Journeying to Christmas, 2019

Listening to God through the life of Mary

Luke 1:29 — “Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think …” NLT
Luke 1:34 — “… But how can this happen? ” NLT
Luke 1:35 — “…the power of the Most High will overshadow you…” NLT
Luke 1:37 — “For the word of God will never fail.” NLT or “Nothing is impossible with God.” ESV

Is this just history that leaves me with a choice to believe or not?
Is this just history that I can learn from?
Is this history that I get; that I identify with?
Is this history with transformative power?
Is this history that was recorded for me in 2019?
Is this history that delivers the power and the balm of the gospel?

No; No; Yes; Yes; Yes; Yes!

As I walk with my sister this fall, we’re experiencing a Mary-esque scenario. Like Mary, the mother of Jesus, we’re both living the reality of the transformative power of God and the balm of the gospel.

One of the earliest truths that captured my attention when my faith first became real is           John 1:12.

“But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave the power to become children of God;” RSV

As children of God, we know there is power. We are personally and intimately connected with the source of all power, with the God of the universe, who is with us, who listens, who responds, who chose a virgin to bear a child; the God who delivers peace in the midst of COPD, our very powerful God.

Barbara and I have been praying over the phone the Lord’s Prayer ending with, “Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever.” Matthew 6:13, KJV. God’s power is FOREVER!

God’s power depends on God, not on the desires of my heart, or the words of my prayers. The power comes from God who hears and responds to those prayers.

Often God demonstrates his power with the balm of belief, of peace, and of rest in the midst of the hard.

As Barbara and I pray, a calmness, a peace descends that wasn’t evident even minutes before; the power of God, the balm of the gospel.

Luke 1:37, “Nothing is impossible with God.” echoes God’s words to Abraham many years before Mary was born.

The LORD appears to Abraham, an old man (“advanced in years” Genesis 18:11 ) delivering the message that his wife Sarah was going to have a son. Sarah who was eavesdropping laughed. (“The way of women had ceased to be with Sarah.” Genesis 18:11) The LORD replied, “Is anything to hard for the LORD?” Genesis 18:14.

The rhetorical question in Genesis leads to the declaration in Luke, and continues its journey to our hearts. We too can experience God’s power at work in our lives and all around us.

Even when life seems impossible, we have the power of God, and can personally know the balm of the gospel. Just like Mary did who responded many years ago, ” … let it be to me according to your word.” Luke 1:38. All is okay.

“Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory, and the majesty … In your hand are power and might …
And now we thank you, our God, and praise your glorious name.”
I Chronicles 29:11-13 (emphasis, mine)

“and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power
toward us who believe,
according to the working of his great might”
Ephesians 1:19

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blessings to you on this Thanksgiving day!
Love, sue

PS. If you haven’t had an opportunity to read “A Mustard Seed Thanksgiving” (posted 11/21/19), scroll down to read one of my biggest Thanksgiving blessings this year.

Next Thursday begins this year’s Advent posts.

The talk show host posed the question, What is something you lost and then found that you are really thankful for? (Jill Tracey, KGBI, Omaha, Nebraska)

The answer came immediately — my sister.

I recently returned from spending four days with Barbara in Virginia. She is living with severe COPD. We were treading on holy ground.

There were years when our relationship was very strained; we had lost our connection as sisters. As I look back, I think we were both too insecure to deal with it. Fight or flight — we flew and the issue exasperated.

But our relationship has changed the past few years. We’ve learned how to support and how to love each other.

It returned gently aided by those expected occasions. Barbara and her husband celebrated with us at the weddings of both of our sons. Then I attended the weddings of her two sons and her daughter. All beautiful affairs. Those weddings were the beginning of the return of our sister-love.

Even so, I would not have imagined that we would be in the place we are today. I am so thankful.

As a result of her COPD, Barbara is living with confusion and anxiety. We’re both experiencing the power of the gospel to calm her heart and deliver peace to her soul. These moments of clarity are a gift to us both. It’s in those times that I see the reality of Barbara’s faith.

The parable of the mustard seed in Matthew and Luke is ministering to her, and through her to me.

A mustard seed, one of the tiniest and most insignificant seeds has the ability to grow into a tree that could be 20 – 30 feet tall and have a 20′ span. It can grow in hot and dry climates or in cool and wet climates. It will push through rocks. It will grow back even if pruned to only its trunk remaining.

Unlike a grain of sand, a seed is a life-giving force that leads to bearing fruit. In the Luke narrative, Jesus compares the faith of a mustard seed to a mulberry tree that is told ‘be uprooted and planted in the sea’ (Luke 17:6). Planted in the SEA? How can something be planted in a sea? I’m thinking Jesus was exaggerating to make his point of the power of mustard-seed faith.

According to my ESV study notes on Luke 17, “The issue is not the size of our faith, but its presence.”

My faith could often be described as mustard-seedish. How about you? But its not the size of our faith, its the presence of our faith.

“Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly [with our mustard seed faith],
according to the power at work within us,”
Ephesians 3:20, emphasis mine

 

 

I don’t remember when I first wrote those words in my journal. Although as I’ve continued my journey and can now claim older status, I know for sure that God whispered an important truth to me that day and it has resonated ever since.

Discipleship, or encouraging others in their walks with God, is not only something I offer, it is something I need. Older woman still need older woman! Age is not a factor.

Recently, having decided to write a manuscript on rest, I knew I wanted … no, I needed … help. Might it turn into a book? I don’t know. However with that thought floating in the background, I began reaching out to others who have gone before me, other authors, others I thought might help. My hour-long phone call with Jean reaffirmed to me, older woman still need older woman.

I initiated. Jean, I’m thinking about … what are your thoughts? Will you share your wisdom with me? Jean immediately went into question mode, her wisdom pouring out. I could hardly write fast enough.

Building on my desire to write, she encouraged me to be a Mary (the mother of Jesus). The word ponder immediately came to mind.

Jean encouraged me to think about my ah-ha moments. What was I doing when they came? Was I at home sitting with my open Bible, or perhaps on a walk with my dog, or???

She encouraged me to not rush through the process.

She shared her writing journey. I was amazed by how her desires overlapped with mine.

Jean is an affirm-er. Each time I’m with her or have talked on the phone, she has verbalized the God-given gifted-ness she sees in my life. I have always left knowing she believes in me.

Jean used the project God has given me to continue to help me mature in my faith. Her questions led me behind the project, to my friendship with God, and propelled me in ways I hadn’t previously connected. Her wisdom influenced my writing process. I knew she was vested in our friendship. Thank you, Jean!

I have other older women in my life as well. Each is a precious gift. Each has encouraged me with their unique contributions. Older women still need older women.

Who are the older women in your life?
How can you create opportunities to connect with them?
Is God asking you to be an older woman to another woman?

“Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior…
They are to teach what is good, and so train the young women…
that the word of God may not be reviled.”
Titus 2:3-5

PS. If you haven’t read Jean’s book, Pursue the Intentional Life, I highly recommend it. It has all 5-star ratings and on Amazon the audio format is currently free.

It all began in June 2002: sitting under the canopy of a very old Oak Tree in the front yard of an old home-turned-coffee shop.

The lessons poured forth from my heart through my pen to my ever-present journal.

Life lesson #3, I don’t need to create ministry or accept all that comes my way (sometimes I want to); I need to allow God to lead in ministry. AKA, I need to live INSIDE THE BOX. I’ve been pondering that last sentence ever since. Currently it sounds like, what does stewardship look like at this point in my journey? (Check out the first three Echoes posts from last month.)

For someone who loves ministry and who used to have a very narrow definition of ministry, at first this was not a very welcoming thought. It seemed so … well, constraining, so impossible until God began unpacking it for me.

Life lesson #1 (remember, Sue), My identity rests in who God created me to be. Although I didn’t often utter the thought, floating below the surface was the fear that my identity is defined by your picture of me; or at least what I thought your picture of me was. WRONG!!!

But I have a picture too. If you read between the brush strokes, you’ll glimpse my heart, the real me.

You  might see a lady in front of a group of women teaching from the Bible. She has on a new outfit, her nails are done, and she captivates her audience helping them in their spiritual lives.

As the digital frame phased that picture out, the next came into view. This picture is a bit clearer.  I’m sitting in a comfortable living room or perhaps around a kitchen table with my friends sipping mulled apple cider. (The flavors of fall are some of my favorites.) I’m leading a small group Bible study. The questions are engaging and the conversation lively. Together we’re hearing from God.

The digital pictures continue to scroll. Now Bill and I are at our dining room table shared with four other couples savoring dessert after a satisfying meal. I get up to re-fill  coffee cups encouraging the conversation to continue. I enjoy hospitality.

Fast forward a few years and you’ll see Echoes of Grace added to my ministry picture pushing on the top of my box.

Echoes of Grace will turn 10 years old this year. Writing publicly began 10 years ago.

What does stewardship look like now?

I’m sensing that living inside the box God created in 2002 can no longer contain his purpose for me. Once again the box is expanding. Stay tuned.

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD,”
Jeremiah 29:11

 

 

I originally penned these words six years ago three months after the fire that destroyed over 500 homes in the Black Forest where we live.

With the holidays upon us and the celebrations they bring, (and with Halloween falling on a Thursday this year), it seemed appropriate to share with you this idea again.

Wish you could have joined us. The food was delicious.

Two neighbors lost their homes in the Black Forest fire. The desire to love well in the midst of this horrendous context was real. But how?

Initiate toward them?

Cry with them?

Offer help?

Throw a Halloween shower in their honor. YES!!!

Charlotte* loved Halloween. It was her favorite holiday and every year she hosted an elaborate bash for her daughters and their friends. Now all the scary decor was ash … swept away in the clean-up … gone … history.

The proverbial light bulb shown brightly. Gather the neighbors and her circle of friends and host a Halloween shower. No costumes, just food, friends, and new Halloween decor for Charlotte.

“That is the loveliest thing anyone has ever done for me”, she responded the morning I phoned to ask if she would be comfortable with the idea.

We planned, invited, prepared. It was fun. It was a huge success.

The night of the shower, I fell asleep with my mouth curved in a smile.

“Love is … kind …”   I Corinthians 13:4.

Mark 4:26-29 comes to mind, four short verses. The parable compares a man scattering seed. Life goes on and the seed sprouts and grows to maturity; there is a harvest. But four seemingly unimportant words jump out, “he knows not how”.

My dreams would not lead me down this path … forest fire … Halloween shower … deepening friendship with a neighbor. I wonder, where will it go from here?

In the Mark passage the seed progresses:
scatters,
sprouts,
grows,
ripens,
harvest.

On my street, my seed is somewhere between scatters and sprouts. I’m praying for growth, ripening, and harvest. I wonder what it will look like. (2019 update — No harvest yet. Now we’re between sprouts and grows.)

What about you … what ideas can you share about planting seeds among neighbors. This October I worked on fertilizing and watering.

“He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows;
he knows not how.”
Mark 4:27

I’m thrilled to introduce you to my friends who live in Scotland. It looks like perhaps Mom Ros is taking this family picture. I sure glad Anna made it in!

We met Phil and Ros last summer when they were visiting the US. Then in May, they hosted us in Scotland. What a wonderful family. Dinner with their family in their home was a highlight.

There was a fourth daughter, Bevan. Until I read Ros’ words (Click the link below), I didn’t know that part of their story.

Ros’ candor and biblical insights touched me deeply. Yes, love can grow even after death.  I think any one who has lived through loss will be ministered to by Ros’ wisdom. Read on …

https://navigators.co.uk/blog/2019/08/19/august-and-everything-after/

 

Last Thursday I posted about Moses’ staff. It was a message to me about a long-term project God wants me to steward. If you haven’t yet, you might want to scroll down and read Take … This Staff first.

This week I’m introducing Elaine and how God used her to help me discern his will concerning something more immediate.

Elaine plopped down next to me on one of the comfortable wooden porch rocking chairs provided by The Wine Country Inn. We were the only two enjoying the view while shaded from the September sun that morning. We’d never met before.

She started the conversation noticing my pen moving across paper left to right as I wrote in my journal.

Are you a writer?
Yes, I responded, my confidence surprising me.
Read me what you just wrote.

Remember, we’d never met before. I didn’t even know her name yet.
I hesitated. Wouldn’t you?

She persisted, politely but persistently.

My words were not particularly personal. So okay.

I read her what I had written, a half page bringing an opportunity before the Lord. The last two sentences I wrote before Elaine came by, But I need to listen to God. I have questions.

Elaine picked up on the word but. A former newspaper owner, she dealt with lots of writers and shared this observation.

“When you write the word ‘but’ it negates what you have written previously.
If you write the word ‘and’, the before and the after have equal value.”

I had written “but”.

God used Elaine to lead me to my decision.

A half page scribbled in my journal and the boldness of a stranger led to discernment on how this opportunity fit into stewarding who God is creating me to be. I said ‘no’ to the opportunity.

“The ear that listens to life-giving reproof will dwell among the wise.”
Proverbs 15:31

 

Copyright, October 2019, Sue Tell

 

Can it be that God helps you understand stewardship with one word — one seemingly inconsequential word?

That is my experience. In this collection of words above do you see staff (to the left and a bit below center)? Staff, the seemingly inconsequential word, takes center stage.

Remember the narrative of Moses in Exodus 3 and 4? Moses, a shepherd, is on Mount Sinai tending to the  sheep of his father-in-law. Suddenly this ordinary day turns into something totally unexpected: an angel with a message from God, a burning bush, holy ground, and when God knew he had Moses’ attention an affirmation of his identity. “I am the God or your father,” (3:6)

Then the reason for the visit, God to Moses: “Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” (3:10) Quite the daunting task for an everyday shepherd!

And Moses was daunted … and scared … and feeling mighty insecure. Excuses, questions, and pleas came fast. “Who am I that I should go …” (3:11) If I come to the people of Israel and they challenge me, who do I say you (God) are? (3:13) “They will not believe me or listen to my voice,”  (4:1) “I am not eloquent,” (4:10) “Oh, my Lord, please send someone else.” (4:13)

How might you feel if God tasked you with a seemingly impossible job?

I’m identifying with Moses.

I also love God’s meeting Moses where he is and responding to each excuse. “He (God) said, “But I will be with you,”” (3:12) “God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM… This is my name forever,” (3:14, 15) I AM, or Yahweh is also a clear reminder of God’s promises to his people and of his help for them to fulfill their calling. (ESV Study Bible notes)

Then the staff, that essential piece of equipment for a shepherd, becomes one of the pictures God uses to communicate to Moses about his they will not believe me excuse. God asks for the staff and instructs Moses to throw it on the ground. It turns into a snake and Moses runs. I would too. God’s next instruction is even scarier, “Put out your hand and catch it by the tail” (4:4) Moses obeys and the snake becomes a staff once again.

After two additional convincing pictures of God’s ability, God challenges Moses’ other excuses. The I am not eloquent, “Who has made man’s mouth? I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.” (4:11, 12) Please send someone else, “Is there not Aaron, your brother, the Levite? I will be with your mouth and with his mouth and will teach you both what to do.” (4:14, 15)

Back to the staff.

After Aaron enters the picture, God says, “And take in your hand this staff,” (4:17, italics mine) This staff.  A staff is an essential tool of Moses’ trade; this staff is the very staff God is using to demonstrate his power.  Now God is highlighting it again. Just a few verses later Moses called this staff, the staff of God! (4:20) Moses is now understanding.

As I ponder, what does stewardship look like at this point in my journey, questions come to my mind too.

What is that essential tool of my trade as a writer that God wants to use to catch my attention?
Am I listening or am I making excuses?
Who are my Aarons?
Will I see my ‘staffs’ as the very thing God has provided for the tasks he has for me?

What about you? How might you answer the questions God has brought to my attention?

“And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you
will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”
Philippians 1:6

 

 

 

Reading backwards not because of dyslexia.
Reading backwards in my journals to discern the voice of God.
Reading backwards to find the path of life.
Reading backwards to know the good, acceptable, perfect will of God.
Reading backwards is teaching me about stewardship.

 

Stewardship: the careful and responsible management of something entrusted to one’s care.
The Merriam-Webster Dictionary

“… I am still entrusted with a stewardship.”
Paul, I Corinthians 9:17

Stewardship: caring for a God-given trust. (my definition)
“The church of which I became a minister
according to the stewardship from God
that was given to me for you,
to make the word of God fully known,”
Colossians 1:25
(This is the scripture I’ve been praying for Echoes of Grace since its inception in 2010.)

Some things don’t change:

God’s purpose for me wrapped in His love.
God keeps the responsibility in his court.

“The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me;
your steadfast love, O LORD, endures forever.”
Psalm 138:8

Some things don’t change; however, applications morph.

My God-given desires remain the same; living them out is morphing.

“Delight yourself in the LORD,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.”
Psalm 37:4

Some things do change.

Capacity.
Current realities.
The best path.

“Behold, I am doing a new thing;
now it springs forth,
do you not perceive it?”
Isaiah 43:19

I’ve been pondering: What does stewardship look like at this juncture in my journey? Answers are emerging; anticipation is growing.

“… guard what God has entrusted to you …”
I Timothy 6:20 NLT

“… let God transform you into a new person
by changing the way you think.
Then you will learn to know God’s will for you,
which is good and pleasing and perfect.”
Romans 12:2 NLT

The stewardship story continues. Part 2 — next week, Take This Staff.

Part 3 — the following week, But I Said “But”.

Two Questions:

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