In case you were not in chapel this past Thursday, a brief synopsis of the devotion and its direct impact on you:
It seems to me that there are two very key parts to the Lent season: our ability to surrender and our need to receive. As we enter the Lent season, we focus deliberately on Jesus, his sacrifice and the gift of his resurrection. For the next 40 days, I would like to challenge our community to be intentional in living out our faith... Do we live what we say we believe? Can we make sacrifices? Can we look beyond ourselves? (see the attachment for great thoughts on Lent)
I was blessed to grow up in a home where my parents were diligent to model, teach and expect stewardship as a Christian value. My parents were very intentional in helping us explore need versus want, sharing, money education, the value of people versus the value of things etc. I see that there is a direction connection between our ability to be generous and our faith journey.
Reid and I were blessed to receive a gift from our parents (my parents, his in-laws) this year and we want to share that gift with others. We are giving each class $1000 to use to bless others. We ask only that as a class you pray for awhile over how that money is to be spent and then that you put in writing how this decision reflects one or more of our Women of Heart values. We believe strongly in Matthew 10:8 "...Freely you have received, freely give."
Our Women of Heart values are: Faith, Family, Growth, Stewardship, Fun, Rest and Integrity. (Not coincidentally, these are also our family's core values except that for our list the wording is a little different: Christ-centeredness, Community/Family, Growth, Stewardship, Balance, Creativity, Integrity!)
Please encourage your class to dream. Remember, Ephesians 3:20-21 is a key verse in this community: "Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."
In my life giving / receiving and acceptance of Christ have definitely been connected. Hence the deliberate tie-in to Lent: at Lent we recognize both the sacrifice of God sending us His son, Jesus' being fully God yet fully human and his 40 days in the desert, and the celebration of His resurrection, the ultimate gift. (Note: the 40 days don't include Sundays as we are meant to continue to celebrate His resurrection! Don't you love that?!). Matthew 6: 24 helps me to persevere and journey into that discomfort "No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money." There may be some in your group who will also find it a challenge to receive or to give for the same reason as I did (do) or for other reasons. I am available for helping anyone process her struggles as I have spent much of my life struggling through these issues and continue to- I'm sure it is lifelong for all of us. And what is so wonderful about our Women of Heart community is that I know from first hand experience that you are available to help me as I continue in my Joy in the Journey!
