Where's My Faith?

If you've never heard about Corrie Ten Boom you need to read "The Hiding Place." She is the inspiration for my new blog. Corrie wrote about the beautiful weaving that God is creating within each of our lives. We can't see what He sees. He sees the whole creation from the topside. We just see the bottom, with all the beautiful threads, some dark, some light, some shimmery, some bright. But all we see the are the knots and loose threads that don't give us the whole picture that God sees. He's working on our lives and we won't get to see the whole thing until we reach heaven one day. That's where faith comes into play.

Faith is a never-ending process for everyone. No matter who you are, you have faith. I choose to place my faith in the Creator God and His Son Jesus. Not only do I believe in God, I believe that Jesus is God and that He came down in the limited body of man to walk this earth to be among His creation.

Jesus came down to live under the knots and threads of His creation. Even though He didn't have to. In fact, He placed the scarlet thread in my life and those who choose to place their faith in Him. He bled on a cross, crucified for all sin, weaving the black threads of the world into His beautiful masterpiece. He laid in a tomb for three days, as God wove a grey thread to bring depth to His weaving. He rose again, threading the fiber of gold throughout the majesty of His art. Now He lives above right by the Father seeing the topside of my life and the lives of His creation. He also dwells within those who love Him giving a glimpse of His eternity.

However, there are moments when I override that faith and place my attention on myself. I focus on the knots and bland threads ignoring the bright and beautiful ones that intertwine. I begin to believe that I'm in control and soon my life spins out of control. Am I just talking to myself here or are there others out there who are on the same page? What a dumb question. Of course there are. What am I thinking?

The definition of faith is confidence or trust in the ability of a person or thing. Do you see that we use faith in every aspect of our lives? When we get up, when we lie down and everything in-between. We have choices when it comes to faith. It's where we choose to place our faith that means anything.

I am fallible. So why do I choose to trust in myself? Why do I choose to trust in situations or people who may let me down? So I now choose to place my faith in Someone who knows me best and loves me most. And when my attention drifts to myself or other people or things or sunny beaches, Jesus gently reminds me to look at Him.

Like Corrie Ten Boom, I see my life from underneath the threads and remember that this life I'm living isn't finished yet. I so excited that one day I will see the completed picture. But, until that time I choose to place my faith in my Creator who sees the whole picture. He still threading His needle with a palate of colors beyond imagination. I can't wait to see how it will turn out one day ~ on the other side. I live knowing that Jesus resides within me reminding me that eternity began when I decided to love Him and believe that He, the great Weaver, loves me too.

"From the Highest of Lows"

Click, click, click...I need a manicure. It's so hard to type with these long nails. When can I go in to get a rebase from Queenie? Click, click, click-a-tee (don't you just love it?), click, click. I absolutely adore my computer. I admit that I get frustrated with it. I can't seem to get it to do my bidding at times and call it stupid. But, name-calling and all, I appreciate my little silver Mac.

My world is so nice. I sit in the comfort of my home near the mountains and spout words of insight hoping that someone will read it and find comfort...maybe a gentle nod in agreement...or even a comment or two. (I've only got one for each entry) Well, anyway...Am I affecting anyone in this world of mine?

My daughter and I were talking on the phone yesterday about things that are common to all of us. At least they are to her and I. Let me ask you if they are to you too. We were talking about the gifts that God has given us and which one we should focus on. For example, she sings and writes like me. Her voice is amazing and she writes too! (Calm down mama!) Hang on, I'll get to my point. My question is this, do you have trouble deciding the direction to take with your gifts? In other words; how can you and I find the best means to use what God has given us?

This world tells us we need to be good enough to have our own TV show where we lose the most weight...win the title of Idol...survive the island dangers...cook the best pot of beans...the list goes on. We are told that success is getting our 15 minutes of fame; make that a lifetime of fame and nothing less will do to be effective and have a useful life.

With those kinds of bars to reach, we are all losers. Hmmmmm... I don't think sooooo. You see, my God tells me different. He tells me that He will complete what He placed in me to do. All I need to do is use my gift/s when He gives me opportunity. I think we try too hard. All we need is a willing heart and an open mind. You see, He will take us to places that we never dreamed of if we trust Him.

Where are those places you say? That's the beauty of it. God takes us to the highest of heights and the highest of lows. That's right! I said highest of lows, because everywhere God takes us is good.

God took a certain New Testament preacher to one of the highest of lows and his ancient world affects my click-a-tee-clack world. His name was Paul. He was an itinerant preacher starting churches all over the Roman world almost 2000 years ago. One day he ended up in jail. In fact, he was in jail more than once and for a long period of time. How could God use a preacher in a jail, seemingly forgotten?

Instead of getting Paul released and placing him in the highest of comfy heights, He provided him with pen and paper in his prison cell. Paul wrote letters to the churches he helped start. Scratch, scratch, scratch he wrote. Words that God gave him. Words that came from a place that no one would suspect would help many at all. Paul wrote from a place of the highest of lows. The words he wrote make up the majority of the New Testament reaching down through the ages touching the hearts of many, even this heart, in this house clicking on this computer.

I guess the answer to our question of where is the best place to use any or all of our gifts is this: Use them wherever you find yourself today. Focus on Him and not direction. He is the direction. Find comfort knowing He knows exactly where you are and is guiding you in all things. Believe it! Know it! Digest it!

"I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you. I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." written by the Apostle Paul from a Roman prison to the first church he helped start in Philippi. Philippians 1:3-6

So wherever you and I find ourselves, let's pick up the tools God places before us and trust him. Use the gift/s He has given you and see what God can do!!

No Words

Yesterday I lost a good friend to suicide. There are no words to describe the pain. I was just his friend. His family must feel the pain ten thousand times worse. There are no words to describe their pain. I thought I knew him and we talked many times about matters deep. Lots of words that didn't really reveal his pain. No words can describe his pain.

Today the questions accumulate likes the leaves that are falling in my yard. Why? No words can give us answers. If someone could just explain. Just wait, let me ask him ~ "Why?" No words come from him who is silent to me and those who love him. No words. No answers. Only why.

I know, I'll pray. He loved the same Lord I do ~ the same Lord his family does. Where are the words to form those prayers. I'm stumped. There are just no words. There are only cries and pain.

A glimmer of a passage that has been hidden in my heart begins to whisper to me. I've shared this verse with others who mourn. I know they're words that can help me. Help us.

"And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will." Romans 8:26-27

It's ok to have no words. Tears are enough. Groans are enough. Jesus is enough. The Spirit that He has given those who believe are filled with enough because He is enough. He knows our hearts and He pleads for us. He intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. Oh beloved one He groans for us in unearthly interpretation. God hears. God answers. God comforts.

Christ knew my friend's heart and knew he loved him. It's alright to not know why. In His great mercy Jesus took him at the split second where doubt and pain collide. The debris of this tragedy has rumbled the hearts of many who loved him. Yet I know he's with his Lord. There are no words to describe the world he's in now. It's a heavenly world where there is no pain ~ no tears.

And so I depend on the holy words of my Lord. I let grief wash over me as a baptism of sorts. Relief is slow in coming. I've decided to allow the Holy Spirit to wash over me with each wave. I give my words in prayer over to His perfect phrasing. He hears and interprets. He speaks and I listen. I'm still. I'm silent. There are no words to describe the peace that comes from Jesus.

To my friend's family I have no words. They only fall flat. Just know that I am mourning with you. I love you. I want to take the pain away. I can't. I pray through the Spirit that Christ has given me. He's given Him to you as well. Just cry, mourn, love, hold on. The Spirit prays in holy groans for you and me before the throne. We can be sure God hears. We can know God answers. God does have the right words and I trust those words to Him.

First Stone

I can feel the weight of it in my hand. It's rough edges dig into my palm and fingers as I squeeze. Every once in awhile I toss it up and then catch it with the same force I use to squeeze it. The target sits wriggling in front of me as I begin to take aim and raise the stone up to hurl it at the object of my distain. Man, this is going to be good. It's about time someone laid out the truth and took aim at the lies and deception.

I hear a voice that says to me, "Throw the first stone. You have every right to but only if you haven't lied or deceived others yourself." Slowly I release the pressure on my stone of justice. It falls scrapping against my leg and hitting my foot on the way down to the ground. My own blood trickles from the wound it has caused. Looking down I see my stone. Its still. Its useless without my hand to weld it.

This isn't the first time I've picked up the stone to nail someone. Sometimes I hit my target ignoring the voice that dares me to drop the stone. This time I obey this voice because I know that I have lied and deceived. I know that I am guilty too.

There is another stone that appears in my sight as I lift my head from my shame. The voice came from that direction. Somehow I know that the voice and the stone are the same. From this stone I see others placed upon it and a beautiful building rising from it. Somehow I know that this stone is holding all the others up.

The urge to touch the stone grows strong within me. I run from the stone that I just dropped and as I do I look at the object of my distain. The head slowly raises and I see the face of my intended victim. It's my face. I'm the guilty one. I'm the one who deserves the weight of the stoning. The voice from the cornerstone of this beautiful building bids me to come. I do. I run with all that is within me.

When I reach the stone all I can do is collapse. Everything that is within me cries out to it. Looking up I see Him. He's full of love for me. I see it in His eyes. Slowly He pulls me up to face Him face-to-face. He says, "Look around. Is there anyone who condemns you now? Go and live with My Love. Remember this moment when sin creeps in and begs you to wallow in it. Remember Me."

Jesus is the Stone I must always hold on to. I never want to pick up any other stone. He alone is my Rock and my Redeemer.

"Look! I am placing in Zion a choice and precious cornerstone. No one who has faith in that one will be disappointed." 1 Peter 2:6

No Comparison

I love to knit. My family teases me about it all the time. I don't know why but knitting soothes me. It keeps my mind from racing to different thoughts. Some of the thoughts I have are silly ones like,"I wonder what my hair would look like if I didn't color it" or "Is that the dog that's stinky or..." Other thoughts are deep and sometimes troubling. I compare myself to others'accomplishments and wonder "what if?."

Do you ever do that? Compare yourself to others. Do you mentally place yourself side-by-side with those who seem to have accomplished more or have good hair days every day? Well, I do. Am I wasting my time or am I using it wisely. Should I have ....? Would I have....? Could I have....? Will I ever....? Am I strong enough? Brave enough? Pretty enough? Thin enough? Exercise enough? Am I enough?

So I knit. Big deal! It keeps me from thinking too much. Don't worry I'm not down. Actually God has used my knitting to bring me to Himself. I knit to bless others and while I knit I pray for the ones who are going to receive what I am knitting for them. It's a blessed time and I really feel God's presence.

Did you know that God knits? HE DOES!!! REALLY!! Psalm 139:13 says, "For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb." The great Creator God knits. He knitted you and me in our mother's wombs. It goes on to say, "I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well." God made you and I reverently (fearfully) and miraculously (wonderfully) created (made).

We are not some hapharzard creation. Its sort of like when I plan my next knitting project. I look through patterns and choose colors and textures. I think about what the piece is to be used for and who it will bless. The same is true for us. God chooses the exact pattern He will create us by (of course He's the author of that pattern) and He chooses the color and texture we will be. He also thinks about how our lives will bless and affect those we come into contact with.

So when we compare ourselves to others it is like comparing apples to oranges. There is no comparison to be done. We were each planned for and "knitted" by the hand of God. He doesn't want us sizing ourselves up to others.

God does want us to compare one thing though. He wants us to compare Him to other "gods" in our lives.Isaiah 40:18-20 (The Message) says this, "So who even comes close to being like God? To whom or what can you compare him? Some no-god idol? Ridiculous! It's made in a workshop, cast in bronze,Given a thin veneer of gold, and draped with silver filigree. Or, perhaps someone will select a fine wood— olive wood, say—that won't rot, then hire a woodcarver to make a no-god, giving special care to its base so it won't tip over! "


God tells us that there is NO comparison. If there is no comparison, because there is no greater god and this incomparable God created us uniquely, then why do we compare ourselves with others?

The answer is...we shouldn't and we must not. God knit us to be who we are. I want to live with that kind of mindset. I am going to stop thinking that I'm not enough and begin to believe that I am enough because God is enough. What about you?

"Reasonless Fear"

Sometimes I am so afraid and I can't put my finger on why. Mirads of thoughts run through my mind like rain rushes down into the culvert collecting all the debris that the storm stirred up. I can't stop the movement of my thoughts and I feel despair.

I know that I am not alone. Others feel like this too I suppose. Can they sort through the undefined fears that plague them too? Is it easier for them? Or is it just me? Do I just need to try harder to not be so scared.

I'm a Christian and I know that I am suppose to have all this faith. Is it my fault that fear gets to me?
As I walk along the flooded streets of my mind I feel two presences. One seems to taunt me by picking up the rubble left by the storm and hurling it at me. I dodge but over and over I get hit and I feel so much despair.

The other presence is still but walks silently beside me. I feel love from Him. And yet I know that I have to ask Him for help. He is gentle and doesn't push Himself on me. I like this about Him. Unlike the other presence He doesn't hurl anything at me. He doesn't remind me of my failures and my fears. He just loves me.

When I choose to focus on the gentle presence the haunting presence retreats. It's like it doesn't have the strength to continue to taunt me. The more I look into the deep love that fills the pools of His eyes. I'm drawn in to them and find myself falling into a deep soft love so strong and sweet.
The fear is only a faint echo of my past reminding me not to turn away from my true love, my God, my Jesus. I sink into Him and feel extreme freedom.

"So don't you see that we don't owe this old do-it-yourself life one red cent. There's nothing in it for us, nothing at all. The best thing to do is give it a decent burial and get on with your new life. God's Spirit beckons. There are things to do and places to go! This resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave-tending life. It's adventurously expectant, greeting God with a childlike "What's next, Papa?" God's Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are. We know who he is, and we know who we are: Father and children. And we know we are going to get what's coming to us—an unbelievable inheritance! We go through exactly what Christ goes through. If we go through the hard times with him, then we're certainly going to go through the good times with him!" Romans 8:14-16 (The Message)

"Know For Sure"
I walked into her hospital room to change her colostomy bag and bathe her. She was 99 years old. I loved taking care of her because she intrigued me. What was she like when she was my age? At the time I was all of 27 years old. This part of being a registered nurse was the part I adored ~ taking care of those who couldn’t take care of themselves.
As I stood her up on her unsteady legs, walked her to her chair and gently lowered her, I asked, “Are you ready to go home to be with Jesus soon?” She answered, “I hope so but I don’t know if I will get to or not. I tried to live a good life and raise my family in church. But I just don’t know.”
I was so shocked. Someone her age should know where she was going when she died. My words and thoughts revealed my naiveté. I had just assumed that all “old people” had made their peace with God. So my questions were probed into an area that she was unsure of herself. Her spiritual feet were as unsteady as her 99-year-old ones.
As I bathed her and took care of her needs. I told her that she could be sure of her eternal life and proceeded to tell her about Jesus and that all she had to do was ask Him to be her Savior. It was not too late and she could know for sure.
She looked up at me and I saw a child’s eyes dance in the face of an old woman. I could see hope and excitement like I had never experienced before. She believed Jesus and I know she rests with Him now.
I wonder what her life had been like if she had known about the safety found in Jesus when she was my age. For 99 years she wondered whether she was good enough to go to heaven after she died. At 99 she chose to build the rest of her life on the solid foundation of Jesus.
It wasn’t long before she stepped into eternity with Him. Can you even image what that was like for her? She is walking strong in eternity with the One who had always loved her beyond her imagination.

As I look at my own life I am grateful that at 49 I can say for sure that Jesus is real and that He loves me. It gives me such peace. It doesn't mean that my life is not full of struggles and pain. Everyone has that, some more that others. It does mean that I am not alone and that this life is temporary. It is just a mist, a mere vapor.
Eternitty is the real life. This one is just the priliminary to the next. As we live here on this earth with all its crud as well as all its joys we need to lean heavily on the One who loves us most.
Don't wait until you are 99 and still wondering were you will be in the next part of your existence. You can be sure now. God loves you so much! Now, decide to really love Him back.

"Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength." Deuteronomy 6:5