We found out this week that friends of ours are expecting their fifth (that's right, fifth) child. They already have 4 boys under the age of 7, including a set of twins. When we heard they were expecting, our first thoughts were, "Oh, they'll definitely be looking to move, then." They live in a little 3 bedroom town house, with the other two bedrooms being just about big enough for a set of bunk beds and a dresser. Turns out, they're planning to stay right where they are. We were flabbergasted. (Fantastic word, btw, flabbergasted.)
And then we were a little convicted.
You see, when we talk about how many kids we want, most of the time I throw around numbers like "twelve" and "sixteen" just for the shock value (although I do want a bunch), and Adrian counters with numbers like "two" and "three", citing his less-than-extravagant teachers' salary. We usually settle on a wait-and-see mentality, agreeing to have as many children as we can afford.
But after talking with our friends, I have a whole new understanding of the word "afford". This couple is willing to sacrifice just about anything, it seems, in order to grow their family. They'll give up not only luxuries, but what some people would consider necessities (like a bedroom for 4 that doesn't involve trundle beds) for the sake of being able to have as many children as they feel God has for them. No, their children won't have all the latest toys. They probably won't even have many new clothes (she's really good at shopping Goodwill). Their meals are simple, their vehicles used. But they're happy. Incredibly, deliriously happy.
I want that. I want to fill this house with happy, loud voices. I want to tell my MSC* that they sound like elephants coming down the stairs. I want to raise, train, teach, shape, mold, discipline, and cherish.
Now all I need is another one on the way (don't get excited; it hasn't happened yet).
*many small children, see also: MckMama
Showing posts with label Spiritual. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Spiritual. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Sunday, May 16, 2010
Virtually Accountable-- Jesus Pursues the Lost
Welcome to the first post in this series. This week, one of the passages I read was John chapter 4. In it, Jesus talks with a Samaritan woman at a well and heals an official's son. I've also taken some ideas for this post from the sermon today (what I heard of it in between Lyndon's fussing).
One tool I've used in the past to meditate on Scripture is to write:
God:
I:
Then we fill in the blanks. So, in this passage...
God: sees into a woman's life and heart, and loves her anyway (v.1-26)
heals someone instantly from a distance (i.e. is infinitely powerful) (v.50-53)
shows extraordinary kindness to outcasts and misfits
I: cannot hide anything from God
will not be rejected by Him once I've been redeemed, even for my worst deeds
can be forgiven and have my thirst for sin taken away (v.13-14)
will not be turned away because of a lack of faith (v.48-50)
Jesus loves the lost. More specifically, Jesus loves the lost that nobody else loves. Samaritans were despised by Jews, and a loose, immoral Samaritan woman would have been about as far on the edges of society as you could get without catching leprosy. Also, John doesn't specify what kind of official this is, but he's probably a Roman, i.e. a member of the occupying army of oppressors... a real popular guy, I'm sure. Jesus isn't afraid to engage them both in conversation, and meaningful conversation at that. He also doesn't let their social status or brokenness get in the way of His redemptive work. How glad I am that God doesn't shy away from messy, awkward, broken people (like me).
On the flip side, do I shy away from messy, awkward people and the kinds of interactions they produce? Do I turn my holier-than-thou nose up at the girl with the tongue ring? the teenagers walking in the middle of the road? the woman dressed like a streetwalker? Do I think of myself as better than them? Absolutely. At the same time, am I a little intimidated by them? Yep. Scared to death at the prospect of having to engage them in conversation? You betcha.
No wonder I'm a lousy evangelist. But, as this passage shows, not only is Jesus my example, he's also my motivation. If he went to all that trouble to pursue me, in all of my brokenness and squalor, how can I not do the same for others? How can I not at least attempt to show them some of that love?
One tool I've used in the past to meditate on Scripture is to write:
God:
I:
Then we fill in the blanks. So, in this passage...
God: sees into a woman's life and heart, and loves her anyway (v.1-26)
heals someone instantly from a distance (i.e. is infinitely powerful) (v.50-53)
shows extraordinary kindness to outcasts and misfits
I: cannot hide anything from God
will not be rejected by Him once I've been redeemed, even for my worst deeds
can be forgiven and have my thirst for sin taken away (v.13-14)
will not be turned away because of a lack of faith (v.48-50)
Jesus loves the lost. More specifically, Jesus loves the lost that nobody else loves. Samaritans were despised by Jews, and a loose, immoral Samaritan woman would have been about as far on the edges of society as you could get without catching leprosy. Also, John doesn't specify what kind of official this is, but he's probably a Roman, i.e. a member of the occupying army of oppressors... a real popular guy, I'm sure. Jesus isn't afraid to engage them both in conversation, and meaningful conversation at that. He also doesn't let their social status or brokenness get in the way of His redemptive work. How glad I am that God doesn't shy away from messy, awkward, broken people (like me).
On the flip side, do I shy away from messy, awkward people and the kinds of interactions they produce? Do I turn my holier-than-thou nose up at the girl with the tongue ring? the teenagers walking in the middle of the road? the woman dressed like a streetwalker? Do I think of myself as better than them? Absolutely. At the same time, am I a little intimidated by them? Yep. Scared to death at the prospect of having to engage them in conversation? You betcha.
No wonder I'm a lousy evangelist. But, as this passage shows, not only is Jesus my example, he's also my motivation. If he went to all that trouble to pursue me, in all of my brokenness and squalor, how can I not do the same for others? How can I not at least attempt to show them some of that love?
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Aidan's Cold
You're all going to have to use your imagination to fill in the cracks in this post. Some experiences just don't translate well into print, but I'll do my best.
Aidan has been feeling a bit under the weather lately. Adrian and I are convinced that we gave him our colds, which were miserable enough for us, let alone for a 3 year-old. As with any small child (or any of us, truth be told), Aidan's health dictates his emotions, which consisted yesterday of fear, sadness, and dissatisfaction.
Zach, Aidan, and I were sitting at the dinner table last night. Sitting upright by himself on a chair and trying to eat was a bit much for Aidan, so, after 5 or 10 minutes, he started complaining that he was cold and wanted to go lie down. But the fun conversation that Zach and I were having was too much for him to abandon completely, so he took his blankie and lay down on the living room floor near the dining room, in a spot where he could still hear us. At a pause in the conversation, he started whining for his mommy, so I let him come sit on my lap. Once he was settled, Zach said, "My friend from school knows one of our church songs." I asked him which one, and he began singing exuberantly, pumping his little fist in the air: "Oh no, you never let go, through the calm and through the storm...". Rather than correct him for this breach of manners, I decided to join in, and together we sang the rest of the song. Then Aidan joined in. He didn't know any of the words, so his singing sounded something like, "Oh no, da da da da da...", but he definitely caught the song's meaning, smiling broadly when I changed the last phrase to "Lord, you never let go of Aidan".
We could debate the validity of that last statement for the rest of our lives, or we could have faith that God holds Aidan and Zach in the very palms of His hands and will save them one day. I'll choose the latter. All I know is that there was something lovely about watching a sick little boy, who had spent the better part of the last 3 days whining, begin to grasp the fact that God is taking care of him. He sang and listened to that song as if it had to be true, as if it was the most logical thing in the world, with no feasible alternative. Oh, that we could all grasp this lesson with such childlike faith. Oh, that I could.
Aidan has been feeling a bit under the weather lately. Adrian and I are convinced that we gave him our colds, which were miserable enough for us, let alone for a 3 year-old. As with any small child (or any of us, truth be told), Aidan's health dictates his emotions, which consisted yesterday of fear, sadness, and dissatisfaction.
Zach, Aidan, and I were sitting at the dinner table last night. Sitting upright by himself on a chair and trying to eat was a bit much for Aidan, so, after 5 or 10 minutes, he started complaining that he was cold and wanted to go lie down. But the fun conversation that Zach and I were having was too much for him to abandon completely, so he took his blankie and lay down on the living room floor near the dining room, in a spot where he could still hear us. At a pause in the conversation, he started whining for his mommy, so I let him come sit on my lap. Once he was settled, Zach said, "My friend from school knows one of our church songs." I asked him which one, and he began singing exuberantly, pumping his little fist in the air: "Oh no, you never let go, through the calm and through the storm...". Rather than correct him for this breach of manners, I decided to join in, and together we sang the rest of the song. Then Aidan joined in. He didn't know any of the words, so his singing sounded something like, "Oh no, da da da da da...", but he definitely caught the song's meaning, smiling broadly when I changed the last phrase to "Lord, you never let go of Aidan".
We could debate the validity of that last statement for the rest of our lives, or we could have faith that God holds Aidan and Zach in the very palms of His hands and will save them one day. I'll choose the latter. All I know is that there was something lovely about watching a sick little boy, who had spent the better part of the last 3 days whining, begin to grasp the fact that God is taking care of him. He sang and listened to that song as if it had to be true, as if it was the most logical thing in the world, with no feasible alternative. Oh, that we could all grasp this lesson with such childlike faith. Oh, that I could.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Chocolate, Midnight, and Amish Ice Hockey
Well, I'm finally posting about the Marriage Conference . . . and now some of the details are a little foggy, so bear with me as I reminisce . . .
We got lost on our way up, to the tune of about an hour's extra travel time. Part of it was Google's fault, and part of it was human error. Adrian felt terrible about it . . . but we still arrived 1 1/2 hours before the first session started, with enough time to check in (free chocolate bars!) , get our stuff together, and grab dinner. ($9.00 panini sandwiches in the hotel's coffee shop; I wish I could say that that was the last time we ate there.)
The next day should have started with breakfast at Skyline Diner (20 minutes away), but we had a bit of an early-morning problem . . . so the next day started with breakfast at Friendly's (20 seconds away).
As a matter of fact, meals like this were probably my favorite part of the conference. Yes, the messages were amazing, and getting away for a weekend was great, but it was so wonderful to be able to hang out with all these couples without the constant interruption of children. After the last session on Saturday night, a bunch of us went to the hotel's sports bar and talked until midnight. I feel as if Adrian and I benefited as much from our interaction with all the wise, godly couples around us as we did from the messages.
On the way home, as we were remarking about how great it would be to live on a farm in the Pennsylvania countryside, we saw this:
Can you tell what's going on here? Let me give you another view:
We got lost on our way up, to the tune of about an hour's extra travel time. Part of it was Google's fault, and part of it was human error. Adrian felt terrible about it . . . but we still arrived 1 1/2 hours before the first session started, with enough time to check in (free chocolate bars!) , get our stuff together, and grab dinner. ($9.00 panini sandwiches in the hotel's coffee shop; I wish I could say that that was the last time we ate there.)
The next day should have started with breakfast at Skyline Diner (20 minutes away), but we had a bit of an early-morning problem . . . so the next day started with breakfast at Friendly's (20 seconds away).
As a matter of fact, meals like this were probably my favorite part of the conference. Yes, the messages were amazing, and getting away for a weekend was great, but it was so wonderful to be able to hang out with all these couples without the constant interruption of children. After the last session on Saturday night, a bunch of us went to the hotel's sports bar and talked until midnight. I feel as if Adrian and I benefited as much from our interaction with all the wise, godly couples around us as we did from the messages.
On the way home, as we were remarking about how great it would be to live on a farm in the Pennsylvania countryside, we saw this:
Can you tell what's going on here? Let me give you another view:
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Lots of Links
Congratulations to this wonderful family on the birth of their lovely baby girl! Emma is so beautiful!
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We're leaving for the Sovereign Grace Marriage Conference this afternoon. Hopefully, it'll be a restful, productive, learning experience as we take this "Sabbath" together.
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We're leaving for the Sovereign Grace Marriage Conference this afternoon. Hopefully, it'll be a restful, productive, learning experience as we take this "Sabbath" together.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
words of peace and comfort
When one takes a leap of faith in a certain direction and doesn't see the bridge, or even a parachute yet, it's easy to regret every leap one has ever taken, especially if one finds oneself with a large amount of free time in which to think and worry.
So here I am, being haunted by the ghosts of jobs past: jobs that I was offered but turned down for one reason or another, jobs that could have led me where I want to be, jobs that I was so perfect for but didn't get.
And as I'm fighting the self-pity and regret that comes with these thoughts, a song starts playing. It goes something like this:
"King of glory, I know you love me
So I will trust you
Yes I will trust you
God almighty, you have saved me
So I will trust you
Yes I will trust in you."
But the bridge was the kicker:
"How can I not trust my King?
The one who has formed me and shaped me
I will rejoice and will sing
For the one who has made me has saved me."
God has a plan for my life, and it's GOOD! He formed me and shaped me; He gave me these talents and abilities, and He has a plan to use them for HIS glory, but it's for MY good too! How can I not trust someone who holds the universe in the palm of His hand, yet chose to suffer and die to save a wretch like me? My God is infinitely powerful, all-knowing and wise, yet infinitely good, kind and merciful. Praise be to God!
*Song quotes are taken from "So I Will Trust You", from the album "Come Weary Saints" by Sovereign Grace Ministries
So here I am, being haunted by the ghosts of jobs past: jobs that I was offered but turned down for one reason or another, jobs that could have led me where I want to be, jobs that I was so perfect for but didn't get.
And as I'm fighting the self-pity and regret that comes with these thoughts, a song starts playing. It goes something like this:
"King of glory, I know you love me
So I will trust you
Yes I will trust you
God almighty, you have saved me
So I will trust you
Yes I will trust in you."
But the bridge was the kicker:
"How can I not trust my King?
The one who has formed me and shaped me
I will rejoice and will sing
For the one who has made me has saved me."
God has a plan for my life, and it's GOOD! He formed me and shaped me; He gave me these talents and abilities, and He has a plan to use them for HIS glory, but it's for MY good too! How can I not trust someone who holds the universe in the palm of His hand, yet chose to suffer and die to save a wretch like me? My God is infinitely powerful, all-knowing and wise, yet infinitely good, kind and merciful. Praise be to God!
*Song quotes are taken from "So I Will Trust You", from the album "Come Weary Saints" by Sovereign Grace Ministries
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