PAIN: a necessary thing.

13 Feb

“Pain insists upon being attended to. God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our consciences, but shouts in our pains. It is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world.” –C.S. Lewis

There’s a terrible disease we’ve all heard of, but perhaps don’t truly know about. It’s a bacterial disease of the nervous system. A disease known as Leprosy.

The first thought that comes to my mind, is this flesh-rotting kind of imagery, but the reality is quite the contrary. In fact, a lepers flesh is just as healthy as yours or mine, the only difference is that they lack the ability to feel pain. Leprosy breaks down the nervous system within the body, deadening their nerve endings, and ultimately their ability to sense danger or harm to their bodies. Leprous people live a virtually pain-free existence.
That doesn’t sound so bad, huh?! I think many of us would do anything to live a pain-free life. Yet for the leper, the absence of pain is his greatest enemy when he can’t feel the piercing of its arrival.

We live in a crazy world that has an unbelievable gift at doing or using whatever it takes to shut down pain in our lives. Did you know that people in North America consume over thirty thousand TONS of aspirin a year? While we make up 5% of the world’s population, we are the ones consuming over 50% of all the manufactured drugs, one-third of which work on the central nervous system alone. We are the most advanced society in the world, at suppressing our pain –numbing what hurts, so we can feel no longer. The danger is, when we refuse to listen to our bodies, we ultimately risk destroying them.

I realize most of this content is speaking of physical pain, but let your mind move from that place alone, to the emotional and spiritual side.

In the same manner as one would suppress pain in the physical, we do so emotionally… All. The. Time.
and I understand why… Who likes being hurt, and feeling weak and vulnerable?! It’s probably not on the top of your to-do list.
But here’s the problem with that… Here’s the great danger in pain suppression::

Just as lepers lack the ability to listen to their body and to feel pain, they experiences the great danger of harming themselves and never knowing it,
WE as a people, suppressing pain with all our might – greatly risk an internal breakdown of the heart and spirit, and will never know it. We spend all of our energy, resources and time on trying to do all we can to numb and silence the greatest indicator that tells us that something within, greatly needs our attention.

C.S. Lewis said with such truth; “Pain insist upon being attended to” and without our attention to it, we risk living a life without warning.

Pain is necessary thing, because without it, we wouldn’t realize what we needed most.
Without pains warning, we wouldn’t know our need for peace when the waves of circumstance come crashing in on us from every side.
Without pains warning, we wouldn’t know our need to be found when all feels lost and unseen.
Without pains warning, we wouldn’t know our need for hope when the odds stack so highly against us that nothing seems possible anymore.
Without pains warning, we wouldn’t know our need for love, the unconditional kind that knows no limits, or boundaries, and has no desire to keep records of wrong doing.
Namely, without pains warning, we wouldn’t know our need for a savior, our need for His nearness and our desperate need for His daily activity in our lives and hearts.

What I’m realizing is that pain is not an enemy to be suppressed; rather, pain is a weapon against a numb existence and if seen with the right perspective, can be a valuable tool in identifying the places we need restoration and healing, as opposed to a crippling blow that paralyzes.

I think our society has things backwards. We seem to believe that the people in pain are the ones that need help. Surely they need some form of pain-killer to suppress and numb out the bad. But now… now I’m beginning to realize that the ones who don’t feel pain, are in fact the ones that need the most help.

Pain is a necessary thing, because it reminds us that we’re weak, human, and in great need – every single day – of a gracious and loving God who desires to carry every weight, heal aching hurt, and redeem our hearts to Him.

So instead of running from pain and suppressing it with whatever seems fitting, let’s look at it square in the face and ask why it’s present, why “this” is painful, and listen for its response. Listen to its warning that shouts of the places we need to attend to. Listen to why it’s taken up residence in our heart and mind, so we can identify that place of pain and turn into our place of need. Our great and continual need of a rescuing God.

Matthew 5:3
“Blessed are those who know their need of God, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.”

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alive with His life.

8 Feb

The Universal Presence is a fact. God is here. The whole universe is alive with His life. And He is no strange or foreign God, but the familiar Father of our Lord Jesus Christ whose love has for these thousands of years enfolded the sinful race of men. And always He is trying to get our attention, to reveal Himself to us, to communicate with us. We have within us the ability to know Him if we will but respond to His overtures. (And this we call pursuing God!) We will know Him in increasing degree as our receptivity becomes more perfect by faith and love and practice.

-A.W. Tozer – The Pursuit of God

 

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megan & the middle east.

7 Feb

I’d love to take a few minutes of your time and tell you about a dear friend of mine, Megan Coleman. She is living and working abroad, doing some Amazing work for the Kingdom of God in Amman, Jordan. She is one of the few that I know, who has taken a childhood dream hidden on the inside, and did all that she could, to make that dream become a living and breathing reality on the outside. I’ve known Megan coming up on 9 years now, and I’ve always known her huge heart for the Middle East and the Muslim people. Moving to the Middle East seemed like a huge mountaintop far beyond her reach… but after much patience and perseverance, God began to open doors, and Megan obediently responded by walking through every single one.

She is stationed in Amman with a team of individuals that’s aim is to be a visible expression of Jesus in the lives of people who have yet to meet Him.
When I asked Megan to write in a bit of detail their strategy and heart for the Jordanian people, she said; “We desire to see people have an encounter with God, and from that encounter, help them foster and reproduce communities of believers within their Muslim cultures. We are there to invite Jesus into their culture, not to impose our culture on them. There are about 2 billion Muslim’s in the world. Most of who believe that their good works will save them. We are there as a reminder of the good news of Jesus Christ – that eternal life are found in Him and what He did and not in good works”.

Individually, she is in language school learning Arabic, in hopes of being able to more easily and effectively share her life and story with others. Ultimately Megan’s true desire is to build relationships/community, share life, and the love of Jesus with all of those around her.

I would love if you would write down Megan’s name right now, and remember her. Keep her in your prayers and thoughts. Pray that God would give her courage and boldness to be a faithful witness of the Truth of His word and of the kindness in His heart.
She is currently in the states proposing meetings galore, raising support, and raising awareness about what she’s doing in the Middle East.
She is campaigning a 25 for 25, right now. Essentially, she is wanting 25 supporters to support $25 a month for the next year. (I know how quickly I can spend $25 in at a restaurant buying dinner… How much of a greater impact could you have with that $25, by sowing it into Megan and ultimately the spreading of the Gospel and the love of Jesus in the Middle East?!!)

Please pray about being one of those 25, I promise your seed would be sown into wonderful soil.

::WAYS TO CONNECT::

  • If you would like to become a supporter, you can do so online HERE at Modern Day
  • If you would like to keep up with all that Megan is doing, please subscribe to her blog HERE.
  • Follow her on Twitter @Megbc
  • Follow her on Instagram by searching megbc

*Friends, do me a huge favor and help Retweet this on Twitter and Re-Post the link to this blog on your Facebook and lets help spread the word about what Megan is doing. Also, by the request of Megan, IF you do post this on your Facebook, please DO NOT tag Megan in it for safety purposes. Thanks so much!*
(top photo by Meshali Mitchell Photo)

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the non-negotiables.

27 Jan

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.
- Aristotle

This quote has become a favorite of mine, because it brings me back to the reality, that the few key life-giving sources that fuel my health and growth in life, must, without a doubt, become non-negotiables.

Because truthfully, time is a very hard thing for me to steward and balance. Between getting up at 5:45am to start my day and not returning home from work till 5:45pm – the little time I have thereafter, has always been a challenge for me to juggle.
Family, friends, writing, entertainment, rehearsals, eating out, socializing with actual humans… They’re all time suckers, and can contribute in both negative and positive ways on the human heart.

Why does life have to be so involved, so busy, so… consuming?!
With so much to draw from, so much to entice.
Yet we willingly invest in things, with full knowledge that we wont receive anything in return. No payback for our valuable time spent. 

And here’s the tough pill to swallow::  health and growth doesn’t just happen. It’s something you earnestly pursue, once you’ve settled your mind and heart on their worth and value.

(i’m really horrible at this) BUT I’m slowly learning, that there are some things in life that must be non-negotiable, in order to create healthy habits that maintain a healthy mind, heart, and life.

Define what those life-giving and contributing factors are in your life, so you can invest in the things that will profit you. And lets do our best to make them non-negotiables.

Ephesians 5:15-17
Live life, then, with a due sense of responsibility, not as men who do not know the meaning and purpose of life but as those who do. Make the best use of your time, despite all the difficulties of these days.

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risk and reward.

25 Jan

what would it feel like to not care
to let the wind really blow this time
i mean really howl with strength
freely without a single obstacle to hinder its gust
not limited by barricades built around places we want protected and untouched
insecure walls shaking faulty with disbelief
let it blow I say
fiercely
kindly
violently
ruin everything in your path with a force so strong and unseen
that destruction and death would force a rebuilding
a rebirth of living beauty both new and pure alike

Living freely always takes a backseat to what’s comfortable and easy. Little courage means little risk, less of a struggle and more aiming at targets you know you can hit. Let’s go where the odds are better, where the end result is already known, so coming up short won’t even be in the equation. But what if those carefully built walls made to protect from rejection and disappointment were shaken a bit?! What if the risk and reward of seeing Gods faithfulness displayed, far outweighed the reward of seeing our standard formulas create the same results we’ve always seen?!

I don’t know what that kind of life would look like. What kind of shape and form it would take. I imagine that it would seamlessly resemble the life Jesus led here on the earth. The life we read about in black and red. The life that’s steadily become greatly unfamiliar and uncomfortable to mimic. Yet is the life we’re called to look, feel, and taste like, one freely filled with courage and risk.

Maybe we can’t just flip on the switch of courage and life be different from this moment on… but I do know, with utmost assurance, that grace will willingly strengthen our hearts, and steady our hands, so we can start tearing down these walls we’ve built.
brick by brick.
fear by fear.
till we’re saved from ourselves.

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a heart to give, always receives.

19 Jan

“A heart to give, always receives”

Aside from being amazing, there is nothing I would say describes my parents more, than the word “givers.”
Coming from a larger family (5 kids) – stinginess wasn’t tolerated in my house. Particularly when 4 little girls were sharing the same small bedroom. Maybe you’re thinking, “well, kids will be kids, right?” well… my parents didn’t really buy into that concept. Trust me, we weren’t all perfect little robots, but our aim was always clearly set before us and regardless of our many attempts and failures – we had a clear understanding that stinginess/selfishness was not, and is still not acceptable behavior. I didn’t fully understand this then, but im growing to learn “why”, a little more everyday.

 “we’re not stingy, we’re givers!”

I remember that phrase so clearly spoken time and time again by my mom. In the midst of frustration as me and my sisters would be playing an unintentional game tug-a-war with a favorite shirt or toy, “NO, this is mine! MOM, tell her this is mine!”
I think after a while that phrase started sinking in, and little by little it’s settling somewhere gladly in our hearts…. “we’re givers”

Don’t get me wrong, sharing toys and clothes weren’t necessarily my favorite thing growing up, but I believe those seeds planted when I was young, to be a giver and to live openhandedly – were seeds sown from daily choices my parents made to instill in us very REAL and ever-PRESENT biblical truths… even at a young age.
I’m grateful they knew these truths of giving with a glad heart and living with an open hand would still be just as vital and just as valuable today, as they were 20yrs ago when all I had to worry about was someone playing with that new toy I just got for Christmas.

As I grew older I learned that money wasn’t mine and I didn’t have a right to claim and hoard it as my own, but it was a gift.
I would have my heart set on buying something of excess and a financial need would come up with someone… I’d take a second thought about giving.

“It’s just money. It’s not yours anyway, Sarah.”

A truthful reminder would be spoken by one of my parents and I would realize again, the vital importance of living with an open hand.
Of course, it was my responsibility to pay my bills, repay my debts, and give my tithe to God. But all that was left over was to be used however He saw fit. Whenever the door of someone’s need flung wide open.

I still don’t have it down right and never will. I fall extremely short of living a selfless life a million times a day. But my aim is to always remember those principles that I learned when I was a kid.

Be a giver. Live with an open hand.
Freely give as you have freely been given to.

That very well may be the key to unlocking a heart longing to give and pour out. To truly believe that all I’ve been given in this life is a gift. The lungs i have to breathe in and out the air i need, the tips of my fingers i use to type this, and even the money in my bank account. It’s all a gift. A gift to be funneled through willingly open hands and a humbled heart that expects nothing in return. 
I’m learning that this kind of lifestyle requires trust, that – im all in – all or nothing – flat on my face or running free – sink or swim kind of trust. A trust that must be confidently placed in a good shepherd, that leads our hearts and lives so carefully.
i shall not want.

a heart to give, always receives.

Proverbs 11
24 The world of the generous gets larger and larger; the world of the stingy gets smaller and smaller. 25 The one who blesses others is abundantly blessed; those who help others are helped.

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a sincere question.

13 Jan

“How can I pray for you?”

ive been asked this question plenty of times.
sometimes i was annoyed by it and felt as if it was someones duty at church to ask me this - as if it were just a protocol question, but i wouldn’t feel a genuine care from them…
and other times i was dying for someone to ask me that question. just waiting with anticipation – who will care about me, who will fight with me and help shoulder this weight that’s wearing me down?!

i have a feeling, there’s gotta be more people out there like me.
maybe you’re waiting for someone to ask you this question, wanting so badly to lean into someone else’s prayers for once.
your need for prayer could come from deep tragedy that’s left you living without hope, or maybe you’re having a crappy day at work and your kids are driving you bonkers, or maybe your dad was just diagnosed with stage 4 cancer and you feel like all breath and faith was just knocked out of you.
no matter the degree of trial or level of circumstances, there is always a part of you, that needs another. that needs someone to come into the trenches, grab a shovel, and help you shoulder a weight too heavy for one.

and here is the reason for the long paragraphs above.
i want you to know that there is someone who loves and cares about your needs, your struggles, and your pain.
i want to know how i can pray for you.
how i can agree with God about whats going on in your life or what you’re believing Him for, today.
i want that to become a new common trend with you, my friends, family, and others. i want it to be a usual thing, a normal thing, to send a text or email or phone call and say “hey, pray for me today!” why be alone, when you can find more strength and grace  for the journey with others alongside of you.

i believe that lifting up another and coming into agreement with God over someone else’s life, can be one of the most beneficial thing for your heart and theirs. it takes your eyes off yourself, your problems, and your tiny scope on life, and it sets your heart and mind on how you can love others well. how you can bear another’s burden, how you can help carry and shoulder another’s weight - whether it be in the natural or in prayer. (Gal 6:2)

with such genuine care i ask a question that i have at times been so eager and desperate for someone to ask me… how can i pray for you (whether the need is big or small, it matters not)?!  
please feel free to post your request in the comment section, or if you feel more comfortable Email Me, or call (if you have my number:)
i wanna pray with you and for you, so please, let me know how i can. or please let someone else you know how they could.

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a reminder for those who create.

12 Jan

“Everything is safe which we commit to Him, and nothing is really safe which is not so committed.
Our gifts and talents should also be turned over to Him. They should be recognized for what they are, God’s loan to us, and should never be considered in any sense our own. We have no more right to claim credit for special abilities than for blue eyes or strong muscles.”

A.W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God.

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how tight of a grip.

10 Jan

If there’s anything I’ve learned about grace, it’s that it always comes when I least expect it.
In the heavy days where the air felt too thick to swallow or cut through. In the dry days, when the road ahead looked bleak, no longer full of enchantment, fulfillment, and life. The only thing consistant was time, and how it passed before me.

It was in those times, I learned most tenderly and assuredly just  how tight of a grip grace could have on me.

And It’s not that it prevents the pain, but it will kindly soften It’s blow.
It will deaden a sting before the venom can quench the life and hope right out of you.
And beautifully enough, for the days that feel like the blow was felt hard and sharp – and the sting, so painful and present. Real grace is found there too. In that moment when your legs are too tired to continue with shoulders too exhausted to uphold, and a heart too afraid…

You can LEAN.  
Fully, completely, confidently, arms open wide, numb heart and emotions finally exposed – into a grace given so freely. Standing tall, and strong, it’s there – ready to relieve a weight you were never meant to bear – while gladly offering you a strength you never thought was conceivable. It’s a beautiful, humbling, and frightening exchange of weakness.

This Grace is received.
 
it’s breathed in like the air
rushing in so it can fill
every open wound uncovered
it lifts
every entangling weight
it carries
a heart dense and heavy
it will revive
and redeem.
like a gift willingly given
so gladly given
it must be received.

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Receive and experience the amazing grace of the Master, Jesus Christ, deep, deep within yourselves. (Mat 11:28, Phil 4:23)

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refuse: a new year’s resolution

9 Jan

refuse to live at a distance.

It’s my new year’s resolve. And what’s written on a post-it-note on my desk as a daily reminder. Don’t get me wrong – eating healthy, working out, reading more, writing more, practicing more… they’re all on my list.

But this is what i want most: refusing to live at a distance

I want to be active and present, in just about every area of my life.
I want that with my family, the people who mean the most and hold such a high worth and value in my heart.
I want that with my friendships, making the time to dig deeper, and together, grow stronger.
Mainly, I want it to be a thriving core-value in my heart, the well-spring of life. That all else would flow from that place.

Because distance is all too easy to be comfortable with. But intimate friendship, is an active pursuit of the heart.

My Resolve:
To Refuse to let the stresses of life, the daily routine, and the convenience of entertainment become the wedge that distances my heart and affections from what matter most.

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