at a loss

{found via pinterest}

okay, i'll be straight with you. i'm kind of at a loss this week. i don't know what to say.

sure, i have a lot of ideas in my head, but none of them have come together to make any meaningful sense. and every time i start to write something about faith right now, i make God sound cliché, and the God of the universe is anything but cliché. the people of this world who try to describe him often make him sound that way - i have no doubt that i have done so on more than one occasion. we use our old standbys when we don't have anything else to say, even though the standbys sound hollow.

living the christian life is tough. well - attempting to live the christian life is tough. let's be honest, none of us do it super well, and no one does it perfectly. but God does not weary of us. and how great is that?

no matter where we are, or what we've done, what our past looks like, how we behaved 5 years ago, or 5 seconds ago, he will receive us with open arms because Christ finished the work a long time ago.

you may be like me today. maybe you're a bit at a loss. maybe you don't know why something happened, or is happening, or what is going to happen. maybe you feel alone or too far gone.

maybe you, like me, just need a reminder that the God of the universe created you, and loves you, and has a purpose for you. when you're at a loss it doesn't always feel like God sees you, even in the moment. but for all the times i've been at a loss - and there have been plenty - i can always look back and see him at work, somehow, some way.

he always finds us.

sometimes we have to come to the end of ourselves to realize who he really is, but nonetheless, he finds us. and he does not grow weary of us.

much love to you.

katie

Remembering Stones

Yesterday in Sunday School, we talked about when the Israelites crossed the Jordan river to go into the Promised Land (Joshua 3).  I loved learning more about the culture and all that God's power over the Jordan would have meant to them.  But it's what happened, after they crossed the Jordan, that I want to write about. 

In Joshua 4, God instructs them to choose 12 men, one from each tribe, to take up 12 stones from the middle of the Jordan and put them down where they would stay the first night.  Verse 7 says they were to be a memorial to the people forever.  I've always thought of them as remembering stones and I think the principle is essential to us today.

More than once, the Bible tells us to remember...  Remember the wonders of the LORD...  remember what He did...  Remembering God's faithfulness to us in the past can give us the courage to be obedient Him in the present...  Remembering God's works, His sovereignty and power, can encourage us when our world seems like it is spinning out of control...  Remembering God's past work in our lives can reassure us and encourage us to persevere, even when God seems distant or silent.

One of my most precious remembering stones is on our oldest son's leg (it's really his remembering stone, but as his mom, I claim it too!).  About 2 1/2 years ago, Zack was working his summer landscaping job when he tripped and fell while operating a 1500 pound piece of landscaping equipment.  It ran up the lower part of his leg and when he pushed it off, the treads cut down into the lower part of his leg.

I'll spare you the gory details, but I have to tell you one thing that's essential to this story...  The treads cut down right between the two arteries that run down the leg.  Doctors were amazed that they were untouched.  If one had been cut, it might have been tragic, but if both had been cut, as one nurse said, "short of a miracle, it most certainly would have been tragic." 

I don't see the scar on his leg that I don't also see the hand of God...  Just yesterday (with no idea of what we had talked about in Sunday School) Zack said, "Mom, it's strange, I can feel my heart beat through the scar."  Another reminder that I don't have to live in fear...  I don't have to constantly worry while waiting for our children to come home... God holds life in the palm of His hand.  It doesn't mean that nothing bad will happen, but it does remind me that God is in control of all of our days.  Psalm 139:16 tells us that God ordained all of our days, before one of them came to be.  All of my worry won't change a moment and God is far more capable of protecting those I love than I'll ever be.  And as much as I love them, He loves them far more, so I can trust that too!

Remembering stones come in all shapes and sizes, much like the stones they would have chosen from the middle of the Jordan.  They are simply the stories of God's work, His love, His faithfulness, His redemption and restoration in our own lives.  They can come from answered prayer, a life experience where God redeemed a story of heartache for good, or other stories of God's provision, protection, etc.  But here's one last thing about remembering stones, they can be used to encourage others and to teach others about our Great God!  In Joshua 4:6-7, God told them to tell the story to their children.

So, do you have a remembering stone?  I would love for you to share your story with us.  You never know who might need a word of encouragement today!

Happy remembering!

Sharla

Walking A Mile

Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes.  That way when you critize them, you are a mile away from them and you have their shoes.  ∼ Jack Handey

I think this is a funny quote.  Although, it is said that truth is often found in humor.  This truth is not the 'Big T' truth of God, but the 'little t' truth of reality.  Too often we are critical of others, try to justify our own critical natures and fail to treat others as Jesus asked us to treat them. 

The idea of walking a mile reminds me of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount which instructs us on many things.  For me, one of the most convicting instructions is found in Matthew 5:38-42:

³⁸ “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ ³⁹ But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. ⁴⁰ And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic,^[h] let him have your cloak as well. ⁴¹ And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. ⁴² Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you.

This passage very clearly tells us how to react when evil is done to us.  Those are hugely radical statements.  Yet in our culture we have qualified, excused, explained and reasoned around them.  Did Jesus really mean what he said?  If he did this is what he asks us to do:

• When someone hits you, don't hit back.
• When someone sues you, give him and extra amount.
• If you are forced to do something for someone, double the work.
• Give to those that beg from you.
• Lend to the one that asks to borrow from you.

As a follower of Christ, it gives me a lot to think about ∼ Cynthia

building a kingdom

{found via pinterest}

every day i wake up, get keane out of his crib and proceed to get us breakfast. there are a million little things i do on a daily basis, and i do most of those things to benefit me somehow. most of the day, most of the time i do things for me. even if what i'm doing is also for someone else, there's usually something in it for me too.

at the end of the day, i'm ridiculously selfish. we're all pretty selfish when we get right down to it, and we can easily get caught up in pushing our own goals through to fruition.

and that's the thing. no matter who we are, or what we do, or even what we believe about God, we work every day to build some sort of kingdom. we may work toward building our own individual kingdom, a kingdom for our family, a kingdom for our company, or any other number of kingdoms. but the point is, we serve someone. we set someone or something up on that pedestal and we live our life for it.

sometimes we live for money. sometimes it's fame. sometimes it's family. sometimes it's for someone else's agenda. sometimes it's politics. sometimes it's simply to chase happiness. and sometimes it's God.

personally conviction has set in over the last couple of weeks. how often do i really live to serve God? and who or what do i put in his place? and why do i live like that other thing matters more?

i know i cannot work simply work harder at it, and live a better life out of my own ability. and i know that living more for God will not change how much he loves me or accepts me. i know there are many things in my life that i must simply surrender to God over and over and over again [x(a million)]. but i also know that in building his kingdom i can rest in him, and his perfection and his sovereignty and his justice and his holiness. i know that his kingdom is the only one truly worth building. and though one day he will build a new heaven and a new earth, his kingdom will not pass away.

xo,

katie

Two Natures Within...

I have to admit, there was a show on Netflix last year that I really enjoyed...  Now this feels like a confession, because there was nothing, I mean NOTHING, redeeming about this show.  But it had some of my favorite actors and the story lines each week were fascinating...  I didn't realize this last season, but as I look back, it seemed to explore the depths of the darkness of the human heart, left to its own devices and schemes.  I was watching for when the second season would begin, which was last week...

Monday morning came, the kids were back in school and I was working on a jewelry project that made it possible  to watch and work at the same time...  But God has a wonderful sense of timing!

Earlier on Monday morning, I read Acts 3.  In Acts 3, Peter and John heal a lame man and the people are astounded, so Peter addresses the people and gives a powerful presentation of the gospel.  But it was verse 26 that grabbed my heart and mind, "God, having raised up His servant, sent Him to you first, to bless you by turning every one of you from your wickedness."

God sent Jesus to bless us by turning us from our wickedness...  Jesus said that He came that we might have life and have it to the full...  Therefore, turning from our wickedness is necessary to live the abundant life!  Seems like a 'duh' moment when you spell it out like that...  but too often we live like we believe that pleasure, fun, satisfaction, the abundant life are found in the things of this world...  not the things, or the ways, of God!

So back to Monday morning...  I turned on the new episode and I started to watch.  I don't think it was any darker than last season, but something was different.  As I watched the episode unfold, a sense of uneasiness settled over me.  As the episode ended, I just sat...  The darkness of the story in that episode was oppressive...  People doing anything necessary to get what they want, including murder.  And as I sat God's word came back to mind...  Jesus came to BLESS us by turning us from our wickedness.  It is a BLESSING to turn away from wickedness, to reject it...  Then why on earth would I immerse myself in wickedness for the momentary pleasure of a tv show? 

Let's just say, that show is OFF my watch list, and in the future, I'm going to be more careful about what I add to my watch list...  Here's why... 

I was relating this incident to a very wise friend of mine and she started to recite a quote she remembered,

"Two natures beat within my breast,

The one is foul, the one is blessed

The one I love, the one I hate

The one I feed will dominate."  (Author anonymous)

I long to live the abundant life, not just experience it occasionally.  But if that's going to be true, I have got to stop feeding the old nature within...  I can't immerse myself in wickedness and be transformed (Romans 12:2, Be transformed by the renewing of the mind.)

The nature I feed is truly the nature that will dominate...  What I read, watch, talk about, think about, listen to, it ALL matters!  It's not about following a set of rules...  it's not about legalism...  it's ALL about the practices that will help me live the way I long to...  the way Jesus paid such a high price for me to be able to.

As I finish this blog, I'm resolving to get an index card to put a question on my bathroom mirror...  Each morning, I want to be reminded to think about, "Which nature will you feed today?"

Have a great week!

Sharla

Logos & Labels -- Or Not

Several months ago, the hottest mobile device game was an App called Logo Quiz.  The point of the game was to identify logos by their color and shape without any identifying words.  My children were very 'culturally savvy,' progressing very quickly through the logos.  After some thought, I found it somewhat disturbing how good my children were at this game.  First and foremost because their 'expertise' was rather condemning of my parenting skills and the amount of media they were consuming.  However, the more troubling aspect was that they could easily identify an entire company and/or product by virtue of its label.

In our culture, marketing has done a great job in communicating very succinctly the images, emotions and ideas tied to a particular logo or label.  That is fine for a shoe or drink but when we try to reduce a multi-national company or a complex organization down to a label we dismiss a lot of information.

The same is true of people.  All too often, we try to reduce people to a label - a single aspect of their entire personality by which we define them.  And yet, the reality is that people are the Imago Dei - which is the image of God.  God is so complex and multifaceted that He has many names to describe His character, countless attributes which demonstrate His nature and all of history to reveal His work in the world.  Likewise, when God creates each person, he gives them a multitude of qualities, character traits and talents.

Jesus should be our example in this.  He never reduced anyone to one aspect of their entire being (a label).  Rather, Jesus always saw the person for the unique individual they were created to be.  It is difficult to be like Jesus -- after all, he was perfect -- but He has called us to follow in His steps.  To love as He loved is to see the complete person and the entire individual, not just the most prominent or easy to identify trait.

Blessings - Cynthia


    

rest

as a culture we kind of pride ourselves on being busy. we expect everyone to have a lot going on in their lives [maybe even too much]. and we're pushed toward that. if we have any free time, we must not be doing enough. i mean, how dare we take time to rest?

and if you ask me, all of this is compounded by that fact that we women have a whole other host of expectations placed upon us. [i'm not arguing that our male counterparts don't, but the expectations look different from one side to the other.] we are not only supposed to be "successful" with a spotless house, well-groomed and stylish children, either a great job or happily stay at home with the kids - depending on which side of the coin you live on - and a stylish wardrobe, perfect hair, zero wrinkles or any other indication that we may be getting older, flawless skin, the perfect body, and anything else you'd like to add to the list of unattainable, but actually expected expectations.

so let's get real for a minute. really real.
our culture is full of crap. and no matter how hard we try to attain the unattainable list listed above it's not going to happen. and frankly, if you somehow do make it happen, you'll kill yourself getting there, and you're still not going to be happy.

so what does all this mean? it means we can all breathe a sigh of relief and be really honest with each other.

we all need grace, and God is gracious enough to give us his grace. when he looks at us he sees that our price has been paid. we have been bought with the blood of Christ, and he sees us as perfect standing before him.

that means we can rest. we don't have to try to impress God. and we couldn't if we tried. but we don't even have to try. we can simply rest in him.

and we can be honest with each other about our struggles. big or small. we can honestly say that the expectations of our culture are ridiculous and unattainable and push back against them by letting our lives be defined by God and the fact that we are his children, rather than by the size of our houses, the niceness of our cars, and how well we measure up to the standards set by everyone else.

we can be honest with each other when everything is not great and wonderful and rest in the prayers of the saints lifting us up.

we can rest in the arms of our heavenly father knowing that we are perfectly accepted and perfectly loved regardless of our circumstances. regardless of what life is handing us. regardless.

xo,

katie