In Other Words

“At the heart of the story stands the cross of Christ where evil did its worst and met its match.”
~ John Wenham ~

This quote really hits me this week. It seems that every way I turn, I'm learning something about identifying with the sufferings of Christ. Just yesterday I posted this verse from Philippians 3:10:

"10That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;"

This past Friday night I was at Bible study. One of my objectives in going was actually to stay awake because I had just flown in from Mexico, and I knew that if I went home I would just crash. But I wanted to try to get back on my normal schedule. So I went to Bible study for that reason.

God however had a different reason for me to go. He had something that He wanted me to hear. Something He needed to get through my thick skull. Something that Paul wrote about many years ago.

In this verse Paul talks about walking in the fellowship of Christ's sufferings. Now to fellowship with someone means to take an ACTIVE part in whatever they are doing. If we are to fellowship in Christ's sufferings, it means that we WILL suffer. Evil will try to throw its worst at us, just like it threw its worst at Christ. The thing is that we KNOW we already have the victory.

Because, as Paul stated in the beginning of this verse, we KNOW the power of Christ's resurrection. No matter what evil tries to throw at us, we have already won. Christ DEFEATED evil when He rose from the grave. And through His victory, He gave us power to overcome it as well.

So if you are in a time of suffering, don't give up. You HAVE the victory. Just hold on to Christ, and He will see you through!

Thanks, Iris for hosting this today and for making me think about this wonderful quote!

CWO - In Other Words

I long to worship Jesus with the heart of a child, in a state of pure and true adoration. Yet so many things of the world cloud my thoughts and pull on my heart until it’s no longer just a girl in the arms of the Father”

~ Darlene Schacht ~

“The Mom Complex”

When I saw the quote this week, I just had to participate. I've been studying about worship this week. Since I don't have children of my own, I'm probably going to hit this topic from a totally different angle.

I started to think about my own actions as a child. Worship flowed freely and easily. And not just for Jesus. I adored my mom and dad. I idolized my grandparents. I wanted to be just like my kindergarden teacher.

And like Darlene said, my motives were pure and true. However, my childlike adoration didn't mean as much as my grown up respect. Let me explain.

When I was a little girl I loved my parents because they were my parents and in my eyes they could do NO WRONG. I've since learned that my parents are human, but I've also learned that they DESERVE my admiration. They really are great parents.

I think it's the same way with God. Sure I would throw my hands up with glee and sing my little heart out when I was a child. And I miss the innocence of those days.

But life has happened. I've grown older. I've grown more mature. I've gained responsibilities. And as the Bible says, I've put away childish things.

Now that isn't to say that I've put away worship. Please don't think that I'd ever say that! It's just to say that when I worship now, I worship with a heart of true praise. I worship from the depths of a soul full of adoration for a God who I KNOW. A God who has seen me through the storms of life.

God says when we come to Him, we must come as a child. A child who asks no questions but just trusts. But the Word goes on to say that we must grow in the faith. And the occurences of life are things that help us grow.

We just need to make sure that the things of life don't pull us away from the MAKER of life. There are still times that I throw my arms in the air and sing to the top of my lungs in praise to the Lord. It's just that now I have so much more to praise Him for!