Maybe what the world needs is a Christmas on Our Knees

The dawn broke through the horizon and spilled through my curtain panels. I prayed-God, help me see people, help me love them this Christmas season. My people. People I don’t know. All of them.

I rolled over to check-in with my phone before checking-in with my coffee. While scrolling through my newsfeed I was stopped by a long string of prayer requests posted on a local radio station page. So much hurt. So much despair. People suffering. Grief bursting at the seams. Loved ones dead and sick and facing unimaginable pain. Divorce papers to sign and court dates for custody to attend. Cancer-oh that dreadful word that threatens to take over so many bodies, so many souls.

And I realized, if this dark world feels dark, even at the most joyful time of year, it’s because it is. It always has been. That why Christmas came.

…because true home is far from here. 

…yet, a taste of home is right beside us.

Home, it's the grace moments we’re given to love our little ones when we’d rather surrender in self-weakness. We can rest upon home when our Savior speaks through the pastor pulpit in an unexpected sermon. Home is whispered when the woman who buries her husband proclaims Glory to God in the Highest because she feels His presence and His presence is peace. Home is the joy-filled laughter heard from tickled babies and felt in the warm embrace of a soldier-husband coming home from war. Home is the love we embody when we extend selfless love to another, not expecting anything in return.

And this home. It is Heaven. Jesus is drawing us home every day. The babe in the manger that came to the world that long ago time comes to us every day on earth. Fully home is fully Heaven but what makes it home is the presence of our savior. Not the absence of pain and suffering for eternity. But Heaven, Home, is where our loving, mighty God is.

Choosing peace and joy in this world boils down to this…will you make room for Him in your inn, in you? Not just to secure eternity but to welcome Him to lead you through this finite life also. Will you lean into Him, into Heaven. Listen to the voice of your Savior singing over you. See Him woe you with his wonder-filled creation. Give heed to the child He sent to lift your soul from dark and allow room in your heart for the Savior who saved you. Will you search the Word to know His intimate love, his wild passionate love for you. Will you be romanced by the author of romance. Will you look above the cloud looming over you just to taste and see that He is good. Does the baby in the manger only symbolize peace to you when you glance at Him during Christmas…or do you live peace with that tiny babe who became everything you need.

I prayed for those people. I scrolled through and read comment after comment with tear-stained eyes spilling out sorrow for them. It sobered me. It down right threw me right out the pit of self-pity I had been coddling. It reminded me why the babe gave up his Heaven seat to come down. To save us. Yes, you know-from eternity with hell and separation from God. But He always has more to do than what we think. He is saving us daily from a life void of peace. He offers his hand of hope while we sing O Holy Night, the Stars were Brightly Shinning. And they still shine. Because He holds them in their place.  

And what about the shepherds who came to the manger, I’ve wondered this Christmas. Why them? Ah-ha... They were servers of the sheep and watchers of the field. They protected their precious sheep from the prowling dangers of the world. They took the sheep gleanings of wool to clothe the people and provide for them. And so is the reason our shepherd came. Jesus. Shepherd of us, His sheep. The shepherds were chosen to bow to the ultimate shepherd because Jesus considers it high honor to serve and love the sheep. Our shepherd tends to us so that we can use our gleanings to bless the people. With His coming, he shepherds you so that you can use your gleanings to bless the world. So the world can sing in wonder at the shepherds...

1. Shepherds, why this jubilee?
   Why your joyous strains prolong?
   What the gladsome tidings be
   Which inspire your heav’nly song?
2. We long for rescue from our suffering, oh how we long for it. And we will have it when we reach the gates of our sweet eternity with God. But what about here on earth, we wonder. Is it even possible to sing Joy to the World with our lives instead of only on Christmas Eve?

If standing tall with joy seems too much for you this Christmas season, or any season, might you adopt this song and allow your weary self to really live these lyrics...

A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices

For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn'
Fall on your knees, O hear the angels' voices
O night divine, O night when Christ was born
O night divine, O night, O night divine

Jesus came humbly to allow us, and command us, to be humble too. If the world-reigner came any other way the world would have continued standing tall with pride. But instead, the world came to his baby bed and knelt…they fell on their knees in humble worship and adoration.

Maybe this Christmas we don’t stand and shout to our Savior. Maybe this Christmas we fall on our knees, in prayer, in praise, in adoration. To offer a kind of heart throbbing, gut-spilling, honest prayer. One for ourselves, many for others. On our knees we are positioned to look up to Him and be reminded that while our earthly pain is ever-so-real, we can still sing…

Silent night, Holy night
All is calm, all is bright
Round yon virgin, mother and child
Holy infant, tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace,
Sleep in heavenly peace.

Silent night, Holy night
Son of God, love's pure light
Radiant beams from thy holy face
With the dawn of redeeming grace,
Jesus, Lord at thy birth
Jesus, Lord at thy birth.

Silent night, Holy night
Shepherds quake, at the sight
Glories stream from heaven above
Heavenly, hosts sing Hallelujah.
Christ the Savior is born,
Christ the Savior is born.

Merry Christmas to you and your loved ones. 

An $80 Faith: When God Works at Wal-Mart

I was standing in line at Wal-Mart shaking, speechless and filled with a trembling faith.
 
Have you ever experienced a time when you know God is calling you to walk out your faith with an act of love, but in your mind, and on paper, it didn't seem logical? I've heard all sorts of crazy stories of people giving their homes away and paying off mortgages for other people and gifting thousands of dollars to strangers in need.
 
But that's other people's story, right?
 
Or is it...

Recently I was called to be courageous and I have to be honest, I didn't feel courageous at all. In fact, I downright wrestled with it, even to the last second. Through God-orchestrated events, I landed at a local Wal-Mart to pick up a few things. It's hard to explain but trust me when I say it was kind of odd that I was there in the first place. And then, the fact that I perused the store the way I did, was also something confusing. But when I was headed to the checkout lane, I started to see a glimpse of why. I passed by a woman with a half-cart full of groceries. It was clear that this was probably a hard shopping trip for her. I offered up a quick prayer for her as I often do, and then turned into the checkout lane to be on my way.

But, while standing there, loading my whole 3 items onto the table, my spirit was shaken with this thought, "Pay for her groceries".
 
I have thought many times how I wished I was in a financial position to spontaneously pay for other's groceries, gas and other such things. But I've rarely felt like God was actually asking me to. Typically I just pray that God would show me how to bless others even if it's not financial.
 
This time was different. I knew it was the voice of God calling me to love this woman, his precious daughter, by acting in a small way so that He could take it and do big things in her life. Even though I was sure it was Him I wasn't convinced that I should go outside our budget and offer the money to her. I know that sounds selfish, because it is. But I want to be honest with you because doing what God asks of us does not always stir an automatic right response. So I offered up this prayer, "God, I don't see how I really can afford to do this but if it's you asking me to do this, I will. All I have is yours. Do what you want through my life and bank account to bring glory to yourself and bring your Kingdom here-even to Wal-Mart. But God, I honestly need to just know for sure that it's you. God of grace, please confirm for me that this is your voice."
 
And He did. I overhead a conversation between the woman and her boyfriend that was without a doubt confirmation that I was hearing God correctly. Because the thing is, we serve a God who knows us. He knew in my heart I wanted to obey him but he also knew that I wrestled with my own fears and worries. He came to me, met me in my lack of faith and confirmed, that yes he was asking me to take a step of faith so that He could do a work of love right there, in Wal-Mart.
 
With shaking hands and a trembling soul, I proceeded to pay for my things and in faith, I took out the amount of cash I believe he led me to. Just $80. Whether that seems like much to you or not, it felt like a lot to me at the time and in truth, for a split second I was tempted to choose a lesser, more comfortable amount. But God has been teaching me that he doesn't want us to cheapen his work by giving less than he asks of us. He is God and will work in whatever ways he wants, when he wants, but he asks us to walk blindly by faith and when we do, he is able to work in completeness through us. I didn't want to cheapen what he wanted to do. But I was tempted.
 
And isn't that the thing. We often say, "yes God", I will obey you....as long as it doesn't inconvenience me too much or take me out of my comfort zone. We pray these bold prayers of "use me" but then when he responds with "okay, NOW!" , we shrink back and add a few "but ......" In Jeremiah chapter 1 we read of the call of Jeremiah. God says to Jeremiah, "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations." So here's the God of the entire universe telling Jeremiah that he has made him for a specific purpose and how does Jeremiah respond? Not with courage or excitement or a great sense of worth. Instead we read in verse 6, "Alas, Sovereign LORD, I do not know how to speak; I am too young." Jeremiah completely acknowledges God as sovereign but he still responds with a "but..."

I feel like I get it. I get Jeremiah's hesitation. I am so thankful that we get to open the Bible and read of real people like Jeremiah who have doubts and fears and insecurities. God was calling him to something that felt really big, something that was really big but instead of God throwing Jeremiah aside when he responded with doubt, God reassured him.

Much like he reassured me of the small task he had for me at Wal-Mart. He wasn't asking me to approach a city and speak bold prophecy but he still understood my heart enough to know that in that moment, what he was asking of me, felt big to me.

I will never forget the look on that woman's face. And although my eyes were locked with the woman as I handed her the money, I imagine the people around us were blessed also. When we obey God, big or small, he takes it and multiplies it. As Jake reminded me after I shared this story, God's work is always a ripple effect. We can never understand the full reach that takes place when we walk in love and obedience.God's reach is far beyond anything we can comprehend. If he wills, one small act can change countless lives.

I don't share this story to glorify myself in any way. In fact, I hope you feel the honesty of my struggle. More than anything, I hope that through this example, you are encouraged that all acts of love and obedience are worth it. We serve a God who takes our small offering and makes them reach multitudes. Just as he took the boys 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish (Luke chapter 9) and multiplied it to feed thousands, he will take our offerings, our lives, and use them to do the work he has called us to. It's not for us to determine whether we are enough or have enough, we are just called to offer what we have.

While I was writing this, my little 4-year old Charlotte came bouncing in the room singing, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight." (Proverbs 3:5) Yes baby girl, that's it!

I truly believe we were made for more than simple, safe lives. I pray that we will be people that live our lives as if eternity really exists and matters.


Chelsia

***Would you please pray for that women, her boyfriend, the Wal-Mart worker and every single precious soul that will be touched by that experience. Pray that God would show his glorious love and grace to many lives. Pray that hurting, hard hearts would believe in the God who loves them and sees them. That those who feel forgotten would feel held by the Savior of the world. Pray that the ripple effect would continue through this small act. Pray that they would hear about our great, loving God who is jealous for them and desires to have relationship with them.***

I see you. The one who doesn't feel thankful this Thanksgiving...

I see you. Yeah, you. The one that loathes this time of year because everyone around you is brimming with thankfulness and it feels like you just don’t have much to be thankful for. You know you are supposed to feel thankful, but your feelings and circumstances tell you otherwise.

I get it. I get you.

You who wakes up early every morning just to get ready to go to a job you don’t like so that you can earn a small paycheck to spend on bills you wish you didn’t have. You are seen...

You who feels trapped in a relationship that drains you to the point where you aren’t sure who you really are anymore. You are seen...

You single mom who is raising her kids alone because the father refuses, or is not capable of, being a father to them. You are seen...

You who feels lonely, longing for others to love you for who you are. You are seen...

You that feels the deep ache of loss. Knowing you would give anything to fill that empty chair around the Thanksgiving table this year. Your loss is ripping your soul into pieces. You are seen...

You that has everything, and nothing. From the outside you have a picture-perfect life. But inside, you feel dead and unfulfilled. You are seen...

You who wonders if there is really even a God that loves you. Because if there was, you wonder why he isn’t rescuing you. You are seen...

You that spends countless hours at church-serving, serving, serving. You are weary and tired. Hoping that one day you will actually get to experience the deep joy we read about in the Bible. You are seen...

You who has no "good" reason not to have a thankful heart. You are seen...

I validate how you feel with full compassion and love. I extend to you a hug from across the screen and an open ear to hear every word that is trapped inside you. This comes from a place of deep apathy, because I have been there. 

**If that's all you needed to hear...the reminder that you are seen and loved, then feel free to stop reading and relish in that because it.is.true. And I get that sometimes we just need to be reminded of that. **

But if you are hungry for more and you desire to move past where you are at and need to consider how you might do that, keep reading as I share a few quick thoughts with you.

Psalm 139 reminds us of the intimate way God formed us and knows us. He sees your struggle to be thankful and He loves you the same. He sees your struggle to be thankful and He is near you just the same. In Verse 18 we read this..."When I awake, I am still with you." It's easy for us to think we need to earn His love, affection and nearness. Let this Scripture put your heart at ease that you don't need to reach a certain level of thankfulness in order to be near to Him. He is already near to you. In James 4 we read that if we come close to God, He will come close to us. Likewise, in Deuteronomy 31:8 He says, "The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." This was said at a crucial moment for the Israelites. It was an uncertain time with a huge task ahead and still the promise was spoken that God would not leave them. If you are wrestling with an unthankful heart today, don't think you are wrestling alone. Do not be discouraged. God sees your future and He promises never to leave you or forsake you. 

This morning I listened to a message from Beth Moore in which she said, “Whether you know Jesus as your personal Savior or not, He knows you.” So let me extend that truth to you. God made you in His image, and He sees you. He delights in you. He is not afraid of the dark places in your heart and He can handle every word you want to say to Him. He is stronger than you could ever imagine and more loving than you could ever hope. If you want to allow some light to shine through the cracks of you, might I suggest you start right where you are at, right now. Nothing fancy. No need to have the right words to say, candle lit or Bible verses memorized. Just tell the God who hears every word and holds every tear. Tell him how you feel. Not what you think you should say. Don’t hold back. He can more than handle it. Tell him why you don’t feel thankful. Open your heart to vulnerability in the only true safe-space you will ever have…tell God why you are struggling this Thanksgiving.

Now, once you’ve gotten every nitty-gritty word out, would you trust Him enough to hold those words carefully in His hands, trust Him enough to not return your vulnerable offering void. If it is a thankful, full heart you desire, then will you be willing to ask Him to show you how to be thankful-trusting Him to actually do it. Remembering, God works differently than we do. Your thankful heart may come in a form you did not expect, but when God is the gift-giver of thankfulness, it will more than satisfy you.  

And if at the end of the day, your word-offerings, and prayers have been laid out, and all you can do is barely muster out a broken, thank-you, I want you to know that it counts. God will hold that thank-you close to His heart, because He holds the broken-you close to His heart. I believe He would rather have one whispered, broken thank you, than a thousand superficial, fabricated thank you’s screamed from the roof tops.

And just in case you need one more piece of good news, I am praying dear one, that God would take your mere offering and multiply it. That one day, you will be overflowing with thanksgiving. Because the thing about being thankful is that it’s something we practice. Jesus was the perfect example of this. He practiced a heart of thanksgiving, even right before He went to suffer on the cross of crucifixion. We can learn from this, that it takes an effort, it takes intention. But one thing I know for sure, is that once we begin and we allow Him to work through thankfulness, it will multiply and morph into a new way of living, regardless of our circumstances.

Thanking God for you, my friend. 

Your friend,

Chels

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

If you connect with music, take a listen and be encouraged...I Am Not Alone by Kari Jobe

Silence

There’s an uncomfortable place we don’t like to be. A place where resistance and compulsion reside together and we have to decide whether to react with grace by reigning in our emotions or release the words that are begging to be loosed from our mouths.  

Some call it tact, or the reigning in of words. I am choosing to call it the place of Silence.

We were sitting on the cold, uncomfortable bleachers at Westonka High School. Between rich laughter with my family and keeping a close eye on my 3 and 4 year old girls, we were cheering for my niece’s gymnastics meet. This was an important meet. It was the last opportunity for these young, hard-working ladies to earn a spot at the state competition. The stakes were painfully high and the nerves of some of these parents were a clear indication of the pressure those girls felt.

We happened to be sitting right behind one of those parents.

He was a large, burly man with an intimidating beard and defensive body language. Unfortunately, I didn't pick up on his intolerance for noise or distractions-I was too busy enjoying my children, my family and cheering for the athletes.

About 10 minutes before we planned to leave, this Paul Bunyan of a man turned around with a dark shadow over his eyes, looked my petite, fragile 3-year old little girl in the eyes and demanded, “Could you stop kicking me!” He didn’t shout. But he didn’t have to. His brashness was fully felt by everyone around him. He swiped a harsh glance at me and turned his back to us.

You can probably imagine what it felt like as a mother to watch my innocent, fun-loving little girl get scolded by this big scary man. I imagine there’s times in your life when you have felt the same hot, angry feelings rise in you and you want to compulsively respond with less-than-gentle words. After all, men like this have it coming, right? But, as believers we also have a resistance in moments like that. We have a built-in sensor that acts as a thermometer, in a sense. The Holy Spirit gives us access to a thermometer that helps us measure the consequences. The higher the heat of our emotions, the more damage done, if we act on them. But when we keep our emotions in check at a cooler level, we are able to release the reaction that brings the healthiest result. Think of it in terms of using a thermometer to cook meat. If you allow the meat to rise too high in temperature, it can easily become unpalatable. After all, when does a chunk of burnt meat ever please the crowd? Likewise, when prepared correctly, you can win your dinner guests over with the first tender, flavorful bite.

This is true of our response in situations like the one I experienced. Oh how I wanted to tell this man how wrong he was. How foolish he was. I wanted to remind him that picking on a tiny, vulnerable child makes him look like a fool that takes advantage of those weaker than he. But I felt that familiar sensor in my spirit reminding me that the stakes were high. What stakes? The gospel. Because as a Christian, I am not only representing my child, I am also representing Christ. I am responsible for the measure of glory I let live through me. Would yielding to my immediate emotion, extend the hand of God to this man? Or would it be a poor witness to the gospel of grace? I do think there is a time to stand up for ourselves and our children. Jesus himself was not a timid, passive man that never spoke the “harsh” truth. But even then, in his perfection, Jesus had a way of doing it that exemplified love. In that moment, I did not feel love. I knew full well my limits and my limits said there was no room for love in my words.

So instead, with shaking hands and bitting my tongue, I scooped up my precious girl and held her on my lap as she silently melted into me-with a shattered spirit. My mom once told me that when people would say rude things to her children, instead of confronting them and further embarrassing us, she would protect us and so reminding us how loved we are. I have adopted that wisdom as a mom. 

That’s what I did for my little girl.

On the drive home I talked to Naomi about this experience. She opened up about how it made her feel. We prayed together for her...and for that man. Because the thing is, as a mom, I have a greater responsibility than just teaching my kids how to defend themselves. God has entrusted me with teaching them how to love God and live by his example. I thought of how Jesus called to his Father while hanging on the cross of calvary, asking him to forgive us. Us!? The ones who brutality beat him and pounded nails through his hands and feet. He was crushed and crucified by us. But Jesus didn’t look down and say spiteful words to those standing, mocking him. He interceded for us. He prayed for us. What a profound love. That is the love I want to teach my children. That despite the fact that this man hurt my daughter so emotionally that she reverted back to stuttering her words for days, she could pray for him. Because Jesus prayed for her. Jesus loves her…and he loves that man. Most importantly, Jesus is the only one that can ever change our hearts. As she and I prayed for that man, I could see hope in her eyes. It’s as if she got a glimpse of what it looks like to love God enough to put ourselves aside and fight for the hearts of his people.

I’ll admit that when I shared this painful experience with my husband later that night, I cried and was full of frustration. My emotions were high and I wished I could tell that man how he had hurt my little girl. But I also shared how silence felt like obedience which felt like freedom. Because when we are obedient to what the Father asks of us, we are not in charge of the results. We don’t have to live with regrets and we don’t hinder the great work of God. 

Sometimes silence is the salvation message someone needs to hear. Because sometimes, grace is heard loudest through silence.

Your co-laborer in Christ,

Chels

Proverbs 15:1 A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.

"Fifty Shades of Grey" (the popular book series)

5 Things to consider

I feel compelled to start with a confession. Actually, make that two confessions. The first is that I have been working on writing this for a long time because I've wrestled with the fear of writing it. If you are familiar with the book series, and soon-to-be film, “Fifty Shades of Grey” (FSG), then you probably understand why I've wrestled with writing this. Addressing controversial topics is not typically a fun pass time of mine. I will warn you now that while I pray for you to feel nothing short of God’s loving hand on these words, this isn’t going to be a “warm-fuzzy-feel-good” read. It’s possible that some of the content may even sting a little for some of you. Which brings me to my second fear. I have a pitfall of people-pleasing which means I wrestle with the fear of writing something that would come across as hurtful or lacking in grace and understanding. That’s just the honest truth. But I've walked with Jesus long enough to know that living out of fear will only destroy the potential for great and steal the joy and freedom we can experience. So, I write on. Because my Father has asked me to and honestly, being disobedient to Him is more scary than rubbing some the wrong way. 

*Disclosure: I have not read any of the book series Fifty Shades of Grey. However, I have done a substantial amount of research and I have a thorough understanding of the storyline as well as some of the content. I do not recommend reading the books or seeing the movie that will be released February 2015.

Be blessed as you read on…

As your sister in Christ, and as a writer, I feel the honor and weight that this is a controversial issue I want to face with you. One reason being that I don’t think it’s controversial enough. I don’t see, in my Christian community, enough people raising the flag and inviting conversation on how this popular series stacks up against the Word of God. In fact, I have some godly friends that were completely unaware of what this wildly popular, erotic series is about. On the other hand, I know of other Christian friends, who have read the books and look forward to the release of the movie. But until I asked, I didn’t know, because these books haven’t come up in conversation. Which tells me that for some of you it may be encouraging to find out that I do not agree with Fifty Shades of Grey. For others it may feel like a blow to the comfortable, slightly secretive, “dirty pleasure” you have been hiding. Wherever you land, I care about you and want you feel safe in this space. There are a lot of opportunities for us to feel shame and I do not want my writing to be one of them. With that said, while love, grace and acceptance is the loud song our Savior sings, there is another song that he sings just as loudly. That is the song of truth. The truth in which he lays out clearly for us in the living Word of God, the Bible.

Below I've listed just a few of the many scriptures for us to consider when looking at lust, love and intimacy. If you are not familiar with the Biblical view of sex, I hope this helps give a glimpse of the ground level in which I base the rest of my writing and my view.

Worldly lust passes away.

1 John 2:15-17:  “Do not love the world nor 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 lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.”

Holiness builds our relationship with God, sexual immorality separates us from God.

Colossians 3:5: “Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.”

Godly love is selfless.

Ephesians 5:33: “However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.”

God gave us a whole book of the Bible filled with romance.

(An example of both his love for us and the love we get to experience with our spouse)

Song of Solomon 4:9-10 : “ You have captivated my heart, my sister, my bride; you have captivated my heart with one glance of your eyes, with one jewel of your necklace. How beautiful is your love, my sister, my bride! How much better is your love than wine, and the fragrance of your oils than any spice!”

The marriage bed is holy.

Hebrew 13:4: “Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous.”

1. Sex itself is a marvelous gift from our Creator. We know from reading His word that He intends it to be a unifying act between a husband and wife which promotes love, tenderness, connection and ultimately it is an act of serving one another which then honors God. I believe that it is a form of worship as we honor our covenant of marriage. Using that definition, I cannot imagine there would be any argument for the sexual acts displayed in FSG as God-honoring and unifying. The sexual experience in FSG is a tangible picture of what lust looks like. In 1 Thessalonians 4 we read this, “It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality, that each of you learn to control your own body in a way that is holy and honorable, not in a passionate lust like the pagans, who do not know God; and that in this matter no one should wrong or take advantage of a brother or sister. The Lord will punish all those who commit such sins, as we told you and warned you before. For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life. Therefore, anyone who rejects this instruction does not reject a human being but God, the very God who gives you his Holy Spirit.” Lust breeds more lust. It cannot be a stand-alone sin. (1 Cor. 6:18, James 1:14-15) It seeps into the crevices of us and infects our souls until we surrender it to the healing power of Christ. FSG promotes and glorifies lust. So to this I ask all of us the question, do we desire to promote lust or to promote genuine love? Do we want to support the glorification of lust or do we want to encourage one another to pursue the sanctifying, satisfying love that only comes from that which God designed?

2. When I consider our time here on earth, it is nothing short of finite. I wonder if we were to adopt a more eternal perspective if we might reconsider how we spend our time here. How we spend our minutes, turns into hours and eventually adds up to our lifetime. Author, speaker and Bible teacher Lysa Terqeurst refers to is as how we “spend our souls”. So consider those minutes spent reading “dirty” romance novels and watching the associated movie that only welcome ungodly, unwholesome thoughts into our minds that eventually take up residence in our hearts, which eventually are lived out in our lives. Those minutes, those hours, they count. They hold value and weight because our time here is too precious to be spent swallowed up by the traps set by the thief who comes to steal and destroy. Jesus came that we might have life in the full (John 10:10). The question I ask us to consider is this, does FSG promote life in the full that is ours for the taking? Or does it resemble what the thief might want to use to deceive and distract us from that which God wants to richly give us?

3. Men are wired to be sexually bent and the world does a lot of harm exploiting that. The men and boys of our generation need us to teach them and encourage them to pursue a righteous love and to love their wives as Christ loves the church. Christ does not put sexual bondage on the church. He does not entice us to push boundaries and cross over into a “naughty, erotic” way of living. He loves the church, us, selflessly and purely and full of mercy and grace. Our men don’t need us teasing them and taunting them with thoughts of dangerous sex only to leave them in bondage to those desires. What they need is to feel the support of women to pursue godliness by us choosing to live our lives in such a way that they don’t desire us in any way other than that which is honoring to God. I don’t know about you but I don’t desire my brother in Christ, or any man, to look at women and think, “I want to take advantage of her and exploit her vulnerability in the bedroom”. When we support FSG, that is the message we are sending men. That we actually like and want them to treat us that way. And not just us, but our daughters and our nieces and our friends. So I ask you this, do you want your daughter to be “romanced” the same way Ana is in FSG? Do you want your sons to be a Christian Grey to other women?

4. Fifty Shades of Grey is pornography, which not only has deep, devastating consequences in and of itself but it contributes to human trafficking. If you aren't familiar with human trafficking, here is a quick glance…“Human trafficking is the illegal trade of human beings, mainly for the purposes of forced labor and sex trafficking. As the world's fastest growing criminal industry, it affects every nation across the globe. Every 30 seconds, someone becomes a victim of modern-day slavery. The average age of a trafficking victim is 12 years old.” (Source)  If you do any research on this topic, you will find that pornography is undoubtedly linked to sex trafficking. In an article posted on the Christian Post it was said this way, “Yes, porn fuels the sex trade by teaching its consumers that women exist for the pleasure of men and that their purpose is to be degraded and dehumanized for men's excitement. But below the surface, these problems are all symptoms of a patriarchal world system that preys on women and children, keeping them subservient to and fearful of men so that they can be controlled and used." (Written by Justin Holmcomb. Emphasis added by me) Did you catch the words degraded, dehumanized, subservient, fearful, controlled and used? That sounds a lot like the methods Christian Grey uses in FSG, doesn’t it? God calls us to act justly (Micah 6:8). We are to fight injustice, not promote it and encourage it. I love how Martin Luther King puts it, “Anger at injustice, is the political expression of love." And I just wonder how we can be so deceived that we don’t see it. How can we support sexual lust, which promotes sexual abuse and treating God’s precious children as objects and still call it okay-writing it off as harmless dirty pleasure. We can’t. Truth won’t allow us to make room for that.

5. There’s a saying that what we accept, we teach. I look at my young, beautiful little girls and I think how innocent and lovely and precious they are. It literally makes me sick to my stomach to think of them ever being treated in such a lustful way. My kids could possibly be raised in a generation where sexual exploitation is sold as beauty. They are being threatened with the message of needing to be sexually submissive to men like Christian Grey. I urge you to consider whether this is truly the direction we want to stand for. Sexual sin is not a new sin, all we have to do is open our Bibles to see how deeply rooted sexual sin is in our ancestry, but if we choose to support the message that dominance and lust and control are the new “norm” and we make it publicly acceptable, we are setting up the next generation for some deep sin pits. Together we can unearth this. We can shed light on the darkness of this so that we can set the example for my girls, our children and their children and their children’s children, that we will fight for purity and freedom from sexual bondage. In ten years, I can’t imagine looking my girls in the eye and saying, “I read Fifty Shades of Grey, I saw the movie, I paved the way for more of the same”. Consider the message we send when choosing to support this type of entertainment.

This is not an exhaustive list of reasons why Fifty Shades of Grey is more harmful than helpful but I pray that many of you will feel inspired and encouraged to turn to our loving God and seek his heart and Word on where He stands with this series, along with all other erotic, lustful entertainment. I also pray that from the overflow of your seeking, it will spark conversation within your own friend and peer circles so as to bring light to the dark places of this series.

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

Heavenly Father, we praise you for making us in your perfect image. We thank you for giving us eternal life with you through your son Jesus. We repent now of our sexual sin. We grieve for this devastating series that has fed lies and fueled sin in countless lives. We claim that you are the healer and restorer of our souls. Bring healing and freedom to our nation as we seek to be a people holy and pleasing to you. Thank you that you are sovereign and we are never without your loving hand upon us and our future. We submit to you and your just, holy, loving authority. Thank you for loving us no matter what. In the precious blood of Jesus, Amen.

**If you are looking for a practical way to have a voice against FSG, consider seeing the movie, “Old Fashioned” (Website) which is a faith-based love story film being released the same weekend as Fifty Shades of Grey.

So you think God might be stirring your heart for something new...now what?

A New Thing

Author and speaker Jen Hatmaker has coined the phrase, “It’s a thing.” She usually throws it out there after introducing people to a new idea or way of doing something that doesn’t appear to exist or have any relevance to, well, anything. But she makes it cute and fun and she makes a whole lot of things, "a thing."

I wonder if that’s sometimes what we do when God begins to stir our hearts for something new but He hasn’t yet revealed fully what that “New” is. By nature, we tend to jump ahead of ourselves at the first hint of excitement over an idea. How many times have you felt compelled to join the gym without pausing long enough to consider some logistics. Such as, what days of the week do I have time to go? Can I afford this even if I don’t go regularly? How long can I sustain a regular workout routine? Instead, most of us get the limited time offer ad in the mail that says, “$.99 signup fee & free 30 day trial! Hurry fast!”, and we’re all over it like white on rice. We march in that gym and insist we sign up right then and get our first workout in before dinner that night.

This can be true of how we respond when we sense God stirring our hearts for a new thing. We jump on a hasty train and take the infant vision we have and make it into a thing. Not really taking our lead from the God who holds the whole vision in His hands and has plans for how it comes to life so that he alone receives glory.

For the next couple minutes, let’s pause and consider some things. First, how common do you think it is for God to throw an entire vision our way and ask us to put it together the next day? Yes, He is preparing us years before we have the slightest hint of it and while God can do whatever He wants, it seems to me that most of the time He plants an idea in us and allows it grow over time, carefully watering it and watching the roots grow deep while He orchestrates all the details we can’t see. Then, when it’s time to move, we’re ready, the team around us that we didn’t even know existed is ready and God begins to pull it together. This could takes days, weeks, or even decades. There are some powerful Christian leaders doing big things for the Kingdom of God and you know how most of it started out?...a stirring, a vision, a spark. What did they do with it? Hit their knees and seek God. Jennie Allen, the founder of IF: Gathering in Austin, Tx, stated that her biggest fear after the conference was that we would all go do a bunch of stuff. I think she was right on. Sometimes we do need to just put a foot forward because we’ve been living in fear or doubt but before anything else happens, we must surrender it to God and pray, pray, pray.

The other thing that is crucial we grasp, is that we may not think God can do much through us, but HE IS GOD. He will use you. We are all called to spread the gospel, to love His people, and extend His hand of mercy and grace to those around us. If you feel a stirring in your heart, first, hit your knees in prayer and second, believe that the God who has given you the Holy Spirit has mighty plans to use your life for His glory. You may not be expecting God to call you to bring thousands of college students to an arena like He has with Louie and Shelley Giglio (Passion Conference)…but He may. The stirring you have may not be leading a women’s Bible study at your church…but it could be. We cannot project our own insecurities, fears, ideas, vision onto what God is placing on our hearts. Our job is to yield to His plans and say, “yes”, to whatever HE is laying before us.

This morning I posted a picture on my Facebook page showing my Bible open to Jeremiah chapter 1. I captioned my post this way,

“Sometimes I feel a lot like Jeremiah. God calls me to something and I respond with "But..."
Friends, I pray we will be a generation that responds with an exuberant "YES God!"-before we even know what he's calling us to.”

The more I grow in understanding who God is, the more excited and honored I feel to be a part of what He’s doing here on the earth, in this generation. He is moving among us and reaching the hearts of people that desperately need truth. He doesn’t need our help to do that but He wants it. It’s important to remember that the timeless truths that we see in the Bible are the same and will remain the same, always. God never changes (Hebrews 13:8). BUT, with each changing generation, He equips us a little different so that we can reach people in a fresh way with the old message. If ever you’ve thought, as I have, “That message has been given already” or “Everyone knows that Bible verse”,  remember this-they haven't heard it from you, from your perspective and God has uniquely worked in your life and gifted you in a way that they have not yet experienced. Share your story, share the truth in scripture then watch God work.
 

I truly believe we are hungry to have our lives count for more than just ordinary. Our Creator desires that for us too. In Ecclesiastes 3 we read about there being a "Time for Everything." It's not always a time to make brave changes but it is always the time to bravely ask how God wants to work through you. Are you open to what that stirring might mean? Are we going to be ready to say, “yes!”, to God and then hit our knees in prayer, humbling ourselves before Him as we authentically ask Him to lead us.

Just imagine how different our lives might look if we choose that sort of surrender. I've seen it I my own life...when I live this way, taking His lead, I can always anticipate an exciting ride.


Blessings,
Chels


 

I Want What I Want

I have a feeling I won’t be alone when I tell you there are many days I find myself consumed with desire to have things I just can’t have.

Today was one of those days.

 

Driving through the breath taking scenery in western Minnesota is something familiar to me but it still captures my dreaming heart every time I venture through that part of our beautiful state. That was true, once again, today. I put my blinker on and turned right off of the highway and like stepping into a new world I began driving slowly down the paved road that is encased with rolling hills as far the eye can see. Sparkling streams of water are flowing beneath charming, old bridges and full, lush, green trees seem placed in such a stunning way that it is as if God wanted our eyes to fall on them in wonder after every new mile marker we pass on the county road. There are many farms. Some small, some big. Some with large farming operations but most read as hobby farms with a few chickens, small gardens and beautiful views of the scenery from their well-loved porch. I was soaking in the beauty when I caught myself day dreaming of owning one of these precious plots of land and having room for my own little ones to freely run around. It’s always been our dream to live in the country but after the market took a dive a few years ago, it made that dream seem far from our reach.

When I got to my destination I turned into the driveway of yet another stunning little hobby farm in this beautiful countryside. I was only picking up an item I purchased from an online garage sale but I lingered for some time chatting with the sweet woman that owned this lovely home. I wish I could show you a picture of this place. It was a country-meets-modern dream house. As I stood there making small talk with her, I suddenly felt as if I was standing there naked. I felt exposed. Vulnerable. Plagued with insecurity. I said some awkward things and laughed nervously. In part because I felt like a slob. (Moms, I think you’ll appreciate this next part of my story). Before running out the door this morning, I had thrown on some old clothes that were too small for me, I threw my hair up in a messy ponytail and started with one dollop of makeup under my eyes before deciding to skip my usual beauty regimen all together and get my kids in the car before they started taking off their shoes and running around, again. I didn’t feel pretty or put together or even semi-confident at all. That feeling combined with a longing for “more” left me with my insides hanging out. Certainly not because of anything this sweet woman said, she was darling, but simply because of the battle ragging inside me. I drove away with tears in my eyes and it wasn’t until 5 miles down the mountainous road that I finally exhaled and whispered…”Lord, why can’t I have a place like that? Why do you withhold some things we long for but you lavish us with others? Help me understand because I am angry and frustrated and weary of fighting off this longing for something I can’t have.” A few miles later I drove in my driveway and felt the sting of discontentment with my small, outdated, inexpensive home.

And there it is.

The dreadful American delusion that gets us all wrapped up in greed and coveting and all sorts of ugliness. We want things that God hasn’t assigned us. We know we aren’t supposed to covet or lust or long for that which God hasn’t given us but sometimes it’s a hard battle to fight and it creeps in slowly, stealing joy from our life. It can take many different forms such as material things, talents, gifting’s, relationships and so on. I imagine you could fill in this blank without any hesitation…”I wish I had______.”

As I wrestle this in my own life right now I think of what I lose in the process of letting this type of desire fester in me. The greatest tragedy is that I trade the wonder of intimacy with an infinite God for the empty longing of something finite. While I sit fantasizing about sipping my coffee and doing my morning devotions on a serene front porch overlooking the countryside, I am trading peace and contentment in where I am now. We must ask ourselves, what have I gained by dreaming of the future if I lose my peace in the present?

I’m not suggesting we hide our desires, I am however suggesting that we come to God with open hands offering them to Him, choosing to trust the God who fiercely loves us to gently hold those desires. We are precious to Him and He cares what’s on our hearts. In the process, He may change our heart to desire other things but He may not. What we may receive in return is a sense of deep contentment where we are, just as Paul describes in Philippians chapter 4. And wouldn’t that be worth giving up all of those empty longings? I think so. If only it were that easy, right? J

I’ve recently started practicing a few things that help me re-center my heart. I’m going to share them with you in hopes that you may be encouraged as you consider your own habits.

Prayer. This may seem obvious but don’t underestimate the power of earnestly coming to the living, Holy God in prayer. If we’re being honest, I wonder how many of us could really say we spend more time in prayer over the things we want than dwelling on how we can get what we want.

Focus on what you DO know/have. How many times an hour do you stop and say out loud what you are thankful for? Like Ann Voskamp style. Bless that woman and her ministry! Recently I was feeling anxious over a host of unknowns we were facing in our family. I knew I needed to halt my poisonous focus on what I didn’t know so I started to focus on what I do know. My goodness, that one practice has made a huge difference for me. If you find yourself reeling over things that you desire, try making a list of things you are already surrounded with and aim to battle thought for thought.

Talk to your soul. I first heard this concept from the lovely Dee Brestin. It sounds similar to replacing uncertainty with what you know but this differs in that you’ll use Scripture to combat that. When your soul begins to swirl with dark, peace-threatening ideas, turn to Scripture that fills you with truth. For example, if we’re tempted to think God must not be pleased with us or He would be blessing us with “more”, we can turn to verses such as Titus 3:5 which reminds us that Gods love for us has nothing to do with our works or John 1:6 that remind us of God’s grace which is not dependent on what we do or who we are.

I sit here writing from a new, pretty desk at a car dealership while I patiently wait for the mechanic to finish working on my mini-van. You know what I see all around me? New, sparkly cars. I hear the car salesman talking them up to potential buyers and using strategy to pull on strings of desire. “This is a great truck! And we can give you a great finance rate on this one!” “What are you waiting for? You could driving this thing to work tomorrow and show it off to your buddies!” Bless those salesmen. They know how to pull on that which is deeply seeded in us; desire. The devil does too. He wants nothing more than to take your eyes off your Creator who will satisfy you with living water. Just as He spoke to the women at the well, He alone can satisfy us in a way that would leave us thirsty no more.

We  simply just need to go to the well. He is waiting for us.

Chels

*I want to be clear that I am not talking about desires that are honoring to Him. I am only speaking to those that consume us and distract from what is most important.

The Messy That Turns Out To Be Beautiful (and a peek at my latest decor project)

After 7 years of living in our current home, my husband and I are finally doing some light remodeling. I say light because we aren't planning on tearing any walls down but we've definitely braved some minor demo work such as ripping up old floors and replacing our stairs. It has been a slow process because we are working within our budget and around our busy schedule as a family of five. However, even with the slow progress, it has been so rewarding.

If you've done any remodeling then you know that redecorating often comes with the territory. A little over a year ago I started allowing room in my schedule for doing just that. Most of my decorating projects involve painting, staining and a little crafting-all of which require me to use some "non-mom" brain space. In other words, I get to use the creative, artistic side of me. The one that would easily hides itself underneath layers of housework and mom duty and to-do lists if I didn't choose to set aside time to "create."

Just a few weeks ago, while strolling up and down every isle at the local farmers market, I had my eyes scanning each vendor's small space looking for that one special item I just couldn't live without. We turned a corner and once again I began looking carefully through the treasures laid out on the acres of green, lush grass. At first glance I didn't see anything special from this man's sale but then out of the corner of my eye I spotted a worn out, time stamped stool sitting alone on the corner of his lot. I walked up to it and without skipping a beat I asked my husband if he was okay with me purchasing this item. He must have saw that familiar twinkle in my eye because he looked at me with a soft, knowing smile and gave his blessing. After making an offer, I loaded it in our wagon and she was all mine. Although I saw potential in this stool, I knew it needed some serious tlc. So I perused the internet for inspiration and just today, during my kids naptime, I was able to bring my vision to life.

Here it is all painted and prettied...
 

 

At first glance, it looks really cute doesn't it? Take a closer look at the photo below...

 

I imagine you can see the obvious flaws now. In fact, it's down right messy and sloppy in some areas. I was so careful when placing my design on top of the stool and I focused really hard on painting lightly and using only a thin coat so it wouldn't smear. Clearly I didn't do as good of a job as I thought I did because when I peeled back the stencil I was so disappointed to see the sloppy letters and numbers. I thought about starting over and trying to clean it up, making crisp lines instead of the blurred, semi-ugly ones that are pictured above. Then at least no one would ever know how I messed it up. But before I could even reach for my paint brush I felt God say in my spirit, "Sweet daughter, don't paint over it just to hide the flaws, love it for it's messiness and take joy in what you've created".

That's when I understood the lesson God was teaching me. That's exactly how he feels about us. We are His masterpiece, a product of His infinite love and while we can appear quite messy, He never once has wanted to take a paintbrush and start over by covering up our mistakes and imperfections. Instead, He views us much like my husband and I view our home remodel. He wants to take us and shape us slowly. He allows the process to happen without rushing us because He knows that authentic, true art takes time and it cannot be hurried. Isaiah 64:8 refers to God as the potter and we, his beloved children, as the clay. As a potter sees all the imperfections of his clay, so does God. As a potter sees all the potential with his clay, so does God. Art rarely turns out just as the artist pictured it. In fact, I would venture to say that most artists choose to find the beauty in the imperfections because they know they will exist. Thankfully God is not surprised how we turn out. He knew how messy we would be and He chose to create us anyway. He could see our imperfections from before time began but that did not stop him from beaming with excitement when He wove us in our mother's womb's (Psalm 139). He is not interested in pretending we don't mess up. He wants to walk through our messes and give us the gift of seeing the beauty He is creating in us through those messes.

"God often uses our deepest pain as the launching pad of our greatest calling". I don't know who wrote that but it has recently become one of my favorite new quotes. I think I like it so much because it reminds us that nothing is wasted. When we mess up, when we hurt, when we are feeling undone and stripped down....He uses it. He doesn't paint over the imperfections, He allows them to shine just as an artist would. 
 
My cute little stool is sitting in my entryway right now. It's placed on top of the silver-toned tiles that are laying loose, waiting to be glued down. I'm anticipating quite a few more hours of work in our entryway and I'm looking forward to seeing my little stool proudly placed right where it needs to be-in my line of vision as a reminder to love the imperfections.

With love for you and all of your messiness,
Chels