Hebrews 12 Beyond Circumstances

Hebrews 12:1-3 NIV

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

For at least 4 months, this passage has been rattling around in my brain. Like a good friend, I've sought it out, embraced it, and returned to it frequently when I needed encouragement. Partly because I ran my first half marathon about 6 weeks ago and was TERRIFIED. In my training, especially during the killer 10-12 mile runs, I would meditate on this passage. Particularly the thought of endurance, fixing our eyes on Jesus, his suffering for our benefit. Not that my 1-2 hours of running hold anything to what Jesus endured, but I love how God can use even small things in our life to remind us of eternal things. 

Throw off. Run with perseverance. Fix my eyes. Endure. Consider. Paul is calling us to activity. Not passive complacency, but active, growing, squirming, breathing, fighting faith. Faith that seeks and thinks. That reads and studies. That isn't thrown off by a mistake or doubt or a bad day. Whether it's whining kids, frustrating friends, a grumpy spouse, personal sin and failure, circumstances beyond our control such as death/cancer/pain, we endure, fix, consider, run, TRUST. 

Why?? Because of Jesus. So Paul not only calls us to this, but gives us the reason why it's possible. When my marriage is failing, my family member is dying, my job isn't working, Jesus is the reason we can and should endure. He's the reason we can and should remain faithful. Because He KNOWS. He's been there. He endured and considered. He ran the race. FOR YOU. So you could look beyond your circumstances and see Him. And know Him. And find peace, joy, love, HOPE. 

If you've run a race, whether 1 mile, 5K or 13.1, you know the feeling at the finish line. When you've reached your goal, all the sweat, pain, doubts, fears are gone. You fought through it and finished. Do you see the metaphor? Cause I'm laying it on pretty thick. Faith is like that. It can't be dictated by feelings or circumstances. Or else you won't finish well. You'll quit early and allow the sweat and pain to cloud your vision, keeping you from the prize. 

So don't quit. Keep going. Run the race. Pursue the prize, which is Christ Jesus. If you can't see him right now, seek him. If you seek Him, you will find Him, friends. He promises. 

Jeremiah 29:12-13 Then you will call on me and come and pray to me and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all of your heart.

Remember, faith is active, not passive. Grace is available and sufficient, but we must receive it. When running my races, I always picture the course and my next leg so that I won't quit. I think through how I'm going to make it to the finish line and what it will be like when I get there. That's how our faith journey is. When we're lost, afraid, tired, doubting, we look heavenward and remember what we're receiving in the end. That's what can keep us going. What you're going through may not change, you may have to go through it, but our underlying hope and future will NEVER change. Our goal is Jesus and He is eternal sitting at the right hand of God, encouraging you, pushing you, fighting with you every step of the way.

1 Corinthians 9: 24-27 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.  Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.  Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

It Takes a Village

So raising children is hard work. It's exhausting, right? Thankfully, God sends us resources and people to encourage us and spur us on. It is a battle to raise children in this chaotic world.  My best friend recently sent me a transcript from a Family Life broadcast about discipline in 2-4 year olds that is fantastic. I love when my friends send me stuff like this, it reminds me that there are others out there who are praying for strength to love their kiddos enough to grow as parents and do the best thing which is usually the hardest thing. Because it is a journey; Josh and I are perpetually reevaluating our parenting techniques and what works best with each child, they are so different! So Sarah sending me this reminded me of all the parenting resources I've cataloged over the past few years, and I wanted to share some of them. God gives us community to exhort one another towards godliness, to love each other, and pray for one another when things inevitably don't go as planned:-). 

Discipline 2-4 year olds: Transcript/Audio from the Family Life radio broadcast Sarah sent me. So much good advice. Part 2 is here: Discipline 2-4 year olds-Part 2. 

Children are a Blessing: Lots of succint, applicable advice here. Josh found this, summarizes a lot of what we've read in parenting books. My favorite part is the guy's first point, children are a blessing. How often have I seen my children as a burden or as impeding on what I want?? Get your eyes off of yourself, Smeader!

10 Ways to Love Your Kids: Great reminders.

So the above links have some practical parenting techniques, and I hope they don't overwhelm you. I know I get overwhelmed when I think about discipline. So here is some encouragement! A quote from the Discipline 2-4 year olds link from Dennis Rainey:

"You know, after hearing this many principles and stories and all that, it's easy 

to get something like parenting down to a formula, or an "A + B =C" type of approach.  I just want to encourage you that, don't remove God from the equation.  Because he has all kinds of surprises that you're going to discover as you raise your family.  Some of what's going to happen with your children is going to help you grow up. 

We mistakenly thought God gave us six to raise them; He gave us six to finish the

process of growing us up.  It's interesting how many times you can observe behavior in your children, that's a real reflection back of your own devious heart.  What I'd just encourage you to do is keep following Christ, and don't lose your first love for him in growing as a follower of Christ. 

Because, it's your relationship with Him, that's going to enable you to stay ahead of your kids. Because he knows where they're headed; he knows what they're dealing with.  He does feel sorry for us at times, as we raise our family.  He will help you catch them, when they're doing something wrong and when they're doing something right.  You need to celebrate the positive, and we've talked about what you do with the negative, but in all of those things, have courage that you can do the right thing and finish the course, and raise the next generation who are going to take our places."

So from that...here are links to remind us who ultimately is in control:-):

Behavior vs. Heart Change: This is NOT to hate on homeschooling. Not at all. This article simply encourages all of us, home school/public school/private school, to check our hearts that we don't think our particular "brand" of parenting is the best. Lots of good reminders to lean on and press into God first in all decisions and not judge others with their particular choice.

My Favorite: This is my favorite. She just nailed it. We are so dependent on His mercy.

Trust In His Love: God can restore brokenness. That's what He does, that's who He is. So remember, when you fail, he offers grace. As a parent, this is a truth I have to remember constantly.

Overall, I remember in a women's bible study once, a woman who had had some struggles with her teenage son saying she held on to this verse through it all - 1 Peter 4:8 Above all, love each other deeply, for love covers a multitude of sins.  That just struck me. I need to LOVE my children. Well what is love? Well first God is love (1 John 4:16).  And then the beautiful definition from 1 Corinthians 13 that we use so much in the marriage relationship, but definitely translates into the parent/child relationship - ⁴ Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. ⁵ It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. ⁶ Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. ⁷ It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.⁸ Love never fails. What a great reminder of how to love on our babies as they grow and most importantly to draw from the powerful love offered to us in Jesus Christ.  

If you have any good parenting resources, please share! Would love to hear from you, we're in this together!! Let's fail together, pray for one another, quit judging each other, and realize that we have the same goal if you're a believer - children who love jesus first and foremost, right?? 

Refurbishing fun

My husband recently started a photography business and his equipment was taking over our house! So we decided to turn our "catch all" room next to our bedroom into his office. We got some fun shelves from IKEA, a bookshelf from a local secondhand store (Kalamazoo Kitty kzookitty.com), and a desk and chair off of craigslist. I wanted to make my hub a cool, manly desk for his photography stuff and his baby aka the iMac. The desk we got was a great size with lots of drawers which is what he wanted. But it was pretty scratched up and well-loved as the old owners would say:-). I look at some design blogs and was noticing people doing some neat things with spray paint, so I let my creative side fly! I knew I wanted something kind of metallic looking, which terrified Josh, but he trusted me and let me go at it.
Here is a pic after the sanding was done:

I then put on 2 coats of Kilz white primer:

Then did 3 coats of silver spray paint. This is a pic after the first 2 coats:

My husband was freaking out at this point. After the third coat of silver spray paint, I had turned his desk into a version of the Tin Man from wizard of oz. This was not what I had envisioned. So I sanded down the edges and basically all over to take away some of the bright "silveriness."  Then I applied ebony stain all over. I painted on the stain with a sponge brush and then wiped off after about 30 seconds. On a couple of the corners and edges, I let the stain sit for the night. Then sanded some more where it was too black. It was still a bit silvery, so I sanded over the whole thing one more time (all sanding was done by hand, not with a machine). I then added new hardware that I found at Lowe's and put on a coat of Minwax clear gloss polyurethane. 
Here is the finished product:

Thankfully, he loves it! It's nice and smooth, fits all his stuff, and looks fairly manly:-). I had a ton of fun doing it, would love to refinish more furniture, but with a 2 and 3 year old, most work is done between 9pm and 12am. Momma needs to sleep!  I wanted to share in case any of you have the itch to refinish furniture but are fearful...don't be! I am not "artsy" in nature, I just decided to go for it, looked at some blogs, and had a good time. Plus I was only out about $50 bucks if it didn't work! So be courageous and be creative!!

Pete the Cat

If you have preschool-age kids, you may have heard of Pete the Cat. Pete the cat has four groovy buttons. He rocks white shoes. He loves school. Pete is a laid back, cool cat who plays the guitar. Lots of things happen to Pete's buttons and shoes but he takes it in stride "because it's allllll good."

My boys LOVE these books. Love is probably an understatement. We don't even read it anymore, we just turn the pages and Jackson tells us the story word for word. He and Landry even act it out. Sometimes I use it in discipline, when the boys are throwing fits, I'll say "does Pete cry??" "Goodness No!" Lol.

Pete is a smart dude. Not sure if the guy who wrote the book is a Christian, but his theme is Christian in nature. It always makes me laugh when we read it because God can use anything for his good and to teach his children if we just open our eyes to see.

Psalm 46
1God is our refuge and strength,
A very present help in trouble.
² 2Therefore we will not fear,
Even though the earth be removed,
And though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;
³ 3Though its waters roar and be troubled,
Though the mountains shake with its swelling.

10Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth!

11The Lord of hosts is with us;
The God of Jacob is our refuge.

Does Pete worry? Goodness no! Does Pete cry? Goodness no! Whatever comes at Pete, he just keeps going and singing his song because it's all good.  Shouldn't we be the same? Our hope is eternal, our place is set at His right hand, a time will come when all sadness will be gone and we have joy everlasting. God is with us, He is our ever-present help in times of trouble. BE STILL AND KNOW. He is God, I am not, he is in control. So when troubles come, will Jess cry? Maybe:-). But ultimately, I hope I remember that stuff will come and stuff will go but God is my refuge and hope. Because it's alllll good.

Full of Thanksgiving

It's pretty fitting that the book I'm still reading right now (I commented on it in my last post as well) is all about being thankful. One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp is a good read, friends. I've learned to be present in all situations, to be thankful for every moment I'm given, and to see and expect God in each day. Because he tells us he's there and we can take him at his Word.

So as we come into thanksgiving, I want to encourage you to be grateful for what you have and to stop pining for what you don't.  

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. James 1:17

He is worthy of our praise and admiration. He deserves our thanksgiving not only on this holiday, but every day.  As our perspectives shift, and we start seeing each day as a gift, not a right or entitlement, we will gradually see our lives change as we find joy in EACH moment and EACH circumstance. Celebrate what God has given you and worship him accordingly! 

Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe Hebrews 12:28

Happy Thanksgiving:-)

God is good.

Give me faith to trust what you say
That you're good and your love is great  - Elevation Worship "Give Me Faith"

God is good.  This truth is so foundational in what we do and how we live. The Lord has been revealing this to me over and over in most of my quiet moments with him lately.  Think about the fall. We talked about this in our women's group last weekend. When Eve first decided to eat the fruit, what lie was she believing??

^{Genesis 3:6} When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it.

God had given Adam and Eve every single fruit in the garden except ONE, but Satan convinced Eve that God was withholding from her...that he did not have her best in mind, that he was not truly "good" and trustworthy.  As we women often do, Eve thought she knew better than God; she wanted "wisdom" and control.

I'm reading a book right now (spoiler alert) called one thousand gifts by Ann Voskamp. In the beginning she writes of a terrible family tragedy that rocks her world and view of God, wondering if she could believe that a God who allowed this unthinkable death was truly good. I read this and sobbed. Would I believe that God is good if he took my child home? At the core of my being, do I really believe that in any circumstance, whatever comes my way, that the God I serve is good? Because if I don't, what's the point? And if I do, it changes everything. I won't worry, I won't fret or fear, I'll live with joy knowing that nothing can shake my foundation. Nothing can steal my peace because the God I serve always always has my best in mind. He is good all the time, no matter what.

This truth is especially real right now, as people struggle with hurricane sandy and unspeakable tragedy throughout our globe.  Why does our God allow suffering? Why would a "good" God allow such awful things to happen? Well the answer is simple and complicated:-). It starts with the fall and ends with Jesus as our rescuer.  The vital truth that God is good  reminds us that God hates to see his people suffer and that was not his original intent for us, but because of choices made suffering comes.  His purposes are beyond our limited sight.  Visit this link http://www.christianityexplored.org/tough-questions/godandsuffering for great insight.  I'm not bailing on this question, but I just think this site explains it way better than I can, not trying to reinvent the wheel here.

So believing in God's goodness has huge implications for both personal circumstances and global suffering and injustice. For if God is not good, what am I doing? How can I trust him with my life? But he proves his goodness over and over, the cornerstone of this proof being Jesus - God sending his own Son to take on ALL suffering, pain, injustice through his wounds and his blood, then rising again three days later to give us hope for a future free from hurt and wounds.  Why would a God who doesn't care about us, who isn't good, do that? If God wasn't good, he would have left us at the fall. He would have said, hey Adam and Eve, you idiots, I told you what to do, you didn't do it, so peace out!! You're on  your own. But he didn't. Over and over he implores his people to return return - I love you, I created you, I want fellowship with you! Come back to me, do what I say, I promise, everything I have for you is VERY VERY GOOD.  The crowning glory of his reaching out for us is Jesus- God Man to earth living in a fleshly form exhibiting God's love and goodness through every word, act, miracle and of course, the cross.

So when I struggle with believing in God's goodness, when some tough time comes, or I'm just believing the lie that God doesn't know what's best for me so I need to take control, I turn back to Jesus. I remember the cross. My heart softens and gratefulness sets in. I remember that God loved us so much, he sent his Son. He is good. He is worth it all. He knows what I need exactly when I need it. And he has set a place for me in heaven. Why worry? 

Psalm 34:8 Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.

Spurgeon:

Christ loved you before all worlds; long ere the day star flung his ray across the darkness, before the wing of angel had flapped the unnavigated ether, before aught of creation had struggled from the womb of nothingness, God, even our God, had set his heart upon all his children.

Since that time, has he once swerved, has he once turned aside, once changed? No; ye who have tasted of his love and know his grace, will bear me witness, that he has been a certain friend in uncertain circumstances. . . .

You have often left him; has he ever left you? You have had many trials and troubles; has he ever deserted you? Has he ever turned away his heart, and shut up his bowels of compassion? No, children of God, it is your solemn duty to say 'No,' and bear witness to his faithfulness. 

 --Charles Spurgeon, 'A Faithful Friend,' in Sermons of C. H. Spurgeon (New York: Sheldon, Blakeman & Co., 1857), 13-14