Leap of Faith

                      Marriage should be honored by all...
                                                                     Hebrews 13:4

                     After dating for countless years they finally agreed that it was time to marry. They decided to stay engaged for a year so they could plan an elaborate wedding. It needed so much planning. 

                    When the six month period hit they both began to doubt. "Is he the one?" "Does she still want to be with me?"

                  
                      In God's hands 

              "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. 
                                             Ephesians 5:31

              Marriage is a complicated thing in many ways. And for this reason many believe that  you have to train for it by saving up much money and or date many people to see who you're "compatible" with. The thing is, what if I told you that that's a lie. There is nothing we can do to prepare for such an amazing and terrifying relationship. 

             Marriage is actually a leap of faith! It's where two people, one man and one woman, bind themselves to each other by the law and by the flesh. I think many of us wish that there was a special secret recipe to having a good or even great marriage. Well actually there is! It's not necessarily a secret but the answer is Jesus. He is the healer, the leader, the guide ...He is everything we need! Now, he's not a genie. He won't grant all your greatest wishes. Jesus wants to be apart of your life and your marriage. If you're not married yet like me, continue placing this in his hands. It's difficult to wait but the outcome will be worth it. 

           Everything you do in your life is a leap of faith. Next time you feel that fear of sharing your life with this person you've been getting to know, remember that God has you and this man in his hands and that he has a wonderful plan for your lives that can be trusted. 




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Are We Really Independent?

           You hem me in-behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me. 

                                                                                                                  Psalm 139:5

                         Ahhh, the good life. I can do whatever I want! I can go outside when I want. When I want to play I can and I can eat whenever I want. All I need to do is look at my master with my big brown goo goo eyes.

                       Hmm. Do you ever feel like that? Like you can do whatever you want? You can go wherever you want? You're independent and free! Or are you?

                                                              I'm good

               Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?

                                                                                                               Psalm 139:7

                     Have you ever thought of us as human beings? You may think, Yeah! We're pretty good. We're intelligent, clean etc. Well, have you thought how fragile we are? Like I look at my fingers. I have all these hang nails, nicks and cuts. My hands dry out horribly during the winter and they look like 70 year old hands instead of a 24 year old's. Our skin can tear from small little cuts to huge gashes. We can break like twigs under certain circumstances, we can lose our balance and get bruised. You may think it's your own brains keeping you from getting terribly hurt or worse. Naw ah, it's God's grace that's keeping the air in your lungs.  

                   I don't drive. I don't think it's a bad thing; I choose not to because I'm not comfortable yet. I've heard my share of "advice" on driving so I could be free and independent. Those who shared their thoughts on my "predicament" meant well but I would assure them I was fine. I don't see being able to drive as the symbol for independence. I could keep going on with this but I won't. I think we as a culture need to change our perspective and thinking. Or let God change our hearts. We think we're good. We don't need anyone, we're our own boss. "I can take care of myself." Ultimately We are all very dependent. Our very life, each breath we take in and every heart beat that pounds in our chests is orchestrated and is choreographed by the God of life. He has already written out our lives like a dance or a sheet of music. We simply can't try to figure out what we think goes with the music of life. We need our Instructor to lead us through this life. 

          O Lord, you have searched me and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar.

                                                              Psalm 139:1-2     

Shelter or danger?

              

        And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. To him be the power for ever and ever Amen.
                                                            1 Peter 5:10-11
                  

                  One day last year when summer was turning into fall one of my sisters yelled for my Mom and other sisters to see what she was watching. It was one of the strangest things I've ever seen. We are renting a house that is on eighty acres of land. It's a huge field then it ends right there with a wire fence and all these brambles and grass growing on it, then a ditch that's about four feet across by a busy road. Now the weird thing was a deer was bounding so flawlessly across the field. It seemed to be in a hurry. It took it about a minute to get to the fence. It pounced quickly over the fence and ditch! It landed on the road and stood very still. Casually it walked across the road. We were all screaming for the deer to move its hiney across the road!! It did not hear our cries of alarm. It reached the golf course on the other side safely.

                                       Peace in the storm
       Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
                                                                                                Psalm 23:4

                Why did that deer rush across the field and not across the road? That just did not make any sense to me. The thing was, that was such a metaphor of us. As followers of Christ we need to be focused like that deer. Put yourself in that creatures ...hooves. Having to run across a huge field. Jump over a humongous obstacle then, cross this black hard thing that always has these fast running shiny things that hurt your friends and even kills them without mercy!! Oh man, what did the deer want so bad?! The golf course across the road from our house is so beautiful. It has big rolling fields of grass. It has a couple ponds and a beautiful view of the Canadian mountains. I don't know if the deer cares about the view but, that sounds wonderful doesn't it? 

                What about us? We get so scared of the things of this world. We get overcome by Satan's lies, by the negativity of  friends and the shattering of dreams. We tend to forget the reality of whats truly important. Our dear Father! He is the one we need to keep our eyes on. He is our peaceful golf course. God is calling us to reach the lost. We shouldn't just wait out the storm, we need to jump in it and follow God's call of reaching out to the casualties of this bloody battle. He is our shelter in this storm.  

Practice or Preperation?

      Prepare your work outside; Get everything ready for yourself in the field, and after that build your house.

                      Proverbs 24:27

         What do we usually practice with?  Riding a bike, w hen in grade school we practice our ABC's, writing etc.  When we get older we practice giving speeches, we practice singing, dancing or even how we treat others. What about preparation? Is there a difference?

                               Prepare to be amazed!

  But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.

                          1 Peter 3:15

         

           What is the difference between practice and preparation anyway?

                  Practice- Carry out or perform ( a particular activity, method or custom) habitually or regularly.

                  Preparation- The action or process of making ready or being made ready for use or consideration.

        There's a big difference between the two. 

        I will never forget this comment that this girl said. Back when Twilight (the first movie) came out in theaters, my sisters and I were so excited. After the movie came out on DVD we bought it and threw a movie night for some of the other girls in the neighborhood. After the movie we asked the girls some questions. I think we asked if the girls think it's okay to kiss when you're dating someone. One girl piped up and  answered loudly and confidently; 

             " Oh, I think it's good to kiss. You have to practice so when you get married you'd be able to know how to kiss!"

       I admired her outspokenness and honesty. What she believed, though, concerned me. 

              Yes there are things you can practice with, but when it comes to human beings that is not right. You don't need to practice kissing your boyfriend or multiple boyfriends. All that opens you up to is lust and sexual addiction.  The thing is that's not the most important thing when you get married. Yes it's important that you like kissing but, what you can prepare for is being married to a man! You can prepare for marriage by reading what the Bible says about it and ask your parents, and other married family members or friends. The most important thing is to ask God to prepare you and trust him.

            As followers of Christ we get practice and preparation mixed up. Practicing sounds more like it's ritualistic.  Preparation is more personal. Your parents prepare you for how you are to act in public. You are prepared for abiding by the law, being able to understand you can't always get what you want and respecting rules by you being disciplined by your parents. God can prepare us for things that he wants us to do in our lives. 

           There was a young woman who was very thin, short and had stick straight black hair. She was often looked down on and she felt dejected. One day she felt led by God to go on a mission trip to a different country. She ended up going to China and guess what?  She fit right in! God prepares us for things we can't even imagine! 

          There are things you have to practice for and there are things you are prepared for. What is God preparing you for?