Life By The Way

All the Credit: A Grandmother’s Legacy

Today is my grandmother’s birthday. She passed away in 2007, but her memory is cherished, and her impact is felt to this day. The last entry in my book, Life By The Way, gives a snapshot of her life of humility, service, and love for her family. She raised six children almost single-handedly, as her husband was ill for much of his life. These six children all grew up to embrace the faith she imparted to them, and live lives of purpose.

After I had children of my own and was marveling at her life, I remember expressing my admiration to her one day. In her quiet way, she said, “Well, I give God all the credit.” It was her way of saying she gave all the glory to God for anything she had accomplished.

In Galatians 1, the Apostle Paul recounts how he was called by God, and how he was now serving the Church he once persecuted. He was preaching the faith he once tried to destroy. All because of an encounter with Jesus. The last line of that chapter says, “And they glorified God because of me.”

What about your story? Could you say, “They glorified God because of me?” Are you giving Him all the “credit” as my MaMa would have said, acknowledging that all your talents, abilities, and possessions come from His hand?

May we bring Him glory, with everything in us.

All I Have Is Yours

Lord all I have is yours today
Use me as you will
Each thought, each word
Each deed that’s done
Be with your Spirit filled

Lord all I have is yours today
May those who know me see
Your light, Your love
Your kindness shown
In grace and charity

And when I have surrendered all
Your visage I shall see
May that glimpse
Of glory bring
More of You and less of me

~Michelle Dowdy

Easy and Light

Have you ever seen a yoke used for plowing? There are two holes for two animals. Typically, an experienced animal will be paired with a less experienced one, and the two must work together.

Jesus says His yoke is easy and His burden is light. We have work to do and burdens to bear in this life, but He is with us, working with us, to gently guide us through all of life’s challenges.

He does not force us to be under the yoke with Him, but if we choose that yoke, it will be “easy and light,” just as He promised.

Lord, let us be under that yoke with You. Let us be joined to You. Bind our wandering hearts to Your Heart and lead us and guide us along Your path and in Your ways.

Transaction or Interaction?

I was ready for the day. I had done all the various things to be “presentable” – hair, makeup, clothing. I had quite a few perfunctory errands to run and was about to head out the door. The thought occurred to me that I had taken a lot of care in the “getting ready,” but I had not given a single thought to the people I might encounter throughout the day.

Standing there looking at my now ready reflection in the mirror, I couldn’t help but wonder, “What if I put as much effort into the interactions I would have that day as I did to carefully applying my makeup?”

What if I saw every exchange with others, not as a “transaction” of some kind, but an “interaction” – an opportunity to look someone in the eye, to demonstrate some caring beyond just the business at hand? Even if we are generally friendly, sometimes we can be guilty of just going through the motions. I know I am.

But a smile, a compliment, a genuine expression of concern – these are all more rare than they used to be, and still needed, still appreciated. There may be people who you interact with weekly – maybe it is the teller at the bank, or the clerk at the checkout counter, or the pharmacist, or a server at a restaurant. Ask their name if you don’t know it; strike up a conversation; connect. It doesn’t cost a single thing.

“Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.” Romans 12:9-10

I pray we will.

Be Prepared

Be prepared. It’s the Boy Scout motto. So much of life is about the preparation. It is often the difference between success and failure.

Even in something as simple as preparing a meal – the organizing, buying ingredients, cutting, chopping, peeling, mixing – all done before you get to the actual cooking.

In a career- the education, the thousand little things you have to do, “turn in,” and the knowledge you must acquire. In my case, it was the reiteration of anatomy and physiology over and over throughout my years of schooling, enabling me to understand function in the human body, in order to understand dysfunction and be able to help people.

I think about the time it takes to gestate a baby. Nine months are spent preparing that little body and preparing our hearts and minds for the wonder and responsibility of caring for a new life.

In preparing for a wedding – so many hours of planning go into the moment of the bride walking down the aisle and for the ceremony, which usually takes about 30 minutes or less.

Jesus tells us over and over not to be concerned with temporal things but to focus on the eternal, and to prepare ourselves for that reality.

He said, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:19-21).

One of the things we are all called to do as His followers is to “make disciples.” What does that look in your life? What is your sphere of influence, and what are you making disciples to?

I would suggest that we are all making disciples to something. We could really believe in a product and be devoted to something we are selling, or to an activity or hobby that may be fun but really has no eternal value.

If we see the world as our mission field, though, these things are just a means to an end. For example, former UGA Coach Mark Richt saw football as a character builder. He was more focused on building young men than necessarily winning games, although winning games came as a result of building character. It was in the DNA at that time. I believe he saw the Football Program as a way to prepare young men to make a difference in the world, to make disciples.

Think with me for a moment about how God might have been preparing you for something. How has He orchestrated your circumstances to get you to this very moment? Can you see it?

What is that thing, in this season, that might be the culmination of preparation?

Are you open to what He might be calling you to?

“Go therefore and make disciples.”

Be prepared.

Jesus Is Our Amen

Jesus Is Our Amen

“All the promises of God find their yes in Him” (2 Corinthians 1:20).

Jesus is the one who fulfills all the promises of God. In Revelation 3:14, when giving instructions for writing to the church at Laodicea, Jesus says of Himself, “The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God’s creation.”

The word “amen” literally means “truly” or “so be it.” Most of the time we end our prayers with the word “amen.” In this verse, Jesus is saying he is the true Word, the one in whom all the promises are fulfilled, and the one who was there at the beginning with God.

He is the final word; the authority; the end of the prayer.

“All authority in heaven, and on earth has been given to me,” Jesus says in Matthew 28:18. Because he has the authority, he then gives us our instructions, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” (v.19) Then he leaves us with a promise, “And behold I am with you always, to the end of the age” (v.20)

He is our Amen

He is Manna in the wilderness

He is the Bread of Life

He is the Lamb of God

He is the Good Shepherd

He is the Prince of Peace

He is Redeemer

He is King

He is Alpha and Omega

He is Lord

Amen

The More You Know

The more you know His Word, the more you know His Will. That phrase came to me recently as I was pondering some decisions about the future.

All of us who follow Christ have probably prayed for specific direction about a big decision we needed to make. Maybe we have operated with the assumption that there is a perfect, detailed plan and place somewhere out there that God might reveal to us. We want specifics, we want it written in the sky, but maybe He is just saying something like, “Go West.”

As Eugene Peterson said, the Christian life is a “long obedience in the same direction.” But we need to make sure we are headed in the right direction. The more we know His Word, the closer we will move toward Him, and the less likely we will be to move toward things that would cause us to head in the wrong direction.

2 Thessalonians 5:16-18 says, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” Are you thankful? Are you prayerful? Are you joyful? This is His will for you. It doesn’t involve a detailed plan of action, but a plan for how we should “be.”

The more you know His Word, the richer your prayer life will be. As you start to pray and worship, you speak God’s promises, His attributes, and His character back to Him. You affirm the truth over and over, like the saints and angels around the throne who cry, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord God almighty, who was and is and is to come.” You are reminding yourself of His promises as you pray His words of Truth and Life back to Him.

The more you know His Word, the more love you show. When you take Jesus at his word, your desire will be to live out the greatest commandment – to love the Lord your God with all your heart mind soul strength, and your neighbor as yourself.

This is His Will for you.

Maybe it’s just that simple.

The more you know His Word, the more you know His Will.

Written by: Michelle Dowdy

A Matter of Inches

Inches That Changed Everything

Recent events have left me, like many of you, heartbroken and pondering where we are in our society.

I was thinking about how in many ways, life comes down to inches, minutes, or even fractions of seconds. A bullet can merely graze the flesh, or penetrate the tissue of life- inches. In a car accident, sometimes the difference of inches can be the difference in life or death. For an elite athlete, a fraction of a second is the difference between Olympic Gold, breaking a world record, or dashed dreams.

And at the risk of sounding crude, even at the beginning of life itself, how far for sperm to travel to meet egg? Only inches.

Life can change in just a few minutes, or even seconds: a marriage, a birth, a death, a win, a loss.

And on the cross – how long were the nails? By most accounts, five to seven inches.

Five to seven inches of iron spikes.

Those five to seven inches of iron that pierced hands and feet, holding Jesus to the cross, brought death to Him, but life to us. His moments of agony became our healing. With His death and resurrection, everything changed. Hope was reborn. Eternal life promised and secured.

Some things we don’t understand, and may never understand, this side of Heaven. But we need to be reminded that the One who holds the seconds, minutes, and inches in His Hands is Lord of All. We can trust in His Sovereignty, knowing that we won’t live one moment longer, or one moment less, than He has planned for us.

Psalm 139:16
“Your eyes saw my unformed body;
all the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be.”

Even today, that’s the Good News.

The Beautiful Eternal

The Beautiful Eternal

What is it that makes us yearn for beauty? In people, in nature, in created things, in music, and even in words, we seek after beauty. Artists of various kinds long to create something transcendent – something that will be remembered long after we are here.

I believe part of this yearning is manifested in the longing for something that always seems just out of reach. One example of this is people’s desire for a “dream home.” I think most of us have a conception of that perfect place – if money were no object and we could have exactly the dwelling we wanted, in the exact location we wanted. Many people would want to be near water; some would want to be in the mountains. We would have different ideas of size and style of a house, but we would no doubt look at pictures and follow a plan that had some objective standard of beauty about it.

Ecclesiastes says God has placed eternity in the human heart. Could it be that this eternity, this knowledge that there is something beyond this life, is the beauty for which we actually yearn? In seeking after beauty, are we really seeking after eternity?

Jesus said, “I go to prepare a place for you.” Is it really that eternal place which is our heart’s desire? The place where He is – where his Presence, his Glory and his Beauty permeate the atmosphere and every particle of our surroundings.

Romans 1:20 says that God’s invisible attributes, his divine nature and eternal power, have been seen in what was made, so people have no excuse for unbelief. We can look around at the complexity and the awesomeness of nature and see Him. In the beauty of creation, we are able to see those invisible attributes.

I remember as a very small child, often looking up at the clouds and being overwhelmed with the beauty of them. From my earliest memories I was taught about the love of God and the story of Jesus and his sacrifice, and to me all that was tied into the beauty I saw in the world around me, especially the sky and the clouds. I honestly never doubted any of it. His creation in all its various forms is meant to lead us from what is beautiful to what is good and true, to what is eternal.

When we look at a sunset painted in the sky, or majestic mountains that dot the horizon, or the ocean teeming with life, we see God in all of it. All of it points to Him.

Lead with the beautiful, because it will inevitably lead straight to Him.

A Return to Joy

There seems to be a lot of sadness today, especially among young people. There is more focus on mental health, more introspection, more “self-care” than ever before, and yet it appears there is also more misery. Even on their faces, there is a hopeless, hardened look.

Approximately 42% of Gen Z have been given a mental health diagnosis of some kind. What is the difference between them and the previous generations? While there may be many things at play, dare I suggest, the counselor has replaced family and friends, and the therapist has replaced the preacher. With intense focus on the self, isolation, and no place for the Sacred, a crisis of meaning is sure to follow.

But what about joy? Is there hope for a return to joy? Nehemiah 8:10 says, “The joy of the Lord is my strength.” That verse came crashing through to me in a new way recently as I pondered it. Joy and strength are related? Really??

Nehemiah had just built a wall, a fortress, but was reminding the people where their joy came from. The word “strength” used in the verse has the meaning of “stronghold, a place of safety.” Nehemiah was reminding the people that the joy of the Lord was their true strength, not the wall they just built.

The joy comes from knowing God and His character and nature and allowing that knowledge to change us. If we have that joy, it becomes our strength, something we can build on. We build on materials with strength; we don’t build on sand. This joy is different from mere happiness that rests on our emotions.

It’s the kind of joy that says,

“When things don’t go my way – the joy of the Lord is my strength.”

“When I am struggling and agonizing for a wayward child – the joy of the Lord is my strength.”

“When I get the dreaded diagnosis – the joy of the Lord is my strength.”

“When a loved one is standing on the edge of eternity – the joy of the Lord is my strength.”

“Day by day, hour by hour, the joy of the Lord is my strength.”

May you walk in the joy of the Lord and know His strength for today, and all your tomorrows.

Twice Adopted

Twice Adopted

Growing up I never realized there was a stigma associated with being adopted. In fact, truth be told, I might have gone to the other extreme, thinking I was a bit “more special” than others who had come into their families in the “typical” way! I have to credit my parents with my confidence in this area. From my earliest memories, adoption was part of my “story,” told to me often, and always with the reminder that I was “chosen, loved, and special.”

Along with this knowledge of the nature of how I came into my family, I always, from the time I can remember, was aware of the fact that God loved me, and was looking out for me. In my childlike way I think I understood that things were as they should be, and it was part of His plan for me.

It would not be until later years, with more awareness, that I would learn people had different ideas about adoption and what it meant. I have heard theories even recently about the so-called “primal wound” that is present in adopted children, where the separation from the mother who has carried the child is felt deeply, even if the child is adopted from birth.

As I thought more about it, looking through my child development lens, I could see how it might be true for some, or maybe even most, adoptees. But we need to be careful of believing something just because someone else says it; we may even start to feel like a victim, based on another’s opinion or view of the matter. Knowing you are “supposed” to be wounded, almost makes you feel wounded, somehow, even though you never felt that way before.

In so many areas of our lives, it seems we allow others to define us, when what we need to focus on what God’s word says about us, who we are in Him. Our ultimate security rests in who He says we are.

This is who I am:

~ Made in God’s image – Genesis 1:27

~Known – Jeremiah 1:5

~God’s Friend – John 15:15

~The righteousness of God in Christ – 2 Corinthians 5:21

~Adopted into His family – Romans 8:14-17

~Made alive with God – Colossians 2:13

~A new creation – 2 Corinthians 5:17

~Not lacking in any gift – 1 Corinthians 1:7

~God’s Temple – 1 Corinthians 6:19

~Beloved – 1 John 3:1

He’s a great and good God; we are who we are because of who He is.

~Michelle Dowdy