Worth It

Ministry life is not always easy. Yet, there are special moments in ministry that I am both blessed and humbled to get to witness. These special moments make any difficult times worth it. Today, I would like to share with you ten things I love about being in ministry.

1)      Seeing people “take up” their "cross" and follow Jesus.

2)      Hearing testimonies of God’s power and provision in people’s lives.

3)      Being able to pray for individuals' hurts, struggles, and healing.

4)      Seeing people grow hungry for the Word of God.

5)      Having spiritual and theological conversations.

6)      Seeing people experience authentic worship.

7)      Talking with people about what they are reading in the Bible.

8)      Seeing people change the music they listen to and the books they read.

9)      Watching people realize and answer the calling God has placed in their lives.

10)   Developing precious friendships that will last for life.

Because of these things (and many others), I am beyond thankful to God for my life as a minister’s wife.

A Different Kind of Mother's Day

“Are you a mother?” the sweet waitress at our restaurant asked me this afternoon. She stood by our table, ready to give me a cupcake should I say yes. There is no way that young lady could have realized the emotions she stirred up inside of me with that simple, innocent question.  As I looked around the restaurant, I said a silent prayer for any of the women who were also experiencing sadness this Mother’s Day.

On November the 7^th, I thought I would be spending Mother’s Day 2011 eagerly anticipating the bundle of joy that was to arrive the first week of June. One day later, I found out that would not be the case. Instead of excitement, I feel pangs of unresolved grief as I think about that little one whom we never got to meet.

I never really understood why Mother’s Day was so hard for so many people. But now, in some small way, I do understand. This day can stir up all sorts of emotions for so many different reasons. Those emotions range from grief for a mother who has passed to sadness from a broken relationship.  Perhaps you have experienced miscarriage and, like me, you are fearful about what the future will hold. Maybe you are battling with infertility, and your heart yearns and breaks all at the same time on this day.  

For me, this holiday is different than ever before. It is difficult to have all these emotions stirred up.  I know I am not alone; many of you are experiencing pain on this day from past wounds. Many of you have wounds that are far more difficult than mine. My heart goes out to you.

Dear sweet sister and friend, whatever hurt this holiday may bring back to you, know this: you have a great High Priest who bears your grief and pain. You do not have to bear it alone. Others may not know what you are going through, but Jesus does.  I am praying for you today.

Surely our griefs He himself bore, and our sorrows He carried; yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, smitten of God and afflicted. (Isaiah 53:4).

The Water is Rising.

Over the past few days I have almost gotten used to seeing people with moving trucks parked in their front yards. As I complete my afternoon runs, I see people throwing laundry, furniture and other belongings in the back of vehicles. I know many of the houses in my neighborhood are empty or being emptied. Preparations are being made for worst case scenarios.



On May 22, the Mississippi is projected to crest at 64 feet (it was originally 65 feet, and has dropped Praise the Lord!). This is six feet above the highest crest in recorded history, which was during the Great Flood of 1927. At 64 feet, the river will be about 21 feet higher than the elevation of our house, and will be 4 feet from the top of the levee. We live about 6 blocks away from this levee.  The levees are expected to hold strong, and it is expected that there will be no flooding in our town. Still, the list of things that could go wrong is scary, and has set many into panic mode. Some people are moving everything out of their houses and across the river to Natchez which is at a much higher elevation (about 190 feet higher than Vidalia).




The river at 53 feet. It will crest at 64 feet on May 22nd.

 

The whole thing became very real to me on Wednesday, when there was an unplanned after-school meeting for the teachers. In this meeting, we were told of the evacuation procedures in the case that an evacuation happened during school hours. Also, we were told that school would end two days early. I was advised to move my textbooks and important supplies to the top shelves in my classroom. As I moved my textbooks to the very top shelf, it hit me.....Wow, this is real.

 

So, I began precautionary measures.......I have packed up my pictures, keepsakes, and non-replaceable items. The laundry basket that they are in will be sent with some sweet friends to their home in Natchez on Sunday along with some of Stephen’s guitars.  We will take a couple pieces of furniture to another location. We have a place to stay across the river, should there be an evacuation. I plan to stack the remaining furniture in the house as high as possible should we have to leave. So, there’s the plan.




My basket of photos, keepsakes and important documents.

 

During all this planning I have realized much. In the past, I have been quick to say I would leave everything and go to the mission field should God call me. But, the prospect of losing everything to flood waters revealed that I was more materialistic than I thought. Maybe materialistic is the wrong word, and it is more like idolizing comfort. Losing my stuff did not bother me as much as the hassle it would be to replace it. I was concerned with comfort and convience.

It is interesting to think about how your actions reveal your beliefs.  I don’t want to be someone who is anxious about “stuff” as I believe that stems from a lack of faith. I don’t want to claim that I know God will spare us, because I don’t know his plan. But, I do know that I want to trust in Him. I want my actions to reflect my trust. I want to trust that He will reveal himself through the outcome, no matter what happens.  A song by Laura Story says it best:

"Cause what if your blessings come through raindrops

What if Your healing comes through tears

What if a thousand sleepless nights

Are what it takes to know You’re near

What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise?"

Yesterday was the National Day of Prayer, and our city had a gathering at the city hall. As you can imagine, the attendance was high and the flooding was the main topic of the prayers. I did not get to attend, because of work. However, today I read a quote in the Natchez Democrat taken from my husband's prayer at the event.

 “Even if we are under 15 feet of water, you are the same God,” he said. “You are the same God in the sunshine and the rain.”

I don't know what will happen. But I do know this: God is still good, holy and just. Not because the levees hold, but because He is God.

As I type, the water is rising. I pray our faith rises too. Not “faith” that God will give us what we want, but faith that He is good and will provide for us what we need, no matter what happens.

Honduras Update

We are three months away from leaving on a mission trip to Honduras. THREE MONTHS! Stephen and I have been to Honduras several times, this will be my 5^th trip and his 4^th. This trip, however, will be so incredibly different from all the others. We are leading this trip. I can’t believe that we will be leading a group of 14 other people to a third world country.  It is scary, but so exciting.

Today, we had a flip-flop drive at our church. Our church brought 548 flip-flops! We will be able to put flip-flops on the feet of 274 precious souls. We will take these with us, along with care bags and other supplies to attempt to meet some of the material and physical needs of the Honduran people. However, this is not the focus of our trip. The most important thing is that we will take the good news of the gospel. We will share the story of Jesus.

 The people of Honduras have absolutely stolen my heart. The love I have for these people, people I don’t even know is overwhelming. My heart breaks for their bondage. I am so burdened for their lostness. I cannot wait to place my feet on that soil again, and to share the love Christ, which knows no language barriers.

I cannot wait to spend a week our team, and see the unbelievable things God will do. I am overcome with emotion as I imagine what it will be like.  As I type this, tears are steaming down my face, out of pure anticipation.

But, I know that our trip must be surrounded with prayer. So, I ask you to join me in praying for this trip. Please pray that god will allow all the details to work out, including finances, supplies, passports, and plans. Pray that God will begin preparing our hearts so that we may minister effectively. Pray that our team members’ health remains strong in the next few months.  Pray that individuals’ hearts will be open and sensitive to the Gospel. Pray that the strongholds of the country to be broken. Pray that we are sensitive to the Holy Spirit. Pray that Stephen and I would have wisdom to lead well. Pray that God will do exceedingly more than we could ever imagine! 

I thank you in advance for your prayers, you have no idea how much they are appreciated!

There are so many details to be worked out, but I trust that God has a plan for us in the beautiful country of Honduras........ 61 days and counting.

Good Friday Thoughts

As I type this, I am sitting in the truck with my wonderful man on the way to Dallas. Thanks to modern technology, I have spent a good part of the trip surfing the net and reading blogs and Facebook posts about Good Friday. As I read, the thoughts kept coming and of course I felt compelled to write. 

The most profound thought that I have meditated over on this Good Friday is one that John Piper wrote about today: God created the universe for Good Friday. Wow.

Revelation 13:8 "Everyone [will worship the beast] whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who was slain." 

Please read that passage again! The book of life of the Lamb that was slain was written before the creation of the universe. God made this universe with the purpose of displaying his glory supremely and ultimately in the crucifixion of the Son to provide propitiation for sinners. This leaves me humbled and speechless. How awesome is our God?

Secondly, I have thought about the cross. The cross is a symbol of the torturous death Christ endured.  I have become far to comfortable with this symbol, using it as a house decoration and jewelry adornment. Sometimes I forget the blood, pain and gruesomeness that should be associated with the cross. I would never put an electric chair on my wall or around my neck  because I understand culturally what it represents. I am not saying it is necessarily wrong to have a cross in your home or on your neck, but I don't want to forget what the cross really was, and in effect forget the suffering of the Savior.

I pray that you have taken time to meditate on the death of Jesus today, because it is by his stripes that we are healed. 

What Makes Jesus Glad.

What makes Jesus glad?

I promise to return to the “Digging Deeper” posts, but I just had to share something from my reading/studying this week.

John 11:14-15 - Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus has died, and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to them.”

Stephen and I had the privilege of being present when his grandfather passed away in November 2007. It was such a very special, sweet time. Sitting there as our loved one took his last breath was awesome. Standing around him and praying with the family was beautiful. I am so glad I was there!  Jesus told his disciples, that he was glad he was not present when Lazarus passed away! John 11:5 says that Jesus loved Lazarus, Mary and Martha; so, why was he glad that he was not there for them during Lazarus’ final moments?

Jesus cares more about the opportunity to grow faith. The verse above says He was glad because the disciples would be able to believe.  Oh, I hope you get this: Jesus cared more about growing his disciples’ faith than sparing Lazarus from experiencing death. For us, that means He cares more about our depth of faith than our pain, unhappiness, grief and even life itself.  He would rather us grieve if it means having our faith strengthened. He would rather us see and experience trials to the point of death if it means that our faith would be grown.  Jesus was glad he was not there, becuase if he was there he would have kept Lazarus alive. Though keeping him alive would have spared many from mourning, it would not have provided such an opportunity to strengthen the faith of His followers.

If we jump back to John 11:3-4, we see that the sisters told Jesus about Lazarus being ill. Jesus responded, “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the Glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified though it.”  Now, imagine the thoughts that went though the sisters’ and disciples’ minds when Lazarus DID die.

"But, He said Lazarus wouldn't die! I don't undersand!"

Imagine the faith it took to believe that what Jesus said was still true.  Imagine how their faith was grown when they saw Lazarus resurrected. Imagine how they realized that Jesus keeps His word no matter how impossible it seems.

Dear, sweet friend, I don’t know what you may be facing right now, but I believe there are two important applications that we can make from this passage. First, God will keep his word, but his deliverance may come when all hope seems to be lost and it is humanly impossible. Second, he wants to grow our faith more than he wants to spare us from any trial, pain, or grief.  He values faith above and beyond the breath of life.

Remember, Jesus is glad when our faith is strengthened!

“…you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith – more precious than gold that parishes though it is tested by fire – may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”  1 Peter 1:6-7

Digging Deeper into God's Word: Hermeneutics

Yesterday, I told you that a class called Biblical Hermeneutics (her –men-new-tics) changed my life. I did not, however, tell you what hermeneutics means. Hermeneutics is the science of studying God’s Word. It is the method we follow to find meaning in the scriptures. Good hermeneutics is essential to good theology.

Today, I came across a forum discussion of John McArthur’s on bad hermeneutics. I wanted to share what I read with you to further convince you why good hermeneutics is so important:

“Those who take God’s Word seriously spend many hours in study. Coming out of diligent study are lessons, sermons, articles, and books that are deep, weighty, sober, doctrinally coherent, and theologically consistent.

Sadly, today’s evangelicals aren’t known for being profound, sober-minded, or consistent; instead they’ve developed a reputation for being superficial, trivial, doctrinally erratic, and theologically naïve. Want proof? Walk into your local Christian bookstore, sample the preaching online, survey the blogs—the shoe fits.”

One of the individuals who responded on this forum shared two examples of bad hermeneutics:

“I heard a local pastor preach a sermon from Mark 6:6-13. In this text is Jesus sending out the twelve to preach the gospel. His sermon was about accepting one another in marriage. He said Jess accepted and used the disciples even though they were just ordinary men. Therefore, we must accept one another in the marriage relationship. That is absolutely foreign to the intent of the author.

Recently, at our state convention preaching conference, a man used Isaiah 49:2 as his text. He took one phrase from that text, "a polished shaft," and preached a sermon on how God selects preachers. His whole sermon was built upon the way American Indians selected and made arrows. For instance: the shaft is selected; the shaft is shaped; etc. He never discussed the text at all. He never even referred to it again after the initial reading. It was sad. The worst thing is the poor model he put before young preachers at the conference. Again, it is an abandonment of authorial intent. The interpreter must have as his goal discovering the intent of the human author.”

Without good hermeneutical skills, we miss the point of the passage. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to miss the point that God wants me to get. I can’t afford to!  So, let the hermeneutics begin!