Aramco 1/2 Marathon, Houston 2010!

There's something about a finish line that I just LOVE, especially on days like this!

Ready to roll!

We had such a great day. Wendy, our dear friend & neighbor, ran the FULL marathon.  She did great & and I loved part of her story, that at mile 18, she shook hands & was cheered on by none other than President George Bush, Sr.!  How cool is that???  Her boys, Conner & Hadyn, even got to run the last 1/4 mile in with her & cross that finish line with their mom - wow!  You know that's a memory they will never forget, what a special moment!

Just an early morning run with a few thousand of our good running buddies!

As we gathered in the early morning hours with literally thousands of other runners to run the Amaco Houston 1/2 Marathon, I thought, "wow, these people are as crazy as we are, and some much more!" (:  It was really fun to run into a number of other friends from our neighborhood & church who were gearing up to run too.  Saw & heard others we know in that great cheering along the way.  The weather was perfect, nice & cool in the pre-dawn hours, then the sun came out, but never got too hot. We pounded the pavement & felt strong for most all of the race, few aches & pains along the way, but nothing serious, thank the LORD!  My legs are most definitely reminding me today what they "endured" yesterday, ouch.

The Beginning...

 
Loved running with my favorite running buddy, in fact, love doing life with him too!  My husband kept the pace for us & encouraged me onward in my weak moments.  You know, it's quite the bonding moment to cross that finish mark hand in hand with the love of your life.  It's such a clear picture, that you can pace together, race together, thru the roughest of moments of life & and celebrate the victories as you cross each mile marker & ultimately, that great finish at the end!  And, as most of us know very well, when you've journeyed thru struggle & pain along the way, as tough as it is to endure it, the victories you share are ALWAYS more meaningful. 

The end...for now...until the next one. (:

Let's Do It!

One 1/2 marathon looming in the distance, one awesome husband who's willing to run it with me, one sweet sister who's taking care of our kiddos, one sore knee, one big dose of Motrin, one GREAT God who gives strength to the weary - O.K., ready or not, let's do this thing!!!

Thoughts From Jan. 4 - 11th Bible Readings, Job 1 - 31

Why do bad things happen to good people???
Thoughts on the book of Job:

O.K., I admit it, this is a tough book to swallow.  I mean, most all of the story of Job is about pain, suffering, hard things, not understanding where God is & what He's up to!  But there's so much to glean from these chapters along the way.  It certainly doesn't seem to offer any pat answers as to why bad things happen to good people & may actually leave MORE questions for us to ponder.  But it does ultimately challenge many of our "religious," sometimes even critical or judgmental type thoughts & easy answers for those who suffer in this life, which, last time I checked, seems to be almost all of us at one point or another in this world!
I love what Euguene Peterson writes in, "Job, Led by Suffering to the Heart of God," from the Message Bible, "Real faith cannot be reduced to spiritual bromides & merchandised in success stories.  It is refined in the fires and the storms of pain...When people go through suffering, their lives are often transformed, deepened, marked with beauty and holiness, in remarkable ways that could never have been anticipated before the suffering."  Definitely true for the life of Job, hopefully true for our lives as well.

Here's some thoughts, facts, ideas I thought were interesting as we read through Job these past few weeks...would love to hear what you've been thinking too!

Did you know that...

• Most scholars seem to agree that Job is the oldest book in the Bible written somewhere around 1500 BC.  The author is still unknown, but most believe the writer of Job was an Israelite, and the book's profound insights & literary structures make it a work of art as one of the biblical books of "wisdom literature."
• Job lived in the land of Uz (always reminds me of the land of Oz, as in Wizard of Oz, crazy I know), which many locate as part of Edom, Arabia, or Syria.
• Job lived a blameless, righteous life before God, even in the midst of all the temptations that go along with great wealth.  He also had incredible concern & protection over his children, he seemed to desire that they too follow in his footsteps of living uprightly before God.
• There is a real enemy in the world.  His name is Satan & though we cannot see the invisible forces that surround us in this world, the Bible states that he is like a "roaring lion, prowling around looking for someone to devour," 1 Peter 5:8.  Though we see this in the book of Job, we also clearly see that he is NOT all powerful & that God is ultimately in control of what Satan is "allowed" to do.
• It's so interesting that we often hear the cliche, "the patience of Job."  While Job may have indeed been a patient man in many ways, I think he also seems quite bold, protesting his sufferings even before God Himself!  He refused to accept "pat, easy" answers from his friends, he was passionate, he got angry, he had great feelings about what he endured!  He actually even called himself "impatient" in Chap. 21:4.  Maybe the more true cliche of Job's character, should be "the passion of Job."
• Job was greatly tested by losing 3 main things in life that most all of us hold dear, his fortune, his family, & his health.  That's HUGE!  Many of us may lose one of those things here & there throughout our lives, but all at one time?  Wow! 
• Some Bible scholars wonder if Job's illness was actually leprosy or maybe elephantitis, since he speaks of the "ashes" or ash heap which was generally located outside of a city for those who were determined "unclean."  Whatever it was, it brought much physical pain, mental anguish, and a lot of questions for God.
• Up to Chapter 32, the book of Job has told his story, and of the 3 debates between Job & 3 friends who came from a distance to "console" him.
• Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar were considered "wise men," and were friends of Job who obviously once held great respect for him.  That's noted in the fact that they were willing to travel such a great distance to be with him, they cried when they saw him, and they sat & mourned with him in silence for 7 days, wow!  The problem began when they opened their mouths...hmmm...THAT still seems to be a problem for many of us today. (:  They indeed seemed to fear God & said many things that may have been true, but they did NOT understand the full reason of why Job was suffering, even though they spoke as though they knew.  It was because God had allowed it, not because he had sinned.  They spoke with the assumption that Job must have done something to deserve this, that he needed to come clean, confess, repent, etc...  That same generality is often pressed upon many people today who face hard circumstances.  Sure, sometimes the hard trial we walk through is indeed because of our own bad decisions, our own sin issues or weaknesses, but sometimes it's for a purpose that we, nor those around us, can fully understand.  We simply do not see the big picture as God does.
• One big theme of Job seems to be this - TRUST.   Job is struggling with the fact that he must simply TRUST God when he can't understand & get all the answers he's looking for.  On the flip side of that, God trusted Job enough to allow this to happen to him for a greater purpose in our world.  In some ways it seems that God was willing to put His own "reputation on the line"when it came to Job, He greatly believed in Job's character & integrity, that's big!
• We must never have the perception that following God means all of our troubles will go away...sometimes, at certain periods of our lives, they actually seem to increase.  But we can be fully assured that God does not "waste" our suffering, He uses it to build greater character, wisdom, and purpose into & through our lives.  He truly is the ONLY One who is able to do that!
• So what can we see of God's character from this story that unfolded literally years ago?  Even today, He is still the God Who Is In Control, He is our Redeemer, He is Trustworthy, He is With Us in what we suffer in this world, He is our Creator, He Has the Big Picture in Mind, He Has All the Answers, He is All-Seeing, All-Knowing, He is Just, He is Wise, He is Powerful, He is our Savior.  Through this story, we are reminded that, amazingly, He is never intimidated by our questions of Him, especially when we feel He is silent, distant, or not responding as we'd like.  Through it all, He is forever Loving, Patient, and Gracious.

Let's see how the story ends...10 more chapters of Job to go!

Thoughts From Jan. 1st - 3rd Bible Readings, Genesis 1 - 11

In the Beginning...
Did You Know???

As we've started this journey of reading thru the Bible this year, here's just a few things I'm looking at with fresh eyes, questions to think about, interesting thoughts & facts.  It's certainly not an exhastive list, wow, there's just so much packed in every chapter!

Would love to hear what you're thinking as you read, or maybe what you're seeing for the first time.  Please be sure to share your comments, questions, or thoughts as you journey through the Word of God!

There's such depth, amazing richness, to the Bible, no matter how little or how much you've read before, there are ALWAYS new things to learn.  Praying that the Spirit of God will enlighten our hearts this year, like never before, as we dig into His truth.


Thoughts from the first few days, from Zondervan Bible study notes & a few internet searches -

• Although everything else in the world had a beginning, God has always "been."
• Days 1 - 3 were "forming" days, days 4 - 6 were "filling" days, and on day 7, God rested, not because He was "tired" but because His work was complete!
• The present day Garden of Eden is possibly somewhere near Iraq, and there is a belief among some scholars that the Garden of Eden presently lies under the waters of the Persian Gulf.  According to http://www.gotquestions.org/garden-of-Eden-location.html , "if oil is, as most scientists believe, primarily decayed vegetation and animal matter that has decomposed, then this is the area where we might expect the greatest deposits of the substance we call oil. Since the Garden was the epitome of perfection, it stands to reason that the decomposition of the earth’s most perfect and lush organic materials would produce vast stores of the earth’s best oil." Hmmm...
• God put Adam in the garden to care for it, to work, He gave him specific tasks to do, He never intended for us to be "idle" & without work, though many of us probably picture the garden that way.  Just the same, we may tend to picture heaven that way too, but I do believe God might have something for us to do there, using our abilities & gifts to bring honor to him.
• Remains of Noah's ark were actually found in present day Turkey / Armenia areas in the mountains of Ararat, according to http://www.noahsarksearch.com/ararat.htm .  The flood really did happen, it's not just a cute preschool story, it's an amazing event in our world's history!
• The flood waters rose to 20 feet OVER the tallest mountains of the earth.  Wow, that's a lot of water!
• Noah & his family spent about 1 yr. exactly living on the ark, um, whew!
• Bible scholars are still not in agreement with just who the Nephilim were, Gen. 6:4, but it is a very interesting google search.
• The descendants of Ham, Noah's youngest son, included many long term enemies to Israel from the land of Canaan, and although many have read the curse of Ham to include former slavery, the truth is that Canaanites historically were of Caucasian descent (as shown by ancient paintings discovered in Egypt).
• Noah's judgment of Ham might seem rather harsh at first, but he was at fault for "broadcasting" rather than "covering" his father's immodesty.  Shem & Japheth were given a blessing for covering Noah & not disgracing their father.
• Ever wonder how people inhabited the entire earth, how they got there?  The Tower of Babel story specifically says that "God scattered them around the world."  Just how did specific people groups arrive to every continent around the world???
• I see so much about the character of God in just these first few chapters of the Bible, He is truly amazing - Perfect Creator, Skilled Artist, Breath of Life, The Beginning, Light Giver, Resting Place, Holy God, Provider for all our needs, Just, Righteous, One who seeks to have fellowship with us, Promise Keeper, Giver of all good things, Safe Place in the storm, One who blesses His people. 

Wow, that's just the first few chapters...there's so much to know about Him...let's keep on reading!

Time to Move Forward

Happy New Year 2010!!!

"Forget the former things, do not dwell on the past.  See, I am doing a new thing!  Now it springs up, do you not perceive it?  I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland." 

Isaiah 43:18-19

I love these verses, especially for the New Year - they seem to shout off the page - MOVE ON, move forward, get going, forget the past, don't stay stuck there, there's more ahead!  The Message Bible says it so clearly, "Forget about what's happened, don't keep going over old history.  Be alert, be present.  I'm about to do something brand-new." 

One thing I see so often about God in His Word is this, He's the God of fresh starts.  He's the God who loves to make things "new."  He's the God of redemption, the God of grace, the God of forgiveness, the God who doesn't repay us what we deserve from our mistakes, but instead, is able to use all of the difficult circumstances we've experienced thru life for a greater purpose, a greater good. 

Don't believe me?  Reflect on the many characters of the Bible who, like us, were far from perfect.  Many had made some pretty bad choices in life, but they also had one thing in common, they were able to move "past their past" and keep going on their journey with God.  Just think about some -David...Moses...Jacob...Paul...Peter...Rahab...the list goes on...yep, there were some poor choices alright, murder, adultery, betrayal, among others.

So, if you're still stuck in the past, beating yourself up for previous mistakes, come on, do what His word says, "forget about it already!"  It doesn't mean that all the pain from poor decisions will automatically disappear unfortunately, it does mean that Jesus Christ is able to offer forgiveness & to cleanse us from ANYTHING we've done.  He will wipe the slate clean, offer healing from the past, give power to set us free, and bring new life & hope for the future!

If you haven't yet, take the opportunity this New Year 2010 to talk to God.  Let Him know that you are ready for a fresh start in your own life.  He is with you, He is for you!  There's more ahead...keep moving!