Ordinary into Extraordinary

Have you ever had a thought so fascinating that it consumes your mind and leaves you in awe? Last week I posted a link on Facebook about snowflakes. The website was loaded with micro images of delicate snowflakes. Marveling at the intricate details of the “frozen fractals”, I was left in awe and wonder. Breathtaking. Unique. Beautiful.

God takes ordinary things and does extraordinary things through them, for His glory.

This Christmas season, I have been reflecting on God’s use of ordinary objects, places, and people, to bring attention to His power. A girl. A carpenter. A small town. A stable. A feeding trough. A couple socially award outcasts called shepherds. A star.

God trusted mankind to raise His Son in a small town, with a humble family, and a common occupation of wood working. When Jesus was 30 years old, he began his public ministry (30 doesn’t seem so bad anymore, Hallelujah!). John baptized him in the river and proclaimed Jesus was the Messiah everyone was waiting for! (Since John and Jesus were cousins, I wonder if they had met each other before this?) Once in the womb, John leapt for joy when his mother Elizabeth heard Mary’s voice. Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied to Mary:

Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit in your womb! But who am I that the mother of my Lord would come to me? As soon as I heard your voice, the baby leapt inside my womb for joy. Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord!

How kind of God to give Mary a sign to confirm what was spoken to her from the angel! She found her cousin Elizabeth pregnant with John, just like the angel Gabriel had told her! John was also a part of the fulfillment of prophecy. I can’t help but wonder what was going through John’s mind when Jesus came walking into the Jordan River to greet him to request his baptism.

After being baptized by John, Jesus began inviting ordinary men to follow him. Fishmen. A tax collector. A thief. He walked with them through life, taking intentional moments to teach them about the Kingdom of Heaven and what was to come. On his last night with his followers, he took bread and a cup from an ordinary meal and made it something the followers of Jesus partake in today. The bread now symbolizes Jesus’ body that was given for us, and the wine symbolizes his blood that was to be poured out for the sake of the world.

Then they took an ordinary tree and formed it into a cross. This cross, that used to be a symbol of fear and death, now stands for mercy and unconditional love.

God took an ordinary man and made him new. God now takes ordinary people and transforms them into extraordinary vessels that He empowers to bring His name glory.

“But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.” – 2 Corinthians 4:7

Jars of clay were used as common household items that can be easily disposed of if rendered useless. The could hold anything from important family documents to food waste. We are ordinary people and He is an extraordinary God. Who are we that He would entrust this message of hope and salvation for all of the world? 

This Christmas I encourage you to not give material things to others that will collect dust, but give a gift that you will not receive back. Give you time, attention, and love to those around you. After all, the greatest gift that God has given us is Himself.

There is Another in the Fire with You

I live in a place where I literally bump shoulders with thousands of people every day, yet still feel completely alone. Loneliness is a plague and a kill-joy. It makes you wallow in a hole of self-pity that can easily attack your identity if not held in check.

“Why do others hate me?”

“Why do I never get invited to things?” 

“What’s wrong with me?”

The following song has been so powerful in my walk lately. Trails, hardships, pain, stress, “persecution” are all things that are a part of this life on earth because of the Fall. (Yes, THE Fall of mankind from Genesis 3, check it out if you need a refresher.) The consequences of Adam and Eve’s choice sent the world into a downhill spiral. Things have never been the same since. Sometimes life sucks.

You failed an exam.

You didn’t get the job you wanted. The drama in your family is too much to bear.

You lose someone you loved. Sickness threatens to control everything.

You miss out on life events of the people you love because you are far away from home.

You are being used, rather than pursued.

Pain is real (and so is the struggle). What do you do when it threatens to take over your thoughts, emotions, and identity? 

Sometimes it feels like you are thrown into a fire with no hope of getting out. Have you ever experienced this? Well, 3 guys have! The lyrics are based off a story in Daniel, about 3 young men who lived in Babylon after the nation of Israel was taken captive. They were drafted to serve the king of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar (Lord, bless that child’s name). Part of this process was a sort of “brainwashing” where they were educated in the language, literature and rituals of the pagan gods the king served. They even had their names and diet changed to reflect a new “identity”.  Well, these 3 men who loved God denied eating the food the king brought to them (that had also been sacrificed to the gods) and the ritual of bowing down to worship the gods. They stood firm for their faith in the Almighty God and were thrown into a fiery furnace, heated 7 times more than it usually was to insure their fate. It was so hot, that the officials ushering these 3 men into the furnace were scorched! However, after counting how many men were thrown in, the guards were shocked to see four men walking around in the fire, unaffected by the flames surrounding them. By the king’s order, they brought out the men only to find no evidence they had been anywhere near a fire. Their clothes were unharmed, and they didn’t even smell like smoke! (Read the whole story here) There was another in the fire, walking with them. He never left them.

With this story in mind, reflect on this song… 

(or watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMw_9AhsJFs )

"Another In The Fire"

There's a grace when the heart is under fire
Another way when the walls are closing in
And when I look at the space between
Where I used to be and this reckoning
I know I will never be alone

There was another in the fire
Standing next to me
There was another in the waters
Holding back the seas
And should I ever need reminding
Of how I've been set free
There is a cross that bears the burden
Where another died for me

There is another in the fire

All my debt left for dead beneath the waters
I'm no longer a slave to my sin anymore
And should I fall in the space between
What remains of me and this reckoning
Either way I won't bow to the things of this world

And I can see the light in the darkness
As the darkness bows to Him
I can hear the roar in the heavens
As the space between wears thin

I can feel the ground shake beneath us
As the prison walls cave in
Nothing stands between us
Nothing stands between us

And there is no other name
But the name that is Jesus
He who was and still is
And will be through it all
So come what may in the space between
All the things unseen
And this reckoning
I know I will never be alone

The book for Micah mentions the “refiners fire” where he holds the gold in the middle of the fire and lets all the impurities melt away. He doesn’t throw it in the fire and leave it. The gold is too precious! Instead, he holds it until it is finished with the process. How does he know when the impurities are gone? When he can see his reflection in the gold. That’s exactly what God does with us. He hasn’t left us alone in the fire. Instead he holds it through the process. We are all in the process of sanctification – the process of becoming more like Jesus.

James 1:2-5 challenges, “Consider it pure joy [throw a party because God’s up to something!], my brothers, when you face trials of many kinds[make a list of the different things you are going through], because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance [among other things], and let perseverance have its full effect[finish the process], that you may be perfect and complete [like Jesus] lacking in nothing.” [BTV – Brindley Taylor Version]

These are the truths I cling to when trusting God is hard and I feel lonely and forgotten. I have been grateful for a great song to remind me that He is with me through the dark days. He is a trustworthy God!

Joel Houston and Chris Davenport talk about the story behind Another In The Fire by Hillsong UNITED - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xrE-JMAfMY

"Another in The Fire" by Hillsong UNITED 2019

A Fresh Start

 Do you ever feel like life came with a factory reset button? Like if you made a mistake that came with consequences you didn’t see coming, wouldn’t you like to be able to have a redo? Or you have fallen into a mindless cycle that you can’t get out of and need a fresh perspective? Or maybe you just need to refresh the page of your mind, clear it of junk, and start with a blank page?

Lately, have been going non-stop and haven’t taken time to recharge my battery. I have been so busy doing “things” that I haven’t taken time to rest. There have been times of sleep deprivation, neglect of physical health, mental, and spiritual health - because I think I can do it all my own. I haven’t spent time to reflect or process what is happening around me and where God is working.  I have missed those “divine appointments” with random people as I rush from one thing to another. But most of all, I miss spending quality time with Jesus. Only with Him have I been able to experience true rest – not just the absence of work, but shameless peace. I have been really convicted of not taking time to refresh and reset my priorities. I have asked myself: What does it actually mean to rest? I can sit around my house all day and binge on Netflix and still not feel rested. I can sleep for as long as I want still not feel rested…

Any doctor will tell you the importance of physical rest and that our bodies need it to function properly. Anyone who has pulled an all-nighter studying for a paper and had to take an exam the next day will tell you lack of sleep does not help productivity. However, could there be a difference between physical rest and spiritual rest?  The writer of Hebrews thinks so.

Hebrews chapter 4 differentiates between physical rest and redemptive rest:
"The nation of Israel, in the Old Testament, provoked the Lord to anger by disobeying – therefore they were not permitted to enter God’s rest."

In this passage, rest is referred to the Promise Land. God brought this nation out of slavery in Egypt so that they would be free to worship and enjoy Him. However, they started worshiping other things rather than God, turned their hearts away from Him. Of course, this made God angry and he sent them wandering around the desert for 40 years as a result of their decisions. 

According to John MacArthur, “the application of this picture is to an individual’s spiritual rest in the Lord, which has precedent in the Old Testament. At salvation, every believer enters true rest, the realm of spiritual promise, never again laboring to achieve through personal effort a righteousness that pleases God. The Lord wanted both kinds of rest for that generation which was delivered from Egypt.” 

When God created the world and it’s order, He created rest. In Genesis chapter 2 God finished all the work He had done and rested. He blessed the seventh day and made it holy – different than all the others. It’s not as if He needed rest (after all, He SPOKE the world into motion), but modeled the new created order.

There are still times when we need both kinds of rest, not just sleep. Rest was made to be a blessing to man “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath” as Jesus reminds his followers when they were accused of doing “work” on a holy day (Mark 2:27). To be holy means to be “set apart” or “different” from the mainstream. The culture of humanity today is driven by work and performance. We are taught at a young age that if you perform well, you will receive worth. During potty training for toddlers, parents give their kids a reward for a job well done. As young kids play sports, now days they receive a reward for “participating” (don’t get me started…). The next 12 years (or more) of academics, students are pressured to perform well so they can receive good grades, so that they can get into the top universities, so that they can perform well at their job, and... you get the picture. What happens when you can’t preform up to those expectations? Life seems hopeless.  

In a world that is driven by work and performance, it is easy to feel inadequate. Often times, I feel like I fall short on my work, therefore I am not valuable to others. There are always more things to do, more people to serve, more people to listen to, and more energy needed to accomplish them all. It is a never ending “rat race”. The world around me likes to throw shame for not keeping up, but that’s ot how it was created. But God reminds me that my worth is not based on my performance. (See my last article “You Say…”)  Praise God that I can rest in the fact that I am accepted, loved, and valuable just for being me based on what Jesus did on the cross. By believing and accepting Jesus’ gift of life to me I can now live in freedom!

Okay, I know there is a difference from physical rest and redemptive rest. But what does that look like practically? Reset the pace of your life and take a day to practice redemptive rest. I am still learning what that looks like... 

Sometimes I just go for a long walk in the cool of the evening or chase the sunset. 

Sometimes I curl up on the couch and read an encouraging book.

·     Sometimes I journal ideas I am processing (a lot of my blog articles come out of journaling!). Sometimes I go explore a new area of the city or a new coffee shop.

·     Sometimes I sleep in and stay in my PJ’s allllllllll day.

·     Everyday I strive to read something in scripture and reflect on it throughout the day.

·     Everyday I thank God for waking me up this morning and for giving me purpose.

·     Everyday I aim to list off things I am thankful for instead of presenting a long list of things I still want.

·     Everyday I ask God to reset my priorities to make Him first in my life and my “work” last. After all, I am first called to Him, then what I do flows out of that!

I am reminded of Romans 12:1-2 which commands “do not conform to the pattern [set by] this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind…” The Message Bible phrases it this way:

“Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.”*

Let God produce a healthy work/rest cycle in your life! Discover and fall in love with Jesus, the more time you spend with Him, the more time you want to give Him.

*Just a note that the Message Bible “is a highly idiomatic translation, using contemporary slang from the US rather than a more neutral International English, and it falls on the extreme dynamic end of the dynamic and formal equivalence spectrum.”

In This Valley of Dry Bones...

It was Friday night when thirty-or-so people gathered in a lecture hall to reflect on all what God did during the 24/7 Prayer Week. On the University of British Columbia campus over 145 students met to pray over their classmates, campus, and city. Many of them met or heard God for the first time. Others were awakened to the needs circulating around them daily. Still, others just came to sit and rest in the presence of God that filled this community house living room. We may never know the impact of this week, but one thing was drawn to my attention.

During the Friday night gathering, one person shared a verse from Ezekiel 37, but for the life of me I do not recall the context. We finished out the night with worship and corporate prayer. The next morning, I was listening to a podcast and there was another reference to Ezekiel 37. Naturally my curiosity was peaked so I decided to place a mental bookmark in Ezekiel so I could read it later. However, as I opened my Bible to the topic passage of the podcast and I randomly landed on Ezekiel. At this comical moment, I verbally agree that God wants me to read it now.

Ezekiel chapter 36 talks about the Lord’s concern for His name, “Therefore to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord God: It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations to which you came…And I will vindicate the holiness of my great name.” God’s preface to what He promises to His people is His purpose: for the sake of His holy name. It is not for the sake of any leader, any organization, any campus club, but for His name alone will He bring revival.

God proceeds to specify his promises stating, “I will cleanse you from your idolatry…I will give you a new heart (of flesh and not of stone) and put my spirit within you… I will be your God, and you will dwell with me” (Ezekiel 36:25-29). I found myself asking God, “are these promises for this campus, just like the house of Israel?” I am still searching for the answer. The chapter ends with this phrase, “Then they will know that I am the Lord.”

But, He doesn’t stop there! Chapter 37 describes the “Valley of dry bones.” God brings Ezekiel to this valley of not just a pile of fresh bones, but a valley full of dry bones. The writer emphasizes the condition of the bones: hopeless, past the point of no return, and very dry. God then asks Ezekiel, “Son of man, can these bones live?” To which Ezekiel full of faith replies, “O Lord, you know.” God challenges Ezekiel to prophecy over them saying, “O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord to these bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. And I will lay sinews upon you, and will cause flesh to come upon you and cover you with skin, and put breath in you and you shall live, and you shall know that I am the Lord.” As soon as God breathed life into them, they rose up to be an “exceedingly great army.” I sat there weeping and full of hope that God could breathe life into an army that brought His name glory.

I began to pray that over the UBC campus. I prayed that God would look at this valley of dry bones, students walking around without hope or purpose in life, and breathe life into them. I prayed that people would know that He is the Lord and that He is the only one that can bring life. I prayed that He would remove their hearts of stone and give them hearts of flesh. I prayed that He would pour out His spirit on them and they would rise up to be a great army in the Kingdom of God. I prayed that we become like Ezekiel believing that God is “more than able to do more than we can ever imagine” according to Ephesians 3:20. We want to see your Kingdom Here, Lord!