What Is Your “Rachel?” (Part I.)

imagesWE ARE GOING TO DO ONE MORE TWO PART LOVE STORY — ANOTHER LOVE STORY THAT REALLY POINTS TO JESUS.

THEN I HAVE A NEW EXCITING ADVENTURE FOR MID-SEPTEMBER WHICH I’LL BE TELLING YOU ABOUT.

I HAVE A DEEP GROUP OF WOMEN HERE, AND GOD IS WORKING IN YOUR LIVES. I PRAY SOME WILL JOIN YOU FOR THIS, BUT ALSO WHEN WE BEGIN THE NEW ADVENTURE. THIS LOVE STORY CAN TEACH YOU SO MUCH. I’M PRAYING FOR YOU.

JACOB ADORING RACHEL

What do you think you need to be happy? What is your “Rachel?”

Our hearts, John Calvin said, are “idol-making factories.” Instead of worshiping the One who is beautiful beyond description, who will never leave us or forsake us, who laid down His life to rescue us, we worship the things He made, thinking they will fulfill us. We don’t really believe He can fulfill us.

But for those rare individuals who learn that He alone is worthy of worship and pour their hearts into Him, they also find they become thankful for the people and things He has made, giving them grace for their weaknesses, and not expecting them to be everything to them.

Let’s start with Jacob. We know he’s on the run after cheating his brother and father. What I’d like you to do first is find evidence that he was absolutely obsessed with Rachel. (Remember, we can be exactly the same way, seeing someone as being like a god or a goddess, making them what only God can be.)

Read all of Genesis 29 as an overview, asking God to quicken you.

1. Read Genesis 29:7-11 and find any evidence you can of the beginnings of his obsession.

2. In Genesis 29:18-27, How does Jacob “give away” his hand to Laban the cheat? How do you see Jacob’s heart for Rachel?

3. Have you ever been obsessed with someone like this — a lover, friend, or child? How did God show you that that person could not hold that kind of worship?

4. Falling in love and marrying is a gift from God — but no man or woman can ever be what only God can be. But if our heart is right with God, if we are adoring Him, then we can likewise be thankful and contented with a spouse (or friend, or child) who is a sinner and give him or her grace. One of the truths we can learn from the parallel that the Bible makes between marriage and our relationship with the Lord is to adore the Lord — the kind of adoration that happens when you first fall in love with a man, or even, if I may be so bold, the kind of adoration that might happen in the marriage bed — where you adore every part of a person, as you see in The Song of Songs.

SPEND SOME TIME ADORING THE LORD. USE MUSIC, PSALMS SUCH AS PSALMS 96 THROUGH 1OO. USE SONG OF SONGS 2:8-17 — AND SING OR TELL HIM WHY HE IS SO BEAUTIFUL TO YOU. GIVE THIS TO HIM. WERE YOU ‘QUICKENED’ TO ADORE DURING THIS TIME? CAN YOU SHARE SOMETHING ABOUT IT?

Jacob thought if he had Rachel, life would be complete. Tim Keller says that Jacob dreamed of apocalyptic sex with Rachel. If only he could have Rachel…

Leah thought if she had Jacob’s love, her life would be complete. If only she could have Jacob’s love…

Rachel thought if she had Jacob’s children, her life would be complete. If only she could have Jacob’s children…

Our hearts are idol-making factories.

5. What contrast is made between Leah and Rachel in Genesis 29:17. How can you tell that the writer wasn’t just saying that Leah didn’t see too well?

6. In a world that worships physical beauty, why might not having it be a gift?

7. Can you see the beauty in individuals who are not physically beautiful? If so, share. If not, pray.

8. Read Isaiah 53:2-3. What do you learn about the Lord here and His physical beauty?

This is when Jesus was on the cross. Spend some time in Isaiah 53 worshiping Him, asking Him to change your heart to worship Him, to care about the things He cares about, instead of the things the world cares about.

9. There is so much more about Rachel and Leah and our idol-making factories. We’ll look at that next week. But for now, let me ask you: “What is your Rachel?” What do you tend to worship instead of the Lord? Ask the Lord to help you with this — to be thankful, yet not a worshiper of this “Rachel?” I’d also love some testimonies here.

10. What did you learn that is impacting you and why?

Aug 30, 2010 | Categories: Personal | Tags: , , | 59 Comments »

THE TWO BECOME ONE

My best birthday gift -- four new grand-daughtersToday is my birthday and I’m with my four new grand-daughters. From left to right, Katherine Harrington; Sadie Hale; Octavia Brestin, and Miabelle Lano.

I could try to tie this picture into our Bible study, but I won’t! (Except to say that mid-September I’m planning to do The Friendships of Women on this blog!)

Here’s the real post:

THE TWO BECOME ONE

We have contemplated how leaving and cleaving in earthly marriage points to our relationship with Christ, but this week, we will also consider how the act of a husband and wife becoming one portends an even deeper mystery that will occur one day in heaven: that of Christ becoming one with His Bride, the church, as Paul explains:

“Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, the two will become one flesh.” This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.

Ephesians 5:31-32

I am no longer a young bride - I am a youngish widow, for my husband lost his battle with cancer at the age of fifty-nine. In losing Steve, the love of my life, I am also glimpsing more clearly this mystery of becoming one with Christ. For though sexual intimacy is a great gift, we also don’t have to have it - for we will have it forever with the Lord in heaven, in a mysterious way our minds cannot yet comprehend. It will be different, it will be better, it will be more glorious and more unifying that we can imagine. It will be the end of loneliness forever and ever.

Christianity holds the loftiest view of sex of any philosophy in the world. The Biblical view is unique, for it holds not only that sexual intimacy within marriage is sacred, but absolutely good and lovely. It was God’s great idea for a couple, through sexual intimacy to: find delight in one another, become one with one another, renew their covenant regularly in the sanctified marriage bed, learn how to unselfishly serve one another, and be blessed, if it was His will, with children. Seen as God sees it, the sexual act is about intimacy, about renewing covenant, and about faithfulness. These are the central principles that transfer, absolutely making it a pointer to His relationship with us.

I would never, ever dare to use this parallel at all - except that God does it. So we must look at it. Sexual intimacy is an important and integral part of the love stories between husband and wife - of the whole metaphor - and when it is clearly there, attempting to take it out would be like trying to extricate one of the braids in a triple-braid. The whole braid would fall apart. So it stays in - and it will appear and reappear frequently in this triple-braid, but it is certainly not the only braid or even the most important braid.

But before we begin our study, how are we to interpret metaphors and parables accurately? We are to look for the central truths. One distorted paradigm is to assume that you can press all the details of a metaphor and make a literal transfer. For example, when Scripture says that each believer must be wearing a white linen wedding gown when Christ returns, it does not mean that each of us, men and women, will be getting an actual wedding gown, but that Christ has the power to make our sins as white as snow, and to continue to transform us into “beautiful brides” who are confident and unashamed at His coming. When Scripture uses the sexual metaphor - and I feel a foolish even saying this, but know I must, it certainly doesn’t mean we are engaging in a sexual act with God, like some ancient and modern cults say, but that as we increase in our love, trust, and intimacy with the Almighty, as we willingly put ourselves in His arms, that our lives will have a fruitfulness that can only come when we fully yield to the Spirit of God.

BIBLE STUDY

1.       Contemplations on the introduction

A.      Why does Christianity hold the loftiest view of sex of any world religion?

B.      What are some parallels between earthly intimacy and intimacy with Jesus?

C.      What is important to remember when looking at a scriptural parable?

2.       The Marriage Parable in Ephesians 5:22-33

A.      How are wives to submit to their husbands according to verse 22?

B.      How are husbands to treat their wives according to verse 25?

C.      How is this rephrased for each in verse 33?

D.      How did Christ fulfill his role perfectly as a husband?

E.       How are you and how could you better submit to and respect your heavenly husband?

3.       The Marriage Parable in Genesis 1 and 2 (CHALLENGE QUESTION)

A.      Challenge question: According to Genesis 1:27, male and female together image God. The first marriage was also one man and one woman for life. When you realize marriage is also a parable for Christ and His Bride, why is it important that it be both male and female? (Hints: Why it “otherness” important in this parable? Why is leadership important in this parable? )

B.      Just as a husband and wife are designed to fit together physically, what are some ways God designed them to fit together emotionally and spiritually?

4.       The Marriage Parable in Proverbs 30:18-20 (CHALLENGE QUESTION)

A.      What are the three amazing things Agur sees? How do the two become one in each case?

B.      What is the fourth mystery, the beauty Agur “does not understand?” How is this a culmination of the two becoming one?

C.      What is the contrast in verse 20?

D.      Why must sex be kept within the covenant of marriage in order to reflect the parable of Christ and His Bride?

5.       The Marriage Parable in Hosea

Find a few verses in chapter 2 that show that sin is not so much breaking the rules, but unfaithfulness, breaking the heart of God.

6.       What will you remember and apply from this week?

Aug 22, 2010 | Categories: Personal | Tags: , | 104 Comments »

I, Adam, take thee, Eve (Part I)

dees-mother-as-a-bride-300dpi1I’m hoping this love story will be a little easier, now that you’ve had some practice. What we are doing, for those who have just joined us, is finding Jesus and His Gospel hidden in the love stories of the Bible. I’m testing the waters here. You are a depthy group of women — if it is too challenging for you, I know I need to go back to the drawing board. I also covet your prayers for wisdom for me if I should proceed with this book. I appreciate you!

Let’s go to the beginning — to the first love story. My favorite picture of a bride is this picture of my mother on her wedding day. Dressed in snowy white, I know she took my father’s breath away. And though it is hard to believe, when Jesus has finished His work in us, we will thrill Him in the same way.

Whether we realize it or not, there are many moments in a wedding that tap into the deepest love story of all. It is as if far behind the sanctuary, a door has been opened to a room where heavenly music is playing, and we catch faint strains of the greatest Wedding Day of all.  We may sense that deeper love story when:

A WEDDING GLIMPSES THE GOSPEL

Each of us longs to be loved the way a bride is loved, but we wonder how that is possible, given the secrets we hide. We think if someone knew us completely, he couldn’t love us. Yet that is the heavenly music of the Gospel, for:

This is the good news of the Gospel - and every earthly wedding is a foreshadowing of this great day.

AS A BRIDEGROOM REJOICES OVER HIS BRIDE

The very first “wedding” may not seem like a wedding at all. It may not even seem real to us. We may picture Rubenesque figures frolicking naked around an apple tree. It may seem almost mythical, and certainly so far in the past that it is hard to relate. Our hearts may not be stirred.

But if we glimpse the deeper love story behind this first love story, our hearts indeed could be stirred. For this love story doesn’t just whisper His name, it nearly shouts it.

Bible Study

1. Comment on the introduction — is the idea that a wedding is a picture of the Gospel new to you? What thoughts do you have?

2. When the first bride is walked down the aisle by God the Father and presented to Adam, how does he respond in Genesis 2:23? Why was he so excited? (Genesis 2:18-20 may give insight.)

2. What parallel do you see between this first wedding and our wedding to Jesus Christ? (See Isaiah 62:5) How is it possible, given our sin, that our God will rejoice over us?

3. Challenge question: Why is a wedding a picture of the Gospel? (See above notes — and bring any Scriptures that you feel help clarify this.)

4. After Adam breaks out into song, Moses states the most importance verse about marriage in the Bible. It consists of three parts — what are they?

5. In Ephesians 5:31-32, Paul says this verse applies not only to earthly marriage, but something deeper. What is that?

Let’s begin with leaving and cleaving and do one flesh next week. (For even sexual intimacy is a picture of the Gospel.)

6. Leaving:

Earthly marriage: What does it mean for a man to “leave” his family? Does this mean  abandonment? Why is this important for a healthy marriage?

The parallel with Christ: How did Jesus leave His Father in order to woo His Bride? Was this painful for Him, do you think?

In the psalm about Christ and His bride, how does “leaving” apply to us, according to Psalm 45:10-11.

How could you personally apply this?

7. Cleaving

Cleaving is akin to gluing two pieces of paper together. They are no longer two, but

one, and if you try to separate the two pieces, you rip into each of them. Cleaving cannot occur when a couple simply lives together, because there is no lasting covenant, no legal commitment. Cleaving provides the protective tent for becoming one flesh, which God says should follow rather than precede cleaving. This helps us to understand why divorce is so painful. It rips at each partner, and at any children of their union. God wants us to cleave, to be committed - for earthly reasons, but also, because it reflects His covenant.

A. As Applied to Earthly Marriage: What does cleaving mean, and how should this impact a couples’ perspective of marriage?

B. In Malachi 2:10-16, the prophet thunders at men who have broken their marriage covenant with the brides of their youth, casting them aside to marry younger pagan women. What reasons does God give in Malachi 2:14-15 for his anger with these men?

C. The parallel with Christ. Christ cleaves to us, will never leave us or forsake us. Find passages that show that this cleaving depends on Christ’s faithfulness. If we are truly His, we need not fear that He will walk out.

8. What will you take away from this week’s study? Why?

Aug 15, 2010 | Categories: Personal | Tags: , , | 85 Comments »

CHOOSING BONDAGE OR FREEDOM (INDECENT PROPOSAL PART II)

IF YOU HAVE JUST JOINED US, PLEASE READ INDECENT PROPOSAL PART I

Jesus said, If you know the truth, it can set you free. Paul uses the story of Abraham and his two wives as an analogy to show us a wrong way and a right way to approach the Christian life. One puts us in bondage, and the other sets us as free as an eagle in the sky.

The Galatians had listened to false teaching and had embraced an indecent proposal and the way of slavery. Paul writes to them sternly, saying:

You foolish Galatians! Who has

bewitched you?


I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel, which is really no gospel at all.

False teachers had come to Galatia and told them it was right to trust what Christ did on the cross, but they also needed to keep the law. It was faith plus. It was a perversion of the Gospel. And Paul thunders:

But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned! As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned.

Let’s look at the analogy Paul makes and then find applications to how we approach life — for God’s heart for you is to be set free.ble Study:

1. Read Galatians 4:21-23 and explain the differences between the birth of Ishmael and Isaac.

2. Read Galatians 4:24-31 and explain who “our mother” is. What does this mean? (This is a challenging passage, but not as hard as it might appear, and can truly make a difference in your life, so ask the Lord for His quickening to understand.)

3. Contemplate on the following and answer after each bullet point:

THE SON OF THE SLAVE WOMAN

  • What did this not involve a miracle but natural means?
  • Why did this involve an indecent proposal?
  • What bad fruit did this lead to?

BUT THE SON OF THE FREE WOMAN

  • Why was this a miracle?
  • Why did this honor God?
  • What good fruit did this lead to?

In our lives, we are continually faced with these two approaches to life. Consider:

THE LONGING TO GO TO HEAVEN

THE WAY OF SLAVERY

  • Follow the rules and earn your way to heaven - no miracle involved
  • Is an indecent proposal because Christ already paid dearly and it was enough
  • Leads to bondage and doesn’t work!

THE WAY OF FREEDOM

  • Trust what Christ did on the cross to pay for your sin
  • Honors God by trusting the miracle of grace
  • Leads to joy, freedom, and assurance

4. Tim Keller says one of the surest signs to discern whether someone is a Christian is their response when you ask, “Are you a Christian?” The response of someone who is a child of the slave will be a bit of a perturbed, “Of course! Why do you ask?” But the child of the freewoman will say something like, “Oh yes — isn’t it wonderful? Isn’t it amazing?” Explain, using the above analogy, why this would be so.

Now, let’s apply the Gospel to more than just heaven.

THE LONGING TO BE RELIEVED OF GUILT

Many women who talk to me after a retreat will confess a sin like abortion or infidelity and then say something like, “I know God forgives me, but I can’t forgive myself.” There are two paths open to them. Let’s see how you do - imagine how someone who does trust Christ, might also choose the way of slavery. Then contrast that with the way of Freedom.

5. Using the above diagram, see if you can answer the questions in parenthesis.

THE WAY OF SLAVERY

  • Trust Christ but also beat myself up to help pay for my sin
  • (Explain why this is an “indecent proposal”)
  • (Describe result)

THE WAY OF FREEDOM

  • (What must you trust alone?)
  • (Why is this honoring to God?)
  • (What fruit does this lead to?)

4. What guilt and regrets do you carry? Why is carrying them dishonoring to God, offering an “indecent proposal?” If you are willing, list them here and lay them down at the cross.


THE LONGING FOR THE DESIRES OF OUR HEART TO BE MET

When my husband was diagnosed with cancer, the desire of my heart was that he would be healed on earth. I thought, I’ll ask everyone I know throughout the world to pray. I’ll live a blameless life. I’ll fast. I felt if I just did enough, then God would heal Steve on earth. And while it is true that Scripture exhorts us to pray, to live blamelessly, and even to fast - it is not to arm wrestle God, but instead, an expression of our intimate walk with Him. We live as He asks because we love Him, rather than to control Him. We leave the results to Him, who does all things well in His time. If we cannot see a reason for suffering, we submit to His wisdom and grace, knowing His character. As we grow in our trust for Him, we know that if He does not give us the desires of our heart, then it is because He has a better plan, a better way, that one day will be made clear. When we have a strong desire, whether it is for marriage, or children, or to be released from suffering - there are two paths open to us.

5. When we face suffering — see if you can explain which path is honoring to God and which path is not.  Explain also why the path that honors God leads to humility and freedom, and the “indecent proposal” leads to pride or anger.

6. There are so many other applications, because living a Gospel-transformed life applies to much more than heaven. How might you apply this to your life?

This forum has become a place where we not only help one another find strength in God through pondering the Scripture, but by sharing our needs and praying for one another. I must thank you for praying for the births of my three grand-daughters this summer. Here is Katherine Elizabeth Harrington, my daughter Beth’s daughter who was born Friday. We are so thankful for yet another healthy baby. She, like her cousin did, is struggling with billirubin — (we used to call it jaundice.) I do appreciate your prayers for this precious one, as you prayed for Mia. Here she is — and thank you so for your prayers. I’m praying for you as you do this study. I think it’s an important lesson.

Katherine Elizabeth Harrington

Aug 09, 2010 | Categories: Personal | Tags: , , | 129 Comments »

An Indecent Proposal: Part I.

Adriaen van der Werff "Sarah supplies Abraham Hagar."I’m going to give you a taste of a new book I’m working on with the tentative title of Every Love Story Whispers His Name.

Hidden in every priest, every prophet, every slain lamb, every suffering servant, every king, and every Bridegroom is Jesus. He is also hidden in the love stories of the Bible. Each of them, if you look deeply enough, point to Jesus and/or His Gospel. This week we will begin with the love story of Abraham and his two wives and see how it points to Jesus.

In the movie Indecent Proposal a wealthy gambler, played by Robert Redford, offers a husband and a wife a million dollars in exchange for sleeping with the wife, played by Demi Moore. At first they refuse, then deliberate, and then, hard-pressed for money, agree, assuring one another that it is just a physical act and their marriage will survive. But, as we might anticipate, afterwards, their guilt, blame, and anger hammer at the marriage. The husband can’t forget the image of his wife in another man’s arms. The wife can’t forget Robert Redford. (Who could?)

Walter Wangerin, in The Book of God, imagines how another indecent proposal occurred.

“Abram?” she said. “I have an idea.”…She cast her eyes to the side, now cutting melon for herself. “I would not object,” she said, “if you liked my idea and acted upon it. Another woman might object. I would not. In fact, I would be grateful.”

Abram put a sticky finger to his tongue. “What is your idea?” he said.

“You know my maidservant, of course,” she said, carefully cutting the rind from her fruit.

“Yes.”

“Hagar. The sturdy woman whom we brought north from Egypt. That one. Young, she is. A good servant.”

“Yes, said Abram. “I know her. What is your idea?”

“Now, then, are you finished with the melon? Have you had enough?”

Abram simply sat and gazed at his wife.

Finally she laid the pieces of her own fruit aside and wiped her hands and folded them in her lap and lifted her eyes to her husband.

“When certain wives are unable to bear children,” she said, “they bring their maidservants to their husbands. They invite their husbands to go in to their maidservants in order that they, the barren wives, might in this manner get children of their own. For if the maid bears a baby upon the knees of her mistress, the baby becomes the child of the mistress. Abram, if you wished to do such a thing with Hagar my maidservant…I would not object.”

The Scripture then tells us:

And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai.

Genesis 16:2 (NAS)

Let’s look at this story and how it teaches us something about Jesus and how we can release the power of the Gospel in our lives. I’m going to take you back to see the story in context, and then forward to the book of Galatians where it uses this story as an analogy to help us understand how to release the power of the Gospel in our lives.

Mia and Annie

Mia & Annie

For those new to us, you may want to take a question a day — or do more than one. I’ll post again next Monday. And before we begin, I must show you my newborn grand-daughter. (The only way I can tie this into this story is that the births of babies are significant in showing us something about the Gospel in the story of Abraham! :-)

BIBLE STUDY

1. Read Genesis 16:1-2.

A. What Sarah proposed may have been in keeping with the culture, but how do you know that it was not in keeping with God’s will? Can you

give Scripture to support your answer?

B. Can you sympathize with Sarah? Put yourself in her place. What was valued in that culture? How was she feeling? How long had it been

since God had promised Abraham a son?

C. Compare Genesis 16:2 “And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai” to Genesis 3:17. What is the implication? Is listening to your wife

wrong? Then what was wrong?

Read Genesis 16:3-5 and the following commentary.

Most English translations of the above say “in your arms,” or “in your embrace,” but Hebrew scholar Robert Alter says it is rawer than that. Literally, in Hebrew, Sarah is saying, “I put my slave in your lap,” which is a euphemism for the genital area. She’s trying to help Abraham understand why her suffering is so intense. She is saying, “Abraham – I put my slave girl between your legs.”

2. Put yourself in Hagar’s place. What do you think her feelings were about herself before this happened? How does she now respond to Sarah, and why, do you think?

3. Considering what you learned from Robert Alter’s translation, put yourself in Sarah’s place. Why is she suffering? Think of everything you can. How has the plan that she thought would set her free enslaved her?

4. Does it seem fair to you that she blames Abraham? What’s going on in her mind, do you think?

Read Genesis 16:6

5. Though Abraham’s advice to Sarah might have been in keeping with the culture — how does it go against what God would have us do?

7. The plan that Sarah and Abraham thought would set them free surely has not. List the fall-out.

8. This story will unfold more next week, and you will see how it applies to the Gospel. But for now, can you think of a time when you tried to get something good, but did it in a way that was not pleasing to God?

Aug 01, 2010 | Categories: Personal | Tags: , , , , | 109 Comments »

YOU KNIT ME TOGETHER IN MY MOTHER’S WOMB

anne-at-9-months
Two of my daughters are expecting babies this week. Anne, we think, is first. Here she is — 9 months and four days pregnant. She is praying labor happens naturally, but if it doesn’t, she will be induced this Thursday. Beth is due next Monday. I am going to start driving to be near them (Nebraska and Iowa) tomorrow. The psalm we “happen” to be on, certainly is timely for our family, but it is enormously timely for each of us.

This week will conclude A Woman of Worship, but we will be doing some interesting passages until we begin a new study in the fall.

Before we begin the study, I’ve a question for you to ponder:

What are the strengths of an internet study? How could we better use this gift to make this study better? What are the weaknesses? What could be done to overcome the weaknesses?

BIBLE STUDE — TAKE A QUESTION OR TWO A DAY, OR ALL AT ONCE IF YOU PREFER
READ PSALM 139 IN ITS ENTIRETY, ASKING GOD TO GIVE YOU THE BIG PICTURE
1. Contemplate THE WONDER of Psalm 139:1-6
A. List the ways God knows you — find as many as you can.

B. Compare verse 6 with Job 42:3. In what context did Job speak these words?

c. CHALLENGE QUESTION FOR THIS AMAZING GROUP: What link do you see between God’s intimate knowledge of your every move, thought, and word and the suffering He allows in your life?

2. Meditate on Psalm 139:7-12.
A. What mood shift do you see here — and why do you think it happened?

B. Why is God’s omniscience and omnipresence both wonderful and terrible?

C. holiness triangle
Imagine (since I don’t have the tech savvy to do this) that on the top line you would write “God’s holiness” and on the bottom line “My sinfulness.” As you grow in Christ, God’s holiness will grow greater to you, and you will simultaneously see the depth of your sinfulness more clearly. This is part of what is happening in this psalm, what happened to Job, and what happens to each of us as we contemplate the greatness of God. What dark parts of your heart do you see today that you were not able to see a few years back?

4. beth This is my daughter Beth and her husband Seth. (We wouldn’t have done a picture like this in my generation, but I realize pregnancy is nothing to be ashamed of — it’s beautiful. I think that the change in maternity clothes to revealing instead of hiding is healthy, so, I’m posting this picture of my beautiful pregnant daughter.)
Meditate on Psalm 139:13-18.

A. What causes the Psalmist to be filled with wonder? Be as specific as you can be.

B. In A Woman of Worship, if you have the song, “I was made to praise You,” comment on it.

C. What thoughts does verse 16 bring to you — especially those of you who have lost loved ones?

D. Compare this passage with Ecclesiastes 11:5. What do you see?

E. If you have had the privilege of becoming a mother by biological birth or adoption, what wonder do you remember?

5. Meditate on Psalm 139:19-22. Why do you think the abrupt mood change? Is it logical? Explain.

6. Make Psalm 139:23-34 your own prayer. You may want to write it out here.

7. What do you think would happen in your life if you made the above prayer a regular part of your life when you faced problems, decisions, or the end of the day?

Love to each of you — on to a new exciting adventure next week! Please come!

Jul 26, 2010 | Categories: Personal | Tags: , , | 170 Comments »

CATCHING THE WIND OF HIS SPIRIT


Learning how to pray the psalms has changed my prayer life from rowing upstream to catching the wind of His Spirit. We’re going to look at just four verses from Psalm 119 that are filled with power. It was my husband Steve who first discovered this passage. When he found Integrity had set it to music he was thrilled and we knew it had to go into A Woman of Worship. I think it is the most beautiful song on the CD and you can hear the beginning of it by clicking here.

The phrase “Remember the Word to your servant” is the psalmist reminding God of His promises. Charles Spurgeon says that God loves it when His children remind Him of His Word, because it shows they know and trust it. It’s the way a parent feels when his child repeats back to him something that he’s wanted him to believe and understand, but wasn’t sure he did.

For example, when Steve thought he might be dying, he was so concerned about his three youngest children — all daughters. So He reminded God of one of His promises — to be a Father to the fatherless. He asked God to remember this promise. Then Steve also asked, knowing God might have a different way of fulfilling this promise, but still submitting this request: “Would you give each of my daughters a godly husband who has a godly father? And could that father love my daughter should You be calling me home?” In the three years after Steve’s death, each of his daughters married a godly man — and each man was the son of a godly pastor. Steve certainly caught the wind of God’s Spirit.
I am also seeing how often I pray for God’s gifts instead of my character and the character of those I love. But there are so many promises that have to do with our character or with experiencing the presence of God, which is key to everything else: our character, our contentment. There are many promises right within Psalm 119, that if we prayed them, would help us catch the wind of the Spirit. What if we regularly prayed Psalm 119:18 (Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law) or Psalm 119:37-38? (Turn my eyes away from worthless things…)

Wouldn’t you like to catch the wind of His Spirit?
Let’s go sailing together!

1. Write out Psalm 119:49-50 in a version that you particularly like. Why do you like it?

2. Meditate on “Remember your Word to your servant.”

A. Why is the psalmist reminding God of His promises? Has God forgotten? Then, why?

B. Why are God’s promises more powerful than ours?

One commentator from the 1800’s put it like this: “Sue God on His Word, for His Word is His bond.” (That’s a lawsuit
you’ll never win!)

3. Meditate on “Upon which You caused me to hope” List three promises of God that could give you hope — look especially
for promises that would help you with things you tend to be anxious about or with your character.

4. Meditate on “This is my comfort in my affliction, for your Word has given me life.” Take one of the above promises and
explain why it comforts you.

5. Now, take this promise and pray it, making it yours. (I want to caution you that we can’t use these promises to
arm-wrestle God, making Him do what we want, but we can ask Him to fulfil His promise to us. For example, in the story
above, God may have chosen to have our daughters be single, but still have been a Father to them in a different way.) Find a promise to pray back, perhaps one in Psalm 119, and do it here. You can do this throughout the week with various promises.
Write your prayer here:

6. In the song on the CD, they drop down to Psalm 119:147 and sing that. Contemplate that verse as well as Psalm 119:148 and share what you see.

7. Here’s a challenge question: Find examples in Psalm 119 where the psalmist almost seems to be worshiping the word, the law, the precepts. We know we shouldn’t “worship” anything or anyone other than the LORD - so what is going on here?

8. What will you remember from this week?

Jul 19, 2010 | Categories: Personal | Tags: , , | 96 Comments »

A PSALM FOR DANGER

psalm91_4 (more…)

Jul 12, 2010 | Categories: Personal | Tags: , , , , | 76 Comments »

BLOW UPON MY GARDEN

awake-north-wind-and-south-wind-aleonartIn the Song of Songs, the Beloved says to her Lover: “Awake north wind, and come south wind! Blow upon my garden that its fragrance may spread abroad.” (Song of Songs 4:16)

Throughout Scripture, including the psalms, we learn how the Lord would have us respond when He brings the north wind (the hard things of life) and also, when He brings the south wind (the sweet things of life). The purpose of our lives is to glorify God, to let His fragrance be spread abroad. That can happen when our heart is right, whatever weather He ordains.

Let’s start with the hard things, finding some insight from Lesson 4 in A Woman of Worship and Psalm 42, and then move to the sweet things, finding insight from Lesson 5, and a few of the many psalms that model and exhort thankfulness.

We’ve gained some new sisters in our last post, for whom I’m so thankful. I’m praying for each of you, that our sharing may be honest and thoughtful, and that together we will help each other be ready for either the north wind or the south wind.

Take a question a day, two if you like, and listen to the songs, if you have them, to help your heart.

NORTH WIND

1. In Psalm 42, the north winds are blowing, and the psalmist keeps asking the same question of himself.

A. What is the repeated question?

B. The psalmist is taking his soul in hand and asking her, “Why are so you upset when you know that your hope should be in God, who can never be shaken?” The psalmist realizes he has displaced his hope in something that can be shaken. List some of the things or people you have placed your hope in that could be shaken.

2. If you have the song from A Woman of Worship on Psalm 42, listen to it. There are two voices — one if the male psalmist, asking his soul “Why are you downcast?” Then there is feminine voice who keeps singing back, “Put your hope in God.” What is your interpretation of these two voices? (If you have other songs based on Psalm 42 you’d like to recommend — please tell us about them and why you like them!)

3. If the North Wind is blowing in your life right now, would you be willing to take your soul in hand and ask her, “Where have you displaced your hope?” If so, what do you learn? (This is our chance to pray for you to put your hope in God.)

4. We’re starting to get to know one another in this blog. Is there someone whom you’ve seen put her hope in God when the North Wind is blowing? What have you seen?

How has His fragrance spread abroad?

SOUTH WIND

5. If you have A Woman of Worship, listen to the song “Give Thanks” and share your thoughts. What other songs of thankfulness can you recommend that stir your heart? How might you better sing them on a daily basis?

6. Read Psalm 78:1-16

A. Summarize verses 1-4 in one sentence.

B. You could call this passage “forget not.” Find some verses that re-iterate this theme. What are we to “not forget?” Why?

C. What verse stands out to you from this passage and why?

7. Let’s practice thankfulness right now for everyday life. List a few simple pleasures that you do not want to forget.

8. I’ve a video of my daughter Anne speaking at her Dad’s funeral about “giving thanks.” http://www.deebrestin.com/about/steve-brestin/

(Scroll down under the About Dee section.) What do you learn?

9. How does practicing thankfulness as a daily habit, when the South Wind is blowing, better prepare you to respond when the North Wind blows?

How might you better incorporate practicing the habit of thankfulness? Specific ideas are welcome!

Jul 05, 2010 | Categories: Personal | Tags: , , , , | 161 Comments »

WHITER THAN SNOW

whiter-than-snowThis is going to be a great week. Paul Tripp’s devotional on Psalm 51 is packed with insightful questions on this famous psalm. I’m going to use just a few to help us begin to dig into this psalm of David’s repentance. I’m so thankful for the hungry souls on this blog. I don’t want superficial Christianity. I want to be surrounded by believers who want to go deeper, who long for transformed lives, and whose excitement is contagious. That’s you!  We’ll spend a week here, and we can’t cover it all, but the last question allows you to dig, dig, dig. Set your pace. Pray for your sisters. This could be an extremely transforming week.

This is asking very personal questions — so it is only fair I jump in too, so I will be answering as well this week. This is a study that could be done over and over again in order for us to walk a life of repentance and faith.

Prepare your heart with music based on Psalm 51. I love Dennis Jernigan’s version of Mercy Me. I like the rendition on A Woman of Worship of Psalm 51. You probably have one to suggest and we’d love to hear it or watch it.

Bible Study

The background for this psalm is David’s sin with Bathsheba and Uriah and his repentance after Nathan came and painted a word picture for him. If you aren’t familiar with this, the story is in 2 Samuel 11-12. Read it. Then read all of Psalm 51 prayerfully.

1. We often think our problems are on the outside — a difficult boss, tight finances, or a lack of appreciation. Yet the whole of Scripture, including Psalm 51, shows us our problems are on the inside. If we are convinced we are righteous, that we don’t need cleansing and rescuing, that is our biggest problem. It seems amazing that David was so blind to his sin before Nathan came to him, yet we are the same way. Think about a time when you thought the problem was on the outside, but God opened your eyes to see that your attitude, your sin, and your blindness was the real problem.

2. Think about a problem you are facing right now that you might have thought was on the outside. How might it actually be on the inside?

3.  What is our only hope, according to Psalm 51:1? Tim Keller says growth comes from continually walking in repentance and faith on a daily basis. Where, today, is God calling you to walk in repentance and faith? (Let’s pray for one another and share how God has helped us through the week.)

4. Paul Tripp shares about a time when he was on a panel with two Islamic colleagues and a Rabbi. When the subject of what you would say to a family whose loved one committed suicide came up, Tripp said the Gospel shone the brightest. He said, “Suicide doesn’t change the paradigm. …Both the person who has committed suicide and the person who has not, yet has sinned, is dependent on God’s mercy.” Contemplate this: Do you really believe your only hope is in God’s grace? Is your life characterized by thankfulness or complaint?

5. Tim Keller says the distinguishing mark of a Christian is that he is overcome with thankfulness that he is saved. When asked if he is a Christian, he says something like, “Oh — yes — isn’t it wonderful?” Whereas the person who doesn’t really get it becomes indignant, thinking somehow he has earned the right to be called a Christian. Comment.

6. What does Psalm 51:3 teach us about our hearts? Tripp says we are masters at disguise. Anger masquerades as a zeal for truth, gossip as concern, pride as a love for biblical wisdom. We are all too skilled at looking at our own wrong and seeing good. Be still before the Lord praying through Psalm 51:1-3, and Psalm 51:6. Does he give you light in your inner parts?

7. How do you explain verse 4?

8. Take a passage of Psalm 51 and pray through it for yourself. Write your prayer here.

9. There is so much in this psalm, it is hard to do it justice in a week. But contemplate it, chew it, and share your insights here, giving a verse reference, an insight, an application.

Jun 28, 2010 | Categories: Personal | Tags: , , , | 112 Comments »

Older Entries »