Valerie Hess

During Advent, I’d like to start the “Judith Group.” Judith is the heroine of the Deuterocanoncial book by the same name. If you’ve never read the book of Judith, I recommend using the Renovare “Spiritual Formation Bible” to do so as the study notes, essays, and introductory articles are so helpful.

Judith was a woman who lived a godly life at a time of great national crisis. As the study note on page 1482 of the Renovare study Bible says: ” Judith’s wisdom rests in not having a backup plan where God’s glory is concerned.” In other words, Judith went out to face a far superior Babylonian army with the idea that God would not lose; she had one plan only and while it took great courage to carry out, she never doubted that God would win in the end.

I’d like to hear from you all about times when you have had to have great courage in the face of evil, about the times when the only plan was to glorify God and further God’s kingdom here on earth, about those times when there was no Plan B because you knew that God would not fail.

Send them to me through this site and feel free to pass this on to others. Maybe the story isn’t your story but one that you are aware of in the life of another “Judith.” During this time of Advent, when the Church celebrates the three comings of Christ (his coming at Bethlehem, his coming daily in our lives, and his coming at the end of the world in victory), let us encourage one another through our stories of living as Judith did, whatever name the enemy had in our particular time and place.

To my friends in Indiana: On Tuesday, October 30th, I will be talking to Lynne Ford at wbcl at 9 AM. I hope you can listen in. If not, check it out at wbcl.org.

Every where we go, there are messages encouraging us to be “authentic.” What does that mean from a Christian perspective? How do we balance being “true to ourselves” and being servants of Christ and others? Where is the line between being “self-centered” and being what God created us to be without forcing ourselves to work against our gifts and temperament either because of other people’s expectations or because of guilt?

I am collecting thoughts and ideas for a possible book. If you have things to share with me, I’d love to hear them!

I just came back from a wonderful week at Ghost Ranch near Abiquiu, New Mexico where I went with a group from church. One of the morning devotions centered on “portion” and what that means in Scripture. It got me to thinking how if God is my portion and in some mysterious way I (and all believers) are God’s portion, then a good prayer to begin each day is “Lord, help me to live well in the portion you have today given me.” It is also a good concept to teach children as it helps them learn to live within their incomes with gratitude starting early in life. If God is my portion, then I don’t need to fear about my needs (not necessarily my wants) being met.

Today is the start of the Muslim holy month of fasting called Ramadan. As I begin my annual time of prayer for the Muslim world, I was reflecting on how we as Christians, especially in Europe and North America, squander our faith opportunities. For example, there are way more people who call themselves Christian in Europe than Muslims but far more Muslims attend Friday prayers at mosques than Christians attend church on Sunday. There are huge mosques being built in Europe (or in the planning stages to be built), mosques that in some European cities will rival major cathedral sizes. Even “non-practicing” Muslims will defend “being Muslim” to their death. Would that be true of “non practicing” Christians in Europe? In North America? We are like the frog in the water that is slowly heating up. One day we are going to wake up and realize that the pot has begun to boil in favor of Sharia law (the stated goal of Islam for all nations). Maybe we who call ourselves Christians (whether that is a major identity or not) should use the next 30 days to look at the world situation. Islam is on the move with money and education for the young, with health care and provisions in many desperate places, in ways that put many of us Christians to shame. Islam is even ready to convert everyone in the world by the sword if need be (see latest Osama bin Laden video) while too many of us Christians worry about “offending” someone. If you were a betting person, which side would you bet on winning in the long run? I would bet on Islam’s ultimate success–except for one thing: Jesus Christ, God’s Son and Lord of the Universe; Jesus who has promised that the gates of Hell will never prevail against his Church. Let us as Christians awaken to Jesus’ call to live as salt and light so that during this time of Ramadan, many Muslims might take the next step from knowing about God to knowing the God who loves them in Jesus.