Saturday, April 21, 2012

Bonus Blessings

There are times in life that a blessing comes from God that I don't expect, didn't see coming, and is perfectly timed to bring an extra does of over the top joy into my life.  I call them bonus blessings.  As believers, we are blessed everyday.  Salvation, the mere fact that Christ gave His life on the cross for us all is a blessing that can not be topped and goes above and beyond anything we could deserve.  The presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives, daily, counseling and teaching us is a phenomenal blessing on top of that.  The will of God laying out a plan for our lives that is filled with purpose and hope is a blessing and reassurance for our future.  These spiritual blessings that come automatically when we make that decision for Christ, and never leave us are blessings that can not be counted or ever appreciated enough. 

And yet, our God in His generosity and love, pours out even more for us. He blesses us with friends and family, laughter and fun, adventures and excitement so that we can have moments of happiness in our daily lives while we still walk in this world.  One of those blessings in my life is, Brynna, or BG as I began to call her in utero. She's the niece of my heart,  as she is the daughter of the sister of my heart, Regina.  She is precious, adorable, stubborn, strong-willed, brilliant, and more than a handful.  She can make you laugh and get herself in timeout all in the same sentence.  When she was born I thought she would grow up down the street from me, and for the first 18 months of her life that plan was happening. I saw her all the time and she was working herself into my mall companion rotation already, but then she and her family moved to a new city thousands of miles away, so phones and Skype became our way of connecting. If you've every tried to talk to a two year old on the phone or on Skype you know how challenging that can be.  So, I began to worry that she wouldn't know me the way I wanted her to know me.  I wouldn't be the Nay Nay in her life that I planned on being.  Somehow though, the love that I have had for her since before she actually was born had crossed the miles over these last 18 months that she has lived away.    A couple of visits  last year, and lots of technology assisted contact, along with pics and more, have somehow held my place in her heart, so that yesterday, when the car pulled up to the airport and I opened her door, she opened her arms and my heart melted a little more.  

Bonus blessings in my life are getting to laugh hysterically with my best friends or cuddle up on the couch with my husband, or watch March Madness with my family.  My bonus blessing this weekend is  getting a big smile and a big hug from my sweet BG.  Thank you, God for the bonuses!

Friday, April 13, 2012

You Don't Know, 'Til You Know

I learned a lot of my life lessons in high school as many do.  Some of them were less life altering like never eat a big meal before wearing spandex (yes, I was on the dance team). Some of them were more critical like there is always more time to do it right than to do it over, thanks to my physics teacher.  One of the lessons that was very important was learning that you can't know anyone based on what you hear about them, you have to get to know them yourself.  I remember a particular teacher that I heard was "evil" pretty much from my freshman year, but I wasn't in his class until I was a senior. I was horrified to learn I had not managed to escape his classroom, and on the first day of school attempted to change teachers before I ever walked into his class.  When I finally sat in his class, I was surprised to learn that he wasn't so bad.  While he didn't have one of those charming, "favorite" teacher personalities, he cared about students and the material and wanted us to learn.   


Now, as much as that was an instructive experience in my teenage years, I was reminded of this lesson some years later.  After I became a Christian, I went through my unfortunate "self-righteous" phase with some fellow Christian friends.  We would watch preachers on TV or  read about them and decide who was "really" living for Christ and who wasn't.  I'm embarrassed to admit that we had quite the holy huddle of judgement going for a while.  Then I moved to a new city and actually heard some of those same preachers we used to judge speak and preach in person.  I also sat in a few seminary classes and listened to people I knew, talked about in ways that I knew were untrue and was very convicted of my own behavior.  Since then, I have adopted an attitude of "you don't know, 'til you know."  Whatever I hear about someone or read about someone, especially Christian leaders or pastors, I give the benefit of doubt,  recognizing that you can't know anyone that you don't have an actual relationship with, and appearances can be deceiving.  


Two years ago, my own pastors Ed & Lisa Young came under attack from a local news station. I was appalled as I saw how the reporter manipulated the public with half-truths, innuendos, and implications all of which were dishonest.  Now, that same station is at it again.  Their willingness to report false information and disparage good people who love Christ and continuously give all they can for the local church makes me livid! Ed and Lisa Young were my employers for seven years and have been my pastors for ten.  I have sat with them in meetings, been a guest in their home, watched them raise their four amazing children, and learned more from them about ministry than I can enumerate.  They are not perfect people, but thankfully none of us are this side of heaven, but I can tell you that they are honest, loving, compassionate, generous, and trustworthy.  I say this not based on rumors or things I've read, but because I know them.   


Ed and Lisa are not the only Christian leaders or role models to come under attack. This happens to pastors and leaders all the time.  Anyone who stands for Christ will face this kind of persecution.  Tim Tebow gets mocked because of his faith.  Bubba Watson takes hits on twitter and Facebook for being vocal about following Christ.  Joyce Meyers, Bishop Jakes, Brian Houston, and many, many more will continue to have things said and written about them that will be untrue.  As their fellow believers, it is our job to look past the implications to what we know.  We know that Jesus Christ gave His life for our sins and that He is alive today. We know that the Holy Spirit lives in us and guides us with conviction and wisdom.  We know that God loves the church and has commanded us to be united as a body. We know that the Bible is God's word to us and should be used as the foundation for all we believe.  We know that behind all the news stories are people, writers, reporters, some of whom are good and write with integrity, and some who aren't.  The point of this is not for us to judge them anymore than we want them to judge us.  The point of this is to encourage myself and any who read this post to stick with what we know is true.  Let's commit to taking all reports in with a grain of salt, and reserving our opinions until we actually get to know someone. Let's commit to listening to leaders and preachers and letting their own words tell us who they are and the Bible be the only standard by which we judge what they say. We won't get to have a personal relationship with every leader out there, but that doesn't mean we have to accept what we hear as truth about them.  We can simply say that we don't know them and leave it at that.  After all, you don't know, 'til you know.  

Monday, April 9, 2012

Psalm 100

Recently my pastor, Ed Young did a message series called "That Thing We Do" that was about living a lifestyle of worship.  I found myself sitting up eagerly in my seat on that first Sunday morning of the series when he began referencing Psalm 100.  You see, I have a long history with that particular chapter of the Bible that all starts with a 5x7 bubblegum scented, scratch-n-sniff sticker.  Not the start you expected? Well, let me give you the story.


At the age of five my parents enrolled me at Cathedral in the Pines Christian School for kindergarten where I immediately fell in love with my teacher, Mrs. Larson.  One day she issued a challenge to our class: the first student to memorize ALL of Psalm 100 would win an oversized, scratch-n-sniff sticker.  The joyous thing about being five years old is that a sticker is already a big prize.  An OVERSIZED, SCRATCH-N-STIFF sticker was like winning the mega millions lottery.  I should also mention, that I can be a tad bit competitive (No need to snicker, fam).  Needless to say, I went home determined to win.  I told my mom the mission, and being a Christian woman and a teacher, she was thrilled to help me with my assignment.  Now my memory may be off a bit, but I'm pretty sure I memorized it in one or two nights. I can definitely say that the day I raised my hand in class to announce I was ready to  recite Psalm 100, my fellow classmates were shocked.   I stood before the class and spoke from memory and got it right the first time.  My prize was placed in the most logical place I could think of, the inside cover of my Bible.  I spent many  a Sunday morning sniffing that Bible.


I never forgot the verses and to this day can recite it from memory, King James Version at that.  However it was twenty years before I gave my life to Christ, twenty years before I began to understand what the words meant.  In the years since I became a Christ-Follower, the words have taken on new nuances and meaning each time I have read them. They have served as a reminder to be thankful, joyous, and ever conscious of my place in God's economy.  However, in these recent weeks, the words that I know so well have been both convicting and encouraging.  Going through a very difficult personal season, the verses and Pastor Ed's messages have made me remember that no matter how bad things may seem to be in my life, I always have reason to be thankful, to praise God, to share that joy with others and that with all that God has done for me, I may have seasons of grief or sadness, but I never had cause to despair or lose hope.  I had allowed my grief to overshadow my joy and cause to me to forget to hope, but, as always, God's words to me pulled me out of that place.


You may have heard someone recommend scripture memorization and thought, "I can't do that" or "why bother when I can just go read it", but let me tell you it is worth it.  When you are driving down the highway or in a meeting at work or in an argument with your spouse and you can bring to your mind God's word to help you remember what is true and not just focus on what you feel, there is NO substitute.  Think about what you struggle with regularly; think about your areas of weakness, and find verses that will encourage you when you face those situations.  If you don't know where to start, allow me to recommend this one:
 

Psalm 100

A psalm. For giving grateful praise.
 1 Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.
 2 Worship the LORD with gladness;
   come before him with joyful songs.
3 Know that the LORD is God.
   It is he who made us, and we are his[a];
   we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
 4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving
   and his courts with praise;
   give thanks to him and praise his name.
5 For the LORD is good and his love endures forever;
   his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Saturday, April 7, 2012

Easter: From a Woman's Point of View

As a woman following Christ, I frequently look in the Bible for female examples to follow. Don't get me wrong, I don't think that women can only learn from the women of the Bible.  I find myself connecting greatly with Joseph and Peter all the time. However, it is natural that women want to see specifically how Jesus interacted with the women of His time to give us a clearer picture of how our God in heaven sees us and relates to us.  This Easter weekend, I decided to look at the women in the Easter story.  The women who loved Christ, followed Him faithfully, and stood and watched the horror that was His death.  The women who are named as witnesses of the crucifixion even when many of His faithful disciples ran and hid.  The women who tended to the bloody and broken body when Jesus was brought down from the cross.  The women who were the first to see the resurrected Christ because they were going to tend to Him even in death.  
    
This reminded me that as women we are not better than men, just different.  God has given us specific roles to play in His Kingdom knowing that He has specially equipped us to handle certain situations in ways that men are not equipped by Him.  Our empathy, our compassion, our grasp of our emotions, and our ability to stand strong with those we love through their worst moments are gifts from God.  These are gifts we should embrace, encourage in one another, and take every opportunity to put to use for His glory.  The roles we have been given to play as daughter, sisters, wives, mothers, and friends all call upon these gifts at different times.  As women we are caretakers, comforters, encouragers, nurturers, and confidantes.  He has given us compassion, discernment, and strength wrapped in graceD.   It is how He designed us, and it is how we must live.  In doing so, we position ourselves to see His will more clearly and demonstrate His love to others.  We position ourselves to recognize His presence and hear His commands.   We position ourselves to be like those women who first encountered Christ on that Easter Sunday morning so long ago. 


So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”  Matthew 28:8-10