Tuesday 19 January 2016

We Are Not Just Grasshoppers!

I heard a Christian speaker on the radio as I drove home last night.  It was only for a few minutes, but I love how God just uses a few minutes of my life to speak to me, even if it's in the van.  The speaker was talking about Numbers 13 and how the spies were just coming back to give a report to Moses about what the land was like in Canaan.  Ten of the spies were scared, "...the people who dwell in the land are strong and the cities are fortified and very large...and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them." (vs. 28,33)

The speaker focused on the phrase, "we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers."  Is that how we view ourselves, too, like grasshoppers?  And how did they know that the people of Canaan thought they looked like grasshoppers, was it just an assumption?

This is not right.  If we know who God is and who is fighting for us, we will not see ourselves this way, as grasshoppers, but instead as a mighty army, capable of anything!  Caleb saw this, "We are well able to overcome it. "  He had a right view of God.  He knew who was fighting for them.  He was not in the same opinion as the other spies who saw themselves as grasshoppers.

It is not to speak arrogantly of ourselves and think we are greater than we are because in some senses, we are just grasshoppers, but if we view ourselves from the point of view of God, we are definitely not just grasshoppers.  We can speak with confidence, like Caleb, "we are able to overcome"......whatever it is that is in front of us.

I left the van encouraged.  We are not just grasshoppers.  Our family will overcome whatever obstacles are in front of us because we know God is fighting for us.

Monday 18 January 2016

An Unlikely Hero

We love Gideon, one of the heroes of the Old Testament, in Judges. 

Israel had found themselves in a big mess.  They stopped listening to the Lord and "did what was evil in the sight of the Lord."  Why were they so surprised when things didn't go their way?  I appreciated the description in Judges 6, "And Israel was brought very low because of Midian.  And the people of Israel cried out for help to the Lord."

Very low.  We have felt very low before.  We've cried out.   Sometimes it has been because we've put ourselves in a situation all on our own, other times it doesn't seem to be anything we've done, it's just the ups and downs of life.

But God heard the Israelites and sent help, even though they didn't deserve it.  He chose Gideon, such an unlikely hero.   The angel of the Lord called him, a "mighty man of valour" (our 5 year old's middle name, Valour).  Gideon cannot handle this and says, "Please, Lord, how can I save Israel?  Behold, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house." 

The Lord's answer is great, "But I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianites as one man."  There it is again - one man.  An unlikely man, a faithless man,  a man full of fear, "too afraid of his family and the men of the town..."  He needs so many signs that God has really chosen him.  Yet God gives him the signs he requests each time. 

I appreciate how weak Gideon was, but mostly how afraid he was.  When the angel first called him he was "beating out the wheat in the winepress to hide it from the Midianites."  He was fearful of being caught as the Midianites were known to take all the produce of the land as soon as it was harvested.  Then, when the angel of the Lord comes to him, he immediately has so many questions for him, doubting, fearing, that what the Lord is asking him to do is even possible as the Lord, in his opinion, hasn't been as wonderful as he'd been told, "If the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us?  And where are all His wonderful deeds that our fathers recounted to us....?" (Judges 6:13)

When the Lord responds, "Go in this might of your and save Israel from the hand of MIdian; do not I send you?"  he as even more questions, "Please Lord, how can I save Israel?"

Why?  Where?  How?  He's afraid and needs answers.  Fortunately for him, God does answer him directly, but that isn't always the case.  And, even when he was given answers, he was still afraid.  He did what God told him to do, but "because he was too afraid of his family and the men of the town to do it by day, he did it by night." 

I did that once.  I was sure I was supposed to start a Bible Study at university when I was getting my teaching degree.  But it required putting up posters all around the campus announcing a time and place for Christian teachers-to-be.  So, in our fear, my friend and I went around at night and put up all the posters!  We had a great turnout-out, but we shouldn't have been so afraid!

Gideon definitely grew in strength and faith as God continued to develop him into a great leader.  We take great encouragement from him as my husband and I both took steps of faith this week.  He is moving ahead in an area of his business that isn't foreign to him, but requires a lot of time and effort with no pay until he makes a dent in the market.  It takes a lot of behind the scenes work before he'll see any return, but we both feel this is what he is supposed to be doing.  It makes us fearful at times and we have a lot of questions, but we're moving forward by faith and all along the way we get little signs of encouragement that this is what he's supposed to be doing.  Gideon, initially had a huge army, but God dwindled it down to 300 men, "The people with you are too many for me to give the Midianties into their hand, lest Israel boast over me, saying, 'My own hand has saved me.'" (Judges 7:2)  RM doesn't even have 300 men.  Most big companies have at least that many employees to do what he would like to do, but RM is only "one man", hardly the least weakest in my eyes, but I know he feels that way sometimes.  But God sees him as a "mighty man of valour".  He is the one who sends him.  He says, "I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianties (or the market!) as one man."  He has said, "Go in this might of yours."  So, next week he's off to a tradeshow to take on the big guys.  Flights are booked.   No 5-star hotels, just a small hole in the wall, but he's going!  He's going with might!  We're excited!

I, too, took a step forward and booked a seminar that I haven't given before.  I never know if women will show up.  I order books by faith.  I book churches by faith.  I send out emails and notices by faith, never knowing if I'll even make enough money to cover the costs of the seminar, but I feel it is such a benefit to so many women.  The Maxwells books have been such an encouragement to so many of us.  I have a lot of fears and questions, but then I, too, get little signs of encouragement along the way, so I keep going.  Any amount of income at this time will help and if this is something I can do to contribute I'm happy to do it.

We read a great verse in Revelation 3 this weekend, "Behold I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut...."  It is speaking of a much greater picture, but we were reminded that God is the one who opens and closes doors.  We simply need to move forward.  It appears He has opened these doors before us.  We are moving through them.  If He closes the doors, then we will know it.

Wednesday 13 January 2016

War with a Purpose!

Well, I'm excited to say, scheduling, or should I say, re-scheduling, worked.  When my little guys are on their own plan for life, it means trouble, and not just for them, but for me!  I really do feel like I'm pulling my hair out a lot of the time and that just shouldn't be! 

My first three children were, well, much easier!  The oldest, responsible, diligent, quiet-natured.  The next one, definitely more talkative, interactive, prone to getting into trouble, but so repentant when caught.  The third one?  Right out of a parenting book on "easy child".  Every child after that has definitely added more "life" to our family, let's say....

But I'm so grateful.  If I had stopped at 3, I would have definitely missed out on many parenting/life learning lessons.  This will seem like a stretch, but a verse from Judges reminded me why each of our children are here,

"Now these are the nations that the Lord left, to test Israel by then, that is, all in Israel who had not experienced all the wars in Canaan.  It was only in order that the generations of the People of Israel might know war, to teach war to those who had not known it before."  (Judge 3:1-2)

Clearly, the verse is not speaking of children, but again, I'm simply drawing a principle from Scripture.  The Israelites might have asked, "Why did you not take the Cannanites out of our land?" as they drew them away from God soon after.  I could ask, "Why have you given me challenging children?"  Any challenge He leaves in our life has a purpose, often to test us.  I feel tested a lot.  For the Israelites it was to teach them how to do war.  How else do you learn except by having someone to do battle with?

The Canaanites were also left "for the testing of Israel, to know whether Israel would obey the commandments of the Lord." (Judges 3:4)  Isn't that why God allows all things ultimately into our lives, to test us, refine us, purify us?  Not unlike the Tree of Knowledge from the Garden of Eden, He wants us to choose to love Him, not to force us to.  It isn't a set-up for failure, as I've sometimes seen it.  It's His way of ensuring that we've chosen to love Him of our own free-will.  Will I choose to go to God, or just sit in my pity party, whining about my busy household....

My younger boys have certainly taught me about war!  My oldest two boys have almost never fought their whole lives.  They are best friends.  It's been so wonderful to watch their friendship grow over the years.  Just the other day, my husband asked the oldest to change the lightbulb on the van.   Almost immediately he came in looking for his brother, "Hey D, I need your help!"  So great.  But with the younger boys, it's a lot of playing, followed by a lot of crying......Maybe they'll be best friends when they are older, but for now, it's a constant series of me separating them so they don't kill each other!

It occurred to me, as I watch my older children watch me with each of their little altercations that I am training them how to deal with their future kids.  I'm literally experiencing that verse, "in order that the generations...might know war, to teach war to those who had now known it before."  My older ones didn't have conflict the way the younger ones do, but what if they have children who are disagreeable or children who have strong personalities?  They'll need to know what to do and it is my job to teach them.  I hardly know what I'm doing sometimes, but I'm learning through trial and error, a lot of prayer, talking with others, reading good material, and slowly but surely figuring these kids out.  I'm learning about war so my kids will know how to deal with war, not just with their own kids, but with all situations in their future lives.

So, what exactly did I do with them yesterday?  I wrote up a schedule for their day and taped this massive piece of paper on the fridge delineating their whole day, from wake-up time to bed-time.  To anyone just walking in, it would have seemed a little regimented, but I had to be.  I figure, start regimented, then loosen up once they get the whole idea of the schedule a little better.  We couldn't follow it to the letter of the law because I had a guest for a couple hours, but we did our best and it sure helped.  Little J and little B seemed to obey the schedule more than listening to me!  That's a good thing.  I wanted them to see it as if it were the law and they seemed to!  I cannot tell you what it did for the rest of the day - it went virtually problem-free because they were busy, busy, busy!  The snow outside was a huge blessing, too, as they were able to play a lot outside.  We needed a snow fall!  Being cramped inside as a little boy must be an awful form of torture!  Girls don't seem to mind, they always have something fun to do, but not boys.  They need to get out and run around. 

All my children saw this and I hope they learned another war strategy.  We'll see how "war" goes today.....

Tuesday 12 January 2016

A Reason For Scheduling!

Our two littlest boys sure give us a run for our money (ha, funny expression.)  We are constantly putting out fires with these two.  At 3 and 5, it feels like they are out to either make us older faster or perhaps keep us younger with all the running we do to keep up with them.

Last night, the older one was brushing his teeth and for some reason decided he needed to shut the door for privacy.  The 3 year old knocked on the door, "Open the door!"  "No!"  "Open the door!" "No!"  This went back and forth until finally, the 3 year old realized he was taller now and with that sudden realization that he could reach the light switch on the outside wall, he turned out the bathroom light on his brother and said, "Take that!"  Ohhhh, the screaming from the other side of the door.

That is what I feel I am constantly dealing with!  I woke up this morning determined to make their day a little more ordered.  I have been writing a seminar on scheduling your day and how to schedule your child's day.  I have written many schedules over the years for our family, but it always needs an update.  This morning I wrote another update, specifically with the little ones in mind.  I have noticed when they have work to do or they are helping their dad (specifically with this most recent reno), they are awesome!  They don't get into trouble, they are happy, they feel important!  So, I figured I need to give them a little more purpose in their life.

This is the whole premise of this latest seminar.  If your children are occupied purposefully, they will not be needing as much discipline!  I'm praying that this will be a quieter day with those two little rascals.

Monday 11 January 2016

Surprise!

The week before Christmas, as I've said before, was hard for me.  Now that it is over, I feel so foolish even saying that as I only get that way because I get so easily caught up in what is going on all around me.  Nevertheless, I sat in my husband's office that week and I told him how I was feeling.  I even went so far as to say I hoped for a surprise for my kids.  I just really wanted to bless them.  I hoped something would happen that I wasn't planning (or paying for!).  We sat there together that day and literally prayed for a way to bless our kids without spending any money or that there would be a surprise we didn't know about.  I left his office wondering what God would do.

On Christmas Eve, out of the blue, my husband started to renovate our family room!  And I'm not talking a small renovation.  (Don't worry, it isn't costing money, it's saving us money!)  He and I had been discussing for some time all the issues with that room.  It wasn't insulated.  It had a plumbing pipe in an awkward spot which meant we could never frame one of the windows properly. It had a bad door seal which sometimes made it feel like a wind was blowing through the room.  We were never able to keep that room warm. 

When I saw what he started doing, I immediately thought, "Maybe this is the Christmas surprise?"  because the rest of the week nothing out-of-the-ordinary really happened to fit the bill of my prayer request.  I was ok with that though as renovating the room was fun, it meant a complete demolition of the room.  We literally gutted it to the studs and found NO insulation.  It sure explained why it had been so cold and why we had such high heating bills.  RM and the boys even went so far as to take out the drop ceiling (which I had never liked in the first place).  This was where I got a huge surprise that we had really hoped for - beautiful, old, thick beams lay hidden underneath the cheap ceiling that had been there before.  It was like walking into history.  Every time we walk into the room all we do is look up.  I thought, "Maybe that was the surprise!"  as we just kept finding beautiful things covered up by cheap wood panelling and awful ceiling tile.  Had we purchased those beams it would have cost us a fortune!

But it didn't stop there.  The beams went down the walls, too, framing the windows.  It got us so excited as we realized we never wanted to cover those up again.  After all the walls were gutted, we did have to spend a very small amount and threw in some very high-rated insulation to keep the room as warm as possible and quickly threw up a few pieces of drywall on the outside walls.  The room is already noticeably warmer, so it will pay for itself quickly.  RM made sure he kept all the beams exposed where he could.  It looks so good!

This week we'll move all the furniture back into the room (even though it isn't completely done) and start on the other side of the house in what we call the "homeschool room".  We'll gut it to the walls, too, and insulate it as well.  I'm sure we'll find the same thing in the ceiling which I'm excited about.  I'm also excited to keep getting our house warmer and warmer.  We are only renovating as the money comes in, so it will be a slow messy process, but I'm ok with that.  I kind of like the wood cabin look!

On top of all this, it has been birthday season for two of our girls.  The younger daughter turned 12, and the older one, 18.  Both pretty significant dates.  We like to celebrate and with my oldest daughter when she turned 12 we did a big thing.  I wanted to do that with our next daughter, but it was just too costly, so we have delayed it a year.  No rules are set it in stone in this house.  However, it was still a fun birthday.  I just did it on the cheap.  We made homemade pizze (not store bought).  We bought a video (didn't go to a movie) that they could all watch.  They didn't even end up watching it!  The girls all just sat and sat around the piano!  Then the one splurge was to go for ice-cream on us, but the ice-cream store was closed, out-of-business!  So they went to another place, for even cheaper!  A great party.

For my oldest daughter, though, it was hard to just pass over her birthday as she was turning 18!  She's officially an adult now!  I didn't know what to do.  Typically we have it planned well in advance, but as each day went by, we just kept putting it off.  I kept praying that the Lord would give us wisdom and a miracle!

Other friends of hers were also having birthdays and she was always in on their celebrations, so I kind of half-thought, "Isn't that enough partying?!"  But no, she still wanted to do something on her day as well.  Ok, I can understand that, so we finally settled on having just two friends over on Sunday afternoon.  My parents were going to graciously meet us for lunch and treat everyone to their favourite spot to eat, so I thought, once again, "We're good."

But, a couple of days before her birthday, out of the blue, another friend emailed her and said, "Are you doing anything for your birthday?  Do you want to come here and watch a movie?"  How nice, I thought to myself.  That's perfect.  But then, that same friend, called me personally and asked if she could turn it into a bit of a surprise party and invite some friends that she didn't know would be coming!  She was going to give her a surprise party!  This sweet friend of hers went and did the grocery shopping on her own (just got her license!), baked a cake, made snacks, decorated the house....basically went all out.  I'm sure it cost her a pretty penny (if not her, her folks!)  I was sooo touched!   There was the answer to my prayer. God did hear me.  He blessed my kids (the older four all got to go) with a literal surprise!  I didn't have to plan it or even pay for it.  God took care of everything using another young girl in my daughter's life.  I was teary just thinking of it when she told me what she was planning for her. 

We call the older four Team A.  The younger four Team B.  While Team A was out at the party, Team B got to go to a chili cook-off at our new church.  They had so much fun trying out all the different kinds of chili and voting on all of them.  The dessert table was pretty great, too!  So God took care of them, too.  No one missed out on having a good time. 

I know God cares about even the littlest things.  Blessing my kids is something I love to do.  What parents don't want to bless their kids?  To me, it usually means I have to spend money, but because things are so tight lately, I haven't been able to do it in a way that I normally do.  Key word - normally.  So I simply brought that request to the Lord and He took over.  He got a party planner in place, a church event, even a demolition idea into my husband's mind and voila!  Lots of blessings, and even surprises, overflowing for my whole family.

I have prayed for income this year.  We don't know where it will come from.  Perhaps because God has a sense of humour, He had RM wear a certain suit jacket that he hasn't worn for a long time this past Sunday.  He put his hand in the side pocket and out he pulled $30!  I don't think that will be our source of income, but God can do whatever He wants!  All I know is that He answers our prayers, our very specific prayers.  Our church will be studying prayer this new year.  I can sure speak to the many answers He's given us.

Friday 8 January 2016

Me and My House

Our roosters became men in the last few weeks and they want the whole world to know.  They do not follow the "crow when the sun comes up" rule.  They crow sometimes as early as 5 am and once they start they DO NOT STOP.  It is particularly loud and strong in the morning, when everyone is wanting to sleep.  I'm just glad our closest neighbours aren't very close.  To top it off, there are FOUR of these boys running around making noise.  We have really become an Old Macdonald's Farm with a cluck cluck here and a moo moo there and a neigh neigh here and a meow meow there!  Better than reading about the sounds in a book!

So in the final chapter of Joshua, he finishes his pep talk off with a complete review of all that God has done since the exodus of the Israelites, reminding them of many details just in case they forgot.  He closes with the classic choice and what he and his family will choose,

14 “Now therefore fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. 15 And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

What I didn't notice before was their response.

16 Then the people answered, “Far be it from us that we should forsake the Lord to serve other gods, 17 for it is the Lord our God who brought us and our fathers up from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, and who did those great signs in our sight and preserved us in all the way that we went, and among all the peoples through whom we passed. 18 And the Lord drove out before us all the peoples, the Amorites who lived in the land. Therefore we also will serve the Lord, for he is our God.”

It seems obvious!  That is the answer we would expect from the Israelites.  "Of course we'll serve the Lord!  We remember all that He's done for us!  We know the danger in turning away from the Lord.  We would never serve another God! "  But no, it isn't like that.  Joshua gives them a very unexpected response, too:

19 But Joshua said to the people, “You are not able to serve the Lord, for he is a holy God."

I really loved that.  "You think you can serve the Lord, but you can't.  You are too sinful and He is too holy."  I think what he might have been trying to say is that you are not able to in your own strength, without acknowledging how sinful you are, without acknowledging His holiness and how far off the mark you are.   For us, reading this today, thankfully we have the knowledge of Jesus and the Holy Spirit.  We can say every day, "I will choose to serve the Lord."  But we know very well, we won't or we can't, not in our own strength.  I can barely make it out of bed without His strength let alone co-parent a group of 8 or get out of debt or anything!  I'm so grateful I have the benefit of knowing what Christ has done for us and for the gift of the Holy Spirit that I can call on any minute of the day, all day.

Fortunately, though Joshua gives them the bad news that they aren't able to serve God how they think they can, they still say they will.  

"And the people said to Joshua, 'No, but we will serve the Lord.” 22 

I appreciate this statement.  They know they are hopeless and not very good at serving Him.  They know they will fail.  They know they can't match His holiness, but they want to try anyway!  I can relate to that sentiment so well.  I know I fail in so many attempts at trying to serve the Lord.  I know I can't reach His standards.  I just can't do it most of the time, but I still say, "I will serve the Lord."  I then rest in His mercy towards me as He knows my heart.

That's it.  Joshua pretty much ends there.  The people were given a choice, they made the right choice (at least for the time being!).  It ended on a high for sure.  They are in the Promised Land, all the inheritances have been allotted.  They've made a covenant to serve the Lord faithfully.  If it had been a movie it definitely had a happy ending.  I really loved studying this book and the story of all the tribes fighting for what God longed for them to possess.  It inspired me in our journey to keep fighting, to not give up, to persist in prayer, to rely on my one man, and to choose to serve the Lord, me and my house.

Thursday 7 January 2016

Every Promise Fulfilled

As Joshua comes to a close, I find it impossible to think there could be more encouragement, but there is.  Ch. 21:44 says,

"And the Lord gave to Israel all the land that he swore to give to their fathers.  And they took possession of it, and they settled there.  And the Lord gave them rest on every side just as he had sworn to their fathers.  Not one of all their enemies had withstood them, for the Lord had given all their enemies into their hands.  Not one word of all the good promises that the Lord had made to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass."

So much in this verse!  It basically comes down to we must trust God, even if it takes 45 years or longer!  Eventually, though it probably seemed like forever, the Israelites did move into the Promised Land.  Sadly, it wasn't the first generation, but the second that received this blessing due to disobedience.  How I pray that it will be this generation that sees the freedom we long for, but it might not be.  All the enemies were taken down, one by one.  And, even if the Israelites thought it was their fighting skills or their doing in any way, the bible makes it clear that "the Lord had given all their enemies into their hands."  Yes, they had to do their part, but ultimately it was the Lord's doing. 

The last line of the verse is the most powerful, "Not ONE word of all the good promises that the Lord had made to the house of Israel had failed; ALL CAME TO PASS."  This is such a comfort to me.  I can cling to His Word because of this verse....every promise will come to pass.  He will not fail me.  It almost seems like it was written in that dramatic form on purpose, to stand out, "all came to pass."  Just in case a reader was wondering or questioning if perhaps God left something out in His promises....He didn't and the writer wants to make sure you know it.  The fact that line is included in Scripture is great.  It shouldn't be necessary.  You could go back and look through the last couple books and find out if all the promises came true.  It must have been very important to include so that there is no doubt at all in our minds about God, His promises and His faithfulness to fulfill them. 

Finally, in Chapter 23, Joshua calls all the leaders of Israel and gives them one last pep talk,

"Therefore, be very strong to keep and to do all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, turning aside from it neither to the right hand nor to the left, that you may not mix with these nations remaining among you or make mention of the name of their gods or swear by them or serve them or bow down to them, but you shall cling to the Lord your God just as you have done to this day."

Somehow there are remnants of the nations around them though they possess the land.  That must have been a challenge, not unlike us as we live amongst a godless world.  It is hard to be separate.  As the Christmas season ramped up, I did find it soooo hard to not want to "mix with the nations" and do everything they did.  The warning is severe.  The Israelites were not to "make mention" of them, "swear by them", "serve them" or "bow down to them" in any way.  When the culture is all around you, it is very hard to not do this.  The antedote is to cling to the Lord.

The chapter goes on, "For the Lord has driven out before you great and strong nations.  And as for you no man has been able to stand before you to this day.  One man of you puts to flight a thousand, since it is the Lord your God who fight for you, just as he promised you."

This is where I read the idea of ONE MAN.  I only have one husband.  That's all I'm supposed to have!  It never occurred to me to want more husbands, but I extrapolated a little and thought, "Hmmmm...I suppose a few more husbands would help us get out of debt faster!"  No.  Ridiculous.  God gave me one husband and he's enough!  (not "he's enough", I can't stand more, but "he's enough", the perfect man for the job!)  He can put to flight a thousand!  Again, my prayer for him to today is just that, "Lord, help RM put 1000 debts to flight!  Help him put all the competition to flight as he bids on work!"  I can pray with confidence that God can do this as RM has God fighting for Him, "just as He promised."  So I don't have to pray fearfully, but in strength.

It goes on some more, "Be very careful, therefore, to love the Lord your God.  For if you turn back and cling to the remnant of these nations remaining among you and make marriages with them, so that you associate with them and they with you, know for certain that the Lord your God will no longer drive out these nations before you, but they shall be a snare and a trap for you, a whip on your sides and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from off this good ground that the Lord your God has given you."

More warnings to be very careful about this remnant that remains as they will be a snare and a trap, a whip on our sides and thorns in our eyes.  That describes all the marketing out there, trying to draw us into spending more and more money.  As soon as we fall victim, we're done.  We were talking to a few people who asked us about our holiday.  RM told them it was nice, no details.  They also said their holidays were nice, but then added the classic line, "Now we just wait for the bills."  Talk about a snare, a trap, a whip, a thorn.  We have enough regular bills to pay for, let alone Christmas bills!  I'm glad we don't have those, too, to dread!

I'll end now.  One final chapter tomorrow.

Wednesday 6 January 2016

Procrastination and More Fighting

So often I am a procrastinator.  I find that out when a deadline approaches.  Suddenly all these things that needed to get done are done in a flash!  Why do I do that?!  Joshua asked the people of Israel the same thing.

"There remained among the people of Israel seven tribes whose inheritance had not yet been apportioned.  So Joshua said to the people of Israel, 'How long will you put off going in to take possession of the land, which the Lord the God of your fathers, has give you?'"  (ch.18:3)

How long will you "put off"?  I love the fact he actually uses those words, put off.  They had been given an inheritance.  The land was subdued.  There was nothing left to do but to move in!  Too much work, perhaps?  They were too comfortable perhaps?  So interesting to think that blessing was waiting, but they didn't take it!  I think they were tired from war.  Ahhh....that I get.

I started to ask myself, "What am I not taking possession of?  What blessing am I missing out on because of putting something off?"  I think it is just a good reminder in general to not procrastinate actually.  Not much simpler than that.  I think the blessing is a result of what can happen when you do things when you know you should.  A great example was this week when I was on my daughter for cleaning her room.  I had asked her to do a more thorough cleaning, like under-the-bed type of cleaning for weeks.  She put it off and put it off.  Finally, I knew I had to get involved.  She was too overwhelmed.  So I began to help her.  We went nuts on that room.  Well, surprise, surprise...a missing library book showed up that had been lost for weeks.  I loved that!  But it would have been even better if we hadn't procrastinated and done the room when I first asked!  Thus we paid overdue fines as a result and missed out on the blessing of no fines!!!! 

Relating it to debt-reduction, I know I need to continue to keep track of our finances as closely as possible.  I can't put that off at all this year, so I am asking the Lord for continued help to be careful with what we have.

Chapter 19:47 was another call to war and a great reminder to not give up the fight.  "When the territory of the people of Dan was lost to them, the people of Dan went up and fought against Leshem, and after capturing it and striking it with the sword they took possession of it and settled in it..."

This verse reminded me of when we were building our house and coming to the end when all the financing was coming to a very critical point and we were scrambling.  It was no easy task pulling that all together.  I was very afraid at many points that it wasn't all going to come together as it needed to.  I had just started learning the lessons on fear, but hadn't quite mastered it yet!  RM and I were starting to feel like we should just give up and let the bank take over - it was too much it seemed.  That's when my friend called, as if she knew what was going on.  I explained to her what our situation was as she went into a story of how a very similar situation happened to them, but the moral of her story was they wouldn't go down without a fight.  If they were going to lose their house, it wasn't before they did everything in their power to make things work.  I will always remember that and it did turn out well in the end for them and for us, the bank didn't win.  I kind of feel that is what this verse is saying.  It seems at first the land given to Dan was "lost to them", but they didn't hang their tails between their legs and walk away.  They "went up and fought against Leshem" and then they fought, "capturing it and and striking it with the sword".  Sure enough, they won and took possession and settled in it.  They wouldn't go down without a fight.  A great reminder for us to do everything that we can, to not lose this fight.  It might mean another battle of some kind which makes us feel very tired just thinking about it, but if we want to possess the land, what choice do we have?

Anyway, more encouragement from a tiny little book in the Bible.  So full of truth and just what I needed to hear...again.

Tuesday 5 January 2016

Tribal Inheritances

Back in Joshua for a bit....

When I was reading back in December about the Levites, so much jumped out at me.  In Ch. 14 when all the inheritances of land were being distributed, to the Levites, it read, "he gave no inheritance among them...And no portion was given to the Levites in the land, but only cities to dwell in, with their pasturelands for their livestock and their substance."

I wondered at the time that I first read that if the Levites ever questioned their inheritance.  They were really at the mercy of others giving honestly and appropriate amounts, not cheating or procrastinating, not unlike those in ministry today I suppose.  But, at the same time, God did give them cities to dwell in and pasturelands, just what they would need - a place to live and food to eat.  I looked around and realized I have a "city to dwell in", my house.  I have literal pasturelands for livestock!  We now have two freezers full of meat just recently slaughtered from off our land - food from heaven really.

Later, it says, "and the Lord was their portion."  God has to be enough.  They had to lean on Him for everything.

Other tribes received their inheritances, too.  I, again, wondered if any of them looked at what other tribes were getting and then go and think to themselves, "Uh, I don't think that was exactly a fair distribution of land?"  Sure enough, the people of Joseph went up to Joshua with some words....

"Why have you given me but one lot and one portion as an inheritance, although I am a numerous people, since all along the Lord has blessed me?" (Ch. 17:14)

Allow me to give my version of the complaint, "What is going on here Lord?!  You asked me to trust you with the number of children I would have.  Now I have a lot of kids and I just don't feel like you are giving me what I need, when I need it and how much I think I need?  Don't you see the size of our family?!"

Joshua's answer is amazing, "If you are a numerous people, go up by yourselves to the forest, and there clear ground for yourselves in the land of the Perizzites and Rephaim, since the hill country of Ephraim is too narrow for you."

Basically, he was saying, "Oh yeah?  Ok, well, if you are such a big family, then go over there!  We have options for you!  You just have to clear a forest with that big family of yours!"

But that didn't make Joseph's tribe very happy, "The hill country is not enough for us.  Yet all the Canaanites who dwell in the plain have chariots of iron...."

Excuses, excuses.  They complained.  Joshua gave them a solution.  They didn't like the work that was ahead of them and all they saw were big chariots of iron in their way.  So Joshua responded again,

"You are a numerous people and have great power.  You shall not have one allotment only, but the hill country shall be yours, for though it is a forest, you shall clear it and possess it to its farthest borders.  For you shall drive out the Canaanites thou they have chariots of iron and though they are strong."

Again, my translation, "You told me you are a big family and you are, but that means you have great power!  I will give you what you need, but it is going to take your whole family to be on board and work hard together!  It'll be like clearing a whole forest, but you can do it!  And those chariots of iron won't be a problem.  You can drive them out!"

So, I sat there pondering what our family could do.  I asked God for a forest!  What can we clear?!  I thought it was such a great little side story in the whole book.  A large family wondering if they were going to be taken care of, yet looking back seeing that God had always blessed them.  Then, going to Joshua, just to make sure there hadn't been some mistake.  No.  They were given an extra inheritance, but it was going to require some work and a lot of faith.  I took away a great lesson that God does notice my large family.  He will give us what we need, but it might just take some work on our behalf.  I think we are willing to do whatever it takes!

Caleb, too, was an awesome example of faithfulness.  From the time he first went in with Joshua to spy out the land to the time of the inheritances being distributed, he waited faithfully, but finally he approached Joshua and said, "And now, behold, the Lord has kept me alive, just as he said, these forty-five years since the time that the Lord spoke this word to Moses, while Israel walked in the wilderness.  And now, behold I am this day eighty-five years old.  I am still as strong today as I was in the day that Moses sent me; my strength now is as my strength was then, for war and for going and coming.  So now give me this hill country of which the Lord spoke on that day ....." (ch.14:10-12)

That became my prayer for my husband, that he would remain strong and faithful like Caleb and that would sustain him.  He often wakes up in pain, perhaps some arthritis in his feet.  I long for him to be as strong at 85 as he was at 40!  I pray he would remain strong to fight this war against debt and for his going and coming.  Caleb was just one man.  Joshua was just one man.  We have only one leader in our family, too.  But he is enough and I pray that he will be able to continue to lead our family to the final victory.

Monday 4 January 2016

Back On-Line Recap

On one of the last days of all my days and weeks of studying, the computer died......then my cell phone died.....I was truly media-free, but not by choice.  But, then, somehow my husband managed to fix the computer without having to make a trip into the city, so here I am......finally feeling connected again.

Well, I made it through December.  It was definitely a struggle at times.  Here's a quick recap of the week before Christmas...

The Sunday before Christmas, the pastor mentioned just briefly about the innkeeper.  He had no room for Jesus and put Him in a back corner, in a stable, not to mention the other innkeepers before that who made no room for Jesus at all.  He asked the congregation, "Are you making room for Jesus this year in your Christmas celebrations?"  I was able to happily say, "Yes" as it was literally all we had.  Taking the gifts away felt like, for the 3rd year in a row, we were finally understanding the true celebration of Christmas.  It has taken us this long to really listen to the sermons on baby Jesus and not be actually thinking about the gifts in the back of our minds.

Christmas week is definitely where I see the spiritual struggle the most.  It is when I start feeling the anticipation of children around me, at church, with friends or family, and I start to hear Satan's voice making me second guess our decision, but God was so faithful and gave us so many blessings that week.  One of the greatest blessings was the gift of "busy-ness"!  That is not usually a gift, but for us it was!  We had so many places to go where we either went to see friends for our annual get-together, or we went to Christmas concerts, or we had a family event to attend or a party to go to or a visit from someone at our house......there was always something to do and because we didn't have to find a parking space in a mall or tons of gifts to wrap, we found it so enjoyable.  Each visit, or service or concert was just that much more special and we took it all in.

Christmas Eve, like the last two, was again where Satan's voice was the loudest.  I sang each song at the candlelight service reading each verse, meditating on each hymn truly thanking God for sending His Son to save me from myself, who was still there stuck in shackles.  I tried to explain it to a friend after who saw I had tears in my eyes during the service and I explained the dramatic changes we had made in our Christmases lately, but how it was still, sadly, hard for me.  I joked with her that I still hoped deep down that Santa would come during the night and bring gifts as I certainly hadn't bought them.  She realized it was in the name of debt-reduction as well as changing patterns in our lives and the future lives of our children and she reminded me that all sacrifices are hard, but worth it.  She then pointed out all the gifts I had right in front of me, the 8 children surrounding me.  She even suggested I put ribbons on all the gifts I knew were from God that I had seen recently.  In my mind I could really see it.  I had been given so many gifts this month, not just tangible ones, but gifts of friendship, gifts of surprise visits, gifts of time, gifts of peace.....it was a great reminder.  Even just talking with her was a gift.

Christmas Eve we went back home after the service and enjoyed a meal my parents had gifted us with, an amazing beef pot roast dinner, one I didn't have to prepare...another gift making my evening just perfect.  My second daughter surprised everyone and gave each person a homemade gift or a little candy she'd bought with her own money.  I hadn't taken her out, so she did it on the sly with my other daughter.  That was a special, too.

Christmas morning I got up early and lit all the candles on the table and made a delicious breakfast that looked pretty on the china I rarely use.  Everyone came down to a yummy breakfast and just like I have in past years, I thanked them for being so understanding and being in on the decision to go without gifts.  I had woken up a little sad, but then picked up my devotional book and read.  It was perfect.  I had just finished reading in Joshua his warning to not "cling to the remnant of these nations remaining among you", but to instead, "incline your hear to the Lord".  In the devotional, the author reminded the reader to "cling to God" and not to His gifts, though His blessings are great, we must cling to Him. I started to realize my sadness that morning was still coming from me clinging to the wrong thing.  My whole disposition changed in a flash.  I think it was because I had read the word "cling".  Such a strong word.  It was me, hanging on for dear life to the wrong thing, to something that could never satisfy.  I shared that with the family, too, and we all went on with our day, no sadness.

Christmas Day ended up being warm and mild and one of the best Christmas Days ever.  We built a fire and sat around it outside while we watched our children chase roosters.  It was definitely different!  It has been 3 years now since we first made this decision to give up all the gifts, all the spending, all the craziness.  I can see now why it was so hard for me to break free as it was years and years of patterns.  That is hard to change overnight.  I will now be much more prepared for the challenges December brings, and hopefully stronger as a result of all the lessons I learned. 

January is now here.  We are going to do what we did a couple of years ago and just detox a little from all the sugar.  So, the whole family will be on a slightly different eating plan as of today.  They aren't even complaining as I think they think it's a good idea!