Some Thoughts on Jesus the One and Only - Week 2

Last week we studied Joseph and Mary, and how they walked through the difficult and miraculous time of Jesus' conception and birth. Winn gave me a short devotion by Max Lucado, which we thought would be a blessing to share with you.

LIMB-CLIMBER OR BRANCH-SITTER
Joseph was perched firmly on his branch in the tree. It was thick, reliable, and perfect for sitting. It was so strong that he didn't tremble when the storms came, nor did he shake when the winds blew. No, this branch was predictable and solid and Joseph had no intention of leaving it.
That is, until he was told to go out on a limb.
As he sat securely on his branch, he looked up at the limb God wanted him to climb. He'd never seen one so thin! "That's no place for a man to go!" he said to himself. "There's no place to sit. There's no protection from the weather. And how could you sleep dangling from that quivering twig?" He inched back a bit, leaned against the trunk, and pondered the situation.
Common sense told him not to go out on the limb. "Conceived by the Holy Spirit? Come on!"
Self-defense told him not to do it. "Who will believe me? What will our families think?"
Convenience told him not to do it. "Just when I was hoping to settle down and raise a family."
Pride told him not to do it. "If she expects me to buy a tale like that . . . "
But God had told him to do it. And that's what bothered him.
It bothered him because he was happy where he was. Life next to the trunk was good. His branch was big enough to allow him to sit in comfort. He was near scores of other branch-sitters and had made some valid contributions to the tree community. After all, didn't he make regular visits to the sick at the North Branch Medical Center? And wasn't he the best tenor in the Treedom Singers Chorale? And what about the class he taught on religious heritage, appropriately entitled "Our Family Tree"? Surely God wouldn't want him to leave. He had . . . well, you could say that he had roots here.
Besides, he knew the kind of fellow who goes out on a limb. Radical. Extremist. Liberal. Always going overboard. Always stirring the leaves. Guys with their heads full of strange ideas in search of foreign fruit. Why, the stable ones are the ones who know how to stay close to home and leave well enough alone.
I have a feeling some of you can relate to Joseph. You know how he feels, don't you? You've been there. You're smiling because you, too, have been called to go out on a limb a time or two. You know the imbalance that comes from having one foot in your will and one foot in his. You have sunk your fingernails into the bark to get a better grip. You know too well the butterflies that swarm in the pit of your stomach when you realize changes are in the air.
Perhaps changes are in the air right now. Maybe you're in the midst of a decision. It's disrupting, isn't it? You like your branch. You've grown accustomed to it and it to you. And, like Joseph, you've been a pretty good branch-sitter. And then you hear the call. "I need you to go out on the limb and . . .
. . . take a stand. Some of the local churches are organizing an anti-pornography campaign. They need some volunteers."
. . . move. Take your family and move overseas. I have a special work for you."
. . . forgive. It doesn't matter who hurt you first. What matters is that you go and build the bridge."
. . . evangelize. That new family down the block? They don't know anyone in town. Go meet them."
. . . sacrifice. The orphanage has a mortgage payment due this month. They can't meet it. Remember the bonus you received last week?"
Regardless of the nature of the call, the consequences are the same: civil war. Though your heart may say yes, your feet say no. Excuses blow as numerously as golden leaves in an autum wind. "That's not my talent." "It's time for someone else to take charge." "Not now, I'll get to it tomorrow."
But eventually you're left staring at a bare tree and a hard choice: His will or yours?
Joseph chose His. After all, it was really the only option. Joseph knew that the only thing worse than a venture into the unknown was the thought of denying his Master. So, resolute, he grasped the smaller limb. With tight lips and a determined glint in his eye, he placed one hand in front of the other until he dangled in the air with only his faith in God as a safety net.
As things turned out, Joseph's fears were justified. Life wasn't as comfortable as it had been. The limb he grasped was, indeed, a slender one: The Messiah was to be born to Mary and to be raised in his home. He took cold showers for nine months so the baby could be born of a virgin. He had to push away the sheep and clear out the cow patties so his wife would have a place to give birth. He became a fugitive of the law. He spent two years trying to understand Egyptian.
At times that limb must have bounced furiously in the wind. But Joseph just shut his eyes and held on.
But you can be sure of one thing. He never regretted it. Sweet was the reward for his courage. One look in the face of that heavenly toddler and he knew he would do it again in a heartbeat.
Have you been called to go out on a limb for God? You can bet it won't be easy. Limb-climbing has never been easy. Ask Joseph. Or, better yet, ask Jesus.
He knows better than anyone the cost of hanging on a tree.

Reflections on a Weekend at Hume

Precious Sisters,
I just experienced of the most impacting weekends of my Christian life at Hume Lake. I have been slowly unpacking it as the days progress. I wanted to share just one of the lessons the speaker, Lori Salierno, shared with us.

I don't know if it is as difficult for you as it is for me to accept the TRUTH that the God who created the heavens and the earth is CRAZY in LOVE with ME! There must be others who struggle as I do, because Lori spent an entire evening on it. Her title was, "How You View Yourself Will Determine How You Serve God and Relate To Others." Here in a nutshell is what she shared with us. I hope it will give you a jolt of understanding, and some tools to combat the lies of the enemy, who does not want you to believe this truth.

"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be." Psalm 139:13-16

Point A: God loves you so much He can't take His eyes off you! You need to view yourself like God does, and find your identity in Christ. Usually we have a title connected to the roles we play, like wife or mother or teacher.... we need to have a title reflecting our role as daughter of the King... like "Loved by God".
Point B: God will never leave your presence. Surround yourself with positive people, messages and books, do not compare yourself with others.
Point C: God has known you longer than anyone alive. Affirm what you know to be true about yourself - you are TOTALLY accepted, UNCONDITIONALLY loved, FULLY forgiven and FULLY pleasing. (She used the acronym "TUFF".)
Point D: God thinks about you ALL the time. Renew your mind with healthy habits of thought and recognize the dangers of a poor self-image.
Point E: God wants the best for you. Refuse to accept lies concerning yourself and surrender to the Lordship of Christ.

Again, I don't know about you, but for me, at the place where I am in my life, this was truly an affirmation that I needed. It made me realize that for as long as I have been a Christ Follower, I have believed this in my mind, but not in my heart... and God gave me a picture... of my heart, with a wall around it... like the city of Jericho... and He, in his compassion and faithfulness, and incredible love for me, has patiently been marching around that wall, waiting for the ground to be soft and tender... You have loved me with an everlasting love, I am the apple of Your eye, You knew me before the world came to be, Your compassion for me will never fail.... Blow that trumpet, Lord, blow....