It Doesn't Matter

This is not a side note. It's a for-real point I am making: I'm reading Renegade, by Vince Antonucci. I'm reading it faster than pretty much any other non-fiction book on the Christian life that I have ever read.

You should read it. Vince is to discipleship what Ann Voskamp is to gratitude. His humor on par with her poetry. Seriously, put on a diaper before you read it, just in case. He's hilarious. He's also real. He doesn't deny the scariness of discipleship. He calls a spade a spade, a pimp a pimp. (Literally, "But you know what momma always said: a pimp is a pimp is a pimp.") Oh, and he started a church plant on the Las Vegas Strip. Crazy, inspiring, and liberating. His honesty freaks you out, and frees you too. His words hold your hands and guide your mind towards a wholly holy new point of view- right to Jesus. We have so. much. freedom. And I can't wait to share with you all my renegade stories as I embark on some deliberate loving of the lost.

Last night, I read of a sermon he gave that rocked a pimp's world. "It Doesn't Matter."

"It doesn't matter who you are; God still loves you. It doesn't matter why you left; God is still pursuing you, just like the shepherd pursued the one lost sheep. It doesn't matter where you've been or what you've done; God will still take you back, just like the father took back the prodigal son." (Chapter 14)

It doesn't matter.

And I just want to be clear, "it doesn't matter," doesn't equal, "God doesn't care." The hairs on your head answer to God's roll call. Every little part of your life matters to Him, but when it comes to His love for you- all those sins cannot keep Him away. You cannot disgust Him so much that He doesn't desire you by His side forever.

But they matter to us- our sins. They don't keep Him from pursuing us, they keep us from pursuing Him. They keep us from pursuing others. If we, who have the knowledge of a loving God can still feel so unworthy of His love, how much more so do the lost feel it? If we are broken by our sin, and healed in intimate times of prayer with a close Father, how broken are those who receive no healing?

It's a question worthy of an answer. Not because the law requires we convince people, because we have been loved, and can love, with supernatural power. God's love for you, and in you, is so much more powerful than the sinful choices you have made.

So, if you are struggling with the sins that hold you back, take a gander at the sinful woman in Matthew 26 (or Luke 7, which is slightly different, but sooo awesome). After this incredibly sinful woman (whom I now picture as a hooker on the Strip) anointed Christ's feet, the disciples get their linens in a wad over the cash she just flushed down the... whatever facilities they used in those days.

"But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, 'Why do you trouble this woman? For she has done a beautiful thing to me.' " (v. 10)

I'm sorry- but I've just trained myself to believe that those devotions to God, which seem to cost me so much, are incredibly insignificant in the big scheme of things. But Jesus says something different, They are beautiful. Done in love, they are memorable. In Luke 7, Jesus says,

"Therefore, her sins, which are many, are forgiven- for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little." (v.47)

I've been forgiven much. We all have. May our love reflect that today in our real lives. God so values tangible love. That's why Thomas (the doubting one) got to touch Jesus' wounds. He loves us tangibly. Praying His wounds, His resurrection, His love, hold undeniable sway in your life today.

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Linking up for Three Word Wednesday today with Simply Beth. Come join in and read some wonderful writing by beloved and gifted believers!

5 Ways to Keep Your Joy When the World is Falling Apart (Messy Monday)

It's a season of preparation around here. Preparing for what, I'm not sure, but the lack of drama and trauma in our personal lives is a welcome gift. Some may call it a season of peace, and I wouldn't disagree with that (those who know the insanity of our house, feel free to chuckle at that). Still, preparation implies expectancy and readiness, and I've lived long enough to see the seasons change. It's a time to prepare.

 

That's not to say there's not some serious soul-shaking circumstances going on in the lives of those close to me. There's a time for everything. We've read Ecclesiastes. Sung with The Byrds. Wept, laughed, mourned, danced. So, even in my season of relative peace, I still manage to fret. To get bogged down with multitudes of crazy and overwhelming issues around me.

 

In all those seasons, sometimes I forget that there's one season that remains constant:

"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!" Phil 4:4

 

It's time to fight for joy.

 

In the face of persecution, bride burning, divorce, human trafficking, death, that attitude doesn't just happen. It takes some deliberate effort. It is a gift of the Lord to be sure, and He equips us to receive it. But it's like exercise- if you don't use it, you lose it.

 

So, if you are looking for some exercises to help strengthen your joy muscles, here are five ways to seek joy where it may be found:

 

1. Read. I know- bo-ring. There are some totally rad Christian authors out there that just rock. I yell "yes!" when I read them. Underline like a madwoman. Still, it ain't nothing compared to the Bible. Having a hard time finding joy and needing a place to start? Here is a handful of passages:

Phil 3-4; 2 Corinthians 5; John 14-17; Psalm 18; Psalm 138.

 

2. Pray. Right- I'm sure this is another shocker for you. C'mon, Lauren. Read the Bible and pray. Surely you can come up with something more exciting. Actually, no. You can read and pray standing on your head if you want to make it more demanding, but you won't find anything as effective as talking with the Lord and hearing His Word.

 

I had a friend ask me once, "How do you know when you have prayed for something long enough? When do you just need to let it go?" Well, it's different for everyone and every circumstance, but Luke 18:1-8 gives us a pretty clear answer:

And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart. ² He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected man. ³ And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’ ⁴ For a while he refused, but afterward he said to himself, ‘Though I neither fear God nor respect man, ⁵ yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her justice, so that she will not beat me down by her continual coming.’” ⁶ And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge says. ⁷ And will not God give justice to his elect, who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them? ⁸ I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”

Pray with open eyes. He will deliver you.

 

If you have a hard time remembering to pray- give yourself a visual or audial aid. A clock chiming. Stopping at a red light. A text message notice. A song. When you hear or see your cue, start praying.

 

3. Let go and LOVE- Of course taking time to think of others takes your mind off your own problems, but this is more than that. So often we are afraid to love others because we don't think it will make a difference, or we will look foolish. Or there is this pressure to somehow win them to Christ. Here' the deal: Christ didn't command us to win anyone. He commanded us to love everyone. He alone is the winner of souls, and that frees us up to love.

Imagine just showing someone love without strings attached. No worries over reputation. No pressure. Just a plate of cookies and a smile. Brainstorm ways to love a new person in a new way. You can't solve every world problem, but you can love another person.

4. Get Creative- David wrote psalms, rain or shine. We each have a deep-seeded creativity planted by the Master Creator. It's cathartic. Turn on the music. Sing. Dance. Even if you're horrible at them. Bake or cook. Invent. Draw. Write. Photograph. And give it as a gift to God. This is for you, Lord. It's not much. But it's Yours.

 

5. Praise. Praise. Praise.- Pause and remember the good things God has done, is doing. And praise Him for it. Out loud. Really. Say it out loud. May be awkward. You might want to put in your earbuds and do it so people will think you are just singing along with the music. Vocalize it. Take it from your head and put it in your whole body. Write it down. Share it. Check out Phil 3-4 again. Give thanks all the time.

 

And when all this seems like a bit too much to chew, the struggle for joy is just too hard, Phil 4:4-9- the Rejoice in the Lord Always passage- gets that, and gives us three promises to cling to. Hold fast to them and know you are never alone.

 

The Lord is at hand. (v. 5)

 

And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (v. 7)

 

The God of peace will be with you. (v. 9)

 



 

Laundry

Can anyone please tell me when laundry made it to the list of credentials for a good mom? Like there is some weekly diagnostic test as to the efficacy of my mommy-hood, and laundry is right there at the top.

Sister, I fail.

And I have half a mind to crawl into a little fuel-efficient time machine and do a little rewriting of history.

A few years back, I read a well-meaning blog post from a young mother who really insisted that cleanliness and laundry be at the top of our list of things to do because that was good stewardship. It revealed to the Lord, and everyone else, just how thankful and grateful we are to God for His good gifts. Really, she meant well. We should appreciate His gifts- we really should.

But thankfully, my young mommy self puzzled and stewed and ranted, and finally read and prayed enough to know that not all gifts are created equal.

I simply cannot put clothes on par with kids. And if you want to know my real reason for the epic disaster that is my laundry-littered basement, it's those kids. And the laundry genie I ordered a few months ago still hasn't arrived...

First things first. Priorities. Lessons from motherhood. Laundry shouldn't be its own circle of hell. Laundry doesn't need to be the cruel tyrant in the kingdom that is my life. God is the only Lord I have, thank you. So, if you happen to have to wade through the ocean of clean or dirty clothes in my basement, or smell my shirt and realize I really should have just cleaned it again after I wasn't sure if it sat too long in its own wet after being washed, here is a good idea of the things I was doing instead of watching the washer.

Feeding kids. I do this a lot. Like, every five minutes it seems.
Reading to kids.
Talking to kids
Playing with kids.
Reading to me.
Cooking.
Laughing.
Tickling.
Talking to my husband.
Shopping for groceries.
Shopping for us.
Quiet time.
Talking to sister friends.
Singing.
Dancing.
Writing.
Praying.
Running.
Sleeping.

To get to laundry would take a five minutes all its own. In the meantime, I'm extending grace. To you. To me.
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Today's post is part of a series called Five Minute Friday, hosted by Lisa-Jo Baker over at the Gypsy Mama. A ton of rad writers take her prompts and, for five minutes- or thereabouts- patch an amazing global quilt of God-glorifying blog posts. Click on the Five Minute Friday button and join us! I feel like I should also give a shout-out to the awesome gift that is my husband. I don't raise these kids or do this laundry without a partner in crime- you rock, Scott!

Not An Underdog

You know, I can go a whole week with about 6 three-word sequences bouncing around in my brain, confident that all of them are "the one," and then it gets to Wednesday morning and I am stumped. Then this morning, I rebelled against the little voice that told me, "Don't do it. Don't check Facebook first thing in the morning. Never a good idea. Don't do it!"

I checked Facebook.

And read something just totally perfect for today!

In your FACE, little voice!

Here's the disclaimer, though: It starts off talking about baseball. Chances are, if you are anything like me, you are now debating whether or not it is worth it to read through whole post because you don't really care about baseball. I like baseball, but I totally tune out on things I don't get or care about. Like, math. But it is TOTALLY worth it, so keep reading. It is totally going to revolutionize how I live this day, and I hope it does the same for you, so stick with it.

I'm a St. Louis Cardinals Fan. I embraced it pretty much as soon as I met my husband, and I haven't regretted it since. They are good. But here's the thing- when they manage to make it into the post-season, on their way to the World Series, they are often ranked last, or thereabouts. Not always, but often. The teams they play just have more going for them than we do. But we still manage to pull out wins and leave a trail of confused and dejected "better" teams in our wake.

Now I have some friends who, well, I won't say hate, but they have a vehement dislike for my Cardinals. And that's fine, especially because my team is in the National League Championship Series, and theirs, well, aren't.

And since Facebook is just about the easiest, and most public, medium on which to vent our most impassioned opinions, they voice theirs quite often. I get it, and I am totally cool with it. This morning, one anti-Cardinal friend of mine (and I say "friend," because he is indeed a friend, and team affiliation is pretty low on my "friendship deal-breakers list") made sure us Cards fans were put in our place: "You're not an underdog, you're not the little engine that no one believed in, you're just a good team that has a lot of good players."

Listen up, Christians! Because the message is the same for us!

You are not an underdog.

We all like the Cinderella stories because something deep down inside convinces us that we are the Cinderella too, but the Bible has a different message for us believers.

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

Romans 8:37

The "him who loved us," that's Jesus. And I'm pretty sure people thought He was the underdog too. I mean, look at Him. A man v. death. We've seen that about a billion times, and death always wins out.

Only, not with Jesus. He's clutch. Not only did He resurrect others- He was resurrected HIMSELF. Death is just an impotent bumblebee without his stinger.

And get this, He gives His victory to us-

But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

John 1:12

 

Now I'm not saying it's all lollipops and lemon drops for Jesus-lovers, but we aren't doomed. Not sure how it's all going to go down, but the Bible gives us the best spoiler alert E-VER.

 

For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.

Romans 6:5

 

What does that mean for us when life today could be better? It means we face our struggles with an attitude of victory. Because those things don't own us, God does. And when those problems are nothing but dust flying into oblivion behind us on our road of life, we are the ones who are going to last forever.

 

 

In short, we are more than conquerors.

 

We aren't just people who know someday we will be with Jesus. We are people who live that out today. We're not going to wait for the joy and hope. We are conquerors right this very second. Because, after all, the story isn't really about us anyway. It's about Him.

 

Amen?

 

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Today's post was a part of a series through Simply Beth, called Three Word Wednesday. Come join us!

 



Thank God It's Monday: Here's to the Rebounds!

"He missed the shot! But he got the rebound!"

 

He played the commentator and baller simultaneously- announcing his own moves aloud as I watched.

 

"And another rebound! And another! Another rebound!"

 

Who knows just how many shots he missed before his rebound paid off in the currency of a basket, but that wasn't going to bother him. At all. Because look at all those rebounds!

 

It's the ability to recognize the failures, yet dwell on the good that comes from it, and it's a perspective that eludes all of us at times. Maybe that's why I started this "Thank God It's Monday" segment to supplement the Messy Mondays. We get used to going with the flow, however negative it may be, and sometimes we need to step out of the stream and change course.

 

Psalm 77 does just that. Asaph cries aloud to God, his soul refuses to be comforted.

"Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has he in anger shut up his compassion?" (v. 9)

Then he steps out of the stream.

"Then I said, 'I will appeal to this, to the years of the right hand of the Most High.' I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your wonders of old." (vs. 10-11)

The law needs to work on our hearts to humble us, but when we let him work overtime, he gets a little power-hungry. He tries to take over. To become our god.

So let the law work, but when his job is over, put him back in his place.

Because dwelling on your shortcomings can be an idol too. And it robs the resurrection of its power.

Step out of the stream, off the court, and recalibrate, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith. And live in His joy.

If you are looking for scriptures in which you may ponder the mighty deeds of the Lord, look at these passages throughout your week!

 

• Psalm 16
• 1Thessalonians 5:9-24
• Colossians 2:6-15
• Ephesians 6:10-20
• Ephesians 2:1-10
• 2 Corinthians 5:14-21

 Praying for recalibration in your days ahead; the strength, courage, and wisdom to step outside of your circumstances and prison of sin and live in the grace of a God who loves you so so so much!

"Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." 1Thessalonians 5:16-18