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“Trust Yourself”

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Coming from a background of Legalism, these words first sounded a little soft…too “New-Agey” to me. In recent years, however, they have served as a sort of North Star in moments of darkness. Of course God is our constant & ultimate guide, but so often we doubt our own intuition enough that we silence His voice. Life experiences can set us off balance enough that we come to doubt the orienting abilities of our compasses. New ventures that call us forth to vulnerability can cause us to feel we’re risking an awful lot, but as Andre Gide observes, “One cannot see new lands without consenting to lose sight of the shore for a very long time.” Life is often a risk, yes…but risk can lead to great things. As we all know, it can also lead to hard things. Let us remember that regardless, God always does great things, & that we are always safe in His love. Our home is not in this place of fear, but in His heart. We all have our moments…& most of us have them daily.  
A challenge from an unknown author that has often inspired great leaps of faith in my own life say is: “Let your faith be bigger than your fear.” Many of us are so good at having this faith for others…let’s have a little for ourselves too. Go on…give your soul & thoughts a bit of grace, trust in & claim God’s good plans for you. Trust yourself too dearly beloved…you have good instincts, great wisdom, & the filling of the Holy Spirit. May you know His leading & peace as you boldly face fears that are partly founded in experience….making them all the harder to defeat. May our good, good Father hold you in His arms & calm you with His voice. Rest easy…He is for you!

“Always Stay Humble & Kind”: Working with Him

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A short stint as a missionary in the Dominican Republic taught me many lessons that have taken years to process; it was simultaneously one of the most challenging  & rewarding experiences of my life. My first time in a third-world country, the poverty & conditions in which people lived often took my breath away & broke my heart. They also mystified me, for even if the Dominican families didn’t know where their next meal was coming from, they seemed so happy. Those I knew, & some I didn’t, welcomed me to all they had. I taught school, & was often invited to lunch at the home of my students. One seventh grade girl & her sisters lived totally on their own, with parents living in other countries where each had found reliable jobs. I remember sitting with the four sisters, all under the age of seventeen, as a drenching rain poured through the many holes in the rusting roof of their small & unfinished cement home. I wondered how they could laugh so much when they had so little. There was such a sense of peace in the home, simply because they had placed Christ at the center of the lives they lived together. It struck home that truly, this was all that was needed for a happy & fulfilling life. Writer Ann Voskamp succinctly challenges us to live likewise: “In everything surrender, & trust Jesus as center.”

There’s nothing wrong with being blessed, & yet…it is good to know that we are, in fact, blessed. We’ve been given so much more than we deserve or should expect…but our eyes are often closed to countless reminders of His love & provision all around us. The Bible includes many prayers for blessing, such as in the Psalms: “May God be gracious to us & bless us, & make His face to shine upon us.” This is what they call “top-line worship”: our prayers of petition, our acknowledgements of our reliance on God. But there is also a bottom-line: our requests that ultimately, these gifts will not only be for our good, but also for His glory. The Psalm finishes: “…that your ways may be known on the earth, your salvation among all nations.”

This prayer is an echo of the Abrahamic Covenant offered in Genesis 12:1-3:

Now the Lord said1 to Abram, “Go from your country2 and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 nAnd I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3 oI will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and pin you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”3

God wants to bless us, yes…but He wants to bless us to BE a blessing. We are each equipped & gifted in unique ways…to BE a blessing. We each have our cups filled….to BE a blessing. We each are qualified to offer hope to a hurting world & step into the lives of others…to BE a blessing. As secular country singer Tim McGraw offers, we must “always be humble & kind”. His song offers many pieces of wisdom to awaken our sense of gratitude, & remind us that true fulfillment comes in pouring out that gratitude to others.

 

I know you got mountains to climb but

Always stay humble and kind

When the dreams you’re dreamin’ come to you

When the work you put in is realized

Let yourself feel the pride but

Always stay humble and kind

Don’t expect a free ride from no one

Don’t hold a grudge or a chip and here’s why

Bitterness keeps you from flyin’

Always stay humble and kind

Don’t take for granted the love this life gives you

When you get where you’re goin

Don’t forget turn back around

And help the next one in line

Always stay humble and kind

Humble & Kind

The world may call it karma, but this is really just saying what He has said all along. The “Parable of the Sowers” told in the Gospels tells us as much: you get what you give. The great thing is that although we’re called to give anytime we’ve been blessed, the reverse is also true…we’re blessed anytime that we give. Isaiah 58: 10-11 tells us that if we will spend our lives on behalf of the hungry and downtrodden, that He will make us as deeply-rooted trees, whose lives bear fruit season after season. As we are promised in God’s Word, so we are assured in the song: “It won’t be wasted time; Always stay humble and kind.”

Wholehearted Living…

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I want to live with my whole heart…to give it without fear, without  judgement, without reservation. The trouble is…this heart knows what it is to fear, to judge, to be reserved. These days it seems holding back is what it’s really good at, for like most, I find it hard to love like I’ve never been hurt. I try to offer it still, but offer in part. I can’t really blame other or this great gift of Life as much as my own shame, & the brokenness that surrounds any experience in this world. God wouldn’t want me to hold my heart back, His heart back, I know. It’s just seems so much safer. Over & over again I read what Ray Lessin wrote: “God didn’t come to make you half; He came to make you whole.” Please God, make me whole. Please God, keep making me whole. Please God, help me to love others as if I am whole.

What does it really look like to live wholeheartedly? In her excellent book entitled The Gifts of Imperfection, Brené Brown offers a definition for wholehearted living that has transformed my understanding of it:

“Wholehearted living is about engaging with our lives from a place of worthiness. It means cultivating the courage, compassion and connection to wake up in the morning and think, ‘No matter what gets done and how much is left undone, I am enough.’ It’s going to bed at night thinking, ‘Yes, I am imperfect and vulnerable and sometimes afraid, but that doesn’t change the truth that I am also brave and worthy of love and belonging.”

In Christ, I am indeed enough. What I could never merit on my own, I am freely given. As I accept His gift of being completely right with Him, I am free to live with generosity of spirit toward others. Living wholeheartedly means I choose to accept & assume the best in others. God takes all of my need, & offers me all His wholeness. How can I, in turn, attempt to offer any less to a world He loves with all His heart?

The Weaving-

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Life can be so messy. There’s so much beauty, & yet…so much pain. In my own journey, it has seemed that just as I’m beginning to see or predict a pattern, dark threads come & interrupt. It’s when I think I’m in control of the design that I really get into trouble. Despite my failing, mistakes, suffering, I’m assured over & over again in Scripture that God is weaving all into something good…something beautiful. 

Corrie ten Boom is a Dutch woman who experienced trial on a scale most of us can’t imagine. As punishment for hiding Jews during the Nazi Occupation, she & her family were eventually arrested & sent to concentration camps.. Though she lost her family, she survived to tell the story in The Hiding Place, & continued to speak in proclamation of God’s faithfulness for the rest of her life. In her beautiful poem “The Tapestry”, she describes w/ great beauty the trustworthiness of God’s hand working all for good in our lives:

 

“My life is but a weaving
Between my God and me.
I cannot choose the colors
He weaveth steadily.
Oft’ times He weaveth sorrow;
And I in foolish pride
Forget He sees the upper
And I the underside.
Not ’til the loom is silent
And the shuttles cease to fly
Will God unroll the canvas
And reveal the reason why.
The dark threads are as needful
In the weaver’s skillful hand
As the threads of gold and silver
In the pattern He has planned
He knows, He loves, He cares;
Nothing this truth can dim.
He gives the very best to those
Who leave the choice to Him.”

Light & Love, Lead On-

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Someone once said that war is a lousy way to settle politics. How strange indeed, that historically, so many have attempted to “fight” for peace & truth & the glory of God, through methods that have only brought conflict, devastation & hatred. Though many have had good intentions, so few have found a way to really bring about righteousness. Gandhi implored us, “Be the change we want to see in the world.” (emphasis mine), & St. Francis of Assisi exhorted, “Preach the Gospel every day; use words if necessary.” Most of us know in our souls that the only method that truly provides us with a resonant form of speaking into the lives of others is through the practical language of our daily living & examples.  Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. famously reminded us of the ways to fight well for the peace of the world: “Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.” These greats of old echoed the example of Jesus, who perfectly embodied a love that kept no record of wrongs, sought not its own, & delighted in the Truth (I Corinthians 10:13). Let us offer petition the Father, Son & Holy Spirit for strength & integrity to lead by example, to walk in His Light always, to offer others the haven of His Light & Love.

A Table Prepared-

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The thing I remember most about my Grandma Thelma’s house is the kitchen table. It bore a red & white checked tablecloth, kept the sugar bowl elusively out of my childhood reach, & always seemed to be awaiting the next family meal, or cup of coffee & piece of famed apple pie. It’s where telephone calls took place visitors were welcomed. Just as my grandmother was the center of a large family & network of neighbors & friends, her kitchen & table seemed to be the centrifugal nucleus of the home. It strikes me now what a statement of her character it was that we all looked forward to sharing in the preparation of a meal with her, or even in cleaning up. My grandmother’s voice would crack with gentle strength as she sang hymns long-practiced over sinks full of dishes, & gazed out anew at the hummingbirds flitting to feed outside the window.

There are so many good memories to choose from, but the best thing was that the table always seemed to be prepared…just waiting for meals to be shared, grace to be said, bread to be broken. Part of having such satiating experiences requires openness, preparation, thanksgiving, & anticipation. Those that provide for us such refuge & nourishment are like this. Guests are always welcome, room is always made, both fullness & quietness are always appreciated. In gratitude, we remain present in the moment. In expectancy, the table remains prepared & enjoyed.

Shalom…

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The traditional Hebrew word “shalom” is often translated simply as peace, but it’s true meaning is significantly more complex, & quite nuanced. Indeed, this beautiful word means peace, but it is peace in a comprehensive, life-sustaining sense of complete wholeness over the mind, body, emotions & spirit…over the individual life & all its relationships. According to Strong’s Concordance,

“Shalom means completeness, wholeness, health, peace, welfare, safety, soundness, tranquility, prosperity, perfectness, fullness, rest, harmony, the absence of agitation or discord. Shalom comes from the root verb shalom meaning to be complete, perfect and full.”

This definition reminds me of Paul’s declaration in Romans 8: “If God is FOR us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but willingly gave Him up for us all, how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things?” Is it not, indeed, His desire to give us all things…for us to know in our souls that in Christ we have all that we need. Peter joins in the proclamation: “His divine power has given us everything we need for life & godliness” (emphasis mine). The journey toward wholeness is the life of each one of us wholly surrendered. In Hebrew, it is used as both a greeting & a farewell, becoming a proclamation on the life on whom it is bestowed. May we receive it; may we offer it.  May our Prince of Peace continue to pervade each & every area of our lives.

“Come Rain or Come Shine”-

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Come Rain or Come Shine was Billie Holiday’s song, & no one sings it like she did. Only she could so soulfully, so sweetly, so gently sing the words to what each & every one of our hearts long to hear from our beloved:

You’re gonna love me, like nobody’s loved me, come rain or come shine.

High as a mountain, deep as a river, come rain or come shine.

It’s such a beautiful song, & what an amazing promise it offers, but…do the words carry any truth? Is it really possible to find that elusive love, or even to faithfully offer it to another?

Though all good relationships are proved in their ability to weather the storms mentioned in this song, few in this world come close to dwelling in that symbiotic state where love is given & remains unfailing…always, forever. Life can be beautiful when we find love, but it can be messy too, just as anything involving human beings is. Our love falls short of being perfectly patient, kind, unconditional or selfless. Only through Jesus do we experience the satiating love whose width & breadth & height & depth all surpass our understanding. All tangible glimpses we are given here somehow first flowed from His throne.

The love & friendship He offers us is truly incomprehensible to the human mind, truly intimate. Phil Wickham sings:

“Your love is extravagant, Your friendship intimate.

Spread wide in the arms of Christ, is the love that covers sin.

No greater love have I ever known, than You considered me a friend.

You’ve captured my heart again.”

God knows our every flaw & failure, & loves us still, more than we can fathom. There is no fear in His love, for no matter what we do, He could never love us more or less that He already does. His love is already that complete. Zephaniah 3:17 tells us that He takes great delight in us, quiets us with His love, & rejoices over us with singing.

His Word is His love letter to us, & His creation continually plays the melody of His song. In the words of John Denver in Annie’s Song, we could, in turn, say of our Lord:

You fill up my senses, like a night in the forest, like the mountains in springtime, like a walk in the rain.

Like a storm in the desert, like a sleepy blue ocean, you fill up my senses, Come fill me again.

Come, let me love you. Let me give my life to you. Let me drown in your laughter, let me die in your arms.

Let me lay down beside you, let me always be with you. Come, let me love you, come love me again.

We are made new in relationship with Him. We receive the love He has for us, but we also receive His ability to offer that heart to the world. An old poem by an unknown author  says: “I love Thee Lord, but with no love of mine, for I have none to give. I love Thee Lord, but all the love is Thine, for by Thy love I live. I am as nothing, & rejoice to be, emptied & hollowed & swallowed up in Thee.” By His grace, we can boldly sing to my Saviou, Friend, Father & Beloved:

“I’m gonna love you, like nobody’s loved you, come rain or come shine.

High as a mountain, deep as a river, come rain or come shine.”

“In the World Itself”-

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In a way, suffering always causes blindness. It turns our gazes & journeys inward. In our pain, it is a challenge to really see outside ourselves & beyond the limited perspectives of our isolated experiences. When the storms come, most of us hunker down & attempt to wrap our minds around what is happening. We seek answers that are rarely forthcoming, explanations that are non-existent, solutions that are slow in manifesting. Although it is rarely useful, we often cast blame, often find a target within ourselves, often contribute to our own anguish.

As we wrestle with such thoughts, we must often wrestle alone. As the famed poem Footprints captures however, even when we can’t see our Lord walking beside us & His footprints seem strangely absent, it is in these times He scoops us up in His arms & carries us. His healing & growth oft come in unexpected forms, often through the very experiences we disliked, often as a surprise discovered through the advanced perspective of time. In his novel Jayber Crow, author Wendell Berry says it best: “I am always surprised, when I look back on times I have known to be laborious or worrisome or sad, to discover that, they were never out of the presence of peace & beauty, for here I have been always in the world itself.” The world bestows gifts that can restore damaged vision, & even strengthen it beyond what it was before. In a way, suffering always awakens sight.

Path Paved by the Son-

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Heraclitus observed that “The only constant in life is change.” This truth is older even than ancient Greece, yet in our own journeys, we often find ourselves surprised by & resistant to transition. Unexpected curves in our paths can throw us off balance & leave us searching for direction. God promises that His Word will be our lamp & guide, & also assures us of guidance as a component of communion with His presence. As Isaiah prophecies in chapter 30, verse 21, “Whether you turn to the left or to the right, your ears will hear a voice behind them saying, ‘This is the way, walk in it’.” Rather than an audible voice or a burning bush, however, we most frequently come to commune with our Savior by being attuned to His still, small voice. His paves our path gently by going Himself behind & before us, providing a guiding light & peace as gentle & as sure as the rays of the sun. In Jesus Calling (February 11), author Sarah Young says it this way:

 

“My Peace is like a shaft of golden Light shining on you continuously. During days of bright sunshine, it may blend in with your surroundings. On darker days, My Peace stands out in sharp contrast to your circumstances. See times of darkness as opportunities for My Light to shine in transcendent splendor. I am training your to practice Peace that overpowers darkness. Collaborate with Me in this training.”

Who better than our Lord to bestow light? Who better than our Savior with whom to collaborate? Who better than Jesus to plan our journey? May we discern His voice & surely as we watch the sun rise & set. May we respond to His leading as gently & pleasantly as we feel the sun warm & light our way.