Rest

Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Exodus 20:8

Rest is hard sometimes. I am constantly noticing this struggle around us. I have personally struggled really badly with resting this year. As believers in Jesus, we are to submit to God in our work and in our rest. As I grow, I am realizing that I have “done my best” to submit my work to God rather than submit to God in my work. We know our best isn’t good enough. Our righteousness is like filthy rags, right? What we think is right, what we think is good is not necessarily what God declares right and good. So often we commit personal best to do what we perceive our responsibilities to be, in our own strength. No wonder we find ourselves in weird cycles of unpunctuated work, exhaustion, and numbing, feeling like we are failing! Scripture clearly tells us to trust in the Lord and in the power of HIS might (Ephesians 6:10), not ours. We believe that our work is unto the Lord, for this glory. However, I think a nasty lie, a perversion of this truth, can sometimes slip into our minds, leading us to believe that we must “work for the Lord”, for His approval, for His pleasure, and for our satisfaction. Our “sacrifices” of postponing rest, forgoing stillness, and solitude are not just unhealthy; they do not glorify God. 

Remember the sabbath day to keep it holy. There is an entire commandment dedicated to rest. Our Father takes rest very seriously. Just as we do not get to determine what constitutes good, profitable work; we do not get to define rest. What rest looks like for us as citizens of the Kingdom of God, collectively and individually, is dictated by the King. Set the day apart! It is sacred! God declares it so. 

We were challenged in this week’s sermon to ask God a pertinent question when seeking Him about our calling: What are You doing? How can I help? We don't know what we are supposed to be doing with our lives, what work is truly right and good and profitable, glorifying God, until we seek the Lord. In the same way, we don’t know good rest unless we are directed by Him and obey His instruction. 

The Israelites had a Sabbath issue. In Isaiah 58, God graciously tells them His heart for Sabbath and for service to others to redirect them from ritual and tradition to Glory and Holiness. This issue keeps coming up for me too. Sabbath is a discipline yet to be formed in me. If I am completely honest, I am becoming frustrated with myself. The past month I have been focused on a growing to-do list, people and projects vying for my attention and effort. People are in need of love and support. The projects need to get done. I firmly believe that I have been led by God to help and do. Where I have not been led by the Lord is in how to recover and refresh from that work. Most times I just keep it moving because, you know, life is “lifeing”. Our Creator worked to wield the universe into existence by His Word then rested on purpose. God is good. Everything God does is good. God is perfect. Everything God does is perfect. God is glorious. Everything God does is glorious. God RESTED. Rest is good and glorifying to God when it is led and informed by the Glorious. I encourage you to join me in inquiring of the Lord about our rest. I have crashed and burned multiple times this year already because I didn’t do this. Thankfully, I only crashed this week (no burn). I’m not so quick to pick up the pieces this time, though. I am not running to sweep up the mess and resume my regularly scheduled programming. I am being as still as I can, even asking God: Is this stillness still enough? Am I quiet enough? Is my environment quiet enough? What needs to be turned off, shut down? I am desperate to obey because disobedience is causing suffering I don’t think God intends. 

God commands rest. I am now, while writing this, realizing that because God commands rest, rest should be planned and guilt free. Rest from holding and juggling all the things, carrying the mental load of households and organizations; rest from mindless scrolling and Netflix; rest from jumping from one crisis to the next. The practice of Sabbath is of God and is done to the glory of God. Inquire of the Lord and Rest well, friends. 

—Anyah E. R. White

Our World Didn’t Need the Sun

My wife recently gave me a “newly-weds” gift set that includes a journal with a number of suggestions for activities that couples can engage in to add to the joy of being together. It includes ideal “dates” and games to play as couples that one normally doesn’t imagine or think about. One of these activities includes preparing a meal while blindfolded! As a self-proclaimed Chef, I truly enjoy cooking and love a challenging recipe to recreate and videograph for my social media platforms. Cooking comes second nature to me, and I have no problem recreating sometimes difficult recipes with new and exciting ingredients. A challenge like “preparing a meal blindfolded” intrigues me. A dish like Spanish rice, for example, needs to attain a certain color as it cooks. When adding ingredients and spices, one normally needs to put the right amounts to reach the proper taste in other recipes. How could I use exact amounts without looking at the measuring spoon or not being able to read the print on the outside of measuring cups. Will I be able to know when enough water has evaporated so I can lower the heat and the food doesn’t burn? It would definitely be a challenge to create a proper meal without being able to see what I am doing. It could turn into a failure. How can anyone properly create anything without seeing what they are doing?

But wait a minute; didn’t God create our world in the dark?

If you carefully read Genesis, you will discover that on the first day, after creating the heavens and earth (this is by no means a small feat), God commanded for there to be light. (Notice this was AFTER creating heavens and earth). He then divided the light from darkness and called them Day and Night respectively-on the first day. What’s amazing is that He didn’t create the sun until the fourth day. What does this tell me? God created earth and heaven first. He then created light, the skies, land and vegetation before creating the sun itself. How could there have been light without the sun during the first few days? Well, He didn’t need the sun. He was and is light! 1 John 1:5 (KJV) reads, “God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.” How else could such mind blowing creations like earth and heavens even be possible! Let that stick to you; “in him is no darkness at all.”

In the face of that severe medical diagnosis that does not go away regardless of how much you declare healing; that child that although you raised him in the Word, has made decisions as an adult with terrible consequences, including jail time; your spouse and her actions have led your marriage to fall apart, your income seems to dwindle and that mortgage or car note looks more and more impossible; that addiction seems like it's clinging onto you; you have a great educational and professional background yet cannot find employment, or you feel you’re at a dead-end job; that venture you undertook seems to be failing regardless of how confident you were in it…

It feels dark, doesn’t it?

Unfortunately, or fortunately (depending on the viewpoint), I once experienced divorce. It totally changed my life. Although it was eventually proven that it was the best decision, it was an emotional wreck. Driving to my new “living quarters” was especially difficult in the afternoons. It literally felt like daylight “dimmed” at 4 p.m. each day as I drove to my new home, and it felt darker and darker as the day progressed. When I woke up at 6 a.m. the next morning, it still felt dark. Through many struggles and much, much prayer, I kept my faith in the Lord. About ten years later, God shined His light on me and gifted me the gift of a true, God-given, wife. She is not only everything (I mean everything) I always wanted in and from woman, but she is a fellow Christian believer, and we are now going on two years of marriage building a powerhouse for the Lord. While there have been some struggles, the light always shines through and we feel God’s grace, mercy and power in each part of our lives.

If your world feels dark today, remember there is nothing impossible for God. Muster some strength, and in the middle of that darkness rejoice! I know it's easier said than done, but the truth is that God can create something out of nothing in the darkest moments. Yes, that means even in the darkest moments of our lives! I’d like to think our heavenly father likes to work especially during our most difficult times so that way we are certain to give Him all the honor and glory when we finally see the light. It's easy to praise and worship Him when our bank accounts are overflowing; or when we are in tip top shape and our health is great; when our marriage is thriving and our children are walking upright. Even easier if we have that dream job or our endeavors seem to be successfully blessed. But will we sing the same song of honor to the King, when it feels as dark as midnight at ten o’clock in the morning? The psalmist says, “the Lord will enlighten my darkness.” It implies that we will go through turbulent times, often filled with what we perceive as darkness. But we rejoice in the fact that God our Lord is not only light, but will enlighten that very darkness in our lives as He fulfills His promises and gives us beauty for ashes. In Him is no darkness at all.

R. Bermúdez 

Nuestro Mundo No Necesitaba el Sol

Mi esposa recientemente me regaló un conjunto que incluye un diario con una serie de sugerencias de actividades que las parejas pueden realizar para aumentar la alegría de estar juntos. Incluye “ideas para citas” y juegos para parejas que uno normalmente no imagina ni piensa. ¡Una de estas actividades incluye preparar una comida con los ojos vendados! Como estudiante de cocina y chef autoproclamado, realmente disfruto cocinar y amo una receta desafiante para recrear y tomarle videos para mis plataformas de redes sociales. Cocinar es una segunda naturaleza para mí y no tengo ningún problema en recrear recetas a veces difíciles con ingredientes nuevos y emocionantes. El desafío de “preparar una comida con los ojos vendados” me intriga. Algunos platos como el arroz Hispano por ejemplo, necesitan adquirir cierto color mientras se cocinan. Cuando se agregan ingredientes y especias, normalmente es necesario poner las cantidades correctas para alcanzar el sabor adecuado en otros platos. ¿Cómo podría ser exacto en las cantidades sin mirar las cucharas de medida o sin poder leer la impresión en el exterior de las tazas medidoras? ¿Podré saber cuándo se ha evaporado suficiente agua para poder bajar el fuego y que la comida no se queme? Definitivamente sería un desafío crear una comida adecuada sin poder ver lo que estoy haciendo. Podría convertirse en un fracaso. ¿Cómo puede alguien crear algo correctamente sin poder ver lo que está haciendo?

Pero espera un minuto; ¿No creó Dios nuestro mundo en la oscuridad?

Si lees atentamente el libro de Génesis, descubrirás que en el primer día, después de crear los cielos y la tierra (no es poca cosa), Dios ordenó que hubiera luz. (note que esto fue DESPUÉS de crear los cielos y la tierra) Luego separó la luz de las tinieblas y los llamó Día y Noche respectivamente - en el primer día. Lo asombroso es que Él no creó el sol hasta el cuarto día. ¿Qué me dice esto? Dios creó la tierra y el cielo. Luego creó la luz, los cielos, la tierra y la vegetación antes de crear el sol mismo. ¿Cómo podría haber habido luz sin el sol en los primeros días? Bueno, Él no necesitaba el sol. ¡Él era y es luz! 1 Juan 1:5 (RV) dice: “Dios es luz, y en él no hay oscuridad alguna”. ¡De qué otra manera pudieron ser posibles creaciones alucinantes como la tierra y los cielos! Deja que eso se te quede; “en él no hay oscuridad alguna.”

Ante ese severo diagnóstico médico que no mejora por mucho que declares sanidad; ese hijo o hija que aunque lo criaste en la Palabra, ha tomado decisiones de adulto con terribles consecuencias incluyendo la cárcel; tu cónyuge y sus acciones han llevado a que tu matrimonio se desmorone, tus ingresos parecen disminuir y esa hipoteca o pagaré de automóvil parece cada vez más imposible; esa adicción parece como si se estuviera aferrando más a ti; tienes una gran formación académica y profesional pero no puedes encontrar empleo o sientes que estás en un trabajo sin salida; esa empresa que emprendiste parece estar fracasando, independientemente de la confianza que tuvieras en ella...

Se siente oscuro, ¿no?

Desafortunadamente, o afortunadamente (según el punto de vista), una vez experimenté el divorcio. Cambió totalmente mi vida. Aunque finalmente se demostró que fue la mejor decisión, fue un desastre emocional. Conducir a mi nueva “vivienda” era especialmente difícil por las tardes cuando salía de trabajar. Literalmente se sentía como si la luz del día se “atenuara” a las 4 p.m. cada día mientras conducía a mi nuevo hogar y se sentía más y más oscuro a medida que avanzaba el día. Cuando me despertaba a las 6 de la mañana siguiente, todavía se sentía oscuro. Pero a través de muchas luchas y mucha, mucha oración, mantuve mi fe en el Señor. Unos diez años más tarde, Dios me iluminó con su luz y me otorgó el regalo de una verdadera esposa dada por Dios. Ella no solo es todo (me refiero a todo) lo que yo siempre he querido en y de una mujer, sino que también es una creyente cristiana y ahora estamos en dos años de matrimonio construyendo una potencia para el Señor. Si bien han habido algunas luchas. No obstante, la luz siempre brilla y sentimos la gracia, la misericordia y el poder de Dios en cada parte de nuestras vidas.

Si tu mundo se siente oscuro hoy, recuerda que no hay nada imposible para Dios. Reúne algo de fuerza y ​​en medio de esa oscuridad; ¡alegrarte! Sé que es más fácil decirlo que hacerlo, pero la verdad es que Dios puede crear algo de la nada en los momentos más oscuros. ¡Sí, eso significa incluso en los momentos más oscuros de nuestras vidas! Me gustaría pensar que a nuestro padre celestial le gusta trabajar especialmente durante nuestros momentos más oscuros y difíciles para que de esa manera estemos seguros de darle todo el honor y la gloria cuando finalmente vemos la luz. Es fácil alabarlo y adorarlo cuando nuestras cuentas bancarias están desbordadas; o cuando estamos en buena forma con excelente salud; cuando nuestro matrimonio prospera y nuestros hijos caminan erguidos. Aún más fácil si tenemos el trabajo de nuestros sueños o si nuestros esfuerzos parecen ser bendecidos con éxito. Pero, ¿cantaremos la misma canción de honor al Rey, cuando se siente tan oscuro como la medianoche a las diez de la mañana? El salmista dice: “Jehová iluminará mi oscuridad”. Implica que atravesaremos tiempos turbulentos, a menudo llenos de lo que percibimos como oscuridad. Pero nos regocijamos en el hecho de que Dios, nuestro Señor, no sólo es luz, sino que iluminará esa misma oscuridad en nuestras vidas al cumplir sus promesas y darnos belleza en lugar de cenizas. En él, no hay oscuridad alguna…

R. Bermúdez

Little Things Matter

So I’m still pretty stuck on this hospitality theme that Pastor Greg broached a few Sundays ago in our One Another Series.

I think it’s because I needed a swift kick in the pants!

As I heard me speak about hospitality with Greg on the video clip during that message, sweet faces flashed before me of precious people who have graced my table, found refuge in my  home. What a privilege to serve and to love people God has placed in our story. Conversations. Tears. Laughter. Prayer. Life. What blessings!

My heart was heavy with the conviction of the Holy Spirit from this flood of memories and Greg’s words from God’s Word. 

I reminded myself how much I enjoy hospitality and serving others, why I think it is important to love people well, to make strangers friends.

Between caring for my elderly and vulnerable in-laws who live with us, navigating the never-ending Covid-19 restrictions, and enduring double knee replacements last year, I’ve had some undeniable and convenient excuses for putting hospitality in our home on the back burner.

Frankly, though, I think I’m just out of practice. And maybe I’ve gotten a little bit lazy. Comfortable. Complacent. Disobedient??

You see, I profoundly believe that hospitality isn’t just a nice idea or a helpful suggestion for believers in Jesus. It is a command, one Jesus Himself implied when lawyers questioned which commandment was the most important one. We now call it the Great Commandment.

“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and  first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets. (Matthew 22:36-40 ESV)

Loving God with all we are is made visible, is demonstrated best, by loving others purposefully and sacrificially. He is our ultimate example of this kind of lifestyle. And it seems to me that loving others is inextricably linked to service. I believe loving our neighbors, near and far, loving people, requires hospitality, extending ourselves on their behalf whatever form that takes. 

The Apostle Paul’s words clearly mandate this. 

“Above all, keep loving one another earnestly since love covers a multitude of sins. Show hospitality to one another without grumbling. As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace. (1 Peter 4:8-10 ESV)

Commands are meant to be obeyed. So why have I become so negligent?

Well, I’d argue defensively in my flesh that I had some very good reasons for a while. But I don’t think those reasons totally let me off the hook. Lots of people have loved and served others well during quarantines. Or when they were caring for the elderly in their homes. Or when they were experiencing physical problems. Or during financial crises. Or when they were busy. Or when they found themselves in much more difficult circumstances than I have. Jesus did…

It just takes some new, out-of-the-box thinking and some creative, intentional, and innovative planning to extend hospitality when conditions aren’t great, when money is tight, when you aren’t a gourmet chef, when you are by nature shy, when the people you are to serve are difficult, when you can't do what you have always done.

Honestly, it just takes resolve. And maybe a new understanding. Maybe even a kick in the pants!

There isn't just a one-way-fits-all kind of hospitality as Charissa explained so well. It isn’t always BIG. 

Small things matter. A lot.

I think we often excuse ourselves from serving and loving others the way we should because of our own faulty definitions of hospitality. We make it all about a fancy, candlelight dinner, a 5-star overnight accommodation with a gourmet breakfast included, or a crazy-big, churchwide or neighborhood gala in our backyard with karaoke blaring across town. I have been guilty of making it only about these. And while it sometimes is a gigantic undertaking, I think, most often, it’s the small things we do everyday that best show our love to others. The kind things we say. The verse we share. It’s SEEING folks. It’s being a good neighbor, even to those who are not necessarily living in close proximity to us, and even to the ones who don’t return our garden tools!

Or our friendship. 

It is a mindset that can change the world.

But it seems most of us have blind spots when it comes to recognizing just what we DO have to offer others, what we can really do for them. Instead of watching Monday night football alone, invite someone over. Instead of eating all the cookies you just baked, send some over to a neighbor. Take time to chat over the fence. Drop a card in the mail to someone who had a recent health scare. Have a playdate in the park and bring some juice boxes and Cheetos. And wipes! I had a wonderful neighbor who picked up trash along our road every Saturday. How thoughtful!

It’s important to determine how we can make a difference in the lives of others. It may not seem like a lot, but when we generously offer them what we have, “something sacred happens. God uses the small things we bring to him and multiplies them into a miracle in someone else's life.”

I’m impressed with a familiar story (surprise!) told in each of the Gospels about a time when Jesus wanted to extend hospitality in far more difficult circumstances than I have ever experienced in my quest to be obedient to the hospitality command. And He uses a small boy, one so insignificant that we never even know his name! But he stands up in a group of 5000 men and gives what he has. “Then a miracle takes place. His little effort combines with God’s power and everything changes.” I found these quotes and a telling of this event in a book called, The Art of Neighboring by Jay Pathak and Dave Runyon, BakerBooks, 2012, pp.87-89. It’s well worth the read! 

It’s getting late, and thousands of people have hung around all day to listen to Jesus preach. But it’s becoming clear that all of these people didn’t plan ahead. They need to eat but they are miles from civilization. Jesus turns to his disciples and tells them to find something for the crowd for dinner. But the disciples have no way of providing a meal for the crowd. One of the disciples, Philip, calculates what it would cost–more than a year’s salary, way more than they can afford. Clearly the disciples are way over their heads with the challenge at hand. What is Jesus expecting? He's not serious, right?

When we start to take the Great Commandment literally, we realize we don’t have what it takes. We don't have enough time, even though we prioritize. We aren’t great at remembering names, even though we write them down and try to remember. We don’t  love enough, even though we are trying to be like Jesus. We feel as though we are being asked to manage an impossible task–loving our neighbors. Do our small efforts add up to anything? Let’s get back to our story.

As the disciples are about to give up, something outlandish happens. “Another of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, spoke up. ‘Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?’” (John 6:8-9)

Andrew knows the little boy’s lunch would feed only a few of the people. Why would he even offer something so ridiculous? First of all, it’s rude. You shouldn't take food from little children. Second, it’s silly. What good could it possibly accomplish? What was Andrew thinking? Apparently Andrew knew something we should all remember: small sacrifices can lead to a miracle. When you give what you have, even if it’s minute, God can make a miracle. He can work with very little and turn it into something that no one could have imagined.

 As the passage continues, Jesus prays for the food. Then he breaks up this kid’s lunch and hands it out to the disciples. He tells them to start distributing it–somehow there is enough to feed the crowd.

Now here’s an interesting question: When did the food multiply?…I think that the miracle happened in the hands of the disciples. As they handed out the bread and fish, it was miraculously replaced in their baskets. Every time they gave away some food, they looked down into the basket, only to find it full again. The miracle happened as they participated in giving the food away. The food multiplied in their hands. 

Can you imagine being a part of something like this? It must have been amazing, not only for the disciples but for the little boy as well. Suddenly he is a hero. He gives up his lunch, and a bunch of adults get to participate in a miracle. I doubt he ever imagined his day would turn out like that. 

When you give away what you have, Jesus will give you more to give. Even if what you have isn’t enough to solve the whole problem, just do what you can in the moment–give it anyway. Trust that God will fill you up with enough to supply the need that’s right in front of you, and assume he will do it again for the next need as well. If you don’t give, you don’t get a chance to see God do a miracle. 

Give Him what you have, no matter how small or foolish or unusable it seems. There are people out there He longs to love and care for through YOU. Maybe not 5000 of them at once, but maybe there are! What an incredible thought! What an amazing privilege! He still does miracles.

Maybe for this season of my life, I can’t do what I used to do. So maybe I need to figure out what I can do, even if it seems so very small and insignificant. My definition of what hospitaIity looks like right now may need a little tweaking. God wants me to love and serve others to demonstrate my love for Him and HIS love for them. I can do that. I can meet up for coffee and offer encouragement. Send a card. Text a verse. Share a casserole. Give a ride. Pray over the phone. I can make my mother-in-law queen of our home. I must remind myself that it's often the small moments, the little things, that count.

Little things matter. A lot.

It’s simple: Give the little you have and are and watch God do a miracle.

Those old enemies may become friends, and strangers may become Family!

And God the Father will smile. A lot.

—Eileen Hill

Use the Weeds

Do you have weeds in your garden? Most define weeds as the unwanted plants that take up valuable space, water, and nutrients without providing us any benefit. Most gardeners hate weeds and do all they can to remove them as soon as possible. For a long time I shared this sentiment. I worried that Pop Pop Rudy or Pop Pop Bill would show up to my house and find the unwanted plants in my vegetable beds, signifying a lack of commitment to the responsibility of being a gardener. I have used tremendous energy during binge weeding sessions, pulling them until my fingers cramped and hiding them in the woods. Now, I am starting to see weeds a little differently.

Recently I read an article in which the author encouraged his readers to never weed again. Instead, he implored us to harvest nutrients. This is far more than a mere change in perspective. With great wit, he went on to remind us that weeds, if kept from maturing to reproduction stages, are best used to fertilize the very area in which they grew. After all, they are composed of the very nutrients they stole from the exact soil from which they arose. This understanding makes weeds more than an enemy to bid riddance, it makes them fertilizer to be used for a more bountiful harvest! This garden lesson can teach us how to look at some other unwanted things in a different light.

Sin is like a weed that often takes up valuable space in our lives. It grows in our gardens and limits our production of good fruit. As Christians, we often deal with the sin in our garden like me, and Adam and Eve.  We try to hide it. In fear of judgment, we do all we can to present weedless lives. In the process, we miss a wonderful opportunity to use it for a more bountiful harvest.

The secret to using sin for gain is confession. God is able to use what the enemy meant for harm for good.  Confession takes something deadly and uses it to bring life. If we confess our sins, he is faithful to forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy. Satan wants sin to reproduce and lead to death. Forgiven sin in God’s hands, like an uprooted weed, can be used to grow faith and glorify Jesus, displaying His power to save from the penalty, power, and presence of sin.

I leave you with this personal testimony. About 20 years ago, in college, I had a roommate who I desperately wanted to know the love of his creator and savior. I tried everything to get him to receive Christ, even purchasing evangelism books to help gain insight on how I could share the Gospel in a way that he would receive it. This dear friend was always interested, but never believed my Jesus could actually be for him.  Finally, over a midnight Papa John’s pizza, I used something I had normally hidden. I used my sin. I confessed to him that in my struggle with lust I had sinned against God, and shared how Jesus remained with me in the battle. Suddenly his face lit up like the sun. He credits my confession as the moment he first believed that Jesus could save a wretch like him. James tells us to confess our sins to each other and pray for each other so that we may be healed. Don’t simply remove the weeds, use the dead and alive to help others grow their faith in what God has done, is doing, and will do. Use the weeds!

In Christ,

—Roger Garrison