Unmet Expectations and the Goodness of God

We all have expectations. Each day we wake up we have an expectation of how that day is going to go (whether big or small) and yet every day we face unmet expectations. The past few months the Lord has been teaching me that in spite of my expectations, God is the one who determines my path… and is to be trusted. That path isn’t always easy.  In fact, sometimes it’s really hard.  Sinners that we are, we too often focus on our desires outside of Him. Here’s a confession: It is impossible to be content with anything if focused on earthly desires and not on the God who gives grace. In fact when we realize that those are the only options, the circumstances of life show us where our desires are truly rooted! We must not find contentment in our circumstances and we must have faith in God who has allowed us to go through whatever we are facing.

Have you ever caught yourself saying, “IF ONLY__________then I would be happy”? Many times we think that if our circumstances were different then we would be happy or content. However, this is sinful thinking and will lead us down a path of wrong thinking that will make us discontent. When we ask the “what if’s”, we are not trusting God and allowing ourselves to think rightly about Him.  We know we will all face trials and afflictions in this life.  Yet many times they come as a surprise to us. Why is this? Well, our expectations of how we thought life was meant to be have been overturned.  We love and cherish our thoughts and ideas about how we see our life above that of the infinite mind of God.  As believers, we shouldn’t be surprised when we face trials.  Even when the unexpected takes us by surprise, we must trust that God’s sovereign plan has allowed it in our lives for good.  Why?  Because ultimately, it’s not about us and what our flesh craves.  It’s about bringing glory to Jesus Christ by trusting in the grace only He provides.

“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, says my soul, therefore I will hope in him. The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him… For the Lord will not cast off forever, but, though he cause grief, he will have compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love; for he does not afflict from heart or grieve the children of men." (Lamentations 3:22-25;31-33)

“All the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness, for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies.” (Ps. 25:10)

What a good and loving God we serve that He is faithful to keep His promises to us and that He has compassion on us!! I am a sinner who has already been given more than I deserve, which is Christ who took my sin and declared me righteous that I might have eternal life with Him!! The Lord will not disappoint us if we put our hope and trust in Him.  I can say that I am so thankful for the trials the Lord has allowed in my life because through them they have grown me closer to Him and have caused me to realize how sinful my heart really is and my need of Christ. I pray that I would set my expectations and hope in Christ and trust Him that He will direct my steps.

I would encourage you to take some time to think about what expectations you might have and ask God to show you through His Word if these are right. Whatever circumstances the Lord is allowing in your life right now are to grow you and make you more like Him. We have to cling to the Lord and place our hope in Him and trust that He is good.  I pray that we can “count it all joy when we face trials of various kinds, for we know that the testing of our faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” (James 1:2-4)

Hope you all have a great week!

Love,
Brooke

A Heart of Submission and Prayer

Lately my heart has been so thankful for God’s design of submission. And that through His Son, I can learn to be submissive in the most impactful ways that glorify Him to the up-most. Before the Lord so graciously saved me, I viewed submission in all the wrong ways. I thought of it as a demeaning term and that it was something I had to do because it was “right” or because my guy friends told me I needed to do it ‘cause I was a girl. You can imagine my attitude towards submission then as an enemy of God. But through God’s grace He changed the way that I viewed and lived out this term. He caused me to realize the great privilege I have in learning what it means to submit to the glory of Himself with all my “…heart, soul, mind, and strength.” (Matthew 22:37) I’ve experienced the joy that comes when I submit my will to the Father’s. Learning to trust in Him in the day to day circumstances excites my heart to further serve the Lord. Sometimes submission isn't always the easiest thing to do or even what I want to do when my flesh fights it, but as a woman of God it is something I must learn to do in the hardest of times.

In the past few weeks the Lord has granted me an incredible, wonderful new avenue for me to learn submission. Just when I thought I had a good handle on it, God had a new challenge for me and knew the need for me to learn still. I honestly never thought I could learn so much in such a short period of time, but through marriage God has continued to open my eyes to my daily need for Him in order to submit and serve Him and my husband the way I am called to. When I fully submit to my husband I am ultimately submitting to the Lord. Learning to humbly serve the Lord as a single person has just continued into the relationship I have with my husband.  How thankful I am for this area where I can continue to be challenged to grow!

Submission has also made me incredibly aware of the need for prayer and the importance of it in my life. Apart from the well-known scriptural calls to prayer, there are really two great human reasons, I've learned, why we ought to pray. One because of the fact that prayer is the source of power for growth and perseverance in our spiritual lives. How am I to know how to best serve and love my husband, others, and my Savior unless I am constantly on my knees asking for the knowledge to best do so? How am I going to grow in endurance in the various areas of my life if I am not going and laying down my life before the Father daily? The scripture tells us that “…He has given us all that we need for life and godliness.” (2 Peter 1:3), through the living out of His Word. What better way can we honor and glorify the Lord than to align ourselves to His Holy Word and praise Him for it every day that we live? The second reason is that prayer bends our will to God’s will, which is what submitting our life is all about. Prayer and submission weren't designed to pull God to my will, but to align my will to His. How awesome is this?! How awesome is it that we as God’s children have the privilege to have our wills aligned with our Savior! Even when we don’t understand why life brings hardships and trials, we can fully trust in the Lord and have a true peace when we submit to Him and trust that He knows and has the best in mind for us "...for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose." (Romans 8:28-30)

Yet how few of us exploit this opportunity to draw from Him the power we need to press on or to have our will bent to God’s. How I have failed in the past to try to understand how to better serve my Lord, how to submit my life to Him, and praise Him in thanksgiving. Yet, He is SO gracious! He has provided us a way to draw closer to Him and enter into His presence daily….through the saving power of the Gospel and through prayer! Adoration and praise for our God quite naturally leads to the presentation of our bodies – our entire lives – in an ultimate act of worship. After the apostle Paul says, “For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever! Amen.” (Romans 11:36), he immediately calls us to submission: “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship” (Romans 12:1).

Through learning about submission to God I realize that my devotion results in a conscious yielding of every part of my personality, every ambition, every relationship, and every hope to Him. This is a daily task of laying down my life in which, by God’s grace, you and I can grow and one day be presented "...fully mature in Christ." (Colossians 1:28) I pray that this encourages you to submit and praise the Lord in whatever stage of life you are in. Submitting to the Lord is one of the single most effective ways we as women can make the Gospel attractive to others and exhibit a true heart of worship!

"In all things, praise Him."

Tiffany

It's gonna be okay...and even better than that.

To be completely honest, this last month has been the hardest month I have had in a long time. Details aside, it was mixed with decisions that needed to be made, uncertainty, anger, fear, sadness, restlessness, lots and lots of tears (which I blame at least 50% on being 32 weeks pregnant)...lots of highs and lows. I found myself being "okay" one minute to being a puddle of tears the next. "What the heck is wrong with me?!" I kept asking myself. I knew some of the things I felt were valid, human emotions, but I also knew that I couldn't go on like this indefinitely.

Our pastor here has been preaching through Ephesians, and the last several weeks has been on the armor of God (Ephesians 6). Last Sunday was just what I needed to hear...balm for my soul, really. He was talking about how Christians have to constantly remind themselves of the gospel in order to be armed against Satan's attacks- not just reminding ourselves what Christ has done for us on the cross (although it definitely includes that!), but also the present help and future hope that we have as His children. It was nothing new, nothing I haven't heard before, but it spoke directly into my fears and sadness. Even hearing Pastor Todd simply say, "it's going to be okay!" was a relief to my restless heart.

You know what? At the end of the day, Christ is still King. He is still my Savior, He is still the one that holds me in the palm of His hands. Even though the present trials are not a huge deal in the grand scheme of things, He still cares. That truth alone brings me to tears (as if I haven't cried enough this month!) :) Not only does He care, He has secured for us, His precious children, a certain hope of a new heavens and a new earth with Him eternally. So while it doesn't discount the hardships we face day to day, it gives us perspective and the strength to keep going.

So as simple as it may seem, remind yourself of the big picture. We don't have to pretend the trials aren't there, but we don't have to go through them as if there is no end in sight...because there is. A beautiful, glorious end where He will make all things new.

Sweet Jesus Christ, my sanity
Sweet Jesus Christ, my clarity...
Christ has died and Christ is risen
And Christ will come again 
("Mystery" by Charlie Hall)

Dust Bunny Sins and Not Loving this World

“Let us seek treasure in heaven, lest we awake to find that we are paupers for evermore.” – JC Ryle

The Lord recently gave me a check-up that left me speechless.

Have you ever been in a situation, an ordinary day with an ordinary conversation, and a little something comes up and you find yourself shocked at your response.

In the words of You’ve Got Mail, “Boom! It’s Mr. Nasty.”

I think the Lord gives us those opportunities to show us the dust bunny sins that hide under the couch in our hearts. The Lord recently blessed me with one of these sweet opportunities, where Clay threw out a random idea and I was surprised at the panic I felt in my heart. “What!! Change the way things are? May it never be! I like my life! I like the way things are. I like what I have! No change!!!!”

And “Boom” – there was Mr. Nasty.

My response revealed so many flaws, among which were

                - forgetting that my life needs to be aimed at God’s glory, not my own

- thinking I own anything

- thinking I needed to be happy

-clinging too tightly to the things of this world

And I am so grateful that the Lord showed me this. I struggled and stewed and prayed, and am still praying, confessing the idols in my heart and asking God to give me the grace to destroy them. I’ve had to copy Paul David Trip and physically pray with my hands open to remind myself that “The Lord gives, and the Lord takes away; Blessed be the name of the Lord.” It is difficult not to get caught up in what I see. I am too often distracted by what my hands can touch. My eyes linger on pretty, glamorous things that do not actually matter.

And here is where the need to renew my mind becomes so clear. 1 John warns about this very thing, 

saying,

“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world – the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life – is not from the Father but is from the world. And the World is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.” 1 John 2:15-17

As Jesus taught in Luke 9:23-25,

“And he said to all, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever saves his life for my sake will find it. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself?’”

I am always in danger of being like the crowd who followed Jesus when they were fed, but left him afterward. The daily taking up the cross, realizing the world and its desires are passing away, and being diligent to do the will of God who abides forever is a worthwhile yet constant battle. I don’t want to be deluded; I don’t want to be distracted from the reality of God’s call on my life.

How about you? How do you battle the tempting sirens of this world? What keeps you from being sidetracked by earthly things?

Love

Lately, I have been thinking a lot about love.  After all, this has certainly been a summer packed with weddings. I’ve had friends who have gotten engaged.  Tyler and I just celebrated our second anniversary.  Yes, love is in the air! But this isn’t the love that I’ve been thinking about.  

The love of the body of Christ, the love that should be between believers . . . this is the love that the Lord has continuously brought to my mind and confronted my heart with over the last several weeks.  I’m immensely grateful for the recent teaching we’ve received from Pastor Shane on 1 Corinthians 13.  And in the weeks that have followed, I’ve had to ask myself a difficult question.  Where is my love?  

I don’t think it’s a secret that a very real danger that exists in any church, even one that is wholly dedicated to deep, exposition of the Word, is that we can fool ourselves into equating agreeing with truth with putting truth into action.  Honestly, it’s a lot easier for me to sit under teaching and think of all the ways other people need to hear what’s being taught than for me to admit that I need to hear it.  Additionally, I need to stop going into times of preaching, teaching, or Bible study with the assumption that just because I know truth doesn’t mean I’m living it out.  Instead, I need to assume that I am always lacking, because guess what?  I am.   

Here are some hard truths on love I’ve had to wrestle with, admit to, and in many cases, repent of: 

 1.  Love changes how I think

 I’m commanded to love ALL believers. 

There is no shortage of verses in Scripture requiring us to love the body, but one of the clearest to me is found in John 13: 34-35.  

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you 

have love for one another.”

There are no conditions or caveats put on this love for the body.  No “you only have to love believers who are your closest friends” or “you only have to love believers who don’t annoy, frustrate, or irritate you.” This is a call to love all believers at all times under all circumstances.  

It’s very easy for me to come to church or college group with the mindset that I’m going to fellowship with just my friends or the people that I may know really well.  That is selfish.  I ought to come with the mindset of “Are there new people/visitors to whom I can be a friend? Who can I encourage today outside of my comfort zone?” In truth, the best friendships and relationships I have today, including that of my husband, are ones that forced me to get out of my comfort zone and meet new people.  I should never be content that I have “just enough” friends within the body and lack the desire to forge new relationships.  If that is my heart, I don’t have love for all believers.  And if I don’t have love for ALL believers, I don’t have love at all.  

2.  Love changes what I do

Love = Service

Phil. 2:3-8 “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,  but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Our greatest example of a loving, selfless, sacrificial life is Jesus Christ.  He loved us to the point of death.  But imagine if Christ responded to the command from His Father to love us poor, weak, annoying, unlovable people with human and selfish excuses: 

“Ugh! Her?!? I don’t feel like dying for her! She is so annoying!”

“Can’t I just die for my disciples?  I mean, they’re my friends.”

“I’m tired and I’ve had a long day.  I’ll do it tomorrow.” 

I’m so grateful that Christ’s love is not like that! And His love wasn’t in word only but in action, too!  Love is a choice.  Love is an action.  Love that is real and genuine will be fleshed out in ministry.  And that ministry isn’t always convenient or even appreciated.  However, if I truly love the body, I will be pursuing ways to serve the it, rather than myself.  

3.  Love changes who I am 

Am I really changed?

1 John 4: 7-11 “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.  Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, 

we also ought to love one another.”

Love for the church is not only a command but it is also a mark of true, genuine belief.  Lack of love for believers has many faces.  It’s more than just being at odds with someone.  It can manifest itself as selfishness that refuses to serve but expects to be served, a critical spirit toward church leadership, failure to seek out ways to encourage those beyond my most intimate circle of friends, ignoring the call to be transparent with each other and seek to be discipled as well as to be discipling, etc.  

I had a professor in college who was known for saying, “Ministry is a natural overflow of your love for God.  So, if you aren’t ministering to others, what does that say about your love for God?” Over the years, and even in the last few weeks, I’ve had to do this “gut check.”  What does my pattern of love (or the lack thereof) say about my faith?  Does it prove my salvation to be real?  Or should I be concerned about what I’m seeing?  

My heart in sharing this with you all and encouraging you to think on these things is not to be harsh.  But I do hope it is shocking.  Why?  Because shocking things get our attention.  And, when it comes to God's commands for love, we need to pay attention because the stakes are high.  If we continue to live in such a way that only receives theological teaching, doctrine, and truth about love but neglect to put it into practice toward ALL of the body, we are living in a state of delusion.  We delude ourselves into thinking we are growing, learning, and maturing.  We think we are okay, when in fact we are lacking a primary and vital thing . . . love for God and for His church.  

The truth is that I haven’t been loving as I ought to.  But now, confronted with truth, I am called to act not just agree.  If I love the Lord, I will pursue keeping His commandments . . . I will pursue love.  So, pursue it I will.  May we all as young women of faith, exhort, encourage, and challenge each other to love as He commands us to . . . to love as He first loved us.  


Elisabeth

Here's My Heart.

These past few months have been crazy for me. I’ve cried, I’ve laughed. I’ve smiled. I’ve worried. I’ve sung. I’ve struggled. I’ve rejoiced. I’ve sifted through feelings and focused on truths. I’ve felt alone. I’ve felt surrounded. I’m embarking on a new adventure here. One I’m thrilled about, and one I’m scared about. I don’t know how to be a wife. I have all these ideals of what I want to be and it seems so big. I see faithful wives around me and I want to be like them. I want a love like 1 Corinthians 13. I want to bear all things, believe all things, hope all things, endure all things. I want that love to never fail.  I want to be a helper who is strong and steady for when my husband doesn’t feel strong. I want to be full of wisdom and grace. I have idolized what it is to be a wife at times. Having a statue of something glorious in my mind. It’s a worthy calling, it truly is. But it’s not worthy to be worshipped. (Wo)man’s chief end is not to glorify wifehood and enjoy it forever (for those of you who grew up learning the Westminster Shorter Catechism). We can worship anything for that matter….kids, school, singleness, work, church, family, friends. These things in and of themselves are not what we live for. They are all part of our lives and a part of who we are. In living out these callings there is an intermingling of unique gifts and abilities God has given us to serve in these areas, but they are not our “chief end”. In recently listening to a sermon preached by Brad Bigney (author of Gospel Treason) I heard repeated, “An idol is anyone or anything that begins to capture our hearts, minds, and affections more than God.” My heart. My mind. My affections. How utterly consuming! That’s all of me. Oh how easily I let these idols build in my heart. It seems as though my heart is filled with hundreds of little factory workers anxious to meet a deadline, so they are working as fast as they can, scurrying around in my heart. However in the end I have myself to blame. My passions, my desires. If I am not vigilant I will let desires and passions capture this heart of mine. It’s a daily struggle. A daily reminder of my need to preach the truths of Scripture to my heart, to be on my knees before the Lord, to say, “here’s my heart, Lord. Take and seal it.” I am comforted. I am comforted that “he who began the good work in me will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.” I’m thankful he doesn’t leave me in pursuit of these idols, but he stops me and shows me my sin, and lavishes me with grace. So what is my chief end? “Man’s chief end is to glorify God and enjoy him forever.” When I pursue my idol of an ideal wife, a daughter, a co-worker for my own good I am met with disappointment because I meet failure. When I pursue the Lord, I find joy because in him are deep waters of grace and strength.  It is in His grace and strength that I am able to be what he has called me to be. His perfection covers my imperfections. His grace is sufficient for me. His power made perfect in weakness. In pursuing him, in his presence, there is fullness of joy.

Knowing Him and Making Him Known

On Monday evening, many of us were surprised to hear about the death of Robin Williams. The Facebook posts, articles, tweets, etc, that followed likely stemmed many thoughts.

For me, I found myself saddened by the state of this world, convicted by my lack of diligence to share the truth, and reminded of the hope found in the Savior.

So often, we get caught up in our routines. Clock in, clock out. Church on Sunday. Bible study on Thursday. Clean the kitchen. Fold the clothes. And I think, when we're truly honest, our focus is so often not on glorifying the Lord, especially in the mundane routines of our daily lives.

Things hit home for me this week. On Monday, I was hit with the realization that people around me may be deeply struggling with anger, depression, and are often clinging tightly to the sin that continues to destroy them. In my pride, I grow frustrated with people and I fail to show grace. Some of these thoughts began whirling through my mind and I soon heard of Robin Williams' apparent suicide.

What is holding me back from sharing truth today?

It's as if I am surrounded by people drowning in the sea, and I'm in a boat filled with life preservers. Why am I not more diligent in sharing the truth that saves souls? Now, I'm not trying to say that God is not sovereign in these situations, because He surely is. We have a responsibility we often fail at, and He's sovereign even in our failures. But this is no excuse to not even try. We have a great responsibility.

I have heard many a comments this week... Some that have invoked a deep sadness inside of me for the lost souls around me. Just goes to show that money can't buy happiness. Yes, but you've still got it all wrong. Living for yourself can't buy that either. Not family, not friends, not "good works," not a house or a husband or kids or anything this world has to offer.

Can you imagine getting to the end of your life and the biggest thing people have to say about you is that you made people laugh? What about those empty words we hear uttered in regards to death in a non-believing community? He loved football, loved to make people laugh, he loved country music, and he loved his mamma's cheeseburgers. These are the things that people live for. There's nothing inherently sinful about sports or laughing or music or food... But these kinds of things are the things the world grows consumed with.

I've heard and read a lot of comments this week. Many of them seem to be filled with pieces of truth, yet they're missing the main point. Surrendering our hearts and our lives to Christ is truly the only way to find true hope and joy in this life. No, money can't buy happiness. That is evident all over our culture. Yes, Robin Williams made many people laugh. I can't say with one hundred percent certainty that I know the state of his soul, but I can say this... What value does any earthly achievement have at the end of a life? And this continues to hit home in my heart because I am surrounded (as many of you probably are) with people pursuing success and pursuing a great name in the eyes of the world (and these temptations are still there for believers, including myself). And I see them continuing to feel empty. And here I am, filled with hope, and often keeping it to myself. I often miss the opportunities in front of my face. I quickly fear man. But truly, what can man do to me? God is so kind to show us our hearts, to forgive us, to teach us, and to grow us.

Am I ready to give an answer when they ask about the hope that is within me? Do they see me living a life characterized by the fruits of the Spirit? Am I sharing these truths when given the opportunity, and praying for more opportunities? Am I caring for their souls? Is my greatest desire to know Christ and to see Christ formed in people?

Hope that lifts me from despair, love that casts out ev'ry fear, 
As I stand on ev'ry promise of Your Word. 
Not forsaken, not alone, for the Comforter has come, 
And I stand on ev'ry promise of Your Word. 
Grace sufficient, grace for me, 
Grace for all who will believe— 
We will stand on ev'ry promise of Your Word.

- Getty and Townend

Our hope is found in the truths in His word. This is the hope that a dying world is searching for in everything but Christ and His word. Let us continually be examining our hearts, desiring to know Christ, and desiring to make Him known. That is what this life is about. Knowing Him and making Him known.

Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. (Psalm 73:25-26 ESV)