Merry Christmas

John 14:31a (NIV84)

but the world must learn that I love the Father and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me.

Good morning Zebras,

Today we celebrate the birth of Christ and the beginning of his thirty-plus year missionary journey in obedience to His Father.  And although to us it is a great day; a day of celebration, this year, for the first time I have wondered how Jesus felt on this day so long ago as He voluntarily left His home in heaven and came to dwell among sinful men. 

Dear Jesus, Thank you for your perseverance, obedience, endurance and love.  For giving up Your life for the lives of Your people, not only on the cross, but every day as you died to your own desires and chose to live a sinless life so that You could be our atoning sacrifice.

And I pray this year will be the year Your Spirit pours down upon Your people allowing us to live up to what You have done for us and awakening in us the true heart of Christ, a heart of love and obedience to the Father and of compassion and love for the lost.

Merry Christmas little Zebras,

Love,

Jill

Just a Sinner?

Psalm 32:1–2 (NIV)  

“Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord does not count against them and in whose spirit is no deceit.”

Good morning Zebras,

People say they don’t go to church because it’s full of hypocrites, recently I heard someone respond, “That’s true and if you come, there will be one more.”  But Biblically that is scary and wrong.

A hypocrite as defined in the Bible is someone who is pretending, an actor, someone whose heart is not enlightened to the truth of Jesus Christ but likes to act as if it is.  And according to Nave’s Topical Bible it is who Paul was referring to when he wrote:

2 Timothy 3:1–5 (ESV) But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.

Hopefully that doesn’t describe the church, or us.

Struggling with sin and failing doesn’t make a person a hypocrite.  It makes them a sinful human saved by grace who often falls short of the mark of perfection God has set for His people. A mark set to show us that we will never be perfect and to remind us that we are sinners in need of a savior. It should also make us warm and loving to others who are struggling.

People came to Jesus to be healed.  Now they should be able to come to His church.

None of us are perfect, everyone stumbles over something but God’s grace covers it, enabling us to forgive others and ourselves.

Love,

Jill

 

 

Toothless Monster

2 Timothy 1:7a (ESV)

“for God gave us a spirit not of fear”

Good morning Zebras,

What are you afraid of? 

It’s a good question and one that deserved to be looked into because what you’re afraid of affects your actions.

If you are afraid of being broke you will work for money to the exclusion of other things, if you are afraid of being alone you will settle for unhealthy relationships and if you are afraid of being fat you will be consumed with trying to control your food intake.  But if you are afraid of God you will work to please Him.

The Bible says the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom, but it also says, perfect love drives out fear.  How can it be both?

Easy, when you finally get to the point that you really fear God, you realize you have nothing to fear at all, for as the Bible says, “What can man do to me if God is on my side?”

Nothing really, because the things the world can do only last for a moment.

Recently God has been challenging me to face my fears.  To look at the worst case scenarios and think what would happen if…What would happen if the thing I feared most happened?  Would God quit being God?  Would He leave me all alone to struggle through on my own?  Would God set me aside in complete disgust because I was such a disappointment to Him?  No.

That’s when I realized how effectively Satan uses fear to control God’s people.

Everyone one of us is probably afraid of something, but God wants to set us free from our fears.  He does not want us fearing the things of this world, He wants us to fear Him and walk in faith because faith in God cancels out fear of the world.

Love,
Jill

Happy Thanksgiving

2 Peter 1:3 (NIV84)

His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.

Good morning Zebras,

I woke up this morning thinking about how I would explain Thanksgiving to someone from another country.  From my public school education I remember it to be a holiday started when the Pilgrims and Native Americans got together to share a meal and give thanks to God for the bountiful harvest He had provided.

I assume they were thankful because the harvest was going to enable them to survive the winter.

Then I started thinking if Thanksgiving were invented today it would be more likely we’d celebrate it in the spring.  After we had survived the winter, we would all get together and give thanks that we had made it through.  A sort of  “Yeah God, You came through again!” party.

But which is a more Biblical approach?

I think it is the first.  We should, in faith, give thanks to God for what He has already done knowing that what He has done has changed the future.

So have a wonderful Thanksgiving little Zebras, giving thanks to God for sending His Son which gave us eternal life and the ability, through the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit, to overcome anything that comes our way.

Love,

Jill

Correction

Romans 6:11–12 (NIV84)

In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires.

1 Peter 2:24 (NIV84)

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed.

Good morning Zebras,

Sometimes I think God has me write these things more for me than for any one else and the one about staying on leash was the perfect example-because I was wrong. 

After writing about Abigail running off leash after a dog, I took the moodles for a walk. Instead of there being one dog to tempt her to run away there were many. And even though she was on leash, she barked and barked and barked.  And I realized I don’t want her to just quit chasing dogs I want her to “want to quit chasing dogs.”

And I realized that is where I had made my mistake.

God’s Spirit does not want to keep me on leash constantly restraining me from doing what I want to do.  God’s Spirit is bigger than that.  He wants to indwell me and change me from the inside so that I no longer desire to run off leash.

People have told me God only has us work on one sin at a time, and up until now I would have agreed, but lately I am starting to wonder if that approach is Biblical.  If I work on one sin at a time and conquer it, who gets the glory?  I do.  I am so proud of myself for having overcome my…insert name of sin…that I can’t wait to tell people.

But if through faith in Christ I put to death my sinful nature, no longer letting old passions and desires rule my life then the glory would go to God.  For only God can truly change a person from the inside out.

I read a book once on the holiness of God that said to conquer to sin we needed to have the right attitude about sin.  We needed to realize that all sin is conquered by Jesus’ death and resurrection.  We conquer nothing; we simply walk out what He has already done. The battle is over and we need to live like victors.

Flip Wilson used to jokingly say “The Devil made me do it,” which was really an excuse to sin.   I think Christians should be living so empowered by the Holy Spirit that our explanation for super naturally loving others and dying to the desires of the flesh is: “The Holy Spirit made me do it.”  For after all “greater is He who lives in you, than He who lives in the world.

Love,

Jill

Happy As a Clam

Hebrews 6:15 (NIV84)

And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised.

Good morning Zebras,

I really like the internet, you can find anything.  For example have you ever wondered where the expression, “Happy as a clam,” comes from?  I have and now I know, or at least I think I do.

According to The Phrase Finder, it’s from the northeastern part of the US and its earliest recorded use is 1833. Some people say the phrase comes from the fact clams appear to be smiling when they are open, but Phrase Finder believes it is actually part of a larger saying, “happy as a clam at high water,” which makes a little more sense because at high water clams are protected from the animals who like to eat them, thus they are happy. But either way, it’s a saying that has made its way into the American language and we know it means to be content.

God has me in a weird position where I know that all I’m supposed to do is wait upon Him.  Since waiting doesn’t come naturally to me, it’s driving me a little crazy. Yesterday as I was thinking about it I realized I needed the “patience of a saint.”  And a light bulb went off.  I have always thought having the “patience of a saint” meant being able to put up with an annoying person or situation without blowing up. But yesterday I realized it might come from God and have something to do with the way He trains His people.

Or, like the clam. was it just a cute little phrase that had nothing to do with the Bible at all?

So this morning I did a topical search in the Bible on patience and I can say without a doubt that having the patience of a saint is definitely a Biblical thought.  It appears to be a trait that all of God’s mighty men and women needed to have. 

It often takes less faith to plunge headfirst into a situation and try to fix it ourselves than it does to wait.  Plunging is what we like to do, we are people of action.  But that’s what Saul did that cost him the kingdom. And waiting is what David did.  David waited years to get the kingdom and God rewarded his faith.

When you think about it, it takes a lot of faith to sit around and wait on God trusting He is going to come through even though it appears nothing is happening.  Especially if you think you can do something to hurry things along.  But running ahead of God is the recipe for disaster; just ask anyone who has done it.

But then I dug a little further, only to be reminded that patience is a Fruit of the Spirit and an attribute of God.  Duh.  God has patience and He gives us patience. I think He expects us to use it.

So, here’s my lesson from yesterday...to be happy as a clam at high water, safe and protected from my enemies, I need to have the patience of a saint and wait upon God.

Love,

Jill

We Have Hope

Romans 15:4 (NIV84)

For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.

Good morning Zebras,

I am getting ready for the "We Have Hope" retreat in Simi Valley this weekend and I just wanted to share a little bit of what God has been teaching me.

As I began researching the idea of hope I found that hope comes from reading and understanding Scripture (today’s verse) from knowing and trusting God (Psalm 62:5), from believing in and accepting the sacrifice of Christ (1 Cor 15:19), and from walking in the power of the Holy Spirit (Romans 15:13). And when you think about it, it makes perfect sense.

Reading the Bible is where we have to start. It is in Scripture that God reveals Himself to His people. It is there we learn who He is and what He has done for us. Just like the lame man who was healed by Jesus in John 5, if we want to get well, we need to “Get up! Pick up our mat and walk.” And walking, for me, began with opening the Word and getting to know God.

Look at the men and women of the Old Testament who knew their God, especially David, who was promised the kingdom of Israel at fifteen but did not get it all until he was thirty-seven. Yet read David’s Psalms. David knew who God was and knowing that allowed him to wait, to stand up to the ridicule and attacks of others and obey God even when it was difficult, because his God was bigger than the problems around him. And when he failed, he threw himself on the mercy of God because he knew his God would forgive him.

Plus, people who have hope know Jesus Christ as savior and they understand that this world is not their home. They understand that we are passing through and our real home is in heaven. They know that they will be rewarded for the good deeds that they have done in the body and are willing to make any sacrifice for Christ. They know that there is something better to come and they live with their eyes focused on that goal. They know what Paul knew-that everything is rubbish compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus.

Finally, those people who have hope understand the Holy Spirit that lives inside them. They know that they have the power to overcome because of that spirit. They know they can do all the things that God has given them to do because of His power. They know they are not alone in this world because God sent the counselor, the Spirit of Christ, to live in us and to be with us at all times. And they know the truth of who God is because His spirit has revealed it to them

I think what God is teaching me, and what I felt prompted to share, is that all of us can have hope if we know our God personally, as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Love,

Jill

Well Done...

Psalm 37:4 (ESV)

Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Good morning Zebras,

I want to thank you for all the prayers. The Reno conference went really well and I even had a fun God story to share. Since Reno was the last conference for the year, my prayer was that I would finish strong.  I wanted to know I had done well and not have nagging doubts I should’ve said something differently. 

The way conference works is the missionary assigns each of us a room that he thinks will accommodate the people who want to come and hear the workshop.  He also provides what he believes to be adequate seating.  Sometimes they underestimate people’s interest in the topic, and sometimes they overestimate so chairs have to be moved around from room to room.

In the past Mike has overestimated people’s interest in hearing what God has given me to say, and underestimated the interest of the topic that is being presented in the room next door.  More than once people have come into my room and borrowed chairs for other workshops.

So Friday night, as I was setting up the room, I thought, “I’m just going to leave some of these chairs folded up so it’s easier for people to borrow them.” But when I showed Mike what I’d done, he told me to set them all up.  So even though I didn’t think we would use them all I did what I was told.

Saturday morning, as I was walking down the hall, I glanced into the room next door and surveyed their chair situation.  In my mind I was already planning on giving some of my chairs away and I wanted to make sure they had room.  I mean I have been doing conference for six years now and I know how this goes-at least how it has gone before.

To be honest it used to bother me, it’s hard to speak when you think people aren’t interested in what you’re saying, but through a very long and painful process God has really grown me in that area.  Now pleasing Him is what is foremost in my mind.   

The first workshop had twenty-plus people, for planning purposes Mike makes us count attendance, which is pretty normal for a conference of three hundred, the second workshop had more, which again is normal, but what wasn’t normal was that in last workshop all the chairs were filled and for the first time ever people had to go get chairs from other rooms.  And today’s verse came to mind.

Now I know chairs are not a big deal, and numbers don’t really mean anything, but in this case God knew I wanted to know that I had finished well, and I really felt like this was His way of telling me that I had.

Love,

Jill

Scorched Earth

2 Timothy 1:7a (NKJ)


For God has not given us a spirit of fear

Good morning Zebras,

Last month while I was preparing for the Walking in the Spirit retreat, waiting to see if the fires in Mt. Lassen would be put out in time for the event, a zebra sister sent me the following information she found on the internet about zebras and fires. She said she felt God was prompting her to send it to me as a way of encouragement.

"Would you believe," she said, "that the animals in Africa mostly likely to survive a fire are not the ones who run from it - they're the ones who run through it? Those who run away get tired, collapse, and are engulfed by the flames. Zebras, on the other hand, are especially great survivors because, rather than running away from the fire, they run through the fire."

"What a powerful analogy for the healing process," she continued. "The fire is fear. If we run away from fear, we die. However, if we simply turn around, face it, and run through it, we survive. And discover that on the other side is simply scorched earth, fresh for rebirth. And the fire is no longer moving towards us but away from us, no longer a threat to our survival."

This morning, I feel like I have run through the fire of fear and come out the other side. God tells us in 2 Timothy 1:7 that He did not give a us a spirit of fear-and because of that I am beginning to understand that decisions made out of fear are not from God.

For example two years ago as I left the Redding area Awana conference I was so discouraged I vowed never to return. I cried most of the ways home that day and I never wanted to feel that bad again.

So last year I didn’t go. Instead I managed to get myself invited to another Awana conference so I would have an excuse not to go. This year I tried to do the same thing, but God wouldn’t let me. And I knew I needed to return to Redding and face my fears.

And just like the story, running through the fire ended up being the right thing to do.

I made it all the way home yesterday without a single tear and even more surprisingly I had a wonderful time at the conference. The people who attended the workshops were great and I had a truly blessed day talking about the Lord, encouraging God’s people and being encouraged in return.

So thank you little Zebras, for praying me. It made all the difference and I hope my story encourages you to trust God and run through your fears so that you too can experience the blessings on the other side.

Love,
Jill

Power of God

1 Corinthians 10:13


No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it

Good morning Zebras,

I finally found it!

A few years ago God showed me that today’s verse is often taken out of context and used to encourage people who are going through trials to prove that God never gives more than they can handle. A sort of “buck up, you can do it” speech.

But this is a temptation verse.

God never allows us to be tempted beyond what we can bear, but it doesn’t say that God limits our troubles and hardships to those that we can endure. It just wouldn’t make sense. If we could handle everything in our life on our own, we would.

Anyone who has gone through serious trials knows that “bucking up” is not always an option. How can you “pull yourself up by your bootstrap” when you don’t even have the energy to reach your feet? You can’t. But what you can do is throw it back to God.

And here is the proof.

2 Corinthians 1:8-10
“We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we suffered in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life. Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us.”

If Paul, the super apostle, was given more than he could handle then I think it only follows that we will be too. But what Paul understood was the power that lived inside of him to overcome because three chapters later he writes: We have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.

All of us are clay jars, fragile and weak but God himself lives inside of us and that is the power we have to overcome everything the world throws at us.

Love,
Jill

Fruitful Branch

John 15:1–4 (NIV84)

 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.  He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.  You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

Dear Zebras,

I’m not sure if it’s my imagination but we seem to be having a very windy summer here in Benicia.  And because of that quite a few limbs have fallen off of trees.  The first one was a few weeks ago while I was doing my quite time. I looked up just in time to see a very large branch fall from the tree across the street.

It fell with a large crack and a “poof.”  There were so many leaves on the branch it “fluffed” as it hit the ground taking a few minutes for all the leaves to settle down and quit moving.  Since the house across the street is currently empty the branch sat on the lawn for a few days so I got to look at it every morning for about a week.

What amazed me was how quickly a vibrant branch withered and died when removed from the tree. And I was reminded of Jesus’ warning to His disciples in John 15.

John 15:5–6 (NIV84)

"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.  If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.

As Christians the most important thing we can do is to stay connected to Jesus.  He is what gives us life and the ability to do anything of value.  But too often in this busy world Jesus gets pushed to the background and real quality time with God gets overlooked in our hurry to do “more important” things.

But the truth is there is nothing that is more important, especially if we want to be a fruitful branch.

Love,

Jill

Barking Through the Fence

James 1:25–27 (NLT)

But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.  If you claim to be religious but don’t control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless.  Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you.

Good morning Zebras,

Some of you are probably starting to think I need to get out more because God keeps giving me lessons through my dogs. But I believe it shows that no matter where you are or what you are doing, if your ears are open to the teachings of God, He will teach you.

As I have mentioned, my dogs, Abigail and Joshua have very different personalities.  Abigail is by far the more “high strung.” She is the one who hears and responds to every sound and noise. But she isn’t always content with waiting for “noise” to come her way sometimes she goes looking for it.

Three out of our four neighbors whose fences adjoin our property have dogs. And one of Abigail’s very favorite pastimes is to sit by the fence looking through the cracks trying to catch a glimpse of what the other dogs are doing.  As soon as she spies them she erupts into barking and has to be brought inside.

Joshua’s favorite pastime is to sit on my lap.  He will go outside to see what Abigail has discovered, but he usually comes back quickly to reclaim his place of honor

Watching them has reminded me once again that we need to have our eyes firmly fixed on God and not pressed against the fence of other people’s live to see what they are doing. It doesn’t really matter what they are doing it only matters what God is doing.  And all that time wasted at the fence is time that could have been spent with Him.

Hebrews 12:1 tells us to have our eyes FIXED on Jesus, which means we are to look away from everything else and look to only at Him, running with perseverance the race He has marked out for US.  And 2 Timothy 2:4 says: No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier.

Jesus Christ is the one who has enlisted us, He is the only who knows what we are supposed to do, and that means we need to work to please Him if we want to remain on active duty.  Which leads to the question: What really pleases Jesus?

According to today’s verses I think what pleases Jesus, is looking into God’s Word, applying what we have learned, watching what we say, taking care of others in need and keeping ourselves from being polluted by the world.

Nowhere do I see sit at the fence and watch others, barking when necessary.

Love,

Jill

Scary Moodles

Matthew 5:23–24 (NIV84)

“Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.

Romans 12:18 (NASB95)

“If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men.”

Good morning Zebras,

About a month ago I was walking my dogs around the neighborhood.  Since it’s a quiet neighborhood with very little traffic, I let them walk off-leash part of the time.  It makes them think they are “big dogs,” (which is important when you only weigh five pounds.)

Anyway, as we were walking along we came upon a lady doing some yard work.  She had her back to us and she was engrossed in her task so she didn’t hear us coming.  This was very unfortunate because when Joshua and Abigail came up behind her and sniffed her arm she nearly had a heart attack.

She started yelling very unpleasant things and telling me to get my dogs off her property.  I tried to apologize but she was so angry she couldn’t hear me.

Ever since then I’ve kept the dogs on their leash because the lady was right and I didn’t want them scaring anyone else.  But I still felt bad about it. I really wanted another chance to apologize to the woman. I thought about knocking on her door every time I walked by her house, but I wasn’t sure how that would go over.

Finally God answered my prayer and put me out of my misery by giving me the opportunity to apologize and set things right.

Last Saturday she was out in her yard again, but this time she was facing my direction so she saw us walk up.  I stopped and apologized; I asked her to forgive me for scaring her and told her how very sorry I was that the dogs had frightened her so badly.

She forgave me-and I felt great.

But this morning was the “final healing.”  Once again I was walking my dogs and once again she was out in her yard, but this time instead of dreading talking to her, I was happy to see her.  Nothing inside of me felt convicted by her presence.

I think she was glad to see me too, because she asked the dogs names and even called us “friends.”  And once again I was reminded of the healing power of forgiveness.

Love,

Jill

Hearts

1 Samuel 16:7 (NASB95)

But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”

Good morning Zebras,

Have you ever thought about the fact that today’s verse can either be terrifying or comforting depending upon the condition of your heart?  I hadn’t not really until God gave me a visual.

I have two dogs that have very different personalities, but as their master I think I know them rather well.  I think, as much as humanly possible, I know my dog’s hearts and that influences how I interact with them.

For example, On Wednesday Joshua was in a rather lazy mood.  He came downstairs for breakfast and then went immediately back to bed. When I went up to tell him it was time for our walk, something he really loves to do, I was met with complete disinterest.  I tried to coax him off the bed, but he really wanted to sleep so I decided to let him.

But in my heart I knew he would be disappointed if he missed his walk, so I gave him a little time to think about it and then I went back.  When I opened the door I was not met with the lazy disinterested dog I had left, instead he sprung off the bed without me even saying a word, eager and ready to go. 

I think he thought he had missed his chance.

And I realized that is how God deals with us. He knows our hearts, He knows what we REALLY want to do and He loves us enough to give us a second chance.  He knows that sometimes we are tired and lazy, indulging our sinful nature rather than walking in the spirit, but because of His great love for us He doesn’t leave us that way.  He keeps coming back offering us a chance to “get off the bed.”

Then yesterday Abigail got “misplaced.”  It didn’t take me long to notice she was gone but when I did, I didn’t panic. Unlike Joshua who would wander off if given half a chance, Abigail doesn’t have a restless spirit.  So I knew she had to be trapped somewhere and I went to find her.

And again God had a lesson for me.

God knows the hearts of His people.  He knows those who are trying to run away from Him, and those who just get misplaced.  And when we are misplaced, off track or otherwise distracted, He lovingly comes looking for us.  He knows we don’t really want to wander around lost, so He comes to show us the way home.

The condition of our heart is very important to God and in theory it should be comforting to us knowing that God looks at our hearts rather than how we “sometimes” behave. 

Love,
Jill

Mercy

Ephesians 2:3–5 (NIV84)  

All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.  But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.

Good morning Zebras,

I finally packed away the attribute tree yesterday, so today I need to finish the last of the ornaments which is “mercy.”

I think for most of us mercy is where we start, the knowledge we’re sinners, saved by grace according to the mercy of God.  So it was interesting to me that mercy was the last attribute left on the tree.

I think that’s because God wanted me to see not only do we start with His mercy, we will end with it as well.

The great picture in Revelation Chapter 1 of John falling at the feet of Jesus has become a visual to me of how it will be when I finally see God.  When I am standing before Him in all His majesty and glory I have no doubt that like John, I’m going down.   And I would remain there if it were not for Jesus. 

It is His relationship with the Father and my relationship with Him that’s going to allow me to stand in the presence of the Father, for without Christ’s sacrifice we would all be cast away forever from the presence of God.

And when I really ponder on this, my response is same as the psalmist: “How, (Oh Lord) can I repay You for all the goodness you have done to me?” The answer is of course I can’t.  God gave me for free what I could never get for myself.

So why aren’t I more grateful?  Why aren’t I constantly on my knees thanking God for what He did and offering up my life as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to Him?

I think it’s because it was free.  When the price is paid by someone else it is easy to forget how much it cost and take their gift for granted.  At least it is for me.

When I graduated from high school my brother paid my way to college. He didn’t have a lot of money; he was just willing to make the necessary sacrifices so that I could have a college education.  And how did I repay him?  I flunked out. Of course I was just a kid, I had no idea what it cost him to pay my way to school  In fact, It was years later, when I had to pay my own way that I finally  appreciated what he had done. But then it was too late to thank him, he had died.

And that’s how I am starting for feel about God’s mercy.  Short of heaven I will probably never really understand what it cost Him, but I don’t want that to be an excuse to live the rest of my life as an ungrateful child.

Love,

Jill

Jar of Clay

2 Corinthians 4:7 (NI V)

But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.

Good morning Zebras,

This is an old z-mail, it was written in January 2010 but the message is never far from my mind.  And this morning as I found myself once again praying this passage of scripture I thought I would share.

This weekend Gary was relaxing and watching a little TV and I stopped to see what he was watching. It was a “documentary” about Susan Boyle.

After watching fifteen minutes of the show I figure I am the last person in the world to hear about her, but in case you don’t know who she is, she is the woman who went on “Britain’s Got Talent” and blew them away.

She was a 47 year unemployed overweight woman who has bad hair and a pretty unfashionable outfit. Coming on stage she doesn’t look like anything special in fact the audience is sort of laughing at her and then she sings.

And everything changes because Susan Boyle is a jar of clay, nothing special on the outside but filled with an amazing talent.  We too are jars of clay. But what we have on the inside is not the ability to sing, but the power of God.

Every year our family makes new Christmas stockings where we put pictures of things that represent our year. For example my daughter Katherine, who turned sixteen this year, put her car and Nick made a small model of the Washington Monument to commemorate his 8th grade trip to D.C.

I put a variety of items on my stocking this year. I put a tea cup and saucer to represent the woman’s tea, the Proclaim logo from the fall Awana conference and an envelope with a zebra stripe since I spend so much time writing z-mails.

And because it is my greatest desire that God will use me even though I am a 52 year old, unemployed, overweight woman with intermittently bad hair who likes to wear clothes from a gas station...I put a clay jar.

Of course, since this z-mail Susan Boyle has gone on to great success and now looks like a singer. She has changed her appearance to fit the task.   But to me, she will never be more impressive then she was on that very first day.

Love,

Jill

Small Sins

1 John 1:8–9 (ISV)

If we say that we do not have any sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we make it our habit to confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us those sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Good morning Zebras,

About a week ago, I stepped on a small piece of glass.  Now I’ve stepped on glass before and it has been no big deal.  A pair of tweezers and a cooperative husband and it was all good.  But this time Gary couldn’t get it out.

So I went to the Urgent Care.  As soon as they heard what the problem was they turned me away.  They said I should to go to the ER because the foot needed to be x-rayed and they didn’t have the equipment.  But that seemed WAY overkill to me, so I decided to wait and go to my doctor the next day.

He took one look, poked and prodded for a few minutes and then told me the same thing.  The foot needed to be x-rayed to find the glass and then it would have to be removed by a surgeon who had the appropriate tools.  But unfortunately this was late Friday afternoon and there were no surgeons available. I’d have to wait until Monday

Well, Monday came and went and the doctor didn’t call back.  At this point I’m figuring I can just live with the stupid thing.  I mean it is a VERY LITTLE piece of glass, how much trouble can it cause?

Once again I was wrong.

So Tuesday I called the doctor.  Unfortunately the surgeon he wanted was unavailable so he referred me to a podiatrist.  When I went to the podiatrist’s, he poked and prodded and x-rayed my foot, but he couldn’t find the glass.  So he advised me to go home and wait for a couple of weeks to see what would happen.

What happened was my foot got worse and today I am once again headed to a doctor to get this VERY SMALL piece of glass removed from my foot.

So what is God trying to teach me with all this?

Since He and I have been in a battle over a VERY SMALL sin what I think He is telling me is: small things matter and even the smallest of sins will affect my walk. Taking a “wait and see” attitude, once He has convicted me of a sin, doesn’t work.  And sins can only be forgiven by Christ who took a drastic step and therefore has the correct tools.

Love,

Jill

Warning Dr. Smith

Proverbs 10:19 (NASB95)

When there are many words, transgression is unavoidable, But he who restrains his lips is wise.

Proverbs 10:19 (NIV84)

When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise.

Good morning Zebras,

This morning my Bible opened to the page that contained this verse.  The reason I noticed it is because I have it underlined and starred.  I am totally convinced talking too much is one of the fastest ways to get into trouble.

Then I went for my walk.

As I caught up with two women who were walking ahead of me, one of them turned around to see who was behind them.  She may have done it because she was curious to see who was gaining on her or she may have done it because she wanted to see who was going to hear what she was saying.

No way to know.

But I immediately thought: “If you have to look around to see who is listening, you should probably hold your tongue.”

And I realized that combined with today’s verse, holding my tongue is my warning from God for the day. So I thought I’d pass it on.

Love,

Jill

Power of God

Good morning Zebras,

I learned something this week that I wanted to share with you.

God has me focused on learning about the Holy Spirit and the power that comes from His presence in our life, so yesterday when I was reading A.W. Tozer’s book The Counselor: Straight Talk About the Holy Spirit, I was quite interested in the following text:

Jesus had said, ”Tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem until ye be endued with power from on high” (Luke 24:29b.)  A definition of the word “power” means ability to do.  You know, because it is the Greek word from which our English word “dynamite” comes, some of the brethren try to make out that the Holy Spirit is dynamite, forgetting that they have the thing upside down.  Dynamite was named after that Greek word, and the Holy Spirit and the power of God were not named after dynamite. Dynamite was discovered less than 200 years ago, but this Greek word from which we get our word “power” goes back to the time of Christ.  It means ability to do-that’s all, just “ability to do.”

Then he gave this example:  “One man picks up a violin and gets nothing out of it but squeaks and raucous sounds.  That man doesn’t have the ability to do.  Another man picks up the violin and he is soon playing beautiful, rich melodies…It is the man with the ability to do who wins. It means the dynamic ability to be able to do what you are given to do.”  

And I really liked that.  I don’t know about you but I’ve heard numerous pastors make reference to dynamite when talking about the Holy Spirit.  It always gave me the impression we should be running around blowing up or something.

So this morning I looked up the original Greek word to see if Tozer was correct and here’s what I found in the Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible listed under “Power”
Power: Ability to do things, by virtue of strength, skill, resources, or authorization. What the Bible says about power may be subsumed under four headings: (1) the unlimited power of God; (2) the limited power God gives to his creatures; (3) the power of God seen in Jesus Christ; (4) the power of God (by the Holy Spirit) in the lives of his people.

I couldn’t stop there so I went on to see what it said about the Power of God in our Lives and this is what it said:

The Power of God in the Lives of His People.

…When we turn to the NT we read of the gospel itself as “the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith” (Rom 1:16)... In that life as children of God power is received from the Holy Spirit (Acts 6:8), inner strength to live in his service (Eph 3:16), power to be his witnesses (Lk 24:49; Acts 1:8), power to endure suffering (2 Tm 1:8), power that enables for ministry (Eph 3:7), power in the face of weakness (2 Cor 12:9), power through prayer (Jas 5:16), and power to be kept from evil (1 Pt 1:5). Those who do great things in the service of Christ do not do them in their own strength (Acts 3:12); he sent out his disciples confident only in the assurance that all things are under his authority and that they would have the power of his unfailing presence with them (Mt 28:18–20).

And I decided all of that was way better that running around “blowing-up.”

God has given us amazing strength-to endure, to overcome, to resist, and to live lives free from evil.  And that is the kind of power I want to have.

Love,

Jill

Count on God

2 Timothy 4:16–17 (ESV)

At my first defense no one came to stand by me, but all deserted me. May it not be charged against them!  But the Lord stood by me and strengthened me

Good morning Zebras,

While I was at camp last week I learned Awana has decided to discontinue Zip E. Zebra.  The preschool material hasn’t been updated for about 15 years and it was time for a change so they moved Cubbie-the-bear from the jungle to a barnyard which meant the zebra had to go.

This is of course, no big deal.  Right?  Right!  Except for the fact that Zip E. Zebra is the zebra mascot I use for the ministry and I’d grown quite fond of him.  But that wasn’t really the problem.  The problem was that deep down inside, deeper than even I care to admit, I was hoping Awana would help me start a ministry.

I mean they are real, they are big, they have power, and they could help me if they wanted to, but when they discontinued Zip E. I felt God say “Don’t count on them.”

And I started to cry. 

Since I didn’t want to be seen crying over a zebra puppet, I went outside and there sitting on a log watching the sun come up I heard the rest of the message.  ‘Don’t count on them, count on Me. I’m big, I’m real and I have power.”

But here’s the funny part I didn’t realize until that moment that I’d been counting on anything else.  It’s amazing how easy it is to put our hope in others, how it sneaks up on us even when we know better and how difficult it is to keep our hope centered totally on God.

Oswald Chambers today reads:  “Do you have even the slightest reliance on anything or anyone other than God?  Is there a remnant of reliance left on any natural quality within you, or on any particular set of circumstances?  Are you relying on yourself in any manner whatsoever regarding this new proposal or plan which God has placed before you?  Will you examine yourself by asking these probing questions?...The person who is still relying and trusting in anything within himself is the last person to even come close to saying, “I will serve the Lord.””

So I guess I’m grateful Awana discontinued Zip E. because it showed me something I would’ve never noticed otherwise. 

Dear Heavenly Father, please show us those areas where we are depending upon something other than you to accomplish the tasks you’ve given us to do and remind us that You alone are sufficient to supply all that we need.  Amen.

Have a wonderful day little Zebras-focused on and relying on the Lord.

Love,

Jill

Be Brave

Joshua 1:9 (NIV84)

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”

Good morning Zebras,

Last week when I was feeling “frightened,” I took myself to Joshua Chapter 1.  There’s something so encouraging about reading God tell Joshua to be brave and courageous over and over again.

I mean if Joshua needed reassurance it would only be natural that I would too.

But this time I noticed something I hadn’t really seen before.  In verses 6, 7, and 9, God tells Joshua to be brave and courageous, to go out boldly because He (God) will be with him.   But in verse18, after pledging their loyalty to Joshua and promising to fully obey him as they obeyed Moses, it’s the Israelites, not God, who tell him to “be strong and courageous”

And that got me to thinking.

Christians need to be brave and courageous not just because God tells us to, but because other Christians need us to be.  We all need to see people who are willing to follow God whole heartedly because it encourages us to do the same.

But it doesn’t stop there.

I think the world needs Christians to be brave also.  They need us to live up to the hope we profess to have.  They need to see us keep our head when everyone else is fathering because they need to see the power of God and they need to see it in us.

The world can be a dark place, but rather than sitting around and cursing the darkness Christians are called to turn on the light.

I love you little Zebras, and I pray today, wherever you may be, your life offers a little light to someone who really needs it.

Love,
Jill