Marydean Draws: identity

Showing posts with label identity. Show all posts

Sometimes, I think it's important to take a big step back out of the busyness of life, and ask the big picture questions. What is God doing here? What am I doing here?

When we frame life in God's big picture, then the day-to-day takes on a different color, a deeper joy, and a rediscovered purpose--without changing our actual circumstances one little bit.

Here's a big picture truth: God has a kingdom and he's calling you and me to be a part of it. It's not an inaccessible kingdom. It's not a kingdom under threat (no matter the current political climate). It's not only a future kingdom. It's here and now, and you're invited.

What's our role in this kingdom of God's?

Genesis 1 tells us he entrusted us rule to over the earth (see Genesis 1:26-30), but it would be a rule over which He would graciously reign and sustain us.

Dallas Willard (who fully fleshes out the ideas here) writes in The Divine Conspiracy**:

"The human job description . . . found in Chapter 1 of Genesis indicates that God assigned to us collectively the rule over all living things on earth, animal and plant. . . . However unlikely it may seem from our current viewpoint, God equipped us for this task by framing our nature to function in a conscious, personal relationship of interactive responsibility with him. We are mean to exercise our 'rule' only in union with God, as he acts with us. He intended to be our constant companion or coworker in the creative enterprise of life on earth."

God invites us to be Kingdom men and women involved in His work on earth, full of His Spirit, abiding in Him.

But we easily get that confused. We say:

I will reign over myself. God. You are not to be trusted, so I will trust myself.

Or, maybe this:

So as long as I've got my ticket to heaven, I'm good, and can't wait for your will to be finally done in heaven (but certainly not in this crazy place, God!).

(This is the "it's all gonna burn" theology, as in, "it's all gonna burn so why try to fix it?")

Or, this:

There is so much work to do on this earth, and it's all up to me. I'm not sure God cares as much as I do. Really loving Jesus means doing all the good stuff (secondary or divorced from a relationship with God).

I wonder if confusion about the nature of God's kingdom accounts for why people argue about the relationship of social justice and the Gospel and debate the value of faith versus works.

I wonder if Jesus just shakes his head, and says, "You really don't know how my kingdom works, do you?"

God says,

"I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing." (John 15:5 ESV)

and

"No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you." (Jhn 15:15 ESV)

Will God call you to big work or small work? Will you run for office or will you run an office? Will you disciple your own kids or someone else's? Will he call you to social action in the city or Gospel proclamation in the Amazons?

I don't know. But I do know that you're His friend, and He will tell you what He's doing and how you can be a part.

These are the things I'm thinking about today.

I made this coloring page to remind you that God wants to be YOUR God, and that He calls you HIS PEOPLE, and that just as he walked with Adam and Eve in the garden, He wants to walk with you today and do Kingdom work through you.

You can download the page in English HERE and in Spanish HERE or click on the images below:

PRAYING the WORD

Jesus, teach me what it means to be part of your Kingdom. Show me the big picture of your work and my life. Show me the work you have for me. Thank you that you promise to be my God.

QUESTIONS to consider:

In what ways have you misunderstood your human job description?

*I'm so happy for you to enjoy my coloring pages and printables for your personal (not commercial) use. Use for Bible studies, church groups or events, and Sunday school classes are all fine! If you're in doubt, I'm happy to answer any questions. All artwork and photos are copyright Marydean Draws. If you share this, you're awesome (!), and as a courtesy, please link back to this post and not the PDF file. Thank you!!

****affiliate link. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

September 19, 2018

Garden Living + a 2 Corinthians 6:16 Bible Coloring Page in English and Spanish

It's a beautiful day here in Virginia. I've been enjoying working outside in the garden, mulching the flower beds, getting my fingers dirty because my gardening gloves are frayed in five of the ten fingers. That winter heaviness is being replaced by new growth.

Today I'm thinking about how what we believe about a person and how they feel about us affects how we interpret what they say and do. If we're confident in someone's affection and our connection to them, we trust their intentions. We believe their actions toward us are intended for good and not evil. We see everything they do or say in the light of what we believe about them.

Suspicion and distrust, then, can wreak havoc on relationships, even when they aren't based on the truth.

I'm wondering how this plays out in our relationship with God and the connection we feel with him? What are we believing about his character and about how he feels about us, and how has that affected our relationship?

I see the Psalmist wrestling with these feelings over and over. There is the very-real reality he can see--fears from within, opposition from without. "Where are you God?" he asks.

And then he preaches truth to his heart, like here in Psalm 56:

"You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book? Then my enemies will turn back in the day when I call. This I know, that God is for me. In God, whose word I praise, in the LORD, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can man do to me? I must perform my vows to you, O God; I will render thank offerings to you. For you have delivered my soul from death, yes, my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of life." (Psalm 56:8-13 ESV)

Yes, friend, God is for us in the most important ways. No, the little and big pains and afflictions of our daily lives are not taken away or resolved. But when we step back and see the big picture of His love spelled out in the life and death of Jesus for us, then we have hope that endures.

"And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"" (Luke 11:9-13 ESV)

God is the good Father who gives good gifts. If we see him as the Father who will drop a scorpion in our lap when we ask for an egg, we miss these good gifts because we don't trust him enough to ask.

He hasn't given us ease or simple cures; He has give us Himself, the Holy Spirit as a deposit for a glorious future.

This is the kind of truth that sprouts hope in our hearts, even in suffering.

"For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us." (Romans 8:18 ESV)

"So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison." (2Corinthians 4:16-17 ESV)

Today's printable Bible verse screensaver is from Psalm 56:9b. You can download it be clicking on the image below and saving to your phone!

You are loved!

*I'm so happy for you to enjoy my coloring pages and printables for your personal (not commercial) use! Use for Bible studies, church groups or events, and Sunday school classes are all fine! If you're in doubt, I'm happy to answer any questions. All artwork and photos are copyright Marydean Draws. If you share this, you're awesome (!), and as a courtesy, please link back to this post and not the PDF file. Thank you!!

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May 1, 2018

This I know Screensaver

I recently discovered the Gospel Taboo blog and read this article that captures a marriage lesson I see God pressing in on me recently. Kendra Dahl, the author, had an alarm set on her phone that said, "nourished and cherished by Jesus" that would go off before her husband was to arrive home. This was to remind her that only Jesus could fully nourish and cherish her the way Ephesians 5:29 describes. Knowing this set her free to love her husband and set him free from expectations he could never fully meet.

"In the same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. Indeed, no one ever hated his own body, but he nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church." Ephesians 5:28-29

I love Kendra's idea, so I made this month's screensaver to remind you and me of this truth. To get the image, just right click on the image below, save, and then set as your device's lock or home screen.

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June 30, 2017

Nourished and Cherished by Jesus Screensaver

"And as he [Jesus] was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, "Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" And Jesus said to him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments: 'Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.'" And he said to him, "Teacher, all these I have kept from my youth." And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, "You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me." Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions." Mark 10:17-22

A couple of weeks ago, I fussed at my girls when they interrupted my attempt at some work in the middle of the day. This is a battle I fight periodically--to make a happy marriage of my ideas, my ambitions, and what I think God has called me to do, with this other amazing calling to be a mom and wife. There is also the struggle not to make this "good thing" become the thing that is better to me than my Jesus. So tricky . . .

My husband commented on my poor attitude and then I saw it for what it was.

I told my girls (after shedding a few tears), "I'm sorry I fussed at you."

And instead of "It's okay Mom, you're normally so sweet," one said, "It's okay, we're getting used to it."

Ugh.

A blow to my self-righteousness. I resist these blows, trying to deflect them on other people or maybe my body chemistry. Everything in me wants to justify myself. I can quickly list all the reasons I can't possibly have a good attitude or exercise a larger measure of patience.

The rich young man in the Mark 10 passage above seems to want justification from Jesus too. "Why yes, son, you have been extremely good. I'm impressed and you have my approval" . . . is what he longs to hear, but isn't how Jesus responds.

That approval would have made the man momentarily happy, but would leave him enslaved to his love of money.

Jesus just loves him too much for that.

Jesus gently ask the man to do something painful that cuts to the heart of his identity, so that he can come and follow Jesus in freedom.

In the same way, Jesus loves you and me too much to leave us in our sin and idolatry, our striving for empty things to fill up our hole-ridden purses.

"You have sown much, and harvested little. You eat, but you never have enough; you drink, but you never have your fill. You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm. And he who earns wages does so to put them into a bag with holes." Haggai 1:6

But this process of setting us free will be just as painful for us as it was for the rich young man. Our sense of our own goodness has to go. Ouch.

As we walk with Jesus, He confronts our idols, using circumstances, various trials, and basically "all things" to conform us to the image of His Son (Romans 8:28-29). It reminds me of this passage in Hebrews:

"For they disciplined us [referring to earthly fathers] for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it." [Heb 12:10-11 ESV]

Like the Edward Mote hymn, My Hope is Built, so beautifully expresses, Jesus breaks down our sandcastle foundations and replaces them with a towering palace built on Himself alone.

My hope is built on nothing less

Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.

I dare not trust the sweetest frame,

But wholly trust in Jesus’ Name.

On Christ the solid Rock I stand,

All other ground is sinking sand;

All other ground is sinking sand.

When darkness seems to hide His face,

I rest on His unchanging grace.

In every high and stormy gale,

My anchor holds within the veil.

His oath, His covenant, His blood,

Support me in the whelming flood.

When all around my soul gives way,

He then is all my Hope and Stay.

When He shall come with trumpet sound,

Oh may I then in Him be found.

Dressed in His righteousness alone,

Faultless to stand before the throne.

When I needlessly fuss at my children or bicker with my husband, or muddle up my friendships, I'm finding there is great freedom in simple humility. And isn't that the only appropriate response for a child of God living under His great grace? I don't do humility well, but I'm learning from Jesus:

"Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross." Philippians 2:5-8 [ESV]

Humility helps me accept correction from others. Humility helps me to overlook what I perceive is an offense (Proverbs 19:11). Humility helps me apologize when I'm wrong. Humility helps me listen to my business clients and meet their needs without feeling like I always have to be right or in control.

There is a lightness to humility. There is a confidence that comes from resting in the mercy of Jesus alone.

Sin is more harmful than we imagine, and has a greater grip on us than we like to admit. But, because of this, the Gospel is also better news than we realize, and God is more gracious and compassionate than we understand.

That's good news friends.

Today's printable Bible verse coloring page is from Mark 10:18b. You can download your page HERE or by clicking on the image below!*

Mark 10:19 words of Jesus printable Bible verse

PRAYING the Word
Thank you God that you are slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love to a sinner like me. Thank you that by grace, you are transforming my mind to be like yours. Keep my lowly and humble, unafraid to look at my sin, so that I can repent and find grace and receive mercy. Thank you that I can approach you with confidence because of your great love, bringing nothing but my contrite heart. (See Psalm 86:15; Hebrews 4:16; Psalm 51:17)

QUESTIONS to consider:

1. How is the truth that "no one is good but God alone" actually good news?
2. In what ways do you try to justify yourself before God?
3. How would an attitude of humility serve you well in your relationships with others and with the God who loves you?

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February 23, 2017

No one is good + Mark 10:18 Bible verse coloring page

Hello friends! There are many things marinating in my heart and my blog drafts folder, but none of them are quite ready to share, so today I'm simply sharing this coloring page with you.

I illustrated this verse as the start of a Scripture card set on our value in Christ. What other verses would you include in that set?

This printable Bible coloring page is from Ephesians 2:10. You can download yours in English HERE and in Spanish HERE (or by clicking the images below).* You can check out all the other coloring page (including more in Spanish) HERE.

PRAYING the Word

Thank you for taking such care to create us. I pray that, in Christ, we will walk faithfully in the good works you've prepared for us to do.

QUESTIONS to ask about the verses:

1. God calls you His workmanship. How does that affect how you see yourself?
2. God calls other people His workmanship too! How does that affect how you see them?

3. This verse says you were created "in Christ Jesus for good works." What does "in Christ Jesus" mean and why is that a key part of the verse?
4. What does this verse say is your part in what God has prepared for you?

*I'm so happy for you to enjoy my coloring pages and printables for your personal (not commercial) use! All artwork and photos are copyright Marydean Draws. If you share this, you're awesome (!), and as a courtesy, please link back to this post and not the PDF file. Thank you!!

If you like this, you can get these posts in your inbox by signing up HERE! You'll also receive occasional news from my Etsy shop.

July 11, 2016

HIS workmanship printable coloring page (in English and Spanish)

Tulip image courtesy of Twiggy Posts

Only your Creator can tell you who you are. This is the truth that's been ringing in my ears lately.

Did you know a mirror is just piece of glass coated on one side with reflective metal? A mirror reflects your outward image, but it can't give you any information about:

who you are.
what you were made to do.
what's important and valuable about you.
your worth.

"For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." (Ephesians 2:10 ESV)

Stare long and hard, but your mirror can't define these things.

Let God define what's beautiful about you.

"Do not let your adorning be external--the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear--but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious. For this is how the holy women who hoped in God used to adorn themselves, by submitting to their own husbands," (1 Peter 3:3-5 ESV)

What's does God say is beautiful in His sight?

Your spirit. The hidden person of the heart that the mirror can't reflect. This is the place where God chooses to dwell by His Spirit, producing in you gentleness and quietness. I don't think this is necessarily about volume, but about a spirit submitted to His.

I think God loves the work He's about in His creations because it brings Him glory. If you belong to Him, He loves the changes that are happening in your heart. He loves the way you're growing and changing. He loves the work He gets to do through you as you go about your day (see this post about that!).

If we're going to fuss over something friends, let's fuss about our spirits, not our fashion (although I don't think there's anything wrong with enjoying fashion. The issue is what our hearts are attached to).

"For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Matthew 6:21 ESV)

Let's lead our spirits again and again back into slavery to His. When we see we're wrong, let's repent and mourn and cling to the One who made us right at the cross.

I'm going to do my best to obey God and take care of this body I was given until God gives me a new one free of sin and sickness.

But this body is not who I am.

I'm getting white hair and my shape is totally different than it was when I was 20. Any beauty I once had will continue to fade. If my hope and my identity are there, I will despair.

But if I place my hope in God, along along with the long lineage of beautiful women of the past, my identity rests on His unchanging grace and love for me.

PRAYING the Word
I pray that God will continue to cultivate the beauty of my heart, and that I would value that beauty more than any other.

QUESTIONS to ask about the verses:

1. The beauty God loves is hidden in our hearts. What does that mean for how we see the people around us?
2. Think about this beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit. Who are some people in your life who are beautiful in this way?

3. How can we help grow this kind of beauty in our hearts?

Today's printable Bible coloring page is from 1 Peter 3:3-4! You can download your page here or by clicking on the image below!*

"Let your beauty be not just outward adoring but the hidden person of the heart in the adoring of a gentle and quiet spirit which in God's sight is very precious." 1 Peter 3:3-4

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May 25, 2016

The problem with mirrors

It's so good to be back after my month of rest! Even though my husband (who has recovered well) was stuck on the couch a good two weeks after his knee surgery, I found there's a soul rest that doesn't depend on the fullness of your days. My house is rarely quiet, but my soul needed to stop striving and live quietly for a while.

Over the break, I read three books in the Chronicles of Narnia series that I don't ever remember reading. If you haven't read this series by C.S. Lewis, I'm a bit jealous that you have the chance to read them for the first time, although they're good the second and third too!

I came across a theme in Lewis's The Horse and His Boy that has been marinating in my heart since I read it. One of the characters, a young girl named Aravis, runs away from an undesirable marriage and so unwittingly causes her former servant to be punished. Aravis asks Aslan about this girl's fate (Aslan is a lion, and the central character in the all the books. He is the Creator and ruler of Narnia).

Aslan responds, "Child . . . I am telling you your story, not hers. No one is told any story but their own."

Aslan's words remind me of Jesus's words to Peter in their first conversation after Peter denied Jesus three times and since Jesus's resurrection. Jesus has just reaffirmed Peter's calling to "Feed My sheep." But Peter's mind turns quickly to the future of Jesus's other disciple, John, who was, after all, "the disciple Jesus loved" (John 13:23)! Peter asks, "But Lord, what about this man?"

Jesus replies, "If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow Me" (John 21:21-22).

Just like Peter, I can be such a "but what about her?" kind of girl. In our social age, we can get so lost in everyone else's story. We know how they feel about politics, the weather, their spouses, and various causes. We know what kind of food they're eating, how they decorate their homes, and how they spend their Saturdays and with whom.

I'm not arguing that this sharing is bad, but I think social media can create an environment that is unhealthy for unguarded hearts. Just as you are more likely to get malaria in the jungle than in New York City, although neither place is inherently good or bad, you're more likely to struggle with loving your own story in certain environments. And just as you're more likely to become sick if you have a compromised immune system, you're more likely to struggle in certain environments if your heart is vulnerable. At the root, the problem is not the environment, but the heart.

My heart sure needs a boost of immunity. I struggle to love MY story, the story that my faithful God is writing.

I'm like Peter asking Jesus, "Well, what about her . . .
marriage,
ministry,
business,
energy level,
strengths,
children's behavior,
friendships,
hardships,
HER STORY?"

Like Jesus' gentle redirection of Peter's heart, He lovingly says to me (I imagine with my cheeks grasped between His hands in an attempt to get me to focus) "If I am doing that in her life, what is that to you? You, follow me."

So simple. You follow Me, my dear.

Maybe your story is messy.
Maybe your story is unhappy.
Maybe your story is confusing.
Maybe your story is incredibly ordinary.

But written all into the plot lines is God's great faithfulness to you. Written into your story is His great grace for you ensured at the cross by the Son. Written into your story is His conforming work that makes you more like Him..

So love your story because God is walking you through it, moment by moment. Joni Earickson Tada in her book, A Place of Healing: Wrestling with the Mysteries of Suffering, Pain, and God's Sovereignty, relates her journey as a quadriplegic for more than 40 years. She explain how she is able to go on through the pain:

"I can go on . . . because God moves through time with me. . . . He knows time in a personal, experiential way. As the writer of Hebrews said, 'We don't have a priest who is out of touch with our reality' . . . When you find yourself in chronic agony, life gets reduced to hours rather than days--and sometimes minutes and seconds. When I am in physical distress in the night, unable to sleep, unable to move, and unwilling to awaken Ken (again) to turn me, I need to know that God's concern and care for me is literally breath by breath, heartbeat by heartbeat, moment by moment."

God is not a distracted and distant author. No, He is the God who is with us, the God who was one of us, the God who now dwells in those who trust in Him. Your story is personal to Him.

Love your story because the Author already sees the end of it--and it's beautiful if you'll trust Him. It may not be beautiful now, but it's not finished.

"And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ." Philippians 1:6

If you trust in Him and His work on your behalf, your story ends with you face to face with all His brilliant glory. It ends with you fully knowing the Author of life, just as He has always known you. It ends with all your current heartache and pain, victories and accomplishments, fading in the light of His presence.

"For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known." 1 Corinthians 13:12

"For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison." 2 Corinthians 4:17

There are a great many stories that God is writing, and I hope we'll take joy in sharing in those, especially via social media. But only you can live yours.

Jesus says, "YOU follow me."

To remind you of this truth, I made a print for you to print and frame or just clip on your refrigerator. You can download your 8x10 print HERE (usage below*). If you'd like a smaller size, cut your paper to the desired size (such as a 5x7), change your paper size in your printer settings, and then choose the "scale to paper" option. Enjoy!

*I'm so happy for you to enjoy my coloring pages and printables for your personal (not commercial) use! All artwork and photos are ã Marydean Draws. Please share freely by posting a link back to this blog post. Please don't repost the actual file. If you share this, you're awesome (!), and as a courtesy, please link back to this post and not the PDF file. Thank you!!

If you like this, you can get these posts in your inbox by signing up HERE! You'll also receive occasional news from my Etsy shop.

January 6, 2016

Loving your story + Printable Art Print

I was driving home from my favorite discount grocery store and heard the Casting Crowns song, "Thrive," playing on the radio. This chorus ends with this:

"We know we were made for so much more /
Than ordinary lives /
It's time for us to more than just survive /
We were made to thrive."

I like the song, but weary from another long week with the kiddos, I thought of how my days don't look like thriving, and they certainly aren't more than ordinary.

Is this a biblical anthem to claim, I wondered. Or is this just a catchy lyric made for the young and optimistic to belt out?

So, I've done a little Bible detective work to try and answer the question: What does it look like for a Jesus-follower to thrive?

Here are some thoughts:

Thriving can look like ordinary faithfulness.
I'm the product of a very churched upbringing followed by a Christian college education (at Gardner-Webb University), all of which I'm grateful for, but I find that sometimes in an effort to motivate young people, we unintentionally create the expectation that life has to be extraordinary to be Kingdom-shaking. This expectation then makes it a struggle to be faithful in the ordinary. Everything we do serves our King:

Colossians 3:23-24 "Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ."

1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 ". . . and to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one."

Thriving can look unsuccessful.
We have an idea what a successful "walk with God" looks like, and when things get difficult, we think we've got it all wrong or begin to doubt God's faithfulness. Have we been reading and hearing God's words selectively?

Isaiah 40:31 "but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint."

My vision of thriving often looks like soaring eagles, or at least running, and definitely not just walking and trying not to faint. But God's promise in this oft-cited verse in Isaiah 40 is that, as we wait for Him, He will renew our strength so we can keep going--sometimes soaring--yes, sometimes running--yes, and sometimes just enough strength to put one foot in front of the other without keeling over. Not glamorous. Just faithful.

Or consider the list of the faithful in Hebrews Chapter 11. Our friend Matt taught on this passage and pointed out how we like to identify with the people on the first part of this list, but not the last!

"And what more shall I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets—who through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, were made strong out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. Women received back their dead by resurrection. [And here's where things take a turn.] Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life. Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated— of whom the world was not worthy—wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth." Hebrews 11:32-28

"Unsuccessful" as these last in the list seem by our standards, God honored them their steadfast faith that was sure of what they hoped for and certain of what they couldn't see (Hebrews 11;1).

Thriving can feel like dying.
There is no thriving without a crushing of us in some way. Look at what must come before resurrection:

"But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh." 2 Corinthians 4:7-10

Afflicted in every way . . . completely normal.
Perplexed . . . to be expected.
Persecuted . . . yes.
Struck down . . . it's what we signed up for.
Death . . . just following the Master so His life can come alive in us.

And until our complete redemption (yes it's coming!), so much of the old sinful flesh is left to die!

Romans 8:13 "For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live."

Colossians 3:5 "Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry."

Mark 8:35 "For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it."

John 12:24 "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit."

Every day, there is death to my selfishness, my will, and my flesh and all it cries out for. Death doesn't immediately feel like thriving, but it's necessary in order to yield fruit.

Thriving is the result of abiding in Christ.
Consider these passages with very similar tree images:

Jeremiah 17:7-8 "Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose trust is the LORD. 8 He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit."

Psalm 1:1-4 "Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; 2 but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. 3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. 4 The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away."

Fruitfulness, not necessarily great things you are doing, is the mark of a thriving life. Fruitfulness is what God is doing in you through being rooted in Him. The trees in the passages above are fruitful because of their position of rootedness. They are unmoved by changes in weather, seasons, or drought. They are thriving.

So, there's some evidence, friends. I'd love to know what you think now. What does it look like for Jesus-followers to thrive? Do your expectations for thriving match up with God's Word? I'd love to hear you thoughts in the comments!

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July 15, 2015