Jesus as our Plumb Line

"And I will make justice the measuring line and righteousness the plumb line."
Isaiah 28:17
"Look I am setting a plumb line among my people Israel."
Amos 7:8

Jesus is the plumb line. 

Two tools a good carpenter needs:

A level and plumb line

       
         In a symbolic sense, using a level could be equated with only comparing  ourselves with others.  And we might see ourselves above or below them.  But our perspective is inaccurate as there is no alignment with The TRUTH or what is right.  It's a trap. 

       "Am I on their level? Are they on my level?"
  We may be tempted to ask.  But if we are subtly asking this question we are already mistaken.  We are all fallible broken humans.  Judging ourselves by looking at each other is a game we have already lost from the get go. We will never grab hold of our destiny peering through this earthly perspective of comparison.

         But, if we have a plumb line, we have what is TRUE.  We have a perfect standard by which to measure and judge ourselves accurately.  We have the perfect standard embodied in a man.  That is what Christ is; He is the Plumb Line with which we need to compare ourselves to.  In so doing, we realize the truth; that there is still more and more in us that needs to align with Him.  

           Also if we have the perfect Plumb Line, we have a perfect Love that tells us The Truth about who we are becoming.  We also find He has more love and affection for us than we ever imagined possible.   Sure, He sees our weaknesses and shortcomings.   But much more than that He sees us for our potential.  He sees us seated in high places, lacking nothing.  He calls us up higher, away from our measly trappings of comparison.  He sets us in our place, puts a crown on our head and tells us who we are becoming.  He tells us the TRUTH in a way the world or those we are tempted to compare ourselves to never could.

     

                Two tools every good carpenter needs:
                           a level and a plumb line
                 
                     

Lazer level and plumb line making a cross

          

    A prayer for today: Father, expose any ways I am comparing myself to others today.  Help me to make you the Standard by which I measure myself by.  Help me to see myself as you see me.

Parenthood and the Dying Seed

         
                 I know most of my blogs are directed at everyone.  And this one is too, but it is also specifically for parents.

                 No one told me the investment that this parenting gig would take.  I signed up years ago while I was still young, knowing I had a dream in my to be a mom.  A friend and I were talking and laughing as we realized "God convinced us of these dreams while we were young and stupid and energetic."

                   Please take that as a little comic relief.  But there is also truth in it.

               She was explaining how she had sensed a call to missions and to care for orphans from early on.  People would even speak this over her this to her at random times and places.  And she fully embraced it.  She said "yes" with all the enthusiasm that an energetic bright eyed 20 year old could contain.  Little did she know what the investment it would entail.  There would be long nights, shocking moments that would take her breath away and heartbreaking days.  But there would also be laughter and joy all mixed in at the same time.  There would be many many hidden acts done with love with no immediate results.  It was a long obedience in the same direction.  It was a marathon run, orchestrated by God to not only change these children (who have now become thriving adults) but also to change her; to forever shape her into the image of God.

               I feel the same way about parenting.  It has taken me a while to catch up to the investment this calling actually entails.  I seriously had no idea.  I just set out to be "the best mommy possible."  But when God makes this the longing of your heart and the prayer you pray, watch out! You have just signed up for the longest roller coaster ride you have ever been on.  Its filled with high heights coupled with laughter and joy and low lows that cause your stomach sink to your knees.  And sometimes the only thing you have is a prayer on your lips.  You are fully invested for the long haul; just as He is with us.  He is in it for the long haul too.  He is fully invested in a way you and I might never comprehend this side of heaven.  But He gives us reflections and avenues to learn His ways; to get a taste of his heart.  Parenting is one of those.

             Good parenting takes everything.  But its worth it.  The long sleepless nights.  The moments we so desperately need rest but we choose to get up because our child needs our attention.  It's the laundry and the quality time.  It's the the homework they bring home.    It's breaking up the arguments and learning to lead in love.  We might even need to surrender our career or our hobbies in a busy season.  This. is. hard.  We might grieve who we thought we would be.  But who we are becoming is far better.  Because we are being shaped, molded and transformed into His image.  We are becoming like The One who is fully invested and loves fully.   And that is forever.


     As I was praying about parenting, this verse stood out to me.  Parenting can feel like a death, but it is a death that leads to life and joy as we see that not only our children are being shaped, but also we ourselves are being molded too.

     "Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed.  But if it dies, it produces many seeds."John 12:24


       
         

             

       

sunflower shoot with the dead shell still attached

More Than a Doorkeeper

           "A single day in your courts is better than a thousand anywhere else! I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than live the good life in the homes of the wicked."  Psalm 84:10

           The Psalmist knew something about the goodness of God.  He would have rather been just outside the door of Heaven, in God's courts for ONE day than live it up like lifestyles of rich and famous in this temporary world his whole life.

            He had tasted something so good he couldn't shake it.  He wanted it more than the best the world could offer.  Even just to peak in the door and get a glimpse of God's glory would be far better than the best he could find on earth.

           The Good News is that now, through Christ, the door HAS been opened.    A way HAS been made.  The Veil has been torn.  We don't just only get to peak in the door, like a mere servant.  We don't have to just sit outside the door seeing but a sliver, like hired help.  
          
          I can just imagine the Father saying, "Oh yes, a doorkeeper is great position, but this is going to be WAY better.  Once I send my Son, you will understand my plans.  I desire something far greater.  I will make Sons and Daughters.  I want more than servants.  I want partners, and friends."  

           Remember what Jesus said in John 15:15 . . . "I no longer call you servants because a servant doesn't know His master's business.  Instead, I have called you friends." 

we can know who He is and we can know who we are.  We can enter in now as a Son or a Daughter, approaching our Father's throne, without fear, full of boldness.    As we worship God out of this place, we can truly
                         
     ". . . taste and see that the Lord is good!" -Psalm 34:8

       

"Doorkeeper" 24"36" oil on canvas.

Touch, Taste and See: A God Who Wants us to Experience Him

          As I was reading in Acts chapter 1 this morning and a line jumped out at me.

"After his suffering, he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive.  He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the Kingdom of God."

Acts 1:3

           Did you catch that?  He, Jesus, presented himself to his disciples AND gave them many convincing proofs that He was indeed ALIVE.  He was God, The Almighty so He really didn't have to do that.  He could have just sent a prophet, like He had done before.  He could have just sent an angel.  But, no, this time, He Himself came to convince them of His life and power.

           This touched my heart.  He knew the weakness of man.  He knew and understood our struggle to believe in the supernatural.  He didn't rebuke them in disgust for their lack of faith.  Okay so I too remember a few "Oh ye of little faith!" statements from the Gospels.  But I think those statements came with compassion.  He knew the propensity for human flesh to doubt. Especially in the face of grief and pain.  Remember they had just lost their best friend at the Cross. Their world had collapsed.  They were mourning, disoriented and confused.  And so, for His grieving friends, He came.  For. 40. Days.

        In His mercy, He went to his friend Thomas and what did He say?

      Even though the doors were locked (I love that line), Jesus came and stood among them and said, 

      "Peace be with you!" Then He said to Thomas, "Put your finger here; see my hands.  Reach out your hand and put it into my side.  Stop doubting and believe."  John 20:26-27

            And He is merciful to meet us.  And yet He is wanting us to STOP DOUBTING and  believe.   Locked doors won't stop Him.  Death won't hold him back.   He will keep coming.

I have heard unbelief is a sin . . . but that's the good part.  We can say "oops sorry God." OR "Help me overcome my unbelief." And He does.  He did it for Thomas and He will do it for us as well.

           He wants us to experience Him! He wants to be with us!  Psalm 34:8 says,

                                     
                "Taste and see that the Lord is good."

       

           He wanted it for his disciples, and He wants the same thing for us today.

     
                                  "Taste and see"

He isn't afraid for us to experience and encounter Him.  He isn't holding back.   He is drawing near through Christ.

Prayer for today:

        Lord, help me in my unbelief.  Help me to believe.  Lord let me experience you.  Let me encounter you and know you want to be near.

 On a Practical Level:

       Write down any answers you receive to this prayer this week.  Record them and treasure them.  Whether simple, like a scripture verse jumping out at you as read the Word or a dream.  Or whether its a vision or an orchestrated circumstance or even more profound,  they are now part of your testimony, your history in God.

"The Healer" 20'x36" oil on canvas, "Taste, Touch and See"

Multiply My Fish and Loaves!

                   "Multiply my fish and loaves!"

                   This has been the cry of my heart since I found out God does this multiplication stuff; not just with food but in many areas of my life.  This has been the cry of my heart since I entered motherhood.  With every person added to our family there seems to be less and less of me.   And maybe you have offered up a similar cry perhaps as a college student or a business executive, teacher or church leader?  Or maybe a stretching season or a stretching relationship causes you to feel like you are just not enough.  Here's the Good News . . . you aren't.  And the good news is you never were.

                    In those seasons, we feel so stretched beyond what we can possibly do well.
It seems our best effort isn't good enough, and we literally feel like we may snap in two unless He comes to our aid.

                    And I have to wonder, was this a set up? A way for the Divine to display His distance??  No, I think its supposed to be a way for the Divine to display His deliverance.

                    And He might just use us to do it; to be the ones who toss our tiny efforts up to the Father and say "Multiply this!", even from our position of apparent weakness.  The temptation is to drop the ball and run and hide.  We may feel inadequate.  We want to assign the job to someone else.

                     "This has got to be someone else's job!"  And sometimes, on a rare occasion we are right.  But many times we are wrong.  God is looking right into our eyes, pointing straight at us.

                    Remember, the disciples tried to send the crowd elsewhere?  I will admit, on a bad day, I have had this thought a few times with my kids.  But what does Jesus say to his disciples . . . "You give them something to eat."

Mark6:30-44 says:
                35 By this time it was late in the day, so his disciples came to him. “This is a remote place,” they said, “and it’s already very late. 36 Send the people away so that they can go to the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.”

37 But he answered, “You give them something to eat.”

They said to him, “That would take more than half a year’s wages[a]! Are we to go and spend that much on bread and give it to them to eat?”

38 “How many loaves do you have?” he asked. “Go and see.”

When they found out, they said, “Five—and two fish.”

39 Then Jesus directed them to have all the people sit down in groups on the green grass.40 So they sat down in groups of hundreds and fifties. 41 Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to his disciples to distribute to the people. He also divided the two fish among them all. 42 They all ate and were satisfied, 43 and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces of bread and fish. 44 The number of the men who had eaten was five thousand.

             

               A Prayer for Today:  Lord, be strong in our very apparent weakness.  Multiply our weak efforts.  Do the impossible through us.  Help us not to gaze too long on our inadequacies.  Do for those around us what we can't do in and of ourselves. Amen.

                   
                   

Calm Waters

"Calm Waters" oil on canvas 24"x24"

        Do we really think of ourselves as sheep; weak, needing help to get to the next destination, in need of a Shepherd?  When we consider our weakness in the face of Our Leader's great strength our heart comes to a rest under His perfect leadership. 

       A good shepherd doesn't just go passive when one in his flock wanders off.  He is attentive.  He goes after that one sheep.  When a few in the flock begin to go down a different route the good shepherd hems them in, gathers them together.  He constantly is watchful for vicious wolves that try to come in from behind.  The sheep know and trust the Shepherd's tender voice.  They (are ever learning) to follow Him.

        He is my Shepherd.  He is trustworthy.   Even in my weakness.   He isn't holding my dumbest choices against me.  He even still seeks to find me, to refresh me and to restore me.  I can't go too far from His leadership.

        He knows where the refreshing waters are.  He knows when to tell my heart to rest.  He knows the path that's before me.  My heart is learning to trust in Him rather than my own devices.  When I do, even in the midst of hardship, He finds a way to refresh me.  He is responsible for refreshing me.  He is responsible for leading me.  He leads me to the calm waters in the midst of turbulent times.  He restores my soul.

Psalm 23 says:  

1 

The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
2     He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
3     he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
    for his name’s sake.
4 Even though I walk
    through the darkest valley,[a]
I will fear no evil,
    for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
    they comfort me.

5 You prepare a table before me
    in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
    my cup overflows.
6 Surely your goodness and love will follow me
    all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord
    forever.

       Prayer for today:
     Father, help me know you today as a Shepherd; as the perfect leader.  Even when I fail, you still hem me in, draw me close.  You know where are the refreshing places are in the midst of tough terrain of life.  Help me to trust in your perfect leadership today.  Help me to believe you are attentive to my needs.  Even in life's valleys, you are there, still faithfully leading me.  Amen.

The Veil Torn: A New Way Opened to Us

              As we recently celebrated Jesus' life and resurrection, I thought it would be appropriate to remind my kids of the story.  As you might recall, when Jesus breathed His last on the cross, that heavy, enormous, dense curtain keeping us out of the Holy of Holies in the Temple was split in two, torn right up the middle.  Simultaneously, the earth shook, signifying that man was more than just a lunatic, criminal or a wood worker.  

  "Whoah! Really?"  My kids responded when I explained what happened.  Earthquakes and things tearing on their own! Cool!

              For us, as Christians, this is everything.  We get in for free.  Before this, only a certain high priest entered after all the prescribed sacrifices and rituals were complete, filled with a holy fear.  But now, Christ became that high priest and AT THE SAME TIME became the final sacrifice for sin.  We get in because of His wounds.  We get in because of His love.  We get in because of His sacrifice.  

              But what does it all mean?  It means we see again.   In the place we were kept in the dark about God's presence and personality, we can know Him.  Where we were shut out, unsure, fearful, now we can see.  And we can continually see.  We can continually know Him.  It's not just a one time deal.  It's a daily relationship; second to second, minute to minute ongoing dialogue with the Almighty.  And there is a good reason for this.  It's what He wanted.  He initiated it.  He longs to draw us close.  He made us for this reason; to have relationship with Him.  And in that relationship we are continually transformed.  What we behold, we become.  

           "And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit." 2 Corinthians 3:18

"The Veil Torn", 3'x5' oil on canvas

A Prayer for today:              
           Lord, thank you for tearing the veil so we can know you again in a daily relationship.  Open my spiritual eyes again today so that I may know you by your Spirit.  Show me who you are afresh and anew.  Erase any lies I have believed about you.  Let me be changed as I behold you.