An Unexpected Good and Perfect Gift - Newborns, Bili Lights, & Full Plates!

I had the privilege and honor yesterday of bringing a newborn baby into our home to begin her pilgrimage on this earth.  What an awesome privilege that is!  "Mommy" came the day before, but "Baby" needed a few more hours under the bili light.  Several of our own wee ones needed the same treatment. 

The last newborn carried into our home was James - who made his entrance into our family in 1995 - some 19 years ago.  But as I anticipated the events before me yesterday, my mind went back not only to 1995, but also to 1993, 1991, 1990, 1985, and 1979 - each of the years that a newborn was carried into our home.  Each of those times were red-letter days in our lives, full of both intense joy and stressful challenges.  

But regardless of how tough those challenges were, we wouldn't trade them for anything in this world!  Those challenges served us well, entwining our hearts with theirs as our Creator God bonded us together as only He can.  Little did we know then that those challenges (sleepless nights walking the floor, colicky wee ones that would not be comforted, combined with weepy eyes from out-of-whack hormones) were minor compared to the challenges yet to come!  

At this point in my life, my nest isn't exactly empty. With 4 kids living at home while going to college, it seems our nest has turned into a college dorm!  But the residents in my nest no longer require the time and attention they once did.  I've struggled the last couple years with trying to figure out what to do with myself!  After homeschooling my children for some 27 years, I found myself somewhat at loose ends.  But, as always, God knows exactly what my schedule needs - both in weeding out unneeded activity and in adding new ventures.  

I have a deep desire for these age-60-and-beyond years of my life to matter - to make a difference in the lives of others.  And I love it when the Lord brings things and people my way without me going out to look for them or trying to make something happen; He just shows up sometimes, seemingly out of the blue, and fills "my plate" with good things!  I gladly accept this new mother and her precious baby girl as the "good and perfect gift" to my life that they are - from the Hand of my loving Father!  

As I look at my newly-filled "plate" this morning, I'm reminded of several words from The Word - treasures for this day that He has made, and reasons to rejoice and be glad in it!

The bili light is needed for benefit and healing, and it reminds me of how much I'm in desperate need of Light, as well!

Psalm 119:105  Your word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path.

John 8:12  Then spoke Jesus again to them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

Psalm 27:1 The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?

Isaiah 42:16  I will lead the blind in a way that they do not know, in paths that they have not known I will guide them. I will turn the darkness before them into light, the rough places into level ground. These are the things I do, and I do not forsake them.

The challenges of this day, and of all the days ahead - both known and unknown - need not cause us to fear!  They will be overshadowed by the same love, power, grace, and help that yesterday's challenges received.  We will not walk through them alone!  The Father of Lights, Who is steadfast with no changing, will walk beside us each step of the way! As our dependence on Him increases, so does the enabling power He pours out on our behalf.  Great is His faithfulness!

2 Corinthians 9:8 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.

2 Corinthians 12:9 But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

James 4:6 But He gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”

Ephesians 3:20 Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us...

Luke 1:37  For nothing will be impossible with God.

1 Corinthians 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and He will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.

The Lord is involving us in His work, giving us the opportunity to share His love with this mother and baby, to come alongside Him in His work ... and to experience Him as we do.  What an awesome privilege that is; we are grateful!  I don't know how long they will stay, or all that will be involved, but I pray that every day will find each one of us looking to the Lord more and more for His Light on our path - His direction and guidance for each step of the way.  

So as I begin this new chapter in my life, I give Him thanks for this good and perfect gift, knowing that He will use it all - the seeming good, bad, and ugly - for the good of His Children and for His glory, as He molds and makes us on the Potter's wheel of life.

One step at a time...

Jesus - Never a No-Show Friend!

I volunteer each Monday as a receptionist for Sav-A-Life, an abortion alternative ministry. One of my Monday tasks involves scheduling appointments. After an appointment has come and gone, I am to make the appropriate notation in the scheduling book: Show, Rescheduled, or No Show. 

 A "No Show" means the appointment was made, the counselor reserved time and was ready and waiting to spend that time with them, but the client never showed up. I assume that if a client had too many "No Shows," it would affect the counselor's willingness to make another appointment.  It certainly would if I was the counselor!

Yesterday, I was a No Show. I made an appointment with a dear friend. She set aside the time, and was ready and waiting for me at Subway - a favorite lunch spot of ours. After waiting for quite some time, she discovered that she'd been stood up. She had a No Show on her hands, and she went home frustrated and disappointed. 

I felt horrible about it. It was unintentional. I apologized profusely. I hated what I'd done. But none of that changed the fact that I'd said I would be there and I was not. No phone call.  No notice whatsoever.  I was a No show.

As I got my day started today, loving the bright sunshine after a dreary day of rain yesterday, my mind played back over the sorry excuse of friendship that I'd shown my friend. After shuddering and sadly shaking my head over my inexcusable behavior, wishing I could re-do yesterday, yet knowing I couldn't, words to several old, beautiful hymns came to mind.

What a friend we have in Jesus! Can we find a friend so faithful, Who will all our sorrows share?  What a Friend We Have in Jesus

There's not a friend like the lowly Jesus - no, not one! There's not an hour that He is not near us - no, not one! Did ever one find this Friend forsake him? No, not one!   No, Not One!

Then my thoughts went to a song from Phillips, Craig, and Dean:

Who am I that You are mindful of me, That You hear me when I call?Is it true that You are thinking of me? How you love me; it's amazing!I am a friend of God; He calls me friend!  Friend of God

Then on to another by Selah:

Faithful, faithful to the end, My true and precious Friend,
You have been faithful - faithful, so faithful, to me!  Faithful One

The beauty of those songs led me to the Scripture truths behind their lyrics:

John 15:15  
I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from My Father I have made known to you.

James 2:23
And the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God.

Psalm 8:3-5
When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,The moon and the stars, which You have ordained;What is man that You take thought of him,And the son of man that You care for him?Yet You have made him a little lower than God,And You crown him with glory and majesty!

James 4:8
Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you.

How To Draw Near To God

Psalm 34:4
I sought the LORD, and He answered me; He delivered me from all my fears.

Deuteronomy 7:9
Know therefore that the LORD your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love Him and keep His commandments, to a thousand generations.

1 Corinthians 1:9
God is faithful, Who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Psalm 117:2
For great is His love toward us, and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever. Praise the LORD!

He is forever faithful! When I draw close to Him, He is always there, without fail. He is NEVER A NO SHOW!  He never forgets.  His schedule never crowds me out.  I never get pushed to the back of His Mind by other things.  I'm always on His Mind!  I'm so grateful to Him this morning for His constant faithfulness, His unconditional love and mercy, His consistent goodness to me, His little child - a child so prone to wander away from Him! He is my Shepherd, keeping His Eyes always on me, correcting my steps, watching over me in love. He is constantly fulfilling His Word: "I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you." (Psalm 32:8)

So I bless His Name this day! This is the day He has made, and I will rest in His goodness and love and faithfulness!  I will rejoice, and be glad in it!

I Bless Your Name

Christianity: What it IS and IS NOT

To fully understand something, you must grasp not only what it IS, but also what it IS NOT.

Most times, you will find Christianity listed as one of the world's religions.  It is defined as such out of ignorance; that is a totally inaccurate definition!   There will be those who disagree and scoff at such a statement, but the fact that Christianity is not a religion is central to what the Bible, the Word of God, teaches.  Let me explain further, borrowing from Why Christianity Is Not a Religion.

“The difference between Christianity and every other faith (or belief system) in the world is that all other religions are about man trying to reach up to God.  Christianity is about God reaching down to man.”

"This is a very important distinction...so I would like to try to clarify...  Here is the way I am defining religion:

"Religion is a system of beliefs or a code of moral conduct that judges (qualifies or disqualifies) a person based on their adherence and obedience to certain codes, rules, laws, traditions, or the performance of required acts... Religion is the creation of man and is not the intention or design of God."

Even when a person or church has good motives, and/or claims to believe the Bible, if there are requirements taught that are not found in the Bible, then they are simply "still being religious and this 'religion' is not from God."

True Christianity is not a religion, but is a relationship with Jesus Christ - the One, true, living God. The simple Gospel of Jesus Christ - the record of Jesus' life and teaching recorded in The Holy Bible, particularly in the first four books of the New Testament - is categorically unlike any "religion" found anywhere in the world.  To correctly understand this word "Christianity" is to be well on your way to understanding what it means to be a Christian.  So let's examine it closer.

The great religions of the world were founded by men in specific regions of the world, and the epicenter of those movements remains in that same region:

Bahá'í  began in the Middle East.  Its center remains in the Middle East today.

Buddhism began in Asia and its center remains there today.

Confucianism began in China; its center is there today.

Hinduism began  in Asia and its center remains there today.

Islam began in the Middle East and its center is found there today.

Judaism began in Israel; its center remains there today.

Mormonism began in America and its center is still there today.

Shintoism began in Japan; its center remains in Japan today.

Taoism began in East Asia and its center remains there today.

(Related:  Click here for "Christianity Is No Religion At All"

The history of Christianity is quite different!  Christianity was founded by Jesus Christ, beginning in the small country of Israel.  It then spread into places such as Syria, Assyria, Mesopotamia, Phoenicia, Asia Minor, Jordan and Egypt.  By 300 AD, Christianity became the accepted religion of Rome, and spread throughout the Roman Empire.

Christianity then spread throughout Europe and eventually was taken to the Americas, as Christian people fled persecution and crossed the Atlantic.

Religion is always the enemy of Christianity, but in that fact lies a great benefit.  A look throughout history shows that whenever and wherever Christians are persecuted, Christianity strengthens.  Where there is no persecution, where Christians begin to be "casual" about their relationship with Jesus Christ, where churches cease to have a sense of urgency in sharing the Gospel, the good news, with people who have not yet been introduced to Him, where apathy begins its cancerous attack - you will find the epicenter of Christianity moving somewhere else.

And so it is doing today!  The epicenter of Christianity has for many years been found in the United States of America, but that is true no longer.  The power keg, the epicenter, of Christianity will move to where the hearts of Christian people are passionate about their relationship with Jesus!

There are still Christian people in America who love Him and serve Him, who seek to share Him with others, and who are deeply passionate about their relationship with Him - but fewer and fewer with every passing year.  Unlike the United States, however, today - in other countries of the world - the growth rate of Christianity is exploding.  In some countries, it has out-paced their birth rate!  The epicenter has shifted!  Take a moment to look at this website:

Top 20 Countries Where Christianity Is Growing the Fastest

On this 2013 map of  the top 20 countries experiencing the greatest growth of Christianity, sadly, you will not see the United States of America.

Christianity moves to wherever Jesus Christ is received by human hearts.  Where it is rejected, God's power moves elsewhere.  This is true of individuals, of churches, of countries.  The epicenter of Christianity stays in no specific place - no region of this world, no country, no building.  It is found in human hearts!

Jesus Christ is the same - yesterday, today, and forever.  (Hebrews 13:8)  Just as it was in the days when He walked this earth, so it is today.  "But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right (the power) to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name." (John 1:12)

As already stated, Christianity is a relationship, a love-relationship with Jesus Christ.  A heart in a love-relationship with another seeks to maintain that relationship by drawing close to them.  There are significant correlations between maintaining a relationship with another human being and maintaining a relationship with Jesus Christ - the One, true, and living God.

Each of us could make a list of things that must be in place for a relationship to thrive and grow. Here are a few that easily come to mind:

Putting the other first
Spending time with them
Having an interest in the other
Experiencing a desire to learn more about them
Keeping a desire to please them
Talking with them and listening to them
Sharing your life with them

These are a few ways that I, and other Christians, purposefully seek to daily maintain my relationship with Jesus Christ, to keep it fresh and vibrant, to draw close to Him.  While He promises unconditionally in His Word never to leave us or to forsake us, promising to always hold us in the Palm of His Hand, and to bring us Home to be with Him in Heaven when our life on earth comes to an end - even so, our relationship with Him can grow cold and distant if we turn our attention from Him to other things in this world.

When we allow that to happen, we are still secure in Him as far as where we will spend eternity, but we lose our daily joy and peace, our influence will no longer point others to Jesus - the Answer to every need of the human soul, and we no longer are useful and available to God for His purposes in this world.

That is why the Bible, God's Words for us, gives clear direction for what to do when we realize we've let other things come before Him.

"Let us examine and probe our ways, and let us return to the Lord."  Lamentations 3:40

"If we confess our sin, He is faithful and just to forgive our sin and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."  1 John 1:9

"If My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land." 2 Chronicles 7:14

You can trust Him to do just what He says He will do.  He is faithful!  (Here's one account of God's faithfulness from my own experience.)

For those of you not familiar with Jesus Christ, who have not yet received Him into your heart and life as the One, true, living God, I pray these few paragraphs have helped your understanding of Him, of what Christanity IS, and what it IS NOT.  If you choose to seek Him with your whole heart, He will make Himself known to you in surprising, amazing ways.  Put Him to the test; He is more than equal to the task!

I welcome your questions and comments.  :)  If you would rather chat about this privately, I can be found on my Facebook page.  My husband would also welcome the opportunity to chat with any interested guys out there!  We can chat via Facebook private messaging, or through email.

What is Christianity to you, from your own experience?