Gifts from God

Having been raised in a church, I am relatively familiar with many different hymns.  As such, I oftentimes find myself just singing the words and forget to really praise God with them or allow them to convict me.  However, I was convicted while singing the song "Make Me a Blessing" at a service during Holy Week (the week before Easter).  Here is the refrain:

Make me a blessing,

Make me a blessing,

Out of my life

out of my life

May Jesus shine;

Make me a blessing, O savior, I pray,

I pray Thee, my Savior,

Make me a blessing to someone today.

But what exactly does being a blessing mean?  The first few definitions from Dictionary.com say that a blessing is:

noun

1.the act or words of a person who blesses.

2.a special favor, mercy, or benefit:

the blessings of liberty.

3.a favor or gift bestowed by God, thereby bringing happiness.

Okay, so definition 1 is not much help.  But what about number 2?  It seems to shine a new light upon what we're asking God to do when we sing the song.  We are asking God to make us a benefit to someone else.  If we continue reading to definition 3 we see that a blessing is a gift given by God.  

Now as I sang this song during Holy Week, I wondered if I really wanted to be singing the song!  Did I really want God to use me as a gift to somebody else?  Quite simply, the answer was no!  (Please recall my blog about those weeks and what I said about being at the service just to be there, not to grow in Christ.  Read that post here.)  I was not at the service for the right reasons.  I just wanted to go to the service, leave and work on my to do list.  My heart was not in the right place and I wanted to be selfish with my time.  Upon this realization during the service, I began to pray that God would move my heart so that I would want to be a blessing.  I still have a long way to go.  Today, when my church say that song again, I sang it wholeheartedly, truly wanting God to use me.  I hope that today God used me as a blessing to someone.  I hope that God continues using me as a blessing.  Some days I am not so willing, but I know on those days God will be gracious, patient, and loving with his flawed daughter.

Do you want to be a gift from God today?

Living in Reckless Abandonment for Jesucristo, 
Jo

Beauty

Do you see the trees?

Do you see the pretty trees?

I see the green trees.

I have a friend who is color blind who came up with this haiku as we were walking through the woods.    He informed me that sometimes he feels that he can't fully appreciate the beauty in nature because he can't differentiate the colors, but at the same time he feels that he is experiencing more beauty because he is seeing the nature in a way that nobody else sees it.  

This conversation made me begin to think about the definition of beauty.  When speaking about humans, most cultures have their own definition of beauty.  Americans find facial symmetry attractive unless it is 100% symmetrical, we also find tanned skin attractive.  Other cultures try to maintain pale skin tones as a form of beauty.  Yet other cultures stretch their necks gradually with metal rings to be considered beautiful. 

 Dictionary.com says that beauty is 

"The quality present in a thing or person that gives intense pleasure or deep satisfaction to the mind,whether arising from sensory manifestations (as shape, color, sound, etc.), a meaningful design or pattern, or something else (as a personality in which high spiritual qualities are manifest)."

Basically beauty is a matter of opinion.  Beauty is what you want it to be.  Beauty is God's creation.  No matter what you look like, you are a creation of the one true God.  He made you just the way you are.  You are beautiful.  The world around you is beautiful.  The people around you are beautiful.  See the beauty in the world today the way that you want to see it, but make sure that you see it.

Wonderfully Whacky Stupendously Strange Staff

As I have mentioned for a few blog posts, I work at a summer camp.  I really do love my job and I have told everyone why.  One of the reasons why I love my job was "Staff Friends," which I would like to elaborate on in this post (Plus, I asked one of the staffers for a title of a blog and am writing from the title that I was given).

As humans we crave time with other humans.  We are designed by God in this way.  Remember in Genesis, after God created Adam he realized that Adam shouldn't be alone, and so Eve was made.  Because of this, we all need friends.  We are to depend on God, but God wants us to have fellowship with other humans, especially other followers of Christ.  We are called to be one body.  We are called to serve God by working together with others. 

I am part of camp staff.  I am part of something bigger than myself.  This year, our program director has repeatedly reiterated that we are all a team.  We are all buddies that should be looking out for each other.  Not only should camp staff look out for each other, Christians should look out for each other.  We should help each other when we see each other struggling.  I am a follower of Christ.  I am part of something much bigger than myself.  All around the world, I have a family that is known as the body of Christ and I know that we can all depend on each other through prayer, faith, and fellowship.

As you rush through life with a smile pasted onto your face, remember that you are surrounded by people who are your brothers and sisters in Christ.  Remember that you have the Holy Spirit with you.  Remember that God wants you to depend on Him and on other humans.  Remember.

For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function,so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.

Romans 12:4-5

At camp, even as an area director in charge of an area I depend on the people in my area and the other people in other areas for camp to run smoothly.  In the same way, we need to work together as one body in Christ.  Use your gifts.  Share your talents.  Amaze yourself at the wonders you can achieve with the rest of the members in the body of Christ.

Elimination

2 Versions of a Story:

First Version:

On Wednesday nights, most of the staff has their night off from camp.  We all do pretty much the same thing: eat out, go to Walmart, and possibly head to a drive-in movie.  This past week, a large group of us decided to go to a drive-in.  Upon arrival, we decided to toss a football around.  However, we decided to play it in the form of the game, so that if someone missed a catch to them, that person was out.  This game has become fairly common with staff around camp this year, so we all know the rules and call this game "Elimination."  Upon the first throw, one of my coworkers/friends turned around to catch the ball and ran straight into a pole with his face.  As I was closest to him, I reached him first to see that he had a cut above his eye, a cut below his eye and a scratch down his cheek.  

I proceeded to run for ice, antiseptic wipes, band-aids, and butterfly bandages from the concession stand.  After wiping everything out and applying the butterfly bandage onto cut located on his forehead, we sent him back to the camp to get checked out by the nurse to verify that he didn't have a concussion.  It turns out that he had a mild concussion, but was going to be alright.

Second Version:

While hanging out with us in Indiana, my friend/coworker saw a bear that charged at him and mauled his face, resulting in a cut above his eye, below his eye, a scratch down his cheek, and a mild concussion.  We were all very concerned as his cheek remained swollen for the following day.  

Now, one of these stories is what happened to me this past Wednesday.  I will let you choose which is true and which is what we told the campers.

Obviously, some of the campers thought that a bear attacking my friend in the middle of Indiana was a bit far-fetched.  However it was quite a bit of fun to convince them that this is what had occurred.  It should be fairly clear which of these stories is what really happened.  That being said, what enables us to deduce truth from lies?  

I believe that studying the truth and knowing that the probability of running into a bear in Indiana is relatively low is what allows us to do so.  This is also true of other situations like this one.  Knowing the truth enables us to identify the lies.  As such, we should study the truth.  I do not necessarily mean beg people to tell the truth.  I mean that we should study the Bible, as it is the truth and the Word of God.

Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.

John 17:17

In studying what is true, we will know when there are lies being fed to us.  Have you studied the truth today?