The Invisible Almighty

To say, 'I have gone beyond the reach of God,' is to limit the one who is limitless.

To say, 'He cannot love me,' is to say He is a liar, because 'God is love.'

To say, 'He cannot use me,' is to deny His power to redeem, and His mercy to forgive.

To say, 'He is not faithful,' is to ignore the multitude of Scripture which clearly proves otherwise (Phil 1:6, 2 Tim 2:13).

All of these statements are lies from the devil rather than the truth that comes from God. They seem pious, but they are self-centered. In essence, they are prideful. Instead of saying as Satan did, 'I will ascend to the Most High,' these say, 'I have ascended above Him and surpassed Him. I am outside of His sovereignty.'

If you say, 'I cannot see His hand at work; I cannot feel His power; His love seems like hate,' all these things might be true. However, do not make the mistake of making yourself your own authority, and saying beyond that, 'Because I cannot see His hand, feel His power, or experience His love, these things do not exist.'

God is above us in all respects. How can we expect to understand the one who is incomprehensible?

[33] Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!

[34] “For who has known the mind of the Lord,

or who has been his counselor?”

[35] “Or who has given a gift to him

that he might be repaid?”

[36] For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.

(Romans 11:33-36 ESV)

"Held"

"Held," dedicated to Isaac

To be held is a secure thing.

It is comforting,

and it feels safe.

This week I have been held,

both by human arms

but mostly by divine.

I have experienced the deepest security imaginable.

I am held:

always,

constantly,

lovingly.

I am held:

held safe in the arms of God.

No hurricane-force can pull me free;

no plague can touch me there;

and nothing can snatch me away.

I am held.

Original composition, January 2012.

A Good Christmas Prayer

Valley of Vision- The Gift of Gifts

O Source of all Good,
What shall I render to Thee for the gift of gifts,
Thine own dear Son, begotten, not created,
my Redeemer, Proxy, Surety, Substitute,
His self-emptying incomprehensible,
His infinity of love beyond the heart's grasp.

Herein is wonder of wonders:
He came below to raise me above,
He was born like me that I might become like Him.

Herein is love;
when I cannot rise to Him He draws near on wings of grace,
to raise me to Himself.

Herein is power;
when Deity and humanity were infinitely apart
He united them in indissoluble unity, the uncreated and the created.

Herein is wisdom;
when I was undone, with no will to return to Him,
and no intellect to devise recovery,
He came, God-incarnate, to save me to the uttermost,
as man to die my death,
to shed satisfying blood on my behalf,
to work out a perfect righteousness for me.

O God, take me in spirit to the watchful shepherds,
and enlarge my mind;
let me hear good tidings of great joy,
and hearing, believe, rejoice, praise, adore,
my conscience bathed in an ocean of repose,
my eyes uplifted to a reconciled Father,
place me with ox, donkey, camel, goat,
to look with them upon my Redeemer's face,
and in Him account myself delivered from sin;
let me with Simeon clasp the new-born Child to my heart,
embrace Him with undying faith,
exulting that He is mine and I am His.

In Him Thou hast given me so much that heaven can give no more.

[Arthur Bennett, ed., The Valley of Vision (Edinburgh: The Banner of Truth Trust, 2002), 28-29.]

Paper Blockade

I know they are outdated, but remember those over-head transparency projectors? The thing that always made me laugh about them was that you could block the view with a simple piece of white printer paper.

Sometimes the hardest blockade for me to break down to spend time with God like I know I should is a flimsy little piece of paper. It's my to-do list. It tells me, "Evaluate your topical message," "Write your journal for BibFund," "Study for those three exams," and of course "Don't forget that phone date!"

I wonder how often our view of God's glory and His plan for our lives is obstructed by that piece of paper... the same way the light of the projector is entirely blotted out... by a thin, weak, paper blockade.

Heaven

This semester I am taking Message Prep for Women with Betty Price. I am not sure if it has been my toughest class, but it has been pretty close. It is kind of unnerving knowing that for four class periods you are going to show up and teaching your class, even if it is just a handful of girls that you've gotten to know really well!

I am speaking in class on Wednesday on one of my favourite topics: heaven. I picked this topic about two weeks ago. Since then, an eighteen-month old from my hometown fell into a pond right by my house and drowned. This week, I was at the hospital with one of my friends just minutes after her friends' two-year old died after a brief but terrible battle with leukemia. Even now, my favourite professor's wife is in the hospital on bed-rest, and their unborn child might not survive. Death is all around us. The irony of speaking on heaven at a time like this has caused me to recognise even more that God is sovereign. He knew when I picked my topic that death would be at my doorstep as a constant challenge to my joy. He knew that I needed to be reminded of the rest that awaits the weary righteous.

What is heaven like? That's tricky to answer, because the Bible almost always refers to it metaphorically. Heaven is like this or that, or heaven means that this or that will be true. Here are a list of 11 such biblical metaphors. I urge you to read these descriptions thoughtfully. Rejoice in the inheritance that is yours!!

1) Job 3:17 describes heaven as a place of rest.

2) Psalm 16:11 and 1 Thessalonians 4:17 remind us that heaven is the place where God is present.

3) Psalm 16:11 and Colossians 3:1-4 (as well as other places) remind us that heaven is a place where pleasures are found forever more at God's right hand, and Jesus is also at God's right hand.

4) Psalm 23:6 and John 14:2 refer to heaven as the house of the LORD or the house of teh Father, where we will dwell forever.

5) Heaven is often referred to as the place of God's glory. See Psalm 73:23-26, Colossians 3:1-4, and 2 Thessalonians 2:12.

6) Ephesians 1:18 refers to heaven as a place of hope, and heaven is the glorious inheritance (cf. Colossians 1:12) of the saints.

7) Colossians 3:1-4 twice refers to heaven as the place that is above, in contrast to the earth below.

8) 2 Thessalonians 2:12 and 2 Peter 1:11 acknowledge that heaven is God's kingdom, and since believers are destined for that kingdom, they should make an effort to walk worthy of that citizenship commitment to heaven.

9) Hebrews 10:34 call heaven the better and abiding possession which will belong to all who suffer the loss of their physical possessions for the sake of Jesus.

10) Hebrews 11:10 has an interesting description of heaven. The author calls it a city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God. I hate cities; they are often cesspools of wickedness... but heaven is a city designed and built by God. Pretty sure I'm going to love that city!

11) Later on in Hebrews 11:16, the author terms heaven a better and heavenly country, a homeland for all those who were exiles on this earth who faithfully followed God.

Another major question answered in the Scriptures about heaven is, who goes there? Who inhabits this city built by God? Who lives in the many rooms in the Father's house? Scripture delights in answering this question for us in at least 15 unique ways. As you read this, carefully evaluate yourself. Have these terms every been applied to you? Granted, not all of them should apply directly (I hope no one has ever called you Asaph, especially if you're a female; that would be slightly insane), but the thought behind them all should be. Also, note that above all, God is already there. If you are not both thrilled and terrified by the thought of spending eternity with God our Maker, chances are you won't, because you aren't one of His children. Check out 1 Corinthains 6:9-11 and Revelation 21:8 for a detailed list of those who for sure won't be in heaven.

1) The righteous (Job 3:17)

2) The holy one, specifically David/Jesus (Psalm 16:11)

3) The Lord's sheep, specifically David (Psalm 23:6)

4) Specifically Asaph, but anyone who is not wicked (Psalm 73:23-26)

5) The disciples/seventy-two (Luke 10:20, John 14:2)

6) Those sealed with the Spirit (2 Corinthians 5:1-5)

7) Saints (Ephesians 1:18, Philippians 3:20, Colossians 1:5, 12)

8) Those who have been raised with Christ (Colossians 3:1-4)

9) Those who have turned from idols to God (2 Thessalonians 2:12)

10) The dead in Christ and all who meet him in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:16 & 17)

11) Persecuted believers (Hebrews 10:34)

12) Abraham (Hebrews 11:10)

13) Old Testament saints (Hebrews 11:16)

14) Elect exiles (1 Peter 1:4)

15) Those who have obtained a faith of equal standing (2 Peter 1:11)

If in reading this list of fifteen descriptions, you have been convicted that you do not match up with them, but you want to know how you can be sure of an eternity in heaven, I encourage you to e-mail me at ednella.godfollower@gmail.com. I would be more than happy to explain salvation to you on a deeper level. The basic gospel message, however, is simple: repentance and belief. Admit that you are a sinner who has broken God's laws, turn from your wickedness, and confess with your mouth and believe in your heart that Jesus is Lord. That is what it takes to become a child of the king and have heaven for your inheritance.

Accepting that gospel seems simple on the outside, but it requires a changed life. Colossians 3, 1 Thessalonians 2:11-12, and 2 Peter 1:1-11 talk about this. Colossians perhaps is the most thorough in dealing with this issue of how to live in light of heaven.

Colossians begins, as most epistles do, with a lengthy prayer by Paul that encompasses most of the first chapter. He begins by praising God for the Colossians' salvation, and then turns to praising Christ. He concludes the first chapter by describing his ministry in the church at Colossae, which segues into the second chapter, which reiterates his prayer for the church's unity and love. Paul makes statements similar to those recorded in Galatians, warning the Colossians of the Judaizer's legalism, which would try to take them captive to tradition. Why is Paul so upset about this? Because the Colossians have already died to the sway these traditions and regulations once had over their lives. Compared to the Spirit, rules are useless. The Colossians, Paul insists, have died with Christ and have been raised with Him, so they should do two things: seek the things that are above, and set their minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. What should they do with the things on earth? Colossians 3:5 says to put them to death. Verses 12-17 tell them what things they should put on--things fitting for godly character. The section to follow (3:18-4:1) give further instructions for how believers ought to live in a family context. The lifestyle of a person headed for heaven couldn't be more clearly presented. No detail has been omitted. In fact, the whole Bible was written for that purpose.

My hope is that in writing this, I have communicated to you how Scripture describes heaven in many ways, how it describes its current and future inhabitants, and how you should live as a person headed for heaven. My hope is that in reading this, you feel a new and fresh passion for heaven as a place where you will be united with God for all eternity. I ask you now to evaluate your desire for heaven. What is it motivated by? What do you expect from heaven? Do you long for it at all? How will what you know about heaven change your everyday life as a believer in Jesus Christ?

From the dust of the Rabbi,

~Camille

Outreach Week =(

So, I'm not going to Union Rescue Mission for Outreach Week after all. I'm staying in my dorm room getting over a cold.

"If you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plans." (From the movie, Bella)

The Things God Can't Do

Aren't you thankful there are things God can't do? Life would be a pretty sorry wreck if God could sin. Temptation would be as irresistible as grace is if God put temptation into our lives. Who would we turn to if God sometimes lied? What if He made burdens we couldn't bear... or burdens He couldn't bear? I am thankful God can't reject me after He has already elected me, that He can't let me go once He has put me in the palm of His hand.

I am thankful, not that I have a God who can do anything, but that I have a God who is unerringly consistent with His character as revealed in His word.

Outreach Week! =)

By way of announcement, I will not be on Facebook much (if any at all) from Wednesday through Sunday because I will be off-campus for Outreach Week. I am going to Inner City L.A. to work in a rescue mission on Skid Row with a team of several others from my school. Please, please be praying for us! As best as I can remember, my team members are...

Abby

John Mark

Sergio

Kyle

Cate

Lindsay

Preston

Mollie

Pray for good health. I'm getting over a wicked-bad sore throat and now I have a cold.

Pray for the weather to be good. We're sleeping outside on top of a roof, so it'd be nice not to be flooded into oblivion.

Pray for Gospel opportunities among the people we'll be serving.

Pray for team unity.

Also, if you are from TMC and you are going on Outreach Week somewhere else, please comment and let me know where you're going! I'm going to be praying for as many of you as I can be!

If you need to contact me, message me and I will send you my number. And I don't/won't have texting, so just keep that in mind. I am going to try to send out e-mail updates if I can, but I'm leaving Woodpecker in my room, so don't count on it. A daily e-mail to my family to tell them I'm alive might be all that happens :) Message me if you want to be on that list, along with an address.

From the dust of the Rabbi,

~Camille