrote many wonderful books including Passion and Purity, Let Me be a Woman, and Discipline: The Glad Surrender. However it was her book, "The Shaping of a Christian Family" that gave me some tools for shaping my little ones. In her book, she talks about having the Bible open on the kitchen counter. This way when the children come to you with a problem (most likely you will be in the kitchen), the Bible is easily accessible for you to thumb through and teach a principle pertaining to the circumstance. I had mine open to Proverbs--it is chalk full of life's wisdom that will be helpful for toddlers...and adults.

Here's one of my favorite memories putting this concept to practice. One day, my 2 and 4 year old came to me while I was in the (you guessed it) kitchen making lunch. They were very upset with each other and requested my assistance in settling a disagreement.

My 4 year old wanted to play cops and robbers and my 2 year old wanted to play house. They were at an impasse. So, we walked over to the counter and I read them a Proverb that pertained to the argument and I brought up the idea of compromise. They walked out of the kitchen a happy family of bank robbers.

The Babywise books really helped me get the kids on a schedule when they were first born. It also gave me some concrete ideas on how to teach my children to put others above themselves. A small example of this would have be the lawn. Lawns and landscaping are not to be walked in unless permission has been granted from the homeowner. This is a small way we can show our neighbors that we see all the hard work they have put into their landscaping.

The Ezzo's also taught on siblings being best friends with each other. Friends come and go throughout the years, but siblings are a constant. They suggested that parents enforce and reinforce the notion that siblings are best friends by asking them who their best friend is, then responding with affirmation when they chose their sibling or with correction--naming the siblings as that child's best friend(s). My husband and I did this practice between ourselves when we had babies. I am so glad to say that my husband is my best-friend!

I have taken the advice of some other voices like Foster Cline and Jim Fay who wrote a wonderful series of   Love and Logic books including Parenting with Love and Logic and Teaching with Love and Logic. No matter what books on child rearing you read, know that your child isn't a chapter in a book or an "if-then" statement. You may need to take the advice from the experts and change it up to meet your needs. And above all, make sure the Bible is your primary source of child rearing. Put it on your counter and just let it be a presence in your home.

Pitter Patter & Clitter Clatter

My house is void of any sounds of humanity right now. All I can hear is the wind blowing cold air outside the house and the furnace quietly blowing warm air inside.  The stillness is quietly beautiful.

Ahhh, I love my children and I love my husband. I love having them all with me. I love hearing the pitter patter of the kids traipsing up and down the stairs. I love hearing the clitter and clatter of my husband as he works on a project or rummages through a box looking for something. There is still peace in the commotion. But there is a sweetness to the silence as well.

These moments of silent stillness,these kisses of solitude, serenade me into the presence of the King of Kings. My soul remains fixed on the throne room and my body delights in the Holy Spirit's swaddling. He speaks loudly and lovely in the silence.

Sit in the silence and wait. Wait for the Lord to bring His soft silent lullaby. Wait for Him to swaddle you in His love. "He will be quiet in His love, He will rejoice over you with song," (Zeph.3:17).