Turn Your Hurt Into Hope

The Lord gets his best soldiers out of the highlands of affliction.  Charles Spurgeon

When life has been well spent; when there is a conscience without reproach; when there is faith in the Saviour; when there is a well-founded hope of heaven, there can be nothing that should disquiet us.  Albert Barnes

Last weekend we were at a show in Houston and a young woman came into our booth.  She walked into our booth and asked several questions.  If you believe that God sent the Holy Spirit to give us the words to say in circumstances, this was one of those instances. 

As we were talking, the subject of cancer came up.  She looked to be in her late twenties and she was a breast cancer survivor.  As soon as she told me that I told her “Oh you get a free candle.”  My sister was standing next to me so she immediately went to get a candle and bag it for this young woman.  I explained to her that I was a cancer survivor too and that we always give cancer survivors a free candle.  She immediately started crying.  I reached across the table and hugged her and told her it was ok. 

I am not squeamish when it comes to crying.  I think it is easier for women because we are so emotional, but maybe it is also because I have had a lot of practice.  One thing I have figured out is that every single one of us is or has been hurt.  The problem is most of us don’t identify that in another person.  It is easier to judge someone than it is to look for the hurt and offer hope. 

If every person on earth has been hurt at one time or another in their lifetime, we each can offer hope to another person.  Hurt starts with pain and if put in the right perspective, it can bring about hope.  To offer hope to another person we have to make ourselves vulnerable.  We don’t like being vulnerable.  It is against our worldly nature to make ourselves less than another person because we are taught from childhood to be proud and not admit to failure or weakness.  So what do we do?  We pretend.  We pretend that we don’t hurt and we cover it up and we don’t talk about it because others might think we are weak. 

There is Hope in Christ Jesus and each one of us has the ability and opportunity to offer that hope to another person.  Take your hurts and turn them into hope.  You will give another person a glimpse of hope for a better life away from this world.   

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, as I watched this young woman cry it brought You to mind.  You give me many opportunities daily to show others hope through experiences in my life.  Help me to be humble with others and not be afraid to step out in faith.  Fill me with the Holy Spirit so that I am not afraid to be vulnerable to someone else.  The ultimate goal is to show someone else You.  Thank you for the difficulties in my life that have taught me what hope means and for turning my hurt into hope.

Scripture: And who is he who will harm you if you become followers of what is good? But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you are blessed. “And do not be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled.” But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear; having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed. For it is better, if it is the will of God, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. 1 Peter 3:13-17

Your Identity

The major strategy of Satan is to distort the character of God and the truth of who we are. He can't change God and he can't do anything to change our identity and position in Christ. If, however, he can get us to believe a lie, we will live as though our identity in Christ isn't true.  Neil T. Anderson

Have you ever felt insecure?  I grew up a shy introvert.  I always felt like I never quite fit in with any crowd.  My insecurity was worse when it came to conversing in a group.  I thought if I said anything it would not come out right and everyone would make fun of me.  One of the biggest struggles I had was I hated to be embarrassed in front of other people. 

One of the interesting things about insecurity is that it can bring out our worst qualities.  My insecurity brought out my tendency to withdraw from others.  If I didn’t say anything then how could I be embarrassed by what I didn’t say?  The irony of this is that when I didn’t say anything it made others walk away from me.  It’s kind of like walking up to a stone statue and starting a conversation with it.  No feedback.  You’d be better off talking to the bird on the statues head.  Have you noticed that some people’s insecurity brings out anger?  When they feel they are losing control they get angry.  Then there are the ones who are insecure and become jealous of others. I could go on and on about insecurity.

I learned something over the years.  I was insecure because I didn’t really understand what it meant to belong to God and I didn’t fully understand what Jesus did on my behalf by dying on the cross.  If I build my identity on what the world thinks, I will be insecure for the rest of my life. How about if I build my identity on my looks or my spouse or the things I own? If I build my identity on anything but how God loves me, then I am doomed to a life of insecurity. 

When we let hurt, frustration and fear into our life, we will know insecurity.  It will surround us and take over every aspect of our life.  God wants more for us.  When we are secure in the knowledge that He loves us and places great value on His children, we will begin to understand what it means to be secure in the love of the Father.   

 

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I spent many years of my life being driven by insecurity.  Even to this day I still find myself falling back into those old patterns.  It is at those times that I need You most.  You are the One I trust in and only You can give me a true picture of what love means.  When I become insecure, please remind me of Your love and that if I place my trust in You, I don’t ever have to feel insecure again.   

    

Scripture: “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.  Matthew 5:14-16

The fear of man brings a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord shall be safe.  Proverbs 29:25

Pride, Fear & Anger

PRIDE: No one enjoys feeling weak, whether it is emotionally, spiritually or physically. There is something within the human spirit that wants to resist the thought of weakness. Many times this is nothing more than our human pride at work. Just as weakness carries a great potential for strength, pride carries an equally great potential for defeat.  Charles Stanley

FEAR: Fear of something is at the root of hate for others, and hate within will eventually destroy the hater.  George Washington Carver

ANGER: Anger and bitterness are two noticeable signs of being focused on self and not trusting God's sovereignty in your life. When you believe that God causes all things to work together for good to those who belong to Him and love Him, you can respond to trials with joy instead of anger or bitterness. John C. Broger

Have you ever waited to hear God speak to you?  Sometimes we sabotage our chance to hear God speak to us because we are focused on one or more of three things.  Pride, fear and anger are the top three human behaviors that get in the way of conversations with God.

Pride gets in our way of communicating with God and it closes off communication from the Father.  If I begin to think that I don’t need His help and that I can do it on my own, I have accepted pride as my savior and not God.  It is easy to fall into this sin.  We do a good job at work and someone praises us and we start patting ourselves on the back.  If God created me and gave me the talents I have, then shouldn’t I be praising Him instead of myself for a job well done? 

Then there is the whole fear thing.  This one gets me into more trouble than I care to admit.  Some of us are afraid to hear God speak because that would mean I might have to change some things in my life or give up things I really enjoy.  Too many times fear becomes our shield against others.  How can we admit to someone else that we failed? So instead of being honest with others because we fear rejection, we let fear in and it takes over.

I’ve noticed that we live in an angry world. All you have to do to see this in action is get on the freeway.  There are people cutting each other off, not letting other cars in front, yelling and shaking of fists at other drivers and even in some cases road rage where weapons are involved.  God can’t speak to us in our anger.  We block His way in when we let anger rule our lives.  It is impossible to be humble when we are angry.

When we incorporate any of these in our life we close God off. We literally shut off communication with Him.  How many times in our lives have we totally missed God’s blessing because of pride, fear or anger? 

It is not easy tackling any one of these.  Since I am guilty of all three, I have broken it down into three parts.  Tackle one at a time.  Examine your life and determine where one of these or all of them is interfering with God’s phone call.  It is very much like the phone being off the hook or a dropped call on your cell.  If you don’t clear the lines to hear His voice you will miss His call.  

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, sometimes I allow pride, fear and anger rule my life.  I get involved in worldly stuff and that makes it easier for me to push You out and let the sin of pride, fear or anger take hold.  Help me to discern when this is happening and to turn to You so that I will not be tempted to fall.  Anytime I let one of these take over I lose communication with You. I want to hear Your voice all the time and I can’t if I am lost in pride, anger or fear. 

Scripture: 

Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.  Proverbs 16:18

There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.  1 John 4:18

Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body.  “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.  Ephesians 4:25-27

Is God Your Parachute?

We regard God as an airman regards his parachute; it's there for emergencies but he hopes he'll never have to use it.  C.S. Lewis

Many years ago when I was in college I knew a guy who owned a plane and he loved to parachute out of it.  He had friends that he would take up in his plane and they would parachute into our college stadium at the beginning of football games.  They would control the parachute with ropes and handles so that they could land in formation on the field. 

I never quite understood his fascination with jumping out of a perfectly good plane.  I think that is probably because I don’t like heights or maybe it’s because I don’t like falls.  I climbed trees when I was a kid and I always enjoyed the climb up but never the trip down. 

My next thought was I wonder how the first guy who decided to use the first parachute felt when it was time to jump.  I can just imagine the thoughts that went through his head as he leaned over the side of the plane and looked at all that wide open space and the ground below.  “How do I know this sheet strapped to my back is going to open once I step out into that open space?”  “What happens if I didn’t fold it right and it doesn’t open properly?”  “How will I control where I land and the condition I will be in when I land?” 

When I started researching the parachute I found a lot of stuff labeled the first “successful” parachute jump.  If you have to emphasize successful in the story it’s probably not something I want to do because the opposite of that can’t be good.  There was also the guy who held the dubious honor of being the first recorded incident of someone dying in a parachute accident. Robert Cocking was an artist who was interested in science.  To make a long story short, he built a parachute that weighed 250 pounds. When he jumped the parachute turned inside out like an umbrella and you can guess the rest.  He should have stuck to art.

This quote by C.S. Lewis made me stop and think.  Do we treat God like we would our parachute?  Do we only call on Him when we are in trouble or during an emergency?  I have learned over the years to give it all to him.  I don’t give Him just the parts that I don’t think I can handle; I give it all to Him.  If I want to understand His incredible power, I need to give it all to Him and trust Him with the details.  

 

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I want You to be in charge of my life.  I don’t want You there just in the emergencies or storms of life.  I want You there all the time.  You know what is best for me and if I give you control of it all, You will guide me in the way I should go.  I praise and thank You for every blessing and challenge in my life.     

       

Scripture: In you, Lord my God, I put my trust. I trust in you; do not let me be put to shame, nor let my enemies triumph over me.  No one who hopes in you will ever be put to shame, but shame will come on those who are treacherous without cause.

Show me your ways, Lord, teach me your paths. Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.  Remember, Lord, your great mercy and love, for they are from of old. Do not remember the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to your love remember me, for you, Lord, are good.

Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he instructs sinners in his ways. He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way. All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful toward those who keep the demands of his covenant.  For the sake of your name, Lord, forgive my iniquity, though it is great.

Who, then, are those who fear the Lord? He will instruct them in the ways they should choose.  They will spend their days in prosperity, and their descendants will inherit the land. The Lord confides in those who fear him; he makes his covenant known to them. My eyes are ever on the Lord, for only he will release my feet from the snare.

Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted. Relieve the troubles of my heart  and free me from my anguish. Look on my affliction and my distress and take away all my sins. See how numerous are my enemies and how fiercely they hate me!

Guard my life and rescue me; do not let me be put to shame, for I take refuge in you.  May integrity and uprightness protect me, because my hope, Lord, is in you.  Psalm 25

Cuckoo In the Nest

Every Christian is either a missionary or an impostor. Charles Spurgeon

Impostor definition: a person who pretends to be someone else in order to deceive others, especially for fraudulent gain.

I found a website that gives meanings of various sayings.  I ran across the saying “cuckoo in the nest.”  Since I am the curious sort, I decided to read more about the cuckoo.

The cuckoo is kind of a lazy bird.  It lays its eggs in the nests of other birds.  God made some amazing things when he made birds.  The cuckoo will wait until the right moment, (I would say when the neighbors aren’t home), then she will break into another nest, kick one of the eggs out and then lay her own egg in its place.  The thing is she will sometimes visit up to 50 homes (i.e. nests) and lay 50 eggs. Another interesting thing is the cuckoo adapts its egg to look like the other eggs in the nest so that others will raise its young. 

So the cuckoo egg hatches before the others and proceeds to push some of the other eggs out of the nest.  The other odd thing is the cuckoo is about 3 times bigger than its foster parent. The cuckoo chick also mimics the call of the foster parent’s chicks, thereby camouflaging that it is an impostor.  So the cuckoo, using vocalization, tricks its foster parent into thinking this big buzzard in its nest is just like the others.  It needs this because otherwise the foster parents would be distracted by its unusually large size compared to its other offspring.

So what does this have to do with God.  Have you ever noticed that there are a lot of preachers and teachers of God’s Word out there who are not what they seem?  They look good on the outside and they say the things we want to hear, but some of them are just like the cuckoo.  Impostors.  If we aren’t careful we can be start thinking they are speaking truth.  We need to remember that Satan is the best impostor of all.  He can disguise himself in more ways than we can imagine and if we are not careful we will buy into the fact that he is a warbler like all the other warblers instead of a cuckoo.  The only way we are going to determine the real deal is to study God’s Word.  If anything someone tells you goes against God’s Word, you can bet it’s a cuckoo.  

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, help me to dig deeply into Your Word for truth.  There are so many impostors in our world.  Many are impersonating Christians and are in the business of bringing the downfall of others. Help me to discern the truth and to always use it as my measuring stick.  I praise You for showing me the truth through study and diligently seeking You. 

    

Scripture: Shepherd the Flock

The elders who are among you I exhort, I who am a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that will be revealed: Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock; and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away.

Submit to God, Resist the Devil

Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world. But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.  1 Peter 5:1-11

Security

Where does your security lie? Is God your refuge, your hiding place, your stronghold, your shepherd, your counselor, your friend, your redeemer, your saviour, your guide? If He is, you don't need to search any further for security.  Elisabeth Elliot

Where does your security lie?  When I thought about this question some of the things that came to mind were, my job, my home, family and friends, the security system on my house.  The problem with this kind of thinking is that it isn’t true.

One of the things I have figured out is that my job can fail.  I can lose it, it can be taken away from me, or I can make the decision to leave it.  If you look at it from that perspective, there is not much security there.

How about your home?  I can lose it due to mismanagement of funds (not making the mortgage payment), it can burn down due to faulty wiring, someone setting fire to it or leaving something cooking on the stove can make it go up in flames.

Then there are family and friends.  These can be lost due to mismanagement of relationships, differing values and beliefs or plain old neglect.

What about my security system on my home?  If I forget to turn it on there is no security there, or how about if a mouse gets in and decides to chew the wires and short circuits the system. 

When we place our trust in worldly security it will fail.  Why does this happen?  Because we are human and the world is filled with fallible things. When we learn that there is no better security than that which is found in God we have found our resting place.  He is the only security that will never fail us.  If we place our trust and faith in Him, He is the only security we will ever need. 

I love this quote by Elisabeth Elliot. “Take the word of the Lord in your darkness. If He died to let us live in his company, is He likely to abandon us just because things look dark?”  That’s the security I want.  If things in your world seem hopeless, rest in Him.

Prayer for the Day: Father, You are my security.  In You I can place my trust and You will never fail me nor forsake me.  Help me to remember that the things of this world are fleeting and not to place my hope in them.  My hope is in You Father and I praise You for your strength and presence when all else fails. 

   

Scripture: For the word of the Lord is right, and all His work is done in truth.  He loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.  Psalm 33:4-5

Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, on those who hope in His mercy, to deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine.

Our soul waits for the Lord; He is our help and our shield.  For our heart shall rejoice in Him, because we have trusted in His holy name. Let Your mercy, O Lord, be upon us, just as we hope in You.  Psalm 33:18-22

Holehearted or Wholehearted

Can Jesus Christ see the agony of His soul in us? He can't unless we are so closely identified with Him that we have His view concerning the people for whom we pray. May we learn to intercede so wholeheartedly that Jesus Christ will be completely and overwhelmingly satisfied with us as intercessors.  Oswald Chambers

Are you holehearted or wholehearted?  For many years I was holehearted and there are still times when I revert back to being holehearted.  Holehearted means we allow shame, and fear to run our life.  This means there is a hole in the very heart that keeps our body running.  To many times I think we let the world determine how our heart works.  It is all based on what we feel our worth is to others.

There are times when I have based my worth on what someone else thinks of me.  What I have noticed is that when I base my worth on what someone else thinks, shame and fear are not far behind. In fact, shame is made up of fear.  We fear that someone will not like us if they know the truth about us. How will I ever live up to the expectation of the other person? 

How can we learn how to be wholehearted?  We have to cultivate courage, compassion and connection.  In Brene Brown’s book called “The Gifts of Imperfection” she talks about these three things.  For a person to be wholehearted they need courage to stand up and be vulnerable.  Have you noticed how many of us hate being vulnerable?  Who wants to be vulnerable when we often know there will be someone out there who will hurt us in or during our most vulnerable moments?  It is a scary thing to become vulnerable to others.  When we are at our weakest there is often someone who is struggling with being wholehearted and steps on your vulnerable self. 

Several years ago I was writing this devotional and one of the individuals who was reading them contacted me by email.  She told me in her email that I was not living according to God’s Word and that she couldn’t and didn’t want to receive any more devotionals until I was right in God’s eyes so she asked me to remove her from my email list. 

I was devastated. My unworthiness was showcased.  I beat myself up for days afterwards because doubt set in and I thought; you know she could be right.  I am not a theologian and have not formally studied in a college about the Bible, so how do I think I can qualify to tell others about who God is. The thing I forgot was that the last time I checked; God loves me as a sinner.  He sent His only Son to die on a cross for me. The other thing I thought was “is this person who is telling me she can’t read my devotionals because of my “imperfection”; “perfect”? 

   

There have been times over the past few years that I have considered not writing the devotional anymore.  Insecurity and worthlessness overtake me during those times, but when I start feeling that way I start praying and turn to God.  I usually will call or email a friend who loves me unconditionally, knows I am not perfect and will ask the tough questions and be honest with me.  If we can’t be vulnerable with others we will never move toward compassion and connection.  In order for me to become wholehearted I need to understand that God created me and loves me.  I need to look at myself through the eyes of Jesus because only then will I be transformed and understand my true worth.

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, there are times when I get so discouraged in trying to share Your message.  I don’t always do a great job at it, but You know and understand my thoughts and concerns.  Thank You for lifting me up when discouragement overtakes me.  I also praise You for bringing people into my life who help me to understand that I am worthy and give me encouragement to continue what I believe You call me to do.  

Scripture:  For Sing to the Lord, all the earth; proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day. Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples. 1 Chronicles 16:23-24

Purpose of the Mystery

To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to make all see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden in God who created all things through Jesus Christ; to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places, according to the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through faith in Him. Therefore I ask that you do not lose heart at my tribulations for you, which is your glory.

Appreciation of the Mystery

For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height—to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. Ephesians 3:8-21

What’s Next?    

The branch of the vine does not worry, and toil, and rush here to seek for sunshine, and there to find rain. No; it rests in union and communion with the vine; and at the right time, and in the right way, is the right fruit found on it. Let us so abide in the Lord Jesus. Hudson Taylor

Worry is the sin of distrusting the promise and providence of God, and yet it is a sin that Christians commit perhaps more frequently than any other.  John MacArthur

Do you ever worry about stuff?  Do you ever look at your life and ask yourself what’s next?  Why do we spend so much time in our lives worrying about what’s coming next?  It’s not like we have any control of any of it in the first place. 

The older I get the more I see how much time I have spent in this life worrying about things that never happened. It’s like borrowing trouble that never comes. 

I think we should change our way of thinking.  Instead of asking what’s next we should be saying God I’m ready for whatever happens.  I’m ready for whatever comes my way because I know You are there with me.  You aren’t going to give me more than I can handle. 

I think many times we are so busy worrying about what might happen that we miss God speaking to us in the everyday things that happen in our lives.  God tells us to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all things will be added to you. One of my biggest struggles in life is not seeking Him first.  One of the best examples of trusting God is the birds of the air.  They don’t sew or reap nor do they gather and store provisions into barns.  God feeds them.  How much more does He care for us?  Are we not children of God? 

I love that the Bible is full of humor if you search for it. In Matthew 6:27 he says “Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?  I looked up what the measurement of a cubit is.  It is about 18 inches or 21 inches for a long cubit.  All of our worrying about what’s next will not make us grow taller.  God is saying stop worrying and trust Me.  I will take care of you as I do the lilies of the field and the birds of the air.

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I am guilty of the sin of worry.  When I worry I am basically saying that I don’t trust You for my needs.  I have learned that the more stuff I have, the more things I can find to worry about.  There are the finances to pay for the stuff, the money required to repair the stuff and the room to store the stuff that I worry about.  Help me to lighten my worry load.  If I get rid of a bunch of stuff there will be more room for time with You and I won’t worry about “what’s next”. 

Scripture:  Do Not Worry

“Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?

 “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

“Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.  Matthew 6:25-34

Soul Vacation

Happy the soul that has been awed by a view of God's majesty.  A.W. Pink

Blessed are the single-hearted, for they shall enjoy much peace... If you refuse to be hurried and pressed, if you stay your soul on God, nothing can keep you from that clearness of spirit which is life and peace. In that stillness you know what His will is.  Amy Carmichael

Do you ever take soul vacations?  How many times do you stop in the midst of your busy life and take a rest from the worries, trials and just plain busyness of life? 

We are all busy.  Sometimes we take on so much stuff that we forget about God and the peace and rest we can find in His presence.  If we ever took the time to slow down long enough to realize how many things we do in life that have no bearing on eternity, would we stop and take a soul vacation? 

 

Here is my definition of a soul vacation.  To take time off from our overly busy life to dwell with God.   To listen for His voice and to meditate on His Word.  To talk to Him when we are anxious, afraid or just plain tired.  Quiet time spent with the One who created us. 

We all need soul vacations.  God stopped to rest on the seventh day and when Jesus was tempted by the devil for 40 days and 40 nights God sent angels to minister to Him.  Can you imagine being human like we are and fasting for 40 days and 40 nights and having the devil tempting you at every turn?  The devil offered Jesus the kingdoms of the world and asked him to turn stone into bread so that Jesus could eat.  I am afraid I would have caved to the devils demands.  One of the most important statements in this is that "God sent angels to minister to Him".  What a comfort to know that God will do that for us too.

If I want to stand strong for God it is necessary for me to take soul vacations.  I will not be able to fight Satan off if I don’t rest in the arms of my Heavenly Father.  Schedule time each week to take a soul vacation.  It doesn’t matter whether it is 10 minutes, 2 days or 1 minute each day.  Make time for a soul vacation and God will be there.   

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I want to make soul vacations a part of my life every day.  You promise to give me rest when I seek You and I want that more than anything the world offers.  I pray for your presence and strength in the midst of my soul vacation, so that I may remain strong against Satan and the temptations of this world. 

Scripture: Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them, were finished. And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.  Genesis 2:1-3

He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.  Psalm 23:2-4

All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him. Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  Matthew 11:27-29

Back On My Feet Again

Getting on my knees puts me back on my feet again.  Jonny Lang

I find it interesting that in Jesus’ time on earth, the majority of that time was spent either on His knees or with people no one else had time for.  In Jesus’ darkest hour he spent time with God.  Jesus knew He would be betrayed and would give His life for us, but He prayed anyway. Matthew 26:39  He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.”

When we are at our weakest we should be on our knees.  When troubles come our way there is no better place to be than on our knees.  When Jesus was hurting the most, He didn’t turn to His disciples for comfort.  He turned to our heavenly Father.  The One who can get us back up on our feet again.  Jesus even asked some of his disciples to stay and watch with Him.  When He came back He found them sleeping.

Too many times I start thinking I am not worthy of going to God and asking Him for anything.  I am a sinner and why would He want to hear from a lowly sinner?  The thing is I’m not worthy and that is exactly why I need to go to Him.  If there was ever a time that I needed to go to Him on my knees, is when I am at my worst. 

God redeems us and offers us relief from what the world deals out to us on a daily basis.  I need to be on my knees with the Father so that I can get back up on my feet again and move forward.  Keep Your eye on the prize and spend time on your knees.   

Prayer for the Day: Jesus, I would like to think that if I had spent time with You, I would have been able to stay awake while You were on Your knees with the Father.  The sad reality is, I don’t think I would have been any better than the disciples; sleeping when You needed me most.  Help me to remember that You are an amazing Father who comes to us in our time of need, but I must first get on my knees and remember that I am not worthy and deserving of His grace and mercy, but He gives it anyway.   

    

Scripture:  The Prayer in the Garden

Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to the disciples, “Sit here while I go and pray over there.” And He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and He began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed. Then He said to them, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with Me.”

He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.”

Then He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “What! Could you not watch with Me one hour?  Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

Again, a second time, He went away and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if this cup cannot pass away from Me unless I drink it, Your will be done.” And He came and found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy.

So He left them, went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words. Then He came to His disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going. See, My betrayer is at hand.”  Matthew 26:36-46 

 

Fireflies

Men come and go; leaders, teachers, thinkers speak and work for a season, and then fall silent. He abides. They die, but He lives. They are lights kindled, and, therefore, sooner or later quenched; but He is the true light from which they draw all their brightness, and He shines for evermore. Alexander MacLaren

When I was young we lived the country and there was always things going on outside.  One of my favorite things was to catch fireflies.  They fascinated me.  You would see them come out at dusk and their lights would blink on and off.  It always amazed me that this tiny beetle could produce light. 

You guessed it.  I looked up how they produce light.  They take in oxygen and a special cell in their body mixes the oxygen with a chemical in their body called luciferin.  This produces the light they give off with almost no heat.   The flashing patterns are unique to each species.  Sometimes they use the light to attract a mate and other times they use it as a defense mechanism to warn off prey.  I am not sure how scientists figured out this part, but fireflies don’t taste good so other prey normally don’t eat them.  Scientists believe that some fireflies never eat.  Maybe that is because they have such a short life span. 

We are called to be a light to a fallen world.  Just as the firefly gives off light, we are to give off continuous light.  We can be just like the firefly too, in that we sometimes give off intermittent light.  When we sin our light goes out.  When we live in truth our light shines. Our life span on this earth is extremely short.  How will you show others God’s light?

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, there are times in my life when my light has been snuffed out.  I didn’t reflect Your light and others suffered for it.  When I live in truth I move into the light and that light is a reflection of You.  I pray that you will make my light burn brightly for You. 

Scripture: For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.”  John 3:20-21