A Simple Silent Night

By Kathi Woodall –

Last year, our pastor called my husband two days before Christmas. He asked if our daughter would play the piano for church on Christmas morning. Somewhat surprised, but knowing she had a few Christmas carols in her musical repertoire, my husband agreed. Now, my daughter was only six years old and wasn’t an accomplished pianist. In fact, she had only been taking lessons for a few months. Despite her inexperience, she nonchalantly agreed to play. On Christmas morning, she seated her small frame in front of the grand piano and simply yet beautifully played “O Come, All Ye Faithful” and “Silent Night.”

“I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it” (Luke 18:17).

A month previous, my daughter received a book of Level One Christmas carols. Born with a passion for music, she diligently began to learn every song in the book. She never expected to play for anyone besides her piano teacher and us. Audience or not, it didn’t matter, she simply loved to play and practiced her carols every day.

Similarly, God wants us to study and know His Word everyday simply because we love Him, not so we can look good when we spiritually perform for others. When we grow in Him just because we love Him, we become a vessel He can use at unexpected, impromptu opportunities. “But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have” (1 Peter 3:15).

After the Christmas service, many people commented they couldn’t even see my daughter while she was playing because she was so little. The pews full of watching eyes, the imposing grandeur of the piano, and the expectant silence of the room could have scared her into not playing her songs. The intimidating combination could have kept her from doing what she had been asked to do.

I have felt this way so many times in my ministry. The voice inside my head says, “You can’t teach. What business do you have trying to explain the Word of God?” Or, “You can’t speak. People will be bored with what you have to say.” Sometimes the voice says, “You can’t write. Everyone will be critical of the words you type.” At those times I have to recognize the true enemy, face the giants of fear and rejection, and persevere in what God called me to do, “being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6).

Like I said, my daughter is not an accomplished pianist. Her song was simple. So often, we feel we can’t serve because we aren’t the most perfect, the most accomplished. We can’t have people over for coffee because our house isn’t adequate. We can’t teach a class because we’ve never done it before. We can’t serve on a mission trip because we aren’t trained like a real missionary. God calls us to those things, and countless others, not because we are perfect at them but because He is glorified through our weaknesses. “But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me…For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:9-10).

A Chayil Woman

By Kathi Woodall –

Chayil.

That single Hebrew word has transformed my image of who we are, not only as wives, but as women. “A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies” (Proverbs 31:10 NIV).

The Hebrew word translates to noble in the New International Version. Capable, virtuous, excellent, and worthy are also common translations. If someone used any one of these adjectives to describe us, we would take it as a compliment. The problem is that none of them fully capture the meaning of the original Hebrew word. The Hebrew word translated here as noble, virtuous and excellent is chayil (khah-yil). Even today, people of the Jewish faith refer to this passage as “Eshet Chayil,” or “A Woman of Valor.” A woman of valor is perhaps the most accurate and has become my favorite translation of this familiar passage.

The Old Testament uses chayil most often in the context of war or battle. Traditionally, the role of a man is to fight for and defend his country or his homeland. Scripture is full of stories of the Israelite men leaving their homes to go to battle; over and over it refers to them as chayil. They are the valiant warriors who crossed the Jordan to claim the Promised Land and fought alongside Joshua. They were the “elite army” of Israel who could “wage war with great power” (2 Chronicles 26:13). King David was chayil even before God chose him as king; he was “a mighty man of valor” (1 Samuel 9:1).

These are merely a sampling of the imagery behind the word chayil. Like these valiant warriors, a chayil woman fights for and defends her home. She protects it from invading negative influences and organizes those under her so that it runs smoothly and calmly. A chayil woman is strong, mighty, and efficient. She is valiant and virtuous. But, and this is a very important point, she is all of these things alongside her husband, never in opposition to him.

What is the significance of comparing to rubies? In our society, when we think of the most valuable gemstone, we immediately think of diamonds. But, just as our society doesn’t recognize the value of a good wife, neither does it recognize the value of a ruby. According to a jeweler friend of mine, a ruby of gemstone quality can be worth more than a diamond of the same size, and it is definitely rarer.

A good marriage has many balancing factors. One of them is a valiant, chayil woman for a wife and a husband who recognizes and respects that quality in her. Then, a powerful, beautiful marriage can be built that is worthy of being compared to the future marriage relationship between Christ and His bride, the church.

Like a flawless ruby, do you view yourself as being of inestimable value? If you don’t view yourself that way, will you accept that you are and begin to ask God to reveal the jewel He created you to be?

Golf & God

By Kathi Woodall –

Last summer, I watched the US Open golf tournament with my husband. An aerial view provided a unique perspective of how the game of golf compares with our Christian journey. The overhead camera showed Rory McIlroy at the tee box as he prepared to drive the ball. Divots in the turf surrounded him where many others had made their drive from that same box. Rather than solid green, the whole tee box was tightly dotted with brown divots.

A few moments later, Rory continued to drive towards the green. Another camera shot on the fairway showed more divots, only this time they were yards apart instead of inches apart. Due to the excellent skill of the professional golfers in the Open, their first shots took each of them fairly close to the same position. As they progressed down the fairway, their respective drives took them further and further from each other as they each made their own unique journey. However, they all worked toward a common goal—to land the ball in the hole on the green at the end of the fairway.

Each Christian makes a similar journey. We all start at the same point like the golfers who each placed their tee in the ground and began their drive from the box. At that beginning point, we each recognized our own sin and need for a Savior. We repented and placed our faith in Jesus Christ who forgave us through His grace. From that common point of beginning, we each branch out in different ways. Poor choices or uncontrollable circumstances may leave us out in the rough, aiming to get back on course. Some may drive a straight line to the hole while others may zigzag all over the fairway. Regardless of the journey we take, we all work toward a common place. As the golfer works toward landing his ball in the cup, we work toward our eternal home in heaven with the One who redeemed us, Jesus.

Some may say my analogy could show different journeys all lead us to the same desired end. For example, someone may say a journey through Islam or Buddhism will each have the same result of “their ball landing in the cup.” He or she might say that we all take different journeys but every journey of faith results in eternity in heaven with God.

A problem exists with a pluralistic application. In the golf analogy, each player began their journey at the same point on the appropriate tee box. A player could wander onto the course and begin his drive from out in the rough. Although they would reach the pin at the end, their drive wouldn’t be successful because he didn’t begin at the tee box. Likewise, a golfer might begin their drive on the tee box for hole six. They hit the ball off of six and it lands on the green for hole seven. We wouldn’t count that as success for hole seven. The drive only counts if it began on the tee box for hole seven. We may begin a spiritual journey on some other path only to realize we need to be on the one that leads to eternity with God. To find eternal success, we must begin on the appropriate tee box, or in other words, go through the saving grace offered by Jesus Christ.

“Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me’” (John 14:6 NIV).

No. I Don’t Want To

By Kathi Woodall –

One night I hurried to throw dinner together. I added spices and other ingredients to ground beef before shaping it into hamburger patties. My oldest daughter mixed up coleslaw. My youngest daughter sat on the stool beside me. At four years old, her eagerness to help and her frequent position right next to me already made her into quite the little chef. She could measure, pour, mix, and even chop a little—with a table knife, not a sharp knife.

This particular night, she pleaded to help me. However, even with her diverse skills, she could do nothing to help with the hamburger patties. Her older sister asked her to help by retrieving ingredients from the pantry and refrigerator but she wanted to help mommy, not sister. Besides, I believe she felt those tasks didn’t fit with her particularly advanced skill set. I could tell she only wanted to do the “bigger” jobs such as mixing and measuring.

So often I have seen myself in her position. Just as she sat beside me and watched me work, I have been in the presence of the work of God. I watch what He is doing and, like my helpful daughter, I eagerly want to join in and help. So He gives me a job to do.

Perhaps He says, “Make a phone call.” But I say, “No, I don’t want to do that. I want to teach a lesson about this issue.”

He says, “Donate some money.” But I say, “Hey, I could write a really great blog article about this.”
I might hear Him say, “Tell her about Jesus.” So I respond with, “No, not now. I’ll just be a good listener.”

Like my daughter, my heart is in the right place. I truly do want to be helpful. The things I want to do are all good things. However, if they aren’t what God is asking me to do, then am I really being helpful? We each have a unique way to fit into the work of God’s kingdom; however, God is the One who determines what that way should be.

“So the body is not one part but many. If the foot should say, ‘Because I’m not a hand, I don’t belong to the body,’ in spite of this it still belongs to the body. And if the ear should say, ‘Because I’m not an eye, I don’t belong to the body,’ in spite of this it still belongs to the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But now God has placed each one of the parts in one body just as He wanted. And if they were all the same part, where would the body be? Now there are many parts, yet one body. So the eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I don’t need you!’ Or again, the head can’t say to the feet, ‘I don’t need you!’ But even more, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are necessary” (1 Corinthians 12:13-22 HCSB).

She is a…a…Sinner!

By Kathi Woodall –

“Now one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, so he went to the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume, and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them. When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, ‘If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is–that she is a sinner’” (Luke 7:36-39 NIV).

This story from Luke’s gospel reminds me of three different groups of people in this world.

The first group sits inside the church and thinks, “This is a good place to be. I’m comfortable here. How dare anyone come in here with their alcoholism, or drug abuse, or divorce, or this, or that.” So they sit, inside, thinking.

The second group sits outside the church and wonders, “What’s going on in there? Something is missing in my life and something deep within me thinks the church might be able to help. But I can’t go in because of my alcoholism, or drug abuse, or divorce, or this, or that.” So they sit, outside, wondering.

The third group kneels at the feet of Jesus and doesn’t think or wonder about anything. They don’t have to because their actions speak more than their words ever could. They have come face-to-face with their own depravity and recognized their inability to overcome it. Tears stream down their faces and land on the feet of Jesus. Each tear cries out, “Take my alcoholism, my drug abuse, my divorce, my lying, my stealing, my anger, my indifference, my vulgarity, my…” So they kneel, at His feet, forgiven.

This third group is much like the woman at the feet of Jesus. He says of her and to her, “Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven – for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little. Then Jesus said to her, ‘Your sins are forgiven.’” (Luke 7:47-48 NIV). The third group of people knows these words weren’t just meant for the women alone but for all who kneel at Jesus’ feet and accept His gift of forgiveness.

The tender moment of forgiveness may have made a great ending to the story, but the story is not done. The third group of people doesn’t just sit there, continuing to weep and lament over their sins. With the glory and the beauty of their encounter with Christ ever forefront in their minds, they rise up and leave the home of the Pharisee. Each one goes to a different place where Christ has told them to go. Each one has a unique job for the kingdom. But they all go, and they go in peace.

“Jesus said to the woman, ‘Your faith has saved you; go in peace’” (Luke 7:50 NIV).

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