Living Life for Christ Alone

"...I want them to have complete confidence that they understand God's mysterious plan, which is...." (Colossians 2:2) How would you finish that sentence?  I think some might launch into a long theological answer. Others might simply say, "to get glory for Himself."  Some might recite some creed they memorized a long time ago. Still more might be stumped and say nothing. Another might talk about the big dreams they believe God has for them. I'm not saying none of these are good or needed.... But what if God's mysterious plan was something incredibly simple?  What if He wants us to get our focus off of doctrine and theology alone and onto something far deeper, that touches the heart?  What if He wants us to stop pursuing some incredibly high calling, or spiritual greatness and turn our attention elsewhere?  What if He means for us to be completely awestruck with His mysterious plan because it's incredibly simple, yet profound?  Alright, alright... wha...

I sat on the bathroom floor, the sound of the girls crying from the different rooms they were in making its way to my ears and breaking into the silence. It had been an emotional week for the girls. Between potty training, teething, leaps and who knows what else, there had been many, many tears. My own emotions were frayed, and I knew I couldn't handle their tears and the intensity of emotion much more.  I took a deep breath and said a prayer. "God, I can't even hold myself together..."  His whisper quieted my soul: "I can hold you -and them- together."  I stood back up and walked out of that bathroom with renewed confidence. ... "He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it." (1 Thess 5:24) How readily I take things into my own hands. How easily I grasp for control. And then, how quickly it all gets out of control because of my choice to take control.  But I am here -as  a wife, a mother, a writer and whatever else I am, because He  called me...

Have you ever felt like life's many troubles, pains, challenges and pressures line up at your bed to greet you the moment you wake up?  This has been me the last couple weeks... I wake up in the morning, and there they are clamoring for my attention. I think through one and come to a conclusion about it, and then the next one takes its turn. And then, when I have thought through them all, the first one comes around again with another side to the issue to get me thinking again. Fix it mode is a very real thing, and not just for men. We want control, we want to see wrongs made right, we want our world to be put back in order, we just want peace. And before long, we become consumed.  Have you ever been here? It comes in many different forms... You could call it worry. You could call it fear. You could call it anxiety. You could call it control. You could call it a search for stability. You could call it a desire for things to be fixed. You could call it a pity party. You could ca...

 "We were crushed and overwhelmed beyond our ability to endure, and we thought we would never live through it. In fact, we expected to die. But as a result, we stopped relying on ourselves and learned to rely on God, who raises the dead." (2 Corinthians 1:8b-9) The saying that God will never give us more than we can endure is simply not true.  At times, we get to this place of complete overwhelm beyond what we can endure.  Why? Why would God allow that to happen to His children? Why would God make life -and even survival- impossible for us?  It's quite simple, really.  Overwhelm is when all the temporary fixes we depend on stop working. Overwhelm is when the truth of those temporary fixes sinks in; they are not really fixes at all. Overwhelm is when we can begin to realize we were made to depend on the unseen, eternal God. It is when we are forced to make a choice in response to our own instinct to survive as to who or what we will depend on. It is when we are g...

"Oh God, do you even love me?" The question escaped my lips before I could even begin to think how "unchristian" it was. The darkness seemed to envelop my vision and I could not see the One I was speaking to... was He even there? How could He be when I felt so far from Him?  ...No, He couldn't be. Desperately, I looked around me, looking for solace, but the wind kept blowing, the waves kept beating against me, threatening to knock me down.  "What is He doing?" I asked myself. 

"For we have not an High Priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities..." (Heb. 4:15) When I do not understand myself, Jesus  still  understands me.

"Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before His eyes, and He is the One to whom we are accountable." -Hebrews 4:13 Think about it. You are always before His eyes. He searches and knows you. There are are many things you may be able to hide from others, but there is nothing you can hide from Him. He's seen you at your worst.

"One of the teachers of religious law... asked, 'Of all the commandments, which is the most important?' Jesus replied, 'The most important commandment is this: "Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength." The second is equally important: "Love your neighbor as yourself." No other commandment is greater than these.'" (Mark 12:28-31) Have you ever wondered what brings God the most pleasure?   The out-flowing desire of a person who has been redeemed is to know what pleases Him. After all that He did for us in saving us from a life of sin and separation from God, and then eternity in hell still separated from God, it only makes sense to have so much gratitude in your heart that you want to do something for Him.

I walked all alone down the leaf-strewn sidewalk, my hands in my pockets. A dark figure came out of the shadows and walked towards me. I could not make out who it was, but I sensed an evil about him -an evil that threatened my beautiful surroundings. And then he spoke in a forceful tone. "You had better face it. You are alone, and it will always be that way. Nobody really loves you. You just think they do. Really, though, you are alone." I tried to fight back the tears as the reality of his words sank in. Was it really true? People seemed to like me, but really, did they? It seemed true enough. I was all alone in this world. Nobody really wanted to know what I had to say or think. It was just me, and that was it. Deep in thought, I failed to notice that the dark figure had left me to think about his lies alone.