Without Faith...

The Scriptures tell us that without faith it is impossible to please God. (Hebrews 11:6)

There are times in our lives which we face where we know with perfect certainty that there is no other way to deal with these issues than to trust the Lord. With sincere hearts full of expectancy we cast those cares upon the Lord and look to Him for provision and guidance. Then hours, or even minutes, later, our hearts are churned up again, seemingly with the same turmoil we had before we even prayed about the situation initially.

Does that churning in our heart mean we have no faith in the matter? Does it mean we did not truly "cast our cares" upon Him? Does it mean we are not pleasing the Lord because we do not have faith to believe Him in the situation?

We would be foolish to deny that it could mean those things, for everyone of us can at some point be deceived. Even the Apostle Paul spoke of keeping his body under subjection, lest he become a "castaway". (1Corinthians 9:27) But there are other dynamics at work here to be focused upon.

When we became believers in the Lord Jesus, the Bible states that we were, somehow in the mystery that is known only to God, crucified with Christ and "buried with Him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. " (Romans 6:4) We were crucified with Him, put to death and then we were raised with Christ Jesus as a "new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." (2 Corinthians 5:17 ) Our spirits are joined with the Holy Spirit and the Scriptures say that "he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit." Corinthians 6:17)

So we have this wonderfully new spirit inside of us that seeks to do the will of God, "For I delight in the law of God after the inward man" (Romans 7:22). But that spirit, joined to the Spirit of God (which could not do evil while joined to the Spirit of God, could it?) is clothed upon with a mortal body which still has not been redeemed. Let me give an illustration.

If I went out in the yard and did yard work all day during the summer, I would become quite dirty, sweaty and smelly. When I came inside I could take a shower with my favorite Mandarin/Bergamot scented soap. My body would smell marvelous. If I were then to put back on the dirty, sweaty and smelly clothes...my body would be clean and sparkling, but I would be clothed in that which had not yet been redeemed...no Tide had yet touched those clothes.

This is what has happened to every believer. Our spirits are marvelously clean and sparkling with the Righteousness of the Lamb that has been granted to us by His sacrifice on Calvary. But our bodies still have in them the law of sin, "But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members." (Romans 7:23) This law of sin pulls at our flesh and we become sorely tempted by the world, our enemy and yes, even our own flesh.

Here is where the real faith steps in. Faith in the situation is not a "wish-list' of "Lord, I want this and that. Lord, do this and that." Our faith is when we feel in our flesh the pulls and stings of the law of sin, but we know in our heart what the Scriptures have said is true about our Spirits and we agree with the Lord that it is true. Regardless of what we see now, regardless of what we have seen in the past, we agree that it is true. "Faith is the substance of things hoped for," not "things" as in tangible, monetary things, although we often must trust the Lord for provision in times of need. The things we are hoping for are to see the fruits of the Spirit walked out through our own spirits in spite of the law of sin in "our members", as Paul referred to our flesh. This is the walk of faith.

Does that mean that there is no churning of the heart, then? Does this eliminate the feelings of fear? By no means, for even Paul said, "We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. " (2 Corinthians 4:9-10) The times when we feel the least able to fight the battle of faith, the times when we feel the weakest, are the times of His greatest ability to be Strength in and through us.

"Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong."
2 Corinthians 12:10

I Can Do (Without) All Things...

I was eating dinner the other night and as I pushed my plate away, I thought about the food still on my plate. Growing up, I was told to finish all my food so that my mother wouldn't have to throw it out. Since then, there have been few times I have finished a meal with any food remaining on the plate...until last summer.

Last summer I was diagnosed with pre-diabetes and insulin resistance, which necessitated a dramatic change in my eating habits. Since then I have lost weight, but more importantly, I have learned that I can do without so much more than I thought I needed.

Nine months ago, if you were to tell me that we would have cupcakes with butter-cream icing at work, and I would be able to walk away from them without the sticky icing still clinging to my lips and fingers, I would have been incredulous. I would not have thought it possible for me to live, much less be satisfied, on the smaller amounts of food that I consume now. But I am satisfied. I believe the Lord has allowed me to walk down this path and He has absolutely strengthened me to do what needs to be done, and I feel better than I have in years because of it.

So if I can become satisfied with less food...let's face it here, I'm talking sugar, less sugar... and butter, less sugar and butter...and pasta, less sugar, butter and pasta... and bread, less sugar and butter and pasta and bread...oh, and potatoes. OK, less sugar and butter and pasta and bread and potatoes, if I can be content without those things through the strength of the Lord, what other things that I mistakenly think I "must" have to be happy, could I really do without?

We have an elderly friend who is a missionary to Siberia. He leaves the balmy climate of the sub-tropics of this country that he knows and loves and travels to Russia where it can be forty degrees below zero. Now for a guy from the Deep South, that's pretty impressive. He is content to do so, in fact, when he is in the States, he can't wait to get back to Russia and the people he loves to minister to there. He has sacrificed much, but he is greatly content.

At the Convalescent home where we do church services, we see people who have lost their ability to move around. Stricken by injury or stroke, they are wheelchair or bed-bound. But many still have a song on their lips and praise in their hearts and are a great source of blessing, encouragement and testimony to us. Their bodies have been stilled, but their hearts are content.

I have had dear friends move away and out of my life, and I thought when it was happening that it would break my heart, but the Lord "...healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds." (Psalm 147:3) He was sufficient to soothe the pain and heal the wound, and to give the song in the night.

Sometimes, as most mothers are I suppose, I am tempted to fear that something will happen to one of my family members. "What would I do then?" is often the voice that sounds fearfully in my heart. I have already lost both parents, and while I miss them and have grieved for them, I am not discontent. Their passing did not shake the solid Rock upon which my faith is founded.

Loss and grief is not something that our Lord is unacquainted with. The cry of "My God, My God, why hath Thou forsaken me?" must surely ring throughout the heart of the Trinity as a scar that will never heal. The Lord Jesus IS the "Man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief" (Isaiah 53:3), "He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed." (Isaiah 53:5). Still He calls us to "cast our cares" further upon Him, for He cares for us.

Is there a grief we are bearing tonight? He has borne it first. Is there a loss we are suffering? He has suffered the loss of all for us. Is there a sacrifice we are called to make for someone, for some circumstance, for some purpose? We must remember the One who strengths us to continue, to persevere, is this same Jesus:

"But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour;
that He by the grace of God should taste death for every man. For it became Him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things,
in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings." Hebrews 2:9,10

Through His suffering we were brought unto glory, and by our sacrifices and sufferings, we can then comfort others, knowing a contentment and peace that the world can never understand.

"And He said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for My strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong. " 2 Corinthians 12:9,10

Change, the unfortunate inevitable

Well, I have never liked change. Yet, it always seems to be close by. Just as we settle into the routine of something, change becomes a necessary force to be dealt with.

We have decided to move our blog from one platform to another, and in the process we are losing all of our comments from the past. I will be adding the old posts, but since the import function doesn't seem to be working correctly, it will be something I have to so manually, and it will take me a little bit of time to accomplish. Please have patience with me until that process is finished.

About the Cafe Powder Room

This is the Powder Room, a journal page of the Orange Moon Cafe, dedicated specifically for women and written by women. The purpose of these pages are for us to encourage each other in our walk with the Lord.

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The Little Books

I have on the headboard of my bed, two little books. There are very special to me for several reasons. First, they were given to me by some dear friends of ours, Larry and Jane, whose kindness, thoughtfulness and graciousness are always an example to me. They are testimonies that though the storms may destroy all, one can still rise up with a song in the heart and praise the Lord, even while the tears are freshly streaming down your cheeks.

The little books are special to me because of their colors. One is green, which is my husband's favorite color and one is red, which is my favorite color. Stacked together, they have quite a Christmas look to them, which is just fine with me. We were married a few days after Christmas, so it has always been our favorite time of year, and we love to see red and green together.

I love the books because they are old. I just love old things. I love the thought that they have been read and touched by many, many people. I love that others have turned the pages just as I have, that the edges of the spine are worn with use. Now, let me say here that new books can be nice, too. There is something special about being the first person to bend the spine of a book, or to separate the pages and delve into the secrets the pages hold, but an old book not only holds the secrets of the book itself but also of all the people who have held the book in the past.

The little books are special to me also just because they are little. Only slightly bigger than a deck of cards, the tiny books don't depict the incredible truths they contain. You see, both these books were written by Frances Havergal. Now, if you love hymns, that name may be familiar to you, because she wrote a great many hymns. These two little books each have thirty-one entries. The first book, entitled "Little Pillows", contains sweet little "pillows" of truths for us to rest our minds upon as we are going to sleep each night. They all are truths regarding the Lord Jesus and His relationship to us. The second book, "Morning Stars", to be read upon rising each morning, contains short essays about the different names of the Lord Jesus.

Tonight I was reading in the little book and the essay was about the Lord Jesus being our Head, and it mentioned that the Head always knows everything about the rest of the members of the body, especially pain. "For if your finger is hurt, your head does not have to be told! you know about it, and feel it, and cry out, in an instant." the book states. This is such an obvious statement, but it struck me as if I had never even encountered the notion of it before. The Lord Jesus knows my pain instantaneously of me feeling it! I don't need to cry to Him that I hurt, although I can't help but to do so, but I don't need to...He knows, He knows because He feels it. In a physiological sense, the brain knows the pain before the body part feels the pain. He knows my pain before I do. He knows and He cares. If He didn't care, He wouldn't have made Himself to be my Head in the first place.

I read from the other little book too, and it was about the suffering of the Lord Jesus for us and how great it was, greater than we can imagine, and how He didn't shirk from it, He didn't try to diminish it, but He willingly took that upon Himself because of His great love for us. Like the two little books tied with the black ribbon I use to bind them together, I put these two truths together in my mind. He knows my pain even before I do, and He can understand and care because He suffered for me more than anyone can ever imagine another person suffering. Whatever the source of my pain...is it physicial? He knows that pain. He was a perfect human enduring horrific torture. Is it mental? He knows that pain. He was the Creator of the Universe, humbling Himself to be misunderstood, lied about and betrayed. Is it emotional? He said in Gethesemane that He was "sorrowful even unto death" and yet He continued on because He knew He must die on the cross to secure our eternal salvation. There He suffered separation from His Father,whom He loved and from whom He had never been separated from all eternity. Whatever our pain, whatever our hurt...He knows, He cares, He has carried our burdens and born our griefs and He longs to do so again. Let us cast our cares on Him, for He cares for us!