I'm not going all elemental on you with these titles. Promise. It's just the way it worked out.
Dad suggested I read through John over the break, and since he is utterly wise, I'm doing as he said. So far it's been great, and I'm only to chapter 4. I got to one of my very favorite verses this morning, John 3:8. Jesus is speaking to Nicodemus and He says, "The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit."
First off, isn't that beautiful? Just take a minute and reread that verse and think of the wind. So it is with the Spirit. Second, I found out some cool information while researching deeper into this passage. In the Greek language, the same word is used for "wind" and "spirit": pneuma. The term evolved from a description of an elemental, vital, dynamic wind or breath into a more specific breath blowing from the invisible realms...more of a reference to the Holy Spirit of the Lord as it is used 345 times in the New Testament of the Bible. This breath of life is the Spirit that gives us new life in Christ. I love that these words are interchangeable. They are dynamic, moving as the air around us.
This idea of movement is extremely applicable to the Christian life. God never calls us to be stagnant. We are to continuously grow and learn in Him, going wherever He may call, wherever His Spirit (this wind John is talking about) takes us. Hillsong United has a song dealing with exactly this issue. If you haven't heard "Oceans" here's the link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dy9nwe9_xzw It's totally worth listening to the whole thing, trust me.
But the chorus of this song is what I really want to focus on:
Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders
Let me walk upon the waters
Wherever You would call me
Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander
And my faith will be made stronger
In the presence of my Savior
Wow. Yes. This is my prayer because I'm so afraid of the unknown. I'm afraid of the future, of not having hard and fast plans, of not being assured of anything other than that my Savior is the same yesterday, today and forever. Which is enough. Lord, let it be enough. It takes me to John 3:30 when John the Baptist says of Jesus, "He must increase, but I must decrease." The more that I allow Jesus to fill me up, the less room for me and my selfish desires and sinful nature there is. The more clearly am I able to shine forth the light of Jesus because it's not fogged up by all the junk of moi.
So Spirit lead me where I have never been before, wherever I may be called. Take me deeper. I hear the wind, the breath of life God sends to me as the Holy Ghost, and I will follow though I might not know where I'm going. Honestly, this prayer scares me. But it also reminds me of the Chronicles of Narnia when Mr. Beaver responds like this to Lucy asking if Aslan is safe: "Safe? Who said anything about safe? 'Course he isn't safe. But he's good. He's the King, I tell you." Amen. God is good. He is always good.
The wind is blowing. The Spirit is leading. Aslan is on the move.
Friday, December 27, 2013
Thursday, December 19, 2013
Fire
"Now I see fire inside the mountain, I see fire burning the trees. And I see fire hollowing souls, and I see fire, blood in the breeze. And I hope that you remember me."
That's the chorus to the song Ed Sheeran wrote for the credits of the new Hobbit movie that was just released. The song is beautiful - lyrically genius for all of my fellow Tolkien nerds out there - and it's acoustic Ed at his best. But beyond those aspects, I've been weirdly affected by this song. I can't stop listening to it, and I couldn't figure out why until today, which is why I'm finally blogging after approximately 7 months. Haha, oops. This seems to be a pattern...
For those of you who haven't seen the newest installment of Peter Jackson's (loosely-based on the actual book -_-) Hobbit trilogy, the second movie ends with Smaug leaving the mountain and heading to Laketown (that's not a spoiler, I promise). And Bilbo climbs up onto this rock, looking after the dragon and says, "What have we done?" I loved that ending despite my complaining about other portions of the film. I love it because there's this promise of fire, death, destruction, and Bilbo realizes he and the dwarves are responsible for a large portion of what's to come, good and bad. "What have we done?" I find myself asking that question in my own life - "what have I done?" Hindsight is always 20/20, and I wish so often for a time machine to go back and change things I say and do in the past.
And this is where Ed's lyrics come in, at the end of the chorus: "And I hope that you remember me." Through all of the things I do and all of the experiences and happenings in this world, that is my prayer. "God, please remember me." Honesty hour: I felt distant from God for a large portion of this semester. Just like the dwarves headed back to Erebor, I saw fire inside the mountain, I saw burning trees, I saw blood in the breeze. And I kept asking myself where God was in it. "Do you remember me, Jesus??" It became less of a prayer and more of a question. I started doubting God's love and goodness, despite His obvious provision in my life.
In the past weeks, though (I think finishing the semester had a lot to do with the timing...), God started to soften my heart again. He revealed great kindness to me through my friends here in Albuquerque. He quieted my soul. He reminded me that even when I am faithless, He is faithful because He cannot deny Himself (2 Tim. 2:13). He showed me that when I look back, aghast - questioning like Bilbo, "What have I done?" - that He is bigger than that, He is in the fire and the bloody breeze. He showed me that not only does He remember me always, He consistently works on my behalf.
I still don't get this world. I never will. I don't understand the death, the sadness, the suffering. Why do good people get taken from this world too soon? Why are beautiful young children torn from life in these horrific school shootings? Why must war continue and my friends and my friends' family members be called upon to put themselves in harms' way? A lot of my time is taken up by this sort of worry. But today I read George Whitefield's sermon entitled "Contemplating Christmas." He says, "Let your time be spent in thinking and talking of the love of Jesus, who was incarnate for us, who was born of a woman, and made under the law, to redeem us from the wrath to come." I'm trying to refocus now, fixing my eyes on the love of Jesus, asking the Holy Spirit to convict me, to teach me, to guide me. Allowing the love of Christ and the miracle of His birth to mold my heart this Christmas especially.
It's going to take time, that's for sure, but my pastor directed us to Revelation this past Sunday, and spoke on Revelation 1:17-18 where Jesus says, "Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades." Now here's the spoiler alert: Jesus wins. In fact, He already won. There's fire in the mountain because the devil hates defeat, but Jesus holds the keys. And Jesus Christ leaves us with this truth: "Fear not. I remember you. Always."
That's the chorus to the song Ed Sheeran wrote for the credits of the new Hobbit movie that was just released. The song is beautiful - lyrically genius for all of my fellow Tolkien nerds out there - and it's acoustic Ed at his best. But beyond those aspects, I've been weirdly affected by this song. I can't stop listening to it, and I couldn't figure out why until today, which is why I'm finally blogging after approximately 7 months. Haha, oops. This seems to be a pattern...
For those of you who haven't seen the newest installment of Peter Jackson's (loosely-based on the actual book -_-) Hobbit trilogy, the second movie ends with Smaug leaving the mountain and heading to Laketown (that's not a spoiler, I promise). And Bilbo climbs up onto this rock, looking after the dragon and says, "What have we done?" I loved that ending despite my complaining about other portions of the film. I love it because there's this promise of fire, death, destruction, and Bilbo realizes he and the dwarves are responsible for a large portion of what's to come, good and bad. "What have we done?" I find myself asking that question in my own life - "what have I done?" Hindsight is always 20/20, and I wish so often for a time machine to go back and change things I say and do in the past.
And this is where Ed's lyrics come in, at the end of the chorus: "And I hope that you remember me." Through all of the things I do and all of the experiences and happenings in this world, that is my prayer. "God, please remember me." Honesty hour: I felt distant from God for a large portion of this semester. Just like the dwarves headed back to Erebor, I saw fire inside the mountain, I saw burning trees, I saw blood in the breeze. And I kept asking myself where God was in it. "Do you remember me, Jesus??" It became less of a prayer and more of a question. I started doubting God's love and goodness, despite His obvious provision in my life.
In the past weeks, though (I think finishing the semester had a lot to do with the timing...), God started to soften my heart again. He revealed great kindness to me through my friends here in Albuquerque. He quieted my soul. He reminded me that even when I am faithless, He is faithful because He cannot deny Himself (2 Tim. 2:13). He showed me that when I look back, aghast - questioning like Bilbo, "What have I done?" - that He is bigger than that, He is in the fire and the bloody breeze. He showed me that not only does He remember me always, He consistently works on my behalf.
I still don't get this world. I never will. I don't understand the death, the sadness, the suffering. Why do good people get taken from this world too soon? Why are beautiful young children torn from life in these horrific school shootings? Why must war continue and my friends and my friends' family members be called upon to put themselves in harms' way? A lot of my time is taken up by this sort of worry. But today I read George Whitefield's sermon entitled "Contemplating Christmas." He says, "Let your time be spent in thinking and talking of the love of Jesus, who was incarnate for us, who was born of a woman, and made under the law, to redeem us from the wrath to come." I'm trying to refocus now, fixing my eyes on the love of Jesus, asking the Holy Spirit to convict me, to teach me, to guide me. Allowing the love of Christ and the miracle of His birth to mold my heart this Christmas especially.
It's going to take time, that's for sure, but my pastor directed us to Revelation this past Sunday, and spoke on Revelation 1:17-18 where Jesus says, "Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades." Now here's the spoiler alert: Jesus wins. In fact, He already won. There's fire in the mountain because the devil hates defeat, but Jesus holds the keys. And Jesus Christ leaves us with this truth: "Fear not. I remember you. Always."
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Integrity
Last night, we wrapped up our semester-long discussion on the fruits of the Spirit here at the Mission. Each of us shared the particular fruit(s) we feel that God is really calling us to cultivate and work on in our lives. Throughout the entire conversation, the word integrity kept coming to my mind. And last night, I was thinking of integrity with its more typical definition: characterized by soundness of an honest character. We should honestly pursue and manifest the fruits in our lives in a dedicated manner.
And then God (as He often does) hit me with integrity again this morning but in a different way. I'm reading the book of Titus right now, and Titus 2:7-8 says, "In everything set them an example by doing what is good. In your teaching show integrity, seriousness and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned, so that those who oppose you may be ashamed because they have nothing bad to say about us." Let me give a little context: this verse is set in a passage talking about how to instruct young men. I think, however, these are great verses to apply to everyone at all times.
Anyway, being who I am, I looked up integrity in the dictionary, and I found another great definition. Integrity is also the state of being whole, entire, or undiminished. So cool! In Titus, then, God - through Paul - is commanding us to be wholly devoted in order to teach in an honorable way. Wholly devoted to what? To Jesus Christ. If our entire beings, our whole selves undiminished by outside distractions and dirt, are directed toward God and dedicated to Him, there will be nothing bad to say about us - our opposition will have no foothold to slander us. We will be characterized by integrity.
Also in that definition, I'm drawn to the word undiminished. Why? Because it reminds me of something from Tolkien's work. We can laugh together because I'm a nerd. HAHA. But for real. Let me give you a quick summary of part of The Silmarillion. This book, which is a history of the beginning times of Middle-earth, revolves around the making, losing, and quest to recover the Silmarils, these crystal jewels that captured the light of the two trees of Valinor (the trees were the lights of the world before the Sun and the Moon were created). Tolkien describes them as shining with the "radiance of white flame." These things are bright, man, so bright one eventually becomes a star! Anyway, Melkor, the really bad devilish character of The Silmarillion, steals the Silmarils from the Elves and takes them to his dungeon fortress where he sets them in his crown. Now everything about Melkor is dark and smoky - not a lot of light penetrates his kingdom. But when several of the characters venture into Melkor's halls to steal back the Silmarils, there the jewels are, shining through the darkness, undiminished. Even in the devil's dungeons, the Silmarils are unsullied - their light cannot be quenched.
I want to strive to have that kind of integrity of character: wholly dedicating my entire self to the pursuit of Christ, undiminished by satan's attempts, shining for all to see because Jesus, my Savior, is the light of the world. Forget diamonds, Rihanna, I wanna shine bright like a Silmaril!
Peace and blessings, y'all :)
And then God (as He often does) hit me with integrity again this morning but in a different way. I'm reading the book of Titus right now, and Titus 2:7-8 says, "In everything set them an example by doing what is good. In your teaching show integrity, seriousness and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned, so that those who oppose you may be ashamed because they have nothing bad to say about us." Let me give a little context: this verse is set in a passage talking about how to instruct young men. I think, however, these are great verses to apply to everyone at all times.
Anyway, being who I am, I looked up integrity in the dictionary, and I found another great definition. Integrity is also the state of being whole, entire, or undiminished. So cool! In Titus, then, God - through Paul - is commanding us to be wholly devoted in order to teach in an honorable way. Wholly devoted to what? To Jesus Christ. If our entire beings, our whole selves undiminished by outside distractions and dirt, are directed toward God and dedicated to Him, there will be nothing bad to say about us - our opposition will have no foothold to slander us. We will be characterized by integrity.
Also in that definition, I'm drawn to the word undiminished. Why? Because it reminds me of something from Tolkien's work. We can laugh together because I'm a nerd. HAHA. But for real. Let me give you a quick summary of part of The Silmarillion. This book, which is a history of the beginning times of Middle-earth, revolves around the making, losing, and quest to recover the Silmarils, these crystal jewels that captured the light of the two trees of Valinor (the trees were the lights of the world before the Sun and the Moon were created). Tolkien describes them as shining with the "radiance of white flame." These things are bright, man, so bright one eventually becomes a star! Anyway, Melkor, the really bad devilish character of The Silmarillion, steals the Silmarils from the Elves and takes them to his dungeon fortress where he sets them in his crown. Now everything about Melkor is dark and smoky - not a lot of light penetrates his kingdom. But when several of the characters venture into Melkor's halls to steal back the Silmarils, there the jewels are, shining through the darkness, undiminished. Even in the devil's dungeons, the Silmarils are unsullied - their light cannot be quenched.
I want to strive to have that kind of integrity of character: wholly dedicating my entire self to the pursuit of Christ, undiminished by satan's attempts, shining for all to see because Jesus, my Savior, is the light of the world. Forget diamonds, Rihanna, I wanna shine bright like a Silmaril!
Peace and blessings, y'all :)
Friday, April 12, 2013
#LoveDoes: Three
This chapter is awesome. Bob talks about meeting Ryan, a young guy who is ready to propose to his girlfriend and keeps asking Bob (a stranger to Ryan but owner of the house Ryan would like to use to propose to his girl) for help in his engagement plans. Anyway, since Bob is a boss, he ends up helping Ryan, and Ryan proposes in a scene complete with Coast Guard water cannons. WHAT? I'm going to be happy if I just don't get proposed to over the phone!
Bob makes an important point through Ryan's story, though. He talks about living our lives in an "engaged" manner, going after love like Ryan did - a love that is audacious, whimsical, strategic, and contagious. Bob says this engaged way of living is about "going to extremes and expressing the bright hope that life offers us, a hope that makes us brave and expels darkness with light" (p. 24). And when we live our lives in this state of excited, extraordinary love that we find through Jesus, love will multiply; it's contagious, so we'll infect others with this desire to live and love radically.
I really like that word "audacious." I was pretty sure I knew what it meant, but I looked it up in the dictionary anyway, and I found an alternative definition that is so awesome. Audacious can mean "extremely original; without restriction to prior ideas; highly inventive." Now I'm challenged by this definition - how can I love audaciously? How can I modify my love with that adverb? How can I think outside the box and love people in ways that they've never been loved before? Let me know if you have ideas. I'll keep you updated with anything I come up with. But seriously. Let's pursue this!
Bob closes in talking about how Ryan's love emulated the love Jesus talks about, "a love that never grows tired or is completely finished finding ways to fully express itself" (p. 24). I think it also emulates the love that Jesus demonstrated here on Earth. Jesus was audacious. He loved without restriction to prior ideas, choosing to eat dinner with prostitutes and tax collectors instead of the "respectable" members of society. He was the first person to love others so incredibly radically. But guess what? He doesn't have to be the last! As Christians, we are to strive to be Christ-like so let's seek out ways to love audaciously, ways to love with whimsy, ways to love strategically, and ways to love contagiously. Let's love like Ryan did, and, more importantly, let's love like Jesus.
Peace and blessings, y'all!
Bob makes an important point through Ryan's story, though. He talks about living our lives in an "engaged" manner, going after love like Ryan did - a love that is audacious, whimsical, strategic, and contagious. Bob says this engaged way of living is about "going to extremes and expressing the bright hope that life offers us, a hope that makes us brave and expels darkness with light" (p. 24). And when we live our lives in this state of excited, extraordinary love that we find through Jesus, love will multiply; it's contagious, so we'll infect others with this desire to live and love radically.
I really like that word "audacious." I was pretty sure I knew what it meant, but I looked it up in the dictionary anyway, and I found an alternative definition that is so awesome. Audacious can mean "extremely original; without restriction to prior ideas; highly inventive." Now I'm challenged by this definition - how can I love audaciously? How can I modify my love with that adverb? How can I think outside the box and love people in ways that they've never been loved before? Let me know if you have ideas. I'll keep you updated with anything I come up with. But seriously. Let's pursue this!
Bob closes in talking about how Ryan's love emulated the love Jesus talks about, "a love that never grows tired or is completely finished finding ways to fully express itself" (p. 24). I think it also emulates the love that Jesus demonstrated here on Earth. Jesus was audacious. He loved without restriction to prior ideas, choosing to eat dinner with prostitutes and tax collectors instead of the "respectable" members of society. He was the first person to love others so incredibly radically. But guess what? He doesn't have to be the last! As Christians, we are to strive to be Christ-like so let's seek out ways to love audaciously, ways to love with whimsy, ways to love strategically, and ways to love contagiously. Let's love like Ryan did, and, more importantly, let's love like Jesus.
Peace and blessings, y'all!
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
Relentless
Today, I finished reading through the book of Hosea. Last night at the Mission, we talked about faithfulness, and then I had a great conversation with Jamie and Russ about this very thing. The word that keeps running through my mind is relentless. Let me tell you about it.
Basically, summary of the story of Hosea, God commands this man, Hosea, to marry a prostitute, Gomer. He does, she bears him children, she goes back into prostitution, and God commands Hosea to reconcile with Gomer. God uses this as an example of His love for the Israelites, an "adulteress people" that He continually loves despite their lack of faithfulness. So many times throughout Hosea, I was struck by God's language of wrath that is then subdued by His great words of love. Hosea 11:9 is incredible: "I will not carry out my fierce anger, nor will I turn and devastate Ephraim. For I am God, and not man - the Holy One among you. I will not come in wrath." WOW. God's love does not operate on a whim - He is not a man, and His love is greater than anything we can imagine! He is faithful even though we are so often faithless.
That thought connects to a verse Russ read last night. 2 Timothy 2:13 says, "If we are faithless, He will remain faithful, for He cannot disown Himself." That He is Jesus. God is love. And here we find out God is also faithfulness. It is a characteristic of God, one of the key components to who He is. He is faithful. Now, since I'm an English major, I love words and definitions. The dictionary definition of faithful is "steady in allegiance or affection; loyal; constant."
And finally we get to the title of my post. Relentless. Why did I choose relentless over faithfulness? Because when I was talking to Russ and Jamie, Jamie made a comment about how faithfulness has this perpetual aspect to it. It's not a one and done deal - "Oh, I was faithful today. Good job, self!" No. Faithfulness is ongoing, there is no break, there is no timeout. And people remember lapses in faithfulness, lapses in loyalty more than anything else. Another definition. Relent means "to soften in feeling, temper, or determination." Relentless means the opposite of relent. God is relentless: He does not soften in feeling towards us, His jealous nature for us cannot be quenched, His determination does not sway. God is relentlessly faithful. He is determinedly constant.
I keep thinking about this in light of Easter and Jesus on the cross. I am so glad Jesus chose to remain relentlessly faithful on that cross. He remained steady in affection for us, He did not soften in His love for a people that would continuously lapse in faithfulness to Him. Incredible.
How can we be relentlessly faithful? We are man, not God (refer back to Hosea 11:9), so inevitably we're going to lapse sometimes. But how can we work to make faithfulness one of the deepest characteristics and desires of our hearts? How can we remain steady in our allegiance to God?
Peace and blessings, y'all! It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood :)
Basically, summary of the story of Hosea, God commands this man, Hosea, to marry a prostitute, Gomer. He does, she bears him children, she goes back into prostitution, and God commands Hosea to reconcile with Gomer. God uses this as an example of His love for the Israelites, an "adulteress people" that He continually loves despite their lack of faithfulness. So many times throughout Hosea, I was struck by God's language of wrath that is then subdued by His great words of love. Hosea 11:9 is incredible: "I will not carry out my fierce anger, nor will I turn and devastate Ephraim. For I am God, and not man - the Holy One among you. I will not come in wrath." WOW. God's love does not operate on a whim - He is not a man, and His love is greater than anything we can imagine! He is faithful even though we are so often faithless.
That thought connects to a verse Russ read last night. 2 Timothy 2:13 says, "If we are faithless, He will remain faithful, for He cannot disown Himself." That He is Jesus. God is love. And here we find out God is also faithfulness. It is a characteristic of God, one of the key components to who He is. He is faithful. Now, since I'm an English major, I love words and definitions. The dictionary definition of faithful is "steady in allegiance or affection; loyal; constant."
And finally we get to the title of my post. Relentless. Why did I choose relentless over faithfulness? Because when I was talking to Russ and Jamie, Jamie made a comment about how faithfulness has this perpetual aspect to it. It's not a one and done deal - "Oh, I was faithful today. Good job, self!" No. Faithfulness is ongoing, there is no break, there is no timeout. And people remember lapses in faithfulness, lapses in loyalty more than anything else. Another definition. Relent means "to soften in feeling, temper, or determination." Relentless means the opposite of relent. God is relentless: He does not soften in feeling towards us, His jealous nature for us cannot be quenched, His determination does not sway. God is relentlessly faithful. He is determinedly constant.
I keep thinking about this in light of Easter and Jesus on the cross. I am so glad Jesus chose to remain relentlessly faithful on that cross. He remained steady in affection for us, He did not soften in His love for a people that would continuously lapse in faithfulness to Him. Incredible.
How can we be relentlessly faithful? We are man, not God (refer back to Hosea 11:9), so inevitably we're going to lapse sometimes. But how can we work to make faithfulness one of the deepest characteristics and desires of our hearts? How can we remain steady in our allegiance to God?
Peace and blessings, y'all! It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood :)
Saturday, March 30, 2013
Calvary
Taking a break from Love Does to talk about Good Friday and Easter. I went to the Good Friday service at Desert Springs last night, and Pastor Kelly really got me thinking. So I'm going to share several of my main take-aways from yesterday.
1) First point has a story behind it - I actually think I've included it in my blog before, but I was reminded of it last night. In Venice this summer, we saw a painting of the crucifixion by Tintoretto. It's this MASSIVE painting - took up a whole huge wall - and the colors are intense. The painting itself seems chaotic at first because it's the entire scene at Golgotha. There are Roman soldiers casting lots, a Centurion on a white horse, the thieves are being nailed to and raised up on their own crosses, Mary mourns at the foot of the cross, etc. Tons of commotion going on. But somehow, looking at the painting, I could not take my eyes away from Jesus hanging at the center of the painting. Although Tintoretto included so many small scenes, if you take the work as a whole the main focal point of the painting is never diminished - Christ dying on the tree. The other characters/scenes point to Jesus, they frame him, they raise my eyes to the King.
Sitting in church last night, thinking about this painting, I asked myself, "Am I casting my eyes to the Lord?" The thing about Tintoretto's piece is that it would be easy to get stuck looking at one of the smaller scenes rather than stepping back and taking it in as a whole. So am I zeroing in on specific circumstances in my life, getting caught up in the chaos of life, or am I stepping back and fixing my eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of my faith, who endured the cross? Am I looking for ways that the goings-on in my life direct me back to God?
2) Desert Springs has a great stage set up for Easter Weekend. And I don't know if it was just where I was sitting last night or if they set up this way on purpose, but every time I blinked my eyes after looking at the stage last night, the wooden cross awash in red light would stay burned on my retinas like a sun spot. What an incredible image, what an incredible allegory. The cross and the sacrifice it represents should never be out of my sight or out of my mind. May it be burned into my eyes, stamped onto my brain, seared across my heart: Jesus paid it all, all to Him I owe.
3) One of Pastor Kelly's main points last night was throughout the crucifixion, God was working behind the scenes. Things look like they're going wrong, like sin is going to win, like death is going to triumph, but in reality, everything is going according to God's original plan. Are there situations in your life that look like failure right now? I know there are in mine. Guess what? God can reconcile those - have faith that He's behind the scenes right now, working things together for good.
4) This revelation literally blew my mind last night. Jesus experienced silence from God, too. How many times have I felt like I have no clue what God is saying to me or like God's not saying anything to me AT ALL? Answer: so many times. Jesus knows what that feels like. He asked repeatedly for His cup to be taken from Him. I interpret that as Jesus got no definitive answer from God so He simply proceeded in faith. Jesus cries out on the cross that He is forsaken by God, but He remains obedient. Jesus, as always, is the example to follow: ask God, listen hard, follow the plan as we see it laid out, don't be discouraged, be obedient, have faith. God has plans not to harm us but to give us a hope and a future because He is good and He is love.
Bob Goff tweeted this yesterday, and I loved it for this weekend. "Day turned to night, His friends scattered, and death thought it had won. But heaven just started counting to three." Praise God! Jesus is risen, indeed!
Happy Easter :)
1) First point has a story behind it - I actually think I've included it in my blog before, but I was reminded of it last night. In Venice this summer, we saw a painting of the crucifixion by Tintoretto. It's this MASSIVE painting - took up a whole huge wall - and the colors are intense. The painting itself seems chaotic at first because it's the entire scene at Golgotha. There are Roman soldiers casting lots, a Centurion on a white horse, the thieves are being nailed to and raised up on their own crosses, Mary mourns at the foot of the cross, etc. Tons of commotion going on. But somehow, looking at the painting, I could not take my eyes away from Jesus hanging at the center of the painting. Although Tintoretto included so many small scenes, if you take the work as a whole the main focal point of the painting is never diminished - Christ dying on the tree. The other characters/scenes point to Jesus, they frame him, they raise my eyes to the King.
Sitting in church last night, thinking about this painting, I asked myself, "Am I casting my eyes to the Lord?" The thing about Tintoretto's piece is that it would be easy to get stuck looking at one of the smaller scenes rather than stepping back and taking it in as a whole. So am I zeroing in on specific circumstances in my life, getting caught up in the chaos of life, or am I stepping back and fixing my eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of my faith, who endured the cross? Am I looking for ways that the goings-on in my life direct me back to God?
2) Desert Springs has a great stage set up for Easter Weekend. And I don't know if it was just where I was sitting last night or if they set up this way on purpose, but every time I blinked my eyes after looking at the stage last night, the wooden cross awash in red light would stay burned on my retinas like a sun spot. What an incredible image, what an incredible allegory. The cross and the sacrifice it represents should never be out of my sight or out of my mind. May it be burned into my eyes, stamped onto my brain, seared across my heart: Jesus paid it all, all to Him I owe.
3) One of Pastor Kelly's main points last night was throughout the crucifixion, God was working behind the scenes. Things look like they're going wrong, like sin is going to win, like death is going to triumph, but in reality, everything is going according to God's original plan. Are there situations in your life that look like failure right now? I know there are in mine. Guess what? God can reconcile those - have faith that He's behind the scenes right now, working things together for good.
4) This revelation literally blew my mind last night. Jesus experienced silence from God, too. How many times have I felt like I have no clue what God is saying to me or like God's not saying anything to me AT ALL? Answer: so many times. Jesus knows what that feels like. He asked repeatedly for His cup to be taken from Him. I interpret that as Jesus got no definitive answer from God so He simply proceeded in faith. Jesus cries out on the cross that He is forsaken by God, but He remains obedient. Jesus, as always, is the example to follow: ask God, listen hard, follow the plan as we see it laid out, don't be discouraged, be obedient, have faith. God has plans not to harm us but to give us a hope and a future because He is good and He is love.
Bob Goff tweeted this yesterday, and I loved it for this weekend. "Day turned to night, His friends scattered, and death thought it had won. But heaven just started counting to three." Praise God! Jesus is risen, indeed!
Happy Easter :)
Monday, March 25, 2013
#LoveDoes: Two
Bob Goff spoke at Lost Canyon's Men's Weekend Retreat. I've never wanted to be a boy that bad before. Haha. Here we gooooo!
Chapter 2: "Sniper Fire"
Ok, Bob Goff is nuts. The story he tells here is about how his friend Doug shot him with a BB gun in high school. I think it's a little bit of a stretch in how he relates it to his point for the chapter, but hey, if I'd gotten shot by a BB gun in high school, I would totally include it in any book I wrote.
I think mostly Bob uses the story to introduce his friend Doug. Doug was the first person to really tell Bob about Jesus, and he radically reorganized Bob's ideas about religion and Christianity. Bob says, "All I knew of faith [before talking to Doug] were fragments and shards of various traditions, but I hadn't ever heard the whole story about who Jesus was and what He wanted the world to know about Him" (p. 13). So Doug told him the story. Doug introduced Bob to Jesus, the One who is (or should be if He isn't) the foundation of all those "various traditions." But Bob also says, that more than anything else, what attracted him to what Doug had to say was who Doug was as a person. Isn't that the way it goes? In Young Life, a huge emphasis is earning the right to be heard with the kids we meet. I love this because it's such a valid point. Who's going to listen to me if I just go up to them and start telling them about this great way to live life and this awesome dude, Jesus? Maybe some people, but the majority of people will just think I'm crazy and avoid me like I avoid the GreenPeace reps on campus. When people see Christ in my life and then hear what I have to say (the message God provides me with), that is so much more powerful! It's like in education, teachers try to incorporate multiple senses in lessons because students learn more effectively that way. So if I'm reaching out, and people see and hear about God's love, it's a double-whammy. And it's pretty radical.
Bob follows this point up, saying, "God is constantly inviting [us] into a life that moves away from typical" (p. 15). You know what, I love that. After all, who really wants to live a mediocre, typical life? I want to do extraordinary things. And God opens those doorways for me - in fact, I'm seeing Him open them right now in my life. God gives each of us amazing and unique gifts, but it's up to us to figure out what they are and then go and use them. Like what if you got this great car but chose not to drive it? Makes no sense to me. I'd drive it all over! God doesn't force us to use our gifts or to venture out into an atypical life, but He does invite us to step out in faith.
Maybe this is weird, but hang with me, and just do it. Pretend you're sitting in a coffee shop, and God's sitting across from you. I don't know what He looks like. Whatever. But imagine Him sitting on the edge of His seat and being really excited, and saying, "[insert your name here], I have the BEST idea. You know those gifts I gave you? I know JUST how you can use them. It's gonna be great. And it might get kind of crazy, but stick it out. It'll be so worth it. Just keep your eyes peeled - opportunities are going to start rolling your way. I'm stoked to see what you do!"
That's how I picture God inviting us to diverge from typical. To have faith that He will 1) provide opportunities and 2) help us make it through.
So let's ask ourselves: What are my gifts? How can I use them? How am I radiating God's love to those around me? How am I earning the right to be heard? Lots of things to think about, but it's exciting! Let's be atypical this week :)
Peace and blessings, y'all!
Chapter 2: "Sniper Fire"
Ok, Bob Goff is nuts. The story he tells here is about how his friend Doug shot him with a BB gun in high school. I think it's a little bit of a stretch in how he relates it to his point for the chapter, but hey, if I'd gotten shot by a BB gun in high school, I would totally include it in any book I wrote.
I think mostly Bob uses the story to introduce his friend Doug. Doug was the first person to really tell Bob about Jesus, and he radically reorganized Bob's ideas about religion and Christianity. Bob says, "All I knew of faith [before talking to Doug] were fragments and shards of various traditions, but I hadn't ever heard the whole story about who Jesus was and what He wanted the world to know about Him" (p. 13). So Doug told him the story. Doug introduced Bob to Jesus, the One who is (or should be if He isn't) the foundation of all those "various traditions." But Bob also says, that more than anything else, what attracted him to what Doug had to say was who Doug was as a person. Isn't that the way it goes? In Young Life, a huge emphasis is earning the right to be heard with the kids we meet. I love this because it's such a valid point. Who's going to listen to me if I just go up to them and start telling them about this great way to live life and this awesome dude, Jesus? Maybe some people, but the majority of people will just think I'm crazy and avoid me like I avoid the GreenPeace reps on campus. When people see Christ in my life and then hear what I have to say (the message God provides me with), that is so much more powerful! It's like in education, teachers try to incorporate multiple senses in lessons because students learn more effectively that way. So if I'm reaching out, and people see and hear about God's love, it's a double-whammy. And it's pretty radical.
Bob follows this point up, saying, "God is constantly inviting [us] into a life that moves away from typical" (p. 15). You know what, I love that. After all, who really wants to live a mediocre, typical life? I want to do extraordinary things. And God opens those doorways for me - in fact, I'm seeing Him open them right now in my life. God gives each of us amazing and unique gifts, but it's up to us to figure out what they are and then go and use them. Like what if you got this great car but chose not to drive it? Makes no sense to me. I'd drive it all over! God doesn't force us to use our gifts or to venture out into an atypical life, but He does invite us to step out in faith.
Maybe this is weird, but hang with me, and just do it. Pretend you're sitting in a coffee shop, and God's sitting across from you. I don't know what He looks like. Whatever. But imagine Him sitting on the edge of His seat and being really excited, and saying, "[insert your name here], I have the BEST idea. You know those gifts I gave you? I know JUST how you can use them. It's gonna be great. And it might get kind of crazy, but stick it out. It'll be so worth it. Just keep your eyes peeled - opportunities are going to start rolling your way. I'm stoked to see what you do!"
That's how I picture God inviting us to diverge from typical. To have faith that He will 1) provide opportunities and 2) help us make it through.
So let's ask ourselves: What are my gifts? How can I use them? How am I radiating God's love to those around me? How am I earning the right to be heard? Lots of things to think about, but it's exciting! Let's be atypical this week :)
Peace and blessings, y'all!
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