Thursdays in the Truth: Terrible things are happening

Terrible things are happening

It seems lately that every time I get a text, a phone call, or check Facebook, I hear about something terrible.  My friends and family are going through some serious trials right now. Health problems, family problems, loss, financial problems, betrayal- the list can go on and on. The amount of terrible things happening around me has been heartbreaking. My heart is so heavy at times.

I’m not angry at God, but thoughts do creep into my mind. Why is all this happening? Why does God allow this to happen?

You’ve all heard the saying “God will never give you more than you can handle.” This phrase is in reference to 1 Corinthians 10:13.

I used to think this overused phrase was comforting. But, terrible things are happening. Real suffering and heart ache is going on. Stuff that is too much to handle.

What people forget about is there is more to just the idea that God will not give you more than you can handle. Here’s the entire scripture:

“No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”

Re-read that last sentence. There it is. That’s what we should be reminding our friends and families in trials. HE will provide a way out so that you can endure. It’s not that in this life terrible, heartbreaking things won’t happen. It’s that GOD will be with us to provide a way out so we can get through it.

I was also reminded of a passage in Deuteronomy 8:2-4:

^"2 Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. ³ He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.”

God let his people suffer for years to humble them and make them realize that they needed him. We must not live on bread alone. We can’t do this life alone. We need God. We need him to provide a way out. We need to rely on him. Because this life alone is not enough.

I’ll end with an excerpt from a devotional I’ve been reading. Here’s August 26^th excerpt from Oswald Chamber’s My utmost for His highest.

“August 26: With regard to the problem that is pressing in on you right now, are you “looking unto Jesus” (Hebrews 12:2) and receiving peace from Him? If so, He will be a gracious blessing of peace exhibited in and through you. But if you only try to worry your way out of the problem, you destroy His effectiveness in you, and you deserve whatever you get. We become troubled because we have not been taking Him into account. When a person confers with Jesus Christ, the confusion stops, because there is no confusion in Him. Lay everything out before Him, and when you are faced with difficulty, bereavement, and sorrow, listen to Him say, “Let not your heart be troubled . . .” (John 14:27).”

-Andi 

Thursday's in the Truth--You have to love me, God said so!

When I taught in a local public elementary school, the district implemented the “Norms of Collaboration” or some such thing like that.  It was so funny, as an adult, to be taught how to treat other people.  My team of teachers all shared a common workplace and taught the same grade.  At times it felt like we were college girls sharing a dorm room!  We each had designated storage places in that tiny room as well as a place to meet and discuss team topics.  The best part about this team was that we were all like minded.  We all liked a tidy workspace.  We all liked having civilized meetings.  Most importantly we loved to laugh together.  You should have heard us during our lunch times.  Lunch is the only time where you can maybe 5 minutes of quiet when you are a teacher and we packed those five minutes with huge amounts of deep, gut laughing.  Anyone who spends any amount of time with kids knows that sometimes you just need list:  humor.  It looked totally inconspicuous scribbled on the poster in marker.   And of some laughter to keep you going.  Because often times if you are not laughing, you are crying.  At least on the inside. It’s true, ask a teacher.  Never mind, they are too good to tell you the truth.  Just trust me. 

So when the “norms” were introduced we thought they were kind of redundant.  We had no problems speaking our minds and still being nice with each other.  Naturally, we had to embrace these “norms” with our usual humor.  What do good, law-abiding teachers do for fun?  We defaced the “norms” poster by adding our own norm to the course the one time the district Superintendent comes to visit the school, she chooses our workroom to visit. (insert forehead slap here) I think we all looked at each other with wide eyes, terrified for her to see it.  In the end, she thought it was cute.  (whew, I was afraid I’d have to throw someone under the proverbial bus.) 

Looking back, I can see that we respected each other.  More than that, though, we loved each other as sisters.  We cared about each other and the kids we served.  However, that begs the question, why did the district feel the need to bring these norms into our schools?  Apparently not everyone enjoyed the same environment we had created in our workspace.  Some people are just not respectful or nice to others. 

It has been heavy on my heart lately how much people are not loving others. It’s all over the news of people doing hateful things and saying hateful things.  And these are so-called Christians!  I was reminded recently by a very dear friend that it should always be love above everything else because God is love.  After talking with her, I found myself drawn to a couple of verses:

“Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another”  1 John 4:11

“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?  Jesus replied: Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.  This is the first commandment.  And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.  All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”  Matthew 22:36-40

These verses are so comforting to me.  We live in a broken world.  We will meet people everyday who do not know or love Jesus.  We are His hands to hug those people.  If you think about all that God has done for us, how can you not see Him as the ultimate definition of love?  

I have been working on acting out these verses.  I encourage you to do the same.  God’s got plans for you.  Maybe today’s goal is just to share some of His love with someone.

Thursday's In the Truth: Lord, I Need You

I have been trying to figure out words to write today.  My heart is broken for so many women who are hurting, sad, lonely, angry and overwhelmed.   

About two years ago, I asked the following question on Facebook, “Name one word to describe the hearts of women.”  The answers included: nurture, bold, strong, hormonal, conflicted, bruised, lonely, tired, malnourished, longing, heavy, divided, empty.”  To this day, I have the answers hanging by my desk and I look at it often. 

I was looking at it the other day, and realized those answers haven’t really changed but one seems to be standing out more than any other: lonely.  We were created for relationships.  God wants us to be in relationship with Him and others.  We were not created to live this life on our own.  Chris Tomlin said, “The deepest part of you, the secret place, the depths of your heart long to be connect to God.  Nothing else can satisfy you.”

As I have been praying for and thinking of so many, this song just keeps coming to my mind and I think it is all we need to hear today:

"Lord, I Need You"

Lord, I come, I confess
Bowing here I find my rest
Without You I fall apart
You're the One that guides my heart

Lord, I need You, oh, I need You
Every hour I need You
My one defense, my righteousness
Oh God, how I need You

Where sin runs deep Your grace is more
Where grace is found is where You are
And where You are, Lord, I am free
Holiness is Christ in me

Lord, I need You, oh, I need You
Every hour I need You
My one defense, my righteousness
Oh God, how I need You

Teach my song to rise to You
When temptation comes my way
And when I cannot stand I'll fall on You
Jesus, You're my hope and stay

Lord, I need You, oh, I need You
Every hour I need You
My one defense, my righteousness
Oh God, how I need You

You're my one defense, my righteousness
Oh God, how I need You
My one defense, my righteousness
Oh God, how I need You

Thursday's in the Truth ~ Flying By Faith

“It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance. He went without knowing where he was going.” Hebrews 11:8

Earlier this summer, my husband and I took a much needed vacation, just the two of us. I had been so pre-occupied with all of the necessary preparations during the weeks that led up to our departure, that I was anxiously awaiting the upcoming stillness before me. As our initial plane lifted into the vast openness, I found myself mesmerized with the beauty of the sky that surrounded us. We transformed into a speck of dust against the blue and white canvas that encompassed. I began meditating in deep thought, and could only imagine what was to come. As we reached our maximum cruising altitude, I decided to open up His Word, sit back, and let Him speak to me. Almost immediately, before I could even dig deep into my study, I sensed a stirring within my heart. The gentlest voice could be heard, yet it was loud and clear. It was almost as if the pilot himself had spoken over the intercom instructing the cabin to fasten our seat belts as turbulence was approaching.

 “I will prepare you, but be ready.”

If you have walked in faith for any length of time, you have hopefully come to realize that the changing of seasons is inevitable. They will come upon us, it is just a matter of when. God allows certain things to take place in order to transform you for your calling. It may be to transition you to become better equip from a bigger picture perspective, to humble you, to bring you closer to Him, or even to use your season as a platform for others to witness. Whatever the case may be, He will always prepare you for what is ahead. Are you actively making it a point to listen? Do seasons of change catch you off guard, do you allow yourself to become too comfortable in your service to Him, or is your armor already fitted for battle?

One of my favorite books in the Bible is Hebrews, specifically chapter eleven. Many types of commentary refer to this particular set of scripture as “The Hall of Faith.” Verse 4: “It was by faith that Abel brought a more acceptable offering to God than Cain did.” Verse 5: “It was by faith that Enoch was taken into heaven without dying” or how about Verse 7: “It was by faith that Noah built an ark to save his family from the flood…..” Did you catch the pattern here?

Each of the people listed throughout this book were those of faith who died without ever seeing their fruit of their faith on earth. Yet, they never lost their vision, their hearts remained focused on what He had prepared for them. They understood that the greatest of all rewards was what they would receive eternally through their faith in Him. I do not know what it is you may have resting on your plate right now. However, I do know that if you are not eating the fruit of His word, friends you are missing out on the sweetest part of the feast. Each of those written about here in this chapter had a choice; to follow what was being asked of them or not. The same goes for you and I today. God may very well be calling on you right now. Are you listening?

The next time you find yourself among a season of change, just as an airplane relies on its engines to propel it through the skies; allow God to be your pilot and keep your tanks full, steady your course, sit back, relax, spread your wings and just enjoy the ride.  

~Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.

Hebrews 11:1

http://youtu.be/3_jSuTRzob0