Answering "YES" and Accepting "NO"

"Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails." Proverbs 19:21

Hmmm...A while back, maybe a year and a half ago, I studied the book of Esther. It was life-changing for me and the verse that captured me was the second part of Esther 4:14, which says, "And who knows but that you have come to a royal position for such a time as this?" Mordecai was compelling Esther to risk her life by petitioning the king to spare the lives of the Jewish people. Seeing how she was Jewish herself, she could pretty much count on dying either way, but the opportunity to act was at hand, and act she did! And she was able to save her people by using the position that God put her in (or called her to).

Since then, I committed to say "yes" to God no matter what He asks of me, and I looked forward to how He might use me. I was a little surprised, when at first, He called me to some very unglamorous positions. Yet I learned to delight in saying "yes" even to the lowliest or simplest of calls. For He placed inside me a desire to please Him. Later, He called me to some bigger tasks, and though at times, I felt unequipped, unworthy, or just plain scared, the Holy Spirit provided me with the power to say "yes". And even better, God helped me to accomplish them!

Please do not think that I am boasting, because I know me, and no "yes" ever came from me. Unfortunately, in my journey of learning to give God my "yeses", I have become quite stubborn in accepting His "nos". You've got it! I have become mighty proud in thinking that God must want to use me for absolutely everything. Just because I can do all things through Him, doesn't mean that His plan is to accomplish all things through me.

Really, when you come right down to it, I am boasting. But not to you-just to myself. I have come to believe that there are certain things that I am good at and that come naturally to me. Therefore, God should always let me be the one to do them. Then, if there is something out of my character that He calls me to do, I will rely on Him to accomplish it through me. That's where I have been mistaken. Nothing, absolutely nothing, I ever do well comes from my own nature. God created me. He gave me certain talents and abilities, but I only ever do them, because He has made me willing and able.

This all slammed me in the face this week, when three times, He told me "no". Three things this week were very important to me, and being a planner, I had attended to every detail... or so I thought. Just after I published my last post on Monday night, my face began to hurt. Long story short, I woke up with the face of a hippopotamus and sure enough, I have the mumps. The mumps! Who gets the mumps? I am so sad, and my ego has taken a huge hit, because as it turns out, God still accomplished what He saw fit, without my contribution.

But the blessing in it all is this: By God teaching me this lesson, I have the opportunity to change. I have the opportunity to become more like Christ. I am taking on a new shape at this very moment. And though to look at my face, you might say that I resemble a very large lump of clay more than ever before, I actually feel lighter. It is as if some extra dirt has been removed, and oh, how I feel my Father's hand in me, sustaining me through this disappointment! I am more aware of who He is and what He has made of me. I am blessed to have the talents He has given me. I am even more blessed that He allows me (from time to time) to participate in things I am not normally good at. Most of all, I am blessed the He is still working on me. What's greater than any talent or any ability, is the promise of scripture that the Lord's purposes prevail. Thank God!!!

All About Attitude

"Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound in you, so that in all things, at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work." 2 Corinthians 4:7-8

Okay, this is not a post with a great amount of depth and the lesson that has been the theme of the past couple of weeks for me, is not a new one. Just one that I have pretty much been learning my entire life. And it is all about my attitude!!!

Have you ever been in a really good mood, then found yourself a bit grouchy and traced the change back to someones' bad attitude? If you have ever shopped at the nameless superstore near my house, I think you'll answer,"yes". Have you ever met someone who could just suck the fun right out of any situation? If you have ever shopped at that same superstore with me, I'm sure you'll answer "yes". I can not stand to shop at that place!!! I tell myself on the way in to be patient and kind, but somehow, I manage to loose all resolve by the time I leave.

I'll spare you all the different scenarios (lately) in which God has reminded me to have a cheerful attitude. The point is, that it is not in my nature. I am by nature a very negative person. "And God is able to make all grace abound in you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work." The Holy Spirit in me is able to be gracious in all things, at all times! Whatever, I have been called by God to give, whether it be love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, or self-control, I have it to give, and give cheerfully. Because I have the Holy Spirit living in me.

I basically know this, and I usually rely on the Holy Spirit in the big things. It's like I am aware of the importance of my investment of time or talent when I visit a sick person or take on a huge project, but not when I set out to accomplish ordinary, day to day things. And so, in trying to be gracious on my own, I fall miserably short.

Anything and everything that God has called me to do is an opportunity to invest (or sow) cheerfully. I'll have to remember to allow the Holy Spirit to live through me the next time I run to ...well, you know..., the superstore!

Forgiveness and Answered Prayer

"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 with the truth. It ALWAYS protects, ALWAYS trusts, ALWAYS hopes, ALWAYS perseveres. Love never fails..." 1 Corinthians 13:4-8

I chose to save the second part of Hope, which I had planned to post today. For God has given me a sweet answer to a prayer that I wept to Him yesterday. To tell you of His answer, I must tell you a bit of my story.

I recently found myself wounded, betrayed and disappointed. I knew in my heart that forgiveness was mine to give through the Holy Spirit (it's a good thing, too, because I wouldn't have had it in myself). The thing I have learned about forgiveness is that sometimes it has to be given more than once for the same offense. And I don't mean the same offense committed again. I mean the same offense revisited in memories, and in future trust issues-those type things.

I have only ever struggled with forgiving memories in one other situation. It was several years ago and the "offender" was an acquaintance. Anyway, at the time and for some time after, I was devastated! To say that I was hurt would be a gross understatement, though all of that situation pales in comparison to the one I faced recently. That is the amazing thing about God's plan. Each part of it prepares us for the next. Nothing happens outside of His knowledge and provision.

What I learned from that situation that has helped me so much in this one, is found in the story of Joseph. You know the story. Joseph's brothers sell him into slavery because of anger and jealousy. Many years later, they are at his mercy and they apologize (mostly out of shame and fear)-Genesis 47. Then again in chapter 50 of Genesis, they apologize (out of shame and fear). Both times Joseph forgives them, but I love his words in v. 50:19- "...Don't be afraid. Am I in the place of God? You intended it to harm me but God intended it for good..."

I remember the day I heard those words three years ago. I was studying THE PATRIARCHS and Beth Moore was teaching on video. It was as if she looked straight into my eyes and reached through the screen and held my heart in her hands. She went on to say that sometimes we wait so long for an apology and when we finally get it, we know that the offender has no clue about what their action cost us, and the apology doesn't make us feel the way we thought it would. But God knows what we suffer, and He cares. Not only that, but He has a plan!

So that brings me to the prayer that I wept to my Father yesterday afternoon. This most recent hurt, leaves me absolutely raw, because unlike the one which came from an acquaintance, this one came from a person I dearly love, a person I have a precious relationship with. And when I shared with the person how the offense had cost me, there was barely an acknowledgement, and no understanding. The apology was forced, and I am guessing that it came from a place of fear and shame.

God helped me to forgive then, and yesterday, as I felt fresh with hurt, I asked God to do it once more. I asked that His love (His AGAPE love) would erase the recorded wrong from my mind and heart. I also asked that His love would help me to always protect-because nothing good can come from exposing this sin; to always trust- because no relationship can grow without trust; to always hope-because I need the promise that my heart will heal; and to always persevere, because that is the way God loves us every time we mess up. He never fails!!!

My answer came today in the form of an acknowledgement, and a heartfelt apology-at almost the exact time that I had prayed yesterday. I do not gather that the person understands the depth of my hurt, but that isn't the point. The point is that I wanted to feel God's love and I wanted to be able to give it as well. He delivered a message of love through that apology and yes, once more He allowed me to love by receiving the apology and forgiving the offense.

God sometimes takes longer to deliver the apology we want as in the case of Joseph. And some apologies may not come in this lifetime. Rest assured though, nothing has happened to you that God does not know and care about. He hurts for you. And somehow, He will make something good from your pain. I pray desperately, that in sharing this, I will not spark the curiosity of those who know me, but that perhaps someone who is hurting from a similar situation will find peace and feel God's Agape love.

Hope-Part 1

"But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give a reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect..." 1 Peter 3:15


A couple of weeks ago, our Sunday school teacher told the class that God had put it in her heart to try and prepare us for some difficulties that we as Christians in America may face in the future. She asked for us to give her some feedback, and I immediately (and foolishly) raised my hand to say that, there was some verse about giving a reason for our hope and that maybe that was something we could look into.

I do not mean to say that it was a foolish idea to explore and understand and be prepared with an explanation of hope in times of trouble. I just mean that I am guilty of knowing a part of a verse, never the reference, and only sometimes the context. So God, in His mercy, allowed the verse to come up later in the week during my homework time of a Beth Moore Bible study I am working on. I took note of the reference. Then, because I knew I would be writing a post about the verse, I looked into the text surrounding the verse.


This is what I found. First of all, I did not even realize that the first and the last part of the verse existed. I had only ever heard the middle part; Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give a reason for the hope that you have. I have always assumed that this meant that as Christians, we are to always be ready to give our personal testimony of salvation to non-Christians. And that is true. But...

The book of 1 Peter was written by Peter as a letter of encouragement to believers who faced social and economic persecutions from the Romans, the Jews, and from their own families. Sound familiar? We, as Christians in America, may be facing some hard times. And the difficulties may come from many different sources. So, where is our hope? Let's look back at the very first part of this verse. But in your hearts, set apart Christ as Lord. "But" in this verse follows a command to fear not. By setting apart Christ as Lord, we can do just that. Because, in setting apart Christ as Lord, we are taking our control (or lack of it), and our leaderships' control (or lack of it), out of the equation. GOD IS IN CONTROL! HE HAS A PLAN! HE MADE PROVISION FOR HIS PLAN THROUGH CHRIST JESUS! AND WE HAVE THE ABILITY TO LIVE OUT HIS PLAN BECAUSE OF THE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT!

Now the next part of the verse, Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give a reason for the hope that you have...caught my attention because of the absolutes, "always" and "everyone". I think that if we pay attention to those words, they speak for themselves. There are no exceptions!!!

Finally, the last part is, But do this with gentleness and respect. There are no conditions on when we are to be prepared, or who we are to share with. The only conditions here, are in how we deliver our message of hope. I find myself feeling awfully self-righteous at times, when in reality, I have done absolutely nothing to secure hope for myself. It all goes back to God-God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.

I will not elaborate in this post, but God has most certainly placed peace and hope in my heart. As a matter of fact, I am sort of anxious to see what lies ahead. Has God given you peace about the upcoming election, the economy, the war? I'd love to hear from you!

TREASURE

2 Corinthians 4:7-9 "But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down but not destroyed."

Treasure. According to The New Strong's Dictionary of Complete Bible Words, treasure (in the context of these verses) comes from the Greek word, thesauros, meaning a deposit, i.e.wealth:-treasure.

I came across these verses a couple of months ago. I think it was one of those mornings, where I just sort of flipped through my Bible, not really looking for anything in particular, but hoping for something profound. And the heading for the fourth chapter of 2 Corinthians seemed to bounce off the page. Now the idea that Christians are "clay", God is "the potter", and the process of life in this spinning world is the "wheel", is not especially profound. What was profound to me was the idea that the "treasure" is God's hand(s); not just shaping, but supporting, sustaining, and sometimes resisting.

Bear with me while I give you a little art lesson in pottery. I so loved the classes I took back in high school. It has been awhile, but I rather enjoyed refreshing my own memory! Okay. The very first step in throwing on the wheel, is to dress the part. Maybe God would wear a spotless, white robe for the occasion, but I rather like to imagine Him in some baggy coveralls. Anyway, then the potter chooses his piece of clay. The size and shape are sort of irrelevant, since, after all, it is just dirt. What makes it special is what the potter does with it. Now, the potter throws the clay on the wheel and begins to center it (let's think of that, as the moment when a person realizes that the Holy Spirit has been drawing him to Himself and accepts salvation through God's son, Jesus.) This step in pottery and in life is the most important. What follows though, is what thrills my heart!

Once the clay (or the person) is centered, the potter (God) inserts first, his thumbs and then his hand. The treasure!! When I think of a vessel on a potter's wheel, this is what I picture. And what makes it so neat, is that his other hand is on the outside of the vessel working in perfect unison, in perfect synchronization with the hand that is inside the vessel. Throughout the process of creating a vessel, the clay can take on many different shapes. You see the process is different for every vessel (every person). Certain pressure, certain events, certain elements of life affect the process. And without the "treasure" of the potter's hand in the vessel (in us), it would certainly be destroyed.

This past summer, I experienced a series of events, so hard, so perplexing, so humbling, and so devastating, that I can honestly say that I am not the same person I used to be. My "shape" is forever changed, and I believe that that is a wonderful thing! An amazing thing, in fact! That God can take such events and hold me from the inside out (and not just hold me, but continue to shape me), can only be explained as His all-surpassing power!!

So look back with me at the definition of treasure. God deposited Himself into me! He considered this lump of clay worthy of His investment-the wealth of Him! I am in awe! I am Pelos-a lump of clay!

Whatever it is that you face in your life, it has purpose. Either it is for the purpose of calling you to salvation or (if you have already received salvation), it is to continue to the process of sanctification-the state of purity. I pray that you are encouraged! I know I am! I would love to hear from you!