Facets of Faith

Conversations about life, faith, and friendship.

Archives for April 2017

God’s Resurrecting Power: From Death to Life

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We’ve been talking about God’s resurrecting power here at Facets of Faith this month. Tracy and Jen shared their perspectives earlier this month and you don’t want to miss them. Now it’s my (Kim’s) turn. Ready?

I don’t like to feel out of control. That feeling of powerlessness, an inability to influence or change circumstances or, to be honest, even people around me.

Call me a control freak, with this desire to order and maintain my world. These feelings of powerlessness that sneak up on me, but like everyone, there’s a story behind these impulses. I know all too well what it feels like to be utterly helpless, completely powerless, and it scares the life right out of me.

It happened one day about twelve years ago. I left my home thinking all was normal, as my every day life could possibly be. I forgot something on my way to work so, in my typically optimistic fashion, I turned my car around and determined this was simply more time to listen to a message from one of our pastors.

Little did I know what was happening as I turned my car back that morning. Little did I know the scene I was about to drive upon would change everything. My family. My home. My life. Nothing would be the same.

Fire poured from the home I left just twelve minutes earlier. My home that still held my precious Emma and her daddy.

I remember standing on the driveway feeling utterly powerless, the crushing weight of what I lacked to stop the scene unfolding before me. The fear that snatched my breath away. The horror that my daughter may have breathed her last. The crushing reality that my greatest fear just became my living nightmare.

My heart shriveled up and threatened to die that day fire destroyed everything. But somehow, in some way, it continued to beat and pump living-giving blood. It continued to beat as the doctor told me Emma died. It continued to beat as her daddy struggled against pneumonia and third-degree burns. It continued to beat as I stood next to her little white coffin and stroked her tender cheek that no longer held the warmth of life.

My heart betrayed me as it continued to beat and pump, reminding me that life continued on even though death made its unwelcome departure with my little girl.

Powerless.

Never as a mom, as a woman, as a person did I feel so utterly out of control. I never expected this. I feared it. I prayed against it. I never expected to bury my daughter. And that weight of grief, those unexpected blows as wave after wave pummeled against my wounded body caused me to gasp for each life-sustaining breath.

How do you survive the dark days your deepest fears come alive? Maybe you, too, have walked the treacherous road of losing a child or a spouse, your health or your job. How do you find your footing when you’ve been knocked to your knees? How do you choose life when all you taste is death?

The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed.” Psalm 34:18, NLT

I clung to the One who not only gives life, but who resurrects it. The One who takes dead, lifeless things and creates life by breathing into dry bones (Ezekial 37:5). The One who conquered my greatest fear with a single crushing blow as He hung on the cross and triumphed over death. I was powerless, without control, but I knew the One who loves me, who not only has power but is the source of power, and I held on to Him for dear life. Literally.

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Romans 15:13, NLT

His is the power that fed thousands of people with few loaves and a couple of fish. His is the power that silenced the seas and called a dead man from the grave. His is the power that healed diseases and stopped years of bleeding. His is the power that conquered death once and for all.

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.” 2 Corinthians 12:9, NLT

That power . . . that resurrecting power changes everything. And it’s not just for then, those days Jesus walked the earth or as his disciples performed miracles. God’s resurrecting power that rose Jesus from the grave is available for us today. Now.

His resurrecting power heals the deepest wounds and shines bright in the darkest of places. His resurrecting power declares goodness despite brokenness, and offers hope in despair. His resurrecting power breathes life, restores shattered hearts, and revives lost dreams.

He saved me. His resurrecting power revived me. His power gives me strength on the days I miss my girl the most and shifts my gaze from all I lost to all He has in store for me. His resurrection power breathes new life, life that I enjoy and embrace all the days my feet will walk this earth. And He gives me hope, hope that death and destruction do not have the final say. He does. And that same power He gives me is available for you. Will you choose life?

I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being,” Ephesians 3:16, NLT

How have you experienced God’s resurrecting power in your life? Join the conversation and leave a comment or jump over to our Facebook page to share there.

Resurrection Power: Jesus, Life, and All of Us

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Have you read our first posts this month yet? You simply must! Tracy shared two beautiful posts, an introduction and her own response, to help our readers think about the question: how does God’s resurrection power change the way you live? Don’t forget to look for Kim’s post next week!

Of all the questions we’ve explored, this one has been the most challenging and exciting for me. You see, I (Jennifer) had a neatly-ordered worldview and a simple paradigm—or so I thought. Then what I knew shifted slightly and kind of went “Kerplunk!” into a new place. I’m making what feels like a feeble attempt at sharing what I’ve been learning. And in “Jen fashion,” I’ll ask you to walk this curvy road with me and check out the scenery along the way.

The shift began when I heard a song on the radio. You may know Jeremy Camp’s Same Power. I struggled with the chorus for a while, and I wasn’t exactly sure why:

The same power that rose Jesus from the grave
The same power that commands the dead to wake
Lives in us, lives in us
The same power that moves mountains when He speaks
The same power that can calm a raging sea
Lives in us, lives in us
He lives in us, lives in us ¹

My first question was “Where did that lyric come from anyway?” Then I suppose I thought a life filled with that kind of power was reserved for the Disciples, Apostles, and super-Christians. After all, I had never moved a mountain, calmed a sea, or been part of any other radical, miraculous thing with a word. Maybe I assumed my life story disqualified me from witnessing God doing those things or being used by him in that way. If I get honest, I probably thought the Creator of the universe was far removed from creation or just didn’t do those kinds of things anymore. At a certain level I wondered about the strength of my faith, the way I lived it, and the real identity and character of God. Have you been there? (Some call this mindset “practical atheism.”)

I was a little “off base” in my thinking. I’ll tell you about that, but it’s a bit of a long story. Can you bear with me?

What I Knew
A day came when I realized a righteous, holy God’s mere presence would overwhelm and annihilate imperfection. Who is full of imperfection? Me! I, like many, made a decision to pray to Jesus and ask for his sacrifice on the cross to be applied to my life. Jesus, of course, would certainly say yes to that!

Then a group study of the book of Romans wrecked me—in a good way!

What I Learned
There’s something emotional in realizing there are only two kinds of people on the planet. It’s hard to accept that there are black-and-white things when we prefer choice, flexibility, and comfortable shades of gray. But if the Bible is true, there are people who do not yet identify with God and Jesus’ death on the cross and resurrection and those who do. That’s it. For Christians, this probably doesn’t sound revolutionary, but let’s be clear about one thing: identifying with is not just knowing about.

The Shift
It happened when a Bible study group asked a simple question: What is it that separates these two groups of people in the world? I thought I knew what placed someone in the family of God: if you could point to a date on the calendar when you prayed “the prayer,” you were “in.”

My paradigm rattled when we studied the life of Abraham in Romans, Hebrews, and Genesis. Wonderful books, teaching, and discussion filled in some gaps. Did you know Abraham never prayed the prayer of salvation? Intuitively I knew that, but I never paused to think more about the fact that he “believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness” (Romans 4:3). That’s the source of the resurrection power! Do you see it?

Let me translate this for our day—God said, “I will make a way for you to come to Me.” Jesus was that way on the cross. His perfectly sinless life as a man and the Son of God paid for every sin. But he is more powerful than death. Sin and death has no claim to a perfect, sinless God-man. And so the Son of God can and does rise in unstoppable power, leaving an empty tomb!

So what do you say to that? It’s simple. God says, “I will.” The response is, “I believe.” Nothing more can be added to that. Our best behavior doesn’t change this moment, and our worst doesn’t either. We don’t clean up our act in order to look more attractive to a Holy God. We can’t do it. Remember: we are sin until we believe. We believe, and we identify with Jesus’ resurrection. Friend, there’s a reason the Early Church was full of “believers” and called “The Way.” And here we are—at the only way.

This is where my “Kerplunk!” happened. The gospel was flexible, in my mind. There were people on a spectrum (even me). I was on my way to a “closer relationship” with God, and so was everyone around me. There’s nothing dangerous about a spectrum, right? But, there are those who have Jesus advocating for them and those who do not yet have that. (Now I’ll begin to cry.)

8 “Those whose lives are in the flesh are unable to please God. 9 You, however, are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, since the Spirit of God lives in you.” (Romans 8:8-9).

I don’t know which group you’re in. Maybe you don’t either. I don’t know about you, but I had to wrestle with this at one point. Have you? How will our lives be different when we are one of God’s people? Where is that resurrection power, you ask?

10 Now if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11 And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead lives in you, then He who raised Christ from the dead will also bring your mortal bodies to life through His Spirit who lives in you. Romans 8:10-11

What does that mean for me (and you) for the rest of our lives here and in eternity (where all of us will be one day)? Our choice to believe provides a resurrection-powered life here and forever!

Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! The second death has no power over these  Revelation 20:6 CSB

Blessed and holy—one of God’s people. And for that reason—

I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection   Philippians 3:10a NIV

I want everyone else to know it. So many people will remain outside the church, not part of God’s people—and that’s a whole other life now and eternity waiting. I don’t want that for anyone!

And how will that be done? Noticing people, hearing their stories, and then speaking truthfully and lovingly (something I’m asking God to help me with!).

Now we have this treasure in clay jars, so that this extraordinary power may be from God and not from us. 2 Corinthians 4:7

Friend, I can’t thank you enough for hanging with me. You’re precious if you’re still reading! I just wrote down all the words—and there were still more. Thank you for being gracious. I think you’ve just read an indication of the change in my life just now. The display of the power will have to wait for another post. *grin*

Consider starting a conversation here or at our Facebook Page. This is a conversation worth having. What are you thinking right now?

 

Signature, Jennifer Howe

 

 

 

 

 

 

¹ Same Power. Jason Ingram and Jeremy Camp.

How Does God’s Resurrection Power Change The Way You Live?

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Welcome to Facets of Faith and this month’s question: How does God’s resurrection power change the way you live? If you are unfamiliar with the term resurrection or would like to gain more understanding, read yesterday’s post entitled What’s so good about Good Friday?

The greatest difficulty in answering this month’s question is to limit my (Tracy’s) response to just one. When God’s resurrection power grabs hold of our hearts, we are transformed from the inside out, top-to-bottom, as He brings every good work in us to completion. Our minds are renewed, we are changed, and because we are changed others are too.

God, in His sweetness, helped me to narrow my focus. If I tossed a net to capture all the ways God’s resurrection power has changed my life, it would break from the weight of all God’s good work. Like Peter who tossed his net over the boat a second time, God’s provision in my life has been great.

But that’s not where we started. Even though God was always providing for me, I didn’t see Him or His hand in my life.

One of the spiritual mile markers Jesus gave me started here….

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”─Jeremiah 29:11 NIV

Like a child dragging her baby doll and blanket, I drug that verse with me everywhere. I didn’t know what else to do. I had no hope at the time. I couldn’t see past my circumstances. I was lost in a sea of sin─mine and others.

That verse was my lifeline. God used it to literally save my life. I was overwhelmed by my circumstances. Me. Little Ms. Independent who could figure her way out of just about anything and had always prided herself in that. Resilient almost became Rest In Peace.

And then Jesus stepped in. He spoke hope into my heart. So many sweet-nothings from my now-Savior. But back then? We were just getting to know one another.

Where do I sit today? Grateful! That’s where.  Pulsating in God’s power. Resurrection power. Always connected. He is the Source. All that is good in me is because of Him. Anything good I get to do is because of Him. He touched my heart and transformed it, because He loves me. He loves you that way too. His resurrection power has the ability to take those once lost and help them to find their way back up to their feet. Jesus helps us stand when without His power, we would puddle and flop like a fish.

One of the things I love about Jesus is He speaks to us. Not in an audible voice (at least not with me), but like His Word promises when it says His sheep know His voice, I now do. I remember being thirsty to hear Him. I was curious how.

How do you hear God? And how do you know it’s God and not just a voice in your head thinking these things? Over time, He showed me. He trained my ear to recognize His “voice”.

If you are thirsty to hear His voice, He will teach you too. The best advice I can give is to ask for His help. Jesus, I want to hear You. Please teach me how to hear and recognize Your voice. I know He’ll answer a plea like that. Like any relationship, it takes time but He’ll honor that request.

This morning God spoke to me and showed me a connection I’d not caught before. He wasn’t going to let it get away. God helped me to reel it in. Slowly. Gradually. His truth and its meaning grasped me in a deeper, more profound way than it had before.

My eyes had read the Scriptures. Plenty of times.  These verses answer our question: How does God’s resurrection power change the way you live?

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,” declares the LORD, “and will bring you back from captivity”─Jeremiah 29:11-14a NIV

Do you see it? Do you see how God’s resurrection power changes the way we live?

Yes, God delivered me in many ways from captivity. It could be an answer, but that’s not the answer God brought to the surface this morning.

God wants us to know HOW we access His resurrection power, not necessarily the byproduct of His resurrection power. (Although I suppose that’s fine too. We need to know what we’re working toward. Freedom from captivity is definitely worth accessing Christ’s power for.)

I think most of us would want freedom as a goal.

I think more people don’t know HOW to attain it.

Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.

That’s how!

People─even those who call themselves Christian and would say they love Jesus─often find it hard to pray. But THAT is where our real power exists. We tap into God’s resurrection power through prayer.

I love that God connected prayer to my original life verse. I didn’t know it all those years ago, but I’d grow to love prayer to the point where I can’t not do it. (And I’m letting the double negative go friends because it’s exactly how I feel.)  Little did I know, God had planted it in my heart all along as a spiritual gift He desired to grow. And He placed instruction for it right next to my life verse.  He knew He’d grow my love to hear His voice through prayer. He knew He’d ask me to stretch myself and then stretch my life verse to become verses, no longer stopping at 11. We’d be working from an expanded version.

Why do I say that’s how we access God’s resurrection power?

I’ve felt it. I’ve felt Him. Literally, power surges from God pulsing through me when I get out of His way and let Him pray the prayers through me that He desires to be prayed. It’s awesome! A bit unexplainable. Might sound hokey, only I know it’s the Holy Spirit putting His power behind God’s inspired prayers.

The more I experience God’s resurrection power through prayer, the more I want to experience it because I’m experiencing Him. I trust it most when I don’t know the person and couldn’t possibly know what they need… but God does.

I’m reading an excellent book on prayer, The Daniel Prayer, Prayer That Moves Heaven And Changes Nations by Anne Graham Lotz.

Consider a question she asks, “When was the last time you heard someone pray to the point that you became more aware of the One to whom the person was speaking, than you were of the person doing the speaking?”₁

That’s the power I’m talking about and what I think God wanted emphasized.

Even simple things you know you have no business knowing exhilarate. In prayer you’re told, “Wear the shirt that says, ‘Write Your Story’ on it.” Mind you … no T-Shirts are allowed. But you follow the voice, the One telling you what to wear.

You share with others sitting in your circle, “I don’t know who is supposed to see this shirt. God told me to wear it today. I assume He wants someone to see it, but I have no idea who.”

Incredulous, the person sitting across from me exclaimed, “Are you kidding me! God’s been telling me I need to work on my story.”

And there you have it. One small way to give a little spiritual shove to someone who needed to get going on something God had given her to do.

God’s resurrection power will do that.

Join the conversation here or on our Facebook page.

 

₁Graham Lotz, Anne. The Daniel Prayer, Prayer That Moves Heaven And Changes Nations. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2016.