Lessons I'm Learning: Psalms of Life

The Lesson: My boyfriend (Ryan) and I have been reading through one of the Psalms together each week for the past few months. Every week, a common theme runs through my head—the Psalms are so much like real life!

 We see that David’s life, especially in his mind and spirit, was not an easy one. He has much to say about how his enemies surround him and he feels like God has abandoned him. He was often discouraged. In fact, if David and I were Facebook friends today, he might have had a slew of those posts that I tend to just scroll past and think, Dude, l know your life feels hard and all, but can you stop complaining about it already?  Yet, other times I think I might come across this amazing poem he wrote about how powerful and loving God is, or how beautiful nature is if you just stop and look at it, or about the marvelous phenomena of childbirth. Those days I might stop scrolling for a moment and think, Wow, David. You really get it. Thanks for the moment of inspiration and the encouragement toward worship of God.

Then I think about my own life, my Facebook posts, my text messages, my chats with my mom, and my occasional journal entry. Suddenly, I start to sound a whole lot more like David. I am perfectly capable of complaining, expressing frustration, and walking (or dragging myself) through hard times. Then there are the other days, when I cannot help but just stop and marvel at how amazing God and His creation are, and thank Him for the plans he laid out for my life before time began.

Lament and love. Whining and worship. Sadness and surprise. This is the stuff that real life is made up of.

Reading Psalms has really pushed me in one particular area: coming back to how great God is, and praising Him even when I don’t feel like it. Here’s an example, and then I will explain what I mean:

Psalm 13 (NIV)

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

¹ How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever?
    How long will you hide your face from me?
² How long must I wrestle with my thoughts
    and day after day have sorrow in my heart?
    How long will my enemy triumph over me?

³ Look on me and answer, Lord my God.
    Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death,
⁴ and my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,”
    and my foes will rejoice when I fall.

⁵ But I trust in your unfailing love;
    my heart rejoices in your salvation.
⁶ I will sing the Lord’s praise,
    for he has been good to me.

We see that David’s life feels pretty rough at the beginning of this psalm. He’s even accusing God of forgetting him forever. (And FOREVER is a really long time!) In the middle, David asks for an answer, trusting one will come. Finally, he expresses praise and trust in God, looking back to how God has been faithful in the past, and hoping for His faithfulness to hold true once again.

The challenge: I’m challenging myself to pray and think more like David did. Will you join me? Like David, we can tell God just how much life stinks and how much it feels like He’s forgotten us down here on planet earth. But DON’T STOP THERE! Ask God to answer, and praise Him even in the midst of the struggle. Look for His past faithfulness, and ask Him to demonstrate Himself once again in our lives. Ask God to bring Himself glory by working through us. Let’s look past the moment of hardship and trial to the eternally good and great God who promises to never let us out of the palm of His hand. Let’s pray big, bold prayers. Let’s praise God no matter what. You never know what might happen!

 

Lessons I Am Learning: The Importance of Little Things

UPDATE: In a post this summer I told you all that I was working on becoming a volunteer at New Beginnings Pregnancy Services. Since then, I have successfully begun volunteering there. It's been a great experience and has not been without its challenges as well. It's obvious that God wants me there. It's been good.

So, now for my story: A few weeks ago I was at New Beginnings. I had brought some crochet work because often my hands are happier if they are doing something, so I figured I would keep them busy. Sometimes I end up watching educational videos or things slow down in the front office, so it works out well. Everyone asked what I was making. That particular day I was working on a glove--nothing particularly exciting or meaningful.

After that, I ended up deciding that if I brought my crochet work back to the office, I would make things for our clients--baby shoes, hats or blankets--so that my busy-work would add value even if it was just a fun hobby.

So, the next week I brought some more yarn, this time to make a pair of baby shoes (using this pattern). The pattern I chose was a very quick one, so I actually finished this pair of shoes while I was there. They were a hit! Melissa, the volunteer coordinator, made me take pictures of them for her and then leave them on the desk so she and the other ladies could admire them.

 

The next week I brought with me a pair of shoes I had finished over the week. (It turns out I spend enough time in one week on the phone or otherwise chatting with people  to make a whole pair of baby shoes!) I worked on another pair while I was there, using this pattern. And now I am making great progress on a blanket, the first one I have made in a really long time. 

 

I say all this because the last few weeks have shown me how important something little can be. My hobby, something that I brought just to keep my hands busy, has become a huge way to contribute to the place I am volunteering. Why is that? Because taking the time to make something with my hands shows our clients that someone loves them and cares for them. They don't have to go through one of the hardest things they will ever do alone. God is there, and so are the ladies of New Beginnings. Every time they use the shoes or the blanket they got, they can remember that someone else out there cares. And that is a beautiful thing.

 

 

Yes, little things are powerful things. I have many things that seem of little importance to the outside observer, but they have acquired a deeper significance because special friends gave them to me or told me about them or told me they liked me wearing them.

 

This week, don't forget the power of the little things!

 

 

P.S. On the note of crocheting, I found a new organization that does some amazing work internationally to save women from sex slavery by giving them a trade and helping them earn a living for themselves and their children. It's called Eternal Threads. A representative of the organization was visiting my school today, and she was selling some incredible crocheted bags and other handmade items.

 

 

You can't really see the beautiful detail on this bag. But to give you an idea of the complexity and beauty, take another look at the lacy baby shoes in the picture above. They probably took me three hours to do. That bag.....it would take me years! But these ladies make and sell the bags for a living to keep themselves and their children safe. Wow. (I am sure the other students in the Student Center this morning got a good laugh at me geeking out about the workmanship on the bag. I was blown away and it was probably hilarious...)

 

In any case, I would encourage you to check out Eternal Threads' products. They go to support a great cause, and the craftsmanship on the products is some of the best I have seen in a long time. This is another one of those little things that can do big things.