In my last post, we explored the spiritual discipline of sacred reading. Today I’d like to show you an example of what this looks like from my journal entries. I’m certainly not an expert on this, but sometimes it helps to see what a discipline looks like for someone else when you’re trying to learn it yourself. On this particular day, I read from Colossians 4:5-8. I was following along with my church as we were doing a study on the book of Colossians. So, using the four steps of sacred reading 1) Read, 2) Reflect, 3) Respond and 4) Rest, this is what my entry looked like that for that day.

1) Read. The part of scripture that jumped out to me was “Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, redeeming the time,” and “Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt that you may know how to answer each one.”

2) Reflect. The answer to the question, Where do I see myself in this passage? was that I felt like God was talking about the importance of time and making the most of the opportunities He gives us. Also, the thought that God wants us to spend some time evaluating our speech–about the words that come out of our mouths on a daily basis–seemed to jump out to me too.

3) Respond. In this third step of sacred reading, I had to pray about how God wanted me to personally respond to the scripture. In this case, I felt like God was telling me to get braver about sharing my faith in those opportunities that He gives me–not to force it, but to watch for the opportunities the Holy Spirit opens up and then be obedient and follow through. I can be shy to share this part of my life with strangers, because of how I might appear. God was convicting me to get past the obsession of worrying that others might think of me as weird if I talked to them about Jesus.

Next, I also felt like God was showing me to pray about my words to others, especially to my husband, Mark. I was being patient with other people, but not so much with him, the most important person in my life. God was telling me to build him up with my words, not tear him down.

4) Rest. During this time, I just sat quietly and reflected on what I had learned. I also wrote a short synopsis on a sticky note so that I didn’t forget that day’s lesson. Then I stuck it right in front of me while I was working in my office. Finally, I  thanked God for His wisdom and prayed for help to do make the changes that I needed to make.

I’ve found the practice of sacred reading to be so valuable in teaching me and continuing to mold me into the person Christ wants me to be.

I hope you do too!

Pray on!

Image: nuchylee / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Jesus used many everyday objects to illustrate important truths to His disciples; fish, bread, water…even mustard! To do the Bible study The Mustard Seed, just click on the link!

Photo by Michelle Meiklejohn Six Spices

https://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/Herbs_and_Spices_g68-Six_Spices_p9486.html

“Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen!” Luke 24:5,6

He is risen! Happy Easter!

I pray this Easter morning finds you rejoicing in the knowledge that our Savior is alive.  We do not serve a powerless God. No! We serve a Savior who conquered death and all the powers of hell to rise triumphant. Because of that we have the certainty of eternal life when we accept Jesus’ sacrifice for our sins on the cross. It is a free gift with no strings attached. And He offers this gift to every person. Have you accepted it?

Jesus isn’t a go-with-the–flow kind of person. No, He came to the earth to shake things up. And He did. He healed the sick. He cast out demons. He talked to a Samaritan woman and companioned with tax collectors. He took a whip and cleared out the moneychangers from the temple.  And He opened the truth to the Gentiles, Jews, Greek, slave, and free—in short anyone who would believe in Him.

And Jesus still does all those things today. He wants to be our everyday lives. He changes us, encourages us, heals us, admonishes us and loves us. He brings hope to even the darkest of situations and times.

Wherever this Easter day finds you, I hope it finds you rejoicing in our Savior. Happy Easter!

Pray on!

Read Luke 23: 50-56

The day of Preparation was the day before the Sabbath. Jesus had just been crucified and had died the night before. Pilate had granted Joseph of Arimathea permission to take Jesus’ body, and Joseph had wrapped Jesus in linen and laid Him in a tomb. The desolation of Jesus’ friends and followers was complete. But the love and loyalty of the women in verse 55 is obvious.

They went to the tomb and the scripture says they “observed the tomb and how His body was laid. Then they returned and prepared spices and fragrant oils. And they rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment.”

On this Holy Saturday, the day before Easter, we think of the women and what they were doing the day after Jesus died. It had to have been the darkest of days, yet they went to the tomb and decided to do what they could. They were going to prepare spices and oils to properly anoint Jesus’ body. One commentary I read stated that Jesus had had a hasty anointing and burial, so the women wanted to properly anoint their beloved Savior.

I like it that they didn’t let the little problem of a huge stone in the way of the tomb stop them.  They went forward with their plans, and they spent that sad day lovingly preparing the spices and oils for what they thought was their last act of service for Jesus.

Oh, but it was just the beginning.

Isn’t it amazing that God had these women preparing the spices and ointments to anoint Jesus for burial while God was preparing the biggest celebration of life ever? If only we could see the juxtaposition of the behind-the-scenes-action of heaven and of earth at the same time!

You see, these women, and the world, were in waiting. They just didn’t realize what they were waiting for. The women were waiting to anoint a dead loved one, but God was waiting to invite them to a party.

It’s not quite time for the celebration yet, though. We need to sit with these women in their darkness for a bit. We have much to learn from them.

In their darkest time, they did what they could and they waited. They made a plan to go to the tomb, and they trusted that God would provide a way for them to anoint Jesus.

When we are in our darkest moments—when someone is sick, when we are going through a divorce, when a loved one has died, we need to do what God gives us to do and then we need to trust and wait.  Sometimes all we can do is pray. But, because of the cross, there is hope in our tragedy.  Though we may be suffering, God promises to use all things for our good–happy things sad things, devastating things like divorce, sickness and death. Like the women at the tomb, One day we will hear Him say, “Why are you weeping?” He shall wipe away every tear from your eyes and there shall be no more death, no more sorrow, no more pain for the former things have passed away. It is finished. (Revelation 21:4) Hold on dear one…Sunday is coming!

“Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the lamb.”

Pray on!

With a couple of simple words, “Follow Me,” the lives of a few fishermen were changed forever. Jesus still uses these simple words today to call all who are willing to follow Him. To do the study, Following Jesus, just click on the link! 

Photo by Engeni Dinev Sunbeams in the Mouintains  https://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/Landscapes_g114-The_Balkans_p17835.html

Who doesn’t love that sweet little baby face? It’s hard to resist chubby cheeks, sparkling eyes and toothless grins! But what if we stayed as babies for our whole lives? Would it be quite so attractive?

We are smack dab in the middle of a series at church called Colossians: Living a Life Worthy of the Lord. It’s been a challenging series, not a feel good one necessarily. But one that is sorely needed. It’s all about moving beyond baby steps with Christ and growing and maturing in our faith.

A few Sundays ago, the scripture we were in was Colossians 1:24-29 and Colossians 2:1-5. Pastor David Bell was talking about how our maturity matters greatly to God, and how it is an expected privilege of all who follow Jesus. It got me thinking about the whys of it all. Why is maturity important in our faith? What would the world look like if we just happily accepted our salvation and never moved on from there?

Well, one way to look at this is to use the analogy of a baby. Babies are immature of course. They need to be fed, changed, cared for, loved and protected. They can’t stand on their own. They can’t do much for others yet. They are pretty much in the “taking” mode. Imagine how we would feel if our babies never grew up. We would forever be immersed in diapers, baby food, car seats, play pens and strollers. Now I know we all are nostalgic about the days when our kids were little, but there is something very satisfying about watching children grow up, reaching new milestones and independence, making mistakes along the way, yes, but ultimately becoming productive members of society—and God’s kingdom.

Now let’s imagine that this is similar to how God sees us. When we take our very first step of faith by accepting Jesus as our Savior, we are born into God’s kingdom. And for too many of us, that’s where we wallow. It’s a comforting, easy place to be. We’re loved, we’re fed—all our needs are taken care of. But, I can imagine God looking down and saying “Come on, it’s time to take those next steps. We need to get rid of the baby food and get some meat into us. I’ve got work waiting for you to do!”

It takes time and work to grow in Christ. Sometimes we have to give up other things to attend that Bible study or take that class. We need to devote time to prayer. We need to spend time with mature Christians who can encourage us. Often times, it’s far easier NOT to do those things. But where would our world be if we all took that attitude?

What if Martin Luther, George Müller, Amy Carmichael, Billy Graham, your pastor, the person who introduced you to Christ, what if they all had made different decisions, different choices in their lives? What if they had never grown up in Christ?

God doesn’t see each of us any differently. He’s got things that He prepared in advance, waiting for us to do (see Ephesians 2:10). What if we never get there?

This isn’t meant to be a guilt trip. If you are already growing in God, then don’t pile on anything else that He hasn’t given you to do or hasn’t called you to. But, if your Christian life hasn’t changed much since you started following Jesus, and you feel God is nudging you to grow up, here’s a few questions David left us with at the end of service that Sunday morning that may help you too.

1. Am I content where I am in my maturity in Christ?
2. Is God content with where I am?
3. Is there room to grow?
4. What areas do I need to grow in?
5. Am I willing to pursue what it takes?

What do you think about maturity? I’d like to hear your thoughts.

Pray on!