Names of Jesus - True Vine

I looked over at my calendar sitting on the table next to me. It was open to the tab between months and the words on the aesthetically pleasing page popped out at me: let yourself rest.  Rest. That is something I cannot do. Not now, not ever. I have three kids. I have to cook dinner, I have to go grocery shopping, I have to wash the dishes, the laundry, the floors, the kids...myself! I haven’t showered in two days. How do I rest?

I think of Jesus saying, "Come to me, all who are weary, and find rest," and I wonder how long it will take to find that rest.

Then I realize my problem. I am striving to find rest. Jesus also says that he is the vine, and we are the branches, whoever abides in him will bear much fruit. What does that have to do with rest? Abiding is resting; but not just sitting down and doing nothing, it is actively remaining stable in a fixed place. 

Have I been abiding in Jesus? Honestly? No. I've been trying to do things on my own without remaining in Jesus, and my soul has been withering. I have chosen to open my tablet and play a game rather than open my Bible and abide. I have chosen to get impatient with my kids rather than patiently listen to God's prompting on my heart.

The thing is, I cannot bear fruit on my own. I cannot force goodness out of me; I cannot push out joy like giving birth to a baby. Fruit will come after a season of rest and renewal (winter). It takes nutrients from the vine and those blossom into fruit, but only because the branch has been abiding and remaining in the vine.

As North America enters the winter season physically, it seems we are already in a winter season spiritually and mentally. I have not been abiding in Jesus through this Covid winter. It is time to stop trying to make rest happen and just abide and remain in Jesus.

Read John 15:1-11 today.

Names of Jesus - LIght of the World

Week one of Advent is about HOPE. We lit the first candle of Advent on Sunday, the Hope candle, or the Prophecy candle. The Hebrew prophets of old foretold of the coming Messiah, the one who would free them from the bondage of their sin and fulfill the Law. They knew the Law didn’t save them; they looked for the one who would be the fulfillment of the Law and release the burdens they felt when they couldn’t keep the Law.

Isaiah 2:9 says,

“The people walking in darkness have seen a great light;

on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.”

Jesus responded to Isaiah’s prophecy, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

My world has felt rather dark lately, how about yours? Jesus is the light that shines in the darkness, and darkness cannot overcome his light. The wonderful thing about Jesus’ light is that it shines into every nook and cranny of our lives, illuminating everything with his brilliance, even the parts we wish could stay hidden in the darkness. However painful, the revealing light that shines on and exposes our sin is the same light that awakens our souls to see our need of redemption.

As Jesus’ light shines in us, we reflect his light to those around us. Our world desperately needs light right now. God placed us in our world, right where we are in time and geography, for a specific reason. Does that thought give you pause? It does for me. To know that I was placed here deliberately, to shine God’s light to those around me, gives me hope and a purpose. I am where I am supposed to be, and you are too.

This week, let Jesus shine his light into your heart, burning out any hidden sins, shining through the darkness that has invaded our lives.

Names of Jesus - an Advent Devotional

Today is the first day of the Advent season. Advent comes from the Latin word 'adventus' and simply means "coming."

In this year of no coming or going anywhere, I want to especially look forward, not only to the coming of Messiah as a baby, but especially to the second coming of Messiah as the triumphant conqueror.

If you've been struggling to find joy this year like I have, let's change our focus from Covid to Christ, from loneliness to living fully, from disillusionment to decisive introspection.

Join me this Advent season and delve into the names of Jesus. We can look for his coming in our hearts and in the sky.

Walking on the Water

You may be familiar with the passage in Matthew 14 where Jesus walks on the water. Peter was scared at first, but then in a bold moment asks to walk on the water with Jesus. At first he succeeds, then he starts to sink. Pastor Brett Meador gave a good reminder that "The waves that are rolling over your head are the same waves that are under his feet."

The Bible tells us not to forsake the gathering together with believers. We may be at home, but we can still gather virtually with thousands of other believers and Jesus is still in our midst.

It is hard not to buy into the panic when you are at the store and see the empty shelves. It is hard to stay calm when the media is freaking out. When you see all the rising statistics posts, it's hard to keep your heart from skipping a beat.

Peter was in a boatload of panic. The waves were tossing the boat around and everyone was scared, and rightly so. Jesus came into their presence and calm ensued. Peter took steps in his new-found bravery and was confidently walking on the waves. Then he got distracted and began to falter. Jesus again lent his calm to Peter, reached down and pulled him from his panic.

My mom used to say, "Trust God and fasten your seat belt." That means, you do what you can (social isolation, eating right, exercise, plenty of fluids, keeping a positive outlook) and trust that God has the best in mind for you, even if HIS best isn't YOUR best.

Don't let Satan steal your peace. Don't let isolation make you scared. Don't let the distractions take your eyes off the Father. Remember Jesus is our salvation, and in Him we can rejoice, even in the midst of panic.

Some additional thoughts from Mark McCrary about churches cancelling services because of the Coronavirus:

1) This is not a Hebrews 10:25 matter. This passage speaks of not forsaking the assembly, but the word for "forsake" is exactly that-- a leaving behind or walking away from. It means to abandon. That is not the case here. If someone is sick, we do not say-- at least most of us don't say-- they have "forsaken the assembly." I fear we have taken a rather two-dimensional approach to this command.

2) This is not an issue of government oppression. On Wednesday, our governor (Kentucky) asked churches to forgo assembling this weekend. Some Christians seemed to suggest this was some form of persecution. But as one of our elders said, "This is not a 42nd cousin of the government persecution of the 2nd or 3rd centuries." Our federal, state and local governments have an obligation to protect the well-being of its citizens. As Christians, we are called to love our neighbor as ourselves. Last Wednesday, about 1300 Americans had contracted the virus. As of today, that number has almost doubled-- 2572. That's in 4 days. Last week Italy had 600 cases; today they have 21,000, and 200 people dying a day. This isn't government oppression. It is the government trying to protect its citizens. They are asking us to help.

3) This is not a matter of people living in fear or not trusting in the Lord. I’ve seen those statements, and they sound good until one spends a minute or two thinking about them. Are you afraid or untrusting if you take blood pressure meds? Insulin? Cholesterol meds? Go to the doctor? Have a life-saving surgery? If not, then why are Christians who choose to avoid crowds because the medical profession has urged us to do so (in order to contain this virus) living in fear or failing to trust? If you started to leave your house on Sunday morning to go to church and saw a tornado outside in the direction of the building, would you still get in your car and drive toward the tornado, or run to safety? Now, if you would not do these things (take medicine, go to the doctor, run to safety, etc.), then you have every right to judge others. But, I suspect most would not think twice about any of these things. So, let’s not be so quick to judge others by standards that really fall apart when we think about them just a little.

4) Finally, let’s be careful about self-righteousness. I’ve seen more than a few comment to the tune of, “Well, ok, you stay home, but I’m going to obey God….” Implication: if you stay home, you don't love the Lord as much as I do. Self-righteousness is a nasty sin, and does not reflect well on a follower of Christ.

Kids Home Unexpectedly?

Copied from a homeschool group. It's a long read, but a good one! 

Oh, and one thought from me: homeschool doesn't look like traditional school at home. Focus on the basics, especially if you're new to this: read aloud, some fun math games, writing a letter or journal entry. Have fun with it.

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Friends, I suspect the reason why you’re dreading having your kids home for the forseeable future is because you give them 110% of your time, attention, and energy when you all are home together. You are dreading having them home with no breaks, because you just don’t have that kind of time, attention, and energy to give 24/7. And that’s okay! Additionally, kids are noisy, dramatic, often unreasonable, create chaos and clutter everywhere they go, and wreak havoc on plans and schedules. This can be super stressful for parents. Now add in the schooling part?!

The problem: that 110% attention, time, and energy given to your kids at home isn’t compatible with your needs. Their noise, clutter, commotion, and disruption of plans can stress YOUR sensory systems. The good news: they don’t NEED all that time and attention from you to feel loved and to do well.

Also, boredom is okay. It helps kids learn to try new things and use problem-solving skills.

Everyone has different levels of introversion and extraversion, and different levels of sensory tolerance. Take some time to observe yourself, your partner, and your kids.
•How much noise can you handle?
•How much clutter?
•How much touching?
•How much interaction?
•Does interaction drain you?
•How much down time do you usually need?
•Do you feel like it’s never enough?
•Are you good after a few minutes?
•What about your spouse or kids?

How do you recharge? I think most parents dreading kids home 24/7 for weeks have some needs not being met at home. Getting angry or frustrated is a natural response to the hard parts of parenting. It shows that you have an UNMET NEED, often for a recharge.

Home is for you, too. Don’t feel guilty about needing your space or your quiet. Don’t feel guilty about needing to go call a friend for the social interaction we aren’t getting (thanks, social distancing!). If you can parent and work with your spouse from a place of rest, recharged, your tolerance levels will be much better than when you are exhausted and depleted. The same for your other family members. Compromise is key, and trying to understand the extrovert or introvert needs of your family can help you all stay recharged and more tolerant of each other.

Changing your routine and way of doing things is never easy, but here are a few ideas that might get you started in the best direction for your family.

✓ Accept your needs and your family’s needs. You are the way you are for a reason. Taking the correct break for you, will make you all more able to be the best “you” possible.

✓ Create a routine. It doesn’t have to be a minute-by-minute schedule, just a “parade of daily events” that can help give consistency and boundaries. Don’t try to replicate a classroom school day, even if your kids are skyping into school or doing online classes.

✓ Make some space for rest. Maybe quiet time with an audiobook or independent reading for an hour. Extroverted kids might want to pair up and sit together for a quiet activity. Introverted kids might need their own space away from everyone else.

✓ Think about earlier bedtimes. Kids tend to wake up early anyway. Let them get some more rest, and give yourself some more time at night to relax.

✓ First thing in the morning, ask your kids to come say good morning and give them a long, 1-2 min hug (or until they pull away themselves). No one has been “touched out" yet, and everyone will feel loved and loving first thing.

✓ Take some time for your needs. No thinking about what needs to be done, who needs what, how the schedule needs to change, etc. Step outside, take some deep breaths, and enjoy the fresh air. Go to your room and really savor a piece of chocolate. Make some tea or coffee, then sit and drink it, no rush. Take a nap, a bath, or a long shower. Go for a walk, a run, or do a workout. Listen to a song that makes you happy. Take 5 min to do yoga or meditate. Practice some mindfulness exercises or pray. Skype or Facetime with a friend. Create something and share it. Call a friend and do something together, over the phone.

✓ Introverts can simply sit and listen to an extrovert who needs to vent. Extroverts can respect that an introvert needs alone time, and remind themselves that alone time helps an introvert process things better.

✓ Arguments and meltdowns might mean someone needs more alone time than they are getting.

✓ Everyone doesn’t have to be happy all the time. Life has inevitable ups and downs, and it’s okay to process them according to your temperament. Just look for hope, forgive yourself and others when things don’t go right, and try again tomorrow. Try to find the humor in each day.

It takes time to figure out being home all the time with everyone. Be patient, focus on figuring out how you all work together and what needs you have for being apart. Put those relationship goals above the to-do lists. Give it time, slow down, and change things that aren’t working. Your kids can, and will learn from home. This quarantine/social distancing could be a wonderful opportunity for you and your family. There are tons of good resources out there and a lot of homeschooling communities who are happy to help during this time.

A word of caution: please remember many homeschoolers have been often questioned and ridiculed about their decision to school from home. Don't get defensive, but instead try to be understanding and respectful of their experience and advice.