Spring Cleaning in October Unshakeable Faith

October 26, 2012 by Teri Lynne Underwood 3 Comments

I’ve been looking around my house lately and noticing some areas that are in desperate need of some spring cleaning. Of course, since it’s October spring cleaning is a bit far away.

Sometimes, though, I get a glimpse of my heart and notice there’s some cleaning needed there as well. I’m sharing today a lesson I learned about my heart while cleaning my bathroom. {It’s a good one!}

{Click here if you cannot see the video above.}

What about it? Do you have some moldy places in your heart?

How can you invite God to clean up the hidden places in your life?

I Am Adopted: Welcome at the Table

October 25, 2012 by Teri Lynne Underwood 2 Comments

I stood in a room filled to the brim with people. The beautiful kind of people. All of them in groups—some were laughing together, others huddled close for intimate conversation. I looked around at these women with their perfect hair and cute shoes and everything in me wanted to run. I didn’t belong there. I wasn’t pretty enough, talented enough, smart enough, good enough.

Tears welled up in my eyes and I turned to leave the room as my heart pounded and the voices in my head screamed, “You don’t belong.” With my head down, I moved toward the door when I felt a hand on my shoulder.

“Teri Lynne, where have you been? I’ve been waiting for you!”

As I turned around I saw the smiling face of someone way more important than me. She’s a “big blogger” … everyone knows her name. She wrapped her arms around me, ignoring the shock on my face and tears in my eyes, and said, “C’mon, there are some people here who need to know you.”

We sat at a table and she introduced me to some incredible women who are beautiful and talented and wise and hilarious and genuine. I knew I didn’t really deserve to sit at that table. But I was welcome there.

Maybe you can relate?

There’s this amazing story captured in 2 Samuel 9 … brings me to tears every time I read it. The story of David and Mephibosheth. Do you know it?

Mephibosheth was Jonathan’s son. Jonathan, you remember, was Saul’s son and David’s very best friend. Jonathan knew David was God’s choice for king of Israel and he asked only one thing from David—that David would treat his family with “faithful love” (from 1 Samuel 20:15 NLT).

Saul and Jonathan were killed in battle and David was crowned king of Israel. He remembered his promise to Jonathan. In 2 Samuel 9, we find this amazing story of David’s great kindness. He invites Mephibosheth to move into the palace and sit at the king’s table, right there with Absolam, Amnon, Solomon, and all of David’s sons.

David extended extravagant kindess to Mephibosheth—not because of anything Mephibosheth had done but simply because of his love for Jonathan. David offered Mephibosheth a place at the table, treated him as equal with his own sons.

This, y’all, this is what God has done for us! He has extended extravagant kindness … not for our sakes but simply out of His perfect love. We are welcomed at the King’s table and treated as equal with His own Son.

The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. Romans 8:16-17

You are welcome at the table … How will you live in that promise today?

Share with us how you have experienced being welcomed at the King’s table.

I Am Adopted: My Forever Family

October 23, 2012 by Patti Brown 2 Comments

Father of the fatherless and protector of widows

is God in his holy habitation.

God settles the solitary in a home;

Psalm 68:5-6a

Father to the Fatherless

More than ever before, in this society of broken marriages and single mothers, we are a nation of the fatherless.

In 2009 Unicef estimated that there are over two million orphans in the United States alone. Over two million orphans.

They are waiting. In foster homes, in orphanages. Waiting.

Waiting for fathers.

“A lot of times kids in adoptive situations know their mom, and have a connection, but sometimes dads are more elusive… God being a Father to the Fatherless means so much in filling the gaps of the father they never had. Being the strong rock in their life, the foundation to build on, and (a) male figure they can rely on as they seek relationship with Him.” – Brittany, adoptive mother

Yet even those with fathers physically present in their lives may have wounds. Our earthly fathers are sinners too.

As adopted children of God, we know that He is our perfect Father, with only our best interests at heart, disciplining us when needed, but ever forgiving, always loving.

God cares about family

Orphans have a need for forever families which was put there by God Himself. It’s a need that we all have. To belong and be loved; to be part of a family.

God knows that we don’t do well alone (Genesis 2:18, Ecclesiastes 4:9-10)

You and I, adopted into the family of God, have found our forever family. We are Jesus’ brothers and sisters (Matt 12:50). We are now in a household of faith (Galatians 6:10).

When we choose Christ, God sets us in a new family, of which He is the perfect head.

God sets the example for us

…just as the Good Shepherd longs to see the return of just one who is lost, He desires to see the solitary and lonely in their own “flock” with those who will love and care for them. – Christina, adoptee and adoptive mother

I have seen the passion of adoptive parents. The desire they have to bring the children they know God has prepared for them into their forever families becomes a mission.

That passion is but a small reflection of the passion the Lord has for orphans.

You shall not afflict any widow or orphan. Exodus 22:22

He executes justice for the orphan and the widow, and shows His love for the alien by giving him food and clothing. Deuteronomy 10:18

Learn to do good; seek justice, reprove the ruthless, Defend the orphan, plead for the widow. Isaiah 1:17

Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of the least of these, you did it unto Me. Matthew 25: 45

Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world. James 1:27

As people made in His image, we are to imitate our Heavenly Father. This passionate adoptive mom says it well:

“This passage doesn’t simply give an example of God’s “character” if you will, but it is God leading by example…doing first what He expects His people, His church to do. It gives us a concise “road-map” to follow as to how we are to care for widows and orphans. We are not to just sit in the pews and talk about caring for them. We have to go into the places where they are, which are Holy to God. We have to actively seek them out, just as He does. We have to meet them at the point of their need and lead them to God, who can meet each and every need they have. In doing so, they are part of a family of believers and are no longer alone.” – Christina, adoptee and adoptive mom

As adopted children of God, we are no longer fatherless! He is the head of our forever family of brothers and sisters in Christ. And like Him, we must go into the world, serving the hurt and lonely, bringing them into our earthly and heavenly families to share in our eternal inheritance in Christ.

They are waiting.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

How much does God care about each and every one of his children?
Watch this precious video of one family’s journey into each other’s arms.
Take special note of the expressions on Mikhail’s little face. And get your kleenex!
(shared with permission)

If you can’t see this email in your feed click here.
A happy footnote: Mikhail (now 8) and his parents are flying to Russia soon to pick up Lukas, Mikhail’s new forever brother!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What about you? What are your thoughts about being a member of a forever family in Christ and serving the orphans of the world? Share here.

photo credit

Spring Cleaning – Unshakeable Faith Lesson Six

October 22, 2012 by Kathy Howard 3 Comments

This post is the Devotional version of Lesson Six. You can also access the Quick Study (2 page version) of today’s lesson in a PDF. If you want to do the Full Study you can purchase the book on Amazon or CBD.

When my children misbehaved, they often avoided me to try to keep me from discovering they had disobeyed. There have been seasons when I avoided God for the same reason. I failed to spend time with Him because I didn’t want to “hear about” the attitude or behavior that displeased Him. The result was a lack of fellowship with God and no sense of His presence. Intimacy with God and rebellion can’t coexist.

Unshakeable Faith Trait Six: Pursues Holiness with Eyes Focused on the Father

Peter wrote clearly and passionately about a Christian’s need for holiness. He knew that holiness is necessary for intimacy with God. He heard this truth many times from Jesus Himself.

Read Matthew 5:8 from Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. What is a blessing given to the “pure in heart?”

From the very beginning of His ministry, Jesus taught the importance of a “clean” life, one free from corrupt desire and sin. Peter used the adjective “holy” to call believers to this kind of life.

Read 1 Peter 1:13-16. Peter’s call to holy living begins with a “therefore” in verse 13. Look back at 1 Peter 1:3-4. What is the wonderful truth that deserves our response of a holy life?

How does Peter describe a holy life in verses 13-14?

I don’t want to be far from God when tough times hit. I want to be close enough to God to feel His strong arms around me. What about you? If there is something in your life that’s gotten between you and your Savior, don’t wait another day without going to Him in repentance.

As we strive to live a holy life that is pleasing to God, our intimacy with Him will deepen. We will understand Him better and more fully sense His presence. We will continue to face trials as long as we live in this earthly body. But if we pursue holiness, we will not fall when adversity strikes. We will be unshakeable!

In what ways can a deeper experience with God and a more intimate understanding of Him bless our life and help us in times of trials?

A Mom’s Testimony to Life by the Spirit

October 19, 2012 by Kathy Howard Leave a Comment

This real-life story is an excerpt from “Unshakeable Faith: 8 Traits for Rock-Solid Living.” It demonstrates this week’s faith trait: Lives by the Power of the Indwelling Holy Spirit. You can purchase the book on Amazon or CBD.

How does a mom keep going when she knows she could lose her son any moment? Wende’s answer comes without hesitation. “I couldn’t have done this for five minutes without God.”

Ethan was diagnosed with an extremely rare condition when he was just ten years old. Arterio-venous Malformation (AVM), an abnormal formation of blood vessels in the brain, can cause seizures, hemorrhages, and strokes. Larger AVMs, like Ethan’s, results in progressive neurological deterioration. And a ruptured aneurysm is a daily possibility.

Wende smiles when she describes Ethan’s early childhood years. He was in the gifted program at school, could beat his dad at Chess, and loved to write and garden. Ethan was a beautiful and happy child with a contagious grin.

There was no hint of a problem until ten-year old Ethan’s hands started shaking. It took eight months and several doctors before they received the AVM diagnosis. Shortly after that Ethan suffered a stroke.

The stroke left Ethan with some physical challenges but it did not weaken his spirit or his faith in God. He never asked “Why me?” Instead Ethan firmly believed that God wanted to use his illness for a specific purpose.

Wende agrees completely. “I’ve seen God use Ethan to change people’s lives. They’ve caught his joy. He loved people just the way they are. The way he lived taught people not to get caught up in things that don’t really matter.”

But how did Ethan’s mom cope? Wende remembers a specific moment just days after the diagnosis. “I was washed by an overwhelming sense of God’s peace and I felt God whisper, ‘I’ve got this.’ And I believed Him.”

The Holy Spirit continued to pour peace into Wende’s life. “Those moments were a rest from all the things I had to deal with, so I could keep going.”

Wende experienced the Holy Spirit working in other ways as well. Joy when she was grieving. Strength when she felt weak. The constant awareness of God’s presence and love. And the physical support of God’s people.

After nine years of battling AVM, Ethan went home to heaven. Today, the day after Ethan’s memorial service – Wende is choosing to cling to the peace God continues to provide.

I Am Adopted: Chosen and Loved

October 18, 2012 by Caroline 5 Comments

Sometimes I need to read, read, and re-read Scripture to even begin to grasp its meaning.

Ephesians 1:3-6 fit in to that category.

It can be helpful to take verses packed with extraordinary impact line by line to see what truths they explain.

Chosen and Loved

Ephesians 1:3 – “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places…”

[amazon_link id=”1598562754″ target=”_blank” ]Matthew Henry’s Commentary[/amazon_link] says, “Spiritual blessings are the best blessings with which God blesses us.” This adoption blesses. He blesses us, and so we are to bless Him with praise, obedience, and love.

Ephesians 1:4 – “…even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love…”

God chose us before the foundation of world. Does that baffle anyone else’s mind? He chose us. Us. You. Me. Them. Not only did He choose – in love – but He chose us for the purpose of becoming holy before Him

I love how [amazon_link id=”1598562754″ target=”_blank” ]Matthew Henry’s Commentary[/amazon_link] explains this original choosing: “…not because he foresaw they would be holy, but because he determined to make them so. All who are chosen to happiness as the end are chosen to holiness as the means. Their sanctification, as well as their salvation, is the result of the counsels of divine love.”

Our adoption results from God, and happiness abounds from that holy adoption.

Ephesians 1:5 – “…he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will…”

We fulfill His purposes in part because we are His adopted. Since it is by God’s infallible will, this adoption is not at all a mistake. He chose us for a purpose.

Ephesians 1:6 – “…to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.”

We are adopted in grace. Undeserved, unmerited, amazing grace. I shake my head in awe as I ponder this love. We are chosen by grace, and so we praise.

Gifts of Adoption

A loving, responsible adoptive family offers a home, safety, provision, and love. What do we receive in our adoption from God?

Redemption through His blood (Ephesians 1:7)
Forgiveness of our trespasses (Ephesians 1:7)
Grace lavished upon us (Ephesians 1:7-8)
A plan set forth in Christ to unite all things to Him (Ephesians 1:9-10)

We are chosen, adopted. We are loved. And He offers us this life to praise Him for it and share that love with others.

What is your response from knowing you are specifically and purposefully chosen?

Adoption: It’s a joint effort

October 16, 2012 by Julie 5 Comments

The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry reports that approximately 120,000 children are adopted in the United States each year. To be adopted is to be accepted, claimed, and raised as a child of promise. Last week Lisa helped us understand the difference between a Roman slave child and a family child and how adoption points back to the Father. Millions of children around the globe long for a father to accept them, claim them, and raise them as a beloved son.

Sonship happens for all those “in Christ Jesus,” who become “sons of God, through faith” (Galatians 3:26). The action of all three members of the Trinity has the power to move us from the position of the father-less to that of a secure son. As all three take part as One adoptive parent in a joint effort, something new and wonderful is born.

The Father Initiates

Slave children and adopted children of Roman culture lived side by side for their childhood years, but when the time was right, the adopted child realized the benefits of his adoption. The timing was not random or haphazard, but carefully planned. In the same way, “when the fullness of time had come,” (Galatians 4:4a) the Father initiated our adoption. Like many parents save and sacrifice today in order to bring home a child from places like Ethiopia, China, and Guatemala, the Heavenly Father paid a high price for the redemption of His cherished ones who long to be accepted into His forever family.

The Son Provides

The Son acted in our adoption by becoming the payment for our transfer from slave child to adopted child. “God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons” (Galatians 4:5). Jesus did once and for all what we could never do on our own; He bought our permanent place in God’s family as sons of promise.

The Spirit Guarantees

The Father initiated our adoption, and the Son provided for it, but the Spirit was sent as our guarantee of a coming inheritance. “And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father’” (Galatians 4:6) At just the right time, all members of the Trinity acted in union to make us children of God. We’re so loved.

New Benefits with Adoption

With our adoption comes a new relationship, expressed when we cry out the familiar and intimate words of a child to their daddy: “Abba!” In today’s world, this change merits a new status update: “I’m a son now, not a slave!” (Galatians 4:7) If we become a son, then we become an heir through God (Galatians 4:7).

God the Father, Son, and Spirit act in a joint effort to make us their own, to give us a new relationship, to declare our new status, and to guarantee our new future. We leave scraps of bread to sit at a banquet table. We escape our dirty stone bed to nestle in the lap of our Abba. We erase the fear of tonight with the expectation of eternity. We “are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.”

In many countries, children “age out” of the foster care and adoption system at the age of 16 or 18. Time runs out to find a family. But there’s no aging out of God’s divine plan for adoption and no limit on His love for those who want to come home.

How old were you when God brought you into a new relationship with Him?

How does it make you feel to know the Father, Son, and Spirit made a joint effort to make you their own?

A Mighty Wind – Unshakeable Faith Five

October 15, 2012 by Kathy Howard 3 Comments

This post is the Devotional version of the study intro. You can also access the Quick Study (2 page version) of today’s lesson in a PDF. If you want to do the Full Study you can purchase the book on Amazon or CBD.

Like the wind, we can’t see the Holy Spirit, but we can feel His power and see the effects. If you are a Christian, the Holy Spirit dwells inside you. His powerful presence is a gift from the Father. The Spirit equips and enables us to live the life God has purposed for us. And that includes standing firm through the storms of life.

Unshakeable Faith Trait Five: Living by the Power of the Indwelling Holy Spirit

On the night Jesus was betrayed, Peter fell to temptation. He couldn’t stand firm in his own strength. He needed the power of the Holy Spirit that Jesus promised would come. Ten days after Jesus’ ascension the promise was fulfilled!

Read Acts 2:1-8. How is the Holy Spirit’s arrival described in verses 2-3? How did He demonstrate His power in the believers?

Read Acts 2:14, 36-41. What difference do you see in Peter compared to the night Jesus was arrested?

Before the Holy Spirit came, Peter was willing in spirit, but weak in his flesh. He deserted and denied Jesus. Fifty days later Peter stood in front of a crowd of thousands and boldly proclaimed Jesus. He called the people to repentance. The Holy Spirit had transformed Simon the fisherman into Peter the rock!

Weak Peter learned that the Spirit of Jesus within him was strong. And he did not fail to teach others what he had learned.

Read 2 Peter 1:3-4. According to verse 3, what has “His divine power” (the Holy Spirit) given us?

When God asks us to serve Him, the Holy Spirit equips us for the task. When God allows trials in our lives, the Spirit gives us the strength to endure. The Holy Spirit is God’s presence and power within us!

Peter recognized that God, through His Spirit, gives believers everything we need to live the life God wants us to live. Whatever our circumstances, physical weaknesses, limited material resources, or emotional needs, God will supply. The Holy Spirit even gives us everything we need to escape our selfish, evil desires and act like Jesus.

In what current life situations do you need a fresh encounter with the Spirit of God? It might be a trial, temptation, or a call to an overwhelming task.

Stay Alert! – Unshakeable Faith Week 4

October 12, 2012 by Lisa Burgess 18 Comments

What are your valuables? How do you protect them?

How do you protect your most precious treasure—your relationship with God—against temptations to destroy it?

Jesus told Peter to “Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Mark 14:38).

In what practical ways can we do that?

[Click here if you can’t see the video above]

What is one of your weak spots? How do you guard against it? Please share.

Adoption: It’s about the Father

October 11, 2012 by Lisa Burgess 8 Comments

For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!”
Romans 8:14-15

If you’re a believer in Jesus as your Lord, you know it includes adoption by God, His Father. But how comfortable are you with that bond? Is your relationship with Him the central relationship in your life?

Does knowing you’re His daughter bring you the joy and security you’d hoped for?

Roman Adoption vs. Slavery

At the time of the apostle Paul’s writings, in the Roman world as now, a child from one family could legally be transferred to another family through adoption. He became an equal heir with any children by birth. He was often as equally loved as any natural-born child and treated no less inferior, according to Biblical scholar F. F. Bruce.

But what about a slave child brought into a family? Both the slave child and the family child were to do what they were told, go where they were sent, eat what was put before them. Neither had authority or control to make high-level decisions or to live on their own.

But there the similarities ended.

One lived in fear. The other did not.
One could make no plans. The other had choices.
One was property. The other was free.

The Father Difference

Were the children inherently different themselves? No. The difference was the adult in charge.

As Christians, we have all the privileges of the adopted child—the free child—not because we’re smarter or holier or more worthy, but because of the One who rescued us—the Father.

Led by the Spirit of God, as children of God (Romans 8:14), we no longer have a spirit of slavery to push us down in fear.

Still Afraid?

But I’ll admit I still live with fears. What if my husband loses his job or my daughter can’t have children or I end up with Alzheimer’s?

Do these worries mean I’m not a child of God?
No.

But it might mean I’m not putting total confidence in my adoptive Father and His promises. Not for a perfect life now—that’s never the promise—but to be held by a perfect Father through the imperfections here. Even though I’ve been given a full measure of the Spirit of adoption, I’m still in the process of fully accepting it.

Cry Abba, Father

In Romans 8:15, Paul uses both the Aramaic word for father, Abba, and the Greek word, Pater. Jesus used the same words in His passionate prayer to God in Gethsemane (Mark 14:36) when He called out “Abba, Father!”

But slaves weren’t allowed to use the more deeply affectionate terms Abba or Imma (mother) when speaking with their masters. Those were only meant for children.

Children like us—kids intentionally chosen and extravagantly loved into a family.

His Spirit breathes into our spirit, confirming our true identity as His children. He leads us away from the slavery of fears into a life of freedom. We can now not only say, but cry out, “Father,my Abba!”

What a beautiful birthright to inherit.

The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ….
Romans 8:16-17

What, if any, insecurities do you still carry around needlessly, despite being a child of God?