For His Glory

Right before Christmas, I traveled to the mountains to a people group called the Bunuyao to deliver 225 coats, socks and shoes to the children. These village people are extremely poor and live in very sad conditions. 

We went to visit one family specifically before we went to give all the children their new belongings. This family lived in the saddest condition I have ever seen. Their house was barely standing, with hardly any walls and it was below freezing outside. We took the family clothes, food, medicine and formula (for their baby). They have 2 small children. One was a 4 year old boy who maybe looked 2 and had no socks or shoes on and his feet were so filthy they were completely black. The other child was a little girl who is 1 years old but looked maybe 2 months old. She was filthy dirty and super under developed and she had a terrible cough. We tried to feed her formula and she could not even suck the bottle. All I could do was cry. We asked if we could take the little girl with us and bring her to the hospital but the family did not allow us to. The mother is mentally ill and locked in a cage in the back of their shack. Everything was heart breaking. I couldn't believe anyone lived this way, but a huge reality hit me that day as I realized that millions of people live like this all over the world every day. 

After our visit with the family, we traveled to the school to deliver the coats, shoes and socks. As we arrived, the students were all watching us with anticipation. They all came outside as we were unloading the cars and they started lining up without us even initiating it. As I looked around, I could see many students with sandles and dirty feet (it was below freezing outside) and some had coats and some did not. We had organized sizes and gender in advance with each students name and measurements and we began handing everything out. Some students stood with their new packages not sure what to do and some students opened up their packages quickly and put their new belongings on. 

The whole day and my whole experience in the Bunuyao village was one that is forever etched in my mind. It was an experience where God used me to care for the less fortunate and bless those who do not have much. Jesus has given us all the authority to go and make disciples of all nations. He has commanded us to take care of the less fortunate and care for the sick. To help save the lost and broken. And God promises "He will be with us always, even to the end of the age." (Matthew 28:20)

My life is forever changed by the glory of God. I want to display God's hands and feet in all situations. It isn't always easy, but God promises that He will be there to give us His unending strength and grace. God has created the world and all that is in it and He wants to use us to show others His unending love. 

Some village children

Village children 

Walking to the village to bring the family blankets, food, clothes and medicine

Sick village baby

Village house

Village school children watching us unload

All the children lined up

Waiting to receive their new stuff

Hugging her new stuff

You Are Valuable

So often I try and find my value and my worth in everything but God. I look to things or to other people to tell me how valuable I am. I wonder what other people think about me. Am I pretty enough? Am I funny enough? Am I too quiet? Am I even wanted? These questions often flood my mind and consume my thoughts. I want others to define my value. 

But, my friends, me having these thoughts is so silly. I say this because in the end we will all stand before God and He has the final say over who we are and what our value is. And of course we are valuable because we were all created by God and belong to Him.

 

In 2 Corinthians 4:18 it says "For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever." Meaning that earthly things will eventually perish and if our value is rooted in earthly things then our value will perish with those things. Then where do we go? But if our value is in Heaven and we submit our thoughts to what God says about us, then we can know that our value is eternal! 

In Matthew 6:19-21, Jesus explains this point clearly. “Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in Heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be."

People will fails us, things will go away, but God and His thoughts of us are eternal. Look to Him always. Whenever you are doubting who you are, remember God has already told you! You were bought with a price. Christ died for you so that you could live in freedom. Freedom from lies and doubt. You are worthy because He has said you are. He has chosen you. You are valuable.

"Those who look to Him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame." Psalm 34:5

He Won't Let Go

I remember the first time I took my nephew, Cade, to the lake. He was so excited to go, but once we got there, he realized he couldn't go very far before he could no longer touch the bottom. I told him that I could carry him out but he was too scared. I assured him over and over again that he would be safe and that I would not let him go. He finally agreed that I could take him out a little ways. I walked deeper and deeper and Cade gripped onto me for dear life, looking terrified. He started crying a little bit at one point so I just stood still long enough for him to see that he was fine and that I was not letting him go. He started realizing that he was okay and that I was not going to let him fall into the water. He slowly released his super tight grip on me and started enjoying the waters. I was swaying him back and forth with his legs freely moving about the water and he started laughing. He loved it! After a while, I could not get him to go back to shore. He was loving being out in the water, enjoying it, safe in my arms. 

I feel like this story is the perfect description of how we are a lot if times with Jesus. I know for me, God reassures me repeatedly that I will be okay and that He is carrying me, but I still have so much fear inside of me. I grip tightly onto Jesus and I am not sure if He will drop me or let me go. I can't fully trust Him. But eventually, after some crying and doubting, I realize that He was right all along. I realize that I can actually trust in Him and that He will not let me fall. He will not loosen His grip and He will guide me the whole way. And when I do finally trust in Him, I love His plan for me! It always turns out way better than I could ever have imagined! 

Trust in God today. No matter what He is telling you or where He is guiding you. Trust Him. Step out into the unknown with Him...into the deep waters. He promises that He will carry you the whole way and that the end result will be the best thing for you. He won't let go. 

Be Still

This is my art piece. Jesus has been teaching me a lot about being still before Him. Often, I am so quick to make my own decisions, but what Jesus really wants is for us to just sit before Him and seek His thoughts and just spend time in His presence. Just be with Him. Jesus spoke to me yesterday about being still and He gave me this picture and then I decided to draw it. He is so worthy of having every part of us. Be still today. See what He says. 

The 5 Letter Word D-O-U-B-T

Doubt. I do not like that word very much. I do not like to hear it and more than that, I do not like to experience it. Doubt is not a fun feeling.
As humans, we doubt a lot. We doubt if people will stick around in our lives. We doubt ourselves in performing certain functions. We doubt if we will be a good husband/wife, friend, father/mother, sister/brother. We doubt our capabilities. We doubt if others will let us down. We doubt if God will let us down. We doubt if God is even really there. If He really cares. If He really loves us like He says He does. We doubt His creativity. And we even doubt if He really exists.

We may question. We may lack certainty. But God never doubts. He never wonders if He exists, or if I am saved, or if everything will turn out alright. So in the midst of my own doubt, I can rest assured that God has the answers. I may waver in my faith, but my belief in God does not determine His existence. God remains faithful even when I am faithless. Sometimes I pray “God, I do not believe you right now,” but the statement in itself acknowledges that He is already there and that He is listening. How silly is that?

If I have childlike faith, I can press on through doubt...

“Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven”  Matthew 18:3-4.

I’ve never seen a child turn to his parent and say, “You know, Dad, it’s altogether possible you’re a figment of my imagination. Perhaps I’ve constructed you to bring me comfort and explain the universe."

Childlike faith acknowledges reality regardless of reasoned doubt. The disciples practiced childlike faith after Jesus resurrected from the dead. After the journey to Emmaus in Luke 24, Jesus showed Himself to His disciples, and they believed. Later, around a campfire, Jesus came to breakfast. His disciples did not say, “You are not here; we saw you die.” They saw the risen Lord, and they believed. Even Thomas, known for his doubt, believed once he saw Jesus face to face. Doubting the existence of someone who stands before you is not possible.

God has proven Himself real to me time and time again, and yet sometimes, doubt will still creep up in my mind. But the key to remembering God's realness, is to simply remember that He does not doubt Himself. He does not doubt His love for you. He knows He exists. He knows He created you. No matter how much we may doubt, He never does. He stands at the door and knocks. “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends." Revelation 3:20. He waits at the door, even in our doubt. He waits for us to open the door, but He never stops knocking. He never stops loving us. I just need to look beside me at the Lord who has been there all along, and will remain in spite of all my questions. I just need my skepticism to fade for a moment and, like a child, say, “Oh, hello. For a moment, I forgot you were there.”

The Best Love We Could Ever Know

      Old, ragged, and faded pink. Baby was worn out, but I did not care. I took her everywhere with me. I took her to bed, to eat, and outside to play. It never mattered if I had gotten a new doll for Christmas; I still kept Baby right beside me.

      Did you ever have a blanket? A stuffed animal? Or maybe a doll you just could not bear to get rid of? That was me. I was the one with the doll. I played with her all the time. Even though I would get new toys for my birthday or Christmas, I could never give up Baby. I cherished that ragged, old, worn-out pink doll. As the years went on, my family made sure she came along with us wherever we went. To this day, my mom still has Baby. For some reason she’s never been able to throw her away.

      I forgot about Baby for a while, but then I recently read a story in a book called Love Beyond Reason by John Ortberg. Now I have a totally new understanding of Baby’s significance and why my mom has yet to pitch her.

      Dr. Ortberg tells of his sister’s doll, Pandy. Just like I did with my doll, his sister did everything with hers. She loved Pandy very much. But eventually Pandy got old. She lost an arm, most of her hair, and even her stuffing. Gangly and barely held together, Pandy was still her favorite toy.

      Dr. Ortberg remembers one year when he and his sister went on a trip to Canada, and as they were driving back, they realized that Pandy had been left behind at the hotel. So what did they do? The family drove all the way back to Canada just to get Pandy because of his sister’s love for her. Eventually she grew up and Pandy was put on the shelf. John Ortberg writes that the doll was a mess and should have been thrown out, but his mom could never do it. Instead, she wrapped Pandy in tissue paper and put her in the attic. Why not just throw the ragged old doll away? Why has my mom yet to throw Baby away? Dr. Ortberg explains that Pandy was worth saving because of his sister’s love for her. Her love for the decrepit doll made it valuable – and worth keeping. Eventually they had Pandy restored. Finally everyone could see why Pandy was so beautiful.

      I love that. Because of my little-girl-love for Baby, my mom decided to keep her. It was my love for Baby that has made her valuable. It is that way with God too. I am Pandy. You are Pandy. We are all Pandys. Broken. Worn-out at times. Hurt by the wear and tear of life and those around us. We sin and are sinned against. There are some of you that probably think you would be better off thrown away. But God loves you – you are valuable. You are worth keeping. He wants to keep you. He takes care of you. He carries you everywhere with Him and will even come back to get you when you are lost. He loves you. Love conquers your sin. Love heals your bruises. Love overcomes your pain. Love reflects your beauty. Love increases your value.

      The wildest part is that God does not have to love us. His being is utterly complete and perfect. He does not need me or you. Yet He chooses us, even considers us His inheritance. The greatest knowledge we can ever have is knowing God treasures us.

      Dr. Ortberg closed the story by saying, “There is such a love, a love that creates value in what is loved. There is a love that turns rag dolls into priceless treasures. There is a love that fastens itself onto ragged little creatures for reasons that no one could ever quite figure out, and makes them precious and valued beyond calculation. That is a love beyond reason. That is the love of God. This is the love with which God loves you and me.”

      A reporter once asked Billy Graham, “What is the greatest theological statement ever made?” It is said that Billy Graham thought for a moment and then replied, “The greatest theological statement ever made is ‘Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so.’”

      But what exactly does the Bible tell us of God’s love? In Jeremiah 31:3 it says “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness.” And in 1 John 4:10 it says “This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.” Then it continues in verse 16 by stating “and so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in Him.”

      No one has ever loved as God has loved. His love is unique, select, and uncommon. In the face of rejection – He loved. In the face of hatred – He loved. And in the face of unbelief – He loved. It is not possible to be “too bad” for God to love you. His love transcends our evil nature and ways and He keeps on loving us. There is a song that says “He knew me, yet He loved me.” God’s love supply is never empty. His thoughts of us outnumber the sand on the shore. We never leave His mind, escape His sight, or flee His thoughts. He sees the worst of us and loves us still. Our sins of tomorrow and failings of the future will not surprise Him. He sees them now. Every day and deed of our life has passed before His eyes and been calculated in His decision. He knows us better than we know ourselves and He has reached a verdict: He loves us still. No discovery will disillusion Him; no rebellion will dissuade Him. He loves us with an everlasting love.

      God’s love is infinite. It will never run dry. We are much more valuable than the birds in the sky and the lilies of the field. Yet God feeds the birds and makes the lilies grow. Because we are much more valuable than they are, God will take care of us too. He loves us. In fact, God even has the very hairs on our head numbered. He knows us. He knows our thoughts. He knows our actions. He is the one that looks at us and sees what we were meant to be. He is familiar with all our ways. We cannot flee from His presence. God is always with us. He loves us. He created us from the beginning. He knit us together in our mother’s womb. Our frame was not hidden from Him. God recorded all the days of our lives before one of them ever began. We are fearfully and wonderfully made. He loves us with an everlasting love. Saint Augustine once said “God loves each of us as if there were only one of us.”

      In the eyes of the Lord, we have value simply because we are who we are, who God made us to be. We do not have to look nice or perform well. Our value is inborn. Think about that for just a minute. We are valuable just because we exist. Not because of what we do or what we have done, but simply because we are here. In Matthew 7:11 Jesus says “if we humans who are sinful have such a love, how much more does God, the sinless and selfless Father, love me?” Surely there has to be an end to this love. You would think so, wouldn’t you? But David the adulterer never found it. Paul the murderer never found it. Peter the liar never found it. When it came to life, they all hit bottom. But when it came to God’s love, they never did. When it comes to God’s love, we will never find the limit. Don’t confuse God’s love with the love of people. The love of people often increases with performance and decreases with mistakes. Not so with God’s love. He loves us right where we are. Just the way we are. We have never lived a loveless day. Not one.

      Max Lucado once said “If God had a refrigerator; your picture would be on it. If He had a wallet, your photo would be in it. He sends you flowers every spring and a sunrise every morning. Whenever you want to talk, He will listen. He can live anywhere in the universe and He chose your heart. Let’s face it. He is crazy about you.”

"The Lord is merciful and gracious; He is slow to get angry and full of unfailing love. He will not constantly accuse us, nor remain angry forever. He has not punished us for all our sins, nor does he deal with us as we deserve. For His unfailing love toward those who fear Him is as great as the height of the Heavens above the Earth. He has removed our rebellious acts as far away from us as the East is from the West. The Lord is like a father to His children, tender and compassionate to those who fear Him. For He understands how weak we are; He knows we are only dust. Our days on Earth are like grass; like wildflowers, we bloom and die. The wind blows, and we are gone – as though we had never been here. But the Lord remains forever with those who fear Him." Psalm 103:8-17

Forgive Each Other Just As God Has Forgiven You

     In his book Letters to Malcomb, C.S. Lewis writes these words, “Last week in prayer, I discovered, or at least I think I did, that I was suddenly able to forgive someone that I had been trying to forgive for over thirty years...” I can really relate to C.S. Lewis’s words as I am writing this blog about forgiveness. In my own life, I find that to be such a struggle. Forgiveness is one of the most difficult things to do. Sometimes we find it difficult to even think about forgiving somebody who hurt us. But just as we desperately need God's forgiveness of our failings, so we desperately need to forgive those who fail us. In Matthew 6:14-15 it says "If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins."
   
     One person who learned to forgive in an extremely tough situation was Christian author and speaker Corrie Ten Boom. She tells her story in her book titled The Hiding Place (which is an amazing book)! Here is her story ---> Corrie and her sister, Betsie, were confined in a Nazi concentration camp during World War II because they were caught concealing Jews. Corrie survived 10 months of inhuman and humiliating treatment at the hands of the Nazi guards but her sister died because of the brutal conditions. After the end of the war, Corrie traveled the world telling the story of God’s faithfulness during her imprisonment.

     After one of her messages, a man approached her who she immediately recognized as one of the more brutal guards at the concentration camp. He identified himself as a former guard and then told her he had become a Christian since that time. He went on to share how he had experienced God’s forgiveness for all the cruel things he had done there. Now he was standing in front of her, his hand extended, asking for her forgiveness as well. If you were Corrie Ten Boom, how do you think you would be feeling or what would you be thinking at that moment? I know that it would feel almost impossible for me to forgive him.

     Corrie continues the story by saying - "I had to forgive him and I knew that. The message that God forgives has a prior condition: that we forgive those who have injured us. I knew it not only as a commandment of God, but as a daily experience. Since the end of the war I had a home in Holland for victims of Nazi brutality. Those who were able to forgive their former enemies were also able to return to the outside world and rebuild their lives, no matter what the physical scars. But those who nursed bitterness remained invalids. It was as simple and as horrible as that....And still I stood there with the coldness clutching my heart. But forgiveness is not an emotion – I knew that too....Forgiveness is an act of the will, and the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart. ‘Jesus, help me!’ I prayed silently. ‘I can lift my hand. I can do that much. You supply the feeling.’" --- "And so woodenly and mechanically, I thrust my hand into the one stretched out to me. As I did, an incredible thing took place. The current started in my shoulder, raced down my arm, and sprang into our joined hands. And then this healing warmth seemed to flood my whole being, bringing tears to my eyes. 'I forgive you, brother!' I cried, 'With all my heart!' For a long moment we grasped each other’s hands, the former guard and the former prisoner. I had never known God’s love so intensely as I did then, in that moment.”

     From this story we learn how God forgives - eagerly, totally, and lavishly. And is it any wonder on the basis of that, that when Jesus taught us to pray the best words that He could think of for us who have so great a need to be forgiven were the words "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us?” Those words really put our feet to the fire. They tell us that God's forgiveness of us is based on our forgiveness of others.

     In Matthew 6:12 is says “forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.”  Everyone here probably agrees that this is a difficult word from the Lord. It is hard to understand and even harder to apply. Our basic problem is quite simple: It appears that the Lord has drawn something into this prayer that does not belong there. We would understand this petition perfectly if it read, “Forgive us our debts,” and just stopped right there. That would make sense.  We all understand that we need to confess our sins and ask for forgiveness. We know that confession and repentance are part of what prayer is all about.  What makes this prayer so frustrating is that Jesus seems to drag in something that does not belong when he adds the phrase “as we have forgiven our debtors.” At first glance, there doesn’t seem to be any necessary connection between the first part of the petition and the second part. So this petition is puzzling, difficult, and one that bothers every sincere thinker. It makes you wonder what Jesus really meant. Is Jesus here teaching that God’s forgiveness is conditional? Is He teaching us that our forgiveness with God is somehow predicated on our forgiving other people?  It would appear at first reading that that is indeed what he is teaching. When it comes to forgiveness, who takes the first step - God or man? Indeed, this is a difficult text of scripture. But this verse means exactly what it says. The teaching of this verse can be given in one simple sentence: Unless you forgive, God will not forgive you. There is nothing hidden here; there is nothing tricky here. Jesus is saying that unless you forgive, you will not be forgiven.

     Some people think that forgiveness is the same as forgetting. "Just forgive and forget," they say. But how do you forget, especially when the wrong is something that really hurt you and perhaps some of the consequences are still with you? You can’t just turn off your mind. Forgiveness isn’t simply forgetting. So the key to learning how to forgive is in learning how God has forgiven us. In Jeremiah 31:34 is says “For I will forgive their wickedness and remember their sins no more.” And in Isaiah 43:25 is says “I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more.” In these passages, God isn’t promising a lapse of memory. He knows all. He does not "forget" in that sense. What He is promising here is that, in forgiving our sins, He will not make mention of them again. He will not bring them up again. This is the key to understanding forgiveness. Forgiveness amounts to a promise never to bring up the issue of blame again - not to the offender, not to another, not even to oneself in brooding over the loss. This means that once we extend the promise of forgiveness we can no longer throw it up against the offender, tell another the story of it, or sit around running it over and over in our minds.

         It is hard to forgive. But we can forgive when we understand God’s word. Difficult? Yes! Costly? By all means! But the cost of unforgiveness is far greater. I’ll end with the words of Jesus Himself - "For if you forgive men for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions."

"And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you." Ephesians 4:32
"Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you." Colossians 3:13