tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73092523040644423982024-03-08T04:18:02.246-05:00Home OfferingsEvery thought, word, and deed in a Christian's life is an offering to God. This is mine. These are the thoughts and experiences that I have as I live at home, striving to be holy as He is holy and to walk through life trusting that God really does have my good at heart.Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.comBlogger29125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-81058119682030307482011-01-02T15:40:00.002-05:002011-01-02T16:00:23.710-05:00And God DiedThe words 'God' and 'died' don't seem like they should go together if you really think about it. I mean, by definition, God is all powerful, all knowing, eternal. He is the Unchangeable One...so...how can He die? How could someone get one up on Him and stab Him in the back? How could the Life from which all of the universe has sprung be ended? <br /><br />One of my favorite verses of Scripture is in the Gospel of John, chapter 19. Pilate is questioning Jesus but the Savior does not give him an answer. No doubt frustrated and definitely nervous, Pilate asks, '"You will not speak to me? Do You know know that I have authority to release You and authority to crucify You?" Jesus answered him, "You would have no authority over Me at all unless it had been given you from above."' John 19: 10-11<br /><br />I love the image of that. To any unenlightened eye, these are the insolent words of a foolish carpenter, so poor He doesn't even have a roof over His head, standing before the man who had all the authority of the Roman empire backing him. For anyone else, it would have been rash, foolish, and stupid, but for the Son of God...it was the truth.<br /><br />That is where we find the answer to how God could die. God chose to do so. He knew from the beginning of time and beyond that He would create, that His creation would rebel, and that He would become like His creation so that He could save a people out of them for Himself. A simple concept that changes everything about us and that so many people have stumbled over and rejected it.<br /><br />Some people find Jesus' death offense, like cosmic murder of the Son by His Father. Others don't like the fact that the Gospel tells them that they can't save themselves. We Americans are obstinately self reliant and don't you dare tell me that I have to trust somebody else to fix my problems. Like a nation of two year olds, we proclaim that we can do 'by my self, darn it!' But the Gospel isn't supposed to be easy. Such revolutionary change on how we think and act won't come easily. But left as we are, we are dead in our sins, we are lost, and we are blind to the goodness of God. That is why God died: so that He might open the eyes of His chosen people to His salvation. Not all will be saved; the Bible is clear on that too. But in His mercy, God chose some and for these, He became flesh, He lived a hard life, He suffered, He was spit on and cursed, He died, He was buried, He rose, and now, He prepares to receive us to Himself. The impossibility of God's death made the impossibility of our salvation a reality! Praise be to the Most High Who in wisdom, justice, and love, satisfed His wrath and our need!Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-33299762591076878972010-12-21T13:50:00.003-05:002010-12-21T14:00:32.651-05:00ThoughtsWow...I haven't even checked my blog in FOREVER! Sorry to any body who left hanging. College has proved enough of a challenge to keep me busy, though I have decided to take three more credits than my first semester load come this January. And yes...I have finished that first semester now with good grades! This semester, I will be taking classes in my major and minor, which will give me an idea if my plan is really where God wants me or not. Either way, I am excited!<br /><br />God has been good to me this past semester. It has been a time of growth as I have been exposed to worldviews and lifestyles that I had very minimal contact with when in highschool. I am still living at home and am constantly grateful for the guidance of my parents. It has been a time of mental challenges and spiritual ones as I have more and more opportunities to talk about my lifestyle, my choices, and most important of all...my faith! <br /><br />And now it is only four days till Christmas! I can't believe it! As most of my followers know, last Christmas was probably the worst one ever with my dad serving our country in Iraq! This year, we are all so, SO grateful to have him here with us! What lessons I have learned since October of 2008 when my father told us he was going to serve in Iraq! It was hard...very possibly the hardest thing I have ever had to do, but I am so glad that God gave that challenge to me. It taught me things about myself that I hadn't known. My appreciation of my father increasing one hundred fold and my love for God was so strengthened.<br /><br />Over and over again in these past two years, God has showed me more of Himself. How marvelous is the God we serve! Why I am still so often afraid or angry or uncaring? I am loved by the God of the universe! I have been adopted by the King of Kings! Every day of the rest of eternity, I will be walking hand in hand with the One who created everything around me. How can I even explain the joy that brings to my heart? How can I weep long enough for how often I ignore that truth? <br /><br />God's blessings to you all this Christmas season and I pray that above all else, you are deeply reminded of Who lay in that manger. He wasn't just a good teacher or a moral preacher; He was God and He loved us, as He still loves us today!Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-58851386798150914162010-11-16T14:42:00.003-05:002010-11-16T17:05:22.272-05:00My Enemy, StressStress stinks! I'm a month away from finishing my first semester of college and it is getting harder and harder to not stress out. I'm naturally a worrier and a control freak. I like everything to be in its own box and don't like it when I can't get my head around things; i.e. my history paper on William, Duke of Normandy's conquest of England. These past two days, it has been so bad that I am clenching my jaw in my sleep to the point that chewing is torture! It was pretty pathetic when I was trying to eat cereal this morning.<br /><br />For the simple reason of self-preservation, I have been really trying to relax, keeping calm, taking breaks, and noticing when I'm clenching. But there is another, bigger reason that I need to keep reminding myself not to stress. When I stress, I am not trusting my Savior to take care of everything. I don't know how many times I've told myself that He can take care of it better than I can, but still, I want to do it all myself like an obstinate toddler.<br /><br />I think Christ was thinking of people like me when He said: "And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life...Therefore do not be anxious, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." Matthew 6:27,31-33<br /><br />God is fully aware that I'm stressed about getting all my classes in for the winter semester and frustrated cause my paper is refusing to flow together, and He is big enough to get me through it. I won't die, in spite of what I think. The Gospel is still certain, I am still saved, and Christ still loves me! No paper or exam will ever shake that.<br /><br />Whether it is school or work or an overload of housework, don't stress. It will only wear you down. Breathe and trust! We'll all survive together!Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-33301250662909620522010-10-06T11:40:00.003-04:002010-10-06T11:45:39.110-04:00Praise and ConfessionLord,<br /><br />What can I say? You know me. You know my lying tongue; You know my sinful heart. You see the wrong that I can't even sense. Yet, You love me...<br /><br />Why? Why do You stay? Why do You still forgive after an eternity of rebellion? Why do You not leave me in the pit I keep returning to? Why don't You let me go?<br /><br />How can I understand such love? How can it truly be mine? Oh, teach me what my forgiveness cost! Sear me with the memory of my salvation.<br /><br />Never let me forget the blood that makes me clean! Teach me to love You for my stone heart cannot love alone. You must change me. You must give for me to return. It is not payment. It's praise.<br /><br />Feeble, broken praise from half-holy lips, but to You, it is incense. Christ has perfected it. The Spirit transates it. And I stand holy before a perfect King!Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-34317906906772699932010-10-01T14:19:00.002-04:002010-10-01T14:33:17.271-04:00AutumnYesterday, I stepped outside after classes were done...and I met Fall. She had been on her way in the cold air and the turning leaves for more than week now, but not until yesterday did I catch her perfume. The crickle-crackle of leaves, spicy hot cider, rosy cheeks, bright eyes, turtleneck sweaters, and clear, cloudless skies; all this in the scent of Fall.<br /><br />I do not think any other season invites such feelings of joy and worship in me like Fall does. I love watching the trees slowly ignite to crimson, saffron, and pumpkin orange, and of course, raking them into piles and jumping in them. Yes, I still do such things and I am convinced that jumping in leaf piles as an adult/semi-adult is even more fun than when I was little. <br /><br />There is a tree that I pass every day coming home from school. Every day, as I go by, it is a little more crimson and a little less green. Then, the weekend comes, and it is even more aflame come Monday. Soon, its summer garment will have vanished and it will be standing beside the road in a thirty foot high blaze of brilliant red and yellow glory! And it is simply a tree, a mere creation. How much more beautiful must its Creator be!<br /><br />Whether you enjoy fall or prefer summer, this is a marvelous thought: we are loved by the Person who created those radient colors, that mighty tree. Though the seasons come and go, He remains the same...always. He will always, eternally love us and that's something to rejoice about! Have a blessed autumn!Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-31126176672957408522010-09-20T13:50:00.003-04:002010-09-29T12:20:14.804-04:00A Line UncrossedMy family went up to Lake Ann last weekend to stay in a cottage with a family who are close friends of ours. Needless to say, it was awesome! We went up to Sleeping Bear Dunes, thoroughly exhausted ourselves walking uphill through sand, and then, ran or jump back down in attempts at flight. We also went out for the best ice cream in America and spent an entire afternoon at the beach where I learned to skip rocks, even succeeding in ramping one up an incoming wave, and did more jumping off sand dunes with the other kids, collecting several sore or bruised muscles, a favorite new thing to do, and several pockets' full of sand from an unsuccessful jump.<br /><br />But even with all the fun, we did not forget God. As I walked along the beach towards the end of that exciting afternoon and let the waves just brush my bare feet, snatches of a verse came to mind, which I later looked up and found. "'Should you not fear me?' declares the LORD. 'Should you not tremble in my presence? I made the sand a boundary for the sea, an everlasting barrier it cannot cross. The waves may roll, but they cannot prevail; they may roar, but they cannot cross it.'" Jeremiah 5:22<br /><br />No one has ever conquered the ocean. Do you realize that? We can conquer animals, land, and even other peoples to our discredit, but water is not tamable. Who can tell the waves to not approach this or that line or command seas to stop their motion? Only One. From the beginning of time, He has ruled the oceans and the chaos that they so often represent. He thought this unconquerable substance into being, dug out space for it to dwell, and then, He drew a line and commanded that here it can go and no farther. To His voice it listens...as should we.Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-31927955572274073242010-09-15T15:31:00.002-04:002010-09-15T15:40:38.712-04:00College PrayersFall is arriving and with it, a new academic year begins. For those of you who don't know, I am now a freshman at Saginaw Valley State University near my home. This decision to enter the public arena of education has already been a mixed blessing.<br /><br />As a Christian, I am always a stranger in a strange land, but I must admit, I feel it more here. Already, I have encountered opinions and beliefs that oppose my own, but those hours away have heightend one hundred fold my appreciation for the sanctuary and love of my family. There is nothing better than returning to them and letting go after a long day.<br /><br />I have also discovered a love for the French language. I'm only three weeks into the introductory class and I already adore the pure vowels and flowing rhythms.<br /><br />I pray that as I continue here, that God will use me for Himself. I am now surrounded by people who don't know Him! My prayer is that they will see Him in me.<br /><br />Please pray for me as I continue this journey. Pray that I am faithful and remember how great is mercy, love, and strength of my God, and pray that I am able to testify to His salvation whenever the opportunity arrives.Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-22174566718066615422010-08-23T18:14:00.002-04:002010-08-23T18:30:05.464-04:00To Love A Black HatHow awesome, wonderful, and incredible is our God! Every person who ever lived has had a god; everyone worships something. It might be Buddha, or money, or success, or aethism, or Allah. We can give our love to just about anything, but there is only One who will love us back! How can such a tiny vessel as a human body carry the magnitude of that Divine affection?<br /><br />I am reading the Psalms for my current devotions, and today, I read Psalm 91, the end of which talks about how God will deliver the one who holds fast to Him in love. Do we hold fast to God in love? Do we cling to Him, vice gripping Him each and every day, staking everything we have on His steadfast faithfulness? Do we understand what it means to be loved by God?<br /><br />That is truly an amazing thought! Think of God as the best good guy ever, and we are the bad guys: black hat, filthy heart, total scumbag. Now, these bad guys get caught and are finally brought to account for their wickedness. But then, the good guy stands up and says for all to hear, "I will die for them. I will take the punishment for their sins. Because I love those bad guys and I desire to make them mine!" The bad guy did nothing but evil; the Good Guy did everything and now, we are loved more than we can describe. <br /><br />(word count: 247)Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-17326452794986413342010-08-13T14:16:00.003-04:002010-08-13T14:24:09.671-04:00When Things Totter"When the earth totters, and all its inhabitants, it is I who keep steady its pillars." Psalm 75:3<br /><br />I love that verse! I've highlighted it in my Bible and next to it, I have a note: 'We must lean on God's strength.' I just love that imagery.<br /><br />Everyone has those times when they feel unsteady or as the saying goes, 'their whole world's turned upside down.' When the entire planet is shaking, when our lives are crumbling down around us, when we're not sure how we're going have the strength to get up and face another day...God holds the pillars in place. Not the President, not the military, not our parents, not us...God. Just Him.<br /><br />Sometimes, we get all worried about our lives and our troubles. We forget and think that God needs help to take care of His creation. It's HIS creation! I'm saying this to myself as much as anyone. I am a terrible worry wart! But my worrying won't do a single thing, except for give me an insanely bad headache. The pillars are too big for me to hold, but they fit just perfect in God's hands. I think that was the point in the first place.<br /><br />(word count: 204)Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-83558203176235321482010-08-12T19:08:00.002-04:002010-08-12T19:21:04.163-04:00Forever ChangedTwo thousand years ago, a man was sentenced to death by the Roman governor of Israel. He was then scoured, beaten, spit upon, cursed, and finally, nailed to two pieces of wood that had been lashed together to form a cross shape. For three hours, He hung there in agony, which we can't imagine, while His closest friends and His mother watched. Storm clouds covered the sky and when He died, the earth trembled beneath the weight. Then, He was laid in a tomb and His followers went home, numb because they thought their leader had failed...<br /><br />Today, I sit in my home with my laptop in front of me and the school supplies I've been organizing to my right. I have been born and raised in America and seem to have no connection whatsoever with that Man who Pontius Pilate killed so long ago. Yet, I sit here today with a soul that is washed clean because of that Man. Today, when God looks at me, He sees the perfect sacrifice of that Man and He declares me justified and righteous, consecrated to Him.<br /><br />The day Jesus came to this earth, all of human history that had come before Him and all that would come after changed, irrevocably. God touched His creation as He had never touched it before and did something that no one but He could...and we will never be the same!<br /><br />(word count: 238)Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-40408505863578197412010-07-28T11:41:00.004-04:002010-07-28T11:51:33.188-04:00My August ChallengeOkay, I can admit this. As a writer, I have the profound ability for using the largest amount of words possible to say something. Sometimes, that is alright, but I have decided to challenge myself for the rest of July and into August to write every post with a 250 word maximum limit. So...here goes.<br /><br />(57 words)Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-63319496157732518352010-07-27T19:52:00.004-04:002010-07-28T11:41:25.431-04:00A God Like No OtherWow! For an aspiring writer, I am not good at being consistent with this blog thing. *sigh* <br /><br />Well, my family is settling well into a new normal with Dad back home. I am still so grateful that God brought him home. The Lord was so good to us during that year. I can never tell Him 'thank you' enough!<br /><br />I tend to be so forgetful, especially with God. I pray for something, and then...I never thank Him for answering. He is utterly patient with me!<br /><br />These months have been an up and down time for me spiritually. I've been struggling with my own apathy, seeing so many areas where I simply do not desire God as I should. But, as always, God has not left me alone. Even when I am back in the same sin over and over again, He does not give up on me. How can we ever dwell enough on the patient and steadfast love of our God?<br /><br />And He is more than just a Savior. That almost sounds disrespectful, 'just' a Savior, but I don't mean it that way. I mean that He is Savior and Father and Comforter and Protector and Shepherd. He offers us love that no human could ever give; He wants to have a personal relationship with us. He is the One who I can greet every morning and walk through every day with. He is waiting to help me through every trial and smile with me through every gladness. How can we ever deserve such a God?<br /><br />In my struggles of trying to understanding myself, I imagined what it would be like not to believe in God...I was saved at seven years old and in the back of my mind, ever since that day, I have been having a conversation with Him. Imagine not having that quiet presence in that back of your soul? The constancy of His presence has been another grace that God has shown me over these past weeks, and I am so grateful for the work He is doing in me. I am never alone. I am never parted from the One who loves me more than I can comprehend AND who has the power to actually take care of every single problem I will ever face. Not to say that I think He will make all my troubles go away, but He can dissolve them, or give me strength or wisdom or whatever I need to get through it. No one else will ever be able to offer me that kind of love. <br /><br />We are loved by a God too big to describe, and yet, so many, many times, we don't pray, don't read His Word, don't listen to Him. What is wrong with us? O Lord, You are beyond comprehension! You pursue us when we don't want to be pursued. You love and forgive us beyond measure, and even the gratitude and obedience we give to You in return is only in our possession because You died to free us from our own sin. How great are You!Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-65300015501491125022010-03-23T16:13:00.003-04:002010-03-23T16:29:55.094-04:00The Faithfulness of the LORDExodus 34. Moses has already completed his forty day trip onto Mount Sinai. The people have forsaken the Lord and worshipped the calf that Aaron molded for them. The first set of the Ten Commandments has been broken and the idol ground to dust. Israel has experienced the plague of God's wrath and now...God still gives Moses His covenant.<br /><br />Again, the Lord writes His laws upon tablets of stone and now, after Israel's terrible forsaking, He proclaims His name. In Israel, your name was more than what you were called; it told something of your character. By telling Israel His name, God was revealing part of Himself to them. This is what He said as He passed before the averted eyes of Moses:<br /><br />"The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will be no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children's children, to the third and the fourth generation."<br /><br />Even after Israel had already shown their inconstancy, God reveals Himself to Moses, show him His glory, and proclaims this title. Even after Israel has abandoned Him for a god of their own hands, He calls Himself slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness. We serve a God who is not like us, a God who forgives long after we would have punished, a God who never wavers or changes, and a God who is both perfectly just and perfectly merciful. <br /><br />He does not depend on our faithfulness, He does not leave us when we sin, even when we disobey, He remains. He will punish, but even when we are chastised, it is in love (Proverbs 3:12). He saves us all on His own, praise be to God!Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-75190643515750657772010-02-21T14:29:00.002-05:002010-02-21T14:45:18.706-05:00And the King Will Sing!The sermon today was Zephaniah. What a powerful message! Zephaniah, I learned, was the only prophet of the Davidic line and the last prophet before the exile. He speaks of the Day of the Lord, the day when God finally gives sinners what they deserve. He looked past their sin for so long; it was time for recompense. But there is a final Day of the Lord still to come, as my pastor reminded us. We too need to hear Zephaniah's message and to repent when we wander from our Savior-Judge.<br /><br />However, what struck me most in the entire sermon is my pastor's comments on this passage:<br /><br />'Fear not, O Zion; let not your hands grow weak. The LORD your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing." Zephaniah 3:16-17<br /><br />This is the message of hope at the very end, the promise that God will draw, not just Israel, but His children from all the nations to Himself. As my pastor pointed out, when God merely spoke, universes were created, and this verse says He will sing over us! <br /><br />As I sat in the pew, I thought about that great day when we would finally be cleansed of all our sin and the mighty voice of the Deathless One would ring out in joyous song over the whole congregation of His elect. In my mind, I crouched to the ground, weighed down by the glory of that moment, and the crazy thing is, we can't even comprehend the fullness of what we have in Christ.<br /><br />This was another point that was given during the service and it made me think. There are times when I am almost crushed with awe of God, and yet, I don't even know how great Jesus' gift is! What a marvelous thought! We have been given the Son of God Himself, and yet, so, so often, we reject Him or forget. I think so little of my status of GOd's child, and not only child, but heir, during the day. How does God endure us? <br /><br />Yet, in spite of all the fickleness that God's people have been guilty of for thousands of years, we are still saved. God didn't wipe us out. He poured His wrath on His Son instead of us! One day, He will return, His voice will exult in the culmination of history, and by His grace, I am going to be there! There is truly nothing in this world worth trading that everlasting future!Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-45827298126262131872010-01-29T19:09:00.003-05:002010-01-29T19:25:24.302-05:00I Saw Her DancingIt has been quite a while since I blogged last. Sorry! Between general busyness and some computer issues,I haven't been in the loop as much! But, I couldn't think of a better way to start my blogging again then with a post about my father's return from his tour in Iraq!<br /><br />He returned yesterday. Friends and family came with us to the airport and amidst cheers and clapping, my family was reunited for the final time! I laughed and cried and laughed and cried again! I still have to remind myself that we are done!<br /><br />As I thought about this last year and put up facebook status' about my father's return, I was overwhelmed with gratitude. Gratitude to our loved ones for prayers and support that I will never be able to thank them enough for and gratitude to God that He brought us through. There were times when I didn't really think that we would get through this, when I doubted if my dad would return safe from this tour. If he hadn't, I know that God would have had reasons, but I am so thankful that He returned my father to us! It is a great gift that I did not deserve, but that God gave anyway!<br /><br />So, we have begun to be a family again and tonight, I was again reminded of God's latest mercy. My sister was playing the Beatles' 'Here Comes the Sun' on the guitar while we both sang and I turned to see my mom dancing with my brother in the kitchen. She was all smiles as they twirled and I just watched...she hasn't danced like that since my father left in January of 2009. It was just another reminder of what God has done for us!<br /><br />So often, time gets jumbled together but with my dad having been gone, I can look back really clearly on this past year and remember where I was when he left and where I am now. I had feared and hurt deeper than I ever have before but I have found strength greater than my own! I had gained greater confidence in the salvation that I was given and I am learning to fall more in love with the God who loves me enough to use even bad things for my good! God, not the Navy, sent my dad out into the Iraqi desert and God brought him back! He was with me as I clenched in fear for my father's safety and He and He alone helped me release that fear and trust Him. I am by NO means perfect and I still have a long way to go but today is a good day. My mother is dancing again, my father's laughter is back in the house, and God was faithful, as He said He would be!Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-50469884568448343132010-01-01T00:19:00.002-05:002010-01-01T00:31:54.355-05:00Security in the DoorJohn 10.<br /><br />This was my passage for devotions today, and my pastor also happened to have just preached on this same chapter. In these verses, Christ compares Himself to the Good Shepherd, whose voice is known to His sheep, and as the Door, the only way into His sheepfold.<br /><br />In Jesus' time, shepherds would sometimes keep their sheep in pens that could be as primitive as rocks piled into a low wall with the shepherd himself lying at the entrance as the door, to ensure that no curious lamb wandered out or that any predators gained entrance. This is what Jesus compares Himself to.<br /><br />As I thought about that concept, I realize how reassuring that statement should be to us, His flock. We are the sheep in His flock, He lies us down in His pasture, and He Himself guards the door. Why are we so worried about life? What are we afraid? I thought about it. The Creator of the universe Himself is guarding our lives; what in the world can possibly do us harm?<br /><br />Now, by no means, do I mean that as Christians, we should never have pain or trouble. I know that isn't true, BUT...there is no sorrow that comes to us, which God has not seen every detail of. He knows exactly what griefs and joys come our way and every one, He uses for good. Every ONE! We can walk through life without worry or fear because the Good Shepherd is watching us. What better guide could we ask?<br /><br />"I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly." Jn 10:9-10Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-48790332971245004462009-12-25T22:02:00.002-05:002009-12-25T22:13:36.442-05:00And You Shall Call His Name JesusChristmas morning. We got up early and gathered around the tree...and the computer as we skyped with my dad. The troops where he is got the day off and so, he was able to call in and watch us open gifts. It was hard...being able to see him but knowing he wasn't really there but I was glad he was able to.<br /><br />However, before we do gifts, we always read the Christmas story and Daddy always reads it. Thanks to technology, this year wasn't any different and we all sat in our living room as, half a world away, our deployed sailor read the words of the Christ's birth in the sandy deserts of Iraq. As he began to read, I was struck by the situation. We are Christians here the United States; he is over there in a Muslim country but today, Iraq proclaimed the birth of the world's Messiah.<br /><br />As we finish out the last month of this long deployment, I thank God that He has kept my dad safe thus far and I pray that He will continue to do so. But...I know that, no matter what is to come, through all the years of my life no matter how many or few, He's going to be there with me and whatever it is, it will be better than anything else...even if I don't understand how. Because our God's ways are not our ways and His foolishness is wiser than man's wisdom.<br /><br />Merry Christmas!Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-29900726086913323372009-12-19T18:12:00.002-05:002009-12-19T18:26:56.840-05:00We went and got our Christmas tree today. Going to Kluck's, picking out the perfect tree, and taking it home and setting it up to Christmas music has been one of the deepest traditions of my family. It was wonderful and really feels like Christmas now...but not quite like it has before.<br /><br />For those who don't know, my father has been serving our country in Iraq for the past year and will be returning home in late January. We are all happy to be back together so soon but the holidays aren't even close to the same without him. And, of course, on our way home, the song "I'll be Brave for Christmas" by Big Daddy Weave came on the radio and we all tried not to cry.<br /><br />Sitting here, I realize a little more of what Christmas really means. It is so easy to get wrapped up in the gifts and the lights and the beautiful decorations but bright garlands and ornamented evergreens are not what this holiday is about. It is about something much bigger and MUCH better.<br /><br />It is about a baby. Just one baby and yet, there was never another like Him. God the Son in flesh; born not to wealthy parents in a beautiful palace but to a peasant girl and his first crib, a manger where animals would eat. That was the entrance of the Son of God.<br /><br />I miss my dad. Sometimes, I just have to grit my teeth at how deeply I miss him but I am not sorry that the Lord gave us this trial. It increased my love for my earthly father and now, it has showed me a little more of the love of my Heavenly One. That same pain that I am feeling now, God felt a hundred times over when His Son left heaven and came down as a Man and then, even more than that, when the Father had to actually turn away from His Son as Jesus bore the world's sins on His shoulders. That take your breath away, clench your jaw pain that I feel...He didn't just endure that, He purposefully endured it...for me.<br /><br />He missed His Father, just like I do, and He loves me even more than that pain. I could not ask for a greater gift and I will never be able to thank Him enough!Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-8826371154758406252009-12-17T18:59:00.003-05:002009-12-18T09:46:59.797-05:00Comfort in Insignificance"Be comforted, small one, in your smallness. He lays no merit on you...Be comforted, small immortals. You are not the voice that all things utter, nor is there eternal silence in the places where you cannot come." C.S. Lewis from <em></em> Perelandra <em></em><br /><br />I finished this book today and towards the end, I found those two passages. At first, I confess, pride reared its ugly head. I get to rejoice that I'm insignificant? But then, I thought on it more. Yes, I do!<br /><br />At the core of our sin nature, there is our pride and arogance that desires to be like God. It is the temptation that Eve was given in the garden and just like our first parents, we are ever listening to its lie yet again. Selfishness, anger, even worry, they are all tenacles of the same massive pride. We want to be our own God.<br /><br />But do we really? Do we really understand what being God is? Yes, He gets all the glory and worship but He has endured pain that we cannot even fathom! And, besides that point, how comfortable would you be if your loved one's lives were in your hands? If you alone were responsible to ensure that your father made it home safe from work every day, your mother stayed strong as she served her family, or your children lived through the raging fever of the flu? Wouldn't you kinda, you know, go insane with the pressure?<br /><br />That is why I think C.S. Lewis' character told the human to rejoice in his smallness. God does not require us to do His job. The world will not crumble because we goofed; our salvation will not be in jeapordy because we didn't see something coming. He does not lay any merit on us...He knows we are sinners and He sees us as we are, expecting neither more nor less. He understands us, for He became like us.<br /><br />Rejoice! God is mighty enough to be God by Himself! He doesn't not need us!Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-19323254574181014792009-12-14T10:53:00.004-05:002009-12-17T18:50:14.436-05:00Never Was Grief Like HisI know this is a long post but trust me, it is worth it. This is a portion of my Sunday School lesson on 'How did Jesus win our salvation?' Read the passage please. It left me speechless...<br /><br />Excerpts from 'The Sacrifice' by George Herbert<br /><br />"With clubs and staves they seek me, as a thief,<br />Who am the Way and Truth, the true relief;<br />Most true to those, who are my greatest grief:<br />Was ever grief like mine?<br />See, they lay hold on me, not with the hands<br />Of faith, but furie: yet at their commands<br />I suffer binding, who have loosed their bands:<br />Was ever grief like mine?<br />Arise, arise, they come. Look how they run!<br />Alas! what haste they make to be undone!<br />How with their lanterns do they seek the sun!<br />Was ever grief like mine?<br />Therefore my soul melts, and my heart's dear treasure<br />Drops blood (the only beads) my word to measure:<br />Was ever grief like mine?<br />These drops being tempered with a sinner's tears<br />A balsome are for both the hemispheres:<br />Curing all wounds, but mine; all, but my fears:<br />Was ever grief like mine?<br />So sits the earth's great curse in Adam's fall<br />Upon my head; so I remove it all<br />From th' earth unto my brows, and bear the thrall:<br />Was ever grief like mine?<br />The soldiers also spit upon that face,<br />Which angels did desire to have the grace,<br />And prophets, once to see, but found no place:<br />Was ever grief like mine?<br />'O ye all who pass by, behold and see';<br />Man stole the fruit, but I must climb the tree;<br />The tree of life to all, but only me:<br />Was ever grief like mine?<br />Such sorrow as, if sinful man could feel,<br />Or feel his part, he would not cease to kneel,<br />Till all were melted, though he were all steel:<br />Was ever grief like mine?<br />'Now heal thy self, Physician; now come down.'<br />Alas! I did so, when I left my crown<br />And father's smile for you, to feel his frown:<br />Was ever grief like mine?<br />In healing not my self, there doth consist<br />All that salvation, which ye now resist;<br />Your safety in my sickness doth subsist:<br />Was ever grief like mine?<br />But now I die; now all is finished.<br />My woe, men's weal: and now I bow my head.<br />Only let others say, when I am dead,<br />Never was grief like mine."<br /><br />He suffered more than we can even imagine, to gain the love we so rarely give Him. How truly great is our God!Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-27111425806757168822009-12-09T18:57:00.003-05:002009-12-09T19:32:13.712-05:00Live like We're Dying"We only got 86,400 seconds in a day<br />to turn it all around or to throw it all away<br />We gotta tell 'em that we love 'em while we got the chance to say<br />Gotta live like we're dying!"<br /><br />This is part of the chorus to a popular song right now by Kris Allen. It isn't a 'Christian' song but it applies anyway. God is not confined to speaking truth only through the music of those who claim His name. We can find truth even in the words of the firmest athiest.<br /><br />So...what are we going to do with our lives? Who are we going to live for? What, at the end, will give us joy? Imagine if more people starting living like this, living as if the day they had were the last they would ever see. What would change?<br /><br />As Christians, every night we should go to sleep ready to meet our Maker and knowing that we didn't waste a second of the day we are now finishing. We only have one life,all we are guaranteed is the moment we are now in. What are we going to do with it?<br /><br />Christ came to earth to die for us, He wrapped Himself in flesh to take the punishment for our sin, He bore the shame and agony of the cross to redeem His sinful creations. As He went through each day, He knew that He was one day closer to His own death but also, to the glory of His resurrection. Will we follow our Lord's example or will we live for ourselves? Will we enjoy good now or we will wait, realizing that there is greater good to be gained at the feet of our Savior?<br /><br />You only have 86,400 seconds in this day. Will you be proud or ashamed of them once they are gone?Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-53445507392424632002009-12-07T18:38:00.003-05:002009-12-07T22:42:20.065-05:00Harlot BrideExekiel 16.<br /><br />This is sin without veils, without sugared words, and without side stepping. It is put down in clear, powerful, attention demanding language. We are not allowed to ignore this.<br /><br />The orphan has been wed by the King, the bride has been adorned by her Husband, and the wife has betrayed her Savior...<br /><br />Imagine if a man and woman were about to be married; he had popped the question, she had accepted, and now, they are at their wedding day. The groom is at the altar, the wedding march begins, and the bride comes down the isle. But what if...instead of white gown and veil and eyes on her fiance alone, this girl comes clothed in the garments of a prostitue and flirting with every man in the room? <br /><br />We were abandoned and covered in our own blood and filth and He came, cleaned us off, and claimed us as His own. He covered us with beautiful robes and gave us all that we have and just like Israel did, we so often spurn it. We run after the fickle idols of this world and sacrifice His own gifts to the vanities of our hearts.<br /><br />Do we understand how puny, how miniscule we are compared to the God who has saved us? Do we realize how brutal of a betrayal it is when we run from the greatest Love ever just to have some sinful pleasure that will burn on the Day of Judgment? We are His Bride; we should be striving every day to be beautiful for Him.<br /><br />And yet, our offended Groom does not leave us. He doesn't throw the ring down in the church and walk away. He stays there, calls us back to Him, with pain even, and continues to teach us, to persue us, and to love us when we are unlovable. What an amazing God we have!Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-15158673931211277702009-12-05T19:27:00.004-05:002009-12-05T19:56:47.658-05:00Sandpaper PeopleI just got a new background with the help of my awesome, high-tech younger sister. She suffered through my painstakingly slow persusal of the different options and my control-freak need to do everything myself. Bless her heart!<br /><br />As the oldest of five, I have had plenty of instances when that younger sister and the other three have acted in the same aggravating way to me. They are loud when I am trying to study, they ignore or interrupt me when I am trying to talk, and they discover unlimited ways to simply tick me off. Mom calls them 'sandpaper people'. Those are the people who rub your rough edges smooth; they teach your patience, selflessness, obedience, and humility. That would be my siblings.<br /><br />And yet, there are times when I hear my six year old brother burst into hysterical laughter or eat lunch with my two beautiful sisters or marvel at the complexity of my other brother's artwork, and I just have to praise God for what would I do without them? What would I do without that obnoxious noise that fills this house or those young voices telling me things I feel too busy to listen to? I am first a Christian, then a daughter, and third...a sister. My siblings change me in ways they don't realize. They define who I am and the way I treat my husband and my kids, should God bless me with both, will be that way because of the decisions I made about them. They are my best friends, my worst enemies, my motherhood practice, and one of the greatest gifts God has given me and I am eternally grateful!Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-36604007848283743582009-11-05T21:47:00.000-05:002009-11-05T21:59:28.835-05:00Our Alabaster Flasks"A woman came to Him having an alabaster flask of very costly fragrant oil, and she poured it on His head as He sat at the table. But when His disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, "Why this waste? For this fragrant oil might have been sold...and given to the poor.<br />"But when Jesus was aware of it, He said to them, 'Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a good work for Me...For in pouring this fragrant oil on My body, she did it for My burial. Assuredly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her.'"<br /><br />This passage was part of my devotions today. The story has always fascinated me; just the whole picture of Jesus, the cross only days ahead of Him, reclining at the table and Mary, nervous and sorrowful, coming in with that flask. The sound of pottery smashing as she broke it, the pungent scent of the costly liquid filling the room, and then, this young woman anointing the Master's head and washing His feet with her tears, wiping them dry with her long, dark hair.<br />That perfume was not cheap and it was probably all Mary had; a fragrant oil to perhaps be used at her own burial. And yet, she gave it completely and recklessly to Christ; every drop was poured over Him, she kept nothing back.<br />How often do we clutch our alabaster flasks so tightly and say, "No, Lord, everything but that! You can have everything else but not my job, my home, my spouse, or my money. Not that one precious flask."<br />And yet, that is often that very thing that He most wants because it is of most value to us. Sometimes, as with Abraham, He asks us to give up the unthinkable just to see if we really love HIm best?<br />So...do we? What is your flask? What are mine? If He asked for them, would we obey? Or would we grasp it tighter, hide it away, and mutter excuses on how the God of the universe isn't worth that much? <br />Do we trade the Creator for a creation or do we smash it recklessly and completely and let the sweet scent of obedience fill our nostrils and cover us in the fragrance of a heart truly under the lordship of Mary's Master?Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7309252304064442398.post-32152357518808378542009-10-07T09:48:00.000-04:002009-10-07T10:06:09.915-04:00Light and Life Obeyed"O Father, you are sovereign, in all the worlds you made;<br />Your mighty word was spoken, and light and life obeyed.<br />Your voice commands the seasons and bounds the ocean’s shore,<br />Sets stars within their courses and stills the tempest’s roar."<br /><br />We think of God's powerful arm; His mighty throne room; or His loving eyes but how often do we think about His voice? His mighty <em></em>word<em></em> was spoken and light and life obeyed. Imagine, the darkness of before creation and then, a voice to shatter the mountains and still the heart of a child shot across the waters, commanded light to form, and like an obedient servant, it leapt forth shimmering and brilliant!<br /><br />Through all six days of creation, it was His voice that was obeyed as dry land stretched up from the waters, animals and plants sprang to life, and finally, a man was formed with the breath of life breathed into his nostrils.<br /><br />But the power of God's voice does not end with creation. Look at the second part of the verse. It commands the seasons and bounds the ocean's shore. I always liked that image. It is as if He drew a line in the sand and told the waves, "Here you go and no farther for I AM."<br /><br />He sets the stars in place and He stills the tempest's roar. He has utter power over nature and us. We have no need to fear. We serve a God who knows all the stars by name and at whose voice, the earth quakes. We can rest knowing that His voice, His love, His arms, and His eternal plan are unfailing; we will never be alone.<br /><br />"The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?" Psalm 27:1Raichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09478603548388252186noreply@blogger.com1