little known fact about me…

I’ve been blogging for over a decade.
That may not seem like much until
you realize that means I started blogging as a preteen.

That blog is still on the internet somewhere…
{no, I’m not going to link to it here}

After that blog
came another
and another
and another.
Then there was this blog.

I’m not referring to individual blog posts
I’m saying I’ve had four completely different blog webpages
before this one.

Having started them throughout
my preteen and teen years,
I quickly outgrew them.

I’ve almost outgrown this one.
So, predictably,
I started a new one.
New content every Monday.

Maybe I’ll write for both
for awhile,
but I don’t know how long that will last.

I may let jordannewhouse.wordpress.com
become dormant.

So if you want to keep hearing from me,
subscribe to my newsletter on jordan elisheva…

Once upon a time the hero was you

Am I the only one who saw myself in every protagonist?
Who wondered how I could feel such solidarity with a fictional character?
She might be a princess, an orphan, or a little girl on the prairie.
What does an average 20th-century girl have in common with these?
Plenty.
And in coming to know them I came to know myself.

When was the last time you read a story
and let yourself be in that story?

Why not allow yourself to be the hero
of a story again?

Maybe in experiencing another story
you’ll come to better understand your own.

is God good?

photo credit: Moriah

Do you believe that God is good?

Do you really believe that God is really good?

Do you live like you believe that God is good?

 

What does it mean that God is good?

Does it mean that all that He allows is good?
Or only what He gives directly?
And how does a mere mortal distinguish between the two?

Does it mean that His children will never know sorrow or suffering?
Or that they will only know sorrow and suffering if they need it as punishment?

No?
Then what?

If God is good…then what is good?
Is not God?

Perhaps in order to know good, one must know God.

God is not found by looking at His world.
But once He is found He is clearly seen in His world.
Even then, one must be careful to always return to the Source.
All good – every good and perfect gift – comes from above.
From God Himself.

So then, what does it mean to live like you believe that God is good?

It means searching to find Him everywhere.
The incessant hunger to know Him.
The constant running after Him.
And then, to allow the finding and knowing and loving to flow out.

One who has been justified by faith
and made righteous through the one man, Messiah Yeshua,
walks and lives in righteousness.
And God does not withhold one good thing from those who walk righteously.

Can you truly believe, then, that God will not keep any good thing from you?

And if God is good, then He will not hide Himself from you?

and I was terrified

I was in the dark
praying for a sign
something to let me know He hadn’t forgotten

in the night
keeping watch, but not for Him
forgetting everything He promised

Then it came

glory and radiance
surrounding me
unmistakably telling me He had never forgotten

and I was terrified
hid my eyes
forgetting that this was the promise I was waiting for

Then He spoke

He said do not fear
I have good news
and not for you to keep for yourself, I want you to share it

I have a gift for you
here is the sign you prayed for
it may seem mundane at first, but this is the promise you’ve been waiting for

Then I heard

the glory became
even more overwhelming
but this time I opened my eyes, took it all in

as the visible glory faded
I remembered
got up, left the place of fear, and carried the gift to anyone who would receive it

{inspired by this true story}

Tell them what I’ve done

Go tell them what I’ve done for you.
Can one really hear God speak?
If I can, that’s what He said to me.
Go tell them what I’ve done for you.

But I don’t want to
What would they think?
They’re having their own conversation.
What would I have to add to it?

Your story.
You’re the only one who can tell it.
Go share it.
Go tell them what I’ve done for you.

I reluctantly obey.
In the telling, my gusto returns.
I tell them where I came from.
And I tell them what God has done for me.

And then,
as I listen to them respond,
I stand in awe
because my story was exactly what they needed to hear…