Monday, December 31, 2012

When He Calls...

He will equip.

Then the Lord said to Moses, "See, I have chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with all kinds of skills-to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver, and bronze, to cut and set stones, to work in wood, and to engage in all kinds of crafts. Moreover, I have appointed Oholiab son of Ahisamak, of the tribe of Dan, to help him. Also I have given ability to all the skilled workers to make everything I have commanded you..."
Exodus 31:1-6

While reading through the instructions that God had for Moses to build the tabernacle, I felt overwhelmed. There were so many DETAILED instructions. Surely there were mistakes! I mean, they were normal people, not artists. Then I came to Exodus 31 and it all made sense. They didn't have to do it on their own. The Lord appointed specific people and gave them specific skills. When the Lord calls us and gives us instructions, he doesn't leave us on our own. He will provide us with the skills needed. Moses did not have the skills to lead the Israelites out of Egypt, but the Lord called him. He equipped him. Our God is good.

Sunday, December 16, 2012

Banner Year

Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, "Thus far the Lord has helped us." 1 Samuel 7:12

I often change this to, "Thus far the Lord has helped me", when pondering this scripture.

The past several weeks our pastor has led us through a series called Banner Years. At first I thought it sounded weird. What is a banner year? It seemed over my head. However, it was exactly what I needed to hear. I learned that EVERY year can be a banner year. It depends on your perspective. Some of the things Pastor Steven discussed were trusting the Lord with finances, examining what our "scoreboard" is "scoring". Is it scoring how we are pleasing man or how are taking the gospel to the lost. A banner year is a year that you consider successful. I was really challenged by this. I could easily (and I do often) look at this past year as being a barren year. I had two bad flares. Out of 12 months, I was on steroids for 6 of them which caused me to gain around 25 pounds. I endured severe pain for a month. It was hard financially. I loved my first year of teaching but it was very stressful.

Truthfully, however, it was a banner year. The Lord provided a wonderful job with wonderful kids during a terrible economy. We never went hungry (clearly!:)) The Lord provided everything we needed. We traveled to SK. The best, however, was the eternal perspective I gained while laying in bed for weeks. It can't even be described in words. I only see the vision in my head. My pastor and my egroup challenged me to reflect on how the Lord has helped. Wow. It is amazing. Have you had a banner year?:)