Tag Archive | holy

Author Confessions: It’s The Little Things Part II

Aug25
Reading Time: 3 minutes

Author Confessions: It’s The Little Things Part II

As I pondered little things when it comes to fiction, my little grey cells meandered to other areas where this is important.

When the Isrealites were preparing for that first Passover they needed to clean to the degree that not a tiny piece of yeast ( a little thing) could be found in the house. I had help cleaning in the house a few weeks back, and the woman told me to be aware that there were crumbs of something in one cupboard. Maybe I had mice. We live in the country and mice are not unusual to find if traps aren’t set, however, in this instance it yeast had fallen out of a tiny hole in a packet that had been cut too close. Better than a mess left by mice, but still, a mess.

I’m not a big fan of cleaning, but this reminded me that even the tiniest sin, is still sin. A speck that can obscure your view. How often do I deep clean my own soul? We get too used to the dust in the corner, or the window sill, or in the cupboard. Over time it gets worst.

There’s a saying that we are not to stress over the little things. And in reality many little things we stress over will be insignificant in the future and we won’t remember them at all. Still, when it comes to daily life, sometimes it is the little things that are important, like confessing sin, spending time with God, paying that credit card bill, changing the oil on the car…

But how about in life? How often do we pay attention to the little things around us? I was deep cleaning in my home and amazed at how much dirt shows up in the space between window glass and screen. Ewww! My husband walks around the outside of his shop or garage always looking for nails or screws. Those little things can cause big problems if a tire hits one the wrong way.

Sin often starts out small. A tiny lie. A corner of your soul that holds on to anger and resentment. Just one video you’d never want your mother to catch you watching (not to mind God!).

What about patterns of behavior? Saying a behavior is wrong for some but not for you (hypocrisy). Being able to think critically can be important for certain tasks: medicine, police work, even editing books. While that is a great skill to have, it can be difficult to turn it off when it comes to people. Having a good work ethic is important but working so hard you avoid relationships, isn’t honoring to those who love you. Seeking to do your work perfectly is great if you’re a surgeon, but expecting perfection of others in everyday life is always going to disappoint.

I could list so many more things, mostly because I have a tendency to sin. I’m gratful for those who I love and trust who can tell me when I’ve erred. I need to speak the truth in love as well at times. I hate having to call out sin in others because I hate having to look at in in myself. True love helps those they love, even with the little things.

When it comes to sin, what little things trip you up? What might God be showing you that you need to deal with? It’s the little things that can grow to be big things.

Author Confessions: Imagination and Creativity are Reflections of God’s Character

Apr29
Reading Time: 3 minutes

Author Confessions: Imagination and Creativity are Reflections of God’s Character

It would be lovely if I could claim that my stories are masterful works of art. I’d like to think they are good, and I’ve applied as much excellence as I have within me to write them. Awards and accolades (and money) would be lovely validation but in a deep field of other authors who are also doing their best to labor to write well, it’s hard to rise to the top of the heap in any way at all.

Creativity is a gift from God. He after all is the ultimate Creator of everything and any faults in them are not accrued to Him, but to our sin nature. I won’t go into the theology of sin but whether you have read Genesis or not, I doubt anyone can state that humans are innately good or perfect in any way. Even the physical world, including our bodies, are prone to the effects of sin including diseases and malfunctions.

I am a creative person. Now I would argue everyone can be creative in some way, shape, or form as we express that part of God’s character in our own lives. We paint houses, plant flowers, perhaps have a favorite color and it’s hard for anyone with vision to deny the beauty of sunrises or sunsets. My husband didn’t think of himself as creative, but he likes to fabricate things and fix things using the materials he has. It’s a challenge and he enjoys the process of trying something new to see if it can be done. That’s creativity. Maybe it isn’t as pretty, but even function can be a worthwhile aim. He has painted classic cars so there is that creativity for the purpose of beauty as well.

I mentioned that creativity is an attribute of God but it’s not one that we often think about. Without creativity we wouldn’t have innovation or try new things. There would be no music, no books, no art, no masterful gardens to walk through and enjoy. Buildings would be bland but functional, or would they? Even functionality requires creativity, doesn’t it?

Creativity is central to life and as an author who also enjoys other creative endeavors, I fully recognize that I cannot do any of it on my own. The imagination that helps me write stories is a gift from God and I have to believe my writing is an act of worship. When I go back and reread stories, I’m often amazed, not at how great I am, but at how God used my fingers on a keyboard to craft and weave through the stories all the threads that are there. They form a beautiful tapestry on the page. That’s not something I can do. Not without Him guiding me.

I also mentioned imagination. We daydream. We make up little songs. We converse with words that we somehow select and put together to tell others our life stories. Another gift from God. How did God possibly imagine us before He created us? Then He made every one of us so unique even to our fingerprints? Our DNA? There was no template for anything that exists on this planet without the imagination and perfect execution of that by our Creator God.

Obviously there are creations out there that do not glorify the Creator. God gives us these aspects of His character and holds us responsible for how we use them. Someone who writes erotica is misusing a powerful gift and will be responsible for how those words impact someone else. The same could be said for many aspects of life. Imagination is holy when subjected to the One who gave that to us. Then it can do amazing things.

Stop today and think about how creative life really is. How God has enabled you to express creativity. Whether you read a book, listen to music, watch a movie or television show, or even play a game. Stop for a moment in wonder and thank God for giving us such a marvelous gift because imagination and creativity are reflections of God’s character.

Do You Make Jesus Look Stupid?

Dec16
Reading Time: 3 minutes

IMG_20131214_090959_409I’m stepping out on a limb here because something has bothered me a lot lately with social media.

Christians are making statements and polarizing themselves over things that are inconsequential. Oh, I know, you believe your views are important and I respect that, but please, hear me out here.

Does your firm stance and insulting words about whether someone is Republican or Democrat show the winsomeness of Christ?

Or whether you believe in Creation or Evolution?

Or, whether everyone should say “Merry Christmas?”

I’m not saying that these things are unimportant. What I want to propose though is that the militant stand that many take might be doing more to alienate those from the truth of the gospel and the holiness of this time of year than attract them to it.

Insulting someone to try to win them to your point of view is the equivalent of throwing manure on them rather than the sweet aroma of baking Christmas cookies. It doesn’t work.

Our opponents are fellow image bearers of Christ, whether we agree with their political, cultural or theological positions on things.

I have my perspective and stand on issues too, and some I feel strongly about. However, the reason I initially went to pursue a degree in Christian counseling was because I saw too often that the words and behaviors of many Christians were a stumbling block to unbelievers.

Granted, we are all in the process of sanctification–and I am at times as guilty as anyone of being obnoxious about things I believe strongly in. However, I believe as Christians we need to have an extra filter on our conversations on-line. The filter of the question: “Will this bring honor to Christ and make Him desirable for others to pursue?”

Yes, I know Christianity is objectionable to many. But consider this. Is it because of the truths of the Bible itself,or could it be due to the way those who claim to be Christians behave and respond to the world around them?

I’m not going to tell you what to believe about how you educate your child, whether or not you should vaccinate or if you should be for or against Obamacare. I respect the fact that there are people on both sides of the aisle of these issues. And that’s okay. (No. Really. It is.). God can be honored and glorified in many of the diverse opinions we hold depending on the manner in which we hold them.

Does that make sense? I believe God can be glorified in the family that chooses public school as well as  those who homeschool (or private). God leads and guides us all in different ways because He desires to shine His light in all the dark corners of the world. When we can love others in spite of their views on abortion (gasp!) or how they vote, we elevate their dignity as humans created in the image of God above our own agendas. Do we have to negate what we believe in to do that? NO! But we can love and listen and even disagree without disrespecting those who hold opposing views. We can stand for truth, certainly, but let us do it with grace.

Ultimately our goal is to win the world to Jesus, but if  the world sees us as fighting about minor issues as to what color of skin Jesus or Santa had or get militant about boycotting stores that say “Happy Holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas” then how does that draw them closer to the very Savior we proclaim to worship and adore? When we do things like this we are slamming the door of the inn in their face and tell them they can’t belong with us because of some corporate policy dictated to them by a handful of people removed from the day to day interaction at a cash register.

Go ahead and say Merry Christmas in response to a benign greeting. Sometimes those employees are obeying orders but can respond to your comment with their own Merry Christmas when you open the door instead of being hostile. And the sweetness of Christ will prevail instead of more animosity.

This goes beyond Christmas – but the war seems to be more heated than ever at this season. Christianity is not supposed to intentionally alienate people from the truths of the Gospel. The gospel can do that on it’s own but those who believe in Him should not. We hold our faith as a precious and beautiful gift of grace that is meant to be shared, not horded.