Waiting turns into Action

Sometimes really really awful things happen in the lives of students. Things that you couldn't even imagine. And every time it makes my heart hurt. It doesn't ever get easier hearing about abuse, rape, deaths, bad family situations, eating disorders etc.

Every time that it happens, I long for Jesus to come back. I'm reminded of just how broken this world is. I want it to end and Jesus to come and restore righteousness.

But I have a confession to make, I don't always act on these injustices. Sometimes they are so overwhelming I don't even know where to start and other times I just get lost in my comfort zone. And sometimes I just hope and pray that God will fix it all.

Now don't get me wrong, hoping and praying that Jesus will return and redeem is a good thing. But that doesn't mean we get a free pass.


Look at Simeon in Luke 2:25-35:

Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord's Christ. Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts

First thing that I noticed was that Simeon was a devout and righteous man. He had his head on straight. He was one of the few from the Jewish remnant who was eagerly awaiting the Messiah. He knew God's promises to deliver a Savior were coming.

The next thing that jumped off the page at me was that Simeon was "waiting for the consolation of Israel". Clearly he saw the brokenness of humanity and was waiting for it to be redeemed by the Redeemer and Messiah.

This is usually how I feel when I hear about awful injustices around the world and especially in the lives of the students who I hold so dear. I long for consolation and restoration.

But what is amazing about Simeon is that he doesn't just sit around and wait, he is moved to action. He knew God would fulfill his promise to deliver a Savior and he went to the temple where he would be sure to see this Messiah.

His action was motivated by his faith. He did not just wait idly but sought out the Messiah.

Do you just sit idly and hope for the Messiah to come? Or do you move into action?

Oh Lord move us into people of action. Rise up a generation that will not stand for injustice. Make us a nation who moves to seek you in every circumstance. Let us be more like Simeon and seek you first and always. Fill us with your Spirit and let us move as you lead us. 


This is the third post in my Discovering Advent series. You can get the whole series delivered straight into  your inbox or favorite RSS reader by subscribing on the side bar. Thank you for joining me as I discover the true meaning of Christmas and focus my eyes on Jesus.

Linking up here: Imperfect Prose and SomeGirlsWebsite

Why Advent?

So I really wanted this to be my first post in my Discovering Advent series, but I needed to process yesterday. Thanks for your grace :)




The question of the hour, especially from those who don't participate in traditional church liturgy, is "Why should we celebrate Advent?"

I didn't grow up in a church going family, so up until last year "advent" was just a sweet part of Christmas that allowed me to get a chocolate every day.

As I got older and Jesus intersected into my life I began to wonder what Advent was all about. Was it just some staunchy old-world Catholic thing that had lost its relevance or was there more to the story?

So the Internets came to the rescue! I scoured websites and blogs searching for the truth behind Advent. Was it something I missed in the Bible? Was it simply tradition? Was it worthwhile or a waste of time?

And here's what I've come to know- It's awesome.

Advent (comes from a Latin word meaning coming) is a tradition that started somewhere in the third and fourth centuries as a fast before the Feast of Epiphany where all those who has chosen to follow Jesus were baptized. It's unclear exactly how it evolved into what most liturgical churches (Catholic, Lutheran etc.) celebrate today, but from the beginning it has always been about expecting the coming of Jesus.

Here's the top 10 reasons why Advent is awesome:

1. It allows us to refocus on Jesus for a whole month before Christmas
2. You get to celebrate Jesus' birth for a month instead of just a day.
3. You intentionally look toward Jesus' return (the second Advent)
4. Your eternal perspective grows (see #2)
5. We're reminded that Christmas is not about gifts, snowmen, hot cocoa or even family but Jesus
6. We participate in patience (a willingness to endure suffering) with God.
7. You get to see how Jesus is interwoven through out God's whole story (not just the NT)
8. You are reminded that Jesus is the light of the world (if you use candles)
9. You get to anticipate and be excited about the promises God has yet to fulfill
10. God is glorified in your worship! ( The most important reason!)

So friends, it's not too late to start an Advent tradition of your own. In fact many Advent devotionals start on December 1 (TOMORROW!) I am using a number of great resources as I seek Jesus and discover what Advent is really all about. One of them is from the lovely Ann Voskamp - A Free Advent Jesse Tree Book. Another is from John Piper's blog Desiring God. I'm also going through a devotional series from YouVersion  because it's handy and on my phone. You can do it alongside me and find it here. 

If you want to catch the whole series Discovering Advent make sure you subscribe on the sidebar. Thank you sweet friends for journeying through Christmas season with me!

Linking up with these amazing women:

We are THAT family, Women Living Well, A Holy Experience, Internet Cafe Devotions, Good Morning Girls

A Desperate Need

Someone I knew passed away last weekend. Just hours after a family Thanksgiving dinner. After hearing all the details my heart hurts for his family. I mourn alongside his daughters, one of whom just got engaged and won't have a father to walk her down the isle. My heart hurts for them.

"Death Sucks" I whisper up to God. "Like really, this sucks. I hate it when people die."

God ever so gently reminds me of my part in death.

"Stupid sin causing death. But who am I kidding? I can't go one day with out sinning."

And then God reminds me of His part in death.

"Oh Jesus thank you for Grace. Thank you for taking my death. Thank you for taking my sins. I am dead apart from you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you"

In my path of Discovering Advent, I think about how different that situation might be with out a Savior. 

A lost and broken world not sure of the grace to come. Seeing only obstacles and only rules. Trusting in their own power to deliver them from sin. Desperately hoping for a better way.

Jesus is not only the better way, he is the only way. The only atonement for our sins. The only way for life. 

Thank you Jesus for the cross. For reminding me in the face of death for my desperate need for you. Thank you that You and You alone are the Savior. With out You we are lost.

 

Thank you friends for journeying with me to rediscover Jesus this Christmas season. If you want to catch the whole series be sure to subscribe by email or RSS over on the sidebar.

Linking up with: On Your Heart, Finding Heaven

Discovering Advent: Finding the Reason Behind the Season

Christmas time is one of my very favorite times of the year. The weather, the music, the food, the family and the traditions. I love it all. But so often I forget to put my focus on Jesus.

I get wrapped up in ornaments and cookies. And then by the time Christmas day rolls around I'm tired and glad to finally get it over instead of celebrating the day the Savior came to earth. 

Wouldn't it be great if we could celebrate Christmas for what it really is? As the day that God returned to earth to win the fight on sin? I want to rejoice in Jesus on Christmas.

I want, and more importantly need, to ready my heart by focusing on Jesus during the 4 weeks leading up to Christmas Day. Taking a page out of Laura's book (and because I so so so enjoyed Not About Me November) I'm starting a new series called Discovering Advent. Each day I will be discovering and posting about a different aspect of Advent and the Christmas season. Each post will point back to Jesus as Savior of the World.

If you would, please join me in setting our hearts on things above and looking toward Jesus. You can make sure you catch the whole series by subscribing and getting Angi Does Ministry delivered straight to your inbox or RSS feed. Feel free to take my virtual sticker and stick it places too. You can grab the code in the side bar. 

I am eager to see what God is going to do in my heart this month and can't wait to share with you all!


Linking up with:

Thanksgiving is not about me! (Sharing Jesus at Thanksgiving)

Just like most of you guys, I have a special place in my heart for Thanksgiving. I have an even more special place in my stomach. Seriously, I love love love food. Carbs and I are BFF's.

But really, I love the traditions and quality time spent with loved ones. Every year I have two thanksgivings. Morning Thanksgiving with my family and real Thanksgiving with my best friend's family. 

Thanksgiving 2010

Lexi and I have been friends since we were 13 and I've been celebrating Thanksgiving at their house since I was 15. They are more like family.

Lexi and I 2004ish. Yikes. Look at those awesome braces.

 I have so much fun at their house and man does Lexi's dad make a mean turkey. But I have to say, the thing I have been looking forward to the most is the conversation. Every year there are people from all different spiritual backgrounds and yet we still love each other.

I get to share about what God is doing in my life and share the gospel. I get to talk about why I do full time ministry (most people think I'm totally nuts! lol) and get to show the love of Christ through my actions.

Not many people in my family (or my pseudo-family...) are Christians but I get to display Jesus to them. If you're in my shoes, you might benefit from these tools.

How to share the gospel while blessing the food - Evangelism.net

How to share Christ at Thanksgiving - Eternity Impact Blog

This time of year is a great time to bring up spiritual conversations and transition into sharing the gospel. Many people are already focused on thankfulness (a major biblical theme) and Christmas (the birth of our Savior!) and it can be a natural start to a conversation about Jesus. If you need more evangelism ideas, check out my friend Nate's website Eternity Impact and you'll find 137 easy and creative ways to share the gospel!

What does your family do for Thanksgiving? Do you have opportunities to share Jesus during your holidays? Or do you have any neat ideas or stories for sharing Jesus at Thanksgiving?

Focusing on God with Laura at Beholding Glory:

Also linking up with these amazing women:

We are THAT family, Women Living Well, A Holy Experience, Internet Cafe Devotions, Good Morning Girls

My gifts are not about me

My wonderful friends just after two of us were baptized.

I have the most wonderful small group in the whole world. Every time I'm with them it is such a time of encouragement! We've been going through Ephesians and just started talking about our spiritual gifts.

Now I don't know about you guys, but when I hear "spiritual gifts test" a tiny piece of me dies. It seems like every small group I've ever been in has taken a gifts survey and by now I can just pick out the answers to get the results I want. That was until I took this awesome one called "The Call" (I can't find the website for it now, but if you want to know more just email me) and sat down with a life coach (yep like on Oprah!).

Now if you're anything like me you would be beyond skeptical of some random life coach telling you about your personality and spiritual gifts, but seriously this was legit. Geri, the life coach, was so encouraging and edifying and really assured me that it was okay to be who I was and that was how God made me. I was able to finally get over my bitterness and hardness of heart to really see who God made me to be.

It made me see spiritual gifts in a whole new light, truly as gifts that the Lord has given me. And so I began to function more in the areas God gifted me while intentionally growing the areas where he did not.

But tonight, I had a whole new realization! God showed me his body through the different giftings and how they can be used to edify one another. I always knew it was great to have people who aren't alike to round out the body of Christ. That there needs to be all sorts of people to grow the Church. But I guess I always saw them as tiny little isolated islands. The evangelists would share the gospel, the hospitable would make them feel welcome, the pastoral and teachers would exhort and teach, and the servers would clean up after.

Every "gifting" just kind of doing their own thing apart from each other. But through the wise words of an amazing woman in my small group, I saw how we needed to function intermingled in order to grow.

How you can show leadership within the context of serving, and how you can be merciful and compassionate while standing firmly on truth.

Which makes so much sense! Especially when you think of the context in which God placed the spiritual gifts in Ephesians 4. Paul talks about the body growing and building itself up as each supporting ligament and joint does it's part. (4:16) Ligaments and joints aren't just hanging out in their own little world but joining together two different parts of the body, just as our spiritual gifts tie into each other.

What I saw and felt tonight was a time of encouraging each other in the gifts God has given us. "Jen, you're so good at teaching and shepherding!" "I can really see that God has given you the gift of hospitality, you're so quick to open up your home and serve people!" "It's neat how God has used your gift of evangelism with what you do"

What a blessing to be able to see the body of Christ functioning as he intended-

...joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work (Eph 4:16)

Linking up here:

I can't believe Not About Me November is almost over! If you've been encouraged and want to hear more don't forget to follow or subscribe there on the right. Or if it's your thing you can grab my button (virtual stickers! Remember when trading and collecting stickers was cool? Glad it came back in a grown up version!) I'm so blessed by all of you!

Saturday Scripture

I lift up my eyes to the hills-
     where does my help come from?

My help comes from the Lord,
     the Maker of heaven and earth.

He will not let your foot slip-
     he who watches over you will not slumber;

indeed, he who watches over Israel
     will neither slumber nor sleep.

The LORD watches over you-
     the LORD is your shade at your right hand;

the sun will not harm you by day,
     nor the moon by night.

The LORD will keep you from all harm-
     he will watch over your life;

the LORD will watch over your coming and going
     both now and forevermore.

Psalm 121

My Bible isn't about me.

A while back I was reflecting on all the different facets of God's character and was really wishing I had a master list going. So I started writing them down.

This was great except I really wanted to see them in the context of scripture. So I started writing down different aspects of God's character on the top of my Bible

Our whole purpose in life is to know God's character and proclaim it to the world. So it helps me focus each of my quiet times on who God is so I can better share his glory. This small trick works for me!


Linking up with: Beholding Glory, We are THAT family, Women Living Well, A Holy Experience, Internet Cafe Devotions, Good Morning Girls

God's promises are not about me

God promises so many great things to us. Things like-

• I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you - Psalm 32:8
• If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from unrighteousness - 1 John 1:9
• "For I know the plans I have for you" declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future" - Jeremiah 29:11
• And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus - Philippians 4:19
• If you confess with your mouth "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved - Romans 10:9
• God has said, "Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you" - Hebrews 13:5b

But these promises are not about us. They are intended for us but they are not about us. 

What I mean is that God's promises are more than just blessings for us. They are another way for us to see the character of God.

God doesn't promise to teach us just so we'll learn, but to show us that He is the ultimate teacher

God doesn't just forgive us because we need it, but because He is slow to anger and quick to forgive. (Ex 34:6)

God doesn't provide for us simply to bless us, but to show that He is the Provider and that He holds all the resources of the world

And the reason that we can trust any of God's promises is because His faithfulness is unending. He keeps His covenant because of His love. He keeps His promises because if He didn't then He would no longer be God. 

Sometimes I get so selfish about God's promises. I throw a fit like a two-year-old who isn't getting the candy in the grocery store. 

"But God!" I whine "You promised you would provide for me! Where the heck is my support?" {insert crying and screaming and kicking here}

And in the midst of my self-focused plea to God I forget that He doesn't promise to provide for me just so that I'll have enough money, but so that I can see more of Him. So that when it all comes in I will see that he is faithful, loving, gracious, the one who ordains and arranges, and the Ultimate Provider.

God's promises are good! But they are not purely intended to bless us, but rather to reveal the One Who Blesses.

Lord thank you for the promises you give in your word. Let us see you through them. 

Linking up here:

Also! Did you notice over on that sidebar? Yep, I finally caught up to the game and made my own button!! So feel free to stick it where ever you want like a tiny little virtual sticker :) 

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My Tattoos are not about me.

Alternate title - The Majors and Minors (sidenote Major/Minor by Thrice is a great album!)

Steven Covey says "The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing". 

For Christians the main thing is Jesus. Or at least it should be. 

But so often Christians get so wrapped up in theology that they forget the main thing- Jesus. They forget we live in a world where there are literally BILLIONS of people that don't know him. 

These "arguments" between believers can be one of the biggest distractions from people coming to know Christ. If Christians spend all their time debating each other over things that are not the main thing then who is going to tell all those non-believers about Jesus?

The "minors" distract from what God has called us to do- display His glory and tell people about Jesus.

One of these minors (in my mind at least) is tattoos. I know there are a lot of people, probably some of you that read this blog, that think tattoos are wrong and would never get one. 

That is perfectly okay. One can be a Christian with or with out tattoos. We are called to be beacons of light in a lost world. We're told whatever we do to do it for the glory of God. 

And my tattoos are for the glory of God. I have two tattoos on my feet - 

19,340 is the height of Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania and Isaiah 52:7 which says "How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news" (sorry I have weird looking feet lol)

I got these shortly after I got back from Africa, which the first place that God really started working in my heart. You can read the whole story of God's goodness here. 

And Isaiah 52:7 reminds me that our true value comes from God and he finds beauty in those who share the gospel. 

So whenever someone asks me "What are those random numbers on your feet?" I get to tell all about God's beautiful pursuit of me and what Jesus did for me on the cross. 

I have another new tattoo on my wrist that I'm sure will get me into sweet conversations too. 

This is the Hebrew word "checed" meaning faithful love. It is one of the words that God uses to describe himself to Moses in Exodus 36:4. The key passage of God's word that most embodies this word is Psalm 136. That's the one where every verse says "His love endures forever" - that enduring love is checed. 

Two of my dear friends Kaylee and Tina also have awesome God-glorifying tattoos.

This is a picture of us and our lovely un-inked friend Danica. Clock-wise from top: Tina, Danica, Kaylee and me. I love these girls a whole lot!

Kaylee and Tina both work at Best Buy and have conversations nearly daily about their tattoos:

One of Tina's many - A story of Good and evil

Kaylee's wrist - agape

While they're selling computers and sound systems they get to tell of God's redeeming work in their lives. They know that even their own bodies are not about them but about bringing Glory to God. 

Even though we all love our tattoos, we know that they are not about us. They are about Jesus, the one and only, the life giver and our redeemer. Even redeeming the practice of tattooing from something that thousands of years ago was intended for idol worship into something that would be used for God.

I consider it a blessing to be able to share about the character of God through my body. And ultimately I pray that it will be useful as a tool to bring others to know God.

Redeemer God, thank you for the freedom you bring in Christ. Thank you for sending your Son to die in our place that we might partake in this freedom. Thank you for placing me in a society where I can use my tattoos to glorify Your name. Lord would you continue to use us and our tattoos to tell people about You. We love you so very much.

Linking up here:

My sin is not about me

So often when we sin the tendency is to look back at ourselves and only see our imperfections and to become discouraged.

I know frequently I look at myself and think "Oh man I just suck. Why can't I ______?". Sin has this way of distorting our vision and reminding us of our failures.

We become what we focus on. So if our focus is on our failures and regrets, it just opens up this door for sin to rule. It's like an unraveling sweater.

The sweater might start out great but you walk by something and it snags. At first there is this tiny string, but the more you pull and pull and pull the sweater starts unraveling. All of a sudden all you have is pile of yarn on the floor and you're standing in the cold with out a sweater.

It's the same way with sin, at first it might be something small like sleeping in instead of having a quiet time. But the more you focus on the sin, the more your focus becomes about you and your shortcomings instead of the mercies of God.

Nehemiah 9:26-31 shows the "big picture". Israel was caught in a sin cycle - they would sin, plead to God for forgiveness, God would give them a righteous judge to guide them, and then as soon as the judge died or left they quickly forgot God and were consumed with sin again. (You can read the whole story in Judges)

Four times in this passage Nehemiah talks about the character of God during these times of sin.

From Heaven you heard them, and in your great compassion you gave them deliverers, who rescued them from the hand of their enemies. (9:27)

And when they cried out to you again, you heard from Heaven, and in your compassion you delivered them time after time. (9:28)

 For many years you were patient with them. (9:30)

 But in your great mercy you did not put an end to them or abandon them, for you are a gracious and merciful God. (9:31)

Through out their sin, the character of God did not change. God is still merciful and gracious even when we sin against Him.

 What if when we sin, instead of feeling sorry for ourselves and discouraged, we focused on the character of God? If in our sin we turned away from our self-pity and turned to embrace the Creator?

What if we turn our focus to him like Nehemiah did in 9:17 "But you are a forgiving God, gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love"

Or like David in Psalm 51? "Have mercy on my, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions."

When we shift our focus to Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, and trust him to fix us it will bring God the most glory. To focus on Him is our only hope of leaving our own sin cycles. Let's trust God to be the one who repairs our unraveling sweater and to knit it together by His spirit.

Oh Lord it is so easy to focus on our own shortcomings. I confess my self-focus in my sin. Lord lead me into your glory. Let us focus on you the grace giver whose mercies are new every morning. Thank you for being the one to repair us. 


This is my third post for Not about Me November over at Beholding Glory. It has been such a blessing and such a great way to focus my heart. Have you written any NAMN posts that you've linked up to Laura? I'd love to read them! Leave the links in your comment and I'll make sure I swing by. You can find my other two posts here:

Dating is not about me.
My Birthday is not about me.

If you have been blessed by what God is teaching me and how He is working in the lives of college students, make sure to subscribe either by email or by reader. You can do that up top on the sidebar :)

My Birthday is not about me

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Today is my 22nd birthday and I can not take any credit.

With so many friends writing on my facebook wall, sending me sweet texts, taking me out for dinner, etc it would be so easy to think this day is all about me. Easy to inflate my own pride and think this is all happening because I'm so great and people love me so much.

But the truth is, that any good thing that my friends see in me is because of Jesus. Apart from Him, I am mean, selfish, rude, arrogant and prideful. Through His spirit living with in me, He enables me to be loving and joyful, patient and kind, bold and encouraging.

All glory and praise be to God Almighty for twenty-two amazing years. Thanks be to Him who created me, sustains me, provides for me, loves me, teaches me, shapes me, and most of all saves me.

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Linking up here:

Dating is not about me!

Sometimes being single is great. But sometimes, I feel a little isolated. Like I'm on the outside of this great thing that everyone else is a part of.

Ever since I was a little little girl, I've wanted to be a mom. I cared for my baby dolls (and later my baby brother) and even wrote in a Dr. Seuss book about my future hopes of mother hood. The more I learn, the more my heart for adoption grows. I've told people (quite often) if my circumstances were different (not 22, single and broke) I would adopt eight kids.

Loving on my baby brother

And I would be lying if I said I didn't want to be married (obviously since I want kids lol). I think of how God designed marriage as a way to reflect himself to the world. I see how it can grow and change people in ways that singleness can not. I sometimes long for that person to whisper to in church or to give me directions when I get lost or to help me out in difficult circumstances.

The other night God gently reminded me while I was talking to a guy I like, that my value is not found in whether or not that guy asks me out. How like God to encourage me in the midst of a situation tempting me to believe something false.

The next morning in my time with Jesus, I was continuing to process God's gentle reminder of where my value comes from. I had this little voice in the back of my head (who sounded an awful lot like Laura ;) ) that it's Not About Me and lightbulbs started going off.

More like fireworks actually. Something clicked.

Dating is not about me.

Being single is not about me either.

Actually, my relationship status (no matter what it is...) is not about me!

Seriously, it was like this huge weight of responsibility just flew off my chest. It's not about me. It's not about how I look or what I say. It's not about whether another person accepts me or rejects me. It is not about me.

Dating, singleness, marriage; they are all good things. All of them can bring glory to God. Dating is not about us. It is about bringing glory to God by displaying his passionate love for the world. (Check out Ephesians 5 if you don't know what I'm talking about)

No matter where I'm at in my relationship status it doesn't matter because it's not about me. I can't tell you what freedom this brought me when it FINALLY clicked. Now let's just hope it sticks... :)

Linking up with:

Good Morning Girls, Word Filled Wednesday