Tag Archives: Holy Spirit

What do You want me to say, Lord?

Posted on by

0

Papa's Horses

Hello friends!  I pray that you have had a wonderful couple of weeks, as have I.  God’s been challenging me in new and exciting ways, as I continue this journey of drawing closer to Him.  I’m excited to share these new insights with you over the next few weeks, but God is still growing them in me.  So, today, instead of going terribly deep, I thought I’d share a simple, yet deeply profound discovery.  I pray it blesses you.

 This discovery started a couple of weeks ago when I was fretting (I do this way too much, don’t you!)  I had the children’s sermon in church.  I worry every time I have it because, first, I want to share something that will impact these children and perhaps give them a clear memory that God will use in their lives, and second, I want to remind the adults in the congregation of the simple, yet profound, joys that God shares with us.  These building blocks are so important.  I feel sometimes we lose track of them as we get older, and being reminded of them is a gift.   So, I feel a deep obligation to speak what God would have me speak.  In other words, I put a lot of unneeded pressure on myself.  I usually try to do an object lesson and have something to give the kids that reminds them of that lesson; however, after a long hard week, Saturday arrived and I still had no idea what I was going to teach about.

I was so tired—as I have been frequently lately—and my husband, daughter, and I were grabbing a quick bite to eat out because I didn’t want to cook.  (On a side note, my husband has taken over the cooking this week because I’m still feeling very tired.  I have to brag on him and how good he is to me.  He works the evening shift and isn’t home when we have supper, but he’s put things in the crockpot, pre-cooked meat, and even purchased all our groceries this week!  I am one blessed woman!)  When I shared my dilemma, Mattie, my sweet daughter who is incredibly horse crazy, piped up: “You could teach about Muley!”  Muley is a horse her Papa is giving her at the beginning of summer break.  I laughed because I knew she was going to say this.  We don’t go a single day without at least 15 questions about her new horse.  My response to her suggestion: “Mattie, I know you love Muley, but how can I share about God through that?”

Isn’t it so amazing how God works?  Jason said, “I’m sure you can think of something that horses do that you can use to teach the kids about God.”  I paused, and asked God, “What do you want me to say Lord?”  I immediately got the picture of an old rickety bridge not far from my childhood home, and a memory surfaced.

When I was young, not much older than my daughter is now, I used to ride my horse Chata down the road by our home.  About two miles down this road was a very old bridge.  The bridge was low to the water and often when it rained the water would wash over the top of it.  This made holes in it where the cement and gravel had washed away, and you could see the creek beneath.

One afternoon in the spring I was riding Chata, and we came upon this bridge.  The water was up, but it wasn’t rushing.  It was more like a gentle stream over the top of the road.  We’d been here often enough that I knew where to cross to avoid any washed out portions of the bridge.  I clucked at Chata, but she balked.   I couldn’t get her to go through the water.   After a couple attempts, I got off her back and walked her across the creek—getting myself wet in the process, but earning her trust.  We came back to that creek many more times as I got older, and she never balked again.  She trusted that I knew where to lead her and she would be safe.

I once asked my dad why horses feared water like they do.  He explained that horses have little to no depth perception.  A horse can see the water, but it can’t see how deep it is.  So, while I could see that the water was only a couple of inches deep and not dangerous, she couldn’t.  She didn’t know that she’d be safe until I got off  her back and led her through her trial.

God whispered, “That just like you.”  Immediately I saw the world through Chata’s eyes.  With God as my rider, guiding me through the crags and snares of life, I’ve learned to trust His design.  But, oh, how many times have I balked.  I come across a trial, and I can’t see the depth of it.  I can’t tell if I’ll make it through to the other side, or if it will swallow me whole.  But, God can.  He knows where the holes are.  He knows how deep it is and how long I’ll be in it.  I just have to learn to trust him—like Chata learned to trust me.  How many times has He climbed out of the saddle to walk beside me and coax me through life?  How many times have I slowed a blessing because of my fear and unbelief?  I need to completely surrender control to my Rider, and trust that He will keep me safe.

Amazing.  God always has a plan.  It’s a blessing to have a horse-crazy daughter after all.  The neatest thing is that I remembered that my sweet Chata, who passed away my freshman year in college, is the grandmother to Mattie’s Muley.  How precious is our God.  Things have a way of coming full circle.  The blessings from the Lord are immense and beyond my understanding.

Lord, thank you for giving me such wonderful reminders of who You are.  Thank you for being a faithful friend and rider. I surrender control to You and trust that, even when I don’t know the outcome, You do.  You give me so much more than I deserve.  I love You.   Amen.

Staying Alert in Christ,

Megan

Playlist:

“You Lead” Jamie Grace http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFmSzL2ppvg

“Keep Making Me” Sidewalk Prophets http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGkmPeVpBbI

“Speak Life”  Toby Mac http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZeBv9r92VQ0

“Love Take Me Over” Steven Curtis Chapin http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8DiZhNVu1I

Lord, are You my “room of requirement”?

Posted on by

2

Door

I started writing this blog over a week ago.  It just didn’t seem to be coming together, and I almost chucked it.  But, isn’t God good!  He’s shown me so much more this last week, and I pray that He uses this blog to bless you!

A confession…

I have a confession to make, but before I get disowned, please hear me out.  Okay, here goes:  I have read the entire Harry Potter series.  Now, wait!   Before you close this blog out, let me explain.

I started reading the series when my daughter was in kindergarten.  Prior to this, I’d held the view that the series was bad news, and that Christians should stay as far away from them as they could.  So, I did.  But, then my daughter brought home an ABC book from the library. (She was in public school at the time, but it was a small and very conservative school) The book was about all of the wonderful books you could check out from your local library.  Being an English teacher, this excited me that she’d checked it out—and guess what, “H” was for Harry Potter.

When we read this little book together, my daughter knew every title but this one.  So, I told her it was a book about magic and quickly moved to the next page.  However, this interchange got me to thinking, “Has Harry Potter become part of our culture, or is he just a passing phase?”  The more research I did, the more I became convinced that this book series not only had a huge fan base, but many terms that were invented for use in the book were becoming part of our language—it was growing into a part of the culture as a whole.  Humph.

My husband and I sat down and discussed this.  We agreed that I should read the series so as to know what to do if our daughter ever decided to read she wanted to read it.  We did this prayerfully, and I asked God to expose every danger and give me discernment as I read.  I was convinced I would hate every minute of it.  I was sure I’d find sin and discord at the turn of every page!

I didn’t.  What I found, and later verified through research, was a series that is not unlike that of Narnia, or The Lord of the Rings (with a marked difference in the author not desiring to impart Christ).  In fact Rowling admits that much of what she wrote is based in her Christian upbringing—although she also admits to have many other influences as well.  I believe that, like people, books have good and bad in them.  Some are not worth reading—but some, even with their flaws, are.  Now, I’m not going to try to convince you to read the series.  It’s okay for us to disagree.  However, I felt you needed to understand this background before I got to the main point of my blog.

And now, getting to that point…

I’ve been blessed with an amazing opportunity to serve on a ministry team for a local women’s retreat.  I’ve attended this retreat every year, without fail, for twelve years.  It’s blessed my life, changed me, and challenged me.  You can imagine how excited, and nervous, I was to attend my first planning meeting.  After introduction of the new members of the team and some housecleaning discussion, our first activity was to take a prayer walk (in the freezing cold) around the grounds to pray for the retreat, and more importantly, to ask God what His will was for this year’s retreat.  As I started to pray, I couldn’t get my brain to just settle in on God…so I sat down and started writing out what God had done for me through this retreat.  Soon enough words started flowing that I knew weren’t from me, and as I prayed I said, “God, what is it You want?  How can this retreat help Your people?”  Words that all started with “R” starting flowing onto the paper.  He wanted the retreat to be a rest, a renewal, to provide revelation, bring revival, a refreshing of the Word, a requirement…wait…what was that Lord?  How can we make this retreat a requirement?  That seems harsh.  I prayed and waited.  What came to mind?  Harry Potter—weird, I know.  I prayed that God would make it clear to me that He was speaking, and his answer, “I can be that.”

“You can be what Lord?”  The image of the “room of requirement” from the Harry Potter series again came to mind.

“I can be that…’

The room of requirement is “… a room that a person can only enter when they have real need of it… when it appears, it is always equipped for the seeker’s needs.”  (Doby the house elf)  So the Lord can be a magical room that shows itself when a person is need.  I wrote down the idea and looked at the time.  My time was up, and I had to get back into the meeting.  Oh how I wanted to spend some real time—even in the freezing cold—visiting with my Lord about this!  Even while cutting the conversation short, I knew this idea was something God was going to build upon in the next few days.  I had no idea that it would be weeks, and He’s still showing me more.

I started pondering the times in the book series when the room showed itself.  The two instances that were most prominent in my memory were when the children of Hogwarts were preparing for battle against the forces of evil and they needed a place to practice, and when that evil had taken over, they found a place or refuge where they could congregate together in safety.  The room, in both instances was equipped with exactly what the children needed.  It provided a safe place and a refuge—it gave them just what they needed.   I also found it interesting that the room was located on the 7th floor of the castle—a holy number.

As I continued to pray about it, God showed me that the analogy wasn’t perfect.  He does not give what is needed to those whose work is for evil—and the room in the story does.  And, He is not limited in what He can give, while the room cannot make food for those who need it.  However, it’s an interesting thought.  What if we truly made God our “room of requirement”? What does His word say about His desire and ability to meet our daily needs?

“And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.”  Philippians 4:19

“Therefore do not worry, saying; “What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we wear? For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Matthew 6:31-33

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds!” Luke 12:22-24

“So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today.” Matthew 6:34

“And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to the span of life?” Luke 12:25

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.” John 14:27

These verses are just the tip of the iceberg.  God continually shows us in His word that He wants what is best for us.  He wants to give us what we need.  He wants to give us so much more than our simple minds can fathom.

In regard to the Retreat, God showed me that He wants the women attending to see that He can supply all that they need.  They don’t need anything but Him.  Most of us know this, but we don’t live it out day-to-day.  We try so hard to be self sufficient, that we forget that we need to be dependent.  We need to completely depend on Christ for our every need.  God can be our very own room of requirement. We can enter into His presence and have every need met and every heartache healed.

I find it amazing that God can use anything to show me biblical truths—even Harry Potter.

Lord, today, it’s my desire to become completely dependent on You.  Lord, keep calling me into Your presence.  Don’t let me wander Lord.  I want my every breath, and my every step to be about You.  Amen.

Staying Alert In Christ,

Megan

Playlist:

“Declaration of Dependence,” Steven Curtis Chapman:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7GpwrBn0eXQ&list=PLCC72C714A25775FB

“Magnificent Obsession,” Steven Curtis Chapman:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cel_O-qy0i0

“Keep Making Me,” Sidewalk Prophets:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGkmPeVpBbI

Why don’t people get Your grace, Lord…

Posted on by

2

Train up a child

Over our busy Christmas I had the opportunity to sit down with my mother, brother, and his beautiful wife and visit. This doesn’t happen often in our family–that we’re all in the same place, and we have time to just visit.  My brother lives three hours away from us to the east, and my mother and father live two and a half hours away to the south.  So we really only see each other on birthdays and holidays.  So, this time was precious; however, it became stressful to me very quickly.  My brother’s and my relationship has always been a bit strained.  We’re just different enough that getting along wasn’t always easy.  I’m betting I’m not alone in this, as it’s very common among siblings.

 Our discussion was unusual in that my brother and his wife were discussing their faith—something they don’t do often around me because I can be overbearing and opinionated, like my dad.  So the fact that they opened up was great, and my reaction to what they said will probably stop them from doing it again anytime soon, which makes me sad.  (I really need to learn to control my reactions, but I digress)  We were discussing grace—you would think a safe topic as everyone loves grace, and we are all three saved—and when it became “real” to them that they didn’t have to work their way into heaven.  I was shocked to find that they had only recently made this realization.  I immediately said to my brother, “How can you have sat through all of Pastor Bodenhammer’s sermons growing up and not have gotten grace!”  Not a good response.  My brother’s face immediately changed from enthusiasm over this new and wonderful revelation, to a shut-off, defensive wall.  I realized once again that I had blown a great opportunity to connect with him.   Why is it that we so often miss the opportunities to bless our own family?  I could get into analyzing sibling relationships, but I won’t, because that’s not the point of this blog.

 However, this whole discussion got me to thinking (more like ranting, and yes, I need to work on that too) about why people who have the same upbringing, sit in the same pew, go to the same youth groups, and gave their lives to the same God, don’t know Him the same way.  How did my brother, who was saved the Sunday before I was, hear doctrine when I heard grace!?  I also got to thinking…if my brother didn’t get it when he was raised just like I was, then there’s a chance my daughter might not get it either…and “what do I need to do to make sure she ‘gets’ grace?”  So, like I do when I’m not sure about something, I started doing some research.  I discovered this isn’t a new problem.  One of my favorite Baptist preachers, Charles Spurgeon, gave a sermon about this very thing on May 8th 1887:

 “The people to whom I am referring really listen to what the preacher has to say; they are attentive, and they seek to retain in their memories the truths he preaches. They even talk when they are at home of the striking passages, if such there be, in what they have heard. You would suppose that such persons would get a blessing from the gospel; yet they do not.” (http://www.newsforchristians.com/spurgeon/chs2411.html)

 Spurgeon goes on to discuss this phenomenon and then speaks directly to the hearer in hopes of breaking through the “thick scales” on their eyes.  However, I’m not going to reteach what has already been taught.  I do recommend you take a look at the sermon, like most of his writings, it’s insightful.  I do want to spend some time analyzing the issue.

 First, after I’d left the room, my brother confessed to my mother that he didn’t remember any sermon that was taught when he was a child. The only thing he really remembered was a visual using a glass of water and an egg about baptism.  What my brother heard was a message on why we believe in immersion (doctrine), and what I heard that day was a message on the internal transformation salvation brings us.  So that leads me to my first conclusion.

 Not everyone learns the same way.  This is a “well duh” statement, but it’s something I think the church is missing.  Educators have known for years that we need to meet the needs of every learner in the classroom—we need to teach them they way that they learn best.  However, many churches only teach from the perspective of one learning style.  I’m a VERY auditory learner.  I learn best by listening—which is why I remember so much from the sermons of my childhood.  My brother is much more visual—which is why he remembers the example of the egg and water, and not much else.  We don’t process information the same way.  I can walk into any church and be blessed by a biblically based sermon.  He may not get as much out of it, because he doesn’t function like that.  The church he attends now, has video, light shows, a darkened auditorium, and active powerpoints to follow during the sermon.  I find this distracting and, truthfully, annoying.  But, he’s learning and growing there!  When taking our children to church, we need to be aware of how they learn, and if the service doesn’t fit their learning style, we need to augment it!

 So many times, we parents quote Proverbs 22:6, “Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it” and we see it that we have to teach the kids, but when going back to the original Hebrew, the word train actually is the same word that is used for the process of cleaning out a babies mouth after birth.  The word means “create an environment for life.”  To quote Mark Hamby, founder of Lamp Light ministries:

 “Training our children requires more than simply providing an education. We must create an environment of captivating learning, with experiences that motivate them to passionately pursue worthy goals. External rewards will not suffice; motivation must be intrinsic. We must help to ignite a fire from within so that the child’s passion becomes the driving force behind persevering practice that leads to the achievement of excellence. Turning passivity into passion by providing experiences that cultivate their taste for what is Godly, great, and glorious is the essence of true Biblical ‘training.’”

 So, who is responsible for this training?  If you’re the parent, the buck stops with you.  Our job is not to just take our child to church and hope that it sinks in, or to allow our child to hear our discussions of the sermons.  This only works for kids who have active listening skills.  Our job is to stand it the gap for our kids.  If we attend a church that doesn’t have visual or kinesthetic learning as part of the service, then we need to provide that.  Show your child how to take notes during a sermon, or draw a picture with them that teaches the lessons of that day.  Be present, and active.  Don’t just assume because they heard it they learned it.  My daughter is much like me in that she’s very auditory.  She loves church services, but doesn’t enjoy Sunday school as much.  The reason is her learning style.  She soaks up the message in the sermon, often interrupting by asking me questions about what our pastor is teaching (we’ve fixed this by giving her a notebook and when she has a question she has to write it down for discussion after the service).  But, Sunday school is trying.  It’s a lot of reading, and with her dyslexia it’s frustrating for her.  And, although she loves to draw, she doesn’t like structured drawing.  She would much rather be asked to create a picture about the sermon on a blank piece of paper than to have to draw what someone told her to.  So, what’s my job?  I ask her questions about her lesson.  We draw pictures—which I proudly place on our fridge.  I’m active in her learning.

 While sitting in a service, I think there’s something that’s even deeper that we sometimes miss.  We assume that our children “got” the message because we did.  We forget that they are not adults, and that they process things differently.  I’ve noticed this a lot with my daughter.  I’ll visit with her about the sermon and she pulled something completely different out of it than I did.  This is good, but it shows that we need to assume nothing, and actually converse with our children—every day—about the things God is doing in our lives.  If we don’t, we may find that they’re in their mid-thirties and just now “getting” grace—or worse, they may never get it at all.

 Lord, help me to see beyond the day-to-day and see the eternal.  Thank you for my brother’s growth.  I praise you that his walk has become one of joy and service to You.  Help me to show my daughter Your grace and love everyday.  I want her to know You Lord.  Amen

Playlist:

Chris Tomlin, Amazing Grace (My Chains are Gone,) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jbe7OruLk8I

Mark Shultz, I Am, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hILaSh78yHQ

Casting Crowns, Stained Glass Masquerade, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzKOrlPuWzo

Staying Alert in Christ,

Megan

Lessons on Legalism Part 2: Making God Frown

Posted on by

0

I have to admit; I’ve had trouble writing this blog.  I’ve put it together several times in my head and on paper, and it never seemed to work out right. I either sounded wishy-washy, or I sounded bitter.  It’s been hard because I am battling bitterness right now.  I totally believe God wanted me to write and publish my last blog.  But, it’s like He’s now frowning, saying, “Okay, you got it off your chest.  You were right.  You proved it.  You spoke it.  And, you’re done.”  So, this will be my last blog in this series.  I won’t be writing four; I’ll end it with two.  God is done with my writing on this subject, and He’s made that clear.  It’s my job to obey.  I don’t like it when I make God frown.

The other thing that He’s been speaking to me about is that I need to be honest.  I was part of the legalistic problem.  In order for me to truly be able to write this blog, I have to accept part of the blame.  I don’t want to do that.  I don’t think anyone likes taking blame…but this is particularly hard for me, because I bought into the lie.  I bought into legalism hook, line, and (definitely) sinker…So, for me to write this and really speak to you…I need to be honest.  The reason I understand and see the dangers of legalism are because I was one.

I truly believe that people don’t step into legalism on purpose.  I know I didn’t.  I stepped into it with a real desire to please God. I became close to a group of people who were following God with all their hearts, or at least that’s what I believed at the time, and I did grow closer to God at first.  Being legalistic feels like a call to righteousness.  But, what eventually happened is that I started to believe that I knew better than the Holy Spirit.  Instead of reading my bible and letting it speak to me, I started using it to find proofs for what I believed.  (Which is what I was doing in my last post, I might add…anyone besides me find it dry?  🙂  )   I started holding people to a standard that I couldn’t meet. I became critical, judgmental, and very un-Christlike.

I didn’t used to be this way.  I just liked to love on people.  I listened.  It was one of the things my students liked about me.  I would talk to them about how much God loved them.  I would show them God’s love by forgiving them, and by loving them no matter what they did.  However, the last year of my teaching, I didn’t do that at all.  To other people, I would defend my students and fight for them, but in the classroom I spent most of my time chewing them out for the very things I was trying to protect them from.  It was a vicious cycle.  They stopped believing that I loved them.  They started to rebel against me, and against God.  It was the hardest thing I’ve experienced teaching.  I watched them become the very thing I was fighting against.  And, because I was fighting against legalism everywhere but in my own classroom, I had no support system. I’d become the enemy.  The other teachers had become like Cain and wanted to destroy Abel.  I felt very alone.

It would be easy for me to say that the blame belonged to the other staff.  The truth is, much of it was.  My students had progressed through a very legalistic system—which is why they loved my classroom so much.   But, as a friend pointed out, I began to return evil for evil.   I was part of the problem because I’d stopped fighting the good fight.  I’d become the enemy.  I was just as bad as were.

But, there is hope.  In my case, God led me to step away so the school could heal.  The school has almost all new staff—staff that love God and desire to show God to the world (not just shelter their children from it).  The board also took my suggestions to heart and put almost everything I’d asked for into place.  It’s not the same school.  God used my brokenness and made something truly wonderful.  I can attest to this because after explaining to God how I never wanted my daughter to go back there, He told me that she should.  Talk about humbling. And she is LOVING this school year.  She comes home every day, excited and fueled. It’s amazing.  I pray every student is feeling this.  I especially pray for my former students whom I failed in so many ways last year.  God is good.  He has a plan for them, and even though they may not believe it, He’s been breaking away the legalistic shell (that I didn’t create but couldn’t seem to destroy) that stifled their growth and crushed their faith. And, he’s changing me back into a person who is just in love with Him…I know it, because others are seeing it in me.  I’m seeing it in myself, and I know God is smiling…

Staying Alert in Christ,

Megan

P.S. Remember, like my page on facebook (https://www.facebook.com/stayingalert) and you’ll get a daily scripture discussion as well as uplifting quotes and photos.  Also, if you scroll to the bottom of this page and hit follow, you can be sent an email every time I post a new blog!