Higher

Higher

Posted by Sarah 

 

“[For my determined purpose is] that I may know Him [that I may progressively become more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him…] - Philippians 3:10 Amplified Bible

The other day I heard a song that made me write. I didn’t quite yet know what to say but it stirred so much, I had to say something. Maybe it was because of the intimacy and honesty it cultivated with my Savior as I sang the words:

I could sit/
I could just sit and wait for all your goodness/
Hope to feel your presence/
And I could just stay/
I could just stay right where I am and hope to feel You/
Hope to feel something again/

And I could hold on/
I could hold on to who I am and never let You change me from the inside/ I could be safe/
I could be safe in Your arms and never leave home/
Never let these walls down

But You have called me higher/
You have called me deeper
And I’ll go where You will leads me Lord/
You have called me higher/
You have called me deeper/
And I’ll go where You lead me Lord/ You lead me/

I think the lyrics from All Sons and Daughter’s Higher struck a cord in me because it was me! For a long time I let fear dictate my life. I listened to fear’s speech filled with the “what if’s” of rejection, failure, and the obscure and dreaded unknown. I agreed with fear’s overly cautious advice until I realized what fear promised never actually happened! In fact it was fear that often hedged me into my little comfortable radius keeping me from the life God called abundant.

The first step to freedom and abundant life happened about two years ago when I gave my life over to Christ. Although God did a major work in my life with fear, I had to daily choose to live differently and live in the reality that I no longer had to fear.

One day while I was having some quiet time, Jesus gave me gentle and loving promise and proposition through Isaiah 41:13 saying, “I, the Lord your God, will hold you by your right hand saying to you, ‘fear not, I will help you.” He would lovingly take me by the hand and help me through my fears. However, the promise was predicated on one thing – was I willing to take His hand? Was I willing to do deeper with Him?

Jesus asks us all this question.

Are we willing to take God’s hand? Are we willing to change? To leave behind what we know? What we think is right or good? To leave our old lifestyle patterns and habits? To go outside our comfort zone? To trust God and not ourselves?  To completely let fear go?

Jesus will never force us. His proposition is gentle and full of grace and compassion. It comes from a heart that wants relationship with us and to grow in intimacy with us. He is calling us higher. Calling us deeper.

That day, I answered. At first it was hard and uncomfortable. It was different. It was change. It was hard. It was scary. But I was assured I didn’t have to fear anymore and I had God to help me through it. Step by step old habits, unbelief, insecurity, and fear began to dissipate. God was patient with my struggles. Gracious when I fell and dusted me off to take His hand and continue with Him.

As I started living the abundant life Jesus intended me to have, I grew closer to Jesus. I discovered more of who He was and enjoyed dialoguing with Him about life. I discovered a relationship with Him.

Out of my anxieties, I learned that Jesus never called us to live the mediocre life, He called us to something greater, something “higher” and “deeper.” In fact Jesus said, “I have come that they might have life and that more abundantly,” (John 10:10).

It was His call to me to come on an adventure and it is our call to us. It may not look like we thought it would and It might interrupt our plans but from experience, I would say those are the biggest blessings and the things that have brought the biggest joy in my life. They were experiences I thought I couldn’t do. Things that I actually feared, but as I took a step, I saw the wonder of God using a person who was simply willing. I also learned precious lessons along the way and
uncovered the beauty of the various shades of God’s nature and character.

That’s the abundant life -- the higher, deeper call God is giving us.

Isn’t it time to stop settling for less?

Isn’t time to answer?

Practicing Gratitude

Practicing Gratitude
Posted by Lynette

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever
- Psalms 118 NIV

I don’t know about you but I know for me sometimes it is so easy to focus on negative things. I’m twenty four and still living at home, I wish I made more money so I could afford to live in my own apartment, I wish I wasn’t in so much debt with student loans, I wish I was in better shape, I wish was thinner, I wish I wish, wish….

None of these wishes are bad but it comes from a place of discontentment and ungratefulness. For the last year, God has really shown me that I need to practice gratitude - that gratitude and thanksgiving is the antidote for discontentment and the bringer of joy.

Before Jesus was crucified he had the last supper with his disciples.  Jesus, being fully God and fully man, knew that his crucifixion was upon him. Can you imagine knowing that you were going to die? Can you imagine knowing that it would be painful? That you would suffer?  Now can you imagine thanking God for it?

“While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body” (Matthew 26: 26 NIV)

Jesus gave thanks knowing that his body would be broken. He also knew that it was for the greatest cause- to save us from our sins. He gave thanks knowing he would suffer, that he would hurt, that he would feel pain.

In our suffering, in our wishing, in our hoping, in our sadness, and our trials, we too can learn to thank God.  It’s not an easy practice and it takes time, effort, and trust in God to cultivate a life of thanksgiving and a heart filled with gratitude.

But as Christian’s we are told to “give thanks in all circumstances” (1 Thessalonians 5: 18 NIV.) I am grateful I have a roof over my head and food in my stomach for every meal. I am grateful for the education I received, the friendships I cultivated, and the memories I created in college, I am grateful for a fully healthy, functioning body that Jesus hand-crafted.

What are you grateful for today? How can you begin to practice thanksgiving in your life?

Words of Wisdom

Reflection

Posted by Selma

But we Christians have no veil over our faces, we can be mirrors that brightly reflect the glory of the Lord. And as the Spirit of the Lord works within us, we become more and more like him.  - 2 Corinthians 3:18 (Living Bible Version)

Have you ever walked past a mirror and took the opportunity to stop and admire yourself? C’mon girls, let’s be honest - We love to check ourselves out! We’re all guilty of stopping to fuss with our hair. We stare at our complexion to touch up our makeup. We turn back and forth to make sure our outfits look good. We tug here and adjust there giving ourselves the once over and a smile of approval.

Or how ‘bout this, have you ever stopped to look in a magnified mirror that intensifies everything times ten? Whoa! All kidding aside, we’re talking a new experience here. Honestly, it takes all the fun out of looking. We don’t want to emphasize every unsightly unwanted body part - big nose, cellulite, wide hips, flat chest, bulging belly, crooked teeth, bad acne, frizzy hair, and the list goes on.

Girls, why are we constantly admiring, envying, or coveting what we don’t have? Christian girl’s aren’t excluded from doing this either. I know first hand because I do it (laugh out loud.)! So ladies, how can we have a healthy balance about our appearance? How can we not be so extreme as to go back to the Little House on the Prairie days, but still look attractive, not letting today’s culture dictate how we should look?

 Here’s some eye opening statistics: in the book True Beauty by Carolyn Mahaney and Nicole Whitacre, Eighty-five percent of women are dieting and sixty-five percent confess to having an eating disorder. Additionally, eighty percent of women will have cosmetic surgery at some point in their life.

According to ex-Victoria Secrets model, Kylie Bisutti in her book, I’m No Angel,  in  modeling world, anything over thirty inch hips is considered curvy and curvy doesn’t do well on a high fashion runway, whereas anorexic thin models are considered ideal. In Debra Evans book, Beauty and the Best, she states today’s average model, actress, or dancer is thinner than ninety-five percent of the female population. However, sixty percent of women in the U.S. wear a size twelve and thirty-one percent of women are a size sixteen and over.

In retrospect, when you’re young, you’re not pre-occupied with growing old. Reality is that one day you are going to age. Just take a look at mom or grandma, remember they were once young too! Through them you see it’s a peek of what’s to come. It can’t be stopped although some women try spending lots of money on surgery, they only come up with a superficial “one size fits all,” unnatural, tight botox face, with swollen protruding lips. It’s so sad!  They are pretty women who in actuality didn’t need anything done because Jesus already created them beautiful the way they were originally.

Younger girls, allow Jesus to become your mirror! See what God sees, He sees the real you! He sees beyond, into our spirit (soul). He loves you for who we are!
True beauty comes from Jesus, (Christ within us)! Then we’re transformed into His image. This beauty never fades. 1 Peter 3:3-4 in the Living Translation says, “Don’t be concerned about outward beauty that depends on jewelry or beautiful clothes or hair arrangement, be beautiful inside, in your hearts, with lasting charm of a gentle and quiet spirit which is so precious to God.”

When I repented and asked Jesus to be my Savior, He took residence in my heart and a metamorphosis took place! I could walk radiantly in God’s spirit. Don’t get me wrong Christ does His part but you have to do yours to continue to walk in the spirit. It takes some discipline. You need to daily read your bible (i.e. communicating with Christ), pray, and get plugged into a good bible believing church. This is how to develop in your spirit and grow spiritually.

Did you know in the New Testament there’s no reference to women’s physical attractiveness at all? Check for yourself. The majority of the women in scripture aren’t described as beautiful but they share their virtues, inner qualities, and love for the Lord as they walk in the spirit (Evans, 150). Isn’t that awesome?

In closing girls, I waited as a young gal to ask Christ to be my Savior. Don’t wait! Do it now! Girls, don’t we want our sense of worth to come from God and not man? Don’t you want to find your true identity in Christ? Your value? Because, it has nothing to do with the way we look (1 Samuel 16:7, NIV)! When you have Jesus in your life, He makes you valuable because it’s His beauty! We want to exhibit and reflect Jesus’ character to others like being compassionate, helpful, generous, loving, caring, and encouraging. It will be evident to others that they will be able to see Christ’s true beauty in you!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6RezoHKni0

A Devotion
Posted by Lynette 

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” -  Mark 12:30

Today I want to talk about idolatry and I’ll be speaking from experience…

I have idolized everything from marriage—believing it to be a “fix all” to my problems, my job—that somehow I was defined and my worth determined by what I did and how well I did it, even ministry—how well I served others or not.

But, more specifically, I want to talk about relationships.  Whether it is a relationship with your boyfriend, your mom, your best friend, or your sister—any relationship is idolatrous when it is co-dependent.

Relationships that are codependent take precedence over the areas of your life that really should belong to God.

Is your identity based in the person and not God’s love for you?

Does that particular relationship overshadow all other relationships? Including your relationship with the Lord?

Do you find your identity in what that person thinks about you? Instead of in the loving truth of who God says you are?

Has your focus been diverted from the Lord and placed on something lesser?
The very definition of idol says that it is only an “image” or “representation” of a god.

Idols are lesser. As long as we maintain our idols, we cannot love God with our whole hearts, souls, minds and all our strength. God is a jealous God, and he is jealous for you.

So what should we do?

“…Break down their altars, smash their sacred stones, cut down their Asherah poles and burn their idols in the fire. For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession” (Deuteronomy 7:5-6). 

So, to my sister who keeps running back to the boyfriend who you just love so much, and can’t be without, even though you know somewhere deep down inside it’s bad news. Stop. Run to the loving arms of Jesus.

To my sister who has to have their mom always be there because they can’t be without her. Breathe and rest and give yourself a break. I promise you, you are just fine without her.

We need to abandon the things we so tightly cling to so that our hands are open to receive the things God wants to give us. We cannot receive with closed hands.

When You Wish You Didn’t 

 Posted by Sarah

“….But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more”

- Romans 5:20

I was having a moment of “I wish I didn’t.” I wish I didn’t date him. Wish I didn’t go there. Wish I didn’t do that. Wish I knew that. Wish I knew Jesus sooner. Wish I could go back. 

But let me first tell you how this began. I came home from watching a movie called God’s Not Dead and was impressed by the love twenty-one year old actor/singer Shane Harper had for Jesus. So impressed that I decided to look up his story. On screen and in Facebook posts I saw a light that shined bright for God and was encouraged. That was until my admiration was washed away by a wave of shame and regret. A wave that reminded me my early twenties were gone and caught in this current, I wished to turn back time thinking, He’s only twenty-one and he has his whole life ahead of him. That was until my Savior rescued me with a single word: redemption. 

In the eyes of a loving God, my past wasn’t wasted. Each moment of shame and every passing regret had been covered by Jesus. In the New Living Translation, Hebrews 12:2 says that Jesus disregarded the shame of the cross for the joy set before Him. That joy was me and it was you. It was the fact that He would forgive our sins past, present, and future, removing our shame and declaring on the cross, “It is finished!”, (John  19:30). Not only that, but my story can now be covered in grace. If grace means unearned favor (which means getting what I don’t deserve), than my history in the hands of Jesus can be something I praise God for because He forgave it. He tells me I can now move on because He wants to do something new in my life (Isaiah 43:18). When I live in grace, I can rejoice at what God did to my past and how He can turn it into something beautiful.

“Wish I didn’t’s” can be redeemed. If redeemed means bought back, then my past can be used for a good and for a purpose. For example, my past is redeemed when I see God’s hand in my past and stand in wonder of His mercy. It’s redeemed when I lovingly warn someone going down the wrong path. Or when I sympathize with someone who is going through what I went through. In God’s economy, nothing is wasted. Every thread in life becomes a beautiful tapestry. 

So if you are wishing you didn’t, remember your story isn’t over. I know mine isn’t and time hasn’t passed me by. There is still time for wrongs to be made right. Discoveries to be made. New dreams to unfold. It’s not too late. In fact, Jesus tells us that He has good plans for us and future filled with hope (Jeremiah 29:11). Like Shane Harper, we too can shine bright for Christ and remember that God’s grace is bigger than our sin. 

A song for you: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QSvWpOolDsc