Learning to Trust in the Face of Uncertainty

Pregnancy is amazing. I am really loving it! I think it really “agrees” with me, and for that I am grateful. I don’t know how I’d pull off working full time if this wasn't the case. God has been gracious.

I feel like there is a lot of negative hype around pregnancy though, and while it’s not always sunshine and roses (sometimes it’s snow and ice!), pregnancy offers a woman the chance to learn a lot in just 9 months – and no, I am not talking about cloth diapers and sleeping training. I am talking about trust.

One thing this pregnancy has offered me that I wasn't really expecting is the opportunity to learn to trust more deeply in God. I mean, let’s face it; we really can’t control a whole lot about our pregnancies. We can’t control how our bodies will handle it or how healthy our babies will be. In fact, next to picking a baby name and nursery colours, there isn't a lot left in our hands. And I have found this to be a very good thing; a very scary thing, but very good. Necessary, even.

While this pregnancy has been a relatively easy one (praise God – I pray it continues), it doesn't mean it hasn't come with its fair share of tough times.

Probably the toughest time was last week when we went down to Toronto to have Roman’s echo cardiogram done. While there was a very low chance that anything would be wrong, it was still pretty intimidating.

Side note: my husband, Justin, was born with two holes in his heart – also known as Congenital Heart Disease (CHD). This problem is not genetic – in other words, not hereditary. In fact, no matter who you are, your baby has a 1 – 3 % chance of having a CHD. Our chance of having Roman born with CHD is about the same as anyone else, but to give us peace of mind, my midwife allowed us to go to Toronto for this special ultrasound – just to be 100% all was well.

If you follow me on Facebook you've heard the news: Roman’s heart is perfectly fine (thank you Lord!) and the rest of his body is developing just as well (thank you Lord, again!). But I won’t lie, I have never been more terrified then when I was laying on the table, the doctor examining my 20-week-old baby’s heart.

About 15 min went by and the doctor hadn't said a word to us. It wasn't a great experience, but the cool thing is, while I was lying there waiting for the “verdict”, I was at peace. Sure, my heart was beating a mile a minute, but I was at peace. This is SO rare for me because, by nature, I am a worrier. But after much time, consideration and prayer, I found myself in a place where I’d never been before… a place of calm in the eye of the storm.

I will tell you this, the peace that I had was NOT by my own doing. My human nature wanted to think of all the horrible “worst-case-scenarios”, but the Holy Spirit that lives inside me reminded me that whatever the outcome, it had already passed through the hands of God – for His glory and for my… our… Roman’s… good. And that gave me the peace that the Bible says “surpasses all understanding”.

I can’t control this pregnancy and (news flash for me) I can’t control the rest of my life either. I used to think I could control it all, but I realize now that the pursuit on control shows a lack of trust in God. This doesn't mean that I'm hands off on things completely – I still am called to plan and work towards things accordingly – but it means that when situations are uncertain, I go to God with them. I don’t let it fester inside me until I become a worrying, untrusting mess (which I have been so many times in the past). 

I am quickly learning that there is no harder thing than to trust God with your children, and although my little bun is still baking away in the oven, it’s crucial I learn to trust God with him now before he is born. By doing so, I will be a better, more godly mother to Roman. I’ll be able rest easy knowing my son’s precious life is in the Lord’s hands, and I can only hope that Roman learns at a young age to trust in God in the same manner.I want my son to know full well the sovereignty of God so he can grasp the amount of trust he can put in his Heavenly Father. I believe this will strengthen his faith, even in the face of uncertainty and trials. 

Grace and Peace, 

Alannah

Romans 6: Victory Over Sin Through Sanctification

My mentee and I agree that Romans 6 has been one of our favourites so far. There is just something about the way Paul describes our victory over sin that is just amazing! Anyway, friends, enjoy! 

Main Ideas:

We are no longer under the law, but under grace
We are no longer slaves to sin, but to righteousness
We are dead to sin, but alive in Christ
Sanctification leads to eternal life

Summary:

Up until this point, Paul has dealt primarily with the issue of justification. He has talked extensively about how man can be justified (made right with) God because of the blood of Jesus Christ. In this chapter, however, we see Paul begin to transition to the issue of sanctification. Sanctification is essentially the act of becoming holy or more like Christ, or as we like to call it, changing from one degree of glory to the next. Another critical aspect of sanctification is the ability to resist sin. Sin is not suddenly acceptable because we are under grace; in fact, it’s still utterly detestable and sickening to God (and so should be to us too!) So nothing has changed in that regard. We still need to follow the law, but it’s the grace of God that allows us to pursue sanctification. We couldn’t do it alone. It’s important to note that sanctification is not instantaneous. It’s a process that every believer will undergo through out their walk. 

In verse 3-4 Paul talks about how Christians have been baptized with Christ in His death and have been buried in order that we too may rise again and “walk in newness of life”. The term “newness of life” refers to a believer dying to his or her old self (the self that sought the desires of the flesh) and changing into the image and likeness of Jesus. In short, we are dead in sin and alive in God (verse 11) and there is no place for sin among God’s chosen. Possibly the most reassuring verse here is the verse 14, which reads: “sin has no dominion over you, since you are not under the law but under grace!” This means that we are no longer slaves to sin as we were in our previous state. Instead, we are now slaves to righteousness, and this righteousness will helps us in the journey of sanctification, and as we read in verse 22, sanctification leads to eternal life! 

Most Christians in today’s society have this all wrong. They think that they can continue on in a cycle of sin-forgivness-sin-forgivness and that God will just oblige. But this is not the case. God demands that His chosen live a life of sanctification. Sure, we will fall time and time again, but our default should be to run from sin and deny themselves for the sake of the cross. For as the final verse in Romans 6 says “the wages of sin is death!”

Discussion Questions: 

Do you understand the term sanctification? 

What has your journey of sanctification been over the past few months? How are you growing from one degree of glory to the next? What are some areas that need improvement? 

Living Word:

2 Timothy 2:21

2 Corinthians 5:17

Hebrews 13:12

John 17:17

It's a Boy!

As you probably already know, Justin and I found out last night that we are having a little boy! His name will be Roman Marc Oliver.

I knew in my heart that I was having a boy. In fact, I have always known I’d have a first born son. When I used to talk about having kids, I would always tell people “I just know the Lord is going to give me a son first.” Don’t ask me why I had this inclination, I just did. Maybe mother’s intuition or maybe God was preparing my heart to love and receive a little man into my life. Whatever the reason I am so truly excited to welcome this little life into the world.

And I’ve always known that he’d be named Roman. I tried to like other boy names, and some of them came pretty close, but something about the name Roman made me melt a little and I knew he’d come to be a real person some day. This is the reason why we have decided to tell everyone Roman’s name now. I feel like with pregnancy comes a lot of secrets (i.e. keeping pregnancy a secret for first trimester, keeping gender a secret, keeping the child’s name a secret), and while I totally understand why some people might want to do this (they might genuinely not know the name of their baby until he/she is born, and that’s totally cool!) for me, I’m just sick of the secrets! I try to keep my life an open book to world, so secrets don’t really fit in. Also, a name gives a person an identity and Justin and I wanted to give our baby that right away. We want people to pray for him by name, talk about him by name and know him by name – that’s just something that’s important to me. (So please, pray for my little bean by name!)

So, why the name Roman? I’ve been asked this quite a few times and it’s a good question. Roman isn’t a very popular name in North America.

I think originally I was really drawn to the manliness of the name Roman. It’s Latin in origin and means “strong and powerful” and when I hear the name Roman, that’s exactly what I think. But above all, I really love how it reflects the book of Romans, a work of the Apostle Paul rich in theological text and one of my favourite books of the Bible. The book of Romans proclaims the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ by teaching doctrine and edifying and encouraging believers. I can only hope and pray that my little Roman will do the same with his life – teach doctrine, edify and encourage fellow believes and ultimately proclaim the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ all the days of his life.

Side note: it’s so ironic that I have been studying the book of Romans over the past few months! This was NOT planned! It’s a total coincidence…funny, eh?!

Anyway, that’s the story of the name Roman.

Even as I type, I can feel him moving inside of me and I am filled with a hundred different emotions: joy, fear, excitement, love, peace, and so much more.

Please keep Justin and me in your prayers as we prepare for the birth of our son, Roman Marc Oliver. Please pray for Roman, that he is born healthy and safe, but above all, that God saves him at an early age. Pray that he becomes and man of integrity – a good husband to whatever woman God blesses him with. It’s not too early to pray for those things! Roman will only be a little boy for a few years and I want prayer to pave the way for a godly life.

Thanks, friends.

Grace and Peace,
Alannah

A Special Note from a Daddy-To-Be

Everyone knows how important Moms are, but sometimes Dads get the short end of the stick. But the truth is, every child needs a positive and Godly male role model in their lives to help them grow and develop into who God has called them to be. Sadly, in today's society, more and more children go to bed each night without a Daddy. This hurts my heart to think about. Dads are SO important! 

By no merit of my own, I have been blessed with a man who is super eager and ready to take on the responsibilities of fatherhood. Today, he wrote me a little note reminding me of this.

I love you, Justin. Thanks for being such a good man.

Alannah,

I am so excited about this baby, like seriously I just got a huge surge of Joy.

If it’s a boy I’m going to be dedicated to spending time with him, raising him in the ways of the Lord, teaching him to respect and love his mother and to honor and cherish women and not idolize them. Im’ going to teach him to be watchful, to stand firm in the faith, to act like a man, to be strong and to let everything he does be done in love. I’m going to teach him about dignity but most importantly how to Love the Lord with all his heart, soul, mind and strength.

If it’s a little girl I’m going to be dedicated to Daddy daughter dates, making her feel beautiful, give her encouraging words of affirmation, tell her what to expect in a man and to demonstrate that by example, I will cherish and protect her and teach her that if any boy is to date her he has to date me first. I will teach her that she has value and worth and that her body, her virginity and her life is to be held with high esteem and honor and not to just be thrown away to just anybody. But most importantly I will teach her to be a woman of God, to be Christ like and to teach her to be a Titus 2 and a Proverbs 31 woman.

Love, 

Justin 

Alannah's Top 10 Pregnancy Cravings

#10 - Tropical Mike and Ikes

These delicious little candies are in fact the ONLY sweet thing I have craved this whole entire pregnancy... no word of a lie! Please note that the green ones are particularly amazing! 

#9 - Ketchup 

In the early stages of my pregnancy I went through a phase where I wanted... no... NEEDED... ketchup on everything. It's weird because I hate ketchup usually. Ketchup sandwiches, you say? Yes, please!

#8 - Rapini and/or Broccoli 

Both of these... any time of day or night, with lots of garlic and olive oil.

#7 - Spicy Noodles 

Spicy noodles in soup, spicy noodles without the soup - it's all good, baby! Oh, but make it udon, please.

#6 - Bread (any kind)

What's better than fresh baked bread with some butter... or a bagel with cream cheese in the morning? I love it all! 

#5 - Sushi 

Veggie sushi, that is. *Sigh* I can't wait to get my hands on some of that spicy salmon goodness when this baby is born... that'll be amazing. 'Cuz veggie sushi doesn't really cut it... it's like a tease:(

#4 - Olives and/or Pickles

Yes, they are both delicious, and yes, I do eat them straight out of the jar with a fork in front of the TV. Don't judge...

#3 - Water

Obviously everyone NEEDS water, but not everyone craves it. But I do... this baby does! Good work baby, that's a good carving to have, little one!

#2 - Strawberries

What's not to love?

#1 - Salmon 

As well as other types of seafood, including lobster, crab, calamari, shirmp, est. Salmon, though, has been my biggest craving and I try to eat it about once every week or so. My mom makes it THEE best... sooooo good!!! And good for you!

Romans 5: Suffering the Sin of Adam, Hope in the Righteousness of Christ

Main Ideas:

We can have peace with God because we have been justified through faith in Christ.
Suffering produces endurance.
The sin of Adam brought condemnation to all of mankind.
The righteous of Christ brings hope to all of mankind.

Summary:

Picture it: you’re seated in front of God the Father on judgment day. It’s time for Him to determine your eternal fate – heaven or hell? All of the world watches and waits as God considers all the deeds you’ve done while on earth. The Prosecutor, Satan, has made a good case against you. He has proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that you are a sinner. In your earthly life, you sinned every single day – you were and are totally depraved! You most definitely deserve the maximum punishment: eternity in hell. God shakes His head; the evidence against you is too great. And just as He’s about to bang His gavel and make your fate in hell official, Jesus Christ enters the courtroom. He approaches the Father with blood stained hands and feet. He humbly reminds the Father of His blood that was shed, just for you! He willingly takes the punishment in your place. The Father accepts Christ’s act of sacrifice as atonement for your sin, and you go free into heaven, the weight of sin no longer upon your shoulders.

As shown in this analogy, Paul makes it very clear through the book of Romans that the only reason we can approach the Father, the only reason we can spend eternity in heaven, is because of the shed blood of Christ. The term “justified through faith” is used often in this book and simply means that if we truly believe that Christ’s death paid the penalty for our sins, we can be cleansed of all unrighteousness. As we have learned in our study of Romans, this free gift was given to us, we did not seek it out and we did nothing to deserve it. We were simply chosen by the grace of God as one of His elect. This is possibly the most humbling realization of all. This is exactly the reminder given in the first few verses of Romans 5. In the midst of this reminder, Paul also touches on the role that trials play in our lives. They are important because “suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame” (vs. 4-5). These hardships are ordained by God and invaluable for our growth and development. We need them so we can have an unshakable faith in Christ, for it’s that faith that saves us.

The later part of Romans 5 talks about how the sin of Adam condemned us to a life apart of God, but the righteous sacrifice of Christ restored us. If Christ has not laid down His life for us, the wages of our sins would be death (Romans 6:23), but praise God that we can have eternal life if we have faith in His son’s blood. 

Discussion Questions: 

In the New Covenant we are saved through faith in Jesus’ Christ, what saved people in the Old Covenant?

How has the suffering in your life allowed you to grow in your faith?

Living Word:

About Trials:
Matthew 5:10-12
James 1:12
John 16:33
Job 2:10

About Jesus Saving Us:
1 John 2:2
Romans 6:23
2 Corinthians 5:21

Romans 4: Faith Like Abraham

Main Ideas:

Abraham is declared righteous through faith.
We are saved by faith, not works.
We have no right to boast.

Summary:

Paul uses Abraham as an example in this text because he was well respected among the Jewish people. While Abraham followed the Lord’s leading in his life, he was ultimately saved by his faith. God told him that he would be the father of many, and although he was old and his wife Sarah was barren, he has full faith that God would do as he promised. It was by this blind faith that Abraham was saved. Because he was saved through faith and not works, Abraham would have no reason or right to boast to man or to God about himself because the grace to carry out any and all good works comes from God alone (i.e. God would get to boast). But even if, by some bizarre turn of events, Abraham could attribute the good works he had done to himself, he STILL would have no right to boast because he is still a sinful man, a man who constantly fell short of the glory of God – as all humans do (Romans 3:23). In short, no one can be justified through works. We are justified through faith in Jesus Christ. The rabbis argued that Abraham kept the law perfectly, even before it was given to him. Obviously this could not be true because last week in Romans 3 study we learn that “no one is righteous” and that “everyone does evil”. We are born evil and we are total depraved, and while Abraham was a godly man, this doesn’t mean that he was exempt from these principles because he was only human. He was not Jesus Christ, who of course was the only sinless man in all of history. The idea of grace stands opposite the principle of works; grace has to do with receiving the freely given gift of God, while works has to do with earning our merit before God. A system of works would put God in our debt. It implies that God owes us our salvation and blessing because of our good works. However, the truth is that it is faith in Jesus Christ alone that saves us. Our good works should flow from a heart of thankfulness to God who freely gave us salvation through the death of His son, though we did not deserve it one little bit! We still need to value good works, but we can’t elevate them to the point where we believe they will save us.


Discussion Questions:

We know good works cannot save us, but is there value in good works?

There is most definitely value in good works! In fact, the Bible says that “faith without works in dead!” (James 2:17) The key here is to remember that all our good works need to steam from a heart of love and submission to God our Father who saved us. We can never boast in the good works we do because it’s God who gives us the grace to carry out these works in a way that is ultimately pleasing to God. Many pagans do good works, but God doesn’t see them as good because they aren’t done to the glory of His name – therefore, they are in vain. This is a huge point of controversy, but the Bible says it to be the truth.

How can we follow Abraham’s example in our own lives?

Though Abraham was an imperfect man, he demonstrated great faith in God several times through his life. We need to model this faith in our own lives by trusting in God, even when things seem too hard or impossible. While God may not give us everything we want, He will always give us the things we will need to bring Him glory. This means that even in trials and tribulations we need to know for certain that God is on His throne, He is in control and through the hard times, we will be brought forth as gold (Job 23:10). We may have to suffer here on earth, but the promises He has set before those who love His name WILL one day come to fruition in the Heavenly place. If we set our minds on those things – the things above – then we have demonstrated the faith of Abraham. 

Supporting Verses: 

Jeremiah 9:23

Ephesians 2:8-9

John 3:16

Galatians 2:16

Galatians 3:5-6 

Philippians 3:9

Amen!