Hurricanes and Healing

I once read that a family crisis can be like a hurricane. Sometimes the winds blow and the rain beats down and then it all blows over. But sometimes the wind and rain ravage everything and leave only a path of destruction behind. We've seen some pictures of that kind of destruction this week in Texas.

Recovery from this hurricane damage, we are told, is going to be a marathon not a sprint. It's the same with recovery from family crisis. The main difference is that the scars are invisible -- on the inside of each family member's heart.

And just as with a hurricane, after a family has suffered through domestic violence, death, or divorce there are the desperate immediate needs, but then months and years later there is still need for healing.

If you have gone through a crisis that split your family, be gentle with yourself, and remember the self-care that will be needed emotionally and spiritually in times to come. It's a marathon, but you can do this!

And if you have friends who have experienced family devastation, like a hurricane, check in with them from time to time to see how their healing process is going. <3 span="">

Make God Look Good!

Christian, have you ever wondered what you can do to see that God gets credit more often?  What can you and I actually do in order to glorify God?  I asked this question recently after an unusual dream. Here are some ideas.

• Don’t be afraid to tell people about your good works.  Jesus said, “Let your light shine,” which means don’t do good things and then keep them hidden out of false humility.  But the purpose is not about boasting.  No, we have to tell the story in such a way that God gets the credit.  That means we have to “connect the dots” for them as we tell it.  

We have to tell a story that shows both our need and God’s supply.  For instance, I have started volunteer work at a hospital by making crocheted baby blankets for new moms.  If that is all I tell people, it sounds like I am boasting – I must do this because I am such a good person!  But the reality is, I took up crochet at a time when my life had hit rock bottom and I couldn’t work.  It gave me an outlet so that I felt less useless.  Then God answered the prayers of many people and healed me.  Now I can become a “Blankets of Love” hospital volunteer. 

• Don’t be afraid to share your own weaknesses in the process of telling the story.  Sometimes Christians think that in order to glorify God they have to appear strong.  In fact, the opposite is true.  As in my example of the crochet ministry, if we let people see our area of need and how God provided for us anyway, we give them hope that he might do the same for them.

• Finally, don’t be afraid to pray specifically and then tell the story of what happened later in that situation.  Many people pray very general  prayers, thinking that this gives God sovereign leeway to do “whatever” is his will in the situation.  But that is not the way Jesus taught prayer.  It’s true that he did teach us to pray “your kingdom come, your will be done,” but he also prayed that a fig tree would wither up, that a deaf person’s ears would hear, that a blind person’s eyes would see, that a lame person would get up and walk, etc.   

How does specific prayer give God the glory?  People tend to take notice when a “coincidence” occurs. 

For example, if you ask God to heal someone quickly after surgery and then the doctor tells them they have healed very quickly, is that a coincidence?  Perhaps.  People will draw their own conclusions about it, but the closer the similarity between the request and the result, the more credit goes to God and not to coincidence. 

And if you pray for what is humanly impossible, for instance that the person heal without the need for the surgery, and the doctor later tells them, “I have no idea what happened – the tumor was there on the first Xray but now it is gone” – then everyone will experience a mystery.  

Human beings love a mystery.  Something in our nature seeks for an answer to it.  And the answer to the mystery is God.

Live life to glorify God.

The Best Way to Live

I had an unusual dream.  Actually, it was like a conversation. 

 Me:     “What is the best way to live?

Answer:           “Live to glorify God.”  These words glowed like a bright cloud.  

Me:      “I don’t know how to actually do that.”  

Answer:           “Whoever offers praise glorifies me.”  “Let your light so shine before men that they see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”

Me:    “What causes people to give God the glory or credit?”

Answer:           When a circumstance is unusual or unlikely, when something is serendipitous or coincidental, or if something happens that is technically impossible.

So then I woke up.  And here was my first waking thought:

"Unusual, unlikely, serendipitous, coincidental or impossible events make people think about God."

And now I have a question for you:

“Who was answering my questions?”