A Year of Waiting - Respite

The word respite is a waiting word, but one that usually gives the idea of a welcome break. A respite is defined by Webster’s Online Dictionary as (noun) a period of temporary delay, an internal rest or relief; as (verb) to grant a temporary period of relief to, or to grant a respite to, or to put off or delay. A respite is a term also applied to giving a caregiver a break from caring for an ill loved one.

As I type this my husband and I are on, what I would call, a respite. We got away for the purpose of rest and relief. Although, I think a true respite would be to completely unplug, with no phone or internet, something that is rarely attained, even when we purpose to do it. However, just getting a change of scenery and getting outside can provide a similar benefit to a true respite.

Image by Julia from Pixabay

Doesn’t that picture make you want to get away? Ha, ha. Getting away is something both my spouse and I find cathartic to the chaos filled, fast paced and anxiety inducing lives we are often living. Even though we no longer have children at home, we live close to our girls, and in turn our grandsons. This is a wonderful thing and I count myself very blessed to have both of our grandsons in our lives and to be a part of helping our daughters and their significant others take care of and have input in their lives.

In addition to family my spouse’s job keeps him busy, and I have my blog and all the other responsibilities of maintaining a home, grocery shopping, making meals, laundry, the list goes on. As with most people we are also constantly bombarded by images, noise, and input in the form of news, social media, and everything else we have access to on the internet.

As I have in all the past posts on A Year of Waiting, I find a definite connection to our waiting on the Lord. So often, God brings circumstances into our lives to bring us into a waiting position. We are to wait for Him, whether it is for deliverance, justice, healing, rescue, hope, glory or perfection. Waiting is much less about what we are waiting for and more about who brought us to a place of waiting.

Image by Jeff Jacobs from Pixabay

The Old and New Testaments are full of examples of men and women who had to wait. Noah had to wait while building the ark for the actual flood, over 100 years of waiting. Abraham waited a lifetime for a son. Hannah waited for a child. The people of Israel waited 400 years before they were lead out of slavery from the Egyptians. Simeon waited his whole life for the One who would save Israel. Jesus waited approximately 30 years before starting his public ministry. Life is filled with waiting.

When we look closely at the word respite we see it is a waiting that is meant for good. Indeed, I believe that all waiting brought about by God’s orchestration is meant for our good. As I mentioned in my original post at the beginning of this year, Word for 2024: Wait, waiting can be to keep us safe, give us rest, or give us time to think through a decision or recover from a difficult circumstance or tragedy.

Unfortunately, finding a respite in these busy, chaos filled, and tragic times can be difficult. It really takes a choice and often a predetermined plan. Whether you need to find time to spend with God or time to regroup and reenergize, or time to grieve and heal, the best way to get a respite is to schedule it in just like you would a doctor’s appointment, a trip to the gym, or a visit with a friend.

Image by SerenityArt from Pixabay

Don’t think of it so much in terms of quantity as in quality. An individual who is providing long term care for a sick or aging family member finds they are much better able to cope when they can just walk a way, even for a short time period. Whether it be 15 or 30 minutes for a walk outside, a two hour walk around the mall, or an entire weekend in a different location you can find respite in the smallest of changes and moments.

Also, recognize what might work for me, might not work for you. Not everyone likes the outdoors. I can actually sit out on our patio on a sunny day and feel like I am getting away from whatever struggle I am dealing with. Both my spouse and I love to take walks and hike, but not everyone does. The point is to find what works for you.

Respite is a type of waiting that is important for all of us to do. God made the Sabbath for our benefit, and for His glory, but it seems in this day and age, we have forgotten how to rest and be still, whether you believe the Sabbath is on Saturday or Sunday. God knew how restless a people we would be and also how fatigued we would become from our nonstop lifestyle.

“10 “Cease striving and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.””

— Psalm 46:10 (NASB 1995)

“28 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.
29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.””

— Matthew 11:28-30 (NASB 1995)

I hope you will find time for a respite, and find time to go to the Creator of your soul who truly knows how to give you rest.

Mulling it Over - Romans 8:30

Last month we looked at Romans 8:29, and had a short discussion on the theological points of predestination and free will. We also looked at what followed this idea of predestination, that we are being conformed to the image of Christ.

Image by Dimitris Vetsikas from Pixabay

Today we are going to look at verse 30. Once again, we are proceeding slowly, so that we might truly understand and let the Spirit drive home the truths revealed in these Scriptures.

“30 and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.”

— Romans 8:30 (NASB 1995)

and these whom He predestined,

We discussed this in last month’s post. The end result is God is able to both predestine and give us a free will. We tend to limit God, because we think if it is beyond our understanding then it must not be the case. We need to recognize God’s wisdom is a mystery and is not always completely known to us.

“6 Yet we do speak wisdom among those who are mature; a wisdom, however, not of this age nor of the rulers of this age, who are passing away;
7 but we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God predestined before the ages to our glory;
8 the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it they would not have crucified the Lord of glory;”

— I Corinthians 2:6-8 (NASB 1995)

For instance, a 7 day, literal creation has stumped many a Christian over the decades. This is not a problem for me. As my husband always says, “Seven days? What took Him so long?” Ha, ha. Unfortunately, rather than taking God at His word, and according to His word, man has come up with alternative theories to better coincide with the evolutionary theory touted by Darwin. The Day Age Theory, and The Gap Theory are two of the most popular.

Image by Andrew Martin from Pixabay

I just wanted to reiterate, we are the Creation, not the Creator, and we are limited in our understanding of the many layers of God. With that said, lets move on.

He also called;

This idea of calling has also had its day on the debate floor. Questions that have been around for years include: Is everyone called? Is calling just for special people at certain times? Is calling only for people going into full time Christian service, like a missionary or a pastor, etc?

Image by Steve Buissinne from Pixabay

I see calling as a general term, much like predestination. We are all predestined, meaning God wants all of us to become His children by belief in Christ. In the same way we are all called. The difference lay in the fact that we must respond to His calling. We must choose to believe. Of course that presupposes you believe in free will. :)

“God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord..”

— I Corinthians 1:9 (NASB 1995)

Let me reiterate, I am not a theologian. I had three years of Bible school, but that doesn’t mean I have exhaustively studied every topic. However, I do believe God gives us His wisdom, understanding and knowledge as we delve into His deeper layers through His Holy Spirit. That being said, if you ever think I am in error in the ideas I bring to you, I welcome your thoughts.

and these whom He called, He also justified;

The word justify is defined in several ways: to judge, regard or treat as worthy of salvation; to prove or show to be just, right, or reasonable. Justification is the process by which Christ takes on our sin through His death on the cross enabling us to be worthy of God’s calling. In essence Christ’s blood covered us so that we might be made right before God.

Image by Sang Hyun Cho from Pixabay

“24 being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus;”

— Romans 3:24 (NASB 1995)

…and these whom He justified, He also glorified.

The predestination, calling and justification all lead to the perfect end result, our glorification. The older I get, the more I look forward to this glorification process. At 60 I am experiencing all the things that age brings with it. I have become acquainted with chronic illness, my hair is thinning, my joints ache, and my brain is almost always in the phase of post menopausal fog.

Image by kapokia from Pixabay

Jesus told us we would have trouble in this world.

“33 These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.”

— John 16:33 (NASB 1995)

We don’t have to look very far to see trouble. The southeast part of the U.S. has see two large hurricanes in the last two weeks. Out west there continue to be wildfires consuming thousands of acres of trees. We are entering in to flu and Corona season, in addition to that allergens are ever present and driving many of our sinus cavities wonky. We have political and societal unrest in the United States and there is still a war going on in Ukraine and the Middle East.

Jesus told us we would have trouble, but He didn’t want us to stay in that mindset. He told us He would give us peace, and He has overcome the world.

This mentality of looking towards glory is not a bad thing. Yes, we still need to be present. We need to live our lives as the brightest lights of Christ that we can be so others might come to know Him. How much easier it is to do this when we know that we are called, justified and one day will be glorified.

Just like the Morning Glory flower we need to turn our faces towards the light of God and His truth and open ourselves up completely to what He is trying to do in our lives. Only in doing that will we become the beautiful reflection of Him that we are meant to be.

A Year of Waiting - Tarry

The word tarry as defined in Webster’s Online Dictionary means: to delay or be tardy in action or doing; to linger in expectation; wait; to abide or stay in or at a place; stay, or sojourn. Tarry is an older word used in the first few senses in the 14th century. Ask yourself, how often do I use the word tarry today? We don’t usually say, “I tarried at the train station.” “I’m going to tarry at the seashore.” “I’m sure to tarry in line at the concert.” It sounds rather archaic.

Image by Thomas from Pixabay

When it comes to this word journey I have been on for the year 2024, I like the way tarry opens up other doors and windows to this idea of waiting. As I have noted previously, waiting can be a complete drag, and most of us would not sign up for an adventure in waiting, but our lives are full of lines, traffic jams, delays, and prospects of a future that require we wait.

When I hear the word tarry, I do not think of a long term situation. However, if we look at the King James Version of scripture, which uses a synonym, sojourn we see that the span of time could be quite lengthy.

“Now the sojourning of the children of Israel, who dwelt in Egypt, was four hundred and thirty years.”

— Exodus 12:40 (KJV)

Still we get the sense that it was not intended to be forever. When God speaks of a long term living situation He often uses the word dwell, or abide. We took a closer look at the word abide in February. You can see that post here.

“1 Behold, how good and how pleasant it is
For brothers to dwell together in unity!
2 It is like the precious oil upon the head,
Coming down upon the beard,
Even Aaron’s beard,
Coming down upon the edge of his robes.
3 It is like the dew of Hermon
Coming down upon the mountains of Zion;
For there the Lord commanded the blessing—life forever.”

— Psalm 133 (NASB 1995)

Psalm 133 has a tone I would associate with a long term living situation. God intended that we dwell together in unity in a place where we experience the blessing of life forever. In this psalm it is a reference to Zion, which we can also look at as eternity with God. With the state many of our current churches are in it can be hard to imagine being able to dwell with those same brothers or sisters together forever in unity. Ha, ha. However, God said it will be true. We won’t just be tarrying, but putting down roots and dwelling.

Image by Filip Loczek from Pixabay

Since we already looked at the idea of abide, I wanted to spend some time thinking about what it means to tarry with God. I have learned, it is essential that we tarry with God as much as we can, especially when our lives are pulling us in so many directions. You might feel on any given day, “I don’t have time to abide. I am too busy.” However, if we don’t find the time, God will give us the time, and that is not always preferable as it usually comes with some sort of difficulty. God is not mean hearted, He loves you purely with everlasting love, and He knows exactly what you need, and that is directly linked to the time you spend with Him.

Let me give you a personal example. I was really struggling for several weeks this past month. I was exhausted, discouraged and my heart felt so heavy. Grief was a blanket I was regularly wrapping up in. Grief over my mom being in a nursing home and not being able to be there to help with her care. Grief over my children who have walked away from the truth of the scripture and the love of Jesus. Grief over the state of our country and the fear of the looming downward spiral. Grief over relationships. Grief over loved ones with cancer and other illnesses. Grief over other people’s kids who were struggling with addictions and various other issues. Grief over my own health. The list goes on.

Image by Tern70 from Pixabay

I am learning the importance of acknowledging these feelings and allowing myself to feel them. They are real, after all, and are felt on the deepest levels. However, we all know we can’t live in those dark places. We always need to return to the light, otherwise the darkness will become an all too comfortable place to abide and dwell.

I felt God pulling me. Whispering to me, “Amy, come to Me. Spend time with Me. Only I can meet every need and help you bear every burden.” I know this to be true, but as you know our flesh wars against us every chance it gets. Finally, one sunny afternoon, I took my Bible and my prayer journal out on the patio and began a search through the scriptures. I was looking for Psalm 34:18

“The Lord is near to the brokenhearted And saves those who are crushed in spirit.”

— Psalm 34:18 (NASB 1995)

I knew it was in the psalms, but I couldn’t remember where, so I just started leafing through. God brought me two different passages.

“8 Depart from me, all you who do iniquity,
For the Lord has heard the voice of my weeping.
9 The Lord has heard my supplication,
The Lord receives my prayer.”

— Psalm 6:8-9 (NASB 1995)

Image by wal_172619 from Pixabay

“1 “I love You, O Lord, my strength.”
2 The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer,
My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge;
My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
3 I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised,
And I am saved from my enemies.”

— Psalm 18:1-3 (NASB 1995)

Image by Enrique from Pixabay

When we tarry with God we can find peace and joy, even in the midst of our grief and pain. When we tarry we spend time, even just a small amount of time, doing the following:

1 - Remembering God’s character - He hears our weeping, our supplication and He receives our prayers. Don’t you love that? God isn’t ashamed of our emotions. He wants us to come and ask. He is our Abba, Father and He loves us. He wants to hear our prayers. He doesn’t just hear them, He receives them. He takes them on as His own. Remember The Bee Keeper? If you don’t, buzz on over to that post for a refresher.

2 - Acknowledging His abilities - He is our strength. He is our rock, our fortress, and our deliverer. He is our shield. He is our salvation. He is our stronghold. He is our refuge. All of these things are His abilities, and He gives them to us without reserve. He can protect, give strength, and get us through anything that comes our way.

“7 Then the earth shook and quaked;
And the foundations of the mountains were trembling
And were shaken, because He was angry.
8 Smoke went up out of His nostrils,
And fire from His mouth devoured;
Coals were kindled by it.
9 He bowed the heavens also, and came down
With thick darkness under His feet.
10 He rode upon a cherub and flew;
And He sped upon the wings of the wind.
11 He made darkness His hiding place, His canopy around Him,
Darkness of waters, thick clouds of the skies.
12 From the brightness before Him passed His thick clouds,
Hailstones and coals of fire.
13 The Lord also thundered in the heavens,
And the Most High uttered His voice,
Hailstones and coals of fire.
14 He sent out His arrows, and scattered them,
And lightning flashes in abundance, and routed them.
15 Then the channels of water appeared,
And the foundations of the world were laid bare
At Your rebuke, O Lord,
At the blast of the breath of Your nostrils.”

— Psalm 18:7-15 (NASB 1995)

Image by Jean Louis Tosque from Pixabay

3 - Renewing our understanding of Him - I have read Psalm 18 numerous times, but the Scripture, being that it is living and active, spoke to me anew. The above verses floored me. He is not just a gentle and loving God; He is a powerful, mighty force able to move mountains with a thought. He has, can and will display holy anger when the time is right for His wrath and will to be accomplished. It sets my heart to quaking, but also fills me with hope. He will have the final word, and all that is dark, and ugly, and painful will be burned away in His purest, most holy light.

“16 He sent from on high, He took me;
He drew me out of many waters.
17 He delivered me from my strong enemy,
And from those who hated me, for they were too mighty for me.
18 They confronted me in the day of my calamity,
But the Lord was my stay.
19 He brought me forth also into a broad place;
He rescued me, because He delighted in me.”

— Psalm 18:16-19 (NASB 1995)

Image by Dimitris Vetsikas from Pixabay

“49 Therefore I will give thanks to You among the nations, O Lord,
And I will sing praises to Your name.”

— Psalm 18:49 (NASB 1995)

4 - Thanking Him for all He has done - If you can only tarry for a few minutes, I think this is the best bench to sit on. Gratitude is known to change hearts, minds, health, and perspective. When we sit for a few minutes on God’s goodness and provision to us it gives us the ability to keep going because we come away with hope. With God there is always hope.

Take it from me, if you are struggling with grief, pain, bitterness or other unresolved feelings and situations it certainly is helpful to talk it out with a trusted friend or counselor, but also don’t forget to tarry for a little while with Jesus. He makes all the difference.

Mulling it Over - Romans 8:29

We are working our way through Romans chapter 8. I know I have taken a long time to get through this passage, but it has been worth the plodding pace. There is so much in this chapter to chew on, so like our friend the cow, we will continue to ruminate on this a few verses at a time until we are done.

Image by Heiko Stein from Pixabay

Today’s verse is one that has been included in what I like to call the predestination/freewill debate. I am no theologian, but I am a believer in a powerful and mysterious God, who can be beyond my human comprehension. In fact, I prefer it that way. He is beyond our complete comprehension and understanding. He gives us enough information to know His unchanging character, His complete and boundless love, His merciful forgiveness, and His long suffering patience. I do not need to know every single thing about Him, or completely understand his ways.

“8 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways,” declares the Lord.
9 “For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways
And My thoughts than your thoughts.”

— Isaiah 55:8-9 (NASB 1995)

I have always believed that the most important aspect of the Scriptures are the Gospels of Jesus Christ. The Old Testament is pointing forward to the necessity of a Savior, and the New Testament is the fulfillment of the prophecies and the subsequent start of the church. I most definitely agree that all of Scripture is the inspired Word of God and all of it is important and we can learn from it, thus the reason I am spending so much time on these different passages, even the pieces that may not be easily explainable.

“29 For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; ”

— Romans 8:29 (NASB 1995)

Let’s dive in to this verse phrase by phrase.

For those whom He foreknew…

Image by Michal Jarmoluk from Pixabay

It is no stretch of the imagination to understand that God is all knowing. We could read all the books in the world and still not have a fraction of the knowledge He has. That doesn’t mean He just knows everything about the universe and how it all stays in place and was put together, but he knows you and I.

I have been doing a personal study on Psalm 139, a passage I have long loved. I shared some thoughts on the first three verses on a Faith Inspiration post recently. (Click on the link to go directly to that post.) From that psalm we learn how much God knows us, and it isn’t just current knowledge, it is from the foundation of the world. To say “those whom He foreknew” makes perfect sense. He knew each and everyone of us from the beginning of time.

He also predestined…

Image by Ryan McGuire from Pixabay

This is where, for some people, things get sticky. There are basically two theological points of view that underly the predestination/freewill debate: Calvinism and Arminianism. I am choosing to not go into details on those two points of view. A good comparison of Biblical texts that are controversial between the two can be seen here. You can also look up each and see what their basic points are if you are not familiar with them.

However, let me make clear, God is the one who gives us knowledge and understanding. It is important to search things out ourselves and ask for God’s wisdom and direction when looking at different passages. I think things are pretty clear when it comes to sin, Christ’s role in atoning for our sin, and our need to believe in the work of Christ on the cross and His resurrection to have eternal life. Also, if a person leans one way or the other, does not mean they are not saved.

Remember, God is God. He is almighty. He is beyond our finite minds to understand. There is most certainly a way for Him to predestine something, and also give us freewill to choose. The key is to not get hung up on it.

…to become conformed to the image of His son…

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

I think the important point here is what follows the word predestined. What did God predestine us to do? To become conformed to the image of His son. Isn’t this what God wants for everyone? He wants all of us to accept His son as our savior, and be conformed to His likeness. He wants all of us to look like Jesus. Christ left us the Holy Spirit to make this possible.

You might be thinking, there is no way I can be perfect, but God knows that. The fact that we are still in our flesh means we will continue to struggle until the day He takes us home, but we do have the power and strength through Him to become more and more like Jesus.

…so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren…

Image by Victoria from Pixabay

Jesus is not only our savior, but our brother. We become His brothers and sisters when we believe in Him and call God our Father. When Christ died for us and rose again He became the firstborn among all of us who believe, meaning we will all, like Him have eternal life and rise from the dead by the power and might of the Father above. Indeed, there will be many brothers and sisters because of our belief in the finished work of Christ, not what we believe about predestination or freewill.

Next month we will look into verse 30 and learn more about the process God uses to draw us to Himself, make us His own even though we are sinners and bring us to future glory.

I hope you will join me then.

Faith Inspiration: Psalm 139:1-3

This column is meant to inspire our faith; to move us to action or even to contemplation. Scripture has become more and more my source of inspiration. After all, these are the words of God; His thoughts given to men and written down. All of them were spoken, or God breathed by His Spirit to the men who wrote. I believe, though this is becoming a less popular opinion, that God’s word is without error. I believe that it is alive and transforms us as we read and meditate on it.

Image by Pexels from Pixabay

Today’s source of inspiration comes from one of my favorite Psalms. Psalm 139 is a psalm of David. I recently decided to reread this Psalm taking it three verses at a time. Often, if we want to learn more we need to take a deep dive into just a few verses at a time, thus my Mulling it Over series. I am finding more and more that a brief look at God’s word is never enough. He has so much more to say to us in between the lines, through the voice of His Spirit speaking to our spirit. This is the beauty of an intimate relationship with God.

“1 O Lord, you have searched me and known me!
2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you discern my thoughts from afar.
3 You search out my path and my lying down
and are acquainted with all my ways.”

— Psalm 139:1-3 (ESV)

I have long looked at this passage as a way to understand my standing before God. Indeed, it reminds us that we are worthy and needful of His love and compassion, and it has been so since the beginning of time. As I read through these verses again, I was suddenly struck by the fact that the psalm is not just telling us details about ourselves, but it it telling us great secrets about the Almighty God.

What do we learn about God from these three verses?

1 - He desires to know His creation. God didn’t just set the world into motion and walk away, though some like to believe that is the case. God interacted and wanted to have a relationship with his artistry. Let’s look back at Genesis. First of all we see God actively involved in the making process. He didn’t just make primordial ooze and let it evolve, he spoke, molded, shaped, and breathed everything into existence. The more telling statement is this, “And God saw that it was good.” God actually took time, not only to create, but to enjoy what He had created.

Image by Pexels from Pixabay

Further on we see God’s personal involvement to make sure His work was taken care of by creating Adam. (See Genesis 2:5.) After this He also attended to Adam’s need to not be alone by making a companion completely suited to him. (See Genesis 2:18-24.) In addition we are told that God walked in the Garden. He was part of their community, and though we don’t know exactly what this was like we can use our imaginations. (See Genesis 3:8.)

Maybe this seems scary or off putting to some, but to me it gives such comfort and reassurance that can only be described as complete trust. If a being as powerful and righteous as our God wants to know us He is doing it with complete, pure love.

2 - He has know His creation from the foundation of the world. This is obvious from the same verses I pointed out from above. In addition, the first line of the psalm says, “…you have searched me and known me.” Both these words are past tense.

Image by info254 from Pixabay

As a writer I do like words to make sense; to choose the correct word for the correct sentence, and have the appropriate grammar, tense and so on. However, when it comes to God, I do recognize He is outside the bounds of time. The Bible is written for our understanding, so that we might comprehend what is being said. Since God is eternal He not only knew us from when He set the world into orbit, but He knows us in the present and in the future.

3 - He desires intimacy with us. It isn’t enough for God to know His creation. He wants to be intimate with us. Intimacy basically means familiarity. We often use it with regards to a sexual relationship, but today many sexual encounters require no intimacy at all. True intimacy is a feeling of closeness, belonging and trust.

“The friendship of the Lord is for those who fear him,
and he makes known to them his covenant.”

— Psalm 25:14 (ESV)

Image by Dim Hou from Pixabay

The psalmist says, “You know when I sit down, and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar.” God must be up close and personal if He knows when I am sitting, and when I am getting up. He also knows my personality and what makes me tick. He can take one look at my face and know exactly what I am thinking. My husband is good at reading me, but not that good. He also knows where I am most of the time, but not every single minute of every day.

4 - God is aware at all times. For the same reasons stated above, God is fully aware of where we are, what we are doing, and what we are thinking. (See Psalm 139:7-8.) I know there are varying thoughts on the omnipresence of God. Some say that while He is everywhere present, He doesn’t necessarily know everything that is going on at every moment. Others say God can be everywhere present, but also chooses to not be at all times. My belief is that God is big enough to know all of us, at all times, in every place, and in all circumstances. This is what makes Him a personal God. It is not for us to understand this mystery, merely believe.

“9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.””

— Joshua 1:9 (ESV)

“4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.”

— Psalm 23:4 (ESV)

“God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble.”

— Psalm 46:1 (ESV)

5 - God is actively involved. Verse 3 states that God searches out our path, and our lying down. He is acquainted with all our ways. How can you be acquainted with all of someone’s ways without being a part of their life? God is our Good Shepherd. He knows the lamb who has the loud, obnoxious baaa; the one who hides in the corner of the fold; the one who bullies the others, and the one who tends to wander away. Make no mistake, God quietly observes, but He is actively orchestrating our lives to bring us into intimacy with Him.

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

“He will tend his flock like a shepherd;
he will gather the lambs in his arms;
he will carry them in his bosom,
and gently lead those that are with young.”

— Isaiah 40:11 (ESV)

This gives me great comfort. Life is hard, and having loved ones who don’t walk with Him makes it even harder, but these revelations about God, through His word inspires my faith to trust, be still and lean on His timing and compassion to bring them back to Him.

I hope this has inspired you to worship, praise and thank Him for the amazing God He is.

Until next time.

Mulling It Over - Romans 8: 26-27

The month of May flew by with my younger daughter’s graduation from the Master of Nursing program, our meandering trip across the states of Wisconsin and Michigan, and the last week spent helping to take care of our two year old grandson while his mom and dad were on their anniversary trip in Cancun, Mexico.

June started off with a literal bang as the roof on our house and garage got completely torn off and redone. The roof was followed a few days later by the gutters, and then about a week after that a few guys came out to finish off a few trim pieces that had been missed. In the midst of all of that I got slammed by a sinus infection. As I write this I am once again on an antibiotic, steroids and I’ve been working with my pulmonologist on switching up inhalers. Eye, yie, yie. Welcome to Amy’s “new normal.”

I know I am not alone in this journey we call life, and as Jesus said before and I will say again, “…you will have trouble in this world.” Trouble with a capital “T” is often lurking around every corner. I know numerous people struggling with the respiratory gunk, have cancer, or are struggling with relentless burdens. That is precisely why this 8th chapter of Romans is so fitting to our lives today. Remember we, along with creation, are longing, and groaning for that future glorification of our bodies and an eternity with our God.

La Crosse, WI

In this Mulling It Over column, I have been looking at the 8th chapter of Romans. Romans is packed full of theology and doctrine that is pertinent to our faith as Christ believers. Chapter 8 reminds us who we are in Christ and why his death on the cross was necessary to set all things right and fulfill what the law could not do. This week we are going to look at two more verses, and only two because there is a lot to mull over.

“26 In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words;
27 and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.”

— Romans 8:26-27 (NASB 1995)

Let’s take these verses a phrase at a time.

Image by Andrea Don from Pixabay

In the same way the Spirit - When we see the phrase, “in the same way” it typically refers back to the verses or passage that came before. In this case it is referring to the work of the Spirit in the previous verses. Let’s review what that work is.

1 - The Spirit of life in Christ sets us free from the law of sin and death (vs. 2)

2 - The Spirit gives life and peace to those whose minds are set on Him (vs. 5)

3 - The Spirit dwells in us if Christ is in us (vs. 9-10)

4 - The Spirit of Him (God the Father) who raised Jesus from the dead will also give life to our mortal bodies (eternal) (vs. 11)

5 - The Spirit helps us put to death the deeds of the body (flesh) (vs. 13)

6 - The Spirit testifies with our spirit that we are children of God (vs. 16)

7 - The Spirit gives us first fruits (referring to the gifts of salvation, reconciliation, forgiveness and so on that we receive when we believe) (vs. 23)

As we can see from looking at this list, the Holy Spirit has an equally important place in the Christian’s walk, and now we come to the next, gloriously wonderful thing He does for us.

Also helps our weaknesses -

Image by Лечение наркомании from Pixabay

The Spirit helps our weaknesses. Having a chronic health problem has put me fully in contact with my weakness. The reality is we are all weak. It doesn’t matter how physically, mentally, or emotionally strong we are, life can take us out in a heartbeat. It is here, in this realization of our weakness, the full beauty of the Spirit’s work in a believer’s life takes place. Could it be, our weaknesses are the result of one very important point?

…for we do not know how to pray as we should…

Image by Malachi Cowie from Pixabay

Imagine a world where, when anything goes wrong, we drop to our knees in prayer? We don’t just throw up a rote prayer, or one we’ve learned by heart as a child, we come into full combat mode aligning our desires, interests, struggles, thoughts, and heart with the One who truly knows what is best for each and every one of us. We would pray according to the Spirit. We would pray as Jesus taught us with a “…gentle and humble heart.” It is only in learning to pray this way that we will truly find rest for our souls.

As we study God’s living word we are reminded again and again we do not do this alone. He is with us. He is making it possible. He is instilling us with Spirit filled, death-defying, almighty power through the blood of the one we gave our lives to, Jesus Christ.

Once again, I am stunned by this beautiful Savior who made it all possible. He gave us a choice. He gave us a hope. He gave us grace that is unbound. He extended mercy where none is deserved. He knew how we would struggle in this life, fettered by the chains of flesh, constantly struggling to keep our eyes on Him, but fiercely aware of the multitudes of unseen that desire to take us down.

Once again He provided a way.

….but the Spirit Himself intercedes with groanings to deep for words…

Image by Richard Reid from Pixabay

This phrase is rich with images. Imagine the Spirit doing this work of intercession. This is not an easy work. Ask yourself how easy it is to pray, and you begin to understand how amazing our Holy Spirit is. He doesn’t just speak, He groans; so deep and heavy is the need for each of His Father’s creation whom He indwells. Words cannot do this intercession justice. These prayers fall to the language of lament and mourning. For a being, not restricted by language, how very telling it is that His mighty prayers are lifted up as groans. (If you get a chance read my allegory, The Bee Keeper. This gives life to the above words.)

…and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is…

Image by Ben Kerckx from Pixabay

Who is He who searches the hearts? It is God, our Abba, Father. The God who is everywhere present and all knowing, is also the God who is one in three. The trinity works from the same mind. While we know that not all things have been revealed to the Son, or the Spirit, such as the time of His return, we do know that the three work with the same goal in mind; that of our salvation, sanctification and future glorification. The Father is confident in the Spirit’s intercession and rightfully so…

…because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.

Image by Jondolar Schnurr from Pixabay

The Spirit cannot do anything other than the will of the Father, so His intercession for us is according to what God’s will is for us. The possibility of a simple, child-like trust arises from this knowledge. If we truly believe that God is good, and we know that He is working out good in our lives, then we can lean back in His mighty arms as the same Spirit who lives within us intercedes for us in complete alignment with the Father’s will.

“13 for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.”

— Philippians 2:13 (NASB 1995)

These two verses are the basis for what comes in the next session as we narrow in on one verse, Romans 8:28. I hope this has been an encouragement to you today, just as it has been to me.

Until next time.

A Year of Waiting - Holding Pattern

When the idea of doing a deep dive into this concept of waiting tickled my brain, I wrote down a list of different words and phrases that revolve around the concept of waiting. So far I have looked at wait, abide, and pause. Today I want to look at a term used by the airlines.

Image by Erich Westendarp from Pixabay

When we are flying from one city to another, we often experience delays due to busyness, weather, or other problems, and often the pilot will be told to go into a holding pattern. When in a holding pattern, the pilot will fly an oval course over the airport as they are waiting their turn to land.

This phrase came to my mind as I grew up in a home where airplanes and flying were a pretty regular occurrence. My father was an airplane mechanic, and also had his pilot’s license for a number of years. He ran a small airport where he serviced single engine planes flown mostly for recreation. It was rare to have to enter a holding pattern at that small airport, but the idea still holds true, because great care is taken to not have an accident while flying in the sky.

I wondered, how do I bring the Bible into this idea of a holding pattern and the people of Israel came to my mind. These chosen ones of God were often in a holding pattern. They spent over 400 years in the arms of captivity to the Egyptians. I am sure during that time they were often heard murmuring, “When? When is our deliverer going to come?”

Image by wal_172619 from Pixabay

We know God brought Moses along as that deliverer, and we also know their time of enslavement to the Egyptians was drawing to a close. However, this wasn’t the only time they found themselves in a holding pattern. Some time after they left Egypt they found themselves at the mountain of God: Sinai. It was here Moses received the Ten Commandments, and all the many laws associated with living life.

“1 In the third month after the sons of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that very day they came into the wilderness of Sinai.
2 When they set out from Rephidim, they came to the wilderness of Sinai and camped in the wilderness; and there Israel camped in front of the mountain.”

— Exodus 19:1-2 (NASB 1995)

Due to movies like Charlton Heston’s Ten Commandments, we often think their time at Mount Sinai was a mere few days, but in reality it was close to a year. In fact they held a holding pattern in the Wilderness of Sinai for approximately two years. During this time, God not only gave them the Law, but He instructed them on the building of the Tabernacle.

If we spend a little time thinking about these holding patterns the Children of Israel had to endure we can recognize God’s wisdom in the waiting. Their time in Egypt was actually a time of great growth. There was a population explosion among the Israelites. That was precisely why Pharaoh became persistent in keeping them under his thumb.

“8 Now a new king arose over Egypt, who did not know Joseph.
9 He said to his people, “Behold, the people of the sons of Israel are more and mightier than we.
10 Come, let us deal wisely with them, or else they will multiply and in the event of war, they will also join themselves to those who hate us, and fight against us and depart from the land.”
11 So they appointed taskmasters over them to afflict them with hard labor. And they built for Pharaoh storage cities, Pithom and Raamses.
12 But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and the more they spread out, so that they were in dread of the sons of Israel.
13 The Egyptians compelled the sons of Israel to labor rigorously;
14 and they made their lives bitter with hard labor in mortar and bricks and at all kinds of labor in the field, all their labors which they rigorously imposed on them.”

— Exodus 1:8-14 (NASB 1995)

Their holding pattern in the Wilderness of Sinai was meant to teach the people the necessity of the Law and the Tabernacle as a space for worshipping God. While we now recognize the Law and the Tabernacle as a shadow of God’s future intent, salvation through the perfect lamb of His Son Jesus, it was necessary to remind humanity of the holiness and righteousness of God.

Image by Sasin Tipchai from Pixabay

Are you experiencing a holding pattern in your life right now? Do you feel like an airplane circling over the airport waiting for the go ahead to land? I am right there with you, girlfriends! While this time is difficult, I am trying to remember God’s purposes are beyond what I can comprehend. He knows exactly what other planes (circumstances) are circling around, and how to bring everything safely onto His runway, in His time. While we are waiting, I recommend talking to the co-pilot (Jesus). Get to know Him better. After all, His Father owns the airport!

Have a great weekend, everyone, and fly safe! :)

Faith Inspiration - Solar Eclipse

I just love when God uses His beautiful and amazing creation to teach us something He wants us to know about Him. Just a few days ago we got to witness an event that only happens once every so many years: a total solar eclipse. We got to witness a partial eclipse back in 2017, but that definitely dims in comparison to the total eclipse we just saw.

Image by sandid from Pixabay

It is a fantastic phenomenon, and those of us who follow Christ, know that it is all brought about by God’s mighty hand. He is the One that set all of these heavenly bodies into motion, and He is the one who keeps those bodies just exactly where they should be.

We see in the 1st chapter of Genesis the creation account. These heavenly bodies came into existence on the fourth day.

“14 Then God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years;
15 and let them be for lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth”; and it was so.
16 God made the two great lights, the greater light to govern the day, and the lesser light to govern the night; He made the stars also.
17 God placed them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth,
18 and to govern the day and the night, and to separate the light from the darkness; and God saw that it was good.
19 There was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.”

— Genesis 1:14-19 (NASB 1995)

We see here God made the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. It is interesting to mull over, now that we know more through telescopes and men going into space, that the moon does not generate its own light, but is a body that reflects the light of the sun. The sun, the greater light that rules over the day, does not just give us light, but it does so much to give our planet life. Along with the moon, the rotation of the earth on its axis, and the revolution of our solar system around it, the sun provides the basis for the water cycles, the ebbs and flows of the oceans, and the regenerative cycle of oxygen and carbon dioxide. Plants would not grow without the warming light of this immense celestial star; for that matter all life would cease to exist without it.

So why did God give us this greater light to rule the day, and this lesser light to rule the night? “…to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years…He placed them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, and to govern the day and the night, and to separate the light from the darkness…” All of this He did for our benefit.

Image by Patou Ricard from Pixabay

Seeing the solar eclipse was an inspiration to how wonderful our God is, and how He established this place to be our home. It’s not a place of drab shadows and dim understanding, but a planet alive with His creative power and amazing, lavish love. He made all of this, even the moon passing in front of the sun so that we might remember what a beautiful, enchanted Being breathed life into this dust, and how very fortunate we are that even when darkness entered the world in the form of sin, He had a plan. He made a way. This leads to my second thought.

You know I have written about light and darkness on various occasions. See Light Beyond the Darkness, When Darkness Comes - Part 1: The Light, When Darkness Comes - Part 2: The Dark. There are several more parts to that series, which you can find on my Faith page under June and July of 2021. Darkness and light have always fascinated me. Though, I love winter, I need my sunshine. Being a Seasonal Affective Disorder sufferer, the shorter, gray days of winter are a detriment to my mental, emotional and physical well being.

When the eclipse moved into full totality, I couldn’t help but imaginine what the world would be like in permanent dusk; never to feel the heat of the sun, or to know the glory of it shining full bore in a pristine blue sky. It would be horrible. As we know from that first chapter in Genesis God gave us the sun for our benefit. We would not last long without its beautiful light.

However, there was something even more telling that began to illuminate my spiritual mind. At the point the moon fully covered the sun we were able to remove our eclipse glasses and look at it. It was awe inspiring to know all at once this would not happen again for a very long time, at least in our area, and to realize how apropos this celestial phenomenon was in reminding us that the light of Christ cannot be dimmed.

Image by bdabney from Pixabay

We can be in the throes of darkness, being beaten down on every side, but Christ in us shines like that sun as it glowed fiercely all around that orb until it began to pass and the light burst forth exploding onto the landscape below chasing the darkness back into the deep corners. This is who our Savior is in our lives, if we let Him be. He is the Son, the bright light of salvation, deliverer from the kingdom of darkness to the Kingdom of Light.

“13 For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son,
14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”

— Colossians 1:13-14 (NASB 1995)

I hope that you are inspired by this post, but even more so I hope you are daily inspired by God’s amazing creation, and His steadfast love.

Have a great weekend!

The Greatest Story - The Story Behind the Cross

We are all story tellers in one form or another. Whether you are telling a friend about your trip to the doctor’s office, your spouse about the new movie you just saw, or people on social media about the sales at Nordstrom, we are all telling a story. Your story might not be exciting, or full of action and romance, but it is your story. Story telling is a way of relaying information. At times the information might be made up for the purpose of entertainment, but more often story telling is a way to relay true accounts and facts.

Image by Ri Butov from Pixabay

We tell stories with our words, but we can also tell stories with our body language and other vocalizations. Crying tells a story of great sadness, or euphoric joy. Anger tells a story of frustration or hatred. Walking with your head raised, making eye contact tells us you are confident and most likely friendly. Sitting alone at a social even with your head down looking at your phone tells a story of relational struggle and possible low self esteem.

Story telling has been around for centuries. It is one of the oldest ways of relaying information. When God inspired the writers of the Old and New Testaments He spoke to them in a type of story form. He didn’t just give them a list of facts telling them to write them down as bullet points. He gave them people, places, events with incredible details.

The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are rich with details on the birth, life, death and resurrection of Christ. Indeed, they do not just include the who, what and wheres of a good story, but they are also seen as true accounts of Christ’s teaching, travels, prayers, and sufferings.

Image by congerdesign from Pixabay

To be sure, these are not made up stories, but factual accounts of the life of Christ and the lives of his followers. From His birth in a stable in Bethlehem, to His triumphal entry into Jerusalem, to His agony in the Garden, to His death on a hill with a criminal on each side, to His burial, to His walk in the garden after three days, these books give us every detail we need to know the living Christ.

What makes Christ’s story the greatest story ever told? It is unique in its message, and universal in its reach. This story is the only one inspired by the true, living God, put together by 36 different men, all with the same message over a period of 1500 years.

The focus of the Old Testament is the why. The first two chapters of Genesis relate the beautiful symphony of the triune God bringing our planet, and life into existence. Unfortunately by Chapter three, we learn of the devastating fall of that glorious creation by one choice to sin. What follows is a detailed telling of the history of the nation of Israel, God’s chosen people and the system of the law, God put into place to govern those people.

We need to remember this was all laid out to point to a future event: the coming of the fulfillment of the Law, Jesus Christ. The Old Testament is full of prophecy pointing to Christ’s coming. In order to fully understand the need and provision of the New Covenant, God gave us the detailed account of the Old Covenant. As seen in Hebrews, the Law was imperfect, but Christ was perfect.

“18 For, on the one hand, there is a setting aside of a former commandment because of its weakness and uselessness
19 (for the Law made nothing perfect), and on the other hand there is a bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God.
20 And inasmuch as it was not without an oath
21 (for they indeed became priests without an oath, but He with an oath through the One who said to Him,

“The Lord has sworn
And will not change His mind,
‘You are a priest forever’”);

22 so much the more also Jesus has become the guarantee of a better covenant.”

— Hebrews 7:18-22 (NASB 1995)

Christ is the guarantee of a better covenant, the new covenant brought about in the New Testament. This covenant is laid out simply in a few simple verses from the New Testament.

“16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”

— John 3:16 (NASB 1995)

Image by Fernando Rodriguez from Pixabay

The following verses are known as the Roman Road. They tell the Gospel of Christ in simplistic terms.

“23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”

— Romans 3:23 (NASB 1995)

“23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

— Romans 6:23 (NASB 1995)

“8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

— Romans 5:8 (NASB 1995)

“9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; 10 for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. ”

— Romans 10:9-10 (NASB 1995)

We learn all about the system of sacrifices that were part of the Old Covenant in the Old Testament. Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross did away with the need for that system. The Law given to Moses by God, was fulfilled in Christ given to us by His Father.

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

The story of the cross was centuries in the making, but the most beautiful thing about it is that it gave access to the throne of God to every single person who believes. It doesn’t matter who you are or who you have been. It doesn’t matter where you live or what sort of job you have. It doesn’t matter how low you have gone, or how great you have been. The story of the the cross is for all.

If you are struggling today with the story of your life, look to Jesus. He will make all the difference.

A Year of Waiting - Pause

If you have been following me since the beginning of this year, I chose the word, wait as my word of the year. After I chose the word, I thought it would be a good idea to devote one Faith post a month to this idea of waiting. In mulling the idea over, I thought it would be interesting to look at different definitions and nuances of the word wait, after all, waiting isn’t just about standing in line to get tickets to see your favorite band, or board your flight. Waiting is a time consuming part of our lives, and I feel it deserves a weightier look. Ha, ha. See what I did there?

Image by Alana Jordan from Pixabay

Let’s look at the definitions for the word pause as given in Webster’s Online Dictionary.

As a noun:

1 - a temporary stop

2 - a - a break in a verse

b - a brief suspension of the voice to indicate the limits and relations of sentences and their parts.

3 - temporary inaction especially as caused by uncertainty: Hesitation

4 - a - the sign denoting a fermata (music related)

b - a mark (such as a period or comma) used in writing or printing to indicate or correspond to a pause of voice

5 - a reason or cause for pausing (as to reconsider)

6 - a function of an electronic device that pauses a recording

As a verb:

Intransitive -

1 - to stop temporarily

2 - to linger for a time

Transitive -

to cause to pause: stop

Let’s pause at the word pause. Ha, ha. I think it would be good to temporarily stop, and hesitate when it comes to considering the word pause; a word we really don’t think much about. We often view a pause as an interruption, but a pause is often necessary to be able to think, take a new direction, or find peace and restoration.

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

When my first grandson came along, I became familiar with Time Out’s, a discipline method that is still used by many parents today. The purpose of a Time Out is to allow the child to not only think about what they have done wrong, but give them time to cool down if a situation has become volatile. I think this is a well intended method, and preferable in many ways to a spanking or some other form of physical punishment. I know for my grandson it was fairly effective in curbing misbehavior, though I don’t know for sure what he was thinking about during the Time Out. Ha, ha.

A Time Out is a good way to think of the word pause. It is a time to pull away and think about things. We see that Jesus gave us the same type of example when He would get away by Himself to pray. He paused His busy activities of healing people, teaching his disciples, and making new followers to get away and think, breath and pray.

“36 Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to His disciples, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.””

— Matthew 26:36 (NASB 1995)

“In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went away to a secluded place, and was praying there.”

— Mark 1:35 (NASB 1995)

“But Jesus Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray.”

— Luke 5:16 (NASB 1995)

Image by Sonam Prajapati from Pixabay

While the Bible does not specifically use the word pause as we know and use it, there is the use of a Hebrew term in the book of Psalms and Habakkuk that literally means, think about it. This is the word, Selah.

“Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, He is the King of glory. Selah.”

— Psalm 24:10 (NASB 1995)

“I acknowledged my sin to You, And my iniquity I did not hide; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord”; And You forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah.”

— Psalm 32:5 (NASB 1995)

“The Lord of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our stronghold. Selah.”

— Psalm 46:7 (NASB 1995)

“God comes from Teman, And the Holy One from Mount Paran. Selah. His splendor covers the heavens, And the earth is full of His praise.”

— Habakkuk 3:3 (NASB 1995)

The word, Selah is used 71 times in the Psalms and 3 times in the book of Habakkuk. Obviously, the Psalmist thought it was important to use this phrase often. He wanted us to think about all that God had done, both the rescuing and the judging because both are very important to remember.

If you find yourself in a time of waiting think about how you can see this as a time to pause. A good idea might be to keep a journal where you can think about why God might have you in a waiting period. You could use journalling as a time to pause from the busyness of life to pray, think, and consider. There are so many reasons God might want you to take a Time Out. These are just a few:

1 - Rest.

Image by DanaTentis from Pixabay

I mentioned this in my initial post in January, Word for 2024: Wait. As women, and Christ followers it is not uncommon to burn ourselves out. We are constantly doing, giving, helping, working; often with little time to catch our breath, let alone do something for ourselves. Let’s face it, we barely even pray for ourselves. We fail to process our emotions, because we are always helping others to carry or process their emotional loads. Even when we lay down at night we run through our to do lists, and before we get up in the still hours of the morning we are praying for all our wandering lambs.

I just turned 60, and I am only beginning to understand this is not really what God wants for us. We are God’s creation. God is the heavy lifter, I am but dust. Perhaps if I became more acquainted with this mighty, omnipotent being I would spend more time relishing the practice of His presence in worship and adoration, rather than trying to solve every problem for everyone we love and care for. God will work it out. He alone is able.

This being said, I know how hard this is. Letting go and actually resting is probably the hardest thing we can do, especially as mothers. It took a major illness to change my way of thinking, and even now I still struggle against this trending current; this current that says you only have value if you are doing and being. However, it was during the time I was down and out that I heard and saw the love and provision of the Lord in a new and deeper way. And, He’s not done yet. I am still learning how to rest, how to take time for myself, how to spend more time with Him, and how to let go of all of the preconceived notions of what gives me value.

2 - To change our thought patterns.

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

As used in the book of Psalms, and Habakkuk, taking a moment to think about what the scripture was saying was important enough to include the term, Selah. Perhaps our waiting time is not just about rest, but about changing the way we think, or taking us back to thinking about what is really important.

A time of illness, recovery, or job loss can certainly give you ample opportunity to think. The important thing is that we think about the right things. Am I thinking about my struggles, or am I thinking about God’s goodness? Am I dwelling on my anger, or thinking about God’s provision? Am I tempted to continue in a behavior or a wrong way of thinking, or am I ready for God to bring about change?

The best way to change our thought lives is through regular reading and study of God’s Word, and through the mindset of choosing gratitude and joy.

3 - To change our actions.

Image by Alexa from Pixabay

Just like a child being sent into a time out, God will often use times of waiting or times of pause to gently turn us away from bad or unproductive behaviors towards truth in Him which will also cause changes in our actions. As Christ followers we should always be growing and changing to become more like Christ, and that may involve changing many of our fleshly behaviors.

Since I lost my job in 2019, and went through a health crisis in 2021, I have had a lot more time to spend reading, and studying God’s word. I am not a very disciplined person, so I don’t regularly get up in the wee hours of the morning to have my quiet time, but lately, the Lord seems to be waking me up earlier, even when I feel dog tired (and these days that is a regular occurrence) so I can have that time with him. I believe God knows our hearts and our circumstances. If we are open to His work in our lives, He will bring it about.

If you are in a situation right now where you are waiting, consider it a pause. Linger over your Heavenly Father and get to know Him better. This will always help you feel more content while you are waiting.

Have a great day.

Faith Topics: Why is it Necessary to Study the Bible?

Let’s face it, life is busy, especially if you are working, have children, or are involved in any sort of activities outside the home. People just have a lot to do these days. If I am a Christian and believe in eternal security (once saved, always saved) what’s the point of studying the Bible? Isn’t it enough to hear it on Sunday morning? Isn’t reading it once in a while more than sufficient to keep me grounded in my Christian faith?

Image by wal_172619 from Pixabay

There are several thoughts I have on this topic and I think it is an important issue to address. Let’s start by looking at what scripture itself has to say.

“16 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; 17 so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.”

— 2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NASB 1995)

This verse gives us several good reasons to study God’s word.

1 - All of Scripture is inspired by God.

Image by Aritha from Pixabay

If you were interested in learning more about a certain historical figure, Hollywood star or famous pop singer would you go to the Tabloids or would you want to go to the direct source? An autobiography is going to be more revealing about a person than a few short paragraphs about where they were last seen and who they were last hanging out with. If we claim to be Christians and want to live a Christ like life then the place to go is the Word of God to receive information that is most accurate and truthful. God, Himself, inspired the men who wrote the words. I believe this is the most accurate historical document we have.

2 - All of Scripture is profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, and for training in righteousness.

Image by Dolf Maurer from Pixabay

Think about this for a minute. If you read a magazine, a textbook, or a fictional piece, each one may give you some sort of benefit. You might learn how to cook a certain dish from a recipe book. You might learn more about what vitamins to take as you age from a magazine on aging. You might find yourself swept away by a riveting adventure which helps you relax. However, unlike the Bible most things we read are not able to do everything the Bible can do.

The Bible is a historical account of the Nation of Israel, giving us a history lesson. The Bible is a book of poetry and love. The Bible gives us steps to ease anxiety, love our neighbor, and forgive those who have hurt us. The Bible teaches us how to live, how to love and how to have a relationship with an amazing God.

3 - All Scripture enables us to be adequate and equipped for every good work.

Image by free stock photos from www.picjumbo.com from Pixabay

You know what I like most about that last phrase? The word adequate. It doesn’t tell us that we will be perfect. It doesn’t say we will be all knowing, powerful, or rich. It says we will be adequate. Webster’s Online Dictionary defines the word adequate as: Sufficient for a specific need or requirement; good enough. God gives us what we need when we need it. He doesn’t give us more. Why do you think this is? It might have something to do with humility and dependence.

Our ability to be equipped for every good work, isn’t dependent on our ability. It is dependent on God. This fact takes us back to the first two points…it’s all from Him, and it is meant for teaching, correction, training, etc. We have to be continuing to learn and study and grow.

Another familiar verse in the Bible about why we should study it is the following:

“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

— 2 Timothy 2:15 (KJV)

I went for the King James Version of this verse, as it is the verse I remember growing up with. It is one of the few versions that uses the word study and links it to the ability to understand accurately what God’s word is saying. We don’t need to be ashamed if we know God’s word, what it says and what it means. If we look at the New American Standard version, it reads a little differently, but the end result is still the same. We are to be diligent workmen, who don’t need to be ashamed, because we know how to handle God’s word.

“Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.”

— 2 Timothy 2:15 (NASB 1995)

If we just look at this one verse we can come up with several more reasons we should study God’s Word.

1 - To be able to present ourselves to God.

Image by svklimkin from Pixabay

Accepting Jesus as our Lord and Savior is merely the first step in a life time of growth and knowledge as we get to know Him more and more. Not only are we getting to know Him better, but He is making us more like Christ. When we know His word, we can bring that to Him and show that we know Him and His desires for us. Knowing and studying His word is like giving a gift back to him. We are saying that we agree with what He has said.

2 - To be an unashamed workman.

Image by 652234 from Pixabay

Often what makes us feel ashamed in our Christian walk, is not what Jesus has done for us, or our belief in Him, but our inability to talk about those things. I believe one of the important ways we become better able to talk about our faith and defend it is by knowing what the Bible says. Regular study of the Word helps us to walk with Him without feeling unable to share our faith.

3 - To be able to accurately handle truth.

Image by Markus Winkler from Pixabay

Regular study of God’s word will not only make us more confident, but will enable us to know what is true and what is untrue. There are many who believe the Bible is just another book. They might even acknowledge that it has historical significance, but they do not believe everything in it to be true. They argue that everything from creation and the flood, to the virgin birth and resurrection were just fabrications put together by a random string of zealots to lead people into some sort of cult like living. The problem with many of these supposed arguments is that they really don’t take into account the actual words of the scriptures. A question both my husband and I ask people who say they don’t believe is, “Have you ever read the book?” Most often the answer is, “No.”

Let’s not depend on the world to tell us whether to believe the Bible or not. Let’s allow the Holy Spirit to do what He is best at, revealing the truth in the living, God breathed, words of Scripture. Paul admonished us in the book of Colossians:

“8 See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ. ”

— Colossians 2:8 (NASB 1995)

Paul also instructed Timothy about not listening to the “irreverent babble”.

“20 O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding worldly and empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is falsely called “knowledge”—
21 which some have professed and thus gone astray from the faith.”

— I Timothy 6:20-21 (NASB 1995)

I hope this gives you a little motivation to start looking at the Scriptures with more time and care, for in studying His Word we will be blessed with a deeper relationship with Him.

A Year of Waiting - Abide

Back in January I published a post on my word for the year 2024. The word was wait. At that time I decided I was going to spend once a month looking at different words and definitions related to the word wait. This month we are going to dive into the word abide.

Image by 32520394 from Pixabay

When I hear the word abide I think of an image like the one above. This is a fictional place where I would like to abide, or live. I want to dwell there, not just visit. To me abiding feels more cozy and desirable than the word wait, but what if you don’t like your abode? What if you would like to move to a different place to abide, but you can’t. At that point you might feel more like a prisoner than a resident.

We learn a lot about a word by looking at its definition. Webster’s Online Dictionary defines abide in this way:

- to continue in a place: sojourn (intransitive verb)

- to remain stable or fixed in a state (intransitive verb)

- to bear patiently: tolerate (transitive verb)

- to endure without yielding: withstand (transitive verb)

- to wait for; await (transitive verb)

- to accept without objection (transitive verb)

Grammar tends to drive most of us crazy, but I found the differentiation between transitive and intransitive curious. Since it has been a long while since I took an English class, I had to look at what those words meant and how that affects these meanings.

“A transitive verb is one that makes sense only if it exerts its action on an object. An intransitive verb will make sense without an object. Some verbs can be used both ways.”

— Grammarly (online)

Image by Christoph Partsch from Pixabay

I can say, “I abide in a house in California.” I can also say, “I cannot abide a house in California.” If I just said, “I cannot abide…” then you would have no idea what it is that I am not abiding. In the first sentence it is obvious, albeit an odd way of saying it, that I live in a house in California. You could have shortened the sentence and just said, “I abide in California.” Okay, that is enough grammar for one day. Ha, ha.

So when I use the word abide as it pertains to the idea of waiting what definition is most appropriate? Would it be odd to say, I believe all the definitions pertain. Let’s dig deeper.

One of the most familiar passages in scripture where Jesus talks about abiding is found in John 15.

“1 I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser.
2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.
3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you.
4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.
5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.
6 If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned.
7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.
9 As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love.
10 If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love.
11 These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.”

— John 15:1-11

When Jesus says, “Abide in Me…” He is talking about continuing or sojourning in Him. Basically, when we make Christ our Lord and Savior He wants us to come live with Him. He is also saying to remain stable or fixed in Him.

Image by Jill Wellington from Pixabay

The image of a grape arbor comes to mind when Jesus is talking. The base part of a grape plant, the vine, becomes like a mini tree trunk. The branches are the long arms that extend from the vine and the part that produces the beautiful clusters of grapes. The grape clusters don’t just happen. They have to be part of the bigger vine, the part that digs down into the soil and brings nutrients to the rest of the plant. Just as the branches have to be part of the vine to grow and produce, we have to be part of Christ to bear the fruit of the His Spirit.

This is where I want to make a connection between abiding and waiting. There are seasons in life where you might feel useless, or like you are not bearing any fruit. We start to question our relationship with Christ, and maybe even doubt our salvation, but lets look back at those transitive uses of the word abide. There are times where we have to bear patiently, endure without yielding, wait for, and accept without objection.

Image by Petra from Pixabay

Perhaps the whole point behind Jesus’ talk on abiding in Him was not only about bearing fruit, but about the changes that He knew we would all face living life in a fallen world. Just like the grape arbor we face all manner of storms, from wind and hail, to lightening, to torrential rains, to snow and ice. During those times we have to wait, stand firm, and sink our roots ever deeper into the good soil of our Heavenly Father. Most importantly we need to learn to accept without objecting. Our Father is a good Father, and He knows exactly what the arbor needs to produce the best fruit. During these times of waiting out the storms we can remember what Jesus said. “As the Father has love me, so I have loved you. Abide in my love.”

Finally, Jesus ends with the statement, “These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.” Christ has made clear, by abiding in Him, not only will we bear fruit, but we will know the Father’s love and our Savior’s full joy.

If you are in a waiting time, don’t be discouraged. Look at it as the opportunity it is to abide and know your Savior even better.

Have a great weekend!

Maintaining the Presence of Peace

If you have been following along, you know I have been talking about the last name of Jesus mentioned in Isaiah 9:6, Prince of Peace. Even though we often refer to that scripture at Christmas, I believe it is one that we should look at again and again. We need to be reminded who this One is that we call Lord and Savior.

Image by Benjamin Balazs from Pixabay

While it is true that we always have the Prince of Peace with us, as I explain last week, we don’t always feel His peace. We all to often allow life and all of its difficulties and distractions to take the place of peace in our hearts.

Many of you are probably familiar with the “love bank” idea created by Dr. Willard F. Harley, clinical psychologist and author of a variety of relationship and marriage books, including His Needs, Her Needs. The sum up is that the more we put into someone else’s love bank, the more they will feel loved. When we criticize, demand, or do unkind things we make withdrawals from the their love bank, thus causing damage to the relationship.

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

I believe we can use a similar analogy when it comes to peace in our lives. When we read God’s word, pray, have fellowship with others, and abide in Him we add to our “peace bank”. When we neglect those activities, or do things that go against God and His truth, we make withdrawals from the bank. It is easy to suddenly find ourselves lacking funds in our bank account when we have been living life in our own strength and might.

For this final post on the Prince of Peace, I would like to look at some of the tools we can use to ensure our peace banks never run low. I want to look at a few specific ideas. As I said earlier, prayer, God’s word, etc. help us maintain peace, but I want to look at specific thoughts in this regard.

1 - Prayer

Image by Pexels from Pixabay

a - Prayers of confession and repentance. There is nothing faster at removing our peace than unconfessed sin. I like the idea of keeping “short accounts”. Did I hurt someone’s feelings at work today? Did I gossip when I was with my lady friends at lunch? Did I speak harshly towards my spouse? We must be ever vigilant to keep our minds and hearts clean before our Prince of Peace.

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

— 1 John 1:9 (NASB 1995)

b - Prayers of release. As a parent, and grandparent, this is one of the hardest things to do. You might wonder, if I let it go, how is that going to give me peace? Don’t I have to do something about it? Actually, the most important thing we can do is to lay our fears, doubts and desires at the foot of the cross. We need to find our Lord to be the most trustworthy friend we will ever have. Let go of those things that are troubling you and let Him be God.

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”

— Philippians 4:6

2 - Scripture

Image by peachknee from Pixabay

a - Using God’s Word for meditation. When we are having difficulty with peace going back to God’s word and mulling it over helps to bring back our connection to the Prince of Peace. I always have a journal and at least a pen when I read passages from the Word. The Holy Spirit is always able to give us new insights, even from passages we have read over and over. I am not afraid to underline and write notes in my Bible either. Being centered on His holy Word will always reconnect us to our wonderful Prince of Peace.

“And I shall lift up my hands to Your commandments, Which I love; And I will meditate on Your statutes.”

— Psalm 119:48 (NASB 1995)

b - Using God’s Word for battle. I have discussed my walkabouts on here before, but as a refresher, a walkabout is when I pace around my house praying out loud for the purpose of spiritual warfare. I do this often when I am praying for my children, grandsons and my spouse, although, many people end up on my walkabout list, because so many are struggling. During these times of intense communication with God, I take the Words He has inspired in the Bible and I pray them back to Him.

“And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”

— Ephesians 6:17 (NASB 1995)

The Word of God is not passive. According to Hebrews 4:12 it is, “living and active.”

“ For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”

— Hebrews 4:12 (NASB 1995)

3 - Changing our thought life.

Image by Engin Akyurt from Pixabay

This might seem obvious, and certainly spending more time in prayer and the Word of God will help. However, I thought it important to give this a little more emphasis since we can change our thoughts by doing other things as well. The mind is not the only part of our bodies affected by a lack of peace. Anxiety, anger, lust, bitterness, and lack of forgiveness can affect our digestive systems, cause aches and pains and can rev up the inflammation triggers all over our bodies. One of the main areas we can control is our thoughts.

a - Scriptures to help our thoughts:

“Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.”

— Philippians 4:8 (NASB 1995)

“You will keep him in perfect peace,
Whose mind is stayed on You,
Because he trusts in You..”

— Isaiah 26:6 (NKJV)

“The Lord will give strength to His people; The Lord will bless His people with peace.”

— Psalm 29:11 (NASB 1995)

“Those who love Your Law have great peace, And nothing causes them to stumble.”

— Psalm 119:165 (NASB 1995)

“The steadfast of mind You will keep in perfect peace, Because he trusts in You.”

— Isaiah 26:3 (NASB 1995)

“And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”

— Philippians 4:7 (NASB 1995)

I am particularly fond of this last verse. The word guard in this verse evokes the idea of a battalion of soldiers standing guard over our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. This is what God’s word says about His peace. His peace is beyond our comprehension, meaning we can have it, even when it doesn’t make any sense, and it will be like a company of warriors watching over our hearts and minds.

Image by Amber Clay from Pixabay

c - Other ways to maintain our peace:

There are plenty of secular things people do to give them peace of mind from meditation, and medication, to music, to exercise and getting outside. All of these are good, but don’t forget, as a Christ follower your peace ultimately comes from the Prince of Peace. Nothing else will give you true, deep, lasting peace like Jesus.

I hope you have enjoyed this look at the word peace, and our Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ. Please let me know in the comments how our Prince has given His peace to you.

His Design in Our Desires

I was recently going through a struggle brought on, in part by two problems, the long dreary wearies of winter with no sunshine, and a post New Year bout with Covid. Seasonal Affective Disorder always leaves me feeling more blue during the short gray days and longer dark nights of this season. I really need to invest in a light to help with that. Getting sick on top of SAD and it being after the holidays left me in a pretty low place. Being in a low place usually makes me more susceptible to the enemy’s tactics of blame and self pity.

Image by Mimzy from Pixabay

It came to my attention that a friend of mine was in a similar place, but for her the struggle was from a difficult marriage. She had texted me asking for the name of the counselor I was going to. I could tell by the tone of her text that she was not in a good place. We ended up having a video chat that ended with us both in prayer for one another. The interesting thing about our struggles, was that even though they stemmed from different sources we were still looking for the same things: love, affirmation, and companionship.

Over the next 24 hours, both my friend and I were on our own journeys seeking the Lord, knowing that we wanted to be spiritually right, but also not quite sure what to do with these desires that we had. Were these desires wrong? Were we just supposed to not think about them? Were we supposed to sacrifice them on the altar of, “Well, that’s just what Christians are supposed to do without?”

The Lord in His kindness took me to a passage in Isaiah, which I felt not only applied to myself, but applied to my friend, so I texted her a few of those verses. (My friend was also being led by the Lord to a different passage in the Psalms, which she also shared with me.)

Image by Monika from Pixabay

“10 They will not hunger or thirst,
Nor will the scorching heat or sun strike them down;
For He who has compassion on them will lead them
And will guide them to springs of water.
11 “I will make all My mountains a road,
And My highways will be raised up....

13 ...Shout for joy, O heavens! And rejoice, O earth!
Break forth into joyful shouting, O mountains!
For the Lord has comforted His people
And will have compassion on His afflicted.”

— Isaiah 49:10-11,13 (NASB 1995)

The Lord was telling us that our desires were not only real, but good. The desire for food and water is not a wrong desire. In fact, just like food and water is a desire that must be met, our desire for love, companionship and affirmation are just as necessary.

My husband and I like to watch survival shows like Dual Survivor, Dude Your Screwed, and most recently Alone. The thing I have found fascinating is that not everyone leaves due to starvation or injury. In fact, often times it is the aloneness of their situation that finally drives them to pushing the button to tap out. We are made to be in relationship, and in community.

Image by Joe from Pixabay

Over my years as a church going Christian I have seen problems arise when we forget that the church is the body of Christ, and we are meant to look out and care for each other. That means taking the time to listen, to pray, and to help. We also have to be willing to be vulnerable. When a person is struggling whether in a hard marriage, a tenuous work environment, or a changing family dynamic the enemy will always take advantage, and He will always blame.

“Well if he only would….”

“Well, if I don’t get that promotion then I’m out…”

“If she would just listen when I tell her something…”

We suddenly become all about our rights and desires. Is that what God called us to? Or did He call us to trust in Him?

The above verses tell us we will not hunger or thirst. We will not be struck down by the sun by day nor the moon by night (Psalm 121:6). This isn’t just a reference to physical hunger, thirst and discomfort. It applies to every aspect of our being. God cares for every desire and care we have.

We are created in His image. We are able to reason, love, care, act justly, and have compassion. God doesn’t just say He’s going to meet our needs, He does meet our needs and our desires, every single one. When we look back at Isaiah 49:10 it says God has compassion on His people and He will guide them to springs of water.

As we continue to read the passage we hear the Lord say, “I will make all my mountains a road, and my highways will be raised up…” That tells me that God is going to provide a way for those desires to be met. The thing we need to understand is that we are limited where God is not. We see things in a physical dimension, but He works in both the physical and the spiritual.

Image by Lisa Caroselli from Pixabay

“4 Delight yourself in the Lord;
And He will give you the desires of your heart.”

— Psalm 37:4 (NASB 1995)

Could anything be more simple or sure than the meaning of this verse? If we delight in the Lord, He will give us the desires of our hearts. Every desire we have for love, companionship and affirmation will be lavishly and fully met by our Lord and Savior.

Don’t think this is going to be easy. Verse 13 shows us that we are going to have affliction. There may be seasons where we don’t feel the love. There might be weeks where the blame game seems to work better at every bend and turn. However, what does it say about God? He comforts His people and has compassion on the afflicted. He’s got you. He’s got your desires, every, single one. Our job is to:

Be still and know He is God - Psalm 46:10

Remember we are not condemned - Romans 8:1

Give it all to Him, because He cares for us - 1 Peter 5:7

As we journey into this new year, I hope you will recognize every opportunity to know Him more deeply and that every desire you have will be filled in Him.

Mulling it Over - Romans 8:18-25 Part 1: Of Suffering and Longing

Another month has gone by and we have come back around to Mulling Over Romans chapter 8. This chapter is full of information that is pertinent to our walk with Christ and to our future with Him. I know it can be hard to think about the future when our days are so full of the present, but one day we will know fully our inheritance in Christ Jesus. As it is, our lives at this point are merely reflections of Christ, and many of us have dirty mirrors. God is often trying to clean those mirrors with a glorified bottle of Windex and a rough cloth, and that can make us uncomfortable, but remember our goal is to be like Christ, so clean on Father, clean on!

Image by Simon Kadula from Pixabay

“18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.
19 For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God.
20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope
21 that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God.
22 For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now.
23 And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body.
24 For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees?
25 But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.”

— Romans 8:18-25 (NASB 1995)

This is a longer section so we’ll take it a chunk at a time.

For I consider…

I wanted to take these three words by themselves because they are so important. One of the things I often hear Christians accused of is that they don’t think. They take the scriptures, and the historicity of their belief system on blind faith. While it is true that we are walking by faith, it is also true that we, with the Holy Spirit’s help, are able to think just as intellectually about our faith as someone who has studied for years and has multiple degrees.

Webster’s Online Dictionary defines the word consider in the following ways: to think about carefully; to think of especially with regard to taking some action; to take into account; to regard or treat in an attentive or kindly way; to gaze on steadily or reflectively; to judge or classify; regard; suppose; reflect or deliberate.

When we look at the book of God, the Bible, we need to consider what we are reading. We also need to look at life and consider what it means, and how what we are doing, or going through pertains to our faith, or how our faith pertains to it. We aren’t meant to just bull doze our way through life giving no regard to how our actions or words are affecting the people around us.

Image by Paul Brennan from Pixabay

In this particular passage the word consider relates directly to the words that follow.

…that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.

I have been emphasizing this idea of suffering over the last few months, not because I am trying to be a downer, but because suffering is inevitable. We all, at some point in time, will suffer. We will know illness, loss, grief, sadness, anger, fear and the overwhelming reality of a busy life in a chaotic and fallen world. It is not bad or wrong to consider our suffering.

“12 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you;
13 but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation. ”

— I Peter 4:12-13 (NASB 1995)

Paul, however, did not want us to be solely focused on our suffering. In fact, He says that whatever we are currently suffering through is not worthy to be compared with the glory that is going to be revealed to us. Let’s just sit there for a minute.

Think about all the bad stuff you have been through. Some of you have lived through the typical minor inconveniences life offers like, car break downs, the fridge stops working, or the toilet backs up. Others have walked a bumpier path. You have lost a job, a home or been through a divorce. Still others have seen suffering in the form of addictions, jail time, death of a loved one, or a chronic, incurable disease. No matter what the suffering, it is not worthy of being compared to the glory that awaits us! Isn’t that amazing? What hope is ours that the suffering we are going through on this planet will pale in comparison to the joy and glory we will know when we see Jesus face to face.

Image by 🆓 Use at your Ease 👌🏼 from Pixabay

For the anxious longing of creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God.

Have you ever thought about the fact that the world: the trees, birds, fish, animals, rocks and so on have longings? Is it possible for creation to be anxious as it waits for the revealing of the sons of God? Stay with me here. I am not talking about something weird or spooky. Let’s back up a minute.

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1). If God created them, don’t they have His signature on them in a similar way that we have His signature on us. Granted we are human beings and we are made in the image of God, while creation was not, but that does not mean that creation is unable to recognize its creator and recognize the position of humanity as its caretaker.

Image by Evgeni Tcherkasski from Pixabay

There is a reason creation waits eagerly which we see in the next verse.

For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope…

The creation did not want to be cursed. It enjoyed its relation to its Creator and to its caretaker. It rejoiced in the growing and the greening, the fullness and the fellowship. When sin came into the world, God didn’t just send Adam and Eve out of the the beautiful garden of Eden, but the creation changed. It became rife with weeds and thorns. Where once all animals lived in harmony, now certain animals became predators and all others became prey. In addition, creation no longer bore the fruit of the relation between it and its Creator, but was subject to futility, disease, rot and death.

Image by Ilo from Pixabay

But God…

In hope…

…that the creation itself will also be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God.

This was God’s hope from the foundation of the world. He knew it all before it began. He knew when He set into motion the creation of a planet and the filling of that sphere of rock and stone with all that is living, and breathing, moving and reaching…He knew that His beautiful creation would suffer and die. So He also created the plan, the One, the Savior, the Son. It was only by this, the gift of pure, unselfish love, that the whole of creation would be able to be set free. But, it will not happen until we are face to face, fully knowing as we have been fully known (1 Corinthians 13:12); when we become His perfect reflection.

Next time we will continue our look at this section of Romans 8 by looking at the Groaning and the Hope.

Have a great weekend!

Faith Inspiration - Be Thou My Vision

This hymn has been inspiring Christ followers for over one thousand years. Originally an Old Irish hymn, the song was translated into English by Mary E. Byrne in 1905, and put into verses by Eleanor H. Hull. (Information take from Hymnary.org).

“1 Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
be all else but naught to me, save that Thou art;
be Thou my best thought in the day and the night,
both waking and sleeping, Thy presence my light.

2 Be Thou my Wisdom, be Thou my true Word;
be Thou ever with me and I with Thee, Lord;
be Thou my great Father, and I Thy true son,
be Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one.

3 Be Thou my Breastplate, my Sword for the fight;
be Thou my whole Armor, be Thou my true Might;
be Thou my soul’s Shelter, be Thou my strong Tow’r,
O raise Thou me heav’nward, great Pow’r of my pow’r.

4 Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,
be Thou mine inheritance, now and always;
be Thou and Thou only the first in my heart,
O High King of heaven, my Treasure Thou art.

5 High King of heaven, Thou heaven’s bright Sun,
O grant me its joys, after vict’ry is won;
Great Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
still be Thou my Vision, O Ruler of all.”

— Be Thou My Vision - Psalms and Hymns to the Living God (From Hymnary.org)

I think this is a beautiful hymn, and one that is rarely sung. Some may say it sounds like a dirge, but I like the lilting, Celtic style music. Let’s take a look at it verse by verse.

Image by Joe from Pixabay

Verse 1 - The writer of the hymn pleads with God to be his vision. He wants God to consume him. He recognizes his own struggle with the flesh and realizes that God’s thoughts are his best thoughts in the day and the night. He desires God be his light.

As we saw last week, our struggle with the flesh is ongoing, but if God is our vision, we can and will have victory, and we will continually be in His light.

“But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

— Matthew 6:33 (NASB 1995)

Image by Thomas Wolter from Pixabay

Verse 2 - The author not only wants God to be his Vision, but to be His true word and to dwell in him, and he in Him, always. He recognizes that God is his Father, and he is His son.

“If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.”

— John 14:3 (NASB 1995)

“Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him.”

— John 14:23 (NASB 1995)

“15 For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!”
16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God,
17 and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.”

— Romans 8:15-17 (NASB 1995)

God dwells with us if we love Him and keep His word. He is our heavenly Father, and we are His children. Being His children means we are heirs with Christ. We are children of the King!

Image by Donna Kirby from Pixabay

Verse 3 - He knows God is his breastplate, his sword, his FULL armor, his might, his shelter, his tower and his power. His desire is to be raised “heavenward”. This may have had two connotations. It may have referred to his mindset, his thoughts and desires, but it also may have been the longing for finally being home with his Savior.

“13 Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.
14 Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,
15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
16 in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”

— Ephesians 6:13-17 (NASB 1995)

“The name of the Lord is a strong tower; The righteous runs into it and is safe.”

— Psalm 18:10 (NASB 1995)

“4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,
5 even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),
6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, ”

— Ephesians 2:4-6 (NASB 1995)

Image by NikolayF.com from Pixabay

Verse 4 - In this verse the author recognizes God is all he needs. He doesn’t run after riches. He doesn't seek the praise of men. He knows the “High King of Heaven” is the only treasure he needs.

“But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal;”

— Matthew 6:20 (NASB 1995)

Image by Tim Hill from Pixabay

Verse 5 - The last verse is a final stand on the foundation of all that is God:

High King of Heaven

Heaven’s bright Sun

Great Heart of my own heart

Ruler of all

God is all these things and more that we cannot comprehend with our finite minds. The author knows that all his joy and all his victory our found in Christ. He also desires that no matter what happens he would keep God as his Vision.

“O sing to the Lord a new song, For He has done wonderful things, His right hand and His holy arm have gained the victory for Him.”

— Psalm 98:1 (NASB 1995)

“...but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

— I Corinthians 15:57 (NASB 1995)

On a personal note, I have always loved this hymn. When I gave my life to Jesus at the age of 12, I knew I wanted it to be for keeps. I wanted Him to be foremost and forever my vision. Unfortunately, ever since that age I have struggled in that desire. My vision is often clouded by doubts, fears, and failures. My eyes often wander to things that might satisfy my flesh such as food, clothes, or fictional worlds.

The counselor I am currently going to said it is absolutely normal to have set backs in life. The difference comes in how long I choose to stay in the setback mindset. The phrase “begin again”, is a mantra we all can put into play. As long as I have breathe I will begin again. I will place my eyes back on His face and know His amazing grace. I will say again, “Be Thou my Vision.”

Mulling it Over - Romans 8:12-13

This week’s Mulling it Over passage is going to continue to look at Romans chapter 8. The book of Romans is full of doctrine that relates specifically to our standing before God without Christ and with Christ. It deals, in detail, with the flesh versus the Spirit and how that plays out in our lives culminating either in the devastation and destruction of the one (flesh), or the fullness and life of the other (Spirit).

Image by Jeff Jacobs from Pixabay

Today I am only going to look at two verses.

“12 So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh—
13 for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. ”

— Romans 8:12-13 (NASB 1995)

Verse 12 tells us, “…we are under obligation…” What does it mean to be under obligation? Being obligated means I have a duty or responsibility to someone or something. In this case Paul is telling us we have a responsibility “…not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh.” We are duty bound to not be living according to the flesh. That sounds pretty serious, doesn’t it? The next verse tells us why.

Verse 13 begins with a devastating statement. “For if you are living according to the flesh, you must die…” Whoa! Now wait a minute. How can we not be living according to the flesh? We are, after all, walking in our skin, or flesh. In a manner of speaking we are always living in the flesh.

Image by Andrew Martin from Pixabay

The idea of “living according to the flesh” isn’t speaking just of the physical, fleshly body we are stuck in while on this earth. Living according to the flesh, means that we are letting our flesh rule our lives. We are living for our desires, our passions, our lusts and our self. We want what we want, when we want it. If you are a Christ follower and think you no longer live according to the flesh, don’t fool yourself. We are in a constant state of dying at all times. Look at the rest of verse 13.

“…But if, by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the the body, you will live.” The tense of the word “putting” means we are doing it on a regular basis. If it had been in the past, it would have said, “…if, by the Spirit you put to death…” This would have changed the meaning making it that we only had to put our flesh to death once.

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

Before you get discouraged let’s remember what Christ did on the cross. Verse 3 of Roman’s 8 reminds us that God sent his own Son to condemn sin in the flesh. Jesus was made flesh for us and then put to death for us. The moment we align ourselves with Christ we have His blood covering us and giving us the ability to die to sin, and flesh. We are dead, because of what sin has done, but alive because of what Christ has done.

How do we put this flesh to death on a regular basis? If you are like me, you might find yourself easily sliding into old habits like feeling sorry for yourself, thinking you are not enough, turning to food or purchasing items to make you feel better. These are all “fleshly” rather than “Spiritual” forms of coping. I am learning, to battle and put to death the flesh there are several things I need to do.

Image by Firmbee from Pixabay

1 - Keep short accounts. Checking in with God regularly helps me to keep my mind and heart where it needs to be and keeps me from focusing on the flesh.

Image by StockSnap from Pixabay

2 - Find some accountability. I have a good friend that I know I can text any time and she will pray for and with me. I also have a group of women I meet with virtually once a week for a Bible study, that I know I could check in with any one of them if I am struggling with my flesh.

Image by Pexels from Pixabay

3 - Memorize God’s word. This is one I don’t do nearly enough, in fact hardly at all, and of that I am ashamed. God’s word is our sword, and if you want a quick way to put your flesh to death, the sword of the Spirit is it.

Image by Himsan from Pixabay

4 - Pray without ceasing. You all know this from 1 Thessalonians 5:17, but we need to make it a reality in our lives. Praying doesn’t have to be an on your knees posture. It isn’t about physical posture, but heart posture, although, getting on my knees or even flat on my face on the floor does wonders for my prayer life and for my dying to the flesh.

Image by bangindsoft from Pixabay

5 - My sister-in-law gave me some great advice, which she had gotten from a book she was reading, take life 24 hours at a time. When you wake up in the morning, before you even get out of bed, dedicate the next 24 hour period to God, submitting to His divine appointments. Sometimes, life just doesn’t go as planned, but when we begin to see that each 24 hour day is a gift from Him, even the bad stuff can be used for our growth and His glory. This is Spirit living, not flesh living.

Believe me ladies when I say, I am struggling right now to live in the Spirit rather than the flesh, but even taking the time to mull over these two verses has brought me back to His center, and that is the only way we can really live.

Next month we will delve deeper into Romans 8.

Creative Christianity - Midlife Battle Cry by Dawn Barton - A Book Review

This book review was done in exchange for the book. No money has exchanged hands for this review.

About a month ago I was contacted by a company who does marketing for Christian books and movies. I was asked if I would post a review of a book in exchange for the free product. I have been asked before to do these, but this is the first one that really pulled at me. I said yes. What follows are my thoughts and opinions on Midlife Battle Cry: Redefining the Second Half by Dawn Barton.

I had never heard of Dawn Barton until I received this book. A blonde, southern gal, Dawn has an infectious smile and an earthy sense of humor that pokes fun of life in all of its beauty, and ugliness. Dawn is no stranger to success, she left a thirty year career in sales marketing to become an author; and she is no stranger to difficulty, she has been through the loss of a child, divorce, rape and cancer. Anyone who has been through that much bad stuff and still has their sense of humor, has my attention.

The premise of the book assures us there is more to come once the kids are grown and retirement is looming. Many of us who have reached mid-life, and are moving into our late forties, fifties, sixties and beyond feel like we are done. We are done raising kids, retirement is not that far away and we feel like we have nothing to offer a society that looks at youth and beauty as the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. We are afraid, as Dawn says, “of becoming irrelevant to the world.”

“The story is always the same: look younger, dress younger, eat younger, just BE younger. The message is clear: old bad, young good. Thanks for coming. Good night.””

— Midlife Battle Cry by Dawn Barton (p. 13)

Dawn is encouraging us to get out of the “irrelevant” mindset through practical steps, exercises, and entertaining stories, all with her sassy, southern comedic voice. This is Dawn’s second book and she is an Evangelical Christian Publishing Association best selling author.

When I am reading Dawn’s book I feel like I am sitting down on a lovely wrap around front porch, with a gentle breeze blowing. I am chatting with a close friend, one who gets me, and really understands the hard bits of life. This friend is one who gets to the point quickly and though her honesty is sometimes hard to handle, she accepts and loves me immensely.

Here are a few of the chapter titles from Midlife Battle Cry:

1 - Did the Fat Lady Sing?

2 - The Shift

3 - Hello You

4 - The “I Love Me” Challenge

5 - The Black Hole of 45+…..

and more.

If you order Dawn’s book at midlifebattlecry.com you get a free Book Club Kit, which is good wether you use the book in a group, or use it for individual study.

This book spoke to me. It came into my life at the precise moment that I needed the reminder that I am still important and I still have something to offer the world, even though at the moment I feel I am in the chapter where Dawn talks about God forcing us to rest, to prepare us for the next thing (Chapter 16 - Hello, God, Remember Me?)

“He needs you ready for the next thing, and in order for that to happen you need rest. You need to recharge, and you need to pour into your soul, you mind, and your body. Remember, a season of rest is not because you are forgotten or that He doesn’t love you; it’s because He does love you.”

— Midlife Battle Cry by Dawn Barton (p. 171)

I hope you will check out Midlife Battle Cry. It is a book worth your time, especially if you are entering the next phase of life and feel unsure how to proceed, or that you are done.

“I’m not sure if we’ve done the damage ourselves listening to generations before us or if it’s the rambling of social media and society, but we are a huge group that for the most part has become silent during a time when we are profoundly needed in this world....This is not our time to stop being wild participants of life and just become mere spectators...It’s time for us to lead.”

— Midlife Battle Cry by Dawn Barton (p. 184)

Wonderful Words of Life - Partake of His Divine Nature

Today’s Wonderful Words of Life, take us back to the first chapter of second Peter. I did a series on verses 1-11. If you would like to see the introductory post on verses 1 and 2, you can see that here. I am focusing only on verses 3 and 4 today, for the specific purpose of sharing these wonderful words again.

Image by RachH from Pixabay

“3 seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.
4 For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.”

— 2 Peter 1:3-4 (NASB 1995)

I would like to look at these wonderful words in phrases.

Image by OpenClipart-Vectors from Pixabay

seeing that His divine power - The words “seeing that” as they are used here could be replaced with “since”. It is used in direct correlation to the phrase, “His divine power.” This phrase applies to what follows. I find it wonderful that it is His divine power. God’s power is limitless, and His, referring to Jesus Christ, was that same power that raised Him from the dead.

has granted to us - He didn’t use His divine power to give good gifts (Matt. 7:11) to the trees or grass or animals, He granted them to us. The word granted, according to Webster’s Online Dictionary has these definitions:

1 - a - to consent or carry out for a person

b - to permit as a right, privilege, or favor

2 - a - to bestow or transfer formally; specifically to give the possession or title of by a deed

What is it, exactly, that has been granted to us?

everything pertaining to life and godliness - This is so encouraging to me. God’s divine power has granted to us everything…EVERYTHING…pertaining to life and godliness. When I don’t think I have the ability to go on; when I can no longer stand; when I don’t know what is going to happen tomorrow…His divine (heavenly) power gives me everything pertaining to living life and being godly. How is this accomplished, because obviously I still have to do things myself. I have to live life, go to work, take care of my family, survive the difficulties, so how does he do this?

Image by Gordon Johnson from Pixabay

through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence - What does it mean, “true knowledge”? In a world with so much learning, so much knowledge, so many books, podcasts, how-to videos, and so many ideas, how do we know what true knowledge is?

The world will tell you true knowledge is only that which you learn through your own senses. Only the things you can taste, smell, hear, see or touch is true knowledge. However, our senses can be skewed. We might have a cold, or ongoing sinus issues that cause our taste and smell to be off. We may have poor vision or the day might be foggy or rainy causing us to not see clearly. Noises are not always perceived correctly either. What sounds like a baby crying, might actually be a tiny dog yapping, or a rabbit being attacked by a cat.

True knowledge can only be the truth which God has established. God has allowed us to share in that truth by giving us His word, the Bible. This is true knowledge. If you do not know Christ as your Lord and Savior, you cannot know true knowledge. Sure, you can read the Bible and you can have all sorts of PhD’s and certificates that give proof of your head knowledge, but true knowledge is only found in a heart that is walking humbly with the One True God.

We come to understand this true knowledge when He calls us by is own glory and excellence. He doesn’t call us to another glory…the glory of a professor, a priest or a preacher…He calls us by His glory, and His excellence.

For by these - This refers back to His glory and excellence.

He has granted to us - Once again, it is God Almighty who is doing the giving.

Image by Cheryl Holt from Pixabay

His precious and magnificent promises - We could spend an entire year looking at God’s precious and magnificent promises. His promises include things like, He is always with us (Hebrews 13:5), He will give strength (Isaiah 40:31), He gives us rest (Matthew 11:28-30), He delivers us and forgives us (Colossians 1:13-14), and so very many more. If you want a good study that encourages you from top to bottom, find all the promises of God in Scripture. It will leave you feeling overwhelmed with gratitude and amazed at His goodness and mercy.

So that by them - refers back to those precious and magnificent promises.

You may become partakers of the divine nature - How cool is that? We actually can partake, like drinking deeply of God’s very nature. Wow!! I am on the floor, prostrate before him in my heart as I type this. Why would such a powerful, mighty being allow us, allow me, to partake of His divine nature? Refer back to John 3:16 - “For God so loved the world….”

God says we are to be holy for He is holy (I Peter 1:14-16). We cannot strive to be holy. Only He can make us that way. Remember it is by His precious and magnificent promises that we are able to become partakers of His holy divine nature. We are not made holy by a new church program, by showing up for every service, by witnessing, by passing out tracts or helping at the soup kitchen. While all those things are good, only God Himself through the blood of His Son Jesus can make us Holy.

Having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust - Let’s sit here a minute. There are several things being stated in this phrase. First, the world is corrupt. We know this because of what happened in the Garden, when Eve listened to that slippery snake, and convinced Adam to listen as well.

We engage in this corruption in its many forms when we lust for that which we do not have. Think about it. Just about every sin that we can engage in involves some sort of temptation. Temptation is the lure that whispers to us all that we do not have…money, power, fame, a boyfriend or girlfriend, a big house, the perfect marriage, and on it goes. Lust takes over when we recognize we are dissatisfied and so we strive for all that we do not have.

Image by Pascal Laurent from Pixabay

I hate to break it to you, but we will always feel that emptiness and lust for what we do not have, unless we have Jesus in our hearts. Even when we do, we must claim those precious and magnificent promises to really begin to partake of His divine nature, and fully realize true peace and contentment.

I hope these words reminded you of several things:

You are not alone. God is with you and His is doing, moving, and working all the time.

You have His divine power, which can help you live this life.

You have all of His precious and magnificent promises.

You can partake of His divine nature.

You can escape the corruption of this world by delving deeper into the depths that are God.

You are loved!

Mulling it Over - Romans 8:9-11

In this series we are looking at the eighth chapter of Romans. It is commonly believed that Paul’s letter to the church at Rome was written from Corinth and was written to provide guidance and encouragement. The church in Rome was probably rather large and had been established early on after Pentecost. Today we are going to unpack Romans 8:9-11, only 3 verses, but a lot of information.

Image by Abstract Vibe from Pixabay

“9 However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him.
10 If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness.
11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.”

— Quote Source

Let’s take this a verse at a time.

Verse 9 - The emphasis here is that the individuals being written to are believers. They already have the Spirit of Christ. Paul reminds them they are not in the flesh, but in the spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. From reading other writings of Paul and even in this letter, we know there were plenty of false teachers around, and in turn false believers.

How can someone be a false believer in Christ? For an answer to that we have to look at the Parable of the Sower and the Seeds.

“3 And He spoke many things to them in parables, saying, “Behold, the sower went out to sow;
4 and as he sowed, some seeds fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate them up.
5 Others fell on the rocky places, where they did not have much soil; and immediately they sprang up, because they had no depth of soil.
6 But when the sun had risen, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away.
7 Others fell among the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked them out.
8 And others fell on the good soil and yielded a crop, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty.
9 He who has ears, let him hear.””

— Matthew 13:3-9 (NASB 1995)

Image by Florian Pircher from Pixabay

From this parable we learn that the seed, which represents the Word of God, can have four outcomes after it is sown:

1 - It can be eaten up by birds, meaning those who hear it have no interest at all.

2 - It can fall on rocky soil, where it takes root, but because it has no depth it withers away, meaning those who heard it, took it to heart, but in never took deep root, and as soon as the camp high is over they forget about it.

3 - It can fall among thorns, and the thorns take over and choke it out. I am unsure with this one whether the seed actually developed at all, or if it never has a chance, because the thorns, or the cares of life, difficulties and struggles overpower its development.

4 - It can fall on good soil where it takes root and grows and yields a crop one hundred fold. These seeds take root in a person’s heart who is truly searching for the truth and here they grow, and grow, and eventually they deliver the word to others, and so on.

Which of these would you say is the person in whom God’s Spirit dwells? Remember the word dwell means to abide or take up residence. Are you a person in whom God’s Spirit dwells?

Going back to verse 9 of our Roman’s passage. Pauls continues, “…if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him.” It is important to know whose spirit we have allowed to take up residence in us. If it isn’t God’s spirit, then it is Satan’s, there is no middle ground.

Image by StockSnap from Pixabay

Verse 10 - In this verse the emphasis is on Christ’s part. “If Christ is in you…” Once again, Paul is reiterating the importance of knowing Christ and of inviting Him in to dwell with you. It is Jesus Christ who took us from death to life. It is only through Him that we are able to be righteous.

You can be a good person doling out kindness, love, generosity, and helps, but still be dead in your sins. Remember:

“For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

— Ephesians 2:8-9 (NASB 1995)

Image by D. from Pixabay

Verse 11 - The truth is driven home once again, if God’s Spirit is in us, the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead, then He will give life to our mortal bodies. This work is done in the afterlife, through His Spirit, but it is also done in this life. There is never one more alive, than the one who is in complete communion with his/her God.

Speaking from my own experience, I know the days that I give to Him, and the days I spend time with Him are the days I have focus, energy and joy. Unfortunately, so often I don’t do this. I roll out of bed feeling fatigued, and I think about doing some exercise, and spending time with God in His word, but it doesn’t happen. I get distracted by my phone, or my spouse, or the dishes that are still sitting in the sink, or my grocery list and on and on it goes.

Image by Alexa from Pixabay

If there is only one thing in life I need to do better, it is this: living in His Spirit. I need to allow Him to consume me and give me the gift of His presence every single moment of every single day.