a glimpse

'Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, 

for the first heaven and first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.

And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, 

prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, 

"Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. 

He will dwell with them and they will be his people,

and God Himself will be with them as their God.

He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more,

neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain anymore, 

for the former things have passed away.

And he who was seated on the throne said,

"Behold, I make all things new."

And He also said, 

"Write this down for these words are trustworthy and true."

And He said to me, 

"I am the Alpha and the Omega,

the beginning and the end. 

To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment.

The one who conquers will have this heritage,

and I will be his God and he will be my son.

But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable,

as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all the liars, 

their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur,

which is the second death."

The wall was built of jasper, while the city was pure gold, clear as glass.

The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every kind of jewel. 

The first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, 

the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, 

the eight beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysophase, 

the eleventh jacinth and the twelfth amethyst. 

And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made of a single pearl, 

and the street of the city was pure gold, transparent as glass.

And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb. 

And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine upon it, 

for the glory of God gives it light and its lamp is the Lamb.

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, 

flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city; 

also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit,

 yielding its fruit each month. 

The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 

No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, 

and his servants will worship him. 

They will see His face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 

And night will be no more. 

They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, 

and they will reign forever and ever. '

Revelation 21:1-8, 18-23, 22:1-5

In my limited and sin-stricken human understanding, the perfect and unhindered presence of the Almighty God is something I can't even imagine. 

More than streets paved with gold, 

the gates of pearl, 

the fruit, 

the healing, 

the comfort, 

the presence of the saints....

So much more than all of that, 

I am eager for His presence. 

To be face to face with God--

the One who is everything and in everything--

the Author and Perfecter of my faith--

the True Vine--

the Light. 

I am eager to be in the presence of God. 

Today, while I live life in the dust of earth and the angst of human strivings, 

I will practice the presence of God. 

I will recognize that although I am sinful and I will fail, 

I will set my heart on things above and not on things of this earth. 

I will intentionally incline the eyes of my heart to seek Him, 

to hold Him, 

to love what He loves and 

to serve as He served. 

And then, when my strivings of life are through, 

may He open His mouth and welcome me into His glorious and radiant presence. 

<><tce

the order of which

I long to rejoice.

I yearn for refreshment. 

I deeply desire to dwell among the wise. 

I hunger for intelligence. and wisdom. 

I crave honor. 

The longer I live the more I realize how similar humanity is. At the end of the day, we all desire to be recognized. We desire to be understood and to understand. We long to be loved and to have the opportunity to love in return. When all is said and done, I long to love Jesus more than I did when my feet hit the cold floor when the day was new. 

'The light of the eyes rejoices the heart,

and good news refreshes the bones. 

The ear that listens to life giving reproof will dwell among the wise.

Whoever ignores instruction despises himself,

but he who listens to reproof gains intelligence. 

The fear of the Lord is instruction in wisdom, 

and humlity comes before honor.'

Proverbs 15:28, 30-33 

Humanity is seeking and chasing feverishly the blessing and abundance of God and yet it fails to come under His protective covering. John 15:10, Jesus says pointedly with complete love, "If you keep my commandments, you will abide in My love." This is not because Christ is a dictator. This is because there is safety and blessing within the loving boundaries and correction of our Creator. 

As I long for wisdom, it is critical that I listen to reproof...even when it exposes that which I wish desperately to hide. 

If I long to rejoice, I must dwell within light--The Light-- and fill my eyes with light. 

If I yearn for refreshment, I must saturate myself in the good news--the Good News. 

"Fear not, for behold I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord!" ~Multitude of Angels to unworthy, uneducated and deeply loved and divinely chosen Shepherds (Luke 2:10,11) 

The truth, life, death and resurrection of Christ is MY GOOD NEWS!

I want wisdom? Fear God--understand my place and His glory--embrace it, find beauty and strength in my inadequacy and His sufficiency. Embrace the surrender and the fear. 

I desire honor? 

Take a look upon the life of Jesus Christ, the very definition of humilty and honor. 

'Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not consider equatlity with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in the likeness of men, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on the cross. 

Therefore, God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above all names, so that at the name of Jesus Christ, every knee should bow and every tongue confess, that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." 

~Apostle Paul, Philippians 2:5-11

Can I get an AMEN?!

Editors side note: Can you imagine what that moment will be like? 

Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess! That includes all those that have spent their live's work trying to destroy Christianity, marriage as it is defined by God, killed babies mercilessly in the name of 'free choice', executed Christians, and profaned the cross of Christ. There will come a day when they will bow and they will confess that Christ is Lord--this does not mean they will be saved for at that time, it will be too late if they had not confessed during their time on earth--but they will stand face to face with the very God they spent their lives trying to deny--oh what a moment!!

The point is, we cannot have the blessing without the obedience. 

Obedience is hard. Doing the right thing is the hardest thing we could ever do. 

It will be the hardest thing to teach to our children and human nature promises to challenge it. 

However, it is within that obedience and that surrender and the brokeness that it brings, 

that we will find healing.

freedom.

refreshment.

wisdom. 

honor. 

But, to quote the words of Apostle Paul, 

Do not grow weary my friends in doing good, 

for in due time, you will reap a reward (Galatians 6).

We must obey in order to receive the blessing. 

I pray that obedience and blessing would be your companions on this sunny, spring day. 

humbled. 

tiffany 

a letter to learn from: genuine

"Accordingly, though I am bold enough in Christ to command you to do what is required, yet for love's sake I prefer to appeal to you--

I, Paul, and old man now and now a prisoner also for Christ Jesus--

I appeal to you for my child Onesimus, whose father I became in my imprisonment.

...I preferred to do nothing without your consent in order that your goodness

might might not be by compulsion

but of your own accord."

~Apostle Paul to Philemon

Philemon 8-10, 14

I love how relevant the Bible is. 

I am reminded daily that is alive and active, sharper than any double edged sword (Hebrews 4:12) and although they are ancient words of truth, because it is the Truth and it is alive and active, it will always be relevant to our lives at all times. 

This is no exception. 

As I read this letter from Paul to a brother in Christ, he is making a plea. 

He is pleading on behalf of a transformed brother in Christ. 

It is clear that although separated physically, Paul has the authority and strength of influence to ask something of Philemon and see results. He has the authority to 'command it be done' but he chooses something different--he chooses to appeal. 

This is not emotional manipulation, but rather a spiritual exhortation so as to impact Philemon's understanding of the situation as a whole that he may make the best decision according to God's perfect plan of brotherhood in the Body of Christ. 

Paul understands that coerced love is not genuine love. 

Love must not be the result of feelings or emotion because that is sure to change. 

Love must not be a result of coercion because that will end in resentment. 

Love must be a choice. 

If love is to be genuine, if love is to be sincere, if love is to be beneficial and fulfilling, 

love must be a choice. 

Join me today in making a choice. 

I pray that you too will have a desire to love those and accept those for who God is transforming them to be. I pray that my heart would see the new creation rather than the flawed human soul my heart is so inclined to see. I pray that we would see and celebrate the evidences of grace and that as a result, we would choose to love. Not out of coercion but out of obedience to Christ. Not out of manipulation but out of genuine love....

the way Christ has loved us. 

"Therefore, be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God." 

(Ephesians 5:1,2)

"Let love be genuine...." 

(Romans 12:9a)

Forget not that you are loved. 

Forget not that you are forgiven. 

Forget not that God has a choice in both matters

as do you. 

May the love of God change you.

May you live forgiven. 

May you forgive that you may live. 

May you love genuinely. 

blessed. 

tiffany 

a funeral and a wedding

My heart has been savoring the words of King Solomon in the book of Proverbs.
The more I read, the more my heart longs for wisdom.
I long for discretion.
I long for discernment.
I long for understanding and self control.
I long for wisdom--to wear her like a dearly loved necklace--beautiful and protected and close to my heart.

Saturday was an interesting day. It was exhausting emotionally. It started with tears and ended with tears. The tears though, were two very different types of tears.

Saturday morning, dear friends of ours, said a final farewell to their beloved newborn son, who departed from earth to enter eternity after only twenty-five and one half weeks in existence.
He was perfect and beautiful.
The number of his days were altogether lovely and perfectly planned by His loving Creator.
Although there is great peace and rest in this truth, there is still great sadness for two parents who just want their baby back.
The anguish is great. The pain is real. There are no words to speak to the pain.
Just the still, small voice of Truth that says, "Come, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest." 
Although words cannot explain it and only the Spirit of God can begin to heal it,
there was an overwhelming sense of hope in the midst of this unspeakable loss.

Late that same afternoon, I had been asked to share at the wedding of a couple I used to disciple. They have been living together for many years and have three children together. There is a history of drug use and alcohol abuse. They have the head knowledge of Biblical truth, but fail to see its value in life or the beauty in the freedom that the instruction and fear of Lord provide.

As I drove to the wedding, I prayed that the Spirit of God would prevail over the spirit of darkness that had been vying for their souls. I prayed that I would have a heart of love and celebration as they take this step of marriage. I surrendered the feeling of pointlessness and hopelessness.

What happened within the next three hours is terribly difficult to articulate and the only response I had as I drove home, thankful it was over, was tears.
Tears for what the Lord has given and how it has been wasted.
I wept for the gifts of life and the heritage of children that are sacrificed on the altar of momentary pleasure and drunken foolishness.

'My son, if you receive my words and treasure up my commands with you, 
making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding;
yes, if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding,
if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures,
then you will understand the fear of the Lord and will find the knowledge of God. 
For the Lord gives wisdom;
from His mouth come knowledge and understanding;
He stores up sound wisdom for the upright;
He is a shield for those who walk in integrity,
guarding the paths of justice and watching over the way of the saints.
Then you will understand righteousness and justice and equity, every good path;
for wisdom will come into your heart,
and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;
discretion will watch over you,
understanding will guard you,
delivering you from the way of evil,
from men of perverted speech,
who forsake the paths of righteousness to walk in the ways of darkness,
who rejoice in doing evil and delight in the perverseness of evil,
men whose paths are crooked and who are devious in their ways.'
~King Solomon
Proverbs 2:1-15


I have spent countless hours with this couple as they wonder why God allows the hardships they face. I counsel them, pray with them, read Scripture with them. They want God's blessing, but have no desire to seek Him, to surround themselves with others that hunger for Righteousness, to receive His words, to call out for insight or to seek Him like precious jewels.
The result is hopelessness.
The result is that He will not shield them from the destruction of their own behavior.

As I drove home, I wept over the stark contrast of the two events of the day:
a hope filled, Christ centered funeral
and
a hopeless, Godless, wedding of fools.
While there may be laughing and feasting outwardly, if Christ is not present, all hope is gone.
In sharp contrast, even in the presence of deep grief and loss and tragedy, where the Spirit of the Lord is, the great is great hope, unexplainable peace, unconditional joy.
When all is said and done,
it is not life or happiness we long for and our souls crave--
it is the presence of the Almighty God.
So if that means standing in the house of mourning,
I will gladly forgo the wedding of fools,
to dwell in the Presence of God in the company of saints.

Oh sweet Jesus, Lover of my soul!
Let me not throw the beauty of the life you have given before the swine to be trampled underfoot for the sake of momentary pleasure. 
Today, I seek you. My heart longs for wisdom and so I will intentionally saturate my mind with Your Word and those who speak Your Word and live Your Word. 
Grant my heart grace to receive your words: to hear them and live them.
Incline my ear to wisdom as I raise my voice to heaven and cry out for understanding. 
You promise to shield those who walk in integrity
and so this new day my sweet Jesus, 
I pray that I will walk integrity, and train my children to follow hard after You. 
Thank you for the promise of Your presence, even in the midst of unspeakable pain. 
May I savor Your presence today and spread the fragrance of Christ everywhere I go. 
Amen


seeking.
tiffany