All Things Hold Together

I struggle with American Christianity. There is the inclination to focus on what God can do for us and to become angry when God doesn’t make everything go our way.

Then there are the ever present prosperity preachers, who lead us to believe that if only we are faithful enough, God will heap riches upon us.

We have books that promise us a great life – a great life by worldly standards – if we are Christians. And in turn, leave people broken and bitter at God when it doesn’t happen.

So, when I was asked to review Joyce Meyer’s new book, which will be released next Tuesday, April 29, entitled, “The Secret to True Happiness,” I was skeptical, to say the least.

Well, I am glad to say now that I was also pleasantly surprised.

Joyce Meyer’s latest work, The Secret to True Happiness: Enjoy Today, Embrace Tomorrow, is not just another pseudo-biblical work promising a life of prosperity.

Instead, Ms. Meyer explains how God calls us to enjoy the life and the circumstances that we have been given. She teaches us how knowing who we are in Christ can allow us to experience true happiness even through the pain and suffering that life can bring us.

Unlike some other popular Christian books that shy away from scripture, The Secret to True Happiness embraces the Bible as the source of its truth.

I must admit, I will be re-reading and working through this book for some time to come. Joyce gives her readers a lot to read, think about, pray about, and apply to their lives.

Joyce Meyer walks us through:

Making the most of what we have,
Living by the Word,
Choosing to be happy,
Finding joy,
Knowing who we are in Christ and how God sees us,
Living by faith,
Trusting God through trials,
Finding rest,
Making good choices,
Having a right perspective about possessions,
Gaining wisdom,
Developing a true commitment to your Christian walk,
Being healthy,
Simplifying,
Cultivating good habits,
Letting God lead,
Practicing discipline,
Embracing tomorrow,
And more.

In The Secret to True Happiness, Joyce Meyer will walk you through how to apply biblical principles and a deeper understanding of your relationship with God and finally understand what it means to be truly happy.

The Secret to True Happiness: Enjoy Today, Embrace Tomorrow will be available on Tuesday, April 29, 2008. Pre-order yours on Amazon today.

I would also like to give a copy of The Secret to True Happiness to one of my readers. Just leave a comment and you will be entered to win.

When filling out the comment form, be sure to use a valid e-mail address, so I can contact you, if you win.

The winner will be drawn at random on Friday, April 25 at 5:00 PM EST.

This post is included in the Bloggy Giveaways Carnival. Stop over for loads more bloggy giveaways.

I had to share this comment that I read on a blog today. It was just so beautiful, so exactly what has been on my heart to write about lately, but said so much more succinctly and eloquently than I would have said it.

The post that the comment was made on is about prayers of protection. It is a discussion that expands on a previous post at the same blog entitled, The Divine Protection Racket? A Fixer God? The comment (on 19 Apr 2008 at 8:49 am) was made by Tim Melton.

When Jesus taught us to pray for “our daily bread”, he was teaching us to pray for intimacy with him. He is the daily bread. We don’t necessarily pray so that God will change our circumstances. We pray for the Spirit of Christ to fill us and sustain us in the midst of them. The difference between an atheist and a Christian is not that our circumstances are different, but that we are different in circumstances. We pray as a means of appropriating the Grace of Christ so that in even the worst that life has to offer, we plead: Lord Jesus, abide with me, hold me, sustain me, give me faith, grant me hope, feed my soul, help me to worship, help me to love, forgive me idolatry, walk with me through this.

The only, but huge, difference between me and an Atheist is that I have Jesus. Nothing more should be expected. Truly, nothing more should be desired.

When I first became a Christian, I fell into the trap of thinking that my life was going to be better (from a worldly perspective) than it was before. I believed that if I tithed, God would make sure we had money. If we gave to people who needed, God would make sure we did not struggle financially ourselves. If we trusted God, He would give us a life that we wanted.

Boy, was that wrong! In many ways my life is much worse (from a worldly perspective) than it was before.

As you can imagine, that led to a lot of struggles with my faith, which I have discussed a little on this blog before. I had to relearn my understanding of who God is and what it means to be a Christian.

This quote so beautifully sums up what I have struggled over the past 9 months or so to come to grips with: I have Jesus. Nothing more should be expected. Truly, nothing more should be desired.

I have had this song in my head for days. I think I heard it at Easter. At any rate, I thought I would share it.

Because of Your love, we’re forgiven
Because of Your love, our hearts are clean
We lift You up with songs of freedom
Forever we’re changed because of Your love

I mentioned a few times in the past that I had some struggles with my faith last year. I wrote a couple of posts that laid it all out there, but I never published them.

I decided that I do want to share, but since this is a long post and not everyone will be interested in the subject matter, I am going to snip it here. Click the link if you want to read on. (more…)

A while back, quite a while, unfortunately, Landel Bilbrey graciously sent me a copy of his book, “Sentinel: City of Destiny” to review on my blog.

With apologies to Mr. Bilbrey, it took me far to long to write this review.

Sentinel: City of Destiny is a fiction story written for boys ages 8 and up. Its purpose is to illustrate to them “foundational character traits that God wants to see in a mature man.”

The Four Keys of Mettle (Manhood) are Vision (Proverbs 29:18), Courage (Joshua 1:9), Integrity (1 Chronicles 29:17), and Service (Luke 10:27).

Throughout the book, there are paraphrased scripture references, which are worked into the story under the fictional name “Logos.” The Logos reference can be decoded to locate the supporting scripture verses quite simply.

I thought it would be interesting to find out what a boy in the intended age range thought about the book. After all, that is who will be reading it.

So, I asked my 11-year-old son, The D, to read the book. Then, I sat down with him and asked him to share this thoughts about it.

What was Sentinel about?
It was about a quest for seeking Sentinel and the temptations will try to pull you away.

What did you like about it?
It was a good action book with lots of cool things in it.

Was it obvious to you that Sentinel was a metaphor for something?
Yes.

What do you think it was a metaphor for?
Seeking God.

Did you learn anything from this book?
That there are lots of temptations that will try to pull you away from seeking God.

Didn’t you already know that?
I did not know there were that many.

Did you decode any of the Logos passages?
Yes.

What did you think about that?
It was cool. It’s cool that he came up with that.

Would you recommend this book to other boys your age?
Yes.

What about boys that are not Christians?
I think they would enjoy it, too.

Is there anything else you want to add?
No.

To be honest, I was rather shocked to find out that he did not realize that there are so many temptations that stand in the way of seeking God.

I think that is an example of why books like this are good.

My husband and I try to instill biblical principles, as does our church, but it really does take other influences as well. We can never be sure exactly what will take root in their minds and hearts.

Not only does Sentinel provide a “good action book” with a great message, but it also includes resources in the back of the book for further discussion and reflection.

Overall, I would highly recommend this book.

I have not finished reading it, but when I do, I will also post any further thoughts I have.

For more information, visit the Bridgemaker Book homepage, where you can read the first 6 chapters in PDF.

This morning when I brought in the paper, I looked down and saw the headline, “Flawed Chess Genius Dies.”

The article was, of course, about the death of Bobby Fischer.

What struck me, though, was the word “flawed.” It was as if there is something noteworthy about a person being flawed.

Aren’t we all flawed?

We don’t like to think so, do we?

I don’t doubt that Bobby Fischer was indeed an unusual character. Just the other day, before his death, my husband was talking about chess, and he told us a story about Bobby Fischer. He was a seemingly troubled man.

Bobby Fischer’s idiosyncrasies notwithstanding, we are all flawed.

So why is it that many of us try so hard to imply otherwise?

The other day I stumbled upon a blog that had a list of Christian bloggers, some of which I read, along with a few nasty words about each one.

The one that stuck out and hurt me the most was a comment regarding the fact that one of these Christian women was a divorcee. You know, you can’t take advice from a Christian woman who has been divorced, right? She’s obviously a sinner.

Except that her husband was an abusive, alcoholic adulterer. The three As, as Dr. Laura calls them. The three valid reasons for divorce. And he had the triple-play.

This makes her a bad Christian, according to this person, but not according to the One whose opinion matters.

I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, and marries another woman commits adultery.

Those are the words of Jesus himself, in Matthew 19:9, and elsewhere.

But, still, people judge.

I think the reason this was the most hurtful to me is that I know that judgment. I know the sting when someone judges my faithfulness based on my past.

Only, I cannot get away from it. People who do not even know me know that Big E and The D are not my husband’s biological children just by looking at them.

They don’t see a woman who was raised without God, but found Him, and found forgiveness for the life that had left her so empty inside for so many years.

They see a woman who is a sinner.

They don’t see a saint, sanctified by the blood of the Christ they profess to follow.

They see their own desperate attempt to cover up their own flaws, at the expense of their sister in Christ.

This used to bother me a lot. I had found this incredible forgiveness and there were people who wanted to take that away from me, just because of their own insecurity, their own narrow view of our God.

But then I realized that no one can take away the grace I have received, and continue to receive each day.

I am forgiven.

That does not depend upon what someone else thinks about me.

And no one can take it away.

If you are like me, every year you start a new read-the-Bible-in-a-year plan.  And, if you are like me, every year, you fall short of completing it.

Last year, I made it to sometime in mid-February.

This year, I made it to January 4.

No worries, though.  I just found out that our church’s children’s ministry has posted a New Testament reading plan that starts tomorrow and goes through April 4.

I was working on a post that tells about the struggles I had with my faith last year, but I just could not get it right. I didn’t want it to be too long or say too much, but I wanted it to say enough.

I wanted to share what I learned, looking back, about the way our modern, seeker-friendly churches give people a shallow faith that cannot stand up to trials and tests.

I wanted to share how God used other Christians, some of whom I don’t even know IRL, to bring be back to Him.

I will share it because it is a good story that needs telling, but today I was hit in the face with another example of the problem I had, only this person did not come back, or at least not yet, and a good friend of mine, an inspirational sister in Christ, was hurt in the process.

Some time after I cane to Christ, some ladies in my neighborhood were having a study group for the book Captivating, by John and Stasi Eldredge, and they invited me.

There was a woman there who was not a Christian, I’ll call her Deena. She was going through a divorce. Her husband had been unfaithful. She was a wreck. I felt compassion for her, but I did not like being around her.

After she accepted Jesus, she was a totally new person. I love being around her now. She is so uplifting. She glows with her love for the Lord.

The most amazing thing about her is that she struggles with illnesses and pain. She has greater struggles than most people I know. But through everything her faith is strong and she is an inspiration to everyone around her.

After seeing this great change, her soon-to-be ex-husband, I’ll call him Stan, wanted to give his life to Jesus. He changed, too, and they recommitted to one another.

I just found out that the seeds sown in him were not so deep; they did not take root in him as they had in her.

Deena found out a couple of months ago that Stan has been having an affair.

Amazingly, through it all, she is closer to the Lord than ever.

But as much as her faith is a testament to the power of having Jesus in your heart, Stan’s unwillingness to repent of his sinful lifestyle is a testament to the sad reality that many people who accept Jesus will fall away.

“A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. He who has ears, let him hear.” - Matt. 13

I don’t know which analogy explains what happened with Stan. Did he not understand the message of the Kingdom? Did it not take root? Did the worries of this world choke it out?

I had a crisis with my faith this past year. For me, I was the man in verses 20-21.

The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away.

Fortunately, I did not do anything as stupid and irreparable as what Stan did. Thankfully, God pulled me back and provided me with the means to gain a deeper understanding.

There but for the grace of God go I.

I’ve given up on giving up slowly
I’m blending in so you won’t even know me
Apart from this whole world that shares my fate

And this one last bullet you mention
Is my one last shot at redemption
Cause I know to live you must give your life away

And I’ve been housing all this doubt
And insecurity
And I’ve been locked inside that house
All the while you hold the key
And I’ve been dying to get out
And that might be the death of me
And even though there’s no way of knowing
Where to go
I promise I’m going

Because
I got to get out of here
I’m stuck inside this rut that I fell into by mistake
I got to get out of here
And I’m begging you
I’m begging you
I’m begging you to be my escape

I’ve given up on doing this alone now
Cause I’ve failed and I’m ready to be shown how
You’ve told me the way, and I’m trying to get there

And this life sentence that I’m serving
I admit, that I’m every bit deserving
But the beauty of grace is that it makes life not fair

Because
I’ve been housing all this doubt
And insecurity
And I’ve been locked inside that house
All the while you hold the key
And I’ve been dying to get out
And that might be the death of me

And even though there’s no way of knowing
Where I’m going
I promise I’m going because..

I got to get out of here
Cause I’m afraid that this complacency is something I can’t shake again
I got to get out of here
And I’m begging you
I’m begging you
I’m begging you to be my escape

I am a hostage to my own humanity
Self detained and forced to live in this mess I’ve made
And all I’m asking is for you to do what you can with me
But I can’t ask you to give what you already gave

Because I’ve been housing all this doubt
And insecurity
And I’ve been locked inside that house
All the while you hold the key
And I’ve been dying to get out
That might be the death of me
And even though there’s no way of knowing where to go
I promise I’m going

Because
I got to get out of here
I’m stuck inside this rut I fell into by mistake
I got to get out of here
And I’m begging you
I’m begging you
I’m begging you to be my escape

I fought you
For so long
I should have let you win
Oh, how we regret those things we do

And all I
Was trying
To do was save my own skin
Oh, but so were you
So were you

I started watching the new series on ABC, “Samantha Who?” I really like it a lot, which is saying something because there is very little on TV that I like at all these days.

It’s about a woman who has amnesia and cannot remember anything of her former life. As she meets people and starts to piece together who she is (or was), she realizes that she does not like that person. The show chronicles Sam as she tries to find out who she wants to be, while realizing that she is stuck with the fallout of the actions of her former self.

For example, she discovers that she works for a firm that aggressively acquires real estate through less than honorable means. She decides that she wants to quit, until she finds out that old Sam left her with $30,000 in credit card debt.

If you want to check it out, ABC offers full episodes online, which is an awesome feature.

Anyway, at the end of this week’s show, Sam offered the following closing monologue.

I had this dream and I woke up clean and white as snow, my debts forgiven, and my sins all washed away.

That sounds awesome!

But, it’s a bunch of crap.

I mean, yesterday can’t be un-lived. It’s part of today. You drag it along like a big, old dog.

I heard this and my heart just sank. I mean, I know that our sins can be washed away, yet I also know that the truth is, we do carry around the past like a big, old dog. And man, I hate dogs, especially big ones.

I felt so conflicted, so disappointed, so lost. It brought up some feelings that I didn’t even know I was having about God and about my life.

When I came to Christ, I was already living a pretty good life. Bob and I were happily married and had a beautiful son. I was involved in local politics and writing a column for our local paper. I was happy, but deep down I carried with me the burden of childhood hurts and the pain brought on by the immoral lifestyle I had once lived. Way down in the places where I would never let myself go, I was very broken.

I brought these hurts to the cross and I had the pain lifted and healed in a way that I never knew possible. I was free. I was whole for the first time in my life.

As time passed, though, I began to feel beaten down by the reality that, while my guilt and shame could be washed away, the consequences of my actions would always be with me, for me to drag around like a big, old dog. I will never be free from that.

I started to feel like I had been sold a bill of goods. I started to think that maybe it is all just a bunch of crap. What good is forgiveness when I still have to deal with the fallout of the actions of my former self?

Samantha ended her monologue on a more positive note.

Today is all we can control. We do today right, we may even have a shot at tomorrow.

And this is where grace comes in. It’s not about erasing our past; it’s about carrying us through today.

We can’t control today. We can’t do it right, either. Oh, we can try and we can do the best we can, but it will never be good enough. We will always make mistakes. We will always have regrets.

What we can do is walk with Jesus by our side. What we can do is accept that He has forgiven our sins and restored our relationship with Him.

We might not be able to do today right on our own, but we can do today right with the power that comes with knowing the One who created us.

There is really no getting around the fact that there are problems in our lives that we cannot leave behind no matter how much we want to. But dragging around a big, old dog doesn’t seem like quite as much work when you have someone with infinite strength helping you pull it along.