My favorite people inspire me because they are selfless. I'm reading "Atlas Shrugged" at the moment and was shocked to discover that Ayn Rand also inspires me in certain ways for different reasons. Gasp! Inspired by an atheist, Celena!? Yes, well, even an atheist can have a brilliant mind and can achieve great things in the eyes of the world. She was an amazing writer who overcame great odds, she weaves a captivating story (too captivating, perhaps) and she paints a picture of humanity and the world that can't simply be brushed over. Atlas Shrugged makes me think more than I have since I graduated from NAU with a minor in Anthropology 3 years ago. Minoring in Anthropology and being bombarded with relative truth and Darwinian evolution taught by the most amazing professor this side of the Universe will make a Christian think a great deal, I assure you. But I've missed being so challenged. I've missed having to actually think about things.
One thing I've begun to ponder is how selfishness invades everything I do and realizing that it's alright to be that way. Maybe that doesn't sound like anything a Christian should consider, but bear with me! Ayn Rand advocated nothing short of selfishness. I began to think things like, "Maybe the only reason I really make my husband coffee in the morning is for what I'll get out of it." Truly, it is a part of the reason. But that reason and my doing anything good is all wrapped around the reality that I love God and try my best to live for Him. Think about why you do anything good. You do it because of the feeling of gratification it gives you, or because of pride and the way people will see you, or because of what you'll get out of it, and, hopefully, because God wants you to. Most of those things are selfish but the last thing wraps it all together and makes it good. Ayn Rand leaves out that last part and so her ideal, "perfect" characters fall short of anything close to perfection because of it.
According to her, "rational self-interest (i.e. selfishness) is every individual's highest moral obligation." My favorite Christian apologist, John Piper, said what sounds on the surface like the same thing: "some dimension of joy is a moral duty in all virtuous acts." Joy is for ourselves, is it not? Both John Piper and Ayn Rand believed that pursuing joy is selfish. Rand wrote about 2 of her characters, "They were both incapable of the conception that joy is sin." Truly, what rational person would want to be a Christian if joy is sin?! Perhaps seeking joy is selfish, but joy in itself is not sin.
That idea that all joy is sin is totally anti-god, which any average person will discover if they read His Word. According to the bible, God gives us "all things richly to enjoy." When we "delight in Him, He gives us the desires of our hearts." Mr. Piper said, "Pursuing maximum joy is essential to glorifying God. All-surpassing, soul-satisfying treasure. People actually don't seek pleasure with nearly the resolve and passion they should."
The greatest pleasure anyone can have is in living for God every day of their lives. I'm not saying that I never question or doubt Him. I'm not saying that I read my bible from dawn to dusk. I'm not saying that I'm even close to perfect. I know who I am and so does God, and I am not quite as "good" as I may seem on the outside; no one is. But God made me a person who would want to seek joy and who wouldn't give up until she found it. He made me someone who would long for passion and richness in life because He is the author of real passion and real richness. He made me that way so that I would want to love Him and want to know Him.
Ayn Rand obviously sought passion and joy, too, but I pity her because she didn't realize that God is the author of the greatest pleasures and the greatest passions, and the author of complete wisdom. I haven't touched on wisdom much but I want to be wise as much as I want the other things. When King Solomon asked, God blessed him with the greatest wisdom any man ever had before or since. As amazing as Ayn Rand was, as much wisdom as she had in certain things, as much as I like this book, it falls so short of what it could have been had she acknowledged the One who bestowed so lavishly a gift upon her. Complete wisdom can only be found in God; no matter how brilliant a mind may be, there are certain things a person will never understand without the wisdom that only comes from asking the One who created our minds in the first place.
Knowledge of God without knowledge of man's wretchedness leads to pride. Knowledge of man's wretchedness without knowledge of God leads to despair. Knowledge of Jesus Christ is the middle course, because by it we discover both God and our wretched state. ~Blaise Pascal, 17th c. Scientist
As for you, dear reader, may God show you all passion, joy, wisdom, and truth; and may you understand the height, and depth, and width of His love for you! I'm just barely skimming the surface of something that's pretty deep. I hope you'll investigate it for yourself by getting to know Him better.
Thursday, February 16
Sunday, January 15
Thor, Cap, Wolverine, & This Girl's Eternal Perspective
I'm quite smitten with Cap (Captain America, I mean) & Thor, too… oh, and Wolverine! Maybe you don't stay up late and read comic books in bed, but I challenge any girl to watch Thor, Captain America, or X-men and not fall for the hero during the next 2 hours and 17 minutes.
The end of the Thor movie was especially poignant for me when our dashing, charming, extremely heroic superhero gave his leading lady Jane a quite romantic kiss. There was the perfect bit of romance the movie needed to end with. Then Thor was lifted up into the sky and a cloud received him out of Jane's sight. Jane stood there looking at the sky, and I sat there looking at the TV feeling bittersweet and wondering, "How in the world's she ever going to marry anyone now that she's been loved by a super hero?!"
So these Cap-Thor-Wolverine thoughts have been rushing around in my mind for a month or so, along with thoughts of Jesus and God's word and wishing I were a superhero and wanting to put an eternal spin on it all. A wise man once said, "All heroes are shadows of Christ."*
Here I am, fascinated by the stories of these incredibly awesome super heroes who really are just shadows of Christ. They're cool, sure, and they have really interesting stories, sure, and they're likeable and attractive… but Jesus is infinitely more amazing than all of them put together. I'm doing my best to write about super heroes & Jesus all in one breath without sounding cheesy, but honestly, look at all these super powers He has:
Like Storm, He has power over nature. (Matt 8:23)
Like Nightcrawler, He can teleport. (Acts 1:9; Luke 24:31)
Like Wolverine, He's got an immortal, incorruptible body. (Luke 24:39-43)
Like Mystique, He can disguise Himself. (Luke 24:16-31)
Like Thor, He can fly into the Heavens. (Acts 1:9)
Like Professor X, He can read minds.
Plus, He knows the future, He can heal the sick and raise the dead, He walked on water, turned water to wine, multiplied a little bit of bread into a lot, withered a fig tree with just a glance, and the list goes on.
After Jesus rose from the dead, He was no longer bound by the laws of matter and time. And it doesn't stop there. Paul wrote to the church at Corinth:
"There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one, and the glory of the earthly is another. There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory. So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown a perishable body, it is raised an imperishable body; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory… In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality." (1 Cor 15:40-43; 52-53)
And so, we're going to live in eternity with an immortal, imperishable body just like Jesus. Hm… does that sound like a super hero to you? Maybe it's just my own girlish, vain ambition but being a super hero someday gives me just another thing to look forward to. I think it's pretty awesome that I'm going to spend all eternity not only with the only One truly worthy of my awe but with a bunch of other super heroes who aren't bound by time or matter--who can walk through doors without opening them, live forever, never get old, swim without holding their breath, fly, teleport, and do all kinds of other things I'm sure neither Marvel nor DC has even begun to dream up yet. Comic book super heroes are awesome… but I think they only just scratch the surface. They're just shadows of Christ.
*John Piper, Don't Waste Your Life, 35.
The end of the Thor movie was especially poignant for me when our dashing, charming, extremely heroic superhero gave his leading lady Jane a quite romantic kiss. There was the perfect bit of romance the movie needed to end with. Then Thor was lifted up into the sky and a cloud received him out of Jane's sight. Jane stood there looking at the sky, and I sat there looking at the TV feeling bittersweet and wondering, "How in the world's she ever going to marry anyone now that she's been loved by a super hero?!"
So these Cap-Thor-Wolverine thoughts have been rushing around in my mind for a month or so, along with thoughts of Jesus and God's word and wishing I were a superhero and wanting to put an eternal spin on it all. A wise man once said, "All heroes are shadows of Christ."*
Here I am, fascinated by the stories of these incredibly awesome super heroes who really are just shadows of Christ. They're cool, sure, and they have really interesting stories, sure, and they're likeable and attractive… but Jesus is infinitely more amazing than all of them put together. I'm doing my best to write about super heroes & Jesus all in one breath without sounding cheesy, but honestly, look at all these super powers He has:
Like Storm, He has power over nature. (Matt 8:23)
Like Nightcrawler, He can teleport. (Acts 1:9; Luke 24:31)
Like Wolverine, He's got an immortal, incorruptible body. (Luke 24:39-43)
Like Mystique, He can disguise Himself. (Luke 24:16-31)
Like Thor, He can fly into the Heavens. (Acts 1:9)
Like Professor X, He can read minds.
Plus, He knows the future, He can heal the sick and raise the dead, He walked on water, turned water to wine, multiplied a little bit of bread into a lot, withered a fig tree with just a glance, and the list goes on.
After Jesus rose from the dead, He was no longer bound by the laws of matter and time. And it doesn't stop there. Paul wrote to the church at Corinth:
"There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one, and the glory of the earthly is another. There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory. So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown a perishable body, it is raised an imperishable body; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory… In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality." (1 Cor 15:40-43; 52-53)
And so, we're going to live in eternity with an immortal, imperishable body just like Jesus. Hm… does that sound like a super hero to you? Maybe it's just my own girlish, vain ambition but being a super hero someday gives me just another thing to look forward to. I think it's pretty awesome that I'm going to spend all eternity not only with the only One truly worthy of my awe but with a bunch of other super heroes who aren't bound by time or matter--who can walk through doors without opening them, live forever, never get old, swim without holding their breath, fly, teleport, and do all kinds of other things I'm sure neither Marvel nor DC has even begun to dream up yet. Comic book super heroes are awesome… but I think they only just scratch the surface. They're just shadows of Christ.
*John Piper, Don't Waste Your Life, 35.
Wednesday, January 11
The Way Things Ought to Be
I'm not a poet but every once in awhile when God inspires him, my husband is. This poem touched my heart! I hope you enjoy it.
In this world which we live
there's a sense of what ought,
an intangible feeling,
a perception, a thought
of the way things once were
or someday will be.
If only we could
through the darkened glass see;
the pane has been clouded
by the sin in our hearts,
from the lust and vain pride
that has torn us apart
from the Father above
by whom we were created
but we spurned His great love
and became separated.
What then must be done
for the ache deep inside
for the longing of home
where our dreams do abide?
Take heart, precious one,
turn the pages and look
at the Father & Son,
at the Author & Book
All began with a word:
"One day!" He would write,
"I will give to them vision
and restore them to sight."
Then the dark glass will clear
day by day, by and by
revelation and truth
will displace the great why.
The light dwelt among us
and is here to behold
if we will comprehend
and believe what we're told;
all shadows of Christ
were the things of past ages,
the substance is Jesus
thread throughout all the pages.
*Inspired by Pastor Fred Rubi's Christmas sermon a few years ago, and the many truths about time and the faith by which we occupy it, found in God's word.
"Faith is meant to occupy time." -Pastor Fred Rubi
"God is not bound by time." -Dave Fish
Habakkuk 2:3
Col 2:17
2 Cor 5
1 Cor 15
John 1
there's a sense of what ought,
an intangible feeling,
a perception, a thought
of the way things once were
or someday will be.
If only we could
through the darkened glass see;
the pane has been clouded
by the sin in our hearts,
from the lust and vain pride
that has torn us apart
from the Father above
by whom we were created
but we spurned His great love
and became separated.
What then must be done
for the ache deep inside
for the longing of home
where our dreams do abide?
Take heart, precious one,
turn the pages and look
at the Father & Son,
at the Author & Book
All began with a word:
"One day!" He would write,
"I will give to them vision
and restore them to sight."
Then the dark glass will clear
day by day, by and by
revelation and truth
will displace the great why.
The light dwelt among us
and is here to behold
if we will comprehend
and believe what we're told;
all shadows of Christ
were the things of past ages,
the substance is Jesus
thread throughout all the pages.
*Inspired by Pastor Fred Rubi's Christmas sermon a few years ago, and the many truths about time and the faith by which we occupy it, found in God's word.
"Faith is meant to occupy time." -Pastor Fred Rubi
"God is not bound by time." -Dave Fish
Habakkuk 2:3
Col 2:17
2 Cor 5
1 Cor 15
John 1
Thursday, November 24
The Mayflower and the Speedwell
I'm not a poet but every once in awhile when God inspires him, my husband is. This poem touched my heart! I hope you enjoy it.
 | |||
| The Mayflower & The Speedwell at Dartmouth Harbor |
Two ships were commissioned,
precious cargo to bear,
the seeds of a nation,
God's hand would prepare,
These ships you may know,
called Speedwell and Mayflower,
on them pilgrims and strangers,
set forth the same hour,
a moral herein,
may be found if you wonder,
at the names of these ships,
take a minute and ponder...
one ship returned back,
to old Plymouth you see,
for leaks in it's vessel,
meant it was not to be,
but the other pressed on,
fought through sickness and gale,
the souls below deck,
tossed and turned and grew pale,
yet faith replaced fear,
and New Plymouth drew near.
If you're asking what lesson,
can I glean from this tale?
well I'll tell you this moment,
yes I will without fail,
One ship bears a name,
Speedwell, one would think,
would get you there quickly,
strait shot, in a blink;
But if in this life,
we'd brave the dark grief,
God's lovely May flowers,
give His pilgrims relief,
in them we can glimpse,
dim light though it be,
a brand new Creation,
where we will be free,
One day we will land,
after much weary sailing,
He'll take us in hand,
not a word of our failing.
We'll see of Him then,
as He sees us now,
"Well done", He'll proclaim,
as we wonder how,
we made it across,
such a forbidding sea,
T'was the blood of the Cross,
made it possible for thee.
Monday, October 10
More of my Brother's Poetry
DESERT
I step out the door and into the sky
Another fork in the road,
Another tattoo on my soul.
The sun grows brighter with each step to the west
Desert is glorious and mountains a success
Beauty surrounds me with her peaceful mountains
And through this desert there are plenty of fountains
The freedom of the desert's warmth
And the vision that I walk towards
Breeze on the naked trees, whisper to me
'Cause nature's its own reward in a desert sea.
STORM
Reclining on a bed with a pen in my hand
I hear the thunder beat.
I'm listening to nature's percussion band.
I hear the ocean falling around me,
But I'm under a roof with conditioned air
On a dry mattress with pillows to spare.
This is God bringing back to the tree,
This is God providing for me,
This is God ever forgiving me.
SISTER (that's me)
Bless my sister, the gal who shared her soul
Sacred is the loving embracement no one can owe
From Christmas mornings to slumber parties
to mischievous stories of school sneak-ins before tardies
Viewing your art in astonishment
like a message to me, creativity's sent.
My deserving hero,
I feel the love of her grace and courage to my apprenticeship.
Seeing your tears draws in fears
because of the burn, scare, and sears
I'm a lucky man with God's love sent
With the love of the Lord I must repent.
CHOOSE YOUR PATH
Life's not all about Chinese food and kickin' back.
Used to think it was 'til I ran into reality slack
Slip into another portrait of how things should be
Break the mold of economy souls fishing liberally
Shake the views of the cement personality
Destiny is not for the frozen ones
You gotta decide to make yourself a chosen one
So go ahead and do the math
You can't wait for others to choose your path.
BRAND NEW START
A fool without a prayer and he's all out of breath
He tried to put his hands together but was twitching bad from meth
The sun shined down beside him and leaned on his neck
He looked up to be blinded but only for a sec
Breathing in and out deeply, he confessed with his tongue
20-something years old and he felt so young
Lifted is the burden that drenched his heart
Ready now for a new way, a brand new start.
QUESTIONS
Sometimes I write a line and then scratch it out
I continuously question my consistency
Wonder who or what I really wanna be
It's even hard to look in the mirror
'Cause the image behind my eyelids looks clearer
Can I come to terms with my external temple,
Or is it my soul I hold lamental?
I CAN
I can feel myself get lower
I can feel the pain in the power
I can see the lights in the mirror
I can see the hands on the hour.
FIRST STEP
First step, swallow my pride.
Second step, just take the ride.
Third step, stop shruggin' my shoulders.
Fourth step, realize that I'm older.
Many more steps, too many to mention.
Can't gain it all in a single session.
But I should always try to hold my head high.
Gotta know it's okay for my soul to cry.
I'm a man looking for his place in this world,
Crawling out of the smoke that left my mind swirled.
DIVORCE
A tear drop hits the page
A wrinkle hits my age
A twinkle burns in the skies
An indescribable warmth dies
As the love unties.
OVERRATED
Thinking about all the times I moan...
It makes me sick.
'Cause I'm not abandoned and alone
Love and family's thick.
We can be so ungrateful,
Taking luxuries for granted.
Taking luxuries for granted.
So when you can't afford the new fad
remember food's in your belly, ain't got it too bad.
I'm not starving and I got love,
family, friends, and God above.
Tangibles and throw-aways are overrated
It's all smoke from a green flame, quickly dissipated.
HIGH IN A DREAM
Getting my high in a dream,
waking up to a grace gleam.
Thanking God smoke was only in my sub-conscience
like the lost soul who has hope in his responses.
Scared as hell as I feel my soaking back.
It was just a fantasy. Now I come back.
Like a looking glass of my past,
it's not in the urinary tract, at last.
Smelling, feeling, dealing,
Then I fall from the ceiling.
What a forgiving crash--
Waking up with no stash.
EXECUTION OF INSTINCT
The time has come for me to change
Flip my life and rearrange
Give my soul to Someone else
And let God's angels ring their bells
All I need is an American dream
No picket fence 'cause that's not what I mean
Paying taxes to old folk
Collecting possessions instead of being broke
Adopt a dog and name it something true
Raise that pup and do what I gotta do
Keep a routine, sleep, work, and play
Wake up again to do it the next day.
Somehow I can't believe this is coming from my heart
but I know it is true 'cause my pen begins where the beat starts.
THE RING MASTER
For years, the freaks shed their tears
While their master sits and waits.
The show's all over and who gets the cheers?
The ring master and his two dates.
The ring master and his two dates.
The deformed grow old and fed up faster
and the strong man bends the bars.
The rebels tie up the ring master,
The rebels tie up the ring master,
all laugh near and far.
He was the caster
of their humiliation
They sought peace by sitting him in their situation,
But it brought no consolation.
GOLD
Money is success
or so it is told.
People, they always be chasing that gold.
Catch it, want more, and they're sold.
ALICE
When danger isn't adventure,
then I don't know what story you are in.
When adventures get stranger,
You need not match the Cheshire's grin.
The touch of the glass
felt like the thickness of mist.
The entrance through which she passed,
the terror of bliss.
More than what she used to be,
But lesser, too, at times.
Taking the distortion and awkward things she sees,
As natural as, in a windless sky, the singing of blown chimes.
HARVESTING A DREAM
I'm not sick of think'n 'bout destinations,
but I want to be there.
I'm waiting for the occasion.
I'm gonna get there.
Tomorrow is today before you know,
I will someday reap what I sow.
Things will be the same and different. I know.
Yeah, jah know I'll be harvesting a dream.
Yes, I know I'll be harvesting my dream.
AWAKENED
Seems like whenever the time comes to test myself
I always seem to fail.
Living hour for hour, leaving my soul on the shelf,
but who's gonna post my bail?
Chasing a tangible dream that wasn't on any map,
floating on a raft with no sail.
Ocean and sand on just another beach,
All along I'm like a puppet on a string,
grasping for something I can't reach.
But now it's gotta give, cause I'm tired of taking.
It's time to live, now that my soul's awakened.
NOW
They say you should stay
on this afternoon
But I just want to play
Music's infinite tune
It's easy, the song today
'Cause “now” is what I'm gonna play
Can't let today take away from tomorrow
Don't want to let happiness sour to sorrow.
ALL YOU NEED
I never had such an urge to sing as I do today.
I never had such a rush in my ring as I do today.
Thinkin' 'bout how it came from a sprout
It got watered by a heavenly spout
Seeds unfertilized can still shout
Raw material is all you need
Remember this when you plant the seed
It takes more than supplies to succeed
Just remember “love is all you need.”
TRYING
Trying to help myself when all it does is hurt
Trying to redeem myself when they think I'm dirt
Always under someone's watchful eye
Hiding away so they don't throw tissues when I cry
I like the tears to just fall down my face
Drop after drop, like a destiny race
Things so simple are just tearing me limb from limb
I don't think I'll ever have a chance to win
On the other hand, I'll just fight expectation's odds
And just pass on the side of the man who sits by and nods.
My destiny is between my fate and my God's.
WAR
I'm at war with my own temple
Some say it's cause I'm a little mental
My body is scarred but my heart is pure
Sick of this and ready to move on
Today is another opportunistic dawn
Diving drops of rain come here to saturate me
Been scorched in a desert,
Now I'm swimming in a sea.
Invisible clouds seem to shade my skin.
How did it all begin?
WHAT I WANNA BE
I'm sick of writing 'bout despair
all this negative and how I don't care.
But deep inside, I really do want something better.
Living the dream, receiving a golden letter.
A dog and I woman and I would feel like a king.
Don't need a platinum or a lexus for my soul to bling-bling.
I wanna feel happy about the things I do
I wanna be a man that lives true.
PICTURE OF CONFUSION
A picture of confusion is me.
Scared of the unknown and what I'm to be.
All I want is an American Dream
But somehow I feel that's not what it seems.
Alone again like that guy from Kung-fu
Gonna head on a journey I don't know I can do.
CONTROLLED
I was buzzin' one day and I started coughing
I noticed I wanted (“needed”) another nail in the coffin
I don't like this feeling of being controlled
It never makes me feel great, just satisfied
Might as well end it before I've died
Too many times my exception borrowed,
All burnt away, conscience led to sorrow.
Check my heart's inventory, yeah I know it's not empty..
'Cause love is glory and compassion is sympathy.
Life my voice to a full extent
It's never too later for a devil to repent.
HOUSE ON A HILL
I'll pass on another status symbol
'Cause I don't want a house on a hill
Refreshing is life if you keep it simple
So I don't want a house on a hill
I won't crave a jealous intention
You can keep your house on a hill
I don't seek a social intervention
You can have your house on a hill.
ANGER
Anger can get out of control
For advice, feel inside of your soul
Breathe in, breathe out,
Ignore the demons who shout.
Don't end the pointless encounter in violence,
Pull out two fingers, walk away in peaceful silence.
A fist for a fist...
Whatever happened to “a kiss for a kiss”?
HARVESTING A DREAM
I'm not sick of think'n 'bout destinations,
but I want to be there.
I'm waiting for the occasion.
I'm gonna get there.
Tomorrow is today before you know,
I will someday reap what I sow.
Things will be the same and different. I know.
Yeah, jah know I'll be harvesting a dream.
Yes, I know I'll be harvesting my dream.
AWAKENED
Seems like whenever the time comes to test myself
I always seem to fail.
Living hour for hour, leaving my soul on the shelf,
but who's gonna post my bail?
Chasing a tangible dream that wasn't on any map,
floating on a raft with no sail.
Ocean and sand on just another beach,
All along I'm like a puppet on a string,
grasping for something I can't reach.
But now it's gotta give, cause I'm tired of taking.
It's time to live, now that my soul's awakened.
SONG
As silence breaks the day of my heart
I listen for the music begin to start.
I love hearing and feeling the power of His song.
It's a pounding weapon of love given by our Creator.
It always seems to stump the anti-peace propigator.
I can't dance to the ill-rythmed beat of gunfire
'cause glory mixed with blood is one thing I'll never desire.
HACKY SACK
Skyward it flies,
The momentum—will it die?
More amazing with each play,
It's over—on the ground it lays.
Flashbacks of the event immediately occur and soon decay.
Nothin' like hack'n on a sunny day.
Thursday, August 18
Jochebed's Baby
Jochebed leaned over her baby boy and smiled. What a blessing! For the next two, perhaps three years, Pharaoh's daughter would pay her to nurse her own son! Unlike all of the other Hebrew baby boys, he would be protected and safe. She no longer had to hide him, no longer had to seek to shush him when he cried. She could encourage him to laugh and to coo. She, her husband, Amram and their other children Miriam and Aaron would see the baby's first smile... help him with his first steps... rejoice over his first tooth... wait expectantly for his first word!
When many people think of the story of baby Moses, they think only of a baby boy in a reed basket floating down the Nile River who will be found by Pharaoh's daughter and will someday deliver God's chosen people out of Egypt. I see so much more when I read the story! The bond of motherhood stretches across centuries and tears catch in my throat whenever I read of Jochebed's part in the story:
Pharaoh gave his order to all his people: "Every Hebrew boy that is born you must throw into the Nile, but let every girl live." Now a man of the tribe of Levi married a Levite woman who became pregnant and gave birth to a son. When she saw that he was a fine child, she hid him for three months. But when she could hide him no longer, she got a papyrus basket for him and coated it with tar and pitch... and put it among the reeds along the bank of the Nile. His sister stood at a distance to see what would happen to him. Then Pharaoh's daughter went down to the Nile to bathe, and her attendants were walking along the riverbank. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her female slave to get it. She opened it and saw the baby. He was crying, and she felt sorry for him. "This is one of the Hebrew babies," she said. Then his sister asked Pharaoh's daughter, "Shall I go and get one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you?" "Yes, go," she answered. So the girl went and got the baby's mother. Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Take this baby and nurse him for me, and I will pay you." So the woman took the baby and nursed him. When the child grew older, she took him to Pharaoh's daughter and he became her son. She named him Moses, saying, "I drew him out of the water."
Because so many women had lost their babies to Pharaoh's degree, his daughter could have chosen any number of women to nurse Moses. As part of God's plan, though, Miriam followed her baby brother and made a way to keep him at home for the next couple of years. I wonder if Pharaoh's daughter did imagine Jochebed might have been the baby's mother. The idea that a princess of Egypt would love and care for a Hebrew baby sets her apart from other Eyptian women of that time. Her story is one I hope to hear someday when I get to Heaven!
As for Jochebed...
She nursed her baby boy day after day, month after month, until it was time she must wean him. Did she teach him who he was... who his people were? Most bible scholars think so. Did she teach him stories of a deliverer who would be used by God to save their people, and did God speak to her heart that her baby boy would be that same deliverer? Certainly she made the most of the time God had given her with her son and certainly she was walking the path that God had set before her. Did Moses know that he was her son? Whether he knew or not, he knew she loved him and he had bonded with her in a special way. Perhaps on the last night of his weaning, Jochebed danced with baby Moses in her arms as he cried for the kind of milk he could never have again. Perhaps she cried, too, as she prayed for him and sang to him. Bittersweet tears. God had blessed her with her son's life, she had been given time with him that other Hebrew mothers had not received when their babies were taken from them, but now she had to give him to another. Bittersweet, for certain, but she trusted in God's marvelous plan.
Lord, you love me as you loved Jochebed. I know that all things work together for good for those who love you. Help me to love you always, to trust you when life seems to be too much to bear, and to know that you love me with an everlasting love no matter what comes my way. In Jesus wonderful name, amen.
For more about Jochebed, read:
Numbers 26:58-60
Exodus 1:22-2:10
Exodus 6:19-21
When many people think of the story of baby Moses, they think only of a baby boy in a reed basket floating down the Nile River who will be found by Pharaoh's daughter and will someday deliver God's chosen people out of Egypt. I see so much more when I read the story! The bond of motherhood stretches across centuries and tears catch in my throat whenever I read of Jochebed's part in the story:
Pharaoh gave his order to all his people: "Every Hebrew boy that is born you must throw into the Nile, but let every girl live." Now a man of the tribe of Levi married a Levite woman who became pregnant and gave birth to a son. When she saw that he was a fine child, she hid him for three months. But when she could hide him no longer, she got a papyrus basket for him and coated it with tar and pitch... and put it among the reeds along the bank of the Nile. His sister stood at a distance to see what would happen to him. Then Pharaoh's daughter went down to the Nile to bathe, and her attendants were walking along the riverbank. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her female slave to get it. She opened it and saw the baby. He was crying, and she felt sorry for him. "This is one of the Hebrew babies," she said. Then his sister asked Pharaoh's daughter, "Shall I go and get one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you?" "Yes, go," she answered. So the girl went and got the baby's mother. Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Take this baby and nurse him for me, and I will pay you." So the woman took the baby and nursed him. When the child grew older, she took him to Pharaoh's daughter and he became her son. She named him Moses, saying, "I drew him out of the water."
Because so many women had lost their babies to Pharaoh's degree, his daughter could have chosen any number of women to nurse Moses. As part of God's plan, though, Miriam followed her baby brother and made a way to keep him at home for the next couple of years. I wonder if Pharaoh's daughter did imagine Jochebed might have been the baby's mother. The idea that a princess of Egypt would love and care for a Hebrew baby sets her apart from other Eyptian women of that time. Her story is one I hope to hear someday when I get to Heaven!
As for Jochebed...
She nursed her baby boy day after day, month after month, until it was time she must wean him. Did she teach him who he was... who his people were? Most bible scholars think so. Did she teach him stories of a deliverer who would be used by God to save their people, and did God speak to her heart that her baby boy would be that same deliverer? Certainly she made the most of the time God had given her with her son and certainly she was walking the path that God had set before her. Did Moses know that he was her son? Whether he knew or not, he knew she loved him and he had bonded with her in a special way. Perhaps on the last night of his weaning, Jochebed danced with baby Moses in her arms as he cried for the kind of milk he could never have again. Perhaps she cried, too, as she prayed for him and sang to him. Bittersweet tears. God had blessed her with her son's life, she had been given time with him that other Hebrew mothers had not received when their babies were taken from them, but now she had to give him to another. Bittersweet, for certain, but she trusted in God's marvelous plan.
Lord, you love me as you loved Jochebed. I know that all things work together for good for those who love you. Help me to love you always, to trust you when life seems to be too much to bear, and to know that you love me with an everlasting love no matter what comes my way. In Jesus wonderful name, amen.
For more about Jochebed, read:
Numbers 26:58-60
Exodus 1:22-2:10
Exodus 6:19-21
Sunday, June 12
Written in Heaven
This year, my hubby and I celebrated our 10 year anniversary so I wanted to take a minute to share our "love story" with all of you.
Our love story began with a prayer. Mike and I had been friends for years but he was the last person I’d ever choose to marry. He just wasn’t my "type." I wanted someone loud and outgoing; he was quiet and laid back. I wanted someone with my interests in writing and art; he liked electronics. We were as different as night and day. The main thing we really had in common was our love for God. We had become Christians around the same time while we were in the Air Force. I was in Tucson, Arizona and he was on the other side of the world in Saudi Arabia. When he came home to Tucson, he prayed that someday I would be his wife (I'm not sure why because back then I was still a bit of a flighty, unfaithful mess!). I guess he saw something in me that wasn't there yet.
One night I was in church praying, wondering who God had for me. I looked at Mike beside me, praying, worshiping God, and suddenly I heard a still, small voice speak to my heart. Later that day, I told Mike that I thought God wanted us to be together. Later, he told me about his prayer. We dated for a year and on our anniversary which was also my brother's birthday (August 12th), we went to a rose garden at Reid Park. At the last rosebush, Mike stopped and got down on one knee. He took my hands in his and said, "Angel, I love you and I want to serve Jesus with you for the rest of our lives. Will you marry me?" Of course I said "Yes." I gave him a big old hug and he put my engagement ring on my finger. We’ve been married for ten years today and have been through so much together!
Through it all, Jesus Christ has been the center of our marriage. We are blessed beyond measure with a wonderful marriage, three beautiful daughters and a handsome little prince, and so many friends and family who really care about us. Mike has always been so gracious towards me in his forgiveness, patience, and trust, a fine example of a man of God. When I remember the person I used to be, I'm amazed that Mike would have wanted to marry someone like me! He showered so much grace upon me and must have had faith that I could change into the person I've become and am becoming, only by God's grace. I could never have found a more perfect match, and I thank God that He found him for me; in my blindness, I never would have chosen him on my own. I don’t deserve such wonderful blessings, but I begin to understand how high, how wide, and how deep God’s love is for me as I experience daily my own husband’s love for me. Our love story is still being written and will continue on until the glorious day when we see Jesus face to face.
Our love story began with a prayer. Mike and I had been friends for years but he was the last person I’d ever choose to marry. He just wasn’t my "type." I wanted someone loud and outgoing; he was quiet and laid back. I wanted someone with my interests in writing and art; he liked electronics. We were as different as night and day. The main thing we really had in common was our love for God. We had become Christians around the same time while we were in the Air Force. I was in Tucson, Arizona and he was on the other side of the world in Saudi Arabia. When he came home to Tucson, he prayed that someday I would be his wife (I'm not sure why because back then I was still a bit of a flighty, unfaithful mess!). I guess he saw something in me that wasn't there yet.
One night I was in church praying, wondering who God had for me. I looked at Mike beside me, praying, worshiping God, and suddenly I heard a still, small voice speak to my heart. Later that day, I told Mike that I thought God wanted us to be together. Later, he told me about his prayer. We dated for a year and on our anniversary which was also my brother's birthday (August 12th), we went to a rose garden at Reid Park. At the last rosebush, Mike stopped and got down on one knee. He took my hands in his and said, "Angel, I love you and I want to serve Jesus with you for the rest of our lives. Will you marry me?" Of course I said "Yes." I gave him a big old hug and he put my engagement ring on my finger. We’ve been married for ten years today and have been through so much together!
Through it all, Jesus Christ has been the center of our marriage. We are blessed beyond measure with a wonderful marriage, three beautiful daughters and a handsome little prince, and so many friends and family who really care about us. Mike has always been so gracious towards me in his forgiveness, patience, and trust, a fine example of a man of God. When I remember the person I used to be, I'm amazed that Mike would have wanted to marry someone like me! He showered so much grace upon me and must have had faith that I could change into the person I've become and am becoming, only by God's grace. I could never have found a more perfect match, and I thank God that He found him for me; in my blindness, I never would have chosen him on my own. I don’t deserve such wonderful blessings, but I begin to understand how high, how wide, and how deep God’s love is for me as I experience daily my own husband’s love for me. Our love story is still being written and will continue on until the glorious day when we see Jesus face to face.
Wednesday, May 25
"God is Love"... But What Does That MEAN?
"Jesus loves you," she says as she hangs up the phone.
"God is love," she says as she tries to explain how wonderful He is to someone who just doesn't get it.
Yes, God is love. But our idea of love as we live in this often-confused, far-from-perfect world is sometimes less than accurate. Honestly, it can be pretty skewed and totally the opposite of what love really is. And if we don't understand what real love is and what that really means, it's hard to appreciate God's love for us.
I want to take a couple minutes to show you how I've begun to understand what "God is love" really means.
Just so that you know where I'm coming from and that I'm not pulling anything out of thin air, in 1 John 8, John proclaims "God is love." He reiterates the same exact truth in verse 16. If God is love, that means God defines love. In 1 Corinthians 13, we find a longer definition of what love is. It begins, "Love is patient. Love is kind..." You've heard it before. If God is love, I was presumptuous enough to substitute (just for a minute!) the words "Love is" for "God is." Read it like this and begin to understand how real and perfect and wonderful and everlasting God's love is for you!
God is patient,
God is kind and is not jealous,
God does not brag and is not arrogant,
does not act unbecomingly;
God does not seek His own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered,
does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth;
God bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
God never fails.
Lord, Your word says that neither height, nor depth, nor anything on Heaven or Earth can separate us from the love You have towards your children. Help us to remember that we can't earn your love but that's it's simply a free gift. Take away our preconceived ideas of love that we've learned from imperfect people by showering us with Your love! In Jesus name, Amen.
"God is love," she says as she tries to explain how wonderful He is to someone who just doesn't get it.
Yes, God is love. But our idea of love as we live in this often-confused, far-from-perfect world is sometimes less than accurate. Honestly, it can be pretty skewed and totally the opposite of what love really is. And if we don't understand what real love is and what that really means, it's hard to appreciate God's love for us.
I want to take a couple minutes to show you how I've begun to understand what "God is love" really means.
Just so that you know where I'm coming from and that I'm not pulling anything out of thin air, in 1 John 8, John proclaims "God is love." He reiterates the same exact truth in verse 16. If God is love, that means God defines love. In 1 Corinthians 13, we find a longer definition of what love is. It begins, "Love is patient. Love is kind..." You've heard it before. If God is love, I was presumptuous enough to substitute (just for a minute!) the words "Love is" for "God is." Read it like this and begin to understand how real and perfect and wonderful and everlasting God's love is for you!
God is patient,
God is kind and is not jealous,
God does not brag and is not arrogant,
does not act unbecomingly;
God does not seek His own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered,
does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth;
God bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
God never fails.
Lord, Your word says that neither height, nor depth, nor anything on Heaven or Earth can separate us from the love You have towards your children. Help us to remember that we can't earn your love but that's it's simply a free gift. Take away our preconceived ideas of love that we've learned from imperfect people by showering us with Your love! In Jesus name, Amen.
Tuesday, May 10
O Lord be my refuge!
I'm not a poet but every once in awhile when God inspires him, my husband is. This poem touched my heart! I hope you enjoy it.
O Lord be my refuge!
Dear Lord be my rest!
Give me divine guidance
On this arduous quest
Some trials come at us
They form from without
Other fires kindle thus
From within they burn out
Whether deep in our minds
Or the depths of our soul
Whether enemies armed
With a sword or with bow
We're plunged into war
In this life here on earth
The instant the Word
Was received in new birth
In scripture we're told
As the lawless abound
That love will grow cold
Take a look, all around
The headlines declare
What the prophets spoke clear
The reports that we read
Tend to weary with fear
The weight settles on us
We think in our mind
I can't stand beneath
The slow strain and the grind
Some cope with what's real
By ignoring the signs
Some eat their next meal
Oblivious to the times
Some numb themselves sick
With the drug of their choice
Some drown in vain pleasure
And drown out the small voice
Where does my help come from?
It comes from the Lord
Dear God, strengthen me
To continue forward
Shed the love of my Jesus
Abroad in my heart
Let me remember the work
You began at the start
You promised your presence
You promised your care
Your promise stands true
You'll always be there
I'll do what I can
To give it my all
To honor your name
In the midst of the fall
When my efforts fall short
As at times in the past
When I come to my senses
And remember at last
It has been by your grace
That I've been made to stand
And find hope in this place
By the strength of your hand
O Lord be my refuge!
Dear Lord be my rest!
Give me divine guidance
On this arduous quest
Some trials come at us
They form from without
Other fires kindle thus
From within they burn out
Whether deep in our minds
Or the depths of our soul
Whether enemies armed
With a sword or with bow
We're plunged into war
In this life here on earth
The instant the Word
Was received in new birth
In scripture we're told
As the lawless abound
That love will grow cold
Take a look, all around
The headlines declare
What the prophets spoke clear
The reports that we read
Tend to weary with fear
The weight settles on us
We think in our mind
I can't stand beneath
The slow strain and the grind
Some cope with what's real
By ignoring the signs
Some eat their next meal
Oblivious to the times
Some numb themselves sick
With the drug of their choice
Some drown in vain pleasure
And drown out the small voice
Where does my help come from?
It comes from the Lord
Dear God, strengthen me
To continue forward
Shed the love of my Jesus
Abroad in my heart
Let me remember the work
You began at the start
You promised your presence
You promised your care
Your promise stands true
You'll always be there
I'll do what I can
To give it my all
To honor your name
In the midst of the fall
When my efforts fall short
As at times in the past
When I come to my senses
And remember at last
It has been by your grace
That I've been made to stand
And find hope in this place
By the strength of your hand
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