But If Not

This is something I posted on another blog last year, but I was reading it today and felt like sharing it again. 

If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and He will rescue us from your hand, O King. But even if He does not, we want you to know, O King, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up. Daniel 3:17-18

Have you ever felt like you were trapped in a situation where you had to make a choice...God's way or the world's way? Was the pressure to compromise so intense that the easiest thing to do would be to conform? In this story, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were going to face certain death in a fiery furnace if they didn't submit to the King's wishes. Even though they knew God was more than capable of delivering them if He chose to, they made it perfectly clear that even if He didn't they still would not bow. Their loyalty to God wasn't determined by whether He would or wouldn't do something for them.

Many times people face trials and circumstances where they pray diligently for healing, deliverance or some other need. They may even make rash vows to God, offering to serve Him if He would do as they were asking. The thing is, God is not prone to accept bribes. He is moved by faith. Now He can offer compassion or extend mercy, but He is not obligated to do what we say or want. So basically, our devotion to Him should remain stable even in the most troubling times. God has a plan in all things even when we don't see it.

Have you ever heard the saying, "hindsight is 20/20?" Most times people who say this are referring to seeing clearly the things they should have done in the past. But think about this...sometimes we want things to work out a certain way, and God doesn't allow it for whatever reason. Later in life we may be able to look back and see where God's hand was at work. He was working things together for our good. Oh I know it may be hard to see God at work in the midst of the chaos. But we can trust that He is. And He will never leave us nor forsake us no matter how bleak things may appear.

A pastor once said that you can't minister from the dregs. Now, you may be wondering, "What on earth does that mean?"Let me put it in simpler terms. But before I get into that, let me remind you that this is not just a message for pastors, teachers, evangelists, worship leaders, etc. Every person who is born again is called to be a minister of the gospel. So this applies to each of us. That being said, let me break this down.

Imagine a friend calls you up and tells you they've run out of gas and they want you to bring them some. And suppose you think, "I have some gas in the can that's in my car, I'll take that to her." So you take it to her and when you get there she expresses gratitude. That is, until she goes to pour the gas in her car and finds that the can is nearly empty. There is only a small amount, not enough to do much good. This is what it's like when we attempt to minister to someone from the dregs. We haven't spent time in the word, in prayer, in worship, and in the presence of God. We haven't filled the tank.We're running on the fumes of yesterday's intake. Oh, we have some knowledge of the word. We know all the so called right things to say. But something is lacking. We are scraping the bottom of the barrel, and that takes a huge toll on us and makes us less effective as ministers.

When you go to the gas station to fill up your car there are usually signs that say not to top it off. But as believers we need to not only top it off, but to be filled to overflowing. It is then that we can minister from that overflow without feeling drained ourselves.

Over the years I have had seasons where I wasn't as "overflowing" as I should have been. So when someone came to me in need of something, I had very little to offer. It made me feel bad because I want to help others. But I realize that, in and of myself, I am not much use to anyone. My flesh likes to advise based on what the world would do. But it's not my flesh that needs to be ministering to others. It's the Spirit of God living on the inside of me. And this is why it is vitally important to spend that intimate time with God. In order to know His heart, we must study the word. We must spend time in prayer, not just asking for things, but listening to the voice of God and His leading.

As always, when I write something it is generally what God is speaking to me. It doesn't mean I've always mastered it. I still have times where I allow busyness to rob me of time with God. But that needs to change. I don't want to look back over my life and think that I missed out on helping others because I didn't take the time to first help myself. It kind of reminds me of being on a plane when something goes wrong and you need to put on the oxygen mask. In order to do any good for anyone else, you must first put on your own oxygen mask. What good would it do to attempt to help them, but then pass out from lack of oxygen? You'd be of no help at all.

~jan~

Veteran's Day at Fort Clinch 11-11-13

My daughter in law and I decided to go spend the day at Fort Clinch for Veteran's Day. We wanted to get some photos of the boys. My camera hasn't been doing right so I brought mine and she brought hers in the hopes of getting at least a few shots between the two of us.

Anyway, it was quite the adventure. Anytime you get these three together you're in for a wild time. By the time we were done, Jennifer and I thought perhaps the best idea would have been to just hire a photographer to do it. Whew! But it was worth it just to hang out with my little men. They are the joy of my life. And I wouldn't trade them for the world.

Today has been a very good day. My husband and I went to the Folk Festival and we got to hear some pretty amazing singers and musicians. I truly enjoyed it. There's just something about good harmony and exceptional music that makes me smile.

Over the years I've been blessed to sing with some pretty amazing voices. Usually much better voices than my own, but voices that I could blend well with. I love that moment when you hit the harmony part and it just sounds so sweet....it can give me chills when it's just right because you know that this is something special. Well, today I listened to several groups with really amazing harmonies. My ears were in heaven! The blend of their voices had that something special that I want to hear when I'm listening to singers. Alone they were great. Together they were even better. I honestly felt all mushy inside.

Thank you, God for giving me ears to hear that beautiful music. Let me never take it for granted.

Okay, so all that being said, I got to thinking about harmony in another sense. Living in harmony. Being united as brothers and sisters in Christ. So many times I've seen Christians attacking one another and I felt a bit embarrassed by it. I mean, the world outside is looking at how we behave and when we attack one another it's definitely not a good thing. Have you ever heard that saying, "You may be the only Jesus they ever see?" It's true. When we do something the world perceives as bad for a Christian to do, they automatically get this bad taste in their mouth about Jesus. He doesn't deserve the bad rap. We do. But the two are intertwined in their eyes. As I thought about that statement I made earlier, "Alone they were great. Together they were even better," I realized that when we are in unity, working together in living out the gospel and sharing it to a lost and dying world, we can accomplish so much more. The love we are shining through will be witnessed by those around us and make a much bigger impact on them. It will portray a Jesus they would like to know. And shouldn't that be our primary focus?

Last night I went out to eat with my family to celebrate my birthday. Things were going fine until my mother took a bite of chicken and immediately started choking. She was grabbing at her throat and trying to cough. She looked panic stricken. I got up and walked with her into the restroom. She was coughing, but nothing was coming up. I did the heimlich maneuver, but it still didn't come up. My husband came knocking on the bathroom door and I asked him to come in and perform the heimlich maneuver again. He did. Even though we never saw anything pop out, she was able to talk more and was coughing, which helps to dislodge it. It was indeed a scary moment when it happened; one I never want to repeat.

We finally made our way back to the table. I had barely eaten any of my food when the servers came over and began singing a birthday song, complete with gong and clapping. After their performance they said, "Happy Birthday, Jane!" My husband, mother and I started laughing. What made it even funnier was that my husband had told them my name and even spelled it. But this happens to me all the time. I don't know what it is about my name that people find so difficult. My name is JAN. I often wonder...if a man is named Dan and he introduces himself, do people say, "Glad to meet you Dane?" ;-)

Today, my son and daughter in law came to the house to redo my bathroom. It's been a long, exhausting day. But they did a good job and I really appreciate it. I am probably going to have to pop some Ibuprofen if I hope to get any sleep tonight. My body is already feeling it, and I didn't even do all the work they did. I just helped with cleaning out the old tile and such. But any time I do a lot of bending my back hurts. I also have issues with my elbow that was injured years ago, and with my knee. I was glad to finally be done for the night.

It's funny how people call to ask me advice about things that I have just struggled with myself. Oh, I know the proper response, but it's not always because I applied it in my own situation. I suppose I learned from my mistakes. But I have to wonder if  my telling them the right way to respond (when I didn't necessarily respond that way) is a bit hypocritical. I know I'm not perfect. Far from it. But sometimes people have placed me on this pedestal and think I have my act together and that I don't deal with their kind of issues. That's just not the case though. And I've learned over the years that when you place someone on a pedestal it's a long fall when they let you down. It's a lot of responsibility to place on someone's shoulders. Anyway, they continue to seek me out to answer their "spiritual" questions.

Some have jokingly said I missed my calling. I'm not so sure about that. I just think I know how to listen to what people are saying and I think before I speak.There have even been times when I waited a couple of days before I responded. It gave me time to pray and make sure my answer was in line with the word. It kind of depends on what I am being asked. I guess if I'm honest with myself I should see that the times when I react hastily and lose my temper are those times when I'm not listening and I'm not thinking before I speak. Which brings me to another point....self control. That's something I've been thinking a lot about lately. It's something I need to work on in several areas of my life. I think if I can get a handle on that, then a lot of issues would be resolved.

I guess in some ways, when people ask my advice, it helps me as much as it helps them. It's like a light bulb goes on as I'm talking about it. You know what they say, "It's so much easier to see another person's flaws than to see your own." But I've found that, in seeing another person's problem, and listening to their heart, it often times can bring conviction for things I may be struggling with. And other times it's confirmation about things I've been hearing.

I was sitting here thinking about David and his affair with Bathsheba. Surely, he had to know it was wrong. But why did it take Nathan having to tell him some story about a rich man with lots of sheep and cattle taking a lamb from a poor man for him to see that? David was appalled when Nathan told him this story. He wanted the man punished. And then Nathan says to him, "That man is you." Ouch. Nathan presented a problem to David and asked for advice. And David was quick to give it. But once Nathan revealed it was about him and Bathsheba, that revelation brought David to a place of repentance.

I know this isn't a well thought out blog...I'm just talking off the top of my head and not really trying to edit my thoughts. So hopefully someone can read and understand what I'm trying to say here. When I see a person's flaws, it would be easy for me to make judgments. But if I take the time to listen and to truly hear what is in someone's heart, and if I keep my mouth shut until I hear from God, perhaps I will see the mercy that needs to be displayed. It's the same mercy I would desire. And it's the same mercy we've all been shown when Christ died for us.

"For our light and momentary trials are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." 2 Corinthians 4:17-18

A few days ago I was driving to my son's house when I noticed storm clouds looming overhead. It wasn't raining yet, but I figured it soon would be. Sure enough, as soon as I got to where the clouds were, the rain started pouring down. I was thinking about the blue skies I had previously been under and how it changed so quickly. It's kind of how life is. We can be sailing along smoothly without a care in the world when all of a sudden some trial knocks us upside the head. We didn't expect it and often times, we have no clue how to deal with it. I'm not just talking about dealing with it in the natural. I am referring to how we handle it in a spiritual sense. As believers, we should be prepared for these things. The word tells us that we will face trials. Knowing this, we have to be prepared for how we will respond before we're smack dab in the middle of the trial. That requires spending time meditating the word, and spending time with God in prayer, learning to recognize his voice. These things help to develop a strong relationship with God, and help us to understand what God has to say about the various trials we face. It also helps us to know that we can trust him even if our prayers aren't answered in the way or in the timing we think they should be. It's a lot harder to trust after the fact. Think about it. If you've never had a relationship with someone and then find yourself in a place where you need their help, do you feel confident that they will do what they say? Probably not. Oh, there may be times when you will have to trust someone you're not familiar with, but it's so much easier to trust the ones you know well. And trusting God is much easier when you have an intimate relationship with him. We all go through things in life. And we will most likely have to go through more trying times at some point. Building our faith in the little things helps us to stand firm when faced with bigger things. That reminds me of the story of David and Goliath. In 1 Samuel 17:33-37 it says:

33 Saul replied, “You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a young man, and he has been a warrior from his youth.”

34 But David said to Saul, “Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, 35 I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. 36 Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. 37 The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.”

David knew that God had helped him in smaller things (though I would think those animals were pretty ferocious) and it gave him the confidence that God would be with him in the bigger battle.

At times people have told me, "I don't have the faith you have." As I hear their words, I am reminded of my own questions, doubts and fears. They don't see me as I do. There are times when I really struggle with things. Like why did my cousin die when she had faith for her healing? In those times, I seek answers. And guess what; I may not find them. There are some things in this life that we will never fully understand. But we have to trust that God knows best and that in the end we will see that all of it was working to fulfill his plan. It can be hard, especially if I'm slacking on spending time in the word. It's all about focus. I find that my faith seems strongest when my eyes are fixed on Jesus, not on the problems or cares of life.

In Matthew 14:25-29 we read the story of Peter walking on water.

25 Now in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea. 26 And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out for fear.

27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.”

28 And Peter answered Him and said, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.”

29 So He said, “Come.” And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus. 30 But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!”

Peter was fine walking on the water as long as his eyes were focused on Jesus. But the moment he looked at the storm around him, he began to sink. And that's what happens with us. If we can remain focused on God, the trials around us will not cause us to lose heart. Our faith will help us stand.