Thoughts and Prayers

It’s always a wonderful blessing to wake up and read back over God’s Living Word that we have available to us at any moment.  Going back through and looking at  scripture through the lens of God’s character  has been a reminder how amazing and gracious our Lord is.  Today, we get to reflect on His character in one of my favorite verses from Paul in Philippians 4.

As we read through these scriptures I try to use the S.O.A.P. acronym to read through scripture and apply it to my present life.  S= Scripture Writing down a verse or two that really stands out to you today.  O=Observation What are observations about what you read? What do you think God is saying to you?        A = Application Personalize what you have read by seeing how it applies to your life right now. P = Prayer write down a personal message from you to God based on what you just read and ask Him to help you apply this truth to your life.

Let’s give it a try.

Today’s reading: Philippians 4:4-9

4 Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! 5 Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon.  6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. 8 And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. 9 Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you.

Amen…As a new father of our 3rd child, a husband trying to juggle various needs for our household, a principal getting ready to start the school year,  I caught myself up most the night last night thinking about being a being a better husband a more supportive father, being a better son, being a better brother, being a more involved small group leader, being a more engaged mentor, being a closer friend, being a more helpful neighbor, being a dedicated student starting once again back to ISU…  There was definitely moments of rejoice about how the Lord can get you right where He wants you, but in all honestly there was more time questioning, concerns, wondering how I will do it? Worry about what it will look like? How do we get the kids from fighting? How can I put less stress on Jennifer? Then in the early hours of the morning,  I thought back to these verses for today. The truth is I can’t… but HE can.

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank God for all He has done. God is listening. Instead of staying up wondering about future circumstances that haven’t even happened,  I should give it to God.  God gives us peace

Isaiah 26:3 You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!

John 14:27 I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.

Colossians 3:15 And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.

What reassurance.  When we are not at peace we can be in the opposite world of worry.  Not very fun.  A mind divided between God’s promises and our own destructive thoughts about how we plan to attempt to do it all and control all situations.  I can’t, we can’t allow our own thoughts put the Word of God to the side. Jesus is enough.  This reminder was shared once again with me this past Sunday by Jordan Rice as he preached on Joshua 21. Listen to this great sermon here. Kingdom Under Construction

1 Peter 2:9  But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.

Psalm 55:22 Give your burdens to the Lord, and he will take care of you.
He will not permit the godly to slip and fall.

In verse 8 God tells us how we should think instead. And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. 

What would it look like if we fixed our thoughts on these six guidelines today? When we put these guidelines into practice our God of peace will be with us.

As Jordan said this week.  “Until God is enough, nothing else will ever be.”

Dear Father, I know you have a perfect plan for our lives. You transform us from the inside out and only from my own selfish desires do I lose sight of your promises.  When we follow your commands, trust in You,  You are enough! You are always with us, listening, waiting, providing the Peace that only you can provide in this world.  We love you.  Amen.

Praying for Peace today.

Pressing Toward the Mark

Todays Reading : Phil 3:12-16

12Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.15 All of us, then, who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. 16 Only let us live up to what we have already attained.

This is another one of my solid scriptures to mediate during the joys and the struggles of life. In the beginning of the chapter Paul gives an account of his stature before Christ.

Philippians 3:3-6

  For it is we who are the circumcision, we who serve God by his Spirit, who boast in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh— 4 though I myself have reasons for such confidence.  If someone else thinks they have reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: 5 circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; 6 as for zeal ,persecuting the church; as for righteousness based on the law, faultless.

In the main section of Scriptures: 12-16, Paul tells that he has not made the goal or mark of fully living his life for Christ. Paul by many accounts would have been the best of the best.

  • Circumcised on the eighth day
  • Member of the tribe of Benjamin
  • A Pharisee – high ranking religious official
  • Persecutor of the Jewish law

But all of these “things” that he had were not enough to give him the richness that he has attained in Christ.  Even after Paul has been in the actual presence of the risen Christ, he still feels that he has not received the fullness that Christ has to offer.  Here we are seeing that the continual pursuit of Christ is the true nature of our faith. We should always search and seek the face and presence of God.

I have been fortunate to witness God and the embodiment of these scriptures with my son.  My son, Oliver, is a really amazing and beautiful person.  I know that I am biased, but it is true. He truly has a heart that is kind, loving, and affectionate.  He has become a constant reminder of the grace and the tenacity of faith that many aspire.  Two years ago, Oliver suffered several weeks in the hospital, where the physicians and providers could not find what was crippling my child.  We were in the hospital for 21 days and could not have a definitive answer.  During his stay, his stomach and intestines stopped work properly and he was in terrible pain. He had a condition that is called an ileus.  This condition can be remedied with surgery or walking.   We decided walking.  This was one of the hardest times for me as a father, because I was the main person who had to get him up every couple of hours to walk around the hospital.  This was both hard and challenging for both of us. But six weeks later he was able to run and play on the beach at East Bearskin Lake in Minnesota.   Two weeks ago, he again was at East Bearskin where he was still able to run and play in the lake.  Now he is able to kayak to the center of the lake and jump off the floating dock by himself.

After the hospital stay two years ago, Oliver was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease.  This is where the body is fight against itself in the gastrointestinal tract. Many times individuals that are affected by this disease are left weakened and unable to do many things. Through God’s compassion and Ollie’s faith, he has been healthy and strong.  He will tell you proudly that he is 4’9”, 75lbs, and 7 & ½ years old.

Two weeks ago, Oliver also completed his first outside rock climb.  This was on a 40-foot cliff, without any predrilled or placed foot or hand holds. He climbed this cliff several times without stopping.    At the beginning, he looked up and stated, “ Let’s go”, not one word of hesitation or fear.   He knew he was ready and able to have faith in himself and God (and mom and dad) to take on this rock.

I write these things to express that

  • Let us renew our child-like faith and attempt the impossible
  • The circumstance that we face will prepare us for something amazing in the future – next week, next year, or two years
  • No matter what has happened in our past or is affecting us, God is working on us to perfect us to his Glory.

 

 

Wake Up!

Revelation 3:2-5

“Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die; for I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God.  So remember what you have received and heard; and keep it, and repent.  Therefore if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you  But you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their garments; and they will walk with Me in white, for they are worthy.  He who overcomes will thus be clothed in white garments; and I will not erase his name from the book of life, and I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels.”

This passage in Revelation is written to the church in Sardis, also known as the dead church.  

A few years ago, my husband and I had a heart to heart conversation about the condition of our hearts!  After some soul searching and time, we took a deep look at our lives and realized…we were just like the church at Sardis!  We looked good on the outside.  We went to Church every Sunday.  We participated in a small group.  We had our 3 children with us and in their respective classes.  But…we were spiritually dead!  We had no spiritual life beyond these few practices.  Sadly, this went on for about 2-3 years.  We let all the things of life get in the way (work, opening a small business, soccer, swimming, gymnastics, a new puppy, school).  We had good intentions, but lost our focus.  

This is what happened to the church in Sardis.  They looked good.  Sardis was a city on a hill.  Literally, the city was built on a hill some fifteen hundred feet above the valley floor, which made the city very secure.  The hill on which Sardis was built had nearly perpendicular walls on three sides and the city could only be approached from the south by a steep, difficult path.  The people of Sardis became overconfident in the secureness of their city and on two occasions the city was conquered.  Overconfidence and complacency led to defeat as they let their guard down.

God cared about them so much, that He sent a messenger to them with a warning!  

Wake Up

The phrase, wake up, means to be watchful, awake, and to prevent oneself from falling asleep.  How do I wake up?  First, I need to search my heart.  Are the things I am doing for the glory of Christ, or for my own glory?  Whom do I want to get the credit for what I am doing, Jesus or myself?  Not only must I wake up, but I must stay awake and be watchful.  I must keep a careful guard of my heart.  

Rekindle

“and strengthen the things that remain”

This second part of verse two is encouraging to me!  God has begun a good work in me and does not want it to die.  Philippians 1:6 says, “For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.”  God is saying to me…”Get the flame burning again!”  There is hope!  Don’t just look good and go through the motions.

Remember

Go back to the truth of God’s Word, the basics.  Jesus Loves Me!  He wants a true genuine relationship with me.  

This is a huge reminder to me that going through the motions and checking things off the list is not good enough!  God does not care if I show up at church or my small group.  He cares about my heart.  He wants me to be awake and listening.  He wants me to hear His message.  Just like this call to Sardis to WAKE UP…He is telling me to WAKE UP!  Do not let the works I have begun in you die!  His message is for us to be alive for Him and not dead in our own works.  His message is for us to repent and confess our sin to Him.  He wants to clothe us in white garments.  He wants us to confess our sin to Him so that He can forgive us of our sin.  He wants us to be righteous, and holy before Him.  He wants our name to be in the book of life.  He wants to walk with us.  

Do we want the same thing?  He gives us the choice. God wants to use me and you…it is up to us to WAKE UP and have a relationship with him.  That is His deepest desire.

I am thankful for this warning!  God does not want us to die spiritually.  He is reaching out with limitless chances to begin again (and again!) and reach out to Him!  We daily need to WAKE UP and talk with Him.  Yes, it is important to be involved in a local Church and have community with other Christ followers, but what does your heart look like today?  Is it time for you to WAKE UP?

Look Closer

Luke 15:11-32

How many times have you read the story of the prodigal son?  My guess is that it’s a lot.  In fact, this BibleJournal blog has 10 articles about it.  Obviously, it is a valuable story.  Even so, I have to admit that I was a little bummed when I was assigned this scripture again.  I mean, hasn’t it all been said?  Yes, yes, I know what you are thinking, and I am thinking it too.  I need to check my pride at the door and take a closer examination of my life.  In so many ways, I am a prodigal son.  Today, however, I want to look at the story differently.  Let’s focus on the father.  We are, after all, trying to focus the character of God.  This familiar story reveals much about His character.  Here are four character traits of God that I see in it.

He gives us freedom  As did the father and prodigal son, we begin life in a relationship with God.   As time passes, however, we may refuse the relationship.  When we do, God does not seek to control us.  Instead, he allows us to pack up our gifts and talents and use them however we want.  It’s up to us.

He longs for us We don’t get details from this parable, but it’s there.  Consider for a moment how the father felt as his son was leaving, or maybe a year later.  He missed him.  The Bible has several stories about how God misses us when we choose something other than him.  In the parable of the lost sheep, for example, the shepherd leaves 99 sheep to search out the one missing (Matthew 18:12-14).  Or, the parable of the lost coin in Luke 15:8-10.  Isaiah 30:18 says it directly,  Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; therefore he will rise up to show you compassion. (NIV)

He Forgives. While my view of forgiveness often gets distorted.  God’s is always the same.  Whatever our crime, whatever our transgression, God removes it.  As far as the East is from the West (Psalm 103:12).

He establishes his kingdom within us. The father, in the story reminds the second son that “you are always with me and everything that is mine, is yours.”  God doesn’t hold anything back to those that love him.  He gives us his kingdom, literally.   We are reminded of this in the book of Acts.  As the disciples share the love of God, they “were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit” (Acts 13:52).  Galatians 5:22-24 expounds on this.  His kingdom in us looks like love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness and self-control.

We can discern God’s character by the actions of the father in this parable..  If I were to sum it up, I would use one word; love. What better scripture to encapsulate it than 1 Corinthians 13:4-8?

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.  Love never ends. 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 (ESV)

Walk the Walk

Growing up in small town in Central Illinois where high school basketball and football were king, I remember at a very young age being out to prove you were the best and would be the future quarterback or basketball star. One way you could prove it to the high school coach and the community as early as second grade was during the summer camps run by the high school coaches and players. The biggest platform to do this in basketball was the one on one contest. I remember not being able to sleep the night before which seems so silly now and the trash talking started months ahead of time. When another kid began saying how he was going to beat me, I remember my Dad and older brother telling me to say to him, “You can talk the talk, but can you really walk the walk?”

In today’s reading, Ephesians 5:6-20, God is telling us as a Christian and Christ-follower to not just talk the talk, but to walk the walk. Ephesians 5:8 reads, “for at one time you were in darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of the light.” Align your actions with your values. Again, in Ephesians 5:15-16 it says, “Look carefully then how you walk not as unwise but wise, making the best use of your time, because the days are evil. ”Did you catch that? ….”because the days are evil.” As we dig in to the character of God over these 40 days, we see here that He knows the temptations we face in this world because Jesus faced them himself. He knows it’s not easy.

He gives us 3 ways to help us walk the walk.

  1. Choose who you spend your time with wisely. Ephesians 5:6 -7 tell us not to partner with the sons of disobedience. I love and believe the saying that who you will be in 10 years is a result of the people you surround yourself with and the books you read. Even Jesus spent time with the worst of sinners to help guide them in the right direction, but are the people you spend the most time and partner with those that will nurture your faith or bring you more temptation which could cause you to fall into more sin?
  2.  Ephesians 5:10 tells us to try to discern the will of God. How? I believe there are 2 primary ways to know the will of God better…being in the Word daily (back to the books you read from above) and asking Him for wisdom and discernment daily in prayer. How often are you in the Word, and how often are you asking Him for wisdom not only on the big decisions and issues, but even on things you don’t know may come at you in the upcoming day?
  3. Ephesians 5:20 tells us to give God thanks in everything. You will live (walk) differently and inspire others to have a relationship with Jesus when you have an attitude of gratitude no matter the circumstances. I’ve heard it said you can’t feel gratitude and stress at the same time. How often do you write down the things you are thankful for or not only thank Him in prayer for His saving grace on the cross, but also for the simple things like your home, your spouse, or your kids? Do those around you see you as someone who is extremely gracious for the blessings God has given you despite the stress and challenges on this Earth? Would they be drawn to Christ to want what you have by seeing your walk?

Take some time to ask yourself how you are doing on these 3 items. What is the nature of my faith? Am I growing closer to Him and learning the character and will of God which can help me in my walk? Do my actions align with my values and what I say I believe? We are not perfect and need Him as our Savior, but let us honor His sacrifice on the cross by striving to improve every day and live a life worthy of His calling.

Footsteps

5 1 Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children 2 and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

As we look at today’s first verse, what are we being asked to do? Follow Jesus. Follow his example. Walk in his footsteps. Love others as he loves us. This is quite a challenge! We think we are following Jesus by being in his word, performing good deeds, attending worship, helping others and generally being a good person. However, it is much harder to perform, especially in this complex world. Every day, we take footsteps and we take missteps. Missteps that lead us away from God’s word and his wishes for us. We become distracted. We lose our focus when we get “too busy”. A bit humbling as it happens to me for sure.

As I reflected on my own actions and today’s word, I thought about how to change the distractions that take us away from God. No quick fixes here. Certainly we as Christians can love one another just as Christ loves us. As Rachel posted yesterday, God looked on us with love and we need to offer that love and grace to others.  Additionally, we could and should be offering up sacrifices. What if we all spent a bit more time each day trying to walk more closely in his footsteps. Would we have an impact on the world we live in? I think we would and could. If we impacted one person each day by showing extra love, maybe they would impact another person. It is a small thing yet could have a big impact.  Love and grace.  (Imagine the wave in a stadium!)

Most of my time reflecting on today’s reading has to do with verse 1 and following in his footsteps.  I envisioned a morning walk in solitude.  My footsteps being small inside of God’s large footsteps.  Footsteps are part of my walk on God’s personal path for me.   For each of us, even if we stop to smell the roses or happen to step on a thorn along the way, God is still guiding us, prodding us and showing love and compassion for us. As we take steps in our daily lives, we are trying to move forward on a Christian path. We are walking. Sometimes we try to run, but oftentimes we are throttled back to a walk, at God’s pace.  On our walk through our days we have the chance to be looking up and out, not down at our own footsteps. Are we walking for our own pleasure or are we following God’s path? If we look up and out, we won’t miss the impact we can have on the world, showing love and grace.

3 But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. 4 Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. 5 For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a person is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.[a]

As we walk down this path and further into today’s reading, we are being warned to always be watchful, guarding against temptation.  Are we walking on a cliff hoping we don’t misstep? Are we imitating Christ or getting caught up in gossip, foolishness and deceptive words? Do we misstep into greed? To receive this inheritance of the kingdom of God, we should not become distracted. We need to walk in God’s light.

In today’s reading, Paul simply asks us to walk in God’s footsteps, to follow his word, to imitate him, to show kindness and love to others just as he shows it to each of us. Be like God as you go on your walk today!

 

 

 

 

Great Love

Ephesians 2:4-10 (ESV)

4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us,5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

The few verses preceding this passage highlight the powerless, hopeless, lifeless condition of mankind, being enslaved by our fleshly desires and being dominated by the world around us. Then we are reminded that despite our fallen condition, God looked on us with love. Not just a little bit of love – GREAT love. He knew that salvation, if left to us to earn, would be granted to none. He gave us a gift that we have only to accept through our faith. No strings attached. Nothing we have to do to keep the gift.

Why? “So that he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” He created us and gave us life and this earth to dwell on. He gave us the things we love and enjoy while we’re here (family, food, beautiful weather, etc.) But since many of the things we crave and yearn for are unpleasing to him, and eventually bring sadness and despair in our own lives, he offered a way for us to live with him in perfect eternity – just because he loved us.

It’s difficult to grasp the measure of his love, and the full meaning of this much grace. Almost daily I have to remind myself to show grace to people – over small, mostly insignificant things (cutting me off in traffic, using a large pile of coupons in the grocery checkout aisle, children spilling milk). My instant natural reaction is anger and/or frustration. And these actions aren’t even specifically committed against me personally – they’re just from people making mistakes or going about their business in life and causing me an inconvenience in the process. The concept of loving the way God loves and giving grace the way God gives it is nearly impossible to comprehend. And it has nothing to do with us – we have done, or will do nothing to deserve or earn his love. It’s just there, without fail, without end.

As you think about God today, meditate on his kindness. When you see someone or have an interaction with someone whose actions are less than perfect, try showing them grace. It won’t be easy, but I bet it will turn your heart to prayer and to thankfulness for God’s ability to love us better than we love others. 🙂

Lord, Thank you for loving me. Thank you for being a God of Grace, and for saving me through your son Jesus. Help my actions to reflect your kindness, and help me to show more grace and less frustration to others. 

Immeasurable Greatness

Thanksgiving and Prayer

For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might. Ephesians 1:15-19

Isn’t that just the most healing, powerful collection of words you’ve taken in to your mind in a long time? If you breezed over it or if you mind is full of everything you have to do today just stop and make some space for this beautiful scripture. Give it room to breathe in your heart before you move on.

As I sit down to write to you again friends, I want to just be in this word with you today rather than comment on it. When I take this one in, I hear Him saying, just listen…don’t speak. So instead of processing or contextualizing today, I just want to live in it together.

 Verse 15-16: “Because I have heard of your faith and your love….I remember you in my prayers and I give thanks for you” Our faith is not just an inward commitment to a specific creed but a live and active trust in God’s plan. When our faith is outward, people will “hear” of it. Paul thanks the Ephesians for the love the show through action, the outward manifestation of their faith.

Verse 17: “The spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him”A spirit of wisdom. With each and every decision I make Lord, give me the spirit of your wisdom. Help me to revel, truly revel in the knowledge of you and your character. Give us the wisdom Lord to live in community and to build love in our relationships with one another.

Verse 18: “the hope to which he has called you and the riches of his inheritance” He has called us to hope. He does not call us to despair, not to worry or carry burdens. That is so powerful if you let it really soak in. God calls us to hope. That alone gives us the opportunity for a total shift in our perception. He calls us to hope, he promises that faith in Him brings the knowledge, the awareness and the eventual manifestation of our inheritance with Him. No matter how dark our current situation, he calls us out of the spirit of darkness.

Verse 19: “immeasurable greatness”a specific reminder of God’s activity in our lives. He establishes and defines us. We are redeemed not by what we have done but by what God has done. Far above place, far above power, far above time…immeasurable.

Choose to have a great week.

 

 

Unity vs. Uniformity

Two weeks ago, my daughter posed this question:

In light of being frustrated with herself (and likely a squabble with her little brother), she wanted to know why we couldn’t all just be the same, think the same, and make good choices every time. I can’t say I blame her line of thinking. Even as an adult, I have found myself scratching my head wondering why God wouldn’t just make me to do exactly what He wants me to do… or why He gave us all different minds and two people could process the exact same situation wildly different. Ummm… any spouses feeling me on this one?

Paul describes God’s design in 2 Cor 12:12-27.

One Body with Many Members

12 For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves[a] or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.

14 For the body does not consist of one member but of many. 15 If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body.17 If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? 18 But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. 19 If all were a single member, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts,[b] yet one body.

21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” 22 On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, 24 which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, 25 that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. 26 If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together. 27 Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.

Her 8 year old brain could process that God DID create us differently, and she understands that He gave us all the option to choose Him or turn away from Him. But her question is in the WHY.

Baby girl, there are just some things about God’s ways that are so far above our own ways, we may not understand till we are in heaven.

(I wonder when that line will get old…)

I asked her what she thought and we had a great conversation about robots. God could have created a bunch of people that were all identical, perfect, and He programmed to love Him.  But how much cooler is it that God created each person unique, and with a choice. Wouldn’t you rather create something that can choose to love you, than create something you force to? And wouldn’t you rather make 100 different rainbow loom bracelets, each with their own pattern and colors, rather than have 100 identical pink bracelets?

God is so powerful and so creative that He uniquely designed each one of us. AS HE CHOSE.  Did you catch that in verse 18? King James Version says “As it pleased Him”. So the answer to the “why”… because He wanted to. It made him happy. He chose it.

We can speculate about His creativity and being created in His image, and so many other attributes of God. And verse 24 tells us that He composed the body so that it would be different but unified. He gave us our bodies as an example of how we come together as the church. Even the parts that seem less honorable, He bestowed more honor.

God didn’t create us to be uniform, He created us to be unified.

In His perfect wisdom He designed us uniquely so we could be better together. Learn from one another. Serve one another. God designed us to synergize long before that was a business buzz word. We are greater together than the sum of our individual parts.

We can come up with a list of benefits of His “One Body with Many Members” design – but what would your list look like for the WHY behind it?

Because He Can.

Because it pleased Him.

What else?

Acutely Aware

Italian drivers seem crazy to me. They drive too fast, often disobeying even the most basic traffic signs, they seem to have some unwritten rules that I’ll never understand, and worse, they seem to get upset with the people who obey the written rules of the road.

Dear God, I’m glad I’m not like them (except too often I am).

This week I became acutely aware of many of my own arrogant thoughts as I observed immigrants, the homeless, drunkards, pushy travelers on and around public transportation, and people who were too slow, too fast, or too loud. It is shameful to think about how often these thoughts came into my head.

On the other hand, I acknowledge these thoughts are sinful. I have God’s Holy Spirit reminding me to turn away, to change my line of thinking before it gets worse. Until I get to Heaven where there is no more sin, I live each day with this battle. For now, I have the joy in knowing that when I repent and turn from these evil ways I am forgiven, made new. In these moments I am also reminded to pray for others (instead of cursing them), to give, to share the love of Jesus.

One of the reasons I was able to remain “acutely aware” of these thoughts as sin was because God’s word was fresh on my mind; specifically the verses for this week where Jesus contrasts the proud and the humble.

The Pharisee and the Tax Collector

9 He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: 10 “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ 13 But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.” (Luke 18:10-14)

What a great simple prayer from the tax collector. Sometimes I make prayer too complicated. This is a good reminder to just humbly go to God and start by begging for mercy.

Father God, in this moment, I beg you for mercy. All too often my choices reflect self-focus rather than kingdom-focus. Let me see others how you see them, your children, your beloved, your creation. Amen.