GMG Week 7 Reflection {Colossians 3:15-25}

"Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father. Wives, be subject to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives and do not be embittered against them. Children, be obedient to your parents in all things, for this is well-pleasing to the Lord. Fathers, do not exasperate your children, so that they will not lose heart. Slaves, in all things obey those who are your masters on earth, not with external service, as those who merely please men, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve. For he who does wrong will receive the consequences of the wrong which he has done, and that without partiality." ~Colossians 3:15-25 (NASB, emphasis mine)

This has not been the best week in our household or for me personally. The combination of post-partum hormones, sick children, a gravely sick spouse, and the onset of sibling jealousy has made for a difficult week.

The first challenge to arrive was the tidal wave of post-partum hormones. Those pesky things that take a relatively rational woman and turn her into an irritable, emotional mess. Random little things that are of no significance have the power to annoy her to the point of snapping at those she loves most-- or possibly worse, storing up those feelings and letting them fester inside of her making it difficult to think nice thoughts and remember all the things she actually loves about the offenders.

The second ongoing challenge has been sickness. Q had a fever and then a cold. Husband suffered with misdiagnosed severe pneumonia for 5 days before finally getting the correct diagnosis and being admitted to the hospital. And LK also caught Q's cold. I have been legitimately worried and scared for the health of my entire family. Husband is more sick and debilitated than I have ever seem him during our 12+ year relationship. There is nothing I, or anyone, can really do for him. The nature of his illness would be extremely dangerous to either of our children and would likely kill our newborn premie which despite our precautions (husband is quarantined to our bedroom and my hands are dry and cracked from all the hand washing) has caused me lots of anxiety.

The third ingredient of this recipe for disaster is what I believe is the onset of Q's jealousy towards LK. Fortunately, he doesn't express any negative emotions towards LK but he has been throwing temper tantrums and acting out more frequently than usual which I believe is attention-seeking behavior. This is particularly challenging this week since I am pretty much flying solo parenting considering husband is completely incapacitated, not to mention quarantined (which might also have something to do with Q's crankiness).

All that to say, peace has not exactly been ruling in my heart.  And thankfulness hasn't come naturally this week. I have so appreciated these verses that we have studied because I have really had to claim the bold portions above this week to keep my attitude and actions in check. I have had to remember that regardless of what is going on in my life, every word I speak and every deed I perform should be representative of Christ in my life and should be an expression of my thankfulness of what He has done for me in giving me new life. I have had to remember that through serving my family, my service and hard work is really for the Lord.  And I have had to claim Christ's peace even in the midst of worrying for my husband and children's lives.

I am grateful for the power behind these words because it is only by His power that I am experiencing peace and that I am able to appreciate the many blessings, big and little, in each of my days regardless of the trials.

GMG Week 6 Reflection {Colossians 3:7-14}

"and in them you also once walked, when you were living in them. But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech from your mouth. Do not lie to one another since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices, and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him-- a renewal in which there is no distinction between Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and freeman, but Christ is all, and in all. So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity." ~Colossians 3:7-14 {NASB}

New life in Christ should have a dramatic effect on our relationships. God is not only interested in our individual relationships with Him, but He has created us to live in community with others and unity among that community is valuable to Him. He wants us to "put aside" those things which are destructive to our relationships {anger, wrath, malice, slander, abusive speech, lies} and, by the power of God, "put on" those characteristics that encourage healthy relationships {compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, bearing with one another, forgiveness, love}. It is Christ in us that empowers and enables us to put on these characteristics.  However, "put on" indicates that we must take intentional action. God is the One who supplies the power to "put on" these virtues, but we still have to choose to put them on!

GMG Week 5 Reflection {Colossians 2:16-3:6}

"Therefore no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day-- things which are a mere shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ. Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize by delighting in self-abasement and the worship of the angels, taking his stand on visions he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind, and not holding fast to the head, from whom the entire body, being supplied and held together by the joints and ligaments, grows with a growth which is from God. If you have died with Christ to the elementary principles of the world, why as if you were living in the world, do you submit yourself to decrees such as, 'do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!' (which all refer to things destined to perish with use)-- in accordance with the commandments and teachings of men? These are matters which have, to be sure, the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion and self-abasement and severe treatment of the body, but are of no value against fleshly indulgence. Therefore, if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory. Therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire and greed, which amounts to idolatry. For it is because of these things that the wrath of God will come upon the sons of disobedience." ~Colossians 2:16-3:6 (NASB, emphasis mine)

People sometimes have the urge to "add" to the gospel by creating rules to follow. Apparently the Colossian church was being influenced by some of these sort of philosophies putting restrictions on food and specials days and suggesting self-punishment as a means for atonement. Paul, the author of this letter to the Colossians, is reminding them that they have died to this world and have been raised to a new life with Christ.  The only way this new life is made possible is by the power of God through Christ's sacrifice, not by anything that we do in addition to Christ, no matter how "spiritual" it may sound. Paul suggests that rather than focusing on rules regarding earthly matters, that believers spend their energy setting their minds on things above. Again, Paul is challenging us to have an eternal perspective.  He rationalizes this by reminding us that all the things on the earth are temporary; "destined to perish with use", "a mere shadow of what is to come." On the other hand, eternal glory awaits us through our life with Christ. In light of this, we should consider ourselves dead to earthly temptations which put temporal desires ahead of God (essentially, idolatry).

Here are a few lessons I learned from this weeks passage:

• Christ created everything (including me) and thus, it all belongs to Him. I need to keep this in mind when deciding how to spend my time and what to put into my body. Do my choices honor my Creator?
• When I find myself judging others, consider what exactly I am judging them for; is it a tradition (or rule) that I've mistakenly made into something sacred? or is it actually sin? Either way, it is not my place to judge.
• Our fleshly minds can convince us that we are being wise and spiritual by taking matters into our own hands (i.e. rules and self-abasement) when really the only wise thing is to rely on Christ (the head of the body).
• Be dogmatic only about the gospel of Christ and be wary of those who are dogmatic about other "spiritual" rules or principles.
• Seek the eternal, not the temporal!
• Ask: What do my desires reflect? Am I seeking things more than God? Put God in His rightful place- first!

An Eternal Perspective {GMG Week 4 Reflection: Colossians 2:6-15}

"Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude. See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ. For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority; and in Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ; having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him." ~Colossians 2:6-15 (NASB)

It is easy to look at current circumstances and get bogged down in the here-and-now.  Currently, my daughter is in the NICU after being born 5 weeks early. My son is home being taken excellent care of by my mom about an hour away. No matter where I physically am, my heart is torn in two between my two precious children. It is easy to feel "incomplete" when my family is separated like this.

The verses I have studied this week through our Good Morning Girls study have challenged me to have an eternal perspective rather than focusing on my circumstances here-and-now. The truth is, I have reason to be "overflowing with gratitude" because of what Christ has done for and in me. He makes me complete, not the physical location of my family members or anything else. He took the punishment for my shortcomings and made this possible.  He is working in me to cut away my fleshly concerns and desires and to raise me to new life in Him.

When I choose an eternal perspective, I can see that the trial I am currently enduring is part of His plan to refine me. It is teaching me to rely on His strength, to find joy and contentment in Him, to trust that He is in control of this (and all other) situations, and to rely on the truth that He is working everything together for the good of those who love Him (whether I understand it or not).

I wrote the following to my GMG group in an email earlier this week and was reminded of it this morning as I was struggling with emotions due to having to leave my almost 2 year old at home yesterday in order to return to the hospital to be with my newborn;

Today has been a challenge.  Lanie Kate has hardly eaten anything on her own all day and after yesterday's amazing progress I am really disappointed and frustrated. I can feel the emotions welling up in me and it feels like I just might not be able to keep it together at times. I have to remind myself that in the grand scheme of things, a few more days in the NICU is nothing- it hardly takes an eternal perspective to know that. When I consider eternity though, I realize that not only is this just a speck of time that will be over before I know it, but the difficulty of the experience for me brings the potential for God to really grow me spiritually which will not only pay dividends for me, but also for my children (one of whom is the reason I am so emotional). If God uses this time to mature me and teach me, my newly developed character will influence my family (and potentially others) as a natural result.  So please pray for me that God will not only give me the strength to get through this but that He will also use the experience for spiritual growth and character development- cut away my flesh and raise me to new life giving me an eternal perspective!

LK still hasn't made any progress towards coming home in the past 4 days. We are just waiting for her to have the energy to eat all her meals on her own without a feeding tube. We have no idea when she will decide to do that and are just hoping and praying that it is sooner rather than later!

Stewardship {GMG Week 3 Reflection: Colossians 1:24-2:5}

"Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I do my share on behalf of His body, which is the church, in filling up what is lacking in Christ's afflictions. Of this church I was made a minister according to the stewardship from God bestowed on me for your benefit, so that I might fully carry out the preaching of the word of God, that is, the mystery which has been hidden from the past ages and generations, but has now been manifested to His saints, to whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ. For this purpose also I labor striving according to His power which mightily works within me." ~Colossians 1:24-2:5 (NASB)

Paul says, "Of this church I was made a minister according to the stewardship from God bestowed on me for your benefit, so that I might fully carry out the preaching of the word of God," I love the idea of stewardship that Paul talks about here. Paul didn't earn the job he was given and he wasn't "boss" over the people he ministered to, God is the one who entrusted Paul with the responsibility of ministering to the church by preaching the word of God. 

I believe this can be applied to us too. What has God made you a steward over? For me, at this time in my life I am a steward of my household. Everything I do as a stay-at-home mom is a ministry to my family, whether it be making sure we have clean laundry, shopping for groceries and feeding my family, or disciplining my children. My household does not belong to me, my children do not belong to me, my husband does not belong to me... they all belong to God and he has entrusted me as a minister to our household. 

Paul goes on to talk about his "labor" and his "struggle" for the church of which he is a minister.  It indicates that it isn't always easy and it requires sacrifice (in fact, he was in prison for preaching the word of God when he wrote this), but he does it because that is the job that God entrusted him with and because he cares so deeply for the church that he desires to "present every man complete in Christ." Likewise, I should be willing to make sacrifices and endure some struggle as part of my role as a steward in my household knowing that my labor is for the ultimate purpose of presenting those under my stewardship complete in Christ.

Walking in Jesus through trials

"Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude." 

~Colossians 2:6-7 (NASB)

I read these verses today as part of my Good Morning Girls Bible study while I was eating breakfast in the hospital cafeteria. Tears welled up in my eyes right there in the cafeteria as I realized how I am truly experiencing this right now. 

I shared in a recent post about how this NICU experience with my daughter has been markedly different for me from an emotional perspective than our similar NICU experience with my son nearly two years ago. When I wrote that post my daughter was only a day old and since then I have been waiting for the bottom to drop out of my emotional tolerance for this experience. So far, now that she is 6 days old, it hasn't. God has continued to bring me peace, joy, contentment, and strength when I have least expected it. I find myself multiple times a day on the brink of tears of gratefulness for all that God is doing for me, for our daughter, and for our family during this time. Reading this verse, I am starting to "get it."

I have been walking in Christ (as this verse encourages) in a way that I was not as faithful about doing at the time when my son was born. By "walking in Christ" I mean that I have been seeking to know Jesus for myself, not just reading or listening to what others teach, but spending daily time in the Word (the Bible) and in prayer. As a result, He is building me up and establishing my faith. This has filled me with gratitude for all that He has done and continues to do for me.  And thus, my perspective during life's trials has changed from one of despairing at the trial to "counting my blessing" within the trial and being grateful for how the trial matures me and offers me new opportunities to bring glory to God.

God has filled me with joy and strength and gratitude during this trying time with Lanie Kate in the NICU.  He has given me so so much to be grateful for. I know that our situation is not as dire as many people face, but the contrast of how I handled a similar (and even less dire) situation a couple of years ago when I was not being as faithful walking with Jesus, to how God is enabling me to handle the current situation, tells me that His work in my life as I walk with Him is the significant factor regarding my ability to have joy and gratitude during a difficult time. He can and will do the same for you if you walk with Him through your trials.

GMG Week 1 Reflection {Colossians 1:1-14}

I was so excited for the new session of Good Morning Girls to start because God always teaches me so much going slowly through His Word with a group of girl friends as well as a whole online community that offer so much insight and bring so many personal connections to God's timeless Word! I am already enjoying this study on Colossians.

"Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, to the saints and faithful brethren in Christ who are at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father.  We give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the love which you have for all the saints; because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel which has come to you, just as in all the world also it is constantly bearing fruit and increasing, even as it has been doing in you also since the day you heard of it and understood the grace of God in truth; just as you learned it from Epaphras, our beloved fellow bond-servant, who is a faithful servant of Christ on our behalf, and he also informed us of your love in the Spirit. For this reason also, since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light. For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins." ~Colossians 1:1-14

Paul (the author of Colossians) sure gives my brain a workout trying to make sense out of his run-on sentences! I am not much of an English/grammar person (as you can probably tell if you ever read this blog :-P) but I actually kind of find sentence diagraming fun with Paul's letters because they get so long and complicated. Anyway... a couple of things stuck out to me this week while studying these verses; grace and how Paul prays for the Colossian believers.

Grace. 

Paul opens the letter by writing, "Grace to you and peace from God our Father." He wants his letter to bring grace to the Colossians. Paul is not afraid to call sin, sin, and to rebuke believers when it is needed, but from the very beginning of his letter he wants the Colossians to know that his intent is to communicate grace to them. 

Later in the passage Paul says that a key aspect of understanding the gospel message is understanding the grace of God.  After all, that is what the gospel is all about; God offering us grace through Jesus Christ. We are all sinners by nature, none of us are worthy of heaven, but God offers us grace, giving us what we do not deserve, an inheritance (heaven) by redeeming us through Christ.

I imagine Paul wants to communicate grace to the Colossians because a key aspect of God's message is grace.  Grace is not candy-coating everything or turning a blind eye to sin, but it does involve choosing to show love (the fruit of the gospel message according to this passage) even when we encounter those who do not deserve it (as none of do).

This week God has challenged me to think about my interaction and communication with others. Are my words and actions towards others full of grace? Is my intent when sharing my faith opinions to bring grace to those who hear or just to prove my point?

Prayer for the believers.

I learned so much from the way Paul prays for the Colossian believers.  These are people that he doesn't even know.  He heard of their faith second hand.  Yet, he prays "always" for them.  Since he is praying for people he doesn't specifically know, I imagine his prayer can be applied pretty generally to believers, and I imagine he requests for them the things which he finds of utmost importance for Christians. He makes two major requests in his prayer and gives explanation for those requests.

Request 1: Knowledge of God's will. Paul ask's for this knowledge for the Colossians so that they can "walk in a manner worthy of the Lord," meaning so that they can live in such a way that their lives are a good representation of what they claim to believe. If we do not know God's will (which we can discover through prayerful study of His Word), then there is no way for us to accurately represent Him in our lives.

Request 2: Strengthened with power. Paul ask's for God to strengthen the Colossians with His power so they can be steadfast and patient. Of all the things Paul could ask for, initially I wondered why he thought it was so important to ask for strength so they could be steadfast and patient.  As I thought about it, it made more sense to me. Often times it takes patience to see the positive results of doing God's will and at those times we need God's supernatural strength to help us be steadfast and do what is right even when it is hard and seems like it isn't even making a difference.  

As a parent, I find God's supernatural strength and patience to persevere in doing His will raising my child as necessary on a daily basis! Often times it takes months to see positive results and many times I am tempted to give up because it feels like what I do doesn't matter.  This same sentiment applied when I was a teacher and I'm sure it applies to whatever your current role in life is!

Paul ends his prayer with joyous thanks for redemption and the inheritance we have. This is a good reminder that even praying and making requests to God is a privilege made possible by God's redemptive work through Jesus. 

In light of what I have learned from Paul's prayer, this week I am praying for my friends and family and our whole faith community including other believers I have never even meet modeled after this prayer.

I am looking forward to what I will learn in week 2! You can join me by downloading the 8-week GMG Colossians reading plan here.