Gifts

I think we all have that "inner child" when it comes to gifts.  Like at Christmas time, we all remember how it felt to be waiting with such anticipation for the presents from Mom and Dad.  We would wait all December, seeing the pile slowly accumulate with brightly wrapped packages.  Then Christmas morning finally comes, and us kids would wake up at the break of dawn!  Our parents are sleepy-eyed, but they still smile with just as much joy as they watch us open the presents.

What makes this process so much fun!  Is it the surprise?  The whole point of a gift is that it is something you didn't choose, but it was given to you.  Is is the anticipation?  Or the expectation of something wonderful?

So, what is it about gifts?

"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, 

coming down from the Father of lights 

with whom there is no variation 

or shadow due to change."  

James 1:17

Our heavenly Father is the Giver of good gifts.  All His gifts are good, because He is good!  

Think of this in relation to what it is like to get presents at Christmas time.  We are so excited for this "thing/present".  We don't know what is in the package.  We may have suggested some items that we wanted, but in the end our parents made the final decision for what would be good and best for us.  It might be that toy we always wanted, or the socks that we really needed!  We don't approach the tree with fear or worry, but we are excited to find out what is there.  

Our heavenly Father is the Giver of good gifts.  All His gifts are good, because He is good!  

"I say to the Lord, 'You are my Lord; 

I have no good apart from You'"  

Psalm 16:2

Think of all the gifts we have from God.  

Everything is from God!   

And everything from God is a good gift.  

My life is a gift from God, every part of it, even what I don't see.  In His grace, He has given me so many blessings--so many good things.  He has allowed me to learn things and go through trials--so many good things.  He is working out His plan for my life, which is a gift from His good hand. 

I can go through life waiting expectantly for the next gift from God.  I can be like that child on Christmas day, holding their breath for the nod from Mom and Dad to dive into the pile of good things.  I don't need to fear or worry, the gift will be good!!!  

"You open Your hand; 

You satisfy the desire of every living thing.  

The Lord is righteous in all His ways, 

and kind in all His works."  

Psalm 145:16-17

God gives good gifts. 

Ambassadors

     "What should we do to be part of God's work in the lives of others?  Paul uses the word ambassadors to define what it means to live incarnationally.  
     The job of an ambassador is to represent someone or something.  Everything he does and says must intentionally represent a leader who is not physically present.  His calling is not limited to forty hours a week, to certain state events, or to times of international crisis.  He is always the king's representative.  He stands in the place of the king (or the government of his country) wherever he is, whatever he is doing.  His relationships are not primarily driven by his own happiness.  He decides to go places and do things because they will help him to faithfully represent the king.  Thus the work of an ambassador is incarnational.  His actions, character, and words embody the king who is not present.
     Paul says that God has called to all to function as his ambassadors.  Our lives do not belong to us for our own fulfillment.  The primary issue is, "How can I best represent the King in this place, with this particular person?"  This is not a part-time calling; it is a lifestyle.  When an ambassador assumes his responsibilities, his life ceases to be his own.  Everything he says and does has import because of the king he represents.  Anything less is an affront to the king and a denial of the ambassadorial calling.
     What is God calling you to in your marriage?  To be an ambassador.  What is God calling you to as a parent?  To be an ambassador.  What is God calling you to regarding friends and neighbors?  To be an ambassador.  What is God calling you to at work and in leisure?  To be an ambassador.  We represent God's purposes to the people He places in our lives.  This is much broader than a commitment to formal ministry occupying a portion of our schedule.  It acknowledges that our lives belong to the King."  

- Paul David Tripp

"Instruments in the Redeemer's Hands"

Have you ever? (It's a new year)

Have you ever taken the time to simply stop and think about all that God has done in your life?  

God is faithful.  

His Word speaks of this attribute in extent.   

Faithfulness is a part of His character. 

remember that!  

God wanted the nation of Israel to remember His works for them too.  He told them, that they should remember what He had done for them to lead them out of the land of bondage.  So that when they were in a foreign land they would not be tempted to follow other gods when they served the one true God.  

They forgot.

So, what about me?  It's a new year, 2013!  There are many exciting things to anticipate within the next 12 months?  Last year was filled with many adjustments and changes and moves and steps and challenges.  This year is bound to be filled with just as many.  

But where I stood a week ago, the future didn't exactly look...bright!  In fact, it looked quite bleak.  In this season of my life, I am still in a state of "transition".  At first, it was normal, but after a while it has got harder and harder to deal with the constant state of limbo.  (But I had the wrong glasses on...)  It only gets hard when I don't have my focus on Christ.  When I am self-focused and not seeing His will and plan for my life!  

So, what about me?  Well, you see, I had forgotten the faithfulness of God.  And this brings me to why I love going on walks when I am at home.  There is a lovely highway just north of town that I love to walk on.  It is so quiet, and a person can see for miles.  It is perfect for walking and thinking and praying and meditating.  

This is what I was reminded of...

We serve a faithful God who holds you in the palm of His hand.  He has never forsaken you or left you to fend for yourself.  Psalm 139:5 says, "You hem me in, behind and before, and lay Your hand upon me."  He is there in the past (behind) and in the future (before).  BUT He is not just there in the past and the future, because He has in hand on you NOW, in the present...Right Now!  

Nothing has escaped from His eyes, even though my life feels so fluid.  This "season" of transition is hard, but He has led me to this place for a time.  I don't know how long that is, but it is only a chapter of my life.  The book is already written, God has it all planned, scripted according to His design.  I don't need to know the full story now, just the chapter I'm in presently.  

Then I looked back to only the last 4 years of my life and thought through all of the things that God has done for me!  The list was astounding.  I never knew then, that He would have me here and now.  But that was His plan.  He sculpted and shaped the events of my life for a better purpose than my own plans--HIS OWN GLORY!  

How can I not trust a good God with all the days of my life?  

Dare I answer more?  

a new year is here...2013

So, I know that I am a little late for the whole...beginning of the year blog posts about New Year Resolutions and reflections from the past year...but I figured something was better than nothing!

Here is something to start the year off right!
This is the song "Dear Refuge of my Weary Soul".

And another personal favorite...

See, this is something...:)  

(don't worry, in true blogger fashion, I'll have a post soon about my thoughts on the new year and so forth!!!)

They spoke of the Messiah

It is Christmas Eve.

I am sitting, cozy and comfortable under a blanket, by a fireplace (that isn't lit), while enjoying the feeling of a profitable day.

Tomorrow is Christmas Day.

The day that thousands of children wake to find piles of brightly colored packages laid under a heavily decorated tree.

They wake up too early from the anticipation; and "gently" wake the parents too!

Christmas is a day for family and friends and good food and games.

It is the day that we remember our Savior's birth.


I have been reading the Christmas narrative from Matthew and Luke's gospel for the last couple of days, and have been impressed over and over again of the wonderful miracle of the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ!  Three people in particular stood out to me, as I read the familiar account.  They are Zechariah, Simeon, and Anna.

Zechariah:

He spoke of the Messiah.  He was Mary's cousin by marriage and the father of John the Baptist.  Because of his unbelief after hearing about his wife's pregnancy, he was unable to speak.  Yet, when the birth came to pass as the Lord had foretold, his "...tongue was loosed..." and he began to prophecy concerning the soon-coming Messiah. (Luke 1:67-79) 
He spoke by the Holy Spirit, blessing God for His provision of salvation through the Messiah.  He was raising up a "horn of salvation" for Israel--God's chosen people--just as He had spoken in the ages past to the fathers and prophets.  God was fulfilling His promise.  Salvation was born.  The Messiah had come!  The Messiah came to save.  For Israel, they were looking for the physical salvation and the return to their land with a mighty political ruler, but God's plan, set from before the foundation of the world, was to redeem people from the power, presence, and penalty of sin and death so that man could live forever in heaven to the glory of God.
This Messiah has delivered us from our enemies, so that we might "...serve Him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before Him all our days..."  Server God, without fear, because of the righteousness of Jesus Christ applied to our account through the cross.  This is Messiah.  Messiah has come!

Simeon:

He had waited and waited.  He was growing older.  His body was beginning to fail.  But he had a promise, a promise from God that he would not die until he saw the Promised Messiah.  At just the right time, Christ was born; and eight days later His earthly parents took Him to the temple for the customary rites of the Law.    And there was Simeon.  

Imagine the overwhelming delight to see God's promised Son.  Here was the One he had been waiting for all his life.  And it was a Child.  A small Baby, wrapped in rough cloth, held by a young woman who looked a little scared.  Here was the Messiah, God's chosen Lamb!  

This Child was salvation, promised by God, to be "...a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to Your people Israel..."  Jesus is the Messiah.  The Messiah has come!  

Anna:

Anna was a prophetess.  Having seen her share of sorrow, a widow of 84 years, she stayed in the Temple worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day.  She too, was looking for the salvation of Israel.  And here it was!  Her response: "...she began to give thanks to God and to speak of Him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem."  

She gave thanks to God for bringing salvation to earth, His Son in human form!  The Messiah has come!  

Jesus is the Messiah, the promised Christ, come for you and me!

16 days

16 days.

Two days past two weeks.  A normal amount of time for grass seed to sprout.  Sixteen days, plus five, is all the time it takes to break a habit.  Sixteen days from now it will be January 3, 2013.  Sixteen days ago, it was December 2, I was going to a Christmas Tea.

16 days.  Such a short time.  Not long enough, but that was all they had.

He stood out in the cold, tears streaming down his face.  His wife stood beside him, not crying, but overwhelmed.  His uniform looked official, but underneath, there was a man, grieving, hurting, touched by a song.  She was holding back the tears, but we knew that there had been many days when the flood hadn't ceased to run.
We were Christmas caroling.  You know that old-Christmas tradition, famed by well-bundled people singing carols in the cold on people's doorsteps.  There were about twelve of us who braved the cold that night.  It was a beautiful night, chilly and dry, but clear.  The stars were shining, and you could almost see most of them despite the city lights.  We were jolly and loud.  It had been a fun evening.  We had sang to many houses, and had blessed many people.
As we were coming to this house, we began to ask the same question: "Should we stop here?"  "There aren't any lights on, maybe no one's home."  Our fearless leader led the charge, saying that we would sing one song and see if anyone came to the door.  We started and the door opened.  At first, the man in the uniform looked a bit confused.  But soon, his expression changed and he called to his wife.  She rushed to the door with an exclamation.  As we started the second song, her camera came out and she took a couple of pictures and a video.  Needless to say, we were delighted to have made such an impact!  We could tell from the tears and their body language that they had been touched by the love of God.  When we finished the last chord of "We Wish you a Merry Christmas", they both thanked us deeply.  Then we heard why...

This was a hard time for them.  They were grieving.  16 days was all the time that they had with their newborn son.  Just a few months back, they had a son, but he only lived 16 days.  This Christmas was the first Christmas of many without him.  There had been months of preparing and planning for this new little life to change their lives, and then after 16 days, the dream was taken away.  What was supposed to be the first Christmas with their son, was instead the first Christmas with the memory of those few short days.  16 days.  

They told us that we would never know how much it meant to them for a handful of college students to come out in the cold to sing some Christmas carols to them.  We would never know!  We can't know.
But God used us.  We weren't even going to stop there, and that house alone would have made the whole evening worth the trip in the cold!  We got to pray with them, endeavoring to show God's love to them.

We'll never know the full impact that God allowed us to have in this couple's life.  We pray that it is a testimony to the gospel of Christ, and that they are surrounded by His love and see their need of a Savior from their sins.  But God used us!  He used selfish motives, cold fingers, noses, and toes, and froggy voices to glorify Himself!  Praise God!

We can never know how God is going to use us in other's lives.  Most often, it is during the oddest circumstances and situations that God's hand is most seen.  He works in mysterious ways.  But He knows, and He calls us to be faithful; faithful to proclaim His truth, His love, His grace to a dying, hurting world.

This Christmas season, may we not be too quick to overlook a person who may be hurting.  May we be vessels filled to overflowing with the grace and love of God, so that we can spill over onto others and God may be glorified!

Of kings and countries; elections and presidents.

Opening Thoughts: 

I will be the first to say that I am not a fan of politics!  Most of this, I admit, is my own fault for not putting the necessary time into studying and learning about them.  And for that matter, I don't enjoy politics because I don't understand them.  However, my opinion towards this subject does not make it any less important!  I fully believe that each person should exercise the rights that the government has given by voting and choosing the best candidate for the position.  Therefore, my own personal enjoyment of politics has nothing to do with this post, but I wanted to lay the foundation of my feelings toward the subject.

All of this aside, I have been thinking about our upcoming (which is tomorrow) election.  So many people have been making a big deal about this election for a long time.  It seems as if the media has been on "You Decide 2012" kick for a couple of years.  And this is not bad.  It's just a big deal.

So, what is my response as a believer in Jesus Christ?

Initial Questions:

I am not seeking to answer these questions completely.  However, I do want to stir some thinking in this direction.

• What does the Bible teach in relation to elections, officials, and rulers?  
• What is my responsibility toward these in authority?  
• Where does the Bible put the emphasis in relation to human authority? 
• How should I treat an ungodly leader?  
• What is the church's response to politics?  
• Are we seeking spiritual revival through a political leader?  Or more importantly, are we seeking for our "ideal-America" to come through a political leader?  
• What would happen if the "wrong" person gets elected and our freedoms begin to be compromised and persecution becomes more and more visible?  
• Is this wrong? (see previous question)  

The bigger goal, a bigger purpose:

Perhaps it is through politics that believers are made more aware of the fact of our sinful society, and the need for Christ's return!  Even so, come, Lord Jesus!!!   In this lies the greater, bigger purpose for our existence...the Glory of God.
In a recent sermon, given by a fellow student at Calvary, we were challenged in our thinking concerning the purpose of life.  We all know the "correct" answer, but when smacked in the face with the truth that we are called to live EVERYTHING in life for the Glory of God, we see where we lack.  Philippians 2, relates Christ's purpose in coming to earth as a Man, to suffer and die for our sins--the glory of God.  Verse 11 summarizes Christ's ministry and the end when all will bow before Him in worship for the purpose of glorifying God.

It is at this point that most get caught.  I know in my own life, I do not always live for the purpose of glorifying God, and I do not always see that everything that happens is for His glory.
Tying this back to the topic of politics, if everything happens for God's glory, then what?  What?!  Well, Scripture affirms that God causes All things to work according to the purpose of His will (Rom. 8:28).  Every realm.  Every country.  Every leader.  All things work according to God's sovereign plan for His glory and our good.  

This truth alone is enough to change the actions, words, and thoughts of every believer toward our present government and the status of our country and the world.  If we continue to look at things from our "evangelical" materialistic-idealistic mind, then our battle-cry will be to revive our government to go back to the foundational principles (not that this is necessarily wrong, just miss-lead and over-emphasized.).  Our battle-cry is Christ crucified, resurrected, ascended, and seated at the right hand of God.  It is the gospel.  It is the soon-coming return of Christ.  It is Christ's final conquering of sin and death.  It is God's glory!

This is the bigger purpose, the bigger goal.

Concerning the Election: 

Tomorrow is coming.  By the grace of God, the sun will come up and a new day will commence.  People are going to "go to the polls", cast their vote and new leaders will be elected to power.  Some have been saying that this is the "turning point", and that there is a lot at stake.  Maybe this is true, I don't know.  Does it matter?  Really matter?  

No.  

God is God.  All things happen according the purpose of His good and perfect will.  He is sovereign.  He raises up rulers, and casts down rulers.  He only acts to glorify Himself.  He is perfectly Good.  Just.  Righteous.  Holy.  Loving.  Gracious.  Merciful.  Free.  

The Right Response: 

In the end, it doesn't matter what the outcome of tomorrow is, because God has already gone before to plan and purpose all things according to His will (am I seeming redundant?  Good!).  God's purpose is SO much bigger than our "dream" of an ideal America.  It is so much bigger than going back to the constitutional principles.  It is bigger than a man and his plan for economic growth.  So much bigger!!!  

Scripture tells us to live godly lives in this present age for the glory of God.  In relation to our leaders as well. This means that whoever is elected tomorrow deserves our honor and respect.  Because we love God and trust Him to place the person that He wants in power, we will do what is right and honorable in relation to that man.  We will not slander him, or act in a hypocritical way.  [1) It's sin 2) It is a horrible testimony to the unbelieving world around us.  3) God has called us to honor and be submissive to every human authority, as an act of obedience to Him.]  We will place ourselves under the laws of the land in submission to our government, as long as it does not cause us to sin against God.  

And if persecution comes at the hand of an evil ruler?  It will.  Therefore, it shouldn't surprise us.  Christ promised us that in the world we would face persecution.  The church has and is facing persecution for the sake of Christ.  Will we be like the apostles who left prison rejoicing that they had been counted worthy to suffer for the name of Christ?  (Acts 5:40-42)

 "Let every person be subject to the governing authorities.  For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.  Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment."  Romans 13:1-2

"Be subject for the Lord's sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme or to governors as sent by Him for the punishment of those who do evil and the praise of those who do good.  For this is the will of God that by doing good you should put silence the ignorance of foolish people.  Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God."  1 Peter 2:13-16

To God Alone be the Glory, Honor, and Power!