Lessons from Jehoshaphat

Today our office met for a time of listening to God and lifting up our praises and challenges. Pete led us to 2 Chronicles chapter 20. I don't know about you, but 2 Chronicles probably wouldn't be my first thought as a go-to passage, but in chapter 20 we find this amazing story of God's provision, faithfulness and the wonderful response of His people in the face of great difficulty.


Here's the "Sarah Version" summary of the story:
Jehoshaphat was the king of Judah, and he heard that a huge army of enemy nations was advancing toward his own people. He decided to go before the Lord, and in front of all the peoples, led in this amazing prayer honoring God and asking for his judgment and power to be shown to the enemy. One of the men among the group proclaimed a message from God, that the Lord was going to fight on their behalf. The people worshiped the Lord then and there, and prepared to meet the coming army. As they set out the next day, Jehoshaphat realized that the power was not in their weapons or physical strength, but in God's might, and they sent a group ahead to sing praises to God. The Lord did indeed fight the battle on their behalf, and the warring nations fought amongst themselves, wiping each other out. When Jehoshaphat and his army arrived, the whole enemy army was already dead. They got together again and praised the Lord for how He had delivered them. This was a witness to the nations around them of God's sovereignty and power.


I was really amazed reading and reflecting on this story. There are so many "mountains" in the path of our organization right now: the long process of remodeling the building, budget shortfalls, personal transitions and struggles in the lives of individual staff members, the need to recruit and train teams to go to the unreached areas, and many more. Yet, the battle is the Lord's. This doesn't mean we sit by and let Him do all the work. Jehoshaphat and his army still went out to meet the enemy to do battle. But instead we need have our focus in the right place. I love how they sent out the group to lead the way in singing and praising God. My focus is so often on how big the challenges are that I forget to give praise to the One who can move mountains.

Do you have a struggle in your life right now that threatens to overtake you? I encourage you to read 2 Chronicles for yourself and look to our powerful God to fight the battle for you.

Reaching Our Neighbors

Perhaps you have heard about the church in Florida that is going to hold a Qu'ran burning day on September 11th in remembrance of the terrorist attacks that occurred 9 years ago. I do not know the pastor personally and have not tried to discern all of the reasons behind this decision, but I just wanted to share a different response.

I am taking a class called Understanding Islam this semester. I am learning that one huge key word is "understand". This does not mean that I agree with the religion of Islam or what is in the Qu'ran but instead it means that I am not just making judgments, or condemning or responding in hate without taking the time to really seek to learn.

What does Christ command us? Colossians 4:5-6 (NIV) says, "Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone". I am learning in my class and have learned from other instances that the best way to share the love of Jesus with a Muslim is to build a relationship. How do we build relationships if we respond in hate toward them? I do not see that burning or destroying the holy book of another religion will help us to share the Gospel truth with people from that religion.

I have added a devotional given by my professor for additional consideration.

“But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.” 1 Peter 3:15

"After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb."

"Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity. Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person." Colossians 4:5-6

These are three passages of scripture that have guided me as I prepared this course. Of course, there are many more passages that I have grown to love as I relate to Muslims and eager to find a story from scripture that would point to God. I will share many of these passages over the course of this semester, and hopefully, there will be additional passages brought to light that will be good preparation for our encounters with Muslims.

One of my overarching beliefs is that we must be ready to engage all peoples in a world who have yet to come into a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. Many of these are, of course, Muslims. Muslims do believe in God (Muslims use the Arabic word Allah for God.)

The Apostle Peter tells us to always be prepared to give an answer to anyone who asks. To me, this means to slander another faith by not knowing what they believe serves only to discredit my own faith. That is one reason why this course is so significant. This course is preparing you to give an answer. But what exactly are their questions? I love what Peter was saying in 1 Peter 3:15.

First, what is it that Muslims actually believe? We must have a basic understanding of what Muslims believe so that we can be prepared to give witness to the hope that we have. Steven Covey, in his book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, provided some excellent principles for daily living.

One of those habits was the idea of listening FIRST before trying to be understood. He makes the point that we have to earn the right to be heard. I believe that is especially true for Muslims. We must listen (and learn) first to understand, before we are to do the explaining. Muslims have heard our doctrinal shouting and have seen us preaching at them with fists clinched. Their prejudices and stereotypes about what they think are true about Christians keeps them from hearing our message. In reality, they often cannot see our lives and hear our words up close in a relationship.

Maybe, just maybe, we need to learn what it is they believe so that we do not discredit our own living witness. I strongly believe that only in comparison can we really begin to sort out what it is WE really believe. It is in the contrasts that we establish our own doctrinal “ non-negotiables” (If one cannot explain their hope in Christ, then how can one expect to share something they don't own?). If we do not know what we believe about sin and what is distinctive about how to resolve sin, how can we differentiate our sin over what a Muslim believes? The answers we have to these kinds of questions are important: Is the Bible the only source of truth? What do I believe about prophets, angels? Judgment Day? They are significant to how we will explain these biblical concepts to Muslims.

Many students have come away from this course and have said, “ Only after taking this course have I come to better understand and explain what it is I truly believe.” If that becomes your testimony after taking this course, then as your professor, I have accomplished more than I had ever hoped.

Read the next passage, Colossians 4:5-6. Yes, Muslims are outsiders, but as Christians, we should want to bring them in as covenant insiders. As we learn about what Muslims believe about God, his word, and his character, we must learn to season our words so that the gospel message is tasty. Have you ever taken a bite of food that had been overly salted? Remember how utterly tasteless the food was in our mouths? In fact, the salt was so strong that you couldn’t even taste the actual food. Often Christians have the appetizing biblical food and have prepared the food to be enjoyed, but our testifying “salt” has kept outsiders from experiencing the life-giving food. We want just enough salt so that they will yearn for living water. One litmus test to measure if we are ready to share our faith with a Muslim is this: “Can I explain my faith and not be angry?”

Paul reminds us that we should learn how to respond to each person – individually. It would be impossible (and it’s not even biblical) to take a cookie-cutter gospel message, package it, and present it to each person in the same way. Sometimes, we throw our “gospel gift” at Muslims. God forbid that we would not take the time to understand the person – his beliefs, his worldview, his culture – and tailor a message just for him. Did not Jesus craft a message that was tailored for a particular person? The word given to the Samaritan woman was uniquely for her. The challenge to Nicodemus was for him (John 3). Did not the Lord do that with you? Did we all come by the same person with the same testimony in the same place and time? No way! Jesus knows each individual and knows how to explain who he is and for what purpose he came. Our job is to “show up” and be ready. In the same way, Muslims need a message that they can hear, understand, and respond to. Just because we offer a Bible verse does not necessarily mean they “ received” the intended message. So often, well-minded Christians have tried to explain God using prepared messages, plans, programs, and strategies, thinking that the message has been encoded and received, when in reality, the “ words” had no contextual meaning. Remember, Muslims already have theological words like sin, heaven, grace, in their vocabulary. It is our job to practice, trains and equip ourselves to explain the wonderful Gospel message and bring a new definition to their vocabulary words. Our words must have meaning for Muslims for our testimony to have meaning for them.

Why do we do all this? Because Rev. 7:9 tells us a day will come when there will be Muslims – from every tribe, nation and people at the throne room. Yes, there will be Muslims worshiping the Lord at the throne. Does that amaze you that God loves Muslims? I challenge you to lay aside everything you ever thought you knew about Muslims and begin to encounter the world of Islam to learn about these awesome and wonderful people. Throughout this semester, you will discover how to do this, and ultimately, how God is going to use you in that plan – I can’t wait to see how he prepares to use us all.

Revelation 7:9

A Tribute

My grandma went home to be with Jesus last week. I'm still trying to wrap my mind around the fact that there won't be any more letters from her waiting on my bed when I get home from work. She won't be there at holidays or all of the other important events in her grandchildren's lives that she loved to attend. She won't be there to stand on the bride's side at my wedding. I used to look forward to the day when we might be able to take a four-generation picture with my grandma, my mom, me and my little one, and that is not a possibility anymore.

I know as the days and months and years go by there will be lots of things I will miss. But there will be so many more things that I will remember and praise God for because of the legacy that my grandma left for me.

As many people heard at my grandma's funeral, it was very fitting that she died on what would have been her 56th anniversary. Through the years that my grandpa suffered with Alzheimer's disease, my grandma lived out her wedding vows of "For better or for worse... in sickness and in health". Her dedicated love for my grandpa, her patience, her honesty when things were tough, all of these have served as beautiful examples to me and the rest of my family.

My grandma also invested so much in her grandchildren. Every Christmas program, sporting event or ceremony that went on, she did her very best to be there. She was always eager to hear what we were doing and how things were going, and she truly cared about what we had to say. I so loved getting letters from my grandma through college and as I moved to Texas. Some of my friends who opened empty mailboxes told me how cool it was that I had a grandma who wrote to me regularly. She loved to play games with us at Thanksgiving and when we spent the night, and we laughed a lot together over Pit, Spoons, or Dutch Blitz.

I believe what Paul says in 2 Corinthians that to be absent from the body is to be present with Lord if we are believers. My grandma is at the feet of the Lord, giving him glory and praise. I don't know exactly how heaven will work, but I think that we will get to see our loved ones again, and so I wait with eager anticipation for the day when I can see both my grandparents again. But, for now, I want to continue to live out the things that my grandma taught me, and in doing so, continue on the legacy that she left.

Lorraine Anderson 1934-2010

My grandma's obituary that appeared in the Norfolk Daily News on August 19th.

Services for Lorraine Anderson, 76, of Madison will be 10:30 a.m. Saturday at Calvary Community Church with the Rev. Roy Scorup officiating. Burial will be in Fairview Cemetery. Visitation will be 5-8 p.m. at Resseguie Funeral Home. She died at home Tuesday, August 17th, 2010.

Lorraine, the daughter of Adolph and Millie (Konicek) Severa, was born and raised on the family farm southeast of Madison in Stanton County. She graduated from Madison High School in 1952 and from Norfolk Junior College two years later.

She taught in several rural schools, including seven years at District 96 south of Meadow Grove, before teaching second grade at Newman Grove Public School for 23 years. While she was teaching, Lorraine earned her bachelor's degree in elementary education from Wayne State College in 1971. She retired in 1998.
On August 17, 1954, Lorraine married Donald A. Anderson at Trinity United Methodist Church in Madison. They were married for 55 years prior to Donald's death.

Lorraine enjoyed teaching, walking, flowers and especially spending time with her family. She loved entertaining and doing projects with her grandchildren. Lorraine took particular delight in attending her grandchildren's activities. She wrote a special book of memories to each of her children and grandchildren.
In September of 1970, Lorraine trusted Christ as her personal Savior, and she was an active member of Calvary Community Church.

Lorraine is survived by her children and their spouses, Brian and Yvonne Anderson of rural Hoskins, Arden and Karen Anderson of rural Chappell and Chris and Mark Hilkemann of rural Pierce; 15 grandchildren, Sarah Hilkemann, Lars Anderson, Beth Hilkemann, Sven Anderson, Ilene Anderson, Josh Hilkemann, Amelia Anderson, Nels Anderson, Emily Hilkemann, Miles Anderson, Hannah Anderson, Leah Anderson, Matthew Hilkemann, Anthony Anderson, and Regina Anderson; one sister, Adelyn Shultz of Madison; one brother, Adolph "Duffy" Severa and his wife Shirley of Fremont; one sister-in-law Carol Severa of Norfolk; and one brother-in-law, Alvin Sayers of Clarkson.

She was proceded in death by her parents; husband; infant brother, Joseph Severa; one sister, Mary Lou Sayers; and a brother-in-law, Otto Shultz.

My Story in God's Story

Hebrews 12:2-3 (NIV) Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

I used to love to write when I was a kid. I would sit and pour out a tale, mostly having to do with pioneers or modern-day elementary age girls (since that’s how old I was). I once even got one of my friends to do illustrations for a short story. I loved seeing the characters come to life, the story take shape and the conflict resolved in the end.

I guess that’s why I love the concept of God as the author of my life and faith story. It’s more than just that God has a plan for my life, because while plans are good it doesn’t sound as exciting as a story. Stories have highs and lows, adventures and times of rest and peacefulness and amazing characters. God has written a wonderful story for each of us according to His purposes for our lives.

But sometimes, like when I was a kid, I like to hold the pen for writing my own story. I look at the plot and think, “God, this really isn’t a good idea. I think I’ll take over the writing of this next chapter”. That’s not what God wants of me, though. He wants me to trust Him with the pen for my tale. That requires surrender on my part, knowing that the story He has for me is the very best story, one that honors and glorifies Him. He sees the very last chapter, while I only see what’s right in front of me. Maybe my story doesn’t include the epic adventures I might want it to right now, but each page holds a new truth I can learn about my Heavenly Father, and a new character that I need to get to know and love as the Father loves them. I am excited for what is ahead and thankful for what is behind.

Really and truly, the story isn’t about me anyway. It’s about God’s ultimate story for the whole world- people from every tribe, people group and language honoring and glorifying Him. It’s a redemption story and each of our stories get to be a page or chapter in the big volume of God’s work in the world. Now, that is exciting!

Hebrews 12:1-3 (The Message)
Do you see what this means- all those pioneers who blazed the way; all those veterans cheering us on? It means we’d better get on with it. Strip down, start running- and never quit! No extra spiritual fat, no parasitic sins. Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed- that exhilarating finish in and with God- he could put up with anything along the way: Cross, shame, whatever. And now he’s there, in the place of honor, right alongside God. When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility he plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your souls!

On Mission with God

Over summer vacation I've been trying to take a break from a lot of non-fiction reading, particularly dealing with missions. It was all I read about last semester and I think I got a bit worn out on the topic.

Recently though I've been trying to remember my heart for missions and why I am really in Texas. Sometimes I can get bogged down with the daily details and frustrations and forget the ultimate purpose for the work I'm doing- seeing people groups transformed by the Gospel. I went back to my Perspectives book from the class I took at my church this spring and found an article that I particularly loved. It's called "On Mission with God" by Henry Blackaby and Avery Willis. I love their introductory paragraph:

"God is on mission. He has been on mission throughout history to accomplish His purpose throughout the earth. Each time we see God in the Bible, He is acting in accordance with His purpose: to reveal Himself in order that His name would be glorified, that His Kingdom would be established and that some from every people would be reconciled to Himself." (p. 74 in Perspectives)

I love that God has had the same purpose throughout history- to bring the peoples to a knowledge and love of Him. I get to be a part of His purpose and that is exciting!

Desert Song

I've been listening to and pondering this song lately. It's called "Desert Song" by the group Hillsong. Here are the words.

Verse 1:
This is my prayer in the desert
And all that's within me feels dry
This is my prayer in the hunger in me
My God is a God who provides


Verse 2:
And this is my prayer in the fire
In weakness or trial or pain
There is a faith proved
Of more worth than gold
So refine me Lord through the flames


Chorus:
And I will bring praise
I will bring praise
No weapon forged against me shall remain

I will rejoice
I will declare
God is my victory and He is here


Verse 3:
And this is my prayer in the battle
And triumph is still on it's way
I am a conqueror and co-heir with Christ
So firm on His promise I'll stand


Bridge:
All of my life
In every season
You are still God
I have a reason to sing
I have a reason to worship


Verse 4:
This is my prayer in the harvest
When favor and providence flow
I know I'm filled to be emptied again
The seed I've received I will sow

Whether we're in a season of great hope or great need we are still to worship God and come to Him. I was thinking about the Israelites and how they came through the desert before they got to the land of promise and how they experienced many different trials but also God's faithfulness and goodness each step of the way. Psalm 78:52 says, "But he brought his people out like a flock; he led them like sheep through the desert." God is faithful each season of our lives and I am thankful for the promises that He gives us.

"The world is too dangerous to live in- not because of the people who do evil, but because of the people who sit and let it happen".
~ Albert Einstein

This quote is displayed in the lobby of the Dallas Holocaust Museum, and serves as the major theme of the exhibit there. The museum tells 3 stories of bystanders during the Holocaust of World War 2. I recently visited the museum with a friend while she was in Dallas, and I've been thinking a lot about the atrocities that went on during that time, and what injustice is happening in our world today. I wonder what lives could have been saved if more people would have stood up to Hitler, the soldiers and the evil that went on.

So I have been thinking a lot about today too. There is so much going on in the world, so much injustice, so much oppression. I am quite comfortable in the US and sometimes its easy to forget that someone else around the world is suffering. I have been thinking about who I need to stand up for on a personal level, but also on a church level and national level. There are so many that come to mind:
~ The 27.9% of the world who have no access to someone to tell them about Jesus Christ
~ Those who are in war-torn Sudan, Afghanistan, and Iraq who have been forced to leave their homes as refugees
~ The unborn who can't fight for themselves
~ Believers in China, Indonesia and other places who can't worship publicly because they will be imprisoned or killed for their faith
~ Children who are forced into trafficking and slavery

How do we separate the idea of just jumping on a cause for it's own sake, and when do we need to stand up as God's children to say "enough is enough"? People lobby for their causes all the time, and there are many passionate people.

I'm not quite sure yet what my cause is, what injustice I need to take a stand against. But I don't want to be like many of the bystanders during World War 2 who did nothing to save the Jews and others. Sometimes it just takes one person to follow Christ's leading, even if it means risking everything.

The Adventure

I have been a bit absent from the blogging world for a few weeks. First I was wrapping up a busy end of the semester, and then I was home in the lovely state of Nebraska for 2 1/2 weeks. There is nothing like going home. But, here I am, back in Texas and will try to get back into putting out some thoughts from time to time.


While I was home I heard a pretty great sermon in a series on characteristics of a servant leader. The pastor was highlighting a different characteristic each week, and the week I was there the focus was on the Adventurous servant leader. I'm not sure if I would have used "adventurous" to describe a servant leader before, but after hearing the sermon I got excited about the idea. Here are a few points from the sermon and my thoughts.


The first point of the sermon was that the adventurous servant leader has a cause and they are committed to that cause. Acts 20:24 says, "However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me- the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace". Paul's cause was the Kingdom of God and sharing the Good News. He was not only committed to this task but he took action and he inspired others along the way.


The life of the adventurous servant leader will involve risk and hardship. But that is where faith in God comes in. We do not walk blindly without a Guide. Corrie ten Boom described faith as the "Fantastic Adventure in Trusting Him".

I think walking by faith makes each day an adventure. Sure, not everything we do each day involves stepping outside of our comfort zone or taking huge risks. But for me, the adventure begins when I ask God to help me see the people around me with His eyes. I don't know when that means I will stop to talk to someone or just offer a helping hand, or when God might ask for another step of obedience. But I've said, "Yes, Lord" and I've taken off any strings or "Yes, buts..". I don't always feel very adventurous, actually most of the time I don't. But what better place to be, then to have to say, "Lord I'm trusting You in this because I'm in way over my head", and then watch how He provides the strength and resources you need. I hope that you will see what adventures God has for you in the small things every day as well as in the grand journeys He may take you on.

Wrapping Things Up

This week is bringing to a close my first year of graduate school and also the 15 week course of Perspectives that I took at my church. I have learned so much from all of these classes and hope that I can apply what I've learned as I continue to grow.

By the end of the semester, I wasn't as faithful in reading for Perspectives (or my classes) as I should have been. I was ready to be done. But I am so thankful I got the chance to take the class and learn from the different authors we read and speakers each week. Here are some key things I will take away from Perspectives:
1. God has a plan from beginning to end. The Bible isn't just a collection of a bunch of different stories but one big, amazing story of God's heart for the peoples of the world.
2. We can learn from the missionaries that have gone before us. Their stories can inspire us, show us what not to do and encourage us to keep going during times of trial.
3. We should focus on building bridges with those from other cultures rather than putting up walls. Instead of going in with an agenda we need to be sensitive to the Holy Spirit and raise up leaders from among the people group.

I'm sure there are more things that stood out to me during the 15 weeks, and I hope to sit down and process more of what I learned this summer.

I also had my last night of Missiology class and the semester is coming to a close. I'm ready for summer but it's been a great semester.