on the shoulders of giants
Isaac Newton is quotes as saying, "If I have seen further, it is by standing on shoulders of giants."
As a woman in my early twenties I heard some wise counsel. It is wisdom that I have tried to hold onto for my entire adult life.
Dr. Erwin Lutzer the long time senior pastor of the historic Moody Church in downtown Chicago was preaching. He took a moment to specifically address the young people in the audience and told us that if we wanted to live lives set apart for the Lord we should not only read the word, pray and generally walk with the Lord, we should also make it a practice to read biographies of the great man and women of the faith who have gone before us.
This is something that has never left me.
Some of the deepest inspiration and encouragement I have found in my faith has not come from sermons or conferences but rather it has come on the shoulders of giants.
I love to read these books, some of them I have read over and over. Others I have yet to discover.
What made me think of this today was that this morning I was working on a project in church and was listening to an audio book about the life of 8 women of deep faith.
I heard a story I had not been familiar with before. The story of Lady Jane Grey.
The name was historically familiar to me but beyond that I knew little about her.
I was so stricken by the intensity of her faith. She was imprisoned for nothing beyond wickedness and paranoia. She ultimately lost her life because of this but she remained faithful to the end.
Even as she was taken to the place of her execution she offered forgiveness to her executioner.
As she died, she cried out the same words as Christ, "Lord, into your hands I commend my spirit."
As I worked steadily and listened to this story I wept hearing how she died, but I was inspired by her faith. She was faithful to the end.
Over the years some of my most brilliant mentors in my faith have been people that I will never have the good fortune to meet this side of eternity.
People like Corrie and Betsy TenBoom, Darlene Deibler Rose, Amy Carmichael, George Meuller, Elisabeth and Jim Elliot, Nate Saint, Emma Dryer, Evangeline Booth, Brother Andrew, Hudson Taylor, Sarah Dunn Clark, Lady Jane Grey and the list goes on and on.
These people were NOT perfect. Not even close,
But they lived lives of faith that I hope in even a tiny way I can have the courage to emulate. I want to live a life of dedication as I follow Jesus. I want to live with reckless abandon recognizing that my the life I am created for is a life well lived in the service of my Savior.
I want to have the courage to do whatever it takes to follow Jesus.
Whatever the path that He has for me is right where I want to be. I hope that someday, some little girl will hear the story of my life and think I want to be brave like she was.
I have spent much of my life looking further on the shoulders of giants.
I hope and pray that by doing so, someday for someone, I can be one of those giants.
You see not all the giants I have sat on the shoulders of have books written about them. Some of them are just average everyday people who follow Jesus well.
My mom who taught me how to be a relentless servant.
My grandpa who saw lost boys and girls and literally"kicked the windows in" to find a place where he could teach them about the love of Jesus.
My boss who has served faithfully in the most difficult ministry in town for 23 years.
I could go on for days.
There are giants all around us.
I want to be one someday when I grow up.
As a woman in my early twenties I heard some wise counsel. It is wisdom that I have tried to hold onto for my entire adult life.
Dr. Erwin Lutzer the long time senior pastor of the historic Moody Church in downtown Chicago was preaching. He took a moment to specifically address the young people in the audience and told us that if we wanted to live lives set apart for the Lord we should not only read the word, pray and generally walk with the Lord, we should also make it a practice to read biographies of the great man and women of the faith who have gone before us.
This is something that has never left me.
Some of the deepest inspiration and encouragement I have found in my faith has not come from sermons or conferences but rather it has come on the shoulders of giants.
I love to read these books, some of them I have read over and over. Others I have yet to discover.
What made me think of this today was that this morning I was working on a project in church and was listening to an audio book about the life of 8 women of deep faith.
I heard a story I had not been familiar with before. The story of Lady Jane Grey.
The name was historically familiar to me but beyond that I knew little about her.
I was so stricken by the intensity of her faith. She was imprisoned for nothing beyond wickedness and paranoia. She ultimately lost her life because of this but she remained faithful to the end.
Even as she was taken to the place of her execution she offered forgiveness to her executioner.
As she died, she cried out the same words as Christ, "Lord, into your hands I commend my spirit."
As I worked steadily and listened to this story I wept hearing how she died, but I was inspired by her faith. She was faithful to the end.
Over the years some of my most brilliant mentors in my faith have been people that I will never have the good fortune to meet this side of eternity.
People like Corrie and Betsy TenBoom, Darlene Deibler Rose, Amy Carmichael, George Meuller, Elisabeth and Jim Elliot, Nate Saint, Emma Dryer, Evangeline Booth, Brother Andrew, Hudson Taylor, Sarah Dunn Clark, Lady Jane Grey and the list goes on and on.
These people were NOT perfect. Not even close,
But they lived lives of faith that I hope in even a tiny way I can have the courage to emulate. I want to live a life of dedication as I follow Jesus. I want to live with reckless abandon recognizing that my the life I am created for is a life well lived in the service of my Savior.
I want to have the courage to do whatever it takes to follow Jesus.
Whatever the path that He has for me is right where I want to be. I hope that someday, some little girl will hear the story of my life and think I want to be brave like she was.
I have spent much of my life looking further on the shoulders of giants.
I hope and pray that by doing so, someday for someone, I can be one of those giants.
You see not all the giants I have sat on the shoulders of have books written about them. Some of them are just average everyday people who follow Jesus well.
My mom who taught me how to be a relentless servant.
My grandpa who saw lost boys and girls and literally"kicked the windows in" to find a place where he could teach them about the love of Jesus.
My boss who has served faithfully in the most difficult ministry in town for 23 years.
I could go on for days.
There are giants all around us.
I want to be one someday when I grow up.
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