Check the Mail

Inspired by a letter my mom wrote...

A few times I have wondered, "God, are you there?" Maybe it was in the midst of a traumatic personal experience, like a sudden death in my family. Maybe it was a heart-wrenching incident I witnessed someone go through, like losing everything they had in a fire. Or, maybe I just didn't feel that God answered a prayer I had prayed so many times.

Regardless of the the circumstance that led me to the lonely feeling, the lonely feeling eventually led me in a desperate search for God; and, as scripture promises, God will be found (Jer 29:13). Although so much could be said about God carrying us through the lonely times, there is also much to be said about possible reasons we even encounter the lonely feeling at all.


Imagine you have someone you consistently write letters to, and they in turn, consistently write letters back. As a matter of fact, the majority of your correspondence is dependent on these letters. Every few days you check the mail in anticipation of a letter, and every few days they do the same. You write a letter. They receive it and respond. You recieve and write... And it goes on and on. Think how this would change if, although you received letters every few days, you only opened and read them once a month? And - although you only opened them once a month, you still continued to write every few days. How confusing would this be to your friend? Think again, how much would change if you totally quit reading their letters, but continued to send them. That is just insane, right?! Your friend would wonder what your crazy ramblings were even about. There could be some very important information or questions in their letters, but you would never know because you don't read them.

When looked at alongside our relationship with God, this letter writing analogy makes sense. So many times we "write" to God (in the form of prayer,  praise, or just talking), but we never read His letters (the Bible). We want to communicate with Him, but do we really desire to hear from Him? It makes me wonder if God turns His head to the side and says, "Huh?" when we ask Him things that, if we read His Word, we would know the answers. How does it make God feel when we question and search for answers to our situations and circumstances, when all we need to do to find the answers is get into His Word.

I know that too many times I have been guilty of "writing" letters to God and not reading His letters to me. How many times have I been in the midst of a tough situation or trial, prayed, but then didn't look for the answer or even comfort in His Word?

This only reiterates the importance of our quiet time with God - that one-on-one time that we have to "write" letters to our Savior and eagerly await the wonderful letters of love we will find in His Word. Jeremiah 29:12-13 tells us that God hears our prayers and cries, and if we seek Him with all our heart, He will be found. Sometimes all He is asking us to do is check the mail.

50 Shades...

Be careful little eyes what you see.

 Be careful little mouth what you say. 

Be careful little ears what you hear. 

It is not surprising that a "magic" movie and a "shady" book have people talking. What is surprising is who is watching and reading.

"Fifty Shades of Grey" could sadly be a description of many relationships with God. The only problem: There is no grey when it comes to God. As Christians, it is time we stop acting like we think God has any part in some choices we are making.

Proverbs 3:5-6 tells us not to "lean on our own understanding." Instead we are to "acknowledge Him in ALL [our] ways and He will make [our] paths straight." Human understanding says we can watch, listen, read, and do whatever we want and it will not change us. That is a lie! What is put in the heart and mind does change us. The cliche, "Garbage in, garbage out" is not only true, it is Biblical (Prov 23:7, Mat 15:15-20, Psalm 101:2-3). There is no way to walk the straight path God has laid before us when we do not even acknowledge Him when deciding what we watch, read or listen to.

It is easy to make excuses or exceptions for these choices. We may fool others, but God is not fooled (Gal 6:7). These choices we categorize as "no big deal" are, in fact, huge because they say something about our relationship with God. Every choice either pulls us closer to or further away from our Savior. And - what should break our heart - every choice tells other people, saved and lost, who we believe Jesus really is. This is the point where many will say, "No one judges me but God." For Christians, that just is not true. We are to hold one another accountable - to judge one another in love (1 Cor 5:12, 1 Pet 4:17).

This is about so much more than one certain book or movie. This is not about "judging." This is about being Christ-like. It is time for Christians to live the life God has called us to live, a life of accountability, truth and integrity. In Christ, there are no grey areas and we have to stop pretending there are (1 Cor 6:12).

For the Father up above is looking down in love -

Be careful little eyes what you see.

 Be careful little mouth what you say. 

Be careful little ears what you hear.

2 Cor 5:17

Get a Little Perspective

Perspective. God has kept this word tattooed in flashing neon on my brain for a seemingly endless amount of days.
Words. Thoughts. Body language. Reactions. These all serve as great indicators of where our perspective lies. It all comes down to this: Is our viewpoint coming from our disheveled heart and mind or the heart and mind of Christ?
I keep finding myself in different conversations, places and circumstances where God might as well yell out, "That's your perspective, not Mine!" And, He's not yelling at the people I'm talking to or the people I'm with; He's hollering at me! As I grit my teeth or even roll my eyes, I can almost feel Him slap me gently on the back of the head, reminding me that I need to share His perspective.
By adjusting my view of the situation and tuning into His, I see the situation more clearly. Things like selfishness, jealousy, pride and lack of understanding take a hike when I choose to see things as God sees them and choose to see people as God sees them.