Facets of Faith Archives – Page 11 of 20

I’m Dreaming of…a Significant Life

01.08.2019 by Jennifer Howe //

Welcome, friend! We’re excited you’ve taken time out of your busy-busy to peek at the Facets’ thoughts. Thanks for making the cyber-trek and the time. This month is an opportunity to think about our dreams. Tracy offered 7 ways to realize your dreams, a fantastic read. Next week, Kim will offer her thoughts. Don’t miss Tuesdays when posts go live; or better, subscribe to receive the posts in your inbox.

Once upon a time I (Jennifer) was a “resolutionist.” But I was like so many who set lofty resolutions for a new year and break them by the third week, or day, or hour into the goals. I lost interest in breaking promises to myself. (Tell me I’m not alone, friend!) When someone introduced me to My One Word—BOOM!—I had a new way to think. Soon I was dreaming of the possibilities in the word, and I still do. This year’s word came from an intimate conversation with God about who I am in his eyes. No doubt, I always want to hear encouraging whispers to my heart from my Daddy-God. (One day I’ll share more about this year’s word, but not today.)

The question this month at Facets asks me to think intentionally about my big dreams. I know I have little “everyday dreams” that basically amount to wishes. A question has been echoing since this topic was chosen: What do I want in this life—what do I really, really want?

Having begun the journey of my word for 2019, a fat, juicy tendril is growing off the main vine. Turns out, what I want most is a significant life. I don’t mean popular in the culture or high in status. That’s not me, but I’m an Enneagram 1, the Reformer, if that tells you anything. What I know is this: I’m full of strengths and talents that can be used to help and bless others. Guess where the best parts of me (and you) come from? They are gifts from God. Since he has gifted them, it’s only fitting to acknowledge that and use them in service to him and those around me.

When I answer the question that way, I immediately think of Jesus’ teaching about the fruitful, significant life that really comes from the Lord. Take a look at John 15 with me; we may both find real, significant life. Jesus is with his inner circle, the disciples, and I imagine a walk through a vineyard becoming “a teachable moment.”

1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. John 15 ESV

He sets up the characters: God the Father is the “vinedresser,” the one who tends every part of the vine; Jesus is “the true vine,” which assumes there are others; and the followers are the branches connected to the vine. The Father works in the vineyard; he removes fruitless branches and prunes the fruit-bearing ones. Why? Because big, leafy grapevines are pretty but not what they’re grown for. Hard pruning causes a vine to produce fruit!

This applies to our lives: if we say we are disciples, we place ourselves in that “branch” place. If our lives reflect the close following the disciples did—listening to, trusting, and obeying Jesus’ teaching—we can be called “clean” too. That’s the beginning of real life, eternal life, the significant kind. And it doesn’t have to be a dream. Actualizing real life is simply choosing Jesus. (If you’re confused at this point, let’s talk!)

Jesus continues:

4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. John 15 ESV

Abide. That means to live in; to remain. The vitality in a branch comes from connection to the healthy vine. A leafy branch off the vine produces exactly nothing. That is not life.

5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. John 15 ESV

Jesus is the vine, and his disciples are connected branches. Life flows from the vine outward, and beautiful fruit grows. Healthy branches are connected, and they should stay there. Dr. J. Vernon McGee reminds us

If we are in Christ, we should stay there. The connection can be broken, as Jesus warned Peter in the foot washing moment; we can have nothing to do with God. ¹

Abiding is a choice.

7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. John 15 ESV

The vine’s lifeblood is in the abiding. If we remain connected to Jesus, and if his words remain in our minds and hearts (as evidenced by our thoughts, words, and actions)—then something important happens. Intimate relationship with Jesus and choosing to learn and embrace his words leads to a couple of things: a regular, two-way prayer conversation with God and prayers that reflect his heart and (often) his will. In other words, we ask for things he loves to say yes to; we want what God wants!

Over time my thoughts, words, and actions can look more like Jesus and less like selfish Jen. Look, little grapes are growing! At least, I really want that to be true. (Yeah, I still make a colossal mess of things at times. *Sigh*) I’m thankful the disciples are so obviously and gloriously imperfect in everyday life with Jesus, and then the Spirit filling them changes everything. It gives me hope.

8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. John 15 ESV

Wait. What? If we stay connected, and if we keep his word fresh in our minds, God is glorified. Other people see the life as good fruit on our little pruned-branch selves. We don’t grow it; it flows from the life we receive through connection with Jesus. Then other branches connect to the vine because of what they’ve seen. (Often “fruit” in the New Testament points toward a disciple’s significant impact on others knowing and trusting Jesus for life.) No one chooses to connect to Jesus because of our perfection (we are flawed); they come because of HIS perfection!

And then what? Then we don’t just say we follow Jesus—we prove we follow Jesus.

Friend, that’s the significant life I want, the dream I have unfolding little by little. I hope to live a transforming life in which others see or hear about Jesus and want him. On a good day, I think I spot grapes plumping up. Other days, I imagine the pruning shears doing necessary work. Either way, I dream of abiding and having a life that is exciting and joy-filled and beautiful. (Jesus, let’s do this thing!)

Now one of my “everyday dreams” is to hear your thoughts and dreams! What’s your biggest, way-out-there, God-sized dream? Share in the comments below or on our Facebook Page. Thanks, friend!

¹ https://www.blueletterbible.org/audio_video/mcgee_j_vernon/Jhn/John.cfm#John_15_6_11. Jan 07, 2019.

Scripture sourced from bible.com.

God is…Gracious!

11.13.2018 by Jennifer Howe //

This month the FACETS are thinking about the character of God, the precious attributes revealing facets of Almighty God to us. Tracy wrote on God’s faithfulness here. Visit next Tuesday to find out which attribute Kim chose. Finally, we have a guest sharing the following Tuesday. I love each writer’s choice and voice. I hope you will, too.

Then the Lord passed in front of him [Moses] and proclaimed: Yahweh—Yahweh is a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger and rich in faithful love and truth Exodus 34:6 CSB

Sweet friend, can I be honest for a pair of minutes? I need grace. I need more of it than the average Jo, no lie. Some days I’m more sensitive to my failings and have to admit Paul’s words both pierce and offer healing balm to my soul:

But God had mercy on me so that Christ Jesus could use me as a prime example of his great patience with even the worst sinners. Then others will realize that they, too, can believe in him and receive eternal life. 1 Timothy 1:16 NLT

I’m a writer who lives in a world of words. Those same words are weapons I draw on a terrible, horrible, no-good day. Anyone can dip into “strengths” for the wrong reasons or intent, right? Then an insidious whisper hisses, “Jesus can’t love me. I’ve messed up too much. I’m disqualified. Again.” The voice of the liar gets in my head, sometimes my heart, too often. Maybe you’ve heard the voice with an accusation. It can crush us if we’re not careful to make intentional choices.

Accept the gift of grace. A precious gift was given. We see it in John 3:16-17—

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only and unique Son, so that everyone who trusts in him may have eternal life, instead of being utterly destroyed. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but rather so that through him, the world might be saved… CJB

The Son, Jesus, came for a purpose. He came to represent the Father and us—to fix the gap between holiness and humanity. He was both God and man, all on a rescue mission for us, who could do nothing about the problem on our own. Since we couldn’t earn it and don’t deserve it, that’s grace! Jesus is the display of God’s gracious character on our behalf. I just love that. And I desperately need it! (You too?)

Once upon a time, I made an intentional decision. I wanted that. I wasn’t clear on how it the gift of grace happened, but I knew I wanted it, and I asked wholeheartedly. I was a beggar doing what beggars do. Sometimes when you have a need, you ask…and ask…and ask again. I needed some kind of do-over. The Good Father meets the need through Jesus. The Father’s child knows to come, ask, and shelter in the Father’s house. Then the child becomes an heir to the inheritance, in this case, beautiful grace!

Be willing to accept the gift and accept what He says. The gift of grace is for you, through Jesus’ death and resurrection. Whatever you do, hang on to that truth with all you’ve got. Grasp it like your life depends on it. Never let go! This is daily acceptance or rejection of truth, in my experience. We choose daily, friend; let’s choose well.

Beware the lies! The enemy of our souls wants nothing more than to destroy any hope, truth, or connection to our Father through the Son. So he strews a path of lies to obscure the way. Root out the lies by comparing the voice you hear to the Bible. When the voice matches the Word of God in good context, you can rest in the truth. When lies come, you’ll see them for what they are.

Let’s allow God to love us through words in Scripture. Let’s be loved. Then we can love others.

Remember my struggle with word weapons? Some conviction is truth mixed with lies. It’s true my words must become increasingly filled with truth and love and grace (because God’s people become more like the character of God). But there is no shame with truth because “no condemnation now exists for those in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1). There’s a chasm of difference between Holy Spirit’s whisper of conviction to repent and the shame-filled hiss of the enemy. One leads to freedom; the other spirals into a trap.

Practice receiving the gift of grace. The longer we’ve listened to the hiss, the more difficult it may be to meet it with truth. We need to sit with Scripture, wash the mind with it, and counter the lies with truth. That takes time, repetition, and practice!

It’s a choice to receive grace. If we choose not to receive it, we land in a pit of pride. We isolate and insulate. In my experience isolation leads to anger, frustration, and sadness. Hope is absent. That’s a choice—but not a life I want. (None of us wants that.)

I practice receiving truth and love by spending time with Him throughout the day. I read what He has to say. I want to talk to Him often. Good habits to cultivate, for sure, but the relationship doesn’t rest on some fuel I generate through effort (it would for sure fall flat!).

Grace is a gift created and given by the giver. We can’t earn or deserve it. Because He is compassionate and gracious, His gift is always more than we can think or imagine. Think of how lavish that is!

Grace. I’m thankful for enduring grace! Now I want to respond in love to Him for that amazing gift—I want to live differently because grace leads to repentance…and fierce and fiery love for Him and others.

Which attribute is precious to you? We all want to know. Share in the comments below or at our Facebook Page.

Guest Post: Much Becoming Little and Little Becoming Much

10.22.2018 by Jennifer Howe //

Hello friend, I (Jennifer) am excited to introduce you to one of my dear friends, a beautiful thinker and writer of Bible studies with her team, Woven. (See their site here.) Please welcome Beth Whartnaby to our little corner of the Internet. The FACETS believe you will love knowing her and reading her thoughts on God multiplying little into much.

This is a story about much becoming little, and little becoming much.

Eight years ago I moved my elderly parents, who were suffering from chronic physical and mental health issues, from the Gulf coast of Alabama to my hometown in Illinois. My mom and dad had reached the stage where they needed assistance. They were clearly failing, and as their only daughter, I was ready and willing to help. The prospect of having them near us for the first time in our married life excited me as I anticipated sweet times together as a family. I was eager to assume the caretaker role.

Looking back, I realize that I was full of much. I was chock-full of energy, enthusiasm, ideas, and plans, bursting with knowledge and creativity, ready to dedicate my time. I was determined to make a lovely little home for them in their tiny new apartment, find all the right specialists to treat their medical needs, make sense of all their insurance questions, diligently drive them to all their appointments, and warmly include them in family gatherings, making the little time I believed we would have together into much.

God beautifully positioned me to obey the fifth commandment, “Honor your father and mother,” in a very hands on way—and I was determined to do it. But I forgot where the strength and power to fulfill this mandate comes from.

After a few years of caring for my parents I found myself scraping up the dregs from my bucket of much. My own physical and emotional health began to suffer, and it was all I could do to walk into their building each day. My feet felt like lead and my heart broke at our combined need—I was burned out. It was then I realized that what I thought was much, was actually little. I had gone from feeling like I had much to feeling like I needed much, when all I really needed was one thing: God’s powerful grace.

Each time he [God] said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me … For when I am weak, then I am strong. 2 Corinthians 12:9, 10b NLT

The funny thing about God’s grace is you have to let God fill you with it to experience the power. You have to acknowledge your weakness, surrender control, and offer your empty bucket to God so He can fill it.

For out of His fullness [the superabundance of His grace and truth] we have all received grace upon grace [spiritual blessing upon spiritual blessing, favor upon favor, and gift heaped upon gift]. John 1:16 AMP

I realize now that if I had just surrendered my little to God in the beginning and allowed Him to be strong in my weakness, I would have started out with much! But I didn’t. It took hitting the wall of my own resources for me to actually live what I know: “When I am weak, then I am strong.” When I have little and I put it in the hands of Jesus and leave it there, trusting Him to work on my behalf then I have much.

Doing what God calls us to do is the first thing. Doing what He calls us to do in His strength and not our own is the only way the first thing is possible. Humanly, we all have little. Only God, in His wondrous grace, by the power of His Holy Spirit, can turn our little into a harvest of much. Surrendering everything to God is like handing Him our bucket, the one we think is filled with so much. Suddenly we are overwhelmed when we realize it is now bottomless. Imagine the awe of the boy with only five small barley loaves and two small fish watching thousands feast on his meager lunch (John 6:1-13)!

So how do we live in this power and grace that transforms our little into much? We dwell with Jesus minute by minute, relying on the Holy Spirit to influence our decisions and to infuse us with all we need to follow through. We cultivate a life centered on God’s Word and prayer, growing into a deep abiding with God that makes Him our first and best thought each day, our “go-to” every minute, and our source of rest and peace each night. There is a sweet discipline involved in living in God’s power and grace, an effort on our part, that pays off exponentially. As we surrender our life completely to God, the gift we get in return is “infinitely more than we might ask or think” (Ephesians 3:20).

By God’s grace my parents are still with us, battling daily against the challenges of being in their 90s. We have navigated countless doctors’ appointments, many hospitalizations, and our fair share of emergencies. We have argued and agreed, negotiated and surrendered, laughed and cried. The burdens that many would consider much are, in the scheme of things, really little. The little I had to offer, by God’s grace has yielded a harvest of much.

Is there much in your life that God is waiting for you to realize is really little? When you see it, surrender it, and by the power of His amazing grace, He will turn it into much.

Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. Glory to him in the church and in Christ Jesus through all generations forever and ever! Amen. Ephesians 3:20-21 NLT