When God shares with us His plan, do we submit with joy or doubt? Do we believe and protect His promise, or do we expose it to ridicule?
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Now that Landon is a little older, it is pretty rare that he falls asleep on me anymore. Our bedtime routine is to read a book together in the rocking chair, sing a couple of songs, pray, and then lay him down in his bed. But today, after reading our book, he fell asleep in my arms. It felt so good. And no child falling asleep in my arms could feel as good as my own dear son or daughter.
The Lie
As a young adult, I heard sad and bitter stories surrounding the way some people were brought up in a Christian home. They would speak of how they felt like God and righteousness were pushed down their throat until, as a result, they became “turned off” to wanting to belong to Christ. I, too, had been brought up in a Christian home, but had only thankfulness and joy in my heart to associate with my upbringing. Even so, these accounts affected me and took their toll on my mind without me realizing it as I struggled with fears of raising my own children.
Think of a person who you love more than anything. Now imagine that person asking you, “Do you love me?” How would you reply?
I was asked this question today on a quiet evening walk around the neighborhood, when my three year old daughter softly asked, “Mommy, do you love me every day?” My heart-felt reply was, “I love you every day, every moment, for as long as I live.”
Have you ever wondered, “Does God love me?” I want to assure you that just as you know the immense love you have for that special person you thought of at the beginning of this post, God loves you immensely – even more than you are capable of loving. So if you wonder, “Does God love me?” I can tell you, no matter who you happen to be, reader, that God does love you – with an amazing and everlasting love. You can imagine Him saying to you, “I love you every day, every moment. I gave my one and only Son so that you can know me, know life, know eternal life, because I love you that much. Oh yes, I love you.”
The idea of an older woman mentoring and admonishing a younger woman paints a wholesome and pretty picture in my mind. The older woman, full of love and nurturing, pain and wisdom, victories and joys, is bent over slightly from age, but not lack of strength. She is smiling and cupping in her experienced hands the worried but hopeful face of the younger woman who is looking up into the older face with anticipation and trust.
It sounds more like a lovely painting in an art museum than a scene that we see in our daily lives, right? Why is that? Perhaps
Encouragement. We love to get it. But how frequently are we giving it? We often wait for a holiday or a crisis or even death before we bring encouragement and thoughtfulness to others’ lives. We also overlook the people who seem to be “doing good” and assume that they don’t need encouragement. Let’s throw those mentalities out the window and focus on being an encouragement right now to people who won’t be expecting it.
The Truth
For the last several weeks at church, the topic of the services has been personal evangelism. As I told my life group last week, this is hands-down, my biggest weakness as a Christian. Give me a Christian who needs to be ministered to, and I am ready! Give me someone who does not know Christ, but it is openly seeking information/direction/help,and I am ready! But place me in front of someone who has not yet been introduced to Jesus, and I am very uncomfortable. Of course, I want them to know the Lord, but the process of discussing it is very difficult for me. It probably sounds odd that I feel this way, since I am such a passionate person, I am married to [drum-roll please…] an evangelist, and I enjoy helping other people. Deep in my spirit I want nothing more than to see them come to Christ, but my uncomfortable, busy, little self gets in the way…
Here is a poem/prayer I wrote one month before Ava was born. And I can express the same sentiments for my son…