Wednesday, December 30, 2009

The King David Quandary

Most of the time when I think of King David, I just long to have as close of a relationship with God as he did. I admire the undying love he had for the father, and the incredibly deep level of trust. HOWEVER, today (I hope you don't mind) I'm going to talk about something that has me totally perplexed.

I just had surgery on my foot and have been laid up for awhile (foot in the air, ice on the foot). The biggest upside of this is that I've had some extra time for searching through my favorite book for little tidbits I may have missed before. Yesterday, I just happened to find such a tidbit.

Generally speaking, when people come to the end of their lives here on earth, the things they are concerned about are things that really matter. You don't find them on their deathbed wishing they had gotten in a few more hours at work, or even that they could have reached a higher payscale. They always seem to know by then that it's their family and friends that really matter.... And they cherish the time spent with them. I've gotten great comfort from this over the years, just knowing when the chips are down, most of the stuff that causes us to worry won't even matter anymore.

Which leads me to I Kings and King David. I was reading about how David had Solomon named the new King, and was right in the middle of the feeling of amazement I get that God would have the son of the woman David committed adultery with be the new king. That's so like God. But that's a whole different post.

The thing that got my attention yesterday was David's last words to Solomon from his deathbed. Now, you would think he would be talking to Solomon about how much he loved him and how much he cherished the memories. "Remember, Solomon, when you and your buddies took the chariot without asking and parked it behind the palace where you thought I wouldn't see it?" Something of that nature. But instead, David spends his time telling Solomon who to get even with, which people to make sure he has put to death, etc., etc.

Somehow this just isn't what I would expect from a man after God's own heart. I'm still pondering it... and these are some ideas I've come up with so far in discussing it with Leonard.

1. Most people get very sentimental at the end of their lives because of that overwhelming sense that the end is near. David was acutely aware that it was not the end, but only the beginning. Maybe he didn't have sadness in his heart because he was leaving this world... or at the very least that sadness was completely overshadowed by the joy he felt that he would finally get to be face to face with the God he had spent his whole life worshipping.

2. Things were different back then, there's no doubt about it. Maybe these are things that God had told David needed to be taken care of. Maybe he was just passing the message along to Solomon.

I'm not sure. I just know this kind of took me by surprise. I've read it before, but it has never really sunk in. Maybe because I'm getting older and more sentimental with every day that goes by. David, whose heart was overflowing with love for God, spent his last moments on earth telling Solomon who to kill and/or punish.

Does that bother anyone else?

Monday, December 28, 2009

Being filled with the life and power of God....

What does it take to really be filled with the life and power of God? I can't imagine anyone NOT wanting this. There is nothing in this world that could compare to a gift like that. It's the thing I desire with all of my heart.

But how do you get there? Reading the Bible? Surely that must help. But obviously not just reading... really trying to hear from God as you read. That should be a good start.

How about overcoming the sin in our lives? It's no secret that sin slows us down. Life would be so much easier if we could just get past all the things we struggle with.

Doing good for others. There's a good one. We know that's something that is close to God's heart. Really love others. Help them on their journey. Certainly God would pour his life and power into that.

These are all great things. And in 2010 I would like to improve in all these areas. But the problem is, these things don't achieve the goal. You don't receive his life and power from doing these things. In fact, you can't really achieve any of this unless you already have his life and power.

So how do you do it? How do you become filled with this life and power???

Ephesians 3:19   May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.

Why does it seem we humans always underestimate the power of his love? It can't be that easy. It's got to cost us something. It's got to hurt. We have to pay for it somehow.  Well, it did cost something and someone did pay for it. But it wasn't us.

And when we realize that... if we really understand the depth of what he's done... when we genuinely experience his love... there doesn't need to be a cost. We will freely, joyfully, lavishly give it all.

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

A time for family

I love this time of year. Even with all the hustle & bustle, it always seems to me that it's going in slow motion. Life slows down and I thoroughly enjoy every single moment of it. I am a sentimental sort of person anyway, but just start that Christmas music, start talking about Jesus being born  here on earth because God wanted that much for us to be near him, start getting the families together to share meals.... it's the hap-happiest time of the year!

I know there is a lot of talk about people spending too much money at Christmas. And most certainly, it must be true. But, being the Christmas-optimist I am, I have to believe a lot of the motivation behind it is just people wanting to brighten other people's days! If you're going to go overboard on something, why not go overboard with doing something for others? Now, don't walk away from this post thinking I'm advocating going into debt at Christmas-time. Spend what you have, not what you don't have. I just think when our focus is on the happiness of others, it can never be a totally bad thing!

The past couple of Christmases, I have discovered something wonderful. Me and my sentimental self... I've always been such a lover of holiday traditions. We've always gotten our tree from the SAME place the day after Thanksgiving, we decorate it the same way, we have our grilled cheese and hot cocoa after we decorate, and we joke about how in my mind we're having the grilled cheese on Christmas Eve because that's how I did it when I was a kid. The past couple of years, with the girls moving out and Rachel getting married and having kids of her own, it's been quite a bit different. I thought it would be much harder on me than it is, to let go of the traditions we've held so dear. But I have found there is great joy in seeing the new traditions taking shape in Rachel & Aaron's family. We've adjusted, we've done things differently, and it has worked. I felt as if God was telling me something when we got the postcard in the mail telling us as of this year the Kiwanis would no longer be selling Christmas trees. And on top of that, we knew we wouldn't even be able to put up a Christmas tree until after the wedding. But you know what? I don't even feel as if any traditions have been broken.

Instead, I feel like I've made the greatest discovery of all. The traditions have never been about what or when. It's always been about who.

Monday, December 14, 2009

The Stinky Barn

For the first time in my life, it has hit me. The impact of what God was saying to us by choosing to be born not in a palace, not in a hotel, not even in someone's guest room, but in a stinky barn....it has hit me hard.

We have really gone a long way toward "glorifying" his physical surroundings. Those gorgeous manger scenes. Manger is such a nice word for a feeding trough in a stinky barn. It makes me want to write a new song. "Away in a Stinky Barn, no crib for a bed".  And the cattle won't be "lowing". They will moo. And when he wakes up from all the racket the animals are making, baby Jesus will indeed cry. It will be a song about some very real circumstances... and how the glory of God exists right in the midst of it.

And therein lies the message. I am coming to where you are. The God of the universe chose to come to us. He is not put off by the circumstances that surround our lives. He is not afraid of getting dirty. He has chosen... chosen... to come to where we are. Because that is who he is.

But it doesn't stop there. He wants us to do the same. WHAT??? We are CHRISTIANS, after all! We don't belong in places that may get us dirty! When those people are ready, they should come to us. The only problem is... that's not the example He set for us. Now I'm not suggesting we all need to run out and find some sin-filled situation to jump into so we can consider ourselves obedient. I'm merely suggesting we open our eyes and tear down any walls we've unknowingly built up. Be willing. When the time comes and the need presents itself, be willing to step right into a dirty old barn so His love can transform the lives of the people you find there.

There will be a time for living in palaces. But for right now... it's about helping as many people as we can find palaces of their own.

And if it means we have to live in stinky barns for awhile, then so be it.

Friday, December 11, 2009

Is there something wrong with me?

The other day I got to thinking about the things that cause us to struggle in life. I thought about the things that cause angst in my own life, as well as different things I knew were weighing heavily on friends and family. Now, I hate making blanket statements because every situation is different. I will just say that for all the things I was thinking about, the root cause of each of the ongoing struggles could be traced back to what we allowed ourselves to believe.

Could it be that often times the only reason we continue to struggle is because of what we're allowing ourselves to believe? Let me give an example. I have struggled my whole life with this underlying feeling that there is something wrong with me. It doesn't matter how many successes I have, how many friends I have, how much encouragement I receive. I just feel like my personality is flawed and I find myself wishing I could be quieter, more passive, more loving, less outspoken, less overbearing. You know... that Proverbs woman that has eluded me all of my life. In my head I understand we're all different, and all our personalities work together to accomplish God's purposes. But in all honesty, I believe that more for you than I do for me.

I saw the movie "Blind Side" last week with Leonard. THAT IS MY NEW ALL-TIME-FAVORITE MOVIE! Sandra Bullock's character had a lot of the personality traits I've spent a lifetime wishing I didn't have. But it worked for her. She was able to be totally overbearing, yet still have a heart that was overflowing with love and mercy. I can't tell you how many times through the movie Leonard told me her character reminded him of me. (One example... her husband told the kids as she was outside talking to Big Mike, "I know that look. Your mother's about to get her way.") (yeah, that's me)

That movie was so good for me. It gave me hope that it's okay to be who I am. And I think it also got me to thinking that I've struggled with something for a lot of years (decades) simply because of what I've allowed myself to believe. Will I be able to change what I believe? Probably not right away. But I have a clearer picture of what I'm fighting against. When those old feelings arise, I will try to identify what it is I'm believing that's causing those feelings, and replace it with truth. What truth have I discovered?

1. It's okay to have areas of my personality that need refining. It's all part of the growth process.

2. I don't stand alone .... chances are there's something wrong with most of you, too. :o)

3. In the midst of the things that may be wrong with us, there are lots of things that are good and right and wonderful about us.

4. We can rest in the fact that there is not now nor will there ever be anything wrong with God.

What are you struggling with? What is it you're believing?

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

And life becomes normal again....


We just finished marrying off our daughter this weekend! We don't have the pictures back yet, but here's a snapshot my other daughter took while they were getting ready....




I don't know how this whole process usually goes for people, but we planned this for over A YEAR... and it still seemed like all the details were crashing in around me at the last minute. I thought I had everything planned out so well, yet there were still things that were missed, things that didn't go as planned. Fortunately, all my friends told me that no one even knew anything went wrong and that it was a beautiful event. I love friends.

I was right about one thing, though. For all the last-minute stress, and all the details that didn't work out right... none of it mattered anymore when I saw my beautiful daughter walking down the aisle on her dad's arm. It's a picture that is forever etched into my memory.

And when I look at that picture, all I can do is smile.