Peaceful Choices (Discernment Series #12)

If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. James 1:5

What a beautiful promise this verse is for us. Let’s come to God for the wisdom we lack and seek His ways.

In today’s blog, I want to follow wisdom as we dig deeper into the fruit of the Spirit (introduced in last week). We will be honing in on one fruit in particular and what part it plays in our discernment process, and that is the fruit of peace.

1. Jesus’ last words on the cross were, “I commit my spirit into your hands.” In other words, He was asking God to take His precious life now that everything had been accomplished.

That’s a pretty peaceful place to be.

I long to imitate Jesus’ words, but instead of waiting to say them at my time of death, I desire to speak this beautiful phrase to God, right now. I want Him to use my life and let it be all that He wants it to be. I commit my spirit into His hands in dying to myself while living.

A surrendered life brings peace.

2. Feeling safe is a condition that we think will bring us peace, but does it really?

Certain circumstances happen in which we don’t feel safe. Examples for me would include: driving to unfamiliar places, doing new things, speaking uncomfortable truths, giving to others on an empty tank (after a prompting from God) and not knowing if I can handle unappreciation on their part.

Is peace supposed to always be our guide in knowing that something is right when we feel it or wrong if we don’t?

Is it possible that discerning between two opposing choices can be done without bias?

“I think I’ll go with door #1 because it feels safe or peaceful to me.”

Yet, what defines ‘safe’ to God?

Do we make decisions based on our comfort and safety or are we willing to go forward in courage knowing that God’s wisdom and love will carry us through?

Ponder each of the above questions thoroughly.

3. God will lead us, at times, to go through a delay in giving us the wisdom (discernment) we lack and we must choose peace in the waiting in order to truly carry out His ways.

We may say, “I don’t have peace in making this decision.” And sometimes, the peace we seek will come, yet not defined as comfortable or convenient. However, we claim a quiet calm when we know (on a deeper level) that God helps us do what is right even in our most insecure moments.

After all the praying we do and the processing of it all, we still may make a wrong decision! Does that mean all of life will crumble if we get it wrong from time to time? What will happen to us? Will we be struck by lightning?

God is bigger than my incompetency. He is bigger than my mess ups. I am relieved and thankful for that. He knows my heart. He knows your heart. We WANT to follow His ways.

In my mind, I simply don’t see God as a giant, holding a zapper, ready to zap me when things go wrong because of a failed decision. He knows I want to do what is right. He can make good come from my bad choices, my incompleteness and failings.

And…we all can use our mistakes to learn better ways for the next time. We can have peace in simply knowing God will take care of the situation. We can let go of anxiety, stress and worry.

We can even let go of other people’s stupid mistakes and make the atmosphere peaceful (and generous) in our love for them (because we know how it feels to err). THIS makes our lives beautiful. It also sets the tone for others to make better choices next time. Our ‘I told you so’s’ or rages and rants over people’s bad choices only create stubborn, rebellious and prideful hearts who will not learn from their mistakes.

4. When peace is far from you, first ask your heart, “Am I believing a lie (through fear)?” And then ask, “Am I at peace, sometimes, simply because I’m comfortable?”

5. How hard is it to seek peace in times when you must start, continue or end a necessary conflict? What about when you are in the middle of a storm? Where is God? He is absolutely with you and when you call out to Him, He will come to aid you. A peace beyond understanding (Phil. 4:7) will guard you, but you must have eyes to see and ears to hear His kind of peace that may not feel very peaceful. Sit with Him and let Him supernaturally invade your emotions, your mind and heart. He wants to be present in your life. God may still ask hard things of you (that feel unsafe), but to stay in His peace, go forward in His tasks and let Him take care of the rest.

Here are things I’ve added to the Discernment Wheel from last week.

Discernment is:

A desire to do the right thing even when antagonized (to not have regrets)
Following the Holy Spirit and His fruit
Not grieving or quenching the Holy Spirit
Not about one way of doing things; His ways can change in a heartbeat
Flexible
Not necessarily a magical experience
Not a moment to enjoy but to work
Emptying ourselves to be filled with God’s wisdom

Lord, thank you….thank you that even in turmoil and tough decisions, we can find peace in you, an inner calmness that we cannot quite wrap our brains around. Your peace is such a comfort. Growing in letting go of everything having to be perfect in and around me is also a comfort. Father, I commit my spirit to you for always. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Out of Sight, Out of Mind (Discernment Series #10)

My son, do not let wisdom and understanding out of your sight, preserve sound judgment and discretion. Proverbs 3:21

Discretion is simply another word for discernment. We have been learning these lessons in order to develop a habit of making good and wise choices, and we are finding out how important it is to go to God for help.

A few weeks ago, I spoke about the wisdom of freezing in place to hear God’s voice leading us when He says, “I need you here!

In Luke 18:31, Jesus became urgent as He took the 12 disciples aside and told them what they were about to do. He even explained where and why. They didn’t understand any of it, but they went.

His sudden request to them gives us a great example of what the Lord, sometimes, does in our lives today. He says, “Let’s go!” We may not mentally understand His reasoning, but wisdom tells us to go to a deeper place of understanding and follow Him anyway, with all our hearts.

Our listening, discerning ears hear His voice. We freeze in place and shift our direction to obey His call. We do not let wisdom and understanding out of our sight. Sound judgment is worth clinging to. Discretion is fantastically beneficial for us to preserve in our hearts for a lifetime.

How might the discernment lessons we’ve learned so far help us to never let God’s wise ways leave our sight? Let’s bring it home by processing through a situation that may, very well, happen to you (in some form or another).

Imagine a married couple who love the Lord and one of them is seeking discernment about a problem in the social arena of their relationship. This person could be either the wife or husband, but for sake of time, I’m going to address the person as him).

As you listen to your friend’s story, you may compassionately relate and admit to yourself how easy it is when we’re in trouble to let wisdom and understanding disappear from our sight and mind. Our trials make it easy to let our minds dwell on blame and negative emotions, instead of preserving sound judgment and discretion.

Probably, the first temptation for this man may be to bad mouth and gossip about his wife, softly complaining, whether to friends, family or just internally. But this will not bring a solution, only more misery. He would be wise to strive for faithfulness and loyalty in marriage, even in times like these. (Note: Seeking help from a trusted friend, like you, or a counselor is not gossip!)

Your friend may explain that the issue has been repeatedly confronted to no avail, so now he is moved to passively listen to his chatty wife and never confront the issue again, which, if you think about it, wouldn’t be helpful in the long run. Her rude and inconsiderate desire to be center of attention in front of their peers truly is a problem in his mind!

What if you suggested to your friend that he freeze in place and listen for the Holy Spirit’s direction?

Perhaps God would whisper to him, “Build up your wife with kind words of encouragement and then softly and lovingly confront her.”

The Spirit may direct him to pray that someone else might be able to better reach her.  “Lord, provide someone my wife will listen to, or give me the right words to say.”

What else might the Spirit speak if the issue still isn’t resolved?

…To come to some sort of peace in the uncomfortable and embarrassing situation and let go of bitterness and resentment? To realize that, once the truth is consistently spoken in love, that is the best he can do and God’s will has been heeded?

There is so much rest in seeking and following God’s ways. If the friend doesn’t find a place of healing, the only other choice is to remain miserable and keep fighting. But, that seems to lead to self-pity and ruin.

In the meantime, here is a good question for your friend, “Why is this issue affecting you so much? Why are you so miserable? Is it fear of what other people think about you or your mate?“

Here are a few ways to address fear when it is keeping your friend from carrying out a decision of peace:

Love casts out fear – I John 4:18
God doesn’t give us a spirit of fear – II Tim 1:7

Your friend can learn to continue to love his mate and commit both of their reputations and approval of others to God. He can commit the social group and the group’s souls to God and include their own souls as well.

Consider all the lessons we’ve learned so far (on the Discernment Wheel) and how they would apply to this situation:

Is your friend able to overlook what other people think of him in his search for answers?
Is he willing to be misunderstood without needing to defend himself, yet pursuing and rightfully defending God’s truth.
Is he keeping open eyes and ears to hear that he might be wrong in his views or approach of his wife?
Is there an awareness that the Holy Spirit will, at times, require hard things from him?
Is he offering up prayers to God in order to know when to let go and start walking the obedient road of suffering?
Is he showing humility and contentment in these circumstances and a willingness to see what God is providing even in these tough times?
Does your friend know that his decisions may be made in obedience, but they will never be perfect, and perhaps not end in great results?
Does he know that such discernment isn’t an absence of fear, isn’t the right to use fear to settle for less or to ask for less from God?
Is there an awareness that in right decisions there may still be hunger, weariness or inconvenience, and not always a feeling safety or popularity?
Is he allowing the Holy Spirit to direct his decisions or is HE attempting to direct the Holy Spirit?
Is he wrongfully going his own way in arrogance and pride and calling that discernment?
Is he praying for patience, decisiveness, trust, faith?

These are only a few of the comments we can use in conversation with our friends when they are unsure of what to do in the hard times of struggle. Of course, we show our support, listening ears and understanding. But if they want to process their situation to get to a better place, pray that God will lead you.

Now, let’s add to last week’s Discernment Wheel (in blue circles) to refresh our memories.

Discernment is:

Acknowledging God
Reducing physical and spiritual clutter (dragon scales)
Sometimes revealed during mundane and boring moments (instead of glamour)
Serious business

Father, your ways are wonderful. I ask for your help that we would never allow wisdom and understanding out of our sight. When you give us direction, help us to stop what we’re doing and follow you. In our circumstances and in those of our loved ones, pour out your blessing of discretion to our souls. When we feel defeated and hurt lead us to the peaceful place of surrender in all our decisions. We want to always be moving closer to you and bringing others with us. Purify our hearts. In Jesus name, Amen.

Distinguish! (Discernment Series #2)

Give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours? I Kings 3:9

Earlier in the chapter, God had told Solomon, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.” Solomon responded with a desire to have a discerning heart in his new role of King over Israel to distinguish between right and wrong. What a beautiful request of God!

Last Tuesday, I began a new blog, recording a class I taught in the summer. In last week’s blog post, I asked 3 questions about a discerning heart. Here are some of the comments:

What is discernment?

The obvious answers are: insight, wisdom, understanding and prudence (good judgment). But let’s go a little deeper.

Discernment is:
*The ability to overlook what other people think of us while carrying out a godly choice
*A willingness to be misunderstood without defensiveness (or thoughtless self-preservation)
*A pursuit of God’s truth and rightfully defending it (notice the difference between defensive and defend. The first is impulsive and self-serving; the latter is standing for truth.)
*Opening our eyes and ears to hear that we might be wrong about things we strongly believe in
*Knowing that the Holy Spirit will, at times, require hard things of and from us
*Knowing in prayer when to let go and start walking the obedient road of suffering
For example, Jesus begged for other options than to die on a cross. But, God’s response was silence, which affirmed only one option for His beloved Son. “Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, ‘My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.’” Luke 22:39
*Becoming humble and content in tough circumstances and willing to see what God has for us even in the tough times. Paul prayed for a thorn to be removed. He prayed multiple times. Again, God was silent.  “Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” II Cor. 12:8-9.

That’s all we’re going to cover for that question, for now. It’s a lot to think about!

What is discernment NOT?
*Perfection (We obsess over the opinion that every part of our decisions must always be exactly what they’re supposed to be, and everyone involved in those decisions will be in awe of us! No! We will sometimes muddle a situation, but God knows what He’s doing [in HIS perfection] with this weak and imperfect soul of ours and HE receives the glory)
*Great results (Every godly choice we make will end up with great outcomes and compliance…wrong!)
*An absence of fear (No! We will make many decisions that will cause us concern, but God gives us the courage to go keep going forward)
*Using FEAR to settle for or ask for less (Sometimes our flesh will point us to a wrong decision based on fear [not on God’s call], therefore we settle for less than His perfect will OR, we become so overwhelmed with fear that we fail to boldly discern God’s will; but He desires to do the impossible through us)
*An absence of hunger, weariness or convenience (There are times when we will make a right choice that will leave us without our usual comforts, therefore our decisions do not need to be based on having to be constantly soothed)
*Always safe, always popular (No! We may be stretched out of our comfort zones, OR we may be the ONLY ones going forward to do what is right)
*Us directing the Holy Spirit instead of the Holy Spirit directing us
*Simply going OUR OWN WAY in arrogance and pride

What unique qualities do you imagine a truly discerning person to have? Patience, humility, decisiveness, contentment, trust, faith…

The answers to these 3 questions may continue to grow throughout this study. Keep exploring!

Father, discernment includes so many things we’ve never thought of before. There is so much more about the deeper attitudes that need changing. Show us how doing what is right encompasses a work in us that will require constant awareness of your direction and presence. We fall to our knees to ask for a profound desire to pursue you in everything we do. Help us to distinguish between what is right and wrong. In Jesus name, Amen.

Fearless in Love

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. I John 4:18

Have you ever noticed that when we are afraid, fear can take over our whole person? We become its slave.

When I am truly frightened, my body fills itself with dread. I am weighted down, starting in my gut and spreading out to my shoulders, then to my head and so on.

Fear is an emotional response, but it is also physical.

I John 4:18 says that fear has to do with punishment, perhaps because some are afraid of what God will do when they sin. Yet, fear itself carries within it a self-made chastisement.

Fear can be a prison, holding us inside our own cell walls.

I met a woman long ago who told me how good she was as a wife, but that her marriage was awful. As I questioned and listened to her story, I found that her motive for everything good she did for him was fear. I wrapped my arms around her and prayed with her, but I could feel her trembling. I’ll never forget this. Everything she did was already, even in her own eyes, condemned.

If a person is driven to do a good deed out of fear of the consequences of not doing good or because their ‘kind deeds’ never feel good enough, it is not healthy and true service; it is slavery, and I’m sure carries with it, not only fear, but also resentment and misery. True service typically brings us joy (a normal response to the nice things we do for others).

I never saw the woman again, but I heard that the marriage ended. Certainly, the husband may have been a terrible man who treated her poorly enough to warrant her behavior. In her mind, her only option was to separate herself from the object of her fear. But did the separation actually take away her long-ingrained fear? Set aside, for now, that I sound uncaring, and simply go with me into the question.

Sometimes, our fears are deep-seated, and they evolve (and grow a life of their own) from things that happened to us long ago. As adults, we may place our fears on the shoulders of those we know and love. Sadly, the loved ones receive the blame for our past.

Granted, there are some godly reasons to have certain fears in our lives. As children, we are given smiles from good parents, pats on the back and maybe even rewards for choosing to do right. On the other hand, the choice of wrong-doing has its painful consequences: the iPhone is taken away, one’s friend cannot come over today, one has to do extra chores and so on. Hopefully, the fear of these things teaches us to rid ourselves of bad choices as we mature and to find out that our lives are much better when we go the right direction.

Eventually, we grow up and these good and right principles become a part of our character. We, now, choose the better path because we want to. Fear is no longer our motivator. When we serve, we do so voluntarily. We want to be kind out of love for each other, but also out of love for Christ. Spiritual maturity daily draws us closer to God and moves us towards wisdom and away from foolishness. God doesn’t want His children to cower in fear as we give our loving deeds in His name. He wants us to serve Him from a motivation of pure and self-sacrificing love.

There are still times in my life that I take a wayward path. I love God so much that I hate to break His heart. I fall on my face in fear (awe and wonder) of His Holiness. I’m not afraid of Him. In His continual grace and mercy, I desire with all that is in me to be in His presence. But, I fear missing out on His good path for me. I fear wounding His heart and knowing the bad consequences that follow my bad choices. These still point me, in a good way, to rise up, surrender my life to Him and learn His ways of love.

There is another good reason to have fear and that is when we have moments of true danger. Fear motivates us to run away and find safety (from harmful animals, from abuse and so on). Fear was placed there by God to do something about the situation we’re in.

Some people fear losing their jobs if they fail to be punctual and on task. Others fear the failing grades when they don’t study for a test. Fear can be a great motivator to become responsible in our choices.

However, most of our fears are not outside of us. They are formed from within, maybe even from things that happened to us in childhood that need to be addressed and perhaps forgiven. And to the internal distresses, God says all through His word, “Do not be afraid, I am with you.”

Is it possible that LOVE is the opposite of such fears as suggested in today’s verse? When I am afraid, my focus is on what might happened to ME. I am not thinking about how to love. I am thinking about wringing my hands in worry (as if that would help anything). When I am filled with love, I cannot be filled, at the same time, with fear.

There is no fear in the love God gives me, and He gives this love to me in abundance.

I John 4:18 says that perfect love (God’s love) drives out fear. This perfect love is most seen in Jesus’ death on a cross for love of the world. Perfect love steers me away from dread and thoughts of punishment.

Christ’s unbelievable, magnificent love is the love I want to grasp. I want my heart to become a passionate lover of His people. I want to learn to care more about them than the self-centered fears I tend to dwell on that try to swallow me whole and distract me from what is pure, holy and good. I want to be perfected in Christ’s perfect love.

When I become fully aware that I am filled with God’s love, and with His help, I direct this great love toward His people, fear may attempt to enter my mind and body, but after wrestling for a time and submitting to love, I realize, I am no longer enslaved by fear as I was before. Though, I will struggle always with fear in some form or fashion, I will take daily intentional steps into love to let God fight my fears away.

The Bible says, “For God has not given us a spirit of fearfulness, but one of power, love, and sound judgment.” II Tim. 1:7

My mind helps me to shift from paralyzing fear to generous love. Love gets my mind off things that make me afraid. Passionately serving others reminds me of my God who is sovereign over all things and looking out for the good of our lives.

Love comes from God. God IS love. But fear comes straight from hell. May I learn wisdom to run from the author of fear and into the arms of love Himself.

FEAR births a self-protective withholding of good from others. It leads to an enslavement of hording and greed. It is always looking for something bad to happen, and many times, these things come true simply from a narrowed view of life.

However, LOVE goes hand and hand with a growing sense of trust in the Father and an ever-increasing desire for compassionate deeds and selflessness.

Point me away from self and steer me towards the cross of Christ. That is love.

Such a life, either way, is contagious. We pass on to those around us what we believe most. If we live in fear, that is the heritage we will give our loved ones. If we live in love, it never dies, even after we’re gone.

So now, when the dread and fear start in my gut and try to work it’s way through me, I stop and redirect it to God. I worship Him in awe and wonder. I talk to Him about my concerns and leave them at His feet. I may have to do this several times, but I keep heading towards His calming presence.

Father, love and light of my life, thank you for continually raising me up above the darkness of fear. Help me to always hold onto your hand as you guide me through the tough and fearful trials I must go through. Keep my eyes on how you love me, and show me how to turn that around to give to others. In Jesus name, Amen.

Safe With God

The one whose walk is blameless is kept safe, but the one whose ways are perverse will fall into the pit. Prov. 28:18

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if any of us could say that we lived a blameless life and that our ways never strayed from the righteous path of God? Yet, sin is found from time to time in the best of us, and oh, how I still long to be kept safe next to my Father, God.

The key here is to define blameless. Some versions use other words: upright, honesty, integrity, or straight (referring to the right path). The blameless person is sincere in his desire to do what is right, as opposed to vacillating between his view of good and evil or pretending to be one thing, but inside, he is another.

If my ways are upright, I will intensely pursue the Holiness of God, Jesus and the Spirit. This doesn’t mean I have a sinless life, but that every day brings new maturity in the Lord and increased understanding in how to please Him.

Rom. 8:5-8 says, “Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God.”

Gal. 5:22-23 says, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

When we make the choice to follow righteousness, God helps us and prospers our lives. Physical security and relief may not always come in the ways our minds imagine. The Savior, sometimes revives, protects and hides us in or from our calamities by giving us what we hope and pray for (in tangible ways, called miracles!), and sometimes He breathes a deeper life into us by allowing our most profound fears to become reality. We are driven to our knees before Him and must walk through dark seasons, maybe even death itself. We are forced to let go of our most prized possessions that have a tight hold on us.

No matter what, Christ never fails us, when our eyes remain on Him. In the exuberant OR dreadful circumstances He allows, His main desire is to redeem us to Himself forever. We can trust His ways. The door through which He calls us to walk is always safe (not necessarily comfortable or convenient), but safe (as in good, trustworthy and promoting of His Kingdom). The other translations use words like delivered, rescued and saved. We may, in our lives, yet be injured, but nothing can hurt the deep well of our spirits. In all things, we can always give our souls the upright choice to thrive in the Lord. In such ways, our integrity most certainly always delivers us through His power and might.

Father, you never guarantee me all good and happy circumstances or outcomes, but you have promised salvation in the deepest places of my heart. My spirit is united with your spirit. In that sense, no matter what is going on around me, eventually my heart can find its way home. Thank you for guiding me to stay nestled close to you, my dear Father. Help me to never stray from your presence. In Jesus name, Amen.

Weeded Heart

The prudent see danger and take refuge, but the simple keep going and pay the penalty. Proverbs 27:12

A familiar story came to mind this week concerning God’s ‘testing’ of Abraham in which he was to offer Isaac (his own son) on an altar (Gen. 22). Many friends and family tell me they could never have obeyed such a command.

Actually, I don’t think the story was about Abraham binding Isaac’s hands and feet as an offering as much as it was about Abraham metaphorically holding out his own hands and feet to God, to ready himself for his own ‘death’ to self. That’s what it would have taken for Abraham to willingly comply, even to God. God never intended for Isaac to die. He only wanted to know that there was nothing between them, not even the beloved son Abraham had waited for, for so long. In the end, God provided a ram for Abraham to offer instead of his son.

When there is ANYTHING between God and me, THAT is a danger to my soul. A wise man stands still as his prized possessions are carefully weeded out by the Lord’s careful hand, possessions that could close his ears to God’s voice and his heart to obedience.

The ‘weeds’ (things to which one attaches one’s self too strongly) could be anyone in one’s family or church or anything that captures one’s attention away from the Father.

All summer, I’ve been pulling weeds on my one acre lot. The work has kept me busy. I’ve pruned and cut and trimmed. It’s been hard work, but satisfying to see the beauty of my accomplishments.

As I pull up whole root systems that take hours to conquer, my mind is drawn to how God must feel when the process of change in me is complicated and dreadfully deep. My soul doesn’t want to let go. My soul clings to what it thinks will provide happiness or safety. In reality, the Lord knows what will endanger and harm me more than I do.

Other weeds in my yard, I’ve noticed, are extremely easy to uproot. That reminds me of the hard work the Father has given to my heart’s negatives for several long years. These traits will always try to return, but at this point, God gives a little tug and they yield freely to His gentle hand.

Such a dynamic is astonishing and miraculous and stirs in me a desire to be a prudent woman.

How is the prudent wise and the ‘simple’ so foolish that they keep holding onto their possessions and walking into the same snares and traps of the enemy of God again and again?

Let’s review what we’ve learned so far in Prov. 27:

The fool or simple person boasts about tomorrow, praises himself, overreacts, gets insanely jealous, insincerely compliments but never openly confronts or lovingly ‘wounds’ his friends. The fool is too full of self to be hungry for honey (righteousness), he strays from home, doesn’t care to give or take sweet advice, forsakes his friends in times of need and dishonors his father.

There is danger in continuing a life of laziness, anger, neglect and, also, pride.

Why do the foolish keep going in this direction?

Maybe doing so is thrilling or maybe they are bored. They may need to numb the pain felt on the inside. They may think that anything else is better than the bad they know, even if the consequences are terrible.

But the prudent fight for the good life they can have in Christ. They surrender their desires that would cause them to crave danger.

One beautiful day, I was running in my old neighborhood with my face glancing at the houses I passed by. At one point, the next thing I knew, I had tripped over a jagged piece of sidewalk and fell flat on my face. Bleeding and sore, I picked myself back up and kept running. The next time around, my eyes were fixed on the sidewalk (at that spot), not wanting to go through that again. I learned from my mistake.

The prudent learn to see past their impulsive choices and consider the outcome. They don’t simply live for a moment of pleasure or temporary relief from pain.

The prudent wisely and honorably learn from their blunders and escape much trouble. The simple continue doing the same thing they’ve been doing (foolish or lazy) and continue to be conquered by painful experiences.

Certainly, the situation someone is in isn’t the “problem,” though he may think so. What he does in wisdom or foolishness with the situation or temptation is the focus of today.

What does he see ahead? What will happen if he goes this way or that? He must think it through. Everything he chooses must be carefully and prayerfully weighed for its spiritual benefits or disadvantages.

Some follow the crowd into a pit even though they know the consequences. The benefit of being included is worth more than the wages of sin. Therefore, it is the mature (prudent) man who deeply considers his value in the eyes of God, knowing his acceptance in God’s family and not giving into a need to stray for want of companionship.

The wise soul doesn’t put off needed repairs or projects. He knows that procrastination will eventually worsen the cost and pain of the important jobs. His priorities are rearranged to take care of today’s need. The prudent worker takes time to rest and play and not lose his health. The wise mother cleans up a messy spill immediately and doesn’t wait until it dries and cakes onto the container, only to further complicate and extend her work.

If today the prudent is energetic and strong, he finds productive things to do with his energy instead of lazily watching the time pass him by.

Father God, your Bible is perfect and so good for me to hear every day of my life. Please weed my heart of things that cause me harm. Help me to be free of ruinous habits and negative traits. Help me to thrive in my life like a well-watered garden. Keep me from danger. Help me to be prudent and wise about my choices. In Jesus name, Amen.

Black Lives Matter – Different Perspective

Do not forsake your friend or a friend of your family, and do not go to your relative’s house when disaster strikes you—better a neighbor nearby than a relative far away. Proverbs 27:10

Last night, I heard the terrible cries of a friend whose life had fallen apart during the pandemic. Her story broke my heart.

The effects of covid, cancer, disease, marriage problems, starvation and many other severe trials has the entire human race under its grip. We can’t always relate to each other’s unique struggles, but we can all relate to suffering in some form or another.

Every human encounters trials that keep us up at night and worry our minds to the point of despair. We also face the temptation of our souls that the enemy of God brings to ensnare us. Darkness is his home, and he wants us to follow him into his pit of destruction.

Two things may cause us to live in the shadows: our trials (circumstances) and Satan’s traps (temptations). No one escapes these.

So who do we turn to for help?

Again, Proverb 27:10 says, “Do not forsake your friend or a friend of your family, and do not go to your relative’s house when disaster strikes you—better a neighbor nearby than a relative far away.”

The commentaries seem to agree that “far away” means relationships not proximity. In other words, the friends or family who invest in us (and are active in our lives) will be the ones we call on in times of need (and vice versa).

When someone checks on me, and I check on them, I have a true friend. They honestly care about my well-being (the stories of my life). If a little time goes by, and I become quiet in my pain, they don’t let it pass without sending a verse, a prayer or a song of encouragement, and I do the same.

This kind of friend isn’t too fearful to return love, isn’t too shy, oversensitive or over-needy (dependent on me in my human flaws to fix everything and make it all better). Both of us lean on God for that!

I vividly remember the days of holding and rocking my babies late into the night. I also remember the terrible moments of teaching them how to self-soothe. We train our babies to understand that mommy has other responsibilities (including getting some sleep), and that they must learn how to cuddle with a stuffed toy or suck on a pacifier instead of wearing mommy out. Mainly, as babies grow, we teach them about the arms of a big God, arms that are always open and available.

As adults, we cling to Jesus in our worst moments and let Him rock and hold us tight. We always have His comforting touch. Our friends will, at times, be unavailable. That’s our cue to go to the Greatest Friend we have.

In our trials, who do we turn to? God first (I choose to take myself out from under despair and place myself into the safe grip of my Father!) HE directs us to each other. He gives us communities in which we involve ourselves in the emotions and hardships of problems other than our own.

During this pandemic, I am tempted to feel the dislike, the hurt and pain concerning my life. I am bored, at times, and sick of not having the freedom to spend time with and see my friends. Every other trial my family is going through seems magnified by this virus. Through it all, several adversities have popped up, sometimes, feeling like layer upon layer of grief. It is overwhelming.

Yet, here is a question I pose to myself and the world: what if, in our hardships, God is refining and purifying us? What if all we’re going through isn’t about healing our hurts, but our souls? What if He is turning us to Him? Wouldn’t that be the true miracle? Not an eradication of covid (which I pray for every day), but an eradication of sin in our lives. What if we are supposed to use every second of this contagious event to spread caring hearts for one another in our pure suffering?

One thing I’ve noticed lately is how the flowers continue to blossom even in the pandemic. The animals go about their lives pretty much untouched. The sun still rises and falls every day. Apparently, God cares about my response to the good and the bad. I am taking this time to do likewise: to shine, to blossom, to go about my life blessing people. I am working hard within the choices in front of me that make a difference. The hard, sweaty work is good, and I find myself praising God, though my circumstances are NOT what I want them to be.

My friends are the ones who remind me of my Father during this time. They help keep my mind fixed on the eternal aspects of life, not on what is temporarily painful. They cry and hurt with me, but they also spur my heart to go higher. (Laughter does it every time!) My friends encourage and help me to thrive (my theme for the year)!

Certainly, however, not every person in our lives are ideal to turn to in times of need.

Forsake is a daunting word. It means to abandon, desert or give up. The verse of the day encourages us not to forsake (out of laziness or petty anger) those we know need our help.

The opposite of forsake is to stay with, to be there for someone who is in a disaster.

I had a simple surgical procedure 15 years ago that knocked me off my feet, physically and emotionally, for a few months. No one knew I was in need because it didn’t occur to me to seek help. My trial was nothing compared to the hardships others were facing. But my neighbor, out of the blue, twice, brought over food for my family. I was touched and amazed at answers to my unspoken prayers. I felt especially loved!

We don’t always vocalize our pain, so it’s nice for gifts like that to drop from the sky out of nowhere. From that event I learned that it is important to take the time to listen to the promptings God puts on our hearts. Make the phone call or drop a casserole off at a friend’s house. You never know the impact God wants to have through you!

Sometimes, we are insulted during our trials when no one shows up, calls or provides anything, or they provide very little (and look what we did for them when they were in trouble, right?) But remember, not every trial is the same. Some trials are personal, between you and God. If God, for reasons of His own, doesn’t take away or stop the bad from happening, and you end up with layers of hardships painfully carried on your back, and then one day if the Lord God brought you something good, would you be insulted? Would it be too late to feel the kindness of His offer? Would you turn Him down?

Our friends or family cannot possibly be present 24/7 for our every need or trial. Let our response to them, when they do show up, be thankful and gracious for their gifts of love (this includes our mates or children). The next time we are available and they are in need, we still give in abundance because God is our helper.

On the flip side, we can’t always be there for our friends, and that can cause us great discomfort. We want to give them our time and attention. But, for reasons beyond our control, we must let them and their troubles go, and place them into the hands of God.

It is vital in this life to learn ways to be a good friend.

Sometimes when I exercise or clean the supper dishes, I think to myself how silly it would be to assume that this steadfast, productive moment should be enough to last forever. “Okay, I’m done. I’ll never have to do dishes again.” “I just went running, and now my heart should infinitely respond to this one attempt at fitness.” “I’ve eaten an awesome healthy lunch today. Now my body will be healthy forever!“

But that’s not the way of things. Dishes pile up again, bodies, though they beg for junk, are really always craving fuel, exercise has to be done almost daily in order to make a difference toward health. Unless we heed these calls, we can put ourselves into unspeakable trials and habits that will take a long time to reverse.

Likewise, I cannot simply speak ONE kind word to my friend in his trial and expect that friendship to last. Friendship is an ongoing responsibility and a joy when done right. Friendship is a dynamic used by God to bring about great good in times of suffering and distress.

It is important to follow the good paths so that none of us end up forsaking our friends. Here are a few solid steps: refuse to gossip, stop jealousy from over-taking your heart, believe good things about your friends, if at all possible be there for them when they are in trouble.

All the lessons we’ve taken into our hearts so far in Proverbs 27 (previous blogs) can strengthen or weaken the bonds of friendship.

Today’s proverb teaches us that it is in the trials of life that true friends show up.

The verse says also that friends of our family may need our attention in times of trouble and likewise may be a help to us. When a father is long gone, HIS true friends are OUR true friends. It is our way to keep our fathers and their morals alive.

Of course, relatives and family can become some of our closest friends.

However, just because they wear the label of nephew or aunt, doesn’t make them the best people to call on. When in need, turn to someone who loves and invests in you.

When your friend is in trouble (one you’ve invested in), be there for him. Go the extra mile. Grab others to help if the job is too heavy. When someone’s house burns down or the doctor calls with a bad diagnosis… cook, clean, or send notes. Do what you can. Be their prayer warrior when they can’t remember what or how to pray.

For a moment, recall the worldwide, well known phrase, “Black lives matter,” and let’s use it to remind ourselves that the greatest way to truly bring this slogan to life and make a difference in this world is to rise up and help our fellowman who currently suffer in dark circumstances, no matter the race, politics, views or even the sins against us. In a sense, their black lives must matter.

Not everyone who undergoes trials is someone we personally know. We become their friends through actions of love.

Don’t you think these are worthy endeavors to expend our energy and time when everything around us feels so grim? Each of us has someone in our lives we can help today. What if we all followed that call? What difference could one person make if that person was you?

Lord, when we listen to your voice and become your children, nothing can separate us from your concern and care for our lives. Use us to help each other. Use us to be a blessing and to bring light to the darkness. Purify us in our trials and bring our souls completely to Jesus. Let nothing we go through be wasted or used for an excuse to harm or forsake. Help our circumstances to be our link to conversion to the One True God, our creator and friend. Teach us how to be good friends to those in need. In Jesus name, Amen.

Don’t Tell Me What to Do…But Tell Me What to Do

Let me stay on your tracks so that my feet will not stumble. Psalms 17:5

Once, as a young child, I remember being left at church. Forgotten. I don’t remember any other details except that I found myself in the car of a strange family (my parents knew well) who were kind enough to take me to them. Yet, I cried all the way home. I didn’t know how safe I really was and that there was no reason to be afraid. But a fear gripped me like none I’d never known before.

Having a large family and lots of siblings, somehow they must have thought I was with them. I must have become distracted, away from my mother’s gaze. I must have strayed from the right path where she could keep an eye on me.

In my spiritual walk, God knows the better way, the good track for me to follow, and when I venture outside His path, things can get fearful and difficult. It is always so relieving to be back in His presence with His careful gaze watching over and protecting me.

The Bible says, “Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind. Eccl. 12:13

Solomon, the author, had made several unwise choices in his life and strayed away from the Father’s ways many times. At the end of his life, he discovered how wonderful were God’s words, how right were His commandments, how good were His precepts and how glorious was a life of one who keeps His statutes.

‘Precepts’ and ‘statutes’ are not typically in our vocabulary. But it all means the same thing: to follow His will. We learn to trust that what He’s asked us to do is trustworthy.

Certainly, there are challenges to staying on God’s tracks when I become weary or I’m tired of my difficult circumstances. In fact, it is interesting to note that when I am in the middle of a sin, I don’t even want the right tracks. “Leave me alone. I’m fine in my misery.” Right? “Don’t tell me what to do. I’ll eat what I want, do what I please and go where I want to go!”

Pride, self-pity and arrogance have a subtle way of taking over when my flesh begs for more comfort and ease of suffering.

All of us would rather eat ice cream than spinach. We know to have self-control with our diets, to exercise daily, but more than anything to choose to have spiritual alignment with the Lord God (which only comes when we stick close to His word and in prayer fellowship on our knees before Him).

The feeling of being out-of-control is a terrible feeling. It is a dreadful thing to be caught in a snare with little hope of regaining one’s life through spiritual restraint. Addiction, in a sense, is stepping off God’s track onto whatever track we think is better and becoming entangled in that choice.

However, the feeling of welcoming God’s spirit as He helps a person in self-discipline simply feels like an unbelievably great accomplishment. THAT is true success!

Anytime I follow the Lord’s steps instead of my own, I am under the spirit’s control. I am free to live a life of surrender and trust.

I cannot stumble when my heart is in the act of following God.

King David said, “It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees.” Psalm 119:71

A decree is another way of saying, ‘God’s track.’ David had many obstacles in his life in his journey with the Lord. Sometimes, David faltered and wandered away. Yet, one day, when he was met with the consequences of sin or trials, he wrote the verse just mentioned. He took the situation to heart and saw it differently than most would see it. He could have strayed, but instead, David came to understand that difficulties were a pathway to knowing God’s heart and will more precisely.

When my trials come, I am tempted to get off His path and casually stroll in the direction I prefer. Enemy voices lie and tell me this way will make me happy, fill me up and satisfy my soul.

Yet, the point of God’s commands, laws, decrees, statutes, lessons and teachings all through the Bible and throughout my life are for my good. That is truth.

Lord, please tell me what to do. I step onto your tracks and ask you to help me stay near you all my life. Help me not to wander. Keep my eyes fixed on you when the storms come and when I don’t understand your callings. Draw me into your presence daily. For you are my safe place, forever. In Jesus name, I pray, Amen.

The Blessed Wait

Isaiah 40:31 Those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.

I’ve heard it said that an eagle will teach its young to fly. Both parents guard the nest and take food to the young. At about 11-12 weeks, if the eaglets have not ventured forth, the parent eagle “stirs” or rocks the nest, tipping them out! The young eaglets flap about in panic, still new at flying. The parent eagle carefully watches, waiting for the critical moment. With wings spread wide, the eagle then swoops down underneath those babies and delivers them back to the security of the nest.

Ours is a God of powerful gentleness. Ours is a God whose timing is perfect. Like the parent eagle, He is sensitive to our needs. He knows when the nest has become too comfortable and needs a little stirring. He, too, watches carefully, and, as with spread wings, catches us up, bringing us to Himself. But He wants us to learn from our fluttering & flopping and to mature. He wants us to leave behind our helpless panic and learn to wait on Him. Then, with our eyes on our Father ‘eagle,’ we begin to know what it means to soar on eagle’s wings!

The trials in our lives can teach us how to fly. We may flutter around at first, but we will learn and grow if we keep our eyes on Jesus.

The verse says that those who ‘wait on the Lord’ will renew their strength. Waiting can be defined in many ways:

Looking for treasures in the trial
Sitting with God in the pain
Letting him carry me through it
Letting him build up energy in me to be able to soar above it

Energy is gained not from temporary distractions of the world, but by being carried on the solid wings of Christ and allowing Him to be the power by which I lunge forward and fly.

Waiting on the Lord renews my strength.

When I head out to go running, but haven’t run in several months, I have to build up stamina and strength. I don’t like to run. But running my goal-amount improves my health. At first my muscles are sore from being stretched and pushed. Once I’ve built up stamina I run without getting weary.

It’s the same with trials. I’ve lived long enough to know that trials come and go. They have such huge value in our lives if we let them. They hurt us in the deepest places of our souls where God can be discovered and leaned upon and where we can allow the pain to change us from the inside out, giving us wings to fly.

This week, I took some time to think about what renews me. God works through inspirational movies, books or sermons to reawaken my tired spirit. It’s like my perspective changes, in an instant, and in the exhausting trials, I’m ready to stop complaining and get on with my life in the way He leads me.

Today’s verse is a promise:

Those who wait…shall renew their strength
Shall mount up on wings like eagles
Shall run and not be weary
Shall walk and not faint

Wait means to believe and trust in God’s goodness no matter how bad things seem. Wait means to fix my eyes on Jesus and not on the problem. Wait means to be still. Wait means to stop being controlling, having an agenda, labeling ‘one outcome’ as the only thing to make me happy. Wait is believing in a big God who has a reason for asking me to obey Him in areas I would rather not, like: going the second mile, returning a blessing for a curse, being the first to give a kindness in a relationship of built up walls, speaking softly to one who is angry with me or praying for my enemies.

Notice on whom we are to wait: the Lord. Everything stops with Him. He is my all and all. He is my everything. He is the One I am waiting on during the trial.

In trials, I DO get overwhelmed and weary, but somehow, when I become still in His presence, my breath is restored, and I am able to go forward into another day, even, at times, in joy. His strength is enough.

Father, thank you, thank you for this awesome verse. It breaths life into my soul at a time when I so much need it. Teach me how to better wait on you. Keep my spirit calm, steady and steadfast. Move the mountains out of the way that stand before me. Be my God, and I declare with confidence that you alone are my Jehovah. Thank you for your care and for your saving wings that carry me through my trials. In Jesus name, Amen.

Clap if You Believe!

Abraham believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness. Gen 15:6

Belief is a powerful thing. I remember watching the movie Peter Pan as a child. When we came to the part when Tinkerbell’s life was fading away, we clapped hard. We believed that she could get better!

Belief is actually a childlike trait. It’s a posture of trusting in something bigger than myself, like knowing that my daddy would take care of my needs and never even giving it a second thought that something could go wrong. I was with my daddy. I didn’t have fear of want.

In my current situation, I may not have any reason to believe that my need or want will come true, but I choose to believe because I have a God (my heavenly father) who can do the impossible, and I can rest in that.

I grew up singing the song, God Moves in a Mysterious way. In the lyrics, I remember these words: “Blind unbelief is sure to err.”

It is true, my unbelief will tend to get me into trouble. It will take my eyes off God and put them on my own abilities, which are terribly lacking.

I am safer believing in God’s plans than I am in my own power.

In fact, believing is a wonderful practice. It leads to more joy, peace and patience. I am happier when I release my unbelief and take a chance on my Almighty God. Even when things don’t turn out the way I prayed. God can still be trusted.

Sarah laughed when she overheard that she would have a son, maybe a little out of anguish and sorrow from all the years of waiting and giving up on God’s promise that this could actually happen.

No matter how much time goes by, something always happens in the waiting. Then one day God shows up.

In the New Testament, belief for healing was extremely important. Jesus healed one person after an other because of their belief. And when a whole town disbelieved, the healings diminished greatly, even though Jesus was in their midst. How sad!
Their lives could have been so changed.

Question: Does belief mean that I always get what I want, exactly the way I pray for it, or does it mean that I get what God wants (concerning the situation), in His timing?

When a person believes, his actions show it. That’s why the fruit of the spirit gets involved when I believe. My heart has room to love and show kindness when I have given everything over to the Lord. Disbelief makes me cling to my own needs in selfishness and despair.

When I have a tough problem to bring to God (one that is impossible to believe will be resolved well), I give my all in worship to Him and lay that issue at His feet to do as He pleases. It is important that I give even the results of my prayers to Him and trust His choices in the matter. Then I turn my eyes to serve His people and give my all to help them. I don’t sit around and anxiously fret. I get busy.

This waiting period and these moments are my chance to show through my actions that I believe, and it’s God’s chance to glorify Himself in the way He answers my prayers.

There are times that life will crush and beat me down. Yet, in my frailty, I still believe, and in the process I am being refined as gold for the things He has planned for me.

Lord, you considered Abraham a righteous man because of his belief in you. I am so weak and sinful. Yet I want to learn how to believe in you with all my heart. Teach me how to give you my full trust. In Jesus name, Amen.

Safe

Be on watch and pray always that you will have the strength to go safely through all those things that will happen and to stand before the Son of Man. Luke 21:36

As I continue through my study of Luke, remember that Jesus had just spoken about some disturbing times that were coming in the future and also about His return at the end of time. Then He encourages them to be alert and prayerful about what was coming, that they may have the fortitude they need to meet each situation.

At first when I read the verse, it surprised me that He was so clear in His instructions: “You are my disciples and I’m telling you ahead of time that bad things are going to happen. I’m not rescuing you from the bad this earth has to offer, I’m equipping you with a way to deal with it. Remind your thoughts to be aware, to look for these terrible times. They will come. PRAY…ALWAYS….that you will have strength through it all.“

What a fabulous verse for today. Jesus wants us to come to the Lord for everything we need to face. He wants us to come safely through it. We do so by listening for the voice of God (He is my lighthouse, the light that leads me to my safe place). We are saved by following His instructions (Safe doesn’t always mean that our lives are spared. Safe may mean that we are coming to join Him).

This week, a visual came to mind. I saw myself among a group of people and something evil was coming towards us. There were children around me, and I had a choice to fling my body over as many as I could to save them. Would I do it? Would I lay down my life for them?

You say, “Of course you would? The question is rhetorical!“

I’m going to be very honest.

But, typically, I am slow to react. Most things going on around me aren’t followed by an immediate response or action. I’m not an ER kind of person who can access facts and act at the same time.

In the above scenario, I would hope that without blinking an eye I would just go for the children without even thinking about it.

Yet, I am weak and don’t always understand the urgency of the situations accurately. I NEED the Lord’s mindset and His wisdom to know what I would do in an event like that or what to do in my every day life.

It’s one of the reasons why the verse meant so much to me. I don’t have to rely on myself in these days of trouble. I don’t have to be smart or intelligent enough or some know-it-all. I don’t have to be physically capable or spiritually profound or emotionally 100% always solid. I just have to be willing to ask for HIS strength.

God does His best work when He is allowed full access to work in my weakest moments.

That is a marvel to me.

Would I save the children? Yes! God, if anything like that were to ever happen, HELP me to think fast and do the right thing.

In the meantime, Father, I pray that you would give me a sharp awareness of your presence in times of trouble. I come to you in prayer to ask for your help and strength to get me safely through the tough circumstances of life. I depend on you. May it be to me as you have said. In Jesus name, Amen.

The Door

Here I am! I stand at the door and knock (Revelation 3:20).

I wrote this several years ago and the visual of the door comes back to me over and over in my life. I am finding that the invitation to walk through this door happens every day and sometimes, many times a day.

In the morning and at night and everywhere in between,
there stretches wide open before me:

…a door…

It is surrounded on the edges with blossoms and ivy trailing down the sides.
On THIS side of the door is fear, worry, anger, self-protection, pride,
and every other act I may not at first label or see as sin.
On this side of the door I FEEL safe,
because it’s all I know.
It feels good because it’s the place I stand up for my rights
and make demands for my needs to be met.
It is the bed I choose to lie in that pouts and blames
and gives the silent treatment and angry threats.
It all makes me feel powerful and in control.

I can do it myself.

I don’t need God in the depths of my own secret garden.
Those other people deserve my tongue lashing.
They deserve my silence.

But there is another side to this door.

And it takes all the faith I can muster to walk through.
It takes keeping my eyes on Jesus;
it takes my full trust.
And when I commit to walk over the threshold, I am committed to leave the rest behind
and take what feels like a step off of a cliff to free-fall into the void of the unknown.
Why do I call this a void?
Because following Christ is risky.

HIS door led him to a cross.

What will God ask of me? What will become of me if I’m kind to that mean person?
Who will be there for me if I’m looking out for their needs?

For a while I don’t know.
But I am grabbing hold of a greater power, the power of love.
It means I wash the person’s feet who has offended me;
I speak lovingly to the one who has bellowed out a curse.

Jesus did.

And he has given me the ability to follow him.
It means I pray and pray and pray for God to bring answers to my tough situations.
And I never give up.
I keep trusting even when all seems lost.
Even when I don’t know what’s up or down in this void.
I keep trusting even when I don’t think I can last another second.
I keep serving and praying and serving and praying,
even when I can barely lift my eyes to the sky.

And one day, in that void, I feel the arms of God
and the joy of God reach down to my very soul
and wrap itself around every part of who I am.

I feel completely loved.

And I feel completely full.

And I realize that this feeling didn’t happen because of anything this earth provides
or because of anywhere else I might put my trust.
I realize that on the other side of the door
is the greatest pleasures I can experience on earth.
But I can’t experience them unless I walk through
and stake my life on obeying the sweet will of God.

Years of stepping through that door I realize that everything I will ever need is met.
I find myself overflowing with some inborn service,
now a habit, now making sense, now bringing fruit.
It is a long journey and it is full of tears and fear of what will happen,
but that door stands open for me to choose.
And I have a big God who stands and waits as he knocks for me to answer.
The question is will I walk through and experience all God has for me?
Will I let him into the deepest places of my heart
so he can help me walk through that door?
Will I put my confidence in God and not in myself
and my own fleshly way of dealing with things?

There are vast treasures on the other side of that door,
treasures in obeying God‘s will.
Yet all of us tend to hold on to things,
burdens we carry that keep us from crossing over.

What are your burdens today?
How might you lay down those burdens
and save room in your arms for the bounty God has for you?

Thank you, Jesus.

Sure Foundation

“Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?”
  “As for everyone who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice, I will show you what they are like. They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built.” (Luke 6:46-48)

If I am in tune to God and not wrapped up in my circumstances, somewhere deep in my spirit, I know what He wants of me.

The man who hears the Lord’s words and puts them into practice is compared to a man who builds a house:

1. He digs down deep.
2. He lays a foundation.
3. The foundation is solid.
4. When (not if) the storms come, the house will stand, unshaken.

First, the man digs down deep. No one can do this for him. He must take this journey deep inside his soul and find out where his truest dependence is. Life will help him to discern where his loyalty lies. He must find his Maker, his Father; his King in all things. On nothing else can he ever depend.

Second, the man lays a foundation. All else in life is built on this foundation. His singlehood or marriage, children, job…everything.
Even when life seems good, in reality, good may make him think that he doesn’t need God. Good may be corrupting his soul. When life seems bad, the bad may lead him back to El Shaddai. That is good!

Third, the man realizes that this foundation must be true and solid. If not, all of what sits on top can come crashing down. When the foundation cracks, everything else cracks as well. If he builds on something that cannot crack, his life is solid.

Fourth, the man prepares for storms. He knows they will come. When they come, he is not the one holding everything up, but the foundation he has chosen. Hopefully, he has chosen God’s will and His kingdom for a sure and steady rock on which to build, and when life’s storms swirl all around his house, he and the house will stand.

I pray prayers I feel so sure God wants for me. Yet, sometimes He doesn’t answer the way I think He should. Sometimes, it feels like the answer is very close to coming true and then at the last minute everything changes. It’s like I’m standing there anticipating this wonderful answered prayer and I’m looking right at it with everything I have and then it collapses right before my eyes.

Answered prayers are not my foundation. The lack of what I want is like a storm that comes, but if I’m standing on the rock, my life will not be shaken.

In reality, to stand firm during unwanted circumstances is better than the uncertainty of temporal, happy times. If what I want is God’s will, it’ll come in His timing. The waiting is part of the journey. It’s part of my story. It’s my chance to let God shine through me.

I am learning that God works in unanswered prayers!

He’s got this. He’s the only One I can put my hope in and know that I am safe and strong in Him. Trusting Him is all I have. It’s all I need. It’s why I can dry my tears and get up and go out and serve His people in power.

In Nehemiah 4:4-12, Nehemiah had a great task: to gather the people to help rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. But enemies came and tried to discourage and frighten their work.

He prayed, “Hear us, our God, for we are despised. Turn their insults back on their own heads.” So we rebuilt the wall till all of it reached half its height, for the people worked with all their heart.
But when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites and the people of Ashdod heard that the repairs to Jerusalem’s walls had gone ahead…they were very angry. They all plotted together to…fight against Jerusalem and stir up trouble against it. But we prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat.
Meanwhile, the people in Judah said, “The strength of the laborers is giving out, and there is so much rubble that we cannot rebuild the wall.” Also our enemies said, “Before they know it or see us, we will be right there among them and will kill them and put an end to the work.” Then the Jews who lived near them came and told us ten times over, “Wherever you turn, they will attack us.”

In the end, Nehemiah bravely encouraged the people and they put away their fears and finished the wall.

When we are in the process of building our lives on a sure foundation, we will have very real enemies to threaten, discourage, and attack us (hard circumstances, negative thoughts, disappointments).

A lot of times, we (like the people) get most discouraged when we are halfway through the project. We look back and wonder if our time has been a waste. We lose confidence and momentum. We become weary of the task that feels too big for us. We don’t like the voices around us who hinder our way.

Yet, if the task is of God, He wants to show us Himself as our strong foundation. He enables us to have what strength we need to finish His work.

Father, I dig down deep and lay my foundation on the Lord Jesus Christ. He causes me to stand strong in the storms of life. I keep my eyes on you! There are times I think I can ‘do it myself’ or I know what’s best for me. There are times, in human error I imagine I hear your voice and then discover it wasn’t you at all. Yet, you use others in my life to set me back on the right path. I realize that my demand to always hear your voice for myself is shallow. I humble myself and put my confidence not in my ability to hear you, but in your ability to relay your will to me however you please. I humble myself before you! Help me to build my house on the rock of Christ who will forever hold me up. In Jesus name, Amen.

Make Me

“This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: ‘Go down to the potter’s house, and there I will give you my message.’  So I went down to the potter’s house, and I saw him working at the wheel. But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him. Then the word of the Lord came to me. He said, ‘Can I not do with you, Israel, as this potter does?’ declares the Lord. ‘Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, Israel’ (Jeremiah 18:1-6).

I have been honing in on the names of God for over a month, now.

Yesterday, I began the very cool task of coming up with my own instead of going to a website for a list of names of God.

If you sit in the quiet for a few moments and think about who God is for you today, what would that be? Yesterday, for me, He was “God, the Touchable One.” Today, He is God, the ‘Teacher.’

If you look carefully at the photo above, you’ll see the potter using instruments to better shape the clay. The potter (artist, refiner and teacher) pokes and prods and spins the clay a thousand times. The clay (or person) on the potter’s wheel feels disoriented, foggy, confused, hurt, disappointed.

“Stop!” the person cries, “I can’t take anymore!”

I think back to all the times God put me on that wheel. It has been immediately my desire to jump off and do my own thing. “I can do without all this pain, thank you very much!”

But God’s hands are:

POWERFUL,
WONDERFUL,
CREATIVE,
LOVING,
And seeking my good at all times.

He is my Savior, and He uses His instruments:

To rescue me from myself,
To help me survive (thrive) this evil world and all that comes against me,
And to help me know that He is the only one I can truly trust to do what needs to be done in me.

The more I trust Him, the more I stay on that wheel, willingly.

What instruments does God use for ME?

He uses everything in my life…good and bad, terrible and sad, awesome and incredible. He uses them all. God is kind and compassionate, but He cannot stand sin in me. He will use whatever it takes to empty me of self and make and mold me into His Son, Jesus Christ.

He uses the bad (what the enemy does in my life) to make me lean on Him more. He uses the good to remind me that the good is never good enough and to make me lean on Him more.

God is my Teacher. When I remain on that potter’s wheel, I am open to His lessons. He is my greatest teacher. It may not feel ‘safe,’ at times, but obeying Him is by far the safest place on earth for my soul. My body or my emotions may get hurt, but God makes all things new. I trust Him, completely.

“See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland” (Isaiah 43:19).

Father, I come to you and willingly take my place on your potter’s wheel. I see your hand with its instruments and I tearfully submit. I hear your voice, calling me to be still under your mighty hand. I taste the mud and dirt in my mouth, but I stay. This is no fun. I smell the scent of your presence near me and that brings me comfort. I reach out and touch your fingers and trust you with everything in me, for you are the Touchable One. Oh, Rock and Fortress of mine, please lead and guide me. Teach me your will. I am sitting still on the wheel of God. Set me free in you to forever worship your name, Rabboni, my Beloved Teacher! In Jesus name, Amen.

“Since you are my rock and my fortress, for the sake of your name lead and guide me” (Psalm 31:3 NIV).

Know My Anxious Thoughts

Last week, I felt weary as I cried out to God. Yet, truly His power greatly reveals itself most in my weaknesses. He gave me rest, and immediately called me back into battle.

Diving into obedience, I knew: that hardships would come, that staying close to Him would be the safest place in the world, that He would never leave me even in my hardest struggle and that disobedience might seem easier, but in reality to disobey my Father would be wrought full of a shallow and boring life I never want to live.

Writing this blog makes me feel alive, and though each post challenges me to my core, as each Tuesday approaches, I pray for you…each one.

Today’s subject is anxiety. “Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.” (Psalm 139:23 NIV)

My circumstances lure me towards anxiety every day. Yet, I typically am too naïve to know that something is worth being anxious over until way past everyone else’s breaking point. My reactions to trouble do come, but they are sometimes a bit delayed. On rare occasions, however, worry and fear immediately rear their ugly heads and cast a shadow on the bright spaces of my mind. Previously, in my life, anxiety has been heavily investigated. But, as I researched all week, this study encouraged me to stand stronger and believe in God’s power and goodness more than before and not to give into doubt and despair.

So, now, let us enter with bold hearts into a lesson on ANXIETY.

There came to me several simple thoughts in quick succession I wanted to record:

1. Anxiety happens when I listen to all other voices in my head and not the ONE voice that truly matters (God’s voice).
2. Peace becomes more available when I allow all other voices to be sifted through the ONE voice and His truth.
3. Peace intensifies when I make a choice to follow the ONE voice even if it means going through hardships or loss of what I consider to be a good name or feeling insecure. The truth is: my best offering to Jesus in my hardships is to surrender to Him the life He gave me, take up my cross, and follow Him. My greatest name is known when I allow God’s Son to live and act through me. My truest security is felt when I stand on the foundation of Christ.
4. Anxiety increases when instead of facing the problem, I simply pass the time. There’s a difference between having downtime and burying my problems behind ‘nothing‘ activities with, perhaps, a hidden motive (even hidden from me), to deny the real issues of life; especially when the issue is the ONE voice calling me to follow Him. (Jonah ran from God. Sometimes, I run, too. Running is an open door to great anxiety!)
5. Anxiety decreases when I center my focus of life, worship and trials, NOT to be about ME and my feelings (who speaks to me, who is there for me, who is stirring MY gifts, who wants me, who is giving to me, who isn’t?) Instead, I focus on my Creator and His plans for my life regarding His kingdom. At church, I allow the songs, prayers, and lessons to move my heart to action. I listen to God more than I tell Him what to do about this or that. Seeing the bigger picture helps me to breathe in and out, as I let go of control and anxiety.
6. Peace comes alive when prayer turns into an awakening of my soul to do something MORE than just pray. Laziness, self-pity, jealousy and anxiety are qualities I proactively and continually try to kill within myself, instead of passively waiting for God to take these away.

Reread the first thought above. One of my favorite stories in the Bible is when God speaks to Samuel, and Samuel’s answer is, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening” (I Samuel 3:7 NIV). Rare moments in my life happen in which clear, yet inaudible ‘words’ come to mind, but I know it’s God, prompting me to do something for Him. I admit, I’ve made mistakes many times. But, I know if I never jumped in and made mistakes in hearing from God, I would never learn to decipher His true voice!

Mostly, however, in my life, God speaks through the Bible, His word. His word is a treasure, sought after every single day, and as much as possible, the very first part of my morning. This practice brings strength and help for my every day trials. (Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful” Joshua 1:8). Following God’s word (His voice) simply makes sense. His word is there for me to know Him more (not necessarily to have ease, but to have the power He gives me to meet whatever comes my way).

Yet, how does one block out the other voices?

1. Memorize scripture – This one is huge for me! When an evil voice(s) tries to enter my brain, I have a habit now of quoting verses. The activity relaxes me and sets me on the right path.
2. Prayer – Pray for the enemies in my life that are causing my anxiety. (Matt 5:44)
3. Praise – Negative thoughts cannot live inside of my praises to God.
4. Think on good things – “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things” (Phil 4:8). Write a note to unpleasant people in the midst of relational struggles that reflect what is in them that is noble, right and pure. Daily taking note of the good in a person can change my life and my relationships!
5. Attend a church that believes the Bible is truth. Soak in the sermons and songs.
6. “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38). The Holy Spirit guides and leads me through my fears to have faith in God.
7. Fellowship with believers (especially those who will hold me accountable to discipleship and service)- “I am united with all who fear you and with everyone who keeps your precepts” (Psalm 119:63 ISV). Did you notice in the verse how the focus for fear or awe is on God? Surround myself with encouraging, godly people who will walk this rough road with me and lead me to fear the one true God.
8. Speak the name of Jesus and acknowledge that He is Lord and Master of my home, my work, my spirit and so on.
9. Serve others; get out of the habit of making life all about me.
10. Become involved in refining my gifts for the sake of the kingdom of God.
11. Become overwhelmed with what is godly – “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Romans 12:21 NIV).

Sometimes, nothing removes the voices from my head. I may be grieving a deep loss (which takes time), dealing with a troublesome, towering giant or anticipating a dreaded event. And the overwhelming thoughts seem to multiply by the minute.

Read the following snippets from a few verses in the Bible (ISV). The verses are best read in the context of their whole chapters.

Psa_55:5 Fear and trembling have overwhelmed me…
Isa_8:12  …don’t fear what they fear…
Mat_6:28 …why do you worry…
Luk_10:41  …You worry and fuss about a lot…
1Co_2:3  It was in weakness, fear, and great trembling that I came to you.
Php_4:6  Never worry…
1Pe_5:7  Throw all your worry on him…

These verses cover a variety of situations and reactions from several people. Notice how authentic was David’s fear and trembling. David speaks his heart all over the Psalms concerning his real anxieties about real and terrible circumstances. Paul speaks about being intensely nervous before his future audience. And several commands concerning worry and fear are given, “don’t” “never” “throw all” “why do you, ” as if worry and fear were things that can be managed, or that because I’m a Christian, I have a choice over not fearing what the world fears (because my focus is different). Perhaps, with practice, one day that will be me!

We all have times of anxiety, sometimes over real troubles and sometimes over imaginary fears. We live in a world of uncertainties and misfortune. Until the end of time, sleepless nights and difficult days will be a part of our lives. Our responses to the anxiety are what matter (King David, in his anxious moments, always leaned heavily on the Lord).

After doing everything possible in the list above, when all else fails, what truly helps me is to come to a place of acceptance.

“This trial is in my life for a reason for I don’t know how long. I have fought it with everything I have. The trial is not leaving. So, I will be still and look to the Lord to fight for me. The darkness is real. The pit is deep. But I am not alone, even though I may not hear or feel God’s presence, HE IS HERE! I prepare my heart to suffer (instead of spending time in dread). My eyes stay on the Son of God who goes before me in suffering. I face these times head on with the power of the Almighty God. Daily, I practice NOT staying in a state of worry, but throwing the worry on Him. I am human. I cry and feel pain. So, in the long run, I crawl into His lap, lay my head on His shoulder, and receive his comfort for the duration of the trial. There is no greater comforter.”

Learning to be still is a process that comes more quickly as I get older. God provides beautiful examples of heroes of faith in His word that aid my journey to be still. The story of Nehemiah is an inspiration for today’s study of anxiety:

“The king asked me, ‘Why do you look so troubled, since you’re not ill? This cannot be anything else but troubles of the heart.” Then I was filled with fear‘” (Neh. 2:2 ISV).

Nehemiah was cup-bearer to the King. He had just received unsettling news, and knew he was supposed to go and help out. Nehemiah failed to hide his pain and concern, and the king became aware of his burden.

Here, I have recorded more insights from the beautiful commentaries:

The Pulpit Commentary
“… Nehemiah feels his danger. He has never looked sad in the king’s presence. He is about to ask permission to quit the court. These are both sins against the fundamental doctrine of Persian court life. Will the king be displeased, refuse his request, dismiss him from his post, cast him into prison, or will he pardon his rudeness and allow his request?”

Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
“A Persian subject was expected to be perfectly content so long as he had the happiness of being with his king. A request to quit the court was thus a serious matter.”
(end of quotes)

Nehemiah might have been fearful of the king’s reaction. He also might simply have feared the huge undertaking God was putting on his heart. Either way, we can all relate to Nehemiah; maybe not in the circumstance, but in fear.

What Nehemiah says to the king next changes the way I view anxiety. Notice how Nehemiah didn’t move a muscle or say anything in response to the king until he “prayed to the God of heaven.”

“‘May the king live forever. Why shouldn’t I be troubled, since the city where my ancestral sepulchers are located lies waste, with its gates burned by fire?’ The king answered, ‘What do you want?’ So I prayed to the God of heaven and I replied to the king, ‘If it seems good to you, and if your servant has found favor with you, would you send me to Judah, to the city where my ancestral sepulchers are located, so I can rebuild it?'” (Neh. 2:3-5 ISV).

Later, the “gracious hand of God” was on Nehemiah; the king not only agreed to send him; he also provided safety and supplies.

Let’s go back to the first chapter, and find a prayer worded by Nehemiah soon after receiving the terrible report! We do not know what he prayed in the split second prayer above before his response to the king. But, we do have his recorded words of prayer before he approached the king in the first place:

“When I heard this [the bad news], I sat down and cried, mourning for a number of days while I fasted and prayed in the presence of the God of Heaven. I said, ‘Please, LORD, God of Heaven, the great and fearsome God who keeps the covenant, showing gracious love to those who love you and keep your commands, please turn your attention to observe carefully and listen to the prayer of your servant today that I am presenting to you day and night on behalf of your servants, the Israelis. I confess the sins that we Israelis have committed against you. Both I and my father’s house have sinned. We have abandoned you by not keeping your commands, your ceremonies, and your judgments that you proscribed to your servant Moses. Please remember what you spoke in commanding your servant Moses. You said, ‘If you rebel, I will scatter you among the nations but if you return to me, keeping my commands and doing them, even if your exiled people are in the farthest horizon, I will gather them from there and bring them to the place where I have chosen to establish my Name.’ These are your servants as well as your people, whom you have redeemed by your great power and by your strong hand. And now, Lord, I ask you to listen to the prayer of your servant—and to the prayers of your servants who delight in revering your Name. I ask you, please prosper your servant today by granting him to receive favor from this man.'” (Neh. 1:4-11 ISV)

What I see in Nehemiah’s prayers are: tears, fasting, pleading, honor, yieldedness, confession, trust, reverence and hope.

Can you imagine what would become of our anxieties were we to practice such prayers? Nehemiah, in his fear, boldly stepped forward onto the paths God made straight for him.

Listen to the following song about no longer being a slave to fear:

Finally, anxiety in the area of change can be a good thing. (All anxiety has the possibility of changing our lives forever.) Change is frightening and feels impossible. But God is doing something big. All the evil voices accuse, remind and tempt me. When I listen to them, I am overcome. Yet, when I only listen to the ONE voice, I am at peace. This back and forth process eventually opens my eyes to the wonders of God and the shallowness of everything else. The anxiety is doing its work. Anxiety is bringing me to the presence of God and falling away into faith and trust.

Father, I pray for my readers and for the prayers they have on their lips this day. Guide and comfort them, and be their God. Walk them through each worry and help them to believe in the great God you are. Awaken us to your presence and to all you have for our lives. Stir us to be on our knees, yet then to rise up in your power to follow you. In Jesus name, Amen.

Retracing My Steps (Anger Series 7th of 9)

The other day, I was talking with a friend about the challenging things that can happen to us. As hard as they are, they end up becoming exactly what we need in order to minister to others in teaching and sharing our faith. We must go through the hard stuff to understand how people in similar circumstances feel.

Sometimes my life becomes so difficult, I don’t think I can make it through! When these moments become absolutely ridiculous (the 3rd or 4th shoe drops), that’s when I know I am in the midst of enemy attacks. Yet, God is with me! I am safe and cognizant of the fact that He will use the situation for His glory.

I love this verse:
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms (Eph 6:12 NIV).

The rest of chapter 6 continues by instructing us how to stand in the day of trouble with the full armor of God!

Oddly enough, the challenges my friend and I talked about actually began to happen to me as I wrote today’s blog. It wasn’t funny to me, but painful. Anger is real. I have a long list of reasons why I felt justified to feel the way I did. I’ve already responded with the words I needed to speak. I’ve said all there is to say. I haven’t wimped out and skulked in some corner. But the bottom line is: God HAS even this seemingly impossible situation in the palm of His hands. He cares about me and about the people with whom I interact.

I texted my friend, ” Sometimes in the midst of the negative stuff, I get a thought that what I’m experiencing is about something so much bigger than this isolated event. But it feels humanly impossible to keep from cycling downward. I accept the negative as being part of whatever God is doing in the bigger places of his Kingdom. In other words, I allow myself to hurt, feel anger, cry (to be human), yet still godly in my responses, knowing that this will pass and much will be accomplished through it all.”

Then I pray, “Lord, I know I have to walk through this uncomfortable situation. It’s not going to magically go away. So in this moment, I thank you for the circumstance. I know that you are doing a great work in me for your Kingdom and your glory. I accept my pain, and fight, not flesh and blood, but the need to stay close to you and trust that you have this. I love that you are with me. I give my offering of acceptance, service and forgiveness to you. Even now, as I pray, you are revealing my pride in this situation. Please forgive me. Create in me a clean heart. Set my face to have joy. In Jesus name, Amen.”

“Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed”(I Peter 4:12-13).

Anger can be stirred in me by anyone, anything, at anytime. In reality, the struggle has to do with spiritual forces at work behind what I think I see with my eyes or even feel with my emotions. It has to do with learning joy and revealing God’s glory.

The noisy world hollers at me to do things in the way of my flesh. But as we read last week, God’s ways are higher, and my job is to pray and arm myself with the full armor of God.

We have a big God who knows better than anyone else how to care for us.
We don’t have to spend our time in anger at people for having brains and for using them in a different way than ours. Sometimes we misunderstand each other and when we try to clarify, the feelings can be difficult. It’s never easy, but it is reality.

In my situation, I have had a chance to retrace my steps with the help of a friend. And I can see with better clarity some things I would do over again if I could.

My mission now, as I choose to go forward is to release my life as an offering into God’s hands. Again, it is not easy, but it is right.

Let’s turn once again to our passage:
Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.
Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it” (Gen. 4:2-7 NIV).

Cain brought “some” of the fruits to offer to the Lord. What else might have been in his heart as he went to his garden and gathered this offering together? How spiritual he must have felt with his fruit. How hidden were his sins.

It’s when I work with people, encounter tough times, or when something doesn’t go my way that my true self is exposed, and I discover hidden things to address; anger, hurt, pride, fear. That’s when I am called to turn to God the most. I tend to turn sour when I don’t acknowledge His presence in my life.

It is wonderful when anger doesn’t take center stage of my heart. It’s also wonderful to have been through the ringer with anger and still rise above it before it gets to the deeper places of my soul. I waste so much of my life letting old stuff go round and round my head.

“Very angry” doesn’t simply happen in a moment as we’ve said before; it builds. Cain’s attitude had to have been old anger, stirred up once again in the moment.

Barnes Commentary Notes:
“A feeling of resentment and a sense of disgrace and condemnation take possession of Cain’s breast.” [God never disgraced or condemned him, but that’s how he feels.]

“The Lord…puts [forth] a question which implies that there is no just cause for his [Cain’s] present feelings.” [Repentance is the only right response.]

“To do well is to retrace his steps, to consider his ways, and find out wherein he has been wrong, and to amend his offering and his intention accordingly.”

“Let him who is in the wrong retract at once, and return to God with humble acknowledgment of his own guilt, and unreserved submission to the mercy of his Maker; for to him who perseveres in sin there can be no hope or help.”
(end of quotes)

Yes, we are reminded to retrace our steps and purify our hearts. We want to learn to handle everything that comes our way with God’s power and strength.

Jehovah God, I want to come to the altar with a pure heart. Teach me what it means to let go of having to rule over other people or circumstances, to manage them, and to have to always be right. Reveal truth about the state of my heart. I am broken before you; I want to listen to your word and your voice at the foot of the cross. Please remove all the distractions around me. Quiet my soul. And when the time comes for me to be confronted with life, arm me and make me a good soldier ready for battle. Bring healing to my ever-sensitive heart. Teach me how to be bold in speaking YOUR truth. Give me grace to be like you in mild, forthright and compassionate words for the purpose of drawing others to you. Help me not to make everything about me and my hurt feelings but about unity and love. May I then be willing to let it go into your hands. Guide me out of my negative thoughts. Teach me what true praise is. Lord, show me how to retrace my steps. Father. I am utterly depending on You this day for the cleansing of my soul and for the uprooting of sin. In Jesus name, Amen.