Christian and pro choice: yes, it’s true!

15 May 2008 at 4:16 am (Christian life, Christianity, Food for Thought, Responding to God)
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I don’t get into this conversation with many of my Christian friends…I wish more of them would be open to the discussion but I have to respect that this is an incredibly emotionally charged issue and friendships can be lost over such things. At the same time, I wish that more Christians could be open to the possibility that one can be Christian and pro choice.

The prompting for this post is learning on a friend’s blog that the National Abortion Rights Action League (NARAL) has endorsed Barack Obama. I’m surprised by this because I thought for sure that their endorsement would go to Hillary. But they see the writing on the wall like I’m thinking Hillary already has.

I worked for Planned Parenthood for many years doing pregnancy testing and counseling. I have referred many women and girls for abortions and some for adoption. I have heard countless stories of how these women and girls ended up with an unplanned pregnancy — some stories I wish I could forget. Stories of incest (on more than one occasion stories of repeated pregnancies from incest), rape, domestic abuse, loneliness, heartache, self-hatred, and fear. Never in all of the years that I worked in an abortion clinic did I meet a woman who casually chose abortion on a whim, as if without thinking or because it was the “easy” thing to do. Never did I meet a woman who was not torn up over her decision. And there it is: her decision. Not mine. Not yours. Not a Senator’s sitting on Capitol Hill. Hers. There in that very small counseling room, looking at that positive pregnancy test, knowing that she was going to make the hardest and worst decision of her whole life. And knowing that she will never be the same again.

I do not advocate or encourage abortion, but I believe that our government must maintain the right to legal and safe abortion for women who want to end a pregnancy. Women must be allowed the right to make this decision between herself and her physician without the interference of any government entity. I believe that reproductive choice is a fundamental human right. Criminalizing abortion will not end abortion. Women will die just as they did before abortion was legalized. My own mother lost a high school friend to a botched back-alley abortion in the 1950’s. Even in the 1990’s I met women who came to our clinic after trying to perform their own abortion by their own crude means. All to save face and avoid having to come to our clinic.

We live in a tragically fallen, sinful world and abortion is part of it. Sex without commitment (ie, marriage) is part of it. Unplanned pregnancy is part of it. Criminalizing abortion will not change these facts. Only the return of Christ and His reign on Earth will change these facts. Until then I believe that we must educate our young women and men (in homes, schools, and churches) about healthy sexual activity and the consequences of sex outside of marriage. We must work diligently to improve the self esteem of teenage girls so they do not seek acceptance through sex. We must provide affordable birth control to women of all races and economic classes. We must provide single women with economic and social support to make parenthood a feasible option. And we must reach the world for Christ so that women will have a foundation and support system to help them choose not to have an abortion.

Please know that I do not take this issue lightly. My husband and I struggle with infertility and the knowledge that we will never have our own biological child. Some days I feel that I would give anything for my own pregnancy and I struggle knowing that there are women out there choosing to end theirs. But my pain does not give me the right to take away another woman’s choice. It is hard and it doesn’t make sense, but God is good and his forgiveness and mercy are unfathomable.

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The True Campaign

12 April 2008 at 3:49 pm (Body image, Christian life, Christianity, Food for Thought, Responding to God)
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I encourage my readers to visit the True Campaign website created by Constance Rhodes of Finding Balance. Make comments!

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Notes from A Woman’s Heart - Week 8

20 March 2008 at 4:28 am (Bible study, Christian life, Christianity, Notes from A Woman's Heart, Responding to God)
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Summary notes from Week 8 of A Woman’s Heart ~ God’s Dwelling Place

Our journey into the tabernacle has now led us through the Holy Place (the home of the Golden Lampstand, the table for the Bread of Presence, and the Altar of Incense) into the innermost chamber, the Most Holy Place. Here we find the Ark of the Covenant, the most important object in the tabernacle proper. Covering the Ark was the mercy seat of pure gold with cherubim on either end, facing each other with their wings spread out above. At this very place God promised, “There I will meet with you, and from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim that are on the ark of the testimony, I will speak with you about all that I will give you in commandment for the people of Israel.” (Exodus 25:22)

Remember that only the High Priest was allowed to enter the Most Holy Place, and only once a year on the Day of Atonement. The glory of God’s presence in the Most Holy Place was so powerful that it had to first be concealed by smoke from the incense placed under the heavy veil before the Priest entered or he would be killed. Israel believed that the Ark of the Covenant was the footstool of God on earth. (I Chronicles 28:2; Isaiah 66:1)

How do we as Christians find our way through the veil and into the very presence of God?

We accept the invitation offered to us by the shed blood of Christ. “Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh…” (Hebrews 10:19-20) The flesh of our savior, both bruised and crushed, became the veil torn in two from top to bottom (Matthew 27:51), providing us with free access to the heart of God.

We recognize that our salvation is guaranteed and we rest on the security of an unchanging and immutable God. “So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of His purpose, He guaranteed it with an oath, so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us. We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.” (Hebrews 6:17-20)

Viewer Guide answers (pages 180 & 181 of your study book):
  1. anchor, veil; promise; oath, confirmed
  2. invitation; confidence, authorization, access; new, living, similar, different, freshly killed, freshness, revelation

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Grace Chapel Missions Conference 2008

19 March 2008 at 11:15 pm (Christian life, Christianity, Responding to God)

Grace Chapel’s 2008 Missions Conference will be held April 18-21 and volunteers are needed! If you would like to volunteer on a specific day (Friday through Monday), or for any day needed, let me know via this blog or at our Monday night Women’s Bible Study at Grace. You can also volunteer by contacting the Grace Chapel office directly or Ben Welstead (benwelstead@yahoo.com). The planning committee will then contact you with further details.

Specific areas where you can serve are as follows:

  • set-up/tear-down
  • meal preparation
  • meal clean-up
  • coffee/snack making
  • open mic spot (more info on that below)
  • any area where there is a need

Grace Chapel Missions Conference Schedule

Friday Night, April 18 - Local Missions - 7 to 9 p.m.

This will be a time to highlight our local missions involvement while enjoying the artistic talent of Grace Chapel. Painters, potters, photographers, and others will set up their visual art in the church. Musicians from Grace Chapel will participate in an Open Mic night. There will be an auction of art work displayed and local ministries we support will give brief updates between music sets.

Saturday Morning, April 19 - Short Term Missions - 10 a.m. to Noon

Enjoy a delicious pancake brunch while you hear from those who have taken short-term missions trips this last year, and from another group preparing to leave this summer. Six people will also win tickets to the Nebraska Spring Game!

Saturday Evening, April 19 - India - 5 to 9 p.m.

Several people in the Grace community have strong ties to India. We will enjoy a delicious Indian dinner, hear ministry highlights and testimonies, and view the movie Born Into Brothels. The movie will be followed by a discussion of the different faces of ministry in a foreign context. Child care will be provided from 7 to 9 p.m. (NOTE: Born Into Brothels is a fabulous movie, but is rated R for language and content.)

Sunday Morning, April 20

The keynote speaker for the conference, Pastor Dony St. Germain of El Shaddai Ministries in Haiti, will speak during both church services. During the educational hour, Pastor Tom Barber from the People’s City Mission will also share with us. After the services there will be an all-church lunch.

Sunday Evening, April 20 - Haiti - 7 to 8:30 p.m.

The focus for this time will be the history of Haiti and the incredible work that God has done to bring hope and life to that country. Pastor Dony will speak about El Shaddai Ministries and the work they are doing in Haiti.

Monday Night, April 21 - Haiti

The culmination of our missions conference will have Pastor Dony speaking more extensively about El Shaddai Ministries and its vision for the future. This will be a time of prayer and praise as we continue to show our support for this important ministry in Haiti.

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Notes from A Woman’s Heart - Week 4

21 February 2008 at 2:35 am (Bible study, Christian life, Christianity, Notes from A Woman's Heart, Responding to God)

Summary notes from Week 4 of A Woman’s Heart ~ God’s Dwelling Place

This is my favorite week yet of this Bible study! I am amazed and humbled at the realization that not only is every aspect of the Altar of Sacrifice in the tabernacle significant, but every element represented Jesus Christ. To realize that this knowledge is right there on the pages of Exodus fills me with joy that God is endlessly revealing His mysteries to us in His word.

We now find the Israelites beginning to construct the tabernacle but they are still moving through the wilderness at God’s prompting, following His pillar of cloud by day and pillar of fire by night. The tabernacle was a mobile structure. The walls of the tabernacle were pure white linen, the linens of the gate were embroidered with the colors blue, purple, and scarlet. There was only one gate through which to enter the tabernacle and it faced the east, reflecting the gate to the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:24).

God specifically located the tribes of Israel at different locations around the tabernacle. The group to the west of the tabernacle was the smallest (~108,000), the groups to the north and south of the tabernacle were slightly larger and approximately the same size (~150,000), and the group to the east of the tabernacle was the largest (186,400). The people remained in these locations and, when the camp picked up and moved, the tribe of Judah, located at the east in front of the gate, moved first. Can you picture this? The tribes formed a cross moving through the wilderness!

What was the Altar of Sacrifice? Positioned between the gate and the door of the tabernacle, it was the first structure one would have encountered upon entering. The altar was made of acacia wood, known for its ability to resist decay. This type of wood was also known for bearing large, sharp thorns. Like the acacia wood of the Altar of Sacrifice, the body of Christ never saw decay (Acts 2:27) and He bore a crown of thorns as He was made the sacrifice for our sins (Matthew 27:29).

God instructed that the altar should be hollow but the inside should be filled with earth (Exodus 27:8; 20:24). Recall that the word “Adam” in Hebrew means “groundling” or “of the ground.” The symbolism here shows us that, before Christ accomplished His work on the cross, the blood that poured from the sacrifices on the altar soaked into the ground to atone for man’s sin. We know that there could never have been enough blood to accomplish this task — until Christ shed His blood for all mankind.

A horn was placed at each corner of the altar, to both tie down the sacrifices and serve as a place where those seeking the protection of God could flee (I Kings 1:50-53). Jesus, the “horn” of our salvation (Luke 1:69) would provide us with eternal refuge in His salvation.

Do not forget that every aspect of the tabernacle, including the Altar of Sacrifice, was a copy of a heavenly reality. God chose to give the prophet Isaiah a glimpse of this reality in a vision in Isaiah 6. In this vision, Isaiah sees the Lord on His throne with His robe filling the temple. Around Him fly seraphim (”burning” or “fiery” ones in Hebrew), beings who continually praise and worship God Almighty. When Isaiah begins to despair at being “a man of unclean lips,” a seraph flies to him and touches him on the lips with a burning coal taken from the altar saying, “…your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.” (Isaiah 6:7)

We can be sure that this burning coal was taken from the Altar of Sacrifice. Why? Because there was no atoning power in the coal, or even the altar from which it was taken. The only thing that could atone for sin was the blood that was on the coal — the blood of Christ, shed on the altar of the cross. How awesome to see Christ revealed on the pages of Isaiah!

Viewer Guide answers (pages 90 & 91 of your study book):

  1. awe
  2. relief; cover, reconciliation, sacrifice
  3. refuge
  4. joy

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Notes from A Woman’s Heart - Week 3

12 February 2008 at 11:02 pm (Bible study, Christian life, Christianity, Notes from A Woman's Heart, Responding to God)

Summary notes from Week 3 of A Woman’s Heart ~ God’s Dwelling Place

After giving Israel both their freedom from Egypt and their sustenance in the wilderness, God invites the Israelites to participate in the construction of the tabernacle by the giving of a freewill offering. While the amount they could offer was unrestricted and should come “from every man whose heart moves him” (Exodus 25:2b), the items they could offer were very specific (Exodus 25:3-7). The response of the Israelites to the freewill offering was so overwhelming that the giving was halted because there was “much more than enough” (Exodus 26:3-7). Compare these passages in Exodus with Paul’s instructions for freewill offerings in 2 Corinthians 9:6-11. Think about the fact that God’s desire for our freewill offerings as a response to His goodness and provision in our lives has not changed.

We will see in the weeks to come that each of the items God instructed the Israelites to give was very symbolic and there are many reasons why each material was significant. Gold signified rarity and purity and represented God’s deity. Silver represented redemption and atonement. Bronze represented strength and judgment. The precious stones represented God’s children. The blue linens would remind Israel that the tabernacle was from the heavens. The purple linens represented royalty, kingship, and elegance. The scarlet linens represented bloodshed, pain, and sacrifice. And finally, God chose to fill Bezalel, a man from the tribe of Judah, with the Holy Spirit to enable him with the intelligence, ability, knowledge, and craftsmanship necessary to construct the divine sanctuary (Exodus 31:1-11)

But again, Israel was impatient. When Moses did not return from the mountain fast enough they demanded that Aaron create gods for them. Aaron did what they asked yet did not take responsibility for his actions (Exodus 32:24). Israel would soon realize that their grievous sin put their entire relationship with God at risk. God tells Moses that He would no longer be with Israel, as His very presence among them would destroy them in their sinful state (Exodus 33:3-5). At the same time, their sin would allow Moses to have “the most elevated glimpse of God [he] has ever had and will have” (NIV Application Commentary pg. 583).

What was the elevated glimpse of God that Moses was allowed to have?

  • God’s affectability: God gave His creation the ability to affect Him - He permits this to happen (Psalm 30:5a). He is omniscient, yet still participates in the human experience. He felt the effect of Israel’s sin (Exodus 33:1-6).
  • God’s friendship: Moses enjoyed the intimacy of friendship with God. God spoke with Moses face to face (or “presence to presence”) as a man speaks to his friend (Exodus 33:11). Compare this notion of friendship with Jesus’ words in John 15:13-15.
  • God’s presence: God’s presence was to accompany Israel and give them rest (Exodus 33:14) as well as distinguish them from all other peoples (Exodus 33:16). God’s presence meant both comfort and identity. Compare the importance of God’s presence to Israel and the promise of Christ’s presence in John 14:21.
  • God’s glory: God allowed Moses to affect His decision and chose to remain with Israel because His goodness and glory are inseparable and He is a God of compassion (Exodus 33:18-19).

Viewer Guide answers (pages 70 & 71 of your study book):

  1. affectability
  2. friendship
  3. Presence, anxiety; with; significance
  4. glory

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Notes from A Woman’s Heart - Week 2

6 February 2008 at 11:04 pm (Bible study, Christian life, Christianity, Notes from A Woman's Heart, Responding to God)

Summary notes from Week 2 of A Woman’s Heart ~ God’s Dwelling Place

The Israelites find themselves in the wilderness, a solitary and vast desert landscape, filled with their own bitterness that they had been removed from the relative richness and luxury of Egypt. How quickly they had forgotten their lives as slaves, and how they “groaned because of their slavery and cried out for help. Their cry for rescue from slavery came up to God.” (Exodus 2:23). How did God respond to the cry of His people? He was true to His name (”I AM WHO I AM “) and moved Israel into the wilderness with a promise of fellowship with Him. “And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. God saw the people of Israel - and God knew.” (Exodus 2:24-25)

God allowed Israel to taste their own bitterness when they were desperate with thirst. After 3 days without water, they finally came upon the water of Marah only to find that it was completely undrinkable. God illustrates Himself as the Healer of bitterness by showing Moses a log that would sweeten the water when thrown in, and leading Israel to the relief of the palms and springs of Elim. However, this healing came with a command for Israel to “diligently listen to the voice of the LORD your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statues…” (Exodus 15:26)

Israel’s grumbling continued in the wilderness of Sin, as they hungered for the full pots and full bellies of their past life in Egypt. God responded by providing manna (”man-hu” in Hebrew, meaning “what is it”) each day as the morning dew faded. Explicit instructions accompanied this bread from heaven: that they should only gather as much as they could eat for the day and not store it up, for the provision would perfectly meet their need. Not only that, but the provision on the 6th day (”lehem mishnah” in Hebrew, meaning “double the bread”) would be enough to allow for rest and observance of the holy Sabbath, which God had first introduced in Genesis 2 but had not instituted as part of law (”Torah” in Hebrew, meaning “law” or “instruction”) until Exodus 16:23.

God’s miracle of daily manna illustrates His desire for a daily relationship with His people. His provision was inviting them into His presence, and was not about creating dependency on Him but rather about creating depth of relationship. The freshness of the daily manna and their inability to store it up without consequences illustrated that God expected Israel to seek Him daily to meet their needs.

We serve a God who pursues us with passion each and every day. He is more than able to meet our need, and is vastly more than able to meet our want. He seeks relationship with us yet remains a mystery. “Also, he has put eternity into man’s heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.” (Ecclesiastes 3:11b). So how do we respond? We respond based on who He tells us He is - knowing that we must seek in order to find (Matthew 7:7), that He grants to us all things that pertain to life and godliness through the knowledge of Him (2 Peter 1:3), and that we must get out of our tents and gather up what He so graciously and mercifully provides (Exodus 16:16).

Viewer Guide answers (pages 48 & 49 of your study book):

  1. expecting, unexpected
  2. daily relationship
  3. daily, pride, fear

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Feeling the fire

18 January 2008 at 11:44 pm (Christian life, Christianity, Depression, Responding to God)

My husband is very fond of a statement that we heard Beth Moore say many times during Sunday morning class at Houston’s First Baptist: “God burns away the fake.” I find that when I am feeling mired in depression, confusion, loneliness, and near desperation for God to make our path clear, that my thoughts often turn to the very strong possibility that God is using the murkiness of our life right now to “burn away the fake.”

What do we want from our life? What do we want from our marriage? Who is God molding us to be in His purpose-plan? And what does it take to get there? Who will we choose to be on this path? How will we respond to God?

There are 2 places in God’s word that are speaking to me clearly about this struggle:

“Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw — each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.” (I Corinthians 3:12-15)

“…In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith — more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire — may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” (I Peter 1:6-7)

And finally, what prompted this post today, are the lyrics of one of my favorite Nichole Nordeman songs (”Burnin” on the album Wide Eyed 1998):

Started rubbing sticks together

Thought a spark would take forever

Never dreamed this fire would appear 

When Moses saw the bush in flames

And heard the branches speak his name

I wonder if he felt this kind of fear

 

Cuz I’m burnin’, yeah I’m burnin’

And I know I’m gonna blister in these flames

But I’ll stay here till this smoke clears

And I’ll find You in the ashes that remain

 

Used to be that I could say

My faith was one arm’s length away

From any flame that ever felt too warm 

Asked for matches, but I received

A gallon full of gasoline

And now my cozy campfire days are gone 

“Knock with caution at the door,” they said

“Beware of what you’re praying for”

So I’ll stand with my whole desire

In the middle of this forest fire

Till I’ve nothing left to show

And new life begins to grow

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“Lucky” or responding to God?

30 December 2007 at 4:04 pm (Christian life, Christianity, Responding to God)

I have no idea if it is kosher to cut and paste somebody else’s blog entry on your own blog because you think it is totally awesome and you want lots of people to read it. Of course, credit is given where credit is due… I don’t know the writer of the Nonconform Freely blog but I wish I did!

Lucky

Yesterday I heard those words that infuriate me. “You are lucky you have the option to stay at home.” Lucky? I am not lucky! My husband and I have CHOSEN, yes, as an act of our wills and, we believe, in accordance with the word of God, that I be a fulltime keeper-of-the-home these past 22 + years. We are not LUCKY to have the OPTION for me to stay at home!

Do I understand that some women do not have this option? Yes. But, far fewer than our society would have us believe. It costs much to choose this option. Like Paul listing his sufferings, out of need that people understand, I will list some of the do-with-outs of our years: 30 year old carpet in my living room and hall, 30 year old decor in our basement family room, bedroom, etc., only one big family vacation in 22 years and that one to visit colleges in Chicago and Grand Rapids, Michigan, no salon dyed hair or professional nails, no latest style clothing, no complete decorating or re-decorating of our home, missmatched used furniture. This gives the idea. Have I ever wished for these things? Certainly. Do I now wish for these things? Sometimes.

But here is what I have gained: the blessing of having to learn to be content, of being forced to trust in the Lord for His provision, of beautiful memories of my son’s and daughter’s growing up years, of being the primary person to shape my children, of availability to help with school activities, of no day care stress when my children were sick, of learning patience in the midst of 24/7 care, of having all the hours of the day to pray for my loved ones, of being the one to snuggle my kids after every nap, of seeing my children shout for joy each day when “Daddy” came home for lunch, of being home to hold my children accountable for their whereabouts as they got older, of seeing them mature and make wise decisions, of TIME, TIME, TIME. We had hours and days and months and years of family time, not big momentous events, though there were some of these, but day after day after day together. Many of the memories of their early years our son and daughter do not remember, but my husband and I remember.

There are no material possessions which can replace the gift of time. Time cannot be saved. Once is passes it is gone. These years with my children and husband are an immeasurably precious gift from the hand of our Lord.

My children are raised, but I am not returning to the ‘workplace.’ I have always told my husband that my job has no pay, but all the benefits. He and I continue to have time together each day at lunch and in the evening. I continue to have time to pray for my loved ones all day. I am able to meet with my grown children for coffee or lunch. I am available to help my aging parents. I hope to have the blessing of time with grandchildren. I want to savor all the time offered by the Lord to spend minutes, hours, days, months, and Lord willing, years to continue to be blessed by my family. It is not luck which dictates our lives, but deliberate choices as to how we will live our days.

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Letting God define my longing

20 December 2007 at 12:36 am (Bible study, Christian life, Christianity, In His image, Responding to God)

My life has had a theme of “longing” lately. Longing for things of the world: to be pregnant, to have financial security and creature comforts, to feel like everything is safe around me and I am loved. Praise the Lord, in the midst of it all, He has drawn me into his Word so that my worldly longing can have the proper context. God has asked me to allow my longing to be defined by who He is.

What is this longing that I feel? It is a direct result of the Fall. “Therefore the LORD God sent him out from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken. He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.” (Genesis 3:23-24) Who can even begin to imagine the feeling of longing and sorrow that Adam and Eve experienced as they looked back over their shoulders to the Garden, knowing that they could never return to the paradise lost? Can any human being imagine losing the unique fellowship that our original parents had with God Himself?

The Israelites, our adopted brothers and sisters, experienced 400 years of longing for the fulfillment of God’s promise to them. “Then the LORD said to Abram, ‘Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years. But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions.’” (Genesis 15:13-14) Homeless, transient, living in tents, year after year, generation after generation trusting that God would not abandon them in their affliction. The writer of Hebrews further describes the faith of our Patriarch fathers: “By faith he (Abraham) went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God.” (Hebrews 11:9-10)

Even Moses, after freeing his people from the Pharaoh, receiving the law from the very finger of God, and leading Israel to the banks of the Jordan would go to his death without entering the Promised Land. “And the LORD said to him, ‘This is the land of which I swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, “I will give it to your offspring.” I have let you see it with your eyes, but you shall not go over there.’” I cannot imagine the bittersweet tears that Moses must have shed on the water’s edge as he gazed upon the land that he would not inherit.

The Psalms are full of the longing of the great King David. When I read his words I can hear his choked sobs as he pleads with the LORD to pull him out of the pit of darkness and not forsake him as he breaks under the burden of his pain. “O Lord, all my longing is before you; my sighing is not hidden from you. My heart throbs; my strength fails me, and the light of my eyes–it also has gone from me.” (Psalm 38:9-10)

And finally, I am overwhelmed by the longing of Creation itself: “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.” (Romans 8:18-23)

All of creation lives with longings not yet fulfilled. We dwell in the land before the promised land. We exist between the “now” and the “not yet.” And yet we too have a promise. “For we know that if the tent, which is our earthly home, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked. For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened–not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.” (2 Corinthians 5:1-5)

We think that we long for things of the world and that these things will truly satisfy us. But our true longing is for what was lost in the Fall–a return to paradise. “As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.” (Psalm 42:1-2) We long for that which only God can completely provide.

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