9/11

A solemn day,

A day for remembering

Cross at Ground Zero

     although we can't forget. 



 Not afraid, only sad
That life was crushed,

     hope forever changed.

Proud too. Proud that sacrifice
     and heroism won
O’er evil intent and hate.

And even when no duty called,
Some loved neighbor more
        than they loved themselves.

Fountains flow with tears that never dry,
Trees reach up their hands into the sky.
Twin lights pierce heaven, a prayer and a sigh.


A cross of beams, a tattered flag,

     remind us of our call. 

We still believe.

MaryMartha



Art from http:www.sxc/hu.com





Enthusiasm

An employer was urging his workers to be enthusiastic. “Customers want to see you demonstrate enthusiasm as you assist them when they come into this business.” A good suggestion, don't you think?

The word has an interesting etymology. It comes from the Greek éntheos meaning God-possessed or in God. Now I'm certainly not implying that those who are not enthusiastic are not in God, but showing enthusiasm is a great way to demonstrate that we are indeed in Him! Scripture has many admonitions to be grateful, to be full of joy, to have hope and confidence. These are well-expressed by what we recognize as enthusiasm.

It is not easy to be enthusiastic about working with people that are difficult, at a distasteful job, or in troubling circumstances. But God hasn't required that for everything we are to give thanks, only in everything to give thanks. The Apostle Paul did not claim to like every situation in which he found himself, or to be fond of every person with whom he worked! He only said that he had learned to be content. The Psalmist wrote about “songs in the night” and “the valley of the shadow of death.” Obviously then, enthusiasm--”God-inness”--is not dependent on our always being comfortable and enjoying pleasant surroundings. Keeping a positive outlook is one way we can show that our hope and security is in God, and that our good cheer does not depend on the weather outside or the indoor “climate” of our interaction with others around us.

MaryMartha

Art from http://www.sxc.hu/

The Safest Place

A security camera
is watching!



Some months ago, I read an article about what is possibly the safest house in the world. The five-story residence sits high in the hills above Los Angeles with a 360° view of the surrounding area. Inside are thirty-two luxurious rooms, discreetly disguising the fact that the house is heavily fortified and super-secure. Six cars can park in the virtually impenetrable cave-like garage below the living areas. Should an intruder manage to breach the high-powered exterior security measures, there are two hidden panic rooms plus architecturally invisible safe cores. These are entire sections of the house that can be shut off from the rest of the building, and would provide safety from any outside threat: intruders, natural disaster and even nuclear, biological, or chemical attack.

This modern-day fortress can only provide a certain measure of peace of mind. The man/woman who is owner of this house is just as likely to have a heart attack as the next person. He/she is as susceptible to cancer, lung disease, or brain tumor as other people are. What then? The safest house in the world isn't really safe at all.

I believe in taking precautions that will help me be safe physically. Don't I have a basement equipped for waiting out a tornado? A fire extinguisher? Air bags in my car? Grab bars in the bathroom? But no effort of mine will be enough to give me spiritual safety. Psalm 23 is not yet worn out! Here is a verse of assurance: Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me." (Ps. 23:4) When we die certainly, but at other times too, when we pass through a dark place and experience the "dying" of something precious to us, we experience "the shadow of death." It is then that Jesus is right with us, not driving us through the valley, but leading us. His staff reassures and even rescues us, His rod protects us

The safest place? In His care. Whether we're in an elegant, fortified house or in a tiny apartment, "My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father's hand." (John 10:27-29)

MaryMartha

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

Art from http://www.sxc.hu/

No Turning Back

I remember singing often, while I was growing up—as we rode in the car, or at youth services,

I have decided to follow Jesus,
I have decided to follow Jesus,
I have decided to follow Jesus,
No turning back, no turning back.

The world behind me, the cross before me,
The world behind me, the cross before me,
The world behind me, the cross before me,
No turning back, no turning back.

Though none go with me, still I will follow,
Though none go with me, still I will follow,
Though none go with me, still I will follow,
No turning back, no turning back.

--Attributed to Sadhu
Sundar Singh, India, early 20th c.

I could sing that very earnestly. What was there for me, after all, as an eight-year-old or a fourteen- or seventeen-year-old, to turn back to? Now, with advanced age and much more experience, I still ask, "What could there possibly be that is worth turning back to?"

The children of Israel, faced with the uncertainties involved in taking over the Promised Land from the giants who lived there, lamented to Moses and Aaron. "Then the whole community began weeping aloud, and they cried all night. Their voices rose in a great chorus of protest against Moses and Aaron. 'If only we had died in Egypt, or even here in the wilderness!' they complained. 'Why is the Lord taking us to this country only to have us die in battle? Our wives and our little ones will be carried off as plunder! Wouldn’t it be better for us to return to Egypt?' Then they plotted among themselves, 'Let’s choose a new leader and go back to Egypt!' ” (Numbers 14:1-4)

Those who had gone ahead to spy out the land returned with proof that the land was fabulously productive. Two men of faith assured the people, "The countrymen there are powerful, but we are well able to overcome them!" Still, motivated by fear and a complaining spirit, the Israelites began to talk of stoning their leaders—until the Lord intervened and sent them back out into the wilderness to wander for forty years, one year for each day the spies had spent exploring the good land ahead of them.

We wouldn't deny our Savior, but we might cringe at the prospect of change. We might pull back when faced with challenge. What if Columbus had not said (in the words of American poet Joaquin Miller), "Sail on! sail on! sail on! and on!" What if Winston Churchill had not given the commencement address that has inspired various valuable (mis)quotes? "Never give up! Never give up! Never, never, never!" What blessing and provision we miss, if we close our eyes to what is before and us and turn back to what is only safe and familiar!

MaryMartha

Scripture quotation is taken from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. United States of America. All rights reserved.

Art from http://www.sxc.hu/

If the Lord Is With Us, Why . . . ?

Time and again, the enemy forces from Midian had attacked the children of Israel, forcing them to hide in caves and dens in the mountains. Whatever the Israelites sowed in their fields, the Midianites and other marauding tribes came and destroyed or carried away, leaving an impoverished people.

Gideon, an Israelite, was threshing a little bit of wheat one day, hidden in the winepress because who would think to look there? The Angel of the Lord appeared to him, saying "“Mighty hero, the Lord is with you!” Gideon must have been quite surprised—first of all, by seeing an angel, and secondly, by being addressed as a hero, and a mighty one at that.

“Sir,” Gideon replied, “if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? And where are all the miracles our ancestors told us about? Didn’t they say, ‘The Lord brought us up out of Egypt’? But now the Lord has abandoned us and handed us over to the Midianites.” (Judges 6:13)

Gideon is not the only one to have wondered about God's readiness to stick with us: the Israelites in the wilderness, Job's wife, the psalmist David. Even Jesus' agonized cry from the Cross was, "God, where are You?" And it is easy for us too to look at what is around us—the difficulty we are encountering or the loss we've suffered—and question, "If the Lord is with me, why has all this happened?" We can even recount what He has done for us in the past and still conclude, "I guess He has abandoned me." It just isn't true!

God did deliver the people from oppression, using Gideon—to his own surprise—as a strategic warrior and a true hero. God did lead the people from the wilderness into the Promised Land. He did heal Job from terrible disease and free Job's wife from her inner turmoil. God did make David a king and a man after His own heart. And He did raise Jesus to sit with Him in heavenly places.
God has not changed. He is with us too, "For God has said, 'I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.' ” (Hebrews 13:5) Some lines from a very old hymn remind us:

I’ve seen the lightning flashing, I’ve heard the thunder roll.
I’ve felt sin’s breakers dashing, which almost conquered my soul.
I’ve heard the voice of my Savior, bidding me still to fight on.
He promised never to leave me, never to leave me alone!

The world’s fierce winds are blowing temptation sharp and keen.
I have a peace in knowing my Savior stands between.
He stands to shield me from danger when all my friends are gone.
He promised never to leave me, never to leave me alone!

When in affliction’s valley I tread the road of care,
My Savior helps me carry the cross so heavy to bear;
Though all around me is darkness, earthly joys all flown;
My Savior whispers His promise, never to leave me alone!

Refrain
No, never alone, no never alone,
He promised never to leave me,
He’ll claim me for His own;
No, never alone, no never alone.
He promised never to leave me,
Never to leave me alone.

-- Ludie D. Pickett (1897)

MaryMartha

You may also like:
The Lord Is My Shepherd (here)
Has God Forgotten? (here)

Scripture quotations are taken from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. United States of America. All rights reserved.
Hymn lyrics from http://my.homewithgod.com/heavenlymidis2/alone.html
Art from http://www.sxc.hu/

Things Mama Taught Me: "Whistling Girls and Crowing Hens . . . "

Imagine Adam's surprise when he discovered that he could make a shrill, though not unpleasant, sound if he held his mouth just right and blew! He must have been as delighted as youngsters are nowadays when they acquire this new noise-making ability!

Did Eve come running and say, "Oh Adam, teach me how to do that too!" She may have. She didn't have a mother telling her, "Whistling girls and crowing hens always come to some bad ends"! I had such a mother, and I suppose she had such a one too, because these ideas tend to get passed from one generation to the next. I think it had to do with keeping little girls girl-like. (Whatever that means.)

This was the same Mama who could summon boys from their baseball game in the pasture with an ear-splitting whistle she produced by placing her thumb and forefinger to her lips. It never occurred to me to question why this was acceptable and my merry whistling was not. Because it was useful rather than frivolous? Because she was already grownup and wouldn't be harmed by doing something "boyish"? Simply because she was the Mama?

The popular American essayist, Charles Dudley Warner (1829-1900), wrote that this is one of many proverbs which we accept without questioning and vaguely respect as the wisdom of our ancestors! It probably has a Puritan origin, he says, speaking as one of Puritan descent. "Very likely the musty saying [is] the product of the average ignorance of an unenlightened time, and ought not to have the respect of a scientific and traveled people." He goes on to say that a crowing hen was not an object of derision, but was instead one of interest and distinction. The owner was proud of her accomplishment and eager to point her out to visitors, especially if she also could produce eggs. A hen that could lay and crow was indeed a rare bird! "Thus the crowing hen was of more value than the silent hen, provided she crowed with discretion, and she was likely to be a favorite and not at all to come to some bad end."

And the whistling girl does not ordinarily come to a bad end either. As a matter of fact, she has an advantage over some others: She can whistle to keep up her courage! Anna, in "The King and I" sings, "Whenever I feel afraid, I hold my head erect and whistle a happy tune so no one will suspect I'm afraid . . . The result of this deception is very strange to tell, for when I fool the people I fear, I fool myself as well!" (Oscar Hammerstein II) While whistling and other self-confidence boosters can never take the place of trusting God, there is something to be said in favor of a positive outlook.

Thus the whistling girl is of at-least-equal value to the silent girl, provided she whistles with discretion, and she is likely to be a favorite and not at all to come to some bad end!

MaryMartha

"The Whistling Girl" essay from http://www.readbookonline.net/readOnLine/17695/

The music is an image included with the poem "Whistling Sam" found in The Complete Poems of Paul Laurence Dunbar, published 1913; the source is The Gutenberg Project. Ah, could the Sam possibly be Samantha?

Comforters

My mother used to make comforters, two or more for every bed occupied by the six of us children. I remember the flannel, usually in somber stripes, being laid out on the big dining room table. On top of this, Mama laid a thick layer of batting and covered that with a second flannel. The edges were stitched on the sewing machine, and the whole was tied in a neat, squared-off pattern with colored yarn. We saw no particular value in handmade items, because that was all we knew. In those days, it would never have occurred to us to purchase a quilt or comforter. Now I would gladly exchange my bright floral bed covering stitched in a flowing pattern for one of those old tied comforters, just because they are so—comforting!

The very word "comfort" brings to my mind being secure, even enclosed—like being wrapped up in the comforter my mother had made. "Are you comfortable?" someone asks us, and yes, we feel an atmosphere of warmth and safety and ease. "I'm not comfortable with that," we protest in some situation, and it may be because we feel uncertain or exposed. A parent offers the safety of their arms to the child who is injured, or a friend puts an arm around us when we are hurting; they are giving comfort.

God too provides comfort. In fact, one of the Trinity is specifically assigned the job description of "Comforter." Various Bible translations give descriptive names for this person: Friend, Advocate, Encourager, Counselor, Helper, Strengthener, Standby. The Greek paraklētos literally means "called to one's side," capable and ready to give aid. However, God does not comfort us just so we can be comfortable, but so that we become comforters too—friends, encouragers, helpers, ready to give aid.

The Apostle Paul wrote, "God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. For the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with his comfort through Christ. Even when we are weighed down with troubles, it is for your comfort and salvation! For when we ourselves are comforted, we will certainly comfort you." (II Corinthians 1:3-6)

Our experiences of difficulty are not wasted, for when God gives us strength and encouragement, He then can use us to help another person who is weak or discouraged. The movie script writers were not the first to come up with the idea of "paying it forward"!

MaryMartha

The movie reference is to the 2000 feature, "Pay It Forward," based on the novel of the same name. A student's project to "change the world" involves not paying back the person who has helped you, but instead paying it forward to other people.

The Scripture quotation is taken from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. United States of America. All rights reserved.

Be Afraid or Not—Our Choice

I have come to suspect that some of the people around me would like for me to be afraid—if not very afraid! Do they think that if others join them in considering what terrible things may happen before we get out of this world, that gives some credibility to their own fears? Or if enough people worry long and loudly about perceived calamity that will somehow ward it off? All the fuss will neither cause nor prevent the adverse circumstances which they fear.

Unless I am missing something, Jesus told His followers only once to be afraid. Recorded in Matthew and in Luke, He said, “Dear friends, don’t be afraid of those who want to kill your body; they cannot do any more to you after that. But I’ll tell you whom to fear. Fear God, who has the power to kill you and then throw you into hell. Yes, he’s the one to fear." (Luke 12:4, 5 NLT) The rest of the time, over and over and over again, He told them, "Don't be afraid" or "Fear not." His last discourse with the disciples included the words, "I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid." (John 14:27 NLT) The message could not be clearer.

Yes, there things in our world that can very well cause fear. But the Psalmist was firm in his choice of trust rather than fear. "Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You." Then he was able to declare, "In God I have put my trust; I will not fear. What can flesh do to me? . . . In God I have put my trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?" (Psalm 56: 3, 4, 11 NKJV) One might suppose that this song was composed on a peaceful hillside as David watched his sheep. No, he has taken refuge from King Saul who is after him. He is in the enemy camp of the Philistines, and they have discovered who he is! Shouldn't you be afraid, David? "No, I will not be afraid."

First we decide, "When I am afraid, I will trust God." Then we work that out, day by day. We hear a scrap of news that strikes fear to the heart. We get an e-mail that warns of some dire "probability." The conversation we hear is negative and full of fear. Rather than going into an immediate defense mode, I suggest we stop and calmly repeat to ourselves, "In God I have put my trust. I will not be afraid." (And it wouldn't hurt to say it out loud too!) If media reports scare you, don't watch/listen. If forwarded e-mails are frightening, don't open them. If your acquaintances speak of fearful things, move on. Better to be a bit uninformed than fearful and angry. Guard your heart.

MaryMartha

Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. United States of America. All rights reserved. Scripture marked NKJV is taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

But If Not

These are troubled times, economically and socially, and some of the voices I hear around me express fear or anger. How anxious we become if any of the comforts and conveniences to which we've become addicted are threatened! Compared to much of the rest of the world, we live very privileged lives. Some of the things which we consider our "rights," are totally unknown in other places, but ease is not an essential part of the Gospel. We would like to think that it is, but the experience of Christians elsewhere does not attest to that. If the "American" gospel of peace and prosperity does not work in slums and refugee camps and political prisons, then it is not really the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

As Jesus' followers, we cannot be harmed! But, one could argue, ineffective leadership and questionable legislation and illogical court decisions harm believers too, just the same as people who don't love God. Yes, of course. That is the point: "just the same." Christians are not excluded from the difficulties that a broken world full of searching people causes. But surely God delivers His people, doesn't He? Yes, but not always from the calamity or out of the distress. Hear what the Apostle Paul has to say: "Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? . . . No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us." (Romans 8:35, 37 NLT) We cannot ultimately be harmed!

"God wouldn't let it happen," we fondly hope: all-out war, religious persecution, a broken home, desperate poverty, wasting disease, violent death. "We have to live." No, the experience of Christians in many other parts of the world does not bear that out, and neither does the experience of Paul and thousands of people since his time. Death may be the last enemy of Jesus Christ, but it is not the worst. Jesus taught His followers not to fear those who could destroy the body, because "there's nothing they can do to your soul, your core being. Save your fear for God, who holds your entire life—body and soul—in his hands." (Matthew 10:28 MSG)

I love the attitude of the young Hebrew men in the Old Testament who were threatened with death if they did not worship the image set up by the king. I hope Christians in these uncertain days can develop the same stand. "Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.” (Daniel 3:17, 18 NKJV) It is almost incidental that God did spare them; the fire burned only the ropes that bound them. When they came out, there was not even the smell of smoke on them. God did not have to do that, because they were already free! The king had no power over them when they set their hearts on God and declared, "We won't bow down." The fire could not destroy their determination to trust and honor Him with their lives—or their deaths.

While we desperately look for a way to escape distress or to avoid it altogether, the Enemy of our souls has us at his mercy. He can bind us with fear, self-pity, bitterness, and doubt. "God can and will deliver" is an important stand of faith, and when we can say, "But if He doesn't . . ." nothing can ultimately harm us. We are already delivered.

MaryMartha

Perhaps of interest to you:
http://findingthefaithway.blogspot.com/2008/07/god-sees-sparrows-fall.html
http://findingthefaithway.blogspot.com/2009/05/does-god-always-provide-bread.html

Scripture quotation marked NLT is taken from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. United States of America. All rights reserved. Scripture marked MSG is taken from The Message. Copyright © 2003 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group. Scripture marked NKJV taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Pollyanna, FDR, and the Psalmist

When I was young, I read and re-read the Pollyanna books. Written in 1913 by Eleanor H. Porter, the first book introduced Pollyanna's "Glad Game," which consisted of finding something to be glad about in every situation. When, instead of the doll Pollyanna had hoped for, a pair of crutches arrived in the Christmas gift barrel, her minister father made up the game—in this case, be glad for the crutches "because we don't need them!" Her name has been used so often to describe untiringly cheerful people that it has entered into our common language as a term for being excessively optimistic! Scholars and writers and politicians use "the Pollyanna principle" to describe people who unfailingly look on the bright side and hope for the best, regardless of how things look.

The perpetually happy little girl in the series has been given—unfairly, I think—a reputation of foolishness by those who might prefer to predict doom! She is actually in very good company. President Franklin D. Roosevelt had a motto in the Oval Office of the White House: "Let unconquerable gladness dwell." Is that an admonition? A goal? A prayer? Whatever the intended message, it was not mere foolishness. It reflected the hope and determination of our national leader during a bleak time in American history. FDR faced crises on both the home front and an international level, and he did so with bold optimism.

David expressed gladness in many of his songs. "I know the Lord is always with me. I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me. No wonder my heart is glad, and I rejoice. My body rests in safety. (Psalm 6:8, 9 NLT) "For you make me glad by your deeds, O LORD; I sing for joy at the works of your hands." (92:4 NIV) "May all who search for you be filled with joy and gladness in you. May those who love your salvation repeatedly shout, “The Lord is great!” (40:16 NLT) "Let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you. (Psalm 5:11 NIV)

Gladness is not just a game, although Pollyanna had a great idea. Gladness is not just a motto to live by, although that's worthwhile too. Gladness is a God-thing.

MaryMartha

Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. United States of America. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

Impossible!

"When God wants to do an impossible task, he takes an impossible man, and he crushes him." This notable quotation is from Alan Redpath, who moved to the U.S. from England in 1953 to become the pastor of the Moody Church in Chicago where he served for nine years. He then returned to Great Britain serve in Edinburgh, Scotland, but suffered a near-fatal stroke in 1964. He was able to recover but suffered from deep depression for a period afterwards, even while serving in important administrative positions. Did he consider himself that impossible man?

When I think of what Dr. Redpath said, I am reminded of Gideon in the Bible. The Midianites, an enemy nation, were so cruel that the Israelites made hiding places for themselves in mountain dens and caves. When the Israelites sowed their crops, marauders from the east would arrive, as thick as locusts, and they camped in the land and destroyed the crops. They stayed until the land was stripped bare, leaving the Israelites with nothing to eat, even taking all the sheep, goats, cattle, and donkeys. .So Israel was reduced to starvation by the Midianites. An impossible situation! So God selected an "impossible" man.

Gideon was threshing wheat one day, at the bottom of a winepress to hide the grain from the Midianites. The angel of the Lord appeared to him and said, “Mighty hero, the Lord is with you!” “Sir,” Gideon replied, “if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? And where are all the miracles our ancestors told us about? Didn’t they say, ‘The Lord brought us up out of Egypt’? But now the Lord has abandoned us and handed us over to the Midianites.”

Then the Lord turned to him (because it was indeed the Lord) and said, “Go with the strength you have, and rescue Israel from the Midianites. I am sending you!”

“But Lord,” Gideon replied, “how can I rescue Israel? My clan is the weakest in the whole tribe of Manasseh, and I am the least in my entire family!” Gideon knew his people were in an impossible situation, and yes, he would be an impossible man!

The Lord said to him, “I will be with you. And you will destroy the Midianites as if you were fighting against one man.”

Gideon was not easily convinced. Even after miraculous demonstrations of God's ability to do the impossible, he was reluctant. Gideon saw the angel touch with the tip of his staff the meat and bread Gideon had brought for his guest to eat. Fire flamed up from the rock and consumed it all. He saw a wool fleece soaking wet with morning dew while the ground around it was dry; then he saw the fleece remain dry while the surroundings were wet with dew.

Gideon assembled an army of 32,000 men but God wanted them to know they were still dealing with an impossibility, and that victory would not be something they achieved on their own. God instructed Gideon to cut down the troops by sending home those who were afraid, 22,000 of them. That left 10,000—still too many. A test of watchfulness while drinking, probably at the well of Harod or the stream there, further diminished the number, leaving only three hundred. Now it was indeed an impossible situation!

Equipping the men with swords and lamps hidden in clay pots, they entered the enemy camp. Read the story yourself (Judges 6 through 8); it is exciting history of God doing the impossible through an insignificant, "impossible" man.

MaryMartha (Thanks, cousin R.!)
(All rights reserved)

Email: mrymrtha@gmail.com

Don't Give Up the Dream!

Susan Boyle, an unemployed Scottish church lady brought down the house at the "Britain's Got Talent" auditions and has introduced "I Dreamed a Dream" (from Les Miserables) to a new generation. As of April 20, Reuters reported over 100.3 million online views of her performance and related materials. The song is actually quite a sad one, beginning with lines about excitement and high hopes and undying love, ending with hopelessness and disillusionment. The closing words are, "Now life has killed the dream I dreamed." I don't know whether or not it was intended, but Susan capitalized on the "dream" idea by explaining that she had not had the chance to fulfill her ambition of becoming a professional singer. She ignored the open skepticism of the audience and the rude presumptiveness Simon (one of the judges) didn't even bother to hide. She then proceeded to wow them all! Against the odds, at mid-life, she is still holding on to her dream.

A blogging friend of mine is headed this fall to a prestigious seminary on a full, merit-based scholarship. People wonder, she reports, how she happens to have such a wonderful opportunity, how almost like magic she reaches her goals, how she seems to have fairy dust sprinkled on her life. No, she would like to explain to them (but can't really), it has involved risk and lots of personal growth and a great deal of hard work. It has been some time in coming, but rather than give up the dream, she has pursued it and enlarged it and is ready to capture it.

Use of the word "dream" in Scripture usually means either a dream in the night or a special vision from God. Perhaps "ambition" or "compelling" may serve to mean the same as the "dream" we have for our future. The Apostle Paul wrote, "My ambition has always been to preach the Good News where the name of Christ has never been heard, rather than where a church has already been started by someone else." (Romans 15:20 NLT) He did exactly that in his missionary journeys! "Afterward Paul felt compelled by the Spirit [Or decided in his spirit, marg.] to go over to Macedonia and Achaia before going to Jerusalem. 'And after that,' he said, 'I must go on to Rome!' ” (Acts 19:21 NLT) Paul went to Rome as a prisoner, but he did get to Rome and was an effective witness there. Finally he wrote, "This is the only race worth running. I've run hard right to the finish, believed all the way. All that's left now is the shouting—God's applause!" (II Timothy 4:7, 8 MSG) What would the world have been like if Paul had not dreamed? What a great loss to the Church if we did not have the letters which were born of his dream?

Don't give up your dream! This is the race worth running! Run hard right to the finish, believing all the way!

MaryMartha
(All rights reserved)

A related post: I Have a Dream

Scripture quotations are taken from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. United States of America. All rights reserved. Scripture marked MSG is taken from The Message. Copyright © 2003 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

Email: mrymrtha@gmail.com

Goodbye to a Person You Once Knew

Years ago I was deeply affected by Eda LeShan’s account of losing a large amount of weight. (Winning the Losing Battle, 1979) As is true with many people, she found the root of this problem in attitudes and ideas she had brought with her from childhood. She finally told the self she had been for almost all her life ("Fat Eda"), “You suffered so much pain and you tried so hard; it has been such a struggle—as far back as memory—the hunger, the desperate efforts at control, the torment of self-consciousness and self-loathing . . . the shame and frustration and disappointment. Thank you, dear friend, for caring so much and finally letting me go. I'll never, ever forget you." And although she was justifiably proud of her achievement, she very literally mourned the loss of someone she once knew.

The Apostle Paul urges us, “Let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.” (Romans 12:2) Sometimes changing the way you think means leaving behind someone you have known for a long time—an earlier self. The words of a song come to mind: “I’ve grown accustomed to [your] face.” That person may not have been “bad” at all; there was nothing really wrong with LeShan’s inner self except that she was still just that heartsick little nine-year old girl. Finding that you no longer want to be the person you are accustomed to being can be disheartening until you begin truly to love the new person that is developing.

Erik Kolbell, a psychotherapist and former minister at New York's Riverside Church, has written a fine book, The God of Second Chances. In it, he mentions his admiration for women who have found their way out of abusive relationships. They underwent a major change in their thinking, refusing to tolerate any longer the degradation being heaped on them. They came to understand that they did not have to remain burdened by the pieces of their past or their personality that unwittingly capitulated to abuse. Although their new optimism and self-esteem is cherished, they are not likely to ignore the fact that it was won by a certain kind of “dying,” giving up something of themselves. However unhealthy that earlier self was, it can be painful to say goodbye forever.

The alcoholic, the approval addict, the “control freak,” the compulsive eater or liar or shopper face the same loss—part of the person they once knew has to be left behind. Be gentle with the individual who is constructing a new life pattern. (Even if, or maybe especially if, that person is you!) It is not as easy as just making a New Years’ resolution. Often it is not even part of the decision to receive Jesus Christ as Savior. It may be a part of one’s spiritual growth or it may be a practical, personal determination. In any event, respect the enormous sacrifice of self that he/she (or you) have made to be transformed into a new person.

MaryMartha
(All rights reserved)

Scripture quotation taken from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. United States of America. All rights reserved.

Email: mrymrtha@gmail.com

Responsibility for the Life You Have

“The first step toward having the life you want is taking responsibility for the life you have now.”

Our society has developed a lot of “victims.” Anyone who looks hard enough can find logical reasons for being who and what they are: poor parenting, a traumatic incident, mental illness, disability, situations of abuse, the list goes on and on. I do not want to minimize how these conditions affect the lives of those who experience them; these are not small matters. It takes great courage and perhaps even obstinacy to overcome the tremendous odds against a happy and productive life. That is just my point. Rather than accepting the role of victim, some people have found the necessary courage and determination within themselves to rise above their difficult circumstances.

In recent months, I have read the sad but inspiring true accounts of such individuals: poor parenting (Blue Genes: A Memoir of Loss and Survival), trauma (Amish Grace), mental illness (Izzy & Lenore: Two Dogs, an Unexpected Journey, and Me), disability (Against Medical Advice), abuse (Leaving the Saints), financial ruin and homelessness (Breakfast at Sally’s). These stories show me that it is difficult, but not impossible, to take charge of your life instead of succumbing to self-justification, complaints about the unfairness of life, and accusations against those who have done you wrong.

Many speakers and writers have likened life to a game of cards, where one of the rules is that you have to play the hand you are dealt. In some games, you may be able to draw some other cards, trade a few, or capture someone else’s. Only a poor sport would throw his/her cards down and say, “I don’t like my hand; I’m not going to play.” In one respect, the game analogy for life does hold true: Nobody has control over where he/she starts in life, that is, the circumstances into which one is born and the early events and influences. Nobody has control over later tragedy that can alter life in an instant. He/she must play the hand they have been dealt.

Different from a game is the opportunity life gives to make clear-cut choices. As you gain independence from childhood or from the numbness of trauma, you have a greater degree of self-determination. You can, in fact, say, “I don’t like the hand I’ve been given but I can’t change that. I don’t like what I’ve done with my hand. I’m starting over.”

That choice is not easy, because the difficult circumstances that gave life its rough patch are still there. But having made that choice, begin looking around for help. Ask God for courage and insight. Learn how other people rebuilt their lives. Consider whether professional counsel might benefit you. See if journaling contributes to your progress or whether you can talk with a supportive friend.

Don’t be in a hurry! If you spent years making the life you now have, it may take awhile to build the life you want. But it is there for you!

MaryMartha
(All rights reserved)

Email: mrymrtha@gmail.com

Gate of the Year

A hundred years ago, a lecturer at the London School of Economics had a collection of poems published in a volume called “The Desert.” Although Minnie Louise Haskins was not well-known as a poet, one of the poems entitled “God Knows” gained public attention and acclaim when Queen Mother Elizabeth handed a copy to her husband, King George VI, and he quoted from it (the first two stanzas as printed below) in his 1939 Christmas broadcast to the British Empire.

This was in the early days of the Second World War, and at the time no one was certain Britain could win their engagement in it. The poem, which we know as “The Gate of the Year,” remained a source of comfort to the Queen for the rest of her life, and she had its words engraved on brass plaques at the gates of Windsor Castle’s Memorial Chapel where the King was interred. Subsequently, the words were read at her own state funeral and she also was buried at the chapel after her death in 2002.

I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year,
'Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown.'

And he replied, 'Go into the darkness and put your hand into the hand of God.
That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way!'

So I went forth and finding the Hand of God trod gladly into the night.
He led me towards the hills and the breaking of day in the lone east.

So heart be still! What need our human life to know if God hath comprehension?
In all the dizzy strife of things both high and low, God hideth his intention.

God knows. His will is best. The stretch of years which wind ahead,
So dim to our imperfect vision, are clear to God.

Our fears are premature. In Him all time hath full provision.
Then rest; until God moves to lift the veil from our impatient eyes,

When, as the sweeter features of life's stern face we hail,
Fair beyond all surmise, God's thought around His creatures our minds shall fill.

We are at the beginning of a new year, a gateway to some uncertainties as we face our country’s economic crisis, new leadership at the national level, environmental challenges, war, humanitarian extremities, and political, cultural and spiritual unrest. What are we to do? Are we at the mercy of the overwhelming tide of trouble?

No, put your hand into the hand of God. That is better than a light to see what is ahead, for just seeing it does not necessarily mean the ability to cope with it all alone. Seeing what is ahead could rob us of joys as well; who would want to trade mere knowledge for the thrill of an unexpected gift, the pleasure of a new friendship, or the satisfaction of a hard-earned accomplishment? He sees the path, and we can trust Him.

Put your hand into the hand of God. That is safer than a known way, for although a path may feel familiar, there may be new, unseen dangers for which we cannot possibly prepare in advance—figuratively equivalent to an unmarked bridge out, a ten-car pileup in a blinding snowstorm, or a gunman waiting to assault. Walking only familiar paths might make us feel safe, but it would also mean no exciting challenges, no hope or anticipation, no growth. He knows the path, and we can trust Him.


MaryMartha
(All rights reserved)

Email: mrymrtha@gmail.com

Two Brave Queens: Vashti and Esther

Almost every Sunday School child knows the story of Queen Esther, and how she bravely faced King Ahasureus (Xerxes, reigning from 486-465 B.C.) in order to spare the lives of her people, the Jews. When we’re young, we’re not told the whole story, really, because of some of its “adult content”!

In the third year of Ahasureus’s reign, he gave a sumptuous banquet for his military officers and the nobles and princes of the 127 provinces he ruled. For six months, he displayed the opulent wealth of his empire and his personal splendor. When that was over, he gave another banquet for all the people (men), great and small, in the courtyard of the palace. The garden was decorated extravagantly, with gold and silver couches arranged on a mosaic pavement of costly stones. Drinks were served in golden goblets, and the royal wine flowed freely, for the King had instructed his palace staff to serve each man as much as he wanted. And this feasting and drinking went on for a week!

Meanwhile, in the palace, Queen Vashti, the reigning queen, was hostess at a banquet for all the women. I am intrigued by Vashti’s story, although we are given the barest of details. We don’t know what the women drank—Kool-Aid maybe? I think they were not drinking a great deal of wine, because Vashti still had her wits about her, completely, as we shall see. On the seventh day, the King, in high spirits because of the wine, (he was just plain drunk!) sent seven of his attendants to call Queen Vashti. She must come to the King’s feast, wearing her royal crown which would signal to all who she was—and to whom she belonged. He wanted the nobles and all the other men to gaze on her beauty because she was a very lovely woman. Imagine! Several hundred drunken men ogling one beautiful woman—and who knows what other lascivious behavior would have ensued.

But Vashti refused! The King was furious. He consulted with his accustomed counselors who knew all the laws and customs. “What should be done to Queen Vashti?” he demanded. What penalty does the law provide for a queen who dares to refuse the King’s orders?”

One of the wise men answered, "It's not only the king Queen Vashti has insulted, it's all of us, leaders and people alike in every last one of King Xerxes' provinces. The word's going to get out: 'Did you hear the latest about Queen Vashti? King Xerxes ordered her to be brought before him and she wouldn't do it!' When the women hear it, they'll start treating their husbands with contempt. The day the wives of the Persian and Mede officials get wind of the queen's insolence, they'll be out of control. Is that what we want, a country of angry women who don't know their place?

"So, if the king agrees, let him pronounce a royal ruling and have it recorded in the laws of the Persians and Medes so that it cannot be revoked, that Vashti is permanently banned from King Xerxes' presence. And then let the king give her royal position to a woman who knows her place. When the king's ruling becomes public knowledge throughout the kingdom, extensive as it is, every woman, regardless of her social position, will show proper respect to her husband.’ The king and the princes liked this. The king did what [the counselor] proposed. He sent bulletins to every part of the kingdom, to each province in its own script, to each people in their own language: ‘Every man is master of his own house; whatever he says, goes.’ " (Esther 1:16-22)

After the King had calmed down a bit, he began to have second thoughts about the beautiful Vashti and what he had ordered. Since the ruling could not be rescinded, the King’s young attendants suggested that a search be conducted throughout the kingdom to bring every beautiful young virgin to the royal harem. There they would all be given twelve months of beauty treatments, and after that, the young woman who most pleased the King would be made queen, replacing Vashti. Each young woman in turn was to spend one night with the King, thus becoming a “secondary wife” who could not marry any other man. She must live as a recluse unless the King specifically sent for her again. And that is how Esther became the queen, for she had a lovely figure and beautiful face, which naturally pleased the lustful king.

Read the whole story of Queen Esther again; she was indeed very brave. She said, “I will,” and risked her life. I will go in to the King although he hasn’t sent for me. I will expose the wicked man who has plotted against my people. I will stand up for my Uncle Mordecai who has taken me as his own daughter. I will find a way to save my people. “And if I perish, I perish.” But Vashti too was enormously courageous. She said, ”I will not,” and lost her throne. We never hear of her in Scripture again.

Probably Vashti was not a believer in the God of Israel, but she was a woman who had the moral strength to tell her evil husband “no.” In those days, women—even queens— did not tell their husbands what they would or would not do, especially not with a whole empire of subjugated women watching. But Vashti did not let fear prevent her from doing right. And for that, I have to admire her.

MaryMartha
(All rights reserved)

Scripture taken from THE MESSAGE. Copyright © 2003 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

Email: mrymrtha@gmail.com

The Courage to Grieve

One of my blogging friends wrote something a couple of weeks ago that I have been pondering ever since. She used the words, “the courage to grieve,” and I have not been able to escape their personal implication. I have had some significant losses in my lifetime: a marriage, my parents, a brother, a grandbaby, a husband, some dreams. I think I have grieved appropriately in each case—differently, of course, but even today in ways that are still suited to the loss.

What I have not known until recent months is that there are some “deaths” I have not even recognized, let alone suitably grieved. Doing so takes courage, because I have to admit that parts of me were allowed to “die” when I was very young. That is no one’s fault in particular, certainly not my parents’ since the only way they knew to raise me was the way they had been raised. That was fairly uncomplicated: you fed and clothed the children and kept a roof over their heads, you bandaged them if they were bleeding, you saw to it that they learned to work and to read, and you took them with you to Sunday School and worship.

I am very grateful for all I was given; it is no small thing to have raised a big family during the Depression and war years. Given their economic situation, education, and religious culture, my parents certainly provided us with every advantage they knew how to supply. William Hodding Carter, Jr., a prominent journalist in the twentieth century, said, “There are only two lasting bequests we can hope to give our children. One of these is roots; the other, wings.” (Someone has rephrased it a bit to make it memorable as a rhyme: You can give your children but two things, one is roots and the other wings.) My parents gave us impressively strong roots. I felt safe and provided for; we were probably poor, but I didn’t know that! I readily absorbed our cultural and religious values. I learned early to take a lot of responsibility.

While they gave us sturdy roots, they didn’t know anything about giving your children “wings.” I absolutely believe that I was loved, but I never felt that I was valued. I was obedient, smart, and creative, but my mother never said, “I am proud of you.” Photos show a sweet little girl with dark eyes and long curls, but my father never told me, “Honey, you are so pretty.” They did not encourage me to find out how to do what I really love doing. They didn’t help me learn how to make good decisions—and live with the results. They did not give me the freedom to make mistakes or teach me to enjoy my successes.

You must not think this is an indictment against my parents. They did not nurture me well because they did not know how. No one had built self-confidence in them. No one had appreciated and guided them. No one had encouraged them to discover their gifts. No one had helped them find a sense of purpose and a passion for life. I have hesitated a long time to even write these things about them, but I am doing so because there may be some of my readers who will think, “Yes, I know what she’s talking about. I lost something back there too. I am grieving the loss of— “ Maybe innocence. Maybe faith or self-confidence, security or privacy. Maybe enough to eat. Maybe a dozen things. Or only one that really, really matters.

It is not dishonoring to those who brought us up to look honestly at the job they did. Evaluating it does not mean forgetting what we hold precious, but may mean taking a more clear-eyed view. We can be truly thankful (or not) for our heritage, but that does not eliminate the “holes” from those early years—and nearly everybody has them. Few people had a perfect childhood and youth, and so there are many of us who have empty places inside that never were filled up sufficiently. We may try to ignore these places, or scold ourselves for being silly enough to re-visit the distant past. “Those things don’t matter now,” we tell ourselves.

But they do matter. That is one of the reasons why some of us find ourselves so conflicted about who we are presently. We did not know who we were back then. Grieving for something that is missing—either lost or never was—is a way of acknowledging that the long-ago nurture was something valuable and precious to us. That’s why it takes courage to grieve; it says that we are quite vulnerable and not ashamed to admit it. Grieving for these losses in an appropriate way has an amazing power to heal.

So what would be appropriate grieving? Whatever is appropriate for other kinds of losses. Talk to someone. Cry if it makes you feel better. Pound on something (but not people). Keep a journal or write a letter. Read. Rest. Exercise. Sit in the sun. Treat yourself kindly. After awhile my process of grieving has yielded new understanding and new growth toward wholeness. If you need to grieve some early losses, so will yours.

MaryMartha
(All rights reserved)

My thanks to Kimberly George who writes an inter-generational dialogue with another member of the Evangelical and Ecumenical Women’s Caucus, an international organization of women and men who believe that the Bible supports the equality of the sexes. The particular post I refer to is located at: http://eewc.com/72-27/2008/10/15/remembering-grieving-and-the-pursuit-of-wholeness/

Email: mrymrtha@gmail.com

What Three Young Men Learned about Freedom

Daniel and three other young men, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, were among the Hebrew people who were deported from their homeland around 605 B.C. We remember Daniel by his given name, but we know the others best by their Babylonian names: Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego. A number of young Jewish men, including even nobles and royal descendants, were selected for a special program of preparation to serve in King Nebuchadnezzar’s palace. All were healthy, good-looking, and intelligent. Daniel and his companions, probably all mere teenagers, decided from the beginning that they would remain faithful to their God even though they were captives. Eventually, they were above all the others in their physical fitness, their knowledge of the culture, and their wisdom and understanding. After Daniel was enabled by the Lord to interpret a dream for the king, the four young were appointed to high positions in the realm.

King Nebuchadnezzar was a man of monstrous ego. He had a golden image erected, ninety feet tall, and ordered “everybody who was anybody” to come to its dedication. When all were gathered, a herald announced, “As soon as you hear the musical instruments playing, you must bow down and worship the image that the King has set up. Anyone who does not kneel and worship will be thrown into a blazing fiery furnace."

The band began to play and all the people bowed down—almost all the people. Daniel’s three young friends did not. (Apparently Daniel was elsewhere in the province when this occurred.) Some Babylonian fortunetellers stepped up—perhaps those who had not been able to understand the King’s dream—and reported to the King that three young Jews, the very men he had placed in high positions,were ignoring his command. The King flew into a rage and ordered them to be brought to him. “If you do not obey,” he warned them, “you will be immediately thrown into the roaring furnace. Then who is the god who can rescue you?”

The group answered, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God whom we serve is able to save us. He will rescue us from your power, Your Majesty. But even if he doesn’t, we want to make it clear to you, Your Majesty, that we will never serve your gods or worship the gold statue you have set up.” (Daniel 3:16-18 *) This made the king so angry that he had the furnace heated seven times hotter than usual. He ordered some of his stoutest soldiers to tie up the young men, turbans and all, and throw them into the furnace. The soldiers themselves died from the intense heat, and the three young men, securely tied, fell down into the flames.

Not the end of the story! To his amazement, the King saw not three but four men, loose and walking about in the fire. “And the form of the fourth,” he said “is like the Son of God!” When the young men were pulled out of the furnace, their hair was not singed, their clothes were not scorched, and there was not even the smell of smoke upon them. They were completely free, and were given positions of even greater importance!

But the freedom of these three young men did not actually start when they were released. It began earlier when they declared, “Our God is able . . . He will . . . And even if He doesn’t . . .” It takes some faith to say that God is able to rescue us from a desperate situation. It takes greater faith to declare that we believe He will. It takes abandonment to faith to say, “But even if He doesn’t, I will go on trusting and obeying Him.”

Peace and freedom come when we begin to trust God with our lives. Our freedom and confidence increase as we develop a “history” with Him, and we have experienced His reliability. Our freedom is unassailable when we are able to declare, “If He doesn’t answer the way I would like or even if it seems He doesn’t answer at all, He knows best, and I refuse to stop trusting Him!” I am reminded of our childish retort when someone tried to lord it over us, “You’re not the boss of me!” Although we might not say exactly that, our determination must equally clear-cut. “You’re not big enough to make me stop loving and serving God!” That is a powerful freedom!

What if God had not intervened on behalf of the three young men? What if we ourselves face threats and persecution and even death? Well, the Apostle Paul says we’re better off out of our bodies and in God’s presence. That defines for us the ultimate freedom.

MaryMartha
(All rights reserved

*Read the whole story in the Book of Daniel, chapters 1-3. It will be worth your time!

Scripture quotation is taken from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. United States of America. All rights reserved.

Email: mrymrtha@gmail.com

Don't Be Surprised

There are many surprises in the Christian life, for God is infinitely creative in His relationship with us! There are some things, however, that take us by surprise that really shouldn’t if we are careful readers of the Word.

— Don’t be surprised on the insistence that one must be “born again.” A co-worker of mine has a new baby daughter. He is not at all reluctant to tell us that Bridget was born yesterday morning because that’s how she arrived here to participate in human life—she was born. Jesus tried to explain to Nicodemus, a respected Jewish teacher, that if he wanted to participate in the Kingdom of God, he needed to be born a second time. Both kingdoms, the earthly one and the heavenly one, are entered by birth. Jesus told him, “Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life. So don’t be surprised when I say, ‘You must be born again.’ “ (John 3:6, 7 NLT)

We were meant for the heavenly Kingdom; that was God’s plan all along, so don’t be surprised! Believing that to be true is as natural an expectation as telling an airliner sitting on the runway, “Don’t be surprised that I am expecting you to take off and fly. You were made to fly!”

— Don’t be surprised that Jesus is both Savior and Judge. The Jewish rulers were in an uproar because the Lord had healed a crippled man on the Sabbath. He took this opportunity to declare very openly His connection to the Father. He explained that in “an hour that is coming—and now is—” those who are dead in their sins receive life by hearing (believing) Him. He could give life because He was the Son of God; He was one with God. He also claimed that authority to judge had been given to Him. He could judge because he was the Son of Man; He was one of us. “Don’t be so surprised! Indeed, the time is coming when all the dead in their graves will hear the voice of God’s Son, and they will rise again. Those who have done good will rise to experience eternal life, and those who have continued in evil will rise to experience judgment.” (John 5:25-29 NLT)

— Don’t be surprised at God’s interventions. One afternoon Peter and John went up to the temple to the three o’clock prayer meeting. They were stopped by a crippled beggar who wanted alms, and the disciples gave Him what they had—the life of Jesus Christ! The man got up and went into the temple with them, leaping and praising God. When all the people saw the man whom they knew had been lame from his birth, they were amazed. Peter, seeing that he now had an audience, addressed the crowd. “People of Israel,” he said, “what is so surprising about this? And why stare at us as though we had made this man walk by our own power or godliness? For it is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—the God of all our ancestors—who has brought glory to his servant Jesus by doing this.” (Acts 3:12, 13 NLT)

— Don’t be surprised at your difficulties. “Dear friends, don’t be surprised at the fiery trials you are going through, as if something strange were happening to you. Instead, be very glad—for these trials make you partners with Christ in his suffering, so that you will have the wonderful joy of seeing his glory when it is revealed to all the world.” (I Peter 4:12, 13) Sometimes it is very difficult to wait for the glory, whether at the end of the particular trial or the end of life itself. “Hold on, my child, joy comes in the morning; weeping only lasts for the night. Hold on, my child, joy comes in the morning; the darkest hour means dawn is just in sight.” (Reader, do you know the author?)

— Don’t be surprised when not everyone accepts you. I often hear people lament the restraint or ridicule that Christians face in their workplaces, schools, or communities. Such mild opposition does not even merit the label “persecution” when every day Christians in some parts of the world are losing their lives for the faith. As the writer to the Hebrews cautioned, “In this all-out match against sin, others have suffered far worse than you, to say nothing of what Jesus went through—all that bloodshed! So don't feel sorry for yourselves.” (Hebrews 12:4 MSG) Some Christians are angry at those who oppose them, even murderous in their hearts, but “we must not be like Cain, who joined the Evil One and then killed his brother. And why did he kill him? Because he was deep in the practice of evil, while the acts of his brother were righteous. So don't be surprised, friends, when the world hates you. This has been going on a long time.” (I John 3:12, 13 MSG)

So . . . Don’t be too surprised. You’ve been warned!

MaryMartha
(All rights reserved)

Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. United States of America. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked MSG are taken from The Message. Copyright © 2003 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

Email: mrymrtha@gmail.com

Sarah and Her Daughters

Sarah is another woman of the Bible in whom I have a great interest. She is the prototype for women of faith, standing almost alone in the Scripture’s “Hall of Faith” (chapter 11 of Hebrews). She is a held up as stellar example of another characteristic as well: submission. The Apostle Peter writes that the holy women of the past put their hope in God and were submissive to their husbands, “like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her master. You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear.” (I Peter 3:6 NIV, emphasis mine)

Sarah, in her submission to her husband, was reflecting the culture surrounding her, both religious and secular: Women, even several wives, were part of a man’s possessions. Sarah was submissive to the point of risking her own integrity, cooperating twice with her husband’s deceit in calling her his “sister” (technically, his half-sister, so a half-truth) rather than acknowledging that she was his wife. There is no record of her objections. She was submissive because she was owned by him.

Even given these facts, I cannot imagine that Sarah sounded very submissive when she learned that Abraham was taking Isaac, the long-awaited promised son, off to Mt. Moriah to sacrifice him. Perhaps something like this:

“You’re going to do what? Are you out of your mind?”

“Not Isaac! Ishmael maybe. But not my baby!”

“Well, you’re not taking him. It’ll be over my dead body!”

And finally, “You will not be coming into my tent again for the rest of your life!”

Abraham was not to be deterred. He insisted. Loudly.

I can imagine that at last, weary with weeping and pleading, Sarah gave in. What else could she do? She couldn’t very well bite and claw until she got her way. And what if her husband had indeed heard from God? She did not want to rebel against the Almighty. She was more afraid of offending God than she was of her husband’s actions. That is why the Scripture says, “You are her daughters when you do what is right without fear of what your husbands might do. (1 Peter 3:6 NLT, emphasis mine). The MaryMartha version is “Do what is right, regardless.”

Things may not have gone smoothly for Abraham when he returned home either, even though Isaac came back safely with him. There must have been some pretty vigorous discussion! Still, most couples go through times of disagreement and have to negotiate a solution, even sometimes with a mediator. Unfortunately, some women that you and I know, and many that we do not, are in terrible, nonnegotiable circumstances. What can they do?

I personally believe there are some absolutes:

(1) Submission is not an imperative for women only. The Apostle Paul is often quoted on the subject, but before he addresses husbands and wives separately, he says to all his readers, “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” (Ephesians 5:21 NLT) Not even learned Bible scholars agree on how far wifely submission should go when there is not the mutual submission clearly taught by the Scripture. It would be very difficult for those outside the situation to determine exactly what the answer is for someone else. We are Sarah’s daughters. We will “do what is right without giving way to fear.”

(2) The key feature of submission, as I understand it, is humility. One contemporary writer cautioned that an outwardly meek and dutiful wife could nonetheless be harboring a bitter and rebellious spirit. While that is true, I offer the counter suggestion that an inwardly gentle and submissive wife might very well speak unequivocal words and take decisive action. We are Sarah’s daughters. We will “do what is right without giving way to fear.”

(3) God’s original intention for marriage was companionship. All the while Adam was naming the animals, he must have seen that they were in pairs, yet he himself had no one. God saw this, and He said, “It's not good for the Man to be alone; I'll make him a helper, a companion." (Genesis 2:18 The Message) Taking one of Adam’s ribs, He made woman and presented her to the Man. Adam saw immediately, “This beautiful creature is like me! But different too. What a great idea!” And this, the Scripture explains, is why “a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.” God really did have a great plan! It is we who have managed to make, in many cases, a mockery of His intention with our marriage hierarchies of master-servant or parent-child or advisor-learner or controller-subordinate. We are Sarah’s daughters. We will “do what is right without giving way to fear.”

(4) We love and serve the God of hope. He is absolutely aware of the situation; He is in it with the sufferers. He will certainly make a way, although it is not the same for everyone. Most women will need wise counsel; some will need legal advice or intervention by the law; some will need a safe place for awhile. God will give hope to some in their situation; He will give hope to others out of theirs. But we are Sarah’s daughters, and we will do what is right without giving way to fear.”

MaryMartha
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Scripture quotation marked NIV is taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. United States of America. All rights reserved. Scripture taken from The Message. Copyright © 2003 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

Email: mrymrtha@gmail.com