Everything's All Right

It happened. This past week, it happened. Did you notice it? Spring finally arrived! The sun shone. Birds greeted me in the dawn and mourning doves soothed me to sleep. The grass actually started to turn green. And the people! Everywhere, on nearly every block, the people emerged from their winter hibernation. Kids on bikes. Couples on a walk. Families grilling and soaking up the sun on their decks. Warmth - sunshine - are incredibly wonderful. Incredibly powerful.

We desperately need the sunshine, don't we? Isn't it amazing that - when the day is cloudy, rainy, or snowing for the 104th time all winter - our days seem so blah? That on such days, the bad seems awful and the good seems mediocre? But bring out the sunshine, and BOOM! The bad doesn't seem so awful anymore and the good seems glorious. It's almost as if, when the sun is shining and we feel the warmth on our face, that we can conquer anything. We may still have troubles, we may still feel exhausted - but somehow, we know it's going to be all right.

And you know what's great? As believers, we don't simply have to rely on the physical sun to brighten our days, to lift our spirits, to bring joy to our hearts. We know the Son; we have the Son walking with us: Jesus. He is our Light. Our warmth. The One who, on those awful, gloomy, blah days, doesn't change. Who can bring us joy in the midst of heartache. Who lifts us up out of the miry clay and sets our feet on solid ground.Who brings light into the darkness. Who makes everything beautiful in its time.

"Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why have you become disturbed within me? Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him for the help of His presence." - Psalm 42:5 

Walking with Jesus, with the Son, doesn't mean that all of our troubles are going to vanish. In fact, we'll probably have more. But when we walk with Him, we don't face them alone. In Him, we know that everything truly is going to be all right.

"'In the world you will have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.'" - John 16:33

Elementary Thinking

One of the most significant memories of my elementary school years was learning the "who, what, when, where, why, and how" paradigm.

All too often, as an adult with a college education, working in the everyday world of ministry, and doing continued high-level schooling my thinking gets complicated.

Sometimes though, I get hit upside the head with a figurative two-by-four and remember to settle down and do some elementary thinking.

That happened this morning after a couple really long days of work.

I was sitting in the glow of the Montana morning, the sun having just crested the Swan Range, and my hand clutched a coffee cup that was shaped by the hands of a father figure of mine.
My taste buds leaped for joy when the freshly roasted coffee swirled around my tongue.
The epidermal layer covering my bones tingled with satisfaction as the heat of the sun warmed my arms. Through the tired fog inside my brain, the words I was reading in the Bible came alive.

"I have loved you as the Father has loved Me. Abide in My love. Follow My example in obeying the Father's commandments and receiving His love. If you obey My commandments, you will stay in My love. I want you to know the delight I experience, to find ultimate satisfaction, which is why I am telling you all of this." (John 15:9-11 The Voice)

For some reason beyond the comprehension of my blurry brain, the processes of elementary thinking put my pen to the paper.

Here's what I found:
Who? Jesus, you (me, my wife, my mom, friends, enemies, every human being)

What? Have been loved, abide in that love, obey, receive, stay, know the delight, find satisfaction

When? Then. Now. Forever. (that craziness we call "eternity")

Where? Anywhere you are located on the Earth

Why? Know the delight Jesus experiences, find ultimate satisfaction

How? Abide (see also "remain") in Jesus' love, follow Jesus' example, receive His love, obey, stay

This simplified a simple text.

I am loved.
You are loved.
This "loved-ness" is the same reality that Jesus has with the Father.

Receiving and remaining in this love is good.
We can know the delight Jesus knows and find ultimate satisfaction.

This all happens in a relationship that trumps any human relationship we may understand.
Our Father and His Beloved children relate as a result of His love.

So then, I went for a bike ride with my Daddy.
We talked, we laughed, we listened, we thought like children.

Do you need to turn on the switch for "elementary thinking" today?

SCANDAL!

Grace is a SCANDAL.

Scandal: "a circumstance or action that offends propriety or established moral conceptions or disgraces those associated with it." (Merriam Webster)

"God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." --Romans 5:8

Sinners are separated from God because of His holiness -- He cannot be in the presence of sin because He is perfect. Here's where the scandal comes in... Christ died to take away the barrier that separated us -- the curtain was torn (Matthew 27:51), the sin is washed away (1 Cor 6:11). That doesn't make sense; it goes against everything that we know as far as morality and "right" and "wrong". We have engrained in our minds -- across cultures -- that wrong behavior must be punished. As sinners (also known as human beings) we stand in direct opposition to the God of the Universe; we disobey the rules He has established on a daily basis. And you know, if you get pulled over for speeding but say you didn't know the law, you're still guilty. It's the same with God -- whether or not we recognize our sin, we stand in His presence 100% guilty with a payment to make as punishment.

However, that's where this scandal becomes so beautiful, because it's so personal to me, to you. We deserve punishment for our disobedience to God, but He took that upon Himself in order to set us free. The glorious thing about this scandal is that He didn't just take our sins away and tell us to be good children now. That's moralism, and that's bad. It's not a vacuum where He sucked all our sin away and leaves us with an empty void that we now fill with being good -- but He fills us with His Holy Spirit and with His righteousness. That's a big word that basically means that we now stand before God as perfect and complete by the blood that was shed on the cross.

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come." -- 2 Corinthians 5:17

I don't know about you, but it's incredibly frustrating to recognize sin in my life today. I get in the mindset that I'm a new creation, I shouldn't sin. In Christ, we stand before God as perfect, as saints. But as Pastor Haugen once said, "You can have a saint with a dirty diaper." As we live in the [already, not yet] -- we are simultaneously saints and sinners. The beauty in this is that the price that Christ paid on the cross was sufficient. It was paid in full.

"For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast." -- Ephesians 2:8-9

[What a huge scandal in such a beautiful exchange. My sin for His righteousness. It was done over 2000 years ago, and we stand in that freedom and forgiveness today.]

Maybe you already know this, but I pray that it would be a reminder to you today of what He did for you that day in history. The biggest scandal of all time, and it has everything to do with YOU.


"Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him" -- Colossians 2:6
You received Him through grace. Walk in that grace today. 

Not Alone

I love being a stay-at-home mom. I love all the chances I have to snuggle with my boy throughout the day. I love all the firsts I get to witness: first smile, first crawls, first steps. I love that I can get nothing done but yet know the day hasn't been wasted because I've spent it with my son. Sure, there's frustrating moments. Times when I wish I could really just make a "quick" trip to the grocery store or post office. Moments when I wonder if all this will make a difference. But not even the most frustrating times are enough to make me want to change jobs. 

Since I'm the one who is home with Zeke every day and because I've been given those maternal instincts, I sometimes forget that I'm not Zeke's only parent. That I don't have to do this whole parenting thing alone. That - believe it or not - I'm not infallible. That I'm not the only one capable of taking care of our son. Far too often, I think that everything rests on me. And that isn't right. I've been given a great husband who is a wonderful father who is fully capable of changing diapers, dressing an almost-one-year-old, and preparing his food.

Sometimes, I fear we do the same thing with God. We think that we can manage without Him. That the weight that is upon us is ours to carry on our own. That we are strong enough to go on by ourselves. That we don't need His help. And if we did ask for help, cry, or show some another sort of weakness - that somehow makes us less "great" in the eyes of our peers. We don't like to be see as weak.

But that isn't how God intended us to live. We are weak. He is strong. We are helpless. He is our help. We are incapable. He can do the impossible.

"'Do not fear, for I am with you; do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you by My righteous right hand.'" - Isaiah 41:10  

"'Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.'" - John 15:4-5

No matter your pain, hurt or sorrow - you're not alone. You don't have to try to be strong. Because there is One who is strong for you. Let Him be Your help.

"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear . . ." - Psalm 46:1-2a

Trimming Trees

With a snap, crack, and a pop another limb gets grabbed by gravity and is forced to drop.Away from the tree, into the air, and onto the ground. The branch is gone for good, soon to be burned in a fire.

Chainsaw buzzing, hands tingling, the tree trimmer's eyes scan the canopy for more places to bring the blade. Seeing between the beautiful green buds, it's the old, dead branches that get cut. Before too long, the old tree choking for air will thrive rather than simply survive.

Jesus talked a bit about this with his disciples - minus the chainsaw.

In a divine moment with his closest friends, Jesus paints a picture of trimming trees and offers new depth of understanding how we live in a relationship with Him.

Branches bearing fruit are connected. The dead branches get cut out and thrown in the fire. Fruit bearing branches are a testament to the goodness and grace of God, bringing Him glory by simply remaining connected and bearing fruit.

Wind whips through trees, breaking some branches and shaking all of them. Under the weight of snow and ice, the non-fruitful trees break off and fall to the earth. No matter what the weather does, a branch that is connected remains alive.

We humans are branches.

Are you connected to Christ?

(read more in John 15)

A Beautiful "YET"

Once upon a time there was a man named Habakkuk. He was a prophet for the tribe of Judah during the reign of King Jehoiakim. Keep in mind, these are real men that lived in a real time. He lived in a preverse and corrupt time and called out to the Lord for change. God answered him, but He gave a different response than Habakkuk had in mind.

"Look among the nations, and see; wonder and be astounded For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told. For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans..." --Habakkuk 1:5-6a

Habakkuk had asked God to intervene and God said He was going to raise a group of ungodly men to seize them. I think it's safe to say that wasn't entirely what he was hoping for. His response is out of reverence, but he did complain that they are an ungodly nation and it didn't seem fair. The rest of the book is Habakkuk going back and forth between extolling the LORD as the God of his salvation, but also expressing his concern that this does sadden him. He was in anguish with this, but still saw that the Lord was to be praised. 

The end of the book are some of my favorite verses ever. (I know I say that a lot, but for real!) 

"Thought the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, ..." --Habakkuk 3:17

Pause, okay...this sounds really bad, right?

"...yet, I will rejoice in the LORD; I will take joy in the God of my salvation. GOD, the LORD is my strength; He makes my feet like the deer's; He makes me tread of my high places." -- Habakkuk 3:18-19a

Habakkuk has such a beautiful picture of trusting God here. Honestly, I don't think I'd have this response. Okay, I don't have this response now often when the "fig trees don't blossom" in my life. Things were really bad for Habakkuk as he saw the nation that he loved fall under God's judgement, but he knew that God was still good and he could praise him even in the hard times. 

I'm not much like Habakkuk, but through the working of the Holy Spirit in my life, He can give me a response of praise during the hard times in life. It's not something that we work up to and try harder, but the work of God in and through our lives. When times are hard, He is still worthy to be praised. Above all, we can point back to the one day in history when the Creator of the Universe sent His Son to die on a cross, where each and every one of us should have been. And as we point to that day, no matter what this day entails, we too can say, "yet, I will rejoice in the LORD. I will take joy in the God of my salvation." 

Let's Pray

I'm grateful for prayer. I'm grateful that we have a God who answers prayer. And I'm grateful that no request is too small in His eyes, no concern of ours is too insignificant for Him. As I drove home from Sioux Falls on Friday, I felt the prayers of family and friends being offered on our behalf. My can't-sit-still-for-more-than-thirty-seconds boy napped for nearly three hours straight (the longest nap he's taken probably since he was a newborn); he played well, let animal crackers keep him happy, and all together did great on the seven-hour car ride. Definite answers to prayer. The roads were only wet, not slippery; and we had safe travels the entire 507 miles. Definite answers to prayer. In moments like those, when I see, experience and feel the power of prayer, I wonder: why don't I pray more?

And not just pray because it's nice or it makes me feel connected to God or to tell Him about how that lady at the grocery store made me feel. I mean pray. Pray for our nation. Pray for the lost souls surrounding us. Pray for our courts. Pray for the devil's hold on hearts to loosen and for the world to turn to Jesus.

I've realized in the last couple of days how little praying I do. Oh sure, I pray for our families, those dear to my heart and the troubles facing them. But why don't I pray bigger? With a more far-reaching, worldwide impact? Don't get me wrong: those prayers for my parents, brother, in-laws and close friends -- those are important. But far too often I simply stop there. Why do I fail to mention our nations leaders, abortion doctors and clinics, our church leadership, the souls of the lost, Bible translators, the hungry, the orphans, airline pilots?

Pride, perhaps. But I think what it really boils down to is discipline. Not just recognizing all there is to pray about (and yes, it's quite daunting), but actually praying. Carving out time in my day to pray. Praying while I do everyday, mundane tasks. Not allowing my mind to wander and daydreams to enter. Being still before Him. 

"'Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him to knocks it will be opened. Or what man is there among you who, when his son asks for a loaf, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!'" - Matthew 7:7-11 

If you're like me and disgusted at the atrocities performed by Kermit Gosnell, let's pray.
If you're like me and dismayed at the acceptance of blatant sin even by believers, let's pray.

If you're like me and shocked at the bombing in Boston, let's pray.

". . .pray without ceasing . . ." - 1 Thessalonians 5:17

Our Eyes Are On You

Once upon a time there was a man named Jehoshaphat. This man was the king of Judah and was a strong man of battle. The Moabites and Ammonites came against him in battle one day, and you should understand that these were powerful armies. His response is recorded after he was told of their arrival, "Then Jehoshaphat was afraid and set his face to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. And Judah assembled to seek help from the Lord; from all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord" (2 Chronicles 20:3-4)

I love that it states that Jehoshaphat was afraid; a king, a strong man of God, was afraid. But his reaction to this fear is what strikes me the most: "he set his face to seek the LORD".  He then went into the house of the Lord an spoke with God in prayer. He recounted how God had protected and provided for them in the past. He acknowledged how God rules over kingdoms and nations and has all power and might in His hand. His states his utter dependence upon God. Then he ends with this, 

"O our God, will you not execute judgment on them? For we are powerless against this great horde that is coming against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.” (2 Chronicles 20:12)

Jehoshaphat understood that he was powerless, but he knew the Source of all the power in the world. He took his eyes off of himself, off of his army, and off of the terrifying armies that were quickly approaching, and turned them to God. His eyes were on the LORD.

God's beautiful response was, "‘Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed at this great horde, for the battle is not yours but God's" (2 Chronicles 20:15).

Spoiler alert, Judah won. 

In this glorious telling of God's provision and protection of His people years ago, I rest in the fact that this God has not changed. This is my God. I rest in the fact that when I do not know what to do, and it feels as though there is a great horde against me -- whether that looks like finances, relationships, an unknown future, or any other number of problems we deal with daily -- my eyes can fix on Jesus, the author and perfecter of my faith (Hebrews 12:2). I find assurance that multiple times throughout the Old Testament God reminds His people that the battle belongs to the LORD. 

Whatever your battle today, you can joyously turn your eyes to God. He knows what to do. Rest in that today. 

"The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.” --Exodus 14:14

Read the whole story of Jehoshaphat in 2 Chronicles 20 -- it's worth the read! 

Every (Inconvenient) Opportunity

I really don't like driving on snowy, icy, wind-blown roads. Therefore, I am still here in Sioux Falls rather than in Fargo on my way home to Beulah. I probably could have made it to Fargo today, but I decided that if things got ugly in North Dakota, I'd rather be stuck in Sioux Falls at my parent's house than in Fargo. So here I am. To be honest, I really want to be home. I would love to cook at my stove and wash my dishes. To put my baby boy to bed in his own, real bed instead of a Pack 'N Play. To see my husband and give him a hug. But home is 500-some miles away. And there's a snowstorm looking like it's going to keep me here until potentially Thursday.

So, I decided to make the most of this opportunity. To go visit my grandparents now instead of planning on doing it this summer because I don't know how much time we've got left. To maybe look up some friends in the area simply because I've got time and relationships are important. To let my little man have these extra bonding days with his grandparents. Even though I am looking forward to home, I've got to do something and be faithful with this time I have here in Sioux Falls. I need to do the same spiritually as well.

Sometimes, instead of making the most of the time I have here and now, I am simply looking ahead, to our eternal home. Like when I consider world events. I hope and pray that Jesus will come back soon. I would love for my little man to be protected from so much of the evil happening in the world; to witness the coming of Christ. And I think that as believers, we are to look forward to His coming and prepare for it. But sometimes, it'e easy for us to forget to work while we're here. To be fruitful for His kingdom. To make His name known to people and in places where His name hasn't been heard. To make disciples.

"But if I am to live on in the flesh, this will mean fruitful labor for me . . . But I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better; yet to remain on in the flesh is much more necessary for your sake." - Philippians 1:22-23

While we wait for His coming, while we live on in the flesh - we've got work to do. It won't be finished until He calls us home. May we be a body who is busy about His work, doing what He has called us to do, making the most of every opportunity -- even those that seem to inconvenience us. 

"So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of faith." - Galatians 6:10

To Be With Him in Paradise

Two weeks ago my grandpa passed away. Last week our beloved Dr. Monseth went to be with Jesus. Needless to say, death has been on my mind for the past few weeks. This seems fitting, seeing as we just celebrated Easter last weekend, where we were reminded of the death of our Savior on the cross. This would be a terribly depressing post if I were to stop there, but I cannot! You've all heard the story; you've all sung the songs; Christ the Lord is risen! Up from the grave He arose!

Through these deep times of hurt for myself and many others, I'm reminded that death is guaranteed. As Dr. Monseth once put it (He had a hilarious, dry sense of humor that could always make me laugh!), "There is a 1 in 1 chance that you will die. The odds are against you." Scripture speaks of death: Genesis 3:19 tells us that we will one day return to the dust that we came from, Romans 6:23 says that the payment for sin is death, and Ecclesiastes 3:2 plainly informs us that there is a time to die. No matter how much we live for today and plan our years, death is inevitable.

But hey, I'm not done. Because the whole deal with Christ suffering and dying on the cross was so that He could take on the punishment that we deserve for our sins. He took on the entirety of God's wrath for all mankind that dark, bleek day that we now call Good Friday. (Read about that here) He did that so that we wouldn't have to pay, because there is no forgiveness without the shedding of blood (Hebrews 9:22). The beauty of it all is that He didn't stay dead! He defeated death by breathing again after He had breathed His last. While we still face the reality of an earthly death where we will one day be 6-feet under, we no longer have to face the eternal death that is separation from God. Through the death and resurrection of Jesus, we now have access to life eternally with the Creator of the Universe!

While we on earth still mourn the loss of loved ones, there is such sweet joy in knowing there is more to the story for those who knew their Savior. I have never rejoiced more at the passing of someone than of Dr. Monseth's death, because I know that He is in glory with Jesus now, which he often spoke of in class and everywhere else that he went. He looked forward to that glorious day where He would meet his Maker with such reverence and awe, that I am only able to praise the Lord myself now knowing that he is with the Lord. Dr. Monseth knew and lived Paul's words in Philippians 3:20, "But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ." 

So today, whether you are mourning the loss of a loved one or not, be reminded that death is 100% guaranteed  As comfortable as we can get in this skin, we're all going to spend an infinite amount of time somewhere else. As we see our need for a Savior once we realize that we are not perfect (Take a look at the 10 Commandments: I don't pass the test at all.) He places His death over us and we are invited to spend eternity in paradise with Him. And in that, I find reason to rejoice!

"For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain."

 --Philippians 1:21

The Neglected Quarter

Every day - or almost every day- my little man and I head out for a four mile walk. I love the fresh air and exercise; and Zeke gets a solid nap in the stroller. But there's another benefit to my daily walk: sometimes, I find money. It's usually not much; just a penny here, a dime there, occasionally a quarter. Once, I actually found a five dollar bill. The other week, as what little snow we had was melting, I spotted a quarter in the mud near the path. Instantly, I was excited - it had been a long time (probably a couple of months) since I found any change. But before I slowed my pace to stop and pick up the quarter - I just kept walking; and I walked right past that twenty-five cents. Why?

To be honest, I think I was worried about what the ladies I had just passed would think about me stopping. Would they consider me a cheapskate? Would they look down on me because I pick change up off the ground? Would they assume that things were so tight at our house that walking was a source of income for me?

But ya know what? I think that sometimes, we treat Christ's call to the Kingdom like I treated that quarter. Whether it is the call to accept His salvation, the call to serve someplace we would never have chosen, or the call to love the unlovable -- it's easy to neglect the call. To maybe get excited initially, but then worry about what others will think. And for some awful, sin-nature reason, what other people think is important to us.

"As they were going along the road, someone said to Him, 'I will follow you wherever you go.' And Jesus said to Him, 'The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.' And He said to another, 'Follow Me.' But he said, 'Lord permit me first to go and bury my father.' But He said to him, 'Allow the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God.' Another also said, 'I will follow You, Lord; but first permit me to say good-bye to those at home.' But Jesus said to him, 'No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.'" - Luke 9:57-62

That quarter is no longer in the mud by the path. Somebody else was lucky enough to spot it and smart enough to pick it up. The fact that I didn't pick up the quarter that day didn't cause us to miss a house payment or make us go one day without a meal. But not responding to the call of Christ is much more costly. It comes with an eternal cost. Let's not make the assumption of thinking that we'll have one more day to answer, one more day to serve, one more day to love. Because if I've been reminded of anything this past week, it's that we don't know how long we've got.

"'Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming . . . the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will.'" - Matthew 24:42,44 

"Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away." - James 4:14