what He gave up to come to you

May 15, 2012 By

This is the final post in a series sharing my story and the reason for this blog. Read when the power of prayer seems lost, when radical faith goes in mourning, and daring to hope again first and then head back to this post. And welcome!

After suffering so much loss, I was left disallusioned, and afraid that what was to come would be worse than what had already been. Saying “I trust You Lord,” felt like pronouncing open season on my heart, as if trusting invited God to take as much away from me as He wanted to…all for His glory.

#SurprisedByLife

In some ways, holding on to the hurt was easier, more comfortable, than taking a step into the unknown. Bondage or drowning…it reminds me of the Israelites.

Ahead—the Red Sea, water as far as the eye could see. Behind—the Egyptians, slavery, death. The Israelites had nowhere to go. No safe place, no rescue in sight, only death behind them and death before them.

Maybe they were wondering how their promised deliverance would come? Maybe they felt deceived, duped by the hand of a God they once thought of as kind. Where was their Rescuer? When would He come?

Maybe they felt abandoned by God, lost, and afraid. What good could possibly outweigh all they had lost, and what they stood to lose as they waited between their future and their past. Could they trust God to be good again?

Could I?

Moving forward

“And Moses said to the people, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again.” ~Exodus 14:13

One-by-one the Israelites chose to leave their past behind, and move toward the deliverance God had planned for them since the beginning of time. They watched with eyes wide open as the waters lifted and dry land formed…and they walked. This moment, not a surprise to God any more than your circumstance or mine, proved once and for all that their God could finish the job.

He still can.

Your loss, your fears, pain, and hurt, whatever surprises life has brought your way, they aren’t a surprise to God. There’s never been even one moment that God wondered what to do now, or how He would pull off your rescue or mine.

He had our rescue planned from the beginning of time. And the hope of our rescue, our deliverance, isn’t something we have to wait for. Our ”hope is not a wish or a sprinkle of magical fairy dust. Hope is a person.” (Stacey Thacker, Hope for the Weary Mom)

His Name is Jesus. He IS our rescue.

The same Jesus who paid the penalty for your sins and mine, provided the single greatest rescue the world has ever known.

I’ve often wondered if Mary knew what Jesus gave up to come to her?

“Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was. Then after this he said to the disciples, ‘Let us go to Judea again.’ The disciples said to him, ‘Rabbi, the Jews were just now seeking to stone you, and are you going there again?”

~John 11:5-8

Jesus’ turn to Judea to minister to Mary and her family ensures His walk to the cross, His resurrection of Lazarus setting in motion the plot for His own death. And as He comes to Mary in her time of need, offering her family life after death and healing from their pain, so He begins the walk toward you and toward me, offering us life through His own death and resurrection.

Do you know what He gave up to come to you?

Look at all you’ve lost, then look at all He lost so that you could be found. You ARE rescued already if you call Him Lord. Maybe not from the hurts of this life—Jesus told us we would have trouble—but your ultimate salvation has already been won. And just as the Israelites found sure footing as the waters lifted, you can too in remembering that the stone was rolled away. Jesus paid the ultimate price to win the battle for your heart and mine, and He arose the victor.

So take the step into your future. Leave the past in the past and allow the deliverance God has already given to propel you into the future with purpose and passion for what might come next.

Trust Him, and say yes.

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Thanks for joining me these last few weeks as I’ve shared my story, and a little of the reason for this blog. My desire is that you would find the courage here to say “yes” to God too. Here’s a list of all of the posts in this series.

When the power of prayer seems lost

When radical faith goes in mourning

Daring to hope again

What He gave up to come to you

 

 

 

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daring to hope again {on opening the lid}

May 9, 2012 By

This is the third post in a series sharing my story and the reason for this blog. Read when the power of prayer seems lost, and when radical faith goes in mourning first and then head back to this post. And welcome!

“If I wanted life at all, it would have to come through His hands. . .the good, the bad, and the ugly.”

#SurprisedByLife

When He Calls Your Name

Slowly but surely my heart returned to Jesus. So did Mary’s.

“When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary, saying in private, ‘The Teacher is here and is calling for you.’ And when she heard it, she rose quickly and went to him. . .Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.’ 

~John 11:28-32

Mary mustered enough strength to place her hope in Jesus one more time, and ran to meet Him. And even though her first words seemed to accuse Him of neglect, we can’t overlook the fact that she ran to Him at all.  Even in the midst of her pain, when she realized He was calling her by name, she went running.

So did I.

I stared at the box in my bedroom floor knowing what I had to do, and for the first time in over six months knew I could do it. There, on the top of the pile of my secret prayers, was a card that simply said, “Baby McGlothlin.” I felt my heart breathe as I picked it up and turned it over again and again in my trembling hands, and knew that Jesus had called me by name.

On a breezy, beautiful day, my family and I drove to a nearby lake. With the glorious water all around us, and the sun making us want to jump in, we took the pieces of our dream and released them. I watched the wind take the bits of paper into the water and finally felt at peace with the Lord.

Restoration

We live in a world where speed is everything and waiting is unthinkable. We want what we want, and we want it yesterday. Healing is no different. The world doesn’t stop for us to grieve. There are still bills to pay, laundry to be done, homework to be finished, meals to cook, children to parent. We have to keep living.

But healing can’t be forced. It simply takes time. And as with everything else in life, true healing comes as God leads us toward it, peeling back layer after layer of raw hurt, and breathing new life into our wounds.

Later in John, as Jesus inches closer and closer to his fate on the cross, we find Him once again taking respite in the home of Mary and Martha.

“Six days before the Passover, Jesus therefore came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. So they gave a dinner for him there. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those reclining with him at table.  Mary therefore took a pound of expensive ointment made from pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.”

~John 12:3

From withholding her heart, to offering Jesus the very best she had, Mary now humbles herself and expresses her love and gratitude toward Him who could raise the dead. Assured now of His love for her, she shows Jesus how much she loves Him and wipes his dirty, grimy feet with her own hair.

How precious He was to her, this man who had restored her family, restored her heart. Once closed to Jesus because of what she interpreted as neglect, abandonment, and pain, her heart was now fully open to Him as her King. I like to think that as Mary poured the expensive ointment over Jesus’s beautiful, but dirty feet, she also poured out all of the hurts and disappointments she had carried in her heart and entrusted them to her Savior once again. She opened the lid of her heart and walked in faith once again.

Friends, are there areas of your heart that you’ve closed off to the Lord? Areas that are just too painful, too disappointing, too devastating to open back up? Have you stopped hoping? Stopped praying? Stopped dreaming about what could be because the lid is closed and locked tight on your heart?

I think Jesus might be calling your name sweet one. I think He might be inviting you to take the first step back to Him, and welcoming you to pour out your hurts and disappointments so that He can show you who He truly is.

Will you take one step toward healing today friends? If there’s even the smallest amount of strength left in you, would you reach up and grab the hand of hope? Choose to trust again? 

If you’ll take the dare to hope again, share it. Tell me one thing you’ll do this very minute to say “yes” to God one more time. Open your heart. He’s there waiting.

Tuesday, we’ll finish up this series as I share what all of this has to do with my new blog!

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I adore Logos Bible Software, and it helped me write today’s post. Check Logos out for yourself!

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when the power of prayer seems lost

May 2, 2012 By

There’s a box in my room. A recipe box. Blue. Translucent. Etched in cheap silver metal. And it hasn’t been opened in over six months.

#SurprisedByLife

When I bought the box my heart was filled with dreams. Overflowing with hope for the future and faith in a God of miracles, I lovingly wrote the names of my loved ones on index cards and tucked them away there for safe-keeping. My secret prayers.

The box symbolized a season of new faith in God’s Word, God’s love, and the power of prayer. Challenged to believe in a God Who could and would meet all of my needs according to His riches in Christ Jesus, I hand-selected private prayers for each of the people I love most in this world.

For a month I faithfully prayed for God to help my boys love to read. I joyfully pleaded with Him to provide us with a car (after I wrecked the one we had). I wholeheartedly believed in His ability to bring healing to my loved ones and provide for their needs. And I petitioned Him to breathe life, and health, and peace into the heart of the tiny baby I carried next to my heart that no one really seemed to be excited about but us.

In early September of 2011 we went in to the OB’s office for a regular seven-week maternity check-up. I had been feeling much worse with this pregnancy than with either of the two before it. I was drained, and nauseas as we waited to be seen, and remember telling my OB that the morning sickness just felt worse this time. He joked and said it was probably because I had two other small children to take care of. I thought he was probably right.

We made our way to the ultrasound room and prepared to meet our newest addition for the first time. However, it was apparent to me within the first few moments that something was wrong. After several twists of the wand and pushes of the button, the sonographer, a friend of ours, turned to me with tears in her eyes and broke the news: this baby was no longer with us.

On September 20, 2011, our third child slipped from my womb into eternity with God, and I haven’t opened my prayer box since.

Closing the Lid

The day we lost our baby, I closed the lid on my dreams and locked away my secret prayers for him inside of a cheap blue recipe box. My closest friends and my precious husband took good care of me, and God continued to provide for my needs, even answering the desire of my heart to miscarry naturally. There were constant signs of His love and care for us during that season of loss, but a part of my heart closed that day with the box. I put away my dream of having three boys, embraced all of the good God had already given me, and closed the lid.

I appeared to be managing the grief well to those around me. But the depth of my prayer life took a hit, and a pervasive cynicism crept into my heart, replacing my faith in the God who could move mountains. I was shaken, and no longer sure God would come when I called.

Question:  Have you ever “closed the lid” on something that was just too painful to process? 

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Join me Tuesday for the next part of this new series on prayer and faith as we take a look at what happens when radical faith goes in mourning. And don’t forget to enter for a chance to win a “my life is beautiful” necklace from Grace Tags! The giveaway is open all week!

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I adore Logos Bible Software, and it helped me write today’s post. Check Logos out for yourself!

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