On the Side of the Road Hebrews 10:23-25 Recently I was driving along a stretch of highway where most of the businesses on both sides of the road had been closed and abandoned. So many thoughts stirred within me. I imagined the devastation many of these people may have faced as their lifelong dreams ended and their finances had been depleted. I wondered what happened and why? Boarded up windows, sagging roof lines, fire scorched siding, scattered litter, random graffiti, overgrown weeds and crumbling parking lots were all that appeared to be left. How many 'highways' do we go down where there are forgotten believers along the side of the road? People who were new to the faith that no one took the time to reach out to; teens whose lifestyles and piercings were just too different for us; believers who decided the road was too difficult on their own; the broken believer who seemed to come with too much baggage; the addicted believer; the hurt; the worn-out; the depressed; the lonely; the misunderstood; and the list goes on. Do we just turn our heads and keep on moving down the highway that we believe Christ set before us? After all, there is ministry to do, lost people to reach, jobs to get to, families to care for and a never-ending to-do list. But who have we left in the dust to spiritually die along the side of the road on our way to becoming 'more like Christ'? We are told clearly in Scripture to love one another and to encourage each other.
And so it goes in Ephesians 4:31-32; 1 John 4:10-12; Acts 2:42-47; Zechariah 7:8-10; Hebrews 3:12-14; 1 Peter 3:8-9 to name a few. I have been along the side of the road and left alone. I have also been along the side of the road when someone took the time to stop to pray for me, to mentor me, to teach me and encourage me. I praise God for them. The side of the road is full of believers who need a word of encouragement, who need sincere fellowship and sincere love. Who will you stop to help today?
Kim (c) All Rights Reserved August 20 , 2008 |
A New Journey Galations 2:20 I got a new bible recently - a much needed one I might add. The words are large enough for me to actually see without stretching out my arms and the cover doesn't fall off. I had been waiting with great anticipation for this bible. I had prayed about it and waited on God's provision for it. With much excitement, I grabbed it to look for a verse to share with some ministry partners, but very quickly found myself in unfamiliar territory. In fact, I felt somewhat frustrated in the whole process and quickly wanted to grab the bible I had always used. You see, this new bible hasn't been broken in yet. It looks good, but the familiarity is gone. In my old bible, the pages are worn and marked. Scotch tape and coffee stains can be found in 1 Peter. It was hi-lighted throughout and comments written in the margins. Tear stains marked the places where I cried out to God and the places where I just cried over who God is. My old bible is comfortable. I know where to find things. I could have found a verse by now. Please don't tell me that the verses are in the same order in this bible as they were in the last - I already know that, which makes me feel that much more inept! This life and this journey we are on need to be lived out 'by faith in the Son of God'. And so in faith, we press on. He loved us enough to give himself for us, then I know He loves us enough to see us through this as well. Kim (c) All Rights Reserved August 5 , 2008 |
CRACKED FOUNDATIONS Matthew 7:25 Not too long ago, I had one of "those weeks". You know the kind that just seem to test you from every angle. On top of that our lives were just plain busy. Our daughter had gotten married just a couple weeks before, our women's bible study was starting back up and we were in the throws of all kinds of preparations for the "Called to Belong" worship event. However, it wasn’t even so much the busy-ness of life, but rather the chipping away that God has been doing in my life that had me out of sorts. When I asked him to move quickly in my life to get me where He wanted me, I’m not sure I was prepared for what I was asking. I don't really remember all the details of that week, but something hit me hard then and has ever since. The concrete steps outside our house are being torn out. After many years of pressure against the foundation, they are causing the foundation to crack. They needed to be removed and replaced so that the foundation could be fixed. On Tuesday, I had cleaned my house (well at least the areas people would see). I was thrilled that floors had been washed, mirrors cleaned, etc. Sure that the ‘clean’ would last until our small group met on Friday and another group meeting we were having on Saturday. Then the jackhammer showed up. Noise and concrete dust filtered through my ‘clean’ house. The appearance of cleanliness and orderliness – gone!!! I cried. And then God showed up and taught me a lesson amidst the dust and debris. Our lives are alot like this. When pressure from the past and the present and all kinds of different circumstances keep pressing on our ‘foundation’ - our earthly, human foundation cracks. Somehow we manage to keep the parts that people will see ‘clean and orderly’. We aren’t interested in fixing the foundation because it will mess up the appearance we are trying to keep. It will be inconvenient. Then God shows up with the jackhammer. Sometimes things need to be torn out, broken up and removed from our lives. The repair work can be messy and dirty and cause the dust from the past to filter into the ‘clean’ areas of our life. It is then that God can fix the foundation and put us firmly back on it. If we allow Him, he will even come and clean up the inside of our spiritual home. Several weeks later there is still dust and debris flying as they continue the repairs. But somewhere in that first day and all the days since, God continues to remind me that He is working in my life. He needed to get rid of the unnecessary stuff that was putting pressure on my foundation and causing it to crack. He needed to get out the jackhammer because for 40 years (okay 42) it has been piling up. Some things needed ripped out and repaired. "The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock." (Matthew 7:25) I praise God that he loves me enough to want my foundation to be on the Rock. Plenty of years of my life were spent trying to build a foundation on things that didn't last in the storms. Now my foundation is in Jesus Christ and in Him alone. May He continue to work in each of us to bring forth what He has created each of us to be. Kim (c) All Rights Reserved July 25, 2008 |
Choosing to suffer is not normal. I believe we all prefer to avoid suffering and thoughts of death. Given a choice we will choose comfort. We like cushions on our chairs, climate control in our cars and homes, and we take aspirin to numb our slightest discomforts. To choose pain would seem foolish in our society. Jesus' call to discipleship is an echo of his Father's call to him. Jesus knew he must suffer because he was called to be the Messiah. Jesus then lays this same call onto his disciples. We are only his disciples if we are prepared to pay the cost. Are you prepared? The price of obeying his call is dying to our selfish desires so His spirit may live in and through us. The world says "be in charge - be nobody's fool". I say out of our love and gratitude for him, we should desire to be called fools for Christ. July 6, 2008 All Rights Reserved |