Temptation!!
(The devil)
At the church office (again)...sitting in the corner of the main office ...listening to "Freedom United" music on my phone. I love this place..Hard-working folks. It is ministry on steroids ...people coming and going... Phones normally ringing off the hook. A polite office staff every time.
Side fact: You know some folks can call this place five times in one day!! ...Sometimes about facts that were in every bulletin on Sunday morning:)....Just a well observed fact!!!:) Shared all in fun.
Everybody is gearing up for "Freedom United" amongst all their other weekly duties. Chris is right now meeting with one of our faithful families preparing for the funeral of their loving father. It is heart-breaking. These are moments I love my husband most..he NEVER hesitates in a ministry opportunity...he loves people with a heart that only God can give...You can't fake his kindness ..it would be exposed in these times....It only comes from a heart surrendered to the Lord. These are also moments I am glad there is a roast in the crockpot for my hard-working fella.
I love Ministry. I love doing it right here at Lee Park Baptist Church. My kids love it. Chris leaving TV and surrendering to the call of ministry has made everything line up for us. Marriage is better. We work harder. I buy less shoes.
I love life!!!
How then can I still be tempted to sin daily? Knowing and proclaiming the sacrifice of Christ. How can I be so happy and blessed...love serving God in the local church AND still be tempted to sin? I have no idea(on my own) ..my chief frustration (on my own).....
Thankfully, I have God's Word to explain :
I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin. (Romans 7:15-25 ESV)
Never have I struggled with temptation more than in the ministry. Never have I been convicted more of sin. (Praise the Lord). My guess is.. I was just giving in to it before then.
Never have I been more resolved to follow Jesus!
Never have I felt the keeping...pursuing ....hand of the Lord ...producing endurance and perseverance in me. No sin has "overtaken" me.
Becky:)
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
You mean He actually cares about that???
"God wants me to have fun!"
"I have to know what is on "that show" so the people at work don't think I'm weird"
"Seriously, you want me to do that???"
You are now privy to parts of many conversations, at least my part of them, that I have had with God over the years. The first one was really hard, and I have spared you the awful embarrassment, and me having to relive it. What conversations, you may ask? The ones that started when I began studying God's Word and realized that He had the right to make decisions about my life and I did not. If you are there, you know what I am talking about. If not, you will get there. Every believer has to. To come to the understanding that not only is He your Savior, but He is Lord over everything in your life. It is the wonderful pruning hand of God.....the painful and most freeing thing that happens in our life.
The thing about it is, it is a continual process. I was okay, not really....but I am now, with God telling me to stay away from certain books, or movies, or TV shows. That was good.....but it was not enough. His Word began telling me things I didn't want to hear.....not that it suddenly showed up in the Bible, but I was actually reading it.
God paid a price for me......the death of His Son on the cross. Paid in full. I belong to Him. And I am thankful. The Bible says we are a slave to sin, or a slave to Him....but His burden is light. I know the burden of sin, and do not want it. Do we understand what it is to be not a servant, not a bond-servant, but a slave.
This has been what I have been learning in the past couple of years. I was thrilled to find that John MacArthur had written a new book, on just this subject: Slave: The Hidden Truth About Your Identity in Christ. I am even more excited that we will begin a Ladies Ministry study through this book on Wednesday, September 7. Please come and join me as we come to understand how abundant and full our lives are meant to be.
"We are slaves that become friends.....friends that become sons....sons that become joint-heirs. Jesus is Lord. I am His slave." John MacArthur
Joyfully His,
"I have to know what is on "that show" so the people at work don't think I'm weird"
"Seriously, you want me to do that???"
You are now privy to parts of many conversations, at least my part of them, that I have had with God over the years. The first one was really hard, and I have spared you the awful embarrassment, and me having to relive it. What conversations, you may ask? The ones that started when I began studying God's Word and realized that He had the right to make decisions about my life and I did not. If you are there, you know what I am talking about. If not, you will get there. Every believer has to. To come to the understanding that not only is He your Savior, but He is Lord over everything in your life. It is the wonderful pruning hand of God.....the painful and most freeing thing that happens in our life.
The thing about it is, it is a continual process. I was okay, not really....but I am now, with God telling me to stay away from certain books, or movies, or TV shows. That was good.....but it was not enough. His Word began telling me things I didn't want to hear.....not that it suddenly showed up in the Bible, but I was actually reading it.
God paid a price for me......the death of His Son on the cross. Paid in full. I belong to Him. And I am thankful. The Bible says we are a slave to sin, or a slave to Him....but His burden is light. I know the burden of sin, and do not want it. Do we understand what it is to be not a servant, not a bond-servant, but a slave.
This has been what I have been learning in the past couple of years. I was thrilled to find that John MacArthur had written a new book, on just this subject: Slave: The Hidden Truth About Your Identity in Christ. I am even more excited that we will begin a Ladies Ministry study through this book on Wednesday, September 7. Please come and join me as we come to understand how abundant and full our lives are meant to be.
"We are slaves that become friends.....friends that become sons....sons that become joint-heirs. Jesus is Lord. I am His slave." John MacArthur
Joyfully His,
Lisa
Thursday, August 25, 2011
First Blog!!
Woohoo!
We are so excited about the many new aspects of Ladies Ministry at Lee Park. This blog being one:). I am right now at work with Chris( take your wife to work day:) working on our relationship series "Heirs Together" . It will start with AWANA, youth and all the LINKS groups starting back for Fall on..Wednesday night..September 7th!!!
Back to: "working on our relationship series"...
Here is pretty much how it goes ...we agree..then disagree...I am reading girly marriage books to prepare...Chris will not be(he is working on his sermon).......I make me a cup of coffee...He smiles and I hand mine to him....I put my feet up on his desk....He gets the comfy chair and I get..deservedly so .....the very uncomfortable Pier 1 chair I bought for his office........I read things to him aloud.....It would be hard to find something that gets on his nerves more...........I annoy him to a point...He annoys me to a point........As a matter of fact ...He just invited me to visit another room to do my work in:).........This behavior is typical " Chris and Becky".......Both strong-willed ...Both add sass to that will......Both sarcastic....Both love to pick and kid.........
The travesty in all this is the days we took ourselves too seriously and put undo pressure on each other to be perfect. Perfect doesn't exist in marriage. I let Chris down daily.....Just two days ago I backed out of our garage too quickly ..for the umpteenth time...and shattered our drivers side mirror(the passengers side already is cracked from repeated wall crashes ..just not shattered yet...favor from the Lord, I remind Chris). What man doesn't want to harm their wife after such things? Chris just smiled and said over and over "I will not get mad..I will not get mad" ( note to married girls and married girls only..lipgloss and high heels help get this response too)
Come to relationship class(please)....We will together work on the only lasting relationship ....our relationship with the Lord........How sad it would be if i would of kept on looking unto Chris to be only what God can be.......
Chris and I both fiercely love the Lord, MOST!! ....and from that has come the best years of marriage!
Ladies some suggested reading that I have gotten from my friends and loved:
(and maybe you just read it and not suggest that your husband read it:)
-"Creative Counterparts". ..Linda Dillow
- "What's it like to be Married to Me? ...Linda Dillow(dear heavens...not easy reading but an excellent book)
- "Sacred Marriage" ...Gary Thomas
Becky
We are so excited about the many new aspects of Ladies Ministry at Lee Park. This blog being one:). I am right now at work with Chris( take your wife to work day:) working on our relationship series "Heirs Together" . It will start with AWANA, youth and all the LINKS groups starting back for Fall on..Wednesday night..September 7th!!!
Back to: "working on our relationship series"...
Here is pretty much how it goes ...we agree..then disagree...I am reading girly marriage books to prepare...Chris will not be(he is working on his sermon).......I make me a cup of coffee...He smiles and I hand mine to him....I put my feet up on his desk....He gets the comfy chair and I get..deservedly so .....the very uncomfortable Pier 1 chair I bought for his office........I read things to him aloud.....It would be hard to find something that gets on his nerves more...........I annoy him to a point...He annoys me to a point........As a matter of fact ...He just invited me to visit another room to do my work in:).........This behavior is typical " Chris and Becky".......Both strong-willed ...Both add sass to that will......Both sarcastic....Both love to pick and kid.........
The travesty in all this is the days we took ourselves too seriously and put undo pressure on each other to be perfect. Perfect doesn't exist in marriage. I let Chris down daily.....Just two days ago I backed out of our garage too quickly ..for the umpteenth time...and shattered our drivers side mirror(the passengers side already is cracked from repeated wall crashes ..just not shattered yet...favor from the Lord, I remind Chris). What man doesn't want to harm their wife after such things? Chris just smiled and said over and over "I will not get mad..I will not get mad" ( note to married girls and married girls only..lipgloss and high heels help get this response too)
Come to relationship class(please)....We will together work on the only lasting relationship ....our relationship with the Lord........How sad it would be if i would of kept on looking unto Chris to be only what God can be.......
Chris and I both fiercely love the Lord, MOST!! ....and from that has come the best years of marriage!
Ladies some suggested reading that I have gotten from my friends and loved:
(and maybe you just read it and not suggest that your husband read it:)
-"Creative Counterparts". ..Linda Dillow
- "What's it like to be Married to Me? ...Linda Dillow(dear heavens...not easy reading but an excellent book)
- "Sacred Marriage" ...Gary Thomas
Becky
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
We're here!!
Well, we finally made it to the blog world! We are very excited about this next step for the Ladies' Ministry of Lee Park Church.
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