Posts (page 2)

The ringing in my ear has gotten better post-wedding. My mom bought me some ear-drops that helped significantly. And if it was stressed induced, the stress is gone and the ringing almost non-existent. Also, on facebook, my status was quite often, "pray this ringing stops" - so quite possibly there were a lot of prayers going up for me! yay, Jesus!

I won't go into the entire history. I have ringing in my left ear.

It started back in March when I took some antibiotic that I was allergic to. Then it subsided when it got switched out. I haven't been on any antibiotic since April but the ringing is back as of last week.

I noticed that it would get bad whenever by temperature would drop below normal...but now it's also when it's normal.

Someone mentioned a migraine without a headache. That's very convenient because I can be productive whil sick at the same time. But why would I get a migraine?

Could it be stressed induced? I am getting married in 6 days.

Could it be because of too much tea? I have recently been consuming great amounts of green, black, mint, hot, cold teas. All kinds of teas. I love tea. So as of yesterday I stopped drinking teas to see if the ringing is related to too much tea consumption.

Any ideas?

I am getting married in 8 days. I just can't believe it.

well, that's all. I've got to go do stuff.

When I was in college I was sitting in front of a computer all day every day. So I had plenty of opportunity to write posts. Recently I've entered the real world and have not had so much time any more for the computer. I have gone back to my paper journal because I can carry it around with me everywhere and I don't need wifi to write. Perhaps in the future I'll be back in front of a computer...but seriously, I doubt it.

Also, I've noticed another trend for myself. Back before I had a significant friend in my life, I wrote a lot more. Now, whenever I have some Biblical insight I've heard or come across I simply share it with Felipe thus eliminating the need to write it. It's awesome because Felipe talks back to me whereas my journal never does :)

This came from an elder at my [former] church:

Dear brothers and sisters in the Lord,
Good morning to you as the rain falls at my house.  What a blessing from our Lord!  He showers us with both physical and spiritual blessings by His marvelous grace.
I was reading in 2 Cor 11 this morning regarding Paul's concern for the Corinthians.  He was concerned that they might turn away from the true gospel and that their minds might be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.   Paul was afraid that if someone came to them preaching another Jesus or a different gospel, they might put up with it.
As I look at my own attitudes and talk with other believers, I am afraid Paul's letter is as appropriate today as the day he wrote it.  How relevant is God's word to us!
We all know there is another Jesus and another gospel being preached all around us.  Every day we all come in contact with those who have believed and even preach a false gospel.  Just recently I was sharing the gospel with one of my patients who said he believed that if he just followed the principles of the Bible, he would be OK in the end.  That is the same lie that Satan has always fostered; that we can make it to heaven on our own efforts, that we don't need the good news of the gospel.  Most of our world believes exactly what my patient believes; that human goodness and self-effort will earn God's favor.
Beloved, that is another gospel and we, like the Corinthians, too often put up with it.  That is, we are silent when we hear that other gospel, that other Jesus, being preached.  We too often fail to speak up with the true gospel, the true Jesus, the power of the Spirit. 
Let us pray for each other that the Holy Spirit would strengthen our hearts and minds to be bold in proclaiming the true Jesus, who alone has the power to save and in whom we must trust.
We are called to battle that other Jesus.
Dale

A friend of mine asked me to pray for her son this past Sunday. He's rather snobby and unloving to people he doesn't consider his equal. He's very intelligent - he's a scholarship, PhD, physics student at an Ivy-league university. I come from a very similar mind-set that he retains and this is why his mother felt that I specifically could intercede on behalf of her Christian son. (I started college when I was 14; had numerous scholarships; was always in math and science etc). So, I have learned that knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. It was a hard lesson to learn, but I'm glad I learned it. The joy and peace that I have chosen to walk in has greatly out-numbered the benefits of walking in pride and knowledge. on a side note, I can still be quite prideful at times and I'm not claiming perfection.

Today, I listened to a sermon from Highland Oaks Church of Christ dated Sept 29, 2008. And then I wrote this to my friend (I've edited out the names):

S-, your son has been on my thoughts constantly since Sunday. I can only remember how sad I was when I knew how much smarter I was than everyone else. God has continued to bring him to the forefront of my thoughts to have me pray for him.

Just now I was listening to a sermon that B- W- posted to his fb. I'd like to share some thoughts I had during the sermon. I'm sure you've already shared similar thoughts with A-. I think my heart aches so much for him because I know exactly where he's coming from and I know exactly what he's missing out on.

This sermon still spoke to my own areas that need improvement.

-We will not be carrying a banner of victory on this earth, but a cross. That is, a banner of love symbolized as a death sentence. Some deaths are physical, but some are a death of ones-self, of one's will.

-John 15:13 Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command you. -- Christ seeks to be our friend. Will we lay down our lives for him as he has laid down his life for us? He gave up being omnipotent; he gave up his riches, he slept in boats. He asks us to put aside our lust for knowledge.

-Christianity is not consumerism, it is love. They will know us by our love, not by our intellect. “Are you thinking how this place isn’t meeting your needs? It isn’t about you. Are you a consumer of religion? Have you made Christianity about you? It’s about God and others and how much you love them and serve them.” (that was a direct quote from the sermon)

-If you want to be the greatest in the kingdom, you must make yourself the least. We can have the greatest intellect and the most knowledge because we passionately pursue theology but we would be least in the kingdom because God has made this life about love not about intelligence. Jesus said it is impossible for the rich to enter the kingdom of heaven, and I believe that we could include the rich in knowledge, even Christian knowledge, in his words. In fact the story of the rich young man in Matthew 19 is completely a story of love. Obedience, knowledge, and riches are not enough. Only in giving yourself up will you be able to find Christ. You can’t buy your way to heaven, not even with intellectual currency.

Anyway, I know you know this. And I'm praying for your son that he would some day soon know this too.

<3 Lauren

A little girl giggled in a well-lit closet. She could hear someone passing in front of her door, opening another.

She hears a voice say, “Are you in this room?”

The little girl’s laughter can be heard all the way down the hall.

“You know I’m going to find you.”

The little girl peeks out of the closet to see if her pursuer is near.

“You can’t run. You can’t hide. I will find you.”

The little girl doesn’t say anything but covers her face to try to stifle her laughter at the sheer joy of the game.

“I think you are in this closet,” he said as he approached the girl’s closet.

In the game of Hide and Seek, the hider hides and eventually finds her way back to “base” – a place where she is safe from being tagged “it”. But the little girl just sits and waits giggling, perhaps too young to know she should have been finding her way back to base. She may eventually call out “Try the closet!” or some other hint because the enjoyment is in being found not in hiding.

As he opens the door, the little girl lunges at him and wraps her arms around him crying out “SAFE!” as if he were the base and they laugh together.

So maybe I’m too incredibly silly. But this is my idea of how to spend eternity with Christ.

First, I want to tell a funny story. I was subbing at a middle school and during one period I had an inclusion teacher come "help" me. She was probably in her late 20s. She saw my opened Bible and asked if I was still in school. To be a sub you have to have a degree so I thought it was an odd question and I think she could tell from my response that I thought it was odd. So she said, "oh, well, I just saw your opened book and thought it was a text book. What it is?" And very shocked that an educated grown woman wouldn't recognize the Bible, I told her that it was the Bible. I could tell she felt kinda silly. But the best part was when she said, "Oh, I should have noticed at the top of the page it says "pro-verbs"" She didn't say "Proverbs" she said pro-verbs as if it were an English text book. It was hysterical. SHe didn't feel stupid, or at least she didn't act like she felt stupid. And I didn't try to make her feel stupid but quite the opposite - I tried to help her laugh off her mistake. But it was very funny.

So, Proverbs. I've been reading it this week. The women in proverbs range in excellence. Wisdom is referred to as a woman. Her paths are paths of pleasantness and all her ways are peace, 3.17. And there is mention of wives as a gift from the Lord. a prudent wife is from the Lord, 19.14. And we all know the excellent wife passage of Proverbs 31. But what about those dripping faucets of 27.15? Am I her? And what of the woman who's stolen water is sweet of 9.13-18?  She is seductive and knows nothing.

I continually fear becoming the nagging wife or the adulterous woman. I like to make sure that I am not behaving in a way that would bring reproach. I listened to the latest podcast from The Village church today. Matt Chandler spoke a bit about evil coming from within the church. He spoke about misleading doctrines, but I immediately thought of young Christian females who are within the church but behave as those he said were outside the church. He spoke of girls who behave seductively for their own gratification. It's immature. I can think of girls who flirt and scamper about trying to see how many boys will fall for her all the while having no care for them. It's an ego boost for her. I fear becoming that. The Bible warns against woman like that.

Make sure that you are not her.

Hebrews 6^1-2

Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, ²and of instruction about washings, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.

elementary doctrine ie “the basics”

                repentance – saved by grace through faith

                washings – rituals and/or baptism

                laying on of hands

                resurrection – eternal life

                eternal judgment – hell

leaving these…

                I Corinthians 13¹³ faith, hope, love…the greatest is love.

                Repentance                       faith

                Washings                            

                Laying on of hands

                Resurrection                      hope

                Eternal judgment

Love is built on the foundation of faith and hope. This leads to Ephesians 4³² - Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

And John 15¹³ - Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.

John 13³⁵ - By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.

Ephesians 3¹⁹ - and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

I John 3¹⁶ - By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.

     I don’t know of many who have gone beyond these basics. I personally am often sucked into conversations and lead others into conversations where our only content discussed is the nature of predestination. But here in Hebrews (at the top) I am told to grow up and stop dwelling on these childish lessons. It’s interesting to me how what is considered a basic lesson (love) is actually mature and what is considered a mature lesson (eschatology, religiosity, faith, security) is actually immature.

     Christ tells us in John 13³⁵ not that wooing others with our jargon and intelligence and bumper stickers and ball caps will they know we are his, but by our love. – not by our faith, not by our hope, not by our Ichthus fish, but by our love for each other. It seems so simple and yet rarely do we encounter someone who exudes Christ’s love in such a way that we just know they’re a Christian. I know that I am not that person.

     We start with faith. I believe in my heart and confess with my heart that Jesus is Lord and that God raised him from the dead (Rom 10⁹) then I can know that I am saved (I John5¹³).

     We build on faith hope…that whoever believes will have eternal life (John3¹⁶) and Christ will return for his bride (I Thessalonians 4^16-17).

     But pervasive to the entire Bible (not just the Gospels or the Epistles but also the Law and the Prophets) is the message of love. God is love (I john 4¹⁶) and if we are to emulate God we must emulate love. For Christ is the example, that we should do just as he has done (John 13¹⁵).

     2 Peter 1^5-7 - For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love.

     I don’t know if this passage is a literal stepping blocks of first this, then that; but it is interesting to note that we start with faith and end with love. Love is the goal lesson.

     We knew through faith God to be the I Am. We knew through hope God to be trustworthy and faithful. But it required an additional demonstration to show his love to us. Love is the key.

     The conclusion is the action of love.

     But what does this look like? We can point to what is not love. We can remember Bible stories about Samaritans who showed love. We can remember the cross. But how do I, how do you show love?

     I don’t really know. But I’ll take a stab at it –

     We have to learn to do good (Isaiah 1¹⁷). For this lesson we need a most excellent teacher. What did he do? He, being the greater, took the lower position and washed his disciples’ feet. How do I emulate? Do I wash feet? Maybe. But I think the point is to get dirty with love. More than just physically dirty, get emotionally dirty and mentally dirty. What does this look like? For me, it means apologizing for my lesser offense knowing that I will never receive an apology for their greater offense. Also for me, it means admitting my faults to people who will only take advantage of the admitting.

     Further application for myself would be to not hold my money so tightly. It was always so highly emphasized growing up that I find it difficult to be generous. The reason behind it is no excuse.

Dear brothers and sisters in the Lord,
May you recognize the new tender mercies of the Lord early today.
This morning I was reading in 2 Kings 10 regarding the reign of King Jehu over Israel.  He was commended by God for the good deeds he performed in destroying the wicked house of former King Ahab and putting away the worship of Baal by killing the worshipers and pulling down their temple.  However, we are told he was not careful to walk in the law of the Lord God of Israel with all his heart, nor depart from the sins of Jeroboam who had allowed idolatry.
In short, he was only partially obedient, neglecting to follow with God his whole heart, which is obedience to the first commandment to love God with all our hearts.  How well I identify with Jehu and how convicting those words are to me!  Partial obedience, choosing the easy path, neglecting the weightier matters of the law are things of which I am guilty and in need of repentance.
I found the words of the psalmist in Psalm 119 pointing me to a high standard of obedience, not just partial.
"Oh, how I love you law!"
"Because I keep your precepts, I have restrained my feet from every evil way."
"I have not departed from your judgments,...therefore I hate every false way."
"I have not strayed from Your precepts."
The psalmist is  apparently looking toward total obedience, not just partial.  What an impossible standard, yet one for which we are to strive by the grace of God!  Paul emphasized the same to Timothy as I read later in 2 Tim 1.  Paul urged Timothy to "hold fast to the pattern of sound words" which Paul had given him, the word of God.  Holding fast to the word of God will call us toward more complete obedience to Him.
May He cause us to mourn over our sin that we may be comforted and desire to walk in complete obedience, not just partial.
Dale

This was emailed to me this morning. And at Thinklings.org there's a conversation brewing that as of now says this:

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.
- Galatians 6:9-10

3. Lauren - 10/29/2008 8:52 am CDT

I've been having a reoccurring conversation with different people. The theme is whether we should feed and take care of the poor.

1st conversation was with a staunch republican who works with the local Mission group to help poor people get jobs and find homes for the homeless. We were talking about republican v democrat and my problems with both sides. His position was that I didn't understand when some 24 year old guy refuses to work, how can we want to help him?

2nd conversation was with my best friend and he and I agree that we help and continue to help because Christ showed us by example what grace is and told us to feed the poor. By telling people they have to try to get jobs in order to receive our help we are negating the grace part of grace.

3rd conversation was with my mother and she said that if people aren't willing to work then we shouldn't have to take care of them.

I think we shouldn't grow weary of doing good despite it being foolishness to the world. If Christ were to say to us, that in order to get the grace and mercy he offers we must do ...something, that would completely negate everything Christians believe about faith being a gift from God and not of works that no man can boast.

But in all sincerity I understand how being first American citizens (and later becoming Christians) it's difficult to think of other values other than the American Dream. We want what's fair for others, but grace and mercy for ourselves.

4. Bill - 10/29/2008 9:30 am CDT

Well stated, Lauren.

I do think that part of the issue is determining what we mean by "help". For instance (ok, extreme example coming here) does it help an alcoholic if you give him alcohol? Well, it makes him feel better, temporarily.

I think that grace can be worked out even in saying "no". There's hardly a better picture (though still imperfect) of God's grace on earth than when looking at a parent's love for his/her children. Yet what parent would give the child whatever he/she wanted, without teaching them to work and learn to get what they want on their own?

So there is a tension there.

Finally, doing the right thing (that can appear graceless), rather than the easy thing, can be very hard work, and can make us weary, and yet still be a good work. For instance, your friend who helps poor people get jobs. That is certainly more of an investment, and harder work, than just passing out meals.

Thoughts?

5. Lauren - 10/29/2008 10:00 am CDT

That was great Bill.

It does seem to me from various conversations that people who don't want to help (I'm only talking about the people I have personally talked with) they don't want to help because "it isn't fair" or "no one helped me" etc. I come away thinking those were very selfish statements.

But also, I see some very lazy people who aren't doing anything but taking advantage of grace and free hand-outs. My heart breaks for them because if only they could see the better way, then they could get ahead and not be useless. But maybe I am being selfish by wanting them to contribute to society?

well, anyway, I think you must be right that sometimes love means doing things that appear graceless. so for me, I will check my motives and try to do what is out of love.