The Fruit of the Spirit--Faith

Am I known by my friends and family as faithful? When I say I'll do something, can I be relied upon to follow through on my word? I must admit that I used to be more faithful than I have been lately. I find myself committing to things and then realizing later that its more than I can handle. Life is so busy, there are so many things to get done, so many events to participate in and so many more things I want to do...but, I don't want the hustle and bustle of life to be an excuse to compromise faithfulness. The Lord has been impressing upon my heart the need to be faithful to my word. When I say I will do something, I want the people in my life to trust that I will follow through on that commitment.

So, in light of this thought, here is an excerpt from One Day at a Time in the continuing series on the Fruit of the Spirit...

"The fruit of the Spirit is...faith..." (Galatians 5:22)

The fruit of the Spirit is generally understood as being faithfulness. It is not the faith that saves or the trust we exercise in God day by day (although it may include that). Rather it is our fidelity and dependability in our dealings with the Lord and with one another. Someone has defined it as being "true to oneself, to one's nature, to any promise given, to any trust committed."

When we say that a man's word is his bond, we mean that in dealing with him, no written contract is necessary. If he has agreed to do something, he can be depended on to do it.

The faithful man keeps appointments on time, pays his bills on schedule, attends the meetings of the local fellowship regularly, performs tasks assigned to him without having to be constantly reminded. He is unswervingly true to his marriage vows, and unfailing in the discharge of his family responsibilities. He is conscientious in setting money aside for the work of the Lord and careful also in his stewardship of time and talents.

Faithfulness means being true to one's word, even at great personal cost. The faithful man "swears to his own hurt, and does not change" (Ps. 15:4c NASB). In other words, he does nto cancel one supper engagement when he receives another that promises a better menu or more congenial company. He does not renege on a work assignement to go on a recreational trip (unless he first arranges for a satisfactory substitue). He sells his house at the agreed price even if someone later offers him $10,000 more.

The ultimate in faithfulness is being willing to die rather than renounce one's loyalty to Christ. When the king demanded that a faithful Christian retract his confession of Christ, the man replied, "The heart thought it; the mouth spoke it; the hand subscribed it; and if need by, by God's grace the blood shall seal it.l: When Polycarp was offered life in exchange for a denial of the Lord, he chose rather to be burned at the stake, saying, "These eighty-six years have I served my Lord. He never did me any harm, and I cannot deny my Lord and Master now."

The martyrs were faithful unto death and will receive a crown of life (Rev. 2:10).

One Day at a Time, by William MacDonald

Faithfulness....sometimes there is a cost to be faithful but may we each strive to exhibit faithfulness in our lives. And, above all, may we remain faithful to our Lord and Savior.

Fruit of the Spirit--Longsuffering

It's so easy to be aggravated with the people around me. It might be the crazy driver who cut me off when I'm late to work. Or maybe a co-worker that forgot to follow through on a task I had delegated to them. There are so many things that can happen in a day that might fall into the "aggravation" category! I get frustrated. Sometimes I can hide my frustration and show outwardly an attitude that resembles patience. But, I must admit that too often I am still aggravated in my heart..I am merely trying to muster up a fake image of longsuffering. But, longsuffering does not come from me, (no matter how hard I try) because we see that longsuffering is a fruit of the Spirit, according to Galatians 5:22, and not a fruit of Kelly!!

"The fruit of the Spirit is...longsuffering..." (Galatians 5:22)

Longsuffering is the virtue that bears up patiently and even triumphantly under the aggravations of life. While it may refer to a patient response to adverse circumstances, it usually refers to a merciful endurance of the provocations of people.

God is longsuffering with man. Think for a moment of the gross sinfulness of the human race at the present time -- ... the laws permitting abortions, the breakdown of marriage and the home, the wholesale rejection of moral standards, and, of course, man's crowning sin -- the utter rejection of God's Son as only Lord and Savior. One could scarcely blame God if He were to wipe out mankind with a stroke. But, He doesn't do it. His goodness is designed to lead men to repentance. He is not willing that any should perish.

And His will is that this longsuffering should be reproduced in the lives of His people as they yield to the Holy Spirit. This means that we should not be quick-tempered. We should not fly off the handle easily. We should not try to get even with people when they have wronged us. Instead we should display what someone has called "a kind of conquering patience."

When Corrie and Betsie ten Boom were enduring indescribable sufferings in the concentration camp, Betsie would often say that they must help these people after they were released. They simply had to find a way to help them. Corrie thought, of course, that her sister was planning some program to rehabilitate the victims of the Nazis. It wasn't til later that Corrie realized that Betsie meant her persecutors. She wanted to find some way to teach them to love. Corrie commented, "And I wondered, not for the first time, what sort of a person she was, this ssiter of mine...what kind of road she followed while I trudged beside her on the all-too-solid earth" (The Hiding Place, p. 175).

The road Betsie followed was the road of longsuffering. And Corrie walked it too, in spite of her humble disclaimer.

quoted from One Day at a Time, by William MacDonald

Fruit of the Spirit--Peace

Peace has been on my mind a lot lately. We hear people talking about the peace of the world, of our country but do we really know what peace is all about? Do people really live in such a way that promotes peaceful living? What is it to really know peace in our lives?

Life happens all around us...the good, the bad and the ugly. And it is hard to have peaceful reactions to the scary and difficult things that present themselves to us. But, I'm learning, that when I try to conjure up peace myself, I always fail miserably. Peace is a fruit of the Spirit, NOT a fruit of myself! Peace can only come from the Lord. So, in continuing my posts on the fruit of the Spirit, peace is next on the list! William MacDonald writes:

"The fruit of the Spirit is...peace..." (Galatians 5:22)

As soon as we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. (Romans 5:1). That means that the hostility between ourselves and God has ceased since Christ has effectively dealt with the cause of that hostility--our sins.

We also have peace of conscience knowing that the work is finished, Christ has paid the penalty of our sins, and God has forgotten them.

But then the Holy Spirit also wants us to enjoy the peace of God in our hearts. This is the serenity and tranquility that comes from knowing that our times are in the hands of God and that nothing can happen to us apart from His permissive will.

So we can remain calm when we have a tire blowout on the busy freeway. We don't have to lose our composure when heavy traffic causes us to miss the plane. Peace means remaining cool in a car crash. Or when grease ignites on the kitchen range.

The fruit of the Spirit enables a Peter to sleep soundly in jail, a Stephen to pray for his murderous assailants, a Paul to comfort others in a shipwreck.

When a plane flies into clear air turbulence and is thrown around like a feather in the gale, when the wing tips flex thirteen feet, when most of the passengers are screaming as the plane lurches, falls, rises, and dips, peace enables a believer to bow his head, commit his soul to God and praise God for whatever may be the outcome.

Or to change the illustration, the Spirit of God can give peace to us when we sit in the doctor's office and hear him say, "I'm sorry to tell you but it's malignant." He can enable us to reply, "I'm ready to go, Doctor. I'm saved by the grace of God, and or me it will be 'absent from the body, at home with the Lord.'"

And so in the words of Bickersteth's lovely hymn, we can have "Peace, perfect peace, in this dark world of sin...by thronging duties pressed...with sorrows surging round...with loved ones far away...our future all unknown" because "Jesus we know, and He is on the throne."

*One Day at a Time, William MacDonald

I am so thankful to our Savior who humbled Himself to the point of death on the cross for MY sins, so that I might have peace with God, peace with the very One who created me and that I have the Holy Spirit dwelling in me, to equip me for walking this life in a way that will honor and glorify the life that He gave up for me! Won't you praise Him with me today?

Fruit of the Spirit--Joy

I haven't posted in a while. The Lord has been working on my heart in so many ways lately that its difficult to even put it into words on this blog post or to convey some of these "elementary" realizations without feeling like a moron for not learning these lessons earlier in life! But, that's how we humans can be...a little dense, a little slow...or sometimes just a little stubborn!

So over the next several posts, while I contemplate the lessons the Lord is teaching me, I'd like to share with you a few thoughts from William MacDonald's One Day at a Time devotional that have both encouraged and challenged my heart. There are several days where he addresses the fruit of the Spirit and so as this dreary winter is winding down and we look forward to the hope and sunshine of spring, and all the blossoms that it entails, I pray that we will reflect and also see the fruit of the Spirit blossoming in our lives this spring!

"The fruit of the spirit is...joy..." (Galatians 5:22)

Man never finds real joy till he finds the Lord. Then he enters in to what Peter calls "joy unspeakable and full of glory" (I Peter 1:8).

Anyone can rejoice when circumstances are favorable, but the joy which is the fruit of the Spirit is not the result of earthly circumstances. It springs from our relationship to the Lord and from the precious promises He has given to us. Christ would have to be dethroned before the Church could be finally robbed of its joy.

Christian joy can coexist with suffering. Paul weds the two when he speaks of "all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness" (Colossians 1:11). The Thessalonian saints had received the word "in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost" (I Thessalonians 1:6). Suffering saints down through the centuries have testified how the Lord has given them songs in the night.

Joy can coexist with sorrow. The believer can stand by the grave of a loved one, shed tears of sorrow at the loss, yet rejoice at the knowledge that the loved one is in the presence of the Lord.

But joy can not coexist with sin. Whenever a Christian sins, he loses his song. Not until he confesses and forsakes that sin is the joy of his salvation restored.

The Lord Jesus told His disciples to rejoice when they were reviled, persecuted, and falsely accused (Matthew 5:11, 12). And they did! Not many years later we read of them leaving the courtroom, "rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name" (Acts 5:41).

Our joy increases as we grow in the knowledge of the Lord. At first, perhaps, we can rejoice in minor irritations, chronic ailments, and trivial inconveniences. But the Spirit of God wishes to bring us to the point where we can see God when circumstances are at their worst and rejoice in the knowledge that His way is perfect. We are spiritually mature when we can say with Habakkuk, "Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls; yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation" (Habakkuk 3: 17,18).

*One Day at a Time, William MacDonald, p 67

My Song is Love Unknown

A few weeks ago, I was practicing the piano. When no one is listening, I love to find unfamiliar songs and play them. I came across this hymn, My Song is Love Unknown, (Hymns of Truth & Praise, 162) that has a lovely tune and, more than that, the words struck me. I haven't been able to get them out of my head. And, today, as I was forced to miss meeting because of feeling a bit under the weather, I came back to this song, thinking on the wondrous love of my Savior for me, that He showed love to me, the loveless, so that I might be lovely. He has set me free and I gives thanks to Him with a heart grateful for the love He has bestowed on me!

My Song is Love Unknown
by Samuel Crossman

My song is love unknown, My Savior's love to me,
Love to the loveless shown, That they might lovely be.
Oh who am I, that for my sake My Lord should take Frail flesh, and die?

He came from His blest throne, Salvation to bestow;
But men made strange, and none the longed-for Christ would know:
But O, my Friend, My Friend indeed, Who at my need His life did spend!

Sometimes they strew His way, And His sweet praises sing;
Resounding all the day Hosannas to their King:
Then "Crucify!" Is all their breath, And for His death they thirst and cry.

They rise, and needs will have My dear Lord made away;
A murderer they save, The Prince of Life they slay.
Yet cheerful He to suff'ring goes, that He His foes from thence might free.

Here might I stay and sing, No story so divine;
Never was love, dear King, Never was grief like Thine.
This is my Friend, In whose sweet praise I all my days could gladly spend.

**If you like, here is the tune on YouTube to the rendition found in Hymns of Truth & Praise

Memories and Scripture

I like the beginning of a new year. It feels like a fresh start. It's an opportunity to reflect on the past year and the lessons learned. It's a chance to look at the good times and smile at the memories. It's a chance to look at the not-so-good times and rejoice that the Lord brought me through it. It's an opportunity to look at my mistakes and determine what I will choose to do differently this year to avoid those mistakes. A new year gives me a chance to assess my habits, the good, the bad, and the ugly.

One weakness that is identified every year, to my shame, is my lack of faithfulness to memorizing scripture. I STINK at memorizing. I am not being dramatic! I really am awful at it! I've struggled with it for as long as I can remember. I remember something for about 2 seconds...then it's gone! In fact, I have a dear friend, who I lovingly refer to as my "Sticky Note" because she can remember things FOR me better than I can for myself!

Why should I memorize scripture and what do I know about God's word, (according to Psalm 119)?

1. God's Word is truth. "The entirety of Your word is truth..." Psalm 119:160
2. God's Word is cleansing. "How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your Word." Psalm 119:9
3. God's Word keeps me from sin. "Your word have I hidden in my heart that I might not sin against you." Psalm 119:11
4. God's Word revives. "My soul clings to the dust; Revive me according to Your word." Psalm 119:25
5. God's Word strengthens. "My soul melts from heaviness; Strengthen me according to Your word." Psalm 119:28
6. God's Word gives life. "This is my comfort in my affliction, For Your word has given me life." Psalm 119:50
7. God's Word gives light. "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path." Psalm 119:105
8. God's Word is pure. "Your word is very pure; therefore Your servant loves it." Psalm 119:140

Those are just a few reasons I think it's important for me to work diligently to create a new habit of memorizing scripture.

To help me in this memorizing endeavor, I'm using a new program, that I found on "Revive Our Hearts" website...it involves repetition...a LOT of repetition.

1. Choose your verses.
2. Review them daily for 7 weeks.
3. Then, weekly for 7 months.
4. Then, yearly for 7 years.

Each time you rotate your verses to the next step, add in new verses. So you'll always have new verses to read through....ie memorize!
(Click on the above links to find the printable pages to follow the program!)

I've started with a bite size number of verses...but, I'll share those with you another day! Good luck and Happy Memorizing!!

A Look in a Book

"A Look in a Book." Thanks to Jenica for coming up with the name for my new series of posting various quotes and thoughts from books I'm reading. So, here's my first post as we look forward to many more to come!! I hope to enjoy great discussions with you as we "look in a book" together!

The presence of the living Christ, by His Spirit within you, imparts to you all the things that pertain to life and godliness, all that you need to live a life of righteousness and nobility of character....

...He not only reconciles you to God by His death, but He saves you moment by moment by His life; that is to say, He died not only for what you have done, but He rose again to live in you, to take the place of what you are.

His strength for your weakness!
His wisdom for your folly!
His drive for your drift!
His grace for your greed!
His love for your lust!
His peace for your problems!
His joy for your sorrow!
His plenty for your poverty!

This was God's purpose for His people...He desires that the natural man...might become the spiritual man--filled with the Spirit of Christ, alive unto God as an instrument of righteousness, destined for heaven.

*The Saving Life of Christ, by Major W. Ian Thomas, p 40-41

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.
The old has passed away; behold, the new has come."
2 Corinthians 5:17 (ESV)

A "Helper"

A thought that has primarily been on my mind for many months is this idea that God created the woman to be a "helper". We find this true when we read Genesis 2:18 when God says "...I will make him a helper comparable to him." Typically, when we think of our role as a "helper" we think of it in the marriage relationship, a woman coming alongside a man in marriage and becoming his partner, his helper in life. I've watched the marriages around me and seen the women coming alongside their husbands, helping them. What an incredibly important and awesome role! But can this role only be experienced in marriage? Am I only able to just wait and hope to some day be able to experience this "helper" role because I am a single woman?

I have a hard time believing that God would wire us to be helpers and yet only allow it to be developed and utilized within the confines of marriage alone. At the same time, I often find it difficult to be creative and think outside the "marriage" box when it comes to being a helper. The other day, I was reflecting on the importance of encouraging and exhorting one another in the Lord and it struck me that this is a way that ALL woman can be helpers.

It may seem odd to think of encouragement/exhortation as a mode of being a helper. But, as I look at a more familiar picture of a "helper" in the marriages around me, I've noticed my friends being helpers to their husbands by encouraging them. Encouraging them to be faithful to their families, to their assemblies, to their God. Encouraging them in their role as fathers, brothers and sons. These "helpers" have recognized wonderful characteristics in their husbands and have encouraged them to continue on in these behaviors as well as recognizing their potential and encouraging them to strive to reach that potential.

Personally, I can think of times in my life where someone saw potential in me that I didn't recognize in myself. They came alongside me and encouraged me to pursue that potential. That is how I want to be to those around me...I want to be in tune, recognizing the potential of those around me and encourage them to pursue it! I want to be the sort of "helper" that can come alongside another with a pure desire, not with manipulative or selfish motives, but to really see others become a more devoted and faithful servant of the Lord. If we all were to seek and encourage unrealized potential in those around us, I wonder how the body of Christ would be changed? Would we see more of our young men becoming Godly leaders and more of our young women becoming Godly helpers?

Whatever the case may be, the Lord has been challenging my heart to seek opportunities to encourage one another in our faith that our "labor may not be in vain." Praying this very thing for each of you today!

"...we sent Timothy, our brother and minister of God, and our fellow laborer in the gospel of Christ, to establish you and encourage you concerning your faith, that no one should be shaken by these afflictions; for you yourselves know that we are appointed to this. ...lest by some means the tempter had tempted you, and lest our labor might be in vain."

I Thessalonians 3:2-5

**I'd love to hear your thoughts and observations on what it means to be a "helper"!

"The Saving Life of Christ"

'Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it." The One who calls you to a life of righteousness is the One who by your consent lives that life of righteousness through you! The One who calls you to minister to the needs of humanity is the One who by your consent ministers to the needs of humanity through you! The One who calls you to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature, is the one who by your consent, goes into all the world and preaches the gospel to every creature through you!

If you will but trust Christ, not only for the death He died in order to redeem you, but also for the life that He lives and waits to live through you, the very next stop you take will be a step taken in the very energy and power of God Himself. You will have begun to live a life which is essentially supernatural...You will have become totally dependent upon the life of Christ within you...

**quoted from The Saving Life of Christ, Major W. Ian Thomas

Sometimes I find myself facing defeat...defeat in doing the things I do not want to do and defeat in not doing the very things God has asked me to do. As I look towards some of the upcoming events of the summer, I am wanting to find courage and boldness to proclaim the name of Christ in ways I'm not typically comfortable with, avenues I'm not well versed in. I came across these words in The Saving Life of Christ and realized anew that I am trying to find courage in myself, I am trying to find the strength in myself. I am looking in the wrong place! Where I will find the courage and the strength and the victory is in the life of Christ! He not only died to redeem me but His life saves me to a complete trust and dependence on Him...a trust and dependence for those "little" things like strength and courage and by my consent He will work through me, in spite of my short comings!

Happy Mother's Day!

Today is a day we celebrate the mothers in our lives. I am so thankful for my mother. As I've watched her over the years as mother to Scott and I, and now as grandmother to Kate and Zach, I've seen her continually give of herself, being selfless for the sake of her family. I am so incredibly thankful for the godly example my mother has set forth and hope to be as selfless to the loved ones in my life as she has shown to me. Happy Mother's Day, Mom!

To all of you mothers out there...kudos to you for all the hard work you are putting into your children, sitting up with them late at night when they are sick and fussy, cooking their meals each day, doing their laundry, and wiping their noses to name a few. But your most important job as mother is diligently working to grow them up in a way that their lives might honor and glorify the Lord Jesus Christ and that they might grow up to be men and women with a passion for the things of God.

As I was looking at verses this morning about mothers, I came across this verse in Isaiah 66 that made me realize how much a mother is a picture of our Lord. "Like a mother comforts her children, so the Lord will comfort you." (Kelly paraphrase!) Wow! I think that verse caught my heart in a special way because last night I longed for my mother, for her loving touch and most of all for her comfort. I don't care how old you get, there are moments in life that nothing soothes like a mother's comfort...and that is a sweet picture of our Savior and the comfort He offers to us.

For this is what the LORD says:
"I will extend peace to her like a river,
and the wealth of nations like a flooding stream;
you will nurse and be carried on her arm
and dandled on her knees.

As a mother comforts her child,
so will I comfort you;
and you will be comforted over Jerusalem."

When you see this, your heart will rejoice
and you will flourish like grass;
the hand of the LORD will be made known to his servants,
but his fury will be shown to his foes."

Isaiah 66:12-14

My Tongue?!

Over the last few weeks, I've realized that I am becoming more settled in my new job. One nice thing about a new job and a change is that I can also use the transition to reflect and determine what changes I need to make in myself. One thing that has always bothered me in nursing is the politics, the gossip, talking about others, etc. It's a very common issue in life that we all encounter. When we find ourselves in a conversation that has taken a turn in the direction of gossip, how do we deal with it?

Our tongues are a weapon, dangerous. Our tongues spill careless words that cut to the heart. If I carried a sword with me, I know I would always be aware of where the sword was, who was near it. I would be oh, so careful so that no one would be hurt or injured because of my carelessness. And yet, with my tongue I am thoughtless and unaware of the trail of blood I leave in my wake. I do not want my tongue to be characterized by the following:

1. Destruction & Deceit: "Your tongue devises destruction,Like a sharp razor, working deceitfully." Psalm 52:2

2. Lying: "Getting treasures by a lying tongue is the fleeting fantasy of those who seek death." Proverbs 21:6

3. Evil: "He who has a deceitful heart finds no good, And he who has a perverse tongue falls into evil." Proverbs 17:20

4. Poison: "But no man can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison." James 3:8

5. Foolishness: "But the mouth of fools pours forth foolishness. " Psalm 15:2b

So, what should my tongue be characterized by? What are the descriptions of a "good" tongue?

1. Wise & Just: "The mouth of the righteous speaks wisdom,And his tongue talks of justice. " Psalm 37:30

2. Tree of Life: "A wholesome tongue is a tree of life, But perverseness in it breaks the spirit." Proverbs 15:4

3. Promotes Health: "But the tongue of the wise promotes health." Proverbs 12:18b

4. Guarded/Kept from Trouble: "Whoever guards his mouth and tongue keeps his soul from troubles." Proverbs 21:23

Wow! I want a tongue that can be described in these terms. What words should be coming forth in order to live according to that characterization?

1. Praise & Righteousness: "And my tongue shall speak of Your righteousness, And of Your praise all the day long." Psalm 35:28

2. Kindness: "She opens her mouth with wisdom, And on her tongue is the law of kindness." Proverbs 31:26

3. God's WORD & Commandments: "My tongue shall speak of Your word,For all Your commandments are righteousness." Psalm 119:172

4. Confessing Jesus Christ: "..and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." Phil 2:11

I want to be characterized on my unit and in my life as someone who does not participate in gossip or other destructive conversations. It's a daily, hourly, minute by minute struggle to use my tongue wisely and to not participate in conversations that are destructive. And, these verses that I've shared have challenged my heart to strive for a tongue that promotes life and health, and shares the kindness of the Lord Jesus to all those around me and ultimately glorifies His name.

Who is the man who desires life,
And loves many days, that he may see good?
Keep your tongue from evil,
And your lips from speaking deceit.
Depart from evil and do good;
Seek peace and pursue it.
Psalm 24:12-14

Abundantly Satisified

Recently, a friend of mine sent me a copy of the following devotional:

'This is the day the Lord has made.' Psalm 118:24

Three of the biggest mistakes you can make are:
(1) Longing for yesterday. Learn from the past, but don't put a halo on it. The Bible says: (a) "Do not say, ' Why were the old days better than these?' For it is not wise." (Ecc. 7:10) (b) "Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?" (Is. 43:18-19)

(2) Longing for the right somebody. God knows what you need better than you do, and "No good thing will He withhold from them that walk uprightly" (Ps. 84:11). Instead of finding the right person, strive to become the right person.

(3) Longing for some future destination. It's a mistake to believe that when you arrive at a certain point you'll be happy. No, your happiest moments are along the way, not at the end of the trip. When it comes to living, you can't improve on the Scripture "This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it."

These thoughts encouraged and challenged my heart to stop longing for the things which I do not have and to be "abundantly satisfied" with all that the Lord has blessed me. He has given me my salvation, a wonderful family, a beautiful niece and handsome nephew, a job to provide my daily needs. His mercy, faithfulness, and His lovingkindnesses shown to me are boundless and without measure. And, as the Psalmist wrote, I want my heart to be "abundantly satisfied with the fullness of His house..." and to rejoice that this is the day that He has made for me to rejoice in!

Your mercy, O LORD, is in the heavens;
Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.
Your righteousness is like the great mountains;
Your judgments are a great deep;
O LORD, You preserve man and beast.

How precious is Your lovingkindness, O God!
Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of Your wings.
They are abundantly satisfied with the fullness of Your house,
And You give them drink from the river of Your pleasures.
For with You is the fountain of life;
In Your light we see light.
Psalm 36: 5-9

**A special thanks to Andrew Nelson for my recent blog sprucing. My pictures are ones that were taken while I was hiking in Aspen, Colorado at Maroon Bells. Andrew incorporated them nicely along with other ideas in order to come up with my new look! Thanks for all your help, Andrew!

Praying, Waiting, Exalting

John Heller spoke last Sunday on one of my favorite verses. He was speaking on the 10 lepers where 9 did not return thanks and then he took us to Isaiah 30:18 that says:

"Therefore, will the Lord wait, that He may be
gracious to you and there He will be exalted..."

John spoke on the fact that an immediate answer to our prayers is not always the answer that will be the best for us or will glorify the Lord the most. Perhaps, there are things that need to change in me, or perhaps in circumstances around me, for the answer to be the best for me. Perhaps time just needs to pass. Whatever the case, the Lord is waiting because He wants to receive the glory. And, for me, that brings comfort. To know that it's not that the Lord is ignoring my prayers or holding out on me. He is waiting so that He will receive the most glory. And, if it means that I wait all my life for an answer and He receives the most glory by the way I respond in waiting, than that is what I want. Everything is designed for His glory.

I say these things, but I must be honest that my heart doesn't quite fully follow in this line of thinking yet. I sometimes struggle with really desiring the Lord's will for my life if it means that what I want won't be fulfilled. That statement brings out the reality of my childish heart...to desire what I want over what is God's best for me. I read it in scripture, I know it in my mind, that it is best to be in God's will but sometimes it is hard for my heart to follow in suit.

What I have realized, too, is my sinful heart in how I approach my prayers to the Lord. Sadly, oftentimes, I am "doubting God's ability to bring it about...expressing a kind of 'hope fatigue' and resignation...a strong current of unbelief toward God."* Whatever my prayer is for-healing from illness, salvation of a soul, provisions for my needs, etc- I seem to be so surprised when I see the Lord answer my petitions because in my heart I am minimizing God's ability to bring it to pass.

So I have been challenged this year to "pray things through" (George Dawson), to not just present them before the Lord once or twice but to be faithful to the fulfillment of an answer (yes or no!). I have been challenged to be committed to pray boldly to the Lord with unwavering faith that He WILL answer me ("you have not because you ask not") when He will be glorified the most...and that He will help my heart to truly desire His exaltation over my own need for an immediate answer.


*Quoted from Radical Womanhood: Woman Praying Boldly

"...and let us run with ENDURANCE..."

Do you ever find yourself discouraged by the monotony of your daily life, by the menial tasks that never seem to end? I know I do! But I was so encouraged when I was reading my devotions several days ago.

I've been going through Bill MacDonald's "One Day at a Time" this year and it has been such a blessing to my heart. I was reading what he wrote about endurance in this life, an endurance for the things of God. He talked about how many people view the Christian life in a very idealistic manner, a manner that makes it seem as if every day should be filled with an "uninterrupted series of mountaintop experiences." It's like this idea does not include heartbreak, trials, daily routines that become monotonous, hard work, etc. And, when we find ourselves experiencing these things we become disheartened, discouraged and feel deprived. MacDonald goes on to say:

The true facts are these. Most of the Christian life is...'the way of plodding perseverance in the doing of apparently small things.' This is the way I have found it. There has been a full share of menial tasks, of long hours of disciplined study, of service without apparent results. At times, the question has arisen, 'Is anything really being accomplished?' Just then the Lord would drop some token of encouragement, some wonderful answer to prayer, some clear word of guidance. And I would be strengthened to go for a while longer. ... If you are ever tempted to quit, remember the words of Hebrews 10:36 (NEB), 'You need endurance if you are to do God's will and win what He has promised.'

So, when you're feeling discouraged because you have yet another load of laundry to do or the floor needs to be scrubbed again or just another day of work, be sure to look for those "tokens of encouragement" that the Lord gives you to help you go on, to remind you of His faithfulness, even in the midst of the mundane!

A noble life is not a blaze
Of sudden glory won,
But just an adding up of days
In which God's will is done.

One Day at a Time, January 10

Grief & Comfort

My heart has been heavy this week. Various friends and families that are going through trials have constantly been on my mind. Eli H., Elliot H., Luke K., the Hausmann's, to name a few. My heart breaks to think of the pain that these families are going through right now. I wonder how to give them words of comfort. The things that come to mind are true. All things DO work together for good for those who love the Lord. God WILL only give us what we can handle (in HIS strength). The Lord DOES have a purpose behind everything that happens. But are these words really comforting when someone's heart is breaking from grief and pain?

I wish there were a magic wand that would make everything "right" again. But, that isn't how God designed things, did He? Everything is designed with the purpose that God might be glorified...even through these horribly, heartbreaking events. So, my conclusion for now?

Be there for them.
Listen to them.
Pray FOR them.
Pray WITH them.
Cry with them.
(And of course, do some of those practical, every day things for them so they can focus their attention on their loved ones.)

"Rejoice with them that do rejoice and weep with them that weep." Romans 12:15

My prayer for you this year

I am having trouble sleeping tonight and so have been sitting here reading and thinking. I have been thinking about how I want to pray for my loved ones this year. I have been thinking about what I want to see the Lord do in your lives and that I want to see you "be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God..." (Colossians 1:9-10) Sounds like a pretty lofty goal, right?! But, I figure that if Paul could pray that for the people at Colosse than surely I can pray it for you too!

As my mind has been drawn to prayer this evening, I was wonderfully encouraged and surprised when I opened up my One Day at a Time devotional by William McDonald and saw that it's all about a prayer for the year. And so tonight, before I lay my head on my pillow to hopefully finally drift off to sleep, I will be praying these things for my life and for yours in this New Year! (The following is taken from One Day at a Time. It has been modified and is not quoted in its entirety.)

Lord Jesus, I rededicate myself afresh to You today. I want You to take my life this coming year and use it for Your glory. "Take my life and let it be consecrated, Lord, to Thee."

I pray that You will keep me from sin, from anything that will bring dishonor to Your name.

Keep me teachable by the Holy Spirit. I want to move forward for You. Don't let me settle in a rut.

May my motto this year be, "He must increase; I must decrease." The glory must all be Yours. Help me not to touch it.

Teach me to make every decision a matter of prayer. I dread the thought of leaning on my own understanding. "I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps." (Jer. 10:23)

May I die to the world and even to the approval or blame of loved ones or friends. Give me a single, pure desire to do the things that please Your heart.

Help me to speak what is edifying and profitable.

Give me tears of compassion for the perishing.

Help me to be a good steward of everything you have entrusted to me.

Help me to remember that my body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. May this tremendous truth influence all my behavior.

I pray that this may be the year of Your return. I long to see Your face and to fall at Your feet in worship. During the coming year, may the blessed hope stay fresh in my heart, disengaging me from anything that would hold me here and keeping me on the tiptoes of expectancy. "Even so, come, Lord Jesus."

Amen.

Rise Up & Look: Our Lively Hope

Yesterday, I got home from the Rise Up Conference in St. Louis. The main focus of this conference was The Last Days and it was really an intense topic to try to tackle in a couple of days. Typically, when I've heard messages on the Last Days, particularly on our Savior's return, I get the feeling that the idea being communicated is a fear of the Lord's return and that this fear is to motivate me to be a "better christian". I was particularly encouraged by the perspective the speakers portrayed throughout the conference, one of HOPE as our motivator.


Joe Reese spoke on the Church in the Last Days. He reminded us that our salvation is not complete yet and that our hope is the consummation of our salvation, when our salvation is fully and completely realized when we are perfected in glory!

What do we know about our hope?
1. Our hope is unseen. It is real but is not seen and one day our faith will give way to sight!

2. Our hope is stabilizing. It is our hope that serves as an anchor and stabilizes our life.

Hebrews 6:19 "This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast..."

3. Our hope is purifying. It is our hope that purifies and sanctifies our life. (more to come on sanctification in future posts)

4. Our hope is a confident expectation. Our Lord IS returning. It is imminent. And though we do not know the day or the time, we know that it WILL happen one day.

There are 3 principles which we can rest on through the Last Days:

1. Our faith in Him based on PAST personal experiences. We can hope today based on what God has done for me in days past. God has NEVER failed me and with confidence I can know that He will not fail me today because he did not fail me yesterday.

Daniel 3:17 As Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego answer King Nebuchadnezzar "If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and HE WILL deliver us from your hand O, king."

Based on their experience of God's faithfulness in the past, they could tell the king with confidence that they would be delivered from his hand.

2. Our faith in Him based on what He's done for others. We can look all around us and see the grace of God. Others bear witness to His faithfulness.

Mark: 5:22-36 Jairus was there when the woman with the issue of blood was healed. He was there and witnessed the power of the Lord.

3. Our faith based on His promises. I have hope today because God has given me promises in His Word. God's promises are like checks that are meant to be carried to the bank and cashed out. Based on the personal promise that He will return for ME, I will NOT give up and I will continue on!

Romans 4:18-25 "...He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform...Now it was not written for his sake alone...but also for us."

All in all, I was encouraged as I realized that I have a lively hope in looking forward to the day that my Savior returns for ME. Yes, He will return for ME as His redeemed child. What a wonderful and blessed hope! It seems to me as though this Hope and love towards the Savior is a much more effective motivator towards Godly living than fear. And, it is THIS hope that motivates my heart to strive to live a life that honors and glorifies His name.

Petrified!!

Have you ever had something happen to you that absolutely freaked you out?! A couple of nights ago, it was particularly windy out and as I snuggled into bed and got all cozy I remember being so thankful that my house is sound and doesn't creak a lot on windy nights. Then, I drifted off to sleep, listening to the rustling of the leaves, not suspecting what kind of madness was soon to follow.

I'm not one who is easily awakened...in fact, most of the time, it's quite the endeavor to get me awake...so significant in fact, that I need more than one alarm to get me up every morning. But, this particular night, I awoke suddenly...so suddenly in fact that I flipped over in one quick movement and sat straight up in bed when I heard a loud "BANG". It was just one loud bang, that was it. Then it was silent. I began to think that I was just dreaming it up...and then, I heard it again a few minutes later and it seemed to be coming from a different place in the house this time...was it outside? Or was it coming from inside? I couldn't tell. My eyes were as big as saucers and as the creaking and banging continued...much too sporadically to be the wind in my opinion...my imagination began to go wild....in fact, I was completely and totally convinced that there must be an intruder in my house! I was petrified...if I hadn't been scared stiff (literally) I would have crawled into my closet with my pillow and blanket and spent the night there, or even crawled under my bed...but, in all my "sound thinking" at 3 AM, I knew the "intruder" would hear me move around because my floors creak a lot (the house IS 50+ years old, you know!) and so I stayed put...stiff as a board lying in my bed, with my phone in my hand, ready to dial 9-1-1 if needed and crying out to the Lord with much desperation to protect me through the night! I laid awake like that until my alarm went off at 6 AM.

I went outside in the morning and took a look at the outside of my house to see what could be causing such a racket during the night...it's amazing how less intimidating it is when the sun is shining brightly and all the shadows of the night have disappeared! All of a sudden I was super courageous! In my search, I found a little 8 oz plastic cup that the wind must have been throwing into the side of my house (it makes quite a racket when it hits the aluminum siding!). Other than that, I can only figure that the wind must have been wreaking havoc with my window well coverings. It's a little embarrassing to realize that these two little items were likely the reason for my petrified state only a few hours earlier! Things that seem so scary in the dark of night are put in proper perspective in the light of day.

Isn't it that way in our lives too? When we are in the thick of a trial, it can be so scary and sometimes we are petrified. It seems overwhelming when we are in the midst of the storm. But, when it passes, we can look back on it and see the faithfulness of the Lord and how He carried us along and provided for our every need.

Or perhaps its the sin in our lives....it's much more appealing through the eyes of the world, under the cover of darkness, but when we view it in light of God's word, it puts it into perspective...all of the sudden we see sin for the destructive and filthy thing that it is, no matter how appealing it once seemed. We know that in darkness things are never as they appear. We can't see things clearly and with proper perspective until we see them in the light.

"...let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. Let us walk properly...But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts."

Romans 13:11-14

"Now hope does not disappoint..."

Do you ever find yourself discouraged with whatever season you are enduring right now? Things in life may not be turning out how you expected or how you planned, or maybe the job you have doesn't give you the satisfaction you thought it would. Do you ever find yourself looking at life circumstances and when you look around, you all the sudden find yourself in a "funk"? I don't know about you, but I know I've experienced the "funk" and I was reminded about where our true contentment lies when I read the following excerpt from "The Purple Cellar" in her post titled "Our Vital Need for Hope".

"Contentment is a choice, although at times it is hard to believe that. It just makes no sense. We would give anything to get out of the funk in which we find ourselves. But picking ourselves up by our purse straps just isn't going to do it. We need an answer; we need help. And if we do not get it, what starts out as a mild case of the blues can spiral down into depression, which leads to discouragement, and then, finally, to despair. There is a common thread in each slide we make down this awful spiral—a loss of hope. Each time we move a little lower, it is because a little more hope has died.


The key, of course, to not losing hope is to place our hope in the right things. If we set our hope on something, even a very good something, that we want in this life, we may well lose our hope, because there are no guarantees that we will get the things we want in the here and now. There is only one thing of which we can be sure, and that is God's presence and all the blessings that come with it. Our hopes will find increasing fulfillment if what we hope for is to know more of Christ. Our hopes will be realized if deeper intimacy with our heavenly Father is what we seek. Our hopes will not disappoint if we long to be free of our enslaving sins. We can bank our hopes on any and all of the things God has promised us in his Word."

I've recently been enjoying some posts over at "The Purple Cellar" blog on the topic of contentment. One post spoke that "Contentment is Always an Option" and that no matter what circumstances we find ourselves in or what season we are experiencing, there is always an option to choose to be content. But we have to be looking for our contentment in the right places, we have to be placing our hope where it will not be disappointed.

What a wonderful reminder to set our sights on the things above, to set our hopes where they will not be disappointed. And, the one place that our hopes can safely rest are in the promises of God's word. We find true contentment when we seek (and find!) an intimacy in knowing our Savior and seeking after the things that please Him.

"Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us. For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly."

Romans 5:1-6

Is it really an "Accident"??

Yesterday, as I was hurriedly leaving work, my car personally got to know the concrete support pillar in the parking garage. I heard the crunch, felt the jolt of the car, and was instantly horrified that I could be that stupid! How could I back right into the very large pillar!? How did I not see it? And, why are there accidents like this that just seem to be inconvenient, frustrating, and, to say the least, costly?

As I was driving to the auto shop with my stearing wheel very off centered, I began to think about accidents and was gently reminded of the devotional I had read just that morning by Elisabeth Elliot:

All Things Serve Thee

During my husband Addison's terminal illness, everything in our lives was changing. The cancer had spread with a speed which startled the doctors. I found during those hard days and nights strength in the ringing words of the liturgy, proclaimed aloud as the congregation knelt: "Christ has died. Christ has risen. Christ will come again." I could hold onto those immutable facts.

The psalmist found the same strength in the Lord's infrangible decrees: "This day, as ever,Thy decrees stand fast: for all things serve Thee" (Ps 119:91 NEB). The Lord is not subject to vicissitudes, exigencies, and contingencies." Accidents" are, in fact, subject to the Lord of the universe, the blessed Controller of all things."

Thy promise endures for all time, stable as the earth which Thou
hast fixed" (Ps 119:90 NEB).

He "fixes," that is, He sets in place, the whole earth. Surely He can fix
and establish my heart. Every "happening" serves Him. **

**by Elisabeth Elliot**

Though I am certainly not facing anything comparable to the terminal illness that she was facing, I can rest in knowing that my God is a Sovereign God and does not allow anything to cross my path without His knowledge and without a purpose. I know that my God allows certain circumstances to come into my life to prune, mold and change me, that my character might become more and more like that of my Savior's.

"In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith...though it be tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and
glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen you love."
I Peter 1: 6-8a

I am comforted and reassured to know that the circumstances I face that appear to be less than ideal to my eyes really do serve a purpose. The purpose is that I might seek out the Lord, the ultimate Provider and Protector, to be the fulfillment of my every need and desire. The purpose is that I might be drawn into a deeper love and greater intimacy with my dear Savior.