Reality is Calling

History repeats itself. The Old Testament alone is filled with examples of repeated bondage, repentance, redemption, ingratitude, a turning away from God, judgment, and back to bondage. Over, and over, and over in our world’s history, this pattern is repeated. Yet people naively believe that because yesterday was fine, and today was fine, that tomorrow will be fine as well. This belief is a failure to understand the lessons of history.

If you ever visit the Holocaust museum, there is a room where you can see all the newspapers that printed headlines merely alluding to the genocide of the Jews that was occurring overseas. When you put all of the headlines together, it becomes obvious that we knew what was happening. We had to know. There was no way for us not to know.

Immediately following Germany’s defeat in WWII, those Germans who lived near the camp at Buchenwald were taken on a tour of the facilities. Upon arrival, they were upbeat and smiling. Perhaps some thought of it as just an outing in the country to view some innocuous army building. They were in for a horrifying surprise. When they left, their faces were contorted. Some were sobbing like children. The thoughts must have gone through their heads, “How could this Evil have been happening in our own backyard? How were we so deaf to the screams, so blind to reality?”

The warning signs of that reality were everywhere. People chose not to hear it or see it. Not until they faced the grim consequences of their actions or inactions were they able to comprehend what Evil had been at work, and they were grieved by it.

Since the election, I have heard a constant stream of “Chill out. Things won’t be that bad. Don’t be such a fear-monger. It doesn’t matter who is President because Jesus is King.” While I understand the sentiment behind these well-meaning statements, I cannot help but find them to be wildly inappropriate.

The warning signs are everywhere. We are headed down a dark path that has never ended well for any nation, regardless of how prominent they were in the world. People can choose not to hear it or see it. Elections have consequences. Choices have consequences, whether those choices are made through action or inaction. Evil is at work, and the proper response is to be grieved by it.

God is grieved when I sin. His response is no different when a nation turns its back on Him. He prospers us. We become greedy. He gives us freedom. We abuse it. He gives us power. We think ourselves invincible. He blesses us more than any people in the history of the world. We give ourselves the credit.

This is reality. This is not fear mongering.

However, not all is lost yet.

“If My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”2 Chronicles 7:14

Just as the lessons of history are constant, God remains the same. My hope, my trust, my faith are in Him. That is why I can grieve over the darkness and not be consumed by fear and worry. That is why I can rest in the comfort that no matter how bad things might become, my life is in His hands.

“These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.”John 16:33

This is reality. Reality is calling. Will you answer?

One Big Lie

I want to make clear that this lie is in no way the biggest lie, not even remotely close. It is, however, a very common lie, one that I have heard from Conservatives, Liberals, Libertarians, Christians, and non-Christians alike. It is spoken with the best of intentions and comes from a heart of gold from nearly every person who has ever believed this lie. It is a lie nonetheless, and I would like to explain why I believe it is such. You may disagree, and you most certainly have the right to. We will just agree to disagree.

The lie goes something like this, “You can’t legislate morality because it doesn’t change minds and hearts.” On its face, one could see how a person believing this has the greatest of intentions. It is their intention to be loving towards people in the hopes that eventually those people will see the consequences of their actions and how they are perhaps damaging to others, and then they will put a stop to their actions. There is absolutely nothing wrong with loving people and hoping they will come to their senses. As Christians, we are called to be even more loving and more gracious towards people in the hopes of leading them to the ultimate giver of Love and Grace, which is Christ. What some seem to forget is that Christ is also ultimate Truth. We can’t abandon truth in the name of grace. They go together.

How is this statement a lie if it is said by a number of people with good intentions? This statement is not logical. Legislation is a law or set of laws that are written and passed by people in government. People in government write and pass laws based on what they believe to be right and wrong- also called morality. What kind of morality those people have depends entirely on the kind of people they were born and raised to be. Some might have a Biblical morality. Some might have a more secular morality. Either way, no person would ever write or pass a law that went against their kind of morality unless they suffered from some sort of split personality. Therefore, the idea that one cannot legislate morality is silly and illogical at best, but it also leads to something much worse.

This statement completely ignores the Biblical purpose of government.

“Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God. Therefore whoever resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves. For rulers are not a cause of fear for good behavior, but for evil. Do you want to have no fear of authority? Do what is good and you will have praise from the same; for it is a minister of God to you for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword for nothing; for it is a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil. Therefore it is necessary to be in subjection, not only because of wrath, but also for conscience’ sake. For because of this you also pay taxes, for rulers are servants of God, devoting themselves to this very thing. Render to all what is due them: tax to whom tax is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honor to whom honor. Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law. For this, “You shall not commit Adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal. You shall not covet,” and if there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this saying, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

Romans 13:1-10

If a person claims Christianity as their religion, one of the central tenants is the belief in Scripture as the incorruptible Word of God. If you are one who does not hold to this belief, then ignore this paragraph and maybe even the next. These verses in Romans 13 clearly state the purpose of the authority God establishes. The purpose of governing authorities is to be a minister of God in the world for those who do good and to be a minister of God in the world to punish those who do evil. What sort of instrument would a government implement in order to punish evildoers? Most governments come up with some sort of guidelines that clearly define what is acceptable behavior in a society and what is not. (I say most, but it’s most likely all.) Those same governments then define the consequences that come with not following those guidelines. These governments might call these guidelines “laws.” What would a government use to determine what sort of laws are acceptable? The vast majority would use something referred to as the Laws of Nature.

“This law was called the Law of Nature because people thought that every one knew it by nature and did not need to be taught it. They did not mean, of course, that you might not find an odd individual here and there who did not know it, just as you find a few people who are colour-blind or have no ear for a tune. But taking the race as a whole, they thought that the human idea of decent behavior was obvious to every one. And I believe they were right. If they were not, then all the things we said about the war were nonsense. What was the sense in saying the enemy were in the wrong unless Right is a real thing which the Nazis at bottom knew as well as we did and ought to have practiced? If they had had no notion of what we mean by right, then, though we might still have had to fight them, we could no more have blamed them for that than for the colour of their hair.”

            C.S. Lewis from Mere Christianity

The Laws of Nature inevitably lead to morality. Morality is the determining source for any set of governing laws.

Some proponents of this lie are concerned about some Christians gaining power and imposing their religion and the worship of their God on others who would not normally worship their God. I would be lying if I told you those kinds of Christians don’t exist. They do unfortunately, and they have absolutely no concept of the Biblical limits on government. This same passage (Romans 13) that establishes the Biblical purpose of government, also establishes what laws the government is to be responsible for upholding among its subjects. You will notice that there is no mention of forcing subjects to obey the commandment given specifically to Jesus’ followers to “Love the Lord their God.” There is only the commandment of loving a neighbor as yourself. If I truly love my neighbor, why in the world would I force him or her to worship a God that they had no desire or intention of worshiping? That would be hatred of the worst kind and would most likely send those poor neighbors sprinting towards the gates of hell.

Most proponents of this lie use it to say Christians have no right to impose their moral views or to legislate their morality in one particular matter: abortion. The vast majority of people when asked their personal views on abortion will say that they wouldn’t personally have an abortion, but they would never tell anyone else that they couldn’t. When you ask these same people why they would never personally have an abortion, they essentially tell you, “Well, I think it might be murder, and I would feel bad about it.” If they honestly considered abortion to be murder and they inherently understood that they didn’t personally have the right to murder another human being, why would they be ok if someone else murdered their own baby? Either they don’t really believe abortion is murder or they do not understand or value the rights of other human beings.

When talking about rights, most people will cite the Constitution (or believe they are citing it) and say, “The Federal Government has no right to outlaw abortion. It should be a states’ rights issue so that the people can decide what is best for them.” It should be noted that this exact same debate took place among people in our nation before over the issue of slavery. Christian fanatics were telling people and their government that no person had the inherent right to own another person and force him to slave labor. Those fanatics prevailed, and we were blessed with a President who understood human rights and the liberty that was his job to protect. With the Emancipation Proclamation (an executive order) came the beginning of the end of slavery. Minds and hearts began to change and see the wickedness of what those slaves had endured only after they were set free.

If a person does not have the right to own another, where does it follow that they have the right to murder another? Now Christian fanatics are telling people and their government once again that no person has the inherent right to murder another person, even if that person is still inside the womb. Our rights end when another person’s rights are being infringed upon.

           

“No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”

            Amendment XIV-Section 1

If abortion is truly murder, there is no doubt that this atrocity must be ended. A new Emancipation Proclamation needs to be declared for the unborn. Perhaps then when all the graves are counted will we be able to see the Evil that we allowed to exist, all because of one big lie.

Marriage is Hard

Marriage is hard. Anyone who tells you different is selling something. Sometimes our relationship seems perfect, and all the love I have in my heart for my husband comes gushing out in a torrent of affection and admiration. Other times our relationship is a mess, and I can’t believe I actually married that guy who’s sleeping next to me. My love grows cold, and I become distant. I’m not even conscious of the fact that I’m building up walls between us just so I don’t get hurt again or disappointed. By the time I realize the walls have been built, they are towering above me, seemingly impenetrable. Every time I build that wall, it gets harder and harder to tear down. I can’t even begin to tell you how many times in my 9 years of marriage this has happened.

As a Christian woman, it is a fine line to walk between being respectful of my husband’s reputation and being real about the struggles we face. We are so far from the perfect couple. We have seasons of feeling close and knowing God made us for each other. We also have seasons of feeling like strangers who tolerate each other’s company. I hate being in that season. I know that God wants better for us than that, but our selfishness and stubborn pride often find themselves between us and the better plan God has for us.

We are sinners, both in need of grace, and both in need of forgiveness. When all the garbage that festers below the surface of our relationship begins to boil over, we are in need of an intervention. We are in need of a God who can heal our hurts and fill that place in our hearts that longs for completeness. I won’t find wholeness in my husband. He won’t find wholeness in me.

I wish I could tell you that the first thing I do when our relationship starts falling apart is to pray. I usually don’t. My husband does. Every time, God has answered his prayer. Every time, God has intervened. Every time, we have felt the newness and love that comes with wholeness and a fresh start.

For some reason, I always believe that whatever we have just faced will be our last big challenge. I get it in my head that we will now be happy together from here until eternity. Then when another, different challenge pops up, I get disappointed. Here we go again. Why can’t this be easy? Why can’t things stay good the way they are?

God transforms us from glory to glory in our relationship with Him. I believe He does the same in our marriages. When He is invited to restore what is broken, He shows up. He uses the difficulties to transform us more into His image. That is the goal after all. Marriage can often be the tool He uses to chisel away at our pride. Marriage can be the refining fire that draws out the selfishness and self-consuming thoughts.

I don’t want to ask God why anymore. I want Him to rid me of the garbage that started this mess in the first place. I want Him to tear down the wall that I built until not even the foundation is left standing. I want to look like Him, and I want Him to do whatever it takes.

Making Friends

When I was a kid (and even a teenager), I really looked forward to making new friends and spending time with them. I loved the sleepovers where my new friend and I would share secrets that we would promise not to tell anyone else in the world. I believed in best friends forever and would do almost anything to keep them.

Then I grew up. I learned that people were not to be trusted because they would only end up hurting me. I learned that I hated answering my phone and was even worse about returning phone calls. I learned that friendships took time and energy, and that they were not always worth the time and energy spent. I learned that if people knew I was gullible and nice, they would take advantage of me.

So I stopped making friends.

Then I got lonely. I realized that my husband did not want to hear me rattle on about my day’s tasks or my crochet hobby or parenting styles or homeschooling methods. I realized that I really did need someone else to talk to who understood what I was going through as a mom, a wife, and a woman. In short, I needed a friend.

So I started making an effort. You know the saying “to make a friend you have to be a friend.” I tried and failed several times to “be a friend.” I could not forgive offenses. I could not let things go. I was constantly insecure about my standing in that friend’s life. I thought it was unacceptable for them to see me as anything but perfect the way I was. I thought I could judge their life and tell them what to do, but they were not good enough to tell me what to do.

Ugh. Those words are so ugly. I am repulsed by my own pride. You see, I am not anywhere close to perfect. I have made a ton of mistakes. I have hurt people and been incredibly unkind. My pride does not want anyone to know my secrets. It does not want anyone to find out how I really am because it is not pretty. My pride wants to keep my past under wraps.

“God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” James 4:6

I need His grace. So I am going to have to let that pride go, which can be terrifying at times. The amazing thing about His grace is that it has brought me from death to life. My dirty, rotten past can now be used for His glory because it is a clear picture of His grace at work in my life. I can honestly look at the good things in my life and know that they are not there because of me. I have no reason to boast. Any good fruit in my life is there because God is kind and very patient with me.

Now the friendships I have and will make in the future will exist because of His grace and will last because that same grace can be extended to others.

I like hanging with my friends, talking 'bout my B.F.F. Big. Friends. Forever!

Me, Myself, and I

Hello. My name is Faith, and I am insecure.

I am not very pretty. I am not very skinny. I am not very creative. My clothes are not that nice. My house is not that big. My stuff is not that new. I did not graduate from college. I have no career. I lack talent. I have no purpose. No one likes me. My husband is going to leave me. My kids are going to hate me. My friends are going to dump me. My body is going to fall apart.

This is a small sampling from the thousands of insecure thoughts that run through my head each and every day. While some of these thoughts are based in reality and some are clearly not, there is no doubt that the experts nowadays would clearly diagnose me as having “low self-esteem.” They might try to tell me that I became this way because my parents were disapproving of me or some such notion. They might try to get me to think more positively about myself and recite lovely platitudes that all revolve around a single unifying theme....

“I, I, I, I, Me, My, Me, My.”

“Low self-esteem” is not about having a low opinion of myself. It is about being consumed with myself. It is exalting my opinions of what my life should look like over the knowledge that God made me and placed me where I am. God did not create me to be made into other people’s image, nor did He create them to be made into mine. God created me in His image so that I could become more like Him in love. When Jesus said to pick up my cross daily, He did not intend for me to pick it up so that I could bring glory to myself. He wants me to pick it up to identify myself with Him. The weight of that cross does not afford me the luxury of looking around to compare what others are wearing, saying, or doing along the way. The weight of that cross is so great that all I can do is call out for help in carrying the load. When I do, Jesus steps in beside me. He becomes my strength. My focus is on Him.

Are there things in my life that I could try to improve or do differently? Always. I can start by improving the kinds of thoughts I allow myself to think. I can start by putting my focus where it belongs. Those insecure thoughts can then get swallowed up by the Truth of His love for me.

God created me. He created me with purpose. He gave me a unique set of gifts and talents. He has blessed me with children. He has blessed me with a good husband. He has filled my mouth with laughter. He fills my cup. My cup runs over. His goodness and mercy follow me. He forgives me. He calls me friend. He loves me.

What is Love?

Love is simple. The world tells us that love is complicated. They tell us that love is a feeling. When the feeling moves on, so should you. They tell us a thousand clichés about finding your true love and what to drink when you lose them. Mostly, they tell us that love is all about having expectations and expecting others to meet those expectations whether they are spoken or not. In other words, love is completely conditional.

God is love. God tells us that all of our good works combined are still only good enough to earn us a spot in hell, and yet His grace provides us a way out. He tells us that we have never deserved a single breath we have breathed, and yet He has sent His son to die so that we might breathe freely. He tells us that even if we never even acknowledge His existence, He will still bless us. In other words, His love is completely unconditional.

Jesus is God. He is our example. He lived a life of sacrifice and service to others. He healed the sick and the broken-hearted alike. He spent His time with the imperfect and the lowly. He washed the dirty feet of His disciples when His heart knew they would deny Him. He forgave and restored those He knew were undeserving.

I am not Jesus. How do I live as an emotional creature in this world of conditions with an unconditional love like His? When I feel judged, slighted, or taken advantage of, I have no intention of overlooking the pain that causes. When my kids are misbehaving, the furthest thing from my mind is offering them a chance for more freedom. When my husband sticks his foot in his mouth, the last thing I want to do is bless the man. My initial reactions are those of a selfish, loveless person because these people have not met my expectations.

Enter Grace. Grace is what helps me see that I am just as judgmental, petty, hurtful...as sinful, as the one who did me wrong. Grace is what helps me see their motive and what pain in their life caused them to act or react the way they did. Grace is being able to show compassion and offer forgiveness, whether it is asked for or not. Grace is being able to bless those who will always fall short of my expectations simply because they are valued and loved by God.

Love is unconditional. There are no exceptions.

My Journey To and Through Motherhood- Part 2

The first part of this journey was mostly consumed with my self, my opinions, and my fears. It never occurred to me that perhaps God’s opinions on the subject would be different from my own. He was certainly not surprised by the news that I was going to become a mother. In fact, He knew it well before I did. It was almost as if He had planned this journey for me all along, from the beginning. 

One gloomy day well after Lucy was born, I was crying out to Him for comfort and direction. He said to me, “Faith, you have many gifts and talents, but I am going to bring you into an area that you do not know anything about in order for you to see My grace and My power in your life.” When I heard that, I was excited about all the possibilities for ministry this would bring. I started dreaming big and expecting world-wide ministries to be birthed. I could not wait to see what door God was going to open next. I just hoped that I would be able to recognize it and walk through the door.

For some reason, instead of becoming the next Joyce Meyer overnight, I just continued to have babies. Sure, I held a Bible study at my house here and there and was involved in my church, but red and yellow lights were blinking everywhere I turned. Perhaps it was because God had something bigger and better in mind.

I was no longer going back to school or worried about finishing my degree. I had actually arrived at a place where I enjoyed staying home with those beings I could now call blessings. I no longer resented my husband for getting to go to work and getting to speak with adults all day. The revelation hit me like a ton of bricks. “Every time you did the dishes, I showed you my grace. Every time you cleaned that mess up- again- I showed you my grace. Every time your precious daughter laid hands on you to pray for your healing, I showed you my power. You wanted a world-wide ministry, I gave you three.” Thank God.