Lie: God Is Not Really Good

Nancy Leigh DeMoss starts her discussion in Lies Women Believe with lies we believe about God. This is a fantastic place to start. Really, what we think about God determines what we think about EVERYTHING. What we believe about His character and His power will determine how we react in situations, in relationships, in the day-to-day mundane of life. If we know who He truly is our hearts can not help but embrace Him and want to follow in His ways.

The best way to prevent lies from creeping into our hearts, is to flood our hearts with the truth. The best way to do this is to read the Word each day. Every word speaks truth about God- His character, His attributes, His track record in history. If our hearts are flooded with the truth, Satan's lies and half-truths won't stand a chance. We'll quickly disregard them as falsehoods and move on. However, if our hearts aren't saturated with the truth- we will give lies room to grow in our hearts.

As we look deeper into specific lies we believe about God, I want to encourage you to think about ways you are flooding your heart, your husband's heart, the hearts of your children, your family your friends, with truth. Ross and I have recently been very diligent in speaking truth to Caleb. "See that big tree, Caleb? God made that tree. He is much, much bigger than that tree. He made it and everything we can see and can't see." or "Do you see the rain, Caleb? God sends the rain to help the plants grow. He knows we need the rain. God sends it to us because He is good. God gives us everything we need." I encourage you to speak like this to your little ones. Flood their hearts with the truth!!

Okay, onto a specific lie that we often can believe, even in small parts in certain situations:

Lie- God is not really good. If He were, He would...

Satan doesn't try to convince us of this when things are peachy keen. It's when hard times come that he starts whispering in our ears, "A good God wouldn't let that girl die so young... A good God wouldn't allow your hardworking husband to lose his job... A good God wouldn't let your parents get divorced... A good God would provide you with a spouse. Why are you still single?" The variations of lies go on and on and on.

But the truth is simple: Paraphrased, Psalm 119:68 says,

"God is good and everything He does is good."

We can stand on that promise. Even when things are really ugly. And things will get really ugly (if they haven't already...) We also know from the Word that the world we live in is horribly corrupted by sin. At the creation it was good and everything in it was good, but our nature has changed and sin gives birth to evil things. We live in a world of hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, fires, starvation, exploitation, abuse. Bad stuff happens here. God sees it all. He allows it to happen. But that does not mean He is not good.

It does mean that "his thoughts are not our thoughts, neither are our ways His ways" Isaiah 55:8.

We must cling to the truth that God is good- ALL the time, in EVERY circumstance.

I love this quote DeMoss includes by Hannah Whitall Smith:

"A great many things in God's divine providences do not look to the eye like goodness. But faith sits down before mysteries such as these, and says, "The LORD is good, therefore all that He does must be good no matter how it looks. I can wait for His explanations."

Oh, the glorious day when He can explain to us how He was working good in all our circumstances!! Better yet, on that day, when we can see His face, I don't think we'll remember our circumstances very clearly...

Lies Women Believe

I've been on a bit of a reading frenzy lately. The new book I have a hard time putting down and can't seem to stop pondering is Lies Women Believe (and the Truth that Sets Them Free) by Nancy Leigh DeMoss. If you attend Trinity, you can pick it up in the book stall for $10. If you don't, you can purchase or read more about it here.

The main premise of the book is that, from the beginning, Satan has been at work lying to God's people. Satan knows that the truth will really set us free to love God and to be all that He wants us to be. However, if he can get us to believe lies and half-truths, we can get caught up in sin and selfishness that leads to misery. The premise is simple, but the application is revolutionary.

The book is written primary to women, since Satan lied to us first and knows that we are especially susceptible to lies, but the book could benefit men as well. Satan lies to them, too- and it would be helpful for men to understand the kinds of mind games Satan plays on their wives.

Ms. DeMoss spends a chapter discussing how Satan lies and how devastating those lies can be, then she jumps into specific areas where Satan likes to lie the most- especially to Christian women. This is important to note, too. Satan lies to everyone, but he has specific tactics that he uses on women and even more specific tactics that he uses on women who belong to Jesus.

The specific areas that Ms. DeMoss covers are Lies About God, Lies About Ourselves, Lies About Sin, Lies About Priorities, Lies About Marriage, Lies About Children, Lies About Emotions and Lies About Circumstances.

My favorite part of the book is not the lies (hopefully!) but the specific truth taken from God's word that illuminates the lie and shows God's true will in that situation. Over the next couple of weeks, I'd like to share with you some lies that Nancy Leigh shares in her book, the truth that sets us free and how recognizing these lies has brought personal growth and change in my own heart.

I hope you join me in searching for, believing and applying the truth!

John 8:31-32

New International Version 1984 (NIV1984)

The Children of Abraham

³¹ To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. ³² Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

Baby Watch

The past 2 days have been full of anticipation. I've been waiting for friends' babies to come.

The first was dear Natalie from Trinity. She was expecting her second child- another boy. His name is Joshua and has been for a long time. As soon as they found out it was a boy- they named him. I love that! Such a testament to life. We don't name "tissues" or "organisms". We name people. And Joshua has been a person this entire time. God's known him forever- his parents just got to meet him yesterday.

I went to bed on Sunday night knowing that Natalie was in the hospital, dilated to 6cm. I woke up in the middle of the night and thought of her. From then on I had some pretty scary labor dreams. I don't even want to tell you what they were. I kept waking up, assuring myself that it wasn't real and then falling asleep right in the middle of the dream again. It was awful.

You can imagine my joy and relief when I finally woke up and got a text saying Joshua was here and they both were safe and sound.

Then last night, I went to bed knowing that my sweet neighbor Beth was in the hospital. This is her 3rd child- also a boy. Jett is his name and he was a surprise-to them and to us. But not to God, of course :)

I don't know all the details of her delivery yet. She was supposed to be induced, but that kept being pushed back- like 5 days pushed back! Beth was admitted last night around 9pm, but just had the baby an hour or so ago. I had hoped to wake up with good news from her, too- but I had to wait longer for that.

All of this reminds me of how unpredictable babies are. Natalie was due on the 10th, but Joshua didn't come till the 13th. Beth's due date is this Friday, but she's been dilated to 3 for almost 2 weeks. We think we know when babies are coming, but we really don't. Even though Beth was going to be induced, she had very little control over that situation...

Yet, God did. Birth is one of those areas of life where we have to trust Him. We really have little control over when it will happen and how fast it will happen. There are so many details that we can not control. Praise God that He can, though!

I can't wait to sit down with each of these friends and listen to the details of their birth stories. What surprises were there? How did God show up?

And I can't wait to tell you my story in a few months. Until then, I'll keep praying that I have a heart that trusts and gladly hands over the control to Him. : )

Ten Reasons...

Today's been a little crazy. Caleb woke up an hour early, so we went down for a nap early. The LORD is the only one who knows when he'll get up... (An hour, 45 minutes, 3 hours??)

I had a long to-do list that included cleaning and all he wanted to do while he was awake was dump toys on the floor.

That's the kind of day I have had : )

So I'm going to go back to work, but I wanted to give you something to read.

Please check out this article entitled "Ten Great Reasons to Have Another Child."

If you're married and of child-bearing age, consider it : )

If you don't fit into those categories, rejoice that people are gifts from heaven- even the ones that dump toys all over the floor over and over again- most especially those ones : )

Stupid BP!

I went to see the midwife today. I'm actually seeing a midwife practice and there's no guarantee who will be there when you deliver your baby, so you see them all. Today, I met with a precious lady named Lisa. She was wonderful, a great listener and encouraging to me. It was a great appointment actually, except for my blood pressure...

In case you don't know my BP history- here's a very quick rundown.

When I was about 6 months pregnant with Caleb, my bp was high. My ob didn't like that. The next time, I worried about it and it was still high. This went on and on until I was 39 weeks pregnant and my doctor said that high blood pressure could cause all kinds of problems and he induced me. It wasn't a horrible experience, but not what I had wanted for our birth and, really, not necessary.

2nd baby comes along and I don't want that same experience, so I change to Bethany Women's Center- an awesome midwifery/ob clinic. Everyone there is more naturally focused and super kind, but my bp has still been kind of high, just from fear of what happened last time.

Side note: I have a monitor that I use at home. On average, my bp is about 110/65- which is fantastic.

I've been praying about this situation for a long time now. When I was pregnant with Caleb, my prayers went like this: "Please, LORD, don't let my bp be high!" That was my prayer with my first couple appointments for this baby girl as well.

Then, a couple months ago, the LORD spoke to my heart. The root of my problem is not that my blood pressure is high. It's that I have an anxious heart. And that is not something out of my control. It feels like it is. I feel like I can't control my worries and my emotions and my fears. But that's a lie. I can. And I should.

My new prayer goes something like this: "Please, LORD, teach me to trust you in EVERYTHING. Remind me that you are ultimately in control. You are my shepherd. I don't need to fear. Use the truth in your word to cut out the anxious parts of my heart. "

My bp today was 152 (yikes!) over 68 (awesome!) Which means the LORD is working in me, but I'm still not done conquering this anxiety. The LORD is still not done teaching my heart to trust Him. And there are still fears that I cling to instead of clinging to him.

Can I ask for your prayers? That I would trust the LORD completely, with everything. That I would remember that He loves this little baby girl even more than I do. That His plan will prevail and bring Him glory.

Thanks, friends : )

Proverbs 3:5-6

New International Version 1984 (NIV1984)

⁵ Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
⁶ in all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make your paths straight.

How Many Kids?

The following has been on my mind a LOT lately. It's not politically correct. It's not a clear right or wrong/black or white answer. But I think the LORD has it on my heart for a reason...

"How many kids would you like to have?" It's such a common question- but most especially in this stage of life- with a little guy running around and a little girl on the way. My answer has been the same since Ross and I married. "Well, Ross wants 3, but I think I want 4." And people give the same sort of response "Oh, that's a lot of children, but you'd be a good mom. You could probably handle it."

I don't know how many times I've had a conversation like that. The amazing part is the emphasis on me in that equation. How many kids would YOU like to have? YOU could probably handle it.

Lately, I've been struck with the question- "How many kids would GOD like us to have?" He hasn't responded to me with a clear number. I don't think He ever will.

Think theologically with me for a moment. Set practicalities aside and just think about God.

1st- God is the one who gives life. I've seen this in my own life as we have "tried" to make babies. It's not my timing. It's His. It doesn't matter how hard Ross and I work at it- God's the one who decides whether or not to breathe life into the little ones.

2nd- God says that children are blessings. Throughout Scripture, God gives children to people in order to bless them. Proverbs 127:3 says that children are a heritage and a REWARD.

3rd- God is ultimately in control. He has a plan that I can not squelch- with my sin or my selfishness or with all of my grand plans. His will will be done.

So when I think this way I begin to wonder why I use birth control methods at all. Why would I want to prevent rewards and blessings? Why would I say no to life God wants to give me?

Then I start thinking practically-

1st- Kids cost money. A lot of money! How would we provide for lots of children?

2nd- Kids take time. Lots of time! How would I care for many, many children?

3rd- How many kids would I end up with anyway? 5, a dozen, 2 dozen???

4th- Big families complicate everything- what kind of vehicle would we have to own, could we ever go on vacation again, who's going to want to buy my kids Christmas presents, how do we put a bunch of kids through college, what would our house have to look like, etc. etc. etc.

5th- What if God blessed us with 6 kids right away (big #, but not unreasonable) then, when I'm 45- He gives us another one! Then what??

But then I start applying what I know about God to those practical issues:

Yes, kids cost money and time- but God says He will provide for all of our needs and that we ought not to worry about clothes, food, etc.

Scripture is full of big families. Some happy, some not- but the size doesn't seem to affect their happiness. Their devotion to God and His ways, does though.

Scripture is also full of old ladies having babies. Really old ladies, not 45-year-olds. While age is a very important factor in motherhood according to our culture, it seems trivial to God.

So what does this all mean to me?

I don't know. It's easy to talk about trusting the LORD and forsaking birth control when you're 5 months pregnant and know just 1 is on the way. It may be a totally different matter, however, months after our little girl is born.

Ross thinks I'm a little crazy. I totally get that. Culture- even our Christian culture!!- has programmed us to think that 2 kids are necessary and every one after that is a step closer and closer to insanity. I obviously need to respect and honor my husband and his wishes, but we also both need to be on the same page as God.

And I don't think God thinks big families are weird at all. In fact, He's probably thankful that at least some people are willing to accept His rewards. : )

Changing Seasons

Life is good right now for us Phoenicians. The end of summer is in sight! Finally, the thermometer is not reading over 100- in fact, mine says 66 right now. Time to put away the shorts and tees, and unpack the jeans and sweaters. I love this time of year and an welcoming it with open arms.

But I have a secret to admit. Come late March, I'll be craving sunshine. I won't want to wear jeans one more minute. At the first sign of warmth, I'll be happily unpacking the jeans and summer dresses.

So which one is it? Do I like cool air or warm? Do I prefer fall or spring? The correct answer is both.

I think it is so kind of God to have created the different seasons. How every few months things change around here. Always something new to prepare for- always something new to look forward to.

Each season has it's glory- spring's flowers, summer's abundant sunshine, fall's crisp air, winter's still beauty. And each season has it's downfall- spring's allergies, summer's scorching heat, fall's wetness, winter's looong, dark nights. Yet we don't get to enjoy or endure any season for very long.

In God's grace, He brings something new and something different every so often. He does that in life, too. Just when we start getting used to a season (and often, bored with it) something new comes along. He mixes things up.

Here's a small example from my life: Caleb and I were getting super comfortable with his 2-nap stage. I had my whole day figured out around his 10-12 and 3-4 naps. We didn't go many places, but boy, did I get a lot of work done around here! Just as I felt like I had it all figured out, Caleb has dropped his first nap. A new season is here!

Come spring, our family will be entering an entirely new season with the addition of a little baby. Things will be different. Some things will be uncomfortable (like winter's long nights and summer's scorching heat). However, many things will be glorious.

So what season are you in today? Have you just entered it? Enjoy the newness! Are you getting ready to transition? Thank God that He is with you to sort through the changes. And always, always, be looking for the good aspects of the season you are in : )

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

New International Version 1984 (NIV1984)

Ecclesiastes 3

A Time for Everything

¹ There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:

² a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
³ a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
⁴ a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
⁵ a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
⁶ a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
⁷ a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
⁸ a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.