Michelangelo
I was watching a show the other night on Michelangelo. It was amazing to see how he made the David Statue. The block of marble he used was one that had been quarried years ago but was not considered of value and had been exposed to the elements for years. But, Michelangelo saw something in the imperfect stone- he saw a masterpiece. I love this quote by him, "In every block of marble I see a statue as plain as though it stood before me, shaped and perfect in attitude and action. I have only to hew away the rough walls that imprison the lovely apparition to reveal it to the other eyes as mine see it."
Last night in my small group, I was struck by this same thought from God's point of view. It is not a new thought or even very deep but something we all need to be reminded of at different times on our journey. God takes our imperfections, our rough walls, the things other people don't find value in and creates a masterpiece- not because of us- but because He is the ulitmate artist. At His hands, with His chisel- we become something astounding.
Putting ourselves in His hands can be the difficult part- releasing ourselves to the artist for Him to form us, refine us, and mold us can be hard, painful and beautiful at the same time.
But, I love that God sees things in us that no one else can see. He knows our hearts, the parts of stone that needs to be worked around, the elements of our life that have created rough walls that have to be carefully hewn. He knows how hard to chisel to create a masterpiece- even breaking off parts if necessary.
Through God's love, through Jesus' sacrifice, through the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives- we are made into something beautiful and of eternal value. Praise be to God that he loves us to keep working on us- that he sees something that only His eyes can see and yet he wants the whole world to see us as he does!
Philippians 1:6
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.
2 Cor. 5:17
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Sunday, June 24, 2007
Blessing
The yearning we have from our parents, our spouses, and our church is to be blessed- unconditional love and acceptance. Many of us can receive that in an earthly fashion but most of us have to rely on the perfection of Christ and the Father God to be the avenue of blessing in our lives. When we receive the Holy Spirit- we receive the Blessing of our heavenly Father.
Ephesians 1:3-6
3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. 4 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. 6 So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son
Galatians 3:14
He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.
This is a profound truth. It is a truth that enables us to move forward with success in our lives when we trust the love that Christ's death symbolizes in our lives. God chose US before we were born, God sent his son to die for US before we were born, God knows US, loves US and provides a way for US to live eternally with Him- because we are HIS!
Does this release us from the hurt caused by the lack of earthly blessing in our everyday lives? Most likely no. But, it does give us an amazing alternative to rely upon in the dark hours of feeling unloved, unaccepted, and rejected. God's love is perfect. He made us and knows exactly what we need- and provided it through the sacrifce of His son so that we may have an incredible relationship with Him- as adopted children- chosen for a purpose.
There is a book called The Blessing by Gary Smalley and John Trent. I highly recommend reading it if you feel that you have had the blessing of either of your parents withheld from you.
There are five elements of the Blessing (based on blessings in the Bible):
Meaningful Touch, Spoken Words, Expressing High Value, Picturing a Special Future, Active Commitment
In so many ways- you see evidence of God's example of these five things in the Bible- many expressed through his Son, Jesus Christ.
Parker came home last week from Frontline's Kids Quest with a keychain of verses. I asked him what they were. He told me about one of his teachers that had been told various things like 'she was too short', 'she was ugly', 'she couldn't do things', etc. He said that she made these verses for them to take home, to look at, and remember God's love for them when the world was telling them that they were not good enough. So precious! Parker totally got this concept! I would love to believe that Todd and I's love is enough for him- but I know there are days he doesnt' understand our discipline and feels maligned, that there are definite days when friends cause distress and our words are not enough. BUT- he trusts the truth of the Bible- and he can go to these verses to understand his true value in Christ.
I am going to list them here for you:
You are a beloved child of God! 1 John 3:1
No one can separate you from God's love. Romans 8:39
There is a place for you with Jesus! Hebrews 13:5b, John 14:2-3
God will never condemn you when you belong to Jesus! Romans 8:1
You can come to God with freedom and confidence! Hebrews 10:19
When you ask, Jesus can save you and forgive you for all you ever do wrong. Acts 16:31, 10:43
The Lord has plans to prosper you..He has a hope and future just for you! Jeremiah 29:11
God made you, He created you to belong to Jesus, and has good things planned for you to do! Psalm 129:13-16, John 10:29-30, Romans 8:28
You are chosen by God. You are holy and loved! 1 Peter 2:9
These truths are not just for Parker- but for all of us to be reminded of!
Ephesians 1:3-6
3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. 4 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. 6 So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son
Galatians 3:14
He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.
This is a profound truth. It is a truth that enables us to move forward with success in our lives when we trust the love that Christ's death symbolizes in our lives. God chose US before we were born, God sent his son to die for US before we were born, God knows US, loves US and provides a way for US to live eternally with Him- because we are HIS!
Does this release us from the hurt caused by the lack of earthly blessing in our everyday lives? Most likely no. But, it does give us an amazing alternative to rely upon in the dark hours of feeling unloved, unaccepted, and rejected. God's love is perfect. He made us and knows exactly what we need- and provided it through the sacrifce of His son so that we may have an incredible relationship with Him- as adopted children- chosen for a purpose.
There is a book called The Blessing by Gary Smalley and John Trent. I highly recommend reading it if you feel that you have had the blessing of either of your parents withheld from you.
There are five elements of the Blessing (based on blessings in the Bible):
Meaningful Touch, Spoken Words, Expressing High Value, Picturing a Special Future, Active Commitment
In so many ways- you see evidence of God's example of these five things in the Bible- many expressed through his Son, Jesus Christ.
Parker came home last week from Frontline's Kids Quest with a keychain of verses. I asked him what they were. He told me about one of his teachers that had been told various things like 'she was too short', 'she was ugly', 'she couldn't do things', etc. He said that she made these verses for them to take home, to look at, and remember God's love for them when the world was telling them that they were not good enough. So precious! Parker totally got this concept! I would love to believe that Todd and I's love is enough for him- but I know there are days he doesnt' understand our discipline and feels maligned, that there are definite days when friends cause distress and our words are not enough. BUT- he trusts the truth of the Bible- and he can go to these verses to understand his true value in Christ.
I am going to list them here for you:
You are a beloved child of God! 1 John 3:1
No one can separate you from God's love. Romans 8:39
There is a place for you with Jesus! Hebrews 13:5b, John 14:2-3
God will never condemn you when you belong to Jesus! Romans 8:1
You can come to God with freedom and confidence! Hebrews 10:19
When you ask, Jesus can save you and forgive you for all you ever do wrong. Acts 16:31, 10:43
The Lord has plans to prosper you..He has a hope and future just for you! Jeremiah 29:11
God made you, He created you to belong to Jesus, and has good things planned for you to do! Psalm 129:13-16, John 10:29-30, Romans 8:28
You are chosen by God. You are holy and loved! 1 Peter 2:9
These truths are not just for Parker- but for all of us to be reminded of!
Saturday, June 23, 2007
Abba
Romans 8:15
You didn't receive a spirit that makes you a slave to fear once again. Instead you received the Holy Spirit, who makes you God's child. By the Spirit's power we call God "Abba." Abba means Father.
I was, and I am lucky. I have a father that makes God approachable, loving, and always there. My earthly father is someone you can always count on. When I was little and scared in the middle of the night- he was willing to check all the doors and then come to rub my back until I settled down. When Sundays rolled around- he set the example of being excited to go to church. My father wanted to hug me when I didn't want to be hugged. He longed to be with me even when I was being a tacky teenager. He took me on my first date and set my expectations high. All my friends loved him.
Of course, my dad has his faults. But, overall, our family is so very lucky to have his wisdom, his loving nature, his spiritual leadership, and his goofiness as part of our lives.
I started realizing that not everyone was as lucky as I was when I was in the 5th grade. Many of my friends lived only with their moms and their dads were a distant prescence in their lives. Sometimes it bugged me the way they clamored for my dad's attention. But, since my parents worked with youth at our church- I had realized the value of a dad's prescences in childrens' lives.
Parker has a friend right now that is fixing to go spend 6 weeks with his father. He has started wetting his pants periodically as the date for him to leave grows closer. He is so very excited to see his father- but there is anxiety there as well.
Todd and his father. So much there over the years. Pain, Joy, Suffering, Rejection, Longing, Confusion, and Love. Todd's father was absent from the time Todd was born. Over the years- he would move in and out of Todd's life. There were times he wouldn't show up and Todd would be sitting at the window waiting. There were times that he would black out his return address to spite Todd's mother- but what it really did was hurt Todd.
After Todd became a Christian- he chased down his father on the first Father's Day of his Christian life. They talked, reconnected, and started building a relationship. After Todd graduated from college his dad sent Todd his old rolex watch to celebrate the occasion.
Over the years since then, Todd's athiest dad has been a part of our lives. He is a wanderer. Since I met him, he has lived all over the world doing various things. We never knew when we would see him or talk to him but always welcomed him. Todd and He took some cool trips together and Todd treasured the time with his Dad. This past February Todd received an email from his father basically disowning him. He blamed Christianity for the break, he claimed we didn't want him around our children, and all sorts of random statements. Todd tried to combat the arguments with frustration, other arguments to contradict his father's claim, and unconditional love and acceptance. None of that worked. Ultimately Todd's dad asked for his watch back since it represented a father son relationship that they no longer had. Todd truly felt like his legs had been kicked out from underneath him. He has offered to buy the watch from his dad so that Parker will not be hurt by the situation since Parker thinks it will one day be his. We haven't heard anything.
It was so painful to watch. No one had any answers for Todd. We had conversations that Todd did not remember. In many ways- he limped through life for about 4 weeks. It was just too big for him to deal with. In many ways, it still is.
The ONLY saving grace in this whole thing is that God is a FATHER! Not only does he provide a Savior for us through his son- He acts as a Father in our lives. I encouraged Todd to seek out scriptures to reconnect to God as a Father. Let God be the perfect Father. And yet, we all have a longing for an earthly father that loves and accepts us as the Heavenly Father does- even with the discipline that comes with being a child of God.
This blog is unfinished...we will see what happens along this journey
You didn't receive a spirit that makes you a slave to fear once again. Instead you received the Holy Spirit, who makes you God's child. By the Spirit's power we call God "Abba." Abba means Father.
I was, and I am lucky. I have a father that makes God approachable, loving, and always there. My earthly father is someone you can always count on. When I was little and scared in the middle of the night- he was willing to check all the doors and then come to rub my back until I settled down. When Sundays rolled around- he set the example of being excited to go to church. My father wanted to hug me when I didn't want to be hugged. He longed to be with me even when I was being a tacky teenager. He took me on my first date and set my expectations high. All my friends loved him.
Of course, my dad has his faults. But, overall, our family is so very lucky to have his wisdom, his loving nature, his spiritual leadership, and his goofiness as part of our lives.
I started realizing that not everyone was as lucky as I was when I was in the 5th grade. Many of my friends lived only with their moms and their dads were a distant prescence in their lives. Sometimes it bugged me the way they clamored for my dad's attention. But, since my parents worked with youth at our church- I had realized the value of a dad's prescences in childrens' lives.
Parker has a friend right now that is fixing to go spend 6 weeks with his father. He has started wetting his pants periodically as the date for him to leave grows closer. He is so very excited to see his father- but there is anxiety there as well.
Todd and his father. So much there over the years. Pain, Joy, Suffering, Rejection, Longing, Confusion, and Love. Todd's father was absent from the time Todd was born. Over the years- he would move in and out of Todd's life. There were times he wouldn't show up and Todd would be sitting at the window waiting. There were times that he would black out his return address to spite Todd's mother- but what it really did was hurt Todd.
After Todd became a Christian- he chased down his father on the first Father's Day of his Christian life. They talked, reconnected, and started building a relationship. After Todd graduated from college his dad sent Todd his old rolex watch to celebrate the occasion.
Over the years since then, Todd's athiest dad has been a part of our lives. He is a wanderer. Since I met him, he has lived all over the world doing various things. We never knew when we would see him or talk to him but always welcomed him. Todd and He took some cool trips together and Todd treasured the time with his Dad. This past February Todd received an email from his father basically disowning him. He blamed Christianity for the break, he claimed we didn't want him around our children, and all sorts of random statements. Todd tried to combat the arguments with frustration, other arguments to contradict his father's claim, and unconditional love and acceptance. None of that worked. Ultimately Todd's dad asked for his watch back since it represented a father son relationship that they no longer had. Todd truly felt like his legs had been kicked out from underneath him. He has offered to buy the watch from his dad so that Parker will not be hurt by the situation since Parker thinks it will one day be his. We haven't heard anything.
It was so painful to watch. No one had any answers for Todd. We had conversations that Todd did not remember. In many ways- he limped through life for about 4 weeks. It was just too big for him to deal with. In many ways, it still is.
The ONLY saving grace in this whole thing is that God is a FATHER! Not only does he provide a Savior for us through his son- He acts as a Father in our lives. I encouraged Todd to seek out scriptures to reconnect to God as a Father. Let God be the perfect Father. And yet, we all have a longing for an earthly father that loves and accepts us as the Heavenly Father does- even with the discipline that comes with being a child of God.
This blog is unfinished...we will see what happens along this journey
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)