The Hiding Place

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I've heard it said:

when you pray to God, expect big things to happen!

The thing is, they NEVER happen the way I think they might, so they come at me . . .  unexpectedly!

I've been praying this year about LOVE. About learning to LOVE on a much higher plane.

 On God's plane.

And then he sends me this book.   THE HIDING PLACE,   by Corrie ten Boom.

I didn't go looking for a book on love, though I have read many. I didn't even know this was a book about love.

It was the book of the month for my online bookclub. It just came to me, there on my computer screen.

As some may have noticed, I even quoted from it, here on my blog. The tab "Thanks for the Fleas" is from the book, but I requoted it from another author who I was reading at the time.

I've heard about the book for as long as I can remember, and always meant to get around to reading it. But God dropped it in my lap and said,

 NOW.

And NOW is when I most needed and could most appreciate the true story of

 Corrie and Betsie ten Boom.

Agape love practiced on the highest level.

I recommend this book to you.

the law of kindness

It says of the worthy woman in Proverbs 31 that "on her tongue is the law of kindness."

Since love expresses itself, among other ways, through kindness, I can assume she was a loving woman.
Most of the description of the worthy woman refers to her industry and resourcefulness, her skills and benevolence. I heard a young mother comment once that her mother-in-law must be a worthy woman because she was very hard-working, resourceful, a good cook, a good seamstress-- she even canned!

But my heart cried out, "NO! She is not a worthy woman!"

 And it was for one simple reason.

 She was unkind.

 That one little statement amongst 21 verses says volumes about the woman.

But why the law of kindness?

It seems that she has bound her tongue to a law:  That nothing unkind comes off of it.
 And if a law, I assume, by her character, that she strives to keep it. She is a law abider, even in the realm of self-imposed restrictions.

In 2012 I will bind my tongue to the law of kindness as well. It will be difficult because it is often unruly-i.e.without law. But I will try, and since "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me"

 I know I can succeed!

"As I Have Loved You"

Jesus gave  his disciples a new commandment just before he was cricified:

that you love one another as I have loved you

 What was "new" about this? Love your neighbor as yourself was a very OLD commandment.  Wasn't that good enough? Was "as I have loved you" different?

Immediately after washing the disciples feet he gave this command. Ok, so it's about having a servant attitude. "If I your LORD and  teacher have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet."

But something even more powerful jumped out at me earlier in this scene. The Bible says that Jesus knew that Judas was about to betray Him. He told His disciples that HE KNEW one of them was about to betray them. He KNEW that Satan had entered Judas' heart.

And then He did it.

 He demonstrated the NEW commandment.

 He washed Judas' feet.

I don't think it was easy for Him either.

He told them clearly that one of them would betray Him and He was troubled in spirit.

The Prince of Peace was troubled in sprit because those whom He loved were betraying Him. Not just Judas alone, but the whole Jewish nation. His own people.

Still, Jesus washed Judas' feet.

That was new. That was supreme love-- agape love-- deomonstrated.



Deliberate Choices

According to the Nelson Study Bible agape love is based on
 "the deliberate choice of the one who loves rather than the worthiness of the one who is loved."

It seems to me that the Lord wants every choice I make to be deliberate. He wants me to think, act, speak . . . love . . .deliberately.

That's hard. The world all around says do what feels good, don't over-think it, follow your heart. But sometimes my mind and heart feel like doing or saying something unloving. So those ideas don't work in agape-land!

The ability to make deliberate choices requires deliberate preparation.

 My prayer and goal for 2012 is to grow in choosing to love others as my Lord has loved me----

deliberately.

I Am the Sparrow

Thrown from my ship

I cannot sail

The water's dark

The sun is veiled

The sea is angry, cruel and deep

The shore beyond is far too steep.

I grasp the slippery rope of fear

That pulls me down

But then I hear

The voice that calmed the stormy seas

Echoes round

And touches me

Reminding me, though I'd forgot,

I am the sparrow

That He sought.

___

Now standing on the sun-washed shore

I can hear Him

Speak once more

With broken wings I now can fly

The greater heights

I dared not try

And to this day I must be brought

For I am the sparrow

That He sought.

Though I've not exhausted the subject, I feel I have contemplated  trust fully for now. It has been a life-changing, life-saving study, and I am better for it--and grateful.

Trust has also lead me to my next subject:

 love

The hard, sometimes seemingly impossible, agape love.

The kind that requires a lot of trust.

Thanks for reading.

What Does Trust Look Like?

Early into my year-long exploration into TRUST, I wrote this question down:

 What does trust look like?

The answer surprised me.

Peter says that when Jesus suffered "He didn't threaten, but ENTRUSTED HIMSELF to Him who judges righteously."

This was surprising to me at first- to think that Jesus entrusted Himself to His father during His horrible suffering, just like we are told to do.

Jesus had to trust too?!

Had to just let events unfold, bad as they were?

All the ugly lies, the taunting, the humiliation and unjustness . . .  simply had to be endured?

Yes.



Trust looks like Jesus Christ, the son of God.

Falling Bricks

"The wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God."

In the middle of a sleepless night this verse came to my mind  (much like a brick on the head!).
I understood the message clearly: Vicki, your angry attack (of earlier in the day) won't bring about the righteous change you desire!

The amazing thing is, I have never understood that verse before!!

As I travel through my life, I find scriptures that were once a mystery to me, often suddenly become clear and meaningful. After all, the Word IS active and sharper than a two-edged sword.

When I was young(er) I was impatient to understand ALL of the Bible. I now see that it is a process; that God, in His wisdom, knew I couldn't understand everything at once (not that I'll EVER understand it all). The gentle, sometimes not, unfolding of truth in our lives, I believe, is a part of His master plan.

And I praise Him for it.