Unity in Christ

I (Richard) had an awesome opportunity to lead a group doing some disaster relief in Tuscaloosa, Al. I had been with this particular church before and had been impressed with their servant’s attitude and heart. As a matter of fact, the first time we worked together, I was in charge of leading their team of 42 jr. high students – anyone who has ever spent a week with that many jr. high students can understand what I was thinking I was getting myself into- I was amazed at the maturity that each student showed. We spent one whole day picking up trash in a housing community……oh yeah, and the heat index was 111 degrees with NO shade. I didn’t want to be there, but I never heard one complaint from these kids.

Fast forward and one year later we are going back to the heat of Alabama but this time with an adult team. The trip was great and God used them in many ways. Everybody was included on this trip, BRAND new Christians that were still really trying to figure out the whole God thing to lifetime churchgoers.

There was one person in particular that really encouraged me. She had been saved for just a few months and took it upon herself to find a church to start attending. She was an adult with no real religious background but she said she got to the point where she knew there had to be something more in life (that’s Jesus drawing her to him but that is an entirely different blog post). She accepted Christ and has since started her own ministry working with the homeless (all in the past 5 months). Wait, what?? She can’t do that! She barely knows about Christ herself! She has never been to seminary! She isn’t equipped to run a ministry sharing the gospel and Christ’s love with others! – Really? She’s not? I’ll just be honest with you; she taught me more in her attitude and love for the Bible that week than I have ever learned from a sermon. How is it that someone who has known Christ for less than 6 months has a grasp on the deep relationship that she does? –It is all about Christ. She’ll tell you right now that it is nothing she has done, she has a past but God is now using that for His glory! She doesn’t need to regret or be ashamed of the things that she has been involved in in the past, you want to know why? “Therefore, no condemnation now exists for those in Christ Jesus, because the Spirit’s law of life has set you free from the law of sin and death!” Rom. 8:1-2

We are now slaves to Christ and in HIM we find life, no longer are we subject to the law of sin and death!

Here is my favorite part, that church that I worked with. It’s not the same denomination I was taught and grew up in (let me put in a quick bit here, their fundamental core beliefs are the same, I do not think it is right to work or encourage the work of those that don’t teach Christ as the Gospel (2 John 9,10) but that is certainly not the issue here) yep, we actually had true unity and spirit as we worked and served Christ. They allowed me the privilege to lead their devotions. I, a Baptist, worked with them, Methodists, to serve Jesus and be his hands and feet. Yeah, we may come to different conclusions on certain (non-Gospel) topics of the scripture, but here is a tidbit of information. Christ was neither!

I was encouraged as we were brought to unity under Christ and served him. New believers, youth pastors, people struggling with addiction and difficulties, and missionaries all came together and presented the body of Christ to those who needed it most.

I am convinced that if we could quit bickering and work together with those who truly bring Christ Gospel, we can reach the world! Jesus teaches us in Luke 9:49/50 a very important lesson. “John responded, Master, we saw someone driving demons out in your name, and we tried to stop him because he does not follow us. DON’T stop him, Jesus told him, because whoever is not against you is for you!”

Let’s get over ourselves and our self-righteousness and work with those who are “not against us” to share Christ with the world!

(Sorry, for those of  you expecting another awesome post by my wife, you were undoubtedly let down by this one but thank you for reading what was on my heart! : )

Don't Pray for Health or Wealth

I used to pray for Elliott like this:

"God, please protect Elliott. Keep him happy, healthy, and strong. Keep him safe and I pray that he will one day meet a beautiful, godly lady and that you'll bless him with a family and that they will serve you and live to be 100 years old." (Yes, I really did pray that he would live that long.)

I thought God would respond to that prayer a little something like this:

"Of course I will protect your precious baby boy. Of course I will keep him happy, healthy, and strong. Of course I will keep him safe and bless him with a wife and children and he will live a full and long life. I'll do that just for you, Ashley, my sweet child."

But, quite frankly, that's not what He said. Like, at all.

Since the day Elliott was born, I began a journey that has involved my whole being: mind, body, spirit, and soul (can I get a witness, fellow parents?). It's been tiring, challenging, encouraging, exhausting, fun, exciting, energizing, refreshing, exhausting, transforming, stretching... did I mention exhausting?

I think that more than anything, though, being a parent has begun a spiritual transformation in me that I never anticipated. Maybe that's been the main source of the feeling of exhaustion that I've faced time and time again.

Sure, the late nights and long hours in the beginning wear you down when you're up every hour, on the hour to those cries of hunger or thirst or that cry that you can't seem to figure out. Of course it pushes you to your physical limits when your husband, child, and yourself are sick and it's 3am on a house boat in the Amazon Jungle (ok, maybe that one's a little specific....) Who wouldn't be worn out after working all day then chasing a one year old all evening trying to get dinner ready and keep the house at least functional?

Physically, I get tired.

But it's those spiritual lessons, the ones that I seem to be in need of learning over and over again... those are what really take a toll. If I'm honest, though, I'll admit that it's not really the lesson that tires me. God's Truths don't exhaust me. His "yoke is easy and [His] burden is light." (Matthew 11.30) No, the part that wears me down is my pride, my wholehearted resistance at times to what His Spirit is saying to me. Things that, in my ignorance, I don't want to hear.

When I was praying for Elliott like I said in the above prayer, I longed to hear a response like the one I mentioned. I wanted so badly for God to tell me--promise me--that He would protect my child from hurt or harm. That He would keep him safe and make him happy.

So when His response instead was, "Pray according to My will, not your own." I was frustrated. This was my child that God had entrusted to me so I needed to know he would be safe.

Still God's reply each time I prayed that way was, "Pray according to My will, not your own."

I didn't understand. Shouldn't it be His will, too, to protect my baby? Shouldn't He want that too?

My mind goes back to the Gospels where Luke describes the scene in chapter 22 when Jesus is praying to His Father shortly before He was to be taken and crucified.

39. Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. 40. On reaching the place, he said to them, “Pray that you will not fall into temptation.” 41. He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, 42. “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me;”

But He doesn't stop there. He continues:

"Yet not my will, but yours be done.”

Matthew gives us another insight in chapter 26. Jesus didn't ask God once, but twice:

42. Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.”

So there it is. Jesus is about to face the most grueling death one can imagine. He was going to feel real pain--real, tormenting pain. Yet His prayer was, "Yet not my will, but yours be done." 

God spoke to me very clearly on this one evening as I rocked Elliott to sleep. It was almost as if He was looking at Elliott with me when I felt His Spirit say to me once again, "Pray according to My will, not your own."

Again, I didn't want to hear that.

Why was I so resistant?

Because I know what my will is. I know that if it were up to me, Elliott would never hurt, never cry, never be in pain... and neither would I. But I don't know what God has. I don't know God's plan for his life.

For a long time, I still refused to pray that way. I didn't want to let go because I was afraid that as soon as I did, something bad would happen. Something out of my control.

Then I took another look at the example that Christ gives us when He was praying to His Father. He didn't pray, thanking God for the pain He was about to suffer. He didn't pray that God would carry through with the plan. He prayed that God would take it away. But the key is, he went on to say, "Yet not my will, but yours be done."

It hit me. It's OK to pray that God protect my child and keep Him healthy... as long I'm willing to accept that He may not do that. And that is faith. That is faith because I'm trusting in the fact that God is good and God is sovereign. That indeed He does have a plan for Elliott's life and it's a good one. It may not look like what I have in mind, but if it were up to me, Jesus wouldn't have had to die on the cross. To my human mind, that's not fair.

But to God, it was good.

God sees the big picture. He sees a humanity that is utterly lost and broken. A people that need a Savior and redemption. A people that are empty and fallen. And He loved us so much that He didn't take that cup from Jesus but followed through so that you and I could know Him and the power of His resurrection.

And that is good.

So now, I pray differently. I don't pray for health and wealth for Elliott. My prayer goes a little something like this:

"God, thank you for this beautiful boy that you have entrusted to me. Thank you for loving Elliott enough to send your Son to die so that he has hope. Please use this little life to glorify You. Whatever that looks like, whatever that may be, I want his life to glorify You. I know that you have a plan for his life and that it's a good one. It may not be what I would choose, but it's a good one that will honor You. I want him to be healthy and strong and happy. Yet not my will, but Yours be done."

If I'm honest, I don't pray this every day. Some days I can't because I don't really mean it. I'm still holding on to my pride, thinking that I know what's best for him.

But each time God ever so gently reminds me of the beautiful story of a Savior who wanted the will of His Father more than His very life and the redemption that followed when He surrendered knowing that God's will was the best.

Thankful Thursday: The Grandparents

So, I only have 8 more working days until I officially become a stay-at-home mom and I couldn't be more excited! But I can't help but look back over the last year and think of how blessed we have been that Elliott has such great grandparents!

Cindy (Richard's mom) has watched Elliott nearly every weekday since he was 6 weeks old. I can't begin to express how thankful I am that she has been there to take care of him. It gives me such a great peace of mind knowing that he is in good great hands! Not only that, but she has taught me a lot as I navigate the waters of parenthood. She and Bruce (Richard's dad) have given of their time and resources to make sure he is well taken care of and to help expand his little mind.

And I kinda think they like it ;)

I'm so thankful that my mom lives close. So many times she has been there when I call feeling totally lost and overwhelmed, especially when Richard has been out of town. She's been such a great mom to me and her example, advice, and listening ear have helped me tremendously. Not to mention she always encourages me and helps me see the big picture of parenting!

Whether it's keeping Elliott for a few hours so Richard and I can have a date night, buying him a special toy, giving advice, or, most importanly, just loving him abundantly.... well, they're awesome!

And we are so thankful and so blessed.

Stupid Elbow

Sometimes, I don't want to be called a Christian.

Yep. You read that correctly.

But the reason I don't want to be called a Christian is not because I don't want to be associated with Christ. As a matter of fact, it's the exact opposite: I DO want to be associated with Christ.

Unfortunately, Christians have done a great job of turning people away from Christ. And by Christians I mean all of us who claim that title. Me included.

I work for a ministry and the other day I was surprised by a phone call I received. We'll keep the real names anonymous, but it went a little something like this:

Me: Hi, Fred. How can I help you?
Fred:  Hey, I was just wondering about the softball trip that you guys have coming up to the Dominican Republic. I was asked to help recruit for it but I wanted to see if Sarah was going. You know the lady from that other ministry.
Me: Um, let me check. *Checks to see if Sarah or anyone from her ministry is signed up* Nope, doesn't look like I have any of them signed up yet.
Fred: Ok, good. I just wanted to be sure. I don't want to go or recruit anyone to go if she or anyone from her ministry is going.
Me: *Pauses for a moment to let it process in my mind what he just said.* Ok, so if she is going, you're not going. But if she's not going, you are going? I just want to make sure I have that right.
Fred: Well, um, yeah, I mean, I just have worked with her before and I just, well, Bill knows why. He understands where I'm coming from. I just, I know what they are like and well.... I'll just talk to Bill about it.
Me: Hm. Oh. Okay.

Yeah. That happened. Someone does not want to go on a mission trip to show Christ's love if someone else is going. And I happen to know that this "someone else" is a lady who runs a really phenomenal ministry to reach softball girls for Christ. She's not perfect, but neither is Fred.

We are told in Romans that we are one body in Christ.

"For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another." Romans 12.4-5 

So how are we supposed to function as one unit if we can't get along?

What if our legs didn't want to go somewhere because they weren't especially fond of how our hands dressed us? Or what if our forearms refused to move because all the elbow ever does is bump into things?

Stupid elbow.

That seems ridiculous, but that's exactly how we act as Christians sometimes. We don't like how someone else does ministry so we criticize [behind their backs of course]. We don't agree with the standards of a particular group of Christians, so we avoid them all together.

Stupid other Christians.

Obviously this is a problem that goes back to the very first Christians, because even Paul had to give a reminder to the Ephesians:

"I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." Ephesians 4.1-3

Think of all that the human body accomplishes when it works together: walking, talking, running, laughing, digesting, smelling, thinking, listening, touching, typing, seeing, holding, crying, writing, reading, healing, sitting, breathing, and the list goes on and on.

The amount of "teamwork" that goes into the processes that make the body function is remarkable.

It's no coincidence that God gives us the analogy of the church as a body, too. Works the exact same way... if we let it.

I admit, it takes a conscious effort sometimes. It would be great if we could function as effortlessly as our lungs do when it comes to breathing or our heart when it comes to pumping blood. But that's just not the case most of the time.

So what can we do?

Well, I guess the answer is pretty obvious: keep our eyes on Christ. It's when we start looking around us and comparing ourselves with others that the bickering and disunity ignites in our hearts. We begin to become critical of others and thereby seeing ourselves as somehow worthy of Christ's love. When our eyes are focused on our Savior, though, it's impossible to see the imperfections in those around us because we are keenly aware of our own imperfections before a holy God and we are willing to not only allow His grace to be sufficient for us, but also everyone we come in contact with.

Richard and I are working to memorize the book of James. It's chocked full of how to deal with these very issues. Because even we missionaries struggle with it. I know. You're shocked.

I challenge you to memorize James, too. It's a big undertaking, but oh so very worth it if it means we can become unified as the body of Christ.

That's what the world needs to see in us.

Will you take the challenge?

Q & A’s for Mission-Minded Families: MOTHERHOOD

This is a post I found on a blog I read: Passionate Homemaking

I normally don't post things like this because I realize it's not relevant to all of our readers, but as a mom this was encouraging to me. So, if you're a mom, it may be encouraging to you. Seems logical, right?

Here's the link: Q & A’s for Mission-Minded Families: MOTHERHOOD

I don't agree with everything she says in regards to motherhood (personal preference, really) but overall I think there are some great points!

That's So [Christian] Cliche

I think that if Jesus walked the earth today, He wouldn't attend a Christian school. I don't think He would wear a t-shirt that somehow adapted a secular look with a spiritual reference. I don't think He would dress differently than your Average Joe. I don't think He would attend "church" "every time the doors were opened". I don't think He would wax Ye Olde English when He prayed to His Father (i.e. "Dear gracious most holy and righteous Heavenly Father above, we beseech thee upon thy tender mercies to forbear us to...." you get the idea). I don't think He would have a "Jesus fish" on the back of His car (even that one that's eating Darwin's fish with the legs). I don't think He would have petitioned for a "Christian" version of the birthday song. (What? You don't believe me that this exists? Check it out for yourself.)

I don't even think He would hang out with "Christians".


And I certainly don't think He wouldn't create a language that makes no sense outside the Christian Bubble.

It doesn't help people, it freaks people out.

It doesn't "set us apart", it makes us sound like we're in a cult.

Now, I don't think there's anything inherently wrong with the fore mentioned, but let me explain.

If you were to walk up to a non-believer and say, "We're having a Gospel Revival Jubilee at the Lord's House this Saturday. It's going to be a good, old-fashioned prayer meetin' and Brother John Smith is going to be leading the congregation in hymns of rejoicing and it would bless my soul if you would join us. We are all just waiting for that glorious day when Jesus steps down from the clouds and the voice of the Archangel sounds to carry home His dear children." They are going to promptly reply, "I'm busy that night." To which you will reply, "But I haven't told you the date." To which they will reply, "Yeah. I know. But I'm busy that night."

Words and phrases that Christian culture has come up with and/or overuses are doing a great job of one thing: scaring people away.

If I were a non-believer and someone told me I needed to "bow my head, close my eyes, and ask Jesus into my heart", I'd probably wait until they bowed their head and closed their eyes and then promptly make my getaway.

Jesus never said to "ask Him into your heart" [but that's a whole other blog post].

So, next time you go to say something that sounds like its' going to be super-spiritual, maybe something your Sunday School teacher taught you when you were seven, double check that you're not breaking out your Christianese on everyone.

I don't speak English with a Ticuna Indian and expect them to nod in agreement.

So before you go all holy lingo on somebody with your "washed in the blood" and "living a sanctified life", take a minute to evaluate if you are going to even make sense to the person you're talking to.

It's hard to track with someone who doesn't speak your language.

 

 

Let's not get so "in it not of it" that we separate ourselves from the very ones we're supposed to be reaching. After all, wasn't it Jesus who was chilling with the tax-collectors and Samaritans?

A Beautiful Ending

My Thankful Thursday post this past week mentioned a young man, Austin Foraker, who died tragically last weekend in a drowning accident. He was only 19.

Austin was in Richard's small group for a couple of years and his sister, Kaylee, was in mine for three years. One of their biggest prayer requests that I can remember Kaylee mentioning nearly every week was her step-dad's salvation. He was not a believer and they were both very burdened for him.

Over the last several weeks, I have seen Kaylee's Facebook statuses as she's talked about little things she's noticed in her step-dad's life.... almost as if God was preparing him for something.

Fast-forward to yesterday at the funeral of his stepson. It was a beautiful ceremony as several shared about how Austin had impacted them, including his older brother, Jake. Dwight Martin, Austin's former youth pastor, was last to share and gave the Gospel. That's what Austin would have wanted.

It was then that the Holy Spirit did what only the Holy Spirit can: changed a heart for eternity. Austin's step dad's heart had been tilled. The soil was ready to receive the seed of the Gospel. God had been working for weeks, months, maybe even years through the prayers and testimonies of Austin and Kaylee and it all came together in a beautiful finale when the tragedy that took place last weekend ended in the salvation of a soul.

Austin would have never dreamed that his prayers would be answered this way. Maybe he imagined personally leading his step-dad to Christ. Maybe he pictured him coming to church and walking down the aisle to the front to give his life to Jesus once and for all. However he prayed, I don't think he considered that maybe it would take his own death to lead his step-dad to life.

But God is good like that.

It makes me stop and consider something. Would I be willing pray that even if it takes me giving my life, I would do that so a family member could be saved? What about a friend? What about a complete stranger?

Do I love Christ so much that I am willing to die so that others can live? Do I love souls that much?

Christ did that for me. He did that for you.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." -John 3.16



Only God can turn death into life.