Rest

Render Miracles of Our Sin

/ Jana / Leave a comment

What a crazy call.  A friend of mine who had completely given up hope on her marriage called to tell me that God had changed her heart. You have to understand how radical this is. They are separated. They have been at war for years. And the last time we talked, my friend and I were trying to process how to go through the death of a marriage in a graceful way, like walking through a funeral.

And now, a couple of weeks later she is different. Completely different. “I do want to be married…and to him!” she said through choking words. She sees now that she had never been willing to do what it would take to make her marriage work. “I have never been willing to change myself.  I always wanted him to change.”

We pray her estranged husband  will try again too, but watching the Lord soften and heal and completely renovate this wife’s heart is faith building. You can’t believe how bad this story has been.  I listened to her recent revelation with the Lord and  I was dumbfounded. And humbled. She said “I thought about you and Chuck and what God has done.” She named two other mutual friends’ marriages that God had resurrected from dry bones. “If God could heal you all, as bad as you were, then maybe there is something I’m missing here,” she said.

As I relayed the good news to Chuck, we both just sat on the phone stunned. “That’s crazy,” he said. “I mean, who would have believed that this could happen?” Many of us have prayed for breakthrough and deliverance. But when the husband moved out, we felt like it was  over and dead. But God. I am glad that God has enough faith  for all of us.

“It’s a miracle. Really. It is a miracle in our midst,” I said quietly.

Three things  stir in my heart. Share your God stories. No matter how messy and ugly and painful. If God has been God to you through heartache, if you have a story of dry bones brought back to life, then breathe that glory out on others.

At Yes and Amen we talked a lot about the power of God to breathe new life on dead bones. All around the room you could see women sharing their stories. Eating disorders  now healed, marriages being restored, parent relationships being bridged… God’s heart is to heal us all if we will only ask and believe Him to move. And we need to hear that God is still God. Share your stories even if they are not “happily ever after” yet. By faith, we must keep on believing and speaking all that God is doing.

The second thing is hold onto the power of redemption. Really, really. The power of God put on display is not when we do it “Just Right” and He gives us a pat on the back. He does love our maturing in Him for sure. But until we mature, or as we mature, He loves when we bring everything to Him to restore and renew and well—to Be God. God is constantly wanting to be God for us, if we will only ask, believe and receive.

There is a beautiful line in a Caedmon’s Call song called “Carry Your Love.” It says, “change us from within/ render miracles from our sin.”  Only God can do that —take our sin and turn it in to something beautiful for His glory.  That word render  is so potent. Look it up sometime. “To melt down, to give in return, to transmit to another.”

All of those are so different in meaning but so God. His glory melts our sin and converts it into something mold-able in His Hands. He gives us beauty in return for ashes. We give him mess and brokenness, He gives us more of Himself, full of joy, possibility, new mercies. He transmits His very life into our own. Remember in Narnia? Aslan would breathe on the children, and their fears would vanish. In place of lack, He would “breathe into them”, transmit to them  His power, His presence.

And third?  Keep your eyes on Jesus.  Keep believing. What are your dead bones? Ask Him to breathe on them and then believe for your own heart change to happen too. May He render miracles of our sin.

Carry Your Love
We are called out; we are ransomed
We are not of the world were in
We are chosen; we are blessed
to bring light to the lives of men
So Father sow your seed
Give us life in community
Wake us from our sleep
This is your time; this is your place
and we are vessels for breaking

Under your grace we are led by your spirt
You have redeemed us by the blood of your son
Send down your word we are eager to hear it
Ready our hearts to cary your love

You are sunlight you are morning
Your the hope of a brand new day
Your are comfort; you are blessing
and you wipe all our tears away
So change us from within
Render miracles from our sin
Remind us once again
This is your time;this is your place
We are vessels for breaking

Under your grace we are led by your spirt
You have redeemed us by the blood of your son
Send down your word we are eager to hear it
Ready our hearts to cary your love

Sweetly Broken Abortion Healing Retreat

/ HeatherT / Leave a comment

“I thought I was over it.”

“I’ve never told anyone.”

“I’m afraid God is punishing me.”

“How can I make this right?”

“How can I forgive…?”

We know how you feel.  We have been there too.Through the fear, nightmares, denial, anger and regrets.

BUT we have passed through to a new place called peace, and true forgiveness.

We are still sad about the fact of our past, but we are no longer held captive by it.

God has shown us there is beauty in our brokenness.

We invite you to a tender, honest and safe weekend to
hear about how to walk forward in freedom.

What you can expect:

Time to process

Time to worship

Time to hear truth

Time to be honest

Time to sort out what’s next?

Teaching and materials by Jana Spicka.

2 night’s lodging at a lake house in Louisville, TN.

Check in at 5pm. First session at 7pm.  Check out Sunday at 11am.

Four meals and snacks. Breakfast, lunch and dinner on Saturday and breakfast on Sunday morning. (Friday night dinner is on your own before first session.)

This is an intimate gathering for 9 women.

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER.

The Fawn Down the Way

/ Jana / 1 Comment

We first saw her when she stood wide eyed in the middle of our small street, too paralyzed to move. We often have deer grazing in our back yard, or passing through our neighborhoods. So to see deer on the street is not unusual. But to see a baby this size without her mom was highly unusual. We assumed Mama deer was nearby with bated breath, eager to be reunited with her fragile fawn.

After several minutes, the fawn finally stepped slowly to the side of the road and we passed on by. I glanced in the rear view mirror and was so surprised that I stopped the car again.  The girls and I turned in our seats and looked back to see the baby step back into the road with stuttering steps. Suddenly the neighbor’s dog was coming toward her. “MOM!” Charis whispered in a panic, afraid for the deer.

“Just wait,” I said.
“Mom, what’s he doing?” Salem asked.

This hunting dog did not bark, nor was his head hunkered down or his fur raised. He was in no way on the prowl. Instead he paused slightly near the deer and then trotted slowly down the road. He stopped every few steps, looked to see if the deer was following, and then trotted a few more steps. This process continued until the deer was off the street and vanished up a wooded driveway.

We turned the car around and slowly edged back down the street to glance up the driveway where we had seen the dog then the deer disappear.

They stood there, face to face, about a foot apart, as if deep in conversation. The sound of our brakes interrupted their pow wow. They both looked at us, student and teacher, and then back to their conversation.

“Am I crazy, or are you two seeing what I am seeing?” I asked the girls.
“Mom, that dog is helping the baby deer,” Salem said quietly.

We sat in awe of the moment.

That was more than a month ago. And you see the now-growing doe meandering, eating, sleeping on the property where the dog lives. The other day she was playing in the field where the horse was. Before that she had a little deer poop in the dog’s back yard in broad daylight. The dog is always nearby overseeing, protecting.

One day I came through and saw the dog farther away from his home than normal.  We all immediately began seeking the deer. We knew that she had wandered off, again. He was bringing her back to his home. We don’t know how long she will stay, or even make it. But I’m not sure that is the point.

This has done funny things in my heart. Funny things about “who is my neighbor?” Funny things about this God who cares for the sparrows and evidently the orphaned fawn as well.

More strikingly it has stirred funny things about innocence of the young. Are we taking a posture of protecting the young among us? Are we doing whatever it takes to prepare and position them to live and thrive?  Are we actively moving them out of harm’s way? Even to our own sacrifice and inconvenience?

It may be a cold world out there. But this noble dog has provided a warm place for the fawn down the way and he has thawed some places in my own heart as well.

Women Getting Real Weekly Class

/ Lyschel / Leave a comment

Remaining class dates are: Oct 11 & 25, Nov 8 & 22, Dec 6 & 13

I am shooting for the moon. I am flinging open the doors and inviting you in.

We believe that God wants to share life intimately with us. Most of us have heard that. Some of us experience that. Many of us are at least open to the idea. So we try different things to move into this life with God.

We also believe that God wants us to share life intimately with each other. And that is… where we close the book; turn off the TV; hit delete.

But it is true. From my humble perspective, after speaking to many, many folks from different parts of the country, and even in Zimbabwe, it seems that we don’t really like each other and for sure don’t want to get too close. This is especially true of Christian women. We often feel the most shut down and shut out relationally.

However. This is the very miracle of “God among us.” When we come together, it isn’t just you and me and our drama. It is you and me and our drama and the Living God. There is a power and synergy and healing that can happen when the Spirit of God is given permission and freedom to live and move and breathe within us together.

We see things. We hear things. We experience things that we couldn’t see, hear, experience alone. I have amazing revelations with the Lord alone. But it is radically different from what happens when I am with other believers. I hear your story and it taps into my story and vice versa. Your breakthroughs strengthen me. Your weaknesses reveal mine. And our shared bond of Christ keeps us looking to the One who heals and restores all things.

So I want to extend a personal invitation to you. Through the WGR class we desire to create a community of authentic, honest, real relationships. We desire to dispense with the petty comparisons, the surface mindless chatter and go for real heart connections. We desire to journey and not judge, to strengthen and encourage instead of play denial or fix-it games.

Women Getting Real Class is beginning August 23rd and you are invited to come. BUT you are also invited to join in with some of your friends and be part of the the online connection.  Many folks can’t come in person but they still want the connection. So can you, will you, take the effort and invest in real community? Will you gather 1-4 of your friends and watch the class together and really participate, share and go deeper with Christ and with someone else? You sitting in front of a computer is still you looking from the outside in. It is safe. And sanitized. And comfortable.

Life with God and others is messy and marvelous. It is a rollercoaster and a haven. Real honest relationship is life-changing.

If you are playing the “I just need me and God” card, will you consider adding a card to your deck called  “sharing your God life with others”? If you are playing the “I don’t trust other people” card, will you add the “I trust God in those people” card? Even if you have been burned before, will you learn the lessons of what not to do and try again?

Whether you like it or not, agree with it or not, even know how to do it or not, we are a Body. His body. We need to be together in some way, to share His Spirit among us. The WGR community on Tuesday nights, live in person, or live in your living room, is one humble honest way for us to share that connection.

Pray about it. Look at the obstacles and excuses. Then ask the Lord for the courage and faith to do Real Life with Him and others.

With Him, With His Daughters

/ Jana / 2 Comments

“I don’t want to go be with a bunch of women.”

Does this sound like your first reaction when considering going to women’s retreats?  Especially Christian women’s retreats? It was what I heard this morning from a friend when I asked her about the upcoming Yes and Amen Retreat. Sigh.  And you know what? I know how she feels. I used to feel the same way.

But God.

I wish I could somehow convey that this retreat is NOT like other retreats. Yes, there are women. Even Christian ones. But “we” are not the focus. He is. Our comparisons, our insecurities and very real needs are not the focus. He is.

Yes and Amen is a time to really sit and soak in the presence of God. And what happened last year was each individual woman heard from the Lord in a no-pressure, no-performance kind of way, and we all got swept up into a much bigger story than “woman drama.”  We all got a glimpse of His Very Great Story in each woman. It was breathtaking.

It was so very refreshing.

Are you stalling? Are you quitting before you even begin? Are you thinking you are beyond this—I don’t know— notion of needing a bigger picture of God in your own life? Maybe think again. Take small steps in faith. I promise, if you come, He will meet you there.

And we will all be better for the revelation of who He is in you.

Why would we “retreat”?

/ Jana / Leave a comment

If you know anything about military terms, “retreat” generally means you are getting your arse whipped. So you retreat to catch your breath, to design a strategy, to regroup and reassess the plan of attack.  If you have been around Christian circles, then “retreat” can mean something a little different — a time to rest and be quiet, to reflect and recharge. Think tents in battlefields compared to bed and breakfasts.

But I’m not sure the two meanings aren’t closer than we realize. We are in a spiritual war.  And sometimes it feels like we are getting pounded. We do need to rest and reevaluate our position and restock our weapons.  We do need to be reminded of what it is we are doing and is there a better way to go about the it. Who are we fighting again and why does it matter?

Thus said, I want you to strongly consider two “retreats” on the horizon, either for you personally or for someone you know.  The “Yes and Amen” Retreat is a time to get quiet with the Lord and really listen for Him. It is not mindless activity but purposeful exercises that help us see where God is working in our lives. We all need to be reminded of the “vision” He has for us and this weekend really draws that out. Time to rest, reflect, reassess what you are doing and why.  The Lord always seems pleased to breathe new life and new dreams into those who invest the time to be with Him. I don’t know how to explain what happens other than it is a supernatural time in His presence.  We are truly refreshed and renewed for a different level of warfare.

On the other hand, “Sweetly Broken” is a very unique retreat to help women who have been wounded by abortion. This  weekend is for women who have been recently wounded or have been carrying around this scar for years. We know that Jesus truly longs to heals this hurt so we are creating a very safe and tender time to seek that very healing. If this is you and you still feel shame or guilt, or feel like God is mad at you, please don’t live in this lie any longer. Come and be with other women who know exactly how you feel, but also know how to help you walk into wholeness again.  If this is someone you know, don’t let fear keep you from telling them about this weekend. The walking wounded need to know where to go for help, so be willing to give them directions.

If God has given you a  burden for these fellow soliders, we are waiting for Donor/Prayer Warriors who will carry each woman who attends Sweetly Broken in a spiritual way and a financial way. Think of it as going back to pick up a wounded solider on the field and carrying them to safety. We must link arms as we all battle together.

I am simply compelled to be part of building God’s kingdom.  But we must retreat at the right time.  I have to make myself pull away from the foray to really hear what my spirit needs for warfare. Won’t you join me for these two power filled weekends? And please, pray for His kingdom to be advanced as we seek His face.

“Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.” Mark 6:31

Between Morning and Evening

/ Jana / 1 Comment

The Lord has me sitting in the story of Elijah lately. I must be a slow learner because it seems like we have been here a while. But I confess, the longer I sit in these couple of chapters, 1 Kings 17- 19, the more I see of God, and the more I see of me.

What I like about Elijah is his utterly honest humanity. He walked with God when things were really, really bad; when it didn’t look like things would be improving soon. But still he depended on God. And he trusted God to not only understand his weaknesses but to CARE about them.  This strengthens me. When all the wheels start coming off my life, it refreshes me to have a God that won’t despise my weaknesses but help me in them.

Look at Elijah as a flesh and blood example.  He had just declared to Ahab, one of Israel’s most wicked kings, that “as the Lord lives, the God of Israel lives,” there would be no rain or even dew until Elijah says so. Talk about gumption. That is serious confidence in God. Elijah’s whole accusation against Ahab was that the king had turned to false idols and led the nation away also. Elijah was constantly pointing back to the clear evidence God was alive and well and willing to be their Loving God.

Now look what follows. God sent Elijah to a remote place where there was a brook and told Elijah that He had commanded the ravens to provide for him there.  Draught on the land, provision for you. All through the Bible you see how God protects and provides for his own regardless of what is happening all around.

In this quiet place, equipped with fresh water, God sent ravens every morning and evening with meat and bread to feed Elijah.

This weekend in my own head, when the giants seem too big, the desert too hot, the needs too great, the bills too many — this weekend I was struck by the time between morning and evening for Elijah. Did he ever question that the ravens would come? Was he ever surprised day after day?  Why didn’t the Lord just give him a small oven and flour?  What was the Lord teaching Elijah (and us) in the space between meals?

Before every great battle and public encounter, there is a private battle and spiritual encounter. I think God used this time to teach Elijah that he could not take care of himself. Elijah had to look to God to provide, even for the food in his mouth. I think God was teaching Elijah how to faith in the space between meals. I think God was teaching Elijah how to Receive from His hand, in whatever way, by whatever means the Lord decided was best for Elijah. Even when that way was ravens. I think God was preparing Elijah in the quiet space for the battle that was on its way.

I am not going to rush through this story. But for today, I wonder, are you looking for the ravens? Are you receiving what the Lord is sending for your good?  Are you waiting by the brook for your God or are you bustling about trying to feed yourself?   “He leads me beside still waters, He restores my soul.”

Stop Fighting – by Guest Blogger, Beth Hungerford

/ Jana / Leave a comment

This past September I went to the Dominican Republic to visit my friend.  My favorite day of the whole trip was the day we went to a secluded beach to swim in the ocean.  We swam out pretty far from shore and just floated up and down with the waves.

However, these were not small waves and I kept finding myself coughing and spitting out salt water after getting smacked in the face.  I got really tired of this really quickly but I just couldn’t seem to do anything about it.

Then I heard the Lord say quite clearly, “Stop fighting.”

“I’m not fighting I’m just trying not to drown,” I responded getting another mouthful of salt water.

“Stop fighting.”

That’s when I started watching the two local boys that were out there with us.  They had lots of experience swimming out in the waves and I realized they just dove straight into them.   I tried this and found that it was much easier than bracing myself or trying to fight them.

Soon I was tired and started swimming toward shore. If you’ve ever done this, you know that you swim and swim but never really get anywhere because the receding waves pull you right back out.

Again I heard the Lord’s voice, “Stop fighting.”

“I’m not!  I’m just trying to get back to shore.”

My way clearly wasn’t working, so again I watched the local boys and learned that the only way to get back in was to swim hard with the incoming waves, but then you just relax and let the waves pull you back a little, repeating the process until you’re all the way in.  It is slow going but you use way less energy when you let the waves do the work and don’t try to fight against them.

At last I was close enough to stand and I immediately tried to run out of the water before the next wave came to overtake me.  I still hadn’t gotten it.  I didn’t even get three steps toward shore before a giant wave picked me off my feet and slammed me into the ground.

“Stop fighting.”

“I didn’t even know I was!”

What I ended up having to do was let the water bring me all the way up on shore and I mean ALL THE WAY.  The waves were so strong that to stand up even when it was little more than ankle deep you would be caught be the next wave before you could get out and you’d get a not so gentle landing on the rocky shore.

When it was all over, I realized the Lord was trying to get me to completely surrender and let Him do all the work.  I really didn’t have to do anything except listen and respond to His voice.

No Ear Has Heard, No Eye Has Seen. . .

/ Jana / Leave a comment

First, let me say “thank you!” for your responses and questions surrounding the blogs.  It is really nice to know that when you send something out in the big internet cosmos there is someone live to catch it. And in answer to a one of those responses, I want to encourage us all that journeying with God is not “doing better,” but trusting, waiting, asking for more. Then believing when God begins to answer our frail prayers. The change to come is not on our shoulders, but on His mighty, loving, transforming shoulders.

Our job is to believe. His job is to transform.

Second, I finally found that verse that the Lord had been poking me about. It goes along with this hope of growth, change and transformation. It is in 1 Corinthians 2.

However, as it is written:
“No eye has seen,
no ear has heard,
no mind has conceived
what God has prepared for those who love him”— but God has revealed it to us by his Spirit.

What God has prepared for those love him…When you think about your 2010, ask the Lord to show you what He has prepared for you. And then claim the promise for Ephesians 2: 10. “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”

Did you catch the subtle nuance?  God has already prepared these good works, as in, past tense, done, completed. So that we can walk in them. Not run, panic, scramble, but walk. Walk with Him in the goings of our day to day life. There is a resting here, a peace.

Want me to really blow your mind?  We are God’s good works.

You and me, right now. All of heaven looks at us and sees who we are, who we are becoming and looks back to the Father and declares, “Good job. Well done. Nice work.”

Resolve to love Him more. Everything else will follow this one thing.

Living the Gospel

/ Jana / Leave a comment

As we continue to talk about Rest and the life of God in us, I want to share an excerpt about the power of the gospel.  The author’s definition of “gospel” is not just praying the prayer, but the death-to-life transformation that God has begun and will complete according to the promise through His Resurrected Son.

“In much of the popular writing on spiritual formation there is a tendency to convey a very stunted view of the gospel.  We get the idea that what unbelievers need is the gospel, and then, once they accept Christ as Savior, they move on to “needing  discipleship,” which consists of learning about Christ,  developing the fruit of the Spirit, learning how to have a quiet time, and so forth.

However, the picture that the New Testament gives is remarkably different.

We must remember the description  of the gospel as the power of God for the beginning, the middle, and the end of salvation.  Often we do not really understand all the vast implications and applications of the gospel. Only as we apply the gospel more and more deeply and radically —only as we think out all its truth — does it bear fruit and grow. The key to continual and deeper spiritual renewal and revival is the persistent rediscovery of the gospel.

All our spiritual problems come from a failure to apply the gospel. This is true for us both as a community and as individuals.”

page 32 of Spiritual Formation as if the Church Mattered, James C. Wilhoit