Why are the nations in an uproar?

Posted by Admin on Jun 24, 2015 in Mission trips, Prayer Perspective | Comments Off on Why are the nations in an uproar?

Many believers take time off during the summer months to travel to other lands for the purpose of sharing their faith in a variety of ways: through word, song, drama, medicine, hammer and nail, or fresh water and food. For the next three days, I would like to share some of my own tales of God’s grace, leading, and deliverance during three different summer mission trips—one to the former Soviet Union and two to the tiny island of Grenada.

In the summer of 1991, I found myself “between” churches, but not without fellowship. While I was waiting on God for direction, I landed for a season in a church that was planning a two-week mission trip to the Soviet Union.

I was delighted. That nation had been on my heart for over a decade, and now I had the chance to go. Along with the associate pastor and five other believers, I headed for three cities in the Soviet Union—Moscow, Leningrad (St. Petersburg), and Riga, Latvia.

The walls had come down between the east and west in Europe, and the Soviet Union was in the process of succumbing to the greater freedom of Glasnost. The newer buildings in Moscow, stark and institutional-looking, however, betrayed the constraint on individual liberty that had prevailed not too long ago. The people, as well, had the appearance of sadness, isolation, and exhaustion as they looked at the floors or the sidewalk while they traveled on public transit or walked down the streets. Communism had taken its toll on them, even though its grip was in the process of weakening.

The seven of us from America were on an adventure to share Jesus in Russia, and we found that the door was wide open. A church with whom we spent a large part of our time met in an apartment in Leningrad. The only Christian literature they possessed was  a single, very treasured Bible. We were privileged to provide them with enough Russian Bibles so that no one would be without—including those yet to be saved. Most shocking to us, though, was that their only access to contemporary worship music—which they treasured as a gift from God—was the album Jesus Christ Superstar. But they were hungry for truth and were glad to receive the Word and learn new worship songs which our interpreter translated into Russian. One of our primary goals was to help this sweet fellowship to increase as we daily ministered on the streets of Leningrad. Many were added to their number, and they were all baptized on Sunday afternoon in a large metal tub in the basement of a local hotel.

We sang everywhere we went (and on the train from Leningrad to Latvia, we sang Motown), and the sad faces all around peeked up at us shyly, breaking into smiles rarely revealed in public. Opportunities for evangelism abounded, and lives were changed because of that trip.

But to me the most memorable event of the trip happened soon after we arrived the first day in the USSR. Our transportation took us straight to Red Square before we checked into the hotel. As we stood there in the middle of the square, gazing at the thousands and thousands of people milling beneath the domed-spirals of St. Basil’s Cathedral on one side and the stern ramparts of the Kremlin on the other, I sensed the Spirit of God whisper a Scripture to my heart. He persisted, and it grew stronger and louder within me. I told Pastor Mike that I needed to get my Bible off of the bus. He agreed, and one of my traveling companions and I rushed to retrieve the sacred Book.

When we returned, I opened to Psalm 2 and read the passage aloud as a proclamation to both Red Square and the entire Soviet Union, just as the Holy Spirit had prompted:

Why are the nations in an uproar And the peoples devising a vain thing? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying, “Let us tear their fetters apart And cast away their cords from us!”

He who sits in the heavens laughs, The Lord scoffs at them. Then He will speak to them in His anger And terrify them in His fury, saying, “But as for Me, I have installed My King Upon Zion, My holy mountain.”

“I will surely tell of the decree of the Lord: He said to Me, ‘You are My Son, Today I have begotten You. Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations as Your inheritance, And the very ends of the earth as Your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron, You shall shatter them like earthenware.’”

Now therefore, O kings, show discernment; take warning, O judges of the earth.  Worship the Lord with reverence And rejoice with trembling. Do homage to the Son, that He not become angry, and you perish in the way, For His wrath may soon be kindled. How blessed are all who take refuge in Him! (Psalm 2.)

After I was finished, Pastor Mike led us in prayer for the people of the Soviet Union. The holiness of God was tangible; we knew our small band would experience the supernatural hand of God on this trip.

We arrived back in the U.S. on Saturday evening, August 17. On Monday morning, the 19th, still jet-lagged and sleeping in, I was awakened by an urgent phone call. One of my friends from the church was on the other end and demanded, “Get up! Turn on your TV! Something’s going on in Red Square!”

Still in a daze, I stumbled into the living room and saw the very square where I had proclaimed Psalm 2 just two weeks before and where I had stood and prayed just two days before, now filled with Soviet tanks in an attempted coup d’état. Hard-line members of the Communist party, opposed to Mikhail Gorbachev’s reforms (which involved divvying up much of the central government’s power to the republics), were attempting to regain control.

Why, indeed, as Psalm 2 asked, was the nation in an uproar? Why were the peoples devising a vain thing? Those hard-line rulers were taking counsel together against the plan of God—freedom in the USSR for the spread of the gospel.

Wikipedia states of this coup d’état, “Although the coup collapsed in only two days and Gorbachev returned to government, the event destabilized the Soviet Union and is widely considered to have contributed to both the demise of the CPSU [Communist Party Soviet Union] and the dissolution of the Soviet Union” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1991_Soviet_coup_d%27%C3%A9tat_attempt).

As I viewed the chaos on TV, I remembered the urgency of the Holy Spirit within me two weeks earlier to proclaim Psalm 2 as I stood in Red Square. And I bowed my head in reverence to God.

Tomorrow: Grenada, 1987.

Father’s Day Thoughts

Posted by Admin on Jun 21, 2015 in Special days | Comments Off on Father’s Day Thoughts

My dad: WW2 vet, married to one woman, breadwinner, shrewd thinker, uncomfortable about faith, better with small kids than pre-teens or teens, giver, uncomfortable in crowds, adventurous.

My dad was a flawed man. He battled insecurity, anger, and alcoholism. Yet as I thought about him this Father’s Day, I smiled and thanked God for him. He exemplified the American dream. He came from a dustbowl, Depression-era home in Oklahoma and survived a broken home at age 10. He knew the stigma of living in a single-mother home when very few other kids did. He started smoking about the same time his dad left his mom, and gave up smoking in his late fifties in support of my mom who had to quit smoking or die.

And despite his broken beginnings, he served in the South Pacific as a pilot in WW2 between stints at Oklahoma University, and when he finally finished college, he went to night school while working days at his dream job—an engineer at a corporate firm—to earn his Masters. He provided for his wife and two kids, and later his third—me—and made sure we had everything we needed.

Although he battled his demons, he sought to live in integrity. As outraged as he could make me (and he did seem to look for buttons to push), I am thankful for the man God gave me as my dad. Just recognizing that he was not only flawed but also longed to do what was right most of the time helps me to honor him in my memory despite those flaws.

He passed away in 2008, and I am thankful for his positive input in my life and for the lessons I’ve learned from the more unpleasant times. I’ve chosen to forgive him completely and to love him as the gift of God that he was able to be. Although he shunned my offer of leading him to Christ, he heard the truth. I can rest in the love of my Heavenly Father and trust that God has it all covered. And perhaps…maybe…my dad heard the message one last time, and recognizing his eternal need, quietly opened his heart to Christ.

I am writing this for all of you who did not have a “perfect” dad. I know that wounds can still fester on the inside of many—even Christians—due to the thoughtlessness, negligence, and sometimes abuse of their fathers. If this describes you, I challenge you to find the positive—whatever it may be—in the relationship you’ve had with your dad, and thank God for it. I found that great healing started in my life and love for my dad  increased as I thanked God for the good that he was able to instill in my life.

You don’t need to pretend that everything was—or is—hunky-dory to look for the good. But as you seek out those good things (I bet you’ll find something) and thank God for what you discover, a washing and a healing in your heart will begin, and a new compassion—the love of Christ—will rise up in your heart for that one flawed man called Dad.

God bless you,

Dorothy

Have you ever seen the rain?

Posted by Admin on Jun 17, 2015 in Revival | Comments Off on Have you ever seen the rain?

Just this morning, I was enjoying breakfast at one of my very favorite fine dining establishments, Waffle House. I was minding my own business doctoring my coffee with Half and Half, when from the juke box (remember those?) I heard a familiar melody and words so dear to my heart. They speak to a deep place within me, and I wrote a blog about the lyrics in one of my earliest entries here. I believe the Lord wants me to repost it. Here it is:

As I was praying and doing chores a while back, a wisp of a song arose within me:

“I wanna know have you ever seen the rain?”  (Creedence Clearwater Revival, © 1970.)

The words stirred something deep inside me, and as I sang them quietly, I felt the need to search out the rest of the lyrics.

This song had played during an era in my life when I was a camp counselor, living outside, sleeping under the stars, and swimming in Ozark lakes, creeks, and rivers. I wondered if the emotion I felt as I heard it was merely the stirring of the sleeping flower child still camping out somewhere inside of me.

And I remembered it was my older siblings who had introduced me to this music. Was the pull I felt just a reminder of how much I still loved and looked up to my big brother and sister?

Or was there something more primal, deeper than soul, drawing me? I had to know. This song touched something within me that day, so I googled it to see if the lyrics had anything to say to me.

In my search I found what others had written about the lyrics. To many of them, the song was sad and beautiful, simple and touching.

To me, however, it spoke of the rains of God. God’s rains often follow the tumultuous storms of discord, trial, and dismay in society. The storms erupt after periods of calm and complacency and spiraling hedonism. And as folks feel the very foundations of their lives shaken—those false values and structures in which they had so trusted—they start looking elsewhere—often Heavenward—for comfort and direction. And God sends the rains, raining a sunny day, raining a day of help, raining a day of salvation.

“Someone told me long ago there’s a calm before the storm

I know, it’s been coming for some time

When it’s over, so they say, it’ll rain a sunny day

I know, shinin’ down like water.”

Not everyone gets to see one of God’s rains. However, blessed is that generation so privileged to experience the outpouring. Strangely enough, Creedence Clearwater Revival wrote and sang during one of God’s downpours. I wonder if they realized it at the time.

The sixties and seventies witnessed the last bona fide widespread outpouring of God—at least in North America. I got in on the final days of that sweet time. The things I saw and experienced in the first four or five years of my walk with Jesus still elicit a deep longing for the rains to fall again.

“I wanna know, have you ever seen the rain?

I wanna know, have you ever seen the rain? Coming down on a sunny day?”

When you meet someone who has seen the rain, lived in the rain, danced in the rain, they seem like anyone else. But if you scratch a bit, dig a bit below the dry surface, the flood waters still run within them, longing to be joined again by the rains from Heaven.

And then they will ask you:

“I wanna know, have you ever seen the rain?

I wanna know, have you ever seen the rain? Comin’ down on a sunny day?”

Let it rain, Lord! Let it rain.

Dorothy

Need light?

Posted by Admin on Jun 11, 2015 in Prayer Perspective, Updates | Comments Off on Need light?

For with You is the fountain of life; In Your light we see light. Psalm 36:9

Have you ever had one of those stressful stretches of time? One that lasts over several weeks? I’ve been going through one of those myself, lately, and as pressure and stress levels seemed to be crescendoing out of earth’s orbit last night, I decided to apply a simple “talk-through” technique to my emotions as I plugged away at an impossibly long “to do” list.

Here’s what I did: With every little thing I worked on—mundane as each one was—I talked to God about how glad I was about that little part of my life. Putting away the dishes? Thank You, Lord for these dishes and the ability to clean them! Sorting clothes for laundry? Father, thank You for giving me these clothes and a great washer and dryer! Paying bills? Thanks, God, that I can do math and that there’s some money left over after paying these! It may not be much, but I’m not broke, glory to God!

And as I continued in this vein, it wasn’t long until the stress started ebbing away and peace seeped back in, quietly reigning once again.

This morning however, I remembered a scheduling detail I became aware of yesterday that played a huge contributing factor in my spiraling stress the day before. It still bothered me, and it was something that was pretty much out of my control—unless I made a great big scene and pushed several levels of people around. I started feeling the stress creep back in.

I prayed. I prayed in the Spirit. And then I verbally committed the scheduling to God—to accept it as is or let Him rearrange it if He saw fit—without my personal interference.

And do you know what He spoke to me? It was eye-opening! He said, “There’s a difference between being a prima donna and being led by My Spirit.”  Burn!

How many times have you and I demanded our own way, insisting we were being led of the Spirit, when in actuality, we were being led by our flesh—our preferences, our fears, or our biases—absolutely clueless about our own motives?

As I repented and prayed in the Spirit—a gusher this time—God’s great comfort came upon me. An old praise song rose up in my heart, and as I sang it, once again it was well with my soul:

“For with You is the fountain of life; In Your light we see light. With You is the fountain of life; in Your light, we see light.” (From Psalm 36:9)

When you make Jesus the Lord of your life, then you have given Him the right to have His say-so in every aspect. And that is very good.

Dorothy

Due to my very busy schedule, I will be sporadically adding to this blog in the next few weeks—sometimes on, sometimes off. Just check back periodically to see any new entries. Blessings! 🙂

Hidden treasures

Posted by Admin on Jun 8, 2015 in The God who hides | Comments Off on Hidden treasures

…attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God’s mystery, that is, Christ Himself, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Colossians 2:2b-3

Truly, You are a God who hides Himself, O God of Israel, Savior! Isaiah 45:15

For many of us, one of the most frustrating aspects of God is the fact that He often hides Himself. A dear family member of mine who would love to believe in God struggles with the reality of Him—and His Son Jesus—for that very reason: She hasn’t yet “felt” Him.

It has been my experience that God approaches each of us in varying ways according to His wisdom—and His ways have never proven to be our chosen ways (see Isaiah 55:8). But no matter what methods He uses to draw each individual to Himself, each one of us who comes to Him enters through the same Door—Jesus Christ (see John 10:7).

Once you’ve entered through the Door, a new heart is formed in you and a new life awaits you. And yet, although all things in you have been made new (see 2 Corinthians 5:17) and you now have the mind of Christ (see 1 Corinthians 2:16), a lifelong adventure of “hide and seek” lies before you. You see, you have embraced Jesus, the Mystery of the ages, and within Him are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge (see Colossians 2:3).

Just as pursuit is an integral component of a healthy romantic relationship, so, too, is seeking a key part of the relationship between God and you. Jesus came to seek and to save the lost (see Luke 19:10); likewise, He is honored when you seek Him with all of your heart—so much so that He assures you that you will find Him (see Jeremiah 29:13). If He seems slow in answering, persist. How many men have wooed reluctant lovers only to win them over by their raw determination? And if you—like my precious family member—are experiencing the “hiddenness” of God, realize that your persistence in the search honors Him who is yet unfelt by you—and as a result, blessing and intimacy with Him are piling up to your account, ready to tip the scale and pour out upon you. At some point in your search, you will detect the tiniest mustard seed of faith within you where you never noticed it before; when you sense it, plant it in Him by asking Him into your life and the Door will open to you. And then? Joy unspeakable and full of glory will capture your heart (see 1 Peter 1:8).

And just as pursuit is an integral component of a healthy, maturing relationship, so, too, is seeking a key part of the continuing relationship between God and you. After all, in Him—Jesus Christ, the Lover of your soul—is hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. It will take a lifetime—and then on into eternity—to explore and enjoy all that belongs to you in your relationship with Him. Daily He bears your burdens (see Psalm 68:19); daily you are invited to enter into new discoveries of the vastness of His unsearchable wisdom and knowledge (see Romans 11:33).

Contrary to some of the griping I’ve heard about how boring “God stuff” is, I have found unlimited treasure in Him—and I know that I’ve barely scratched the surface.

Here’s the deal. If you learned that you owned the deed to a large unmined vein of gold or a vast untapped reservoir of oil, would you be bored with that information? Would you lament how much time and effort you would have to expend to search out ways to access all that wealth?

Spiritual treasure is no different. In fact, that which God has hidden for you in Christ is not only treasure to be embraced now in this life; it extends into all eternity. Nothing—whether silver or gold or oil or all the money in a billion treasuries—could compare to even a portion of the vast expanse of all that is hidden in Christ.

Wherever you are in your pursuit of Him, be encouraged. He is the Lover of your soul and He is the limitless Treasure worth seeking out.

Dorothy

…God’s mystery…Christ Himself, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Colossians 2:2a-3

…the mystery which has been hidden from the past ages and generations…which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Colossians 1:26a, 27b

The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. Matthew 13:44

He is not far from any of us

Posted by Admin on Jun 4, 2015 in The God who hides | Comments Off on He is not far from any of us

Truly, You are a God who hides Himself, O God of Israel, Savior! Isaiah 45:15

Does God seem to be hiding His presence from you? Don’t be discouraged. He Himself has not departed from you; He is close at hand and is very engaged and interested in your life.

I’ll use an illustration from my teaching days to drive this point home. A first year middle school teacher at my school had very little control over her classroom, and one young man in particular was especially challenging for her. I watched this bunch with great interest, for they would soon be advancing from seventh into eighth grade—the grade I taught.

As the year progressed, the disruptive behaviors in this class—stirred relentlessly by this one young man—grew more and more unruly, outrageous, and unbearable. Unfortunately, this new, young teacher had little support from the administration, but one day she made a very wise decision: She contacted the teen’s mother—a street-smart police officer-in-training.

Mom showed up the next day when the students were out of the room, and with the teacher’s permission, she hid in an empty classroom locker. (Did I mention that Mom was in great shape and could actually fit into a classroom locker?)

The bell rang, and soon students, loud and rambunctious, began filing into the room. The teacher called for order, and slowly—with attitude—one by one these young teens took their seats—everyone, that is, except the ringleader. He became more and more boisterous, strutting around the room, daring his teacher to do something about it. And as he danced around, a virtual one-man vaudeville act, wild and full of himself, what do you know? Out of the locker jumped his mother!

Everyone in that class roared with delight except one—the young man! Shock, horror, and awe spread across his face as his body froze in terror. That which was hidden was now revealed, in oh so many ways!

You are probably not like this young man, creating havoc in wild abandonment. You are likely disciplined—constrained by decorum and kindness—and yet God seems to be hiding from you.

Wherever you may be on the “self-control spectrum”—from completely out-of-control to rigidly self-disciplined—God is near, loving you no matter what He sees or hears.

And God is something like that mother who loved her son enough to hide, only to make her presence known in time—suddenly. Your God—though seemingly hidden—is near to you, also. And He will be faithful to reveal Himself when you most need it—and sometimes when you least expect it!

Rest assured. God—though seemingly hidden—is very near.

Dorothy

…He is not far from each one of us. Acts 17:27b

Do not fear, for I am with you… Isaiah 43:5a

The God who works behind the scenes

Posted by Admin on Jun 3, 2015 in The God who hides | Comments Off on The God who works behind the scenes

Truly, You are a God who hides Himself, O God of Israel, Savior! Isaiah 45:15

One reason God hides Himself at times is to allow us to grow in faith as we trust Him and His Word without any sensory input at all.

Another reason God may hide Himself for a season from you and me has to do with the way He works out His purposes—both in our own lives and in the lives of others. The Message Bible says it this way: “Clearly, you are a God who works behind the scenes, God of Israel, Savior God.”

You may wonder why the Lord would do such a thing. You may even cite the verse in Genesis which says, “The LORD said, ‘Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?’” (Genesis 18:17.) You might think, Of course God wants to reveal Himself to me—doesn’t He?

Yes, God will teach you concerning Himself, He will show you by the Holy Spirit things to come (see John 16:13), and He will be a Friend who reveals secrets to you just as He did with Abraham. However, like a seed sprouting in darkness, hidden below the ground, forming roots and all that it will need to bear fruit once it breaks through the earth, the mysteries of your life and future often need to remain underground for a while, developing a strong root system and support structure, hidden away from both your eyes and impatient curiosity. If God is hidden to you, you can rest assured that He is nonetheless at work on your behalf, forming the structures of His will and purpose for the details of your life.

Take courage in the fact that the Lord is actively working on your behalf, especially when He seems hidden!

Dorothy

“Shall I bring to the point of birth and not give delivery?” says the LORD. “Or shall I who gives delivery shut the womb?” says your God.  Isaiah 66:9

For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6

…He knows the way I take; when He has tried me I shall come forth as gold. Job 23:10