The company I work at has a mandatory shutdown the week of July 4th. My initial intention was to fill the week with at least one sermon for 4 days, make a trip to kohls with my mom, and spend lots of time with my husband (plus one afternoon was dedicated to apartment searching). However, the week did not turn out exactly as planned... and it's not all a bad thing.
For starters, what began as a trip to the Apple store to pick up my repaired iPhone ended up being the day we picked up our first kitten. After just the first day of having her, I fell in love with her, and she is the perfect fit for us to start out our family. She is a beautiful Flamepoint Siamese, and quite a spaz. I am learning how to have a lot more patience, since this is my first indoor cat. Growing up with the cats outdoors always gave me a lot of separation time, so I never spent more than 2 hours at a time with any cat.
Tuesday came, and that was the day that I originally planned on going to Kohls. Unfortunately, on my way into my parents' neighborhood, the noise that I've been hearing on my car got worse, so I ended up turning around and trading my shopping trip for an hour at the repair shop. The news I got was that the noise was ultimately pointing to a $700 repair that can wait for a little while but I will have to get done in the next few months.
God has revealed to me exactly how much I've been trusting money. Just a few short months ago, my account had 3 times as much as it does right now. Little by little (or a lot, in some cases), I'm seeing my account go down lower than I've ever had it go. I don't ever want to live paycheck to paycheck, so I'm going to try my best to have a little margin in my account, but I've just come to realize how much trust I actually have been putting in money. Although God definitely wants us to be smart with the resources He's blessed us with, He also commands us to give it when we are prompted to. We are not going without any needs being met, and that is a huge blessing.
I have not yet listened to a sermon completely through this week; however, I did read through Craig Groeschel's book Weird, which is a GREAT and challenging book. Then I started reading Forgotten God by Francis Chan, and it's absolutely awesome. In one chapter, he tells us to put down the book and read John 14-16. I discovered a lot in this chapter...4 pages worth in my written journal.
John 14 opens with this statement: Don't let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me. There is more than enough room in my Father's home. Not having enough room is a problem in our society. We have overcrowded schools, overcrowded buses, and parents selling their homes to buy a bigger home to accomodate their growing family (not to mention the stuff for each family member). Anytime an event is planned, the amount of space is considered for the amount of people attending. Concerts and other entertainment shows become "sold out" and there's not enough room for all the fans. The promise that God's home has more than enough room for everyone is HUGE. We will never have to worry that Heaven will run out of room.
In Jon 14:12-13 Jesus says "Anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father. You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father." I don't believe this means we can ask for a Ferrari and a beach house, and we will get it. Nor will it be that we will ask for a specific situation to be immediately resolved, and it will happen. I believe this means if we ask for something that will build God's church and bring glory to Him, we will get it. A similar verse is in John 15:7, "If you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted." No, Jesus is not a magic genie. If we are in Christ, with the word He has given, we will not be asking for worldly things. The experience that comes to mind is the recent spontaneous baptisms we had at church a few months ago. We started out with Pastor Steven requesting five, and we ended up with 134!
John 16:33 "Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, for I have overcome the world." This life isn't going to be easy. Jesus reminds us, however, that He has overcome the world - nothing is greater than Him on this earth. Not even death can separate us from God.
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