More about God's Love

We bought a car! And we're thankful for that. We spent a bunch of money, but I think we got a good deal.
I just wanted to share a couple more verses that have encouraged me:
Deuteronomy 1:31 "...you saw how the Lord your God carried you, just as a man carries his son"
Isaiah 66:13 "As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you"
These verses speak of the tender love of a parent for a child. I like to imagine myself as a little baby asleep in Father's arms-- so safe, protected, and loved. This brings a lot of peace to my heart.
I pray that all of us will know Father God's love more and more.

God's Love

I wanted to share some thoughts about God's love that have encouraged me lately:

IN CREATION
We see God's love in what He created for us. Here's a great quote from Love and War, by John and Stasi Eldredge: "We live in a love story. We are created for romance and we have an insatiable capacity for it. Now, God gave us such a heart; it was one of His first gifts to us. (You have to have a heart to live in a love story.) Then He gives to us this world that is so breathtakingly beautiful. "The earth is filled with the love of the Lord" (Psalm 33:5). You see it in the fact that He made grass just firm enough that it stands up straight like a carpet, but not too firm that it hurts you when you run on it with bare feet. And He makes snow just firm enough for snowballs and sledding, but not so firm that it hurts us when it falls; it falls so softly. He makes birds and their songs just loud enough to be delightful, and He creates our ear to delight in the sound. Do you begin to see the tenderness and the love of God through all creation?"

IN HIS ATTENTIVENESS
The Lord pays attention to our troubles because He cares. He's aware that the Andersons are having trouble finding an affordable car to buy. He knows that my sister doesn't need to be sick when she's already challenged by her responsibilities as a single mom. (Please pray for her, by the way. The doctor is checking a lump on her throat.)
The Lord also pays attention to every minute of our lives, including the ones that we think are insignificant. He sees all the hugs that my daughters give me, and He's aware of their willing attitude as they do their chores. This stuff is important to Him.
Abba also sees the good that He has put in our hearts, the gifts He's given us for displaying His glory, and the plans He has for using those gifts for His purposes. We don't have to be discovered to be important. We don't have to sweat to make God's will come about. He will see to it. That's a relief and an encouragement.

IN CHERISHING PEOPLE
The Lord places infinite value on every person: "You were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold....but with the precious blood of Christ" (1 Peter 1:18-19). The Lord has challenged me to see every person as precious, because that is how He sees them.

God bless you!
Sandra

Overcoming Sin

I spent so many years (after trusting Jesus for salvation!) frustrated with not being able to overcome sin. I have learned three things that have helped, and I want to share them:
1.) Keep a firm grip on the truth about who I am in Christ. The old, sinful self is dead and God has given every Christian the gift of righteousness (Romans 6:6, 5:17).
2.) Depend on the Spirit and not self.
3.) Take emotional pain to Jesus and talk to Him about it. So much of my bad temper has turned out to be a result of fear that was in my heart because of believing lies. Jesus will reveal the root of pain, the lies perpetuating it, and the truth that sets us free. And a close encounter with Him and His love is very very healing. He gives us joy instead of mourning (Isaiah 61:3)
:)

Fear

Sunday was the church Christmas brunch, and I was in the kitchen early Sunday morning about to make some fruit salad, my contribution to the potluck brunch. Jeff was cleaning up Saturday's dirty dishes. I shooed him out of the kitchen so I could finish the cleanup myself and get on with the salad prep. I was feeling pretty stressed about this project, for no real reason--cutting up some fruit isn't very difficult!
I had been pretty bossy to my husband and was feeling bad about that (he forgave me :)). Then I started wondering why I was feeling so much stress and anxiety. It's a cloud that hangs over my head a lot of the time, kind of like living in Seattle. I think there's a lot of fear in my heart: fear that if I don't do everything right, someone will get angry at me or won't respect me. I know that a fear-based life isn't a loving life, hence the bossiness to my husband. As I looked to Jesus, I could sense Him gently and tenderly saying, "If you make mistakes, it doesn't change my love for you or my respect for you." The perfect love of Jesus casts out fear.
This all reminded me of a scene from the movie Imagine That, when Eddy Murphy and his daughter dumped mustard on some nasty black pancakes. They had a precious father/daughter moment even though the pancakes were inedible. Instead, it could have been an ugly moment if the little girl had thought she had to cook as well as Martha Stewart.
In my journal I wrote: PERFECT PROJECTS NOT REQUIRED. PURSUE LOVE.
I pray that we will all know more of the Lord's wonderful love and learn to let His love flow through us to others.
Christmas blessings to all!
Sandra

Light

It's interesting to me that the people who came to worship baby Jesus followed a bright star. In the Bible, light is used to symbolize God's wisdom given to people; also, light means good as opposed to evil. I also think of the light of God's face when He looks at His beloved children (Numbers 6:25, Psalm 44:3). Think of the joy on the face of the prodigal's father when he saw his son coming home and "ran and fell on his neck and kissed him" and said, "Let us eat and be merry." We come to Abba and He rejoices. Amazing, and wonderful.

Rejection

I was in a situation the other day where I was on the receiving end of some disapproving words (or at least they sounded to me like disapproving words). And I was feeling the same unhappiness that I've felt many other times when someone was displeased with me. I realized that there was a lie attached to my emotion, which was: Sandra is a bad person if others don't approve of her. It's an especially effective lie because sometimes I do bad things that earn me negative input from others. But even if it's an unavoidable mistake that irritates someone, I still struggle with thinking I am bad.

I asked Jesus to speak to this. I was in tears, and as Jesus comforted me, I really believe that He was weeping with me. Then He told me that His righteousness is my righteousness, and because of that I'll never be a bad person, even if I sometimes do bad things. He reminded me that He has given me the gift of holiness. The Prince of Peace gave me peace in my heart.

May the Lord also bless you with His peace.

In Christ/Christmas

In Christ

I love what Jesus said in John 14:20: "I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you." This means that every Christian has been given the same close relationship with the Lord as Jesus has with God. Malcolm Smith said, "The miracle of the new birth, by which we pass from the death of sin into the eternal life of the new covenant, is to be understood as our being actually joined to Christ" (The Power of the Blood Covenant). No wonder He calls us members of His body. That's how close we are to Him. What a gift!

Christmas

I was thinking about the angels in the Christmas story in Luke 2, who appeared to the shepherds and said, "Glory to God in the highest." They weren't just mouthing those words like I sometimes do when I sing Christmas carols. The angels' praise was the outflow of adoring hearts.

What is it that moves the heart to praise God? I think Psalm 45:1-2 gives us a clue: "My heart is overflowing with a good theme; I recite my composition concerning the King; my tongue is the pen of a ready writer. You are fairer than the sons of men"

We praise Jesus from the heart when we see how wonderful He is.

God bless your holiday season,

Sandra

Prayer Requests

I'd appreciate prayer for a couple of things: Please pray that my husband would do well on a test on Friday. He has to pass the test to keep his job. Also, my daughter Amy is in China on a mission trip. Please pray for safety for her and her group. Thanks!

These concerns have caused no small amount of anxiety in my heart, and as I was trying to discover the root of it, it occurred to me that I just don't expect that the Lord is going to be there for me, or for my loved ones. As soon as I had this thought, the Lord reminded me of Psalm 139:9-10: "If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there Your hand shall lead me, and Your right hand shall hold me." The Lord really is the hound of heaven! It's not like I have to beg Him to show up. Wherever I am, He is with me, holding me in His hand. That's faithful, constant love. Immediately after this thought, guess what song came on the radio? "You Lift Me Up". This line in the song is especially meaningful to me: "Your arms wrap around me/Your love catches me so I'm letting go.......I surrender to Your love." Abba wants me to receive His loving care, to trust Him to take care of me and my family. If I don't, I live in fear, needless fear, because I believe the lie that He doesn't care and won't help.

Another thing the Lord has been showing me is that I can share all of my life with Him, even the sinful stuff. I was reading in the book The Practice of the Presence of God, by Brother Lawrence. A friend said of Lawrence, "In the beginning, Brother Lawrence declared that a little effort was needed to form the habit of continuously conversing with God, telling Him everything that was happening. However, after a little careful practice, God's love refreshed him, and it all became quite easy." My thought was that it isn't that easy to talk to God all the time, because I'm afraid that He'll be displeased when I have a bad attitude and spew out complaints and criticisms. But Jesus wants everyone to come to Him, including:

-the weary and burdened --Matt. 11:28

-the predestined--Romans 8:30

-the arrogant and self-righteous son (or daughter)--Luke 15:28

-those who want to walk on water--Matt. 14:29

-those who love their wealth--Matt. 19:21

-the thirsty--Isaiah 55:1, John 7:37

-children--Mark 10:14

-the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind, and those in the highways and hedges--Luke 14:16- 23, Luke 18:40

-crooks and criminals--Luke 19:5, 23:43

-the lost-- Luke 19:10

-the fishermen--John 21:12

-the tax collector--Matt. 9:9

It seems that the Lord isn't picky about who he hangs out with. In fact, He is merciful and calls sinners to Himself. And to repentance, which I get tired of because it's so humbling. But "reproofs of instruction are the way of life." (Proverbs 6:23) And I want life.

So I need not be afraid to come to the Lord with my unholy frame of mind, because He is gentle and will heal backsliding and love freely (Hosea 14:4). Hallelujah.

Christmas Thoughts

It's snowing! What a great day to write down some thoughts about Christmas. I was thinking about Zechariah's prophecy in Luke 1:78-79: ...."the Dayspring [dawn, Messiah] from on high has visited us; to give light to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace."

What does it mean that Jesus is light? It means....

LIFE. "In Him was life, and the life was the light of men." In Greek, that's zoe, life as God has it!

FAVOR. Psalm 44:3 says, "...they did not gain possession of the land by their own sword, nor did their own arm save them; but it was Your right hand, Your arm, and the light of Your countenance, because You favored them." I think that when our heavenly Father looks at His children, His face lights up because He's rejoicing in His beloved ones :)