New Year - New Adventure

Welcome to the new year! It's a little late coming, so forgive me, but if you know me personally, you know my year has been a delightful new adventure!

A couple days before my birthday, I got engaged to an amazing friend and partner in the Kingdom of God.  We are working out details for a wedding, but getting to know each other better is our top goal right now as we pray about those details.

New adventures always bring more dynamic and thrilling views, along with the harder paths and rockier terrain.  I choose the hard stuff for the good stuff, and that's where I've been most blessed.  What about you?

If you've chosen a road less traveled, let me encourage you today... don't give up on the things you love because of the effort it takes to get them.  This is as true in any relationship as it is in a life-goal: hard times come, but the reward is worth it.

Hang in there and keep pressing forward!

Encouragement from Scripture...

Galations 6:9
So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.

Philippians 3:14
I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.

The New Leg of Our Journey: Crystal Laine

For anyone that has read my blogs throughout the years, you may not know that my writing extends beyond this website.  I have been writing music and lyrics for over ten years now, and praying for every line to be used in some way.  For an artist, to reveal artwork is a huge risk, because we make ourselves vulnerable to the world's interpretation of it in addition to our intention behind it.   At the same time, this risk is what makes artwork so beautiful and vibrant:  every perspective brings a new light to the artwork.

Without "too much, too soon," I'll share with you that I've ventured into this new journey with you of singing and songwriting.  I specifically titled this post as "Our" instead of "My" because - without a doubt - no artist does it alone.  This is so much more than "all about me".  There are countless people that fall into the category of musician, producer, encourager, promoter, listener, and prayer partner (to name a few).  All play a pivotal role in ensuring a message reaches the ears, eyes, and hearts of people worldwide and throughout the generations to come.

In the next few months, I'll be working with some local musicians (including Phillip Gonzales) and distant musicians (including my cousin, Zack Leffew) to polish and record songs.  I need your help in these ways:

• Pray - For me, every administrative aspect of this dream's goal, people to be blessed by it, and for the people who *get* to deal with me ;)
• Write - Send me a note to encourage me, ask specific questions about the music, or to let me know of the best calorie-free chocolate recipe you can find
• Share - With your friends, family, online community, the doorman, the taxicab driver, and the neighbor's pets (to name a few)

Below I have just a couple links to my new social media sites where people can "follow" or "like".  Please pass them on, have no shame in sharing, and help me stay accountable on this journey.  I'm excited.  I'm challenged to new levels.  I think you will like taking this trip with me.  ;)

Facebook | CrystalLaineSings

Twitter | @CrystalLaine28

One final note: don't give up on dreams God has placed in your heart.  Trust Him and His timing, walk closely with Him even when you don't see fruition, and enjoy His presence every step of the way.

Soli Deo Gloria

Transformation (Scripture Notes: Psalm 30)

“Sing to the Lord, all you godly ones! Praise his holy name. For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime! Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning.” 

-Psalm 30:4-5 (NLT)

I find it refreshing to know that, while God has a time for everything, He gives little of it to anger and weeping. Rather, He dwells on the good: favor and joy. Favor for a lifetime and joy in the morning.

Notice that He doesn't promise to shelter us from His anger or from the weeping that this world brings, but He does bring favor and joy that far outlast the time spent in anger or weeping. And not only that, but He transforms us by the bad into something good. His anger becomes the action that leads to Him disciplining us because He loves us. Our weeping and mourning become joyful dancing.

Why does He do this?

So that, out of our great thankfulness, we will finally see a bigger piece of His great love for us.

vs. 11-12
“You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing. You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy, that I might sing praises to you and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give you thanks forever!”

Bloom Where Planted (A Reflective Entry on Nehemiah 05)

I was driving a friend to dinner one night and happened to have a conversation with her over the phrase “bloom where you are planted”.  You may have grown up with the phrase, like I did, but she is from a different country and was unfamiliar with the phrase. 

“Bloom where you are planted. Basically, it means to grow wherever God puts you. You know, like a flower blooms in the soil.”

Then, my friend made a very valid statement, “But sometimes, the flower dies.”

Ah, yes.  Sometimes the flower dies.  Sometimes the plant withers and the heart breaks.  Sometimes the dream is turned to dust.  Sometimes the walls are destroyed.  Let me be a little vulnerable here: sometimes I don’t bloom.  Sometimes my dreams are crushed and sometimes my walls are destroyed.  Sometimes, all the work of my lifetime that I have put into a task or a project is looked over and I’m left wondering, “What is left?”

Well, a fragment.  Fragments are left.  Nehemiah’s city was fragmented.  And what did he do with the vision God placed in his heart?  Nehemiah led his fellow countrymen (and women!) into a strategic plan to rebuild what was fragmented.  The key to their success was to take what was in front of them and build it up based on the threats that were specific to their part of the wall.  Each person was responsible for a little part, and their little part, in turn, helped fortify the whole city.

God has a vision for rebuilding us, too.  When you or I find ourselves left with pieces of a fragmented dream, or even a reality that went badly wrong, God will step in to redeem these fragmented pieces and build something even greater out of them, if we let Him. 

Garden of Gethsemane, Israel
May 2012

You see, sometimes the flower dies, but sometimes it only dies for a season.  Sometimes it just needs to be replanted into richer soil (like when you lose a job and are relocated), fertilized with the right nutrients (like when you become sick and have to cleanse your body of the sickness), watered (like when you are simply drained from life and need to take time to rest and recuperate), or placed in the right light (like when you have a bad day that helps you see a different perspective). 

Chapter 3 of Nehemiah shows us that God’s plan for our success involves not just where we’re at, but it is also about taking advantage of the other resources He has given us in this place.  Also, we learn that no success is found alone – there are always people surrounding us and God directing us.  As in blooming, I may be the best gardener ever, but God alone sees that the seed opens and life comes forth.

Blooming is not easy.  Blooming requires lots of growth, lots of change, lots of waiting, and lots of weather changes.  But this process also develops strength and beauty that cannot be found in a closed seed sitting in soil. 

Dare to pick up the pieces of what is left.  Dare to go to God with a fragment and work with Him as He rebuilds what has been broken and lost in your life.  Dare to bloom where you have been planted.

Questions for Reflection

• What things in your life have been shattered (seemingly) beyond repair?
• Can you see where God has had a divine purpose in allowing these things to happen?
• How might God use your broken walls to draw people closer together? How might God use your broken walls to draw people to Him?  What makes the difference in bringing people together and bringing people to Him?
• Are you willing to let God restore what has been lost in your life?
• What is holding you back from daring to live a life of Christ-honoring influence in the place God has planted you?

God Knows Your Need

I needed an escape.  

I needed to feel the wind in my hair and feel free from the stress of the world.  Just for an afternoon.  Just for a little while.  I just needed an escape.

So I grabbed my headphones (after a frustratingly long search), hopped on my bike, and headed out for an adventure.  I had some ideas of where I could go but I just knew I needed to ride.  I planned to bike to a friend’s house and just decompress there for a few minutes.  I didn't hear back from my friend in time to make the turn to her house, though, so I sat at the intersection for a moment, trying to decide on my course of action. 

I could take the risky road – the one I hadn't biked before – and see what new places I could find.  Or, I could turn around and go back from the direction I came.  I needed an escape.  Adventure. I took the new road.

In my defense, I have driven this road often, but I had never biked this road.  I could tell you major landmarks, but I could not tell you details about the shops that lined it or the sights that surrounded it.  I needed to see a different perspective.  While praying for protection and direction, I was also praying for God to speak to my soul this day.  Lord, I desperately need You right now to show me things I would not normally see.

Butterflies and wildflowers lined my trail - there were so many
butterflies that I was afraid I was going to run over them as I
breezed past them! But what a beautiful sight - the fluttering
white all around me!  

That day, I had the best bike ride I have had in a long time.  I took the time to get off my bike and bend down close to the flowers, to notice the little details of the path, to explore shops and diners I had never known were so close to home.  I found a park! I drank a fruit smoothie.  I took pictures of the water. I joked with the fishermen on the bridge.  This was “me”.  This is me. 

Most importantly from that day, God whispered into my heart life. This was the "life" I needed to see, hear, taste, touch, and smell.

Let’s face it: there are some people in life that speak to you in a way that nobody else can.  These people know how to speak love and truth to you, and you can receive it knowing you’re safe with them.  Their words may sting but they do not cut.  Their presence may compel, but it does not overwhelm. 

This is how God spoke to me that day: 

as the One who knows me. 

My stresses.

My heartache.

My joy and delight.

My questions.

My dreams.

My need.

God knows what I need.  God knows what you need.  I was desperate enough to run away with Him to a place where He could speak to me.  And He did.  He glided with me down a path of a thousand butterflies, all the while orchestrating that a beautiful song of life would be playing in my ears. 

Are you desperate enough to push away the things that are holding you back and to run away with Him like you might a lover?  Are you that desperate?  Because He can speak life to you in that desperation.  Run to Him.  Run with Him.  Look for the butterflies on your path and listen to His promises that He sings over you.  

He knows your need.

"For I am about to do something new.  See, I have already begun!   Do you not see it?  I will make a pathway through the wilderness.  I will create rivers in the dry wasteland."

-Isaiah 43:19 (NLT)

A Revelation of Change

Do you ever face so much change and challenges at once that you're not really sure what to think?

I'm learning so much right now that I can't hardly keep my thoughts straight.  I want to learn much, but the intensity of it is shutting me up - making me too humble to even talk about it until I can process it all.  There is big change going on inside of my heart.  At the same time, with all the pain and ache of change, I feel closest to God.  These are the times that give me strength for the "easy" times.  

I'm thankful for God's presence.  I'm thankful that I can speak the truth, whether I believe it or not, and that the truth sets my heart and my emotions free.  I'm thankful that God does not condemn me for all the faulty things I'm learning about myself.  Rather, He has convicted me of them so I can become more of who He designed me to be when He created me.  

Change is super-good.  But it's super painful.  I don't know how I'll make it through the challenge, but I always seem to do so somehow.  God in me is stronger than even I know. 

And this is why I choose to accept the change, the growth, that is being manifested inside of me:

"...when God has put His call on you, woe be to you if you turn to the right hand or to the left.  He will do with you what He never did with you before the call came; He will do with you what He is not doing with other people.  Let Him have His way."  (Oswald Chambers in "My Utmost for His Highest")

I want to be made into what God has for me.  It's not easy, but it's exhilarating.  What life can be truly fulfilled when it is not moving in the way it was created to move?  When can a heart be more rich than one that flows in it's designated purpose?  

From Vision to Reality: GCWS

Five months ago I sat in a hotel breakfast lounge on the west side of the Sea of Galilee.  We were getting ready to head out to a day of exploring the beautiful land of Israel near Tiberias.  My roommate and I were just enjoying our delicious breakfast when none other but our pastor, Pastor Dan Betzer, joined us at our table.  Wow!  What an honor!  To have someone you respect so much take the time to eat breakfast with you is something not soon forgotten.

We were glad to have him join us.  Not people to be shy, we included him in our conversation and enjoyed the humor he infused into it.  Then he hinted at a project he was working on, a vision, really.  Something that had been on his heart for a while but that God was just putting the finishing pieces together for it - and they were coming together quickly.  That was all.  He didn't share anything except that God was working out something big.

Now, if you know anything about Pastor Betzer, you know that God doesn't put small dreams in his heart. You also know that when God puts dreams in his heart, he doesn't see them as dreams, he sees them as goals.  The great lesson I've learned under Pastor Betzer's leadership throughout the years has been faith.  Faith, faith, faith.  Not that you can't have doubts, but that faith does not have to be swayed by doubts.

That being said, we didn't think much more of the conversation, and we enjoyed a magnificent day of touring on our dream trip.

Fast forward to now.  Much has happened, you understand, between then and now, to make now a reality.  But this was the work God was doing in Israel: The Great Commission World Summit.  It's like a huge fundraiser, yes: the goal is to raise $50 million in one night, November 2, 2012.

But that is just the tactical end of things.  $50 million represents millions of lives impacted by the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.  It is not about the money.  It's about what will happen with the money.  It's about getting Jesus into the hands of people who have not yet heard of him.  A project like this has a ripple effect that will last for generations to come.

Consider Paul's challenge regarding sharing the good news about Jesus:

"But how can they call on him [Jesus] to save them unless they believe in him?  And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent?  That is why the scriptures say, 'How beautiful are the feet of messengers who bring good news!'" (Romans 10:14-15)

 You can be a part of lots of things that help spread the good news about Jesus, and I don't discount one over this one.  This is just another opportunity, and I encourage you to be a part of it, whether by coming to the event on Friday night, or by streaming it live, or by sharing it with people you know.

For information on the project, you can visit their website here.

The Great Commission World Summit from First Assembly of God on Vimeo.

Let's show the world the incredible gift of Jesus!

The Cost of Garbage in New York

When my brother first moved to New York, he shared with me that the local town he lived in charges $2 for each bag of garbage he puts out to the street.  On top of that, if it is not tagged in a certain way, they would not take it.  $2 does not seem like much, but the cost can certainly add up.  Still, I thought it was quite comical to hear him tell of this "inconvenience".

The way my mind works, I quickly thought about how we have to pay for the garbage in our minds that we want out too.  We pay with stress, emotions, frustrations, peer-pressure, and lost friends when we choose to live a life righteously.  It's not much different from the rest of humanity, except when you make a decision to live righteously, you gain an abundance of peace in your life that you'd never thought possible.

Peace comes from being right with God.  If I'm struggling with peace in my heart, I first ask myself what I might be doing that is not honoring Him.  Everything about my peace returns whenever I make a choice to live "righteously" (in right standing with God) again.

Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand.  His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. (Phil. 4:7)

Tupper Lake, NY

Copycats

Stray twins from a spring litter 2012 

I feel like it's so easy to fall into a pattern of believing life should be a certain way because it has been a custom of our own little world; of our generation; of our society.  We look at this in the physical sense most of the time (looks, tastes, feels), but what about the spiritual?  What about our thoughts?

Often, I've found, I've justified something or classified it as a character trait of God because of the way society tells me God is (or should be).  May I be a person that seeks truth above standards and that seeks to honor God above doing something simply because it's the custom.  

And may I also be a person humble enough to accept the customary when I find it to actually be an honor to God.

Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.  Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. (Romans 12:2)

Brilliantly Pure starts out Ugly

In May, I had the incredible privilege of touring the great country of Israel with some dear church family members.  We stayed in Jerusalem for a couple of days and then made our way to the western side of the Sea of Galilee, where we stayed at a beautiful resort in Tiberias.  I certainly enjoyed the entire trip, but having a thing for water, you can imagine why I soaked up Tiberias...

Looking South:  View from our Hotel in the Afternoon

And if the afternoon was not quite soothing enough, perhaps you would fall in love, like I did, with the invigorating sunrises over the Sea of Galilee....

Sunrise over the Sea of Galilee - Looking due West from the Resort

Little do many from our trip know, however, that there was something even more beautiful happening within my room.  Late one evening, a woman from our tour came to my room and prayed with my roommate and I.  We talked for a while and discussed life.  And we prayed hard.  We prayed hard, the three of us, to break down walls and seek God for turning points in our life.  And we broke down walls, spiritually speaking.

My prayer that night was to see Jesus' face more clearly in my life.  I want to focus on what is right and push aside what is wrong so I can "achieve my destiny", if you will, according to God's plan for my life.

My prayer wasn't bad.  But my prayer requires an answer that is not quickly forthcoming.  How much have you lived, like I, hoping for an answer to really just slip out of nowhere?

Recently I read an old devotional entry from Smith Wigglesworth's Devotional dated May 20:

"In the melting pot, He removes the skimmings until His face is seen.  When the metal reflects Him, it is pure."  

Remember how I mentioned I wanted to see Jesus' face more clearly?  Well I finally figured out the key to this task: Give God time and expect some heat.  There's always fire involved in a purification process.

So I'm doing that.  I'm choosing to make changes in my life that will give me more focus on the One I love and that will help me develop that lasting relationship where, even when the burner's on and I'm boiling, I'm still getting brighter.  This is why I can be called brilliantly pure: because I'm choosing to face the fire for the gold.

Will you?

Abortion, the Holocaust, and Salvation

Isaiah 1:18
Come now, let us reason together....

I'm not a fan of trickery or fooling people.  I'm very passionate about people knowing Christ and committing their lives to Him, but no change comes from deception.  This is why I so appreciate Ray Comfort's approach with people.  Give him a chance - he may come off as pushy at first, but you will see towards the end that he was only provoking conversation.  There's no commitment card signed by people in this video, only thought-provoking conversations that encourage people to make an informed decision in their own time.

I also appreciate his down-to-earth approach at the fact that we are all sinners - none of us are perfect, none of us are worthy of God's favor.  But we have a "parachute", we have a "bridge", we have a "lifeline", and that is Jesus Christ.

I encourage you to watch this video if you have not.  What are your thoughts?

The In-Between

Seasons in life resemble a story.  We have an intro, a plot, a climax, a resolution, and the end.  That's how every season goes. This ebb and flow of a season can bring about physical and mental sickness from the roller coaster ride of emotions we all go through (right mom??).

Then, there's always the in-between time.  That time between the end of one season and the beginning of another.  All the waters are steadily flowing - no major cliffs or rocks ahead.  But we can be sure that there are rough waters coming. These rough waters always bring about change. 

Now I'm not a huge lover of change.  There's a lot of comfort in knowing something is stable and working well.  I have a good job.  I have a good family life.  I have a good church.  I have a reliable car.  Yada yada yada....

The change factor is so painful.  It just is.  It rips us from these norms and most times, the pain is totally worth it.  Sometimes it's not.  However, I really believe change is what we make of it.

I chose today, while faced with anxiety, to praise God.
I chose today, while frustrated with illness, to keep working on (and believing in) healing.
I chose today, while my schedule changed, to be excited about the different opportunity.

If we stay in that in-between place and refuse to face change, we will be sitting pretty until the sun rots our skin.  (Go with the metaphor, people... :))  But as we move with calm and turbulent waters, we become more beautiful and we are saved from lack of purpose.  And we also learn that, oftentimes, there is no "dropoff ahead", but rather, a very lovely place of new life.

And if ever you doubted that God can use [seemingly bad or hard] change for good purposes, don't.

Miriam chose, while babies were being killed, to trust her baby Moses to the God who controls the water.  And her son became the rescuer of an entire nation from slavery.

Harriet Tubman chose, to stand up for justice and took a beating for a fellow slave at a very young age.  Later, God used her to rescue slaves in America for many, many years.  She knew what a beating was like and was able to face it head on when it came.  She was unafraid of it anymore.

Mary chose, while facing incredible ridicule, to become mother to the Savior of the world - and later watch him die for the world.  Would she have changed her mind if she could go back?  I don't believe she would consider it for an instant.


Let's move from that in-between place.  Let's not let fear of change keep us from pulling our shoulders back, looking toward heaven, and letting God walk us through it gracefully with strength and purpose.

Giving time to Anger

Ephesians 4:26 (MSG)

Go ahead and be angry.  You do well to be angry-but don’t use your anger as a fuel for revenge.  And don’t stay angry.  Don’t go to bed angry.  Don’t give the Devil that kind of foothold in your life.

I was talking with a new friend today.  A very positive person, I wondered how they would answer the question:  what makes you angry?

It’s easy for me to assume something makes everyone angry.  And perhaps that’s still true, but my friend’s response got me to thinking about what I possibly waste on anger.  

Let me explain – 

Anger should always only be temporary.  The Bible talks about letting go of the anger because if we do not, the Devil will have a place in our life to step in and control us like a puppeteer.  

So my challenge to myself is this: don’t go to bed angry.  Also, never give anger more than a moment’s thought during the times that it does come around.  

Every moment angry is a moment for the Devil to move closer to me, and that’s the last thing I want. No dancing with the Devil for me, sir.  No thanks!

And what do I waste?  I waste time to praise and thank God.  It seems like only moments now, but when I get to heaven one day, I don’t want to have wasted a single moment on anger when I could have invested it in my Lover, my King, my Savior.

Anger Management Class...

Live every moment....

Live every moment, as though it was your last
Before the Thief of Always steals tomorrow from your grasp
Before the chance to know His love has somehow passed you by
Let your heart reach out, right here, right now, for the Lord to touch your life
                           -Jaci Velasquez, Thief of Always

 A few weeks ago, I went to spend time with one of my friends from choir.  Though about 50 years separates us, I love her as if she’s a sister my age.  We ate at her favorite pizza parlor and she gave me a tour of her home.  She moved here several years ago at the insistence of her children, who lovingly purchased and furnished the beautiful place she lives in.  She has nothing but praise and love for them. 

One thing that is just remarkable to me about this lady is that she is such a graceful and welcoming person.  There aren’t very many people who don’t just have a blast spending time with her.  Spunky, she is.  She’s not willing to give in to discouragement, though she deals with it often.  I admire her greatly.

That is probably some of the reasons why a lady in her development, Tanya, became such good friends with her.  Tanya has been dealing with medical issues for a while, but you’d never know it looking at her.  She’s spunky too, but a bit more quite than my friend.  So I had the delightful idea when I was visiting my friend, to plan for a ladies’ night in where we could invite Tanya to lift her spirts a little and have fun together.  We were going to plan it as soon as I got back from my trip.

That was a couple weeks ago.  Last Thursday, Tanya passed away suddenly. 

I grieve because I simply miss her sweet spirit, but I know that as I grieve, she rejoices with no pain, and with the love of her life.  I take great comfort in that.  Also, as Pastor Phyllis mentioned at her memorial service, Tanya simply got an address change, and those who know Jesus with see her again someday.

While I celebrate the fact that Tanya is at peace, I am also challenged to not let a moment go by when God brings someone to my heart.  Take advantage of that opportunity now, because it may not be there tomorrow, and you never know what God might have for you to learn from that moment. 

 “Father, I want those you gave me to be with me right where I am…” John 17:24

Here's a little blast from the past.  Enjoy. :)

Faithfulness v. Stubbornness

The most dangerous thing you can do is to take any one impulse of your own nature and set it up as the thing you ought to follow at all costs.  There is not one of them which will not make us into devils if we set it up as an absolute guide.

- C. S. Lewis in Mere Christianity

I've never really thought about the difference between the two: faithfulness and stubbornness.  One has a positive connotation, one a negative.  Often, I've interchanged the words, but the passage in Lewis's book has made me think twice.

Faithfulness says "I'm going to do this because it is right and I want to live a righteous life."  Stubbornness says "I'm going to do this because it is right and I am required to do what is right."  Both can do the "right" thing, but only faithfulness will do it with the right attitude.  

Faithfulness produces growth.  Stubbornness produces despair. Faithfulness will bless you when you have achieved your goal.  Stubbornness will deflate you.

Faithfulness causes us to let go of the goals and dreams we have so we can go in new directions.  Stubbornness keeps us on one path until we reach that goal, but allows no room for mistake or outside influence.  We will probably end up in the same place, but getting there stubbornly can be very painful.  Getting there faithfully will bring lots of joy to us and to those around us along the way.  

Most of all, faithfulness denotes a trust in God for our strength.  Stubbornness relies solely on ourselves.  What things in your life can you stop being stubborn about, and start being faithful about?

Just for smiles... :)

Reevaluation

It's that season - a time in life where you have been driving down a highway and all of the sudden find yourself on a side street, with the GPS voice reading off "recalculating, recalculating". 

Sometimes we look at the roads we're on in life and we can see a long drive.  We can be content there because we know what's up ahead.  We can anticipate the traffic, the turns, and the scenery.  And sometimes, we  look at the roads and see a dead end.  How did we get here?  We were traveling straight, steady.  We took no stops or detours. 

But wait, perhaps we should have.

That's the spot.  That's the recalculation, the reevaluation place. Maybe you stay on this road, but maybe you need to turn down another.  And only God knows which way is the correct way.

It's not really something to get stressed out about.  After all, "we can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps." (Proverbs 16:9). 

So it comes to this: pulling off to the side, and looking at our road map, calling the person we're headed to see, and reevaluating our course.  This is where I, and several of my friends, find ourselves.

I'm seeking God through the Bible and prayer and counsel.  I'm hanging out on the side of the road for just a little bit while I get my bearings. I'm sure I won't be here long.  There's a lot of road to travel.

Pastor Dan Betzer once made the comment about choosing how to proceed in a huge life decision - if you're really not sure what to do, don't do anything.

If you're in this season with me, let's be proactive about seeking God and serving others while we wait for an answer.  You never know when the call is going to come, so make the most of this time, and you'll be ready when it does.  

Road trip...

Waiting v. Camping

I mentioned in an earlier post about reading Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis (1952).  I've only made it through the preface with my busy schedule, but there were several things that grabbed my thinker and took off running.

I enjoy the way Lewis has written in such a direct style.  There is little fluff, but lots of illustration, in his writing.  Toward the end of the preface (pg. 12), Lewis is describing decisions we must make in life regarding how we will live out our faith.

However, he goes on to point out that while we are waiting to make certain decisions, we must remember this is a time of waiting, not of camping.  Rather, don't get too comfortable.  As Lewis explains it, we must keep seeking God on the matters, even though we are in a waiting time, because we are not there to stay.

This train of thought has led me to remember the Bible verse that clearly says we must have faith if we are going to have any chance at all of pleasing God.  In our times of waiting, we have to keep seeking God, believing that He has more for us than this "hallway", and believing that He will answer us.

I'm choosing to seek and believe.  Let's live proactively in the waiting time, and save the camping for our recreation times.

One of the Most Important Things....

...to God is relationships.

I would argue that yes, God wants us to have relationships with others on every level and to experience the interest, joy, frustration, excitement, allure, confusion, disappointment, hope, pain, and growth through relationships with others. Why? Because this is the one place in life He knows we are completely hopeless without calling on Him to get us through.

From MotivationalTwist.Com

(Repost from an old blog.  Original publish date was 11/1/08.)

2012 Goal: Be Who I Was Made To Be

There are things that we have to do in life that - man - we just do not want to do.  We don't want to face the challenge, we don't want to deal with the possibility of defeat, nor do we want to fail.  We sometimes play the voices of our past critics in our head and battle their attacks with ways we can be better to, essentially, prove them wrong.

Last year, my brother went through Officer's Candidate School, and was thrown into a class of incredible, incredible men and women all pining to be dubbed officer's for the US Army.  His class's cutoff scores for physical fitness was higher than any other class before him, and he made it by a hair.  Every day was a challenge - a good one, at that - but a challenge nevertheless.

During this same time, I was taking state exams and not doing so well on them.  I've always been a high achiever, so it hit me hard to be so uncertain about my scores.  My brother was able to call me for a few minutes one day, and we talked about how what really matters at this point is that we have done our absolute best, and that we pass the test.  Not that we actually come in first place, but that we pass.  We've both found ourselves in leagues of extraordinary people this last year, and it's been exhilarating to be in their company.  Humbling, too.  What this means, though, is that while our best score may be the worst one of the group, it's still our best.  And our best is still good enough.

My pastor, Pastor Dan Betzer, quoted Theodore Roosevelt this week, and I was very encouraged by his words on pressing forward.

It is not the critic who counts:  not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better.  The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat.


"Citizenship in a Republic"
Speech at the Sorbonne, Paris, April 23, 1910*

So please make a resolution to live with me this year, to be who we were made to be, to jump in our life's arena with the heart God put into us and move with Him.  After all, He earns the right to be a critic since He's right there with us all along.



*Retrieved from http://www.theodoreroosevelt.org/life/quotes.htm in January 2012

2012 Goal: Believe Bigger

I don't know one single person that would not benefit from believing bigger about God's ability and the ability He has instilled inside of each of us.  Too often, we find ourselves backing out of things before we even attempt them, though, because we don't believe God made us strong enough for something.

Remember Moses in the Bible?  God chose him to lead an entire nation to freedom, but he was so scared of speaking that God had to use Aaron, his brother, to speak to the crowds.  It's not to say that God didn't know this was going to happen, but I always wonder how or if the story would have changed if Moses decided to stammer his way through every speech, just because God told Him to.  I didn't read anywhere where God was asking Moses to be eloquent, just obedient.  Still, our human nature inherently tells us we are limited, where God's divine nature tells us we are able.

Remember Esther in the Bible?  She didn't think her stunning beauty was worth anything but to be beautiful.  She probably had hopes to be chosen as a bride by some other humble Jewish boy and to become a good wife and mother.  Yet God had a kingdom to save, and He knew he could use Esther, so He called her.  She became queen, but even with her influence as queen, she doubted her ability to do anything of significance.  Her wise uncle was the one who said to her that her whole life may have been purposed for just this very thing: this very pivotal part of the nation's survival.  And who is she to question God's purpose at this time?  Even here, the human nature of limitations creeps in on God's divine nature of ability.

Andy Grammar, a current singer/songwriter from L.A., has had an experience similar to these.  While I don't know how divine his experiences have been, I do know that God's Spirit can use anything to get inside of our hearts, including a song. From a non-Christian singer.  The lyrics to the chorus of "Lunatic" are especially encouraging to me.

You can do this, you can do this. You are not a lunatic. Crazy would be changing your mind. You can do this, you can do this. You are not a lunatic. Crazy would be leaving it behind.

God has put dreams inside of you and I.  Let's believe this year more than ever, let's let our faith grow this year more than ever.  And let's not ignore every little thing His Spirit speaks to us, from whatever source it seems to come from.


"And without faith it is impossible to please God" - Hebrews 11:6