Divinity Arrived

"As moments go, ( the moment of incarnation) appeared no different than any other. If you could somehow pick it up off the timeline and examine it, it would look exactly like the ones that have passed while you read these words...But in reality, that particular moment was like none other. For through that segment of time a spectacular thing occurred. God became a man. While the creatures of earth walked unaware, Divinity arrived. Heaven opened herself and placed her most precious one in a human womb." Max Lucado, God Came Near.

Isn't it amazing what we don't notice? There is this link that is floating around on the web that is a video. It challenges you to count how many times a basketball is passed from person to person during a game. Then at the end of the video it asks if you noticed the moonwalking bear. I watched that video the first time and of course missed the moonwalking bear. It is amazing what we miss when we are focused on other things. We get so incredibly busy with our lives that we miss really important things. Like the quote from one of my favorite books that I have at the beginning of this blog says, "while the creatures of earth walked unaware, Divinity arrived." That's a pretty huge thing to miss isn't it? God came to earth and the only people that knew it were some shepherds and wise men and that is because angels shouted it out and they noticed a big ol star in the sky!
When I read this quote, I got to thinking about how busy our lives are. Work, Family, school, church, social activities... the list goes on and on. And at Christmas time it just gets worse! We have to add decorating, buying presents for people, family get-togethers, holiday baking, etc. to the endless list of things to do. So, it shouldn't surprise me that we tend to miss the real meaning of Christmas too, huh? Even over 2000 years later, we are still missing that God came to earth! That's what we celebrate isn't it? Isn't that what Christmas is really about? Celebrating that Jesus came as our true gift that we don't deserve!
So... maybe we could just take the time to slow down for a second and not miss the complete awesomeness that He came to earth knowing He would be our sacrifice for sin. That He humbled himself enough to be God in human form. That he came as a baby. And that he came for us. Let's not miss that.

A Clean Slate

Lamentations 3:22-24 ESV "The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, says my soul, therefore I will hope in him."

I hate mornings. I despise them. I don't like the sound of the alarm buzzing in my ear. As a matter of fact, I tend to hit snooze at least 3 times. One of my favorite things is sleeping in. There are not alot of good things that I can think of about mornings. That's why I think I like this verse so much! Because one of the best things about morning is that it brings new beginnings. What happened today doesn't matter anymore. If I was in a really bad mood today, I can be in a good mood tomorrow. If I didn't have any energy today, tomorrow I might have tons of energy. Mornings bring a clean slate. Everything from today can be wiped clean. It doesn't have to dictate what happens tomorrow. I don't know about you, but I see that as incredibly freeing! No matter what happened today or what I did or what I said, tomorrow can be different. I can choose to do things differently tomorrow. This verse is saying that because the Lord loves us so incredibly much, his mercies are new every single morning. As long as I continue to wake up in the morning, if I ask Him to, He will wipe my slate clean and give me a fresh start. Tomorrow can be better than today. I can make better choices tomorrow! My past doesn't have to dictate my future!
I have made bad choices in my lifetime. I've made some good ones too, however, if I could go back and change some things that I did or said, I would do it in a heartbeat! But isn't that what is so exciting about tomorrow, about mornings, about the future??? That we get another chance to do things right. We get the chance to have a good outlook, to be compassionate towards people, to respond in love and not anger, to be obedient to the Lord. So maybe mornings aren't really so bad after all. They bring one of the things I value the most... A clean slate.

Rest for the Weary

Do you ever feel like you need a cheering section in life? I do. Sometimes I get weary. I get really tired. Emotionally. Spiritually. Physically. And today is one of those days. I'm tired in every sense of the word. I feel weary. Life is hard. It is a constant battle. Work. School. Relationships. Life takes some serious effort. Some days more than others. And today I really wish I had someone cheering me on. Telling me that I can make it. That I can do this. That I can get through it. It's just a season. So I have done some searching to find the encouragement I need.
Isaiah 40:28-31 "Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the Everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth, He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint."
In my searching for encouragement today, I found it. The Lord doesn't get tired. He doesn't get weary. And my favorite part is: no one can fathom his understanding! He understands that I'm exhausted and He understands why I'm so tired. And He has promised me that if I put my hope in Him, He's gonna give me strength. He doesn't promise that things will be easy or get easier. But He promises me to get me through it and to hold me up while I walk through this season in my life.
Matthew 11:28 "Come to me , all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."
Some background on me. I am a touch-me-not. I hate cuddling. I don't like to be touched for the most part. It's weird. I know this. However, there are some times in my life when I have enjoyed being held or hugged. I remember times when I was a little girl when my dad would hold me in his lap or mom rocking me and I remember thinking it felt good. It felt really safe. I think that is why I like this verse so much. I imagine God holding out his arms, making room for me in his lap. Telling me, "Come sit with me. I'll hold you and you can feel safe. You can get some rest here in my arms. "
So today, I'm feeling his arms around me and I'm hearing his voice tell me that He's gonna get me through this. He is gonna give me the strength I need.

A Way of Escape

In my last blog, I talked about God's grace. How I have sensed and experienced His grace in my life in the midst of my struggles and failures. This week, I decided to focus on what do I do when I'm in the middle of my struggles? How do I overcome these battles that I face and how do I not fall flat on my face every single time? I believe God gives a way out. A way of escape. Why do I believe that? Because His Word says so. in I Corinthians 10:13.."No temptation has overtaken you, except what is common to man, and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide a way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it." If you read my blog often, you know I love the Message version of the Bible. I like it because it puts things so simply. It's version of this verse is great. "No test or temptation that comes your way is beyond the course of what others have had to face. All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; he will never let you be pushed past your limit, he'll always be there to help you come through it." That's pretty encouraging. He's not gonna let me be pushed past the limit of where I can say no. I listened to a great podcast this morning and the speaker said something of this sort... What are we? animals? Animals can't control what they do. They are controlled by their instincts. But God has given us brains. He has given us souls. He has given us consciences. ..... so should we assume we can't control what we do? I think not! I think God has created us as complex beings. Beings that are absolutely able to stand up against temptation. We are absolutely able to say no to what is wrong and to say yes to what is right. He has given us a way of escape and it is my prayer daily that I recognize those ways of escape and that I don't ignore them but run towards the escape as fast as I can. So that I can live a Godly life. A life that is pleasing to Him. I'm so thankful that He provides a way out. He doesn't just leave us in the pit of sin to wallow there. He gives us His Holy Spirit to convict and guide and if we are keeping our lives submitted to His guidance we will be able to recognize the escape routes He provides so mercifully.