A devotional I wrote was published today on Park Street’s website.
It’s called “The Giving Heart of the Father”.
Here’s an excerpt:
In the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7), Jesus admonishes us to give to those who ask us for something. He goes on to say later “when you give to the needy.” He doesn’t say, “If you give” or “When you have extra”; He says “when you give”, as if it were understood that giving is a vital part of following Him.
Now go read it 🙂
Another article of mine was published in Boundless 🙂
“If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.” 2 Timothy 2:13
This is one of the coolest verses in the Bible. In order for God NOT to be faithful in our lives, He would have to deny Himself or disown (as some translations say) Himself.
This verse has been very encouraging to me as I’ve watched a friend grapple with some real questions about the character of God. It can be challenging to not just jump in & try to fix it because I’ve been where she is & I know how painful & difficult those feelings are. But I can’t fix it; only God can. God has reminded me that His faithfulness does not depend on us; He is faithful because that’s the core of His character.
I recently heard Sy Rogers talk about God’s character. He gave an analogy that God is sort of like the ocean. We can’t know everything that’s in the ocean, what every part of it looks like, or what types of animals are in different parts of the ocean. What we do know is that through & through, the ocean is salty. If the ocean is not salty, then it’s not ocean; it’s just regular water.
I may not understand all God is doing or all He chooses to allow, but I know that through & through, He is faithful and good and loving. That I know for sure.
There’s a great article over at Boundless today called “Remember the Poor, Part I“.
Remembering the poor goes beyond dropping change in an offering plate or writing a monthly check to a relief organization — although these are virtuous acts of generosity. Jesus calls us to go a step further and become friends with the poor — to develop relationships with them.
It seems when life gets more difficult & I’m feeling low, God shows me how much He cares for me in the little things.
1. I won free raw chocolate yesterday.
2. I paid $2.95/gallon for gas today.
3. One of my best friends is getting married today.
4. My dress alterations for the wedding were only $18 instead of $93.
5. I got some great deals at Rite Aid & Walgreens this morning.
6. I found the time to make gluten-free muffins yesterday & gluten-free scones today to bring for my gluten-free friends at the wedding.
7. I have a wonderful family that includes a husband, a son & a dog.
Sometimes all we need is a reminder of the many blessings we have to gain perspective on those things that feel overwhelming.
I’ve added a “Subscribe to” in the top of the right column of my blog (there has always been one at the bottom of the page). Then I went to every blog that I read & added it to my Google Reader. This will further streamline my internet time. Last night, I cleaned out my other 2 e-mails accounts (one had over 800 e-mails in the inbox!), and I’m down to 14 e-mails in one inbox & only 8 in the other.
I feel lighter already!
I started reading this book, The 4-Hour Work Week. I read a review over at The Simple Dollar and got a copy from the library. The young man who wrote it (younger than me, at least!) is obviously quite entrepreneurial, and his methods definitely wouldn’t work for everyone, but there is a lot of meat to be taken from it. I’ve started taking some notes & jotting down some ideas.
One of the ways I’m simplifying my life is by clearing out the inboxes of my various e-mail accounts, as well as trying to reply right away when I can. My main e-mail account now has 36 e-mails waiting to be replied to rather than the 150+ it usually has. Now I have 2 more accounts to clean out.
I’m not sure if some of my new blog friends know that I’m a singer/songwriter. I don’t have a professional CD, but in the past had a CD made of a concert. I also, in the past couple of years, did rough recordings of 2 newer songs, “You” & “You Know Me“. I already have about 10 songs written for another project. The drummer from church said we should get some studio time and record some of the songs, which I’d love to do. So one of my goals for the next 6 months is to record at least a few of the songs for my next CD project, which will be called “You”. That’s one of the things the book has reminded me that I’d like to do.
My fifth article has been published on Boundless.org:
A ministry colleague & friend of mine wrote this great article with the working title “I’ve Got a Secret” (it had a much longer title when published!).
Imagine what it would be like to be free of the fear that someone might discover our secrets. Imagine what the world would see if it saw the Church being real, and saw the powerful presence of God as the church worshipped in total honesty with hearts unencumbered by secrets. Imagine how many marriages might be saved and addictions diverted and damage contained if we shared our struggles sooner rather than later.
This article really hit home for me personally. I walked away from reading it asking myself how is it that we can go through such difficult things (for me, not just same-sex attraction, but an eating disorder & self-injury), and yet with today’s trials & struggles, I’m still tempted to hide them until I have them all figured out? I wonder at what point in my life, if ever, I’ll feel comfortable just saying, in the appropriate context, what I’m dealing with.
You think I’d have this figured out by now! I definitely need to think on this more.
If the Bible says that as a Christian, we will experience suffering, to what extent should we try to alleviate suffering? Should we simply accept that suffering is a part of life and live with it? Or should we be proactive and take steps to “solve” that suffering?
I always tend to run from suffering, to do everything in my power to change it. I can now look back and see how much I’ve learned during those times, and I wouldn’t change what I experienced, but during those times, I seem to fight & fret & doubt & struggle. I’m not sure that’s God’s intention. Maybe it’s His intention that I snuggle up against Him and allow Him to hold me & sustain me during those times.
Just thinking out loud…