We are Healed

"But he was pierced for our transgressions,
    he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
    and by his wounds we are healed."  Isaiah 53:5

Today we remember that before Sunday was Friday.  Before Jesus rose victoriously from the grave, He paid the debt for our sin.  He took our punishment, took our place.  He lived a perfect spotless life.  He was our pure Passover lamb.  He provided us with robes of righteousness where before stood  filthy rags. He provided us a path to salvation and everlasting life through his sacrifice. 

Hope replaced dispair

Faith replaced fear

Life replaced death

Heaven became home.

This day is full of solemn hope.  Perhaps it would be appropriate to take a moment to reflect with gratitude and a humble heart on the incredible victory brought forth on this day so many years ago.

All good things

All good things
Do not really end as one might say
But rather find their true beginning.

All good things
Like eternal spring
Do not fade.

They may lay dormant for a time
They may appear lost or hidden
Past human sight

But when the drops of living water fall to fertile soil the seeds of all good things find their everlasting bloom

In that far off country
Of endless day
All good things find their way like tiny rivers of light into the eternal ocean of purpose.

That all might hear. And in hearing believe and in believing mold their lives after the source of goodness. That all might become like Him by wearing His robe of righteousness. And somehow through grace and mercy not yet fully understood that they...that we might go home to the place He has prepared for us. And that in that glorious day that all things might be described as in their beginning: good.

-Kristen

If only the Mayans were right

If only the Mayans were right.

I'm not not talking about their practices or beliefs or general interpretations on life of course.

But rather about tomorrow. How amazing would it be if the world really did end tomorrow?

If Friday, December 21 was the end of the world that would mean that on Sabbath, December 22, I could see my Grandparents again.   It would mean that, should Christmas be celebrated in heaven, this December 25 we could sing O Holy Night with the angel choirs.

It would mean that the new year would bring a truly new life without the need for resolutions.

So while I'm pretty clear that our sun will rise on December 22, I can't help but feel a bit of disappointment with that statement.  

The wait continues for that day which C.S. Lewis describes in allegory in the last page of the Last Battle,  "But for them it was only the beginning of the real story.  All their life in this world and all their adventures in Narnia had only been the cover and title page: now at least they were beginning Chapter One of the Great Story, which no one on earth has read: which goes on forever: in which every chapter is better than the one before."

But if we wait it must be for good reason.  Peter reminds us in the text below:

"But the Lord is now slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness.  He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance."
2 Peter 3:9

So until the day dawns and the morning star finally rises in our hearts, may we be faithful and may we continue to learn how to love God and one another.

The Greatest Risk of All

I'm scheduled to have Lasik surgery this week.  It's something I've thought about for years now and the pieces have finally come together for it to happen.

The thing is, even though I feel pretty confident in a positive outcome, there are risks involved.  Scenarios have been playing out in my mind over the last few days, what ifs, thoughts I probably shouldn't be dwelling on.

The reality is that however small the risk, there are still risks involved in any surgery. In this case the likelihood of a positive outcome significantly outweighs the very slight possibility of a problem.

But yet, even knowing this, the fear of the unlikely comes close to contriving me to cancel this surgery despite all the very good reasons I have to go forward.

Risks are hard.

And then I start to think about another risk that was taken over 2000 years ago.  Perhaps even before our world came into existence.

From the far reaches of the universe, in a city yet unknown to mortals, surrounded by thousands of stars, another risk was considered.

Are the people of Earth worth saving?  And at what cost?

For before there was a Christmas birth.  Before there were miracles.  Before the blind saw and the lepers were healed.  Before Gethsemane, and before the Glorious Resurrection, there was a choice.

Even though the risk was small, and the reward was great, there was still a risk.  What if clothed in human flesh, Jesus had sinned just once?  A horrible unlikely thought.  But a risk.

I don't think we can fully realize the magnitude of this Divine decision.

What if God considered, as I have in my tiny choice, is it worth it?  Should I cancel this procedure all together and be happy with what I already have?

But He didn't.  He choose to come.  And He proved to be Perfection itself, living life on Earth without blemish.  Never wavering, never taking His eyes off His Father and the glory set before Him.

No wonder he is King of Kings and Lord of Lords; our Conqueror, our Savior, and our Friend.

How grateful I am that we were worth the risk and that because of His eternal victory, we too can be more than conquerors through Him who loved us.

The Gauntlet

Do you ever feel like you are running through a gauntlet?  An invisible one of course, without hot coals or obvious weapons.

Rather a gauntlet of busyness and expectations; your own expectations and those of people who influence you.

One of decisions. Small every day choices like if you should have a soda with lunch and big decisions like whether or not you refinance your house or go back to school.

The question is when do you stop running?

Is it at the the end of the work day?  Or maybe Friday evening as you close out the work week?  Do you slow down when the dishes are finally done and your favorite show, or perhaps any semi interesting program, beckons from the T.V.?

Is life a gauntlet?

I don't have an answer for this question.  But I suspect the answer is somewhere between yes and no.

We currently live in a fallen world.  Paul says in 2 Timothy 4:7,  " I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race,  I have kept the faith."

This suggests that there may be days that feel like a struggle to get through.  And that's okay.  We have to keep living in faith.

But there is another side.  Jesus states in John 10:10.  "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full."

In Isaiah 30:15 we find the Lord saying, "In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength."

Also in Matthew 11:28, Jesus says, "Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."

Maybe a-take-away from this question is that some days, weeks and, sometimes months are harder than others.  But even when getting out of bed in the morning feels like a step of faith, God is present.  And there are so many moments of goodness even in an imperfect day.  Today for example I enjoyed a quick walk in the crisp air and saw a little cardinal chirping in a tree beside the path.  That was a a breath of joy.

And in general, I don't think life was meant to be full speed ahead all the time.  So if we are feeling overworked, stressed, or overwhelmed, perhaps it is time to seek rest in the shade of the Almighty God.

We were created after all for relationship, with God, with each other, with animals, and trees, and sunny days.

So as we say goodbye to yet another month in 2012, may the beginning of the next bring with it peace and rest, and may we continue to learn how to live a life worthy of the incredible calling we have received.

Book Review- Marta's Legacy

I recently read a mini series by Francine Rivers called Marta's Legacy.  (Her Mother's Hope and Her Daughter's Dream.)

I am a somewhat picky reader.  I know the themes I like, and there are many books that hold no interest for me.  But this was an excellent series.

It explores the relationships between mothers and daughters over 4+ generations, and passes the story telling baton between the women.  Marta is the main character, and she grows up in pre-war Switzerland.   She has a terrible relationship with her father and it is her mother who encourages her to "fly" and find her dreams.  However, she is traumatized by a family tragedy and ends up passing on well intentioned but less than perfect coping and relational skills to her daughter who continues the trend.

All the women in this story love God and strive to do what is right, but until Marta's grand granddaughter Dawn pulls some of the pieces back together, they struggle with misunderstandings and a way to express their love.

The trip through history and changing culture is interesting as is Marta's legacy of the importance of education, hard work, and trusting in God.

But it's the resolution of their differences, the crumbing of long build walls, the restoration of loving relationships that makes this book especially beautiful.   And the ability they find to look forward with peace and hope, knowing that their future is secure in Christ.

It's a great series and I recommend the read.

Restoration

A few weekends ago I was thick in the middle of cooking.  Onions sizzling on the stove.  Noodles draining in the sink and red pepper waiting to be chopped.   If I had only kept the chopping action on the cutting board, things would have continued smoothly.  But alas, I dared to slice the top of the red pepper against my thumb pressing a bit too hard and thus producing a long gash of blood, an unwelcome addition to the scene!

I quickly grabbed a towel to blot the cut and a new knife, determined to get the red pepper into the frying pan with the onions and the noodles rinsed.

Then I applied basic first aid to my injured thumb.

After spending much of the weekend in a band aid, the cut on my thumb began the healing process.  The red disappearing.  The skin becoming smooth again.  Now there is just a tiny white mark as evidence that there was once a cut in my skin.

Restoration.

The healing of an injury.

Things returning to what they were.

We were born into a world with an injury so deep and persuasive that it's hard to fathom life without it.  Through Christ we can be healed from our mortal wound.  We can be set on the path of life.  And one day we can be restored.

We can catch glimpses and moments of that restoration now.  Jesus said,  "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full."  John 10:10.

But restoration in its full power; its far reaching effects; its time changing, age reversing, sin deleting, love winning triumph is still to come. We long for restoration to a world we cannot even dream of, but yet deeply desire.  The memory of Eden is still in our DNA.  The image of our Creator still stamped on every fiber of our being.   And we are not alone.

Paul reveals in Romans,  "The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed.  For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God."  Romans 8:19, 20.

Can you imagine the trees, the mountains, the birds, the lions together in each heartbeat crying out for freedom from their bondage?  Imagine their longings to be themselves what God made them to be.

The overwhelmingly good news is that restoration is coming.  We can live each day in freedom, joy and hope, knowing our future is secure as long as we belong to Christ.