Am I Willing? Living Out the Foot-Washing Lessons of Christ. Part 2
If you missed part one of this post, take a click over and catch part one.
Have you ever noticed that God often asks us questions?
Call it conviction.
Call it insight.
Call it what you like, but if we will quiet our thoughts and read His word reflectively, we will often hear the questions God speaks to our hearts. Washing the feet of his disciples, Jesus is a living picture of the humility of service.
Lesson Four: Don’t Skip the Washing
Peter said to Him, “Never shall You wash my feet!” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.” John 13:8
Has God ever surprised you with how he chooses to work? I am pretty sure none of the disciples entered the upper room that night expecting Jesus to wash their feet.
Am I willing to learn, when the lesson is not what I expected?
Being willing to let Christ cleanse our hearts and wash away our sin is integral to relationship with Christ. Some things we can’t skip. There is only one route to purity and that is through the cleansing of sin. True humility of service requires that we be cleansed from our inner-selfishness. I can’t pretend I don’t need it or that Christ isn’t interested in getting involved with the dirt on my feet.
Again, I sense the Spirit’s whisper, “Are you willing?”
Lesson Five: Knowing is not the same as doing.
IF you know these things, you are blessed if you do them. –John 13:17
If is an interesting word, isn’t it? Folded up in those two little letters is possibility and choice. The word If raises a question. Maybe we will, but then again…maybe we won’t.
There is blessing for us in obedience in serving others, even in the most menial of tasks. There is also sweet blessing in the cleansing touch of Christ. My eyes seem to stick on the word IF, as I recognize my tendency to know something but not follow through and do it.
Am I willing?
Lesson Six: Live it out.
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.–John 13:34-35
I find it interesting that Jesus gives such a vivid demonstration of humility in serving others before teaching about the importance of loving one another. Context adds layers of meaning that I miss when I read this verse by itself. Serving and loving, can you really have one without the other?
At first glance, this is a seemingly simple command: love others.
Familiar words, until we read as I have loved you. Loving others as Christ has loved us requires a willingness to serve and sacrifice, to love without condition or expectation.
Am I willing?
Humility, willingness, service, cleansing, follow-through, and love-crucial steps to living out the foot-washing lessons of Christ. What we do is part of that visible picture of love that identifies a disciple.
From demonstration to command, Jesus never teaches for the sake of knowledge alone. The life-lessons of Christ are always tied to the transforming grace of obedience.
Lord, make me willing.
What are some of the ways you live out the Foot-Washing Lessons of Jesus? Leave a comment and share your story:)
Am I Willing? Living Out the Foot-Washing Lessons of Christ. Part 1
Familiarity can dull our senses and routine can blur our vision.
Ever get used to things being a certain way, comfortable in the familiarity of routine?When it comes to reading Scripture, we can sometimes drift off to autopilot when we’ve read it before. At least I can.
Recently I touched on the passage of Jesus washing the disciples feet as he demonstrated humility and service. Although this passage may be familiar, let’s resist the temptation to think, “Know that…” A closer look and a moment of our time is all God needs to break through the attention barrier to shine the light of grace.
Join me today and later this week as we consider a few foot-washing lessons.
Jesus… got up from supper, and laid aside His garments; and taking a towel, He girded Himself. Then He poured water into the basin, and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded.–John 13:4-5
Lesson One: Get up from the table.
Acts of service require that we get up from the table. Service begins with a willingness to stop what we may be doing in order to serve others. Uncomfortable, I think about all the things piled up waiting for my attention. Serving others?
Am I willing? This phrase echoes in my thoughts.
Lesson Two: Lay it aside.
Laying aside his garments…Jesus prepared to do the menial work of a servant, washing the feet of his disciples. As I read these words, the Holy Spirit quietly asks, “Are you willing to get up and lay aside in order to serve?”
I think of the times that I grumble inwardly when I am interrupted mid-project. I think of my snippy answers when asked to add something else to my loaded list of tasks.
Am I willing?
Good question.
Lesson Three: Sometimes understanding comes later.
When Peter asks, “Lord, do you wash my feet,” Jesus answers, “What I do you do not realize now, but you shall understand hereafter.” John 13:7
Stuck in my I-know-best way of thinking, I can relate to Peter’s question and confusion. There have been times when God’s directions or provisions don’t seem to make sense in light of what I think I know now.
Sometimes understanding why God is doing something in our lives is a process. Deeper understanding is often anchored to time and experience.
Am I willing to get up from my familiar life, lay aside my outward trappings in order to serve others with humility? Am I willing to wait for understanding that comes over time?
How about you? Is God prompting you to get up from the table and lay something aside in order to serve Him today?
From a Military Wife on Memorial Day
I did not plan to be a military wife.
“Did I ever tell you that I want to go into the Marine Corps and fly jets?” I was shocked silent. Little did I know that this question was God’s way of introducing major directional change. This startling question came from Mark, a guy I had been dating for a just a few months.
All my if-this-works-out daydreams had never covered even a thought of active duty military life. Though my dad served in the Navy in World War II, I knew nothing of living life in the military.
And I didn’t want to.
I wanted to stay put in one place and live a predictable life. I had no real-time context for the military life.
Was this guy going to suddenly turn into Rambo?
“Are you going to get a tattoo,” was the first thought that came to my mind as I tried to envision my guy as a Marine. All I could think of was the worst that Hollywood movies had to offer.
I wasn’t quite sure about this whole military service thing. A few months later, while Mark was gritting it out in OCS, Officer’s Candidate School, a co-worker asked if we were talking about marriage.
“I don’t know. He’s joined the Marine Corps.” I said this like he had a disease. My co-worker reminded me that I would be marrying the man, not the job.
“I don’t think that’s true with the Marine Corps. If I marry this man, I am also marrying into the Marine Corps and all that entails.”
Welcome to the Marine Corps.
Time passed, and my once-civilian boyfriend became my lean and green Marine husband. I will never forget the swordsman at our wedding who whacked me on my backside with a drill-instructor firm, “Welcome to the Marine Corps, Mrs. Harrington!” That was the first time I was addressed by my new name.
Twenty-two years later I can say without a single regret that military service has become both an honorable and a personal part of my life. It has shaped our family life in countless ways.
We are all better for it.
Commitment to God, country, and duty.
Integrity and leadership.
Camaraderie and faithfulness.
Sacrifice and honor.
These are just of few of the core values that permeate and sustain the military family. Though I may have been a reluctant military bride, I am so proud of my husband and all that he has given to both our nation and our family.
Today, I know that I am not alone in gratitude for those who have served our country through military service.
Just a few weeks ago, my husband retired. As they placed the folded flag into his hands, I exhaled a soul-sigh of relief that he had survived 24 years of service healthy and whole. I had not realized that somewhere deep inside, I had been holding my breath. Tucked away out of sight was 24 years of resolve and fear of what could happen if…
I know through personal experience many times over that many who serve in our military do not come home. Too many do not have the opportunity to celebrate retirement with family and friends. My heart breaks for each one of these families both past and present.
These are the ones who are on my heart today. Join me in remembering with honor those who have sacrificed their lives serving our country.
Truly we are the home of the free because of the brave.
Please feel free to show your honor for our military by passing this post along.
More Than a Volunteer…Putting My Inner Wimp to Rest
Today I am continuing my last post, Just a Volunteer…and Other Accusations from My Inner Wimp.
Here I am still prepping work for the upcoming Writer’s Conference. I want to pull my brains out of my ears I am so twisted up with proofing. My Inner Wimp chimes in, “You know you missed something that is going to make you look like an idiot.” All morning My Inner Wimp has been nagging me, “You’re just wasting your time to go to that conference again this year. You’ll never be…more than a volunteer.”
Stopping me in my tracks this morning, I got a Holy Spirit nudge take a moment learn from Jesus, Washer of feet and Saver of souls. “Who are you going to listen to? Me or your Inner Wimp?
Whose voice do you heed?
Why is it when we are feeling crunched and most need to hear from God that we think we are too busy?
I am so glad I listened to that little God-nudge! Here are a few observations that God used remind me of the value of serving, preparing my heart to walk confidently into that crowded conference room a few days from now.
A Secure Identity
“Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come forth from God and was going back to God, got up from supper, and laid aside His garments; and taking a towel, He girded Himself. Then He poured water into the basin, and began to wash the disciples’ feet…“–John 13:3-5
- Being before doing—Jesus knew who He was and what God had given Him to do.
- The meaning was in the service and the example; Jesus wasn’t worried about achieving a particular result.
- Jesus volunteered his heart and his hands in serving others.
- In regard to washing the disciples’ feet–few noticed, but the world was never the same.
So what does all of this have to do with attending conferences, trying to get a book published, and getting rid of My Inner Wimp? What does this have to do with any act of our service?
- When I am secure in my Christ-given identity, I am better able to serve others, even in a task like writing.
- I know what God has given me to do for this season.
- I can focus on the act and heart of service, rather than worrying about the outcome–especially important when sitting across the table from a publisher.
- Never lose the heart of serving and writing in the lure of being noticed and gaining success.
- Large numbers count in the world’s economy, but God tallies value on an entirely different scale.
Maybe your acts of service look a little different. God has shaped us all with different gifts, skills, and experiences. He breaks forth from our hearts with differing desires and unique callings. Some service is humble and little noticed, but oh, so valuable in the Father’s eyes. Some places of service are huge; we find ourselves trying to cover chasms of need with Band-Aids and feeble efforts.
Tasks may be large or small, but the humility of service is the heart of a volunteer.
This is what I need to remember when I walk into that crowded conference room Sunday afternoon.
So much more than a volunteer.
This is the value and the truth that puts my Inner Wimp to rest, so I can enter boldly with the heart of one who serves the God Most High.
In what ways are you more than a volunteer? How do you put your Inner Wimp to rest?
Like this post if you are more than a volunteer!
Just a Volunteer…and Other Accusations From My Inner Wimp
Nervous, I stepped into a room of four hundred new faces. “Do you really want to be here,” My Inner Wimp whispered. I scrunched my eyebrows together, certain that I had not packed this unwanted guest. She continued, “You don’t belong in here. These are the professionals, and you, my dear, are just a volunteer.” My Inner Wimp can be rather nasty if I let her get a word in.
Have you ever felt the disdain of that phrase, just a volunteer? In today’s hard-driven, everyone-seems-successful world, the word volunteer doesn’t have much clout or glitz. Service isn’t glamorous, and it often doesn’t pay the bills.
Just a volunteer?
Yet it has been in serving that I have discovered and developed gifts and skills that lay buried under the surface. It has been through volunteering my time as a Bible teacher and Women’s ministry leader that has been God’s way of revealing my calling. Serving others, encouraging with a Biblical message, showing other’s how–this is ministry and it is true joy.
Just a volunteer? I don’t think so. There…I put My Inner Wimp in her place, determined to make the most of a new experience.
I found a seat and carefully placed my bag filled with my hopes and dreams under the seat in front of me. So many writers. So many talented people with a God-given story to tell. Such a competitive business. My Inner Wimp tried her best to convince me to give up, with thoughts like, “No one cares what you have to say.”
I stuck it out and had a blast, learning new information and meeting interesting people. The new friend in this picture is Alycia Morales.
By the way, My Inner Wimp had to find her own way home. (I was hoping she’d get lost…)
Fast forward a very quick year:
I am busy getting ready to return Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writer’s Conference. Just a few more days, so I am feeling the excitement–and the pinch–of wanting to get all my ideas and pitches ready to go. Once again, I will enter that crowded room filled with writers, hopefuls, agents, editors, and publishers. Once again, I will have some dreams tucked into my briefcase. I will pitch my book to agents and editors, nervous that I will sound like…just a volunteer. This year, My Inner Wimp is going to be locked in the basement with no chance of sneaking into my suitcase.
What accusations does your Inner Wimp say?
If you have ever felt like just a volunteer, Like this post and pass it on.
Enjoy this related post: 3 Steps for Getting Rid of My Inner Wimp
Mom-i-tude Adjustment for Frazzled Moms
Let’s all just pretend it’s Mother’s Day. I could use a little appreciation around here–how about you?
Oh the bliss of Mother’s Day. A day of recognition and appreciation for the blood, sweat, and tears of all my mama-work throughout the year…about time!
A day my children will rise up (before ten?) and call me blessed.
A day that someone else will do the dishes.
I hope.
I think a lot of the things moms tend to think on Mother’s Day. Where are we going to eat? Are the kids going to cook? Will they actually wrap my present?
Did they get a present?
I fully intend to bask in my well-deserved Mama Glory…until I am nudged to realize that I have been so busy lately that I haven’t taken time to just enjoy being a mom.
Feeling spread too thin is not good for the Mom-i-tude.
I have been running around like a chicken with my head cut off–squawk-squawk! I make goofy mistakes like try to open the front door with the unlock clicker for my car.
I put Lemon-Pepper Seasoning in my purse instead of the cabinet because…I am trying to do six things at once!
It’s more than true: feeling spread too thin is not good for the Mom-i-tude.
Know what I mean?
Frazzled moms can do goofy things.
Time sneaks up on me and I am late to pick up my daughter from practice. I clip coupons…but forget to take them to the store. Rushing, I spill an entire container of pineapple juice in the refrigerator. Then I am aggravated that I have to stop and clean up my mess.
I have felt pressed with frustration of a To-Do list longer than a roll of toilet paper, and to be honest, it has made me just a little crabby.
I have felt guilty when kids want me to drop what I am doing to take them someplace..and I don’t want to. I have growled my inner-GRRRrrrr…when the phone rings, when the tenth interruption comes in the same hour, when the family has the audacity to comment that the house is a wreck. Imagine that.
It’s time.
Time for a Mom-i-tude adjustment.
My friend, Jen, posted this on Facebook. Seeing this cute Mother’s Day note is the reminder I need.
I need to laugh and cherish the smile factor of my kids.
Past or present, they fill my heart with joy.
My heart is full with many little moments that have made me smile over the years. Taking time to enjoy those sweet moments is important.
Even when they become teenagers and those little cute things grow up, they make me laugh. Sorry to break it to you, but my teens no longer bedtime read stories to the dogs. Now they do funny things like sabotage family picture day:
I needed that laugh…
How about you? Do you need a Mom-i-tude adjustment to breathe a little zip into your parenting?
Taking time to remember precious things that kids do breaks through the tension and reminds me to laugh. I stop to give a hug…just because. I breathe deep and reach for joy.
Remembering joy turns to my focus to gratitude.
Joy and gratitude soothe like a cool balm, calming my stress. Perspective shifts and my Mom-i-tude brightens. I let go of the grit of frustration scraping across my last nerve.
I listen as God uses the lighter side of life to whisper to my heart:
… mother rejoice; may she who gave you birth be joyful!–Proverbs 23:25
Note to self: Busyness, schmiziness…don’t ever get to frazzled to enjoy the journey!
How do you adjust your Mom-i-tude?
Share this post with other mom’s that could use a little encouragement. Just click on one of the media buttons–so easy:)
The Truth about Hearing God
Learning to listen to God is a challenging and sometimes frustrating process for many of us. If you have struggled with hearing God, I hope this will help.
“Long ago God spoke many times and in many ways to our ancestors through the prophets. And now in these final days, he has spoken to us through his Son…”–Hebrew 1:1-2a (ESV)
Read God’s Word as a conversation with the Living God.
It is helpful to learn practical ways to listen attentively, with the awareness God will speak. For all of us, this is a process. Time in God’s Word is the training ground where we learn to recognize his voice. Learning to respond to the voice of God comes easier when we read his Word as a personal conversation. He speaks; we listen. We read; he speaks; we hear. We process what we’ve read by getting to know him through his words, responding to what we have learned. This is the heart of a Quiet Time.
Recognizing God’s voice:
God speaks through his Word, and His Spirit leads us by giving understanding as we read thoughtfully. As we read, the Holy Spirit speaks to our thoughts acting as leader, teacher, guide, and comforter. Learning to recognize God’s voice challenges us to fight the tension between the physical and the spiritual, between the auditory and the intuitive. Rather than a verbal conversation, the Holy Spirit speaks by drawing our attention to meaning, reminding us of personal connections, enabling us to understand or remember truth with increasing clarity and depth…
God opens our ears to listen.
“The Lord God has given Me the tongue of disciples,
That I may know how to sustain the weary one with a word.
He awakens Me morning by morning,
He awakens My ear to listen as a disciple.
The Lord God has opened My ear…”–Isaiah 50:4-5a
The Holy Spirit speaks in the holy space between God’s truth on the page and the thoughts of our heart, calming fears, guiding decisions, revealing answers, convicting sins, strengthening weakness, teaching truth, and stirring up desire to know Christ. Faith that embraces the active presence of Christ through the words of Scripture opens our ears to hear and prompts our will to act.
The word of God and the voice of God work together:
“For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart”—Hebrews 4:12 (NASB).
What challenges have you faced in hearing God?
If you are seeking to hear God, like this post and use one or all of the social media share buttons below. I am now on Pintrest, which is a great place to share inspirational photos and quotes from Ginger’s Corner. Just click the Pintrest button:)
Just a Hang Ten Kind of Day
Sometimes you just need a hang ten kind of day. There is nothing like the fun of kicking back with friends and taking a leisurely, where the mood may take us outing…just for fun. Just for friendship. Just because you can. Today, I had the...
Three Simple Ways to Listen to God
Yesterday I had the honor of speaking at a PWOC retreat for the wives at Marine Corps Base, Kaneohe Bay. Let me tell you, it was such a sacrifice to travel to Hawaii for this event. Just kidding–what joy to have an opportunity to come to Hawaii, run my mouth for Jesus, enjoy some friend time, and meet a whole new crop of amazing military wives. Blessed beyond measure for sure!
While things are fresh on my mind, I want to share a few highlights from the retreat content, My God Ears are On: The Quiet Time Guide.
I can’t hear you…I think I have a marshmallow in my ear!
Learning to listen to a God that we cannot meet with face to face can be a confusing thing.
Ever feel like there are marshmallows clogging your ears when it comes to hearing God?
We long to hear from God, but sometimes lack confidence that God will speak personally to us.
Ever been in that place of feeling like you are somehow missing something when it comes to hearing God?
Hebrews 1:1 speaks to this very question that can plague our souls.
“God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son….”
This passage goes on to say that Jesus sustains everything by “the word of His power.”
Bottom Line:
God speaks through Jesus and the sustaining power of His Word.
Expect to Hear from God
Learning to listen to God comes easier when we come with the faith and expectation that He will speak to us through His Word. For me, the essence of having my God ears on has everything to do with how I listen and what I do with what I hear.
It is so tempting to approach having a devotional time with God (Quiet Time) as one more good thing to be crammed into an over-loaded day. Ever catch yourself with the Wheaties mentality…”It’s supposed to be good for you…”, but your heart is chasing after other things?
Activity or Relationship?
When we begin to approach spending time with God as an activity rather than a relationship, we are missing the point. Hearing God through the Scriptures is about relationship. Too often, we are more focused on information and performance (doing what good Christians are supposed to do). The most important thing about having a Quiet Time is what God has to say, not how long I spent, or how many facts I can collect. It is a matter of the heart longing to grow deeper in relationship with the living, loving, ever-present God who specializes in grace.
Invited to enter in just as you are.
Listen to the heart of God for relationship in this verse that I have rephrased in first person: “Approach Me with confidence so that you may receive mercy and find grace to help in the time of your need.”–Hebrews 4:16 rephrased.
This come-as-you-are invitation relieves us of the feeling that we must somehow get ourselves clean and polished before coming to God. God’s heart is wide open for relationship, and learning to recognize His voice breaks through the barrier of our misunderstanding and skewed expectations.
[tweetthis hidden_hashtags=”#hearingGod”]Begin to read the Bible as a conversation with the God who loves you more than you could ever understand.[/tweetthis]
3 Simple Ways to Listen to God:
Ask God to give you understanding, to speak to your heart. Begin reading a short passage of Scripture. As you read, consider these three questions
What does it say?
What does it mean?
What will I do about it?
As you read Scripture and listen, the Holy Spirit will speak, using your mind to direct attention and give insight, or sight into, what He wants to say to you today. As you listen, follow the train of Spirit-led thought.
“But when he, the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth.”–John 16:13
Want to hear from God? Open that Bible and put your God Ears on.
What are you waiting for?
