Rest Issue - Signet Ring by Signet Ring

REST

IN EVERY ISSUE 2 Q &A God’s Rest 14 Classics Homily by C.H. Spurgeon

16 RELATIONSHIPS 16 Ministry Mothers with a Mission

20 LIFE 15 Hymn Trust and Obey 20 Resting at Home What is Home? A Missionary’s Perspective 22

IDENTITY 6 Who Am I? Child of God 9

Discipleship Resting in Christ

Eternal Perspective A Savior at Rest, But Not Idle

Living in Hope Wings of Hope

24 Parenting Makin’ Copies 26 Devotional Something to Ponder

Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. NIV. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zodervan. All Rights Reserved. Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked (NKJV) are taken from the New King James Version . Copyright © 1979, 1980, 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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t the time of the earthly ministry of Jesus, would you describe Him as hurried, frantically performing miracles? Or as relaxed, walking the streets of Judea as if time had no hold on Him? I believe Jesus was an unhurried Savior, owning time instead of being owned by it. Consider the following instances: Jesus waited thirty years before starting His earthly ministry, He was unhurried on His way to heal Jarius’ daughter, and He deliberately delayed for two days after the death of His friend Lazarus. Of course, raising Lazarus from the dead ultimately brought all glory to God! Additionally, consider His invitation in Matthew 11:29 (The Message): “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to Me. Get away with Me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with Me and work with Me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace.” The famous Chinese pastor, Wang Mingdao stated, “To walk with God you must go at walking pace.” The pace of grace is walking side by side with Jesus and learning and conforming to His unforced rhythm. Jesus beckons us to a relationship where we can find rest for our souls; a solace enabled only through the cross. In His single and perfect sacrifice we stand reconciled to our Creator, as Hebrews 10:14 states, “For by a single offering He has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.” Thus, we can rest assured that our salvation is only by the grace of God, and not by works which is a continual striving for approval or a conjuring of our own way to redemption. Not only can we find rest in our reconciled position, we can also find rest in our inclusion.

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Publisher JOYCE BIRCH General Editor JON SCOTT BIRCH Art Selection HALEY DYE SHANA SMITH The Holy Spirit testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, therefore we can approach the throne of grace with confidence as beloved children, not having to work tirelessly to earn the love and favor of our Father. First John 3:19-20 reiterates, “This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in His presence: If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and He knows everything.” God is full of endless mercy and grace. At times when our hearts tell us otherwise, we can trust in the unchanging character of our loving Father, calling to mind that “God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). The sacrifice of Jesus shows us His steadfast love; a love that is patient, kind, not easily angered, and keeps no records of wrongs (1 Cor 13:4,5). Such a love cultivates freedom in our relationship with Him and provides a foundation for our identity, purpose, and life. I pray that you will be encouraged by the following articles to live with holy purpose, abiding and walking with our unhurried Savior at the pace of His grace.

Layout & Design LIZ RAÑOLA Advisor CANDY ABBOTT Social Media STACEY HITCH

Published by Signet Ring, a division of Recover Church. P.O. Box 1891 Millsboro, DE 19966. For questions or comments: info@signetringmag.com Copyright © 2012-2014 Signet Ring a division of Recover Church. All rights reserved. No part of this magazine may be reproduced without written consent of publisher. ISSN: 2168-34259 (print) ISSN: 2168-3433 (online).

Mission Statement

Signet Ring promotes a wholehearted pursuit of Jesus Christ in response to His invitation, “Follow Me.” We do this through learning about and growing in our identity in Christ, imparting His love in our relationships, and living a disciple’s life. In light of the principles of 1 Tim 1:5, “The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.” REST

Q & A: God’s Rest

What is

God ’s Rest Rest in

and how can we

he first thing in the world that God made holy was a day- the Sabbath. “Then God blessed

the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created”

(Genesis 2:3). The importance of this day is reinforced as it is the only holy day mandated in the Ten Commandments to be observed: “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Ex. 20:8). Surely some of us, in our youth, wondered if God could ever truly get tired (physically or spiritually) and thus need rest. And certainly, as we matured we came to understand that on the seventh day God ceased His work of Creation, considering and actively enjoying its goodness.1

JON BIRCH is cofounder of Recover Church, a discipleship-driven movement purposing to recover and promote the early church model as recorded in the book of Acts where Christ, close relationships, and discipleship-apologetics were the pillars of Christianity. He is also the author of Simplifying the Complex. For more information visit veritasunum.org.

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Q & A: God’s Rest Such consideration and proactive enjoyment is in fact the true reason for the Sabbath, along with remembrance, as revealed in Deuteronomy 5:15, “And remember that you were a slave in

Him?

BY JON SCOTT BIRCH

the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God brought you out from there by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm; therefore the LORD your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.”

Jews connect the Sabbath to two events: Creation and the Exodus from Egypt. This connection serves as a remembrance of both God’s omnipotence and deliverance. Likewise, Christians can connect the Sabbath to two events: Creation and the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. This also recalls God’s omnipotence and deliverance, but, in light of our former slavery to sin, further extols His love and desire for fullest relational reconciliation and restoration. For it pleased the Father that in Him all fullness should dwell, and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself… having made peace through the blood of His cross (Colossians 1:19-20). Thus, God’s rest is God’s peace. The Hebrew word for Sabbath is Shabbat and is related to the verb shavat, which means to “cease, desist, rest (from work).” Yet, the Sabbath demands more than refraining from physical work, for we can still actively fulfill “the Lord’s work/ rest” without dishonoring this holy day. The Sabbath is specifically marked off as a day devoted to God and to the life of the Spirit. It is to be honored by blessed remembrances, receiving Scriptural instruction, studying to show oneself approved unto God, fellowshipping and demonstrating love for family and friends… all accomplished in a most humble and genuine worshipful bent toward our Creator. The celebration of the Sabbath is noted in the Gospels, Acts, and also throughout the Epistles. Jesus even “kept the Sabbath” as a devout Jew; however, His devotion was tempered by His stated truth that “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27). Indeed, Jesus continuously frustrated the Pharisees by showing the intent of the Sabbath to be one that blessed people, rather than being a rigid ritual observance that called down condemnation from “overlords” when deviated from.2 Herein, it matters not whether your weekly Sabbath day is Saturday, Sunday, any other day, or

fluctuates week to week. What matters is that you take at least one day a week to honor God and His provision accordingly.3 Moreover, we must also understand that “Sabbath rest” is not just to be experienced on one particular day of the week, but is meant to be lived out as we present ourselves to God as living sacrifices proportional to our reasonable service.4 HOW IS RESTING IN GOD POSSIBLE? Resting in the peace of God5 is only possible when we have peace with God. When a heart is awakened to Gospel truth, there are but two directions in which to go: continued rebellion or surrender to Jesus Christ. Therefore, we must desire to be reconciled to God so that we may have fellowship with Him sweeter than even Adam possessed, knowing that God would not have allowed the initial state to be spoiled by sin had He not meant to fashion a more magnificent structure out of its ruin!6 And only Jesus as Architect could accomplish so great a design: “I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself… I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly” (John 10:17-18; 10:10).

How, then, is our present circumstance more advantageous than Adam’s? Consider that the reconciled sinner has the advantage in both union and communion with God. Adam was indeed joined in love and fellowship with God, undoubtedly a perfect condition. Yet our union and communion is deeper still, an even more perfect condition, as the Father, by His Son and through His Spirit, marvelously makes a man or woman one person in Christ. This is a privilege Adam did not know and of which angels seek to be apprised.7 If the Bible is the Word of God and Jesus the Word made flesh, then what is the Gospel but God’s heart in print? Our own hearts must trust God at His Word and then actively confront and wrestle with His Word in a divine heart to heart. “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!”8 must be our cry as we are beset by our flesh and its poison. No longer can we run from our Savior because of guilt and improper fear, attempting to fix ourselves in the flesh before we engage Him in the spirit. REST

Q & A: God’s Rest apart from God that we are ever trying to right ourselves before we pray, even to the point of avoiding worship. We forget that ritual and ceremony has expired, for Jesus now resides in our midst!

“My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest” (Ex. 33:14). “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest”

Recall and proclaim aloud that there is no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus and that the fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.9 Call to Him in full surrender of your being and then incline unto His invitational psalm: “Be still, and know that I am God.”10 WHY DOES GOD TELL US TO BE STILL WHEN THERE IS MUCH TO BE DONE? God understands that our busyness, even in serving Him, always keeps us from true and lasting intimacy with Him. Though the devil lashes us with condemnation, so too does our conscience: “The carnal mind is enmity against God” (Rom. 8:7). Too often our Bibles remain unopened due to a presumptive familiarity. But we must never rob God of the opportunity to utilize the power of His Word. The heart and mind of man is so rooted in its enmity against God that the only remedying power is that which can uproot mountains and create worlds: The Word of God. The Gospel. “I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation” (Romans 1:16). Such power,

after reconciliation with God, can also bring reconciliation with oneself. But, as with the former, we must taste and see that the Lord is good (Psalm 34:8). Then we must learn to feast on His truth and actually grow

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in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:18). And if we neglect to feast daily, and persist in leaving our Bibles and hearts unopened, then we invite further condemnation and a mindset that justifies our aversions and places the blame for our sorry state on God Himself! We willingly believe the lie that good works will overthrow our condemning thoughts. Then when such imaginings fail, we suffer mental, emotional, and spiritual anguish as we discern the growing disconnect from our Savior. We wish for God to rescue us from ourselves but we envision His countenance to be one of stone and judgment, so we avoid the prayers of affection we know we must pray. Yet this is precisely when we must “be still” and contemplate God, opening the Gospel and looking wholly upon the face of Jesus whose delightful countenance is one of only mercy and truest love. WHY IS RESTING IN GOD SO DIFFICULT? Why is prayer, studying Scripture, and “being still” so dreary to so many of us? It is because we know God too little. In our prayers and stillness, our hearts are not soundly set on His presence, but rather on our own presence. In our Scripture reading, our hearts are hurried, divided, and legalistic. It is only when we live a life

(Matt. 11:28). The true disciple understands that life is meant to be a constant abiding with the Father and Son, through the Spirit. Whether in the prayer-closet, at work, at play, at rest, fulfilling a ministry call, rejoicing, suffering, or dying, the true disciple is in sustained communion with God. And since God is Spirit, those worshiping Him must worship in spirit and truth (John 4:24). This is impossible if we are walking in the flesh and deception. We worship God “in truth” as we allow the revelation of His Being to dissolve all religion and vain imaginations of who He might be. And we worship “in spirit” as we humbly invite His Spirit to draw us unto Him. We must not only provoke a confident voice, but a confident soul. We must not only exhibit a humble posture, but a humble mind. We must not only have a ready ear for our Savior’s Word, but a receiving heart. Jesus often withdrew Himself into the wilderness to pray alone with His Father (Luke 5:16). And He instructed His disciples to incorporate a specific kind of prayer: “When you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place” (Matt. 6:6).

Resting in God is only possible for those who have genuine prayerful communion with Jesus, and the difficulty in/with prayer is purposed to sift the halfhearted from the wholehearted disciples. If Christ on earth needed such fellowship with the Father, how much more vital must this be for us? 1

God and humanity were both “at rest” walking in perfect fellowship before Adam and Eve sinned. 2 Matthew 12:1-14; Mark 3:1-6 3 Mark 2:28; Acts 15:22-29; Galatians 2:11-21 4 Romans 12:1 5 Philippians 4:7; Colossians 3:15 6 Romans 8:28 7 1 Peter 1:12 8 Mark 9:24 9 Romans 8:1; Psalm 111:10 10 Psalm 46:10

Stop being perpetually uneasy (anxious and worried) about your life, what you shall eat or what you shall drink; or about your body, what you shall put on. Is not life greater (in quality) than food, and the body (far above and more excellent) than clothing?

Consider the lilies of the field and learn thoroughly how they grow; they neither toil nor spin. Yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his magnificence (excellence, dignity, and grace) was not arrayed like one of these. Matthew 6: 25-34 (AMP)

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IDENTITY: Who Am I?

Child BY LAUREN HIRSCH-FARROW

ow do I define myself? Is it by the company I keep, the type of car I drive, or the namebrand items I brandish? This is a challenging question for me. How about you? What are the various ways in which you characterize your individual identity? Take a moment to contemplate it. Now, consider 1 Corinthians chapter 6, verses 19-20: “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought with a price. Therefore, honor God with your body” (NIV). I am not my own. Jesus paid the ultimate price for my life so that I may receive the presence of the Holy Spirit – a price which was paid for in love. In other words, my identity could never be found

LAUREN HIRSCH-FARROW currently resides in Salisbury, MD with her husband, Jon. She is a social services specialist at a skilled nursing and rehabilitation facility and is working on her Master’s degree in Psychology at Washington College. Lauren has a heart for worship and a passion to see social justice extended to the less fortunate in the world. 6

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in the material possessions or endeavors of this world. Therefore, because worldly things can never define me, they can also never represent my worth. Instead, my identity is found in Christ Jesus alone, as is yours if you’ve asked Jesus to become your Savior. Is that not a comforting thought? In the same way that we cannot define ourselves by what we have or what we do, we also cannot define ourselves by our sins. Of course, we should strive toward that which is holy, but let’s be honest here: every one of us falls very short of perfection each and every day. I know I do! Even so, we cannot define ourselves by the things we do, otherwise the undeserved gift of Jesus would be for naught. If there is repentance in our hearts for the unholy things we do or say, then God Himself has cast those sins into the sea of forgetfulness. If God Himself doesn’t define us by our shortcomings – if He doesn’t even remember these things – then why should we dwell upon them? Don’t forget that the enemy of our faith, Satan, is the one who stands as our accuser, dredging up the things in our past so God’s unrelenting forgiveness may be denied its full healing power in our lives. Any guilt or shame we may be feeling over something we have already given to God can only come from Him, for God can only be love. Consider the book of 1 Corinthians chapter 4, verses 1-7: “So then, men ought to regard us as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the secret things of God. Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. I care very little if I am judged by you or

by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. Therefore, judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men’s hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God. “Now, brothers, I have applied these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, so that you may learn from us the meaning of the saying, ‘Do not go beyond what is written.’ Then you will not take pride in one man over against another. For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?” (NIV). On the same note, if we shouldn’t characterize ourselves in worldly terms,

IDENTITY: Who Am I?

of God

“Are we not more alike than we are different?”

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IDENTITY: Who Am I?

we also cannot view others in terms of their deeds. Consider it: wouldn’t it be hypocritical for me to ask God to give me grace and mercy for my shortcomings and failings, but then to ask for His judgment upon another? Since we are all sinners, we are all standing on equal ground with one another. That is, we’re all, essentially, the same. If I can have the love of God simply by being His child, for whom He loves and sent His Son, every sinner on earth can also experience the love of God by simply being His child. Instead of categorizing others as lawyers, doctors, drug addicts, or adulterers, we must recognize that these are some of the things that people may do but it is not who they are. We cannot identify others in terms of their deeds – or sins – for God doesn’t do this to us. Every person on the planet is a child of God and He loves each of us equally. It’s just that some of His children do not yet know their heavenly Father personally, and we need to be willing to demonstrate the unfathomable, unbreakable, unshakable, and all-accepting love of God to those we encounter.

In the book of Romans, chapter 14, verses 1-4, the apostle Paul states, “Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters. One man’s faith allows him to eat everything, but another man, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. The man who eats everything must not look down on him who does not, and the man who does not eat everything must not condemn the man who does, for God has accepted him. Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand” (NIV). My job is not to fix others – to judge them for their deeds in order to make them “better.” God will deal with someone else’s sin according to His will (not mine), in His own time (not mine), and in the same way He deals with my sin – with the loving hand of a father. Are we not more alike than we are different? Categorizing individuals into groups of “us” and “them” produces great division, both within the church and between the church and the rest of the world.

“...we must first receive love in order to be love and we must then be love before we can help others in love.” In the book of Romans, chapter three, the apostle Paul explains that both Jews and Gentiles are viewed alike in the eyes of God in that we are all sinners. Paul states, “There is no one righteous, not even one…” Therefore, it is only by God’s unfathomable grace that we can be granted, as followers of Christ, undeserved righteousness when we cannot come close to earning it by our own deeds. Yet, how can we not share this redeeming love with a broken and hurting world? “If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don’t love, I’m nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate. If I speak God’s word with power, revealing all His mystery and making everything plain as day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain, ‘Jump,’ and it jumps, but I don’t love, I’m nothing. If I give everything

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I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don’t love, I’ve gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I’m bankrupt without love” (1 Corinthians 13:1-3, The Message). My life – and your life – they are not our own and they can never be appropriately described by the definitions and labels of this world. We were all paid for with Jesus’ loving sacrifice and it is only through this sacrifice that we are able to truly find rest in Him. Therefore, no matter what we do in our day-to-day lives, we are called to be a beckoning light to those who are lost. Ultimately, we must first receive love in order to be love and we must then be love before we can help others in love. In this way, we may honor God with our bodies and with our lives.

IDENTITY: Discipleship

Resting in Christ BY BRANDON MILLER

n Luke 9:23-25, Jesus said “If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow Me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself?” We are called to give up, or “lose,” anything in this world that would stand in the way of us following Christ. We deny sin and fight to keep ourselves pure. We deny any desire that would cause us to go against God’s will. We deny anything that could cause us to fall away from the faith and have our faith proven false (Matthew 24:10, Hebrews 6:4-6). But are we to deny ourselves rest, laboring around the clock, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, without taking the time to relax? And how can we relax if we have full-time jobs or school, errands to run, dinner to cook, a wife or a husband desiring our attention, and children to raise? Sometimes it seems tough to get away from it all. The Bible happens to say a lot of things about rest. First of all, we know that God rested on the seventh day of creation and made that day holy (Genesis 2:1-3). In Exodus 20:8-11 He commands the Israelites to do no work on the Sabbath, “For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day.”

Here we catch a glimpse of the rest that God wants us to have, in that He actually commands the people to take a rest. And it must have been nice for the workers to take a rest after working so hard for six straight days every week! But it seems to me that this was but a shadow of the rest that believers would find in the Son of God, Jesus Christ, when He was revealed to Israel and to the Gentiles. In Matthew 11:28-30, Jesus says “Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.” For those of us who have not had to plow a field using oxen, a yoke is a wooden frame that attaches to the necks of a pair of oxen so that they can be worked as a team (Collins English Dictionary, 2009). We are human; we grow tired from our labor and the trials of this world. Without Christ, we go through life as if we are an ox pulling an extremely heavy cart behind us. We labor and sweat and struggle and seem to go nowhere. We wallow in our sins. But once we repent and trust in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we take His yoke upon us, so to speak. His yoke is light, and we can find the rest and peace that we need in Him. But

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IDENTITY: Discipleship

this passage is not merely talking about physical, bodily rest. Notice how Jesus said “you will find rest for your souls.” The Bible teaches that everyone’s soul is eternal and that we will spend eternity in one of two destinations: heaven or hell. When we repent and trust in Christ, our sins that once separated us from God are forgiven and we gain eternal rest for our souls. Yet the ability to repent and trust in Christ is not something that we could have done on our own, for we “were dead in the trespasses and sins in which [we] once walked… But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved” (Ephesians 2:1-2, 4-5). We can rest knowing that it was not our works that saved us, but it was Christ Himself who saved us by dying in our place on the cross. Second Corinthians 5:21 says “For our sake He made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” Once we believe in this Gospel, this Good News, we no longer feel the pressure to 10

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IDENTITY: Discipleship

earn favor or salvation for ourselves. It was Christ who earned it for us in His death and resurrection, and if we repent and trust our lives to Him, we will be saved (Mark 1:15). Our souls have eternal rest because of Christ. This is the most magnificent thing we could ever ask for! But that still does not change the fact that we have to endure this life, as difficult as it may be. In a way, life gets easier when we become Christians, as we now have the grace necessary to overcome sin because Christ dwells within us through the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:9-11). But for some it may become more difficult as tribulations increase and they endure mocking, persecution, imprisonment, or even death. As Christians go through tough times in life, we must constantly go back to the Gospel and remind ourselves of how we were saved and what we were saved from. Our minds naturally wander away from the Gospel as we get caught up in the cares of this world. So let us keep reminding ourselves and other Christians about the cross. We will find rest in that. We must also understand that everything happens according to God’s

eternal plan, even the hardships we experience. Find rest during times of failure or trials by keeping in mind that though something may seem terrible to us, it is happening according to God’s plan. God uses trials to prove the genuineness of our faith (1 Peter 1:6-7). God even brings good out of evil: Though Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery, God saved many lives through Joseph during a time of famine (Genesis 50:20). Second Corinthians 4:17-18 states, “For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen.” So we can also find rest by looking forward to eternity. That we will be with God for all eternity, where there will be no more death, mourning, crying, or pain (Revelation 21:4), should help us to keep running the race of faith until we reach the finish line. This current life, difficult as it may be, is only a blink of an eye compared to eternity. Once we reach the end of our lives, if we have trusted in Christ for our salvation, we will certainly enter His rest.

BRANDON MILLER is a member of Crossview Church in Los Angeles, CA. He has a passion for Jesus Christ, evangelism, missions, and theology. His mission is to make disciples of Jesus Christ by faithfully living out the Gospel and by truthfully speaking the Gospel.

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IDENTITY: Eternal Perspective

A Savior at Rest, But BY JON SCOTT BIRCH

e are either a product of religion or of the Spirit of God. For example, when we desire to make anything a success in worldly affairs, we put our whole heart into it. We are “religious” about whatever it is we are trying to succeed in. But we repeatedly have nothing left of our hearts to give to God, though we earnestly proclaim that He indeed “has our heart.”

Is He not worthy? How often do we rob our own Creator of opportunities to reveal His will to us by forsaking His Word and closing our ears to His still small voice? As His providence would have it, He has surely given us a choice: obedience or disobedience. And disobedience is a direct result from not being at rest in His presence soulfully, emotionally, and physically. We must labor and discipline ourselves (in body, mind, and spirit) toward proper and practical discipleship to Christ, for with a stark awareness of our deficiencies we can more boldly pursue and walk in His sufficiency. Only then can we sing with the psalmist: “With my whole heart I have sought You; Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments! Your Word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You” (Psalm 119:10-11).

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In that Jesus is the Word made flesh, we can trust His example to inspire our own words to become flesh rather than rotting under the rising pile of idle intentions. And we also must move beyond merely understanding how Jesus utilized Scripture to perceiving how He viewed Himself in relation to it. While on earth, Jesus was ever alert to not only His immediate circumstance but also to the simultaneously existing eternal one. He knew when He was fulfilling Scripture, yet it was not forced. The Gospels do not present Jesus as being hurried or constrained by an unforgiving schedule that dictated His mood or actions. Despite His foreknowledge of coming events, Jesus’ composure embodied peace and offered unequaled love. Consider that after waiting thirty years to begin His public ministry, Jesus’ first action was to follow the Spirit’s leading for forty more days in the wilderness! Then there are the seemingly puzzling occasions when He unhurriedly made His way to heal a synagogue official’s daughter and to visit his sick friend Lazarus, who died during a two-day delay.1 Let us consider these circumstances more carefully. In the wilderness, Jesus was tempted to take for Himself instantly what His Father had promised to provide in time according to His earthly ministry. Fasting and isolation had made Jesus weak

physically but His fervent prayers to His Father and meditation on the Word made Him stronger mentally and spiritually. Thus empowered to resist the devil and pass this difficult test, Jesus was prepared to abide in the will of the Father and was equipped to be in step with the Spirit, every day.2 On His way to heal Jairus’ daughter a woman reached out and touched Jesus’ garment. She was instantly healed of her discharge of blood that she had suffered for twelve years. But rather than hurrying along, Jesus engaged the woman and commended her faith, turning the moment into an opportunity to minister to the surrounding crowd. This apparent postponement of healing Jairus’ daughter effected the girl’s death, for while Jesus was still speaking to the crowd someone brought such news. But Jesus entreated Jairus not to be afraid and to “only believe” (Mark 5:35-36). When He appeared at the house to heal the girl, Jesus was met with a tumult of weeping and wailing but insisted that the child was “not dead,” to which the people responded with ridicule (Mark 5:39). At His command to “Arise,” the girl arose, full of life. Those present were overcome with great amazement (Mark 5:41-42). In similar unhurried fashion, when Jesus heard news of Lazarus’ illness and despite being two days’ travel away, He

“...hurry is not just a disordered schedule but a disordered heart.”

IDENTITY: Eternal Perspective

Not Idle “...love is patient...”

tarried across the Jordan for two days and continued teaching those who came to Him.3 But upon His arrival in Bethany, where by this time Lazarus had been dead four days, Mary (Lazarus’ sister) affectionately scolded Him by crying, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died” (John 11:32). Even some of those Jews who had joined Mary and Martha in their grieving said, “Could not this Man, who opened the eyes of the blind, also have kept this man from dying?” (John 11:37). Then at Jesus’ command to open the tomb, Martha (who had just conversed with Jesus about His being “the resurrection and the life”) expressed her own abiding doubt by stating, “Lord, by this time there is a stench, for he has been dead four days” (John 11:39). It was Jesus’ turn to offer tenderhearted rebuke when He said to her, “Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?” Jesus called Lazarus to come forth from the grave, and he did. Then many of the Jews who were present believed in Him (John 11:45). Being that love is patient and the eternal perspective is so much more revealing than a self-focused worldly one, Jesus’ deliberate and relaxed pace of life allowed for more of Himself to be poured

into others. Likewise for us. The apparent delays were simply further opportunities to love, heal, and glorify God through resurrection from death, and it was death that Jesus was explicitly (and prophetically) showing to have no power: “I am the resurrection and the life” (John 11:25). And it must be noted that Jesus’ power over death included being set free from a death-driven mindset. Through Him one could (and still can) breathe freedom and live as He did in full, unhurried, and joyful awareness of their divine mission. We must refuse to give in to the lies that beckon us toward the fruitlessness of frenetic and endless toil. Genuine discipleship teaches us to learn not only to value a Savior at rest but to also partake of His rest, even in the presence of the enemy.4 In his book The Life You’ve Always Wanted, John Ortberg states that hurry is not just a disordered schedule but a disordered heart. Recall again Jesus’ trial in the desert. How often do we purposefully avoid or indifferently dismiss the “wildernesses” in our discipleship that would establish or correct our bearings? Do we mistakenly believe that God would never lead us into a period of testing when not even Jesus was spared such? How many of our personal ministries are born of comfort and convenience rather than by fire and crucible?

Be still, and contemplate God.5 Invite Jesus Christ to rectify any identity crisis and allow His Spirit to equip and direct you toward the mission you were created for.6 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God (Romans 12:2). Let us be wholehearted disciples, and thus products of the Spirit of God. Let us live a life (in body, mind, and spirit) that proclaims Christ’s worthiness of our worship! Our salvation is nearer than when we first believed, so let us not disappoint the faithful under the Old Covenant who have gone before us and had a more difficult time in “resting” and being loyal to a forward-pointing guarantee. For they did not see the fulfillment of the promises, as we have. Promises we can rest on by a Savior whom we can rest in. The promises’ consummation came with us, and ours is the easier place in the plan of God.7

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Matthew 4:1-11; Mark 5:22-43; John 11:1-43 Galatians 5:16-25 John 10:40-42; 11:6-7 Psalm 23:5 Psalm 46:10 Jeremiah 1:5 Hebrews 11:39-40

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LIFE: Classics

he other evening I was riding home after a heavy day’s work. I felt very wearied, and sore depressed, when swiftly, and suddenly as a lightning flash, that text came to me, “My grace is sufficient for thee.” I reached home and looked it up in the original, and at last it came to me in this way, “MY grace is sufficient for thee”; and I said, “I should think it is, Lord,” and burst out laughing. I never fully understood what the holy laughter of Abraham was until then. It seemed to make unbelief so absurd. It was as though some little fish, being very thirsty, was troubled about drinking the river dry, and Father Thames said, “Drink away, little fish, my stream is sufficient for thee.” Or, it seemed after the seven years of plenty, a mouse feared it might die of famine; and Joseph might say, “Cheer up, little mouse, my granaries are sufficient for thee.” Again, I imagined a man away up yonder, in a lofty mountain, saying to himself, “I breathe so many cubic feet of air every year, I feel I shall exhaust the oxygen in the atmosphere,” but the earth might say, “Breathe away, O man, and fill the lungs ever, my atmosphere is sufficient for thee.” Oh, brethren, be great believers! Little faith will bring your souls to heaven, but great faith will bring heaven to your souls.

C.H. SPURGEON Homily, 1895

“Drink away, little fish, my stream is sufficient for thee... Little faith will bring your souls to heaven, but great faith will bring heaven to your souls.” A small region of Omega nebula. Also known as The Swan Nebula. 14

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LIFE: Hymn

The Lord is my strength and my shield; in Him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to Him. - Psalm 28:7

“Trust and Obey” HYMN BY JOHN H. SAMMIS (1887)

When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word, What a glory He sheds on our way! While we do His good will, He abides with us still, And with all who will trust and obey. Not a shadow can rise, not a cloud in the skies, But His smile quickly drives it away; Not a doubt or a fear, not a sigh or a tear, Can abide while we trust and obey. Not a burden we bear, not a sorrow we share, But our toil He doth richly repay; Not a grief or a loss, not a frown or a cross, But is blessed if we trust and obey. But we never can prove the delights of His love Until all on the altar we lay; For the favor He shows, for the joy He bestows, Are for them who will trust and obey. Then in fellowship sweet we will sit at His feet. Or we’ll walk by His side in the way. What He says we will do, where He sends we will go; Never fear, only trust and obey. Trust and obey, for there’s no other way To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.

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RELATIONSHIPS: Ministry

Katlyn Street, 4-month-old Adelyn Street, Rita Clucas

others With a Mission® is a nonprofit organization designed to strengthen the moral and spiritual foundation of our homes, families, and communities. Their mission is to impart eternal values, and according to Candy Abbott, the organization’s executive director, “We do that by ‘doing life together.’” Signet Ring recently interviewed Candy and we were blessed with her response. HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE “MISSION” OF MOTHERS WITH A MISSION?

as worldly moms, but if we’re walking in step with the Holy Spirit, we can have peace and joy in the midst of all the things that tug and pull at us and go wrong in a day’s time. With all the demands and noise around us, sometimes we need a reminder that we mother by a higher standard with the help of the One who promises never to leave or forsake us. Our hope is to inspire moms to be intentional about coming alongside one another so they can share the joy and empowerment that comes from recognizing what the Lord is doing in their lives. As we encourage one another, our excitement will naturally spill over into mothers who don’t know Christ as they observe us.

MWM’s desire is to build up godly mothers in an effort to give the world something to aspire to. If the women of God look no different than the world and produce no better results, then something is drastically wrong. Sure, we have the same struggles

Mothers With a Mission offers: A biblically based outreach for mothers and grandmothers of all ages A relational ministry that reaches people on a heart level, meeting genuine needs

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A valuable tool for drawing un-churched moms and their families into the family of God A way to inspire moms to identify and use their God-given gifts and passions to build one another up A custom-fit approach that can work for any church or community In time, we’re hoping our website will be so full of fresh and substantial resources that it will become the “go to place for moms” (www.motherswithamission.org). HOW DID GOD CALL YOU INTO THIS MINISTRY? WHEN? WAS ANYONE ELSE INVOLVED FOR YOU TO START THE MINISTRY? My call to initiate Mothers With a Mission began during my second year as president of the Delaware Chapter of American Mothers, Inc., a national organization that has been honoring mothers for 75 years.

RELATIONSHIPS: Ministry During the national convention in April 2013, the board unveiled a marketing campaign that targeted a more secular audience, which included a new vision and values. When they abandoned the mission statement that had drawn me into the organization in the first place, I sensed the Lord nudging me to not only embrace their discarded statement but to run with it. By then, the Lord had stirred a passion in me to speak out on behalf of biblical and moral values, and the next thing I knew, the whole concept of a new non-profit organization was coming alive before my very eyes. The concept for Mothers With a Mission came about in the spring of 2013. In August, several of my Delaware AMI board members and I met with Nicole Theis who is the driving-force behind Delaware Strong Families (which works to promote biblical worldview values, resources, and programs to educate and empower citizens to stand strong for those values) and Delaware Family Policy Council (which advocates for principles of life, marriage, family, religious liberty, and biblical stewardship of government). By October, Mothers With a Mission was successfully trademarked. In December, seven mothers met in my home to prayerfully discuss the

overall direction of MWM, and we held our first open meeting in February 2014, where we connected with others with a passion for biblical motherhood. On March 6, we had our official launch at the annual DFPC Summit where Nicole introduced Mothers With a Mission to the 600 pastors and leaders present. While our leadership team is still in its infancy, the Lord has already brought uniquely gifted women alongside. One of the best surprises for me has been the blessing of Rita Clucas. It turns out that several years ago, while journaling during her prayer time, the Lord gave her the very same words: Mothers with a Mission. She didn’t know what it meant at the time, but the Lord positioned her to connect with me at the very outset of Mothers With a Mission, and she is already proving to be my primary partner. WHAT RESOURCES DO YOU OFFER FOR MOTHERS FROM DIFFERENT WALKS OF LIFE OR BACKGROUNDS? Mothers With a Mission seeks to meet the needs of mothers and grandmothers alike from diverse backgrounds, cultures, and stages of life. We do that by understanding

we can’t do it all, but that through God’s leading and help, we can empower others to meet each need. For instance, we may not be able to personally speak into a foster mom’s life or a widowed mom’s life, but God can bring people to partner with them who have the desire, the experience, and the ability to do so. Our primary method of nurturing moms is simply through building relationships. What we have in mind is an “intentional friendship” among or between moms. Don’t worry, we older moms won’t come in with a “fix-it” mentality thinking we have all the answers, because, well, who does? What we have is compassion and a desire to cast a vision for the next generation, and the next, and the next. It is our desire to come alongside and serve as a sounding board and beacon, pointing to Jesus, the One who holds the answers to each mother’s needs. What would this look like? Well, just as every fingerprint and snowflake is different, no two Mothers With a Mission entities will look alike. This is friendshipdriven, love-driven, and Bible-based. But we do have tools to recommend. It could be as simple as choosing a book from our recommended reading list on a casual basis as a small group, or it could be a more

WGMD Interview 4-23-14 Rita (left), Jim Rash and Candy

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CANDY ABBOTT, executive director of Mothers With a Mission, is an author, publisher, inspirational speaker, and a grandmom. But most of all, she sees herself as a “fruitbearer” as it is her life’s goal to exhibit the Fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5: 22-23) in all that she does. She began writing in 1983, around the same time she co-founded Sisters in Christ. Candy is a charter member of Southern Delaware Toastmasters, elder and deacon at the Georgetown Presbyterian Church, director of the annual Fruitbearer conference, and founder of Delmarva Christian Writers’ Fellowship. She and her husband Drew own and operate Fruitbearing Publishing, LLC. They have three children and four grandchildren, all in close proximity to their home in Georgetown, DE. Visit motherswithamission. org, fruitbearer.com or fruitbearerevents.com

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structured Bible study, like the DVD-based Mom to Mom series with workbooks and a leader’s guide. Our website contains a wide variety of resources, including books that can be used as discussion-starters as well as for personal edification. We’ve been getting requests for online Bible studies for moms (for adoptive moms, foster moms, working moms, homeschool moms), and we’re researching the right vehicle for that kind of offering. Several of our advisors are teachers who can write curriculum. Creative ideas are coming at us from all sides—from YouTube skits to ministering to pregnant teens to biblical parenting seminars, a radio “mom minute,” and a potential Facebook forum. We already have a number of helpful links on our site as well as other tested resources, and we’ll be continually updating those. Our desire is to make the website as interactive and meaty as possible. However, we have to keep reminding ourselves that we don’t have to have everything in place right away. We’re committed to following the leading of the Holy Spirit, praying our way along, step-bystep, guarding our peace.

find it interesting that a number of our blog followers are not believers. In fact, one said outright that she doesn’t like Rita’s Jesus but loves her parenting and reads every word she writes. The blog is growing and sparking healthy conversation. I really hadn’t thought about track results, but I think we don’t need to concern ourselves with that. The key is for each mom to be faithful with the part God has given her to do at any given moment, and the Lord will take care of the spiritual development, probably in more ways than we’ll ever know. For example, a year ago, before any of us knew that MWM would exist, Rita felt a call to begin a mentoring program for young women. Not knowing where to start or who to invite, she waited on the Lord to give her nudges about who to approach about the idea. Some of the twelve were women she knew, but many were strangers she met in places like the grocery store where she would see a mom who looked overwhelmed and say something like, “This may seem strange, but I felt like I should mention that I’m starting a Bible fellowship for young women and didn’t know if you might be interested.” And then tears would fill the woman’s eyes and she’d say, “This is such an answer to prayer.” What began as a group of women who didn’t know each other has become a group of sisters whose hearts are knit together through the Word of God and from just hanging out together. They meet once a month to study together, once a month for a planned activity with all their families, and then whenever they feel like it for other events. They all attend different churches but stay connected by being intentional about being together and passing on prayer requests and praise reports. Rita says, “Regardless of what happens at this point, we know we have a shared and lasting bond that gives us strength.”

IN WHAT WAYS HAVE YOU SEEN MOTHERS WITH A MISSION HELP IN AN INDIVIDUAL’S SPIRITUAL DEVELOPMENT?

HOW DOES MOTHERS WITH A MISSION SHOW THE LOVE OF CHRIST?

One of the best features of our website is our blog, which really seems to be taking off. Rita is at the helm as our primary author, and she is getting a tremendous response on Facebook. We

MWM shows the love of Christ by investing in others. We desire to collectively and individually help moms and their families find their strengths and build upon them by reaching out to meet the needs of others.

RELATIONSHIPS: Ministry The tone we hope to set as a nonprofit organization is relaxed rather than corporate. For example, instead of electing officers, we trust the Holy Spirit to guide us to those who are to hold leadership positions. It’s the Jesus model. The Father showed Him who to invite to be His disciples, and that is how we operate. Nothing we do is rigid or legalistic, as too many people have been hurt by religion that insisted on its own way. We do things decently and in order, of course. In fact, we often have a printed meeting agenda, but flexibility is built in. If we insist on anything, it is that our members be authentic and teachable. For us, instead of using Robert’s Rules of Order, we trust that our members will operate according to the Fruit of the Spirit so that we will function in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. It is up to us to set an example of these qualities for the mothers we hope to inspire, and it must be genuine. How can anyone do that, you may ask? By considering others more important than ourselves and by clinging to the Source. After all, this kind of good fruit is not something we can generate through our own willpower. It only grows on a branch that is connected to the Vine.

WHAT ARE YOUR CURRENT NEEDS AND HOW CAN OTHERS HELP? Our current needs are primarily to get the word out and especially to draw people to our website where they can link up with us, whether it is to help us help others or tell us what they need. We can’t meet the needs of moms unless we hear from them and find out exactly what those needs are. For instance, do they need parenting seminars, online counseling, a refuge from abuse, someone to show them how to shop or cook or clean, someone to watch the kids so they can have a moment of sanity, a Bible study or mom’s group to connect with, an adult voice on the phone who understands, resources for personal use, or even just another woman to link arms with in the journey? We want to serve as a conduit for God to flow through in matching up mothers with other mothers who need one another and Him. After we have identified the needs and specific individuals who are willing to step forward, we’ll need help in sorting out all the pieces of the puzzle to see how things fit together. But that’s where our greatest need comes in: Prayer. We need prayer, and lots of it. For our team, for our families, for

the mothers who will become involved as this ministry unfolds and for their loved ones. For wisdom, for protection, for discernment. . . and for the ability to keep in step with the Spirit so we’re not tempted to try to figure all this out on our own. WHERE DO YOU SEE THE LORD LEADING THIS MINISTRY/ ORGANIZATION IN THE NEXT 5 YEARS? Only God really knows what Mothers With a Mission will look like five years from now. One thing I know is that we are committed to being faithful with the charge He has entrusted into our care, and the results are up to Him. And I can tell you this: We’re keeping in mind that whatever we develop for Delaware may, at some time in the future, serve as a model for mothers to replicate in other states... or around the world.

MWM Advisory Board (left to right): Rita Clucas, Judi Folmsbee, Nicole Theis, Candy Abbott, Karen Gritton, Linda Forte, and Betty Daudt

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LIFE: Resting at Home

What is Home? A Missionary’s Perspective BY BETH GRAVES

t’s hard for me to believe that I’ve been living in Africa for more than three years. It was a dream for so long, for so many years. And it came true. I worked really hard and God opened the door and I’ve been able to live the dream of being a missionary in Africa since December 2010. While each day is a gift, it has been much harder than I could have imagined. And I imagined it to be extremely hard. My first two years I was learning the local language, working with street boys, and absolutely fell in love with the people and city I was in. But I was also groped on public transport, sick a lot of the time, living with temperatures well above 100 degrees for eleven months out of the year with no air conditioning, desperately missing my family, was robbed, and had a house fire that took weeks to recover from. I struggled—oh, I struggled—but I loved it! I had friends, community, surrogate family, and work that I adored and was fulfilled in. I was building my life there. I was making it my home. Then everything changed.

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It is a closed country. And suddenly the government decided they wanted me and other missionaries out. I was followed, held in security, forced to be alone in a room with men, interrogated, and finally expelled. I have friends who were put in prison and some of my local friends and colleagues were tortured. My heart was broken and my dreams were shattered. I was shaken and exhausted. I went back to the States for a few months to recover. I ran, read, painted, cooked, and spent time with loved ones. I wrote in my journal a lot, and, as recommended by my organization, I met with a counselor a few times. I did things that fed my soul. I was empty. And God filled me again. After a few months I felt restored. It was not possible for me to return to my desert home, but I knew there was still work to be done. So I headed back to Africa not sure where I’d end up or what I’d be doing. God opened a door to a street girl’s center in South Sudan. I knew the language, it fit my skill set, and I was able to work with children at risk, something I am passionate about. I loved the work that

I was doing. I was fulfilled. But I was also living in the dorm with the girls. After six months of being around and available all the time, I was exhausted. My leadership and loved ones were concerned. On December 15, 2013 fighting broke out in the capital city, Juba, where I was living. I woke up in the night to audible gunfire and RPGs. This continued for two days and two more nights. I hunkered down with the thirty-seven girls at the center, trying to hide my own fear and keep them calm and entertained while the city was in crisis. Leaving the girls in good hands, I was evacuated on one of the first flights out as soon as the airport reopened. As I write this the country remains in crisis, at war against itself. So many senseless deaths. So much destruction and unrest. I cannot comprehend it. All in the same year, I was expelled and evacuated. Forced to leave two different places that I had made my home. Forced to leave personal belongings and people I loved and cared for deeply. Both were places where I felt passionate about the people and strongly about the work I was trying to do. Both were difficult places to live and work. Both were places that desperately need Jesus. When life throws us really hard circumstances, I think most of us just want to go home. But… home. Where is that? What does that even mean to me? I refer to the United States as my home, but the truth is that when I’m there I feel torn. The US will always carry the comfort of family and familiarity and ease, but Africa is my home now, too. Where I lived in North Africa for two years was starting to feel like home, but I don’t know if it still would feel the same if I’m ever able to go back. I have personal belongings in five different countries. Will

LIFE: Resting at Home

home finally be when I have all of my stuff in one place and I don’t feel so befuddled? John 14 talks about making our home in Christ. He is our place of rest. Or He wants to be. Our exhale at the end of the day. Our exhale throughout the day. Home is where we are nourished, where we are settled, and usually where the people we love the most reside. It is a place of warmth, comfort, and importance. I don’t know where on earth to call my home right now. But if I keep looking up, and keep my perspective on the life hereafter, making my home in Christ can mean something. It’s easier to hold the things of this life more loosely if I think of Christ as my home—my place of belonging and being—instead of any tangible place on this earth. A lot has happened these last few years. I’ve had a lot of losses to mourn. And it’s not like Jesus is not worthy. He is. Jesus Christ is worth every sacrifice and more. And I can’t live in fear of what the Lord might, seemingly, take from me next. I’ve had too many goodbyes, so much moving around, heartache. We all have heartache. And bad things will come. But I can’t live afraid of what I may have to let go of next. He is good. But He is more than good. He is a loving father. We are filled to be emptied again. But when we are feeling empty, when the bottom is near, we have to believe that the filling will come. And I think some of us have to swallow our pride, slow down, admit we are empty, and take time to rest and be filled in the Father. Yes, it is a declaration of weakness in some ways. In that we are declaring that we don’t have all the strength on our own. And if we try to live like we do have it, it’s essentially telling God we don’t need Him. It’s spitting in His face. So it’s okay to

admit our weaknesses. And it is necessary to turn to Him for refreshment. Is that what making my home in Him means? To come back every day, time and again, empty and trusting that I can rest and be filled again? That’s what homes are for, yeah? I long for a place to settle. Where I can stop unpacking and repacking my life. Where I can put in roots and be part of community. Where I can have all of my books and clothes in one house! I think in the back of my mind, in this imaginary house, when I’m surrounded by my stuff, it will help me be at ease. At rest. But it is all a farce, really. This earth will never be my home. No matter how contented I feel at times, I will always be aching for Glory. But if I can make Christ my home here on this earth, it makes it much easier to loosen my grip on everything else. So as I continue in this journey, I think the only way I can keep coping with life as it comes, is to keep my eyes fixed on Christ, moving forward to whatever lies ahead on the way to my true home.

BETH started following Jesus early in life and by the time she was sixteen she knew she wanted to share Christ with the orphans and the destitute in Africa that have yet to be reached with the Gospel. Her time in Africa has been joyful, challenging, and dangerous. With much in transition, including her most recent country of service, Beth remains steadfast in both her mission for Jesus and in calling Him her home.

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LIFE: Living in Hope

“Hope is the thing with feathers That perches in the soul, And sings the tune without the words, And never stops at all.” -Emily Dickinson

“Even while going th turning farther from BY SHANA SMITH

ope. All of us know it to a degree. We humans are very hopeful beings, we are built for hope. We all hope for little things from morning till night; we may hope for a good day, nice weather, no traffic. Some of us, however, hope for bigger things; we play the lottery each week, dream of a better car, a larger home, or the perfect relationship.

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LIFE: Living in Hope Then there are those who are hoping and praying with all of their heart that their precious child responds positively to the latest round of chemo. Others hope to not be laid off of work. Mothers hope to somehow put food on the table for their family. We also recognize that not all of human hopes are of a positive nature. I don’t think I have to list some of the ugly things humans are capable of hoping for. The daily news and history books are full of people trying to get away with harming others in the name of their desires, and such desires obviously have to start with some kind of hope. Thinking about the fact that everyone wakes up with an agenda full of hopes for the day makes me wonder why this world is not in complete chaos! Fortunately, I think most of us hope for good things and have learned to roll with the changes when things don’t go our way. Of course, in each of our lives there are times when we don’t feel very hopeful. Especially when all hope

new set of hopes some morning. Actually, there are a bunch of hopes I used to have that seem silly now and even some I thank God never happened! But when I hope on the things of God, I can feel my heart -like a bird freed from a cage- sour into the sky! As I continue to grow as a Christian, seeking to be a servant of God, I notice I have less of an agenda of my own in all of my hoping. Even while going through tough times, strangely enough, my hopes are turning farther from my own will and toward His will. This is why I can continually put more and more of my own hopes on the back burner. And that feels like freedom. It’s wonderful! It means having hopes that are bigger and better than my finite mind could ever attain. The more I read, listen to, and ponder God’s Word, the more I realize that His hope for me is to partake of all that He has prepared for me. First Corinthians 2:9 states, “But as it is written: Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” I hang a whole lot of my hopes on that verse. I believe many of us recognize that we have been born with a void in our hearts. It’s a place that feels empty, and so we spend

rough tough times, strangely enough, my hopes are my own will and toward His will.” for something is dashed, and such is life. We begin learning this from our earliest years, and yet we still hope. I am a very hopeful person. I LOVE to hope. I think of “hope” as both a noun and a verb. It is a noun, a “thing,” because I feel it take up space within me; it is a verb, an “action,” because it is something that I do. I have put many of my hopes and dreams on the back burner, not to be forgotten, but to simmer and stay warm. I like to dip into them regularly, stirring them up, making a few changes here and there. And I have many that are not far out of reach that I can work toward attaining each day. I might even wake up with a brand

much time and effort trying to fill it in order to feel satisfied. Humans are made in God’s image, but we are not complete at birth since we are all born with a sinful nature. That sinful nature causes us to try to fill the void with anything except Him. And hopes apart from God, even the fulfilled ones, may be fleeting or even empty at the end of our lives. John 3:5 says, “Jesus answered, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.’” Thankfully, many people realize that only Jesus Christ fills that void. How people go through their entire lives apart from a hope in Christ is beyond me, even while I understand the sinful nature we

SHANA SMITH is a wife, mother of two grown children, and has been in the child care business with her daughter for 9 years.

all share. To not know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that there is truly a hope for a better life after this one would probably drive me insane! We must live well in this life, and God desires this of us, as Jeremiah 29:11 reveals, “’For I know the thoughts that I think toward you,’ says the LORD, ‘thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.’” Examine Titus 1:1-2, “Paul, a bondservant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect and the acknowledgment of the truth which accords with godliness, in hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began.” How about that for something to have hope in? God promised it to us before He even created man. What a wonderful Savior we have to give us the gift of Hope before we even got started! To live our lives without hope would mean to be dead while we are alive. In this tumultuous world it is easy to give in to hopelessness. But Jesus never wants that for us. Hope in Him is a rest and a power that eases the harshness of life on this planet. It’s a power to rise above and see beyond what is before our eyes. In fact, the Bible calls hope “seeing the invisible.” Second Corinthians 4:1618 encourages us, “Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.” And to that I say, Amen!

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LIFE: Parenting

BY KAREN LEMBO

ow often, when calling an old friend, I am stunned to hear what I think is her voice on the other end say, “Oh, just a minute, let me get my mom.” It’s amazing to observe the similar mannerisms and vocal cadences that children pick up from their parents. Even the youngest children quickly pick up parental jargon and disciplinary strategies as they begin to interact with their siblings. In essence, parenting is less about instruction and more about reproduction. Whether we like it or not, it’s a world of “monkey see, monkey do.” When I first became a mother, I was so eager to be the best parent I could be. (I’ll also admit I was more than a little afraid to mess up my kids!) So, like many of you, I stocked up on the latest parenting manuals, along with diapers, lotions and onesies. I applied myself to intensive research and implementation of the best parenting strategies—and I drove myself crazy trying to get it “right.” Christian parenting complicates things further, as we try to teach our children to swim against cultural currents, attempting to follow God’s way of bringing kids up. Many of us grew up without Biblical training in our homes. For others, the training we received at home distorted God’s model. We know the answer is found in the Bible, and we are all quite familiar with this verse from Proverbs: “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6 KJV). Wanting to be the best parents we can be, we set about applying that verse by instructing, correcting and reprimanding our children. We seek the counsel of older and wiser friends, attend parenting workshops and try to determine appropriate rewards and consequences. But no matter how

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reasonable our instructions may seem, no matter what words we choose, our children only seem to hear, “Blah, blah, blah, blah,” much like the droning adults of the old Peanuts cartoons. We eventually throw up our hands in exasperation, wondering what we could possibly be doing wrong. Perhaps the answer is found in this verse: “In everything set them an example by doing what is good” (Titus 2:7 NIV). When we follow the old adage, “Do as I say, not as I do,” we can talk ourselves silly trying to teach our children right from wrong. What they really need from us is to be the people we want them to become. We do that by letting God’s word change us first:

As we concentrate on conforming ourselves to God’s image, we will be pleased to find our children likewise conforming, as they witness and copy our example. “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind…Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.

LIFE: Parenting Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited. Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone” (Romans 12:2, 9-18 NIV; emphasis added). There’s certainly enough to apply in just this one passage of Scripture to keep us busy for the rest of our lives! But before we find new ways to beat ourselves up over not “getting it right,” let me redirect our thinking. Here’s the thing we so often miss: we are transformed when our minds are renewed, not when we check a whole bunch of things off God’s big “to do” list. You see, the key to being a good parent is the time we spend in God’s Presence, not in the bleachers, the office, or the minivan. Hebrews puts it this way:

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith” (Hebrews 12:1-2 NIV; emphasis added). When our eyes are fixed on Jesus, when we witness His example and let His Word and His Spirit change our thinking, we become like Him, just as we pick up the mannerisms of our earthly parents. As we concentrate on conforming ourselves to God’s image, we will be pleased to find our children likewise conforming, as they witness and copy our example. For just as they seem to inherit our voices and mannerisms, they also inherit our spiritual tendencies and find it increasingly easier to obey God’s Word as they follow our example.

In essence, parenting is less about instruction and more about reproduction.

KAREN LEMBO is an artist and writer currently residing in Salisbury, MD with her husband, Art, and their three children, Emily, Arthur, and Katie. Karen has been sharing her unique insights from God’s Word for over four years on her blog, “Living above the Laundry Pile,” which you can access, along with her artwork, at www. karenlembo. com.

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LIFE: Devotional

Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy:You are to labor six days and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God… For the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and everything in them in six days; then He rested on the seventh day.Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and declared it holy. (Exodus 20:8-11 HCSB)

od said to “REMEMBER.” I wonder if it is because He knew there would be a time when people would water down or completely forget the fourth commandment. It is sometimes referred to as “The Forgotten Commandment” because many people fail to keep it faithfully. In the time of Jeremiah and Isaiah, Sabbath problems were more like the problems we face today. The Jews in their time were largely discounting the Sabbath, not keeping it any better than the pagans. They were being careless in their Sabbath obedience. This is the dilemma I observe in the Christian community today; I have certainly been guilty of not keeping the Sabbath. We often treat God’s fourth commandment with insignificance as compared to the other commandments, making it that much easier for Satan to sink this generation in work, stress, and activities that keep us too busy to rest and too occupied to keep our focus on God. God created the Sabbath as a day for us to rest, to refresh, to pray, to praise Him and to keep it Holy. Taking a Sabbath is not easy in today’s world. It’s all too easy to allow those “little things” to creep into our Holy Day. Truth be told, we are making the Sabbath similar to every other day of the week. Sabbath days need to be protected. I confess that many times I have failed to keep the Sabbath holy, so this isn’t about judging you, the reader. Rather, God gave me this devotional to help turn the minds of His people toward the importance of the Sabbath rest and protecting the sanctity of ALL His commandments.

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Some to Po

“God created the Sabbath to refresh, to pray, to praise H

thing nder BY STACY HITCH

as a day for us to rest, Him and to keep it Holy.”

LIFE: Devotional

We need to be reminded that the fourth commandment is NOT a suggestion. God’s commandments are instructional rules. God didn’t make the Sabbath day a gentle recommendation, the day has been set apart in worship to Him. The fourth commandment says that we are not to impose work upon others, whether man or animal, on the Sabbath. This struck home for me. There are many times I have gone out to eat after a church service. And then one day during my devotional time God pointed out to me that so many people are praying for their loved ones to attend church and to accept Jesus in their life, but those loved ones have to work on Sunday. Was I assisting in them not going to church because they had to work? Indeed I was, not only in that they were serving me food, but I believed I was imposing work on others on a day that I considered a Holy Day. Not keeping the Sabbath holy is part of Satan’s game to highlight our contradictions and erode our commitment to the Lord. The devil is saying it’s not a big deal, but it is killing our witness. Please don’t let the devil use you, too, as a hypocrital pawn in his game. The Sabbath is a blessed time given to us as a gift. We need it so that we can break from our regular work and activities. It is a unique day to focus on the Lord and everything He does for us. Most of all, it is a day to set aside distractions so that we can sit at the feet of Jesus. It can revive us spiritually with the energy and encouragement we need to live each day as messengers of the Good News. The Lord’s Day is both a day of spiritual opportunity, and a spiritual safeguard for all of life. Opportunities to compromise God’s Sabbath are limitless. Therefore, we have to be vigilant to “remember the Sabbath day.” If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on My holy day; and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the LORD, honourable; and shalt honour Him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words: Then shalt thou delight thyself in the LORD; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it (Isaiah 58:13-14 KJV).

STACEY L. HITCH is first and foremost a daughter of the King, a wife of 20 years, a mother of 2 great kids, a sister, a daughter, and a friend. She writes daily devotionals that come from her heart on www.RunTheRaceWithJesus.org, and she prays they always communicate a love for her Savior, a love for people, and a love to serve. Stacey attends Joshua House Ministries in Gumboro, DE, and she anticipates to see what God has for her next! REST

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