Fine China

I heard a story from a guest speaker at a meeting I went to recently that has really stuck with me and I believe it bears repeating!

This speaker was from Romania where all of her family still lives. While visiting her family the gift of an heirloom that has been passed down from generation to generation was bestowed upon her. This precious family heirloom was a set of fine china. She told her mother she was scared to transport them from Romania to the United States in fear that something would happen to them, however her mother insisted that the tradition be carried on through her: the only female of her generation.

Upon arriving home after a long journey she carefully opened the box of china. Tears sprung to her face as she beheld the sight of her family’s fine china. Several pieces lay broken and cracked in the bottom of the box. In a fit of unbelievable anger she picked up the un-broken china and smashed it into tiny pieces destroying the rest of her inheritance.

Everyone in the room gasped at her drastic reaction, until she revealed to us that instead of smashing what was left of her family’s heirloom she lovingly picked up the broken pieces, finding every speck that she could and mended them back together. Then she said to us “how many times do we set goals for ourselves and the first time we slip we smash what is left in to tiny pieces?”

I don’t know about you but I am very guilty of doing just that! I will set a goal for myself, and the very moment I mess up I will throw in the towel.

Instead we should think of ourselves as the fine china! When we mess up and fail, and we most definitely will, we need to come before God and allow him to help us pick up the pieces and mend them back together. After all isn’t that exactly what God declared when he sent his son to die on the cross for us? He was telling us that we are precious that we are beyond valuable to him.

My challenge to you today is to treat yourself as fine china! Take it a step at a time. When you mess up, confess it to God ask for his forgiveness and help; and then mend the pieces back together!

Psalm 116:1-9 New Living Translation (NLT)

¹ I love the Lord because he hears my voice
    and my prayer for mercy. ² Because he bends down to listen,
    I will pray as long as I have breath! ³ Death wrapped its ropes around me;
    the terrors of the grave^[a] overtook me.
    I saw only trouble and sorrow. ⁴ Then I called on the name of the Lord:
    “Please, Lord, save me!” ⁵ How kind the Lord is! How good he is!
    So merciful, this God of ours!
⁶ The Lord protects those of childlike faith;
    I was facing death, and he saved me.
⁷ Let my soul be at rest again,
    for the Lord has been good to me.
⁸ He has saved me from death,
    my eyes from tears,
    my feet from stumbling.
⁹ And so I walk in the Lord’s presence
    as I live here on earth!

His Grace is Enough

I went to a concert a few days ago and one of the bands led us in the singing of Amazing Grace. Slowly the band stopped playing the instruments and the signers backed away from their microphones, until it was only a symphony of voices worshiping the living God. What a powerful sound! I couldn’t help but ponder upon the words:

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me....
I once was lost but now am found,
Was blind, but now, I see.

T'was Grace that taught...
my heart to fear.
And Grace, my fears relieved.
How precious did that Grace appear...
the hour I first believed.

Grace: unmerited divine assistance

Unmerited (undeserved) divine assistance, grace is not something that we earn; it is a gift from God to us because of his unconditional love. “How precious did that Grace appear… the hour I first believed.” It’s immediate; it does not take works to go into effect. When we accept Christ as our Lord and Savior his grace covers our life!

Ephesians 2:8-9

New Living Translation (NLT)

⁸ God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. ⁹ Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.

In her book Scandalous Grace(a must read if you need some grace in your life), Julie Ann Barnhill says it like this, “It’s all about wrapping our minds around the preposterous nature of God’s grace, embracing it for ourselves, and then extending it to those around us.”

I love how she uses the word preposterous, because that is exactly how his unmerited grace is perceived! In almost every avenue of our lives we have to “work” at things. We have to strive and push to make things happen. So our automatic thought process is that we must work for God’s grace, when in reality it is already ours.

The real key (and trust me I am not saying it is easy), is to learn to walk in the grace that already covers your life! Yes, you will make mistakes. Yes, you will fall and fail in life. However we need to learn that God’s grace is sufficient, his grace is enough! He sent his son to die on the cross for our sins, covering us with an unmerited grace.

 

Acts 15:11

New Living Translation (NLT)

¹¹ We believe that we are all saved the same way, by the undeserved grace of the Lord Jesus.”

Truly that is Amazing Grace! So walk in that grace, take ownership of it in your life. Live with the freedom and authority that God has placed over you with the sacrifice of his son.

 

Acts 20:24

New Living Translation (NLT)

²⁴ But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God.

Share his grace; do not keep it to yourself. Can you imagine if we all learned to walk in true grace? How many lives would be changed and saved? If we were give others the same underserved grace that God offers to us we could see a great change in our world. Let it start with you! Grab a hold of God’s grace. Allow it to cover your life, and then go and share it with those around you!

Live in Grace

Let God be your Daddy!

Sitting on the edge of her bed perfectly positioned in the light that was streaming in from the hallway through her cracked door, she could hear daddy talking and laughing with her brother across the hall. She knew it deep in her soul that tonight would be the night. Tonight he would come across the hall and tuck her into bed too. He would give her hugs and kisses and wish her sweet dreams. With her heart beating violently inside her chest she sat up a little straighter when she heard him saying his last “good nights.” Anticipation overtook her when she heard the flick of her brothers light, and the closing of his door. Daddy’s shadow cast across the floor, when his big frame entered her door jam a smile light up her tiny face. He then reached his arm in, grabbed a hold of the door handle, and without a word swung the door shut. Hearing the latches finality when it clicked into place caused her smile to dissipate. Sobs began to take over her little body as she sat on the edge of her bed and listened to daddy walking down the hall away from her.  When she heard his feet descending the stairs she felt as if she had been punched because all the air left her lungs and she struggled to breath. She heard a gentle whisper…

“I watch over the fatherless”

It calmed her, and brought a peace that was unexplainable. With that peace upon her she lay down on her bed and drifted off to sleep.

***

Her head hurt from all the studying, she felt as though she would never be ready for the test tomorrow. Her brother sat across the table from her working on his own homework. They had been joking with each other all evening as mom prepared dinner.  She loved spending time with her family like this; it made her feel special and loved.

Hearing the front door open she smiled, dad was home. He came around the corner into the kitchen and headed straight for mom.

“Hello my bride, how was your day?” He said as he leaned in to give her a kiss on the cheek.  They shared simple banter and then he came over to the table.

“Hey Son, how was school? Do anything fun?” He asked looking right past her at her brother. Knowing it would be her turn next she began compiling a list of things she wanted to share from her day. After her brother had bragged about his grade in science class, dad rounded the table corner and tousled his hair telling him how proud he was.

She then watched as Dad turned away from her and walked out of the room with out a single word uttered in her direction. Hurt consumed her. Every feeling of love and specialness fled from her body. She tried to finish her studying, but was unable to concentrate.

Five minutes later mom instructed them to go wash up for dinner. Entering the hall, dad bumped into her, “Oh, I forgot to say hi to you…” he said, pulling her into an impersonal embrace.  As she walked away from him, the pain worsened.

“How could he forget to say hi to me, I was right there?” Were the words she spoke under her breath. A new wave of pain overcame her. She no longer felt special at all, instead emptiness filled her.

“I sustain the fatherless”

Just as it always had, that gentle voice filled her with the peace she needed so badly.

***

            Waiting at the table of her favorite restaurant she kept telling herself he would show up this time. He promised. She had called and made the reservation for two. A night with just her and her father, she couldn’t wait. It had been a while since she had gotten to spend time alone with him. All week she had been anticipating their time together.

            Feeling the sudden vibration of her phone, she removed it from her pocket. Noticing a text message from her father, she said a simple prayer before reading it. “God, please say he is still coming.” Another piece of her heart felt chipped away as she read what he had to say. He was caught up at work and would have to reschedule, he would call her tomorrow. “Yeah, that’ll happen”

            She stood up, feeling badly for wasting space on a Friday night. Placing a ten dollar bill on the empty table she walked out of the building. The rain pouring down outside matched the mood in her heart and helped hide the tears that were now streaming down her face. She climbed into her car and let the emotions unleash.

            “God, I don’t understand. Why did I think it would be different this time? I have fooled myself for so long. How could I expect him to love me? I am nothing but a burden to him, an obligation. I hate how he makes me feel. I don’t feel loved, I don’t feel protected… I need a daddy!”

            “I am a father to the fatherless.”

            Once again the peace she had come to rely upon consumed her. God was speaking to her, just like he always had. He was asking her to surrender, to allow him to be her daddy. Fear filled her. What would it be like to have God as her daddy, would he hurt her the way her earthly father had?

            “Be strong and courageous my daughter, I will never leave you nor will I forsake you.”

            She sat in her car, embraced by the peace of God.

“I love you… daddy!” Saying the words she began to sob more passionately. She felt free, loved and cherished like she never had. It felt so right, it felt as though she had known it her whole life; God was her daddy. God would watch over her; he would sustain her; he would never leave her or forsake her. He would be her daddy.

When I am...

By, Michelle Brister 2012

When I am…

abandoned, you claim me

tossed aside, you pick me up

pushed away, you pull me close

lost, you guide me

hungry, you feed me

sad, you give me unspeakable joy

broken, you mend me

ashamed, you forgive me

empty, you fill me

weary, you strengthen me

stuck, you break me free

burdened, you carry me

afraid, you give me peace

hurting, you comfort me

sick, you heal me

fatherless, you love me

confused, you give me wisdom

angry, you calm me

impure, you wash me clean

lacking, you pour out your blessings

called worthless, you remind me of your sacrifice

Thank you Father that you are “I AM” so I do not have to be!

What are you Bound, United and Connected to?

One of my ALL time favorite verses is
Matthew 11:28-30 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

I remember the first time I read this verse it really spoke to me I had an overwhelming urge to study the verse and dissect it into my understanding! First I started with my dictionary, I find that learning the meaning of words (or replacing them with their meaning) really helps me grab hold of concepts better. Here is what I came up with (notice the words that are bold above are the words I exchanged for their meanings):

Matthew 11:28-30 (with Webster’s definitions)
"Come to me all you who are (exhausted in strength, endurance, vigor, or freshness) and (are depressed or worrisome, bearing a load), and I will give you (freedom from activity of labor and peace of mind and spirit). Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am (kind, soft, delicate and moderate) and (not proud or haughty, not arrogant or aggressive) in heart, and you will find (freedom from activity of labor and peace of mind and spirit) for your souls. For my yoke is (not severe, nor abrupt, not difficult to endure or undergo, but marked by peace and comfort, free from pain, annoyance, or anxiety, not burdensome or strained, fitting comfortably, allowing freedom of movement) and my burden is (easy to bear, not burdensome, easy to do, not difficult, not burdened with grief or sorrow).

After reading the verse the word yoke really struck me as something that I needed to learn about Webster’s defines a yoke as:

1.      A wooden frame or bar with loops or bows at either end, fitted around the necks of a pair of oxen, etc. for harnessing them together.

2.      Any mark or symbol of bondage or servitude.

3.      Something that binds, unites, or connects

This understanding brought to me the thought “what are you bound, united and connected to?” if we are following the world and carrying the worlds yoke the Bible tells us in Galations 5:19-21 ^“19 The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; ²⁰ idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions ²¹ and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.” I don’t know about you but that kind of yoke scares me! That is not the woman that I want to want to be! I would so much rather wear a Godly yoke such as that in Galations 5:22-25 “²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. ²⁴ Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. ²⁵ Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.”

It is far better to walk under a Godly servitude by placing his yoke upon our shoulders, than to allow the devil’s yoke to kill us in such painful ways! When I reached this understanding I thought I was done in my research… however God still was not done unfolding understanding with in me! He then showed me that even as Christians that have chosen to wear God’s yoke we can find ourselves ill fitted in the yoke department. There are three yokes that we as Christians can wear;

1.      The yoke that is too small: Hebrews 11:6 “…without faith it is impossible to please God” When we wear a yoke that is too small it cuts off our oxygen so that we can not breath. This is when we are not stepping out in faith and following what God has called us to do. We are sitting on the outside watching all of God’s goodness pass us by. James 2:14 “What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them?” James 2:18-19 “Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. ¹⁹ You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.” We become so frustrated because we don’t understand why our relationship with God isn’t growing! He seems to be blessing everyone else around us, however if we would only step out in faith and allow God to use us and allow ourselves to grow with God we would find peace and joy knowing we are correctly fitted in our yoke and walking rightly within God’s plan for us.

2.      The yoke that is too big: When we wear a yoke that is too big it falls off of our shoulders because it is too loose, we are constantly reaching down to pull it back on and we become exhausted. Psalm 27:14 “Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.” When we try to take on too much and step ahead of God’s timing we are placing a burden on our shoulders that we are not yet ready for. Psalm 37:7 “Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways.” Proverbs 16:32 “Better a patient person than a warrior, one with self-control than one who takes a city.” Just as God wants us to step out in faith and act, he also wants us to wait for his timing. Just as we grow in age from infant to adult we must take those same steps with God. We would not expect our 2 year old to drive a car, in the same way God would not place a 2 day old Christian in the position of Senior Pastor because he is not yet equipped for the challenge. We can not act and then ask God for his blessing, we must wait on his perfect timing.

3.      The yoke that fits perfectly: When we wear a yoke that fits perfectly we can grow and cultivate our relationship with God our creator! This is the hardest yoke by far to wear for we must continue to crucify our flesh and submit ourselves to God 2 Chronicles 30:8 “Do not be stubborn, as they were, but submit yourselves to the Lord. Come to his Temple, which he has set apart as holy forever. Worship the Lord your God” Ephesisans 4:23 “And be constantly renewed in the spirit of your mind [having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude].” When we accept the correctly fitted yoke upon ourselves we will begin to see a great change, we will be able to walk in our calling that God has for us! Will there be challenges? Oh yes, there will be days when we want to give up and surrender our calling but we must remember what we are told in James 1:2-4 “when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. ³ For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. ⁴ So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.” The correctly fitted yoke allows God to work in your life because you will be in the exact place where he needs you. Have the confidence and boldness to claim that blessing that God has for you by wearing that perfectly fitted yoke, given time it will grow as you do! You can not force it or make it happen before it’s time, simply walk with God and take his yoke upon you, and learn from him!

It is time for you to make a choice! Study what God has said in his word. Search your own life and heart; be honest! What are you bound, united and connected to?

This is something that I wrote a few years ago and when I read it the other day it really spoke to me where I am at and felt lead to share it.

Washing Clean

So there I was looking at the daunting task ahead of me... giving the cat a bath. Now maybe if I had a cat that has had baths every week for its whole six years of existence this would not be a problem, but my cat... well let me tell you about my cat. I think my cat is probably the most difficult animal in the world to give a bath to. The neighbors know when you give this cat a bath! Not because you told them, no that would be too easy. They know because they hear sounds not yet known to the human race coming from your upstairs bathroom! You have never heard a cat utter the sounds of sheer death until you have heard my cat! Oh, that's right I was going to tell you about this escapade...

Like I said there I was looking at the cat and trying to get the courage built up to pick him up and take him into the bathroom. Finally after stalling for oh, let’s say... two days I took the cat with me into the bathroom and closed the door behind us. Then I walked over to the tub with the cat in my arms and started the bath water. That was mistake number one. Never, I repeat NEVER hold a cat in your arms while you turn the bath water on! The cat jumped from my arms scratching the skin away from my bones and ran across the bathroom towards the door. I thought to myself "wow that wasn't very smart on my part." I decided to get the water to a good temperature before trying to catch the cat and put him in the tub.

As I got the cat reluctantly into the tub I realized that I had forgotten to grab a cup to help me wash the cat. So I hollered over my shoulder through the closed bathroom door hoping that my voice would project down the stairs to where my husband was cleaning up a mess that our nine week old puppy had made "Hey babe, can you bring me a glass." I heard no reply but had faith that my words had made it to his ears. Moments later the bathroom door opens and there is my knight in shinning armor holding a glass in his hands. He handed the glass off to me and pushed the puppy away with his other hand, as to not bother the already drenched and terrified cat anymore. With the door once again closed I pressed on with my mission to get this cat clean.

I was able to calm him down enough to get him completely covered in shampoo, but then it came time to rinse him off... "Oh, joy!" I picked up the glass and started filling it with water and dumping it over the cat. I did this several times and then all of the sudden it was like someone reached down and smacked the cat on the behind. I mean he just went ballistic! He started yelling bloody murder and was doing flips and flops like I have never seen a cat do before! I put the glass in the corner of the shower on the ledge so I could try and get the cat under control. Then somehow the cat managed to grab the edge of the tub and pull the glass right down into the bottom up the tub. And when it hit, it did what every glass cup does when it meets a hard surface at a fast pace. It shattered into tons of little pieces. That was mistake number two. Never use a drinking glass while giving a cat a bath, unless you enjoy cleaning up broken glass out of a wet bathtub!

So then I swept all of the glass to the far end of the tub with one had while keeping a firm grip on the still rampaging cat. I then grabbed the cat with both hands put my face on the top of his head and shushed him until he calmed back down. I then held the cat and pushed him back and forth under the water facet while trying to keep the broken glass away and finished washing the shampoo off of him.

Finally the nightmare had come to an end; I turned off the water and started squishing the water off of the cat. I pulled the towel hanging on the rack down and wrapped him up in it. Then I took him in my arms and held him for a few minutes to get him the rest of the way calmed down. When I took the towel off of him I noticed that he still had shampoo on the top of his head. I threw my hands up in the air and said... "Oh, forget it!"

After this whole ordeal I have realized something, we children of the Lord are exactly the same as my cat! We are saved by grace into the kingdom of God, and yet when God begins to cleanse us and wash away all of our sins we flip out.

God has an amazing plan for us, he wants to prosper us and give us a great future, but we get in the way. We look at the things that he has for us and we get scared. We try to run away, oh we may not do it intentionally but we do it. We will be so close to breaking through and having victory in some area, but then the refining process gets too uncomfortable so we begin to squirm and then we full on book it out of there. We may even look at what God is offering to us and we pull it down and shatter it until it is no longer an option.

Thankfully God never gives up on us! No matter how many times we squirm, fuss, scratch, kick, scream and runaway; God will not give up on us! He allows us to runaway so that when we do come back we can appreciate it knowing that he really is the BEST way and the ONLY way! I thank God that he has given me a bath and that I can be clean through the grace and mercy of my Lord! And I pray that all of us can recognize that it will be much easier if we would simply submit to his plan!

Thanksgiving

What an a amazing time I have had since my last post! I'm not saying that it was all roses... there were some definite moments where I would have LOVED to just give up, but as it is said in James 1:2-4

 ² Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. ³ For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. ⁴ So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.

I don't know about you but I find it difficult to find joy sometimes when things start to pile up on you! I was in a hard place at the beginning of last week. My husband and I were down to NO working cars (thankfully our family helped to get us places), The bank that I work at was taken over by the FDIC, I felt like I was getting a bladder infection and my Kidneys hurt so bad that it was difficult to walk. I had to cling desperately hard to the truths that I know. I know that God is for me and will NEVER forsake me (1 Chronicles 28); I know that God has a plan for my life to prosper me and not to harm me (Jeremiah 29), The Lord is my strength and my shield (Psalm 28)!!!

It was not easy by any means, there were some tears and some fervent prayers of petition.... but I made it through that storm! My job is taken care of, my health is very much improved, and my husband and I each have a working and reliable vehicle. However we serve a mighty God who goes above and beyond, so not only did he add unto me those things he also made a way for me to get my braces removed after 11 years of wearing them!

Now my husband is expecting a job offer in the next couple of days and I am working toward a promotion at work! God is Good, beyond what I could even imagine! I am not saying any of this to brag but simply to remind you and myself that God is in control and has YOUR best interest in mind! So be strong and hold on, God IS opening doors!!

1 Chronicles 29:13 (New King James Version)
 13 “Now therefore, our God,
      We thank You
      And praise Your glorious name.