April 29, 2013 - Do you have a hero or heroes in your life? You know, those people that are maybe a bit famous, maybe they are not so famous, but when they speak or write they can just speak straight to your heart. Please tell me there are other people out there admire and want to hear more from a speaker or author. Yeah, well, I had the privilege to hear my "hero" in person over the weekend (thank you dear husband and mother-in-law for watching the kiddos). It was one experience that I do not want to forget or let the words that were spoken go away void in my life. Jen Hatmaker is an author and speaker with whom I can relate. She is an everyday, down to earth girl. She does not get all dressed up to speak in front of crowds. (For some reason I really like that.) She is humble, she is funny, and she captures my attention. Now, I do realize she is not perfect and should not be placed above what the Spirit is telling me. However, I do think God places certain books, certain authors, and certain people in your path to guide you in this journey of life. Jen is that instrument of guidance in my life right now and I learned so much from her presentations this weekend. Funny story: So me and my friend, Anita (who was really the person that introduced me to Jen's books), were out in the hallway during a break at this conference. Jen was standing at her "table" signing autographs, getting pictures taken, and talking with ladies. I kept thinking to myself, it would be fun to get a picture with her, but what do I say to her. I mean seriously, she is just a woman seeking after a life that truly follows Jesus. So, I gradually made my way over to her and saw that the line was short. I stood in line thinking the conference directors would be telling her she needed to get back up on stage soon so there is no way I would be able to meet her. Well, two ladies in front of me were done talking and I walked up, heart racing, and said, "I really don't know what to say to you." (Yes, my true honest self comes out in these types of situations.) But this is what I loved, Jen just looked at me and said, "that's o.k. just come here" and then hugged me. We are talking an everyday, does not see herself as anything special kind of person. I had someone take our picture and after the picture I did tell her that I read her book "7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess" on the way to China to pick up our daughter. She asked how old Lucy is and how long we have been home. She could totally relate and said "oh, you are just getting out of the foggy stage. Things are starting to look up." She can relate because she has two adopted children from Ethiopia and has been home for only 1 1/2 years with them. I then thanked her for being such an inspiration and for speaking truth. An everyday, down to earth girl who is doing what God has equipped and called her to do.....to train and lead people into what it means to be a disciple of Jesus and to live in radical obedience. She also made me sob when she showed the video of meeting her two children in Ethiopia for the first time. I mean, I couldn't hold back the tears. It was beautiful!
 |
| Anita, Jen, and myself |
 |
| "Oh just come here!" |
1. Life was so nice and comfortable before God messed me up! :) Jen said something to this effect and oh how I can relate! Once your eyes have been opened to a lot of the NEEDS in the world, you cannot ignore it. But that makes life complicated and messy and doesn't always seem to make much sense to other people. Where do you even begin? What does God ask of us and how do we know what direction we are supposed to go? The answer I heard was "just do the next right thing." God places people in our path every single day. Just do the next right thing with them. Walk with the Holy Spirit and He will direct you.
2. We can be so saturated and filled with bible teaching, and bible studies, and sermons, and serving in our church and yet still be searching for more of Jesus. We can have all the head knowledge possible, but what good is that if we are doing nothing with it (this is why I am writing this down so I do not go away having done nothing). In the Jewish culture, when boys started school and if they became elite students they were expected to follow everything their Rabbi did. In fact, it was such an honor if a boy came home covered in the dust of his Rabbi's sandals because that meant he followed so closely to his Rabbi. Often the disciple of the Rabbi became an exact replica of the Rabbi himself once the disciple was done with his training. People could tell which Rabbi a student was following by his actions. How closely am I following my Jesus? Am I covered in His dust by the end of the day? Lots to think about!
3. The quote I have pondered the most is this, "The enemy tells you what is true but he does not tell you The Truth. Yeah, let that sink in. When I think about it, I would have to agree with that statement. Cling to The Truth. "Jesus answered, 'I am the way and THE TRUTH and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.' " (John 14:6)
So what is the takeaway for me? Living with the Holy Spirit's guidance. I don't know much else. During a quiet time a couple weeks ago I was reading in John where Jesus' disciples start following him. So I asked the question, what does Jesus mean when He says "follow me" in this culture, in this place, at this time in life? I looked down at my bible again and the passage John 1:39 jumped out at me. "Come," Jesus replied, "and you will see." I am still unclear as to the where, what, and how Jesus is asking me to follow him, but this response was so real to me the tears started flowing. "Come and you will see."
***Just a side note, I am taking a break from Facebook for a while. Starting May 1 I will be taking the FB app off my phone. I don't know when or if I will ever be back, but I will try to keep up with my blog. Exciting things will be happening in May. We will be celebrating Lucy's Gotcha Day and possibly have exciting news from my brother and his wife as they anticipate the arrival of their China doll, Lilly.
No comments:
Post a Comment