The Big Picture

Photo Credit: Creative Commons

Sometimes I do not get it. 

To be honest, I sit here wondering "how"? 

How will God use me? What will that look like?

I know part of it looks like this blog. Part of it looks like my family. Part of it looks like Girl's Ministry at church. Part of it looks like the Praise and Worship team.

But what does the "Big Picture" look like?

I think Moses had a similar question.

He was a Hebrew raised by Egyptians. He knew he was different. He knew God had called him. He thought he knew what that looked like. He got it wrong.

He thought people would understand he was made to be their leader. They did not get it.

"During this time Moses was born. He was a very beautiful child, and for three months his parents took care of him in their home. Then when they were forced to leave him outside, the king’s daughter found him and raised him as her own son. Moses was given the best education in Egypt. He was a strong man and a powerful speaker. When Moses was forty years old, he wanted to help the Israelites because they were his own people. One day he saw an Egyptian mistreating one of them. So he rescued the man and killed the Egyptian. Moses thought the rest of his people would realize that God was going to use him to set them free. But they didn't understand." Acts 7:20-25 (CEB)

Moses heard the call of God on his life, but he was trying to do it all himself. Even the people around him realized that would never be enough.

In ourselves we are are not enough. God is more than enough. With God, all things are possible.

His grace is sufficient. 

So I will be patient. I will let Him work His great work on my heart. I will listen and obey. I will wait until His timing is perfect. I may not get it, but when I am ready, when I am humbled, when I am undone by a burning bush experience, then He will fulfill His purpose in me.

Until then I will be like Paul. I will press. I will strive. I will move forward. Toward the goal. Toward my Father.

I will be like Isaiah. When God asks "Who will go?" I will say "Here I am, send me."

Join the Conversation: 

Do you ever wonder how God will use you? 

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I Get By With A Little Help From My Friends

Inner Circle of Friends Credit: Creative Commons

Proverbs 27:17 (Message) “You use steel to sharpen steel, and one friend sharpens another.”

Coffee with a Friend 

I was having coffee with a friend yesterday (one of my favorite pass times) and we got on the subject of friendship. 

As we talked we discovered that we held in common one belief: Everyone can have friends, but the core group directly around you (your closest friends) is the most important, especially when you are a leader.

I have two examples for you.

Moses, Aaron and Hur

Moses and Aaron were brothers. These two are mentioned together in the Bible 139 times. Often, when God was telling Moses something, Aaron was right there, getting the same download. When the people complained and murmured against Moses, Aaron was being complained about too. When Moses needed a spokesman, Aaron knew his brother’s heart so well; he spoke on Moses’ behalf. These two were a powerhouse. When Hur was added into the mix, nothing could stop these guys. Moses relied on Hur just as he did Aaron.

Exodus 24:14 Moses told the elders, “Stay here and wait for us until we come back. Aaron and Hur are here with you. If anyone has a dispute while I am gone, consult with them.”

When Moses grew tired during battle, who had his back? Aaron and Hur.

Exodus 17:11-13 Whenever Moses held up his hand, Israel would start winning the battle. Whenever Moses lowered his hand, Amalek would start winning. But Moses’ hands grew tired. So they took a stone and put it under Moses so he could sit down on it. Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on each side of him so that his hands remained steady until sunset. So Joshua defeated Amalek and his army with the sword.

Moses was undoubtedly the leader of the Nation, but Aaron and Hur were his right and left hands.

Peter, James, John

The three closest to Jesus were Peter, James, and John. These were the ones he spent the most time with. The ones he prayed with. The ones he loved the most. Each friend brought a different thing to Jesus as a friend.

Peter was brash. A tell it like it is kind of guy that swings swords first and asks questions later. He is the one that first called Jesus the Christ. He also had an impetuous streak. When Jesus was going to wash the disciples’ feet, Peter pitched a fit until he realized Jesus was sealing their friendship with service, and then he was ready for a sponge bath. The guy was funny like that.

James was special. He was a fisherman. As Jesus walked by them on the shore he recognized something in James that sparked. Has that ever happened to you? You meet someone and you immediately “click”? James was a leader. He brought his brother and even his mother to follow Jesus.

James was quick to react, and had a bit of a temper, though Peter got stuck with the bad rep of being the hot head. Jesus nicknamed James and his brother John the Sons of Thunder, because they wanted to call fire down on a guy for not believing.

John did have a tender side though. Jesus held a tender affection for John. He trusted John to always do the right thing. John was a details person. He was the one Jesus wanted to set up the Passover meal. He was the one he trusted with His mother. Jesus had brothers. They could of and should have taken in Mary. Jesus trusted his friend John.

These three men were Jesus’ inner circle. They saw the everyday Jesus and they saw the Christ. They were all passionate but each had something slightly different to offer. We can learn something from these men and from Moses, Aaron and Hur.

1. Friends are not all interchangeable. Each friend brings something different to the table.

2. We need friends who tell us like it is, but remind us how it should be too.

3. We need friends who will pray for/with us and friends who will go to battle for us.

4. We need friends who are trustworthy.

5. We need friends who will go above and beyond the call of duty and minister not just to us, but our families as well.

If you have friends in your life who embody these qualities you are truly blessed. These people will stick with you and can make all the difference in the world!

What are characteristics you look for in a friend?

Why?

The Question We All Ask 

Why? Why me? Why not me? Why her? Why him? Why now? Why not now? We have all asked God the one question: why? Why do bad things happen to good people? 

I know I have. When the hurt of my parent’s divorce was too much, I would ask why. When my daughter got diagnosed with epilepsy I asked why. I know when parents lose children why is a question they have too. When we face loss or hardship “why” is the most often asked question. A close second would be, “if only”. 

Questioning God is okay. 

The Psalmist David did it and God called him a man after His own heart. We just can’t stay in that place of questioning. 

My pastor brought this subject up in our Wednesday night Bible Study and I want to share some of the things that were said, and some things I heard in my spirit when we were discussing this age old question “why?”. 

Psalm 13 For the music leader: a song of David.(CEB) 

1 How long will you forget me, Lord? Forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long will I be left to my own wits, agony filling my heart? Daily? 2 How long will my enemy keep defeating me? 3 Look at me! Answer me, Lord my God! Restore sight to my eyes! 4 Otherwise, I’ll sleep the sleep of death, and my enemy will say, “I won!” My foes will rejoice over my downfall. 5 But I have trusted in your faithful love. My heart will rejoice in your salvation. 6 Yes, I will sing to the Lord because he has been good to me. 

Sometimes when I read this passage or ones like it I wonder; was this man bipolar? He goes from despair to rejoicing so quickly, but then again don’t we all do this, just in the opposite order? I know I have gone from happy and rejoicing to despair in no time flat before. It doesn't mean I am bipolar, it means I am human. 

The Psalmist has it right here. 

We can question, (like he does in the first two verses) and we can petition (as he does in the second two verses) and then we need to remember how well taken care of by our Father we really are. We need to recall all the things He has done and rejoice in those things. 

First, we overcome by the blood of Jesus and the word of our testimony. Secondly, when we pray in faith, believing, then we ask and we receive. The answer is on the way, just believe. 

What if the answer is no? 

What then? You Stand. No one knows better than Jesus what it is like to hear “no” to a prayer. 

In the garden, before the soldiers came, Jesus prayed. With so much fervor that he bled drops of blood. He prayed this: Let there be another way to save the world, “Let this cup pass” from me. Thank God the Father said no! In saying no to Jesus God said yes to all of us! In that one “No” He made a way for salvation, healing and victory for everyone: through Jesus. 

God told Moses no when Moses asked permission to cross into the Promise Land. This is what God said: “…and the Lord said unto me, Let it suffice thee; speak no more unto me of this matter.”

Sometimes, the answer is no. 

That is just the way it is. 

Being a Christian is not a solution to all your problems. We don’t have a wand to wave over our issues and they magically disappear just because we asked God for something. Trust in the Lord: voluntarily, not begrudgingly, faithfully, not here a little and there a little. 

It’s Raining NOW! 

So when trouble comes, and it will, (it rains on the just and the unjust) remember that our victory is in what Jesus did, not in whether or not we feel better after a prayer. 

Our victory is not in the immediate relief of our pain, but in the fact that we can petition God ourselves and no longer need intermediaries. 

Our victory is in the fact that Jesus already defeated Satan and all we have is a little time on this earth, and all our problems will go away and we will stand in heaven before the throne of God worshiping Him and reveling in His mercy and goodness. 

The Psalmist David did not have his answer yet. But he knew the answer was on the way. He began rejoicing, because he knew that despite what he faced in that moment, God was faithful. God had always answered before, and he trusted that the answer was on the way. 

Be Courageous. Ask why, but don’t forget to trust. God grants peace in the storm. 

Join the Conversation:  

Have you ever asked why before? Can you tell us about it? Leave a comment below.