Category Archives: Thoughts From Scripture

The Back Burner

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One of the few articles I’ve had published is the following. It appeared in Frontline magazine’s July-August 2005 issue. It’s been on my heart again because I think it is something that mothers wrestle with a lot. I wrote to Frontline asking permission to reprint the article here, which they granted.

The Back Burner

Every mother, particularly one who has very small children, can get discouraged sometimes. Even though a woman has looked forward to being a mother all her life and delights in her child, there are those days when she feels she is accomplishing nothing beyond wiping noses and changing diapers, when she feels her mind is turning to mush after reading Dr. Seuss and Curious George all day, when she longs to do something “important.” Certain intellectual and creative pursuits have to be put on the back burner because there are only so many hours in the day. Even some ministry opportunities have to wait until the children are a bit older. It is easy to lament what we can’t do.

Of course, young mothers are not the only ones who have to put things on the back burner. Newlyweds, new teachers, young singles getting started in a career, middle-aged children taking care of an elderly parent, and any number of other life situations will cause us to have to focus on the business at hand and delay other pursuits. But motherhood is the area through which the Lord taught me about the back burner.

Some 15-20 years ago I read something in a secular women’s magazine that greatly encouraged me and has stayed with me ever since. Unfortunately, I can’t remember even what magazine it was, much less what author. The writer was talking those things that have to be put on the back burner. But, she wrote, what is usually on the back burner when we are cooking? Isn’t it something that has to simmer awhile, that is all the richer in flavor for the time it spent there on the back burner? The meat gets tender, the flavors blend, the smell wafts though the house, and we can hardly wait until dinnertime.

Oh, dear mother….what you are doing is vitally important. Your little one may not remember the specific things you did together or all your loving care in their early childhood, but those loving ministrations laid the foundation for your future relationship. The time you spend together reading, playing, rocking, feeding, nurturing a new little life that God has given to you to care for is precious.

As the children get older, their need of your care is still vital, though it is different from when they were small. Instead of feeling isolated at home, you may feel you are nearly living out of your car with all the places you have to take your children to. We have to keep a balance between giving them opportunities and spreading everyone too thin, but some of those times in the car can be precious as well. One of my sons does not open up to me if I sit across the table from him and ask him how things are going in his life, but a casual conversation or observation made while we are out and about can give me glimpses into his heart. Sometimes children feel a little freer to open up while we’re driving.

Someone once said, “With children, the days are long, but the years are short.” That is all too true. You have heard it before, but they do grow up so fast. You always have a ministry with them and an influence on them, but your main years of training them are when they are little. Redeem the time and enjoy it to the hilt.

Don’t worry about those things on the back burner. Give them a stir every now and then. Perhaps you can skim over the newspaper headlines or watch some of the evening news with your husband, or spend 15 minutes or so a day reading a good book to stimulate your mind. Buy a craft kit, take a class, jot down story ideas, or somehow “stir the pot” of whatever your areas of interest are. Take advantage of opportunities to get together with other ladies for fellowship. Explore what ministry opportunities you can within the constraints of your situation, but remember that ministry doesn’t only take place within the four walls of the church: getting to know your neighbor, inviting another mother from the baseball league to church, baby-sitting for another mother for a doctor’s appointment, giving a tract to the repairman are all outlets through which the Lord can use you as well as being an example to your children.

Then, as you stir those things on the back burner from time to time, perhaps you can take a small taste to test the readiness of it. After all, if you start to write the next great novel, and find the timing still isn’t right, you can let it simmer a little longer.

Don’t get discouraged if other women seem to have all their burners going at once, accomplishing things right and left. I used to lament that I couldn’t do as much as some other ladies til I finally had to come to grips with the fact that God made us with different capacities, abilities, and personalities.

Ultimately we have to entrust those back burner issues to our loving Lord and ask His guidance as to when and how to proceed with them. There may be some things He wants us to relinquish completely, and here our back burner analogy breaks down: there are some things He never intended for us to pursue, and we have to set aside what was a personal desire that was not His will. We have to remind ourselves that, no matter how strong and even good a desire was, if it is not God’s will, it would not have been good for us and may actually have been harmful and taken away from what He did have for us to do. On the other hand, we can’t let the back burner become a place of excuses and due to laziness or fear place things there that the Lord does want us to pursue now. How can we know the difference? By walking with him day by day, seeking His guidance, asking Him to open doors He wants open and close doors He wants closed. When it is His timing to finally serve one of those “back burner” dishes, it will indeed be “just right.”

Plan to read the Bible more this year?

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Many people begin with new year with a goal to read the Bible through, or at least to read it more. And that is a worthy goal. There are many good reasons to read the Bible.

I’d like to suggest, though, that if you don’t have some kind of plan of action, this goal, like many others, will likely fizzle out and you’ll get discouraged: likely either making the time will fall to the wayside, or you’ll hit or miss in favorite passages and not venture out into others.

So I would like to suggest that you make some kind of plan. Let me say up front, though, that not every day will go according to plan, and that’s ok. Don’t let it discourage you that you can’t do the exact same thing every day, when someone is sick, when on vacation, when something unexpected comes up. On “those days” just do what you can and then get back into routine as soon as you are able.

That’s one reason I like the Daily Light devotional book. I like to use it to begin my devotions and get my mind in gear, but there are some days that that may be all I can do, and on those days I know I’ve had a good “bite” into God’s Word — kind of like those days that you don’t have time for a proper breakfast but you grab a multi-grain nutrition bar rather than a donut.

I’ll confess that on Sundays I only read Daily Light (and sometimes other devotional books I am going through). Our routine is different on Sunday and everyone is home, making it a little harder to find a quiet time to concentrate, plus we’re at church 3+ hours with Sunday School and the morning and evening services. I look at it like going to Grandma’s house for a big Sunday dinner rather than eating at home: I am going to church for the “family meal” my pastor and teachers have prepared that day.

There are a number of plans online for reading the Bible through. One here is based, I believe, on the One Year Bible plan. BibleGateway.com has a few different ones: a comprehensive one for reading the Bible through in a year, a 121-day biographical one covering some of the major people in the Bible, a 61-day survey schedule, and a 61-day chronological reading plan.

There is a plan developed by Robert Murray McCheyne (or M’cheyne) here that will take you though the Old Testament once and the New Testament and Psalm twice in a year’s time.

Susan at By Grace posted links to some other Bible reading plans that I’m going to “borrow” and share with you here. One she saw at Mountain Musings is here with five different plans for many different versions (even foreign language ones). Another one has you reading from different parts of the Bible (Epistles, Law, History, Psalms, Poetry, Prophecy, Gospels) each day. Susan also shared a link to a free online version of Alexander Scourby’s audio reading of the KJV for those who learn better by listening than by reading (or who sometimes like to listen while reading).

There is a list of thirteen other Bible reading plans here.

Surely with all of those plans there is one to strike everyone’s fancy. 🙂

I’ve mentioned many times that I love reading the Bible through, and when I first started a plan kept me at it and on track. Over the past several years I have continued to read the Bible through, but not in a year. I usually read a couple of chapters a day, but in some of the narrative passages or some of the shorter epistles I’ll read more at a time. There are some places in the Bible that, if I try reading more, I am not comprehending it, and that’s the goal — understanding and meditating on what you read, not just getting through a list. Plus I want to be free to study out something that strikes me in my reading or look up cross references, etc., without feeling like I don’t have time to because I need to keep with the plan.

Sometimes I take a break in my regular reading to do a particular study or to go through a Christian book, like Changed Into His Image.

A few other posts I have written on this topic are Devotional tips, Having devotions when you’re not feeling very devoted, God’s Word, When there is no hunger for God’s Word, and What do you say about this book? One of my passions is getting people into the Word of God for themselves. It’s such a treasure.

In closing, here are some quotes from other well-known voices of the past about reading the Word of God:

“Above all theologies, and creeds, and catechisms, and books, and hymns, must the Word be meditated on, that we may grow in the knowledge of all its parts and in assimilation to its models. Our souls must be steeped in it; not in certain favorite parts of it, but the whole. We must know it, not from the report of others but from our own experience and vision,…Another cannot breathe the air for us, nor eat for us, nor drink for us.”
–Horatius Bonar from They Walked With God

“It will greatly help you to understand scripture if you note – not only what is spoken and written, but of whom and to whom, with what words, at what time, where, to what intent, with what circumstances, considering what goes before and what follows. “
–Miles Coverdale

“Some people like to read so many [Bible] chapters every day. I would not dissuade them from the practice, but I would rather lay my soul asoak in half a dozen verses all day than rinse my hand in several chapters. Oh, to be bathed in a text of Scripture, and to let it be sucked up in your very soul, till it saturates your heart! “
–Charles Haddon Spurgeon

“The Word of God well understood and religiously obeyed is the shortest route to spiritual perfection. And we must not select a few favorite passages to the exclusion of others. Nothing less than a whole Bible can make a whole Christian.” –AW. Tozer

“When you are reading a book in a dark room, and come to a difficult part, you take it to a window to get more light. So take your Bibles to Christ.” –Robert Murray M’Cheyne

“If there is anything in my thoughts or style to commend, the credit is due to my parents for instilling in me an early love of the Scriptures. If we abide by the principles taught in the Bible, our country will go on prospering and to prosper; but if we and our posterity neglect its instructions and authority, no man can tell how sudden a catastrophe may overwhelm us and bury all our glory in profound obscurity.” — Daniel Webster

Book Review: Never Say Can’t

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Some years ago I read a book called Never Say Can’t about a missionary who didn’t feel he had much natural ability but who determined that he would do whatever God called him to do and not make excuses, trusting God for the ability. In fact, he and his wife made a little ceremony of burying the word “can’t.” I couldn’t remember their names or the author’s, but I remembered that incident.

I was excited to find a used book by the same title and ordered it — but it’s not the same book. 🙂 It was an enjoyable read, though.

never-say-cant_.jpgThis Never Say Can’t by Jerry Ballard was about a missionary with the same motto, Thomas Willey, who ministered in Panama and Cuba. Rather than recapping the whole story, I want to just touch on a few things that stood out to me.

He had had to quit school,early to help take care of his family. Later when he felt called to preach he knew he needed to go to Bible college. He had been a hard worker and had saved money to go. But he was so out of touch academically that when the registrar asked him how many credits he had, he said, “How much do I need, sir? I have money in the bank and my credit is good as gold.” The ripple of laughter from the other students nearby caused him to realize he was missing something. Tom later wrote, “Who could forget the amazement on the dean’s face when he realized that he had an ignoramus on his hands, a young man past 20 who wanted to go to college yet couldn’t work fractions and had no knowledge of grammar or spelling.” The registrar asked to meet with him privately and told him he would have to take a lot of background courses in the academy before he could start college and that it would be a long, hard haul. Tom knew God had called him and settled in to work hard.

When Tom began missionary work with Indians in the jungles of Panama, “He knew civilization wasn’t their primary need. White man’s civilization without Christ would simply replace their primitive sins with more sophisticated ones. He only wanted to share his Savior.”

His first experience on the mission field came just after college, where the students had been experiencing a wonderful revival. He thought the mission field would be even more of a revival, but within just a few hours sensed “strange tensions” among the missionaries with whom he was assigned to work. He became a sounding board for both sides. “What shocked Tom was the inability of those involved to maintain spiritual victory over their emotions, to forgive in love and to forget.” After a few months “he became more sympathetic as he realized the strange drain which life in a continually threatening jungle environment could be to one’s spiritual resources. How easy it was to become so busy with mission affairs that prayer and Bible reading were neglected, and one became introverted and self-centered through the constant fight for survival.” After two years on that field he left 20 lbs. less, underweight, and “backslidden …himself due to his frustration in seeking to be a reconciling force among his co-workers.”

In the zealousness of youthful Christianity, when I first heard of missionaries having trouble getting along, I was similarly shocked. I thought surely any group of godly people shouldn’t have that problem. Well..after a little more maturity and experience, I’ve realized that any group of Christians can have trouble getting along. If that happens to us here, we shouldn’t be surprised it happens to people on the mission field, especially with the additional stresses they are under. That is an area we should pray for them more — grace and getting along with each other’s faults, foibles, differing ideas of how things should be done, etc.

Another area that stood out to me was the account of the rise of Communism in Cuba. Evidently Castro did not present himself as a Communist at first — there was none of the usual rhetoric or slogans. He was seen as a great liberator from an oppressive government. There is some disagreement as to whether he was really a Communist all along or whether he just chose that political line in order to “institutionalize his revolution.” The missionaries had been sympathetic to the revolutionaries, but had to make “late-hour course corrections to cope with another anti-Christian influence.” Though some of the soldiers themselves had originally seemed friendly to the missionaries, repression began.

Before repression became too bad however, Mr. Willey attended the trials of those deemed war criminals, then asked and was granted permission to visit those condemned to die before the firing squad. “The rebel authorities were impressed with Pop’s obvious concern for the spiritual needs of the condemned men.” Many of them had never heard the gospel. One told him, “Had we had this teaching, none of us would now be in this sad state. Please preach this in the streets, in the country, in the cities. This is the only hope for Cuba!”

Many believed. It was hard to see spiritual newborns put to death so soon after their conversion. “Pop,” as he was known, then took the dead men’s belongings to their families and was able to share the comfort of the gospel with them as well. Though God vitally used him in this way, the experience “took a heavy physical and emotional toll…He was never to be quite the same again.”

It wasn’t long before the missionaries had to leave Cuba. They found a ministry to exiled Cubans in Florida and in speaking to churches to stir up missionary interest. Eventually they ministered back in Panama.

Near the end of the book when the author recorded Tom’s death and the viewing and funeral, I thought he perfectly captured the mixed emotions one feels at the death of a Christian loved one: “Sorrowful because of earth’s loss. Joyful because of heaven’s gain. Awkward because of the paradox of extreme grief and extreme joy mingled in a single sensation.”

Even though this wasn’t the book I was originally looking for, I am glad I read of this servant of the Lord.

Biblical resolutions

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I don’t usually make New Year’s resolutions any more — not the kind you forget about by March. When I think about them, they are things I need to be doing as a matter of course any way, and usually nothing new. Nevertheless I can see that it is good to sit down and take stock of life and see if there is anything that needs to change, and the beginning of a new year seems a good time to do that. I do like the idea of making goals.

Sunday night at church, one of the verses the pastor mentioned in one of his points was from Psalms where David says, “I will…” It struck me that that is a resolution of sorts, a determination, a plan to do something. So I looked for the term “I will” in BibleGateway.com. There are many places where God says, “I will…” do a particular thing — that would make an interesting study in itself. But I bypassed those and the “I wills” of people making a particular promise or determination for a specific time or purpose (i.e., Jacob saying “I will work seven years for Rachel”) and just looked for those passages that could be said by any believer in any time period. Here’s what I found (I only got from Genesis through Psalms — there are hundreds more verses after that! But this should keep me busy for a while):

The LORD is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father’s God, and I will exalt him. Exodus 15:2.

Because I will publish the name of the LORD: ascribe ye greatness unto our God. He is the Rock, his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he. Deuteronomy 32:3-4.

Hear, O ye kings; give ear, O ye princes; I, even I, will sing unto the LORD; I will sing praise to the LORD God of Israel. Judges 5:3. (See also Psalm 7:17;9:1-2; 52:9; 56:12; 57:7, 9; 59:16; 69:30; 71:22; 75:9; 89:1; 101:1; 104:33-34; 108:1-3; 138:1; 144:9; 145:2; 146:2.)

And he said, The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; The God of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour; thou savest me from violence. I will call on the LORD, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies. II Samuel 22:2-4. (See also Psalm 18:2-3; 44:5-7;55:16-17;57:2; 86:7).

Therefore I will give thanks unto thee, O LORD, among the heathen, and I will sing praises unto thy name. II Samuel 22:50. (See also Psalm 30:12.)

What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee. In God I will praise his word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me. Psalm 56:3-4. (See also Psalm 3:5-6; 4:8; 23:4; 55:23; 56:11; 118:6.)

But as for me, I will come into thy house in the multitude of thy mercy: and in thy fear will I worship toward thy holy temple. Psalm 5:7. (See also Psalm 138:2.)

That I may shew forth all thy praise in the gates of the daughter of Zion: I will rejoice in thy salvation. Psalm 9:14. (See also Psalm 13:5-6:27:6.)

I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel: my reins also instruct me in the night seasons. I have set the LORD always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. Psalm 16:7-8. (See also Psalm 34:1-3.)

I will love thee, O LORD, my strength. Psalm 18:1.

I will declare thy name unto my brethren: in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee. Psalm 22:22. (See also Psalm 22:25; 35:18; 66:13, 15; 116:14-18.)

I will extol thee, O LORD; for thou hast lifted me up, and hast not made my foes to rejoice over me. Psalm 30:1.

I will be glad and rejoice in thy mercy: for thou hast considered my trouble; thou hast known my soul in adversities. Psalm 31:7.

I acknowledge my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah. Psalm 32:5.(See also Psalm 38:18.)

Come, ye children, hearken unto me: I will teach you the fear of the LORD. Psalm 34:11.

I said, I will take heed to my ways, that I sin not with my tongue: I will keep my mouth with a bridle, while the wicked is before me. Psalm 39:1.

I will make thy name to be remembered in all generations: therefore shall the people praise thee for ever and ever. Psalm 45:17.

My mouth shall speak of wisdom; and the meditation of my heart shall be of understanding. I will incline mine ear to a parable: I will open my dark saying upon the harp. Psalm 49:3-4. (See also Psalm 78:2.)

I will freely sacrifice unto thee: I will praise thy name, O LORD; for it is good. Psalm 54:6.(See also Psalm 139:14.)

I will abide in thy tabernacle for ever: I will trust in the covert of thy wings. Selah. Psalm 61:4.

Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee. Thus will I bless thee while I live: I will lift up my hands in thy name. My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips: When I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches. Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice. Psalm 63:3-7. (See also Psalm 119:48.)

But I will hope continually, and will yet praise thee more and more. My mouth shall shew forth thy righteousness and thy salvation all the day; for I know not the numbers thereof. Psalm 71:14-15.

I will go in the strength of the Lord GOD: I will make mention of thy righteousness, even of thine only. Psalm 71:16.

And I said, This is my infirmity: but I will remember the years of the right hand of the most High. I will remember the works of the LORD: surely I will remember thy wonders of old. Psalm 77:10-11. (See also Psalm 119:93.)

I will meditate also of all thy work, and talk of thy doings. Psalm 77:12.

I will hear what God the LORD will speak: for he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints: but let them not turn again to folly. Psalm 85:8.

Teach me thy way, O LORD; I will walk in thy truth: unite my heart to fear thy name. Psalm 86:11. (See also Psalm 26:11-12; 101:2; 114:45; 116:9.)

I will praise thee, O Lord my God, with all my heart: and I will glorify thy name for evermore. For great is thy mercy toward me: and thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest hell. Psalm 86:12-13. (See also Psalm 109:30; 111:1; 118:19, 21, 28; 119:7, 32-33.)

I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. Psalm 91:2.

For thou, LORD, hast made me glad through thy work: I will triumph in the works of thy hands. Psalm 92:4.

I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me. A froward heart shall depart from me: I will not know a wicked person. Psalm 101:3-4.

I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the LORD. Psalm 116:13.

Open to me the gates of righteousness: I will go into them, and I will praise the LORD. Psalm 118:19.

I will keep thy statutes: O forsake me not utterly. Psalm 119:8, 69. (See also Psalm 119:106, 115, 145.)

I will meditate in thy precepts, and have respect unto thy ways. I will delight myself in thy statutes: I will not forget thy word. Psalm 119:15-16, 48, 78.

I will speak of thy testimonies also before kings, and will not be ashamed. And I will delight myself in thy commandments, which I have loved. Psalm 119:46-47. (See also Psalm 145:5-6.)

At midnight I will rise to give thanks unto thee because of thy righteous judgments. Psalm 119:62.

The wicked have waited for me to destroy me: but I will consider thy testimonies. Psalm 119: 96.

Hold thou me up, and I shall be safe: and I will have respect unto thy statutes continually Psalm 119:117.

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee. Peace be within thy walls, and prosperity within thy palaces. For my brethren and companions’ sakes, I will now say, Peace be within thee. Because of the house of the LORD our God I will seek thy good. Psalm 122:6-9.

Happy New Year!

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But the land, whither ye go to possess it, is a land of hills and valleys, and drinketh water of the rain of heaven: A land which the LORD thy God careth for: the eyes of the LORD thy God are always upon it, from the beginning of the year even unto the end of the year. Deuteronomy 11:11-12.

Wishing you a wonderful new year!

The year to come

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I have a maddening tendency to face new situations with anxiety rather than eager anticipation. My mind floods with “what ifs” that I have to wrestle to give to the Lord — not that I don’t want Him to have them; I do — but they want to keep coming back to me.

I don’t remember facing the new year with anxiety before, however. I’m not superstitious, but with this past year being relatively mild and knowing that every life will face it’s variety of trials, I have wondered with a little trepidation what this new year might hold.

I have been having devotions in the New American Standard Bible this past year. In my course of reading the Bible through, I am in Isaiah now. A few days ago I came to one of my all-time favorite verses, Isaiah 41:10: “Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.” The NASB rendered it thus:

Do not fear, for I am with you;
Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God
I will strengthen you, surely I will help you,
Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.

“Do not anxiously look about you.” That was just what I needed.

God doesn’t always explain His actions or His reasons, but He promises His presence.

My weakness says, “I do want Your presence, Lord, but can’t I have it without painful or confusing or frustrating events?”

Yes — I do have His presence with me always. Yet there are many reasons He allows various trials to come. I know, from Scripture and from past experience, that He uses those trials for good, that something about them strengthens and deepens my relationship with Him and trust in Him, that there are things I learn and ways I grow that I would not have otherwise.

The last verse of the morning reading for the last day of the year in Daily Light is “Hitherto hath the LORD helped us.” (I Samuel 7:12). He has helped all along: He will help in the future.

He will help me.

He will strengthen me.

He will be with me.

Do not be afraid.

He is enough.

He’s Emmanuel

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Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.
Matthew 1:22-23.

He’s Emmanuel

By Jeanine Drylie

Who is this baby lying asleep where cattle feed
Who is this babe that merits not a bed?
As angel choirs proclaim the glory of His name
And wise men by the star to Him are led?

He’s Emmanuel,
The God of all the ages clothed in human flesh
To die in sinners’ stead.
Though He was God yet He was pleased to live on earth with men.
But why these swaddling clothes, this cattle stall,
And why this manger bed?

Who is this weary man sitting down upon a well
Too busy with the souls of men to eat?
Who is this man that’s sleeping in tempest-driven boat
Until aroused it’s glory to defeat?

He’s Emmanuel,
The God of all the ages clothed in human flesh
Salvation to complete.
Though He was God yet He was pleased to live on earth with men.
But why no palaces, no pillow soft,
And why these weary feet?

Who is this man they’re mocking with thorns upon His brow?
Who is this one deserves such cruelty?
Who is this man suspended on yonder rugged cross,
The object of such shame and blasphemy?

He’s Emmanuel,
The God of all the ages clothed in human flesh
To bleed and die for me.
Though He was God yet He was pleased to live on earth with men,
But why these cruel nails, this mocking crowd,
And why this fallen tree?

He’s Emmanuel.

May we rejoice in Emmanuel, God with us, and if you don’t know Him in that way, I pray that you would even this day.

I Hear Thy Welcome Voice

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I hear Thy welcome voice
That calls me, Lord, to Thee,
For cleansing in Thy precious blood
That flowed on Calvary.

Refrain

I am coming Lord!
Coming now to Thee!
Wash me, cleanse me in the blood
That flowed on Calvary!

Though coming weak and vile,
Thou dost my strength assure;
Thou dost my vileness fully cleanse,
Till spotless all, and pure.

Refrain

’Tis Jesus calls me on
To perfect faith and love,
To perfect hope and peace and trust,
For earth and Heav’n above.

Refrain

All hail! atoning blood!
All hail! redeeming grace!
All hail! the gift of Christ our Lord,
Our Strength and Righteousness.

Refrain

~ By Lewis Hartsough

His Dear Wife

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Several years ago I heard Claudia Barba speak at a ladies’ conference at a nearby town. Her husband had been a church planter and an evangelist and currently has a ministry helping church planters get their churches established. He had spoken at a missions conference at our church a few years earlier and his family was there: I may have met Claudia then, but I didn’t know she spoke to ladies groups and I didn’t know she was the sister of a college friend, who was the pastor’s wife at this church. You know how some people can speak and convict you and you feel like you’ve been beaten up, and others can speak and convict you and leave you feeling hopeful and encouraged and looking forward to what the Lord can do in and through you. Claudia is the latter kind of speaker. Her talks were practical and convicting and went right to the root of my selfishness, but they were tremendously encouraging as well. At that time she mentioned an e-mail list she had started called “Monday Morning Club.” It was primarily for minister’s wives, but was open to everyone, so I subscribed. I’ve been enjoying Claudia’s Word-based instruction and encouragement ever since. Later our own ladies group was blessed to have Claudia as a speaker at our spring Ladies’ Luncheon.

This particular “Monday Morning Club” e-mail has spoken to my heart again and again. Even though my husband is not a pastor, every Christian is a minister of the gospel in some way, and I found much to convict and inspire in this piece. I don’t know what brought it to mind again, but when I thought of it this morning I e-mailed Claudia to ask permission to publish it here, and she graciously gave it.

If you would be interested in receiving Claudia’s Monday Morning Club e-mails, you can e-mail her at cbarba@ipresson.com. The Barba’s web site is Press On! Ministries.

His Dear Wife

by Claudia Barba

It happened again recently. Sitting in church, I heard the pastor welcome us to the service: Dave Barba and his “dear wife.” I think that pastors use that phrase as a graceful way to introduce me when they have forgotten my name. But it always makes me want to laugh as I imagine my husband as a majestic buck in the deep woods, and me as the docile doe by his side. My son (Bambi, I guess) added to my amusement years ago when, during a similar introduction, he grinned at me and formed antlers with his fingers on his head.

This time, after my invisible (I hope) laughter, I began to think about that word—“dear.” It was okay to daydream; none of the pastor’s announcements applied to me.

“Dear” people are precious—beloved, highly esteemed, valuable, cherished, and treasured. I like to believe that that is how my husband thinks of me. But “dear” also has another definition, and I am sadly aware that sometimes that meaning can apply to me as well. “Dear” can mean expensive. A wife can be precious to her husband, or she can be costly to him.

On a literal plane, I can be a drain on his budget or a plug for it. When money is scarce, I have to make every dollar stretch a mile. I can do it cheerfully and creatively, or I can do it grudgingly. One attitude makes me precious to him; the other makes me just another burden—his doe spending his dough.

When he preaches, I can be his silent cheerleader. I can stay awake. I can nod and smile at him from the pew, listen and take notes. I can thank him for praying and preparing, and tell him how the Lord has used his sermons to help me. That makes me precious. On the other hand, criticizing or ignoring his preaching costs him dearly, for it damages his confidence in the pulpit.

When enemies attack our ministry, I can crumple, weep, and blame him for my pain. After all, if he would just be perfect like me and please everybody all the time, no one would criticize and life would be bliss! Or I can bravely and tearlessly remind him in our most painful times that the Lord is the One Whose approval we need. Pleasing everybody else, all the time, is impossible.

If he has worked hard for few visible results, I can “dearly” remind him of the laws of sowing and reaping. I can point him to the future, when God will reward his labor. Or I can drain his spirit by questioning if the ministry is really worth all the work.

When he gets discouraged, I can find ways to lift his heart: a picnic in the park or a love letter slipped into his briefcase. I can pass along compliments from others and promises from the Lord. I can be steady, patient, prayerful, and dear until he’s himself again. I can be his ladder for climbing out of the pit. Or I can jump in with him and then expect him to lift me out.

I can praise his leadership at home and his skill working with people. I can honor the hidden character and steadfastness that I know better than anyone else. I can point out the good I see in him. How precious it is for a man to know that his wife admires him! Or I can take the good for granted and focus on his flaws—costing his self-image dearly.

Someday (long before your funeral, I hope), your husband may say that you are a woman with a price “far above rubies.” That can be true because of your incredible value to him, or because of what it costs him to keep you around. I want to be precious, not expensive—don’t you?

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Psalm Sunday: Psalm 57

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1 Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusteth in thee: yea, in the shadow of thy wings will I make my refuge, until these calamities be overpast.  2 I will cry unto God most high; unto God that performeth all things for me.

 3 He shall send from heaven, and save me from the reproach of him that would swallow me up. Selah. God shall send forth his mercy and his truth.

 4 My soul is among lions: and I lie even among them that are set on fire, even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword.

 5 Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens; let thy glory be above all the earth.

 6 They have prepared a net for my steps; my soul is bowed down: they have digged a pit before me, into the midst whereof they are fallen themselves. Selah.

 7 My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise.

 8 Awake up, my glory; awake, psaltery and harp: I myself will awake early.

 9 I will praise thee, O Lord, among the people: I will sing unto thee among the nations.

 10 For thy mercy is great unto the heavens, and thy truth unto the clouds.

 11 Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens: let thy glory be above all the earth.

Other versions list a heading saying this is a “Prayer for Rescue from Persecutors,” a Psalm of David when he was fleeing from Saul in the cave. Even though we may not face that exact type of persecution, I think the day is coming when we might. Even now there is not a general favorable attitude toward Christianity as there has been in past decades in this country. Really, it’s unusual to have a general public attitude favorable toward Christianity — in many countries throughout much of history, persecution has been the norm.

And even if we’re not facing persecution for our faith or our stand for Christ, sometimes we can face opposition as David did when someone takes it upon themselves to try to thwart our cause or decides they just don’t like us. Many people battle “office politics” or family problems or bullies or any number of contrary people or circumstances. So I believe this Psalm can be applicable to any situation in which we face opposition.

Our first recourse, as David’s was, is to cry unto the Lord, trusting Him to undertake, protect, and deliver us. I love the way verse 1 is worded. I love that God is our refuge.

I love also that David is not only concerned for his own situation: he is concerned for God’s glory. He wants God to be exalted in his situation. You see this echoed throughout the Psalms. In Psalm 109:26-27, David says, “Help me, O LORD my God: O save me according to thy mercy:That they may know that this is thy hand; that thou, LORD, hast done it.” Too often we just want deliverance; we want out of the problem or situation, as fast as possible, and we may remember to thank the Lord, but we don’t often think about wanting Him to be exalted or His glory to be seen in the midst of it all. I am touched by how, in many of the Psalms, David doesn’t just cry out for help, but his heart for his God is seen.

Once again David tells the Lord of his circumstances, then focuses on God’s mercy, faithfulness, and ability to deliver. My heart is fixed….other versions use the word “steadfast” instead of fixed. We could say David steadfastly fixes his heart on the Lord. In verses 7-10 he looks forward in faith. When he says he will praise the Lord, I am not sure if he means “I will praise you now despite my circumstances: I will focus on You and not the dilemma” or if he means “I will praise you in faith, knowing that You will save me.” I think there are ways that both views are applicable.

I am so thankful that in the midst of any calamity, we can trust in God’s mercy and take refuge in Him.

See Butterfly Kisses for more thoughts on this Psalm. and feel free to join us in meditating on them.