There was a statistic taken that listed the three things people at the age of 95 wish they had done more of in their life. Like most people, I desire to learn from the mistakes and success of others, so when I hear things like this, my ears perk up. What do you think the majority said? They wish they had more money? Worked longer? Spent more time with family? They said they wish they would have reflected more, risked more and did more that outlived them. That makes total sense! If our life is aligned to the purpose (to glorify God-Isa. 43:7) and the mission (to make multiplying disciples through the process of evangelism and discipleship Mt 28:18-20) God gave us, these top three would not be ours. We would be investing in the things that outlive us, would be taking healthy risks to walk by faith and would be reflecting on God and our alignment to His plan for our lives. Just like other things in life which are important to us, we have to be intentional. The law of entropy says things naturally go from order to disorder. We need to be intentional about living out our purpose and mission. There is a need to steward the gift and responsibility of glorifying God (displaying His heart/character). When we spend quality time processing how He is revealing Himself to us, we will become more effective at proclaiming His character to those in our sphere of influence. In light of this I am starting Brag on God Friday's. It's a link up to share how God has revealed Himself that week. You can share how He came through for you when you took a step of faith, how He answered a prayer, what He showed you through His Word about Himself, or how He gave a glimpse of Himself through His creation. Every Sunday is an opportunity to rest and reflect on the past week and see how God has shown Himself and then get to share it with others. "Proclaim his glory to the nations, his mighty deeds to all peoples." 1 Chron. 16:24, Ps 96:3 Some things to help you process how God has revealed Himself are: 1. What did you read about in God's Word and how can you see His heart or character through it? 2. Glance back through your calendar and think of the things you were nervous or fearful about. How did God come through? 3. Think about prayer requests that were answered. 4. Look back through your journal and note the things which stood out or were repeated and how does that reveal God's character? 5. Ask youself: What verses talk about God's character and how did He evidence that to you in your last week? 6. Romans 1:20 says, "For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities--his eternal power and divine nature--have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made..." So how can you see God's heart and character through what has been made? If you would like to use this opportunity to brag on God, please link up. I will put it up late Saturday night. Please just post my button within your post. Thank you! I'm linked up with...
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Asher has been practicing for 9 months his choir songs. Today was his big performance. Uriah was so excited to clap for him and say “Go Asher!” Asher was excited all week. The day arrives. I can’t wait to see my little boy up on stage on mother’s day singing about God using his hands and having so much in store for him. Asher is the farthest thing from shy. But today he was. He wouldn’t stay on the stage without Austin or I with him. He didn’t get to sing. He was sad, we all were. This is new territory. The next few hours I spent trying to figure out how to deal with a disappointed little boy who experienced failure in the face of fear. Just like Jesus does with us, I want to help him see the truth, the reality that he messed up, but also the reality that the cross is big enough for even his mistakes. With my wonderful yet handful boys I am often wondering, “Why my kids?” “Why are my kids the only ones that _____________?” God brings to mind, “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction and faithful in prayer.” Rom. 12:12 Hope of what? That life will get easier? No, because that is not God’s goal for my life. He never promised life being easy. (But He did promise the opposite. “In this world you will have trouble…” Jn 16:33) “We boast in the hope of the glory of God.” Rom. 5:2 The only place for my hope is that God’s character will be revealed and seen. Marveled at even! “On the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed.” 2 Thes. 1:10 But that means that sometimes His character/heart might not been seen through some circumstances till then… when he comes again. But when He comes, He will “give relief to you who are troubled… This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels.” 1:7 I can hope in the reality that relief is coming and God’s character and purpose will be revealed… marveled in through my circumstances. The hope of glory! But this hope is not for all. For others God says something else, “He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might on the day he comes to be glorified.” 2 Thes. 1:8-9 Obedience only comes as a result of trust. Who are you trusting to make you right before God? Are you trusting in your own effort to be good enough? Hoping that the good will outweigh the bad? Or is your hope in the fact that you (just like me) are guilty and nothing can erase that but Jesus lived the perfect life and died to make a way for your guilt to be forgiven. Are you putting your hope in the innocence of Christ on your behalf? If so. You can have hope! Christ in you, the hope of glory! (Col. 1:27) I am thankful for… Hope. The hope that Christ’s purposes and character will be seen through my strong-willed boys. The hope that the frustration, discouragement and exhaustion will prove to be worth it. God’s Word. His promises that He will never break. God’s Spirit. Who reminds me what’s true. Who teaches me and instructs me. Who enables me, giving me strength and ability to do what only He is capable of doing. My strong-willed boys and for God bringing them into my life. They are a joy and being used in the hand of God to develop in me perseverance and character. And giving me a longing for God’s heart to be revealed… hope. I'm linked up with... God is teaching me perseverance. He is reminding me it's not about me, it's about Him. He is reminding me to fix my eyes on Him and continually find my idenity in Him, not in my performance as a mom. 2am till 4am. Defiantly my 2 year old throws himself out of bed grabbing his trains and throwing them across the room screaming and yelling. I discipline him and put him back to bed telling him not to get out of bed. Repeat for 2 hours. Exhausted, weary, discouraged. A strong-willed child causes you to rethink everything you thought you knew about parenting and about yourself. It brings insecurities where there was none before. A few hours of sleep, the day starts and the mail comes. I get surprise books from someone about how to be a good wife and mother. (Makes me think they think I'm not one.) At naptime, I briefly pick up the parenting book. It starts out, “While we tried to sit and talk, the children were constantly running in and out of doors, complaining of ill treatment from the others, begging to go or stay or eat, or demanding a tory that another child would not relinquish. The mother had to continually jump up and rescue some breakable object. She said, “No,” six hundred sixty-six times in the space of two hours. She spanked each child two or three times…” Then this family is compared to “another mother walked into my house with her little ones and sat down to talk. She said to the, “Go out in the sunroom and play, and don’t bother Mama unless you need something” For the next two hours we were not even aware the children were present-except when a little one came in holding herself saying, “Pee-pee, Mama.” They played together well, resolved their own conflicts, and didn’t expect attention when one of the girls turned the rocking horse over and got a knot on her head… This mother did not spank her children while at my house, and she did not rebuke them. She looked rested… This young mother said to me, “My children want to please me. They try so hard to do everything I say. We have such fun together.” Authors conclusion…”by the grace of God and through the simple, Biblical principles found in these pages, with determination and an open heart, this mother has trained up children that bring her joy and honor.” I burst into tears. I hear, “if you just did what the Bible said with determination, your kids would be perfect.” I get self-righteously angry, “you discipline a child for 2 hours in the middle of the night and tell me I’m not determined enough!” Followed by intense insecurity, “I must really be an awful mom.” The moms of strong-willed kids are probably nodding with encouragement their heads with hearts full of compassion. The ones without strong-willed kids are thinking, “What? That sounds totally right to me.” To mothers of strong-willed kids: You’re not alone. You are right when you think you can’t do this, but God can and He will. He will come through for you. He will show His grace to be sufficient when you need it, not before then. He will empower you by His Spirit. He will make you able. Remember to not compare yourself to other moms and compare your kids to other kids. God wants to reveal His heart, His character through you and the kids He gave you. Look to Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith. Remember there is hope. He will always come through for us, He will never leave or abandon us. As iron sharpens iron, you are being sharpened, being made more effective. You are developing perseverance. And remember not to fix your eyes on the results… how your child turns out. That is not up to you. All we can do is take initiative in the power of the Holy Spirit and leave the results up to God. Keep your eyes on Jesus. Ultimately it is not about you or your child. It is about God and whatever you do, do with all your heart as working for the Lord, not for men. (Col. 3:23) To mothers/people without strong-willed kids: When you see kids that seem out of control. Please don’t assume the parents aren’t consistent in disciplining them. The most hurtful thing you could do is give your unsolicited parenting advice without understanding them. Instead, ask lots of questions and listen, trying to understand. Find out what their parenting style is and how they discipline and why they’ve chosen that way before giving advice. The mother of a strong-willed child needs you to remind them that God’s grace is sufficient, not that they need to be perfect. They need to be reminded to look to the cross, to look to Jesus, the Author and Perfector of faith. Reminded that He came to serve and not be served, that He gave up His life, that died to Himself and the result was life and that they get to be pictures/reflections/representations of His heart. They need to be reminded that no discipline seems pleasant at the time but painful, but later on it will produce a fruit of righteousness by those who have been trained by it. (Heb. 12:11) They need someone in their life that understands, affirms and cheers them on. They are fighting not only the battle of wills with their child/children, they are fighting the mental battle of feeling like an awful parent and hear on a regular basis how they just need to __________. They need you to come along side of them and lovingly wrap your arms around them, telling them Jesus is enough. I'm linked up with Chats With An Old Lady
When i first heard about Bin Laden being dead I was confused. Wondering what to think and feel about it. He was an evil man. But so are a lot of people. I have never seen delight and rejoicing take place over someone's death before and I just wasn't sure what to do with that. I am very passionate about justice but death of one man didn't seem like justice to me like everyone on facebook was declaring. Two verses kept ringing in my mind, "As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign LORD, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live." Ezekiel 33:11 and "...leave room for the wrath of God; for it is written, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord." Romans 12:19 I still don't have it all figured out but one thing I know is that this has expanded my view of how great God's love is! He pours out His wrath on evil. "The LORD is a jealous and avenging God; the LORD takes vengeance and is filled with wrath. The LORD takes vengeance on his foes and maintains his wrath against his enemies." Nahum 1:2 But He doesn't delight in it. He isn't rejoicing over people experiencing His wrath, living in hell for all eternity. Just as God delights in justice (true justice, not the death of a person created in His image) it is also built into us to feel the same. To hate evil and delight in it being crushed."When justice is done, it brings joy to the righteous but terror to evildoers." Prov. 21:15 But as fallen people, we just can't see the big picture sometimes, that our battle is not against flesh and blood. God doesn't delight in Osama being in hell. Rather He desired for him to repent and live. Hell is far worse than we dare imagine. When we delight in someone going there... it's because our view of hell is too wimpy... too comfortable. God's wrath is real and worse than we dare imagine. And all of us are under His wrath. Objects of His wrath. Deserving of His wrath, just as Bin Laden. I am not saying you or I are as bad as him. But really how bad do you have to be to not measure up to God's standard? Just one failure, since His standard is perfection. But that is why we have someone's death to celebrate! The death of Jesus. The One who lived the perfect life and wasn't under the Father's wrath but took on His wrath to make a way for us to be forgiven for our guilt. "Only those who see themselves as sinners in the hands of an angry God can fully appreciate the magnitude and wonder of His love." John MacArthur
Let's repent (turn... a change of mind, leading to a change of action) and live since God does not take pleasure in the death of the wicked. I think this is a call to many to trust in the perfection of Jesus to be reflected/accredited to your account. God's love is greater than we dare imagine! He is ready and willing to forgive even the worse of us. He sees it all but is still ready and desiring to forgive! If you already trust Jesus' perfection to be your only access to the Father, as a form of worship use Bin Laden's death to celebrate in and point others to the death (and resurrection) of Jesus! Now that is justice! People coming to the knowledge of the truth of Jesus on Bin Laden's grave. A few heads of our sprinkler system broke last summer which ended up killing parts of our grass. So as I am out in the grass with my rake trying to break up the hard ground the Lord reminds me of Mark 4. In Verses 1-20, Jesus tells the parable of the Sower. He says that the Lord is the Sower and His Word is the seed that is scattered. Each one of us has a different heart receptor condition to His Word; teachable, shallow, distracted or hard. As I was raking, if you can call it that, I was thrusting the rake at the ground with all my might to get it to break. It was hard, exhausting but filled with hope of having grass return. I wondered what the rake is in my life. What does God use to break me? In this parable, I am both the rake and the dirt. My kids (who are wonderful blessing from God, though it sure doesnt feel that way some days) are what God uses to rake me. To soften me, to break me to His purposes. Thier strong-willed hearts and what seems like a constant need for correction, training and discipline gets way too much for me to handle. I get to the end of myself. Worn. Exhausted. Somedays (especially within the last week or 2) I feel as though I am functioning solely on God's grace (His ability through me) and completely exhaust even that (though that is not possible, it sure feels like it). He steps in and provides grace upon grace. I am the dirt, my hard heart being held, molded. My boys, in the hands of my loving Father being used as tools to soften me. I am also the rake. The tool God is using to bring about change in my boys hearts. To soften them. That they would become teachable, moldable in the hands of the Father. Equipped, ready for every good work (2 Tim. 3:16-17). I am the tiller of the soil so they can recieve God's Word. It hurts, with sweat and tears involved. But God promises it will produce a fruit of righteousness later on (Heb. 12:11). What hope! There is pain involved with being both the rake and the hard ground, but there is hope. God is active in softening my heart (if I yield to Him and not get more stubborn in demanding life my way an on my terms) and softening my boys hearts which will produce eternal fruit and bring glory to God.
What about you? Are you the rake or the dirt? And if the dirt, are you receptive to what God is doing in your life, distracted, hard or shallow? How are you responding to the things He is allowing in your life? Yielding to Him and relying upon His grace or demanding life be different and on your terms? Why not break up the fallow ground (Jer. 4:3) Meaning, be no longer unproductive but repentant. Like John the Baptist said, "Repent! Bear fruits worthy of repentance." (Mt 3:1-12) Here I am to worship, here I am to bow down, longing just to bring something that's of worth... This my desire. But what can I bring? This week I made a bad judgement call and ended up loosing us $500 (booking the wrong hotel rooms), got angry at some guy I don't even know on facebook (for calling my husband names) and publically said rude things to him and then tried to justify it in my heart, and didn't speak up for myself in a situation I should have. What can I bring? All I have and am is tainted by the flesh. Longing just to bring, something that's of worth, that will bless His heart... Something more than a song, something He desires... What can I bring? I come with my Myrrh. A small scraggly tree with flowers that only bloom as they remain connected to the branch. Mhyrr, nothing great in and of itself but when put to the ax and the fire it has great value. An entire page full of benefits, including guarding against fever, food poisoning, cough & cold, mumps, measles, pox and infections on wounds, stimulating the mind, blood circulation, digestion and nerves. But it's most notable use is for embalming, preserving the dead. The wise man presented Jesus as an infant the embalming ointment symbolizing He was to die for the world. But isnt that what I want? To be a living sacrifice? A servant of the Almighty, yet daughter of the King dead to myself and alive to Him? And as Jesus died for the world, you and I die to the world. Laying down our life to take up His. This is what He desires. To take frailty and imperfect and refine it, to redeem it, to make it into the aroma of Christ. He doesn't want my self-made perfection. He wants Mhyrr. He wants our imperfections, our inadequacies and failures laid at His feet, following the example of the wise men. Something that has nothing of worth, but once it runs through His fingers it becomes something of great worth. I have nothing in an of myself to bring. Nothing that is fit for a King.
But what I do have, through the embarrassment and sadness I bring my failures and insecurities. He sets them to the ax and the flame and makes a beautiful offering to Himself, bringing redemption, bringing healing. I havent seen fully how. But I trust His Word. That He knows I am but dust and asks me to come. So here I am laying all of me at the foot of the cross. Waiting for my tainted scraggly tree to be turned into something of worth. This is my desire. I pride myself in the ability God gave me to trust Him. My faith didn't come from me mustering it up, it is a gift from Him. Not only is it a spiritual gift He gave me, but also a result from spending time in His Word (faith comes by hearing, and hearing from the Word of God) and it was built through many circumstances stacked on top of each other of trusting Him and seeing Him come through. The more you trust God, the more you trust God. BUT... when it comes to my kids, it seems so different. It seems I continually have a tightening grip on them coming from worry and fear. What if this and what if that. BUT GOD... Right in the midst of my worry, anxiety and desire for control to keep them from anything bad... right in the midst of what God calls that, sin (since whatever is not from faith is sin. Rom. 14:23) God leads, God rescues, God redeems, God shows grace upon grace, God steps in and saves me and my kids. "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Rom. 5:8 Joseph. The worst thing I could ever imagine happening to my kids happens to Jacob/Israel's son, Joseph. He is sold into slavery. BUT GOD... comes though. When Joseph was in the worst of circumstances, God never left Him. Jacob/Isreal could not be there to keep Joseph from harm, BUT GOD was there. God never left him. He lead, He used it to rescue, He redeemed, He showed grace upon grace, He saved! But God coming through didn't look like it does most other places in Scripture. When God tells someone "I will be with you." He means He is going to come through for them in some remarkable way. (And He gives that promise to you, and to me when we step out and walk in the mission He gave us of making disciples. Mt. 28:19-20). With Moses, Joshua, Gideon, David and so on, "I will be with you" meant that God was going to come through and give victory over thier oppressor by pouring out His wrath and destroying them. But not here. God doesn't use Joseph to destroy Potiphar and the Egyptians. God doesn't rescue Joseph out of captivity, but ends up using Joseph's captivity to lead the Egyptians out of death (the plague to come in Gen. 41). Grace upon grace. What if some teacher at their preschool says something contrary to what God says is true? What if some kid is mean to them? What if thier privacy is invaded and little minds corrupted? My fears and worries for them come from all that is outside the home. But Joseph... and for many others I know (I dont have first hand experience here, since I grew up as an only child) the bad influence, the harm was not brought from outside the home, it came from within. Joseph's brothers sold him. Many others I know were exposed to pornography and drugs through older siblings. Just because they are in the home doesnt not mean they are exempt from harm. My grip alone, my control can not rescue, save, redeem and show grace upon grace. Only God. So whether inside the home or outside, only God is worthy of my trust of my kids. He promises He will come through in His concern and care for them: "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." Isa. 41:10 "But now, this is what the LORD says-- he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze." Isa. 43:2 Throughout time, the Great I AM holds my kids (and your kids) in His tight grip... freeing me to loosen mine. This video will blow your mind reminding you how worthy Jesus is to have our full trust and loosened grip in everything. Ok, this picture does not do this meal justice. This is the greatest meal on the planet! It is Bob's favorite from Cafe Jordano. My favorite (apparently Bob's too). I love it so much that I have zero desire to try anything else (though I hear everything is great). I have been there too many times to count and have not tried one other thing on the menu. The cost is just too high for me to try anything new there since I know I would be missing out on my favorite. God showed me this is how I am in other areas. I have done college ministry full time for 10 years and I love it. It's my favorite. In my opinion college students are the most strategic people to minister to, not having made serious bad life choices that keep them from living on mission. They are still like wet-cement and can become very passionate for the Lord when yielded to Him. In fact, every past revival was started by college-aged people. God uses college students powerfully and I count it such a privledge to be used by God to see them become multiplying disciples. But... God is leading me to take a couple little steps toward women's ministry and I can see myself resisting because I love my favorite so much. But God is a Gentle and Faithful Leader. Thought is has taken me awhile to become willing to follow Him at the expense of my favorite, He never gave up on me. He never threw up His hands in frustration or thrashed at me in anger. He is Patient, knowing how to get my desires lined up with His. He brought me to willing. This past weekend I finally said ok. And truly surrendered the way my husband and I thought the Lord wanted me to. But to my shock, 2 days later, God opened our eyes to another way. I don't have to lay as much down as I thought and can still take a couple steps He is asking me to. What a gift! Not only to not have to give up all of my favorite but to be able to appreciate and live opened handed with it in a whole new way. What an incredible Gentle Leader and Heart/Desire Shaper we get to serve! My two boys are incredible. They are extremely intellegent, sweet, active and loving. For example, my little Asher who is 3, puked in the car yesterday (not fun!) and as he walked to the house in clothes drenched in throw up, he stopped to pick me some flowers. But they are also the most strong-willed kids I know. And the fact that they are a year apart doesnt help. They constantly egg each other on in their naughty-ness.
I am more of a thinker than a feeler, so the ignorant comments of parents who have never dealt with a strong-willed child don't bother me that often. But tonight was a different story. Someone had asked how we were going to keep our boys "under control" at an upcoming retreat (as though they are bad 100% of the time and we are totally unsuitable parents) and then asked, completely serious, if he could squirt them with a water bottle if they were bad. Well, the wrath of a mom rose it's ugly head and I said, "you tell him that if he squirts my kids with a water bottle, I will grab it from him and squirt him in the face." So here I sit, in frusteration and sadness and God meets me through google and Focus On The Family Online Communities. I read and totally related with a lady named Rebekkah. Oh Lord, thank you for Rebekkah! And was totally encouraged by a lady named Susie in response to Rebekah's discouraged heart. If you have strong-willed kids, be encouraged with me at http://www.focusonlinecommunities.com/message/102486 If you are wondering how to encourage moms with strong-willed kids, read below as your example. This turned my discouraged heart into joy. (Another tip, please dont tell me how great that strong-willed attitude is going to be in the future. That is really not encouraging for today and what people think of me and my parenting today.) "Be encouraged Rebekkah, you are doing a wonderful job. Being a mum is hard work. I have been in your shoes and I encourage you to continue to be consistent. Don't give up. I know it is hard especailly when you seem to have a 100 pair of eyes condemning you. When you see other kids doing "the right thing"! And behaving so perfectly. Don not allow discouragement and condemnation to consume your heart. My youngest, Cayden, now 5 years old, lives up to the meaning of his name: Spirit of battle, battle warrior. God in His wisdom gave us Cayden last. He is the youngest of 4. My first three children were easy and obedient. But Cayden has been on the move since he could crawl - climbing out of the pram, out of the cot... Sit still... Not Cayden. So we have had to be consistent. We've done the parenting classes! We've read the books! We've prayed! We've spanked! We've time-out! We've tried new things! We've cried! And we are getting there. For the most part these days things are wonderful - he is a delightful boy. But it has been a long road and we have experienced the condemnation, interference, wisdom, well meaning advice, judgement, help of others or should I say criticism!! We had a situation at school assembly this morning - Cayden sat with me for the first 15 mins quietly but when a classmate from Pre-primary (his 5 year old class) came in with his mum he went and sat next to him and they chatted. But his friend went off to play at the playground and Cayden went to follow. I grabbed Cayden and said "NO!" (We are in Western Australia and go to a Christian school in Perth. Our school assembly is held in an undercover area next to the Pre-primary playground. No children are allowed on the playground unless they are at school and supervised by a teacher for insurance reasons.) Well he hit me, yelled, kicking etc and I had to take him around the corner. He continued to call me names and tell me how horrible I was. When he settled down I told him "you know you aren't allowed on the playground.... Mrs Pyke will tell you off.... We are here to see Edward receive his certificate... I know you don't want to be here but can you sit down for the rest of the assembly..." Well he sat down beautifully for the last ten minutes. After which the mum next to me commented. "His strong willed! He doesn't hit you all the time does he? He better not!". And to Cayden: "Don't you ever hit your mummy again? I won't be happy if I ever see you do that again! And you better be a good boy for the rest of day! I want to hear a good report when I see you this afternoon!" She totally could have praised him for sitting so beautifully for the rest of the assembly! I spoke to Cayden and he apologised for what he did. But none-the-less that other mothers' words upset me and I spent the rest of the day in tears on and off. And my lttle son well he said "feel sad in my tummy" cried because I was crying! Sometimes we cannot control our circumstances and situation, but we can be consistent. I spoke to Mrs Pyke (the school principal) and apologised for the disturbance. She hadn't noticed anything. She was wonderful. She reiterated that no one is perfect, that the other parents' comments where unhelpful, that she appreciated my consistency and that I didnt give in to Cayden's demand. As of next week Cayden's class will be going to each school assembly and he "WILL HAVE TO SIT THROUGH THE WHOLE HALF HOUR". He along with his classmates will not be allowed to go to the playground and play, or sit with their mums. Hopefully the last eight months of going to assemblies sitting with me, will help him to do the right thing for his teachers. Rebekkah don't compare youself or your children to others. Each child is unique and a beautiful gift from God. Our 'strong willed sons' will learn that no matter what they do we will love them. God is also teaching us to look to Him, to trust in Him, to spend to with Him pouring our hearts for our children to Him. And this time, well it is the training ground, for the future plans God has for them. God has His hands on our sons and He will use them to bring glory to Himself. They will learn that love is patient. They will learn that love is kind. They will learn that love does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. They will learn that love does not dishonor others. That love is not self-seeking and love is not easily angered. And they will learn that love keeps no record of wrongs. They will learn that love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. They will learn that love always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. And that love Love never fails. I encourage you to go and pray I Corinthians 13 over your sons. Do it for the next 40 days. May our Lord richly bless you and your husband today with His love and presence. Love and joy Susie" In terms of Japan’s earthquake, John Piper in his blog says, “Earthquakes are ultimately from God. Nature does not have a will of it’s own. And God owes Satan no freedom. What havoc demons wreak, they wreak with God’s permission. And God has reasons for what he permits. His permissions are purposes. That’s the point of Job 1-2 and Luke 22:31-32.”
So why? Why would God send/allow this earthquake, Katrina, Haiti? 1. Because the end-time earthquakes in Revelation are means as calls to repentance. To warn people of the coming day of the Lord. To warn people of God’s wrath that is coming. 2. The end-time earthquakes in Matthew 24:7-8 are meant to be interpreted as “the beginning of the birth pangs”. To prepare us to meet Jesus face to face. 3. "God's unilateral taking of thousands of lives is a loud declaration that “The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away” (Job 1:21). The message for all the world is that life is a loan from God (Luke 12:20) and belongs to him. He creates it and gives it and takes it according to his own will and owes us nothing. He has a right both to children (2 Samuel 12:15) and to the aged (Luke 2:29). It is a great gift to learn this truth and dedicate our lives to their true owner rather than defraud him till it is too late. 4. 4.The power felt in an earthquake reveals the fearful magnificence of God. This is a great gift since “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Psalm 111:10). Most of the world does not fear the Lord and therefore lacks saving wisdom. The thunder-clap summons to fear God is a mercy to those who live. 5. 5.When the earth shakes under our feet there is a dramatic sense that there is no place to flee. In most disasters the earth is the one thing that stands firm when wind and flood are raging. But where do you turn when the earth itself is unsafe? Answer: God.” (John Piper) John 3:36 says, “Whoever trusts in the Son has eternal life. But whoever disobeys the Son will not see that life but remains subject to God's wrath." So what are your thoughts and feelings about God’s wrath being toward a non-believer? And what specific action does that motivate you to today? |
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