Luke 11:28
Happy are those who hear the teaching of God and obey it.
What does it mean to actively listen for God’s voice? I always thought that when God spoke to me it would be in unconventional ways that would get my attention. Perhaps He would speak through a lightning bolt or good conk on the head or even through a powerful speaker, it would definitely be an “ahh haa” moment, a revelation. What I am learning though, is that God’s voice is often a soft and gently breeze, a whisper, so quiet that if I’m not listening I’ll miss it. That means I have to be actively listening all the time, I have to be studying His word, immersed in His word and yes, living His word.
Let me put it another way. When you live with a person you begin to know what they will say before they say it, how they will act before they act and how they will react before they react. The longer you live with that person the more their actions become predictable, in some cases you can finish their sentences, no words even need to pass between you and you know what the other is thinking. That is the kind of relationship you need to have with Christ to hear God’s voice.
Colossians 2:6 says “As you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so continue to live in Him. Keep you roots deep in him and have your lives built on him. Be strong in the faith, just as you were taught and always be thankful.”
Christ spent time daily, talking with His Father, listening for His voice and obeying His instructions. We are called to do the same. Are you actively listening for God today? Have you surrounded yourself with things that will help you hear God’s voice or is the cacophony of life drowning Him out?
Take time today to talk to Him. Ask Him for ears to hear, to be actively engaged in listening for Him. And when you hear Him, obey, your happiness will be found when you listen, hear and obey.
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Monday, May 24, 2010
Planted to grow!
Jeremiah 24:6b “I will plant them so they can grow.”
Have you ever planted a vegetable garden? The first year we moved here I determined that in the spring I would plant my own tomatoes, cucumbers for pickling and green beans.
Early in April I set to work, we marked off a rather large plot in the back corner of our yard and the boys turned the earth for me. Then we added fertilizer, not that you have to fertilize but I was determined to follow what the gardening guru’s said would make my garden the envy of the neighborhood.
Then I went shopping. I was very ambitious that first year, a row of cucumbers, a row of beans, two rows of tomatoes with cherry, roma and big beefeaters. Next to that would be pepper plants, green, yellow, red, hot and cayenne. My salsa would come from my own garden, I would can the green beans and make pickles just like nana’s.
What I didn’t count on were the bunnies. Three years later I still attempted green beans and three years later I had the healthiest, chubbiest bunnies in the county. They loved my green beans. I also learned some other very valuable lessons.
First, learn how to space your vegetables apart, cherry tomatoes take up more room than beefeater and cucumber vines go everywhere. Second, patience is the key, especially where peppers are concerned, if you want them to be red or yellow you have to wait, you don’t pick all of them when they are still green. And third, gardening is a lot of work. There are weeds to pull, plants to water and pruning that needs to take place.
Now my garden is a very small 5 by 5 plot, just large enough for 4 tomato plants. Last year I even got the brilliant idea to plant them in pots, no earth digging for me, needless to say, we bought all of our tomatoes for our salsa last fall, expensive but a good lesson. You see, I had every intention of becoming a master gardener. One who knew plants, a green thumb. I was determined that I would master the art of gardening. Truthfully I think it mastered me. I planted, they grew and though I did see some fruits from my labor, the lessons I learned are what I count as the most valuable.
That’s what God says about each one of us. He says “he will plant us so that we can grow”. In the New Testament we are referred to as branches. Jesus says “I am the vine and you are the branches. If any remain in me and I remain in them, they produce much fruit. But without me they can do nothing.” Have you ever seen a tree grow that has no branches? Can you imagine a vine that comes from the earth with no leaves or offshoots? That is what Jesus is saying. If he dwells in you, you will have leaves, you will be a branch and you will bear fruit.
Much like the tomato plants in my garden, if I stopped tending them, learning lessons from them, pulling the weeds around them or watering them, they would shrivel up and stop bearing fruit. Trust me, I’ve neglected them on occasion and the results are not pretty. We are a branch from the “source”. Jesus is that source, He is the good earth, His word is the fertilizer and from that we bear good fruit but only if we continue to fertilize and rely on the root for every decision and every ounce of “growth” in our lives.
God promises He will plant us and we will grow. Luke 6: 43-45a says “A good tree does not produce bad fruit, nor does a bad tree produce good fruit. Each tree is known by its own fruit. People don’t gather figs from thorn bushes and they don’t gather grapes from bushes. Good people bring good things out of the good they stored in their hearts.” What are you storing in your heart today? To produce good fruit we need a strong root. Who have you rooted your life in? Were you planted by God and are you fertilizing your soul everyday? If not take a moment to ask first for forgiveness for not seeking him or if need be for not asking him to plant you in the good soil of his love, then let his word be your fertilizer and his love be the water that helps you produce good fruit of the vine.
Have you ever planted a vegetable garden? The first year we moved here I determined that in the spring I would plant my own tomatoes, cucumbers for pickling and green beans.
Early in April I set to work, we marked off a rather large plot in the back corner of our yard and the boys turned the earth for me. Then we added fertilizer, not that you have to fertilize but I was determined to follow what the gardening guru’s said would make my garden the envy of the neighborhood.
Then I went shopping. I was very ambitious that first year, a row of cucumbers, a row of beans, two rows of tomatoes with cherry, roma and big beefeaters. Next to that would be pepper plants, green, yellow, red, hot and cayenne. My salsa would come from my own garden, I would can the green beans and make pickles just like nana’s.
What I didn’t count on were the bunnies. Three years later I still attempted green beans and three years later I had the healthiest, chubbiest bunnies in the county. They loved my green beans. I also learned some other very valuable lessons.
First, learn how to space your vegetables apart, cherry tomatoes take up more room than beefeater and cucumber vines go everywhere. Second, patience is the key, especially where peppers are concerned, if you want them to be red or yellow you have to wait, you don’t pick all of them when they are still green. And third, gardening is a lot of work. There are weeds to pull, plants to water and pruning that needs to take place.
Now my garden is a very small 5 by 5 plot, just large enough for 4 tomato plants. Last year I even got the brilliant idea to plant them in pots, no earth digging for me, needless to say, we bought all of our tomatoes for our salsa last fall, expensive but a good lesson. You see, I had every intention of becoming a master gardener. One who knew plants, a green thumb. I was determined that I would master the art of gardening. Truthfully I think it mastered me. I planted, they grew and though I did see some fruits from my labor, the lessons I learned are what I count as the most valuable.
That’s what God says about each one of us. He says “he will plant us so that we can grow”. In the New Testament we are referred to as branches. Jesus says “I am the vine and you are the branches. If any remain in me and I remain in them, they produce much fruit. But without me they can do nothing.” Have you ever seen a tree grow that has no branches? Can you imagine a vine that comes from the earth with no leaves or offshoots? That is what Jesus is saying. If he dwells in you, you will have leaves, you will be a branch and you will bear fruit.
Much like the tomato plants in my garden, if I stopped tending them, learning lessons from them, pulling the weeds around them or watering them, they would shrivel up and stop bearing fruit. Trust me, I’ve neglected them on occasion and the results are not pretty. We are a branch from the “source”. Jesus is that source, He is the good earth, His word is the fertilizer and from that we bear good fruit but only if we continue to fertilize and rely on the root for every decision and every ounce of “growth” in our lives.
God promises He will plant us and we will grow. Luke 6: 43-45a says “A good tree does not produce bad fruit, nor does a bad tree produce good fruit. Each tree is known by its own fruit. People don’t gather figs from thorn bushes and they don’t gather grapes from bushes. Good people bring good things out of the good they stored in their hearts.” What are you storing in your heart today? To produce good fruit we need a strong root. Who have you rooted your life in? Were you planted by God and are you fertilizing your soul everyday? If not take a moment to ask first for forgiveness for not seeking him or if need be for not asking him to plant you in the good soil of his love, then let his word be your fertilizer and his love be the water that helps you produce good fruit of the vine.
Monday, May 17, 2010
Wilderness Seasons
Have you ever wondered why God allowed the Israelites to wonder in the desert for 40 years after delivering them from the bondage of the Egyptians? Or why Jesus spent 40 days and nights in the desert being tempted at the beginning of his ministry? Why would God, the one who called Moses to lead His people out of Egypt, and gave His son in human form, send them into the desert for so long when His intention all along was to save and in the end give them a Savior? Why experience wilderness seasons when the He already promised the blessings that came at the end? Why was it necessary to spend time in the wilderness at all?
Maybe you are spending time in the wilderness right now. “Wilderness or wild land is a natural environment on Earth that has not been significantly modified by human activity. It may also be defined as: "The most intact, undisturbed wild natural areas left on our planet—those last truly wild places that humans do not control and have not developed with roads, pipelines or other industrial infrastructure.” (Wikipedia.com, emphasis mine). Hmmm, those last truly wild places that humans do not control. Maybe things for you are out of control. Maybe your life is currently in a state of nothingness. Days just go by, nothing seems to change, the good is still good, and the bad is still bad and maybe you’re not hearing much from God or anything at all. That may be your wilderness. However you define your wilderness state there is one thing you can be assured of. You are not alone. What you are is not in control.
Maybe, like many of us, you are spending your time in the wilderness missing the point. So, what is the point? I believe God allows us wilderness seasons because we need to understand how much we really need Him. The Israelites wondered in the desert for 38 years before coming close enough to the promised land to send scouts in but Deuteronomy 1:2 tells us that in reality the trip from Egypt to the land of milk and honey should have taken eleven days. They took a very long, very round about way to get to a land in which enemies lived that would require conquering before they could settle in what they had been promised. David spent his first 15 years after being appointed by God through the prophet Samuel living in 15 different places, most of it hiding from the corrupt King Saul who in jealousy wanted David dead. It was not until David’s thirtieth birthday that he finally became King of Israel. David wrote Psalms during that time, Psalms of sorrow, frustration, praise, and thanksgiving. David’s time in the wilderness helped him know God better. One of the most beloved Psalm’s, the twenty-third references David’s wilderness when in verse four he says “Even when I walk through a very dark valley, I am not afraid, because you are with me.”
Let’s face it; the wilderness can be very dark, cold and lonely. It can be a time of tears, and mourning. It can be divorce, and addiction, rejection, loneliness, despair, financial crisis, depression, spiritual dryness, childlessness, singleness. Whatever your wilderness you are assured that you are not alone. Isaiah 43:18-19 says “Forget what happened before, and do not think about the past. Look at the new thing I am going to do. It is already happening. Don’t you see it? I will make a road in the desert and rivers in the dry land.” God says, I am making a way for you, even in the wilderness. Isaiah 41 and 42 both tell us “He is holding our hands”.
When Jesus was in the desert being tempted He responded to each temptation with an Old Testament lesson. He was prepared for the wilderness season because he knew God’s word. When you enter into the wilderness seasons of your life, God gives you an instruction book. God often drives us into the wilderness so that we can realize just how empty our own personal resources are. He calls to us to rest in Him, rely on Him and yes, trust Him.
If you are experiencing a time in the wilderness, call on the One who is walking beside you. The Psalms are full of reassurances that God listens to us, loves us and protects us. David learned those lessons in his own personal wilderness season. All we have to do is trust him, not ourselves. Proverbs 3:5-6 says “lean not on your own understanding. Remember the Lord in all you do and he will make your paths straight”. Are you trusting and leaning on him during the wilderness times in your life? The path out won’t be clear until you are. Begin by spending time with him, he will show you the way.
Maybe you are spending time in the wilderness right now. “Wilderness or wild land is a natural environment on Earth that has not been significantly modified by human activity. It may also be defined as: "The most intact, undisturbed wild natural areas left on our planet—those last truly wild places that humans do not control and have not developed with roads, pipelines or other industrial infrastructure.” (Wikipedia.com, emphasis mine). Hmmm, those last truly wild places that humans do not control. Maybe things for you are out of control. Maybe your life is currently in a state of nothingness. Days just go by, nothing seems to change, the good is still good, and the bad is still bad and maybe you’re not hearing much from God or anything at all. That may be your wilderness. However you define your wilderness state there is one thing you can be assured of. You are not alone. What you are is not in control.
Maybe, like many of us, you are spending your time in the wilderness missing the point. So, what is the point? I believe God allows us wilderness seasons because we need to understand how much we really need Him. The Israelites wondered in the desert for 38 years before coming close enough to the promised land to send scouts in but Deuteronomy 1:2 tells us that in reality the trip from Egypt to the land of milk and honey should have taken eleven days. They took a very long, very round about way to get to a land in which enemies lived that would require conquering before they could settle in what they had been promised. David spent his first 15 years after being appointed by God through the prophet Samuel living in 15 different places, most of it hiding from the corrupt King Saul who in jealousy wanted David dead. It was not until David’s thirtieth birthday that he finally became King of Israel. David wrote Psalms during that time, Psalms of sorrow, frustration, praise, and thanksgiving. David’s time in the wilderness helped him know God better. One of the most beloved Psalm’s, the twenty-third references David’s wilderness when in verse four he says “Even when I walk through a very dark valley, I am not afraid, because you are with me.”
Let’s face it; the wilderness can be very dark, cold and lonely. It can be a time of tears, and mourning. It can be divorce, and addiction, rejection, loneliness, despair, financial crisis, depression, spiritual dryness, childlessness, singleness. Whatever your wilderness you are assured that you are not alone. Isaiah 43:18-19 says “Forget what happened before, and do not think about the past. Look at the new thing I am going to do. It is already happening. Don’t you see it? I will make a road in the desert and rivers in the dry land.” God says, I am making a way for you, even in the wilderness. Isaiah 41 and 42 both tell us “He is holding our hands”.
When Jesus was in the desert being tempted He responded to each temptation with an Old Testament lesson. He was prepared for the wilderness season because he knew God’s word. When you enter into the wilderness seasons of your life, God gives you an instruction book. God often drives us into the wilderness so that we can realize just how empty our own personal resources are. He calls to us to rest in Him, rely on Him and yes, trust Him.
If you are experiencing a time in the wilderness, call on the One who is walking beside you. The Psalms are full of reassurances that God listens to us, loves us and protects us. David learned those lessons in his own personal wilderness season. All we have to do is trust him, not ourselves. Proverbs 3:5-6 says “lean not on your own understanding. Remember the Lord in all you do and he will make your paths straight”. Are you trusting and leaning on him during the wilderness times in your life? The path out won’t be clear until you are. Begin by spending time with him, he will show you the way.
Monday, May 10, 2010
Ready, Willing and Able
Over the past few months I have been alternating between studying Priscilla Shirer’s “Discerning the Voice of God” and Kelly Minter’s “Ruth” series. One of the things that amazes me about both of these studies and even the Sunday sermons I hear is that God will continually give me a message in different ways, all saying the same thing until I “get it”. Not long ago Bev Swayze in her sermon on Palm Sunday talked about “taking up your cross daily”, she went on to say that being a Christian is “hard” work. It requires daily sacrifices, discipline, obedience and most of all a willing heart to hear God’s call and move forward.
About 3 years ago I was in the local grocery store standing in the check out line. Ahead of me was a young Mom with her little girl, probably no more than 18 months who watched her with big eyes as she placed her items on the belt. I kept one eye on the baby and one on the groceries as I waited, hoping to catch the baby watching me so I could see her smile. Ever since becoming a grandma, nothing makes me warmer and fuzzier than a babies smile, especially when it’s directed at me. Anyway, when it came time for the young Mom to pay, she became flustered. The baby crinkled up her nose and started to cry. Her Mom, dug frantically in her purse looking for her wallet and I could sense the distress coming from baby and Mom alike. Finally I heard her say that she had forgotten her wallet and would not be able to pay for the groceries. Then, I heard another voice. “Jane, you pay for her groceries”. I looked around. No one was in line behind me, but I was pretty sure I heard a clear, distinct voice say I was to pay for her groceries. Now, let me stop right here and explain that I don’t hear voices regularly, I am not prone to dramatics and though I felt sorry for the Mom, my usual suspicious nature was in high gear. Sure, she forgot her wallet, that’s an old trick, she uses her money for other things, I’ve seen this game before, I bet she had money for the liquor store, the drug dealer, the gambling addiction, just a few of the not so pretty things that ran through my head. Then I heard it again “Jane, you pay for her groceries”. You see, I had been praying that God would help me to hear him. Just that morning I had asked for His voice to be loud and clear, for direction and guidance and if need be, a lightening bolt or two. So, you can imagine my surprise and lack of trust when all the sudden I heard a clear voice telling me to pay for this woman’s groceries.
I wish I could say I had a willing heart, what I had was a suspicious heart. God never spoke this clearly to me before, or so I thought. Yet here I was in the grocery store, in the check out line, hearing him tell me exactly what to do. So, I did. I walked around the women’s cart, slid my card through the charge machine and paid the ninety dollars for her groceries. I’m not sure who was more surprised, the clerk behind the counter, the Mom or me. I don’t really remember saying anything, just acting on what I heard and telling her I was glad to help. She asked for my name and address to repay me, I told her it was not important, paid for my own groceries and left.
All the way home, I tried to figure out what to say to my husband. How did I justify the added ninety dollar expense, how to explain the voice I heard. When I got home I told him just what I related to you, his response “that’s fine honey, glad you could help her out.” No further discussion but oh, what a huge lesson I learned that day.
God does talk to me, sometimes not as clearly as he did on that day but much more often than I am willing to admit. The issue is not what he asks me to do, it’s do I have a willing heart to listen and obey? I am ashamed to admit how many times I have heard and turned my back. How many times I have known what he wanted me to do but been reluctant and sometimes unwilling to carry the load, make the phone call, apologize, write the letter, clean up the mess or just hug the one I hurt. In spite of myself, God continues to pursue me, to call me to action and to equip me with the resources to complete the task at hand. But am I ready to hear his voice, willing to obey and able to pick up my cross and follow him daily?
God’s word says I am. My dependence on God is the only qualification I need to serve Him. 2 Corinthians 12:9 tells me that God’s grace is sufficient for all my needs. Kelly Minter says “One of the most tragic ways for a Christian to spend her life is to be in the right place with all the right resources but without a willing heart.” When we obey, no matter how unusual God’s instructions we create a foundation for the work of Christ to be evidenced through our actions. We are living witnesses that he abides in us. Matthew 7:24 says “Everyone who hears my words and obeys them is like a wise man who built his house on rock”. What are you building your house on? Are you obedient when you hear his voice? I want to challenge you today to be obedient. To be “ready, willing and able” when called.
Oh, by the way, do you know where that saying came from? “Ready, Willing and Able” was filmed in 1937. Its’ stars included Ruby Keeler and Ross Alexander. A movie about mistaken identity, it features “Jane” a young lady who wants to make it on Broadway who is mistakenly thought to be the real “Jane Clark”. Through all its twists and turns, we learn that it is better to tell those you love, who you really are, than try to get away with who you are not. Catch it sometime on TCM.
Since then, we have coined the phrase “ready, willing and able” when talking about our government, our charitable foundations, our military and a whole host of take charge entities, all “ready, willing and able” to step in at a moments notice.
I want to be “ready, willing and able”, ready to hear God’s voice, willing to obey and able to serve at a moments notice. How about you? Philippians 2:17 says “Your faith makes you offer your lives as a sacrifice in serving God.” I want to be a living sacrifice, serving God daily. Ready, willing and able.
About 3 years ago I was in the local grocery store standing in the check out line. Ahead of me was a young Mom with her little girl, probably no more than 18 months who watched her with big eyes as she placed her items on the belt. I kept one eye on the baby and one on the groceries as I waited, hoping to catch the baby watching me so I could see her smile. Ever since becoming a grandma, nothing makes me warmer and fuzzier than a babies smile, especially when it’s directed at me. Anyway, when it came time for the young Mom to pay, she became flustered. The baby crinkled up her nose and started to cry. Her Mom, dug frantically in her purse looking for her wallet and I could sense the distress coming from baby and Mom alike. Finally I heard her say that she had forgotten her wallet and would not be able to pay for the groceries. Then, I heard another voice. “Jane, you pay for her groceries”. I looked around. No one was in line behind me, but I was pretty sure I heard a clear, distinct voice say I was to pay for her groceries. Now, let me stop right here and explain that I don’t hear voices regularly, I am not prone to dramatics and though I felt sorry for the Mom, my usual suspicious nature was in high gear. Sure, she forgot her wallet, that’s an old trick, she uses her money for other things, I’ve seen this game before, I bet she had money for the liquor store, the drug dealer, the gambling addiction, just a few of the not so pretty things that ran through my head. Then I heard it again “Jane, you pay for her groceries”. You see, I had been praying that God would help me to hear him. Just that morning I had asked for His voice to be loud and clear, for direction and guidance and if need be, a lightening bolt or two. So, you can imagine my surprise and lack of trust when all the sudden I heard a clear voice telling me to pay for this woman’s groceries.
I wish I could say I had a willing heart, what I had was a suspicious heart. God never spoke this clearly to me before, or so I thought. Yet here I was in the grocery store, in the check out line, hearing him tell me exactly what to do. So, I did. I walked around the women’s cart, slid my card through the charge machine and paid the ninety dollars for her groceries. I’m not sure who was more surprised, the clerk behind the counter, the Mom or me. I don’t really remember saying anything, just acting on what I heard and telling her I was glad to help. She asked for my name and address to repay me, I told her it was not important, paid for my own groceries and left.
All the way home, I tried to figure out what to say to my husband. How did I justify the added ninety dollar expense, how to explain the voice I heard. When I got home I told him just what I related to you, his response “that’s fine honey, glad you could help her out.” No further discussion but oh, what a huge lesson I learned that day.
God does talk to me, sometimes not as clearly as he did on that day but much more often than I am willing to admit. The issue is not what he asks me to do, it’s do I have a willing heart to listen and obey? I am ashamed to admit how many times I have heard and turned my back. How many times I have known what he wanted me to do but been reluctant and sometimes unwilling to carry the load, make the phone call, apologize, write the letter, clean up the mess or just hug the one I hurt. In spite of myself, God continues to pursue me, to call me to action and to equip me with the resources to complete the task at hand. But am I ready to hear his voice, willing to obey and able to pick up my cross and follow him daily?
God’s word says I am. My dependence on God is the only qualification I need to serve Him. 2 Corinthians 12:9 tells me that God’s grace is sufficient for all my needs. Kelly Minter says “One of the most tragic ways for a Christian to spend her life is to be in the right place with all the right resources but without a willing heart.” When we obey, no matter how unusual God’s instructions we create a foundation for the work of Christ to be evidenced through our actions. We are living witnesses that he abides in us. Matthew 7:24 says “Everyone who hears my words and obeys them is like a wise man who built his house on rock”. What are you building your house on? Are you obedient when you hear his voice? I want to challenge you today to be obedient. To be “ready, willing and able” when called.
Oh, by the way, do you know where that saying came from? “Ready, Willing and Able” was filmed in 1937. Its’ stars included Ruby Keeler and Ross Alexander. A movie about mistaken identity, it features “Jane” a young lady who wants to make it on Broadway who is mistakenly thought to be the real “Jane Clark”. Through all its twists and turns, we learn that it is better to tell those you love, who you really are, than try to get away with who you are not. Catch it sometime on TCM.
Since then, we have coined the phrase “ready, willing and able” when talking about our government, our charitable foundations, our military and a whole host of take charge entities, all “ready, willing and able” to step in at a moments notice.
I want to be “ready, willing and able”, ready to hear God’s voice, willing to obey and able to serve at a moments notice. How about you? Philippians 2:17 says “Your faith makes you offer your lives as a sacrifice in serving God.” I want to be a living sacrifice, serving God daily. Ready, willing and able.
Monday, May 3, 2010
Hearing from God
In my Sunday night study group we are learning how to recognize when God speaks. The people of the Old Testament really had it made when it came to God speaking directly to them. God would show up in a grand way, do what he needed to do and then be silent, sometimes for years on end. I often thought how cool it would be for God to just show up and speak to me, like he did with Moses in the burning bush or Samuel when anointing David or Zechariah in the temple when God told him through an angel that Elizabeth would have a child in her old age. God had this way of just showing up, in splendid ways that would astound and humble the people. Then it occurred to me, God shows up in my life every day, not in splendid ways but in quiet subtle ways and He pursues me. The problem is, I sometimes don’t hear Him, often I ignore Him and many times I just don’t get it. How about you, do you hear from God or has He been silent. Maybe you are experiencing a desert season in your life. What would you say if I told you that even when He is silent He is pursuing you? That he is speaking to you in His silence. Bear with me as I share what I hear.
Priscilla Shirer in her study “Discerning the Voice of God” says this. “The Holy Spirit works in our hearts, in the hearts of others, and in the events of our lives to point us in God’s direction. He uses all these things to cause us to hear and heed His voice.” “God is persistent.” Think of a time in your life when you had to make a decision that was not only difficult but at times agonizing. I can give you an excellent example. Not long ago I was asked if I would be interested in pursuing management with lia sophia. I love the company, the jewelry, the people and I was having fun right where I was, so not only did this surprise me it caught me off guard. Why would I want to pursue being a unit manager? I was comfortable where I was, liked what I was doing and really wasn’t working that hard to earn the extra income lia sophia provided. Management just sounded like a lot of work and a lot of time. My immediate thought was, no, I am comfortable where I am. But God started working on my heart. Daily I committed to pray about what direction He would have me go. Notice I did not immediately respond. I have learned that answering immediately can get you in a lot of trouble. Committing to pray about every decision has become pretty common for me. It’s the learning to say “no” lesson, I needed to learn a long time ago. We’ll call this a lesson that comes with age and wisdom. Anyway, I prayed, hard, for almost a month. And every time I prayed I heard God saying, “Jane, I know you know sales, I know you are good at it, you’ve been selling for years but what you really love, what you are passionate about are books and reading and teaching. Why are you not pursuing your passion?” To which I responded, “but God”. My immediate response was an objection to what I was hearing. How could I pursue my passion? To be a librarian I need a degree, to teach I need a degree and to even work with books I need more knowledge than what I have in my bachelor’s degree arsenal. So, I prayed more and every time I heard God say, “Jane, you love books, you love reading, why are you not pursuing your passion?” Then I heard something else, God, through others was opening the doors for me to not only pursue my passion but promote to manager so that I could help pay for the schooling I need to pursue what I love. He not only provided mentors, people who could guide me but he began to provide shows and people who wanted to be advisors and before I knew it I was signing the paperwork to promote and accepted in the masters program at USC. He provided, He pursued me and all He ask in return was that I hear Him and obey. Not in splendid or supernatural ways but in people He put in my path, books that He knew would help me hear him and even songs that would help me draw closer to what His word was saying to me.
That’s how God works, he pursues us relentlessly. Even in our desert seasons, when His silence rings loudest of all, He is holding us, saying, “wait, I have more for you but right now, I just need you to be still.” It would be so easy to brush Him off, we tell ourselves lies every day about how we are not good enough, smart enough, thin enough, tall enough, the list is endless. And yet, in our weakness He is strong. 2 Corinthians 12:9 from “The Message” says “My strength comes into its own in your weakness”. Romans 8:28 tells us that even when we don’t know what to pray the spirit will intercede on our behalf. God provides the direction; we must choose daily to hear him. This morning in my quiet time God gave me a song. It’s an old hymn written by Clara H. Scott in 1841. Below are the words. As you spend a few quiet moments with God meditate on these words and be ready to hear. Revelation 3:20 says “I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears my voice and opens the door; I will come in to him and dine with him and he with me.” God is knocking, are you listening?
“Open my eyes, that I may see;
Glimpses of truth thou hast for me;
Place in my hands the wonderful key
That shall unlock and set me free.”
Chorus:
“Silently now I wait for thee,
Ready my God, Thy will to see;
Open my eyes, illumine me,
Spirit divine.”
“Open my ears, that I may hear,
Voices of truth thou sendest clear;
And while the wave notes fall on my ear,
Everything false will disappear.”
Chorus
Priscilla Shirer in her study “Discerning the Voice of God” says this. “The Holy Spirit works in our hearts, in the hearts of others, and in the events of our lives to point us in God’s direction. He uses all these things to cause us to hear and heed His voice.” “God is persistent.” Think of a time in your life when you had to make a decision that was not only difficult but at times agonizing. I can give you an excellent example. Not long ago I was asked if I would be interested in pursuing management with lia sophia. I love the company, the jewelry, the people and I was having fun right where I was, so not only did this surprise me it caught me off guard. Why would I want to pursue being a unit manager? I was comfortable where I was, liked what I was doing and really wasn’t working that hard to earn the extra income lia sophia provided. Management just sounded like a lot of work and a lot of time. My immediate thought was, no, I am comfortable where I am. But God started working on my heart. Daily I committed to pray about what direction He would have me go. Notice I did not immediately respond. I have learned that answering immediately can get you in a lot of trouble. Committing to pray about every decision has become pretty common for me. It’s the learning to say “no” lesson, I needed to learn a long time ago. We’ll call this a lesson that comes with age and wisdom. Anyway, I prayed, hard, for almost a month. And every time I prayed I heard God saying, “Jane, I know you know sales, I know you are good at it, you’ve been selling for years but what you really love, what you are passionate about are books and reading and teaching. Why are you not pursuing your passion?” To which I responded, “but God”. My immediate response was an objection to what I was hearing. How could I pursue my passion? To be a librarian I need a degree, to teach I need a degree and to even work with books I need more knowledge than what I have in my bachelor’s degree arsenal. So, I prayed more and every time I heard God say, “Jane, you love books, you love reading, why are you not pursuing your passion?” Then I heard something else, God, through others was opening the doors for me to not only pursue my passion but promote to manager so that I could help pay for the schooling I need to pursue what I love. He not only provided mentors, people who could guide me but he began to provide shows and people who wanted to be advisors and before I knew it I was signing the paperwork to promote and accepted in the masters program at USC. He provided, He pursued me and all He ask in return was that I hear Him and obey. Not in splendid or supernatural ways but in people He put in my path, books that He knew would help me hear him and even songs that would help me draw closer to what His word was saying to me.
That’s how God works, he pursues us relentlessly. Even in our desert seasons, when His silence rings loudest of all, He is holding us, saying, “wait, I have more for you but right now, I just need you to be still.” It would be so easy to brush Him off, we tell ourselves lies every day about how we are not good enough, smart enough, thin enough, tall enough, the list is endless. And yet, in our weakness He is strong. 2 Corinthians 12:9 from “The Message” says “My strength comes into its own in your weakness”. Romans 8:28 tells us that even when we don’t know what to pray the spirit will intercede on our behalf. God provides the direction; we must choose daily to hear him. This morning in my quiet time God gave me a song. It’s an old hymn written by Clara H. Scott in 1841. Below are the words. As you spend a few quiet moments with God meditate on these words and be ready to hear. Revelation 3:20 says “I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears my voice and opens the door; I will come in to him and dine with him and he with me.” God is knocking, are you listening?
“Open my eyes, that I may see;
Glimpses of truth thou hast for me;
Place in my hands the wonderful key
That shall unlock and set me free.”
Chorus:
“Silently now I wait for thee,
Ready my God, Thy will to see;
Open my eyes, illumine me,
Spirit divine.”
“Open my ears, that I may hear,
Voices of truth thou sendest clear;
And while the wave notes fall on my ear,
Everything false will disappear.”
Chorus
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Talking to Myself
A dear friend and I agreed to read Jennifer Rothschild’s new book entitled “Self Talk, Soul Talk”. Once a month we are getting together to discuss what we’ve read and share what we’ve learned. I am only on chapter three and my discussion notes will take once a week lunches for a year because I talk to myself. Do you talk to yourself?
In Jennifer’s book she shares these statistics. “Psychologists and neuroscientists have concluded that everybody maintains a continuous, ongoing silent dialogue, or stream of talk, of between 150 and 300 words a minute. These are grouped into 45,000 to 51,000 thoughts each day. Most of those thoughts are neutral or harmless, such as Where did I put my keys? Or I need to go to the dry cleaners today. But another small yet powerful percentage of such self-directed speech can be accurate or inaccurate, constructive or destructive, right or wrong words that pack quite a punch.” Those are the words I am talking about today.
We all talk to ourselves. It’s what we choose to say that impacts how we perceive and begin to understand who we are. It starts early in life too. Remember the first time you were embarrassed in front of your peers? Did your conversation with yourself go something like this? “You idiot, I cannot believe you did that, you will never live this down or maybe like this, I am so mortified, I will never be able to face these people again, they all think I am so stupid, because I am.” However the conversation went, you began to process that you were at times, an idiot, stupid, unaccepted, unloved, would always be on the outside or maybe even, never have any real friends. Whatever you said, you started to stockpile, right then and there, negative thoughts that would resurface each time you made a mistake, wrong choice, had an embarrassing moment or even a bad day.
When I was growing up I had huge issues with weight. It seemed I constantly struggled with overeating, being overweight, finding clothes that would fit and basically a self-image that was so destructive I began to look for my self-worth in very negative ways. By the time I got to college I carried around a lot of baggage, even into my first marriage. I needed my husband and others to give me validity. I expected them to carry the burden of helping me to like myself. How unfair when they had their own baggage, I just heaped on more. I often sought out friends who needed me, because if they needed me then I felt needed, thus better about who I was. Let’s face it, I was helping these unfortunate few, who had no clue I needed them far more than they needed me.
As a young Christian I struggled with my self-image, never understanding how much God loved me as I was. It was not until my divorce and even later that I began to understand how the choices I made; the things I told myself went against everything God said about me. For me, it took some very wise counsel and serious “soul talk”. Colossians 4:6 says “Let your conversation be gracious and effective so that you will have the right answer for everyone.” What I failed to understand is that the conversation has to start with me. God loves us so much that he tells us in Psalm 139 that “he knew us before we were every born”. He also tells us that “He knows our words before we speak them” even to ourselves. How it must distress Him to hear what we say to ourselves when he loves us so much He created us. I think of the young anorexic girl who is starving herself because she tells herself every day how ugly and fat she is. The young Mom who had to keep working to make ends meet after having the baby telling herself what an awful Mom she must be to leave her baby in the hands of a stranger daily. We all fill our heads with negative talk. The world convinces us we are what we tell ourselves. Instead of hearing God, who tells us “we are His workmanship” (Ephesians 2:10) we hear what we are not according to the world. I Timothy 4:4 tells us that “everything God created is good.” How sad God must be when he hears how much we do not like what He has created.
1 Timothy 4 goes on in verse 7 to say “But do not follow foolish stories that disagree with God’s truth, train yourself to serve God.” God’s word tells us that we are made in His image, created by God and loved by God yet we fill our minds with foolish stories, and negative thoughts, contradictory to the Word of God. Jennifer goes on to share “Wise, truthful words are never harsh or unkind. They are gracious. Wise truthful words are never wimpy or without power. They have authority. Even the hard truths we speak to ourselves should not be condemning. They should build us up. You can’t remove those hurtful thoughts, words and memories, but by the power of God, you can drain them of their potential control over you.”
What harsh, hurtful words and thoughts are you carrying as you talk to yourself today? Replace them with the wise words of God found in His letters to you. Are your thoughts based on the truth or lies found in scripture? Take a minute today to examine your “self-talk”. Philippians 4:8 says we are to think about things that are “good and worthy of praise, true, honorable, right, pure and respected.” Start talking those things today that honor God; you will be amazed at the conversations that take place silently and what others in your life start to hear!
In Jennifer’s book she shares these statistics. “Psychologists and neuroscientists have concluded that everybody maintains a continuous, ongoing silent dialogue, or stream of talk, of between 150 and 300 words a minute. These are grouped into 45,000 to 51,000 thoughts each day. Most of those thoughts are neutral or harmless, such as Where did I put my keys? Or I need to go to the dry cleaners today. But another small yet powerful percentage of such self-directed speech can be accurate or inaccurate, constructive or destructive, right or wrong words that pack quite a punch.” Those are the words I am talking about today.
We all talk to ourselves. It’s what we choose to say that impacts how we perceive and begin to understand who we are. It starts early in life too. Remember the first time you were embarrassed in front of your peers? Did your conversation with yourself go something like this? “You idiot, I cannot believe you did that, you will never live this down or maybe like this, I am so mortified, I will never be able to face these people again, they all think I am so stupid, because I am.” However the conversation went, you began to process that you were at times, an idiot, stupid, unaccepted, unloved, would always be on the outside or maybe even, never have any real friends. Whatever you said, you started to stockpile, right then and there, negative thoughts that would resurface each time you made a mistake, wrong choice, had an embarrassing moment or even a bad day.
When I was growing up I had huge issues with weight. It seemed I constantly struggled with overeating, being overweight, finding clothes that would fit and basically a self-image that was so destructive I began to look for my self-worth in very negative ways. By the time I got to college I carried around a lot of baggage, even into my first marriage. I needed my husband and others to give me validity. I expected them to carry the burden of helping me to like myself. How unfair when they had their own baggage, I just heaped on more. I often sought out friends who needed me, because if they needed me then I felt needed, thus better about who I was. Let’s face it, I was helping these unfortunate few, who had no clue I needed them far more than they needed me.
As a young Christian I struggled with my self-image, never understanding how much God loved me as I was. It was not until my divorce and even later that I began to understand how the choices I made; the things I told myself went against everything God said about me. For me, it took some very wise counsel and serious “soul talk”. Colossians 4:6 says “Let your conversation be gracious and effective so that you will have the right answer for everyone.” What I failed to understand is that the conversation has to start with me. God loves us so much that he tells us in Psalm 139 that “he knew us before we were every born”. He also tells us that “He knows our words before we speak them” even to ourselves. How it must distress Him to hear what we say to ourselves when he loves us so much He created us. I think of the young anorexic girl who is starving herself because she tells herself every day how ugly and fat she is. The young Mom who had to keep working to make ends meet after having the baby telling herself what an awful Mom she must be to leave her baby in the hands of a stranger daily. We all fill our heads with negative talk. The world convinces us we are what we tell ourselves. Instead of hearing God, who tells us “we are His workmanship” (Ephesians 2:10) we hear what we are not according to the world. I Timothy 4:4 tells us that “everything God created is good.” How sad God must be when he hears how much we do not like what He has created.
1 Timothy 4 goes on in verse 7 to say “But do not follow foolish stories that disagree with God’s truth, train yourself to serve God.” God’s word tells us that we are made in His image, created by God and loved by God yet we fill our minds with foolish stories, and negative thoughts, contradictory to the Word of God. Jennifer goes on to share “Wise, truthful words are never harsh or unkind. They are gracious. Wise truthful words are never wimpy or without power. They have authority. Even the hard truths we speak to ourselves should not be condemning. They should build us up. You can’t remove those hurtful thoughts, words and memories, but by the power of God, you can drain them of their potential control over you.”
What harsh, hurtful words and thoughts are you carrying as you talk to yourself today? Replace them with the wise words of God found in His letters to you. Are your thoughts based on the truth or lies found in scripture? Take a minute today to examine your “self-talk”. Philippians 4:8 says we are to think about things that are “good and worthy of praise, true, honorable, right, pure and respected.” Start talking those things today that honor God; you will be amazed at the conversations that take place silently and what others in your life start to hear!
Monday, April 12, 2010
Surrender
There’s a wonderful hymn entitled “I Surrender All” that says:
“All to Jesus I surrender
all to Him I freely give
I will ever love and trust Him
In His presence daily live
I surrender all
I surrender all
All to the my blessed savior
I surrender all.”
What does it mean to truly surrender? The word surrender conjures up images of someone guilty being caught, maybe one more cookie from the jar and the lights suddenly turn on, “caught with your hand in the jar” you admit to the crime and head to bed, cookie less and sad. Maybe whoever caught you ended up at the kitchen table with cookies and a glass of milk, giggling that a late night snack was just what they were looking for too. Either way surrender has different outcomes. What do you think of when you hear the word surrender? The dictionary defines the word surrender as “to give up, or give back”, to yield or relinquish”. At times it is to give up control, at others to give up something you have. No matter what you must give up something.
Jesus took the word surrender quite literally. He gave his life as the ultimate surrender so that you could gain your life. Matthew 10:39 says “Those who try to hold on to their lives will give up true life. Those who give up their lives for me will hold on to true life.” Romans chapter six and twelve tell us we are to surrender ourselves as “living sacrifices” to God to be used in doing good. Christ came to bring new life. Colossians 3:10 says “you have begun to live a new life, in which you are being made new and becoming like the One who made you.”
Ruth surrendered herself for the sake of her mother-in-law; the apostles surrendered their lives for the sake of Christ whom they followed to His death and after. David was even willing to surrender himself to a life on the run until such a time as God saw fit to make him King. Being a Christian means “surrender”. It means being willing to give up what you have to gain even more. Kelly Minter in her study on Ruth says “What Christ can do with a willing life surrendered at His feet is more than we can comprehend.” We are all at risk of missing what Christ has in store if we continue to hold onto what we must surrender.
Are you holding onto this life; those old habits? Do you fall back into the patterns of life before Christ when the going gets tough? Are you holding onto a grudge, bitterness, anger? Surrender the old today. Ephesians 4:22-24 tells us to put off the old and become as a new person in Christ. Surrender the old, put on the new. Surrender can be a good thing, what do you need to give up today to make all things new? Tell Jesus what you need to surrender and sing of what you freely give the Savior who surrendered all.
“All to Jesus I surrender
all to Him I freely give
I will ever love and trust Him
In His presence daily live
I surrender all
I surrender all
All to the my blessed savior
I surrender all.”
What does it mean to truly surrender? The word surrender conjures up images of someone guilty being caught, maybe one more cookie from the jar and the lights suddenly turn on, “caught with your hand in the jar” you admit to the crime and head to bed, cookie less and sad. Maybe whoever caught you ended up at the kitchen table with cookies and a glass of milk, giggling that a late night snack was just what they were looking for too. Either way surrender has different outcomes. What do you think of when you hear the word surrender? The dictionary defines the word surrender as “to give up, or give back”, to yield or relinquish”. At times it is to give up control, at others to give up something you have. No matter what you must give up something.
Jesus took the word surrender quite literally. He gave his life as the ultimate surrender so that you could gain your life. Matthew 10:39 says “Those who try to hold on to their lives will give up true life. Those who give up their lives for me will hold on to true life.” Romans chapter six and twelve tell us we are to surrender ourselves as “living sacrifices” to God to be used in doing good. Christ came to bring new life. Colossians 3:10 says “you have begun to live a new life, in which you are being made new and becoming like the One who made you.”
Ruth surrendered herself for the sake of her mother-in-law; the apostles surrendered their lives for the sake of Christ whom they followed to His death and after. David was even willing to surrender himself to a life on the run until such a time as God saw fit to make him King. Being a Christian means “surrender”. It means being willing to give up what you have to gain even more. Kelly Minter in her study on Ruth says “What Christ can do with a willing life surrendered at His feet is more than we can comprehend.” We are all at risk of missing what Christ has in store if we continue to hold onto what we must surrender.
Are you holding onto this life; those old habits? Do you fall back into the patterns of life before Christ when the going gets tough? Are you holding onto a grudge, bitterness, anger? Surrender the old today. Ephesians 4:22-24 tells us to put off the old and become as a new person in Christ. Surrender the old, put on the new. Surrender can be a good thing, what do you need to give up today to make all things new? Tell Jesus what you need to surrender and sing of what you freely give the Savior who surrendered all.
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