What He Requires

Some time ago, I made a silent commitment to write nearly every day. It was as though God said to me, "This is your part for now. Practice. Then wait on me for clearer direction."

I love to write, so following His lead hasn't been a burden. Not too concerned about topic, I just wrote from the heart.

But now that I'm forty-something, hormones steal my voice for three or four days a month. Words won't come. Darkness sets in....darker than anything I remember feeling in my twenties or thirties. It's not my circumstances, unfavorable though they are with husband still underemployed (working lots of hours for low wages).

I ruined another whole chicken the other day. I thought I turned the crockpot on low in the morning, as is my custom. But the knob got caught just before the low slot; it never actually engaged. A couple of the kids were sick that day, so I spent more time cuddling and less time in my kitchen.

Can you believe I never noticed Mr.Chicken sitting there, cold and uncooked, until six hours later...at which time he probably contained too much bacteria to be salvaged? My husband really looks forward to chicken, and the kids as well, so I felt horribly inadequate.....though Husband's a dear and never complains.

Can I say the same about my holy, righteous kids? Um...no. They speak their minds.....without any tact, I'm afraid.

Although usually a positive person, on these dark days, I can't think a sunny or organized thought, or do anything right. And the hormone-induced ache in my head won't quit throbbing, no matter how much OTC medicine I swallow (following the label, of course)

It's as though I'm in prison. Trapped and worthless. No fun to be around. A downer for my family.

"Why, Lord?  Why must women be so afflicted? Why give me so much responsibility, and then render me useless?"


2 Corinthians 12:10
That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Dare I say it, but are we women more prone to living in our own strength, rather than relying on our Heavenly Father, who requires our submission?

Do you see it in yourself? Or in your own girls? My girls are so different...so stubborn compared to my boys. They set their jaws, those girls, and it isn't pretty. They're full of sweetness and blessing....don't get me wrong, but it has to be their way, so often.

Looking at pictures of my sweet blessings, and listening to praise music, are two coping mechanisms that help. They allow me to do the next thing.

Make dinner. Smile at a child. Kiss a boo boo. Utter a kind word.

There is always grace. We must wait for the flood of grace. Ride it like a wave. Let it overtake us.

Mary, tired from church the night before, was a teary mess around 2:00 PM today. She told me in her nastiest voice, "No! I'm not taking a nap!"

I scooped her up.....my head aching, I needed a rest anyway.

Lying on the bed with me, she writhed in my arms at first. But I was patient. I planted kisses on her forehead, her hair, her cheeks.

Her contrary body relaxed. Giving in, she pulled me closer, squeezing me. Soon, her eyelids gave in. Her breathing steadied.

I took in her beautiful sleeping face. A picture of peace. Of submission.

This is what God wants from me.

My monthly affliction is my reminder. Surrender. That's what the Christian life requires.

And. it's. so. hard.

Into a Life of Prayer; A Journey, Part 7

Links for earlier posts in this prayer series are here:   Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6


The Lord's Prayer, Our Model, Vol. 4
We're back to our study of the Lord's Prayer this week.


The first three petitions, remember, focus on God, using the word Thy. 1) Hallowed be Thy name;  2) Thy kingdom come;  3) Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.


The last three petitions focus on Us:
~ Give us this day our daily bread
~ And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors
~ And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the Evil One.


Today we focus on:  Give us this day our daily bread


After focusing our minds on God and his Kingdom, Jesus calls us to acknowledge our dependence on God the Father for our daily living needs, both physical and spiritual.


Spiritual Needs:  Matthew 4:4--But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.


Physical Needs: Matthew 6:25-34 (Source here)
²⁵ “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? ²⁶ Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? ²⁷Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?


²⁸ “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; ²⁹ and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. ³⁰ Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?


³¹ “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³² For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. ³³ But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. ³⁴ Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.


In praying for our daily bread, we remind ourselves that He is the Source of our sustenance. 


That means our physical sustenance needs are not met by:
employers
businesses
farm fields
retirement funds
governments
savings accounts


In the same way, our spiritual needs are not met by: 
spouses
children
friends
hobbies
material items
careers


Our Father desires to provide everything we need to live our lives in obedience to him. Just as an earthly father would not withhold daily sustenance from his children, neither does Our Heavenly Father withhold it from us. All feelings of lack, therefore, result from our going elsewhere for our sustenance.


If we lose a job, yes, it is disconcerting. But if we view Our Heavenly Father as our Source, we know that when one income channel dries up, another will surface. Indeed, income channels will always dry up. Change is inevitable. A new channel may be in the form of a part-time job at first, but regardless of how attractive the channel, we must feel at our very core that Father will provide. This shouldn't be something we have to convince ourselves of, through sheer will. We must know it at our core. 


We must pray for our daily bread, as Jesus instructs us, so that it never enters our mind that something else might be the Source. Jesus knew our weakness. He knew we would try to rely on ourselves, or on another false god, to supply our needs. Thus, he teaches us to pray:  Give us this day our daily bread.


Notice the word daily. Remember that the Children of Israel were instructed to rely on daily manna, and told not to store it up for tomorrow?  It they tried to store it up for tomorrow, they had pestilence.  God made it spoil if they didn't obey.


This part of the prayer, this emphasis on daily, it to address greed. Jesus knew there would be greed, and indeed, so much of the world goes without daily bread because of greed. Our Heavenly Father provides for all, as promised, but we do not distribute it fairly. We take too much for ourselves, trying to store it up. We don't give enough to the third world, or to our needy neighbors in America, because we don't have faith. All greed is a lack of faith.


Jesus wants to prevent that lack of faith, so he teaches us to pray for our daily bread. 


Friends, we must do this....not only when we lose an income channel, but everyday. So that we will share. Just as God relies on us to plant sustenance crops and to tend them (we must work), he relies on us to share the food and other sustenance resources. We have a part in providing. 



Notice the words us and our. Give us this day our daily bread. We don't ever, in the Lord's prayer, ask anything for ourselves. We pray as a brotherhood. And we must live as a brotherhood.


In addition to food, Our Father provides other daily needs as well (shelter, clothing, for example). If we live in an area without public transportation, then He will provide a vehicle, if that vehicle is necessary to maintain employment.


If you drive a luxury car and lose your job, don't expect luxury wheels as a replacement. Luxury, at its core, is greed. If you lose your wardrobe in a natural disaster, don't expect new designer clothes as a replacement. They are greed also. Any extra we try to store up, beyond our actual need, is greed. Our desire to store up keeps starving people, starving. 


We are outside the will of God when we exercise greed....when we lack faith. 


Matthew 6:33
But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.


If we are greedy and faithless, we are not seeking the kingdom of God and His righteousness. The promise to be provided for, then, does not apply to us.


Does that sound harsh? Well, yes. But is it any harsher than all the bellies heard around the world, grumbling for food, because of our greed?


We must align ourselves with the will of God, and that starts by praying for our daily bread. That will build faith. Do that and then believe it.

What is needed daily? What is not needed at all? We question every purchase, in light of God's will that we share. Is a new carpet really needed, when billions live on dirt floors? If we have the means to buy a new carpet, could that money, instead, be used to buy small business resources for a Compassion-sponsored third world family, or a water well or filter?

Is our car unreliable, or just out of fashion or old looking? If we have the means to buy a new modest car, can we donate our old one to a needy family, rather than trading it in? For that is how God may provide for that needy family to maintain employment. Through our obedience.

Do we want a bigger, better house to impress others, or because we plan to house some of God's people? For our extra space may be how God plans to provide for a family who lost their house in the recession. Through our obedience.

The Lord's Prayer, when we look at it closely, aligns us with the will of God. Let us live by every word.

Edited on August 13: I need to retract my statement that all luxury consumption is greed. That doesn't make sense since the luxury industry employs a lot of people, and where would the little guy be without this industry?  So sorry about that ill-conceived notion.

What Do You Know About Missions?

My friend Katherine has a strong background in missions.  She's written a wonderful, practical post to assist us in informing ourselves, our children, and our churches and faith communities about a topic that is sadly neglected in most churches, that of missions discipleship.

She included many educational website references in her post, including 1040Window.org.  What is the 10/40 window?  Here is a definition from the website itself:

What is the 10/40 Window?

The 10/40 Window is an area of the world that contains the largest population of non-Christians in the world. The area extends from 10 degrees to 40 degrees North of the equator, and stretches from North Africa across to China.

I learned so much just from this one website!  Katherine's post also includes lists of missionary biographies, including those suitable to read aloud to our children.  Please, please, bookmark this link if you have to and read her wonderful post!

Missions Discipleship: Some Practical Ideas (From her website, Restore the Ancient Paths)

Redefining Blessing

Philippians 1:21
For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.


The Apostle Paul's famous words challenge me this week. They're teaching me to redefine the term blessing. As we sit under crushing financial stress, I'm learning that my day to day comfort is unimportant. It's my spiritual state, not my physical one, that matters to God.


Whatever definition the world holds for the term blessing, we can be sure God's definition is opposite.


According to the world, you're blessed if you have....


...physical beauty.
...a vacation fund.
...a summer house.
...the latest fashions.
...a great personality.
...an advanced education.
...a good job.
...retirement savings.
...college education savings.
...good health.
...a big house with nice furniture.
...investments.
...funds for adventures.
...a good support network.
...high confidence.


According to the Lord, you're blessed if you have...


...humility.
...a heart for the poor.
...a heart of thankfulness.
...spirit joy
...spirit peace.
...a deep devotion to God.
...blind faith.
...a poor spirit (from the Beatitudes--"Blessed are the poor in spirit" means you understand your own iniquities, and your deep need for God).


The Beatitudes, from Matthew 5:3-10

"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 

Blessed are they who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. 

Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. 

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. 

Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God. 

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God. 

Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."

I'm learning this week that a blessing is that which sets my gaze on the Almighty.

I am blessed!

If one has all the worldly things from the first list, where is their gaze likely to be?  Squarely on themselves. 

Matthew 19:16-23

The Rich Young Man (source here)

16 Now a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?”

 17 “Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, obey the commandments.”

 18 “Which ones?” the man inquired.

Jesus replied, “ ‘Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony,  19 honor your father and mother,’a and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’b”

 20 “All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?”

 21 Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

 22 When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.

 23 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.  24Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

The unemployment rate is still nearly 10%, so I estimate at least seven of you are experiencing, or have experienced, unemployment or underemployment. The road back to financial stability can be long and arduous. Some, depending on their age and experiences, may never attain the financial footing they previously enjoyed. 

Your new lifestyle demands a lot of redefining. 

~ If you have plenty, that's only a blessing if you share it. 

~ If you have what you need, that's only a blessing if you're thankful.

Look at your circumstances as an opportunity. God has your undivided attention. Listen. Learn. Teach.

Did you know....

.....there's a raccoon in one of our trees?

.....we're sick here and enjoying extra cuddling, extra books, and extra Curious George and Thomas The Train movies?

.....the bunnies love it when husband doesn't have time to mow the grass clover?

.....that my husband now works days, so all four children go to the doctor's together? They are looking forward to watching brother Paul get his ear wax sucked out by the ENT. They really want a glimpse of his ears under the microscope. Paul's looking forward to hearing again.

.....you can buy absorbent vomit granules at medical supply stores? You only have to sprinkle them on the offensive piles and then vacuum them up a few hours later. (A trick I learned from my teaching years. The custodians always used them.) The smell goes away immediately. Trust me, you want these granules. Two of mine get one vomiting incident each when their post nasal drip gets too thick.

....that in the middle of the night last night, Miss Beth began to vomit in my hand, after violent coughing?  I yelled twice, as loud as I could, "Get me a throw-up bowl!"  No one woke up. We did make it to the bathroom in time to avert a major 3:00 AM disaster, though.

....my children behave much better when only one parent is home? They want one boss at a time. At night, when Daddy arrives home at 7:15 PM, all is calm. And stays calm. For a long time, on his non-errand, non-school days, he was home until lunch. Conflict was a regular part of our mornings, as Peter especially, had difficulty with two bosses at the same time.

The new routine is a blessing! All the bossing around is done by the time Daddy arrives home. He helps with reading and devotions only. I love it! Women are very good at "guiding the house."

1 Timothy 5:14
I will therefore that the younger women marry, bear children, guide the house, give none occasion to the adversary to speak reproachfully.  

.....squirrels crawl with their bellies on the ground, like at army boot camp, when they see something interesting edible?

....spending your days cuddling with sick kids is very rewarding (minus the sick part)?

I'm loving it.