Winds of Change, Wings of Grace

Sometimes, it feels like life never changes. But that's just surface appearances. It's the little things that add up, and all the sudden break out in change. That's why the small stuff is so very important. And in this life, things must change. Like C.S. Lewis said,  

It may be hard for an egg to turn into a bird: it would be a jolly sight harder for it to learn to fly while remaining an egg. We are like eggs at present. And you cannot go on indefinitely being just an ordinary, decent egg. We must be hatched or go bad.

It can be hard though. Whatever stage we are in, we can feel too comfortable with where we're at, instead of pressing further out into the deeps of God's promises. We curl up in our shells and feel that life is going just fine. But God in His infinite wisdom, holiness, and love, wants so much more for us than personal peace, a sense of morality, a bit of pocket-change, and our cozy self-deception of being able to "handle" it all. He wants our hearts wholly, and He wants them holy. So He cracks our shells.

I had a feeling this past year was going to be different. Looking back now from the cool vantage point of late fall, Thanksgiving season, the main theme that has arisen is change, and the truth that in this life nothing ever stays the same. Except one thing. Okay, two things.

First, my fragile little heart is always in motion. Always floating, drifting, being tossed about in the waves of life. Second and most important, my great God and Savior Jesus Christ never changes. He is always the same, yesterday, today, and for all the unknowns. He remains steadfast and sure, an anchor for the soul.

by N.C. Wyeth

Take courage from the example of the Pilgrims. They left cozy England, climbed into small wooden ships, and embarked upon a perilous journey across a great deep into a greater unknown. They faced unrelenting hardships in the New World. They could have stayed "safe" in England, if they would give up their freedom to worship God. But they knew the only truly safe place was found in casting themselves on the promises of the Lord. So they chose a holy adventure and a hard pursuit of the Kingdom of God. In the words of William Bradford,"They committed themselves to the will of God, and resolved to proceed." The Lord wanted their obedience, even in the teeth of trials, that would light a beacon of faith for future generations. He proved to be their courage and strength in weakness. They persevered bravely, and gave thanks. Their world was shaken, so that what was unshakeable could remain.

"All great and honorable actions are accompanied with great difficulties, and both must be enterprised and overcome with answerable courage.   ― William Bradford, Pilgrim 

This year, different things have been shaken in our world, and in small ways just in my own life. And it has been uncomfortable. But...it has been good. Because He is shaking things that I tend to put my trust and identity in, even good things, so that what cannot be shaken can remain: Christ Himself, His finished work, His victory and power, His Kingdom, and His great love for His children, for me, in spite of me.

Consider this. It doesn't get more dire and hopeless than Ephesians 2:1-3: "And you were dead in trespasses and sins...sons of disobedience...by nature children of wrath." But then in verse 4 come the most glorious two words in the history of mankind: "But God." And everything changed. The grand thing is, when we get out of our little shells, when we leave the harbor, no matter what comes, we aren't left to ourselves. God promises to be with us. It doesn't get more hopeful than that!


Earlier in the summer, I went to put up the chickens one warm, soft evening. In the dim, musty barn was a seemingly ordinary, mundane scene. Our little red hen had hatched babies, and she lay on the ground in the corner of the coop (since the chicks couldn't roost yet) with her little ones nestled under her heart, safe.

And what struck me with so much weight and reality is this: that's how the Lord of the universe describes Himself and His tender care of His children! Astounding, isn't it? As I stood in the dirty coop, my eyes welled up as that truth soaked in:

He shall cover you with His feathers, And under His wings you shall take refuge.  ― Psalm 91:3

Because You have been my help, Therefore in the shadow of Your wings I will rejoice.  ― Psalm 63:7

We can't know the incredible closeness our Heavenly Father wants with us when we have various shells separating us from seeing Him clearly. We get too comfortable in our dangerous English harbors. But praise HIM, He gives us courage to break through, embark on the voyage that we were made for, and He keeps watch over us. He is infinitely worthy of our trust.

"Faith is a reasoning trust, a trust which reckons thoughtfully and confidently upon the trustworthiness of God."  ― John Stott

“Have courage for the great sorrows of life and patience for the small ones; and when you have laboriously accomplished your daily task, go to sleep in peace. God is awake.”   ― Victor Hugo

In this grand adventure of life, we have steadfast promises made by our unchanging Lord Jesus Christ that He has saved us by His grace (Eph. 2:8), delivered us from darkness, forgiven our sins, placed us in His Kingdom (Col.1:13-14), pronounced us righteous in Christ (2 Cor. 5:21), adopted us as His children (Rom. 8:15), nothing can separate us from His love (Rom. 8:37-39), He has overcome the world (John 16:33), He has defeated the enemy (Col. 2:15), He has broken our bondage to sin (Rom. 6:12-23), He will be with us always (Matt. 28:20), and He will finish the work He's begun in us (Phil. 1:6), even now He Himself works in us to will and do His good pleasure (Phil. 2:13), and He will help us break free from all the shells we find ourselves in (Heb. 4:14-16). He will lead us on as our Captain (Heb. 2:10), and be our Anchor (Heb. 6:17-20) in the winds of change.

So what are we afraid of anyway? By HIS grace, I want to know Him better, see Christ more clearly, venture wholly out into His promises, and whatever it takes, be changed more and more into His image.

“A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for."

So let's press on, hidden in Christ and looking to Him. Fearless.



Happy Thanksgiving!
-ak

Duty (Quote)

“It is a terrible thing to be happy! How pleased we are with it! How all-sufficient we think it! How, being in possession of the false aim of life, happiness, we forget the true aim, duty!”   ― Victor Hugo, Les Misérables

-ak

To Shed Joy (Victor Hugo Quote)

 

 
Let your light so shine. Be inspired.

To shed joy, to radiate happiness, to cast light upon dark days, to be the golden thread of our destiny, the spirit of grace and harmony - is not this to render a service? Here and there we meet one who possesses the power of enchanting all about her; her presence lights up the house, her approach is like a cheering warmth; she passes by, and we are content; she stays a while, and we are happy. She is the Aurora with a human face. Is it not a thing divine to have a smile which, none know how, has the power to lighten the weight of that enormous chain which all in common drag behind them?                                   

- Victor Hugo  

 

The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.

- Gal. 5:22-23          

    

In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.  Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.

- 1 John 4:10-11       

 

 -ak

Mercy Has Swallowed Up All Misery

Every good thing we could think or desire is to be found in this same Jesus Christ alone...He died for our life; so that by Him fury is made gentle, wrath appeased, darkness turned into light, fear reassured, despisal despised, debt canceled, labor lightened, sadness made merry,...death dead, mortality made immortal. In short, mercy has swallowed up all misery, and goodness all misfortune.

- John Calvin

-ak

Inherit a Kingdom

“I heard a good man say he should be content to win a corner behind the door. I shall not be.

The Lord says we shall inherit a kingdom. We would not be satisfied to inherit less, because less than that would not suit our character. ‘He has made us kings and priests unto God,’ and we must reign forever and ever, or be as wretched as deposed monarchs.

Beloved, strive after, more and more, that which the Spirit of God will give you—a kingly heart. Do not be among those who are satisfied and content with the miserable nature of ordinary humanity.” — Charles Spurgeon

-ak

Happy New Year!

A good word from Puritan J.C. Ryle to kick off the new Year of our Lord 2012!







-a

I don't know about you, but I need to be reminded of this more often than not. From the compilation of Puritan devotionals, Voices of the Past.

So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do,
do all to the glory of God.
1 Corinthians 10:31

This life is not to be valued but as it yields opportunities to glorify
God. We were not sent into the world to live for ourselves, but
for God. If we could make ourselves, then we could live for ourselves.
If we could be our own first cause, then we might be our own end.
But God made us for himself, and sent us into the world for himself.
It is not our duty to glorify God in heaven only, but also here on
earth in the midst of difficulties and temptations. No one is sent into
the world to be idle, or to bring forth fruit to themselves, but God’s
glory must be our chief work and aim while we are here upon earth.
We must not promote merely our own interests. Every man, besides
his general calling, has his own work and course of service where he
might glorify and honour God; ‘I glorified you on earth, having accomplished
the work that you gave me to do’ (John 17:4). In a great
house one has one employment, one another: so God has designed
for every man the work he has to do; some in one calling, and some
in another; but all have their service and work given them for God’s
glory. Every morning we should revive the sense of this upon our
hearts. This day I am going to live with God. When a Christian leaves
home in the morning, he must remember he is at Christ’s disposal;
he is not to do as he pleases, but to be guided by rule, and for God’s
glory. Not only in our duties or immediate conversation with God,
but in our sports, business, and recreation. What is it to do things in
the name of Christ?—But to do it according to Christ’s will and command!
In discharge of this work, we must do it all for God’s glory. We
can do nothing without him. If we have anything to do for God, we
must do it in his own strength, in every word and every deed.

10 January
Thomas Manton, Works, i:81-82

Hardy Grace

I was reading in J.C. Ryle's book Holiness: Its Nature, Hindrances, Difficulties and Roots a while ago, and I came across this paragraph that struck me, and I copied it down in a little black Moleskine. I just reread it there, and thought you should read it too . . .

"Hundreds of hermits have buried themselves in some wilderness, and thousands of men and women have shut themselves up within the walls of monasteries and convents, under the vain idea that by so doing they would escape sin and become imminently holy. They have forgotten that no bolts and bars can keep out the devil, and that, wherever we go, we carry that root of all evil, our own hearts. To become a monk or nun, or to join a house of mercy, is not the high road to sanctification. True holiness does not make a Christian evade difficulties, but face and overcome them. Christ would have His people show that His grace is not a mere hothouse plant, which can only thrive under shelter, but a strong, hardy thing which can flourish in every relation of life... It is not the man who hides himself in a cave, but the man who glorifies God as master or servant, parent or child, in the family and in the street, in business and trade, who is the scriptural type of a sanctified man."

- J.C.Ryle, from Holiness

(John 17:15)

-ak PS For extra credit, watch The Village.

A Mother's Day Tribute

Today is for Mothers, so here are a few words from a grateful daughter's heart.

Blessings on the hand of women! Fathers, sons, and daughters cry, And the sacred song is mingled With the worship in the sky-- Mingles where no tempest darkens, Rainbows evermore are hurled; For the hand that rocks the cradle Is the hand that rules the world. William Ross Wallace, 1865, from his poem, "What Rules The World"

I am so thankful for my Mother's godly influence in my life, and the Lord's kindness in placing her there. Mom turned down worldly pursuits for one that would cost her life in the world's terms, and instead found her life abundantly, as the Word promised. She is my heroine for her brave heart and her vision for God to be center in our home. As my siblings and I grew up, Mom modeled (and still does) womanhood not only in big things but in her habitual acts and daily work. The aroma of her homemade bread is still the olfactory theme of my life. Some of my fondest memories as a little girl are of Mom reading aloud to us; her conversations filled mine and my siblings' childhood and gave us a Jesus-centered education. As I type, I hear her voice reading to my 6 and 8 year old brothers in the next room, giving them the same precious gift. Now that I'm older and still at home for now, I have the blessing to still learn from her, and observe her wisdom in managing our home, loving her family, and showing hospitality to others. She is a strong pillar under our family roof, and I call her blessed! In honor of my wonderful Mother, below is a quotation on the important and colossal position given to mothers by the all-wise Creator.

"If drudgery only means dreadfully hard work, I admit the woman drudges in the home, as a man might drudge at the Cathedral of Amiens or drudge behind a gun at Trafalgar. But if it means that the hard work is more heavy because it is trifling, colorless and of small import to the soul, then as I say, I give it up; I do not know what the words mean . . . How can it be a large career to tell other people's children about the Rule of Three, and a small career to tell one's own children about the universe? How can it be broad to be the same thing to everyone, and narrow to be everything to someone? No; a woman's function is laborious, but because it is gigantic, not because it is minute. I will pity Mrs. Jones for the hugeness of her task; I will never pity her for its smallness." G.K. Chesterton, from his book "What's Wrong With The World"

Hello Spring

Hello Spring,

You have been a long time coming. I am glad to see you. You bring hope that warmth and color will once more grace earth's face. It is a brave thing to do, and that is why I like you. You are a heartening gift from a good Giver, and I rejoice in the joy you spring on the world.

There is not one blade of grass, there is no color in this world that is not intended to make us rejoice.
— John Calvin

It is May, and from my bedroom window I have watched you grow stronger and stronger. Other places you come swiftly, but not here. Here, you come slowly. I wonder if that is why I savor your arrival so much. Old Man Winter's dying breaths still blow over the snow-shrouded mountains, reluctant to relinquish power, but he is fading fast. The grass bravely pushes up from its brown grave, the birds raise hopeful voices, the rain makes mirrors of heaven out of the mud, and bravely you come steadily home.

I remember watching you this time last year, from a hospital window. One May day you looked softly in and spread your sunrise glow on our grief, and it seemed the gentleness of our Maker caressed our hearts the morning my infant brother, Isaac Samuel Triumph King, went to be with Him. And I cannot help but think with eager anticipation of the day you come to stay, and spread your glow over the Triumphal procession when all the King's subjects will dance with joy in His unfading glory, Home to stay.

Yes, you remind me of something deeper than what you seem. I think every brilliant color and keen clean scent and lengthening sunbeam is a proof of something more...

When I look across the sun-struck fields, I know in my inmost bones that my joy is not solely in the spring, for spring alone, being always returning, would be always sad. There is somebody or something walking there, to be crowned with flowers: and my pleasure is in some promise yet possible and in the resurrection of the dead.
— G.K. Chesterton, A Miscellany Of Men

Our Lord has written the promise of resurrection, not in books alone, but in every leaf in springtime.
— Martin Luther

Yes, you are more than a season. You are a Promise. The brown earth cannot hold back the tender green grass forever, because, once upon a time in history, it could not hold back a God-Man for even three days. And every year since that morning, you repeat the Promise.

We, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. — 2 Peter 3:13

I like you. Please stay a while, and show us the beauty that grows from the dirt, our Creator's glory reflected in puddles of sky.

Sincerely,

audrey

On The Third Day (Quote)

On the third day the friends of Christ coming at daybreak to the place found the grave empty and the stone rolled away. In varying ways they realized the new wonder; but even they hardly realized that the world had died in the night. What they were looking at was the first day of a new creation, with a new heaven and a new earth; and in a semblance of the gardener God walked again in the garden, in the cool not of the evening but of the dawn.

- G.K. Chesterton (The Everlasting Man)

The Sacrifice of Open Hands

"It isn't a sacrifice unless we have something to put upon the altar."

I surprised myself when these words came out yesterday. I thought about the simple weight of what I'd just said...how often do I give flesh to those words? How often do I really place my desires there on the altar?


Too often, I find myself holding on to them. One cannot paradoxically give life to dreams by holding them with a death-grip. And death-grips are tiring. But when what is held tightly is released to God, rest and freedom can enter.


Whether our desires are little things like a simple hour to read in peace, or big things like traveling the world, good things like marriage and children, or things that can never be...a different ending to a tiny mound of brown dirt...in the end, all can eat away the soul if they consume us. If we seek redemption in anything but Christ, all we get are dreams that quickly turn to nightmares.


As we place our desires there upon the altar, we have room for His desires to enter.


The only freedom from bitterness and anxiety and futile manipulation is in the Dream-That-Has-Come-True. The only thing that can nourish our souls when we are consumed by it is the love of God in Christ. I must find contentment and fulfillment not in some plan or dream, but in Him alone, where He has me now, in this hour, in this fixed longitude and latitude, or it will forever elude me.


As Francios Fénelon wrote to a young lady hundreds of years ago:

You must return to Him. You will have no peace except through this surrender. Let go all your plans; God will do as He pleases with them. Even if they should succeed through earthly means, God would not bless them; but if you wholly offer them up to God as a sacrifice, He will turn everything to His own merciful purposes, whether He does what you have desired, or whether He never does it.

It can hurt to give them up. Plans, desires, dreams. It is death when they are ripped away. And unless the seed falls to the earth and dies...it is dead already. But when it dies, when we die to it, fruit can grow from the brown dirt.


Plans, dreams, desires, all are in much better care out of our hands and in our Heavenly Father's hands anyway.

"There is heaven in the depth of that word—Father! There is all I can ask; all my necessities can demand; all my wishes can desire. I have all in all to all eternity when I can say, "Father." - Charles Spurgeon

He promises that He is good, and works all things for our good. And the more we give up ourselves, stop holding so tightly to ourselves and more tightly to our Heavenly Father, the less it hurts and the more we realize...we have HIM. Hold all with "as the Lord wills."


I wonder if sometimes I don't have it backwards. What if Psalms 37:4 means not exclusively that we will get what our hearts desire, but that we would receive the desires of our hearts? Meaning, as we delight in God and all He has carefully chosen for us (for His glory), that our Father would place His desires for us in our hearts. What if He replaced our passing fancies (even consuming desires) with the ultimate Desire, the Desire of nations...more of God Himself? And desires that He give always have a fulfillment. We must simply find Him that fills all in all our all in all.

If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him! - Matt. 7:11

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. - James 1:17

But what if all we had was God? Wouldn't we have everything in Him?

"When in all gifts we find Him, then in Him we shall find all things."
- George MacDonald.

Jesus put Himself upon the altar. He opened His hands, let go of what He could have had, and received driven nails through them so we could open our hands, escape what we deserve, and receive Him. He died and fell under the brown dirt...and lived again more gloriously than ever.


Opening your hands and releasing what you never really held in the first place is the only way to truly see all you already hold. If all is His, and He is ours, what more do we desire? And in that open position, those hands are ready to give and serve, bless and receive blessing...as the Lord wills.

All to Jesus I surrender,
Make me, Savior, wholly Thine;
Let me feel Thy Holy Spirit,
Truly know that Thou art mine.

ak

Dragons Can Be Beaten

This dragon was sketched by a little valiant knight-friend of mine. I couldn't resist playing with it just for fun; I added color and a Chesterton quote for good measure.

“Fairy Tales are more than true; not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.”

-G.K. Chesterton

-a

Finding Brave Hearts

Life is risky sometimes. It's an uphill battle against the come-easy things, like selfishness, and faint hearts. It's a battle against Self. And the sword gets heavy. I look down at my weak hands, feel my feeble heartbeat. I doubt my ability to be brave and faithful, to completely die to self when things don't go my way. It's daunting when pride and self-love choke, fear of what others think creeps in, hearts ache and circumstances threaten to drown; when having a brave heart is hard, and being a coward is so...easy. It's much easier to put down the sword and give in.

But there is the problem: That is not life, according to Life Himself. And He calls us to life.

"I have come that they may have life,
and that they may have it more abundantly."

-John 10:10

Abundant life. And that means swimming upstream. As G.K. Chesterton put it:

A dead thing can go with the stream, but only a living thing can go against it.

It's easy to go with the flow. To just do what comes naturally since the Fall. To buy the world's "wisdom." To be discontent. Proud. Jealous. Fearful. Despairing. Rebellious. Exploitative. In other words, to live for self. I don't know about you, but no one had to teach me how to be selfish. It comes easy.

But the truth is...to live for yourself is the easy way.

It's cowardly.

It takes a brave heart to go against the flow. To be selfless.

Nothing is more difficult than to forsake all carnal thoughts, to subdue and renounce our false appetites, and to devote ourselves to God and our brethren, and to live the life of angels in a world of corruption.

-John Calvin

But it can be done. Just not alone.

[The Lord] wants those who belong to Him to be brave and fearless. He shows us Himself how weakness of the flesh is overcome by courage of the Spirit. This is the testimony of the apostles and in particular of the representative administrating Spirit. A Christian is fearless. (Emphasis mine)

-Tertullian

Think of the people you most admire and respect. They probably aren't very selfish. The strongest women I know are the most submissive and selfless. They are no doormats; they are lionesses, princesses in invisible tiaras. The strongest men I know are the most gentle and servant-hearted. They are no wimps; they are warriors and kings. The bravest knight has the softest heart.

painting by N.C. Wyeth

They follow the True King, Jesus Christ, Who came to serve and not be served. They pour their lives out for the weak and despised, the widows and fatherless, the disabled, poor and needy, for their families and communities, for the Kingdom of Christ. And they find their life abundantly. They fight for victory against The World, The Flesh and The Devil. These are true heroes. They are brave and strong...precisely because they know they aren't.

What?

“Welcome, Prince,” said Aslan. “Do you feel yourself sufficient to take up the Kingship of Narnia?”

“I - I don't think I do, Sir,” said Caspian. “I'm only a kid.”

“Good,” said Aslan. “If you had felt yourself sufficient, it would have been a proof that you were not…”

Prince Caspian – Ch. 15

They are weak. But He is strong. I'm not strong enough or brave enough to fight the good fight...alone. "But thanks be to God Who always leads us in triumph in Christ!" (2 Cor. 2:14) God gives His children His own brave heart through His Spirit. Like Caspian looking into the eyes of the Lion, doubt your ability, and trust His instead. He is strong enough to enable us, weak and unfit as we are, to do brave things for His Kingdom. Not alone.

We are most alive when we are loving and actively giving of ourselves because we were made to do these things. It is when we live like this that the Spirit of God moves and acts in and through us in ways that on our own we are not capable of. This is our purpose. This is our hope. (Emphasis mine)

-Francis Chan in "Forgotten God"

I continually need a brave heart, to know my insufficiency and His all-sufficiency, to be emptied of me and filled with the fullness of Him who fills all in all, to die to self and find Life abundant. It's an uphill battle, but victory at the top will be worth it. Broken hearts will be bound up, and battle wounds will be healed. The brave know, and they press on for the joy set before them. Not alone.

Do you need a brave heart too? Keep your eyes on Him alone - He is the one with the Brave Heart, who's name is Faithful, and it's only from Him you will find a brave heart.

"You have listened to fears, Child,” said Aslan. “Come, let me breathe on you. Forget them. Are you brave again?"

Prince Caspian - Ch. 11 : The Lion Roars

Listen to His heartbeat and take heart.

-audrey

The Gospel in Four Words - Spurgeon

“‘Come unto me,’ he says, ‘and I will give you.’ You say, ‘Lord, I cannot give you anything.’ He does not want anything. Come to Jesus, and he says, ‘I will give you.’ Not what you give to God, but what he gives to you, will be your salvation. ‘I will give you‘ — that is the gospel in four words.

Will you come and have it? It lies open before you.”

C. H. Spurgeon, The Treasury of the New Testament (Grand Rapids, 1950), I:175.

-A

Wisdom of Fénelon

I've really enjoyed reading the Dialogues of Fénelon, published by Lamplighter Publishing. Read on, it's good. (Emphasis mine)

from Francois de Fénelon, 1651-1715

I quite understand that all your troubles come from excessive self-consciousness, and from letting yourself be too much guided by feeling. As soon as you cease to find prayer a perceptible solace to you, you are tempted to be discouraged. Do you desire to be at peace? Try to be less occupied with yourself, and more with God.


One of the most dangerous delusions of self-love is when we grow sentimental about ourselves, are perpetually self-engrossed, and are absorbed in ourselves with a restless, anxious care which troubles, withers, and disables the heart, deprives us of the consciousness of God's presence, and ends by hopelessly depressing and discouraging us. Say, with St. Paul, "Yea, I judge not mine own self." You will watch all the better for the real correction of your faults, and the fulfillment of your duties because of the absence of all this self-willed restlessness.


Then it will be out of love of God that you will simply and quietly repress whatever that watchful love shows you to be faulty and unworthy of the Beloved. You will work at conquering your failings without impatience or pettiness; you will humbly bear with yourself without flattering your weaknesses; you will accept reproof, and be ready to obey.


Conduct such as this tends far more to self-renunciation than yielding to all the fancies, vexation, and impatience of a self-love, which is too eager for perfection.


I do not care to have you a wise, strong, and virtuous woman on a grand scale; I want everything on a small scale. Be a good little child.