So Grateful

I am so grateful that God did not call us to a ministry of deliberation or reputation but to a ministry of reconciliation! Through Christ we were/are reconciled to God and saved from His wrath. I am personally grateful for the grace, love, and forgiveness I have received! I pray I do a better job of passing it on just as I have received it. I will rejoice!

Romans 5:11

"Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation." (NIV)

You know I often wonder - not that I get it right all of the time - but I wonder why we choose NOT to do certain things because we know how it feels instead of doing something BECAUSE we know how it feels. What do I mean you may ask? Maybe we can convince others that we are forgiven in this way.....

2 Corinthians 5:11-15, "Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade men. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience. We are not trying to commend ourselves to you again, but are giving you an opportunity to take pride in us, so that you can answer those who take pride in what is seen rather than in what is in the heart. If we are out of our mind, it is for the sake of God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again." (NIV)

Or.....perhaps you don't hold grudges because you know what that feels like. What if it looked like this: I forgive because I KNOW HOW IT FEELS. Same thing different perspective. I am grateful for the forgiveness I have received from my God and people. I'm sorry if someone has held a grudge against you perhaps they will remember what forgiveness feels like and send a little your way. Or we can do as Paul instructs here....

2 Corinthians 5: 16-17, "So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" (NIV)

Did you see that? I have missed this all too often myself - "from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view." What do you think Paul is saying here? Maybe just maybe it ties right in with this:

Proverbs 3:1-6, "My son, do not forget my teaching, but keep my commands in your heart, for they will prolong your life many years and bring you prosperity. Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man. Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.

Ok, can I just say, "OUCH!" ? Too many times have I looked at others as simply people instead of His valued prized creation - the Apply of HIS Eye! Oh sure there are days when I have to convince myself of the same regarding myself but daily I need to regard others from HIS point of view not a worldly one.

Then when James addresses the little things, yes they are little, that causes quarrels among us, I think it was four letter word called SELF. We are all so concerned for ourselves, we protect ourselves, and even run from ourselves. But even where it concerns our'selves' we are to be reconciled. Quit holding that grudge against yourself. You are not merely valuable YOU ARE VALUED! That is so much more! You are not and never will be what others say you are! You have been defined by something bigger than you or they will ever be - CHRIST, His death, His resurrection, and His return! So we can quit that quarreling, quit demanding our own way, quit carrying that garbage bag of guilt, and just stop, drop, & pray. He has made a way - God has deemed us reconciled unto Him through His Son. We are redeemed!

2 Corinthians 5:17, 18-21 (NIV)

(Too good of news not to include again & again...) Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!

All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin[a] for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (NIV)

So what does all this mean? Forgive as you were forgiven. Give grace as you have been given. Love as you have been loved. And now look at others from a Kingdom Point of View not a worldly one. Perhaps, just maybe, we all will do a better job with grace, forgiving, and loving if we did see others through His eyes.

Abiding Still,
Chel

Great Article on Welcoming New Women in Your Church...

 I love how our Father works!! This EXACT thing has been on my heart for a year and I have been delaying in obedience to do anything about it. I felt helpless really as to HOW to do it. But here lately God has been equipping me and showing me how to do what He has called me to do.

Then today I saw this article in their archive. I hope it speaks to you as well and it is a great follow up to the previous post on WALLS - Ways Around Living & Loving Sacrificially. Enjoy!

from Lifeway Women: http://blogs.lifeway.com/blog/women-ministry/2010/08/5-easy-ways-to-welcome-new-women.html

Have you ever joined a church and struggled to figure out where you fit? I have and that was after serving on a church staff in another city for about 12 years. You’d think I would know how to fit in! But it is not so eas, even for a leader. If we do not find effective ways to get to know other women and get them engaged fully in church life, she may leave and find a place where she can fit. Or she may just come to worship on Sunday and not get involved in a small group or any other activity where she can grow and serve.



It takes more than one person to draw a woman into fellowship at your church. It also takes more than one way of touching her life. To welcome guests into your women's ministry, consider forming a team of volunteers to exercise at least seven "touches" to new members of your women's ministry.



Here are a few suggestions:

• Extend a handshake, smile, and "hello" to greet a new member when she is presented for church membership.

• Call her and schedule a convenient time to meet with her.

• Visit her in her home and share information about the church and women's ministry. Share details about other ministries she might like to be involved in, such as Bible study, programs for her family, etc.

• Ask how you and others can pray specifically for her and her family.

• Follow up at least four more times in a variety of ways:

· Send a handwritten note welcoming her to your church.

· Invite her to the next luncheon, dinner, or other activity with a complimentary ticket. You may even want to offer to carpool.

· Invite her to your house or to meet you for coffee.

· Invite her to Wednesday night supper and Bible study.

· Bring her to a regular women's study or other gathering and introduce her to others.

· Introduce her to other new members.

· Seek her out at church and invite her to sit with you, especially if she is alone.

· Bring her homemade cookies or bread, or flowers from your yard.

· Send a card to let her know you are remembering her.


These are only a few suggestions. Be creative with these, and include several women in this "seven touch" ministry.
Share what you do to keep new women from falling through the cracks.
Want the full listing of ideas to welcome women into your ministry? Read Transformed Lives: Taking Women's Ministry to the Next Level.

I pray you feel equipped to better handle your new women too.

Abiding in HIM
Chel

Walls within our walls and then there is the wallpaper....

No this isn't a design post, I'm talking people, WALLS & relationships . So I say,

"If you tear it down they will come!"

Have you ever noticed the number of walls that seem to be around ourselves and others? Lately I have seen them in abundance and variety: high, tall, strong, and most nearly impenetrable! But the one thing that walls have in common is that they are (for the most part) perceived - assumed - presumed - and quite often not even intentional. I have watched as walls build up around people, namely women, so much so that the women eventually begin to blend in with the walls. aka the Wallpaper, the Woodwork, just seem to disappear, etc. Or maybe there are walls that you are projecting onto people and you can't seem to scale it in order to approach them. Is it their clothes, their hair, their relationship status??? What is it exactly that makes us uncomfortable around others????

One word...WALLS

Picture of lady praying at the Wailing Wall from The World Race.

An organization to stop the s** trade in Thailand and around the world.

Imagine that challenge to love those women...one who would hit on your man to make a dollar.

Could YOU love HER? Yes, that is a WALL.

Ways Around Living & Loving Sacrifically

My heart has been breaking when I see women who keep to themselves out of fear from stepping out from behind their wall or beyond the perceived walls of others. I guess we can all give off that "air" from time to time but here is a crucial difference, an "us vs them", a "have and have not" scenario - when you know Christ, if you know Christ - HIS love should reach beyond all walls real or perceived. We should follow His example.

He is the only demolition expert when it comes to relational walls. He is the only one able to tear down every brick and mortar, hay, mud, etc wall on the face of this earth in order that His love may be freely given and received. He was there when Jericho's walls came crumbling down! He was there when the veil was torn! He was - correction HE IS HERE! Here to remove all our walls, our pain, our dirt, our hurt, and all that we desire to cover up, protect, and secure....HE unveiled His presence to us to live in us and share HIS love through us.

The next time you see someone trying desperately not to be noticed in your church, in your city, in your school - WELCOME THEM. The next time you see someone blending in with the wall paper MAKE EYE CONTACT. The next time you see _________________________ (anyone) SHARE HIS LOVE.

This is just my conviction but perhaps when you, who read this, see me trying to be the woodwork, just might give me a smile or a hug. Just maybe we will all reach out and UNVEIL HIS LOVE.

Abiding Still,