A Hide and Seek Challenge!

I am inviting you to join us in a Spring Challenge.  The kind of challenge that changes your life...causing you to live and breathe the very words of God...in your kitchen, in your car, echoed in your prayers and whispered in the sweet dreams of sleep.  Really.  It will change your life.

We have begun memorizing in the first chapter of Ephesians....and seriously, it's so good.  As you meditate through each phrase, ask the Lord to speak to you, ask Him what this means and what that means?  Talk to Him as you memorize each line...think about the words and what God is saying to you right now.

Some are faster, and some are slower at this sort of thing...don't get caught up in the conquering but...lose yourself in the listening.  We will begin one verse at a time.  And when that one is done...good and steady, imprinted on your beating heart...it will be time to go on to the next one.  

We do not all have to be at the same place at the same time but there is something seriously beautiful about going there together.  

If you're game and you want more....Join us.  

Let me know, so we can encourage each other,

 as we Hide God's Word in our Hearts and Seek His Heart along the way.

In God Alone...

I've been thinking a lot about unconditional love over the past few days. This type of love would be called, "agape love." One reference I read said it was, "intelligent, purposeful and active; and is expressed by doing that which results in the highest good for the person loved, without expecting anything in return."

When I consider what that means... I realize that I fall pretty short of "agape love." In our human nature, it is so easy to expect love, affection and appreciation from the ones we give it to. But, how many times has God answered our prayers and we failed to show our appreciation. Or, just sort of mentally said "Whew!" We made it through that one! And yet, how many times have I been hurt when those I loved failed to see the sacrifice I had made for them and became resentful because I expected something I did not get.

God keeps on loving us... He doesn't remove his affection like we do... He doesn't become sullen and dwell on why He hasn't heard from us... He doesn't try to figure out what His next step is.

God is... "Grace and mercy, truth and purity, full of loving kindness, forgiving, light in darkness, righteous, just, faithful, holy and blameless. There are not enough words to describe what a wonderful and loving God we have!

I struggle with myself sometimes because I want that "agape' love in my life. But I get caught up in the flesh, wanting to be appreciated or acknowledged. Not all the time, but it does show up when I least expect it. I am glad that I can tell all of that to God though and He doesn't condemn me or reject me. I love His Scripture because it encourages me more than anything else. Psalm 66 tells us...

"Come and listen; all you who fear God; let me tell you what He has done for me. I cried out to Him with my mouth; his praise was on my tongue. If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened; but God has surely listened and heard my voice in prayer. Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld His love from me!

God does not withhold His love from us! If we confess to Him our weaknesses, our sins... He is so eager to forgive us and lead us in the right direction. If we rely on anything other than His love, guidance and direction... we will always be disappointed in this life.

"Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from Him." Psalm 62:5

The Voice of the Lord

I was reading in Psalms the other day, and found a really cool passage in Psalm 29:3-9.

³ The voice of the LORD is over the waters;
the God of glory thunders,
the LORD thunders over the mighty waters.
⁴ The voice of the LORD is powerful;
the voice of the LORD is majestic.
⁵ The voice of the LORD breaks the cedars;
the LORD breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon.
⁶ He makes Lebanon leap like a calf,
Sirion like a young wild ox.
⁷ The voice of the LORD strikes
with flashes of lightning.
⁸ The voice of the LORD shakes the desert;
the LORD shakes the Desert of Kadesh.
⁹ The voice of the LORD twists the oaks
and strips the forests bare.
And in his temple all cry, “Glory!”

As you can see, the part that stuck out to me was the voice of the Lord, and how amazingly powerful it is. It thunders, it creates lightning, it shakes the desert, it is majestic... you'd think I was talking about a huge storm or something. God's voice is so powerful that creation came to be by just Him speaking.

⁹ For he spoke, and it came to be;
he commanded, and it stood firm.
(Psalm 33:9)

That is INSANE! And then I thought of something else. That same voice, the awesome voice that created everything, speaks to me in the quiet places of my heart. It whispers words of encouragement or challenge, it blesses me and teaches me. It just amazes me that God would choose to take His booming, thundering voice, and shrink it down to a whisper so we can hear Him in our hearts. It makes me realize that He really does love us. The God of the Universe speaks to each and every one of us. That just blows my mind.

Little Words Make All the Difference

One super cool thing about memorizing scripture, is that you notice every word. In the first verse of Ephesians there is the significant word "in."

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,

To the saints who are in Ephesus, and are faithful in Christ Jesus:

As I began to work on memorizing this verse, at first I thought I was quoting when I said, "faithful to Christ Jesus," but then I noticed that it was "faithful in Christ Jesus."

It's just a little word, what's the difference!?

Faithful to Christ Jesus is more about me.

Faithful in Christ Jesus is all about Christ.

It's a huge difference. In the person of Jesus Christ you are faithful if you are in Him. That's how it is. That's what He says... and we know that what He says is true no matter how we think or feel. In Christ we are faithful. That's good news! Whoo hoo! God is amazing!

Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.  1 Thessalonians 5:23-24

God is faithful, and in Christ we are faithful. Doesn't that truth make you love Him even more? Isn't it amazing that God declares us faithful and sees us faithful? All because of Christ.

Are you caught in an undertow?

I am sitting in my living room this evening and it's almost 5 o'clock. There is a glow and warmth coming from the fireplace that makes me feel cozy and comforted. It is grey and cloudy outside with drops of rain still holding onto the branches of the tree outside my window. It has been a while since I have written. I have no excuses except that I have been dealing with some issues of the heart. My heart to be specific... Don't we all struggle with something from time to time. Just when we think we have a handle on things, we are thrown a curve.

How quickly we can spiral down to a place where we feel like we are drowning. It would not be our first time... or our last. Fortunately, for me... I know how to swim. But sometimes even knowing how to swim does not takes us to the shore. Maybe we swam out too far... or the water is really cold and we are getting cramps and we know we cannot make it back without help. I remember two times in my life when I thought I was actually going to drown and I was a good swimmer. One of those times I was in the ocean and was being pulled out further and further by an undertow. The harder I swam to get to the beach and safety, the stronger the undertow pulled me back. I had lost all hope that I was going to get any closer to shore when I felt my body being lifted by the strong push of my husband's hands. I swam, he pushed. Eventually we got to shore and I collapsed in relief.

What I am trying to say is... I knew how to swim, but something more powerful than me had a grip on my life that was beyond my control. When I felt the strength in my husband's hands, it gave me strength to not give up and to keep swimming.

Sometimes, we need a lifeline. We need someone to encourage us. We need to know that whatever it is that is trying to suck us under does not have all the control. We need to rely on what we know is true and allow others to help us if we need it. We need God's Word and we need to ask others to pray for us when we are hurting or struggling. Sometimes, someone else can shed a different light on what is happening and it is not as bad as it seemed after all. Don't be afraid to ask someone to help you.

May you have a blessed week as you keep looking to the One who loves you as no other can.

Trust

I hate being sick. I don't get sick too often, but when I do, I hate it. I feel gross, but also useless and energy deprived. It takes a lot of effort to do small, normal things. That's how I'm feeling right now. But being sick is also a good reminder for me... I am imperfect. This world is fallen, so we humans are not perfect. Only God is perfect. I keep having to ask Him to be strong in my weakness. It's at times like this when I really feel like if I don't lean on Him, I'll fall apart. So, I guess in a way, being sick is a lesson for me. I need to trust completely in Jesus all the time, not just when I'm tired, grumpy and feeling disgusting. I should be leaning on Him when things are just great... when I have lots of energy, when my life is going well. All the time. We need to trust in Him, all the time.

Forgive and Live

"Good sense makes one slow to anger,  and it is his(her) glory to overlook an offense."

Proverbs 19:11

Right now, while you're reading this post, it's time. God is calling you to say "yes" to Him.

Jesus says, "Forgive. As I've forgiven you, you also must forgive."

If that's what you're hearing from Him, do it now. It's time. Right now, while you're even giving it a thought, forgive.

"But I can't!" you say. I know. That's a given. Forgiveness is miraculous; God needs to do it in you. Ask God to change your heart so that you can forgive. If you don't feel like it, admit that. You don't have to feel like it, you just need to be willing. You can choose to forgive...even if you don't feel like it.

Do you know why God wants you to forgive? Because He knows how you're made. He knows what gives you peace and joy and life. Today is the day to forgive. Don't wait. Do it now. For heaven's sake, forgive! For your sake, forgive... and live.