Palm Sunday Thoughts

So, as I'm listening to my pastor preach about Palm Sunday and the Triumphant Entry, an interesting thought popped in.  These people in Jerusalem who are hailing the King as He enters the city are probably the same ones that were shouting for Him to be crucified a few days later.  Its amazing how much things can change in that short amount of time.

Of course, like things normally go as I'm sitting in church, when I have these random thoughts and questions, something about the sermon will help to answer it.  These people who are celebrating Jesus' return to Jerusalem were wanting a king to come in and save them from Roman rule.  That is the king they were hailing as he came into the city.  But Jesus didn't come for that purpose.  His purpose was greater than anyone at the time could have ever comprehended.  He didn't come to save them from the oppression of the Romans.  He came to save them from the oppression of sin.  They were probably thinking Jesus would come in, say a few words and the Romans would be destroyed and the Jews would finally be free.  Instead, the man they were hoping would deliver them does nothing when he's arrested and beaten.  He takes the beating and just listens as they shout for His death.  Someone even challenged Him to save himself as He was hanging on the cross and He didn't.  He knew what He had to do in order to save us all, and He finished that task.

So I think the reason the people were cheering for Him one moment and shouting for His death the next is because they wanted something small when Jesus came to complete something greater.

I'm so glad I live in today's world where I can look back and see how God's plan was working rather than being one of the people with certain expectations of what the Messiah would be and then being disappointed.

Of course, it could also be said that too often I think I know how God is going to do something and get disappointed when He doesn't.  I should instead try to wait patiently and see what He's going to do instead that's going to serve a greater purpose in my life and the lives of those around me.

How about you?  Do you have specific examples of how your expectations of the actions of God haven't panned out, but in the end were better and more glorifying to God?  Or do you have your own thoughts about Palm Sunday, perhaps something YOUR pastor preached about this Sunday.  Leave a comment below and tell me about it!

Children Worshipping

This morning, I had the joy of running sound for the children's worship service at my church.  I used to do this all the time, but I've stepped away for a while now and let others take care of things for me lately.  This morning was the first time in months that I was up there.  I had forgotten how much fun it can be to worship with kids.  They have so much energy and absolutely no shame.  Adults need to take a cue from kids.  We shouldn't be afraid to just let it all go and completely worship God with all that we are, regardless of who is around us and how they might make fun of us.  How much joy would be ours if we unabashedly worshipped God with everything that's within us?

It was a great time and I loved just watching them dance and listening to them shout the lyrics to the songs. If you haven't been to the children's service at your church, I recommend trying it once...but you have to participate :)  And if you're church doesn't have a quality children's program, come try mine :)

Bible Study

I've been attending a Ladies' Bible Study recently where we're going through Luke using a Beth Moore study called, "Jesus the One and Only."  Right now we're going through the last week of Jesus, which is quite appropriate given that Easter is coming up.

Last night a few things stood out to me that Beth pointed out in the video session.  The study was about Jesus' time in the Garden of Gethsemane.  Something I've always been aware of was that this is really the only time we see Jesus, the man struggling with God and his will.  He knows the pain He's going to go through and would love for His father to take it all away.  He's in a "war of the will" as Beth Moore puts it.  How often have you felt you were in a war of the will with God?  I definitely went through about a year long war with God struggling to first ignore, then to question and doubt and finally accept what His will was for this time in my life.

Another really interesting thing Beth Moore talked about in her video, and something that needs to happen during any challenge, comes from the idea of anguish.  In Luke 22:44 it talks about Jesus being in anguish as He's praying.  Beth tells us in her video that the Greek word for this means having a fear that doesn't run away, but continues on to the end despite the fear.  I may still have fear and anguish about what I'm going to do, but I need to have the kind of anguish that continues on and does what I know God is leading me through until the end.

Sermon Series

Have you ever been through a sermon series where it feels like every message is meant or you? I hope so... If you haven't, it's probably because you haven't been listening to the sermon very well :)

The series my pastor has been going through the last two weeks has very much felt like it was written and planned with me in mind. I'm pretty sure it wasn't, so I know it has to be God talking to me through my pastor.

The series is about the call we feel in our lives to chase after adventure. Today he made the point that God never tells us he's safe. He just promises to go with us wherever He sends us. Right now I'm struggling to remember that God is not only sending me to Africa, but He's promised to with me. I find myself nervous and afraid of leaving my comfort zone and the security of my family. This series is reminding me that just because he called me out of my comfort zone doesn't mean he's going to leave me on my own. I need to continually remind myself that I will never be alone in my life no matter whether I'm in Ohio or Africa.

It's a timely and important reminder that I have my pastor (speaking the Words of God) to thank.

Since Februrary 2010

A lot has happened in the last year and I have a lot to let all of you know about.

First off, I promised I would discuss a few of the signs that came up that confirmed I was supposed to go.  The biggest one was that my aunt had a dream that Satan would attack me and try to get me to feel like I shouldn't be going on this trip.  She had a last name of someone that the devil would use to try to change my mind.  As soon as she woke up from the dream, she prayed and then texted me what her dream had been about so I could be prepared.  Now, you should know that this is a very unusual occurrence for my aunt.  She's never had something like this happened to her ever before.  So when I received the text, I was instantly on alert.  Then, that evening I was discussing with one of the pastors at my church and he told me some information of things that were happening.  One of the families involved had the last name my aunt had given me THAT morning!  To say that I received confirmation at that point is an understatement.  From now on, anytime I have doubts creep in about whether I should go or not, I just remember my aunt's dream and my confidence in my task returns.

Since I last posted, I have filled out my application, turned it in and gotten confirmation that I will be going.  At this point, it appears that Tanzania could possibly by my destination.  I would be working with missionary kids and teaching them as well as working with the missionary team already in place.

This gets me excited, nervous, impatient, a whole gamut of emotions.  But, I am ready to get started in the next step of the process and know for sure where I'm going and what I'll be doing.  So, please be in prayer for me and for this opportunity to spread God's word and work with people dedicated to bringing Him to people who have never learned about Him.  I will keep you updated on my journey as I get really going on this new path.  I hope you are blessed even a little with my journey as I'm sure I will be over and abundantly blessed by it myself.

Feb. 2010: God starts working on my heart

For a few months after I made the decision that doing mission work would be my back up plan, I was content to wait and see if I still had a job at the end of the school year. Thankfully, God had other plans.

In February God started working on my heart and challenging me to trust Him completely with my future. I couldn't stop thinking about the fact that I had made it my back-up plan when maybe it should be my only plan. I couldn't stop thinking about the fact that it would be an amazing opportunity to go and do something for more than myself. But, I liked my comfortableness. I didn't want to give it up.

Then, on February 14, Valentine's Day, a day I'm extra emotional anyways because I haven't had a valentine since 7th grade, my pastor gives a sermon that cuts down all my defenses. He preached about phileo love. It's a relational type of love and when applied to our Christian lives, it is the kind of love we have in relationship with God. But the words that really struck me in his sermon is when he started pointing out what phileo love with God looks like. He asked the question, "Do you love God enough to give up your comfort?" That hit me so hard that I broke down on the spot.

I knew that I had trust issues. But I always thought I was pretty good at loving God-not perfect, but better at loving Him than trusting Him. But here my pastor was, pointing out that trust and love go hand-in-hand. Not trusting God with my future was the same as not loving Him. And if I truly want to love God, then I need to trust Him with everything-even if it means giving up my comfortable life. That's when I really made the decision to go to the mission field. A lot has happened to confirm that I'm supposed to go, but I'll get into that in another post. For now, you should know that I am hoping to leave for Africa sometime in July 2011.

November 2009

So for about a month, I struggled with trusting my future to God. I didn't know if I would still be teaching the next year or not. All I knew was that I had to figure out how to trust God completely with my future. Then, on Wednesday, November 4 I went with the youth group to see Hillsong United's "We're All in This Together" movie. The movie is a documentary of their tour around the world and the injustice and unfairness that goes on in so many places. They advocated for justice, compassion, and mercy for these people and children that they met along the way. The movie was thought-provoking and inspiring. Towards the end of the movie, an idea straight from God popped into my head. I should go serve in the mission field at least for a short time. Now, my interpretation of this was that I should use that idea as a back-up plan for in case I lost my job. This was me not trusting in God to provide for ALL my needs, but it would take about 4 months for me to open my eyes to that. For now, I knew what I would do if I did lose my job so my mind was at ease for at least a short period of time.