"Friday's Favorite"

"My Beloved" - Kari Jobe

 

You're My Beloved
You're My Bride
To sing over you is My delight
Come away with Me My love

You're Beautiful to Me
So beautiful to Me

Under My mercy
Come and wait
Till we are standing face to face
I see no stain on you
My child

You're Beautiful to Me
So Beautiful to Me

I sing over you My song of peace
Cast all your care down at My feet
Come and find your rest in Me

I'll breathe My life inside of you
I'll bear you up on eagle's wings
And hide you in the shadow of My strength
I'll take you to My quiet waters
I'll restore your soul
Come rest in Me and be made whole

You're My beloved
You're My Bride
To sing over you is my delight
Come away with me my love

“Remember Who You Are”

Just recently I was reminded of something my parents would say to me as a teenager. I would get ready to go out with friends, or maybe a boyfriend, and before I would walk out the door, it was not unusual for mom or dad to say the words, “Remember who you are.” It was their way of saying, “the choices you make not only affect you, they affect others as well.” Your family is part of your identity and what you do reflects not only on yourself, but also on the family name. A name in which you should take pride in. A name to protect.

Unfortunately, many people today are facing an identity crisis. There are people in the world who feel they don’t fit in, who are searching for a place to belong, who don’t know who they are. Even Christians seem to have lost their sense of identity. Too many young people are seeking identity from wearing the latest fashions, keeping up with popular trends, or giving into the expectations of their peers, while other Christians are gaining identity from their careers, struggles, or their roles in life.

In my Psychology class in college I recall discussing the I.R. theory, (Identity Role Theory). Theorist Erik Erikson coined the term, “identity crisis” and felt it was one of the most important conflicts people face. It is referred to as the time of intense analysis of who you are. An identity crisis occurs when one confuses her identity with her roles in life.

All of us have roles in life - husband/wife, father/mother, salesperson/teacher, student/retired, etc. These roles are temporary. A married couple may experience divorce or their spouse may pass away. Anyone can change careers whether by resigning, getting fired or laid off. Obviously, we age and so do our children. These roles in most cases are based on our performance. When we fall short, we tend to feel like a failure which can make a dramatic impact on how we view our identity, or our worth. Our circumstances can also affect the way we view ourselves. Rich or poor, healthy or ill, strong or broken relationships - all of these examples can change at the drop of a hat.

How we identify ourselves to others says a great deal about how we perceive ourselves. Not only do we try to communicate what we feel is important, but we want to reveal the area in which we find worth as a person. I may introduce myself as Dayna Schrock, mother of 3. Or, maybe I would say, Dayna Schrock, Secretary. Being a mother and a secretary happen to be important roles I carry, but they are not my identity. Another may identify themselves as alcoholic, cancer survivor, or maybe even CEO. Again, our circumstances and our positions do not define true identity.

On the other hand, an identity is something permanent and based on grace alone. Grace given by Christ. No one can take away your true identity.

“For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.” (Ephesians 1:4-8, 11-14)

Are you defining your worth by the position you hold, the money you make, or your circumstances in life? Are you looking at yourself through the eyes of the world, or through the eyes of your heavenly Father? Are you living out a life of the ordinary and routine because you have accepted it as your lot? Have you made up your mind that you are a failure, unable to measure up because of what you have been told by others?

Each one of us is a unique and special individual placed on this earth for a purpose - God’s purpose! We need to be reminded that God’s standard of measurement is much different than the world’s, but we often give way to the enemy in believing that we are worth much less. In Christ, we are significant! He paid the penalty of our sin with His death on the cross. He is in us and we are in Him. He sees that our potential is much greater than we or others give us credit. Now when God looks at us, he doesn’t see sin, He sees us as a new redeemed creation. God doesn’t see us as failures in the roles we carry. He identifies us as His children, holy and blameless. We have been adopted into the family of God, taking on the family name. A name in which we should take pride in and protect. Our choices not only affect us, they affect others around us.

If we were to introduce ourselves using our true identity, we would tack onto our name, “child of God” - permanent, and based on grace. Oh how the perspective of ourselves changes when we realize that our very Creator loves us with an unfailing love despite our roles and positions, despite our circumstances in life, despite our successes and our failures - and He calls us His very own. His love for us is permanent and never based on our performance!

Remember who you are!

"Monday's Moment"

"We can let the circumstances of our lives harden us so that we become increasingly resentful and afraid, or we can let them soften us and make us kinder. We always have the choice." -Cancer Warriors Facebook Page

"Monday's Moment"

"FAITH is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase"            -Martin Luther King, Jr.

"Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that."               -Martin Luther King Jr.

 

"Friday's Favorite"

"I Can Only Imagine" - Mercy Me

I can only imagine
What it will be like
When I walk
By your side

I can only imagine
What my eyes will see
When your face
Is before me
I can only imagine

I can only imagine
 

Surrounded by Your glory, what will my heart feel
Will I dance for you Jesus or in awe of you be still
Will I stand in your presence or to my knees will I fall
Will I sing hallelujah, will I be able to speak at all
I can only imagine

I can only imagine
When that day comes
When I find myself
Standing in the Son

I can only imagine
When all I will do
Is forever
Forever worship You
I can only imagine

Surrounded by Your glory, what will my heart feel
Will I dance for you Jesus or in awe of you be still
Will I stand in your presence or to my knees will I fall
Will I sing hallelujah, will I be able to speak at all
I can only imagine

I can only imagine
When all I will do
Is forever, forever worship you

I can only imagine

“What Must Heaven Be Like?”

“We shall not cease from exploration. And the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time. If this fallen world in all of its brokenness can be so wonderful, what must heaven be like?” - T. S. Elliot

A note came home from school with my third grader. It was stapled closed and read, “Mr. and Mrs. Schrock”. You never quite know what to expect when you have a very inquisitive 8-year old son and he brings home a note from school. But I carefully opened it and began to read it’s contents. In the note, my son’s teacher explained how the children were drawing pictures to go along with their story. He was quite perplexed about how to accurately depict an illustration of heaven. He approached her, “Teacher -how do I draw heaven?” She responded, “Well, that’s a tricky one, maybe you could draw streets of gold and tall mansions.” He just gave her a strange look. But his teacher replied, “Haven’t you ever heard of streets of gold in heaven before?” He very innocently and honestly said, “No - we haven’t gotten that far in church yet!”

Some of you may be wondering the exact same thing. What must heaven be like? Although we are quick to answer streets of gold and beautiful mansions, it’s HEAVEN - there MUST BE MORE! There is more! Like my son, if we haven’t gotten that far yet we need to turn to the final book of the bible. The book of Revelation gives us a taste of what heaven must be like, at least through the eyes of John.

John’s view of the Holy City came from the top of a high mountain. He was taken there by an angel. God’s glory shone through out the city “and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal.” The City has twelve gates, and each gate is guarded by an angel. The wall is made of jasper, the city is of gold, the gates of pearl, and the foundations of twelve precious stones.

Verse 16 of Revelation 21 tells us, “The city was laid out like a square, as long as it was wide. He (the angel) measured the city with the rod and found it to be 12,000 stadia in length, and as wide and high as it is long.” Ok, so let’s put that into the year 2011 terms. Stadia was an old Roman method of measurement. One stadia equaled 607 feet, times 12,000 stadia, equals 7,284,000 feet, OR 1,379 miles. Stick with me here - the city was 1,379 miles long, 1,379 miles high, and 1,379 miles wide. Wow! Try drawing that illustration to go along with your next story!

What must heaven be like? God paints the picture of a river of life as clear as crystal which flows and the tree of life which grows and yields fruit in this holy city. There will be no need for the sun or the moon, for God Almighty himself will provide an abundance of light and there will be no dark night. Gold and precious stones, the very things we hold in high value as humans, will be the very things our feet will trample upon. You see - the values of heaven are certainly not material, but spiritual.

The city is marvelous beyond description. What John experienced within his vision must be symbolic. For it seems as if God has used only terms that we as humans can understand to describe the indescribable. But, it is important that we don’t focus completely on the surroundings. The most important feature of this holy and beautiful city is to be in the very presence of God Himself for eternity. It is written in John 17:3, “this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom You have sent.”

“He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death, sadness, crying, or pain, because all the old ways are gone.” Revelation 21:4

What must heaven be like? Heaven is a real place. Heaven is a right place. It is the city in which we will be free from sin’s curse. All of the wrongs of the world will be made right. All evil will cease and be replaced with that which is good. Sadness will be no more, instead only joy will be present. Gone forever are the feelings of hate and despair. For hope and love will prevail. Every sickness will come to an end and our bodies and souls will experience complete wholeness. Every failure, inadequacy, frustration, struggle, and suffering will be over forever. Only complete success, complete adequacy, and complete fulfillment is possible in the presence of Christ.

Isn’t it reassuring to catch just a glimpse of the place that God is preparing for His children? Think about the trials and sufferings of life that will no longer cause us pain! There will be no more need to strive and struggle. But until then, we must make sure we are ready. “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.” 2 Peter 3:10-13

What does it mean to be ready? Verse 14 goes on to encourage us to be spotless, blameless, and at peace with God. Why does God wait to bring us into this holy city? Because His patience means salvation to those who have not come to know Him as Lord and Savior, (vs. 15). Furthermore, we are to be on our guard - growing in the grace and knowledge of Christ!

What must heaven be like? Set aside all else, if it’s where God is….it’s where I want to be. In the words of the great Buzz Lightyear, for “Infinity and beyond!”

"Monday's Moment"

"No one can go back and make a brand new start, but anyone can start from here and make a brand new end."  - "Remininscences"

"Friday's Favorite"

"On Eagles' Wings" - by Theocracy

The tears stream down her face onto the cold hospital bed
Just like a prisoner between four ugly walls
The fear she can’t control is running rampant in her head
With every day she spent just waiting for that call
And I will never leave her side
We walk the tightrope between faith and fear
Each moment of our lives
But then the darkest hour of night is turned to day
Another miracle, another act unfolding in this play
And I’m blown away
The wine overflows, and my cup runneth over again
I’m blown away
My thankfulness grows with these blessings I can’t comprehend

You raise my spirit to the sky above to fly away
To fly on eagles’ wings
You lift the fallen back on high again to coronate
The King above all kings
All honor
All glory
Raised to Your Majesty on eagles’ wings

I looked him in the eye and played those words over and over in my mind
But that can’t be what he just said
I heard it for myself and know that life can be unkind
But can’t you see I’m much too young to lose my dad?
But I’m blown away
When you laugh at the odds, for the doctors cannot know your plans
I’m blown away
You hold the keys to all life and all death and all time in your hands

You raise my spirit to the sky above to fly away
To fly on eagles’ wings
You lift the fallen back on high again to coronate
The King above all kings
All honor
All glory
Raised to Your Majesty on eagles’ wings

Every tribe and every nation
(Lift your voices and sing)
All in heaven, all creation
Let the tongues of men and angels
(Lift your voices and sing)
All ye blessed, all ye thankful, sing!

You raise my spirit to the sky above to fly away
To fly on eagles’ wings
You lift the fallen back on high again to coronate
The King above all kings
All honor
All glory
Raised to Your Majesty on eagles’ wings

“On Eagles’ Wings”

“In a desert land he found him, in a barren and howling waste. He shielded him and cared for him; he guarded him as the apple of his eye, like an eagle that stirs up its nest and hovers over its young, that spreads its wings to catch them and carries them on its pinions. The Lord alone led him; no foreign god was with him.” Deuteronomy 32:10-12

I recently learned an interesting fact about how a female eagle finds her mate. She watches carefully for a male eagle who shows interest in her and when ready to be courted, she flies down, picks up a twig and carries it high into the air. She drops the twig and watches to see if the male eagle will catch it before it hits the ground. If he is successful and returns the twig to the female, she will find a larger twig or branch to drop a second time. The eagle will repeat this process with various sized branches from various heights. If the male ever allows the branch to fall to the ground, she flies away and the courtship is over.

For the final test, the female picks up the largest branch she can carry and will fly in a figure eight pattern. She will choose her timing and suddenly drop it to see if the male will succeed. If he does, they will lock their talons in flight and become one another’s lifetime mate.

The most interesting fact about this process is to realize the reason behind the female eagle’s series of tests. You see - when a baby eaglet reaches a certain point of maturity, it is time for the mother to push it from the nest in order to see if it will fly. Obviously, this is a stressful time for the eaglet. He has never flown before and instinct must take over, but there is that possibility the small bird isn’t ready yet to take flight. The mother nudges him over the edge anyway. He flaps his wings frantically as he falls faster and faster. Just before he hits the ground, the father eagle swoops down just in the nick of time and catches him on his wings. Daddy will then safely return the baby back to the nest where he will await the next flying lesson.

It is easy to see here why the momma eagle was so adamant about choosing a mate that could pass the test - one that could be trusted. For her precious babies very lives depended on his swiftness to catch them and carry them through. Sometimes I feel like that baby eagle who has been pushed out of the nest. I flap my wings like crazy in order to take flight, but despite my efforts I continue to fall farther and farther. But in all those situations, I have had a daddy eagle swoop down just in time to catch me and carry me to safety.

Are you experiencing circumstances in life that make you feel as if you are falling farther and farther, ready to hit the ground? Does it appear that there is no one there to catch you? God is actively working on our behalf and He is there to support us. He knows what is best and just how much we need to learn through our circumstances. He may allow pain and suffering, but He has promised we will never experience more than we can handle. It is in these very moments that His grace provides us with hope and encouragement and the more we get to know Him the easier it is to trust that He will be there to catch us when we fall. When we can’t find our wings, He will continue teaching us until we do. He carries us through - on eagles’ wings!
　

"Monday's Moment"

Try to make at least one person happy every day. If you can't do a kind deed, speak a kind word. If you can't speak a kind word, think a kind thought. Count up, if you can, the treasure of happiness that you would dispense in a week, in a year, in a lifetime. - Lawrence G. Lovasik