Leader's Notebook
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The best Christmas present I received this year wasn’t one wrapped with pretty paper and a matching bow and found under the tree on Christmas morning. It wasn’t even one found in a decorative bag handed out at the office or given by a friend. The best present was one I received early Christmas Eve morning from the Lord Himself, as I studied the scriptures for that day.
That morning I followed the Spirit — starting at the first chapter of Luke with the announcement of the birth of John, on to the Mount of Transfiguration, then to the Mount of The Beatitudes and ending at the Cross. It was quite a journey, but it was also quite a gift.
In the first chapter of Luke, we are told that John will come in the spirit and power of Elijah. Elijah wasn’t just a prophet; he was the prophet noted for praying it would not rain, and it didn’t rain for three and a half years. He then prayed for rain and the sky poured forth. He was the prophet who turned the hearts of the Israelites back to God after challenging the prophets of Baal to a showdown between their god and his. Elijah was bold and prayerful, honest in his fears, and listened with a finely tuned ear to the voice of the Lord. He was one of two individuals mentioned in the Old Testament who never died, but was taken straight to heaven.
Focusing on John’s comparison to Elijah, the Lord brought to mind Elijah on the Mount of Transfiguration, so I followed the Spirit there. Whenever I read this passage in Mark, I am usually taken by the fact that Peter, not knowing what to do or say as he suddenly sees Jesus standing on the Mount with Moses and Elijah, offers to build three shrines as if they were all staying. For some reason Peter always wants to offer an answer before a question is even asked.
But that day, what struck me most wasn’t what Peter and the others saw, it was what they didn’t see. After God proclaimed, “This is My beloved Son, listen to Him!”, they looked around and saw no one with them anymore, except Jesus only. One moment there were three of them — Moses, the giver of the Law, Elijah, one of the greatest prophets of the old scriptures, and Jesus, all standing together in community. Then, in the blink of an eye, it was just Jesus.
In the past, I have not given much thought to their departure as I always focused on their presence and Peter wanting to build shrines. But that morning, I keyed in on these words “no one with them anymore, except Jesus only.” Except Jesus only. That phrase kept replaying in my mind, and suddenly I realized, it was as if God was showing them in the past the Law and the words of the Prophets were of prime importance. But now the time had come to listen and fully heed what Jesus says, Jesus only.
From there I felt drawn to Jesus’ words about the Law on the Mount of The Beatitudes, “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets, I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill. For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass away from the Law, until all is accomplished” (Matthew 5:17-18).
Jesus was telling his followers He wasn’t coming to overthrow the Law or the words of the Prophets. Instead, if we look up the word fulfill, what Jesus was really saying is that He was coming to complete the Law and the words of the Prophets. In thinking about the fact that His mission was to complete the Law and to complete something means to finish it, suddenly the next phrase that crossed my mind was Jesus’ words on the cross, “It is finished.”
“It is finished.” I had never given much thought before to what “It” was or is. Was it His work? Yes. Was it His life? Yes, that too. But what if He was referring to the specific task assigned to Him, to fulfill the Law and the words of the Prophets? What if for a moment, we view it from that perspective? Maybe when He said, “It is finished,” He meant the time of the Law and the words of the Prophets in being a governing force has ended. Moses and Elijah are no longer on the Mount. Just Jesus only, with the Father instructing His disciples to “Listen to Him!”
What God gave me that morning was a vision for Jesus’ mission. The importance of His work in bringing the Law and the words of the Prophets to completion before ushering in His new and indwelling presence into the lives of His disciples. Then there would be no question as to whom they should listen to. “This is my Beloved Son,” He told them, “Listen to Him!” Jesus understood His task, the Father confirmed it, and He brought it to completion before putting in place A New Way of living in direct relationship with the Father.
Many of us don’t understand the importance of completing one initiative before starting another, but Jesus did. And I am eternally grateful. There is no confusion about who to follow. It’s always Jesus. Jesus only.
What a beautiful gift I received this Christmas.
“What do you want me to know?”, I asked.
I recently attended a conference with many other NorthStar women. One morning before breakfast, I sat on the edge of my bed in prayer and asked, “Father, what do you want me to know?” After a short time of complete stillness, He lovingly answered with, “I see you.”
It was the first time the Lord ever said those words to me, but it was not to be the last. Throughout that day, God confirmed His word as various speakers made some type of reference to God seeing us. It was crazy. As I shared those words with a few friends, they continued to confirm the message as they heard it throughout the day as well.
Those three words, “I see you,” have been permeating my thoughts so much this Advent Season as I am beginning to realize how foundational they are in this season of Advent.
From the beginning of time, God has seen us.
He saw Adam and Eve in the garden.
He saw the Israelites in slavery.
He saw Moses by the burning bush.
He saw David shepherding his flock.
On and on throughout Scripture, God sees His people.
In the first chapter of Luke, God sees Zechariah, Elizabeth, and their newborn son, John. He also sees Elizabeth’s relative, Mary. God sees them as they are and more importantly, as they are yet to be.
And God‘s view of them is so different from that of the world’s.
The world looked upon barren Elizabeth with disgrace, yet God looked upon her with love. He saw her from the inside out. He saw her righteousness, her faithfulness and her obedience. Once Elizabeth discovered that God saw her, that was all that really mattered. When we realize God sees us in our place, we discover our true significance.
The world looked upon Elizabeth’s son, John the Baptizer, as odd. He lived in the wilderness, ate locusts and wild honey, drank no wine, and was clothed with camel’s hair.
Yet, God saw Him before he was even born, fulfilling his purpose as the forerunner of Christ, preparing people’s hearts and turning them back to the Lord. When we recognize that God sees us in our purpose, it fuels our focus and drives us forward.
The world looked at Elizabeth’s relative, Mary, as young and ordinary, yet God saw her and called her blessed among women. Before He even came to her, He saw her potential to believe in the fulfillment of what would be spoken to her. He knew she was the one. When God sees us in our potential, nothing is impossible for Him to bring about. If only we would believe and step out in faith. As Mary did.
Perhaps God’s reminder to us this Advent Season is, “I see you.”
I see you in your place. I see you in your purpose. And I see you in your potential. I see your successes, and I see your struggles. I see your joys and I see your sorrows. I see who you are and who you are yet to be – not from a distance, but up close and personal, because I am right there with you. Where you are, there I am also.
I see you.
As we await the coming of the Christ child, let us remember our God as the God who sees.
Sometimes it's just two letters that make all the difference in the world.
In reading Isaiah 53 several weeks ago, I got to verse 10 and drew a breath. "But the LORD was pleased to crush Him, putting Him to grief;..." For some reason, I was expecting the next word to be "so." Almost like it was the Father's plan and Jesus was just going along with it, but the next two letters weren't "s-o.” Instead, they were "I-F."
Even Jesus had a choice. "IF He would render Himself as a guilt offering,.."
Yet, God is not about taking life, but giving life.
It's what comes after the IF that explains why God was pleased to let Jesus suffer. When there's an IF, it's always followed by a THEN. IF Jesus would surrender His life to the Father, THEN Jesus "will see His offspring, prolong His days and the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand."
Sometimes the choice (the IF) seems so painful, but we have to remember that God is a good God and always wants what's best for us. Unfortunately though, growth (the THEN) doesn’t usually happen without pain. The choice is always ours, but so are the rewards.
Choose wisely.
As I reflected on those words, my thoughts were drawn to a few very specific women in the Bible— those who went to the tomb that first Easter morning. They were leaders, women of influence, and they influenced not only each other, but their actions are still influencing us today.
These women were brave enough to journey with Jesus to the cross, despite the animosity of the crowd. They didn’t run away when they saw Christ being persecuted; in fact, they remained steadfast and focused until the end, even when others of His followers fled.
They were humble and caring and willing to do what needed to be done, when it needed to be done. They didn’t hesitate and weren’t timid. They were ordinary women open to being used by God for his extraordinary purposes.
After Jesus was laid in the tomb, the women went home that night to prepare the burial spices, and then they took a very important step. They stopped. Instead of rushing to get their task done, they rested quietly on the Sabbath and didn’t let their work get in the way of their worship. It gave them each the time to prepare their body, mind and spirit for what God had laid on their hearts to do. And when the sun rose the next morning, so did the women. They
went out early and without delay. They didn’t exhibit any fear or concern of how they were going to move the big boulder in front of the tomb.
Instead, they trusted, and their trust in God made them bold, determined and disciplined. It led them to be the first ones to hear the news of the risen Lord and to be able to share it with others. And even though the disciples first laughed at them when the women told them about Jesus’ resurrection, the men didn’t ignore their message. They still went to see for themselves.
That was influence at work. It’s called leadership. And the world was forever changed. By ordinary women.
Has the Lord put something on your heart to do? If so, what is your first step—to race to get it done or to stop and sit with Jesus? Today, I would like to encourage you to take a few moments to worship before work and see what a difference it makes.
Normally we look at the wilderness as a less than desired place to be. A place that we would rather run from than run to. However, as I reflected on the verses about John the Baptist, I realized that it was during his time in the wilderness that John received the word from the Lord that propelled him into ministry. It was similar with Joshua. It was when Joshua was in the wilderness that he received his calling and was given his marching orders. And then there was Jesus. Jesus was led into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit after a pinnacle moment in His life. His baptism. It was during His 40 days in the wilderness that Jesus hungered and was sustained by God's truth. He wasn't teaching or preaching, instead he was building up His inner resolve against the enemy by feasting only on what the Lord had to offer.
I have come to the conclusion that being in the wilderness is not necessarily a bad place to be, as we may often think. Instead it can be a very holy time, a time to listen much and speak little. A time to reflect and repent and renew. The past two months have been a very busy time in the life of our Network - both for our churches and for our women, so I had thought that it was just the busyness of the schedule that had made me lay my pen down. Now I realize that I wasn't meant to write during this busy season. I was in the wilderness, and it was a time for just listening. Listening to God's Word, feeding on His truth and discovering some of the next steps in moving forward. What I have learned has been incredible.
There may be times when you too will find yourself in the middle of the wilderness. I would encourage you to not be discouraged by the fact that you are not completing what maybe you think you should be doing with your time. Instead, embrace this time, let go of the unnecessary and just listen. Listen to what the Lord has for you, and then follow His leading. Let the wilderness be a place to recall or discover your purpose. Let it propel you on the next steps of the journey the Lord has planned for you.
"'For I know the plans I have for you,' says the LORD. 'They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope'" Jeremiah 29:11.