As much as the text is repetitive this week (for reasons that only ancient redactors will ever know), I feel like this little chapter is fraught with meaning, and the questions we've been asked to ponder and delve into have really got my cogs churning today. So let's get started!
To start off with, HisGirl is focusing on characteristics of God each week, with this week's focus being that God is unchanging. She posed the question, "Do I truly believe God is Unchanging?" At first I thought, "Well, DUH -- of course!" Then, I thought, "No, actually I don't," but now I think my final answer is "yes" but with caveats, as the military would say.
Yes: God is good. Faithful. Just. Omniscient. Omnipotent. Omnipresent. Loving. Steadfast. Eternal. And so on and so on. In my opinion, these things do not change, regardless of what is/is not going on in my life, the lives of others, or world events.
No: This is based on my knee-jerk reaction earlier, but what I understand now is that I was looking at it from the perspective of how I am interacting with God from one circumstance to another. The characteristics of God are a constant; these never change. HOWEVER! The big difference is how I am experiencing God at a certain place/time in my life. When T. died, I could truly say that God was Omnipresent and Steadfast. Was I experiencing God as being Just? No, not in that circumstance. I do not believe that God's will was that T.'s life would be cut short and that the lives of everyone around him would be ruined with grief. I do, however, believe that bad things happen in life, and they grieve God as well. I do believe it was God's will that some way, some how, there would be glory given to God throughout this tragedy and that lives would be blessed as a result.
In the section about "Concept Study," I chose to look at the word "remember" or "remembrance" and look at all the times the LORD asked someone to remember. There are 148 times that the word "remember" occurs in the KJV Biblical text, some of which are times when God is to remember a promise, covenant, or blessing, and others are times in which we are to remember. The Israelites are told to remember their dramatic exodus out of Egypt, they are told to remember the Sabbath and keep it holy, remember how the LORD led them for 40 years in the wilderness, and only about a kajillion more examples that I could keep listing but won't. For an excellent resource to use for study, go here. This is the search I ran for this word study.
Out of all the times where "remember" or "remembrance" is used, I love two examples the most:
1) Take a stroll through the Book of Psalms. Where better to read examples of individuals going through real-life trials or praises who are remembering God and how God will faithfully be there for them?!?
2) My favorite example is at the Passover meal where Jesus tells the disciples to break bread and drink wine "in remembrance of me." Why aren't churches doing communion every.single.time.they.get.the.chance??? To me, this is, aside from baptism, one of the only tangible things in the Christian religion that we can experience to connect us with the precious sacrifice of Jesus. Lutherans in particular believe that Christ is present with is "in, with, and under" the bread and the wine. True, I don't have to be having communion to know that Christ is with me, but it is such a special, sacred experience that I can't imagine not wanting to have that personal, intimate connection with Christ more often. (I am an individual who is motivated by sensory experiences, which is why I think I connect with communion in this way.)
Finally, we are "Putting It Out There":
1) How do you keep your memories of the Goodness of God alive?
2) Do you feel comfortable sharing the things God has done in/through/for/to you with your children? Your friends? Your family? Your coworkers? Why or why not?
These are actually hard to answer but I will do my best.
1) I'm ashamed to admit it, but I don't think I really, intentionally keep these memories alive. My main examples always seem to come from everything I went through surrounding the death of T., my life afterwards, and where I've come to now. That really only covers about five to six years. What about the other 30 or so years prior to that? I don't have trouble recalling these memories in times of trial; they do bring me hope and encouragement. I know blogging has been a good way to document these things, but other than that, it's a real chore to journal. It's kinda hard to take a photograph of God making your feet work so you can take baby steps, or sitting next to you during a time of woe or grief. But I can tell you that I do have photographs of some amazing friends and family who were God's way of ministering to me, and all I have to do is see their love and dedication on their faces to see God's fingerprint on the canvas of my life. "I don't know" -- can that be my answer?!?
2) Yes and no. I know this answer may surprise some, but sometimes I almost lean toward no. In my heart I want to be able to be frank with people, and I think for the most part I am. I am definitely not ashamed to explain my testimony to others and explain my religious views to others. I guess that, over the years, how I do that has changed a little, and I've gotten to be a lot more sensitive to my audience. I have never, ever been one of these street-preacher types of evangelists; in fact, people like that are extremely off-putting to me and I try to avoid them at all costs. The quote about wanting to bear spiritual fruit and not be a religious nut comes to mind. I choose not to insulate myself from what I feel is the "real world," a world of people who may or may not believe in Christ, or they may or may not be Christian even if they are religious or spiritual. I love seeing and interacting with all types and walks of people and want to appreciate the diversity of all of God's creations. That being said, they aren't changing my mind on how I feel. And when it comes to spiritual matters, or my testimony, etc., it can be a real challenge to find the words that clearly convey my perspective and personal experience in a way that 1) they can understand and relate to, and 2) not feel is condemning or judgmental language in reference to them. I strongly believe that if we are to be "light" and "salt" and be the hands and feet of Christ to the world, the majority of that calling takes us out of the Christian population and puts us in the mix with lots of types of people. I want people to come up to me and ask, "How on earth did you do it?", "How are you still standing?" "Why do you feel this way?" Then I can launch into the Real Answer in my life. I know that the Holy Spirit will put the words in my mouth that are meant for that individual to hear.
As far as my children go, it's a whole different story. They're my children, so of course they are my captive audience! I have undoubtedly made some terrible choices in my life, and I want to share that with my children at the appropriate time so that they can see me not just as Mom, but as a sinful human who is still beautiful to God since God sees who I am and what I look like in light of the cross. I also want them to hear about the times God gave me the strength to praise through pain, the times God helped me to make decisions, and all of the other amazing experiences we have had together. It is through my mother and grandmother passing along this same type of testimony that has strengthened my faith and resolve through the years, and I hope to continue that for my own children.
My Favorite Verse For Week Four: "...'When your children ask their parents in time to come, 'What do these stones mean?' then you shall let your children know, 'Israel crossed over the Jordan here on dry ground.' For the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you crossed over, as the LORD your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up for us until we crossed over, so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the LORD is mighty, and so that you may fear the LORD your God forever.' " -- Joshua 4:21-24 (NRSV)
5 comments:
AMEN for having pictures of friends to remind us of God's goodness!!
"I want people to come up to me and ask, "How on earth did you do it?", "How are you still standing?" "Why do you feel this way?" Then I can launch into the Real Answer in my life. I know that the Holy Spirit will put the words in my mouth that are meant for that individual to hear."
So. good.
And I, too, am a sensory girl. Communion is one of my favorite things,ever, because it is so tangible. So big--in just a little bread and juice.
Kim, all the stuff I loved in this amazing post would fill another post. Truly, learning so much from you. You always give me something on which to chew. xxxoo
I cannot believe that anyone can hear your amazing story and not see the stones you've piled up along the way.
love ya, chickie.
Loved this. Thank you for sharing!
Girlfriend, First let me say, You wear Christ all.over.yourself and He is so beautiful in you. No one can meet you, at least here on this blog, and not see His beautiful presence in you.
Second, you are so stinkin' brilliant. You string big, smart words together in an awesome way.
Third, "Why don't churches doing communion every.single time.they.get.the.chance???" This is part of the reason why I started taking communion in my own time with the Lord each day. To remember.
Post a Comment