Act Accordingly

Romans 14:22-23

“You’re fortunate if your behavior and your belief are coherent. ... If the way you live isn’t consistent with what you believe, then it’s wrong.”  (Rom. 14:22b, 23b; MSG)

Not too long ago a friend of mine and I were having a discussion about God.  This friend is not a member of a church and does not ascribe to any particular set of beliefs.  Out of our conversation, the thing about which she felt strongest was seeing people all around who profess a faith, spout scripture on their Facebook walls and proudly claim belonging to a church, yet their lives are inconsistent with their declarations. 

I knew this was in no way directed at me, but it gave me pause.  Do I live what I believe?

I am human, I am fallible, there will be inconsistencies where my beliefs and actions don’t line up at times.  Those are times to be thankful that God doesn’t expect perfection.  Still, this does not take away from the fact that I should strive with all my effort to live up to my own beliefs, to live my faith.  The NIV poignantly puts it this way: “Blessed is the man who does not condemn himself by what he approves.” (Rom. 15:22b; NIV)  I read this with the meaning that what he approves is what he believes, therefore would condemn himself by not living by his beliefs.

I laid in bed this morning thinking about that conversation and asked myself, “If I never said a word about God, if I never shared the Good News, if I couldn’t speak, would it be evident that I’m living a life of Love? 

A lot of us know the phrase, “Actions speak louder than words.”  I love words.  I’m a wordy girl.  God definitely gave me the gift of language.  But language isn’t enough.  Because a few good words won’t feed the orphans, and a well-spoken sermon won’t keep the widows warm.  (See James 1:27)

“So, chosen by God for this new life of love, dress in the wardrobe God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline.  Be even-tempered, content with second place, quick to forgive an offense.  Forgive as quickly and completely as the Master forgave you.  And regardless of what else you put on, wear love.  It’s your basic, all-purpose garment.  Never be without it.”  (Coloss. 3:12-14; MSG)

May my actions speak louder than my words, may I do the work that God has given me to do, and may I always remember to check what I do against what I believe.

Amen!  :D

Breathe, Believe, Pray

James 5:13-20

“Are you hurting?  Pray.  Do you feel great?  Sing.  Are you sick?  Call the church leaders together to pray...” James 5:13 (MSG)

Very simple instructions, yet hard to remember and follow without having complete faith in God.  Incredibly difficult to follow or even know without knowing God at all.

Other than a simple prayer of, “God, help me,” praying wasn’t the first thing to which I ran when I was hurting.  My tendency was to stay stuck in self-pity, focusing on all the reasons things would never get better and not believing God would help me because I wasn’t worth it.

I’ve never had trouble singing when I feel great, but I struggled with reaching out for healing prayer.  In the last few months before going into treatment, I did go for prayer after communion the few times I made it to church.  But that was the extent of my reaching out to the church.

I’ve been prone to believing in the power of prayer – when others pray or when I pray for others.  I didn’t think there was much power in praying for myself.  Of course, how could there be if I didn’t really believe?

Yet!  “Believing-prayer will heal you, and Jesus will put you on your feet.  And if you’ve sinned, you’ll be forgiven – healed inside and out.”  James 5:15 (MSG)

The power of belief extends to the power of prayer.

In today’s society of consumerism, importance of appearance, popularity contests, political strife, etc, it is difficult to turn my eyes away from the world and focus solely on God.  I know to do so keeps my heart at peace and my worries decrease.  But, though I know he’s there, I can’t see him.  What I can see are my troubles, my bills, my state of unemployment in a bad economy...  Though I can hear him, the voice of the world is louder through friends and family, the news, etc.  I have to stop, listen and pay attention to hear him.  All the other voices are ready and available without any effort on my part at all.

In order to get to the place where I can turn away from the world and latch onto believing prayer, I must exercise.  I must hit the spiritual gym at least twice a day, morning and night.  And I must do little exercises throughout the day, always reminding myself, “Breathe.  Give it to God.”

So as I head to the unemployment office in a little bit to find out why my claim isn’t going through, I will not be anxious, worried or upset.  I will breathe, and I will give it to God.

Amen! :D 

Somewhere Between Planting and Harvest

James 5:7-8, 10-11

“You see farmers do this all the time, waiting for their valuable crops to mature, patiently letting the rain do its slow but sure work.  Be patient like that.  Stay steady and strong.” James 5:7b-8a (MSG)

I grew up with farms as neighbors, in a state covered with farmland, with farmers in my family, and kids in farming families at school.  I watched fields rotate corn, soybeans, cattle, and seasons where nothing was planted.  Farmers must know their land and how to work it in order to provide for their families and for the rest of us who go to the grocery store hoping for food to put in our stomachs. 

Farmers are dependent on the weather, which requires much patience.  My dad, who lives on a farm, updates me on how things are going both at planting and harvest time.  This year it rained so much through the spring that the farmers couldn’t get the crops out until much later than usual.  Then the weather became too dry, then too wet again...  It has been a rough farming season in the Midwest. 

But, like the old prophets, the farmers keep going.  “They put up with anything, went through everything, and never once quit...”  They have to – their lives depend on it.  And if they don’t keep going, we don’t keep eating.

James references Job’s trials and how God brought it all together for him at the end.  So, too, it is, when I work not for myself, but for God, striving to do his will and sticking it out with him through every trial, every test, every bad day, every good day, and so on. 

Even now, as I have gotten more distracted and side-tracked, too new to this whole completely trusting in God and not worrying thing not to take on human concerns, God is pulling it together for me.  Today it was as if he said to me, “Look, you know I’m in control.  Just let go and do what I am telling you to do.  Stop trying to pull it together yourself, even if you’re only trying a little.  I’ve got this.  Just do what I tell you.” 

So I am going to try much, much harder and pray all the more on my surrendering power and my ability to let go and let God and do what he tells me, “Because God cares, cares right down to the last detail.” James 5:11b (MSG) 

He’s got this.  I’ve just got to find my inner farmer and wait for God to make this crop mature, patiently letting his rain do its slow but sure work in me.  Steady and strong.

Amen!  :D

There May Be No Tomorrow

James 4:13-17

What is your life?

Don't Bruise the Word

James 4:1-12, 5:9

This goes hand in hand with gossip, but there’s a key component James includes in this instruction: “It’s God’s Word, his Message, his Royal Rule, that takes a beating in that kind of talk.  You’re supposed to be honoring the Message, not writing graffiti all over it,” James 4:11b (MSG)

As a Christian, I set an example by the way I live – the way I speak, the way I act, etc.  If I proclaim to try to love like Christ, then talk badly about someone, it only reinforces the hypocrisy which riddles Christianity and religion as it is.  Not to mention, as James says in 5:9, surely far worse things could be said about me.

Why do I complain or speak poorly about others?  Usually because they irritate me.  Sometimes it may simply be that my personality and theirs are not compatible.  Most of the time, if I really examine why someone irritates me or why I feel the need to share that irritation with others, I find that it comes back to me thinking I know how she should live her life. 

God has a plan for everyone, and I need to remember that.  Others may not think I’m doing what I should be doing, but I know that God is working in me.  I must extend that understanding to others when I am tempted to pass judgment. 

This is no easy task, especially when I see a loved one in conflict and I think I know what she could do to ease her struggling.  It is not my job to come up with her answers.  I may offer advice based on my own experience, but after that, I give it to God.  In no way should I think I’m right or that I know best.  How she comes through something may be completely different than how I would.

So yet again I will work to be careful in my speech, particularly when it comes to commentary on others’ lives.  If it isn’t helpful – and it usually isn’t – I don’t need to say it.  I will pray and lift up those in the midst of troubles instead of telling them and everyone else what they’re doing wrong and how I know how to fix it.

Amen!  :D 

One Slice of Humble Pie, Please

James 4:1-10

James has a knack for revealing flaws in the human condition.  His frustration with the new Christians is obvious.  And I Imagine he would be just as frustrated with today’s Christians. 

In this piece of scripture, James is scolding us for fighting with each other to get our own way or to get what others have that we want.  He points out that we don’t even bother asking God for whatever it is we’re after because we know it’s for the wrong reasons.

I know when I’m not doing the right thing.  That still, small voice is right there at the back of my mind telling me to stop, turn, and bring him back to the front of my mind.  He’ll knock me down to my knees, but if I humble myself before him and ask for forgiveness, he’ll lift me right back up – higher than before.

Being in recovery and familiar with the 12-step system used by many different types of groups, I know this is often stressed as the second most important component of the program.  The first is surrendering oneself, the second is humbling oneself.  I’ve heard many a voice in those groups say, “I had to get down on my knees and get humble before God.”

Pride, ego and desire leave no room for God, but open the door to the enemy.  There is no happiness in this kind of life, no fulfillment.  If I am always fighting, always trying to get my way, or always wanting what I don’t or can’t have, I will not enjoy my life. 

God wants me to enjoy life!  But I must surrender to his will for my life before I can enjoy it.

“So let God work his will in you.  Yell a loud no to the devil and watch him scamper.  Say a quiet yes to God and he’ll be there in no time.  Quit dabbling in sin.  Purify your inner life.  Quit playing the field.  Hit bottom, cry your eyes out.  Get serious, really serious. Get down on your knees before the Master; it’s the only way you’ll get on your feet.” James 4:7-10 (MSG)

Amen!  :D

C'mon People Now

James 3:13-18

“Live well, live wisely, live humbly.  It’s the way you live, not the way you talk, that counts.  Real wisdom, God’s wisdom, begins with a holy life and is characterized by getting along with others.  It is gentle and reasonable, overflowing with mercy and blessings, not hot one day and cold the next, not two-faced.  You can develop a healthy, robust community that lives right with God and enjoy its results only if you do the hard work of getting along with each other, treating each other with dignity and honor.” James 3:13,17-18 (MSG)

James admits that getting along with each other is hard work.  As I like to say, the world is full of magical people.  This is how I refer to special members of the human race – whether they are odd, unpleasant, of large and intrusive character...  It doesn’t matter what their human affliction (I know I have mine, too), simply referring to them as “magical people” immediately softens my heart a little toward them.  I still may not want to be around them, but it makes it a little easier to “get along” with them.

It really is such a simple concept to get along with each other!  The Youngbloods even wrote a song about it, Get Together:

“C'mon people now,
Smile on your brother
Ev'rybody get together
Try and love one another right now”

I remember growing up, my mom and I would get into an argument, neither one of us budging on our side.  Finally, she’d say, “Let’s just agree to disagree.”  Imagine foreign dignitaries ending a debate that way, then changing the conversation to how they can work together instead of hold grudges, fight wars, or secretly plan and plot to undermine one another.

And what is the best way I can work toward getting along with the rest of the human race, to be “gentle and reasonable, overflow with mercy and blessings, treat others with dignity and honor?”  Jesus, of course, has the answer:

“This is my command: Love one another the way I loved you.  This is the very best way to love.  Remember the root command: Love one another.” John 15:12, 17 (MSG, emphasis mine)  “This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples – when they see the love you have for each other.” John 13:35 (MSG)

Several times in church as a child and as an adult I’ve sung the song, They will know we are Christians by Our Love.  If I profess to be a Christian and do not love – do not walk in love, do not show love, do not spread love – then I am a very poor example of living a life in Christ.  If I gave love to everyone I met, how much easier might it be to get along? 

The Good News is that we have a new life in Christ, that he came for our salvation, he came in the name of love, loving every one regardless of social status, affliction, sin.  And God sent him in love to teach us how to live, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son.” John 3:16 (NIV)

So my prayer will continue to be that God help me to walk every day in love, to get along with all others I meet along the way, and to show others how much nicer life can be by making these choices. 

Amen!  :D

You Are Beautiful and Amazing

James 3:1-12; 5:12

“A word out of your mouth may seem of no account, but it can accomplish nearly anything – or destroy it!  By our speech we can ruin the world, turn harmony to chaos, throw mud on a reputation, send the whole world up in smoke and go up in smoke with it.” James 3:5,6 (MSG)

Over and over in new age, self-help and Christian books I’ve read about the power of thought and word.  What I say can have profound impact on myself and others. 

In The Four Agreements, the first agreement is: “Be impeccable with your word.” Don Miguel Ruiz writes that, “Mostly we use the word to spread our personal poison – to express anger, jealousy, envy and hate.” (p. 33)  My words are poison when I use them negatively.  Gossip spreads poison.  If I speak unfavorably about someone, it can change others’ views of that person and it can make that person feel badly if she takes it to heart. 

Growing up, I heard over and over again at school and at home that I didn’t do things right.  Whether it was because I didn’t do them the way someone else thought I should or because I kept getting into trouble, I did things “wrong.”  I came to expect I would be a constant disappointment.  As a result, the idea took root and I struggled with it into adulthood.  I always have been much harder on myself than I need to be.  And if based on what I’d learned from experience I thought I didn’t do something “right,” I felt like a failure. 

This was a heavy and unnecessary burden for me to carry.  That root thought tainted every aspect of my life.  Fear of failure, Fear of what others would think about me if I screwed up, fear of consequences for doing even the smallest thing wrong.

All unnecessary.

I try to think carefully about what I say now.  When others gossip or talk negatively about someone, I try not to engage and/or I try to change the topic.  I’m not perfect – I don’t succeed at this 100% of the time, but I try.  I try to tell people good things I see about them, to encourage and spread positive energy.

If I, as a Christian, aim to walk like Christ, then my mission is to bring people up, not tear them down.  Consider Mary and Martha in Luke 10:38-42.  Martha, frustrated with doing work in the kitchen by herself, comes out and tells Jesus to scold Mary and send her to help.  Martha felt that Mary was doing the wrong thing because she was out with the men instead of in the kitchen.  Jesus, rather than scold Mary, pointed out to Martha that Mary was not in the wrong because she wanted to learn from him.  Martha could have torn Mary down, made her feel inferior, perhaps even given punishment for not doing what Martha thought was the right thing.  Jesus, on the other hand, gave it a different perspective, lifting Mary up and restoring her sense that what she did was okay. 

I have to be conscious of what I say and how I use my words.  My words can ruin the world or make it a better place.  It’s up to me to choose the words which make this a better life to live.

Amen!  :D 

Just Do It

James 2:14-26

“Faith without works is dead.” James 2:26 (NAB)  This is another one of those bits of scripture that I’ve heard over and over.

“Dear friends, do you think you’ll get anywhere in this if you learn all the right words but never do anything?  Isn’t it obvious that God-talk without God-acts is outrageous nonsense?” James 2:14, 17 (MSG)

As I am going through this period of great spiritual growth, I have to look around and ask myself, “Where are my works?”  God has been calling me to go volunteer somewhere while I have this time without a job, but I have yet to do it.  Though it’s on my list, I tend to forget until I look at my list later in the day when it is too late to call.  Today, however, I will make a call to schedule myself for volunteering somewhere early next week. 

I can’t very well be writing and conversing about all this amazing stuff God is sharing with me, yet spend the majority of my time hanging out in my apartment with myself.  I’m not doing anything.  And I am not solidifying my faith by adding works.  Imagine how much stronger and more on fire I would be if I were out doing something good with a purpose!

In James 2:25, he refers to, “That seamless unity of believing and doing.” (MSG)  It is a unity, and my relationship with God can only be made more fulfilling by completing that unity and getting myself into doing along with my believing.

“For just as a body without a spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.”  James 2:26 (NAB)

I’m gonna get out there and DO.

Amen!  :D

Working with Habitat for Humanity

Here, Take My Seat

James 1:26 – 2:13; 5:4-6

I am fortunate never to have been homeless or dressed in rags.  Yet I have been subject to different treatment based on my outward appearance.  Whether it was as a teenager with my particular style of dress, or now as an adult just dealing with other adults and their assumptions, it never feels good to be treated differently. 

“Do to others as you would have them do to you.” Luke 6:31 (NIV)  It’s the golden rule.  Even in my public kindergarten class I remember learning it.  “For if you refuse to act kindly, you can hardly expect to be treated kindly.” James 2:13 (MSG)

The town in which I was raised was very much all about appearance and social status.  As far as I knew, the people in my town were mostly upper-middle-class or higher.  And I remember kids at school who weren’t would do anything to make it seem as though they were to avoid the persecution of other students.

What so warped my childhood perception of Christianity was the behavior of the kids at my Catholic elementary school and the members of our church parish.  These were people who would make the homeless person sit at the back, if they let him in at all.  And my peers were mercilessly mean to me and anyone else who didn’t quite fit in. 

I believe that, in conjunction with the heart that God gave me, is the reason why I have compassion for others, and why I always try to be kind, even if I am uncomfortable or I really don’t feel like it. 

So I’m going to keep trying.  To keep making people feel like they are on an even-playing field, that they are no different than the rest of us in spite of what outward appearance may suggest.  After all, we are all made in the image and likeness of God.

And, “He chose the world’s down-and-out as the kingdom’s first citizens, with full rights and privileges.  This kingdom is promised to anyone who loves God.” James 2:5 (MSG)

Amen!  :D

The Real Miracle-Gro

James 1:19-25

“In simple humility, let our gardener, God, landscape you with the Word, making a salvation-garden of your life.” James 1:21b (MSG)

I love the imagery in this verse.  All the ways to describe God: Shepherd, Father, Creator, Comforter...  Gardener.  I can see God, knees in the soil, no gloves because he likes to get his hands dirty, gently tending his garden.  He carefully plants seeds, pulls weeds, waters and provides sunlight to his plants.  In the parable of the scattered seed (Mark 4:1-20), Jesus compares believers to planted seeds.  He related the strength of the believer’s dedication and faith to the type of soil in which the seed landed.  The good soil represents the Word of God, and the seeds that land in the good soil and take root will thrive. 

If I take root in God’s Word and let him mold me through what I read in the Good Book, I will have communion with God and my life will have joy.  But I have to be sure I am not merely reading and reflecting on what I read.  If I do not put what I learn into action, I’m not doing God’s will, and I will not have his joy.   

“Those who hear and don’t act are like those who glance in the mirror, walk away, and [immediately forget] who they are, what they look like.” James 1:23-24 (MSG) 

My memory is less than stellar these days.  I need to write everything down.  If I have a meeting, an appointment, lunch with a friend, or anything outside my ‘normal’ routine, I must write it down and stick it on my bathroom mirror or I will forget.  I put some things into the calendar on my phone to alert me if it happens later in the day and I haven’t been by my mirror in awhile.  I also do not retain information well unless I have studied and studied a certain subject or read a book several times. 

So it delights me to no end to find I am remembering more and more verses from the bible – even if I don’t know the book, chapter and verse numbers that go with them.  Between time spent with God’s Word, making notes of particular verses and writing these devotions, the Good Stuff is starting to stick.

I’m getting good instruction and I’m allowing God to landscape me with his Word.  I’m taking root in the good soil and taking it with me when I step away from the Good Book.  The next step is ensuring that I am acting on what I am learning. 

Amen!  :D

I remember my dad making me work in the garden, too.  :)

This Is Why He’s My Rock!

James 1:16-18

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” James 1:17 (NIV)

This is what I want to think about.  I like the good stuff that comes from God.  But I do understand that I have to have the bad stuff to know the good stuff. 

This verse is stuck in the middle of a couple of topics in James.  I know it’s related to the previous chunk about temptation, but I wanted to set it apart for a crucial element in this sentence: 

“...who does not change like the shifting shadows.” 

I am a small, miniscule, tiny, tiny little human being who deals with other tiny little human beings here on earth.  There is absolutely no way I can even begin to comprehend the magnitude of God.  He created our entire universe, and possibly other universes beyond that.  He gave light to the sun, set the stars in the sky, and placed us on this earth, giving us everything we need.

But I only have my tiny little human understanding.  I do believe that God is bigger than everything, that he can do anything, and that he infinitely loves and forgives me.   Yet my human brain wants to relate him to something in order to make him more tangible.  The problem here is that the only thing I have to which to relate him is other tiny little humans. 

Tiny little humans who change with the wind.  Tiny little humans who lie, cheat, steal.  Who abandon, abuse, betray, deceive.  Who, without fail, never fail to let me down.

This is why it can be so hard sometimes simply to trust God.  It is not an easy task by any stretch of the imagination.  I’ve got all my human-inflicted wounds, my people trust issues, my expectations to be let down.  All of this wants to carry over to God and it is a daily task to work beyond that.  I must remind myself that my heavenly Father is not my earthly father.  My Friend among the stars is not like unreliable friends I’ve had here on earth.  My Eternal Love is not at all like the romances I’ve experienced on this planet.

I pray that this is something I never forget, and that it is a task which will become less and less work over time.  Because I know God.  I just have to stop trying to assign human characteristics to God in an attempt to understand him. 

Amen!  :D

Put the Corndogs Down!

James 1:12-15

Temptation.  Yet another theme that shows up all over the bible.  Being human, temptation is a daily struggle.  Even if it’s little things, temptation shows up everywhere, sometimes in the least likely of places.  It’s a tricky component of human nature. 

Tempt: to entice or allure to do something often regarded as unwise, wrong, or immoral (dictionary.com – italics mine).  In other words, to persuade one to do something that goes against the will of God.

I am very familiar with temptation – especially where it connects to my lack of impulse control.  There was one particular grocery shopping trip where a box of fifty mini corndogs jumped in and out of my cart at least four times.  I lost the battle and it came home with me (and I am primarily a vegetarian).  This may be a small, silly example which doesn’t adversely affect my life in any big way, but I still gave into temptation.  

For any of us who are addicts of any sort, temptation plays a huge role in how we live our lives.  Due to the nature of our physiological and psychological addiction, when we get that urge to use, to drink, to gamble, etc, it can be next to impossible to resist.  Somehow the car ends up in the dealer’s driveway.  “Well, I’m already here.  I might as well go in.”  Walking by a bar, “Oh, one drink won’t hurt.  At the most I’ll have two and then I’ll leave.”  I think plenty of folks other than myself know where both of those situations will lead.

What I find interesting about this passage is that James is clear that it is not God who tempts us.  “God is never tempted to do wrong, and he never tempts anyone else.  Temptation comes from our own desires which entice us and drag us away.” James 1:13b, 14 (NLT)

What about Job?  God allows Satan to wreak havoc upon Job’s life to tempt him to curse God, but God himself in no way tempts Job.   What about Jesus in the desert with the devil?  In Matthew 4:1, Mark 1:12 and Luke 4:1, the Holy Spirit leads Jesus into the desert.  Yet the devil, not the Holy Spirit is the source of the temptation.  God doesn’t do the tempting, the enemy does.  James says temptation to give in comes from us. 

While another entity may be the source of that which tempts me, what causes me to succumb to temptation is within my human nature.  I give in whether it is due to my brain chemistry, my seeking of approval or attention, my desire to do something other than what I am doing...  The list goes on. 

The good thing in all of this is that I am reassured that God will never allow my desires and temptations to be more than I can handle.  “God is faithful.  He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand.  When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so you can endure.” 1 Cor 10:13 (NLT)  He will always provide a way out, I just have to pay attention.  And the best way I can keep myself equipped to see the way out is to have my nose in the Good Book and recognize things which are in accordance with God’s will instead of my own. 

Amen!  :D

p.s. While looking over various topics of temptation, an image of Peter from Family Guy showed up in the search results.  Of course I had to look.  Rev Peep: Resisting Temptation

I Already Planned to Sell My Couch, Now I Need to Have a Yard Sale!

James 1:9-11, 5:1-3

“Prosperity is as short-lived as a wildflower, so don’t ever count on it.”  James 1:10b (MSG) 

Growing up in the countryside of the Midwestern US, there always was an abundance of wildflowers growing in the fields and pastures.  While James refers to the wildflower withering in the sun, I think of winters, cold snaps, early and late freezes as ways I saw wildflowers die.  They came and went with the changing of the seasons and their lives were at the mercy of the weather.

A common misconception about verses like these is that the bible tells us money is bad.  But what it actually says is that the love of money is not good.  “For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.”  1 Timothy 6:10 (NIV)  It is not riches or wealth themselves that are bad.  But how important they are to me can make way for harsh judgment.

In the story of the young rich man (Matt 19:16-23; Mark 10:17-23), Jesus tells the man, “Go sell all your possessions... Then come follow me.”  Matt 19:21 (MSG)  It wasn’t that he couldn’t get to heaven while rich, but that his possessions were too important to him.   He was unable to let go of earthly things and follow Jesus because his stuff was more valuable to him than Jesus.   God doesn’t mind if I have money or possessions, he just doesn’t want my focus to be on things of this world.  If I am focused on making money or acquiring stuff, then my focus is not on God.

Then consider the ever-changing economy, stock market fluctuation, massive amounts of individual and national debt, depressions, recessions...  In the blink of an eye I can require major surgery that costs many thousands of dollars.  I can lose everything I own in a fire or flood.  Even if I had money, I couldn’t count on it always being there.

The only thing that is sure and constant in my life is God.  I can’t count on worldly prosperity, but I can count on God.  Keeping my focus on him and living according to his will I will be more fulfilled and spiritually prosperous than if I am trying to figure out how to get more money, get more stuff, get more, get more, get more.

So I will enjoy the wildflowers while they are here, but not mourn them when they are gone.  Because I know that while they come and go with the changing of the seasons, God who gives them life will always be by my side.  And I can count on that.

Amen!  :D

Thanks, But I Wanted a Pony

James 1:1-4

The book of James is a great book in the bible.  God called me to read it again last night and I've decided to meditate on James over the next few days.  The more time I spend with the Good Book, the more the Good Stuff sticks.  I like it when it sticks, so I'm going to take this particular Good Stuff bit by bit.  For better digestion, take smaller bites.  :)

James, acting as a leader, is writing to Jesus' followers who have moved away from Jerusalem and are in different parts of the early world.  Unlike Paul, he isn't simply writing to one group of people, rather addressing Christ's followers as a whole.  

In reading the bible, just about any chunk of it seems to contain a lesson on going through trials.  James is no different.  He starts out strong, "Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides." James 1:2 (MSG)  A gift?  Really?  NLT says, "...consider it an opportunity for great joy."  Not just joy, but great joy.  

"Because you know the testing of your faith develops perseverance." James 1:3 (NIV)  Now James sounds like Paul, "...we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance..." Rom 5:3 (NIV)  When I had my business I was known practically to snarl the words, "Perseverance is the key!!!" near the end of a grueling day or during a particularly difficult project.  I obviously didn't believe it, as I was overworked, overwhelmed, and spiritually undernourished. 

While going through any difficult time, I knew I had to stick it out, but I could not make myself be happy about persevering.  My spiritual hat was pulled down way too low for me to see the light at the end of the tunnel.  My hard work always paid off - job well done, happy clients...  But I hated constantly being stressed and under pressure.  Job-wise or otherwise, I never wanted to stay in my trials. 

But, "Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." James 1:4 (NIV) 

If all I am focused on is making it through a tough time, I am missing the point.  I'm stumbling through an obstacle course, twisting ankles and getting bruises because my eyes are on the finish line, not the obstacles, and most importantly, not on God.  Maturity develops as I patiently examine each obstacle, look to God for help, then step out in faith, trusting that he'll catch me if I fall.

Now, I am glad to have "an opportunity for great joy" these days.  I am focused on my obstacle: I got laid off.  I need to find a job.  The economy isn't the best right now and there aren't many jobs out there.  But I am also focused on God: "I can do everything through him who gives me strength." Philippians 4:13 (NIV)  God will provide.  So I am thankful, and it is a gift because it allows me to lean on God, to strengthen my faith and to grow spiritually in a way that I could not if I never were tested. 

When Paul writes of one of his trials, he says, "Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me.  But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in [your] weakness." 2 Cor 12:8-9 (NIV)

Amen!  :D