Saying No to Say Yes

There are those seasons in life that seem extra busy. Those seasons where you just do not have enough time in each day to accomplish all the things that you had hoped to. I'm finding that those are coming more and more and that I am having to learn to say no to things much more frequently. Recently I felt the need to drop out of a Bible Study with some dear friends simply because I just wasn't able to keep up, and falling behind proved to be stressful and sent me to bed each night regretting that despite my best efforts I hadn't answered even one single question, much less done a whole lesson.

Then today a friend shared a mommy blog post. I like mommy blogs even though I'm not a mom, and so I took a minute to read it while on lunch break. And I had to smile. I think my life is hectic and I don't have children hanging off of me. I thought, "Well, am I saying no to quickly? If she can do that, maybe I can do more?"

But as I thought about that, I realized that each season of life has it's own moments of hecticness, and that her busy is different than my busy. What I say no to, will be different than what she says no to, but that doesn't mean either of us is wrong. We are just in different seasons of life. We all need to say no sometimes. The important thing is to evaluate what we are saying yes too, and making sure that that is in line with what God has for us in our current season of life, and evaluate our no's in the same manner. Right now one of my big yes is finishing my college education. Later when I have finished college, my yeses will be for something else. 

So, what are you saying no to so that you can say yes to the most important things in life? Namely your relationship with the Lord.

Yeah, I know, I said life was crazy enough so that I couldn't even do a Bible study lesson and here I am writing a rambling blog post. While my lunch is getting cold no less. But you see, for some people, writing is every bit as important as eating. ;)

Procrastination, A Lack of Trust

February 5, 2014

Have you ever been so busy that you never seem to have a down moment? You go from one task to another all day long and reach each evening feeling further behind instead of more caught up. You tell your friends you would love to join them in this or that, but you are just too busy and cannot spare time just now. And yet, beneath all of the busy you are procrastinating.

Have you been there? I have.

Some of my own struggles in procrastinating has been rooted in my fear of being still, quiet, and trusting in the unseen hand of God Almighty. To cover up any sense of guilt or shame for not trusting, I often allow myself to become super busy and tell myself that each task is important and the world would all but stop if I stopped. Can you say pride and foolishness?

This ultimate struggle to surrender and let go of control, placing my trust in the One who is most worthy of trust, pushes me into a tizzy. I go and go and go until one day I realize that it is all empty. I am busy, but it amounts to nothing more than burned energy and a dissatisfied heart.

Have you allowed procrastination and busyness to rob you of the joy of being still and letting God be God? Have you taken matters into your own frail hands and "made" a life for yourself that is deceivingly full, but frightfully empty? If you have, I challenge you to be still and let that truth sink in. Then take some time and talk with the Lord about this area of sin in your life and start tomorrow afresh. Start by being prayerful and careful about what you say "yes" to and what you need to say "no" to.

He is worthy of our trust, and He has so much more for us then empty busyness.

"O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him" (Psalm 34:8).

He Finds Me Here - Part 1

The sky is dark, all but the lights in the distance that speckle the horizon.

The house is quiet, but not too quiet.

"Bump-ity-bump," the dryer balls spin round and round

amongst the still damp towels.

The hum of the dishwasher and my computer add to the comforting, homey sounds as I await my families return.

 

I breathe deep and revel in the relative stillness of the house.

This time has been good. God has been good. In this mostly-alone-time He has showed me more of Himself. Whispered truths into my worn and weary heart.

He loves me.

 

I struggled to know this not so long ago, doubt and lies trying to rob me of my hope and trust.

But here, here as time balances between the new and old years, even if only for a few hours, here He met me. Here He linked truths together so that I would know.

 

Here He removed doubts, uncovered lies.

Here He made my heart to rejoice again in His truth and love. Here He made the passion and deep joy spring forth once more.

 

A familiar sing song rhythm beats within, slow and sweet.

Each breath becomes a prayer. A praise.

 

I've missed this. When did it slip away? All day the question comes and goes. When had the sweetness faded, the joy gotten lost?

For This Too, Will I Trust

Sometimes living in the past holds an appeal. You wish you could go back and be there again. "But, why?" I asked myself. "Is it the appeal of knowing what happened already and knowing that there would not be any surprises? Or at least, not surprises in a bad way."

 

I pause. I sit back. I play the past through my head. It is like an old friend. I know the twists and turns it will take. It is sweetly familiar. I smile.

 

My mind turns again to the question at hand and I look deep at the future. It is filled with possibilities. It is like lump of clay that could be molded in one of thousands of ways before being painted, textured, fired in another thousand ways. It has endless possibilities, but until the artist begins to mold and make, it is just a lifeless lump of nothingness. It has no beauty. No shape. Only the artist knows what it will be and what processes it will go through to arrive at that more refined and beautiful shape.

 

Life is like that. We look forward and see a thousand possibilities, and a thousand ways to get to them. We do not know what the end of our life will look like, when we will reach it, or what processes we will go through to reach that, hopefully, more refined, sanctified, and beautiful imitation of our Savor. Until the Artist has finished His working on and within our lives, we cannot guess at the outcome. We can pray for and work towards a desired oneness with Him, but only by the workings of His grace in us will we reach such a desired end.

 

"Yes, perhaps," I mused. "Perhaps this is the appeal in the past. We know the outcome because we have already reach it. The future stands before us nameless and shapeless and it requires trust."

 

Trust. How hard it is to trust. And yet, as Ann Voskamp states in her memorable way in One Thousand Gifts, "If God didn't withhold from us His very own Son, will God withhold anything we need?"

 

He has already fulfilled our biggest need. Eradicated our biggest need of fear. Why is it then that we do not trust? Why is it that we are tempted to wish ourselves back in time, standing in trembling fear of what lies ahead? Why do we doubt the One who has already been more faithful than we could ever be? More loving, kind, and merciful that we could ever deserve?

 

I pause. I look into the brilliant display of evening colors and my heart sings. Wordless praise flows forth to the One who holds my tomorrow. It is like reaching forth to place my hand once more in the work-worn hand of the Master artist. A pray whispers forth from my lips, "Lord, make me more like You. Mold me more and more into your likeness with each passing hour."

 

 

"But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay,

and thou our potter; and we all are the

work of thy hand."

~ Isaiah 64:8

"It is a good thing to give thanks unto the LORD, and to
sing praises unto thy name, O most High: To shew forth thy lovingkindness in the morning, and they faithfulness every night." ~ Psalm 92:1-2

And Then...It Didn't Happen

There was a determined air to her little chin as she jutted it out as if to dared anyone to challenge her. She was five and she was already tired of the looks people gave down their noses when she answered their all important question, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" They could laugh and sneer and pass those "knowing" looks around her for a hundred years and that could not change the dream buried deep within her little girl heart. Yes, despite all the scorn she knew what she wanted to be when she grew up. She wanted to be a wife and a mother. She wanted to keep a house, change dippers, wipe little faces, and be there to welcome her husband home at the end of a long day.

 

Maybe her thoughts were not quite as detailed as that, but over time they would grow to be. At five she never even doubted it would happen. At twelve, sixteen, eighteen and even twenty she never doubted and her dream stood strong. And then, after that as each year passed, doubts began to creep in and the dream began to crack just a little and the sureness she had once had began to waver. Would it fall?

 

~

Are you that girl? Are you passing up your twenties with the speed of a freight train on a rickety track feeling that any minute you may come to a bridge that will not hold your dreams up and they will come crashing down all around you? You wanted nothing more than to marry young and thought that by now you would have a house full of little ones. Only, it didn't happen.

 

So now what? What do you do with those desires? And are those desires being shaped in God glorifying ways?

 

I recently sat down to write, to try to make sense of the many thoughts and questions that whirled in my own head. While I was sitting there, fingers poised over the keys, questions began to pop out on the page. "What is it that I desire from marriage? Why do I desire these things? Are they godly desires or selfish ones?"

 

Those were some deep questions but I really did want know my heart answers. As is often my habit when I have something to think through, I slipped on my shoes and set out on a walk, book and pen in hand.

 

As I walked answers did not magically appear, instead, even more questions crammed themselves out through my pen and onto the spaces between the lines. "Why is that I desire marriage? Is it so that I can give, or so that I can take? Is the appeal in having someone to share my life with, or is it sharing someone else's life with them? Is it about my plans being accomplished, or is it about God's plans being fulfilled? Is it about my success and my dreams coming true. Is it about my happiness?

Now, I know that these questions are not an answer to what you should do with your own desires for marriage. And I know that they probably are not consolation to a lonely heart and that they probably cannot mend the cracks in your dreams. They cannot wipe away any doubts you may be having in the likelihood of your own wedding ever being more than a board on Pinterest, but maybe, just maybe they can show you some areas in your thought life that are a little warped. Perhaps you might find that some of your desires are more selfish and less godly, and what better time to realize that than now? Now when you have an opportunity to seek the Lord's strength in realigning your desires with His before your emotions become entangled in a relationship.

 

Maybe I do not have any more answers than you do, but I do know that for you, and for me, and for every other person who has dreams that they feel are crumbling, that God has a plan and it is perfect. How do I know this? Because each day as I seek to align my dreams with His plans He has been showing me that His hands are in the smallest of details. Do not despair my friend, He is faithful. Seek after Him with all your heart and He will meet you there.

"For He satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul

with goodness." ~ Psalm 107:9

 

 

 

 

 

Standing on the Rock

Recently we had rain. We have not had much in a while, so it was a real blessing. After the rain the air was so fresh and cool that I just "had" to go out and explore a little. I found the acreage behind the house had turned into a shallow pond. Beyond that was a "fort" my siblings had dug into the ground, so I had to go see if it was full or not. I waded through water and mud and finally was able to see into the trenched out fort. It was full of rain water and the dirt walls that my siblings had piled around it where becoming so saturated by the water from the neighboring field, that they were beginning to fall into the murky water filled trench.

 

You know, sometimes we are like those saturated wall. We know that we are called by our Lord to be in the world, but not of it, but sometimes we stand just as close as we can get to the world, looking over at it. "It can't hurt us" we say. But the world's influnces are many and they slowly but surely can flow in and surround us if we let our guard down, much like the rain water from the neighbors field slowly seeped in and surround my siblings dirt walls surround their fortress, their safe place.

 

Before we realize it, the ways of the world begin to seep into our lives and saturate us, and we begin to crumble. The walls that were once strong, standing against the evil of the world become soft and our standards which were once high slip lower and lower until people looking on can no longer can see the difference. Then they may ask, "So, if you are a Christian and I am not and yet we speak the same, we dress the same, we like the same music and movies, why do I need Jesus? Why do you?" And what opportunities we may have had to witness have been swallowed up in the murky waters that we though could not harm us.

 

Any good that is in man, is there by the grace of the Lord. There may be times when we are tempted to think that the world cannot hurt us because we are too strong. But, the fact is, if we do not surround ourselves with the Word of the Lord to the point of becoming saturated in it, and if we are not continually seeking Him and are not continually on our guard, we will fall. It is not a matter of if, it's a matter of when. Why, because in and of ourselves we are weak. We cannot stand...but for Him. 

 

Everyday is a battle. Our hope and safety from the murky sin filled water of the world is on top of the Solid Rock. He is our strength, our stronghold. Are you standing firmly on the Rock? 

 

"The LORD is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and He knoweth them that trust in Him."

Nahum 1:7

The Greatest Gift

 

"If we have the slightest clue about being bought by the blood of Jesus, we won't see how much we can get away with. We'll see how much we can honor Him. True, there is not a sin that you or I could muster up that would make God say, 'I don't love you anymore.' But that doesn't mean we have the right to take His grace for granted." ~ David Nasser


If we know what a sacrifice was made for us by Jesus, if we grasped how much He gave of Himself for us, then we could not help but to live every moment of every day in a way that honors and pleases Him. Think of it like this, if someone nearly died saving your child (or insert your mother, father, or dearest loved one's name here) from a raging fire, would you not be grateful to that person and show them gratitude? Would you not do whatever was in your power to show them that you valued their willingness to, if need be, sacrifice their very life trying to save the one you love with all your heart?

Well, Jesus did that. He died to save your loved one from a fire bigger and hotter than any forest fire. He also died to save you from the same fate. And would you dare to be anything but grateful for that sacrifice? Should you not live a life of gratitude? Should you not do your best to honor Him? Yes, we will all fail, we will all sin, we will never be perfect on this earth. I get that. But, shouldn't we seek everyday to live in a way that says "thank you" for the great sacrifice of the cross instead of pushing limits to see how much we can "get away with"? 

If we really understand grace, and the price of the gift given to us by our Heavenly Father through His only Son, we can't take it for granted.

Lost in the Sand

April 15, 2013

 

I am the type of person who likes to make up her own, "quotes." For each season of life I make up little sayings, often drawing from Scripture, and things I have heard or read. These little phrases may be ones I hang onto for only a day, or maybe on that is with me for a week. If I were to make one for today it would be, "In times of drought, trust in the Maker and Sender of rain, for He shall surely quench your deepest thirst."

 

There are times as we walk the paths of life where dryness comes to our souls. Darkness shades our way and we cannot make out what the "road signs" so. We stand at this crossroad of the heart, unsure of which way to go. Left or right? There seems to be no hope, no reason to keep on keeping on. The joy to which we once danced to, slips away...and all we hear is silence.

 

In such times I have learned to cling with every fiber of my being to the truth of His Word. Maybe it does not speak so clearly to my heart, but I just keep on trusting in the truths that He has promised. I do not always know why the dry times come, but I know that I have always made it through them before...and I trust that I will once more.

 

If we have not trust and faith in the unseen, then we have no faith at all. It is how we act and react in the times of drought that truly show how much we truly trust in the unseen Almighty God.

 

If you are going through a time where God seems sooooooo far away, let me encourage you to soak in the Word and to trust in what you cannot see, clinging to His promises. He will not let you die of thirst. He will be your Spring of Life.

The Law of God

Some say that we are no longer under the Law of the Old Testament. That the Old Testament is just there so we can know history and see where we came from. I disagree. Obviously there are areas of the Law of the Old Testament that we no longer have to live under because of what Jesus did for us on the cross, like the many sacrifices that were required of God's children back then, but there is much of the law that we are still to keep.

 

Jesus, Himself, stated, "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law till all be fulfilled" (Matthew 5:17-18).

 

Without the Law we would have no standards, and without standards how would we know the difference between righteousness and unrighteousness? The Bible states in 1 John 2:3-6, " And herby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked." So, to recap, he who loves God will keep God's commandments -- or law?

 

Maybe you want to argue that our faith is not to be of works, but of grace. There is truth to that. Ephesians 3:8-10 says, "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them." Ultimately we are saved by God's grace. We cannot save ourselves by our own works. This is a fundamental truth that cannot be argued, but we should not stop there. The verse goes on to say, "created in Christ Jesus unto good works" or as some translations state, "for good works."

 

We were created to glorify God, we can do this, in part, through good works. We show God that we love Him by obeying Him and following His commandments -- obeying His Law. By doing that which His Word commands, by His grace, we will love others, which means we will serve others, which means we will do that which people consider to be "works." These works will not save us, no, because we have already been saved by grace through faith in the Son of God which is the only way we can be saved. No, these works are not our salvation, these works are the result of our salvation in Christ. They are an out pouring of our love for God.

 

This is a huge topic, and one that takes much thought and discussion to get to the bottom of. My thoughts in writing was to encourage you to study the topic for yourself. There are so many things that we have been told we should believe, even in our churches, that are not firmly grounded in God's Word. We should not blindly believe everything we hear, but take everything and hold it up against the Word of God to verify whether it is actual truth or a convincing lie.

 

The God that many supposedly Christian churches teach of is not the God of the Bible. The God of the Bible is a God of order, a God of justice, a God of unfathomable love and mercy, but He is not a God who condones those who live in sin and disobey His commandments. If you think I am wrong, read His Word for yourself from cover to cover. I have, and it has challenged the way that I believe, the way that I think, and the way that I live. I am not perfect, but daily being conformed into His image. My prayer is that you too, will be drawn closer to Him through His truth each day.

 

"It is not the Law which separates me from God; it is my violation of that Law (sin)." ~ Michael Davis

Do You Believe?

November 30, 2012

"Is anything to hard for the Lord?" ~ Genesis 18:14

 

Maybe your first reaction to reading that is, "No way! God can do anything!" I do hope that you know that He can do anything, but more than know that, I hope you believe it. What do I mean by that?

 

We often say that we believe God can do anything, but when it comes to obeying God blindly do we always trust Him explicitly? In that moment when doubt creeps in...do we let it live, or do we crush it because we trust even when we cannot see? Search your heart, is there anything that you are not trusting the Lord in? Are there any areas where you have let doubt creep in that He is actually who He says He is and that He can actually do anything and everything because He is that big and powerful?

 

Can you say from the depths of your heart that you believe without a shred of doubt that there is nothing that is too hard for the Lord?
 

New Years Resolutions?

Perhaps it was just the thoughts of the holidays sneaking up on me, or perhaps it was adding every ones birthdays in my 2013 calender and seeing how quickly the years are passing me by, or perhaps it is something else entirely, but whatever the reason, my thoughts last month were turned to the past and the future. What did I do this last year that I would like to do better in the this year? There are two things at the top or my list, and they have been there probably as long as I have been making lists. They are, "Love God more" and "Love people more."

 

Now, loving more can mean a whole variety of things, and to list them all would take longer than I have. So, I will just give you the abbreviated definitions. To love God more is to make it my top priority that His name be hallowed in everyday life and in every circumstance. To love people more is love others as Christ loves. Selflessly, forgiving all wrongs, putting their needs above my own wants.

 

I have never been much for New Years resolutions, so this year I am not making any. What about my goals to love more, you ask? Well, those are not New Years resolutions. Those are New Life resolutions. Everyone who has New Life, should have these types of resolutions. Resolutions to be more like our Lord.

What are your New Life resolutions?

Talk Less, Pray More

 

Written September 10, 2012

A sigh escapes my lips...there is no one there. I look again five minutes later. Still no one. Have you ever found yourself constantly checking social networking sites in hopes that a friend gets on-line? I know I have. There are times when I want so bad just to talk. I don't really care who to, just someone so that I can get my mind off what is "bugging" me.

 

I am currently staying off most social networking sites where my friends are most active for that very reason. I realized that I had become dependant on talking to others because it was a way for me to escape. A way to stop thinking. When did thinking and deep thoughts become something which I wanted to run from? I used to sit for hours just thinking and writing our my thoughts. What has changed?

Maybe because my thoughts are ones that I have no answers to? It's easier if you have a problem to solve. You research, and in time you find a solution. But what about those thoughts that there is no real solution to as far as you are able to see. That is, no solution but to wait on the Lord. The ones that chase each other around and around your head and no matter how hard you try to stop thinking of them they don't go away.

 

Today I have a little cold and haven't felt up to my normal riggers, so I've been sitting still. I caught myself glaceing at my phone to see if anyone had texted, and looking at my inbox for a new email to answer. But there was nothing. I started to grow a little agitated. Where was everyone when I needed to talk? Then a simple truth came to mind. The things I wanted to talk about, they are things that only God has the answers to. Talking them over with friends is not a bad thing, and yet, is it profitable? They don't have answers and you still don't, so you are right where you started. If God knows the answers, why am I afraid (yes, afraid) to talk to Him about these things that will not leave my mind?

 

I am afraid because what if the things I want are not what He has planned? What if He says no? What if He says I need to wait...just wait for His timing? What if He tells me that I don't need answers. That I just need to have faith and trust in Him? I'm not good a waiting for answers. I like to know what lies ahead, what the plan is, have a schedule. I don't want to give up all of the things that I have dreamed about and prayed for, even if only for a season. In fact, I just want what I want. Or do I?

 

If I think about it long enough. If I face my fears and if I take those fears to the Lord, He teaches me that I don't really want what I think I want. He shows me where selfishness leads and reminds me of a better way. His way. If it brings Him glory (which in turn brings Him pleasure) then I desire to die to self. I desire to go where He leads even if it means walking in ways that I fear to trod. I desire to learn how to wait, patiently.

 

The next time I start looking to see if anyone is available for me to talk to. I am going to try to ask myself why it is I want to talk. And I pray that in times when I am running, I will learn to seek out silence and seek out my Lord. That my desires will become molded more and more into the likeness of His perfect plan.

Degree Purpose

If you are a college student, then you have mostly likely encountered the following question from well meaning friends or relatives, "So what do you plan to do with your degree?" I like to rephrase that question. Instead of answering to what I will do with my degree, I would like to answer, "I like to think of my degree, not in terms of what I will do with it, but what it has done and is doing for me." At this point you will get puzzled looks, in fact you may have a puzzled expression on your face now. Let me explain.

I began the process of earning my degree through CollegePlus as an exercise in trust. I was scared by the phrase, "Credit by examination." I have always had to work hard to maintain a good grade. Studying and testing has never come easily for me. The idea of gaining my whole degree through distance learning was so daunting that I very seriously considered attended a brick and mortar college, because for some reason that option sounded far less frightening.

For reasons I may explain in another post, God really convicted me that leaving home and going several hours away to college was not a good choice for my spiritual growth, and that I needed to remain at home and involved in the lives of my family members and friends. For months I sat staring the option of starting CollegePlus in the face. "But Lord, I don't think I can do it. You know that testing isn't my strong point. I might fail…" The argument when round and round, and finally I remember the question that changed my life. "Katy, you have always told God that you would go where He led. How you would leave all behind and follow Him anywhere He asked you to go. What if He is not leading you to go anywhere? What if He is calling to serve here? What if He is asking you to trust Him in this journey of earning your degree? Will He be with you any less in passing exams than He would have been if He had called you to Africa? You said you would trust and follow Him anywhere, what if this is where He is leading you? Can you trust Him?"

That was the beginning of my journey to earning my degree. Since then there have been many faith stretching moments, many fears to overcome, and I know that there will be more as I continue forward. The question for me is not about what my degree will do for me, or how I will use it, it is, "How will God continue using this process to build character and ultimately draw me nearer to Him."

I have learned what it means to persevere. What it means to fail and try again. I have learned how to better manage my time and how to trust that He can help me overcome seemingly impossible odds. I made friends through CollegePlus who challenged the very core of everything I believed, causing me to seek the truth through His Word. Consequently I have grown by leaps and bounds spiritually. I could probably write a book on all that the Lord has taught me since I took that first step of faith and enrolled with CollegePlus.  The decision to begin CollgePlus really was a life altering decision.

For me college has never been about earning a degree that will give me better career opportunities, it has always been about trusting the Lord and following where He leads. The question is not always, "What will you do with your degree?" but rather sometimes it is, "What will your degree do for you and how will the Lord use it to grow you in ways that glorify Him?"

Love the Bride, Love the Savior

"If you do not love the bride, you do not love the Savior." ~ Voddie Baucham

Time management is something I have always struggled with. Truth be told, it is probably something everyone struggles with to some extent. This morning I was listening to a sermon by Dr. Voddie Baucham and the line I quoted above really stood out to me. "If you do not love the bride (speaking Christ's bride, the church), you do not love the Savior. He spoke of how it isn't enough to just serve Christ in your little closet. You must also love the bride as He loves the bride. Your top priority is not only to serve Christ, but to see Him worshipped among the nations.

I personally want that to be my first priority, but sometimes in the midst of everything I loose sight of that top priority. Thinking of it in terms of if I don't "see Him worshipped among the nations" and show concern for His bride thenI do not love Him...that really changes the way I look at life. At what I want to do, versus that which I have to do.

Recently I have been thinking a lot about marriage. Having just seen my older brother marry and having friends preparing to make that same commitment, I have begun to look a marriage in a different light. I see it more and more as it was meant to be seen, as a reflection of Christ's love for His bride, the church. As that reflection, marriage is a union that calls both parties involved to become more selfless, to be more concerned about the needs of the other than about their own wants. Marriage is a reflection of Christ's love for His bride. He was selfless when He died on the cross to redeem us, so stands to reason that I, as His child, am also called to be selfless.

After all, you do not just get married and all of the sudden become selfless. Selflessness is something that must be nurtured throughout our lives. How does this apply to the topic at hand? Well, it means we are called to be selfless or Christlike. When we are Christ-centered we will want to be about our Father's business. We will desire to serve Him in every area of life, but we will not stop there. Our desire will also be to see Him made known to the nations and worshiped by all. Once this longing fills our heart, we should not let it get pushed aside for things that we may want to do, or even what others may want us to do. This is not a choice that is left to us. We are not to serve Christ only if we want to, and to see that He is worshipped among the nations if we want to. No, we are called to do this. It is something we have to do. If we do not do it, then we are walking in rebellion and sin.

The next time I am tempted to push aside the importance of loving Christ's bride, I pray I remember to keep my priorities straight. First, I do what I have to, and then when I have done that and as He provides I can do those things that I want to do. Those things that may be good, but are not best right here and right now. There is no joy in serving self, but there is unfathomable joy in serving our Savior and "singing" His praises to the nations so that they may join in the song and lift their voices in fervent worship to He, who alone, is worthy to be praised.

Day 20

September 30

My morning song!

"Casting all your care upon Him for He cares for you" (1 Peter 5:7)

Day 5

September 2

Today I was reminded to not grow weary and loose heart, to not cease to pray, but to continue steadfastly in the way the Lord has shown us through the example of His Son. Also, I was reminded that what Christ suffered, I must not expect to escape (Matthew 10:22). I once heard a speaker say, "If you are not being persecuted for Christ's sake, then you are not where you are supposed to be." Am I where I God has called me to be?

"Rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer" (Romans 12:11).

"And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we reap if we do not loose heart" (Galatians 6:9).

"For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls" (Hebrews 12:3).

~*~

"What David offered to his God was a heart that was utterly satisfied with His will. There were no private reservations, no little whispered "if"---if only I can be where I want to be and have what I want to have, then there will be gladness in my heart...he went further...It (joy) does not depend on what I have, it is more than that sort of gladness. It is a joy that is entirely independent of circumstances." ~ Amy Carmichael Edges of His Ways

I long to be utterly satisfied with the will of my Father, to have a deep gladness within that is not dependant on the circumstances of this life! Don't you? What do you think are some steps each of us can take to find such joy?

I would have to say the number one step is prayer. Studying God's Word. Then action.

Day 4

Lest anyone think that I have given up so quickly, let me assure you that I have not. Due to the fact that I was without a computer for several days I am just behind on posting. I hope, within the next few days, to catch up. Until then, here are a few posts to tide you over.


September 1

This morning was a wee bit more challenging than the last few mornings. An unexpected amount of projects for work came in yesterday that needed to be taken care of in a timely manner. Because of this, I was not able to go to bed at my regular hour. Nevertheless I was determined to still get up by my normal time this morning. When morning rolled around I wanted so much to snuggle deeper into my pillow and keep on sleeping! Thankfully the Lord was with me and reminded me of what a day started without prayer, usually turns out to be. Knowing I had a lot of work to do again today I knew that prayer would have a major roll in keeping my day flowing smoothly. If the doors to Heaven aren't opened in the morning, I always find that they usually stay closed all day. Not because God will not open them. Oh no! But because I am so stressed and harried that I do not take the time to open them. Have you ever found this to be true?

Hebrews 11:13-16

We are strangers and pilgrims on this earth. This is just our temperary home. There is what I like to call a eternal perspective. This is how we view the world and all that is in it. We look at it all through the eyes of our Lord. We look at it with the thought that glorifying our Father is our number one priority, and that Heaven is our goal. So, if I am just a stranger here, if this is not my home and Heaven is, then is how I am living reflecting that?

"By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy passing pleasures of sin" (Hebrews 11:24-25).

What are we willing to endure for the Lord? Are we willing, even eager to stand with His people and to suffer with them for the sake of our Father?

Quiet Time: To Be Treasured

"For Jesus, time alone with God was not an option. It was not something He tacked on to an overcrowded schedule. It was His lifeline to the Father. It was not something He could do without. It was the highest priority of His life-more important than being with His disciples, more important than preaching the gospel, more important than time with His mother and brothers, more important than responding to the demands and needs of the crowds, more important than anything else."
~Nancy Leigh DeMoss
A Place of Quiet Rest

What about you? Is your time alone with the Lord the most treasured part of each day?

I spend time with the Lord, yes, but is it the most treasured, the most well guarded, part of my day? Right now I wish I could answer, "Yes," truthfully. The truth remains, when life gets busy, when the unexpected happens, I often find myself doing the "just enough to not feel too guilty" routine. I pray as I run out the door, "Lord, I had to leave by six this morning and You know I just did not have time. Oh, I love You Lord." And that is that. My day is busy, most likely stressful, but I rarely take ten to just be still and know that He is God. To raise my voice in praise. I complain, I gripe, I exclaim in frustration, but I do not often thank and praise. When those hectic days draw to a close and I lay in bed I sigh, "I wish I had stopped to spend time with You this morning Lord. I wish I had gotten up a little early so I could dedicate this day to You. Lord, I tried to do my best, but I'm not proud of what my best was. I needed Your help, but I was foolish and did not stop to pray. Lord, I'm sorry."

And yet, the next time, do I really guard that time any better? I have been thinking over the past month and I see that I have not. I cannot promise to change overnight, or that the next time I will get up earlier. But I mean to try. I want to be more like Jesus. I want to have more to give, because how can I give what I do not have? I need God's grace, love, and kindness if I am to give those things to others. I must seek His wisdom and strength if I am to encourage and to advise. With this in mind my motto for this coming week is going to be, "prayer is the reaction before action." Basically, before I do anything I want to pray. I want my first reaction to any question or doubt about a decision to be prayer. And so, another week of striving to live for the Lord begins. This time, not just with good intentions, but also with prayer.

What has God been speaking to your heart lately? I would love to hear from you. Please take a moment to comment about God's faithfulness in leading you ever nearer to His heart.

God is Forever Faithful

Sometimes we get to what seems to be nearing the end of a road, and we start thinking about the crossroad we will be coming to, mentally looking in all ways and wondering which way we will go. All roads look the same. Unknown, and the high hills that the paths climb block the future from our view. "God, what now?" We weight our options, we think, we seek, we pray...still nothing. "So, God, now what? I can't just stand still and do nothing, but none of the options look right." And then right when you feel like you have gone as far as you possibly can, He answers. Many times in unexpected ways. Now all your worry over what you would do is a source of shame to you. You should have trusted. Where was your faith?

I have been at what looked to be the nearing ending of a path recently. I sought out God. I did my best to trust, I knew He would be faithful, but once in a while a doubt would sneak in. I would brushed it away like a pesky fly. "God, I don't know what you have for me, but I'm choosing to trust, even when I don't understand." I kept walking, intent on finishing faithfully on this path He has had me on. The pesky doubt tried to land in my heart, but I brushed it away again and again with what I knew to be the truth. God would be faithful. And He was!

Now as I look towards the future I rejoice that God was with me, and that He kept the doubt away with His Word. Many times I have faltered, but this time I can rejoice with no regrets because I was faithful in believing that He is always faithful. I thank Him everyday for keeping me close to His heart, and faithful, because I know myself too well. Alone I would have doubted, been scared, sat down and refused to walk forward, and then missed all that He had planned for me.

"You are my hiding place and my shield;
I hope in Your Word" (Psalm 119:114).

"You are my God, and I will praise You; You are my God and I will exalt You" (Psalm 118:28).

"I will lift up my eyes to the hills—
From whence comes my help?
My help comes from the LORD,
Who made heaven and earth.

He will not allow your foot to be moved;
He who keeps you will not slumber.
Behold, He who keeps Israel
Shall neither slumber nor sleep.

The LORD is your keeper;
The LORD is your shade at your right hand.
The sun shall not strike you by day,
Nor the moon by night.

The LORD shall preserve you from all evil;
He shall preserve your soul.
The LORD shall preserve your going out and your coming in
From this time forth, and even forevermore" (Psalm 121).

"I will sing of the mercies of the LORD forever;
With my mouth will I make known Your faithfulness to all generations" (Psalm 89:1).


You can walk in faith, because He will always be FAITHFUL!

Trials Can Be Blessings

"But smooth living invaribaly, eventually, makes for sloppy spirituality."
~ Beth Moore
Get Out of That Pit

When trials come I think that sometimes God is just pulling our hearts closer to His. He is calling our names, trying to get our attention. Our God is a jealous God (Exodus 20:5) and He wants nothing in our lives to consume us more than He does. We should look at hard times, not as punishment or as some message from God that He no longer loves or cares about us, but as a message from Him calling us to allow Him to walk with us, and be our strength when we have none.

If you are speaking about parenting, true love for one's child demands you to discipline them (Proverbs 13:24). God's love is the purest form of love, if He tells us that true love requires discipline, then you can be sure that as His children, He will chasten us from time to time, because He loves us. I am not saying He won't, but whether He does or not hard times will come. It is just a fact of life, and when those rough times come to us we will likely long for instantaneous deliverance but God may not grant it. He longs for us to be draw closer to Him, whatever it may take. Even if this means that we must struggle for a while to overcome.

If we were to always keep Him first, perhaps the trials would not last so long and would be fewer, or at least we would not mind because our hearts would be so full and overflowing with love for Him that nothing else would matter.

Complaining when hard times, temptations, come is a natural occurrence to many, but if we look deep enough we will discover that we were tempted because we were weak, we were weak, because life had been going smoothly and we begin to think we could do it ourselves, and in failing to put God first, we fell. We hated our self, we were tempted to be angry with God for not making us strong enough, we were ashamed, hurting, and in time, crying out to God for forgiveness and deliverance. We cried out to God. We drew closer to Him. Think about it. If weakness brings you closer to God, than trials can be a blessing.