Learn What This Means

Matthew 9:12,13 has played a big role in my tutelage under the Holy Spirit these past months. This is the passage of scripture where Jesus calls Levi, the tax collector to follow Him and Levi decides to do so. Jesus proceeds to eat and hang out with more publicans and sinners and the religious icons of the day (Pharisees) question Jesus' motives. Jesus response always hits at the heart of the matter as He states His answer which cannot be refuted.

Before I go further I'll quote the text, "They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick. But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."

Verse 13 is rich with lessons. I was able to experience these lessons through specific circumstances. The Lord decided to take me on a field trip of sorts. I was somewhat flung into a world I did not particularly want to take part in. I knew from the first it was a test. I wanted to pass it so I knew I had better pay attention. I passed and failed at the same time, yet, the failure was meant to ram home a very important point; so maybe it wasn't a total failure because I did learn what I was supposed to.

To learn in this passage is is the word 'manthano' and means to desire to learn through experience. The word for mercy is 'eleos' and concerns special and immediate regard to the misery which is the consequence of sins. God's mercy is extended to alleviate those consequences.

Oil and Water
By: Brainsik

This worldly experience fit the teaching criteria perfectly. Let me explain. As a follower of Christ, I know I am consecrated, set apart (Hebrews 3) for holiness. I am to be in the world but not of the world (Romans 12:2) I found myself in a struggle. How do I act, what do I say when I have made every effort in my life to reject what these worldly people were doing. Why am I here when I do not have anything in common with them. There were even times of disgust and thinking, "why am I waisting my time here?" I was a little confounded at first, this oil and water thing was uncomfortable. Religion tells us to stay away and don't intermingle with this crowd, yet Jesus did the opposite and was called a glutton and wine bibber for it. Then I remembered, Jesus is a stumbling block (I Corinthians 1:23) He came into this world and caused people to make a decision. He cast His pearls before swine (*Matthew 7:6; Mark 2:17). And this was MERCY!

Jesus lived this day in and day out, whether he was in the synagogue or eating with a publican. He came to the worldly to alleviate the consequences of our sin. He was pure, holy; the answer in living flesh come down to live out and tell us the good news so we could be free to KNOW Him and redeem us from our due wages; death. (Romans 3)

My experience was not meant to focus on the worlds ways contrasted to holiness, but to focus on speaking the truth of who Jesus is and what He did for a hurting, lost people. My failure through this experience was not opening my mouth a bit wider, a bit louder and proclaiming the Gospel clearly at every opportunity. I was able to speak some truth as I grappled with the circumstance, show truth through actions but not on the scale that was needed. Sometimes when you're learning something you bumble with it before you really get the fullness of it. The failure was a cleansing. It helped me rid more religious thought and take on Christ likeness.

The time for this circumstance came to an end through the Holy Spirit's direction. Honestly, I was relieved but I was also melancholic. Not that I missed their worldly ways but that they were so far in them and didn't seem to understand their need to abandon them. I saw their misery in sin clearly and was saddened. Contrasting this with Levi's actions is powerful. He heard Jesus, obeyed and was changed.

I'll conclude with this last simple statement, Jesus never missed an opportunity. I pray these lessons have made their impact so I won't miss the next one as I traverse through the world and walk the narrow road.

I Peter 2: 7-12

*Thank you Ken Brown for the exegesis of Matthew 7:6...God was using you!

Why I Love Reading The Bible

The school year is back in session and my daughter is now in fourth grade. Back to school night is behind us and we are off to a good start. I've noticed writing will be more of a focus. I decided to make myself do my own writing exercise; hence, my 'fourth grade' title.

I am not an intentional eaves dropper but when the word 'God' or 'Bible' is used in others' conversations I just can't help but let my ears perk up. Sometimes I do get to be that solitary fly on the wall buzzing in and out of people's conversations. I hear off-hand comments which describe various opinions and it gets my brain brainstorming in all different directions. One I recently heard was, "The Bible is so boring." Another I see posted alot on chat sites is, "It's so contradictory."  I sigh when I hear that and want to butt in to the conversation but I have some social grace and leave the rude behavior as an after thought and buzz off to do the next thing on my list.

This particular theme could have chapters so I'll try to make it succinct. First, I would like to say (get ready to pull out your dictionary) The Bible is sui generis, the author is proof of that. He uses real life events; with real people to declare who He is. The Bible is a biography, auto-biography, historical non-fiction, mystery, romance with multiple themes that support a main plot. Every good author knows how to draw in their audience and make them relate to the characters demise or triumph. If you allow the author to lead you, He uses His word to graft your own story into His masterpiece. It truly is a pluperfect work of art.

Secondly, I find no contradiction in God's Word. Humans get hung up on the polygamy of the Old Testament, Abraham willing to do in Isaac, God telling Elijah to kill the prophets of Baal. When these so called 'contradictions' arise we need to stop and look around us. What is the reality we are all living in (from ancient time to modern)? I'll answer that for you; we live in a fallen, sinful world. The beauty of the Bible is it shows How God chooses to deal with us in this fallen state. He shows His utter perfection, we fail to heed to it and in our own power we can not attain his demands of it yet He still exhibits patience, mercy and justice. I challenge you to ask the author about these "twists" for the full detail. Then apply the lessons to your own life.

Lastly, each and every account given of the lives and events of the Bible point to the One hero who sacrifices dearly for Love. The Bible is an epic love story that extends through all space and time. Jesus is the climax, but it doesn't end there; the fulfillment of all that He promised, has accomplished and will do is ours to share in with Him forever.

I was succinct, there's a lot in these paragraphs, for those that understand I don't have to remind them there is adventure in following Christ and being submitted to His will. I think they'd agree, reading of others' experiences before us only leaves The Iliad and the Odyssey in the dust.

What Bible account has impacted the way you walk with Christ?

Fox Den Design By Alex Brown

 A few weeks ago, I was rummaging through the 'what is this and why is this here' stockpiles in my daughter's room. Finding underwear in toy baskets and long forgotten shirts shoved behind the toy barn in the closet made me shriek with horror and plan a trip to Ikea. I squeezed all I could from the dollar bin organization system over nine years and it was time to invest in a real dresser.

Sometimes a purchase for one thing will be an avenue for changing other things. We bought a cheap pinewood dresser that we could paint. Alex mentioned she was sick of the pink walls in her room and was ready for change. "Mom", she replied, "I'm not a little girl anymore, the pink has got to go." I had to admit I liked hearing her bold assertion of opinion. This was a milestone moment.  I said, "You're ready for a change, how about you design your room? With a little help from Mom and Dad we can make it the way you envision it." Her baby brown eyes perked up with excitement, "YES, that will be so fun!"

This project was perfect for learning- doing things well takes time. When I work on a creative idea, I can become impatient and want to push it through so I can see the final result, this usually ends in mistakes or downright disaster. I have had to learn to put the brakes on and sit on it for awhile or do due diligence in researching the proper execution so the final product will be worth all the effort involved.

Alex working on her Fox Den Design Project; The Fox Box
photo by: Chandra Brown

Alex was chomping at the bit to get going on her vision of the perfect room; The Fox Den, as she calls it. She wanted all dark brown walls with green rugs to represent grass. She wanted a mural of a forest scene and a fox painted on the walls. She knew what she wanted. She picked out countless color swatches and even researched murals on the internet.

I hadn't even put one word of advice on the docket and she was tearing it up on her own. I had a little moment of motherly pride watching her talk about pulling colors through a room, knowing that earth tones don't mix with pastel palettes.(I did hint at not making all the walls dark brown and guided her to the idea of an accent wall of dark brown.)

I was impressed at her resourcefulness. She found a $4 clearance paint at TreeHouse, that matched her color palette perfectly. She chose that for the dresser. She found the grass rug at Ikea for $20 and the two different wall paints at Lowes were $45.

Nathan putting together the dresser
photo by: Chandra Brown

We got to work on the room re-do. Alex painted a wood box we found on the sidewalk put out for large item pick-up. Mom painted the dresser and Dad got involved and helped put the dresser together. The next day Alex and I painted her room, she is a pretty good wall roller. As we painted over the pink, the walls had a green hue. UH OH, we thought we picked a medium tan, what was going on? We patiently kept painting. I told her sometimes a color will not be true until it dries. She looked a little worried, I secretly was too. We put the brushes up and called it a night, shut the door and turned on the fan to help air out the room, tomorrow would tell if the color was a bomb.

The next day we opened the door to tan walls. Phew! We made it over a design hurdle. We began putting the room together. We knew the existing bedspread would not work anymore and I remembered I had stored an heirloom quilt in a trunk. It was given to us by Nana Brown. It worked perfectly in her room. We just had to buy a new bed skirt, which we found for a steal at Target for $15. The room needed a little something else, a little detail was missing. A pop of color was needed to bring the room together, so we saw the perfect find at Target, the red pillow made the finishing touch for $25.

Alex's Fox Den Design
photo by: Chandra Brown

Alex and I looked back over the receipts for the room remodel, we spent $190. We high-fived at how well it all worked out. It took over 2 weeks from idea to fruition, we still have a bit more to do,we are still working on the mural, which will take more planning and time but thankfully we have an artist in the family that can help when the time allows.

This project was worth more than the $190 we invested in it. I will always remember the time I spent with my daughter, the view into her thinking and seeing her idea take shape because she planned and worked towards her goal. Seeing her enjoy her space and want to be in it speaks to the success of the project.

Chocolate Fox Box, The Green Dresser, Fox Figurines, Alex and I painted the Fox picture too!
photo by: Chandra Brown

Looking forward to the next one...

Burger And Fries with A Side of Fellowship

My husband, daughter and I grabbed a P-Terry's treat for lunch the other day. We ravenously ripped into our $2.45 burgers. When our stomach growlings' were satisfied we found a little time for some fun Bible discussion. Nathan mentioned how he was reading the book of Daniel and how the Old Testament can be a trippy read. He said, " It amazes me that men like Daniel stood against the societal, cultural and even legal laws of the land yet still rose to high positions within the community."  It is pretty interesting to see how God elevates a person through the world's system to be His enforcer, or example or a stop-gap.

Photo By: pointnshoot

Being a  hobby reader; an amateur literature buff, this topic was right up my alley. Any good story or epic novel has a hero who is characterized as being the underdog, the one who knows something the others don't yet prevails despite warnings of loss and may be riddled with weaknesses that should end his journey but become his saving grace.

This is why I love reading the real life accounts of the Bible. God used men, who knew and understood the important detail of a submissive, relationship with God, and were plagued with weakness; and only because of their dependence on God did they become a hero in God's service bringing all the glory to Him. How can anyone not get excited about that.

Take, for instance, the account of Gideon, Judges: 6,7. Even before Gideon is a hero, the Angel of the Lord calls him a Mighty Warrior. (6:12) Gideon's underdog quality shows up when he says, "How can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family."  Then Gideon does something bold even though it was in the dark, (a direct command from God) and destroys one of the World's icons of "untruth", the idol of Baal. This action really gets the world's attention and stirs up a hornet's nest. Gideon's weakness makes an entrance as he squirms and doubts and struggles with the task bestowed upon him, he asks for signs from God even to the point of begging God not to be angry with him for asking for the signs. God is gracious and grants Gideon his requests, a bit of a confidence builder,  he needs it because the next day God cuts his man power down to three hundred in a curiously odd fashion too, keeping those that were crazy enough for the task. God keeps the climax titillating as he encourages Gideon to sneak into the enemies camp at night and eavesdrop on a conversation. Gideon is grateful for the revealed secrets of the enemies and at the next watch, Gideon smashed jars and blew trumpets causing the enemy to panic, scatter and turn their swords on each other. The art of confusion took care of the Midianites and the victory was attributed to God.

How could any of this happen without talking to and knowing God? As you read other heroic accounts in the Bible, the theme appears, men having relationship with God and the realities born out from that!

The really neat thing is this still happens today! Although the heroes are rare, it is amazing to see God's unchanging ways in the people that follow Him. I am lucky enough to know a few heroes in the making. He's the author and finisher of our faith, and I hope my role will bring honor to Him. (Hebrews 12:2)

Before I end this little ditty, I want to always point to the Ultimate Hero, Jesus. He came into the world in underdog status, He was not weak but weakness (sin) was put upon Him. He was the ultimate example of how to walk and talk and live out God's will. He willingly went to the cross and died for you and me. And this is where is gets EPIC, He conquered sin and death and rose from the dead so you and I can have the means to enter into relationship with God, and that is not a fairytale but reality so glorious one's soul can only soar with the understanding of it!

Making A Meal

A while back I posted a blurb about relishing the idea that Jesus cooked breakfast for his disciples. I just loved that a simple pleasure was shared between God's Son and the disciples.

Recently, I made a meal for my family and ended up sharing it with two others unexpectedly. I was more than happy to share it, in fact, I was a little nervous to share it because it was a new recipe. Poor guinea pigs!

Funny how I sit here with tears rolling down my cheeks thinking about this shared meal, maybe I am nearing my time of the month, but tears over a meal goes deeper for me in this circumstance. I have an inkling it is God teaching me more about who He is, and I just can't help but cry at the softening process of my heart. (Glad I wasn't crying about burning the food, HA!)

The meal wasn't amazing, and I didn't even sit down to eat with those I shared. So why am I a  blubbering mess over this insignificant meal? Because I was able to understand a little more of what God wanted me to do for that day. The article, Perfecting Holiness by Ken Brown helped confirm the reason for this particular lesson with the Lord.

This simple meal wasn't world saving, it wasn't even something others will necessarily take notice of. It was a task meant to help me take on more Christlikeness, more opportunity for obedience which leads to the glorification of God.

This meal ended up being a lesson in compassion and kindness; His compassion and kindness. I may not know what another is going through but God does. I don't and still don't know what my two guests have gone through or are currently going through and maybe everything is just fine BUT that is all part of the lesson.  I don't need to know the why's, the reasons, the details, I just need to be obedient to what He tells me to do.

Sharing this simple meal helped me glimpse into the compassionate nature of God towards these two fellows. He loves them very much.

There may be a lot to this story that can't be understood by those that read it, but I felt compelled to write it down anyway.

This time, I am relishing the meal not for it's tasty contents but for the amazing glimpse into God's Nature and His overwhelming Compassion for people.

Just Fishin'



Lake Bastrop North Shore

Trace Adkins

Just Fishin'

Passion Flower

Ecclesiastes 3
Photo By Chandra Brown

Sometimes a rare, exotic beauty hidden from view pops out at you when you least expect it. This texturally complex specimen is growing in a neighbors front yard here in Texas. When I think of a passion flower, I think of far off, ethereal lands, not Texas.

I was admiring the delicate features when my neighbor plucked the flower off the vine and handed it to me. She said, "The buds only bloom for a day, so enjoy it while you can."

I never thought a fleeting blossom could teach me something about relationships but this small, hidden wonder along with my neighbors advice helped me come to a realization. When life becomes monotonous, boring or rigid and an opportunity to revitalize arises, even if it isn't one you think is your cup of tea, snatch up the opportunity! Killing the passion because you're not used to the change of scenery only leads to a wilted existence. You might be missing out on something beautiful!