Celebrating More

“The more you celebrate the more you find there is to celebrate.”
Loren Thornburg

I recently finished a protocol from my doctor which included a strict diet and powerful supplements.  It was quite a feat to complete.  At my follow up appointment the doctor said, “Congratulations!”.  Initially it caught me off guard that he would respond in that way.  Yet, the more I thought about it the more I realized that congratulations and celebration were in order.  I completed a difficult task.  So yes, let’s celebrate. In fact why don’t we do this more?  To celebrate means to publicly acknowledge with a gathering or enjoyable event.  What if we started celebrated and congratulating ourselves and one another more?  We just might find how much there is to celebrate in life.  Have you done something hard that you’ve been putting off for a while?…Celebrate!  Did you overcome something you didn’t think you could?…Celebrate!  No matter how small there is reason to celebrate.  How can you celebrate today?

“Celebrate God all day, every day.  I mean, revel in him!”
Philippians 4:4 MSG

With God there is always something to celebrate or revel in.  Even if none of our circumstances seem to have His hand on them, still He remains and who He is and what He has done is worth our celebration.  To 'revel in' means to get great pleasure from.  We can revel in God and celebrate Him knowing He first reveled in us.  It’s true.  He is celebrating you, He revels in you and takes great pleasure in you.  Even when you don’t have it all together He celebrates you.  He disciplines and holds you accountable, but He also celebrates.  He is so for you that He is willing to do both.  More than anyone He knows how hard your struggles are and He more than anyone He celebrates when you are willing to step out to overcome those.  Join with Him, the One who is celebrating you.  He is worth our celebration, all day, every day.  

Timing is Key

“The key to good timing is the willingness to wait.”

Loren Thornburg

When I just miss a green light I can hear the words of my dad, ‘timing is everything.’  It’s true in much more than traffic lights.  I see the importance of timing everywhere especially in matters of waiting.  In cooking we have to wait for the right timing.  Even when I’m starving I wouldn’t eat raw meat because I know the possible negative effects that would have.  Yet, sometimes it seems I am not willing to wait in other areas of my life.  It takes patience and knowing it is worth the wait.  Timing is key in the words we speak to one another, in our healing, in our relationships, in so many things. It’s everywhere.  It matters.  Mostly we struggle to wait for the right timing.  We tend to want to jump ahead forgetting it’s worth the wait.  As ready as you are, be willing to wait.  Timing makes all the difference.  

“I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living! Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!”

Psalm 27:13-14 ESV

I love David’s cry in the middle of being sought by enemies he speaks to himself of the goodness of the Lord and the importance of waiting on Him.  It seems he must make note of this because it is not an easy thing to do.  Our temptation is to take matters into our own hands, forgetting we have a God that is worth waiting on.  The story of Abraham and Sarah is such a great example of the human tendency to want to provide even what God has said that he would provide.  Sarah had Abraham sleep with Hagar even though Sarah was promised a child.  It wasn’t until she was past childbearing years in her old age that God granted that promise.  I can see why David cried for his heart to take courage. It takes great courage to wait when there is no answer in sight.  It takes courage to wait for the Lord to fulfill His promises.  It takes courage so let your heart take courage for the waiting is worth it.  God’s timing is always good and He is always worth the wait.  

Life Comes In

“You have to take time to heal from the chaos of life.”

Loren Thornburg

Life brings unavoidable chaos and messes.  After having my roof redone I noticed the increased dirt and dust happening inside my house.  It seemed that we had been tracking in that which was around our home.  I see how we do this with life too.  We track into the inside of our hearts the things going on around us.  As much as we might like to believe we are unaffected we can’t deny the fact that to some degree our hearts are penetrable.  So then we must take time to clean our inside.  Although we can be careful where we walk, avoiding some of life’s unnecessary chaos and mess, there are some things that are unavoidable.  Either way life requires time to clean and restore the inside.  Give yourself space to get set right, before the mess accumulates and becomes too much to handle.  It takes time, it takes quiet and it takes all of you.

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.”

Psalm 51:10 ESV

It starts with seeing that there’s a mess.  This psalm of David begins with him seeking God, seeing the mess that he is in.  When we see the mess we see our need for it to be clean.  It’s when we realize we are incapable of cleaning it ourselves that we can follow David and invite God into it.  It starts with an invitation, a desire to let God come and have His way.  As simple as it sounds it’s true.  We can simply say, “God I invite you into this…” and He comes.  Yet, as easy as it sounds, it doesn’t always feel that way.  We have to be willing to take space to look at the mess, humble ourselves to our sin in the mess, and recognize our need for God in it.  As hard as it is at times it is always worth it.  God is so gentle to come into our mess.  He sits with us in it and when we’re ready He restores us.  He wants to take your mess and gives you a clean heart and a right spirit.  It begins with an invitation.   

Dry Places

“When life gets dry, take time to soak.”

Loren Thornburg

I’ve noticed that when my hands are dry they are more easily cut.  Things that normally would not leave a mark cut through the skin.  My life is not much different.  When I am in a dry season of life, where I’m not getting filled with things that refresh me I get cut much easier.  Only this time it’s not my skin, but my heart and soul.  Just like my skin needs more hydration through lotion and water in dry seasons, so does my heart.  I can’t expect my heart to respond the same in these hard seasons.  It needs more springs of life.  If you find you are getting easily cut it might be time to find what brings you life and soak in it.  

“For He satisfies the longing soul, and the hungry soul he fills with good things.”

Psalm 107:9 ESV

God loves to satisfy the longing soul!  This psalm speaks over and over of His steadfast love for those who will turn to Him.  When we are walking through a dry place He knows exactly how to meet us and fill us with good things to revive our soul.    Life brings many hard spaces leaving us broken and dry.  Some days and some seasons require more soaking than others.  Let God restore you in the places life has cut you.  The more you can soak in Him, the more you will find the refreshing that keeps you full of life and not so easily cut.  It is Him that you need to soak in, letting His steadfast love pour over you.

Consider the Context

“Don’t forget there is a bigger story going on beyond this one event.”
Loren Thornburg

I’ve been learning about how to interpret literature and if I could sum it up in one thought it would be: Consider the context.  Context means to consider the circumstances that form the setting of which it can be fully understood.  You wouldn’t start in the middle of a letter or email and expect to understand the message and intent of the sender.  I am reminded that this principle applies to more than just literature, but is true for people as well.  Although I may not be able to know the whole story of many of the people around me, what if I took a bigger look than just the event at hand.  Often we are prone to judge people based on one event ignoring the bigger picture going on.  We make assumptions about people forgetting we have picked up in the middle of the letter of their life.  Even though we don’t always have the liberty of knowing the context of each person we come across we can always assume that there is a greater context than what we see.  Therefore let us not be so quick to judge but rather quick to ask questions and consider the context of each life.  May we have the same understanding with ourselves as well.  Consider the context of your life and see the bigger picture.  There is a story being written with your life.  

“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.”
James 1:17 ESV

Like all literature we need to read the Bible in context.  One aspect of the context of the Bible is the context of God.  We see in the scriptures that He is good and that doesn’t change, so then we can trust that in each season of our lives that is still true.  James has been writing about the importance of enduring temptation, but yet not to assume that God is the one who is tempting.  He is reminding his readers of this truth that God is a good God who gives good Gifts and that doesn’t change.  So then, we must consider the context of our God.  When we are going through difficult times He doesn’t change and His goodness to you hasn’t changed either.  Let us not forget the context of our good God.  

Not by Sight

"Even when there seems to be no hope in sight...walk on in faith."

Loren Thornburg

There is always something more going on that I can’t see.  I was reminded of this when after a month under a new doctor’s care I wasn’t feeling any different.  However, both he and another doctor noted that my color was better.  I wasn’t able to see this difference but it indicates a change in my health on a deeper level.  I couldn’t have seen this on my own.  It reminds me how small and slow change happens and there is always more going on than I can see.  Even in your circumstance there is so much more going on than what you can see.  This gives us hope that the change we desire may be happening in ways so slow and small it’s hard to see.  We need help to see and we need patience to endure.  Even more, we need faith to believe when no change is in sight.  Even when it seems no change is in sight…walk on. 

“…for we walk by faith, not be sight…”

2 Corinthians 5:7

Following Jesus requires more than sight.  We see this spoken of all throughout scripture including here in 2 Corinthians when Paul is referring to our assurance of the resurrection.  With each opportunity to trust Jesus there is also the challenge to walk not by sight, but by faith.  It is the only way to follow Jesus.  So it seems we should expect to endure even when we can see no signs of hope.  We can walk on regardless of what we see for faith endures beyond what’s seen.  

Clear the Stage

“The approval you are looking for isn’t found on stage.  It’s found in the freedom not to need it.” 

Loren Thornburg

We long for approval, we even perform for it, but life is not a performance.  Before performers get on stage they make sure everything is just right.  From makeup, to wardrobe, to lighting and sound it all has to be just right to create the perfect performance.  Although people may be watching you, your life was not meant to be lived like a stage.  You weren’t meant to have to always look perfect or have everything around you appear just right.  Yet, sometimes we live like that.  We think we have to have it all together.  As nice as that might sound it’s too much work and pressure.  It’s just not real life to be on stage all of the time.  So clear the stage of your life.  Let go of the masks, the trying to be something you’re not and let the real you out.  You just might find that freedom is what you’ve been looking to find.  Whatever the audience that you’ve been looking to impress, you don’t have to anymore.  You can be you in all of your imperfections and that’s enough.  

“…You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.  This is the first and greatest commandment.”

Matthew 22:37-38 NLT

The first and greatest commandment from the Lord is to love Him.  It is not to work hard, have it all together, and never show your weakness.  Instead it is to love the Lord with everything you’ve got.  So it seems that God’s greatest concern is not for me to have it all together, but rather to love Him with all that I am.  I find freedom and approval in this commandment.  He knows that the growth He desires and the love for others He desires will come as I pursue Him.  He has never been about having it all together first.  His first has always been to love Him.  What we find when we love Him is that He is already loving us for all that we are, exactly as we are and that is enough.  It’s not about performance with Him.  It never has been.  It’s about letting the One who says, ‘You are enough’ be enough too.  No performance has ever been needed.  So clear the stage and let Him have His way. 

Check out Jimmy Needham’s Clear the Stage: 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6smGew7dGto

Clear the stage and set the sounds and lights ablaze if 

that’s the measure you must take to crush the idols

Jerk the pews and all the decorations too, until the 

congregations few that have revival

Tell your friends that this is where the party ends, 

until your broken for your sins you can’t be social

Seek the Lord and wait for what he has in store, and 

know that great is your reward so just be hopeful,

Cause you can sing all you want to

Yes you can, sing all you want to

You can sing all you want to and still get it wrong

Oh worship is more than a song

Take a break from all the plans that you have made, and 

sit home alone and wait for God to whisper

Beg him please to open his mouth and speak and pray for 

real upon your knees until they blister

Shine the light on every corner of your life until the 

pride, and lust, and lies are in the open

Then read the word and put to test the things you’ve 

heard until your heart and soul are stirred and rocked 

and broken

We must not worship something that’s not even worth it

Clear the stage, make some space, for the one who 

deserves it

Anything I put before my God is an idol

Anything I want with all my heart is an idol

Anything I can’t stop thinking of is an idol

And anything that I give all my love is an idol