are you walking on a treadmill?

Resting on Self-Righteousness

For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.  Romans 3:20

God is not a mean tyrant, but some of us see him in just that way--hard to please, tapping his celestial finger in impatience with our imperfections, and willing to hand out blessings only when we're arrived at certain spiritual heights.  Nowhere in Scripture do we find such ideas about God.  But that is the image we are going to wind up with if we try to win God's approval by what we do and say.  Surely we want God's acceptance, but we just aren't up to obtaining it.  Seeking the blessings of salvation by self-effort will get us no farther than walking on a treadmill.  We will find ourselves living under an ever-thickening cloud of fear, because nothing we do can make us right with God.  Only Christ can do that.

Perhaps you have taken Jesus as your Savior, but you are still lacking assurance that God accepts you.  No matter what you do, you can't grasp the idea of a kind, loving Father who longs to relate.  If so, what have you been doing about that?  Perhaps you have doubled your efforts for God--more serving, better attitudes--in an attempt to secure the divine favor that you seem to be missing.  If this is your default in your dealings with God, chances are good that, instead of the love and joy you long for, God seems more remote than ever.

There is only one way out of the tangle, and that is to stop your efforts.  Stopping feels counterintuitive, but it's actually the only way you find restful assurance that God accepts you.  When you stop trying to get yourself right with God and instead simply rest in Jesus, you'll see that God doesn't go away.  You will be surprised to discover that your efforts to clean up for him were actually contributing to your sense of distance from God.  The only way to get near him, the only way to know him as Father and Friend, is to forsake yourself and rest in Christ.  'Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you,' wrote the apostle James (James 4:8), and the only way to do so is by looking at Christ.

We believe in our hearts and declare with our lips that Jesus is the only way--we believe it, but often we don't live it.  If we profess Christ and sing his praises, yet we aren't enjoying the peace that comes through him, let's see whether there is a performance treadmill under our feet and make a decision to step off.  By uniting us to Christ, God has set us free from bondage, and our liberty is there for the taking.

Trust: A Godly Woman's Adornment by Lydia Brownback

ponder this.

The Tables Turned
UP! up! my Friend, and quit your books;
Or surely you'll grow double:
Up! up! my Friend, and clear your looks;
Why all this toil and trouble?

The sun, above the mountain's head,
A freshening lustre mellow
Through all the long green fields has spread,
His first sweet evening yellow.

Enough of Science and of Art;
Close up those barren leaves;
Come forth, and bring with you a heart
That watches and receives.

William Wordsworth

humbled by grace

"All my changes come from him who never changes.  If I had grown rich, I should have seen his hand in it, and I should have praised him; let me equally see his hand if I am made poor, and let me as heartily praise him.  When we go down in the world, it is of the Lord, and so we may take it patiently: when we rise in the world, it is of the Lord, and we may accept it thankfully.  In any case, the Lord hath done it, and it is well.


It seems that Jehovah's way is to lower those whom he means to raise, and to strip those whom he intends to clothe.  If it is his way, it is the wisest and best way.  If I am now enduring the bringing low I may well rejoice, because I see in it the preface to the lifting up.  The more we are humbled by grace, the more we shall be exalted in glory.  That impoverishment is to be welcomed."

Cheque Book of the Bank of Faith by C.H. Spurgeon

Vintage Ideas for Modern Living

I became aware of Amy Butler as I browsed through one of her books while babysitting.  I ordered Found Style from the library and I'm already a fan!  This husband-wife duo own and operate a design studio in Granville, Ohio.  They also create fabric, graphic, and product designs for their studio.  Check them out here!

"Sometimes you have to look beyond the history of an item to see its potential."  Found Style

"Good style is ultimately a found style--stumbled upon, discovered, and collected over time.  It is easier to hire a designer, choose to be either shocking or conservative, to use massive clutter or leave rooms nearly empty for effect.  But homes that feature a true sense of style are most often those that have been lovingly assembled over time, piece by piece, matching old and new with creativity, common sense, thriftiness, and occasional humor."  Found Style

ideal

The other day I came across a quote from the girltalk blog.  I found it encouraging and thought provoking!  I think I need to read every day. :)

"Here we have a picture of God's ideal woman...Faith in God that sees beyond present bitter setbacks. Freedom from the securities and comforts of the world. Courage to venture into the unknown and the strange. Radical commitment in the relationships appointed by God....This is the woman of Proverbs 31:25 who looks into the future with confidence in God and laughs at the coming troubles: "Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come." Ruth is one of "the holy women who hoped in God...[and did] not fear anything that is frightening" (1 Peter 3:5-6). It is a beautiful thing to watch a woman like this serve Christ with courage….Whatever else the great women of faith doubted, they never doubted that God governed every part of their lives and that nothing could stay his hand...Nothing--from toothpicks to tyrants--is ultimately self-determining. Everything serves (willingly or not) the "purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will" (Eph. 1:11). God is the all-encompassing, all-pervading, all-governing reality." --John Piper, A Sweet and Bitter Providence, p. 35, 44

finished all

"When Jesus died on the cross he paid the full price for sin.  His work of redeeming us from sin was perfect and final.  Jesus did all, finished all, suffered all. He made full atonement.  Those who trust in Jesus have been purchased back from sin.  They have no outstanding debts.  They do not need to make any further payments for their salvation." 

Philip G. Ryken