Tyrannies and Victories

There are many things people want to be liberated from, many kinds of tyranny from which we would like to escape, but one of the inescapable ones is the tyranny of change.  ( I didn't make up that idea.  I got it from Paul, reading the Phillips translation of Romans 8:20-21.)

Most of us are ambivalent about change.  We say, "Let's do this for a change, " or "I've simply got to have a change," and in the next breath we moan, "Oh dear, how things have changed!  They're just not the same anymore."  Lots of people do things purely for the sake of doing something different.  And of the ironies (tyrannies are full of ironies) is that things don't necessarily turn out to be all that fresh and original after all.

The ocean can teach us very many things.  Change is its essence.  It can be counted on ceaselessly to change, and this is the source of its beauty.  The waves roll in, and this is the cource of its beauty.  the waves roll in, sweep the shore, suck out and roll in again.  It does this in almost hte same way each time, but there is something endlessly fascinating in watching how it happens.  The swell and the crest, the break and the crash, the glass-green turning to milk-white, the cream, the foam, the bubbles, the think sheet that slides back so smoothly and disappears so suddenly -- who can take his eyes off it?  But each chane is in perfect harmony with the nature of the ocean.

We need not be always seeking something different, something other, out of mere restlessness.  There are enough changes we cannot stop, which are of the essence of this life and are meant to be.  They are meant to drive us to God.

The world of creation, said Paul, has, in God's purpose, been given hope. "And the hope is that in the end the whole of created life will be rescued from the tyranny of change and decay, and have its share in that magnificent liberty which can only belong to the children of God."

Twelve Baskets of Crumbs, by Elisabeth Elliot

Spiritual Pruning

Vines must be pruned.  T life of the vine is strengthened in one part by another part's being cut away.  It is necessary business, for only the well pruned vine bears the best fruit.  Pruning increases yield.

So also in the spiritual life.  We may pray a prayer such as Lancelot Andrewes prayed int he seventeenth century.  "O direct my life towards Thy commandments, hallow my soul, purity my body, correct my thoughts, cleanse my desires, soul and body, mind and spirit, heart and reins.  Renew me thoroughly, O Lord, for if Thou wilt Thou canst" (Lancelot Andrewes and His Private Devotions).


A Path Through Suffering by Elisabeth Elliot
I highly recommend this book!  Get it today and finish this wonderful study!

Developing a Passion for God's Word - Part 1

But those who wait on the Lord

shall renew their strength;

they shall mount up with wings like eagles,

they shall run and not be weary,

they shall walk and not faint.

--Isaiah 40:31

As a busy woman, your natural tendency at the sound of the alarm each morning is probably to hit the floor running (like me!).  The blare coming from your clock reminds you (once again!) that you are faced with a life full of responsibilities.

And if we look a little deeper into our hearts, we also find thoughts like these -- "I'll never get it all done...especially  if I take time out of my hectic schedule to read my Bible and pray!"

But, dear one, the exact opposite is true for you and me as God's busy women, for it was our Lord Himself who said, "Without Me you can do nothing" (John 15:5).

Like an Eagle
By contrast, the Bible teaches us that with Him we can "mount up with wings like eagles" (Isaiah 40:31).  Can you imagine...soaring through you pressured days like an eagle?!  Watching eagles first-hand can give you an understanding of Isaiah's imagery of strength  and endurance.

For instance, an eagle...
...has a wingspan of up to seven feet (how majestic!)
...flies higher than almost any other bird, up to 10, 000 feet (how awesome!)
...glides easily at up to 2400 feet altitude (oh, for the ability to rise above life's demands and difficulties!)
...moves up to 150 miles an hour (and oh, for the ability to speed through our daily work!) and
...can carry objects equal to its body weight (no task is too daunting!).

With such grandeur available to our imagination it's clear that even with our multitude of responsibilites, we must be women who wait on the Lord.  In spite of the busy-ness of life, you and I must learn to look to Him each new morning.  We must realize that life management is really spiritual life management.  So we must pay attention to a handful of daily disciplines that are sure to ignite in us a passion for the Lord and equip us for living out His plan each day...and for life!

Three Small Steps
Here's a little three-step method that helps us tend to first things first...no matter how busy we are.

1.  Time is first on the list.  Our time is always well spent when we spend it looking to the Lord through His Word.  You and I must acknowledge this truth and accept it for life.  We must embrace the challenge to cultivate the discipline of daily time in the Bible into our daily routine.  What time?

2.  First time.  Aim at giving the first minutes of each day to the reading of God's Word.  Proverbs 3:9 instructs you and me to "Honor the Lord with your possessions, and with the first fruits of all your increase."  Then comes the promise-- "so your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will overflow with new wine" (verse 10).  This proverb is speaking of the blessings that follow the offering of a tithe to God of the first crops from the harvest.

But the same results occur in the spiritual realm.  We are blessed in our spirit and in our practical life when we make it a point to give God the first portion of time from the harvest of each fresh new day, of each new measure of 1440 minutes.

3.  Early time.  David wrote these expressive words from the core of his heart -- "O God, You are my God; early will I seek You; my soul thirsts for You" (Psalm 63:1).  Many of the great heroes of the faith sincerely sought communion with God early and earnestly in their day.  For instance,

--Abraham rose up early in the morning and went to the place where he met with the Lord (Genesis 19:27).

--David wrote of morning worship with these utterances:  "My voice You shall hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning I will direct it to You, and I will look up" (Psalm 5:3).  I particularly love the translation that reads, "at dawn I hold myself in readiness for you, I watch for you."

--And our Lord Jesus rose up early, while it was still night, literally a long while before daylight, to converse in solitude with His heavenly Father (Mark 1:35).

Three small steps.  And three simple steps any woman can take!  A time, the first time, and an early time.  As I'm thinking back to the eagles, I realize that it comes for a purpose -- to get food for the day.  And it comes as the first act of its day, taking care of first things first, the priority of ensuring sustenance, nutrition, and energy.  And it comes early --at the first hint of daybreak, as soon as it can see.

You and I need the spiritual food only the Word of God can provide...and that takes time.  And we need to gather that food first thing each day, before life presents its daily demands on our hours and our energy.  And we need to do it early, before the rush and clamor of the day begin. 

Life Management for Busy Women by Elizabeth George

God's Guidance

To ask for guidance of God is to make a choice, and this takes faith.  It must be faith of a far higher kind than the breezy "if I like what I see I'll take it."  It is the faith that has strength to wait for the rewards God holds, strength to believe they are worth waiting for, with the price asked.  Our prayers for guidance (or for anything else) really begin here:  I trust him.  This requires abandonment.  We are no longer saying.  "If I trust him, he'll give me such and such, " but, "I trust him.  Let him give me or withhold from me what he chooses."

Nothing I have to say here is new.  It is a well-worn path that thousands have traveled; but I have written down in very simple terms what I have seen on the way, hoping that one more witness will be an encouragement to some who even in the 1990s believe there is a God who can lighten our darkness.

God's Guidance by Elisabeth Elliot

God's Love For You

Mary stood outside the tomb crying .... She turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus...

Jesus said to her, "Mary."

She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, "Rabboni!" (which means Teacher).

Jesus said, "Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father.  Go instead to my brothers and tell them, 'I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'"  --John 20:11, 14, 16-17

What a wonderful and amazing God we have!  With just one word, Jesus changed everything for Mary.  He quietly and gently said her name.  Once devastated by disappointment, anger, and grief, Mary was now restored to ecstatic joy -- her friend, her teacher, her Lord was alive!  Her world was changed and her life had a new outlook all because of one word, and in that one word Mary knew Jesus cared deeply about her and loved her.

God knows each of you and cares for you just as He cared about Mary.  He knows your name; you belong to Him (Isaiah 43:1).  No matter who you are or what kind of baggage you carry with you, no matter what you look like or feel like, no matter what you do or don't do, God loves you just as you are right now.  You don't have to get your act together, lose ten pounds, run a marathon, write a best selling book, or raise perfect children.  You are an extraordinary woman in His sight right now.

Not only does He love you, He cherished you.  He wants to have a close, loving relationship with you like no one on earth can.  All you have to do is make yourself open and available to spend time with Him and feel His loving arms encircle you.

Encouragement

Somewhere I came across the following:

"Let not this weak, unknowing hand
Presume Thy bolts to throw
And deal damnation round the land
On each I judge Thy foe."
- Alexander Pope

God help us to be more welcoming, less judgmental; more encouraging, less critical.

The widow of George Dempster of London (Finding Men for Christ, Touched By a Loving Hand, The Love That Will Not Let Me Go) wrote me after his death that she was praying God would give her "the ministry of encouragement."

God has blessed certain of His servants with just such a ministry.

John Minder of Florida not only encouraged my husband when a student; he was an encourager to all young preachers who came across his path.

In England, Lindsey Glegg had such a ministry.

And Henrietta Mears of the First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood had such a ministry.

"More people fail through discouragement,"  someone has observed, "than for any other reason."

*****************  ****************

Most families, it seems to me, have an encourager.  Not necessarily the oldest, youngest, or middle ones.  They seem to have an innate sense of balance, and a good sense of humor.  These two qualities almost invariably go hand in hand.

They are the encouragers.  They keep in touch by note or phone call.  They smooth things over when the going gets a little rough.  They aren't much on sharing their own problems or hurts because they are too busy shouldering those of others.

One family I know invariably turns to the youngest son -- who is steady, unassuming, loyal, with remarkable wit and uncanny discernment.  He is the family rallying point.

Andrew in the New Testament was a bit like this.  He first brought his own brother, Peter to Jesus (John 1:41).  Then when there was no food for the five thousand, Andrew brought the lad with five loaves and two small fishes (John 6:8-9).  When certain Greeks sought to see Jesus, it was Philip and Andrew who told Him.  Andrew was the quiet disciple with the sensitive heart, quick to look for ways to help.

Legacy of a Pack Rat - Ruth Bell Graham

Francesca Alexander - Poem

So her life was full of sunshine,

for in toiling for the Lord

She had found the hidden sweetness

that in common things was stored.

Francesca Alexander

God's Ways

"So do not worry and say, 'What will we eat?' Or 'What will we drink?' Or 'What will we wear?' ... Your Father in heaven knows you need all these things.  But seek His kingdom and His righteous ways first, and all these things will be given also to you" (Matthew 6:31-33).

"From a weary laborer, worn with slavish and ineffectual toil, I had become as a little child receiving from God the free gift of eternal life and of daily sustenance -- and prayer, from a weary spiritual exercise, had become the simple asking from the Heavenly Father of daily bread, and thanking Him."  Elizabeth Rundle Charles

Ordinary Work

"Ordinary work, which is what most of us do most of the time, is ordained by God every bit as much as is the extraordinary.  All work done for God is spiritual work and therefore not merely a duty but a holy privilege." 

Elisabeth Elliot

Ordinary Things

"The person who is faithful in little things is also faithful in big things"  (Luke 16:10).

"It's the bits and pieces put together year after year that count.  Sometimes we don't see meaning in the little things and we are not conscious of how it all works together to create a powerful image.  The little things we do at home ... putting wildflowers in a vase ... an old photograph tucked into a frame, a lullaby each evening by the bedside ... are the putty that holds the mosaic together."   Ingrid Trobisch


"There is no act too trifling to be made by God the first link in a chain of blessing."  Sarah W. Stephen

"Lord, give us a sense of satisfaction at the end of this day's work.  Let us be able to look back on it, whatever its successes or failures ... with the knowledge that it was worth doing and that we did our best."  Marjorie Holmes 

"Perfection in outward conduct consists not in extraordinary things; but in doing common things extraordinarily well.  Neglect nothing ..." Mere Angelique Arnauld

"It is easy to make great sacrifices when God does not ask them, but to give up our own will in each detail of life is something far harder.  And this is what he does ask.  To hold ourselves ever in readiness for His bidding -- to count no token of it too slight -- such is His call to each."    Hetty Bowman

"I felt very inadequate to do anything for the Lord, but one day I heard someone say that God does not expect us to be spectacular, He only asks us to be faithful.  He needs us in all the little shattered corners where there are people hurting, needing encouragement.   This is the beautiful part about ministering for Christ -- we do not have to depend on our ability, strength or wisdom ...He will be there to enable us."
Sara Abram

How can you say NO?

The Creator of the universe

wants to meet with you alone daily.

How can you say no

to such an opportunity?

Emilie Barnes

Contemplative Hour at Home

"How can a single weekly hour of church, helpful as it may be, counteract the many daily hours of distraction that surround us?  If we had our contemplative hour at home we might be readier to give ourselves at church and find ourselves more completely renewed ... Quiet time alone ... prayer ... a centering time of thought or reading ..."

Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Really Listen

"I still believe that the planning, preparing, fixing, and organizing is important ... After all, I am trying to be faithful to do well the tasks He has set before me.  I need to remember, though, that by far the most important thing I can do is to take the time to sit at Jesus' feet and really listen."

Mary Hampton

Silence of Your Soul

Think not again the wells of Life to fill, 

By any conscious act of your own will; 

Retire within the silence of your soul,

And let God's Spirit enter, and control.

The springs of feeling which you 

thought were stilled,

Shall so be deepened, sweetened,

and refilled.

Anna J. Granniss

Quiet Times

"Jesus got up very early ... and went to pray where there were no people" (Mark 1:35).

"You cannot expect to be victorious, if the day begins only in your own strength.  Face the work of every day with the influence of a few thoughtful, quiet moments with your heart and God ...Meet Him alone.  Meet Him regularly.  Meet Him with His open Book of counsel before you, and face the regular (and irregular) duties of each day with the influence of His personality definitely controlling your every act."

Mrs. Charles C. Cowman

Jane Woodfall - Poem

Thus will I live and walk

from day to day,

Contented, trustful, satisfied, and still.  

What life so shielded, or what life

so free,

As that within the center of Thy will!

Jane Woodfall

Trusting In Him

"When trouble, restless fears, anxious fretfulness strive to overpower the soul, our safety is in saying, 'My God, I believe in Your perfect goodness and wisdom and mercy.  What You are doing I cannot now understand, but I shall one day see it all plainly.  Meanwhile I accept Your will, whatever it may be, unquestioning, without reserve.'

There would be no restless disturbance, no sense of utter discomfort and discomposure in our souls, if we were quite free from any -- it may be almost unconscious -- opposition to God's will.  But we do struggle against it, we do resist; and so long as that resistance endures we cannot be at peace.  Peace,  and even joy, are quite compatible with a great deal of pain -- even mental pain -- but never with a condition of antagonism or resistance." 

Henrietta Louisa Sidney Lear

Trust His Ways

"Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass" (Psalm 37:5).

"Having taken the step of faith by which you have put yourself wholly and absolutely into His hands, you must now expect Him to begin to work.  His way of accomplishing that which you have entrusted to Him may be different from your way; but He knows and you must be satisfied. 

There was this lady who entered into this life of faith ... with a wonderful flood of light and joy.  She supposed this was a preparation for some great service ...  Instead of this, almost at once, her husabnd lost all his money, and she was shut up to domestic duties, with no time or strength left for any Gospel work at all.  She accepted the discipline, and yielded herself up as heartily to sweep, and dust, and bake, and sew, as she would have done to speak, or pray, or write for the Lord.  And the result was that through this very training He made her into a vessel 'meet for the Master's use, and prepared unto every good work.'

Another lady who had entered this life of faith under similar circumstances of wondrous blessing ... was shut up with two peevish invalid children to nurse and amuse all day long.  Unlike the first one, this lady chafed and fretted, and finally rebelled, lost all her blessing, and went back into a state of sad coldness and misery.  She had understood her part of trusting to begin with, but not understanding the Divine process of accomplishing that for which she had trusted, she took herself out of the hands of the Heavenly Potter, and the vessel was marred on the wheel.  I believe many a vessel has been similarly marred by a want of understanding these things.

Hannah Whitall Smith (adapted)

Victory Over Our Enemy

God promised us an abiding place of great victory over our enemy.  From the moment God first issued the promise of land to Aram, He described its occupants as quickly as its perimeters:  "To your descendents I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates --the land of the Kenites, kenizzites, Kadmonites, Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites, Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites" (Gen. 15:18-21.    Our Promised Lands are characterized by the presence of victory, not the absence of opposition.

Are You Doing All You Will Ever Do?

God has far more in mind than bringing forth one kind of fruit from your life.  The harvest God desires to produce has the potential of abounding variety.  I believe the promises God made to the Israelites for their Promised Land in the tangible realm parallel ours in the spiritual realm. You and I weren't called to become machines of mass-but-monotonous production.  Just when we decide our lives  are all about figs, God starts mixing up  the soil underneath our feet to bring forth some pomegranates.  Have you too quickly decided that what you have done or what you are doing is all you'll ever do?  Ah, God's far too creative for that.  May God use our present journey to shake up some soil.

If you can't imagine God ever delivering you from the corruption of evil desires and bringing forth a great harvest through your life, you've bought into the lie that God's promises don't apply to you.  The Amplified version of Ephesians 2:10 says that you and I are "God's [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us [taking paths which He prepared ahead of time], that we should walk in them living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live."

Ephesians 1:18 says, "I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints."  Our glorious inheritance in Christ is not meant for heaven alone.  The primary context of Ephesians 1 is the impact of our heavenly inheritance on our earthly existence.  God knows the plans He has for us, Dear One, but He will not force them on us.  Don't miss the word hope.  Nothing about your calling or mine is compulsory.  God is going to accomplish His agenda regarding heaven and earth no matter what you and I do, but we get to decide whether we're going to be part of His process in our generation.  Our callings remain a hope until we allow the eyes of our hearts to be enlightened and choose to accept them.