Living in Context

By Donna McCrary –

Forest Gump said, “My mama always says, ‘life is like a box of chocolates.’”

Renee Zellweger romantically confessed, “You complete me” in the movie, Jerry Maguire.

Martin Luther King shouted, “I have a dream!”

All of these famous quotes bring a smile to our face and an immediate reaction to the context in which they were stated. The context provides the punch. Many people claim, “I have a dream.” However, the context (position, person, and particular moment) of these spoken words are the cement that places them into the fabric of our culture. Same with the movie lines, it is the context (emotion, story line, and setting) that breeds recognition in the expressions.

Context is what gave new life to a powerful scripture for me. Context is what made it stand apart with a new and fresh perspective. “Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full” (John 16:24). Pull this out of context and it appears to say, “Ask for your wants, desires, dreams and all the things that will bring you temporary joy and I, Jesus, being in complete control will fill you with abundant joy just because you asked.” I must admit my prayers at times resemble this logic. However, after reading this in context of the setting, the Person, the emotion of the moment, I grasped a deeper understanding in Jesus’ Words.

In context, Jesus was speaking to His closest followers, His disciples; the people who walked away from normal to live radical. The people willing to forsake all they knew to exist daily trusting in Jesus to provide, teach, protect, and direct their steps. Jesus didn’t say these words to the miracle spectators. He said them to the dedicated men and women willing to walk by faith, take up their cross, and follow Him. In context, He proclaimed these words to the very people He called friends.

When I looked at the context of Jesus in my daily life, I had to ask myself some tough questions. Am I dedicated to living the radical life of a disciple? Do my actions resemble great miracles and mountain moving prayers? I know Jesus is true to His word! Will I put myself in the right context to experience His joy for me?

Are you living in the right context to experience joy in Christ?

PRAYER: Father, help me draw close to You and live my life in the context of Your plan for me.

“Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full”  (John 16:24 NIV).

 

If We Are the Body, Why?

By Donna McCrary-

“But if we are the body, why aren’t His arms reaching? Why aren’t His hands healing? Why aren’t His words’ teaching…why is His love not showing there is a way?”

These lyrics by Casting Crowns blasted straight to my heart. I glanced around at the 6,000 plus women packed in the coliseum. Six thousand mothers, daughters, wives, and BFF’s praising God in our own unique way. We are the body of Christ!

The drum beat of my heart suddenly seemed louder than the pounding state-of-the-art sound system. The powerful lyrics cut straight to my soul. Why? In that moment it was the Holy Spirit asking me, little unimportant me, “Why don’t you see me?” I glanced around the coliseum as the tears started streaming from my eyes and the burning why question pieced my thoughts. God softly asking, “Why don’t you see my hands healing? Why aren’t my feet moving? Why?”

For the remainder of the conference, I found myself searching for the answer to the simple question. Each speaker shared their own struggles and heartaches.  Then each shared the redemptive power of God’s perfect plan. This only stirred in me a deep hunger to answer the question of ‘why’ burning in my soul. I found myself crying out prayers between breaks, “God, show me! Show me how I can know you intimately. Show me how I can see you moving daily in my life. Show me how I can speak boldly like Peter and John. Show me how I can experience water walking faith! Show me how my life can be a living testimony of Your indescribable love, your unexplainable grace and mercy. Show me! Please, God. I am willing and wanting to experience You like never before!”

Determined to answer the why question, I searched the scriptures to glean wisdom from those who were part of the body that experienced the grace, love, and miracles of Jesus first hand. There it was, a simple answer spelled out in red letters, “put aside your selfish ambition, shoulder your cross, and follow me” (Mark 8:34). Easy to read, hard to live! But if we are the body, why aren’t His hands healing?

Perhaps you should also ask yourself why?

PRAYER: “God, show me where I am living out my own selfish ambitions. Show me the sacrifices I have been unwilling to make for You. Help me today to follow You!”

“Then He called His disciples and the crowds to come over and listen. ‘If any of you wants to be my follower,’ He told them, ‘you must put aside your selfish ambition, shoulder your cross, and follow me’” (Mark 8:34 NLT).

Consumed!

By Donna McCrary –

Pitch darkness. Pounding waves. Whipping winds. Mayday! Mayday! Suddenly across the water appears a ghost-like image. Panic and fear race through their veins. The adrenaline surges through their shivering bodies as the flight or fight reflex consumes them. They see Him walking on the sea. Terrified, they cry out in fear, “It is a ghost!” Immediately Jesus speaks to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.”

After discussing this passage with a friend, I realized all too often I am like the rest of the disciples in the boat and not like Peter. I praise God for coming to my rescue. I thank Him for calming the storms in my life. What made Peter willing to walk on water, to step out of a perfectly good boat into the storm?

Could it be that he wasn’t satisfied with staying in the boat? He wanted more than a calming of the sea in his life. He answered Jesus’ command, “Do not be afraid” with a command of his own, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” Crazy! In essence, Peter acknowledged Jesus as Lord and then asked Jesus to help him do the impossible—walk on water.

Jesus didn’t explain Walk on Water 101 to Peter. He didn’t give him any safety tips or swimming suggestions for that matter. Jesus simply replied, “Come.”

Peter made the decision to take action. He stepped out of the boat and onto the water. He eagerly participated in an illogical stunt. He was a fisherman so we can assume he had full understanding of the physics behind “sink or swim” logic. He had an all consuming desire to be in the presence of Jesus. This desire consumed him so deeply he dismissed every logical thought as he stepped out of the boat.

I bet if a modern-day news anchor asked Peter why he committed such an insane act he would simply state with calm satisfaction, “Just to be close to my Jesus!” When the reporter asked how the rest of us could experience this miracle, Peter would answer, “Validate your visions and dreams and live daily to be consumed by the presence of Jesus.”

Jesus said, “Come.”

PRAYER: Father, today, show me how to be like Peter. Show me how to step out in faith and draw nearer to You so I can do the impossible in my life and bring Your name glory.

“But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, ‘It is a ghost!’ and they cried out in fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.’ And Peter answered him, ‘Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water’” (Matthew 14:26-28 ESV).

Perspective

By Donna McCrary –

The crackling voice over the intercom said, “Look to your left and experience a rare privilege—the best view of the Grand Canyon.” I quickly grabbed my camera and snapped some pictures. The different shades of brown, rust, and black helped my eyes distinguish the depth of the ever expanding crack in the earth’s crust. The layers of brown tones in the landscape created beautiful contrast against the deep blue hue of Lake Mead. The view from the plane was breathtaking!

I sat in awe—but the beauty didn’t stop there. Traveling from Las Vegas, Nevada to Atlanta, Georgia, I found the landscape continually changing below. As the sun descended, the plane flew over pillows of clouds. The fuchsia shades seemed to sparkle and dance on the white cotton balls below. Then a dark sky settled in as we neared Atlanta. The twinkling city below glowed like a shimmering sea of lights. My husband leaned over and said, “Mind boggling!” After a thoughtful pause he whispered, “Makes you feel small in this giant world.” I chuckled because small is not exactly the best word to describe just how insignificant and tiny you feel at 35,000 feet.

As the wheels of the plane touched, I stopped to thank God for such a wonderful trip with my husband. This quick prayer moved me into a surreal moment of worship. This cross-country trip captured a glimpse of God’s handiwork, from the Grand Canyon to the manmade city lights of Atlanta. It is hard to put into words the picturesque views from my day; even harder to grasp the phenomenal concept that my God is in control of it all. He created the landscapes. He gave man the ability and the material to build the city of lights. He controlled the sun traveling across the sky. Not only is God in control of all this but He chose to love small, insignificant me! He knows every hair on my head. Just as He controls the sun and clouds He orchestrates the events in my life. He is in control of every aspect, every situation and every minor detail. From His viewpoint, everything in life is designed for the single purpose to draw us near to Him. Now that is perspective!

PRAYER: Father, today, I want to pause for a moment to truly worship You. May I never forget   how much You love me and how You long for me to live with You one day in heaven.

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28 NIV).

Today’s devotion is by Donna McCrary, a co-founder of Walk of Purpose ministries. Read more of her inspirational devotions in DIVAS of the Divine: How to Live as a Designer Original in a Knock-Off World study or check out her blog at www.walkofpurpose.blogspot.com.

Marshmallow Fondant—Priceless!

By Donna McCrary –

Cake decorating kit $19.99, two boxes of powdered sugar $3.59, one bag of marshmallows $1.99. “Mom, you’re turning into a smurf!”—Priceless!

This past weekend my daughter and I had a little girl time. We decided to practice our cake decorating skills with the Ace of Cakes decorating station. As we unwrapped the gizmos and gadgets, washed the utensils, and collected the necessary ingredients, we began our girl time. First, we mixed the cake batter and poured the two tablespoons of chocolate mixture into the microwave cooker. I set the timer and stepped back expecting the aroma of fresh baked goodness to fill the air. To our surprise, out of the microwave came a choking black smog. Oops! My daughter fell in the floor laughing when we pulled the Oreo sized black remains out of the smoke. We decided to stick with traditional cake making, the box-to-bowl-to-batter-with-two-eggs-method.

With the fool-proof cake in the oven, we started to make the fondant included in the decorating kit only to discover we would not have enough to cover our now larger cake. We were determined to let nothing hinder our precious girl time so I quickly researched recipes of fondant on the Internet. To my surprise, marshmallow fondant seemed to be a quick easy way to spare our unraveling girl time. I followed the directions. Melted the marshmallows, slathered the table with shortening, and stirred in one box of powdered sugar. What came next was an hour-long battle with four hands and the stickiest pile of goo imaginable—seasoned with side-splitting laughter! In the middle of all the goo the phone rang. We both just froze and looked at each other. Then our eyes sunk to our hands. No matter, it was girl time!

Now time to add the blue food coloring. The next thing I knew my hands looked like Smurffette. My daughter doubled over as she hollered, “Mom, you’re turning into a smurf!”

This time together was priceless. In my quiet time the next day the Spirit of God reminded me of how much He wants to spend time with me creating treasured memories. He says “Seek Me and you will find Me and I will show you great and mighty things.” Now, that is priceless!

PRAYER: God help me to treasure our time together and make it a priority in my daily schedule. Help me seek You in every aspect of my life.

“Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know” (Jeremiah 33:3).

Today’s devotion is by Donna McCrary, wife, mother of two, author, and life coach. Busy is an understatement but she is always thrilled to share laughter and life lessons through her writing and speaking. Join her on the journey at www.walkofpurpose.blogspot.com.

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