The Family Universe

Our article for the August Edition of Austin Faith and Family magazine also appeared in Bell County Family! We are excited to share our hearts with a new community.

This month is all about The Family Universe. How are things in your home? Does it feel like life revolves around the children? Or is your marriage at the center? Check out this online issue of Bell County Family. We are on page 11.

Grace to Your Mountain!

Years go my husband and I were facing a mountain of debt. Now some people find themselves in that kind of situation when there has been a job loss, sickness or hospital bills...that was not the case with us. We made this mess ourselves with our own poor management. It was embarrassing and intimidating. Things were dark in the shadow of that mountain.

But we swallowed our pride and signed up for Financial Peace class. We started to chip away at that mountain. Honestly it feels like you’ve got a toothpick. For several years we were chipping at this giant mountain with our little tiny toothpicks wondering will it ever go away??

But one day…we got a check in the mail…a big one.

That check swept away what remained of our debt mountain like it was just a little pile of dirt.

It was amazing!

We did nothing to deserve that money…we didn’t earn that money…it was a gift.
It was God’s grace to our mountain!

Zechariah 4:7 says ‘What are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you will become a plain; and he will bring forth the finishing stone with shouts of "Grace, grace to it!"'"

Zerubbabel was facing a mountain, he was trying to build a temple for the Lord and there were lots of obstacles, there was a lot of opposition…but Zechariah prophesied that mountain would be leveled…the temple would be completed and the people would shout GRACE!

What a great word to shout!

I know that many of us are facing challenges today, and maybe it’s even a mess you that made. You might be saying " I don't deserve help with this." That is what God's scandalous grace is all about.

Today I want to shout:

GRACE to your mountain of shame.
GRACE to your mountain of debt.
GRACE to your mountain of pain.

Grace to the obstacles and opposition you experience in pursing God’s plan.

You can finish…there is victory…there is freedom and hope!

We are saved and our lives are truly changed by God’s great grace!

By His Stripes

He was wounded for our transgressions;

he was bruised for our iniquities (our guilt and sin)

The punishment that brought us peace was upon him;

and by his stripes we are healed. Isaiah 53:5

Two weeks ago in our Easter production, The Thorn, there was a scene where Jesus was being beaten. At one point he fell from the whipping post and the devil was taunting him…"haven’t you taken enough?.....just walk away." But Jesus got back up to take the full punishment, all 39 stripes. It brought tears to my eyes. I remembered this verse, by his stripes we are healed.

I was in Jr high when this verse first came alive to me. I was outside and I can’t remember exactly how it happened but I sprained my ankle. I went hopping on one foot to find my Mom, thinkin' we are going to have to go to the doctor, I won't be able to stand for our choir concert, this is awful! Now our family was new to this whole idea that the Bible is for today, and something came over my Mom! She grabbed my arm and said Lynn, we are going to pray, we are going to believe what God’s word says and you are going to be healed.

So right there in the driveway she started praying.

I’m in some serious pain. I’m crying…thinking my mom has lost it! But she prayed this verse, "Jesus you were wounded for us, you were bruised for us…you carried our diseases, you bore our pain….and by your stripes Lynn is healed today." There we were…praying and crying and limping around…in the front yard…I’m thinking My Mom is crazy….we should at least be in the back yard!

But it was amazing…the pain left…my ankle was never swollen and we couldn’t wait till my Dad came home from work so we could tell him what happened.

Jesus is our Healer! If you need physical healing… by His stripes you are healed. Maybe you need healing in your mind, or in your relationships…by His stripes you are healed!

Our God is a healer. He is faithful. He is still active on the earth …healing people Body, Mind and Soul. Today on Good Friday, we remember he was beaten for US and by His stripes our wounds are made whole.

Resurrection Life

We are in the middle of rehearsals for The Thorn and honestly, my family is exhausted. Our boys are acting in the production, my husband is assisting with technical needs and I’m the taxi driver, which as any mom knows can be quite taxing!

What an amazing retelling of the timeless story of our redemption. As I watched the practice, tears welled in my eyes and gratefulness flooded my heart. I remembered this truth:

I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in me: and the life which I now life in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. Galatians 2:20

"Death and Resurrection" is no longer a theological concept that I simply choose to believe. It is very real to me. I lived in a tomb of my own making for several years. The pain of betrayal and the loneliness of the secret I kept shrouded my life in darkness. If you would have seen me then, you may have never known I was walking around mostly dead - going through the motions of life but feeling very little emotion. God met me in that place with the warmth of His love. He softened my cold heart and planted a seed of faith.

When I see Jesus emerging from the tomb, I see me. I’m alive, because God breathed His life into me. I’m still standing because He strengthened me. I see those grave clothes falling from His arms and I know I am no longer bound. I’ve been set free! I’m moving forward with hope for the future.

Sometimes I just have to stop and take a Long, Slow, Deep Breath. And then another. And then another. It feels so good to be ALIVE!

How has God breathed His resurrection life into your life?

The Space Between Us

Conflict visits every relationship like a salesperson at dinner time. Who wants that?

We share what we've learned about conflict in the March issue of Austin Faith & Family and talk about the SPACE between us.

Click here for the March Issue of Austin Faith & Family

Look for our Journey for Two article "The Space Between Us" on page 15

Super Moon Tonight

March 19th, 2011 - TONIGHT - our moon will appear 14% bigger and 30% brighter than it has in 18 years. So get outside and look up.
Click to read more about this Perigee moon.

LOOK UP!

I was thinking last night, as I was enjoying the stars out on my patio, what would it feel like if the sky were empty. No moon, no stars....no clouds...just vast, dark emptiness.

How would that feel? (Lonely)

It made me wonder, perhaps, if those things are not painted across the sky simply to remind us that we are NOT alone.

Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these?
He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls forth each of them by name.
Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing. Is 40:26

There is something, Someone above us. Earth is wrapped in the beautiful, breath-taking blanket of the universe. And even though we have mapped out the stars, and charted the phases of the moon, this blanket is ever-changing. Our skies are predictable but never the same. Somethings are constant - Orion in Winter. and the Bear in Spring. Yet, no sunrise, no evening sky is ever the same. There is always new beauty to behold. Factor in the Hubble Space Telescope and there is seemingly no end the the glory ABOVE us.

I see a portrait of God when I look up. Constant and steady.....yet surprisingly NEW every morning. I think He painted the sky scape to help us wrap our minds around this improbable dichotomy. Don't miss it tonight!

When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars,

which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them,

human beings that you care for them? Psalm 8:3-4

Thank you Adrian Gutierrez for your gorgeous moon photo!

Baseball, America and You

I needed an escape the other night so I grabbed one of my boy's book and filled up the tub. The great thing about junior fiction is that it only takes a hour or so to finish a book and they are usually quite refreshing! In The Year Of The Boar And Jackie Robinson, by Bettte Bao Lord is the story of a young Chinese girl, who immigrated to the U.S. and found a sense of belonging through baseball. Her teacher Mrs Rappaport had this to say about the sport and her new home:

"In our national pastime, each player is a member of a team, but when he comes to bat, he stands alone. One man. Many opportunities. For no matter how far behind, how late in the game, he, by himself, can make a difference. He can change what has been. He can make it a new ball game.

"In the life of our nation, each man is a citizen of the United States, but he has the right to pursue his own happiness. For no matter what his race, religion or creed, be he pauper or president, he has the right to speak his mind, to live as he wishes within the law, to elect our officials and stand for office, to excel. To make a difference. To change what has been. To make a better America."

The main character, Shirley was so inspired by her teacher's speech. The author goes on to say "Shirley felt as if the walls of the classroom had vanished. In their stead was a frontier of doors to which she held the keys."

Each one of us holds a set of keys and there are doors that need unlocking. There in the tub with my pruney toes, I wondered if I am making the most of my turn at bat. I've always found comfort in the whole, in being part of the team. Standing out there all alone at the plate looks so scary. Mrs Rappaport inspired ME to see the opportunity and not the pressure. I'm on deck. Practicing my swing.

What will you do when it is your turn at bat? Do you believe that one individual can indeed make a difference?