Spanish Blog: Why Such Suffering?

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The past year has been devastating for so many.  My heart aches for those who I know and those who I don’t who have experienced heartache and loss due to Covid-19, economic failure, relational dysfunction, and many other afflictions this world and its people were not created to endure.

 

 

This year the Lord has taught me to walk out onto the waters of grief and lament with Him.  It is natural and good to mourn the affects of the fall as our Lord and Savior did Himself, and as God’s people were instructed to do throughout time.  

 

 

Why is life so hard?  Why such hurt and agony?  Why such brokenness?  As I ask myself these questions, I am reminded that this present world is a mere shadow of the beauty and harmony it was originally created to be.  God created this world to bring order and beauty out of chaos.

 

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.  The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.  And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.” – Genesis 1:1-3

 

Humanity was created with honor, dignity, and the highest of callings.  As partners and sons of the God of the universe, we were created to spread truth and justice, beauty, and love over the face of the earth.

 

 ^“Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” – Genesis 1:26-28

 

And yet, because we could not trust in our Father’s perfect plan this perfect peace was lost, and our high calling all but forgotten.  Yet rather than scrap it all and start over, God chose to enter our pain and take our shame upon Himself.

 

But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace [shalom] was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed. ~ Isaiah 53:5

 

And so, as followers and partners with the true King, we also take on the suffering of this world.  We endure trouble, hand in hand with our Savior.  We weep with those who weep.  We carry the burdens of our brothers. We lament and confess the sins of our countrymen.  We take up the cross with Jesus our brother.  But as we step by faith into this abyss of pain, of which we cannot see the bottom, we experience oneness and comfort with He Who went there first.

 

 ^“For as we share abundantly in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.”  - 2 Corinthians 1:5

 

And as we abide with our Savior in this hurt, we are reminded daily of the light that is dawning, of the hope for ultimate restoration that our Creator God promises. 

 

 ^“For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised.  For,“Yet a little while, and the coming one will come and will not delay.” – Hebrews 10:36-37

 

"For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; and the former shall not be remembered or come to mind. But be glad and rejoice forever in what I create; for behold, I create Jerusalem as a rejoicing, and her people a joy. I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in My people; the voice of weeping shall no longer be heard in her, nor the voice of crying." – Isaiah 65:17-19

Spanish Blog: Before Time Began

   *Click here to read the story behind my Spanish Blog

 

There was a girl who fell in love.  She was not looking for love, but Love itself conceived of her, and pursued her, and slowly overpowered her, melting away all of her defenses and replacing them with gratitude.

 

 

As I have said in previous posts, the Creator God has captured my affections, and I am here in Peru as a response to the beauty and majesty of His great plan for the universe.  Apart from God’s work in my life I know that I am nothing, but my King has seen fit to include me in His conquest for the hearts of men—His marvelous plan to spread His kingdom over the whole world.  The Infinite has lifted the finite to walk alongside Him, learn from Him, and find its purpose in Him.  In this blog, I shall endeavor to share some of this journey—my journey with my King.

 

 

I have often heard the Christian life referred to as an adventure, a journey, a battle, or a friendship. But the description that has always seemed the most applicable to my life as a Christian is one that I hear used far less often.  When I think back on God’s working in my life from even before I trusted in Jesus as my Savior until the present, the best single word description I know of is a romance.  I love Joni Earickson Tada’s words, “He’ll say, shall we dance, and our endless romance will be worth all the tears I have cried!”  In context, Joni is talking about our relationship with our Heavenly Father when we reach heaven, however I firmly believe that He initiated our relationship long before that. 

 

 

You might expect that my journey began when I came to know the Lord for the first time, or even when I was born into this world.  But many verses in the Bible make it clear that my journey began before I was born.  The Lord assures me that He knew me before I ever existed in this world.

 

 

“For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.”  - Romans 8:29-30

 

*See also Jeremiah 1:5; Psalm 139:16; Ephesians 1:4; Galatians 1:15; John 15:16

 

 

Indeed, as I was reminded in a book I recently finished reading (Designed for Dignity, by Richard Pratt), God settled ahead of time the course my life would take.  He resolved before time began to have me hear and respond to His call, to declare me just and worthy through the righteousness of His Son, and to conform me slowly to become perfect like His Son.

 

 

Of course, these are all truths that I had to discover over time, for I came into the world, in August of 1986, hounded, like all people, by the imperfection and futility that sin works in us all from birth.  

 

 

Why didn’t my heavenly Father just perfect me from the beginning and raise me in His own celestial palace in heaven?  

 

 

Why did He ordain that I, whom He calls His beloved child, wrestle with sin and weakness—both my own and that of other people? 

 

 

These are questions for which I am still discovering the answers.  Perhaps, if you choose to continue reading my story, you may discover them with me.

Spanish Blog: I Was a Sneaky Child

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As a small child, I was quite sneaky.  I remember planning ways to keep my parents from knowing about my disobedience. I would often shift the blame for things onto my little sister, who was just a year and a half younger than I.  And when my parents caught me in disobedience and sent me to my room for time out, I sometimes raced to put on multiple pairs of shorts so that I would not feel the spanking that I knew was coming.

I thought that living for myself and avoiding discipline was the best way to enjoy life. Thankfully, I was born to parents who looked to the Lord for wisdom regarding how to train up and discipline their children.  They always tried to discipline me in love as our heavenly Father does, teaching me about the consequences of my actions, and the correct way to seek forgiveness.  I realize now what a tremendous blessing this was for me.  

 

 

From even before I could really understand, my parents taught me about the sin in my own heart, and the forgiveness that God offers, and the joy that comes with submitting to His kingship over me.  They read Bible stories to me regularly, and took me to church every Sunday.  Most mornings I saw my parents spending time in prayer and reading their Bibles.  And as I grew older, my parents began to teach me directly from God’s word as well.  I remember sitting on my parents bed as a family and listening to my Father read to us from the Bible and explain how he understood it.

 

 

My parents taught me that because God created humanity in His image, we all belong to Him, and each person must be treated with kindness, generosity and respect.  These are truths which humanity seems to be slowly losing.  As we forgo our identity as sons and daughters of God, fear creeps in and we begin to live like victims.  We hurt one another as we attempt to protect ourselves from hurt (just as I did to my poor little sister).  We have forgotten that our heavenly Father longs to be our advocate and protector.

 

 

“Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.  When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.  For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.  ~ Isaiah 43:1-3

 

 

Even as I write about the sad decline of the knowledge of God and His good purposes, I am reminded, however, of many ways in which His truths are written on the hearts of every human being.

 

 

Friends in Cusco, your culture is such a beautiful testament to many of these truths! 

 

 

Despite the difficult circumstances many of you face daily you are so committed to justice and mercy.  You so readily celebrate noble causes and champion the plight of those less fortunate than yourselves, demonstrating incredible passion for the good and the beautiful.  You give such lovely respect to the image of God in mankind by the way you honor each acquaintance with a warm greeting and intentionally navigate each interaction in a way that preserves the dignity of the other.

 

 

These are attitudes and practices which I have observed over and over again living in Cusco, and they are such tangible evidence of the image of God in you!  So many of you naturally take up the call from Genesis 1:27-28 to spread God’s kingdom of honor, respect, and love over the face of the earth.

 

“So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.  And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it,” ~ Genesis 1:27-28a

 

But friends, I beg you to also remember what God’s word proclaims next:

 

“Have dominion over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.” (Genesis 1:28b)

 

So highly has God honored you as His image bearers that He has called you to rule over the creation and cultivate it in propagation of God’s kingdom and eternal glory.  

 

Oh that you would not neglect this calling by worshiping the creation as if it were the ruler over you!  Oh, that you would rise to the high calling your loving Creator intended for you!  My prayer is that this message from God’s word will captivate hearts and minds here in Cusco and free people to live even more fully as the light in the world they were created to be.

 

My Thoughts on Christian Education

A friend recently asked me about how one could go about educating children at home from a Biblical perspective.  I've decided to share my thoughts on this here.

I recognize that Christian education is a highly controversial topic among believers, so know that I am merely sharing these thoughts as my own convictions, but I certainly do not condemn parents who through their study of scripture and prayerful time with the Lord arrive at different plans for their children's education.  

How to Apply the Bible in the Process of Homeschool Teaching?

 

I believe that theology is the integration point for all knowledge and all activities, and whatever might rightly be called an education must teach the lordship of Christ.  Education that does not do this effectively teaches that He is irrelevant to most of life.  Secular education leads people to compartmentalize subjects into categories and spirituality is relegated to its own compartment making it unnatural to see all of life as spiritual.  In my opinion, all subjects and aspects of life are greatly intertwined with God’s work in the world and His plan and purposes for it.

 

So how do we do we teach this way? 

All school subjects must be studied for the purpose of knowing God better and glorifying Him better.  The whole reason we as humans exist is for God and Him alone, and so the whole reason for everything in the world—including education—is for Him and Him alone.

-       We study history in order to see what God has done in the world and in the lives of humans from the beginning of time.  He is the main subject in History class, and events are all seen as the context of His work.  We always look for what He was doing, what His purposes were, and how humanity’s perspective on Him (or lack thereof) affected its response to those events.

-       In science we study the creation and processes in the natural world in order to understand the creator of these things better.  We look for reflections of His good purposes, His redemption, and His gospel message in all aspects of science.  God has put countless truths about Himself, His plan for the world, and His plan for us as His children into the fabric of our world, and we study it in order to know and glorify Him better.  He is the main subject in science.

-       In math, we study numbers in order to better understand God’s nature, as a God of order and consistency rather than a God of chaos.  Additionally, we study math in order to train our minds for service to our Lord and to be better stewards of the resources and opportunities He has given us to serve and glorify Him.

-       We study literature for the purpose of better seeing how humanity has interacted with truth and beauty bestowed on us by God throughout time.  Through reading the stories and ideas of humanity from throughout time, we become better equipped to participate in the great conversation throughout the ages between men regarding ideas and questions that matter—things ordained by God.

-       We also study writing and speech in order to become equipped and capable representatives of God on the earth.  Through winsome, clear, and compelling communication in these modes, we bear witness to the truth from our Father, the way it sheds light on all things, and the response that it demands from us in all areas of life.

 

When we study subjects without acknowledging God as the purpose, facilitator, and the way, we communicate to our students that some parts of our life and experience have nothing to do with Him.  In my opinion it is for this reason that the vast majority of adults—even Christians—go about the majority of their day without ever thinking about God and what He has to do with the small and large details of their day. Our education has taught us the habit of leaving Him out of it.

- Laura