Dark and Gloomy Scenes

"I am deeply sensible in the kind of care of my heavenly Father.... Still, were it not for the support we derive from the Gospel of Jesus, we should be with ready to sink down in despondency, in view of thee dark and gloomy scenes around us. But when we recollect that Jesus has commanded his disciples to carry the Gospel to the heathen, and promised to be with them to the end of the world; that God has promised to give the heathen to his Son for an inheritance, we are encouraged to make a beginning, though in the midst of discouragement, and leave it to Him to grant success, in his own time and way."  {Ann Judson}

Sometimes, complicated and unwanted circumstances and emotions wrap such a tight grip around our minds that our souls struggle to rise above the heaviness on our hearts. It seems impossible to move on, to progress, with the mire of grief, pain, and hurt engulfing our feet. Forget finishing the race-- the next step is even too difficult to defeat. 

But alas, behold! The cross of Christ gleams in the darkness, and our Father is gracious enough to remind us that we are not running the race alone. The scene around us is bleak, but the finish line is yet attainable with the help of a Friend. Strength is renewed in our weary bodies by way of short seasons of rest. Encouragement enters our sore hearts as we glean promises and assurance from the Word. Sustenance is outstretched to our grappling hands as we reach for the provision of a loving Father. Comfort wraps around our wanting minds as we are reminded that we are complete in the finished work of Christ.

Equipped with the gospel, we are enabled to endure life's difficulties and submit to God's commands. In love, we can carry the Gospel to others.We obtain the assurance of a Friend who is with us to the ends of the earth-- both the farthest shore and the last moment in time. Clinging to the promise that the heathen are given to Christ by God as an inheritance, we are armed with boldness and confidence in completing our task of love. We can lead another to a new beginning even in the midst of unforgiving circumstances and lingering emotions. For He who has called us is faithful, and in His goodness, He will bring it to pass.

G.E. (College Sophomore)

Turkey: Looking Back

Grace with friends from English school

Well, I've been back State-side for twelve days now. It's hard to believe I was actually in Antalya less than two weeks ago!

Above all of the feelings that came with the hardships of the trip, I have a great joy from the countless lessons learned. I watched in awe as I again saw my God work in truly amazing ways in the hearts of our friends and in us in the past five weeks. Through the trip itself, our team, the Turks, and my personal devotions, He again interwove so many convictions, challenges, and so much encouragement as He revealed Himself yet further. I'll do my best at putting it into words, but you'll quickly see the focus of this post is clearly not on my eloquence.

Darlene with our host, Yula

Of the many lessons, one of the biggest was certainly the incredible impact of my relational investment in the lives of others. It's amazing what can happen when you make the choice to take your focus off of yourself and take the time to genuinely get to know someone! Taking a personal interest in the life of another will help you get below the surface and begin friendships. It paves the way for the a relationship that exemplifies true compassion.

In Whatsoever State I Am: Content!

        As 2011 draws to a close, I have been reflecting on all the Lord has brought me through this year. Last year about this time, I was reading several blogs, and I kept coming across the idea of picking a word to live out in the year ahead. As I got to thinking about the idea, I decided that in 2011 I wanted to focus on having contentment. So my theme for the year became "Contentment v. Complacency."  At first, I thought that I would kind of learn about these two concepts through personal study. However, I quickly realized that God knew that I needed to learn about these concepts through circumstances and direct experience.

        The year quickly spiraled into unmanageable busyness as I tried to plan for college, my senior trip to New York City flew by, high school ended, graduation came and went, the summer brought an evangelism trip to the Philippines, the fall took me to my first semester at Bible college, and my mom took a new job and moved across the country last week. Now here we are, at the end of another year. Although 2011 was incredibly packed with changes, it was also a year of waiting. Waiting on college decisions, waiting on high school to end, waiting for scholarships to be awarded, waiting for job applications to be accepted, waiting to see souls (in whom I had deeply invested) saved, waiting to start college, waiting for prayers to be answered, waiting to see my family, waiting to know God's revealed will. 


        It seemed to go on forever. But God knew what I needed to learn. He knew that I needed to experientially find out the difference between contentment and complacency. In all of my seasons of waiting, I had to wait on God to provide  for my needs. And ya know, He always came through! He had a plan far before I did (Psalm 139:16), and He had a lesson in contentment waiting for me far before I even desired to learn it.

        A passage on contentment that I have been studying recently is Philippians 4. I have heard people quote verse 13 many, many  times. However, I never realized that when Paul says, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me," he is speaking in regard to his finances! He is saying that, regardless of how dismal his bank account may appear at any given time, God is fully able to meet his financial needs for whatever God wants him to do. Paul is thanking the Philippians for giving him financial support as directed by God. He is relaying to his fellow Christians that God has taught him to be joyful with little and how to be responsible with a lot. But, Paul makes it clear that God has taught him to be content in any financial situation. Paul can do this because he is resting in the fact that his God has no limits on His financial ability! 

Mere Mortals?

"All day long we are, in some degree, helping each other to one or other [eternal] destinations. It is in the light of these overwhelming possibilities. . .that we should conduct all our dealings with one another, all friendships, all loves, all play, all politics. There are no 'ordinary' people.  You have never talked to a mere mortal.  Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations -- these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals  whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub and exploit -- immortal horrors or everlasting splendors. This does not mean that we are to be perpetually solemn. We must play. But our merriment must be of that kind (and it is, in fact, the merriest kind) which exists between people who have, from the outset, taken each other seriously -- no flippancy, no superiority, no presumption. And our charity must be a real and costly love, with deep feeling for the sins in spite of which we love the sinner -- no mere tolerance or indulgence which parodies love as flippancy parodies merriment."

--C. S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory

(emphasis mine)

At my church, we have a chance on Sunday nights to go different 10-week classes which focus on one subject.  The class I’ve been going to is called The Truth Project.  It is a series of videos that explain the foundation of the Bible.  It’s been amazing, and I’ve learned so much!

Last night, the lesson discussed the Biblical sphere of community.  I wasn’t expecting much, but wow, was I caught off guard!  One of our jobs as Christians is to help the needy and the poor.  If you’re anything like me, initially you say to yourself, “Yep, got this one done,” and then just turn off your brain.  Thankfully, this time the speaker, Del Tackett, caught me before I turned off my brain.  He began to explain that the poor and needy are not only  people who are low on cash or unhealthy… they are also the left-out, the unpopular, the ignored, the shunned, and the outcasts.

As the speaker went on explaining who is included in the "outcast" group, I was hit hard.  I immediately thought of three girls in my school that I know I could have befriended, but I chose not to because--in my mind-- they were not worth it.

Start Here -- Right Now

Countless times I have heard people ask, "How do I know God's will for my life? How do I know I am doing God's will?"  The answer, which I have also heard many times, is to do what God wants you to do right now.   Yes, organizing and planning out your week or year is wise time management and important.  But as another week comes to an end, I am reminded that we must truly take each day as it comes, focusing on doing the next  right thing.  It is when we begin to focus on doing what God wants us to do moment by moment that we learn to appreciate the journey, and not just the destination.  

Doing the next right thing also requires that we are equipped with the proper tools.  

We must be saturated with God's Word, ready to apply a biblical truth to any question that is shot our direction and able to combat any temptation with the Sword of Truth.

Hustle While You Wait

Last week I had the chance to visit a Christian college that I am considering attending.  I had so much fun with the girls in my dorm room!  They were such an encouragement to me. It made me so excited to be in college soon, and to be like them--always edifying others and constantly looking to what God has to say instead of what the world says.  Then it hit me: I can’t be that way in college if I’m not doing what God wants me to do in high school right now.

The title above is from a chapter in I Kissed Dating Goodbye by Joshua Harris.  This phrase perfectly defines what we should be doing with our lives.  There are certain times in our lives when we are in one realm but we are looking into another.  It’s kind of like how seniors in high school feel; they are physically in the high school realm but mentally want to be in the college realm.  These times in our life we are the most vulnerable to Satan’s attacks.  He would like us to get off track and start giving in to what our sin nature wants.  But we should do the exact opposite; we need to hustle while we wait!

What I mean by this is  that while we are waiting for the next big step in our lives, we need to be totally focused on doing God’s will right now. That means that we need to be respecting our authority, not having bad attitudes toward our families, and constantly reading our Bibles and praying. In the small areas that you think you have under control, Satan will attack there. We also need to guard our weaknesses as they are always a target.

Disciples in Waiting

This Easter, and the past few days leading up to it, has inspired many thoughts that I had never had before.  These past few months have yielded many lessons in waiting for me, as I have been waiting on some things to be decided that will determine the course of my life.  At times, trusting God has been a struggle, although I do know that He is in control.  


As I was thinking about Jesus' crucifixion on Good Friday, some people came to mind who had a very difficult time of waiting.  They were Jesus' disciples.  When Christ was crucified, their hopes were shattered. They thought that He was their Messiah, but then He was tortured to death as a criminal.  And while we remember the crucifixion with the knowledge that the resurrection  was coming, they didn't know it was coming.  Sure, they had heard Jesus tell them that He would soon leave them, but would be coming back, but they did not know how it would all play out.  


In their time of waiting, they struggled with trusting that Jesus was even who He had told them He was--their Lord!  Now, we can look at that and say that we are at least a little better than that, because we "don't doubt that Christ is our Lord."  We know  that is true.  


We just doubt that He is....who He tells us He is. 
We doubt He is our compassionate Shepherd.  We doubt that He is our faithful Provider.  We doubt that He is our loving Friend.  We doubt that He is our gracious Father. . . .The list goes on.  We doubt that He is who He has promised He is!  Sure, we know it in our heads.  But the true understanding of His essence does not come until we are seeking His face (not His hand), and we experience these attributes for ourselves.

As Life Draws to a Close

Christopher Columbus Award

Citation reads: This award goes to those who, like good old Chris, when they set out to do something, don’t know where they are going; neither do they know how to get there.  When they arrive, they don’t know where they are, and when they return, they don’t know where they have been. (Source Unknown)

For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. 

I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith. 

Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, 

which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: 

and not to me only, but unto all them also that love His appearing.
II Timothy 4:6-8

The Apostle Paul was sitting in the Mamertine Prison in Rome when he wrote these words to Timothy. His time was short, he was out of appeals, but he was ready to pour out his life for Christ. Unlike Christopher Columbus, he knew where he had been and where he was going.

Martyrdom might be thought by some to be the ultimate sacrifice and the greatest demonstration of complete commitment to a person or cause. Perhaps that is true. Most Christians that I know would be willing to give their lives to Christ in death. But would they be willing to give their lives in life (living for Christ)?

Full Schedule v. Full Life

Most of us are very busy most of the time, but lately it seems that I, and most of the people I know, have been extra busy and exhausted.  

Busyness is a funny thing, because it causes so many different emotions: satisfaction, and accomplishment, along with stress, irritability, etc.  

Often, being busy means we have to prioritize and be organized and efficient in order to fulfill all of our responsibilities, needs, and a few wants.  We have to eliminate unnecessary things in order to ensure we are able to do the important things. 

In many cases, Satan uses busyness as the perfect opportunity to attack.  We can be the most vulnerable during times that we are busy, so we must be careful to recognize the attacks the Enemy puts in our path and be able to guard against them.  

On the other side, God is using this time to push us and to teach us that we can't "do it all" in our own strength or on our own schedule.  We need to rest in the assurance of God's perfect plan and must wait on Him, prayerfully seeking His will throughout our day.

When we are stressed and tired, normally minor irritations become great annoyances.  More and more things seem to go wrong, and it seems like we can't catch a break!  The burdens increase, the road seems longer, and what's required of us seems so much more unattainable.

Does Jesus Care?

Have you ever wondered if Jesus really knows and cares about every detail in your life? I have at times.  Though I don't consciously wonder that very often, my actions show that I do. The Bible teaches about God's omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence. Most of us who have been taught these truths would have no trouble agreeing with words that they are, indeed, truth. However, I'm ashamed to say that often our actions prove contrary to our words.

In the past few weeks, many of my prayers have been answered and events have unfolded which were undoubtedly God's doing. Unfortunately, I'm not always so quick to recognize that God is the one that is planning all of my moments. I think this is often because I fail to pray throughout my day, consulting the Lord before I make decisions. Usually, when I am conversing frequently with Him about things, it's so much more apparent when He does things that I had asked Him for or talked with Him about.

The Loneliest Phone Booth

A few years ago I was involved with a ministry where (for a time) I saw little in the way of lasting fruit. It was very discouraging. At times I would ask God, "Is this it. Is this all there is? Have I done something to displease you?" Everyone who serves God gets a little discouraged from time to time. But it's not about what we desire, or think, or feel, or perceive, or even experience. It's never about us and our timing. It's always about God and His timing. 

We find a great lesson about this in the book of Exodus. Moses spent the first 40 years of his life being trained and educated in Pharaoh's court. He became a somebody. Then he spent the next 40 years in the desert being humbled. He became a nobody. After being trained and humbled, he spent the last 40 years leading the Israelites. He had become God's somebody.

It's like the story of the loneliest phone booth. 

A PacBell phone booth was place in the middle of the Mojave desert for use by miners in the 60's. It was 8 miles from the nearest paved road and was most likely put there for emergency uses.