Truth in Each Circumstance

"Jesus, truth in each circumstance" This phrase hit me like a steak on a black eye tonight. Yes, a steak. A weird comparison, sure, but it's true! Hear me out. Sometimes we have ideas in our heads of how things should be in life. Sometimes we guard ourselves to the point that we don't even take the chance (or risk) to allow something to happen, even if that something is good. In my life I've come to realize that it's not that I want to hide from people or be emotionally elusive so no one can truly know me but in a way it's like a protection device, doing myself the service of keeping my heart from being hurt. That's where the black eye comes in! The things in life which we may try to protect ourselves from may end up kicking us in the face later, and by this I mean that in trying to keep something from happening we actually end up hurting ourselves anyway by means of regret, disappointment (ironic, huh, that you would become disappointed from trying to protect yourself from disappointment), even guilt. It's like a black eye in our spirit. Our spiritual eyes help us see where God is taking us, the doors He is opening and closing, and the long-term promises He has for our lives. But when we have a spiritual black eye, all swollen and shut, how can we see?

Now I have to say, I love steak. Steak is a wonderful thing! There aren't many ways you can ruin a steak unless you over or under cook it, or over/under season the meat. But when the steak is raw what do people do with it? Slap it on the big black eye! Ever seen that in real life or a movie? They do that because the meat is cold and helps keep the swelling down. It doesn't heal the black eye or make it go away but it helps.

So I know my black eye. I was talking about it in the beginning. Over protecting ourselves is like saying to God, "I don't think you can help me". That's like a slap in Jesus' face! But tonight as we sang in church I heard, "Jesus, truth in each circumstance", and it occurred to me again that no matter what the circumstances are in life Jesus is always the truth and by looking at my Jesus, and not at myself, through open and unwounded spiritual eyes I will see clearly where He's taking me....and in that place there is no room for fear of the future. Why? Because Jesus loves me. And perfect love drives out fear. (I John 4:18). No matter what you face or what you're worried about in your life there are always risks involved but if you never take any risks you'll never find what God has for you. Jesus took risks. He took risks by speaking, healing, and by saying He was God. But that didn't stop him because he knew God was in charge, that there was an ultimate plan, and no matter what pain he faced there was an eternal purpose for it.

So even though singing those words didn't change any circumstances in my life, nor did it take away any of those things which make me guarded, but it does effect me in a long-term way. Just like the steak doesn't heal or take away the black eye, it does effect how long the eye is bruised. It does effect the long-term! And so does trusting Jesus all the time, the truth in every circumstance, in doing so you will change how your spiritual eye will look in the future.

An Amazing Gift

Wow, tonight was such an amazing night in ministry! My heart is aching tonight, but not in a sad or negative way, but rather out of absolute love and admiration for Father God. I am so thrilled at what God has in store for Everfree, Fundamentals, and BCC! After a time of transition, without a youth pastor, it is time to move on and move up! I believe we will have the worship center completely packed with kids by mid-October, I love the perspective PT gave us tonight about not just thinking or believing but EXPECTING that God will move! Praise the Lord! I am so excited!

We memorized Ephesians 3:20 for the series we're starting and as I did my devo's today I did some cross-referencing on the verse. This is what I came up with:

2 Corinthians 9:8-15. "And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. As it is written: 'He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.' Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God. This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of God's people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God. Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, men will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else. And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you. Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!"

So it's kind of long but that's ok! The part which struck me was that Paul says, "men will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confessions of the gospel of Christ" That, my friends, is truly a gift. When we are obedient to God's calling we are doing His will. When we do His will we're sharing the truth and expanding the kingdom, which is bringing people to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. In turn people will praise God for the obedience you have lived in because it was through you which they found Jesus. I can't speak for you but I know for sure that if I knew someone became a Christian because of me and they praise God for my obedience, their heart going out to me in their prayers, I definitely see that as an amazing gift! At one point in culinary school I had a friend who had a heart problem and one day in class she had an "episode". Hahah, I'm sorry but when I hear or say "episode" I think of someone with boughts of diarrhea or something, hahahah! Ok that's gross so back to subject! Anyway she had an attack of whatever this problem was and she was all weak and had to sit down all of a sudden. I felt the prompting of the Holy Spirit to go over and pray for her so I did. I found out soon after that the people around us thought it was weird and I'm sure they thought I was a little crazy, but that didn't stop me from ministering. It wasn't until a year later when I talked to this friend while we were making a wedding cake together that when I prayed for her that time, she was blessed so much and she told me how much of an example it set for her. She wanted that light, she wanted Jesus! So this passage blessed me today. It reminded me of this story, that when we're obedient to the Lord that others really do praise God for our obedience.

On a funny note I managed to go running at Wildwood today without snapping any branches or twigs in my face while I ran through the woods. On my way to my car I stepped on a branch and it flew up and whacked me in the leg and left a long, branch-shaped welt. Yes it was an adventure.

Oops

Hey guys, sorry about that last blog, I didn't realize something bad in the cartoon. HA! Oops! I changed the picture but I hope you can find in your hearts to forgive me. Heehee. :)

You Choose

Yesterday while I was working I was getting really frustrated about this wedding cake I'm doing for Saturday. Around cake number 90 I just wanted to cry, I had been icing and decorating cakes for hours and was only half done. You know those times in life where you feel like there's got to be more to life than THIS?! Well, let me tell you, it's obvious that there's more to life than frosting cakes and making pink buttercream roses, but in the moment I felt like there was no end. I was stuck in a pit of tiny cakes. It was like Daniel in the lion's den only Libby in the midget cake den! Anyway, to make a long story short I had a horrible attitude. I realized that it was my own choice what my attitude was and I could either enjoy the time alone to pray and focus on my amazing piping skills (ya know, maybe build up my finger muscles some more or somethin...), or I could be grumpy and live just to get home. Along the same lines, we have a choice every day to choose Jesus. Yeah, we're saved and we "live" for God, but do we truly live every moment to please Him?

It is our choice to wake up every morning and say, "Jesus, today I choose you." What does this mean? It's the process of dying to ourselves daily. Choose Jesus, meaning when a situation comes your way and it's easy to be irritated or grumpy, sad or depressed, think of all the truth there is in the promises of God! He promises He will never give us more than we can handle (I Cor. 10:13). He promises He will always be with us and provide a way (Psalm 31:15, I Cor. 10:13b). We choose our attitudes.

Last fall was a really difficult time in my life. I don't think I ever remember crying so much as then, I mean when you feel so heartbroken you can barely breath....it's really like the life has been sucked right out of you. But then there are other times when you are so incredibly happy that all you can think about is that special someone or that exciting event coming up! But there is a similarity in both extremes, that we have the choice to choose God no matter what the circumstance. Whether you're overwhelmed with joy, or in the pit of despair, you can either focus on yourself and how happy or sad you are, or focus on God and praise Him because you're happy, or praise Him because you know He's going to bring beauty from ashes. So last fall was a time in my life where I was truly heartbroken, but it was in that time that I started to truly realize that I had to decide. And I praise God that I chose Him. I recognize now that my decision then led me to a much closer, much more intimate relationship with Jesus today. I fell in love with Jesus all over again, and it was all because of the choice I made. I chose my attitude. You can choose your attitude. Joshua 24:15 says, "But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve.....But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord." If serving God in your attitude doesn't sound fun to you then well....go ahead and serve yourself and see what happens. But tonight I choose Jesus. I hope you do too.

Wendy's T-Bone Steak

This is random, and it is about food. I had a dream last night that my dad was looking at his credit card bill and he comes to me and says, "Elizabeth, do you know anything about this $100 purchase on my credit card....at Wendys?!" In my dream I had no clue what it was all about but I woke up and laughed with my parents about it because it was so ridiculous. Wendy's is one of my favorite fast food places, and even though I don't eat there often and when I do I definitely don't spend that much (mooo), the thought was pretty hilarious.

And just to let you all know, throwing a T-bone steak at a car doesn't total it, unless your car is a worthless piece of junk from two decades ago. ;)

Boundless

Last month I made homemade vanilla ice cream at work and wow, was is amazing! There are three things I really have a hard time refusing: popcorn, potatoes, and ice cream. It was horribly torturous making all that creamy, smooth ice cream and knowing I probably wouldn't have any of it except the test-taste I so willingly took every time I made it! Well in one of my rounds of making the ice cream base I was careless in my sugar measurements and the ice cream simply refused to freeze in the ice cream churner. That was frustrating! But who could I blame but myself? I didn't follow the recipe exactly and I reaped the consequences. I had to make the batch over again, not only wasting time but also the pricey ingredients. So what's my point? Well, recipes (or cookbooks) are there for a reason. They're kind of like the law books of cooking. Naturally as your progress in your cooking skills certain things don't need to be measured but there are some things which simply always need to be measured. Like sugar in ice cream, or baking soda in cookies. In charcuterie you could royally ruin a terrine or pate by not being careful in the process! So basically I really love the laws of cooking! I love it that there are measurements I can look to, and references to seek when I need help (Psalm 119:24). When you pay attention to the recipe you will find yourself reaping the benefits of an extremely satisfying result. Even though there were rules to follow you feel kind of....free. :) So here's where my thoughts are coming from tonight.

"To all perfection I see a limit; but your commands are boundless." Psalm 119:96. I love this passage in the Psalms. Throughout the entire chapter of Psalm 119 King David goes on and on about loving the Lord's decrees, His laws and commands. This totally opened my eyes again to the truth of God setting us free. Why did King David love the laws of God so much? What could possibly be interesting about a LAW? Because they set him FREE! I mean when we're in a hurry we don't want to drive the speed limit. When I want to go home from work I wish I didn't have to dunk all those dishes in three compartments of water before they can dry. And who ever slows down at a yellow light?! ;) Honestly, no ones does, but that's what we're supposed to do, right? Haha. Anyway, there's even a part in verse 71 where he states, "It was good for me to be afflicted so that I may learn your decrees." David was even grateful for his afflictions because they taught him the decrees of the Lord, and he loved the laws of the Lord (he even longed for them! 119:20) because they taught truth, which then brought Him freedom (119:30-32). I didn't particularly enjoy ruining that batch of ice cream but it was good for me because I learned what NOT to do, therefore making me appreciate the recipe and then brought me the freedom of knowing what to change. There is a limit to all perfection and to all beauty. There is a limit to everything in this earth....but the commands of the Lord are boundless. For some reason the idea of liking boundless commands sounds kind of funny but if you think about it, there is no reason for us to NOT like the commands of the Lord. In fact, we have every reason to love them like King David. Why? Because the commands of God are good. There is no end to the commands of the Lord, therefore there is no end to the goodness of God. This is why I love reading cookbooks and studying recipes. They remind me of the laws of the Lord and how when we follow them we truly do reap a rich harvest in the end. All I pray is that God will set a passion in our hearts for His word. I pray even now as I type that God will open our eyes as we sit in our quiet times, reading, praying, listening for His voice, and we will see what it is that He is commanding us for these times.

119:18 "Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law"
119:12 "Praise be to you, O Lord; teach me your decrees."
119:16 " I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word."
119: 20 "My soul is consumed with longing for your laws at all times."
119: 24 "Your statues are my delight; they are my counselor."
119: 30-32 "I have chosen the way of truth; I have set my heart on your laws. I hold fast to your statues, O Lord; do not let me be put to shame. I run in the path of your commands, for you have set my heart free."

Building The Fire

How do I keep my spiritual zeal? I thought about that verse last night, "never be lacking in zeal but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord." I met with a friend of mine last night and as we talked he told me about a human video his young adults group was planning. As he talked I recognized that spiritual flame in him, the desire to reach out and share the truth, and the spiritual fervor to never give up. How do we obtain that fire, the passion, and keep it there? Did my friend just one day wake up and have a burning passion for reaching the lost? No. It was a steady incline in his life, a gradual build-up of God-given passion to reach the goal of the Creator.

Let me tell you about chicken stock. This will be interesting, I promise, don't laugh at me! Hahaha! When you make any kind of stock you have to start with cold water and the bones of the animal. The temperature is slowly brought up and as the water and bones are warmed the "scum" from the bones surface. This is when you skim the scum, a term we enjoy using in school haha. When the desire of my heart became to just let God fill every room of my heart I had to start out cold. Many times people are kind of set on fire with passion for the Lord but I've realized in my life that when the passion is burning sometimes it doesn't stay. I like to approach it as a gradual increase in spiritual fervor, a zeal which continually rises through my life and never stops or cools down. In the process God has brought up the scum in my life. Fear, depression, anger, bitterness.....none of those are quick to leave when they've been planted for so long but when they come to the surface and I'm willing to let it go, that's when God has skimmed the scum of my heart.

After the scum is gone you add herbs and vegetables to flavor the stock. When the scum in our heart is gone Jesus fills those empty places with flavorful and beautiful things which sometimes we don't even realize how wonderful they are till the end! You see, a stock doesn't automatically taste amazing right after you add the herbs and veg. You have to let it simmer and develop for hours, letting the flavors mingle and compliment each other! Same with us, it takes time and even though we don't automatically see the blessings and wonderful things Jesus plants in our hearts, they come out in time, resulting in something amazing! A stunning taste on our spiritual palette. The result of a well-made stock brings out five things: color, clarity, flavor, body, and aroma. When our hearts are filled to the core with Jesus and we've allowed His love and character to simmer in our hearts we become more like Him. The color of our lives are vibrant and gold, our vision is clear and our integrity in tact, we give a pleasing taste to the hungry hearts of the lost, our overall aura is full of robust character which draws others in, and we offer up a pleasing aroma to the God who created us, the one who's sole desire is for us to obtain all these things.

Spiritual Mise En Place

I have been reading the book A Woman After God's Own Heart and I am so amazed at the things God is revealing to me in order to open my heart (and mind) and truly be devoted to Him. The first thing which struck me the most was in in the basics. This is how He showed me.

In cooking there are the basic things you need to create a meal. All those things, including ingredients, tools, and equipment are called "mise en place" which, in French, means "everything in place". You gather all your mise en place so that when you start cooking you will not be lacking in the essentials needed (with minimal stops!). For instance, if you are cooking a complicated sauce you don't have time to stop what you're doing to chop up a bunch of vegetables or run around and gather milk and eggs....you have to have everything within hands reach so you don't ruin what you're making. In this process of gather mise en place and making sure I have everything I need I realize it is the same with my relationship with Christ. The Lord has given us ALL we need in order to live our lives to fulfill all the wonderful plans He has for us. What are those things? Simply put in three words, prayer, reading, and listening. This is our spiritual mise en place. When we have all these things we will not be lacking when we are put in a place where we don't have time to reach for the Bible and look something up. When we have these things we fill our spiritual stomachs with the fulfilling bread of life, and we learn to listen when words just aren't there, and we learn that once we have gathered what we need it is our responsibility to share what we have and enlighten the people around us with the amazing truths of God.

It's kind of funny because we grow up and hear about praying, reading the Bible, etc., but it's truly a lifelong process of truly getting it down. But the next thing about spiritual mise en place I realized was that if I do NOT have those things in my life, I will never reach the full potential Jesus has for my life. How can you reach your full potential when you don't take advantage of all the blessings around you? You won't. If you read your Bible every day, spend time in prayer, and sit in quiet and listen for God's gentle voice you are quietly taking the steps of reaching for the FULL potential God has for you.

So let's grab your mise en place, let's get cooking!!!