God is CRAZY-wild

So, can I just say that God is a little crazy?

Wait – no – I don’t mean the “out of your senses” kind of crazy.

I mean the “amazing, unbelievable, beyond my comprehension” type of crazy.

(There is no other word I could locate within my brain that could communicate that concept as clearly as, “crazy.” Maybe – wild.)

He’s working within my soul and I am OVERWHELMED.
I am OVERWHELMED with His purposeful craftsmanship.
I am OVERWHELMED to recognize that He actually IS preparing me for GLORIOUS things in Eternity!!!! For heavenly reward!!!

I am also overwhelmed because I don’t know what it means. I don’t know where I am going with this sudden burden of urgency and need to change and act. I don’t know what specifically to change or how to take new action.

This plan of His is amazingly, wildly CRAZY because – He chose me before the foundation of the world to be CONFORMED to His image that I might find fullness of JOY in Him and reveal His wisdom to the heavenly principalities. (YEEHAW!!!)

I PRAISE THE LORD! because He is showing me how FAITHFUL to His promises He is.

Guess what?!

HE WILL PRESENT US BLAMELESS!!!!
HE PRESERVES HIS SAINTS!!!!
HE GROWS US IN GRACE AND KNOWLEDGE OF HIM!!!!
HE WILL FINISH THE WORK HE HAS STARTED!!!!
HE HAS NOT LEFT US ORPHANS!!!!
HE HAS GIVEN US ALL HEAVENLY RICHES IN HIM!!!!!

::skip, skip, doodah, doodah::

God is amazing and the sanctification process and perseverance of the saints promise AMAZES me as I see it being worked out.

God is working and changing. He has NOT left me to die in my sin of rebellion and complacency -- in my ignorance. He has taught me His Law! He has convicted my soul! He has given me the grace and the power through His Holy Spirit to be VICTORIOUS!!!

Last year, I asked that God would change my heart from a heart of stone to one that would love Him fully and above all other things. Immediately He began to work. It was painful. He had to take away idols, but it was GREAT!! I love Him more than ever I have loved Him before -- and yet-- I am so far from loving Him completely and above all.

This year my request for the impossible was that all my hopes and dreams would be given to Him and that I would only hope and dream HIS desires, according to His will.

HE has been guiding my steps in this manner.
HE has taken me from point A, to point B, to point C -- it has been a building block process.

On this progression the Lord had me read:

--Revolution in World Missions by KP Yohannan (TORE down the idol of being a missionary)

--Keep a Quiet Heart by Elisabeth Elliot (TORE down the idol of control and independence)

--Irresistible Revolution by Shane Claiborne (PLANTED questions concerning the poor, orphans, and widows – about my place in society as a Christian)

--the Bible by the Holy Spirit through various human authors/Weinbergs (PRUNED awareness of the repetition of the theme – justice, compassion, giving, sacrifice, care for orphans, widows, don’t be blind to their needs.)

--the Bible/Sean/One28 staffers (PRUNED/WATERED/PLANTED awareness of the picture of discipleship, of LOVE for the Church, of the PRECIOUS position of the Church, of the PRECIOUS calling of the Church, we must pursue MORE, MORE!!!)

--the Bible (PLANTED the awareness of LIVING OUT holiness in LOVE-actions – not me being perfect, but giving God the glory, pointing to HIM and not to myself or my arguments.)

All these things have been jumbled in my head.

How? HOW do I live this out at Starbucks? HOW do I praise the Lord more publicly? When do I speak? What actions of sacrifice and love can I give to my fellow baristas and customers?

Then…I began reading Crazy Love by Francis Chan (three days ago… 4 chapters left…I am reading two a day,) and it’s affirming all these themes together: LOVE in holy action, SACRIFICE for discipleship and the Church, GIVE to the poor, LOSE ALL for the sake of the Kingdom.

To what extent am I supposed to “lose all”?!
Should I teach again? Should I go to another country? Should I stay at mission-field Starbucks?!!

How serious was Jesus when He told the rich man to sell all he had and give to the poor?
How serious was Jesus when He preached the “Beattitudes”?

Because I am comforted here and now, am I missing out on my heavenly comfort?
Because I am full now, will I not be as full in heaven?
Do I mourn enough so that my joy will be GREAT in heaven?!
The Bridegroom has not yet come, should I take more time to fast???

When Jesus requires my ALL – when Jesus requires me to DIE – how far am I going?

Have I been REJOICING in the fact that my dad has asked me to stay at home?
Have I been REJOICING in the fact that I am living in Ohio?
KNOWING that this is God’s will for me?!

WHERE is my treasure??

Why haven’t I been REJOICING more in Him? Why haven’t I been PRAISING Him that He would choose to plan these events in my life to REFINE me and CONFORM me to the image of His Son?!
That He has CHOSEN me and is continuing to PROVE that He has CHOSEN me because He CONTINUES to MOLD me and CHANGE me.

I am overwhelmed.
God is crazy-wild.
And I just don’t know what to do.

(Be still -- pray. Be faithful. Be ready. He knows. Trust Him.)

***HUMOROUS aside: I am not purposefully calling God “crazy” in line with Francis’ book. That is a coincidence of thought. haha

This morning I asked that God would truly overwhelm me with Himself. After writing the paragraph, I forgot about the request and moved on with my quiet time. By the middle of my time with the Lord I was OVERWHELMED by His work in my life to preserve me as His saint. He answered my prayer in a crazy way I wasn’t expecting -- and I am still overwhelmed and have been so since this morning.

Eternally Imperative

I am not sure if I should be posting this. It's an email I get from missionaries (Scott and Jennie Phillips) in Indonesia. I don't know them personally, I just "happened upon them" while doing research for children's church/missionary Sunday last year. I now LOVE them. I hope you will too.

This update is sobering. That's why I wanted to post it.

Pray for them and then pray about our stewardship with the people God has brought to us.

Go to their website.

He was only weeks away from hearing the message he had been waiting for and asking for for so long. Multiple times, Ekapitaa sent messengers down from his village, to ask for the Creators message. He even made the two day hike down to our village himself and asked us in person if we would send someone up to his village to teach him and his clan. It was over a year ago now that he began asking. The Dao believers had to make a choice, will we go down to teach the Taomi clans first that have also been asking for teachers, or hike up to Ekapitaa's area and teach the Mokotaka clans first? A year and a half ago there wasn't enough teachers that could read and teach well enough to go both places at the same time. They chose Taomi. Now, finally a year and a half later as other trained Dao teachers are finally starting the teaching in Ekapitaa's area farther up valley, we got word that Ekapitaa, the village leader passed away. He never got a chance to hear the story of what Jesus did on his behalf though he was waiting for and asking for it for so long.

The Dao believers are shocked at the news of Ekapitaa's death. He was one of the most looked up to people in their people group. They can't believe that he was so close to finally hearing the Creators message, yet missed hearing it by just a few weeks before he died. Over the past two weeks people have come hiking through our village from as far as 2-3 days away on their way up valley to grieve with Ekapitaa's family.

Yunus is one of the men that came from over two days hike away, from another yet unreached branch of the Dao people group, to grieve the loss. These are the words he said to us this past week. "Friend, I am afraid. I come and see the people here in your village that have already heard the Creators message and see how they have hope in what will happen to them after death because they know of this message. Then I hear about my good friend Ekapitaa that just like the people of my clan, wanted to hear the good message from the Creators leaf book but never got a chance to. Ekapitaa died before having a chance to hear the message, and I am afraid that it will be the same for me. I fear that just as Ekapitaa, I will die before ever having had a chance to even once be taught about the Creators trail to eternal life."

In a desperate attempt to raise up teachers that can someday come to his village, the following day Yunus chose three young men from his clan, that were also traveling with him and told Jennie and I that he was leaving them in our village specifically because he wanted them to learn how to read and write. All this so that these three young men could in the future carry back to his village the words of the Creators book. "I am leaving these, my sons, in your care. Please teach them well so that they can in the future teach our clan about the Creators message. I must hear this message before I die" he said to us before leaving to make the 2-3 day return hike back to his own village.

The following day three more young men, one named Dabepiyaa, the son of the man named Ekapitaa that died also showed up having hiked two days down from Mokotaka in hopes that they also could join the literacy classes and also be taught about their Creator and his son Jesus. It seems like this is a unique time in the Dao territory that God is using this tragic death of a man that desperately wanted to hear about His Creator but never got a chance too, to stir up various unreached villages all over the Dao territory.

We praise God that He is using this tragic death for His Glory . We ask you to please pray with us that we will have wisdom as we work together with the Dao believers here to teach those that have come to us from these far away unreached areas. We are teaching them not only how to read and write but also trying to teach them through the Creators story chronologically from Genesis all the way up through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. We also have more advanced daily Bible classes going on daily for the believers from our village and are co-teaching with the Dao teachers on Sundays as well through the book of Ephesians. We need prayer that these teaching times will also go well. Last but not by any means least, Jennie is also working daily to continue translating the New Testament into the Dao language and there is also teaching going on by the Dao believers in other villages. Please pray with us that we will all have wisdom in teaching and balancing all these different responsibilities. We appreciate you all and also your prayers, encouragement and faithful support!

Holiness -- Is an Action

“Be holy as I am holy.”

But what does that mean?

Of course, to be holy, (we often hear it,) is God sumarized, to be perfect, set apart, etc.

But how does holiness live?
Is it sterile and clean?
Do we stand apart from all those “vile, unholy” ones in order to be "set apart"?

God Himself is what holy is.

So, how does He choose to describe and reveal Himself – His holiness?

I have noticed a particular theme that runs throughout the Scripture to describe the One who is holiness.

(This has just been JUMPING off the page at me as I read through the Bible…)

When Moses, the one who was with the Lord face to face heard the proclamation of YAHWEH’s name on Mount Sinai during the second inscription of the 10 Commandments, how was the name – the personhood of the Lord proclaimed before Moses? How did GOD choose to describe Himself and to make Himself known?

“The Lord passed before him and proclaimed, ‘The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and fourth generation.” (Exodus 34:6-7)

Throughout the Scriptures these phrases are used to describe the Lord.
(That is what I have been especially noticing in the last few months.)

“Abounding in steadfast love” has really stood out to me because (not only is it repeated in this phrase alone,) but it summarizes the “merciful, gracious, slow to anger, faithfulness, and forgiving all iniquity, transgression, and sin” descriptors. (1st Corinthians 13)
Note, also the “other side” of God’s holiness: not clearing the guilty; punishing the unrepentant sinner.

Hmmmm…

“Be holy as I am holy.”

How do we live this out?
What are the “movable appendages” of His holiness? (ie What does holiness look like? Feel like? What does holiness DO?)

Is it “just” striving for sacred perfection? (That is an important aspect of it because He punishes iniquity to the third and fourth generations. And yet...)

1st Peter 1:13-2:3,

13 Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 14 As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, 15 but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 since it is written, "You shall be holy, for I am holy."

22 Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, 23 since you have been born again

2:1 So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander.

Our holiness is love – it’s about where our passions lie.

I LOVE THE CONNECTIONS!!!!! Holiness and love -- inseparable. (Wow!!)

Out of the purification of holiness flows deep wells of love that cannot be measured or comprehended. (Those deep wells would be the Lord's.)

Whoa.
Crazy.

This holy love that surpasses all knowledge and understanding! That is unsearchable – yet knowable because He has made Himself known to us.

Wait…”selah”…--> made it know “to us.”

WHAT a stewardship we have as the Body of Christ!
(This is humbling; precious gift and a precious responsibility.)

What are the “moving appendages” of holiness??!! – Love.

Funny thing, what is the greatest commandment(s)?

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.” (Deuteronomy 6:5 and Matthew 22:37-40)

The monks seem to have been mistaken (yes, yes,), the snobbish church people seem to have been in error (of course, of course,) we the living stones who are to make known the eternal wisdom of the everlasting King appear to fall short in our holiness.

(Not only in the pursuit of a life of perfect living, but in “doing” holiness.)

When our name is “proclaimed” are we known for mercy, steadfast love, grace, forgiveness, and compassion that is lived out in a life pushing on for perfection?

[“If you love Me, you will keep my commandments.” (John 14:15)]

Holiness is not a list of do’s and don’ts, but the expressed manifestation of our holy [perfected] love.

Holiness is love...and [true] love is being holy.

Awesome.............(Think of the connections between Jesus and the fall and revealing Himself and the church and us being perfected and heaven....wow....Also, on the reverse -- think of the just consequences seen in His wrath when this commandment to be holy is rejected...when love is not accepted and not given to the One whose well of love is immeasurable...May we fear Him!!)

Increase my love, oh Lord. The call is demanding -- requires my life, my all -- not that You gave less. (You are the One who has given far beyond what my imagination can fathom.)