Addition

After rereading my post from several hours ago, I wanted to point out one further thing regarding "fellowship". True Christian fellowship is not having a dinner out or going to the movies. I think we erroneously believe we are having Christian fellowship anytime we engage in such activities with other Christians. These events actually just provide an opportunity for true fellowship. You can go to dinner or a movie and never experience true fellowship. It can be merely a social outing and nothing more. However, as believers, if we are intentional with our motives and always consumed with our love for Christ, "breaking bread" together as the New Testament Christians did, will be characterized for us by encouraging and thoughtful conversations. The base of our relationships with one another will be to sharpen each other continually, to be conformed to the image of Christ more and more. Whether married or unmarried, this should be the primary motivation for the time spent together.

Segregation

Let me preface this post with a couple of disclaimers (I guess that's what we would call them:)...

1)I am not turning this blog into a "singles" blog despite some frequent posts on the subject of being unmarried. However, because I am in the process of working on my graduate thesis (which is about the unmarried woman), it is a more pertinent consideration in my life these days.
2)I am not complaining or referring to myself specifically in these posts. My life as an unmarried woman is richly full and significantly blessed beyond measure! While I do desire marriage in many regards, I am happily submissive to God's perfect will for my life right now (most of the time anyway!). I am writing these posts, as well as my entire thesis, specifically for the benefit of ministry - ministry to myself, to my dear sisters in Christ who remain single for this season, and for the benefit of the Church, so that maybe just a little, we can cultivate a better understanding of how the unmarried woman relates to and lives out her calling in the community of believers in which she serves.

That being said, I plan to have a full chapter of my thesis devoted to the role of the unmarried woman in her local church, as well as that church's role in the unmarried woman's life. These things could certainly apply to men as well, but since I am a woman, my calling is to speak primarily to women and leave the teaching and discipling of men to my wise and God-ordained male authorities.

In observing the local church and its relationship to the unmarried woman, many would immediately and rightly note that there is a special place for mentoring and training, in which the Titus 2 model is carried out in an effort to live out a holy calling of spiritual mothering. To this I would be the first to cry out a hearty "Amen!". However, I believe there is much more to this relationship of the unmarried woman to her congregation when we consider the later age at which many women are marrying and even the more common experience of prolonged or permanent singleness. While I could spend time outlining the many possible reasons for this "trend" (such as prolonged adolescence, selfish ambition and feminist mindset, a shortage of godly, driven and biblically sound males who are prepared to take a bride and lead a home, and even just the ever increasing affects of sin in general - for it was God Himself who said it was not good for man to be alone, yet He said this before the Fall - is it possible that singleness is one of the outcomes of sin entering this world since His original intention was for marriage?...these are all areas of consideration I will explore further in my thesis after much more diligent study), the primary purpose of this post is not to do so, but it is to discuss how an unmarried woman can relate to her spiritual family and how they can relate to her.

One of the first things that came to my mind when thinking on all of this was the examples of the apostles and close followers of Christ in the New Testament. It is evident that there was a great deal of fellowship that took place between both marrieds and unmarrieds. In fact, part of what makes that clear is that there is not a distinguishing mention of those classifications. Now, we live in a day where classifications are everything and everywhere! We have singles fellowships, young marrieds dinners, family nights, and on and on. Please note, I am not calling for us to do away with all such categories. I know that it is beneficial to all for some Bible studies and classes to be aimed at particular audiences who are experiencing similar circumstances in life. However, have we so segregated ourselves in these categories that it becomes totally unnatural to specifically plan to fellowship together? Let me give a couple of real-life examples. Last week I went to dinner and a movie with a married couple I am friends with, and later today, I will meet another young married couple for lunch. I am not bringing a date, or even another girlfriend to accompany me. It will be me, my friend and her husband. And let me tell you, those outings are very special to me. It is my time to feel like an adult, a true friend...much more than a babysitter or a pity project. We enjoy true and sweet fellowship. I give these examples because I know of many singles who don't have such experiences. So, the next time you are planning a game night or going out to the movies, invite some friends - whoever that may be - without limiting the guest list to just those with a spouse and kids the same age as yours. Yes, there are times when you want to be alone on a date with your husband or go out with another couple you enjoy talking with. But just consider the opportunity you have to be a "family" to the unmarried woman and to make her feel loved in Christ Jesus.

Lest you think I only offer "corrective" advice for the marrieds, let me speak to the unmarried woman's role as well. Ladies, let us not box ourselves in. Be flexible about how you spend time with your married friends. Being friends with a married woman requires that you be willing to maybe run errands with her, help her around the house, work on a special project, or have a cup of coffee while her kids play outside. You too must be willing to change up your plans and your preconceived idea of what you think fellowship is. Some of the best conversations I have had with married friends were painting a dresser until the wee hours of the morning, rocking a baby while she did dishes and chatted with me.

By being willing to forgo the typical expectations of society (ones that we have foolishly placed on ourselves and are not rooted in Scripture), we have deprived one another of some very sweet and encouraging friendships in the body of Christ. It is clear man was not meant to be alone - whatever that looks like for each of us may be different. God created us to live in community with one another, to bear one another's burdens, to teach one another and live out examples of godliness as a testimony of the transforming work of the Savior. Acts chapter two provides a vivid demonstration of this principle:

44And all who believed were together and had all things in common. 45And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. 46And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, 47praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.

Take note, it does not say, "all the married people" or "all the single people" gathered in the temple and homes. There was no segregation.

Christ my Husband...

The holidays are always a time that can be quite difficult for many walking through this temporal life. Maybe a spouse of many years has passed recently, maybe one's marriage has unexpectedly and tragically ended, maybe a parent has died...or sadly, maybe a child, or maybe one has watched another year pass without a family of her own. I would fall into the latter category, and I would immediately say that this category is probably far less tragic and sorrowful as the others mentioned. In fact, it is no tragedy at all because it is God's perfect will for my life right now. And how could I be disappointed or frustrated at God's will? That would mean that I believed He was not a good, loving and benevolent God.

As a single woman, there are so many common statements made by well-meaning friends who want to be an encouragement, however, often what is said is not really biblical or helpful. For instance, at a wedding this past weekend, I cannot count how many times myself and several of my unmarried friends heard the comment, "your turn will come". While the thoughtfulness is appreciated, what baffled me was that I was rejoicing at this dear friend's wedding and gave very little thought to my solitary status. I can honestly say that I was basking in my sweet friend's happiness and was not sad or disappointed that it wasn't me getting married. If anything, such comments merely draw the unmarried person's thoughts into exactly the kind of doubting mindset that she is seeking prayerfully to avoid. Another comment that is often spoken is something to the effect of, "well, God give the desires of our hearts and if marriage is what you desire, then He will grant that eventually, you just have to trust Him". Again, well-meaning, but not rooted in any kind of careful theological study whatsoever. There are multitudes of people in Scripture who never got what they desired, but they got what God deemed best for their lives and what would bring Him the most honor and glory! The fact of the matter is...I do desire marriage and children. However, God is not obligated to grant me this desire at all and there is nothing in Scripture that says He will certainly accomplish that specific thing in my life. What is true and sure is that whatever state I am in, God is to be my source of life, happiness, comfort and rest always. He is my Husband, and this is what I was reflecting on during the wedding ceremony I attended this past weekend. God's name was made great in that worship service. He was exalted far above any marriage vows, and that is how it should be! As Christians, we need to be careful in making assumptions and even well-intentioned comments that are based not on Scriptural principles, but on what we think each other wants and deserves. None of us deserve anything. We don't even get a spouse because we deserve it. A husband is not something to be earned by righteous merit that somehow surpasses the norm. It is a precious gift from God, but just as much the companionship granted through sweet friendships and familial bonds within the Church are also precious gifts. While marriage is the biblical norm for most people and the God-ordained means of exemplifying Christ and the Church, it is not something that I am missing because I have somehow failed, and it is not something that I can will to happen by good behavior and faithful living.

So, during the holiday season, when we think that we might see others struggling with loneliness or difficult circumstances, instead of merely trying to speak words of relief, let's help one another embrace the path God has placed us on for this time. Invite one another to meals and activities, include each other in the fun holiday traditions that your families have. Consider the many widows, those who have been neglected by their own earthly families, the college student who can't afford to travel home, those who have no children of their own, or the one who has been painfully discarded by most. This is not written out of self-pity, or from a desire to be seen as such...but as someone who is "alone" and yet has been richly provided for with a warm room in my parent's home and many precious friends who do include me in their lives regularly, I know there are many who do not have such blessings. Let's find them...and seek to minister to them, not patronizing them but encouraging them to live out the calling God has placed on their lives, whatever that may be for this season.

The only true and pure servant, Jesus Christ!

I am currently reading through the book, Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus by Nancy Guthrie. It is a compilation of many great writers including Charles Spurgeon, George Whitefield and John Piper. Each short chapter is a summary of a sermon or book previously recorded on the topic of Christmas. They are intended to be read as an advent book. I have been so encouraged by these chapters to ponder what is most valuable during this season of busyness and worldly distractions. One of the most impactful readings thus far was written by J.I. Packer entitled, "For Your Sakes He Became Poor". Instead of trying to bring my own disjointed thoughts to the table, I will let the Scripture passage and Packer's meditations speak for themselves here:

For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you by His poverty might become rich (2 Corinthians 8:9).

"The New Testament does not encourage us to puzzle our heads over the physical and psychological problems that it raises, but to worship God for the love that was shown in it. For it was a great act of condescension and self-humbling. 'He, Who had always been God by nature,' writes Paul, 'did not cling to His prerogatives as God's equal, but stripped Himself of all privilege by consenting to be a slave by nature and being born as mortal man. And, having become man, He humbled Himself by living a life of utter obedience, even to the extent of dying, and the death He died was the death of a common criminal' (Phil. 2:6, Phillips translation). And all this was for our salvation.

For the Son of God to empty Himself and become poor meant a laying aside of glory; a voluntary restraint of power; an acceptance of hardship, isolation, ill-treatment, malice, and misunderstanding...It meant love to the uttermost for unlovely men, who 'through His poverty, might become rich'.

It is to our shame and disgrace today that so many Christians - I will be more specific: so many of the soundest and most orthodox Christians - go through this world in the spirit of the priest and the Levite in our Lord's parable, seeing human needs all around them, but (after a pious wish, and perhaps a prayer, that God might meet them) averting their eyes, and passing by on the other side. That is not the Christmas spirit. Nor is it the spirit of those Christians - alas, there are many - whose ambition in life seems limited to building a nice middle-class Christian home, and making nice middle-class Christian friends, and bringing up their children in nice middle-class Christian ways, and who leave the sub-middle-class sections of the community, Christian and non-Christian, to get on by themselves. The Christmas spirit does not shine out in the Christian snob. For the Christmas spirit is the spirit of those who, like their Master, live their whole lives on the principle of making themselves poor - spending and being spent - to enrich their fellow men, giving time, trouble, care, and concern, to do good to others - and not just their own friends - in whatever way there seems need. There are not as many who show this spirit as there should be. If God in mercy revives us, one of the things He will do will be to work more of this spirit in our hearts and lives. If we desire spiritual quickening for ourselves individually, one step we should take is to seek to cultivate this spirit. 'Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus'."

I run in the path of your commands, for you have set my heart free! Psalm 119:32

Half as hard and twice as good...

When I was in my teen years and early college, I was a terrible friend. I had so many ridiculous expectations for people and thought I was so great and wondered why they couldn't just be a good friend. I also, at times, did not choose my friends so wisely, which didn't help matters. Though I was a Christian at the time, I was a very immature and poorly taught one at best. My friends were typically chosen on the basis of how that person made me feel and the focus was always on whether they were treating me kindly or not. I burned a lot of bridges with people who I got frustrated with when they didn't treat me the way I thought I deserved to be treated.

Jump forward 10-15 years, and what a dramatic measure of grace God has granted in this area of my life. He has blessed abundantly with some very particularly precious friendships, ones that are centered on a mutual love for Christ and motivated by a desire to see each other become more like Him. Sometimes this means painful confrontation, and it definitely means that my friends bear with my many sinful weaknesses that can often be discouraging to them I am sure. It means there is a loyalty to love one another that I have never experienced before. It means taking seriously the admonishment that "it is a joy to overlook an offense" and yet also taking seriously the command to "speak truth in love" when there is a need for specific repentance and turning from sin. Praise God for His longsuffering as my dearest Friend, for He is the highest Friend and in Him there are no imperfections or impurities. Yet, even in the communion we are able to have in Him, which is all that is necessary, He still chooses to bring such earthly gifts of friendship to us.

"When I am down and need to cry till morning,
I know just where I am going.
When I'm in need of sweet commiseration
To speak out loud.
Raise a glass to friendship
And to knowing you don't have to go alone.
We'll raise out hearts to share each other's burdens
On this road.

Every burden I have carried,
Every joy--it's understood.
Life with you is half as hard,
And twice as good.

With my good news you're dancing on the table:
Baby's born, to celebration.
The joy of life, oh what a sweet communion,
Shared with you.

Every burden I have carried,
Every joy--it's understood.
Life with you is half as hard,
And twice as good.

Every burden I have carried,
Every joy--it's understood.
Life with you is half as hard,
And twice as good.

I know we're growing older,
Can you imagine what that will bring?
It's all a mystery to me now,
Except this one thing:
It'll be half as hard, and twice as good.

- Sara Groves -

Do not allow culture to define your personhood...

Yesterday, I read a very insightful post on the "Council of Biblical Manhood & Womanhood" site. Though it speaks of the effects of culture on womanhood, it is important to note how many areas of life we allow culture to inform and impact. There are many preachers nowadays who are adjusting their message to fit within the cultural atmosphere in which they serve. Knowing that is the case, this brings one to consider...where then, does it stop? If the culture guides preaching (instead of preaching guiding the culture), then it will necessarily follow that the culture will guide even Christians understanding of manhood and womanhood, motives in parenting, contentment and usefulness in the unmarried state, and on and on. Today we have Christians who believe homosexuality is acceptable, that depression and ADD are merely uncontrolled mental illnesses that must be medicated, that women HAVE to work outside the home in order to feel fulfilled and complete, that children should be able to decide for themselves how they desire to live. I am thankful for a pastor who is most assuredly not guided by the culture we live in, though sadly, many cannot say the same of their own pastor.

Here is a clip from the CBMW's post:
Some of us do not remember a time when it was considered “progressive” for a woman to work outside of the home. In the wake of the feminist revolution women in full-time careers are normative now. For many young girls to grow up and be “just like mom” means to go to college, pick a career path, and climb the ladder of success. One of the interesting aspects of Time Magazine’s cover story last month were the stories of women who had been profiled in the initial cover story in 1972. One was a career woman who stayed that way, one was a woman who was a farmer’s wife who went to work when her kids grew up, and one was a homemaker who was still at home after all these years.

Intrigued by their stories, I went back and read the original stories of the women profiled in 1972. One of the recurring things I noticed with the women who chose to stay home with their families back then was that they would say "it's just what you do." Many of the women believed the husband was the "dominant" one because that is just how it is. And to this day, some of them still would prefer the husband to be the dominant one in the relationship, but would like to embrace some of the more “freeing” aspects of feminism’s effects. In their generation the norm was June Cleaver. The homemaker who is always there to greet her husband, bakes fresh cookies for her boys, and never forgets to wear her pearls. That is just the way it was. It was embedded in the culture, and feminism was simply a fringe movement.

But when it hit the suburban housewife it changed everything. The problem with making a cultural model normative is that it holds no lasting weight. It’s only bearing is the fact that it is tradition that defines you, not an external authority. When the feminist movement of the seventies became culturally relevant to every woman, it allowed for a complete shift of ideology. When culture defines womanhood and the family, a cultural shift takes the norm with it. The shift leftward gave us the new normal. And this is where we are today.

As Christians we are not shaken by the cultural revolutions. We know that God defines our personhood and our gender. If he, who is unchanging, defines us, then no matter what the culture does, his Word will still stand true. So many of the women who stayed home in the 60’s and 70’s, became slowly dissatisfied with their lives because they never had a real framework for why they were home in the first place. It was just what they did. And when all of their kids left home, and they were left with their husbands, they were unhappy with their lives because everyone on the outside looked like they were having a lot more fun.

As Christian women we have a tremendous calling to teach the next generation of women that we are not women by accident. We do not define our own personhood and gender. God does. So many young girls today believe in a norm, just like the women in 1972. Only now this norm is thinking that you have to go to college and seek a career to be successful in this world. Many of them have no framework for desiring children and a husband. It’s just not what you do anymore, until you have established your own career. I often wonder what they will be thinking 25 years from now when they have the career, but no family and no children. It is a vicious cycle when God is not in the center.

We do a great disservice to our younger sisters in Christ when we teach them womanhood in the context of “it’s just what you do.” We are not creating a new cultural norm in the training of the next generation. We are passing down a legacy. We are passing down a history and a story that was written for us by a good God when he created Adam and Eve male and female (Gen. 1:27).

The hope for the American woman is not better pay, more career opportunities, perceived equality, or even a well-kept home and family. It is in Jesus Christ alone and in his plan for his people. We don’t believe in womanhood because we just think men should be the “dominant” ones. We believe in womanhood because God said that is what we are. And that is what we must be and teach.

Dangers for youth and young adults in a doctrinally sound church...

I read a blog written by one of the student deans at my graduate school, The Master's College. He often has some very thoughtful things to say, and although he wrote this most recent post directed at the students of the college, I think it is especially pertinent for the young people being raised and working through early adulthood in a strong doctrinally sound church, much like the one I attend. I have struggled through some of these same issues and have witnessed it firsthand in many young people at my church. May we be careful to examine where our pursuits, both academically and spiritually, are leading us. Here is his blog post:

Dangers of The Master’s College
November 28, 2009
This past Monday night a small group from the dorms came over to our place to spend some time together. They had asked me to share some of the dangers of life at the college. Before they came, I sat down in the living room to reflect, and wrote down nine dangers that come to mind. Some overlap, and some are more prominent than others, but all are legitimate dangers that I’ve observed and experienced. We only had time to talk about three, and I promised I would send them the rest. But since the rest were only bulletpoints, I thought that expanding on them here would be a good way to make the most of my opportunity to reflect on an important question. So these are for Austin, Garrett, Sam, Jon, and Brandon. Everybody else is just being nosy.

1. Apathy. In a residential Christian community this side of eternity, the sacred can quickly become common. Zeal fades, lethargy sets in, and apathy reigns. Truth becomes fodder for discussion more than fuel for mission, theological issues become writing assignments for grades, relationships lose spiritual meaning, and participation in chapels and classes and community events become requirements instead of privileges. We gather fuel but light no match.

2. Bad habits. This relates more to general college life than TMC specifically. College is a place of new-found independence, a garden in which priorities are planted, and an assembly line of life decisions. Yet unfortunately, the college community is fairly accepting of bad habits — procrastination, lack of discipline, misplaced priorities, noncommittal attitudes. Instead of crucifying some of my bad habits in college, I fed them. And they are much more difficult to slay now. The wise student will fight for good habits in the core disciplines of life. College is a crossroads. Settle some things now.

3. Self-deception. It isn’t too difficult to pick up the lingo, abide by the rules, fit into the culture, and learn the customs. This may all be OK if my heart is pure and my discernment is active and the overall culture is biblical, but if I am just unwittingly following the crowd or (far worse) subtly playing the game, I am deceiving myself. I am coming to see that self-deception is a much bigger and more prevalent issue than I ever thought. It’s all over Scripture and all over our hearts, and the American entertainment and advertising industries are masterful at exploiting our penchant for deceiving ourselves.

4. Hyper-criticism. Studying at an institution that stands firm for doctrinal detail and biblical methodologies can tempt a student to become a relentless critic and a professional stone-thrower. We become those who shoot first and ask questions later. On the other side are reactionary students who lambast the critics, judge the judgers, and trumpet virtual equality among all ideas and methods. It takes the wisdom of discernment and the quality of self-restraint to be one who discerns wrong from right and good from best, and to be one who is developing a working understanding of the difference between those two comparative categories.

5. Disillusionment. Plenty of students come to TMC with a set of baggage that differs in color, shape, size, and contents than the stereotypical black, Samsonite, rolling carry-on. They can feel instantly judged, marginalized, pushed to the fringes, and generally given no sincere opportunity to learn as well as to contribute. On the other side are students who come from conservative Christian homes, and either instantly or over time grow disillusioned with the idiosyncracies or outright weaknesses of the community. How the disillusioned deal with their disillusionment is a vital issue. There’s the danger that instead of dealing with frustrations by going to the Word, abiding in Christ the vine, seeking harmony with other believers, repenting first of personal sin, talking it out patiently with those older and wiser, and gently yet boldly offering correction and perspective to those perpetuating unbiblical attitudes and methods, disillusioned students may choose to distance themselves from the community, solidify kneejerk views in isolation, gather ammunition, and use every felt wrong and negative experience to construct walls. I’ll be the first to admit that we need to do a much better job ministering to the disillusioned.

6. Over-reaching. With all the opportunities at the college and all the calls to Christian obedience and all the nuances of practical living, it can be easy to over-reach. You can be tempted to start putting up crown molding before the foundation has been laid. This is not to say that we should only obey one command at a time, starting with those that seem most fundamental. Only that focusing on all the details and complex dynamics of the human heart and the Christian life can sometimes distract us from mastering the basics. Sometimes I actually want to distract myself with labyrinthal issues so that I don’t have to face my own negligence in the simplest matters of faith and discipline. Certainly there’s nothing praiseworthy about a longtime believer who still needs milk instead of solid food (Hebrews 5:11-14), but among the younger generation, first things first is a needed principle (Proverbs 24:27).

7. Works-righteousness. We don’t need rules and policies and requirements and discipline procedures to make us lean on our own perceived righteousness. But the clear presence of these standards and expectations in a community can certainly tempt us to become focused on personal righteousness (or even appearances of righteousness) to the exclusion of the grace and forgiveness found in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ our Lord. Further, instead of heart-transformation and a purified conscience, we can become focused on externals. Healthy patterns of outward behavior can become the goal, to the neglect of a heart after God.

8. Missionlessness. College is a place to be trained. I strongly disagree with the dichotomy that’s often made between college and “real life,” but I freely acknowledge that college is a time of training and preparation. The spiritual battle still rages, yet in many ways college is a boot camp that’s preparing students for the battle outside. Forgetting the purpose for which we are being trained is destructive, not just to an individual but to the college community and especially the future local church to which a student will belong. God is on a mission in Scripture, and we are benefactors of and participants in that mission. Our college years are not simply for vocational training or career preparation or personal improvement. We are arrows being whittled and fashioned and sharpened — for a purpose. I am fully convinced that one of the greatest needs in the church today is clear, accurate, multi-dimensional teaching on the mission of God in Scripture and how that mission relates to every part of life. Without it we are aimless, misdirected, and wasteful at best.

9. Guilt. Over the years many students have testified that they had culture shock throughout their first semester at college and beyond. They come from being leaders in their youth groups, examples of Christian character in their public schools, and older siblings in their families to being rookies and seeming benchwarmers in a place that can appear very spiritually intense. All of a sudden the academic standards skyrocket, the biblical fire hose is turned on, and the expectations are ratcheted up. Even for upperclassmen at TMC, there are constant reminders of the diverse sufferings of the outside world which you can’t do much about, calls in chapel and classes to get bigger, faster, and stronger spiritually, along with the constant temptation to compare yourself with the spiritual maturity of your peers (which only leads to pride or despair). A constant sense of guilt and the burden of underachievement is almost accepted as a normal part of the Christian life. It’s just here to stay, Romans 8:1 notwithstanding. On top of all of this, there’s the simple fact that guilt gets stuff done. It’s a great motivator, plain and simple. Yet for all that it can produce (externally), it eliminates joy, erodes love, and evicts kindness, meanwhile increasing competitiveness and envy. Guilt is a slavedriver, and eventually a silent killer. But grace — grace is the wonderful, freeing, unexpendable Christian motivation. It creates joy, fuels love, and cultivates kindness, and it destroys competition and comparisons and jealousy. And the striking thing about the saving and sanctifying grace of God expressed in the work of Jesus Christ and the gift of the Spirit is that this grace is the solution and the corrective to every one of the above dangers. It drives away apathy, it urges us toward good habits, it frees us to be honest with ourselves, it destroys judgmentalism, it replaces cynicism with gratitude, it allows for progress over time, it gives us righteousness apart from works, it informs and saturates our mission, and it purges us of guilt and shame.

Refinement is often painful...

“Oh, bless our God, you peoples!
And make the voice of His praise to be heard,
9 Who keeps our soul among the living,
And does not allow our feet to be moved.
10 For You, O God, have tested us;
You have refined us as silver is refined.
11 You brought us into the net;
You laid affliction on our backs.
12 You have caused men to ride over our heads;
We went through fire and through water;
But You brought us out to rich fulfillment.” (Psalm 66:8-12. NKJV.)

The heart is so easily distracted by earthly matters...

Let all mortal flesh keep silence, and with fear and trembling stand;
Ponder nothing earthly minded, For with blessing is His hand,
Christ our God to earth descendeth, Our full homage to demand.
Fernando Ortega

I have so many thoughts swirling in my mind this week, actually for several weeks now. There have been some interesting bumps in my road lately as well as the anticipated holiday season and what might as well be called wedding season, even though it's not June! One small thing that I have thought about much in the past few days is how quick my heart is drawn to earthly matters. I spend time talking about what dress I should wear to an upcoming event, and then wonder whether I have matching shoes or jewelry. I go into other people's homes and often begin wishing I had a home like theirs, that I had space to entertain, or could buy some nice decorative items to spruce up what I do have. I love projects and I love to do things for other people, but sometimes even these things can become a distraction from the only thing that really matters, and that is knowing Christ more and more. This next thought seems a bit disjointed, but it's all part of the ongoing progression of my thoughts these days. I was watching a few minutes of the movie "Troy" this afternoon, and I always get so inspired by Prince Hector and how he defends his city, even when his brother acts like a cowardly fool crawling to his feet begging for his help. The King is there telling the younger brother to fight, you can almost hear him in the background, calling out, "Come on, be a man!" I am so moved by Hector's eagerness to protect and guard and defend his bride, his father's kingdom and all those in it. I know this movie has no spiritual bearing whatsoever, but I was suddenly overcome with the thought that this is how my Savior is for me. As an unmarried woman, I often long to be protected or provided for in some way, wishing someone were quick to defend me, and eager to protect me. I don't fear often, but when I do from time to time, it's easy to think how nice it would be if someone were there to be looking out for me. But then I was reminded, as I was watching some silly movie, that Christ is all that for me. When I hear a strange noise, when I am in the dark, when I am feeling alone, when I am worried about how I will make it alone as I get older, I remember that Christ is my all in all. I may not have an earthly husband and I may not have a beautiful home that is filled with spacious and creatively decorated rooms. But I have Christ living within me. I have the power of the Spirit dwelling within, equipping me for every good work. Is there really anything else that matters? And in recognizing such things, how could I want for more? When I do, I am saying to God that He has somehow not given me enough or that what He has given me is not the right thing. How ridiculous and selfish for me to be so busy thinking I must have a new dress every time there is a wedding to attend, or to think that I have to get the best things to make my room all coordinated. What are my clothes and belongings for anyway? They were all given to me by a gracious God to be used for the advancement of His kingdom. He clothes me, feeds me, and provides shelter for me so that I can open my arms to others in generosity, so that I can minister to those in my path. I am merely His slave, a servant who should always be ready to do His bidding. May I forsake the ways of this world and cling to His fellowship tightly.

John MacArthur says, "Those who are consumed with their own needs and comfort rarely accomplish much. Many noble servants of God have suffered much to reach the spiritual goals of Christlikeness in life and ministry. Many even paid with their lives. All had one thing in common - their own comfort was less important to them than being like the Lord Jesus Christ in this world. They left their mark on the church through their undying devotion to Him and their untiring efforts for His gospel."

Seeing our sin...

How do you truly recognize when you are looking for an excuse for your sin? Well, it’s just like Eve in Gen. 3:1 – “Did God really say?” As young women, how often do we find ourselves asking some variation of this question. For example, in regards to our dress – “well God did not clearly outline the specifics of what is modest and immodest so how can we be so stringent?” or “Well God never said we couldn’t drink at all, so what’s the big deal?” or even seemingly good things – like a young man we are interested in or a job we wish to pursue, we challenge our authorities with responses like, “well Scripture is not really perfectly clear on this issue, so I have the freedom to pursue this even though my spiritual authorities have spoken up about their concerns”. What if your parents or pastors have voiced a concern and yet you press on to get what you want, when maybe their concern was the very thing God using to keep you in His will. Be cautious not to disregard this counsel, because you may just end up with exactly what you want and live to regret it. Sometimes God’s will is to let us pursue our own agenda, which in the end might be to our own demise! Don’t be like Eve, who even tried to reason that this fruit was “good for food” as a means of soothing her troubled conscience about what she desired in her own heart. This is manipulation. Be careful you are not trying to manipulate God’s will for your life, seeking to bend and twist it to your own interests.

Woman, return to your God-ordained role!

TIME magazine has finally stated what we can easily see when we observe the world around us...that "as women have gained more freedom, more education and more economic power, they have become less happy." What a shocker, considering we have done away with the purposeful and precious roles that God intricately designed us for and placed the god of selfish ambition first! May we redeem the times and seek to encourage the women God places in our paths to return to their beautifully-ordained role as the helper they were created to be!Check out the following links for some more biblical insight:

http://www.cbmw.org/Blog/Posts/CBMW-Responds-to-TIME-Pt-1

http://solofemininity.blogs.com/posts/2009/10/time-the-womens-issue.html

What is your greatest satisfaction?

“Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith – that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and may share His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.” Philippians 3:8-11

Jesus had truly become the Satisfier of Paul’s soul. Who or what is most satisfying to you?

Knowing the Heart

In our church college ministry, we have been studying through the book, Knowing the Heart, by Jonathan Edwards. Tonight I taught the ladies from a chapter entitled, “The Gadarenes Loved Their Swine More than Jesus Christ”. Following are the notes I prepared for this lesson. I cannot take credit for a lot of it, as my pastor, Michael Harsch, gave me a great deal of insight for it. And I must add, I cannot say that I have mastered the art of knowing my own deceitful heart. But I am so thankful God has provided teachers and writers and a church where I can learn more about my heart and how to know it better. May He always receive all the glory and honor!

Texts: Mark 5 & Luke 8

Let’s first review the main purpose of these sermons that have been compiled in this book. Edwards had a very specific intention of provoking his hearers to examine their personal hearts in an effort to gain assurance of their salvation. When speaking of the “heart”, what is meant is this: “The heart in Scripture is variously used; sometimes for the mind and understanding, sometimes for the will, sometimes for the affections, sometimes for the conscience, sometimes for the whole soul. Generally, it denotes the whole soul of man and all the faculties of it, not absolutely, but as they are all one principle of moral operations, as they all concur in our doing good or evil. The mind as it inquireth, discerneth, and judgeth what is to be done, what refused; the will, as it chooseth or refuseth and avoids; the affections, as they like or dislike, cleave to or have an aversion from, that which is proposed to them; the conscience, as it warns and determines – are all together called the heart.” Proverbs 4:23 says, “Keep thy heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life.” John Flavel, in reflecting on this verse, said, “The greatest difficulty in conversion is to win the heart to God, and the greatest difficulty after conversion is to keep the heart with God.”

If the heart is so fickle and so easily deceived, then we must approach this study knowing that even when Edwards seems to be speaking to the unregenerate man, it is needful for us to take heed and listen. Now I am not trying to cause unnecessary or harmful doubt about your salvation. However, we must all take care that we are not fooling ourselves about our spiritual condition. Whenever we read a passage of Scripture, we never want to isogete it, meaning we don’t want to attach our own meaning or interpretation to it. In this chapter from Edwards’ book, if you read it, you might find yourself wondering why he took one small passage of Scripture and made such broad applications. It might seem at first as though he read it and then placed his own meaning to it. When we read the passage, is it perfectly clear that the sole reason for the Gadarene’s fear and refusal to receive Jesus into their company was specifically because they lost the herd of swine? Well, obviously, the text does not explicitly say this. So how then, does Edwards make the application he does? And what is the application for us?

Edwards makes this application based primarily on the cultural context of the time. Clearly, a herd of a couple thousand swine would be a hugely valuable commodity in this day. A town’s livestock was their primary means of survival and prosperity. To lose such a herd all in one moment would be quite devastating for the people. What is even more important in this text however, is not to discern exactly how critical just the swine were to these people, but to observe that regardless of what caused it, they were fearful and they were adamant that Christ depart from them. So whether it be merely the loss of the swine, or a combination of other issues, the point is – they were filled with fear and boldly rejected the Son of God from being in their presence. The primary motivation for the Gadarenes to want to be ridded of Christ was self-interest and self-preservation. This is where the application for us comes in.

Again, the primary motivation for the Gadarenes to reject Christ was self-interest and self-preservation. And is not that the very thing that causes us to reject Christ? And make no mistake, I am not referring only to those who reject His saving power, but even to those believers who daily reject the intimate fellowship that Christ is calling them to. So, the swine represent self – whatever that might be to you. For you all, that will not be livestock (I assume). It will be whatever threatens to take your gaze off of Christ. Steve Camp calls this inward focus “the rot of religion – the idolatry of self-love”. It is a plague and cancer eating away at the church and causing a great stumbling block to true Christianity. No wonder the world calls us hypocrites. He goes on to say, “The two great commandments of ‘Love the Lord thy God’ and ‘love thy neighbor’ have now been eclipsed with this third hell-inspired commandment: ‘love thyself’.” Let’s ask ourselves this question posed by Jonathan Edwards: “Has it not been your manner, in particular cases wherein the command of Christ has stood on one hand, and some carnal interest and enjoyment on the other, to refuse the former and choose the latter?” Now you may claim that you have not done so, you may say, “Well, I have not chosen some carnal form of sexual immorality or stealing or murder, so that does not describe me.” But we must think more specifically. Have we chosen to spend our money on a new outfit or that latest gadget we have been lusting after – instead of giving above our normal tithe, or using our money to generously bless another? Have we chosen to abuse our Christian liberty by flaunting ourselves in a manner which is unbecoming of a godly woman or engaging in some form of entertainment that may cause a younger believer to stumble or be confused? When it comes to our finances and resources, we often think, “I need it for myself. I need it for my own. I cannot spare it.” Another way that we often become self-absorbed is with our time. We say we want to serve and help, yet we fail to do what we said – we don’t follow through, we are late and leave others to handle the task we committed to. I bring up some of these particular examples because I see them as being the most common tendencies for this age group. By refusing to carefully examine those areas of our lives, and the motives behind them, we are displaying a heart that is absorbed with and ruled by self. Be careful when you catch yourself making statements that others have no right to judge you or that your personal convictions are your own business. When you publicly embrace Christ, you are to be characterized by a desire and willingness for accountability. John Flavel said, “There are many real saints in whom the Spirit of truth is, who yet, through the impetuous workings of their corruptions, and neglecting of the watch over their hearts, often fall into such scandalous practices that they look like hypocrites though they are not so.”

In this chapter, Edwards gives the primary use of the text as a means of self-examination. In examining oneself, one must begin by observing and pondering his own profession of faith. If I want to scrutinize my profession, I am necessarily going to have to consider what it is that gives me assurance. What does the man who thinks he is converted cling to in order to give himself assurance? Well, Edwards says there are two things: a verbal profession of Christ and an emotional response.

A verbal response is something that cannot be relied upon as a means of assurance. Judas Iscariot publicly professed a love and devotion to Christ, yet eagerly betrayed him when something more valuable was offered to him. He chose his own form of swine over Christ. Edwards says, “The one who prefers anything to Christ is not a Christian regardless of what they say.” Even now, in my own prideful thoughts about myself, I may say that does not apply to me, I never prefer something to Christ. But what does my life say about this? Edwards goes on to say, “If you are frequently talking of things of religion and speak of Christ, and what He has done and suffered, and often in your discourse expressing how needful a thing it was that Christ should have regard to such unworthy worms of the dust as we are, what cause we have to love Christ, and to be careful to praise and glorify Him, and how that the praise of our salvation does not belong to us at all, but only to Jesus Christ, that he only should have all the glory, and drop many expressions time after time to the like purpose, ‘tis no certain sign that you don’t love your swine better than Jesus Christ.” WOW! So I can speak of the Lord and His goodness and faithfulness, yet still remain far from Him in my heart.

Secondly, the emotional response. At a church like the one I attend, it may be tempting to think this is not a problem for us. We are not an emotionally-driven congregation. However, think of the response you have when you see a romantic movie, or even listen to some moving and powerful praise and worship music. Is your heart stirred to such degrees when you merely read the precious words of God in the quiet of your room? Edwards tells us that the test for our emotions is this: Compare your affections unto Christ with your affections to other matters. Are you highly charged in your emotions to rise up and defend yourself when you are rebuked by someone, yet not near as passionate about the heart examination you do in the solitary confines of your room? What are you more moved to emotion over – what others have said or done to you, or what you have said and done to others? Richard Baxter said this: “Whether you love an immortal, holy life with God, or this earthly, fleshly life better, is the great question on which it will be resolved whether you are Christians or infidels at the heart, and whether you are heirs of heaven or hell…And if God say plainly, ‘if any man come to Christ, and hate not his own life (that is, love it not so much less than Christ, that for His sake he can use it as a hated thing is used), he cannot be my disciple’ (Luke 14:26).” What meticulous care do you give ladies, to the apparel you put on, to the way your hair is styled, to the impression you give off particularly in front of men – or even the concern you have over your academic studies or the reputation you hold in your place of employment? Do you expend a greater measure of careful attention to your heart and to the study of it?

Jonathan Edwards takes this story of the Gadarenes and their swine as a careful opportunity for us to apply diligence in knowing our heart. But do we want to know our hearts? John Flavel said, “We are all naturally prone to flee from ourselves, and we desire to converse with our own hearts as seldom as possible.” Let’s read a corresponding passage in John 3:19-21. Why did the Gadarenes want Christ to depart from their presence? FEAR! What were they afraid of? Being exposed. Christ’s reputation most assuredly preceded Him. The Gadarenes knew of His agenda. They also knew of their own agenda. Man relies on his position, his goods. How about us? Are we relying on our position – our good looks? Our popular reputation? Our vain pursuits? Even our righteous deeds? The Gadarenes were afraid because they quickly and dramatically saw that what Christ was doing in their midst cost them something, and they were probably wondering what more it would cost them if He remained! Christ would have been welcome among them if it had cost them nothing. They wanted the benefits without the cost. They were tired of dealing with this possessed man. They had already chained him up and tried to suppress him. Yet, they weren’t willing to give up those swine. See how we are the same! We try and chain up our sin, pushing it down within, hiding it, talking around it – yet we are unwilling to give up what it would cost to have Christ remove it entirely. The verses we read in John 3 – how is a lover of the light described? As one who has his deeds exposed for all to see – why? Because he wants protection! There is much safeguarding of your soul when you allow yourself to be exposed to the light of truth. A practical example of this might even be in how we relate to one another in small groups. I have been in ministry long enough to see that we often repeat the same general prayer concerns every week. We confess that we have not been diligent in our quiet time, we are struggling with discipline and consistency. We are not managing our time wisely. We want to be more devoted to the Lord. Here is a particular means of testing our hearts. Are we pursuing secrecy or scrutiny (as one of my pastors so clearly asserted)? Scrutiny is not a bad thing, and when we think it is, we will often find that it is because we are trying to protect ourselves. We want to keep our prayer requests and struggles very general and abstract, usually so that we don’t really have to answer for them when we continue in them. We love our sin. We are most content there. And if we made it more specifically known by confessing it to one another, then we would be more accountable for it. So just as the Gadarenes had sought to suppress the demon-possessed man, we are suppressing our sin. We secure a place for sin in our hearts. And we do it most willingly! Edwards says, “Christ had been a stranger in the land of the Gadarenes, but He sailed over the sea in a ship and came to them. It might well have been a joyful time among the people of that country when He was coming. That ship was bringing the Lord of Life and glory to them! And Christ actually came ashore upon their land and gloriously showed His power and mercy among them. When He had but, as it were, touched on the coast, they quickly sent him back again because of their swine that they had lost.”

Receive this story as a warning to not do as the Gadarenes did. Edwards said, “How just would it be if Christ should finally leave you, never to come to you or strive with you anymore?” Ladies, He has been so longsuffering toward us. Are there areas of your life where God has given you opportunity to repent, where maybe either in your own personal reflection or from the loving rebuke of another, you have shunned and rejected Him? I am not speaking only of repentance toward salvation, but even repentance in your sanctification? Are there hidden or suppressed sins that you have been confronted with – immorality, sensuality, rebellion against authorities, bitterness and wrath held in your heart, unforgiveness, refusal to serve and care for others – that when confronted, you did a quick self-check and came to the conclusion that it must not be true of you, and then move on? He may not continue to be so longsuffering. If you are an unbeliever, He may choose to remove opportunities for repentance and veil your eyes for all eternity. Believer, He may not always be so faithful to give you careful guidance and wisdom when you abuse it and suppress it. Don’t choose to remain an immature Christian. Consider the Lord’s patience with you even in such lessons as He pleads with you and implores you to know and understand your heart – yet some of you remain ambivalent. You don’t come regularly, there is always something pressing that prevents you from coming. Even your small group ministry is a mercy of God intended to bring about salvation and sanctification in your hearts. Let us not pay lip service in our responses, but may our hearts be genuine and sincere in gratitude for the Lord giving us such an opportunity to be conformed to the image of His Son. As Edwards states, “Consider what danger there is that Christ will forsake you as He did the Gadarenes…Christ took ship and bid adieu to the Gadarene shore, and crossed the sea again and returned unto His own country. And we have no account that in all his travels, He ever went to the country of the Gadarenes anymore; but it seems as though Christ, according to their own desire, totally left them.”

Let me close by reading a portion of a letter written by William Lord Russell, as he sent words of counsel to his son (from pg.ix in Flavel’s book):“Fail not, what employment soever you have, every night, as in the presence of God and His holy angels, to pass an inquisition on your soul, what ill it hath done, what good it hath left undone; what slips, what fall, it has had that day; what temptations have prevailed upon it, and by what means or after what manner. Ransack every corner of thy dark heart; and let not the least peccadillo, or kindness to a sin, lurk there; but bring it forth, bewail it, protest against it, detest it, and scourge it by a severe sorrow. Thus, each day’s breach between God and your soul being made up, with more quiet and sweet hope thou mayest dispose thyself to rest. Certainly at last this inquisition, if steadily pursued, will vanquish all customary sins, whatever they may be. I speak it upon this reason, because I presume thou wilt not have the face to appear before God every night confessing the same offense; and thou wilt forbear it, lest thou mayest seem to mock God, or despise Him, which is but dreadful to imagine.”

Legacy of Servanthood

Even though there are no special holidays in honor of my mother right now, and really no upcoming ones, I have been pondering my appreciation for her much in recent days. I have also been pondering how little I express that appreciation to her. Saying thanks every time she does something for me is not nearly worthy of the true measure of my gratitude for her. I must note furthermore, that it is not so much the little things she does for me, as it is the overall life-encompassing example that she is for me in my own pursuit of biblical womanhood. I am not even a fraction as patient, gracious, kind, thoughtful and generous as my mother is in her service toward others. What gets me even more when I observe and consider her selfless ways, is that her motives are never, ever to draw attention to herself or to any merits within her. What she does, she does for the glory of God and the welfare of others! When someone asks my mother if she can help them with something, she would never have them know at all how many other things she has to do that day. They would never have any idea that she has already volunteered to assist in two or three other areas of ministry/service that day and that she might be making a meal for someone that day as well. No matter how much she has on her plate, she will always make room for more. Her bookshelves might be a little dusty that week or the dishes might sit in the sink for a day or two, but she has touched many lives that were in need. That’s because she has truly learned the hidden art of placing others before herself…always! She is the most unselfish person I know. If she has any small amount of extra money, she looks for ways to bless her children and grandchildren, or to provide for others. If she has leftovers, she shares them with neighbors and friends. If she has a free day, she fills it up with meals and cleaning for those who are either sick or just in need of an extra hand. If someone is in a bind and needs her to care for their children, she jumps at the opportunity to lovingly do so. If she has a couple hours at home, she asks me what she can do to help me so that I can do homework or go to a meeting. When I go out of town, I come home to a freshly detailed car that smells fantastic or to having all my laundry put away neatly. Her service is rarely visible to others, and she will probably be embarrassed that I am publicizing it here. She never harbors bitterness or resentment for all the ways in which she is often looked over or forgotten. She expects nothing from people in return for her kindness. She never gets frustrated or impatient that no one is serving her or meeting her needs. She doesn’t read to gain merely theological depth, but simply to love Christ more and more. Oh, how I long to be like her! If I grow to be an old woman who has little money, no fancily decorated home and not many interesting stories to tell about all the places I have been or things I have done, I will be satisfied just to see Christ mold me into even a small measure of her likeness. So today, just because it’s a day when I saw her commit to several acts of service this afternoon and tonight, making this Lord’s Day far from a day of rest for her, I was especially considering how thankful I am for her example of womanhood. She serves because she is so blessed by the service Christ has done for her. She loves because Christ loved her first. She meets needs because He met her greatest need. She prefers others because Christ preferred her. Mom, I love you and honor you today!

“Her children rise up and call her blessed…Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all…let her works praise her in the gates.” Proverbs 31

Psychology vs. Biblical Counseling

As I study and practice biblical counseling more and more, it becomes so evident that there is a great divide between modern psychology and biblical guidance. Last year I actually wrote a paper on this very topic, entitled, “The Importance of Biblical Counseling to the Ministry of the Local Church,” from which I would like to share some points that bear repeating. In recent days I have heard so many in the Church trying to communicate various forms of pseudo-counseling, in which they espouse to believe in the sufficiency of Scripture, yet in practice forsake it quite readily by blaming man’s sinful deeds on his upbringing, his environment, his chemical make-up, and all such nonsense. Now we have a form of “Christian” psychology that has infiltrated our pews, even in doctrinally sound churches. Due to the accessibility of psychologically driven media that has cloaked itself in a spiritual guise, as well as the lack of protective shepherding being done by many pastors, many Christians embrace psychology as the primary means of change in one’s life instead of the Almighty God! Psychology gathers bits and pieces of biblical principles, seeking to apply them as a means of encouragement or assistance in the process of change in man’s life without clearly defining them as the basis for that change. Biblical counseling relies on Scripture as THE establishment for a theology of God and His Word, which means that Scripture is the interpreter of man’s problems and the cure for his soul diseases. God will not share the recognition for transforming change in the life of man: “God, who has made Himself known in Scripture, is jealous for His own glory (Deut. 4:24).”

The biblical counselor places the authority and power to change where it rightly belongs: in the inspired and inerrant Holy Scriptures. The psychologist places authority and power in the hands of man. Biblical counseling follows the scriptural teaching of self-denial, while psychology touts self-fulfillment (Mtt. 16:24). Biblical counseling is about who man is, while psychology is about what is happening to man. Biblical counseling is rooted in the restoration of the soul, while psychology is only about a reformation of the soul. Essentially the two come down to personal redemption versus behavior modification.

The psychological world teaches that man is affected by unmet needs, victimization, inborn temperaments and biological determinations. Biblical counseling affirms that man is driven by his sinful nature; it has permeated every crevice of his soul!

A church that adheres to a psychological approach for helping people, most likely, has a membership filled with those who are seeking the church out to meet their personal emotional “needs” – which are actually demands and expectations. The psychology-driven church is not interested in teaching and training every believer to be a spiritual counselor to others, but is more interested in making him feel good about himself and his circumstances. One common characteristic of a psychology-driven church is that it will typically refer out its members for “professional Christian counseling”. This denies the scriptural mandate of the pastor as the caretaker of the souls of his sheep. The pastor, as well as the congregation, is called to “the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ” (Eph. 4:12). By neglecting this biblical principle, the church is failing to fulfill the commands of God. One of my professors has stated that preaching cannot be pursued apart from counseling. A pastor who is not connected intimately to the heartaches of his people certainly cannot truly know how to preach to them. His knowledge of his members is utterly superficial and therefore, cannot benefit the membership best.

A final concern when examining the effects of psychology on the Church is the failure to call sin what it is. The biblical counselor must call man to repentance, but the psychologist has invented substitute word for man’s evil. Jim Own remarks: “Disease is one of the most common. It replaces the ideas of sin nature and being in bondage to lust. Addiction is another replacement word. People don’t lust anymore, or give themselves over to lusting continually as described in Ephesians 4:19. No – now they are addicted(implying thereby haplessness as well as helplessness). And when they lie about their own addiction, they are not really lying. They are just in the denial stage of their disease.”

Buying into Christian psychology has left the Church filled with members who see only a brief glimpse at spiritual transformation as it is based on controlled behaviors. The biblical counseling church, however, produces sincere believers who are committed to a lifetime of hard labor to see the rich rewards of a life renewed in the Spirit and kept by the ordaining and sustaining hand of an Almighty God!

A Firm Future

It is so easy in this earthly pilgrimage to become discouraged and unsettled when we are constantly confronted by one another’s sins – sins of careless or thoughtless words, sins of unloving and unmerciful attitudes, sins of cold or harsh behavior. Even more so, we become discouraged when we see our own sins so quickly bubble to the surface. In these days or moments when we become weary of persevering or when we sense something is wrong and just can’t put our finger on it…consider Christ! Consider how He has secured eternity on our behalf. Listen to John MacArthur:

“The way you deal with daily trials and stress is totally transformed when you live each day with an eye toward God’s kingdom. All the little frustrations in life – traffic jams, difficult co-workers, unruly children – don’t make a dent when you’re focused on your future with Christ. The same goes for big problems. Living in the constant expectation of heaven gives you a new perspective on even your most complex trials and concerns. When you’ve got eternity in mind, you’re free to approach every situation with the calm confidence that God is in control, knowing that circumstances here – whether good or bad – are temporary.”

So, Christian, when we are treated unkindly, or when our own hearts condemn us within, we can rest in this firm future that is so tenderly promised.

Burning our sons and daughters in the fire

29When the LORD your God cuts off before you the nations whom you go in to dispossess, and you dispossess them and dwell in their land, 30take care that you be not ensnared to follow them, after they have been destroyed before you, and that you do not inquire about their gods, saying, 'How did these nations serve their gods?—that I also may do the same.' 31You shall not worship the LORD your God in that way, for every abominable thing that the LORD hates they have done for their gods, for they even burn their sons and their daughters in the fire to their gods.
Deuteronomy 12:29-31

I have pondered this verse many times over the past few months, particularly in relationship to biblical counseling. I don't have any profound insight or mysterious exegesis of it, but I think it bears such a practical and tangible picture for the believer, as it exposes clearly how far we will go to hold onto what is most valuable to us. It is becoming more common in many evangelical circles to speak about idols, and trying to identify what it is that we worship. Elyse Fitzpatrick has even written a book entitled, Idols of the Heart, which I have found to be extremely insightful in learning to understand my heart and what it is lusting after or desiring more than Christ. But even long ago, before this resurgence of idol conversation, the Puritans often wrote on the topic. Jonathan Edwards, John Flavel, John Calvin (all the great "John" theologians!) - all spoke frequently about the tendency of man to place his own wants before his loyalty to the Father.

So back to the verse that started this post - what is the point? It shows the absolutely insane fervency with which man pursues his idols. He is so obsessed with these self-motivated and self-absorbed pursuits that he is willing to sacrifice his own sons and daughters in the fire to display his loyalty to the idol. You say, "Ridiculous! I would never burn my children on an altar for the sake of a false idol!" But wait. Consider how we do this very thing quite often. We allow others to provide the majority of the primary care for our children so that we can make more money to live in our perfectly decorated "dream home" where we all have plenty of space to spread out and make sure we have at least two nice vehicles as well as being able to afford some fun entertainment on the weekends. No physical children of your own? We are not off the hook either. Ponder how often we avoid spending time with spiritual children because it inconveniently interferes with our personal time. We would rather have that time to "rest" because we already work hard all week and we "deserve" to relax, right? We refuse to intentionally seek out opportunities to disciple or mentor a younger believer because we think this time of singleness is our time to enjoy life in ways that we will be restricted from if we ever marry. Singleness, biblically speaking, means a time of singular devotion to the ministry God has granted us, not a time of singular devotion to self. We are all placing these children, whether our own offspring or a spiritual daughter or son, on the burning altar of our own idols! We desire our own satisfaction and pleasure and comfort more than their eternal welfare.

Tend to your heart. Search out its idols and put them to destruction. John Flavel writes, "God, our Creator, has formed man with not only a physical body, but within that magnificent body is an inner realm even more significant, glorious and powerful than the body which contains it. This stately palace, the soul of man, was designed for habitation by God and not for any other." What rules me? Is it Christ who habitates my heart above all other longings? Who or what am I sacrificing in the fire for the sake of my own ease?

What I need...

When I am weary, this bears particular importance for me to remember. What I really need is simply Jesus!

In the morning, when I rise
In the morning, when I rise
In the morning, when I rise, give me Jesus
Give me Jesus,
Give me Jesus,
You can have all this world,
But give me Jesus
When I am alone
When I am alone
When I am alone, give me Jesus
Give me Jesus,
Give me Jesus,
You can have all this world,
But give me Jesus
When I come to die
When I come to die
When I come to die, give me Jesus
Give me Jesus,
Give me Jesus,
You can have all this world,
You can have all this world,
You can have all this world,
But give me Jesus

Fernando Ortega

Women as Influential Teachers

"Since there are more women and children in the world than men, what a mission field women have! Some women complain, 'I don't have anything to do for Christ.' But the women who say that are usually looking for an excuse because they do not really want to serve Christ sacrificially. Women can never legitimately say that they have nothing to do for Christ until they have taught every needy child and every needy woman in the church and in their community everything they know about the Word of God. In fact, these are ministries that women can perform better than men because there are problems among children and other women that women can deal with better than men. Women may disclose personal problems to women that they would not discuss with men, and women can often understand the emotional makeup and disposition of other women better than men." (Mack & Swavely)

"Be hospitable to one another without complaint." (I Peter 4:9)

Repentance

First of all, please don't think I chose this topic because I am any kind of expert on it. In fact, I actually just finished a research paper on this topic and realized how poor I truly am at repentance...at least a sincere biblical repentance. Can there be any other forms of repentance? Oh yes!

The Scriptures say in Second Corinthians 7:10, “For the sorrow that is according to the will of God produces a repentance without regret, leading to salvation, but the sorrow of the world produces death.” If there is a sorrow that leads to life and a sorrow that brings forth death, then certainly it is imperative that man knows the difference. When a believer turns from evil and intends to serve God, because of the remaining flesh, he cannot do that once perfectly for all time. He must choose day to day to turn from his sin and pursue Christ with his whole heart and being.

One commentator offers a solid picture of these two types of sorrow in comparing the lives of the apostle Peter and Judas Iscariot. He says that godly sorrow is evidenced in Peter’s repentance after his denial of Christ, while a worldly sorrow can be seen in Judas when he betrayed Christ. This conclusion can be reached in evaluating the differing responses: Peter’s repentance led him to serve God, while Judas’s repentance resulted in him ending his own life as he was overcome by his guilt. Peter rested in the cleansing righteousness of His Savior, while Judas gave into his own self-condemnation. Dr. John Street says, “Worldly sorrow is focused on self and self-consequences, not God. It is concerned with forgiving self, which places self above God. Instead of saying, ‘I can’t believe I did that sin,’ man should be saying, ‘I can’t believe I’m not worse.’ It is a complete change of mind that leads to a permanent change of life.”

How am I failing at true repentance? By practicing a self-revealed repentance, one that is characterized by penance and not a complete turning of the heart and mind and will. “Penance is ‘a religious attitude prompting men to attempt to pay for their sins through good works and suffering’.” The primary difference between repentance and penance then, is that penance relies upon the works of man, while repentance relies entirely upon the merits of Christ and His righteousness.

One poor example of repentance can be found in the book of First Samuel, where Saul failed to show full and true repentance. Though commanded to utterly destroy King Agag and his kingdom, Saul pursued his own selfish desires, allowing his people to keep some of the spoils. When he was confronted with his sin, he quickly expressed some measure of repentance, yet in the end showed his true colors by still asking Samuel to help him save face in front of his people. One author writes, “There are many who turn from sins, even odious ones, who do not turn to God. A drunkard may turn from his liquor to preserve his reputation or the health of his body, only to take up some other form of self-gratification or self-indulgence…Saul spared but one Agag, and that cost him his soul and his kingdom.” (Jonathan Edwards)

True repentance is specific, to the point of making public confession and restitution if that is what is necessary. True repentance does not fear the idea of gracious humiliation, and is willing to turn immediately – urgently – from his sin and to forsake it entirely. Saul showed no such willingness. Instead, he tried to excuse his actions, blaming it on the people and then trying to blame it on his own desire to please the people. He was more concerned with making a good impression than with pleasing God, and this was his demise. True repentance is radical in nature and produces radical results, as evidenced in Isaiah 55:6-7, “Seek the LORD while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return to the LORD, and He will have compassion on him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.”

Romans 7:24-8:2:
Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin. Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.

Paul lives out the purpose of biblical counseling, to be able to use biblical truths about God to question and answer oneself to attain godliness. Here Paul provides a glimpse of a very important element of biblical repentance. The repentant individual cannot attain righteousness apart from a fixed meditation upon Christ and His finished work. The person who is sincerely repentant knows that there is no act of penance that could ever satisfy the Lord and because of Christ’s sacrificial death on the cross there is no need for such acts. Men often make repentance too difficult for themselves by refusing to rest in Christ and claim Him as their right standing. One writer quotes one of the Puritans on this very tendency, stating, “Brooks tells the tempted person, under the power of this distortion, to remember continually that Satan is a liar. Before you sin, he will tell you repentance is easy, but after you sin, he will tell you repentance is too hard! Both are lies.” Paul knew of the condemning accusations of the enemy, and he recognized the tendencies within toward self-condemnation and despair. True repentance boldly embraces the freedom that has been granted from Christ’s death and welcomes with joy the substitutionary atonement made on man’s behalf. There is no longer a need for atonement. The truly repentant man flees from sin and runs to the cross.

A primary hindrance to sincere repentance is self-love. Again, pride is the root of such tendencies and the result is a deceived heart, which never knows true repentance. In a recent sermon, one preacher stated:"Self-love renders itself to self-deception to maintain its position of authority and can only be healed by self-examination. It is a preferred willing deception. Men do such a thing because they love a god that is pliable to their own desires. Self-love will only move when it finds a place of greater happiness or contentment or when the current place of contentment and happiness is dismantled. True repentance shows up in contrition and humiliation, being cut off from previous self-trust and self-love. If we are in Christ then we will love Christ supremely. This is not a momentary examination, but lifelong." (Kent Pletcher)

One writer states, "The key to a godly life is not more and more self-generated effort. Instead, Jesus is saying, 'Love me and your obedience will flow naturally from that love.' The secret to obedience isn’t formulaic steps found in a self-help book. It is a relentless pursuit of love for him. How then do I cultivate the sincerity of love that motivates obedience? By focusing more intently on his love for me than on my love for him, more on his obedience than mine, more on his faithfulness than mine, more on his strengths than mine." (Elyse Fitzpatrick)

I am learning that my self-efforts will always fall short of pleasing God, and so by loving Christ supremely, I am pleasing to God because when He looks at me, He sees Christ. I am learning that my repentance is only true when it is focused entirely upon the merits of Christ and on the restoration of fellowship with the Father.

I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service, even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus. It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all. Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life. Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen. (I Timothy 1:12-17)

Why I love biblical counseling

I just finished a 20+ page paper on the Sufficiency of Scripture as related to biblical counseling. WOW! Intensely wonderful! Now I am moving on to finish putting all my notes for my next paper into their final form - this one is on Repetance and remorse vs. Repentance and penance. Also intense! But in the midst of all this reflection, I was reminded quite vividly about why biblical counseling is so important to understand, not just for the biblical counselor, but for the local church, which is the primary place in which biblical counseling should be happening. Here are a couple of thought-provoking quotes:

"Our ecclesiastical theology has inadevertantly taught Christians that church is where I learn how to get to Heaven, but the psychologist's office is where I learn how to live right now." - Dr. John Street

"To deny a counseling ministry in the church is to deny the church to fulfill its purpose." - Steve McAlister

And so I remember again why am I doing this. Because God has called the Church to meet the needs of its people and to try and do so outside of the local body is to go beyond the bounds of Scripture. Let me clarify that I am not saying that believers don't minister outside the local body. However, that would be a different type of ministry as the only true counsel that can be given to an unbeliever is to call them to Christ in repentance. Teaching an unbeliever biblical concepts without a regenerate heart results in nothing more than moralism and behaviorism, neither of which will secure eternal life or freedom from the bonds of sin. For the true believer, there is no source of counsel other than that which is based on the Scriptures. The Word is wholly sufficient! If it was not, God would have provided another means of help. The reason this is so precious is because that means that I don't need an "expert" because I have the expert handbook right infront of me, accessible at all times!

Social Networking

Anyone who knows me knows that I teeter back and forth about whether I want to involve myself in social networking. On the one hand, I guess even this blog could be seen as a form of such. However, I believe that my purposes in blogging are vastly different than the purposes that go along with much of the social networking sites (i.e. Facebook, Twitter, etc.) I still do not really even know what "Twitter" is, but statistically, all these avenues of networking combined, allow us humans to be invasively involved in one another's lives in no way we have ever historically experienced before. Sometimes I think, "what's the point in getting to know someone when I can read all about them online?" and other times - let's be honest here - we contemplate not wanting to know someone after seeing all their dirty laundry aired all over the pages. I came across the following quote from an article about people leaving social networking sites and why they are doing so. Obviously, I am not calling for any of us to delete our Facebook accounts or stop twittering altogether. But this is just another good reminder about evaluating our motives behind what we write for our status updates, "tweets", etc:

"...Social networking seems to me to often demonstrate the “thinness” of our lives, to use a David Wells term I like alot. What is it about the modern person that so needs to share with and be connected to massive amounts of people? Christian or otherwise, is this a healthy trend? What good, lasting good, comes of it? Or does social networking often highlight our less flattering features–narcissism, need to be linked to popular/cool/attractive folks and exciting events, endless talking/communicating, oversharing, and so on? If you stay on Facebook, and you use it for good ends (like making meaningful kingdom connections, and especially encouraging other Christians and evangelizing friends), great. Keep at it. I’m still on it, and I hope to use it for good insofar as I can." - Owen Strachan

Nothing original here...just the key to a godly life!

Since I am in the midst of paperwork for school, there aren't a lot of original thoughts to dispense at this moment, though my list of future blogging titles is ever-increasing with the hopes that one day I can sit down and develop those ideas more! In the meantime, let me just share a quote that really gripped me last night as I read.

"The key to a godly life is not more and more self-generated effort. Instead, Jesus is saying, 'Love me and your obedience will flow naturally from that love.' The secret to obedience isn't formulaic steps found in a self-help book. It is a relentless pursuit of love for him. How then do I cultivate the sincerity of love that motivates obedience? By focusing more intently on His love for me than on my love for Him, more on His obedience than mine, more on His faithfulness than mine, more on His strength than mine." (Elyse Fitzpatrick, Comforts From the Cross)

I need to remember this, as I am so prone to self-generated effort and often find myself looking for three simple steps toward obedience. Lord, help me to love You more, and in loving You to obey as You did!

Joy in obedience

My posting may be a little sparse the next couple of weeks as I have some very intense school assignments that are due, some of which I am struggling greatly to meet the deadlines for. However, I wanted to share just a couple of brief thoughts from the past couple of days, things I am contemplating and have yet to come to some final conclusions.

I tend to be a legalist at times, particularly in regard to my own salvation. This hit me so hard in a sermon my pastor preached last night. At the end, he spent just a couple of sentences admonishing the congregation to examine themselves to see if their view of salvation and even sanctification is based upon works. Of course, my knee jerk reaction would always be a resounding, "of course I don't believe that! We are saved by grace through faith". However, when I closely evaluate my heart responses to sin being exposed in my life and even more importantly my motives for obedience, I begin to see how often I operate with a mindset that is trying to somehow earn the favor of the Lord, and even others. This is why my obedience, though outwardly successful, is oftentimes lacking severely in joy. I am the person my pastor was talking about. When he said "do you find yourself thinking that God doesn't love you because of how badly you messed up today?" (paraphrasing), that's me! I operate this way in how I relate to others as well, thinking that their love for me is conditional upon my pleasing them or living up to their standards or even surpassing those standards. I need to apply much of my biblical counseling education to my own heart. Even if I never get to use what I am learning in a job or even as much as I would like in ministry, I was sweetly reminded last night of God's goodness to me in allowing me to learn how to counsel myself. The hard part now is not just speaking to my heart about these matters, but actually doing them and living it out. Again, this goes back to Christ, as I have been studying in Philippians: "Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me His own...forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead" (vs.3:12-16).

Pray for me in the coming days to diligently complete my assignments and to do it with joy, all the while learning to be mature in Christ Jesus for the glory of God!

Biblical Womanhood...again!

Since I am always looking for some insight into cultivating biblical womanhood, when I came across this quote I knew right away I would have to share it! One thing that troubles me is when we unmarried women in particular, think that somehow we are exempt from pursuing biblical womanhood. Or we think that only certain parts of it apply to us. I would submit however, that knowing Scripture is a command given to all believers, and therefore, as a woman who wants to know Scripture more and more, I must seek to apply all areas of biblical womanhood, if not in experience itself (obviously I cannot experience being a wife without actually getting married), then in principle for certain. I must know what it means to be a godly wife, and I must be prepared to give an answer on issues like submission and motherhood because I will most definitely come into relationship with women who are experiencing marriage and parenting. Jesus was never married and yet He taught signficantly on marriage. Paul was never married and he spoke clearly on the issue in many of his letters. So I too must be familiar with the teachings of Scripture, instructing and praying alongside women who are seeking to love their husbands, teach their children and manage their homes in a way that brings honor to God. ALL of the Bible is meant for every believer and so therefore, I must embrace it, obey it and live it out whatever season of life I am currently in.

"Young Christian ladies must either remain in a virgin state of life and devote themselves to piety, prayer, self-denial, and all good works; or they must marry and be holy, sober, and wise in the care of a family - bringing up their children in piety, humility, and devotion, and abounding in all other good works to the utmost of their status and capacity. They have no choice of anything else, but must devote themselves to God in one of these states. They may choose a married or a single life; but it is not left to their choice whether they will make either state a state of holiness, humility, devotion, and all other duties of the Christian life. They must...look into the spirit of their prayers and into the nature and end of Christianity. There they will find that whether they are married or unmarried they have but one business upon their hands. And that is to be wise, pious, and holy - not in little modes and forms of worship but in the whole turn of their minds, in the whole form of all their behavior, and in the daily course of life."
William Law, A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life

32 things I am hoping for this year!

So here I am working on a paper three hours before the 32nd anniversary of my birth. Not a big deal this year, other than the fact that in recent days I have been able to reflect very specifically on the things I would like for God to accomplish in my life. With age comes a greater longing for heaven and an urgent desire to be united with my precious Jesus. So here is a list of 32 things that I would like to either experience or see God do in my life this year. I hesitate to publish it because then I become more accountable to it, but hey, sometimes that is the best way to be motivated toward the goal.

1. Finish my thesis and graduate with my master of arts in biblical counseling
2. Tell my niece and nephew more about Christ and all that He is for us and all that He delivers us from
3. Become a more compassionate counselor to the young women God has placed in my life
4. Study Christ every single day and seek to become more and more like Him
5. Meet my husband
6. Gain more control over my emotions and learn true forgiveness
7. Intentionally disciple the young children God has providentially placed in my life, always pointing them to the only salvation that can redeem them from their black hearts
8. Be selfless! Die to my desires, wishes, demands and expectations
9. Go on another mission trip - school has consumed me the past two years and I long to go once again to Africa or Romania or anywhere to share what Christ has done in me
10. Love my pastors and church leaders more diligently, pray for them more intentionally and serve them more sacrificially
11. Use my conversations with friends as a way to build up and encourage the cause of Christ, drawing us into sweet fellowship with Him that supersedes our own inward motivations of wanting to be liked and appreciated
12. See my sin more clearly in the very moment it appears - and even more so, to identify the motives behind it
13. Pursue humility - look for ways to be anonymous and unknown in my ministries
14. To know my heart more clearly and to examine the drives behind every word that is said and every thought that is contemplated
15. Write more
16. Pray more diligently for Addy, Rory, Kiersten, Kalli, Baby boy Clayton, Autumn, Noah, Payton, Daniel, Elizabeth, Joshua - for their redemption!
17. Stop looking at myself and look more closely at others, seeking opportunities to bless, provide for needs, uplift with words of life, provide pleasant communion
18. Get back to hospitality and keeping my home better, in spite of all the demands of my schooling
19. Plant a garden and maintain it
20. Counsel women in crisis situations, maybe volunteer at the local crisis pregnancy center
21. Read for fun instead of just for school
22. Save $500
23. Give away more stuff to others instead of hoarding everything for myself - and to give away things that are of significant value to me, not merely things I no longer care about
24. Speak out as much as possible about the principles of biblical counseling in the local church (ALL believers are called to counsel in some way or another)
25. Spend a day with my Mom doing something completely relaxing and indulgent
26. Guard my tongue more diligently, speaking only what is TRUE, KIND and NECESSARY
27. See lost family members who are in denial about their sin come to repentance and find Christ most satisfying and worthy of all honor and praise
28. Help some sweet young ladies plan and enjoy a most beautiful and joyous wedding day, while at all times pointing to the value of Christ and His bride, the Church
29. Overlook small offenses that I so quickly pick up and carry around
30. Rejoice in the opportunities God has given me to serve Him in lowly positions and to be grateful for the provisions He has given in them
31. To show my parents that I love them more faithfully and consistently
32. Love Christ and value Him above any earthly thing - laying aside any single thing or person that might cause me to take my eyes off of Him even for one moment

Not a lot of time!

I went out of town for a few days this past week and just returned to the pressures of some major school assignments that are due in the next several days. Needless to say, this post will be brief and probably not very unique. But I know I am committed to try and post once or twice per week...so this will have to suffice for this time.

One of the things I have been seriously pondering and praying about this past year has been the idea I am working on for my graduate thesis. I would rather not give it away entirely in such a public format just yet, but would like to touch on one area. That is how my creation design plays out a great deal in my relationships. As an unmarried woman, I think it becomes so easy to think that I am not able to fulfill my calling as a woman since I remain single. However, what do I do then with the biblical instructions for femininity, characteristics such as submission, nurturing, hospitality, keeping the home, training children, being a help-meet? I must choose to live in light of this calling, for it is not a calling that is ever separated apart only for the married woman. I am created different from man in my original design by God Himself, not merely because I am married or unmarried. It may look a little different for me - nurturing and training other people's children through the unique relationships that develop within the church body, submitting to my pastors and church leaders with joy and loving respect, and helping others by coming alongside them in service and humility. This is why I find the church body so distinctly precious, as it is THE primary means by which I can live out my creation design, whatever my marital status is in this life. Either way, I am married to Christ. I am His and He is mine!

"Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its desires and passions." Galatians 5:24

Satisfied in Christ

Obviously I am experiencing a fresh interest in learning to love Christ exclusively, though I am disappointed when I see how quickly I find satisfaction in other things and my gaze easily shifts from Him to fleeting matters. But when I was in California, I had the privilege of attending the Women Discipling Women conference, put on by The Master's College Biblical Counseling Department - my graduate school. Anyway, there was this young woman there who shared during the praise and worship time and I was blown away by her music (and bought a CD on the spot)! I have copied one favorite song below because the lyrics are just profound in a very simple way. You can find links to her music just by googling her name:

Be Satisfied

Oh my heart is, very simple;
So foolish, so deceived.
Oh, this heart, pleased so easily.
Awake my soul to find in Him
More joy than any passing sin.
Drink His pleasures in, and be satisfied.

Oh, my heart, though very simple
Can never be refused.
Oh, this heart, bound by His own love
Awake my soul to who you are
Beloved, beyond the farthest star.
See your Savior’s scars, and be satisfied

Protect me from this heart that is mine
O lover of my soul, Keeper of my hope
Let your beauty shine so I can see
How perfect and free you love towards me defends my weakest part
And not for what I’ve done but for who you are

In you alone are light and truth,
Oh may my soul be found in you.
Though all the world be offered to me.
Though often led astray by sin
Your mercy beckons me again
Forever loved by you I’ll stay