Byron Pitts for President!

      Well, what an afternoon.  I just had the remarkable privilege of listening to Byron Pitts, of ABC News, speak about his book, his life, and his faith at my friend, Pamela's house.
      Can I just say that if I were ever to become a stalker, Byron might be the one I'd pick to stalk...because he is FABULOUS.  And I'm gonna become a one woman cheering section praying that somehow, someway this man becomes the next anchor for ABC News.  How desperately we need men and women of faith and strong values and character in positions of power and influence in this country...and especially the bully pulpit of the media.
      Yeah, yeah, I know some other guy got the job after Diane Sawyer.  I'm sure he's a fine fellow...but Byron...he is THE man.  (Well, that is, after my husband, of course, but Richard has no plans as of right now for network television.)  Seriously, can't we pray that (for Byron, that is)?
      If we're going to make a difference in this nation and world, it has to start one person at a time.  One person making a difference in their school.  One person making a difference in their neighborhood.  One person making a difference in their office.  One person making a difference in their community.  And maybe one person making a difference in the network news...or the playgroup...or the grocery store.
      Ahem.  Somehow I got a bit off topic here.  How unusual.  There are so many thoughts rattling in my head, but can I recommend his book--Step out on Nothing.  I read it several years ago and then just reread it again for this meeting.  I loved it even more the second time than the first.

      Truly an amazing story of God's faithfulness in the life of one young man and his family.  But it's a story that could be true for any of us.  Because all of us can change our lives--or change the lives of others--with unwavering faith, prayer, hard work, and dogged, never-give-up love.  If you want to be inspired, convicted, challenged, and encouraged, then pick up this book and be reminded of how our great God's power, grace and sovereign hand are at work in all kinds of places and in all kinds of people.
      I came away thinking, "Our God is amazing."  And He is.
      But one quote I won't forget. Byron shared a remarkable story about how he was able to ask Nelson Mandela a question.  He'd been assigned to stakeout the Boston hotel where Mandela was staying several years ago in hopes of landing a question or two as Mandela came or went.  Unfortunately, Byron was assigned the graveyard shift--from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. Not exactly the plum time for landing an interview!
      Byron said he was mad as fire (my slight paraphrase of his words here--not quite how he put it!).  Here was this old man--he certainly wasn't going to be coming or going late at night, so Byron figured somebody at the network had it out for him.  No way he'd see Mandela that night.
      Along about 4:30 a.m his crew wanted some coffee, so Byron volunteered to go search the neighborhood to find some for them.
      And our God of sovereignty was about to go to work.  
      Byron still muttering and fuming over his crummy, dead-end assignment, began walking, looking for coffee.  Suddenly, in the darkened streets, he noticed an older black man in a sweat suit walking up ahead of him.  Now this was apparently quite an unusual sight inBoston, so Byron sped up a bit to check out this man...
     And yes, you guessed it (well, maybe you didn't)--it was Mandela.  Apparently ever since his days in prison, Mandela had been an avid exerciser.  Doing 100 push-ups, 200 sit-ups, 200 squats and walking an hour every day.  Geez--no more complaining in my core class.
      Byron caught up with him; they shook hands and talked, and of course, Mandela was the gentleman you would expect.  Byron eventually was able to ask him "Sir I do not want to bother you, but could you tell me [my paraphrase again] with all you have been through, could you tell me one thing that you know for sure?"
      Mandela responded that the one thing that he knew for sure was this: "Good and evil are constantly at war...and good men must choose."
      I will not forget that.
     Oh Father, we sometimes forget that this world we live in is not a playground but a battleground.  So much suffering.  So much disease.  So much evil.  So much injustice.
     But towering over it all is the gigantic figure of our Savior and His cross. The One who conquered sin and death...for all time...for all people who choose to come to Him by faith.  We know the end of the story and one glorious day our Redeemer and Sustainer will reign in glory forever.
     Yet until that wondrous day, as long as we breathe this earth's atmosphere, there will be battles.  Daily battles.  Hard battles.  Public battles.  Private battles.   Battles between selfishness and selflessness.  Battles between pride and humility.  Battles between apathy and empathy.  Battles between sitting on the sidelines and diving in and making a difference.  Battles between good and evil.
     And we all must choose.  Oh Father, give us wisdom to choose wisely, to choose courageously, and to choose rightly.
     One more thing.  Pamela asked Byron how he would answer that same question, and he immediately responded, "The one thing I know for sure is that God is good.  God is good, no matter what is going on.  Even if we can 't see it in the moment."
      Mercy, I could go on and on and on.  So many wonderful stories.  So much wisdom.  So many reminders of God's amazing sovereignty.  But the bottom line: God calls for us to make a difference in the lives of others.  We are put here for a purpose--to love God and glorify His great name...and to love others.  And that means daily choosing to engage in the war between good and evil.
     Help us Father to be the "good men who choose."
     To God be the glory.

Brokenness, beauty, and our Anchor

      The winds howl outside and rattle the bones of our old mountain house.  But Bingley and I sit inside, warm and safe.  A steaming mug of tea.  A sleeping family safely ensconced around me.
      Thank You, Father.  Another picture of rest.

      I know we have to brave the brisk temperatures, drizzling rain, and cold wind in a few minutes.  Mr. B needs his walk, and well, I need to be reminded one more time of God's presence and His treasures of beauty all around...even in the hard, the dark, the unexpected.
      Funny, isn't it, how the colors of the leaves seem to shine more magnificently on the cloudy, rainy days?  Is it the contrast between grayness and brightness?  I don't know...but it's always appeared that way to me.  Those reds and oranges startle more in the gloom...and surely bring more smiles of wonder.    
      Sometimes life's most precious treasures come packaged in unexpected and unwanted ways.
      Sometimes glory is revealed most profoundly and powerfully in brokenness.
      Sometimes suffering allows the love and grace of Christ to shine through those broken, cracked places in ways we never would have seen in some perfect, unbroken life.
      I've learned it in my own life, and oh my, I've seen it demonstrated so beautifully in others' lives.  And nothing, nothing, nothing makes me want to bow down in awe, recognizing I'm on holy ground, as seeing such beauty in brokenness in the lives of others.
      I've recently begun reading the story of Kara Tippetts--a young mother of four who has stage 4 metastatic cancer.  And her story brings both painful tears and profound wonder.  I just read these words she wrote: "Suffering is not the absence of goodness, it is not the absence of beauty, but perhaps it can be the place where true beauty can be known."
      We have a number of dear friends right now facing tough battles of cancer and of other less obvious, but no less difficult, struggles.  Relational.  Addictive.  Long debilitating diseases.
      Battles can wear us down.  Cause us to forget Whose we are.  Make us miss the beauty even in that brokenness.
      So Father, I lift up everyone right now facing those battles.  Living in those hard places of brokenness and restlessness and wondering if You will come through today.  Father, they need You to break through the clouds and darkness today and remind them You are there.
      For you are.  Always.
      Help them to feel, to know, to see Your tender love and sustaining grace in every hard, broken and beautiful moment of their day today.  And that will be enough for today.  Because we know, we know, we know You will be there tomorrow as well. And Your grace is always sufficient.
     So we only ask for today.  Today's manna, today's grace...for today's needs.  "Give us this day, our daily bread." (Matt.6:11)  And we'll trust and know that tomorrow's manna and grace will be just what is needed as well.
      Thank You, Father, that no matter how we might feel, no matter what we might be going through, no matter what the world says, You are our unmovable, forever faithful, ever-sustaining Anchor.  "We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf." (Heb.6:19)
      Jesus--our Anchor through the fiercest storm.  And our Anchor will never ever fail.
      Mr. B and I are headed out into the winds and rain and darkness...but we do not go alone.  Oh no, our Anchor goes with us. Always.  Shielding us, holding us, and showing us His treasures even in the storm.  Thank You, Father.
      To God--our Anchor who holds us firm and secure and brings beauty from brokenness--be all the glory.

Rest on the mountain...and in the valley

      "So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from his works as God did from His.  Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience." (Heb.5:9-11)
      We've been studying rest recently in Bible study--what a beautiful truth.  Because Christ said "It is finished!' we can rest in His death on the cross for us.  In the words of a Matt Papa song: "It is finished, it is done.  To the world salvation comes.  Hallelujah, we're alive!  Hell was silenced when You cried: It is finished."
      "It is finished" puts an end to our striving and straining, fretting and fussing.  We can rest in Him and what He has done.  And we can trust that He who has done it all for us in the past will also come through for us in the future as well.
      I love Sally Breedlove's definition of rest: "At it's core, to rest is to give thanks for the present and to trust that as the future becomes the present, God will supply what we need."
      Or as Dag Hammarskjold put it: "For all that has been: Thank You.  For all that is to come: Yes!"
      Can I just say that all too often, I'm not there.  Sigh.
      Too many anxious thoughts.  Too little gratitude.  Too much worrying.  Too little trusting.  Forgive me, Father.  But thank You that Your offer of rest still stands, no matter our failings and weaknesses.
      So as I sit here in the North Carolina mountains with most of our family, my refrain echoes that of Hammarskjold: Thank You, Father.
     Thank You for the astounding beauty of Your creation.  The colorful patchwork quilt of trees all around us.  The clouds heavy with life-giving water.  The green of the mountains and the blue of the valley.  A picture of rest all about us.

      And thank You, Lord, for the priceless gift of family.  Thank You for the joy of sitting around a dinner table with them--laughing, talking, simply savoring their presence.  To me, that's a wondrous picture of rest as well: to be surrounded by those you love while enjoying a great meal!  Just a tiny foretaste, don't you think, of the wedding supper of the Lamb?  That's rest--thank You, Father.
      Tomorrow we head back down the valley.  Back into the land of homework, chores, deadlines,  and older children scattering to their own homes.  And that's when those terrible tendencies arise that cause us to dread the busyness, to worry over the unknowns,  and to strive in our own weak strength.         But that's not rest.  Lord, help me to carry Your rest with me down the mountain.  Just as I carry the memories of one last hurrah savoring the mountains before the long slog of winter...just as I carry and treasure the joyous memory of our children right here with us rather than far away.  Your rest resides just as fully in the valleys of our lives as on the mountaintops, for You never change and neither does Your perfect rest.
      Father, teach us to rest. Teach us to trust that as the future becomes the present, You will supply all we need.  For You are forever faithful.
      Because "It is finished,"  we can rest...and trust...and shout a resounding "Yes" to whatever the future holds.  For we know the One holds the future...
      And we rest in You.
      To God be the glory.
   

Glory is happening!

      Early yesterday morning, Bingley and I went out for a walk.  It was still dark outside--but I love that time of morning.  The world still rests, the stars still sparkle in their velvet blanket, and we have the gift of greeting the dawn of one more day.
      One more day to worship God.  One more day to love and enjoy our families and friends.  One more day to witness the miracle of life awakening all about us as darkness slowly, reluctantly yields to the light.
      But at dawn yesterday, I was preoccupied as Mr. B. and I slipped out the door.  The heaviness of friends and family battling disease and other difficulties.  The weight of too much to do.  The weariness of the daily grind.
      We started up the street, and then, as always, I looked up to enjoy God's magnificent light show...and saw this--

      Oh my stars, I had forgotten all about it!  The lunar eclipse!  Only 20 minutes earlier, I had glanced outside, and the moon was full--a huge ball so bright it illuminated our back yard.  Yet now, just minutes later, the shadow of the earth had already covered more than half of the moon!  Amazing!
      As Bingley and I walked, I planned the whole route around trying to see the continuing eclipse.  Eventually the entire moon was shaded.  And then it turned a remarkable copper color.  A blood moon, I think they call it.
      As we passed a couple of other folks walking in the predawn darkness, I wanted to shout--"Do you see it?  There's glory happening right over our heads!  Right this very moment!  Glory!"  God's glory--albeit veiled (since we couldn't bear to see His true glory)--here in Raleigh, NC!  Who would have thought?  Yet how often do we pass by these pale, but still magnificent reflections of His glory everyday...and they go unnoticed and unheralded.  Oh forgive us, Father.
      Seriously, think about the vastness of this universe.  The size and scope of the planets and stars. The complexity of their orbits.  The strength of the sun's rays.
      And on an ordinary day in October, a gigantic ball of fire, an ever present moon, and a brilliant blue and green orb pulsing with life, all momentarily align perfectly, allowing the earth to block the sun and shade the moon.
      It's all just a tiny fingernail of God's glory.  What a creation...but infinitely greater: what a Creator!
      If God can control and align the planets, why would we ever doubt He can and will tenderly care and control our lives as well...for our good, for His glory.
      As we walked, there was only one proper response: awe and worship.  Worship while walking.  Yep, I like that.  For shouldn't we live all of life in that mode of wonder, worship and awe?
      Worship while working. Worship while cleaning.  Worship while driving. Worship while eating.         I couldn't help but think of these words from A.W.Tozer:
     "The totality of our Christian lives--our entire attitude as persons--must be towards the worship of God!  If you do not know the presence of God in your office, your factory, your home, then God is not in the church you attend either! I became a Christian when I was a young man working in a tire factory in Akron, Ohio.  I remember my work there--but I remember my worship too!  I had plenty of worshipful tears in my eyes.  No one ever asked me about them, but I would not have hesitated to explain them.  You can learn to use certain skills until they are automatic.  I became so skillful that I could do my work and then I could worship God even while my hands were busy. If the love of God is in us and the Spirit of God is breathing praise within us, all the musical instruments in heaven are suddenly playing in full support! Even our thoughts become a sanctuary in which God can dwell."
      Yes, yes, yes!  Oh might worship fill our hearts and minds and so be reflected in our attitudes and actions.  As the psalmist says, "My mouth is filled with Your praise, declaring Your splendor all day long." (Ps.71:8)
      He is worthy of all our worship from dawn to dusk.  From walking to working.  From reading to resting.  From the first moment our lungs draw breath, until the very last time beat of our hearts.
     Oh might our thoughts become that "sanctuary in which God can dwell" as we continually worship and rejoice...in our Creator.  Redeemer.  Sustainer.  Healer.  Savior.  Almighty King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
      Glory is happening all around you.  Open your eyes and fill your mind and mouth with His praise.
      To God be the glory.
   

What are you fearing?

      The first verse from today’s Daily Light: “I will not fear.  What can man do to me.” (Heb.13:6)

      Good, good words, Father.  

      And don’t we all need reminding?  

      Just yesterday we discussed fear in Bible study.  But as I pondered the concept of fear, one picture kept bubbling to mind--Jesus, sound asleep while on a boat with His disciples, though they are in the midst of a raging storm.  Apparently storms in that area can sweep in suddenly, with terrifying ferocity, making the Sea of Galilee a place of danger and death.   

      Can you imagine it?  The disciples, eyes bulging in terror, were probably frantically bailing out water or yelling to one another over the roaring of the wind to yank in the sails.  Finally, assuming they were all about to die, they rouse Jesus.  In desperation, they shout: “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?”  (Mk 4:38)

      Isn’t that so often our response when the storms of life crash upon us?  When loved ones get sick.  When longings go unfulfilled.  When we’re waiting and waiting on something.  When life seems out of control and fear stalks our hearts, our first faithfulness response can often be, “Lord  do You see?  Don’t You care?  You’ve obviously forgotten all about me or You wouldn’t have allowed this storm!” 

      But that’s a response based on feelings rather than on faith.  That’s our natural human inclination based upon what we see around us rather than based upon the Savior Who is with us.  Because if Jesus is in your rocking boat, you can have rest even in the midst of the fiercest storm.

      What was Jesus’ response to His terrified disciples?  He calmly speaks a word, and the storm ceases.  Immediately.  Think of those gigantic, ship-eating waves...vanished with a word...and replaced with a glassy sea all around the shocked and awed disciples.  Imagine the silence as the sound of crashing waves and raging wind is gone--in a moment.  It’s totally quiet, still, serene. 

Do you recall what Jesus said to them then?  “Why are you so afraid?  Have you still no faith?” (Mk4:40) And Mark tells us the disciples “were filled with great fear and said to one another, ‘Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?’” (Mk 4:41)

      There’s that word: “fear.”  But this wasn’t a fear of the storm.  No, the disciples’ fear of the circumstances had properly been displaced by a reverential fear and awe of the Messiah who stood before them.  When godly fear replaces our worldly fears, then the storms of life lose their power to strip us of our rest in God.  We can enjoy His perfect rest--His joy, peace, hope, and power--whether the seas around us are glassy and calm or crazy and crashing.  

      But so often that’s our problem--we fear...but our fear has the wrong object.  The Bible constantly reiterates the command to fear God--meaning to have a healthy awe, honor, and respect for Him.  The Psalmist tells us “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,” (Ps.111:10), and Prov.14:26 instructs us “In the fear of the Lord is strong confidence; and His children shall have a place of refuge.”  And according to Psalm 112, we’re greatly blessed when we fear the Lord and delight in His commands.  

      It’s the healthy fear of God that keeps us motivated to stay on the path of obedience...which is always ultimately the path of blessing.   

      Yep, no doubt about it--we’re to fear the Lord...but tragically, we’ve misplaced the object of our fear.  Rather than fearing God, we fear man.  We seek to please man...because we fear the world’s disapproval.  Or we fear what man can do to us.  

      And fear has a whole host of ugly relatives that love to rush in and camp out in our hearts, stripping us of the peace and joy God longs for us to enjoy.  There’s fear of disease, failure, accident, loneliness, financial disaster, dependency, death and on and on. 

      One fear will always displace the other--we either fear God, or we fear man or circumstances or sickness...or you name it.  If we fear God, all other potential fears will diminish, because we see them in their proper perspective.  But, boy, if we fear man, we’ll find ourselves consumed with worry, stress, insecurity, and doubt...that’s no way to live.

      And fear can paralyze.  Rob us of the abundant, full life Jesus died to give us.  Yes, His death on the cross gave us the greatest possible gift--forgiveness from our sins and eternal life.  But His death and resurrection also assures of His presence with us, for us, within us...and wherever Jesus is, there’s Life with a capital “L”...full, free, fruitful.  

      When we fear anything or anyone other than God, we’re not only misplacing our fear, but we’re misplacing our hope. 

      “In Christ alone, my hope is found.  He is my light, my strength, my song. This cornerstone, this solid ground, firm through the fiercest drought and storm.  What heights of love, what depths of peace; When fears are stilled, when strivings ceased.  My comforter, my all in all.  Here in the love of Christ I stand.” 

      That’s what a healthy proper fear will do for you...when we replace our fear of man or circumstances with a fear of God.  We can rest assured that Jesus will either still the storm raging about us...or He will still us right in the teeth of the storm.  Either way, we win.  Either way, we are secure in Him.    

      But let me ask one more questions.  Were the disciples just as safe and secure in that boat before Jesus stilled the storm?  Absolutely!  The disciples’ complete safety and rest depended not upon the prevention of the storm but upon the presence of the Savior.  

      We don’t enjoy God’s supernatural peace, joy, and hope as a result of favorable circumstances but in spite of them.  That’s the point--Jesus can and does give us His supernatural rest, peace, and joy even in the midst of the hardest of situations, but we have to actively and continually choose to trust and depend upon God.  

      We have to watch what we are fearing! 

      We have to choose to fear God--and not man...or our circumstances.  We have to choose to trust that God’s ways and plans are always ultimately for our greater good and His greater glory...in the big storms and the little annoyances of life. 

      If Jesus is in our rocking boat, we’re good.  No matter what.  Oh might we fear, adore, and worship Him and not anyone or anything else.  He is worthy.

      To God be the glory.

Pilgrims, pumpkins...and encouragement!

      “Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God.  But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called ‘today,’ that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.” (Heb.3:12-13)

      God calls us to be incorrigible encouragers.  

      Yep, in studying Hebrews this fall, it’s one of the themes that has stood out to me time and again: God wants His children to encourage and spur one another on as we live our lives and run our races by faith (Heb. 12:1-2).  We’re none of us meant to be lone-ranger Christians.  We need each other!  When I’m struggling, I need you to remind me of God’s faithfulness, presence, and power so I won’t fall into sin...and when you’re struggling, I need to do the same!  

      That’s why we’re called the “body of Christ.”  A body is connected, and each part of the body is important and needs to work with, and help, the other parts.  We need our hearts to beat...so our blood can flow..so our brains can think...so our lungs can breathe...so our mouths can eat...so our legs can more... We’re connected, and when one part of the body is ailing, the other parts are affected as well.        You know, it’s so easy to get isolated in this day and age with email, twitter, cell phone, home phone (if anybody other than our family still has one of those), voicemail, blogs, online ordering, and on and on.  Technology has both massively expanded our world...yet simultaneously shrunk it to the tiny, removed-from-the-world size of our living room.  We need never see one another face to face, or even voice to voice.  (Speaking of--if any of my children read this, note to self: please listen to your mama’s voicemails...and then call her back, rather than text.  Just an editorial comment.) 

      Ahem, where was I?  How can we truly know when a friend is struggling or burdened if we don’t see them in person...or hear their strained voice?  No, we miss multiple opportunities to nurture and encourage others simply out of sheer technology-induced-ignorance.  

      Add to that the rush and crush of our everyday, busy lives, and before you know it, we’re isolated and unable to do that which is most important in our lives--other than loving God--and that’s loving and encouraging His prized creation, His people.  

      Oh my, I’ve been so convicted of this, for if I’m too busy doing, doing, doing (or texting, blogging, and emailing) to reach out and embrace and encourage a hurting world, then I’m too busy with the wrong stuff.  Period.  If God’s Word so consistently elevates the critical importance of encouraging and spurring one another on, well then, it better be one of our life’s heartbeats as well.  

I need to be reminded of God’s Truths so I won’t come apart at the seams, slip into sin, or simply fall prey to discouragement.  And I need--and want--to do the same for you.  I don’t care if you’re Billy Graham, Beth Moore, or president of the world--we all need “Jesus with skin on” to help us stop looking around and wringing our hands and start looking up and trusting our Lord.

      l love what Jon Bloom says, “To battle sin is to battle unbelief...Jesus wants us to know the truth, because the truth brings freedom: If you abide in my Word, you are truly my disciples and you will know the truth and the truth will set you free. (John 8:31-32) So as freedom fighters, let’s fight against ‘unbelieving hearts’ by ‘exhorting one another everyday, as long as it is called “today,” (Heb.3:12-13) to live in the freedom--and peace (John 16:33)--of the truth.” 

      Yes sir, I want to be a freedom fighter and grace encourager.  We never know how near the edge someone might be, and how an encouraging word, a thoughtful note, a kind phone call might make all the difference.  

      Can I just give two little examples?  One sits right here in front of me as I work--a gift last week from some dear women in our Bible study.  They know I love, love, love pilgrims...and along about October 1st, out they come at our house--

And the second arrived just yesterday from a wonderful friend whose children also attend UNC.  This little fellow rests happily on our kitchen counter--reminding me on several fronts of God’s great faithfulness--

      My point?  It doesn’t necessarily require much to encourage someone else.  But speaking from experience, a little encouragement can go a long way to helping us persevere in the daily mud and muck of life.  So listen to the Nike ad...and just do it!

      Will you ask God to show you someone you can encourage TODAY?  It may only take a pilgrim, a pumpkin, or a phone call...but it could make all the difference in the world.  

To God be the glory.

Consider Jesus!

      “Therefore, holy brothers, you who share in a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession...” (Heb.3:1)

      We just studied this in Bible study this week, so for those of you who were there yesterday, this will be redundant!  But I thought it was worth repeating, because yours truly is a world champion “forgetter!”  I need constant reminding about what I should already know full well...but tend to forget in the stresses and struggles of daily life.  And this concept of daily “considering Jesus” is one of those bedrock principles that we cannot hear too often, because let’s face it--we forget.  In our mad rush to get everything done...or to absorb the obscene amounts of information thrown at us everyday in the form of email, twitter, internet, TV, newspaper, magazines and on and on, we (or at least I) tend to quickly forget what’s really first and most important.  (Important as opposed to urgent--the old “tyranny of the urgent”)  

      So here goes!  I love how The Message translates this verse. “So, my dear Christian friends, companions in following this call to the heights, take a good hard look at Jesus.  He’s the centerpiece of everything we believe, faithful in everything God gave Him to do.”  And the NIV describes same idea as “fixing your thoughts on Jesus.” 

      We’ve got to consider or fix our thoughts or take a good hard look at Jesus daily by examining Him in His Word.  But it’s not just reading the Word--it’s also thinking about, pondering, meditating upon those words as we go through our day.  God’s Word is meant to be part of the warp and woof of our day.  

      To consider Jesus means we don’t just read the Bible in the morning and then promptly get busy with life and forget about it.  No, we might write out a few verses and look at them over the sink while we cook or in our car as we drive to work.  We might speak a verse out loud as we pray...or as we clean up the house.  We turn it over in our minds as we weed the garden (well, that is if we actually weeded our garden!) or as we run errands.  

      There are so many practical ways to focus on God and His Word even as we go through our busy days.  But here’s one example  that really encouraged and challenged a number of us when we went to the house of one of my dearest friend’s, Ashlie Mann.  Her high school daughter, Lizzie, decided to write Bible verses and inspiring quotes all over her bathroom to encourage her to focus upon and follow the Lord Jesus--

      This is a high school senior who has recognized early on in life that the more she surrounds herself with God’s Word, the more she’ll consider Him.  And the more she considers Him and His Word, the more He’ll shape and transform her into His likeness.  As Ann Ortland once said, “It’s the look that saves...but it’s the gaze that sanctifies.”  True transformation occurs when we spend time gazing at Jesus and pondering His Word.

      I’m guessing this might be first time you’ve seen a picture of a bathroom in a blog!  But boy, it sure convicted and encouraged me that I need to do all I can to keep God’s Word all around my family and me so it will soak inside us. 

I recently heard Nancy Leigh DeMoss share a letter written by her aunt and uncle to their children.  Here’s part of what she shared:

      “When you children were young, one of our main goals was to get each of you to love Scripture, to read it each day and to have your own devotions.  We’re so grateful to God for leading each of you into this life-giving practice.  One related practice we’d like to see each of you consider is to post Scripture all over your walls in your home.  In bathrooms [Go Lizzie!], bedrooms, kitchen, everywhere...The adversary works 24/7 to tempt us to discouragement, selfishness, complaining, or whatever [can I just add a hearty ‘Amen!’].  The best counter-offensive not only keeps the devil on the run but additionally enriches our lives each day.”  

      And what is that counter-offensive?  It’s constantly considering Jesus and thinking about His Word. The letter goes on to explain, “Yes, I know you can open the Bible any time day or night, but to actually see God’s Word as you enter and exit your home each day, as you look in the mirror each morning, working in the kitchen, and anywhere else in the home you go, this makes for a living context of swimming in God’s Word.”  

      I love that--surrounding yourself with God’s Word will help you meditate on it day and night.  Here’s how one old-time commentator described the value of meditating on God’s Word: “Meditation is to reading the Word what digesting is to eating.  Without the slow and lengthened process of digestion, food would not nourish the body. Without meditation, the Word read will not nourish the soul.”  

      Now considering Jesus and meditating on His Word does NOT refer to some strange Eastern practice of closing your eyes and humming some mantra till you go into trance!  Not at all!  

Here’s how JD Greer explains meditating on God’s Word: The word “meditate” literally means “to mumble over and over.” JD says, “It’s like a cow chewing it’s cud.  A cow wakes up in the morning, eats some grass, and then lays down to take a nap.  After his nap, he regurgitates the grass he ate, chews on it a little more, extracting more nutrients, and then he takes another nap and wakes up and regurgitates again and continues this process until all the nutrients are gone.”  

      (I hope you’re not eating right now, and I’ve totally taken your appetite!  If so, I apologize--and if it’s chocolate, please don’t waste it.  Just drop if off at my house.  But I digress--)

      Seriously, what a vivid example of what it means to meditate and chew upon the Word so that God can nourish and equip us for whatever we’ll be facing each day.  Nothing is more critical if we want to enjoy the strength, joy, peace, hope, and power that Christ promises to those whose minds on fixed upon Him.  

      You know, I want to absorb every single bit of what God has for me so that I can daily grow more and more into His likeness...and less and less like my all-too-often selfish, silly, sinful self!  The more we’re swimming in the healing, convicting, empowering, revealing waters of His Word, the faster and more complete the transformation.  

      Today, will you consider Jesus?  There’s nothing, absolutely nothing, more important. To God be the glory.