Not an Idol, but the Living God

Psalm 115

Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us,
But to Your name give glory,
Because of Your mercy,
Because of Your truth.
Why should the Gentiles say,
“So where is their God?”

But our God is in heaven;
He does whatever He pleases.
Their idols are silver and gold,
The work of men’s hands.
They have mouths, but they do not speak;
Eyes they have, but they do not see;
They have ears, but they do not hear;
Noses they have, but they do not smell;
They have hands, but they do not handle;
Feet they have, but they do not walk;
Nor do they mutter through their throat.
Those who make them are like them;
So is everyone who trusts in them.

O Israel, trust in the Lord;
He is their help and their shield.
O house of Aaron, trust in the Lord;
He is their help and their shield.
You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord;
He is their help and their shield.

The Lord has been mindful of us;
He will bless us;
He will bless the house of Israel;
He will bless the house of Aaron.
He will bless those who fear the Lord,
Both small and great.

May the Lord give you increase more and more,
You and your children.
May you be blessed by the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth.

The heaven, even the heavens, are the Lord’s;
But the earth He has given to the children of men.
The dead do not praise the Lord,
Nor any who go down into silence.
But we will bless the Lord
From this time forth and forevermore.

Praise the Lord!

This Psalm has been on my mind a lot lately, especially the verses (4-8) describing the futility of idols. This past Sunday, our pastor pointed something out that corresponded with these verses - people who create idols ultimately worship themselves. True, isn’t it?

If an idol has a mouth but can’t speak, who comes up with its rules and morals?

If an idol has eyes but can’t see, who determines right and wrong?

If an idol has ears, but can’t hear, or noses, but can’t smell - who says what’s pleasing and what’s not?

Someone may have a literal figurine or statue that they bow down to, or it may be something abstract. But anything worshiped that isn’t the Lord God is an idol.

Those who make them are like them; So is everyone who trusts in them.

This Psalm talks about literal statues, physical idols. And the author says that those who create and trust in these idols are like them. Empty, futile, hopeless.

But those who trust in the Lord? We have substance to our faith!

We have the God who speaks, the God who sees, the God who hears and smells and moves. He’s living and active. He is our help and shield, He is not only aware of our lives but involved in them. We don’t serve an idol, we serve the living God!

The dead do not praise the Lord,
Nor any who go down into silence.
But we will bless the Lord
From this time forth and forevermore.

Praise the Lord!

-Amy

Intentional Parenting

A few days ago I watched a short video on Facebook, and then saw a nasty, heartless comment from another woman. Social media is a breeding ground for nasty comments, of course; it shouldn’t have surprised me, but it did. I was taken aback by how sincerely hateful this woman was - she had pure evil purposed in her heart and made absolutely no apologies.

Raising kids in this world is scary. Sometimes I think, man, how are my kids going to go out into the world, into public places, and deal with these kinds of interactions? How are they going to handle all the evil? Will they know right and wrong and be able to stand their ground when they’re pushed? Will they make it, following Christ??

There’s no guarantee how our kids will turn out. But mamas (and dads!), we certainly have a whole lot of influence on them!

If we as Christian parents think that everything is up to chance, we are so mistaken. If we think that we can sail through parenting and let things happen as they happen, or do damage control later, we are so mistaken.

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.

Deuteronomy 6:5-7

God’s design is that we, Dad and Mom, be their primary teachers. We are the ones who establish prayer, reading Scripture, searching for God’s truth when we have questions. It’s not a bubble, keeping them from the world completely - but it is protection from some things as is age-appropriate. We walk them through each phase of their lives, until they are out of our homes and on their own. I sometimes envision that walk starting out with them being carried, then we hold hands, then lessen to holding hands sometimes. Then we walk beside, then stay a couple steps back - until they’re fully on their own.

We won’t parent perfectly, but may we be intentional! May we not just wait to see how they turn out, hoping and praying they’ll be okay.

Your ultimate hope and prayer for them is salvation, is it not? Then let us show them the Savior.

Only God knows who will be saved, but let us do all that we can to point them in that direction!

Pray with them regularly, read Scripture with them daily. Show them how you yourself turn to the Lord when you have questions or need wisdom or comfort. Forgive them, and ask for forgiveness when you mess up. Let them see a flourishing relationship between you and your Savior, a relationship that is alive and growing. If you’re struggling, it’s okay! Keep seeking Him anyways! Our children don’t need perfect parents, they need parents who recognize their shortcomings and turn to Him for every little and big thing.

Our God is a righteous, loving God. He is able to bring us along, and bring our children along, in faith and knowledge of Himself. Be encouraged; He has given you this role as parent of your children, and He equips you to do it well. When you seek Him, you will find Him (Jer. 29:13)! When you ask for wisdom, He will give it (James 1:5)! He won’t leave us alone as we try to lead our children toward Him.

Take up your duties with joy, dear friend. Be intentional in your parenting; teaching and training and gracefully pardoning. May our children see Jesus through us, that they may be drawn closer to Him!

-Amy

We Can Be Dramatic

Some mornings (okay, most mornings) we are outside early. On this particular morning, the kids were happily playing in the dirt, digging and running their trucks around. The dog was off chewing on sticks and sniffing around the yard. My bucket full of weeds was in need of emptying again. 

We brought their little trucks up to the bathtub and everyone got scrubbed. There is nothing like fresh, clean babies! Lunchtime came and went and we made our way upstairs for a nap. 

After the boys were in their beds, I grabbed the dog to bring him out for a potty break. But our dog has this malfunction that causes him to fall over in the grass when he feels the warmth of the sun. Despite all my coaxing, he doesn’t budge. And if he does, it’s only to roll onto his back with his legs in the air so I can’t easily pick him up. He’ll just lay there and stare at me, tongue out, like what? 

I scoot him over and put him on his feet again, just so he can fling himself to the side or do a somersault. Can’t make me move, I don’t want to!

I’m sure my neighbors think it’s hilarious. Cuz yanno, normally people have to walk around the yard with their dog flopping like a fish. 

Sometimes I do find it funny, but a lot of times it’s so irritating! Why can’t we just walk from Point A to Point B and back?! Why does it have to be so dramatic?

Saying it like that does make me laugh. I wonder if God ever thinks the same thing. Why can’t we just walk from Point A to Point B? Why does this have to be dramatic?!

Thankfully He is infinitely more patient and understanding with us than I am with the dog! And I wonder, how often do we make things a bit more dramatic than they need to be? God says to go one way, to walk in His commandments and pattern our lives after what He has shown us in His Word - and we have a hard time. 

He says not to lie; eh, roll over and ignore. He says to be joyful and full of the fruit of the Spirit; but I don’t like this - flop. He says to honor our husbands; nah, I’ll pull in the opposite direction. He says to abide in Him; ain’t nobody got time for that, the grass over there smells better.

Oh we can be so dramatic. And at times, straight up disobedient. But our Leader knows so much better than we do, and He is worthy of our loyalty and obedience! Let’s do better, followers of Christ. Let’s honor Him and seek to walk in the way He desires for us!

-Amy

A Marriage to Remember: Part 2

If you missed the first part of this story, read it here before you jump in to part two!

After their divorce in November of 1978, Pam felt the freedom to put her failed marriage behind her and start afresh. She was living in Rock Springs, WY with her new boyfriend, pregnant and hopeful for a happy future, when she received probably the strangest phone call of her life.

It was from Doug. He told her three things:

1. He was now a follower of Jesus Christ

2. God hates divorce

3. She was living in sin!

As you can tell, he had all the zeal of a man who was experiencing new life in Christ, learning the heart of God, and figuring out what God wanted from him. His mentor and good friend had pointed out that divorce (apart from adultery) was never God’s will and that their divorce wasn’t recognized in His eyes, so Doug concluded that he and Pam were living in disobedience and needed to reconcile.

Pam, however, had not reached that conclusion. She was in a new relationship, pregnant with a child she never could have had with Doug (who had a vasectomy, if you remember from the first part), and she wanted to make this new family work. Pam wished Doug happiness, but let him know that she had moved on. Doug hung up the phone thinking that he had done his part. That was that.

As God would have it, Pam’s new relationship did not work out. It crumbled into nothing, and within a few months Pam felt compelled to return to Portland and talk to her ex-husband, Doug. It was March of 1979 when Pam met up with Doug and witnessed the incredible change in his life. No longer enslaved to drugs and alcohol and a life of living to get high, he now spent hours in prayer and studying the Bible, and after some self-examination, Pam realized that she too desired that transformation. She had always considered herself a Christian, but witnessing Doug’s very personal and real relationship with Jesus revealed to her that what she had was a surface level label, not a heart and soul change. Pam gave her life to Christ and experienced true freedom and forgiveness.

But that did not mean she was ready to jump back into a relationship with Doug. She was pregnant, and the Doug she knew had made it clear he didn’t want any more kids. Doug promised to take an active role in the baby’s life, despite the fact that he was not the biological father, but Pam wasn’t sure that was what she wanted.

In June 1979, Pam went into labor early and delivered a 2lb baby boy named Paul. His little lungs were very undeveloped, and he struggled for four days before passing away. Doug and Pam grieved, but now they had the comforting hope in Christ that death is not final, and they will one day see baby Paul again.

That whole experience served to begin the healing in Doug and Pam’s relationship, that by the grace of God they too have the hope of an abundant, restored and redeemed life together. Also, Doug’s devotion to both her and the baby showed Pam that he was genuine in his intentions towards her and he truly considered Paul his own child. During their time in the hospital, he stayed by their side and made it clear to the doctors and nurses that Paul was his. Pam was ready to recommit herself to this changed man.

The next month, in July, they determined to be obedient to the sacred covenant of marriage as established by God in the Bible and were remarried on the tenth anniversary of their first wedding!

At their recent vow renewal, Pam reflected back on that second wedding day:

This man I gave myself to ten years before not only gave me a ring, he gave me a heart.

They both knew, as they stood before the altar, that being “in love” could not be the reason for their marriage. The Lord had by then given Doug the firm foundation of commitment to his wife Pam, regardless of feelings. He knew that love was a choice they were vowing to make to each other.

Also at their 50th vow renewal, Doug shared:

Because of this understanding, I have been intensely in love with my wife for the last 40 years. Hallelujah! It’s amazing what the Creator can do with the marriage relationship. Something God our Savior has shown me for many years now is that my wife is His perfect representation of His unconditional love of Christ for me, in our marriage.

After their second marriage to each other, Doug had a vasectomy reversal (which at that time only had an 80% success rate) but they failed to get pregnant within the two-year timeframe. Doug and Pam fostered many children, eventually adopting two, a son named TR and a daughter named Mary, and seven years after the vasectomy reversal they had a surprise pregnancy – Joe!

We were perfectly happy where God had us as a family and didn’t feel as though anything was missing, this was just God’s timing and an added blessing. All our kids are a blessing and are OURS.

God has redeemed the years that many would consider wasted, and He alone has written a masterpiece for His glory through the 50 years of Doug and Pam’s marriage. It is a testimony to His love and outrageous grace, and a beacon of hope to those who are struggling in darkness. The power to redeem is available to all who surrender their lives to Him and accept the truth of the Gospel – that Christ died for us, while we were still sinners.

I hope you have enjoyed this two part series sharing the story of my parent-in-law’s marriage! Obviously, they have much more wisdom to impart after that many years together, but that will have to wait for another time.

To God be the glory, great things He has done.

Written and shared by Natalya Brown.