Author Archives: Rebekah Roper

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11/16/2011

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Live the Journey, Sing-Along Scriptures

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The Door of My Heart

In light of my recent announcement that I’m stepping out and pursuing a new dream, a co-worker of mine decided to educate me on the subject of open doors. It’s his personal opinion that God doesn’t open doors. He claims that the doors are always open with the exception of one… the door of our hearts. Now, it’s a great theory, and I would agree that sometimes our hearts are the only door left to open. But that’s not always the case.

Sometimes my heart feels ready before the rest of me is. And sometimes I want to go barging through a door I probably shouldn’t open yet. A look through my journals will prove that I’ve been jiggling the knob on this door for a little over a year now. Trust me, if it wasn’t locked, I’d have gone right through it a long time ago and ended up who-knows-where. But it was locked. Because God knew I needed a little more preparation before starting this new journey.

Maybe the doors in my co-worker’s life are always open, but the doors in mine are definitely closed because God isn’t worried about having to fight with my heart; He’s worried that my heart is going to move sooner than my head.

And maybe there are doors that God has left hanging open, waiting for the day we finally have the courage to step over the threshold. But most doors are left closed until the timing is right, and then there is nothing that could keep you from walking into the great unknown.

“This is the message from the one who is holy and true, the one who has the key of David. What he opens, no one can close; and what he closes, no one can open.” -Revelation 3:7

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11/14/2011

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Things That Inspire

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Tell Me a Story…

Tell me a story any day, and I’ll find Jesus in it. Guaranteed.

That’s why I think it’s funny that there are people who consider fiction a waste of time. Fact is all that speaks to them. Even Christian people. People who have read the entire story of the Bible. People who study the STORIES Jesus told.

I think Jesus told more stories than He preached sermons. Or maybe I just remember the stories. Because I’m not one of those people who wants the facts. I want the story. I want to find my own truth through the eyes of a character. There are certain things you could preach to me all day, and I’d turn a deaf ear. But with a story, you’re presenting the truth in a non-threatening way.

Think of King David. After his sin with Bathsheba, God sent Nathan, not to preach a sermon, but to tell a story. (You can check it out in 2 Samuel 12.) Why? Because if Nathan would have barged in there and told David all he had done wrong, David would have gotten defensive. But Nathan didn’t start pointing fingers. He posed a “hypothetically speaking” story that got David’s blood boiling. And that’s when David acknowledges that he has sinned against the Lord.

The story and the sermon have the same message, but only one reaches the heart of the person who hears it. Because only one is capable of disarming the defenses. After all, what threat is there in a story?

I’m reading a story right now that isn’t even a Christian story. It’s mainstream YA fiction, but I see Jesus all over it. It’s a story about taking risks and finding that some things are worth fighting for. It’s about a girl who has lived all of her life in a bubble and is about to break free.

I’m not sure that I’ve lived in a bubble (leastwise, not so much as the heroine in Ally Condie’s Matched), but I’m definitely on the verge of taking a huge risk, so Cassia’s story has been as encouraging and inspirational as it is well-written.

So tell me a story… and it might just be the thing that catapults me into taking that final step and breaking out of the little world I’ve created for myself.

What stories has God used to challenge you lately?

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11/11/2011

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Live the Journey

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Sit Down, You’re Rocking the Boat

When I was young, my cousin and I used to sit on a raft in her pool and rock back and forth, back and forth, until we created waves that lapped over the edge of the pool. It terrified me to think that if I were to slip back into the water, I would be in over my head. I hated water. I still do. But something about the waves we created fascinated me enough to make me keep rocking back and forth, back and forth.

You know what else is both terrifying and fascinating at the same time? God’s call on each of our lives.

I think back to a time that Jesus played with water, perhaps similarly  to how my cousin and I did when we were young. Only He was walking in the middle of a storm-tossed sea when He invited Peter out to play with Him. I wonder what was going through Peter’s head when Jesus told Him he really could climb out of the boat. Did he think he would drown? Did he know he would sink?

I wonder if the other disciples thought Peter was crazy for even considering jumping overboard. Didn’t he know it was safer in the boat? Didn’t he know he could drown?

Of course he knew. Of course he was afraid – probably even terrified. But Peter saw what so many of us fail to see through our fears. He saw that there was something better out there. He saw the thrill of walking on water. He saw that the risk was worth it. He saw Jesus beckoning him to play in the waves. And for a few, shaky steps, Peter lived the dream that the rest of the disciples merely dreamed because, unlike the rest of them, he faced his fears and took the risk.

Today I encourage you to rock the boat, make some waves, and take a step of faith, knowing that the One who called you is faithful to fulfill His promises.

Remember, you can live your dream, or die dreaming. As for me, I choose to live.

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11/09/2011

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Live the Journey

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Being Led by Needs

Today I was slapped in the face by a ministry update I was reading. It talked of being led by needs rather than calling, and how easy it is to let those needs drive us. The reason it hit me so hard is because I’ve recently realized that I do a whole lot of stuff that needs to be done, but is not what I need to be doing. And I feel like God has been saying to me, “Hey, Rebekah, stop living someone else’s life and just live how I’ve called you to live, already!”

But these needs drive me. They’ve driven me for a long time. It’s easy to think that responding to needs is the right thing to do. But it isn’t. Not always.

As my partner in ministry pointed out in his letter: “Lazarus was dead. He needed life. Jesus had life. Jesus didn’t go. I would have gone!!!”

I would have gone too. Because going is what I do. I go and go and go until I can’t go any farther, and as I lay there panting for breath, God says, “Now will you listen?”

It’s not about the needs; it’s about the call. Even good things can be bad things when they’re not the right things. And sometimes you have to let Lazarus die so a greater purpose can be revealed.

Does it hurt? Oh, yeah. Jesus wept when Lazarus was still in the tomb, and He knew the miracle that was about to occur. I’m stepping out on a limb here, trusting, hoping, praying everything will work out in the end. There’s faith, but not certainty. Trust, but not stability. And that’s okay. Because there is certainty and stability in the fact that I’m being called. And though I can’t see where my next step is going to land, I’m taking the step regardless. And I’m letting myself be led by the call, rather than the needs I see around me.

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11/07/2011

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Sing-Along Scriptures

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Chasing the Wind

I was talking to a missionary friend about doctrine the other day. He said it’s something he’s been struggling with lately as he visits churches here in the States. He’s had a couple of churches tell him that they’d only be willing to support him if he and the pastors he supervises preach the doctrine these churches believe.

Now, I’m not saying doctrine is a bad thing. It’s great… until it gets in the way of more important things. The little details that define denominations are not the Gospel that my friend is proclaiming. And when people in India are dying without ever coming to know the Lord, what does it matter what they believe about predestination? The only thing that matters is that they are saved.

You can analyze the entire Bible and interpret it whatever way you wish, but there are certain truths that never change no matter how you look at them. As long as Jesus remains in the center of things, the other details are just details – and they shouldn’t keep anyone from getting involved in what God is doing around the world.

I couldn’t help but smile as my friend confessed that some of the driest seasons of his life were in seminary – with all that knowledge, all that theology, all that doctrine. It reminded me of the verse in Ecclesiastes that says, “Then I applied myself to the understanding of wisdom, and also of madness and folly, but I learned that this, too, is a chasing after the wind. For with much wisdom comes much sorrow; the more knowledge, the more grief.” (chapter 1, verses 17-18)

You can know everything there is to know about Christianity and still feel as if you’re missing something because it’s not doctrine that draws us to the heart of the Father; it’s His unfathomable love and mercy. And while it’s important to know what you believe, you can’t let the little things separate you from other believers. God never intended for doctrine to divide His church. Don’t get so caught up in chasing the wind that you miss the miracle of what God is doing in this moment here and now.

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11/04/2011

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Embrace Truth

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That’s My King

Right on the heels of my post about running, God yet again reminds me of who He is. Bible study yesterday morning started off with this rousing video about my King. I know God’s talking to me, and I hope you’re blessed by this powerful reminder of what kind of God we serve:

I wish I could describe Him to you, but He’s indescribable.

That’s my King.

Do you know Him?

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11/02/2011

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Paradoxes and Mysteries

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Running

“I’m running as fast as I can and every hour is another frantic stride. I used to think I was running toward you, then for awhile I thought I was running away from you. But in truth you’ve been running beside me this whole time.” ~Steven James

That’s the kind of God I serve – the kind that sticks close to me whether I’m seeking Him or not. The kind that doesn’t wait for me to run into His arms, but rushes to meet me where I’m at. The kind that doesn’t wait for me to wander back to Him, but follows me as I meander along the bunny trails of life.

He’s the kind of God who doesn’t wait for an invite to help a friend in need. He’s the kind of God who stands patiently by my side until I finally turn and notice that He’s there – that His arms are open and that His love is true.

Even when I run a million miles in the wrong direction, He loves me enough to keep running beside me. And even when I think that I’ve drifted too far – when I believe that redemption is too far out of reach, I find Him waiting. Waiting there all along, hoping I’ll turn around and notice Him. And it’s during those times when I realize how lost I truly am, that I’m thankful He runs alongside me just waiting for the moment He can turn around and carry me back to the life I was always meant to live.

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10/31/2011

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Live the Journey

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So Much More Than a Haircut

I didn’t feel like doing much of anything yesterday. I went to church, but was planning to come home and spend the whole afternoon locked in my room by myself. It would be absolutely beautiful. But then I noticed my hair. It had needed cut for a while, but I kept finding reasons to postpone it. Yesterday I was out of reasons… except for the reason that said I just wanted to go home and could get a haircut any other day. But still, the question lingered: To cut or not to cut? As you’ve probably guessed, I opted for “to cut.”

It was the same old walk-in haircut at the same old salon I’ve gone to since moving to this town (What can I say? I’m a creature of habit). But this time, it was completely different. This time, it wasn’t about the haircut. It was about the divine appointment God was about to make.

Her name was Kristin and she loves Jesus. And, boy, was she excited when she found out that I love Jesus too.  See, Kristin is currently the only believer in her salon, and she hates missing church on Sundays. For the entire half an hour it took her to finish my haircut, we talked about our greatest passion – Jesus. And I didn’t just walk out of that salon with a new haircut; I left with a new friend. And you can bet that I’m never going to have any old walk-in haircut again. I’m going to be dropping her name.

And to think that I almost missed it. That I almost decided against getting the haircut yesterday. To think that I nearly missed that divine appointment that God had ordained for the two of us.

Next time you get one of those thoughts that go against your instant desire, I’d challenge you to think about it. Who knows what divine appointment could be waiting for you in the midst of those little interruptions? It might just be so much more than a haircut.

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10/28/2011

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Heartfelt Prayers

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Oh My Mysterious God

“Who has seen the wind?

Neither I nor you.

But when the leaves hang trembling,

The wind is passing through.”

-Christina Rossetti

Your Presence washes over my spirit today and I know. Though I cannot see Your hand, I see that You’re opening doors for me. Though I can’t see Your face, I feel the warmth of Your smile.

If I could wrap my mind around You, You wouldn’t be God.

If You lived within the bounds of human comprehension, You wouldn’t be divine.

If You were something I could study and scientifically prove, You wouldn’t fill me with wonder.

But as the breeze proves its existence to me by playing with my hair, the tiny miracles surrounding me remind me that You’re alive and You are here.

And that is all of the mystery I need to know.

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10/26/2011

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Embrace Truth

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Wear it on Your Heart

I have a slight obsession with names. Seriously. While I love the names Silas and Gideon, I refuse to use both of them because the first means “forest dweller” and the second, “tree cutter.” That’s just asking for World War III to break out in your home.

Names are important. Your name is what defines you. That’s why I’m glad my mom was kind enough to name me “devoted and cherished.” And maybe that’s also why I was so touched when I read this article about Indian girls changing their names.

Here are a group of young women who have known from birth that they were “unwanted.” But on this one glorious day, they decided to make that change. They decided to transform the way they saw themselves and force others to see them in this new light. I wish I could have been there to watch these 285 girls receive the certificates that would restore them with a sense of worth. I wish I could have been there to see their smiles, to cry their happy tears.

But here I am, half a world away, talking to you. And I’m sure you have labels – names – that define you. And I’m sure there are words bouncing around in your mind. Words like: worthless, stupid, failure, unlovable… and God only knows what else. But you know what? You don’t have to go by those names anymore. You don’t have to see yourself as alone and unwanted. You don’t have to believe that your life has no value.

You are:

a child of God. (John 1:12)

chosen by God. (Ephesians 1:4)

valuable. (Matthew 10:31)

beautiful. (Psalm 45:11)

delivered. (Psalm 34:4)

endlessly loved. (Isaiah 54:10)

God knows your name, and He loved it enough to inscribe it on the palm of His hand. (Isaiah 49:16) He wears your name like a tattoo. I’m not really into tattoos, but I love the thought that I’m a permanent part of the Almighty God.

When the world screams that you’re unloved, unwanted, and undesired, God throws a renaming party and totally redefines you. Wear your new name on your heart as God wears it on His hand, and know that you are so much more than the words that define you.