Lauren Sparks

The Sparks Notes

How a Church Cemetery Reminded Me of What’s Important

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what's importantEvery day I drive 20 minutes to take my daughter to her dayhab program.  And every day we pass a church with a cemetery beside it.  The church and grounds are gorgeous.  And I love their commitment to history.  This congregation kept and preserved other iterations of their sanctuaries as they continued to expand and build.  And today,  this patch  of  land  and  buildings reminded me of  what’s important.

 

God handed us a break with the temperatures this week (only getting into the low 90’s instead of triple digits).  So I chose to exercise outside on a mild morning or two (still in the upper 70’s).  I prefer being outdoors for movement these days but the Texas climate rarely allows that during the summer.

 

what's importantAfter dropping Shelby off, I decided to stop at this church campus to explore and walk.  They have a prayer labyrinth and a walking trail with spiritual landmarks – and a lot of space.  I tried to take a picture of the cemetery while capturing the church on the other side of it, but mucked it up.  I blame the poor vantage point.  Making excuses really.  If you look closely at the picture with the gate, you might just barely see the steeple above the trees.  Oh, well.  My younger sister got all of the photography skills.what's important

 

What’s Important

 

Let me make my point.  I think seeing a cemetery every time I went to church would remind me that this place is not our home.  I know funerals and burials make a lot of money now – big business – which is probably why the church is not the preferred plot anymore.  But I think being put in mind of the saints who went before us on a weekly basis could be a good thing.

 

We spend so much time trying to make ourselves comfortable here and devising ways to live our best lives now.  And the bible does tell us that Jesus came to give us an abundant life (John 10:10).  But I don’t think abundant lives focus on the here and now.  Today reminded me that I need to keep my eyes on Jesus (Hebrews 12:2) and things in the heavenly realm.  That is what’s important.

 

We only use these bodies in this place for a short time.  But 2 Corinthians 5:1 NIV tells us, “For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands.”  Through this scripture the Holy Spirit whispered to me, “Everything you do in this body should be focused on that”.

 

Summing Up What’s Important

 

I get so caught up in the pain and difficulty – and even the minutia – of my days.  My walk this morning renewed my commitment to myself and my Heavenly Father to turn my thoughts to Him and His purposes.  And to the promises that await me when this blip on earth is over.  Our Father, using that church and the quaint little graveyard, hugged me warmly and reminded me that this is not all there is.  He reminded me of what’s important.

 

“But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ,  who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.”  Philippians 3:20-21 NIV

 

The Link Up

 

Paula Short provided us a great list of encouraging scriptures that I thought might be beneficial for you too.  Plus, she has a new link up for you writers.  Two resources in one!  24 Ways Christ Tells Us Who We are in Him.

 

1. Share 1 or 2 of your most recent CHRISTIAN LIVING posts. (No DIY, crafts, recipes, or inappropriate articles.) All links are randomly sorted.

2. Comment on 1 or 2 other links. Grace & Truth linkup encourages community.

3. Every host features one entry from the previous week. To be featured, include this button or link back here on your post (mandatory to be featured, but not to participate).

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MAREE DEE – Embracing the Unexpected
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LAUREN SPARKS
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LISA BURGESS – Lisa notes
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TAMMY KENNINGTON – Restoring hope. Pursuing peace.
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Praying God’s Word Wednesday #50: Psalm 143:10-11

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Today, a dear friend prayed God’s Word over me.  What a privilege to be an intercessor AND a recipient!  The prayer is so dear that I wanted to share it with you, with the hope that it encourages you in your prayer life.  My friend chose Psalm 143:10-11 NASB:

 

Teach me to do Your will, For You are my God; Let Your good Spirit lead me on level ground.  For the sake of Your name, Lord, revive me.  In Your righteousness bring my soul out of trouble. Psalm 143:10-11

 

King David – who wrote this Psalm – not only wanted to know the will of God, he wanted to be instructed to obey this will.  And this is one of the many reasons God said David was a man after His own heart (Acts 13:22)!  How many times have I prayed to know God’s will?  Yet, never had the wisdom to ask to be able to obey it.  What good is the former without the later?

 

The Psalmist also prayed for level ground.  We all have ups and downs in this life, but David had more bumps and potholes than many.  That’s why the Psalms are such a good place to park when we are struggling or feel like we’ve been dealt a raw deal.  In this state David asks for revival or restoration.  Not for his own sake, but for the sake of God’s glory.  The most important thing to our Lord is that His name be made known.  Because only when He’s known can we be saved.  And God desires all to come to a saving knowledge of Him (1 Timothy 2:3-4).

 

Even as David prays to know and obey God’s will, he obviously knows it in realizing that His righteous name is the reason God saves us.  My sweet friend texted this to me:

 

 

Replace the pronouns with the appropriate ones for the person (or yourself) that you are praying for.

 

Praying for you in this.  And don’t forget to share on social media or with a friend who could benefit.  It would mean so much to me.  And if you don’t want to miss a Praying God’s Word Wednesday, subscribe over on the right hand side of this page.

Lauren

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