change

I (Sherann) hear it quite often.  Change.  It's one of those words that can either bring you hope or shivers down your spine.  I hear people say they don't like change, but they know it's inevitable.  Change will come.  Sometimes you are ready for it and often times it comes when you least expect it.  And whether you want change or not, let me just break the ice before you read on.  Change will come.
But think back for a moment and look at all the changes that took place in your life.  And because of change you are where you are today.  Personally, who knew that a bay area girl would move to the valley. (seriously, right?)  I prepared for that and as I look back, i'm grateful for that change.
But on the other hand, I wasn't prepared for my mom to unexpectedly pass away.  It will be four months and I still haven't fully grasped this whole grieving process.  People have been telling me that I will need to adjust to the "new" normal.  In other words, change is on the horizon and I need to adjust my life towards this "new" direction... a direction without my mom.  I get that.  I understand that.  I'm working to get there.
PERHAPS, even at this very moment YOU, my friend are going through changes or change is on the horizon.  Whether you are graduating from high school/college, career choices, moving to another state, etc... I would like to share with you one truth that has kept me going.

Ready?

Whatever "change" you may be facing, you and I can hold onto this truth:

My God.. YOUR God... does NOT change.  Can you just let that wash over you right now?  Our God does not change in the midst of what you are going through.

Hebrews 6:17-18 (The Message):
 "When God wanted to guarantee his promises, he gave his word, a rock-solid guarantee—God can’t break his word. And because his word cannot change, the promise is likewise unchangeable.

2 Timothy 2:13 (ESV)
"If we are faithless, he remains faithful."

I am grateful that God is an unchanging God and I can trust His promises to be true.
Today, I hope that you are reminded of His unfailing love and faithfulness.   Face your change with God before and behind you.

Because He lives... I can face tomorrow
Because He lives... all fear is gone
Because I KNOW... He holds the future
and life is worth the living just because HE LIVES!

 soli deo gloria

Not the Way it's Supposed to Be

Today's tragedy in Boston is just another reminder that this world is not the way that it's supposed to be.

Sin has a strong hold on humanity. The enemy holds no regard for human life. And his power over many is very strong.

In this time of despair and sadness, as individuals and families are suffering, we need to pray for those who are suffering, and we need to remember the love of God and the hope that we have in His Son, Jesus Christ.

I encourage you to turn this tragedy, this weapon of the enemy, into an opportunity to share God's love and hope. To shine His light into the darkness. To remind those who are confused, that while God allows evil to exist, it is only for a time, and it is only because we (humans) chose it over good at times. This is not the way it's supposed to be. And it's not the way that it will always be. Praise God! This is not the way that it will always be!

Acts like this are just proof that we need a savior. Which means that it is the perfect opportunity for you to share Jesus with others. This hurting broken world needs Jesus now just as much as it ever did.

Be His light in the darkness of this world. Be His hands and feet to those who are suffering. Remind them that they are not alone and that there is hope.

“Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” (1 Cor 15:55)

The tomb is empty! And it isn't empty so that we can sit in it and marvel at the fact that it's empty. It's empty so we can go out and share the news with those who are suffering that death has been defeated and that our God has done, is doing, and will do great things!

Go out and tell them!

 

 

 

Wounds

My (Aimee’s) God-daughter got a splinter in one of her toes.

 

And she didn’t tell anyone.

 

She’s almost 4.

 

We’re not sure how much time had passed before her mom noticed it. But at that point, the wound was black, and the skin around it was inflamed—red and a little puffy. And definitely tender.

 

We explained to her that we needed to get the splinter out. We also told her that it would probably hurt while trying to get it out, but that if we left it alone it was going to get worse and start to hurt more and more. She wasn’t happy to hear any of that, of course, but she nodded and let us get to work.

 

She sat on my lap while her mom and my mom worked on her toe. She was very brave. Although it hurt and she cried some, she didn’t kick or fight, she never asked them to stop, she let them do what they needed to do. Then my mom put some antibiotic and a band-aid on and we told her that next time she gets a splinter she needs to say something right away so that we can deal with it immediately, because then it wouldn’t have hurt so much. Within a minute or two after that, her tears were completely forgotten and she was laughing at something on the television.

 

Why am I sharing this story?

 

A couple of days later I was listening as a friend unburdened some stressful/painful memories. She explained that she has only recently come to understand that she needs to really deal with certain things from her past so that she can heal instead of allowing those wounds to continue to get worse. Then, I shared with her the story about my little one’s splinter.

 

See, emotional wounds are like physical wounds. If you ignore them—trying to pretend they aren’t there or hoping that they’ll heal on their own—they fester (which means “to rot”). If you fiddle with the wound to attend to it, it will probably hurt. It might even hurt a lot. But it allows the healing to begin. The longer that it’s left alone to fester, the more painful it will be when you finally deal with it. Or, if left completely unattended, it will continue to fester and begin to spread.

 

Do you see it now?

 

God has no desire for you to be one of the walking-wounded. He can help, if you let Him. In Matthew 11:28-30, Jesus says:

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

When we turn to Him we can find the healing that we need. No matter your burden, He can take it away. He created the universe, He created you, He can handle anything you want to throw at Him. Turn to Him and give your burdens to Him and learn how to walk with Him. When we walk in His will, we find that the “burdens” He places on us aren’t even burdens at all. He makes our lives easier by giving us the right perspective (I’ll give you a hint: it’s all about Him).

 

Go talk to your Christian friends, elder members of your church, your pastor … there are, no doubt, many people in your life who can help you deal with your wounds so that you can begin healing. They’ll point you to God’s truth, and your life will never be the same again!

 

Go ahead, try it out and see.

 

 

 

carry me

A lot has been going on in my (sherann) life.  To be honest, I'm going through a rough season.   I won’t go into details, but I’ve shared one of my personal thorns.  My OCD has been a constant battle.  Yesterday, for example, was an all time low and I even came to a point of saying… “why! Why me?! Why can’t I go back to being normal?! God, please take this away!”  Thankfully, I have friends and my brother who graciously listen to me while I have my episodes. (I’m sure they think I’m nuts, but still love me anyway) 

Anyway, I called Aimee and just basically said… “Why doesn’t God just take this away from me?” Conclusion? Don’t know.  To be honest, I don’t know when or even if He will take this from me.  At the same time, I HAVE to TRUST that God has this issue in the palm of His hands.  I’m constantly battling this and I’m not going to lie… it’s hard.  Along with everything else going on in my personal life, I feel absolutely overwhelmed.  And maybe you feel overwhelmed as well.  Life seems so hard and difficult.  I know… I’m in the same boat as you.

BUT. (yes, here comes the “but”…)

I know… no, as a matter of fact I BELIEVE that even though our circumstances may change, we have a heavenly Father who does not change.  When I read the scriptures, I am reminded of who He is and for that reason I can trust Him.  I can trust that He is out for my good. 

Why?

Because He loves me.  He loves you. 

“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.” 1 John 4.10 (ESV)

I know He loves me.  And no matter where I am or where you may be in this season, I hope you will join me in receiving the Father’s love.  And truth be told... it doesn't matter if you are a baby believer or a faithful follower for 50 years.  Point is this... the cross is our continual defense and a reminder that even through life's deepest valleys, the Father never recants His love for you or for me.  And that's why we can call Him faithful.

 

Soul Cleaning

Whenever I (Aimee) brush my teeth it always makes my mouth feel amazing. I find the actual process soothing for some reason (maybe it’s the repetition). But when I’m done. Wow. My mouth is so clean and fresh. All the grime of the day is gone and I just feel wonderful. And what’s funny is that usually it isn’t as if I walk around after a meal with my mouth feeling disgusting. My mouth doesn’t feel icky. And I make sure that I’m not walking around with food stuck in my teeth. I don’t feel gross, yet when I’m clean, the difference is like night and day and I almost wonder why I waited so long after eating to brush when I could have felt this amazing sooner!

 

As I was brushing my teeth and thinking of this, and thinking about how great it makes me feel when my mouth is all clean, I started thinking about how Jesus cleans us.

 

We walk around and, for the most part, we don’t feel dirty and disgusting even though we are. We sin all the time. We make bad choices, we reject God, we choose the world, and all the while our souls are getting dirty and stained more than our teeth after eating Oreo cookies (if you can’t picture what I mean, eat an Oreo and then go look at your teeth in a mirror). The point is, we may not feel gross and dirty, but we are. And we need to be cleaned.

 

Jesus died on the cross so that His blood could wipe away our sins. He’s our soul-brush, if you will follow the metaphor with me. He brushes away all of the grime of the day so that we can feel amazing again! But unlike how we need to brush our teeth every day, Jesus cleanses us once and for all (check out John 13:2-11, taking particular note of v.10, or check out the discussion in Hebrews 10:1-18). So that after we’ve been cleaned by Jesus’ blood, when we get dirty again with sin, all we have to do is admit our wrong and seek forgiveness and it’s like the dirt just falls off. No more brushing required. Grace and mercy keep away the yucky sin-plaque build-up on our souls.

 

Those who don’t know the Lord don’t know how truly dirty their souls are. They don’t turn to the Lord because they don’t realize their need for Him. It’s like someone who never brushed their teeth because no one ever told them what a difference it would make for the health of their teeth and their health overall.

 

Those who do know the Lord, who mess up, and then who walk around in denial of their sin, or are afraid or too ashamed to admit what they’ve done wrong are like people who don’t brush cause they don’t want to admit they ate that candy, even though it’s gumming up their teeth and anybody who tries to talk to them can see the evidence right there.

 

Have I carried the metaphor too far? Have I lost you or are you following me?

 

Do you tell your friends about Jesus? Have you told the people in your life about the man who can cleanse them of all the dirt in their lives? Would you tell your friend if they had a big piece of green broccoli stuck in their teeth but shy away from pointing out the giant black sin that’s staining them?

 

How often do you walk around dirty because of pride or fear? What makes you think that you’re too dirty to be cleaned? What makes you think you’re so clean that you don’t need the Cleaner now and then?

 

Just something that I was thinking about. I hope that it gave you something to think about too.

 

 

Stubborn

A while back, my pastor preached a sermon on spiritual warfare. During his sermon, he took time to look back into the Old Testament and the story of David and Goliath in 1 Samuel 17. That following Wednesday morning, while I was with Sherann, I went with her to chapel at her work. The man who preached that morning took time to talk about the story of David and Goliath. After chapel, Sherann and I talked for a few minutes about how funny it was the same message was mentioned. The following Sunday, while at a retreat with Sherann, the preacher that morning focused on the story of David and Goliath. During the service, when the preacher first mentioned the story, Sherann turned to me and simply lifted up her hand and showed me three fingers. As we walked away from that worship service, again we talked and laughed about the “coincidence” of this story being preached to us three separate times, by three separate people, in three separate locations. I asked her, “How stubborn are we that God sees the need to send us a message three times for us to get the point?”

 

I was reminded of this recently as, once again, I seem to find many areas of my life colliding and I’m forced to ask once again, “How stubborn am I that God sees the need to send me the same message over and over again for me to get the point?”

 

Or perhaps the better question is, “Why am I not getting the point the first time?! What’s holding me back? What’s closing me off from what God is trying to tell me?”

 

Are you so stubborn that God has to tell you something multiple times before you get it?

 

Have you ever taken time to think about what was holding you back from hearing the message the first time?

 

What have you found helpful in opening yourself up to hearing God the first time?

 

 

What are you living for?

Why did Christ die for you?

 

Was it so that you can live for you?

            or

Was it so you can live for Him?

I think, if we’ve read the Scriptures, then we know the answer to that question. So, the real question is: what does it look like to live for Him?

 

It can look a little different for different people, but there are always going to be certain things that are true of the life of someone who is living for Christ. What are those things?

 

What does it look like to live for Christ?