Giving Up Control

I am always wary the first time I take a ride in anyone else's car. When I drive, I am in control and know exactly what to expect; when someone else drives, there's no telling what will happen. It takes a great deal of faith to trust that this person, who at any moment might speed around sharp corners at 70 MPH and ignore the "NO TURN ON RED" signs, will get us safely to our destination.

Driving can be stressful, however; though I enjoy the independence of being able to drive wherever I want, I often prefer to be the passenger... if I trust the driver.

Assuming I don't have to worry about the driver slamming on the breaks at the last minute and getting hopelessly lost, being a passenger is a relaxing way to travel. Because my attention isn't focused on controlling the vehicle, I am free to unwind, take in the scenery, take a nap, or just have some quiet time to think. Even when the situation is stressful--I have to rush to the hospital or I'm headed to school for a scary exam--there's a measure of comfort in knowing that someone else is making my struggle easier by taking away the pressure of driving.

In the same way, I like to have control over my own life. I feel much more comfortable when I'm making my own plans and plotting out my own future. The only trouble is that I've reached a point in my life where I'm driving through a thick fog on unfamiliar roads. The pedals aren't responding the way they used to, and the instruments on my dashboard don't make sense to me anymore. I no longer trust myself to drive.

Some time ago in church I received a printed prayer that has ended up being incredibly valuable in this challenging time. I do not know the author of the prayer, but its message is one that has truly resonated with me. After several months of praying this prayer on a regular basis, it continues to refresh me, and I continue to find new meaning in it. Allow me to share this prayer with you:

Abba, I surrender my will and my life to you today,
without reservation and with humble confidence,
for you are my loving Father.

Set me free from self-consciousness,
from anxiety about tomorrow,
and from the tyranny of the approval and disapproval of others,
that I may find joy and delight simply and solely in pleasing you.

May my inner freedom be a compelling sign of your presence,
your peace, your power, and your love.

Let your plan for my life gracefully unfold one day at a time.

I love you with all my heart, and I place all my confidence in you, for you are my Abba. Jesus, I trust you.

The Fall to Grace

I have an entertaining and silly book in my bathroom entitled These Aren't My Pants. In this book are a few hundred true stories about dumb criminals who get caught in the act because of something stupid they say or do (besides committing a crime in the first place). The title of the book, for those whose curiosity is just itching, comes from the common response dumb criminals make when an officer pats them down, finds illegal substances or a weapon, and asks why the items were found in their pants.

What in the world could this secular book have to do with the God and the title of this entry: The Fall to Grace? Well, let me share with you the story I read last night by the same title:

Sgt. Johnny Cooley was running radar on the interstate outside Birmingham, Alabama, one night when he witnessed a bona fide traffic miracle.

The street was slick from a rain that had just ended, and the pace of the traffic was again picking up. an eighteen-wheeler came barreling around a curve, when a car suddenly switched lanes directly into the truck's path. The truck driver hit the brakes and began to hydroplane across the lanes, out of control. The cab of the truck hit the railing at full speed and the trailer followed, disappearing over the edge of an overpass.

Cooley knew there was a basketball court below, and chances were real good that a pickup game was in progress. Cooley quickly radioed in for paramedics and backup. When he got to the twisted, crushed semi, his worst fears surfaced, although it appeared that the basketball players had escaped: they were all busy looting the trailer of its beer and wine haul. When they saw Cooley, they made a fast break toward the shadows.

Sergeant Cooley sighed as he stepped out of his cruiser for the worst part of his job--visually confirming the traffic fatality. He stepped up on what was left of the cab's running board and peered into a small opening that used to be the driver's side window. He gritted his teeth and swallowed hard. But when he looked in, he couldn't believe his eyes. There was a woman lying comfortably stretched out on the seat, reading a book.

"Ma'am? Are you okay?"

The woman calmly closed her book and smiled, "Oh, I'm fine, thank you."

Cooley could not believe that she had survived the crash, much less the sixty-five-foot drop.

"Were you driving the rig, ma'am?"

She smiled again, "Yes, sir, but I had some help."

"Help? You mean another driver? Where is he? The paramedics are here."

"My copilot's right here," she said, holding up the Bible she had been reading. "God."

Granted, the only dummies in this story were the free-loading basketballers, but it's a story that just had to be told.

Quite an unbelievable story, if you don't believe in the miracles God still performs today. :-)

Mourning Into Dancing

Mourning Into Dancing

More art by Stacy Lee and a lesson of how God will lift you up when you are down if you have faith in him. I especially like the last few sentences in the last paragraph: "God won't bless us with our calling or next stage in life until we are ready for it. We'll stay in the valley as long as it takes to build up the necessary faith. But once we are ready, God will swiftly bring us out of the dark as He speaks light over our lives. Glory be to God!"

God's Way of Shuting a Door

Stacy Lee's beautiful artwork combined with an excellent lesson of how to deal with rejection.

God's Way of Shutting a Door

Be Spiritually Greedy

What is your American dream today? Is it to work hard during the week so you can party harder over the weekend? Is it to work your way up the ladder enough to get a high-paying executive job so you can order underlings around? Or is it simply to accumulate enough wealth so that you're comfortable and don't have to worry about living from paycheck to paycheck?



All of these could be considered forms of greed. Our society today, though it doesn't put an emphasis on greed per se, definitely puts an emphasis on ambition. While that in itself is not a sin, it can easily become greed if used inappropriately. A powerful example of this is found in the book of Numbers chapter 16, after the Israelites had escaped Egypt and were on their way to Canaan, wandering in the desert as punishment for their idolatry. A man named Korah, who had gained influence over important people in the Israelite community, was ambitious enough to try and take Moses' brother Aaron's place as high priest of the people. The whole story can be found here. God knew Korah's heart was filled with greed disguised as ambition, and He quickly punished Korah and his followers for their sin. He opened up the earth and swallowed Korah, his men, their households, and all their possessions, and fire consumed the men who were making an offering out of greed on Korah's behalf (Numbers 16:31-35).



Greed cost Korah and his followers their lives. For Israel's King Rehoboam in the book of 2 Chronicles chapter 10, his greed left the kingdom of Israel divided and broken. The Israelites had requested that the new king lighten their harsh labor and heavy yoke that his father, King Solomon, had placed on them. But instead of listening to them and the elders who had served Solomon, he elected to take the advice of his peers and seek greater control over the Israelites. He told them that he would lay an even heavier hand on them. The Israelites rebelled and killed Adoniram, the man who was in charge of forced labor, and King Rehoboam had to flee. Fortunately, once the prophet Shemaiah came to Rehoboam with God's message that he would allow Rohoboam to be conquered, the king and his followers humbled themselves before God, and God gave them deliverance.

These two Old Testament stories are there to teach us the dangers of earthly greed. But I think a true Christian should be extremely greedy. A good kind of greed, if you will. A spiritual greed. Jesus told us of this type of greed in the Gospel according to Matthew when he said, "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven...For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Matthew 6:19-21) If we choose to be greedy about where we spend eternity, we can overcome the need for temporary, earthly treasures. If we choose to obey God, we are storing up our own treasures in heaven! He will give us a mansion in heaven if we follow His Word! Sounds like a pretty good deal to me. I hope you can join me in making your desire to be rich in heaven far greater than your earthly desires. Praise be to God for his wonderful promises!

the artist's eye: A Father's Promise: The Purpose is Greater than the Pain

Check out Stacy Lee's beautiful Spirit-inspired artwork on her blog site. It's always combined with a passage of God's promises and truth.


the artist's eye: A Father's Promise: The Purpose is Greater than the Pain

In the Beginning...

Blessings, and welcome to this new blog for God, "Light of the World." I'd like to begin with an explanation of why I decided to write this blog. I have been attending Bible Study Fellowship (BSF) for the past 2 years, which is a very structured Bible study that gives its members homework assignments, keeping you reading from God's Word 6 days out of the week. Each weekly meeting consists of everyone gathering for introductory hymn singing, followed by breaking into small groups and discussing the lesson we worked on during the week for 50 minutes, then gathering back together for a 45-minute lecture on that same lesson. While that initially didn't sound very exciting to me, it served the purpose of exactly what I wanted to do, which was to get myself reading the Bible every day and consequently grow closer to God.

This year, we have been studying the life of Moses, starting from the beginning of the book of Exodus, and now we're closing in on the end of Deuteronomy. During this time, I have learned quite a bit about my faith. Most of the time when I've been to church and Bible studies in the past, the focus has been on the writings of the New Testament, and rightly so, considering the life, death, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ is the backbone of the Christian faith. But there's also a big reason there's that big Old Testament in that big Bible, and that is to give us an outline of God's ultimate plan. Through the study of God's original laws given to Moses and the journey His chosen nation of Israel took to Canaan, it has been incredibly eye-opening to see how God's master plan never faltered, and everything led to Jesus' death on the cross, his resurrection, and the salvation of his beloved people of Earth.

The purpose of this blog, first and foremost, is to share God's revelations he has given to me and others with anyone who is willing to take the time to read this blog. It is my hope that I can bring you hope, encouragement, and truth. The truth I am talking about is based on the belief that God's Word is written by men, but divinely inspired, and 100% absolute truth. There will be no watered-down, politically correct versions of Christianity here that have become prevalent in today's society, because God does not think the same as people, and unlike the hearts of people, His heart is unchanging throughout the ages. This truth can seem harsh at times, but if we are obedient to it, God promises us his blessings. "All these blessings will come upon you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God." - Deuteronomy 28:2

Though the content of this blog will always be based on God's Biblical truth and confined to those boundaries, the format will be very loose. One post may be somewhat long-winded, like this introduction; the next post may be just a sentence or two, or maybe just one verse, without any commentary, for you to absorb. I also intend to have other people who feel inspired by the Holy Spirit have the ability to post. I want this to be a place where Christians can shine their light and have it pierce through the darkness of today's world.

I hope this is truly a place where you can be fed spiritually with the wonderful and perfect truth of God's word and take what you have read and be like the seed that fell in good soil (Matthew 13:1-23). Blessings to you in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit!

"Behold, I am coming soon! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy in this book." - Revelation 22:7