Thank Goodness?

What does that even mean?  Who is this goodness?  Why do we thank her instead of thanking the God of our salvation?

I’ve often wondered why well-meaning people stop themselves from thanking God.  Is it somehow perceived as taking the name of God in vain or something?  It boggles my mind.

International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church

Sunday, November 8, 2009.  International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church.  The least and the most you can do is intercede for our brothers and sisters who are bleeding, burning, and dying every day in the name of our Precious Savior.  Praise be to God for their devastating faithfulness.

 

Intercessory Saturday

Leaders in Uzbekistan’s Baptist Union went to trial over their children’s camp ministry on false charges of tax evasion and illegally teaching children religion. According to a report by Mission Network News (MNN), Bob Provost with Slavic Gospel Association said a judge convicted the leaders on Oct. 29, despite evidence to the contrary. The verdict means the president of the Baptist Union, the director of the camp and the bookkeeper will lose their jobs and have to pay a $14,000 fine, according to MNN. The leaders plan to appeal the judge’s decision within 10 days.

The move is so hostile it is raising more questions. “The camp director believes the authorities want to change the leadership of the Baptist Union and somehow gain control over the churches,” Provost said. “We have a government that wants to eliminate evangelical Christianity from their soil. The Bible says God can change the heart of a king. If he can change the heart of a king he can change the heart of a judge.”

Please Pray!

Let us come before the throne of grace in agreement with Bob Provost! Pray the Lord will change the heart of the appellate judge and move him to drop these false charges against the Christian leaders.

Pray for strength for these and other Uzbek Christians who suffer harassment and hostility by the government for their witness in Christ.

Source: Voice of the Martyrs’ Be-A-Voice Network

I Read a Christian Romance.

Alright, I’ll level with you.  I have read romance novels before.  I’ve even read some racy ones in my younger years.  Did I like them?  Yes.  A romance novel grabs at your heartstrings until you see yourself as the heroine, desperately loving the hero.  You’re so invested in seeing the two live happily ever after, that you can’t put the book down.  It’s ludicrous, because the romance probably should have never come about in the first place, they’re sinning all along the way, and you know they will end up together at the end.  But, it reels you in.

I gave up on romance novels as quickly as I started reading them.  I concluded that they were a waste of time, they were completely not God-honoring, and they stirred in me desires that an unmarried teenager shouldn’t be messing with.  And I also concluded that they were very poor “literature.”

—

I have also read Christian fiction before.  I will not name what or who, but it was ridiculous.  As un-literary as romance novels were, my experience with Christian fiction just took the cake.  Everything was so contrived!  In an effort to make sure the reader knew that the theme of the book was Jesus, every other line talked about Jesus and the Spirit in a completely unnatural way.  They couldn’t even properly develop the plot because this manufactured religion got in the way.  It was ridiculous.

So, I swore off Christian fiction.

—

This past weekend, a friend lent me a copy of Francine Rivers’ novel, Redeeming Love.  I had heard the author’s name before, and I laughed off any claims at real literary talent due to her association with Christian fiction.  My friend was enthusiastic, however, so I accepted the book.

I knew before I opened to the first page what the point was.  A woman would fall in love, but she would realize that the only true, redeeming love was that of her Savior.  Expecting pages of awkward preaching forced into contrived conversations between ridiculous characters, I sat down to get the whole thing over with.

I was surprised.  I was floored.  I was devastated.  I was blessed.  I couldn’t have been more wrong.

Christian woman, read this book.  You’ll fall to pieces, and you’ll fall in love with Jesus all over again.

Have You Missed Me?

I don’t know how much you’ve noticed my lack of posts lately, but I tend to think it affects people more than it probably does!  In case you’ve noticed, I would like  to explain myself.

I started this blog with a pretty serious commitment to writing every day.  Even if I didn’t have any real inspiration, I wanted to at least say, “Hi,” every morning.  As life gets busy, however, it gets harder and harder to do that.  Sometimes I share a video or a joke on days when I don’t have the time to sit and share my heart.  I have come to the conclusion that such a practice is completely unnecessary.  You do not live for my posts, and I should not be tied to my laptop.

I firmly believe that my blog and my interaction in our corner of the blogosphere is a ministry.  I think it’s important, and I think God called me to do it.  I have found much encouragement through your blogs and comments, and I hope you have found some of the same here.  But, I have felt convicted lately about the amount of time I dedicate to my blog.

I look around and see a daily Bible reading I haven’t done, lesson plans I haven’t written, dishes in the sink… and where am I?  Unfortunately, I have taken a good thing and elevated it higher in my life than I should have.  I love writing.  I love reading.  Blogging, therefore, is right up my alley.  But, I must remember priorities.

God is working in my life in numerous ways right now.  There are several issues He’s dealing with quite seriously, and I need to focus on those things.  Does that mean I’m not going to be blogging anymore?  Heaven forbid!  (Please, forbid it!)  I actually intend to continue my blog, but it will inevitably be less frequently.  I want to make sure that I don’t continue to pad this site with posts full of fluff, just to have something to pop up on your screen.  I also want to be sure that I am not compromising any responsibilities in order to maintain this blog.

I’m sure it breaks my heart more than yours, but I did want to communicate what’s going on.  That being said, I have lots of post ideas!  Hopefully, I’ll have a moment to write a few of them.  God bless you, and thank you for showing up here to read my words and my heart — it means more than you know.  Love you!

Intercessory Saturday

On Oct. 18, a radical Hindu group, Rashtriya Swayam Sevaks (RSS), viciously attacked three pastors, one woman and one child while they were having a prayer service in Hyderabad, Andra Pradesh state.

About 40 believers were gathered in Siluvai Kumar’s house for the prayer service, according to VOM contacts. At 9 p.m., RSS radicals barged into the house and began beating people. Pastors Phillip, Timothy and Siluvai Kumar were badly injured. The radicals also beat Pastor Phillip’s pregnant wife, Kezia, and their 18-month-old daughter. Bibles were destroyed and musical instruments, metal doors and windows in the house were damaged.

Pastor Timothy was dragged to the police station where the radicals lodged a false complaint against him alleging he urinated on idols in a nearby temple. The police detained the pastor but he was later released.
RSS activists had warned the pastors against having prayer meetings in the area.

Please Pray!

Please pray for a rapid recovery for those who were injured in this attack; not only the injuries they sustained physically, but also psychologically and emotionally. Pray the testimony of the believers will lead RSS members into fellowship with Christ.

VOM assists persecuted Christians and their families in India through the Families of Martyrs Fund, by providing Bibles in nine languages to pastors, evangelists and believers, as well as legal support for pastors and Christians who have been arrested and held in custody. VOM also provides emergency bail funding to release Christian workers falsely accused by the RSS radical Hindus.

Source: Voice of the Martyrs’ Be-A-Voice Network

Family

Again, swiped from Amanda

1.  Do I have spiritual discussions with my family?
Yes and no.  I’m very open with my husband and some of my family members who are openly practicing the faith.  With others, I tend to defer to my perception of their preferences, and I keep my mouth shut.  That is not good.

2.  Does my family think I that I treat strangers better than my family?
I suppose you’d have to ask them, but I would answer that no, I do not.  Typically, I’m so introverted that my surprise at strangers talking to me comes across as stand-offishness.  Who am I kidding?  I’m stand-offish.  I don’t do well with people I don’t know.  That is not good, either.  (It’s a wonder how I ever make friends.)

3.  Is Christ the center of our holidays?
I would say that He is not the center to the extent that He should be.  I am always looking for ways to get to the heart of what really matters.  It is important to note that, as a young couple with no kids, we are not “in charge” of major holidays.  We’re not even usually in our own home.  Although I do honor Christ in my own way, I could definitely do better about reminding others and about being more open.

4.  Does my family know my spiritual values?  How?
Deferring to my answer for #1, it depends on which family members you’re talking about.  Some know very clearly and specifically where I stand on just about everything, because we talk about spiritual things often.  Others may know through observation, or by assumption.  Those assumptions may not be correct.  I am pretty honest on my blog, though, so those who read it have some insight into where I’m coming from.

So… family is an area in need of improvement?  Thanks Amanda.

Free Time

Hi-jacked from Amanda.

Does what I choose to do for fun glorify Christ?
Yes, sometimes.  I spend a lot of time on the computer, and that often glorifies Christ.  I use Facebook and my blog as avenues to preach the Gospel.  Like Amanda, I see my blog as a ministry of sorts, since I have found a community here, through which we share mutual encouragement and exhortation.  Sometimes, though, I just waste time clicking “refresh” on the Facebook news feed when I could be doing something productive.

I also love to read and write.  Much of what I read is Gospel-centered, and what I journal is usually reflective and viewed through the lens of the Gospel and how/if I am a useful servant.  I also try to keep much of what I write here focused on Christ.

Otherwise, I do still watch TV occasionally.  Thanks be to God that I don’t have any shows I *have* to watch anymore!  What a beating that was.  Now I just casually enjoy a sitcom every now and then.  I can’t say, however, that any of it is inspirational or encouraging to me — it just makes me laugh.

Do I choose to spend some of my available time in ministry?
Yes.  Isn’t my whole life a ministry?  I assume this is talking about some sort of organized or intentional ministry, to which my answer would still be yes.  However, I think a better question for me would be: How often do you allow your selfishness to distract you from your ministry?  And THAT would be all the time.

Do I spend time with believers and unbelievers in my life?
Yes.  I have a pretty good support system through my small group of Bible-believing Christ followers.  I spend my whole day teaching students from varying faiths (Muslim, Buddhist, Mandaean, Hindu).  It’s weird, though; I generally choose to spend my free time with believers.  I truly need to actively seek out non-believers with whom I can freely speak the name of Christ (as opposed to in my classroom, where I cannot).  That’s something that has always been a major weak point in my life; I am bold behind a computer screen, but timid in person.  It’s shameful.

Do I spend more time and energy on my hobbies than on things that have eternal significance? How?
Well, my hobbies are reading and writing.  Since those things revolve around the Bible and Bible-based texts, it’s kind of hard to answer.  I suppose I could look at it in terms of application.  I’m learning, but am I applying?  How much energy do I put into reaching others for Christ?  I try to show kindness to strangers, but do I tell them why I’m sharing a kindness?  In answer to the question in bold — yes and no.

 

→What about you?

Yeshua’s Early Ministry …from my journal

October 24, 2009

John 1:35-42 (Andrew and Simon Peter)
–I know it’s overused as an illustration, but I love Andrew and Peter’s obedience.  And Andrew’s immediate response was to bring his brother to Christ.  Why am I not so obedient?

John 1:43-51 (Philip and Nathanael)
–I think it’s beautiful that, even though Jesus’ time had not yet come, He’s revealing His divinity in personal ways, and then He promises greater things.

John 2:1-12 (Miracle at Cana)
–I’ve never thought of this miracle in this way before, but I wonder if anyone uses it as proof that Christ cares about ordinary, earthly things.  I mean, the argument could be made that a wedding feast running out of wine has no eternal — or even lasting earthly — implications.  But, Jesus was sensitive to the needs, priorities, and feelings of the people at the moment, and fulfilled their immediate desire as a gesture of love.  That could be.  However, I’m struck by the underlying messages here.  He had servants fill giant jugs full of water and serve it to the headwaiter.  As the unsuspecting man scurried off to praise the groom for his generosity in serving the best wine, the lowly servants were undoubtedly left totally dumbstruck.  While “saving the day” out of the kindness of His heart may have been a byproduct of this miracle, I don’t believe it could be His primary focus.  Of course, He was displaying His deity first and foremost.  But He also seems to be setting the tone for His entire ministry, in which He will choose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise — in which He will reveal hidden things to the lowly and keep them from the rich and powerful.  How sneaky!  (In a good, thought-provoking way.)

John 2:13-25 (Moneychangers in the Temple)
–I love this.  I love it because it shows Yeshua angry — really angry.  He was so angry, He got physical.  He made a whip!  I mean, this wasn’t just a sudden burst of rage in which He “lost His head” and threw a fit.  I wonder how long it takes to make a whip out of cords.  There’s probably braiding, cutting, and tying involved.  He had time for His blood pressure to go down, as He had to focus His fine motor skills to fashion a weapon.  So, this wasn’t just an impulsive temper tantrum — He, as Holy God, was personally offended that these religious persons would turn a sacred place of worship into a money-making business center.  I think this event teaches us two things: God does not overlook the things we overlook, and God is not “understanding” of our selfish belittlement of His holiness.  God is fierce.

John 4:46-54 (Boy in Capernaum Healed)
–The reason for everything is that God would receive glory, and that some might be saved.

~Maranatha

AOYWTOEYWB – Week Five

If you were paying very close attention, you may have noticed that I didn’t post anything about Every Young Woman’s Battle last week.  That’s because, due to a youth function, we did not have our regular meeting.  But, we’re up and running again tonight, and I have a few things to share with you about what struck me from chapters nine and ten.

Chapter nine was all about women and girls pursuing guys and using their sexuality as manipulation.  Ladies, we now live in a post-sexual-revolution society.  We have rights; we have equality.  Apparently along with those things came the tendency to behave like animals.  While I do agree that it’s male chauvinistic to call a girl a slut while slapping her sexual partner on the back, it’s not okay that women so embraced sexual “freedom” that they became as piggish as the men they so despised.

It’s ironic to me, because I thought one of the major points of the Woman Movement was to get men to take us seriously; to see us as more than just tools for sexual pleasure and baby-making.  So, now women openly display their goods to every passerby.  They share their bodies with multiple men — sometimes men they met only hours before.  And then what happens?  The men play and walk away, with no commitment required or desired.  And well, our bodies are still built to conceive.  We’ve gone from hopeless homemakers trapped in a marriage to stressed, single mothers desperately seeking a “real man” who will make a commitment to a family he didn’t create.  And this is better, how?

Well, I went off on a tangent that the book didn’t go on.  That’s okay, because I didn’t highlight much from the chapter.  It wasn’t a bad chapter, it was just geared toward teenagers.  I took it to the next level because I’m getting old, I guess.

Chapter ten was all about dressing appropriately.  It’s hard to do in this society, to be sure.  But it’s not impossible.  And it’s certainly not unimportant.  The way you dress says a lot about you.  You want to dress to impress, of course.  But what kind of impression do you want to make?

You teach people how to treat you.  Either you teach them to treat you with respect or you teach them to treat you with disrespect.  Whether you intend to or not, the way you dress…sends others a message.  (p. 89)

I am going to go out on a limb here and say that many young girls simply don’t realize the effect their clothing choices have on others.  I know I didn’t.  It really didn’t occur to me that wearing revealing clothing could lead someone into sin.  If it had occurred to me, I don’t know that I would have felt responsible anyway.  But, I encourage you ladies, young, old, and in between, to assess your closets.  Is what you’re wearing communicating your love for Christ above all else?  Is it even communicating respect for yourself and others?