Category Archives: Perseverance

Jesus Uses Broken Things

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When The Sweetheart and I first arrived in the country of Latvia in 2011, we were part of a team; a team we had never even met. We were of varying ages, from different areas of the United States, most married, some not, others with small children, some conquering life with teenagers. But, we all discovered we had one thing in common, we had been through STUFF. The Sweetheart even fondly called us The Misfits. Why, we wondered, with our different backgrounds, did God bring us all together to start churches in another country, another world to us? (You can read part of my story here.)

If grace is a kingdom
I’ve stopped at the gate
Thinking I don’t deserve to pass through after all of the mistakes I’ve made

The Apostle Peter experienced plenty of STUFF on his own. As a follower of Christ, he was able to see so many of the miracles of our Lord and vowed to follow Him to the very end. We know that instead, out of fear of the people, he actually did what Jesus said he would do: he denied Him, not once, but three times!

But I heard a whisper
As Heaven bent down
Said, “Child, don’t know you that the first will be last and the last get a crown.”

Peter’s mistakes didn’t keep him from being used of God, and in a mighty way! He preached the first message after the Upper Room Outpouring at Pentecost and saw 3,000 people saved in one day. He didn’t stop there, but right along with Paul and many others; kept preaching the Gospel until his death.

Now I’m just a beggar in the presence of a King
I wish I could bring You so much more
But if it’s true You use broken things
Then here I am Lord, I am all Yours

King David was christened with the title, Man after God’s own heart. Yet David committed adultery and murder! Of course we know sin is sin but David paid dearly for his sin against God and Uriah, the Hittite, with the death of his infant son, born from his relationship with Uriah’s wife, Abigail.

The pages of history they tell me it’s true
That it’s never the perfect; it’s always the ones with the scars that You use

Did that mean it was over for David? No, David repented and God forgave because David desired to please God, he loved the law of God! David is credited with writing over half of the 150 Psalms in the Bible. Most of them were born out of trouble and over and over David repeats how much he loves God’s Word. Psalms 119:47–48: “For I delight in your commands because I love them. I lift up my hands to your commands, which I love, and I meditate on your decrees.” 

It’s the rebels and the prodigals; it’s the humble and the weak
The misfit heroes You chose
Tell me there’s hope for sinners like me

There are many, many other people in the Bible who failed God.

  • Jacob cheated
  • Peter had a short temper
  • David had an affair
  • Noah got drunk
  • Miriam gossiped
  • Martha worried
  • Thomas doubted
  • Sarah couldn’t wait
  • Moses stuttered
  • Zaccheus was short! (there’s hope for me!)
  • Jonah ran away
  • Gideon was afraid
  • Rahab owned a brothel
  • James and John wanted special seats beside God
  • And Lazarus was dead

True, they, and many others too numerous to mention, made mistakes, they fell down, stumbled and maybe even involved others in their mishaps. But, the good news is they got back up and allowed God to take their slip-ups, their bloopers, gaffes and outright sins and forgive, forget and then empower them to do great things in the Kingdom.

I hope you haven’t missed reading the lyrics in this post. They are from a powerful song, Broken Things by Matthew West. The first verse grabs me because he stops at the gate. Why? He didn’t feel worthy to enter, the enemy was whispering in his ear his past, his many mistakes, and it hindered him from being all God wanted him to be.

It’s never the perfect that God seeks out! It’s the ones with the scars, those that have been through STUFF, such as our team in Riga, Latvia. Maybe just like you. But who better to reach broken people than people that have been broken?! We have learned, we have persevered and we have compassion for others who may also be struggling. (I could turn this into a series on my mistakes alone!)

It is said that if God chose the perfect, those that seemingly have no mistakes in their past, then the credit would go to them, not to God. But when He chooses the imperfect, those that have humbled themselves before God, discovered that they can’t make it without Him, have needed Him to bail them out, save them, deliver them, etc., then God receives the praise and the glory!

“For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth.  But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.” 1 Corinthians 1:26-29 ESV.

Do you feel as if you belong in the band of misfits? That maybe you have made too many mistakes for God to forgive? Or maybe you have accepted His forgiveness but think that you can’t be restored to ministry? Remember these heroes of the faith that believed GOD was able to take their mess and turn it into ministry.

Grace is a kingdom
With gates open wide
There’s a seat at the table just waiting for you
So, come on inside

He calls the broken because they are dependent on Him, they rely on His power and His might and when they turn it over to Almighty God, no one can turn them away from the King’s table. They are not perfect but continually chase after the One who is.

Enjoy this song, let it be a blessing to you today or pass it on to a friend. God is ready to restore and use you again! And be sure and comment, share with us someone in the Bible that may have messed up or had a past to overcome that God was able to use regardless of circumstances.

While it was still dark…

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While it was still dark… Mornings. You either love them or hate them. I am a lover of mornings and I will now gladly list some of the awesome things I enjoy about being up early in the morning. (For clarification, getting up sometime before noon is not early morning, ahem. Just sayin’.) I’m talking EARLY, anywhere from 4 to 6 a.m.

  • Coffee. No need to add anything here. Enough said.
  • The quiet. There is no one to bother you, no as-soon-as-I-rise-my-mouth-goes-96-miles-per-hour-with-incessant-questions in your ear. Just you and the quiet. And Jesus.
  • Sunrise. This has to be one of the most amazing pictures God paints for us every single morning. Naturally, sunSET is just as spectacular but with the sunrise it seems it is just you and God, enjoying it together.
  • Morning prayer. Early morning prayer. I am not one that thinks you can only pray early in the morning. Sometimes I might as well have waited until the afternoon because my eyelids won’t stay open and I am so sleepy it is anybody’s guess what I actually said to the Savior. Thankfully, He understands. But when I push through, there is nothing like starting your day with the Lord of the universe! It makes all the difference in the world. Before social media, before email, before television, the newspaper or even others if it is possible, give me Jesus.
  • Walking. This used to be my absolute favorite activity before the sun would rise. I would slip on those walking shoes and be out that door while the family was still relishing the last few minutes before the alarm would go off. Meeting my SIL at the end of the driveway, we would start our 3 mile trek, waking up the body as we went.  I miss it terribly.

I can seriously go on and on about the benefits of being up in the early morning hours but you get the picture. I am afraid if I don’t get up early I will miss something!

Mary Magdelene thought that too. “Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb.” John  20:1 NKJV.

The Bible says she got there while it was still dark. Mary was an early morning person too and today was no exception. She was rewarded with being one of the very first to witness the empty tomb! She ran to tell Peter and the others and the Lord even appeared to her to confirm His resurrection.

Can you imagine being in Mary’s shoes? Seeing the empty tomb, the angel and knowing that your wildest dreams had actually come true? The Savior, the Messiah, did exactly what He said He would do and you were among the first to witness it?

As exciting as that was, it didn’t end there. Jesus still makes Himself available to US every single day, every single moment. He died on that cross for each of us and He rose again that third day so that we could also overcome death, hell and the grave.

The book of Lamentations tells us that the Lord’s mercies are new EVERY MORNING. We have another chance, all things are new! That blesses me every time to think I have a clean slate and when that sun begins to rise I can make it great (as my brother always says) or I can waste it.

Let us resolve, in these last days, to be like Mary Magdalene, not necessarily that we have to be up before dawn but that we be expectant, eager, anticipating what God has for us and for those around us. If we have spent time at His feet we will be able to hear His voice, as Mary did, and have a purpose to GO and tell others that He is alive!

Have a wonderful Resurrection Sunday with your family and friends. May you worship our Risen Savior with reckless abandon and humble adoration. He is coming again; don’t miss it!

For the kingdom

Loving so much it hurts

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Loving so much it hurtsWe have another year behind us with opportunity and anticipation ahead. One thing we cannot say is that 2016 was boring. I won’t bore you with a repeat of all the highlights from the past year, you will see enough of that on social media.

I have reflected on the year personally, as I am sure you have. This 55th year of my birth brought many, many changes for me and The Sweetheart.

  • Norah Jayne. The miracle we have waited more than ten years for finally arrived 4/2/16. She literally lights up our lives. Those eyes and that smile melt me and if I could give her the world I would.
  • We moved. Well, of course we moved! Six hours south to be near Norah Jayne. A new city, a new church, some old and some new friends, all because of a miracle.
  • I went to work full time. For those that know me at all, I was blessed when My Three Sons were all home to be there for them. Then, with pastoring and traveling, etc., I was busy with curriculum editing for Revival By Design the last five years. Now, I want to be available for Norah, but still have some money to spend on headbands and bows, so I now work at night, from home, for Amazon customer service, in my pajamas if I want!

Norah has brought so many changes to my world, the list could easily be longer. I miss my family back in Indiana terribly but when I walk in the door and that little face brightens up when she sees me and those arms reach out for her Nana…well…I have to admit I am in heaven on earth.

Love so much it hurts at times. I want her to be able to climb up in my lap and know that all is well. I want her to know she is loved and that in the arms of her family she is safe and cared for. (Don’t worry, she is!) But I think about her when I am not with her, I miss her if it’s more than a day or two, and naturally, I don’t want her to forget me.

I have been with The Sweetheart for 40 years, married for 37. It seems as if we have always been a couple, an item, a duo. I can’t imagine my life without him and if I allow my head to go there, to try to imagine losing him, my heart feels as if it would break in two. Many of you reading this, that have experienced that loss, can relate to that. You love so much it hurts!

In 2012, Marjorie and James Landis of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, died just 88 minutes apart. They had been married 65 years. One couldn’t imagine surviving and going on without the other.

A few years ago a group of doctors at Johns Hopkins University reported a rare but lethal heart condition caused by acute emotional distress. The technical name is stress cardiomyopathy; we call it broken heart syndrome. A current example of this would be the actresses Debbie Reynolds and her daughter, Carrie Fisher. Literally heartbroken over the death of her daughter, Debbie Reynolds suffered a stroke and died one day after her beloved daughter. She is reported to have said that she just wanted to be with Carrie.

I was thinking of all of that in prayer time today. I reflected on the past year and the many blessings of the Lord: the good, the bad, the ugly and the wonderful. I was thankful for it all because God was with me, He was faithful.

And for His love, the love He had for us. He loved so much it hurt too. He came as an infant, knowing He would be wounded, physically, verbally, etc., but He still came. He also knew He would give so much that it hurt; physical torture and rejection from His own people. But that love trumped pain, it triumphed over rejection and even abandonment. He paid the ultimate price all because He loved us so much.

He would do it all again you know; just as you would stand in the gap for your children and grandchildren. You would take the punishment for them, you would likely give your life for them because you love so much.

As we enter a new year, uncertainties abound: Political unrest, terrorism that grows increasingly close to our door and endtime prophecy being fulfilled all around us. The one thing that is definite is that we are loved, we are cared for and we are safe in the arms of our Father. We can climb up in His lap, so to speak, and be assured that whatever comes our way, whatever 2017 holds for us as God’s children, He will be faithful to His Word. Persecution may come, difficulties may be present but He will walk with us through any fire or trial. He will never leave us nor forsake us.

That’s a Father’s love for His children. Unconditional, unwavering, a really good hurt.

 

 

The Daniel Fast DevotionalIt’s that time of year again…a time of reflection, renewal and denial. Many churches begin corporate fasts at the beginning of the New Year and individuals choose a fast of some kind as well. Pick up a copy of The Daniel Fast, a Devotional! Available in Kindle and paperback, it’s an easy read, full of 21 days of devotions for ANY FAST. There are also daily recipes for the Daniel Fast or a no meats, no sweets fast if you choose that route. Whatever you do, fast unto the Lord! Click on the book or this link to order from Amazon.com!