The Wanderers James 5:19-20 MSG

It's hard to believe that we are wrapping up our time together in the book of James already. We have learned so many amazing things along the way on this journey. Most recently, we talked about patience, materialism, obedience to God, and loving others. We have also seen verses that tell us about applying wisdom, favoritism, showing our faith in our work, and closing our mouths. If you missed any of these posts and wish to read them, you can find them in the archive on the right side of the blog. They've all been labeled with the tags "Book of James" and "Bible Study." You can also find them by clicking the labeled tabs above or using the search bar at the bottom of the page.

Next week we will start a new study in the book of Titus. This time, though, we'll be applying the truths that we learn from Titus- well, Paul writing to Titus- to marriage, family, and parenting. These three areas are places that I am not only currently living, but they are also very near and dear to my heart. I'm looking forward to digging into Titus with you to see what we can learn there.

Today, let's take one last look at the book of James. These are our final two verses:

"My dear friends, if you know people who have wandered off from God’s truth, don’t write them off. Go after them. Get them back and you will have rescued precious lives from destruction and prevented an epidemic of wandering away from God." (James 5:19-20)

I can't say this enough. Jesus loves us with this amazing, extravagant, unparallelled love. He longs to live in relationship with you and be a part of your everyday life. He never promises an easy or always happy life, but there is always the ability to have a deep-seated, Jesus centered joy deep within you. We need Jesus to live our lives effectively and well.

There's a story in Luke 15 that Jesus tells about a shepherd and his lost sheep. In the story, the shepherd owns and herds one hundred sheep. Now a shepherd grows close to his sheep. He loves them. He spends all of his time with them. They are valuable to him. So when one of those hundred goes missing one day, the shepherd doesn't just let it go and write it off. He doesn't say, "oh well, at least I still have these other ninety-nine!" No. He drops everything and goes off in search of that missing sheep. And when he finds it? He doesn't scold it, call it stupid or bad, or try to punish it in any way. Instead, he embraces it and carries it back home with his other sheep. He has this deep joy at finding the missing one.

Jesus told this story in order to compare lost people to those sheep. The shepherd is Jesus. This story shows us that Jesus doesn't just give up on us. Once we are one of his children, he will always be there for us. He loves us too much to do anything else. And we are called to live like Jesus as much as possible in our lives. In my life verse, Ephesians 5:1-2, it says:

"Watch what God does, and then you do it, like children who learn proper behavior from their parents. Mostly what God does is love you. Keep company with him and learn a life of love. Observe how Christ loved us. His love was not cautious but extravagant. He didn’t love in order to get something from us but to give everything of himself to us. Love like that."

So when one of Jesus' own wanders away, we should want to get them back on track. If we are living and loving like Jesus, we want what's best for his people. That's really loving others. Seeing a family member, a friend, a fellow believer falling away and coming alongside them, loving them, praying with and for them, helping them back on the right path- that's some extravagant love.

Typically, our first response when someone else messes up is judgment. We look at them and just know that we could have done it better. Except we don't know. We don't know what is truly going on or how much they are hurting. A better response is prayer, empathy, guidance.

The other day I was on Facebook reading through posts from my friends. One of them wrote about something that was a source of conflict in Facebook Land. Big surprise, right? I read through the comments on that post; most of them were loving, insightful, and full of ideas for change. Others were sadly overly harsh, judgmental, and full of angry words. And you know what? Every word that was written on that post could be seen by believers and unbelievers alike. Did every person's words represent Jesus well? I don't know and I'm not going to make any judgments. The point of my telling you this is that there was a wanderer in that fight on that thread. Every word written- whether meant in a loving and guiding way or in a harsh, judgmental way- was thrown back at the writers. That wanderer was angry at God. I assume that he or she still is. At some point, one lone believer came on the post at the very end and wrapped his/her virtual arms around the wanderer by apologizing in place of whoever had hurt the wanderer and offering prayer.

I have no idea how that story turned out. This was a week or two ago now and I haven't heard anything else nor do I expect to. We don't get to know everything. But God knows. And I just love that one of his children came alongside a wandering, angry soul and tried to guide that person back. The guide knew that the wanderer was still loved and cherished by God himself and wanted to do his/her best to put them back in line with Jesus so the hurts could be healed.

What would happen if we approached more angry and hurting souls like that? I was reading about conflict resolution and how to approach angry people in my devotions from Ecclesiastes today. Solomon wrote in Ecclesiastes 9:17 that "the quiet words of the wise are more effective

than the ranting of a king of fools." That means that when we speak gently and kindly with a loving voice, we are far more effective at conveying our point than when we fly off the handle and scream at everyone.

This is my challenge today- and it's not just for you. I'm working hard on this one too because, if I'm honest, I struggle with this sometimes. Let's work to yell and scream less. Let's try quiet words, soothing voices. Let's seek to understand and explain rather than forcing our opinions on others. Let's believe the best of those around us. I'm starting with those in my own house. Where will you start? At work, at home, online, or at church? Somewhere else?

I pray that we can do this together. The world could be an amazing place if we could all communicate well and love each other, believing the best first, rather than fighting. Don't just be blessed today, strive to be a blessing to others.

The Power of Prayer James 5:13-18

"Are you hurting? Pray. Do you feel great? Sing." (James 5:13)

These 9 simple words are strung beautifully together in The Message translation of James 5:13. James has taken the sometimes overcomplicated-by-our-human-selves act of prayer and made it so easy. Are you hurting? Then pray about it. Are you having a great day? Sing about it. There are so many emotions and events that can happen between hurt and greatness. We are called to pray through them all. What an amazing feeling to know that the God of the universe, He who made everything we see and touch and interact with and love every day also wants to talk to us day in and day out, whether our days are good or bad. That information all by itself sparks a feeling of joy in my heart that no one can take away.

"Are you sick? Call the church leaders together to pray and anoint you with oil in the name of the Master. Believing-prayer will heal you, and Jesus will put you on your feet. And if you’ve sinned, you’ll be forgiven—healed inside and out." (James 5:14-15)

I would love to say that these verses mean that praying hard enough equals complete healing for the person here on earth. But I think we all know that's not true. God is not your personal genie. He isn't going to grant your each and every wish. Sometimes, because we live in an imperfect and fallen world, bad things are allowed to happen. And beyond that, God knows what he's doing. He can see the bigger picture. He will use every single thing for his greater purpose. So even when something bad happens now, you can expect a greater purpose in the future whether you get to see it or not.

The way God heals a person of their illness sometimes includes their going home to heaven. What is going on in their lives is solved by Jesus simply calling them home. In heaven, they are whole and healed and perfect again. Other times, the healing they receive means they are healed temporarily here on earth. This is not our permanent residence, remember. The Bible tells us in Philippians 3:20 that our permanent address is heaven. It's not here. This is a short stop in our eternity.

Look at Paul who wrote half of the New Testament (almost). He was afflicted with what he described as "a thorn in the side." He never comes out and says exactly what this is, but it's possible it was some simple but uncomfortable chronic illness like headaches or migraines. He prayed and prayed for healing and it didn't come. God said his power is made greater in Paul's weakness and so he continued to have that thorn in his side for the rest of his days as far as anyone knows.

A couple of years ago, two of my friends each had a son dealing with cancer. Both are great women who love Jesus, go to church every week, and do their best to live their lives like Jesus. They pray constantly and asked their communities to surround their babies in prayer. We absolutely did that. One son was declared "in remission" and is seemingly healed today. The other is in heaven with Jesus. Two women. Two sons. Two outcomes. Two different ways of healing. The same Jesus.

Does this mean Jesus loves one more than the other? That he answered one prayer and not the other? Absolutely not. He loves each and every one of us the same, with a fierce and unending love. Both of these guys are loved by God himself. One has more life to live here on earth, the other had the privilege of hearing "well done, my good and faithful servant" as his short time here on earth came to an end. Yes, we miss him, but we will be reunited one day in heaven. Those words don't feel like enough and they aren't. Nothing can take away the absolutely heartbreaking feeling of losing a child, not even the "time" that everyone claims.

"Make this your common practice: Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you can live together whole and healed. The prayer of a person living right with God is something powerful to be reckoned with. Elijah, for instance, human just like us, prayed hard that it wouldn’t rain, and it didn’t—not a drop for three and a half years. Then he prayed that it would rain, and it did. The showers came and everything started growing again." (James 5:16-18)

From sickness and healing, James takes a turn at confessing our sins and praying for one another. I love that James challenges us all as believers to pray for one another. There is nothing more powerful that you can do for another person than to talk to Jesus on their behalf. And this isn't because your prayers are better than anyone else's. It's because you are building a relationship with Jesus one prayer at a time. You are giving complete trust to God that he will take care of those you love. And at the same time, you are living in fellowship with other believers which is one of the ways that God made us to live our lives.

I have loved the challenges that God is giving me lately and I have another for you for today. My challenge for you today is to start a prayer journal. It could be written out on paper, in an actual journal, or even on your phone. Write out the names of the people in your life. You can make this longer or shorter, but write it. Add notes about things that are going on in their lives. Then start praying for them. Every single day, open that journal and pray. When you hear about an answered prayer, make a note. It'll be amazingly uplifting and encouraging for you a few weeks from now to look back on it and see all of the answered prayers.

I used to do this, actually. I'm going to go now and update my own prayer journal. I pray that you start your own as well. Have a blessed day.

Patience: James 5:7-12

"Meanwhile, friends, wait patiently for the Master’s Arrival. You see farmers do this all the time, waiting for their valuable crops to mature, patiently letting the rain do its slow but sure work. Be patient like that. Stay steady and strong. The Master could arrive at any time." (James 5:7-8)

James uses the word patience (or a variation of it) three times in these two verses. I'd say patience is pretty important, wouldn't you? And so many of us completely lack this fruit of the spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). We live in an impatient time. We rarely have to wait on anything. Have you noticed? I'm waiting on an important email? It's delivered immediately to my phone while I'm away from my house. I hear a song that I like on the radio? I can just download it instantly to my phone. I feel like having pizza? I place an order online and then walk in and pick it up. There is virtually no waiting for anything anymore. We are an impatient generation and the next one will likely be even more so.

But patience is vital to our faith. James says it in those verses. So how do we develop patience in a completely impatient world? That's a great question that I really can't answer on my own. Let's keep reading this passage and see if we can come up with any more answers:

"Friends, don’t complain about each other. A far greater complaint could be lodged against you, you know. The Judge is standing just around the corner." (James 5:9)

Hmm. What do our friends have to do with patience? Why is this verse here in the midst of a passage on patience? In praying about it, I think our friends are the key to practicing and building our patience. God has placed us in fellowship with other believers- and even several nonbelievers- for many reasons. It's my belief that developing patience within ourselves is one of those reasons. Think about it. Every single person was created in this world to look differently, act differently, sound differently, believe different things. Everyone possesses different personality traits and quirks. We have habits- good and bad.

We will never get along with another human being 100% of the time. Everyone disagrees on occasion. Some people actually enjoy disagreements and seek them out. How do we correct an issue with a friend? How do we resolve a conflict? One of the key ingredients is patience. Sure, there is empathy in there as we strive to understand the other person's point of view and compromise as you work to come to a happy conclusion, but one of the most important elements is patience. We can't approach a disagreement that we hope to resolve without possessing a good deal of patience for the other person. Impatience only leads to more anger and hostility. Patience helps to bring the level of anger down several notches. Patience says, "I want to hear what you have to say even if I have to wait to share my side."

My oldest son is the most patient person that I have ever met in my entire 35 years and counting. Honestly, he has the patience of...I don't know...someone with a lot of patience. Just trust me. He's very patient. He is rarely in a disagreement with anyone because he is so patient with everyone. In our house, there are little spats amongst three of our four kids constantly. They always want their own way and are always trying their hardest to get it. But not my oldest. He rarely tries to get his own way. He puts others first often. He is optimistic about their motives almost always. And he is so, so patient. When he plays a video game with "the baby," who is seven now so not an actual baby in any way, he patiently teaches him how to work the game, what the buttons do, what the best way to get through a level is, and he even lets him win sometimes. Patient. He doesn't care how long it takes for the baby to understand what he is saying and instructing. He just waits for him to get it. It's awesome.

Let's keep reading and see if we can glean anything else from James' words:

"Take the old prophets as your mentors. They put up with anything, went through everything, and never once quit, all the time honoring God. What a gift life is to those who stay the course! You’ve heard, of course, of Job’s staying power, and you know how God brought it all together for him at the end. That’s because God cares, cares right down to the last detail." (James 5:10-11)

And here's another way for us to learn to be patient: by studying those who came before us. James describes "the old prophets" here as great mentors who have put up with a ton, gone through everything under the sun, and persevered despite it all. And they did it all to the glory of God. We can still read about and study the lives of those "old prophets" by opening our Bibles. When James wrote this, the Bible was several books in the old testament. The new testament wasn't a thing yet. It was still being written in the form of letters to the various churches throughout the known world. So when James says to study under the old prophets, they are men from old testament times.

These verses may point to another group of people as well- our elders. People who are older than us have more life experience. It's just a fact. Finding someone who has lived on a similar path to yours and could give you their thoughts and experiences would be a great way to build up your skills, including your patience. So often I think we disregard the older generation as out of touch with current times and lacking in anything more to offer. They are full of knowledge and should continue to be valued until the Lord welcomes them home with the words, "Well done, my good and faithful servant."

Finally, James has an important warning for us to end this portion of his letter:

"And since you know that he cares, let your language show it. Don’t add words like “I swear to God” to your own words. Don’t show your impatience by concocting oaths to hurry up God. Just say yes or no. Just say what is true. That way, your language can’t be used against you." (James 5:12)

God operates on his own timetable. He will not be rushed or challenged into moving quicker. You cannot force his hand or make things happen that he isn't prepared to see come to fruition. He is God and he is in charge. Pushing for something to happen rather than patiently waiting on God to do it will only lead to heartache.

When we bought our first house as a married couple, I wasn't in love with it. In fact, I didn't really like the place much at all. It was in the general area where I wanted to be but the layout was strange (our master bedroom was a walk-through to our oldest son's bedroom) and the yard was small. It was the best that we could afford at the time and my husband swore we would only be there five years. Mistake. Five years came and went. At seven years, I wanted to put the house on the market. Neither of us felt like God was leading us to go yet, but I wanted to go so we listed. And guess what? Our house didn't sell and we didn't find another place to move either. Total heartache. So we stayed five more years. In those years, I did my best to be patient and to remember that where we lived didn't matter. It was how we lived and what we did with what God had BLESSED us with that mattered. My focus shifted. And then, all of a sudden, we found a house we wanted and a buyer for the old place and we were moving! It happened so fast after we had waited so long!

My question for you is this: What has God placed in your life to teach you patience? Who has he placed with you to teach you patience? Now that you recognize these things and people as valuable resources in your life, what are you going to do differently?

As always, it is my prayer that these words somehow change your perspective in both an earthly way and an eternal way. May God bless you as you go forward today.

Are You Materialistic? James 5:1-6MSG

"And a final word to you arrogant rich: Take some lessons in lament. You’ll need buckets for the tears when the crash comes upon you. Your money is corrupt and your fine clothes stink. Your greedy luxuries are a cancer in your gut, destroying your life from within. You thought you were piling up wealth. What you’ve piled up is judgment." (James 5:1-3)

We live in one of the richest countries in the world. The large majority of us are what the world would consider rich. According to Richard Stearns, President of World Vision and author of "The Hole in Our Gospel," those who make $50,000 a year or more are in the top 1% of the richest in the world. Earning $25,000 or more puts you in the top 10%. We live in a very rich country when it comes to material wealth- spiritual wealth is a whole different post. So as I write about "the rich" in this post, I'm talking to all of us.

As I read over these verses, I did what I always do. I asked Jesus what he wanted me to take away from them. What does he want me to learn? And then, what does he want me to share with those reading this blog? And this is what I feel like he's saying: We love our stuff too much in this country, and we don't love our neighbors enough.

We have houses, cars (sometimes more than one or two), closets full of clothes, and refrigerators packed full of food- we often have so much left over that some of it goes bad waiting to be eaten. We have swimming pools, perfectly manicured lawns, toys for our kids pouring out the windows, every electronic device created- many of which we no longer use because they aren't new enough. And I'm not saying that having this stuff is necessarily bad- neither is James. It's what we do with it that determines its value.

Somehow we have lost focus. We've forgotten that we are called by Jesus himself to love our neighbor. But loving your neighbor is way more than a feeling. Love isn't a feeling at all- it's a choice you make, an action you take. Saying "I love you" with your mouth is pretty easy. Saying "I love you" by babysitting the neighbor's son for free for the last six years, painting the shutters on the old neighbor lady's house, sharing your food with a new mom who needs a meal after giving birth, or handing over some of that hard-earned money to a kid who has nothing in another country and will never ever pay you back (in money that is)? Those are totally different, much more difficult ways to say "I love you." They take serious action, sweat equity, and the tough decision to keep going even when it just plain sucks and the other person doesn't seem like they "get it."

"All the workers you’ve exploited and cheated cry out for judgment. The groans of the workers you used and abused are a roar in the ears of the Master Avenger. You’ve looted the earth and lived it up. But all you’ll have to show for it is a fatter than usual corpse. In fact, what you’ve done is condemn and murder perfectly good persons, who stand there and take it." (James 5:4-6)

You know, I read these verses over and over again trying to wrap my head around them and figure out what on earth to write about them. And the part that stands out is this: "You've looted the earth and lived it up." Aren't we, as a country, doing this? We use up so many resources each and every day, much more than many other countries in the world. In fact, this is a quote I found on this subject from EMagazine in an article they published in September 2012:

"United States Leads the World in Consuming Natural Resources. With less than 5 percent of world population, the U.S. uses a third of the world's paper, a quarter of the oil, coal and aluminum, and 19 percent of the copper. The U.S. ranks highest by a considerable margin in most consumer categories as well."

We might not be personally abusing or using any people at this point, but we sure are using and abusing our earth. We overuse every single thing that is available to us, everything that God put here and declared "good" we are digging up, using up, and leaving for dead. I'm not going to go all "Environmental Protection Group" on you, but we need to do this one better. We have to slow down on our overuse of resources.

Off the top of my head, the one I struggle with the most is buying and then wasting too much food. I really don't like to admit that one at all. What I really need to do is use what's already here first and then only go shopping again when it's truly necessary. Honestly, I should just donate half of the non-perishables that are currently residing in my cabinets. I don't NEED that much food here. I'm hoping I'm not the only one that struggles with this.

Okay, so let's talk about a challenge for this week. First, look around your neighborhood. How can you say "I love you" to at least one of your neighbors this week? Does someone need their lawn mowed, their dog walked, or their chickens fed while they're away? Do you have a child that's older than theirs whose clothes you could pass down when they're outgrown?

Second, look outside your neighborhood and into your community. How can you say "I love you" to your community? Is there a food bank that needs more donations or some help with organization? Is there a soup kitchen in need of volunteers? How about a halfway house that needs some paint work or a pregnancy center taking donations? What about a nursing home that just needs some regular visitors or some gardening work done on a weekly basis? How about a smaller church that could use help mowing their lawn? The possibilities are endless. Pack up your family and do something! Do anything! Not only will you be helping out your community, but you'll be bonding with your family and demonstrating real love for them.

Finally, take one more giant step out. How can you help a community in another country? Do you know someone collecting donations for a new well they want to dig in Kenya? Or what about sponsoring a child? Missionaries always need donations, how about finding one to start donating to? Is there a mission's trip you can sign up for?

Can you imagine what the world would be like if every single one of us took the resources that God blessed us with and used them to further his kingdom by demonstrating active love? It is my heartfelt prayer that we get to see that one day. I know we may not see it this side of heaven, but I still pray for it. Don't just be blessed today, choose to be a blessing to others.

When God Says Jump, You Jump! James 4:13-17 NLT

"Look here, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we are going to a certain town and will stay there a year. We will do business there and make a profit.' How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone. What you ought to say is, 'If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that.' Otherwise you are boasting about your own pretentious plans, and all such boasting is evil.

Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it." (James 4:13-17)

During the school year this past year, I was homeschooling my younger two kids while the older two went to public school. This wasn't a new thing. We'd been homeschooling for several years by that point, but the older boys had gone off to public school as we felt led to send them. At the start of the year, therefore, I submitted paperwork that said I planned to homeschool both my fourth grader and my first grader all year long. If you had talked to me last summer, I likely would have told you that I planned to continue homeschooling indefinitely. I enjoy the extra time I get with my babies by doing so.

But by Christmas break, I was getting this feeling like my daughter needed to go to public school. I pushed it away, of course, because why? But every few days, I would just get this overwhelming feeling about it. I prayed about it. I talked to my best friend about it over and over again (we beat that proverbial horse until it looked like a monkey*). I even mentioned the idea here and there to my husband. But I didn't make any sort of decision. Finally, in February, I took a tiny step. I told my husband that I thought we should actually look into it for the rest of the school year. I thought that surely he would say no, that it was silly to send her for just a couple of months, and I would be in the clear on this one. But he went and said, "yes, I agree." *LOUD SIGH*

I have to insert here that I felt a little like Jonah with the message to Tarsus. In that story, he was afraid to go and didn't want to give a message of mercy to the evil people of Tarsus (see the Book of Jonah in the Old Testament for the whole story). Like him, I really didn't want to do what I felt like God was leading me to do. I was struggling with the exact thing James warns about in verse 17! "Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it." Thankfully, God has blessed me with an amazing, overly honest sometimes, and encouraging husband along with an honest, loving, pushy-in-a-great-way, Jesus-knows-what-he's-doing-so-just-do-it best friend.

I took another tiny step. I called the school and talked to the admissions lady about what I would need to do to get my daughter enrolled. She gave me the steps and I completed them. Step by step over the next several days, I walked the path that I felt God had laid out for me and before I knew it, I was standing in the elementary school office on my daughter's first day of school in the public school system (ever!). My fourth grader walked into her classroom with her teacher and a class full of kids that she didn't know. And you know what happened? She loved it, of course!

By the end of the school year, I found myself wishing that I'd been brave sooner, that we had enrolled her in school sooner. Even though I missed her like crazy when she was gone during the day, I knew without a doubt that she was where God wanted her and she was loving every minute of it. In fact, when the last day rolled around this year, she was super sad to see the year come to a close. If it had been her choice, she would have kept going to school all summer long. Haha.

So why did it take me so long to listen? Well, I'm not sure which it was but I can think of a few reasons that could have led to my choices:

1. I wanted it my way- Who doesn't love doing things their own way? Don't we all love life a little bit more when things are going our own way? The problem here is that my way didn't match up with God's way.

2. Fear- Honestly, this was the biggest deciding factor for me. I was afraid to take the steps forward on this decision. What if she hated it? What if she struggled? What if she failed? What if something happened to her either in school or on the bus on the way to school?

3. Was it really God or was this a trick? You can only sit in indecision for so long before you're actually making a decision by not deciding. Whew, that was a mouthful. But it makes sense, right? If I had continued to waffle on my decision, we would have easily ended up at the end of our school year (my daughter only needed another 60 days or so of school by February as we always start early so we can end early). At some point, after talking to plenty of people who also love God and love me, I needed to take a step of faith and see what God guided me to do next.

The next time you are feeling like God is leading you to do something, no matter what it is, move forward using these steps:

1. Pray about what you're feeling. Talk to God about it and see what he shows you. He may never speak audibly to you (I don't know, I'm not you) but he does speak- through his followers, through memes and billboards, through messages at church, and especially through His Word.

2. Check the Bible. Open it up and see what it says in there about what you're being called to do. If you are feeling called to do something that goes against the Bible's teaching, it's not God calling you. God is never ever going to call you to do something that he has already said no to in the Bible.

3. Talk with trusted family and friends who absolutely have your best interest at heart. What do they think about the calling you're describing? Do they see any flaws in the plan? Do they have any valid concerns that you should consider? Or maybe they have a different first step that they think you should take? What does God think about that step? Ask them to pray with you. Remember that Ecclesiastes 4:12 teaches that "a cord of three strands is not easily broken." And Jesus says in Matthew 18:20, "when two or three of you are together because of me, you can be sure that I’ll be there."

4. Keep talking to God as you take the first step. Let him guide your steps. He is going to lead you through what he's leading you to do. Even when you're afraid to do what he's saying, take the steps anyway. God's way is always infinitely better than our own!

Today I pray that we can all take the steps that God is calling us to take. I pray that you are brave and strong. And that you continue to talk to trusted people in your life because God has given us fellowship for a reason!

As we close, think about the following question. What is God calling you to do in your life that you're afraid to do and what is the first step you need to take in order to make it happen?

*No actual horses or monkeys were harmed in the making of either my decision or this post.

Let's Talk About Loving Others Again- James 4:11-12 MSG

"Don’t bad-mouth each other, friends. It’s God’s Word, his Message, his Royal Rule, that takes a beating in that kind of talk. You’re supposed to be honoring the Message, not writing graffiti all over it. God is in charge of deciding human destiny. Who do you think you are to meddle in the destiny of others?" (James 4:11-12)

I've spent much of my morning reading about death and my heart is hurting over it all. Deaths in Dallas, Texas as police officers were killed. Death in Minnesota as a man was killed in front of his girlfriend and her child. Death in Louisiana as a man was killed in a convenience store parking lot. Death of a newborn baby whose mother used heroin during her pregnancy. Death as abortion is chosen over life again and again. So much death. I honestly am at a loss for words over what to say about it all, but I'm obviously going to try to find the words here.

I read today's verses for our study of James and my mind just went right back to all the videos I watched this morning and the articles I read. I cannot shake the feeling that I need to say some things about it all. James says that "God is in charge of deciding human destiny," so why are we constantly trying to do his job for him? That's what all of this feels like to me. A group of people decided that those officers were wrong to take the lives of the men in Louisiana and Minnesota (and I am not disagreeing), so they decided to shoot officers completely unrelated to the incident in Texas in response? How does that make any sense at all? How does taking more lives, shooting more people, causing more death and division help anything? Do these people who have committed this latest act of violence truly feel any better about all that is happening in our country now that they've done this? I can't imagine they do.

God's word, his Message, his Royal Rule are absolutely taking a beating here in our country lately. People aren't loving one another as we are called to do in God's Royal Rule. We aren't spreading God's message of Jesus's love. We are resorting to killing each other! My heart isn't the only one broken here. God's is too. We are quickly becoming a country divided against itself in so many ways- Christians vs non-Christians, Muslims vs non-Muslims, immigrants vs non-immigrants, rich vs poor, homeless vs homed, white vs black. The list goes on and on.

#blacklivesmatter has been circulating social media a lot recently. And it has everyone up in arms. #blacklivesmatter doesn't exist in order to say that other lives don't matter. #blacklivesmatter is here because we are losing so many black lives for no good reason right now. As a country, we are slowly circling back to isolating a group of people and acting like they don't matter, like we don't care about them. And guess what? Black lives do matter. They matter to Jesus. They matter to me. They matter to my family and my friends. They should matter to you too. Because Jesus made those lives. He put those souls into those bodies. He breathed life into them and placed a purpose in their hearts. They are here for a reason, just as we all are. We should be embracing one another, not in spite of our differences, but almost because of our differences.

Those differences are what make this world spin around and around. God wanted us all to be different. He made us colorful on purpose. He gave us personalities on purpose. He gave us passions on purpose. He gave us idiosyncrasies on purpose. He gave us talents on purpose. When God made us, he stepped back and said we were very good work. Not just mediocre, not "eh, I could do better." No! Very good (Genesis 1:31). And you cannot convince me that he doesn't put in every effort, every bit of his sweat, love, and tears into each and every life that he creates.

The Bible tells us that we are all "fearfully and wonderfully made" (Psalms 139:14). He has carefully crafted each of us for his good purpose here on earth. We have no right to snatch the lives of others away in a moment of anger. No right at all. I long to see our country unite as one again, or maybe I should say for the first time.

Today I want to do something a little different. I want to issue a challenge to anyone reading this. I don't know if I'll have one person read this or a thousand, but here's my challenge: Reach out to those you don't agree with in your life today. Tell them that you love them and that you are so glad that God made them so uniquely different. Find something that you love about them and tell them. Embrace the things that make you different from everyone else. The world needs you exactly as you are. God only made one of you, so be the best you that you can be. Don't cave to the pressures of the world. Don't conform and try to become everyone else. We already have everyone else. We need you.

I also want to challenge you to step outside of your perfect little box. There's an entire world outside of that box that you haven't even seen yet! Go somewhere different. Order food at a restaurant you haven't tried before. Visit Goodwill in a different city (because come on, Goodwill is quite possibly the best store ever, seriously). Gather up canned goods and take them to a new food pantry in the "scarier part of town." Offer up your services at a soup kitchen or a homeless shelter. The only way that we can see the kind of love that God calls us to in the world today is if we step up as a group and start showing it.

I pray today that God can heal the hurts in our hearts, that he can come alongside us so completely that we feel his presence throughout the day. I pray that he can help us to pick up the broken pieces and rebuild them into something so beautiful for his glory. More than anything, I pray that we can all come together and realize that every single life matters to God. And I pray that we will start showing God's love to everyone around us beginning today.

Just as we are called to do in Ephesians 5:2, let's go forward "and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us" today.

I Want It My Way- James 4:1-10 (MSG)

Everyone loves to get their own way, right? It's like it's this inborn desire to do things our own way in our own time. But guess what? James says that isn't the way things should be at all. He calls it sinful. Our own sinful nature is constantly battling against the part of us that longs to follow Jesus (Paul talks about this, actually), so we shouldn't be striving for our own way all the time.

"Where do you think all these appalling wars and quarrels come from? Do you think they just happen? Think again. They come about because you want your own way, and fight for it deep inside yourselves. You lust for what you don’t have and are willing to kill to get it. You want what isn’t yours and will risk violence to get your hands on it." (James 4:1-2a)

Can you think of a time that you wanted something so much that you would have done anything to get it? What about a time that you just wanted something and schemed until it happened? Maybe there wasn't violence (I hope not), or even the risk of it, when you wanted something but you still went about getting your own way in the wrong way. Let's read the next couple of verses from James on this:

"You wouldn’t think of just asking God for it, would you? And why not? Because you know you’d be asking for what you have no right to. You’re spoiled children, each wanting your own way." (James 4:2b-3)

Let me tell you about the semi-annual fight at my house, the proverbial hill that we are willing to die on around here. Shaun and I have been married for 14 years now and we have just one really big argument twice a year every year. It's a total first-world problem and ridiculous. You've been warned. We fight in the spring/summer about when to put the AC in/on and then we fight again in the fall about when to turn the heat on. Shaun wants his way because running these things is expensive. It costs us a lot of money each time either thing is running. I want my way because I live in this house all day nearly every day with four kids. We get hot (cold in the fall) and feel that we "need" the AC (heat in fall) to be comfortable. And you know what happens when we both fight for our own way. There is no violence or death, of course, but there is an argument because we are both so focused on getting our own way. Feelings are hurt and we aren't following God's way on it at all.

So what does James say about this?

"You’re cheating on God. If all you want is your own way, flirting with the world every chance you get, you end up enemies of God and his way. And do you suppose God doesn’t care? The proverb has it that 'he’s a fiercely jealous lover.' And what he gives in love is far better than anything else you’ll find. It’s common knowledge that 'God goes against the willful proud; God gives grace to the willing humble.'" (James 4:4-6)

Ouch. Cheating on God? How is it cheating on God to want your own way? Well, James tells us that wanting our own way and scheming to get it is "flirting with the world." How would you feel if your spouse or significant other were flirting with someone else? You'd be upset, I hope. Imagine that feeling and I think we get a small glimpse of how God feels when we are so focused on our way that we totally disregard him and his way.

"So let God work his will in you. Yell a loud no to the Devil and watch him scamper. Say a quiet yes to God and he’ll be there in no time. Quit dabbling in sin. Purify your inner life. Quit playing the field. Hit bottom, and cry your eyes out. The fun and games are over. Get serious, really serious. Get down on your knees before the Master; it’s the only way you’ll get on your feet." (James 4:7-10)

As silly as the semi-annual fight is around here, it's a serious event to Shaun and me. And it says in verse 7 that this fight is just one more way that Satan is trying to drive us apart. In the first few years, there was yelling (Shaun) and crying (me, haha) as we both vied for our own way on this. Our former neighbors knew the day was coming each spring and would practically set up lawn chairs because they knew we'd be ridiculous about it. Honestly, aren't most arguments ridiculous at their core?

But in the last few years, we've approached this differently. We've come together and talked out the issues we each have with our own sides. We've prayed about it. We've done our best to submit to one another as we are called to do in Ephesians 5, giving a little from each side. This year, instead of putting the AC in on the first hot day of May like I would really like to do, I compromised by waiting until July. And I didn't whine about it. That's another key to submitting to one another and trying to do things God's way. You aren't truly submitting to God's way if you are doing the right thing on the outside but insisting on the wrong thing on the inside.

What proverbial hill are you dying on right now? What is it that you just have to have your way on, no matter the cost? God is calling you to a better way, to his way. Lay that sword down at the base of the cross and hand your way over to God. His way is so much better! He has bigger things in mind than you can dream and you will never be disappointed by God's dream for your life. My prayer today is that we can all move forward in God's will rather than our own. Amen.

Applying Wisdom- James 3:13-18

"If you are wise and understand God’s ways, prove it by living an honorable life, doing good works with the humility that comes from wisdom." (James 3:13)

I have wanted to be a writer for as long as I can remember. I always pictured it in one particular way. I'd write a best seller like JK Rowling or Ursula Vernon. Kids everywhere would be dying to get their hands on my books. Because I'd be this great story teller. But there's a problem. No one is beating down my door to hear my stories. Literary agents don't read my samples and then jump on their computers to email me back, let alone set up a phone interview to become my representative. And there's probably a reason. While I have been pursuing this dream for quite awhile, I can't say that I've been doing it God's way. I've been writing my own stories instead of telling God's. Honestly, there have been times that I've struggled with some of the things in these exact verses (though I didn't realize it at the time and I shutter to think of the negative words James uses here):

"But if you are bitterly jealous and there is selfish ambition in your heart, don’t cover up the truth with boasting and lying. For jealousy and selfishness are not God’s kind of wisdom. Such things are earthly, unspiritual, and demonic. For wherever there is jealousy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and evil of every kind." (James 3:14-16)

Recently, I've taken a step back and asked God what he wants me to say and do. I feel like he placed this dream on my heart for a reason and I want to follow it. I just don't know how exactly. The conversation is something like this:

"I want to write," I tell him over and over again.

"What do you want to write?" I can feel him asking.

"Well...I don't really know exactly. Something interesting. Something people will want to read. Something about you," I answer without a real answer.

"Like what?" he asks again gently.

"..."

"While you're thinking about it, I have some things for you to read," he says.

We've been building to this moment for awhile, God and me. I've tried writing my own way on my own time and it hasn't worked. So while I try to figure out where God is leading me, I read what I feel like he's telling me to read. First, he led me to Holley Gerth's book, "You're Already Amazing" via my mom. In that book, I learned that I have strengths and skills that God has given me with the intention that I use them for Him. I am honest. Sometimes overly so. And Jesus made me that way. Interesting, right?

Next I read through Charles Swindoll's book about Paul called "Paul: A Man of Grace and Grit." Initially, I started reading that book because I wanted to know more about Paul for the devotions I was working on about Galatians- you know, the first book of the Bible I felt like God wanted me to study here on this blog. In that book, I learned that Paul was called to the desert to spend time alone with God for quite awhile. In that time, God was molding and shaping Paul to be who he needed to be in order to really impact people for eternity. And while I'd hardly call this summer home with my sweet babies a desert, it is absolutely, unequivocally a transition period for me.

In this transition, I'm also studying the Eeyore of the Bible- Ecclesiastes. I'm using Courtney Joseph's study and learning a lot about enjoying the moments we're in and serving God through what we are doing in our everyday lives. I'm only about halfway through that, but there have been invaluable lessons along the way as I study alongside (goodness, I just checked, haha) 26 of my closest friends. ;)

I'm also reading through another of Holley Gerth's books called "You're Made for a God-Sized Dream" because, you know, I feel like God has called me to this writing life. And do you know what I read there? We go through transitions (like this one!!) where we will develop our relationship with God to a higher level and learn more about what God wants us to do with our lives. He isn't going to call us to a dream and then toss us into the deep end, which is what it would be if he'd made any of these posts go viral or one of my handful of finished stories popular. No, instead, he is going to give me the opportunity to say yes to and work on smaller projects like the manager did in Matthew with the three servants to whom he gave various amounts of talents (a currency back then, just ironic now). You can read the whole thing in Matthew 25:14-30 if you're interested but the basic gist of it is that each servant was given talents to grow. In the end, the manager gives more to those who did well. I want to be the one that does well with the talents I've been given.

So this summer, these verses are my ultimate goal:

"But the wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and the fruit of good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere. And those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of righteousness." (James 3:17-18)

In this period of transition from homeschooling mom to "just mom," I am seeking God's wisdom for my life. I want to be the person that He is calling me to be and no one else. I am listening to his voice and moving along as I hear him speak- hence this blog. I pray that through my writing somehow, God uses me to "plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of righteousness." And I pray the same for you. May God reveal his wisdom from above in each of our lives.

I know this particular post has been a little...okay, entirely me-centered. I feel like the time is now to be sharing where I am in my journey in order to help someone else out there. I think the best way that we can approach this whole "applying wisdom" goal is to stop focusing on our own wisdom and start taking a moment to pray for the "wisdom from above" that James talks about in James 3:17.

Because while we have this very limited view of the big puzzle that we are all a part of, God can see the whole huge picture. He knows where each piece is supposed to go and can gently guide us there if only we allow him to do it. Otherwise, we are just going to sit on the table waiting forever to be used in the bigger picture. God isn't pushy. He isn't going to force anyone to go anywhere or do anything that they don't want to do. He isn't going to make us have a relationship with him. He gave us the ability to choose.

So what are you going to choose today? Are you going to stop what you're doing and talk to Jesus about his plan for your life or are you going to keep pushing on in your own way?  

Me and My Big Mouth- James 3:1-12

James doesn't know this, but he apparently wrote this particular chapter for me about two thousand years ago. God knew he'd be making me with my big, overly honest in not-always-the-best-of-ways mouth and he tapped James on the shoulder. "She's going to need this. Trust me."

"Dear brothers and sisters, not many of you should become teachers in the church, for we who teach will be judged more strictly. Indeed, we all make many mistakes. For if we could control our tongues, we would be perfect and could also control ourselves in every other way." (James 3:1-2)

I can't even begin to tell you the number of times my mouth has gotten me into trouble. And if it isn't my mouth, it's my face. Because whatever I am holding inside of my mouth just pours out onto my face. You can absolutely see the words that I'm thinking written all over my face. It's amusing, therefore, that these words are here in James for me. I think it's even funnier that I spent several years as a teacher to my kids (I suppose I still am since my husband and I are raising them to be amazing, world changing, Jesus loving human beings) and am now writing these devotionals on this blog despite what it says above.

Let's see what else James has to say on this subject:

"We can make a large horse go wherever we want by means of a small bit in its mouth. And a small rudder makes a huge ship turn wherever the pilot chooses to go, even though the winds are strong. In the same way, the tongue is a small thing that makes grand speeches.

But a tiny spark can set a great forest on fire. And among all the parts of the body, the tongue is a flame of fire. It is a whole world of wickedness, corrupting your entire body. It can set your whole life on fire, for it is set on fire by hell itself." (James 3:3-6)

James shares example after example of small things that make big changes. And he's right. Let's look at that first example he shared. The average horse stands as tall as the average man and weighs more than a thousand pounds (these can vary from horse to horse of course, some are more than 2,000 pounds). If you tried to push a horse with your bare hands, it wouldn't have to go anywhere. If you tried to pick it up, you wouldn't get it off the ground. They are heavy and big, right? Insert a bit, a small piece of metal (sometimes other synthetic material), in the mouth of the horse and you can hop on its back and lead it where you want it to go. The bit can be held in the palm of your hand and weighs almost nothing. And yet? It can lead a horse.

Our tongues are just like that. Think about the speeches made in history by people like Rosa Parks, Adolf Hitler, and Martin Luther King Jr. There are so many more but let's think on them here. Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr. used their tongues to speak for positive change, to stand up for the rights of themselves and others while Adolf Hitler used his for evil. He set an entire horrible piece of our history into motion through his speeches. Many of the things that each of those people said in their lifetimes are still with us today, written into our history. The tongue is powerful. Once it's used to unleash words into the world, there is no reigning them back in. You can't pull them back, take them back, unsay them. They're out there forever, for better or worse.

"People can tame all kinds of animals, birds, reptiles, and fish, but no one can tame the tongue. It is restless and evil, full of deadly poison. Sometimes it praises our Lord and Father, and sometimes it curses those who have been made in the image of God. And so blessing and cursing come pouring out of the same mouth. Surely, my brothers and sisters, this is not right! Does a spring of water bubble out with both fresh water and bitter water? Does a fig tree produce olives, or a grapevine produce figs? No, and you can’t draw fresh water from a salty spring." (James 3:7-12)

Isn't it amazing that the tongue is such a small part of our bodies, one that's hidden inside our mouths, and it causes so much trouble when used incorrectly? James paints a pretty scary picture for us in saying, "People can tame all kinds of animals, birds, reptiles, and fish, but no one can tame the tongue." (James 3:7-8a) It all sounds rather hopeless, doesn't it? But it's not. You see, we can't tame our tongues by ourselves. We need Jesus for that, just like we need Jesus for everything. By sticking close to him, talking to him throughout the day, reading his word, and pausing before responding to reflect on Him, we can learn to control our tongue through Jesus' power rather than our own.

So let's move through our day today doing just that- talking constantly to Jesus, our maker, the one who loves us no matter what we do. Allow him to guide you. Let's think before we speak today and see what a difference that could make. Do you struggle with this the way that I do? Is there anyone in your life that you could speak to about this so that you could build an accountability relationship with one another? Start a journal, maybe. Tell your family what you're planning to do so they can help you through it. Who knows? Maybe they'll join you too and you can start something new within the walls of your home. I'm honestly praying for you all today, that Jesus will change each of us one day at a time.  

Faith, Works...What? James 2:14-26 MSG

"Dear friends, do you think you’ll get anywhere in this if you learn all the right words but never do anything? Does merely talking about faith indicate that a person really has it?" (James 2:14)

Today's verses actually remind me of the very holiday we are celebrating today. In the United States, we are celebrating our independence from Britain, written up and submitted on July 4, 1776. The cool thing about this, the part that is comparable to our verses, is that the American Colonies talked a good talk about wanting independence. For years, they grumbled about wanting to be free and then one day, everything came to a head, and they did it. There was, of course, a whole lot more to it than that but this isn't a history lesson. The point is that they declared they were independent.

But that declaration wasn't the end. It was only the first of a long list of actions that they had to take in order to make their dream come true. People died for the dream. There was a war that lasted eight years involving multiple countries. Our own country was a wreck that needed fixing when it was all over. This isn't much different from being a person who loves Jesus today. All over the world, there are Christians who love Jesus and just want to share the amazing news that he died for us all and they are being persecuted for it. They are dying for the dream of sharing Jesus with everyone. Those are huge actions.

Let's look at an example from James:

"For instance, you come upon an old friend dressed in rags and half-starved and say, 'Good morning, friend! Be clothed in Christ! Be filled with the Holy Spirit!' and walk off without providing so much as a coat or a cup of soup—where does that get you? Isn’t it obvious that God-talk without God-acts is outrageous nonsense?" (James 2:15-17)

Ouch. This one hits too close to home because we do it every single day. We see a need that must be addressed and we just hope someone else will take care of it. But what if we are the very "someone else" that Jesus had in mind when that person crossed our path? We are missing out on an amazing opportunity to help a fellow human, to possibly introduce them to Jesus, and to demonstrate our own faith with a little bit of action. We are far too passive here in America. We are comfortable and are rarely willing to step outside of our own bubbles to help someone else whose bubble has popped.

"I can already hear one of you agreeing by saying, 'Sounds good. You take care of the faith department, I’ll handle the works department.'

Not so fast. You can no more show me your works apart from your faith than I can show you my faith apart from my works. Faith and works, works and faith, fit together hand in glove." (James 2:18)

Those are technically James' words from thousands of years ago, but they are still completely applicable now. I am apparently full of examples today because I have another one to share. This one is a little more personal.

When I was a teenager, I made a ton of bad choices. If you asked me then if I loved Jesus and if I was a follower of Christ, I would have said, "yes, absolutely." But you wouldn't have believed me. Do you know why? Because I wasn't showing my love for Jesus in my actions. My actions said that I was a spoiled rotten, bratty teenager of the world who acted entitled to whatever she wanted. That's not Jesus.

It was like a game of mini-golf gone terribly wrong. I was still carrying my tiny little ball of faith around with me, but I had dropped the club I needed to launch my faith into the windmills and castles and across the moats of the world. So instead of playing the game with those around me, I just put my little faith ball in my pocket. From the outside, it looked like I wasn't playing the game. No one else knew except me. So it didn't matter how good I was at tossing my ball toward the little goal. No amount of holes in one were going to make me a winner because I wasn't really playing! I had no actions to back up my claims.

Do you know what James says about my pathetic faith?

"Do I hear you professing to believe in the one and only God, but then observe you complacently sitting back as if you had done something wonderful? That’s just great. Demons do that, but what good does it do them? Use your heads! Do you suppose for a minute that you can cut faith and works in two and not end up with a corpse on your hands?" (James 2:19-20)

And by the time I was 19, that was exactly what I had- a corpse. I had dropped about as low as I could go. I was a single mom and already divorced. Yes, there were still some amazing things in my life- my incredible blessing of a son being the biggest one and my supportive mom being a close second. She came alongside me and helped me pick up the pieces of my broken, dead faith. She walked me back into church, she prayed with me- she had the actions that my faith lacked. And that's when things finally turned around.

Just like Abraham and Rahab did in the Bible, I needed to back my faith with some actions. Here's what James says about them:

"Wasn’t our ancestor Abraham 'made right with God by works' when he placed his son Isaac on the sacrificial altar? Isn’t it obvious that faith and works are yoked partners, that faith expresses itself in works? That the works are 'works of faith'? The full meaning of 'believe' in the Scripture sentence, 'Abraham believed God and was set right with God,' includes his action. It’s that mesh of believing and acting that got Abraham named 'God’s friend.' Is it not evident that a person is made right with God not by a barren faith but by faith fruitful in works?

The same with Rahab, the Jericho harlot. Wasn’t her action in hiding God’s spies and helping them escape—that seamless unity of believing and doing—what counted with God? The very moment you separate body and spirit, you end up with a corpse. Separate faith and works and you get the same thing: a corpse." (James 2:21-26)

Read that last verse again:

"The very moment you separate body and spirit, you end up with a corpse. Separate faith and works and you get the same thing: a corpse."

Let's fast forward from 19 year old Kristi to 35 year old Kristi (that's me today, by the way). If you asked me again today if I was follower of Jesus, the answer would still be yes. And I'd like to believe that you could closely examine my life and see the actions that back that claim up. I'm doing my best to show the world that I love Jesus.

How about you? Do you have the actions to back up your claim of faith? It's easy to say you're a Christian. It's far harder to act like one. I pray that we all figure this one out and demonstrate our faith to the world through our actions.  

Favoritism: James 2:1-13 NLT

Ah, favoritism, you fickle beast. We are apparently discussing you today. You rear your ugly head all over the place each and every day in every single person's life. Food, drinks, clothes, shoes, shows, cities, houses, music, parks, movies- but those aren't the problem here, are they? Oh no, favoriting people is the problem. Let's take a look at what James has to say about that:

"My dear brothers and sisters, how can you claim to have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ if you favor some people over others?" (James 2:1)

Yesterday, James called us to be careful about being corrupted and changed by the world. He said that true religion was serving the orphans and widows, but also not allowing ourselves to be polluted by the world. This sentence is like an elaboration on that verse. Playing favorites is a worldly problem. Jesus didn't play favorites when he died on the cross for our sins. He died for us all. So why should we play favorites here with those in our lives?

James goes on to give an example of playing favorites:

" For example, suppose someone comes into your meeting dressed in fancy clothes and expensive jewelry, and another comes in who is poor and dressed in dirty clothes. 3 If you give special attention and a good seat to the rich person, but you say to the poor one, 'You can stand over there, or else sit on the floor'—well, 4 doesn’t this discrimination show that your judgments are guided by evil motives?

5 Listen to me, dear brothers and sisters. Hasn’t God chosen the poor in this world to be rich in faith? Aren’t they the ones who will inherit the Kingdom he promised to those who love him? 6 But you dishonor the poor! Isn’t it the rich who oppress you and drag you into court? 7 Aren’t they the ones who slander Jesus Christ, whose noble name you bear?" (James 2:2-7)

Haven't we all done this same thing at some point in our lives? I'm positive that I have. As a mom, there are days when one kid is my favorite over the others. I'm sure that I shouldn't be admitting that because it breaks the entire mom code (because each precious gem is special in their own way, yes, yes, I know). But the thing is, I am a lover of peace always. So the kid who is being peaceful and getting along with everyone, the one that is helping the others and saying sweet things, that's the one that's getting the favorite position for the day. Even as I write this I can feel one particular child dropping down the list as he instigates a fight mere moments after waking up. Over a remote. Sigh. I know it's terrible. Clearly James says I shouldn't be this way. Thankfully, Jesus already knows I'm a work-in-progress and is extremely forgiving. I am oh so thankful for this great news. Because I clearly need his forgiveness and understanding every single moment of my day. It's my prayer that I can remember this and extend the same to my gems.

Moving on from my word vomit of imperfect parenting...I actually prefer The Message variation of this next verse:

"You do well when you complete the Royal Rule of the Scriptures: 'Love others as you love yourself.'" (James 2:8 MSG)

The New Living Translation actually says to "love your neighbor as yourself," but that always feels so limiting to me. I know that the word "neighbor" in the Bible refers to others, but this feels more concrete, more all encompassing. It's just so clear in this translation that James wants us to obey the rule that Jesus gave us in Matthew to love others- every single other person- as much as we love our own selves. This is such a tough call to action, isn't it? How can we possibly love everyone the way we love ourselves? Well, I hate to say it but we can't. It's absolutely an impossible call to action. Impossible without Jesus, that is. We need Him in our lives to be able to even attempt to love others the way we love ourselves. Jesus is love and we need that perfect love from him to distribute to others.

James goes on with more examples of his point here:

"But if you play up to these so-called important people, you go against the Rule and stand convicted by it. You can’t pick and choose in these things, specializing in keeping one or two things in God’s law and ignoring others. The same God who said, 'Don’t commit adultery,' also said, 'Don’t murder.' If you don’t commit adultery but go ahead and murder, do you think your non-adultery will cancel out your murder? No, you’re a murderer, period.

12-13 Talk and act like a person expecting to be judged by the Rule that sets us free. For if you refuse to act kindly, you can hardly expect to be treated kindly. Kind mercy wins over harsh judgment every time." (James 2:9-13 MSG)

Let's read verses 12-13 one more time because they pack a powerful punch. They are the entire essence of the Golden Rule. "Treat others how you want to be treated." But they are also more than that. Treat others with mercy and kindness, not because they deserve it- not a single one of us actually does- but because you love Jesus and Jesus would want it that way. Period.

Those words speak loudly to my faithful side. I am actually extremely faithful to those closest to me. I want to do what will make them happy. I love them fiercely and am protective of them. So knowing that Jesus wants me to do this and I am failing at it? That's tough for me. Again, I find myself so thankful that he forgives me for my failure over and over again. I can do this one better. I know I can.

What about you? Are you a natural people lover? Do you struggle with loving others? It's my prayer today that we can love others as we love ourselves, just as Jesus said (and as James is reminding us now).  

Are You Religious? James 1:26-27

When you hear the word "religious" what do you think of? Is it a good or a bad word in your world? If someone called you "religious," would you be happy about that or upset?

If I'm totally honest, I actually don't like it when people call me religious. I'm not aiming to be religious. Religious, to me, means rigid rules, memorized prayers, carefully laid out rituals, and a cold God that is completely detached from me. That's not what I want for my life and it isn't the way I've come to know my Jesus. My Jesus longs for a close relationship with me. My Jesus lays out guidelines for me to follow because when I don't, I get hurt (kinda like how I don't let my kids play in the streets because I don't want them being hit by cars). My Jesus still loves and adores me even when I screw up- which I still do twenty million times a day. Okay, not that much, but it's a seriously daily event. Just like I still love my babies when they mess up, he still loves me and I'm so relieved by that.

So what exactly am I aiming for if "religious" isn't my adjective of choice? I'd love to see a smile and a knowing nod. I'd love to know that when others see me, they just know I love Jesus. Because that's my aim- to love like Jesus loves just as he asks us to in Matthew 22:39 when he said "love others as well as you love yourselves" and again in Ephesians 5:1-2 (through Paul's fingertips as he wrote) when he says to love extravagantly just like God does. But more than anything that I hope others think of me, I hope God sees me doing my best to love those around me because it's His opinion that really counts for anything.

Let's look at the verses Jesus has for me to use today:

"If you claim to be religious but don’t control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless. Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you." (James 1:26-27)

And also The Message translation of the same verses:

" Anyone who sets himself up as “religious” by talking a good game is self-deceived. This kind of religion is hot air and only hot air. Real religion, the kind that passes muster before God the Father, is this: Reach out to the homeless and loveless in their plight, and guard against corruption from the godless world." (James 1:26-27)

At the time that James originally wrote this letter, being religious was considered a good thing. Today, there is a bad connotation with the word, I think. People often don't want to be called religious- I just told you above that I certainly don't. We call ourselves other things and describe ourselves in other ways:

"I'm a Christian."

"Yeah, I go to church."

"I just love Jesus."

"I'm on the path Jesus is laying for me."

For our purposes today, let's look at being religious through the lens of it being a good thing and as a simple describer of who we are aiming to be- people that show the world that we adore Jesus through our actions.

James actually lists out several things that he sees as non-negotiable for being good followers of Jesus:

1. Keep your tongue in check

2. Take care of the orphans

3. Take care of the widows in your life

4. Help the homeless and the loveless

5. Don't get corrupted by the world

We talked a lot about that first one yesterday, so let's look at the others today.

Take care of the orphans: Don't run away screaming simply because you are freaked out by adoption. Taking care of orphans doesn't automatically equal adoption in every family. God calls everyone to care for orphans in lots of different ways. You can adopt or foster, yes, but you could also donate to someone else's adoption, do a fundraiser for someone adopting, sponsor a child in an orphanage, send gifts using a service like "Operation Christmas Child," pray for the families going through adoptions, offer encouragement or to help clean their house- I could go on and on here. My point is, we can care for the orphans in our world in so many great and useful ways.

Take care of the widows: Sadly, widows are everywhere these days. So many people have been separated from the one they love by death and it's heartbreaking. I can't imagine losing my best friend, my husband. The least that we can do as they try to navigate this new (and sometimes not so new) life, is help them out along the way, come alongside them as they go through hard times (2 Corinthians 1:4 anyone?). Taking care of the widows is weeding their flower beds or mowing their lawns. It's spending time with them, praying for them, going out with them, inviting them over to participate in family activities. It's shopping with them, going to church with them, bringing them a gift "just because." It's offering a listening ear or a shoulder to cry on. It's looking them square in the eye and acknowledging how much it sucks that they've lost their best friend and other half in life. It's a text, a message, or a phone call to say you're still here. It's doing whatever it takes to show them Jesus every single day because there is nothing in the world that I can think that would be worse than losing my best friend and spouse.

Help the Homeless and Loveless: Every day in America, we are smacked in the face with the existence of people who have lost their homes and who have no one that really cares. But daily, we walk past and ignore them. Still. This was an issue in James' time and it's still an issue today. As people who love Jesus, we should absolutely be volunteering to help out in places that need us- homeless shelters could use donations, soup kitchens could use workers, and food pantries need both. If you aren't in a place where you want to or are able to get your hands dirty serving, then buy some groceries and donate them. Check with a homeless shelter and see what they could use, then arrange a drive to collect the items. If we all worked together, we could do these things easily.

Don't Get Corrupted By the World: Jesus calls us to live in the world but not to be of the world. It can be hard to keep your eyes on Jesus when there are so many shiny new things in the world. But that's exactly what he's asking us to do. Focus on Jesus, do what he would do each and every day. Love others as well as you love yourself (Matthew 22:39).

You know, one of the reasons I pushed so hard against studying James is that I suspected Jesus would convict me on these things that we are talking about today. And he totally has. Some of it I think I am doing okay on, others? Not so much. How about you? How are you doing with serving others? Loving others?