As I was sitting outside in silence for a few minutes, the most subtle scene grabbed my attention. The wind blew my back patio gate back and forth before resituating it in a different direction. I was immediately awestruck by the thought that the wind, although invisible and in this situation barely audible, is so powerful. The gate is steel, and the wind was not blowing hard; and because of the weight of the gate, it would appear only movable by human hands. The wind, however, delicately yet decisively, rearranged its coordinates in the most humble manner. God is like that, friend. He may be invisible but never idle, always capable of shifting that which seems stagnant. By nature, we want to take charge because the inconspicuous illusion of control deceives us into believing in our sufficiency. Although you cannot see God, and maybe you are standing under circumstances that bear the weight of the world, do not concede to what you see, cling to what He says. Your Father is able, and when the time is right; He will change that which appears concrete. Ephesians 3:20, Isaiah 60:22.
Tag: faith
Backdrops For Blessings
Manna for your moment from my yard. Notice that every individual dew drop is distinct in its resting place upon the rose. This picture reminds me that like the rose catches the rain, God catches every tear. He compassionately holds each one with singular significance and gives them shelter until the Son tenderly wipes them away. God never wastes your tears. Sometimes they are tokens of joy and sometimes pain, but not one goes unnoticed or falls in vain. Every part of who you are matters to Him. When you feel the least loved or lovable, remember that like the dew finds respite upon the flower, we find refuge in The Father; and hope accessorized with faith whispers, moments when we feel bruised are backdrops for blessings.🌹
You Already Are Accepted
My selfish desire is for everyone to be pleased with me, because of this, the relationships in my life that I am insecure about cause me to be anxious. I never know if I am enough or am doing enough to be loved and accepted by the other person. I begin to believe the lie that I have to perform in a way that pleases that person to gain their acceptance. That is bad news and not a healthy or peaceful way to live.
A relationship we have to earn will always end in our hearts getting burned.
Here is the good news of the gospel of Jesus; we do not have to do good works to be loved and accepted; we do good works because we already are loved and accepted. Isn’t that a breath of fresh air?! A relationship we have to earn is one that will always end in our hearts getting burned.
Resurrection Living
Every year around Easter time I reflect on the amazing truth that after Jesus’ crucifixion came His resurrection. When I think about what that sealed for me, I cannot help but rejoice. It was the genesis of the greatest hope the world had ever known. A displaced stone and an empty tomb ushered into eternity new life for followers of King Jesus; securing victory over death, guilt, shame, fear, and condemnation. How wonderful that news is for you and me!
The resurrection of Jesus handed us a priceless gift including all the assets we need to live a joyful life. But I would be remiss if I also did not take the time to ask myself honestly, Today, am I living in the darkness of Jesus’ crucifixion or the light of His resurrection?
Often fear is a frequent “friend.” Sin is my sneaky shadow and circumstances can hollow my heart of hope. This life can easily conform me into a pattern of crucifixion living when I neglect the conditions of my head and my heart. May we never forget the crucifixion, friends; but we must remember Jesus did not die for us to get stuck there. He did not die for us to live small defeated lives. Yes, all stories have seasons of suffering, and many do not end well. It is only the stories of believers living under the resources of a selfless Savior that have the certainty of happy ever after.
I will be honest. I long for this life to look like a Hallmark movie. When I am persisting horizontally, I am defeated by my desire. It is only when my eyes are fixed vertically on Jesus, and I am persevering out of the provisions secured by His resurrection that I can live a victorious life because I know how my story ends and there is a big red bow on top!
Lord Jesus, thank you for procuring paradise for me. I pray that I along with all your children would remember the royalties afforded by your resurrection. May we cast off the weights of crucifixion living, and rest under the shelter of your resurrection. We love you, Lord. Thank you for loving us enough to ensure what we could never do for ourselves. I ask that you would grant us the grace to live from the promises of the resurrection, not just during the Easter season, but through all seasons. Amen.
Temporarily Stalled Stories
Seemingly open doors that fold on seasons of prayer are difficult. Sometimes it feels like we are marching to the beat of a stagnant song forever in waiting.
I am so grateful to be at a place in my life where I can confidently rejoice in the folding of opportunities because I know that each canceled plan is leading me closer to the perfect time and place engraved in the palm of my Savior’s hand.
What are you waiting for today, friend? Pauses hold great purpose in The Painter’s picture.
Futility and faith do not dance in The Teacher’s plan.
Hold on to the hope that you are being honed for a time that is perfect and predestined by a Soverign God who wants your temporarily stalled story to be used for His glory.
The Battle of Hope
I have been struggling with the battle found in the word hope. Hope is a beautiful and bright assurance that allows us to persevere through even our darkest realities and scenarios because we know the best is yet to come. However, while we wait, the burden of seeing the actualization of our dreams and desires can leave us battered, and sometimes beaten up. The first position of hope is of things to be realized once we are Home and have entered eternal life. The second is the concern we carry that the things we long for may not be complete in this fleeting life. In my reading this morning, Romans 8:24-25 ministered to me to patiently persist as I have been arduously enduring through this fight of faith with a matter near and dear to my heart. ~For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. What are you desperately hoping will be achieved; a cure, a child to come home, a reconciled relationship, a successful pregnancy, financial stability, a life partner, victory over addiction, fill in your blank. Fight to keep holding on with free hands and a faithful heart that is courageous enough to say, Even If, (Daniel 3:18), not here Lord, when I see your face. Thy will be done. Amen.
The Emphasis is Not I, But I Am
When I am in a state of spiritual amnesia, which can happen all too quickly, I can get myself wound up over making pending decisions or managing looming outcomes. God has impressed upon me lately to take notes on myself; notes about how I talk to myself and about myself. What is my “self-talk?” Journaling my thoughts and talk has been a VERY helpful thing to do for a vast variety of reasons. Themes emerge that bear paying attention. One line I catch myself saying is some variation of, “What am I going to do; or, I just do not know what to do?” The first red flag in these functionally atheistic statements is the emphasis of I. I am just not that powerful, and that is easy to forget. Making decisions can be hard, especially when they are quilted closely to the treasures of our hearts. I often have to remember that I am not in this alone. I have a Savior who is sovereign and does not get it wrong–EVER. In the midst of our hard predicaments, however, this chart below is the perfect depiction of how to go about making spiritual sound decisions. I know many of you are facing difficult choices in your life. If you aren’t now, you will be soon. I pray you find this helpful, friend! This is the day The Lord has made, and you are loved this day, and all days.
Remember and Rest,Friends
I started my first seminary class last night. I have to say I felt slightly displaced as one who thrives on application among the academics. It is no surprise that the things that stuck with me the most were the points that immediately spoke and applied to my heart.
Our teacher told a story about a young boy who would always wear his underwear, otherwise know as under britches (lol), backward. His dad would always say, son, turn your under britches around. Time and again they would be on backward, so the dad finally asked the child, “why do you wear your under britches backward? The young boy replied, “Dad, I want to see the big picture.” The big picture was Spiderman and all his friends.
I have been thinking about that, and how we have so much going on in our lives that we sometimes can get so bogged down in every detail that we miss the bigger picture.
The ultimate picture is this; there are so many things of this world that I see and do not understand. There is suffering, there are tragedies and illnesses that break my heart, and I am tempted to ask, why God? Why do you allow all this? I have been diligently practicing before I ever get to the why to remember the Who.
The bigger picture often alludes us, and we see the fallen, the evil, the travesties. Thankfully, though, we have a sovereign God who sees, knows and controls everything. It would strike us as insane that He would send His only son to die for someone else, but He did because He crafted the bigger plan far in advance. God promises His picture will prosper us (Jeremiah 29:11). He promises a bigger picture that will ultimately be for the good of those who love Him (Romans 8:28).
We must not get weighed down in all the little details of daily life, friends. If we pick apart ever issue we don’t agree with or understand, life will become very laborious quickly. I know it is tempting. We are passionate people who seek clarity, but we must not let our pursuits and passions overshadow our purpose. John 6:29 says, Jesus told them, “This is the only work God wants from you: Believe in the one He has sent.”
Will you believe in Him? Will you remember there is a bigger picture that requires faith to sustain us? It will take effort, and it will not be efficient, but effective, Yes! You will have to fight, but you will find freedom! You will forget and struggle to realize, but you will learn to surrender and rest.
I am praying for you, as I ask for myself to resist the temptation to focus so much on the trees that I forget to there is a big, beautiful and mighty forest above and around all those trees.
There is a loving God who has His hand on every minor and major detail of our lives.
Remember, friends. Remember and rest.
Even If, Friend
There was a time when I would head into every new year thinking maybe this will be the year. Maybe this year (blank) will change. Maybe this year (blank) will be easier. Maybe this year (blank) will be less painful. Maybe, maybe, maybe. In retrospect, all those maybes were born from a shifty hunger within myself rather than a sure hope in my Savior. No wonder the cycle repeated itself every year. I measured the success of my years by earthly fortune instead of eternal fruit.
My craving for certain circumstances to change is not wrong, and neither is yours. However, my concern should be more about spiritual maturation and less about situational modification. When I focus more on what God is doing in and for me, and less on what the world is doing around me, my outlook completely shifts; my joy increases, thankfulness thrives, I bemoan less and believe more. It is not that griefs dissolve, but gratitude dominates.
I know 2016 and his predecessors have left scars, friend. I know some have left you weary and wishing for relief, but although you carry those scars you don’t have to cower to them. Yes, they are painful, but if we are believing, we can know we are benefiting as challenging as it sometimes is to reconcile.
As you walk into 2017, I pray you tuck two very powerful words from scripture in a pocket of your heart and carry them into the new year with you. EVEN IF (Daniel 3:18). Even if (blank) does not change, I will focus on my Creator not my crosses. You are loved.
Faith,Not Feats
I am not good enough. I will never be good enough. I could never be a Christian because I can not get my act together to qualify. If you ever find yourself thinking these thoughts, you are right about all except the last one. You, NOR I will never be adequate, but Jesus was enough on our behalf. Being good enough is not and never was up to us. WE are perfectly acceptable and accepted as we are because He was and is sufficient, and He completed us by imparting His righteousness to us as a gift that we receive by believing. We are justified by faith, not feats. I hope you rest easy tonight knowing you are enough, friend! You are loved!