To Be Held (191)

So this day has been eventful. Not quite in the way I had hoped it would be, but eventful nonetheless. It started off like any other Sunday morning. Get up, get coffee, lose track of time, rush to get ready for church, leave at least 5 minutes late and eat breakfast on the way. This morning we visited a church that we had visited once before after we first moved back from Arkansas. I have mentioned many times that one thing I loved about our church in Arkansas was that the people were real and wanted to be there and live like Christ, well this church is a lot like that. No, it’s not filled with the sweetest old people ever, but it is filled with people who aren’t afraid to love Jesus. It’s filled with people who smile and don’t stare at guests like they have three heads! It was so good to be in the house of the Lord today! I heard somewhere that living like Christ isn’t just about Sunday’s, but the climax of your spiritual week should be on Sundays when you celebrate all that Christ has done with fellow believers. I can definitely say that that was true this week. It has been a rough week, but it was so good to hear God’s Word and fellowship with other people who love Him. Well after church we had to go get a part for our chainsaw, and then we were going to go visit my grandma in the nursing home. Well, we were just getting settled in to talk to grandma when mom’s phone rang. It was my other grandma calling to let us know that my step-grandpa had fallen and was in the hospital.

So we shortened our visited with my grandma to go meet my other grandma at the hospital. Come to find out he had fallen and broken his hip. He was in quite a bit of pain so we stayed all afternoon with them at the hospital. He is going to have surgery on it tomorrow, so if you think about it, we would appreciate your prayers.
On to what I really want to post about today. A few days ago a friend made me aware of this incredible quote. It’s a little bit long, but believe you me, it is so worth your time:

“Is it not so in the spiritual life? Our Lord withdraws Himself, not in anger or disappointment, but that we maybe sensible of not having attained, of not being already perfect, and that we may follow on to know the Lord, and to apprehend something more of that for which we were apprehended. Do not be disappointed, O Christian soul, if some time you should cease to feel the familiar delight in certain hymns, services, books, or teachers. Thy Master has withdrawn Himself from these; but thou wilt find Him further on. Never rest till you have discovered Him in some deeper revelation. The watchmen that go about the city, and who are probably messengers of divine truths, May not help you in your quest; but the Holy Spirit waits to lead you into all truth. Open your heart to Him. It is but a little time, and as you pass from all human teachers you will find Him whom you love, or perhaps be found of Him. Then hold Him, or better be held by Him. It is a sweet motto, “Teneo et teneor”, “I hold, and am Held.” FB Meyer

How many times in your Christian life have you all of a sudden lost your enthusiasm for things of Christ? You used to love hymns, but now you find them boring, you catch your mind wandering during church, and cant seem to focus when you read books about Christ. It’s in these times that the devil would like to get his foot in the door. But don’t stop pursuing God. He promised that he would send the Comforter. If we are God’s child, then we have the gift of the Holy Spirit. We just have to keep our hearts open, be patient as we walk through the desert. When you are seeking Christ you will find Him, as Meyer says. You can hold and be held by Him. There is nothing sweeter than being held by Him: the Creator of the universe, the Healer of hearts, the Giver of Life…

One of the songs we sang this morning was talking about the importance of passing on what God has done for us to the generation below us. We should be telling others about what God is doing in our hearts and lives. We should be letting them know the blessings and peace that come from being held by Him. How else are they ever going to want to trust them on their own? Why would they want to seek His face if they have never seen what He can do for the brokenhearted? We should tell them so that when they go through something hard, they will lean on Jesus and experience the same blessings and peace that He has given to us! It is so important to leave a godly legacy for our families and everyone around us.

Today’s Blessings:

Another absolutely beautiful day.

Hearing God’s Word proclaimed clearly this morning.

The way that music is used to speak to our hearts.

-Christy

“I Am With You”- Like, Really With You! (173)

“I am with You always, even to the end of the age”

“But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.”

Have you ever thought about that before? Like, I mean, really thought about it? Yeah, we hear all the time in church that God is with us, and that God watches and hears everything we do, but what does that really look like in our lives as Christians?

I remember when I was little I absolutely hated being left with a babysitter. I mean absolutely HATED IT! It wasn’t that my baby sitters were bad or that I didn’t have a good time with them. (Most of the time it was my grandma, and I LOVE my grandma.) But I didn’t like being left by my parents. If I knew that my parents were going to be out for a date night or out of town for business I used to almost make myself sick worrying about it. I would be on the verge of tears almost all day and glue myself to my mom for as long as I could. My grandma used to try to get me distracted with something while my mom left. Sometimes she would get me absorbed in a craft or cooking project so my mom and dad could quietly sneak out the back door. Typically when I discovered they were gone I would go into hysterics for a while and then continue with what I was doing, all the while holding back tears even when doing the most fun project. (I probably wasn’t the most fun to babysit….) Eventually when my mom and dad came back I would meet them at the front door and hug them so tight that I’m surprised they weren’t deprived of oxygen. Sometimes they would bring me a special treat or souvenir from wherever they went. Once mom and dad were back, my world was back in order and life could carry on again.

I imagine that’s what it was like for the disciples when Christ left them to return to heaven. They had followed this amazing leader everywhere. They had witnessed his miracles, His love and His compassion. While I’m sure sometimes they were completely confused by what He said and did, they still knew that this man was the Messiah- He was something special. They had developed a relationship with Him. They knew His personality and Christ knew their quirks. The disciples were friends of the Savior! How cool is that? Imagine what it was like for them to face the death of their friend and teacher, the Messiah. Even though they He told them that He wasn’t going to be dead forever, it was hard for them to completely wrap their heads around that thought. I think sometimes we are a little hard on the disciples…I don’t think I would be able to wrap my head around someone coming back to life either…
Once Christ had been resurrected and seen again by the disciples, He left again. This time, to go and prepare a place for those that love Him. But this time when He left, He was leaving something that would change the lives of everyone who would believe in Him from then on. Filled with hope and probably a little bit of fear after Pentecost the apostles now had something that no one before them had had before. They now had Christ living inside of them! The Spirit of God had come down and was now residing inside of them.

Loneliness

Sadness

Longing

Those are emotions that we feel often as humans (at least I do.) I wish I had a friend, Im sad because I don’t have what I think I should have, and I long to have that which I don’t have.

As Christian’s we have Christ actually living inside of us! There is no reason for loneliness. There is no reason for sadness. There is no reason to long for anything other than more of Christ. Of course, this isn’t a perfect union with Christ, not yet anyway. If I think of how excited I was to see my parents after they left me with a babysitter then multiply that by like a billion, that’s how exciting it will be to have not just the Spirit of God dwelling in me, but actually be in the presence of God! However for now, we must remember that we already have such an amazing blessing by having the Spirit dwelling within us. The “Comforter”, He is called in John. It’s like God knew that we would struggle, He knew that we would need a comforter to help us through the hard days. He knew that we would need His presence to be a constant in our lives.

Today’s Blessings:

The Spirit that dwells within us as Christians.

-Christy

Sometimes God Reveals-Sometimes He Doesnt (153)

Have you ever been reading something in the Bible and as you are reading, it’s like a lightbulb is coming on, but at the same time you still aren’t grasping the whole concept? I don’t think that this feeling is unique to scripture reading, as I’ve also had this feeling while doing math homework. The difference is, that I do eventually grasp the mathematical concepts. (Most of the time.) As Christians when we read God’s Word we aren’t reading it like any other book, we are reading it with help from the Holy Spirit who allows us to see new things each and every time we read.
There are somethings about God’s Word that we cannot grasp on this side of Glory. So when we read those passages here on earth, there will always be a part of it that we cant understand. I was reading Isaiah 55 this morning. I’ve probably read that chapter many times, but while I was reading it this time, new things were sticking out to me, It was like I was barely hanging on to each and every new idea that was being presented.

It’s such a good thing that the Spirit doesn’t just show us the same truth once! I feel like I’m such a slow learner. I go through a trial and seem to still struggle with the same things that I struggled with last time I went through a trial. I wish that my spiritual growth could be measured like my physical growth. Often times it’s a two steps forward one step back, but by God’s grace He doesn’t give up on me! This excerpt from today’s reading in “My Utmost for His Highest” really puts it best!

“Your growth in grace is not measured by the fact that you haven’t turned back, but that you have an insight and understanding into where you are spiritually. Have you heard God say, “Come up higher,” not audibly on the outer level, but to the innermost part of your character?”

I think that’s where I’m at. God is calling me “Come up higher.” My flesh wants to give up. It says “Im spiritual enough, aren’t I? I’m a good person just how I am!” A friends summed this up in a message she sent me. “Christy, I know you are being stretched beyond what you would want to be…” Exactly!! I hated moving a second time! I hated leaving Rich! I hated the new surroundings.Those things were stretching me; creating character you might say. But just being a good person with some character isn’t enough for God. He wants me to be completely sold out for Him- More than just a pew warmer on Sundays, but a completed devoted follower.

“Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing….. God has to hide from us what He does, until, due to the growth of our personal character, we get to the level where He is then able to reveal it.”

Many times Im stuck in the place where God cant reveal to me what He is doing. Im not at a place spiritually, where He can trust me with such insight.

When I was in 2nd grade there was a lot of construction going on around my school. One day all of the teachers seemed to be in a panic and we weren’t allowed to eat lunch in the cafeteria. We had to stay in our classrooms all afternoon and couldn’t even cross over into the main building to use the restroom. I remember one of my classmates asking the teacher what was going on. The teacher looked at my classmate and didn’t answer. She just told us that we had to listen for instructions and obey. Later we found out that there was the threat of a gas leak and they didn’t want us to be outside or in the part of the building closest to where the leak was. My teacher choose not to share with us what was going because she knew that as little 2nd graders she would have a bunch of scared, crying kids on her hands. Fast forward a few years to 6th grade. We were carrying on like normal in our classroom reading silently to ourselves when my teacher got a phone call. She stepped out in the hallway to take the call and then re-entered the classroom with a look of worry on her face. She told us that an intruder had been reported in the building and we needed to turn off the lights and sit in the dark at the front of the classroom away from the door. We quickly moved into position until we were given the all clear to carry on like normal. The difference between those two instances was that as 2nd graders we couldn’t handle the scary information. As 6th graders we were mature enough to know what was going on and obey anyway.

That’s what God is doing with us. Sometimes He doesn’t reveal why He does things. As a matter of fact, so far in my life, God hasn’t reveal what He’s doing until after He’s done it.

God didn’t tell me why He moved me to Arkansas.

God didn’t share with me why He moved me back.

God didn’t tell me why He allowed Rich and I to get incredibly close.

Basically, God doesn’t owe me an explanation. God knows that if He told me why He does things, then it wouldn’t take faith for me to obey Him. I have to trust Him even when I cant see what He’s doing. I may never get to a place on this earth where He can tell why He does things. But because He has never failed anyone ever! I can trust Him!!

Today’s Blessings:

1.God’s Word coming alive each and every time I read it.

2.The Spirit that reveals new truths to me and helps me obey!

3.A God that has never failed!

-Christy