A few months ago, my little girls and I were at the zoo. While we sat down to eat a snack, I heard a little boy screaming, "Mom! Mom! Mom!" He was running, frantically trying to find his mom. He couldn't see her, and there was such terror in his voice. He thought he was lost. His mom was actually quite close to him, and ran after him. "Son! I'm right here! Love, don’t be afraid!" She picked him up and embraced him, calming him with her presence.
This is such a vivid illustration of what happens when I fear. Temptation to fear is one of my most frequent battles as I seek to live by faith and not by sight. This year the Lord has revealed something precious to me in His word through this struggle: the Lord is especially near the fearful heart. My Father in Heaven comforts me, just as the mom I saw comforted her son with her presence. His commands not to fear are spoken with tender love.
From the first moment Adam and Eve sinned, they hid in fear. Yet He came close, clothed them and promised them a Savior (Gen. 3: 8, 15, 21). Let’s listen together to his voice as he continues to speak to His fearful people in the Scriptures:
Genesis 15:1- “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield.”
Genesis 26:24- “I am the God of Abraham your father. Fear not, for I am with you.”
Deuteronomy 31: 8- "It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.”
Psalm 118: 6-7- “The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? The Lord is with me; he is my helper. I will look in triumph on my enemies.”
Isaiah 41: 10- "Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."
Haggai 2: 4-5- “For I am with you, declares the Lord Almighty. This is what I covenanted with you when you came out of Egypt. And my Spirit remains among you. Do not fear.”
Can you see how near He is to the fearful one? Ed Welch says in Running Scared: “God’s assurance of his presence spans all Scripture. By the time we get to Abraham’s son Isaac, the connection between our fear and God’s promise of his presence is well established. From here on out, “I will be with you” will become like a motto.” We see His nearness in Christ. Christ is Immanuel, God with us. He is not ashamed to identify Himself with us, and call Himself our brother (Heb. 2: 11-12).
I am thankful for the way Jesus is using my tendency to fear to reveal to me in His word how near He is to me. As this year ends I am thankful for the nearness of God. I can say with the Psalmist “we give thanks to you, O God; we give thanks, for your name is near.” (Psalm 75: 1).
domingo, 23 de noviembre de 2014
sábado, 1 de noviembre de 2014
Filling up Christ's afflictions in motherhood
Today, as I nursed my Zoie, I read this brief devotional from John Piper:
Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church. (Colossians 1:24)
"Christ has prepared a love offering for the world by suffering and dying for sinners. It is full and lacking in nothing — except one thing, a personal presentation by Christ himself to the nations of the world.
God’s answer to this lack is to call the people of Christ (people like Paul) to make a personal presentation of the afflictions of Christ to the world. In doing this, we “fill up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions.” We finish what they were designed for, namely, a personal presentation to the people who do not know about their infinite worth.
But the most amazing thing about Colossians 1:24 is how Paul fills up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions.
He says that it is his own sufferings that fill up Christ’s afflictions. This means, then, that Paul exhibits the sufferings of Christ by suffering himself for those he is trying to win. In his sufferings they see Christ’s sufferings.
Here is the astounding upshot: God intends for the afflictions of Christ to be presented to the world through the afflictions of his people.
God really means for the body of Christ, the church, to experience some of the suffering he experienced so that when we proclaim the Cross as the way to life, people will see the marks of the Cross in us and feel the love of the Cross from us."
Holding Zoie in my arms was so helpful to help me realize that the truths in this article are poignantly true about motherhood. This is what missional motherhood is about! Every day moms experience some form of suffering. And every day, by experiencing some of the suffering Christ experienced we are proclaiming the Cross as a way of life to our children. And as we do that they see the marks of the Cross in us and feel the love of the Cross from us. What an astounding truth! It humbles me and moves me deeply. The way my children see me face the daily challenges of life shows to them whether I believe or not that truly the Cross is a way of life.
As moms we die to ourselves constantly. Our sleep at night is interrupted because our infants need sustenance, and we wake up in the mornings because someone is demanding to be fed and changed. We keep going through the day, sometimes not eating when we are hungry, because we are busy feeding others; we spend our hours meeting others' needs, continually dying to our desires and wants. There are so many different types of suffering for moms--from sleepless nights to miscarriages; from temptation due to raging hormones to disability. How will we suffer? How are we going to face daily suffering? How are we going to die to self every day? The temptation for me is to self-pity, and resentment. I don't want to choose joy, but rather think about how my life could be better. So easy to dwell on the "if only's..."
And yet-- Paul reminds me tonight that God is using my afflictions to fill up Christ's afflictions. The Lord is using my suffering to proclaim something GLORIOUS to my daughters! Through the daily suffering I experience in this fallen world, Christ himself is making a personal presentation to my children!
My Lord Jesus endured the Cross for the joy set before him. So I will look to Him. He who founded my faith will perfect it (thank you Jesus!). May the Lord give me grace to look to Jesus, and see Him victorious, sustaining my faith till the day when it shall be sight. May my daughters see the marks of the Cross in my life and see how I bear them with joy... May our girls see how worthy Jesus is through the way I fill up Christ's afflictions every day.
Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church. (Colossians 1:24)
"Christ has prepared a love offering for the world by suffering and dying for sinners. It is full and lacking in nothing — except one thing, a personal presentation by Christ himself to the nations of the world.
God’s answer to this lack is to call the people of Christ (people like Paul) to make a personal presentation of the afflictions of Christ to the world. In doing this, we “fill up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions.” We finish what they were designed for, namely, a personal presentation to the people who do not know about their infinite worth.
But the most amazing thing about Colossians 1:24 is how Paul fills up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions.
He says that it is his own sufferings that fill up Christ’s afflictions. This means, then, that Paul exhibits the sufferings of Christ by suffering himself for those he is trying to win. In his sufferings they see Christ’s sufferings.
Here is the astounding upshot: God intends for the afflictions of Christ to be presented to the world through the afflictions of his people.
God really means for the body of Christ, the church, to experience some of the suffering he experienced so that when we proclaim the Cross as the way to life, people will see the marks of the Cross in us and feel the love of the Cross from us."
Holding Zoie in my arms was so helpful to help me realize that the truths in this article are poignantly true about motherhood. This is what missional motherhood is about! Every day moms experience some form of suffering. And every day, by experiencing some of the suffering Christ experienced we are proclaiming the Cross as a way of life to our children. And as we do that they see the marks of the Cross in us and feel the love of the Cross from us. What an astounding truth! It humbles me and moves me deeply. The way my children see me face the daily challenges of life shows to them whether I believe or not that truly the Cross is a way of life.
As moms we die to ourselves constantly. Our sleep at night is interrupted because our infants need sustenance, and we wake up in the mornings because someone is demanding to be fed and changed. We keep going through the day, sometimes not eating when we are hungry, because we are busy feeding others; we spend our hours meeting others' needs, continually dying to our desires and wants. There are so many different types of suffering for moms--from sleepless nights to miscarriages; from temptation due to raging hormones to disability. How will we suffer? How are we going to face daily suffering? How are we going to die to self every day? The temptation for me is to self-pity, and resentment. I don't want to choose joy, but rather think about how my life could be better. So easy to dwell on the "if only's..."
And yet-- Paul reminds me tonight that God is using my afflictions to fill up Christ's afflictions. The Lord is using my suffering to proclaim something GLORIOUS to my daughters! Through the daily suffering I experience in this fallen world, Christ himself is making a personal presentation to my children!
My Lord Jesus endured the Cross for the joy set before him. So I will look to Him. He who founded my faith will perfect it (thank you Jesus!). May the Lord give me grace to look to Jesus, and see Him victorious, sustaining my faith till the day when it shall be sight. May my daughters see the marks of the Cross in my life and see how I bear them with joy... May our girls see how worthy Jesus is through the way I fill up Christ's afflictions every day.
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