Dogwood Digest Icon
In This Issue
Sharing in the Struggle
From My Blog Archives: It's Not About the Messenger
Study in Colossians
Forward to a Friend
 
Join our list
Join Our Mailing List
September 16, 2008
Dear Friends:julie2
 
There are times we are tempted to be less than honest about our walk with God. What would people think if they knew the real us, the person inside that no one can see? So we paste on a false face and work to hide the ugliness within. This week we will look at the value in making ourselves vulnerable to those around us. We need to understand that the message is not made valuable by its messenger. The value is in the message we seek to carry.
 
The summer Colossians study is complete. It will remain archived on my blogspot for quite some time! Check out the opportunity at the bottom of this newsletter to work your way through this book with me in twenty-three days!
 
Also note the archive now available which links to past Dogwood Digest editions, located in the left hand margin.
 
Have a great week!
 
Love, Julie
Sharing in the Struggle
 
Being engaged is a stressful period for anyone. At least that was the case for me and my man, Steve. As our wedding day approached, I began to struggle with doubt. Was I really ready to promise forever?
 
We were traveling to CT about a month before the wedding and stopped off for an overnight with friends. The wife of this happily married couple asked how things were between me and Steve. Confessing to my frequent periods of doubt, I confided, "You know, how you see things about the other person and say, 'Do I want to live the rest of my life with that?'"
 
She shook her head, puzzled. "No," she sincerely replied. "I never had one doubt." Her response shook me more than I cared to admit. Was this a sign that we were making a big mistake? Not knowing what was normal in a healthy engagement, I was afraid that maybe my struggle indicated our incompatibility. So over the next few weeks, I talked with other young couples who were already successfully navigating the waters of marriage. I found to my relief that doubts were a very normal part of the engagement experience.
 
One of my favorite passages in the Bible is when Paul shares his struggle in living for Christ. "There was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me-- to keep me from exalting myself! Concerning this I implored the Lord three times that it might leave me. And He has said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.' Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me." (2 Corinthians 12:7-9)
 
The older and wiser I get, the more I understand my own inadequacy for ministry. My weaknesses and shortcomings often threaten to overwhelm me as I stand to address an audience. I am such a sinner. I certainly don't have it all together. Why should anyone listen to me? The above passage is what I cling to in moments like this. I remember that it is through my very weaknesses that God will be able to use me. He will reveal His glory through the cracks in my armor.
 
It would have been a sad thing had Paul not made his struggle public as he did. Millions of Christians would have tried to follow in his apparently perfect footsteps, and they would have failed miserably. The simple reason is there is no perfect Christian. Not even the great apostle Paul! To present a good face is to set up a phantom standard. The worst thing is, as others observe us, they might believe the fa�ade. Then they will look at themselves and lose heart. They will never be as spiritual as that guy.
 
Jesus shared His struggle with others.  In the Garden of Gethsemane, He told Peter, James, and John: "My soul is deeply grieved, to the point of death; remain here and keep watch with Me." He moved a short distance away from them, fell on His face, and prayed, "My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will." Why did Jesus include His friends in that private moment, allowing them to see Him in His agony? Why didn't He just show them a stiff upper lip and paste on a brave face?
 
I think the disciples needed to know that this event was going to cost Jesus dearly. They also needed to see it was OK to struggle. Most of all, they needed to understand that in the struggle, our most necessary response is to pray. So Jesus struggled in front of them. It would give them a memorable lesson, more than any teaching He could have verbally imparted to them.
 
We are grateful when we see we are not alone in the struggle. The perseverance of others against difficult circumstances serves to keep us moving in a positive direction. Only when we determine to be genuine with each other about our struggles, failures, and victories are we able to be an encouragement to the Body of Christ. Conversely, to act as though we never have doubts or problems only feeds our own selfish pride.  Putting up a false fa�ade may temporarily boost our own self-image, but we are setting others up for a fall when we do. 
 
Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted. Bear one another's burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ. For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself.  Galatians 6:1-3
From My Blog Archives
 Saturday, January 19, 2008
It's Not About the Messenger
Have you ever been given an opportunity to share your faith but did not do so because you were afraid you would mess it up? When I was in the hospital after giving birth to my second son, my roommate was a girl in her late teens and an unwed mother. As we watched the 11:00 news, the subject of the future came up after viewing some particularly disturbing story. She told me her grandmother used to say Jesus was coming back again and would end the world as we know it. I told her I also believed that. The conversation grew silent. Here was my opportunity to express that only those who believed in Christ for their salvation would be taken up at his coming. My heart pounding, I tried to form the words that would express my concern for her salvation. How could I bring up the subject without being offensive to her? What if I actually turned her off to the saving good news of Christ? What if I did it wrong? I hesitated too long. The conversation moved on. I had lost the window of opportunity because I couldn't figure out just the right thing to say.

Feelings of inadequacy can paralyze us in doing the work of God. Before every retreat where I speak, I look in the mirror and wonder why anyone would bother to listen to this overweight, middle-aged woman. In our culture, appearance is everything. Countless shows on TV chronicle make-overs where women go from frumpy to fantastic. They emerge at the end of the show, confident in their new hair, makeup, and wardrobe, twirling and showing off their new look to family and friends. I am a make-over wannabe.

Yet the truth of the matter is this: when it comes to sharing truth about Christ, neither smooth talking nor a beautiful appearance is where the power lies. I was amused and rather struck to find this verse in 2 Corinthians 10:10. Paul is writing about himself. It has become my new life verse: "For they say, 'His letters are weighty and strong, but his personal presence is unimpressive and his speech contemptible.' " Paul wrote strong letters, filled with astounding truth and depth. Yet when those who had heard his written words actually met him in person, they were shocked. Who was this dumpy, inarticulate guy? Could he actually be the author of such profound writing?

Our effectiveness has never been about us at all. We are mere messengers. The power is in the message. Our job is to get the truth of God out into the airwaves. God's Word is powerful and effective. It changes lives. The Lord promised Isaiah: "For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return there without watering the earth and making it bear and sprout, and furnishing seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so will my word be which goes forth from My mouth; it will not return to me empty, without accomplishing what I desire, and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it" (Isaiah 55:10,11). God will use His Word to accomplish His purposes. Success in its mission does not have anything to do with us at all. The power and effectiveness lies in the truth of the message. Paul's writing was a result of the work of the Holy Spirit. The power in its words was the power of God. Not the power of Paul.

When I teach at a retreat, I am relieved to know this fact. If I am faithful to share God's Word with the ladies in my audience, I can expect God to take His Word and work effectively to change lives. It is not about the messenger.

We can be confident in our sharing of the truth with others because we have a faithful God. It is HE who works in us and through our efforts. Don't be afraid if you feel like an inadequate messenger. Know that God will use our fumbling attempts to accomplish His purposes, "for He who promised is faithful" (Hebrews 10:23).
Devotional Study  in Colossians
Summer may be over, but it is never too late to join me in our study in Colossians! Just click on over to juliecoleman.blogspot.com to begin daily short studies that systematically work through this epistle. If you are just beginning, scroll down to day one and work your way up.
 
Be sure to pass the link on to others who might enjoy this month-long study!