A Striped Leopard

I'm assuming you've never seen a striped leopard.
Or a checkered zebra.
Or a purple cow.

...you get the idea.

These animals are stuck the way they're born. They can't change, no matter how hard they try.  That's why you don't see striped leopards, checkered zebras, and purple cows.  They can't change.

And the Bible says we're the same way.

Jeremiah 13: 23 says this:

Can the Ethiopian change his skin

or the leopard his spots?

Then also you can do good

who are accustomed to do evil.

What is this passage saying?  It's saying we're stuck.  It's saying that our hearts are desperately sick (Jer 17) and that we are by nature children of wrath (Eph 2).  We've all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Rom 2:23), and let's be honest-- when we do good things, it's usually to make ourselves feel or look better.

"Do you believe people can change?" This is a classic chick flick question, typically uttered by a young woman complete with running mascara and sorrowful face over some lover in desperate need of a morality makeover.  

"Don't you think he could change?" She seeks confirmation, some kind of hope.

But the answer, apart from God, is clear. 

No.

And it's true for all of us!  No amount of behavior modification can ever fix the problem of our sin separating us from a holy God. Without some kind of intervention, we're stuck.  In fact, we're more than stuck.  We're dead.  And dead people don't raise themselves to life. 

But PRAISE THE LORD that this hopeless situation is not the end of the story.  Reading Ephesians 2 gives us such a beautiful picture:

BUT GOD, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were DEAD in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ--by grace you have been saved.

God raises the dead to life.  He gives hopeless, immovable, empty people the ability to rise up and walk-- walk in a manner worthy of the gospel!  With the Holy Spirit, we have the ability to please him... an ability we never had before!

There is nothing normal, typical, or boring about that. [So how dare we ever take it for granted when we tell our testimony or hear of others getting saved?!]

With this in mind, I realize that the work that's been done in me has made me something miraculous.  Something that I could never make myself.  Something that would never happen naturally.  Something like a striped leopard...? (Okay, stop.)

I think of the words of "All I Have is Christ":

Now Lord I would be yours alone

And live so all might see

The strength to follow your commands

Could never come from me!

If I'm going to SAY that something supernatural has happened to me, my life better show it.  Every time I sing this verse I pray that I will live such a radically obedient life that people would know that strength like that could never come from me, but that it would point STRAIGHT to my loving and merciful God!

Tell me whatcha want

Remember being a kid?

I don't mean the diaper days, or the eating crayons days, or the "I-think-you're-cute-so-I'm-gonna-be-obnoxiously-mean-to-you" days.

I mean the days when you were old enough to look at the future and think about what it could hold and what you'd do and who you'd be.

When I was in, say, junior high, I didn't know what I wanted to be.
But I knew that I was going to be best friends with my best friend forever.
I knew that I was going to be really smart and respected.
I knew that I would live comfortably.

Where did that take me?
That girl's not my best friend anymore.  I don't go to some Ivy League college.  We're in a recession and money got tight and I don't have some things that other people have.

I can't help but think of James 4:13-15:

Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit"-- yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, 

"If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that."

I'm not knocking making plans and working for something (I think passages like Colossians 3:23-24 make that really clear!) but we have to have a sense of holding our desires loosely so that if God wants to take or change them, we won't be broken.  Submission to the will of the sovereign God of the universe is the only thing that MAKES SENSE!

The heart of a man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps

Proverbs 16:9

The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me;

Your steadfast love, O LORD, endures forever.

Do not forsake the work of your hands.

Psalm 138:8

For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

Philippians 1:21

Maybe that last verse has resonated in your heart like it has in mine.  The declaration of a life wholly devoted to Christ, with no fear for the future. The ability to wholeheartedly proclaim those words is a wonderful thing!

But do we know the verse immediately following?

If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me...

Paul's life demonstrates that this fruitful labor wasn't always what he might have wanted.  There were churches he wanted to visit that he didn't get a chance to prior to his arrest. I'm sure there were people he was praying for who didn't get saved before he died. He traveled constantly, never settled in a home as the pastor of a church.  Does that mean he allowed his labor to be less fruitful because it might not have been what he originally had in mind? No! And neither should we.

Now, the things I hope for my life are very different than the things my 13-year-old self would have desired.  But I want to express that any plan I have is subject to the will of the Lord, and because I am his, I am willing to go anywhere or do anything at any time.

If the greatest things that I desire are NOT 

grad school

marriage

a house

kids

several big dogs

a Hawaiian vacation every summer

a walk in closet

etc

but if the greatest things that I desire ARE 

what God wants:

salvation (2 Pet 3:9)

unity in his church (Phil 1:27)

discipleship (Titus 2:2-8)

sanctification (1 Thes 4:3)

the gospel to spread (Matt 28:18-20)

people who love and obey him (John 14:15)

his return (1 Cor 16:22)

[[to name a few]]

then I will NEVER be disappointed.  

Epic&Code v. Bible

[Disclaimer: I was doing research this morning and decided to try to collect my thoughts.  This was the outcome.  I want to note that I don't have the kind of extensive knowledge that I wish I did to accurately defend the Bible in every way.]

It’s a Thursday morning around 10:30, and I’m sitting in history class being told the Bible is a big fat lie and I'm ignorant to believe it.  What else is new?

Today’s “evidence”: The Epic of Gilgamesh and the Code of Hammurabi.  Supposedly, these two documents were written hundreds of years prior to the Bible and contain things that the author of the Bible “stole,” namely, the story of the flood and the laws of Deuteronomy, respectively.  How incriminating!  Apparently Moses was nothing more than a collector of ancient writings, who decided to fill in his own story in between, that fame-hungry jerk…

Can we pause for a second?  In regards to the estimated age of the documents, I’d just like to take a moment to point out the inaccuracy of carbon dating (honest scholars will tell you we’re talking about a range of hundreds, even THOUSANDS of years).  Yes, the Epic and Code were inscribed on stone rather than parchment like the Old Testament but to me that could demonstrate that earlier parchments dating back farther didn’t survive…which also makes me think that those writing the Bible were MUCH more advanced, but that’s purely speculation. 

Here's the real issue: whether or not it’s true that those two documents are older, we have no reason to believe that the Bible isn’t true or that it contains stories stolen from other documents and peoples.  Consider this scenario: The events of the ancient world transpire—biblical events (ie; the fall of man, the flood, Israelites enslaved to Egypt, an escape from Egypt, a massive drought).  During this time, people are developing methods of record keeping, namely with things such as cave drawings and carving into stone tablets.  Of course they would write about some of these things that are happening, but it should be easy to assume that not all writings would be nonfictional; there would be a large contingent containing polytheistic myths (ie, the Epic of Gilgamesh).  Now, at the time God decided to have his inspired words written down, he did so.  That doesn’t mean the Bible copied anyone or was simply the Wikipedia of the great ancient works of the world.  It means God does things his way, his PERFECT way.  Which shouldn’t be news.  To any of us.  

I realize that if I were to build a very strong case for this right now it would take a lot of research, which I don’t have time for at the moment because this is only for my long-forgotten blog and I need to be writing an essay on the cultural affects of the Code in Mesopotamia instead ohhhdeearrr... but I digress.

Here’s what I do know.  The Bible is breathed out by God (2 Timothy 3:16), and thus is inerrant and perfectly true.  The longest chapter in the entire Bible is ABOUT how awesome the Bible is (Psalm 119)!  I trust God, so I trust his Word to me. 

Testify!

            I recently had the opportunity to write out my testimony for some college applications... I thought it would be a great thing to share here!  God is SO INCREDIBLE for saving me, I am so undeserving!

            The story of how I became a Christian starts similarly to many others, but there is nothing ordinary about the work God has done in my life.  I was born into a family of church-going Christians, and thought that I had “accepted Jesus into my heart” (a phrase that never actually appears in the Bible) at a young age.  My life, however, was not in line with that of a true believer.  As I grew older I could see, through various alter calls and points where I was called out in my sin, that I had things which needed serious change.  Unfortunately, my heart was hard and this was not enough to convince me that I was not saved.

Looking back, I can see that my priorities were completely askew.  To any observer, I would have looked like an excellent daughter and student.  In Junior High, I earned nearly perfect grades and starred in leading roles in my school musicals.  I was obedient (especially when I knew others were watching), and made a point of displaying my knowledge of the Bible during the weekly AWANA meetings.  Success and admiration seemed to follow me everywhere I went.  I was a “good” girl, but in my heart what I truly craved was the attention and respect of others.

           Though I did not realize it, I was a completely wicked person.  Jeremiah 17:9 says, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?”  I was narcissistic and selfish; I cared only about doing things that would directly benefit me. There was extreme pridefulness in my so-called success, so when my family changed churches and my parents signed me up for a summer camp called Revival ’07, I was confident that everyone would be in awe of my intelligence and charm.  What had I to fear?

           

Revival ’07 was nothing like what I had expected.  From the very first day it was established, through my humiliating failure to define the gospel, that I was not all I believed myself to be.  Our pastor challenged students to conduct “open heart surgery” that week; he said if we thought we were Christians, we should analyze our faith, as in 2 Corinthians 13:5.  After reading 1 John, I went on an emotional roller coaster as I examined where I was and felt serious conviction over my pride and self-servitude.  It was shocking to me to even consider that I was not saved.  But it was then that I understood I was not a Christian; I needed to do as all are commanded in Acts 26:20 and repent and put my complete trust in Jesus Christ.  My life has never been the same since.  

Immediately upon my arrival home, I could see how God had changed me. I now had a desire to share the name of Jesus at my public high school as a new freshman.  Becoming a Jesus freak was not something that was shameful to me; in fact, I was blessed with the opportunity to speak with many of my friends about Jesus, two of whom have since become my siblings in Christ.  My goals have become the opposite of what they were when I was unsaved.  I now want to glorify God, not myself, with any honor I am given.  What I value is sharing the gospel, learning about the Lord, and pleasing Him with everything I do.  My relationship with Jesus is the most important thing in my life; glorifying God is my highest priority.  Every day, I am searching for ways to bring Him honor, encourage others, and understand God better.

God has truly saved me out of the darkness; He changed my life from one of selfishness and deceit to one that is devoted to His service.  God chose to save me when I was in complete sin.  I had nothing to offer Him, and nothing to impress Him with.  God has done a work in my life that is indescribable and otherwise inexplicable.  As stated in 2 Corinthians 5:17, I am a new creation: the old has gone, the new has come!  I praise God for that every day!

2.5 Kids and a White Picket Fence

When a lot of people think about the American Dream, the perfect family, the perfect picture, it's something like: a loving marriage, a couple of happy kids, a little yappy dog, and a big old oak tree in the front yard complete with tire swing and all.  For many of us, though, that's not the reality.

Maybe we don't have a lot of money.
Maybe we have problems with our siblings.
Maybe our parents aren't together.

So where's the real value in the American Dream of 2.5 kids and a white picket fence?
If you look at some of the great "heroes" of the Bible, many of them don't have that perfect life or perfect family.

Rachel's dad Laban was pretty conniving!  He basically almost sabotaged her relationship with Jacob.  At least most of us don't have to worry about our fathers tricking our fiances into marrying our sisters! (Genesis 29)

Joseph's brothers hated him for being their father's favorite, so they sold him into slavery.  That's not normal... every time I get mad at my brothers my first reaction is not to sell them as a servant to my next door neighbor!  And yet, Joseph became second in command and saved the lives of his family and many, many others. He found himself telling his brothers years later: "What you meant for evil, God meant for good!"  (Genesis 50:20)

Esther's parents were dead.  She was being raised by her cousin, Mordecai.  She ended up marrying a king and saving her people.  Typical?  I think not.  (Book of Esther)

And these are only a few examples!  The Bible is filled to the brim with more.

So what's the point?
The point is, we don't have to have a "perfect" or even "normal" situation or family to be used extraordinarily for God.  And that means we should have nothing to fear!

Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious about itself.  Sufficient is the day for its own trouble.  (Matthew 6:34)

Resolved.

365.

Seems like a big number.  And when its 365 days you think, "Hey, I've got a lot of time."
But do you?

Think back to the first day of 2010.  Kinda feels like forever ago... and then it also kinda feels like we were JUST there.  

You can probably remember making some New Years Resolutions.  Did you hold to them?  All of them?  Really well?  No?  Yeah, me neither. 

I had some Resolutions.  Do I even remember them all?  No.  But what I can remember of them, I know that I didn't always follow them the way I thought I would.  I think I kept telling myself, "There's always tomorrow," which turns into "I'll just do better next week," which turns into "Day one of next month, I'll be on this," which turns into (where we are right now) "HEY, I think I'll actually stick to my New Years Resolutions this year! (Cuz last year was sooooorta an epic fail.)"

Ugh!  I hate it.

So this year is going to be different.  I do not want to be looking back at my year on December 31, 2011 thinking "There's so much more I could have done!"  No.  How about we commit to sticking to our Resolutions this year?  How about we resolve to do as the Lord commands and pursue Him, love Him with everything we have.

When Jonathan Edwards was 19 years old, he wrote a series of resolutions.  There were 70 total, which he committed to reading to himself once a week so he would STAY resolved.  Among my favorites:

"4. Resolved, never to do any manner of thing, whether in soul or body, less or more, but what tends to the glory of God; nor be, nor suffer it, if I can avoid it."

"25. Resolved, to examine carefully, and constantly, what that one thing in me is, which causes me in the least to doubt of the love of God; and to direct all my forces against it."

"28. Resolved, to study the Scriptures so steadily, constantly and frequently, as that I may find, and plainly perceive myself to grow in the knowledge of the same."

 "41. Resolved, to ask myself at the end of every day, week, month and year, wherein I could possibly in any respect have done better."

 "52. I frequently hear persons in old age say how they would live, if they were to live their lives over again: Resolved, that I will live just so as I can think I shall wish I had done, supposing I live to old age."

This year can be about discipline, about reading the Bible, about growing in evangelism and encouragement, about serving more, about praying without ceasing, about speaking and acting with purity and wisdom, about trusting God in every situation, about growing in overall sanctification.  This year can be about pleasing God!

Now you have a choice: what will you do?  Will you waste this new year of 2011 that the Lord has given you?  You have 365 days to change for the better this year, and get closer to God than ever before... unless He comes back first!!

Christmas Superwoman

Can you find the Superwoman in this picture?

That's right... she's the only woman IN this picture.  She's Mary!

Over the past couple of weeks I have been thinking especially about the qualities of a woman who fears God... and one of the first woman from the Bible who came to mind is Mary.  Sure, we don't have the play-by-play description of Mary's everyday life the same way we have the Proverbs 31 woman, but the Bible tells us so much about who Mary was, and she's actually a very relevant example for women today!

Let's take a look at Luke 1.  Reading even just verses 26-26, we can get a solid picture of who Mary was. 

She was young.  Unmarried.  Engaged.  Probably only 12 or 13 years old!  But she loved the Lord and feared God.

When the angel first appeared to Mary, her immediate reaction was to DISCERN "what sort of greeting this might be."  This girl was discerning!  She had Biblical wisdom and humility, and was applying it to her life!

We know what happens: the angel tells Mary she will have a son who will be the Son of God, the Savior of the World.  He will be called Emmanuel, God with us.  Put yourself in Mary's shoes.  What an overwhelming gift!  What a responsibility!  She, a young teenager, was to carry the Messiah that she and her people had been waiting for for generations upon generations!! 

But there's a huge catch.  Her life will never be the same.  She's not yet married, and she'll be pregnant.  What will Joseph think?  And everyone else??  If Joseph leaves her, they'll think she cheated and she could be killed.  If he doesn't, everyone will look down on both of them!  She'll have a baby, and she'll have to take care of Him.  And her baby won't be like the others... her baby will be God!  I think many of us would see this as God "ruining our lives."

I'm sure all of this flashed through Mary's mind.  And what is her reaction?  Panic and say no?  Absolutely not!  She says,

"Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; Let it be to me according to your word."

That word servant??  She's saying slave!!  Doulos Kurios... slave of the Lord!  Here to serve!

What if we modeled ourselves after Mary?  In complete surrender to the will of the Lord, given over to whatever He has for our lives.  How would we live?  How much peace would we have?  How ready would we be for anything and everything?  She's got that ATAPAT (anytime, anyplace, anything) attitude.  She's such a role model!

Did you know she also wrote worship songs? Yup, this girl did it all!  Here's part of Mary's Song of Praise:

 

My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.
For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.

Amen!!