Donna Avant

Look What God Has Done!

Dec 24 2016

Christmas is almost here up on Rocky Top. The kitchen is a mess: powdered sugar everywhere, dishes in the sink, and the garbage is overflowing. “All is Well” is playing in the background and though my life might appear to be “picture perfect” on the outside to some, my eyes well up with tears.

All is not well. Hurt, pain, tragedy surround Rocky Top as well as others in the world.

My eyes might be filled with tears but truly there is much joy in my heart. Preacher said Sunday that if we want Joy in our hearts, we must not look at circumstances, what others have said about us or have done to us, but we must look and see what God has done. In Luke 1:47, Mary rejoiced when she saw Elizabeth. The word “rejoice” in this passage means to shout loudly “Look what God has done.” As an unwed, pregnant teenager in a culture where stoning was the punishment for immorality, Mary had many reasons not to be joyful. Yet, she made the supernatural choice to choose Joy.

As shared before up here on Rocky Top, my dad was not a good man for most of his life. He had 4 wives. Mom was his first. We might have lived in the same city for many years, but his visits were not frequent. Dad’s life was about dad until he met Christ. After thirty years of many calling out his name to the Heavenly Father, Dad received Christ in February of 1995. His life changed radically.

Christmas times after that were so much different. Dad would come visit before Christmas Eve and Christmas day. Presents would be exchanged, meals eaten, prayers said. He always, always left to drive home before Christmas Eve. We would beg him to stay. Not sure why he wouldn’t.

One Christmas day we received the following email from him.

To My Girls:

As I sat down to write, it is Christmas Eve night. I attended a candle light service and was feeling a loneliness that I never felt before. Because I have no Christmas tree, I came back to my apartment and placed the candle in a bowl and lit the candle again. As the light from the candle begin to glow, I knew that I was not alone. Christ was by my side and I began to rejoice in His Love.

From the light of my small candle, I knew that God had not only given His Son to guide and love me, but also has given me a gift of very precious daughters. The gift that each of you have given me is more priceless than any material thing on this earth, and that is my grandchildren. Each one of them holds a very special place in my heart.

You have taken the love you have in the Lord, and placed it in the hearts of your children. I know that you could not have accomplished this without the help and love from your spouses. I feel very proud and blessed to know these fine men of yours. For each is a very loving husband and father.

My candle is just about out. Although it will stop burning, the love I have for the Lord, you, your husbands and the grandchildren will burn forever. I pray each day that God will guide and protect you, and that He places an Angel by the side of each grandchild to protect them.

May Christmas be alive in all our hearts each day and may the Son of God always be with you.

With All My Love, Dad

And so friends and family, Look what God has done!

Merry Christmas and may your life this season declare: Look What God Has Done!

The Broken Thanksgiving

Nov 25 2016

Table set, turkey carved, homemade apple, pumpkin and pecan pie ready to be eaten. Table full of loved ones. Thanks offered to the One and Only Lord. Laughter and love for all. Then it happened……the beloved lady pilgrim salt shaker flew “randomly” out of my hand and crashed to the hardwood floor. Broken in several pieces with salt scattered everywhere….had that lady pilgrim salt shaker and its companion for over 10 years. Ruined and broken. It can be glued back together but not sure it will ever hold salt again. Maybe if the repair is done just right.

No one likes brokenness. Whether the broken happens in things or people, brokenness is just messy and uncomfortable. If we are going to be real and honest, the majority of us want to run from the broken. Just get something new. Move on to the next thing or the next person. Broken is not fun.

Brokenness involves hurt and pain. When there is love for anyone or anything, brokenness is a risk we take.

Witnessed a lot of brokenness lately: a beautiful 17 year old’s death due to a car accident; a 55 year old’s death due to ALS; several broken families due to a spouse deciding they had enough; broken bodies due to age; broken spirit’s due to hurtful words.

When one is broken what is on the inside comes out, according to my friend, Gary Witherall whose wife was martyred in Lebannon.

The salt came spilling out of the pilgrim lady salt shaker. Salt can heal. Salt adds flavor. Salt can sting.

Looked around that Thanksgiving table of loved ones, we had all experienced some type of brokenness in our lives: broken homes, broken hearts, broken bodies, and broken dreams. A lot of salt spilled at that table. Many times the salt has been used to heal; definitely a lot of flavor and sometimes just hurt and sting.

No coincidence, just finished reading Ann Voskamp’s new book, The Broken Way. If you are one that would just soon live a comfortable life, dreaming of a nostalgia that is non-existent in your home or church, then this book is not for you. If you long for Christ to redeem your brokenness, to love through and in your brokenness, then this will take you on a journey to embrace your brokenness and allow Christ to redeem it.

“Never be afraid of broken things—-because Christ can redeem anything. When I’m no longer afraid of brokenness, I don’t have to control or possess anything—dreams or plans or people or their perceptions. I can live surrendered. Cruciform. Given. This feels like freedom. Not being afraid of the brokenness—this sets you free in a thousand ways.” Ann Voskamp

But even more importantly, “I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in His suffering, becoming like Him in His death.” Philippians 3:10

With much Thanksgiving in my heart, I’m going to glue that broken pilgrim lady salt shaker back together and set it out every Thanksgiving as a reminder to our entire family to embrace the broken things in our lives!

The FALL on Rocky Top: Death, Life, and a Prayer Tent

Oct 28 2016

It is Fall once again up on Rocky Top. The leaves are raining shades of yellow, orange and red as they fall from the trees. It’s a beautiful sight to behold as they float down on the wind. Ironically, the beauty comes from dying. The leaves are falling because they are dead.

Fall is a bittersweet time of year.

Today I listened to my beautiful, middle child spill her soul as she shared about her baby in heaven.

She told the story to a group of mommies. With gentle tears rolling down her face she remembered how she had put her hope in being a mommy only to find out that hope was no longer alive. I remember holding her after she got the news………..no heartbeat, no life. We all grieved. Someone had died and we had been robbed of ever knowing this tiny human.

Yet, there was my brave girl standing in front of those women sharing about how death had taught her to put her hope only in Jesus. My momma’s heart was proud of her courage. She told the story of death on the birthday of her now 3 year old daughter, Addison Faith. Death had occurred in the Fall. Life had also been born in the Fall.

Years ago driving down the road, I received a phone call about death on a fall day. Daddy had died in his bed, a massive heart attack. Daddy didn’t come to know the God of Hope until he was 58. His journey to Christ came at a price. He died to himself. Died to selfishness. Died to a never ending stream of bad marriages. From age 58 to 68, that man truly lived. He lived to bring his new Father glory. With his new heart, he loved big and well. When I arrived at his apartment after receiving that phone call, it was covered up with his new life: pictures of grandchildren, his Bible, and the book The Prayer of Jabez.

That was a very hard fall. Yet, there was HOPE. I knew my daddy had really died when he was 58 and he was now fully alive with His Savior.

True, real life requires death. Sometimes the death is more painful than others. Nonetheless, death is hard.

A lady tapped me on the shoulder. “Do you have a few minutes?” she asked. Me, I never have a few minutes. My schedule can be my never ending god if I let it. “Sure.” I said. Then death came.

“I really need to ask your forgiveness. God, told me to come talk to you. I have said bad things about you to others. I’m so very sorry. Will you forgive me?” Tears were welling up in her eyes. She was brave.

Time to die to myself. Time to make a choice of letting my pride and anger take over or die to myself and let Jesus live in me. I asked a few more questions to understand the situation.

I had hurt her unintentionally. I cried. I apologized. We prayed. Life came. I thanked her for being real and vulnerable. I wished I had thanked her for dying to herself.

Fall is also the time of year, that we, as a church focus on people around the world who do not know our Savior. Millions of men, women and children have never heard the name of Jesus. To be blunt, millions who will spend eternity in hell. We don’t like to talk about that. It is uncomfortable.

Our body of believers built a tent in the middle of our church building. The Prayer Tent. As I walked through the tent, His voice was clear: Die to yourself.

“Christ hasn’t called us to live for Him: He has called us to die, so that He might live through us.” Beth

“It’s not me trying but me dying.” Watchman Nee

Millions of people will never hear His precious name, know His intimate love, experience His mighty power, or spend eternity with Him unless WE die!

Die to our selfishness. Die to our comfort. Die to our greed. Die to our fear.

To live in His abundance. To live in His adventure. To live in His POWER. To live in His confident joy.

Lord, thank You for the Fall. It is a visible reminder that death brings true LIFE and HOPE! And if I choose to die to myself and live in You then one day I will stand with Jesus, my grandbaby, my daddy, a brave sister in Christ and millions of others whose faces I may never meet till I meet you, and there will be no more death, no more dying. Just You in all your beauty and HOPE!

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled and unfading, kept in heaven for you.” I Peter 1:3-4

Feeling Tossed Aside? Worthless? Be The REMNANT

Sep 24 2016

I’m sitting on the back porch at Rocky Top coughing, sneezing and just feeling pretty awful but I can’t get a phrase out of my mind. I can’t get a picture out of my mind.

THE REMNANT.

Karen Abercrombie (aka Miss Clara from the movie, War Room) used this phrase a few Sundays ago during an interview with preacher. Karen said, “Jesus is interested in raising up the remnant to change the world not numbers…numbers come and go and play the church game. The remnant is who God uses.”

The next Sunday, preacher had me come up on stage and hold up our precious quilt for the closing illustration in his sermon. This quilt is 37 years old. It was made for us by our first church, Hay Valley Baptist Church outside of Gatesville, Texas. They presented it to us as a wedding gift. Hay Valley Baptist Church had an average attendance of 17 in Sunday School when we began our ministry there. When they presented this quilt to us, this church was 48 families strong and had an average attendance of 60+ in Sunday School. These people were ranchers, farmers, and guards at the state prison down the road. Most of them possessed nothing more than land, modest homes, some cattle and trucks. They were remnants in their small community.

This quilt was made with remnants from clothing the women of this church had once made.

A remnant is a leftover piece of material that is usually discarded after something is made. It is usually set aside or thrown out because it is seen as invaluable.

Once these women pieced together all the remnants of fabric, they then embroidered their names on each square that makes up this quilt. In the very center of the quilt is an embroidered picture of that little church.

The quilt maybe made out of leftovers, what others may discard; however this quilt is treasured by our family.

I’m a remnant. I was never “Miss Popularity” in school. I was the heavy-set girl with glasses who made decent grades and came from a broken home. Tossed aside.

When I married preacher, I was a remnant. I didn’t know anything about being a “pastor’s wife”. I said the wrong things, wore the wrong things, and usually did the wrong thing. Not much use for an up and coming “preacher”.

Don’t we all feel that way at times? The enemy whispers in our ear: Useless, Leftover, Not good for anything!

Oh, but Jesus says to us, “You are my treasured possession!” (Deuteronomy 7:6) He has a plan for our lives! (Jeremiah 29:11)

He took me and laid me alongside others in the body of Christ. They poured into my life and I into theirs.

We are the remnant……The beautiful body of Christ sewn together, salvaged by our Savior for His kingdom purposes.

Standing up last Sunday on the platform holding that quilt, looking at a sea of faces, I was very aware that many of them feel useless, hopeless, and worthless at times. The beauty of the body of Christ is when we come together and knit our hearts together for His kingdom purposes, He will use us! The remnant isn’t about individual beauty, wealth or talent. The remnant is about the beauty of the individuals coming together as one.

Karen Abercrombie is correct. Jesus isn’t interested in just getting rear ends in a pew. He is interested in gathering remnants and knitting their hearts together to build His beautiful bride, the church. He loves the tattered, the torn, the worn, the inadequate, and the tossed aside. These are The Remnant!

The Fight is On!

Sep 09 2016

I really, really do not like to fight. I’m not a fighter by nature. I would rather sit in a circle laughing and talking with others. I truly like peace with people, with my family, and with my church.

But here is the hard, cold truth. Peace came at a price. That price was His precious blood spilt for me and you. His blood poured out of His sinless, perfect life. Peace came because a war was fought.

Jesus won! But it cost a great, great price.

So as I look at His word I read “Fight the good fight of the faith.” (I Timothy 6:12). I read “I fought the good fight.” (II Timothy 4:7)

Yes, Christ has been victorious on the cross but until He returns, there is a fight! I can either choose to be a part of it or I can sit on the sidelines of life. And though I love peace, I do not like to sit on the sidelines.

The problem is when I do fight, I want to fight people. To be brutally honest, when I get really mad I want to take some boxing gloves and just hit someone really hard. I actually do that sometimes when I work out!

I hit hard. I mean so hard that the person I am working out with will say, “Donna, do you have anger issues?”

People aren’t the problem. “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” Ephesians 6:12

We have a real enemy, an adversary. There is one who does not want peace! He does not want peace in my life, my husband’s life, my children’s lives, and he especially does not want peace in the life of my church.

The enemy knows that the world apart from Christ is without peace. Peace is sought after by people.

People spend thousands of dollars every year to obtain peace. Some take long vacations, some buy boats and fancy cars, some use alcohol, drugs, sex, and the list could go on and on. Some just attempt to obtain peace through power over others.

If the world sees no peace in my life, the life of my family or in my church, then they want nothing to do with us. They can always attempt to find peace another way.

So if I am going to have to fight, I need to know the rules of this battle.

Embrace my identity as an OVERCOMER. When the enemy whispers “You are a failure. You can’t do this. Just give up. Quit serving Him.” I need to remind my adversary that I am an overcomer because Jesus has already won the ultimate battle. “Everyone born of God overcomes the world.” I John 5:4
Fight with my armor on. When I stand to fight, I need to do it with all the equipment that Christ has already purchased for me. I need to use defensive weapons: His belt of truth to combat lies; His breastplate of righteousness to combat my inadequacies; His gospel of peace to offer the lost world around me; His shield of faith to combat my unbelief; His helmet of salvation to protect my mind. I also need to train myself to use offensive weapons: the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God and PRAYER which pulls down the enemy’s strongholds or fortresses in our lives. This type of praying is not “bless me praying”! It is on your knees calling out His name and praying His word back to Him. It is War Room praying! Ephesians 6:10-18 and II Corinthians 10:4-5
Worship with thanksgiving. Every time the battle is on I must worship Him. I must sing His praises. I must declare all He has done in my life. “They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony.” Revelation 12:11
Overcome evil with good. If there is a person that I might believe to be my adversary, God’s word is clear! “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.” Romans 12:20

The battle is on right now in my life and the lives of those I love. It is intense and is just no fun. There are sleepless nights and hard days.

The Lord promises me He will stand by my side and give me strength. (II Timothy 4:17)

He will enable me to fight the good fight! He promises me peace in the middle of the fight.

“Now may the Lord of peace Himself give you peace at all times and in every way.” II Thessalonians 3:16