Call for Backup

Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. 1 Corinthians 12:27

We had a real treat last night. A bluegrass band came to lead worship. There were 2 guitars, 2 banjo's a violin, a double bass and a mandolin. Their music was fantastic and there was a lot of toe tapping and hand clapping. One thing that struck me was that at different points in the music, different instruments would be highlighted. Between verses, for instance, the banjo or the violin would have a solo while the other instruments played backup. On the last song, several of us got to go up and sing Oh Happy Day with the group. It was so much fun.
In the middle of having fun, God taught me a lesson. In our lives there are times when one person's talents are showcased. and other times when everyone works together to achieve a goal.Someone may seem to be receiving more blessings than I am or more honor. Each person has seasons in their lives designed by God. A friend or family member may be in a good season when you are in a difficult one. Success, or lack of it, does not have anything to do with whether we are walking in God's favor.
Here's the thing. I know all of that but there are times and situations when I suddenly revert to a junior High mentality.I feel overlooked and unappreciated. I get really frustrated with myself at these times.
Apparently I am not the only one who has dealt with this issue. Paul dedicates all of 1 Corinthians 12 to explaining to the church in Corinth about How to live as a body.

21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” 22 On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, 24 while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the parts that lacked it, 25 so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. 26 If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.

27 Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. 28 And God has placed in the church first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, of helping, of guidance, and of different kinds of tongues. 29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30 Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues[d]? Do all interpret? 31 Now eagerly desire the greater gifts.

Whether it is your turn to play lead or backup, do it with grace and gratitude, knowing that we are part of a body for a reason.

Water! Water!

When we live Unseen, we sometimes feel exhausted emotionally and spiritually. Read on to see what I learned about where we can get our needs met.

If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water John 4:10

My husbands grandparents were farmers in the Texas Panhandle during the dustbowl.   The depression had caused a drastic drop in the wheat prices and farmers leveled their fields to harvest as much as they could. This destroyed some of the native grasses that held the soil in place. At the same time there was a severe drought and the soil was dry and dusty. The winds would pick up the topsoil and carry it for miles. My mother-in-law described great black clouds rolling across the prairie. The dust got into the houses, and covered the floors. It got into the clean laundry and into the food, and even found its way into the cupboards. I learned that this was one reason people put their glasses upside down in the cupboards. Because the crops and gardens would not grow, many farmers were terribly poor and many lost their farms.. People were dying because of dehydration, malnutrition and starvation. My friend’s mother had 6 children and was eating very little to save all she could for them. She was diagnosed with scurvy and doctors advised her to found people who would be willing to raise her children because she was not expected to live.  While different measures made the situation better the dust bowl did not end until the rains finally came.

While the stories and pictures that remain show us the devastation that can come from a drought, we may not realize the damage that can be done to our hearts and spirit from a spiritual drought. Jesus says in Luke that He is the living water. If we are not connecting to that life giving water, we may be suffering from spiritual dehydration.

Water helps us use the nutrition we get from our food. It helps us eliminate waste. It nourishes the plants we use for food. We need all these things in our spiritual life. We feed on His word, but without his power and his spirit what we read cannot come alive. When I was in my teens, I had memorized pages of scriptures. I recited them every morning. Hiding the word in my heart was good. However when my mother got sick I had a crisis of faith. I realized that unless I let those scriptures come alive in me, they would not help me. I could recite “God is close to the broken hearted”twice a day, but until I accepted it and let it work in me it was not able to do me any good. In Jeremiah 2:13, we read this.

“My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water.

Water is essential for growth. Psalms 1 says this

 Blessed is the one
    who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
    or sit in the company of mockers,
² but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,
    and who meditates on his law day and night.
³ That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
    which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
    whatever they do prospers.

Many of us would love to have this living water but don’t know how to access it. When Jesus was talking to the Samaritan woman at the well, he saw her thirst and need for things of God. John 4:10 says, Jesus told her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” He makes the same offer to us today. He is ready to give us all that we need but we have to be willing to receive it.

The drought in our spirits can be broken.

Spend time this week in God’s word and with God’s people. Drink deep of the living water that Jesus offers.

Uncharted Waters

Uncharted Waters

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. Isaiah 43:2

Set the way back machine to elementary school and recite this poem with me.

In fourteen Hundred and ninety two,
Columbus sailed the ocean blue.
He had three ships and sailed from Spain.
 He sailed through sunshine wind and rain.

OK that’s enough of it. Columbus Day snuck up on me this year, but it got me to thinking. Columbus set out on his famous voyage with ninety sailors trying to find a new route to the West. He had trouble finding support for his journey. Three other countries refused to finance his voyage before he got help from Ferdinand and Isabella. The route he took was literally uncharted waters, so he navigated using the stars. He lost one of his ships along the way and his sailors were close to mutiny. At one time I owned a copy of his ship’s log, and it described the storms and the lack of supplies.  In spite of all these obstacles he was successful.
While it is true that Columbus life and journeys were full of controversy, that is not our point here. Many of us are going through uncharted waters with God right now. In my life, he is taking my ministry to places I never imagined it. He is also taking me back through some of the storms in my life so I can forgive people and get some healing. I am learning to walk out of fear and advocate for my family and for myself. You may be in different waters, such as new life in recovery or a new place in your family or work. You may be in some stormy waters with you health or the health of someone you love. You might be new in the faith or you may have found that there are people who are not supportive. Maybe in the process you have lost some things or people that were important to you. One advantage we have over Columbus is that while he navigated by the stars, our course is set and directed by God, the maker of the stars. He sent Jesus, not just as a sacrifice, but also as a scout to go before us and understand our experience.
Like many people, one of my life verses is Jeremiah 29:11, which reads, “I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.” A change, even a good one, is scary and uncomfortable. God is in control, though, and He is still on the throne. Whatever new adventure you are on, God is with you.
In Mark Chapter 4, we read this story of Jesus and the disciples
Jesus Calms the Storm
…37Soon a violent windstorm came up, and the waves were breaking over the boat, so that it was being swamped. 38But Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on the cushion. So they woke Him and said, “Teacher, don’t You care that we are perishing?” 39Then Jesus got up and rebuked the wind and the sea. “Silence!” He commanded. “Be still!” And the wind died down, and it was perfectly calm.…”
The disciples were perfectly safe in the storm because Jesus was with them. He is just as much with us today as he was with them. One of the names of Jesus is Emmanuel, which means, “God is with us.” How wonderful that God used this name for Jesus to remind us of the reality.
When Jesus spoke to his disciples in what is sometimes called the Great Commission, he makes this promise. “Lo, I am with you always, even till the end of the age.” Matthew 28:11.
So many verses speak to God’s promise and presence In our lives. I encourage you to spend time looking for other verses and in supporting and loving other people who are also in the storm. Take Jesus at his word. “Peace. Be Still.”