This morning, I am thinking about all the things I am grateful for. Here is my list:
1. My eternal security and assurance of salvation (my eternal home when I die here on earth is with God in His kingdom in heaven).
2. The Scripture that clearly confirms my assurance.
3. My loving husband, and our marriage relationship.
4. My loving family and friends, so supportive of me, esp my parents.
5. My church, and all believers in Jesus, those I worship with, those I serve with, those who keep me accountable and remind me that my behavior here matters with their grace and love! All of God's Church in Jesus, reminds me He is God, and He is much bigger than me and I am a part of His great plan.
Looking back to number 2. I look at Luke 23:42-43
"Then he said, 'Jesus, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.' And Jesus replied, 'I assure you, today you will be with me in paradise.'" (Luke 23:42-43)
I absolutely love this passage, this man asking Jesus to remember him is a criminal, about to die. He just repented of his sins, and the big thing he did was recognize who Jesus is. He confessed Jesus as the Son of God. Jesus himself assured him, TODAY you will be with me in paradise.
John 5:24
"I assure you, those who listen to my message and believe in God who sent me have eternal life. They will never be condemned for their sins, but they have already passed from death into life."
Luke 10:20
"Rejoice because your names are registered as citizens of heaven."
Romans 8:1-2
"So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. For the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you through Christ Jesus from the power of sin that leads to death."
1 Peter 1:3-5
"All honor to God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, for it is by his boundless mercy that God has given us the privilege of being born again. Now we live with a wonderful expectation because Jesus Christ rose again from the dead. For God has reserved a priceless inheritance for his children. It is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay. And God, in his mighty power, will protect you until you receive this salavation, because you are trusting him. It will be revealed on the last day for all to see."
There are more. Whenever I struggle with doubt, I look to Him and His word, so I know that no matter what others may say or think, this is something I can always be grateful for.
Monday, June 13, 2011
Monday, May 30, 2011
To stand.
This morning, during my quiet time, randomly Harold Camping came to mind. I thought, "Lord, didn't you say?..." I opened my Bible and turned right to Matthew 24:36, He says, "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angles in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father."
Yeah, I thought so.
When lies are all around us, even coming from 'so called Christians' (and who's to say, because H. Camping could have his trust in Christ, although; listening to some of his interviews I fear his theology is way off base and it sure sounds like he is taking advantage of some naive people) What are we to do?
I looked around Chapter 24 of Matthew to see if I could find something, God always reveals His truth when our goal is to know Him more.
Matthew 24:13 says,
"but he who stands firm to the end will be saved."
Stands. A present tense verb, an action. And it is repeated throughout Scripture as instruction for God's people. Stand. Not ' defend,' not 'be on the offense,' not 'be agreeable' but simply to stand. The American Heritage Dictionary defines stand: To rise to an upright position. To assume or maintain an upright position. To remain stable, valid, or intact.
Paul loved to remind the early church members to stand.
1 Corinthians 15:1
"Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand."
2 Corinthians 1:21
"Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ He anointed us"
2 Corinthians 1: 24 (one of my early favorites)
"Not that we lord it over your faith, but we work with you for your joy, because it is by faith you stand firm."
Ephesians 6:11
"Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes."
Galatians 5:1
"It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery."
There are actually, many, many more. If you want to find them, do a word search on biblegateway.com.
Because God is God in the Old Testament as well as the New, He instructed us to stand for Him before Jesus came to earth.
Isaiah 7:9
"If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all."
It sounds simple, but it is not. In most of the passages, the way we stand is described as 'firm' to 'stand firm.' My natural disposition fights me on this. Trusting in the gospel, is standing in the knowledge of the finished work of Jesus Christ.
But my natural tendency is to argue and need to be in control, be critical of others and become bitter, think I need to fix others' problems, need to be right, worry, compete with others or compare myself to others, or compromise.
One of the hardest things about being a Christian is just trusting in the power of Christ! We really have nothing to prove, and that can be hard to remember. So, I pray that God continues to work in me because even when I stumble and fall, I always want to stand firm with Him.
Yeah, I thought so.
When lies are all around us, even coming from 'so called Christians' (and who's to say, because H. Camping could have his trust in Christ, although; listening to some of his interviews I fear his theology is way off base and it sure sounds like he is taking advantage of some naive people) What are we to do?
I looked around Chapter 24 of Matthew to see if I could find something, God always reveals His truth when our goal is to know Him more.
Matthew 24:13 says,
"but he who stands firm to the end will be saved."
Stands. A present tense verb, an action. And it is repeated throughout Scripture as instruction for God's people. Stand. Not ' defend,' not 'be on the offense,' not 'be agreeable' but simply to stand. The American Heritage Dictionary defines stand: To rise to an upright position. To assume or maintain an upright position. To remain stable, valid, or intact.
Paul loved to remind the early church members to stand.
1 Corinthians 15:1
"Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand."
2 Corinthians 1:21
"Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ He anointed us"
2 Corinthians 1: 24 (one of my early favorites)
"Not that we lord it over your faith, but we work with you for your joy, because it is by faith you stand firm."
Ephesians 6:11
"Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes."
Galatians 5:1
"It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery."
There are actually, many, many more. If you want to find them, do a word search on biblegateway.com.
Because God is God in the Old Testament as well as the New, He instructed us to stand for Him before Jesus came to earth.
Isaiah 7:9
"If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all."
It sounds simple, but it is not. In most of the passages, the way we stand is described as 'firm' to 'stand firm.' My natural disposition fights me on this. Trusting in the gospel, is standing in the knowledge of the finished work of Jesus Christ.
But my natural tendency is to argue and need to be in control, be critical of others and become bitter, think I need to fix others' problems, need to be right, worry, compete with others or compare myself to others, or compromise.
One of the hardest things about being a Christian is just trusting in the power of Christ! We really have nothing to prove, and that can be hard to remember. So, I pray that God continues to work in me because even when I stumble and fall, I always want to stand firm with Him.
Thursday, May 26, 2011
THIS
By: Sally Llyod-Jones in The Storybook Bible
"Now, some people think the Bible is a book of rules, telling you what you should and shouldn't do. The Bible certainly does have some rules in it. They show you how life works best. But the Bible isn't mainly about you and what you should be doing. It's about God and what he has done. Other people think the Bible is a book of heroes, showing you people you should copy. The Bible does have some heroes in it, but (as you'll soon find out) most of the people in the Bible aren't heroes at all. They make some big mistakes (sometimes on purpose). They get afraid and run away. At times they are downright mean. No, the Bible isn't a book of rules, or a book of heroes. The Bible is most of all a Story. It's an adventure story about a young Hero who comes from a far country to win back his lost treasure. It's a love story about a brave Prince who leaves his palace, his throne - everything - to rescue the one he loves. It's like the most wonderful of fairy tales that has come true in real life!
You see, the best thing about this Story is - it's true. There are lots of stories in the Bible, but all the stories are telling one Big Story.The Story of how God loves his children and comes to rescue them. It takes the whole Bible to tell this Story. And at the center of the Story, there is a baby. Every Story in the Bible whispers his name. He is like the missing piece in a puzzle - the piece that makes all the other pieces fit together, and suddenly you can see a beautiful picture. And this is no ordinary baby. This is the Child upon whom everything would depend."
(Lloyd-Jones, The Jesus Storybook Bible)
"Now, some people think the Bible is a book of rules, telling you what you should and shouldn't do. The Bible certainly does have some rules in it. They show you how life works best. But the Bible isn't mainly about you and what you should be doing. It's about God and what he has done. Other people think the Bible is a book of heroes, showing you people you should copy. The Bible does have some heroes in it, but (as you'll soon find out) most of the people in the Bible aren't heroes at all. They make some big mistakes (sometimes on purpose). They get afraid and run away. At times they are downright mean. No, the Bible isn't a book of rules, or a book of heroes. The Bible is most of all a Story. It's an adventure story about a young Hero who comes from a far country to win back his lost treasure. It's a love story about a brave Prince who leaves his palace, his throne - everything - to rescue the one he loves. It's like the most wonderful of fairy tales that has come true in real life!
You see, the best thing about this Story is - it's true. There are lots of stories in the Bible, but all the stories are telling one Big Story.The Story of how God loves his children and comes to rescue them. It takes the whole Bible to tell this Story. And at the center of the Story, there is a baby. Every Story in the Bible whispers his name. He is like the missing piece in a puzzle - the piece that makes all the other pieces fit together, and suddenly you can see a beautiful picture. And this is no ordinary baby. This is the Child upon whom everything would depend."
(Lloyd-Jones, The Jesus Storybook Bible)
Saturday, May 7, 2011
What if there's a bigger picture?
These past several weeks I have been struggling with something that I hate. I found myself thinking highly negative and critical thoughts toward others, nagging and resentment toward even loved ones. Harboring and voicing distain toward others' wrongs. It is difficult to see in yourself the very things you know is wrong, that you can so easily see in other people.
I have been thinking about John 3:17 "For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him." At first, I said, how nice, thanks Jesus. I like to personalize God's word to me, "For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn Haley, but to save Haley through him." Okay, save me from what? Well, that took me about 26 years to figure out. If Jesus did NOT come into the world to condemn (definition: to pronounce to be guilty; sentence to punishment) us, but to save (definition: to preserve something from harm, injury, loss, etc) us then what is it He is saving us from? Well, just what I stated above, my sin. Not only the hateful thinking of today, but of all my past sin and future sin. He came for the rest of the world too, to save us from all the sin here on earth, one person at a time.
In honor of Mother's Day, I want to illustrate what God is doing here. When my little sister was younger, like 2 years old, she would get sick with ear infections or flu or something. My mom would take her to the doctor who would perscribe some medicine. It was always a liquid medication, and Aubrey would refuse to take it. Mom knew it would help make her better, she pleaded and even at one point pinned her down to open her mouth to take it. But Aubrey would just spit it right back up in her face! That did not stop mom from desperately wanting Aubrey to agree to just swallow the medicine, knowing that it may not taste good right off, but would soon make her feel much, much better.
When I finally agree to swallow my pride, and take in the love and grace of God in Jesus, I feel much better and stronger.
This came to light for me this week. I am reading a book, Half the Sky, recommended by some ladies at our church and I quickly became critical, while overlooking the amazing job these authors put forth. Some background, this married couple, journalists investigate and bring forth the stories of women in our world today in what can only be considered our society's slavery and modern slave trade. Hundreds and thousands of women due to poverty or just in unsafe circumstances get tricked and sold into forced prostitution and are fiercely abused. They also discuss issues in countries like China and India "disappearing women" phenomion. One point the authors made confused me a little in his conclusion.
In China, women are under so much pressure from their culture and economic situations, to have sons and not daughters, that at one point when given ultrasounds if they found that the baby was a girl they would select to have an abortion. This is so sad, and a tragic problem because hundreds of girls were 'going missing' as the chapter first began in stating the problem of 'missing girls' So, regulations were made so that pregnant women were not allowed to know the gender of the child from the ultrasound. Sadly, this has led to the problem of neglected and abadoned babies---girls, in China. The author then insinuates that an easy solution to this would be to allow selective abortions......wait, what? Solve a problem with another problem? I felt this was a contradiction, and I get upset when people want to 'put bandaids over huge surgical wounds' so to speak. Just wash your hands of it rather than looking at the root of the problem. Now, the authors do spend time in other chapters doing just that, and they do talk about the heart of these issues and what we can do about it. But in this instance, I did not like how they suggest to solve one problem by using another. In these issues, I know there are no easy solutions. This book illustrated and discussed openly many of the major sins that have taken hold in our society, but what I really liked about the book is the authors gave some redemption stories.
One like Rath, a young Cambodian woman who went to Thailand thinking she was getting a job washing dishes and was instead forced into a brothel where she was betten, raped, and drugged routinuely. After more than one attempt, she finally escaped and when she returned to Cambodia there was an aid group in place that was able to give her a $400 starter loan so that Rath could start her own small business selling drinks, snacks, and souvenirs to tourists at the Thai-Cambodian border walk.
John 3:16 is a famous Bible quote, you might see it on billboards or shopping bags even. "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."
"For God so loved Haley...."
"For God so loved Zach..."
"For God so loved Dan...."
"For God so loved Rachael..."
"For God so loved Aubrey...."
"For God so loved Helen..."
"For God so loved Charlie...."
"For God so loved Atticus..."
"For God so loved Rath that he gave his one and only Son for her, that if Rath believes in him she shall not perish but have eternal life."
No matter where you are, what kind of culture you live in, and what status you have here, God desperately wants you. And these women's stories remind me of how God loves each of us, and wants us to turn to Him.
I have been thinking about John 3:17 "For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him." At first, I said, how nice, thanks Jesus. I like to personalize God's word to me, "For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn Haley, but to save Haley through him." Okay, save me from what? Well, that took me about 26 years to figure out. If Jesus did NOT come into the world to condemn (definition: to pronounce to be guilty; sentence to punishment) us, but to save (definition: to preserve something from harm, injury, loss, etc) us then what is it He is saving us from? Well, just what I stated above, my sin. Not only the hateful thinking of today, but of all my past sin and future sin. He came for the rest of the world too, to save us from all the sin here on earth, one person at a time.
In honor of Mother's Day, I want to illustrate what God is doing here. When my little sister was younger, like 2 years old, she would get sick with ear infections or flu or something. My mom would take her to the doctor who would perscribe some medicine. It was always a liquid medication, and Aubrey would refuse to take it. Mom knew it would help make her better, she pleaded and even at one point pinned her down to open her mouth to take it. But Aubrey would just spit it right back up in her face! That did not stop mom from desperately wanting Aubrey to agree to just swallow the medicine, knowing that it may not taste good right off, but would soon make her feel much, much better.
When I finally agree to swallow my pride, and take in the love and grace of God in Jesus, I feel much better and stronger.
This came to light for me this week. I am reading a book, Half the Sky, recommended by some ladies at our church and I quickly became critical, while overlooking the amazing job these authors put forth. Some background, this married couple, journalists investigate and bring forth the stories of women in our world today in what can only be considered our society's slavery and modern slave trade. Hundreds and thousands of women due to poverty or just in unsafe circumstances get tricked and sold into forced prostitution and are fiercely abused. They also discuss issues in countries like China and India "disappearing women" phenomion. One point the authors made confused me a little in his conclusion.
In China, women are under so much pressure from their culture and economic situations, to have sons and not daughters, that at one point when given ultrasounds if they found that the baby was a girl they would select to have an abortion. This is so sad, and a tragic problem because hundreds of girls were 'going missing' as the chapter first began in stating the problem of 'missing girls' So, regulations were made so that pregnant women were not allowed to know the gender of the child from the ultrasound. Sadly, this has led to the problem of neglected and abadoned babies---girls, in China. The author then insinuates that an easy solution to this would be to allow selective abortions......wait, what? Solve a problem with another problem? I felt this was a contradiction, and I get upset when people want to 'put bandaids over huge surgical wounds' so to speak. Just wash your hands of it rather than looking at the root of the problem. Now, the authors do spend time in other chapters doing just that, and they do talk about the heart of these issues and what we can do about it. But in this instance, I did not like how they suggest to solve one problem by using another. In these issues, I know there are no easy solutions. This book illustrated and discussed openly many of the major sins that have taken hold in our society, but what I really liked about the book is the authors gave some redemption stories.
One like Rath, a young Cambodian woman who went to Thailand thinking she was getting a job washing dishes and was instead forced into a brothel where she was betten, raped, and drugged routinuely. After more than one attempt, she finally escaped and when she returned to Cambodia there was an aid group in place that was able to give her a $400 starter loan so that Rath could start her own small business selling drinks, snacks, and souvenirs to tourists at the Thai-Cambodian border walk.
John 3:16 is a famous Bible quote, you might see it on billboards or shopping bags even. "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."
"For God so loved Haley...."
"For God so loved Zach..."
"For God so loved Dan...."
"For God so loved Rachael..."
"For God so loved Aubrey...."
"For God so loved Helen..."
"For God so loved Charlie...."
"For God so loved Atticus..."
"For God so loved Rath that he gave his one and only Son for her, that if Rath believes in him she shall not perish but have eternal life."
No matter where you are, what kind of culture you live in, and what status you have here, God desperately wants you. And these women's stories remind me of how God loves each of us, and wants us to turn to Him.
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Easter Weekend
Last night, Zach and I attended our church's Good Friday service. It was a great time to reflect on the most important aspect of our faith in Jesus Christ. If Jesus had not died for our sins, he would have been just a moral teacher ( and, honestly, a nut job since he claimed to be God!) We could not have the joy of Easter faith without the sorrow of Good Friday. We all together read the prophesy reading in Isaiah 53:2-12 written hundreds of years before Jesus' birth. It is pretty remarkable. God had this planned all along. Since the fall of man, God began His work to redeem us! This reading is quite beautiful.
Isaiah 53:2-12
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. By oppression and judgement he was taken away. And who can speak of his descendants? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was stricken. He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it was the Lord's will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand. After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life and be satisfied, by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities. Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
One part in there especially struck me, v. 10 says, "Yet it was the Lord's will to crush him and cause him to suffer" How have you suffered this year? Reason tells us, "Isn't God loving??" so why would He want us to suffer? We all have it in us, a yearning for an Eden-like world. I know, I have family members who I see especially have a desire for the ideal world. Truth is, God made us that way, and we DID have Eden, but we sinned. We believed the lie that we can be "good without God" we gave into pride, and so suffering and death is the penalty. But God, being all loving, has mercy, He came here to earth Himself through Jesus and suffered and died so that we might be saved.
Ok, so I have accepted Jesus as the "intercession" for my sins. So, why do I still suffer? Paul says in Romans to rejoice in suffering. For suffering produces perseverance, character and hope. While we are here we remember that God never wastes our suffering experiences, but uses it, if we allow Him. We also need to remember that God cares deeply, and has compassion for us (Matthew 14:14). The story doesn't end here. In verse 11, it says "after the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life." It was true for Jesus, and it is true for all of us who believe in Him!
Revelation 21:1,4 says, "Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth...there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."
Isaiah 53:2-12
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. By oppression and judgement he was taken away. And who can speak of his descendants? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was stricken. He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it was the Lord's will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand. After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life and be satisfied, by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities. Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
One part in there especially struck me, v. 10 says, "Yet it was the Lord's will to crush him and cause him to suffer" How have you suffered this year? Reason tells us, "Isn't God loving??" so why would He want us to suffer? We all have it in us, a yearning for an Eden-like world. I know, I have family members who I see especially have a desire for the ideal world. Truth is, God made us that way, and we DID have Eden, but we sinned. We believed the lie that we can be "good without God" we gave into pride, and so suffering and death is the penalty. But God, being all loving, has mercy, He came here to earth Himself through Jesus and suffered and died so that we might be saved.
Ok, so I have accepted Jesus as the "intercession" for my sins. So, why do I still suffer? Paul says in Romans to rejoice in suffering. For suffering produces perseverance, character and hope. While we are here we remember that God never wastes our suffering experiences, but uses it, if we allow Him. We also need to remember that God cares deeply, and has compassion for us (Matthew 14:14). The story doesn't end here. In verse 11, it says "after the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life." It was true for Jesus, and it is true for all of us who believe in Him!
Revelation 21:1,4 says, "Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth...there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."
Saturday, April 2, 2011
I better check myself before I wreck myself
Zach here-I want to thank Haley for giving me the honor of being a guest blogger! I have been so encouraged by her blog posts and impressed with her insights. Having never posted on a blog, I have been a little unsure as to what I should write about but here goes...
I want to share some of the things I think God has been working to fix in my thinking. Perhaps you can identify and perhaps not. I am an intellectual property attorney and I spend most of my time working for people who are fairly wealthy and relatively well educated. Likewise, my work colleagues are all attorneys who have both technical and law degrees. Almost all of my friends are college educated and for the most part are doing fairly well financially now that we are in our thirties. The church Haley and I are members of has a congregation that, with some exceptions, is mostly white and upper middle class. In short, there is a real danger that I can live my life in a bubble, which is what I have been doing lately. However, this kind of life is completely contrary to what I think (per scripture) God would have his followers doing.
I started thinking about this a few weeks ago after I spent a half-day as a potential juror in the Dallas County criminal court system. Yes, we attorneys are not exempt from jury duty, even though we are not usually picked as jurors (I didn't get picked). As a potential juror, I was privy to hearing the opinions of my fellow Dallas County citizens. Although many of my fellow jurors seemed like very fine people, a number of other individuals seemed like, how can I say this, pure white trash. During breaks, I heard a couple of them discussing their own future court dates for various charges and just how drunk they had gotten the night before.
I have lived and worked with all types of criminals and addicts previously in my life. You might be surprised to hear that not all of them were lawyers. ;) When I worked on a dock at a fish processing plant in Alaska one summer when I was 19, almost all of my friends/co-workers were felons of some kind or likely on their way to becoming felons if they didn't change paths. Many of them were also hooked on something or another. However, that seems like a long time ago now and I found myself at jury duty beginning to harbor all kinds of negative thoughts about many of my fellow potential jurors. I was annoyed with them and quite frankly, looked down on them. I wanted to get as far away from them as fast as possible. This is when I think God started to work in my heart and I began to question my thinking.
Basically, I think God is revealing just how prideful I am and how wrongheaded my thoughts are. I think my internal thinking was along these lines: my education, perceived morality and upbringing makes me better than the people I was annoyed with and more valuable in God's sight. What a joke. This is undeniably false according to God's word. Not only that, this kind of self-righteous thinking is sinful and will render me much less likely to be used by God.
First, I need to check myself and realize that God isn't at all impressed with how much I think I've accomplished apart from Him:
Isaiah 64:6:
"All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away."
In fact, I would say that I have done nothing in my life of any truly lasting value apart from God's active involvement. Jesus's teachings as written in the Gospel of John support this conclusion:
John 15:1-5:
1 “I [Jesus] am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.
Second, I need to remember that God loved the entire world of screwed up people (like me) and sent Jesus to deliver us from the condemnation that we deserve as a result of our rebellion against Him:
John 3:16:
16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
I note from the foregoing famous scripture verses that there is nothing in there about God only loving and using the educated, well-off, non-annoying and the superficially righteous. In contrast, from what I can tell, God has instead made it a habit to pick out the non-educated (many of Jesus's disciples-see Acts 4:13), annoying (Zacchaeus the tax collector) and initially blatantly sinful (Saul/Paul) for his most important work.
The truth is that we are all sick and in the same boat. We all need a savior to heal us:
Luke 5:16-17:
16 When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?” 17 On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
I pray that God would help me see when pride enters into my thinking and that He will help me root it out so that I can be effective in sharing His love for the world.
I want to share some of the things I think God has been working to fix in my thinking. Perhaps you can identify and perhaps not. I am an intellectual property attorney and I spend most of my time working for people who are fairly wealthy and relatively well educated. Likewise, my work colleagues are all attorneys who have both technical and law degrees. Almost all of my friends are college educated and for the most part are doing fairly well financially now that we are in our thirties. The church Haley and I are members of has a congregation that, with some exceptions, is mostly white and upper middle class. In short, there is a real danger that I can live my life in a bubble, which is what I have been doing lately. However, this kind of life is completely contrary to what I think (per scripture) God would have his followers doing.
I started thinking about this a few weeks ago after I spent a half-day as a potential juror in the Dallas County criminal court system. Yes, we attorneys are not exempt from jury duty, even though we are not usually picked as jurors (I didn't get picked). As a potential juror, I was privy to hearing the opinions of my fellow Dallas County citizens. Although many of my fellow jurors seemed like very fine people, a number of other individuals seemed like, how can I say this, pure white trash. During breaks, I heard a couple of them discussing their own future court dates for various charges and just how drunk they had gotten the night before.
I have lived and worked with all types of criminals and addicts previously in my life. You might be surprised to hear that not all of them were lawyers. ;) When I worked on a dock at a fish processing plant in Alaska one summer when I was 19, almost all of my friends/co-workers were felons of some kind or likely on their way to becoming felons if they didn't change paths. Many of them were also hooked on something or another. However, that seems like a long time ago now and I found myself at jury duty beginning to harbor all kinds of negative thoughts about many of my fellow potential jurors. I was annoyed with them and quite frankly, looked down on them. I wanted to get as far away from them as fast as possible. This is when I think God started to work in my heart and I began to question my thinking.
Basically, I think God is revealing just how prideful I am and how wrongheaded my thoughts are. I think my internal thinking was along these lines: my education, perceived morality and upbringing makes me better than the people I was annoyed with and more valuable in God's sight. What a joke. This is undeniably false according to God's word. Not only that, this kind of self-righteous thinking is sinful and will render me much less likely to be used by God.
First, I need to check myself and realize that God isn't at all impressed with how much I think I've accomplished apart from Him:
Isaiah 64:6:
"All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away."
In fact, I would say that I have done nothing in my life of any truly lasting value apart from God's active involvement. Jesus's teachings as written in the Gospel of John support this conclusion:
John 15:1-5:
1 “I [Jesus] am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.
Second, I need to remember that God loved the entire world of screwed up people (like me) and sent Jesus to deliver us from the condemnation that we deserve as a result of our rebellion against Him:
John 3:16:
16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
I note from the foregoing famous scripture verses that there is nothing in there about God only loving and using the educated, well-off, non-annoying and the superficially righteous. In contrast, from what I can tell, God has instead made it a habit to pick out the non-educated (many of Jesus's disciples-see Acts 4:13), annoying (Zacchaeus the tax collector) and initially blatantly sinful (Saul/Paul) for his most important work.
The truth is that we are all sick and in the same boat. We all need a savior to heal us:
Luke 5:16-17:
16 When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?” 17 On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
I pray that God would help me see when pride enters into my thinking and that He will help me root it out so that I can be effective in sharing His love for the world.
Friday, March 11, 2011
Coming soon....
As many, or maybe a few of you, may know, I like my television. So, right now I am excited to be like a TV host on my own show through this blog.
Coming soon, on Haley's Blog.........we will be having a guest star!!!!
My amazing and Christ-centered husband, Zach Hilton, will be writing and posting his thoughts making his first guest appearance on John 3:30 blog. Stay tuned!! ;-)
Coming soon, on Haley's Blog.........we will be having a guest star!!!!
My amazing and Christ-centered husband, Zach Hilton, will be writing and posting his thoughts making his first guest appearance on John 3:30 blog. Stay tuned!! ;-)
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