Beauty

When I was a teenager, older women told me it was more important to be beautiful on the inside than on the outside. With all my insecurities, I wanted to believe that, but I had my doubts. Part of me believed that idea was a cop out for ugly girls. For me, it wasn’t enough for God to see my beauty. I wanted people to see it too! So, although it sounded selfish, I went on to pursue becoming beautiful outwardly.

   But beauty is an elusive thing. You can’t pin it down. It cannot be measured by science, and people differ on what they think is beautiful. People can actually develop a taste for ugly things. But some things are so radiant, they startle us, and we know it’s beautiful.

God personifies beauty. The Scriptures describe Him in beautiful terms: bright as the sun, glorious, magnificent, etc. And He made many beautiful things. Clearly, God enjoys beauty, so why should I not desire it too? Don’t most women have a natural desire to beautify their world, first in their own appearance and then in their surroundings?

We can take a cue from nature on where to begin. When I stand in an open field at night looking up at the stars, the incredible beauty of the sky causes me to think of how magnificent our great God is! The same thing happens when I stand on a beach looking out at the vast ocean or in the woods looking up at majestic mountain. I think if God’s Creation is this amazing, how much more amazing He must be! I see Him big and powerful! When people look at us, they should see a reflection of some of God’s attributes. All of the beauty of Creation points to Him, and my beauty should too.

Genuine beauty begins in our hearts, manifests outwardly, and always points to Him. I’m asking God to make me beautiful as He is beautiful – in wholeness and truth with the fruits of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control - Galatians 5:22-23). Although these are inward qualities, I believe they will come out in our actions, words, and even in our appearance. Being beautiful on the inside really does make us beautiful on the outside. (I’m a work in progress!)

The Apostle Paul says this, “And I want women to be modest in their appearance. They should wear decent and appropriate clothing and not draw attention to themselves by the way they fix their hair or by wearing gold or pearls or expensive clothes. For women who claim to be devoted to God should make themselves attractive by the good things they do.” I Timothy 2:9-10 NLT

So, if you’re feeling unattractive today, don’t worry! There’s hope! The best part is that it’s God’s work in us if we allow Him to do it.

Joyce Hague

Face Time

Today, I needed to unload the Diaper Genie (trash can for diapers), and Lee is usually content to lie for at least a couple of minutes by himself if he is already in a good mood. But by the time I got back from taking the trash out (two minutes tops!), he was fussing. As soon as I bent down near to him and talked to him, his little face lit up with the sweetest smile. All he needed was a little "Face Time." Babies at this age love faces. They don’t care as much about toys or other distractions. They want to interact with people, especially their parents.

It has struck me that I want to be like Lee and never want to grow tired or bored of face time with my Father in heaven. And yet, I am often too busy or find distractions in this world that I make more important than seeking Him. Little Lee wants face time just about every moment he is awake. What if I were that eager and seeking my Father that frequently?

1. Worries would vanish. I have found, like Lee, that when I cry out and seek my Father’s face that I find great joy and whatever I am concerned about just disappears. When we seek the Lord, Matthew 10:24-25 tells us that we do not need to worry about all the daily necessities of life because God will make sure we are provided for. In Psalm 27, the psalmist is fearing for his safety and even his life, yet he speaks of seeking the Lord’s face and finding the strength and safe refuge he needs.

2. My joy would be full. Psalm 16:11 says, “You will make known to me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.” Again, I am convicted by Lee. The delight that lights up his face when he sees us is precious. How the Father must long for us to come to Him to find joy that we can find nowhere else! I sometimes think He must be gently shaking His head as I try to fill my heart and life up with other things, wanting me to just seek His face and find the truest joy in His presence.

When I am diligent about seeking God, I find that joy in God every day, and my load seems so much lighter. Peace tends to reign more in my heart than worry, and I believe that I am more of a blessing to others because I am fulfilled. But oh, the distractions! How easy it is to get entangled and forget to seek our Father’s face. If you find yourself overwhelmed, worried, snippy, or if you are facing something that you can’t see your way around, seek your Father’s face. He does not hide, and He is waiting to fill you with joy, provide for your needs, and walk with you through whatever you are facing. I know I am in desperate need of this Face Time as well these days. Let us seek His face with all our hearts, dear sisters, and share with each other the joys, answers, and peace that He brings to encourage each other to keep doing it!

--Judith Graham

God’s Sovereignty and My Story

“The sovereignty of God is the pillow upon which the saint rests his head.” I have found this quote by C.H. Spurgeon to be true in my own life. When I tend to worry about the future, I remember God’s sovereignty, His control over all things, and that gives me peace. God doesn’t simply know the future; He controls it. He ordains the things that happen to me and to those I love.

“My frame was not hidden from You, when I was being made in secret, […] Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in Your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there were none of them.” (Psalm 139: 15-16)

Recently I was in the middle of a fiction book that was occupying my thoughts  even when I wasn’t reading. In the midst of those thoughts, my mind returned to a real life situation, and for a split second, I thought that, in this real life matter, like in a book, I could just look ahead, or continue ‘reading’ to see how it played out. I immediately came back to my senses. This was life; it was not a book. The story of this situation was not yet written; I couldn’t know what would happen. Perhaps time would tell, but I would perhaps never know exactly how that situation played out or the why behind it.

Yet then God sweetly reminded me that this situation I was pondering, like a story, does have an Author, and that things don’t just happen haphazardly. Just as a writer of a well-written book carefully plots out his story and has a purpose for every scene in his book, so our Father uses every event in our lives to weave the story He is writing. This is what His sovereignty does for us.  I don’t know the future, and I can’t look ahead to see. But God is sovereign; He is on the throne, and this truth challenges me not to live in worry and fear. Instead I trust in the One Who created this world and all living in it, Who sustains everything by His power, and Whose very word accomplishes His purposes.

“I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’ calling a bird of prey from the east, the man of my counsel from a far country. I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass. I have purposed, and I will do it.” (Isaiah 46:9-10)

I don’t know what lies ahead. But while I don’t know the details of the story that God is writing in my life, I do know the last page. If you’re like me, as long as I know a story ends well, I can keep reading the book despite hardships and tragedies the author may include. I just want to know everything comes out right in the end.

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth […] And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband, and I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be His people, and God Himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away. And He who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” (Revelation 21:1-5)

And this ‘ending’ is really only the beginning of a story in which, as C.S. Lewis describes it, every chapter is better than the one before.

-- Amy O’Rear

HE'S BEEN FAITHFUL!

HE’S BEEN FAITHFUL

            This morning I have been overwhelmed with God’s faithfulness to me.  I so often fail Him, but He has been faithful to me.  I want to share the Scriptures that have taken root in me.  I plan to memorize these this week so I can meditate on them.

Know therefore that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God, who keeps His covenant and His lovingkindness to a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments.  Deuteronomy 7:9

Your lovingkindness, O Lord, extends to the heavens, Your faithfulness reaches to the skies.  Psalm 36:5

O Lord God of hosts, who is like You, O mighty Lord? Your faithfulness also surrounds You.  Psalm 89:8

O Lord God of hosts, who is like You, O mighty Lord? Your faithfulness also surrounds You.  Psalm 91:4

Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass.  I Thessalonians 5:24

If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.  II Timothy 2:13

            Damaris Carbaugh has been a special blessing in my life and the song she sings about His faithfulness has expressed my thoughts.  Remember, He is Faithful!

HE’S BEEN FAITHFUL

In my moments of Fear
Through Every Pain Every Tear
There's A God Who's Been Faithful To Me
When My Strength Was All Gone
When My Heart Had No Song
Still In Love He's Proved Faithful To Me
Every Word He's Promised Is True
What I Thought Was Impossible
I've Seen My God Do

Chorus:
He's been faithful, faithful to me
Looking Back He's Love And Mercy I See
Oh Though In My Heart I Have Questioned
Even Failed To Believe
He's Been Faithful, Faithful To Me

When My Heart Looked Away
The Many Times I Could Not Pray
Still My God He Was Faithful To Me
The Days I Spent So Selfishly
Reaching Out For What Pleased Me
Even Then God Was Faithful To Me
Every Time I Come Back To Him
He Is Waiting with Open Arms
And I See Once Again

He's Been Faithful
Faithful To Me
Looking Back His Love And Mercy I See
Though In My Heart I Have Questioned
Even Failed To Believe
Yet He's Been Faithful, Faithful to me.

cAROL cYMBALA

Damaris Carbaugh singing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdO2cRXVHII

~~fAITH hIMES lAMB

Bucket of Grace

You’ve got to earn it. The straight-A report card, the blue ribbon, the team trophy, the medal. You might even have to earn some negatives – not annoying your dad, not losing your birthday money, not forgetting to turn off the oven. All kinds of bad things can happen when you aren’t paying attention, but good things rarely come that way.

Whether trying to please ourselves, others, or God, we may or may not choose appropriate and effective ways to gain approval.

When it comes to pleasing God, we think the effort/reward system is the way to go. I have to please God or He will be mad at me. If I please Him, He will reward me. In fact, God says a lot of that in the Bible.

But He also makes it clear that we cannot succeed in a quest for perfection, that Jesus has succeeded in that quest, and that He wants to share His perfection with us. All that is required is our agreement about our sin, our acceptance of His forgiveness, our submission to Him. But that is everything. Our pride prevents.

He also makes it clear that He longs for us to lean on Him, to depend on Him, to ask Him for what we need and want. We don’t have to earn his care and concern.

Through the prophet Isaiah, He begged the rebellious people of Israel to turn to him with their needs:

“I was ready to respond, but no one asked for help.
    I was ready to be found, but no one was looking for me.
I said, ‘Here I am, here I am!’
    to a nation that did not call on my name.”       Is. 65:1 NLT

I see myself in the words of the prophet. I don’t want to need help. I want to be able to earn… Well, what is it I’m trying to earn….?

I see myself in the words of the poem:

Lord, I crawled across the barrenness to You

With an empty cup,

Uncertain in asking any small drop of refreshment.

If only I had known You better

I’d have come running with a bucket.

Nancy Spiegelberg ©

--Lynda Shenefield

What is that?

Ex. 4:2 “Then the Lord said to him (Moses), “What is that in your hand?”

In my Bible, I have written “Maylou” with an arrow pointing to this verse. Often I have to ask myself: “Maylou, what is that in your hand that you can use for the Lord and for others?”

Is it a PEN… to use to write a “hard copy” card to a friend…a card that has to be mailed…with a personal note inside…with a stamp on the envelope…that my friend will receive from her/his postman?

Recently I asked the Lord to bring to my attention people from my past that I need to thank. When a person comes to mind, I pick up my PEN and write!

Is it a WHISK…to use to make cookies for a neighbor…for a young man or woman in college… in the military (like our own Brandon McQueen)? GBC has his address. J

Is it a SET OF CAR KEYS…to use to visit someone in the hospital… to take a lonely friend for coffee… to run an errand for a busy young mother?

Is it a COMPUTER/PHONE… to send a note to our missionaries…to text a friend or relative to say you are praying…to contact a young person who is having difficulty with grades in school?

Is it a TOOL BOX… to help repair a sink or stove…to hang a picture for a single mom?

Is it an HOUR OR TWO …that you can give to babysit for a couple so they can have a “coffee date”?

Is it a BALL or BOARD GAME…that you can take time to play with a child (or your spouseJ)?

Is it MONEY…maybe just $1 or much more to encourage someone God lays on your heart? You don’t even have to know the need…just follow God’s leading and give…just slip it into their hands (even a child’s) or in an envelope… watch the look of surprise and gratitude and even unbelief! YOU will feel the joy.

Is it AN APPROPIATE TRACT…with a VERY generous tip for a waiter or waitress?

The Lord is asking us today: “What is that in your hand?”

Our Prayer: “Lord, Show me a need…give me an idea…help me to use what I have in my hand.”

  

 --Maylou Holladay

Stupid Israelites?

         Am I the only one who can’t understand why the Israelites in the Old Testament kept running after powerless idols when they could have had the living God? God rescued them from their oppressors, fought their battles, gave them the most beautiful land on earth, blessed them with large families, clothed them like royalty, made their crops abundantly productive, etc. He longed to be their God and they to be His people. He poured out lavish love on them, and yet, they turned to idols of their own making? Why?

         But, let’s think about this: For His blessing to continue, God required a few things. He asked them to lead a life of restraint, self-control, sacrifice, and obedience. Their false idols (themselves) allowed excessive indulgence (drink, sex, food), “freedom” to do whatever they wanted, self-promotion, and the pursuit of selfish desires. They refused to submit to God’s authority, because they thought any consequences of their behavior would be worth doing what they wanted now. But eventually (and after numerous warnings), their idolatry led to famine, disease, death, war, torture, and captivity. Only a small remnant would be saved.

         If only people could see God’s goodness and love towards us! When He puts restraints on us, it’s for our good. He knows our sin will enslave us and destroy the good things in our lives. Our rebellion will keep us from fully knowing Him and finding satisfaction in Him. And He is more amazing that we can imagine!

         What idol(s) controls you today? Good things taken to excess or out of God’s boundaries seem to be common idols. Food is one example. It seems to be the Christian “drug,” and it has a powerful hold on many of us. In some ways it’s harder to control, because we can’t just abstain from eating. And as Americans, advertisers push food in our faces all day long. We have been conditioned to think we’re worth it. We deserve it, and we need a lot of it. We believe we can’t enjoy life without indulging. Resolutely, we refuse to give up or limit favorite foods we know are bad for us.

         A few years ago, God told me to give up sugar for a year, because it had such a strong hold on me. A year. He forced me to decide to submit to Him or live in idolatry. That was a tough year. I have since loosened the restrictions a bit, but I still have to be careful. Now, we’re working on portion sizes and good choices so I can be healthy. In the future, if I walk in obedience to Him now, I will avoid terrible consequences.

         Our Pastor recently taught a lesson on fasting. I found these points helpful: Fasting breaks the power of food over us and strengthens our self-control muscle. It causes us to lean into God’s power and strength and depend on Him. It is in our leanness that we find satisfaction in Him alone.

         God’s ways aren’t glamorous or fun or easy, but they are good and life-giving. When we fail, He helps us get up, dust our clothes, and try again. In the process, we draw closer to Him and find that He satisfies the true hunger of our hearts.

--Joyce Hague