They Took Him at His Word

Lately I have been reading a lot of missionary biographies. Amy Carmichael, Hudson Taylor, George Muller, and others. There is one common denominator in the lives of these men and women that especially stands out to me, and that is this: They consistently took God at His word. If He said something, they believed, and acted on it. If He promised something, they took it literally and stepped out in faith. Yet even these amazing men and women sometimes grew discouraged or even doubted. I find myself thinking, 'Wait a minute! Look at what God has done for you in the past! Where is your faith? Don't you understand Who He is?'

But hold on. How often am I guilty of the exact same thing? Time and again I allow the cares of this world to turn my gaze from Christ. I become so wrapped up in what is going on around me that I forget Who He is and what He has said. I know from experience how quickly worry drains our joy.

We trust God for our salvation, but what about His other promises? Sure, we quote them, memorize them, and sing about them, but do we really believe them in a deeply practical way? (I will be the first to admit that I don't.) For example:

"But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong." 2 Corinthians 12:9-10

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6-7

"So do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."

Isaiah 41:10

And that's just a drop in the bucket! What would our lives look like if we really took God at His word? "God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?" (Numbers 23:19) For our Lord to be false is literally inconceivable, and look at what He is freely offering! By His grace, let's take a step of faith and trust that He is who He says He is and able to do all that He says He will do.

7 Random Things

Normally (I hope) this will be a blog with purpose, but my dear friend Emma tagged me, and a bit of randomness never killed anyone, so here goes. :)

1) I do not like to drink coffee, but I think it smells wonderful. I am a hot tea kind of girl.

2) I love taking pictures! My camera is more or less an extension of my hand. Although certain friends of mine complain loudly, they will thank me when they're 40 and have something to show their children.

3) I believe that I'm allergic to nearly all things athletic. I do play tennis once a week, and although I'm not good at it, I have fun.

4) Fall is my favorite season by far. I dislike hot weather intensely.

5) I am very fond of stuffed animals, and my room is full of them. This includes over 100 beanie babies that I collected when I was little.

6) Embarrassing confession: over inflated balloons (especially in the hands of children) make me nervous.

7) Before I die, I would love to go to England.

The end! Laura, you're next!

Ellerslie

I have mentioned Ellerslie several times now, and I suppose it's time to fill you in. Ellerslie is a two month long program begun by Eric and Leslie Ludy. Rather than trying to summarize it myself, I will give you a quote from their website.

Ellerslie Training specializes in taking students deeper with God and providing an atmosphere in which a love for the Word of God, prayer and Biblical study can be cultivated. We are more of a spiritual-training retreat than a classical school environment. But though our primary goal is to help students go deeper with Christ, we are also very purposeful about giving students a strong Scriptural understanding and Biblical framework as they walk through this deepening process.

There are five major themes that we seek to develop in the hearts and minds of our students through the semester-long training:

1. 1.A passionate love for the Word of God
   

2. 2.A clear and intimate understanding of the Gospel life
   

3. 3.The cultivation of a vibrant prayer life
   

4. 4.An establishment of healthy, life-long spiritual behavior patterns
   

5. 5.An intercessor’s mentality – being made strong in order to be poured out for the weak
   

This is what we specialize in at Ellerslie - stoking the fire of the human soul - acquainting Christians with the enormity of our God and His ability to bring about a very real triumph in the human soul.

At Ellerslie, our desire is not to talk about Christianity, but to live it.

I have followed the ministry of Eric and Leslie for a long time, so I heard about Ellerslie soon after it began a few years ago. I distinctly remember a strong impression that God would have me go. That dream never died, but I never thought of it except as something that might happen years down the road. As I mentioned before, God used a conversation in January with my mom to change all that. Now Ellerslie is not something in the distant future, or even what I will be doing later this year.

I will be there in less than a month.

It still seems surreal that I'm actually going, but as time goes on, the more real it becomes. When I think of all that must be done in such a short amount of time it is rather overwhelming, but if God has called me there, I know that He will enable me to get it all done. If you think about it, please pray for me as I prepare both spiritually and practically!