Day 365 Congrats on a Year Well Done!

"A person can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in their own toil. This too, I see, is from the hand of God, for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment?" Ecclesiastes 2:24-25 

First of all, despite this verse from Solomon, this post is about celebration--of a year completed, of a job well done, of lessons learned, of joy complete--and today, of welcome home!

Is our work always fulfilling? Are our days endlessly satisfying? I can hear you saying, "Um, no—not even close." Mine either.

No one likes to feel like their best efforts are wasted. My job has its perks and its downsides. Your year at "la pinta" had them as well.

There's a prevailing notion in our culture that if we could just find the perfect job-our dream job-we'd have day after day of blissful purpose. But even the noblest task, the most glamorous profession, or the most acclaimed work has its frustrations.

King Solomon realized this and resented it. He seems to have loathed life when his meals, his money and his work didn't prove endlessly satisfying (Ecc. 2:18). He was wise to realize no carnal, earthly, or material thing will ever fully satisfy us. No dinner party, employee-of-the month award, new home, relationship, merit raise, coffee drink, or end-of-season clearance sale. (Well, shoot. But it's true.)

Solomon looked at life's inability to truly satisfy and the fact that one day he'd be gone and his work may not be remembered, and decided all was vanity—all is meaningless here under the sun apart from God.

The book of Ecclesiastes puzzling, with its "everything is meaningless" refrain. Solomon seemed to call everything life has to offer pointless. I get what Solomon meant, but I'm pretty rebellious about accepting the idea that life's pleasures and accomplishments are all for nothing.

So how do we approach work and leisure or frustration and pleasure? Our driving goal is to craft a meaningful life that is pleasing to both us and God, whether it's cooking classes, reading novels, or our life's vocation. I think that we can learn to better glory in life's little pleasures and let them fortify us against discontent, depression, and sin.

There is a divine secret about this in Ecclesiastes. It starts with the moments of enjoyment that are found in our work, our laughter, or even our daily food. They are sheer gifts from God and they are gifts to relish.

Moments of enjoyment are gifts that remind us, in a world that is often dark, cold, and disappointing,  that God is good. They don't offer continuous bliss—they punctuate our days of toil and tears. They give us a taste of an afterlife that will exceed the earthly pleasures of a good meal, a tulip in bloom, or a job well done.

These gifts can satiate us over and over with—here's the key—gratitude to God. They not only gratify us when we enjoy them, but they point us to a loving Creator who holds pleasures evermore in His right hand (Psalm 16:11).

That realization makes us want to enjoy the gift and the moment even more.

This gratitude is deeply satisfying—it's pleasing to both us and God. So we eat, and drink, and take satisfaction in our work, for without Him there would be no enjoyment. And in them we can honor God with our pleasure.

Job well done, Sarah, come on home and regroup for a while! Love you, Mom

Dear Lord, thank You for each and every source of enjoyment You provide in this life. Lord, every good and perfect gift comes down from Your hand, and I am grateful. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Day 364 Happy 26!

Day 363 JJ and SDG

Did you know that Johann Sebastian Bach wrote the letters “JJ” at the beginning of his scores and the letters “SDG” at the end. What did they mean?

JJ stood for the Latin Jesu Juva, which means “Help o Jesus.” So, at the beginning of creating his music, Bach was requesting divine help. SDG stood for the Latin Soli Deo Gloria, which means, “To God alone glory.” At the end of creating his music, Bach acknowledged and gave thanks to God.

Bach was an extremely gifted composer but even with his great talents, he had the habit of asking for Jesus’ help as he began his work and then gave thanks to God when he was finished. That's being really intentional about including God in all you do.

I think it would have been easy for a person with Bach’s giftedness to take God’s role in their work for granted—to begin to rely on himself and think that it was all on him in a job well done. If a person of Bach’s talent and giftedness made it a habit to ask for God’s help and to give God thanks, how much more should we do the same?

In the end, it's to our benefit to be reminded that we are dependent upon the Lord for everything. We really do need His help! We also benefit from giving thanks to God. It gives us needed perspective to understand that all we accomplish is from God’s gracious hand.

You started this year saying "Help o Jesus" and worked it through each day depending on him for effectiveness and safety. Your work in PNM was a masterpiece, music to God's ears. Take some time in the coming weeks to thank him for your learning and experiences this year, and listening for his leading in the coming challenges.

"To God alone glory!"

Day 359 I'm trying to...

 

THREE MORE DAYS!

 

Day 358 I have a Dream...

...Let us continue to strive to make justice a reality for all. - MLK

Day 357 Bulking Up

Consider it pure joy when you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. James 1:2-4

You know that for muscles to get stronger, they first have to be weakened. The muscle fibers tear down and then build themselves back up in order to be stronger than they were before. Our spiritual lives often work the same way--to get stronger we must first get weaker.

The verse above encourages believers to not be discouraged by the setbacks of struggles and trouble. James says that difficulties will come “when you face trials.” He said when, not if. We don't have to smile our way through our struggles (that would be weird), James does challenge us to look at them as an opportunity for joy and growth. James is showing how God uses trials to help us build emotional and spiritual muscles in our lives: The experiences that bring distress and trial often make us stronger in the long run.

 We can turn struggle into times of reflection and learning, allowing them to teach us. It's through  struggle that we mature in our faith and are able to show our true colors. What we see as times of trial and challenge, God uses to help us develop character and the fruit of the Spirit.

Building godly character isn't usually easy, in fact, it usually involves struggle. It's just part of the Christian journey. But we have the promise and hope that Jesus walks with us the whole time. He doesn't leave us on our own to handle things by ourselves. He is walking with us, guiding us, strengthening us, and helping us build character and perseverance so we can stay strong.

Day 356 The Secret to Success is....

Day 355 Finding God in the Transition

Have I missed God in times of transition in my life? Probably. Okay, definitely.

One thing is sure about transitions, they don't let you stay in the same place. You can fight it all you want, but it will let you know, "I am here," and until you transition to the expected state you're, well, miserable.

Throughout Jesus' ministry, transitioning people from one state to another was his goal, whether it's in thought, deed, health, or words. But more often than not, people missed His transitions.

Jesus tells the rich young ruler, "If you want to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven, and come and follow me." The rich young ruler's response? "...he went away grieving; for he was one who owned much property."

He missed Jesus’ transition because he focused on his property instead of what Jesus was offering.


How we miss God in the transition?

• The Picture is not clear. Most of the time when we approach God, we want Him to give us a clear picture of what our lives should be. (Before I relocate, I need to know where I will work, how much I will make, and what my house will look like, etc.) There is nothing wrong with this expectation--except that God tells us to "Go to a land I will show you," and not a land I have shown you. "Follow me and I will make you fishers or men," not follow me because I have made you fishers of men. The picture becomes clearer as we follow.

• The Assignment is too daunting. It's interesting how the Bible describes the rich young ruler. He is first rich, he is then young, and he rules. To transition him, Jesus reaches to the very core of who he is: give it all up. Yes, he could have given it up, but would he have risked being poor and not rule at the expense of his reputation? The assignment to do such a thing was too daunting, so he settled when he was supposed to transition.

• The Timing is not right. Samuel Chand said, "When you are 100% sure, you are too late." We often approach life with an attitude of "it needs to feel right" before we can make that change. But is there a situation in our lives or in the Bible where the timing felt 100% right? It says, In His time, He makes all things beautiful--not our time. When people who wanted to follow Jesus needed more time to finish off their personal business, Jesus said that "No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the Kingdom of God."

Do we miss God in our transitions because of lack of trust, lack of faith, or fear of the unknown? It's really not worth it to miss God in His transitions of our lives because of our own insecurities towards Him, not so much the situation. It's worth the risk to go for it with God and not be afraid of the transitions because God's transitions always leads to transformation.

Believe Him when He says, "I know the plans I have for you says the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plan to give you a hope and an expected end. " (Jeremiah 29:11)
 
 Look for God in the transition from a year in New Mexico. He's there, ready to lead you in to greater faith and ministry. Love, Mom

Day 354 TEN MORE DAYS!!! :)

Did you know that Isaac Asimov’s Book of Facts says that after the Civil War, Jefferson Davis was captured and indicted for treason? Northerners wanted Davis to be executed, but one group petitioned for his release: former slaves from Davis’ cotton plantation! After a two-year imprisonment, Davis was freed and avoided a trial.

What a great example of grace and mercy on the part of Davis's former slaves. If we're looking at definitions, grace is receiving something beneficial that we don’t deserve, and mercy is not receiving negative consequence for what we do deserve. The freed slaves demonstrated the same kind of grace and mercy that God gives to us through Jesus--and the same that we we extend to others.

As Christians, we talk a lot about mercy and grace, but we show whether or not we really understand mercy and grace through our lives. When we extend God's mercy and grace, we forgive as he has forgiven us--and I can testify that's better and healthier for everyone!

Day 352 The Untouchables

One reason that religion is so dangerous and often so delusional is that if it does not transform people both in mind and at heart, it ends up giving self-centered people a very pious and untouchable way to be on top and in control. God becomes their defense system for their small self! Even Jesus found this to be true of his own scribes, Pharisees, and teachers of the law.
                                                                                  -Richard Rohr