Armor of God: Clothed with Dignity and Honor

Stand firm to the end. Cling to your hope. Walk by faith. Endure suffering. Live worthy of the calling. Pray continuously. Fight the battle.

We throw out these Christian adages to encourage one another in the midst of our spiritual warfare – and they’re all important. They all have their place. Before we ever step into battle, however, we need to understand our defensive armor and our offensive weapons. Satan’s fiery darts will take us out in no time if we aren’t prepared before we ever step on the battle ground.

Ephesians 6:14-19 details an entire list of garments required before we step into the battle. Many people compare this list to the pieces of armor worn by a Roman soldier. I don’t think this is accurate, however. Instead, the armor listed in Ephesians 6 correlates with the garments worn by the priest in the Old Testament. The Old Testament is always our best tool to help us understand the New Testament – not cultural surroundings, even first century Roman culture.

The primary correlation lies in a comparison of the duties of the priest with the offensive weapons in spiritual warfare. The priests were “to stand before Yahweh to serve Him, and to pronounce blessings in His name” (Deuteronomy 10:8). In other words, they stood before God to minister on behalf of the people as they burned the incense. Incense stood for the prayers of the people (Revelation 5:8, 8:3). Also, they stood to pronounce blessings – or to speak the Word of God – to the people. In the spiritual warfare passage of Ephesians 6, we have two very similar offensive weapons. They are “the sword of the Spirit, which is God’s word” and “Pray at all times in the Spirit with every prayer and request” (Ephesians 6:17-18).

I’ve created two handouts that go into much of the significance and symbolism of the priest’s garments, including what they can teach us about modern day spiritual warfare. I’m including them for you below. Even these, however, barely scratch the surface of all we can learn from the garments and duties of the high priest when engaging in spiritual warfare!

 

 

 

 

Let me give credit where credit is due. I didn’t first make the correlation between the armor and priests’ garments. I’ve based my research on this video by Mark Biltz; he covers it very generally. I built upon that general foundation to find specific, significant connections and relationships between the garments and the armor.

Make the Play: It's time to stop sitting on the sidelines

Softball season is in full swing. Yes, that pun was intentional. With four daughters who love to play, I’ve sat through a combined total of 26 seasons of softball games. I’ll probably sit through 37 more seasons unless one of them plays in college. In that case, I’ll have even more.

I didn’t know much about softball when my oldest started playing ten years ago. I played one season of t-ball when I was little and that was the extent of my career. My skills weren’t impressive and didn’t show signs of improvement. My knowledge was minimal as well. Seven innings, three bases, single, double, triple, and hit the ball with the bat when the pitcher throws it.

I know a lot more now. I know the batter shouldn’t drop their shoulder when they swing. If they do, they’ll have a pop fly that’s easy for the other team to catch. I know the pitcher should release the ball at their hip and follow through with their lower arm up to their chest. Release too early, the ball will be too low. Release too late, the ball will soar over the catcher’s head. Don’t follow through with the arm, the ball will fly to the right. Unless the pitcher is left handed in which case it will fly to the left. I know the outfield players are important for backing up throws from the catcher to 2nd or 3rd base when an opponent is trying to steal a base. Here’s an important one – the catcher, not the pitcher, has the most control over the game. If they’re good, they have a picture of the whole field in their mind during every pitch and they know exactly how they’ll respond to each scenario without a moment’s hesitation. They often set the attitude and pace of the game by their actions.

I could go on but my point isn’t to write a softball technique manual. It’s this…

My skills are still lousy on the softball field. I know the batting position but I can’t hit a line drive. A pop fly hit in my direction would probably land on the ground beside me. I’d break my ankle if I tried to slide into home.

I’ve sat in my portable, folding arm chair and watched from the sidelines for all those seasons. I’m usually the one with the score book on my lap.

I’ve sat… learning and learning… but never doing a thing with it. My head is jammed full of softball knowledge but I've never put it into use to make a play of my own.

Churches are full of people doing the same thing. They’ve sat and watched the sermon and worship team for years. They’re loyal, dedicated fans of the church game who give a loud cheer when a great play happens such as a new adult small group, youth mission trip, or adventurous VBS week. They’ve never tried to be part of a great play out on the field, though.

Their experience is a lot of understanding about what it means to be a follower of Christ but no actual game time. They’ve never developed or tested their gaming skills.

On the softball field, those skills are batting, running, catching, and throwing. It involves a comprehension of the whole game and how it all comes together in one play. Following Christ is really no different. The Christian’s gaming skills are prayer, Bible study, discipleship, and living as a witness. They also need a good understanding of the whole game and how it all came together in one play on the cross.

I’ve heard a lot of teaching on prayer but it didn’t become an intimate, active conversation with a loving Savior until I started doing it. I learned how to make the play on the field of prayer when I set aside time every day to talk to Him. That’s when things became real as the power we wield through prayer humbled me.

I sat through a lot of sermons on Bible passages but never remembered much later. I remembered the plays of the game, though, when I started opening the Bible and studying for myself. The Spirit prompted my memory with a verse appropriate to a difficult situation. The hard parts of His Word started to make sense rather than appear as a contradiction as the whole picture began coming together in my mind. I realized I could help another player on the team as they struggled in a certain area just as others have been there to help me.

I’ve read a lot of lists of do’s and don’ts for a good Christian lifestyle; lists created by men to control others. Prayer and Bible study naturally create a lifestyle of good plays without a list of rules. Loving your neighbor comes a lot more easily. Trusting in God’s provision starts to make a lot more sense. We understand the importance of a faithful marriage between one man and one woman as we learn how it all aligns with God’s design. Until we’re on the field and making the plays, however, the list of rules won’t make sense.

I’m not the MVP of this game; many better players are out on the field with me. Paul was a pretty good player and yet he wrote, “For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by God’s grace I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not ineffective” (1 Corinthians 15:9-10). The goal isn’t to be the star player on the team. The goal is to be a part of the team, to learn to make the plays, and bring honor and glory to the Coach.

Because then, when the game is over, we’ll be part of the huddle out on the field where He’ll tell us good job, we’ll put our hands together in the middle of the circle, and we’ll all yell His name as we rejoice in victory. We won’t still be sitting on the sidelines.

Take that Step: Healthier, stronger, and moving forward

Jimmy recently downloaded a fitness app on his phone. Among its many “smart” capabilities, it tracks the number of steps he takes each day. I guess we can add pedometer to the list of many gadgets now replaced by smartphones. The health and fitness app guided him through setting up a series of health goals, including how far he’d like to walk each day. He set the goal at 10,000 steps/day.

Health and fitness aren’t going to just happen in our lives. We won’t wake up some morning and find we’ve arrived at a certain weight, cholesterol level, or body mass index unless we take regular, active steps to make them reality.

We all know walking is a good, safe option to help us achieve our desired health and fitness goals. As we walk, we become stronger, healthier, and reach our destination.

I started thinking about these three outcomes that walking has on our lives after I posted last week’s article, Don’t Stand Still. The American church is familiar with a phenomenon we call pew sitters. They are people who come to church, sit in the pew for the sermon, and leave again with no real impact on their lives. Well, last week I classified another group of us – the standers. We’re involved in a few activities, have some Christian influence outside the church building, and try to live a fairly good life.

Maybe you read that article. Maybe you thought, “Isn’t that what we call the Christian walk? Isn’t that what we’re supposed to do?” Maybe you’re right.

But I think there’s more.

Think about that app Jimmy downloaded on his phone. After several weeks of use, yesterday he finally reached his goal of 10,000 steps in one day. It didn’t happen because he sat at his desk all day nor did it happen because he stood around talking. He reached that goal because he was up, moving, getting things done, and being active.

When we walk, we become healthier, stronger, and we move forward. That’s why I see a difference between those who are spiritually standing still and those who are spiritually walking. I see lots of us doing a lot of Christian things each day but we’re not becoming healthier, stronger, or moving forward.

Healthier

We all deal with stuff; you know, the baggage we carry around due to bad experiences in our past. We have those experiences because we live in a messed up world that does everything it can to fight God’s design.

God’s Word doesn’t lay out a twelve-step program for overcoming drug addiction. It doesn’t give us three steps to recovering from divorce. You can’t turn to a certain page and find out exactly how to deal with various forms of child abuse, depression, or negative self-image.

But, if we’re walking with God – rather than sitting or standing still – then we’re going to become mentally and spiritually healthier as we learn to let go of the baggage that weighs us down. We’re going to be in an active, growing relationship with the one who can bring health through prayer and an understanding of various Scriptures. We’re going to see truth in His Word come to life in a way we never would have believed possible.

Stronger

We’re all unsure; we all have doubts. We all look at the path that lies before us and feel inadequate to the job. Our weakness overwhelms us.

The Bible doesn’t give us a mathematical formula to incorporate faith into our life. It doesn’t promise trust will come to those who say a certain prayer. The Bible doesn’t give power to those who at most skim through its topics.

But, if we’re walking with God – rather than sitting or standing still – then we’re going to become mentally and spiritually stronger. We’ll see God work in our circumstances even in the midst of our hard times; our faith will grow as we realize His strength will be sufficient for us in future trials. We will face impossible situations with the recognition that our only option is to trust Him. It will make us almost sick to our stomachs as we empty the situation of our own ability and trust completely in Him. And yet, we’ll look back and know that is when the trust in our relationship grew stronger. We will face insurmountable odds; rather than become weak and overwhelmed, we will remember a Bible verse we studied and claim its power and authority for that moment. We will see the power of God work mightily in our lives to conquer and destroy that which would hold us back from all God desires.

Move Forward

We all want to stay where we are because everything is safe, secure, and familiar. We know what to expect and how everything works in our current location. It’s easy to stand still because it doesn’t require us to stretch ourselves or step out into the unknown.

But, if we’re walking with God – rather than sitting or standing still – then we’re going to move forward. We’re going to look back 5 or 10 years and realize we’re closer to God now than we were then. Our spiritual illnesses and weaknesses will be fewer and farther behind us than they once were. We’re going to look forward with excitement, trust, and faith at where God might lead us. We’ll look forward and see that God didn’t seem as far away as He once did.

Take that Step

God gave us everything we need to start a revolution of love… an overflow of hope… an explosion of faith. But we’re not going to see any of it until we change some things in our own lives. God gave us a message of faith, hope, and love with which to transform the world, starting with ourselves. We won’t have the privilege of seeing that message go anywhere until we stop standing still and start walking – to become healthier, stronger, and closer to Him who gave His life to deliver us.

Martyr's Blood: Finding the nerve to speak out

I’m in a mood.

You’ve been warned.

Someone hit a nerve and I’m going to have to go off on it a little bit.

First, though, let me tell you about my day yesterday. I said good-bye to my husband and teenagers as they left in the morning. I started the day with my two youngest – breakfast, dressed, school lessons. We talked about converting improper fractions into mixed numbers, keeping a steady tempo on the piano while practicing scales, and Marconi’s invention of the radio over a hundred years ago.

Later in the day I sat down to write this week’s section in our current study through the book of Hebrews. Oddly enough, it’s a section on hope. Ironic, but you’ll understand that more in a little bit. Also ironic, it’s an article most will never read for a myriad of reasons.

And oh yeah, I watched men saw the heads off other men. Yes, I watched it – only a few seconds but it was enough. Here’s the link; it’s a short clip in the midst of a Glenn Beck report. Heed the graphic warning he gives but watch it if you can.

It was a surreal moment as my kids played happily in the background, trees budded and flowers bloomed outside, and I sat in my comfortable chair with a cup of coffee. My pond outside my window rippled in the breeze while the ocean waves in the video washed the blood out to sea.

Shift Gears

The Grow Barefoot team has been praying about upcoming service projects. Our vision is to serve missionaries so they may better serve their people groups. However, that’s a broad vision; knowing how to carry it out is more complex. We’ve also always had a desire to motivate the American church to, um, well, get out of their pews and do something. Although for some, maybe it’s more accurate to say get yourself out of bed and into a pew. Sorry if that sounds harsh. I’ve learned to control my words most of the time but it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen today.

A GB team member sent me a follow-up link today. It was Matt Walsh’s article, “Here’s What You Can Do about the Persecution of Christians: Stop Being a Lazy Coward.” As always, Matt gets it and he’s not afraid to call it like it is. Read his article; it’s worth it. This was the scraping away of my last layer of protection to expose my raw nerve.

Matt gives three practical suggestions for how we can help the persecuted – pray, give, and get off your lazy backside and do something.

Pray
Matt writes, “We forget that prayer isn’t some kumbaya exercise in sending good vibes.”

It took a months-long study on prayer for me to finally start figuring this out. It took the discipline of starting each day alone on my knees for as long as it takes to get the job done, even knowing that sometimes tears will be involved. Sometimes yelling. Sometimes silence. Life-long church attendance didn’t teach me nor did my years in Christian school. Maybe someday I’ll get that study posted on here or available in a book but I remember three key points from it.

• We need to pray all the time.
• We need to pray for everyone.
• We need to pray for everything.

We thank God for the day and the food in front of us but have we thanked Him for the testimony of those men whose blood still mingles in the Mediterranean Sea?

We pray for the sick and those in the hospital but have we prayed for the souls of those separated from God who risk an eternity in hell?

We pray so we find comfort from the stresses of life but have we realized our stresses would be someone else’s abundance of blessing?

Can we get out of bed a few minutes earlier to kneel in His presence? Can we stay up a little longer at night? Can we humble ourselves before Him rather than try to throw out a few words after our head hits the fluffy pillow and before the peaceful breathing of sleep falls upon us?

Read more on prayer:
Dear Lord: A prayer for today
Prayer Shouldn’t add Stress!
Life Sucks: What are we going to do about it?
The Hand of God

Give
To quote Matt again, “We can also lend material support to organizations that are out there trying to help these people.”

Someone accused me of wanting to be Rambo after last week's article because I asked myself, “What would I have done if I had lived in Nazi Germany?” I laughed at the accusation. I was wondering if I would have been willing to open my home to protect the persecuted. Would I have helped move people to safe locations? I still don’t know the answer but I do know Rambo-type actions weren’t ones I considered. Likewise, Grow Barefoot doesn’t feel a call to enter Libya or Syria with guns blazing. That’s nowhere close to how we operate.

We do hope to partner with some groups on the ground if we can, though. This is a public forum so that’s all I’m going to say about that.

Do Something
This is where Matt hit me in the heart as he proclaimed the message I’ve been saying for years. “We can honor their courage and sacrifice by not being such lazy, selfish, apathetic cowards.”

Our road turns onto a major highway. Monday through Friday mornings, it’s a hard turn to make as traffic backs up with many people headed to work. It’s a hard turn on Friday evenings and Sunday evenings as lake traffic backs up the other direction. However, come Sunday morning as we head to church, we make the turn out onto the highway without a moment’s hesitation. I can look several miles in both directions; not a single car will be in sight. Sometimes I comment to my husband, "I wonder how many of us would make it to church if we had to walk ten miles to get there" or some other snarky observation.

I remember rural Haiti where people walked miles to go to church in a hot, crowded room lit only by a single bulb hanging from the ceiling. I remember the songs the people sang loud and powerful despite the fact they were completely off tune.

We gripe because the service starts too early, the thermostat is set a little high, and the praise team didn’t play our favorite song. And by the way, why is 9:00 or 10:00 too early on a Sunday but we can make it to work other mornings by 8:00 or even earlier?

My husband remembers northern Africa where a local man travels to twenty different areas every week so others can listen to the Word of God on his player. He does so despite high fuel prices but even more despite the risk of persecution. He’s already been kicked out of his tribe.

And we gripe because we moved closer to our job and church is too far away now. We complain because the pastor went a few minutes too long or talked about the meaning of too many Greek words.

I remember the countless stories we've heard through the years from missionary friends around the world. Everyone had stories of those who traveled far to hear the Word or find Christian friendship, those who labored endlessly to copy God's Word by hand so they could keep a copy, or those who lost all they had for the chance to know Jesus.

The Irony of Hope
Do you remember the beginning of this rant when I mentioned I was working on a Bible study when that video came across my desk? A Bible study many will never read?

Why do very few care to study His Word? “His divine power has given us everything required for life and godliness through the knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness” (2 Peter 1:3). God’s given us everything we need if we know Him. How do we know Him? Through His Word! Yet it’s too hard, or we’re too busy, or it doesn’t matter, or it’s boring.

And yet, I found myself writing about a message of hope found only in the Word of God when this horror presented itself before my eyes.

Ok, my rant is over

I don’t know exactly what I’m going to do to help our brothers and sisters who are suffering around the world. I don’t know exactly what I’m going to do when persecution hits our land, our towns, even our local streets. I do know that I’m going to keep praying, I’m going to give of my time and my resources as much as I can, and I’m going to continue trying to know Him and make Him known. I’m going to walk in faith that God is mighty to work through my meager efforts and that in the end, maybe He'll choose to make a difference through me.

Read more at:
ISIS and Christians: Why do we care?
Good and Evil: Who we are in a world of evil
What's the Point: Living Hope in a Violent World
Religious Extremism: Why it's a good thing

Love and Serve God: Learning to pray for our children

I guess I’m a bad mom. I don’t know but it seems that’s what the world would have me believe.

I’ve encountered a few situations lately where people have expressed surprise verging on disapproval with my parenting style. I need to make more of my daughters’ decisions for them. I need to control every aspect of each situation they enter. I need to manipulate outcomes to guarantee my girls’ success. I need to map out every moment of their time and their future so they’ll have an amazingly successful career.

I think this is the problem – when Jimmy and I left the hospital after the birth of our first child, I forgot to pick up my pair of hovering helicopter wings on the way out.

Here’s what did happen in my life around that time, though. In early 1998, I found out I was pregnant with our first child. At that time, I read the Bible and prayed at our kitchen table each morning. From the time of that first positive pregnancy test, my prayer life added a new dimension.

I began to pray for each of my children to love and serve God. That was it. I wanted God to be real in their lives and I wanted help for Jimmy and me to raise them that way. God was real to each of us; the only way we could fail as parents was if we neglected to pass that along to them.

I’ve learned some things about what it means to love and serve God in the past 17 years since that first prayer. If we’re all still around 17 years from now, I’ll have some more things to share because I’m still learning. Also, I think these things apply to all of our relationships – not just how we relate to our children.

To love and serve God

God made you special and He loves you very much

This line actually came from Veggietales, a children’s video series who enjoyed their highest popularity in my daughters’ younger years.

The point for us, however, wasn’t only to teach the girls that God feels this way about them. Even more, we wanted them to learn God feels this way about everyone. Every person has a unique, inherent value because God made them. We don’t classify by race, age, gender, or any of the other categorizations where people like to set one group apart as superior to another group.

Some of the stories I remember that weren’t an issue because of the way my girls’ thought… A fourth grader can play with a third grader even though they aren’t the same age. It’s ok if you’re white but you want to pick out a black baby doll or if you think a black boy is cute. A new kid on the softball team needs help learning how to play – why would someone make fun of them?

We can’t love and serve God – as adults or children – if we don’t recognize this. We put people down because of how much money they have, how hard they work, where they live, how their family behaves, and other nonsense. As long as we do this, we’ll fail to see that God loves and serves each and every human on the planet and calls us to do the same.

Learn to learn

This is my primary goal in choosing to homeschool our daughters but it applies in all aspects of life.

God created an amazing environment for us to live in – it abounds in artistic creation and scientific discovery. It’s full of ideas, truth, art, and logic that all weave together to make the human experience. If our life’s goal is to learn information to pass a test to make a grade to get into a school to get a certain job, then I can almost guarantee we’ll miss out on the beauty of the artistry and the wonder of the science.

At some point we decide we can stop learning; for some, it’s after high school or college graduation. Others wait until they have a graduate or doctoral degree before they stop learning.

Loving and serving God, however, is to realize that we can never stop learning. As children, we can learn to learn so our life may become a pursuit of God’s truth, a discussion of ideas to implement it into the world, an ability to create as He created, and a capacity to research and discover all of it.

Grown up in a grown up body

Children are born with three parts – a body that interacts with its environment, a mind that interacts with other people, and a soul that interacts with God. As parents, we need to raise all three parts to adulthood.

Decent nutrition and shelter will help the physical body grow to adulthood all on its own. The mental functions of the mind aren’t so easy though. The spiritual soul is even more difficult but for now, I’m going to focus on the mind.

We had a 9 year old friend of my daughters over recently. We were going to buy Subway sandwiches for lunch so I asked her what she liked. She didn’t know; she said her mom always orders for her. I asked, “What kinds of meat do you like – ham, turkey, beef, or salami?” She didn’t know what any of the meats were because she’d never had to make a decision for her own sandwich.

Many adults are children in grown up bodies. It’s important for children to make their own decisions. They start young in deciding which clothes to wear or which lunchbox to buy. They learn skills that help them as they grow and their decisions become more complicated… Should I cheat on this test? Should I go out with this guy? Which car should I buy? What classes should I take? Where should I go to college? Should I marry this girl? Should I serve God on the mission field?

This isn’t only about decision making though.

My daughter wanted banana cut up on her Rice Krispies this morning. I’ve been teaching her how to use the knife and cut it herself but she told me she doesn’t like to get her hands slimy from cutting it. My answer was simple, “Yes, but when you’re 35, I’m not going to come over every morning to cut up your banana so your hands don’t get slimy.” She smiled and proceeded to cut her own banana.

We can’t make all their decisions for them; likewise, we can’t do everything for them. We often do because we do it better, faster, or safer. From cutting bananas to balancing their own checking account, they’ll never learn if we don’t allow them to try. Yes, they’ll mess up along the way. Sometimes we learn more from our failures and mistakes than we do our successes!

Part of loving and serving God is to function as responsible members of society. We make decisions and accept the responsibility for the outcome of those decisions as we also seek God’s guidance in the process. We accept our failures as learning opportunities for greater success in the future.

So what’s my point?

I don’t know; goodness knows I don’t have all the answers when it comes to parenting. I guess I’m only wanting to explain my lack of hovering helicopter wings. I want to raise children who recognize the value in all people. I want my children to try and serve those people rather than expect to be served. I want them to learn how to learn about what fascinates them and praise the God who created whatever interests them most. I want them to be responsible adults who can help society rather than drain it. I want them to love and serve God.

Generations: Valuing the legacy of a godly heritage

December may be the month we celebrate Jesus’ birth, but apparently it’s also the month of death.

The passing of four people in my life have warranted mention on my blog – all of them died during the month of December. Perhaps the glow of Christmas lights on homes and trees paled in comparison to the opportunity to experience the enveloping and penetrating light of the glory of God. Perhaps heartfelt tender Christmas carols dulled when given the chance to hear the angelic choir of heaven. I’ve shared the passing of all four with you because each one had a profound spiritual impact not only on my life but on the lives of hundreds around them.

Each one had a story – a reason for which I shared their life with you. For one, her life was a testament to Christ’s power in breaking us free from the confusion of abuse. For another, his story reminded us that the hope of heaven reunites us with loved ones. The third revealed lessons learned from one who lived life serving God.

Yesterday I attended the funeral of Jimmy’s granddad.

None of us are born holy; Granddad was no exception. In fact, quite a few of life’s years passed by for Granddad before the message of God’s salvation started to pierce his soul and transform his life. Somewhere, someone reached out to him as a young man and shared the message of hope.

 

Granddad later became a preacher himself; I would venture to guess that his fifty years behind the pulpit have changed thousands of lives. But even that isn’t the impact I want to share with you.

As I’m spending time with Jimmy and his family, I see a different kind of lasting impact – the impact of a godly heritage. It may not extend far but it runs deep. Granddad was already married when he humbled himself before God to receive forgiveness for his sins. He and Granny would have raised a family, worked their jobs, and lived their lives even if Granddad had never accepted Christ. It would have looked different but they would have made it happen.

But Granddad’s life changed when he accepted Christ. He studied God’s Word so he knew its message and power for his life. He shared God’s Word so others may know that same message and power. He prayed God’s Word because he knew therein is our power.

He studied for, shared with, and prayed for his children. His influence led them to accept Christ as their Savior. The transformation of this one man spread to the lives of his two children.

It led his children to find godly spouses when they grew up and create Christian homes of their own. Within time, four grandchildren were born and raised in godly homes. What was one became two and then doubled to four.

God decided one of the granddaughters could come to heaven early; her short life ended in her teens. Even in the midst of such a painful tragedy, however, the message of the gospel promised the hope of resurrection and eternal life for the young girl. Salvation was already a truth in her life, despite her young years.

The remaining grandchildren grew to adulthood, married Christian spouses, and started families of their own. One man’s influence became two, which doubled to four, and now has grown to ten great-grandchildren. All ten greats (as Granddad always called them), are being raised in three different godly homes where they also are hearing the message of salvation and the importance of a life transformed in service to God. One by one they are responding to that message. While some are still babies and toddlers, almost all of them have claimed the name of Christ and accepted His salvation in their own lives.

My oldest daughter was the first of that generation. Granny and Granddad drove halfway across the country to visit her when she was only a few weeks old. He held her in his arms and spoke that he never expected her to remember him. He thought God would call him home before she would form any memories. Yet, God blessed him with a long life. That same great-granddaughter is now 16. She wrote on her Facebook wall when she learned of his death, "Today my Great Granddad got to go to heaven. He was the one person who no matter how he felt would always have something to say about God's grace and how much he loved his family. Though I don't have many memories with him, because of long distances, I can't wait to make some with him in heaven. Have fun Great Granddaddy. Love you!"

If Christ waits a few more years before His return, who knows what might happen from those ten greats. Will they all accept Christ? Will they begin ten different Christian families of their own? What impact will they leave on the world? How will God answer the powerful prayers of the Great-Granddad who left a legacy of a Godly heritage for them?

In our instant society, we want to see results now. We want to see broad impact. But let us not forget, we do some of the most important ministry in the home to an audience of our children.

"Know that Yahweh your God is God, the faithful God who keeps His gracious covenant loyalty for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commands” (Deuteronomy 7:9).

Intentional: Living as a force for good

It’s that time of year here in the Midwest. It comes every November.

No, not the time of family gatherings, stuffed turkeys, and thankful thoughts. It’s the time of camouflage coverings, early mornings, and deer stand hangouts.

I’m not a deer hunter. I’ve never tried it, have no desire to try it, and probably never will. But I’ve been happily married to a deer hunter for two decades. Over those years, I’ve come to appreciate his hobby, the happiness it brings him, and the food it provides for our family.

However, a group of us deer widows was talking at church the other day. And well, here’s the story…

We came across these verses while studying the actions of evil in Psalm 37, “Be silent before the Lord and wait expectantly for Him; do not be agitated by one who prospers in his way, by the man who carries out evil plans. … The wicked person schemes against the righteous and gnashes his teeth at him.” (Psalm 37:7, 12).

We started discussing the two actions of evil listed in these verses.

• Men carry out evil plans.
• The wicked scheme against the righteous.

They plan and scheme against us who follow Jesus. The forces of evil plan how to bring down the righteous. They actually take the time to think about it and come up with ways to plot evil intent. Evil is highly intentional about causing destruction in our lives (Hebrew: zamam).

My husband is a good man – a true, dedicated, and devoted follower of Christ. But I’m going to compare him to the forces of evil for just a minute. Sorry, honey.

Because here’s the deal that the other deer widows and I started to discuss…

My husband has been planning his deer hunt for weeks. He scouts early in the season for scrapes from the deer antlers. He hangs a motion sensor camera in the woods so he can find when and where the deer are traveling. He applies the deer scent stuff that I think stinks but I guess smells alluring to a buck. He layers on the camo clothing so nothing will see him perched in the tree. He practices making the right noises so he sounds like a deer grunting or antlers rattling. He invests money in a tag, ammunition, gadgetry, and specialized clothing. This year, he even downloaded an app that utilizes Google satellite images of the region where he hunts. On the image, he marked where his tree is, the trees of the men with whom he hunts, any deer markings they found while scouting, and probably more stuff I don’t know about. The app even tells him the direction and speed of the wind.

Alright…you get the point. He’s very INTENTIONAL about his deer hunt. He doesn’t wake up some morning, decide to grab his rifle, and hike off into the woods. He plans, schemes, and invests to make his hunt successful. He covers his body, his scent, and his noise in order to DECEIVE all the senses the deer uses in self-protection.

Based on Psalm 37:7, 12, Satan and the forces of evil are doing the same thing to us. Psalm 83:3-5 says it this way, “They devise clever schemes against Your people; they conspire against Your treasured ones. They say, ‘Come, let us wipe them out as a nation so that Israel’s name will no longer be remembered.’ For they have conspired with one mind; they form an alliance against You.”

Satan is out to get you, friend and fellow follower of Christ. He’s planning and scheming to bring you down. He doesn’t decide on a whim to kind of trip you up a little bit. He is investing in every tool, opportunity, and gadget at his disposal to make his hunt successful.

What are we going to do?

We have to be just as intentional. We can’t wake up one morning and decide, “Oh, I think I’ll do something good today. Maybe I’ll go to church or read a Bible chapter.”

I’m not knocking church attendance or scripture reading, but we’re going to have to be more intentional than that.

Bible reading

The Word of God is the power to transform your life. The Word reveals truth in a world that is so messed up we have Muslims worshiping in a Christian cathedral, schools raising children instead of parents, and babies that aren’t safe in their own mother’s wombs.

Casually perusing a verse or two a day won’t do much for you though – kind of like eating a bite or two of food in a day won’t do much to sustain you. Intentional Bible reading studies it, learns what it says, and applies it to life. Intentional Bible reading figures out the hard parts – not skims over them.

Prayer

You can talk to God – right here, right now. The One who created the universe waits to hear what’s on your mind. The Savior of all mankind wants to know what’s bothering you. Yahweh who knows everything wants to know how your day went.

But He’s not an overpaid psychiatrist or a priest in confessional who can’t really do too much in response to your pleas. He can summon the angels and dispel the demons. He can provide from infinite riches and protect beyond imagination.

Intentional prayer goes beyond meal time thankfulness or casual conversations during mundane tasks. Those are good times to pray but intentional prayer takes it up a notch. It carves out part of the day and declares it as time to prayerfully enter God’s holy presence for a time of praise, thanksgiving, and intercession. Intentional prayer makes that time regular and frequent.

Invest in others

I know you’re hurting right now – so is the person next to you at work, at church, or in the grocery store line. It’s easy to invest in your best friend, spouse, or children but can we invest in those who think differently than us? Or look different? Intentional investment steps outside what’s convenient and easy. Intentional investment extends a word of encouragement, offers some help, or serves another when it’s hard to do so and maybe even dangerous.

That’s all I got – maybe you can think of more ways we can live intentionally as a force for good. If so, please share in the comments.

The forces of evil intentionally fight to bring you down – to destroy your story. We must counterattack with intentional living for Christ as a force for good. Remember, “You are from God, little children, and you have conquered them, because the One who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world” (1 John 4:4).

Good & Evil: Who we are in a world of evil

Boko Haram, a Muslim extremist group in Nigeria, butchers Christians. “Butchers” isn’t too strong of a word; it’s morbidly accurate as the group slices and hacks at the bodies of the non-Muslims. They stop only long enough to determine if the sufferer is ready to renounce Christ and pledge allegiance to Allah. You can read more at VOM’s article, “You can’t kill my soul,” but I warn you that it might make you feel something – a churning of the stomach, a shudder of the spine, an inexplicable urge to fall to your knees and pray for someone in a far off land.

Evil is nothing new; persecution began when God accepted Abel’s sacrifice but not Cain’s resulting in Cain’s murderous assault on Abel (Genesis 4:1-12). Nevertheless, it is part of our current world. How do we face it? How do we respond to bloody stories that don’t fit with our comfortable church-pew Christianity?

I found some help – even some encouragement – in Psalm 37. I hope you’ll take a minute to read it now; all you have to do is click on the link. (Can I be honest here for a second and point out that a lot of people in this world would weep tears of joy for such easy access to the word of God?)

We’re going to take a look at Psalm 37 over the next four weeks. This article will consider who we are, the next two weeks we’ll look at what we do and what God does, and then the fourth week we’ll discuss the outcome.

Who are we? Characteristics of the righteous

I pulled this list of characteristics out of the text of the chapter. Let me start by saying that I dealt with some serious conviction while I did so. You know what I mean – those “Ouch” moments when you read God’s Word and the Spirit points out somewhere deep inside that you aren’t quite living up to what God is asking of you. Yeah, those. But here we go –

When confronted with evil, a child of God is…

37:1, 7, 8 – Not agitated. A confrontation with evil shouldn’t make us burn with anger. That’s hard, isn’t it? When I read the above article from VOM about the beheading of a little boy, anger burned within me. By all accounts, evil is spreading and prospering. Earthly armies can’t stop it but eventually Christ will. Trust me, evil doesn’t prosper and find victory in the end.

37:1 – Not envious. At first thought, why would we be envious of evildoers? But, let me admit, envy flickered in my mind when I found out the ISIS army has $2,000,000 a day in income just from the oil fields they’ve conquered. But again, their success is temporary.

37:6 – Righteousness that shines like the dawn. This isn’t me showing off all my good works to make sure everyone sees them. My righteousness is in Christ; if it shines like the dawn then that is Him in me shining out to the world. That’s a good thing.

37:8 – Not angry nor enraged, in addition to not agitated. Keep the breathing under control; don’t spew words of poison. Stay steady. If you believe God is in control then you should be under control.

37:11 – Humble. Remember, Christ’s righteousness shines through us, not our own goodness. Honestly, we don’t have any goodness on our own anyway. He’s in control. As a child of God, we lay aside our own pride and positions to advance His kingdom.

37:18 – Blameless. We’re not perfect; we’re not sinless. The idea behind being blameless is to be complete or whole. Christ in us – His joy and love manifested in us – completes us.

37:21, 26 – Gracious and giving. We can’t hold tight to what God has given us. When we see evil, our response is to help, reach out, give, and extend grace to those who hurt as a result.

37:22 – Blessed by God. God chose to look on us in favor. He chose to come before us with the greatest gift possible – the life of His Son. He chose to restore us through the sacrifice of that Son. We are blessed.

37:30, 31 – Wise, just, and know God’s instruction. This is another one we can only claim because Christ works in us and through us. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.

37:37 – Man of peace. Evil – characterized by pride, anger, rage, greed, and foolishness – leads to restlessness, destruction, and death. But a child of God knows peace even in the midst of evil.

I don’t know about you, but this list will stay with me this week as I see evil become more prevalent in our world. All of these characteristics are contrary to how the world says we should live. If we can implement them in our lives, we can make a difference. We can live the difference. We can shine the righteousness of Christ in a world of darkness.

Please click here for the next article in the series.

Look to the Future: Praying for the work to be done

Jimmy and his team are home; Africa 2014 is over. But that doesn’t mean the work is finished.

Despite the delays in luggage and the resulting shortage of tools, they installed the solar panel system in the home of a doctor and his family. One thing North Africa has in abundance in sunshine; a solar panel electrical system makes a huge difference for those serving in this region! We received this note yesterday from Doc, “Every day we think of you guys and cherish our fridge and freezer and power…I have not turned on the generator since you left!! Amen!!! Now the battery to the generator is dead…need to charge it. It’s a great problem to have. The system is running beautifully!”

You may recall that Jimmy flew to visit missionaries serving in a different location after they finished installing the solar panels. Grow Barefoot worked with this family two years ago to provide them with solar power as well. He flew in to find the village surrounded by floodwaters; they are a community entering a time of disease, food shortages, and inaccessible medical care. I don’t have any miraculous updates for you on this issue but we continue to trust the One who is the worker of miracles. Please join us in praying for this village as they recover from this debilitating natural disaster. Their national government told them they would not provide any assistance. Floods may have cut off all roads to the outside world, but the road to Almighty God – paved in the prayers of His people – is never cut off.

We didn’t know until Jimmy began his journey home that his friend there, Kap, is also suffering from severe malaria. Despite the lack of available medical care, he continues to improve quickly. Again, God answers prayers.

Which is why I appeal to you today

God does answer prayers. So, I’m asking you to pray for Grow Barefoot as we consider how to work in this region in the future. Some projects we are considering include –

• Doc would love to have a medical team come in to do a clinic. The surrounding villages and tribes need so much in basic medical care and education.
• Doc would also like to begin a milk clinic for babies whose mothers are unable to nurse or are just not available, perhaps due to death. GB has worked with a milk clinic in Haiti; perhaps we can combine knowledge gained in Haiti to help begin a program on the other side of the world.
• Kap is already working on digging three or four wells in outlaying tribal areas so the people may have access to water. This is an immediate need.
• Kap would also like to start a training center in his area. They would teach English, water cleanliness, and job skills for people to develop a trade, earn a living, and create jobs in the community. This is a great method to build relationships with the people, which in turn leads to great discussions and opportunities to share the message of Christ.
• Kap and Chica would also like for me to come and lead a conference based on “Seven Roles, One Woman” for the local women in their area. The Muslim population accepts the book of Proverbs so this study based on Proverbs 31 may be a great way to build relationships, help women understand their value in God’s eyes, and share Christ with them as well.

Please pray for our continued ministry in these areas as we desire to follow where God leads.

ISIS & Christians: Why do we care?

Internet circles are abuzz with the atrocities committed by ISIS against Christians. We’ve all read of the horrors. We’ve wept, prayed, written, questioned, and spoke out. But I have one remaining thought that I haven’t yet seen addressed…

Why do we care?

Before you think I’m as cold and ruthless as ISIS, let me continue. China has been oppressing the church for decades. Muslims have been killing Christians for centuries. Syrian forces have killed 170,000 in recent years, many Christians among them. Egyptian forces burned churches to the ground only a few years ago. Boko Haram recently kidnapped hundreds of Christian girls and the secular world expressed more outrage than did the church.

Grow Barefoot has friends working in places around the globe whose names and locations we can’t put in our articles. To do so would put their lives in danger. We have friends whose governments gave them 24 hours to leave the country or be imprisoned for the mission work they were doing.

This stuff has been going on since the time Christ walked on this earth. So, why do we care now? Why is the American church seeing these things with fresh, raw eyes? Why are we collectively feeling that nag in the pit of our stomachs that says something is wrong? Why are the silent now speaking? Why are the stingy now sacrificing?

I might know the answer

“Don’t you yourselves know that you are God’s sanctuary and that the Spirit of God lives in you?” (1 Corinthians 3:16).

Here’s the answer – the Spirit that dwells within each of Christ’s followers has said, “It is time.” You don’t get to ride the fence any longer. You don’t get to attend the Country Club Church on Sunday morning and not care the rest of the week.

You get to experience life as did the Apostle Paul who wrote, “My eager expectation and hope is that I will not be ashamed about anything, but that now as always, with all boldness, Christ will be highly honored in my body, whether by life or by death. For me, living is Christ and dying is gain” (Philippians 1:20-21).

Paul knew something about persecution. He experienced it repeatedly. I can’t write the way he did as I’ve never been through the sufferings he endured.  And yet, as I write about more extensively in Everything We Need, Paul wrote about seven benefits of persecution…

• Serves to advance the Gospel
• Encourages others and reduces fear
• Causes rejoicing
• Promotes patient endurance
• Teaches us to trust God and the power of prayer
• Is a source of comfort
• Brings us to maturity

We do care

We care not because ISIS is any more horrific than countless other persecutory murderers in the past. We care not because the lives of the Iraqi Christians are more valuable than the millions slaughtered for their faith in centuries past. We care because the Spirit tells us it is time – time to care, to pray, to speak out, to share, to love, to grow, and encourage.  He tells us He has a plan to carry out in this time and place and we have a part to play in it. And our response is to humbly fall to our knees – not only to pray for the innocent lives suffering in another part of the world but to also pray how we might serve and love during such a time as this.

Living Life between the Cross and the Coming

Passover and Easter are over. What’s next?

My focus this Passover / Easter season has been Jesus’ fulfillment of prophecy through His death and resurrection. I shared many of those thoughts on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.

But now Passover and Easter are over. Jesus fulfilled those prophecies; the resurrection has happened. What’s next?

Here’s what – more prophecy fulfillment. Jesus still has a few more things to do.

He has to retrieve His bride, the church.

“Go, my people, enter your rooms and close your doors behind you. Hide for a little while until the wrath has passed” (Isaiah 26:20).

He has to return to earth; He has to come a second time. 

“On that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which faces Jerusalem on the east. The Mount of Olives will be split in half from east to west, forming a huge valley, so that half the mountain will move to the north and half to the south” (Zechariah 14:4).

He has to judge the nations and establish His kingdom on Earth. 

“He will strike the land with discipline from His mouth, and He will kill the wicked with a command from His lips. … On that day the root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples. The nations will seek Him, and His resting place will be glorious” (Isaiah 11:4, 10).

He has to defeat Satan once and for all. 

“I will put hostility between you [Satan] and the woman, and between your seed and her seed. He will strike your head, and you will strike his heel” (Genesis 3:15).

He has to judge those who never chose to follow Him. 

“As they leave, they will see the dead bodies of the men who have rebelled against Me; for their worm will never die, their fire will never go out, and they will be a horror to all mankind” (Isaiah 66:24).

He has to reward those who did choose to follow Him. 

“Look, the LORD has proclaimed to the ends of the earth, ‘Say to Daughter Zion: Look, your salvation is coming, His reward is with Him, and His gifts accompany Him.’ And they will be called the Holy People, the LORD’s Redeemed; and you will be called Cared For, A City Not Deserted” (Isaiah 62:11-12).

As you can see, Jesus has more to do – the fulfillment of prophecy isn’t over.

But what about now?

We’re living in the time period between the first and second coming. And in all honesty, we’re closer to that second coming than we are to the first. But how should we live during this time?

Awake & Serious

“For you are all sons of light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or the darkness. So then, we must not sleep, like the rest, but we must stay awake and be serious” (1 Thessalonians 5:5-6).

I don’t have room to get into all of the day/night and wake/sleep imagery used here but let me boil it down… Live like the life Christ died to give you means something to you. Don’t spend your time and resources on your own satisfaction. God gave His life for you – spend your time and resources living your life for Him. Again I repeat, live like the life Christ died to give you means something to you.

Ready for action, Serious, & Hopeful

“Therefore, with your minds ready for action, be serious and set your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 1:13).

Get ready! Ready to fight, ready to serve, ready to love, ready to obey, ready to do whatever God calls you to do. You won’t ever be ready if you aren’t spending time now getting to know Him and know His Word.

Be Hopeful! This world is not the end game. We have more to come after this life – more than we can ever imagine. That’s the end game. That’s the goal. That’s the purpose. Yes, life here is hard but hold fast to the hope of what’s to come.

Be Serious, Pray, Love, & Play Nice

“Now the end of all things is near; therefore, be serious and disciplined for prayer. Above all, maintain an intense love for each other, since love covers a multitude of sins. Be hospitable to one another without complaining.” (1 Peter 4:7-9).

This is a different Greek word for serious than in the previous passages. This one means to stay in your right mind, exercise a little self control, and curb your passions. Life’s not all about making yourself feel good.

Pray through the hard stuff…and through the easy stuff. Pray through all of it. Do you really have a relationship with someone if you aren’t talking to them regularly? Go to God just like you would a friend – when someone makes you mad, when something great happens, when you don’t know what to do, when you need someone to listen.

Love each other even as we remember that biblical love is all about sacrifice. Biblical love doesn’t focus on how good the loved one makes us feel; biblical love focuses on how we can give ourselves to help them feel good. Kind of like Jesus did in the ultimate expression of love – His death on the cross.

Help others out whenever you can – with a kind word, a meal, a listening ear, a little extra cash. Don’t complain or pat yourself on the back later.

So there you have it – some good ideas for how to live in this time after the resurrection of Jesus as we wait for His second coming. I’m sure there’s more but this is a good amount to get us started.