Tag: spiritual transformation

Cursing or Cooperating With a Mirror

January 26, 2019 /

This week were fortunate to be staying in a lovely vacation home belonging to some friends of ours. As we were getting settled in, I noticed a mirror on the vanity in our friends’ bathroom.

Now I have a mirror at home. I even have a 3x magnifying mirror.

But this…my friend’s mirror? It is a mirror to be approached with fear and trembling. It is a 10X SUPER LIGHTED MEGA-MIRROR. Bless her heart.

Read: It shows EVERYTHING. All the wrinkles and blotches, and uneven make up application I want to see (but not really).

I have such a love/hate relationship with this mirror! I’m tempted to hide it away and live in blissful, blotchy ignorance.

It is only by looking into it that I can see what’s wrong and correct it, but, oh the pain of confronting all that is unattractive! Yikes!

There are two passages of Scripture that come to mind when I use this mega mirror.

Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror  and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 2But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.

James 1:23-25

And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.

2 Corinthians 3:17-18

The more we look at the Lord in His Word, the more we will see where we fall short of God’s righteousness.

It’s not comfortable noticing the smudges of self-righteousness, or the blotches of bitterness.

We can’t cover the mess with makeup, but by God’s grace we are forgiven, and by the power of His Holy Spirit, gradually we are transformed into people who look more like Him.

So here’s an example. Yesterday, I looked into the mirror of God’s Word. Part of my reading included a situation where Jesus was angry at hard-heartedness and injustice and did something risky.

I was convicted that I may be passionate and get angry about injustice, but how often am I willing to sacrifice my comfort and do something, even something risky? I looked at the glory of Jesus and saw how far I fall short.

This is not an exercise in shaming. I know God loves and forgives me no matter what. But I also know He walks with me and can empower me to be both wise and brave in doing my part to stand up to injustice if I submit to Him.

What about you? What are you seeing in the mirror? How are you being transformed? As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts! If you subscribe and receive these posts by email, just click on the title and it will take you to the place where this is posted on my website. Scroll down to comment. If it’s your first time, don’t worry if it doesn’t show up right away. It will!

Ps. I’m thankful my friend doesn’t have a professional grade scale too!

A One Word Challenge for November

November 4, 2018 /

I burst into the house, arms full of groceries. “John, you’re never going to believe this!” I say to my husband who is watching a football game on T.V. “I had TWO, not one but TWO people thank me for my patience standing in lines today! Can you believe that???”

I am NOT a patient person! And I get impatient with myself for BEING impatient! But this is one of the fruits of the Spirit that has been my Word for the year. Although no-one will ever describe me as patient, there are tiny victories where I see the Holy Spirit exhibiting patience through me.

So here’s your One Word challenge for November: Celebrate even small wins!

Example: I HATE technology. It’s detail-y and unreliable and evil I’m convinced. As a person of little patience, it can drive me crazy when it doesn’t respond the way I want immediately. The other day I was preparing to speak and I had created a power point presentation to go with my talk. I opened it, but all it showed was a blank screen. I took a deep breath and tried opening it about 5 different ways. Then I went to a flash drive I thought I had saved it on, and tried that way. No luck.

Here’s where the win comes in. In the past I would have given up and either called my tech-savvy friend Heather to come over, or just scrapped it. Instead, this time I persevered and took it on as a creative problem-solving challenge (like a spy assignment!). Eventually I cracked the code and celebrated this small evidence of progress in the area of patience and perseverance – fruit of the Spirit, not fruit of Laura.

Share one of your small wins in the comments! If you get this in email, just click on the title and it will take you to the website where you scroll down to leave a comment. If this is your first or second time to comment, don’t worry if it doesn’t show up immediately…it will! Looking forward to hearing from you!

How to Get Better at Anything (A One Word Challenge for October)

October 5, 2018 /

Getting better at anything…. ugh, it’s not easy, right?

It’s not easy, but it is simple. Jon Acuff

If you chose One Word for the year (or if you have any goal ever at all) this is for you.

If you want your kids to be better swimmers, you get them in the water, right?

If you want your kids to learn to read, you read with them, right?

If you want them to get better at social interaction maybe you take them to a party and coach them.

God, as our heavenly parent allows us to be put in situations that stretch the muscles that need stretching so they get stronger.

Have you experienced this?

My One Word is “Fruit”, and specifically the fruit of the Spirit that is PATIENCE! Even the way I write that word says how I feel about it.  Lord have mercy!

Perhaps because this is my word, the Lord seems to keep putting me in situations where I need to WAIT. Where I need PATIENCE. And He says, “Just do it.”

I had an important note I wanted to mail. I was a hard note, a risky note. I knelt to pray before I sent it. As I prayed about it, I heard “Wait.”

“Why?!” I asked. I racked my brain and couldn’t think of a possible reason why I should wait.  Maybe it wasn’t really God speaking to me, but on the off-chance that it was, I figured I’d better obey. It required patience and discipline to wait, which may have been God’s strategy all along, but it was sooooo hard! The next day I reread the note and noticed something I hadn’t before – one line that sounded a little passive-aggressive. Ugh. Ok, Lord, score one for “wait”.

In general, my husband and I are in a season of transition which does NOT suit my personality well – perfect for someone who needs to learn patience, amiright? I’m a “J” on the Meyers Briggs inventory which means I want to make a PLAN! I want to DO something! I want to to FIGURE IT OUT AND MOVE ON!” Recently I was waiting for my family to meet me for dinner while in D.C. and decided to do a prayer walk, asking God for a vision for a post-transition future. And again, I heard that stupid word from Him, “Wait.”

So my suggestion for a One Word challenge for October is to look at your life and notice where God has been allowing you to be put in situations where your One Word muscles are stretched. Talk to Him about those situations. As always, I’d love to hear your experiences in the comments. If you receive this in email, just click on the title and it will take you to the website where you can post a comment. Don’t worry if your comment doesn’t appear immediately – the first couple of times you post I have to ok them.

I remain confident of this:
I will see the goodness of the Lord
in the land of the living.
Wait for the Lord;
be strong and take heart
and wait for the Lord (Psalm 27:13-14).

Catching up on One Word

September 6, 2018 /

Are any of you familiar with the Enneagram? Well if you are, I’m a “7” which means I get distracted by ALL OF THE THINGS! Especially in the summer when there’s just so much awesomeness to see and do! Even if you’re not a 7 or whatever, maybe you can relate.

Summer is distracting in the best way possible. Our routines change. We’re outside 24/7 here in Minnesota because, winter. There are lakes and bide rides and cookouts and travel and tennis and bonfires… And then there’s some other writing and speaking I’ve been doing. Anyway, that’s my excuse for neglecting the blog for awhile. I’m guessing you’ve been so busy you haven’t missed it.

So let’s catch up a little. I missed the One Word Prompt for July and August. How’s that going? Here’s a challenge for September:

  • Who is someone who models your word? In whom do you see joy or patience or fruitfulness or whatever?
  • Ask them out to coffee and talk to them about how they have seen God grow them in that area.

My One Word is “fruit” and more specifically “patience”. Fortunately I’m married to the most patient person I know. I realized I can be learning from him!  I asked him how he does it (apart from the work of the Holy Spirit) and he said years ago he recognized that he didn’t like seeing impatience in others and so he decided to basically “fake it” til he made it. He decided to act like a patient person until he actually felt patient. True patience grew in him over time.

!

How are you doing? What can you celebrate today? Maybe join Paul in saying;

I’m not saying that I have this all together, that I have it made. But I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached out for me. Philippians 3:14

A One Word Challenge for June

June 7, 2018 /

You know something I think many of us aren’t good at as Christians? Celebrating.

I think we’re pretty good at beating ourselves up, and judging others, comparing with others, and rationalizing stuff, but enjoying small wins where we see God at work bringing about change in our lives? Not so much.

I feel guilty and self-conscious noting accomplishments. Pride goes before a fall and all that. (Proverbs 16:18)

But the Bible talks about celebrations, festivals, and feasts. They are meant to generate thanksgiving, mindfulness, and praise of the Lord. The difference between patting ourselves on the back and what God describes in His Word is the orientation. Here are just a few examples.

Celebrate God. Sing together—everyone! All you honest hearts, raise the roof! Psalm 32:11

“This will be a memorial day for you; you will celebrate it as a festival to God down through the generations.” Exodus 12:14

Dress your priests up in salvation clothes, let your holy people celebrate goodness. 2 Chronicles6:41

Hezekiah and the congregation celebrated: God had established a firm foundation for the lives of the people—and so quickly! 2 Chronicles 29:36

Is my celebration all about me, Me, ME, or am I acknowledging God’s gracious work in my life?

It’s June. We’re halfway through 2018. Most of us who chose One Word have been at least vaguely aware of it. I’ve posted a kick in the pants at the beginning of each month to try to help us cooperate with the work God may want to do in our lives around the word we chose. But this month, let’s celebrate! What is at least one small win you can thank God for? 

Post a “win” in the comments. If you receive this through email all you need to do is click on the title. It will take you to the post and you just scroll down to leave a comment. If you haven’t commented before, it won’t show up immediately, but don’t worry, it will eventually! 

I’ll go first. My word is “fruit” as in the “fruit of the spirit”. Specifically I’m challenged with the patience and perseverance required to finish scary, challenging, long-term tasks. Reminding myself that it is the all-powerful spirit of God in me that enables this, instead of my own grit alone, helps. It also helps to remember my “why”. One of my small wins was persevering through technical challenges and finishing my first freebie (You can click here to get it.) with automated follow up welcome emails. The reason this is important is because I want to get life-giving resources into your hands and to build relationships – to reassure you this is a safe, and nurturing place to connect with Jesus and others.

Ok, your turn! What win can you celebrate?

 

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A Catalytic One Word Prompt for May

May 1, 2018 /

Did you choose One Word for the year way back in January? Do you remember it?  I’m posting a One Word exercise at the beginning of each month that may help as we try to cooperate with God’s work in our life.  If you want to look at the first three prompts, look here , here and here

This past Sunday I preached on Jesus being tempted by Satan in the wilderness. There is so much in this passage, but the overwhelming message is that we each face our own wilderness – places of temptation. We are in a battle, but God has equipped us for it. The one offensive weapon He gives us is “the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God” (Ephesians 6:1). So… a question:

Are we effectively using God’s Word to grow in our One Word?

My idea for this month is to find a verse or passage to personalize and memorize that may help us in this journey of transformation. So my one word is “fruit”. I found these verses in Psalm 1 and have personalized them.

My delight is in the law of the Lord,
    and I meditate on his law day and night. I am
   like a tree planted by streams of water,
    which yields its fruit in season. Psalm 1:2-3

Confession: I work hard at it, but I’m a terrible memorizer. Can I share a resource that’s been hugely helpful to me? It’s called Scripture Typer   You can input the verses you want to memorize and it takes you through a process where you type the verse with it in front of you first, then with some words missing, and then from memory. It saves and tracks your progress. As a visual learner it’s been great for me. Check it out!

AND…I’d LOVE for you to share your verses in the comments below!

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A Catalytic “OneWord” Prompt for April

April 1, 2018 /

Well, it’s April and we’re 3 months into the new year. Can you even remember your One Word (IF you chose one!)?

I decided we need each other if we’re going to cooperate with God on His work in us, so I’m posting a One Word exercise at the beginning of each month that may help. If you want to look at the first two prompts, look here and here.

This month I was motivated by a post from Life Church on the power of personal declarations 

Craig Groeschel says,

“Our lives move in the direction of our strongest thoughts.” 

It’s kind of like the difference between looking at a flower bulb and saying “That’s an ugly mess”, and looking at it and saying “That is a picture of soon-to-be-beauty”.

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A Catalytic One Word Prompt for March

February 27, 2018 /

It’s almost March first and as I look out the window where I’m writing the world is still white and gray.

In Minnesota, March is the cruelest month… The month I’m most tempted to throw in the towel and run away to Tahiti. It’s hard to stay motivated on every front, especially the One Word front. But we’re in this together, amiright?

In February I promised a prompt each month to help us really lean into our One Word with Jesus. So today, just two questions to journal about.

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The Biggest Mistake We Make With One Word

January 30, 2018 /

A 10 inch snowfall is pretty norm for Minneapolis in January and for the most part I love it.

It’s beautiful, but as I pull around towards Starbucks early in the dark, post-snowfall morning, the plows are struggling to do their thing, cars are fish-tailing, and I have to dodge people in the street cuz the sidewalks aren’t cleared. GRRR.

Four cars have taken up five parking spaces, using precious real estate, landing haphazardly without yellow lines visible. GRRR.

One car has it’s lights on, looking ready to relinquish his spot, but he doesn’t move. GRRRR.

I give up and drive by only to have him decide NOW is the time to move, and another car swoops in to take his place. GRRR.

I find a remote parking place (read 50 yards away) and slippy slide towards the coffee shop, but realize halfway there, I’ve forgotten my purse. GRRRR.

MY PROBLEMS ARE SO REAL!

I am cranky and impatient and totally ashamed of myself.

Many of us have chosen One Word, this year or in the past. If you’re new to it look here.

My One Word this year is Fruit, as in “The fruit of the Spirit is…PATIENCE!” And it’s been a whole month for Pete’s sake! Why am I not transformed into a person with the Jesus-y glow of patience yet?

One Word is a catchy idea, and as with New Year’s resolutions we often start off with a BANG! This word will CHANGE MY LIFE! But unlike the Darling children in Peter Pan, we need to do more than “think lovely thoughts” in order to get off the ground.

The biggest mistake we make with One Word is to just choose it. 

Last year, I wrote about buying a special (oh so pretty) journal for my One Word reflections. That was a good step (highly recommend!), and so was the reminder on my calendar once a month to review my One Word, but mostly I ignored those prompts.

I’m thinking we may all need a little accountability.  I’m going to commit to posting once a One Word Challenge each month along with an easy prompt that we can all reflect on and respond to. I hope you’ll join me because we’re better together!

So this month, here are 2 simple action steps you can take to move beyond just choosing One Word. 

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