Most of my blogs are written in the evenings. I don’t typically blog in the morning because when I wake up on time, that time is reserved for communication with the Lord.
This morning though, I feel like I need to blog to sort out what I believe God is showing me.
I got a new Bible study to hold me over until the Beth Moore Womens Bible Study begins in February. I have never heard of Margaret Feinberg before, but she is a member of LifeWay and I stumbled across her Bible study – Wonderstruck: Awaken to the Nearness of God”. The focus of the study is to help people who fall into a rut and start just going through the motions of Christianity without the spark and vibrancy that a relationship with God is meant to have. So it caught my attention and I decided to begin it this morning.
I couldn’t get past the first question. God would not let me just answer and move on – it was something to ponder and discuss with Him. The first question was: what takes away the wonder of God in your life? She gave the examples of busyness and responsibility and asked us to add our own. I could have written several answers, but God asked me to recall my last 48 hours – and when I thought about them, I was ashamed of myself.
Forty-eight hours ago, I was on my way to church. I was feeling neutral about it – wasn’t excited, wasn’t dreading it – just kinda doing what I do on a Sunday morning. Worship ended up being extra sweet. It does not happen every week but it was one of those intimate worship times where I forgot that I was in a room full of people. It was just me and the Lord – I forgot everything and everyone else. See when I really stop and look at who He is, and the fact that He has invited me into a personal relationship with Him, I really am “wonderstruck” and the rest of the details of my life seem inconsequential.
Worship was followed by a message that I really needed – I was wondering if Pastor Jay knew that there were other people in the room besides me. Lol. Church was followed by breakfast with two friends that I could not possibly love more than I do. I am often wonderstruck when I consider that God blessed with me with a good friendship with them and not just a casual acquaintance. It’s one of the ways He reminds me of His love for me.
So then I went home and did some housework for a few hours. Around 4:30, I decided that I didn’t want to spend the rest of the day alone and I tried to hook up with several people. No one was available. I tried not to get too bummed out, but I knew I would spend all day Monday alone too and a small pity party started to creep in. I fought it as best I could, and ended the day reading in my chronological one year Bible.
Monday morning – woke up at 3:30 am and could not fall back to sleep. Laid in bed semi-praying for an hour, then decided to get up and shower. I mean – I felt wide awake.
After showering and dressing for the day, I sat on the couch with the Bible. Bad move – better to read at the desk. I ended up falling asleep on the couch until 7:45 – time for work.
Monday went downhill rapidly. Both at work and out of work the day filled up with just…. crap. That is the nicest term I can come up with for it… crap. A couple of disappointing personal emails, several aggravating phone conversations, the pile just keep getting bigger and Raquel kept getting crankier. I thought that 5pm would bring relief, but it didn’t. I typically don’t watch the news, but I did because of the record breaking weather. Something on the news sparked a Facebook debate (started by an acquaintance of mine) and I allowed myself to get sucked in. While engaged in that nonsense, I saw a post by a well known and well respected person that just shocked me to my core. I was appalled. Thankfully, the Holy Spirit kicked that self control into gear and I did not comment, because the words I had were sharp and hurtful. Though I said nothing, it took awhile to shake how shocked I was. It was the icing on the cake of crap for the day.
Notice something? Notice how 3 paragraphs ago I am talking about intimacy with God and noticing His rich blessings and love. Now, after a day and half of crap – my view of God is almost non-existent.
Obviously, this is not God’s fault. But what happened? How did I go from one extreme to the other so quickly? I think the answer is in the title of my new Bible study – Wonderstruck. I went from being wonderstruck with who God is to being wonderstruck (in a bad way) at how messed up this world is.
Now both aspects are certainly true. This world is one messed up place and we (including me) are one messed up people. Thus, the need for a Savior.
My downfall was allowing that ever growing pile of crap to obscure my view of a perfect God. I became so focused and flabbergasted with the nonsense that I lost the sense of awe that was so real and intimate less than 48 hours ago.
The story isn’t new – not for me or anyone else. The typical Peter: walking on water when his eyes are on Jesus, sinking in the storm when his eyes are on the waves.
I think God had me type this out so I could see how my downward spiral occurred. Now that I clearly see the need and purpose for it, I am excited to begin this Bible study. My hope is that I will get better and improve on staying wonderstruck with who God is and not get wrapped up in the mess of the world.
Jesus said that in this world we would have trouble, but He has overcome the world. (John 16:33) He is greater than that big pile of crap and my job is to turn my eyes to Him and then the things of this world will grow strangely dim – and I will grow … wonderstruck.
Tuesday, January 7, 2014
Thursday, January 2, 2014
Did God Really Say?
As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, I have had several blog topics on the stove. Some of them were a little heavy and I hesitated to post heavy stuff during Christmas. Plus, as I mentioned, I just wasn’t in a blogging mood. Tonight, some surprising events turned up on Facebook that turned up the heat on one of the burners of the stove - and a topic is boiling over, causing a blog post.
The thought for this blog post originated on December 10th, the evening I was in a classroom instead of at the All Worship Night. Due to bad weather, we had a final exam and a group speech presentation on the same night. My classmates and I got there early to rehearse our speech and load our power point on to the computer. About 20 minutes before the start of class, we sat down to do some last minute studying for the final exam.
A couple of students began chatting with the professor. The awkward part was that one student was on my left and the other was on my right and the professor was in front of me. They decided to bash the Catholic church. Ironic – sitting in a Catholic University. But whatever. I didn’t participate. I kept looking at my study guide. Their conversation morphed into bashing all churches, though they all admitted to attending one presently. Still looking at my study guide, I hear the professor say “well the Bible has errors in it.”
That made me sad, but I still didn’t look up. The girl to my left says “it’s all about love and peace”. I wanted to scream “no honey, the 60s were all about love and peace! The Bible is about Jesus.” Eventually, the professor noticed that I had been staring at the same paragraph on the study guide for 20 minutes and says to me: “I hope we are not offending you, Raquel”.
I was offended – but not with those three ladies. I was offended because once again I could sense the most horrific sound there has ever been – the sound of the enemy laughing. I could sense that sinister snicker as he continues to deceive people with the exact same lie used to deceive Eve in the Garden of Eden. He has been saying the same lie since the beginning of time, and we keep falling for it – making his job so easy.
Just before the holidays, North Way did a sermon series called Enemy in the Shadows and they discussed some of the enemy’s tactics. Pastor Kent spoke about the tools of deception and doubt. We all know the story … God puts Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. The garden was filled with trees of many kinds and God tells them they may eat the fruit of ANY tree in the garden EXCEPT one. That was it. Happy eating – just don’t eat from one tree. In Genesis 3 the enemy comes along and says “did God really say that you must not eat from ANY of the trees in the garden?”. Note how he twisted God’s words just slightly – but changed the whole meaning. God never said they couldn’t eat from any tree – in fact, He said have at it! Eat what you want – just stay away from one. The enemy makes it out like God is the big mean dictator depriving Adam and Eve of something good. Eve buys into this deception and takes it a step further. She told the enemy that God said they can’t even touch that tree. (He never said that). So what happened? The serpent deceives for the first time with “did God really say?” Adam and Eve doubted God, ate the fruit. The perfection that God intended for them was gone. Enter sin. Enter death. Enter toil. Enter sickness. Enter pain. Enter family division. Enter murder. Every single negative thing we deal with in our world today stems from disobedience – and the disobedience stems from buying a lie.
Oh let’s not get too upset with poor Eve. We do it every day. When my professor said that the Bible has errors in it – she was saying “did God really say?....” When my classmates was stuck in the 60s and thinking it was Biblical – she was really saying “did God really say… anything besides love and peace.”
The tragic thing is that God put a few rules in place – for our good. So that we could live a good, safe, fulfilling life with Him. Just like a parent who gives their teenager a curfew – its not to exercise authority, it’s to ensure the child’s safety. But our enemy is busy accusing God of being Hitler. And when we can’t imagine a loving God being Hitler, we go the opposite extreme and turn Him into Santa Claus.
Let’s take a hot button issue. Uh-oh – some of you may start to squirm or put up a wall of defense. But let’s look at the facts. Homosexuality. Here is what God says about it:
Lev. 18:22 ‘You shall not lie with a male as one lies with a female; it is an abomination."
Lev. 20:13 "If there is a man who lies with a male as those who lie with a woman, both of them have committed a detestable act
Did you catch what God really said? He said it’s a detestable ACT. He detests the ACTION. He dislikes HOMOSEXUALITY.
But our culture hears the enemy saying “did God really say He hates homosexuals??”
NO!!!! God never once said He hates homosexuals. He loves them – just like He loved the prostitutes and the thief that hung next to Him on the cross.
I can give several more examples but I think I have made the point.
It just saddens me when the enemy deceives people with that age old lie. It is even more sad when that lie works with Christians. Think it doesn’t?
Did God really say…. Wives submit to your husbands. Ephesians 5 – Yep, God really said. And God did not specify that it expired in the 1950s.
Did God really say… Woe to those who call evil good and good evil. Isaiah 5:20. Yep – God really said that.
Did God really say… Honor your father and mother…. Even when they forbid you to attend church, like mine did when I was 14. Yep – God really said.
I used that last one on purpose – to drive home a point. See the enemy deceives and causes us to doubt the heart of God. Most of my readers have heard my testimony. When my parents forbid me to go to church, I didn’t understand how God could possibly tell me to obey them. It didn’t make sense. I almost bought the lie of “did God really say..”. Thankfully, I had kind, caring, mature Christians from that church that reinforced it – yes, Raquel, God really said. And if you’re parents said you can’t come – then you cannot come. I obeyed. And after 9 months of obedience – I got a double blessing. My parents miraculously changed their minds, and I not only got to go back to church – I got to attend the church’s high school for my last 3 years. It was like God was saying – “yes, I really said to honor your father and mother. But I also said that obedience brings blessing”.
I didn’t type this blog to be a hell, fire, and brimstone message. I don’t do that – cause if I did I would have to be the first one in line for that hell and fire. I have sin in my life. The only difference is I call it sin – I don’t call it okay.
But here is the Good News. Though my classmate was wrong, the Bible is not all about love and peace, the Bible is a love story. It’s a story of God loving us and desiring a relationship with us – so badly that He sent His Son Jesus – to pay the price for every time we said “did God really say…” and then proceed in disobedience. The wages of sin is death. All of us deserve to die and be eternally separated from God. But we don’t have to. Jesus died our death for us – so that we may live, for eternity, but also in intimate relationship with Him now. All we have to do is accept it for ourselves. If someone has a million dollar debt that they have no way to pay and I have a million dollars and I offer it to them – the debt is not paid with just the offer. Until that person takes the money from my hand to theirs – it remains – an offer.
For my readers who have yet to accept that offer, I am praying for you. Praying that the lies of the enemy will be silenced and the deception that God is either Hitler or Santa Caus will be brought to light and that you will see and know the love God has for you and that you will accept that offer this year.
And for my readers who have already accepted Jesus’s offer for themselves, my prayer is that He would grant us discernment, and keep us from falling into the trap of “did God really say…” Because yes – from Genesis to Revelation… God really said.
The thought for this blog post originated on December 10th, the evening I was in a classroom instead of at the All Worship Night. Due to bad weather, we had a final exam and a group speech presentation on the same night. My classmates and I got there early to rehearse our speech and load our power point on to the computer. About 20 minutes before the start of class, we sat down to do some last minute studying for the final exam.
A couple of students began chatting with the professor. The awkward part was that one student was on my left and the other was on my right and the professor was in front of me. They decided to bash the Catholic church. Ironic – sitting in a Catholic University. But whatever. I didn’t participate. I kept looking at my study guide. Their conversation morphed into bashing all churches, though they all admitted to attending one presently. Still looking at my study guide, I hear the professor say “well the Bible has errors in it.”
That made me sad, but I still didn’t look up. The girl to my left says “it’s all about love and peace”. I wanted to scream “no honey, the 60s were all about love and peace! The Bible is about Jesus.” Eventually, the professor noticed that I had been staring at the same paragraph on the study guide for 20 minutes and says to me: “I hope we are not offending you, Raquel”.
I was offended – but not with those three ladies. I was offended because once again I could sense the most horrific sound there has ever been – the sound of the enemy laughing. I could sense that sinister snicker as he continues to deceive people with the exact same lie used to deceive Eve in the Garden of Eden. He has been saying the same lie since the beginning of time, and we keep falling for it – making his job so easy.
Just before the holidays, North Way did a sermon series called Enemy in the Shadows and they discussed some of the enemy’s tactics. Pastor Kent spoke about the tools of deception and doubt. We all know the story … God puts Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. The garden was filled with trees of many kinds and God tells them they may eat the fruit of ANY tree in the garden EXCEPT one. That was it. Happy eating – just don’t eat from one tree. In Genesis 3 the enemy comes along and says “did God really say that you must not eat from ANY of the trees in the garden?”. Note how he twisted God’s words just slightly – but changed the whole meaning. God never said they couldn’t eat from any tree – in fact, He said have at it! Eat what you want – just stay away from one. The enemy makes it out like God is the big mean dictator depriving Adam and Eve of something good. Eve buys into this deception and takes it a step further. She told the enemy that God said they can’t even touch that tree. (He never said that). So what happened? The serpent deceives for the first time with “did God really say?” Adam and Eve doubted God, ate the fruit. The perfection that God intended for them was gone. Enter sin. Enter death. Enter toil. Enter sickness. Enter pain. Enter family division. Enter murder. Every single negative thing we deal with in our world today stems from disobedience – and the disobedience stems from buying a lie.
Oh let’s not get too upset with poor Eve. We do it every day. When my professor said that the Bible has errors in it – she was saying “did God really say?....” When my classmates was stuck in the 60s and thinking it was Biblical – she was really saying “did God really say… anything besides love and peace.”
The tragic thing is that God put a few rules in place – for our good. So that we could live a good, safe, fulfilling life with Him. Just like a parent who gives their teenager a curfew – its not to exercise authority, it’s to ensure the child’s safety. But our enemy is busy accusing God of being Hitler. And when we can’t imagine a loving God being Hitler, we go the opposite extreme and turn Him into Santa Claus.
Let’s take a hot button issue. Uh-oh – some of you may start to squirm or put up a wall of defense. But let’s look at the facts. Homosexuality. Here is what God says about it:
Lev. 18:22 ‘You shall not lie with a male as one lies with a female; it is an abomination."
Lev. 20:13 "If there is a man who lies with a male as those who lie with a woman, both of them have committed a detestable act
Did you catch what God really said? He said it’s a detestable ACT. He detests the ACTION. He dislikes HOMOSEXUALITY.
But our culture hears the enemy saying “did God really say He hates homosexuals??”
NO!!!! God never once said He hates homosexuals. He loves them – just like He loved the prostitutes and the thief that hung next to Him on the cross.
I can give several more examples but I think I have made the point.
It just saddens me when the enemy deceives people with that age old lie. It is even more sad when that lie works with Christians. Think it doesn’t?
Did God really say…. Wives submit to your husbands. Ephesians 5 – Yep, God really said. And God did not specify that it expired in the 1950s.
Did God really say… Woe to those who call evil good and good evil. Isaiah 5:20. Yep – God really said that.
Did God really say… Honor your father and mother…. Even when they forbid you to attend church, like mine did when I was 14. Yep – God really said.
I used that last one on purpose – to drive home a point. See the enemy deceives and causes us to doubt the heart of God. Most of my readers have heard my testimony. When my parents forbid me to go to church, I didn’t understand how God could possibly tell me to obey them. It didn’t make sense. I almost bought the lie of “did God really say..”. Thankfully, I had kind, caring, mature Christians from that church that reinforced it – yes, Raquel, God really said. And if you’re parents said you can’t come – then you cannot come. I obeyed. And after 9 months of obedience – I got a double blessing. My parents miraculously changed their minds, and I not only got to go back to church – I got to attend the church’s high school for my last 3 years. It was like God was saying – “yes, I really said to honor your father and mother. But I also said that obedience brings blessing”.
I didn’t type this blog to be a hell, fire, and brimstone message. I don’t do that – cause if I did I would have to be the first one in line for that hell and fire. I have sin in my life. The only difference is I call it sin – I don’t call it okay.
But here is the Good News. Though my classmate was wrong, the Bible is not all about love and peace, the Bible is a love story. It’s a story of God loving us and desiring a relationship with us – so badly that He sent His Son Jesus – to pay the price for every time we said “did God really say…” and then proceed in disobedience. The wages of sin is death. All of us deserve to die and be eternally separated from God. But we don’t have to. Jesus died our death for us – so that we may live, for eternity, but also in intimate relationship with Him now. All we have to do is accept it for ourselves. If someone has a million dollar debt that they have no way to pay and I have a million dollars and I offer it to them – the debt is not paid with just the offer. Until that person takes the money from my hand to theirs – it remains – an offer.
For my readers who have yet to accept that offer, I am praying for you. Praying that the lies of the enemy will be silenced and the deception that God is either Hitler or Santa Caus will be brought to light and that you will see and know the love God has for you and that you will accept that offer this year.
And for my readers who have already accepted Jesus’s offer for themselves, my prayer is that He would grant us discernment, and keep us from falling into the trap of “did God really say…” Because yes – from Genesis to Revelation… God really said.
Wednesday, January 1, 2014
Remembering 2013
I have had several blog topics cooking for about a month now, but I haven't really been in the blogging mood. I guess those topics will remain on the stove for awhile.
Well it's New Years Day. As I posted in a status, I have never really understood all the hype around New Years. It's a new year - so what? We get new weeks, new months, and yes - a new day every day. We can draw a line in the sand and start fresh any day we choose. So I just don't get in to the hype. However, I do enjoy a day off to rest before the busy month begins.
I do like to take the time to reflect back on the past year for just a minute. My reflection this year was different that in previous years. I usually remember all the details of just about everything. This time, I really couldn't recall all that happened in 2013. Furthermore, the two main things that I could remember were negative. I know I did not have a "bad year". In fact, 2012 was much much much worse than 2013. So it bothered me that the two things I remembered were negative. I remember 2013 as the year that I missed two All Worship Nights. The other thing I remember is my surgery that I had on July 30 - the surgery that left my lifelong dream forever unfulfilled.
So obviously, I didn't want to remember 2013 by these two things. Around the middle of December, I asked the Lord to help me to remember the year by something good. He exceeded my expectations once again - and in a subtle, small way that would seem inconsequential to most folks, but meant the world to me.
I got a Christmas card from a friend. Actually, I got many Christmas cards from several friends. But one was more than a Christmas card. It was three sentences coming from a friend that typically doesn't express herself with words. This card meant the world to me. I normally keep several of the Christmas cards I get - especially if they have pictures or personal messages in them. I keep them in a pretty box and each year when I got to put new ones in the box, I look through previous years. This card, isn't going in the box, it's going in my Bible. It's going in a place where I will see it regularly and allow it lift my spirits when I am down on myself. And... in the next year or so, when I think of 2013, I will think of it as "the year I got that card". I hope my friend knows how loved and appreciated she is.
In regard to ending a year and beginning another... this is my testimony for my past, my present, and my future:
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases.
His mercies never come to an end.
They are new every morning
Great is Thy faithfulness.
Lamentations 3:22-23
Well it's New Years Day. As I posted in a status, I have never really understood all the hype around New Years. It's a new year - so what? We get new weeks, new months, and yes - a new day every day. We can draw a line in the sand and start fresh any day we choose. So I just don't get in to the hype. However, I do enjoy a day off to rest before the busy month begins.
I do like to take the time to reflect back on the past year for just a minute. My reflection this year was different that in previous years. I usually remember all the details of just about everything. This time, I really couldn't recall all that happened in 2013. Furthermore, the two main things that I could remember were negative. I know I did not have a "bad year". In fact, 2012 was much much much worse than 2013. So it bothered me that the two things I remembered were negative. I remember 2013 as the year that I missed two All Worship Nights. The other thing I remember is my surgery that I had on July 30 - the surgery that left my lifelong dream forever unfulfilled.
So obviously, I didn't want to remember 2013 by these two things. Around the middle of December, I asked the Lord to help me to remember the year by something good. He exceeded my expectations once again - and in a subtle, small way that would seem inconsequential to most folks, but meant the world to me.
I got a Christmas card from a friend. Actually, I got many Christmas cards from several friends. But one was more than a Christmas card. It was three sentences coming from a friend that typically doesn't express herself with words. This card meant the world to me. I normally keep several of the Christmas cards I get - especially if they have pictures or personal messages in them. I keep them in a pretty box and each year when I got to put new ones in the box, I look through previous years. This card, isn't going in the box, it's going in my Bible. It's going in a place where I will see it regularly and allow it lift my spirits when I am down on myself. And... in the next year or so, when I think of 2013, I will think of it as "the year I got that card". I hope my friend knows how loved and appreciated she is.
In regard to ending a year and beginning another... this is my testimony for my past, my present, and my future:
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases.
His mercies never come to an end.
They are new every morning
Great is Thy faithfulness.
Lamentations 3:22-23
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