Blog Anniversary!

Well, it has been a year since I started writing Light Thoughts- Light Thoughts from the WORD that Lights my Path.  I must say, I am quite proud of myself for sticking with this project throughout 2011. 

If you recall from my first segment, I was concerned about my writing style and the conflicting comments from Journalism and Composition teachers in the past. I have seen my writing sway back and forth from the simple to the descriptive throughout the two main series on which I have centered. Actually, I have noticed when I am getting too simple and when I veer to the fun style. I have enjoyed the fun, frilly moments and miss it when it doesn’t seem to fit with topic.

I really enjoyed the research that went into the Mary/Martha Saga. That one really impacted my philosophy of ministry. It has been such a relief to discover I don’t have to ‘do it like everyone else’ to be effective. I trust discovering the differences in Mary and Martha has encouraged you in your seemingly weak areas as well.

As we moved to Colossians for Christie, it was my goal that this basic study of Colossians 3 would motivate you in your Christian growth. Using the wardrobe theme was fun! 

I trust the continued study of Colossians, as well as future series, will continue to be a blessing, a motivation, and an encouragement in your Christian walk.

I’m looking forward to another year of sharing Light Thoughts with you!

 

MAY YOU HAVE A HAPPY AND BLESSED NEW YEAR! 

Debbie

MERRY CHRISTMAS

 FOR UNTO YOU IS BORN THIS DAY IN THE CITY OF DAVID, A SAVIOR WHO IS CHRIST THE LORD.
Luke 2:11

Merry Christmas~Love, Debbie (and Greg)

 

Part Two: Here we Come!

As we move into Part 2 of our “Colossians for Christie” study of Colossians chapter 3, we recall that this section of Colossians provides excellent material and direction for a discipleship study for  new believers.

Discipleship is just that~Biblical guidance for a new believer. It answers the questions posed by my “Christie” and new believers everywhere~~ “-Now what?”

Colossians 3:1-4 (picking up on the theology –theory- of salvation taught throughout chapter 2) reviews just what salvation is all about. Believers have been raised with Christ (It is the power of the resurrection that actually allows for salvation) and have been hidden (positioned) with Christ. Therefore, believers should now set their hearts and minds on the things of Christ. A change has taken place in the believer’s life, now a change must take place in her lifestyle. That is the first concept that the new believer must understand.

So, new believer, now that you have become a new person in Christ, there are things in your life that must become new as well. As a new person, your attitude, outlook, philosophy, and your actions must become new. A new you means…a new you.

The purpose of verses 5-14 is to provide direction as to what these changes entail in order to develop this new you. Paul provides specific guidelines and commands as to what you must now do to bring about these changes.

Verses 15-17 provide the encouragement and motivation that reminds you of the resources you have in Christ so that you CAN make those changes and become the new you.

The lessons of verses 1-17 are not gender/age/status/culture specific (see verse 8) and can be used in discipleship for both male and female.  However, since Paul used the word picture of putting off and putting on, I have written this with a closet/wardrobe/accessory theme. Therefore we can say that Part One of “Colossians for Christie” was written as discipleship teaching for adult women who have recently come to Christ as young (older) adults. It was written to encourage these new believers to clean out their old stale and musty 'closets' and start afresh!

However, Chapter 3 is not finished. Paul has not completed his discipleship training for the new Colossian believers just yet.

Verses 5-17 may have been written to encourage all new believers to make those lifestyle changes that come with one’s new life in Christ. However, Paul becomes more specific as he concludes this discipleship section through Colossians 4:6. He emphasizes that there are also changes to be made within the family and in the workplace.

Thus, ladies, we cannot conclude “Colossians for Christie” without taking some time to consider the teaching of 3:18.

There is a lot of controversy and negative connotation in today’s society when it comes to this verse. However, I think if we take the time to look into what submission REALLY means and determine what it DOESN’T mean, we can allow this section to become part of the ‘new you’ as well.

I have already done a lot of study on this topic, and I am excited to share what I have discovered. Ladies, I guarantee you, although it may seem difficult to grasp, it will be exciting!

Hang on!

Debbie
(Entries from Part One can be seen in the archives section.)

A Final Motivation

In my last entry, we discussed how important thankfulness was as a motivation for wearing our Colossians 3 outfits.

Well, as we come to the end of the first section of "Colossians for Christie" from Colossians chapter 3, I would like to wrap it up with Wiersbe’s concluding paragraph to this chapter in his book, Be Complete. He, too, emphasizes the motivation behind our choices.

                “Since we are united with Christ through the indwelling Holy Spirit, we have all the resources we need for holy living. But we must be spiritually motivated. Because we have experienced the grace of Christ, we want to live for Him. Because we have enjoyed the peace of Christ, we want to obey Him. We have been enriched by the Word of Christ, and ennobled by the name of Christ; therefore, we want to honor and glorify Him.” He then asks, “Can we desire any higher motivation?

Now, please allow me to go back through that quote and add some side notes that will hopefully continue to encourage each of you as to the importance of a clean, fresh ‘closet’! 

FACT: 'Since we are united with Christ through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, we have all the resources we need for holy living.'

FAILURE: But we still blow it!

FACE THE FACTS: Again, we have ALL the resources we need for holy living. 'We have been enriched by the Word of God, ennobled (been made noble in God’s sight) by the name of Christ', therefore we have no excuses!

FIELD TRIP: We have experienced the Grace of Christ. Think on that one for a while. I challenge you to think back on your life and consider how has the Grace of Christ has blessed and comforted throughout your life?

“Can we desire any higher motivation?”

Let’s add one more piece of alliteration:

FREE GIFT: If you cannot claim the statements above as a part of your life~this Grace CAN be yours as well, as a free gift from the Creator of the Universe. Scripture teaches in Romans 3:23 that we all have sinned and fallen short of God’s glory, or standard. Romans 6:23 teaches that the wages, or punishment for our sinful condition is death. BUT, Romans 5:8 teaches that even when we were yet sinners (in our most sinful state), Christ died for us. He took that punishment we all deserved. 

God just asks one thing: That we trust His Word, and call upon the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, for forgiveness and Salvation. 

Romans 10:13 says, “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."

That grace and those resources that enable believers to live a life of graciousness and peace can be yours as well.

For the rest of us, remember, although some of those new outfits may seem difficult to put on~with the God’s grace, Christ’s peace, the Word’s direction, and the Holy Spirit’s guidance we can wear each of our new outfits gracefully. I encourage you to take a moment and reread Colossians 3:1-17.

Stay tuned for Part Two~if you are brave enough!

Debbie

Placemats and Deviled Eggs!

I think I need to take a detour from Colossians 3 for a week and share my 'Mary Melt-Down' from Thanksgiving Day. If you recall from my Mary/Martha Saga series (January-May in archives) I had always considered myself a Mary who felt guilty for not being a Martha. Well, I thought I had that licked after my concentrated study of the two sisters in Luke 10 and John 11. If you recall, we determined that both “Marys” and “Marthas” have their own unique strengths and weaknesses. We discussed the importance of both types working together for the cause of Christ. Marthas have their influence and Marys have theirs.

Well, sure enough, my lack of Marthaness overwhelmed me Thursday as I prepared for our Thanksgiving meal with my son and daughter-in-law. I was so excited to be preparing the meal for the first time in 3-4 years, and as you can imagine, I was stressing to make sure things would be ‘just right’!

GRRrr #1: I was so proud of myself for planning and organizing a Wednesday start to preparations. I planned and thought through what could get done on Wednesday-a very Martha-ish process I might add. One of those details was boiling the eggs for deviled eggs. But, Thursday, when I started fixing them, I realized that that probably wasn’t a wise move, as the shells stuck and the outer egg was all messed up on all but two. So, frustratingly, I had to boil a new set of eggs.

GRRrr #2: When I got ready to set the table I couldn’t find the green placemats that matched my CLOTH (I had to use my cloth one!) rooster tablecloth. I was getting frustrated, and Greg couldn’t figure out why it was such a big deal! I WANTED IT TO LOOK AND BE NICE! I thought it had to be nice-after all, it was Thanksgiving-aren’t things supposed to be nice for Thanksgiving?  (I am sure all the Marthas are shaking their heads ‘yes’.) So, begrudgingly, I set the table with my nice rooster dishes without pretty green placemats.

GRRrr #3: Back to the eggs—They turned out nice-Yeah!  I set them in the frig for just a little while as we finished last minute preparations.  As I reached in to grab the can of cranberry sauce (while my dear, sweet daughter-in-law stood behind me) I knocked over the eggs. Only 3-4 were savable! I stood there and cried! 

Christie couldn’t figure out why I was taking it so hard because just a few minutes earlier we were having a laugh about Jimmy dumping a pumpkin pie as he took it from the oven. Guys must not have those moments because he was laughing with us and sharing how they scooped it up and had pumpkin pie pudding! Back to the eggs, though… I hugged her and told her I had just wanted to make everything ‘nice’. How many of you are relating to this right now??

The problem with those GRRrr moments is that my warped definition of ‘nice’ doesn't compare to the love Jim and Christie have for us and we for them! The fact that our family was together on that special day was the ‘nicest’ thing of all. The fact that my life can be an influence on this young couple and their family is far greater than placemats and deviled eggs!

I think maybe I should go back and reread that series and let it serve as a reminder of our true purpose. I used Colossians 3:17 throughout the "Mary/Martha" series, as well as recently in my "Colossians for Christie" series: 

And whatsoever you do, in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

I really don’t think our Lord is overly concerned about placemats and deviled eggs!

I trust you learned the lesson better than I did!

I love you, Christie—I trust Thanksgiving Dinner was special! We are so glad to have you as part of our family-both our physical and our spiritual family!

Momma Debbie

When Thanksgiving becomes our Motivation

As we have gone through Colossians 3:15-17 over the past through entries, you may have noticed that I left out one phrase from each verse. Well, today~appropriately enough, we will go back and pick up on those phrases.

In verse 15, the phrase is “…and be thankful.”

In verse 16, “…with gratitude in your hearts to God…”

In verse 17, it is “…giving thanks to God the Father through Him (the name of the Lord Jesus Christ).”

As you recall, these three verses are an admonition for us the keep our heart’s closet clean and fresh by relying on the peace of Christ and the Word of God. We are told to keep in mind that everything we do and say should be for the honor and glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. Each one includes an element of thanksgiving.

Why do you think God led Paul to include the idea of thanksgiving three times in that paragraph? Well, take a moment to go back and reread Colossians 3:1-4~better yet, go ahead and skim through chapter 2  as well. Do you see where these young Colossians believers had come from, and where they would have been, apart from receiving their new life in Christ? Can you think back to where you came from, or could have been, before receiving your new life in Christ? Are you saying, “WOW!”?

That is exactly why Paul reminds us three times in one short paragraph to stop, think, and BE THANKFUL for our new life that has been raised with Christ, that has set our hearts and minds on Godly things from above, and has provided the hope that we will appear with Christ in glory (verses 1-4)! Stop and think for a moment~How awesome is all that!

When we truly have joyful, thankful hearts and choose to express our gratitude to God for His goodness and salvation, we are (sure should be) motivated to change out our heart’s closet (verses 5-9) and proudly, yet humbly, wear the new wardrobe God has for us in verses 12-14.

Thankfulness and gratitude become our motivation!

Let’s look for a moment at the progression of thanksgiving found in verses 15-17.

First, in verse 15, Paul admonishes us to “be thankful”. We must have an attitude of thankfulness. We must recognize the need to be thankful and think about it daily. Remember verses 1-4?

Second, verse 16 encourages us to sing with gratitude in our hearts. This thankful attitude becomes so much a part of us that it spills out of our hearts in the songs that we sing as we go about our day.

Then, in verse 17 Paul frankly commands us to give thanks to God the Father. It is important that we pause and verbally offer our thanks to God in prayer for all He allows us to do and say. (And, as a side note, if we can’t be thankful for it~maybe we shouldn’t be doing it or saying it???-just a thought!)

Here is a final thought to test your attitude of gratitude:

“An attitude of gratitude contributes to an enjoyment of spiritual tranquility, whereas grumbling makes for inner agitation.” (The Bible Knowledge Commentary)

How are your ‘innerds’ today?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Debbie

Whatever You Do!

Several weeks ago, when I posted my most recent study from Colossians chapter 3, I referred to two directives that allow us to keep our heart’s closet clean and fresh.

1. Allow the Peace of Christ to rule (be the final judge-as an umpire) in our heart-vs. 15

2  Allow the Word of God to dwell (take up residence) richly in our heart-vs. 16

If we choose to allow the Peace of Christ and the Word of God to control the thoughts and responses of our heart, then we can keep our heart’s closet clean and fresh. We can throw out the old, filthy ‘clothes’ of our past live (vss. 5-9). We can wear the ‘outfits’ of compassion, kindness, and humility (vs. 12). We can wear the dress of meekness (vs. 12).  We can put on the suit of longsuffering (patience) and the sweater of forgiveness (vs.13). And, we can accessorize it all with love (vs.14). (See archives for these past posts.)

Now, Paul encourages his readers to stop and think one more time about the importance of one’s attitude as we continue to grow in our Christian life. He wraps it all up in verse 17 by admonishing the young Colossian believers that WHATEVER they do in WORD or DEED (life actions) to do ALL in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ…

These same words hold true for believers today. WHATEVER we do—there is no separation between our Sunday life and our Monday-Saturday life. WHATEVER we do! WHATEVER we say! It should all be done in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Our actions, our words should represent Christ.  The editors of the Expositor’s Bible Commentary state that everything we do should be done as followers of God; as His representatives.

Stop and think for a moment about when you are wearing a polo shirt with your business, school, or church printed on the front. Are you a little more careful about what you say or do? Are you a little more careful about how you respond to a situation? What about when you are driving the company car?

 How much more careful should we be when we consider that we are representing the One who brought us new life in Christ (vs. 1-4)? 

Yes, Paul summarized this section very well in this one short verse that many of us have memorized. 

It is important that we remember where we have come from and what we have in Christ. It is important that we wear our new ‘clothes’ proudly and faithfully-

                    WHATEVER,

                     WHENEVER,

                             WHEREVER!

In word or deed…

Debbie

 (I am saving the gratitude sections from verses 15-17 for next week!)