I will shout it from the rooftops...
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
God is the Paper
Whisper
I have been thinking a lot about the talk that Tara Furman gave to use at MOPS last week. She began with a reading about Hagar, how she was abused by Sarah and escaped into the desert, she was spoken to by God who told her to go back to Sarah and to serve her again. I had never thought much about Hagar, but after Tara talked about her I thought about how hard that must have been to go back to the woman who was mistreating you, who was going to take your baby and claim it as her own, and to know that you were going back to that situation. What got me the most, though, was the fact that she did not believe in God at the time she was spoken to, so she trusted a God that she did not know, and who was the same God that her abuser worshipped. He must have really made an impression on Hagar! I think about how amazing that must have been for her to be in the desert, alone, scared, pregnant and completely lost and unsure how this was going to all go, and then to be spoken to by God, who used her name. Sarah never once used her name according to the scriptures, but God, the Almighty God, called her by her name. She was a servant girl, who did not believe in Him, and who had every reason to not want to believe in Him, and yet, when she was told to go back to Sarah and to serve her, Hagar did. The young, pregnant, scared and alone girl did what God told her to do. What gives me comfort, though, is knowing that God comforted her in what was probably the worst she had ever felt. She went back to Sarah and as able to serve her and continue to live under what were probably not great circumstances because she know that God was with her. He called her by name, I find that so encouraging and uplifting. God, the creator of the universe, the Almighty, knew and used Hagars name. He also know and uses yours! Listen and you will hear Him whispering your name, whispering encouraging words to you, no matter what the situation is, He is there, he cares, he is listening and is speaking to you, you just have to listen for Him.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Take my life and let it be
Consecrated, Lord, to Thee.
Take my moments and my days,
Let them flow in endless praise.
Take my hands and let them move
At the impulse of Thy love.
Take my feet and let them be
Swift and beautiful for Thee.
Take my voice and let me sing,
Always, only for my King.
Take my lips and let them be
Filled with messages from Thee.
Take my silver and my gold,
Not a mite would I withhold.
Take my intellect and use
Every pow’r as Thou shalt choose.
Take my will and make it Thine,
It shall be no longer mine.
Take my heart, it is Thine own,
It shall be Thy royal throne.
Take my love, my Lord, I pour
At Thy feet its treasure store.
Take myself and I will be
Ever, only, all for Thee.
Monday, March 7, 2011
Sacrifice
I was looking for inspiration for MOPS and realized it is Mardi Gras today. Not being from the south, I didn't know much about it, but in doing some research about the holiday, I was having a hard time correlating Mardi Gras with MOPS until I came across the Kings cake. I had never heard of this but if the word cake is in the description I figured it was at least worth looking into. Turns out it was exactly what I was looking for. Apparently, this cake is served during Mardi Gras to celebrate the last "hurrah" before the start of Lent the next day. Traditionally, there is a baby in a slice of the cake, whoever gets the baby is said to have good luck in the next year...
So this got me thinking about Lent, as a new believer I have never given anything up for Lent and honestly didn't know much about it. So I started looking into the tradition and found that it is mostly a Catholic tradition that involves giving something up for the 40 days before Easter to signify all that Jesus gave up for us. I began to think about that and began to feel this pull to at least consider it and to discuss it with my kids. The first thing I thought of was giving up desserts, I don't eat a ton of them, but when I do I love them! So in talking to my 4 year old about Lent and giving something up I mentioned giving up desserts and she began to cry, maybe she is a little to young yet!
I do like the thought, though, of giving up something that I enjoy, in the name of Jesus. I think of the sacrifice that Jesus made for me, for us. He gave his life so that we could live our lives to the fullest. As a new believer, I look at my life 2 years ago before I accepted Jesus and look at it now and realize that I am a completely new person, so much better and so much more whole than I was without Jesus in my life. I owe him my life, certainly I can give up some sugar for 40 days to thank him for all he has done for me! The other side to Lent, as I see it, is to spend more time each day with Jesus. I don't think that giving up the occasional dessert without any further reflection is all that this season has to offer. I plan to spend more time each day reading and reflecting on the bible, more time in prayer (which is admittedly the weak point in my faith), and most importantly, more time listening for the word of God. I am amazed at how much I hear from Him when I take the time to listen for His voice. So, off to have a piece of Kings Cake!!!