New Year
I’m up late and celebrating Chinese New Year by anticipating seeing some of my precious Chinese friends in Thailand. In a few hours, I will begin the 25+ hours of flying and waiting to get to Chiang Mai.
As I prepare myself emotionally for the trip, I have hopes and dreams for those I love there. I anticipate spending time with the Reagans and enjoying the Christian zone. But deep in my heart is a yearning to see more of these precious ones as part of my forever family in Christ. And as I think about how long my trip is, I remember the long trip Jesus made and how costly it was for him. He took it so we would know how much the Father loves us and how deeply he wants us in his forever family.
I also carry in my heart concerns for my family at home while I’m away and while we look for the underlying issue that has caused some of Megan’s health problems. My heart runs to Kentucky and my precious son and daughter-in-law and their two foster boys: oh how I would love to see them be part of our physical and forever family! I think of Donna and the busy and challenging week ahead she faces at school. I pray for our my home congregation and Mitch Wilburn’s Sunday time with them — hoping he helps us catch a little bit bigger glimpse of God’s desire to do more than we imagine to reach those who are lost around us.
So please say a prayer — all my bags are packed and my heart is prepped and my plans are made. Come, O Holy Spirit, and make this more than a long trip and a visit from a friend: make it your work accomplished and the Father’s name glorified and the love of the Son experienced.
Be Born in Me
Sometimes images and music make the words we hold dear, dearer still. The emotion of the music and the grittiness of the images make the truth of God no longer something to be studied, but grace to be received. So first the holy and inspired words of an outcast turned into a witness. Then the powerful demonstration of the truth of these words in song and sight for us to capture and hold and say, “Be born in me.”
The birth of Jesus took place like this. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. Before they came to the marriage bed, Joseph discovered she was pregnant. (It was by the Holy Spirit, but he didn’t know that.) Joseph, chagrined but noble, determined to take care of things quietly so Mary would not be disgraced.
While he was trying to figure a way out, he had a dream. God’s angel spoke in the dream: “Joseph, son of David, don’t hesitate to get married. Mary’s pregnancy is Spirit-conceived. God’s Holy Spirit has made her pregnant. She will bring a son to birth, and when she does, you, Joseph, will name him Jesus—‘God saves’—because he will save his people from their sins.” This would bring the prophet’s embryonic sermon to full term:
Watch for this—a virgin will get pregnant and bear a son;
They will name him Emmanuel (Hebrew for “God is with us”).Then Joseph woke up. He did exactly what God’s angel commanded in the dream: He married Mary. But he did not consummate the marriage until she had the baby. He named the baby Jesus.
From worshiphousemedia.com and Francesca Battistelli.
Sagrada Time!
It is time to be thinking about going and serving in the orphanage in Peru this next summer. The dates for the trip are July 14-22. If you are interested in going, I need to hear from you ASAP. Email me as soon as you think you may have interest in going. Here is a short video to give you a feel of what is going on these days at Sagrada Familia!
Influence
In my Heartlight article today, The Gift of Influence, I try to show that we each have influence over certain people to help them know Jesus, follow Jesus, and learn to live the life of Jesus. Sometimes, however, a picture (or in this case a video) is worth a thousand words. Unfortunately there is a problem with the embed code, but here’s the link to this video: Strangers.
Crazy Love?
The forgiven and formerly sinful woman of the city risks everything to come into the Pharisees house and then cleans Jesus’ feet with her hair and tears, anoints Jesus’ feet with expensive perfumer, and kisses Jesus’ feet to show her great love. Her love is extravagant and dangerous … it’s crazy love! But her risk-taking and her extravagant giving show her great love to Jesus for being forgiven (Luke 7:36-50). Her actions remind us that the heart of loving — and knowing we are loved — is giving. We are most like God when we show crazy love … when we give extravagantly. And when we do, like the woman, we enter a life blessed by Jesus with true shalom — grace and peace, wholeness and joy, life lived to the full!
The most famous verse in the Bible is John 3:16 and you probably know the next word that follows this quote: “For God so loved the world that He …”
And what is that word? Yep, you got it. The word is “GAVE.” Yes, we are most like God when we give and show crazy love!
We are entering the season of giving. We are reminded that we have so much for which we can be thankful (Thanksgiving) and we are reminded of the gift God gave us (Christmas). So let’s open up our hearts … and schedules … and pocket books … and practice some crazy love!
And speaking of Crazy Love, here’s a powerful little video segment from Francis Chan!
And where should we give? Ah, that’s easy.
To your church. I know that’s what I’m doing this week, because right now our church has …
- Giving Tree (Christmas gifts for mentally challenged and disadvantaged children and adults)
- Harvest Missions (funding mission works and mission trips for next year)
- Food Offering (for a local Christian pantry ministry)
- Sock and Underwear Offering (for Love and Care ministry to the homeless)
Not sure about your church, but I bet it has some places you can be generous and these kinds of things are worthy of gifts!
In addition, I would point you to a couple of other things that are especially close to my heart:
Return to Sagrada
This past July, many of us were blessed to be part of an effort to reach out to La Comunidad de Los Niños – Sagrada Familia, something I’ve shared previously on my blog. We are looking forward to a return trip and we are awaiting news today to make sure everything is OK after the earthquake yesterday. Preliminary reports are good, but we are awaiting confirmation. Spencer Peeples sent me this beautiful video of this year’s trip and it touched me deeply — partially because it has a lot of pictures of “our girls” from Casa Susanna, so we know the names and some of the stories of these little niñas. Hope you are blessed by what you see. In the middle of the video you will see Miguel, the founder and key person in The Community, talk about a water system for the children and we believe the money has now been raised for this system to be installed. Hopefully by this year’s trip, there is more water, cleaner water, and warm water in the winter for these precious ones to get warm showers.