Mary the Mother of God

This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about : His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit."
Matthew 1:18

 ²⁶ In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, ²⁷ to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. ²⁸ The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”
 ²⁹ Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. ³⁰ But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. ³¹ You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. ³² He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, ³³ and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”
 ³⁴ “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”
 ³⁵ The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. ³⁶ Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. ³⁷ For no word from God will ever fail.”
 ³⁸ “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.
-Luke 1: 26-38


     When things happen in our lives that we don't understand, it can be very scary. Imagine how terrified Mary must have been when she found out she was going to birth the SON of GOD. She had to be confused, horrified, and scared for her life.
     It's easy to think that it would be the greatest honor to be chosen by God for Mary's job...but think how incredibly difficult it was. I don't think she jumped for joy, or felt lucky in any way. I think she felt exactly how we feel when something new and scary comes into our life and we can't understand why.
     Hopefully we can take example from Mary and say "I am the Lord's servant", even when we don't like or understand what He is asking of us. God doesn't promise to make things easy, but He promises to sustain us and He has proven Himself faithful.  So as I was thinking, "Why God? Why is this happening? I don't understand..."  I thought of Mary - pregnant, scared, scorned by others.... She trusted the Lord, and I can too.

My best friend and I rely on this verse throughout the ups and downs of life....

 ¹³No test or temptation that comes your way is beyond the course of what others have had to face. All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; he'll never let you be pushed past your limit; he'll always be there to help you come through it

-1 Corinthians 10 : 13

A Cool thought from Max Lucado...

"When my daughter was a toddler, I used to take her to a park not far from our apartment. One day as she was playing in a sandbox, an ice-cream salesman approached us. I purchased her a treat, and when I turned to give it to her, I saw her mouth was full of sand. Where I had intended to put a delicacy, she had put dirt. 

Did I love her with dirt in her mouth? Absolutely. Was she any less of my daughter with dirt in her mouth? Of course not. Was I going to allow her to keep the dirt in her mouth? No way. I loved her right where she was, but I refused to leave her there. I carried her over to the water fountain and washed out her mouth. Why? Because I love her. 

God does the same for us. He holds us over the fountain. "Spit out the dirt, honey," our Father urges. "I've got something better for you." And so he cleanses us of filth; immorality, dishonesty, prejudice, bitterness, greed. We don't enjoy the cleansing; sometimes we even opt for the dirt over the ice cream. "I can eat dirt if I want to!" we pout and proclaim. Which is true—we can. But if we do, the loss is ours. God has a better offer." 

-Max Lucado

  (just like Jesus)

Have Fellowship with One Another

As iron sharpens iron,
   so one person sharpens another.
-Proverbs 27:17


     Fall Out 2010. What an awesome weekend full of God's glory and power. I was reflecting on the verse above because I witnessed at Fall Out how much we influence one another. We need to sharpen one another in our faith. I believe that is one of the many things that occurred this weekend. There was laughter, music, dancing, and games. All of the "fun" parts. But I think maybe those are most important....because friendships were built. Trust was created. Because those relationships were solidified, they existed when the important times come....The time to make a decision for Christ. The time to have the courage to stand up. And stand up they did. I watched 12 kids accept Jesus and give their lives to Him. It was pretty cool. But it took a lot to get them to that point....A lot of learning, a lot of love from friends. God used the people around them to lead them in the right direction. We need to be willing to do our best to sharpen others, and we need to consider that God may be using the people in our life to teach us something.
      I'm lucky enough to have made an awesome new friend lately. Sometimes we forget what true friendship and fellowship is until we experience it again. Comfort. Laughter. Strength. Love. Unconditional love. A true friend puts others' needs before his or her own. To find a person like that in this world is a rare gift. If you've found one, hold on. Spending time and growing with fellow believers is such an awesome experience. I am thankful that I got to do just that this past weekend.
     I was supposed to be there for the girls in my cabin; talk to them, teach them, love them. And I did...but they had no idea how much I learned from THEM. God works in mysterious ways. It was awesome to see and experience.

He is Above All

"I know our culture will sometimes understand a love for Jesus as weakness. There is this lie floating around that says I am supposed to do life alone, without any help, without stopping to worship something bigger than myself. But I actually believe there is something bigger than me, and I need for there to be... I need someone to put awe inside me; I need to come second to someone who has everything figured out."    - blue like jazz

Let the Little Children Come to Me...

² He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. ³ And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. ⁴ Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. ⁵ And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.
-Matthew 18:2-5




     I miss Paola a lot. Who knew an eleven-year-old could teach so much to someone twice her age? Paola is a beautiful girl that I met at Hogar de Vida orphanage in Guatemala. I think of those children often and it is always with a sense of awe and admiration that I remember their love for our Lord.
    Most people would walk through the streets and through the orphanage and see all the things that are missing in the lives of these people. Our missionary Dena, said that a big mistake that people make is wanting to give "America" to these children. They don't need America, they have Jesus.
    These children have pure joy inside their hearts because they know the Lord and they live for Him. They find happiness in small things like swinging on a swing or swimming in the river. (el rio!) They are thankful, helpful, friendly, loving, and trusting to anyone who enters their home. Their unashamed passion for life in what is surely an imperfect world can only be a result of God's love.
    They have so little in a physical sense. Few clothes, few possessions. The world would consider than poor or underprivileged. But they are rich where it counts. Their hearts are full. I prayed every day I was there that God would give me a grateful heart like these children. They have all they need because they cling to Jesus.
    The last night of our visit, Paola was sitting on my lap around the campfire. While we were singing, I felt her reach down and slip something on my hand. When I looked down, I saw her purple bracelet on my wrist. One of her only personal possessions, and she gave it to me without a second thought. It's no wonder that God tells us we must become like little children to enter the kingdom of heaven. 
    They radiate love and joy. Instead of complaining that they don't have their own room, whining that they have to do chores, or pitying themselves because they don't have parents, these children embrace life and praise God for what He has given them. Let's strive to be more like them. Instead of wishing for what we don't have, we need to count our blessings.
    The only thing we truly need has been given to us by God through Jesus.
:-) Smile. The kids do it a lot.

Forgiveness

The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
-Psalm 103: 8-12




     The love of the Lord is hard for us to wrap our minds around. As high as the heavens are above the earth....so great is His love. It's INFINITE. Never ending. How do we comprehend something like that? 


     One of my teachers in high school used to say... "In the words of the American teenager....THAT'S NOT FAIR!!!" We often get mad when we think we don't get what we deserve.....but when you really think about it, we should THANK THE LORD for not giving us what we deserve. We are sinners, and if he "repay[ed] us according to our iniquities", it would not be pretty. He not only forgives our sins, he forgets them. He won't bring our mistakes back to haunt us the next time we make a mistake. The wrath of God was satisfied when Jesus died on the cross for our sins.


     As one of my favorite songs says, "My sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow." I love the imagery in that line. As silly as it seems, I think about how badly blood stains clothes, or how anything red stains for that matter. (Ever left a red shirt or sock in the laundry with your whites? If so, you know what I mean.) There's no going back after a mistake like that. We might feel that way about our sins sometimes. As if our mistake was so terrible, we can never right our wrong. That may be true, but our mistakes are erased by the love and sacrifice of Jesus Christ. I think of the beauty of freshly fallen snow, and what a miracle it is that we are redeemed by God. "My sin had left a crimson stain, he washed it white as snow..."


Take a listen:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3o3DiMVdOI


     
    Let's be thankful today that "life isn't fair".


And let's keep in mind how gracious and forgiving our God is the next time someone asks for our forgiveness. Just another way we can strive to be more like Jesus.   :-) 

Running the Race

²⁴ Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. ²⁵ Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. ²⁶ Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. ²⁷ No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.
- 1 Corinthians 9:24-27


Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
- Hebrews 12: 1-2




     Anyone who grew up playing sports knows the importance of training, the effort required to reach goals, the competitive spirit that lies within an athlete. Many people can be good, only one can be the best. And in this world, there are trophies and Superbowl rings and riches and fame. But none of these things compare to the prize to be one in the race toward the kingdom of God. 
"They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever."
     So think of yourself as an athlete, a runner in this race for righteousness. We cannot wander or run aimlessly, we must keep our eyes on the prize. 
     I was talking to a good friend about life being like a marathon. It is long, it is challenging, it is exhausting. There are downhill stretches and uphill stretches...but there is a prize at the end. If we sprint out of the gate, we will grow tired and most likely lose focus. We have to discipline ourselves to do what we can, when we can. 
    I was reminding my friend of these things, but he is actually the one that taught me this lesson. We used to run together often, and I admired his strong, consistent pace. I always had a tendency to sprint, and consequently my runs were short and didn't provide good exercise because I grew tired quickly. So what he probably doesn't realize, is that he taught me more than he even intended to.... 
    We were running on a gorgeous spring day one time, and I was losing energy. I looked over and said, "You can go ahead, I don't think I can make it up that hill ahead of us." and he calmly looked at me and said "One step at a time, Renee. One step at a time." And I ran next to him all the way to the top of that hill. I had taken my eyes off the goal and focused too much on the challenges standing in my way. My friend helped me succeed at running that day, but also taught me a lesson that I still apply to my life. We have to take the race of life "one step at a time." We have to "fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith" so that we do not lose sight of the goal of living for Him. 
    Jesus endured the cross for our sake. We, therefore, can gladly persevere and run the race for Him.