Got to get a new picture for this blog

The picture for this blog was great at first glance. I was ok with Boba Fett in the background and felt sorry for the grim looking virgin in the background. But when I really took a look at the lady in the foreground between Boba and dark lady, I noticed she was carrying a pig’s head. What is that!?!?! I thought this was a Jewish wedding.

Got to go find a new picture.

Hem Me In

Psalm 139:5

“You hem me in – behind and before.” (New International Version)

“Thou hast enclosed me behind and before.” (New American Standard)

“Behind and before Thou hast beseiged me.” (Youngs Literal Translation)

“You have beset me and shut me in – behind and before.” (Amplified)

Psalm 139 seems to have the subtitle on it – “The Pro-LIFE” psalm. Here we read that we are fearfully and wonderfully made. That God has formed us in our mother’s wombs and his thoughts are more than we can number. But I’ve been mesmerized this month with verse five.

This picture of God hemming me in puts a couple of different images. First so many of the translations give that comforting warm hemming in where God wraps us in his blanket of love. I know these moments. The times when rest in the Father is easy and pleasant. (Psalm 16:6 “The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance.”)

But secondly, the image that sticks most in my mind is the image of being beseiged and beset. (definition of beset – to attack, assail and harass on all sides). The predominance of this picture may be from the “glass is half empty” personality I have, and while life is good right now, I think that perhaps He has given me this picture of my life last year.

God hems me in, in all circumstances: pleasant and uncomfortable. When it is uncomfortable, do I keep throwing myself against the thorns in the hedge or should I sit still in the center of this area and wait quietly? My history is of flailing around the hedge in a panic. Not knowing that the hedge is placed there by God, himself, I don’t do myself any favors by resisting the hedge.

No matter whether it is comfortable hemming in or beseiging, I am supposed to sit still in the hedge, because the second half of the verse and verse six all say, “you have laid your hand upon me; such knowledge is too wonderful for me.” I really want the touch of my Creator, Savior, Comforter, Counselor, Friend, Coming King, Lover of My Soul. The closeness and intimacy with Him keeps my lamp burning with the oil of intimacy.

Jesus, teach me to sit still under your hand whether my circumstances are comfortable or not. I need the wonderful knowledge of your hand on me, moment by moment.

Glass is half empty side of me talking now – sure hope verbalizing all this doesn’t mean that I’m about to be hedged in by problems and the LORD is about to give me a chance to practice what I write. But since I’m not optimistic by nature…pray for me that I’ve learned this lesson.

Mailbox

Frequently my inbox hosts questions from various people about prayer and related topics. One of my thoughts with this blog was to post the questions and my answers for your digestion and input. I’m pretty committed to keeping things anonymous so that everybody feels comfortable.

Here’s a question I got this weekend.

Kristen, I had the strangest thing happen this evening, around 7:30 or 8 pm. I was going around, being my happy little usual self, I was suddenly overcome by a wave of grief-SO STRONG I just stood there and criedand it came out of the blue. I wept about mothers during the Holocaust, who had to CHOOSE, between their children-like in the movie Sophie’s Choice. How that experience changed their lives forever, and how some were probably still alive, having to live with that choice. I began to pray for them, and it led me to pray for all the pregnant mothers who CHOOSE to abort their babies, how they are making a choice they don’t understand and they will have to live with that the rest of their lives! It’s like I carried their grief for but a moment and couldn’t take it. I was burdened to tell these moms about the ramifications of their choice. This happened right after my friend told me this week’s messages were about abortion. The scripture I found for comfort was Psalm 33:12-15 Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people he chose for his inheritance. From heaven the LORD looks down and sees all mankind; from his dwelling place he watches all who live on earth-he who forms the hearts of all, who considers everything they do.

Here’s my response:

I would suspect that what happened to you on Saturday night was a moment of the Holy Spirit showing you the heart of God on the matter. Sometimes we get just a glimpse of the bigger picture and a better understanding of how God really feels about the situation. His burden for the babies and moms is huge and we just toddle through life oblivious to how big a deal it really is. The fleeting quality of what you experienced reinforces to me how huge God’s burden is and how inadequet we are as people to carry his burdens. He remembers that we are dust.

Sometimes it is very similar to a “spirit of travail” when the burden to a pray comes on and we carry something through to a birth. This happens me and sometimes I know what it is for and sometimes I don’t. For example, I woke up one night weeping and I knew that there was a young girl in danger. My perception was that it seemed to be Africa, she was hiding under something like a leaf, and there were people looking for her. I cried and prayed and cried and prayed and suddenly knew that everything was ok and immediately fell back to sleep. Sometimes I have no idea what I am praying for. This has happened several times and most frequently during a worship service. I just start crying – hard and making a snotty but quiet scene. There is this sense of overwhelming grief and I cry and cry and cry, and suddenly it will be over, and I feel released. So perhaps it is warfare over what ever is going on in the service and I get released from it when I’m done.

Anyway, my advice is go with it. You never know what God is doing with your willingness to serve him. Whether it would be to feel the pain he feels, or to war something through.

It’s warmer in ALASKA!!!

It was warmer in Barrow, Alaska yesterday than it was in Sioux Falls, SD. And yesterday was the first day that the sun has come up since NOVEMBER!!! Something is terribly wrong with this picture. Here’s the link to the story about the sunrise from the Weather Channel.

There is something about the light when it is 18 below zero (which was the temp when I was driving a kiddo to school); this morning there were sun dogs all over the place. For those of you from warmer climes, a sun dog forms when there are ice crystals suspended in the air. They look like brilliant white or rainbow columns of light in the sky. Sometimes you will even see them form a halo around the sun. If you need to have a full scientific explanation, Wikipedia does a great job with this one. Here’s a picture that looked like what I saw this morning, but this morning it wasn’t just one…they were everywhere.

Now back to my question from last week. Why do furnaces always break down on the coldest day of the year? Obviously…last week wasn’t the coldest day around, so I am thankful that the LORD had his hand on that one. Even while I am extremely grateful for geothermal heat today, why didn’t it happen on the day two weeks ago when we were running around outside without coats.

Get ready for a thaw Sioux Falls – we’re headed for 36 above zero this weekend. Sounds like time to bring out the grill!

The Lord’s Prayer

This is my friend Moriah. It sounds totally adolescent, but I spent a long time hoping that she would be my friend someday. Now that she is two, she talks to me and smiles at me. Click this link for a video of Moriah saying the Lord’s Prayer with her mom.

Jesus told us that if we could become like a little child we could enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Once in awhile when I am praying, I know that I have touched something special… maybe a bit of heaven. Is that the moment of child-likeness?

So, I want to learn to pray with someone I love, and laugh a little while I do it. But mostly I want to say, “I love you too Jesus!”

What’s with the title? – Part 3

Remember this Sunday School song?

“Give me oil in my lamp,
Keep me burnin, burnin, burnin;
Give me oil in my lamp, I pray.
Give me oil in my lamp,
Keep me burning til the break of day.”

Even as a child in Sunday School, I wondered, “what is this oil I am supposed to be wanting?” So as it relates to this blog title, I’ve been searching Matthew 25 again.

If the 10 virgins of Matthew 25 are not chastised for falling asleep, then the problem the 5 are noted for is that they don’t have enough oil for their lamps. Thus I ponder… what does the oil in Jesus’ story represent.

I’ve got a few ideas for myself, but I dug out the commentaries and tried to see what the “authorities” have said. Here’s what I found.

In the context of the chapter, Jesus is talking about the day of his return. These 10 women have come to the point where is Jesus is on the threshold, and suddenly 5 don’t have enough oil. Some commentators point to grace and personal piety, and some point to simple preparedness. One commentary points out that you have to go get it yourself, there is a price to pay to get the oil, I can’t share mine with you or I won’t have enough. This quote from a very old commentary says, “the piety that had satisfied the young women before was not sufficient in the presence of death and judgement.”

So still the question is, “What is the oil?” Nobody specifically says. I think the oil is simply our relationship to Jesus. If I am sticking close to him everyday and allowing him to fill me with the Holy Spirit then I’m not wandering off into personal, self-righteous piety or my own ideas of what it takes to be like him. I’m letting him teach me and speak to me about areas I need to grow and repent and change. He’s breathing over me the areas where he is pleased with me and tells me how he loves me. The Love of God my Heavenly Father motivates me to be more like the Son in whom He is well pleased. I am motivated by the oil of love.

In scripture, we are told to buy from the LORD. Revelation 3:19, he speaks to the lukewarm Laodecian church and says, “Because you say, “I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing, and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked. I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous and repent.”

So, I want to be ready for the cry that comes at midnight. I want my lamp to be ready. Midnight Cry is the title for my blog, because there is nothing more important that knowing that I can rest at the appropriate times, because I am ready for Him at the moment’s notice. Everything flows from this. I love to be with him because he draws me in and I am refreshed and refilled. I will want to evangelize, because I don’t want anyone to be short of oil. I will do the work of the Kingdom, because I want him to return quickly, but laboring in love is the work that energizes my spirit not drains me.

In this blog I will share my thoughts and experiences (where I find oil) and want you to share yours with me so we can be ready together. So that if tonight is not the night that the Bridegroom stands at the door then I want my lamp to keep shining just like the song…
“Keep me burning til the break of day.
Sing Hosanna, Sing Hosanna, Sing Hosanna til the break of day.”

Jesus, teach me to daily care for my lamp. Let the light of your oil shining in that lamp draw others to you. The let the chorus go up “Come, Lord Jesus!” and the cry to go up “Behold, the Bridegroom!”

In Self-Defense

For those of you who read Steve’s blog, you know that there is a bit of controversy in our house over a rooster. If you haven’t read it, here’s the link. Therefore, I submit this in self-defense.

What’s with the title? – Part Two

I think there are two groups of people in the world. Those who bounce out of bed the first time the alarm goes off, and those who hit the snooze a few times.

I am a snooze person. Our alarm goes off at 6:42, 6:51 and 7 a.m. This is an irritating thing for the morning person I live with, but really this is what it takes to wake me up. Ever since I was old enough to need to set an alarm for school or work, I wondered why it is so hard for me to get up and get going but others just pop up and get going.

A few years ago, the LORD broke into my life in new and unprecedented ways. I have loved Jesus my whole life, and figured that I pretty much had this “Christian” thing figured out. And then He surprised me. One of the first noticable things that happened was that when I woke up in the mornings I still had trouble getting out of bed. BUT EVERY morning I woke up with a different song on my mind. As I walked in this newness, what I discovered was that as the day progressed, I discovered that the LORD was talking to me about the day in the songs He gave…what happened to me in the day always seemed to relate to what I was humming under my breath. So I went to the Word to discover what was up with these night songs, and there I discovered Psalm 16:7-8.
I will bless the LORD who has counseled me; indeed my mind instructs me in the night. I have set the LORD continually before me; because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.

Suddenly I was launched into a new study of the night through out scripture. I learned that the Lord visits us in the night (Ps 17:3), that he appoints night watchmen on the walls (Psalm 63:6, Psalm 134:1, Isaiah 21:8), that tons of people – old and new testament – prayed night and day, day and night. There are so many references that they can’t all be listed here.

Maybe it isn’t so bad to be a night owl. David wrote, “My eyes anticipate the night watches that I may meditate on your word.” (Psalm 119:148) Isaiah said that “at night my soul longs for You, indeed, my spirit within me seeks You diligently.” Jesus at several points spent his nights in prayer.

So, what’s with the title? If the LORD is speaking at Midnight, I want to answer. Since He has given me the natural inclination towards night rather than morning…perhaps this is more of an assignment than an option for me. With all my heart, I want to “set the LORD continually before me; because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.”

Two Questions

Tomorrow I’ll do part two for the “What’s With the Title” entry, but today I just have two questions.

1. What are the stats on the frequency of a furnace breaking down on one of the coldest nights of the winter versus a mild winter day?
(The temp outside this morning… six degrees above zero. Temp inside the house…58 degrees above zero.)

2. Do rabbits blink?

(Kaitlyn got her bunny for Christmas, and we’ve been watching closely. Not a single blink. I keep trying to sneak up on Lilly to see if she shuts her eyes when she is asleep.)

Just wondering…

What’s with the title? – Part 1

The title Midnight Cry for my blog comes from Matthew 25 and the parable of the ten virgins. (Actually when you do a Google image search “Ten Virgins” the blog picture shows up, and not a bunch of nasty stuff!)

In the parable ten young women get ready to meet the bridegroom. The elaborate traditions and customs of a wedding in Jesus day is described in depth at Biblegateway.com. In the parable the bridegroom tarried long and in the course of waiting for him all 10 bridesmaids fell asleep. When the call came at midnight, five found they had run low on the oil they had brought with them for their lamps.

I named this blog Midnight Cry for several reasons. The first is that no matter how long Jesus waits to come back, or how long he waits to move on my behalf, or how long the time period is for the answers to prayers I have prayed for years…I want to be ready for him no matter when the cry goes out.

Jesus, it seems like you wait so long. So while I join my voice with the voices of your bride around the world and cry, “Come, Lord Jesus!”, please help me to awaken at a moment’s notice to quickly go and do your bidding.