Over the Top for Jesus

Do you ever have days where you see the same phrase over and over in different contexts? Yesterday it was "Over the Top" for me. I either heard or saw that phrase at lease 4 times. I like that phrase - over the top. Its a great 3 word description of how I like to live life.

I think its also a pretty good description of the kind of life that Jesus calls us to live. I am amazed to see so many Christians bored and apathetic about the Christian life. Sometimes I seriously think that they must be reading a different bible. How can you possibly miss the "over the top" calling that Christ has placed on us? How can you not see the amazing adventure that awaits us when we lay our own lives and agendas at the foot of the cross and pick up His?

A few years ago someone made an interesting comment to me about my hubby. They suggested that over time he would learn that he really should tone it down a little bit when it comes to his passion and zeal for Christ and ministry.

I'm sorry, what?

That was one of those moments where I couldn't believe my own two ears. Where in the bible does Jesus suggest that our love should be tame? What on earth would lead anyone to think that toning it down is an option in the Christian life?

This morning I was reading the story of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10. Yet another reminder of the dangerous, wild love we are called to share with anyone and everyone whose paths we cross. The author of my bible study puts it like this:

If we are to be godly, we must be thoroughly enmeshed in humanity. Dangerously, blindly, and sacrificially, we must engage a world that is beaten, bloodied, and naked. And if we don't, we must question the status of our salvation. (The Preaching of Jesus, Moore & Weece)

I am so grateful that I married a man who is passionately in love with Jesus and who is willing to stick his neck out there in sacrificial commitment to his calling. I am hoping and praying today that we will be totally unafraid and unashamed to live out our faith with serious passion and total commitment.

After all, in the very words of Christ:

Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. Matthew 10:37-39

That doesn't sound tame or toned down to me. . . Sounds more like wild love and complete surrender.

Actually, I might go so far as to say it sounds a little over the top. Love it.

Humbled & Calmed

Do you ever have moments where the most common sense things seem revolutionary and life changing? That happens to me a lot. I'm not sure why I react so deeply to things I've known on one level or another for so long, but I'm grateful for the revelations because they draw me nearer to the heart of God. They also tend to give me a better picture of what my heart is supposed to look like. . .

Yesterday I was reading and writing about life. Somehow I ended up reading in 1 Peter 5 (Well, I know how. I was reading verses on humility. Don't ask me why.)

Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:6-7

As I was soaking up those words it struck me as interesting that in one train of thought we are encouraged to be humble and then instructed to not worry. And I thought to myself, what is the connection between humility and worry?

And then, my friends, the floodgates of understanding opened and I saw the direct cause and effect relationship between our pride and our anxiety. When we feel like it is our giftedness, or our worthiness, or our glory that gives our life meaning, we have a lot to worry about. Because when our sense of worth comes from within it also means that our worth is ours to lose. Suddenly it really matters what others think of me. It matters how I'm dressed and what kind of car I drive. Suddenly I'm in a tornado of anxiety about maintaining my status because it depends on me.

But when we humble ourselves; when our worth comes from Christ, and Christ alone - well, then we don't have much to worry about, do we? It doesn't matter what I have or what others think of me. My destiny is secure and my identity is complete. I have nothing to fear and no reason to worry when I humbly lay myself at the foot of the cross.

So next time you find yourself suffering from a little anxiety about a particular situation, ask yourself this: Am I trusting myself and my own resources to see me through? Am I arrogantly assuming that it is up to me to figure this out?

When we humble ourselves we lay down our expectations for what life should be and accept the calling that God has placed on us. And as difficult as it might seem to get to that point, I can promise you that once you're there you will see that ultimately there is no greater way to live.

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 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. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Matthew 11:28-30

I am praying that as I lay myself before the foot of the cross, trusting completely in the yoke of my Savior, that His peace would overwhelm me. I am praying the same for you. . . Come to Him and lay your expectations and anxieties at His feet.

You will not be disappointed.

To Infinity, and Beyond!

Sometimes I like to think of myself as Superwoman. There is nothing I cannot accomplish when I'm motivated. Well, at least that is what I like to think. I have been known to tackle projects that are totally inappropriate for me to be doing on my own (like the time Matt came home and found me half way up the stairs from the basement precariously holding my digital Yamaha keyboard. . . good thing he walked in when he did - I had been standing there for about 3 minutes trying not to drop it and attempting to discern the best course of action).

Today was another one of those days. I decided I should borrow a friend's pickup truck and take a load of trash to the dump about 10 miles from our house (I've never done this before, by the way). I was feeling pretty good about that decision at first. I got that truck filled to overflowing without too much trouble. I covered the whole load with a large tarp that I tucked down into the bed around the garbage. As I backed out of my driveway I was feeling a little smug and self-satisfied at what an exceptionally versatile woman I am.

Then I drove about a 1/8 of a mile, and the wind caught my little tarp.

The next half hour consisted of me driving as slow as I possibly could, stopping every mile or so to try to secure my load and re-tuck my tarp, and half praying/half crying that the whole ordeal would just end. I'm pretty sure I looked totally ridiculous driving down the highway at 40 miles an hour with my tarp flapping in the wind behind me.

You would hope that my arrival at the dump would conclude the humiliating portion of my experience today, but oh no, it did not. You see, having never been to the dump and being completely unaware of "dump etiquette" I was totally self conscious about how to distribute my trash in the warehouse collection center. I was instructed to back my truck into the large space and just throw my trash inside. It didn't matter where I put it because a large machine would come sweeping across the floor, gathering all of the stuff into one spot.

Well, I didn't realize I was supposed to take those instructions so literally. So I proceeded to neatly pile my trash in the middle of the room. I organized it by type; plastic bags, cardboard boxes, etc. I neatly piled our used fluorescent lights on top of the boxes and felt relieved to have the experience over. And then another truck pulled up through the stall next to me. It was at that moment that I realized I should have listened more carefully to the instructions.

The two men that hopped out began throwing their trash off the back of the truck into the middle of the warehouse. Actually, it wasn't so much throwing as it was launching. Glass broke and junk spread all over. I looked from their disastrous ejection over to my nice, neat little pile of garbage. . . and I felt totally ridiculous all over again.

I should also point out that the office was next to the warehouse and lined with windows facing into the enormous collection center. I'm quite sure I brought a little laughter to some lives today. . .

Apparently I am not Superwoman. Although, my frantically flapping tarp is as close as I've ever been to wearing a cape before. . .

There is no spiritual significance to this post. Just thought you'd enjoy hearing that in the midst of my deep revelations and emotional blogging I am also totally capable of being completely ridiculous.

Have a fabulous night, my friends. . .

Look Up

Oh, these last few weeks have been difficult. I shared recently about our decision to move on to a different ministry, and since that time we have spent countless hours processing through that decision with the people we love so dearly here. Regardless of how anyone feels about the specifics of our decision, the leaving is not easy.

One of my dearest friends here in the Northwoods has encouraged me in so many ways recently. Mostly, she has not allowed the sadness of our decision to sway her faith in God's mighty hand and faithful provision. She kept saying to me last week, "If I look at the circumstances, I become overwhelmed and discouraged. If I look at God, I remember that anything is possible."

That is the truth that can bring hope and comfort to any situation that we face in life. God. He holds the world in His hands and will never leave or forsake us. None of us, anywhere.

In some ways I am grateful that our friends and students here feel a loss at our leaving (it means that actually like us! And hopefully that they saw God work through us. . .). I keep telling them that if they weren't sad I'd be a little offended.

But I am desperately praying that they all come to the same conclusion as my dear friend; that they choose not to focus on the circumstances but on the God who formed them in their mother's womb and mapped their days before they drew their first breath. God is worthy of our trust and His plans for us are for our good.

I was meditating on the Beatitudes again this morning (I'm a little hooked), and a cross reference sent me to Isaiah 55. If you are one of my loves from the Northwoods, read this with great assurance that God is speaking these words straight to you and into your situation. It is a powerful reminder of the love, provision, and protection of a God who can do anything at any time in any one.

Invitation to the Thirsty

¹ "Come, all you who are thirsty,
come to the waters;
and you who have no money,
come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
without money and without cost.

² Why spend money on what is not bread,
and your labor on what does not satisfy?
Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,
and your soul will delight in the richest of fare.

³ Give ear and come to me;
hear me, that your soul may live.
I will make an everlasting covenant with you,
my faithful love promised to David.

⁴ See, I have made him a witness to the peoples,
a leader and commander of the peoples.

⁵ Surely you will summon nations you know not,
and nations that do not know you will hasten to you,
because of the LORD your God,
the Holy One of Israel,
for he has endowed you with splendor."

⁶ Seek the LORD while he may be found;
call on him while he is near.

⁷ Let the wicked forsake his way
and the evil man his thoughts.
Let him turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on him,
and to our God, for he will freely pardon.

⁸ "For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,"
declares the LORD.

⁹ "As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.

¹⁰ As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,

¹¹ so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

¹² You will go out in joy
and be led forth in peace;
the mountains and hills
will burst into song before you,
and all the trees of the field
will clap their hands.

¹³ Instead of the thornbush will grow the pine tree,
and instead of briers the myrtle will grow.
This will be for the LORD's renown,
for an everlasting sign,
which will not be destroyed."

God's ways are not our ways. Sometimes the plans He has confuse us. . . we think, "How can this be for our good?" But rest assured that He can do anything. I think right now the most comforting part of this chapter in Isaiah is verse 11:

It (God's word) will not return to me (God) empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

God has a plan and a purpose in our lives, in our families, and even in our churches. He works all things together for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose (Rom 8:28). Take heart and know that God is good and that He is in control. He can (and will!) work good in your life when you surrender to His purpose and walk faithfully in love with Him.

Turn your eyes upon Jesus. Look full in His wonderful face. And the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace.

Real Love

Yesterday I told a story about a little girl who was encouraged through the sweet love of a teacher. Those kinds of stories inspire me and motivate me to be more loving. But can I be really blunt for a minute? I think sometimes its a lot harder to love others than we would like to admit.

This might seem wrong on a lot of levels, but I'm going to tamper a little with the story I shared yesterday. Imagine that before I described Mary Ann's physical deformities and struggles I informed you about her poor behavior and lack of social skills. What if Mary Ann had anger issues and yelled at other kids or acted out during class? Would your heart still have broken over her insecurities? Or would you have struggled to feel compassion for this little girl who seemed to deserve a lot of the unlove that came her way?

You see, there are people like Mary Ann in our world. Sweethearts whose disfigured faces do nothing to hide the love and beauty in their souls. And then there are people whose tragedies have made them rough. Individuals who have felt the unlove of others for so long that they become incapable of returning any love they are shown.

If we truly want to live like Jesus we have to be willing to love everyone. Anyone. No matter how rough their edges or difficult their personalities. We have to be willing to get down and dirty with our love. When Jesus heals the leper in Mark 1 he doesn't just call out from a distance, "Be healed! Now go take a shower!" No way, friends. Mark records it like this:

Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. Mark 1:41

So as we walk through this week lets keep our eyes open for the people in our own spheres who desperately need our love. Lets pray that our hearts would be filled with compassion and that we would be willing to reach out and touch the unlovable, difficult people in our world. And maybe we need to take a little inventory of our own hearts and remind ourselves yet again that we can be difficult, unlovable people too.

A Story Worth Repeating

I read a story this morning that I'd love to tell you about. . . brought me to tears and reminded me of the awesome love of God.

There was a little girl named Mary Ann who was born with a cleft palate. Her jagged lip, crooked nose, lopsided teeth and garbled speech made her feel completely unlovable. She would often lie about how her lip got to be that way because she thought it was better than admitting she was born with it. Can you even imagine the rejection and pain she must have felt from her classmates at school? Kids can be so cruel (well, so can full grown adults, really), alienating others for differences they had no ability to choose. One year in school Mary Ann had a pretty fabulous teacher. This teacher (Mrs. Leonard) tested the students' hearing every year using a little system through the door. Here is what my bible study author shares about it:

The routine was easy to understand. Each student was asked to stand outside the classroom, cover one ear with a hand and place the other ear against the door. Then, Mrs. Leonard would whisper something from the other side and the student would have to repeat it back. She said things like, "The sky is blue." Mary Ann took her turn, doing everything she had been instructed to do, and she waited to hear a similar phrase. Instead, she heard words that were rarely aimed at her. With her ear pressed against the door, she heard Mrs. Leonard say, "I love you, Mary Ann, and I wish you were my little girl."

Wow. How powerful is the unexpected and unwavering love of another? What a beautiful picture of the love that Christ has for us. None of us is worthy of love. . . none of us are perfectly together and without fault. And yet His love for us is deep and wide and strong.

Words are powerful. Mrs. Leonard knew that, and she used words to bring light and joy into the life of that little girl. I am praying today that my words bring light and life. . . that my speech is a good reflection of the undeserved love that I have found in Jesus.

If you need a little reminder today of the depths of His great love for you, spend a few minutes reflecting on this:

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:38-39

Mary Ann's story comes from:
The Preaching of Jesus, by Mark Moore & Jon Weece

Upside Down

I love being married to Matt. There are a hundred reasons why he lights up my life and brings me such joy, but one of the superficial benefits of marrying my stud is that my library of Christian literature grew by about 1,000 (or more). Yesterday as I was reading through the beatitudes I glanced over to the stack of books next to the fridge and noticed a commentary on Matthew. . . This morning I decided to read more in Matthew 5 and simply headed to the extensive collection in our basement to find another author's interpretation of the mind blowing sermon Jesus gave.

The bible study I got my hands on today brought one of my favorite truths of life in Christ to light through the message of the beatitudes. What is it?

The upside down nature of the kingdom of God.

What do I mean by that? Well, if you look at the things this world values and compare them to the things that God values, you'll find almost nothing in common. This world says that popularity, wealth, comfort, laughter and reputation are the most important ingredients to a satisfying life. Our God says that when we recognize our lowly state, when we mourn over the sin in our hearts, when in humility we long for the righteousness only God can give. . . well, that it is then that we are blessed.

Just read through Matthew 5:3-12. Does it sound in any way like something you would hear on Oprah or Dr. Phil? Not a chance, my friend. God's ways are not our ways. His thoughts are different than ours. . . and I, for one, am immensely grateful for that.

In all honesty, I think our initial reaction to God's upside down ways depends a lot on our experiences here on earth. Growing up I didn't possess a lot of the worldly values that define success. My reality was quite the opposite, actually. As a result, when I learned that my lack of popularity and wealth meant absolutely nothing to God; that my place in His kingdom is based on a completely different scale. . . well, I was thrilled!

But what if you are popular? What if you have collected great wealth, enjoy lavish comfort and high esteem? How do you feel then when God says that those things don't matter? What is your initial reaction when Jesus actually suggests that those things might be your downfall?

It isn't so easy to swallow the upside down values of God when you've got the world's values in your back pocket. And even though I find great relief in knowing that I don't have to live up to this world's standards, I am often still tempted to try.

This morning take some time and meditate on Matthew 5:3-12. Ask yourself where you're at when it comes to the standards of God's kingdom verses the standards of the world. How much are we living like the world instead of like Christ?

Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called sons of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.