To Lay Down a Life

He picks up the fallen, sawed logs and lies them in a path for others to follow.

Raking dead and fallen leaves to clear a path for tiny feet and wrinkled hands.

Pushing the dead things aside, giving of his time and energy. Eagerly working at his task that will provide direction through the woods on a dirt path to grandma’s house.

 

 I see him working gladly and give thanks for his work.  Thinking all the while that in laying down our lives, the dead things, and picking up our cross, new life, we are laying paths for fellow man.

24Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. Matthew 16:24-25

Weeks approaching Thanksgiving may meditation be on this:

1 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth! 2Serve the LORD with gladness! Come into his presence with singing!3Know that the LORD, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him;bless his name! For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations. Psalm 100

In everyday tasks, to serve the LORD with gladness. To do this. To do this, is to lay down my life and walk in the newness of Christ’s.

Give thanks, lay down our wills, take up our crosses and lay a path for fellow-man to follow.

May praises and thanks be on our lips and gladness be in our heart.

*a repost

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When Plans Don’t Work Out

Last year Ron and I traveled to the Grand Canyon with 5 other people through a ministry called Going the Distance Adventure Ministries. You must know, the trip was an unspoken bucket list item checked off. We hiked the 12 mile round trip Bright Angel Trail out to the Plateau Point. It was a beautiful, slightly challenging hike that thrilled my adventure seeking heart.

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But that is only part of the story.

Three men from our team hiked the 25 mile Rim to Rim hike…in one day. I really wanted to attempt this hike, but was slightly discouraged by the sincere questions of people as to whether I was up for the challenge. I decided that I should start with the “easier’ hike first.

The taste  of the Rim to Rim hike has been ever on my mind for 11 months now. I began working-out harder almost immediately after our return last October and even started CrossFit Workouts of the Day between 4-6 months ago. Additionally, the StairMaster plus a 15 lb. kettle bell and I have become friends. I use the term friend loosely here.

Imagine my dismay and utter disappointment when the Government Shutdown earlier this week included the shut down of all the national parks. That meant my Rim to Rim hike with GTD would have to be routed to hikes outside of the Grand Canyon.

Don’t get me wrong, the revenue loss alone is a reason to be upset about the closing of all national parks. However, consider the individual stories that are being rewritten as a result of this standoff. Wedding cancellations, war veterans meeting up with their comrades for the first time in decades are left with dashed plans, and costly family vacation plans impacted.

Sometimes our plans don’t work out.

What do we do next? Well, in my case, I consider what my plans have cost me to date. I am in better physical condition than I was this time last year, Ron and I still get a few days away, great flood geology teaching, and Sedona red rocks will be equally exquisite as last year. However, there remains a goal unmet, a dream unrealized.

You would think I would quit training, right?

Wrong! I am continuing to train.I am confident my preparation will be met with opportunity.

It is much like this blog. When I first started my readership was significantly less than the present. The audience size didn’t affect my output in writing quality and desire to do my best job every time.In fact, days before my editor over at iBelieve contacted me about partnering with them, I told Ron, “I post and write the best I can as frequently as I can so that one day if opportunity arises for growth, I will be ready.”

In the spiritual, as in the physical, we can put off training for heaven as our eternal home because we are duped into thinking this life is longer than the breath we have. However, we are to live with an eternal mindset, everyday, so that when the opportunity to step into the heavenly realm signals with the end of our mortal lives we have done the work and finished our race in top shape…with fewer regrets.

We can make our plans, but the LORD determines our steps. (Proverbs 16:9)

Wherever it is that I hike in the next two weeks, I am confidant that the Lord ordered the steps that I will take, the path I will follow, and the people that I will walk it with. I am so thankful that the Lord gives us the desires of our hearts and then throws in some twists and turns in our stories as well.

What have you learned from plans that didn’t work out?

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Keep Doing Good

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 If you have read here for any amount of time you will know that I am a morning person and a goal in life is to  wake up before my children and have my breakfast and quiet time. This summer I have slept in until 6 AM most days…I realize, it could be worse.

Yesterday, I rose before my husband  got back from the gym. Before the kids were up, I had already prepared the coffee, and poured a cup. Yes, I know man doesn’t live on coffee alone, but it helps! As I was saying, I had prepared a cup of coffee, but that was as far as I had gotten. Each time I sat down to eat, then to read my Bible, one of my three children would arise asking for a drink, more breakfast, a t.v. show, and on it went.

As I kissed Ron goodbye (he had already returned and prepared for his day),  and as I started to shut the door behind him, two more requests sounded. He looked at me in sympathy and told me he would be praying for our day.

Wife, mother, grandmother, can you nod your head emphatically?

Some might say I haven’t developed a sense of independence in our children. Well that may be, but they are all 5 years of age and under. The truth of the matter is, children require attention at no fault of their own.

We played, read, and I vaccummed the whole house and it was only 10:30 AM. After I took the trash outside and breathed the fresh air of a beautiful day, I decided to take the kids to the pool. I had toyed with the idea all morning and just wasn’t sure I had it in me.

We loaded up our supplies and made way to the community pool with noodles, swimmies, and towels in hand.

Maybe 10 minutes into the experience a snack request was made, then a bathroom break, followed by more snack requests, juice box requests, and then multiple potty breaks ensued.

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In short we had a great time. The kids all practiced their swimming and played and giggled with me and each other. Then it was time to go.

Everyone was changed and in their proper seats in the double stroller when one of the boys said, “I have to potty.”

Four simple words, but oh the stress that encompassed me. That was enough for me to declare, “I need a break!”

Are you there dear one? Are you in need of a break? A time-out, away, a respite?

It is never just one stress that pushes us to the point where fists are clenched and sighs are heavy. It is the combination of multiple stresses unaddressed, absent in prayer, and pushed beneath the surface. I know, I am there, I have been there, and in all likelihood I will visit this place again.

Thankfully, God’s Word does not remain silent on the topic of fatigue, in Galatians 6:9, Paul instructs the saints:

Let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.

Dear reader-friend, whatever good you need to keep doing, do it. In due season you will reap if you do not give up. Let the words of Christ as penned through Paul encourage us and admonish us today. God is not slow in fulfilling His promises for He makes everything beautiful in His time. (Ecclesiastes 3:11)

Keep doing good, as I purpose to do the same,

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Here I Am to Worship

To worship is to quicken the conscience by the holiness of God, to feed the mind with the truth of God, to purge the imagination by the beauty of God, to open the heart to the love of God, to devote the will to the purpose of God. ~William Temple

As a little girl, I attended church and Sunday School in the deep south. Each Sunday I donned a smocked dress, tights and leather shoes, topped off with a large matching hair-bow. Today my daughter wears many of  the dresses my mother spent countless hours smocking and ironing  those many years ago. She plays with the little white patent leather purse which in years past held my tithes, offerings, and chap-stick each Sunday.

Maturity has seen a change in apparel along with a change in my heart as I prepare for service…that is, at least when I purpose to poise my heart for worship.

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Addressing a few questions concerning what worship is and why it is important may help us poise our hearts for the most meaningful God-centered worship.

First, worship is a right and exalted view of God and a humbled, dependent view of man on God.

Secondly, worship is important because it opens the door to true intimacy with Christ and clarity of mission we would otherwise live without. Worship does not consist merely of singing. We can worship in various, if not all art forms, in addition to all the work that our hands set to do. Worship is a posture of praise and thanksgiving within our hearts and minds and as expressed through our lives.

The endeavor does not determine the significance of praise, rather it is the hidden thoughts and intents of our hearts. We can sing without love, but it is a clashing symbol or a gong. (1 Corinthians 13) Consider David.  God loved David no less when he worshiped Him on a lonely mountainside filled only with dumb sheep and the sound of his own harp than when David sat enthroned in his palace splendor and declared among God’s people:

“Who am I, O Sovereign LORD, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far? And now, Sovereign LORD, in addition to everything else, you speak of giving your servant a lasting dynasty! Do you deal with everyone this way, O Sovereign LORD?“What more can I say to you? You know what your servant is really like, Sovereign LORD. Because of your promise and according to your will, you have done all these great things and have made them known to your servant. “How great you are, O Sovereign LORD! There is no one like you. We have never even heard of another God like you! (2 Samuel 7:18-22)

Did you notice David’s humbled view of himself and his exalted view of God? This from the man who was labeled by God to be a man after His own heart. Perhaps David was a man after God’s own heart due to his right understanding of the righteousness of God and the praise that flowed from his heart.

Similarly, in Isaiah 6,  Isaiah’s commission comes after he saw the Lord and beheld his glory. His worship of God preceded his obedience to the call of God. Once we see clearly who God is, we realize the absolute imperative of taking the gospel to our neighbor’s, coworkers, and around the globe. 

So the question becomes, how can we worship God individually so that we fuel greater worship of God corporately?  The answer lies in preparing our hearts for worship all week and the hours before corporate worship.

Below are some bullet points which are taken from chapter eleven of the wonderful book, Celebration of Discipline, by Richard Foster.

Daily Preparation for Worship:

  • Learn to practice the presence of God daily. Pray without ceasing. ( 1 Thessalonians 5:17)
  • Have many different experiences of worship: Bible reading, prayers of thanksgiving, meditation on the goodness of God, singing praises, or praising God through various postures of sitting, kneeling, or lying prostrate before God.
  • Have a willingness to be gathered in the power of the Lord for the good of “we” not “me.”
  • Cultivate Holy Dependency: you are utterly and completely dependent upon God for anything significant to happen.
  • Absorb distractions with gratitude. They may be a message from the Lord.
  • Offer a sacrifice of worship. You may not “feel” like worshiping but go anyway.

On Sunday:

  • Arrive to service 10 minutes early.
  • Quiet your mind.
  • Pray for the pastor and worship leader.
  • Pray for others who arrive looking burdened.

If worship does not propel us into greater obedience, it has not been worship. To stand before the Holy One of eternity is to change. To worship is to change.  (Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline, p. 173)

Try to practice the discipline of worship this week. As we do, we will find that our communion with God increases and “the things of earth grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace.” (H. Lemmel)

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A Changing Perspective

A Changing Perspective

Sitting next to Ron on the kiddie playground at the mall, Emily walks over and says,”This playground is smaller.” Ron explains that she is growing bigger, taller, and that what once seemed big looks smaller.

Her perspective is changing as she grows in wisdom and stature.

This changing perspective is a familiar friend to her mama. For instance, the high school halls that once looked so foreboding to an elementary child became navigable as a teen and now seems nearly claustrophobic to a graduate of 14 years.

The inescapable rocks in a box I was told to memorize in middle school have never been so cool to study as they are post-Grand Canyon visit.

I am learning that parenting produces an evolving perspective. Numerous adults have warned me, “These are the easy years when your children are young and you know where they are and what they are doing.”  These same parents fussed and fretted over sleep patterns, eating habits, manners, and mishaps the same as Ron and I when their children were little. However, time has changed their perspective to realize that the trusting and letting go portion of parenthood proves more trying than the building of independence and wisdom.

Noah and his family surely experienced a changing perspective as the ark they labored on day after day reached completion. He walked with the Spirit and worked until the flood. As he and his family labored I propose they thought, “This ark is huge! Certainly there will be ample space for every creature and our family.” But as the earth ripped in two and the waters overcame their boundaries, the once larger than life ark felt more like a pebble tossed into the ocean.

Time and novel circumstances change our perspective. As the changes come, do I respond in thanksgiving? Do I embrace or resent the change? Am I looking for the rainbow in the clouds?

My patterns of thinking constantly need a change in perspective. I frequently, if not daily, remind myself to be thankful for the present, for that which is in-front of me, and which I already possess. It takes a Romans 12:1-2 renewing of the mind to look at reality with a righteous gratitude and not a rotten attitude of envy or jealousy coupled with discontent and nostalgia.

What about you? Do you need a fresh perspective? Do you need a renewing of the mind’s eye? An evaluation of present gratitude?  If so, join me in praying:

Sovereign Lord,

You are the maker of heaven and earth. Your thoughts are higher than our thoughts and your ways higher than ours. You do not see as man sees; you look at the heart. Lord, give me eyes to see, ears that hear, and a faith that believes.  Please search me now and know my inner thoughts. Reveal to me the areas of my life and present circumstances that need a fresh Spirit-filled perspective. Help me to be grateful for what Your hand has allowed this day and for the fruit that my current obedience and labor has been rewarded with. Help me not to compare my lot in life with others, but to glory in Your gracious salvation and Your divine plan. Help me to be obedient and grateful with every step Lord, every step, every thought, every deed. And when I fail, for failure is certain, help me to repent and renew my strength to run again in obedience and steadfastness.

In Jesus Name I Pray,

Amen

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What I Learned at My First Youth Pastor’s Conference

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Sitting in the Hard Rock concert hall in Orlando, I contemplated the irony that my first youth pastor’s conference comes about eight months after our six year tenor as youth pastor and wife had officially ended. I further considered the hilarity that the “cool” students in youth groups  initially intimidate me nearly as much as the youth workers with swag!

After settling into my cushioned seat, along with my surroundings,  the people watching began. As workers and volunteers filed into the auditorium it didn’t take long for mommies and daddies carrying babies in infant backpacks to catch my attention.  I was instantly reminded:

The sacrifices and juggling youth pastors and their wives endure to meet the needs of students is one of the most unseen tasks of the ministry.

For moms partnering alongside their pastor husbands, babies bring love and logistical issues. The will, passions, and heart of the mother are oftentimes torn between the desire to be the visual, involved helpmate of her pastor husband. While loving my job and joy as a mother, I often struggled with the desire to experience all of the riches of youth ministry: trips, conferences, discipleship, after church meals and fellowships. However, the choices of: a. bring the kids and chase after them… and the youth, or b. find a sitter to pay while I enjoy ministry, were both less than ideal.

If you are in the midst of ministering to teens or are parents of teens, would you agree that at times this portion of ministry seems like the leach and daughters in Proverbs 30; always crying for more? As a youth pastor’s wife, I often felt this way. (I can say that now, although it is with great fear and trepidation even after running in a different lane of ministry for 8 months!) Youth ministry is demanding and the pace strenuous.

Please understand, I loved pouring our lives into the next generation. Our aim was to minister so that fully devoted disciples would be made to reach the nations and the generations with the gospel for the glory of Jesus Christ. However, there was an ongoing struggle, a wrestle if you will, with my flesh, our families needs, and the demands and desires to minister as God would have both of us do.

At this conference I learned very valuable ministry methods, was reminded of the global needs of God’s created world, and reviewed with speakers the true critical issues of youth ministry. But, perhaps the most valuable challenge for me specifically was the reminder to pray for youth pastor’s and specifically their wives.

Join me today in praying for the youth pastor’s wife in your church. I hope the bullet points below would be a good launch pad for your prayers.

  • Pray for God’s peace for the current pace they are running.
  • Pray for endurance and perserverance under stresses.
  • Pray that they will see the value in all tasks both the seen (ministering to and with teens and adult workers) and the unseen (ministering to their husband within the home).
  • Pray for peer friendships and women to pour into them.
  • Pray for peace when she cannot go with him on trips.
  • Pray for God to guard and guide their marriage relationship.
  • Pray for their children and the faith and Christian worldview to come to full fruition in their lives.

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Celebrate His Coming

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My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.  You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world– to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice. (John 18:36-37)

Wonder, amazement, and awe are emotions felt when we pause to consider the coming of Christ. Jesus left his eternal domain of Heaven and took time-capsuled residence among the fallen and flailing.

The King of Kings, Creator of All, clothed in human flesh… the dust of the earth. At the Father’s will He was crushed, stripped, beaten, and pierced for my transgressions: envy, covetousness, pride, slander, anger, ungratefulness, and ungodliness to name a few.

Jesus bore a mocking crown of thorns and accepted blows and insults as a lamb slain for the final sin offering. He is the One whose sacrifice we celebrate as His people freed from our sin.

Each man who had a part in the punishment of Jesus was known to Him by name. He knew everything about them. Likewise, he knows everything about us. All that we have done or will do both for shame and for His glory and yet, even then He chose the most burdensome cross of all: to do the Father’s will and restore relationship between Holy God and wicked man.

The Redeemer came to reunify the created to the Creator. Like the Good Shepherd that goes after the one lost lamb, He came so that all the lost have freedom to choose life. Life not given at first breath, but by means of dying to ourselves. That we may be reborn to new life in Christ that can never die.

Now we may walk with our Savior.

In Isaiah 53, the prophet, Isaiah, prophesied about Jesus, the Messiah, 700 years before His birth and 733 years before His cruel death on the cross. Our God is the Master Author, Scientist, and Historian. He is the more than we could ask for or imagine (Ephesians 3:20).

Bowed as branches we celebrate His triumphal entry, as was His way: riding upon a lowly donkey. May this Sunday’s celebration remind us to eagerly await the second coming of the One who, appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. (Hebrews 9:11-28)

But he remained silent and made no answer. Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” And Jesus said, “I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven. (Mark 14:61-62)

Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest! (Matthew 21:9)

Looking to the clouds and eagerly awaiting our Lord…

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A Walk With Our Savior

Almost two years ago I was confined to walking in chest level water for exercise. At the time I tried to learn as much as possible of the spiritual parallels for walking in the water.

This past Sunday evening, Ron and I were watching The Bible on the History Channel. In one scene, John the Baptist is preaching repentance and salvation, and also baptizing in the Jordan River. John’s cousin, Jesus, approaches him to be baptized (Matthew 3:12-17). The moment Jesus’ feet plodded through the water to fulfill all righteousness, it came to me:

Jesus walked through the waters of baptism before He walked on the water of ministry.

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For those who are in Christ Jesus, our conversion precedes our submersion (baptism) and our submission to the will of God begins with believers baptism.

So often people will question whether or not they are ready for baptism. When the Lord calls us to come and die to our old life, our sin nature, repentance followed by confession of His Lordship (Romans 10:9-10) leads to new life. As a new creature, our response is a life centered around the life of Christ lived in us. Walking through the baptismal waters is our first act of obedience and preaching of the gospel with our lives.

No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day. (John 6:44)

Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” (Matthew 17:24-25)

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In baptism we follow our Savior. In so doing we preach the gospel and walk with Him.

And He walks with me, and He talks with me,
And He tells me I am His own;
And the joy we share as we tarry there,
None other has ever known.

~In the Garden, C. Austin Miles, 1868-1946

The act of baptism does not save us but is an outward declaration of our faith in Jesus. It is a picture of our dying to self to rise in new life in Jesus Christ.

As Easter approaches let us test ourselves to see if we are in Christ Jesus. If Heaven is to be our eternal home then Christ must be the Lord of our lives.

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Embracing Everyday Beauty

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 And you shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother, for glory and for beauty. ~Exodus 28:2

This scripture encouraged me earlier in the week. It was comforting to know that God loves beauty. One look outside professes that He delights in creating beautiful things. Likewise, God has created us both for His glory and for the beauty of relationship. Days are messy…relationships certainly included, but we must train our thoughts to think on that which is pure, excellent, praiseworthy, noble, true, …lovely (Philippians 4:8). Embracing the everyday in totality yet through the lens of Christ and the gospel.

 Let us meditate for a moment on that phrase “whatever is lovely.” Think of something that is “lovely” to you. A sunset. A favorite novel. Tiny robins chirping in the nest. The face of someone you love. Music that makes you dance. Let your mind dwell there for a moment. Give it directed mental focus.

You just obeyed the Bible. That “counts.” You just opened up your mind a bit to the flow of the Holy spirit. ~John Ortberg, The Me I Want to Be

God redeems the days and we are to seek and dwell on beauty in them. What has God called for you to make for your brother for His glory and for beauty? What beauty has he crafted for you this day that you can recount? It may be more simple than first imagined: focused discussion, uninterrupted play, a special outing, a shared meal, a thoughtful thank you, or a timely apology.

For His glory and for beauty,

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Instruments of the King


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Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. ~Romas 6:13

As strings glided upon strings and strokes of keys resounded, our Father was praised and His Body edified.

Lifeless wood emits sound only as skilled as the hands that craft the instrument and string its cords. So too is a life.

I once was dead in my sin; absolutely blind to the God of the universe. His spoken word, spilled blood, and resurrected Son brought the newness of life that I walk in.

Paul instructs us to present ourselves to God as instruments of righteousness. Sunday evening I was soul-blessed by a Christmas concert of the Annie Moses band. I heard what instruments yielded in the hands of skilled artists produce. Similarly are the lives of men orchestrated by our righteous, holy God.

Music such as I heard last night takes hours and hours of practice to produce, so too a righteous life. Discipline begets discipline and holy obedience in turn a holy life. Patterns and practices of holiness are the result of one choice upon another to obey Christ with faith that we will be fully rewarded. Further, faith that His ways are truly best.

This created instrument has been used for both righteousness and unrighteousness. When my last note is played and I am laid in an earthen case, it will be the symphony of His story that will play on. May this instrument present herself for righteousness as the skilled hand of the Creator plays out His grand story.

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