Category Archives: Devotions

The past couple of days, I have been privy to all manner of the heartaches and concerns of others. I certainly do have a few of my own as well.

After praying for these dear ones, I opened my Bible this morning and read these words of Jesus spoken to Peter from The Message translation: “Peter, I’ve prayed for you in particular that you not give in or give out. When you have come through this time of testing, turn to your companions and give them a fresh start.” (Luke 22:31-32).

If you are going through a rough time as you read this, let those words settle into your troubled heart.

Are you ready to give in? Do you feel like any moment now you are going to give out?

Know that just as Jesus prayed for Peter, so He is praying for you in this very moment.

Pause for just a moment and insert your name into that very prayer: “_____________, I’ve prayed for you in particular, that you not give in or give out. When you have come through this time of testing, turn to your companions and give them a fresh start.” 

I also want you to pay close attention to the important word “when” in this verse. Jesus is telling Peter ( and you) two things here:

1) You will not be in this season of trial forever (though it might feel like it)
2) You will come through this

And when you do, you will have a message of HOPE to share with someone who is coming up the trail behind you, weary and discouraged. You can joyfully tell them that with Jesus, there is ALWAYS  a fresh start! Just as you have seen and experienced His faithfulness to you, you can hold out that same  assurance to your fellow brother or sister, assuring them that because Jesus lives and loves, blazing hope and joy is theirs in abundance!

Your words will ring with authority because you have been there! You have fought the battle. You have clung to His Word like a drowning person clings to a life raft. You have chosen to believe His eternal Word in the face of temporary circumstances when it looked like the darkness was winning (that is always an illusion. Darkness and death never have the final say. The Cross says so). You have been determined to walk in the Light of His love and His promised and certain Presence, refusing to let the darkness overtake your soul. And even in those times when you have faltered and may have fallen, you have gotten back on your feet to fight another day.

You have a Jesus story. You have journeyed with Him and know Him in ways you never dreamed were possible.

Open your mouth today and tell your story! Nobody can do that for you!

There is literally an ocean of need out there…right outside of your door.  People in this dark and dying world need to hear your story of  the hope and peace and joy and light that only Jesus beings.

Tell it!

And before you walk out that door into what are certain to be divine appointments of those who desperately need to know that there is a Savior who live and loves, take the following to heart. These are the things that Jesus Himself is praying into your sweet life this very moment from John 17 (Amplified version):

*that His joy may be made full and complete in you (v. 13)

*that you may experience His delight (v. 13)

*that His gladness will fill your heart (v. 13)

*that you will be protected from the enemy (v.15)

*that you would be sanctified, purified, consecrated, and holy by the Word of Truth (v. 17)

*for unity with Him and other believers (v. 21)

*that you would know His anticipation of you being with Him face to face, so that you may see Him in all of His extravagant and dazzlingly beautiful glory (v. 24)

*that His very love will be felt in your hearts. (v. 26).

Hold on, Dear One.

Your Deliverer is on His way. He is praying for you. He is working it all out in ways that will astound you. He is drawing you closer to His heart.

And when He comes…go and tell.

My husband and I took a quick road trip to Pittsburgh last week.

We were making excellent time as we traveled along Interstate 91 in Vermont. The sun was shining in the sky and there was barely any traffic. I was driving and may have been going slightly over the speed limit.  But I was making excellent time.

Until…

We came to the top of a hill and noticed the strangest sight.

There was one police car in each lane, lights flashing, preventing any cars from going around them. We had no choice but to brake and slow to their pace, which was around 3 mph.

No explanation. No sign ahead that might give a clue as to what was happening.  No road work.

Cars began to line up behind us and soon they stretched as far as the eye could see.  I thought the man behind us was going to have a stroke. He was yelling and gesturing, straining his head out the window to try to see the cause for the delay. The fact that he could see nothing was only adding to his frustration.

Still, we crawled along.

I must admit it was maddening. We had a 13 hour drive ahead of us and I was anxious to get back to a normal pace.

After a few minutes, we approached an exit. It was a familiar one to us, so we discussed taking it, having no idea how much longer this bumper-to-bumper traffic was going to last. However, it would have added a lot of time to an already monstrously long drive, so we decided to take our chances and stay on the highway.

Several other drivers fled for the exit as soon as they could (including the man behind us, who was still gesturing and yelling as he exited). I watched as he and the other drivers deserted the highway and wondered if we were making a huge mistake.

However, just less than two minutes later, we rounded the next hill and saw that our delay would soon be over.

Officials were moving downed power lines off of the highway.

It all became clear.

The officers had been protecting us. They possessed knowledge that we did not and acted accordingly.

As they pulled over and allowed us to resume the normal speed limit, I thought about the spiritual lesson that I had just learned.

How often have I been  going along in life, pleased with my progress, anticipating my destination…only to reach a roadblock that seemed to come out of nowhere?

Confusion reigns. I question Jesus, asking for answers and explanations. None are forthcoming. There seems to be no reason at all for the delay. I was making such excellent progress!!!!

I have a choice to make.

I can submit to His authority, resting in the fact that He is all-knowing, all-loving, and always has my best interest at heart. I can adjust my pace to His and trust His heart when I  do not understand His actions.

Or I can wail and rant and rave, looking for the nearest exit and take matters into my own hands, traveling along a path I wasn’t meant to wander.

If you are in a season of life where you have encountered a mystifying roadblock, trust the heart of Jesus. He sees the danger ahead. He is protecting you. He is working it all out. He understands your frustration and desires a continual dialogue with you throughout the delay.  Share your thoughts and feeling with Him. Cast your worries and concerns onto His broad shoulders, which are big enough to bear the whole world. He can take it. Stay in His Word so you can hear His Voice reassuring and comforting you, as well as  providing much-needed  guidance and light for your path.

One day, the roadblock will be removed. No season lasts forever.

In the meantime, allow your heart to rest in His perfect love.

Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don’t try to figure out everything on your own. Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; He’s the One who will keep you on track. —(Proverbs 3:5-6, The Message)

When I began my walk at the high school track this morning, I noticed that a white feather was right in front of me.

I watched as the wind carried it along. It touched the ground occasionally but then floated back up into the air.

I realized that that is how my heart feels these days.

Not because there are no trials in my life, but because I have rediscovered the rich treasure of the gospel. This is in large part due to Tullian Tchividjian’s book Jesus + Nothing = Everything.  Tullian was our pastor when we lived in south Florida and I have never met a more gospel-intoxicated man. He truly understands God’s grace and takes great joy in sharing that precious gift with others.

This book was birthed out of a devastating season in Tullian’s life and as he sought God as never before, he realized in a fresh and life-altering way that “the gospel is way more radical, offensive, liberating, shocking, and counterintuitive than any of us realize…like Aslan in C.S. Lewis’s Chronicles of Narnia, the gospel is good but not safe.” (p.11). 

In so many ways, we accept that the Gospel saves us and we thank Jesus for doing what we could never do for ourselves: bring us into a loving relationship with a holy God by taking our sin upon Himself.

However, the problem begins when we now feel that it is up to us and our puny efforts to take it from there. That is when legalism and bondage enter the picture, causing all kinds of stress, comparison, self-loathing, and feelings of failure. As Tullian explains, “To define ourselves by what we must do, what we must accomplish, and who we must become—that’s the epitome of slavery. When we believe, deep down, that God’s blessing depends on how well we’re behaving, we wither and groan under the heavy burden of self-reliance…when life is all about us—what we can do, how we perform—our world becomes small and smothering; we shrink. To have everything riding on ourselves leads to despair, not deliverance.” (p. 54)

It is all so unnecessary.

We really can live free.

The truth is, we were never meant to go beyond the gospel. For the rest of our lives and on into eternity, we are destined to go deeper into its wonders, majesty, and breathtaking beauty.

Understanding the height and depth and breadth of what Jesus did for us on the cross is the only thing that will set our burdened hearts forever free.

We desperately need a change of focus.

It is NOT about what we do.

It is ALL about Jesus and what He has already done.

We do not add anything to His finished work on the cross.

When we truly grasp this, we are “strangely liberated by fresh realization of our own smallness.” (p. 64).

I never realized what a heavy load I was carrying, always striving to be good enough, to earn the grace that is freely given, to feel as if a godly life was at least partially up to me to get it right. No wonder I felt like I was running on a treadmill: faster and faster but with nothing to show for it except stagnation.

It is priceless to know without a shadow of a doubt  that “because of Christ’s finished work, Christians already  possess the approval, the love, the security, the freedom, the meaning, the cleansing, the forgiveness, the righteousness, and the rescue we intensely long for, and in fact, look for in a thousand things smaller than Jesus every day—things transient, things incapable of delivering the goods. The gospel is the only thing big enough to satisfy our deepest, eternal longings—both now and forever. ” (p. 77).

Every single thing I need, I already have in Christ.

For the Christian, there is no such thing as lack.

There is only what we perceive as lack.

Christ fills all. (Ephesians 1:23). How can we honestly think that we are missing anything?

This truth has so liberated me!

I no longer have to strive, to grasp, to cling, to be frustrated by what I don’t have but think I need. When He says no to something that I would like, I rest in the knowledge that He is enough.

I accept it and move on with my day, knowing that He is in full control and He has already given me everything I need.

“God is always good and I am always loved.” (Ann Voskamp).

And all is joy.

“The banner under which Christians live reads, “It is finished.” So relax and rejoice. Jesus plus nothing equals everything; everything minus Jesus equals nothing.

You’re free!” (p. 206).

“I’m tired of being thankful,” she said softly, as tears shone in her eyes.

Honest words. Hard to say in a church sanctuary, of all places, where there are lots of smiles and music.

And very often masks firmly in place.

Her life has been shattered into many pieces. She is tired of trying to trace the rainbow through the rain. Most days she doesn’t even see the rainbow; just the seemingly never-ending storm. The hurt runs deep. So deep that the mask has come off because the pain is too much to hide behind a chipper, “I’m fine, thanks.”

Sometimes life is anything but “fine.”

Church should be the safest of places to bare our hurts, our confusion, our pain, our tears. And thank God, sometimes it is.

However, as one pastor states, “Instead of a hospital for sufferers, church becomes a glorified costume party, where lonely men and women tirelessly police each other’s facade of holiness. The higher up in the pecking order, the less room for weakness.”

This kind of nonsense  is not ever from Jesus.

Jesus is real to the bone. He openly showed a range of emotions to His disciples when He walked this earth. He was not afraid to cry. He asked for prayer and support in His darkest hour. He revealed His heartbreak over sin and death and pride. To this day, He deeply feels everything we feel.

…In all their distress He too was distressed…in His love and mercy He redeemed them; He lifted them up and carried them…(Is. 63:9)

He desires truth in our inner being (Ps. 51:6). The problem is that sometimes what is in there is so ugly that we don’t want to look at it, let alone acknowledge it. But we must…if we want to be free.

The enemy would prefer that we keep everything locked up tight inside, that we cement our masks firmly in place and by all means, keep smiling! And all the while, the pain eats away at our hearts like a cancer and our world grows small and claustrophobic  and we feel like we are suffocating.

Yet, Jesus is our Deliverer.

We went through fire and through water, but You brought us out into a broad place (to abundance and refreshment, and the open air).–Ps. 66:12

That is always His goal for us: abundance, revival, the fresh air of liberty!  Liberty from sin. Liberty from fear. Liberty from the performance-driven mentality. Liberty from striving to have the  “perfect” life or be the “perfect” Christian. (There is no such thing).

Because in the end, it is always and only about what Jesus has done for us on the Cross..not what we do for Him. As long as we live, we will never outgrow our need for the Gospel, the Good News: I am a great sinner but Jesus is a great Savior.

You may ask, “How does the fact that Jesus died on the cross impact my current situation/heartache/trial in 2012?”

As Tullian Tchividjian writes in his must-read book Jesus + Nothing = Everything,  “The gospel doesn’t simply rescue us from the past and rescue us for the future; it also rescues us in the present from being enslaved to things like fear, insecurity, anger, self-reliance, bitterness, entitlement, and insignificance.” 

He goes on to say, “Rediscovering the gospel enabled me to see that:

because Jesus was strong for me, I was free to be weak;
because Jesus won for me, I was free to lose;
because Jesus was someone, I was free to be no one;
because Jesus was extraordinary, I was free to be ordinary;
because Jesus succeeded for me, I was free to fail. (pp. 23-24)

That is, indeed, good news! Because of the cross, there is a happily-ever-after for all of our sad stories.

So, if today finds you in the same place as my friend, know that every single day for the rest of your life, you will always have one thing to be thankful for…and it is the most important thing of all: Jesus came for you. He rescued you when you had no hope. He gave you new life.

It’s okay to thank Him through your tears.

It’s okay that you may not feel thankful.

It’s okay to pour your heart out to Him.

And in the end, He will make it all okay.

He promised.

As we parted, I reminded my friend that we are all broken. Nobody has it all together in this fallen world. That’s why we need each other. We can pick up those who have fallen and remind them that, for Christ’s own, the darkest night does not last forever. Morning always comes.

So be kind to each other. As you go into this day, keep your eyes open to those who may be hurting…and remind them of the Good News.

For God so loved and dearly prized (you) that He even gave up His only begotten Son (for you), so that when (you) believe in, trust in, cling to, rely on Him, (you) will not perish, come to destruction, be lost, but (you will) have eternal, everlasting life. —John 3:16 (Amplified) 

This year, I was delighted that Lifeway made it possible for individuals to be able to watch Beth’s Living Proof Live simulcast.

So, this past Saturday morning, I logged on via my laptop and had an amazing time in God’s Word.

I loved that Beth’s worship leader, the incredibly talented Travis Cottrell began the day by declaring, “This is no ordinary day. Jesus has set aside this day to speak freedom to you!”

Did He ever!

Beth shared that she believed that God’s purpose for this simulcast was to ignite a huge revival of faith.

Her text for the day was 2 Kings 4, which chronicles the accounts of two women. One was very wealthy, one was very poor. However, they did share something: they each were in need of a miracle that only a delivering Savior could provide.

The first woman (who Beth called Girl A) had almost nothing.

Her husband had died and the debt collectors were coming to take her sons in order to pay off the debt that was owed. Can you imagine what a terrifying experience this was? She had already lost her husband and now she would lose her sons. I cannot fathom the depths of her grief and fear.

1. Personal desperation can jar us out of second-hand stories.

Beth shared that it is believed that this woman’s husband was named Obadiah, who heroically hid 100 of God’s prophets from Jezebel’s murderous rage. He housed them in a cave at his own expense, which may explain why he was in debt when he died.

For years, she had witnessed God move powerfully in the life of her husband. However, after his death, she was in the spotlight. She would no longer be living in the shadow of someone else’s story. It was her time.

Beth asked, “Can you recount God’s faithfulness to YOU?”  She went on to say, “Your life should be marked by a dramatic, climactic, radical show of God’s faithfulness. It’s time to reclaim YOUR firsthand story!”  

We were never meant to simply watch God’s faithfulness to others; we were meant to experience Him ourselves. There are no second-class Christians! God wants to reveal Himself to each and every one of His own!

This was a woman who was in need of a miracle when God sent His prophet Elisha to her.

The only thing she had in her home was “a little oil.” Elisha instructed her to go to her neighbors and request any and all empty jars. And not just one or two. Elisha’s instructions were to make sure she gathered “not too few.”

First of all, it is not easy to admit to others that we are in need. It takes both faith and humility to do this. Yet, it is important not to hide our need from others. God will use our very weaknesses and struggles to minister to others, as we share how He has met our need. This is the one of the ways that the risen Christ becomes visible to others.

As Beth said, “We have to embrace our need. Our need is our invitation to experience the miraculous!”

Secondly, this desperate woman was told not to just gather one or two jars, but many. We need to be just as bold in our prayers.

As Beth said, “Don’t ask for a few. Stop being so polite about your faith! Have you been attacked? Attack back with your faith!” 

(Beth then shared that after being inspired by her son-in-law’s preaching on this passage of Scripture, she collected some empty jars and placed them all along the mantle above her fireplace to remind her that “there is a jar-gatherer in all of us. It’s time to find her!” ).

After she had gathered all the jars she could, her instructions were simple: “Shut the door upon you and your sons. Then pour out the oil you have into all those vessels, setting aside each one when it is full….when the vessels were all full….she came and told the man of God. He said, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debt, and you and your sons live on the rest.” (vv.4-7).

There are all some seasons in life where we need to shut yourself in with faith. Don’t listen to the naysayers. Soak in the Word. Believe God.

Because she had obeyed God’s plan, she and her sons were miraculously delivered. There is truly NOTHING that is impossible with our God. He can take our little and make it overflow into abundant provision. He sees our plight and He ALWAYS has a plan!

**************

Now we turn our attention to the second woman mentioned in this Scripture passage (who Beth called “Girl Z”).

This lady and her husband were very wealthy and they were also generous. They added a room onto their home for Elisha, so that when he was visiting the area, he would have a place to stay. When Elisha asked if there was anything he could do for her, she told him she didn’t need anything.  She was “fine.”

2. God didn’t call us to “fine.” He called us to FAITH. 

Fine isn’t the point.

Beth recalled a question her pastor asked when he was preaching on this passage that spoke to her in a powerful way: “Do you want to live in the supernatural provision of God where you experience the miraculous or do you just want to live a humanly explainable life?”   

Wow.

I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to get to the end of my life and be able to explain it all. Where is the glory of  God in that?! I have already been privileged to live the unexplainable and it is one wild, exhilarating ride! There truly is nothing like walking through this life with Jesus.

It turns out that Girl Z did have a need that all her money could not buy: she was childless.

When Elisha told her that she would have a son in a year’s time, her reaction was vehement: “Oh!” she exclaimed. “Please, sir, don’t lie to me! You are a man of God!”  (v. 16)

In the modern vernacular, Beth said that she was saying, ” Don’t mess with me!”  This was obviously a very tender area in her heart. How many years had she yearned for a child?

People in Girl Z’s situation learn to live like this:” Do the safe thing. Don’t ask for anything so you will not be disappointed. Don’t risk loss. Don’t risk getting out there where it’s rough.”

Beth mentioned that when we choose to live like this, we end up living a little life because we ask little and risk little.

“God has not called any of you to a little life! We are called to an astonishing life! Risk! Then experience a dramatic story and supernatural provision!

(She had us write out the word ‘faithfulness’ then cross out the word faith).

We want to find a way to be faithful without the faith. Then all we have left is fullness, which creates a vacuum that we try to fill with various things (ex: doing good deeds, possessions, etc.).”

She made it clear that she is not talking about material blessing and provision, though that is certainly part of the equation. Rather, “We are to live in the abundance of Christ!”

3. Fear is the crippler of a walking, talking miracle.

We all deal with fear to some extent.

Beth quoted Ps. 44:5 which says, “Through You we push back our enemies; through Your Name we trample our foes.”  She said it is time to push back the enemy. Earlier this year, she wrote out 7 pages of “fear nots” in the Bible and read one page a day. You can find this on Beth’s blog and print out your own copy.

After doing this every single day, faith replaced fear…so much so that Beth did not even recognize herself three months later and she wrote in her journal “I have no fear. Who is this You are making me???”  That is the power of His Word and His resurrection life that flows through our hearts.

“Are you still accepting the lie, ‘This is how it’s always going to be?’ Are you still drawing breath? Change is always possible! What could God begin to do TODAY that in 3 months, you could ask, ‘Who is this You are making me???”

4. Faith trusts that every call to forsake is a call to also take.

“In Christ, everything He asks us to forsake (such as fear), He gives us something to take (courage).

Just as Elisha promised, Girl Z conceived and had a son the next year. Several years passed and then tragically, her son fell ill and died in her arms. She immediately went to find Elisha, knowing that his God was her only hope.

You can hear the anguish in her voice as she says to Elisha, “Didn’t I tell you, don’t raise my hopes?”

Elisha came to her home immediately and attempted to revive her dead son. The boy began to grow warm again but he was not yet fully alive. Elisha’s first attempt failed.

What happens when we fail? When we believe Him for something and it doesn’t happen?

Do we run or hide OR do we get on our faces before God?

We cannot allow our failure become faithlessness. 

The bottom line is that we want to control God… We want a list of things to do so we can do those things and have some control. But Jesus says NO! Get out there in the wind and the waves and find yourself some fiery faith!

5. Faith faces the fact that there is no formula. 

If there was a formula, we would go for the results rather than the Redeemer.  Pray with expectation! We may not get exactly what we’re asking for, but He WILL be faithful!

We live with mystery. He is GOD and we have to trust Him. Do you have enough security in Him to trust Him with the mystery? In the marrow of your bones, do you believe that He is good? God does NOT have a dark side! 

If what we asked for in believing faith doesn’t come down, that means that something is up!

He never says no to us without a good reason!  His ways are higher than our ways. (Isaiah 55).

6. Faith rests its case on the resurrection of the dead. 

Miraculously, God raised Girl Z’s son from the dead! That was a preview of Christ, who would one day rise from the dead on our behalf.

If Jesus died and rose from the dead, is there ANYTHING He cannot do?!

Within you is the same resurrection power that raised Jesus from the dead! Ask Him to fill you up to overflowing and do what only He can do! 

Beth brought up a question that we may have as we read this account. Why doesn’t God raise the dead in our day?

She went on to share a concept. The wonders of God under the established  Old Covenant  were primarily external & secondarily internal. 2 Corinthians 3 tells us that the O.T. saints saw glory.

In contrast, the wonders of God under the established New Covenant were primarily internal & secondarily external. 2 Cor. 3 tells us that the N.T. saints see a surpassing glory. 

Today, the biggest wonder He wants to perform is IN human hearts. WE become the miracle! Every single believer was stone cold dead spiritually and has been raised from the dead. 

Do you want to be powerfully used by God? You can be. It’s up to you. Spiritually speaking, gather your jars. He won’t do a wonder without your cooperation. It’s up to you to receive it.

The biggest wonder God wants to perform is not just for you but in you!

7. The Lord speaks; many, many women spread the good news. (Ps. 68:11, NET Bible)

It is our immense privilege to spread the good news that Jesus came for us, that He lived a perfect life and died in our place, taking the punishment that we deserved so that we could have the priceless gift of eternal life.

Now get out there and spread the good news!

If God does not part your sea, He wants you to walk on it!

I found it ironic that in my last post, I wrote about being so grateful to have a place to go when we get hit hard by life. That place, of course, is God’s throne, where He rules in absolute control…even when things on this earth seem so out of control.

I published the post and headed to the high school track to walk. I had just started to walk when my cell phone rang. It was my mom’s cell phone.

I hate to see her cell phone number.

I mainly see that number when she is calling to tell me that she is in the hospital.

At 77, my mom is generally quite healthy but there have been a few times over the years when she has had to go to the ER. This was one of those times.

“I’m in the hospital,” she said, sounding tired and frightened. She went on to tell me that she had had a TIA. Her cousin Elaine was with her and she was waiting to be admitted. She told me about the events that had led her there and promised to keep me posted. We said our “I love yous” and disconnected.

I felt a lump in my throat and my heart started pounding. It was a brilliantly sunny day. High school students played flag football on the field and further down the hill, elementary children were out for recess in full force, their loud laughter piercing the early afternoon air.

I felt small, scared and helpless. I only have one parent left and  I was not ready to say goodbye.

The first place I went was to the throne that I had written about earlier. I poured my heart out to Jesus, who is firmly seated on that throne.  He is the Author of life and knows every day that has been allotted to each of us. He is close to the broken-hearted. He collects all our tears in a bottle. He is intimately acquainted with our fears. He draws near to us in our time of need. I was so grateful that I had somewhere to go during a time like this. I took comfort in knowing that nothing takes Jesus by surprise.  Even though I couldn’t be with my mom in that Pennsylvania hospital room, He was there with her.  My prayers reached His ears and He sent His peace pouring into my heart.

After praying, I began to text and call dear friends and ask them to pray. Hearing their familiar voices and reading their words was such a comfort.

When I climbed into my car to head back home, the voice of Michael W. Smith filled the air from my CD player. His version of “Here I Am To Worship” was just starting. I began to sing along as I drove and knew that for the rest of the day, I would listen to that song over and over again.

Worship always replaces worry.

Worship calms fears and soothes frayed nerves.

Worship fills the empty places with His fullness.

Worship silences the lies of the enemy.

Worship replaces the gray with  the bright colors of joy.

Worship brings blessed peace to troubled hearts.

Worship allows our spirits to rise above the confines of this earth and gain a much-needed eternal perspective.

Worship focuses our attention like a laser beam on Jesus and His power and loving-kindness.

Worship reminds us that He gives beauty for ashes and promises to work all things for the good of His own.

All day long, I listened to that song, and my faith became stronger than my fears. Yes, my fear was still there, lurking, but I didn’t allow it to overwhelm me.

As it turned out, my mom was fine. All her tests came back clear and she was released from the hospital yesterday.

I am so grateful.

Whatever you are going through as you read this, do not hesitate to use praise as your most powerful and effective weapon.

Even if you do not get the happy ending you were hoping for, trust His heart and know that His purposes are good and kind.

Praise or fear?

The choice is yours.

My son interviewed me for his history class yesterday.

His assignment was to talk to someone who had lived through September 11, 2001…the day that the veil was pulled back and we all saw a glimpse of hell.

It was hard to put myself back into that horrible day; the day that had dawned so bright and beautiful with no hint of the darkness that was about to descend.

A phone call from my friend Ida Mae at 8:50 a.m. that morning forever pierced my illusion of safety in this world. A quick flick of the remote control filled my cozy family room with the ghastly and gruesome images that I never thought I would see on American soil.

When the initial thought that this must have been a terrible mistake was proven false by the second plane slamming unmercifully into the second tower, the tears flowed and I felt as if all the breath had been knocked out of me.

I ran to check on my kids, who were at the time only 4 and 5 years old. They were happily playing, oblivious to the world gone mad around them.

I just wanted to drink in their sweet, innocent faces and keep them safe forever.

That day passed both quickly and in agonizing slow motion. At one point, it seemed as if the bad news would never stop coming, as we saw planes crash into both the Pentagon and a remote field in Pennsylvania. Nobody knew what fresh horror would appear next. Phone lines buzzed with both rumors and fact. Formerly reticent family and friends were quick to offer “I love you’s”.  Tomorrow was no longer certain, as all those souls who entered eternity that day could attest.

I never remember feeling so vulnerable, so scared, so small. When my husband came home, I hugged him as if I would never let go.

This world didn’t feel like home anymore to me. Of course, it was never supposed to.

A new ladies fall Bible study was to begin that evening at my church. The woman in charge decided not to cancel the event. She called me to say that she wanted to open her home to anyone who wanted to come, feeling that we all needed to be together.

It turned out to be the best decision.

We all arrived that evening at 7:00, in a rather shell-shocked state. Some tears were still fresh, some had dried. All hearts were heavy.

Together, His daughters took our prayers and heartache to the Throne of Grace…the ONLY true shelter in any storm.

How beautiful it is that because of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, we have a place to go with our fears and heartaches. As terrifying events unfold here on earth, we know deep down that they do not have the final say. There is a greater, more beautiful Reality than anything we can see.

Our God reigns.

You, O Lord, are enthroned forever. —Ps. 102:12

God reigns over the nations; God sits upon His holy throne.—Ps. 47:8

The Lord reigns, let the earth rejoice…clouds and darkness are round about Him…righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne. Fire goes before Him and burns up His adversaries round about. His lightnings illumine the world; the earth sees and trembles. The hills melted like wax at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the Lord of the whole earth. The heavens declare His righteousness and all the peoples see His glory. —Ps. 97:1-6

Our God sees.

His eyes are on the ways of man and He sees all his steps. —Job 34:21

Our God comes.

Our God comes and does not keep silent; a fire devours before Him and round about Him a mighty tempest rages. —Ps. 50:3

Our God avenges.

The Lord is a jealous God…the Lord avenges and is full of wrath. The Lord takes vengeance on His adversaries and reserves wrath for His enemies.—Nahum 1:2

Upon the wicked He will rain quick burning coals or snares: fire, brimstone, and a dreadful, scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup. —Ps. 11:6

(No, those hijackers were NOT greeted by virgins in paradise as they had been led to believe. They were greeted by the risen Christ in all His terrifying wrath because they had refused His sacrificial death for their sins).

Most of all, our God loves and our God saves.

For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world that He gave His only Son, so that whoever believes (trusts in, clings to, relies on Him) shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost), but have eternal (everlasting) life.—John 3:16

Later on that fateful day, I heard a most wonderful story. As people rushed down the stairs of the towers, not knowing if they would live to see the exit, there was one man who began to yell out the Gospel message to all who would listen.

“Believe on the Name of Jesus and be saved!” He yelled, bringing the very words of LIFE into death and fear and terror.

That is what I love about the beauty and simplicity of the Gospel message.  It is so simple that a child can understand it but so rich and deep that we will spend an eternity learning of its wonders.

Those people in that stairwell did not have to see a priest. They did not have to perform penance or do good works. They did not have to undergo elaborate religious rituals, empty of meaning.

They had to do one thing: believe that Jesus was God in human form. That He had come to this earth to live a perfect life in order to die the perfect death for sinners who had no way to get to a holy and righteous God. That He paid the penalty we owed so that we could be forever free.

The thief who was crucified next to Jesus illustrates the sheer power and  this wondrous simplicity of the Gospel.

He had nothing to recommend him.

He was a vile criminal, dying a horrific death for crimes that he had committed.

He was helpless to save himself from impending death…both physical and spiritual.

Yet he looked upon Christ and believed.

One of the criminals who were hanged railed at Him, saying, “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!” But the other rebuked him, saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? …We are receiving the reward due our deeds but this Man has done nothing wrong.” And he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” And He said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in paradise.” —Luke 23:39-43.

The sheer grace of this moment takes my breath away.

It is the sheer grace of our Savior, Jesus Christ that still saves today.

And it is because of that salvation, that grace, that we can know a better Day is coming. This world is not our home. All that is wrong will be made right. Jesus will come again. Evil will not triumph. It will be dealt with in perfect justice and eradicated forever. Our magnificent God is in the process of making all things new.

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the former heaven and former earth had passed away and there no longer existed any sea. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, all arrayed like a bride beautified and adorned for her husband.

Then I heard a mighty voice from the throne..saying, “See! The abode of  God is with men and He will live among them and they shall be His people and God shall personally be with them and be their God.

God will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more; neither shall there be anguish, sorrow, and mourning, nor grief, nor pain any more, for the old conditions and the former order of things have passed away.

And He who is seated on the throne said, “See! I am making all things new.” —Revelation 21:1-5

Amen.

There is someone in my life that I just do not understand. (It is no one in my immediate family).

The behavior mystifies me and I truly struggle at times to show Christ’s love.

However, I  recently had a major breakthrough so I thought I would  blog about it to help someone else who is dealing with what author Mary Southerland calls a “sandpaper person.”

One morning when I was going to be in the company of this person, I was literally on my knees, asking Jesus to pour His love for her into my heart, as He promises to do in Romans 5:5. In my flesh, I just did not have it in me.

He answered my prayer almost immediately in rapid-fire succession.

1) He showed me that I am as broken as she is.

After my prayers, I checked in with one of my favorite blogs and read these words (the author was writing about someone in her life who was hard to love): “…when logic said that I should be angry or might love her less, I couldn’t…and as I saw the extent of her brokenness and mine, I loved her even more.” 

Those words stopped me dead in my tracks as I heard the voice of Christ speak to my heart through a Shaun Groves song called “No Better” :

When you throw your stone, aim it at the heart
Where every crime comes from, where every stumble starts
And save the next for me; muster all your skill
‘Cause sin in secrecy is the hardest kind to kill

Lay me down with the liars, brawlers, thieves, and backbiters
Lay me down with the others, cause I’m no better.

There’s no justice here; it’s just as well you know
We’ve all got hell to pay
And grace pays all we owe

Lay me down with the takers, politicians, cheats, and heartbreakers
Lay me down with the others, cause I’m no better.

Jesus used the words of Katie and Shaun to gently remind me that my sandpaper person and I are in the exact same boat.  We were both born into sin, enemies of God, hopeless to save ourselves from the hell that we deserved.

The only difference is that Jesus has opened my eyes to the glorious fact that He took the punishment that I deserved in order to set me free.

She is still bound in her sin, still  resisting the blazing, penetrating, loving, and convicting love of her Savior. She hasn’t  yet  accepted the fact that perfect divine justice and perfect divine love met at the Cross so that she could be forgiven and made new.

That very cross is the place where she can take her list of grievances, her hurts, her pain and find healing…but she is not willing.

I have been very bit as stubborn and prideful and hard-hearted as she is in my life.

It has been said that the ground is level at the foot of the cross. There is only One who is lifted up there. Only One who holds the key to beautiful redemption. Only One who has the power to take our sins away and grant us forgiveness.

The choice is up to us.

At this point in time, she is saying no. She is refusing the precious gift that is offered to her.

My job is to love her right where she is, just as others loved me when I was in her place. This love (the love of Christ) is most often not a feeling; it is an action. It is a determination to love the unlovely, to pursue them even in their ugliness, to see with heaven-filled eyes of faith what they could be when they are redeemed by their Savior’s love.

His command to me in this instance is simple: Love the broken. Pray with all your strength. Watch Me work.

2) The lost have no redemptive revelation of God.

I am continually amazed at my sandpaper person’s insistence on reciting her personal woes. Not just once, but over and over again, like a dog fruitlessly chasing its tail or a broken record.

Her vision cannot seem to go beyond herself and her small, claustrophobic world.

“Look around you!” I practically want to shout, frustrated by the extreme self-centeredness. “There is so much more to life than you and your issues!”

Then Jesus showed me this verse: “Where there is no vision (no redemptive revelation of God) the people perish.” (Proverbs 29:18, Amplified version).

Lost people can be quite incapable of seeing anything beyond themselves and their concerns.

As a Christian, I know that I am the created, that my small story is but a whisper of His huge story. I serve a limitless God who does “exceedingly, abundantly above all that I could ever ask, think, or imagine” (Ephesians 3:20). He is the Author of life itself. He teaches me to look outward. He calls me to go, to help, to serve, to invite, to invest. He commands me to die to self that I might really LIVE. 

He has shown me what it means to look at all people and problems and situations redemptively.  

My God makes all things new! Nothing is impossible with Him! He gives me eyes that see beyond the natural, giving me a thrilling glimpse of His redemptive work.  Living life with Jesus is having a front row seat to watch the seemingly impossible become possible!

What a tremendous gift! 

This dear one who I struggle to love has no such vision…because she doesn’t know the God who created her and longs to be known by her.

All she can see is her problems and her solutions (none of which ever work, leaving her more frustrated and depressed than ever). She thinks that it is up to her to fight her own battles, to defend herself, to set everything right, to figure it all out.

How exhausting. How sad. How hopeless.

She doesn’t know that there is One who promises to be her Shield, her Rock, her Protector, her Guide.

And right  there, Jesus fills my heart with compassion that had run dry.

3) She is my mission field.

I began to listen to my new favorite song, “Sometimes” by David Crowder. I was singing along with David and as I sung the words, “Oh God send me!” it was as if Jesus physically materialized beside me and said, “Please stop thinking of that line so romantically. I am not sending you to Africa or China. Right now, I am sending you into this day minister to her.  She is your mission field today.”

I listened to His Voice. I obeyed His command. I went forward into that day in His strength. And He was faithful to love her through me.

All the “sandpaper people” in our lives are our misson field, aren’t they?

There are no accidents with our God. Nothing is haphazard.

The sandpaper people have been placed very carefully and purposefully into our lives. If we will allow Him to, Jesus has much to teach us through them. They are actually gifts in disguise.

*They help us confront our own weaknesses.

*They teach us about the stubborn, pursuing and perfecting love of our Savior who never gives up.

*They remind us how lost we were until Jesus found us.

*They teach us to look at the world through the eyes of Christ, rather than simply human eyes.

*They show us how utterly bankrupt we are to love anybody more than we love ourselves.

*They help us learn to love, REALLY love in the true and pure biblical sense of the word.

Can you ask Jesus (as I did) to help you see your sandpaper person as His love gift in disguise? Can you thank Him for the opportunity to draw closer to Him as you agree to be His partner in the thrilling and exhilarating work of redemption?

My goal is that what is said of the Proverbs 31 woman in verse 20 would be true of me as I deal with sandpaper people, present and future:

“”She reaches out her filled hands to the needy (whether in body, mind, or spirit). 

May it always be so from this day on…in His strength and power.

Our friend Darrin is a race car driver.

One day before a race, a friend of his gave him a bright orange traffic cone magnet to put on his car, joking that he had one on his car and had never had a wreck. He called it his “cone of protection.”

When we moved to wild and crazy streets of South Florida, Darrin gave us our own “cone of protection” for our cars. It was silly, of course, but it made for a good laugh.

(We lost ours in a car wash).

On Saturday night, our family found ourselves in the emergency veterinarian waiting room with our dog Buddy.

All Buddy has ever wanted is for his family to all be in the house at the same time. He does not adjust well when we travel and he is left behind (usually with my long-suffering brother, to whom we owe a huge debt of gratitude).

This summer has been an unusually busy one and Buddy is not pleased. We noticed a few days ago that he had chewed off much of the fur on this right side due to stress.  We were worried that it would get infected, so we decided to take him in to be examined.

He was given tranquilizers, cream for the infection, and antibiotics…as well as a big plastic “cone of protection” of a different sort wrapped around his head to prevent him from bothering his wound.

Buddy is not adjusting well to his cone at all.

As I have watched him struggle over the past 24 hours,  I have noticed several spiritual truths from his experiences.

*Once the cone was put on, Buddy was completely immobilized. He could do everything he did before but it was as if the presence of the cone caused him to freeze. He seemed to be afraid to move.

How often are we immobilized by a circumstance that floods us with imaginary fears? How often do we allow something external to cause us to believe that we cannot even move, let along finish the race we have been called to run by the very One who has gone before us?

These are lies straight from the enemy of our souls. Nothing, no one, and no circumstance  has the power to stop you. Why? Because the very Spirit of Jesus lives in you!

…thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumph (as trophies of Christ’s victory)…2 Corinthians 2:14.

You, as a Christ-follower, are a trophy of His transforming power and matchless, wondrous grace to a watching world.

Claim your identity and move forward in faith. Do it now.

*When Buddy did decide to move, he stumbled quite a bit because as he tried to move forward, he kept his head down. This caused the cone to drag along the ground and he couldn’t make much progress. If only he would have raised his head, he could have walked unimpeded.

When we refuse to LOOK UP  and remember that God’s eternal and good purposes are always at work for His highest glory and our highest good, we stumble every time. There is more to this life than what we can see with our eyes. As John Piper says, “Our God is always at work in a thousand different ways that we cannot see.” 

Choose to “look up” today by opening His Word and saturating yourselves in His “precious and exceedingly great promises” (2 Peter 1:4). Those promises are stronger and truer than anything you are currently facing. Circumstances never have the final word. God’s Word does.

*Buddy did not understand that the burdensome cone was their for his protection. If left to his own devices, he would continue to bother the wound and make it much worse. The cone serves a greater purpose than Buddy can see. That cone will allow his healing to take place.

Have you considered that your “cone” that you may be railing against has been placed there by your Savior who is passionately and tirelessly committed to your healing? The love of Jesus is not a passive love. It is fiery, all-consuming, and deeply dedicated to restoring and redeeming what is broken in our damaged hearts. If He has deemed it necessary that you need a “cone” in this season of your life, trust His heart. He can do no wrong. There is a reason and a purpose. As I have heard Beth Moore say many times, “Your healing is on the other side of this thing!” Believe it.

*Buddy is completely bereft and depressed because he has no way of knowing that he will only have to wear this cone for 7 days. Clearly, he thinks this is his sad lot for the rest of his life.

The late Women of  Faith speaker/author Barbara Johnson used to say that her favorite verse in the Bible was “...and it came to pass.” No season lasts forever. Every trial comes to an end. As I tell my kids constantly, “Jesus always knows what He is doing.”  Either He will change your circumstance or He will flood your heart with His grace so that you can (joyfully and triumphantly) endure it. He is always willing to give you an abundance of HIM…and He is more than enough.

His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through the knowledge of Him…(2 Peter 1:3)

*Buddy could not figure out how to maneuver his cone in order to get his to his food. (We never said he was the smartest dog! 🙂 ). So he just stood there and whimpered. Doug took pity on him and sat down beside him, picked up some food, and fed Buddy by hand. If Buddy wanted to eat, he had to humble himself to come close to Doug to be fed.

In much the same way, when a “cone” appears in our lives, this is Jesus’s invitation to come closer to Him. In order to do that, we need to humble ourselves and admit we need help. Standing still and whining does no good whatsoever. Our relationship with Jesus is never neutral. We are either moving toward Him or away from Him.  Our flesh naturally wants to run away but that is always to our detriment. Make the decision to move in close to the only One who can truly help and offer real comfort. His heart is kind towards you. His intentions are good and noble. His goal is nothing less than intimacy with you. 

He carries you close to His heart (Is. 40:11) 

He is near to you when you are brokenhearted (Ps. 34:18)

He speaks tenderly to you. (Hosea 2:14)

He desires to see your face and hear your voice (Song of Songs 2:14).

He wants to give you rest and restore your tired soul (Ps. 23:2-3)

Whatever you are going through as you read this, trust Jesus.

He knows.

He sees.

He is in absolute control.

His timing is perfect.

He is at work for good in your life. Always.

And maybe pray for patience for my family as we spend the next week with a dog who looks like this: 🙂

I have been experiencing a one woman revival this summer.

Jesus has used an incredible author named Paul David Tripp to introduce me to my true self and in the process, shine His beautiful and healing Light into a heart that was in need of divine tending. (more on that in posts to come).

I have never known such peace and joy in my 34 years of following Christ.  Everyone in my life has noticed the difference…especially those who live with me everyday!

As I was reading Tripp’s  book Instruments In the Redeemer’s Hands this morning, this question stopped me dead in my tracks:

“In the face of powerful emotions and desires, what will we do? As sons and daughters of the King, will we live in self-imposed bondage to our emotions?”

That was a “eureka!” moment for me.

I have lived in self-imposed bondage to my emotions for most of my life.

I am by nature a passionate person. I feel things very deeply. Generally, anyone in my vicinity knows what I am feeling too. (And sometimes that has not been pretty).

For so long, I didn’t feel like I could control my emotions. I often consented to go along with whatever ride they wanted to take me on.

That’s a tough way to live. It is also not the way Jesus calls His followers to live.

Tripp goes on to ask, “Will we submit to the mastery of our sinful desires?”  (That is exactly what the enemy wants us to do, by the way).

“OR…will we grab hold of the promises of the gospel and turn in a completely different direction?”  (That is exactly what Jesus wants us to do).

Whatever kingdom you are currently serving will determine which route you follow.

In his powerful, convicting, and beautifully written book The Quest For More: Living For Something Bigger Than You, Tripp teaches that each of us lives for one of two kingdoms every single day: your kingdom (that is only the size of your life) or God’s kingdom (which is the size of eternity).

The little kingdom of self is ruled by your wants and desires. In that case, you are ruled by your emotions and what is best for you. Your world is actually very small and filled with frustration because the rest of the world hasn’t received the memo that you are the center of all things.

The big Kingdom of God is ruled by wanting to please the One who created all things and redeemed you at such a great cost. In that case, you are lovingly and joyfully ruled by your Savior and your chief aim and passionate pursuit is to bring glory to His matchless Name. Your world is actually huge and filled with joy because you are fulfilling your destiny, the very reason you have been created.

For years I lived for the little kingdom of self, all the while thinking I was living for the big Kingdom of God. Oh how subtle and deceitful the heart can be! (Jeremiah 17:9).

But now that Jesus in His amazing grace has revealed the truth to me, I have walked away from that little kingdom without looking back.  I have no desire to ever return to its claustrophobic confines, now that He is showing me what it looks like to choose His Kingdom every day.

It is glorious.

As a result, no more self-imposed bondage to my emotions. No more allowing circumstances to dictate my mood. No more feelings of helplessness in the wake of powerful negative emotions that beg to be acted upon.

I cannot tell you how GOOD freedom feels!

My one job description as a Christ follower is obedience to His Word that flows from a fully surrendered heart that is totally in love Him.

He tells me to love Him and love my neighbor as myself. Then He gives me the grace and power to do just that. (Philippians 4:13).

Unleashing a flood of negative emotions on those around me is NOT loving them. That is Satan’s way.

Giving powerful negative emotions full entrance into my mind, creating untold amounts of worry and fear is NOT Jesus’ way. That is Satan’s way.

As Bible teacher James MacDonald might say, “Down with Satan’s way!”

The good news of the resurrected Christ allows me to choose another, far better way. I can say “no” to being ruled by my emotions as I serve the little kingdom of self and say “yes!” to Jesus whose spirit is joined to mine and  and serve Him and His purposes in the strength He provides.

Take a good look at your life today. In what areas are you allowing your emotions to rule? Why? What is the payoff for you? (hint: it’s nothing good).

Can you choose today to release yourself from your self-imposed bondage to their chaotic rule?

You do this by drawing close to Jesus and choosing to submit to how He would have you live, which He clearly outlines in His love letter to you.

And do yourself a favor: order Paul David Tripp’s A Quest For More as soon as possible. You will be so glad you did!