Holy Week: Monday

Clouds are hovering dark and heavy here in Houston today....

threatening to all out pour on this city.

And I feel it's rather appropriate.

This Monday of Holy Week - with skies ready to empty out a quenching, and all of us here needing it....

all of us here - walking toward the cross - where Love poured forth from a Savior on a tree.

Indeed, skies willing to spill and God willing to sacrifice - it's very fitting.

For the last few days here - I have felt a strong impression to pray down Heaven on people. I've felt a keen and different desire to see miracles this week.

Big ones.

I want the Lord to pull hearts to Himself in crazy ways.
I want wayward children to return to the Lord.
I want completely shattered marriages to be restored.
I want healing for ailing bodies.
I want addictions to leave.
I want broken relationships to be mended.
I want atheists to become believers.
I want dreams and wonders from the Lord to be encountered.
I want provision....
 joy
 belief
 breakthrough. 

It's Holy Week..... why not?

So as I take these first few steps here toward a dying, rising Jesus - I pause to implore.

Because...

Over 2,000 years ago...around this time of the week - Jesus went into the temple and cleared it of all things twisted and evil and proclaimed.....

"Is it not written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations'? But you have made it a den of robbers."

"A house of prayer for all the nations."

We then read in 1 Corinthians 3:16 that we......we are now the temples of the living God. 

Us.

Not buildings. Not divine residences. Not some faraway kingly manner....

But God in His fullness dwells in you and me.

Therefore...

If Jesus said the temple was for prayer...
And we are now the temples....
We should be praying!

While God is certainly able to administer, and deliver, and sure-up any week of the year...

I feel in my gut that there is some kind of special anointing on the prayers of this week leading up to the resurrection. I feel like the Spirit is already moving, pouring, revealing in an increased measure this week, friends.

So let's partake. And petition. And praise.

What may I pray about for you? What needs an outpouring?

Do share. It's my honor to pray on your behalf.

The skies did end up showering us with a cool rain today.

And our Savior really did end up being our Stand-In.

And this God - He is still in the business of resurrections.

I'm praying and trusting that every soul that passes by this way this week - will end up experiencing that.

Easter 2014

I come into Holy Week....needing healing, hope, and wholeness.

I come into this season - needing faith, courage, and a heart that trusts.

I walk into this week, friends - longing to know Him more, desiring to see His face, wanting to hear His voice, needing to feel His hand on my life.

You too?

I'm not alone in this?

Perhaps, over the next several days - I'll pop in to punch out what the Lord is revealing..... as we journey toward the cross and empty tomb.

Lord willing - I plan to sit here on this step everyday this week....to just let the Spirit do some speaking.

The days leading up to Easter deserve that, don't you think?

The love that poured out on those nails and on that tree - it's worth our full attention and constant pondering this week.

Let's not allow the eggs and chocolate to outdo the Sacrifice.

Let's not let the new dresses and clove-studded hams to take prominence over what Christ did on our behalf.

Let's not fester over bunnies and gatherings and cantatas and church attendance numbers.... let's just linger....

In scripture.

In prayer.

In thoughtful meditation....

On the One who came for us all.

May your week be filled with precious and intimate and startling revelations from the Lord. 

I pray it's so. 

See you on the flip side, friends :)


 

Currently

I'm sitting here this morning, right on the cusp of dawn....

Thinking about what a doozy of a month it's already been.

The husband's job transition
A home search
Constant rental showings of our current abode
Little sleep
Tiny hearts that need tending in all the change
A big Mama heart that needs tending, too.

It's an odd season.

Lots of ups and downs and twists and maneuvers. 

Lots of long days, and short nights, and inefficient hours.

Some affliction and oppression and warfare, too.

I've felt the last few days that perhaps I've come to the end of myself.

The end of my patience, and my energy, and my mental capabilities.

So this early A.M....I come to you a bit short and fried.

There have been lessons learned and revelations shown in the midst of the nutty - but I'm in no manner to convey such things in words to you now. I'm afraid it would not make a lick of sense :)

But I did want to come - before the blondes stir from bed for the day... to walk along side anyone who may be feeling strung out, stressed out, or flailing.

I don't offer much in the way of wisdom on this and I certainly can't write with authority on the subject..... but I do offer you my company in the drought....and I do offer you a prayer in this season.

Because sometimes....in the midst of the crazy....

Companionship and petitions..... are just what we need to get us through.

Oh Lord, come and minister.
Come and meet me where I am....
And gird me up where I need it.
Clear out confusion
And ring in calm.
Sustain me because I'm feeble!
Give me Your presence....
And let me discern it.
Where I'm parched - pursue me.
 Fill me up.
Where I'm lacking - make do.
Where I'm worn and thin - sustain me God....
In mind, body, spirit.
And let me, in turn, lift up the ones around me...
Who need a boost themselves.
Have Your glory in all this, God. Be famed!
And let this season finalize in joy, blessing, wisdom-gained, and victory.
In Jesus, Amen.

Seek Them

I've discovered that the bravest among us are those who hope.

Those souls who find a way to offer up optimism, vision, expectancy.....

Those people who choose to stay in the realm of possibilities and who maintain a keen, ambitious outlook....

They're the ones you want to know.

They're the ones you want to mimic.

Because those of us who tend to err on the side of doubt, despair, and disbelief - we are lacking something.

It's not happiness, or blindness, or naivety.

It's not youthfulness, or greenness, or even truth.

It's courage.
It's work ethic.
It's energy.

Because being pessimistic....is really just a cover up for being lazy.

It's also a coy... for fear.

If we give up on the possibilities.....we don't have to keep striving for them. We don't have to keep fueling our faith. We don't have to overcome.

On the contrary however, if we hold on to hope that good things really could occur, that healings happen, that talents rise, that triumphs come....we have to expend our energies on it.

We have to hang in their....
and stick it out...
and put forth the gumption to pursue.

But those of us who choose discouragement over determination - we tend to let the whole dream go, in the name of being a realist. And because of that - we release ourselves from the burden of hanging on. And we free ourselves from the possibility of disappointment.

While that's safe....and understandable...

it's also a mistake.

It's true.....  A lot of the things we hope for - end up falling flat. Many of the prayers we pray - seemingly go unanswered. A ton of the goals we strive for - remain unreached.

And yes it's true....that being a dreamer alone, or an optimist without work, or a visionary without action.... is just as foolish.

Yes, we should note those things.

But still...

We should all watch the ones who dare to keep an eye on the prospects.

We should emulate the ones who can remain buoyant in choppy waters.

Copy their routines.
Inquire about their stamina.
Seek their endurance and wherewithal through it all.

For they're the ones who will see lots of glee-stealing failures, yes.

But their also the ones who will see the most joy-filled victories.

Ah, friends. He is writing this to me. I think I'm typing this all out here simply for myself.

I'm currently facing painful setbacks physically. Morning after morning I face new pains in new places. And hope is often squashed. And tears easily flow.

So know....

the one punching this out here feels the pangs - just like you do in one way or another.

And I also understand that being hopeful can leave you flailing at times.

Oh, yes it can.

As I mentioned in my last post....

Having hope - can be hurtful.

That's why those who can hold on to it.....are the bravest, most courageous, most Spirit-filled people on the planet.

Let's persist in seeking them out.

Their testimonies and their joy and their faith - will rise up good things in us.

Consider yourself embraced, friend. Hugs and hope and love to you all.

Why are you cast down, O my soul,
    and why are you in turmoil within me?
Hope in God; for I shall again praise him,
    my salvation and my God.

~ Psalm 43:5

For Somebody Besides Me

I had read that passage dozens of times.

I had underlined and starred certain sections.

I knew the story in and out and could tell you the beginning, middle, end.

Yes, I had heard about Lazarus - all wrapped and cold and days dead in a tomb..... answering the call of a Savior telling him to come out.

My mind's eye had conjured up the image, many times, of a stenched dead man rising to life and stumbling out of a cave tomb.

I had pictured Mary and Martha - Lazarus' sisters wailing in grief over the loss of their kin - only to then picture them at the feet of Jesus.... crumbled in heaps of thanksgiving and outright awe.

But yesterday - sitting on the far side cushion of my stained couch, under a broken lamp shade that fell prey to a soccer ball being kicked in the house -

A certain verse from Laz's story leapt off the printed page and settled down right into the depths of my soul.

This is what the Lord said to Martha right before her brother was brought back to the land of the living....

Jesus said to her, "Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?" (John 11:40)

Read that again. Roll around in it, if you will. Let it tumble off your tongue and let it seep deep into your psyche.

Ah. Somebody besides me needs to sit on that verse for a while.
  
"Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?"

The reading of this passage was so timely and pertinent for me - and the Spirit knew it.

So in His goodness, He all but highlighted that verse, as I sleepily made my way through Bible reading that morning.

It was as if the Lord was sitting right in front of me....asking me the very same question.

You see - there's been lots of changes taking place in these parts lately. There's been a job change. There's soon to be a slight location change. And the trajectory of our lives has shifted a bit.

All good. All God. 

But change is change. And leaving something known for something new - it can feel risky and odd and it can be dredged in worry. It's certainly been all those things....

But....

When God's hand is on something or somebody - your doubt-filled mind will eventually end up seeing it.

And see it, I have.

Oh friends....just in the last week alone - God's provision has been unprecedented. His presence has been thick and His direction glowing.

I cry at the thought of it.

It had all come to a head the night before. All the blessings and gifts and guidance that the Lord had been providing....all came into the light at once. Many of the whys and whens and wheres - were revealed.

And so - sitting there with my Bible open to John, with all the blondes still quiet in bed... He asked me...

"Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?" 

And my bottom jaw fell open a bit - and I sat in silence for a moment and I answered Him aloud...

Yes. Yes! Good Lord, yes.

And so today - if you find yourself on the dark side of things....if you find your life dead and drying in certain areas - I urge you to believe! And if you struggle to believe.....tell Him! Ask Him! For even our faith in Him comes from Him!

What a gracious God!

And then - when you have stood in the faith He Himself has given you....and when divine time is right...

You'll behold His glory. You will.

And when He asks you....

"Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?" 

Sister, you will give a hearty and a resounding head-nod of a 'yes!' as you blink through faith-filled tears.

but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength;
    they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary;
    they shall walk and not faint. (Isaiah 40:31)

Be encouraged. You'll witness His wild glory and grace before too long, sweet one.

It's on it's way.

*************************

*Note: Right before I hit the publish button on this happy little post here, I got an email with disappointing news. Nothing serious, just something dear. Something that I had gotten optimistic about that fell flat. Very flat. So know - I'm well aware that being hopeful.....can be very hurtful, at times. Therefore, on many fronts I stand with you.....waiting. Waiting for grace and glory to come in. Hugs to you all.

Outside

The trampoline's been our teaching table here lately.

Since Spring has mostly sprung in these parts, bringing a new warm wind with it - the blondes like to sit in the sun and study....rather than sit in a seat inside.

And I'm with them.

There's something about open air that opens up the mind, it seems.

So this morning - with the sun rising high and hot....we started out our day with Bibles sprawled on black canvas.

And we did our memory verse, and we added to our gratefulness journal, and we prayed over prayer requests....

All out there under a blue Texas heaven - suspended over a thick ground cover of clover.

And the break of the day - with it's breeze and light....it sent us flying.

Or walking, rather.

Usually after Bible study - we do phonics, handwriting, math.

But today - after cracking open those Scripts under sunshine - we hit the pavement.

For over an hour we stopped to stamp buttercups on our hands, and we gathered weed flowers, and we watched ducks land on bayous, and we heard turtles diving into water, and we breathed deep and long of all things outside. 


Our afternoon was much more 'productive'.

We did eventually get around to opening up those lesson books - and we did tend to everyday chores - and we did go through the ins and outs and ups and downs of our ordinary day...

just not until after we reveled in creation for a while.

As for our morning....it wasn't as generative, I suppose .

Nothing got checked off the to-do list early today. A few emails didn't get sent. The laundry isn't as caught up as it should be. No....there isn't too much to show for our 9-12 time slot.

Not today.

Except, of course....

grin-streaked, sun-kissed faces.

And as a Mama who finally understands that freedom in the outdoors can sometimes be more fruitful than a long lecture in a hard desk seat inside...

I'm okay with that.

Preparation and Prayer

He spent most of his spare moments this past week...

praying for revelation, peering into commentaries,  and pouring over scripture.

He stayed up late, and got up early, and filled his lunch hour seeking and studying.

Because this whole preaching thing - it's precious.

The magnitude of it isn't missed on him.

The weight of presenting the very Gospel to people...the enormity of interpreting scripture... the value in sharing personal experience - it's all very heavy and grand and eternal.

And he knows it.

With no seminary degree, no theology classes, no pastoral training - it's all a stretch, really.

But oh....

It's when we're all stretched out for Him ....that He shows up for us.

There's no hype - just Holy. There's no training - just tracking.....

....with the Spirit - who is always so graciously faithful to fill and provide and roll out something new, needed, good.

My husband's been preaching every odd once in a while for years now.

And it still tickles me.

And it thrills me.

Because there's something about us coming to the Lord with nothing - nothing but our weaknesses and pasts and failures - that urges Him to give to the point of overflow.

It was St. Augustine who said "God gives where he finds empty hands."

There's such a calmness to that, isn't there?

Likewise - the Lord told Paul....“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”

How gracious!

He's in the bathroom now - shut away from the loud noises of children...running through his notes.

And the wife here is praying....

asking for the Spirit to be thick
for people to be loosed of dark chains
for movement
for direction
for purpose
for healing
and yes....

for hearts to be bound to the One who frees. 

Exalt Yourself tomorrow, Lord
Get people and pride and prowess out of the way
Remove distraction
Expose shallow roots
And plant us all deep and down-reaching.

Yes.

For them.
For him.
For me.