Living in God's grace

Last night, I knew something was wrong, and I posted as my Facebook status: "All my longings lie open before you, O Lord; my sighing is not hidden from you." ~ Psalm 38:9

This morning, the Lord Almighty revealed clearly where I had fallen, and I grew discouraged as I love the Lord and long to please Him but continue to fall short time and time again.

"for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." ~ Romans 3:23-24

In my quiet time with my Lord and Savior, He lead me through the following verses:

"In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons: 'My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son.'" ~ Hebrews 12:4-6

"No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." ~ Hebrews 12:11

At this point, I wrote in my journal: "It's so true, but how many times must I fall short and be disciplined and get back up again? How many times will I continue to fall, to fail and to disappoint you? Father, I love you, and I long to please you, but it seems impossible."

"For nothing is impossible with God." ~ Luke 1:37

"For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us." ~ Psalm 103:11-12

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs." ~ 1 Corinthians 13:4-5

"You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised." ~ Hebrews 10:36

"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day."

~ 2 Corinthians 4:16 ~

True love hurts and heals

Have you ever grown so close to someone, only to have that person let you down?

Did you become angry? Did you cry uncontrollably? Did you say you would never love again? Did you put up a wall in order to protect yourself from getting hurt again?

Did you read the poem, "I am a rock" by Simon and Garfunkel?
(According to www.lyricsfreak.com)

A winter's day
In a deep and dark December;
I am alone,
Gazing from my window to the streets below
On a freshly fallen silent shroud of snow.
I am a rock,
I am an island.

I've built walls,
A fortress deep and mighty,
That none may penetrate.
I have no need of friendship; friendship causes pain.
It's laughter and it's loving I disdain.
I am a rock,
I am an island.

Don't talk of love,
But I've heard the words before;
It's sleeping in my memory.
I won't disturb the slumber of feelings that have died.
If I never loved I never would have cried.
I am a rock,
I am an island.

I have my books
And my poetry to protect me;
I am shielded in my armor,
Hiding in my room, safe within my womb.
I touch no one and no one touches me.
I am a rock,
I am an island.

And a rock feels no pain;
And an island never cries.

And a rock and an island never experience the love of a father for his son or the joy of a mother at her newborn child or the peace of a sister after a heart-to-heart or the patience of a teacher with a student or the kindness of a stranger or the goodness of the Lord or the faithfulness of an intimate friend or the gentleness of a tender touch or the warmth of a hug.

That poem, more than anything less, strengthened my resolve never to allow the pain of love to harden my heart, to build walls or to bury love inside. Such an existence would be far more painful with the separation from everything that makes life worth living.

Instead, I choose to fall into the arms of Jesus, the only One who is always there, and allow Him to heal my heart to be soft again in order to continue to love--no matter the cost.

You may ask, why would anyone want to go through that painful process over and over again? Love. Hurt. Love. Hurt.

I would respond, because the Maker of heaven and earth, our Lord and Savior, loves us enough to go through that process over and over again. We say we love Him, yet we fall short time and time again.

What if God put up a wall? What if God decided not to love us any more? What if God gave up on us as we so often give up on others?

Life would be miserable. There would be no reason to live.

But He does not put up a wall. He continues to love us unconditionally--no matter what we think, say or do--because His love for us does not depend on our love for Him or on anything we do.

"And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him." ~ 1 John 4:16

He does not give up on us but bears every nail we pound into His hands and every insult we hurl at His face.

"When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed." ~ 1 Peter 2:23-24

He says not one vindictive word against us but loves us and says, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing" (Luke 23:34).

How often have you prayed that prayer for someone who has hurt you intentionally or unintentionally? How often have you continued to love--not when it was easy--but when it hurt?

"My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." ~ John 15:12-13

Brotherly Love

"Be devoted to one another in brotherly love..." ~ Romans 12:10

With two brothers of my own, Keven and Kristofer, I have always noticed the connection between brothers and particularly noted when brothers work together.

There seems to be a deep bond between brothers which extends beyond understanding to link them together no matter what comes--time, distance or anything else.

That bond never ceases to attract my attention and capture my imagination, and almost no one demonstrates that bond more so than the five Baker brothers: Nathan, Andrew, Daniel, Adam and Benjamin.

Their bond came to mind as I re-read the familiar passage of how believers are to interact with each other and to support each other no matter what comes--time, distance or anything else.

As I read Romans 12:10, I used to think of how a brother loves a sister, mother or father, but I think the picture becomes more clear when the love is demonstrated from one brother to another.

Romans 12:10 ~ "...Honor one another above yourselves."

Disappointed?

Too many times to count.

Disappoint - To fail to satisfy the hope, desire, or expectation of. (according to freedictionary.com)


I hate to disappoint (primarily God and my parents but also others in general), and I hate to be disappointed, but both are realities of a fallen world, so how should we handle disappointment?

After nearly 24 years of disappointments (along with innumerable blessings), God has taught me much in this area.

How we should handle disappointment depends on the source or cause of the disappointment.

What causes disappointment?

The failure of someone or something to satisfy the hope, desire, or expectation of the one disappointed

Who is at fault? The disappointed or the one who fails to satisfy the hope, desire or expectation?

It is far too easy to blame the one who does not satisfy the hope, desire or expectation, but what if the hope, desire or expectation is misplaced?

As an extreme example, what if someone became disappointed when another refused to have sex before marriage (which clearly contradicts what is in the Bible)?

The one who hoped, desired or expected what clearly contradicts God's Word would be at fault.

Is that true all the time? Is the one disappointed always at fault?

No, it depends on the source of the hopes, desires and expectations.

Are the expectations of the disappointed based on the Bible or selfishness?

If the expectations are grounded in God's Word, the one who does not fulfill them is at fault and needs to change.

For example, if a husband expects his wife to respect him and she does not, the wife would be at fault; though, in this case, the behavior of his wife should not influence his love for her (and vice versa - his lack of love should not be cause for her not to respect him).

"However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband." ~ Ephesians 5:33

Love and respect are not earned but are free gifts offered to one another by the grace of God and in obedience to His Word, regardless of the behavior of others; though, each of us is called to live worthy lives.

"Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king." ~ 1 Peter 2:17

"My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you." ~ John 15:12

If the expectations are grounded in selfishness, the one who harbors the selfish expectations is at fault and needs to change.

Every hope, desire and expectation of Jesus' disciples (all believers) should stem from the Word of God.

"Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us." ~ Romans 5:3-5

So, how do we know if our expectations are grounded in the Bible or selfishness?

By knowing God's Word:

Read.

Meditate.

Memorize.

Repeat.

Sacrifice of our Savior

This morning, as I pondered a couple significant changes which seem to be pending, I wondered why God asks us to give up good things and to experience pain.

As I think about it, though, I am reminded of how Jesus left His perfect Father in heaven and experienced betrayal, beatings, insults and death on a cross.

"To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps." ~ 1 Peter 2:21

He has not asked anything of us that He has not gone through himself.

Earlier, I was also reminded of how God is the one who has given us all we possess and all things belong to Him.

"The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it." ~ Psalm 24:1

Job's words in chapter one verse 21 come to mind: "The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised."

What are you reluctant to give back to God?

Remember: He is the One who gave it to you in the first place.

Give you peace

This night, I am reminded of all the missionaries around the world who will be away from their families during this Thanksgiving and Christmas season as well as all the families who have loved ones overseas and are unable to give them hugs and see their faces in person.

"Give you peace" by Echoing Angels is one of my favorite songs.

I see you lying their whispering prayers
I hear you breathing out hallowed by thy name
Holding out my hand catching every tear
Oh my child I'll never leave your side

I will give you peace when the walls come crashing down
I will give you peace through the night
When you've had all you can take can't face another day
I'll give you peace I'll give you peace

For such a time as this I have you here
Chosen for the lost to know I'm near
Through your brokenness my glory shines
And through your frailty my strength will rise

I will give you peace when the walls come crashing down
I will give you peace through the night
When you've had all you can take can't face another day
I'll give you peace I'll give you peace

Your beautiful, your beautiful
Perfect in my sight
Righteousness adorns you my bride
Your beautiful, so beautiful

I'm thinking of you and praying for you!

Your sister in Christ,
Kaelyn

The Ultimate Make-Over

Stories about overcoming some difficulty, trial or circumstance never seem to fail to inspire, to encourage and to draw an audience.

"The Biggest Loser" takes us through the journey with those who are trying to lose weight and the results can be astounding.

Makeovers, from personal appearance to homes, inspire almost a sense of awe as the dirty becomes clean, the broken becomes fixed and the used becomes like new.

One of the attractions of such shows is how anything can be transformed, and the worse the condition; the more astounding the final results.

Have you ever wondered why we enjoy those stories so much?

Maybe it is because all of those stories give us a glimpse into the ultimate makeover, defined for us by the Maker of heaven and earth himself.

"And we who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the spirit." ~ 2 Corinthians 3:18

The Lord God Almighty is able to transform anyone, and the worse the sinner; the more astounding the final result.

He takes lives dirty with sin and makes them clean by his blood and forgiveness. He takes broken dreams and replaces them with His own. He takes the used and restores their former beauty.

These changes, however, do not come easily as losing weight is not easy and remodeling a home is not easy. It takes time and determination.

Transformation from the inside out begins with a relationship with the all-powerful, all-knowing and always present God of the universe! :)

The more time we spend sitting in His presence, seeking His face and dwelling on His attribute; the more we will become like Him.

It is not impossible for anyone, for nothing is impossible with God, and I have seen personally His awe-inspiring transformation in my own life.

Who will join me on this journey to perfection?