What's a Grandmom to do?

Not sure that I know, certainly don’t have a formula,  but I'm finding out as I go. This week it's meant…

…being on call: to wash and band-aid a bleeding foot, to teach little legs to climb down a ladder backwards, to tuck a waking little boy back in his bed, to wake up promptly with a smile, and yes, to cuddle up and read a book…

…being in the yard: collecting fallen apples, manning the swings, picking plump yellow pear tomatoes, being the refuge from the sprinkler, taking pictures of little people in their playhouse.

…being in the kitchen: making bread together, cutting and peeling apples for applesauce, and apple bread, and apple crisp, stirring strong and licking spoons, fixing chicken, and brownies for dessert…

…teaching first notes on the piano: "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star"--singing and playing together.

…holding an awestruck baby as he listens and wonders in his brand-new world.

…taking a walk to get a slushie and play at the park.

The job description is endless. What does it take to be a Grandma? For now it means being here to answer when the call comes: "Grandmom?"

And as I write a little voice carries up the stairs, freshly returning from a walk with mommy and daddy:

"Where's Grandmom?"

Here I am. Gotta go!

--LS

(Please pardon this abbreviated post; this 'Grandmom' stuff has definitely limited my capacity for ponderings this week! So much else to do and to be. )

Great Expectations

On an otherwise unfettered day, content to be at home extracting the last days of summer’s leisure before the pace of fall kicks in…I am troubled by a gloomy companion, a faithless crony that rides on my shoulder under the name of Great Expectations. (Not to be confused with Dickens’ book by that name which has been my summer’s reading project, finished just this morning!)  It natters in my ear to the effect that:  What I do is not enough.  What I should do is unending.  While what I could do, if I would remains  a dark presentiment. This sense of not living up to expectations—God’s, my own, others’, threatens to steal today’s contentment. 

I’m determined to have done with it! And as I sit to take captive these errant thoughts and turn the light of Scripture on them my determination is heightened by the realization that this is not purely for my own sake.  For those around me likely feel in me this same sense of expectation with which I struggle—that they somehow be ‘more’—this illegitimate condemning, binding, stifling sense that they are failing to meet expectations—mine, their own, God’s and fellow believer’s.

We are all called to freedom--freedom to be who we are meant to be, to become who God has wired us to be, to live out His design for His great glory…without guilt, without disappointment, without regret.

This I want for me. This I want for all of us.  But how?  To silence the voices of unmet expectations, do I cease to read? Do I run from the Book that is also Life to me? Do I stay away from all things 'church'? Do I turn a deaf ear to others?

Is this really a means of relief?  Or will it instead shut off the very words of truth that would point us all to freedom?! The Word, the Body, the fellowship with Father and Son by the Spirit—we cannot live without these, only flounder into ways that seem right but in the living of them are hollow dead ways.  Whether we choose to try harder or to give up trying in our quest to be free of endless expectations, our ways are dead ends apart from dependence on God.

We all fall short of the glory of God.

I will never live up to even my own expectations, let alone God's, by trying to get it right, by hoping to do enough, be enough, sacrifice enough, obey well enough. Alas, conscientious Lindy, always wanting the directions to be clear so she can follow them to the “T” and so gain approval and thereby her significance in the world—be justified by keeping the rules. ( ?! ) And lo,
I’ve run headlong into a brick wall:

For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight.

How can I be so dense? Isn't this basically saying that keeping the rules doesn't work?! Can't work. Won't work. Makes no one significant! Keeping rules may look good, to people. It may make me feel good about myself. It may impress others (or not!), even gain one a reputation as a good person (or 'sweet' or 'nice' or some such ambiguity)…but it is of no relevance (did I admit that? Can I say this?) in God's sight as far as currying favor is concerned.

For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

It's the comparison to His goodness that's the real rub. Nobody measures up with that. It's no use trying.

Some figure this out more quickly than others. Shutting their ears to all expectations, they do whatever seems worth a try--determined not to heed the ill-trained conscience, not to resent or regret the consequences, not to give credence to any lofty expectations that might spoil the journey…they steel their souls to previous counsel, warning and instruction determined to find a new way, to find freedom. In short, to find rest for their souls outside the burdensome keeping of rules.

But alas, there is no glory here either. And the glory of God is what we were made for—to live in awe of it, to relish it and to reflect it. Only God's glory will satisfy the deepest parts of us.

If such glory is not found in the summoning up all our sin-bent efforts to do good things and follow fine rules, then where?

If it is not discovered in a self-directed flight from restrictions and the qualms of conscience, then where?

Jesus beckons: Come to me. You're tired. You're carrying a load I never designed for you to bear. Here, tuck your head into my yoke. Walk with me. My load is manageable. My burden is light. You'll find rest here, even while you're working your way through life… (Mt.11:28-30)

This is what redemption is about. Technically, it is accomplished already. Practically, its effects are ongoing in the believer.  I need it, still. You need it. We all are dead without it. God reaching down to provide a sacrifice good enough to cover our insufficiency, still. God, justifying the ungodly, by faith.

And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly,  his faith is counted as righteousness…

God offers Himself freely still, for any disabled body's benefit. Only terms: recognize you're disabled and receive His offer to be righteous in your stead, this "righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe."  You don't have to measure up. There are no expectations, only that you bank on Your Benefactor's goodness, by faith, to pay your debt.

And how do these reflections help me TODAY with all the shoulds and the coulds and the doubts that play havoc with my contentment in being who I am, where I am, just as I am in this moment, for His glory? They remind me that justification isn't found in reading commandments (or rules, or instruction manuals) and seeking to implement them. Bringing glory to God is not a matter of begrudgingly putting aside the joy on my plate to attend to a peripheral round of 'duties' that should (?) take priority.

Justification is mine by faith in the One who provided it.  I'm not called on to prove it by my works, but to believe it and the works prepared for me from the foundation of the world will flow from my life. Justification calls me to believe that His righteousness is enough. He is in me and I in Him and as I abide in this Love, He will lead me in paths of righteousness for His glory's sake. By faith I can offer this day, this moment, to Him--my body His instrument, as is. The rules hold no threat of condemnation. He will conform me to them as I walk with Him holding the Spirit's hand, governed by the 'perfect law of liberty', destined for glory—"the freedom of the glory of the children of God." (Rom.8:21)

And as He beckons me to “Come”, lay down my load of expectations, I take Him at His word, no matter how unlikely it sounds--this is faith. And I bow my neck again to carry His yoke—only the humble find rest. And together we walk through the doubts and by-pass the shoulds and coulds and pull only the weight I was designed to pull, digging the furrows together that are my lot to plow, trusting Him for the planting and the harvest, awestruck with this bountiful redemption He is accomplishing in me. This is the path to glory—my truly great expectation! 

"And those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified…" (Rom.8:30)

--LS

And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose." Gal.20b,21

"For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love." (Gal.5:6)

*************
For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law…the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. (Rom.3:20-25)

Hymns and Hope

I've been brought back to the old hymns lately. It's taken some weeks of pulling away from contemporary tunes and lyrics to begin to hear the old ones singing in my head again. But I need the old ones. I need their eternal no-nonsense perspective. When I wake stiff-necked, when the old body just ain't what she used to be, when joints don't work as well as they once did, (when I can't think of anything better to complain about than my body's petty ailments!) I need the old hymns. They point me to the Savior who came to save me not just so I can feel good today while I'm 'worshiping' but so that I can live for His glory today despite what ails me! and what’s more, I can look forward to an eternity of joy in beholding His glory in the hereafter! They point me beyond myself and my present state, beyond the way I feel to my great and unchanging Hope--this great and unchanging Savior whose glory is the purpose of life the universe and everything!

So many of the old hymns give evidence that everything is not sunshine and happy times in this lifetime but that we are safe in His care and certain of better things to come… We've lost this sense of living with a hope of eternal joy. We want Eden now, and expect it to be restored post haste as part of the 'deal' we 'accepted' when we came to Jesus.  But look at the old lines: "Under His wings, O what precious enjoyment! There will I hide till life's trials are o'er; Sheltered, protected, no evil can harm me; Resting in Jesus I'm safe evermore" (William Cushing, 1823-1902)

"Be still, my soul: the hour is hastning on When we shall be forever with the Lord, When disappointment, grief, and fear are gone, Sorrow forgot, love's purest joys restored. Be still, my soul: when change and tears are past, All safe and blessed we shall meet at last." (Katharina von Schlegel, 1697)

Or how about this old one: "Fade, Fade, Each Earthly Joy". The last stanza reads: "Farewell, mortality; Jesus is mine. Welcome, eternity; Jesus is mine. Welcome, O loved and blest, Welcome, sweet scenes of rest, Welcome, my Savior's breast; Jesus is mine." (Jane Bonar, 1821-1884) I need the old hymns because I need to be reminded of a theology that emphasizes the Kingdom of God as yet future in its fullness. We have been made new creatures in Christ, it is true, but these old bodies are waiting a future redemption. When Christ returns to set up His Kingdom all will be well. Until then we live in hope and no matter how good it gets here, it's not Eden. No matter how bad, (and it will get worse before it gets better!) there is a Kingdom coming! And the only thing certain in this lifetime is that it's subject to change without notice!

I escaped to the garden one morning this week when the house was too chilly and the sun far too inviting to think of hunkering down to desk work! It was one of those days where the bottom seemed to have dropped out of all the carefree summer fun. You know the kind-- you wake to the awareness that physically speaking, life is not getting better.  Maybe your neck is stiff; your joints are sore… You're getting older. You can tell it's happening when all your yesterdays seem sweeter than your todays. And your tomorrows? Well, they just draw a bleak blank. Maybe you're just tired from all the summer fun (?)…So I turned my small energies to wrestling with weeds in the hot morning sun. And as I worked Sunday's hymn came singing through my head: "My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness…" (Edward Mote, 1797-1874) It stirred me to think beyond my petty self-absorption. What was I hoping for anyway? A forever body in the here and now?! Endless carefree summer days?

I reflected on what a good thing it is that I have an Unchanging Savior. He never tires, (never grows old!) never loses perspective, and never puts aside His purpose of revealing His glory to me, in me, and through me. No wonder Paul said that rejoicing in the Lord would be a safeguard! (Phil. 3:1) He's the only One who does not and will not change. I am fickle. My energies are finite. I'm in trouble if rejoicing in me is all I have.

One day I'm pedaling with the ocean breeze in my face, on top of the world. The next I'm hunkered over lesson plans with a stiff neck and sagging confidence. One day I'm floating serenely on a quiet lake without a care in the world, the next I'm troubled over a dozen dilemmas…. My salvation is about more than my fickle here and now, my pleasure in the moment---where I can be rejoicing in the feeling of sun and water on skin and the delight of wind in my hair one moment and the next be plunged into weary malaise… There's no stability there; not unless in everything I'm turning my focus back to the glory of God, rejoicing in this moment because it is His doing, and trusting Him with whatever the next moment holds. My salvation is about rejoicing that I have a Savior whose agenda doesn't change with the weather, who never tires or gives up on His plans for me…He has redeemed me for a purpose bigger than me. "When darkness veils His lovely face, I trust in His unchanging grace. When all around my soul give way, He then is all my hope and stay." He has redeemed me for His glory.

Somehow, as I rejoice in all He is, I fulfill His purpose for my days. He intends for me to reflect His glory whether I'm sweating in the garden on my knees in the dirt or inhaling the essence of sweet peas on a summer's evening. Whether I'm reveling in sunshine while floating on a secluded lake or bent over a desk grappling with lesson plans… In everything I'm meant to look to Him as Source and Solace, my beginning and ending, and my Song in the meantime. He's the One constant in a lifetime of change. My hope can be built on nothing less.

--LS

"….for apart from God who can eat or who can have enjoyment?" Eccl.2:24,25

"So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." I Cor.10:31

“Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord! It is no trouble for me to write the same things to you again, and it is a safeguard for you.”  Phil.3:1

The Work of Faith

I went out in the backyard to catch up on a little watering this morning. The sweet peas have risen like a curtain of green and delicate pinks and purples to hide the unsightly rickety fencing that surrounds the old chicken yard…Their fragrance is everything I remembered it to be when, daring to hope, I planted those unassuming hard dry peas. First there was the eradication of crab grass entangled in the chain link—the tugging and digging out every trace of a dry root that might spring to life and foil my plans of beautification…It was hard duty on my knees, carried forward only by the vision of sweet peas climbing happily to the sun and the memory of an inimitable scent… This was an act of faith, an undertaking inspired by the yet unseen.

Would these unlikely dark balls even germinate or was the seed too old? Would the tender greens be devoured by rampant slugs or brazen deer? Was it worth the effort? This morning as I watered the thirsty roots with bucket after bucket of cool water a verse came to mind, a prayer… for you, for me, for us to pray for all to whom our prayers extend…"that our God may count you worthy of His calling, and that by His power He may fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith." (II Thess.1:11)

Paul first prayed these words for the Thessalonians who were suffering persecution, needing hope that their perseverance would be rewarded. He commended their growing faith and obvious love for each other in the middle of hard times and even hinted that their persecution was itself  evidence of their calling to a Kingdom not of this world. But the focus of his encouragement was the coming of Jesus to grant them relief and avenge their suffering "when he comes on that day to be glorified in His saints, and to be marveled at among all who have believed…"
(II Thess.1:10) Then he prayed this prayer of blessing on their lives: that God would fulfill the desires He had placed within them and whatever they put their hands to by faith He would likewise bring to fruition by His power. Awesome blessing!

I can pull weeds on my knees. I can plant seeds in faith. I can pray…I can believe…but it is God's good hand that causes the seed planted in faith to sprout and grow into a beautiful vine that covers all the ugliness and effuses a heavenly fragrance…Precisely His intent-- that through our faith-filled enterprises 'the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in [us], and [we] in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.' (II Thess.1:12)

So don't lose heart if your harvest is not yet in. Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with an eye to what it will become with God's blessing. He will prosper that which He inspires us to undertake, for His glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus. May the fragrance of Heaven exude from our lives by His grace.

"…but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not." Gal.6:8,9

--LS

In Christ Jesus the only thing that matters is faith working through love.
(Gal. 5:6)

Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward  of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve. Col. 3:23,24

“Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.” I Cor.15:58

Witch Hunts and the Glory of God

The very best chunk of the day is that delicious morning part before the rest of my 'world' gets up—when all is quiet on the home front and I slip out of bed on tiptoe to curl up with my favorite fleece and my Bible, and yes of course, with my journal and pen. It gets even better in the summer especially on cloudless mornings when the sun is also just rising above the mountains. My favorite perch at such moments is the back step with a cushion for a seat and the sliding glass door at my back…And yes, with my favorite fleece, at least until the sun coaxes me to shed it. I breathe the cool freshness, gaze out beyond the overhang of our giant willow into the beyond of my own green acre so enshrouded with trees it appears to have no ending…and I reflect on the Word and the issues of my heart that it exposes…

I seem to hear God best before breakfast has wakened me to all my daily duties, before I've entered into conversation with mere mortals—my best loved mortals! Maybe my heart is more open, nearer the surface, more vulnerable to being engaged with Truth. I don't know, but mornings are good. Unfortunately I also like evenings. They also are quiet and the duties of the day are now behind…But my mind is not so agile, my heart not so tender; my eyes begin to droop. I wander into other's thoughts and goings on rather than wrestle with my own. Everything becomes virtual until I'm idling my should-be-sleeping hours in perusing Facebook for latest quips or photos--robbing myself of precious morning moments… That by way of confession. Summer's laid back schedules makes this yo-yo of nights vs. mornings much more pronounced. Night usually wins while mornings garner extra sleep. Precious reflections are strewn throughout days….

But there are beach moments with a timely book. And there was yesterday morning—a long quiet perusal of the Word and an 'additive'—good words in a book titled The Explicit Gospel. ¹ And there was a missionary speaker from Israel last night…And there are these conversations with my wise husband… God is not limited to my pre-breakfast routine! His Spirit is not saddled by my need for quiet alone spaces of time. So what is He saying these casual summer days?

I'm reminded lately that even a watchdog needs downtime. Or to change idioms, an unending witch-hunt will sooner or later bring up innocent victims if there is not a balancing reflection on positive truth. If you've followed my thoughts for long, you know they tend toward finding what's wrong in my world. Whether it be my inner world or the outer one of the Body of Christ. I don't often get as far as pointing out what’s wrong in the bigger world. It's all messed up. I figure the Body has just what the world needs if we stay on track. So ferreting out truth and error seems to be my bent. But there's this hazard of becoming overwhelmed by the wrong-headed, the mixed-up, the false-but-enticing and the misled—overwhelmed so that cynicism begins to erode hope of truth ever rising to conquer nonsense.

I've been in a season of sniffing about suspiciously and growling. There's illegitimate teaching everywhere. (At least it seems that way…) And there are excellent books written that synthesize Scriptural truth and apply it to present-day anomalies. The Other Side of the River ² is such. I devoured it on our last sailing trip, processing it alongside Scripture and then writing a review to hopefully alert others to its relevance.

Then I launched into Hunt's (now there's a good name for a watchdog!) Beyond Seduction ³ midstream. My initial enthusiasm, sparked by an excellent section mid-book on the nature of genuine faith, was tempered by overstated 'truths' in another area…reminding me that no author has it all right, none but the Bible is 100% trustworthy. Another sharp-shooting book of recent months was Wandering Stars.⁴ Wow and Ouch. The author's done some serious research and Scripture sleuthing. Good stuff.
But as my truth-loving bent is drawn to writing of this nature I see its potential to become almost addictive—it feels so good to be 'right all along', to 'have the corner on truth', to 'catch a brother in the wrong', to 'be in the know'. What begins as 'speaking the truth in love' can become an offensive elitism devoid of love. Knowledge puffs up. Love builds up. In know way do I mean to imply that these authors are guilty of such, but I see in myself this tendency to get so 'gung-ho' about right and wrong that cynicism begins to displace the love of the brethren that was my initial motivation!

All that by way of explaining that I'm reminded these days that a watch-dog needs down time. A witch hunt needs boundaries. And I've been realizing (again) lately that my reading and learning and the focus of my life must be God-ward, not always pointed toward error. It is no testimony to the glory of our Almighty God to be overwrought by the deceptions of fallen man…as if man were the measure of all things and God had lost control…

Toward this end I add to my 'plate' books that celebrate God's triumph over evil, books that speak of His supremacy, His remedy-- 'big picture' books. Of course the Bible presents the big picture best from Genesis to the grand finale! Revelation tends to set our times in perspective. Jude and Peter and Paul warn that 'perilous times will come' but they aren't the whole story. And they won't triumph over the true Church of God. She will be a radiant Bride at Christ's coming. Though the love of many will grow cold. Though a great falling away is certain, despite our sincerest yearnings for a mass revival… yet God is in control. The Gospel needs no fortifications. In it lies the power of God for the salvation of anyone who will cast in their lot with Christ. The Bible says all this but I do appreciate teachers who write books synthesizing Scriptural truth into thought-bites that get me chewing it all again and again… You know the adage: "Repetition with variety is the key to learning." Teachers and pastors in the Body do this for us.

For example, I've recently finished David F. Wells superb book: The Courage to Be Protestant: Truth-lovers, Marketers, and Emergents in the Postmodern World.⁵ It's both an indictment on the modern church and a rallying cry to return to the foundational doctrines of God, of Christ, of Self and of the Church. Tremendous writing. Daunting to think of writing a review with so much underlining to summarize! Someday soon I hope. And intermittently I dip into: The Supremacy of Christ in a Postmodern World ⁶ by John Piper and others. The title says all. But this week a bright gem came to my door to turn my heart from what's wrong to what is so gloriously right in the world! It's title: The Explicit Gospel. ¹ First chapter title: God.

As author Matt Chandler lays a foundation for his presentation of the Gospel in its fullness and yet simplicity, he expounds on Paul's impassioned cry beginning: "Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God!" (Rom.11:33-36) His thesis is that in order to fully appreciate what God has done at the Cross, we must first be awe-struck by the glory of God Himself. The remainder of the chapter is devoted to turning our attention to the importance of the glory of God. I read such statements as:

"God's glory is what drives the universe; it is why everything exists." (24)…"The Bible is for us, but it's not about us." … "We are allergic to the idea that everything exists, including us, not for ourselves but for the glory of God." (34)… "For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things." (Rom.11:36)  God's aim is His own glory and the 'endless ever-increasing joy of His people in that glory.' (quoting Piper, 35)…"When you understand the driving force behind everything, all of a sudden there's an eternal amount of joy at our disposal because everything we do is enlightened and enlivened by the endless glory of the eternal God." (36)
"Or who has given a gift to Him that He might be repaid?" (Rom.11:35)

And as I reflect on these thoughts and turn to investigate the Scriptures from which they stem it's as though a refreshing breeze is blowing. It whisks away pre-occupation with myself as vigilante of truth, as indispensable defender of the faith, as...as in fact an entity intended for anything less than, more than or other than God's pleasure and glory! This is a relief. It puts the burden back in God's hands, the burden of all that's wrong in the world, the burden of needing to fix it, the burden of myself! A fixation with God's glory—my chief end being to glorify Him and to enjoy Him forever-- puts my small 'world' and calling in right perspective.

When life gets in the way of my soul looking to God in gratitude and awe, I have let life loom to large. My focal point is wrong.

I turn often to the Lord's Prayer. It says all this in a few words. Our Father. In Heaven. Hallowed by Your Name. Your Kingdom come. Your will be done on earth, just like it is in Heaven. Here is a God who is very much in control of Heaven and of earth. He calls me to submit my wishes to His will, done in His way, in His timing, in everything. There's no cause for desperation here that the world (or the church) is 'going to Hell in a handbasket'. We pray for revival. Are we willing for judgment, beginning with the house of God? (I Pet.4:17) Ananias and Sapphira weren't. It seems the fear of God had ebbed in the giddy enthusiasm of the early church. God corrected that. "And great fear came upon the whole church and upon all who heard of these things." (Acts 5:11) Do we mistakenly clamor for the 'feeling' of His 'presence', forgetting the weight of this Glory, forgetting that it is "a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God”? (Heb.10:31) Do we mistake emotional fervor for worship, carnal insatiability, for the Spirit's moving? I wonder about these things. And I return to the Lord's prayer…

Just give us what we need for today, our daily bread. That is enough. We are your bondservants. We rest in your care. I read of the disciples in Acts 4 as persecution had begun. I see the way they prayed, not for the opposition to dissolve, but for boldness to speak in spite of it, their daily bread--courage. They rested their case with the God who had overseen Jesus' crucifixion at the hands of those who "were gathered together against [Him]…to do whatever Your hand and Your plan had predestined to take place." (Acts 4;27,28) They trusted God to accomplish His will through them however He chose, for His glory above all else.

And I think again of Jesus' own prayer in the face of His greatest temptation—He could have called legions of angels to His rescue. He could have saved His own skin. He could have prayed: "Father, save me from this hour." Instead he said, "But for this purpose I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name." (Jn.12:27,28). Hallowed by Your Name… Jesus lived by the Father's design, for the Father's glory. He calls us all to the same. He graces us all to fulfill His design. He supplies the strength, we the yielding. Thy will be done on earth…

To the persecuted church in exile Peter writes: "The end of all things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers. Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins…" What will that love look like? It will be different for each of us as we serve one another with our individual gifts, "as good stewards of God's varied grace…by the strength that God supplies"  But what will be the common thread and the end result? "…that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ." (I Pet.4:7,8)

"To Him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen."
(I Pet.4:11)

So as you and I reflect on the glory of God, whether it be on boats, or beaches or in our own backyards, let us find consolation and courage in this One who 'sits in the heavens and laughs' at those who oppose Him, for 'blessed are all who take refuge in Him.' (Ps.2:4,12) Come what may, He will win the day!

For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea. Hab.2:14

--LS

¹ Chandler, Matt. The Explicit Gospel. Crossway Publ.2012. 237pp.

² Reeves, Kevin. The Other Side of the River. Lighthouse Trails Publ. 2007. 222pp.

³ Hunt, Dave. Beyond Seduction: A Return to Biblical Christianity. Harvest House Publishers, 1987. 264pp

⁴ Gibson, Keith. Wandering Stars: Contending for the Faith with the New Apostles and Prophets. Solid Ground Christian Books, 2011. 312pp.

⁵ Wells, David F. The Courage to Be Protestant: Truth-lovers, Marketers, and Emergents in the Postmodern World. William B. Eerdman's Publ.,2008. 253pp.

⁶ Piper, John and Justin Taylor, eds. The Supremacy of Christ in a Postmodern World. Crossway Books,2007. 179pp. Contributors: David F. Wells, Voddie Baucham Jr., J.Piper, D.A.Carson, Tim Keller, Mark Driscoll