Who Is God .... And How Do I Find Him?

The bible says that God:

*is Holy

*is All-knowing

*Understands Everything

*can be Trusted

*Doesn't make Mistakes (we just think He does because we don't have His understanding)

*is our Father

*is our Shepherd (He leads us, protects us, provides for us)

*is the great Creator

*is our Savior

*is Lord (He calls the shots)

*Works for the Good of those who live Him

*Loves us, Yearns for us, and wants us to Know him

As to how to find him, you could start by listening to this excellent sermon by David Nelson, lead pastor at K2TheChurch here in Salt Lake City.

Or you could blow the dust off your bible and start reading it. 

"God," says Nelson, "is always waiting for us to engage him. Every morning he's sitting there in your living room waiting for you." 

Waiting for you. 

Waiting for me. 

Wow. 

Because He really wants us to know him -- so that we come to know who we are and the purpose He has for us here on earth. 

Cool!

Overheard HA!

Do you play golf? If so, do you love it -- or hate it?

Here's what I overheard my pastor say: "Golf is from Hell, I think ... to frustrate us to no end."

HAAAAAAA!

Pride Cometh Before the Fall

The sermon at church this morning, titled "Peace With Each Other" by Pastor Christian Kocherscheidt, rocked. Kocherscheidt, who hails from Germany and was there to personally witness the felling of the Berlin Wall, reminded us that much of the world is in conflict, and for one single reason: pride. 

Peace, he said, requires humility. But pride demands justice -- or what we individually decide is justice. 

Proving this point, Kocherscheidt shared the story of a domestic dispute that occurred, I believe, in California. Ultimately, a man murdered the couple living next to him -- all because he believed their dog had pooped on his lawn. 

Despite both parties being cautioned by their lawyers to humble themselves, to let the escalating squabble go, neither side was willing to back down. Yet I bet the phrase "Do over!" is what they'd like to cry with the same passion now.

"Peace," added Kocherscheidt, "is not the absence of conflict. It's the presence of Jesus in a situation. Because Jesus IS peace." 

The basic gist of his message: that I can't offer peace to you, my neighbor, if I don't first allow God's peace to fill my heart and mind. And that takes a daily reconnecting with Him, to get -- and keep -- my head and heart right. 

Seeking peace, above all else, is what we're here to do, Kocherscheidt added. We're supposed to function  like a symphony. "Playing" in harmony because we're all reading from the same musical score. I really like that. Just keeping that mental image in mind helps a lot.  ;-)

To listen to a podcast of the sermon, click here. Or watch for it to be upload to the k2thechurch sermons available on YouTube.

His Eye Is On the Sparrow (and Me!)

Sooooo....moving to a new city isn't the hardest thing in the world, at least if you don't have to make the move solo. Having a husband come with me obviously gives me a built-in support system.

Still, there's a bit of stress in trying to find the grocery store, the post office, and the gas station -- all within a grid of perplexing directional streets based on Salt Lake City's ground zero, the Mormon Temple. I mean, seriously, does an address of 145 South 600 West sound sane to you? HA!

Too, there's the stress of trying to find myself a job, as we're now a couple on a budget thanks to the hubby studying at the "U" (University of Utah) full-time this fall.

Add in the torrential rain storms we've experienced (supposedly very UNcommon in June) almost daily in the two weeks we've been here, and well, things could start to seem depressing.

But God has been kind to show me not once, but twice (and with a DOUBLE rainbow the second time), that he's got me in his sights -- a reminder that he'll take care of everything, EVEN the job. 

He also presented me with my first Salt Lake City friend, a fantabulous (and gorgeous) gal who originally hails from Nigeria. Tola works in IT at GE Health, so of course she and the hubby instantly hit it off. 

Below are pics of the gorgeous rainbows.  ;-)

A Little Habakkuk, Anyone?

Have you ever stumbled upon the last chapter of the book of Habakkuk? 

Experts agree the book was written by a prophet, though they're not sure which one. They believe he lived in the Babylonian period, most likely during the reign of evil king Jehoiakim. Jehoiakim reigned in Jerusalem for 11 years, before losing his throne and life after rebelling against the great Babylonian king, Nebuchadnezzar.

The last bit of this very short bible book, in Chapter 3, reads:

"Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no

 grapes on the vines, 

though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food,  

though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, 

yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my savior. 

The Sovereign Lord is my strength; 

he makes my feet like the feet of deer, 

he enables me to go on the heights."

Sooo, to put that in modern context ... that's like my saying:

"Though I have no job, 

and my health insurance is cancelled, 

and I ain't got 5 bucks for a cafe latte at Starbucks, 

still will I sing my little heart out in praise of Almighty God."

Woa. That's quite possibly the loftiest position I could hope to attain: trusting God through thick and thin, and remaining hopeful and joyful, despite the circumstance. 

That's exactly where I want to be. In the center of God's will. In the center of his care. Neither worrying, nor fretting, but telling God he rocks.

I'm Moving to Mormon Country

Yup, another month and I'll be hailing from Salt Lake City, Utah -- home to some of the best skiing in the country.

Of course, my friends have been ribbing me about becoming a "first wife," teasing me that my husband, Greg, will surely feel the pressure to take on additional (younger, prettier, richer??) wives. HA! Fortunately for me, I KNOW that Greg would become as wobbly as melting jello if there was another woman in the house bemoaning her cramps, demanding his attention, and nagging him with her honey-do-right-now list.

The Mormons who make up a good chunk of the spiritual population in Salt Lake City no longer practice polygamy. Haven't for years. Yes, there are some splinter Mormon groups who have continued the practice (which inspired the widely-popular HBO drama Big Love), but the modern Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints does not condone the practice -- though it was handed down as a right by church founder Joseph Smith.

Mormons believe many things I'm having trouble getting my head around (ie: the fact that Joseph Smith rewrote the bible to "correct" it, that Mormons put so much stock in the Book of Mormon, and that God is not the architect of the universe), but I'm looking forward to making some good Mormon friends -- if they'll let me. 

Word on the street is that if you're not Mormon, it's not likely you'll be invited into their circle. Not that Mormons are rude or unfriendly. It's that they like to hang out with peeps who share a common vision of what life -- and the afterlife -- is supposed to be about.

But maybe I'll get lucky and be offered a cup of iced lemonade by some of them. Which would be lovely, as I hear the Salt Lake summers swelter!  ;-)

Growing My Box

I have been seriously depressed lately, mostly because I've allowed my "box" to get too small. 

Yet in a weird way, I've also felt an undercurrent of hope (if that makes sense!), a singing in my soul that God longs to hand me a much bigger box -- one perkily gift wrapped, with a big, floppy bow.  ;-)

So I totally agree with Joyce Sequichie Hifler, who writes in her uplifting book Think on These Things: Thoughts to Enrich Your Days, that "We should open this day with as much reverence as if it were gift wrapped and presented  to us personally, which it is."

The primary obstacle to receiving this box, of course, is ourselves. We MUST face the day with confidence, and do all we can mentally to not get derailed by fear.

Confidence, says bestselling Christian author Joyce Meyer in her persuasive book The Confident Woman: Start Today Living Boldly and Without Fear, is "all about being positive concerning what you can do--and not worrying over what you can't do. A confident person is open to learning, because she knows that her confidence allows her to walk through life's doorways, eager to discover what waits on the other side."

That's exactly right: climbing whatever mountains present themselves because we CHOOSE to maximize our strengths, not concentrate on our weaknesses.

The bottom line in all this, for me, is believing that God has my back. That God is for me, and wants to bless me -- if I will stop trying to put the kabosh on that! 

Joyce says there are seven secrets to being a confident woman, the first being that a confident woman KNOWS that she is loved. That we should daily shout, "GOD LOVES ME UNCONDITIONALLY AND I RECEIVE HIS LOVE!"

Some days I don't get there (not even at a whisper), thanks in part to my upbringing (my church taught that we lowly sinners daily teeter on the brink of hell). But I'm finding the courage to let that box grow.  ;-)