Thursday, January 12, 2012
Looking Forward
"Look forward, finally, and hope for the coming of the Lord. Your best things are yet to come. The second coming of Christ will soon be here...Rest in the hope of that day. Work, watch, and look forward--one thing, at any rate, that day will make abundantly clear. It will show that there was never an hour in our lives in which we had our hearts too thoroughly focused on Christ." -J.C. Ryle
The Wise Man Built His House Upon a Rock
"...When you begin to ebb and flow in your attitude and your demeanor and your joy comes and goes, it is because you have attached yourself to another priority than the unchanging work of God and the unchanging presence of Christ. You have attached your joy to the changing circumstances of life which means your focus isn't on Him, your focus is on you. You can tell a true worshiper because they go through the circumstances of life with an unmitigated contentment and an unchanging joy." -John MacArthur
WOW. Does this quote convict me!!
I have been realizing lately what it is in life that I [prioritize]...because when these things are stripped away from me, I do not respond in a God-honoring manner.
I prioritize my family. When they move away, I don't like it. When seasons of life change for them, I don't like getting less time with them.
I prioritize my friends. Boy has it seemed boring and lonely and quiet this break! I am so used to coffee dates, and heart to hearts, and study sessions, and late night adventures, and hang-outs. When these are gone, life just seems to drag sometimes. I prioritize my friends so much, rather than being excited for them or understanding...I can get jealous and hurt when they are busy, dating, or otherwise occupied.
I prioritize fun. Often times, when I look ahead at my week, it's not going to church that excites me. Or time in God's Word. It's going shopping. Or going to the beach. Or going to go see a movie. Or watching the next episode of my favorite show. Or going out to eat.
I prioritize stability. I like knowing what classes I'm taking, where I will be working, where I will be living, what the next year of my life looks like, etc. I like to have all of my ducks lined up in a row.
Funny how the Lord has been weaning me off of these idols lately. My family is [changing]. My friends are [busy]. Break has been [slow and quiet]. And life just looks like one [big question mark] right now.
I do attach my joy to circumstances and I do focus on myself.
While there is nothing wrong with stability or fun, and while friends and family are GOOD things...I don't want to build my life on these. I don't want to build my life upon sand.
I want to build my life upon a Rock. Jesus Christ. The only One who never changes. The only One I was made for. The only One worthy of all of our focus and worship.
Desiring the unmitigated contentment and unchanging joy that comes from prioritizing the unchanging work of God and presence of Christ,
Mollie
"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock." -Matthew 7:24-25
"Jesus I'm learning how to live with open hands
All of these treasures that I hold will never satisfy my soul
Jesus I lay it at your throne with open hands...
To finally let go of my plans
These earthly kingdoms built of sand..."
WOW. Does this quote convict me!!
I have been realizing lately what it is in life that I [prioritize]...because when these things are stripped away from me, I do not respond in a God-honoring manner.
I prioritize my family. When they move away, I don't like it. When seasons of life change for them, I don't like getting less time with them.
I prioritize my friends. Boy has it seemed boring and lonely and quiet this break! I am so used to coffee dates, and heart to hearts, and study sessions, and late night adventures, and hang-outs. When these are gone, life just seems to drag sometimes. I prioritize my friends so much, rather than being excited for them or understanding...I can get jealous and hurt when they are busy, dating, or otherwise occupied.
I prioritize fun. Often times, when I look ahead at my week, it's not going to church that excites me. Or time in God's Word. It's going shopping. Or going to the beach. Or going to go see a movie. Or watching the next episode of my favorite show. Or going out to eat.
I prioritize stability. I like knowing what classes I'm taking, where I will be working, where I will be living, what the next year of my life looks like, etc. I like to have all of my ducks lined up in a row.
Funny how the Lord has been weaning me off of these idols lately. My family is [changing]. My friends are [busy]. Break has been [slow and quiet]. And life just looks like one [big question mark] right now.
I do attach my joy to circumstances and I do focus on myself.
While there is nothing wrong with stability or fun, and while friends and family are GOOD things...I don't want to build my life on these. I don't want to build my life upon sand.
I want to build my life upon a Rock. Jesus Christ. The only One who never changes. The only One I was made for. The only One worthy of all of our focus and worship.
Desiring the unmitigated contentment and unchanging joy that comes from prioritizing the unchanging work of God and presence of Christ,
Mollie
"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock." -Matthew 7:24-25
"Jesus I'm learning how to live with open hands
All of these treasures that I hold will never satisfy my soul
Jesus I lay it at your throne with open hands...
To finally let go of my plans
These earthly kingdoms built of sand..."
Monday, January 9, 2012
I Live Like Denmark, When There is a War Raging Around Me!
In a wartime lifestyle you always ask yourself, How can my life count to advance the cause of Christ?
I feel like lately the Lord has thrown me clear passes for evangelism opportunities...and I might have looked at the ball, I might even have caught it, but I have not run with it.
[Apathy]. [Fear of man]. [Timidity].
Lately, I have seen these sinful attitudes cropping up in my life. Which is all the more humbling after coming off of a semester in Israel...with my brain fuller and my heart more stirred then ever before.
I too often err on the side of, "Now isn't the right time," or "I don't have the right words to say," or "I am lifestyle evangelizing!" but this is a cop-out (lifestyle evangelism doesn't save anyone, God's Word does!) and it is relying on my own strength instead of the Lord's.
I was really thankful for Andrew Curry's sermon in Exodus this past Sunday in Crossroads about how the Lord uses ordinary, weak, broken vessels to accomplish His purposes...it's just about [stepping out in faith and trusting in Him.]
I have realized that a lot of times, my lack of evangelizing is directly related to my peace-time mentality.
I forget that I am at war..."No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier." -2 Timothy 2:4
I forget that people are perishing all around me. "What is your life? It is even a vapor, that appears for a little time, and then vanishes away." -James 4:14
I forget that I posses the only Remedy that can save the wounded and dying: Jesus Christ. "For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task?" -2 Corinthians 2:15-16
[I am complacent. Comfortable. Distracted.]
I too often live like Denmark, when there is a war raging all around me...and a war with bigger stakes then World War II.
Praying that the Lord will help this Christian soldier to awaken to the realities of heaven and hell, the Gospel, and our dying world's need for Him...and that I would then live with a wartime mentality and seize every opportunity He sends my way!
"But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have..." -1 Peter 3:15
"I'm going to keep my life as wartime as I can in order to maximize my effect for showing Jesus as valuable..." -John Piper
I feel like lately the Lord has thrown me clear passes for evangelism opportunities...and I might have looked at the ball, I might even have caught it, but I have not run with it.
[Apathy]. [Fear of man]. [Timidity].
Lately, I have seen these sinful attitudes cropping up in my life. Which is all the more humbling after coming off of a semester in Israel...with my brain fuller and my heart more stirred then ever before.
I too often err on the side of, "Now isn't the right time," or "I don't have the right words to say," or "I am lifestyle evangelizing!" but this is a cop-out (lifestyle evangelism doesn't save anyone, God's Word does!) and it is relying on my own strength instead of the Lord's.
I was really thankful for Andrew Curry's sermon in Exodus this past Sunday in Crossroads about how the Lord uses ordinary, weak, broken vessels to accomplish His purposes...it's just about [stepping out in faith and trusting in Him.]
I have realized that a lot of times, my lack of evangelizing is directly related to my peace-time mentality.
I forget that I am at war..."No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier." -2 Timothy 2:4
I forget that people are perishing all around me. "What is your life? It is even a vapor, that appears for a little time, and then vanishes away." -James 4:14
I forget that I posses the only Remedy that can save the wounded and dying: Jesus Christ. "For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task?" -2 Corinthians 2:15-16
[I am complacent. Comfortable. Distracted.]
I too often live like Denmark, when there is a war raging all around me...and a war with bigger stakes then World War II.
Praying that the Lord will help this Christian soldier to awaken to the realities of heaven and hell, the Gospel, and our dying world's need for Him...and that I would then live with a wartime mentality and seize every opportunity He sends my way!
"But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have..." -1 Peter 3:15
"I'm going to keep my life as wartime as I can in order to maximize my effect for showing Jesus as valuable..." -John Piper
Piper & the Puritans: The valley is the place of vision...because of God's sustaining grace!
Really like John Piper's definition of God's sustaining grace:
"Not grace to bar what is not bliss,
Nor flight from all distress, but this:
The grace that orders our trouble and pain,
And then, in the darkness, is there to sustain."
[taken from: http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-
library/sermons/sustained-by-sovereign-grace-forever].
Reminds me of one of my favorite Valley of Vision excerpts:
"Let me learn by paradox
that the way down is the way up,
that to be low is to be high,
that the broken heart is the healed heart,
that the contrite spirit is the the rejoicing spirit,
that the repenting soul is the victorious soul,
that to have nothing is to posses all,
that to bear the cross is to wear the crown,
that to give is to receive,
that the valley is the place of vision."
Because His grace sustains,
Mollie
"Not grace to bar what is not bliss,
Nor flight from all distress, but this:
The grace that orders our trouble and pain,
And then, in the darkness, is there to sustain."
[taken from: http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-
library/sermons/sustained-by-sovereign-grace-forever].
Reminds me of one of my favorite Valley of Vision excerpts:
"Let me learn by paradox
that the way down is the way up,
that to be low is to be high,
that the broken heart is the healed heart,
that the contrite spirit is the the rejoicing spirit,
that the repenting soul is the victorious soul,
that to have nothing is to posses all,
that to bear the cross is to wear the crown,
that to give is to receive,
that the valley is the place of vision."
Because His grace sustains,
Mollie
Sunday, January 8, 2012
There and Back Again...an IBEXer's Tale part 8
I CAN'T WAIT FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. :)
This song may be old school, but it makes me [excited] and [tear up] at the same time:
"I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband."
-Revelation 21:2
This song may be old school, but it makes me [excited] and [tear up] at the same time:
"I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband."
-Revelation 21:2
Tracing the Rainbow Through the Rain: George Matheson
Context, context, context!
Context makes everything better.
Most of us have heard of the story of Horatio Spafford, author of "It is Well with My Soul" [his four daughters drowned after their ship, which was crossing the Atlantic, sunk...his wife alone survived and telegramed to her husband, "Saved alone"]. Knowing this background, makes the words, "When sorrows like sea billows roll; Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say, It is well, it is well, with my soul" that much more powerful! Spafford didn't just pen these words, he LIVED them!
An equally beautiful, though lesser known story surrounds the hymn, "O Love that Will not Let Me Go," written by George Matheson. The hymn happens to be my personal favorite, so I was amazed and humbled when I came across the following story:
George Matheson began going blind, while studying for the ministry. Engaged at the time, his fiance broke off the engagement upon discovering this. She told him that she could not go through life with a blind man. This devastating circumstance fueled him to write some of the most [heartfelt, worshipful, and painfully transparent] lyrics of all times:
"O Love that will not let me go,
I rest my weary soul in thee;
I give thee back the life I owe,
That in thine ocean depths its flow
May richer, fuller be.
O Joy that seekest me through pain,
I cannot close my heart to thee;
I trace the rainbow through the rain,
And feel the promise is not vain,
That morn shall tearless be."
Through this trial, Matheson's eyes might have grown dim to the world around Him, but he developed a keener focus on the world to come.
After going blind, he had a vital ministry as a pastor: he regularly preached to over 1500 people each week, and centuries after his death, his hymn, "O Love that Will not Let me Go" continues to minister to the hearts and minds of thousands of others.
"I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints."
-Ephesians 1:18
[Story taken from: http://www.igracemusic.com/hymnbook/hymns/o08.html].
">
Context makes everything better.
Most of us have heard of the story of Horatio Spafford, author of "It is Well with My Soul" [his four daughters drowned after their ship, which was crossing the Atlantic, sunk...his wife alone survived and telegramed to her husband, "Saved alone"]. Knowing this background, makes the words, "When sorrows like sea billows roll; Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say, It is well, it is well, with my soul" that much more powerful! Spafford didn't just pen these words, he LIVED them!
An equally beautiful, though lesser known story surrounds the hymn, "O Love that Will not Let Me Go," written by George Matheson. The hymn happens to be my personal favorite, so I was amazed and humbled when I came across the following story:
George Matheson began going blind, while studying for the ministry. Engaged at the time, his fiance broke off the engagement upon discovering this. She told him that she could not go through life with a blind man. This devastating circumstance fueled him to write some of the most [heartfelt, worshipful, and painfully transparent] lyrics of all times:
"O Love that will not let me go,
I rest my weary soul in thee;
I give thee back the life I owe,
That in thine ocean depths its flow
May richer, fuller be.
O Joy that seekest me through pain,
I cannot close my heart to thee;
I trace the rainbow through the rain,
And feel the promise is not vain,
That morn shall tearless be."
Through this trial, Matheson's eyes might have grown dim to the world around Him, but he developed a keener focus on the world to come.
After going blind, he had a vital ministry as a pastor: he regularly preached to over 1500 people each week, and centuries after his death, his hymn, "O Love that Will not Let me Go" continues to minister to the hearts and minds of thousands of others.
"I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints."
-Ephesians 1:18
[Story taken from: http://www.igracemusic.com/hymnbook/hymns/o08.html].
">
Contentment & Security
There's the many individuals who are dating seriously. Then the individuals that just got engaged. Then my friends and family who are having children. Then the friends who have good paying jobs. And then just my fellow seniors who know exactly what they are doing after college.
Yeah.
I don't fit any of those categories.
Most of the time, that doesn't bug me. But sometimes, I would love the SECURITY contained in each of the categories above. A boyfriend. A husband. A defined role. Money. Direction.
But right now, the Lord has not placed me in any of those categories.
Instead he has me single, in transition, and uncertain.
But what better a time, then to rest solely in Him?
The One who was only ever meant to be my SECURITY.
"But godliness with contentment is great gain." -1 Timothy 6:7
Openhanded and excited to see what God has in store,
Mollie
"Would you not prefer a lot selected by the Lord to one chosen by yourself? Do you not joyfully sing with the Psalmist, "You shall choose my inheritance for me?"...Contentment with your lot and confidence in God will make life peaceful and happy—a dinner of herbs with content will yield a flavor of satisfaction unknown to those who eat the stalled ox. It is better to be happy than to be rich—and happiness lies in the heart rather than in the purse. Not what a man has, but what a man is will decide his bliss or woe in this life and the next."
-Charles Spurgeon
Saturday, January 7, 2012
In EVERYTHING
"In everything, give thanks, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."
-1 Thessalonians 5:18
Two words really convict me in this verse: "in everything."
Believers (and I know myself personally!) often do not apply this verse. Complaining has become a "respectable" sin...just read some statuses on Facebook!
"In everything, give thanks"...means that I am grateful for:
My food.
My job.
My boss.
The weather.
My teachers.
My assignments.
My grades.
Other people's successes.
My relationship status.
The season of life I am in.
[Some of these definitley made me say "ouch," by the way].
It means that {IN EVERYTHING} I should be giving thanks...because even when something is hard, unpleasant, or not what I had planned...God planned it and He will grow me through it, if I respond rightly.
In everything, give thanks!
"As long as a man is alive and out of hell, he cannot have any cause to complain."
-C.H. Spurgeon
There and Back Again...an IBEXer's Tale part 7
A picture is worth a thousand words.
And here are some of my favorite pictures from my camera, during my three months abroad in Israel.
As I am sure you can see, judging by the pictures, I really didn't have a fun semester at all. ;)
[A Look Back: in Color].
Oh you know...just typical field trip sites. No big :)
The gang.
I became OBSESSED with sunrises and sunsets during my time in Israel...they are magnificent in the Holy Land. ♥ Now I find even LA disappointing.
The sites of Israel:
1 & 2. The Wailing Wall (appropriately named!)
3. Dome of the Rock
4. An Israeli flag, glowing in the sunlight
5. Nate showing his kippah, celebrating Sukkot in Jerusalem
6. Nazareth, Jesus' hometown (view from my hotel room!)
Individual shots:
1 & 2. Austin gazing out over the horizon, during a field trip, and while on top of a wall
3 & 4. Our resident gymnast, Caroline, joins the boys in backflipping off of the side of a pool and does a handstand overlooking a gorge
5 & 6. Ben crawling through caves, and overlooking a canyon
7, 8, 9 & 10. Me, posing on the top of an arch (a little bit of fear of heights was kicking in!) Hanging with my little camel friend, armed and dangerous, and perched on top of an Israeli tank.
11. Nate celebrating Sukkot in Jerusalem [this is the day we wandered into a private Torah party...and got to celebrate along with the Jews!]
12. Jackie snapping a picture, while at a fortress
13. Our fearless leader, and my Land and Bible professor, Bill Schlegel being his normal, goofy self :)
14 & 15. John Heim being his normal, fearless self- perched on top of a fortress and jumping across a canyon
16. The now engaged Sierra, posing precariously on top of some military equipment
17. Beautiful Kayla, strikes a pose near the train tracks in Tel Aviv
18. Matt posing with a Coca~cola can, while wearing his Coca~cola shirt
19. Jon Bridges gazing out over a sunset in Galilee
20 & 21. Kristyn rockin' her TOMS on one of our field trips, and tossing petals up in the air
22. Laurel modeling with a pillar as her prop
I. Love. Culture.
1. Little girls racing through the streets of Jerusalem (looks like somebody might need a potty break! ;))
2. Lighting candles in a church
3. An old man standing in the streets of Jerusalem during Sukkot
4. An Orthodox Jew, walking through the streets of Jerusalem at night
5. The camaraderie of friends: Jewish students celebrating Sukkot together
Doing crazy things:
1. Climbing up military equipment
2. Planking
Hanging with friends:
1 & 2. Laurel and I chilling (and posing as hippies!) by the awesome flower bus, and during a field trip
3. Anna and Sierra striking a new pose
4. Best buds, Mark and Jake
5. Awww, Mark and Rae, enjoying the sunset at a field trip site
6. Kayla and Laurel posing at lit up Mamilla Street (where Aroma's and all of the great stores are!)
7. Looking out over the landscape with my friends, and now roommates!, Kayla and Hannah
8. Brother-sister duo, Jon and Kristyn, enjoying the sunset at Galilee together
9. The Fantastic Four, perched on a camel
10. Peering around a cliff with Anna
Funky, artsy fun:
1. Rocking my TOMS in the Holy Land :)
2. Lydia Tsang: Thy Word is a Lamp unto My Path (inside of a Catholic cathedral)
The clouds and lighting in Israel, are all that a person needs to take incredible pictures!
A panoramic view: Jerusalem, Israel.
>>FALL 2011>>
**By the way, in case you were wondering, all of the pictures contained in this post were unedited. :) **
And here are some of my favorite pictures from my camera, during my three months abroad in Israel.
As I am sure you can see, judging by the pictures, I really didn't have a fun semester at all. ;)
[A Look Back: in Color].
Oh you know...just typical field trip sites. No big :)
The gang.
I became OBSESSED with sunrises and sunsets during my time in Israel...they are magnificent in the Holy Land. ♥ Now I find even LA disappointing.
The sites of Israel:
1 & 2. The Wailing Wall (appropriately named!)
3. Dome of the Rock
4. An Israeli flag, glowing in the sunlight
5. Nate showing his kippah, celebrating Sukkot in Jerusalem
6. Nazareth, Jesus' hometown (view from my hotel room!)
Individual shots:
1 & 2. Austin gazing out over the horizon, during a field trip, and while on top of a wall
3 & 4. Our resident gymnast, Caroline, joins the boys in backflipping off of the side of a pool and does a handstand overlooking a gorge
5 & 6. Ben crawling through caves, and overlooking a canyon
7, 8, 9 & 10. Me, posing on the top of an arch (a little bit of fear of heights was kicking in!) Hanging with my little camel friend, armed and dangerous, and perched on top of an Israeli tank.
11. Nate celebrating Sukkot in Jerusalem [this is the day we wandered into a private Torah party...and got to celebrate along with the Jews!]
12. Jackie snapping a picture, while at a fortress
13. Our fearless leader, and my Land and Bible professor, Bill Schlegel being his normal, goofy self :)
14 & 15. John Heim being his normal, fearless self- perched on top of a fortress and jumping across a canyon
16. The now engaged Sierra, posing precariously on top of some military equipment
17. Beautiful Kayla, strikes a pose near the train tracks in Tel Aviv
18. Matt posing with a Coca~cola can, while wearing his Coca~cola shirt
19. Jon Bridges gazing out over a sunset in Galilee
20 & 21. Kristyn rockin' her TOMS on one of our field trips, and tossing petals up in the air
22. Laurel modeling with a pillar as her prop
I. Love. Culture.
1. Little girls racing through the streets of Jerusalem (looks like somebody might need a potty break! ;))
2. Lighting candles in a church
3. An old man standing in the streets of Jerusalem during Sukkot
4. An Orthodox Jew, walking through the streets of Jerusalem at night
5. The camaraderie of friends: Jewish students celebrating Sukkot together
Doing crazy things:
1. Climbing up military equipment
2. Planking
Hanging with friends:
1 & 2. Laurel and I chilling (and posing as hippies!) by the awesome flower bus, and during a field trip
3. Anna and Sierra striking a new pose
4. Best buds, Mark and Jake
5. Awww, Mark and Rae, enjoying the sunset at a field trip site
6. Kayla and Laurel posing at lit up Mamilla Street (where Aroma's and all of the great stores are!)
7. Looking out over the landscape with my friends, and now roommates!, Kayla and Hannah
8. Brother-sister duo, Jon and Kristyn, enjoying the sunset at Galilee together
9. The Fantastic Four, perched on a camel
10. Peering around a cliff with Anna
Funky, artsy fun:
1. Rocking my TOMS in the Holy Land :)
2. Lydia Tsang: Thy Word is a Lamp unto My Path (inside of a Catholic cathedral)
The clouds and lighting in Israel, are all that a person needs to take incredible pictures!
A panoramic view: Jerusalem, Israel.
>>FALL 2011>>
**By the way, in case you were wondering, all of the pictures contained in this post were unedited. :) **
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