Epic Fail

My daughter has picked up this new phrase since going to college. It makes me laugh, and I like being able to not take failure so seriously. So I thought it would make a good title for this post.

"And you are those who have stood by me in my trials" Luke 22:28

How can Jesus make such a statement to these disciples just after they had been caught arguing about who was the greatest?! I know that Jesus isn't lying, but how can He say this? Really? In just a little while these men will abandon him, scatter like sheep and leave Him alone. Jesus knew perfectly well what was going to happen, even giving Peter the details of how he would deny knowing Him. They may fail Him in the near future, but they are not always going to be so cowardly. Soon they'll be speaking boldly in front of all audiences, going to prison, being tortured and killed. The name of Jesus will rock the known world because these men will fearlessly speak of Him.

Does the Lord speak confidently because He knows the power of God to transform them? Is that how He is able to look beyond severely disappointing behavior of those closest to Him and not be discouraged by their failures?

Everyday I am the recipient of this hopeful confidence. The Lord makes this outrageously hopeful statement about us: "just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him" (Ephesians 1:4). I certainly don't feel holy and blameless, I absolutely don't act it and would never think of myself that way, but I believe He sees me that way. My failures cannot limit the hope of what He does to change me.

Might we, in turn, show this same attitude towards our children, our brothers and sisters in Christ, our husbands when they disappoint us? It's hard not to get caught up in all the negative, not to focus on the failures. Can we go so far as to say positive things, no matter how outrageous they may seem? Can we speak hope to them without dwelling on their mistakes, and not wonder if we are lying? Can we look to the future, not on the basis of their ability to change, but on the basis of knowing Him, the Lord Jesus Christ, and His resurrection power?

Five Minutes of Faith

Try to imagine yourself in a boat with the disciples, emotions are heightened, exhaustion has set in, waves are beating the boat and tossing you about. Suddenly, you see a shape walking on the water. As if being in the storm wasn't scary enough, you are all thoroughly frightened now by what you think is a ghost. The ghost says that he is Jesus and Peter asks the Lord to command him to walk out to meet him.

How in the world did such an insane idea occur to Peter?

What a miracle that he was able to walk on the water even for a short time before fear of the winds sent him sinking!

From the comfort and safety of my chair, I find it easy to think "Peter, you were going so well, what happened?"

But if I had been on that boat, I would have been shouting at Peter over the noise of the storm "are you nuts, what are you trying to do? Don't get out of the boat!"

You have to give it to him, it took some gutsy faith to step out on that water. True, it was just a flash of faith, but what a fantastic faith it was. I can't be critical of Peter's failure since fear and doubt keep me from "stepping out out of the boat" all the time.

The Lord said to Peter after rescuing him, "O you of little faith, why did you doubt?"

If Peter's faith was little, what is mine like?

Oh that I could have bursts of flashy faith like Peter's than no faith at all!

Lot Lingered

I was reading Lot's story in Genesis 19 and I noticed something curious that I hadn't noticed before.

After the angels tell Lot to get out of town FAST because the city was about to be punished, he lingers. Imagine this were a movie, we'd all be on the edge of our seats thinking "what are you waiting for, GO!". Lot doesn't move. Instead, the angels grabbed the whole family by the hand and brought them out of the city "for the Lord was merciful to him".

I had always been taught to imitate Lot's righteous behavior, that, because Lot was righteous, he was saved. At least, he seemed more righteous than the others of Sodom. Maybe he was the only righteous one left, but that didn't save him. In the end, it was only God's mercy that did.

Why in the world would Lot hesitate? Then again, why in the world would I? How often do I linger when I most definitely ought to run? How often has God in His mercy grabbed me by the hand and rescued me from the destruction of my own sin when I had refused to leave it myself? I linger because I don't truly believe in God's wrath. If I saw my sin in light of God's holiness, if I understood just how much God hates my sin, I would "work out my salvation in fear and trembling". (Phil. 2:12) I would say to myself 'Don't be stupid, my "God is a consuming fire"'( Dt 4:24, Heb. 12:29).

There is no greater joy than to know that our children walk with the Lord. But I wonder if we are trusting that if they just behave more righteously than all those around them, they will avoid sin. Will that be enough to deter them from doing the wrong thing, from lingering until it is too late? Neither being lulled into a self-righteous complacency, nor fearing our punishment more than God's, will produce the ultimate change of heart we seek in our children. If, however, we help them gain a correct view of God's holiness and mercy, they just might not be so quick to play with fire and so slow to get out of a burning building.

So how do we teach a proper view of God? In addition to living it by example, an honest review of the Old Testament is a wonderful place to start.

Who died and made you God?

That's what my siblings and I used to say to each other when we thought one was taking too much liberties with his power, “who died and made you God?”

Have you ever had to remind your kids that they are not the parent? It is very irritating to have teenagers questioning our wisdom, especially when we all know that puberty makes our kids act like idiots.

So then, how must it appear to God when we question Him?

Habakkuk questioned the Lord.

“I will take my stand at my watchpost and station myself on the tower, and look out to see what He will say to me, and what I will answer concerning my complaints.” Habakkuk 2:1 ESV

I will stand and make my complaints to the Lord, how will He answer?

Habakkuk’s complaint is the Lord’s delay in delivering them from the Chaldeans. He doesn’t deny that Israel has disobeyed and should be punished, he just can’t get on board with the Lord’s choice of instruments to punish them.

Well, I can relate to that. I often don’t like or agree with the Lord’s choices in my life. I’m all for being transformed into something better; but is suffering the only tool He uses? It would be so much easier if He would use “nice” people to teach me lessons. I just wish I could have more say in whom or what He uses to accomplish that. I’m not complaining, just voicing my opinion, right?

It seems to me that Habbakuk is saying this, ‘Where have you been, Lord, and what do you have to say for yourself?’

Yeah Lord, see me standing on my holy tower. Explain yourself.

He answers us:

“But the Lord is in His holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before Him.” Habakkuk 2:20 ESV

Reminds me of Job’s response to the Lord.

“Behold, I am of small account; what shall I answer you? I lay my hand on my mouth.” Job 40:4 ESV

The Daughters of the King tea was an sweet afternoon shared between all of the daughters at the chapel.

If you would like full-resolution copies of any of these photos, just email Cassidy at cassidybaker16@gmail.com!

Doing My Part

In my basement, I have a central heater that keeps my house nice and warm. I like knowing that I have a heater in my house and when I’m cold I can crank it up to a nice 68 degrees. Funny thing is if my front door is open, I can feel a burr-y cold draft. Do I immediately suppose that I have lost my heater? No, that would be silly. I simply need to get up from my comfortable chair and go close the door. I might need to lean up against it until I hear it click, to make sure it is closed tightly. But that’s really all the effort required to stop the cold from disrupting the effect of my heater. I still have one, in my basement.

On the night when Jesus’s disciples’ world was about to be turned upside down, He said to them, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” John 14:27 ESV Even though they possess peace, they still are told to not permit anxiety and fear to disrupt it.

Basically, Jesus is saying to us as well, “I have given you MY peace, now don’t let yourselves get troubled, worried, fearful, anxious, or distraught.”

You see, PEACE is IN the house, but we’ve got to keep the doors closed. How do we keep those drafts of anxiety out? You “close the door” on them by praying.

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7 ESV

Don’t Be Fooled

“He did not need that anyone should witness concerning man, needed no evidence from anyone about men; for He Himself knew what was in human nature. [He could read men’s hearts.] John 2:25 Amplified Version

“Nothing is [so closely] covered up that it will not be revealed, or hidden that it will not be known.” Luke 12:2 Amplified Version

God is not fooled; we cannot hide anything from Him.

How good were you at deceiving your parents? Not too good if you had a mom like mine, who always seemed to know when I was trying to hide something. None of us are as deception proof as we would like to think. Your kids have most likely succeeded in pulling the wool over your eyes now and then.

They might have us fooled, but they can’t fool Him. I try to take comfort in that, especially when I wish that I could take comfort in knowing that my child’s heart is right with God. The motives of the heart are beyond my scope of discipline and knowledge. So then, how do we impress on our children the practical truth that God sees all and knows all that is in their hearts?

First, let us accept our limitations. Second, let us pray that God exposes our children’s sin, gives them a heart sensitive to the Spirit, doesn’t let them “get away with” deception. Third, let’s show by example that we believe that God indeed reads our own hearts.

The Love Law

Can love be written into a law? Some would say that it isn’t love unless it comes from the heart. It’s not true love if you are obligated to do it. This morning my husband came to poor me coffee and said “unconditional love” and I thought to myself, “is there really any other kind of love that is true?”

“You must not hate your fellow citizen in your heart. If your neighbor does something wrong, tell him about it, or you will be partly to blame. Forget about the wrong things people do to you, and do not try to get even.

Love your neighbor as you love yourself. I am the Lord.”

Leviticus 19:17-18 New Century Version

I’m blown away by the direct simplicity of these statements, “tell him about it, forget about it”. But have you ever purposed to forget an offense, only to find yourself, a few minutes later, replaying every detail over and over in your mind? My flesh loves to circle the event like a movie camera catching every angle all in the name of understanding it better. In the end, I’ve only tied myself into such a complicated knot that I’m too stuck to just obey. My mom used to always tell me that when I gave my daughter a direct order I should be quiet and expect her to obey. I wonder if God expects me to obey this?

When I’ve been hurt by another person, I have two options: tell him or forget about it.

I do neither.

By what standard should I love another? By the standard I apply to myself; and let’s face it, my love for self is a deep well that never refuses me.

Stubborn? Me?

“For Israel has behaved stubbornly, like a stubborn heifer. How then should he expect to be fed and treated by the Lord like a lamb in a large pasture?”

Hosea 4:16 Amplified Version
Doesn’t this remind you of your kids? of your teens? So many times as a mom I felt like I was being taken advantage of, being abused. I would plead for good behavior on the basis of all I did. It seemed logical that my kid would see the great disproportion of goodness going her way and want to restore balance. What a joke! What was I thinking??!!
Our sin nature does not see things this way. We expect those who love us to give selflessly, while we take what is owed to us. Isn’t that how we often approach God?
Are we not guilty of the same disconnect between how we behave and how we are treated?
We stubbornly insist to do as we please, to have things our way, while, at the same time, expect to receive blessings from a loving and gracious God.
Now there is no possible way that we can balance the scales so to speak, but we can give Him obedience. We can give Him the sacrifice of praise. We can surrender our wills to Him. We can try.

Sheep without a Shepherd

"When He saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.

Then He said to His disciples,

'The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest." Matthew 9:36-38 esv

Dare we pray that the Lord send them from among our own children!