by Elizabeth | Nov 17, 2010 | Learning Story
Don’t you just love it when God gives a vivid, real-life illustration of His glory? Just such a thing happened to a group I gathered with last weekend to look at A Woman’s Story together.
It was Saturday afternoon, and the weather was quite warm for an Indiana/Ohio November day — temperatures close to 70.
We had opened the back double doors to the little lodge we were meeting in to let the air come through. All of a sudden, with an afternoon-slumber-jolting slam, the side door blew open!
I had two immediate thoughts, which of course, I shared with the group:
1: The Holy Spirit just burst in!’ and 2: ‘I forgot to pray!’ (before the session began:).
Of course, I was wrong, because in fact the Holy Spirit was ‘in’ the room the whole time, alive and active in our hearts as Christians. As Christ told us, we are not left alone as Christians. The Spirit is the “paraclete,” the Comforter who lives in us and moves with us, the power of Christ changing our hearts, the Word of Christ preaching the gospel to our minds, the the Wisdom of Christ redeeming our foolishness.
“All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” John 14: 25-27
Stop, look, listen! The power of the Spirit is moving in you this very moment, as vividly as a door slamming open!
by Elizabeth | Nov 16, 2010 | Learning Story
I confess. Politics frighten me. I easily get overwhelmed by the issues and the ethical complexities. Every election season sends me to one of two places — 1 – cynicism, certainly a safe place to land in this country of the disillusioned, or 2 – worship — praising God again that He is the Wise King who ruled in the strangest way possible, by doing the penultimate foolish political act — “this would be political death” his advisors might say…Our Ruler as Christians established shalom and restored broken things.
Today I write because politics is becoming personal. Our eldest son is declaring intent to run for president of the student body at his university. Part of me is screaming, “Don’t do it!” (Back to my ‘what-if’ tendencies…’what-if’ someone launches a smear campaign?’ ‘what-if someone hurts his feelings?’ Yes, you can see that I am not very far along in my political or maternal maturity:).
Mostly, though, I say, keep on moving, one step at a time, into this story God has so clearly led you into. He has looked to God to help him decide if he should run. He has worked as a restorer of broken things on campus, bringing, among other things, refillable water stations to eliminate the vast waste of plastic bottles. (He’s done other things, but this is not a campaign blog, just a mom being proud and humbled and “treasuring up things in her heart” and watching to see how God moves in this world and her son’s life.)
Mostly, I say to him, to all of my children, to my husband, myself, and you: let us all be good rulers of this earth, for it is our central calling from Genesis 1. Let us exercise dominion by the grace of God alone. Let us live each moment of every day as instruments of peace and restoration. Let us dream of the day when Christ will return, and government will truly mean establishing right relationships and full beauty. For, as I wrote a while back, “the zeal of the Lord of Hosts will accomplish this!”
“For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 Of the greatness of his government and peace
there will be no end.
He will reign on David’s throne
and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
with justice and righteousness
from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the LORD Almighty
will accomplish this.” Isaiah 9:6-7
by Elizabeth | Nov 15, 2010 | Learning Story
One of my favorite things about traveling is discovering previously unknown (to me) aspects of God’s creation. I so enjoyed leading a retreat last weekend. Not only were there amazing women and wonderful stories, there was also beautiful (unexpectedly warm:) Fall weather. Flying into Kentucky, staying with my hostess in Ohio, and traveling to the retreat center in Indiana, I was introduced to all sorts of beauty uncommon to the panhandle of Florida.
In a late afternoon walk, I discovered something new, pictured below.
I am told it is an “Osage Orange” and that it repels all sorts of insects as well as making for a sparkly show in the fireplace when burned. Its nickname is Monkey Brains.
Of course my mind went to part of the subject matter for that night:
“When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.” Gen. 3:6
We don’t know exactly what kind of fruit Eve saw there that seemed so delectable. But it just occurred to me that if it was “monkey brains” maybe she wouldn’t have been so interested:)
On the other hand, perhaps she would because the tricky thing about temptation is that things that look as gnarly and unpleasant to the eyes can also compel us to touch, taste, test if we think they will give us a boost in the quest to make our lives work more according to our liking.
How about you? Why do the things that tempt you to sin seem appealing? What do they offer?
by Elizabeth | Nov 12, 2010 | Learning Story
Oh, love is a many-splendored and often-splintered thing. How do we “define” it, get a handle on it? I think the best answer Christians can give is the old adage, “You look up love in the dictionary and Christ’s picture is next to it.”
Here are a few thoughts from Scripture and various folks. Read them but before flying on to the next window, stop and think (and comment here:) — “What might love look like in your life today?”
16 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. 17 If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be that person? 18 Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.”
“To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even to an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket- safe, dark, motionless, airless–it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable.” C.S. Lewis
“You cannot worship unless you know you do not deserve to dance. You cannot worship unless you know that you do.” Dan Allender
A Love Prayer:
Father God, it is only because you loved us perfectly through your Son’s sacrifice that we can love at all. We ask you, urge you, make us more like Christ. Keep us from stepping into sinkholes of trying to love in our own strength. By your Spirit give us eyes to see, ears to hear, lips to speak, feet to dance, into your hurting world with YOUR love today. We love you, Lord, because you first loved us.
by Elizabeth | Nov 10, 2010 | Learning Story
One of my favorite parts of my work is looking over my notes before I go to teach and picturing how the Word and words God has given me will impact the people there. This morning, as I was doing this, I thought of all of you who read this blog and wondered:
“How’s your hope today?” Tracing Mary’s story from the moment Gabriel says “nothing is impossible with God” to the day when she stands watching Jesus hanging on the Cross, I thought of the sweet moments of hope intermingled with the seasons of hopes crushed.
Don’t have time to find a performance on Youtube now but I’ll bet you can…Look up Natalie Grant’s song Our Hope Endures and listen and meditate. If you can’t find it, here are the words. I do hope we all remember the only source of hope unchanged today.
You would think only so much can go wrong
Calamity only strikes once
And you assume this one has suffered her share
Life will be kinder from here
Oh, but sometimes the sun stays hidden for years
Sometimes the sky rains night after night
When will it clear?
But our Hope endures the worst of conditions
It’s more than our optimism
Let the earth quake
Our Hope is unchanged
How do we comprehend peace within pain?
Or joy at a good man’s wake?
Walk a mile with the woman whose body is racked
With illness, oh how can she laugh?
Oh, ’cause sometimes the sun stays hidden for years
Sometimes the sky rains night after night
When will it clear?
But our Hope endures the worst of conditions
It’s more than our optimism
Let the earth quake
Our Hope is unchanged
Emmanuel, God is with us
El Shaddai, all sufficient
We never walk alone
And this is our hope
But our Hope endures the worst of conditions
It’s more than our optimism
Let the earth quake
Our Hope is unchanged
by Elizabeth | Nov 9, 2010 | Learning Story
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like unto it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the law and the prophets hang on these two commandments.” Matthew 22:37
Just last week, I mentioned the great hymn, “O Holy Night” in a meditation on “the gospel of peace.” And now, as I think about law and liberty, I’m drawn there again: “His law is love; his gospel is peace.”
A quick story to think about the freedom given to us in the law of love:
My daughter, a senior in high school, told me about a recent interaction she had with a former best friend. She and her friend were great buddies as pre-adolescents, during the sweet and somewhat innocent years of 10-13. (Yes, somewhat – not completely.) They headed off to the same high school, expecting this friendship to continue. But it didn’t. They made different choices about the people they would hang out with, and that led to some very different lifestyle choices. As my daughter disagreed with some of the choices her friend was making, thinking they were destructive, they fought and went their separate ways.
My daughter said, “Well, it was so awkward passing her in the halls and not talking to her at all. Then her Dad came into the guidance office where I was working and I asked him how she was. He told me she had really pulled up her grades and was excited about applying to college. I thought how silly it was to be so awkward with her, and I was really happy for her. So I sent her a message on Facebook and told her that. She wrote me back and said she was doing lots better and maybe we could hang out sometime.”
It’s a small story. A high school story. And yet, as a 48-year-old, I’d have to say that sadly I have some stories like that, where the law of “unlove” has limited my ability to live as I am redeemed to live. I’m still thinking about this. How does this law of love give me the liberty to be reconciled to those I have become estranged to? I know I can’t do it in my own strength, but I know the gospel deconstructs all strong barriers to relationship.
Lord, help us all, to look toward reconciliation and restoration, because your gospel of peace frees us to live in forgiveness and hope. Because of your Son’s precious name I ask it. AMEN
