Get Out! Reached by Reaching

This morning was a morning I was in need of affirmation.  After contemplating the beauties of Jesus in my devotions, I was praying He would give me something very special today, something that would really make me happy...and He did.

The first Bible study I had scheduled was with a lady and a  church member.  I started by going to the church member's house and going over the lesson with her, to decide which questions she would lead out in, and which ones I would lead out in.  We prayed, and then went to the lady's house.  The study was about salvation, and the lesson went really well.  As we were talking about Jesus, my friend from church said "you know one thing that I heard in a sermon that always stuck with me was that Jesus is giddy about us.  He really loves us!  He is a personal God."  As she spoke tears welled up in her eyes.  As we continued the study we came to 2 Corinthians 5:17 "If any man be in Christ he is a  new creature..."  At this point in the lesson I like to discuss things in our lives that God has made new for us, or areas in our lives where we need to be made new.   In this study though, I didn't have to ask the question!  The two dear ladies just started sharing what God has done and is doing in their lives!  It was so beautiful to see my new friend from church, who originally told me she was nervous about giving a Bible study, now connecting with and sharing Jesus with someone else!  I didn't have to talk very much!

One of my evening Bible studies cancelled, so I had time to go door-to-door doing surveys.  Before I got out of my car I prayed, "Father, I know it's your will that people study the Bible, I need more people to study with, so I ask in faith, believing that you will lead me to people on this street who will want to study the Bible.  Amen."

I met a lady who tells me she was going to attend a Prophecy seminar that the church had, but she didn't make it.  She said, "I enjoy that type of stuff, because I see that the end of the world is soon."  We had a wonderful conversation on how she sees that the end of the world is coming soon.  She was one of the people on the street who said I could come back and study the Bible with her.

At another door, I meet a dear lady who hasn't really turned to the Bible much.  When I ask what her prayer request are, she asks me to pray for her elderly mother and she opens up to me about the depression her mother has faced after watching two of her children pass away.  As we bow our heads for prayer, her husband comes to the door and says "Your mother is on the phone, she needs you."  "I'll be there in just a moment, we are praying", she replies.  I wrap my arms around  her and lift up her and her mother in prayer.  When we open our eyes, I see tears coming down her cheeks.  "It looks like you came at just the right time", she says.  I left that door overjoyed!

A few doors down I meet a lady who talks with me about how she can see that the end of the world is near.  After we pray together, she tells me "You are so precious!  Each of us is precious to Jesus!"

I share these stories, not because I am such a beautiful person, but because my Jesus is!!!!  This morning I was singing the song, "Jesus You're Beautiful to Me", because I wasn't feeling beautiful!  I was struggling with some doubts, fears, and problems I saw in  my own life, so I was seeking Jesus to fill my heart!  It finally hit me right before I left for Bible studies that at the root of what I was going through was simply Satan trying to get my eyes on myself, so he could get me down and hinder the work I am doing reaching out to others!  But the power of Jesus is greater than anything we face that holds us back!

For years I wanted to do more for Jesus, but often fear always held me back.  This summer I've got out of myself more than ever before.  At times it's felt weird praying with a stranger.  There are times I'm like, "Lord, I don't know what to pray for these people!"  Then there's the outside of the box ideas that I couldn't help but do, like giving a music CD to a cashier at a grocery store who I've seen a few times.  Last Friday, I was reminded that even little things can make a difference.  I did a little shopping, after the lady checked me out, I said "Thank you" and then added, "and God bless you!"  She thanked me and said "I needed that!"

As I see the needs of those around me, my world view has been expanded.  It has made me more grounded in the fact that my only hope is Heaven, because I see that the world has nothing to offer.  It can be easy to get stuck in a fake reality...in our bubble of Christianity, our church, our school, our career, our family...stuck in self, the business of life, so caught up that we don't get out.  And yet, when you get out and see the needs around you, it does something for you-it is where LIFE and JOY really exist!  It is what Jesus did when He was on this earth - he was out mingling with and reaching the people!  

It's always been God's plan for us to reach out to others.  It is an integral part of how we are saved!  Paul, when writing to Timothy, said it like this: "Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee." (1 Timothy 4:16).  So get out!  Get out of yourself, get out of your bubble, and reach out and share Jesus with someone today!

A Beauty of Jesus

"Dear God, I'm frustrated!"  I prayed.  "I want to serve you better!  I love you and I want to do more for you, but I don't know what to do!  I see your leading in my life, but I don't know where it is pointing.  Please reveal to me Your plan for me and I will follow it!  I am ready to know what you want me to do!"

After praying that prayer, I read the following:

"There are thousands today who need to learn the same truth that was taught to Nicodemus by the uplifted serpent.  They depend on their obedience to the law of God to commend them to His favor.  When they are bidden to look to Jesus, and believe that He saves them solely through His grace, they exclaim, "How can these things be?"  

-Desire of Ages pg. 175

Those words spoke to my inner heart.  Yes, love will compel us to work for God, and yes, faith without works is dead, but I needed to be reminded of the fact that God's grace alone saves me!  If God clearly wrote down on a piece of paper exactly what he wanted me to do with my life, it would make it easier for me!  My attitude has often been in my Christian experience "Lord, tell me what to do, and I will do it!"  But God wants something deeper - He wants me to be still and know that He is God!  He wants me to trust Him!  The hardest lesson for me to learn is this lesson!  My desire expressed in this prayer was what God wants me to do.  Yes, I want to know God better, but at that moment my focus was more on what He wants me to do, rather than on knowing Him as my Savior, the Lord of my life, and my Best Friend!

I continued reading:

"Our Redeemer thirsts for recognition.  He hungers for the sympathy and love of those whom He has purchased with His own blood.  He longs with inexpressible desire that they should come to Him and have life.  As a mother watches for a smile of recognition from her little child, which tells of the dawning of intelligence, so does Christ watch for the expression of grateful love, which shows that spiritual life is begun in the soul."  

-Desire of Ages pg. 191 

As I read those words it dawned on  me that Jesus just wants me to be with Him!  What a beautiful picture of Jesus!!!  He is a personal God!  Sometimes in my friendships I will worry about what I am doing, and if I am really being the friend I should be.  I tend to carry this same attitude over to my relationship with God as well, and yet, Jesus just wants me to rest in Him!   He is actually longing for me to enjoy His presence!  He wants me to admire Him and appreciate Him as I would do to a friend!  Just as a friend enjoys being with you, God wants that friendship with us!  He actually loves for me to just be there with Him and abide in Him!  I can actually make Jesus happy and do His will just by praising Him, loving Him, appreciating Him, and giving Him my heart!  I realized that God wants me to trust Him, and abide with Him moment by moment and just enjoy the present rather than worrying about the future.  The most important work I can ever "do for God" is to trust Him fully!

No, it's not a completely new thought, it's not profound, or maybe it is, but it's actually very simple:  Jesus wants my heart!  Jesus wants your heart!  He wants to be our very Best Friend!  He longs for us to love Him with our whole heart!  Will you choose Him today?

A Journey of Love

"How would you define love", a friend asked me.  Me define love?  My definition?  I have to admit, it wasn't something I had thought much about.  Oh yes, I think about love...I love my friends, I love my family, I love my "job" this summer, I love mountains, I love Jesus, I know Jesus loves me very much...and yet, what really is love?  I felt very inadequate to properly define it and to do it justice.  I mean, love is the most powerful force ever...it is something deep...it is something that really many people lack...and many other people misinterpret.

Love is something that I have always wanted  more of.  I've wanted to be loved more, and I've prayed that I would be able to love others more.  A couple of weeks ago I read a Bible verse that really spoke to my heart, speaking of Jesus it said "having loved His own which were in the world, he loved them to the end."  (John 13:1).  "Wow!"  I thought, when I read it, "That means he even loved Judas who was as about to betray Him, and Peter who was about to deny Him. I want that kind of love for people, but that's a high standard of love!"

As I thought about the question of how to define love, I thought of 1 Corinthians 13, which tells us that love is kind, etc., etc.  I thought of 1 John 4:7 "God is love", and I thought of 1 John 3:16 which says "Hereby perceive we the love of God, because He laid down His life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren."  "I guess the simplest definition I can think of for love is Love gives", I replied to my friend.  "You can give without loving, but you can't love without giving."

Nothing says "I love you" more than the way you treat people!  You  may have heard of the five love languages, if not they are: physical touch, quality time, words of affirmation, acts of service, and gifts.  What do these all have in common?  They are all giving something!  Whether you give someone a hug, sacrifice of your time to spend it with someone, write them a note, give them a compliment, or give them a gift, either way you are giving, because you care about the other person.

This past week I experienced love in a deeper way than I ever have before.  It was Wednesday and the Bible study I was about to give was on the sacrifice of Christ (how he suffered on the cross).  Before my friend from church and I got out to give the Bible study I prayed, "Lord, melt our hearts, and help us to see your love in a fresh way.  Please help the lady we are about to study with to really see and understand how much  you love us, Amen".  After reading the story of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane I started explaining how Jesus was being weighed down with guilt, the sins of the whole world.  I explained how difficult it was for him to decide to go through with the cross, because it meant separation from His Father.  As I explained the story in my mind I imagined Jesus falling helplessly in prayer to the Father in the garden that dark, lonely evening.  As I explained Jesus' love I spoke with more conviction than I have ever spoken.  Then I said Jesus looked in the future and could see that if He didn't follow through with the cross we wouldn't be saved.  He made the choice to save us because he loved us, no matter what it cost Him.  And then I broke....I've never cried in a Bible study before, but I couldn't keep back the tears!  In that moment of silence with tears in our eyes, I realized my prayer had been answered, each one of us saw how much God loved us!  Yesterday I gave the same Bible study to another lady.  Her comment after was "If that's not love, I don't know what is!"

This summer has been something a little different than I expected, it has been and will continue to be a journey of love.  A journey to find more depth of God's love than I have before...a journey to learn to be completely fulfilled by God's love and not other people's...A journey where I learn to give and give, more than I thought possible, and not feel empty at the end...not come back at the end of the day and miss those I'm miles away from, because I'm full....because when you give of God's love you truly are filled more and more!  Yes, there's times I'm tired, and times I miss friends and family, but that doesn't happen very often, because I have so many people here who I've grown to love!  And by God's grace I am getting closer to the point where I don't care how I feel or what mistakes I made, I just care how other people see Jesus through me!

And, it's a growing experience.  Sometimes growth hurts!  Because the first step of growth is to admit that I have a problem, I must admit that I haven't loved like Jesus loves!  It hurts to admit I've been selfish in my relationships!  It's humbling to see that there are some people who are so much easier for me to love than others.  It hurts to admit I don't always turn completely to Jesus every moment of the day for help, and that sometimes I turn to people who don't have all the answers.  It hurts to admit the fact that I make mistakes - I don't have all the right Bible answers to people's questions, and I don't know what I'm doing a lot at times.  It also really hurts to see other hurting people and realize I can't solve everyone else's problems!  I can't fill their needs, all I can do is direct them to the source of love, joy and fulfillment - the One who offers them the water of life freely!

Growth in God's love is a journey.  A journey of love that will continue through eternity, where we can each say that we have met the One "Who loved me, and gave Himself for me!" (Galatians 2:20) 

My First Weekend

May 30

I knock on the door of the family I will be living with over the summer.  The daughter answers the door.  The family has three girls!  I tell the girls, “I have two younger sisters.”  I immediately connect with the youngest daughter, she is close to my little sisters age, and she plays violin too.  “We’ll have to play our violins together sometime”,  I say.

I move in and get settled.  I meet the Pastor, and I am excited.  He is going to be a great person to work with, evangelistic minded.  I visit with the Pastors wife, she is a sweet lady.  They are both very warm and welcoming.

The area is beautiful.  From outside the windows of the house there are mountains.  Behind those mountains are the Smoky Mountains.  I go to bed with a full heart, I’m so thankful, I feel at home already.  And I wonder how God blessed me with such a wonderful opportunity to serve Him!

May 31

The next morning is my first Sabbath at the church I’m going to be working with over the summer.  The road to the church is a little windy road, going under shady trees, up rolling slopes.  I drive past a slope that has fresh hay bales, and behind them I see the mountains in the distance.  Then there are cornfields, and countryside, which reminds me of where I grew up - only this is so much better because it’s not all flat there’s mountains!  I arrive at the church, and the church is so cute!  It’s a little brown wooden church outside of town.  Behind it sits a log cabin type building which is their school.  The people are so sweet.  I try to remember everyone’s name, but it’s hard!  One of the sweet older members says, “Just remember, we only have one name to remember-yours-but you have all of our names to remember!”

It’s during the morning church service that my joy and appreciation really came over me.  The man praying prays for their church that they can be a light to the community, he prays for the Holy Spirit.  The sincerity of the prayer, and the way he worded it really touched my heart, and at that moment I realize how truly blessed I am to be here!

As I reflected upon my gratitude, the words of two different women’s prayers in the Bible, seemed to be the only words I could use to fully express the depth of my emotions, my gratitude to God:

“And Hannah prayed, and said, My heart rejoiceth in the LORD, mine horn is exalted in the LORD: my mouth is enlarged over mine enemies; because I rejoice in thy salvation.  There is none holy as the Lord:  for there is none beside thee: neither is there any rock like our God.”  (1 Samuel 2:1-2)

“And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior.”  (Luke 1:46-47)

The Little Girl

There's some things in life I never want to grow out of....Running outside barefoot in the rain, collecting pretty rocks, taking pictures of flowers, baking cookies for friends, making games out of cleaning the house with little kids, fixing my hair and trying to look pretty, or giggling with my girlfriends, gazing up at the starry skies, wading in rocky streams without worrying about staying on the rocks and keeping dry, climbing trees, running down hills.  Deep inside - and sometimes I can't help but let it out - there's a little girl in me.  Someone who needs friends and family to be loved by and to love, someone who just has to be real - even when it means showing my ignorance sometimes, and admitting that I'm blonde.  The little girl who prays that God will help her find the little things she's lost, (only now it's bigger things, like my phone, ID card, or more often my reading glasses).  The little girl who just wants to make other people feel happy, loved, and appreciated.  The little girl who admires her Daddy who can do everything - you can never grow out of wanting someone to look up to.  The little girl who just wants to talk through her struggles with someone a bit more logical and level headed than herself.  The little girl who needs a shoulder to cry on sometimes, but knows she's not on her own in making her big decisions, there are others there with wisdom to share.  The little girl who just loves the freedom of the outdoors, the fun times with friends, the energy she finds from spending time with little children....Because life is made up of the simple joys, the carefree spirit, the enthusiasm about life, the thankful spirit, the contented heart.  Because life is really very beautiful when you just take time to enjoy it, and see it through the eyes of a little child.  "Let the little children come unto me and forbid them not, for of such is the kingdom of heaven."  How thankful I am that the hand Who is there to guide me, the ultimate Daddy, the One I will always be able to look up to - even when miles separate me from friends or family - is Jesus!  The one who blessed the little children hundreds of years ago!

Be Not Afraid

  "But He saith unto them, it is I be not afraid."

John 6:20

I have always loved the story of Jesus calming the storm, and of Jesus and Peter walking on water. The object lesson of Jesus calming the storms in my heart has always comforted me.

This morning as I was doing my devotions this verse really jumped out of me.  I tend to be a worrier.  It is interesting to note how many times angels, or Jesus have said to different Bible characters "Fear not",  or "Be not afraid".

What is interesting about this verse is that the disciples were actually afraid of Jesus!  Of all things to be afraid of!  But why were they afraid of Him?  Because they didn't see Him for Who He really was.  How many times in my life to my fears boil down to looking at myself, and my problems, instead of looking to Jesus and seeing Him for who He really is?

For example, one of my biggest fears is the fear of failure.  But Jesus says "Fear thou not for I am with thee...I will strengthen thee, I will help thee...."  Isaiah 41:10.  He also says, "I have not given you the spirit of fear but of power and of love and of a sound mind."  2 Timothy 1:7.  To me that means that God has given me a brain that can think and reason and learn; when I pray, seeking God, and apply myself to do my studies to the best of my ability, He will help me and strengthen my mind as I study to pass the class, or test etc.  Philippians 4:13 says:  "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."

At times I can be afraid of not being able to please people, or of not meeting people's faces.  "Be not afraid of their faces...."  Jeremiah 1:8.  "There shall not a man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life...I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.  Be strong and of a good courage...."  Joshua 1:5-6

The same principle applies to any problem I am facing.  "I sought the Lord and He heard me and delivered me from all my fears."  Psalm 34:4  "Call upon me in the day of trouble:  I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me."  Psalm 50:15.  "Call unto me and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things which thou knowest not."  Jeremiah 33:3

To put it as simply as I can: When we know God for who He really is, we will love Him - we cannot help but love him! And then that love will cast out our fears! Fear is caused by looking to our self, our lack of ability to face something that looks bigger and scarier than it actually is. But as we look to Jesus He can give us power to overcome every obstacle! If Peter can walk on water than we can do the impossible through Jesus' strength!

It's simple but powerful:  In seeing Jesus for Who He really is, recognizing He is always there with us, and surrendering our lives to Him moment by moment, we can overcome the fears in our lives!

“The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth” (verse 14). Praise God for this wonderful statement. The possibilities that it presents seem almost too great for us to grasp, and put to shame our weakness and our unbelief. I praise God that I can see my Saviour by faith. My soul grasps the great gift. Our only hope in this life is to reach forth the hand of faith, and grasp the hand outstretched to save. “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world” (verse 29). If we would look away from self to Jesus, making Him our Guide, the world would see in our churches a power that it does not now see." -OFC 252.4

iWitness

Yesterday afternoon I had the opportunity to go out in the community to do surveys to see what people are interested in and to generate Bible study interests.  We also took a little "Steps to Christ" with us to give to those we met who were interested in spiritual things.  It was a great witnessing opportunity, a nice way to spend a good portion of Sabbath afternoon!  Because I am evolved with iWitness (a Bible worker's club on campus), I took the left over Steps to Christ with me to keep in my room till the next outreach, or so I thought....

"Do you want to go to China Kitchen with me for lunch?"  I asked my roommate.  "I would like to get a hot lunch with some vegetables."  "Sure", she replied, "but what about 4 Corners Cafe?"  "We can go there if you would like, I might still go to China Kitchen though, it's right next door," I said.

As I got ready to go I decided to take a different purse (don't ask me why) that had more room in it.  As I put my wallet into the other purse, I was impressed to put in a Steps to Christ (it fit nicely but wouldn't have fit in my other little purse).  I didn't know exactly why I was taking it, but I was just impressed that perhaps someone at China Kitchen might need it.

As we looked at the menu at 4 Corners, I decided I didn't want to get any food there, so I went to China Kitchen.  As I was waiting for my order, I overheard a spiritual conversation, I couldn't tell if the three men had just come back from church or not.  I decided I would go and sit in.

There were two "older" men as well as one man probably in his mid-twenties.  One of the men pulled up a chair for me, and we began to talk.  One man was an Adventist, the other was apparently his friend a non-Adventist, but a nice christian man.  The young man was visiting from New York!  The friend said "he's my nephew, we are trying to straighten him out."  We had a nice conversation together, my room mate joined as well.  I left the younger man a Steps to Christ, his Uncle said, "He needs to get saved!"

I hope that he will read the book see Jesus in a way that He has never seen him before and becomes converted!

This afternoon was a needed reminder to me that witnessing is not just to be something we talk about in church, not just an outreach activity to plan for, not a club or an event....but, the way we live our lives!

"Ye are my witnesses; saith the Lord, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he: before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me."  - Isaiah 43:10