We Must Through

"Then Jews from Antioch and Iconium came there;
and having persuaded the  multitudes,
they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city,
supposing him to be dead.
However, when the disciples gathered around him,
he rose up and went into the city...
And when they had preached the gospel... and made many disciples,
they returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch,
strengthening the souls of the disciples,
exhorting them to continue in the faith, and saying,
'We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.'"
~Acts 14:19-22

And doesn't it ring true when it comes out of his mouth? It is a comfort and encouragement to be exhorted to perseverance by those who have suffered themselves. He went to the very hometown of those who had stoned him to encourage the ones who lived there to continue in faith, through tribulation.

I don't know about you, but I get no comfort from the exhortations of the comfortable. From the corrections of the well-fed. When my friends from the tropics complain of rain at the beach, I do not sympathize. The trite assurances of "everything's going to be alright" from people who buy new clothes every week never mean much to me. But I listen very carefully to those whose pains I am familiar with. When I have watched them suffer, and I have seen them bleed, and they tell me there is hope, it has weight with me.

From All Things

"Therefore let it be known to you, brethren,
that through this Man is preached to you the forgiveness of sins;
and by Him everyone who believes
is justified from all things
from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses."
~Acts 13:38,39

From all things from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses. Everything.

Over the years, I have sometimes heard people say sadly that they could not accept God's forgiveness because their sins were so horrible. We recognize the validity of the law's judgment against us. And although we might feel justified over some of our sins, and our good deeds to pay society back for them, there are sins that no human conscience justifies. There is no sacrifice I can make that will right murder. There is no sacrifice I can make that will right adultery. Enslaving another human cannot be righted by the law. Under the law of Moses, those guilty of certain sins have no recourse. Death is all there is.

The thrilling news that comes to us in Jesus is that everyone who believes is justified from all things from which we could not be justified by the law of Moses.

Are you a witch?
Moses says you have to die.
Jesus says, "Believe and be clean."
Are you a prostitute?
Moses says 'die'.
Jesus says, "Believe and be clean."
Are you an adulterer?
Moses says stoning would suffice.
Jesus says, "Go, and sin no more."
Are you a Gentile?
Moses says you have to stay in the outer court, and never come any closer.
But Jesus broke down the dividing wall of separation, and made us one with Him, and gave the promise of the Holy Spirit to all of us who believe.

Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.

His Work

"Honest weights and scales are the Lord's;
all the weights in the bag are His work."
~Proverbs 16:11

It is the work of God to trade honestly and fairly. He concerns Himself with our measuring tapes, our scales, our contract negotiations. I love that. I love that He loves fair dealing. He considers our deals to be His deals.

What tool have I got in my bag? Is it the Lord's tool? When I use the Lord's tools, I do the Lord's business. On the other hand, if the tools I work with are dishonest implements, all my work is dishonest work.

Awaiting the Eagles

"Where is heaven?" Silas asked at breakfast today.
"Heaven is where God is," I answered. "I don't know how to tell you where it is. But it is where God is."
"Is Jesus in heaven?"
"Yes, He is."
"How can I get to heaven?" he asked.
"It is Jesus's job to take us there."
"I think Jesus will send His eagles to come and get us, and they will take us to heaven," he assured me.
"Um, Jeff -- we've got a little Lord of the Rings theology going on here."

To Send Relief

"And in these days prophets came from Jerusalem to Antioch.
Then one of them stood up and showed by the Spirit
that there was going to be a great famine throughout all the world...
Then the disciples, each according to his own ability,
determined to send relief to the brethren dwelling in Judea.
This they also did, and sent it to the elders
by the hands of Barnabas and Saul."
~Acts 11:27-30

I read this with my kids the other day. This is contrary to the 'wisdom' your financial planner might offer. Being responsible means providing for yourself, you know. Having a retirement. Planning ahead for emergencies, and not ever allowing a famine to interrupt your prosperity. The predicted famine was not only going to affect those in Judea. It was going to affect Antioch. But the response of the Antioch Christians to this news was to give away their own sustenance.

I heard conventional financial wisdom summed up the other day: Get all you can, and can all you get.
But Jesus said, "They will know you are Christians by your love."

"There is one who scatters, yet increases more;
and there is one who withholds more than is right,
but it leads to poverty.
The generous soul will be made rich,
and he who waters will also be watered himself."
~Proverbs 11:24,25

"He who trusts in his riches will fall,
but the righteous will flourish like foliage."
~Proverbs 11:28

Trusting in riches is such a snare. It comes in wearing the clothes of 'wisdom': "It wouldn't be wise to spend money right now. I don't have enough myself." But quite often, it's the soul grasping at an anchor that cannot hold.

My heart and mind fight this battle sometimes every moment. I often have to say to myself:
"Some trust in chariots, and some trust in horses.
But I will trust in the name of the Lord my God."
Sometimes I change the words:
some trust in bank accounts, and some trust in paychecks -- 
but I will trust in the name of the Lord my God.

And I reason with myself regularly: if God can't save me with less than what I have, He also can't save me with what I have. If He isn't worth trusting, my money is even less worthy of that trust. Sometimes no one knows the battle I just fought. Maybe it's been going on for days, but I feel such a sense of relief when I decide, "I will trust the Lord." And I pray, "Lord, You see the choice I'm making here. You know what I need. Please take care of me."

I have many times heard the believers in Jerusalem faulted because they tried out 'Christian communism', and failed. Did they fail? Or did they make a conscious choice to trust Him with their upkeep? They had many widows among them, and those who had something gave what they had. They cast their bread on the waters, so to speak, and after many days, the Lord sent it back to them by the hands of Barnabas and Saul. 'He who waters will be watered himself.'

A City For Them

Speaking of Israel, the Lord said,
"They shall come trembling like a bird from Egypt,
like a dove from the land of Assyria.
And I will let them dwell in their houses," says the Lord.
~Hosea 11:11

"These all died in faith, not having received the promises,
but having seen them afar off
were assured of them, embraced them
and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland.
And truly if they had called to mind that country
from which they had come out,
they would have had opportunity to return.
But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country.
Therefore, God is not ashamed to be called their God,
for He has prepared a city for them."
~Hebrews 11:13-16

David said:
"Hear my prayer, O Lord, and give ear to my cry;
do not be silent at my tears;
for I am a stranger with You,
a sojourner, as all my fathers were."
~Psalm 39:12

"Therefore let us go forth to Him, outside the camp, bearing His reproach.
For here we have no continuing city, but we seek the one to come."
~Hebrews 13:13,14

"Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem,
coming down out of heaven from God,
prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying,
'Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men,
and He shall dwell with them, and they shall be his people.
God Himself will be with them and be their God.
And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes;
there shall be no more death,
nor sorrow,
nor crying.
There shall be no more pain,
for the former things have passed away."

~Revelation 21:2-4

I've been reading American revolutionary history with my children. It stirs our blood. Freedom from tyranny is such nobility. I'm a patriot, myself. I love my country. I've heard about 'The American Dream' my whole life. The American dream is the dream of a home and a homeland. Of the freedom to build and be without the stifling tyrant of an overlord exacting his due like a mobster. The freedom to pursue happiness, to be left alone to live in liberty.

How can anyone oppose that? Watching the dismantling of our foundations bothers me immensely. It grieves my heart. I read the Hosea verse this morning and found myself sighing at the promise He gave them: I will let them dwell in their houses. Vineyards, crops, a safe home. Oh, the simple bliss.

I went looking for the Hebrews passage about those who wandered as strangers because they were seeking a homeland, and how the Lord has prepared a city for them. My Bible cross-referenced me over to the Psalms passage. It leaps off the page that it was sobbed out to the Lord. Tears, human heritage, and not being at home here...

Back to Hebrews. 'Here we have no continuing city, but we seek the one to come.' Here, we have no continuing city. America, 'the last best hope of man on earth', is not a continuing city. Not a heavenly homeland. Not 'the one to come'. As sad as it is to see it decline-- our freedoms eroded, our foundations crumbling, I have citizenship in something better. Full citizenship. With dignity, and a home to dwell in, and gardening to do without weeds. Fellowship with my neighbors, my family all around me, and God living with us.

And, oh! John's vision.
He shall dwell with them.
They shall be His people.
He will be their God.
He shall wipe away every tear.
No more death.
No more sorrow.
No more crying.
No more pain.

Not only does He live with us, and comfort us for the pain and sorrow and death we've come out of, He sends it packing. No more walking around with death sitting on our hearts, with sorrow strangling our lungs, with tears leaking out when we get a chance to be still. It isn't just the tears He wipes away. He wipes out every reason for them. No secret misery to try to smile through. And no more pain. The former things have all passed away. I'm looking forward to pain and sorrow and death and crying being a 'former thing'.

O Lord, You know our longing for homes: to be settled in peace and security. We long to have a true homeland -- one where our citizenship is full. Where we can live in real safety, dwelling in our homes, planting our gardens, in harmony with every neighbor. Without drama, in full fellowship, with the government on the shoulders of Jesus. Thank You for Your promises. Come quickly, Lord Jesus.

With the Lord

I just read a little more sickening national history. Beastly. I am so disturbed. So I think about this:

"For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout,
with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God.
And the dead in Christ will rise first.
Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up
together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.
And thus we shall always be with the Lord.
Therefore comfort one another with these words."

~ 1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17

Thus we shall always be with the Lord. Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus. Catch us up. Meet us. Be with us. The reign of beasts has gone on long enough.

Like the Rain

"Let us know,
Let us pursue the knowledge of the Lord.
His going forth is established as the morning;
He will come to us like the rain,
Like the latter and former rain to the earth."
~Hosea 6:3

And don't we need Him like the earth needs the rain? The Lord's coming is described here as 'like the morning', and 'like the rain'. Both things men long for in this world. We long for morning to break, for daylight to come. And we long for rain.

My husband and I got to visit Israel almost a year ago. One of the first things our guide explained to us was their desperate need for rain. It was supposed to be the rainy season, but the rains had not fallen. It was hot, and dry, and everywhere we went, we had to make an effort to bring water. Without water, nothing lives.

Come to us, Lord, as the rain.
Rise on us like the morning.

At This Time

"The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham and said to him,
'Get out of your country and from your relatives,
and come to a land that I will show you.'
He moved to this land and God gave him no inheritance in it,
not even enough to set his foot on.
But even when Abraham had no child,
He promised to give it to him for a possession,
and to his descendants after him.
So Jacob went down to Egypt; and he died, he and all our fathers.
But when the time of the promise drew near which God had sworn to Abraham,
the people grew and multiplied in Egypt
till another king arose who did not know Joseph.
This man dealt treacherously with our people,
and oppressed our forefathers,
making them expose their babies, so that they might not live.
At this time Moses was born, and was well-pleasing to God."

~ From Acts 7

God asked Abraham: 'Come, follow Me.' And Abraham followed. A promise was given to Abraham, which Abraham believed (although at the time of the promise, Abraham did not even possess the means to receive the promise). He received no inheritance. Abraham's grandchildren and great-grandchildren had to flee their 'possession', which as yet was still not theirs, in order to get enough food to eat. They entered Egypt as guests, and stayed there over four hundred years.

But a king arose without any respect for Joseph. He did not know him. And Israel suffered. If I had been among them in these days, I would have brooded over the national decline. The loss of civil liberties. The horrible oppression. Surely God had forgotten them: it can't be His will that they be oppressed.

At this time Moses was born. The time of decline. The time of misery. The time of babies left to die. The time of beatings and forced labor. Do you ever wish you were born for another time? I do. Constantly. I don't like this time in history. I long for quietness and peace and security.

But it says that Moses was well-pleasing to God at this time. In this hour of treacherous oppression.

And before that, it said:
"When the time of the promise drew near
a king arose who did not know Joseph."

I am reminded of something Jesus said.
He described a whole lot of terror coming upon the world.
But then to His disciples He said,
"When you see all these things beginning, look up.
Your redemption draws near."

Look up.
Here at this time -- the time in which you are born, please Him well.
At this time.
In this treacherous hour.
The time of the promise draws near.

And Doesn't Regret

I was having a conversation today about housekeeping and saving money with some ladies. Tricks and tips to spend less money or less time on certain tasks. It brought out the guilt we all feel over certain housekeeping tasks. You know: not recycling enough; not reusing enough; using paper products instead of cloth, not making your own bread, buying canned goods instead of canning them yourself. (Add your personal housekeeping splurge to that list.)

I admire women who seem instinctively to know how to spend the least amount of money on life. I hate wasting money. But when one lady confessed to years of feeling guilty over buying paper napkins, I started thinking again about my feelings towards some of the 'good stewardship' teaching I have heard over the years. Please don't misunderstand. I like saving money and I happen to use cloth napkins. I think 'being wise' is ideal.

But can I just say this pithy little saying? (Certainly not to condemn frugality, but just to point out that it is not necessarily godliness.)

Here it is: God is not a skinflint.

He is generous,
lavish in His gifts,
gives cheerfully,
willingly,
heaping blessings and benefits on undeserving people.
And doesn't regret what He paid for it afterward.

His Baby

 A thought about the prodigal:

He wasted everything he was entitled to by his position in the family. In his mind, he he had forfeited his position in the family. He was 'no longer a son'.

But in his father's mind, when he came home battered, he was his baby, found after a dreadful absence -- needing a bath and some new clothes. His father allowed no separation. He didn't even punish him. It was pure joy and acceptance from Daddy. Not a trial run of sonship (with all the responsibilities, and none of the privileges).

Jesus wants us to know the heart of God. We do not know the heart of God without seeing this in Him. The Father loves His children. He longs for their return. And when they come home, His arms are open.

Only Until

In Daniel 7, Daniel dreamed of a succession of beasts representing all the world-controlling powers of history.

A lion with eagle wings. (Have you watched the YouTube video of an eagle attacking young goats, flinging them off a cliff to kill them? Lions stalking and attacking their prey?)

A bear. (Accounts from the Lewis and Clark expedition of the grizzlies they saw could install the proper view of this stately animal.) A bear to whom they say, "Arise, devour much flesh!"

And a leopard... with bird wings... and four heads. The better to eat you with, my dear. And dominion was given to it.

And the fourth beast, Daniel doesn't even seem able to describe, just to say it was dreadful. Terrible. Exceedingly strong. With huge iron teeth. Devouring. Breaking in pieces. Trampling everything with its feet. Different from the rest, and having ten horns. One of the horns was a loud-mouthed jerk.

While the little horn mouthed off, Daniel watched thrones being set up, and the Ancient of Days took His seat. He watched a courtroom scene, and the Judge sat on a fiery flame of a throne. The books were opened. The little horn still wouldn't shut up. The beast is slain, its body destroyed, and given to the burning flame which came from before Him. All the other beasts were allowed to live, but had their power stripped from them.

"I was watching, and behold, One like the Son of Man,
coming with the clouds of heaven...
To Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom,
that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away,
and His kingdom the one which shall not be destroyed."

Humans who control the world are beastly. There's a good reason so many people are anti-government. Governments are always run by people. And people have issues. Power issues. Corruption issues. Murdering-our-enemies issues. If you had to see in advance how world history would play out, you would be grieved in spirit, too. Troubled. Daniel was severely bothered. He asked what it meant.

"Those great beasts, which are four,
are four kings which arise out of the earth.
But the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom
and possess the kingdom forever, even forever and ever."

Reading this today, I noticed that this was what the answer was. Even though Daniel probes for more information about that fourth beast, which so distressed him, the point of this vision is above. All those beastly kingdoms -- they do not remain.

Those governments arise out of the earth. It is amazing to me that of all the things that arise from the earth, a man to be King wasn't one of them. One of the beasts is given a man's heart, but all the kings that arise from the earth are animals. Only the Son of Man will rule as a man.

And the kingdom goes to the saints. Which would not be apparent by studying the details of the fourth beast. Because Daniel says, "the same horn was making war against the saints, and prevailing against them." Except that there is no period in the text. It continues: "until the Ancient of Days came, and a judgment was made in favor of the saints of the Most High, and the time came for the saints to possess the kingdom."

"He shall speak pompous words against the Most High,
shall persecute the saints of the Most High...
then the saints shall be given into his hand for a time...
But the court shall be seated, 
and they shall take away his dominion,
consume and destroy it forever.
Then the kingdom and dominion,
and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven,
shall be given to the people,
the saints of the Most High.
His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and all dominions shall serve and obey Him."

I hear the Hallelujah chorus in my head every time I read about His dominion. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus. Amen.

It is so tempting to only see the dominion of the beast. But that animal is lumped in with all the other world powers by the angel explaining the vision. 'Four kings which arise.' But the saints receive the kingdom. The Son of Man gets it all. The beast is slain in the midst of his boasting. And all that trouble is only until.

And they lived happily ever after.

The end.

Of Keeping Thee Where Thou Art

"Do not say in thine heart that thou wilt or wilt not do,
but wait upon God until He makes known His way.
So long as that way is hidden it is clear that there is no need of action,
and that He accounts Himself responsible for all the results of keeping thee where thou art."

(From Streams in the Desert, October 19th)

A Meditation

"Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!
For His mercy endures forever.

Let Israel now say...
Let the house of Aaron now say...
Let those who fear the Lord now say,
'His mercy endures forever.'

I called on the Lord in my distress;
The Lord answered me and set me in a broad place.
The Lord is on my side: I will not fear.
What can man do to me?
The Lord is for me among those who help me;
...It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man.
It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes.

...You pushed me violently, that I might fall,
But the Lord helped me.
The Lord is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation.

The voice of rejoicing and salvation is in the tents of the righteous;
The right hand of the Lord does valiantly.
The right hand of the Lord is exalted; the right hand of the Lord does valiantly.
I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord.
...He has not given me over to death.

Open to me the gates of righteousness;
I will go through them, and I will praise the Lord.
This is the gate of the Lord, through which the righteous shall enter.

I will praise You, for You have answered me,
And have become my salvation.

The stone which the builders rejected  has become the chief cornerstone.
This was the Lord's doing; it is marvelous in our eyes.
This is the day the Lord has made; I will be glad and rejoice in it.

Save now, I pray, O Lord; O Lord, I pray, send now prosperity.
Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!
We have blessed you from the house of the Lord.
God is the Lord, and He has given us light;
Bind the sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar.
You are my God, and I will praise You.
You are my God, I will exalt You.

Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!
For His mercy endures forever."

~From Psalm 118

My attention was drawn to this psalm this morning as I read Acts 4 to my children. Peter quoted this in answer to the priests and Sadducees when they asked him in what power or by what name he healed a cripple.

Just a couple of verses above Peter's quoted verse, my eyes fell here: "This is the gate of the Lord, through which the righteous shall enter".
Jesus said: "I am the Door. No man comes to the Father but by Me."
The Good Shepherd.
The Door of the sheepfold.
The Way.
The Gate.

Just below that, it says: "I will praise You, for You have answered me, and have become my salvation." Jehovah's salvation.
Yehoshuah.
Y'shua.
Jesus.

Afterward, it says: "This was the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes. This is the day the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it."
The day of salvation.
The day of the rejected stone.
The gate by which the righteous enter.
This was the Lord's doing.

"Save now."
Hosanna.
They said that, didn't they?
"Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!"
Yehoshuah.
Jehovah is salvation.
He has become our salvation.
He came in the name of the Lord.

"God is the Lord, and He has given us light."
"I am the Light of the world."

"Bind the sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar."
"This is My body, which is broken for you..."
Behold, the Lamb of God, which takes away the sins of the world.

Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!
For His mercy endures forever.

The Lord is for us, among those who help us! In our distress, He answers us. He answered us with this salvation. I am set in a broad place. I am set in Christ. The Lord is on my side.

"It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man."
That is the central verse of the entire Bible. That is the central message of the entire Bible. Put your trust in the Lord. His right hand has done valiantly, and is exalted. Jesus Christ is at the right hand of  the Father.
He has done valiantly.
He has accomplished salvation.
He has become our salvation, and ever lives to make intercession for us.
That means He goes between us and God. He envelopes us in Himself, and stands for us.

We were pushed violently, that we might fall.
But the Lord helped us. He has become our salvation.

That's why the voice of rejoicing and salvation is in the tents of the righteous.
We shall not die, but live.
He has not given us over to death.
Walk through the gate of the Lord, the gate of righteousness.
He has become your salvation.

Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!
For His mercy endures forever.

Thank You, Jesus.

And Light Dwells With Him

"Blessed be the name of God forever and ever,
for wisdom and might are His.
And He changes the times and the seasons;
He removes kings
and raises up kings;
He gives wisdom to the wise
and knowledge to those who have understanding.
He reveals deep and secret things;
He knows what is in the darkness,
and light dwells with Him."

~Daniel 2:20-22

As You Really Are

Show me Thy ways
Teach me Thy paths
Free me from all of my fears.
Trusting in You is so easy to do
When I see You as You really are

As You really are ~ God and King
As You really are ~ Lord of everything
As You really are,
Help me to see You as You really are.

As You really are ~ risen and living
As You really are ~ just and yet forgiving
As You really are,
Help me to see You as You really are.

I love this song. I was reminded of it again this morning when I read the end of Andrew and Emma Murray by Leona Choy:

"Murray urges us to 'gaze and gaze again, worship and adore,
and the more we see Him as He is, the more like Him we must become...
by letting the heavenly likeness reflect itself
and shine out in our life among our fellow men.
This is what we have been redeemed for, and let this be what we live for.'"

Look at Jesus. Behold the Lamb. He takes away the sins of the world.

Aware

I want to always have my ear turned to hear Him, like a mother is always listening for the new baby's cry -- even in her sleep. "Sorry -- gotta go. I hear the Lord calling."

When I would have a new baby, sometimes my husband would send me away to shop for a little while alone. It blew my mind how a couple of hours into it, my body would make me aware that my baby needed me. I would head to the checkout, wherever I was, and drive home. Sure enough, I would arrive to find a wakeful baby who was ready to eat. To think the Lord is like that with us. Aware of our needs. We ought to be assured that the hunger pang that wakes us connects us to Him as surely as the insurge of milk connects the nursing mother to her baby.

At The Table

"Now, behold, two of them were traveling that same day
to a village called Emmaus, which was seven miles from Jerusalem...
While they conversed and reasoned,
Jesus Himself drew near and went with them.
But their eyes were restrained, so that they did not know Him.
...Beginning at Moses and all the Prophets,
He expounded to them in all the Scriptures
the things concerning Himself.
Then they drew near to the village where they were going,
and He indicated that He would have gone farther.
But they constrained Him, saying,
'Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent.'
And He went in to stay with them.
Now it came to pass, as He sat at the table with them,
that He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them.
Then their eyes were opened and they knew Him;
and He vanished from their sight."
(From Luke 24)

As I read this to my children this morning, I thought about Hebrews 13:2, which tells us not to forget to entertain strangers, remembering that some who have done so have 'entertained angels unaware'. Such a colorful phrase.

They did not recognize Him on their seven mile walk with Him. They did not recognize Him through His heart-burning exposition of the entire Old Testament to them. And although Jesus was not above inviting Himself to peoples' houses for a meal, in this instance, He would have just kept going had they not pressed Him to stay. They recognized Him at the table in the breaking of bread and in prayer. What if they hadn't shown hospitality?

Don't you love being pressed to stay with people? Having your plans changed by urged hospitality? My husband one time came home from work and told me that some people were coming to stay the night with us and have dinner with us. They were only five minutes behind him. They were a touring German couple he had run into. We spent that night and a day later talking about the things of the Lord with them, stirring them to holy living, and it was so fruitful and so obviously Spirit-led. I don't normally invite foreign strangers to stay in my house with me. It scares me. But a Bible study would not have produced the beautiful fruit the hospitality did. We asked some friends on short notice to eat dinner with us one night, and the girl said, "Oh, I love spontaneous hospitality!" I like that expression.

Just as this was on my mind, we read an account of George Washington's life in Virginia. It said that he sent someone to stand near the crossroads sometimes to 'waylay travelers' to come to dinner at his house. I love to be 'waylaid' to come to dinner.

And the Hills Disappear

"For the mountains may move
and the hills disappear,
but even then
My faithful love for you will remain.
My covenant of blessing will never be broken,"
says the Lord, who has mercy on you.

~Isaiah 54:10

God in a Body

 The language in the old hymn is far more beautiful than what follows. But, oh, the Incarnation -- the beautiful mystery of the ages. Making it plain only sets off its dazzling splendor.

Listen: the announcing angels are singing
the magnificence of the newborn King:
the end of hostilities; free pardon to the offenders--
friendship restored between God and sinners.

Full of joy, stand up, everyone!
Join the victory celebration of heaven;
Yell out with the angels,
"The Savior was born in Bethlehem!"

Messiah, worshiped by highest heaven--
Messiah, the everlasting Lord:
Wanted for a long time, see Him come
and live in a hovel here.

Clothed in flesh, look at the Godhead,
Welcome God in a body!
Happy to live as a man with humans,
YHWH is salvation, our God with us.

Greet the Prince of Peace from heaven!
Welcome the Source of Holiness!
He brings Light and Life to all
He lifts Himself up with healing for us.

Softly, He lays His magnificence aside,
and is born to put an end to death,
born to lift the sons of dirt,
born to make them live again!

Listen, the announcing angels are singing
the magnificence of the newborn King.

Do you recognize the hymn I paraphrased?

A Bookmark in Affliction

I have been for some time slowly working my way through Edith Schaeffer's book Affliction. I bought it in 1995, I think: I started it in 2010. It is a book that sometimes leaves me weeping, and often leaves me nodding, and writing a prayer in the margin. The bookmark I have in it is a plain strip of card stock upon which I wrote, "In all our afflictions, He is afflicted."

That ministers to me so much. Fellowship with Jesus in suffering makes a temple out of a pit.

I read some time back about a study that showed that being touched by a loved one reduced pain in patients -- I think it even lowered their blood pressure. In the midst of wracking pain I remember the comfort I received from my husband's hand laid on me. When we suffer, learning to recognize the touch of His hand is one of the benefits of the experience. Unlike our medical caregivers, who have often not experienced whatever we are being treated for, our Great Physician is afflicted in all our afflictions. The difference between care administered by doctors and nurses who have suffered themselves, and those who have only read of suffering is huge. Our High Priest is touched with our weaknesses -- He suffers our hurts. And He lays His hand on us in them.

The Darkest Day

For many years, I have overheard disdainful comments about the celebration of Christmas in December.

"It's a pagan celebration of the winter solstice."
The trees are evil.
It's too commercial.
It's the feast of Saturnalia.
Jesus was not born in December.

Personally, though, I love that for a short season every year I hear the Gospel in song in public places. That the whole world considers Immanuel, God With Us. That His humility and His compassion for us are something to pause over even to those who haven't yet received Him.

It is the darkest time of the year, and He came to us in our darkness -- the Light of the world. When my third child was born, I looked at her and broke down because I thought about Him. That He would condescend to a human birth -- an arrival that requires washing for its messiness -- just overwhelmed me. I think it is appropriate to celebrate the arrival of the Light of the world in the darkest days of the year. He is Light, and every one of us who has received Him has had Him come to us in our darkness. Dark minds. Dark hearts. Dark futures.

I saw a news article today that said that this year the winter solstice and a lunar eclipse are coinciding for the first time in 456 years -- making Tuesday the darkest day in over four centuries.

Joy to the world: the Lord is come--
Let earth receive her King!

A Consciousness of Failure

"Let us trust Him and praise Him
in the midst of a consciousness of failure and of a remaining tendency to sin.
Notwithstanding this,
let us believe that our God loves to dwell in us;
and let us hope in His still more abundant grace.
...No more speak of the feebleness of your consecration.
Our mistake is, I think, that we form our own ideal
of an abiding exhibition of power and success
which is not according to the mind of God."

~Andrew Murray

Just Like Losing Time

"When you first begin waiting on God,
it is with frequent intermission and failure.
But, do believe God is watching over you in love
and secretly strengthening you in it.
There are times when waiting appears just like losing time,
but it is not so.
Waiting, even in darkness, is unconscious advance,
because it is God you have to do with,
and He is working in you.
God, who calls you to wait on Him,
sees your feeble efforts, and works it in you.
Your spiritual life is in no respect your own work;
as little as you begin it, can you continue it.
It is God's Spirit who has begun the work in you of waiting upon God.
He will enable you..."

~Andrew Murray, Waiting on God

God's Plan

"Understand God's mysterious plan, which is Christ Himself.
In Him lie hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
I am telling you this so no one will deceive you with well-crafted arguments...
Let your roots grow down into Him, and let your lives be built on Him.
Then  your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught,
and you will overflow with thankfulness."
(Colossians 2:2-7)

God's plan is Christ. Mysterious. Beautiful. We have no wisdom and no knowledge in ourselves. But in Him they lie hidden. And when we let our roots grow down into Him, we draw our strength and our sustenance from Him. Letting our lives be built on Christ, we reject the alternate foundation of anything else. Christ is our base. He is our soil if we would bear fruit. He is the plan of God. God has no alternative route to holiness for me. If I would be sanctified, if I would live -- it is Christ I must live in. If I would be God's child, Christ is my only hope.

If I am trying to grow in holiness outside the soil of Christ Himself, I will wither and die. When I consider Him, I can lift my head in faith, because of who He is. My faith grows strong, because it isn't in me, and thankfulness is unavoidable because He works in me.

Many Things

"I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now," Jesus told His friends on the eve of His crucifixion. "However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come." (John 16:12,13)

It is remarkable to me that Jesus restrained Himself from telling them what He knew they needed to know, but could not yet understand. He considered them in the state that they were in, and held back. But even more amazing to me is His trust in the Holy Spirit's work. He trusted that in leaving them without telling them these things, and sending the Holy Spirit to them, they would have the teaching they needed. If God With Us can trust the Holy Spirit to speak to His own, I think we would do well to also trust Him. He trusted the Holy Spirit to fulfill His mission.

Many years ago, a friend of mine who had been straying from the Lord returned to Him with some baggage. Our relationship in the past had been one of me telling my friend what was right, and my friend, being a genial person, would do it. My friend called me one night for advice about the baggage. I, being a person of many opinions, knew exactly how my friend should handle the issue. But I plainly felt the Holy Spirit telling me to be quiet, and not offer an answer. I suggested my friend pray and ask the Lord for wisdom, which He promises to give us when we ask. I had the great joy of seeing my friend learn to walk. We prayed with one another, and I trusted the Holy Spirit to teach my friend. And He did.

Too often we try to take over His job, and we get in the way of others learning to hear from Him for themselves, and learning to walk on their own feet. But people who walk on their own feet, although they may stumble and trip, have stronger legs than those who are carried everywhere. And the Holy Spirit is a better teacher than I am.

The Wind Blows

My husband mentioned to the children tonight that if they are ever confused or upset, and they need to talk, that they can talk to us, and ask us questions, and although we won’t always know the answers to their questions, we would be happy to pray with them. He told them he didn’t want them to feel like they couldn’t talk about things. “And if it’s something private, you can ask, and we will talk to you privately.”

Without warning, a child sobbed out, “Sometimes I feel like I hate them (indicating the other children), and I don’t want to!” I held the child in my arms and heard the cries of torment over this hateful heart. It wasn’t self-pity. It was the horror of what was inside.

“This is why we need God to give us a new heart, a clean heart, because that same wicked hatred is in everyone’s heart.” I told the child that when I was a little girl, I knew that I was like Cain, with murder in my heart. I assured this child that although that is a very wicked sin, God’s word promises us that when we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to wash us clean of all that sin. I said we needed to pray and ask God for a new heart, that the Lord would change that.

“I have been praying about it,” the child said. I prayed, too. We prayed 1 John 1:9, and we asked that the Holy Spirit would fill the child's heart with His love, and wash that sin away.

I said it was because the Holy Spirit was working in the child's life that the hateful heart disturbed the child -- there could be no peace with it. I talked about the Holy Spirit’s work -- that He is there to convict us both of sin, and of righteousness. That He points to our rotten hearts, and says, “This is sin -- it needs to go.” And that He points to good things, and says, “This is good.” And I prayed the child would be able to hear when the Holy Spirit is speaking. And I mentioned how I have seen this child choose to be kind and to do what is right even when I knew it was not easy. The child left my arms smiling and free. Two siblings were lined up for hugs.

“The wind blows wherever it wishes; you hear the sound it makes,
but you do not know where it comes from or where it is going.
It is like that with everyone who is born of the Spirit."
(John 3:8)

It is a beautiful thing to see the effect of the Holy Spirit interacting with someone right before your eyes -- though you cannot see Him.

What Jesus Said to Failure

 Simon Peter said to Him, "Lord, where are You going?"
"Where I am going, you cannot follow Me now, but you'll follow Me afterward."
"Lord, why can't I follow You now? I'll die for Your sake."
"Will you? You'll without fail deny Me three times before dawn." (John 13:36-38)

This is where the chapter breaks. I think this is where most of us would break it, too. Peter, you failure. Your failure is why you can't follow the Lord now.

But Jesus was still talking. In light of this devastating news to Peter, Jesus says, "Don't let your heart be troubled."  

WHAT?! How could he not let his heart be troubled? Peter would rather die for His sake and go with Him than be left behind, but Jesus tells him that in fact, he's going to fail Him utterly three times before dawn. 

"Don't let your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me."

Peter's failure did not trouble Jesus, and He asked Peter to not be troubled by it either. God's love, and His work on Peter's behalf were sufficient to provide for Peter's failure. Trust Me, Peter -- I won't let you go. Your failure can't nullify My work.

"In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also."

Although you will fail multiple times, Peter, and although you can't follow Me, I have you in mind. I will complete what you will always fail to complete. I'm coming back for you. You'll be with Me, but not by your efforts. I will do it for you. You just believe Me.

Jesus spoke of Peter's coming failure as inevitable. Peter's failure was inevitable because Peter was a failure.

I am a failure. You are a failure. It is inevitable that failures will fail. But Jesus never fails. And His words to His friend, His wannabe follower, His disciple, His beloved failure, on the very eve of his failure are, "Believe in Me."

If God is for us, who can be against us? We are more than conquerors through Him who loves us.

Trying to Assess a Soul

 Sometimes the kids ask me about other people. "Is he a Christian?" is a pretty straightforward question. Some people would look at the person, and immediately say 'yes' or 'no' based on church membership, or good works, or a fish bumper sticker. Sometimes I don't know the answer. Jesus said that if we believe on the One God sent (Himself) we would work the works of God. I do not claim to know the heart of every person I've met. Some Christians are pretty rough around the edges. Some unbelievers are very sweet people. Sometimes I don't know what to say.

"Is Mr. X a Christian?" Elisa asked me.
I smiled. "I'm not really sure. He's a very strange person. On the one hand, he does many kind things and is nice. On the other hand, he uses pretty bad language all the time. I don't know what he believes."
Elisa looked puzzled. "He doesn't speak good English?"
I guess I just added one more superficial thing to judge a man by. 

Whoops.

Membership

 A couple of weeks ago, I listened to a friend teach on Mary and Martha and their friendship with Jesus. He talked about good friends, and the way they walk into your totaled house, and instead of judging the mess, lend a hand because they know you and realize your week was rough. He talked about Martha's frantic service, and Mary's fellowship. I've kind of had it in the back of my mind since then.

Two of my sisters have been in town for the holiday. I didn't clean my house to welcome my little sister and her husband and three kids the other night. (And believe me, the house could have used the attention.) But it's my sister. She loves me. She keeps an amazing house herself, but I don't care if she sees my dirty dishes -- because she's my sister. She's not here to see how my house looks. And, aware of the remodeling that has been going on forever, when she walked into my kitchen (which was not yet cleaned up from dinner), and which showed off my cluttering skills, she said, "It's beautiful!" That would not be the comment out of the mouth of an acquaintance. An acquaintance would see the mess. But my sister saw the improvement.

I share DNA with my family. It isn't the only way to gain membership to a family, but it's how I got in. We are members because we are part of one another. My husband married in. We also have a sister we accepted in. She doesn't share DNA with us. She has no legal standing with us. But she's ours. We take her part, and she takes ours.

Sometimes it seems like rather than being a family, as Jesus asked us to, we change family into something else. Club members have an artificial likeness to one another. There are entrance fees and dues to be paid in order to reap the benefits of membership. Club membership requires conformity. And no fellow member of the club is going to be accepted without anxiety into my trashed house -- because my membership in the club could be affected by my mess. I am only accepted on the basis of my performance.

On the other hand, the biggest losers in the family have full membership. The laziest ones. The stupidest ones. The immature ones. The uncool ones. The ones who went away and crept back, battered. The ones who agree with all my opinions and the ones who oppose them have equal part in my family. There is no attitude of "all those who hold my opinions are on a higher plane than the rest."

I have been chased by my sister with a butcher knife, and she's still in. I've been wrongly accused of things; I've tried to poison my sister with harmless but disgusting substances; I've given out at least four black eyes to the same brother; yelled at members and been yelled at by them -- and none of us have been excommunicated from the family.

Every one of us would have been put out of a club.

Bad news for one of us hurts all of us. And causes for rejoicing are equally joyous. And I think that as each member has grown older and matured, the other members have become more precious and more valued. Our relationship has become more layered. We are friends as well as family. And we have learned to communicate our disagreements without resorting to gouging each others' eyes out.

I'm glad Jesus offers me membership in a family, and not a club. I am accepted in the Beloved.

"Accept one another, then, for the glory of God, as Christ has accepted you." (Romans 15:7)

Whole Offerings

I stayed with my kids at my mom's house while my husband and my dad did an out-of-town job. It also happened to be the day we both received our last phone call from my baby sister (who is pregnant) before she left the country with her husband to be a missionary in a far-off land.  It was kind of an emotional day.

My mom had one last text, called and left one more voice message to say, "I love you," and sat down at the piano to cry and sing.

Hear my cry, O God
Attend unto my prayer
From the ends of the earth
Do I cry unto Thee
And when my heart is overwhelmed
Lead me to the Rock
That is higher than I
That is higher than I

I cried and worked in the kitchen. We've done this before. I am the oldest in a large family. The sister right behind me, a number of years ago, left pregnant with her husband for a far off land. We all waited at the airport with them, tears streaming down our faces. An observer of our tears chided us for them. Not feeling the loss himself, he could not comprehend our grief. We have seen my younger brother off to war. And another younger brother leave for another coast, not knowing when we would be together again. Of course, 'dangerous' places are harder to bear. But every loss hurts.

My children were concerned and confused at the tears, and came around asking questions. I listened while my mom explained her singing and her crying to the kids. She led them through a number of David's prayers to the Lord for help to show them what she does when she is overwhelmed.

But I was thinking of another of the things David said:

"I will not offer to the Lord whole offerings that have cost me nothing."

A Check From a Check

My husband and I are perpetual offenders. When it comes to returning library books, we are always late. And when it comes to time spent at the library, we have a number of times outparked our spot. Our city has this sweet habit of giving out courtesy tickets, which basically say you deserve a real ticket, but since it hasn't been more than once in thirty days (I think it's thirty), you're getting away with it this time. We had a real one several weeks back. We didn't even discover it was on our car until the next day, after a rain.

From a financial background of unemployment and underemployment, a $15 fee for parking in a space that is reserved for the public to park in makes me angry. Okay, I get pretty angry about most fees that always serve to oppress the poor, and never hurt anyone who has enough. I think they are wrong. I think they are unreasonable. To threaten citizens who have done nothing immoral or reckless with the loss of their car if they don't pay extortionary fees to the city just makes my blood boil.

And so, after struggling for some time to find a dang parking spot at the police station, and finally parking in a spot reserved for a local attorney's office in direct opposition to the sign that said so, with boiling blood and a sharp tongue unleashed, I stalked into the police station after first trying the wrong door and finding it locked. I saw the window I had to approach to pay my fee. I pulled out my check book and prepared to say some scathing thing to the clerk who waited for me to write. And my eyes fell on the message that I had printed above the signature line: Jesus rescued me. And God sent Him for you, too. I bit my tongue, and wrote in silence. And then I said, "Thank you."

Thank You.

And We Know

"Likewise, the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses.
For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought,
but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us
with groanings which cannot be uttered.
Now He who searches the hearts
knows what the mind of the Spirit is,
because He makes intercession for the saints
according to the will of God. 
And we know that all things work together for good
to those who love God,
to those who are called according to His purpose...
What then shall we say to these things?
If God is for us, who can be against us?"
(Romans 8:26-28, 31)

Likewise. Earlier in the chapter, we are told the Spirit is life. It says the Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God.

And it says He helps our weaknesses. I am so riddled with weaknesses. And especially, I think, when it comes to prayer. I just don't know what to pray for. I bring my children to the Lord in prayer, and I feel like I stumble over my words, and don't know what to ask.

I pray for my brothers and sisters, and sometimes it just comes out as a groan. "Lord... help." But He does. He is the One who searches the hearts -- and knows what the mind of the Spirit is. And He prays for us according to the will of God.

And not only that, but apparently He answers His prayers, too, and works all things together for the good of those who love Him.

Even While

"Mom? You know how Jesus is everywhere at the same time?" my son asked me.
"Yeah."
"Well, if He's inside of time and He's outside of time, that means He is talking to Moses even while He's talking to us."

Wow.
Jesus said, "Before Abraham was, I am." The past tense does not really apply to Him, and everything He was, He is. And just short of my ninth birthday, I had no such thought.

Crying

 This life is full of so much grief. There's nothing we can do to remove it from others. But we can cry with them. Let their griefs hurt us, too. Suffer with them.

My friend is crying today. More than one of them, actually. Anniversaries of loss, present losses heaped with them... so much to cry through. I look forward to heaven. To seeing my friends with joy filling their faces, to the touch of His hand as He wipes our faces dry, and to the end of loss. The end of death. The New Testament tells us to weep with those who weep, and rejoice with those who rejoice.

When my uncle died in July, I went to my parents' house and sat and cried all day with them. It doesn't remove any of the loss, but there is something in knowing we aren't alone in our misery. So many of my friends are on my heart today, and I'm crying, too.

They're Watching

I overheard my seven-year-old daughter's telephone conversation with her cousin. As a parent, it's always amusing to hear their interpretation of life and things. Well, maybe it sometimes makes you hold your breath as they take out of their brains the twisted, mutilated version of a conversation about something else entirely and apply it to something you never did. But this one was a blessing.

"We pray over our bills together, because we don't have enough money for them. But God has been helping us a lot."

One day, as I was explaining our bills to the kids before we prayed, this same daughter asked me, "Mom, why are you telling us this?"

"Because I don't think that you seeing the wilderness we are in in any way limits God from being able to help us, and I want you to pray with me."

I have been praying the Lord would show my children who He is, that they would know His handiwork. I don't really want them to worry, but I also don't want them to not be in the habit of going to Him in time of need. And I think the only way they will know to do that is if we show them our needs, and take them with us to Him.

Much of my young faith was formed in distressing situations. I think back to what I have seen of the Lord's help, and it gives me courage to ask Him for help again. I want my children to have that database. And every time He sends help, I think of ravens, and water from the rock, and it reminds me that His arm is not short that He cannot save, His ears are open to the cry of the righteous, and my Father knows that I need all these things.

Let us therefore draw near with boldness 
unto the throne of grace, 
that we may receive mercy, 
and may find grace to help us in time of need.
~Hebrews 4:16

More Blessed

Pouring over the Samaritan's Purse Gift Catalog

It warms my heart when I see my children conspiring to help someone else. 

Discussions in our house have included being thankful for such things as we have, and contentment with godliness being great gain. And we've been talking about not having the kind of Christmas they are used to. The kind of Christmas they are used to is a fairly simple one. We buy very little in the way of gifts in a good year. This has not been a 'good' year. But frankly, I think it is a good thing for Christian children to be trained in thankfulness. My kids don't get avalanches of electronic gadgets, piles of clothing, and all the latest toys. And they say, 'thank you' when they open socks and underwear. Contentment and gratitude are so beautiful to look at in people.

In spite of receiving news that their own gifts will be minimal, my children gleefully brought out their piggy banks today to add their money to a small amount we had set aside to participate in Operation Christmas Child. We shopped for hours today, looking for killer deals so the money would stretch as far as it could, praying that the Lord would help us to pick things that would bless the child who gets it. Every year, the Lord lays some different things on our hearts to include, and we wonder about the child who will open the box. We have read stories in the newsletters about volunteers praying as they reached for a box to give a blind boy in the crowd... half expecting to pick the wrong one. The box is opened, and has a Walkman in it (I-Pod, for you newer generation people). A perfect match. We pray that for the box we pack. We talk to the kids about how we don't know this little girl, what she loves or who she is, but her Father in heaven knows every hair on her head, and He is able to bring this gift right to her.

Tonight before my daughter went to bed, she skipped over to me and hugged me, smiling happily. She looked over at the box we packed, and said, "I'm so glad we were able to get that much stuff!" It really is more blessed to give than to receive.

My husband and I have participated in OCC for many years, and when some of our children were younger, the shopping was not always easy. "Can I have...? I would like that!" Over the years, I have watched them change their tone. I think today I heard only one faint: "Mom, could I -- oh, wait! We're picking things for a girl who doesn't get anything." My kids don't complain that we buy more gifts for a total stranger than we buy for them every year. In fact, they give, too. And I am so proud of them.

Spirit Life

 They came to Him looking for bread, and He said, "Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him."

"What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?" they asked.

Be at all the church services? Don't use drums in your worship? Wear polyester? Tithe? Be accountable? Don't touch yeast? Beat yourself with rods until you bleed? Don't cuss? Never dress your children up as princesses and superheroes? Pray six hours of every day? Read ten chapters from the Bible every day? Don't smoke tobacco products? Take a Nazirite vow of no grape products, no fig products, and no haircuts? No bacon from here until eternity?

"This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent."

I'm the bread! I'm the Life! I'm the gift of God to you. I've come down from heaven to give life to the world... 

 Then He offended them all. 

"He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me and I in Him."

Pandemonium. That was too much. It is too much, isn't it? We recoil. His disciples complained and argued with each other, confused. 

"Does this offend you? ...It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life."

I believe Jesus wanted them to understand that communion with Him, being filled with Himself, is the only eternal life there is. He is the Life. How do you explain that to material-minded men? They wanted bread. They looked for signs. But what He spoke, they would not hear.

He didn't explain it to those who got offended and left. But to those who stayed, complaining as they were, He tells them "the flesh profits nothing. The Spirit gives life." All our solutions are flesh solutions. But He is Life. When we believe what He says, we are hearing Him in. We eat His flesh by believing Him. Because God is Spirit. Jesus came physically as a man to take our part. But He is eternal. He is Spirit. I think He was saying, "Here I am. You can have Me. I am given for you. You can have every part of Me. I am your provision. I am your bread. Live on Me."  

Ecclesiastes says that He set eternity in the hearts of men. We are created in His image. But sin has slain us. We walk around on this earth as the living dead. The death sentence of sin is on each one of us. Starving. Our spirits withered and terminal. No hope. But Jesus was sent to be our food. To be our drink. To join Himself in all His Life to our dead spirits. And all we have to do is believe.

O My Soul

Candlelight hamburgers

Many times growing up, we would gather to the table for dinner -- all nine of us -- and we would sing our prayer to the Lord. My mom has a very loud singing voice. I hear it in my mind. I see my family, all my younger siblings, and my mom and my dad around the table singing. Sometimes others were gathered with us -- saints from far away who would stay with us, or friends who just couldn't stay away. Such sweet fellowship around the table: long hours of happy talk and stories of what the Lord had done for others. It had more effect on my faith than years of church services.

Bless the Lord!
O my soul!
And all that is within me!
Bless His holy name!
For He has done great things --
Hallelujah!
He has done great things --
Hallelujah!
He has done great things --
Bless His holy name!

Do You Know Why?

"Mama, do you know why God made eggs and toast fo' us?" my three-year-old asked me.

"Why?"

"Betause He loves us!"

"Do you know why Jesus made sour cream fo' us?" he asked me in between licks of the sour cream spoon.

"Why?"

His eyes twinkling, and his face covered in it, he said, "Betause He loves us!"

And Faith Eats, Too.

I've been thinking a lot about Elijah lately. In obedience to the Lord, Elijah gave the king a message: "You're not getting any rain or dew these years unless I say so." (You can read this story for yourself in 1 Kings 17.)

Then the Lord tells him to flee -- sends him to a brook to drink the water and receive charity from birds. Relying on the charity of birds doesn't sound like a responsible plan. And then the brook dried up because there was no rain -- at his word.

When the brook dried up, the Lord told him to go to Sidon (Lebanon). "See, I have commanded a widow there to provide for you."

A widow? That pretty much guaranteed poverty and want. But Elijah went and found her. She was gathering sticks. Her son must have been very young, or he would have been gathering the sticks. When he asks her for some bread, she answers with reference to the Lord, the Living God -- and explains that she is making the last meal for herself and her son. They plan to eat it and die. All she had was a handful of flour and a drizzle of oil.

Doesn't that excite you? God chose a woman on the edge of starvation to 'provide' for His prophet. In a way, though, He chose to provide for a woman on the edge of starvation through His prophet. Here's this woman with some knowledge of the Living God, and nothing in the bank, and one pathetic meal's worth of food, and God says she's appointed to provide. The prophet tells her to give him a little first, and that God said her bin of flour would not run out, and her oil would not run dry until the Lord sent rain. And she believed him.

I wonder what would have happened if she had said 'no'. She would have starved, I think -- and her son. But the prophet would have been provided for through some other widow.

I think every time she opened that jar and looked inside, it looked nearly empty. I think every time she went to cook it was an act of faith. And every time she ate, it was food from nothing. The Bible says, "The just shall live by faith." And: "we walk by faith and not by sight."

Sight says to go to the land where His name is known, find the richest, most powerful religious leader in that town, and make your appeal. It does not say to go find a Lebanese widow with NOTHING and ask her to be your hostess.

Sight takes water from cisterns -- planned in advance, filled by careful engineering, and guarded over seasons. And it toils to bring forth a harvest of grain, to grind it, to store it, to ration it, to hoard it.

Faith takes water from the Rock and bread from the desert. Faith reaches into the jar and pours out the 'last' drop of oil, and hands it to someone else. And Faith eats, too.