A Challenge from Anne Bradstreet

In my religion classes, I expect to read things that challenge my theology and my thinking and push me to pursue Christ. I don't always expect that in my other classes and so when I was reading Anne Bradstreet's poems for my American Literature class, I was surprised and delighted by what I found.  Here was a woman who had her priorities straight and could verbalize them in an amazing way.

She wrote a poem shortly after her home burned down and her reflections on it caused me to question myself and what I was holding onto.  Here's an excerpt from what she wrote:

"And when I could no longer look,

I blest His name that gave and took,

That laid my goods now in the dust.

Yea, so it was, and so 'twas just.

It was His own, it was not mine,

Far be it that I should repine;

He might of all justly bereft

But yet sufficient for us left."

I love her view - her heavenward gaze even during this very difficult time.  Anne Bradstreet was living in the "New World" of America - rough wilderness and a hard life - and here her house and all her belonging burn to the ground. And what is her response?

She blesses the God who gives and takes away (quoting from Job 1:21).

She reminds herself that God is just and what He did in this situation was just and right - for aren't all of her belongings God's already? 

My favorite part of the excerpt above, however, is the last two lines - God might take all from us, but there is sufficient left for us.  Why?

 Because she still has Christ.

Later in the poem, she goes on to ask herself:

"Then straight I again my heart to chide,

And did the wealth on earth abide?

Didst fix thy hope on mold'ring dust?

The arm of flesh didst make thy trust?

…

Thou hast an house on high erect,

Framed by that mighty Architect,

With glory richly furnished,

Stands permanent though this be fled."

Here Anne asks herself if her treasures are here on earth, reminding her forgetful mind that what really counts is that which is stored up for us in Heaven and being in the presence of Christ.  Was she trusting in earthly belongings that would return to dust?  Or humans who would disappoint? 

Oh, no.  Instead, she reminds herself that God, the mighty Architect, has built her an everlasting house in ever. 

What are earthly belongings when you have Christ?

I was challenged by this poem - am I holding tightly to the things of this world?  Is my trust in the things that will fade and pass away?  

Or do I fix my gaze on heaven and delight in the presence of God, knowing that He is sufficient for me?

"But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me."  2 Corinthians 12:9

Excerpts quoted from:

Bradstreet, Anne. "Here Follows Some Verses upon the Burning of Our House, July 10th, 1666". American Literature. Ed.Julia Reidhead. 7th ed. Vol A. Beginnings to 1820. New York; W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2007. Pp. 212-213. 

In Every Season

I was listening to "Desert Song" tonight.  It's amazing to me how I can sing a song so many times and yet, new things will strike me or a deeper meaning will come out of it depending upon my current situation in life.

Life is full of seasons.  I've come to realize while I've been here at college that the seasons are something I value highly.  The changes signal new and different things and also trigger memories.  

• Fall means changing trees, cooler weather, and in my current season of life, a new start as school begins again.  
• Winter brings Christmas time and a long school break, family time and certain sights and smells that don't grace any other time of year. 
• Spring comes right when it is desperately needed, and it relieves Winter's chill and brings some life and color back into our world. It refreshes the soul and puts new life on display everywhere.  
• Summer brings a much needed break from school, heat and near constant sunshine and for the past few summers, serving opportunities I couldn't partake in any other season in the year.

The bridge in Desert Song goes like this:

"All of my life, in every season, You are still God, I have a reason to sing, I have a reason to worship."

Seasons in life bring ups and downs, new experiences and new memories, fresh starts and ends of the roads.  I cannot predict what tomorrow holds for me. I cannot predict what the rest of this "season" will look like or what the next will bring.  But I can know this thing: that God is sovereign and God is good. 

THEREFORE, I have a reason to worship - to give honor and praise to my King no matter what my season is bringing me.  God is my constant, even as the seasons change. 

There are many verses that reference the steadfastness of God (about 200 in the ESV Bible) but this is one of my favorites:

Psalm 63:3, "Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you."

God's love is better than life itself.  And as a result, no matter the season I'm in, my lips will praise Him.

It is for Freedom...

Freedom, for me

… means slavery

"...having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness." [Romans 6:18]

… means dying to self

"I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me." [Galatians 2:20]

… means pursuing holiness

"Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord." [Hebrews 12:14]

… means living for another

"For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain." [Philippians 1:21]

… means being a servant

"'If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.'" [Mark 9:35b]

… means no longer bearing the chains of sin

"We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin." [Romans 6:6]

… means knowing the truth

"This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth." [1 Timothy 2:3-4]

… means loving others

"We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers." [1 John 3:14a]

… means being loved

"But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. " [1 Peter 2:9-10]

This is freedom in Christ. 

9.11

I can't believe it's been ten years since September 11th. I was only in 6th grade when it happened. I can remember my teacher telling us about it, but I actually remember the hour after that better.  They sent the students out for an early recess, probably so that all the teachers could find out what was happening and figure out what to do.  I walked a balance beam on the playground with some of my friends, talking about what little we knew, but the enormity of the situation didn't really click with me. I hadn't seen pictures. I had heard very little about the Trade Centers themselves and had never seen them so I didn't fully comprehend the situation.  It wasn't until later that day, when I watched footage on TV and my parents explained it to me, that a bigger piece of the picture sunk in. 

Now, ten years later, I wonder what the lives of those most closely affected look like now.  Newborns are now in 5th grade.  Teens are adults.  Widows and widowers are ten years alone.  How different their lives must be than what they imagined they would be before that day occurred.

There was a memorial video played at church. 

I cried.

Not because I was personally affected by 9.11, but because I know that there are people who were affected by 9.11 that don't stand where I do.  I can ask God "Why?", sure.  But I know that I can also rest upon a completely good and sovereign God who is in control of all things, even when what we call evil happens.  After all, didn't God use the Cross, a horrific evil indeed, to crush sin and death forever? 

I know there are people who can only look at 9.11, look at their lives now, and ask "why?" without getting any sort of satisfactory answer.  And this breaks my heart.  

They are on my mind, as the tenth anniversary of that day passes.  I pray that the memory of it will drive them not from God, but to God, the only one who can supply them with the comfort and hope that they need. 

"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear, though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though the mountains tremble at it's swelling. Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth." [Psalm 46:1-3 and 10]

A Thought For Thursday

I sit in my third-story room, thankful to have reached the end of a long day.  The summer heat, which had dissipated yesterday, has returned, bringing with it more than it's fair share of humidity.  The fan is blowing furiously and the windows are flung open.  Through the dark night drifts the sound of singing.  Voices raised in the chapel carry on a slow-moving breeze through my bedroom window and I close my eyes, listening. 

It's a praise and worship song, one I haven't heard in awhile.  But it's not old.  These words never grow old. 

Holy.

                                           Worthy.

                                                                                                    Lord of Lords.

                                                                       King of Kings.

                   Mighty God.

                                                Emmanuel.

Great I AM.

Prince of Peace.

                                                                                                     Lamb.

                                    Living God.

        Saving Grace.

                                                     Ancient of Days.

                                                                                                  Alpha.

                 Omega.

                                                                                      Beginning and End.

                                      Savior.

                                           Messiah.

          Redeemer.

                                                        Friend.

They'll never grow old.  They'll never grow faint.  The Name of Our God will endure forever.  His love will remain from everlasting to everlasting.

"May his name endure forever, his fame continue as long as the sun!" [Psalm 72:17]

Summing It Up

Senior Year, week 1:

*Being a senior is awesome.  Having a schedule that allows you to enjoy being a senior is even more awesome.

*I went running this morning. And I almost got hit. By a BAT. Perhaps I am running too early in the morning…

*I hung out with dear friends and put on an old movie, and colored out of a Disney Princess coloring book.  I love college.

*I have woken up to loud, obnoxious construction work every morning save one: the morning that I woke up to a loud, majestic thunderstorm.

*Piano recitals don't look quite as scary when you know what you're playing…and when they're still 8 months away.

*Living on the third floor provides a nice haven from extra foot traffic in the hallways, and is a great way to get in shape.

*The third floor window provides an amazing view of the sunset. 

The sunset on Monday: stunning. 

*I have the fewest number of classes I've ever taken, and the most amount of reading to do: go figure.

*The desk chairs in our dorm room terrify me in the way they lean backwards and will most likely result in my having a heart attack.

*Sanctification is a process: both a slow and a joyful one.

*It's September now.  Come on, Fall, come quickly.

"But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life."  [Romans 6:22]