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Worship Wednesday – In the Hands of Our Redeemer, Nothing Is Wasted – Jason Gray

October 1, 2014 admindeb 5 Comments

I love the words of the old prophet Joel calling God’s people to repentance with the promise that He would restore the years destroyed by locusts. Read the passage (below) and allow rejoicing to take the place of regret… How thankful I am for the grace, mercy, and kindness of Almighty God.

“Now, therefore,” says the Lord, “Turn to Me with all your heart,
with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.”

So rend your heart, and not your garments; return to the Lord your God, for He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness; and He relents from doing harm.

“So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten…You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God, Who has dealt wondrously with you;
and My people shall never be put to shame…I am the Lord your God
and there is no other. My people shall never be put to shame.” – Joel 2:12-13, 25a, 26, 27b

Jason Gray’s song Nothing Is Wasted is poignant in its message and melody. Listening to it takes me back to those years of locusts in my own life – years in my youth when I praised God on Sunday and went my own way the rest of the week. Truth be told, I was far from Him, taken in by the deceit of the world and the Evil One…and my own self-serving heart. How thankful I will forever be that God is such a great Restorer, a gentle Redeemer, and that, as Jason wrote, nothing is wasted in His hands.

As the years have passed since that time, I have seen God use those years of brokenness in my life to tender my heart toward others struggling with the pull of the world, drawing them away from God. Losses, failures, and disappointments abound in this world and can cloud our view of what is true about God and His Gospel. He wants to turn our “mourning into dancing” (Psalm 30:11), and He wastes nothing in doing so.

“There isn’t anything that happens that is beyond God’s reach to redeem. He gives us a place to bring our brokenness, our weakness, our sadness.” – Jason Gray

Whatever has happened in your past – whatever separates you from the hope and healing God desires for you – give it to Him. He alone is able to bear it. Then reach forward and upward…He is reaching out to you. I know…He reached very low for me, and I will love Him forever with the most grateful of hearts.

Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. – Philippians 3:13-14

Worship with me…

Nothing Is Wasted

Jason Gray, from the album A Way to See In the Dark

The hurt that broke your heart
And left you trembling in the dark
Feeling lost and alone
Will tell you hope’s a lie
But what if every tear you cry
Will seed the ground where joy will grow

(chorus)
Nothing is wasted
Nothing is wasted
In the hands of our Redeemer
Nothing is wasted

It’s from the deepest wounds
That beauty finds a place to bloom
And you will see before the end
That every broken piece is
Gathered in the heart of Jesus
And what’s lost will be found again

(chorus)
Nothing is wasted
Nothing is wasted
In the hands of our Redeemer
Nothing is wasted

(Bridge)
When hope is more than you can bear
And it’s too hard to believe it could be true
And your strength fails you halfway there
You can lean on me and I’ll believe for you
And in time you will believe it too

(chorus)
Nothing is wasted
Nothing is wasted
Sometimes we are waiting
In sorrow we have tasted
But joy will replace it
Nothing is wasted
In the hands of our Redeemer
Nothing is wasted

YouTube Video – Nothing Is Wasted – Official Music Video

Nothing Is Wasted – Thoughts on a Music Video

YouTube Video – Nothing Is Wasted – Official Lyric Video

Jason Gray Song Diary – Nothing Is Wasted

Jason Gray Music

Photo Credit – Jason Gray Music

Family, Food & Drink, Give, Go, Inspired, Jesus, Lessons Learned, Lives Full of God, Persecuted Church, Pray, Thanksgiving or Gratefulness, Volunteering/Serving, Walk with God, Word of God

Am I My Brother’s Keeper? – On Neglect – Part 2

September 25, 2014 admindeb Leave a comment

Learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow’s cause. – Isaiah 1:17

Neglect – the word makes us cringe. If not, then it might do us well to examine our lives once again in the reflection of God’s Word. He is so clear in His teaching of how we are to live. I am so thankful for that because my tendency is to be fuzzy-boundaried – spreading myself too thin, giving precious little to anyone, and then retreating exhausted into the comfy fortress of my home sweet home.

Would you walk with me through this quick journey of sorting out what it is to NOT be neglectful? The one area I don’t intend to focus on is neglect of self – either body or soul. My sense is that when we lean into the urging of God’s Spirit in ministering to others, our own lives are so altered that we are the ones most benefitted by Him (Luke 6:38).

To not be neglectful is to incline ourselves, to lean in, to carry through, to attend, to be intentional, to purpose to:

1) Love* the Lord our God with all our heart. – The Great Commandment

“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?”

Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment.” – Matthew 22:36-38

When our lives are infused by our love for God, we begin our day with Him and end our day with Him. As He speaks to us through His Word, the Spirit, the church, and our circumstances, we become more and more in tune with Who He is and how He is working in us and around us. It’s not ordering our lives as “God, then, family, then job” – it is all God – at the center and permeating all of life. Let’s savor that a moment…all God.

2) Love* your neighbor as yourself. – 2nd Part of the Great Commandment

“And the second [great commandment] is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” – Matthew 22:39-40

“Am I my brother’s keeper?” “Who is my brother?” “Who is my neighbor?” – these questions take us to the heart of NOT being neglectful. We want to choose who this neighbor is. We want to be done when we’ve taken care of “our responsibilities” – our family, our school debt, our house payment. How does that make a Christ-follower any different than a decent law-abiding atheist? God doesn’t define “neighbor” for us because He holds onto the right (as righteous, holy, loving God ) of directing our attention to those for whom He will intervene through us…through us. It could be our own parents or children or it could be that friend who continues to struggle with addiction. Or it could be Bonno, the soon-to-be-orphan son of a beautiful South African mother dying of AIDS.

We, as God’s children, are to give God the freedom to love our neighbors through us, in whatever way He chooses… Why this is uncomfortable and convicting is a testament to our journey of being transformed into the image of Christ. What joy He means us to have in being His instruments of peace and redemption. [I am all kinds of prickly over this, myself. Praying for my own undoneness in this.]

3) Love* the Church

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching. – Hebrews 10:23-25

The church is flawed because it’s peopled by folks like us. Does it mean we get to desert it? Don’t need an answer for what the Word already states definitively. We’ve all heard the lament “I don’t go to church because it’s full of hypocrites.” What better place for us (hypocrites) to be?! It saddens my heart at how people have been hurt by “church folks”. I have had that experience myself. Church folks do not a church make. Church is the Body of Christ – the people of God – we’re His and on His mission until He takes us Home. If we are followers of Christ we don’t get to step away from His church. We need each other in very real, concrete, daily ways. There are no spectators in the Body of Christ, no second-string Christians, no one on the bench. God means us to be all-in, not just on Sunday, but every day – life on life, living Christ with each other and in our circles of influence. It’s messy, and uncomfortable, and other-worldly beautiful…when we wholly follow Christ together.

4) Love* the Nations – Fulfilling the Great Commission

And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. – Matthew 28:16-20

The nations have come to us. Still, there are peoples who will never be near enough to the Gospel message unless someone takes it to them. Through both demonstration and proclamation. We can’t leave this only to some elite group of trained vocational Christians. We are all called to fulfill the Great Commission. Every one of us is commanded to go to our neighbors and to the nations. How does that work? By a daily personal surrender and a Holy Spirit-driven intentionality believing that He will open doors as we step up and grip the handles. By truly loving – in word and deed – neighbors and nations. Here in this post-Christian era we find ourselves, more and more of the church are taking seriously our role in fulfilling the vision Christ gave us in His command: “a multitude from every language, people, tribe and nation worshipping our Lord Jesus Christ” (Revelation 7:9). The Great Commission is not just for pastors or overseas Christian workers – it’s meant for all of us – health care workers, engineers, teachers, stay-at-home moms, store clerks, technicians, students, and retirees…in the marketplace, wherever we are.

Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people. But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.” – Matthew 9:35-38

Jesus doesn’t call us to save the world…He calls us to respond to Him in obedience, one moment at a time, one life at a time…as we take Him at His word, He saves a world.

*Love – used in the fullest sense of that word – the Jesus sense of that word – not in the colloquial sense of that word – “Of course, I love my church, addict brother-in-law, controlling boss, lazy co-worker, Muslim neighbor…but…”

Family First! – Not a Biblical Viewpoint

Embracing the Biblical Tension Between Family and Church Ministry

What Does the Bible Say About Family?

World Hunger – Baptist Global Response

Overcoming Compassion Fatigue

What Does the Bible Say About Poverty?

A Neglected Grace – Family Worship – May I add Household Worship for Friends Who Share Housing?

Inspired, Jesus, Wednesday Worship, Word of God

Worship Wednesday – I AM – by Mark Schultz

September 17, 2014 admindeb Leave a comment

And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” – Exodus 3:14

Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. – Isaiah 41:10

The I AM declarations of God have captivated humankind through the ages. We are dumbfounded to think of God as I AM – fully present in the forever past, and the forever future, and with us in this very moment as well. We are dumbfounded and awestruck…at the I AM nature of God.

For Jesus to speak of himself in this same way is both fantastic and preposterous, if it were not true. Many in the world think of Jesus as a mere man, or prophet at best, on this earth for only a little more than 3 decades. Yet, his life and his influence are completely in tune with God the Father, such that how One is described resonates with the Other. Not multiple gods, but One – fully God, and, for a brief moment in eternity, fully man. One. I AM.

So many discourses in God’s Word draw us into the moment when human reason collides with the Divine. Here is one:

Then the Jews said to Him…”Are You greater than our father Abraham, who is dead? And the prophets are dead. Who do You make Yourself out to be?” Jesus answered, “If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing. It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say that He is your God. Yet you have not known Him, but I know Him. And if I say, ‘I do not know Him,’ I shall be a liar like you; but I do know Him and keep His word. Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.” Then the Jews said to Him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?” Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.” Then they took up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by. – John 8:52a, 53-59

Another time, I personally was faced with what Jesus said about himself which conflicted with what I wanted to be true at that time of my life. I was in my 20s, deeply in love with a man of a different religion and path in life. An older friend (for whom I’m grateful forever) reasoned lovingly and courageously with me over my relationships with God and this young man. As much as my emotions wanted something to be so that could not be, her words bringing me back to an I AM passage (John 14:6, below) restored my sight and cleared my vision of what is true.

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” – John 14:6

If I counted on this Jesus for myself, for my very life, and, at the same time, magically wished that another way would work for someone I loved, how can both be true? That night, on the floor of that older friend’s house, with the Bible open before us, my heart was filled anew with a fullness of love for the God I AM. [By the way, in that situation, that young man and I parted ways; he who had no use for Jesus married someone of his religion, and I eventually and joyfully married a Jesus-follower.]

In these days when having “no absolutes” is fashionable and logical to some, I am, more than ever, struck with the all-present Creator Redeemer God and our desperate need for Him. Not as a crutch…seriously? A crutch is not what we need…we need Him. As our very breath…our light for the next step…our strong arm in troubled times…our love forever.

Consider God’s declarations of I AM in His Word and those words in Mark Schultz’s song. Worship with me.

I Am by Mark Schultz*

I am the maker of the Heavens
I am the bright and morning star
I am the breath of all Creation
Who always was
And is to come

I am the One who walked on water
I am the One who calmed the seas
I am the miracles and wonders
So come and see
And follow me
You will know

Chorus:
I am the fount of living water
The risen Son of man
The healer of the broken
And when you cry
I am your savior and redeemer
Who bore the sins of man
The author and perfecter
Beginning and the end
I am

I am the spirit deep inside you
I am the word upon your heart
I am the One who even knew you
Before your birth
Before you were

Chorus:

Before the Earth (I am)
The universe (I am)
In every heart (I am)
Oh, where you are (I am)
The Lord of love (I am)
The King of Kings (I am)
The Holy lamb (I am)
Above all things

Chorus:

Yes, I am almighty God your father
The risen son of man
The healer of the broken
And when you cry
I am your savior and redeemer
Who bore the sins of man
The author and perfecter
Beginning and the end
I am

*Lyrics

YouTube video of I Am

Mark Schultz Music

Photo Credit – Album Cover – The Best of Mark Schultz

The “I AMs” of God Seeking Biblical Truth – The “I AM’s” of God

The “I Am’s” of Christ by Dr. Henry Morris

God, Inspired, Jesus, Lessons Learned, Lives Full of God, Music, Walk with God, Wednesday Worship, Word of God

Worship Wednesday – Wholly Yours – David Crowder

August 26, 2014 admindeb Leave a comment

As He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because as it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.” – 1 Peter 1:15-16

How can we be holy like God? How is that possible? These verses, and others in the Bible, on holiness have filled me with wonder both at God’s complete holiness and our frail flesh.

The Apostle Paul even said, in his letter to the Roman church, that the things he wants to do, he doesn’t, and the things he doesn’t want to do, he does. His lament over this (in Romans 7) is followed immediately by a declaration of faith: “O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!”

David Crowder wrote a song that revels in the holiness of God and His manifested holiness in us. It is Wholly Yours from the David Crowder*Band A Collision album (2005). The word holy means set apart, special, different from the world*. Being holy is not just about conduct or morality; being holy relates to who we are as Christ-followers. Saved from our sin by His death on the cross, and living transformed lives through the work of the Holy Spirit in us.

Crowder’s mom actually gave him the inspiration for the lyric of Wholly Yours. She wrote him, in a letter, about her own wrestling with how to “be holy as [He is] holy”. Then she told David how a friend sorted it out: “Covered by grace we, being in Christ, are holy as He is Holy, and thus the only hope we have for holiness is to bring the whole of our lives under the coverings of Christ. To be wholly under Christ’s rule and reign is to be found holy, as Christ is Holy.”

The more surrendered we are to God, the more our lives are His, moment by moment, to radiate who He is – His love, His grace, His holiness. When we are wholly His, we can amazingly be “holy as He is holy.”

Worship with me:

I am full of earth
You are heaven’s worth
I am stained with dirt, prone to depravity
You are everything that is bright and clean
The antonym of me
You are divinity
But a certain sign of grace is this
From the broken earth flowers come up
Pushing through the dirt

You are holy, holy, holy
All heaven cries “Holy, holy God”
You are holy, holy, holy
I want to be holy like You are

You are everything that is bright and clean
And You’re covering me with Your majesty
And the truest sign of grace was this
From wounded hands redemption fell down
Liberating man
But the harder I try the more clearly can I feel
The depth of our fall and the weight of it all
And so this might could be the most impossible thing
Your grandness in me making me clean

Glory, hallelujah
Glory, glory, hallelujah
So here I am, all of me
Finally everything
Wholly, wholly, wholly
I am wholly, wholly
I am wholly, wholly, wholly
Yours

I am full of earth and dirt and You.

Lyrics & Back Story

Crowder Music

What Does God Mean When He Asks Us to Be Holy as He Is Holy?

Destined to Be Holy – Oswald Chambers’ My Utmost for His Highest

J.C. Ryle on Holiness

*Definition of the Word Holy in Scripture

YouTube Video – Wholly Yours w/ Lyrics

Culture & Religion, Give, Go, God, Inspired, Jesus, Lessons Learned, Lives Full of God, Persecuted Church, Pray, Walk with God, Word of God, Workplace or Marketplace

We Grieve Differently – We Grieve with Hope

August 19, 2014 admindeb 1 Comment

[Adapted with permission -Abby Wallace – Marketplace Advance]

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. – 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

The news is almost more than we can bear. Violence, war, persecution, suffering, death, seeming hopelessness. We want to look away. Yet, we know we, as Christ-followers, are to confront such matters in ways different than the world. We cannot be silent or uninvolved. We cannot turn away.

Allow the encouragement through the Scripture below help you keep perspective, guard your hearts, and stay in the battle. Remember the battle belongs to the Lord, and we are His witnesses. There are not always words. Sometimes we can’t think of a thing to say to help…and yet, we are not to stand with our hands at our sides. We come near…reach in…take hold…we refuse to be put off by the world’s struggles. Jesus died for these embattled ones around us, and we are His people…meant to extend His love.

Through Christ, we have hope, and it’s ours to share. — But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. – 1 Thessalonians 4:13

The work He calls us to, we have the capacity to do. Somehow, as we obey, He lightens the burden. — Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” – Matthew 11:28-30

We are tempted to recoil from His work, to hide, to hope someone else will speak or act. He calls us as He called Joshua. Do we trust Him? –Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” – Joshua 1:9

His peace is what we bring to those around us. It makes a difference. — Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. – John 14:27

Our tendency is to turn our focus on the mess the world is in rather than on the One who is at work in the mess. He is present with us…and with those He’s brought near to us. — Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. – Philippians 4:6-8

We won’t understand what God is doing always, but we must persevere in prayer for those around us. — To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I take counsel in my soul and have sorrow in my heart all the day? How long shall my enemy be exalted over me? Consider and answer me, O Lord my God; light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death, lest my enemy say, “I have prevailed over him,” lest my foes rejoice because I am shaken. But I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation. – Psalm 13:1-5

As we persevere in prayer, God clears our vision and encourages us to keep trusting Him. — I love you, O LORD, my strength. The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies. The cords of death encompassed me; the torrents of destruction assailed me; the cords of Sheol entangled me; the snares of death confronted me. In my distress I called upon the LORD; to my God I cried for help. From his temple he heard my voice, and my cry to him reached his ears.- Psalm 18:1-6

When hardship comes, and it will, He has given us great promises to take us through. Believe Him. — But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I give Egypt as your ransom, Cush and Seba in exchange for you. Because you are precious in my eyes, and honored, and I love you, I give men in return for you, peoples in exchange for your life. Fear not, for I am with you; I will bring your offspring from the east, and from the west I will gather you. – Isaiah 43:1-5

Our constancy of faith, singularity of purpose, and perseverence through trials are strengths we bring to the battle – to our circle of influence – we won’t give up on God. It’s not over yet. — Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. – Philippians 3:13-14

An example of a life of faith in grief – Job — Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped. And he said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrong. – Job 1:20-22

An example of a life of faith after grief – David — David therefore sought God on behalf of the child. And David fasted and went in and lay all night on the ground. And the elders of his house stood beside him, to raise him from the ground, but he would not, nor did he eat food with them. On the seventh day the child died. And the servants of David were afraid to tell him that the child was dead, for they said, “Behold, while the child was yet alive, we spoke to him, and he did not listen to us. How then can we say to him the child is dead? He may do himself some harm.” But when David saw that his servants were whispering together, David understood that the child was dead. And David said to his servants, “Is the child dead?” They said, “He is dead.”Then David arose from the earth and washed and anointed himself and changed his clothes. And he went into the house of the Lord and worshiped. He then went to his own house. And when he asked, they set food before him, and he ate. – 2 Samuel 12:16-20

Our example of a life of complete obedience and love – Jesus — Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are healed. – Isaiah 53:1-12

As Christ-followers, we are His laborers in the Harvest – we are all His laborers. The marketplace wherever we are is crowded, even in times of war, with those who desperately need Him. – we are His workers; He will redeem. — When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” – Matthew 9:36-38

Baptist Global Response

What Does the Bible Say About Grief and Sorrow

Books, God, Inspired, Jesus, Walk with God, Word of God

The 3:16s of the Bible – Beautiful Glimpses of the Truths of God

August 16, 2014 admindeb Leave a comment

I love to come across passages that resonate for us the truths of other passages. This was my experience this week in reading 1 John 3 as I prepared to lead a women’s Bible study. Meditating on 1 John 3:16, my heart was lifted to praise God again for His great love that Jesus laid down His life for us. His life was not taken from Him…He laid it down…in obedience to the Father…for us to be restored to Him again. Then in this powerful little verse, John writes that we then ought to lay down our lives for each other.

[This reflects so perfectly the two greatest commandments that Jesus taught us to love God with all our being, and likewise, to love our neighbors in the same way we love our own selves (Matthew 22:34-40). How different the world would be if we all determined to obey these commands of Christ.]

As I lingered on 1 John 3, and verse 16, in particular, my thoughts shifted to another 3:16…the one in John’s Gospel. This verse we see on billboards and on signs at baseball games. It’s one of the first verses we memorize as children in church. We lean gratefully on the truth of this verse.

Whoever believes…whoever believes in Him…shall not perish…but have eternal life.

Wow!

1 John 3:16 and John 3:16. Life-changing truths at similar addresses. There are actually many interesting connections intertwined in verses like these throughout the Bible. Dr. Donald E. Knuth, a brilliant mathematician and computer scientist (Professor Emeritus, Stanford University), wrote about, of all things, the 3:16s. There are 59 of them in Scripture. In his beautifully written volume, 3:16 Bible Texts Illuminated, Dr. Knuth used 59 different calligraphers to illustrate these verses as he provided commentary and context.

The Word of God is so profoundly rich; valuable beyond our understanding really. And sometimes it moves an analytical mathematician, who loves the Scripture, to capture its beauty in just this way.

3:16 Bible Texts Illuminated by Donald E. Knuth

All the 3:16s in the Bible

The Bible’s 3:16 Verses Demonstrate Like Referenced Verse Themes

When were the books of the Bible divided into chapters and verses? Who did the dividing?

God, Home, Inspired, Jesus, Lessons Learned, Lives Full of God, Uncategorized, Walk with God, Word of God

At Home with God – Abiding in Him

August 1, 2014 admindeb Leave a comment

“And now, little children, abide in Him.” – 1 John 2:28

Home. Hopefully that brings happy thoughts to you. I grew up in a home wounded by desertion and divorce, but it was also the place and family where I met Jesus. My husband and I have made a home for our children across 4 countries. One way we told them they might answer the “Where’s home?” question was to say wherever our family was at the time. Now they all have their own homes. So, in truth, where is our home?

The word “abide” means simply “remain, stay.” A small group of women I love is studying John’s epistles this summer. “Abiding” was one of the themes. Last night we talked through 1 John 2. John also wrote, in his Gospel, the familiar “vine and branch” chapter on abiding in Christ (John 15). Remaining in Christ…

As followers of Christ, children of the Father, where else would we go?

One of the young women in the study talked about how abiding in Christ is being at home with God. It’s so true. We make our abode in Him. How appropriate…the place where “a light is always on”…the place where we are loved and accepted, where we’re taught truth, where we are family.

There, truly, is no place like home. Abiding in Christ…at home with God. Even in the deepest darkness of life…there is light in Him.

John Piper’s Sermon on John 8:31 on Abiding in Him

6 Ways to Abide in God

What Does It Mean to Abide in Christ?

Sinclair Ferguson’s word on Abiding in Christ

Abide in Christ by Andrew Murray

Abiding in Him in the Last Days – article by John Piper

God, Inspired, Walk with God, Wednesday Worship, Word of God

Worship Wednesday – Listening for His Voice through the Noise

July 16, 2014 admindeb 2 Comments

He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. – 1 John 4:4

There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. – Romans 8:1

All kinds of voices bang around in our heads. Some of those voices belong to family and friends who say things which wound us, whether they meant to or not. There are voices belonging to society that call us “judgers” or “haters”, when we know it’s not true. There are voices from our workplace (sounding like our own voice sometimes) that say we aren’t doing enough or doing our jobs well enough. Then there’s the voice of the Evil One speaking in the first person, with my accent, saying, “I’m too fat. I’m not smart. I’ll never get it right. I’m going to fail…again.”

There are nights when I struggle to fall asleep wondering how to fix what seems wrong, at the time, in my life or relationships. Fear, anxiety, sadness crowd out rest…but worry finally collapses into prayer. It’s then that the Holy Spirit’s quiet voice breaks through the noise, and my head clears. Reminded of what’s true. Peace restored.

In worship, the voices in our heads are silenced by the Voice in our hearts, speaking His Word to us…reminding us of who He is, and who we are, in Him…that we are “fearfully and wonderfully made”; we were chosen by Him; we are forgiven; His grace is sufficient for whatever comes; nothing can separate us from His love; and He will never leave us or forsake us…ever.

MercyMe’s song, Greater, from their Welcome to the New album (2014) describes this wrestling in the lives of believers. Until the day, we leave this place for Heaven, we will struggle against what the world says about God and about us, and we’ll cling to what God says…and what we know to be true in walking with Him.

God has used this song to lift my head, and, with joy and gratitude to Him and MercyMe, I invite you to worship with me, singing Greater.

Greater

Bring your tired; bring your shame; bring your guilt; bring your pain; Don’t you know that’s not your name. You will always be much more to me.

Everyday I wrestle with the voices that keep telling me I’m not right; But that’s alright.

‘Cause I hear a voice and He calls me redeemed; when others say I’ll never be enough. And greater is the One living inside of me than he who is living in the world. In the world. In the world.

And greater is the One living inside of me Than he who is living in the world.

Bring your doubts; bring your fears; bring your hurt; bring your tears There’ll be no condemnation here. You are holy, righteous and redeemed. Every time I fall, there’ll be those who will call me a mistake; well that’s ok.

(He’s greater, He’s greater)

There’ll be days I lose the battle; grace says that doesn’t matter ‘Cause the cross already won the war.

(He’s Greater, He’s Greater)

I am learning to run freely understanding just how He sees me and it makes me love Him more and more.

He’s Greater He’s Greater

My God is greater than he who is living in the world.

Mercy Me – Greater Lyrics | MetroLyrics

YouTube video of Greater with Lyrics

YouTube video of Bart Millard Telling Story Behind Song Greater

More of the Story

The Stupendous Reality of Being in Christ Jesus by John Piper

Inspired, Walk with God, Word of God

What if Romans 8 was the only Scripture Portion You Had

July 1, 2014 admindeb Leave a comment

The Apostle Paul’s letters to the churches must have been a great treasure to those believers, as they continue to be to us centuries later. His letter to the Romans, written in A.D. 57, is rich instruction and encouragement in the things of God. For those who want to know God in the fullness of His glory and to faithfully follow Christ, the book of Romans is invaluable. How grateful I am that God has preserved this letter over the ages, as He has done with all His Word, for our sakes.

Paul’s letter to the Romans is worth examination, no matter what your religious (or non-religious) affiliations. Sometimes when I read the Bible, the thought of “What if” comes to mind. What if I only had this portion of Scripture? How would it change my life? It’s dangerous for any of us to pull out bits of Scripture to order our lives without considering the whole counsel of God. Yet, in some parts of the world, the Bible is not available to everyone. There may come a day, when it might be censored where you live, if it isn’t already. It’s already precious, so to think we might not have it all, I read sometimes as if what I am reading is all I have of the instruction and character of God. Romans 8 was my focus this morning.

“There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.” (verses 1-2, Romans 8) You have to look back to Romans 7 to see what the “therefore” is there for…but in case, we only hypothetically have Romans 8 in our hands, let’s focus on what remains in the passage. No condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. No condemnation! What a glorious word for us who live under perceived condemnation (by self, Satan, or the world) every day. And with no condemnation comes the freedom we have in Christ. He has set us free. Amazing truth given our condition from birth apart from Him.

On a side note: Paul’s letter to the Roman believers also often refers to the perfect unity of God (in God the Father, God the Spirit, and God the Son). Watch for references to the Three-in-One – magnificent “Unity in Trinity”.

“But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.” (verses 10-11) No matter how deep our theological understanding is about life, we know that we wrestle daily with our flesh (body, sinful nature)…even as Christ-followers (not even…maybe more so). This struggle is with us until we leave this life. However, we are not alone in this. The Spirit of life (God), because Christ is in us, gives us life. Life here to choose to live according to God’s teaching and in His power…and life forever with Him. Let that wash over you this morning, Dear One.

“For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.” (verses 15-17) Here we see the witness of the unity of God in three persons as Paul further explains our position and inheritance in the Kingdom of God. We are adopted into His family. We are His heirs, fellow heirs with Christ! We share in the inheritance of Jesus which is His by divine right. Yet God the Father includes us…adopts us as His children. A casual read of this will not do. It is a mind-blowing gift from God!

On a side note: I’m sure the bit about suffering registered. Suffering is inevitable for all of us. It just is, and God tries to prepare us for it through His Word (including these great letter-writers). Yet, with the suffering comes glory. We share in the glory of Christ!

“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose.” (verse 28) This is such a familiar verse, often-quoted and sometimes misquoted in difficult circumstances of life. Still the truth of it resonates so well with us who follow Christ. God works good out of all things…no matter what…for those who love Him and for His purposes. We can take great comfort in this promise…great comfort in the One who makes this promise.

^“What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?” (verse 31) Enough said. Hallelujah!

“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? …No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (verses 35, 37-39) No matter how evil the times are in which we find ourselves. No matter what the course of our lives. Nothing will separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. Nothing. Nada. No matter the press of confusing circumstances or the prosecutorial arguments of the world or the evil whispers of Satan himself lying in our ears…God tells us that we are more than conquerors through Him and that absolutely nothing will separate us from His love. That is the message Paul delivered to the Roman believers in this letter. They understood and clung to this message during a horrific time in history, and, one day, we will join them, worshipping the God of these great words.

This was my word from God this early morning…still resonating all these years after it was written. My life is steadied and course set on a foundation that is not shaken…thanks to a God who preserved His word for us to the present, and for as long as this world continues…as He purposes and in His love.

Romans 8 (and the rest of God’s Word) in Many Languages

Called According to His Purpose

The Preservation of the Bible

How We Got the Bible