By amy_import on January 10, 2005
The unbelievable has happened. The unbelievable for Amy Jones that is: I have a new identity.
Everything happened rather fast, less than a week really. The Lord first spoke to me just last Monday and on Saturday morning I obtained permission from my dad then followed through that afternoon. I am now someone else: I am a bond slave.
Now to explain myself, I pierced my ears. Now I know that doesn’t seem very drastic to some of you but ya’ll have only seen a small side of me there at Verity. This has been a move that I’ve always brushed away as something I didn’t care for and saw as a worthless trouble. Besides, it didn’t fit my image of myself.
During break I asked a woman from our church to disciple me in the area of prayer and one thing she had me do was read through a book on brokenness and then another on surrender. Through the later book I came to realize that I was still holding back from God. I had an image of myself, an image of toughness and masculinity, that I worked very hard to maintain and in rejecting God’s design I was living in rebellion to Him. When God first whispered to me the idea of piercing my ears my whole being resisted and thought, “oh I couldn’t do that, everyone would think I had gone girly!” I tried coming up with other ideas, like going out to the barn and literally driving an awl through my ear, but all of the ideas were Ishmaels compared to God’s Isaac. They would have been done my way, in my strength, and would have still upheld my “ideal.”
So the sum total of all of this is: I have surrendered to the Lord and the ears are my daily reminder that I am His bond slave, ready and willing to do what He asks. I must obey, because that is what is expected from a slave, I have no other choice. Behold Lord, Your handmaiden, be it unto me according as You will.
Posted in testifyhim
By amy_import on January 2, 2005
This post is about my brothers and what a wonderful blessing they are. I love “my guys” and thank God for them. I would like to turn the spotlight on a few recent happenings that really drove home God’s working through them. I’ll start with my older brother, Michael.
One night at soccer some young man tried slipping his arm around my shoulders, I was too slow to see it coming and because it was done in the context of a joke, I didn’t quite realize what had happened until too late. Fortunately my older brother was standing right there and I quickly took refuge behind him to hide my confusion and uncertainty on how to react. Ever since then my brother has been very protective, coming up when I talk to any of the guys at soccer and asking what I was talking about. I think his new role as a dad has really turned something on inside of him.
Christmas day, I had a wonderful time playing with my three younger brothers on our trampoline. The weather was beautiful and we played a crazy sort of hockey with two foot long plastic hockey sticks the boys got for Christmas. To watch them haggle out the rules and decide who had to get the ball each time it was hit off of the trampoline, was entertainment in itself. I was just happy to spend the time with them and see their personalities all over again.
We got a new computer game for Christmas and it’s the kind where you go through it and solve the bigger mystery by working at smaller puzzles until they all come together as a whole. We three sisters were going to split up with the three boys to play in teams and I expected us to split in the usual way, putting David and I together. Instead he teamed with Stacie and I was partnered with Timothy, the youngest. I think God knew just what I needed, I didn’t know Tim as well as my other brothers and getting to work with him and talk with him has been a special experience. He thinks on a whole different track than the rest of our family and I’ve lost patience with him several times but God is working on me as well as him. Through our conversations I’ve been able to get an honest glimpse of the workings inside an 11 year old boy. I tell you, faith does run deep and true in the heart of a child. Praise God.
Posted in testifyhim
By amy_import on January 1, 2005
Happy New Year!
No wise words, resolutions, or deep thoughts. I am grateful that another year has gone by and as children grow physically every year, so I have grown as a child of my heavenly Father. I look forward to another year to grow in His grace and in obedience to His will.
I want to count the blessings of good friends who will play volleyball from one year to the next; for brothers and sisters who will “polar bear plunge” into the pond with you; and for our wonderful Texas weather that allowed both of those things to happen. God is good.
Posted in testifyhim
By amy_import on January 1, 2005
Well yesterday was a very full day, lot’s to think about. I went to
work with my brother on his FedEx route and we had a great time
catching up on our lives and discussing life.
One thing we were discussing was life choices and what was behind our
actions. I was also reading a book and came across a really good
explanation of why we have boundaries on our behavior.
The starting point for our
guidelines has to be a heart desire to honor God…rules for the sake
of rules that are based on human traditions have no value in
restraining indulgence….that only comes by God’s grace. However, an
important part in receiving and applying that grace is establishing
behavior that flees from temptation and puts sin to death. This
involves establishing guidelines that help us. These rules…help us
put our convictions into action.
The boundaries that we set for ourselves, yes the ones I have
set for myself, are based on what would enhance Christ’s reputation.
Think of anyone going into the public area and coming under scrutiny of
the press; they better have a good track record or any “little slip”
will be blasted to the whole nation and their credibility ruined. A
stupid choice, or a little activity that “wouldn’t hurt anything” now
becomes a source of regret and embarrassment, possibly even ruining a
chance to be effective.
There was an incident a few years ago (forgive me for not
remembering details) but Bush was trying to appoint a good conservative
lady to fill a key government position. The opposition however found
that she had harbored and helped an illegal alien, albeit out of
kindness, and under the pressure of the accusations she had to turn her
back on the position offered her. She had made a slight “bend in the
law” and with a good motive too, but that compromise ended in defeat by
hurting her character and rendering her useless to serve her country in
a way that would have had incredible impact.
The same can happen to us as Christians. God has led me to draw
the line in some places that others might not; they might think I’m
weird and try to get me to change. But I’m not doing it for my
reputation but for Christ’s who dwells in me. We have to carefully
guard our reputation, lest after you have preached to others, you
yourself are cast away. Keep yourself unspotted by the flesh.
Posted in testifyhim
By amy_import on December 29, 2004
God knows what we have need of even if we don’t.
After working all week until Thursday and then staying out late at a Christmas presentation that night, dad told me to rest up the next day. (I was staying home Christmas Eve to help mom cook and clean) Well being my normal self I couldn’t imagine sleeping in and messing up my while morning routine so I planned to get up early just like always. One problem, somewhere between getting ready for bed and actually getting in bed I had lost my watch which I use for an alarm. After searching around a bit I was too tired to care anymore and decided to just sleep in until my sister’s alarm went off at six.
For the rest of that weekend I couldn’t find my watch and I continued to get a little extra rest each morning, once I slept all the way until seven! I felt rested, and had high spirits all weekend. I even started coming down with a cold (the first time I’ve been sick since before I left for college) so it was good to give my body a break.
Finally, on Sunday night I knew that I needed to go to work the next morning. If I wanted to jog and read my Bible before going I would have to get up at my regular time. I set up to use my sister’s alarm and then reset it for her, but I really wanted my watch back. Finally I stopped and prayed, I thanked the Lord for the rest that weekend and then asked Him to please put the watch back where I could find it. I went the bathroom and started looking again and there in my little sisters pajama drawer was my watch! It must have fallen off of the counter and been in there all weekend.
I thanked God not only for the watch but also for His care of me. He also made sure that I obeyed my dad when I thought I would do things my own way instead of listening to him. I’m so glad that I have two Fathers watching over me.
Posted in testifyhim
