Sight....

He then answered, “Whether He is a sinner, I do not know; one thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.”  John 9:25

Vision...amazing. I am recovering from cataract surgery and am amazed at how much clearer and colorful  things appear. 

   During the process of considering surgery, being anxious beforehand of the procedure, and now healing and having new vision, I have come to ponder several things.

  The first item is how often patients (myself included) take our doctors for granted. We expect  them to find out quickly what is wrong with us and "fix" it.  We are disappointed, even disgruntled, when our doctors can't figure it out, or the fix takes too long or is not perfect. We have forgotten who our doctor is, the years of study, exams, sacrifice, money and practice it took to make him the person we trust our lives with. Our sight with.

   The second is how physicians, too, may take patients for granted. After practicing medicine for many years, where it seems second nature, they may get tired of complaining patients, long hours, administrative issues, staffing problems and all the other things involved with work life. They may have forgotten how they toiled to get where they are and how very significant their gift of healing is.

    The third is how I recognize, appreciate and am grateful for my surgeon's special skill, the lengthy path it took to achieve it, and giving me, personally, new sight.

      Lastly, and most importantly, I am thankful to the Lord. He not only gave the doctor those sight saving skills and the desire to use them, but He gave me new spiritual eyes when He saved me twenty-five years ago.  Back then with no cataracts, I could see but was totally blind to Him. Not only blind, but spiritually dead, destined for hell. But, at a moment in time, when I least expected it, and was not really searching for Him, He saved such a wretch as me and gave me new sight.  20/20 spiritual vision. For eternity. 

   

Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways! 

 For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, OR WHO BECAME HIS COUNSELOR? 

 Or WHO HAS FIRST GIVEN TO HIM THAT IT MIGHT BE PAID BACK TO HIM AGAIN? 

 For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen. Romans 11:33-36

Remedy for fear...resting in the Lord

Trust in the Lord with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding.Proverbs 3:5 

  Today I go for cataract surgery.  This is supposed to be an easy eight minute procedure that will allow me to see clearly again, instead of looking through the "wax" paper vision that I have been struggling with. Why am I anxious, fearful, fretting, worried that I will be blind?  Conjuring up all sorts of morbid scenarios of the doctor's hand slipping as he cuts my cornea, that I will move unexpectedly and jar his hand, that I will be allergic to the medication and have a bad reaction. On and on my mind reels with fear. I know the remedy, so why don't I grab hold of Him who is the cure for all fear and anxiety? I need to rest in Him, the author and perfecter of my faith, who holds all things together by the power of His word, who loves me and will never let me go, who promises eternal life with Him where there is no more pain, no tears, no sorrow. 

   Jesus, the lover of my soul, my savior, Almighty Holy God. He who has granted everything I need pertaining to life and Godliness. He who saved such a wretch like me. 

   This life is so temporary and then eternity in the presence of Him forever. Why does fear grip me? 

So, I pray that the Lord, today would grant me His peace that is there for my taking. No matter what the results of my eye surgery, one day I will see Him clearly just as He has always seen me. Praise Him. Amen. 

Joy at the finish line.

Count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing 
that the testing of your faith produces patience.  James 1:2-3

   When I ponder James’s comment concerning suffering, it is hard to accept. God uses our suffering and hardship to develop perseverance and build our faith?  And this is to bring joy? How?
   To see these trials produce results in our lives, we need to undergo a radical reorientation.  Cultural critic Francis Schaeffer observed that most of us supremely value “personal peace and affluence.”  Anything that gets in the way of those values is, to say the least, unwelcome. That is me!  But in the Kingdom of God, those things aren’t all that valuable, and in fact, they can get in the way of what God truly values.  He treasures our faith in Him through thick and thin, but He knows faith is built most effectively in times of difficulty.  For that reason, God, our loving and attentive Father, allows or orchestrates problems in our lives so that we learn to trust Him.
    I need to fix my eyes on Jesus the author and perfecter of my faith, who for the joy set before Him, endured the cross. Scorning its shame......(Heb 12)
    Every obstacle, every annoyance, and every genuine heartache in our lives is part of God’s curriculum to produce persistent, tenacious, rich, deep trust in Him.  Patience isn’t killing time until we experience more personal peace and affluence.  It’s riveting our affections on God and His purposes every moment of every day.
  I pray for the ability to lean on Him....at all times...and find joy in Him at the finish line.

Contemplation...All I have is Christ.

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

Romans 6:23

Today I have a heavy heart. So many sad things in the world, in life, everywhere. My sister's loss of her husband, my aging parents so feeble, friends battling cancer, unsaved loved ones, my own sinful ways and aging process. Losing hair, hearing, eye sight, aching muscles, joint pain, critical nature. The list is long. I weep with tears that could fill buckets if I let them. But, the Lord interrupts and reminds me that I have Him, who knows all things, is in control of all things, and sees the Big picture of all things because He is the maker of all things. I am a comforted in this knowledge even as my sorrow lingers. The lyrics of a favorite song come to mind and I contemplate them....

All I have is Christ- Jordan Kauflin

 I once was lost in darkest night

Yet thought I knew the way

The sin that promised joy and life

Had led me to the grave

I had no hope that You would own

A rebel to Your will

And if You had not loved me first

I would refuse You still

But as I ran my hell-bound race

Indifferent to the cost

You looked upon my helpless state

And led me to the cross

And I beheld God’s love displayed

You suffered in my place

You bore the wrath reserved for me

Now all I know is grace

CHORUS

Hallelujah! All I have is Christ

Hallelujah! Jesus is my life

Now, Lord, I would be Yours alone

And live so all might see

The strength to follow Your commands

Could never come from me

O Father, use my ransomed life

In any way You choose

And let my song forever be

My only boast is You

Separate lives?

Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him. Colossians 3:17

Many Christians attempt to compartmentalize their lives into sacred and secular parts.  We are aware of God for an hour on Sunday mornings and perhaps for a few minutes each day when we read the Bible and pray, but we hardly think of Him the rest of the time. Pitiful. One of the most life-transforming concepts is the realization and acknowledgement that we are in God’s presence all day, every day, every MOMENT.  We can relate to Him, serve Him, and depend on Him—at work, at play, at home, in the car, at the store, in the bedroom and in the boardroom. Even if we fail to notice Him, He knows all about us. Nothing is hidden from His sight. All of our sin, wrong thinking, selfish ways, worldly habits, critical thoughts, our idols... We can get away with nothing. Before a word is on our tongue He knows it completely.
  Question to myself. Why don't I live in this reality?

Overcoming the world....

Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? I John 5:3-5

  In the New Testament, the word world is used in two different ways.  Sometimes it describes the earth and all its people (“Behold!  The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” John 1:29), and sometimes it refers to sinful, self-absorbed patterns of life.  When John says that believers “overcome the world, he has the second meaning in mind.

   We live in a culture that promises far more than it can deliver.  Each and every day, we are barraged by promises of beauty, riches, success, fame, and pleasure.  They claim to be able to fill our hearts and give us ultimate happiness, and quite often, we believe their lies.  If these promises came to us dressed up as demons in little red suits, we’d recognize them at once and refuse to trust them, but because their lies appear, like Satan himself, as sources of light, we are easily duped.

  Why do we need to overcome the world?  Because it can overwhelm us and distract us from our relationship with God.  These lies steal our attention, erode our faith in God, corrupt our motives, and strain our relationships.  Every part of our lives is affected, if not ruined, if we believe the false promises.

  Overcoming the world doesn’t happen by magic because we say a certain thing or by osmosis because we attend church.  Wars are won by carefully planning, marshalling resources, being courageous in action, and especially by following the directions of the commander.  In our fight with the world, we overcome when we stay close to Jesus, recognize and reject the lies we hear, and walk in obedience to Him.  The things we must overcome aren't always bad things. Hobbies, family, serving, studying. The Lord gives us a life on this earth to enjoy and a brain to pursue things, but when these things take control of our life, our time..they have become IDOLS. We place them before God and therefore are "worldly". Such an easy trap to fall into. Thinking I am safe when really I have been blindsided by Satan. 

Frustration...Focus...

Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.  Hebrews 12:1-2

  Somedays, too often, I struggle with frustration which often leads to anger which in turn is sin. I go to Bible study and read passages about the servanthood of Christ, yet walk away wondering how to apply this to my life. Right now. My bible class is filled with sweet Christian women. We all are good on the outside according to the world's perspective. Me included. We pray, we attend church, we aren't vulgar and wretched, we are friendly and helpful in a general way to each other. But, is that really servanthood? Just being nice?  I bring up this question for discussion during the class and am met with blank stares. Then, someone states...."Well Kathie you serve with the beautiful handmade cards you send to others"..... That is not what I am looking for. Making my beautiful cards is my hobby that I enjoy and yes,  I do share with others. But is that what Jesus requires of us...just offering up something that we already love to do? I don't know. I want another answer. I want us as a group of women to discuss the real needs of others in our church family and as sisters in Christ have a plan of action for serving them. 

   I am frustrated and need direction, peace, wisdom. In the end, I realize this must come from the Lord. I can't change anyone, I can't force others to look at the questions I have in the same way I am looking at them. I am a sinner thru and thru. I am so very thankful that the Lord saved me, continues to transform me, brings questions about my sin into my mind, convicts me of my sins, and gives me direction. How would Jesus guide me to serve others? That is my question, my focus for this time. 

Contentment

 I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content:  I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound.  Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. Philippians 4:11-12

   Many of us have some mixed-up ideas about contentment.  We think that if we can just have this good thing, travel to this place, have this job, be married to this person, have a good size saving account that our life will be better.  If we can avoid certain undesirable things, then  we’ll be really happy.  If we thought about it more than a nanosecond, though, we’d realize that we know plenty of people who have this or who have successfully avoided that but still aren’t any happier than we are.  Just look at the examples of many rich and famous movie stars, sports players, political leaders.  There must be something more to contentment.....

   Somewhere along the way, Paul learned the secret of contentment.  He realized that possessions, fame, beauty, and other earthly things can be pleasant for a while, but they can never produce genuine contentment.  That comes from the inside.  We experience true contentment when external things lose their grip on our hearts and don’t matter much anymore.  Some of us get bent out of shape when we realize our favorite shirt is still at the cleaners or when we can’t find the perfect pair of shoes or when things just don't go the way we expect or want them to.  Paul’s well of contentment was so deep that he could enjoy life with or without the most basic needs.  He was content being full or going hungry, having many possessions or little to speak of, living a life 

life of ease or suffering at the hands of evil men.  He did suffer, alot.

  A poster in a college professor’s office reads, “Happiness isn’t having what you want; it’s wanting what you have.”  Jealousy, envy, and greed suck the life—and any sense of contentment—out of us.  Focus on the Lord, find joy in Him who is the author of life, joy, holiness, and love. True satisfaction can only be found in Him.

Mistaken Identity

 “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves.  “But beware of men, for they will hand you over to the courts and scourge you in their synagogues;  and you will even be brought before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles. Matt 10:16-18

   Anyone with the slightest familiarity with history knows how frequently and chillingly these prophecies have been fulfilled. The fact that many of us in the West have for so long been largely exempt from the worst features of such persecution has let us lower our guard—even Christians may think that a hassle-free life is something that society owes us. But as the Judeo-Christian heritage of the West weakens, we may one day be caught up in realities that missions specialists know but that the rest of us sometimes ignore: the last century and a half have seen more converts, and more martyrs, than the first eighteen centuries combined.

Courageous Conversations...

They said to me, “The survivors who are left from the captivity in the province are there in great distress and reproach.  The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down, and its gates are burned with fire.”  So it was, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned for many days; I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven. Nehemiah 1:3-4

  Most of us spend our lives trying to project an image of beauty and competence.  Certainly, we want others to think highly of us, but one of the things I respect most are people who exhibit ruthless honesty about themselves and their situations. They are rare. I don't know if I am one of them. Nehemiah was however. 
  Nehemiah had a great job.  He was working closely with the king and he lived a life of luxury.  His heart, though, beat in unison with God’s heart.  He cared about the things God cares about and when he heard that the people in Jerusalem were suffering his heart broke.  He didn’t minimize the problem and he didn’t fly into a panic of mindless activity.  Instead, he let the brutal truth sink in, and he responded appropriately:  He sat down and wept.
  Nehemiah had a courageous conversation with the messenger and then he had a courageous conversation with God.  Only courageous people are known for their honesty.  It’s a lot easier to look the other way when we see needs in our lives or in the lives of people around us.  We can give the excuse that we’ve tried as hard as we can or that we don’t have time to help a person in need.  But excuses don’t cut it.  Like Nehemiah, we need to let the God's truth sink into our hearts so we can respond with genuine compassion. The Lord sacrificed His perfect Son that we might live and bring Him glory. How shall I live my life in light of this?