Learn to release

There are times when you cannot understand why you cannot do what you want to do. When God brings the blank space, see that you do not fill it in, but wait. The blank space may come in order to teach you what sanctification means, or it may come after sanctification to teach you what service means. Never run before God's guidance. If there is the slightest doubt then He is not guiding. Whenever there is doubt, don't. Oswald Chambers.
Learn to release.
Wow, I see how easily we become misguided! The picture of sheep, shepherd, and flock is one to ponder. In the movie 'City Slickers' Billy Crystal decides to have fresh ground coffee on a cattle drive. When he turns on the  grinder, the cattle stampede. They are startled and they start running, causing much grief to everyone. It is indeed a humorous and unforgettable scene. God has much to teach us through the behavior of animals. Look at politicians on opposite sides of an issue and you will find they both have stampeding followers behind them. If you look at Israel in the Bible, when they are following God and depending on His providence and guidance they are not stampeding or arguing. The minute they start to complain, like about the absence of meat in the desert, God sends quail and severe stomach cramps commence. They may have been tired of just eating manna but they were starting to doubt and complain. Doubting and complaining are the first indications that we are stepping away from God. We all do it and we all cause others to doubt as well. It is human nature, but God calls us to be set apart. Sanctified for His glory, just like He called Israel. Israel had God's chosen one to lead them and teach them. They had Moses and the prophets in the flesh. God has not left us today in the dark. God has in fact raised up many wise men and women to shine light on the our path but we also have the Holy Spirit and God's Word to guide and protect us. Yet at times we are all in the desert complaining about the manna and no meat. Maybe it's the car that keeps breaking down and the nice shiny new one we cannot afford. Or maybe you are tired and drained of energy and people are wanting to depend on you. It could be that others are worried and they want you to be worried with them. If we converse with one another and discuss issues then we will hear others' concerns and worries and what we have to say, or not say, matters. Are we walking so close to God and so intimately with His Word that we seem to have a bulletproof vest on against worry? Do we have the helmet of salvation, the breastplate of righteousness, the belt of truth, and the sandals of peaceful readiness? If not, we will indeed fall prey to the stampede of worry and anxiety. The only way to learn to release is to be well equipped with the armor of God.
Reading Oswald this morning I pondered what was consuming my most precious possession on this earth - how I spend my time. You see, I have been consumed with 'should we sell our house and get one that fits more our empty nest needs or just stay put?' House needs upkeep, updates, two people, four bedrooms, wasted space, etc., etc., you know the drill.
Discontent soon becomes the instrument that suffocates the life right out of us.
Talk to friends and neighbors and they are often facing the same dilemmas with no answers. Guess what? After this dilemma the next one is ready to jump in! This is human nature, and a battle of the flesh but God called us to be set apart and to put on the armor of God. It is such a sweet release and He wants us to know it here and now. We have our ideas of comfort, service, and well-being but they are not God's and cannot compare to His wonders that He has prepared for us.
Be still and know...when in doubt, don't.
If we wait and are determined to fill our minds with our Father's truth and will, when He says 'go' we will be prepared for good work. I, as much as everyone else, waste much time, create obstacles and hardships that my Lord never intended. With my worry or impulsive agenda I too have caused much needless worry and hardship and obstacles for others. We all have and we all do with what we think are good intentions. When we feel God distinctly has something for us to do, pray and wait on His timing. This is not putting off, this is trusting God. If we rush His timing we will end up making difficulties that were never His intent.
God can do in an instant what would have taken us years and He will do it without any heartbreak, stress, or disappointment.
'When it is a question of the providential will of God wait for God to move.'
If we desire to live as Christ, and be about our Father's business then we will desire to wait! Then when He says 'go' we will go!
  
     Heavenly Father please calm our anxious hearts and replace it with your peace.  Give us the desire to be still and know You; so we may walk with You well equipped for Your good work.  In Your Son's Jesus name I pray. Amen

Love to all in Christ Jesus C:)

Do you love me?

Do you love me? As believers, most of us would be quick to answer as Peter, "Lord, you know that I love you". Then what? Most, if not all, return to our busyness. The question we continually ask ourselves is: 'is my busyness His?' Everyday we should ask the Lord to show us "where is my heart?" Are we realizing we were put here at this time to be about our Father's business. We were designed uniquely for that specific purpose. We were given talents and gifts to use for His glory alone and like snowflakes no two are exactly alike. We cannot copy what the next person is doing. Our purpose is between our own heart and God's alone. No one else can give us directions to our life being fulfilled to the brim with God's design but God Himself! If we are too busy with our own agenda to walk and talk with Him in all we do, to sit , reflect, and study His word, to fellowship and learn, then we have no one to blame but our own selfish rebellion. Are we blind like unbelievers when we justify our wants to needs? 'A luxury once experienced goes from a want to a need.' We, for the most part, live in luxury. Pretty scary place to be if you ask me. What we do with the abundant blessing we have matters and it's not just material. We have abundant gifts and talents, abundant knowledge and understanding. We should be humbled to the core and be about doing great works for the kingdom of God. Are we so overwhelmed with blessings that we are like an overstimulated child at his own birthday party? Crying and unhappy because it is just too much!? If that is so, there is an incredible remedy. Give, give, give, and chances are you will become so incredibly addicted to how awesome it feels and how it glorifies the Father, you will never want to stop. Make others want what you have by what brings you joy, not by what you have acquired. Joy comes only from a fulfilled relationship with our Lord. We all know we can search this world over substituting everything we can find, and we know it is futile. Everyday we should ask the Lord to show us where our heart is and with humbled thanksgiving make the determined choice to be about our Father's business. If we truly are believers and followers of Christ Jesus , then we, too, are here to do ONLY the will of our Father.

     Heavenly Father, I pray that You will keep our minds clear and our eyes focused. May we feed Your sheep as only You would have us do. In Jesus Your Son's name I pray. Amen.
Love to all in Christ Jesus: c

Let your yes be yes and your no be no...

'No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.' Heb 3:11.
We live in a world of reasonable doubt. We can pretty much give in and rationalize just about anything. We have made tolerance an idol.
I recently watched the old movie 'Bad News Bears' with Walter Matthau. It was pretty clear to see the immaturity on the parts of the parents and coaches as it related to the raising of children in the 70's, and why the pendulum would swing toward tolerance as these children became parents. The problem with both of these viewpoints is that they have little or nothing to do with the word of God. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, ¹⁷ so that the servant of God^[a] may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. 2 Tim 3:16-17
We live in an age of the spirit of busyness and we simply do not take time to put on the armor of God. I have noticed as I have grown older that this is much more important to me, but what did my children receive in the busy hectic years of my child-rearing? Yes, I tried, yes, I prayed, and yes, I fell way short! We all do. 'For all... fall short of the glory of God.' Rom 3:23

God knows we are human and that left to ourselves we are in total darkness, but we do not have to choose darkness. May I be so bold as to suggest that change starts with one small step? A decision on time...just do it! Time to start your day in prayer, handing over the day's circumstances in complete trust. Praying for God's constant companionship and for ears to hear His voice. Praying for the desire to know and be in His Word. You may find at lunch you start reading His word, or the stories you tell your children are His; I don't know, but I do know that when your desire aligns with His, it is a joy to watch it be fulfilled. It reaches in to the very hardest parts of our lives and makes sense of the situations that we found so impossible. We will find that we never had the answers at all, and we need not go searching man's wisdom to find them. We will find that we are God's children and we can trust Him even with our own children. Did God not say ' Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.'? Prov 22:6? He didn't say in the way you may want him to go at a particular moment. You see, this is KEY here! We analyze too much and trust too little. Hebrews 12:5-6 says "My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when He rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines the one He loves, and He chastens everyone He accepts as His son." God knows what our children need, but do we know God so well that we trust Him when our children have to endure His discipline? Are we partners with Him in their raising and even when they are grown, in how we live our lives? Unfortunately for me, this has been one, if not the greatest trial. God gave me the overwhelming desire to nurture and protect my children but He also gave me the desire to know Him. You can nurture and protect without knowing God, but it will prove disastrous. I have found my peace when I nurture and protect according to His good Word. My yes can be yes and my no can be no with the compassion and love of Christ. It can be met with rebellion or acceptance and I can know that it is all part of my Father's plan, in bringing up my children in the way they should go so when they are old they will not depart from it. 
Being a demanding hothead or a rationalizing pushover was never God's plan. His plan is for us to "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding"Prov 3:5. This will either come as a tall impossible order or a sweet release, the choice is ours. May your yes be yes and no be no everyday on earth as it is in Heaven.
Heavenly Father, may we become a light on the path for our children's eyes, that they may even shine brighter for their children so that people's hearts will once again grow strong in their devotion to You and walk in Your ways. You are the Way, the Truth, and the Life, let us rejoice, let us rejoice. In Jesus our Savior's name I pray, Amen.
Love to all in Christ Jesus. c

Is it well with your soul?

     What ever my lot is it well with my soul?  Not always the way my mind thinks about it.  When we choose to surrender our lives to God, we feel the joy of it being well with our soul! or do we?  When life is very real and painful are we really thinking 'it is well with our soul' applies?  How do we rest with excruciating pain and loss?  Do we not have to go through the motions of feeling it, walking through the experience?  We are told we will have trials and tribulations, not maybe you will, maybe you won't.  God has to hurt the things that must go, and yes we will struggle to understand.  Oh surely not! He is a God of love!  We must realize love, true love, will be tough as well as tender.  If we ignored having to do the tough stuff with our children we understand that would harm them more than help them.  I can remember as a child my father saying "you probably won't understand this right now, but this hurts me more than it hurts you"; then I would get a spanking or grounded for something I knew was wrong but did anyway.  I hear parents say that they don't ground their children because it punishes them, too! To that I say 'so what!'  If it will be beneficial for the child then do whatever it takes!  I once grounded my child from driving for a month as a Junior in high school.  Yes I had to get up every morning and drive her to school but I loved her so much it was not an imposition, it was tough love.  I am so thankful I had a father willing to teach me the hard stuff.  God is willing to teach us the hard stuff, too. The question is, is it well with our soul?  My father taught me he was willing to handle my anger and rebellion if I chose to do so in order to teach me right from wrong.  I do not want to express tough love and I do not know anyone who does.  Many people simply refuse to go there; but I believe there are times when we must put our big boy or big girl pants on and press through the tough stuff.  I decided long ago that I loved my children enough for them (to think) they hate me and yes, run the risk of them actually hating me.  I also believe God my Father when He commanded me to "bring up (my) children in the way they should go and when they are old they will not depart from it.'   I also know to "Trust in the Lord with all my heart and lean not unto my own understanding." So in the end the unpopular things I take stands on with my loved ones is because I love them, but more than that, because I love God!  God is not going to forsake me even if I don't understand my lot, or my children's and loved ones lot.  This too I must learn is well with my soul.  When we confess our faith, we gave our lives back to Christ.  "...  the life I now live, I live through Christ who died so I might live." Gal. 2:20  Our souls are His, they are not our own, what ever our lot, 'It is well it, is well with our soul'.  Doesn't say we get to understand it all right now, doesn't say it won't be hard at times and it won't hurt.  God's voice to the saints here is quiet but there is no mistaking it!  We know the right thing to do .  Our flesh so wants the voice to go away so we do not have to deal with the tough stuff;  but we will be miserable until we do.  Oswald Chambers sums this up like only he can " The checks of the spirit come in the most extraordinarily  gentle ways, and if you are not sensitive enough to detect His voice, you will quench it, and your spiritual life will be impaired."  We must stop and do the right thing when we know it or we will grieve the heart of God and ourselves for we have a new heart which is being transformed into His.  Being well with our soul is not a promise of an easy life;  it is a promise of no matter our lot it is well with our soul. " Yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death; I will fear no evil"!  Puts our crazy world in perspective for me and I for one want to hang on to the one thing that will never change for it is well, it is well with my soul!
  
Heavenly Father  We are a fearful people, we panic easily and want to take matters into our own hands. We do not want our loved ones to suffer, grant us the wisdom and courage to get through the tough stuff. Give us Your peace that surpasses all understanding; let us be content just to know what ever our lot it is well with our soul.  Thank you for sending your Son to die for our sins so we might have eternal life with You. In Jesus your Son's name I pray. amen

Love to all in Christ Jesus C:)

Blessings Disguised

We have all been shocked, caught off guard, had the very breath sucked right out of us. All our hope, prayer, strength ripped down to a crumbling brittle leaf. Great is Thy Faithfulness is no where in our blurred tearful eye's sight. We can't turn left or right. So many before us have written on this. Solomon and all his wisdom said wisdom was nothing, and who can ever forget Job! We can read and we can learn but until we walk through it we cannot apply it to our lives. It's easy to say 'Oh poor so and so, they should have done this or they should have done that!' These thoughts have me humbled to the core on ever giving anyone else my advice ever again. Our words are useless to comfort unless from God alone. Not that we don't long to help and comfort but we must realize it is not our call; but only the call of our Lord alone. We understand this when we are the one in need of this comfort. In this unbearable dark place we must learn to trust our God. It is not surprising at all why so many families and marriages are ruined over crises. Life is indeed messy and most of us are poorly equipped at best. Our faith is fragile at best and God knows what pain lies ahead of each of us to make that faith strong. These heartaches are our blessings in disguise. We do not want them and they will most assuredly wreak havoc on us in one way or another. The saving grace is simple, and at first most reject it out of the shock of pain that has been injected without warning - or at least we refused to see the warnings, as it may be in some cases. Processing pain is complicated: anger, blame, guilt, whys and yet... Wait for it... Ahhh yes I remember, I said I believed! I made a choice and I'm either going to follow that choice to my grave or I am not. Why must I bear this hurt, this circumstance, this burden? Doesn't matter! I will handle it with truth and love. I do not have to be intimidated or quiet about my plight but I must handle it through my Savior's will. I am still given a choice but the catch is I need to remember I have already made it!!! "To follow after Thee". It seems hard at times and we are hurt by others because of it, especially by those closest to us . Elisabeth Elliot wisely said "The throne before the phone" and she is right! God will put people in your path when He is ready but first and foremost we need Him! -especially in anger and hurt. "The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want... He leadeth me beside still waters, He restores my soul. He guides me in the path of righteousness for His name's sake. Yea thou I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. This is to be lived out; our sanctification through our hardships in life. Life will throw us punches that are hard to take but we choose! Believers choose goodness and love "For God is love"! That's what we have in the midst of our blurred vision of hurt, the knowledge that "Lo, I will never leave you."

Heavenly Father

It is difficult to see Your provisions and blessings when caught off guard and hurt. A chain reaction of no one understanding our pain or able to comfort us. Help us to rest in You alone. Seek You alone so we may see the magnitude of Your blessings in disguise wrapped in the arms of Your love. In Your Son's name I pray. Amen

Love to all in Christ Jesus C:)

Dead and Buried

"Be anxious for nothing but in prayer and supplication let your request be known to God..." Prayer and supplication, is that our first reaction to trials in our lives or do we want to fix it ourselves?

The simple reason we face weights of depression and anxiety is that we refuse to be dead and buried with Christ and walk in the newness of life. We are in constant war with our flesh. Ever go to church camp as a kid or a retreat or revival as an adult? Maybe it was a particular sermon at church that moved you toward great freedom and joy? Didn't you want to stay there and never leave? If only... If only I could stay here and feel this way all the time. "I can see clearly now the rain has gone. I can see all obstacles in my way" and I know and understand, and believe in the One who has conquered them for me! But alas, it does not last - that clear mountaintop of vision. The dark, very real and very scary storm clouds roll in once again and I believe it is for our own well being. We get to experience many storms and God's deliverance from them. I think perhaps we will always cringe to some degree at our lack of faith when once again we realize God's amazing hand on our lives. It is the trying times, the difficulties and hardships God wants us to relinquish in the heat of the moment. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego are testaments to that statement alone. We may not face a physical furnace, but we all will experience the flame of trials. Most of us are indeed fearful of walking across the stormy water to Jesus and even Peter, who did, started to doubt and sink. Yet Peter believed and so do we. It is the simple act of faith and trust and we all are asked "Do you love me?..." With age comes wisdom and we all want wisdom before the age but very few indeed possess it. Wisdom requires, for most, experience, and a lot of it. I think sometimes on the mountaintops when we can see clearly we tend to think when the storm clouds roll it will be well with my soul. Yep, we are in the clear and we know and believe the truth yet....(come on you knew it was coming!) we all mourn and regret past actions and actions to come! That's right - actions to come, why? We are not fully sanctified until we are in the presence of the Lord and we all know "to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord." I realize most of us may look at this as a real downer - totally depressing! Ummm until I die I'm basically screwed except for a few brief mountaintop experiences?! We all have times of thinking this way - some more than others. Half empty, half full? How we choose to see matters! It is a choice and we all make it. That doesn't mean when you choose to look at it as half full you do not have to have the difficult times, conversations etc... It just means you do what God has for you to do and you know He is in control and that in Him alone your joy may be made full. "I've looked at life from both sides now... It's life's illusions I recall, I really don't know life at all." God is fully aware we really don't know life at all and He is with us to walk us through it; if and only if we trust Him to do so. I can tell you I do not like my life when it is a half empty glass full of depression and anxiety. Wait for it, wait for it, and do so with great expecting joy! Wait for the Son to shine light into your eyes. "Fear not for I am with you always." When I feel myself saying 'easier said than done', that is my rebellion throwing a fit because I do not want to be put in a vulnerable situation and hand over control. This should ring a bell with us all if we are honest. We may be scared but we must trust the net is there; trust and obey! to do what? Make the leap! Once we do we will see our joy has always been there in the midst of all our circumstances; whether good or painful. Whatever comes, all my reactions and shortcomings I have already overcome through my faith in my Savior who died and was buried and so are my sins! If we choose to believe this then we choose to believe in the resurrection, the newness of life and life everlasting! We have the strength through Christ our Savior to get over ourselves and choose. "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength." Practice the presence of God, put on the armor of God. If we choose to do that each and everyday the other choices will become exceedingly clear in the midst of the storms of life. I hope and pray as believers we may all learn to look forward to making the leaps instead of fearing them. May we learn to live a bold life for Christ in a attitude of love.

Heavenly Father

You so patiently let us struggle so we might live and live abundantly. You love us with a greater love than we love our own children and we know too that our children will struggle. Nudge our hearts Lord to keep our eyes fixed on you so light may shine on the path for all to see. In Jesus name I pray. Amen

Love to all in Christ Jesus C:)

Children learn what they live!

Wake up wake up Oh sleeper!

We are all probably familiar with the commercial of a cruise liner where a man is putting on a golf green aboard a ship just as an extremely loud horn blasts "Wasn't expecting the horn!"Sad but true, we live focused on about every distraction life has to throw at us, but rest assured the loud horn is coming when we least expect it. We will be jolted awake to see that life has zipped by. Our children are grown and we will ponder our journey with many questions; some joys, and for many, regrets. It is inevitable that all of us will some day realize we could have done more. I do not believe it is ever too late while we are still here on this earth to wake up! Pray for the horn to blast in every aspect of your life that is not devoted to God because one day you will realize it is not about you but about everyone your life touched for the glory of God. Nothing pulls at our heartstrings more than our children, our own flesh and blood. It is uncanny that we do not devote more of our time and energy to bringing up our children in the way he or she should go. Another sad sad realization is that we can not if we do not know ourselves. I have heard many times a parent say that going to church and their children's faith will be for them to decide when they are old enough to understand! What part of 'children learn what they live' do we not understand! If we find it hard to find time for God our children will indeed find it impossible! Let me say this again and yes this is one for your mirror, fridge, or wall! If we find it hard to find time for God our children will indeed find it impossible! Many times the Israelites turned away from God and worshiped other gods. We make the same choice today to turn away or turn toward! We love our children - that's a given -we live in a very busy chaotic time but we need not be dismayed by it. Jesus has won the victory! And He chose us and we choose Him! Hallelujah Amen! We all get distracted by bright shiny objects. Some more than others and that, my friend, is me , ADD to the max. But nothing is impossible for my Savior and yes sometimes it takes a loud horn to get my attention but instead of being distraught over my distractions I would much rather embrace my Jesus thrilled to be back in His loving arms! So many times I do not even realize I have let the world consume me. I wander off but Jesus always knows where I am . We know sharing the realities of life with our children is so important but it cannot make sense without the truth of God's word . We will never be perfect as parents and its a good thing we are not. Our children are learning not only from us but with us as well. Are we living examples to them how Jesus saves and can they see a transformation in us as we grow older? If our hearts desire Jesus then by the truth of God's word the answer is yes! "Let not your hearts be troubled ...." "Sanctify them," said Jesus, in the truth;" Our Lord's word is truth! To grow our children in sound living, we must grow in sound understanding in the truth of God's word. "No man indulges and error of judgment without sooner or later tolerating an error in practice. Hold fast the truth for by doing so you shall be sanctified by the spirit of God ." (Again) "No man indulges an error of judgment without sooner or later tolerating an error in practice. Hold fast the truth for by doing so you shall be sanctified by the spirit of God." Charles Spurgeon. Yes, another one for your mirror, wall or fridge.

Heavenly Father may we be still and know the beautiful peace of being still and next to you. May we be willing sheep; to follow our master and lay beside still waters and learn of Your love, guidance, and truth. May this be evident to our children as they grow so that Your glory may continue throughout our families for generations. I pray that we may equip our children well to face the storms of life with your saving light. May we teach our children well in Jesus your Son's name I pray. Amen

Love to all in Christ Jesus C:)