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03-24-09

Posted by Andrea Sharp

Have you ever have had a quiet time where you really feel the presence of the Lord and you walk away so encouraged and ready for the day?

Well, that was not my experience this morning. It was more like an unquiet time – at least for my soul. My morning started as I stumbled off to the Y for a morning swim - still half asleep. The pool that I regularly swim in was very crowded so I swam in the warm pool which this day felt like I was swimming in Jell-O. When I was finished, I was more tired than when I started. I made my way home and slipped off to my room for a quiet time. I began to read and in no time started to fall asleep. I tried to rouse myself and pay attention with little success. The passage I was reading was very difficult to understand. Even with a commentary I was lost and feeling very distracted. I was ready to close my books and give up, but through the faint prompting of the Spirit, who wouldn’t let me doze off for long, I pressed on. After further reading, I took a moment to acknowledge my weakness to the Lord. As I finished up, I was tempted to get going with the day, but I opened up a book on the Gospel. This is something I’ve begun to do to help me preach the Gospel to myself every day. I find it helpful that when I can’t seem to preach the Gospel to myself, I can let somebody else do it for me. I read the following short excerpt from The Gospel for Real Life by Jerry Bridges:

“Happily for us, however, our reconciliation to God is permanent and eternal. Because Christ accomplished it for us, there is no possibility it can ever be undone. Though we continue, even as believers, to do those things that in themselves deserve God’s displeasure, we can never revert to a state of divine alienation. For the sake of Christ, God will always accept us …… we must always keep in mind that our status and favor and friendship with God is always and ever will be, based on the objective work of Christ for us as our representative and substitute. We have been forever reconciled to God though the death of His Son.” (p. 96-97)

I closed my books this time, but at real peace as I thought about the glorious reality that my spiritual weakness is covered and overcome by his spiritual strength. This day like so many others started out in weakness and temptation to abandon my quiet time, yet the Lord faithfully drew me and refreshed my spirit. If you have had similar experiences, I encourage you to persevere. He will not disappoint. He can meet us in even the most unquiet times.

08-26-08

Hiding Places

Posted by Andrea Sharp

When I was about sixteen, I remember counting the years I thought I had left, assuming I lived to a ripe, old age. Although not a very wise approach, it seemed to stave off my adolescent but persistent fears of death. Recently, a friend asked me to pray for her concerning her fear of death. It started me thinking once again about my own fears. I prayed for my friend, and during one of my devotions I read these comforting words, “You are my hiding place and my shield; I hope in your word.” (Psalm 119:114).

Charles Bridges said of this scripture, “Here is our main principle of safety—not our strivings or our watchfulness, but our faith. Flee instantly to Jesus… [Who] exposed himself to the fury of ‘the tempest,’ that he might become a hiding place, for us.” What a powerful picture of the Gospel! Yet I confess that my attempt to apply the Gospel to my fears has not always been effective.

I recently read the book, "Running Scared", by Edward T. Welch. It’s a great book and one I recommend if you struggle with fear. I was reminded to dig down beneath the surface to see what might be at the root of my fears. Welch says, ‘Worry reveals our allegiances. Fear and worry are not mere emotions; they are expressions of what we hold dear. They reveal the loyalties of our hearts.”

Cravings for things such as money, relationships, reputation, even life itself (which in and of themselves are not wrong) can masquerade as fears and hunker down in our hearts. The Word says that our hearts are deceitful and full of buried motives discernible only to God. (Jeremiah 17:9). This is a picture of a different sort of hiding place, one we should expose— not keep covered! To do so, Welch calls the fearful believer to confession and repentance—the daily process of continuously turning toward God. As I pondered this in terms of specific application for me, I think it would mean growing in love for others more than anxiously grasping to satisfy my own needs and wants, praying more than reviewing my check book balance over and over, and resting more in His grace rather than “feeling overwhelmed” by my responsibilities, present or future. How about you? What do you fear? I encourage you to ask the Holy Spirit to pull back the veil of your heart and see what lies hidden there. Then flee to Jesus, your true hiding place. As you walk closer to Him in faithful obedience by the strength of the Spirit, that will take you farther and farther away from your fears.

04-29-08

Unexpected Sabbatical

By Andrea Sharp

Have any of you been tracking with the Girl Talk blog over the past few months? They’ve had a series on preparation for seasons such as Postpartum Depression and PMS. It is a very helpful series of blogs with a lot of scripture and biblical wisdom on how to handle our feelings during these times. Check it out. I think you will find it very helpful. I benefited particularly from a post entitled, A Simple Season, where Janelle Mahaney shares how she has had to pull back from her normal schedule and slow down because of morning sickness with the pregnancy of her second child. She said, “I had to acknowledge that the Lord had placed limitations in this season of my life. It was humbling, but these limitations were God-given and for my good.”

I recently got the flu. At first I didn’t think it was more than a cold and tried to push through it. I continued to get up early, go to the pool and swim laps, and carry on, but I finally reached the point where I just had to slow down and rest. In the past, I would not have recognized my limitations. Instead I would have kept pushing and ended up in tears and probably a fit of anger toward my husband or children. But by God’s grace, this time I chose to resist ‘do it all self-sufficiency’ and embraced the limitations God was bringing through a simple virus. In another Girl Talk post, The New Normal Carolyn Mahaney gives suggestions on how to throttle back in a weak season—for example, be sure to feed your soul, focus on key chores such as food and laundry to care for your family, take a warm shower, and slip in a nap or two. The series has loads of both practical help and biblical perspective for ladies in every season of life.

My flu lasted about three weeks, which to me felt like forever. I know my ‘trial’ was very short and mild compared to menopause or postpartum depression. Yet God has used it to help me to grow in humility and my dependence on Him. I pretty much pared down the days to time with the Lord, a little school, making sure we had dinner and sleep! I agree with Janelle, it is humbling, and it’s been for my good. As my weakness increased, the limitations that followed pushed out a lot of the noise in my life (much of it self – generated), and God’s voice became clearer to me. Now that I’m back to more typical responsibilities and projects, I hope I won’t forget this little sabbatical. God continues to teach me that I am to live my life “by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Gal 2:20) not in my own strength.

03-18-08

Hospitality – Cold Tongue….or Warm Truth?

By Andrea Sharp

Amy, the youngest of the sisters in Louise May Alcott’s, Little Women, asked her mother if she could invite several friends from her drawing class over for lunch. Mrs. March approved, saying “Cake, sandwiches, fruit and coffee will be all that is necessary, I suppose?” Amy quickly responded, “Oh dear, no! We must have cold tongue and chicken, French chocolate, and ice-cream besides! The girls are used to such things, and I want my lunch to be proper and elegant…” Mrs. March tried to persuade her daughter toward a more “simpler plan” that would be “pleasanter” for all, but Amy would not budge. So Mrs. March conceded, remembering how “experience can be an excellent teacher.” And the rest of the story is well…sad and humorous at the same time. (That chapter is entitled “Artistic Attempts” if you’re curious how it turned out)

As I read that passage to my daughter, Rosie, I couldn’t help but think that I am more like Amy March than I would like to admit. And have I EVER tasted of those painful teaching experiences where my focus on the food and its presentation prevailed over a desire to connect with women who are dear to me. Such times have threatened to tarnish my view on hospitality, but God has a better way—one that is not steeped in ‘proper and elegant’, but is rooted in love and commends the Gospel. Theologian Alexander Strauch calls hospitality a “concrete expression of Christian love,” which can sweetly strengthen the family of believers, and can also be an ideal context for evangelism. And we as women get to carry it out!

Does your home feel like a retreat sometimes? Or like a box you live in and can’t seem to get out of? God has given us the gifts and opportunity to create a warm environment in our homes which draws people together and toward God. Although we have a church building and meet together regularly, there remains a need and desire for closeness and fellowship which can only come about as we share and bring people into our lives and homes. When people come into our homes they get to know us in a special way. Opening the doors of our home is often the way we can open the doors to real and powerful ministry. Hospitality really is a wonderful call—a part of our larger call to biblical femininity. And we are not left to do this by ourselves--the Holy Spirit empowers us to embrace and carry out the biblical model of hospitality.

What does that biblical model look like? Come and listen as we will be discussing this topic at the Women’s meeting on March 29^{th at} 9:00 am. Don’t miss this opportunity to hear about what God can do among and through us and our homes for the sake of the Gospel. There will be fellowship, laughter, a short teaching and a panel (with helpful ideas) and good food! And it won’t be “cold tongue” whatever that is, I promise !

02-05-08

Retreat!

By Andrea Sharp

We sat in a small book shop in Lewes Beach, Delaware, eating salads, sipping tea, and talking about our plan for the next two days. My daughter Sarah and I were away on a personal retreat together. I had wanted to do this for a while, but desire does not always equal outcome in this busy world, so I was amazed and grateful that we were actually there. The goal was to review our priorities and prayerfully seek the Lord for guidance and growth in the coming year.

After lunch, we headed for a condo in Rehoboth which friends of ours had graciously offered to us and began our retreats. After only about an hour, we both took a nap.J Slow start, but that was ok. Afterwards, we headed to town where I surprised Sarah with a salon visit and then dinner. We returned and spent more individual retreat time, watched part of a girly flick and fell asleep.

The next day I headed for the beach to see the sunrise (it was intended to be a joint adventure, but we won’t name who was still snoozingJ), and later that morning, we did the same thing all over again. We lingered over a long brunch and headed home. It really was wonderfully refreshing, and God was so faithful to meet us there.

After each session, we took the time to discuss our priorities with each other, talk about where we saw God at work and ask for input in the areas where we wanted to grow. We talked about our individual relationships with the Lord and how to grow in our love for Him, our family relationships, and what the future might bring. During my time alone and my time with Sarah, God greatly increased my faith. It’s truly amazing how reflection and time pulled away for extended prayer and thought can be such a means of grace and bring such clarity. To do it with my 21 year old daughter also builds a wonderful memory together in the Lord. Yet because of the time and money it takes as well as the effort involved pulling it all together with childcare and other variables, I often resist it. But it is so worth it!

A personal retreat can be done anytime of the year and can be done in a shorter period of time, but to begin the year afresh with this discipline seems so appropriate. I just wanted to encourage you ladies to consider this if it’s not something you already do. If you’re interested in an outline to follow during your retreat, there’s one entitled “Stand Your Ground (only retreat first)” that Amy Lynch distributed when she spoke at a session during Youth Camp ’07. It is available here and is an excellent resource.

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