Momentary Light Affliction

The other day someone commented to me, "I don't know how you do it!" To which I thought to myself, "well, I don't know either." 

My thoughts then drifted to my sister-in-law who suffers from facial paralysis and impaired speech due to a brain condition. The other day I watched her eyes well up with tears as she expressed how much she wanted to talk normally with her children. I don't know how she does it. Her hopes rest on the verses from Job 19:25-27 "As for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end He will stand on the earth. And after my skin is destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God. I myself will see Him with my own eyes--I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!" She knows that the paralysis and verbal limitations are overwhelming but only temporary. 

I also think of my best friend who has a daughter with disabilities. In the last five years the only time she has gotten a full nights sleep is on the occasion that someone offers to babysit overnight. She watches helplessly as her daughter deteriorates mentally and physically, and she knows that her daughter's days are limited. I don't know she does it! She has shared with me that God does not give us what He knows we can handle, He gives us what He knows we can't handle so that we are completely dependent on Him. She clings to the truth that God is faithful. Every time she sees a rainbow she is reminded that God cares about the suffering of her daughter and that it is only temporary. 

Even though this current suffering seems like it will last forever, it is not forever. What is forever, is our eternal home. Where we will live in joy with our Savior. Where He will wipe away every tear and there will be no more disease, separation, despair, or death. 

"For this momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, so we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." 2 Corinthians 4:17-18

1 Special thanks to our friend Chris Anderson for this photo.

Unfulfilled Longings

We are all waiting for something. There is the couple who has been trying to have children, only to face their second painful miscarriage. There is the unemployed man wanting to provide for his family,  who is searching desperately for work only to hear another "no." There is the stay at home mom wondering if her life will ever be more than laundry and diapers. There is the single girl who has watched all of her friends marry, she keeps waiting to find love but it never seems to come.

We all seem to look back at former days only able to recall the joy and delight, but never the pain and hardship. Or we look ahead thinking "if this one thing in my life was different, everything would be better." 

The Bible gives us everything pertaining to life and godliness and I want to share with you three little verses in Proverbs that have always given hope in my longing. I share them because I need the reminder now more than ever. 


Proverbs 19:21-23 -
"Many are the plans in a man's heart, 
But the way of the LORD is sure. 
The longings of a man are for his love, 
It is better to be poor than a liar. 
The fear of the LORD leads to life, 
and the one that has it rests satisfied, 
untouched by evil."

I must first say that there is debate as to whether the insights in Proverbs are connected and intentionally strung together or if they are various gems of wisdom meant to be examined individually. I believe that it is the former for reasons I will unpack as we look at these verses. Also, I have done my own translation from the Hebrew on these verses, for reasons I will also unpack. So this is the LG Standard Version. We will examine it line by line:

Proverbs 19:21- "Many are the plans in a man's heart, but the way of the LORD is sure."

When I first read this verse, I thought it a bit forthright and severe. As if we are stumbling around with all these foolish desires and ambitions, but God is in charge and His "purpose will prevail" as the NIV puts it. But once I put it into context, both of the text, and the character of God, I realized that we do have lots of wants, desires, longings, and ambitions. God knows all of those things dearly, cares for us deeply, and knows what we need much better than we ever could. He is in control, and He will do what He knows is best for us keeping in mind all the things we desperately desire.  Sometimes that means lavishing blessing in abundance, other times it feels like unanswered prayer and that God is withholding what we desire most. But He is good and He is sovereign. Those are two truths we must never separate!

Proverbs 19:22a- "The longings of a man are for his love"

This is the key phrase of this section and the best commentary I consulted recommended that, "this is best left untranslated." It is because whenever we translate one language into another there are things lost and things added. Various translations read the following: "what a person desires is unfailing love" (NIV), "the desire of a man is his kindness" (KJV), "what is desired in a man is steadfast love" (ESV), "what is desired in a man is loyalty" (RSV), "what is desirable in a man is his kindness" (NASB), "that which makes a man to be desired is his kindness" (WEB), "loyalty makes a person attractive" (NLT). You begin to see how subtly different all of these translations really are. It is because it is hard to determine the object of the verb "desires." That word literally means "the greatest longings." Is the object the man or the love? Also, who is the "his" referring to? It is that man, other people, or God (because He was the last mentioned subject in context)? Simply put, there are four different possibilities:

1) The greatest longing of a human is to love (to actually love others unselfishly and have that love be accepted and requited). 

2) The greatest longing of a human is to be loved (to be loved and accepted for who they are)

3) The greatest longing of a human is to love God (to be free from the bondage of sin to worship and adore our Maker)

4) The greatest longing of a human is to be loved by God (to understand our identity as belonging to Him and trust that love completely without the constant doubts about God and/or ourselves)

So which one is it? All of the above. I think it is kept vague on purpose so that it captures all of those meanings. Does not our greatest longing in life boil down to those four things: to love others, be loved, love God, and be loved by God!

Proverbs 19:22b- "It is better to be poor than a liar."

Got to love that about Proverbs. Just when you think you have it figured out the verse seems to change directions completely. That same commentary surrendered that there is no possible connection between these two phrases. I respectfully disagree. To be poor in biblical times was the lowest of low. A woman whose husband died in the morning would be out begging for food that same night. To be poor was not a plight that would be wished upon anyone. So what this is saying is that it is better to be to lowest of low than to compromise your integrity to get at the things you want. It may seem like this line is independent from the previous phrase about "the longings of a human are for love," but it is urging us towards integrity specifically in the area of our deep desires. The best example I can think to illustrate this idea of compromising integrity is premarital sex - throwing away our integrity and purity to fill the void of love in ways that are sinful and go against God's design. It is okay for us to have deep longings, but we must never try to fill those desires in sinful and selfish ways. 

Proverbs 19:23- "The fear of the LORD leads to life, and the one that has it rests satisfied, untouched by evil."

It is no accident that it speaks of our greatest longing, and then resting satisfied. To fear God means to know His character, be in awe of all that He is, trust Him for who He is, and respond in obedience to who He is. God knows we have lots of desires, but ultimately trusting and obeying Him will bring about the truest and greatest satisfaction. We long to love and be loved and this is completely justified because God designed us this way (He Himself said, "it is not good for man to be alone"), but we are only at rest when we find our rest in Him. This is what will help us navigate with integrity, keep us from evil, and help us continue to trust that God is good and sovereign in light of our longings.

To bring it all together, let me offer a paraphrase of these verses

"In our hearts we have have many desires and longings, 
God knows our desires, but He also knows what we need 
and He will work things out according what is best for us
because He is good and He is in control.
It is at the core of every human to long to love others, 
be loved and accepted for who we are, 
love God completely, and trust in God's love for us.
But we must never compromise our integrity 
to try to fill the void of these longings. 
We would be better off as the lowest of low.
Even though we have lots of longings,
God may or may not fulfill them, 
but one thing He will always give is Himself.
When we trust and obey Him it leads to life and satisfaction.
The more we trust God with our desires, 
the more He will help us navigate with integrity 
and keep us from evil."
- Proverbs 19:21-23

1 Image taken from scrippsunscripted.wordpress.com

Idol Christianity

"Hear, O Israel, the LORD your God, the LORD is One."
- Deuteronomy 6:4
"You shall not make for yourselves idols, nor shall you set up for yourselves and image or a sacred pillar, nor shall you place a figured stone in your land to bow down to it; for I am the LORD your God."
- Leviticus 26:1
"Is is not I, Yahweh? And there is no other God besides Me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is none except Me."
-Isaiah 45:21


The other day, while visiting my sister in Tennessee, I drove past a church marquee that read, "Jesus is my BFF, who is yours?" At this my brother-in-law remarked that he often hears a neighbor refer to God as "the Man in Charge" or "the Big Man Upstairs" but none of these names are how God refers to Himself in Scripture. He does call Himself our friend (John 15:14) but that is directly followed by a call to obedience. He holds our hand (Psalm 37:24), but He is also called our Master (lit. "Lord").1 He is our Shepherd (Psalm 23), but also our King (Psalm 47:7). He is our Father (James 1:17), but also The Most High God (El Elyon).2

There are many names for God in Scripture and His names signify His attributes and character. J. H. Keathley notes:

In our twentieth century Western culture, personal names are little more than labels to distinguish one person from another. Sometimes nicknames are chosen which tell something about a person, but even this is a poor reflection of the significance of names in the Bible. Unfortunately, to many the names God or Lord convey little more than designations of a supreme being. It says little to them about God’s character, His ways, and what God means to each of us as human beings. But in Scripture, the names of God are like miniature portraits and promises. In Scripture, a person’s name identified them and stood for something specific. This is especially true of God. Naming carried special significance. It was a sign of authority and power. This is evident in the fact that God revealed His names to His people rather than allowing them to choose their names for Him.3

So often we pick and choose the names of God that are most comforting and rewarding to us at any given time. God is our Comforter when we are hurting, but certainly not our Convictor in those moments. He is loving, forgiving, and a friend of sinners during the times we cannot shake a sin habit, but it is suddenly easier to downplay God as Holy and Righteous. He is Almighty and Sovereign during the times that we feel lost, but what about the times that we feel self-sufficient? 

Not long after God gave Israel the first of ten major commandments, "I am the LORD your God...and you shall have no other gods before Me, you shall not make for yourself an idol"...(Exodus 20:2-4), the nation was begging Aaron to construct and idol for them. It was not so much that they were rejecting Yahweh as their God, but trying to make him tangible and containable and something that fit more in line with the kind of God they wanted. 

"He [Aaron] took what they handed him and made it into an idol cast in the shape of a calf, fashioned it with a tool. Then they said, 'this is your god, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.' When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of the calf and announced, 'Tomorrow there will be a festival to the LORD [lit. Yahweh].' So the next day the people rose early and sacrificed burnt offerings and presented fellowship offerings. Afterward they sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry." - Exodus 32:4-6

So often idolatry in the Old Testament was not rejecting God but adding other gods into the mix. Baal was sometimes considered to be Yahweh's brother and Asherah (often represented by a sacred pillar) was believed to be God's wife. Most often the people of Israel still viewed Yahweh as one of the various universal gods, but the worship of Baal and Asherah allowed Israel to indulge in corrupt sexual practices and aligned them with the surrounding nations. As they worshipped other gods they could pick and choose the type of god and connecting attribute that was most needed and convenient. 

When we worship certain attributes and Names of God to the exclusion of others it is a form of idolatry. God is revealed as Father, Master, Shepherd, Lamb, Savior, Judge, Loving, Jealous, Warrior, Peace, and the list goes on and on. He is all of these things completely and it is not for us to stack one attribute as more favorable than another. We must maintain a relationship that is balanced between intimacy and reverence, rest and obedience. Avoid the idolatrous temptation to reduce, contain, or add to God.

1 Kurios: Greek word translated “Lord.” Stresses authority and supremacy. It can mean sir (John 4:11), owner (Luke 19:33), master (Col. 3:22), and it is used mostly as the equivalent of Yahweh of the Old Testament. It too is used of Jesus Christ meaning (1) Rabbi or Sir (Matt. 8:6); (2) God or Deity (John 20:28; Acts 2:36; Rom. 10:9; Phil. 2:11).
2 El Elyon: “The Most High God.” Stresses God’s strength, sovereignty, and supremacy (Gen. 14:19; Ps. 9:2;Dan. 7:18, 22, 25).
3 http://bible.org/article/names-god
4 Image taken from richfaithrising.blogspot.com

Some Lessons from the Season

It has been a while since I have written anything, mostly because I do not feel that I have much to offer.  I'm sure you have been in a similar place at one time or another- you try to stay distracted by the mundane of each day otherwise you would burst into tears. The last few days have been a battle of coersion just to get myself out of bed. 

But I wanted to share a handful of things God has been teaching me:

1. The value of time.

It is only when time is working against us that we recognize its value. I never realized the preciousness of an hour until it was the last one Jon and I had together before saying goodbye. Or the costliness of one minute until I stepped away from my phone only to see that I just missed his call for that day. 

We often speak of time in terms of financial language- we "spend time," "save time," waste time." That is why the words "Redeem the time" echo so loudly in Scripture. Redeem has the idea of buying back and attributing value. One friend remarked that the opposite of redeeming time is being a slave to time. Time is a precious commodity, perhaps the most precious. Value it, redeem it, use it wisely.

"Be very careful, then, how you live--not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity ("redeeming the time") because the days are evil." - Ephesians 5:15-16

2. The power of words. 

It is only when someone says something carelessly that happens to affect us deeply that we realize the power of words. After I shared that Jon was deployed a person remarked, "that is hard on our soldiers, they come back really messed up; it's no wonder that the suicide and divorce rate is so high in the military." I soon excused myself and found a secluded place to start bawling. 

But I have been just as guilty of flippant words. I can think of numerous occasions where I have said something thoughtlessly or in humor, only the see the other individual's countenance starts to fall. It makes me think of conversation in which many young mothers were grousing and complaining about sleepless nights and poopy diapers, not realizing that one of the women in their midst struggled with infertility and would trade a thousand sleepless nights for the chance to hold her newborn baby. 

That is why the Bible takes our speech so seriously. It speaks of our words as a raging fire (James 3:5-6) or a piercing sword (Psalm 55:21). We are so quick to speak without considering the impact of our words. 

"The words of the reckless pierce like swords, but the tongue of the wise brings healing." - Proverbs 12:18

3. The danger of comparison. 

People have commented that they are so jealous that I get to do some traveling or have extra free time, but I am thinking to myself, "this is not what I want to be doing right now, I just want to be with my husband." But then I look at others and long for their situation without considering the hardships and trials they are facing. I grumble to myself that this is the worst way to spend the first year of marriage, only to be reminded of my brother and his wife who spent numerous months of their first year of marriage in the hospital while she battled a severe brain condition on the brink of death. 

God has written each of our stories differently because He has designed us uniquely. He knows what we need and what we cannot handle. I am reminded of "The Horse and His Boy" by C.S. Lewis, when Aslan is revealing to Shasta that He was the Lion with them along their journey. Shasta protests "then it was you who wounded Aravis?" To which Aslan responds, "Child, I am telling you your story, not hers. I tell no one any story but their own."

No good comes from the comparison of ourselves or our circumstances because we either measure favorably and become prideful, or we feel inferior and become discontent. 

"Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be. How precious to me are Your thoughts, God! How vast the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of the sand--when I awake, I am still with You." - Psalm 139:16-18

4. The purposes of God.

When I first found out about the deployment I started to become very bitter towards the military. I hated that they were taking him away from me. I felt that they did not care about him, he was just one of their assets. They definitely did not care about me as his wife, and they had stopped caring about this war long ago. It was no longer politically beneficial or conducive to campaigning to talk about the war. So Jon was going to put his life on the line for no reason and without anyone caring. These roots of bitterness were taking hold deeper and deeper until God slammed me with the realization that He needed Jon to be there and He needed me to be here. It was the only way God could accomplish what He wanted in and through each of us. Who knows what decision or action Jon would make that could save the life of another soldier. Or the example Jon could be that would be a testimony to others around him and help further the Gospel. 

In the story of Job, God addresses Job in chapters 38 through 41. He asks Job question after question about things of creation and mysteries of this world. When I first read through these chapters I felt they were harsh and uncaring, until I put them into context. All of the things God speaks of are beyond our control or comprehension. The heart of what he is saying is, "I need you to trust Me because you do not understand." 

To which Job responds, "I know that You can do all things; no purpose of Yours can be thwarted. You asked, 'Who is this that obscures My plans without knowledge?' Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things to wonderful for me to know." - Job 42: 2-3

So I conclude with the verse that God brought my way the other morning:

"Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer." - Romans 12:12

1. Image taken from visionaryvanguard.wordpress.com 

Command With a Promise

Before Jon left I made us both a "countdown jar." I filled the jars with m&m's and a verse for each day. The verses act like a fortune cookie promise for each day we are apart. The verse that he pulled out on the day we said goodbye was Psalm 55:22 - "Cast your burden upon the LORD and He will sustain you, He will never allow the righteous to be shaken." I knew then that this season would be difficult, but God would not let it defeat us.

The verse I pulled out of my jar the first day we were apart was Deuteronomy 31:8 - "It is the LORD who goes before you. He will be with you; He will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed" (ESV) As I contemplated this verse I realized an important truth: when God gives us a command, He always links it to a promise of Himself. Here, as well as in Joshua 1, when He tells us not to fear it is because He is with us, He will not leave us, He goes before us and He will fight our battles. He tells us why we can have courage, He does not merely give us a command to "stop worrying dummy!"

This exists all through Scripture when He tells us not to be anxious. "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own" Matt. 6:34 (NIV). This verse is summarizing a section about worry in which God tells us that we are more valuable to Him than the birds of the air (v. 26) and the lilies in the field (v. 28-30). We can seek first His Kingdom and righteousness and turn from anxiety and fear because the very hairs of our head are numbered by Him. 

We cannot change the difficult and uncomfortable circumstances, but we can control our own attitude and choose to trust and not be afraid.

"Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. Indeed the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear, you are more valuable than many sparrows." Luke 12:6-7

1 Image taken from http://thoughtsonbookss.blogspot.com

The Controversial Conversation

I feel the need to weigh in on the controversial conversation sweeping our nation in regard to same-sex marriage. I want to first clarify that my intended audience is Bible believing Christians. I am not here to make a suggestion for the Supreme Court or American citizens in general. I speak to those who have put their faith in Jesus Christ for salvation from their sins.

It is no surprise to me that this is a hot political issue because of the non-Christian secular progressive trajectory that our country has been moving toward. What astonishes me is how many Christians are blatantly supportive of same-sex marriage. Every day I come to find more people who are committed Christians changing their facebook status or profile pictures to be voicing favor for same-sex marriage. For our country this is a political issue, which is why laws may very well get passed in favor of same-sex marriage. However, for Christians this is a spiritual issue and one that we should not practice or encourage in others. As I previously noted, for non-Christians, who do not possess a biblical worldview, I am not surprised at all that they practice and embrace this lifestyle. But I am utterly disheartened that so many Christians are not only honoring this lifestyle, but some are even practicing it and using a narrow view of God (as only loving and forgiving) to justify their actions.

The discussion surrounding this issue, especially online, often results in the trading of Bible verses without context, which I see as a human-centered reading of Scripture. The coullousness often seen in online discussion is detrimental for good conversation. It is critical that discussions, this one included, bear in mind the work of Christ throughout Scripture.1

With that in mind, I wanted to share this well developed statement on human sexuality:2

God's revealed Word is the only authoritative and trustworthy norm for proper moral judgments. It affirms that sexual intimacy is designed by God to be expressed solely within a marriage between one man and one woman. This view of sexuality and marriage is rooted in the Genesis account of creation, reflected in the teachings of Jesus Christ Himself, and is maintained consistently throughout Scriptures. It is a view based on the biblical teaching of monogamy- that God designed sexual union for the purpose of uniting one man and one woman into a permanent, lifelong, one flesh union in the context of marriage. God created two complementary forms of humans, male and female, to bear His image together (Gen. 1:27-28), and ordained that the first human pair were to become one flesh (Gen. 2:23-24). These and other similar passages show that God views sex, procreation and marriage as good, and that male and female are necessary counterparts- differential partners- in a sexual complementarity. Sexual intimacy and the sexual union of intercourse between a man and a woman are intended for a purpose- to join one husband and one wife together into one flesh in the context of marriage (1 Cor. 6:16).  

Our marriages on earth model the relationship between Christ and His bride, the Church (Eph. 5:31-33), a melding that the Apostle Paul calls "a profound mystery." This God-initiated oneness, as detailed in Genesis, is clearly recognized and affirmed by Jesus in terms of the marital union of husband and wife (Matt. 19:4-6). Any sexual intimacy outside of marriage violates God's design for marriage, and is thus to be understood as one of the disruptive consequences of the fall (Rom. 1:18-32). 

Thus, God's design for marriage and sexuality is the foundational reason for viewing acts of sexual intimacy between and man and a woman outside of marriage, and any acts of sexual intimacy between to persons of the same sex, as illegitimate moral options for the confessing Christian. Sexual relationship of any kind outside the confines of marriage between one man and one woman are inconsistent with the teaching of Scripture, as understood by Christian churches throughout history. On the other hand, chastity in the form of sexual purity for the unmarried person and chastity in the form of sexual faithfulness in marriage are blessed and affirmed. Therefore, as part of living out a consistent, biblical spirituality, one dedicated to the pursuit of Christ-likeness should refrain from sexual intimacy outside of marriage and to avoid encouraging the same in others. Indeed, whatever one's personal tendencies and desires, the call of Christ on our lives is the same: sexual purity manifest among the married as complete faithfulness and by those who are unmarried by living a chaste life (1 Thess. 4:3-8).

I know there are Christians who struggle with same-sex attraction and other sexual issues. This struggle is intense, genuine, and very real. One such person remarked, "Why would a kind God deprive me of intimacy and love when other Christians get to marry and have sex?"3 It is true that God is kind and loving and desires good things for His children. He accepts us completely and looks on us as purified with the blood of Christ, but when we go on sinning He is deeply grieved. When we excuse, justify, or ignore our sin, we challenge the very essence of the cross. I have also heard the comment, "Why would God make me this way and cause me to struggle like this?" But God is not the author of sin, we are born into sin as a result of the fall. This struggle is not unique. Every Christian struggles with temptations, sexual temptation possibly being the strongest of all. The Bible tells us that temptations are common to man, but that God gives of way of escape, which is to yield to the Spirit and deny the flesh.

"We all stand together as persons created in God's image, and we all kneel together as broken persons who need God's forgiveness through Jesus Christ."4 As Christians of course we all fall into sin and temptation, but we are called to wage war against the flesh and grow in our submission to the Spirit. It is not up to us to pick and choose the sins that we deem more or less important. That is why the majority of Scripture talks about the fact that since we are children of God we must live like it in purity and holiness. This is not a priciple that ever changed. In the Old Testament the heart of the Law that God gave to Israel was, "you shall be holy because I Am holy" (Lev. 11:44-45, 19:2, 20:7, etc.). The New Testament reiterates this clearly that we are no longer slaves but sons (Gal. 4:7) and we should not make a mockery of grace (Rom 6:1-2), but that we should actively pusue holiness in our daily living (1 Pet. 1:15, Heb. 12:14, Rom. 12:1-2, etc.). I am not talking about leagalism, but the process of sanctification for believers which is something God takes very seriously. It is not a matter of our salvation or acceptance before God, but that of a growing relationship with our Father Who bought us with the sacrifice of His only Son.

How dare we go on sinning and turn our heads away from the sins of fellow believers. Should we love our sinning brother, absolutely! There is deep wisdom in the phrase "hate the sin, love the sinner." Loving a sinning brother does not mean condoning sin. Christ Himself was a friend of sinners, but He still told them to go and sin no more. We are told to confront the sin of our fellow Christian in love, and that process must always remain a balance of grace and truth.

The political upheaval in our country is messy. Towards our non-believing friend we should be an example of Christlikeness and love. Which means practicing biblical purity and holiness, caring for them with the love of Christ, and engaging in compassionate conversation. Should we expect non-Christians to live by biblical morality, no. Should we sit idlely by, no. My call is for Christians to be the example in living out biblical morality, to be the salt and light in our dark world. The truth of God's revealed Word should be our guide, not the ever changing moral compass of our lost society. Towards Christians who struggle with sexual sin, we should journey alongside them, seek to understand their individual unique story, and embrace them knowing that they know the love and forgiveness of God in ways we may never comprehend. But we should also be modeling and encouraging daily victory over temptation and growth in Christ-likeness and holiness, knowing that freedom from the power of sin begins with God's work of illuminating sin. "My dear children, I write these things to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an Advocate with the Father- Jesus Christ the Righteous One" (1 John 2:1 NIV).

1 Adapted quote from Dr. Barry Correy, Chapel Message May 18, 2012.
2 Excerpt from Biola University's Statement on Human Sexuality
3 As a Christian I practiced chastity up until the point I was married at age 28. Now I daily choose fidelity to my husband because that is the biblical principle. Were I still single, and never to marry, I would continue to practice chastity in obedience to God. This is the lifestyle that we should be personally practicing and encouraging in other Christians.
4 B. Correy, Chapel Message 5.18.12.
5 Image taken from dreamstime.com

Your God is Too Small!

"Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and endowed with salvation, humble, and mounted on a donkey, even on a colt, the foal of a donkey. I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the horse from Jerusalem; and the bow of war will be cut off. And he will speak peace to the nations; and His dominion will be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth."
-Zechariah 9:9-10

When Jesus entered into Jerusalem on what we know as Palm Sunday, His riding on a colt (a young donkey) was the fulfillment of this prophecy in Zecharia 9:9. The people recognized this and heralded Him as their king. They knew that Zecharia 9 was all about proclaiming the end of war and oppression, and the beginning of peace and a kingdom. What they failed to recognize is that the way God works usually differs from our timetable and our purposes. They saw Him as the political leader who could lead the revolt and free them from the tyrany of Herod and the oppression of a foreign government. But His purposes were so much higher than that. He was there to give them the freedom, salvation, and peace that they really needed. His action of salvation at the culmination of the Passion Week brought about spiritual freedom and paved the way for God's Kingdom to eventually be established eternally on a new earth. 

That is why the very same people who proclaimed Him as "Hosanna" upon His entry into Jerusalem could turn around yell, "crucify Him," just days later. It is because He was not there to do their bidding and give them what they wanted, instead He provided for them what they actually needed. They could not see past their current situation and desires to recognize the greatest event in the history of mankind- the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ which brought about the salvation of all who believe!

I cannot help but see how often we are guilty of this same misunderstanding. We want and expect God to work in a way that we deem best, but His character, plan, and purposes far outweigh our thinking. We want God to be our pupet. To work in a way that will bring about our comfort and ease, and to speak the exact words that we feel we want to hear. However, God's primary purpose is for His own glory and our sanctification, and, most often, genuine sanctification is quite an uncomfortable process. 

I have started to see one of the current ways we put God into a box while I have been reading through the devotional "Jesus Calling" by Sarah Young. I want to first say that I am excited to see this devotional as a top selling book, not just on Christian booklists, but as an overall best-seller! I think it is great that people are taking the time to seek God by reading this book and she is helping people develop a deeper, more intimate relationship with God. My problem is that she writes each devotional in the first person of God's voice speaking directly to us. She teaches a type of, what I like to call, "Christian mysticism,"1 that encourages people to clear their mind and wait for God to speak.2

I believe this is a very dangerous practice, because our hearts our decietful (Jer. 17:9), our fleshly desires cloud our judgement (Gal. 5:16-24), and it makes it so that God "speaks" what we conveniently want to hear. It, in a way, forces God to speak and work on our level according to what we want. The reality is God already has spoken in His Word!3 He has already given us everything we need that pertains to life and godliness (2 Pet. 1:3ff).4 

This is just one of the many ways that we want God to say and do what we think is best as opposed to submitting to His ultimately grander plan, which is so much better for us! We need to stop making God so small by expecting Him to work according to our plans and being angered when He has a different way of doing things. As you take time to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, I urge you to bask in the vastness of God's purposes and power. He is the God who dwells in unapproachable light, yet He has stooped to bring salvation to mankind enabling the Creator of the universe to have a personal relationship His lowly creatures. Now that's a big God! 

1 If you would like more information on this topic, please e-mail me at leah.gingery@gmail.com for an excellent and more in-depth essay titled, "Christian Mysticism Within Evangelicalims" by Ken Hornok.

2 While she supplements he devotionals with Scripture, the verses are most often taken out of context. One such example is her favorite verse, "be still and know that I am God" (Psalm 46:10). This verse is not about clearing our minds and seeking God. It is best translated as "cease striving and know that I am God." Meaning we need to stop trying to do everything ourselves, we need to stop trying to be god and just let God be God. Another example was her May 27th devotional where she spoke of "putting on God the way we put on clothing" citing the verses Rom. 13:14 and Col. 3:12. But we do not put on God's presence to help is with our day, we are called to put on righteousness, purity, and Christlikeness. 

3 Of course I also do not want to put God in a box by saying that He cannot speak audibly today. No doubt He can do any miraculous thing He desires, He is God! But He has already revealed Himself through His Word and we grow to know Him more by knowledge and experience of His Word.  

4 So much so that He gave us Song of Solomon, a book devoted to instructing us on how to have a good and godly sex life!

5 Image taken from souljournaler@blogspot.com

The Chaos Before the Storm: Facing Change

When facing times of difficulty, stress, and change it is easy to lose sight of truth. We start to allow our problems to outshadow God's strength. I have not written a post recently because I am facing a storm and not only am I struggling to find something uplifting to say, but I am personally struggling at clinging to truth. I am a wife preparing for her husband's deployment and I recently read that the few weeks leading up to the deployment are sometimes harder than the deployment itself, essentially, that the anticipation of difficulty ahead sometimes causes more stess than the actual situation. This is due to a number of factors:

1. Overwhelming Circumstances- the anticipation of a storm is an extremely busy and stressful time. For us it has involved packing, storing our belongings, and moving. Also, Jon has long hours of training each day, so even our last little bit of time together is spent very much apart. When facing stress, even attempts to relax seem to fall short because there is a heaviness of heart that you cannot lift alone.
2. Relational Stress- when facing stress it is that much easier to become short-tempered and emotional. In other words, you cannot help but stress the small stuff. When we do this, those closest to us feel the brunt of it. Jon and I find ourselves bickering over the littlest things; I have heard this is a subconcious attempt to prepare our hearts for the pending separation, but the last thing on earth we want to be doing is fighting. When facing a storm it is easy to alienate those closest to us. We become so focused on our own problems that we forget we are not the only ones in pain. When we do this we push away those we need most.
3. Change Itself- my mother recently said that "change is never easy, you always lose something." There is so much truth in that statement. With change also comes the uncertanty of the future. This is both circumstantial and personal- what will happen and who will I become? So not only do you experience loss, but you feel lost!

I share this because I want to offer some words of truth, as a reminder to myself, but also as an attempt to encourage others facing a similar situation, whether it is deployment, loss, change, or just stress.

"You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in you." - Isaiah 26:3 (ESV)

With that in mind, here are some ways to be "stayed":

1. Stay in the Word- "Sanctify them in the truth, Your word is truth" (John 17:17). In order to keep ourselves focused on truth, we have to know God's Word and His promises. The Holy Spirit illuminates, reminds, and comforts us, but in order to do this He needs some truth to work with. No matter how busy or stressful things get we have to prioritize time in the Word to meditate on God's truths. 

2. Stay healthy- "Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there, while he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness. He came to a broom bush, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. 'I have had enough, LORD,' he said. 'Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.' Then he lay down under the bush and fell asleep. All at once an angel touched him and said, 'Get up and eat.' He looked around, and there by his head was some bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. He ate and drank and then lay down again. The angel of the LORD came back a second time and touched him and said, 'Get up and eat, for the journey is too much for you.' So he got up and ate and drank." (1 Kings 19:3-8a NIV). 

Sometimes what we need is just plain physical nourishment. Get some sleep! Eat healthy and stay active. Our minds will not stay in a healthy place if our bodies are all out of whack. 

3. Stay connected- "Then the LORD God said, 'It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him'" (Gen. 2:18). The only thing in God's creation that He calls "not good" is when man is alone. God is a God of community and He designed us to be in community. That is why it is so important not to let our stress and self-centered focus aleinate us from those we need most when we need them most. We must keep up good communication with our spouse, and utilize the  support of friends and family. Do not be afraid to ask for help, it may be just a phone call away.

4. Stay hopeful- "Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come" (Prov. 31:25). Rather than being anxious about the uncertainty ahead, we can smile in hopefullness at the future because God is good. He has a purpose and a plan and will not abandon us. He is using the difficulty to produce greater holiness and trust. "For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison" (2 Cor. 4:17). 

1. Image taken from dora4yiu.wordpress.com

Our Everlasting Rock

"The steadfast of mind You will keep in perfect peace, 
Because he trusts in you.
Trust in the LORD forever,
For in GOD the LORD we have an everlasting rock."
-Isaiah 26:3-4

As a military spouse change seems to be the only constant in circumstances. Just as you begin to settle into a routine, things get flipped upside-down at a moments notice with a move or a deployment. As if that is not enough, even the change cannot be adapted to because there are details, dates, and locations that all continue to change. We are leaving in less than two weeks and 80% of the details still seem up in the air. With all this change I am discovering how flexible I am not.

I am learning more and more that the only constant is the Everlasting Rock. This is a verse I cannot seem to shake from my mind. Isaiah 26 opens with the words, "In that day..." speaking of God's promised restoration. It is a chapter that prophecies about Judah's response when that day comes- they will sing a song of God's deliverance, and verse 3-4 are part of that declaration. This verse is somewhat ambiguous as to whether it refers to a nation being kept in safety or a person being kept in peace, and you will often find a number of translations rendering it in different ways. I think it is left somewhat ambiguous on purpose to show that whether it is about national security or individual peace, whatever the size of the problem, God is not surprised nor has He lost control. 



As uncertainties arise the only thing you can do is cling to the Rock that is higher than you or your circumstances. I find myself praying "Lord, we don't know what to do, so our eyes are on you." But the thing we can be certain of is that God cares infinitely more than we do about our difficulties. He is not out to get us. He does not bring things into our lives simply to see how hard he can makes things for us before we snap. He loves us deeply and wants our best, therefore, He does what He knows is best. Jeremiah 31:3 says, "The LORD appeared to me from afar, saying, 'I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have drawn you with lovingkindness." What an amazing thought that we are drawn in love by God. How could we think that He would tease us with problems or leave us out to dry?

In fact, He often takes away what we think we need or withholds what we want to spare us from greater pain. It is just like the mother who refuses to let her child have an extra brownie because she knows it will just make him sick. But is seems that our only focus is what we lack rather than God's provision. That's why Isaiah 26:4 says "trust in the LORD forever," because with a God who is infinite in His love, wisdom, goodness, and control how could we look anywhere else?

When we trust in God, the "bigness" of our problems seem to shrink, and the goodness of our Savior floods us with peace because in God we have an everlasting rock!

1 Image taken from trip.typepad.com

God is King

"When you saw that Nahash the king of the sons of Ammon came against you, you said to me, 'No, but a king shall reign over us,' although the LORD your God was your king. Now therefore, here is the king who you have chosen, whom you have asked for, and behold, the LORD has set a king over you. If you will fear the LORD and serve Him, and listen to His voice and not rebel against the command of the LORD, then both you and also the king who reigns over you will follow the LORD your God. If you will not listen to the voice of the LORD, but rebel against the command of the LORD, then the hand of the LORD will be against you, as it was against your fathers"...Then all the people said to Samuel, "Pray for your servants to the LORD your God, so that we may not die, for we have added to all our sins this evil by asking for ourselves a king." Samuel said to the people, "Do not fear. You have committed all this evil, yet do not turn aside, for then you would go after futile things which cannot profit or deliver, because they are futile. For the LORD will not abandon His people on account of His great name, because the LORD has been pleased to make you a people for Himself...Only fear the LORD and serve Him in truth with all your heart; for consider what great things He has done for you."
- 1 Samuel 12:12-15, 19-22, 24

I believe this story of Israel demanding a king to be one of the saddest stories in all of Scripture. God had given them one of their greatest and godliest rulers in Samuel. He was a prophet, priest, and judge for the people. He served as a bridge between the period of the Judges to the time of the Kings. Judges was marked by rebellion, defeat, confusion, nations disunity, and, despite all this, God's unwavering faithfulness. He did not abandon His people regardless of their idolatry and rebellion. Instead He was faithful to His promises of blessing their obedience and punishing their disobedience. Even as they continued to turn their back on God, He blessed them with the righteous leadership of Samuel who unified the tribes into a nation, helped the people seek God, and caused them to experience peace on every side. 

Despite all this in 1 Samuel 8 the people come to Samuel demanding a king. They gave two reasons: the first being that Samuel's sons were evil and did not walk in the Samuel's ways. However, Eli, the leader that preceded Samuel also had evil sons, but God raised up Samuel to lead the people in their place. In no way was this an valid excuse because God could have and would have raised up another godly leader in the same way He had done for them many times before. Their second reason, was that they wanted to be like the other nations: "Nevertheless, the people refused to listen to the voice of Samuel, and they said, "No, but there shall be a king over us, that we also may be like all the nations, that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles" (1 Sam. 8:19-20).

Samuel is deeply grieved at their request, but God reminds him, "for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me from being King over them" (8:7b). He warns them of the foolishness of their choice, but they are stubborn in their request. Consequently, the king God provides them matches their request. The same was that the people of Israel were more concerned with being like the nations around them, Saul, cared only about what people thought instead of what God thought. We find repeated occasions in which Saul disobeys and displeases God and every time he gives excuse after excuse about how he feared the people. 

In chapter 12 Samuel is addressing the nation for the final time of his career. He reminds the people that even though they are unwilling to accept or admit it, God is still their King. He reiterates God's faithfulness- that if they seek Him, God will bless them abundantly and provide them with peace. But if they turn away from God, He will be faithful to punish them. But Samuel adds that no matter what God would never abandon them. 

The thing that makes this story chilling to the bone is how similar our hearts are to the people of Israel. We reject God as our King on a daily basis. We deeply desire acceptance and to "fit in" with the people around us, when the only opinion that matters is God's. We are quick to give excuses for and even ignore our sin. Although God has protected and provided for us over and over, we still anxiously doubt and dread. We go after futile things which cannot profit or deliver, because they are futile (1 Sam. 12:21). We want to see and put our trust in something tangible because we are certain that will be easier than remembering that God is in control. We cling to money, relationships, occupations, entertainment, even our own ability, even though the LORD your God is your King! (12:12).

In the same way Samuel leaves a charge to the people, "Only fear the LORD and serve Him in truth with all your heart; for consider what great things He has done for you" (12:24). I challenge you in the same three ways:

God is King!
1. Fear Him (trust and rely on all that He has revealed about Himself)
2. Serve Him (love and obey Him)
3. Thank Him (for consider what great things He has done for you)

1. Image taxdollars.ocregister.com