Unity in Truth

When I began the Beth Moore study on James, we focused on who the man, James, was. This took us to every time he was mentioned in the New Testament. Interestingly enough, James was mentioned in Acts 15 as a key leader of the believers in Jerusalem. Based on the text, we can see that James still followed his Jewish traditions and customs (He was a Christian Jew, but still fully Jewish). A debate had arisen between the Jewish converts (former Pharisees--isn't it cool to see how God saved some of them after their initial persecution of Jesus?) and the Greek converts as to whether the new converts had to follow the Jewish law. To settle this division and bring unity among the believers, they met together, prayed, and sought out the Holy Spirit. Through the Spirit, they came to all be in unity. This passage showed me a lot of different things. 1. Our spiritual background or lack thereof affects how we view/interpret the Bible. (The Pharisees had to overcome their background mindset of "work your way to Heaven"). 2. The Holy Spirit can and does bring unity to us when we seek Him with humbled hearts. No one in the passage asserted their right to be right. Instead, they asked Him. It's not about "us," but about following Him. 3. If someone is truly worshipping God and is not worshipping anything false (i.e. the Jews were still allowed to sacrifice/pray in the Temple if they wanted to--they were not *required* to do so), then that is between them and God. He will lead them in it or away from it as He guides their life. We can still have unity in the Truth with someone even if we don't agree 100%.

I've thought about the "Unity in Truth" lesson a lot over the last month. Well, this week at my Tuesday night Bible study, our leader did a recap of Ephesians and talked about the importance of unity among the believers. He said that when we have a disagreement that we need to put aside our biases/opinions and search out the Word together. Saying "This pastor said...." is never a justification for what we believe. If we cannot prove it in Scripture on our own, then what does it say about our belief? God can give us the humility and love to have unity with our brothers and sisters as we seek Him. It would be sad if God asked us why we followed what some man said rather than what He said. I'm truly challenged to make sure that I am constantly seeking Him and changing my life/behavior as His Spirit and Word shows me that I need to rather than accepting complacency in traditions/what someone once said. I'm praying this for the believers as a whole. Draw us close, Jesus.

"To stay away from Christianity because part of the Bible’s teaching is offensive to you assumes that if there is a God he wouldn’t have any views that upset you. Does that belief make sense? If you don’t trust the Bible enough to let it challenge and correct your thinking, how could you ever have a personal relationship with God? In any truly personal relationship, the other person has to be able to contradict you."--Tim Keller

Sometimes I think God "hugs" us indirectly and tells us that He has it all under control. I previously blogged about how this verse kept popping up in my life via my friends. Well, this week has been no exception with it appearing 3 days in a row bringing the total up to at least 6 times God has brought this to my attention in the last few weeks. The timing is always perfect. Whenever I'm tempted to get discouraged, this verse pops up reminding me that the battle is not mine, but the Lord's--and He always wins.

I Believe You Will Come Like The Rain!

Today, I'm thankful that God loves me enough not to let go. I'm thankful that He is always near. I'm thankful that He not only knows what is best for me, but that He lovingly orchestrates that to be my reality. Sometimes the trials of life--the dark valleys and the desert places--are what is best for us because some lessons can only be learned and embraced there. Lately, I have been praying for miracles. I pray for them at night before I go to bed and I wake up praying for them again. I know that God can perform them--I love studying about His miracles in the Bible to encourage me. But I also know that miracles happen in God's timing--not mine. I know that God is capable of all things. What He has really been showing me is the "wait" behind the miracle.

I want to see God move--now! About a month ago during my study of the Word, God told me to pray for something specific to happen. I thought it was a good thing to pray for and knew that He could bring it about, but circumstances changed right at that same time that made this thing look impossible. I had no control over the situation at all so there was no way that *I* could bring it about. I struggled with the why behind the circumstances for a few days, and then I remembered the prayer. It wasn't just a prayer I made up or a request that was 'normal.' It was a God-given prayer and so I prayed it again. In the following days, usually when I felt least like praying about this topic, God would remind me of His command to pray. So, I continue praying--and waiting, waiting to see God move in a way only He can in a situation that in human terms would never happen. I have come to view this command as a gift because it gives me hope. I can never lose hope that God is moving and will continue to move in a matter that He told me to pray about!

I recently re-watched Jim Cymbala's sermon "My House Shall Be Called a House of Prayer." It is one of my favorites. It is so encouraging! He talks about how the church was founded in prayer. He talks about God working in our lives to turn us into prayer warriors. I think that is a blessing of any trial--and especially the trials where I am so acutely conscious of how "not in control" I am--I am forced to rely solely on God and to take my petitions to Him regularly. As we commune, we grow closer. He strengthens me. I'm so glad that me facing my obstacles on my own isn't even an option. I know when He does move that all the Glory will go to Him because I can do nothing in this, but request it of Him.

Our Ladies' Bible Study Saturday was about fervent prayer and Elijah's prayers specifically. The lesson focused on Elijah telling Ahab that abundant rain was coming when there wasn't a cloud in the sky. He then prayed to God and sent his servant to look. No rain. He sent his servant to look and received the "no rain" report 7 times before finally the servant reported "a cloud the size of a man's fist coming out from the sea"...then the sky grew dark and the wind picked up, and a heavy rain came. (I Kings 18:41-45). Elijah received his miracle. God encouraged me so much to keep praying and to not give up and to believe Him that He will keep His word and perform what He has promised. Early this morning, I discovered the song, "My Soul Longs For You" by Jesus Culture. It talks about God pouring out His spirit on us like rain. Here's the link for the song http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-RZ8PqwIk5I.

I believe You will come like the rain.

I believe You will come like the rain.

I believe You will come like the rain.

I see the cloud. It's coming. It's coming!

I believe, Jesus, You are mighty to save.

I believe You will pour out Your Spirit upon us.

I believe You are pouring out. It's going to rain.

I believe You are coming like the rain! So let it rain!

Let it rain!

"The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still." What a word from the Lord! I discovered this verse (Exodus 14:14) several months ago when I was going through a trial in my life, but after things had settled down a bit, I forgot the verse. Recently, when another life trial--or a group of trials to be more specific--were disturbing my world, I came across this verse again. The next day, a friend put it up on facebook, which really encouraged me. AND the next day, another friend put up both verses 13 and 14: "But Moses said to the people, "Do not fear! Stand by and see the salvation of the LORD which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you will never see them again forever. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still." Wow. It made me smile and tear up a little bit to see how God kept orchestrating for that verse to pop up in my life when I least expected it, but needed it most. I decided to make that a theme verse this season of life as I learn to rest in Him and let Him fight my battles for me. Being "still" requires me to trust Him completely that He knows how the battle should be fought--what moves to make and when--and to trust Him for victory. It's an affirmation of His sovereignty in my life; a recognition that He knows what He is doing and that it is good no matter what it may look like to me. I decided to read the rest of the chapter. Chapter 14 starts with the Lord telling Moses where to have the people camp--by the sea. Then the Lord tells Moses that Pharaoh's heart will be hardened by Him (v.4) and that Pharaoh will decide to pursue the Israelites to take them back into captivity. The Lord reveals that He is going to have "honor through Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD" (v. 4). The Chapter continues by describing how Pharaoh's heart was hardened by God resulting in his decision to pursue the Israelites and bring them back. Verse 10 shows the Israelites discovering that they are being pursued and tells of the fear that struck their hearts. They immediately complained to Moses that he should not have brought them out of Egypt to die in the wilderness (v.11-12). How often is complaining about our circumstances our first response rather than turning to the One who is the Maker and Changer of circumstances? What struck me about this passage is that it is a complete setup by God. He told them where to go, where to set up camp, He hardened Pharaoh's heart and had him pursue them....God did all of it--and the Israelites were frightened! Hmmm...I began to wonder how I would've reacted. Let's be honest...I probably would have been terrified that one of the world's biggest armies was quickly approaching me with their horses and chariots...and I would probably wonder how I could escape...only to realize there was no where to go because I'm blocked in by the sea. Then, I would wonder why, why, am I here?! Why did I listen to that Moses? To that God? (Would I go so far as to question Him?). But...God did it all on purpose--and He knew I would be terrified, but more importantly He already knew how He was going to deliver me from enemies that I cannot deliver myself from. God then had the Israelites "move forward" and continue toward the sea, which He opened for them. He used the angel of God to go behind them (instead of in front of them as the pillar of cloud) to keep them apart all night long. Isn't this great how God not only goes before us, but also protects us from our enemies behind us? When they had reached safety, He closed the sea up on all of their enemies and "the Egyptians they saw that day, they never saw again forever." "Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted throughout all of the world." Psalm 46:10 I'm thankful to know that God is always in control even when I see darkness. I am thankful that He loves and protects me. While I may not be facing the horses and chariots of the Egyptians, I know my God fights both my earthly battles and the ones that are in spiritual realms that I cannot see. I am thankful that He always wins and always will win. Help me to learn to be still while I wait for You to bring about Your Victory in Your time. I love You.