Grace Unceasing

WHEN I… really feel like I’m missing this…

THEN I… remember how much I would really miss this…

I have a hard-working daughter.  She spends hours copying, laminating, highlighting, studying. God’s Word is important to her.  Doing what is asked is important to her.  Some folks are against any type of “competition” or earthly “reward” for studying God’s Word.  But I think it has its merits.

Think about how many things you do today that you need to do or that you want to do, that started out as a you “have” to do as a kid.  Brushing our teeth is good for us.  Remember those cute little timers and old-school electric toothbrushes that were around to instill good brushing habits? You think brushing your teeth is a pretty good thing now, don’t you? How about having to eat your vegetables?  If you at all your vegetables…you got dessert.  A pretty good pay off, huh?  And even now, though you may hot get all excited about your veggies, you know it’s a good thing for you…and you eat them.  Now, I know none of these things are “godly” but they are good. And kids are kids regardless of the spiritual element in your home.

So, do my kids get rewarded for some spiritual activities?  Yep.  Will they get gift cards or trophies when they are adults?  Nope.  But hopefully they will get the rewards from the kingdom and from God’s Word itself because they know being in God’s Word daily and memorizing His Word is…good for them.  On every level.  And even on the days when they don’t feel like cracking it open (or logging on…) they will do it anyway because it IS good and it IS right and it IS what will make the difference.

That said, my 10-year-old and my 14-year-old are memorizing 24 verses this year.  Should I do any less?  It’s great to pat them on the back and say, “Way to go girls!”  But wouldn’t the better reward be for them to see Mom writing, and rewriting, and studying and highlighting and studying those verses too?  I plan to sit alongside my 14-year-old when she takes her verse test and take it right along with her.

I’m only on verse 12 and I have about four weeks to go.  As the little blue engine said, “I think I can!  I think I can!”  No…wait…with the power of the Holy Spirit on my side, “I KNOW I can, I KNOW I can!”

I’ll let you know how it goes.  I do pretty well with the verses, but with this year’s “Future Events” theme, I’m struggling with all those references from Revelation!  My memory stick ain’t what it used to be!

This is great.  Thank you, Lindsay, at Passionate Homemaking for this great weekly planning sheet!

http://www.passionatehomemaking.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/My-Weekly-Intentional-Living-Plan.pdf

From The Path of His Passion by Bill Crowder

She Sat by the Grave

Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses were looking on to see where He was laid (Mark 15:47).

Nothing could drive Mary Magdalene and the other women from the side of their fallen Lord as Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea performed the grim and grisly task of removing the body of Jesus from the cross.  Faithfully they followed the mournful little procession as they made their way from the Place of the Skull to the tomb–purchased by the Arimathean for his own burial but now given to the Lord he loved…

Every step of the way, she was at His side–yet how tragic.  She becomes to us the very image of grief.  As the darkness of night deepens to match the darkness of the sorrow in her heart, Mary Magdalene sat by the grave–her heart filled with questions that had no answers…

In the darkness of gloom and grief, however, there existed the brightness of hope–hope in the One who had rescued her and redeemed her life.  Even the nature of the questions calls for answers that go beyond our natural points of reference.

From The Path of His Passion by Bill Crowder:

It is not a surprise that Mary did not want to be separated from the One who had rescued her from the depths of demonic oppression.  In fact, even to the end, she was faithful when Jesus’ disciples (apart from John) had abandoned Him.

She stood by the Cross

But standing by the cross of Jesus were His mother, and His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene (John 19:25).

No, her devotion didn’t wane.  Her love didn’t cool.  Even at the cross, heartbroken and devastated, Mary Magdalene stayed right there.  Mary witnessed the brutality of the cross and the horrors of the suffering of Christ while most of the disciples were in hiding.  She could not walk away.  She was compelled to stay because this was where the Christ was–and she had to be with Him.  While the disciples secreted themselves away, the women stayed at the scene.  Watching.  Suffering.  Wondering.  Weeping.  Nothing could describe the deep sadness of their hearts at the moment Christ breathed His last from the cross of love and yielded His spirit to the Father.  Yet they were there.  Mary Magdalene among them.  The devotion of her heart could not be set aside by the passing of time, by public opinion, by danger, or even the threat of death.