Beverly Van Kampen’s Official Blog

Imagine you know a little girl and you want to buy her a special Christmas gift. You shop for the cutest, cuddliest baby doll you can find. You put it in a box and wrap it in beautiful paper and tie it with a bow.

Christmas morning comes and you hand the box to the little girl. She oohs and aahs over the pretty paper then runs off to play. In another scenario, she might take the box, open it, smile at the doll, and take it in her arms. You smile. But after a few minutes, she gently puts the doll under the Christmas tree and, again, runs off to play.

The best scenario? She takes the box, opens it eagerly, takes the baby doll in her arms and carries it everywhere. A few months later her mom tells you that this doll is the little girl’s constant companion. When they go to the playground, the doll comes along. When the little girl is tucked into bed, the baby doll is tucked in with her. The doll goes to preschool, to church, and to the grocery store. As the giver of the gift, you smile – this is exactly as you had hoped it would be.

What does Emmanuel mean? God with us. When God sent His Son to earth, it was His intention to have Him be with us. It was the greatest of all gifts. Many look into the manger at Christmas time, comment on the beauty of the scene, and go on about their business. Others actually embrace Jesus as Lord and Savior, but tend to leave Him “under the tree” as life draws them away. Many of us fall into that category all too often.

What would make the Giver most happy? If we take His gift with us where ever we go and in whatever we are doing. This is really the story of Christmas. Jesus came to be with us! He wants to be with us. God the Father wants us to be with Him – for now and for eternity. It’s not just about a baby in a manger. And it’s not just about having our sins forgiven, as important as that is. It is about being with God. And we don’t have to wait for heaven for that to happen. If we take Jesus with us as the little girl took the baby doll, we develop relationship with Him. It would be rude, wouldn’t it, to have Jesus here and not to talk to Him? So we talk. We tell Him what we are thinking about, ask Him for guidance on decisions we are making, ask Him to bless us as only He can, let Him know that we are totally dependent on Him not just for eternity, but for the every day, too.

In some of Jesus’ final instructions to His disciples, he concluded with, “I am with you always, to the end of the age.”(Mt. 18:20). Emmanuel, God with us. God is still with us! We simply need to embrace Him.

When we think about Jesus’ teaching, we have to be amazed. Here was a wandering rabbi with no place to call home,  walking around Palestine saying things like “I am the light of the world,” or “If I am lifted up, I will draw all men unto me,” or “No one comes to the Father except through me.” Why would Jesus say these outrageous things? He said them because they are true. He came to tell us the truth about who God is and He did so clearly and boldly. But there are those who want to label Him as a megalomaniac for making such seemingly ridiculous claims.

Then, let’s look at His actions.There was nothing ego-centric about His behavior. He socialized with the religious elite and with the worst of sinners. He chose lowly fishermen and even women to be among His closest friends. He healed the blind beggars. He touched dirty lepers. He gave His time gently and lovingly even when He was tired or hungry. He was patient with His disciples when they failed to understand His teaching or failed to stand with Him when He needed them most. He was never moody, grumpy, or impatient, yet He dealt honestly and boldly with those who abused others.

Here is the way John Stott summarizes Jesus’ personality, “Above all, he was unselfish. Nothing is more striking than this. Although believing himself to be divine . . . he was never pompous. There was no touch of self-importance with Jesus. He was humble.

“It is this paradox which is so baffling, this combination of the self-centeredness of his teaching and the un-self-centeredness of his behaviour. . . He exhibited both the greatest self-esteem and the greatest self-sacrifice. He knew himself to be the Lord of all, but he became their servant.”*

In this Christmas season, as we think of Jesus, as holy, all-powerful God, giving Himself in humble service and unselfish sacrifice, what can we do but worship? And, as we do, we trust His power to change us, little by little, until we see ourselves becoming like Him. He is exactly what He has in mind for us to be.

*Stott, John R. W. Basic Christianity (William B. Eerdmans Publishing: Grand Rapids, MI), pp. 43-44

There is a new exhibition of Degas paintings that just opened in Washington D.C. Ballet dancers are the main theme of the exhibition with the painting entitled “Dancers at the Barre” a centerpiece. The two ballet dancers in this painting are stretching at the ballet bar as they prepare for their dance practice.

Then, as one NPR commentator noted, you look at most of the 30 paintings in the exhibit and realize that they are all of dancers preparing to dance. They are stretching, rehearsing, practicing moves, and working out, but not performing. Every painting reflects commitment, struggle, persistence, and effort. They are going through all the disciplines required to be great dancers, but we never see them perform.

Thinking about “Dancers at the Barre” made me think about spiritual disciplines. If growing our relationship with God is important to us, it, too, requires commitment, struggle, persistence, and effort. We have to pray, study, meditate, serve, worship, and spend time in solitude and we have to do these things every day even when it is painful or hard and we want to quit.

Some day there will be a performance for Degas’ ballet dancers and those who have persisted in their daily practice will be ready. They will glide and pirouette and grace the stage with beauty. And the audience will applaud the witness to their lives of sacrifice.

Someday there will be a performance for us as Christians, too. It will be in part here on earth. If we live a life in touch with the Spirit, we will be ready for our debut – to resist temptation, to give our all to a needy brother, to provide wise counsel -  ready to dance wherever God has placed us.

And the greatest dance of all will be when we worship around God’s great throne in Heaven. Oh, how we want to be spiritually ready for that grand eternal dance! And the only way to be ready is to live lives of spiritual discipline today. It will be worth all the effort when we dance for an audience of One and receive His coveted applause!

“Let them praise His name with dancing and make music to Him with tambourine and harp. For the Lord takes delight in His people; He crowns the humble with salvation.” (Psalm 149:3-4)

Back in my journalism days, I remember seeing news stories with the letters HTK written at the bottom. Later, when those stories were laid out on the page, there was a blank area where, before the print run, the headline would be placed. In the meantime, the HTK promised “Head To Come”.  A writer with expertise in headlines, would read each story, determine its most important point, and then come up with a headline that expressed that understanding.

This morning, I read these verses, “For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. (Romans 8:22-25).

Today the concept of “firstfruits of the Spirit” in that passage stopped me short. In agriculture the firstfruits always mean that there is more to come. The more, according to these verses is our adoption, our redemption. It is what will be the culmination of all of the stories of our lives. Then I realized that the Holy Spirit is our promise that there is a HTK, that there is more to be written before our stories are complete. As we live in this crazy world, groaning inwardly as the verse says, we wait for the headlines, the words that will make sense of all that we go through.

I can almost see the stories of my life written on a page with blank spaces where the headlines eventually will be. The Spirit is the guarantee that we will someday understand situations that confuse us now. God Himself will show us the “why’s” we long to have answered. The headlines will come and, when they do, the meaning, purpose, and consequences of all that has happened in us, to us, and through us will be made clear and our stories will be complete. In the meantime, the Holy Spirit assures us that there is more than what we see today.  He is the firstfruits of the all important HTK!

Have you ever thought of what it would be like to be a Muslim? Scripted prayers five times a day, a journey to Mecca sometime during your lifetime, fasting for one month out of every year, and, if you are a woman, severe restrictions on what you can wear, where you can go, and who you can talk to. Looking on from the outside, the religion of Islam seems like an enormous burden to carry.

It makes me glad that I am a Christian. The One I follow says, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Jesus doesn’t give me a list of things to do to measure up to His standards. Instead, He invites me to walk with Him. He doesn’t simply give me advice on how to live, He shows me how. He is already in the yoke and is waiting for me to join Him.

Farmers tell us that oxen are teamed so that there is one that is strong and one that is weaker. That way, the strong one can do most of the labor while the weak one simple supports. It is easy to tell who the strong one is in Jesus’ invitation. He has already done the hard work and invites me simply to walk alongside Him, to learn of His humble and gentle heart, and to participate in the fruit of His labor. Now, it’s true that, when I get into the yoke with Jesus, it means leaving behind all other “yokes” – I can’t have allegiance to family, career, finances, country, or any other person or thing that rivals my all-out commitment to Jesus Himself. Once I am in the yoke, He steers.

But, letting Jesus steer doesn’t make life harder, it makes it so much easier! Does the burden you are carrying seem heavy? If it’s weighted down with “do’s” and “don’ts” and ritual and demands, it is not from Jesus. His burden is light. We need to see where our heavy load is coming from. If it is from expectations of others or if it is from our own desire to work for God’s approval, it will be a big burden and one that we are not designed to carry. If our burden is from Jesus Who is yoked with us and walking right beside us, it will not hurt us, it will not lead us down the wrong path, and it will not be heavy.

Religion makes demands. Jesus issues an invitation. There’s a big difference. And it has to do with who is carrying the weight. If it is Jesus, then my burden is light. If I am trying to carry everything myself, it is a burden I am too weak to bear.  Religion is heavy. Getting into the yoke with Jesus is not!

I have started a new job and I love it! But, I will admit that there are times when it gives me anxious thoughts and unexpected worries. Early one morning when I was stressing over some upcoming deadline, I was reading about Saul in I Samuel. He had been chosen by God to be the first king of Israel. He was humble and felt unworthy of the task, but he knew that God had blessed him with this responsibility and had called him to bless others. But, amazingly, it was only a few chapters after his anointing that Saul was already off track. He had became proud, arrogant, and unteachable. He was king, after all!

As I pondered poor old Saul, these words came into my mind: Do not make idols of My blessings.

That quiet command hit me between the eyes. God had blessed me with a job I love and an opportunity to be a blessing to others. What am I doing when I allow that blessing to create anxiety in me? I am making it an idol! I am worshiping the job instead of God who gave it to me. Just like Saul!

Then I thought of other blessings that can become idols if I let them: children, grandchildren, spouse, marriage, health, bank account, talents, schedules, and the list goes on. I love these blessings, but don’t want them to become idols. How will I know if that is happening?  I believe a test would be to ask how these blessings are affecting me. If any one of them causes worry, stress, envy, pride, or irritability, I have given that blessing an inappropriate place in my life. God’s blessings will always result in good things such as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control. If those are not the fruits of my blessing, I can be pretty sure I have made it an idol. I have given it more authority in my life than I give God.

God’s gifts to me are wonderful. I value them, enjoy them, and ask for more! But I want always to remember to serve the Giver and not the gift. I want to treat God’s blessings as blessings and God as God. That’s the way He wants it!

A friend called yesterday morning needing to talk. Problems that had been looming for a long time were now coming to a head. What should she do? How could she possibly manage this impossible situation? When I asked how I could help, her immediate answer was “Pray for me.” Of course, I would do that. I had prayed for her for months already. But, sensing the urgency in her voice, I said, “How about now?” And, our prayers, though offered by telephone, made their way from our hearts to the heart of God.

Have you ever emailed a prayer? I am learning that praying for someone by email is just as effective as praying for them when I have a Bible in my lap in the early morning hours. When an email comes to me from someone facing an upcoming meeting, a difficult conversation, or a relationship that has them worried, I sometimes pray for them in my return email. What does that do?

First, it keeps me from forgetting to pray for them later (that does happen – I am sure you can relate).

Second, it lets them know that they and their concerns are important to me.

Third, it acknowledges the urgency of the request and my own confidence that God cares enough to get involved.

Fourth, God’s response to my prayer can begin to affect their thinking and preparation right then.

Fifth, it keeps me from running ahead and trying to help solve their problems without first calling on God for intervention and guidance.

I was in a business meeting last week with just one other person who is also a Christian. Before we began to talk about the project in front of us, he shared concerns for his wife who was having severe health problems. He was obviously distressed about the situation. When I asked if I could pray for her right then, he said, “Yes, of course.” We together brought her needs to our Father in Heaven.

Very few people will say “no” if we ask if we can pray for them. In fact, a flat-out refusal has never happened to me. Most people are relieved that we are willing to pray and that we have faith in God’s love for them and in His power to act on their behalf even when they may not have that faith themselves.

I have believed in the power of prayer for a long time, but I am becoming more and more timely in delivering on my promises to pray. Now is a good time! In fact, now is often the best time!

In the busy-ness of today, do you sometimes wonder how you are supposed to be aware of God’s presence in your life and to be continually praying in your mind as you go through your day? It’s hard. Maybe impossible humanly.

But I have been discovering something as I read through the Bible. It seems that there are two times of the day that are fairly important to God: morning and evening. Many of the psalms remind us of this. And, of course, we all know the morning and evening references in the creation account of Genesis 1.

Maybe God is giving us a pattern here, sort of a rhythm for living in ways that please Him. And just maybe, if we can’t intentionally focus on Him every moment of every day, we can at least give Him special attention during times of the day that He already seems to have identified as being particularly His: morning and evening. What might that look like?

The biographer of author, priest, and evangelical leader John Stott says that it has been John’s habit for many years to say this to God immediately after waking each morning:

“Good morning, heavenly Father.
Good morning, Lord Jesus.
Good morning, Holy Spirit.

Heavenly Father, I worship you as the creator and sustainer of the universe.

Lord Jesus, I worship you, Saviour and Lord of the world.

Holy Spirit, I worship you, sanctifier of the people of God.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.

Heavenly Father, I pray that I may live this day in your presence and please you more and more.

Lord Jesus, I pray that this day I may take up my cross and follow you.

Holy Spirit, I pray that this day you will fill me with yourself and cause your fruit to ripen in my life: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

Holy, blessed and glorious Trinity, three persons in one God, have mercy upon me. Amen.”*

Don’t you think our heavenly Father is pleased to hear this greeting, worship, and prayer from John each morning? What if we began our days in much the same way? Then, as we go about our business, the sense of His presence and guidance will likely be there all day long.

And, before we go to bed at night, maybe we should invite the Holy Spirit to help us review the day. Where did we see God at work? Are there sins we need to confess? What relationships are healthy and which need some attention? Do we see evidence of the fruit of the Spirit growing within us?

Morning and evening: Beginning our day with God and ending it with Him. And, in between, always listening, always aware that He is with us in the dailiness of life.

“It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to your name, O Most High; to declare your steadfast love in the morning, and your faithfulness by night . . “ (Psalm 92:1-2).

Somehow I have to believe that a day that begins and ends with focus on God will be OK in the middle, too!

*Steer, Roger. Basic Christian. InterVarsity Press: Downer’s Grove, IL, 2009, pp. 246-247.

Our Friday night small group has been studying and discussing the concepts of generosity and social justice as taught in the Bible. Naturally, when you are focused on a study like that, you begin to be aware of opportunities to be generous or to help someone in need.

So, when I saw a notice in our local paper that there was an upcoming meeting of 100 Women Who Care, I had to check it out. What I found was nothing short of amazing. The meeting was held at 5:30 in a large meeting room of the Spring Lake Country Club. Chairs were set up and rapidly filled as women came in sipping various beverages and happily talking with one another. Each woman had come prepared to give $100 to a local service organization before she left the room that day.

The meeting began precisely on time with a few announcements. Then the bag containing nominees of local charities was brought to the front and three cards were drawn. The women who had nominated those three organizations were each given five minutes to tell why her nominee deserved the evening’s donation. Each five minute presentation was followed by five minutes of questions. I was impressed with the level of questioning – about things like budgets, other fundraising, governance, beneficiaries of the proposed project, and sustainability.

Then the women were asked to cast a ballot for the organization to which they wished to give. The votes were quickly counted and it was announced that the checks would be written to Hospice of North Ottawa Community. Checkbooks appeared, checks were written and passed in. All by 6:30. I had to love the efficiency!

Now, let’s do the math. If 100 women each gave $100, the charity of choice would receive $10,000.  That’s significant by anyone’s calculation. But, here’s the kicker: The local group of 100 Women Who Care is now known as 100 (or more) Women Who Care. Sitting in the room that evening were 325 women. When the checks were gathered, a total of $32,500 was given to our area Hospice!

Of course, I could simply write my own check to Hospice and mail it in. They would appreciate it very much. But, when I band together with other women who have similar concerns as mine, the gift I give, combined with theirs, suddenly has incredible impact. There is great power in 100 – or more!

I tell you this story for two reasons. First, you may want to join this group or one like it in your community. If you don’t have a 100 Women Who Care group nearby, think about starting one. There is promised blessing in giving and that blessing is multiplied many times over when we join with others in doing so.

Second, when we think about our local churches and the believers who gather each week, we can think about how our gifts work together for a combined impact in our communities and in our world. In the case of our churches, the gifts might be monetary as they are with the women’s group we just talked about, or they may be the spiritual gifts Paul refers to in his letters to early Christians. We can work solo and accomplish something good. But when we work together the effect of our work is increased dramatically. That’s the way God designed it.

We all need to be part of something bigger than ourselves. It might be 100 (or more Women Who Care. And it certainly should be joining the work of our fellow Christians in churches and in Christ-centered organizations. Jesus multiplied the five loaves and two fish to feed thousands. Just think of what He can do with even a few Christians who care!