Don’t Worry

May 22, 2019 / thinkfulkarin / Leave a comment

Musa Ukukhathazeka!

The Zulu words for Don’t Worry! look daunting indeed. 🙂 Actually they are not really that hard. Just sound it out (but the “h” is silent).

At age 58, my husband and I began learning the Zulu language. For a while, I struggled with being th(i)nkful about it. Seriously. But now it is exhilarating to feel more and more comfortable with Zulu words. I find that some Zulu words come to mind that capture an idea better than English words do. Haha!

Worries of the Rich

Matthew 6:30-33 describes a lesson that we are to learn from the grass of the field with its beautiful wildflowers.

But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

We are not to be anxious. The God who clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, is going to clothe us. He is going to take care of us. We do not need to worry. In fact, He says DON’T do it.

Basic food, basic clothing, and basic shelter are pretty easy to come by, but because most of us have much more, we worry more. We have what we call “rich-people problems.” Think about it. We worry about the car accident, the air conditioner’s broken condenser, the college bills, the alarm system going on the blink again, the app on my cell phone not working. We don’t stop to think that we actually have cars, air conditioners, higher education, properties to guard, and cell phones … when most of the world does not. Perspective.

Norwegian Blåklokker

Zooming up from Zululand, where we live now at the bottom of the earth … to Norway at the top of the earth, let me take you on a short trip. I grew up in a little town called Brumunddal, Norway. My father built a house that we called ‘Solheim’ on the hillside of Bjørgeberget.

I sometimes would walk in the forests around our home and one day came across these beautiful blåklokker – flowers we call “blue bells.” They happened to bloom close to my birthday in July. I was so thrilled to find such beauties in the meadow on my birthday. I loved them. These wildflowers were so very delicate … frail … exquisite.

Th(i)nkfulness Attacks Worry

My heavenly Father, who created the blåklokker, also created me and you. He has got this! He is completely in control. You do not need to worry. You can substitute the worry with trust and thankfulness.

Instead of focusing on your item of worry, focus on the character of your Creator God. He has made promises to you that He will make all things come together for your Christlike good if you have trusted in him as your Savior (Romans 8:28). He is sovereign and completely trustworthy. He is within you and with you; obviously you can’t escape His notice. He is using what you are going through to shape you into “Jesus in your skin.” He has to keep His promises.

Engaging in th(i)nkfulness drives worry away.

What are you th(i)nkful for today? My list is:

The sound of the waves of the Indian Ocean
We had Zulu class with Ignatia yesterday
This past weekend we gathered with believers from Grace-Toti for a family camp
Romans 15:13
The Lord tenderly cares for me like a father does for his beloved child
When things that are difficult happen in my life, I can be assured that He has a purpose and a plan to use it to make me more like Jesus if I respond biblically
This life is a vapor
My Savior has removed my sin and reconciled me with my Creator God
Our precious daughter-in-law’s pregnancy is going so well even though it had a rough beginning
I Corinthians 10:13 promises that He will not test me above what I am able

Ikke bekymre deg (Norwegian)

Musa ukukhathazeka (Zulu)

Don’t worry (English)

Th(i)nkful for Dr.Mandy

May 13, 2019May 22, 2019 / thinkfulkarin / Leave a comment

For What Are You Th(i)nkful Today?

Every Monday there are “Th(i)nkful Lists” being sent between South Africa and the USA. I have a dear friend who has asked that we keep each other accountable in being th(i)nkful. Every Monday, we exchange our new lists. It has been such a blessing to me. I love looking back on our texts and seeing precious gifts that God has given us … from something small like a ray of sunshine to the answer of a huge prayer request. It is good to give thanks!

Th(i)nkful(adj) describing people who choose to download grace/strength from the Lord to think thanks about every circumstance in their life and to express that thanks orally or in written form.

Dr. Mandy

In the spirit of being th(i)nkful, let me introduce you to Dr. Mandy. She is a wife and mother and a believing medical doctor. She grew up in Joburg, but has lived for some time down here on the coast near Durban. Her husband Marc and their daughter are her joys. She has a strong love for the hurting; that does not mean just humans, but also animals of all kinds. 🙂 She struggles to see someone in pain and works so hard as a doctor to help.

When David and I, and our Nick and Elly, moved to the south of Johannesburg in 2005 to help plant MountainView Bible Church, we got to know Dr. Mandy. She was an early member of the church-plant there. We grew to love her and she became our doctor when we needed medical care.

We went on a relief mission to Zimbabwe together during the cholera outbreak, and she came with us to the African informal settlements when few whites would. We were sad to see her and the family move to Durban – a 7-hour drive away – when Marc got a job transfer in 2012, but we entrusted them to the Lord.

God’s Kind Fingerprints

When God called David and me back to South Africa in 2017, one of the kind fingerprints of the Lord was that Dr. Mandy and her family were members of the church that was to be our base here in South Africa.

We arrived last September, and from the beginning of our stay here, though we are also good friends, we needed Dr. Mandy’s medical help through some new medical issues. David got tick-bite fever and Dr. Mandy got him on an antibiotic right away. For almost a decade, Dr. Mandy has been my advocate and friend helping me navigate my struggle with my lungs.

It Is Good to Acknowledge

Paul in the N.T. often gave a greeting to someone in his letters and said that he was thankful to God for them. I want to follow that example and thank the Lord for His kindness in allowing Dr. Mandy to be here close to where we are working. Medical problems are often one of the main reasons that missionaries leave the field. Having Dr. Mandy nearby has definitely helped me to thrive here on the field.

I give thanks.

Your Th(i)nkful Person

I wonder if there is a person in your life like that? It may not be your doctor, but maybe it is a neighbor or a sister, a co-worker, or friend at church? Have you communicated your thankfulness to God and to them? God gives us so many gifts every single day. They are all around us and we must train our eyes to recognize them and acknowledge.

It is good to give thanks to the Lord,
to sing praises to your name, O Most High

Psalm 92:1

The Logo of Your Life

May 6, 2019May 6, 2019 / thinkfulkarin / 2 Comments

The Th(i)nkful Logo

It’s here!!!

My Th(i)nkful logo has been up and running for a few weeks. It is so fun to see it in different styles. My desire was to have it look like an olive tree, representing Psalm 52:8-9a where it says: “But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God; I trust in the steadfast love of God forever and ever. I will thank you forever.”

The three parts of a tree – roots, trunk, and crown – are perfect to represent the process of being th(i)nkful.

I have to have roots in the Word of God and the Person of God in order to trust His character when heat and storms come, and I cannot figure out His ways;
Through the trunk, I pull up that trust from the roots and connect it with what is going on up in the crown. That pulling-up process occurs in my thinking and meditation.
Then, as a result of the trust developed in the roots, and the renewed thinking pulling up that trust, I am able to give thanks in the crown, having branches, leaves, and fruit that thrive, no matter the heat or storm.

Trust. Think. Thank.

What Organizations Do

When I wanted the logo, the graphic artist asked me probing questions about what my purpose and values were in starting th(i)nkful. I had to really sit down and think about it. Organizations come up with logos and purpose statements to encapsulate their identity, and doing this takes time and thought.

A logo is a mark, emblem, image or symbol used to aid and promote public identification and recognition. When a person sees that design, it is supposed to trigger a connection and help them remember what it represents.
A purpose statement is a succinct statement answering the question why an organization exists. It gives direction to employees and customers alike, and normally does not change over time.

Th(i)nkful is not an organization; it’s just a personal ministry – nothing fancy. But the exercise of encapsulating something big into a small space is challenging, and can be rewarding. Here’s a thought! Let’s apply these two tools to you, to your life.

You As A Logo

If you were represented in a logo, what it would look like? Stop laughing. Be serious. What’s a little image that would identify you as a person? Would you use hands, or a plant, or wood, or rock, or a river, or a feather, or the sun in your life-logo? Maybe fog? What colors would you use? Would your logo be complex or simple?

Maybe take a few minutes and sketch something.

Your Life Purpose Statement

In the Biblical Womanhood course that I taught at a Christian university, I required each learner to come up with an LPS – a Life Purpose Statement. It needed to be short enough to remember but also encapsulate what their life was all about.

Why do you exist? Why did a sovereign and meticulously planning God who is infinite Mind place you on earth in your time and place?

For Jesus-followers, there are two basic purposes that should flavor everything we do – to love God and love others (Luke 10:27), and to glorify God (1 Corinthians 10:31) – but don’t just copy-paste those phrases into your purpose statement, since they apply to every Christian.

What is your unique purpose? Can you word-smith your statement to blend in ways in which you are individually wired or gifted to glorify God in your life? Take time with this. Try a first draft and come back to it in a day or two. The journey is more important than the destination.

My LPS is : “To maintain an intimate walk with the Lord that will enable me to develop relationships with believers and unbelievers to create thirst for righteousness.”
My husband’s LPS is: “To walk, work, and worship in such a way as to bring about life-change towards Christlikeness in the life of every person and organization I come in contact with.”

To craft my LPS was an exercise that has left a profound impact on me. When I go to bed at night, I can do a quick check on my day to evaluate if I am accomplishing my purpose. Every day, I should be able to relate everything back to that purpose.

I challenge you to prayerfully come up with your own LPS and a logo that represents your LPS. Maybe post your LPS in the comments below.

A good way to come to the end of your life without regrets is to live on purpose.

4 L’s

April 24, 2019 / thinkfulkarin / 4 Comments

What Is Your Biggest Sin-problem?

My grad school professor looked at all of us in class and asked: “What is your biggest sin problem?” He said that, in order for us to learn to be good counselors of others, we first had to be able to self-counsel. Our assignment was to identify a sin pattern that we personally struggled with and to track it for six weeks.

And so, we began. We charted when we struggled most, when we failed and gave in to the temptation, and when we were able to resist and have victory. We studied out how to avoid the places of temptation, to be vigilant during the hours of typical temptation, how to respond when tempted, and how to fight back by renewing our thoughts, replacing the evil with the good. It was a very profitable and eye-opening assignment for me.

4 L’s

I would like to present a tool from James 1 that could perhaps help you fight temptation. I am certain that, if you are human, you are fighting some kind of temptation. It may be sexual sin, covetousness, lying, stealing, worry, gossip, anger, bitterness, selfishness, or greed. The list is long. God can use the battles with these temptations to mold us into the image of His Son, the Lord Jesus, but the fight is REAL.

Here are the 4 L’s:

Locate – identify the temptation (James 1:14)
Link – connect the test with the Lord (James 1:2)
Linger – stay a while with Him and describe the temptation with blatant honesty and cry for wisdom (James 1:5-6)
Lieu – replace temptation with something (James 1:22)

Locating or identifying the temptation is a huge part of victory (James 1:14). Personally I struggle with worry. It is insidious and sneaks into the depths of my soul. I want to comfort-eat to relieve the pressure that I feel and get my mind off the vexatious thoughts. When I react sinfully, I feel badly afterwards because I know that I have not responded in a Christ-honoring manner. So if I am able to shine the flashlight on the temptation by locating it, that is a great start.

Linking or connecting the test with the Lord is the next key. We are told in James 1:2 that we are to count it joy when we are tested. Jesus said we should ask the Father, “do not to lead us into temptation.” He doesn’t tempt us with sin, but He allows the situation to make us stronger under pressure (vv. 3-4), and to motivate us to call out to Him for help (vv. 5-8).

In my own situation I felt like I could locate the temptation (anxiety) and link to the Lord right away by asking Him for help. But I find that often my focus is still on the temptation – for instance, I am getting more anxious as I pray. 😦

But when I begin to think thanks within the test, and for the test, I am able to link more profitably with the Lord. Saying out loud the things that I am thankful for right in the middle of the test, and then giving that thanks to God, grows my strength to fight.

“Count it all joy” means being th(i)nkful

Lingering with the Lord and sharing honestly with Him what I am struggling with, and even what I am tempted to do in sinful reaction, is like releasing the pressure that the temptation builds up. The sin especially flees if I speak it out loud or write it down. You shock yourself as you see your hand spell out the sin.

Rehearsing the promises that 1) God was with me, and 2) He designed and desired me to be victorious, and 3) He made wisdom available for free if I confidently asked just fueled my courage to trust in His help. If forgiveness was needed, He welcomed me with open arms. As I lingered with the Lord, my focus became different.

In Lieu Of, or the replacement principle, is the action part of winning over temptation. What you focus on you give power to. If I say “don’t steal this, don’t steal this,” I am repeating “this” and “steal” many times – not good. If I have the temptation to steal, I should immediately go to the front of the store and pay for someone’s purchase, or give a store clerk some money to say thanks for all of the people who don’t. Look at Ephesians 4:28!

This is the embodiment of being a doer of the word and not just a hearer (James 1:22-25). I need to replace the temptation. Problem with text-gossiping? Put it down and get busy. Think it out! Have a plan ready.

Get down and do 10 sit-ups
Put on your running shoes and get outside and run
Vacuum
Take a shower
Sing a chorus out loud
Read a book that edifies your soul
Write down 10 things that you are thankful for right now

Winning?

Hey, this is just a simple suggestion, but it is helping me. When I did that six-week assignment back in grad school, it made me aware of how advantageous it is to have a plan. Being th(i)nkful is a key in winning over temptation.

Download grace/help from the Lord to think thanks in every circumstance – even for tests, trials, and temptations – as James 1:2-4 mentions. Then express that thanks orally or in a written form. If you are in Christ, you don’t have to live a defeated life!

LOCATE ~ LINK ~ LINGER ~ LIEU

Paul Giving Thanks

April 16, 2019April 18, 2019 / thinkfulkarin / Leave a comment

Our Brother Paul

Welcome to a gathering of the Church in Aquila and Prisca’s home.

We are excited to hear from our brother Paul as he is here and going to share about his recent journeys. We are tantalized by the odors coming from the baking
khubz (Jewish pita bread) that we will enjoy after the teaching and sharing time.

I look around the group of believers gathered in my imagination, and am filled with gratitude to God for their courage and love for the Messiah. Many of them have suffered greatly for their faith. Many know of some that have given in and burnt the worship incense to the Roman gods. Some from this group have been martyred, finishing their earthly journey.

As we listen to our brother share, it is interesting to notice that Paul uses the words for gratitude ~thanks, thank, thanksgiving, thanksgivings, thankful, thanked~ 49 times in his letters. He valued gratitude.

Take the Resurrection Chapter of I Corinthians 15 where Paul shows that without the Lord Jesus rising from the dead, we are of all men most miserable. Here, Paul gives thanks to God who gives us the victory over death through our Lord Jesus Christ (I Corinthians 15:57). Or how about Romans 7:25 where Paul has been describing the struggle over who will deliver us from this body of death and cries out the solution: “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

Expressing Thanks

Paul was thankful for people, and told them so. He was careful to express his thanks to God for these individuals and clusters of believers in the letters he wrote:

Romans 1:8 – First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed in all the world.
I Corinthians 1:4 – I always thank my God for you because of the grace He has given you in Christ Jesus.
Ephesians 1:16 – I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers
Philippians 1:3 – I thank my God every time I remember you.
Colossians 1:3 – We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you,
1 Thessalonians 1:2 – We always thank God for all of you, making mention of you in our prayers
2 Thessalonians 1:3 – We are obligated to thank God for you all the time, brothers, as is fitting, because your faith is growing more and more, and your love for one another is increasing.
Philemon 1:4 – I always thank my God, making mention of you in my prayers

He showed by example how we are to not only think the thanks, but also express the thanks – first to God and then to other people.

Am I Th(i)nkful Like Paul?

Not so sure how I am doing on this issue. I need to be more intentional. I want to think and express my thanks to God first, and then to others for their faithful walk in the Lord. What an encouragement it is to remember the godly examples of others who have gone before us or even others walking life right beside us here and now. Paul’s example is a guide.

Paul’s Prayer for the Colossians

Way back in 2010 our family got together in a cabin in PA. Our youngest daughter had not even started university yet. We were meeting ‘significant others’ and the grand-babies were starting to arrive.

The Sunday morning that we were there, we studied together one of Paul’s prayers. A few months earlier David had gotten all the guys to volunteer to give a talk about a portion of Colossians 1:9-14. They each taught us a piece of this important prayer that Paul offered up for the believers at Colossae. That is a very precious memory to me.

Here is Colossians 1:9-14:

⁹And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, ¹⁰so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;¹¹being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy; ¹²giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. ¹³He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, ¹⁴in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

Paul is challenging the readers by sharing his prayer for them. He is praying for their maturity and growth in the Lord, and for fruitfulness and long-suffering. He ends by praying for them to give thanks to the Father who has delivered them and qualified them for an amazing inheritance.

Thanks, Brother Paul

So as we leave Aquila’s home in our imagination and head out into the world, whether it be Africa, Asia, Europe, America, Australia, or New Zealand … or wherever you go, let’s follow Paul’s admonition. Let’s think thanks and give thanks to our Father first, and then be a bit more intentional in expressing our thanks to others for who they are and what they’ve done.

Who comes to mind that you give thanks to God for in your life? What about them are you thankful for?

Have you shared that with them lately?

Change

April 8, 2019April 8, 2019 / thinkfulkarin / 5 Comments

Change

Have you observed when night changes to day?

Darkness fills everywhere and then ever-so-slowly there begins a hint of difference. A little light begins to seep in driving back the much larger but helpless wings of darkness. Inexorable exchange. Shapes become visible but are colorless. When night actually ends is hard to pinpoint, but sure and steady, comes the dawn.

If you were to define ‘change,’ what would you say? The exchange of one thing for another? To make or become different? Change is a massive field of study in leadership, business, education, technology, counseling, and the list goes on. That is simply because due to the constant motion in our minds, bodies, lives, societies, and the cosmos, nothing is ever the same.

Attitudes Toward Change

Youth tend to love change; that’s why they often start revolutions, movements, and new paradigms. Older folks tend to fear and avoid change because it requires so much energy to remember the changes, adjust to new people, and learn new patterns.

The old timers know much better what the old creature called “time” does – when an event or conversation passes from the present into the past, time freezes it so that it can’t change. This causes many people to regret the past, and just as many to have anxiety about the future.

But, is it really true that time freezes the past? Or is thankfulness a tool that transcends time to change memories, change the present, and even influence my future?

Gratitude Changes the Present

Myriad things in this life promise to change things for the better – that’s what advertisements are all about. But those products can only change possessions and circumstances that surround you; they are expensive and they grow old.

Gratitude doesn’t take money, family connections, or a fancy education to use it. It is put into play one little choice at a time, and it can change your past, your present, and your future.

“No amount of regret changes the past.

No amount of anxiety changes the future.

Any amount of gratitude changes the present.”

http://www.becomingminimalist.com

There is so much hope in the thought that gratitude changes things. It changes the way we view our present circumstances. We can jump the track of anxiety and just start down the track of gratitude. We can give thanks right now for what we have right now.

Gratitude Changes the Past

Our Creator, Who knows us better that we know ourselves, has shown us how we are to handle regrets of the past. “Every saint has a past; every sinner has a future.” If we need to ask forgiveness, He can help us through that process. The 7 A’s of Confession is a fantastic resource to work through things.

Be thankful that your past is exactly that – your past. Be thankful that you feel regret instead of glorying in your past darkness. Be thankful for grace that pulled you out of the miry clay. You have changed with God’s help, and you can be thankful that He who began that work in you will not stop (Phil. 1:6). You may be wounded and damaged … and therefore fully usable because our God specializes in broken things. There is nothing too hard for the Lord, including helping you put your past in its proper place.

Gratitude Changes The Future

If you are consumed with anxiety about your future, come to Him who engineered it and holds it and says it’s a perfect part of a much bigger story. Philippians 4:6-7 shows how we can pour out our anxieties before Him and immerse them with thanksgiving, leaving Him to work as He wills, and He promises this supernatural peace to come and guard us emotionally and intellectually.

Gratitude doesn’t just change the present, it changes the way we view the past and the future. Engage change! Download grace and strength from the Lord to think thanks about every circumstance in your life and express that thankfulness orally or in a written form.

David taught our family a chorus that he had learned when growing up called: “From glory to glory He’s changing me.” It takes 2 Corinthians 3:18 and puts it to music. As I engage gratitude, God changes me. He changes my view of the present, He changes the way I process my past, He changes the way I look to the future. He changes ME to be more like His precious Son, the Lord Jesus.

Let gratitude change you!

I Will Be God

March 27, 2019 / thinkfulkarin / 6 Comments

Perfection and Pride

The Story of Hope is a 40-lesson walk through the Bible that has beautiful new illustrations. My coworker and I are moving through this study with three Zulu women. It is going great. 🙂 Today we did the lesson on the Fall of Lucifer. Lucifer is given an incredible description in Ezekiel 28 and Isaiah 14. He was created by God, perfect in beauty and wisdom, had a covering of precious stones and worshipped God in God’s holy presence. He was originally blameless in his ways and even had access to Eden, the Garden of God on the earth.

But Lucifer became inflated with pride and started down the road of self-exaltation. He ended up not just wanting to be like God, but he wanted to be the Most High.

Th(i)nkful and Humility

In reflecting on the fall of Lucifer, I was hit with how often I personally try to be God. I want to control things in my life. Instead of humbly bowing before God, and deferring to His choices and wisdom in all my circumstances, I start to evaluate what I think is best, and what should have been done, and what would have been done if I was in control. I go on a little self-worshipping Lucifer-rant.

Being th(i)nkful is really about letting God be God and in humility accepting that fact. It is saying, “God, because you say it’s perfect, it is perfect, and I will thank you for it.” Hope, grace, and joy begin to surround my thinking as I download help from the Lord to think thanks in every circumstance in my life and express that thanks.

That choice is hard. Let’s be honest! For most of us, it is difficult to not control things. Our hands must go up in surrender and open in praise. We have to trust that God knows what He is doing. Of course, how can you trust someone if you don’t know them well? And this is a big key to life: know, love, trust. We can only build trust by getting to know that person, and then coming to love them.

Results of “Being” God

In our study this morning we read about the consequences of Lucifer exalting himself to being God. After some serious self-evaluation, he concluded that he should assume the position of the Creator instead of being second best, merely a created spirit. He caused the beginning of evil.

In philosophy, my husband tells me, there is no such thing as evil. Like darkness, cold, and falsity, evil is a term describing the lack of something that does exist, and all four of those things find their source in God’s character. God is Light. He is Fire. He is Truth. He is Goodness. In the beginning, God created choice. Lucifer had two options: the Creator or something other than the Creator. He chose something other than the Creator; he chose himself, and gave birth to the un-Good of evil, becoming known throughout all ages as Satan – “the adversary.”

If anyone had cause for over-the-top thankfulness, it was Lucifer, the anointed, powerful, and musical cherub who stood next to God’s Throne. But pride inflates our thoughts and ideas to become “the optimal standard of what is true and right.” He focused on what he thought was wrong and lacking. Satan did it. We do it.

Only God is God; We are Not

Psalm 52:8-9a gives a beautiful contrast to Lucifer’s debacle. “But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God. I trust in the steadfast love of God forever and ever. I will thank you forever.”

Instead of trying to critique God, and instruct God, and be the God of your own circumstances … why not trust in the steadfast love of God forever and thank Him? Exercise your trust in God and revel in His steadfast love. His Word will stand the test of time and His promises will never fail. He is completely trustworthy. As we lean in trust on Him who holds all things together, we can yield control and express our thanks to Him who is the true God, the right God, the only one fit to be God, our great Jehovah.

God is God. God is good. God is good at being God.

th(i)nkful (adj) describing people who choose to download grace/strength from the Lord to think thanks about every circumstance in their life and to express that thanks orally or in written form.

No Thanks

March 18, 2019 / thinkfulkarin / Leave a comment

No Thanks

Last night one of our colleagues was sharing a story of a very prominent man and his wife. This man and his wife were highly educated and strongly atheistic. They had one son together. When their son decided to trust in Christ, they were sorely disappointed. The last thing they wanted for him was to actually believe in God and live accordingly. Our co-worker tried to build a redemptive relationship with this man; they would have meals together. One thing that particularly irritated the man was when our friend would say “thank you.” He actually ridiculed and harassed him for always saying “thank you.” Since he found it so irritating, our colleague tried to refrain from saying that he was thankful when with him.

Thankfulness is showing that you humbly accept someone else’s help. A self-sufficient person doesn’t need anything from anyone. They are fine by themselves, and thus feel they never need to say thank you.

The Romans 1 Crowd

Currently, I am embarking on a personal study in the Book of Romans. This long letter is packed with so much truth; I am eagerly opening and unraveling the first chapter. Wow, it contains a very dark progression after verse 18. It describes people who knew God, but do not want to honor Him as God nor give thanks to Him.

These people continue to become futile in their thinking and their foolish hearts are darkened. They claim to be wise, but they become fools, moving further and further away from any sacrifice of thanksgiving to their Creator. Since they are without excuse, they will face a very harsh judgment.

The Psalm 50 Crowd

The Psalm 50 crowd is a bit more like you and me. They know about God, but they have gotten lost in empty religious routines, eyes half-open, trying to keep the rules. Righteousness is about a relationship, not rules and routines. But they forgot.

God reminds them that He doesn’t need anything; the sacrifices are for them, not for Him. A Supreme Being really doesn’t need dead animals. “Every beast of the forest is mine. I know all the birds of the hills, and all that moves in the field is mine” (Psalm 50:10-11). So, He strongly urges them to offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving in verses 14-15 and 23.

“Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving, and perform your vows to the Most High, and call upon me in the day of trouble;
    I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me (14-15)

The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies me;
    to one who orders his way rightly
    I will show the salvation of God!” (23)

Interesting that God chooses the word sacrifice. Sacrifices in the Old Testament were offered on an altar. It was costly, took effort and purposeful choice. And God knows that giving thanks (externalizing credit and fame to someone other than self) doesn’t come naturally to us humans. It takes effort; it has to be a purposeful choice. It is a sacrifice to offer up thanksgiving, especially when it is directed to God.

Someone who has cut God out of their lives really can’t be bothered with giving the sacrifice of thanksgiving. They are self-sufficient and don’t owe anyone anything, at least that is what they often believe. Nothing could be further from the truth.

No Thanks to Ingratitude

In complete contrast to ingratitude, I welcome you to consider the mandate of Ephesians 5:20, “Give thanks in everything” and to join the Psalm 50 crowd in breaking free from routine into a living and thank-filled relationship with your Creator and Redeemer.

Don’t let your thanksgiving be an irritant to unbelievers, like we learned earlier, but do seek to give thanks always for all things, even if it is just to yourself under your breath. 🙂

The big bonus in our day is that you don’t need to keep a stone altar in your backpack. You can offer up the sacrifice of thanksgiving at the bathroom mirror, in the driver’s seat, at your work desk, at the gym, or walking in the park.

“I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving and call on the name of the LORD.” Psalm 116:17

Fight Back With Thankfulness

March 7, 2019May 22, 2019 / thinkfulkarin / 2 Comments

Two Secrets

I am going to tell you two secrets.

The Paradox Principle

The first secret is that growing in Christ is built on paradoxes. Things that seem absurd or contradictory prove to be true and right. That is hard for us to really understand. We have to adjust and make new goals and expectations based on those paradoxes.

We died with Christ and are alive in Christ
The more we die daily, the more alive we are
The way up is the way down; and the way down is the way up
To save one’s life you must lose it
The more we give away, the more we gain
We are strongest when we are weak
Though poor, we can make others rich
We are most sinless when conscious of sin
We are wisest when we accept that we know little
The more we serve others, the more joy we receive ourselves
The more we sit quietly at His feet, the more work we get done for the Master

Notice the paradoxes in 2 Corinthians 6:9-10: ^“as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold, we live; as punished, and yet not killed; as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, yet possessing everything.”

To overcome the most difficult trials of life, we begin, not by fighting them but by receiving them as from a loving Creator, being thankful in them, and eventually being thankful for them. It is counter-intuitive. A paradox.

The Replacement Principle

The second secret is the concept of replacement. When we grow in Christ, we desire to be free from sin and the things that easily capture us. A secret to overcoming sin, is given to us in Ephesians 5:4. Let me illustrate it first.

Don’t you love ‘Before and After‘ pictures? I do. I love to see messy, dirty things cleaned up and useful. It is super-inspiring.

But emptying out an overwhelming mess of useless papers, wrappers, and long-expired milk cartons is only half the job. Nature abhors a vacuum; we don’t live in empty rooms. The empty room needs to be filled with profitable things, with a place for everything and everything in its place.

Even Jesus talked about a house swept clean of a demon, but that demon returned and finding the house empty (not occupied) brought with it seven more. The end of the story for that person was worse than the beginning. The room had not been properly filled and was vulnerable to spiritual squatters.

The Weapon of Thankfulness

Replacement is true in human behavior. You don’t just stop doing something; you must replace it. When you focus on a thing, you give it power, so if you just repeat over and over, “I will not steal, I will not steal,” your mind will be filled with the topic of stealing. Not good. For a thief to stop being a thief, he has to start working and then focus on the superlative joy of giving to others in need (Ephesians 4:28). The stealing is replaced with compassion; taking is replaced by giving; evil is overcome with good.

Ephesians 5:1-4 says: “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.”

This passage hits us with a surprise. Paul exhorts us to fight sexual immorality, impurity, covetousness, filthiness, foolish talk and crude jokes … with thankfulness. Paul didn’t simply shout “stop it,” like Bob Newhardt. He said to replace the sinful behavior with thanksgiving. We fight back against sin with thanksgiving!

As we actively think thanks and express those thoughts to God and others, we take back ground that has been formerly occupied with sinful thoughts. Being thankful could be viewed as an antidote to sin. We have a weapon in being th(i)nkful.

Summing Up

So did you get the two secrets? They actually work together.

We overcome trials by receiving them from God with thankfulness.
We overcome sins by replacing them with thankfulness.

How could you start down this road today? What about having 4-5 things written out in an area easily visible like on your refrigerator and when that temptation comes, read those 4-5 things out loud and thank God that He is God, and you are not, and He is trustworthy and will measure out grace and strength to do His will.

“Practically every sin we commit is a result of a lack of thankfulness.” Heath Lambert

Don’t Worry, Be Happy

February 26, 2019 / thinkfulkarin / 2 Comments

So, Where Did That Song Come from?

There is hardly a person that has not heard the hit song from the 80’s, “Don’t Worry, Be Happy.” One feels inspired to sing along with a smirk, embracing and promoting a stress-free approach to life. Bobby McFerrin wrote the a cappella ditty back in 1988 after he kept noticing inspirational cards and posters with the slogan. So, where did the slogan come from?

The “Don’t Worry Be Happy” slogan was coined by Meher Baba (1894-1969), an Indian mystic who believed that he was God in human form – the Avatar. He was silent – as in, he didn’t speak at all! – from 1925 till his death 44 years later, using other means of communication instead. Seems a paradox that the man who coined the slogan would have such a self-exalted view of himself and bring such confusion to his followers about the origin of true joy.

In an interview by Bruce Fessier for USA Weekend magazine in 1988, McFerrin said, “Whenever you see a poster of Meher Baba, it usually says ‘Don’t worry, be happy,’ which is a pretty neat philosophy in four words, I think.”

Smiley

Closely connected to the ‘Don’t Worry Be Happy’ philosophy is the famous Smiley sticker, the inspiration for many of today’s emojis. Harvey Ball (not Forrest Gump) in 1963 is recognized as the original creator of the famous icon.

I remember growing up in the 1970’s (that’s me with the camera) and buying smiley stickers with my allowance in the Brumunddal Bokhandle. This was a bookstore in the little Norwegian town of Brumunddal where I spent my childhood. So exciting to spread joy and happiness all over my school books or backpack, really anywhere it would stick! 🙂

Don’t Worry, Rejoice Evermore

There is an interesting connection between “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” and Philippians 4. Profound actually! It is a biblical command to not be worried and to rejoice in the Lord.

“Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon. Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:4-7 (NLT)

Unlike trusting in the words of a Hindu mystic, or just bursting out in a self-help mantra, we can engage in anxiety-free joy because God is in control, and He says that if we take the trials He sends us right back to Him on our knees, He will give us help to cope with the difficulty.

Thankful Even Though …

The letter to the Philippians, written from jail, is about joy (odd, eh?) – joy in God, joy in His people, joy because of what He has done for us, and persistent joy even though times are tough. When times are tough, what does this passage say for us to do?

Rejoice in the Lord, because other things and people disappoint us; because He lives; because He is the blessed controller of all my circumstances; because He is working out an amazing plan even though I can’t see it; because He will take me home; because He is coming back to fix this mess down here on earth; because He will make all things new.
Let people see you being considerate, because we typically close off and become self-focused when we are hurting; because people will be amazed at the power that causes a suffering person to serve others cheerfully; because when Jesus returns, we should be “caught” serving.
Don’t worry about anything, because it wastes energy, time, and sleep, and causes me to eat too much; because it poisons my soul and still doesn’t change the circumstances, because it indicts God for messing things up; because it pushes me to “help God” and to be the savior in the situation.
Pray and ask for specific supplies, because He often sends trials just so that we’ll talk to Him and get used to it; because He alone can do miracles, change hearts, heal bodies, heal relationships, bring job offers and business deals, give us great ideas, reveal the real problem, and do it at the perfect time; because at times He holds back until we call out to Him.
Make sure you are th(i)nkful, because He designed your trial for you at this time; because He will never leave you nor forsake you; because His Word (especially the Psalms) comes alive during hard times; because He is using the hammer, the rasp, and the furnace to make you into an original masterpiece, the first time in human history Jesus has been manifested in your form, and in your time and place.

One of the keys of not worrying and being happy is being th(i)nkful. As we give thanks, even for our challenges, we obey the exhortation of Philippians 4:6. He promises to fill us with His peace that is supernatural and is the guardian of our emotions and minds.

Our confidence and trust in the One who has everything in control is what enables us to be able to say “Don’t Worry, Be Happy.”

What about using the bridge of this popular song and the Smiley sticker to transition your conversation today to spiritual things with a nonbeliever with whom you interact?