Kids - God's Gift

I'm reading two books in parallel. I didn't mean to, but my Amazon order showed up on my front porch after I had started another book. I kept staring at my new books and was dying to dig into them. So I couldn't resist. I started a second one. And oddly enough, they are a perfect complement to one another.

The first book is Too Small To Ignore and describes the life of Wess Stafford, CEO of Compassion International. He has a deep desire to treat all of God's children like the gift they are. He says, "Every child you encounter is a divine appointment." He insists we have an obligation to give voice to those who would have none otherwise. It is challenging me to set aside some of my typical adult-type ideas about children and embrace each child as an opportunity to show them Jesus.

The second book is titled Age of Opportunity - a biblical guide to parenting teens. It is a very compelling book that completely turns some of my ideas of parenting upside down. The author challenges the heart of parents as the extension of how they parent. He gives voice to things most of us would not admit out loud. It's wonderfully refreshing and very thought-provoking. The author says, "We tend to approach parenting with a sense of ownership, that these are our children and their obedience is our right. These assumptions pave the way for our identity to get wrapped up in our children." I sometimes forget that even in my role as a mom, I must still live in complete submission to God.

I want to embrace opportunities with my boys, which is another aspect of the book. To truly look at normal moments as teachable moments. We live in the mundane far more than the wow. So I grabbed one of those this week. I had already made plans for dinner on Tuesday, but Zach was at a dodge ball tournament and I had to pick him up later than usual. So I put dinner in the fridge and asked Derek if he'd like to ride along and then we'd all go out for dinner. He was delighted and unaware that it was intentional on my part. It's not often I get my almost 18-year old in the car all to myself. And what a delightful conversation we had. He shared a struggle that he was having and what he was doing to overcome it. I was blown away. It was a typical teenage boy issue, which would seem harmless, but his godly perspective was moving him in a totally different direction than most.

I do love to read, but I am particularly moved as God directs me to books that bring about His greater purpose for my life as His humble servant - in all my roles in life.

The Stake is Staying

I’m not a glutton for punishment and you’ll never find me asking for trouble, but I have learned that God is boldest when I’m hurting. I see Him most clearly when I’ve lost my breath from a sucker punch or when a difficult issue seems to have no end. He reminds me that He never left the throne and He never left me.

My single biggest fear in life is that my boys will stray from their Christian faith and never return. So as Derek and I journeyed together recently on a big life lesson, I did the hardest thing a mother can do. I stepped out of the way and turned him over to God. And when I did that, He got busy working in his life. Derek was experiencing the burden of disobedience to me, but found His way back through scripture and prayer. I stood on the sidelines, watched him make this mistake and clung to Jesus all the while. When Derek revealed to me that he came to the right conclusion and how he got there, I simply burst into tears. I am so very proud of my firstborn and can’t wait to see what all God has in store for him.

In addition to struggling with hard issues, God also shows up big when my hour is dark - when life throws me a deep punch to the gut that leaves me reeling. That happened this week. The punch made me question just briefly if it would be better if I dampened my enthusiasm for my faith - at least a little. God said, "No!" He said His plan for me has not changed. I am to be a light for Him in every area of my life. He did not ignite a fire in my belly for me to pick and choose when I wanted to passionately serve Him. He wants me to be as bold for Him and He is for me. I decided that stake I put in the ground years ago is not budging, so I picked up my hammer and gave it a good whack to make sure it was still firmly planted. I'm not looking back - no not ever. I live for Jesus and no one else.

I can think of no greater joy or purpose than sharing my Jesus with my boys, my friends, my co-workers or anyone whose path I cross. And God showed me in Isaiah 52:7 how beautiful I am to Him when I stay fixed on His work…”How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!’” Yes, my God reigns forever and ever!

Held Captive

I’ve been extremely restless this week. A bit of loneliness crept in and I felt God was speaking to me about how to move forward. However, I was struggling with where I thought He was leading me. It just didn’t seem to fit with the path that He has carved out for me, so I dug my heels in deep. And the uneasiness just wouldn’t go away. It kept me up at night. I knew God was up to something, but I didn’t have clarity. So I prayed and I waited.

Well, it lasted all week. I was not until today that God revealed what He was after. There are a couple areas of my life that add to my pain and they start with thoughts that roll around in my head. These thoughts then dilute and distract my capacity to discern God’s voice. God wants this stuff cleaned out.

God’s loudest and most powerful voice comes through His Word and that’s exactly how He showed me what He wanted. It was revealed most clearly through 2 Corinthians 10:5 “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” That verse is huge. The way for me to truly have a tender and attentive heart is to make sure even my thoughts, not just my words and deeds, are in obedience to Christ. Matthew 22:37 reminds me that God wants all of me – my heart, soul AND mind.

Thoughts are critical to a mature spiritual life. And I have some thoughts that need to be reconditioned – they can be selfish, judgmental and unhealthy. As I chatted with a sweet friend last night, we shared scriptures back and forth and she led me to Romans 8:6 "The mind controlled by the sinful nature is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace."I must keep my mind on the Spirit, so I don’t have to fight through the clutter to get to what God desires for me.

I never want peace to elude me and at these times of struggle, it is certainly not as present as I’d like. So as I worshipped in my car on the way to work this morning, a verse from my devotional came to me and put an exclamation point behind what God was teaching me. Isaiah 26:3 made clear that if I want my peace back in full force I must have a mind that is stayed on Him. “You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.”

I have been learning in my bible study that a revelation from God is an invitation to adjust my life and join Him in His work, so I must act on what He has taught me today. God is so faithful in making His direction clear to me. And I am so humbled that God loves me enough not to leave me the way I am. He wants me closer to Him. That's His goal.

I can breathe deep and release that tension that gripped me this week as I let go of the hold that was on me. I want to turn my mind completely over to Christ. I want to be held captive by Him. No one else will do.

Mama's School of Learning

I love to read! I find little redeeming value in TV, so it’s amazing how much time I can find to devour books. Although, I do enjoy a good movie and watched an excellent one Saturday night—Gifted Hands – The Ben Carson Story. It’s playing on TNT—I highly recommend it.

Anyway, I just finished 3 great books in the last 3 weeks: Uncommon Faith – about a lady who gave up everything to live in New York City’s worst neighborhood to bring the gospel to those so desperate; Into The Deep – about a man who lost his wife and 4 young children in a flash flood (the youngest had just been adopted less than a year prior) and then turned his tragedy into a worldwide mission to share God’s grace to others; Gospel Trailblazer - about Howard Jones, the first black evangelist to join the Billy Graham crusades. He followed God’s lead when he was young to go into ministry when his flesh really wanted to become a jazz musician. Through his obedience, God used him to bring thousands and thousands to a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

Biographies about people fighting against the world to follow Christ’s plan are my favorite kind of stories. Being totally sold out regardless of what others say and then watching God explode is incredibly inspiring to me.

I see how books just like these have changed my way of thinking and my relationship with Christ, so at the dinner table last night I told the boys they were about to be introduced to “mama’s school of learning.” Their eyes popped. Zach said, "Let's hurry up with grace. I don't think I'm gonna like this." I told them they must read a book a week from now until the end of the school year. I selected a stack from my library that they must to choose from. And oh, my gosh, you should have heard the whining.

I just sat there cutting up my chicken and eating my mashed potatoes and told them, “Go ahead, get it out of your system. I’m not changing my mind.” So they went on for quite a while, coming up with every excuse why that was not possible and trying to bargain their way out. Derek finally said, “We may as well give it up. She isn’t budging.”

So they each picked out a book last night. I’m so excited to see how God moves in them as they begin reading a whole new world of books. I was so thrilled with the prospect, I didn’t sleep last night.

God's Perfect Word

I finished my 90-day journey through God’s Word earlier this week. And, oh, what a marvelous experience it was. God taught me so much and gave such clarity in many areas. The magnificence of His Word was so powerful in its absolute purity and perfection.

He made very real His story…

- from the beginning as His Spirit hovered over the waters before His creation
- to his wrath and compassion for His people...
- to all the imperfect and unlikely characters He used as part of His great redemptive plan for establishing His kingdom...
- to His unfathomable love being revealed in the majesty of His only Son living in perfect obedience in preparation for a final and perfect sacrifice for us all.
- and Revelation puts an exclamation point on the return of our King.

And I can’t wait. I live for eternity. Revelation 22:20 says it perfectly…”Amen. Come Lord Jesus.” It’s my new favorite verse.

It was so astounding and revealing to read God’s entire Word in such a compact timeframe. At times it almost took my breath away. As I started into the New Testament, I was wowed by the seamless connection to the Old Testament. The gospel of Matthew alone quotes the OT over 50 times. Sometimes I simply held His Word to my heart and just sat there quietly. I simply didn’t know what else to do.

But God also spoke to me very personally in ways too numerous to mention. I may have otherwise missed these teachable moments had I not been obedient 90 days ago when He asked me to do this.

When I was having a widow moment, He reminded me in Isaiah 54:5 “For your Maker is your husband—the Lord Almighty is his name.” And over and over He confirmed that He wanted me to continue to be bold for Him…

- He “must be glorified,” (Isaiah 66:5)
- to “sing the glory of his name,”(Psalm 66:2)
- to be His example because “those who preach the gospel should received their living from the gospel,” (1 Cor. 9:14).
- my allegiance must remain to Him above all else, because “the Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing.” (John 6:63)

I want God to consume me and fuel my passion more than ever before, so I can eventually say, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” (2 Tim 4:7)

Hebrews 12:29 sums it up best for me - “God is a consuming fire.” Amen, yes He is!