JANUARY 1, 2020

“Let there be spaces in your togetherness, And let the winds of the heavens dance between you. Love one another but make not a bond of love: Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls. Fill each other's cup but drink not from one cup. Give one another of your bread but eat not from the same loaf. Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each one of you be alone, Even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with the same music. Give your hearts, but not into each other's keeping. For only the hand of Life can contain your hearts. And stand together, yet not too near together: For the pillars of the temple stand apart, And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in each other's shadow.” 
― Kahlil Gibran, The Prophet

GENESIS 1-2

1But for Adam^f no suitable helper was found. 21So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs^g and then closed up the place with flesh. 22Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib^h he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.

23The man said,

“This is now bone of my bones

and flesh of my flesh;

she shall be called ‘woman,’

for she was taken out of man.”

24That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.

25Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.(2:1-25)

MATTHEW 1

20But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus,^f because he will save his people from their sins.”

JOURNAL 

A new decade, 100 years ago it was the beginning of the roaring 20's, economic prosperity abounded worldwide. It was a decade of fun and excess and technological advancement. The world war had ended and things were really good. I wonder how our decade will be viewed 100 years from now. 

Starting the year again reading the Bible really causes me to reflect on my place in this world. One thing that is evident from scripture is that God designed us to work together. We are here to help each other. Man and Woman are intended to be together, to work with each other and for each other. This is how God has designed it...this collaboration, this union is how we are intended to live. We are not designed to be alone, or to do things independently. We are designed to do them together. In Genesis, woman was created to help man. In Matthew, Joseph (Man) is asked to help Mary (Woman). There is an intended give and take that is good and righteous.

Yet in that there is also an intended independence that makes helping, loving and friendship possible. We are individuals intended to be united in a union that helps each of us yet we still are not to lose our own individuality. This is balance and this is what makes marriage work. Likewise it is the key to all relationships.

Thank you Father for another year, another decade. Help me to not get consumed with the future but rather to cherish and make the most of each moment of each day. Knowing that in doing so, I acknowledge your authority and trust you with tomorrow as I make the most of today.

4“Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’^a 5and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’^b ? 6So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.” 

MATTHEW 19:4-6

DECEMBER 31, 2019

“For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.” 
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King

MALACHI

16Then those who feared the Lord talked with each other, and the Lord listened and heard. A scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared the Lord and honored his name.

17“On the day when I act,” says the Lord Almigh ty, “they will be my treasured possession. I will spare them, just as a father has compassion and spares his son who serves him. 18And you will again see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.(3:16-18)

REVELATION 22

6The angel said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God who inspires the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place.”

7“Look, I am coming soon! Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy written in this scroll.”

8I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had been showing them to me. 9But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your fellow prophets and with all who keep the words of this scroll. Worship God!”

JOURNAL 

We are to worship God and live in faith and hope. By doing so we will live in love. Love is the defining characteristic of God. It is what gives hope, it is why we follow. 

As I say goodbye to another year, it is scripture that reminds me of my purpose and the purpose of life. Every life matters, there is not one that God doesn't treasure...it is why Jesus tells the story of the prodigal and of the lost sheep. We are all to remember that as we walk through each day. It is a reminder that each life on this earth is here for a purpose. Ultimately we are here to love each other, honoring God our creator. In our obedience to him we have hope and faith and joy. It is what makes life worth living, 

 11For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. 

JEREMIAH 29:11-13

DECEMBER 30, 2019

“Remember, Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies.” 
― Stephen King

ZECHARIAH 13-14

9The Lord will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one Lord, and his name the only name.(14:9)

REVELATION 21

1Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,”^a for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. 2I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 3And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 4‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’^b or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

JOURNAL 

A new heaven and a new earth. The promise and hope given to those that are suffering and oppressed. This is the hope for those that are facing certain death in this world. The importance of hope cannot be denied. It is spoken of throughout the Bible and in prophecy and by Jesus himself. Hope is the sustaining message of the Bible. 

Psychologically I know this to be true. Studies have been done that affirm the importance of it in our own psychological health. We humans need something to believe in...

Hope keeps our minds at ease, lowers stress and improves physical health. Researchers studying heart-disease patients found that optimists were more likely than non-optimistic patients to take vitamins, eat low-fat diets and exercise, thereby reducing their overall coronary risk. A study of cancer patients revealed that pessimistic patients under the age of 60 were more likely to die within eight months than non-pessimistic patients of the same initial health, status and age. (TIME, May 28, 2011)

This hope is one of the distinguishable characteristics that separates us from animals...it is the calling of our soul for something better than what currently exists. That calling and yearn is proof that our souls know and seek something which does not exist on earth, it is the itch that cannot be scratched, the desire that cannot fully be filled and it is this truth that proves the existence of life beyond our present reality.

Thank you father for this truth...thank you that we always have hope and that hope can sustain and fulfill us in every moment of every day!

11Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 12Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 13Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.

ROMANS 12:11-12

DECEMBER 29, 2019

“Lack of interest in mission is not fundamentally caused by an absence of compassion or commitment, nor by lack of information or exhortation. And lack of interest in mission is not remedied by more shocking statistics, more gruesome stories or more emotionally manipulative commands to obedience. It is best remedied by intensifying peoples’ passion for Christ, so that the passions of his heart become the passions that propel our hearts.” 
― Tim A. Dearborn, Beyond Duty: A Passion For Christ, A Heart For Mission

ZECHARIAH 10-12

1Ask the Lord for rain in the springtime;

it is the Lord who sends the thunderstorms.

He gives showers of rain to all people,

and plants of the field to everyone.

2The idols speak deceitfully,

diviners see visions that lie;

they tell dreams that are false,

they give comfort in vain.

Therefore the people wander like sheep

oppressed for lack of a shepherd.(10:1-2)

REVELATION 20

 And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. They^a had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years.

JOURNAL 

Scripture often can be confusing and troubling, especially if it is taken out of context. Reading through the Bible this past year has given me a greater sense of the mission and purpose of it from the perspective of the whole. Read in this way I see that God deeply loves us and desires for us to trust him and live our lives in service to him. By doing so he promises that our lives will be full of purpose and significance and that we will experience profound joy.  Since God is the author and creator of all, we function best when we acknowledge that and seek to know him and accept his love for us. When we do this, we are saved from loneliness, fear, despair and evil...which is the absence of love. 

Ultimately we are then given eternal life with God. Yet it is our obedience, and acceptance of his love that must precede our adoption as sons and daughters into his kingdom. This makes sense...just as a child must accept it's adoptive parents love in order to truly experience life as a son or daughter. So when we believe and accept we get everything God has to offer. 

Living this way...wipes out fear and fills us with confidence and passion. No longer do we doubt ourselves, our purpose. For we can look to Christ and know God's passionate love and be filled with his spirit in order to overcome whatever challenge that comes our way. We can live a life that reflects the power and love of God. This is the gospel...Amazing Grace!

We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives,^e 10so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, 11being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, 12and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you^f to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. 13For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, 14in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

COLOSSIANS 1:9-14

DECEMBER 28, 2019

“I believe that Jesus would have given His life for just one person. Jesus emptied Himself, He humbled Himself and He so yielded Himself to His Father's love that He had no ambition of His own. He was not looking to build an empire, He did not want praise or adulation or to impress people with who or how many followed Him. He stopped over and over again for just one person, for just one life.” 
― Heidi Baker, Learning to Love: Passion, Compassion and the Essence of the Gospel

ZECHARIAH 7-9

8And the word of the Lord came again to Zechariah: 9“This is what the Lord Almighty said: ‘Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another. 10Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor. Do not plot evil against each other.’(7:8-10)

REVELATION 19

9Then the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!” And he added, “These are the true words of God.”

10At this I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers and sisters who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For it is the Spirit of prophecy who bears testimony to Jesus.”

JOURNAL 

To worship God means to obey him. Obeying him means to act in love and care for those who are struggling. Throughout the entire Bible this is the constant command. Obedience is ultimately about serving. Obedience to God is first but then that obedience extends to loving others. In order to love correctly though, surrender and obedience to God at all cost is what is demanded. 

I am promised that when I surrender to God and commit my life to loving others then I will receive a peace and a joy that passes all understanding. This promise seems counter intuitive...especially in our world. With all the entanglements of this world it is so easy to lose perspective. It's so easy to believe that the more I have the happier I will be...while on the surface that's true, the history of man has proven that having more never equates to true peace and joy. 

The older I get, I realize how important designated holidays are and why celebrating Christmas is so crucial to our faith, because we tend to get so caught up in "things" that we forget the purpose of it all. Jesus came and was born in the most unflattering way and his birth was announced to dirty no name shepherds. Reason was that he came to tend to the worst in us, not the best in us. He then lived a life of pure obedience and love...which is the life that we are called to embrace and live...yet not alone but with his spirit living within us.

I am so grateful that I live in a country and in a time where Christmas is celebrated...yes it gets twisted and misused and manipulated but it still exists and I get the freedom to worship God and reach out in his love. Just as he continually reaches out across time and space to call me his own. 

4Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

8Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 9Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

PHILIPPIANS 4:4-9