Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" And I said, "Here am I. Send me!"
As I begin the process of applying to seminary, the essays and short answer questions have caused great reflection on my past,present,and my future. I'm the first to admit attending seminary excites, overwhelms, and even scares me at the same time. The funny thing is, I like to think of myself as never being SCARED! If you didn't know, Kingdom Business is extremely serious to me! It brings me deep sadness that those given the position of shepherding God's people blatantly "play church", the ones who commit adultery, fornicate, steal from the church, manipulate those not strong in the faith, the list goes on and on. It totally amazes and NOT in a good way, but more in a "Am I the only one scared of God" way. Now before you say I'm judging-I am not. As God's children, His Word, the Bible is our road map filled with instructions on how to live for Christ. If you don't believe me, then pick it up and dispute the Word of God.
Is it just me? But do you sometimes feel like you dropped the ball on something major and let the big one get away? I actually should've applied to seminary in last fall after visiting a local seminary here this past March. The good news is that God always presents us with another opportunity to get on board and become a part of the plans He has for each of us. As reluctant as we are from time to time, He gently pushes us beyond our limited vision and stretches our expectations to believe there is nothing better than partnering with God for awesome possibilities, breath-taking moments, and a lifetime of innumerable praise for saying yes to His will and way.
I imagine the prophet Isaiah jumping up and down, all too excited to tell the Lord, "Here I am, Send me". As much as we want to do what God requires of us, why is so hard to sometimes to simply say yes to the Lord. He has told us He know the plans He has for us-plans of good and not evil; to give us a future and a hope. This is one of my favorite promises in the Bible and I am quick to quote God's Word back to Him because I believe it whole-heartedly. If I believe it, then I have to act on it to right? As the time between then and now has gotten closer and everyday it becomes more and more real, I too like Isaiah am saying, "Lord send me, I'll go". I wanted to share with you, I have completed one application for seminary,and have one more to go. I've also been taken under the care of the Session at my church and plan to seek an ordination track through my local presbytery. I am STILL shocked by it all!!! Believe me, I am supposed to in nursing school; BUT God...Thank You for allowing me to share my "take" on the Word by subscribing to "The Onyx Stone Chronicles".
Isaiah 6:8
Jeremiah 29:11
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
No Need to Settle
Ephesians 2: 10 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.
There is some kind of hidden treasure in reading different versions of the Bible and gaining a fresh perspective from the Word of God. Imagine my joy this past Sunday as I followed along with my Pastor and chills literally went up my spine as I used the New Living Translation (NLT) and discovered Ephesians 2:10 from an entirely new angle.
This is a very common scripture and we are probably used to it being spoken or reading it this way: For we are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared beforehand so that we could walk in them. There is absolutely nothing wrong with it written just like that. Since this is the way it is commonly quoted, I actually like it just the way it is. It has a promise, and a pronouncement in a few simple words. But the NLT has me TOO excited! Instead of being workmanship, they use the word masterpiece instead. I don't know about you, but I have fallen in love with the notion of being thought of as God's own masterpiece. Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, Da Vinci's Mona Lisa, Michelangelo's David are considered exquisite works of art and titled masterpieces.
From a scriptural standpoint, what an awesome promise and confidence booster. Just close your eyes and think about how much work and detail goes into creating anything that would later be titled a masterpiece. To think the Almighty God, Creator of the Universe has fawned over you and I so much, taken the delicate task of creating us so intricately and perfectly, that He can airbrush our flaws and create us anew in Christ setting us apart for the plans He set in motion long ago and considers us to be masterpieces is mind-blowing. We are indeed fearfully and wonderfully made! Workmanship signals great work and detail too, but for semantics purposes, I'll take being a masterpiece any day. People sometimes call their significant others "dime pieces" and there is nothing wrong with that, but because I stand and believe firmly what the Word says about me(as you should to), I have to let the world know I am a MASTERPIECE. With all the thought and creation that goes into creating such an exquisite work of art I refuse to settle and neither should you.
Psalm 139:14
There is some kind of hidden treasure in reading different versions of the Bible and gaining a fresh perspective from the Word of God. Imagine my joy this past Sunday as I followed along with my Pastor and chills literally went up my spine as I used the New Living Translation (NLT) and discovered Ephesians 2:10 from an entirely new angle.
This is a very common scripture and we are probably used to it being spoken or reading it this way: For we are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared beforehand so that we could walk in them. There is absolutely nothing wrong with it written just like that. Since this is the way it is commonly quoted, I actually like it just the way it is. It has a promise, and a pronouncement in a few simple words. But the NLT has me TOO excited! Instead of being workmanship, they use the word masterpiece instead. I don't know about you, but I have fallen in love with the notion of being thought of as God's own masterpiece. Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, Da Vinci's Mona Lisa, Michelangelo's David are considered exquisite works of art and titled masterpieces.
From a scriptural standpoint, what an awesome promise and confidence booster. Just close your eyes and think about how much work and detail goes into creating anything that would later be titled a masterpiece. To think the Almighty God, Creator of the Universe has fawned over you and I so much, taken the delicate task of creating us so intricately and perfectly, that He can airbrush our flaws and create us anew in Christ setting us apart for the plans He set in motion long ago and considers us to be masterpieces is mind-blowing. We are indeed fearfully and wonderfully made! Workmanship signals great work and detail too, but for semantics purposes, I'll take being a masterpiece any day. People sometimes call their significant others "dime pieces" and there is nothing wrong with that, but because I stand and believe firmly what the Word says about me(as you should to), I have to let the world know I am a MASTERPIECE. With all the thought and creation that goes into creating such an exquisite work of art I refuse to settle and neither should you.
Psalm 139:14
Monday, January 4, 2010
Honor It
Respect! Nothing more and nothing less; or should I say that's what I believe the word honor boils down to. Respect is a two-way street and in the world we live in, people are quick to take someone's life because they feel the person has "dis-respected" them. There is self-respect, respect for others, but it seems we have missed the most important dynamic of respect; respect for the Word of God. In his book "how to study the bible", John MacArthur listed "Honor It" as the second application in bible study. It seems to me the words can be used interchangeably, but respect holds more weight in my opinion.
The word honor is used throughout the Bible: honor your mother and father so your days may be long in the land which your Father gives you; numerous times throughout the wisdom book of Proverbs; even Jesus said a prophet is not without honor except for his own country. One of my favorite scriptures is from Isaiah 29:13 and it reads:The Lord says "These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips,but their hearts are far from me." God is not impressed with our lipservice to Him. As believers we should honor the Word of God if for no other reason than He is God. Once we begin to put things in perspective and begin to read and study the Bible for ourselves, we will honor the Word of God as the highest truth for our lives. There is something to be said about kingdom language that I have fallen in love with over the years. It sounds corny, but I really do stand in the mirror and encourage myself with what the Word of God says about me or the situation I am facing. There is no doubt in my mind that what is written is forever settled in Heaven. If you believe what is written, I encourage you to honor it with your time by studying to show yourself approved so you can rightly divide the Word of truth for yourself.
Exodus 20:12
Psalm 119:89
Isaiah 29:13
Matthew 13:57
2 Timothy 2:15
The word honor is used throughout the Bible: honor your mother and father so your days may be long in the land which your Father gives you; numerous times throughout the wisdom book of Proverbs; even Jesus said a prophet is not without honor except for his own country. One of my favorite scriptures is from Isaiah 29:13 and it reads:The Lord says "These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips,but their hearts are far from me." God is not impressed with our lipservice to Him. As believers we should honor the Word of God if for no other reason than He is God. Once we begin to put things in perspective and begin to read and study the Bible for ourselves, we will honor the Word of God as the highest truth for our lives. There is something to be said about kingdom language that I have fallen in love with over the years. It sounds corny, but I really do stand in the mirror and encourage myself with what the Word of God says about me or the situation I am facing. There is no doubt in my mind that what is written is forever settled in Heaven. If you believe what is written, I encourage you to honor it with your time by studying to show yourself approved so you can rightly divide the Word of truth for yourself.
Exodus 20:12
Psalm 119:89
Isaiah 29:13
Matthew 13:57
2 Timothy 2:15
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