The Real Romance

January 31, 2018 by Amy Christensen in Christian blogger, Christian faith, Christian belief, Christian faith blog, Christian life, God, God is good, God is with us, God's love, Romance, Romance with God, Oswald Chambers, God is sovereign, God is all powerful, God is all knowing, God is all present, We have choices, Walking with Christ

My regular devotional book is My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers. If you have never heard of him, he is one of those men of the past that, like David, seemed to be a man after God's own heart. The wisdom he had as a young man and his passion for Christ drove him to eventually start the Bible Training College in London. I have used this devotional book for years and it never grows old.

Over the years, I started writing in the margin at the top of the page what various events had occurred on that particular date. It has become a way to keep track of life. I always write the year and the event that took place. For instance on September 15, 2010 it says, "Quintin Arthur Vern Christensen born." That is my grandson. On May 31st 2014 it says, "Rebecca Christensen marries Daniel Trumbull." That is when I gained a son-in-law. There are pages filled with vacation travels, birthdays and family gatherings. It is also filled with broken engagements, hospital stays, unwed pregnancies and deaths.

It seems apropos that a devotional book that reminds us over and over to draw closer to Christ, hold a record of the very events that have caused that closeness to take place. The good events caused me to pour out my heart in thanksgiving and praise for blessing. The bad events caused me to pour out my heart in despair and grief. This correlation brings me to today's reading from the devotional and one quote in particular.

“Without the sovereign hand of God Himself, nothing touches our lives. Do we discern His hand at work, or do we see things as mere occurrences? Get into the habit of saying, ‘Speak, Lord,’ and life will become a romance.”

— Oswald Chambers - My Utmost for His Highest - January 30th

There are several truths we can pull from this quote.

1. God is Sovereign.

“The Lord has established His throne in the heavens, And His sovereignty rules over all.”

— Psalm 103:19 (NASB)

God is all. ALL powerful. ALL present. ALL good. ALL loving. ALL knowing. How can a being like that not be sovereign. The word itself means, one who holds supreme power. I have a feeling that this word that was first noted to be used in the 13th century, does not begin to describe the sovereignty of God.

2. Nothing touches our lives that doesn't pass through Him.

“Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them.
The Lord said to Satan, ‘From where do you come?’
Then Satan answered the Lord and said, ‘From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it.’
The Lord said to Satan, ‘Have you considered My servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, fearing God and turning away from evil.’
Then Satan answered the Lord, ‘Does Job fear God for nothing? Have You not made a hedge about him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But put forth Your hand now and touch all that he has; he will surely curse You to Your face.’
Then the Lord said to Satan, ‘Behold, all that he has is in your power, only do not put forth your hand on him.’
So Satan departed from the presence of the Lord.”

— Job 1:6-12 (NASB)

This passage from Job is the perfect example of God's sovereignty and how He filters the events that touch our lives.

What exactly does that mean? It means that no matter what is going on in your life, He is aware of it and He allowed it. That may seem a bit overwhelming and bring questions to your mind like, "If He's all good and all loving, why are all these bad things happening?" Quite simply, God knows you and your circumstances even better than you do. He knows what will push you towards Him or away from Him.

If we allow ourselves the freedom of trusting Him, then we know that He's got us, no matter what is happening. If we bend to His will and sovereignty in our lives we will enter into an amazing relationship with Him. More on that in a minute.

3. We have choices.

“If it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served which were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.””

— Joshua 24:15 (NASB)

I've said this before and I will say it again. We have choices. We can decide to trust His sovereignty or not. We can accept His truth or reject it. Each of those choices we make will have an affect on how we think and how we maneuver through life.

If you read the Old Testament at all you know that the Israelites were constantly changing their choices. One day they chose God, the next day they chose idols. On and on, over and over. When they chose God, they prospered. When they chose idols, they floundered. Our choice to believe God's sovereignty will make life more stable and peaceful. It doesn't mean life will be smooth sailing, but it does mean we will always have someone to rely on and who will give us supernatural means to deal with the hard things in life.

If we look back at Joshua, who lead the children of Israel into the promised land, we know he had to conquer cities, and battle for every inch of land, but God was with Him and as long as they put God first and worshipped and trusted Him they were victorious. That didn't mean people didn't die, or get sick or have marital conflict or....fill in the blank. But God was there through it all. In all honesty, if I have the choice to have an all loving and all powerful being, walking with me through those dark and treacherous valleys, I'll take it.

4. Life with Him can be a romance.

“that the Lord called Samuel; and he said, “Here I am.”

— I Samuel 3:4 (NASB)

Who doesn't love romance? Even the most jaded person, if they do a little soul searching will admit, they want to be pursued and loved. Romance has to be nurtured. When you are in a romantic relationship it isn't about getting what you want, it is a beautiful dance of giving, receiving, listening and talking. We can have that with our Lord. Isn't that amazing? The all powerful, supreme being who created the universe from nothing wants to woo us and have a romance with us.

With February starting tomorrow and Valentine's Day right around the corner, wouldn't this be a good time to reevaluate our romance with Jesus? Are we spending time with Him? Are we pursuing Him, just as He daily pursues us? Are we taking the time to converse with Him and quietly listening for His sweet whispers to our souls? Are we looking for Him in the simple and mundane things of life as well as the big and beautiful things?

“O taste and see that the Lord is good; How blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!”

— Psalm 34:8 (NASB)

Beauty from Ash

January 24, 2018 by Amy Christensen in Abide in Christ, Acknowledging pain, Analogy of Christian life, Ashes, Beauty for ashes, Being in the light, Belief, Blogging, Change, Christian blogger, Christian faith, Christian faith blog, Christian fiction, Christian life, Come into the light, Faith, Faith blogger, Go to the light, God's protection, God's strength, God's work in my life, Growing in Our faith, Growth in God, Imagery, Light in the darkness, Making deep roots, New life

There it was. A single, dark green leaf, beginning to unfurl. It had been conceived in darkness. A tiny seed that lay dormant, not dead, merely asleep in the cozy warmth of the dark earth. While it was sleeping the dragon had done his damage. He had ravaged the landscape, burning every tree and every living thing until all was nothing but ash. He thought he had destroyed life, but what he had meant for death, the One had meant for life.

The ash lay heavy on the earth. It became, not a grave blanket of death, but a rich, comforting layer of warmth and nutrients. Gradually, over time, the rains came and the ash cooled and lingering life seeped into the black earth below.

The seed drank the death life and began to swell. Swollen and full, it opened, releasing a shoot into the fertile soil above. Pushing, struggling, reaching, it climbed upward. It knew, above the darkness there was light and the light was what it wanted. The light was what it needed. The shoot didn't know how it knew, but it knew it had to reach for the light. It knew the light would help it grow. It knew the light would give it life.

Soon the pushing, struggling and reaching paid off. At the very tip of it's furthest point the shoot felt an odd sensation, warmth. It had only ever known the coolness of the earth in which it lay. It had only ever known the darkness, but now...now it reached. With one last ambitious push it poked through the earth and ash and found the light.

* * * * *

Are we not like the seed? Were we not conceived in darkness? Did we not, when we were full with the nutrients of our mother's womb, the womb that would die after our life, death life, did we not move toward the light? We knew when it was time, as our mother's womb knew when it was time to help us, push, and reach and struggle, that we must find the light. We needed the light.

Why then, when we know the light is good, do we stop seeking it? Why, when we know the light gives us life and helps us grow, do we we hide from it? Why do we prefer to cover ourselves back up with the dragon's ash, trying to hide rather than growing to the potential that the One had meant for us?

It is because we are afraid.

Do not fear the light, or the One from which the light has its source. Rather, push, struggle, reach for Him. He will tend you like a tender shoot and raise you up into a mighty tree.

He alone can bring beauty from ash.

(Written by Amy D. Christensen)

Walking with the Psalmist

January 17, 2018 by Amy Christensen in Looking at the Psalms, Psalm 1:1-6, Learning from the Bible, Bible study, Bible teaching, A look at Psalm 1, The righteous man

I have always loved the book of Psalms in the Old Testament. Perhaps it is my love of the written word, and poetry and songs are no exception. Of the 150 Psalms, David wrote 73, Asaph wrote 12, the Sons of Korah wrote 11, Solomon wrote 2, Ethan and Moses wrote 1 and the 50 remaining have no recorded author. The Psalms are divided into 5 books.

Over the next few months I would like to occasionally look at a Psalm. I want to look at the Psalms, not only from a theological perspective, but from a more human and emotional perspective. After all we are emotional beings. We are created in God's image and the Creator gave us emotions.

Take a look at Psalm 1. This week we'll look at verses 1-3 and next week we'll look at 4-5.

“1 How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked,
Nor stand in the path of sinners,
Nor sit in the seat of scoffers!
2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
3 He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, Which yields its fruit in its season
And its leaf does not wither;
And in whatever he does, he prospers.
4 The wicked are not so,
But they are like chaff which the wind drives away.
5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
Nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
6 For the Lord knows the way of the righteous,
But the way of the wicked will perish.”

— Psalm 1 (NASB)

While we do not know who the author of this Psalm was we can derive a few things from its inclusion in the canon of scripture. First, we can conclude that it is important. The content of this short psalm starts off the entirety of the book of Psalms. It has something to say and we would be wise to listen. Second, the fact that it was included might infer that God thought it important to include as well. Isn't God the one who inspired the words penned by the authors of scripture? Third, the fact that it ended up on the first page of the first book of the five books of Psalms might mean that it is setting a foundation for all the other Psalms to follow.

This psalm compares two men (or women). The first described in verses 1-3, is a righteous man. The word righteous refers to one who acts in accordance with the divine or moral law. The second, described in verses 4-5, is an unrighteous man or one who is not following the moral law.

Looking at verses 1-3 we can learn 10 things about the righteous man.

1. He is happy. The word blessed in this particular passage is referring to the idea of being happy or content.

2. He does not walk in the counsel of the wicked. In other words, he is careful who he gets advice from.

3. He does not stand in the path of sinners. He's careful where he hangs out. You probably won't find this guy at the strip club or the casino.

4. He does not sit in the seat of scoffers. What is a scoffer? One who expresses scorn, derision or contempt. It doesn't sound like a person any of us would want to have sitting at our dinner table, but some of us, not only have them at our tables, we are them! This man, does not linger with these types of people.

5. His delight is in the law of the Lord. Wow! Did you catch that? His delight! What do you delight in? Your spouse, your children, your job, your pets, your chocolate? It doesn't say this man delighted in any of those things. He delights in God's word.

6. He meditates day and night in God's law. Wow, again! To meditate means to think on, ruminate on, much like a cow chews its cud. It just keeps coming back around over and over, to think on, day and night. I don't know about you, but I'm doing good if God's word comes to my mind once a day.

7. He is like a tree, firmly planted by streams of water. From this single sentence we can see that this man is rooted and he is provided for. The stream of water, which I would say could be compared to the Holy Spirit, is always near by, for him to swim in, rest by and drink from. I also love that the word firmly is included to describe how this tree is planted. This tree is not about to be toppled by the first storm that comes along.

8. He bears fruit in its season. This man is useful to God. He allows God to use Him as He will to produce fruit in his life. This fruit can be harvested when it is the right season. This fruit is a direct result of his investment and delight in God's law.

9. His fruit and leaves will not wither. It doesn't mean this man won't age. It means that as long as he is delighting in God's law, he will always be a productive part of God's kingdom. Sure, he will have bad days, but it will be temporary and the result will bring him closer to His creator.

10. He prospers. It is good to be wise when we start talking about prosperity. Prosperity doesn't always mean financial gain. This man may prosper as a friend, or as a worker, or in his marriage, or other aspects of his family life. Or it may be that his relationship with the Savior is the only thing that prospers.

When I start looking at these verses, I realize I have a long way to go to be like this righteous man. I am not always happy. I get it, life is difficult, but the things that I so often seek to make me happy are only temporary. This man fully understands that the thing that will make him happy is delighting in God and His law. It is this delight that not only gives him happiness, but roots him deeply and firmly near the source of life-giving water, the Lord Jesus Christ.

This quick look at the first 3 verses of Psalm 1 are only a slight dig into the rich fertile soil of God' word and the meaning it has for our lives. Perhaps on your own you can do a little deeper excavating and discover more truth.

Next week we'll take a look at the second man represented in this passage and ask the hard question, Is this who I am?

Check back tomorrow for another installment on my fashion page on Layering Love.

A Look Back at 2017 - My Favorite Faith Posts

January 10, 2018 by Amy Christensen in A Christmas lesson, A father's perspective, A letter from God, Abide in Christ, allegory, Analogy of Christian life, Armor of God, Ashes, Battle Fatigue, Beginning 2018, Being a woman, Belief, christian, Christian allegory, Christian belief, Christian blogger, Christian faith, Christian faith blog, Christian fiction, Christian life, Christmas, Christmas movies, Deep waters, Doubts, Dragons, faith, Faith, Faith blogger, God the Father, God the Holy Spirit, God the Son, God's word, God's work in my life, Hope in God, Lessons from movies, Lessons from a rhino, Lessons learned

I did this on my fashion page so I thought it would be good to do on my faith page as well. Since we are into a new year, I thought it would be fun to look back at my favorite posts from 2017. I picked one from each month. If you haven't read them and are interested, just click on the link below the picture.

It is good to look back at where we have been, so we can get a better feel for where we need to go. As far as my faith posts are concerned, I want to keep writing and posting things that I hope will be an encouragement to you. We, as older women, are such a valuable part of society. We are capable, strong and worn, and that is just where God wants us to be.

Here are my favorite faith posts from my blog from 2017.

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

Lessons Learned from Miracle on 34th Street

I hope you enjoyed this look back at my favorite blog posts from 2017. As we move forward into 2018, I hope to grow my blog in various ways, while still being true to my belief and faith in Jesus Christ.

If you have any suggestions or things you would like to see me talk about on the blog, please leave me a comment in the comments section or you can send me a message on Facebook. I appreciate all your input and support. I am looking forward to what this year will bring and hope you will join me on the blog!

Thoughts on a New Year

January 01, 2018 by Amy Christensen in Happy New Year, Beginning 2018, Being Thankful, New Year Resolutions, Giving thanks

There is one thing I wish for those I love for the new year, that they learn to practice gratitude. You have heard me talk often about gratitude. Just because I preach it, doesn't mean I practice it as I should. I am like anyone, I have good intentions, but get caught up in the reality of life, where it some times doesn't let up in its relentless pursuit of chaos and difficulty. It is hard to be grateful, when life is woeful.

“Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving And pay your vows to the Most High;”

— Psalm 50:14 (NASB)

“Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving, Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms.”

— Psalm 95:2 (NASB)

“For the ministry of this service is not only fully supplying the needs of the saints, but is also overflowing through many thanksgivings to God.”

— 2 Corinthians 9:12 (NASB)

“Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.”

— Colossians 3:16 (NASB)

I have learned, that joy is only found in the midst of a grateful heart. When I purposefully choose to be thankful, something happens in my state of mind. Change occurs when I choose to see the good in what I have and live in the moments I am given.

I know this is hard to do, especially when surrounded by others who do not look at life in this way. People who are negative and critical seem to carry a dark little cloud around and are willing to let their cloud rain on you. You have heard the saying, "Misery loves company." This idea can go one of two ways.

1. When we are miserable we want to have others around us. We want to have someone else there that we trust to help us carry the burden. We also can be distracted from whatever is bothering us when we have others close by to take our minds off our problems.

2. When we are miserable we want others to suffer right along with us. I don't know that this is really an intentional thing, but it seems that some people who are negative and critical are also consumed with themselves and their own problems. They want everyone to know that they are miserable, even if they don't come right out and say it.

So what does all of this have to do with ushering in a new year? As I look forward to what 2018 will bring, I want to intentionally walk into it with gratitude. Instead of making a list of resolutions that I probably won't keep. It is good to have goals and to make plans to better ourselves and our lives, but being grateful, with a little practice can have an overall impact on our mental health, our relationships and our ability to cope with life.

Will you join me and welcome 2018 with a heart full of gratitude?

The following pictures are some of the things I am grateful for today:

Happy New Year, everyone.