Have you noticed how the art of handwritten letter writing is increasingly fading, or pretty much obsolete?  Our once, “Hi how are you”, or “thinking of you”, followed by a lengthier note of encouragement, has been replaced with a quick text or a cute smiley emoji.

Our words of encouragement to others hold TONS of weight. To see it in writing, or verbally said, that you are loved, appreciated, and supported is priceless. I strongly believe encouragement is universally lacking.

The book of Philippians is an amazing lil blueprint for encouragement.  Paul wrote this letter while in prison in Rome. This, his most personal of all letters to a church, has a main directive to thank them for their love and support.  So basically, the letter is a huge “thank you” note. Yet, he doesn’t stop there. He continues with instruction and wonderful encouragement: “I thank my God when I think of you … I have you in my heart …. stand fast… be of the same mind… rejoice in the Lord always… don’t be anxious … be thankful … let your request be made known… think on these things …”  (Just to mention a few). And he wraps it up with “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit…” That is some loving encouragement!

We need to pause for a moment to remember that Paul wrote this while in PRISON. He could have, in his humanity, turned the letter into a huge “whine.” Many excuses could have surfaced.  He could have withheld the encouragement until the conditions were better. He could have waited until he walked free in the streets, felt the warmth of rubbing shoulders with others, breathed in fresh air. But he didn’t. He spoke from his captivity. He had faith, he reached for his God and with the help of the Holy Spirit, he shared his faith and love of Jesus with others.

What an example to us all, that we not “WAIT.” Wait, until we have it all together and think the conditions are exactly right. Wait until our own pain, our own struggle has subsided. Sure, some of us are thinking, “But he was PAUL, the guy had a direct blinding link to Jesus!” Yes, yes he did. But so do we. We have the same Lord, the same Spirit dwelling in us.

Our words, whether they be verbal, written, texted, tweeted, or posted – should reach out. May we hug with our words. Don’t wait!  Someone out there needs us, needs YOU. The hurting, the lonely, the confused. Embrace them. They need our words of encouragement. They can’t wait for us to get it all together. (Or wait until all this Covid-19 is lifted).

Don’t wait.

In Him, DeDe (“Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love & good deeds.” – Hebrews 10:24)

*I honestly do not remember where I got the image above, I’ve had it in my files for years. But is speaks volumes.

Jesus is in the home of the sisters, Mary & Martha. Mary sits at Jesus’ feet. Martha (being the Martha Stewart of the day) was in the kitchen working.  Luke (10:38-42) describes Martha; while hospitality was a cultural expectation, she was distracted by all the stuff, the preparations, and the work. Frustrated, she urges Jesus to encourage Mary to help her. Jesus tells Martha, “you are anxious and troubled about many things” (v41, ESV).  He continues that Mary is good right here – at His feet.

Mary was at Jesus’ feet.  What a beautiful place to be.  It is the place of learning.  The custom was as a disciple, you sit at the feet of your Rabbi, your teacher.  The one who you follow with your life.  The one you desire to emulate.  The common practice was for men not women to sit before a Rabbi. But here, here Mary boldly sits.  Jesus so accepting of her.

Later, (John 11) Lazarus, the sisters’ brother is dead. He’s been in the grave four days. Jesus comes to them. Mary is again at His feet, this time, heartbroken. “When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw Him, she fell at His feet…” (v32).

Looking at Mary’s example, I have much to learn. I desire to be at Jesus’ feet, in the good times and not distracted by the stuff, or anxious and troubled. Or by what others are demanding of me, or what society expects of me.  I want also to be at Jesus’ feet when my heart is overwhelmed, when tears stain the pages. 

At His feet – In the good and in the painfilled.

In Him, DeDe (“Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love & good deeds.” – Hebrews 10:24)

“One thing I have asked from the LORD, that I shall seek: That I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD. And to meditate in His temple.” King David, Psalm 27:4, NASB

Behold.

The word behold points to bygone days and may be considered archaic and obsolete. With the ever-growing society, some words tip and fall, deemed no longer useful or necessary and easily replaced.  

Webster’s defines behold, “to gaze upon or observe a remarkable or impressive thing or person.”

What do we behold?

The English Standard Version uses behold a total of 1,069 times.  In both the Old and New Testament, behold renders two uses.  First, in context to an unrestrained interjection of new or exciting elements into the story. Essentially, “See here!”  or “Look and take note!” In the Hebrew it is attached to hope, expectation, and certainty.  Isaiah declares, “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the LORD GOD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.” (Isaiah 12:2, emphasis mine). 

John, expressing his revelation and interaction with Jesus, “When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, “Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.”  (Revelation 1:17-18). God is our strength and salvation and Jesus alive forevermore and He has the keys – YES!  Exciting elements indeed!

Behold.

The second use for biblical beholding is the gazing Websters speaks of.  A steady gazing – do not look away.  It is calling to attention – THIS (a verbal pointing) is worth our time and there is value in our full stop. One resource stated, the gazing goes beyond sight, but to all our senses, not only physical but mental and spiritual.

John the Baptist, “The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29).

Full stop. Full regard.

Behold.

In our current culture we tend to call attention to so much and so many, other …than Jesus.  We flock (or did) to stadiums, concert halls and think nothing of it to stand with arms waving in full unrestrained excitement. There are moments, among the crowd we too would quiet ourselves due to awe and wonder.

Behold.

Why aren’t we so excited about Jesus?  Where is our applause?  Where is the awe?   May we reclaim what it is to behold our God!

This song!  (see below) Oh!  That our hearts would behold Him so tenderly, so unrestrained. So full of awe and regard.  Listen to the words. He is worthy of our awe. Behold Him. (I am not exalting the worship, but the One we worship!)

In Him, DeDe (“Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love & good deeds.” – Hebrews 10:24)

*I do not know where I got the image of the lil boy above, it has always captivated me – challenged me.

Have you ever stood on the edge of the pages of your life and just shake your head in complete bewilderment and think one simple word, “HOW!”   Then the rest of the frustration tumbles out, exclaiming, “But God, this … and …” continuing with a list of “can’t do’s – won’t work – not happening” statements – especially in this unprecedented (key word for 2020) day we live in.

Wait!  Keep turning the pages.  Believe it or not, “But God …” (or “But the Lord”) is mentioned 325+ times in the Bible, in GOD’S favor.  In this study, spending four hours looking at these verses, I was captivated. In the story, in the context, I saw God’s character being placed in the forefront.  There were loud moments of reassurance and yet quiet whispers of His love. This is what I found; this is what I learned.  In short, briefly stating, just a few from Genesis:

I begin with Genesis 3, Adam and Eve are in the garden, the presence of God so intimate that He literally takes walks with them.  They have just made some very poor choices (thanks, guys). God is heard walking through the garden and the couple hides. “But the LORD God called to the man, ‘Where are you?” (v9).  God calls. He knew very well where they were, the question was intended for Adam, to consider his location, his position and his condition before Him.  

Then there’s Noah and crew, out in the big boat, floating.  Floating.  More floating.  The waters were high and the large hand-built boat was tossed back and forth. A man and his family all alone among the precious cargo of every kind of animal created by God. Obedience led them to this completely unknown. Genesis 8:1 “But God remembered Noah and all the wild animals and the livestock that were with him in the ark, and he sent a wind over the earth, and the waters receded.” God remembers. He will send a wind to our circumstance, His wind and resolve the flood in our life.

Next, a man by the name of Jacob, he worked hard as requested and then was treated unfairly by his father-in-law. Genesis 31:42 “But God has seen my hardship and the toil of my hands…” God sees. He sees us where we are, how we are and how we are being treated.  He cares – He will act.

Joseph, the cocky favored son, who was thrown into a pit and sold as a slave by FAMILY MEMBERS! Genesis 50:20 “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done and the saving of many lives.” God accomplishes.  He redeems the bad and transforms for good to accomplish His plan.

Amazing, just amazing!  The Word is full of examples like these and more, many, many more: “… But the LORD was my support.” (2 Samuel 22:19) “But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever …” (Psalm 73:26) “But God promised…” (Acts 7:5) “But God had mercy on him…” (Philippines 2:27) “But God is the builder of everything…” (Hebrews 3:4) 

God is incredible! He is never late and never ignores and is extremely attentive to detail and He is concerned more for our welfare than our comfort and goes to extraordinary effort at times to make sure we hear Him.

If our circumstances seem frustrating, just keep turning the pages. God is calling, remembering, seeing and accomplishing and SO much more!

But God.

In Him, DeDe (“Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love & good deeds.” – Hebrews 10:24)

You can go to Bible Gateway (link below) and read for yourself, ‘But God.’

In our current global circumstance,  I sit at my desk thinking of my life, my family and so many others, and yes, the world.  This story keeps coming to mind . . . 

What does it take for us to stop?  Not slow down long enough to reach out and get just a piece of something.  But stop in the sense as to put a hold on what we are doing. Full stop. Full attention.

Moses experienced this.  He was out tending his father-in-law’s sheep, moving them along in the wilderness over to Mt Sinai.  It was here he saw a bush. A bush, not enough to make a shepherd stop, but this bush was on fire and not being consumed by the flames.  Intrigued, the narrative explains Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” (Exodus 3:3).  Moses turned aside.  He stopped what he was doing. Perhaps he had a young lamb he was chasing or carrying a wounded ewe. He stops chasing, lays the ewe down.

We cannot miss what happens next, “When the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.”’  (v4).  What a beautiful scenario: Moses stopped, turned – God saw, spoke. God waited for Moses’ full attention before He spoke.  Moses was told to take off his sandals, he was on holy ground.  It wasn’t the sand – it was the Presence of God – Holy!  God continues to reveal Himself, reveal His plan. (Read Exodus 3, an amazing story).

I’m no Moses, but I wonder how many times God has put burning bushes out there for me to see, His attempt to get my attention.  Yet, I am too busy, too distracted – ramped up on my schedule to even see.  How many times I miss His desire to initiate conversation, initiate commissioning.  In my lack of seeing, lack of awareness, lack of stopping I miss a holy moment, a moment when God reveals Himself.

May we seek to see, seek to know God – at all costs!    May we stop like Moses and turn aside.  God, You have our full attention!

In Him, DeDe (“Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love & good deeds.” – Hebrews 10:24)

Updated and looking fabulous – coming SOON!

Christmas and gift-giving, standing among all the stuff, the noise and the chaos.  Christmas has become somewhat of a plummeting oneself into the art of either grab and go at the store or park yourself in front of the computer and let your fingers do the shopping, ‘Click‘.

Swirling inattentive, not really there, moments.

How often are we somewhere else when we are with people or in circumstances or perhaps even in church?  Our bodies may be present but by golly, our minds are full of grocery list writing or a prior situation or while someone is talking to us, we are busy formulating our response.  WHAT did we miss?

Be in the moment.

In Exodus (the theology of Exodus is Presence) Exodus 24, God called Moses up the mountain, “The LORD said to Moses, “”Come up to Me on the mountain and be there; and I will give you tablets of stone, and the law and commandments which I have written, that you may teach them.” (v12, emphasis mine, NKJV). For 40 days Moses was there, on the mountain, in God’s presence.  Eight chapters worth of divine instruction was given.  Moses was there.  Many translators interpret God telling Moses to ‘stay there’ or ‘wait there.’  Yet a 19th-century Rabbi wrote from a different perspective which I adore.  He explains that ‘there are times we go to a place and not actually being there, simply saying: we can exert ourselves getting to a destination, yet when we arrive, our thoughts remain at the original point of departure.  The Rabbi imagined God was telling Moses not only come up the mountain but – be fully there, with complete attention, concentration – leaving all behind.’* Can you imagine how the story would have played out if Moses was distracted, thinking he forgot to blow out the candle in his tent or was busy taking in the view from ‘way up here, OH WOW, Aaron and all are so small’ all the while God’s talking and has to say, “Moses, over here, eyes HERE, pay attention, you’re going to want to hear this, know this!”

May we too be there, this holiday season and every day – be in the moment. Giving folks or our situation complete attention and concentration.  It is a gift we give to others and ourselves when we are giving presence in the present, full-on presence.  And may we pay close attention and not allow our mind to wander (even when we read God’s word) we don’t want to miss anything – we may need to hear this, know this!

Let’s look the bell-ringer in the eye, tell the cashier “Merry Christmas” while using their name and reciprocate a firm handshake or hug and pay close attention to the details of what others are telling us.

Presence.

In Him, DeDe (“Let us consider how we may spur one another on towards love & good deeds.” – Hebrews 10:24)

*Lois Tverberg, Reading the Bible with Rabbi Jesus –  I had the privilege of being on the original launch team for this book, I highly recommend it.

Image credit: scottberglan.org

Forty. Noah and crew got rained on for 40 days. Israel wandered for 40 years in the wilderness. Moses was on the Mt with God 40 days. Caleb was 40 when he spied out the land. Goliath taunted the Israelites for 40 days. King David reigned for 40 years. Jesus was in the wilderness for 40 days and later, among man 40 days after His resurrection.

Forty.

The year was 1979. Jimmy Carter was in office. Folks were glued to their foil-wrapped antenna TV sets watching M*A*S*H, Three’s Company, Brady Bunch and Dukes of Hazzard. We were listening to our 8-tracks of Billy Joel, the Bee Gees and yes, the Village People, (ok, maybe not the Village People). It’s been 40 years.

It was December 21, 1979, on a Friday evening, when I sat on the floor in the living room of my pastor’s house. His dear wife Brenda explaining the gospel so clear, so lovingly. At nearly seventeen, I wasn’t sure about life, but I knew my life needed Jesus. We prayed. I invited Jesus to be my Lord and the center of my life. Everything changed.

Forty years.

I went on to Bible college at God’s command (for me) it was there He confirmed His call on my life and birthed a love and PASSION for His Word. As I look over celebrating forty years, it’s been a wild ride of God’s faithfulness, His love and at times His (many) well-deserved disciplines. Forty years of on my face before Him in complete wonderment of His Word, with hours upon hours of ‘can’t get enough’. When God calls and then equips, like that evening when Jesus became my Lord, everything changes. I have the most amazing privilege of teaching the women at church, doing research for pastors and the blog Inspired Fountain is now being read in over 50 countries and soon to be put in book form. All at HIS direction, to HIS glory, in HIS name. Go God!

Thank you, Jesus.

Here’s to another forty years! (wink)

In Him, DeDe (“Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love & good deeds.” – Hebrews 10:24)