The Mountaintop Looks Different These Days

Posted on April 5, 2013 by Rosalie

Our retreat cabin sat on a hill overlooking this horse ranch and the ocean beyond.

I went on a ladies retreat. It was a much needed retreat from the daily grind, and I really enjoyed the break from Susanna and house. I missed her just the right amount.

But I had high expectations for the spiritual side of the retreat. I was longing for a mountaintop experience.

Here’s what I learned: the mountaintop looks a lot different these days. When I was a teenager, every new truth I learned about God that required a change in me was a joyful experience. I want to be clear: there were many times when I realized that my beliefs did not line up with scripture, and I often joyfully repented, submitted, and changed. I walked the ways of the world, so after I put my trust in Jesus Christ alone for salvation, for abundant life, my perspectives on marriage, relationships, the sanctity of life, purity, wisdom and the meaning of life all did a 180. And I loved to worship God, so I made my way to the mountaintop often, seeking those transforming moments.

But things have changed. The repentance that is required of me usually follows guilt and shame, because my sins hurt other people. God is so gracious to me, though. And I am thankful for these moments because I realized this weekend that I have the power and the desire (because of the Holy Spirit in me) to kill the sin in my life. I rarely feel the emotional highs that I did as a new believer (and a teenager), but I also didn’t have the will or ability to harness the power to conquer the little sins that the Bible warns will cause destruction.

The mountaintop is a joy today because I can choose to stay there as long as I want. To conquer perpetual sins, I must depend on God; to depend on Him, I must spend time with Him; to spend time with Him is to be on the mountaintop. Ancient Rabbis believed that losing one’s temper meant losing the shekinah, and they had a saying, “nothing is worth risking the shekinah!”* As long as I have God’s Glory resting upon me, I believe I am on the mountaintop.

*Learned that from a video session during Beth Moore’s study of James.

A Bit of Blogkeeping: If you read my blog updates via Google Reader, you’ll need to find a replacement reader soon, as Google is phasing out this application. I have tried Feedly and Bloglovin’ and can recommend both. Bloglovin’ is a bit simpler, but my starred posts didn’t come through in the sync.

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Belief.

Posted on February 22, 2013 by Rosalie

I have believed so many lies.

It is the desire of my heart that Susanna would believe Jesus. Whenever I read her little toddler Bible, I say, “listen, Susanna, this isn’t a story. This is God’s true Word!”

But I fear the thing I most desire for her is the thing I model most imperfectly for her.

This week, she has been getting up extra early. Oh how I have hated it! But a couple days ago I realized it might be that she wants to spend time with her daddy. Just as Chris finishes his morning routine, she cries out. I get her up, change her clothes, and invite her back to bed with me. That lasts a minute, but she wants to hug Daddy’s legs while he shaves, makes his lunch, pours his orange juice. He used to lean against the back of the couch to read his Bible, but now the two of them sit on the couch together. She watches cars out the window and Daddy reads, and then we all pray together before saying goodbye.

When she was sleeping later, did I get up early to spend time with my Daddy? Not usually.

The number one heart change I need is to trust God that the day has begun the way He intended it. Whether it begins with an early wake up, a grumpy, whiny, tear-stained face and immediate toy-throwing, or smiles, giggles and a calm breakfast, the day belongs to the Lord.

Great Treasure

Posted on February 11, 2013 by Rosalie

source

The summer after my junior year, I went on a mission trip to Mexico and my life changed. Although I had been a Christian for over a year, true walking with Jesus had come only very recently. For years I went to youth events and I think I sang the songs but I never heard them. At our pre-border stop at Christian Heritage College, we went to a service where we sang, “Come, Now is the Time to Worship.” I think it was at that moment that I worshiped God in song for the first time, and knew it would not be the last.

On Sunday we sang it too, and I heard the words in a new light. While the invitation to come had been the powerful mover so long ago, this time I focused on the following phrase.

But still the greatest treasure remains for those
who gladly choose You now

I have no idea what I thought that meant before yesterday. I probably didn’t think about it at all, or I thought of it in superficial terms like we are blessed because we believe… ohthankgodihavebelieved!

No.

Jesus is the greatest treasure. Jesus is what we who choose him now get now. Jesus.

Not riches, not blessings, not comfort or relief in trial. Jesus is the greatest treasure.

I don’t know about you, but this motivates me to worship Him! I do gladly choose Him now. HE CHOSE ME and I get the greatest treasure: Jesus.

It also motivates me to share. Because, as the song says, one day every tongue will confess, every knee will bow. But not every confessing tongue and every bowing knee will have chosen Jesus. Why would I keep the greatest treasure from anyone, when this is his future?

Jesus is the greatest treasure. Tell someone about Him today.

Real Food

Posted on January 2, 2013 by Rosalie

One of my goals for 2013 is to commit 50 Bible verses to memory. I probably know 10 verses by heart, some better than others. That’s not terrible, but I have been a Christian for over 10 years. In the last three years, God has significantly increased my appetite for His Word, and I am so grateful. Rarely does a day go by that I don’t at least read a Psalm or use my concordance to find some much needed encouragement. But intentionally memorize verses? Shamefully, not so much. That changes this year.

Based on this basic list and a modified version of this method for memorizing scriptures, I should be able to learn one new verse a week. I plan to use this list if there is ever a week when I don’t feel God has gifted me with a verse to learn. But my prayer is that as I study the word, certain scriptures will stand out as Ebenezers and I will commit them to memory. I’ll keep a running list as I go.

{January 1-6} Hebrews 1:3-4 I chose this verse because last year I halfheartedly tried to memorize it, but I didn’t put in the effort. I didn’t memorize the whole thing and I have forgotten most of what I did memorize.

My Word for 2013

Posted on January 1, 2013 by Rosalie

word for 2013 The scriptures thoroughly address keeping one’s word. Jesus himself chides the Pharisees in Matthew 5:33-38, saying “let your ‘yes’ be yes and ‘no’ be no. Solomon said it is better not to vow than to break one’s vow (Ecclesiastes 5:5). And James reminds us that we don’t know whether we have tomorrow, so we should be careful how we plan for the future but instead say, “if it is the Lord’s will” (James 4:14-17).

Keeping those principles in mind, I have a tentative list of resolutions, things I would like to accomplish in 2013, but my word for the year surpasses them all:

In 2013, I will depend upon the Lord.

The ESV doesn’t use the phrase “depend” to refer to depending on the Lord. But some translations use “depend on” where the ESV and NIV use “commit.” When I did a word study on “commit,” as it is used in the following verses, God showed me what He meant when He asked me to depend on Him this year (and always).

Commit your way to the Lord;
trust in him, and he will act.
(Psalm 37:5)

Commit your work to the Lord,
and your plans will be established.
(Proverbs 16:3)

(Note: I have written about Proverbs 16:3 before)

The word is gālal, and it’s a common one, with lots of different meanings (some of them stinky). But the most common element of the definition is roll, as in, to roll care or responsibility onto the Lord.

Oh. Yes, Lord.

As the cares and responsibilities come rolling toward me, I want to roll them right on to the Lord. I love that it requires action – I have to transfer the care from myself to my King – but it doesn’t require a work of my will, like the English word commit sort of implies. I can’t do it of my own will anyway.

Do you do a yearly word?

2011: Sustained
2012: Yes, Yes and Yes (unofficial, it seems)