Enter In

I heard Jesus say to me "Enter In".  It was a simple little phrase that has captured my mind for the past few days. What happens in the entering in? What is it to enter in? I considered how a child is conceived;  sperm enters into the egg and creates a new life.  Miracle upon miracle, that a uniquely beautiful human being would be created from this act of entering in.  So it is with our lives in Christ. When we enter into Jesus we bear the fruit of life in Christ. 

To the broken and the lonely,
hear Jesus say "Enter In"

To the one who has diligently toiled only to find hands empty and hearth gone cold,
Hear Jesus say "Enter In"

To the one who has wept till eyes and nose were red and soggy,
Hear Jesus say "Enter In"

It is in the entering in that the miracle of Joy is fulfilled. It is in the entering that the aroma of Christ fills the senses, delights the heart, refreshes the soul. 

Enter in...

Come to Jesus all of you who are weary and heavy laden.
Come find Rest!

There is a rest for your striving soul in the entering in...
There is peace in the presence of God.

Go for a walk in the coolness of the day and with arms outstretched invite Jesus to Enter In!  Give God a moment of your undivided attention.  Even if it means that the vacuum is playing your background music offer up a song of praise to God.  Say to Him that you welcome Him. Say to Him that you need Him, long for Him, love Him.  It is in the entering in today that you will find life abundantly.

Today, remember that this life in Jesus is fashioned in intimacy with the very King of Kings and Lord of Lords.  We are His bride, daughter, sister, brother.. these are words to describe deep connection... and so it is with Christ.

When the Church is full, but hearts are empty

I read an article about a Mega Church that downsized because half of their membership were just sitting in the pew and not really contributing to the body.  After thinking it was a real church for weeks I just found out that it is all a joke.  Ha, but why did it stay in my mind all this time? Maybe because I think the church does need a wake up call.   The article talked about how the leadership went through the list of folks and out of the 8,000 folks who came on Sundays only about half of those gave any of their time, talents, or finances to the ministry of the church.  They enjoyed the free childcare, the gathering of nice people, the great music, and charismatic speaker but they never actually engaged their own lives and hearts.  The folks at Lark news were on to something.

As a Mom I think of it in these terms:  If Zack were to sit before a healthy meal that I spent time cooking for him and he rejected all the food that was good for his body, but ate a large piece of cake, I would not be happy. I wouldn't feel proud of my son for finishing his piece of cake. I wouldn't be posting on pinterest how to get your son to eat cake and feeling like I was the best Mom ever because chocolate is consumed with such zeal in my house.  So it goes with the church, church leaders get so proud of the size of their worship center and the bottoms that fill the pews that they have no idea that their people are getting fat on cake and are not growing at all in their intimacy with Jesus.

I am honestly heart broken over the lack of real depth in the church.  Jesus is calling us to true intimacy with Himself.  He calls us his friends, His BRIDE!  He says "Come to me!"  He beckons us to "Life abundantly", and yet so many of the people he dearly loves have no idea that there is even such a thing as intimacy with Jesus. They think that being a Christian means to ascribe to a set of values, attend church, and be nice. 

Jesus wants more for his bride. He wants His bride to enjoy Him and to know Him. He wants his bride to hear his voice and have joy in His presence. He wants His bride to walk intimately with Him on every day of the week.  What husband would be content to see his bride for 2 hours on a Sunday morning?  A husband marries his bride because he wants to live with her, to know her, to walk with her when life is hard and when life is in full swing of celebration.  Dear sister, see Jesus as your pursuing groom today. See Him as the one who was standing at the end of the aisle with his face radiant with joy because you were decked in white and joining with him in covenant.  I am not being sacrilegious here!  These are God's metaphors.  God really loves you.  He wants your heart.  He wants your hands and your feet.  He knows that as you walk with him, you abide in Him, your life will bear much fruit.  Apart from him, you are nothing but a pew sitter using up free childcare.  In Him... abiding in Him... your life will bear the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, goodness.... oh friend, don't settle for life in the pew.  Walk down the aisle to a life of true intimacy with Jesus.

Here is the article that got my mind going even if it is just a silly made up story:  http://www.larknews.com/archives/574

Because Our Friendships Should Go Deep

How many church events do we have to go to realize that in too many ways those gatherings are no different than a Super Bowl party? The conversation, the activity, the way people relate to each other is not a reflection of Christian community, it is just folks hanging out.  Sure, we all know we are Christians and we love Jesus, but we rarely talk about the impact the Gospel has had on our lives.  We talk about dirty diapers (not my preferred topic). We talk about movies and football teams.  We talk about vacations.   This is what we do.  We spend the precious time we have together talking about stuff.  We don't go deep, but why?

Jenn and Linda encourage me in the Gospel almost daily as we raise our children together. Paula told me I need to get off my bottom and write a blog.  God has used them to bring joy, peace, and blessing to me. I love this picture of our baby bumps (Linda's was so big he popped out).

I think there are lots of reasons

• Gospel conversations are tough because they feel vulnerable. It is just easier to keep people on the outskirts. If I deeply engage it will reveal my heart, the beautiful Christ redeemed heart and the ugly sin struggling heart. I have both and they live in tension, I only want folks to see the pretty side. 
• We don't want to be offensive.  I grew up with the adage to not talk about religion or politics.   Jesus is always my favourite subject of conversation but how do you talk about him without bringing offence?  
• We don't want to be that person who is a Bible thumper (do they still use that term? Yes, I am 40)
• We don't spend time in God's word and so it is not really on the tip of our minds in the first place.

 I believe that Jesus wants us to have friendships within the body of Christ that reflect the depth of intimacy that He has with the Father.  It is time to give it a try, to let go of our fear of being known and being challenged out of complacency and to trust God with our hearts. It is time to trust the church.

It is time to jump into Gospel Friendships

This summer I spent quite a bit of time with Zack at the pool. Everyday on the way he would tell me he doesn't want to roll over, and I would make him.  He is not swimming if he can't breathe and the only way to breathe is to take your face out of the water. He is 4, the best way to get his face out of the water is to roll on his back. I would make him practice his technique for 10 minutes every day.  After a while I noticed that he was doing it on his own. He would be in his own little world of swimming and I would see him gracefully roll over to breathe. He was scared to do it, but with practice and consistency he learned that it was a great way to breathe.


I think we should look at this business of gospel friendships in the same way Zack got accustomed to doing something he feared. We took 10 minutes and set it apart and said it was for practice.  We need to take time with our sisters in Christ and set  it apart and call it holy.  Summit Crossing leadership is beginning a new strategy within our Missional Communities that they are calling DNA groups. It is a small (2-4) group of folks who will meet in a time that is holy, to have gospel conversation.  It will be a safe place in which to practice sharing the deeper, tougher issues, and to celebrate the great blessing of the Gospel.  I need a DNA group because in setting the small community apart as Holy Unto the Lord, I have the freedom to share and to listen in a Holy Spirit led conversation.   Perhaps with practice, we will find that even in friendships outside of DNA group we are having gospel conversations.  It reminds me of Deuteronomy 6:

⁵ Love God, your God, with your whole heart: love him with all that’s in you, love him with all you’ve got!

^6-9 Write these commandments that I’ve given you today on your hearts. Get them inside of you and then get them inside your children. Talk about them wherever you are, sitting at home or walking in the street; talk about them from the time you get up in the morning to when you fall into bed at night. Tie them on your hands and foreheads as a reminder; inscribe them on the doorposts of your homes and on your city gates.

We need to rehearse the Gospel. We need to remind each other of the work God is doing.  I know that the more I share what God is doing the more the truth of His work sinks deeper into my heart. I begin to believe that He is good when I recite His goodness.  I begin to remember His faithfulness when I share with others what He is doing. I also find greater freedom from struggles when I let them out of the dark places and bring them into the light. It is a win, win.  In sharing both struggle and joy I find myself in a deeper intimacy with God and His bride.  Friends, let's take this challenge and take time with a small group of trusted friends. Make that time holy.  Set it apart for God.  

For when you need to remember God does miracles

Here is my Mom, Diane, telling her story of the miracle God worked in her life a few days ago.  Honestly, I stand amazed by God.  Enjoy.
love, Judy

I took this picture the Thursday morning on my way out to work.  I am simply amazed that this heavy metal garage door bent around my three skinny little finger tips. You can see in the door where God, in His infinite mercy, bent the door around my fingers which resulted in my not losing my index, middle, and fourth fingertips. Instead of going to Girls Ministry and being a part of a beautiful night of teaching and sweet testimony, I would have been in the hospital and maimed for life if God had not worked this miracle.
 How it happened:  my power was out from the storm.  I had difficulty opening the heavy metal door.  I had managed to get it up but when I pulled it down, it was falling too fast.  I tried to slow it down so it would not bend from the bounce of hitting the ground too fast but my hand slipped into the gap and when the garage door straightened my fingers were flattened in the door.  I was literally trapped, unable to free my hand.  In pain, I began screaming for help from my neighbors.  After several minutes, That "still small voice" told me to raise the door and what had taken me two hands and much effort to raise, I was able to do 1 handed at a very awkward angle.  
 


Look at the dent in the door!  My small fingertips did not do that.  For any of your ladies that are discouraged, show them that God is able to do everything, show them this picture!!!  God makes a way where there is no other way.   He is a defender to the Widow and a constant help in times of trouble.  He is my deliverer!  He is all I need.  I am healed.  I am encouraged and I stand in awe of His faithfulness.  Whomever you need to share this with , do so because God DOES bend the metal of our lives even if it is to get a Girls Ministry teacher to class because she baked cookies and had a fun game, and His word for those 10 year olds.  God cares about His children, old and young, and this picture is God's sweet and tangible testimony of His very real presence in my life and your ministry.  Bless you my sweet sister in Christ.  I am well and rejoicing in God's mysterious and powerful mercy, healing, and provision.  Diane

When everything is unfinished

 I am afraid the most I will see of my husband tonight is his long legs in these holey jeans sticking out of our attic.  After a long day of work he has to come home to prepare our attic for a bug bomb like no other.  It is an urgent issue. One of those tasks that you don't want to do but somehow it has bumped itself up to the top of the list.  

You know the list that looks like this:

.

 Putting a border around our garden because although we are happy for healthy grass, we actually wanted garden beds as well. The grass is fighting for more space..

Here is the beginnings of a playset we inherited on Saturday.  It will probably lay in our backyard for at least a year as many other things are more pressing.

 

 
 How about the flower box my man made for me.  I robbed it of it's soil and now it has become a storage facility. I need to get more dirt in that thing!  It is asking me for flowers... for beauty.  Or the three empty whiskey barrels that are just waiting for sweet potatoes to begin their 5 months of growth.




The thing about real life is that it is almost always unexpected and the thing that takes the most time is the thing you didn't even want to do in the first place.  The whole thing can be disheartening and frustrating. Do you ever feel like you look at that long list of projects and wonder if you will ever have a fun day on the greenway watching your little one ride his bike? My husband said today in his frustration that we should just sell the house, what will we have accomplished at the end of our lives.. that we maintained our home?   Of course that is when I began to panic (I love my garden), but the truth is that Jeff has a good point. 


We spend so much time on our list of things to do that we have nothing left for the more important investment of who to be, and who to love, and who to bless.  We spend little time abiding in Jesus because our list makes us get work done. We do what seems urgent and leave the important stuff for later...  Sometimes later never comes.

So what is the answer?  All I can think is that precious verse that has so informed my life.  Matthew 6^{the Message}

^30-33 “If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don’t you think he’ll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met.

³⁴ “Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.

The list begins to overwhelm us when we forget that God gives us everything we need for the moment. He gives us all the grace we need for today.   When I stop to breathe in the life of God I find that I can breathe again. I can hope, I can rest. I don't feel so weighted down by the long list of projects and obligations.   

When I take that moment to remember my pursuing saviour my heart starts growing again.  I have beautiful peppers, tomatoes, squash, sweet potatoes, mints, and more all all growing in my garden and in pots around my house. I planted them in fertile soil, but God has been making them grow.  

 

Let your life be planted in the fertile soil of God's presence and Word.  He will bring the increase.  He will give you grace to follow Him today. It may be in the attic with holey jeans, but it may just be in a comfy chair in His word, or laughing at the pool with your sweet children.  Today, God has given you what you need for today. 

The Crushing Weight of Infertility

I have been worn out. My heart has been broken in longing for more children.  I was losing sight of a God who I was disappointed with and a hope that I had long held for our family to grow.  Friends, I am not talking about a decade ago. I'm not looking back at a road with years of wisdom to share. I am talking about last week. I am talking about the bad news we had from the fertility doctor and the second blow that followed days later.  I am talking about me weeping in frustration and anger that my heart was breaking and Jeff's heart was worn thin and it didn't seem like God was intervening.  Can we just be honest here?  There are days like this, when all hell seems to break loose and this girl with rock hard faith feels small and insignificant.  I just want you to know that for those of you who have felt like you saw your last shred of hope walk out the door, that I understand.  I feel you.  I feel for you, and with you, that life can be hard.

In the final ladies Bible Study that I taught for this spring we looked at Jesus on his way to Golgotha. He was beaten and bruised. His skin torn to shreds and his muscles without any energy to carry his cross.  A Roman soldier called out a man, Simon of Cyrene, his name to be remembered for all generations as the man who carried Jesus's cross.  Let that sink in, Jesus was so badly beaten that he was not required to carry his own cross, he was given help.  He was walking in the will of His father. He was without sin, and yet in his obedience to God he was in a place where his own cross was too heavy a burden to bear.  Now I know there are a whole lot of theological implications to the question "could he have carried his cross?", but the fact is that he did not carry it and he did not protest to Simon taking on the heavy load.  If there came a time for Jesus to lay down his cross accepting anothers help, certainly we are given opportunity to lay down our heavy burdens. 

Last week my Mom came to my house and I was weeping over our infertility.  She was about to take a long drive and she prayed for me and Jeff.  She heard the Lord say "I am compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love".  My Mom came to my house as soon as she got home and she shared with me what God had laid on her heart. I realized in that moment that I had completely forgotten about God's compassion. He seemed distant and I felt like Jeff and I were on our own in our journey to grow our family.  My Mom's word's began to change my heart.  I was remembering God.   She and others have continued to pray for me and Jeff and to encourage us. I can honestly say that the weight of this cross I have had on my shoulders is not crushing my Spirit anymore. I am keeping those words before me. "God is compassionate". 

Dear friend, you are not meant to carry a heavy burden.  Matthew 11:28-30 says

²⁸ Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.”

Today Jesus speaks to me that this desire for more children is a gift that He has given, not a heavy burden. The desire to conceive is not an idol, it is a joy that I lay at Jesus's feet.  I can trust him with our family. He has certainly proven Himself over and over.  I can trust him with my heart.  You can trust him with yours too.  It may be broken and hurting.  God may be asking you to wait like He is asking me...  But the promise of Jesus is that the burden he gives is light and the yoke he gives is easy. If it becomes too hard, you are probably doing more than God has asked you to do.  You are going an extra mile you haven't been given grace to travel, you are trying to do in the flesh what God must first accomplish in the Spirit.  Or maybe you need a Simon to come along side you and help you lay your burden at the feet of the One who made the Sun rise this morning and has placed breath in your lungs. 
 
 Open your heart up to God and to the body of Christ. He may use your brothers and sisters to help take that heavy burden off of your shoulders and lay it at the feet of Jesus.  He has certainly done that very miracle in my life this week. 

You gotta have friends

I can't stop thinking about what I read in Joshua a few weeks ago. I have long since passed it in my Bible Reading but it still lingers in my mind as a thought with which I am wrestling.  "And the men of Reuben, the men of Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh crossed over armed before the children of Israel..." Joshua 4:12.  Profound, or you think I am losing it? Why this sentence to make me awestruck with wonder?  These men already had their promised land. They had fought their battles and settled in their inheritance on the East side of the Jordan. They could have said that it wasn't their battle to fight, that they needed to stay home and start planting their own fields. They needed to make a life for themselves.  They could have just sent their blessings, their good will to their Israelite brothers as they crossed to conquer Canaan, but they didn't. They led the charge and stepped into the split waters of the Jordan.  They stayed in the fight.

Friends, this speaks to me because God will ask you to cross a Jordan for the sake of your brother or your sister. He will ask you to be present and involved in moving your friends into their own "promised land".  You may think you are too busy with your own world, your own house, your own problems, but God...  He invites you to fight a battle that doesn't look to immediately benefit you.  He may ask you to lay down your own dish towel to clean a friend's house. He may ask you to bring your hammer to your neighbor's house instead of fixing your own fence.  He may ask you to go to your knees in prayer for a sister's son who is headlong on his way as far from God as possible. He may ask.  God may just ask you to go to battle for another's promised land.  Say yes!  Love your friend enough to stop and pray, listen, lend a hand, bring a meal.  Love your friend enough to not just say you will pray, but really pray, fervently with the passion and orthodoxy of God's Spirit flowing through you.  Fight the battle.

What did it benefit these brave men who crossed the Jordan before the ark of God?  They were circumcised on the other side of the Jordan.  Yikes!  It was painful but it meant they were marked for God.  They were set apart as holy. If they had not crossed over they may have missed out on the sign of the  covenant of Abraham.  They were also there in the midst of Israel when the walls fell down around Jericho.  They saw the miracle!  They were given an opportunity to see the God of the Universe show His muscle and His favour.   They didn't miss out on God.

When you are called upon to help a friend enter in to that place of promise you also get to celebrate with your friend in the faithfulness of God.  You get to be a witness to the miracle. You get to walk on a deeper level of intimacy with your sister or brother.  You also get to show the world that those of us in Christ really do love each other. We really are for each other.  We are One!

I ask you to pray for me to enter into that place that I believe God has promised to our family.  Jeff and I and even little Zack long for our family to increase.  We long to have another baby and adopt children into our family.  I am beginning to believe more and more God is asking me to invite others to cross this Jordan with us in prayer.  Please take a moment to really pray for God's blessing on our family.

Lord, bring the increase. Let us Webbs raise up warriors for your kingdom!  Remove any obstacles to fertility, and let conception happen.  Let our licensing with DHR go through and make our home the perfect place for a little one without a home to be loved and raised to love Jesus.   Release your blessings Lord.  Let your will be done on Earth as it is done in Heaven.