Lessons

I have this way of training new people on my team at work that I think works really well. I have them work with more experienced team members for awhile...in this process, they're being helped step by step with someone telling and reminding them of whatever they need to know. Eventually, I will set them off to work on their own. Then, someone more experienced will review their work. Then, the reviewer takes a very specific approach to providing correction. If there (for example) 4 mistakes, the reviewer will tell the new person, "Okay, you have 4 things that need to be corrected. Can you figure out what they are?"

If they take a second pass and find 3 of the 4, I will then ask them to go through each individual element or decision and consider why they've completed it in the way they have - letting them know they're still missing 1. Usually, they find the 4th mistake this way. But if not, I'll tell them which thing is wrong, and then challenge them to come up with the correct thing on their own. Finally, if they're still stuck, I will go ahead and give them the corrected version. And then we do the same thing all over again.

My experience with this approach to training is that, as long as the initial "hand holding" stage is thorough, it usually moves quickly. New employees learn to identify, work through and correct issues on their own, and they become self-sufficient for all intents & purposes.

I've seen this parallel lately in my own life and some of the things the Lord has been teaching me this year. As longer term readers will know, early in 2009, the Lord kicked off a pretty "exciting" journey driving me toward deeper belief. I put exciting in quotation marks, because although the results are exciting and the process was dynamic, much of it has been sort of painful and painstaking. I guess I'm a slow learner in this area!

None the less, as the year has progressed, I am seeing the progress in His curriculum for me. Early in the year, I needed to write about, meditate on and study up on believing Him on a pretty daily basis. I was starting from scratch in so many ways! And as the year has gone on, I've needed refreshers. I have had plenty of my own instances where I have had the Lord say, "You're missing 3 things. Can you figure out where they are?" And, at least in this metaphor, they might be 3 ways in which I was not believing Him and His truth.

So, last night, I had a realization about some big ways in which I have not been believing God. I have been relying on my own best ideas for clarity and direction in many ways. So, I had a good heart to heart with the Father and asked for forgiveness and resolutely turned back in a Godly direction (viz., I repented). And as I was digesting all this inside myself, I was realizing that I, too, am being trained and that some of God's process for tutelage resembles training I've done in more practical areas of my own life.

At first, He was giving me direct and blatant reminders about believing all the time. And as I've learned, and put into practice the things I'm learning, I have needed less and less reminding. Now, naturally, part and parcel with being a student is the fact that, sometimes, I lose my way and don't know what I'm doing. When those times come, I need only go to the Teacher and He sets my path straight. For me, the hard part is sometimes 1) realizing I've gone astray and 2) remembering its as simple as turning to Him. But when I do, He always gets me going. He is a patient, kind and amply capable Instructor. I am so grateful!

The Truth under the Truth

Let's do a quick review of a few things that the Bible has to say about truth:

"LORD, who may dwell in your sanctuary? Who may live on your holy hill? He whose walk is blameless and who does what is righteous, who speaks the truth from his heart..." Psalm 15:1-2

"Truthful lips endure forever, but a lying tongue lasts only a moment.." Proverbs 12:19

"A truthful witness saves lives, but a false witness is deceitful." Proverbs 14:25

"Kings take pleasure in honest lips; they value a man who speaks the truth." Proverbs 16:13

"The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth." Psalm 145:18

So, I know it may be a foregone conclusion at this point, but it does seem pretty clear that the Word is in favor of truth all the way, right?

Well, that may seem a little "duh" at first glance, but let's dig a little deeper; the topic I want to address today isn't just simple truth - as in, "Did you go to the store?" and then saying no, when really you did. That's about lying more than anything. My point is about digging another layer deeper into our surface truths and finding what lies beneath them...and then living that out into the world...and not just because sometimes it's helpful, but because it honors God.

So...what do I mean about something underneath our surface truths? Well, let's make up an example: a husband & wife are discussing their plans for the holidays. They're talking about whether or not to host a Christmas party for their friends and family. The very social wife is all for it, but friction is building because her husband seems reluctant. "Well, I just don't know if I really want to have that much hustle and bustle around the holidays. I'd like it to be quieter." The wife is perplexed; her husband also loves people and she can't understand why having more "quiet" seems appealing. It makes no sense to her.

Well, rather than let this post take 10 years to write out, I'm going to jump ahead a bit... what is really going on for the husband is that he is missing quiet time with his wife. He wants some more time to connect and build their intimate connection. His resistance to hosting a Christmas party isn't about not wanting to host or Christmas parties. It is truthful that he doesn't want to host the party, but his resistance doesn't have a thing to do with Christmas parties, and instead is about what he wants and needs in their relationship.

This is a little off my normal topic style, but I really have been hit between the eyes lately with the realization of just how important the whole truth is. And I can leave out the entire truth without even knowing it...when I hurry and am not thoughtful and mindful about what I say and communicate.

So, I thought I'd check the Bible for some input, and realized all the input I needed was to review the idea of truth. It's a good reminder for me today; I hope it's helpful for you too!

Believe Him for Transformation

As often happens, I got a gentle rebuke the other night when praying about believing God. As I've written about frequently, this is a key topic for me & my relationship with the Lord. In fact, it's hard for me to believe this isn't a key topic for all of us, whether we know it or not, but I will leave that deciding up to you!

I asked God what it was that I wasn't believing Him for lately. And His answer? Transformation.

Ah, what a good God. I forget sometimes, as I am looking at, examining and praying about my human and fallen tendencies that although I am an imperfect being in a fallen world, HE is a perfect God who has drawn us with cords of kindness. Through the sacrifice of Christ, I am not limited by an imperfect world, an imperfect will or anything else. He can make me different. He has already made me different, but that transformation doesn't have to ever stop. I need only to believe and submit to His direction. And I can be continually more and more freed from my natural tendencies and further freed to live into the beautiful creation He designed me to be!

The Grating of the Plane

Do you know what a microplane grater is? If not, it may be helpful to quickly google an image for reference in this metaphor... :)

I've had this image in my head a lot lately, and it may sound sort of morose, but the image has been of a microplane grater rubbing against my skin - just grating away the layers. It may sound a little gory, but I think it's appropriate. If you've ever used one, you know that a microplane grater can definitely get the job done; little can be left of the outer layer of anything you rub it up against. At the same time, it's workmanship makes for removal of little bits at a time; even in its harsh task, it is somehow delicate as well.

I have seen God's had grating away the (metaphoric) flesh in my life in new ways lately, and while I truly am grateful for the refinement, I have to admit that sometimes it hurts! And in addition to some surface wounding, I've found that - in addition - there are some situations in which I also need to grieve a little bit for that which is being scraped away. Or, perhaps it isn't the flesh I'm mourning, but the assumptions of my fleshly self.

The less I attach to the things of my self, and the more I let the Father refine me, the more I realize how foolish it is to attach to my own best plans at all. My own best ways, my own best thoughts, my own best ideas...not a one measures up to His plans, His thoughts, His ways. I will lean not on my own understanding; His way is the path to my greatest good - without fail!

Looking to You

"O our God, will You not judge them? For we are powerless before this great multitude who are coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are on You." 2 Chronicles 20:12-13 (NASB)

I know I am one among many as I hear this sentiment and my feel it resonate in my heart. There are definitely times when I feel powerless before a great multitude who come against me... a multitude of situations, scenarios, limitations, impulses, imperfections... the list could go on and on. I feel, sometimes, like there is a resistance on every side. And, yes, sometimes, I just feel like I have no earthly idea what to do.

But that's the point, isn't it? I have no earthly idea. So I, too, can come to the throne with this beautiful prayer. "I do not know what do to, but my eyes are on You!" Praise God for His righteous leading and His shepherding us! I would be so lost without Him!

On the Approach

I have a book that's been sitting on my nightstand since last Christmas. I have wholeheartedly wanted to read it, and it's on a topic that is of great interest to me. Yet, I haven't; it's just been sitting there. For nearly a year.

I finally started reading it today, and as I fought the urge to put it down half way into the first chapter, I realized why it's taken me so long to start it in the first place: truth.

Proverbs 23:23 reads, "Buy the truth and do not sell it; get wisdom, discipline and understanding." (NIV)

This is clear instruction, and intuitively, I nod along as I read. Of course! How could the truth not be a good thing? Wisdom, good. Discipline, good. Understanding, also good. I would be the first one to tell you that I believe in the pursuit of these things, and that that belief shows up in the activity and actions of my life.

Yet, sometimes, I resist.

I didn't pick up this book because I was a little afraid of what it might have to say. I am still a little afraid, to tell the truth. It's about relationships, Biblical relationships with others in our lives, and I am fairly certain it has some things to teach me. I'm only about 5 chapters in, and I already know there are some ways in which I'm not living out or living into a Biblical standard. Actually, I suppose I knew that before I even started reading. Yet, before beginning, I could claim simple ignorance. How could I be expected to live God's principles if I wasn't 100% clear on what they are? Well, that might sound nice, but isn't honest. Just as the verse above says, we are to get truth, get wisdom and discipline. It doesn't say, "It's a lucky break for people who accidentally happen upon wisdom." It says "get wisdom." Get it. The word used in translation here is clearly active, assertive, alive. This isn't a verse about dumb luck resulting in some wisdom and knowledge of truth; this is a verse about action.

So, I've started my book, and I am going to keep reading. In fact, somewhere inside me, I have a feeling that once I get going, I'm not going to be able to put this book down. There is a craving deep inside me for this knowledge; for knowledge and knowing. Of Him, of His ways. Fearing them, and fearing the learning is foolishness. So, I'm diving in! Wherever you may find yourself treading lightly around His direction, go forth boldly. You are safe in His ways!

More on Battles

I wrote yesterday about remembering that the wars in our lives (which maybe are all just battles of a single war) are not really our battles. Instead, they below to the Lord, and He will fight for us (see also Exodus 14:14). So, just in case you needed any more convincing, please read and absorb this:

'You need not fight in this battle; station yourselves, stand and see the salvation of the LORD on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem ' Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out to face them, for the LORD is with you." 2 Chronicles 20:17

And please, really do let that sink in. Even though I wrote this, I found myself thinking earlier today, "Wow, I need to take in that message! This is God's battle...and He will be victorious." In fact, He is already victorious. We just have to believe Him for it!

Any place there is worry or fear or doubt, turn it over to the Warrior protecting us all. We do not need to fight this battle. He is with us! Hallelujah!

Battle Owner

I'll start here:

"Then in the midst of the assembly the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, the Levite of the sons of Asaph; and he said, "Listen, all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and King Jehoshaphat: thus says the LORD to you, 'Do not fear or be dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours but God's." 2 Chronicles 20:14-15 (NASB), emphasis mine

I added the bold formatting... "Do not fear or be dismayed...for the battle is not

yours but God's."

I cannot say enough how important this principle continues to be in my own life. When I feel like it's me against the world (or me against myself!), it is SO easy to be dismayed and frustrated and, yes, afraid. But when I remember this key principle, I find His peace. We are not alone, nor are we meant to be. He doesn't send us into our battles, our lives or our days alone. Believe Him for it!!

Worship & Praise

Today, we use the phrase "praise and worship" as commonly as "In Jesus Name" and so many other phrases we all-too-casually throw out without the appropriate level of thought, reverence and consideration; it's just part of our "jargon."

Last night, however, a passage referencing both praise & worship caught my attention, and as I dug a little deeper, I found it to be worth sharing:

"Jehoshaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before the LORD, worshiping the LORD. The Levites, from the sons of the Kohathites and of the sons of the Korahites, stood up to praise the LORD God of Israel, with a very loud voice." 2 Chronicles 20:18-19 (NASB)

I noticed that the two words used here for "worshiping" (v. 18) and "praise" (v. 19) are two different words in the Hebrew. The word used for worship distinctly implies one laying prostrate on the ground, face down. As you may notice, there is a reference to some of the men then standing up...to praise. Well, this word translated as "praise" implies absolutely uninhibited shouting, vocal cheering and a large show altogether. This is NOT a shy moment!

What struck me was this question: for all the times I say that it's time for "praise & worship" (in whatever context!), in my life, how often do I either praise or worship in the sense of these words above and their original meaning? And certainly, another worthy question is how often do I do both??

For me, this was a good reminder not to forget the core of what those times are about - not only in act, but in spirit. Hope they serve as reminders and encouragement to you too. Don't forget that "all scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness" (2 Timothy 3:16, NIV)!

Day by Day

When the Israelites wandered in the wilderness, they were provided manna in small, manageable, daily portions. When Paul took his missionary journeys through the various parts of the then-known world, his work was executed one city, one established community at a time. Even God Himself spread creation across a week's worth of days - creating each thing in succession, and then modeling for us all a day to rest.

By nature, I tend to try to do too much too fast sometimes. I decide to undertake a project or an internal change, and I find myself unwittingly surprised when my transformation hasn't been completed 15 minutes later.

I need to remember that life isn't lived that way - and it's no doubt for good reason. I could espouse all the positives of having to build a road, one pave stone at a time...but I will spare you the rhetoric. Instead, I will just say that this is the way God designed us.

I am certainly more successful and less overwhelmed when I let life, even my life, unfold at His pace. I can do today's work today...but tomorrow's portion remains in His hands. I'm sure we are all familiar with the verse, "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Matthew 6:34 (NIV)

In addition to being able to actually function better in the present day, I realize that when I don't hurry myself into tomorrow and tomorrow's tomorrow, I am better able to appreciate and recognize the beauty of the journey. There are many small wanders upon even the simplest of paths. I don't want to miss the way He's marked out for me, and staying on the path doesn't ensure I won't miss some of the scenery. Take it easy. This time of year that is especially hard, but in the long run, the intentionality begets ease and peace. He promises.

Priorities

As we head into a busy time of the year for many, I have found myself in a particularly busy place in life. There is much we are planning and many decisions to be made and priorities to be set. Being who I am, I tend to get into "decision maker" mode a little too easily. I can get into a mindset where I am evaluating things left and right and making big decisions and big plans, all without ever checking in with God.

Talk through some of this stuff with my boyfriend last night, we were talking about the fact that, even with all the variable factors in play, we can stay strong and certain in our decisions if we stick to our top priority: staying submitted to God.

He sees every angle, every factor, every heart and every detail...and He (and He alone) knows what is truly in the best interest of His children - short term and long.

So, if we stay focused on the top priority of being under His will, we can rest absolutely in peace. We still have our parts to play - due diligence, seeking and making decisions in wisdom, but above all else, we have to let Him lead. He won't lead us astray. Guaranteed.

"May the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen." Hebrews 13:20-21 (NIV), emphasis mine

Trust Him with You

I have a friend who is having a hard time right now, and I can SO feel my fleshly desire to jump in and try to "help" the situation. I put help in quotation marks, because although my desire is to help, what's really going on is that I'm trying to control! There isn't a way for me to be helpful in this situation, except for to love my friend and to pray.

While my own discomfort with my friend's discomfort is palpable in the pit of my stomach, what the pit also tells me is that I am not trusting God with my friend. And if I'm going to be perfectly clear about the bottom line, it means that I'm simply not trusting God.

As hard as it is for me to live into, it's just plain truth that your life is mine to manage. There are a hundred ways in which my own life is not even mine to "manage!" So, what am I thinking when I let myself get bogged down in someone else's feelings? I'm thinking God won't take care of it. I'm thinking God won't take care of that person. In fact, unconsciously, I might be able to say I seem to be thinking that God doesn't care.

Remember, God LOVES us, and that's with a Biblical, active love. It's not a far-away-watching-from-the-clouds love. He is up in our business whether we like it or not - as long as we let Him be Lord of our lives. And when God gets involved, things get good. Sometimes they get uncomfortable, but tell me for half a second that you think Jesus' life was comfortable. In fact, think of anyone you admire, and tell me you think for a nano-second that their life was comfortable. Comfort is the enemy sometimes; I'm certain of it.

So, I have to let go of my own reservations about my friend's discomfort. I can love my friend through a hard time, but I shouldn't try to take it away. With God in charge (and in this situation, He is firmly in the driver's seat!), it can't go wrong! And maybe this discomfort will be the doorway to the best that is yet to come. I need to trust. One day at a time, I must! And I have to let Him help me - even with the trusting; I haven't found another way!

Appearances

This weekend, I had a conversation with a good friend that got me thinking. Our sermon that night had been about the importance of relationships, and we were discussing the relevance of this topic around the holidays. This is a time of year during which so many feel especially struck with loneliness and sadness over the state of their own relationships...especially relationships with family.

I was reminded of times in my past, and of scenes from movies and the shared memories of friends - all scenes of happy loving relationships between friends, lovers and families. For many, these scenes can bring on waves of sadness. I would be lying if I were to say I've never looked at a scene out of someone else's life and thought, "Gosh, why not me?"

But, what I was reminded of during my conversation with my friend was that any family can look happy in church for an hour or so, any couple can put on a happy face in the middle of a dinner party and even friends sometimes have times where they "fake it." It's not pretty; it's not even good, but it's real.

So, what's my point?

The Bible talks about not coveting the things of others... that's sort of Sunday School 101, but I think it applies just as much - if not more so - for adults, and adult things...like relationships. God knows what He's doing. With each and every one of us; He knows, and He has a plan. And His plan is GOOD. Good like only He can do. Don't long for someone else's journey; each one has pain and hardship. And the journey you are on is being guided at every step of the way by the Maker who loves you more than you can know.