divingdeeperwithdollins

[divingdeeperwithdollins]

Genesis 2: “I shall call him Squishy”

One of the most pivotal and impactful moments of my life occurred in the summer of 2013 during my time in Guatemala.  I had just passed my first semester of nursing school (by the grace of God), and I felt as if I had barely escaped from a burning building-stumbling out while covered in soot, unable to breathe, and moments from collapsing.  Not only had the rigor of nursing school rocked me, but so did culture shock post my semester abroad in Zambia and significant faith struggles occurring at that time as well.  For a myriad of reasons, I felt I could never be or do enough for God to truly love me, or rather, he used to love me but changed his mind because of my actions. 

Somehow, I brought a copy of “One Thousand Gifts” by Ann Voskamp for some light reading to Guatemala, and the book truly changed my life and my view of Jesus.  The author mentions how burdened she was by life, but then how she decided to challenge herself to list one thousand blessings or gifts God has given her.  She began to list dozens and then hundreds of things, such as the reflection of light from the bubbles as she washed dishes, the sound of children laughing and playing, the smell of lavender.  This shift towards gratitude completely changed her perspective, and showed her how God truly saw her, pursued her, and loved her deeply as displayed in the big moments (sending Jesus to die in our place) but also in the little moments of all the overlooked blessings she received, day in and day out.  Seeing all that God had done for me, it was then that my false views of God’s indifference were redeemed, and I felt him holding me tight, carrying me through, healing my wounds and overcoming this burden of mine with gentleness, victory and love.  He truly loved me!

In chapter two of Genesis, our gracious Father can be found providing for and blessing his creation time and time again as well.  God is going WILD with detailed blessings!  He breathes life into man, sets him in the paradise that is Eden, gives him bountiful and delicious food to eat, give him purpose in caring for the garden and naming the animals, and then, when he sees that it is not good for him to be alone, creates a ‘helper’ for the man (bone of his bone, flesh of his flesh) so that he would not be alone.  God could not have been more thoughtful, loving, and kind to care for not only the physical, but all of the holistic needs man had by delivering time and time again. 

Between the creation of man from dust to God’s provision in countless ways, the principle I deduced from this passage was as follows: (1) He will provide for our needs and we can trust him in that. (2) God’s commandments are purposeful for us even when they may not make sense to us.  I don’t touch as much on the later principle in this post but I wanted to include it!

When I see how God provided for Adam and Eve in so many countless ways and when I am reminded of my realization of God’s intentionality after reading “One Thousand Gifts”, I am compelled to acknowledge that he loves us, he knows what we need, and he will provide what we need when we need it.  How often do I instead cry out to the Lord like a child with floaties in a kiddie pool, flailing around as if God does not see me and have my best intentions at heart?

This makes me think of the wisdom of Jesus from the Sermon on the Mount: “Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.  Are you not of more value than they?...Therefore do not be anxious, saying ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.  But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you (Matt 6:26-27, 31-33).”

That there is a PROMISE!  Seek first the kingdom of God and all these things will be added to you.  One thing I always hung onto from my days at the Porch young adult ministry in Dallas, TX was Jonathan “JP” Pokluda sharing these words, “God’s not trying to rip you off.”  Whether it is God withholding something from me, asking me to withhold from something, or asking me to do something that seems counterintuitive, he’s not trying to rip me off, he’s inviting me to a life of abundance.  This applies to both of our principles listed above!

My application for myself this week is to pay attention to my thoughts.  Whenever I have an anxious coveting thought, or what I want to happen in a situation but have little control over, I must remind myself of his faithfulness and love.  One way to do this is to count blessings, just like I did eight years ago.  For every anxious thought, think of three ways God provided during similar situations in the past, or three blessings God has given me that day already.  Adam and Eve had no clue what they needed, but God went above and beyond for their needs.  He will do the same for his children today as well.

[divingdeeperwithdollins]

Genesis 1: “Let’s start from the very beginning...”

Ahh, Genesis 1.  The chapter likely read more than any other in the first week of January.  Well, we have to start somewhere, huh?  One would think I had the chapter memorized by now!

My commentaries found themselves fixated on the timing of the days and other very specific details.  Were these days actually 24 hours, or were they representative of thousands of years?  How could Day 3 have happened and plants be teeming around the world before Day 4, when the Sun was created?  If the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters before Day 1 even began, what did these waters look like?

Very respectfully, I am not one one to fixate on details with which I am 99% guaranteed never to answer in this lifetime, and 99% guaranteed won't drastically impact my relationship with Jesus.  This is not the kind of blog that will answer these types of questions.  My aim is to learn more about who God is and his character, to learn the timeless theological principle that God is trying to show me in the passage, and how to apply the principle or lesson that he shares to my daily life.  So sorry to disappoint if you expect my study to result in that!

The principle that I determined was this: This incredibly selfless God created everything in the universe, created man in his image, and gave man dominion over the earth and animals.  We were created to be like him AKA good, and to fill the earth and take care of it.

Being created in the image of the God of the universe has vast implications and was honestly what stuck out most to me in this passage.  My ESV study Bible notes share the different possibilities of what this could specifically mean.  In ancient Near East times, this phrase was used to describe the representation of a deity through the form of a king or people who served the god.  Other theories suggest this image is displayed by the relationships humans have with one another, such as by marriage and in community through love and commitment.  Traditionally, many believe this refers how humans in comparison with animals have the capacity for reason, morality, creativity, rule/governance and so on.  Basically, these theories all boil down to how we as humans resemble the character of God, resemble the capacity to lead and care for the world, and resemble the ability to have relationships not only with one another, but with the God who created us.  And what touched me specifically was reading this and specifically having "male and female he created them" stick out to me.  From the very first chapter, God had his eyes on the purpose and worth of women, not just men.

Regarding the determination of application for me from this heavily narrative passage, I saw how incredibly creative the Lord was, and chose a few adjectives I felt described him: thoughtful, patient, kind, good, intentional.  If we were created in the image of God and to be like God, how can I emulate him and these characteristics in my daily life?  What can I create in my daily life to show honor to and display his glory?  

For me as a nurse practitioner, I feel that there are not many things I create!  I am not like my graphic designer friend Mere, who creates beautiful images that I couldn't have dreamt to imagine or form, or like an architect such as Antoni Gaudí whose purpose of la Sagrada Familia was to show the majesty of the Lord.  What I determined, however, was that I create the atmosphere for which I live, and by honoring the Lord, I can personify his patience, his kindness, his goodness, his thoughtfulness and intentionality with those in whom I interact.  God first created the tone of the world, and I as one small peon can give the world a taste of our creator by honoring the image of his that I humbly represent.  For me, this is being patient at work with my patients (ha), this is the intentionality of listening to others when they speak and honoring the information they share, and by looking for opportunities to create positivity and kindness, whether that be while shopping or at work or with new friends.  I hope the atmosphere with which I dwell is a form of worship to the Creator who made me.

[divingdeeperwithdollins]

Full disclosure...

I did not go to seminary.

Ever since I was in grade school, I loved learning.  I always excelled in my classes, I yearned to gain knowledge, and I found myself excited, time and time again, to study material to increase my understanding of a subject.  Growing up I would get straight As year after year, then I graduated as a valedictorian of my high school, finished college with honors, and completed my doctorate of nursing practice at the age of 27.  There are not many things I would say I excel at (ahem, sports), but one where I do is academic study.

Well now, at the age of 29 and settled into my career, my days of studying in school are over!  

I have wrestled with this transition out of school and with how to fill the utmost desire of my heart, which is to cultivate and grow my relationship with Jesus Christ.  While I have always done well in school and assignments with which I had accountability to finish, a large regret of mine is never finding my niche of how to grow in knowledge of the Word.  No one routinely checks to see what I have been doing with my personal Bible study.  No one asks me at the end of the week, "Now what did you learn and how can this be applied to your life?"  No one reviews my notes of what I have interpreted from scripture.  I have had so many goals in the past of how to keep myself moving forward in my faith, but nothing has yet stuck.  So this is my latest attempt to claw my way through culture and distractions to dive deeper with Jesus.  And maybe I will be accompanied by you too.

Each week, I will write a blog post (maybe long, maybe short) that reviews the ONE chapter I have reviewed for the week.  This study will be intentional on my part, with at least three outside sources along with my primary source of the Bible, and will discuss the theological principle I have delineated from the chapter along with my personal application.  And where else to start but in Genesis?

Once again...I did not go to seminary.  But if anyone has interest to see what this academic nurse practitioner has learned about the God of heaven and earth from purposeful study every week, pull up a seat and make yourself at home.

"Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he instructs sinners in his ways. He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way."

Psalm 25:8-9