Category: God’s Word

Not What but WHO

The house is robed in darkness when I slip away from the warmth of my bed and my slumbering husband. I’d rather brew a cup of tea and pray than toss and turn.

I weave my way through the dark and around the furniture until I find the kitchen light. While tea leaves steep, I notice my hungry cat waiting at the back door.

Open a can of food for her, open the Bible for me.

I’m not a morning person, but I love the silence where God is able to speak without interruptions.

If only I can keep my mind from distractions. My year that began slow has picked up speed. The winds are changing.

I tell myself “rejoice in the Lord” because my joy is not based on What is happening in my life, but WHO is ever present.  

El Roi, the God who sees me, even in the dark while I sip tea.

How odd…or is it…that I open my Bible to Psalm 143 where my words were once scrawled in the margin: February 2001: anxiety attack and winter depression.

What happened long ago that caused me to underline emotions that King David experienced: “persecuted, crushed, overwhelmed.”

I can’t remember why those emotions held me hostage, but the solution remains underlined.

“I meditate on all Thy doings; I muse on the work of Thy hands. I stretch out my hands to Thee; my soul longs for Thee as a parched land.” (verses 5,6)

On that winter morning, I lived in dark places. (vs.3)

But I knew then…as I know now…the ONE True God who could and would …

·        Revive me.

·        Teach me.

·        Deliver me.

And bring my soul out of trouble.

Even now, as I write these words, night has slipped away. Daylight is here. And on my window sill, a cross with the words from Jeremiah 29:11, “For I know the plans I have for you…to give you hope and a future.”    

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If anxious thoughts woke me, they are gone.  Not because my circumstances changed, or God fixed my problems overnight.

My soul is at rest because the Lord is my hope and refuge.

And He never changes…not even in this.

The Moment Just Before

 “‘Well,” said Pooh, ‘what I like best,’ and then he had to stop and think. Because although Eating Honey was a very good thing to do, there was a moment just before you began to eat it which was better than when you were, but he didn’t know what it was called.” ― A. A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh

That moment is called…

Anticipation: the action of anticipating something; expectation or prediction.

Think of expectations leading to Christmas Day.

·         Boxes wrapped in colorful paper, filled with who knows what.

·         Fresh sheets on the guest bed, ready for out-of-town company.

·         Scent of homemade cookies in the oven, tempting taste buds.

·         Family traditions and memories waiting to happen.

·         Children, longing for that special toy, unable to sleep

Could it be that ….

“Anticipation is sometimes more exciting than actual events.” ― Ana Monnar

 Perhaps, unless those events surrounded Jesus’ birth.

Imagine people’s anticipation who grew up hearing the prophecies/predictions of a coming Messiah.

And then Immanuel, “God with us,” stepped into their lives, exceeding expectations.

·      Mary expected to deliver a baby boy, who was no ordinary child. “He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High.” 

·      Joseph expected the angel of the Lord’s prediction to come true, and named the baby “Jesus, because He will save his people from their sins.”

Shepherds heard the good news. “A Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord….So they hurried off (with anticipation) to find the baby lying in the manger (exactly like the angel predicted) and they were amazed.”

Magi from the east traveled with gifts to see the Christ Child. And when they found him, “they were overjoyed, and they bowed down and worshiped him.”

 

Today …

·         Christ is exalted, seated at the right hand of God, the Father.

·         Good news is preached.

·         People are saved from their sins.

·         Believers worship Jesus, the risen Savior.

Only now, there’s another event that Christians anticipate.

Jesus said, “If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.” (John 14:3)

Confident God’s Word is true,

 “We eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.” (Philippians 3:21)

And yet, a moment just before we behold Jesus face-to-face, will not be better than being in His presence ….

Because Christ will exceed even our greatest expectations!

A Dose of Cabin Fever

“It’s snowing!” my teenage son exclaimed as he helped my husband carry the seven-foot Douglas Fir to our truck. Snowflakes and the scent of pine needles bolstered our “Christmas spirit.”

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Next morning, our rural property was a winter wonderland. I watched my husband drive away on business, leaving tire tracks down the steep driveway.  

Son and I huddled indoors and enjoyed a leisure weekend. But with frigid temperatures, and no road salt or sun rays to melt our icy driveway, my “Christmas spirit” morphed into “Cabin Fever.”

Monday afternoon, I stood at the window as though I was a prisoner in solitary confinement.

With the exception of my son, who is a young man of few words, I hadn’t spoken to a soul for three days. Even Facebook friends were quiet as a mouse.

I wasn’t bored. I’d been productive. But even as an introvert, I needed me some people.

God created us for relationship. He pursues us.

Even so, God looked at Adam and said, “It is not good for man to be alone.” So He made a helpmate, a woman.

Family and Tribe are vital in the Old Testament. In the New Testament, the emphasis shifts to the adoption of believers into the Body of Christ, but there remains the need for corporate worship.

“And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another….”(Hebrews 10:24,25)

  

However, I don’t think the Lord intends for me to commune on Sabbath morning while “we’re assembled” and then go my separate way for six days.

I can be isolated and still read my Bible, pray, and worship the Lord.

But it’s difficult to give and receive love, comfort, encouragement, accountability, and prayer when I’m alone.    

A dose of Cabin Fever reminded me of two Facebook acquaintances in desperate need of the above.

One has been in the hospital since September, and the other is confined at home. God sustains, but without community, their spirits wither like grapes on a vine.

Weary, heartsick Caregivers beg for people to reach out with cards, phone calls, or visits to show their loved one is not alone.

Perhaps it takes being alone to understand, and moved to action.

Tuesday brought warmer temperatures, and the arrival of my stalwart husband, to rescue me. Free at last, I drove to the grocery store, thankful to rub elbows with the human race.

People are flawed creatures, but I’m convinced we need one another for better or worse, in sickness and health….

What better time than the Christmas season to find a lonely person and SHOW them the love of Christ? 

 

   

 

          

Ants and Application

Ants love sugar water, but they hate chalk.

For years, I fought an army of ants crawling down the chain that holds my hummingbird feeder. Drowned ants floated in the sweet liquid, clogged up the tiny drinking holes.

When I read that ants won’t walk over chalk, I decided to draw a line of chalk around the nail that holds my hummingbird feeder.

Sure enough, the chalk acts like a barricade. I also outline the area around my cat bowl with chalk….no more ants crawling in the leftover food.

Here’s my point.

Last weekend, I allowed disappointing circumstances to put me in a melancholy mood. My emotions took precedent over rational thoughts.

I cried. I vented. I wallowed in self-pity.

And when I’d had enough of ME, I applied what always works for me.

I rejoiced in the Lord, and asked Him to use my circumstances to teach me.

And because God draws near to those who seek Him, the Holy Spirit showed me 2 Samuel 18 & 19.

King David’s son Absalom leads a revolt against his father in order to seize the throne for himself. As civil war breaks out, David and his family must flee Jerusalem. In the ensuing battle, King David’s men win and Absalom is killed.

Despite Absalom’s treasonous act, David is overcome with grief. He mourns the death of his son instead of rejoicing in victory. But Joab, David’s military commander, holds him accountable. He tells David to “snap out of it” and recognize the people who fought for him.

 These events happened centuries ago, but “scripture is alive and active, sharper than any double-edged sword” (Hebrews 4:12)

Rather than read the Bible for content….I search for personal application.

One brings head knowledge.

The latter brings heart change.

In this case, I had two options.

Allow my emotions to become a stronghold which leaves me like King David …. in a funk which robs me of joy.

Apply Biblical knowledge to my circumstances and achieve victory over self.

Like drawing a chalk line, I chose to apply what the Bible says.

I took “captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5)

Because thoughts precede emotions which determine my mood.

And in the process, I was changed for the better.

God’s Word Isn’t a Buffet

IMG_4770My feral cat waits for her breakfast. Depending on the “brand and flavor” of cat food that I serve, she sometimes sniffs the bowl of food and walks away. This morning, the finicky eater snubbed her food. I had to laugh….

Saturday night, I attended a Mystery Dinner Theater that included a dinner buffet. Like my cat, I walked beside the buffet table sniffing the food, to pick and choose what I like to eat.

Salivating, I held my plate to the server, “Yes, please!”

Wrinkling my nose, I shook my head, “No thank you.”

Do I have the same attitude towards the Bible?

Do I pick the verses I want to read, choose the promises I want to hear?

Do I hunger for more of God’s Word when I like what I’m reading. And snub the morsels that tell me to repent, love my enemy, obey?

GOD’S WORD ISN’T A BUFFET.

I’m not suppose to pick and choose the verses I want to believe and obey.

In Psalm 119, there are 176 verses; lots to pick and choose from depending on my spiritual appetite.

Some passages I devour:

“My soul is weary with sorrow; strengthen me according to your word” (vs. 28).

“May your unfailing love come to me, O Lord, your salvation according to your promise” (vs. 41).

“Turn to me and have mercy on me, as you always do to those who love your name” (vs. 132).

“Defend my cause and redeem me; preserve my life according to your promise” (vs.154).

Other passages I balk:

“Turn my heart toward your statues and not toward selfish gain” (vs.36).

“You are my portion, O Lord; I have promised to obey your words” (vs.57).

“Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long” (vs.97).

“Seven times a day I praise you for your righteous laws” (vs.164).

It’s easier to digest what the Lord does for me than think about my responsibility to trust and obey.

But if the following verse is true….

“YOUR WORD IS A LAMP TO MY FEET AND A LIGHT FOR MY PATH” (vs.105).

I can’t afford to be finicky. I must read God’s Word, hold out both hands willing to receive everything He puts on my plates, “Yes, please!”

Knowing His Truth is good for me.

“How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth” (Psalm 119:103).