Book Review: In His Steps

In October, my book club read the novel In His Steps by Charles M. Sheldon. I had read it once when I was a teen, and I was surprised by just how much I had forgotten of the plot line.

This may be understandable, since the occasion of my first reading of the book was on a camping trip. It was my first time camping since almost before I could remember, and I was staying (for the first time) in my own tent. It was also November, and bitterly cold. 

Add to that the fact that the story around the campfire that night had been of the time my parents had inadvertently pitched their tent over a mousehole and felt the mice crawling under their sleeping bags all night, as well as the fact of my absolute terror of the small furry creatures, which was compounded by the further fact that several mice had boldly visited our fire while the fateful tale was told.

Needless to say, I wasn't going to sleep that night. 

A choir director had given me a copy of In His Steps one Christmas, and I had brought it with me, because, of course, a homeschooled teen never leaves home without a book. I read it in its entirety that night as a means of distraction as I waited for morning and light and the banishing of all imagined terrors of mice. I did rush through the last few chapters, however, which my surprise as I read it again years later, completely oblivious of the ending. 

And now for the actual book review: 

As a teen, I was captivated by the character of Rachel Winslow. Reading of her dedication of her voice to the Lord's service was the first time I had ever really thought about the impact one's music could have. I longed to have a voice like Rachel's that would still a rowdy mob and move their hearts so. I think at that point in my life, it was the power her voice gave her that I wanted, more than the ability to use that power for the Lord.

This time, I noticed all the characters, each having its own set of circumstances or dilemmas with which I could relate. It is interesting to me just how much more exciting this book was now, and I am certain it has to do with the fact that my relationship with God is much closer now than it was when I first read the book, which accounts for the growth in excitement over the thought of what God could do through a Christian who was fully committed to obeying Him. 

The scope of the influence of just one minister's decision not to do anything without first asking himself, "What would Jesus do if He were in my position?" is nothing less than astounding. Yet, for the Christian, such influence should hardly seem out of reach, because it is God's power doing the working and the Holy Spirit doing the influencing. For the submitted and obedient Christian, anything is possible! 

I end with my favorite quote from this encouraging novel: 

"No man can tell until he is moved by the Divine Spirit what he may do, or how he may change the current of a lifetime of fixed habits of thought and speech and action."

Finding Freedom in Christlike Adornings

When I was young, my parents, as most parents do, gave us some guidelines for how they expected their children to dress. This was almost unnecessary while we were young, but as I grew old enough to begin choosing or buying clothing for myself, I found myself more and more dissatisfied with the boundaries my parents had laid down.

You see, at the church we were attending at the time, my parents were (or so it seemed to me) the only ones who had guidelines as strict as ours concerning clothes. The other children my age seemed to dress in the latest fashion, according to whatever was in style. They embraced wholeheartedly the trends my parents disallowed. --Trends which were, in hindsight, not only grossly immodest but also quite ridiculous.

But the concerns over modesty and propriety did not matter to me. All I wanted was to look like -to be like- everyone else.

It finally got to the point where every day brought a fresh argument about some article of clothing I wanted to wear, and with every argument my heart grew harder and more bitter towards my parents for the restrictions they were attempting to enforce.

But then, something changed.

It wasn't that the guidelines changed, or that my longing to fit in went away overnight. What changed was that I began to spend time around a dear lady whose dress characterized modesty and propriety and whose heart was so obviously content and secure in who she was in Christ that she didn't even think to care if her clothing was different from what others wore.

And that was the real issue. As I learned more and more about who I was before God, and about finding my identity in Christ, I began not only to understand the restrictions my parents placed upon me, but also to appreciate and embrace them. And as I embraced them, I grew to find great freedom in being guided, not by the changeable and insatiable demands of society, but by the principles of God's Word and the truths of who I am in Christ.

You see, I had spent so many years chasing after the prize of being like "everyone else", that I had missed what God was wanting to teach me through the very guidelines I had thought were holding me back. There is a great freedom in wholesomeness and femininity -a freedom that comes of resting in the approval of my Heavenly Father.

Now, instead of trying to conform to an ever-changing standard in search of approval I could never fully gain, I rest in the unconditional, abundant, and satisfying love of God, and seek instead to have my external appearance reflect the inward adorning of a meek and quiet heart. (Ephesians 3:3-4)

And that’s what it’s all about: the heart. But the external is a reflection of the internal. In that way, how I dress is just as important as how I act or speak or even think. I’m not perfect, but my goal is to dress in a way that reflects Christlikeness, not a heart craving the empty accolades or attention of the world. I don’t need any of the world’s praise or love or approval, because I am secure in Christ’s love for me, and a hungry world should look at me and instantly recognize a soul satisfied with the abundance of God.

The Power of Practice, and a New Goal

When I was little, I remember my sister taking an art class. I remember it, because she tried to sketch me for one of her assignments. I must have been around seven at the time, and as excited as we both were about the project at the beginning, I'm pretty sure she regretted her choice of such a wiggly and talkative model as soon as she began to draw.

Fast forward to a few years ago, when my sister and I took a trip to Idaho. She had begun this challenge of drawing something every day. It didn't have to be something big or important, just something. It was fun to watch her, and I learned a lot from her comments about her own drawings, as well as from the tips she gave me as I tried my hand at drawing in a little travel journal I had brought with me to record the trip.

Since then, she has continued to draw daily, but now she is a skilled and successful artist! Although my undiscriminating eye had already thought her art was very good when she first began the drawing challenge, even I can tell the difference between those early drawings and the drawings she produces now.

These are a few of my favorites:

     

 

(You can find these at her website by clicking here. --Ok, advertisement's over: carry on.) 

 The two of us are about as different as two sisters can be, and I won't pretend I always enjoy the subject matter she chooses to portray, but I have so enjoyed watching her success as she has improved her skill by daily practicing something she loved.

So when I found this notebook in a store a couple years ago, I not only admired it, I remembered my sister and her daily drawing challenge and bought the notebook for the sole purpose of writing regularly (although it was pretty intermittent at first) just for the delight of it. I had no intention of making anything of what I wrote, I just liked the idea of having a journal in which I could write without feeling it needed to be a big project, or anything official.

And now, here I am, blogging, writing, unable to go anywhere comfortably without pen and paper... and, --I am pleased to announce-- looking forward to publishing a children's picture book by the end of the year, Lord willing! (With illustrations by my sister, of course!) -More on that to come!

But I need to improve, and at the beginning of this new year at the start of a new decade, I dare to put into writing a goal I have wanted to accomplish, but have been to terrified to attempt: I am going to write something every day this year, whether it's a blog post, (January second... check!)  a journal entry, a note from my time in the Bible, a paragraph added to a lengthier project, or just a few short lines scrawled in my "emergency" notebook I keep in my car while stopped at a traffic light... it doesn't have to be perfect or even particularly important -just as long as it's words carefully pieced together and recorded, it counts as practice.

Now, the point to all this for you, dear reader, is that whether it's drawing, writing, music, or any other skill God has given you a love for, practice is a powerful thing. It is, in fact, the only way to improve that skill so you can then share it with others.

...and a Happy New Year!

It is the very first moments of a brand new year, and I wanted to share this passage from Ephesians 3 with you, for this, dear reader, is my prayer for you in this bright and shining start of a new decade:

"That He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner man;
That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,
May be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;
And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God"
Ephesians 3:16-19

That is the purpose of this blog: to point your eyes to the fullness of God which really can be yours as you seek Him and learn of Him.

Aren't you glad that God's goodness is not dependent upon our age, status, or stage of life? Wherever you're at, God is the same. He is not the author of emptiness, but of fullness; not of darkness, but of light; not of despair, but of hope. However turbulent the year may prove to be, God remains, and with Him the love and fullness which are always ours in Christ.

"Now unto Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, 
Unto Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen."
Ephesians 3:20-21

New Year's Goals for the Plodder

I must admit, I bristle when one of my friends asks me about my goals for the new year. I shouldn't. Goals are a good thing, and help us keep from coasting along in apathy. But when you're in a season of life where there seem to be no "major" goals for which to strive, it can be difficult to be motivated to make any goals.  (Don't worry, I'm not just going to complain the whole post -there's a point to all this...stay with me!)

 At this moment, I know that I am right where God wants me to be, doing exactly what He wants me doing, and since I have no clear direction from the Lord about changes in the future, making goals can be difficult.

It's not as if I'm in a corporate job, seeking to climb my way to the next promotion. For a teacher who loves the grade she's teaching, promotion to a different position is a very unwelcome thing. And I already have the degrees I had been working so hard on, so there's no more major educational milestone to be achieved.

 I'm a plodder. I don't have some overarching plan to work towards, nor do I have any dreams of accomplishing some grand thing. But I do know that there are things I need to work on this next year, and written goals will keep me from blowing those things off as too much work or just something to do "later".

One thing I tend to forget is that things I've already been doing for years can count as goals. For example, I have been reading through the entire Bible each year since my early teens, and it's easy to feel like reading through the Bible this year doesn't count as a "real" goal. But it does. It matters immensely that I continue in God's Word, though daily Bible reading and time in prayer have become such a normal part of my life. It matters that I keep that up, and that I keep focused on my relationship with God.

Sometimes goals for the plodder look like continuations of past goals, sometimes with additions, sometimes just the same. Goals don't have to be big and flashy to be worked towards.

The biggest thing to remember about goals is that no matter how easy the goal might seem on paper, you need God's help to achieve it. We need to be looking at our goals, not as something to achieve so we can point to ourselves and say "look what I did", but rather as something that drives us to God in humility, looking to accomplish each goal for His glory, to show off what He did in enabling us to meet each goal. 

So, here I am, plodding along towards my seemingly insignificant goals which may not seem impressive or important to the world, but if each is done to God's glory, each is significant and important to Him. And He is the truest judge of value.

Surviving (and Thriving!) Single at Christmas

So, I don't plan on many of these "poor me, I'm single, and it's so hard" posts, but I know from experience that the Christmas season can be one of the hardest to come through with any semblance of contentment left intact.  With all the parties and banquets, family gatherings, and other events, life is busier than normal, and it can seem like everywhere you turn there are fresh reminders that others are celebrating with a spouse or "special someone", and you are not.

But instead of throwing a pity party and riding out the season in your jammies, curled up in a fuzzy blanket on the couch while watching those sappy Christmas movies that make you feel even worse, you could be joyfully thriving and truly enjoying the season.

Now, I'm no singleness expert and I have very few noteworthy examples of single life being hard at Christmastime, but I have wasted many Christmases with my focus on that which I did not have, instead of on what God had given me to enjoy, and I wanted to mention some things I wish someone would have told me years ago.

1.  Remember what you're celebrating
Honestly, this is the biggest help to Christmastime discontent. Sometimes, you just need to get alone with God, read the Christmas story or a good Christmas devotional, ponder the words to a favorite Christmas hymn, or just pray and ask God to help you get your focus off yourself and onto Him. After all, it's the love and graciousness of God we celebrate. Contrary to what Hallmark would have us think, Christmas is not about finding that perfect someone, but about God loving you so much that He was willing to lay aside the glory of His Deity and the perfections of Heaven to live here on earth, born among dirty, smelly animals and living among depraved sinners whose wickedness must have been so hard for His holiness to rub shoulders with day after day.

--And He did that for you.

With that kind of love to celebrate, our dreams of human love suddenly become far less impressive.

2. Embrace the people God has placed around you
Ok, so this can be a tough one at times. When we are wrapped up in longing for what we want but do not have, we tend to forget how much we really do already have.

My parents and I are at the point where we have gone from having to put all the leaves in the dining room table and add an extra table to fit everyone in for Christmas dinner to having to take all the leaves out so we can all reach to pass the food. There have been a few of our former number that have passed away, but most are absent because they now have families of their own and between the needs of small children, long-held traditions of in-laws, and distance, they have not been able to spend Christmas day with us as they used to. There are four of us this year, my parents, my aunt, and I.

At first, it can be easy to grumble or feel offended at those who are not coming, or to feel depressed and lonely, wallowing in remembrances of the "good old days" when there was a houseful. But as I have learned to embrace the changes God has allowed to our family traditions, I have found new things to enjoy, and although I will probably always miss those who used to come, I can nevertheless rest in the knowledge that the four around our table are the four God means to be there this year. Again, this entails getting my eyes off myself and back onto God and, through Him, onto those He has placed around me for me to minister to.

That brings us to number three:

3. Realize it's not about you!
I'll be the first to admit that my focus usually tends to be on myself --especially at Christmas. I can be so wrapped up (no pun intended!) in the preparations and expectations of how Christmas will be, only to become morose in disappointment when things do not turn out exactly as I expected them.

But Christmas is not about me. It's not even about you! It's about God, and the sooner I realize that, the sooner He can begin to work through me as He has planned to be a blessing and encouragement to those around me. And if I focus on encouraging others, God will make sure that I have the encouragement I need as well! After all, the true joy comes in giving not receiving, just as Christ joyed in giving Himself for us. Consider Hebrews 12:2:

"Looking unto Jesus the Author and Finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God."

True joy goes hand in hand with service. One way my family and I have found to serve others at Christmastime is delivering plates of homemade cookies to my neighbors, along with a Christmas card containing either a tract or an invitation to my church's Christmas Eve service. We inevitably come back in much more cheerful spirits than when we left to deliver the plates, and our neighbors have always seemed encouraged by the gesture.

4. Determine to Enjoy the Little Things 
What's your favorite part of Christmas? Is it the lights? The cookies? Candy Canes? Peppermint mochas? Decorating the Christmas tree?

Whatever it is you enjoy about Christmas, enjoy it! Now, maybe that's a dangerous thing to say about a holiday that tends to throw sugary treats at one with joyful abandon, but here's my point: If you enjoy Christmas cookies, make a batch, sit in a comfy chair with a cup of tea (or milk, if that's your thing), put your feet up, and enjoy the moment. (Not the whole batch, mind you --temperance is still a fruit of the Spirit even in December!) It doesn't have to be a perfect day to have peace and joy as you rejoice in the gift of a moment of rest and sweetness.

I have always enjoyed decorating for Christmas, and the day my parents travel to visit my sister I always venture out into the backyard to pick up fir branches to tie together into garlands for our living room. Then, when the garlands are up and the mess is tidied, I sit and admire the fruits of my efforts for just a little while, taking joy in the beauty God allows us to have around us.

One year, my family was taking a walk after Christmas dinner and I ended up walking alone at the back of the group (walking with an odd number of people is always awkward). As I turned my focus outward and began looking around for things to enjoy, I found them in abundance. There was the cold breeze on my face, the warmth of my scarf and hat, the music of laughter of a little nephew, the beauty of the lights shimmering on the houses as we passed, the delight of watching family members get along so well, and the joy of being all together in one place. An outward focus can turn around even the worst "alone in a crowd" experience.

5. Be Un-offendable
Nothing is so miserable as being offended at people during Christmas. Perhaps you're offended because of something someone said or did, perhaps you're offended that someone else is offended with you --whatever the case, it's a miserable way to feel, and not at all worth it! Whatever happens this Christmas, resolve to be unoffendable. When others do or say things that annoy or disgust you, or hurt your feelings, remember that Christ was born on earth to live a holy life amidst sinful mankind, and eventually to be terribly tortured and killed in the most painful way they could devise --all to save the souls of those who had hurt and rejected Him. --That is the Christ we as Christians are to represent to those around us. One of the things I pray for myself every day is that I would reflect Christ in all I say and do. It is a very serious responsibility to be an ambassador for Christ, and we cannot afford to be offended or bear grudges against those for whom Christ died.

This is by no means an exhaustive list, but it is a list of things I have learned over the years that I pray will be helpful to you.

When God Asks for your Future

Someone I know asks me a dreadful question periodically. They ask, "So, where do you see yourself in five years?". And then I sit, completely devoid of an answer for an awkwardly long period of time. I usually end up fumbling around and finally landing on "It's hard to say..."

That is a truly terrible question to ask a single lady who is trying to live contented in a life that is very different to what she had planned in her younger years. I have tried over the years to learn to set my focus on what God wants me to do now, rather than on what I expect or long for the future to hold.  But even at that, being asked to contemplate five years from now can really chip away at contentment if I'm not careful.

And the fact is, none of us can know what the future will hold, but we so very easily pin our hopes to a distant, far-off "someday" that will --according to our carefully imagined picture-- be completely perfect. Those hopes and dreams become unspeakably precious to us, and we work and pray towards that bright and shining "someday" in which everything will be exactly as we had planned... but in reality, we have taken our trustful gaze off the Lord, who really does know what our future will be, and has a "good and perfect" will for us. (Romans 12:2)

Often, that is exactly when God chooses to remind us that our plans are not binding, that we really have no control over any part of our future, and that our trust needs to be in Him, not in our "somedays". He is entirely worthy of our trust, but in order to fully trust Him, we need to surrender our "someday" and release our grip on the expected future we so dearly love.

Abraham knew about this. In Genesis 22, God comes to Abraham and asks him to sacrifice his son.

His only son.

Whom he loves. 

The very wording of the command seems designed to remind Abraham of every reason he might have for refusing, yet instead of questioning or even delaying, he got up early and went out to obey God's command. He obeyed God even to the point of putting Isaac on the altar and raising the knife! -But before we allow our minds to jump to the Divine plot twist that comes next, consider with me what exactly Abraham was willing to sacrifice.

Yes, Isaac was his son, and he dearly loved him. But more than that, he was the son of promise, the fruit of many years of waiting in faith that God would at last provide a son to be the heir of the land God had given as well as the one through whose line would come the Savior in whom all the world would be blessed. Also, Isaac was Abraham's sole heir, which meant that he was the one on whom Abraham would depend for care in his old age.

In short, God was asking Abraham to sacrifice his future.  And he was willing to do it, too. God stopped him just in time and provided a different and appropriate sacrifice for Abraham to offer. God didn't want Isaac's death, He simply wanted Abraham to be willing to give up that which was the dearest to him, not just his son, but the hopes and dreams attached to him.

I used to think that surrendering my hopes and dreams to God would mean that they would never come to pass, that surrender would be the beginning of a bleak and hopeless existence, but that is one of Satan's powerful lies. Surrender does not bring misery and emptiness, it brings joy and hope and peaceful fulfillment as one accepts what God has planned and learns to find fulfillment in a relationship with the loving and all-wise God.

And lest we be bowed by the reality of every day life, there is yet one hope for the future that is certain, and that we may always look forward to; a very real "someday" when everything will indeed be completely perfect. For those who put their trust in Christ for salvation, the future will culminate in an eternity with God in heaven, where there is no more sin, no more sorrow, and no more sickness. Best of all, we will forever be with the Lord Himself! That indeed is something to look forward to!