Eve - "The Crown of Creation"

Speaking as a woman, I sometimes feel very insignificant.  Okay, I feel this way more often than I probably should.

I mean, you read the Bible and it seems like men are doing all these awesome things!  Noah built an ark, Abraham was the father of nations, Daniel survived a night holed up with some ravenous lions, Elijah called down fire from God onto a waterlogged altar, David not only whooped up on Goliath, but also became King, and, of course, we can't forget Moses and his amazing water parting skills!  Geez!  That is just the tip of the iceberg of the men found in the OLD testament. 

Now, I am not stupid.  I know that all of these men were born by women, and many of the men in Bible had the support of some lovely ladies.  But, we don't often hear about them.

Honestly, in my pre-Christian days I knew of two biblical women.  That's right two.  Eve and Mary.  The biggest screw up ever, and the mother of Jesus.  At least that is how I saw it up until few years ago.

The Bible was not a place for women.  There were not any realistic role models.  I mean, who wants to look up to a women who caused the Fall of Man, and who can compare with the mother of Jesus?


Boy, was I wrong!

Last month our Moms' Bible Study group started taking a look at women and their importance in the Bible.  Wow!  I have learned A LOT!  My hope is to share some of the important things I have learned with whoever wants to read them.  Enjoy!

The first lady worthy of honor is Eve.  

As I said before, my knowledge of Eve was limited to her role in the Fall of Man.  However, my take on Eve, and women as a whole has greatly changed.

Without going into too much detail, there are two versions of the creation story found in the Bible.

The first is found in Genesis 1-2:4a.  This version is believed to be written more recently (about 500BC).  The second version of the story of creation is found in Genesis 2:4-25, and was written around 1000BC.  If you want to read more on why there are two creation accounts, and why they differ, please check out this site:  Priestly Vs. Yahwist

For the sake of this post, I am going to use the Creation Story found in Genesis 2:4-25. 

To paraphrase the scripture:  God created the earth.  God created man. God created a garden, plopped man in the middle, and created trees and plants.  God commanded man to take care of the garden.  God told man not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.  God decided man needed a helper.  God created animals.  Adam names animals.  Nothing suitable for Adam is found.  God causes Adam to go to sleep.  God removes Adam's rib and creates woman.  Adam names God's new creation woman.  

*Whew! Take a deep breath!*

Now, there is something more to this story.  Something I missed for years.  Let's look at it again...

God creates the earth; this beautiful, wonderful planet.  God creates man, in his image (Gen 1:26); a creature designed to care for and rule over the earth.  God creates plants and animals; all serving a special purpose and crafted with special beauty.  Yet, something is missing, or shall we say someone.

God creates, and creates, and creates.  He fills the world with wonder, purpose, and magnificence.  But something isn't quite right, not yet.

God had not yet created Eve.  Eve was not an afterthought.  She was not simply another creation in a long line of creations.

She was God's final brush stroke.  She finished creation.  There was something missing, Adam desperately needed a partner, a helper, a companion.  He needed someone who completes him, who could journey with him.  He needed a counterpart.

As John and Stasi Eldredge state in their book, Captivating,

"Given the way creation unfolds, how it builds to ever higher and higher works of art, can there be any doubt that Eve is the crown of creation?  Not an afterthought.  Not a nice addition like an ornament on a tree.  She is God's final touch, his pièce de résistance.  She fills a place in the world that nothing and no one else can fill.  Step to a window, ladies, if you can.  Better still, find someplace with a view.  Look out across the earth and say to yourselves, 'The whole, vast world is incomplete without me.  Creation reached its zenith in me.'"

 So, ladies, while we may sometimes feel insignificant, we are anything but insignificant to the One who created us.  Slap a big smile on your face and remember that creation is not complete without you!

Dear Lord, please help women to see their place and their value in Your kingdom.  Guide us in teaching our daughters to be beautiful and confident in faith and love.  Amen.

Imaginary Jesus... Will the real Jesus please stand up?

 Okay, so Imaginary Jesus is actually the title of a very interesting book by Matt Mikalatos. 

While this is a ridiculously good book, and I think you should read it, I am not writing this with the purpose of selling the book.

Imaginary Jesus REALLY made me think. 

Looking back over my life as a Christian, I realize that I have most definitely been following imaginary, made-up, Jesuses(?).

When I was new to the faith Magic 8 Ball Jesus was my bud.  He was so convenient.  Our typical conversation would go something like this:

Me: "Jesus, am I going to make it to the gas station before I run out of gas?"
Jesus: "Outlook good!"

*Thankfully* my fondness for Magic 8 Ball Jesus dissipated when I started to ask questions with a little more content.

So, I moved on to other imaginary Jesuses.  I went through

• Children's book Jesus
• King James Jesus, because as we all know, Jesus spoke in 1600's English... 
• Patriotic Jesus
• Legalistic Jesus

The list could go on and on.  

Mikalatos states in his book,

"The real Jesus was frightening sometimes, and he said things I didn't like.  He required sacrifice.  He scared me by doing things I didn't believe he could.  He was a better person than me. 

I preferred my fake Jesus."

As I look back over my years as a Christian, I had no idea that I was following imaginary Jesuses.  It is painfully clear that I was.  Painfully clear that fake Jesus, whatever form he might be in, simply tastes better.  I preferred fake Jesus. 

Which really makes me think,

"Am I still following an imaginary Jesus?"

I believe the only way that we know if we are following the true Son of God, is if we compare our Jesus with the Jesus in the Bible.  If they don't match up, we have an imposter. 

I find myself more and more delving into God's word.  The real Jesus is in there.  He may not be the easy Jesus, or the least controversial Jesus.  He may ask me to do some pretty crazy things, put me in some uncomfortable places, and scare the daylights out of me, but this is the Jesus I was made to follow.

This is the Jesus I want to teach my daughter to follow. 

Lord, please reveal yourself to me.  I want to learn to know the real Jesus.  I want to follow the real Jesus.  I want to be a genuine Christ follower.  Give me the strength to leap into the faith and love that you designed for me.  Amen.

Mikalatos, Matt. Imaginary Jesus. Tyndale House Publishers Inc. 2010.

"I give God 10%, why do you get 18?"

First, I have to start off by saying that giving a tithe to God, and giving a waitress a tip are TOTALLY different things. 

Several places in scripture we are told to tithe, to give back to God 10% of what belongs to him anyway.  Tithing is an act of worship.  It is a declaration of faith.  When we tithe we humble ourselves before God, with a meager gift, having faith that God will use it to bless us and others in more ways then we can imagine.

So, why then do we tip?

Surely not the same reasons for tithing! When we tip those who serve us, we are expressing our gratitude.  We are showing them that we care about them and their well being.

As many people know, in the United States, restaurant servers are not paid a fair wage.  The majority of their pay comes from the graciousness of those they serve.  In the state of Pennsylvania, the current minimum wage for servers is a mere $2.83.  That is less than 40% of the standard minimum wage!  Once you factor in all the bills that go along with living, like: health insurance, rent, the cost of a vehicle, food, utilities, and cell phones, our servers are far from wealthy. 

When we as Christians sit down at a restaurant table, bow our heads, and thank God for His grace and love, we need to make certain that we acting as God's mirrors; that we are reflecting those same things to our servers.

Justin Lee, in his book, "TORN: Rescuing the Gospel from the Gays-vs.-Christians Debate" he says,

"Sundays are the worst," one of the servers explained to me. "That's when the church crowd goes out to eat."
"What's wrong with the church crowd?" I asked.
"Oh, honey," she said. "They're usually the most demanding, and they're always the worst tippers. I guarantee you, if you see your table praying before the meal, you can mentally subtract a third from your tip."

There have also been plenty of stories circulating about people who believe that leaving gospel tracts instead of money is an acceptable alternative.  I personally believe that these people fall into the category of "Too Heavenly minded to be any earthly good."  Yes, I understand that spreading the word of God is really the best "tip" that you can receive.  However, failure to take care of a person's earthly needs shows a lack of love, is that the Jesus that we are trying to show them?

I think there should be a shift in Christian attitudes.  We should be looking at a failure to tip, as a failure to provide for God's children.  

As it says in James 2:14-17:

What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food.  If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it?  In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

So, fellow Christians, let our deeds be examples of faith.  Don't just tip your servers, tip them well.  Be kind, patient, and understanding.  Show them the love (and forgiveness) that Christ has shown you. 


Lord, again we pray, please help us to see that what we have is yours.  Yours to use for your people. Help us to be more giving to others, and help us to better understand their plight.  I pray that we take advantage of any opportunity to show Christ's love through our deeds.  Let us be your mirrors, reflecting grace and love into the world. Amen.

If you would like some background on the story behind the receipt, please visit:

Applebee’s fires waitress who posted receipt from pastor complaining about auto-tip

"Stop Having a Relationship with Jesus!"

Okay... before the pastors come after me, the title of the post is a quote.  A darn good one, in my opinion.  Keep reading to find out why!

I was recently re-reading, "I became a Christian and all I got was this lousy t-shirt," by Vince Antonucci.  It is a book that I read a few years ago, but as a baby Christian it didn't mean much.  This time around, WOW!  Absolutely amazing!

So, the title of this post is actually an idea for a bumper sticker that Vince has in the book.  (pg 31) 

After he drops the, "Stop Having a Relationship with Jesus" bomb, he goes on to say:

"I have a relationship with a guy named Kevin.  We met in a small group I was leading and instantly hit it off.  We started playing pool, watching sports together, and serving side-by-side.  Eventually we became best friends.  I have a great relationship with Kevin.  But Kevin moved away three years ago.  Since then I only talk to him once or twice a month. 

I wish he lived closer.  It'd be nice if I could see him more.  I miss him.

But I am fine without him.  Not having him around hasn't dramatically impacted me for the worse.  It certainly hasn't ruined my life. 

Why not?

Because we have a relationship.  It's a great relationship, but it's just a relationship." (pg 31)

How often does our interaction with Jesus look like this relationship?  I know it happens for me way more often than I would like to admit.  I get busy, take a few days off from reading my Bible.  Yes, I miss Jesus.  Yes, I wish we could be closer.  But I can live without him.  After all, it is just a relationship.

Is that really what we are called to have with Jesus? I think not.  In John 15:4-8 it says:

⁴ Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

⁵ “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. ⁶ If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. ⁷ If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. ⁸ This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. (NIV)

The KJV says "Abide in me, and I in you." We are called to live in Jesus, and to have Jesus live in us.

That is so much more than just a relationship. 

When we abide in Christ, not only to we get the joy of producing good fruit, we are saved from the fire, we are blessed, and we radiate the glow of God! 

Whew!  I need to take a moment to regather my thoughts.  Writing that and reading it again to myself felt really amazing!

Vince has an excellent image for comparison in his book.  He is describing the interview of a child in their mother's womb.  (He's a little goofy!  But it works!)  It reads like this,

"What if you could somehow interview a baby inside his mother's womb?  And let's say you asked the baby, "Do you have a relationship with your mother?"

I think the baby would give you a really weird look...

... The baby would say, "Could you repeat that?"

... So you ask again, "I said, do you have a relationship with your mother?"

The baby would give you another weird look and answer, "That's what I thought you said, but I can't believe you would even ask that.  How do I answer?  I mean yes, we do have a relationship, but c'mon it's way beyond that.  I mean, I live inside of her.  I can't live without her.  I am totally dependent on her for everything that keeps me alive.  I can't do anything without her.  So yes, I guess we have a relationship, but that's a colossal understatement.'"(pg33)

 As I move forth from this book, and this post, I pray that I will focus more on abiding or remaining in Christ, and allowing him to abide and remain in me.  I don't just want a relationship.  I want so much more!  I don't want to be a vine that the Father will prune.  I want to produce good fruit, and lots of it, for my God!


Lord, please give us the desire to have more than just a relationship with you.  Give us a hunger to abide in you, as you abide in us.  Help us to be completely dependent on you for life.  In Jesus name we pray, Amen. 

Help me to not be okay....

Okay, the title of the blog should actually be...

 "Help me to not be okay, 

just because everything is okay with me." 

Many who know me well, know that I have a fascination with the Amish.  My husband says it is an obsession... *eye roll* 

There are many things about the Amish way of life that intrigues me.   I firmly believe that there is a lot that we can learn from them!  (Most Amish could probably stand to learn at least one very important thing from us, as well!)

One thing that I very much admire in the Amish faith, is a strong sense of community.  If you live in an area populated by Amish, you have probably witnessed a barn building, or at least the product of one.  When a member of the community has a barn that burns down, the community comes together to help in the rebuilding process.  I would be willing to bet that every person who shows up to lend a hand, has their own growing "to-do list" at home.  They have chores to do, repairs that need to be completed, and families to tend to, but they lay their own needs aside for the sake of the community. 

There are work frolics, quilting frolics, canning frolics, and much more.  All with the idea of helping one another, and carrying each others burdens.  

Acts 4:32-35 gives a wonderful description and example of community at its best.  It reads:

³² All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. ³³ With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all ³⁴ that there were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales ³⁵ and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need.

The apostles and early believers fully understood Jesus when he commanded them to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; and, Love your neighbor as yourself.” 

I am truly blessed to be part of a community that is working together to become less I and more WE.  But we still have a long way to go! 
 

Nothing in this world truly belongs to us.  It all belongs to God.  We need to learn how to let go of our stuff for the sake of others, and to rely on God for our provision. 

How awesome would it be if there was no more need for Welfare, Food Stamps, CCIS, SSI, and all the other government assistance programs?  How wonderful would it be if we would willing and lovingly help God's people?  There will always be members of the community that are in need.  How incredible would it be if WE met their needs? 



Lord, please help us to see that what we have is yours.  Yours to use for your people.  Help us to be less selfish with our time, that we might be better able to love our neighbors.  Show us how to minister to each other in our times of need.  Guide us to become a little more WE and a lot less ME.  Amen.

Evolution of my Marriage

In honor of my anniversary, I feel that I should write about something that I know I struggled with in the beginning of my marriage.  (Struggled... now that is the understatement of the century!)

Submission.


When I first joined into the covenant of marriage, I was a baby Christian.  I knew enough about God to feel comfortable sharing in Sunday School and to be able to usually follow along with the sermons.  Though I have to admit that at the time that was basically limited to what I read in my children's Bible!  I knew that I was loved more than I could ever understand, and I knew that *thankfully* my sins were forgiven.  That was about the extent of my understanding and knowledge of God.

As the wedding approached, I remember that my awesome brother-in-law gave us a list of scripture and told us to choose one.  (For those who don't know, we were blessed by having our brother marry us!)  So, like a "good" Christian, I sat down with my Bible and chose the scripture that I thought God wanted me to chose.  HA!  I chose the one with which I was most comfortable!

I chose Ecclesiastes 4:9-12.  (NIV)

⁹ Two are better than one,
    because they have a good return for their labor:
¹⁰ If either of them falls down,
    one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
    and has no one to help them up.
¹¹ Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
    But how can one keep warm alone?
¹² Though one may be overpowered,
    two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

Pretty good scripture, right?  If I need help with my chores, you need to help me.  If I fall down, you will help me up.  If I am cold, you will keep me warm.  If I need defended, you will come to my defense.  And yes, we will keep God in our marriage, because if it is the three of us we are invincible.  There is some seriously juvenile thinking right there!  After reading my own words, I believe that I thought marriage was a fall-back plan.

"If I can't make it on my own,

there is someone who is legally bound to help me."

Terrible way of thinking....

As I look back, I wish that I would have followed God's guiding and chose a different set of scriptures.  What I should have chosen was,

Ephesians 5:21-33 (NIV)

²¹ Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
²² Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. ²³ For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. ²⁴ Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.
²⁵ Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her ²⁶ to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, ²⁷ and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. ²⁸ In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. ²⁹ After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church— ³⁰ for we are members of his body. ³¹ “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” ³² This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church. ³³ However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.

 As I grow in my walk with Christ, I love this set of scripture even more.  I have learned that this is not a decree allowing men to run roughshod over their wives.  Nor is it a call for women to be second class in their own lives.

In this passage, Paul is telling me to submit to my husband, not because he is in charge of me, not because he is a good person, and definitely not because he usually agrees with what I think.  No, I am called to submit to my husband because I love Christ.  (Wow, I need to stop for a minute and reread that and let it soak in!) 

In turn, Paul is also commanding my husband to love me as Christ loves the church.  Once again, he isn't supposed to love me for my good looks, or my wonderful cooking skills, or my ability to keep house.  He is called to love me because Christ loves his church.  (WHEW!  If it was totally based on my awesome skills I fear his love would very soon fade!)  

Several times I have been personally asked if I mind submitting to my husband.  I will answer that with a resounding, NO!  I have been blessed with a husband who, like it says in verses 28 and 29, loves me as he loves himself.  I know that in my submission, he will care for and provide for me and my family because he loves Jesus.

Lord, thank you for seeing beyond my infant heart and providing me with a wonderful man who devotes his life to you and his family.  Thank you for your grace and for covering the sins of my past, and for nurturing my confidence in your love.  Thank you for sending your son to provide the perfect marriage example.  Please guide me and my husband in your ways, that we may continue to live, grow, and raise our family, in your promise.  Thank you for four wonderful years, and I pray for many more.  Amen.

The Tip of the Iceberg

Being a mom, I have had a few experiences where I have been simply overwhelmed with love for my daughter.  Times when I am struck speechless by the wonder and beauty that is my E-bugs. (Dads, I am sure you have had these experiences as well!) 

The most obvious was the first time I laid eyes on her.  As you may (or may not) know, my pregnancy was not exactly ideal.  I suffered some pretty nasty all day sickness for the first 14 weeks.  Then experienced the joy of sciatica from 16 to 22 weeks.  Just when I thought I was finally done with all the pain and terribleness... I had kidney stones that hurt so bad I started having contractions (not once but twice! at 23 and 25 weeks) and spent the last 11 weeks of my pregnancy in excruciating pain.  Needless to say, I was very overwhelmed when I finally got to meet this amazing little body (who did quite a number on mine!). 

She was so beautiful and perfect (all parents think that, right?)! 

There have been many other times.  Nothing extraordinary, normal kid stuff.  Like the first time she giggled, or the time when she spent 30 minutes taking weeds out of one bucket and putting them into another. Or even just last week, when she marched on over to our neighbors strawberry patch, picked a few berries, plopped and chowed down! 

The amount of joy and love that this one little person has invoked in me is absolutely astounding. 

As I sit in the moment, overwhelmed with love, I imagine God whispering in my ear... 

"And that's just the tip of the iceberg as to how much I love you."1

 Wow! 

Lord, as we go through our daily lives help us to recognize your great love for us, through our love for others.  Thank you for loving us more than we can even begin to fathom.  Amen!



1 - Ortberg, Nancy. Looking for God: An Unexpected Journey Through Tattoos, Tofu, and Pronouns. pg 5