God’s Good Gifts

January 15, 2012 in devotional 1

Bible Study.  What feelings do these two words evoke?  Fear, apprehension, indifference, excitement?  Have you ever been given an opportunity to be involved?  What could be holding you back today?  Bad past experiences, no room in the schedule, no particular interest? No matter where you are in the spectrum of emotion or circumstances, if I may be bold enough to challenge you, you can’t afford NOT to attend.  Doesn’t matter where, or when, or how, His word is life.

Literally.

If a friend had a medical issue that needed attending to, and he/she was refusing treatment, you would not be so quick as to let time slip without prompting, if not urgent prompting, right?

What about heart treatment?  What about spiritual surgery?  What about eternal security?

I, for one, CAN. NOT. wait for this next study He has on tap for myself and a few friends.  The book of James!  One of my favorites!  Because it’s an easy read? Ah, no.  Because it challenges the socks off of me.  It forces me to look at my “ugly”.  It dredges up the mud in my heart so I can examine it, bring it from my dark recesses into His light.  I will do this knowing and wanting Him to show me, clean me, cleanse me, make me new!  I get an awesome hot shower  with lots of steam!  Sound good?

As with so many things the Lord brings my way, He leaves trails of reminders, a magnetic post-it, if you will.  Picked up a Max Lucado book and this is what I read.

James 1:17 – Every good action and every perfect gift is from God.

Ever feel like you have nothing?  Just look at the gifts God has given you:

He has sent His angels to care for you, His Holy Spirit to dwell in you, his church to encourage you, and His word to guide you…

Anytime you speak, He listens; make a request and He responds.

He will never let you be tempted too much, or stumble too far.

Let a tear appear on your cheek, and He is there to wipe it.

Let a love sonnet appear on your lips, and He is there to hear it.

As much as you want to see Him, He wants to see you more…

You have been chosen by Christ.  He has claimed you as His beloved.

Such a great reminder!  I simply can’t wait to dig in!  Don’t be afraid. Don’t be indifferent.  Do it.  Click that browser and search with a passion.  I figure, if we can spend time being nosy about what’s going on in our friends lives’ on-line, why not search with an even greater passion for what’s going on in learning more about our God, Our Creator, Our Father, Our Redeemer, and Our Friend!  We can’t afford not to!  Our lives, our family, our community are waiting for us to live out our God-given purposes.  It happens by learning and falling in love with the One who crafted our purposes in the first place.

Do it. Share it. Live it.

Just leave it be.

January 5, 2012 in devotional 0

Had a thought while running today…

Colder weather leaves the skin a bit dry.  In the case today, my upper lip was in bad need of some chapstick.  Without any nearby, human instincts takes over.  In fact, the next thought was of the words I spoke to my daughter just a few hours prior,

Do not lick your lips.  Leave them be!

We KNOW that it will make this worse, but we do it anyway.  Perhaps temporary relief, even if for a moment.

Got me to thinkin…

Where else in my life do these words apply?

Might as well just have poked myself smack tab in the middle of my forehead.

Ouch.

I’ve been battling lately.  It’s a battle that’s gone to war several times in my life.  It takes on two extremes in my life.  It’s either all I can think about, or something I don’t think about at all.  Either way, not so good.

Bottom line… just leave it be.

You see, the more I think about it, the more I can’t NOT not think about it.  It infiltrates, it marinates, it consumes, it can control if not fought against.  ”It” becomes something it was never meant to be… in my mind.  Basically, these words spewed from my mouth towards my children, yet were meant for me…

Is it really that big of a deal?

Often times not.  So.  Get busy.  Busy doing the next thing.  Busy filling my thoughts with words from Him or of Him through others.  Busy serving others. Busy craving more of Him, filling with Him, not items of this world.  They will never satisfy.  I taunt myself with words that they will, but, they won’t. Real truth doesn’t change, ever.

It changes my perspective.  It changes my life.  One decision at a time.  Thoughts of condemnation turn to thoughts of truth. Thoughts of life.

What are you filling your mind, soul, & body with today?

May I humbly suggest this fabulous book, by speaker and author Lysa TerKeurst, called Made to Crave.  Also, Lysa is hosting a free webcast this coming Monday, Jan. 9th at 8pm!  Put it on your calendar, you don’t want to miss!  It is THAT good.

Blessings!

Our Goal

December 30, 2011 in devotional 0

All I have is yours, and all you have is mine.  And my glory is shown through them.  John 17:10

God is in the business of changing the face of the world.

Let me be very clear.  This change is his job, not ours.  Ou goal is not to make our faces radiant.  Not even Jesus did that.  Matthew says, “Jesus’ appearance was changed” not “Jesus changed his appearance.”  Moses didn’t even know his face was shining (Exodus 34:29).  Our goal is not to conjure up some fake, frozen expression.  Our goal is simply to stand before God with a prepared and willing heart and then let God do his work.

And he does.  He wipes away the tears.  He mops away the perspiration.  He softens our furrowed brows.  He touches our cheeks.  He changes our faces as we worship.

Just Like Jesus - Max Lucado

Every Body Matters

December 23, 2011 in book review 1

I just finished reading this book, and I must say… it’s encouraged and inspired me in the area of physical wellness more than anything has in quite awhile.  God provided this in such a timely manner.  I battle, especially in the dreariness of winter months.  These words have shined God’s light straight to the heart of the matter with His truth.  I’m very thankful for Gary Thomas’ obedience in writing.  It has truly warmed my heart and filled my mind, spurring me on in the race I am running – to finish, and to finish well.

The goal in this book is to cultivate stronger, well-nourished bodies that are primed to become, in the words of the apostle Paul, “instruments for special purposes, made holy, useful to the Master and prepared to do any good work.”

He encourages the reader to look at your body as an instrument rather than an ornament, and in doing so, you’ll find new and compelling motivation to embrace the kind of active lifestyle that fortifies your soul.

I appreciate Thomas’ attack on sin.  He writes,

Because we have positional holiness in the finished work of Jesus Christ, it’s tempting to ignore the call to pursue an experiential holiness, which Paul clearly calls us to do in 1 Timothy 6:11

The fact is, some sins are extremely difficult to get rid of, and on some level, we will be tempted by certain personally familiar sins until the day we die.  We can rise above being enticed by them.  We can manage them and gain mastery over them, but we may still be occasionally tripped up by them.  How often we are tripped up, however, often depends on our vigilance and effort in fighting back.

Many people give up because they have been lied to.  They think they can be cured, rise above the temptation, and never face it (or fall into it) again.  Paul wouldn’t call us to endurance if God delivered us once and for all whenever we asked him to.

In the face of this imperfect reality, rather than permitting us to just give up, the ancients and Scripture urge Christians to take an active view of pursuing holiness.  We can and even must cooperate in fighting sin.

John Baillie’s, a Scottish theologian, urges us to attack sin.  He models this in his prayer:

I remember with bitterness the duties I have shirked.

I remember with sorrow the hard words I have spoken.

I remember with shame the unworthy thoughts I have harboured.

Use these memories, O God, to save me, and then for ever blot them out.

I cherish the reminder that sin, it its stark-naked reality, essentially calls God a liar: “Your way isn’t the best way.  You want to deny me something that is good.  You’re misleading me as to how I should live.”  The reason we need to look at our rebellion in all its ugliness is so that our thinking can be changed.  Paul says we are transformed by the renewing of our minds (Romans 12:2)

What this means is that every point of sin is a point of disagreement with God.  And when we disagree with God, guess who is in the wrong?  When we sin, we’re telling God, explicitly or implicitly, “You say to live this way, but I think it’s better to live that way.”

Go back to that moment of temptation and ask yourself, When, exactly, did I begin to call God a liar?  Do you see how you were deceived?  Thinking through your failings will remind you just how much of a liar Satan and our own desires can be.

Good stuff ey?  This and countless information and statistics about the researched benefits of an active lifestyle can be found between the front and back cover.  It truly has refreshed an refueled me for those hard days. I have been refocused as to why I stay active.  I run to be prepared to go any good work.  I want to be prepared to be useful to my Lord.  I’ve been given this day, this one life.  May I continue to run the race well for you Lord, it’s but a short journey here, I want to give it my all.  Until that day, my goal is to run the race as to win the prize – a eternal lifetime spent in your presence.  May my ears hear – Well done, my good and faithful servant.  Thank you for these words Lord!

She’s published!

December 14, 2011 in book review 2

She did it!  Gotta love the tenacity of my dear friend Rachel.  She felt a calling, and she obeyed.

Here’s what she has to say:

If there was a time of the year that we should be most joyful, it is Christmas! But for many, Christmas is a reminder of better days. Days before an accident…before a diagnosis…before a death in a close-knit family.

There are no words to express the ache I feel for those experiencing sorrow during this time. But the Word of God contains the words- and the power- to heal. Gifts from our True Love- our Heavenly Father- are available each and every day.

So feel free to jump on over to her site, or simply click on this link to read more and order through Amazon.

It’s real.  It’s truth.  It’ll bless you.

And don’t forget to give drop her a note of encouragement while you’re at it!  Writers always enjoy hearing how their inspired words have come to settle on your hearts and make an impact.  It’s an encouragement for those moments she might think a bit of insanity hit her in the middle of a day and it’s too late to turn back now.  Thanks a ton!

Have a very Merry Christmas!

 

Grace for the Moment

December 12, 2011 in devotional 0

Every once in a awhile, I love to pull out a devotional that grabs my attention for a minute of the day.  This is one of my favorites.  Here’s today’s entry:

To all who did accept him and believe in him he gave the right to become children of God.  John 1:12

While we lived in Rio de Janeiro, we met several American families who came to Brazil to adopt children.  They would spend days, sometimes weeks, immersed in a different language and a strange culture.  They fought the red tape and paid the large fees, all with the hopes of taking a child [home} to the United States...

Hasn't God done the same for us?  He entered our culture, battled the resistance, and paid the unspeakable price which adoption required.  Legally we are his.  He owns us.  We have every legal privilege accorded to [his] child.  We are just waiting for him to return.  We are, as Paul said, “waiting for God to finish making us his own children” (Romans 8:23)

When Christ Comes, by Max Lucado

 

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