_8.28.20

I am so excited to finally be able to share with you these thoughts. Many of you have prayed specifically for me as I have been trying to write and share them. These are some of the things the Lord has been speaking to me lately. Thank you for your prayers!

There have been so many changes and challenges affecting the entire world. This ‘new normal’ includes virtual church services; virtual funerals , not being able to visit parents; loneliness; fear; despair, and the list goes on and on.  We have been impacted by many of these and I am sure many of you have been affected by one or all of these things as well. I would like to encourage you to read 2 Corinthians. 

Paul shares with us some of the most challenging times he ever faced in his life, and we see God walking with him.  I am so encouraged by hearing both his struggles and the way God delivered him by helping him to see things from a different perspective.  I want to share with you a short part of 2 Corinthians chapter 1 verses 8-11. 

“We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about the
troubles we experienced in the province of Asia. We were under great
pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life
itself. Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death…“

I am wondering how long it took Paul to gain the right perspective; to be able to share the rest of the verses.  Sometimes the deep things that God is working in our lives can take a lot more time for them to sink into our hearts. 

Paul continues…

“But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God,
who raises the dead. He has delivered us from such a deadly peril,
and he will deliver us again. On him we have set our hope that he will
continue to deliver us, as you help us by your prayers. Then many will
give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in
answer to the prayers of many.“

Paul is sharing with us the struggles and also the right perspective: ‘to rely on God not on ourselves’. God delivers us again and again, He is our hope, He grants us favor and we can count on the prayers of His people. Amazing!

Later, in 2 Corinthians chapter 4, Paul shares with us… (italics mine)

But we have this treasure in jars of clay…waiting time  
to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us… perspective from God 
We are hard pressed on every side …  waiting time 
but not crushed … perspective from God
perplexed … waiting time  
but not in despair … perspective from God
persecuted … waiting time  
but not abandoned … perspective from God 
struck down … waiting time 
but not destroyed …  perspective from God 
We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus… waiting time
so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body … perspective from God 

When my perspective of what I can do is ^_small and my perspective of what God is doing is Huge I get the right perspective.

I want to thank you all so much for your prayers for us. You are in our prayers.

5.21.20

Moses had to learn this just like we do! 

When God called him from the burning bush Moses was filled with doubts and memories of past failures; he told God in Exodus 3:11 “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” 

Can you think of a time when God asked you to do something way beyond what you thought you were capable of? I can.  When we are looking at our abilities and our past, we can quickly join in with Moses in saying “who am I that I should go?” 

 I can start to worry and feel like all of the responsibility is on me to be able to figure out how to solve the problems that come up in life. 

It is encouraging to me to see that Moses also had his hills and valleys. He needed to learn, just like we do, how to walk by faith.  He was learning to trust God more and more and trust himself less and less.  God gave Moses this amazing promise “And God said, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”  Then Moses said to Him, “If Your Presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here.”” Exodus 33:14-15. Moses hung on to that promise! 

In a similar way, Jesus gave this amazing promise that we can hang on to “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”  Matthew 11:28-30 

Our walk of faith is not a straight line; we fail and we learn to trust God and we grow.  Paul said in Romans 8:29 that we are being conformed to the image of Jesus Christ; just as God shaped Moses through their relationship, we are being shaped through our relationship with Jesus to become more like Him.  

A friend encouraged me today with this verse in Romans 14:4 

“Who are you to judge another’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand.”   

I have always read this verse in regards to my opinion of other believers, but until today, I never thought of applying this command to my opinion of myself. I should not judge myself! I wanted to see if this thought was even Biblical 😊 Paul shares a similar thought to this in 1 Corinthians 4:3-4 “But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by a human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself. For I know of nothing against myself, yet I am not justified by this; but He who judges me is the Lord.” 

The encouragement in Romans 14:4 is that God’s opinion is more important than our own opinion, He is the One who enables us to stand, the One in whom we find rest, He is present with those He sends.

Next time when the question of “who am I?” comes, we need to remember to stop looking to ourselves for answers and look to the One True God, who told Moses… 

I AM who I AM    Exodus 3:14 

I AM who is with you! Exodus 3:12 

I AM the one who sent you. Exodus 3:14 

May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful, and He will do it.  Brothers and sisters, pray for us. 1 Thessalonians 5:23-25

It is the day before Easter. Many of us have heard the story many, many times. It is our hope and our joy and yet… we have days like the disciples did between the crucifixion and Easter Sunday…

“And He said to them, ‘What kind of conversation is this that you have with one another as you walk and are sad?’ Then the one whose name was Cleopas answered and said to Him, ‘Are You the only stranger in Jerusalem, and have You not known the things which happened there in these days?’ And He said to them, ‘What things?’ So they said to Him, ‘The things concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a Prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people,and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to be condemned to death, and crucified Him.But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, today is the third day since these things happened.” ~Luke 24:17-21

We, like these disciples, have hopes based on our understanding, perhaps we have a small picture of what Jesus is doing.

The most encouraging thought I have is that God’s plan wasn’t dependent on His disciples. They were confused, doubtful, and fearful of what was really happening.

I realize that I rarely understand even a small part of what God is doing. I find myself in great need of Jesus’ help for understanding. We read later in this chapter…

“And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures.” ~Luke 24:45

Jesus came and helped them understand.

Every one of the people that loved and trusted in Jesus was struggling that first Easter Sunday, Jesus knew that and went looking for them.

We are all going to have our share of ups and downs in this life. Jesus knows exactly where you and I are and how you and I are really doing.

The real Joy of Easter was all of the amazing reunions of Jesus with those He loved, revealing Himself after his resurrection, again and again to them. Our greatest moments of this life are when He reveals Himself to us; a taste of knowing Him forever.

“For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.” ~1 Corinthians 13:12