As a follow-up to the last post, check out Christine's blog - she's got some more insight on the rain parallel....

I love the rain. It's easy to explain - I grew up in Vancouver. More specifically, North Vancouver, where I think they get more rain than everywhere else in the country combined. I love the rain. I like it best when it rains really hard, not just spitting (I personally think that's just an attempt at rain - like the warming up of the orchestra before a symphony performance). Rain is truly beautiful. This morning it rained so hard that for a few minutes I could barely see the buildings that are next to mine in my complex. So cool. It makes me wonder why we as a culture complain about the rain so much - rain makes things grow, it reduces the chance of wildfires, and it is beautiful, albeit rather ... inconvenient at times.

What a neat parallel to the difficulties that God allows in our lives. Spiritual rain - tough times that will force us back to the arms of the Father and effect growth in us and bring glory to God. Why do we complain about them so much? Because they're inconvenient? Because they are hard to go through? Jesus never promised us that we would not face trials. In fact, He promised the opposite: "In this world you will have trouble...." But the beauty of the Word is that He also promised that He has overcome that same world. God also promises us to receives blessings when we accept the lessons from the hard things in life. Check it out:

For ground that drinks the rain which often falls on it and brings forth vegetation useful to those for whose sake it is also tilled, receives a blessing from God.... (Hebrews 6:7)

More than once in the scriptures we are compared to ground or soil (think about the parable that Jesus told about the seeds and the soil - Matthew 13). When we accept the hard times and rely on God for our growth and strength, we will produce something useful to others - to fellow believers, to unbelievers, and to bringing glory to God. Don't shun the hard times - the rain in your life. It comes from God's wisdom - welcome it. Drink it in. It will make you grow, it will reduce the chance of wildfire in your life, and it is beautiful.

"These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world." (John 16:33)

And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. (Romans 8:28)

Battles are bloody. People get hurt. People are lost, both to the enemy and to death. Battles are bloody.

Spiritual battles can also be bloody. People can get hurt. People can also be lost, both to the enemy and to death.

I don't think it's much revelation to the church that we are in a battle. But I feel as though many times people in the church forget that we are victorious in these battles - Christ has already won the victory, so go ahead and fight the battle! (I read the end of the book - we win!) If we truly believe that God is over all and in all and through all (Ephesians 4:6), that His light is more powerful than any forces of darkness in this world, why are we often in despair? Do we forget? I think we often do - we decide that no matter how powerful God thinks He is our circumstances are worse, our burdens are heavier and our wounds are deeper than anything He could deal with or correct.

IT IS RUBBISH.

How can I state it any clearer than that? It's just another part of the battle. And it's a LIE. Throw it out. Here are a few reminders of the truth:

But as for me, I will watch expectantly for the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation, my God will hear me. Do not rejoice over me, O my enemy - though I fall I will rise; though I dwell in darkness, the LORD is a light for me. (Micah 7:7-8)

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. (Ephesians 6:12)

The king is not saved by a mighty army; a warrior is not delivered by great strength. A horse is a false hope for victory; nor does it deliver anyone by its great strength. Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, on those who hope for His lovingkindness, to deliver their soul from death and to keep them alive in famine. Our soul waits for the Lord; He is our help and our shield. For our heart rejoices in Him, because we trust in His holy name. Let Your lovingkindness, O Lord, be upon us, according as we have hoped in You. (Psalm 33:16-22)

You are my King and my God, who decrees victories for Jacob. Through You we push back our enemies; through Your name we trample our foes. I do not trust in my bow, my sword does not bring me victory; but You give us victory over our enemies, You put our adversaries to shame. (Psalm 44:4-7)

Blessed be the LORD, my rock, Who trains my hands for war, and my fingers for battle; my lovingkindness and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer, my shield and He in whom I take refuge, Who subdues my people under me. (Psalm 144:1-2)

There are so many truths about the power of God and His protection of us and His victory in everything that I cannot begin to write even a small portion of them down. (If you want to read more, head to www.biblegateway.com and search the words victory, light/darkness and battle.)

The victory is the Lord's. The battle, even, is the Lord's. It is within our own weakness and inability to rout the enemy that God's power and strength and love for us are truly shown. It is His glory. It is His strength. And it is His great pleasure to save us and deliver us from all the plans of the enemy. Do not allow yourself to fall into the trap of believing that God cannot or will not or even has not given you the victory. It is His. And He gives it to you.

"...and that all this assembly may know that the LORD does not deliver by sword or by spear; for the battle is the Lord's and He will give you into our hands." (1 Samuel 17:47)

And He has said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness " Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)

...one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all. (Ephesians 4:6)

Well, it seems that members of my family were a little ... perturbed ... that I would call them weird. (Or perhaps just miffed that I "outed" them?) In order to back up my assertion that this is actually the case and not some imaginary reality I've created to make myself look more normal, please let me show you exhibit A. Below you will be able to see an actual sample of a cocktail napkin that my mother passed to me this evening, with some hopes, I believe, that what is written on it is actually true.




















Please note that:

(A) It is a cocktail napkin, which is weird enough in itself, and as far as I know, witty cocktail napkins have not yet been successfully used as evidence in court (keep the faith, Mom, it may happen one day!), and

(B) This cocktail napkin was already in my parents' house, which, I think, more than aptly proves my point that my family is known to have a few little quirks of its own.

On the upside for my family, I personally think the cocktail napkin is hilarious and just the sort of thing we should use at family dinners to remind ourselves of the great cover-up plan of normalcy. Brilliant. Perhaps I shouldn't have blogged it - it might water down the effectiveness of the plan....

Ah well. All in good fun.


(PS - For those of you wondering what happened to any scripturally thought-provoking blogs that might have once appeared on this site, they will be back next blog - I promise!)

Teenagers amaze me - truly. For about a year and a half I have preached at them every Tuesday night at our youth and young adult service, and tried to present truths from the scripture that can be understood and applied to all our lives without treating them like children.

That was my mistake.

Tonight I gave the second installment of "The Book of Ruth Told with Toys" - an extremely low-budget production of the Biblical book of Ruth. Ruth herself is a Precious Moments doll, about 6 inches high. Naomi is a 1-inch plastic woman - the kind that fits into the Playschool buses usually. Boaz himself is a freakishly giant white fluffy cat. Other characters included a giraffe, a teddy bear, a turtle on wheels and a small Pluto (as in Mickey Mouse) doll. Oh yes, and the field workers: a small dinosaur and a wind-up purple rabbit.

The people that attend Re:Fuge have professed to LOVE the show! The experience tells me two things:

1. We need new toys in the nursery (these were all I could find).
2. God knows what He is doing when He invites us to follow His suggestions.

One of the teens was able to quite concisely and accurately reiterate the entire first two chapters of Ruth tonight - apparently the comedy version of Ruth made its way into his memory. That's a good thing, and a lesson I will remember. I am unlikely to be able to keep up the entertaining style of preaching every week (Naomi's voice strains my vocal chords quite a bit.....), but it's nice to be reminded that when God drops an idea into your head that you feel is only going to be a lesson in humility, it's still a God-idea, and sure to be worth merit.

I pray my kids will not forget the meaning of the book of Ruth by the time we're done. I imagine they'll not forget the experience for some time. Neither will I.

My heart is breaking tonight. I have spent the afternoon with an old and very dear friend of mine and his wife, his one-year-old son, 2 step-sons, and everybody's family. It was the one-year-old's baptism day, and though I didn't make it to the service, I was able to be at the family reception at the house in the afternoon.

What breaks my heart is that neither my friend nor his wife, who are both really wonderful people, have any desire to know Jesus. Please don't ask me why they had their son baptized - I'm really not sure, and have learned that religion conversations between the three of us can be .... ticklish, to say the least. You see, the last time I tried to have one, they didn't speak to me for over four years.

I love them. I want to respect them and their ability to make decisions about God. I want to be sure they know that I love them and that their friendship is extremely important to me.

But, oh, how I want to see them in heaven. How I want to be able to share with them the love of the Father for both of them and for their children. How I want to apologize and grieve and mourn that it was we, as the bride of Christ, who failed them and we are the very reason they never want to step into a church family again. I literally want to weep.

I want to see them for all eternity. I want to see them saved and free from whatever is in their life that holds them back from receiving the purest love they will ever know. I want to speak, to shout it out - that they need the blood of Jesus and that they will burst from the fullness He has to offer each of them.

But I cannot speak, at least not now.

I can only weep.

"This is why I weep and my eyes overflow with tears. No one is near to comfort me, no one to restore my spirit. My children are destitute because the enemy has prevailed." (Lamentations 1:16)

I've decided my family is weird. Just a little. And just enough. We spent the evening together (minus my sister-in-law, who unfortunately had to work) in celebration of my Dad's birthday. Family get-togethers are rather casual - we didn't even eat at the table tonight (thought that's a first, I think) and forgot to have a camera ready to take pictures of Dad when blowing out the candles on his cake.

The funny part of the night came when we decided to figure out how to use a video camera that my uncle passed on to me. We ended up taping each other, and you know, my family is FUNNY! I won't pass along any of the silly things we all did, because I rather like my family and am not ready to get kicked out of it just yet, but it is sufficient to say that when you videotape each other you get a really good picture of how strange you all are. It makes the cat look much more normal. In fact, I understand more that look of utter disdain she wears on her face most of the time.

So what's my point? Actually, I don't really have one, other than perhaps that Tara will continue to point out that the cat is prophetic. (Though I would argue she's more observant than prophetic....) Family's good, and there is a beautiful joy in knowing that mine extends beyond my biological family. I am blood related to many other wonderful people, many of whom are also weird. (If you're not one of the ones who believes they are weird, please excuse me - we'll videotape you next time so you have a chance to embrace any weirdness to which you may actually be inclined....)

Be blessed tonight and remember that through Christ's blood, you are part of a great family.

God sets the lonely in families, He leads forth the prisoners with singing; but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land. (Psalm 68:6)

I had the privilege of attending the War College (www.thewarcollege.com) graduation ceremonies and celebration yesterday. I was interested and pleased to hear Jonathan Evans (www.suburbanoutpost.blogspot.com) give a preach on sin and lamenting, instead of the usual "you've made it, your future is ahead of you" kind of talks that one often hears at graduations. It made me think this morning that every season of our lives is simply a lap on the race that is set before us (i.e. our lives), and that often when we feel we have mastered any particular discipline or concept that might be just the right time to go back and revisit it to make sure. If we ever feel we have mastered sin, we might want to watch out for the temptation that is right around the corner. If we feel we have mastered humility, we might want to watch out for the pride that is probably already within us. If we feel we have mastered worship, let's look again at the Master's face and realize that our most fragrant offering could actually never be too much for His glory and worthiness.

To be clear, I'm not trying to instill a guilt theology, where we always walk with our heads bowed and our eyes downcast because of our intense lowliness. It is still true that we are sons and daughters of the Most High King and we have been redeemed and forgiven by the blood of Jesus that was spilled on our behalf. But we are still vulnerable to attack, especially when we are not facing and watching for the enemy. Let's keep our defenses high and our armor strong, so that each lap of the race we run is run forward and run well. By the grace of God.

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize. (1 Corinthians 9:24-27)

You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth? That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you. "A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough." I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view. The one who is throwing you into confusion will pay the penalty, whoever he may be. (Galatians 5:7-10)

For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing. (2 Timothy 4:6-8)

I've been reading through "The Purpose Driven Life" lately - I figure it's a good idea to have read the book before we teach on it at the church in the fall.... Anyway, I was reading in one of the earlier chapters that this life is a test. That's an interesting idea - that everything we are given to handle or to administrate on this earth is a test. One thing that seriously caught my attention was the idea that delayed promises are a test. And I thought, "I sometimes struggle to believe in the promises of God that haven't yet shown up - especially when they have taken years to materialize." But God then reminded me that it's not necessarily what my head is saying at any given moment - how He knows what I really believe is what my actions are doing.

Like, God promised Abraham he would father a nation. He said he believed in it, but then took his wife's handmaiden in order to have a son, apparently figuring he'd help God along in His promise. His actions didn't back up what he said he believed - that God will fulfill all His promises. Fortunately, Abraham seemed to learn from this and later, when God tested him by asking him to sacrifice his son, Isaac, he trusted in God and forged ahead.

Perhaps our heads and thoughts weaken from time to time, but our actions will be letting us know if we have passed the test of delayed promises. My encouragement to stay strong in our belief in His promises is that He has never failed us yet. May our heads, hearts, and actions all manifest proof that we believe the truth that God is faithful.

You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. (James 2:22)

Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures through all generations. The Lord is faithful to all his promises and loving toward all he has made. (Psalm 145:13)

I was in the Christian bookstore today and saw a Bible cover with the word "Whatever" sprawled across it. Thinking it was a little strange, I looked closer, and realized that it is a play on the scripture found in Philippians 4:8:

"Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things."

True.
Honourable (Noble).
Right.
Pure.
Lovely.
Of good repute (Admirable).
Excellent.
Worthy of praise.

Dwell on things that are described this way. Seems a pretty simple concept, though I must admit I often find myself thinking about other things, whatever they may be. One of my teens said recently in a Bible study she was teaching, "Whatever you focus on, that's what you'll move toward." I thought that was profound. (I still do!) It's true that the Bible study was actually talking about temptations, but I believe the concept holds true here.

If we focus on the blessings, the beauty of Christ, the faithfulness of God, the character of Jesus - we will move towards these things. If we continue to focus on the struggles, the feelings of defeat, the envy of what others have that we don't have but want, and the feelings of powerlessness in this spiritual war in which we find ourselves, that is what we will move towards and focus our lives upon.

Romans 12:2 says, "And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect." May our minds be so renewed by dwelling on the things that are true, honourable, right, pure, lovely and of good repute, excellent, worthy of praise - in short, everything that is displayed in the character and person of Jesus - that we cannot help moving towards them.

Let the focus on the bad or difficult things in life go - instead cling to the beauties of Jesus and let your own life and character be completely transformed by focusing on the amazing truth of who He is.

I've been having some converations recently about credit cards and their use. Someone asked a frightening question recently: "If I don't have any money in the bank and I don't have a credit card, how do I buy this?" The obvious answer is, "You don't," but the scary part of that question is that the credit card seems to have been seen as the answer to buying things when you don't have money. It's not an uncommon theory at all, even within the church.

As Christians we are given resources by God alone to be used as we walk this earth. We may work to earn money, but the skills requred for our jobs comes from the way God created us - therefore He alone has enabled us to earn the money for the things we need. He has also charged us with a stewardship of these things - a responsibility for using them wisely and to execute the work that He has given us.

Using a credit card when you have run out of ready cash is not what I would consider a wise use of resources. Many people say, "But the bills are due, what do I do then? I can't live off of what I make each month - I have to use the credit card." Not to sound too harsh, but I'm not sure I buy it. Many of the people that I hear use this excuse have cable TV, lots of 'toys,' a car, a mortgage - things that if we really didn't have the money to afford, we just shouldn't have.

The Bible tells us that we should not owe anyone anything except the debt of love (Romans 13:8) - this should include our owing money on our credit cards, I think, because the stress of that money needing to be paid off can seriously affect our peace of mind and the freedom of our financial resources. Plus, we should probably look at the reasons our credit cards might be carrying a balance - is it because we place too high a value on the things of this world and wanting to keep up to the "Joneses"? May it never be. May we instead take drastic steps to avoid living the same way the world does and feeling the need to be the same as everyone else. May we rejoice in the resources with which God has blessed and entrusted us and use them as wisely as we are able, by the wisdom of God found in us.

(By the way, here is a tip for those wanting to build credit but not be governed by their credit cards: Keep a cheque ledger - those little books that come with your new cheques - and whenever you write a cheque, keep a record of it and take that amount off your bank balance. It is gone anyway, as soon as you write the cheque. Do the same with your credit card expenditures - take them off your bank balance. Then, at the end of the month, even though it looks on the ledger like your bank balance is too low to pay the credit card, the amount that you spent on the your credit cards will be sitting in your bank account, ready to pay your credit card balance to zero - this builds credit but avoids debt and interest fees.)

Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law. (Romans 13:8)


(PS - for those of you who keep thinking that my picture was way out of date, I've finally found and posted a slightly more current one.... I find it weird that people thought the first one looked so different that they would hardly recognize me; I thought it looked just like me (well, it was me). And this one is still not exactly current (last April), but check it out - my guitar is in this one, too. I promise that occassionally I don't have a guitar or some other instrument in my hands. Occassionally.... So, do you all feel better now?)

I've been thinking more about service since yesterday's post, and how when we truly are passionate about the Lord, we spend ourselves on Him in service - service to the church (His bride), service to the unbeliever, the poor, the needy. These are all great things, and things that we love to do, but do you ever get tired, like me?

I get concerned when I am tired of leading worship or going to church. This shouldn't be!! And then eventually I realize that I haven't spent enough time just worshipping Him, instead of always leading worship or helping others in whatever way I have been working. I really believe that He doesn't only want me to serve Him by serving His people, He really does want to be in an intimate relationship with me - just me and Him, often.

A good marriage isn't just about doing the work that your spouse would want done - that's a part of it, and shows love and commitment to the joy of that person. But it is also about spending time with that person. Quality time - time that deepens each person's knowledge of and love for the other.

That's time God wants to spend with us, where He will give to us, and we give to Him, and where the foundation of all the things we do to please Him and be obedient to Him will be built. Let's not forget the intimate quiet times with the Lord - I really believe they please Him as much as the work we do for Him - they are two halves of a whole relationship.

Now one of the Pharisees was requesting Him to dine with him, and He entered the Pharisee's house and reclined at the table. And there was a woman in the city who was a sinner; and when she learned that He was reclining at the table in the Pharisee's house, she brought an alabaster vial of perfume, and standing behind Him at His feet, weeping, she began to wet His feet with her tears, and kept wiping them with the hair of her head, and kissing His feet and anointing them with the perfume. Now when the Pharisee who had invited Him saw this, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet He would know who and what sort of person this woman is who is touching Him, that she is a sinner." .... Turning toward the woman, He said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has wet My feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You gave Me no kiss; but she, since the time I came in, has not ceased to kiss My feet. You did not anoint My head with oil, but she anointed My feet with perfume. For this reason I say to you, her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little." Then He said to her, "Your sins have been forgiven." (Luke 7:36-39, 44-48)

Today I took my car in to be serviced. Have you seen my car before? It's a black 2005 Acura EL - leather interior and everything you could want in a car, right down to cupholders! (My excitement about cupholders is a long story....) I like my car a lot - there's a great story about how I got it (because no, you're not mistaken that no pastor would normally be able to afford an Acura) - the truth is that God bought it for me - literally - but that's another blog.

Actually, it went in this morning to the dealership for it's very first 8,000km check-up. I was so impressed with this dealereship! Not only did these guys at Lougheed Acura change the oil and filter and check the fluid levels, tire pressure and wear, etc., like they are supposed to, they vacuumed my car. (They would have washed it, too, if I hadn't been so afraid of mockery at its filthy condition that I washed it last night before I took it in!) Here's the part that I noticed - my car was already washed, but I had not had time to just shine up the wheels. The dealership did it. This is not a service I pay extra for, it is part of the service. They even said that they will chamois my car if I want when it's washed (hate all those water spots) - I just have to ask. Their aim is obviously to have happy customers and add to that slight feeling of luxury you want to experience when you drive an Acura. But it is also a good model for service that we as believers should follow.

Whoops. Wait a minute.

Anybody catch that? We as believers should follow the model of a car dealership in how we treat others and offer our service? Why isn't it that people in the business world are saying, "Wow, those Christians, now that's service - we should do our best to serve people like that."? I want to show up even the Acura dealerships in this world with the way I serve people and treat them like they are people beloved by the most powerful King in the universe.

Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does...." (Ephesians 6:7-8a)

I read an interesting blog the other day by a fellow in seminary. It seems he's been taking a course on church worship history (or something like that) and was musing on style, and how to blend the traditional with something for the modern worshipper, or whether to even attempt it.

It's left me continuing to think about worship and our views on it. We, as the church, definitely have some pretty ingrained thoughts about worship, and everyone has an opinion, including me, of course. But my thoughts are less about what style I prefer (yes, I do have a style preference, especially when it comes to musical worship, but it doesn't need to be stated here - for all intents and purposes, it is actually irrelevant) and more about the fact that style should really be an afterthought. We have been batting around the phrase "It's not about me, it's all about You, Jesus" for quite some time, yet I still think we are missing it. We still so often focus first on what type of worship gathering we like to go to, who's leading worship, and whether we "feel led into worship" when we get together.

I am more and more of the opinion that what comes FIRST is our commitment to offering GOD something that is a worthy sacrifice - the fruit of lips that seek to praise the Lord from the depths of the heart. When we come together to do only that, how can there possibly be any 'fights' about style or any disunity among the believers? Style will come later when we realize who we are as a group and the reflection of our personalities will create what style we choose to worship through - whether we sing hymns or choruses, whether we feed people in the downtown east side, or whether we sit and visit with the lonely elderly person living in a care facility. But I truly believe that our desire to bring honour and obedience to the King should be our first priority. Our style will follow, and should always be subservient to our desire to worship with abandon and authenticity.

Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name. (Hebrews 13:15)

Contrary to popular belief, the following tips were written by Sam Levenson. They are often attributed to Audrey Hepburn, as she quoted this poem in response to a request for beauty tips. Either way, it is a good reminder that beauty is more than the way a person looks.

BEAUTY TIPS

For attractive lips, speak words of kindness.
For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people.
For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry.
For beautiful hair, let a child run his or her fingers through it once a day.
For poise, walk with the knowledge you'll never walk alone.
People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed; Never throw out anybody.
Remember, If you ever need a helping hand, you'll find one at the end of your arm.
As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself, the other for helping others.
The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair. The beauty of a woman must be seen from in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides.
The beauty of a woman is not in a facial mole, but true beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul. It is the caring that she lovingly gives, the passion that she shows, and the beauty of a woman with passing years only grows!

Sam Levenson

I will add to that only one thought - what the Lord seeks of a woman to define her as beautiful:

DESCRIPTION OF A WORTHY WOMAN

An excellent wife, who can find? For her worth is far above jewels. The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain. She does him good and not evil all the days of her life. She looks for wool and flax and works with her hands in delight. She is like merchant ships; she brings her food from afar. She rises also while it is still night and gives food to her household and portions to her maidens. She considers a field and buys it; from her earnings she plants a vineyard. She girds herself with strength and makes her arms strong. She senses that her gain is good; her lamp does not go out at night. She stretches out her hands to the distaff, and her hands grasp the spindle. She extends her hand to the poor, and she stretches out her hands to the needy. She is not afraid of the snow for her household, for all her household are clothed with scarlet. She makes coverings for herself; her clothing is fine linen and purple. Her husband is known in the gates, when he sits among the elders of the land. She makes linen garments and sells them, and supplies belts to the tradesmen. Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she smiles at the future. She opens her mouth in wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. She looks well to the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children rise up and bless her; her husband also, and he praises her, saying: "Many daughters have done nobly, but you excel them all." Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised. Give her the product of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates. (Proverbs 31:10-31)

I've been asked lots lately for tips on learning the guitar, so I thought I'd write a few of them here - probably not as spiritually insightful as other blog topics in the past, but if it assists others to worship the Lord with a new song, I'm in!

So here are some very random tips for those of you learning to play the guitar (these are in no particular order):

1. Get a good beginners' guitar book - one that will tell you everything from how to hold the guitar to what chords are in a certain key. (I've heard that "Guitar for Dummies" is excellent, especially if you don't have a musical background). A web site that is also helpful for simply learning chords is www.chordfind.com/guitar/ .

2. Cut your fingernails (sorry ladies!). And yes, the intense pain that you experience in your fingertips at first will eventually go away - keep practicing.

3. Keep practicing! Try to practice at least 15 minutes a day - less if your fingers are still threatening to bleed! Regular daily practice, even of short intervals, will do far greater things for building your skill than an hour only once per week.

4. Play with someone a bit better than you are, especially to pick up on strum patterns. It will also push you to be just a little better than you are.

5. Never leave your guitar in the sun, a hot car, or too near a heat register. They are made of wood and glue, hence there is a danger of warping the wood and melting the glue. Neither are particularly pretty options. Try to avoid massive tempurature changes, too - very cold to very hot and vice versa - this stresses out the wood as it expands and contracts, and can cause splits in the wood, effectively devaluing your guitar to zero (and making it sound terrible).

6. Find a buddy who is also learning the instrument and learn together - it will spur you on to continue to practice and you can share the frustrating moments together without giving up.

7. Don't neglect learning a little music theory - it will eventually stand you in good stead when needing to change keys or know what key in which you are playing.

8. Don't fudge your bar chords!! (Dave MacP.....) :) They do get easier - try them on a different guitar if you're stumped, your guitar may need the action fixed on it, which makes bar chords pretty tough. (The action is the distance between the strings and the fretboard - too much space and you have to push your fingers down way too hard. Too little space and your strings will buzz on the frets.)

9. Consider taking half a dozen 1/2 hour lessons - this will give you a really good foundation on which to build your skill and won't cost too much. Guitar teachers are usually less expensive than other instruments, and can be found in your local paper, on the teachers' bulletin board at your music store (Tom Lee Music or Long and McQuade), or sometimes even on the church bulletin board.

10. Never forget that you can do all things through Christ who strengthens you, including play the guitar. Ask Him to assist you in your learning, and use your skills to praise His name. And never forget once you've learned how to play that He helped you and and gave you not only the skill to play, but also the incredible gift of music in all its beauty. It was created to bring Him an offering of praise fit for a King.

Sing for joy in the Lord, O you righteous ones; praise is becoming to the upright. Give thanks to the Lord with the lyre; sing praises to Him with a harp of ten strings. Sing to Him a new song; play skillfully with a shout of joy. (Psalm 33:1-3)

I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:13)

I've been reading through 1 Corinthians this week, and found some interesting stuff. I love that reading the scriptures can remind us of the things that we thought we knew but perhaps have been a little warped through cultural teachings and a lack of returning regularly to that passage of scripture.

I often hear people ask how we are to save the world if we do not associate with the world (i.e. we often hear "be in the world but not of the world," and it is often taken as a command to not have anything to do with unsaved people - scary teaching in itself). But as I read in 1 Corinthians 5 that we are not to associate with the immoral person, it is very clear that Paul's instructions are not talking about the unsaved, who do not have the same standards as we are given, but rather the brother or sister who acts in an immoral manner. Check it out:

"I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people; I did not at all mean with the immoral people of this world, or with the covetous and swindlers, or with idolaters, for then you would have to go out of the world. But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler--not even to eat with such a one. For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within the church? But those who are outside, God judges. Remove the wicked man from among yourselves." (1 Corinthians 5:9-13)

There are ways set out in scripture for approaching a brother or sister who is living in their sin, whatever it may be - we need to follow those. But the final admonition when these "brothers" do not want to correct their behaviour is to remove them from fellowship. It's a smart thing - especially with the thoughts of yeast and how it works its way through a batch of dough - but what a hard thing to do. God give us strength and wisdom.

"If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother. But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that by the mouth of two or three witnesses every fact may be confirmed. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector." (Matthew 18:15-17)

Then Peter came and said to Him, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?" Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven." (Matthew 18:21-22)

For the next 15 weeks, the music team cell group at my church has been turned into the prayer team responsible for upholding the upcoming 40 Days of Purpose Campaign in prayer. We are seeking God's guidance and protection in preparation for and also as we walk through a program that we feel He has called us to go through as a church, and praying for whatever He calls us to pray for.

Tonight when we were praying we realized all of a sudden that we were praying the exact same prayer as we prayed at one point last Wednesday night, without realizing it! It was a prayer for righteousness. Here's why: Last week the scripture quoted on the little sheet that helps guide us in our prayers each week was James 5:16b, "The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective." So, we prayed for God to refine us and assist us to live lives that were more defined by righteousness so that our prayers were even more effective.

Then tonight the scripture that was quoted was Psalm 5:11-12: "But let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you. For surely, O LORD, you bless the righteous; you surround them with your favour as with a shield." So, we prayed for more righteousness in our lives so that we might be blessed and surrounded with the Lord's favour.

Actually, that puts me in mind of last night at the Youth/Young Adult service, too - we were reading the last half of James 5 and we talked about how righteousness is one of the keys to having our prayers be effective and touching the heart of God.

I'm sensing a theme....

I wonder why sometimes we consider ourselves "good Christians" and yet choose which rules and laws of our land we are to obey.

I want to throw down a gauntlet today - a challenge to those who want to live lives of purity and obedience to the Father, to those who desire that every minute aspect of their lives be worship that pleases the heart of God Almighty.

Hebrews 13:17 exhorts us to obey our leaders: "Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They keep watch over you as men who must give an account. Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no advantage to you." And Ephesians 6:5-8 says, "Slaves, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in the sincerity of your heart, as to Christ; not by way of eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart. With good will render service, as to the Lord, and not to men, knowing that whatever good thing each one does, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether slave or free."

I realize that we are not "slaves" to Canada and her laws, but I think there is a place where we should pursue obeying some of the little laws of the land better so as to better prove to Christ our desire to be pure. We don't do it for the sake of Canada and winning favour with her, but rather to win favour with God.

So while you're thinking, "Come on, I don't steal, murder, or even cheat on my taxes" let me ask you:

Do you burn illegal copies of CD's?
Do you exceed the speed limit?
Do you actually claim every penny you make on your taxes?

Are you often the person who says, "Oh, it doesn't matter - everybody does it." "The government doesn't care." "Musicians already make a tonne of money." "I'm a fast driver, but I'm safe." Are you the one who makes fun of others who wish to eradicate even the smallest tendency to sin?

The gaunlet is thrown down - I am offering a challenge to those who gloss over these little things - include them in your desire to live a life holy and pleasing to the King of all Kings. (And before you pick apart my life in order to exhonerate yourself, let me remind you of something - yes, there are many places where I'm still growing, but my need to grow in this area will not excuse you of yours.)

I was just reading in Revelation 21 that when the first heaven and the first earth pass away, there will be a new heaven and a new earth, and no more sea. What? It's amazing to me that I have read that a bunch of times and never remembered that fact - no more sea.

I love the ocean - I grew up on it, and even the smell of it can make me feel calm and comforted. So to consider no more sea makes me a little sad, until I remember that there will be other things that pass away when the new heaven and earth are established. There will be no more tears. There will be no more death. No mourning. No crying. No pain. What amazing promises.

There are many things on earth that are only temporary and many things that are eternal. Reading about the ocean being a temporary thing reminds me not to hold too tightly to the things that will pass away. Though spending time near the ocean makes me feel comforted, the real comfort comes from the Father, the One who created the ocean, not from the ocean itself. The sea will pass away, the love of the Father will last for eternity.

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away." (Revelation 21:1-4)

"Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away." (Luke 21:33)

"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Matthew 6:19-21)