Tag Archives: God

plus five

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When I first started dating my boyfriend, there was only one thing that bothered me about him: his driving. I had never thought that someone’s driving could annoy me so much! I’m not sure why, but it drove me absolutely crazy. It was the only point of contention between us, and I know it frustrated him as much as me that I couldn’t just relax and trust him to get us there safely. A few months into our relationship, we were having a casual conversation and he mentioned that he had a plus five driving record. Plus five?? That’s incredibly good. You get one safe driving point for every year that you hold a Virginia license without any violations, and the maximum number of safe driving points you can get is five. So here I am, riding with one of the safest drivers out there, trying to direct him and worrying every second!

Understand, therefore, that the LORD your God is indeed God. He is the faithful God who keeps His covenant for a thousand generations and lavishes His unfailing love on those who love Him and obey His commands. -Deuteronomy 7:9

I have a great life. I’m very thankful for how God has blessed me, so I don’t want to sound like I’m complaining, but I can’t tell you how hard it is to come to work and sit at my desk, day after day, while my family is in Ghana making a difference in the lives of so many orphans, and my friends leave on amazing adventures to experience cultures that I dream of. More than anything, I wish to be doing something that matters, instead of answering phone calls and making appointments. In my head, I know I have bills to pay and that there’s a reason I am here, at least for now, but so easily I find myself annoyed, wondering, God why can’t You just make it happen right away? Trying to backseat drive a God who keeps promises for a thousand generations. Worrying while being lavished with unfailing love.

Lord, those who know You will trust in You.
      You have never deserted those who look to You. -Psalms 9:10

Those who know, will trust. It’s as simple and difficult as that. So I pray, that no matter what is going on in my life, or what isn’t, that God would lead me to the place where trust in Him leaves no room for worry. He’s a plus five driver, and He will keep us safe and in the black.

-lf

get home safe

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I credit my reckless fearless driving style to being raised in Africa, where it doesn’t matter if the traffic lights happen to be working or not, people just do what they want. One night, shortly after getting my American license, I came to a yellow light. Taking a risk, I sped through it just as it turned red, and whomp whomp, flashing lights appeared in my rearview mirror. The officer came to the window and asked me why I hadn’t stopped. I politely explained to him that if I wasn’t home by eleven, my mom started to get worried and it was already 11:02. He nodded thoughtfully and said, “I understand, but what your mother probably really cares about is that you get home safe.” And then he wrote me a ticket. I was super disappointed, but I knew it was true. My mom would much prefer a few minutes of worry to getting a call from the hospital. As annoying as waiting at a light is, it’s necessary, because the goal of driving is to reach your destination- safely.

While we were children, our parents did what seemed best to them. But God is doing what is best for us, training us to live God’s holy best. At the time, discipline isn’t much fun. It always feels like it’s going against the grain. Later, of course, it pays off handsomely, for it’s the well-trained who find themselves mature in their relationship with God. -Hebrews 12:10-11

Whenever I try to talk to my coworkers about my personal life, there’s a disconnect. I had a girl I barely know literally yell at me when she found out that my boyfriend and I don’t live together. She was so angry because apparently, we are never going to know if we are compatible and that is the end of the world. By the end of her public outburst, I felt more than a little embarrassed, added to the inner guilt I feel every day when Mike makes a two hour roundtrip to see me. According to God, we’re at a red light until marriage, but all around me others are running that red light with seemingly zero consequences.

The law of the Lord is perfect. It gives us new strength.
The laws of the Lord can be trusted. They make childish people wise.
The rules of the Lord are right.  They give joy to our hearts.
The commands of the Lord shine brightly. They give light to our minds.
The law that brings respect for the Lord is pure. It lasts forever.
The directions the Lord gives are true. All of them are completely right.
I am warned by them. When I obey them, I am greatly rewarded. -Psalms19:7-9,11

Perfect. Can be trusted. Gives joy and light. Pure. True. Completely right. Greatly rewarding. It’s not fun at the time. Trust me, I know. But God’s commands are like traffic lights, helping us to not only get home safe, but to get there in the black.

-lf

wrong line

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Sometimes, when I don’t feel like driving to work, I take the train. Like a real train, with conductors and choo-chooing. It’s expensive and takes a really long time but there’s a second floor above the riffraff and I get my own seat so it’s worth it. My station is at the very end of the line, and it never fails to make me laugh when, as we pull in, someone jumps up with a panicked expression and says, “Wait- is this Fredericksburg???” Because there are two lines, Manassas and Fredericksburg. And even though it’s written on the side of the train and announced at every one of the ten stations on the way, This is the Manassas line train, all too often someone ends up thirty four miles away from their destination, confused, frustrated, and wondering how they could have been so stupid. The signs were there, but they ended up on the wrong line.

My dear friends, don’t believe everything you hear. Carefully weigh and examine what people tell you. Not everyone who talks about God comes from God. There are a lot of lying preachers loose in the world.

Election season is reaching the inescapable level, so while I was trying to watch my favorite talk show the other day, I was subjected to listening to a segment about how politicians were using religion to further their cause. Most recently, someone notable had claimed that Jesus approved of increasing taxes for the wealthy because, after all, Jesus said in Luke, “For everyone to whom much is given, from him much shall be required.”

 It made me laugh a little bit, and I really can’t say for sure if that was what Jesus meant or not, but it did get me thinking about all the personal opinions that bombard me daily- from politicians, celebrities, journalists, coworkers, friends, and people I don’t even know. Opinions so casually stated that they seem normal and acceptable, but upon deeper scrutiny prove to be diammetrically opposed to the Truth.

  • absorbed in an office conversation about someone’s relationship in a lifestyle that I am wholeheartedly against.
  • pondering quotes from (don’t get offended) Oprah, that are completely self-centered, a stark contrast to the self-less Gospel I believe in.
  • fanatically devoted to a show with zero value. just zero.

Here’s how you test for the genuine Spirit of God. Everyone who confesses openly his faith in Jesus Christ—the Son of God, who came as an actual flesh-and-blood person—comes from God and belongs to God. And everyone who refuses to confess faith in Jesus has nothing in common with God. This is the spirit of antichrist that you heard was coming. Well, here it is, sooner than we thought! -1 John 4:1-3

It can seem overwhelming, knowing what to accept and what to reject, but it’s really not. The key is, we have to be intentional. Don’t believe everything you hear. Test for the genuine. Because everything else has nothing in common with God, who lives in you. Because the end that you have heard is coming is here, sooner than we thought. Because in that end, you don’t want to end up on the wrong line. Because you want to end in the black.