With Thankfulness

I had another WONDERFUL Thanksgiving weekend at home. It wasn't a typical Thanksgiving (last year was more typical with lots of people home and lots of activity which prompted me to have a "stomach full; heart even more so"), but throughout the weekend I was reminded of the many things I've been thankful for throughout the year:

• Family: Even though my sisters weren't able to come home for Thanksgiving this year, we've had plenty of weekends together as a family recently. I'm blessed to have a family that I enjoy spending time with, and sisters who are also my friends. I'm grateful for generous, hospitable parents who put up with us, too!
• Health: A few weeks ago, Dad passed along an email that he described as "sobering". Indeed, it was. He had heard from a woman whose father was also fighting, and still is, a similar cancer to what Dad had. Her father is still receiving chemo each week and has cancer spread throughout his entire body. My sister and I just talked last night about another friend who feels that she may have her final Christmas with her mom coming up because of her mother's cancer diagnosis. In Dad's case, he has been in remission for two years and will have his final PET scan this month, as well as have his port removed (the device they use to administer chemo). Health is something that is often taken for granted until it is gone, but I'm continually grateful for Dad's health, and reminded to keep others who are struggling with health issues in my prayers. Also, since last Thanksgiving, both of my Grandmas have passed away. I'm thankful that they were healthy as long as they were and that I had the time with them that I did. I'm thankful for my Grandpa's health and for the time (like this past weekend) that I can spend with him.
• Singleness: Admittedly, being thankful for my singleness is a half-truth. This year has been one where I've resigned myself to the fact that I won't be the young wife and mother I always thought I would be, which is a difficult/sad reality in my eyes. But it's also been a year when I've tried to choose to not dwell on what I don't have, but what I do have. I have the freedom to travel (Europe and Hawaii this year) and spend time with my sisters, and the time and finances to find ways to bless others in a way that might not be possible when/if I get married and have kids. Making that choice to "take advantage" of my singleness is really why I started my year by writing out core values, and while I KNOW I still have room to improve in my thankfulness for being single, I really have experienced much grace in this area.

In addition to these "big" categories, I was also thankful for time last weekend to EAT, finish reading "The Help" (I recommend), SLEEP IN, watch good football games, work hard at Mom's craft show (though not hardly as hard as Mom worked), play games with my cousins.....etc, etc, etc.

Core Value: Joy

(“do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation”)

This is not a joy that is superficial and flimsy, but deep and firm (distinguishing it from happiness and pleasure). The joy I have comes from the hope I have in Jesus: that He carried our sin, and bore our curse, and endured God’s wrath, and became our righteousness, and conquered death and hell and Satan, and opened the door of paradise for all who trust Him. This is not a natural joy, but a spiritual one. I want my joy to go beyond merely the comforts that God gives to truly be joyful in God alone, regardless of external circumstances.

Being fervent is to be passionate – to be passionate about God above everything else. I need to fight against the advances of the culture and laziness and little dreams of playing on the weekends. God is infinitely worthy of our delight, much more so than the world. This passion is about more than just doing things, but to actually feel deeply about my faith.

Tribulation will be a constant in life, but joy in hope enables us to have patient endurance and display the character of God.

Core Value: Prayer

(“be constant in prayer”)

Being constant in prayer obviously doesn’t mean it is the only thing you do, but it means to be habitual about it; to be persistent and devoted to prayer. Having devotion to prayer means that it affects everything, and there will be a pattern that displays devotion to prayer (not just hit and miss prayers when things are hard, or only before meals). I need to make prayer a regular, habitual, recurring, disciplined part of my life (not random, occasional, and sporadic).

In looking at sermons about prayer, I came across a helpful hints about how to pray:

F – Free (unstructured) and Formed (structured)
A – Alone and Assembled
D – Desperate and Delighted
E – Explosive and Extended
S – Spontaneous and Scheduled

I have a lot of room for growth in my prayer life, especially when looking at these 10 items about how to pray. I specifically hope to become more scheduled, extended, and formed in my prayer life.

Core Value: Service

(“serve the Lord”)

Serving Christ means experiencing His worth and beauty and fellowship as more compelling and desirable than anything else. The wrong way to serve is to seek the approval of man - only God matters ultimately. The main question to ask is: does Jesus Christ approve of what I am saying and doing? Serving the Lord in this way means being freed from the fickle opinions of men.

I want to serve Christ because of what he has done: provided my perfect pardon and perfect righteousness. I want to do all I can to become in practice what I am in Him.

This core value ties in with hospitality (one way to serve) and generosity (serving with my time and gifts, and doing so generously). My service shouldn’t be out of guilty obligation, but out of joyful willingness to serve the Lord and His people.

Core Value: Generosity

(“contribute to the needs of the saints ….outdo one another in showing honor”)

The key phrase with this value is “where you treasure is, there will your heart be also”. Generosity helps me overcome greed. How we handle our money and possessions is an indication of how we trust God and treasure Christ.

Ultimately, generosity is about giving things away for the sake of others. I want my generosity to go beyond only money. I want to be generous with my time and talents as well. That means babysitting for free, willingly serving at church, and being generous in my praise and service of others (outdo one another in showing honor).

Generosity should be disciplined and methodical, not just spontaneous or impulsive. Like hospitality, I want to be more thoughtful and intentional with my generosity, even beyond my tithing. The goal is to awaken more thanksgiving to God and lay up treasures in Heaven.

Core Value: Hospitality

(“contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality”)

Hospitality is a chance to demonstrate the selflessness that characterizes Jesus and His Kingdom – to embrace the beauty and wonder of being invited into God’s kingdom and extend that same grace to others. I want to approach hospitality as more than just entertaining, and doing so is something that is dependent on the state of my heart. Am I focused on making an impression, or on making people feel loved? Do I spend an inordinate amount of time cleaning and preparing, rather than praying for my guests and seeking opportunities to minister to them?

We shouldn’t feel guilty about enjoying time with those we love, but at the same time we should seek (seek implies continuous action – an attitude and practice) to expand our vision to those who are normally excluded from hospitality (Lord’s example: invite the poor, crippled, blind, lame). The Lord expected nothing in return, and was selfless and gracious. Hospitality is a chance to go above and beyond what is ordinary (Luke 6:32: if you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you?), but to live and relate and be hospitable in a unique way to show the Gospel.

Practicing our hospitality helps us to overcome our self-centeredness (and fear of man, and greed, and…..). We naturally look inward, so hospitality can be easily neglected. All we have to do is…nothing….and we will be so focused on ourselves that we won’t practice hospitality.

The motivation for practicing hospitality is a memory of the past (Jesus died to make us members of the household of God) and a hope for the future (He will meet all our needs and see us safely home).

In order to improve my hospitality I want to think more about the following questions: How can I draw people into an experience of God’s hospitality? Who might need reinforcement right now in the battle against loneliness? What new people/couples/group can I invite over? Who are the excluded people that I am tempted to not invite and ignore?

Hospitality is not just reserved for inviting people over to my home. There are opportunities to display hospitality as I greet people at church, as I invite people into conversations at work, as people are looking for a place to stay for a season. It is about really drawing people together in a variety of situations to show God’s grace and put aside my selfishness.

I want to be more thoughtful and intentional in my hospitality. God has given us money and homes not just so that we are thankful, but so that, through hospitality, we can make many people thankful to God. When we give generously and open our homes, the love of God is confirmed in our lives.

We are rewarded when we practice hospitality. We have the opportunity to lift a burden, relieve stress, and give hope.

Core Value: Belief

(“abhor what is evil, hold fast to what is good”)

There is such a thing as objective good and evil outside of myself. Good and evil don’t change – I change. The words abhor and hold fast indicate that simply choosing good over evil is not enough – inner intensity is required. While changing behavior to choose good over evil is important, the battle is about more than just behavior. It is about changing emotions and being born again to hate what my sin nature loves.

Discernment is also important in belief. Understanding the Word is paramount in order to continue to discern good from evil. There must be an active response to hate sin, turn from it, and cling to the Good. Riding someone else’s coat tails or simply agreeing with their convictions isn’t enough. Go to the Word firsthand and follow the instructions found there.

Core Value: Love

(“Let love be genuine…Love one another with brotherly affection”)

Every believer, no matter how imperfect, is a child of God. They are my brothers and sisters in Christ. My love for them should be genuine (more than just sentimentalism). God has become our father and we are family. That is the baseline relationship.

Love does not crave the praise of men, it is riveted on Christ. Love doesn’t put up artificial fronts. Love doesn’t dwell on the flaws of others and love doesn’t act religious to hide sin. Love forgets itself and looks to Christ. Love sees others as ourselves, with all of our longings, needs, and desires.

Brotherly affection suggests a deep bond. This kind of love is about more than just serving, or doing something for others, but is about actually feeling a certain way toward them (which can’t come from me, but comes from God).

I want to be more proactive in recognizing evidences of grace in other believers’ lives, and loving them as I do so.

Thoughts on Core Values

Well, I finally found the post where I talked about doing my core values. I only posted it over six months ago, so, you know. I’m just a little behind. [If you’d like to have the background thoughts about my core values, they are here]

But I have a good excuse. I’ve been pretty diligent in learning more about my core values. Mostly I listened to and read sermons, and I ended up with over 18 pages of notes on a Word document. WHOA. Then came the task of reading, re-reading, organizing, deciding what belongs and what doesn’t, etc. It has been educational and, dare I say, fun.

So, I’m about to do 8 posts with my core values (this post with the verses, seven separate posts with each of my core values). Again, if you want to see how I came to this process, you can read my explanation.

The start of a new year is a good time to write out these values. Really they are things that I resolve to make more evident in my life. I hope. And pray (since prayer is one of my values, after all).

Here are my core value verses (from Romans 12):

(9) Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. (10) Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. (11) Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. (12) Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. (13) Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.

Here are my core values:

• Love (“Let love be genuine…Love one another with brotherly affection”)
• Belief (“abhor what is evil, hold fast to what is good”)
• Hospitality (“contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality”)
• Generosity (“contribute to the needs of the saints ….outdo one another in showing honor”)
• Service (“serve the Lord”)
• Prayer (“be constant in prayer”)
• Joy (“do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation”)