I accidentally posted this blog here last week. I meant to post it to my personal one and clicked on the wrong button. (It's a dangerous thing for me to have edit capabilities on two blogs) With some encouragment from T, I submitt it here for your consideration and most of all your prayers. For those of you who know me well, you know that so much of this struggle comes from watching someone I love more than I can say, destroy thier life from the inside out.
One of the most profound experiences of my Christian journey came in the form of chastisement and the tender age of about 14. I remember every detail with great clarity; as if it happened to me yesterday. I was reading a book that was absolutely fascinating. I was riveted. However, the main character kept cursing God. I'm not talking about just cussing with the Lord's name it it (as if that wasn't bad enough). He was out and out cursing God as a liar, sadist and all sorts of other horrible things. I felt very strongly I was being told to put this book down. It was not for me. But I couldn't. The plot had me transfixed. Over and over I was told to put it down and I refused. Finally, I experienced what I can only assume was the Lord "giving me over" as the bible talks about in Romans, and letting me fully experience the consequences of my chosen sin. Suddenly I was consumed with an overwhelming sense of hopelessness. In the passage of the book I was reading the charaecter was insisting that we all die and wither in the ground as worms eat us. (I know... I know...how was I ever riveted by this I don't know but I was) Anyway, I really believe, for a moment, the Lord removed His protection from my mind and I was allowed to fully experience that despair and what it would feel like to truly believe there is nothing. Everything is meaningless. Take what you can out of life because in the end you're just worm food. It was terrible. I cannot fully describe it to this day. I immediately grabbed my Bible and began reading every passage I could find where Christ promised that He is the Resurrection and the Light and he that believe in Me shall never die. I read it over and over and over until my fears were silenced, my spirit quieted, and my hope restored.
These days I find myself in a similar conundrum. This time it is not because of any act of disobedience but just because I cannot get my head to be still. My time in Texas for some reason has me bombarded with DOUBT. Every question I dared never utter has come rearing its ugly head and chipping away at my faith, which until now has been ROCK SOLID. I told my mom the other day if something doesn't go a particular way that I think it should, I'm going to be so angry with God. (And even as I type that confession my mind reels with exactly the same question; Just who do I think I am?) But I immediately followed that statement with this one. "All I know these days is that God is good all the time and all the time God is good. And I can never question His love for me because Christ's death on the cross has forever demonstrated that to me." And now more than ever, I find myself clinging to those two simple truths. And as I did at 14, I find when I permeate myself with them, my fears are silenced, my spirit is quieted and my hope is restored. For me, gone are the days of cookie cutter answerers to life's tough questions. They bring no comfort. I am in a place of clinging only to TRUTH that cannot be reduced any further. God is good and He is love and because of that I can trust Him. Mark 9:24 has become so sweet to me: "Lord I believe, please help my unbelief."
I must confess that as I write this blog I'm arguing with myself on whether or not to actually post it. It is so immensely personal. But I cannot help but think that in these times of great uncertainty I am probably not the only one struggling. So I post this for my friends and family who I know are struggling through great difficulties of their own. I admonish you my brothers and sisters to hang in there and voice your doubts to our Father. He is more than able to handle them!
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Friday, March 27, 2009
With all your heart, with all your soul…
Hi, girls. I have thought endlessly about our discussion Monday night. Have you?
I’m still stewing over the different ways I can show my love to my God, my Savior, my King.
With my soul, where His Spirit dwells, love is as simple and as complicated utilizing the Fruit, by meditating on His Word, by keeping His tent clean. I am loving Him by trying to not quench Him.
With my heart, I show Him love by making sure it is His. I am loving Him when my heart is undivided. I am loving Him when I put Him first. I am loving Him when I am stoking the flames of passion for Him.
This week, my challenge has been to love Him with my mind. I have had trouble remaining focused on the things that I know please Him. I am so easily distracted – by news, by entertainment, by boredom, by restlessness, by sleep. My world lately is a series of mouse clicks and hyperlinks. But I am honoring Him when I use that time wisely, to do the work I know He has set before me.
This is my race to run, I am reminded. And I am doing no one any favors or honor (including Christ, the community of faith, and myself) when I doddle and meander.
Thank you, dear ones, for sharing in this journey with me. I loved our lesson from Monday night. (I cherish but apologize for all the tears!) We, lovelies, are on the ride of our lives – examining this holy Love Letter together. I have learned so much, and I am grateful for the sometimes violent, always beautiful purification process.
With love and prayers,
T
Friday, March 20, 2009
Dearly beloved
Greetings, girls.
I was just thinking about you all today. I feel so blessed to be a part of your lives, to be a part of your walk with the Lord. I love being witness to your growth and knowing that we are sharing the beauty every week.
My question is, what has the Lord been talking to you about lately? I want to hear Him through your words, your voices.
Hit me back. I'll post my own thoughts in the comments, too.
Love to all (and happy Friday),
T
I was just thinking about you all today. I feel so blessed to be a part of your lives, to be a part of your walk with the Lord. I love being witness to your growth and knowing that we are sharing the beauty every week.
My question is, what has the Lord been talking to you about lately? I want to hear Him through your words, your voices.
Hit me back. I'll post my own thoughts in the comments, too.
Love to all (and happy Friday),
T
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Hosea 6 - The Lord, your Valentine
Tonight, we focus on Hosea 6:1-3
"Come, let us return to the Lord."
Isn’t that what you want, sisters? To Return?
Turn from the sins, from the guilt and shame, from the rot, and turn to God, our father and husband, our Creator and King.
Let’s encourage one another with these words.
First observation: These verses are not spoken by one individual – they were spoken for each other, as a people, as a nation, as siblings, as wives. It's an "us" thing. What a challenge that is to us, girls.
How much time do we spend encouraging one another toward repentance? How are we doing at holding one another accountable in this way?
Here, the repentance is corporate. It's not one man on behalf of a nation or a people. It's a corporate cry, a corporate call toward renewed fellowship with the Lord.
What does it mean to return to the Lord? What does it take? What does He want from you?
This is where those memory verses come in. You know what the Lord is asking, specifically, of you, because you've been praying about it for weeks. You've spent time dwelling on a verse or thought, seeking the Lord about what He is asking of you.
The Lord is not interested in you going through the motions, is He? Would you be? If someone you loved was pulling away, it would not be made better by efforts toward cleaning your house or buying you dinner. You can't "say it with flowers" here, or buy Him a box of chocolates that somehow gets you out of every wrong turn or misstep.
It’s about relationship. God wants you, not your deeds alone.
6:3, the Israelites are encouraging one another to “press on” to acknowledge the Lord. It’s not just a tip of the hat, but a desire to push forward (and keep pushing forward) in our relationship with Him. And it’s important to note that we are here inspired to encourage one another. We are not in this place alone.
Next observation:
The very fact that we can return to God is a beautiful picture of His grace. That He wants us means everything. He isn’t casting us out. He isn’t asking us to “pay” him for his favor. We cannot purchase it.
We can’t pay for our own sins. We can’t offer him anything for our atonement. He wants a broken spirit and a contrite heart. These are not deeds. They are attitudes. They are internal, not external. They aren’t broken promises and actions, like going to church more, getting involved in something, reading more. They are relational.
Hosea is a clear picture to us of God’s grace. And God offers that gift to us because of His love for us. Without His unending, unfathomable, unfailing love for us, He cannot abide our sinful presence. His holiness demands that He is also surrounded by holiness. And that, dear ones, is why He poured out His grace on us. So that we could be near Him. He saw that our sins kept us from Him, and He had to do something about it. He longed for us.
That is where grace comes in.
To understand it, to understand how He feels about us, we have to understand Him. We have to try to grasp His holiness and understand why He wants holiness for us.
Holiness is defined as being set apart for the worship and service of God. We know that we can’t be holy apart from the Spirit of God. And once we are His, we are made holy. We are set apart.
He loved us so much, He didn’t want to be without us. So he made us holy. He set us apart for Himself. And He asks us to continually choose a life of holiness. It’s not that we can lose it, that sanctification; instead, we can still choose to love other things more than Him. We can still choose to not live as though we are set apart for Him, and this grieves Him. It has no affect on our eternal relationship with Him, nor on our salvation. That is one doodle that can’t be undid, homeskillet.
He’s just asking us to choose not to hurt Him.
6:6 – For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.
What God wanted from his people was for them to be merciful and to acknowledge Him. What they DID instead was make sacrifices and offerings. He was looking at their hearts, their attitudes, not their deeds. And they just didn't get it.
God wants you to want relationship with Him, not merely to walk a certain line. Your deeds will never earn you that kind of fellowship with Him.
Instead, He wants your heart. He wants to be your Valentine.
"Come, let us return to the Lord."
Isn’t that what you want, sisters? To Return?
Turn from the sins, from the guilt and shame, from the rot, and turn to God, our father and husband, our Creator and King.
Let’s encourage one another with these words.
First observation: These verses are not spoken by one individual – they were spoken for each other, as a people, as a nation, as siblings, as wives. It's an "us" thing. What a challenge that is to us, girls.
How much time do we spend encouraging one another toward repentance? How are we doing at holding one another accountable in this way?
Here, the repentance is corporate. It's not one man on behalf of a nation or a people. It's a corporate cry, a corporate call toward renewed fellowship with the Lord.
What does it mean to return to the Lord? What does it take? What does He want from you?
This is where those memory verses come in. You know what the Lord is asking, specifically, of you, because you've been praying about it for weeks. You've spent time dwelling on a verse or thought, seeking the Lord about what He is asking of you.
The Lord is not interested in you going through the motions, is He? Would you be? If someone you loved was pulling away, it would not be made better by efforts toward cleaning your house or buying you dinner. You can't "say it with flowers" here, or buy Him a box of chocolates that somehow gets you out of every wrong turn or misstep.
It’s about relationship. God wants you, not your deeds alone.
6:3, the Israelites are encouraging one another to “press on” to acknowledge the Lord. It’s not just a tip of the hat, but a desire to push forward (and keep pushing forward) in our relationship with Him. And it’s important to note that we are here inspired to encourage one another. We are not in this place alone.
Next observation:
The very fact that we can return to God is a beautiful picture of His grace. That He wants us means everything. He isn’t casting us out. He isn’t asking us to “pay” him for his favor. We cannot purchase it.
We can’t pay for our own sins. We can’t offer him anything for our atonement. He wants a broken spirit and a contrite heart. These are not deeds. They are attitudes. They are internal, not external. They aren’t broken promises and actions, like going to church more, getting involved in something, reading more. They are relational.
Hosea is a clear picture to us of God’s grace. And God offers that gift to us because of His love for us. Without His unending, unfathomable, unfailing love for us, He cannot abide our sinful presence. His holiness demands that He is also surrounded by holiness. And that, dear ones, is why He poured out His grace on us. So that we could be near Him. He saw that our sins kept us from Him, and He had to do something about it. He longed for us.
That is where grace comes in.
To understand it, to understand how He feels about us, we have to understand Him. We have to try to grasp His holiness and understand why He wants holiness for us.
“It is essential to the infinite righteousness of His nature to love righteousness wherever He beholds it.”
“A love of holiness cannot be without a hatred of everything that is contrary to it.”
~ Stephen Charnock, “The Existence and Attributes of God”
Holiness is defined as being set apart for the worship and service of God. We know that we can’t be holy apart from the Spirit of God. And once we are His, we are made holy. We are set apart.
He loved us so much, He didn’t want to be without us. So he made us holy. He set us apart for Himself. And He asks us to continually choose a life of holiness. It’s not that we can lose it, that sanctification; instead, we can still choose to love other things more than Him. We can still choose to not live as though we are set apart for Him, and this grieves Him. It has no affect on our eternal relationship with Him, nor on our salvation. That is one doodle that can’t be undid, homeskillet.
He’s just asking us to choose not to hurt Him.
6:6 – For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.
What God wanted from his people was for them to be merciful and to acknowledge Him. What they DID instead was make sacrifices and offerings. He was looking at their hearts, their attitudes, not their deeds. And they just didn't get it.
God wants you to want relationship with Him, not merely to walk a certain line. Your deeds will never earn you that kind of fellowship with Him.
Instead, He wants your heart. He wants to be your Valentine.
The state of being
Greetings, dear sisters.
I am so excited for tonight's study.
We've been plowing through Hosea, full of history and information.
Tonight, we take a breath. We are looking at just three verses. (The text of tonight's study will be up a bit later.)
But I wanted to encourage you to think about something that I've been challenged with.
What is the relationship between holiness and grace?
I was skimming through Stephen Charnock's "The Existence and Attributes of God" last night, and I came across this quote that stopped me in my tracks. I haven't been able to get it out of my head, and I knew I needed to share it with you.
Tonight's study will answer my previous question, but this quote is like a little lamp on the path of my journey toward understanding that relationship between holiness and divine grace:
“A love of holiness cannot be without a hatred of everything that is contrary to it.”
Think about it. Talk about it. Post about it.
Love you all,
T
I am so excited for tonight's study.
We've been plowing through Hosea, full of history and information.
Tonight, we take a breath. We are looking at just three verses. (The text of tonight's study will be up a bit later.)
But I wanted to encourage you to think about something that I've been challenged with.
What is the relationship between holiness and grace?
I was skimming through Stephen Charnock's "The Existence and Attributes of God" last night, and I came across this quote that stopped me in my tracks. I haven't been able to get it out of my head, and I knew I needed to share it with you.
Tonight's study will answer my previous question, but this quote is like a little lamp on the path of my journey toward understanding that relationship between holiness and divine grace:
“A love of holiness cannot be without a hatred of everything that is contrary to it.”
Think about it. Talk about it. Post about it.
Love you all,
T
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Shame and glory
Hosea 4 - 5:14
A judgment against Israel.
For every judgment against Israel, there is salvation, there is grace. For the judgments of Hosea 4 – 5:14, God saves in 5:15-6:3.
We’ve talked a lot in the last few months about harlotry and idolatry. Gomer was a harlot, Angel was a harlot. Both turned to their idols seeking salvation (Gomer to her men, Angel to Michael), but in the end were shown that God alone is salvation. They had to have things removed, they had to be hedged in to be set free.
Here, in Hosea 4 & 5, we see more of the same. God lays his case against Israel, including against its priests. They did not only turn from Him and His commandments, they turned to others for salvation, for knowledge, for fulfillment, for worship (4:11-14), for protection. (5:13) (cf, 2 kings 15:19-20)
God likens Himself again to Israel’s husband (Hosea 5:7, amplified), magnifying the fact that Israel is not only doing stupid things, she is cheating on the One who loves her.
1-3 No one is faithful, and there are consequences.
What are the consequences of your sin? What are things that may not even be punishments, just ripple effects?
Do you see how sin affects more than just you?
4-10 Blame the priests.
First off, God is furious with the priests and prophets of Israel. They are the ones who have played Pied Piper here. God says they “stumble in the daytime.” They have the lamp for their feet and the light for their path, but they also fumble around in broad daylight!
“My people are ruined because they don’t know what’s right or true.”
“You’ve turned your back on knowledge”
“You’ve traded your glory for shame.”
How shameful it is when the people of God falter. How many headlines have been marked by “Rev. so-and-so” stealing or lying or cheating? And it burns those of us who call ourselves Christians.
There is much consequence for those who are instructed to instruct in the ways of God yet do not do it.
We know that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ, and yet we are also encouraged to do the best with what knowledge we have. We are quite often the “spiritual leaders” in relationships, are we not? I would venture to say that all of you have a friend who looks up to you, a child, a coworker.
They are constantly seeking your guidance, right? What are you doing with that information? Are you leading them astray? Are you a stumbling block? This is a mighty challenge.
The priests here had a special responsibility because they knew the Word of God. The people did not have Bibles on every coffee table. They looked to the priests and prophets to hear Him.
Let us not trade glory for shame (4:7).
4:9 Like people, like priest
It’s not just priests who will be held accountable. Just because the priests misled them, the people are not getting off scot-free. They still chose to do things they knew went against God.
This is a huge admonition: It is not up to Pastor Edwin or Pastor Skip to make sure you know God’s Word or to hold your hand to keep you from straying into the wilderness. You know when something is flat-out adultery or idolatry, and there is consequence for that.
4:11-14
Israel had turned to idol worship. They worshiped their own bodies, they made sacrifices to false gods. And they gave in to the idolatry that permeated other nations. They had sex temples and gave their wives and daughters over to them, then went and slept around with others.
4:15-19 Don’t drag down Judah
Israel is warned not to drag others into its sin. And it is also told that other places won’t save it: Gilgal is where (in Josh 5:9), God says He has “rolled away His reproach of Egypt on you.” In Gilgal, the Israelites celebrated with feast, circumcision, prayer and Passover the end of their 450 years of Egyptian slavery. Instead, God warns that reproach is coming.
Beth-Aven is a play on words, a reference to Bethel. “Bethel” means “House of God.” But because Jeroboam 1 set up a golden calf (1 Kings 12:28-29), Hosea calls it “Beth Aven,” or “House of Sin” or “House of Deceit.”
This goes back to those ripple effects that we talked about. Israel turned to idols and left itself defenseless, naked. But what about Judah, who was not caving so easily? Their border is rotting away or watched by drunken whores.
Who is watching as we parade our idols around? And where will we turn when hurt sets in?
5:1-5 The sins of harlotry and pride
God here shows them that their harlotry has brought them nothing. Instead, they are stuck deep in corruption and are being slaughtered. They are defiling the whole nation, not just themselves.
What does their pride get them? They are stumbling and guilty.
5:6 Sacrifice without faith
These people sacrifice and say all the right words but God is not listening. He’s looking for something else entirely. (Psalm 51:16-17)
5:9-11 A warning
Assyrians eventually come in and trample through, destroying the lands and people. The Israelites have left themselves totally defenseless, relying on every other thing under the sun except God, who has saved them time and time again. (cf, 2 Kings 15 and 16, and 2 Chronicles 26-27) Israel had time and time again turned to the Assyrians for protection, yet it is those “protectors” that come through and destroy it.
Those things that we replace God with are the things that will eat us alive. They cannot give us fulfillment, they cannot give us security.
What are the things you have replaced God with?
5:1-14 Consequences
These people were being eaten by moths and decay. Dry rot eats from the inside out, making wood weak but appearing strong.
When you abandon the Lord for other lovers, you feel it don’t you?
What does that inner decay feel like? And why do we choose it?
Homework
If you believe that God wants you in church, then how much is enough?
If you believe God wants your prayers, then how much is enough?
If you believe God wants you to do something, then how do you know when you’ve met that requirement?
What we need to understand is that God wants just you. All of you. He wants you from the inside out, not the other way around. Relationship, not sacrifice. He wants love, not merely adherence to law.
Find verses about sacrifice, and choose one to memorize. WE WILL HAVE SHOW AND TELL NEXT WEEK. Give us the verse, and tell us why you chose it. What does God really want from you, and are you giving it to Him? It’s got to be more than words, more than deeds. It’s got to be all of you.
Let us not trade our glory for shame.
A judgment against Israel.
For every judgment against Israel, there is salvation, there is grace. For the judgments of Hosea 4 – 5:14, God saves in 5:15-6:3.
We’ve talked a lot in the last few months about harlotry and idolatry. Gomer was a harlot, Angel was a harlot. Both turned to their idols seeking salvation (Gomer to her men, Angel to Michael), but in the end were shown that God alone is salvation. They had to have things removed, they had to be hedged in to be set free.
Here, in Hosea 4 & 5, we see more of the same. God lays his case against Israel, including against its priests. They did not only turn from Him and His commandments, they turned to others for salvation, for knowledge, for fulfillment, for worship (4:11-14), for protection. (5:13) (cf, 2 kings 15:19-20)
God likens Himself again to Israel’s husband (Hosea 5:7, amplified), magnifying the fact that Israel is not only doing stupid things, she is cheating on the One who loves her.
1-3 No one is faithful, and there are consequences.
What are the consequences of your sin? What are things that may not even be punishments, just ripple effects?
Do you see how sin affects more than just you?
4-10 Blame the priests.
First off, God is furious with the priests and prophets of Israel. They are the ones who have played Pied Piper here. God says they “stumble in the daytime.” They have the lamp for their feet and the light for their path, but they also fumble around in broad daylight!
“My people are ruined because they don’t know what’s right or true.”
“You’ve turned your back on knowledge”
“You’ve traded your glory for shame.”
How shameful it is when the people of God falter. How many headlines have been marked by “Rev. so-and-so” stealing or lying or cheating? And it burns those of us who call ourselves Christians.
There is much consequence for those who are instructed to instruct in the ways of God yet do not do it.
We know that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ, and yet we are also encouraged to do the best with what knowledge we have. We are quite often the “spiritual leaders” in relationships, are we not? I would venture to say that all of you have a friend who looks up to you, a child, a coworker.
They are constantly seeking your guidance, right? What are you doing with that information? Are you leading them astray? Are you a stumbling block? This is a mighty challenge.
The priests here had a special responsibility because they knew the Word of God. The people did not have Bibles on every coffee table. They looked to the priests and prophets to hear Him.
Let us not trade glory for shame (4:7).
4:9 Like people, like priest
It’s not just priests who will be held accountable. Just because the priests misled them, the people are not getting off scot-free. They still chose to do things they knew went against God.
This is a huge admonition: It is not up to Pastor Edwin or Pastor Skip to make sure you know God’s Word or to hold your hand to keep you from straying into the wilderness. You know when something is flat-out adultery or idolatry, and there is consequence for that.
4:11-14
Israel had turned to idol worship. They worshiped their own bodies, they made sacrifices to false gods. And they gave in to the idolatry that permeated other nations. They had sex temples and gave their wives and daughters over to them, then went and slept around with others.
4:15-19 Don’t drag down Judah
Israel is warned not to drag others into its sin. And it is also told that other places won’t save it: Gilgal is where (in Josh 5:9), God says He has “rolled away His reproach of Egypt on you.” In Gilgal, the Israelites celebrated with feast, circumcision, prayer and Passover the end of their 450 years of Egyptian slavery. Instead, God warns that reproach is coming.
Beth-Aven is a play on words, a reference to Bethel. “Bethel” means “House of God.” But because Jeroboam 1 set up a golden calf (1 Kings 12:28-29), Hosea calls it “Beth Aven,” or “House of Sin” or “House of Deceit.”
This goes back to those ripple effects that we talked about. Israel turned to idols and left itself defenseless, naked. But what about Judah, who was not caving so easily? Their border is rotting away or watched by drunken whores.
Who is watching as we parade our idols around? And where will we turn when hurt sets in?
5:1-5 The sins of harlotry and pride
God here shows them that their harlotry has brought them nothing. Instead, they are stuck deep in corruption and are being slaughtered. They are defiling the whole nation, not just themselves.
What does their pride get them? They are stumbling and guilty.
5:6 Sacrifice without faith
These people sacrifice and say all the right words but God is not listening. He’s looking for something else entirely. (Psalm 51:16-17)
5:9-11 A warning
Assyrians eventually come in and trample through, destroying the lands and people. The Israelites have left themselves totally defenseless, relying on every other thing under the sun except God, who has saved them time and time again. (cf, 2 Kings 15 and 16, and 2 Chronicles 26-27) Israel had time and time again turned to the Assyrians for protection, yet it is those “protectors” that come through and destroy it.
Those things that we replace God with are the things that will eat us alive. They cannot give us fulfillment, they cannot give us security.
What are the things you have replaced God with?
5:1-14 Consequences
These people were being eaten by moths and decay. Dry rot eats from the inside out, making wood weak but appearing strong.
When you abandon the Lord for other lovers, you feel it don’t you?
What does that inner decay feel like? And why do we choose it?
Homework
If you believe that God wants you in church, then how much is enough?
If you believe God wants your prayers, then how much is enough?
If you believe God wants you to do something, then how do you know when you’ve met that requirement?
What we need to understand is that God wants just you. All of you. He wants you from the inside out, not the other way around. Relationship, not sacrifice. He wants love, not merely adherence to law.
Find verses about sacrifice, and choose one to memorize. WE WILL HAVE SHOW AND TELL NEXT WEEK. Give us the verse, and tell us why you chose it. What does God really want from you, and are you giving it to Him? It’s got to be more than words, more than deeds. It’s got to be all of you.
Let us not trade our glory for shame.
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Seeing God
So, about once a year I do some work on my blog, updating and such. I was noticing that in 2007 and 2008 I only posted 2 blogs each year. When reading my last entry in 2008, my heart fell and I broke down in tears. I decided to post what I wrote here and challenge all of us to strive this year to portray God according to His Word rather than our circumstances.
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Posted by Robyn at http://breathe-rhemas-luv.blogspot.com/ Sept 2, 2008
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Posted by Robyn at http://breathe-rhemas-luv.blogspot.com/ Sept 2, 2008
Have you had an experience in your life that changed your perspective... forever? For me, that moment was when I had my children. Some may think it would be marriage, but with children, your every decision, word, and action directly effects their outcome. In a marriage, if one messes up, they go to their adult spouse, apologize, work it out, do whatever adults do and usually there isn't any permanent damage to either adult...b/c they're grown ups! They've learned how to deal with another person hurting him/her...hopefully :o). But with children...well, that's a whole other story!!
How many of you have seen a kid having a total breakdown in the middle of the grocery store? What comes to mind? "That woman needs to get a hold of her kid--teach them who's boss!" Hmmm, even thinking about moments like that makes my heart ache for that mom. Those moments are the hardest to be a parent. You try to do right by your kid yet try to discipline all the while the entire store has their eyes on you. What's a mom to do?
How we respond to our children (or for the childless, how we respond to others) in stressful moments, or to our spouse in stressful moments; how we speak to our children (and/or spouse) in tender moments are all presentations of who God is. How we present who God is either in word or deed has an eternal impact on our little ones.
Let me explain.
The Sisterhood of the Yada Yada Traveling Coffee Stains (graceandcoffeestains.blogspot.com) has been going through the book of Hosea and Redeeming Love. As we discussed last night, Sarah's view of God was shaped by her mom and the few men in her childhood. Her mom portrayed God as one who didn't listen to her cries, didn't "fix" her broken heart, and who was a punisher for "things" done wrong. The men, well, we'll save that for another day.
The only God Sarah was privy to was the God portrayed in Nahum 1:2 "The LORD is a jealous and avenging God; the LORD takes vengeance and is filled with wrath. The LORD takes vengeance on his foes and maintains his wrath against his enemies."
She never had the opportunity to see the God of Isaiah (Isa 43:1-5 "But now, this is what the LORD says..."Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine...Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you...Do not be afraid, for I am with you.")
or of David (Psalm 146:9 "The LORD watches over the alien and sustains the fatherless and the widow, but he frustrates the ways of the wicked.").
She never saw the love that is always forgiving, always redeeming, never crushing.
So my question to you is, what side of God are you portraying? We as Christians know that God is the Judge sitting on the throne casting judgment and, yes, condemnation to those who have denied Him. However, we also know that this isn't the only side of God. We must be careful not to live our lives portraying only this side of Him. We must live our lives portraying the grace, mercy, and unfailing love of God.
Our constant complaining and negative attitude doesn't portray the loving character of God, does it? See, for me, what I say and do, how I react in a split moment in front of or directed to my kids, is shaping their view of God. I desperately want them to be keenly aware of sin and the damage it does to our lives. B-U-T!!! I don't want God to be the Big Bad God coming down to punish them for their little kid sin. I want them to develop a healthy fear of God. I want Him to be a Guest at the dinner table when we eat mac & cheese, a Comforter in the midst of nightmares, a Cheerleader when they "get it," a Parent in times of discipline and a Daddy spilling out unfailing love and forgiveness for their little kid sins.
Thank you, Lord, for blessing me with mom vision. I worry so much about the impact I'm having on their lives, when really, I'm the one who's being impacted by their lives. Continue to remind me to step out of the way and You be You...reminding me that I am me, not You. Thank you for loving me enough.
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(Can you tell I'm getting stoked about being with you all again?!?!)
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