Verses like these...

...make me sit up and take notice.

Ever had those moments when you're sitting down relaxed, reading through the Bible and read something that makes you snap right out of relax mode? Revelations 21:8 did that to me recently. The verse says "But the cowardly, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practise the magic arts, the idolators and all liars - their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulphur. This is the second death". Another version says "But the fearful, the unbelieving and the abominable....".

I was surprised that the Bible lists the fearful and the cowards along with murderers and the immoral, sorcerers and idolators. Surely being a bit fearful, or not so brave is just a personality trait, not a sin? God doesn't seem to think so. I guess He has His reasons. He has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love and a sound mind. That could be one of the reasons. Fear is also the opposite of faith. And we cannot love God and lack faith. A lack of faith hinders God. Fear is like a barrier we put up to prevent God from working in our lives. The Bible gives instances where Jesus was unable to do miraculous things because of the lack of faith of the people.

Aren't there times that we forget the many hurdles God has carried us over and the many doors He has opened and fear for the future? Will and I are guilty of that too. It has taken a lot of miracles for us to be living in the same city, married. Oh wait, it was a miracle we even met. God provided in the most unusual way! And here we sit, fretting about how we will sell our home next summer to move to our new location. I'm grateful for verses like these that help me snap out of my unbelief and get back on track with trusting in God's power.

Lessons from the Dance Floor

Some of you know that I have been taking ballroom dancing lessons with my husband! For those of you who know him well, this might come as quite a shock. Yes, this is the same boy that would refuse to dance and said he hated dancing AND bought us a package of dance lessons. He really seems to enjoy it too! So far I have stepped on his toes twice and he has not returned the favor.

Our first lesson we were taught the "basic principles of leading and following". With subtle pressure applied to my palm and back, Will was taught to steer me around the room while I had my eyes closed. The lesson isn't called "magic" for nothing. I found myself responding without hesitation and dancing was suddenly so easy. A few minutes into it though I began to watch for patterns. We made two "boxes" moving backwards and one "box" moving right, I bet we're going to move right again. I began to guess and anticipate the next move resulting in fumbling feet and our instructor's intervention. I also struggled with trying to stop executing my own plans. "Let's go this way", I'd urge, trying to apply similar pressure on Will's palm. Or "Come on Will, I loosened my grip on your palm. You know what that means, spin me around!". Soon I learnt that was futile and had calamitous results. I have concluded that things work best when I have my eyes closed. Then we're moving around the room easily, there are some promenades and some spins and complete trust.

Isn't that the case with faith sometimes? I struggle often with trying to find out what God is doing, trying to find patterns, trying to steer Him and telling Him in prayer what I'd like Him to do next. And then there are times I give up and quiet myself and close my eyes and suddenly life's dance is so much smoother.