Things We Need to Stop Saying (Part 1)

 Can we please stop telling people that marriage is the greatest tool God can use for sanctification?

It's something I hear all too often, and as a single adult it's frustrating.

It's actually hurtful to many.

As a single adult, it comes across as meaning I don't have the opportunity for sanctification because I'm not married. And, yes, I've had people say that.

With single adults a large and growing number of people in our churches, comments like this alienate more people that we realize.

And, let's be honest, God has a lot more tools to use for our sanctification than just marriage. He's not limited. We make Him out to be smaller than He actually is when we decide what His best tools for sanctification are.

As long as we are living in relationship with God, He can do the work of sanctification in our lives. He can use any situation or relationship or things that come our way to sanctify us. And He does, if we allow Him to.

Yes, marriage is a tool God can use for sanctification. 

So are roommates, friends, coworkers, neighbours, family members. 

So it trusting God through a challenging time. 

So is persevering to finish a project that didn't come naturally or was filled with challenges.

Ultimately, anything in our lives can be a tool God uses for our sanctification, if we'll allow it to be.

But, that's the key with all of this. We have to allow it to be a way of sanctification. If we don't, then it won't be.

Why I Tore up my "True Love Waits" Pledge Card

The "True Love Waits" pledge card . . . signed in January 1998 at a youth group evening is now in 15-20 pieces on the table beside me. I found it tucked in the front of the Bible I used when I was in high school. As I pulled it out, I decided it was time to tear it up.

Not because I'm walking away from what the Bible says about sex and purity.

Not because I don't believe in waiting for marriage.

I actually tore it up precisely because I want live according to God's Word on this. And, while the intentions behind the "purity culture" of my youth were good, I don't believe it was actually about living according to God's teaching anyways.

For some, this might seem strange. But, probably not to many of you who grew up in church youth groups in the 1990s. There was a strong movement that, on the surface, seemed to be about biblical principles for sex and purity. This included signing pledge cards that we would wait for marriage and, for girls, wearing rings that said "true love waits" on the ring finger of your left hand.

Much has been written in recent years about this and what the results of growing up in this "purity culture" have been. And my experiences with it and my own study of Scripture are exactly what led me to tear up this card when I found it.

I tore it up because I no longer see it as being a commitment to live God's way in this area of life. It may have started with Scripture, but so much was added to it that it became just rules and legalism, with sometimes implied and sometimes spoken guarantees for following through that don't actually occur anywhere in Scripture. It's caused a lot of harm to a lot of people and I no longer want to be a part of that.

For some, it may sound strange that it's taken just over 20 years for me to see this. The truth is, until the last 4 or 5 years, I didn't even look at my beliefs in this area of life. I just accepted what I had been taught in church growing up. It was only when I began getting involved with another ministry at my church that spoke to this topic that I first began to question some of what I'd been taught. As I looked again at the Scriptures used and compared what I was hearing and reading in them now with what I'd been taught growing up, I noticed some things I could no longer ignore.

All the teaching I'd heard growing up had definitely started with Scripture. The starting place was good and right. The problem came in what was placed on top of these scriptural truths. The things we were subsequently taught about how to live a life of sexual purity. This is where man-made ideas were taught as being on par with Scripture - as the way we should live.

As I began to realize I'd bought into these lies, I had to begin the process of untangling what was truth from Scripture from what was man-made additions to Scripture. This was a more complicated process than I imagined. I had to acknowledge where my beliefs were wrong and find what Scripture said. And I had to come face-to-face with the fact that people I had trusted and loved had been part of teaching these beliefs. Although I still believe they had the best of intentions in what they taught, I still had to acknowledge that these were the people who had taught me this. I had to face that this was all part of the legalism I'd become bound by. It wasn't an easy thing to do and took much longer than I expected, but, it was also very necessary.

So, why do I share this now?

I know from conversations I've had with some I grew up with and what I've been watching play out in public in Christian circles, this is a struggle many people are facing. My hope in sharing my journey with this is that I can encourage others who are facing this journey themselves.

A Doer of the Word, Not Just a Hearer

Is just reading the Word enough? Or is there more to it?

James 1:22-25 says:

"But be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. Because if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he's like someone looking at his face in a mirror. For he looks at himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of a person he was. But the one who looks intently into the perfect law of freedom and perseveres in it, and is not a forgetful hearer, but a doer who works - this person will be blessed in what he does." (CSB)

It's not just about reading the Bible to gain head knowledge. If that's all it becomes, we've missed the point of it all. It's not just about hearing what the Bible says. It's supposed to change our lives - the way we live.

I was really struck by the phrase "forgets what kind of person he was" when I read these verses from James recently. For me, it helped make the difference between hearing and doing clear.

When we hear the Word, we do look into a mirror and see the kind of person we are reflected back to us. Any time we open the Word of God we'll see things in our lives that are good and things that aren't that we need to deal with.

If we're just hearers of the Word, this is where it stops. We hear the Word, we see what it reveals in our lives, and then we walk away, quickly forgetting what we've heard. We heard what kind of a person we are, but didn't do anything in response to it.

On the other hand, the doer of the Word, goes beyond what they heard and what they saw about what kind of a person they are. They choose to do something with what they've heard.

When things are revealed, when they see things about the kind of person they are that don't line up with God's ways, they dig deeper to allow God to transform them. They allow the kind of person they are to be changed. As they look intently at God's Word, they find real freedom.

True Transformation

In 2 Kings 22-23, we read of the reign of Josiah, king of Judah - one of the few kings who had a heart that was completely committed to following God.

Josiah undertook great work to remove evil from the land of Judah. He was thorough in his destruction of idols and places used for idol worship throughout his kingdom. There was nothing and no one left related to idol worship. Josiah followed God as completely as he knew how.

But then we read these words about Jehoahaz, who succeeded Josiah as king:
"He did evil in they eyes of the Lord, just as his predecessors had done." (2 Kings 23:32)

After a king who followed God so fully, as Josiah did, this seems almost unexpected. Even if he didn't follow God to the same degree as his father had, to have Jehoahaz turn and do evil in God's eyes . . .

How could this happen? How could Judah's kings go from zealously following God to doing evil in His eyes so quickly? What happened?

To read it seems shocking, but when I really stop to think about it, it's actually a really common cycle in our lives as well. We can be passionately following God in complete obedience for a while, and then we're walking in disobedience to God's ways right after that.

At a glance, there doesn't seem to be any logical reason for why this happens. Whether we see it happening in Scripture or whether we see it in our own lives or the lives of those we know, it doesn't really make sense at first.

The more I think about this, the more I begin to wonder if part of it isn't that it's easy to go along with passionate obedience when that's what you're surrounded with, but not experience the true heart change yourself. And I wonder if that's what happened to Jehoahaz.

He would have been a part of some of Josiah's reforms and likely caught up in them. But he may not have experienced the true heart change that needs to go along with it. So when he became king and was no longer following a leader who passionately and completely followed God. Jehoahaz went back to where he heart really was.

And I think the same things can happen to us. We go to an event where God is really at work and get caught up in the excitement of it. We go along with it all on the outside and no one looking at us is going to see us as any different from anyone else. We may not even realize there's anything different for us, then for others. But, as soon as we're not in the environment or with those people, we go back to our old way, because we didn't experience the true heart transformation that others did.

So, how do we guard against this? Is there anything we can do?

I think this is where we need to be intentional about inviting God in. When Josiah was made aware of all of God's truth, he wasn't willing to do anything less than all God required of him. Josiah made sure he was dealing with all of the sin in his life and in his kingdom. Josiah didn't just deal with the obvious. He was thorough in removing all remnants of idol worship from God's people.

This has to be our attitude as well. If we're going to experience true, lasting transformation, we have to invite God in. Once we invite Him is, we need to give Him full freedom to deal with all that He finds.

Seeing with Spiritual Eyes

Often we look at our situation and are overwhelmed by what we see. We're seeing with our physical eyes what is going on and it doesn't look good.

But, when we're seeing with just our physical eyes, we're missing a lot. What if there is more for us to see? And, what if that more would change everything for us?

I was challenged by this thought when I was reading in 2 Kings 6 lately. Elisha, God's prophet, is being pursued to be killed the king of Aram. One day, it seemed inevitable that the king of Aram would get his way. His army was encamped around the city where Elisha was living.

2 Kings 6:15-17 says:

When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. "Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?" the servant asked.
"Don't be afraid," the prophet answered. "Those who are with us are more than those who are with them."
And Elisha prayed, "Open his eyes, Lord, that he may see." The the Lord opened the servant's eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

Elisha's servant could only see with his human eyes when he first went out and looked at the army surrounding the city. When he looked, all he saw was the army of Aram surrounding them and he was afraid. Elisha was seeing with spiritual eyes and saw God's army there fighting for them.

Once Elisha prayed for his servant's spiritual eyes to be opened, the servant could see that God's power of their side was more powerful than the army coming against them. Now the servant was seeing what Elisha saw that took away fear.

I think we're often like the servant. We see with our physical eyes and we're overwhelmed with our situation or we see it as a lost cause. It's in these moments that we need to ask God to help us see with spiritual eyes. With eyes that see Him at work, fighting the battle for us. Eyes that see the assurance of victory in the end, if we trust Him.

Where do you need to ask God to help you see with spiritual eyes, rather than just your physical eyes?

What We All Need As Christians

What do we all need as Christians?

What is it that should mark our lives as Christians?

"For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, encouraging, comforting, and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into His kingdom and glory." (1 Thessalonians 2:11-12)

These are Paul's words in his letter to the church at Thessalonica. 

As I read those words, I was struck by one particular phrase in them.

Live lives worthy of God

This is a hard call. It's so much more than just praying a prayer to ask Jesus int your heart. This is actually about allowing Jesus to change your life.

The only way to live a life worthy of God is the be constantly growing and maturing in our relationship with Jesus. This is what allows for and causes the transformation that means we're living lives worthy of God. Discipleship is what this is about.

Discipleship is not a word we use regularly today. So, what do I mean by it?

When I use the word discipleship, I'm talking about the process of growing in our faith. About moving us from the point of salvation to being transformed. 

Some of this process happens as we spend time on our own in Scripture and in prayer. But, there's also a community aspect to it.

We learn from those who have gone before us. We encourage, comfort, and push one another along. This kind of discipleship comes out of relationship with people, not just be being an anonymous person in a crowd on a weekend. In Thessalonians 2:11, Paul uses the example of a father with his children to illustrate what this looks like.

I think we too often miss this part. We focus on salvation and miss the discipleship that must follow. It makes sense in lots of ways. Salvations are easy to count, to measure, to track. Discipleship is much harder to measure. But, if there is no discipleship after salvation, we've forgotten a big part of what being a Christian means.

Discipleship is where ongoing transformation takes place.

Discipleship is where we learn what God's Word says.

Discipleship is where we learn obedience to what God's Word says, even when it's hard.

Discipleship is the way we begin to live a life worthy.

So, how are you doing at discipleship? Both having people and places where you are disciple, and places where you're discipling others?

It doesn't have to be some sort of formal class or relationship for it to happen. But, we all need to have people who are further along in this Christian life than us who are pouring into us and we need to have people coming along behind us who we are pouring into.

If we're going to thrive and have an impact on a culture that is increasingly hostile to our beliefs, then I believe we must return discipleship to its rightful place in the church. As I read and study Paul's letters to the early church, I see again and again, his call to grow beyond that place of salvation. It's what we all need.

Five Years

The first weekend of April five years ago, I really didn't have any idea what I was at the beginning of. I walked into a Set Free weekend with my church (called Encounter God then). 

I wasn't totally sure what to expect, or even why I was actually there. I just knew that without even really thinking about it, I had said yes to a text from the women's ministry leader at my church when she asked if I was planning to go. I had heard a bit about it, but I didn't really know exactly what it was about.

When I look back now, I can't really imagine what things would be like if I hadn't gone. I'm definitely glad I went. Because it's not just about the weekend. It's about tools for living life in relationship with God - for dealing with the stuff that happens.

Probably the biggest thing I can see when I look at what God has done in these five years is the amount of freedom in Christ I've found. For a long time, that was just a nice idea for me. I knew Scripture talked about it, but I had come to the point of thinking that it wasn't going to be reality for me. 

But, now I can say that it is something available to all of us. I've experienced in a way I never thought was possible. And I want to continue living that way and growing in that. As I've learned to deal with the stuff in life and to better hear God's voice when He speaks, I've been able to see a least a small glimpse of what the freedom in Christ talked about in Scripture is.

As another Set Free weekend approaches in a few days, I'm looking forward to it. To see what God has in store for all of us who are there (both attending and serving on the prayer team) this time.

What is Transformation?

What is transformation?
How do we find it or create it?
Is it completely God's job? Or do we have a part to play in it?

These are some of the questions that have been running through my head for a while. I seem to keep coming back to them.

In many ways they're foundational to how we live as Christians. We talk about transformation - about our need for it, about how we are or are supposed to be transformed to be more and more like Christ. But, what so we actually mean by it? And how does it happen?

I looked up the word transformation recently and was struck by part of the definition for it: "change in form, appearance, nature, or character." That seemed to be what we're talking about when we talk about transformation.

It's about our character becoming more and more Christ-like.

So, if that's what we're talking about, then what is needed for that to happen?

Because my brain works best in the world of math, as I've thought about this, it had been a math formula that has summed up my thoughts. I'll share more thoughts and explain what I mean by it, but I'll start by sharing the "formula":

Belonging + Identity = Transformation

So, what do I mean by belonging and identity?

Belonging is the safe place we need. A place where we're accepted exactly where we are and as we are. The place where we're loved and cared about. This is vital if we're going to come to a place of change.

Identity is about understanding the truth of who we are in Christ. It's about learning who we are in God's eyes. A firm, unchanging, stable identity.

It's when we have both of these - belonging and identity - that transformation can happen. And the order of them in important. It has to start with belonging. Once we feel like we belong - once we feel safe and loved as we are right now - we are able to start hearing the truth about our identity. As our understanding of our true identity in Christ grows in our safe place of belonging, we're transformed.

So, if we go back to the questions I opened this post with:

Transformation comes from having a safe place to understand and learn more fully our true identity in Christ. We need both a safe place to belong and to hear the truth of our identity in Christ to be transformed.

Transformation is God's job. We can't and don't have the responsibility to create it. Our part is to be available to God to use. He often chooses to use the people around us in this. So, our role is to be willing to be used by God and to be listening to what He is saying to us about who we are in Him.

A New Name

What is your name?
What are you called by those who know you?
What is the name others would be introduced to you by?

Isaiah 62 is an intriguing chapter to me. It's all about names and about God changing the name His people are known by. Isaiah 62:2 says, ". . . you will be called by a new name that the mouth of the Lord will bestow." The same chapter ends with words declaring what God's people would now be called:

"They will be called the Holy People,
     the Redeemed of the Lord;
and you will be called Sought After,
     the City no Longer Deserted."

As I read and reflected on this chapter, I was struck by the power of names - the names we believe about ourselves, the names others call us, the names God gives us. What we're called really matters. It can change everything.

The power of names is so evident in our society. People regularly live up to or down to the names they've been called, by themselves or others. People can be completely destroyed by the names they're called,. People can also be lifted up by the names they're called.

We need to pay attention to the names we believe about ourselves. They may be names we gave ourselves or names that others gave us. But, these can become a part of how we live and act and talk, so we have to pay attention.

When we discover names that are destructive to us, names that are not in line with God's names for us, we need to ask for His truth to replace that. We need to take those lies to God so He can speak the truth over us. God wants to give us names that speak to the reason why He has placed us here, that speak to who He see us as. As we allow Him to speak these names over us, they become what we live and that changes everything. That's how powerful names are in our lives.

Revelation 2:17 says:

"I will also give that person a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to the one who receives it."

This is the ending to the letter to the church in Pergamum in the letters to the seven churches that begin Revelation. This church was commended for not falling to the culture around them that was full of evil. But, they still had allowed some false teaching to enter their lives and were being called to turn back to the truth. These words are the encouragement to those who stand firm and are victorious.

Reading these words to the church in Pergamum seems to also speak well to the church today, we need to heed the same call. We're also told that our faithfulness to God will be rewarded. We will have in intimate relationship with God where He teaches us ("gives us some of the hidden manna" Revelation 2:16) and where we receive a new name. A name that speaks to who God created us to be and what He created us to do.

This is the same thing God was promising to Israel in Isaiah 62. When they turned to Him, He would give them a new name that spoke God's truth over them.

What are the names you've been believing about yourself that are lies that you need to allow God to replace with His truth?
What is the name God has given you?

The Problem with How we Often Approach Modesty Conversations

"Be careful what you wear, you don't want to cause your brothers in Christ to stumble by how you dress."

"Men are visual, so it really matters what you wear."

These are just a couple of examples of the messages about modesty I heard growing up in the church. And often still here today.

Then you look at communicated dress codes: They're almost always much more detailed for women than for men. In some cases, they see to be almost exclusively addressed to women.

And that's wrong. And it's a problem.

Hear me clearly:

I'm not saying that these sentiments are wrong. I'm not saying women shouldn't be aware of how they dress and the impact it may have on others. Those things are part of living in healthy community.

But, we absolutely cannot stop here. We cannot stop with just telling women it's all on them with regards to what the Christian men in their worlds think.

What I am saying:

When our focus when it comes to modesty is almost exclusively focused on women's choice of dress, we're doing exactly what we complain about our society doing to women and speak out against in other settings. In framing our discussions of modesty around only what women wear, we're reducing women to nothing more than sex objects. The very same thing we decry in the society in which we live.

We also marginalize a segment of women. We make it seems like only men are tripped up by what they see. Our silence on men's dress and need for modesty pushes the segment of women who struggle with that they see on the sidelines. Left feeling unacknowledged, unimportant, and completely silenced. Silencing them is the worst part of it, in my opinion, because it means they're left alone in their struggle, feeling like they have no place to reach out for help. Their struggle is invalidated and made to be no big deal.

I've had a few instances where this topic has come up in conversation recently that have fueled this post. In some of the conversations, my thoughts have been listened to and considered, regardless of whether they agree with me. In others, the response has been an almost immediate dismissal with a "yeah, but . . ." It's the second response, the dismissal, that really spurred me to write this post.

When I look at Scripture, I don't see responsibility for another's actions being placed on one group of people, but rather, I see all people being called to responsibility for their own thoughts and actions.

There are a couple of Scriptures, I commonly here in discussions about modesty:

". . . Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister." (Romans 14:13b)

"Be careful, however, that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak." (1 Corinthians 8:9)

I have heard both of these verses used as support for the statements I opened this post with. And, while they do apply to that, we can't limit them to a discussion on modesty for women. Taken in the larger context of where these verses are pulled from, Paul is talking about how to live in Christian community. Paul's not even talking about modesty is dress, although the principle can be applied there. But, if we're going to apply it there, we need to be applying to both men and women equally.

We're being unfair if we use it to justify talking to women about how to dress and don't also talk to men about the same thing. Both men and women have a responsibility in this area. And it's important.

In an increasingly sexualized society, we need to have regular and honest conversations about modesty and the implication of how we dress. But, it must be a balanced conversation. We all, men and women, have a responsibility here - both in how we dress and in what we choose to dwell on in our own thoughts.

What Difference Will it Make?

What difference is this going to make in my everyday life?

That's the question I reflect on as I complete any Bible study I've been a part of. It's easy to reach the end of a Bible study and already be looking ahead to the next one we can add to our list of all the ones we've completed. An ever-growing list, an increasing pile of workbooks, an impressive amount of knowledge gained - these things can easily become our goal, even if we don't intentionally make it one.

But, if that's all it becomes, I believe we've missed the point of Bible study in the first place. It's not about all we can accomplish. It's not about gaining more head knowledge. It's not about how smart we can sound in future conversations about that topic or portion of Scripture.

The point of all our Bible study, all our work, all our learning needs to be our relationship with God. it's about allowing God to transform us to be more and more in the image of Christ. The facts we learn, the knowledge we gain is good, but it can't be our focus.

One of the ways I've found helpful in making sure I don't miss the point of the Bible studies I do is to take some time as I finish to reflect on the question: What difference is this going to make in my everyday life?

By asking this question, I slow down and look for the one or two things from the study I'm finishing that affect my life now. It might be a new understanding that changes how I live. It might be a new spiritual discipline I want to incorporate into my life. It might be a challenge to make a change in something in my life.

Whatever it is, by drawing out those one or two things, I keep myself from just checking another study off on a list. Instead, I make it about a growing and deepening relationship with God.

Can I challenge you to have a way of being intentional about paying attention to things so they can make a difference in your life rather than just being something you check off on a list?

Why a Baby?

I've often had this question in mind as Christmas approaches. 

Why a baby?

Why did the Savior of the world, the Son of God, come to earth as a baby?

Wouldn't it have made more sense for Him to come in such a way that people couldn't miss Who He was?

On Sunday night, I listened to a pastor at my church talk about this same subject, based on the story of Elijah in 1 Kings 17-19. Elijah sought a powerful display of God's glory to try to turn people back to God, and it didn't happen. When God revealed Himself to Elijah, it wasn't in the powerful displays, but in a "gentle whisper." (I Kings 19:12). In that quiet moment, in that small way, is where God showed up and changed things. Elijah wouldn't have been the same after that meeting with God.

Not your typical Sunday before Christmas message, but it struck me in how it relates to the reason why our Savior came as a baby, rather than a powerful display. Those powerful displays don't often result in life change. The life change comes from the small, the quiet.

That's why Jesus came as a baby. 

A powerful display of God's glory, wouldn't have made any more of a difference. 

People still would have missed the Savior.

People still wouldn't have seen what God was trying to do.

The Son of God, the Savior of the world, came as a baby because the small, quiet places, is where God most often speaks and we have life-changing encounters.

The Right Soil

The Parable of the Sower in Mark 4:1-20 is a familiar one.

A farmer goes out to scatter seed. There's four places the seed lands:

• Path - where the birds eat it up right away
• Rocky Places - where it springs up quickly but doesn't last when the sun comes because there is no root
• Thorns - where it gets choked by the thorns growing around it before it can really take root and grow
• Good Soil - where it takes root, grows, and produces a crop

Each of the soils represents a heart and how receptive it is to the Word of God.
In some hearts, it will be snatched away before it even try to grow.
In some hearts, it will begin to grow, but won't last when hard times come.
In some hearts, it will be choked out by the worries and anxieties of life.
In some hearts, it will take root and produce fruit in their lives.

I've always heard this parable spoken of in regards to salvation. It's a pretty clear application.

As I was reading it recently, I was struck by how this applies to more than just salvation. The same concepts continue to apply to our hearts after salvation as well.

We continually have a choice in how we'll respond to God's voice in our lives. When He speaks to us, our hope may be that those words will always take root in our lives and bear fruit, but that's not always the case. Those words can land on any one of these types of soil when we're believers as well.

Sometimes we've wandered away and given Satan access he shouldn't have and he uses this to grab the words before they have a chance to grow.

Sometimes we're not will to deal with the sin in areas of our lives and when the word speaks to those areas it grows quickly but doesn't last because there's no way for the roots to go deep.

Sometimes our focus shifts and we get so focused on the worries and anxieties of life that they choke out the words of truth God is speaking.

Sometimes our heart is receptive to what we're hearing and we respond in a way that brings what God desires those words to bring in our lives.

What kind of soil is your heart right now?

Come, See What God Has Done

I was listening to a song as I drove home tonight that made me think. I don't usually post something as soon as I write it, but this time I just don't seem to be able to wait to post it.

I've been thinking a lot lately about the power of story in our lives. The stories we tell ourselves. The stories we live. The stories we try to tell others about our lives. 

Most of all, I've been thinking about the story that God is writing in our lives that He invites us to fully participate in. Our story that is part of His larger story that we get the privilege of being a part of.

It's a story we need to share with others. Hearing how God has worked in someone else's life can encourage us in hard times, can inspire us to new heights, can challenge us in our own lives.

Stories are how we interpret so much of life. They're how we make sense of what is going on around us and in our own lives. We tell ourselves a story about it so that we can try to understand it better.

I was listening to Matt Redman's song, "Come and See." Over and over the words, "come and see what God has done" are repeated. 

That's exactly the stories we need to be sharing. The stories of what God has done in our lives. When we call others to "come and see what God has done" we give God the glory for the story of our lives.

We need to share those stories in every day life. We need to share those stories as God leads us, no matter the setting or the people. It doesn't have to be a formal setting or planned to do that. We just need to share them.

I love the chorus of Matt Redman's song, "Come and See"

     Come and see, come and see what God has done

     Come and see, come and see what love has won

     In this place, hearts and live waking up

     To the light of the world

     You're the Light of the world

What would it look like if those words described the way we lived? What would it mean if through our lives and what we shared, we invited people to see what God has done, what love has won?

What about When Life is Hard?

Life is hard.

There really isn't any other way to put it.

More often than we want it to be true, the truth is that it's hard.

Whether it's personal stuff, or family stuff, or work stuff, or ministry stuff, or things we see happening in the world around us . . . it's hard.

And, even if we try to, we can't hide from it. We can do and try many things to run from the hard stuff of life, but it won't work. The hard stuff will go with us. And we may even make it worse by trying to run and hide from it.

So, now that I've had that slightly depressing start to this . . .

What do we do when life is hard? If we can't avoid that life will be hard, what options to do we have to get through it?

What comes next might seem like the standard Christian answer to that question, but I've realized in the last nine months that it really is what we need to do when life is hard and we're not sure how we'll get through it.

What do we do when life is hard? We take the hard stuff to God. Ask Him to work in it. Give Him control of it. Surrender. Allow God into it.

But that's a lot more difficult to actually do then it is for me to write it.

This is exactly what Scripture tells us we should do. Philippian 4:6-7 says, "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." When we take the hard stuff in life to God, He replaces the worry about it with His peace. The hard situation may not change, but our ability to get through it well does, because we're not trying to do it ourselves anymore.

In 1 Peter 5:7 it says, "Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you." We can take our worries over the hard stuff in life to God because He cares. He cares what we're going through. He cares when we're struggling through hard times. He cares about what we're worried about or struggling with.

Sometimes when it's hard, it's a choice to continually take the issue to God. Every time we become aware that we've taken it back, whatever it is, we give it to God again. Over and over again.

If there's one thing I've learned in the last nine months, it's this: Life is way harder than I wish it was sometimes, but I can always get through it and grow through it when I continually allow God into my struggle and surrender control to Him.

The last nine months have been challenging for me. A series of events in March made life really hard. For a while, each day was a struggle just to get through. The only choice I had was to take it to God, to surrender it to Him, and to invite Him into it to do the work only He could do. Sometimes that was a decision I had to make every minute.

Now, I think I'm on the other side of this particular season of struggle in the hard stuff of life. Life isn't that hard anymore (although I'm not sure I'd say it's easy). And I know I didn't make it through because of something I did. I made it through because I surrendered control of that time to God. I'm where I am today because of God and His care for me and His working in the midst of my hard time because I allowed Him to.

I don't where this post finds you right now. But, if you're in the midst of a hard time, can I encourage you to give it to God. Invite Him in, and let Him do the work only He can do in the midst of it. Do exactly what Philippians 4:6-7 and 1 Peter 5:7 say to do. It changes everything.

We Belong to Each Other

"For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others." (Romans 12:4-5, emphasis mine)

What does it mean that "each member belongs to all the others"?

That was the question that wen through my mind when I read these verses recently. What does it really look like?

These verses come in the middle of a passage that is well known as talking about spiritual gifts. About how we all have a part to play in the body of Christ.

As I reflected on this more, I realized that this makes sense when you think about how the body works. Every part of a body needs the others to do their job in order to function. They depend on each other.

The same is true of the body of Christ. We need each other to be doing what God has given us to do, so we as a body can function properly. We belong to each other in the sense that we need each other to do what God has called us to do - as a body and individually.

If we belong to each other and are part of one body, then we have a responsibility in how we treat each other. It changes the way we should be acting towards one another.

Paul goes on in the book of Romans to describe what it looks like for us to live as members of Christ's body who belong to each other. The way we should live and the way we should interact with each other.

To read the words of Paul it sounds straightforward enough, but living it can sometimes be more difficult than it sounds. Paul describes a was of living that is different from our fallen sinful nature. A way of living that requires us to allow God to transform us and make us more like Christ.

Paul gives us a picture of what this looks like in Roman 12:1-2, where he writes:

"Therefore, I urge you brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - His good, pleasing, and perfect will."

Living as the body of Christ that describes us as, starts with surrender. A choice on our part to let God have control and transform us.


What does Romans say about what this kind of living looks like?

That's the question I'll be exploring in my posts for a while. Romans is full of instruction on what this looks like - good, practical instructions that can help us understand.

In Our Time of Need

"For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are - yet He did not sin. Let us approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." (Hebrews 4:15-16, NIV 2011)

Those words from Scripture are ones I cling to. They contain an important truth for us to hold onto in our daily life.

When I'm tempted by sin, I'm not left on my own to beat it. Jesus has faced temptation when He was on earth and He didn't sin. He is able to help me in my temptation, if I ask Him for help. I don't have to deal with temptation on my own.

That's a liberating truth to grab hold of. It frees us from the never-ending cycle of defeat we get stuck in when we're trying to avoid giving in to temptation in our own strength. The pressure isn't on us to keep trying harder anymore.

In the moments when we're facing temptation, we can call out to Jesus for help and be confident He will meet us in our time of need and provide a way out for us.

1 Corinthians 10:13 says,
"No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so you can endure it." (NIV 2011)

We discover the way out of our temptation when we call out for help when we're facing it. Because we always call to Him for help, we will always be able to endure it - it won't be more than we can bear, because we'll have God's help.

That's a pretty good promise to build our life upon. And it brings true freedom to us.

What Fills You Up?

Life is full of things we have to do. Lists if what is required of us.

Often, these lists can be full of things that drain us. Things that deplete us, but that we have to do anyways.

Sometimes we feel lucky. There's more things on the list that we get excited about doing, then things that deplete us.

But usually that only happens when we're intentional about building those things into our lives. We have to discover what it is that fills us up and then figure out how to do more of that.

Many of the activities that deplete us we won't be able to eliminate completely. They'll still be required as part of life. But, we can find ways to minimize the time we spend on them.

And that additional time we find can be used for those activities we have discovered that fill us up.

What fills you up? What things in your life leave you feeling refreshed and energized to face the list of things you have to do?

How do those things work in your schedule? Do you need to change things, so they're a regular part of your life?

Tramsformation

Cold and dark

What a transformation

It have once been

Warm and bright

A fire burning with passion

Only coals remained

No light to shine

Warmth only with a touch

What happened to the flame?

What happened to the passion?

Life got in the way

Always running

Always hurrying

The fire never tended

Slowly it went out

The flame died away

With nothing left to burn

It doesn't have

To stay that way

If we feed it

It will burn again

The passion will return

With attention and time

The flame will burn again

Warm and bright 

What a transformation

It is no longer 

Cold and dark

The Importance of our Stories

I read a quote recently that made me think about the importance of our stories. Of paying attention to them. Of sharing them with others.

"When we deny the story, it defines us. When we own the story, we can write a brave new ending. . . . Owning our stories is standing in our truth. It's transformative in our personal lives and professional lives and it's also critical in our community lives." (Brene Brown)

Our life is all about stories. The larger stories that last for months, years, a lifetime. The smaller stories that are minutes or hours long. And they're all important, because they are part of who we are, they point to how we are who we are.

What makes a story exciting to read or watch is the moment of decision. That place where the main character has to make a choice about what they will do. Which way they'll go. Which person they'll become.

That's the same thing that makes our stories exciting. The moments where we choose the ending of our story by stepping into it. When we choose to face the realities of where we are right now and be intentional about what we do next. Then we have a part to play in what the outcome is.

If we refuse to make that choice and just allow things to happen, we end up defined by what happened, rather than by what we chose to do. When we make the choice, we get to play a part in writing the ending of our story.

Our stories also impact other people. We need to share our stories with them. In doing so, we remind ourselves and others of God's faithfulness in the past, which gives us courage for the future.