Tag: holiness

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Family Resemblance

FamilyReunionTree_78134301_std I miss family reunions.  In the past, our family on both my father and my mother’s side, would gather on what always seemed to be the hottest day of summer to rehearse favorite memories and eat great southern dishes.

I don’t think there was any gathering where I didn’t hear an aunt or cousin say, “I can’t believe how much you have grown!  You look exactly like your mother!”, if it was my mom’s side of the family. If it was my father’s family who was gathering together they of course would say, “You look exactly like your father!”

It is not so great at 54 years old to be told how much you’ve grown since last year…but how I still love hearing that there is a family resemblance.

When someone delights in seeing how I am favoring the likeness of my parents, I begin to think about my destiny to favor the likeness of my Lord. The Apostle John puts it this way:

What marvelous love the Father has extended to us! Just look at it—we’re called children of God! That’s who we really are.

But that’s also why the world doesn’t recognize us or take us seriously, because it has no idea who he is or what he’s up to.

But friends, that’s exactly who we are: children of God. And that’s only the beginning.

Who knows how we’ll end up! What we know is that when Christ is openly revealed, we’ll see him—and in seeing him, become like him.

All of us who look forward to his Coming stay ready, with the glistening purity of Jesus’ life as a model for our own. 

1 John 3:1-3 The Message Translation

“Glistening purity?”  Yes, the goal of the Father is to have His children grow in likeness to Him.  to bear a family resemblance.  It is for my character to be shaped so that it will manifest His kindness, mercy, love, purity and wisdom. For my thinking to be reordered so that I think His Word as my first thought and know that following it is not only right but perfect for my life.

“To put it another way, God is making us holy.  But there is a requirement in learning how to submit to God’s authority: humility.  We don’t get very far in the development of holiness if we are defensive about our flaws.

That is why truly holy people are so easy to be with.  They have been around God too long to try to pretend they are perfect. They are the first to acknowledge their pride and their faults.

Then why are holy people so joyful and radiant?

One reason is that they know the answer to their character problems doesn’t reside in them but with God.  They don’t try to please God through efforts of the flesh, such as moralism and legalism, but through their obedient walk in the Spirit.” ((Becky Pippert, A Heart Like His, Crossways Books, 1996, p. 146-7))

610px-Banquet_Piece_with_Mince_Pie-1635-Willem_Claesz__Heda It seems that while families plan reunions to stay close to each other…the Father planned communion.  Through the gift of His Spirit, His Presence is so immediate and near that His character begins to rub off on us. We bear a family resemblance.

He has promised us a great banquet when we meet Him face to face.  I find my silly self “humbly” hoping that He loves to serve fatback in His green beans just the way my mama always would for our family reunions!

Talk about being joyful and radiant!  What joy to eat those beans, some homemade potato salad and brown stone front cake.

“O, what a foretaste of glory divine….”

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O Sing to the Lord a New Song

October 19, 2003

Good morning friend.  Today I am staying on site with Cottage #1 while the others have been transported to church.  There has been a new willingness from the staff to assist in transporting children and mamas to “morning prayers”—we can be changed–praise God.  We all have surrendered much to get here and yet are still quick to draw lines and raise boundaries over which we will not yield– DSC00318 as though to say, “This is as far as I am willing to go.”  The curious thing is that we think we are choosing the good when we say that–it is the pathway to some new misery!

This morning I will go down to the gazebo and pray with the children and share the story of Jonah and Auntie Janet and I will sing as many hymns as we can.  She loves to sing and we trust as the children mill around and play that their spirits are absorbing profound truths of the faith.   Robert One day as Robert and I walked hand in hand to the dining hall he began singing with such fervor “Great is Thy Faithfulness“.   It melted my heart to hear that precious African accent and wonderful pitch remember and sing that song with such gusto.  What do you think God will do with a boy with such a heart?

Mike made it to the Post Office yesterday and they had a note in our box that said there was a package waiting to be picked up.  Of course when he went to the package pick up spot it was closed.  We will have to paDSC00326y some shillings (about 50 cents worth)to the Post Office because they have been kind enough to hold the box!  Things are so different here–every service performed is seen as an opportunity to raise revenue–since there is almost no taxation on individuals it makes sense to recoup business expenses this way. I will let you know about the package after Mike retrieves it tomorrow.

DSC00575 I trust that you are worshipping well to day–I listened to Jeff’s sermon on Jesus as Physician for our souls and was wowed by the boldness of that Word.  How would we be blessed if we believed the sufficiency of our God?

I am grateful for these hours alone in the house–drinking coffee–listening to praise songs and eating toast with cranberry jam.  Talk about refreshment of soul–this is it!  I do not miss things much at all–but privacy and being alone at times is a longing that about knocks me down.  As with the leaves there in Asheville–I did not know the magnificence of alone time when I had it in abundance!  I savor this like the finest treat…it is.  I join the psalmist and “Exalt the Lord our God and worship at his holy mountain, for the Lord our God is holy.”
Love to you,
lissa

October 21, 2003

Dear Girlfriend,

DSC01331 Today the housemothers and I will be discussing the 6th chapter of John–I’ll be re-teaching the lessons that I learned from you in that passage years ago about whether we want Jesus as Bread King or as He is –the King of the Universe.  Tomorrow we head out to Jinja and our boxes are supposed to arrive and be delivered by the time of our return Friday.

It cost another $500 to get those things through the customs maze–they open each box and if you have too many towels or sheets, or new things they charge you as though you are a business bringing in things to sell.

We are being helped so much by a Ugandan agent who will usher our things through and try to advocate for us.     Jane–I wish you could have seen Casey’s face as she opened the box from you yesterday.  She was as thrilled as could be and immediately rushed next door to share her good fortune with the Coiner girls.  Lisa immediately requested to borrow “A Knight’s Tale” and Casey allowed her to have first viewing.  She loved the bracelet –it looks so much like Casey and she had it on going to school this morning.

For me–I soaked off the red mud in a bath and climbed into bed on my heating pad with a book and don’t remember waking or wincing with joint pain last night!  Thank you,thank you my friend!

I pray that we both will grow more and more like David who had learned to despise sin in himself and in those around him. He longed for holiness–he was longing for heaven!  I hope your eyes rest on the faithful in this second day of ACTP.

Love to you,
lissa