lessons from an 11 year old...

Jesus said, Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these. --Matthew 19:14

The room was full and worship ended when the youth pastor came forward to announce there would be a impromptu prayer session. Now, I wasn't quite sure if he knew I had completed two sessions and worship had officially ended. Call me YeOfLittleFaith, but did he really expect Junior Highers to pray? Out loud? After being cooped up for nearly two hours?

Yes. He. Did.

Pastor Gil opened in prayer and silence ensued. But one by one, sweet voices began to speak out requests from around the room and I knew why Jesus desired we have faith as a child (Mark 10:15). One particular girl moved me by her simplicity and assurance. In two long breaths she spoke out statements of belief for petitions she requested. In other words, her requests were in complete faith they would be answered.

I grabbed the precious girl after our time of prayer ended and asked her to pray with me. She giggled as if I was joking, but I was serious. I grabbed her under my arm and told her she had the gift of prayer and I needed her faith. We prayed together and after we had ended, I asked her if I could blog about her faith. She said I could--as long as I posted a picture. (This girl was a riot!)

Kayla, thank you for teaching me to have faith as a child. Your belief in our God is humbling, your faith is inspiring, and your confidence is hilarious! Never lose your boldness or faith. Keep praying like a child.

Love,

:B

the buried life...

Everyone has dreams. Everyone has desires. So why it is so hard to vocalize dreams and desires?

Perhaps it's fear. Perhaps it's failure. Perhaps it's fear of failure.

Or perhaps we don't even know what we want.

Last night my little sister called me and informed me she wanted to watch a documentary. (If you know my little sister, you'll know that it's nothing short of a miracle she wants to so anything educational.) I immediately jumped at the opportunity and laughed when I found out it was on MTV. Of course Zoe would watch a documentary MTV. Of course.

In the course of 30 minutes, I decided maybe MTV wasn't that bad after all.

The documentary series, The Buried Life, was so inspirational that I decided I’m going to create my own list. Yes, yes, I made new year’s resolutions, but I’m talking about things I must do before I pass into the pearly gates. Some will be silly, but all of them will be dreams I’ve never spoken of.

Here’s the premise of the series: when something is scratched off the buried list, someone else is granted or assisted in making their own dream come true. It’s moving. It’s real. It’s biblical.

So--what’s on your list? If I can help you achieve one of your goals when I achieve one of my goals, we’ll both be better because of it. Like James says, you have not because you ask not. What’s one thing off of your list?

steps, leaps, decisions, choices...

The pavement beneath my feet burned as I stood on the pool deck. I stared at the reflection of a five-year old and knew I'd never be the leaper. The one who recklessly flung into unknown waters was also the one who could suffer from cold-water shock, water displacement through the nostrils, and brain freeze.

If you're anything like the five-year old me, we were the ones who splashed the pavement we were standing on to cool it off and sit on the deck while we lightly dipped our feet into the pool. Then, after the water was temperate, we'd slowly wade in. Knees, waist, neck, final drop in the water.

I'm not a leaper. But that doesn't mean I don't take steps. People speak about spiritual matters as leaps of faith. And I sure there are those who dive head first into the pool of faith, leaping recklessly without fear. Then there are those who, at the cross-roads of decision making, suffer from analysis paralysis.

Peter was called by God on the Sea of Galilee in a tumultuous storm. Why did the Lord call Peter out of the boat and not the other disciples? There were eleven other disciples in the boat, yet only one asked. Perhaps God is calling you out to take a step in a tumultuous storm. How will you respond? In times of decision making, here's what we can learn from Pete:

1. Ask in prayer. The other disciples didn't ask; therefore, they were not invited by Christ to step out. Don't be afraid to ask. He may not always respond with the answer we hoped for, but He will respond.

2. Seek God's will. What did Peter ask for? He asked for Christ's Word: If it's you... tell me... He sought the Lord first. The goal in taking steps of faith is obedience to the will of our Lord. Faith is not a tool to achieve our own agenda. Peter wasn't making demands or claiming his "right" to walk on water. He was humbly asking for God to show Himself true.

3. Faith waits on the Lord. Peter isn't a leaper. I like him. He's normal. After Pete asked, he waited. Or as I like to say, waded :) The faith that walks on water is faith that waits on God until He answers. Many teachers love this vivid metaphor for believing God for great things. We love to hear about action, the excitement of taking leaps of faith. It's highly empowering, motivating, and inspiring. Yes, I want to take a leap of faith! I want to walk on water! I want to get out of the boat! But Peter didn't get out of the boat until the Lord responded. And, I might add, he didn't leap. He simply took a step.

So, are you sitting in a boat? Have you asked the Lord to call you? Are you at least taking a step? You might not be a leaper... but does it really matter? Just take one step. That's all you need you need to do before walking on water.

if i perish, i perish...

Queen Esther had a choice to make. The annihilation of her people hung in the balance in which she could tip. Esther was full of excuses as to why she couldn't do what was being asked of her. Truth be known, they were pretty good excuses (you know, like not being put to death and other minor details). In verse 11 of chapter 4, Esther sandwiches her excuses neatly in between a slight possible hope, but sends it off as reasons why she is not the girl for the job.

But something happened. Something changed. Someone simply asked if perhaps she was brought to this position for a intended purpose.

Like Esther, I have a choice to make. I don't have a wise uncle by the name of Mordecai, but I have a wonderful mentor who I bug all the time. She questioned my faith in a recent email and I've been reading her email over and over everyday:

Esther went from being full of excuses to full of faith. Not full of wisdom or full of confidence, but full of faith. In one question asked of her by a dear mentor and friend, she acted valiantly. The question was simply, What if you come to this position for this exact purpose?

Excuses exists because they are legitimate reasons for not doing something. But does that mean we can't do it? Or does it mean we don't think we can? My mentor asked me why I was so fearful of making a certain decision. Oh Blog Friends, I listed a host of reasons really good reasons and excuses! She didn't combat me or convince me, but reminded me about faith in a Living God.

Are you struggling to make a decision? Have you made a decision you're proud of? In a myriad of choices, how do we choose? Esther made a decision with such brazen courage--let's do the same.