Back Stage

It’s taken nearly half a century for me to figure out a key reality about life: real life happens back stage.

As I stood with the congregation for worship this morning my mind reflected back on my week.  I pondered the moments I had spent in worship throughout the week in the hidden sanctuary of my own bedroom—alone.  With an audience of One, I expressed my thoughts, prayers and songs of worship.  Sunday morning worship is simply a continuation of worship, shared with my brothers and sisters in Christ.

It all starts back stage, where no one is watching.

Every area of life must find its origin back stage before entering center stage.

For example, parenting isn’t what happens on stage, but rather a byproduct of what has been happening for months and years backstage, in the sacred place we call home.  Parenting is what happens as you tuck your daughter into bed after a tough day at school and attempt to explain to her why girls can be so mean.  One day in a stage-left moment, barely visible to the audience, your daughter may be the one who speaks words of kindness when kindness is not merited.  

Athleticism and musical talent are often years in the making before seen by the smallest of audiences.  The back stories of those who have stolen the show with their magnificent talents are often marked with many years of struggles and failures back stage.  

The ultimate example of a person who spent most of His life back stage, away from the crowds, away from the fame, was the Son of God—Jesus.

Jesus never drew attention to Himself, everything He did was to bring glory to His Father.  For the first thirty years of His life, few knew who He was yet He never needed the applause of man to affirm Him; only the heart of His Father.  Though faced with every temptation known to man, He remained sinless and unwavering in His devotion to serve an audience of One.  

When the time came for Jesus' ministry to begin on stage, He poured out of Himself all that He had received from His Father while in the secret places, back stage, away from the crowds.  Everything He said and everything He did was done to promote God, not Himself.  Jesus never sought out center stage, never wanted the spotlight to rest on Him.

And when, at the end of His life, Jesus was given center stage, He willingly accepted the role as He hung on a cross with nails in His hands and feet, a crown of thorns upon His head.  In the moment that He took our sins upon Himself so that we might one day spend eternity with Him in Paradise—in that moment His Father turned His back on Him and He was left alone to feel the weight of sin and darkness.  It was in His greatest moment of anguish that He drew His last breath and spoke His last words, “It is finished.”  

And then the stage went black.  The main character was dead.  His life given so that we might have eternal life.  

Back stage doesn’t prepare us for a big moment on center stage where we can receive applause from an audience.  Back stage is where we are strengthened at the feet of the One who went before us so that when He calls us to the stage, we are able to pour out to others the same sacrificial love that was once poured out for us.

Stay the Course...

Sheila

Can You Hear the Song?

I’ve taken some time off from writing this summer.  

I’m recognizing that sometimes time off is necessary in order to live and learn and listen to all is happening around me.

Alaska’s short summers are not wasted as most Alaskan’s spend every spare minute enjoying the great outdoors.  There are mountains to climb, salmon to catch, wildlife galore, and roads full of RV’s, campers and fishing boats headed in every direction.  

Mostly, there are the many people you run into en route to your own destination; some locals and many tourists visiting from all over the world.  I find it fascinating to chat with these folks; you can learn a lot in an impromptu conversation with those met along the way.

Just as clearly as you can hear the songs of God along the mountain trails or hear the whisper of His Spirit blowing off the shores of the ocean, so can you hear the song of each passerby if you stop to listen.

I have spent a lot of time listening.  

Sometimes those with me are not happy that I stop to listen; but I stop anyway.  

Some of the songs I have heard have touched my heart, giving me new glimpses of God’s amazing glory, grace and love.

On the top of Mount Marathon I met a doctor from Alabama, who also wrote a book about an old native Alaskan he met many years ago.  The stories he shared of the rough life and the great passion of a native who has faced many great challenges were incredible.  The doctor comes back to Alaska every year to reenergize and to be inspired for his own life’s calling.

There was also a feisty group of tourists from England who had been together long enough to know how to annoy one another.  Even so, they were excited that I was willing to take a group picture of them as a keepsake of their time together.  They were more than happy to talk to me and my friends as an outlet to vent to someone outside of their own familiar group.  They were seasoned and real and beautiful.

One does not need to be on a mountain or standing by the ocean to hear the song of another.  I sat in a restaurant, listening to the song of the waiter, as he shared the sadness of being apart from his family for the summer.  In his noble effort to provide for his family's needs, he had missed important milestones in his daughter’s life, including her first steps.  

Listening to the song of others is teaching me to embrace all types of music.  Often, listening to the song of others makes me realize that my own song isn’t always meant to be shared.  Just as it’s difficult to both run in a race and cheer for others running in the race; sometimes we must chose instead to stand along the race course and cheer. 

Whatever you are walking through or working through in your own life, I pray two things.  I pray that God will place a person in your path who takes the time to hear your song.  I pray also that you might have the opportunity to look deep into the eyes of another and see the beauty of God, as you listen to the song of His beloved.

Stay the Course…

Sheila

Indefinite Postponement

Hebrews 6:13 (NIV) “When God made his promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for him to swear by, he swore by himself, saying, “I will surely bless you and give you many descendants.”  And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised.” 

When a person makes us a promise, our hearts have expectations of a promise coming to pass swiftly.  God’s promises may not come swiftly according to our timetables, but they are given to offer us hope and encouragement, and perhaps to teach us grief and pain as we are transformed into His likeness.

In one of my favorite books, Hinds’ Feet on High Places, Hannah Hurnard uses an allegory to show us the love of our Savior.  Her story tells of a girl by the name of Much-Afraid whom the Good Shepherd (Jesus) promises to take to the High Places.  In the process of reaching the High Places, comes a lesson of learning how to lay down her own will and accept God’s perfect will for her life.   She learns to accept the conditions and tests permitted by God, all the while holding on to His promise.  

“Much-Afraid looked to the left and right, but though it seemed incredible, there was no way possible by which they could continue to climb upward.  The hill they were on ended abruptly at this precipice and the rocky cliffs towered above them in every direction straight as walls with no possible foothold.  

“I can’t go down there,” panted Much-Afraid, sick with shock and fear.  “He can never mean that—never!  He called me up to the High Places, and this is an absolute contradiction of all the he promised.”

She then lifted up her voice and called desperately, “Shepherd, come to me.  Oh, I need you.  Come and help me.”

In a moment he was there, standing beside her.

“Shepherd,” she said despairingly, “I can’t understand this.  The guides you gave me say that we must go down there into that desert, turning right away from the High Places altogether.  You don’t mean that, do you?  You can’t contradict yourself.  Tell them we are not to go there, and show us another way.  Make a way for us, Shepherd, as you promised.”

He looked at her and answered very gently, “That is the path, Much-Afraid, and you are to go down there.”

“Oh, no,” she cried.  “You can’t mean it.  You said if I would trust you, you would bring me to the High Places, and that path leads right away from them.  It contradicts all that you promised.”

“No,” said the Shepherd, “it is not contradiction, only postponement for the best to become possible.”

Much-Afraid felt as though he had stabbed her to the heart.  “You mean,” she said incredulously, “you really mean that I am to follow that path down and down into that wilderness and then over that desert, away from the mountains indefinitely?  Why (and there was a sob of anguish in her voice) “it may be months, even years, before that path leads back to the mountains again.  O Shepherd, do you mean it is indefinite postponement?”

He bowed his head silently, and Much-Afraid sank on her knees at his feet, almost overwhelmed.  He was leading her away from her heart’s desire altogether and gave no promise at all as to when he would bring her back.  As she looked out over what seemed an endless desert, the only path she could see led farther and farther away from the High Places, and it was all desert.

Sometimes, by all appearances, we are being led away from the promise that God has given us.  Will we still trust Him even when we cannot understand, as we lay down our will in surrender?

Much-Afraid finally surrendered to the Good Shepherd, “I will go down with you into the wilderness, right away from the promise, if you really wish it.  Even if you cannot tell me why it has to be, I will go with you, for you know I do love you, and you have the right to choose for me anything that you please.”

Stay the Course...

Sheila

Today's Prayer: “Father, there are times when it feels that You are taking me away from the promise You have for me.  It is a struggle to let go of my will to trust that Your will is much better than my own; especially when it feels I am being led into the desert and wilderness.  I know that indefinite postponement requires me to lay down my rebellious heart as I hold onto the promises You have given me and wait for them patiently.  I know that You have the right to choose for me anything that You please.  I know that that pain and suffering I must feel will bring peace and joy as I refuse to turn back to the path of my own choosing.  Please hold me in the desert as You continue to teach me all that I must learn so that my life may bring You glory and honor.  For the best to become possible, I will stay the course and trust You.  You are all I’m living for.  I love you, Good Shepherd.  In Jesus name I pray, amen.”

Faith

Hebrew 11:8 (NIV) "By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going." 

If someone would have told Abraham that his life would be used to bless the entire world, I wonder if he would have believed it.

Abram (later given the name Abraham) was going about his business as a wealthy rancher, when one day God spoke to him saying, “Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you.” (Gen.12:1)  God promised to bless Abram and to make his descendents into a great nation; but there was one condition.  

Abram had to make a choice.  At the age of seventy-five, he had to decide:  would he obey God, or would he continue doing what he had been doing successfully for many years.  

Unbeknownst to Abram, the hope of the nations rested on his decision of whether or not to obey God.

One decision: worldwide ramifications.

Would walking away from the comforts of home, familiar surroundings, family and friends be rancher’s suicide?  Could he have faith enough to believe God’s promise of greater blessings in the future?  He could not have known that through his family tree, Jesus would be born to save humanity.

Enter faith.

Webster’s dictionary defines faith as, “firm belief in something for which there is no proof.” Faith is not a mystical word, used flippantly when referring to one’s belief; it’s a word with power that can change the lens through which we view life.

The Bible tells us:  “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” (Heb.11:1)

Abraham chose to be faithful to God, “By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.  By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country.” (Heb.11:8&9)

Sometimes God calls us away from what is familiar geographically; other times He may call us away from something in our lives that has worked well for a season, as He reveals that His plan and purpose no longer match what has become familiar.

Like Abraham, we must make a choice.

One decision:  possible worldwide ramifications.

Enter faith.

Stay the Course...

Sheila

Today’s Prayer:

“Father, I am no longer willing to live my life in a manner that settles for less than what You desire for me.  Today I ask that You would give me eyes of faith to believe in what I cannot see.  Please train my ears to hear Your voice above all the other voices clamoring for an audience with me.  I choose Your plans for me as I lay down my own plans for my life.  As I read Your Word, I know that Your promises are for me, Your child.  Just as Abraham, against all hope, obeyed You time and again, knowing that You had power to do what You had promised; so will I obey You.  Please help me to not waver through unbelief, but instead, strengthen my faith so that my life may bring glory and honor to You.  In Jesus name I pray, amen.”

Give Us a King

It’s interesting to note that in every circle of influence across the world, there are leaders and there are followers.

I don’t think the circles of influence with which we are associated offer much distinction in our desire to either lead or to be led. The choice to fix and keep our eyes on God is difficult as we watch our culture fix its eyes on people who have been placed in esteemed positions of power and/or authority

Without our full awareness, we are prone to find ourselves looking for a person to lead us and to fight our battles for us.

The good news is, as we bury ourselves in the Word of God, He gives us perspective as we learn from those who have gone before us facing the same struggles.

One of many examples is Samuel. 

Samuel was a man with a very unique background.  His mother, Hannah, was barren and pleaded with the Lord for a son.   Hannah promised the Lord that if he would honor her desire that she in turn would give her son back to him for all the days of his life.  God honored Hannah’s desire and Hannah honored the Lord, taking her son Samuel to Eli, the priest of God, to be raised in the temple.

When Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons as judges for Israel.  However, his sons did not walk in his ways.  All the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel saying, “You are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways; now appoint a king to lead us, such as all the other nations have.” (I Sam.8:5)

Samuel prayed to the Lord and the Lord told him: “Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected as their king, but me. As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you.” (I Sam. 8:7-9)

In an unforgiving culture, it can be difficult to follow the True King.  When we take our eyes off of God for a moment to look around at what everyone else is doing, we may stumble into idolatry. 

In what becomes a crisis of belief, each person is left to decide for himself or herself whether or not they will serve God or an idol.  An idol, as defined by Merriam Webster, is a “greatly loved or admired person; a picture or object that is worshipped as a god; a false god; pretender or impostor.”

Samuel was deeply displeased when the Israelites demanded: “Give us a king to lead us.” (I Sam.8:6) God’s words to Samuel convict my soul in my own struggle not to worship false idols: “It is not you they have rejected as their king, but me.” 

When the lines of black and white become muddied shades of grey, we must determine to honor the Lord our God with all of our hearts, all of our souls, all of our minds and all of our strength. 

Christ died on a cross to atone for our sins and to point us to the one true King. Therefore, let us enter the Throne Room and determine to worship Him alone.

Stay the Course...

Sheila

Turning of The Tide

I felt myself exhale this afternoon.  It was a deep sigh that I have been inadvertently holding for a long time.

Yesterday I listened as my husband described our life in one sentence to a friend we had lost touch with for many years. Leave it to my husband to use as few words as possible to express something profoundly impacting!  He said that if you were  to look at a beautifully decorated table, meticulously set for a special occasion, and then suddenly grabbed ahold of the tablecloth and  yanked it as hard as you could, causing the arrangement to become unidentifiable—that would sum up the past several plus years of our lives.

I do not share this information for sympathy; because there is nothing to be sorry about.  

Somewhere in the midst of our heart’s cry to be used for God’s glory, somewhere in the middle of telling God that we would do anything He wanted with our lives, regardless the cost…God took us at our word, and the table cloth got yanked.

Many days ended without solutions to problems bigger than we were capable of fixing.  Nighttime found our heavy hearts lying in bed as we held hands, staring speechless at the ceiling, praying that courage might find us somewhere in the night to face the light of a new day.  

We found the core of our beliefs tested and tried in ways we could have never guessed as the tide of God’s favor and blessing, by all appearances, was going out with no sign of a hasty return.

The loss which almost took us out in the mighty undertow was not only the loss of “things” but also the loss of people who we had believed would stand beside us regardless life’s circumstances.  

At times I was certain we would not survive; our strength ebbing away against the mighty grasp of Despair.

I struggle to find adequate words to express the beauty of how God is willing to work in the lives of broken people, such as ourselves, never letting go of us even when all felt hopeless.  In the middle of chaos, He changed the very templates of our hearts.  

Today, the tide is turning once again, swallowing us in the joy of the Lord.  We have done nothing to merit favor in the turning of the tide.

Just as I cannot explain how or why the tide went out so long ago; neither can I explain why the tide has now turned again.  The turning of the tide does not represent an easy life, simply a good life where one can exhale.  

I know that some of you have faced or are currently facing your own unimaginable losses. 

Sometimes loss or change is a gift from God, though in the moment, through the lens of our finite perspective, the gift does not feel pleasant.  Paul reminds us in Romans: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” (Rom. 8:28)

I share this turning of the tide moment with you today with the hopes that your hearts will be encouraged.  If you are stuck up to your knees in sand, looking off toward the direction of the ocean wondering if the tide will ever turn back again, do not lose hope.

God’s promises are written on your heart, never to be erased or forgotten.

I’ve said it before and I will continue to say it again and again: “You are deeply loved by your heavenly Father.” 

Stay the Course…

Sheila

Today’s Prayer: “I lift up my eyes to the hills—where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip-he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord watches over you—the Lord is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you from all harm—he will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.” Psalm 121:1-8

One Thing I Ask of The Lord

Psalm 27:4(NIV) “One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.”

In looking through scripture, there is a common thread between some of the men and the women who desired to live their lives to please God.  Regardless the sins that tripped them up; they strived to place their trust and confidence in the One who would remain faithful and never forsake them.

As we take a look at God's servant, David, the comparison of David's humanity can serve as a reflection in the mirror of our own struggles.  

David was a man after God's own heart.(I Sam.13:14) He was divinely chosen and anointed by God, becoming one of the greatest kings of Israel.  (I Sam.16:13)

David’s life was filled with great accomplishments and stained with terrible sins.  It would be fair to say that he had some high highs and some low lows.  Before he became one of the greatest kings, he was known as a fine musician, so reputable that he played before the king.(ISam.16:14-23)  He was also a poet who wrote much of the Psalms, including the 23^rd Psalm.  

David went from being the youngest of eight boys, a courageous shepherd boy, to being a prominent king possessing more power than anyone of his day.  In spite of the power and privileges accompanied with being the king, there was only one thing that David’s soul craved.  It was something that no amount of power and no person could satisfy.  David says it well when he says, “One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.” (Ps.27:4)

Although David’s heart was led astray by sin, the darkness of his sin and the realization of his depravity led him back to the heart of God, “My heart says of you, “Seek his face!” Your face, Lord, I will seek.  Do not hide your face from me, do not turn your servant away in anger; you have been my helper.  Do not reject me or forsake me, O God my Savior.” (Ps. 27:8&9)

Just like David, we are God’s servants.  Just like David, we are tempted and sometimes led astray by sin.  We are truly a messed up mixture of glory and grime!

There is nothing and no one that can satisfy the true cravings of our soul except our Lord.

Stay the Course...

Sheila

Today’s Prayer: “Father, I know that only You can satisfy the cravings of my soul.  Nothing else and no one else can be to me what only You can be, my God and King.  I desire to seek You and know You as I am known by You.  I desire to love You and accept the love You have for me.  Please forgive me for the many times I push You away. I cannot fathom a love as great as Yours.  Please stay close to me and do not hide your face from me or turn me away in anger.  I am desperate for You.  My soul will not be satisfied with anything less than all of You.  I will seek You and worship You as I gaze upon Your beauty.  There is nothing else my souls craves, only Your presence.  I love You.  In Jesus name I pray, amen.”