Stand Firm Shoes

"Be on guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong."

Two weeks ago I did something that I had never done before. In all the years that my children attended public high school, I never hosted a breakfast for their friends on the morning of "See You at the Pole". I would not have thought about it this year unless the idea had been posed by my son's youth leader.

"See You at the Pole" is a day set aside for students and teachers to gather around their school's flagpole and pray. Students are encouraged to pray for their school, their teachers, their fellow students. The prayer time takes place before school begins. "See You at the Pole" challenges students to stand firm as they represent Jesus at their local school. There is no hiding behind a flagpole. People see you.

Wanting to encourage my son to stand firm, I found myself awake at 5:00AM, preparing a 6:00AM breakfast for my son and two of his friends. At 6:00AM, the two friends arrived, ready to eat. The table was set with cloth napkins and placemats. Breakfast sausages and eggs with cheddar cheese filled the kitchen with appetizing scents. My son prayed over the meal and the boys ate heartily.

At about 6:45 I loaded the three into our van and drove them to the middle school. At 7:00 they walked from the van to the flagpole area. I stayed in the van and watched. Several other students walked to the pole area as well. At first there was an awkwardness in the middle schoolers' body language. Then, one bowed their head, followed by others. Five minutes later some of the students sat down and bowed their heads. It was clear they were praying. They stood firm.

Tired, Old Shoes

The nasty looking shoes in the picture were my husband's before he threw them away yesterday. The shoes are illustrative of the figurative ones that I wore for awhile last week. Tired, old shoes. They are no fun to wear and yet I choose to wear them sometimes.

Such shoes reflect the reality of being involved in full-time Christian ministry. Sisters, I do not want to be negative, but I do want to be real. Ministry can be hard! When one first begins, there is excitement and enthusiasm. The possibilities seem endless. As time continues, the first conflict is encountered. One can feel blind-sided, surprised, and then hurt. After all, you are in the church to serve. How can people be so unkind and unloving?

The answer is simple: the church is made of sinners...redeemed sinners.... but sinners nonetheless. In addition, when you step into full-time ministry you enter the front lines of spiritual warfare. Your marriage is in the crosshairs of the enemy. You will have conflict and trials. This is a given. A common response to such trials is a tendency to withdraw into a "protective" shell. Who wants to be hurt again? So, care is given to avoid any potential occasion or relationship that may lead to pain.

Sometimes it may be necessary to emotionally withdrawal for a time - but not for long. This withdrawal should serve only as a time of spiritual retreat; a time to heal and remind oneself of the Truths of God's Word. Suddenly the Words become real and tangible because they apply to a real-time situation."Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up."(Galatians 6:9) What a verse!

Sisters, don't give up! Hold onto the Truth. Get up, dust off your tired, old shoes, and polish them with the Confidence found in God's Word. You do not have to be strong! The Lord God on high is all the Strength you need.

"Praise be to the Lord, for He has heard my cry for mercy. The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song." (Psalm 28: 6 - 7)

Faith-Walking Shoes

"We will stand as children of the promise, We will fix our eyes on Him, our soul's reward,'Til the race is finished and the work is done, We'll walk by faith and not by sight." (From "By Faith" by Keith & Kristyn Getty)

 Next Sunday there will be a new song sung at my local church. I learned of the song from my oldest daughter and once I heard it I forwarded the song to one of the brothers who leads praise. This coming Sunday I will help to lead the congregation in singing this wonderful song entitled "By Faith", written by Keith and Kristyn Getty. In order to fully prepare to introduce the song, I have been listening to it over and over. My son has installed it on his i-pod. Whenever he and I travel anywhere, it is required that we listen to "By Faith" before he can listen to any of his musical choices. The words have become engraved on my mind as well as in my heart - especially the words of the chorus.

In my fervid preparation, I was unaware that God was using the memorization of the song's words to provide loving support for me. The support was needed when a series of recent events went a different way than I had wanted, planned, and expected. When the final event in the unfortunate series occurred, I immediately thought, "I'll walk by faith and not by sight."

How do I walk by faith and not sight? Trust. Confidence. Assurance. I trust that He will fill me with all joy and peace so that I may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Romans15:13) I am confident that He who began a good work in me will carry it to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.(Phil.1:6) I have the assurance of history. God has spoken in the past and continues to speak through his Son. (Hebrews 1:1-2) My personal history demonstrates these truths to me.

God is at work!!! We cannot always see. It is not always tangible. But it is very real. Let's remember to walk with trust, confidence, and assurance. Let's walk by faith and not by sight.

"Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge." (Psalm 62:8)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stargazer Shoes

"He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name." (Psalm 147: 4)

Have you taken the time to look at a star filled sky lately? During our recent camping trip, I made time to be still and observe the beauty of the night sky. Late into the night I walked to the lake near our site and gazed at the declaration of God's glory. The view was absolutely breathtaking. There were no commercial or residential lights to wash away the brilliance on display. Stars upon stars filled the sky. The Milky Way stretched across the expanse, reflecting its beauty on the lake. As I stood there with my oldest son and his wife, a shooting star blazed across the sky, trailed by a stream of red and yellow light. The three of us stood still, amazed at the wonder of God's creation.

A few days later I read the above passage in the Book of Psalms. That night I went to the lake again. I reviewed the words in my mind over and over, trying to grasp the fact that God had named each of the stars that I could see as well as the millions I could not see. He knows their number, because He determined it! An overwhelming sense of the Majesty of the Lord filled my soul. The Providence of God  was on display and it brought encouragement. How can I be anxious when the God who made the stars has called me his child? Why should I worry when the One who filled the sky with beauty knows my name? I asked for the Lord of the Universe to forgive me for forgetting Who He is.

Are you struggling to make sense of where things are in your life right now? Put on some Stargazing Shoes and find a place that is removed from the lights of civilization. Take the time to listen to the declaration of the heavens: "God is glorious!"

"The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world." (Psalm 19:1-4) 

 

 

Camping Shoes

"From there he (Abram)  went on towards the hills east of Bethel and pitched his tent,with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east." (Genesis 12:8)    

 

It has been a few weeks since I have published a new post because I have been wearing camping shoes! Yes, camping. I'm talking about the hard-core-in-a-tent-on-the-ground camping. (No pop-ups!) What made the camping especially fun was that all of our children except one (she was out of the country) joined us in the camping experience. Above shows a delicious breakfast cooked by my daughter and her husband over an open fire. The pan is called a "lumberjack pan" due to its large size.  Breakfast tasted as good as it looked!

While we were sitting around the campfire, the question was posed, "Why go camping?" I began to think about an answer. I have been camping literally all my life. As a child, my brother and I would sleep in the car while my parents slept in a real double bed that was inside their old canvas army tent. As a  pastor's family in a small church setting, we had very little expendable income for a vacation. Both of my parents knew the importance of taking a vacation.....getting AWAY from home and church. Camping provided an inexpensive solution to the tension between desire for vacation and lack of income. This is the first reason for camping : it is affordable!

One of the delights of camping is the opportunity to observe other families interacting. As I walk up the hill to use the "facilities", I enjoy the sights. There are families that simply sit around the campfire and talk. Others may be seated at the picnic table for a meal. Fathers walk beside their little ones as they bike along the path. Some sit quietly and read while others play card games. Laughter fills the air along with the smell of campfires. It is an atmosphere of family togetherness. There are no rooms in which to escape from each other. No T.V. You must INTERACT. So, the second reason: it promotes family togetherness.

As my children have grown independent, another aspect of camping has become more apparent with each new adventure. I now have a bit more time to reflect and consider the beauty of where we have pitched our tent. The trees, the wildlife, the lake or stream, the flowers, the stars. All of these combine to display the hand of God, the Creator. Camping enables us to more clearly understand Romans 1 :20 :

"For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities - his eternal power and divine nature-have been clearly seen , being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse." 

It is very difficult to try and escape from God (why would you want to?) when camping. Instead, the opposite should happen. You move closer to him. The third reason: gaining a closer look at our Father's Creation.

Maybe you have thought of other reasons to camp. No doubt some of you have developed a long list of why camping is NOT a good thing. I will keep to the three noted above:

• Camping is affordable - even on a pastor's salary
• Camping promotes family togetherness
• Camping draws you close to the Creator

Dear sisters, consider the benefits, find a tent, and pitch it!

 

Big Picture Shoes

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance . Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."

During the past two weeks, God has been pounding me with an answer to my wrestling spirit. Simply put, the answer is , "Step back!" What? "STEP BACK!" When I step back from my tiny picture of the world and expand my point of view, all the events around me begin to look very different. I am able to see a big picture.

The big picture draws my eyes away from my concerns and enables me to see the needs of others as well as God's purpose in bringing about a given trial or event. Sometimes it is impossible to see God's purpose because an event is so very harsh and painful. Still, the big picture reminds me that God is over all things, because I know "that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."(Romans 8:28) The big picture considers that "our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us."(Romans 8:18) The big picture is beautiful.

In the past two weeks I have witnessed the pain and suffering of my brothers and sisters. It is painful, and so I weep with them. I pray for them. I write notes of encouragement to them. I show them the love of Christ. I listen. I am also very careful not to flippantly quote a verse about God working it for good.   Their pain makes seeing the big picture very difficult. Instead, I pray that the Great Healer will bring about His purpose and enable my brothers and sisters to step back and open their spiritual eyes. If I  share a verse, it is carefully chosen to reflect the truth of God's love and comfort.

 How can we wear " big picture shoes "? Simple. Open up the Word, read it, apply it. Turn your eyes and thoughts away from yourself. Step back and see the beauty:

" ' No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him' " (1 Corinthians 2:9)

Wrestling Shoes

" He is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured." (Colossians 4:12b)

Wrestling shoes have been the chosen footwear recently. As disciples of Jesus, wrestling shoes should always be worn because we are in a spiritual battle, wrestling against the powers of this dark world. Yet, the wrestling shoes that I have been wearing are for prayer. I have been wrestling in prayer, seeking God's direction for a specific area of my life.

The shoes in the picture are my son's. He used them to wrestle while on his high school team. I watched him wrestle in amazement, struck with his discipline and determination. Each bout that he wrestled lasted for only six minutes - three two minute periods. Sometimes the bout would end early, sometime there would be an overtime period. The short periods seemed like an eternity as my son worked to hold his opponent or escape an opponent's hold. The bouts always ended - sometimes with a victory, sometimes a loss. Nevertheless, the wrestling ended for a time.

Wrestling in prayer also requires discipline. Prayer is work! In fact, the Greek word translated "wrestling" from the Colossians passage literally means "agonize". To voluntarily "agonize" requires determination. As we wrestle in prayer it may feel like an eternity....like we will never know the answer. For God it is only a 6 minute bout. There will be direction. There will be an answer. Whether the answer is the one we wanted or not, the end of the bout will leave us standing firm in the will of God, mature and fully assured.