Twice Adopted

I’m thankful for adoption!  I am twice adopted, once by my Daddy on this earth, and then by my Father in Heaven. 

When my Dad met and fell in love with my mom, he quickly became aware that I was part of the ‘package.’  A rambunctious, spoiled 3-year old, loved and trained by her mom and grandparents, didn’t dissuade him from marriage or instant fatherhood.  He fully embraced me along with my mom, and raised me as his very own.  Better yet, he adopted me, giving me his name, legally becoming my Father, and I, fully accepted and received as his daughter.  [You can read more about my dad on a past post, Remembering Dad.]

I’ve heard and read so many teachers and pastors attempt to describe adoption in theological and legal terms, yet their dissertations fall short in capturing the heart and bona fide experience of adoption.

Adoption means to me, I am not only accepted, I am Wanted!  

Some men who marry women with children reluctantly accept that they have to help raise those children.  But my dad, by adopting me, said,”I not only accept this responsibility, I want it, I welcome it, I’m ‘into it!!’”

With the exact same willingness and emotions, I’ve been adopted by my Father in Heaven.   He accepts me, even more, He wants me!  He chose to add me to His family!

“Just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him, in love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention (lit: good pleasure) of His will.”  Ephesians 1:5

“For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption by which we cry out “Abba! Father!  The Spirit Himself bears witness that we are sons of God.’”  Romans 8:15, 16

“And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” Galatians 4:6

Knowing my daddy adopted me, gave me full assurance that I was also loved by him. I have no memory of wondering if I was loved. I never doubted.  I knew it.  What a privilege!

So, too, knowing my Heavenly Father chose me and adopted me as His very own, should have the same result, leaving no doubt in God’s love, no questioning of His affection.   That is perfect love.

“There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. 

We love, because He first loved us.”
I John 4:18, 19

I’ve been twice adopted, twice chosen.

First Loved. 

Wanted. 

I Hold the Truth

Today (and always) I’m thankful for my very own Bible.  What a commodity!! A priceless gift and treasure!

I’m guilty blessed to have more than one.  My favourite, and most used. is the New American Standard Version, because that’s where I started when God opened my eyes to His Grace in 1972.  But many others fill our library of treasured books: KJV, RSV, ESV, NIV, The Living Bible, large print versions, parallel versions, Spanish and French Bibles, and more.  Each one shouts:

“From everyone who has been given much, much will be required…”
Luke 12:48

In spite of such increased responsibility, I am extremely thankful!   There are countless believers in other countries who don’t have any Bible to call their own.   Or if they do, they’re breaking the law.  Voice of the Martyrs  presents maps/media displaying countries which either restrict or are hostile to the Bible and Christianity.  Check it out here:

http://www.persecution.com/public/restrictednations.aspx?clickfrom=bWFpbl9tZW51

When you read your Bible, whether in print, online, on your Ipod, or whatever, thank the Lord for the Truth you hold in your hand.  And pray for those who don’t or can’t.

A Web of Friends

“A friend loves at all times.”  Proverbs 17:7 

For the next few days leading up to Thanksgiving, I’d like to practice thankfulness by sharing some things for which I’m personally thankful.

Today, I am so thankful for all the dear friends I’ve come to know or communicate with on the internet.  Though we aren’t able to talk over a nice latte or call each other when we’re feeling down, our friendships grow through encouraging posts and comments, discussing the Lord, sharing photos, Facebook statuses, tweeting, etc.  I’m deeply thankful for Connie, Kay, Kim, Lidja, Beth, Carrie, Mercedes, Marianne, Ben, Mike, Pastor Ron, and many more!   Different ages, different places, but one common thread ties us all together–the saving Grace of our Lord Jesus!   

Many of these friends have blogs, and it’s my sincerest desire that you’ll look at a few of them.  Each one is unique, and so worth reading.  Here’s a sampling:

Beth Stone Studio   
Beth is a young, beautiful, talented Christian artist in too many ways to share here.  See for yourself, and if you do so before Thanksgiving, you can enter in a contest to win one of her outstanding art prints.

Carrie’s Busy Nothings
Carrie just started blogging, and covers everything from crafts to coupons, and a ton of money-saving ideas!

Crown of Beauty
Lidja, an online friend in the Philippines, stuns me each and every day with her insights in the Word, photos of her country, and love for the Lord.

Diary of a Broken Vessel
Mike is a fellow Navy Sailor and my online friend.  He’s a student of the Word and shares my interest in Reformed authors and theology.

God’s Promises are Real
Marianne writes so much on trusting in the Lord, especially in difficult situations.  Her encouragement is like an oasis in the internet desert.

 

“I count myself in nothing else so happy
As in a soul rememb’ring my good friends.”
William Shakespeare 

 

Eternal Hope and Change

“The hope which is laid up for you in heaven.” Colossians 1:5

Without going political here, suffice it to say I’m not feeling very hopeful with our nation’s change.  So I remind myself almost daily that one man’s promise of “hope and change” is temporary, ethereal, and like chaff in the wind.  My hope and change is eternal, weighty, and powerful.

A past devotional by C.H.Spurgeon calibrates my focus back to the Lord:

“Our hope in Christ for the future is the mainspring and the mainstay of our joy here.

It will animate our hearts to think often of heaven, for all that we can desire is promised there.  Here we are weary and toil-worn, but there is the land of rest where the sweat of labour will no more moisten the worker’s brow, and fatigue will be forever banished…

We have suffered bereavement after bereavement, but we are going to the land of the immortal, where graves are unknown things!  Here, sin is a constant grief to us, but there we will be perfectly holy…Oh, is it not joy, that you are not to be in banishment forever, that you are not to dwell in banishment forever, that you are not to dwell eternally in this wilderness, but will soon inherit Canaan?

Nevertheless, let it never be said of us that we are dreaming about the future and forgetting the present.  Let the future sanctify the present to its highest uses!

Through the Spirit of God, the hope of heaven is the most potent force for the product of virtue.  It is a fountain of joyous effort, it is the cornerstone of cheerful holiness. 

 The man who has this hope in him goes about his work with vigor, for the joy of the Lord is his strength.  He fights against temptation with ardor, for the hope of the next world repels the fiery darts of the adversary.  He can labour without present reward for he looks for a reward in the world to come!”

 

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”  John 3:16

Lest We Forget

 ”Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget none of His benefits!”

 

“When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the LORD your God for the good land he has given you.  Be careful that you do not forget the LORD your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day.  Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied, then your heart will become proud and you will forget the LORD your God…”  Deuteronomy 8:11-14

 

We have short-term memories as individuals and as nations.  God knew this only too well.  Others too..once upon a time, some insightful wise men noted the dilemma, and decided to dedicate certain days on the calendar as signposts to assist our flailing memories.  There’s Valentine’s Day, to remind us to say I love you to our most beloved.  And Thanksgiving, so we remember to be thankful!  It’s ludicrous that we require such reminders!  Nevertheless….we do.

So on Veteran’s Day, let’s remember with thankful hearts, the veterans of today and yesterday, as we go about enjoying our homes, our food, and freedoms, small and large, which many can only dreamed of. 

And more importantly (I can say this as a veteran), let’s not forget our Lord and Saviour, Who gives us each breath, directs our daily path, and watches over us as we sleep.   We must not forget the Cross and the sufferings of Jesus, which provide for all who believe, freedom from sin, a guarantee of death swallowed up in victory, and toil that is not in vain! (I Cor.15:57) 

“Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget none of  His benefits.  Who pardons all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases; Who redeems your life from the pit; Who crowns you with lovingkindness and compassion;  Who satisfies your years with good things…”  Psalm 103:2-5

The Big Picture

“Jesus wept. And so the Jews were saying, ‘Behold how He loved him! Could not this man, which opened the eyes of him who was blind, have kept this man [Lazarus] also from dying?’” John 11:35-37

We all have said similar things in response to sorrows and problems which we have.  If Jesus can open the eyes of the blind and raise the dead, then, “couldn’t He have prevented bad things from happening?”

We learn from these verses that although Jesus CAN do the miracle, He often has a larger picture in mind, one which we fail to see because of our own sorrow, grief, or misunderstanding of our life and times.

We can trust the Lord to complete the Big Picture of His will for each of us.

“Did I not say to you, if you believe, you will see the Glory of God?”  [vs 40]

The Big Picture is the Glory of God.

 

[An initial premise of this blog was to share not only my thoughts, but the invariably deeper, more profound musings of my husband, John.  This post, and several to come, will be posted in a new category, John Owen's Journal, John on John.]

Rejoice in Hope

Right before our beautiful granddaughter, Eva, was born, I started a blog series on the “in what” we should rejoice.  Presently, I’m fully rejoicing in the birth of a beautiful baby girl, the happiness of my daughter, and the delight of holding a little miracle in my arms!

But….

What about those times, when we don’t see or feel anything tangible in our arms to rejoice in?  What about those seasons when the “fig tree does not blossom, the fields yield no fruit, and there’s no cattle in the stall”? (Habakkuk 3:17)  Or in other words, not much to be thankful for.  What about those times?

Hopefully, some of these posts will encourage you us towards enduring matters in which we can rejoice, apart from and in spite of, our daily circumstances. 

We can Rejoice in This–our names are written in God’s book of Life!

We can Rejoice in Him!

We can rejoice, because He Lives!

And we can rejoice in Hope!  The Hope of His appearing. The Hope laid up for us in heaven. The Hope of so much more beyond our present trials.

“In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honour at the revelation of Jesus Christ;

and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory!”  I Peter 1:6-8

 ”…in the hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised ages ago.”  Titus 1:2

“…that being justified by His grace, we might be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life!“  Titus 3: 7

“…looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Saviour, Christ Jesus.”   Titus 2:13

It’s not always easy to rejoice.  But it’s a habit we need to develop with everyday use, and pattern ourselves after the many–of whom the world was not worthy–who rejoiced in trials, rejoiced in suffering, and rejoiced in life, all because they had HOPE in a loving God, who keeps all His promises!

Remember the one who said…

“Though the fig tree does not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive fail, and the field shall yield no wheat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls…”

…concluded with this:

Yet,

 I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation!

The Lord God is my strength, and He will make my feet like hinds feet and He will make me walk upon high places.”Habakkuk 3:17-19

Babies…Life…Hope

“A baby is God’s opinion that life should go on.

“Never will a time come when the most marvelous recent invention is as marvelous as a newborn baby. The finest of our precision watches, the most super-colossal of our supercargo planes don’t compare with a newborn baby in the number and ingenuity of coils and springs, in the flow and change of chemical solutions, in timing devices and interrelated parts that are irreplaceable.

“A baby is very modern. Yet it is also the oldest of the ancients. A baby doesn’t know he is a hoary and venerable antique — but he is. Before man learned how to make an alphabet, how to make a wheel, how to make a fire, he knew how to make a baby– with the great help of woman, and his God and Maker.”   
Carl Sandburg (1878-1967)  Remembrance Rock

 

“For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

“Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.

“How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!  How vast is the sum of them!  If I would count them, they are more than the sand.  I awake, and I am still with you.” 
Psalm 139:13-18

 

Living Proof!

Perfect

Wee little Eva

Three Firstborn Daughters

In Awe

Little Man Jon

By any other name, Beautiful!

Perfect Rest

Praying Mom

“Thank you, Lord, for letting us see our children’s children.  That makes us doubly blessed! Your faithfulness truly extends from generation to generation.  We’re indebted to your love, your grace, and Cross of Christ. In His name, Amen.”

And now, a grand-daughter!

Eva Joy joined our family early Tuesday morning!  Welcome to our family, and the world, little one!  You will be in our prayers everyday, without exaggeration!

I will post photos as soon as we have some!  John is ‘chomping at the bit’ to start filling up the memory sticks with pictures of his ‘bunny’s bunny!”  SOON!

Rejoice! He Lives!

Just do it.  

My words fall flat as I try to write about rejoicing in the Lord.  Too many other writers, hymnists, and poets say it better.  Let’s just do it–rejoice in our Lord today, for our Redeemer Lives!!

“As for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, And at the last He will take His stand on the earth.”  Job 19:26 (NASB)

Redeemer

by Nicole C. Mullen

Who taught the sun where to stand in the morning?
and Who told the ocean you can only come this far?
and Who showed the moon where to hide ’til evening?
Whose words alone can catch a falling star?

Well I know my Redeemer lives
I know my Redeemer lives:
Let all creations testify
Let this, life within me cry
I know my Redeemer lives, yeah.

The very same God that spins things in orbit
runs to the weary, the worn and the weak
And the same gentle hands that hold me when I’m broken
They conquered death to bring me victory

Now I know my Redeemer lives
I know my Redeemer lives
Let all creations testify
Let this life within we cry
I know my Redeemer, He lives
To take away my shame
And He lives forever, I’ll proclaim

That the payment for my sin
Was the precious life He gave
But now He’s alive and
There’s an empty grave.

And I know my Redeemer lives
I know my Redeemer lives
Let all creations testify
Let this life within me cry
I know my Redeemer,

I know my Redeemer
I know my Redeemer lives
I know my Redeemer lives
I know that I know that I know that I know that I know my redeemer lives
Because He lives I can face tomorrow
I Know I know
He lives He lives yeah, yeah I spoke with him this morning!
He lives He lives, the tomb is empty,
He lives I gotta tell everybody!

 

You can listen to (and rejoice with) this song, now uploaded in my Blue Music box.  Redeemer, and many other beautiful worship tunes by Nicole C. Mullen, are on her self-titled CD, and can be found  HERE and HERE.