His Unfolding Plan

How many times have we asked God to reveal to us His plan for our lives only to be met with direction for the very next move. Don't get me wrong, it is God's will to share with you the greatness of His power in your life, but at times, God doesn't allow us to see the full staircase all at once.  He does give us just enough grace and direction for the very next step.  I read an excerpt from the book Finding Calcutta by Mary Poplin, who described her volunteer work with Mother Teresa and the Missionaries of Charity in India in 1996.  She writes the following:

"...An evangelical Protestant missionary...went to Mother for prayer.  He wanted to know God's plan for his life.  Mother immediately replied, 'I will pray for you, but not for that.  I will pray for faith, that is what you need- more faith." Mother Teresa said if God had told her his full plan for the Missionaries of Charity, she would have been too frightened to step out of the convent and pick up the first person on the street.  She was simply called into a relationship with Christ that unfolded one day at a time"  (Poplin 38). 

Sometimes we wonder what God has for us next to the point that it causes us to be anxious, however, God is simply calling us into a relationship with Him.  He asks us to cleave to Him and depend on Him.  If we do this, He will ensure that we carry out His will.  We can never miss out on His will as long as we give Him full reign in our life.  Whether it's making a difference in your home, your community, or on foreign land, such as in the case of Mother Teresa, you will get there as long as you hang on tight to Him and never let go.  As you draw closer to God, watch your relationship with Him unfold into a beautiful plan written specifically for you in this time and in this hour.


Poplin, Mary S. Finding Calcutta: What Mother Teresa Taught Me about Meaningful Work and Service. Downers Grove, IL: IVP, 2008. Print.

Faithfulness

 "And Moses verily was faithful in all his house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things  which were to be spoken  after..."  Hebrews 3:5

There is much talent out there in the world and also in the church.  People have such amazing gifts of singing, teaching, writing, designing, preaching, organization, creativity, building, speaking, etc.  However, there is a character quality that overrides all of these talents and that quality is faithfulness. If you have an amazing talent, that's wonderful, but if not mixed with faithfulness, your talent doesn't mean much. Faithfulness means that even when you're not recognized for your talent you still carry on using your talent for God's glory.  Your gift is not for others, it was given to glorify God.  Faithfulness says that even when no one is watching or acknowledging you for your work, you continue to work with excellence giving 100% of yourself.  Faithfulness means "showing up"  when others won't or when its less popular.  It means sticking by your loved ones and friends when no one else will. It means sticking by your leaders even when others desert the cause, or if you are the leader, sticking to the cause when others have deserted you.  Faithfulness means you keep on going even when the going gets tough.  Jesus was faithful all the way to the cross.  Many mocked him, his friends deserted him, yet He still remained faithful to the cause and mission that he was sent for. Faithfulness is a difficult quality to find today, but I know there are still plenty of faithful people out there and God is also stirring this quality up in many others. If you have struggled to be faithful, ask God for a fresh start and for that special grace to keep pushing on.  If you have been faithful, but are getting weary, keep walking.  God honors faithfulness. God never forgets a faithful man or woman and in due season, you will reap if you don't back down now.

"Most men will proclaim every one his own goodness:  but a faithful man who can find?  The just man walketh in his integrity:  his children are blessed after him."  Proverbs 20:6-7

April

A Turkey In Her Own Right

 Last night I started with pain in my lower back and by this afternoon, it turned into an excruciating pain that shot through my entire back and left side of my stomach.   Instead of driving out to meet my family, I ended up making a trip to urgent care.  Traffic was horrible so instead of making it to my destination in 15 minutes, it took me about 45 minutes.  When I finally arrived at the office around 6pm, I found that this medical office had closed down. I was redirected to another office in the next city.  As I drove through another maze of traffic, I began to yell at a couple of other drivers who couldn't seem to get their act together on the road (because I, of course, am the perfect driver).  Once I arrived at urgent care, I waited for what seemed like hours, collected a prescription, and left more grumpy than ever.   I continued to complain the whole time and began having a honking fest with a couple of other incompetent drivers.  Right when I was about to exit towards my apartment did I realize that I forgot to pick up the turkeys for Christmas day.  Now here's the scoop. Someone else in my family was supposed to make the turkey, but told me over the weekend that they decided to do a roast instead of a turkey for our holiday celebration.  Well, this upset me because who has ever heard of Christmas without a turkey?  Seriously.  Why can't people stick to family traditions?  When I voiced my concern, this person passed the baton over to me, so now I was stuck making the turkey.  So as I walked through the market, with that aching back pain, my sour expression, and even worse sour mood, it took every ounce within me not throw a fit right there in the middle of he aisle (I ended up doing that later when I returned to my car).  When I realized that they might arrest me for such a scene, I decided to act grown-up and go find that darn turkey.  I did, and of course it was double the price for a thawed out turkey- $50.00! I grabbed that turkey and thought about flinging it across the aisle, but fortunately, I forced myself be civilized, although I'm sure the turkey felt my disgust.  I marched to the counter, paid for it and walked out still heated, furious, and frustrated. I should be drinking hot chocolate with my family at the Mission Inn this evening, laughing and ready to celebrate the most beautiful day and the most beautiful being on earth, Jesus Christ.  Instead, I was mad at my family, mad at myself, and mad at that darn turkey.  I knew I needed grace, but I didn't have the guts to ask God for it because let's be honest,  I knew that I didn't deserve it.  I  was then gently reminded that grace wouldn't be grace if it was deserved.  Jesus wasn't born and crucified for our sins because we deserved it.  The Bible says that God demonstrated his love for us while we were STILL sinners (Romans 5:8).  He didn't wait for us to get cleaned up, but poured his grace on us despite our sin. What a powerful gift!  That's truly what Christmas is all about and it took a day like this to remind me of that. So I'm home now. All is now calm, all is well. Maybe today didn't turn out as expected, but tomorrow, God is giving me another chance to make it better.  Tomorrow is a new day filled with fresh grace and mercies- maybe not for that poor turkey (Yum!), but most certainly for me, a turkey in her own right. 

Giving God's Way

Starting today, I am making a promise to myself to write.  My hope is to either write on my blog or in my journal each day, even if it’s just a page.  Self-reflection is powerful and it helps you to see how God is transforming you over time.  Here are some of my random thoughts for this beautiful Sunday morning:

• Give to others of your resources and time.  Give to those who cannot return the favor.   Luke 6:30,34
• You may give to others who can return the favor, but won’t.   You may give to others who may return hate instead of gratefulness. Don’t be upset over this.  Keep giving.  If you think about it, you are really giving to God and He is the one that should matter. He is your reward.  Luke  6:31-36, Luke 6:38
• Give to yourself the gift of time spent in the presence of God.   You cannot give to others  unless you have been filled with Him.  Without him, you will find your own resources limited and your body and mind exhausted.  Going to God will ensure that you are filled with a supernatural reservoir of God that spills over into the lives of others.

“You give but little when you give of your possessions.  It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.”  Kahlil Gibran

Here’s to a year of Godly giving!

April

Almost 30

In about two months, I will be leaving my 20′s behind and moving into my 30′s. Since I was a little girl, I’ve always wanted to be 30.   Sounds kind of weird, huh?  When I was younger, my mom used to take in boarders to help make ends meet.  One particular woman was in her 30′s, educated, sophisticated, and classy.  She was also quirky, but confident.  I wanted to be just like her when I grew up.  So I guess that’s where I got the idea that I wanted to be 30.  In my teens, I thought the time would never go by fast enough, while in my 20′s, time just raced by me.  After reflecting, I’ve realized that God has blessed me tremendously in my 20′s.  He has truly given me the desires of my heart.   Here are some of the desires God has allowed to unfold in my life:

• I received my BA in History from the University of Redlands, a top private school.  I’m close to being done with my Masters degree after what seems forever.
• I was able to travel to six different countries (including two short-term missions trips).  Two of these trips I was able to travel alone which was always a dream of mine.
• I started my teaching career and I love it! I'm not a veteran yet, but here’s to year 6!
•  I’ve learned to live solo and love making my little home special.
• I’ve had a blog for almost three years.  For me, the importance of the blog was to remain consistent at something and be a blessing to others. 
• The most important thing: I've established a very dependent relationship with Jesus Christ.

All these experiences have been gifts from God and I look forward to making the next ten years just as exciting and growing even more in my relationship with Jesus Christ.   Let the 30′s begin!

April

A Case of Limited Perception

Now Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword.  So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to say, "My the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like that of one of them."  Elijah was afraid and ran for his life.  When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there, while he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness.  He came to a broom brush, sat down under it and prayed that he might die."I have had enough, Lord," he said.  "Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors."  I Kings 19:1-5(NIV)

Elijah felt alone. Jezebel was after him and vowed to have his life by the very next day.  Elijah escaped to the wilderness in despair.  He even asked God to take his life.   In his mind, he was alone and life seemed hopeless at that point.  His perception told him that he was the only faithful servant left as so many other Israelites had forsaken the ways of God.  Here is how Elijah explained to God his predicament,

"I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty.  The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too”   (v. 10).

   God replied that there were still 7000 who had not bowed down to Baal.  Here Elijah is living in despair due to his circumstances when all along, God had things under control. At this point, Elijah must have realized that what he initially thought was reality was really just a case of limited perception.   He was not alone after all.

      Many times, we find ourselves in a similar situation. While we are focusing on our negative circumstances, we fail to see God working in our lives. While we are focusing on the negativity and what God is not doing, we fail to see what God IS doing.  When we think we are alone, we are not.  We allow our perception to dictate our faith.  If we would allow ourselves to move past our perception  and "feelings" and allow God to open our spiritual eyes, we would find that God's plan is being carried out whether we see it or not.   I'm not sure what you might be experiencing today, but somehow find the strength to call on the name of Jesus and ask him to open your eyes of faith to see that He is working in your life.  You'd be surprised that while you think God has been slumbering, instead, He has been working and the full picture will eventually be unveiled to reveal a life that was worked on 24-7 by a faithful God.

Take a Second Glance

I sometimes imagine what it would have been like to live during the time that Jesus Christ walked this earth.  I think, if I were there, I would never let go of Him and would just want to be around Him day and night worshiping at His feet. I wonder, how could His own people not know that He was the long awaited Messiah?  How did they not know that He was their God robed in flesh?  Then it hits me hard. How many times have I missed God in my daily life?  What about the times when God showed up in a way that I didn't expect and I failed to see Him.  What about the times when my answer came in the form of pain and I couldn't see God in it because I was looking for something different.  It is from these experiences that I wrote this poem.  Maybe you too can relate to it. 

If I had seen Him long ago

Would I have passed Him by

He had no form or comeliness

I might have ignorantly never winced an eye

Would I have taken the time

To see what was inside this simple man

To explore the depths of his heart and see the Great I am

Would I have given a second thought to this stranger

The carpenter from Galilee

A root out of dry ground

Come to rescue sinful me

Would I have seen His true beauty,

beauty not seen with the casual eye

Would I have looked into his eyes, but not seen the King of the Universe looking back into mine

Even today, do I fail to recognize Him

In the simplicity of His ways

In the waiting rooms of life, in the tests, even  in the people I encounter everyday

Superficial is what I have become, looking only at the outward for Jesus’ face

Never digging deeper to explore

Not a Jesus coming with trumpets and fanfare, but Jesus in my every day.

Child-Like Humility

And He called a child to Himself and set him before them, and said, "Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. "Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.…”  Matthew 18:1-4

I've been spending a couple of days with my sister, her husband, and their two little boys.  The youngest one is two years old and quite the hoot. He's full of energy and playfulness which makes him irresistibly adorable and precious.  What I find further endearing is the fact that he loves to do things on his own to show that he is a "big boy."  Yet, when he finds himself in a bind such as not able to zip up his pajamas on his own or he needs help turning on the television  or getting a snack from the fridge, he is not too proud to call out to "mama" or "auntie" for help.  There is something about a child's helplessness that makes a parent (or an auntie, in my case) unable to resist the child's request.

When we think of humility, I'm sure a lot of thoughts run through our mind.  In the scripture above, we are told that we must become like little children to enter heaven.  Further we are told that we must humble ourselves like children in order to be great in the kingdom of heaven.  What does that look like exactly?  Well, it looks like my nephew and the way in which he trusts his parents.   My sweet nephew is very dependent on his mom and dad for EVERYTHING.  He depends on them for food, shelter, clothing, and love. He trusts them to meet his basic needs and he isn't too proud to ask for what he wants.   If he wants something, he will ask for it no matter how big or small the request is.  He trusts mom and dad to protect him. When he's scared, he clings to them for assurance.  What I just described is the same kind of trust and dependency God wants us to have in Him.  We must trust God for our every need no matter how big or small.  Whether it be financial, physical, spiritual, and emotional, we must learn to depend on him in that area of our life.  That is the essence of humility- knowing that we can do NOTHING without him just like a child can do nothing without his mom and dad.  I'm personally learning to truly trust God for every single need in my life.  When I pay my bills, I give them to Him.  When I drive to work, I give my job to God.  When I walk into my classroom, I give my students to God.  When I have a conflict with another person, I've learned to give it to God.  When I make a purchase, I give it to God.  I depend on Him for EVERYTHING. When I need to make a decision in my daily life, I trust in Him.

A couple of nights ago, I was struggling with a decision that needed to be made.  I was afraid of making the wrong decision and kept praying to God asking him to help me make a good decision.  Yet, something kept nagging at me for the entire day, scaring me into thinking that I would make the wrong choice and displease God. Later that evening, my little nephew snuggled next to me on my bed and we dozed off.  In the middle of the night, I woke up to a cold draft in the room.  I looked next to me and there was my nephew shivering. Without even thinking about it, I grabbed a thick blanket and covered him.  Even in my grogginess, the Holy Spirit spoke to me very clearly.  April, did you think twice about what you just did?  All of a sudden I was alert.  No, Lord, I didn't.  He continued Well, I'm the same way with you.  You don't have to worry about making a bad decision because I'm not going to let you.  As your father, it gives me great pleasure to take care of you. I can't help but protect and take care of you.  I take pleasure in guiding you and covering you because you depend on me and trust in me.  

It was then that I realized that when one depends on God with child-like trust for every need in their life, God will show himself in every aspect of their life.  There may be some areas of your life that you feel God would not care about- your weight, your romantic relationships, your travels, your college classes, your children's schooling, your hobbies, etc., but if you welcome God into those parts of your life as well as into the other big areas, you will see Him move like never before. What are you waiting for?  Trust Him.

Remember, in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths!

April