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Seesaws

4/27/2015

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Last week I was thinking about the journey of Abram. When Abram was 75 years old, God promised him that he would be made into "a great nation" (Genesis 12.2). Since Abram had no children he had to have a lot of faith in God to believe this incredible promise. Then Abram endures many hardships, times of sin, and humbling himself before his Creator.  Years pass and still no child. I'm sure that my shriveled up body would begin to lose hope in the promise God spoke so long ago...if I was Abram, that is. 

God understood that Abraham needed some encouragement so in Genesis 15, he speaks to Abram again. He speaks words of comfort to Abram, reminding Abram that he has not forgotten him. Abram is not appeased. He loses his temper with God and gets a bit sarcastic. "What can you give me, God?" Abram asks. You see, Abram has had this conversation with God before. He's heard the promise, but he's waited years and years! How do you respond when you're sure God has spoken, but then nothing happens? Weeks, months, maybe even years pass...and nothing happens. The hardship still plagues you. 

God heard Abram, so he took Abram outside to change his perspective. Sometimes, we think the road to the promises of God is a straight path, but if we look closely, we'll see the twists and turns in the road from where we are to the destination of the promise. "Count the stars, Abram," God instructs him. I wonder sometimes if Abram actually started to count the stars, meanwhile thinking, "I get what you're saying here God."

Yet, it wasn't until years later that God's promise is fulfilled and Isaac is born. Through all of the life situations that Abram encountered, he had to keep in mind that night when he went outside and God promised he would make Abram's family number more than the stars in the sky. He had to remember what he saw, not focus on what he sees before him. He had to be careful not to focus on the discouraging situation before him (see), but on that starry night so long ago (saw). 

That's how my faith is sometimes, like a seesaw. When my godly desires, what God has spoken to me, don't align with what is before me. I'm sure you've encountered that too. Just remember to keep your hopes up. Give your glory to God and remember what you saw, not what you see.

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Just a pebble in your shoe...

4/16/2015

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Like the song says: It started as a small thing, just a pebble in your shoe.

Romans 9.30-32 says, "What then shall we say? That the Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have obtained it, a righteousness that is by faith; but the people of Israel, who pursued the law as the way of righteousness, have not attained their goal. Why not? Because they pursued it not by faith but as if it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone."

Are you an Israelite or a Gentile in this case? Have you become righteous through your lifestyle of faith? Or have you followed rules step by step, and in doing so, missed the point altogether?  If you have been a church-going believer for any length of time, you have probably heard the message that when Jesus showed up on the scene, things changed. We're no longer bound by the law. Instead, we are justified through faith. This is a thought that is conveyed often, so let me take a different viewpoint.

Are you aware of the stumbling blocks in your life? The first step is to identify your stumbling blocks. It is often the "acceptable" sins that are the biggest stumbling blocks. Do you gossip? Lie? Overeat? Smoke? These are the stumbling blocks. Are you, like the Israelites with the law, going to blind yourself to the damage it does to your life and your relationship with God?  Romans 10.4 says,  "Christ is the culmination of the law
 so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes."


Christ is the culmination of everything in your life. He is the one who removes your stumbling blocks. This is a lesson that I continue to learn. This is a lesson we must learn. Otherwise that pebble in our shoe will become the boulder that crushes us. Believe; have faith; Christ will remove those stumbling blocks. He will knock them down, destroy them, demolish them...they will be no more!

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Renewing Waters

4/5/2015

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Recently I was reminded of a passage I hadn't looked at in years. Ezekiel 47 speaks of being led into the river of God, flowing from the temple. The water starts ankle deep and rises until it is deep enough to swim in. Then the man shows Ezekiel all of the life being fed by this water. Ezekiel goes back to the shore and the man continues speaking to him.

This is such a beautiful and poetic metaphor for our relationship with God. Reading this I wonder if Ezekiel was tempted to dive under the water, let it surround him, then take a deep breath.  I wonder then, if the water would have flooded Ezekiel's lungs would give him life, instead of taking it. 

Many times our faith seems just as contradictory as this. We need to fight against our instincts to do the right thing. I fight against my sinful instincts - those times when I don't want to show grace or patience; those times when no one is looking - take a deep breath, and and allow God to breath living water into my very being.

That's what the resurrection did. The cross was a moment in time, but the resurrection is renewed each day! So dive deep into those living waters, knowing that the source is the risen Saviour - your creator.
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    Pastor Megan

    Pastor. Teacher. Book lover.

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