Being the cool kids that we are, a group of us watched The Prince of Egypt the other night. I've seen it plenty of times and have always been impressed with the music and animation. But it was wonderful to watch it with a few of my fellow believers and truly be in awe of the great I AM.
I mean really...can you imagine? The risk and heartache Moses' mother had to endure to save her baby's life. How Moses must have felt when he realized he wasn't really an Egyptian prince but an Israelite slave. What it must have been like to see a bush on fire but not burning away and hear the audible voice of God emanating from it. To see the wonder and power and devastation of the plagues. And of course, my favorite part, getting to walk straight through the parted waters of the Red Sea on dry land...the most enormous aquarium ever!
It shows so much about faith.
Although Moses had a lot of it, he faltered and doubted and evaded God's plan and provision.
"O Lord, I have never been eloquent...I am slow of speech and tongue...please send someone else to do it." (Exodus 4:10, 13)
And those Israelites. I mean how many miracles did they have to see before they trusted Him fully??
But how hypocritical of me...If we're honest with ourselves, aren't we all that way? How many times have we enjoyed God's blessings and seen His leadership in our lives and witnessed His Providence and realized how He has rescued us from circumstances or from ourselves? Yet we are still so slow to believe...with faith even smaller than a mustard seed.
I'm like the father in Mark 9 who, when Jesus comes to rid his son of the evil spirit, says, "I do believe! Help me overcome my unbelief!"
I'd like to believe if I saw all that the Israelites and Egyptians witnessed in Exodus, I would never be able to doubt the miraculous power and sovereignty of my God. But even being eyewitnesses didn't seal their faith or ensure their faithfulness thereafter.
But I need to just open my eyes to the miracles He's worked in my life and in the lives of those around me. He is still moving and working in mighty ways. He's not confined to our inerrant, centuries-old Book, although it is His Word to us. He is a living God who is mighty to save (Zephaniah 3:17).
And what was true in Moses' day is still true now. He cares for us and He will be with us (Exodus 3). He will fight for us.
"The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still." (Exodus 14:14)
Thursday, August 29, 2013
Wednesday, August 7, 2013
Being Mary in a Martha World
In all the spiritual highs and lows of the past couple of weeks, if there's one thing I've been personally impressed with and convicted of, it's the fact that I simply do not adore my Savior as much as He deserves.
I don't spend enough quality time with Him. I'm not a good enough listener. I too seldom fall on my face in overwhelming, reverent gratitude for this Person who literally sacrificed Himself for me.
I'm guilty of having a heart divided.
"Teach me your may, O Lord, and I will walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart that I may fear your name." Psalm 86:11
Oh man. Is that ever my prayer.
I want to be like the woman (whose story is told in Matthew, Mark, Luke AND John) who was so aware of her desperate need for Jesus that she honored him with perfume she could probably barely afford and knelt at His feet, washing them with her tears. I am that sinful. We are that sinful. But how often do we have the humility to kneel before Him and, weeping, give Him everything we have?
I want to be like Mary, even though I innately tend towards being Martha. In Luke 10, when Jesus visits these sisters, Mary sits and listens intently to what He says. Martha, on the other hand, is the type-A go-getter who is "distracted by all the preparations that had to be made."
That's me. Constantly distracted. And not always by bad things. By people. By being social. By my easily derailed train of thought. By remembering the past or wondering about the future. By all the things on my to-do list!
But Jesus told Martha, "You are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken from her."
I want to be Mary. Like her, I want to just BE with Jesus.
Thank you all for your faithful support and prayers during this time! The encouraging texts, Facebook messages, etc. have meant so much!!!
With Love,
Elizabeth
Tuesday, July 16, 2013
Kids Say the Darndest Things
They really do. Kids make me laugh. You never know what's going to come out of their mouths.
So of course, I was thoroughly entertained last week during VBS. My grandma and I taught the group that just finished Kindergarten (She's a retired Kindergarten teacher. She rocks), and, as I do every year, I fell in love with our kids and they definitely made me laugh. A lot.
Ever notice how many questions kids ask? One of my favorites was when a little girl asked me why I wear makeup and one of our most precocious boys threw his hands in the air and hollered, "BECAUSE SHE'S A LADY!!!" This was the same boy who had a lot to say about my being gone for two years..."When you get back, we'll be 8 years old! ...In two years...YOU'LL BE MARRIED!!" (No, child. It doesn't quite work that way.)
And, as in most every life experience, I learned some things from them too.
Because VBS this year had a medieval, "Armor of God" theme, we played dress up a lot. One day I put on one of my old dance costumes and a crown and had all the kids convinced I was a princess. I whispered to one kid (the boy I just told you about) that my father was a King, but not to tell anyone. So of course, he starts running around the room and telling everyone just that.
That reminded me of something that's always kind of interested/confused me...Have you ever noticed how in the gospels, Jesus is always telling people not to tell anyone about Him? To keep quiet about Him being the Son of God? I've reasoned that it's because He knew it wasn't the time for everyone to know and that such talk could have gotten Him arrested before the proper time. But I think there's another reason as well...Every time He warned a person not to tell anyone about Him, that person usually went right ahead and did it anyway. Perhaps even with more adamancy and spiritual fervor than if He had told them to do it.
So maybe Jesus was playing on out child-like tendency to do the opposite of what we're told. And doesn't news sort of seem to spread faster when it's supposed to be a secret?
Jesus also said, "Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” (Mark 10:15)
The crazy thing about the kids in my class is that they actually believed me. They just had faith. And another characteristic of kids that we need to imitate: they just want to be loved. They want to be held and cuddled and told they're beautiful and good.
To enter the Kingdom, we really do need to shed a little of ourselves and our pride. We need to crawl into His lap and stare up at Him in wonder and love, desiring His blessing on our lives and having faith in HIm in all things. Like a little child, we need to snuggle into to the warm embrace of our Daddy, trusting Him to protect and love us unconditionally and sacrificially.
On another note, please keep my visa application in your prayers!
Love from Home,
Elizabeth
So of course, I was thoroughly entertained last week during VBS. My grandma and I taught the group that just finished Kindergarten (She's a retired Kindergarten teacher. She rocks), and, as I do every year, I fell in love with our kids and they definitely made me laugh. A lot.
Ever notice how many questions kids ask? One of my favorites was when a little girl asked me why I wear makeup and one of our most precocious boys threw his hands in the air and hollered, "BECAUSE SHE'S A LADY!!!" This was the same boy who had a lot to say about my being gone for two years..."When you get back, we'll be 8 years old! ...In two years...YOU'LL BE MARRIED!!" (No, child. It doesn't quite work that way.)
And, as in most every life experience, I learned some things from them too.
Because VBS this year had a medieval, "Armor of God" theme, we played dress up a lot. One day I put on one of my old dance costumes and a crown and had all the kids convinced I was a princess. I whispered to one kid (the boy I just told you about) that my father was a King, but not to tell anyone. So of course, he starts running around the room and telling everyone just that.
That reminded me of something that's always kind of interested/confused me...Have you ever noticed how in the gospels, Jesus is always telling people not to tell anyone about Him? To keep quiet about Him being the Son of God? I've reasoned that it's because He knew it wasn't the time for everyone to know and that such talk could have gotten Him arrested before the proper time. But I think there's another reason as well...Every time He warned a person not to tell anyone about Him, that person usually went right ahead and did it anyway. Perhaps even with more adamancy and spiritual fervor than if He had told them to do it.
So maybe Jesus was playing on out child-like tendency to do the opposite of what we're told. And doesn't news sort of seem to spread faster when it's supposed to be a secret?
Jesus also said, "Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” (Mark 10:15)
The crazy thing about the kids in my class is that they actually believed me. They just had faith. And another characteristic of kids that we need to imitate: they just want to be loved. They want to be held and cuddled and told they're beautiful and good.
To enter the Kingdom, we really do need to shed a little of ourselves and our pride. We need to crawl into His lap and stare up at Him in wonder and love, desiring His blessing on our lives and having faith in HIm in all things. Like a little child, we need to snuggle into to the warm embrace of our Daddy, trusting Him to protect and love us unconditionally and sacrificially.
On another note, please keep my visa application in your prayers!
Love from Home,
Elizabeth
Saturday, June 29, 2013
Love Language Fluency
No? You really should.
There's one for married couples concerning how to love your spouse well, but I read his Singles' Edition. Loved it. Yes, being able to speak my (God willing) husband's love language well will be very important some day. But we need to love EVERYONE well...parents, siblings, co-workers, roommates, friends.
I often fall short of loving people well in the way they best receive love. But I want to! And--as hippie as this sounds--wouldn't the world be a better place if we all just tried to love each other better? After all, Jesus was all about the love...In Matthew 22, He says the greatest commandment is to "love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."
And Paul echoes that. A lot.
"Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves." Romans 12:9-10
"If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." 1 Corinthians 13
"The entire law is summed up in a single command: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'" Galatians 5:14
So yeah. Love.
I've done the little Love Language Inventory thing a couple of times (http://www.5lovelanguages.com...DO IT!) and both times showed how much I really enjoy Quality Time (closely followed by Words of Affirmation).
That being said, I have been so incredibly blessed by the amount of quality time I've spend with friends these past couple of weeks, especially on my little road trip (we'll call it my "Farewell Tour"). I had a wonderful trip, spending time with my lovelies in Atlanta, Birmingham and Nashville--most of whom I hadn't seen since graduation (a whole year?! TOO. LONG.)
I'm so thankful for the countless hours of meaningful conversations, endless hugs, and just plain old good times with so many people. It made the fact that I'm leaving soon so much more vividly real.
It's hard to say goodbye for two years to the many people I love, but I'm excited to meet the people I'll grow to love in the future. I wonder what their love languages will be...
Until next time!
Love from Home,
Elizabeth
Monday, May 13, 2013
And so it begins...
Welcome to my blog!
If you're wondering about the domain name, this is how I'd like to send you all "Love from Rome" while I'm over there.
For those of you who don't know, I'm going to be spending the next two years in this gorgeous, ancient city working in an art gallery, teaching English and helping with a church plant. I am astounded at God's providence and leadership and His goodness in that He has been uniquely crafting my passions and talents all my life to lead me to serve Him in such a way and in such a place. As a Fine Arts major, I have studied and fallen in love with Italy for the past four years of college! I'm thrilled to have the opportunity to create and discuss art while loving people in this exciting city!
If you're wondering about the blog title, I chose it because we are told to "always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have" (1 Peter 3:15)...it is the reason we go...the reason we serve...the reason we love...
Because He first loved us.
Take a look at 1 John 4:7-21:
Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because he first loved us. Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.
This is our calling. Our divine privilege and purpose. To love others as ourselves.
We, as followers of Christ, are called to do this anywhere and everywhere. For the next two years, I'll be doing it thousands of miles and several time zones away from home.
Why am I doing it?
Because He first loved me.
Thank you for choosing to keep up with me this way! Even though I don't head overseas until fall, I wanted to get this blog underway. I hope whatever I have to say will be worth reading. And I don't want this to be about my life so much as what my Father is doing in, through and with it. I can't WAIT to see just what He's going to do!
So, until I leave...
Love from Home,
Elizabeth
If you're wondering about the domain name, this is how I'd like to send you all "Love from Rome" while I'm over there.
For those of you who don't know, I'm going to be spending the next two years in this gorgeous, ancient city working in an art gallery, teaching English and helping with a church plant. I am astounded at God's providence and leadership and His goodness in that He has been uniquely crafting my passions and talents all my life to lead me to serve Him in such a way and in such a place. As a Fine Arts major, I have studied and fallen in love with Italy for the past four years of college! I'm thrilled to have the opportunity to create and discuss art while loving people in this exciting city!
If you're wondering about the blog title, I chose it because we are told to "always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have" (1 Peter 3:15)...it is the reason we go...the reason we serve...the reason we love...
Because He first loved us.
Take a look at 1 John 4:7-21:
Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because he first loved us. Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.
This is our calling. Our divine privilege and purpose. To love others as ourselves.
We, as followers of Christ, are called to do this anywhere and everywhere. For the next two years, I'll be doing it thousands of miles and several time zones away from home.
Why am I doing it?
Because He first loved me.
Thank you for choosing to keep up with me this way! Even though I don't head overseas until fall, I wanted to get this blog underway. I hope whatever I have to say will be worth reading. And I don't want this to be about my life so much as what my Father is doing in, through and with it. I can't WAIT to see just what He's going to do!
So, until I leave...
Love from Home,
Elizabeth
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