Praise God as He Speaks to Us through the Amish
Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest, October 5th: "The Bible does not say that God punished the human race for one man's sin, but that the nature of sin, namely, my claim to my right to myself, entered into the human race through one man....When our Lord faced either people with all the forces of evil in them, or people who were clean-living, moral, and upright, He paid no attention to the moral degradation of one, nor any attention to the moral attainment of the other. He looked at something we do not see, namely, the nature of man."
I've touched on this with my children as they were growing up, while also telling them that: God has a plan for your life, look for God's call to a particular job, vocation, husband, residence, etc. But at the same time, it's been a mixed message. God/me, God/me, God/me....
I'm thinking a lot about this today because of what happened in the Amish schoolhouse in Lancaster 2 days ago. The Amish testimony coming through the news media that I've heard seems true to my understanding of Scripture. I googled "Amish" and found articles that talked about their trying to stay unpolluted by the culture. Check out this 2004 article, Christian History Corner: The Amish Come Knocking at http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2004/130/53.0.html It's a bit long, but if you read the whole thing, you may be struck, as I was, by the notion of our "modern" Christianity being word-centered. The article explained that Christians today want to be theologically correct and stand on the idea that if we have a faith correctly framed in our minds, we're "good to go." According to the article, the Amish, on the other hand, seem to have James 1:27 as their basis: "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." (Emphasis added.)
Even with homeschooling and trying to develop a "Christian worldview," how successful can you be? The teacher was tainted, you know (as in extremely influenced by the culture herself). And, yet, God is Sovereign over all and we are not without hope. We press on. But, let's be heads-up people and repent of this heresy that we can be our own people. That is the sin nature in man. And, I think the Amish realization that God is God and they are His people and not their own is what has allowed them to react to this unthinkable assault upon their children. If you've given up all claim to yourself, what you should be, how you should be treated, what you deserve. what you'll accept and won't accept, and on and on, replacing that with total acceptance and acknowledgement of God's sovereignty over your life and the entire universe, then you might have the peace and love that the Amish up in Lancaster seem to be showing the world. Perhaps their testimony is the same as that made by Paul in Philippians 4:11 where he writes "...I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.
Okay, one more thing, I got a note card from Amber Morris, a missionary friend in Thailand. She's had a lot of dead ends in trying to discern God's direction for her. The theme of the 8-part card was "this" is exactly where God wants me. I think this is what the Amish are also saying to the world. And, it is a blessing for me to hear it. My life is so changed with Samantha now in public school and Jim working, primarily, out of town. It is good for me to remember "this" is exactly where God wants me. So, those are the words I will focus on today as I do the things on "my list" to His glory and pursue whatever things might be not on "my" list that He brings to my life.
I've touched on this with my children as they were growing up, while also telling them that: God has a plan for your life, look for God's call to a particular job, vocation, husband, residence, etc. But at the same time, it's been a mixed message. God/me, God/me, God/me....
I'm thinking a lot about this today because of what happened in the Amish schoolhouse in Lancaster 2 days ago. The Amish testimony coming through the news media that I've heard seems true to my understanding of Scripture. I googled "Amish" and found articles that talked about their trying to stay unpolluted by the culture. Check out this 2004 article, Christian History Corner: The Amish Come Knocking at http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2004/130/53.0.html It's a bit long, but if you read the whole thing, you may be struck, as I was, by the notion of our "modern" Christianity being word-centered. The article explained that Christians today want to be theologically correct and stand on the idea that if we have a faith correctly framed in our minds, we're "good to go." According to the article, the Amish, on the other hand, seem to have James 1:27 as their basis: "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." (Emphasis added.)
Even with homeschooling and trying to develop a "Christian worldview," how successful can you be? The teacher was tainted, you know (as in extremely influenced by the culture herself). And, yet, God is Sovereign over all and we are not without hope. We press on. But, let's be heads-up people and repent of this heresy that we can be our own people. That is the sin nature in man. And, I think the Amish realization that God is God and they are His people and not their own is what has allowed them to react to this unthinkable assault upon their children. If you've given up all claim to yourself, what you should be, how you should be treated, what you deserve. what you'll accept and won't accept, and on and on, replacing that with total acceptance and acknowledgement of God's sovereignty over your life and the entire universe, then you might have the peace and love that the Amish up in Lancaster seem to be showing the world. Perhaps their testimony is the same as that made by Paul in Philippians 4:11 where he writes "...I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.
Okay, one more thing, I got a note card from Amber Morris, a missionary friend in Thailand. She's had a lot of dead ends in trying to discern God's direction for her. The theme of the 8-part card was "this" is exactly where God wants me. I think this is what the Amish are also saying to the world. And, it is a blessing for me to hear it. My life is so changed with Samantha now in public school and Jim working, primarily, out of town. It is good for me to remember "this" is exactly where God wants me. So, those are the words I will focus on today as I do the things on "my list" to His glory and pursue whatever things might be not on "my" list that He brings to my life.
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