Month: September 2018

I had a connect-the-dots, epiphany kind of moment this week as I was working through a discipleship field guide called, Saturate. It’s a study that all of the small groups in my church are doing right now and it is genuinely nourishing my soul.

My “ah ha!” moment came when I read this question by authors, Jeff Vanderstelt and Ben Connelly, “How does the tribal culture of Israel (God’s Old Covenant people) further inform God’s design for his people, that it’s always been a corporate lifestyle of pursuing obedience and faith together? How does this inform our understanding of “Church”?

Did the authors basically just say that the Israelites in the Old Testament were a church? I think they did! It has never occurred to me to think of them as a body of believers like I would those in the New Testament book of Acts. But the more I thought about it, the more it made sense.

The Israelites were together in Egypt (in slavery), fled together across the dry ground of the Red Sea and spent 40 years in the dessert together. They saw God move (literally) together, they saw miracles and signs together, they grumbled together, they learned together, they ate together.

Together, the Israelites experienced God, His love, grace and redemption.

Moses, and other leaders along the way, tried to help the Israelites allow God to be the center of their culture and community.

It never occurred to me that, in essence, that was a precursor to the church as we know it today. I never thought about the foreshadowing of God’s design for the church in the book of Acts, many, many years before.

God knew we would need one another to effectively and relentlessly pursue obedience and faith. He knew we needed to do it in community.

As I was silently chewing on some of these thoughts and enjoying lunch with my 4-year-old, he asked me an unbelievably pertinent and unknowingly deep question:  “what if we had church every day?”

In his mind, church is a place we go. And he’s right, it’s where we go on Sundays to worship, to fellowship, to learn, to grow, and to give. But what if we broadened our range of meaning for “church” just a bit?

What if God’s design for “church” includes living in community, being on mission for God, because of the work of Jesus, through the power of the Holy Spirit?

If that is God’s design, and our lifestyle reflects it, we just might have church every day. Think about how you “do life” with those around you, those in your community. Think about how often you get together, share a meal, talk about spiritual things.

My husband and I are so blessed to be part of a really wonderful community and one of those families lives just three doors down.

One day I was playing 20 Questions with my then 3-year-old, and I was trying to guess the person he was thinking of. I asked if that person was part of our “bigger family,” meaning our relatives who live nearby, but not in our home. He replied, “yes,” the person was part of our “bigger family.” I continued to ask more questions to narrow it down until I was completely stumped. Our family isn’t that big.

Finally, I gave up and said, “who is it?” He gave me the name of his closest friend, who lives three doors down. Why did he do that? Because that friend and his family are like family to us, and that’s how he thought of them and categorized them in his heart and mind. (I’m trying not to tear up as I type this). From the mouths of babes…

That family is also part of our church body and part of our small group. We really do life together.

Friends, if we really wanted to simplify the concept of “church” even more, I’d say it’s family. It’s your “bigger family,” those believers around you, with whom you do life, pursuing obedience and faith together. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all about going to church on Sundays, but I’m also kind of liking this “church every day” idea too. 🙂

As we consider this life in community, we can’t help but also consider the important role love plays in it.

The Bible tells us that “we love because He first loved us.” What better response to that love, than to love God and love others (also the greatest command)?

Do you remember when Jesus said, “they will know you are my disciples by your love”?

Think about Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 3, “…so that Christ may dwell in our hearts through faith–that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend…the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge…”

Who is in your “bigger family?” How are you showing love to them? Have you had them over for a meal lately? In what ways are you learning or growing with them? How have they encouraged you recently?

I want to thank you for being part of my “bigger family.” I couldn’t do this blog without you and am so encouraged when you share your comments and insights.

Stay tuned for another post next week. In the meantime, let us go be radiant in our “bigger families” this week.

Have you ever watched a world champion figure skater do an amazingly graceful series of twists in the air and think, “she makes it look so effortless”? Or maybe you’ve witnessed a mother who makes child-rearing and home-making look like a piece of cake and you think, “how does she do that so effortlessly?”

People who are really gifted make it look easy, don’t they? It might be tempting for us to think that whatever it is they do well comes so naturally to them, that it is indeed, easy. While it may be easier for them, we would be mistaken to think it’s easy.

When we (and I really mean “I” here, but I’m hoping I’m not alone, so I’m going to say, “we”) see the person do what they do best, whether it’s flying through the air with the greatest of ease, or whipping up a scrumptious apple pie, we begin to believe that our perception is reality.

What we neglect to see is all of the effort that goes in behind the scenes. Do you think Olympic athletes win gold medals by sheer giftedness alone? I don’t think so. I think it’s a result of countless days, weeks, months and years of hard work, dedication, drive and most of all, effort.

Anything worthwhile in this life requires effort.

When we see those moms out there who seem to have it all together, we have to remind ourselves that they have likely put in a considerable amount of time and effort into their habits, routines and disciplines.

When we see those Christ-followers who always appear peaceful, serene and joyful, even in the midst of challenging circumstances, we have to remember that they have likely spent hours upon hours in the Word and on their knees in prayer.

In Mark chapter 9, we read about a boy who was possessed by an impure spirit. When some of Jesus’ disciples tried to drive it out of the boy, it didn’t work. Jesus entered the scene and was able to rebuke the impure spirit and drive it out. The disciples asked Him privately why they were unable to do what He did. “This kind can only come out by prayer.” (Mark 9:29)

I once heard a pastor say that what Jesus meant here is that the disciples needed to have been “prayed up.” They needed to have been more prepared prayerfully for this kind of encounter.

Scripture tells us we can do nothing without God and that we are to abide in Him. He is the one who gives us the nutrients and power we need, regardless of our giftedness, to do what He’s called us to do. The word, abide, is a verb. It requires action (effort) on our part.

When we put effort into our walk with God, we will reflect His glory that much more.

If anyone ever tells you that being a Jesus-follower is easy, that it’s effortless, don’t believe the lie. The fact that we are “followers” indicates we follow, which is also a verb. No athlete, Olympic or world-champion ever achieved greatness effortlessly. To think or say otherwise would be a lie.

I was recently preparing to host an event and was feeling a bit anxious about it. As I took the matter to God in prayer, I found myself praying, “God, help me with this event. I don’t want to handle it effortlessly, but gracefully.”

That was my way of saying that I was willing to put in the work but I didn’t want to get frazzled in the midst of potential chaos (think a dozen tired and hungry children running around a small space). Instead, I wanted to respond in graceful ways. Thankfully, things went pretty well that night and I felt more graceful than frazzled.

I’m sure my prayer helped, but I think the effort I put into thinking through the evening and mitigating potential areas of stress helped too.

Are you believing the lie of “effortless” and if so, where? Maybe on Facebook? Maybe at work or even at church?

Where might you need to put in a little more effort to be a little more radiant this week?

Thank you for reading through this post. I plan to be back next week with a new post and video. I always appreciate your comments, so if you have a moment, please leave one below.

 

 

 

 

Do you ever feel like your son or daughter, or grandchild, or other little one in your life just doesn’t listen to you when you want them to? For the most part, my kids are pretty good about listening, but there’s one thing I do that makes my almost 4-year-old all ears.

Every night, we have story time before bed. Typically I’ve let my kids choose the books they would like read to them and then we’ve added Bible stories too. Well, most recently, my oldest has wanted to do “made up stories.”

Each night he wants me to tell him a story that I make up on the spot. So I have to come up with a main character and then decide if it will be a person or an animal or something else. I have to think through a quick plot and main point of the story. I have to use language he will understand. Talk about pressure! LOL.

However, there’s something that really sweetens the deal for me and makes it extra worthwhile. I can literally see the anticipation in my little guy’s eyes. He patiently, but eagerly waits for me to begin the story. He will hang on every word. I will have his full and complete attention. This, in and of itself, is a total victory!

One night, I made up a story about a clean pig. We usually think of pigs as dirty (think of the term “pigsty”) but this one was clean. All of his pig friends were dirty and made fun of him because he was clean.

The clean pig started to get sad and discouraged because the others were making fun of him. But he began to realize that they just didn’t understand why it was so important to be clean. So, one by one, he began talking to his friends and helping them see why it was so good to be clean. Eventually, all of the dirty pigs decided they wanted to be clean too.

It’s a silly little story but it has valuable life lessons. As a believer, cleansed by the blood of Christ, my little boy might some day be made fun of for being “clean” or a goody two shoes. Though that might discourage him at first, I hope he sees that the issue for those doing the teasing is actually a heart-issue, a need-Jesus-issue.

He can choose to share with others why he is “clean” and how they can be too. I hope and pray, should the occasion arise, that he wouldn’t hesitate to do so.

As I laid down to go to sleep after telling my son the pig story, I realized that my made-up stories are a lot like Jesus’ parables.

Think about the parables Jesus told and why He chose to communicate that way. He certainly had the attention of his hearers. He used language and cultural things that they understood. Think about the parable of the lost sheep, the lost coin and the lost son. People could easily relate to those things.

Now, Jesus used parables with adults, and I think we can too. This might be a great way for us to share our faith with others in a little more of an indirect, but still very powerful manner.

So that’s my challenge for us this week – to consider using parables or story-telling as a way to communicate the Gospel to others. Others might include our own children, our neighbors or people we work with. Give it a try – even if it puts you on the spot a little, just like it does me every night at bedtime.

Your words don’t have to be perfect, just genuine.

Let us use our words wisely this week and see who might listen to them. And let us go be radiant!

 

Do you remember my post entitled Dry Ground? If you haven’t watched it or read it, you can do so here. It is one of my favorite posts because God used those different passages with the common theme of dry ground, to encourage me and give me hope when I was feeling really overwhelmed.

Well, I (maybe even we) must have needed to return to “dry ground,” because I came across another passage where that phrase is used that I had completely forgotten about! Even though I have read it before on different occasions, it didn’t come to mind when I was preparing my original post.

Imagine my surprise (and excitement) when the words jumped out at me as I was reading my Bible, getting ready for my post on Joshua and his leadership!

I immediately wondered how this passage compares to the others I shared previously about Noah and his family getting out of the ark, the Israelites crossing the Red Sea and Jonah being spat out of a big fish–all onto dry ground.

Would there be similarities or would this be more of a unique use of “dry ground?” What was the purpose of the “dry ground” for those who walked across it? Why does God seem to be so fond of “dry ground?” What does this mean for me (and for us) today?

To begin to answer these questions, let’s look at the text in Joshua 3:9-17.

Verse 9 starts, “Joshua said to the Israelites, ‘Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God. ¹⁰ This is how you will know that the living God is among you and that he will certainly drive out before you the Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites and Jebusites. ¹¹ See, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth will go into the Jordan ahead of you. ¹² Now then, choose twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe. ¹³ And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the Lord—the Lord of all the earth—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap.'”

Before we move on, I want to highlight verse 10. This verse helps us see not one, but two reasons the Lord is going to have the Israelites cross over the Jordan on dry ground.

1. It will show that the living God is among them.
2. It will show that He will certainly drive out the people mentioned so that they can take possession of the promised land.

I’m sure there were times in that season of the Israelites journey when they wondered, just like we sometimes do, if God was really with them and would accomplish what He said He would. He’s about to do something miraculous to make sure they know He is and He will.

In verse 13, we see how the waters flowing downstream will “pile up in a heap.” This reminds me of how the waters of the Red Sea were blown by a strong wind to stand up like two walls, creating a passage way.

Let’s continue reading.

^{14 “}So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant went ahead of them. ¹⁵ Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water’s edge, ¹⁶ the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away, at a town called Adam in the vicinity of Zarethan, while the water flowing down to the Sea of the Arabah (that is, the Dead Sea) was completely cut off. So the people crossed over opposite Jericho. ¹⁷ The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stopped in the middle of the Jordan and stood on dry ground, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.”

As if crossing the Jordan under normal water flow weren’t enough, God chooses to do it during harvest when the Jordan is at flood stage. He makes a miracle more miraculous!

Unlike a couple of the other passages on “dry ground,” this one isn’t preceded by traumatic events like when Pharaoh and the Egyptians were pursing the Israelites and had them hemmed in or when Jonah was thrown overboard and then spent three days in the belly of a big fish before being spat out onto dry ground.

However, one thing a bit more unique about the passage here in Joshua, is that it required faith on the part of the priests who were carrying the ark. Their feet had to touch the water’s edge for the waters to stop flowing and pile up. Talk about walking in faith!

I wonder what it would look like if I more regularly walked like the priests carrying the ark–if I kept moving forward in faith, trusting that God would make a way for His will to be done.

We see in verse 17 that the priests were standing on dry ground (in the middle of the Jordan) and continued to do so until “all Israel had passed by and the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.” I love the repetition of “dry ground” in this verse. I feel like it reinforces and reminds us of the veracity of God’s word.

Would it have been any less miraculous if only a few people had crossed over the Jordan as opposed to the whole nation? No, I don’t think so. But imagine the impact on every living soul who walked across a river (in flood stage) on dry ground. Imagine the feeling under their feet with every step. Imagine the awe they must have felt in their hearts and shown on their faces.

In Joshua chapter 4:19-24, we continue to gain some insight as to why God wanted to have the Israelite nation cross over on dry ground.

^{19 “}On the tenth day of the first month the people went up from the Jordan and camped at Gilgal on the eastern border of Jericho. ²⁰ And Joshua set up at Gilgal the twelve stones they had taken out of the Jordan. ²¹ He said to the Israelites, ‘In the future when your descendants ask their parents, ‘What do these stones mean?’ ²² tell them, ‘Israel crossed the Jordan on dry ground.’ ²³ For the Lord your God dried up the Jordan before you until you had crossed over. The Lord your God did to the Jordan what he had done to the Red Sea^[b] when he dried it up before us until we had crossed over. ²⁴ He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the Lord is powerful and so that you might always fear the Lord your God.’”

In verse 24, we have two additional reasons why God stopped the waters and had the Israelites cross over on dry ground:

1. so that all peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the Lord is powerful
2. so that you might always fear the Lord your God

The miraculous acts of parting the waters of the Red Sea and the Jordan weren’t just about the impact on the Israelites, but rather on “all the peoples of the earth.” God wants people to know He is powerful! Only He could have stopped the waters like He did. There is none like Him!

In light of that, may we always respect, revere and fear Him. When we think about how this passage on “dry ground,” and the others I shared previously, impact us today, this is it. It’s that admonishment to remember the Lord is powerful–that He can do anything— and that we are to fear Him.

Along those same lines, I’m also re-inspired to trust Him. He does what He says He’s going to do.

That’s my challenge for us this week and on-going as we seek to be radiant: remember that God is with us, He is powerful, fear Him.