Daring to be Restless

The temptation, on some days, to think that I am somehow a disappointment, that I am not as I should be, that I am somehow too much and too little all at the same time … is overwhelming to say the least, as I’m sure many women know.   And yet, this week, as I was listening to a sermon by Lisa Bevere about Isaiah 52:1-2, God began showing me something powerful about who I am called to be as a woman, and who you (if you are also a woman) are to be.   Isaiah 52:1-2 in the Knox translation says: “Up, up, array thyself , Sion, in all thy strength; clothe thyself as befits thy new glory , Jerusalem, city of the Holy One!   The uncircumcised, the unclean shall enter thee no more.   Shake the dust from thee, Jerusalem, rise up and take thy throne ; rid thy neck of the chains that bound it, Sion, once captive queen! ” Once captive queen … that phrase captures my imagination, calls to the deep, long forsaken places of my heart and beckons me to awake.   Even reading the words now, the wo

Exodus 17:15, LB: “Moses built an altar there and called it ‘Jehovah-nissi’ (meaning ‘Jehovah is my flag.’).” Four simple letters; one syllable; three consonants and a solitary vowel … The word “flag” in and of itself is not at all extraordinary. Any child can sound it out phonetically and print it sloppily on a page.   And yet, the emotions it conjures up, and the images it summons to one’s mind are remarkable.   The one word “flag,” in one instant, can cause someone to think of countless things: -           classrooms of small children with their hands over their hearts reciting the Pledge of Allegiance with childlike innocence,         - stirring scenes from Mel Gibson’s movies The Patriot and Braveheart where the flag summons courage and valor form ordinary men,   -      the tears of a recent widow as she’s handed a folded flag to represent her husband’s sacrifice, his dedication and pride in serving his nation -               -  the wonder

I love to give.  I can’t say it any plainer than that.  I find great joy in giving – money, gifts, time, whatever I can – to minister to people, to bring them closer to Christ.  Just ask my husband – I get so excited when I buy him gifts that sometimes I give them way before the occasion the gifts are for! I get too excited and simply can’t contain myself; I want to see his reaction, want to bless him, and give them early!  :-D  It’s just part of how I’m wired, I guess, how I trust God, how I live.  For that reason, reading “The Treasure Principle” by Randy Alcorn, a book about giving extravagantly to the Lord who gave so extraordinarily to us – to me, reading it is a joy, a fun and creative challenge to give more, rather than a threat.  It’s exciting rather than scary, stretching of course, but not impossible.  Yet I realize for some people, this is not the case.  Some people have not been taught to give lavishly and freely, to excitedly give more than makes sense, trusting God to hon