I Will Serve the Lord

I heard a song awhile ago that I hadn't heard in over 17 years. The song was Serve the Lord by Carman. The last time I had heard the song I was a preteen living in South Carolina. We would listen to Carman in our mini-van with the windows down and all of us kids, sometimes 15 of us (yes I said, 15 of us!) singing at the top of our lungs "We will serve the Lord." 15 of us smooshed into a 7 passenger mini-van is a story for another time.


The chorus says:
I have made my decision
I have staked my claim
I have drawn a line in the sand
And I'll not be ashamed
With the world behind me
And the cross before
By the grace of God
I will serve the Lord



I made my decision as a girl, a little girl to serve the Lord. I knew at a young age that that's what I wanted to do. I was going to serve the Lord no matter what. Every time I'd sing that song as a child, it became a prayer and a declaration. Hearing that song brought me back to when I would sing that song. And so as I watched the video, I once again sang that song as a declaration and a prayer. I evaluated my life and I'm ashamed to say that I've drifted from the stance I had made as a child.

I'm not talking about backsliding. What do I mean by this? I mean that somewhere along the line I've gone from serving God to serving people and to serving my title. I'm busy at church, but I'm busy doing things for different reasons, instead of doing it for the only reason we should do anything and that's to serve the Lord.

The Bible is clear that we cannot serve two masters. And yet, we try to. We justify our actions as God-oriented, when really they are self-serving. If our motive is to prove to people that we are worthy of their respect, then we are not serving the Lord and we are robbing Him of His glory. If we are more concerned with our reputations and what people will think of us then we are not serving the Lord.


1 Corinthians 15:58 says, "My dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless."
 
When you serve a title, a reputation, or even people, you will become tired, drained, and worn out. Why? Because you're choosing to work for yourself. You in your own strength can do nothing. You can't refresh yourself. And the things you are doing in your own strength are useless.
However, there is hope, should you choose to stop serving the wrong master. Remember why you began serving the Lord. He has bought you, redeemed you, pulled you out of the miry clay. He has placed His seal upon you and called you His heir. We serve the Lord not as a way to earn anything, but out of gratitude for all He's done for us. Repent of your pride and self-serving and ask God to help you to serve Him enthusiastically because of your overwhelming love for Him, and not out of a need to prove something. Serve the Lord. "Nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless."
We are to be servants. Servants receive no recognition or credit for the job that is done. The Master will receive it.
Choose today to serve the Lord!

Greater Things Than These

I had the amazing opportunity to co-preach at my church a few weeks. Myself and a friend of mine asked our pastor if we could tag-team because it was family Sunday: which means, the kids stay in service. My friend preached first then, we played this video I made. It's simply called, God is...

After the video I got up and spoke from John 14:12-17. I'd like to share with you what I shared that day. They didn't start recording right away, so here's what you miss...

Greater Things Than These

John 14:12

I can think of some pretty amazing things that are recorded in the scriptures about what Jesus did. Healed all manner of sickness, disease, disability. Raised people from the dead. Cast out demons. These are all significant miracles. And yet, Jesus says here, “greater things than these will you do.”
So what's the key?
John 14:13-15
These are pretty important verses and we could spend lots of time discussing them, but it's pretty self-explanatory. “If you love me keep my commandments.” So is this the key? Nope! Keeping the commandments isn't enough. Remember the Rich Young Ruler, he'd kept the commandments from his youth. Jesus said to him, “Follow me.” What did Jesus want to Rich Young Ruler to learn...

Easter ~ Mary's Perspective

To tell you my story I must start at the beginning. I remember it so well. I mean who could forget a visit with a heavenly being. I was just a girl when the angel Gabriel came and told me I was to conceive and give birth to God's son. I was perplexed, "How could this be?" But I believed God's message and trusted him.


He was a wonderful child. He never did anything wrong. Many mothers call their babes angels, but we all know they're really not perfect. But Jesus was. I think that's how we lost him one time. We never had to worry about him. He always did what he was told, and so when the caravan left Jerusalem we just assumed he was with some of our family members who had made the trip with us. After a day of not finding him we returned to Jerusalem. We searched for him for three days before finding him in the temple. He was sitting with the teachers asking them questions and astounding them with his understanding. When I questioned him, he told me he needed to be about his father's business. Again I was perplexed. But I hid his word in my heart. Jesus always honored us, his father and I.


I can clearly recall his first of many miracles. We were at a wedding in Cana and they had run out of wine. This is a huge faux pas. The couple would have been severely embarrassed. I told Jesus. Then I told the servants to do whatever Jesus told them to do. I was astonished when they filled the pots with water and then served it to the master of the banquet. But Jesus had performed a miracle. The water was turned into wine. And it was the best tasting wine that anyone had ever had.


For three years Jesus performed many miracles and taught the people. Some of the things he said were very confusing. He would antagonize the religious leaders with his words, but he was kind and gentle to the hurting, often ministering to them late into the nights. He would separate himself to pray. He knew how to communicate with his heavenly Father and taught us to do the same.


Our tradition was to go to Jerusalem for the Passover. My heart nearly stopped when I saw him about to climb onto the back of the unbroken donkey. I thought for sure he'd be bucked off. But he handled the wild beast in the same way he handled the people, with gentleness and it responded to him. He entered the city in triumph. The people waved palm branches and laid their coats before him. They shouted, "Hosanna, hosanna, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord." Jesus was to be the King we had been promised. God promised us a Messiah who would save us. The people recognized Jesus, or so we thought.


Four days later after Jesus had finished his Passover supper with the disciples, he went to the garden to pray, which he often did. There soldiers captured him. They led him to the home of Caiaphas and then to Pilate. Pilate tried to release him, but the rulers of the synagogue riled the people up and called out for a murderer to be released, rather than my innocent son. They convinced the people that Jesus should be crucified.


My heart nearly broke as he was flogged, and tormented. I followed the crowd as he made his way up Calvary. I could barely see for the tears that flood my eyes. My son, my promise from God, the Messiah, was being led away like a common criminal. "He's done nothing wrong," I wailed. But they could not hear me over the cheers and leers of the crowd.


I watched as they nailed his hands to the beam and then raised him up over the crowd. They were not gentle with my precious son as they nailed his feet to the cross. Above his head stood a sign, "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews." At noon the world went dark. For three hours we stood there watching, some of his last words were "father forgive them." Even amongst all the torture Jesus begged God for the forgiveness of the people. And then he took care of me to. He looked at his best friend John and commissioned him with my care. I was to be his mother and he was to be my son.


When Jesus finally died, a righteous man petitioned Pilate for the body so that it could be properly buried. Myself and a few of the other women that ministered to Jesus, followed; so that, we would know where he was. We wanted to be able to return and properly anoint his body.


After seeing the tomb we returned to the city. We were unable to do anything the next day because it was the Sabbath and all work was forbidden on the Sabbath. On Sunday morning, we headed out early. We carried spices and perfumes to the tomb. The ladies and I were discussing how we were going to get passed the guards. I was his mother and I would not be denied entrance. We got to the tomb and were astonished the stone, that massive stone that had been protecting my baby boy had been rolled away, and where were the guards, they were nowhere to be found! I ran to the entrance, I let out a wail. My baby was gone. Suddenly there was an angel and he asked me, "Why do you seek the living among the dead. Jesus is not here he is risen!" My heart leaped for joy within me. My son, my promise from God, the Messiah he had risen. He had conquered death. He had truly become the one to save us. But not from the corrupt government, but from ourselves. From our own sins.


Jesus walked on the earth ministering for another forty days, teaching us everything we would need to know. And then, right before my very eyes he was taken up into the clouds but not before he commissioned us. We were to tell everyone the good news, but not until we received the promise from the father. We were to go to Jerusalem and wait. Wait we did. One hundred and twenty of us. And it came the promised comforter. The Holy Spirit. He empowered us to tell everyone about the Messiah. And the best news of all that He's coming back someday soon!

Forgiven

I had a dream a few weeks ago. It was one of those dreams where I knew God was speaking to me. In my dream I saw someone that I'm not fond of at the moment - well let's just be honest, I'm extremely upset with the person. I saw the person and turned and walked away from them. I felt God speak to my heart saying, "You have an unforgiving spirit." Ouch. So I asked God to forgive me and said I would make it right. The person came in and I told them I was holding onto offenses against them. The person said, "Ya think!" And began to berate me. I got mad and walked away. Again I felt God telling me I had an unforgiving spirit. I sighed and knew I needed to make it right. I asked God for one more chance. I walked out into the hallway of the building I was in and here the person came with someone else, and I lost it. I was so mad, I began to have a temper tantrum. God again spoke to me saying I had an unforgiving spirit. And then I woke up.

After waking up I knew God was speaking to me. I knew I needed to make this right, but I was unsure how. So I prayed. While I prayed I could feel myself justifying my anger. And then I did what I've been doing for the last several months, I buried it. I decided I'd rather not feel anything than to feel anger. And so there it has sat, just under the surface churning.

The problem with emotions is they just don't go away because we want them to. Just because I don't want to feel angry doesn't mean I don't. We need to deal with our emotions. We need to bring them into submission just like we bring the rest of our body into submission. Our emotions need to line up with the cross and if they don't we need to make them.

This means taking time to acknowledge that they exist. Sometimes we can shut them down to deal with them later, as long as, we deal with them later. Undealt with emotions will stunt your growth and will bloom in other situations causing you to still have to deal with them. A lot of times if we become angry with another person, we lie to ourselves and say, "That person makes me angry." Sometimes we use not so colorful language to say that as well. But the truth is there is something in you that is reacting negatively to that person. Only by examining ourselves and our emotions can we properly deal with it.

Some simple, yet useful things I'm beginning to learn are:

"Forgiveness is not an occasional act, it is a constant attitude." Martin Luther King Jr.
     We must live in the spirit of forgiveness. Not just burying our emotions, but truly forgiving people as the offenses occur. Even in our justifiable anger we must submit to a spirit of forgiveness. There are a lot of things we feel we have the right to be mad about; however, the Bible is clear - “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. BUT if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." Matthew 6:14-15 (emphasis added).
     Think about it for a moment... You have done WAY more to offend the Father (God), than anyone has done to you. And if anyone is justified in their anger it would be God. But instead of holding on to His anger, He sent Jesus to be the payment for our sins. "For God so loved the world that he gave..." (John 3:16).
     And here lies the key, we need to love people. Love those that hurt us, love those that use us, love those that have wronged us. That love lies in the spirit of forgiveness knowing that God forgave us, and if He did not even spare His own Son. How could we possibly hold back anything from Him? And He is the one asking us to "love our enemies."

Here's the flipside:
When you know you've offended someone, make it right - right away. Sometimes we try to cover the fact that we've hurt someone. We snap at them and then moments later make a joke or try to be nice. The problem is we were wrong and what we need to do is say, "I am sorry." Hardest three words in the English language. We need to lay down our pride and make it right. Don't justify the wrong you committed in the same way that you would justify your anger.

We need to live in a Spirit of Forgiveness, that means forgiving others and seeking forgiveness from others. Remember you have been forgiven.

My Reflection

I often forget that I'm thirty years old. Sometimes I feel like I'm still twelve or seventeen or in my early twenties. Because I remember those ages so vividly, I often feel like I'm still there waiting. What am I waiting for? I'm waiting to grow up.

I struggled a lot with insecurities when I was growing up. And because I remember them so well, I often feel like I will never get over them. However, over the past week I've come to realize something. Although, I remember my insecurities, for the most part, they are not a part of who I am. They are a part of my past, but other than being a memory they are not part of my present. I must be careful when looking in the mirror to not see who I was, but who I am, and who I'm becoming.

Sometimes I think I get stuck because I feel like I should feel a certain way - usually negatively - when that's just not the case. My old self is saying I'm insecure and shy, when although, yes I'm reserved and tend to be more introverted I'm not shy. Shyness implies fear. Fear brings bondage. And thankfully, God has delivered me from this type of bondage.

How?

Through my reflection. God has changed my view of myself. God has shown me who I am to Him, in Him, and through Him. I am loved, because He is love. I am beautiful, because He is my Creator and He declares that I am. I am priceless, because He paid the ultimate price for me. 

This confidence doesn't come from feminism or society. This is the confidence that comes from God. I've seen my reflection more clearly the last week. I used to have to tell myself the truth about who I was because I didn't see it, or believe. So I would literally speak God's Word to my reflection in the mirror. Somewhere along the way, I've learned to believe and accept those truths. I'm not exactly sure where. But as I was speaking with a teenager this week, I realized that the things I said, were said from a place of truth and acceptance. Not from a place of just believing because that's what I'm supposed to do.

So then if this is who I am; confident, free, loved; then, why do I still feel 12 or 17? I think it's because God has allowed me to see the reflections of those around me. Both of who they feel they are, and who He sees them as. I can so clearly see others two reflections, as I can so clearly see my own. And with this insight comes the responsibility to encourage others to see themselves the way God sees them.

So what does your reflection look like? Are you fearful? Self-conscious? Ugly? Anxious? Lonely? 

Then know this, this is not how God sees you. He has a special message for you today, You are loved. Read His Word, Speak His truth over your life. Allow Him to change your reflection to His. 

I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Marvelous are Your works,
And that my soul knows very well.

Psalm 139:14