A Pilgrimage of Ascent

This was no ordinary trip. It was a journey to a sacred and holy place. It may be long or hard, but the Jews were filled with fervent devotion. They were intentional and purposeful. The Jews set out on a pilgrimage. Imagine their hearts -- those who had been exiled, cast out, captives...were now set free. Free to come home. Free to worship. Free to feel and live. What do you talk about on those long journeys? The Jews brought to mind the activity and faithfulness of God. It was a time of teaching -- for rabbis and students, for parents to teach their children. As they traveled, they chanted the Psalms of Ascent.

I took my first pilgrimage through the Psalms of Ascent (120-134) in the summer of 2005. I wasn't really sure what God had in mind for me there. A friend had told me about it from a Beth Moore conference she had attended. It was a new concept for Beth Moore to give a homework assignment to her conference attendees, and she too wondered what God had in mind for it. I embarked on this journey that God had brought to me.

The starting instructions were to write where we are presently in our journey with God. Describe the present season and our spiritual condition in the midst of it. (Is it a season of personal renewal for you? Doubt? Difficulty? Suffering? Loss? Loneliness? Numbness? Articulate both the joys and the difficulties of the present season.) From there, you climb (ascend, hence the name psalms of "ascent") one psalm a day, numbers 120-134. They are short psalms, memorized and chanted on the pilgrimage for the Jews going to Jerusalem.

I was amazed at what poured out of me onto those pages. There was so much to reflect on and journal about. Some days more so than others, but I felt a sense of freedom in being able to express some of the things in my heart. I typed out reflections, prayers, dialogues with God over His Word as it specifically spoke to my condition or circumstance.

Beth Moore encouraged the women to deliberately seek an ascent in our own lives. Relating to the Jews' pilgrimage in a spiritual sense, we seek a higher, closer walk in our journey with God. We were instructed to begin each day facedown. Joshua fell facedown and asked God to speak a fresh word or direction over his life (see Joshua 5:14). Moses and Aaron fell facedown and saw a fresh glimpse of God's glory (see Numbers 20:6). It is a sense of humility where the way up is down.

After reading and meditating on the psalm for that day, you listen to what God is saying personally to you. Let God speak over your present circumstances and concerns, needs and obstacles. As you let Him guide you through, Beth taught that God may address, tend to, heal, or convict you lovingly and pointedly in areas where you might be "stuck". Journal out what He is saying to you, what He brings to mind, and your response to Him. Pour out your heart to Him and express it.

This process was incredibly meaningful for me. I wrote a Bible Study entitled Walking with God, in which there were focused journal prompts. After studying scriptures around a certain topic for the week, there was opportunity to reflect and write about how our hearts respond to it personally. It is very relational and intentional. The response from those in the class was that many hadn't journaled before, or even knew where to begin. Some shared that after they quieted their heart, they started typing and typing -- so much poured out they didn't even anticipate how powerful it was for them.

I wonder if our hearts are willing to go there. What if God Himself beckons us on a pilgrimage of our own? Can we find the time in our day to slow down and reflect with Him through scripture? It can be both healing and life-changing.

I just want to offer this pilgrimage through the Psalms of Ascent if anyone wants to try it. I can e-mail you some notes that will help guide your journal time. It might be a great time of growth and intimacy in our walk with God. I am going through it again for my quiet times right now and I just wanted to share the blessing.

Blessed are those whose strength is in You, who have set their hearts on pilgrimage. Psalm 84:5

Learning and Growth

Lately I've noticed our girls playing together by lining up their stuffed animals and dolls and teaching them school. Emma has taken it upon herself to teach Maddie her letters. She takes her pencil, points to the letter, and says,"Now what's this one, honey?" And praises her with, "Good job, sweetie!" It is incredibly cute. Maddie recites the letters she knows, and the rest of the dolls and stuffed animals sit still as a good student might, maybe waiting for their turn, who knows?

I just have to chuckle because I remember doing the same thing when I was a little girl. I had stuffed bears and dogs and elephants in my class, but wasn't so fortunate to have a little sister to answer my questions. I wasn't very fond of our last name, Hinkel. It didn't sound like a good teacher name, so I picked Miss Alger. That was my mom's maiden name, and my favorite grandfather's name. I loved playing school for hours as Miss Alger. I can see the teacher in Emma shining through as she loves every last detail of giving instruction and praise.

I'm one of those rare breeds who loves school. I used to sit on the front porch with my grandma at the beginning of summer and ask her what I should wear on the first day of school. I loved fresh supplies of folders and papers and pencils. I loved getting homework or sitting at my desk. It even carried on through college where my roommate would wonder what on earth I was doing at my desk for so many hours. I could always find things I wanted to think through, write, organize, or study.

While we lived in Wilmore, I was very blessed to be able to audit a few classes. It seemed ideal to me because they were classes I really wanted to take -- nothing mandatory. I wish I could have taken more, but the timing of having two of our babies there made it too busy to juggle classes with breastfeeding and diapers. Sometimes I dream of going back to school myself, but I wonder with a full household if there would ever be time. With our six years at Asbury, I feel like I already have two masters degrees -- they just have my husband's name on them instead of mine.

My mind and my heart almost feel cluttered by what I want to learn next. I have several things I would like to venture into deeper. Some days I'm not really sure where to start. One thing I'm embarking on though is some reflection on how God made me. I've started some counseling that I'm really excited about, just trying to sort through how my mind and my heart process things. I want to be the best Christ-follower, wife, mom and person I can be -- so if there are any areas where I am stuck or sacrificing freedom, abundant life, or joy, I want to discover them and allow Christ to work in me.

I'm not sure what nuggets of truth will be discovered in this process. With truth comes freedom, new perspectives, wisdom and insight. I'm excited to see how things in my life connect, or how new freedom can be unleashed. I'm excited for the growth and the depth that will come from the reflections, and seeing how God is speaking to me personally.

Jesus said, "My purpose is to give life in all its fullness"(NLT). "I have come that they may have life and have it to the full" (NIV). Jesus wants us to "enjoy life, and have it in abundance -- to the full, till it overflows" (AMP). Jesus brings us a "more and better life than (we) ever dreamed of" (MSG). Part of the abundant life He has for me will overflow all the more as I learn more about how He made me, and what areas to work through with Him. I believe it is a healthy part of discipleship and I'm grateful for the opportunity.

Books and Studies

I have a stack of books I never seem to get through. It sounds very inviting to me to sit by the fire with a blanket over my lap, a good cup of coffee, snow falling outside, and dig into a good book. It sounds great. It just never happens. I have plenty to choose from, so while I appreciate the ideas of what to add to my list when Todd suggests another title, the reality is I just can't keep up. For one year, I participated in a leadership curriculum during which time we read one book a month together. I'm pretty sure that was the most books I have read in a year ever. I either don't make the time to read, or I drift off to sleep when I put a book in my hands.

There is a book that takes exception to that rule. There is a block of time that I need, even when the setting is less than ideal. Nothing else has the power to fill me up when I invest in it, or leave me completely dry without it. I crave it, and if I don't have it, I'm miserable. Everything in my life feels out of place when I haven't had some time of solitude for just me and Jesus.

I'm learning that this can take on different forms. God wired me for study. A great Bible Study fuels my fire in such a way that it is one of my favorite things to do. By the end of a course, though, I'm tired. I need time to just rest with some Scriptures to reflect on and pray. Sometimes my soul thirsts for praise music and singing, or a prayer walk soaking up nature, or reflecting through reading or writing. Sometimes I just like to be still. Sometimes I pray on my knees and sometimes I fall facedown on the floor. I'm learning to delight in the variety. One thing I know from the condition of my heart is that I need it. I need intentionally carved out time with Jesus.

I just finished the Narrated Chronological Bible. (If you compare this with my track record with books, this is quite an accomplishment! There is no other nearly 1,700 page book I have ever finished!) Within the first two days of being done, I already missed it. For the past year, every day there was something to hold me accountable to keep in God's Word.

As I read through Scripture as a whole, it was so evident to me that God has a plan that He is working through time. He is purposeful. He ordains details to accomplish His greater purposes. He is infinitely faithful, so that every word He breathes is brought to completion. This a work of His power and grace, not our efforts. We certainly haven’t earned it, nor could we. But He comes through, time and time again, because that is Who He is. He loves. He works. He is the Living God, very present and all powerful. We can count on Him.

I couldn’t possibly begin to understand all that He has written in His Holy Word, just as I couldn’t possibly contain Him in the corners of my finite mind. Even the details of history – names and events – are hard for me to keep straight. But I know this much for sure: The more I walk with Him, the more I love Him. The more I love Him, the more I want to know Him. Much remains beyond me, yet a beautiful mystery. I don’t need all the answers. He will teach me enough for today. There will always be great things to behold tomorrow too.

I love the dailyness of the walk through Scripture. Every day I could open His Word and hear Him stirring my heart or growing my understanding. I know I will continue on with daily quiet times, but I have a genuine hunger for His Word that can’t be quenched with a quick glance or a brief devotional. I want to be with Him.

Taking Steps

Things don't have to be grand to celebrate them. We are a family who celebrates all kinds of things -- from the end of camp, to the start of school, to the start of Christmas vacation, to a football game on t.v., to any milestone we can think of to celebrate. We look at celebrations, even simple ones, as a pause to say thank you to God for His goodness and blessing. We have appetizer night or game night or go out to eat or ice cream. At birthdays and anniversaries we hang up a wall full of photos that journal out years past. We mark the occasion by conversations of memories and hearts of praise.

I like what Richard Foster has to say about celebrations in his book Celebrations of Discipline. He writes, "God's normal means of bringing His joy is by redeeming and sanctifying the ordinary junctures of human life. Celebration comes when the common ventures of life are redeemed." He adds, "If we fill our lives with simple good things and constantly thank God for them, we will be joyful, that is, full of joy."

So here I am, in all of its simplicity, celebrating. I'm finding the joy in taking steps. I'm excited about a few resolutions I've made this year to improve my health. What thrills me the most is that they are realistic goals that I believe will make a difference. I could dream up some ideals but never obtain them, or I can give some signposts that I can actually celebrate.

Here are a few: I'm a horrible drinker. I normally have about a glass of water a day...maybe. When Noah was at camp, he bought his mom and dad a cool water bottle that holds 32 oz. I'm drinking at least that much water every day. Some say you need twice that, but I'm starting somewhere.

Sorry if it sounds pathetic, but I'm also an awful athlete. There are times the most exercise I would get would be carrying the laundry up and down the stairs...until I realized the boys can help with that and save me the energy. I still trek across the superWalmart, and often forget something in one aisle and have to go clear to the other end, so that counts for some sort of exercise maybe.

In the past I've enjoyed aerobics or walking, but I'm awful with consistency. It has probably been at least ten years since I've done aerobics and my walking goes in spurts. I'm a fair weather walker -- it can't be too hot, too cold, too rainy, too humid, too early or too late. But alas, I've found the goal that works for me: Take a walk every day.

Sometimes it is just the getting started that is the hardest. Some days I need the grace that says it is okay to walk for a shorter time tonight. What freedom to feel like that's okay. I'm now enjoying my walks so much more. Lily is thrilled to walk every day, which we used to do when she was a younger pup but have gotten away from. Now regardless of the weather, I just do it -- bundle up with scarves or hats or umbrellas, whatever I need -- and I really enjoy just getting the fresh air. I've also started aerobics up again, and I'm working to get some consistency going there. But it's a start.

Taking steps in the right direction. We don't have to be so driven that we fall apart in exasperation. What freedom and grace there is to just do the next right thing! As God brings an area of our life into the light, He can bring wholeness and change. Our lives will be transformed. I believe it does our hearts some good to celebrate those changes.

Greater Gifts

Last night was both thrilling and heart-wrenching. The long awaited game started with great anticipation, and boy did the Buckeyes deliver! Within seconds, OSU was on the board with the first touchdown. We screamed, we jumped up and down; we were so excited, my sister could hear us all the way in Indiana and she called to cheer with us!!! What a way to start the game, first possession of the ball, and running the length of the field for a touchdown. The girls had their pompoms, and Maddie does a pretty sweet "O-HIO!!!"

We were ready to let the boys stay up to watch the game, until it was 10:15 pm. at half-time, and Buckeyes were being eaten by Gators. It was awful!! Our hearts were sunk, wanting to hold onto the hope that things would soon turn around. We sent the boys off to bed, hoping that Coach Tressel could inspire them in the locker room to a new game, and Heisman Trophy winner Troy Smith could rally his team for a heroic win. Wouldn't it be amazing if they came back, shocked the scales off those beaming gators, and rose up from the pit and on into victory???

I have come to love Coach Tressel and quarterback Troy Smith. Tressel is a positive, strong coach, who is completely humble and inspiring. He roots himself in his faith in God, and that is evident not only in his testimony but in his relationships on the team and with anyone he speaks to. Troy Smith has a redemption story of his own, rising from the pit to great maturity and leadership. He too is humble and gracious in his words.

I remember the first time I tuned in to either of them and knew their names, was when Troy returned from being suspended. The media asked Coach Tressel if this impressive performance and win would now win back Troy's position and honor in the coach's eyes. The coach said he had already done that long before, and he absolutely affirmed Troy's ability and character. He showed how much he believed in him regardless of anything he had been through in his past. Forgiveness. New beginnings. Redemption.

I kept hoping for the miraculous come-back that never came. My heart sank for those Buckeyes. Caught completely off-guard, it wasn’t the game we had expected or wanted. This wasn’t the way this night was supposed to go. Funny, life feels that way sometimes – doesn’t it?

What if our loved one didn’t have to die? What if that accident didn’t happen? What if a relationship didn’t end or turn cold? For me, wouldn’t it have been great if Todd didn’t have to resign? Why have our years here looked so drastically different than what we had thought? Why do our dreams have to be so different than the way it actually happens?

Stepping back a few paces from the Buckeye game, the Gators really had an incredible night of glory. They fought hard. They did the unthinkable. They rose to the challenge and proved how hard they were willing to fight to win it. In the same year that their basketball team became champions, now they were champions of football too. I’m really bummed that the Buckeyes didn’t pull through and come out on top, but I have to admit (gulp!) that it really was the Gators night to shine.

Life happens. A football game is far different from death, tragedy or loss. But reality is, sometimes we feel sunk. God-reality is that there is always hope. He brings new life and new beginnings. Even when something happens differently than we wanted it to. We are crushed, broken, hurting, dysfunctional people. God-reality is that He brings wholeness. Healing. Redemption. Restoration.

I’m not trying to read God into football – I know it was just a game – but maybe from God’s perspective, the greater gift last night was for the underdog to win. Not that it wouldn’t have been a thrill for OSU to add another win to their team, but how much greater joy for the Gators to have come so far. I’m happy for their joy. I don’t dare ask a Buckeye fan, but all things being neutral, wouldn’t you think the greater gift would be for the Gators to have a chance too? No? (I know, hurts to say it!) Oh how losing can build character and make us stronger!

God seems to be all about giving the greater gift. If stories were rewritten with our own endings, we would most likely miss out on God’s best for us. I’m afraid my own written story would lead to a band-aid covering a need for open heart surgery, thinking it would keep me more steady and comfortable. God loves me enough to go for the deeper healing, the greater gift.

So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what He has promised. For in just a very little while, “He who is coming will come and will not delay. But My righteous one will live by faith.” Hebrews 10:35-38

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him. Hebrews 11:6 This great gift, this reward that He longs to give us is more of Himself. Nothing can compare to it. Nothing could be added to it, for nothing could be greater. It is more than our hopes and dreams if we will open ourselves up to Him. We can trust His leading, even when the road ahead is uncertain.

I came upon this quote yesterday that a friend had sent us. “Not thwarted – not our wills, but Thine, O LORD. Man has not understood Me in this. I want no will laid grudgingly upon My altar. I want you to desire and love My will, because therein lies your happiness and spirit-rest. Whenever you feel that you cannot leave the choice to Me then pray, not to be able to accept My will, but to know and love Me more. With that knowledge and the love, will come the certainty that I know best, and that I want only the best for you and yours. How little those know Me who think I wish to thwart them. How often I am answering their own prayers in the best and quickest way.”

I had a tender "mom moment" on Christmas Eve. Our three oldest were in the Christmas Eve program at church. The kids all did such a great job. My tender moment, though, was when Samuel sang his solo as Joseph. Thinking both of the testimony of what God required of Joseph, and the desire of our hearts for our son to follow whole-heartedly after God, I was so moved by hearing Samuel sing these words: "Walking and working every day, such wonderful plans before me. I want to serve You all the way, trusting what I can't see. I could never have imagine all You've planned, and I can't forget the day it all began." All I could think was Amen, let it be so for me too, Lord.

I lay myself down again. Your will, Your way, Your timing. You alone know what is best for me.

Onward

I was touched by a sermon I heard recently, given by a professor at Asbury Theological Seminary. It is interesting how our stories can be reflected in others. We are on a journey, headed in the same direction, and we can learn from each other along the way, having walked something similar.

Asbury has had some rough times in recent years. Life rarely fits into neat little packages tied up with bows. Eugene Peterson said, "Christians must be mature enough to deal with ambiguity. They must take life’s chaos and life’s messiness and work with it. With it you build the kingdom of heaven." It's not pretty, but it's quite a relief. Life on this side of heaven won't be perfect or ideal, no matter how much we may want it to be like that. It is a relief to realize it doesn't have to be. Even in the messes, God can work in it.

Dr. Kalas preached on Deuteronomy 1:1-7. Moses had led the Israelites up out of Egypt and they were headed to the Promised Land. Unfortunately when the twelve spies inspected the land, ten of them were filled with such fear and disbelief that God told them they would wander the desert for forty years, one year for each of the days they inspected the land. Their grumbling and rebellion brought consequences in the wilderness.

As the book of Deuteronomy opens, the Israelites are coming to the end of their forty years. Moses is about to give his final sermon to remind the Israelites in this new generation of all that God had faithfully done in the past. Moses is stirring them to action to get ready to press forward and claim the land God had promised them.

Deuteronomy 1:6-7 says "When we were at Mount Sinai, the LORD our God said to us, 'You have stayed at this mountain long enough. It is time to break camp and move on.'" (NLT) In some translations, it didn't get my attention. Had I been reading it through on my own, I would have read right past it. But Dr. Kalas drew us in and built a sermon on it.

Dr. Kalas preached that there comes a time in life when you have to move on. This Scripture, he said, is in fact a compliment from God that they could go. They had wandered for forty years, but this was God's praise that they are now able and equipped to go on. The following are his words, not mine:

At certain times in life, you can just keep marking time, wallowing in trouble, mourn losses, ponder, suffer – or you can decide to get up. This is where we really are. This is real life. A marvelous lesson for the ambiguity, messiness and chaos – be grateful for that. God has His place out there for us, of triumph in His will. A will we have stumbled about finding. A will that I couldn’t contend to be perfect with all of our imperfections and human messes. But God is used to working with messes like that. He will work with this one.

Our life has definitely had moments of feeling like an absolute mess. Walking through exile, like walking through the wilderness, has a lot of spiritual attack raging war against our minds. The enemy would have us believe that our worth is empty, our life is shattered, our punishment is earned, and our purpose is ruined. The enemy would have us believe that we screwed up, we blew it, we are forgotten and there is no place for us.

Ephesians 2 in the Message says this,

"It’s a wonder God didn’t lose His temper and do away with the whole lot of us. Instead, immense in mercy and with an incredible love, He embraced us. Saving is all His idea, and all His work. All we do is trust Him enough to let Him do it. It’s God’s gift from start to finish! He creates each of us by Christ Jesus to join Him in the work He does, the good work He has gotten ready for us to do, work we had better be doing.

But don’t take any of this for granted. It was only yesterday that you outsiders to God’s ways had no idea of any of this, didn’t know the first thing about the way God works, hadn’t the faintest idea of Christ. You knew nothing of that rich history of God’s covenants and promises in Israel, hadn’t a clue about what God was doing in the world at large. Now because of Christ – dying that death, shedding that blood – you who were once out of it altogether are in on everything. He created a new kind of human being, a fresh start for everybody.

That’s plain enough, isn’t it? You’re no longer wandering exiles. This kingdom of faith is now your home country. You’re no longer strangers or outsiders. You belong here, with as much right to the name Christian as anyone. God is building a home. He is using us all – irrespective of how we got here – in what He is building. He used the apostles and prophets for the foundation. Now He’s using you, fitting you in brick by brick, stone by stone, with Christ Jesus as the cornerstone that holds all the parts together."

Can you even imagine the difference??? The contrast is astounding to me! No longer exiled, no longer in the wilderness, but welcomed in to the kingdom??? How can it be? For anyone who has ever felt left out, alone, isolated, or outcast, and yet cries out to belong and be embraced, this is a life-changing message!!

It has been a season of healing, refining and growth. At times it has felt a little like a time out chair. Pulled out of the game, and put on the bench. The life-giving message of this sermon to me was hearing the words "You have stayed on this mountain long enough. It's time to break camp and move on." That God had a new work to accomplish in the Israelites and He was ready, and had made them ready to press onward. A new chapter, a new day has dawned.

The LORD builds up Jerusalem; He gathers the exiles of Israel. He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. Great is our Lord and mighty in power; His understanding has no limit. Psalm 147:2-3,5

I will continue to rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and the help given by the Spirit of Jesus Christ, what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance. Philippians 1:18-19 In the Greek, this word for deliverance means to rescue, save, deliver, heal. Praise God! You have indeed done what You said You would do. Hallelujah!! Break camp, let's move on...

Exile

I will soon be finishing up a study with the Narrated Chronological Bible. I'm no biblical scholar by any means, but I've read the Bible through a couple of times (as long as you count skimming and not understanding a lot of it). This time is different. I am on a journey with what started as 21 other people, and has gone down to about 10-12 faithfuls. If it weren't for them, I'm quite certain I wouldn't have made it. We have shared together, prayed for each other, and met along the way, learning one step at a time together. I'm grateful for this dear, albeit odd, group that has walked with me.

One of my goals for our class is to gain better understanding of the flow of Scripture as God's story, then relate it into our own lives where we realize we have been invited in to His story. We don't have time to go through the exegesis and profound insights of the Scripture that we are reading. It's a good thing, because I don't have anything profound to add. I'm a learner, with much more still to learn than what I have begun to grasp. Yet God's grace abounds and they put up with me attempting to encourage them and lead them on.

This time through, the layers are going a little deeper. More of the pieces of the puzzle are clicking together. It's starting to make a little more sense. But what has made this time especially different is that I see our story on the pages of Scripture. Never before have words like rescue, redemption, and healing meant so much to me.

I became a Christian over twenty-five years ago. I'm not one who knows the exact date, but I've been genuinely, though not perfectly, walking with the Lord during that time. Yet it is only in the past two years that I have had greater insight on what my salvation means to me. Through circumstances that I had no control over, my husband and I ended up in the pit two years ago. It didn't initially involve me, but being one with my husband meant that in some ways, I went with him. Where it did involve me was with the refining God had in mind for my heart as well.

This past year in my journey through Scripture, I walked with the Israelites through exile. Todd and I both did in our faith journeys. At times it felt we were cast away in the wilderness, kicked out, rebuked and punished. I think the only person in this world who can understand the depth of that loss and pain in that season is Todd. To anyone else, it's just words. How grateful I am that we walked it together. It was in that spiritual exile where we most profoundly experienced our Savior, Deliverer, Healer, and the Lover of our souls.

It sounds odd, but I've come to love that place of spiritual exile. Hosea 2:14-15 expresses some of God's heart there. "But then I will win her back once again. I will lead her out into the desert and speak tenderly to her there. I will return her vineyards to her and transform the Valley of Trouble into a gateway of hope. She will give herself to me there, as she did long ago when she was young, when I freed her from her captivity in Egypt."

No longer are these just words on the page to me. No longer is this a story of history, covered in years of dust. What my heart would have described as trouble, God called a gateway of hope. God redeemed us from the pit, lifted us out, and completely transformed our lives. We have learned more volumes than seminary had time to teach us. We will never be the same.

"When you go through deep waters and great trouble, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown! When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you. For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I gave Egypt, Ethiopia, and Seba as a ransom for your freedom. Others died that you might live. I traded their lives for yours because you are precious to Me. You are honored, and I love you." Isaiah 43:2-4

God's great purpose in allowing the Israelites to walk through exile, was that He would teach them, grow them, and bring them through it. The Israelites celebrate how God brought them up out of Egypt where they were slaves. Egypt is our bondage too. The freedom He brought to the Israelites, He brings to us in very personal, tangible ways if we will allow Him to.

Hallelujah, the exile came to an end! The exiles are not forgotten! Deliverance is promised. Salvation comes. There is certainty of restoration. "In favor I will show you compassion...you will call your walls Salvation and your gates Praise...for the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. Your days of sorrow will end. I am the LORD; in its time I will do this swiftly." Isaiah 60 I long for better words to praise the One who brings us through.

For as much as the Bible is a book of history of God's activity, a prophecy of what will come, it is living and active today. God intends for us to take it personally. Where have you found yourself in those pages?

Something New

A brand new year, a clean slate, a new perspective. Like fresh fallen bright new snow (I can still dream if these mild temperatures won't give us any)... it awakens our senses to new hope and abundant life. I love it. My heart races with excitement of what God will bring this year! This week I've had the sense of there being something on the horizon, even if we can't see it. I just felt like playing the praise tunes a little louder and putting a dance in my step. Ridiculous as it may seem, I just feel a little giddy that God is good and He is up to something.

For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? Isaiah 43:19

I praise God that we are not bound by what we cannot see. We can only live this day, today, but eternity is set in our hearts. That tells me that there is more out there than what I know now. By faith I can say that there is something on the horizon that God is getting ready to do. Our God is one who "calls into existence what does not yet exist" (Romans 4:17, NJB). I have reason to hope and be excited for what God will do.

Abraham "dared to trust God to do what only God could do...with a word make something out of nothing. When everything was hopeless, Abraham believed anyway, deciding to live not on the basis of what he saw he couldn't do but on what God said he would do." (Romans 4, MSG)

This time of year, I love putting together a big jig-saw puzzle. It is only in the past year or two that I've realized how much I enjoy them. There is something about seeing pieces that make no sense at first, then watching them click just so, one piece at a time coming together to make the whole picture. I love seeing the details connect.

This past week, I ventured into a 750 piece puzzle. It took a couple of days, but as we were nearing the end, I was getting really anxious that it wasn't going to work. Lily (our golden retriever) has been known to eat a puzzle piece or two in her day. With all the activity of four kids and a dog, I couldn't be guaranteed that all my pieces stayed in one place. I was sure one piece in particular was really lost because none of the colors made sense.

Life is like that sometimes. We wonder how God is going to work through this one. And yet, in a way only He can do, He makes an incredible picture that we can only begin to see. My puzzle in fact had all of its pieces, and I was so excited. How fun to celebrate with such joy over something so simple!

I've been reflecting, and will continue to do so, on what our forty days of prayer has meant to me. My heart is rejoicing because I feel freed up from some of the things my heart had tangled. Lord, I'm ready for that something new You have in mind. Clean slate, write on this year what You have in mind for me.