Looking Forward

2 Timothy 1:7 (NLT)

For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.

Good morning Zebras,

Each year it seems God gives me a verse that becomes the focus of my life for the following year.  It isn’t something I choose, but something God chooses for me and it usually builds on the verses He has given me before.

When I first started teaching women at the Awana conferences a few years ago the passage I used most often was Philippians 4:8:  “Whatever is true, whatever is noble…think on these things and the peace of God will be with you.”  My focus was to encourage women to learn God’s word and apply it to their lives, to quit taking their value from the things of the world but from God Himself who has created them in His image for His purpose.  And also that women needed to learn to get along and support one other because Satan is tearing us apart. It was the beginning of Zebras.

The next year I taught what I considered to be my first women’s retreat.  The retreat was centered on Psalm 46:10a, which tells us to be still and know God.  I learned so much as I prepared for that retreat about what it means to be still before the Lord and even more about who God really is. It became the foundation for my life.

The next retreat was on pursuing God, God promises in Psalm 34:10b that those who seek the Lord will lack no good thing.  It was eye opening and very challenging to study the lives of men like Abraham, Moses, David and Paul and to see what it really looked like to live a life totally dedicated to honoring God. I learned, among other things that God’s work must be done God’s way; that God does ask us to sacrifice those things we love most to Him; and that real faith means believing what God says and acting on it.

For the last year my passion has been on resting in Christ and the promise found in Matthew 11:28. This year I didn’t do just one retreat but a series of mini retreats at various churches.  I think God had me to do mini-retreats because every time I did one I learned more.  I still don’t think I know everything there is to know about who Jesus is, but I know A WHOLE lot more than when I started.

So this coming year, in preparation for the Walking in the Spirit retreat scheduled for next September, it’s time to focus on the Holy Spirit.  I can’t teach what I don’t practice and recently God has allowed me to see how often fear keeps me from doing what I am supposed to do. But God has not given us a spirit of fear but of power, love and self-discipline and I am VERY excited to learn what that really means.

Love,
Jill

Omnipresent

Psalm 139:7–12 (NLT) 
 

“I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence!  If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there.  If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me and your strength will support me.  I could ask the darkness to hide me and the light around me to become night— but even in darkness I cannot hide from you. To you the night shines as bright as day. Darkness and light are the same to you.”

Good morning Zebras,

Today’s attribute is omnipresent; the attribute that means God is all-present.   He is with me while I am writing this and He is with you while you are reading it.  He is not limited by time or space so only God has the ability to be EVERYWHERE all the time. And it’s an attribute God had to help me to understand.

Some Christians use God’s omnipresence like parents use Santa.  “Don’t do anything you don’t want God to see because He is right there with you.”  So, for me God became a police officer in the sky, the enforcer whose presence keeps you under control, which made God’s presence oppressive and unpleasant.

The first time I read today’s verses I thought David agreed.  Poor David, I knew exactly how he felt, no matter where you go you can’t get away from God. But obviously that isn’t what David is saying at all. David isn’t complaining because he was trying to hide from God and couldn’t.  He was praising God because David understood that everywhere he went God’s guidance and strength went with him.

The other thing Christians do sometimes is to pray for God’s presence.  So I started doing the same thing.  It was a case of “Monkey see, monkey do,” until recently.  About a year ago I was praying for my son during my morning quiet time.  Nick was on a mission trip so I was praying what every mother prays when their child is on a mission trip “that God would be with Nick and the rest of the kids on the trip."

And God stopped me for a little clarification.

“Jill,” He said, “you do not need to pray for me to be with Nick and the others, I am already there.  My presence does not depend upon your prayers.  Pray instead that Nick and the others would be aware I am there.”

It was one of those light bulb moments where your understanding of God grows. So now I no longer pray for God’s presence.  Not because it is a bad prayer, but because it seems to shrink God and could be a stumbling block to others.

Dear Heavenly Father, I do thank you for Your omnipresence, Your ability to be everywhere at the same time and I pray each of us would have an increased awareness today of Your presence not only in our lives but in the lives of those we love.  

Love,

Jill

Infinite

1 Kings 8:27 (NLT) 

“But will God really live on earth? Why, even the highest heavens cannot contain you. How much less this Temple I have built!”

Good morning Zebras,

Today’s attribute is infinite.

I know I have written about this before but I couldn’t find it.  I went through the older postings on the zebra website but when I couldn’t easily locate it I decided God wanted me to write it again.

Infinite is the very first attribute Tozer covers in his The Attributes of God books.  When I first read them I thought that was a very odd place to start.  If we were explaining God to someone we would start with His love, or maybe His holiness, but we would never start with that fact that He is infinite.

But knowing that God is infinite, that He exists beyond space and time is important if you are trying to understand how great God is. Because God is infinite He cannot be measured.  We talk about endless wealth or boundless energy but there is really no such thing.  Everything we have and do is finite and can be measured except for God. 

Which means every time we try to explain God, we limit His greatness.

Recently I have felt the strain of trying to explain God with mere words.  Words cannot do justice to something that is beyond our understanding, but since it is all we have, they will have to do.

The fact that God is infinite also means that every attribute He possesses, He possesses infinitely.  Therefore there is no end to His wisdom, His love or His power.   They go on and on, into infinity, never reaching an end.  That too is beyond our understanding.  We have a limit on our knowledge, abilities, and love.  God because He is infinite does not.

But still sometimes we don’t realize how great God is until we put it into perspective.

Think about an ant.  It is a great little insect, one which I hope we can all agree is inferior to man.  Yet an ant is a finite creature, it can be measured.  There is a limit to physical characteristics and abilities.    As humans, we too are finite creatures who have limits and can be measured.  But God, because He is infinite, does not.

This means, God, in His infinitude, is more superior to humans than humans are to ants.  For, although the distant between us and an ant can be measured the distance between us and God cannot.  We were created in the image of God, and we have many of His characteristics but the difference between us and He is infinite.

Which when you think about it is very, very comforting.  Because I don’t know about you, but I don’t want a God who I can fully explain or understand.  Nor do I want a god whose powers and abilities are as limited as my own. I want my God to be the infinite, perfect, all-knowing, all-wise, all-loving, infinitely boundless, perfect God that is found in the Bible. Don’t you?

Love,

Jill

Omnipotent

Matthew 28:18 (NLT)

Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth.”

Good morning Zebras,

Today’s attribute, omnipotent, dovetails so nicely with yesterday’s attribute of goodness that I know God planned it that way. The fact God has all power is one of the reasons why Christians have to understand that God is good.  If God was good and didn’t have all power He would be like Santa, a nice guy but rather useless in the crunch.  And if He had all power and was mean, that would just be scary.  Men like Hitler and Stalin had limited power but evil hearts and they wreaked havoc in the world.  Can you imagine what an evil all-powerful God could do?

God is good and God has all power and the combination is something that every Christian can rejoice over.

The Bible Dictionary says there are four aspects to power as explained in the Bible.  There is the unlimited power of God, the limited power that God gives to His creatures, the power of God as displayed through Jesus and the power of God working in the lives of His people.

A beautiful summation of the unlimited power of God is found in 1Chronicles 29:11-12.   “Yours, O Lord, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, and the majesty. Everything in the heavens and on earth is yours, O Lord, and this is your kingdom. We adore you as the one who is over all things. Wealth and honor come from you alone, for you rule over everything. Power and might are in your hand, and at your discretion people are made great and given strength.”

And from that power God grants limited power to His creation. Since all power comes from God no one can have power unless God gives it to them He is the one who sets up rulers and brings them down.  No government exists unless God has allowed it.

Jesus knew that.  He knew that everything that was happening to Him was under the power of God. Look at His response to Pilate as recorded in John 19:11a (NLT) Then Jesus said, “You would have no power over me at all unless it were given to you from above.” Understanding that all power is given by God can give you peace in even the worst situations.

Then there is the power God gives to believers through the indwelling Holy Spirit.  The Bible Dictionary explains it like this:  The gospel itself is “the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith.” In that life, as children of God, power is received from the Holy Spirit, inner strength to live in his service, power to be his witnesses, power to endure suffering, power that enables for ministry, power in the face of weakness, power through prayer, and power to be kept from evil.  Pretty much all the power we need to accomplish what God has called us to do but too often we don’t utilize it.

The power of God is like a present that remains unwrapped under the tree, useless unless you open it, understand it, and put it to work.

Jesus replied, “Your mistake is that you don’t know the Scriptures, and you don’t know the power of God.  Mark 12:24 (NLT)

Love,

Jill

Good

John 10:11 (NLT)

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd sacrifices his life for the sheep.”

Good morning Zebras,

Today’s attribute is good.

Whether or not God is good is a question every Christian needs to settle for themselves and one I have written about before.  Because of my own personal experiences reconciling the goodness of God with the reality of my life was a necessary task before I could begin to grow spiritually.

Reconciling Psalm 119:68 (NLT) “You are good and do only good; teach me your decrees,” with the realities of life is sometimes difficult but absolutely necessary.  It’s imperative as Christians that we understand God is good because the Bible says so, not because of the circumstances of our life.  If God is good only because our life is good then what happens when things turn bad?

In the beginning God made everything good.  Adam and Eve messed it up.  They introduced sin into God’s perfect world.  But God in His goodness did not destroy them.  He punished them for their sin by sending them from the Garden but He did not kill them as they deserved.

Instead He continued on with His plan.

In His goodness He sent His son to pay the penalty for our sins and to reconcile us to Himself.  Jesus is the ultimate expression of the goodness of God.  And yet people still accuse Him of being unkind or unfair when He doesn’t do exactly what they want.

It is rather silly when you think about it.

What we want is a “happy” life.  But God has bigger plans.  He wants us to have a “holy” life.  He wants us to be transformed into the image of His son so that we can reach the world for Christ.  Christians who blame God and whine when their circumstances are unpleasant do not advance the kingdom.

I know because I’ve been there.

God has us on a journey. He has told us the destination, He has paid the price of our admittance but He hasn’t told us everything that is going to happen along the way.  He has reassured us that He is in charge and He has asked us to trust Him.  He has even warned us the road will be difficult but He has promised us it is worth it.

But sometimes, like spoiled kids whose father is taking them to Disneyland, we complain and malign the goodness of God because He won’t stop and get us a soda.

Love,

Jill

Fah Who Foraze! Welcome Christmas, Christmas Day!

James 1:17 (NIV)

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

2 Peter 1:3 (NLT)

By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life.

Good morning Zebras,

As Christmas approaches it gets harder and harder not to focus on what is going to be under the tree on Christmas morning, at least for me.

What I want for Christmas is something that can’t be bought.  It is the privilege of continuing to do ministry, especially Zebras.  I love going out and encouraging God’s women to grow in their relationship with God and with one another.

Obviously, that isn’t something that can be wrapped up and put under the tree.  It is something that I have to wait upon God to provide.  He has to open the doors and provide the opportunities for me to speak.

Though the more I thought about it, the more I realized there are a lot of people who want things for Christmas that can’t be bought.  People who are ill want their health, infertile women want children, unemployed people just want a job and grieving people want their loved one back.

Then I realized even those people who want things that can go under the tree are dependent upon God.  God is the one who provides the money to buy the presents that sit under the tree on Christmas morning. Which is easy to forget when you have enough money or credit to buy whatever you want, but it is painfully clear when you don’t.

And in all of this the meaning of Christmas can easily get lost. And self-pity can set in.

When Dorothy and her friends appeared before the wizard in the Wizard of Oz, he pulled from his black bag things that helped everyone but Dorothy. They each received a worldly token that gave them what they needed. The lion felt brave, the scarecrow felt smart and the tin man began to cry.  But Dorothy knew there was nothing in the little black bag for her because all she wanted was to go home.

Lately I have been feeling like Dorothy but when I shared my feelings with my daughter she threw cold water on my pity party and reminded me of something I’d forgotten.

The reason the wizard didn’t have anything for Dorothy in his black bag was because she already had everything she needed.  The ruby slippers she had worked so hard to protect had the power to take her home.  She just didn’t know it.

So after a rough few days, I think God has me refocused. God has already given me so very much that if He never gave me another thing it would still be more than I deserved. And the focus of Christmas should not be the excitement of what is to come, but the gratitude for what has already been done.

Love,

Jill

Stop and Chew

Galatians 5:22–23 (NLT)  

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

Good morning Zebras,

I wasn’t going to write a z-mail this morning because my brain is starting to hurt. Thinking a lot about God’s attributes, as revealed in scripture, is putting me into information overload and I decided I need a day or two to process what I have already learned.  But then I realized that should be the subject of the z-mail.

When I was little my mom used to tell me to chew my food thirty-two times before swallowing.  Personally, I think chewing your food that much turns it into disgusting goo, but it is probably better for my digestive system than the chew, chew, swallow I normally do.

So today I need to slow down and chew on God’s word thoroughly before I swallow and move on to the next bite.

Let’s start with patience. I used to think I was being patient when I could endure, without complaining, rush hour traffic or a long line at the grocery store.  But after studying the Biblical definition of patience I realized I am so far from God’s goal it isn’t even funny.

The type of patience that Jesus displayed was not silent suffering through situations He could not change, but an active choice not to change a situation that He could.  He didn’t have to be patient, He wasn’t “forced” to wait, He chose to wait knowing that God’s will would prevail.

And He waited knowing that what the people were doing was wrong and evil.

Then there is gentle, the attribute we talked about yesterday.  The Bible says to “let your gentleness be evident to all.’  To ALL, not just your family not to just a select few friends but to everyone you meet or interact with though out the day.

Wow!  That is a lot of gentleness!

But what is gentleness.  It is not something we are born with.  It is not a quiet nature or a soft voice. It is a way of interacting with others we have to cultivate because it is one of the nine fruits of the Spirit and a character displayed by Christ.  It is an attitude which allows us to deal with others in a way that benefits them. 

It means I have to think more of you than I think of me. And it means that I have to deal kindly with everyone, even those people who I sinfully judge to be inferior, because that is what Christ did for me.

Love,

Jill