"ALTARED: The true story of a SHE, a HE, and how they both got too worked up on about the WE" is non-traditional look at marriage in the Christian culture. The authors, Claire and Eli, willingly admit to their audience that this book is "raw" and based heavily on their own personal experiences. It is their look into the Christian view of marriage from their own personal perspectives.
If you were expecting this to be anything like a traditional Christian book on dating and marriage then I encourage you to never EVER read this book because it is in NO WAY a traditional view on marriage! In some ways the authors seem to look down upon and belittle the traditional standards of Christian dating and marriage. As you may have guessed from the title one of their major issues with the traditional viewpoint is the amount of emphasis that is placed on dating and marriage in the church. It goes to the point that it is almost past observation and into the realm of being blatantly offensive.
This book does challenge you to look at things in a way most Christians aren't normally challenged to but I would never recommend this book to someone who already struggles with the ideas of dating and marriage. Make no mistake that I agree that too much emphasis is placed on the fact that many Christians and churches seem to believe that all Christians have to get married, but that doesn't belittle the importance of marriage. There are times that I felt it was marriage--rather than the over focusing on marriage--that was questioned, but that's just my opinion.
However, Altared is a good reminder to churches and church staffs that you don't have to be married to be an effective Christian or an effective minister. I believe that was part of the original intent of this book and for that I applaud them. I simply ask that they present their case in a way that I feel more of an equal and less talked down to.
You can try Altared for yourself by reading Chapter One.
This book was provided to me free of cost for review purposes by Waterbrook Multnomah Publishing.
Let me tell you...the music was amazing! The guys from the bands were super nice, but that wasn't really the only thing that made my night.
My husband, Jimmy, was the one who organized this whole concert so we were at the church all day getting ready. When I was helping the Compassion International Volunteers get their table set up I felt like one of those kids reached right out of their folder and grabbed me! Her name is Ela.
I don't know if you know this but when I was in college I majored in Intercultural Studies. As a part of that program they paired us up with another student (yeah, Alisha!) and they sent us out to live in another country for six months. During that time we lived with an indigenous family, learned as much of their language as we could, studied their ethnic group, and worked to give back and be a blessing.
Now you may be asking yourself how this all relates so let me get to that...
Ela lives in the same country--even the same "city" as Alisha and I lived. She shares the same family name as our family and she speaks the same language. Not only that but she also has the same birthday month as me, my husband, and one of our American friends we met while living there. Needless to say, I felt very connected at her. The more I learned about her the more I just wanted to cry. That's about the time that Jimmy walked up.
As I told Jimmy about this girl, he understood. Jimmy had been on the receiving end of all my emails during the six months that I lived in West Africa. He knew as much about my family as he possibly could, and without hesitation he decided that we HAD to sponsor Ela. So I am happy to tell you that Ela came home with us last night!
If you are interested in learning more about sponsoring a child, visit Compassion Internationals Website. There are children all over the world who really need your help! Don't miss your opportunity to be a blessing in their lives.
My husband, Jimmy, preached at our church this Sunday and I know I am biased but I think that he did a really amazing job! So I encouraged him to write out his sermons from Sunday in a series of smaller blog posts that everyone could enjoy. I also promised him that I would allow him to guest post one here. So ladies I hope you enjoy the an excerpt from Jimmy's 13 Characteristics of a Growing Church!
13 Characteristics of a Growing Church by Jimmy Mustion
Hello, ladies!
This week I have been prepping to preach the Sunday morning and Sunday night services at Villebrook Baptist Church while my pastor recovers from surgery. While I was studying and praying, God laid it on my heart that I should talk about characteristics of a growing church as laid out in Romans. I don't want to give everything away before I preach but I will give you the first point in my 13 point sermon and then for the sake of attention spans, I will break the other 12 points out over the next few weeks. Hope that sounds good to you because that's the plan...so here you go...the sneak preview of my GIANT HUGE 13 Point Sermon...
The 1st Characteristic of a Growing Church is Love.
"Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good." Romans 12:9
In the English language, the word love is tossed about WAY to easily! We love pizza. We love going to the movies. We love our favorite sports team--Go Cards! But what does it mean to have a genuine love?
Good morning, everyone! I am sure that you have all hear me talk about my husband, Jimmy, about a thousand times on here. Jimmy is an amazing man and an amazing youth minister who just happens to write two blogs--one for ministry and one for entertainment. Today, I want to share with you a link to his recent post on worship. It's called Heart of Worship.
I don't know about you, but working with teenagers we often hear complaints. "I like this but I don't like that." or "Why do we have to do things this way? Why can't we do them my way?" You name it and we (and probably you) have heard it.
A not great trend we have been noticing is that this extends to church. Jimmy's post deals with having a heart of worship no matter what the worship style but talking about what worship really is. I encourage you to read his post and to leave him a comment. It would really encourage him and it might even encourage you!
Monday I promised you that I would write about what I learned from Brother Frank on Sunday. As a rule, I try never to break my promises so here it is... (if you don't know what I am talking about read You Never Let Go" )
In 2008, my parents and sisters joined Union Hill Baptist Church in Holts Summit, MO. Three years later I had still never been to their church although I had the opportunity to meet some of the church members and I had met Brother Frank three times before (when mom was in the hospital, at a women's conference, and at my grandma's funeral) so I was excited to finally be able to come experience this church they love and to actually hear Brother Frank preach. I wasn't disappointed.
After Scotty shared his testimony and sang, I knew that God had brought me to Union Hill Baptist Church on this particular Sunday for a reason. I was actually supposed to come the week before but we had to postpone mom's surprise party due to grandma's death. God knew what he was doing sending me here this Sunday instead of last.
The sermon was over a group of passages that I have heard preached several different times. Often you hear the same message from the same passage but not this time. For the first time, I realized several of the verses that Brother Frank was lumping together into one sermon are often preached individually. How many times have you heard a sermon from 1 Peter 5:7, "casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you"? or 1 Peter 5:8, "Be of sober spirit, be on the alert Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour"? It actually didn't dawn on me until we read them all together that they are actually back to back verses in the Bible (I have a bad problem of remembering the verse but not the reference)! When we read them all together they took on a whole new meaning for me.
"So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you. Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your Christian brothers and sisters all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering you are. In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation. All power to him forever! Amen." 1 Peter 5:6-11 NLT
Although these verses have great meaning individually, I think they are way different when you consider them all in relation to one another.
Brother Frank shared that Scotty was right. We all go through rough spots in our lives. We take some hits and we feel the sting of disappointment but you have to hold on to God. It all starts with being humble. God promises that if we humble ourselves before Him then at the RIGHT time HE WILL lift us up. But that requires us to first be humble and to submit ourselves to God.
Once we have humbled ourselves before God and submitted ourselves to the power of God and the will of God, then we are to cast all our cares on Him. Why? Because He cares for us. It's not that He doesn't want to hear our concerns and our worries if we aren't completely and perfectly humble, it's just that God gives us freewill and if we aren't submitting ourselves to God then we aren't allowing Him to handle our problems. We are instead choosing to try and handle them on our own which actually causes more disappointment and worry!
Finally, the last thing that really spoke to me was Brother Frank's analogy. This passage tells us to be alert adn stand firm when facing the enemy. Brother Frank said that when he played baseball in high school he was a catcher but he was a small catcher compared to most of the other players. His coach told him that because he was smaller than the other players he was going to get run over. No and ifs or buts about it. They would see his size, assume he was no challenge, and they would charge the plate. The coach told him that his job was to stand firm, take the hit, and hold on to the ball for the win. If he didn't stand firm when taking the hit then he would get hurt. However, if he could stand firm while taking the hit and still hold onto the ball then he would survive the impact and they could win the game. Then he related it. As Christians, we are small against the world. We will take hits in our lives. It's our jobs to stand firm. We need to hold onto our faith and to God so that we too can win the game and defeat the enemy. Then there will be true joy and rejoicing in our lives. We won't be living in disappointment anymore. We will have victory over the enemy. We will have victory over the depression we have been fighting. All the hits will make sense and they will be worth it.
So join me today in standing firm. Hold on to God. Hold on to faith. Defeat the enemy!
Yesterday I traveled to Fulton, Missouri, to help throw a surprise 60th birthday party for my mom. I was supposed to come and be part of the distraction to get her away from the church and back again in time for the party. My youngest sister, Gretel, said that I should come down for Sunday morning worship at their church. I decided I would, and I never realized that God would speak to me when I thought I was only there to distract the birthday girl! Today, I want to share with you a little of what God shared with me yesterday at Union Hill Baptist Church.
I don't know about you but I have had a hard couple of weeks. Three weeks ago, I was sitting in the hospital with my mom waiting by my grandma's death bed. Two weeks ago, we were at Grandma's funeral. This week I was supposed to be away from my home church again but I was actually able to be in a worship service with God's people and it felt great! So I get to surprise my mom and tell her that I came to celebrate her birthday which made her happy. Then we went into church.
A young man named Scotty (who has an undetermined part to play in my family as he sent my sister Mary a rose for Valentine's Day...but I digress) gets up to sing special music. Before he sings, he shares a testimony about what has been going on in his life. Scotty has been going through a rough time. He is dealing with the fact that he is in a season of disappointment and that it has been hard to see God lately and that he is waiting for some of his hopes and dreams to be answered with no parent response from God. He tells how this continued inaction and disappointment has led him to continual sadness and even some depression. He is braver than I am. I would never get up in front of church and say those things. Still the tears come to my eyes quickly. But Scotty isn't finished. He then shares about how God has helped him to realize that sometimes God puts these times in our lives so that we will appreciate the outcome and that He is always there with us and He will never let us go. Then Scotty sang "You Never Let Go" by David Crowder Band.
I can't help it. The tears start falling silently but steadily. I understand what he is saying. I know how Scotty has been feeling. I have lived there lately. There are a couple of things that I would really like to see happen in my life--that I feel God has promised me WILL happen in my life--that haven't come. I have been dealing with disappointment and waiting. It has beaten me down again and again. The question is will I claim the same promise that Scotty did? Will I trust that God is using this so I will see and recognize and appreciate the good things that He brings out of it? Will I trust Him to never let me go?
Only time will tell.
I have SO much more to say about all the things that God said to me yesterday through Scotty and Brother Frank yesterday. Come back on Wednesday to find out more.
Dear God, Please be with all the people like me and like Scotty who are dealing with a season of disappointment in their lives. Help us to see Your hand holding us and guiding us. May we seek Your face and find You in the midst of it all. Give us the strength to rely solely on You. Give us the patience to wait for Your timing and give us the joy of Your fulfillment of Your promises. Thank you for being faithful to us even when we lose faith. Thank you for never letting go. Amen.
Two weeks ago, we went on our annual mission trip. This year we traveled to inner-city Memphis. When we began planning this trip back in December, we decided that this year we were not only going to challenge our teenagers and adults with physical and spiritual tasks but also with mental ones. We decided that the best way to do this was to require them to take classes during their mornings. They were allowed the freedom to choose classes from a list of course offerings and then they were required to attend their chosen classes all week. The other ministers’ wives and I decided we could best handle our other responsibilities by joining forces to teach a girls only class. During this class the girls learned many different lessons as each wife took time to share the lesson that God had laid on her heart for the week.
For my lesson, I taught the girls about being Daughters of the King. My time that week was limited but I want to take the next couple posts that I make to further expand and break down the lesson that I presented to these beautiful young women. We all need to learn about being the Daughters of the King!
Daughters of the King Pt 1: Evaluation
How do you view yourself?
When the girls entered the room on mission trip, I handed each of them a marker and a pad of sticky notes. They were to write one word or phrase on each sticky note that she felt described herself. Once everyone had the opportunity to write five to six different things down I collected the written on sticky notes. Then the girls and I divided them into positive and negative columns and hung them on one section of the classroom wall. Let me just say that as I prepared this lesson, God used it to convict me of some of the attitudes that I have toward myself and how I see myself. Knowing the attitudes I often have, I was not surprised to see much of the same in the girls we were working with.
So what did I find…
Positive.
Let me just start by saying, I was pleasantly surprised to see more in the positive category that I hoped. Here are some of the things the girls said that were positive about themselves.
Smart Good Smile
Friendly Good Sense of Humor
Tall Athletic
Hard working Musical
Artistic
Many of the girls had the same or similar to the things listed above so I have simplified.
Negative.
I really expected the negative column to be totally overwhelming and in truth it was better than I thought but still twice as big as the positive column. Here are some of the things the girls said that were negative about themselves.
Fat Overweight
Short Zit Faced
Lazy Lonely
Friendless Not good enough
Impatient Unforgiving
Uncommitted Poor
Annoying Ugly
Unemployed Stupid
Critical Angry
Hurting Worthless
Sarcastic
Many of the girls had other things to say that I do not feel that I can share with you, but I think you get the picture.
In Summary
So today we have learned that although some of us do see a few positive attributes in ourselves we are way more willing to see and believe the negative things about us.
Tune in next time to learn more about your true identity as a Daughter of the King!
Vacation Bible School (VBS)…so much fun and yet oh so tiring! Let me tell you I am totally exhausted and I still have two nights left! The best part about VBS is getting to meet a bunch of different kids that you didn’t know before. This week, we have met seven new kids so far and I am sure there will be more tonight. Jimmy and I are teaching the 5th & 6th grade class with the help of Dustin, Kevin, & Shelby. The whole point of the way we structure this class is to help get these kids ready to be a part of the youth group. We want them to know what to expect now that they are old enough to be a part of the “big kids.”
Every year, we take one specific night where someone shares the plan of salvation with the kids. Then the teachers answer any questions the children have and if they want we can pray with them and help them to ask Christ to become a part of their lives. Well last night was that night. Pastor John shared the salvation message and offered the children a chance to pray to receive Christ and then told them to talk to their teachers about it if they “prayed the prayer.” Two of girls approached me and for some reason I got really nervous. It happens to me every year. I don’t know why I get nervous when I counsel youth and children about the gospel…I just do. Give me an adult any day and I am great. Give me a kid and my heart starts racing and I have to work twice as hard. I guess I worry that they won’t understand.
I guess I just have to realize that ultimately it’s not about whether I can make them understand. God uses the Holy Spirit to speak to their hearts and He will help them to understand. I simply need to be there to be a tool He uses to teach those children about His love. Yes, some kids pray a prayer that they don’t fully understand, but there are other kids who have really felt the movement of God’s Spirit in their hearts and lives. I am not worthy of being the judge of which kids are which. Thankfully, it is God’s job—not mine! I just need to let go and let God.
Let go today and let God use you to speak His truth.
Life has been hectic in the Mustion house lately. We are go, Go, GO! Our routine is out of whack between Strawberry Festival and Vacation Bible School. Since I had to work all day on Saturday at the Strawberry Festival, I wasn’t able to do my grocery shopping when I normally do – on Saturday. So while my friend Sondra and her oldest daughter, Shaina, worked on snacks for Vacation Bible School, Jadie (Sondra’s youngest) and I went grocery shopping. It made for a busy Sunday afternoon, especially since I had a meeting at church that night, but we had fun.
While Jadie and I were shopping we started talking about the wind and the sunshine. Jadie didn’t understand why we have wind. Of course, I could have bored her with all the scientific reasons for wind and rain and sunshine, but instead I chose to use this opportunity to have a “teachable moment.” Now you may ask, “What is a teachable moment?” A teachable moment is an opportunity to share about God/Christ that arises from your day to day activities.
Jadie wanted to know why we had wind. I had two choices: tell her the science or tell her about God creating the wind. So many times I am ashamed to say that I choose the easy way out and just talk about the “facts”. I am happy to say that on Sunday God helped me to seize this teachable moment and I told her the Creation story instead.
That night Sondra and I were talking about my outing with Jadie and how she behaved and all those good details parents love to know and Sondra shared with me the questions that Jadie has been having about Jesus. I thank God for giving me those words to say in that teachable moment. I pray they will be a few of the seeds that will help Jadie find all her answers about Jesus and to come to know Him as her personal Lord and Savior.
I urge you to seize those teachable moments in your own life. They don’t have to be children. Maybe it’s your neighbor or co-worker. Whoever it is, you will not be sorry that you told them about the love of God!
In the hectic moments of life when you have run from one activity to another and from one responsibility to the next, do you ever find yourself asking “Who am I?” It is easy to confuse our role with who we really are. Am I a mom? A youth minister? A wife? A coach? A teacher? Not only do we get confused about who we are, we also get confused in our purpose and self-worth.
I was recently talking to my aunt about a project we are working on together. She is writing a children’s book and I am supposed to be illustrating it. I have been having trouble getting the illustrations right because of some self-doubt issues that I deal with on a daily basis. When I expressed these feelings to her, this is what she wrote back to me:
“My precious favorite second niece,
I am not sure why you are not confident, but let me reassure you of things you may have forgotten. Within you, there is a magnificent ability!! Not only are you artistic, extremely intelligent, and hard working, but you are a beautiful daughter of the King. Do not doubt for a minute that He is beside you, holding you close to him and will give you insight and wisdom beyond measure if you ask him. The beauty that you carry is far above rubies, do not dismiss what I am saying. Sometimes we look at ourselves and for some reason, we beat ourselves up for not being a size 2 or not being perfect in some respect. You count all of the qualities that you possess!!! You are loving, compassionate, encouraging, supportive, and I think right now you are also overwhelmed with the everyday stressors of life. You are carrying a great deal of responsibility for your job and your home life. Look to our God and ask for peace during this time. Remember the Holy Spirit is the comforter. Also remember that those of us who love you are here for you. The phone is by my bed, please call anytime----If you need to talk, I am here for you always.
Don't forget who loves you.”
With that encouragement under my belt, I was able to stop and ask myself “Who does God say I am?” If you stop about think about it, God pictures us all the same. One of us is not better than the other. He created us just the way He wanted us to be. Do we mess up? Yes. Do we go outside of God’s will? Yes. Does God’s perspective or opinion of us ever change? NO! Absolutely NOT!
Who Does God Say I Am? I AM…
His Cherished One
Created with a Purpose
His Beloved
Not Forgotten!
Precious to Him (Isaiah 43:4)
Bought with a Price (1 Corinthians 6:20)
The Bride of Christ
Redeemed (Exodus 15:13)
Worthy (2 Thessalonians 1:5)
Beautiful (Ecclesiastes 3:11)
I could go on and on. Spend time today seeking out who God says you are. You can do it! It’s amazing what you’ll find! Also, I didn't have time to find the references for the other characteristics, but if you know what they are--feel free to post them in the comments section! Thanks so much!
Being in ministry is like living under a microscope. Everyone is constantly looking at you to see what you are doing, when you are doing it, and how you are doing it. I think it actually makes some people feel better about themselves if they can catch a minister doing something wrong. They want to be able to say "At least I didn't do what pastor so and so did the other night." It's kinda sick really.
However sick and twisted this is, I have also found it to be true. As minister's and minister's wives we are called to have a higher standard and to be set apart because of God's calling (1 Thess. 4:7). I simply find it frustrating that the willingness of others to tear each other down to make themselves look better adds so much stress to a life that is hard enough already.
Don't people know that it is hard enough to live a life worthy of the calling we have received (Eph. 4:1)! In order to glorify God and minimize stress, we should follow this scriptural advice: "Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold outthe word of life—in order that I may boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor for nothing." Philippians 2:14-16.
This doesn't mean that we should let everyone walk all over us and push us around and treat us like garbage. BUT what it does mean is that we should do everything in our life to please Christ. If we aren't doing anything that Christ would disapprove of then we should be living a life worthy of being under the microscope. If people look at us and scrutinize us they should see Christ first and foremost. Then the imperfections don't seem so bad.
"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." Psalm 18:32
I hope I am not alone in saying that each and every day can be a struggle. As a Christian, I struggle to live a life worthy of the calling I have received (Eph. 4:1), I strive to be holy as God is holy (1 Peter 1:16), and to let no unwholesome talk come from my mouth (Eph. 4:29). Let's just say that there are days, like yesterday, where I fail miserably.
When I have days like that I just want to give up. I find myself asking, "Wouldn't it just be easier if I weren't a Christian and didn't believe in God? Then I could live however I want!" Yet when I think about all the times that God has proven over and over and over again that He is there for me when no one else has been, I know that I could never have made it without Him. Quite frankly, if I was not a Christian I probably would have committed suicide a long time ago! This life just isn't worth it without God.
BUT today I want to take a moment to stand on the promises. In Psalm 18:32, God promises to arm us with the strength that we need to make it through this moment, this day, this week, this month...I hope you get the picture...and HE is the one who will make our ways perfect. Why do we fail so often? Why do we get so frustrated? It's because we are trying to do it all in OUR strength instead of relying on the strength that God will arm us with if we ask Him and let Him.
Let go and let God!
Standing on the Promises
Words & Music:R. Kelso Carter, in Promises of Perfect Love, by John Sweney and Kelso Carter (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: John J. Hood, 1886)
Standing on the promises of Christ my King,
Through eternal ages let His praises ring,
Glory in the highest, I will shout and sing,
Standing on the promises of God.
Refrain
Standing, standing,
Standing on the promises of God my Savior;
Standing, standing,
I’m standing on the promises of God.
Standing on the promises that cannot fail,
When the howling storms of doubt and fear assail,
By the living Word of God I shall prevail,
Standing on the promises of God.
Refrain
Standing on the promises I now can see
Perfect, present cleansing in the blood for me;
Standing in the liberty where Christ makes free,
Standing on the promises of God.
Refrain
Standing on the promises of Christ the Lord,
Bound to Him eternally by love’s strong cord,
Overcoming daily with the Spirit’s sword,
Standing on the promises of God.
Refrain
Standing on the promises I cannot fall,
Listening every moment to the Spirit’s call
Resting in my Savior as my all in all,
Standing on the promises of God.
In the 26 years of my life and 21 years of my Christian walk, I can probably count on my fingers the number of times I have felt God move in a big way. God often answers prayers (even if He doesn’t give us the answer we want to hear) but He seldom shakes us to the very core. However, I saw God move this weekend and I felt Him shake me in a way that I haven’t felt for sometime. This past weekend we had our 3rd annual Disciple Now weekend at Villebrook. The theme of the weekend was Epic. We wanted the youth to experience God in a way that they have never before. I don’t think that any of us could have imagined what God would do, which was appropriate since the theme verse for the weekend was 1 Corinthians 2:9 …
“However, as it is written:
‘No eye has seen,
no ear has heard,
no mind has conceived
what God has prepared for those who love him’”
This weekend strongholds were broken. Sins were confessed. Lives were changed. It’s all because God moved. God began convicting His children of the sin they had been harboring in their life and they listened to Him. They confessed it to Him and to one another. Then they prayed for one another and built each other up.
God not only spoke to the teenagers this weekend, He also spoke to me and to Jimmy and the other adults. Then He answered my prayer for the weekend. I have been praying for weeks that whatever God started with the youth group would pour out into our church and begin to rekindle the fire in the adults. Sunday morning, some of the teens shared testimonies about the weekend. Others praised God through the reading of scripture. We all praised God through the singing of worship songs. Then it really hit and the adults began to confess their sins and pray for each other. It was an overly emotional time, but the healing process was genuinely started for the first time! Praise the Lord!
Over the next few days, I am going to talk about some of the issues that God dealt with me on Saturday night. For now, I simply want to show you a picture of our kids (who are very much my family).
By the way, in case you are wondering…the logos are on the back of the t-shirts, but they look like this…
“However, as it is written: ‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him’” 1 Corinthians 2:9
Today as I sit and think about all the things that God has done in my life, I see that Jimmy and I are extremely blessed. We praise the Lord over the successes we have had in both our personal lives and ministries. We praise God for the struggles that we have lived through that have shaped who we are today. I must even praise God for my failures that show His true measure of grace.
What Make's a Great Ministry?
When people ask how you make a ministry successful, I tell them about our “bread making” ministry. No, we don’t literally bake bread. Hang on for a minute and let me explain to you what I mean…
What is a "Bread Making" Ministry?
All my young life, I would go to my grandmother’s house, and one of the things we would do was bake sour dough bread. The secret to making amazing sour dough bread is the starter. A starter is a small portion of bread dough that is reserved to start a new batch of bread. You must feed it to keep it alive and when the time comes it will be ready to perform. When you make a new batch of bread, you get out your starter and mix it with all the new ingredients for this batch of bread. It becomes completely absorbed into this new dough. Before making your bread, you must reserve a portion of it for your next starter. This bread and this starter are even better than the last because they both contain portions of the new ingredients and the faithful old starter that you have been diligent to feed and nurture. A dead starter cannot be revived nor can it be used to make new bread. Yet the bread that comes from this starter is better every batch because it blends all the different batches of bread you have ever made into one incredible loaf. That’s how we do ministry.
Our "Bread Making" Ministry
Even before I came into the picture, this was how Jimmy would do ministry. He received his very first “starter” when he was in college learning the skills he needed to feed the ministry. Then he made his first “batch” of youth ministry bread when he did a summer internship at a church in Columbia, Missouri. As he moved on to Fritch, Texas he expanded his bread making repertoire. When Jimmy moved to Fulton, Missouri, and we first met, I also had the privilege of being exposed to “starter” members that he had collected along his ministry path. Some of the people he brought along with him from previous ministries were Jeremy, Jeff, Dave, Troy, Chrissy, Penny, Bethany, Mandy, and others. They were able to do things together that they were never able to do alone. Jimmy met Jeremy when he was his youth minister in Texas. I met Jeremy at Millersburg when he came to help Jimmy with our first ever DNOW. Jeremy met his wife Hannah when we all worked together doing ministry in DeSoto, Missouri. Last night Jeremy, Hannah, and their children all came and helped Jimmy and I prepare our students for this weekends Disciple Now. Our kids are going to be the best “bread” yet because they have been exposed to the best “starter” so far.
Do You Get It?
I hope you get what I am saying. This principle can be used in any ministry and in life. Nurture the friends and relationships you have made along the way. Bring your “starter” of people, relationships, and experiences into your current life and ministry to make things even better! Learn to build from the strong foundation that you have been building all these years and someday the people you minister too will hopefully do even greater ministry than you! Wouldn’t that be amazing?!
My RED ALERT for You
WARNING: The quality of your starter will affect the quality of the “bread” that is made from it. Use wisdom and discretion when choosing the relationships and standards that you choose to expose your ministry to.
Right now, I REALLY want to throw my computer against the wall. There are, however, a few essential flaws to this plan. Number One, this isn't my computer (it belongs to my school, oops). Number Two, how is that going to help me get my assignment done. Hmm maybe I better think about this again.
I don't know about you, but I find patience to be one of the hardest fruits of the Spirit to apply to my life. I get angry when other people aren't patient with me, but do I really put in the effort to show patience to others? Honestly the answer is "No". I don't spend enough time practicing patience. I hurry from one thing to the next and stress about traffic and the time it takes the computer to render my 3D objects that I need to turn in so I can get out of here.
I wonder how my life would be different if I were a more patient person?
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law." Galatians 5:22 & 23
I am not naive. I know that life can be seriously hard. Why does it have to be so heartbreaking? Last night, Jimmy and I sat in a room with two of our good friends. We listened to their story and you could almost hear their hearts breaking. The longer they talked the more you just want to reach out and give them a big hug and tell them everything is going to be alright. Well in the end, I did give out a big hug to both of them, but I just couldn't say it was going to be okay.
In life their are so many unknowns. Thankfully God takes care of us. I don't believe that religion is a crutch by any means but I am SO glad that I do have a Savior who loves me and cares for me and provides for me and I can lean on Him when I know I can't take one more breath on my own. In these times, I seek to learn the lesson of Romans 5:3-5 "also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us." Then when I have learned to find the bright side of my problems maybe I will be able to help someone find the light at the end of their tunnel.
To all of you with the gift of mercy and to whom this comes very easily, I applaud you. Thank you for picking up the slack for people like me who have very little mercy. Thank you for showing us by example how to minister to the broken hearted. May we never give up even when it feels like our hearts are broken into a billion tiny pieces for Christ is the healer of our souls. He loves us, and He will build us back stronger than we were before.
You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise." Psalm 51:16 & 17
"He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds." Psalm 147:3
Finally! I get a chance to sit down and breathe! I know we have all felt this way. Between church, family, full-time jobs/full-time parenting, and who knows what else so many of us have very little time or mind power to spare. We multi-task and work thru lunch so often we don’t know what it means to have a moment of peace. Here I am in the middle of one of those weeks, and I suddenly realized something…When was the last time I took the time to memorize scripture?
Really? What’s the Big Deal?
You might be snickering in derision at my big epiphany or you might now be wondering “What’s the big deal? I read my Bible. Why do I need to memorize it?” There are so many other things we give priority over this valuable spiritual discipline that very few Christians still realize just how important scripture memory really is.
Why Scripture Memory IS a Big Deal
Take a minute and hear me out. I believe there are two reasons that scripture memory is a big deal.
Number 1: God Commanded It
What better reason is there to do something than God telling you to do it?! In Proverbs 7:2-4 says, “Keep my commands and you will live; guard my teachings as the apple of your eye. Bind them on your fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart.” Very few things were actually written down at the time that these verses were written and the things that were written down were of the utmost importance. Therefore, when God tells them to “write” His commands on the tablets of their hearts, it conveys a deep sense of importance and significance.
Number 2: It Gives Us the Strength to Keep Going
As I think about continuing on the path God has laid out for my life, I think of Ephesians chapter 6. Although the words “memorize scripture” never appear in this passage we do see the importance of Truth. In verse 14, Truth is compared to the belt in the armor of a Roman Centurion. A Centurion’s belt was 6 to 8 inches wide. It allowed freedom of movement. Most importantly, it held all the other pieces of the armor together and all of the soldier’s weapons were attached to it. In the same way, Truth holds us together and gives us the weapons we need to fight the daily battles that crop up in our way.
Practical Application
Although there are many other reasons that scripture memory is important, I just wanted to focus on these two because they speak for themselves. Now the question is, how can you practice scripture memory in your busy life?
* Tape an index card with this week’s memory verse on it to a place you look multiple times a day. Each time you look at this card take the time to read thru the verse. Some locations I have heard of are the refrigerator, the side of your computer monitor, the bathroom mirror, and in the shower (although I suggest laminating the card for this one).
*Write and copy the verse on paper 7 times each day for one week. I have heard this works best if you do it during your quiet time and you make all 7 copies at the same time.
*Memorize small but important pieces of scripture. It will be much easier to memorize John 3:16 & 17 rather than the whole chapter of John 3. Start small you can always go bigger later.
“Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then…” Ephesians 6:13-14a
Hi, my name is Christiana and I will be your guide during your time on "Life as a Minister's Wife". Since we will hopefully be spending a lot of time together, I want to take some time to introduce myself, my husband, and our ministry to you. SO let's get started!
Who am I? As I said before, my name is Christiana. I am 26 years old. I graduated for Southwest Baptist University in December 2005 with a Bachelor of Arts in Intercultural Studies. Now I work for the Missouri Baptist Children's Home, a non-profit ministry that serves children and families all around the state of Missouri. I moved to St. Louis in 2006 when my husband and I started dating. Most importantly as it pertains to this blog, I am the wife of a youth minister and a full-time partner in our youth ministry.
Who is my Husband? My husband's name is Jimmy. He is wonderfully creative and organized (surprising for a youth minster). He helps to make life interesting with his humor, inside jokes, and unique approaches to life and ministry situations. We have been married for almost 4 years now, but we have been doing ministry together since 2000. Jimmy has been a youth minister since he graduated from Southwest Baptist University in 1998, so that's 12 years of ministry experience. Jimmy is currently the youth minister at Villebrook Baptist Church in Hazelwood, Missouri.
What is our Ministry? Youth ministry! It's what we do. It's why you're reading this blog, but let me tell you a few more specifics about where we are right now. Since 2007, Jimmy and I have been working with the youth and college students at Villebrook Baptist Church. We call ourselves "Live Out Loud Student Ministries" or LOL for short. Our first Sunday at Villebrook we had 5 teenagers now we average around 35 on any given Wednesday night. It's amazing to see what God can do in just 3 short years!
The mission of LOL Student Ministries is to reach the lost, train the saved, and apprentice the next generation of ministers. It can be a real challenge sometimes, but what is good in life that isn't a bit of hard work.
Until We Meet Again Now that you know who I am, who my husband is, and what we do I have only a few short moments left. In the posts to come I hope that you will be able to relate to the struggles and the joys that I have or will encounter in my Life as a Minister's Wife. May God richly bless you and all that you do today.
