Surprise, Another Book!

I also bought another amazing book. Surprise. I hate reading, right? This one's called The Uncommon Woman: Making an Ordinary Life an Extraordinary One. And another surprise, the very first page already has a million jillion things that I like. It's amazing to me that these are all things I think about, but cannot seem to conjure up the way a "real" author does.

1. Accepting acceptance means having the courage to face foibles, without allowing them to diminish our value.
2. Refuse to let others define you, because GOD already has.
3. We learn to understand who we are by knowing whose we are.
4. People are not what they do-- they are people God loves.

"The uncommon woman believes the wonderful truth about herself. Moreover, she has the capacity to view others from this same heavenly perspective. Bursting from her heart is the conviction to do something about the injustices in her world. She walks with a purity that allows her to see God everywhere. And the Kingdom of God is so strong in her life that everywhere she places her feet suddenly becomes an uncommon and holy place-- because she's there. You can be that woman. You were meant to be that woman."

Hope in the Fog

I purchased a book from Lifeway yesterday. It is called The One Year Book of Encouragement: 365 Days of Inspiration and Wisdom for Your Spiritual Journey. "Fred Smith maintains that 'hope is the healthy mental condition of the normal Christian.' He says that if we are to live as Christians, we do so with hope-- even when situations seem hopeless."

I know, I know, it's very LAME that I have come to depend on a book to get through some days. By the way, this was for December 28th.

"Fred recounts a time when the president of a large corporation [facing bankruptcy] came to him to talk about the pressures he was under. Many of the factors that had wrecked the company were beyond his control (KEY!), and he faced tough, divisive meetings. Fred reminded this executive of the dangers of hopelessness. 'We are never to be without hope,' he told him, 'because we are never without help.' AMEN. On more than one occasion, Fred visited a friend who saw nothing good ahead and was considering suicide. He challenged the man to demonstrate hope, emphasizing that hope is not in productivity or material wealth. Enemies of hope invade our lives like toxic fog. A spouse deserts the family. Job losses devastate another family. An accident takes a loved one on whom many had pinned their hopes. The tragedies of our lives are endlessly and variously and painfully unique to each soul. For inspiration, Fred turned to Romans 5, with its ringing declaration of our lively hope. When we feel hope has deserted us, we would do well to read and re-read these verses: 'We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because He has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with His love.' Fred declares from the promise of Scripture and long experience, 'Hope is the birthright of the Christian.'

Well. CLEARLY God knew I needed to read this book. He has pinned exactly what I've been feeling over the past few months. I've had this feeling that something was coming to an end; and while I know I'm about to start with something new, it didn't always suffice to know that. I must learn to be content with what the LORD is blessing me with. And I mean blessing me with now; not what I could be "missing" out on, but what He is doing in my life now. I wake up in the morning with air in my lungs, things to think about, experiences to experiences, people to meet and help, friends to continue conversation with. Really, what more could I ask for?

Judgment

Judgment. Such a small word for such a thing. What does judgment look like? Do we really only judge by appearances, like most people think; or does judgment come in a variety of ways? Is it speaking out of turn or acting out of haste and fear? Well, I think it could be any of these. Simple, quick judgments that value great character can destroy someone's morale. Why is this so commonplace? John 7:24 says, "Stop judging by mere appearances, and make a right judgment." We think it's not so difficult, but we don't really know what this looks like. Day in and day out, we pass judgment upon one another- whether it's a smirk or a face or meeting someone you've never talked to before. Surely we can all relate, and I am guilty of it just as much as one. We are afraid of what we don't know; afraid to hear the truth; afraid that our judgments were incorrect and now we look foolish. Romans 14:13 says, "Therefore, let us STOP passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put ANY stumbling block or obstacle in your brother's way." Whatever affliction there may be, get rid of it! Who wants to live with this heavy world dragging upon their shoulders? "Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor." I love this verse (Romans 13:7). We are to be joyful in our relations with one another, doing everything out of love; learning not to pass judgment, because then we are blasphemous in trying to do the Lord's job.

LOVE

I started reading "Redeeming Love" again the other night. I began at midnight and finished the novel by 3 in the morning. It was quite ridiculous; I couldn't put the book down. I had this craving for the captivating writing of Francine Rivers; but what was more, I needed a glimpse into my own soul. What do I feel about love? What IS love? What does it look like, and how do I view it personally? What does it take to keep it alive; without going stagnant, like our faith can do? If it's a lifetime commitment, then why has it turned into something that makes us unworthy of keeping our promises?

The LORD never fails us in His love. His love is perfect, flawless, blameless in every way. When I think about it, I used to shun the idea of "love" when I was a teenager. It never stirred in my mind; why should it have? I was busy. School consumed my life. Being the perfect student consumed my life. Deep down, I figure it ended up creating this pit of doubts: Why was I not good enough? Why was everyone else good enough? What was wrong? What was the root of this cynicism and guarded nature? Those answers never come easily, and they still haven't. As for now, I'm called to return to the love of the One whose will never fail. As hard as it is, I must tell myself that I am worthy- I am beautiful- in the eyes of the LORD. He has shone His favor upon me; and how lucky I am to have won the heart of the Savior and Creator of the universe- of love itself!

1 Corinthians 13:4
Love is patient.
Love is kind.
It does not envy.
It does not boast.
It is not proud.
It is not rude.
It is not self-seeking.
It is not easily angered.
It keeps no record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices in truth.
It always protects.
It always trusts.
It always hopes.
It always perseveres.
Love never fails.

Let Us Return

"God moves in mysterious ways, His wonders to perform." -William Cowper

"Love God, love others. Love with strength and passion and purpose, and no matter what comes, don't weaken. That is the way back to Eden. Loving is the way back to life." -Francine Rivers

Hosea 6:1 "Come, let us return to the LORD; for He has torn, that He may heal us; He has stricken, that He will bind us up."

"Whose love but the LORD's is so connective, strengthening, powerful, redemptive, and healing?" -Myself

Joy of the LORD

Deuteronomy 16:15 "For the LORD your God will bless in all your harvest and in all the work of your hands, are your joy will be complete!"

John 15:17 "This is my command: Love each other."

Habakkuk 3:18 "Yet I will rejoice in the LORD; I will be joyful in God my Savior."

Simple and True

1 Timothy 6:20 says, "Turn away from godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is falsely called knowledge, which some have professed and-- in so doing-- have wandered from the faith." This is saying that we face many ungodly things in a day, but it is our job as followers of the LORD to put everything we have in Him; that doubts are corrosive and make us fearful of attempting things.

The Temptation of Jesus

Photo: Eleos School of Ministry and Practical Theology

In Matthew 4, Jesus says, "Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God." Amen! We are told NEVER to put the LORD our God to the test- why? Well, most of all, because we would lose. Big time. Worship the LORD your God and serve Him only. This means that we are to do whatever He asks us out of love; and gratitude for His great love. Temptation to toss the Lord's will-- seems pretty awful-- is actually quite a necessary part of the ministry. Yes, it is NECESSARY! This is because, unlike mankind, Jesus didn't need to tempted in the garden to grow, but only to identify with us. He sacrificed Himself so that we might live, being blameless in His sight. We are beautiful to Him. He calls us to Him in every way possible, and so we give Jesus the authority (by fearing Him) to heal the damage that we have done ourselves. Jesus came to teach, never to impress.

Faithfulness

Psalm 57:10 "Your love, O LORD, reaches to the heavens. Your faithfulness stretches to the sky."

Lamentations 3:23 "Great is Your faithfulness! I say to myself, 'The LORD is my portion; therefore, I will wait for Him."

Psalm 91:4 "His faithfulness will be my shield."

Finish the Race, My Beloved

Psalm 40:8 "I desire to do Your will, O God; Your law is within my heart."

Psalm 143:10 "Teach me to do Your will, O God; for You are my God. May Your spirit lead me..."

Matthew 26:39 "Yet not as I will, but as You will."

Acts 20:24 "I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task that the LORD has given me."

Ephesians 5:17 "Do not be foolish, but understand what the LORD's will is."

Philippians 2:13 "For it is God who works in You to will and to act according to His good purpose."

Seek the LORD

Psalm 34:4 "I sought the LORD and He answered Me! He delivered me from all my fears."

Psalm 34:18 "The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those crushed in spirit."

Proverbs 3:5-6 "Trust in the LORD and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge Him, and He will set straight your paths."

Life Throws You Curves

Oh, goodness. How long it's been since I've had time to write; and whether it's time or anything to say, I suppose, is the question. I suppose that there really isn't a lot to say. The past month and a half has been quite crazy, to be truthful, with preparing for my internship, being ALL done with school (but not walking until May), and deciding on a graduate program. Since August, I've really been praying about going into ministry. I had tried to start off in so many other directions and felt the Lord was calling me to this- for good- this time. But as my doubts always seem to throw me off course, there as an influx of people asking, "Well, what about this and what about these things?" and I kind of went a little crazy. I surely thought that something so relative to being the hands and feet of Jesus would be fulfilling in that way; but of course we always battle spiritual warfare, since it is our commoners that question us. Proverbs 16: 2-3 reads, "All a man's ways seem innocent to him, but motives are weighed by the Lord. Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans WILL succeed." How merciful is the Lord upon us that all we must do is commit to the Lord; submit to Him out of love and fear for who He is; and we will succeed. This, again, doesn't always mean "success" in the tangible ways we want it to- money, praise of other men, etc. But the joy of the Lord will be our strength. That was something I forgot when, out of NOWHERE, I felt God calling me back into Nursing. Am I crazy? I quit Nursing for a reason; of course those reason related to comparing myself and telling myself I wasn't smart enough to be admitted to the program. I was a hard worker, but I didn't see any tangible evidence that I would be able to maintain the grades. So I started thinking about music or ministry or something. I graduated with a B.S. in Human Services, Community Health, and Nutrition. But where am I going with that? Through all of this, I have felt a tug on my heart that my desire is to serve the Lord in travel, by caring for people. My ideal career setting is ministry, yes- but the ministry field is everywhere- I want to be in a hospital. I am willing to work very hard again to try to succeed in this, even though it will be painful, no doubt. I am trying to feel as confident as I can this time, about where the Lord is calling me. The thing is: don't question the Lord. He will lead your paths straight. He always does!