Friday, August 29, 2008

08.29.2008

Philippians 1:6
… he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

Psalm 106:21, 43-45 (really you should read the whole Psalm!)
[The Israelites] forgot the God who saved them, who had done great things in Egypt, miracles in the land of Ham and awesome deeds by the Red Sea. ... Many times he delivered them, but they were bent on rebellion and wasted away in their sin. But he took note of their distress when he heard their cry; for their sake he remembered his covenant and out of his great love he relented.

Hello,

I just want to start off by saying that God is an awesome God and the amount of patience He has with astounds me. I hope that you find this especially true in your own life and have been able to see where God is stretching and challenging you (in good ways, even if it doesn’t really feel good).

Ever had a moment where God totally blew you away, revealed something to you, or made it obvious that He’s got everything taken care of? Ever find yourself remembering that moment later on and saying, “Oh yeah, God did THAT. How in the world did I forget that?” The story of the Israelites has been a running theme for this week for me. If you’re familiar with the stories from the Old Testament, there’s a recurring problem that the people of God have: forgetfulness. Time and again, they saw the Lord’s miracles (and plagues) and the power He displayed before their very eyes. When they were in the desert for forty years, they followed God as a cloud by day and a pillar of fire at night! And yet there were plenty of times when they would forget what God had done for them in Egypt and even pined for how “good” they had it in a land in which they were slaves. I can read this and think, “How could they forget,” but when I look at my own life I know I’ve done the same thing. I’ve seen God work things out and yet I still worry about tomorrow. There are lots of examples.... It’s like I wake up in the morning and I need to be refreshed about what God did the day before!

This is why God’s patience is just phenomenal. How good for Him to bear with us when we continue to wrestle and continue to forget what He’s done! If it were me, I’d get frustrated and give up on whoever is frustrating me day in and day out. But because of the blood of Christ, God is not like this towards us. He is completely patient – and even more than this, He even sent the Holy Spirit to work in each of us to help us overcome our faults. Talk about going the extra mile. Praise God.

So in light of all of this, I pray that you are encouraged as I have been by God reminding me not only about what He’s done in my life but also by reminding me that He’s still with me even when I feel like I’m screwing up.

In love and in Him,
Your sister,
Yvonne

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

08.20.2008

Colossians 3:15,16
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another will all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.

Hello!

I started this Weekly Thing last week, only to find myself distracted and unable to finish it until now when I can’t fall asleep. I hope that you’ve had a good week and that God is – as always – revealing Himself to you continually. It’s been interesting week and a half (more??) here, wrestling in prayer over many things. As if to continue the theme of my life, God has been encouraging me to be focused on Him as my provider, the One who is in control. As I was reading a book for the ladies Bible study I attend, the author talked about the Hebrew word ‘hesed.’

I’ve heard this word translated before into the English word ‘kindness,’ and various other synonyms, but the author pointed out that there are many Hebraic words in which the English translation doesn’t really get to the root of the meaning. ‘Hesed’ is really much more complex than mere ‘kindness;’ it means imparting onto another person the same sense that would be found in God’s heavenly kingdom. That’s much deeper than ‘kindness!’ In the part of the book that this is talked about, the author revealed a time in her life in which she doubted God’s ‘hesed’ for her and her family… but she also points out that despite those doubts and feeling as though God wasn’t paying attention, the truth is that God’s ‘hesed’ for us always remains and is always constant. There is no wavering of protection, provision, joy, and love in God’s kingdom… and God imparts that onto us. So this is certainly something we can take a hold of and live in our daily lives. Perhaps this is also what is wrapped up into the “peace of Christ” when Paul talks about it in his letters, saying that the peace of Christ should rule over us. What a fantastic thing to wish upon others and this is something that we can take a hold of as followers of Christ. And that is what I hope we can learn to build into our daily lives as we interact with others. Living in the city makes it hard to not get jaded and cynical towards others who are just as jaded and just as cynical. It’s hard to have a heart of compassion towards the guy who is trying to hit on you and you just want him to leave you alone (OK, so this is a female specific problem). In reflection, ‘hesed’ is hard to do. ‘Hesed’ is hard to embrace and rest in knowing God is going to take care of things when they’re rough.

What’s awesome is that God’s ‘hesed’ still doesn’t change through all of that. Hesed means imparting onto another person the same sense that would be found in God’s heavenly kingdom… and God sticks to his part of the bargain.

I’m totally blown away by that.

In love and in Him,
Your sister,
Yvonne

Thursday, August 07, 2008

08.07.2008

1 Thessalonians 5:21,22
Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid every kind of evil.

Psalm 119:125
I am your servant; give me discernment that I may understand your statutes.

Proverbs 3:21
My son, preserve sound judgment and discernment, do not let them out of your sight.

Hello,
Although there is still almost a whole month left of summer, the season seems to have flown by me. I hope that you’ve been learning a lot this summer and that God has been continuing to teach you, stretch you, and grow you more and more into the likeness of Christ. Due to being very fair skinned, I’ve spent a lot of my own time indoors to keep from getting sun burned. My summer has mostly been uneventful outside of learning how to be a wife! But through learning how to be a wife, and dealing with issues related to full time ministry, God certainly has been trying to stretch and grow me as well. There is much that I need to learn about having a God-centered attitude towards unfavorable circumstances, as well as about the freedom of forgiveness and dependency on God. Nearly seven years into my walk with Christ, and I am still learning a lot about what it means to follow the Lord faithfully. I’m still learning about the Bible despite how many times I read it, and continually being convicted of things I thought I was over. If you’re further along the road than I am, you might be able to say the same thing.

In Thessalonians, Paul exhorts the young believers to “test everything,” while holding onto good and avoiding evil. If I were to guess, I’d say that this passage not only speaks to young believers but also those who are well seasoned in their faith. There are always situations that come up in which we need to discern whether something is either from God or something we should or should not do according to God’s Word. For example, I live in a large city and there are a lot of weird things that can go on that you don’t normally find outside the city. Right before starting our morning bible study in a coffee shop, two friends and I were approached by a man who seemed to have an interest in Jesus but everything about him gave a bad “vibe.” He also was talking a lot of nonsense about government conspiracy, gave his name to plug into Google and left. Later on I looked his name up on Google and found out that the man thinks that he’s a prophet and the one that will bring World Peace. While this is likely an obvious not-from-God situation (because only Jesus is the one that can bring about world peace), other situations are more subtle. There are plenty of times when my own thoughts are against me and make me out to be a failure to God. What does the Bible say about that kind of thing? 1 John contradicts those thoughts in one sentence: “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!”

So there are many physical and non-physical things that we ought to test. “Is this from God? Is this something God would have me do? What does Scripture say about this?” I would encourage you to think about and consider the issues or events, attitudes or thoughts/words, or activities in your own life that might need to be tested against what God has to say about it. As mentioned previously, seven years into this journey and I still need to ask myself those kinds of questions because it’s good be thinking about our lives in view of how Christ asks us to live. Some of these things don’t necessarily have to be negative, since it is also helpful in confirming God’s direction and guidance! It’s also a matter of not simply praying or thinking about it, but also reading and investigating the Bible; there’s so much in there that the Holy Spirit continually reveals bits and pieces along the way. So be encouraged, “test everything,” and continue to walk in grace.

In love and in Him,
Your sister,
Yvonne