Second Chance

Romans 13:14 (ESV)

But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.

Good morning Zebras,

Three years ago when we were planning the first Zebra retreat Mike Sexton, the Awana missionary for our area, let me go to all four fall Awana conferences and talk about Zebras.  From that God brought seventy of the one hundred women who attended.  So last spring when God prompted me to organize another Zebra retreat, the first one for men and woman, I thought “Great I will just promote it at conference again and gather up interested people.”  But God had other plans.

Through a variety of ways, as only God can do, He made it perfectly clear that I was not to speak at Awana conferences this year.  Instead I was to offer my services to Mike and be a support and encouragement to him.  So I did.

Last weekend on the twenty-first I went to Santa Rosa.  It was a great day; God definitely blessed me for doing what I was supposed to do.  Everything was going great, I was focused on supporting Mike and then right at the end someone came and talked to me about Zebras.  They shared a story that was a huge encouragement to me, but instead of just accepting the blessing I whipped out a retreat brochure and asked them to pray for this upcoming event and then I handed one to the woman sitting next to me.

It wasn’t until the next day that God made it perfectly clear I shouldn’t have done that. I haven’t had a day that bad in a long time, but the weight of my disobedience was almost crushing.   God had very clearly told me not to promote the retreat at conference but I had taken a few flyers “just in case” someone asked.  I mean, handing out brochures isn’t the same as speaking…right?  Wrong.  Disobedience is disobedience because God isn’t looking at the actions He is looking at the heart.

He knew I was worried that He wasn’t going to be able to fill this next event if I didn’t help Him out a little, and that is what He was disciplining me for.  It wasn’t for one or two brochures; it was for my lack of faith.  Thankfully, there was one more conference left and I had another chance to show God I trusted Him.  

Yesterday was the Sacramento conference, seven hundred people, lots of opportunities to talk about Zebras but this time because of today’s verse, I left my brochures at home.  I knew if I took them I would give in to the temptation to hand them out and this morning I would once again be sitting around with a crushed spirit. And although I talked about Zebras, God He did amazing things to encourage me I that I was on the right path.

I love you little Zebras; God will do what has promised.  He doesn’t want nor need our help; He just wants our obedience and our faith, and the credit for making it happen.

Love,

Jill

For His Honor and Glory

Isaiah 42:8 (ESV)

I am the LORD; that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols.

Good morning Zebras,

I love you. 

Many years ago God did a miracle for me.  People noticed and when they asked me about it I told them God had done it.  But there was one lady who just kept pushing for a different answer.  She didn’t believe in God and she wanted to know by what human means I’d accomplished it.  I finally broke down and told her. Then she was satisfied.  It wasn’t a miracle from God it was just the outcome of man’s efforts.

After that the miracle went away but it wasn’t until now that I figured out why

People always want to know how to accomplish what they see you doing.  They want a worldly explanation for what they see.  But the truth is, it is not what we do that causes the miracles, it is what God does and all of us need to be on guard that we do not give God’s glory to anything here on earth. 

If God has done a miracle in your life and He has used some earthly means to accomplish it please don’t give away His glory.  The world is more than willing to believe in the power of doctors and the wisdom of men, but what they really need to see is the power and wisdom of God.  But that isn’t going to happen if the Christians keep giving the credit away.

I love you little Zebras, I pray God does many miracles in your life all for His honor and glory.

Jill

Ordinary No More

Acts 4:13 (NIV)

When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and took note that these men had been with Jesus.

Good morning Zebras,

I am starting a Bible study with some Zebra sisters here in my area.  We are going to work through Francis Chan’s book The Forgotten God : Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit together.  This morning I started lesson one. 

The first thing we are asked to do is to write what we believe about the Holy Spirit and honestly access why we have those beliefs.  Have we searched scripture for ourselves to see the work and purpose of the Spirit or have we simply accepted what other people have taught us?  Prior to last year I would have to say I just accepted what I was taught. Recently I have been studying the Spirit for myself.  But when dealing with an infinite God, no matter how much you learn there is always more right around the corner,

So this morning as I started my lesson I was not surprised when Acts 1:4-8, a very familiar passage, took on a deeper meaning.

Jesus was telling the disciples that the Holy Spirit would give them power to be His witnesses in world.  In the past I have always thought about that verse in the context of their speaking.  They would have the power to go and tell others the Gospel.  But this morning God showed me it is way more than that.  They would have the power, given by the Holy Spirit, to go and live lives that would testify to the world about Jesus not just by words but by actions as well. Now that makes more sense. 

Not all of us are called to wander the world and preach the Gospel, but all of us all called to be His witness in the world.  All of us are called to live lives that are honoring to Him.  All of us are called to look different than the world, to value pleasing God above pleasing men, to treasure heavenly rewards more than earthly ones, to love our neighbors even if they are totally unlovable and to keep our bodies and tongues under control so that we don’t dishonor God with what we say and do. To accomplish this we have been given the power of God.

Therefore no Christian should ever say: “I can’t” when it comes to obeying God because they can, they just don’t know it or they don’t want to.

And that is exciting!  It means that everything God has asked me to do; He has given me to the power to do, from the smallest task to the scariest leap of faith, not so that I can look cool, but so that my life is a living witness to the power of God.

I love you little Zebras and if you are thinking “Rats, I want to be in that study!” just pick up the books and learn along with us or make a group of your own.  The more the merrier.

Love,

Jill

WWJD

1 John 3:18 (NLT)

Dear children, let’s not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions.

Good morning Zebras,

Last night at youth one of the small group discussion questions was “If Jesus came to Crosswalk one Tuesday…how would you expect Him to treat you?” Hopefully I am not the only one who can’t seem to get it out of their mind. 

The obvious first answer is He would be nice and welcoming, but when you look at Jesus’ interactions with people in the Bible that is not true. Jesus spoke truth, to the sinner, the disciples, and the religious leaders, and that looked different in every case. He didn’t just run around saying a bunch of stuff to make people feel better.   

People often judge each other based upon outside appearances; Jesus would judge us according to the condition of our heart.  He wouldn’t let us get away with putting up false religious fronts and pretending to be someone we weren’t. He wouldn’t turn a blind eye to our sins.  And He wouldn’t let us go to hell without a warning.  Yet people flocked to Him.  It must have been the love.

On the surface “How would Jesus treat you?” is an innocent question, but in reality it is a very thought provoking one that should make us all examine our hearts and the way that we treat others. 

Have a great day little Zebras speaking truth, but only when the motive is love.

Love,

Jill

The Ministry of Encouragement

1 Corinthians 14:3–4 (ESV)  

On the other hand, the one who prophesies speaks to people for their upbuilding and encouragement and consolation.  The one who speaks in a tongue builds up himself, but the one who prophesies builds up the church.

Good morning Zebras,

I am so excited about what God is letting me do.  After years of narrowing my field of ministry to sitting at His feet and speaking He is finally allowing me to go and serve in the ministries at my local church.  Only a person who has been prevented from working in ministry can really appreciate what a privilege it is to serve God.

Years ago people told me that I had changed from a Bible teacher to a prophet, which felt as weird as it sounds.  Prophets are old dead guys who run around predicting the coming judgment of God.  They are really not anyone you want to be.  But prophets are also the encouragers.  They speak to people to encourage them and build them up. 

After five years of learning, learning, learning, I finally feel equipped to go and do what God has gifted me to do-encourage, starting at my home church with the people who have the vision for youth, Awana, women’s ministry and community outreach.

I know from personal experience how encouraging it is to have someone come alongside and say “I believe in your vision and I would like to help you do what God is telling you to do.”  I am thrilled I finally get the chance to do that for someone else.

God’s church needs encouragement and I am so excited that is the ministry God has given me to do.

Have a great Sunday little zebras loving and encouraging others.

Love,

Jill

Pigs and Dogs

Matthew 7:6 (NIV84)

“Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces.”

Good morning Zebras,

Something happened recently and this verse kept coming to mind.  I have always thought it was a rather odd verse.  In Matthew 7:1-5 Jesus is telling them not to judge others and calls them hypocrites for trying to remove specks from other people’s eyes without removing their logs.  Then in verse 6 He says “don’t give holy things to dogs and pearls to swine.”  Personally I think calling people dogs and pigs is a bit judgmental. So what is He trying to say?

First I think we need to remember He is not telling us not to judge others, He is just telling us we need to judge ourselves first.  It is easy to see the flaws of others, it is much more difficult to see our own but those are the ones we need to work on first. 

The best way I have found to see my own flaws is to hang around people who will tell me the truth about them. People who love me enough to correct me when I am wrong.  Not is a hostile mean way, but with a spirit of love.

I remember the first time that happened to me about a spiritual matter.  My friend Janet and I were having a disagreement.  I was Biblically in the wrong but I didn’t want to hear it.  She said it anyway.  I got mad. Then she said something I have never forgotten.  “If our friendship can’t handle telling each other the truth then we really aren’t friends.”  Amen.  Now those are the friendships I treasure most. Those are the zebras.

Second, I think this warning is really for our own protection.  It is disheartening to keep offering to people the things of God or the things that you really value and have them treat them like dirt. We think we are supposed to offer to everyone everything God has done for us but maybe we aren’t. 

Jesus did not treat everyone in the Bible the same way; He didn’t tell everyone the same thing.  He treated the Pharisees differently than the disciples and the Samarian woman differently than Nathaniel or Nicodemus.  Jesus wasn’t a one shoe fits all kind of guy.  He had discernment.  And that I think is the point of the verse.

We need discernment.  We need to know what to share and with whom.  We need to understand that every person is different and lovingly deal with them accordingly, telling them exactly what God has told us to say, not only for our sake but for theirs, because although it isn’t fun to be torn apart, it probably isn’t fun to be a pig or a dog either. 

Have a great weekend little Zebras, I’ll talk to you next week.

Love,

Jill

Ark Building

Genesis 7:5 (NIV84)

 And Noah did all that the LORD commanded him.

Good morning Zebras,

I feel like I “should” write but honestly I am still processing what happened at the We Have Hope event on August seventeenth and I’m not quite sure what I am supposed to say.

It has been a strange five years. I feel like I have been in a mandatory seminary with God, compelled to learn what He wanted me to learn, motivated and tested by the speaking events He put in my life.  God gave me a task to do and I have been compelled to finish it, and I do mean compelled.  Philippians says it is God who works in us, giving us the desire and the power to do what pleases him and I have found that to be true.  When God tells you to do something He makes sure you do it.

Zebras was never my idea it was always God’s.  I was busy having a normal life, teaching school, raising children, teaching women’s Bible study, working in Awana, when God interrupted it in 2008.   At the time my pastor said “It sounds like you have a calling on your life,” which I didn’t really understand, but I do now.   

I know we have free will, but when the Spirit compels you to do something, it sure doesn’t feel that way, if feels like you have to do it or die trying.  I’m sure that is how Paul felt when He wrote in Corinthians “when I preach the gospel, I cannot boast, for I am compelled to preach. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!” 

And how Noah felt when he was working on the Ark. Noah was told by God to build the Ark.  My guess is it was more than a suggestion. My guess is Noah was compelled and all the jeering and laughing in the world was never going to be louder than the voice of God telling him to keep going.  Only a person compelled by God could continue working when the world said he was a fool.

On the seventeenth, I metaphorically finished my Ark. It is the first event where I did all God wanted me to do and said everything God wanted me to say. Afterwards I was overwhelmed with a sense of having finally finished my task. Hopefully that doesn’t mean the work is done, hopefully it means it’s just beginning. Noah built the ark. God brought the animals and the rain. Noah was done, God was just getting started.

Maybe it’s when we are finally at the end of what is possible for us to do, that God steps in and does the impossible.

I love you little zebras, thank you for all the prayers and support.  I am intermittently excited to see what is next.

Love,

Jill