Come as You Are

“Come as you are.”

As I sat in Open Door last night, watching a video of the evolution of LifeChurch.tv, I was stuck by a “what if.”  Pastor Craig was recalling when he and Amy originally decided to plant the church.  God had been whispering an idea of a church into their heart for a while; a church that welcomed all people to come, just as they are.  But they were hesitant.  Planting a church is risky.  They were scared of the unknown.  They were comfortable in the life they were living.  But God kept whispering.  Then one day, they heard a song, “Come as You Are,” first at church, and then later, after asking God for confirmation that this is what He had for their life.  And they knew this was God’s plan.

I couldn’t help but think, “what if?”  What if Pastor Craig and Amy had chosen to ignore God’s call on their life?  What if they had let the fear and uncertainty hold them back from stepping out in faith?  What if they had decided to continue living their comfortable life?

Looking at all that LifeChurch.tv has become, the hundreds of people who surrender their lives to Christ each weekend, the thousands of people that hear God’s truth each week through our campuses and network churches, the millions of people who have access to the Bible on their smart phones, I shudder at the opportunity that would have been missed had Pastor Craig and Amy chose their way instead of God’s.

But they didn’t.  They obeyed.  It wasn’t easy.  It required sacrifice and risk.  But I guarantee they would say it was all worth it.  Because when we walk in obedience, we get the opportunity to play a part in God’s glorious plan.  When we choose to follow God, rather than our fleshly desires, we open ourselves up to the blessing and honor that only comes to those who are walking with God.

What is God prompting you to do in your life that you are shunning because you are scared, or comfortable where you are?  What opportunity are you missing?  What blessings are awaiting you if you choose to walk in obedience?

Heavenly Father, I am so humbled by your faithfulness to those who follow you.  You don’t promise us that life will be easy if we follow you, but you do promise us fulfillment and security.  Lord, I pray that each of us will set aside out fleshly fears and desires, and step out in faith, knowing that if You are calling us to something, You will see us through it.  You are so good, so faithful, so steady.  I love you Lord.

Impossible?

“For nothing is impossible with God.” Luke 1:37(NLT)

Last fall God told me it was time that we got aggressive about paying off debt.  We don’t have a lot of debt (a van payment, my student loans, and our home), but the debt we do have is getting in the way of living the life of generosity that we truly desire.  To be honest, at first I didn’t know how it was possible to “get aggressive.”  We are a family of four, living on a pastor’s salary.  There’s not a lot of margin, and there’s not a lot of waste.  But in the midst of my doubt, God whispered, “obey, and I will take care of the rest.”

So we began tackling the smallest debt, our van.  Month after month God was faithful.  As I sat down to determine how much of an extra payment we could make, it always far exceeded my expectations.  Although we made adjustments in our budget, cut spending, and made living frugally a mindset, the actions we took couldn’t possibly account for the extra funds in our account.  It was only by God’s faithful provision that we were able to make the extra payments that we were.  And I am happy to announce that we paid off the van this morning.

“Obey, and I will take care of the rest.”

Our God is so faithful.  He is true to His word.  He honors obedience.  When we step out in faith, choosing to obey His commands, we get a front-row seat to witness His glory.

What is God asking you to do that seems impossible?  Obey, and He will take care of the rest.

Heavenly Father, thank you that in a world that is ever-changing, that you are faithful.  That I can trust in you, knowing that every word you have ever spoken is truth.  Lord, may I have enough faith to obey your commands, even when it seems impossible.  I love you Lord.

Orchestrating

“Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you.  Before you were born, I set you apart for my holy purpose.”  Jeremiah 1:5 (GWT)

There I sat, looking at dozens of small, yellow stickynotes.  Words jotted down that represent my life.  The key people.  The key events.  The key circumstances.  Everything that makes me who I am today.  And I was overwhelmed.  Not because of the resurfacing of pain and memories (and there was that), but overwhelmed because I could so clearly see His hand in my life from the very beginning.

Before I knew Him, He knew me.  He has always known me.

I became a Christ-follower when I was 25.  Since then, I have been able to clearly see His hand in my life, directing my decisions, directing my steps.  But as I looked at the summary of my life since childhood, it was so evident that long before I knew my Heavenly Father, He was orchestrating.  I could see so clearly how He used each of these key people, events, and circumstances to mold me into who I am today, and prepare me for what He has for my life.

“Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you.  Before you were born, I set you apart for my holy purpose.”

What a beautiful truth.  The God of the Universe knows us.  The God who created the heavens and the earth, also created us, for a holy purpose.  You are each a beautiful woman of God.  A woman with unique experience, unique giftings, unique passions, that all come together to prepare you for His purpose for your life.  You are made to make a difference for His kingdom. You are made to glorify Him.

Heavenly Father, I am humbled by your greatness.  Humbled that even when I was turned from you, You still loved me enough to work in my life, to mold me, to orchestrate my circumstances.  Lord, help me to see each of the people, experiences, and circumstances from my past as blessings from You.  Although they were not always pleasant, they were always allowed by You, and they are formative.  You are so good.  You are omniscient.  I love you Lord.

Couples

Bible Verses for Couples

God’s Design & Plan for Couples

Genesis 1:26-28  Then God said, ”Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, ”Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

Genesis 2:18   Then the LORD God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.”

Ephesians 5:31-32  “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.

Treat Each Other Properly

Proverbs 24:29   Do not say, “I will do to him as he has done to me; I will pay the man back for what he has done.”

Malachi 2:14-15  But you say, “Why does he not?” Because the LORD was witness between you and the wife of your youth, to whom you have been faithless, though she is your companion and your wife by covenant. Did he not make them one, with a portion of the Spirit in their union? And what was the one Godseeking? Godly offspring. So guard yourselves in your spirit, and let none of you be faithless to the wife of your youth. 

Romans 12:17  Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all.

Colossians 3:12-14 Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.

Ephesians 4:1-3  I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love ,eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

Ephesians 4:31-32  Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

Work at Togetherness 

Matthew 19:5-6  “ … ’Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.”

Mark 10:9  “…What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.”

Philippians 2:2  complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.

Love, Honor and Understanding 

Philippians 1:9-10  And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ

Hebrews 13:4  Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous.

1Peter 1:22  Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart

1Peter 3:7  Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.

Blessings for Couples

Proverbs 19:14  House and wealth are inherited from fathers, but a prudent wife is from the LORD. 

Ecclesiastes 4:11-12  Again, if two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone? And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him—a threefold cord is not quickly broken

Ecclesiastes 9:9  Enjoy life with the wife whom you love, all the days of your vain life that he has given you under the sun, because that is your portion in life and in your toil at which you toil under the sun. 

Children

Bible Verses About Children 

Raising Godly Children 

Genesis 18:19   For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing righteousness and justice, so that the LORD may bring to Abraham what he has promised him.” 

Proverbs 22:6  Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it. 

Isaiah 54:13   All your children shall be taught by the LORD, and great shall be the peace of your children. 

Colossians 3:21   Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged. 

2 Timothy 3:16-17  All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of Godmay be competent, equipped for every good work.

Teaching Children 

Deuteronomy 4:9  “Only take care, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things that your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. Make them known to your children and your children’s children— 

Deuteronomy 6:6-9   And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.  You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.  You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. 

Isaiah 38:19   The living, the living, he thanks you, as I do this day; the father makes known to the children your faithfulness. 

Matthew 7:12   ”So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.

 2 Timothy 1:5  I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well. 

2 Timothy 3:14-15   But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.

Discipline of Children 

Proverbs 13:24  Whoever spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him. 

Proverbs 23:13-14   Do not withhold discipline from a child; if you strike him with a rod, he will not die. If you strike him with the rod, you will save his soul from Sheol. 

Proverbs 29:15  The rod and reproof give wisdom, but a child left to himself brings shame to his mother.

Proverbs 29:17  Discipline your son, and he will give you rest; he will give delight to your heart. 

Ephesians 6:4   Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

Children are A Blessing From God 

Psalm 113:9   He gives the barren woman a home, making her the joyous mother of children. Praise the LORD! 

Psalm 127:3-5  Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate. 

Psalm 139:13-16  For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them. 

John 16:21  When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. 

James 1:17  Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.

Change

Bible Verses About Change

We Can Put our Trust in God to Cope with Change Because: 

God is Great, Faithful, Just & Upright 

Deuteronomy 32:3,4  For I will proclaim the name of the LORD; ascribe greatness to our God!  ”The Rock, his work is perfect, for all his ways are justice. A God of faithfulness and without iniquity, just and upright is he. 

God Promised and He Will Do 

Numbers 23:19  God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it? 

God is a Firm Foundation; A Solid Rock 

Psalms 18:2 The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. 

Psalms 62:6 He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken. 

God Does Not Change 

James 1:17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.

Reshaping

I should have stopped what I was doing.  There sat my two-year-old, crying, throwing a fit.  I should have bent down and talked to him, comforted him, explained why he was in trouble and what my expectations were.  But I didn’t.  I chose to finish packing up our stuff so we could head home.  It wasn’t until I was halfway home that I realized that I made the wrong choice. 

I missed a teachable moment.  A moment where I could have shown him God’s love, patience, and grace.  A moment where I could have helped shape his character.  I missed that moment. 

But God did not miss His moment.

He bent down beside me as I realized I was caught up in my own selfishness and failed to disciple my son as I should have.  He comforted me in my failure, showed me what I should have done, and what His expectations are. He shaped my character.  Because He loves me.  Because He wants me to grow.  Because He is good. 

“God sees our life from beginning to end. He may lead us through a storm at age thirty so we can endure a hurricane at age sixty. An instrument is useful only if it’s in the right shape. A dull ax or bent screwdriver needs attention, and so do we. A good blacksmith keeps his tools in shape. So does God. Should God place you on his anvil, be thankful. It means he thinks you’re still worth reshaping.”  On The Anvil, by Max Lucado. 

How is God reshaping you today? 

Heavenly Father, thank you that you think we are worth reshaping.  Thank you that you do not miss the teachable moments in our lives.  Lord, may we heed your discipline, growing, learning, and becoming more like You.  I love you Lord.