Wait

I love, love, love that moment when I hear a song and there is something about it that triggers instantaneous worship in my heart. One minute I’m listening to the radio nonchalantly, and the next thing I know I’m in full worship mode: hands raised, eyes closed, spirit soaking in the message.

I have been a fan of Mumford & Sons since I first heard one of their singles a few years ago, and when they released their newest song off of their upcoming album recently, worship mode was exactly where I found myself. Their newest song, I Will Wait, is one full of thoughtful poetic verses and a chorus that sweeps you up in it's heartfelt simplicity. When I read through the lyrics, I see the narrator coming to God in exhaustion, and then waiting in His presence to see what He will do next. My favorite part is the bridge, almost to the end, that says:

Raise my hands / Paint my spirit gold / And bow my head / Keep my heart slow 

'Cause I will wait / I will wait for you

Sometimes we get too eager for God to work in our lives, and start doing things in our own time, without properly waiting for His plan to come to fruition. Isaiah prays in chapter 64 verse 4, "For since the world began, no ear has heard and no eye has seen a God like you, who works for those who wait for him!" Sometimes God needs you to be patient and wait for His works and blessings to come forth. 

It's a wonderful song - listen to the full thing below.

Olympic-Sized Faith

Unlike the majority of the world, I’m not a huge fan of watching sports. I watch the Superbowl for the commercials and the half-time show, not for football. The only exception to that is when A) one of my nieces/nephews are playing a sport, and B) it’s Olympic season. I love the Olympics – the torch-bearing, the national pride felt worldwide, the world records, and especially the Opening and Closing Ceremonies. During the years the Olympics take place I find myself watching sports I normally wouldn’t pay any attention to, like fencing, bobsled racing, curling (my all-time favorite Olympic sport!), and during the summer games, gymnastics. During the off-years, gymnastics isn’t a heavily followed sport – but when young American women are competing for the gold, we can’t keep our eyes off of the competition. Names like Mary Lou Retton and Kerri Strug have become some of the most memorable U.S. athletes of the modern games. And undoubtedly, this year’s gymnastic celebrity, Gabby Douglas, will be added to that list.

Sixteen-year-old Gabby recently won two gold medals, including one for the prestigious All-Around gymnastics competition. When she was interviewed afterward, the emotional young girl was quoted with saying:

"It is everything I thought it would be; being the Olympic champion, it definitely is an amazing feeling. And I give all the glory to God. It’s kind of a win-win situation. The glory goes up to Him and the blessings fall down on me.”

When I win awards or am complimented, I have a tendency to let myself be proud of what I accomplished. I did that. I’m great at what I do. I’m talented. Me, me, me. What I should be doing – what Gabby did, and I, ashamedly, often forget to do – is immediately praise God for the victory and give Him the glory. I couldn’t have won that award or compliment or what have you without the gifts and talents that He bestowed upon me. And thought it sounds somewhat selfish on the surface, Gabby is right about it being a win-win situation. When we praise God, He blesses us. When we do the things God asks of us, he graciously gives us more than we could ever imagine or deserve.

We can take a lot of encouragement from the faith of this young woman. This verse, that she recently tweeted, sums up her actions perfectly: “Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me (Psalm 103:2 ESV).”

When you feel that swell of pride well up in your heart, remember to praise the Lord and give Him the glory for the victory of that moment. He is the one who gave you the ability and opportunity to do great things. 

Sticky Quote #8

Undivided Attention

If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. – James 1:5-6

James doesn’t mess around when it comes to delivering important teachings. Very early in the chapter, barely past the introduction, James delivers this heard-hitting message: you can ask God, but be sure you’re doing it with the right frame of mind.

When I think about asking for wisdom, I immediately think of Solomon. In 2 Chronicles Solomon makes a sacrifice so pleasing to God that he appears to Solomon and asks, “What do you want? Ask, and I will give it to you! (1:7)” He could have chosen anything, from unfathomable riches to fame reaching the ends of the earth, but instead he asks for wisdom and the knowledge to be a good leader. And God grants him wisdom, and as reward for his humility he also grants Solomon riches, fame, and wealth. 

But it wasn’t because of his humility that God granted him his wisdom, though – it was because he worshiped God, and was dedicated to him. James reiterates this. God can – and will – grant his children the things they ask for, if they ask it with great faith in Him.

Be sure and unwavering in your faith – and only when you are completely dedicated to God, rather than your wants, will God grant you the things your heart desires most. 

Happy Trees

When I was a little girl, one of my heroes in life was Bob Ross. We didn't have cable and one of the few channels that came in on our antennae was PBS, so we watched a lot of educational television. One of my favorites was his Joy of Painting, during which he would paint pastoral scenes of woods and mountains often with "happy trees" and quaint sheds and fence rows. I distinctly remember trying to emulate his work, and not really understanding why my Crayola watercolors didn't give me the same effect as his fan brushes and palette knives.

I would go on to take art classes all though high school and major in design in college, taking what I learned from his Saturday morning lessons with me. I didn't notice, when I was eight or nine, the sorts of things Ross would talk about during his painting sessions. I was more distracted with wondering whether or not he was going to bring his domesticated pet squirrel to the studio that day (what kid wouldn't be??). In recent years I came across this image and quote from Ross comparing life and art:

I never realized, watching his show, how complicated his life might have been. Admittedly I know next to nothing about his life,  except that he liked squirrels, and painting. I have no idea what this sadness in life was. I do remember, however, that he always seemed happy. He was always joyful, despite whatever was going on behind the scenes. And like Bob Ross, continuing to paint happy trees even when he was experiencing sorrow, we are called to be joyful even in suffering.  I Peter 1:6-7 calls us to "... be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while. These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold - though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world." 

Joy and happiness are not mutually exclusive emotions. It's hard to stay joyful during trying times but remembering the "wonderful joy ahead" will make the trials worthwhile.

Sticky Quote #7

Repentant Heart

Bring your confessions, and return to the Lord. Say to him, “Forgive all our sins and graciously receive us, so that we may offer our praises”…The Lord says, “Then I will heal you of your faithlessness; my love will know no bounds, for my anger will be gone forever.” – Hosea 14:2, 4

Much of the book of Hosea is God telling Israel how upset he is with them. After all he has done for them – bringing them out of Egypt, feeding them in the wilderness, giving them a new land to live in – they still ignore his commands and turn to worshipping idols instead. After giving them blessing after blessing and being ignored in return, God is a little angry. All he wants is for his children to love and listen to him, and they act as if he didn’t exist. He threatens terrible things against them, and uses Hosea and Gomer to show them how loving he will be to them, but they refuse to comply. In the last chapter of the book, God once again explains how to repair the relationship between him and his people.

He asks them to come and confess, asking for forgiveness, willing to praise. And once they humble themselves and put their own desires aside, God will heal them and flood them with a boundless love.

It seems like an easy choice – of course they want God’s healing and love, so following his orders should be a no-brainer. But as we each know all to well, it is much easier to ask God for blessings than forgiveness. The thing is, God wants to bless us – but even more than that, he wants us to love him. And loving him has to come before the blessings.

God longs for us to come to him with a repentant heart, so he may heal us and shower us with boundless love.