Where Does A Christian Stand?

Wow. What a couple of days in our country! We saw the end of one presidency, the beginning of another, and a day filled with protests around the world. There were also riots, big changes to whitehouse.gov, and lots of insults hurled on social media.

Where does a Christian stand in these times? I imagine that's a question that has been asked by many Christians of themselves in many times of history and in many places around the world. I see some on the Left accusing all Christians of being short-sighted, mean-hearted, and narrow-minded. I see some on the Right accusing the protesters of betraying their faith. And I've seen many faithful Christians unhappy about being excluded from the Women's March due to not being "pro-life."

Where does a Christian stand?

I know without a doubt that I am to pray for our leaders. The Bible states in 1 Timothy 2:1-2: "I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people-- for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness." At this moment in history, the elected leaders of America are distasteful to me, But the kings of New Testament times were actively hostile to the Jews and Christians, and Timothy told people to pray for them. So, I will pray for Donald Trump and Michael Pence. I urge you to do so, as well.

I also know that Jesus expects Christians to feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, welcome strangers, clothe the naked, and visit the sick/imprisoned. (Matthew 25:31-46) Therefore, I will continue to work for the oppressed, the poor, the downtrodden. Jesus says to do this. He doesn't ask whether the woman at the well (John 4:4-26) is open to His teaching or is in good standing with her local synagogue; He simply talks to her. She doesn't have to meet some standard before He will reach out to her.

I will not pre-select those who are worthy of my help, my attention, or my compassion. Jesus refers to "the least of these," meaning the most unimportant, the least powerful, those rejected by the establishment. Our family resides on the Jicarilla Apache Nation, one of the many Native Nations in this country who struggle to be heard. My friends here have myriad sorrows, corporately and individually. I will continue to bring the hope of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, to them. I will continue to teach my students with equality, fairness, and excellence.

As for the politics of gender, orientation, marriage, protecting the unborn, my religious beliefs do not affect what should be true in a secular democracy: Each person should be able to make a choice to sin or not to sin. My religion should not be forced upon a secular nation. And as I have said before, I do not want to live in a theocracy because my beliefs will not necessarily align with the leaders' beliefs. I believe we should each be free to worship (or not) as we see fit.

Even though I am clearly a Christian, I do not see that my beliefs (or anyone else's) should be the law of the land. If you or I believe that abortion is a sin, you or I can fight to provide alternatives to abortion, to support families unready to raise a child, and to protect children from abuse. If I (or you) believe that marriage should be between a man and a woman, I (or you) can participate in a church that shares that belief. We can educate our children with our own values. We can even choose to influence them more by homeschooling or by having our children attend a private school. If we are not in a position to accomplish that, we can reach out for scholarships or assistance.

Where does a Christian stand in these days?

Against violence. For the unheard.

That's my answer today. I will remain vigilant, watching for abuses. I will remain hopeful, expecting good. I will remain prayerful, praying for wisdom and peace. I will remain active, working for those things in which I believe. I pray you will do the same.

willpower.

Over time, I have gotten pretty good at laying my burdens at the foot of the cross. I have laid my overwhelming fears, my traumatic past, and my wanderings there.

Or so I think sometimes. In reality, some of those things have been laid down, for sure, but I'm also pretty sure I didn't lay them down. My willpower is too weak.  I do not claim any success in this; God has taken them from me in my weakness.

There is no doubt that I am living without the fears, the trauma, and their legacy. My life is indeed redeemed! But not by me, by God. My willpower is much too weak.

I know this because I can't lay down my irritability, my self-centeredness, my weak faith. I've tried. I've even improved. But my willpower will never be strong enough. It's not even strong enough to make me get up early in the morning to pray and read the Bible!

It's when we rely on our own willpower that we fail. Eventually. Every. Time. Instead, we need to rely on His Will.

God's Will. Not our willpower. I began living without fear when I said to God, "Please take this fear away from me. I cannot get rid of it!" The "power of positive thinking" had taken me nowhere. In my weakness, He spoke redemption. I began to live, day by day, in less and less fear. I relied upon God more and more as I healed. 

Yes, I said to God, "Take this trauma away from me! Let me not live in it any longer!" But even more, I said, "God, help me to want to live without identifying as a victim. Work inside me to make Your Will my truth because my willpower is too weak to even want it." Who would I be once I wasn't defined by the past trauma in my life?

Turns out, I am defined as a child of the One True King! Jesus, my Lord and Savior, is working in me to remake me in His image. Not because my willpower is so great, and I am competent to change, but because I am seeking His Will, in His power and grace. 

I am still working to lay burdens at the foot of the cross, but I'm starting with this: "Almighty God, work in me to make me want Your Will. I am so weak that I can't even really want it without Your action." I am finding that He is working in me to make me want more and more of  His Will. Praise God!

Amen.

A Slave of Fear

Over Thanksgiving, our family traveled to visit one of our children and two of our grandchildren. We had a wonderful visit: Playing at the zoo and the beach, Hiking up a small mountain, and Preparing the Thanksgiving meal together. It was a time of creating memories and enjoying each others' company. I pray that you had similar opportunities over Thanksgiving; family is such a blessing!


We had one other amazing experience while away from home: We worshiped together at their church. Now, it's always delightful to worship with my pastor husband; we don't get the opportunity very often! But this service touched me deeply. The Bible was preached strongly and effectively. Praise music filled the air to begin the service. In particular, "No Longer Slaves" by David and Helser touched my heart. The lines from the song that brought tears to my eyes were, "I'm no longer a slave to fear. I am a child of God."

You see, I was a slave to fear for much of my life. That happens when a child is raised in a home with an abusive parent. My fears blossomed, even after a divorce which freed me from physical abuse, because my remaining parent was severely depressed. She even attempted suicide when I was nine years old. It wasn't explained to me because all the adults thought I didn't know, but I did. And I spent the rest of my childhood fearing to do anything that would upset my mom because then she might kill herself, and I would have to go live with my dad.

This was totally unhealthy, as I'm sure you recognize. And since no one knew my fears, no one could reassure me. When my mom remarried, my fears eased but didn't disappear entirely. I went off to college, still deeply afraid to make waves of any kind. This no longer made any rational sense, but the patterns that we develop as children are hard to break.

I ended up dating and then marrying a controlling, arrogant man. It felt right to me because I was so afraid of making mistakes. He knew what was right, right? Well, as it turned out, not so much. He ended up sexually abusing at least one of our children. Thankfully, I didn't listen to my then-husband's counsel about keeping the secret in the family. I knew better. I reported him; he went to jail. We got divorced.

And still, I was afraid. My faith was growing, but my fear wasn't diminishing. I was afraid of being alone, afraid of changing things, afraid of making decisions that might upset someone else. Finally, I began to ask God to remove my fears. After all, His Word says "Fear not, for I am with you" (Isaiah 41:10).

And He did. As I turned my fears over to Him, asking Him to remove them from me forever, He did. I began to turn to God and pray instead of being afraid. In the past 12 years, God has freed me! I am no longer a slave to fear. I am a child of God. When I heard those words in the song last Sunday, I recognized how fully true they are for me in this season of my life. God completely redeemed my life and my soul, bringing me to this life full of love and peace... and no fear. A life where I am serving Him with joy and thanksgiving.

Thank you, God, for this gift of redemption.

Amen.

Thanksgiving

Yesterday, our family celebrated Thanksgiving at an extended family gathering of a church family. They have graciously invited us to celebrate several holidays with them, and we have been blessed by each gathering. Later yesterday, we joined a different family to celebrate a child's birthday.

We are delighted to be so often invited to participate with friends and family in various celebrations here. It strengthens our ability to minister, and it bolsters our spirits.


Thanksgiving is a time to share our blessings and express our gratitude for them. And people are definitely our greatest earthly blessing. It is, of course, a greater blessing to have eternal life through our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. But here on earth, the people in our lives are delightful gifts.

I am thankful for all of our family, and we have many family members! Even though most of them are far away, God promises in Mark 10: 29-31 that those who leave family, land, etc. for His sake and for the sake of the Gospel shall be rewarded. And He has done so. We are able to visit our families; we can talk to them regularly; and one of our siblings has joined our household! It's wonderful to have extended family here with us.

In addition to extended family and friends, I have personally received the blessing of many children in my life. I am teaching our daughter and two Jicarilla boys full-time. Plus, I teach a Science class and a New Mexico History class to an additional 6 children. Following class, they all play together before going home. This has made my life bountiful in so many ways! I am teaching in the most flexible and joyful circumstance ever. My three full-time students also participate in a larger homeschool co-op that focuses on outdoor education and experiences. I have made many friends among the parents there.

And, of course, there are the blessings that come with marriage and parenthood, neither of which I expected at this point in my life. My first family ended in a "nuclear blast," which landed my first husband in jail. I never expected the joy of a God-given, God-respecting marriage; it goes beyond all of my previous understanding! Even after I remarried, my husband and I never planned to be parents together. We have been blessed beyond all expectation, beyond all hopes, in a way that only God could have conceived! What complete JOY to parent this delightful young lady!

There are, of course, physical blessings in this world that I am thankful for, as well. But truly, the people in my life, here and elsewhere, are my greatest earthly blessing. Thank You, God, for these exquisite relationships in all their complexity.

Amen.

The End of the World

A few days ago, I wrote about the upcoming election. Today is "the day after," and we know who won the presidency. But honestly, I think if either major candidate had won, the situation would be the same. It turned out that Trump is the successful candidate, but if Hilary had won, it would be the same cries of despondency from a different group of people.

The winner's proponents are celebrating the "saving of America." And the losing candidates' supporters are bemoaning "the end of the world," or at least the end of the world  as we know it. I supported neither major candidate, choosing to vote for someone rather than against someone. (If you personally believe I "wasted" my vote, that's your opinion; I strongly believe that I should vote for someone that I want to see in office.)

At any rate, no matter who won, the sentiment would be the same: the opposite camp would be declaring that the election ended the world as we have known and loved it. In my previous post, I explored the idea that the disintegration of our nation was happening long before the election. In this post, I want to say something different.

To those of you who are celebrating today:

Please be sensitive to the insecurity that is being widely felt by racial and religious minorities today. Even in the best light, Donald Trump has said and done some things that rightfully make many fearful of his intentions. Our almost-10-year-old asked if her birth dad and her sister (both Black) would be okay since Trump was elected. She had seen some hateful speech video and is fearful for her loved ones. Thankfully, she hasn't seen the video of Trump discussing women as objects for sexual conquest, but many worry about how to explain these things to their children.

To those of you feeling like it's the end of the world:

Please don't jump to the conclusion that every Trump voter is racist, sexist, cruel, and/or narrow-minded. I'm sure those voters exist, just as those sorts of people existed before Trump came along. But the vast majority of Trump supporters voted for him in spite of  his unsavory characteristics. They voted based on what they felt would be best for our country, either in future Supreme Court nominations, fiscally, or some other issue(s).

To Everyone:

Americans have collectively spoken in this election. Donald Trump, no matter your views on him, is the president-elect of our country. That means that the next four years will be shaped, in part, by his policies. It does not mean that only those Americans who supported him in the election have a share in the work to be done during those four years.  You are not off the hook for the future of our nation if your candidate did not win!

Let me say that again: You are not off the hook for the future of our nation if your candidate did not win. (Or if he did!)

The future of our nation is not in Donald Trump's hands, nor would it have been in Hilary Clinton's hands had she won the election. The future of our nation is in our hands. Our working hands. Our loving hands. Our praying hands.

If you are cheering today, make plans to join in the efforts to achieve what you believe in!

If you are grieving today, make plans to join in the efforts to achieve what you believe in!

And no matter who you've supported or how you're feeling today, lift Donald Trump and Michael Pence in prayer. 1 Timothy 2:1-4 says, "First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth." 

We can all do that. Pray for our elected leaders at all levels of government. God can work in (and through) anybody!

Who Will Win on Tuesday?

On Tuesday, we Americans will elect our next president. Many people believe that our nation will disintegrate following the election of the "other" candidate.

 I think our nation is disintegrating already. We are treating one another with disrespect while discussing the election, to the point of losing friendships and normalizing hatred. Police officers in Iowa (and other places) are hunted down and assassinated. Suicides among children are the highest ever. Our African American loved ones are terrified of being stopped by the authorities.  The Standing Rock Nation, and all indigenous peoples, are continuing to face hostility toward their inherent right to exist and thrive. They face the marginalization that has marked the US response to Native peoples for centuries.

And that's just the problems in the USA that come to mind without thinking!


Wednesday won't be much different. Neither will next January after the inauguration.

Things won't get different until we get different. Until we remember that among the United States' fundamental beliefs are:

1. Out of many, one (people);
2. In God we trust;
3. Liberty;
4. Equality; and
5. Diversity.

Until we begin to live like we believe that others are as important as ourselves and that being different doesn't mean that a person is worse, our country will continue to disintegrate. And yes, I deeply believe we all need to trust in God, but I also respect the rights of others to believe differently than I do.

As a Christian, there is one more vital thing to remember as we approach the election: God is in control. Always. In all ways. We know how this story ends; we know that we are in God's arms. So let's rest easy in that fact. Let's treat people who trust the "other" candidate with respect. Let's not get into arguments about which is the "Christian" candidate. Let's not try to bully others to agree with us.

Make your decision. Remember it's yours.

And vote, so that your voice is heard.

And alongside that, treat each other with love, as Jesus commands, and with respect, as Jesus demonstrated through his life.

God will still be in control on Wednesday, no matter who wins on Tuesday.

A Busy Season

We all have busy seasons in our lives: Young children, Teenagers' activities, Major celebrations, New jobs, Etc. Yesterday I realized that I haven't blogged in well over a month... And the only excuse I have is that it's been a busy season.

Of course, school started. That brings only 2 full-time students for me these days, but there is still preparation to make. And I had a third student for a while, trying to help a child in need of a safe and nurturing space. Plus, I'm teaching Science to my 8 kiddos and New Mexico History to 5 students. I'm having a blast, but it's keeping me very busy!

We had a visit from five top leaders in the RCA, our church's denomination. They came to talk to our congregation and leadership about the changes in funding that are coming our way. The denomination has funded this mission church for 102 years, through the years of the sanitarium, the boarding school, the mission house, roller skating, until today's church mission here in Dulce. Over the next three years, the denomination will lower funding to zero. The group that came to speak to us was addressing how we meet our financial needs through fundraising within the denomination. It was a good visit, with many great ideas that are exciting, but it was... well, busy.

AWANA started this past month, also. I love AWANA, a multi-church youth ministry held at our facility. But it certainly adds to the craziness of our world. We serve between 20 and 35 youth each Monday, teaching them Scriptures, giving them an anchor for those times in their lives when they face difficulties.

During this same period of time, one of our adult siblings and his dog came to live with us due to life circumstances. Adding another human to our household hasn't been too difficult, but the addition of a large dog has been challenging for our two cats! We've had everything from cats-hiding-in-the-basement-for-days to the dog clambering down the stairs so fast (on a leash!) that he rolled down the final couple of steps. We rigged many of the doors in the house to be open just far enough for a cat, but not wide enough for a dog, and we're starting to see the cats more often.

The dog created another set of craziness this past week. A couple of Rez dogs have been hanging around watching him, and they finally decided to come and bug our Smokey. Smokey took off after them, breaking his leash connection and dragging his rope. The rope got entangled around one of the Rez dogs and he got hit by a car. Smokey was tangled, of course, and he was whipped around and hurt, too. We didn't know which dog lay dead in the street and which hobbled away until we ran down the street to find Smokey. Smokey is recovering, but he's a little slow and quiet! (Our cats are enjoying this part of it.)

Add in the normal tutoring, dentist visits, putting in a new dishwasher (which was donated by a friend of the church!), taking down the pool, funerals and potlucks, revivals, marathons, glasswork, and tween sleepovers, it's been pretty busy.

One thing I've learned in the past three years in New Mexico, is to go-with-the-flow and pray for peace. Fifteen years ago, this busy season would have stressed me out! Not so anymore. I am able to adjust and accept the chaos, leaning on the peace that surpasses all understanding. This busy season has had many blessings!

Please pray for our church as we make the transition to raising our own funding. And pray for AWANA, that more children and youth will attend and that we have sufficient adult volunteers each week.

Thank you!