Owsleys in Brazil Blog

Are Your Obsessions Magnificent Enough?

Tullian Tchividjian, pastor of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, was interviewed in a recent World magazine.  He talked about the years he spent in rebellion to the Lord and how he eventually returned to faith in Christ. 

Tullian shared that it was hard to turn away from his wild life until, “I saw that God doesn't take away your excitement. He changes what you get excited about." His passion for living for himself was changed into the joy of living for Jesus.

Through the years I’ve seen the Lord change my passions.  Some things have just become less interesting as I’ve matured in my Christian faith.  Some passions have been redirected and others have been sharpened.   

As a Christian I’ve always known the importance of reading God’s word, but it wasn’t until I reached a crisis experience in my missionary life that the Lord transformed my half-hearted zeal into godly enthusiasm.  EVERYTHING was going wrong (it seemed) during our first few years in Cuiabá.  I begged the Lord to change our circumstances or get us out of there.

Instead He had me join a Bible study with our pastor’s wife.  It was an in-depth study that required lots of extra work.  And the more I dug, the more the wells of living water sprang up into my soul.  It was a precious time of falling in love with God’s word.

Two weeks ago I attended an inductive Bible study conference in Ohio.  We studied the Bible for eight hours on Friday and eight hours on Saturday AND IT WAS FUN.  Praise the Lord for how He reorders our passions!

 

Nerdy or Nice?

On my way to a Fourth of July parade I met an old friend.  She told me that her husband and sons were going to be in the parade.  Sheepishly, she confessed that they would be throwing candy from a wagon while a dozen dads followed behind with their push lawnmowers.  “I wonder if it’s okay to encourage my kids to be nerdy,” she said.  I’ve thought about her words a lot.

The week before I attended Quizzing Nationals in Spring Arbor.  I was impressed with the teenagers who had immersed themselves in scripture and could rattle off Bible verses with ease.   All the hours they spent memorizing God’s word meant they had less hours to watch the latest TV shows or memorize the latest songs, which opened them up to the possibility of being labeled “nerdy” by the world’s standards.

In our culture, “nerdiness” is a disease to be avoided at all costs.  Instead, we are encouraged to fit in by buying the same cars, the same-size houses, and the same name brand clothing as everyone else.  Coolness can be achieved by reading the latest novels, cheering for the hottest sports teams, and copying the lifestyles of Hollywood couples.  Heaven forbid that we should be nerdy enough to make our own choices!

The dictionary defines nerd as, “a person who is single-minded or accomplished in scientific or technical pursuits but is felt to be socially inept.” In answer to my friend’s question, I say, “Yes, please encourage your kids to be nerdy.  En-courage them to make choices based on their own values and to avoid being squeezed into the world’s mold.”  Lord willing, they’ll be strong enough to ignore the world’s sneers while single-mindedly following Jesus with all their hearts.

 

 

 

 

 

"Neat Freak" or Jesus Girl?

As a college co-ed I was convinced I could never be a pastor’s wife because I could not sing or play the piano.  My heart longing was to be involved in ministry, but I thought I had nothing to offer to the Lord.  I remember praying, “Lord, You know what my strengths are. Please use them.”

Through the years He has shown me many ways to serve Him, but one of those ways isn’t on the traditional “gifts” lists.  I cleaned other people’s houses all through college and seminary as a means of earning spending money, never dreaming it was one of my talents.  Later I realized that I love to bring order out of chaos; it’s how the Lord has hardwired me.  Oddly, people like me are labeled, “neat freak” or “obsessive compulsive”, but that label fits only when I misuse that gift to be controlling.  Rightly used, it can be a blessing.

Last week a friend asked me to travel with her to northern Michigan to help prepare her house for sale.  It was pure joy to scrub bathrooms, re-arrange furniture, pack up boxes, and de-clutter.  I can hardly take pride in this since it’s the way God has made me, but I can certainly rejoice that He uses less traditional gifts.   No, I don’t play or sing, but I can give the Lord my loaves and fishes and watch in wonder as He turns them into so much more.

 

Surfing Lessons

 

Psalm 69:1-3 reads, Save me, O God!  For the waters have come up to my neck.  I sink in deep mire, where there is no foothold; I have come into deep waters, and the flood sweeps over me.  I am weary with crying out.

Often the storms of live threaten to overwhelm us.  Earlier this year I was encouraged by the words of Oswald Chambers when he wrote, “Huge waves that would frighten an ordinary swimmer produce a tremendous thrill for the surfer who has ridden them…  A saint doesn’t know the joy of the Lord in spite of tribulation, but because of it.”

We have been hit by many waves during these past two years.  Like timid swimmers, we dreaded each onslaught, but the Lord has been so patiently teaching us to “surf.”  Along the way we’ve learned the thrill of what it means to truly trust Him.  The latest piece of hard news didn’t knock us flat because we finally got it through our thick heads that Jesus can get us through ANYTHING.   It’s a joy to rely completely on Him and to watch and see how He’ll help us ride on the crest of this newest challenge.   

 

Stop Minding Your Own Business!

Pastor Mark Van Valin often says that our personal stories only make sense in the context of a much bigger story.  I caught a hint of that while watching The Christmas Carol last week.  When the ghost of Scrooge’s old partner appears, he is heavily chained.  As he explains that he is being punished for past sins, Scrooge interrupts, “But, Marley, you were a good business man!” And Marley snaps back, “But my business should have been MANKIND!” 

I heard about a woman living in Southern Brazil whose neighborhood was plagued by robberies.   Her own house had been broken into several times and she was fed up and anxious to leave.    The Lord began to change her heart and instead of moving, she invited poor children into her home for afternoon activities.  She helped them with their school work and fed them.  As she switched her focus from her own well-being to caring about the needs of others, the robberies stopped.  Her reputation as someone who loved the neighborhood kids influenced the local thugs so that they not only stopped robbing her, they prevented others from doing so!

She made mankind her business and found a new purpose.  Her story was transformed in the context of God’s story.  May the Lord keep us from being so focused on our own lives that we miss the bigger picture.

 

Risky Christianity

We visited many wonderful family camps this summer.  In every camp we were welcomed warmly.  Still, we couldn't help but compare them.  Some were small and rustic.  Others were large and full of amenities.

One camp had a "no dogs allowed" sign.  Our friend explained that it was because of liability. Later that same friend pointed out a flat, cleared area where the camp had planned to put in a pond.  The idea had been discarded to avoid liability.  As I wondered what other risky activities would soon be prohibited, I looked up to see half a dozen children climbing a tree. (Thank goodness they hadn't cut down the trees yet!)

I understand the need to play it safe in our litigious culture, but could we be going too far?  Have we put such a premium on physical and financial safety that we no longer take any risks? The Bible makes it very clear that following Jesus is a risky undertaking.  Matthew 10 lists a few of the possible consequences of saying "yes" to Him:  (1) You WILL be handed over to the courts. 2) You WILL be scourged.  3) You WILL have family members turn against you. 4) and you WILL be hated.

No one asked, "Who will be responsible if I get hurt?" They just followed!  May we love and trust Jesus to the extent that we let go of our self-protective tendencies.  He alone is worth the risk!

How Are Your Vital Signs?

I recently visited a friend from high school.  While catching up on family news she told me that her grandpa was “actively dying”.  She must have noticed my confusion because she went on to explain, “It means that each of his organs is slowly beginning to shut down.”

The phrase seemed intriguingly Christian:  “Whoever will lose his life for my sake will find it” (Matt 16), and “Except a grain of wheat fall into the ground and die…” (Jn 12) are just a few of the New Testament passages related to dying to self.  Yet, we tend to think of death as a one-time activity, a final act of surrender.  What might it mean to actively die as a Christian?  I think we have learned a little about it during this year of transition from Brazil. 

“Lord, do you mean we really can’t return as soon as we’d hoped?”  Trust Me.

 “Lord, Nathan wanted so much to graduate from PACA.  What now?”  I’ll take care of him.

“Lord, we feel rudderless without being involved in active ministry.  What do we do?”  Leave it to Me.

 “Lord, the healing process is so slow.  Do you hear our prayers?”  Trust Me absolutely.

As we’ve surrendered each of these dilemmas to the Lord, you could say we have been actively dying to our own wishes and plans.  But, of course, instead of feeling “dead” we are more alive to God than ever.  It’s one of the beautiful ironies of our faith.  The more we let go, the more we have.  As E. Stanley Jones wrote, “Sometimes we must lose everything to gain Everything.” 

Sweating the Small Stuff

    We just moved from one rental house to another.  Putting our clothes and books away was easy.  Arranging the furniture was a cinch.  What I’m finding insurmountable are the small things that need to be put away.  Piles of papers are on the office floor.  Boxes of Brazil paraphernalia litter our dining room.  Curtains I won’t be using are stacked on the kitchen counter.  In my day-to-day priorities these little piles are at the bottom of the list.  Yet their presence is weighing my spirit down.

    Dr. David Seamands used to preach about “Your Little Half Hours”.  He said it’s not what you do with your large chunks of time but what you do with the small amounts that shows your true character.  In our spiritual lives it’s the little things that get us off track.  That little grudge that we let grow.  That little sin we excuse.  That extra half hour of sleep that keeps us from spending time in prayer. 

    Someone once told me that if you want to get your new house organized in a hurry, invite someone over for dinner (which explains why we are having the church youth group over tonight.)  Just as I’m praying, Lord, help me to eliminate these last messes, I’m also asking Him to make sure my heart is not cluttered with any small things that keeps me from being wholly His.  

Earthen Vessels

It’s been a while since I’ve blogged my thoughts because it’s hard to write about ministry issues when we are away from our beloved Brazil.  Our lives seem to be temporarily “on hold” and we wonder at times how God can use us in our weakness and frailty.  It was an encouragement to read these words from Chuck Colsen recently: 

As I sat back on the platform, waiting my turn at the pulpit, my mind began to drift back in time…to scholarships and honors earned, cases argued and won, great decisions made from lofty government offices.  My life had been the perfect success story, the great American dream fulfilled.  But all at once I realized that it was not my success God had used to enable me to help those in this prison, or in hundreds of others just like it.  All my achievements meant nothing in God’s economy.  No, the real legacy of my life was my biggest failure – that I was an ex-convict.  My greatest humiliation – being sent to prison – was the beginning of God’s greatest use of my life.  He chose the one experience in which I could not glory for His glory. (From Loving God, p. 24)

Well, we aren’t exactly ex-convicts, but I think you get the idea.  “But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.” (II Cor 4:8)  May Christ be glorified in our lives no matter what the circumstances.

Extravagant Worship

It is a huge pleasure to be able to participate in the life of the student body at SAU through my class and small group Bible study.  Another inroad has been via the university’s chapel services.  Every Monday I rush over to the church after class so I can find a seat before all the students begin packing the place out.  I enjoy the enthusiasm of the students as they enter and the anticipation o f a dynamic service.

The chapel band is composed of an extremely talented group of students who are a joy to observe.  The drummer plays with a look of glory on his face.  The violinist is so at one with his instrument that it seems to be an additional appendage to his body.  The guitarist, in his exuberance, often jumps a foot in the air as he plays. (I’m not sure how he does this!)   Some-times I get such delight out of watching the band that I forget I’m there to worship Jesus.  Then I close my eyes and change my focus. 

While I don’t want to give glory to the band that is due to the Lord, I imagine He is pleased to receive their gift of uninhibited worship.  This is one instance when a teacher can learn from her students.  May I worship Him with reckless abandon.