Karen Rabbitt

Remembering Altars

"Build altars in the places where I remind you who I am and I will come and bless you there.” Exodus 20:24, NLT

Has God reminded you of who he is lately? In our forgetful fallenness, we need reminding. In the early days, when God showed himself, they made altars of stacked stones. In Genesis 12:7, Abraham built an altar at Bethel, after God appeared to him, saying “To your offspring I will give this land.” NIV But building stone altars in our front yards isn’t part of our American culture. How can we build an altar where God reminds us of his character?

Three ways come to mind: journaling, art, and planting. We can take the time to put into language what God does for us. A thankfulness journal of those times when we get a glimpse of his kindness to us can serve as a place of remembrance and refreshment. We can also buy or make an art object. A photograph of a place where God showed himself, sitting on our desk, can be a place of rest in the midst of our busy days. Planting a tree in memory of a special experience with God can be a place of blessing.

We’re all spiritually blind. None of us sees reality like Jesus did when he looked through his human eyes. Wisdom dictates setting up altars, visual reminders of God. Has he revealed himself to us in the last few weeks? Have we made a reminder of that? A concrete cue will help us remember and God will bless us there.

Father, thank you again, for all the reminders you create for us. May we create altars to you, so we never forget your faithfulness.

Holy Nutrition

How do we be “in the world but not of it” in our relationship to food? “World” refers to all the ungodly aspects of culture that seek to shape us into its mold. How, in our attitudes toward food, can we resist the shaping of a hedonistic culture? I like doing my primary shopping at Aldi, a limited choice grocery store, because it limits my temptations. That limitation increases my freedom to choose good nutrition. Now, there’s a word for you. Nutrition. How is it that the word to describe the elements we need to sustain our bodily life—vitamins, protein, fats, minerals—sounds so dull. 

I don’t want nutritious food. I want delicious food. I want warm chocolate chocolate chip cookies. But my body wants sweet potatoes, with their fiber, potassium, and vitamin B6. I even like sweet potatoes. But if I could get the same nutrition from chocolate, is there any question which I’d scarf down? 

Holiness is wanting what I need. Can’t say I’m there yet, certainly not all the time. And, yes, sometimes we need a treat. The question is: “How often?” 

Maybe food isn’t your temptation, but I’m guessing we all have at least one biggie that we fight with day by day. Let’s not give up seeking the Holy Spirit’s power. To be shaped into his image is worth what it costs. 

Jesus, may the Holy Spirit shape our attitudes today. May we want what is good for us.

 

You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. 1John 4:4 NIV

Let's Pass the Test

Though neither of us enjoys the process, God tests us. Deuteronomy 8:2 says:  Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. (NIV) Will we praise him in spite of the wilderness, or are we full of self-pity? Will we accept what he allows without grumbling or will we let anger grow? Will we seek wisdom from others or stubbornly stick to our own wisdom?

Before the nation of Israel’s wilderness years, Joseph, the son of Israel, was tested. First sold into slavery, then falsely accused of rape, Joseph spent twelve years in prison. Then, through a series of God-ordained events, Joseph was not only restored but promoted. Whereas he had been head of the palace guard’s household, now he was second in command over all Egypt subject only to Pharaoh himself,. (See Genesis, beginning in chapter 37) After twelve years in prison, Joseph had learned to keep his bragging mouth shut. When his brothers actually did bow before him like Joseph had bragged they would, he did not say “I told you so.” Joseph passed God’s test. There is no record of self-pity or grumbling during his prison years. Joseph, like Jesus, had learned obedience by the things he suffered.

The choice is ours. Let’s determine to learn obedience by the things we suffer. Let’s guard our hearts against anger. When our wisdom runs out, let’s submit to other’s wisdom. 

Father, we do not like your tests, nor do you enjoy giving them. May we, by your power, pass them quickly and be not only restored but promoted.

Deceptive Reality

Communion looks like nothing. In non-liturgical services it’s often crackers and juice, served on utility tables. The glitter and glamour of the world, however, looks like the kingdom come. The world’s silk and linen, finely-sanded walnut, and winter cruises to warm places can seem to be the epitome of a good life. A brochure of a Bermuda cruise makes it feel like heaven.

Looking more closely at the elements of communion, though, exposes Kingdom treasure. “This is my body,” Jesus said, on the night Judas kissed him. “This is my blood, poured out for all,” Jesus said, knowing the bloody encounter the kiss would set in motion. By that bloody body, Jesus opened a door that Adam and Eve had slammed shut. Now Jesus stands at that door, a golden light glowing behind him. He welcomes all who approach: “Come, my friend, the Kingdom awaits.” Jesus presides over a Kingdom that begins in pain but will end in peace and joy.
 
My husband and I went on a  Bermuda cruise in 1993. The image on the front of the brochure showed a woman in a flowing gown with a tuxedoed man, embracing at the rail as the moon’s golden light shone on the water. Truly, it looked like heaven. But, when Jerry and I, dressed in our elegant clothing, gazed at the moonshine on the water one night, I thought, “This is pleasant, but it’s not heaven.”

And yet, God displayed his power in the midst of that trip. One day, I was ascending the stairs at the English linen shop. Inhaling the lavender scent, I thought, “I am completely relaxed. I am fully present to this one golden moment that God has given me.” I returned from that trip determined to seek his Kingdom peace more earnestly. The Kingdom wasn’t in the glamour of the Dreamward, Norwegian’s new boat, nor was it in the opals that sparkled in Bermuda’s jewelry stores. The real Kingdom, procured by Jesus’ blood, brings God’s peace. May we all seek that peace in the midst of the world’s glittery deceptions.

Mission Match Initiative

This week, I'm inviting you to join my husband and me in a national missions initiative. John and Sylvia Ronsvalle, whom we’ve known since we were young, are bold. For more than thirty years, they have headed empty tomb (intentionally uncapitalized), a source for free clothes, home maintenance, and food, among other services, for the poor of Champaign-Urbana.

In the last few years, they have begun a nationwide initiative, called Mission Match, to increase American Christian involvement with the poor. They offer matching monies to any congregation who will raise finances for a specific, usually international, project. They have proved the concept:  if others will match the funds, pastors can engage their people to participate in projects that share Jesus while meeting basic needs.

These are a few of their accomplishments, taken from their website:
A non-denominational church in Minnesota sent a missions team to build a church in the Dominican Republic and to minister to orphans and the elderly.    

A Church of Christ congregation in Minnesota funded a pharmacy, an ophthalmology clinic, and medical care for the needy in Nicaragua

A Baptist church in New York helped to build a primary school building in Kenya and supported teacher training for teachers in the school.

A church in  Kentucky sent a mission outreach team to Kenya

John and Sylvia possess the solid quirkiness of true disciples of Jesus. They dream big. And they have the research and credentials to back up their dreams. They’ve published books on American church finances, including a continuing series of reports on giving. And they live what they preach:  the poor are their neighbors and their friends, as well as their clients.

Recently, we listened to their audacious plan to finance Mission Match. They want to wake the sleeping giant that is the American church, by getting us to give $48 a year. That’s the easy part. The hard part is what I’m doing right now. They also want each giver of $48 to ask three of their friends to give and ask three of their friends, who will ask three of their friends, and so on, until hundreds, thousands, even millions are involved. They call this a Discipleship Tree.

In their brochure, they point out that many Christians around the world are regularly forced out of their comfort zones, into prison, kidnappings, and beatings for their faith. I’m not being beaten, but I am out of my comfort zone to ask you to consider this request. And I’m asking you to push out of yours, too.

If you want to join Jerry and me, send me an email. On the right side of this page, you’ll see a link to my email. Check out their website first. http://www.wakethesleepinggiant.info/cgi-bin/tree.cgi   

The giving is done online, or you can send a check. But first, I need to know you want to participate, so I can enter your name and email into the tree. Then, you can go online to register and pay. They have a cool graphic that shows how the tree is growing, so we can see God at work!