Against All Hope

“Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations…” Romans 4:18. I looked this passage up this morning as I was praying for what seem like impossible situations. I remembered that phrase, “Against all hope” and wanted to read it from God’s word again. That phrase is so inspiring to me because there was no earthly hope for his situation. He and his wife were far far beyond childbearing years. There was NO hope, BUT God. There are several situations that I am praying for where there is no hope, but God.

When I look with faith on these situations, I realize these are the perfect circumstances for a miracle. But I struggle with the reality of what I see. I want to believe and not doubt, but what do I do with the ‘facts’? I know I shouldn’t dwell on them, but should I deny them? Just try to suppress my thoughts about current reality?

In verse 19 it says, “Without weakening in his faith, he FACED that fact that his body was as good as dead.” Abraham didn’t deny or suppress where he was at in the natural; he faced it head on, “Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God… being FULLY persuaded that God had the power to do what he had promised” (4:21). He fully recognized his situation, but he was convinced that God was infinitely more powerful than the ‘facts’ that seemed so bleak in ‘reality.’

I needed that perspective after a weekend of doubts. I also want to add something that I wrote in my journal last fall that was a huge source of encouragement when I re-read it. I hope it encourages you, too.

‘So many times I feel so helpless, like I’m drowning, like so much wrong is happening…And like no one sees. No one cares. I am powerless to change it…. But I know that you do see, that you do know, that you do care and that you are here. You are not a God who is far off. Nothing is too difficult for you…
You are working even when I can’t see it!
You never stop!
You never tire of turning curses into blessings!
You never grow weary of making the weak strong!
You never stop taking what Satan meant for evil and turning it for good!
It’s your specialty.'

Are You Out of Your Mind?

Yesterday, our pastor preached an excellent sermon with the title above. It was about the Rich Young Ruler in Mark 10. The man asked Jesus what he should do to inherit eternal life. He had kept all the commandments since he was a boy, but Jesus told him to sell everything he had and give it to the poor and then he would have treasure in heaven. The Bible says the man, “…went away sad because he had great wealth” (Mk 10:22b). What Jesus asked him to do must have seemed crazy – Are you out of your mind, Jesus? But in order to follow Jesus, that had to be his number one priority, not his wealth.

Pastor reminded the congregation that following Jesus is an “out of mind” experience. Sometimes (many times) God prompts us to do things that don’t make sense to us – things that are “expensive, inconvenient and difficult” (Pastor Keith) – things that would cause others to say, “Are you out of your mind?”

This morning I was praying for some friends who need the Lord. I was praying that living a life for Christ would be real and attractive to them. Then it dawned on me. Perhaps, living a life for Christ would be more attractive if they saw more Christians living an “out of mind” kind of life. At first thought we probably think, what on earth is attractive about selling everything you have and giving it to the poor (just as an example – I know God does not call all of us to do this literally).

But what ISN’T intriguing about being so devoted to something that you would give everything that you have, spending your life completely for it? What’s even more attractive is the captivating paradox of God’s economy that when we give everything we have, we receive ultimate freedom, joy, peace, love, fulfillment... I’ve never experienced more fulfillment than in the times I’ve sacrificed and completely spent myself for Jesus. That is what Jesus talks about when he says, “I came that they might have life and have it to the full” (John 10:10b) Or “life, more abundantly” in another translation. Now that’s something worth looking into.

I think this is why the Church thrives under persecution. Living a life for Christ is REAL. It has to be. People won’t risk their lives for the opportunity to sit in church and follow rules. They will give their lives for the ultimate adventure – giving up everything, to gain even more.

I know that we usually aren’t called to do major life changing “are you out of your mind” things every day, but are we surrendered enough in our spirits that we will be ready to when it’s time? And there ARE probably ‘little’ things every day that require “out of your mind” surrender. God prompting us to talk to someone or give something away or sacrificing doing something fun in order to pray or letting our spouse be right (I think for me, that’s the ultimate surrender;))…etc. If we practice in the ‘small’ things, we’ll be ready for the big ones.

I pray my life for Jesus will be REAL enough that others can see it and I desperately need the Holy Spirit’s help for that. That’s all for now, I guess. Blessings to you all.

Don't read this, just a test.

test.

A lesson from Asa

A Lesson from King Asa
A couple of weeks ago I was reading in II Chronicles about Asa, King of Judah. The story starts out inspirational… He was a great king of Judah, he did away with idol worship, etc. When Zerah the Cushite came to war against them, he prayed “Lord, there is no one like you to help the powerless against the mighty. Help us…we rely on you and in your name we have come against this vast army. O Lord, you are our God; do not let man prevail against you.” (2 Chronicles 14:11) God saved them from the army, Asa led Judah in renewing their covenant with God and seeking him wholeheartedly, so “God gave them rest on every side.” There was no more war until he had reigned 35 years. But the next time Asa was threatened by war, he made a treaty with another king instead of relying on God. God was not pleased sending this message through a prophet, “Because you relied on the King of Aram and not on the Lord your God, the army of the king of Aram has escaped from your hand. Were not the Cushites..a mighty army?… Yet when you relied on the Lord, he delivered them into your hand…From now on you will be at war.” (2 Chr. 16:7-9)
Finally, he got a disease and “Though his disease was severe, even in his illness he did not seek help from the Lord, but only the physicians.” (2 Chr. 16:12) That gives me chills. He started out with amazing faith and reliance on God, but by the end of his life he wouldn’t call on God even though he was horribly sick. Scary.
Lessons here:
1. The Lord is will fight for us when we rely on him. No one whose hope is in Him will ever be put to shame. (PS 25:3) EVERY time I have stepped out in faith and relied on the Lord, he has more than met my need and provided. EVERY single time, why do I doubt for the future? I have countless examples, but this is getting long. To be shared at another time.
2. We can and should trust him completely, all the time, for everything. We do not want to make the mistake of self-reliance! Over and over in the Psalms and Isaiah God implores us to wait for him. “Be still before the Lord. Wait patiently for him.” PS 37:3 “Be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.” PS 27:14 PS 106:13 “But they soon forgot what he had done and did not wait for his counsel.”
Saul made the same mistake in I Sam 13, when he took things into his own hands and didn’t wait for Samuel to sacrifice to the Lord. The chilling part in Saul’s story is that “Just as (Saul) finished making the offering, Samuel arrived.” (I Sam 13:10) How many times have we decided to take things into our own hands, just before God is about to move? Very scary thought. The consequence for self reliance in these cases was no small thing either… God removed the kingdom from Saul and Asa was at war for the rest of his life.
3. Victories of yesterday don’t mean anything today or tomorrow. If we don’t continue relying on him every day, we are capable of make the same mistake.
4. “Rest on every side” isn’t always a good thing. It’s comfortable not to have any trials, but not usually very spiritually beneficial. He hadn’t felt the need for God in such a long time he forgot that he did need him every day. By the time another trial came along, he believed he could handle it on his own. Trials cause frustration and a lot of pain, but they can keep us from the delusion that we can rely on ourselves. That’s why James says “Count it all joy, brothers, whenever you face trials of various kinds because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete not lacking anything (Jms 1:2-4) And Peter in I Pt. 1:6-7 “In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith – of greater worth than gold…. May be proved genuine and may result in praise… when Jesus Christ is revealed.”
I hope this encourages you and exhorts you to stick it out. Wait for him. You will not be disappointed. His Word is always, always, always true.

The Epitome of Idiotic Impulsivity

I’m not sure if impulsivity is a word, but impulsiveness didn’t rhyme with epitome.
So yesterday my phone had an unfortunate experience with a sippy cup that was not entirely sealed. Not very sealed at all, it turns out. My phone died. UGH.

I went to the store this morning to buy a new prepaid cell phone for $20. Nothing more expensive than that again for this messy mama.

I got it home and tried to insert the SIM card. “This SIM must be a different shape. I thought they were all the same? Am I doing something wrong? I don’t see anything I could be doing differently.” Again and again I tried. It just wouldn’t happen. My SIM card must be ruined, too. UGH!

Urgency set in…I feel a little panicked when I don’t have a phone. I guess I’ll just have to go buy a prepaid SIM and get a land line. I spent all afternoon researching options because I need something…NOW. Qwest had a great deal, but something went awry with my computer like three times and I had to re-type my info, etc. So that took up Gibson’s nap time, plus. And you know what a precious commodity nap time is!

After my new landline was finally ordered, I went to clean up the packaging from the new cell. I began to look at the writing on the box. Included: SIM card. “OH, I’ll try to put this in that way I can have a line out if I need it.” I had the same problems as I did with my original SIM. “I must be missing something!” (Yes, Detective Holmes.) So, I got out the directions. “Blast these tiny pictures and vague instructions! This is no help.” I fiddled and fiddled a little more. “OOoh!....oops” It worked. “Hmm… wonder if my original SIM is going to work?” Yep. “Hmm. Wonder if qwest will let me cancel my order? OH _ _ _ _. I just wasted my whole afternoon being completely counterproductive!"

This is quitessential Erica though… make a move before you have all the facts and explore all options. I totally thought I did though. I swear I am direct descendant of Lucy Ricardo. They could’ve made the show about me; except for I’m not nearly as funny.

And in real time… what’s burning? Oh no… my beans! I just added water! OH!

These are but light and momentary trials.

Wrinkles

...I've decided to think of my wrinkles as newly formed, long, skinny dimples. They seem cuter if I reframe them that way.

What a wonderful weekend...

Last weekend was one of my favorite Memorial Day weekends ever. Saturday morning
I ran a 5k and way exceeded my expectations, so that felt amazing! Then Bob's mom, brother, sister-in-law and their 2 kids came to visit. It was so relaxing and enjoyable. The kids played at the beach and went for walks...we grilled and ate out on the porch... the weather was perfect. Gibson was entertained practically the whole weekend.... We had a bonfire... I made playdough for the kids monday morning because the weather wasn't as nice. We played games. Ahh... it was just so relaxing and refreshing. I made up most of the food ahead of time which was fabulous because it made the rest of the weekend super easy and stress free. Pictures to come.