Let's be honest: reading the old Testament can be a little daunting. Jesus hasn't exactly come yet and the Holy Spirit only fills certain people that God chooses to help execute His will. Other than that, we see a lot of sin run rampant, wars take place, and books full of history. But! (There is always a "but,") God's plan is still working and we get all the background knowledge to how David's family line came to be and all the prophecies, we later discover, come true! Every single one! Nevertheless, the Lord led my heart to Judges this past week and told me to dive head in to an unfamiliar section of the Bible. Man, did He have to say a lot.
One of my favorite judges was Gideon. He was, "'the least in [his] family,'" and a part of, "'the weakest [clan] in Manasseh.'" {Judges 6:15}. Ever heard the phrase, "God uses the weak to lead the strong"? or "For when I am weak I am strong"? (Check out my 2 Corinthians post for more details.) God specifically chose Gideon, the least of his family which was in the least tribe of the nation to save everyone. Not only that, God took the thousands upon thousands of men that were supposed to aid Gideon in taking over the Midianites and made his army into 300 men. That's it. God doesn't need many people to work for His good, for all things are possible in Him and He will give you strength exactly when you need it.
As soon as Gideon receives the interpretation of the dream that God will use him to defeat his enemies, Gideon "bow[s] down and worship[s]." {Judges 7:15}. IMMEDIATELY THIS HAPPENS. Gideon does not wait until he has actually conquered his enemies, He does not wait for someone else to start worshiping God and then follows along, instantly, he turns everything back to God! The Lord had provided signs for him before that He exists and will keep Him safe, but yet another prophecy and that is enough for Gideon! My question to myself and you readers is do you do that? Do you instantly glorify God for all the good He brings into your life? For that good test grade? For that good race? For the fact He keeps you safe and brings you home alive every single day? For the fact that you have a voice to sing and call out to Him? etc. For Gideon, it was a big thing, but shouldn't we be praising Him for all things, big and little?
Finally, the fact that Gideon trusts God so much allows him to hear God's voice. Not only did an angel visit Gideon and give him the news that he would strike down on the Midianites, but after the angel left, God spoke directly to Gideon, bringing words of comfort and peace. "But the Lord said to him, 'Peace! Do not be afraid. You are not going to die.'" {Judges 6:23}. Coming from the Lord of everything ever created, if He told me that I was not going to die, I don't think I could run away from anything He was going to ask me to do. God is the Prince of Peace and tells us that there is no reason to fear for if God is on our side, who could possibly be against us? Who could possibly conquer us if we are fighting in the name of the Lord? This also gives me reassurance that the more time I spend with God, follow through with what He asks of me, praise His name and give me all that I have, I will be spoken to. It takes time and it takes patience, but shown countless times in the Bible, even God speaks and loves the weakest.
Tomorrow is the day that I move into the U and although I could not be any more excited to start a new adventure, doubt likes to creep up on me and say, "You can't do it." Well, with God, I can do anything from talking to strangers to sharing my faith to moving mountains to changing a nation. Therefore, I will not be afraid when adversity comes because it will come, but His love and power is all the more greater.
~Ashlyn
Sunday, August 24, 2014
Friday, August 15, 2014
Psalm 8
Sometimes, I wonder why God wakes me up at 3:00AM only for me to hear... Nothing. this has been happening recently, and i sit there thinking, "Um, God. I'm awake. I am assuming this is important since everything You say is important. So I'm awake and listening. What's up?" And then... Nothing. BUT NOT THIS MORNING! Before I could even get through the usual, "Extremely good morning to You, what-" Psalm 8 was in the forefront of my mind. I was a little taken aback at first since it's been a few weeks since I clearly heard a distinct passage to look at, but nonetheless, I was excited to look at it.
Psalm 8:
Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
These verses say in other words a lot of things I have heard before: that even if God tends to the crows and flowers, will He not provide for you? (Matthew 6:26) That God cares to know my name despite the fact He created the entire universe and I am of no size importance? (Jeremiah 1:5) etc. But the words are not put in a familiar order, they are written poetically (which speaks to me because I have been given a passion for writing and poetry.)
Through the praises of infants and children, all of us since we are ll God's children, no one can harm Him or us. I remember working at the daycare for about 5 years and when one of the kids complimented me with their innocence, I would remember it for a long time, even when they needed a timeout weeks later. It was still the cute little blue eyed boy who told me I was pretty. Now, if we are the children of God, does He also not take delight when we praise Him with our innocence and simple words? I can say, "God, you are so good" (one of my new favorite phrases) as much as I want, but that does nothing to even represent His splendor! But with such simple words, He conquers every single enemy He has and we encounter. How encouraging is this to us?!
Then who are we? Who are we to call upon the God who spoke the word, "light" and it was there? The closest I can get to that is clapping to a sensor, but no! He spoke and that was it! His power surpasses everything! Yet He provides everything we need to us with ease, placing it directly beneath our feet so all we have to do is bend over and pick it up. No work at all. Not to mention that He loves us so much that He gave us His creation to rule over, despite havign made it Himself. How can we even claim to take the credit for all this goodness?! What have we done to deserve this?! NOTHING! ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! (I would indeed be yelling this if I was reading it aloud.) And somehow every day we say, "Look at how amazing these people are for building this or creating that or curing said disease or etc." We did nothing, all we did was bend down and pick up the creation God left us to take care of! No work!
What I am not saying is that we should downplay when certain illnesses are cured or an endangered species is being saved, but we should glorify God all the more for providing us with the information, the creation, the goodness and love to do these things!
Now how does this relate to me at 3:00AM on Friday morning (can I even say morning?) Another way to look at this passage is to see how much God values us and that because He sees us as worthy of taking care of all He has made, why should we seek approval from those around us? I don't struggle with it like I used to and I embrace it now that I am different from my peers, but that isn't to say that it doesn't flare up sometimes and I wonder how I will feel about myself in the future if so-and-so doesn't like me. It doesn't matter! Because God loves me and finds me in His favor and I am saved! That is enough, forever! It also reminds me to not look to the future too far (especially with college right around the corner. Yikes.) when I will be trying to make a lot of friends. Not everyone will like me, and that is just A-okay! As long as I continue to praise His name, everything will fall right into place in front of my eyes.
~Ashlyn
Psalm 8:
Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory
in the heavens.
2 Through the praise of children and infants
you have established a stronghold against your enemies,
to silence the foe and the avenger.
3 When I consider your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which you have set in place,
4 what is mankind that you are mindful of them,
human beings that you care for them?
in the heavens.
2 Through the praise of children and infants
you have established a stronghold against your enemies,
to silence the foe and the avenger.
3 When I consider your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which you have set in place,
4 what is mankind that you are mindful of them,
human beings that you care for them?
5 You have made them a little lower than the angels
and crowned them with glory and honor.
6 You made them rulers over the works of your hands;
you put everything under their feet:
7 all flocks and herds,
and the animals of the wild,
8 the birds in the sky,
and the fish in the sea,
all that swim the paths of the seas.
and crowned them with glory and honor.
6 You made them rulers over the works of your hands;
you put everything under their feet:
7 all flocks and herds,
and the animals of the wild,
8 the birds in the sky,
and the fish in the sea,
all that swim the paths of the seas.
9 Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
These verses say in other words a lot of things I have heard before: that even if God tends to the crows and flowers, will He not provide for you? (Matthew 6:26) That God cares to know my name despite the fact He created the entire universe and I am of no size importance? (Jeremiah 1:5) etc. But the words are not put in a familiar order, they are written poetically (which speaks to me because I have been given a passion for writing and poetry.)
Through the praises of infants and children, all of us since we are ll God's children, no one can harm Him or us. I remember working at the daycare for about 5 years and when one of the kids complimented me with their innocence, I would remember it for a long time, even when they needed a timeout weeks later. It was still the cute little blue eyed boy who told me I was pretty. Now, if we are the children of God, does He also not take delight when we praise Him with our innocence and simple words? I can say, "God, you are so good" (one of my new favorite phrases) as much as I want, but that does nothing to even represent His splendor! But with such simple words, He conquers every single enemy He has and we encounter. How encouraging is this to us?!
Then who are we? Who are we to call upon the God who spoke the word, "light" and it was there? The closest I can get to that is clapping to a sensor, but no! He spoke and that was it! His power surpasses everything! Yet He provides everything we need to us with ease, placing it directly beneath our feet so all we have to do is bend over and pick it up. No work at all. Not to mention that He loves us so much that He gave us His creation to rule over, despite havign made it Himself. How can we even claim to take the credit for all this goodness?! What have we done to deserve this?! NOTHING! ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! (I would indeed be yelling this if I was reading it aloud.) And somehow every day we say, "Look at how amazing these people are for building this or creating that or curing said disease or etc." We did nothing, all we did was bend down and pick up the creation God left us to take care of! No work!
What I am not saying is that we should downplay when certain illnesses are cured or an endangered species is being saved, but we should glorify God all the more for providing us with the information, the creation, the goodness and love to do these things!
Now how does this relate to me at 3:00AM on Friday morning (can I even say morning?) Another way to look at this passage is to see how much God values us and that because He sees us as worthy of taking care of all He has made, why should we seek approval from those around us? I don't struggle with it like I used to and I embrace it now that I am different from my peers, but that isn't to say that it doesn't flare up sometimes and I wonder how I will feel about myself in the future if so-and-so doesn't like me. It doesn't matter! Because God loves me and finds me in His favor and I am saved! That is enough, forever! It also reminds me to not look to the future too far (especially with college right around the corner. Yikes.) when I will be trying to make a lot of friends. Not everyone will like me, and that is just A-okay! As long as I continue to praise His name, everything will fall right into place in front of my eyes.
~Ashlyn
Monday, August 11, 2014
Going Back to the Sea
Recently, I uploaded this picture a few days ago as my cover photo on Facebook and I am immediately transported back to this day:
The sun was shining, the wind was slight, and I was taking a tour of the coast around my town with Eric, his host family, Hope, her host family, and some other Rotarians from Vigo. We were at San Andres de Teixeido and we trecked down one of the steepest hills I have encountered. At the bottom waiting was a path that led to this rock I am standing on in the picture. I have run past the ocean, I would go up hills to watch the boats come in at the end of the day or see the sunset drop itself behind the cliffs, I went to the beach to simply enjoy the smell of sea brine and listen to the calming waves hit the sand.
But the sea taught me many things whether that was to allow myself to see God's glory in full force or beginning to understand just how big God is and how small I am. Distinctly, i remember running one day and pausing to see the water crash and swirl around the boulders in the water. I thought how beautiful and unforgiving the ocean is: it doesn't care if you are simply swimming or on a boat, it can capsize you if not respected properly. Then I thought about Peter and how he was terrified of the storm around him while walking out to Jesus. I never sat at the ocean during the storm, but even just observing it on a relatively calm day, I began to sympathize with him a bit more. No, I am not saying that I would doubt Jesus but I can begin to understand where Peter is coming from.
I remember looking out at the ocean and it stretched for miles with no end, I wasn't even looking at 1% of the ocean and I felt like a grain of sand! How small I am in this world! Yet God chooses to know my name, my heart, my sorrows and care for me as if I was the only person in the world. If grace is an ocean, we're all sinking and how much more ocean is available! Even if all people on Earth were in the sea, there is so much more room left! God has so much grace for us, all of us, and it won't run out, it stretches for miles and miles as far as our eyes can see! And all we have to do is step out of the boat.
Thursday, August 7, 2014
Mission: U of M
It hit me this morning like a brick wall while I was walking to the bathroom at the bank: GOD'S PLAN IS SO GOOD AND ALL I HAVE TO DO IS PATIENT BECAUSE HE IS WORKING FOR MY FAVOR. I legitimately can't explain this overwhelming excitement inside me right now and how joyful I feel. SERIOUSLY. How did I miss all this before?! Like fkljqelriorfjdd5f4eruq33yue!!! (Hopefully running my fingers across the keyboard like that can convey all my enthusiasm. Maybe not. Probably not.)
What on Earth am I talking about? College. What about college? Everything. This fall, just kidding, in 19 days, I move into my dorm at the U of M - Twin Cities campus. Before making my official decision in December last year, I had thought about/looked at/filled out applications for 2.5 years. To say the least, I was more than worried and anxious always about going to school. Finally, in December, God calmed my heart and led me to go to the U, despite never having a tour there or knowing more than the fact that Minnetonka ships off a good portion of the senior class there. Progressively this summer, I have been getting more and more excited for all the things this next year will bring and the Lord reaffirms this decision every day.
How so? Today, I was just hired by a friend into the Carleson School of Business and Management. Job? Check. The Rotex (past exchange students who went on a Rotary Youth Exchange) hub is the U campus. People who understand my year? Check. I will be living in the honors community in my dorm. Stimulating intellectual environment? Check. All my classes pertain to language and 3/5 are in Spanish. Speaking Spanish/learning more languages? Check. Classes that interest me? Check. I have friends who are encouraging me to join the Christian worship/organizations on campus as well as go with me to ones at other campuses like Vespers at Bethel. Supporting Christian community? Check. Endless study abroad/international seminar options. Traveling? Check. Not to mention, all the friends I have in every year there who can pass down wisdom and hang out with me. Friends? Check. Beautiful campus? Check. Tea Garden? Check.
God has so incredibly and strategically brought certain people into my life to help aid this and show me that this was the best choice and was a part of the plan all along. HOW COOL IS THAT?! That God knew I would go there and feel so content with it way before I did! All I had to do was bask in His glory and allow Him to speak to me in little ways for a long time.
To those who don't know where you are going, what you want to do, what classes you will take, where you will work, just stop. Be still and silent. Let God speak to you in His time because He is your best advocate and will always work for your favor when you put all your trust in Him. Let it all go (cue "Frozen" soundtrack) and let Him deal with the future. My God is in control and that's all I need to know to satisfy me.
~Ashlyn
What on Earth am I talking about? College. What about college? Everything. This fall, just kidding, in 19 days, I move into my dorm at the U of M - Twin Cities campus. Before making my official decision in December last year, I had thought about/looked at/filled out applications for 2.5 years. To say the least, I was more than worried and anxious always about going to school. Finally, in December, God calmed my heart and led me to go to the U, despite never having a tour there or knowing more than the fact that Minnetonka ships off a good portion of the senior class there. Progressively this summer, I have been getting more and more excited for all the things this next year will bring and the Lord reaffirms this decision every day.
How so? Today, I was just hired by a friend into the Carleson School of Business and Management. Job? Check. The Rotex (past exchange students who went on a Rotary Youth Exchange) hub is the U campus. People who understand my year? Check. I will be living in the honors community in my dorm. Stimulating intellectual environment? Check. All my classes pertain to language and 3/5 are in Spanish. Speaking Spanish/learning more languages? Check. Classes that interest me? Check. I have friends who are encouraging me to join the Christian worship/organizations on campus as well as go with me to ones at other campuses like Vespers at Bethel. Supporting Christian community? Check. Endless study abroad/international seminar options. Traveling? Check. Not to mention, all the friends I have in every year there who can pass down wisdom and hang out with me. Friends? Check. Beautiful campus? Check. Tea Garden? Check.
God has so incredibly and strategically brought certain people into my life to help aid this and show me that this was the best choice and was a part of the plan all along. HOW COOL IS THAT?! That God knew I would go there and feel so content with it way before I did! All I had to do was bask in His glory and allow Him to speak to me in little ways for a long time.
To those who don't know where you are going, what you want to do, what classes you will take, where you will work, just stop. Be still and silent. Let God speak to you in His time because He is your best advocate and will always work for your favor when you put all your trust in Him. Let it all go (cue "Frozen" soundtrack) and let Him deal with the future. My God is in control and that's all I need to know to satisfy me.
~Ashlyn
Tuesday, August 5, 2014
Lamentations
The Lord works in very unique ways to say the least. My goal that I have recently adopted is to learn to be patient, still, and find quiet times to simply listen to what God has to say to me because He truly has so much to say! We just need to stop talking to Him and allow Him to have a turn to talk to us. So that is what I am doing now: I am praying the Holy Spirit impresses the exact words He wants me to write upon my heart and mind so I, as well as others, can learn more about God and His profound love.
Before we jump in, let's do some quick reviewing/context of Lamentations. The exact author of the book is unknown, some believe Jeremiah but that has not been confirmed. the general idea of this book is it is a collections of laments from the people of Jerusalem as their city is destroyed and God appears to be silent. The cycle of apostasy is happening meaning that Israel turned away from God and sinned, is punished, and then asks God for forgiveness. However, God does not seem to be answering them in a timely fashion and they are wondering why God has forsaken them? To answer this, let's look at Lam. 3:39, "Why should the living complain when punished for their sins?" I see this verse in two main ways: 1) what the living suffer for their sins is nothing compared to what they could suffer if they do not devote their lives to God and suffer in Hell. 2) What even gave them, and us, the impression that they should complain? They have sinned! There is punishment for doing so! God sees all so there is absolutely no hiding any wrongdoings from Him. And they choose to complain. How entitled they must feel. They, we, deserve God's wrath 77 by 7 times. We do not deserve Jesus' spilled blood. We really deserve nothing because we constantly turn our backs on God.
Discussed last night with some friends, we are called to be patient with one another, but not tolerate bad behavior if it continues to happen. God does the same: His patience surpasses ours infinitely and it has been prophesized as well as observed, He is not tolerant with our poor behavior forever. He punished Israel by allowing her to be captured by enemies and Revelations tells us that one day God will come back to rescue those who love Him and His tolerance will not continue. The cycle of apostasy never ceases (even in the smallest forms of choosing sin over what God wants for us,) because it is in our nature to sin, but that should not allow us to have the mindset to abuse God's patience and forgiveness. I see these beginning chapters as a historical view into the minds of the people, but also as a warning, that these things can/are still happening. Look at Israel and the Gaza strip right now. The destruction and separation of the country is terrifying.
But this should not discourage us! Lam. 3:57, "You came near when I called You and You said, 'Do not fear.'" God does not ignore us when we call onto Him, God is not immune to our suffering, He loves us in the midst of our punishmentl; the punishment is out of love for He wants us to come back to Him. it si those simple words that should erase any doubt or anixety we hold onto. If there is one person whose words we can fully trust, it's God's. He commands us to not fear because there is nothing bigger than God and nothing that His power can't fix/do. There is no reason to fear with God on your side because if He is for you, what possibly could be against you that is more than God? Nothing.
There is absolutely no reason to seek help from elsewhere. Lam. 4:17 "Moreover, our eyes have failed, looking in vain for help; from our towers we watched for a nation that could not save us." We are so incapable and stubborn that we insist on looking for another nation, another person or tangible thing to assist us even though we know they can't help! Ultimately, when we have hit rock bottom, like Israel is in these passages, you have no one else to turn to but God. And He wants that. He wants us to understand how weak we are to see how much we need Him. God is not smug or arrogant when we come back to Him and ask for forgiveness, but He is still patient. Think back when you were a child and your mom or dad just came home from work. If you were anything like me, you got a running start across the room and ran to them. I have a distinct reoccuring memory of my dad walking through the door right when the sun shined through our front glass door wearing a white collared shirt, khaki pants, and blue or red tie and he would crouch down with the biggest smile on his face, waiting for me. When I did notice him, I ran as fast as my little feet could take me to him and try my best to tackle him (which of course didn't work.) This is how God is: meeting us where we are, ready to embrace as in His arms as much as He can.
Needless to say, Lamentations ends with people begging God to forgive them, restore them as good as new to what He wants for them to be: His people. They see how they have sinned and need to turn away from that life in order to hear God again. It is impossible to hear God when we've put Him outside and shut the door of our heart, but when we let Him in, allow Him to help clean up the mess we have made, He speaks to us and tells us exactly what we need to know.
Before we jump in, let's do some quick reviewing/context of Lamentations. The exact author of the book is unknown, some believe Jeremiah but that has not been confirmed. the general idea of this book is it is a collections of laments from the people of Jerusalem as their city is destroyed and God appears to be silent. The cycle of apostasy is happening meaning that Israel turned away from God and sinned, is punished, and then asks God for forgiveness. However, God does not seem to be answering them in a timely fashion and they are wondering why God has forsaken them? To answer this, let's look at Lam. 3:39, "Why should the living complain when punished for their sins?" I see this verse in two main ways: 1) what the living suffer for their sins is nothing compared to what they could suffer if they do not devote their lives to God and suffer in Hell. 2) What even gave them, and us, the impression that they should complain? They have sinned! There is punishment for doing so! God sees all so there is absolutely no hiding any wrongdoings from Him. And they choose to complain. How entitled they must feel. They, we, deserve God's wrath 77 by 7 times. We do not deserve Jesus' spilled blood. We really deserve nothing because we constantly turn our backs on God.
Discussed last night with some friends, we are called to be patient with one another, but not tolerate bad behavior if it continues to happen. God does the same: His patience surpasses ours infinitely and it has been prophesized as well as observed, He is not tolerant with our poor behavior forever. He punished Israel by allowing her to be captured by enemies and Revelations tells us that one day God will come back to rescue those who love Him and His tolerance will not continue. The cycle of apostasy never ceases (even in the smallest forms of choosing sin over what God wants for us,) because it is in our nature to sin, but that should not allow us to have the mindset to abuse God's patience and forgiveness. I see these beginning chapters as a historical view into the minds of the people, but also as a warning, that these things can/are still happening. Look at Israel and the Gaza strip right now. The destruction and separation of the country is terrifying.
But this should not discourage us! Lam. 3:57, "You came near when I called You and You said, 'Do not fear.'" God does not ignore us when we call onto Him, God is not immune to our suffering, He loves us in the midst of our punishmentl; the punishment is out of love for He wants us to come back to Him. it si those simple words that should erase any doubt or anixety we hold onto. If there is one person whose words we can fully trust, it's God's. He commands us to not fear because there is nothing bigger than God and nothing that His power can't fix/do. There is no reason to fear with God on your side because if He is for you, what possibly could be against you that is more than God? Nothing.
There is absolutely no reason to seek help from elsewhere. Lam. 4:17 "Moreover, our eyes have failed, looking in vain for help; from our towers we watched for a nation that could not save us." We are so incapable and stubborn that we insist on looking for another nation, another person or tangible thing to assist us even though we know they can't help! Ultimately, when we have hit rock bottom, like Israel is in these passages, you have no one else to turn to but God. And He wants that. He wants us to understand how weak we are to see how much we need Him. God is not smug or arrogant when we come back to Him and ask for forgiveness, but He is still patient. Think back when you were a child and your mom or dad just came home from work. If you were anything like me, you got a running start across the room and ran to them. I have a distinct reoccuring memory of my dad walking through the door right when the sun shined through our front glass door wearing a white collared shirt, khaki pants, and blue or red tie and he would crouch down with the biggest smile on his face, waiting for me. When I did notice him, I ran as fast as my little feet could take me to him and try my best to tackle him (which of course didn't work.) This is how God is: meeting us where we are, ready to embrace as in His arms as much as He can.
Needless to say, Lamentations ends with people begging God to forgive them, restore them as good as new to what He wants for them to be: His people. They see how they have sinned and need to turn away from that life in order to hear God again. It is impossible to hear God when we've put Him outside and shut the door of our heart, but when we let Him in, allow Him to help clean up the mess we have made, He speaks to us and tells us exactly what we need to know.
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