Category Archives: Bible

Change…

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I am not a big fan of change. When something works, why fix it? If everything is going along fine, why mess with it? Can’t we just maintain the status quo, please?

There are a lot of changes going on all around me that I am completely powerless to stop. My kids are growing up and the family dynamics are swiftly changing. My father is in the throes of dementia and my mother’s way of life (and by extension, those of my sisters and me) is changing. Things at work are always changing. The weather is always changing. My weight is always changing. Even my weekend plans are always in a state of flux.

Sometimes I want to dig my feet in and just say no. This situation is fine just the way it is, thank you very much. But in my attempt to be more in line with God’s way of doing things I decided to look up the word “change” in the bible. I thought maybe I could find some justification for staying the same.

Dangit.

The word is used in two different ways, neither of which support my hopes of a static existence.

As a human we should desire change. Change from the old self into a new self.

As God, HE is unchangeable. In fact, he is the only thing that does not change.

*sigh*

Which means I have to change my way of thinking. And the truth is, change isn’t always a bad thing. In fact it might be a little uncomfortable at times, but usually it’s a good thing. Sometimes a really good thing.

So how do I accept change with the right attitude? Not by myself, I’ll tell you that!

First I remember Romans 8:28 ~

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

Okay. I love him and I know he’s called me according to his purpose, not my own. And he IS God, after all, which means he’s much smarter than I am. So maybe this change is a good thing.

Then I remember Philippians 4:6-7 ~

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

That “peace of God” part? It’s my favorite. Especially when the change isn’t welcomed at all, as in the example of my father’s declining health.

If I truly believe God is in control of everything then I suppose (albeit a little begrudgingly at times) I can handle the change.

Do you struggle with change? If not, what’s your secret? If so, what do you do about it?

 

 

Scripture Journal

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Several years ago, while doing homework for whatever bible study my women’s group was undertaking at the time, I came across the following verse:

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

Proverbs 10:19

An image of my 6 or 7 year old son trying unsuccessfully to talk his way out of something immediately popped into my head (it seemed I was constantly telling him he would get into less trouble if he’d just stop talking) and I burst out laughing. I was fairly certain this verse was put in the bible just for him and verifiable proof that God has a sense of humor.

I’ve never been good at memorizing scripture, but I certainly didn’t want to forget this verse so I wrote it down in a fat little 4×6 spiral binder with a quick blurb about why I liked it. Over time I recorded other passages – some funny, some pertinent to my situation at the time, and some encouraging. Some I found during a formal bible study, some I found as I was just perusing the good book and some I was shown by my friend, Beth.

All of that came to an end when I got sick seven years ago and I put the scripture journal away. I’m a little sad I didn’t keep up with it because it would probably be full by now. I came across my fat little binder in the drawer of my coffee table a few months ago. There are still a lot of empty pages in it, but not for long.

I would LOVE it if you would share some of your favorite verses here. It’s a really fat little binder and I’m going to need help filling it up!

Women of Christmas

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Today was our annual Christmas brunch and it was a blast (if I do say so myself, which I do). There was coffee and singing and coffee and laughing and coffee and eating…

A few months ago when Michele and Becky and I started planning the brunch, Becky mentioned she thought it would be a great idea to talk about the women of Christmas. I had no idea what she was talking about, but she’s pretty smart when it comes to all things Biblical so I agreed. She then went on to tell us about the five women listed in the genealogy of Jesus and how she thought of them as “The Women of Christmas”.

Tamar the deceiver

Rahab the prostitute

Ruth the foreigner

Bathsheba the victim and/or the adulteress (a lot of debate here)

Mary the righteous one

Five very different women with such diverse backgrounds, but all used for God’s very grand purpose of bringing us Jesus. I don’t know about you, but I find a lot of encouragement in that. 

You Can’t Phone It In

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I’ve just started doing the On Demand workouts with Jillian Michaels. For those of you who know me, you know that tight abs, muscular arms and a trim physique have always been a struggle for me to achieve. During this morning’s workout, Jillian said something that made sense. She said, “You can’t phone it in, you have to do the work!” Her comment made me think about the areas in my life where I have done the work. The results do come.  

I made the decision to follow Jesus some 10 years ago which for me meant committing to do the work – the work of developing  my relationship with him, reading and learning the Bible, serving in my church, giving my money and sharing my faith with others. I could have just walked out of the baptism tub and returned to the day-to-day, but I wanted so badly to change who I was! I wanted self-esteem, I wanted to accept and see other people the way God did instead of judging them, I wanted to contribute to something significant, I wanted others to get the same new life I’d been given.

Whether it’s spiritual growth or exercise, the work isn’t easy; it takes time and priority adjustments. The person I was 10 years ago is pretty much gone. I think my family and friends would agree. The hard work has gotten me amazing results. The physical changes are coming a bit more slowly, but Jillian’s comment encouraged me to continue to do the work in both areas of my life.

Phoning in our desire to change isn’t an option. We need to do the work.

She Did What She Could Do

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from Diane’s desk…

In the Bible – in the book of Mark – there is a story about a woman pouring expensive perfume on the feet of Jesus.  A similar story was told in several other places in the New Testament. Scholars are not sure if it’s the same woman or not, but it doesn’t matter. The fact that a woman gave up something of such value to honor the man she saw as her Savior, is consistent across all of the stories.

But in Mark, Jesus says a phrase that has stuck with me since I read it a couple of weeks ago.

She did what she could.

In the eyes of those around her, this gift seemed a waste of good perfume. Jesus knew differently.

I can envision this woman – a prostitute – meeting Jesus, feeling loved in a way that she had never been before. He saw into her heart, and loved her as a person. Frantically looking around her small room, all she had was a bottle of perfume given to her by a wealthy ‘customer’. She had valued it for a long time. In fact, she saw more value in that bottle of perfume than she saw in her sorry life. Others around her were having him over for dinner, giving him a place to stay. Wine to drink. All she had was this bottle of perfume. She knew what she had to do, and she didn’t care what others would say. She had to show him how much she loved him.

She did what she could.

I so often think that what I do for God, in comparison to others, is so insignificant. It never seems to be enough. I miss so many opportunities to show others the face of God. I fail more often than I care to admit.

Yet, I do what I can do. Each year, I pray I can do a little more, stretch a little deeper, with less fear. More confidence. More faith.

Each day, I have a choice to make. To stop doing because I’ll never measure up to others; because I’ll fail more often than I succeed. Or, I can decide, to ‘do what I can do’. To see what value I can give today, and give it. And then, work on more tomorrow.

I am confident, that God is OK with that.

Conversations

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This Bible discussion group is for women who want to know more, but have been afraid to ask. Together the group discusses questions about the Bible, Christianity, prayer, the church and everything in between.

Diane Karchner and Terri Stone lead the group. Join us at 9:00 AM the third Saturday of each month upstairs in classroom 1 of CCV’s Children’s Building! For more information, contact Terri Stone at 610.792.0777 ext. 207 or terri@moviechurch.com.

Conversations

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This group is for women who want to talk, question and explore Christianity, the Bible, church life, prayer and whatever else they might be mulling over in their minds! Women of all spiritual backgrounds are invited to participate. There’s no set curriculum, there’s nothing that’s off limits, there’s only open, honest and interesting discussion.

Terri Stone and Diane Karchner lead this group that meets the 3rd Saturday of every month, at 9:00 AM, in classroom #1 in CCV’s children’s building. Join us this Saturday, November 21st!

Weary and Burdened

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“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” – Matthew 11:28-20

This is one of my favorite passages from the Bible. Many years of my life were spent feeling weary and burdened that was until I began following Jesus and believing in what these words mean.

I told a couple of people last week that I was weary, tired and running on empty. As much as I love ministry, I sometimes find myself frustrated, disappointed, irritated and wondering why it has to be so hard.

Ministry’s hard because it’s all about people. We’re complicated, set in our ways, wounded, arrogant, doubtful, side-tracked and unmotivated. What I do becomes difficult because I’m one of those people who sees everything in black and white, right or wrong, which leaves me perplexed at times. I also happen to be a highly-driven perfectionist who will work non-stop to get it all done and get it done right! These traits, unfortunately, give me a narrow viewpoint when I’m under a great deal of stress.

How I’m “wired up” leads to being weary and burdened, but only when I keep Jesus at arm’s length. I end up experiencing weariness when I lose sight of the fact that God is using me to do his work, not mine! It’s so easy to forget that God’s in control, not me.

These times of unrest always pass thanks to the help of friends in ministry and out reminding me that Jesus is there every step of the way guiding, supporting and reaching to me. I just have to remember to reach back and find in him what I need.

Personality, Gifts, Passion

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I’m sure most of us have taken the “Myers Briggs” somewhere along the way, in school, the workplace, at church - you know, the results give you four letters that describe your personality: E or I, N or S, F or  T, J or P. There are 16 different personality types. I’m an ESFJ through and through - Extraverted, Sensing, Feeling, Judging. Here’s how an ESFJ is described:

Warmhearted, conscientious, and cooperative. Want harmony in their environment, work with determination to establish it. Like to work with others to complete tasks accurately and on time. Loyal, follow through even in small matters. Notice what others need in their day-by-day lives and try to provide it. Want to be appreciated for who they are and for what they contribute.

Gifts refer to the spiritual gifts I received when I made Jesus the leader and forgiver of my life and was baptized. My top 3 spiritual gifts are evangelism, teaching and leadership.

My passion centers on people. What makes my heart beat fast is helping people meet and form a relationship with Jesus, coming alongside them as they learn about him and connecting them into the life of the church. I love doing these things, just love them!

These descriptions all look good on paper, but in reality it’s not always that peachy! The last couple of months have been extremely stressful for me at work. I know, I know, most would say, “how can working for the church be stressful?” It can be. While my personality is described as this warm and fuzzy, upbeat, team player who goes around all day making sure everybody’s needs are met, when things aren’t working out so harmoniously, my deadlines are impacted by others, and I get verbally roughed up by a co-worker, I’m like a volcano that grumbles and heats up and eventually erupts thousands of feet into the air. And what comes out is just as hot and dangerous as what comes out of a real volcano! What’s more difficult, is that I want to speak up, work it out, and explain myself, but most of the time I can’t do it. I can’t do it because, for years, I’ve been told I’m too emotional, unapproachable, too black & white, overly upset. If I’m quiet, others can’t say or think those things about me which is what an ESFJ wants – harmony!

My volcano erupted last night and it wasn’t good! Two people I love and trust said I need to figure out how to STOP letting stuff impact me so deeply and so personally. Yeah, I know that, but boy is it hard to put into practice. They also told me the only thing I can control and change is me. They’re right again.

So today’s a new day. I’m up doing what brings me comfort and hope – reading my Bible, talking to God and writing it down. Prayer, Jesus’ words, and time alone always bring the start of change and healing; the continued growth toward Christlikeness.

Brunch – Handout

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For those who have asked (and for those who may have missed)…here is the content of the handout that was provided at yesterday’s brunch. Enjoy!

What is love?

1 John 3.16

John 3.16

1 John 4.18

John 15.13

Does God love us?

1 John 4.10

Eph 3.17-19

2 Thes. 3.5

1 John 3.1

Do we have to love him first?

1 John 4.10

1 John 4.16

1 John 4.19

Do we have to be sinless or perfect for him to love us?

I John 1.8

Romans 5.8