Is NOT Stumbling a Possiblity?

Tags

Christian encouragement, christian journey, christian walk, Christianity, devotional, devotions, encouragement, exhaustion, family devotions, God's Word, keep from stumbling, love of God's Word, stumbling, stumbling blocks, ways to keep from stumbling

Wouldn’t it be great to never have to worry about stumbling blocks in our Christian life? To not have to think about what’s going to trip us up next? I’m not saying we wouldn’t be watchful, just not likely to make mistake after mistake after mistake. Sounds like a great life, doesn’t it? Is that even possible? Is it a “pie in the sky” type of dream, or can it be our reality?

Psalm 119:165 says, “Those who love Thy law have great peace, and nothing causes them to stumble.”

I discovered this verse yesterday and it reminded me that stumbling, or the lack thereof, is always tied up with the Word of God. When I am loving His Word, studying His Word, meditating on His Word, my thoughts are totally different than when I’m not. When I am in His Word, I am filled with peace, not wanting. I am filled with knowledge, not confusion. I am filled with thoughts of Him and not myself. When my thoughts are filled with Him, my actions follow and I am not stumbling along making poor decision after poor decision. I have great peace because I am in love with His Word.

So, the question for today is, “Are you in love with His Word?” Before you answer too quickly ask yourself how much time are you in His Word. Is it one of those relationships where you make your obligatory visit as you would an unknown aunt in the nursing home, or is it a relationship that you look forward to, talk about afterwards and are enthralled with? That’s loving the Word of God. That’s when peace comes. That’s when we don’t stumble.

Job 23:12 tells us that Job thought more of the words from God’s mouth than his necessary food. Job wanted what God had to say more than he wanted food! That’s why we read in Job 1:22, “Through all this Job did not sin nor did he blame God.” Job was kept from stumbling by loving God’s Word.

Jeremiah 15:16 says, “Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and Thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by Thy name, O LORD God of hosts.”

That’s the kind of relationship I want with God’s Word, don’t you? I want to gobble up everything the Lord has for me each and every day from His Word. I want to think about it, memorize it, meditate on it and love it. It’s God’s beautiful letter to us that took many years and many lives to reach us and I fall into the trap of taking it for granted at times. But, I really want peace and I really want to stop all this stumbling around. So, my prayer for us today is that we would love God’s Word. That’s it. That’s all I’m praying. When that prayer is answered in the affirmative, so much is taken care of, so much stumbling diverted. Oh, that we would be a people of The Word!

Jude 24 says, “Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory with great joy.”

Our God can do His part. Let’s do ours.

My Story

Seeking Hearts Ministries

*Photo by tuffmommablog

Am I Trying to be Egypt?

Tags

advice, bearing one another's burdens, burdens, Christian encouragement, christian journey, christian walk, Christianity, devotional, devotions, encouragement, family devotions, God, helping others, helping people, soliciting advice, strength

As I was reading in Isaiah yesterday, I found a little treasure. You actually have to be in the KJV to find it. In chapter 30 of Isaiah the prophet is foretelling the tragic tale of an enemy approaching Israel. Instead of going to God, they go to other countries to make alliances. They trust in things that appear to be powerful, but hold no true strength. One of those countries is Egypt and when we get to verse 7, it says, “For the Egyptians shall help in vain, and to no purpose: therefore have I cried concerning this, their strength is to sit still.”

Their strength is to sit still.

Who is this talking about? Is this referring to Israel, or Egypt? Most commentators believe Isaiah is talking to Egypt. So, why would Isaiah tell Egypt that their strength is to sit still? Why would he tell them not to help Israel?

I thought about the many times I have tried to be someone else’s strength. It hit me how many times I have tried to be someone else’s Egypt. I’m not talking about someone who truly needs my help in a physical sense that God is calling me to encourage. I’m talking about people who come to me for advice, or a word from God. Instead of getting on our knees together, I puff up arrogantly (in my own mind) and decide that I can help. After all, I am a pastor’s wife, a homeschooling mom of two incredible boys, been married for over twenty years, a student of the Word, etc. etc. etc. That’s not exactly what I’m thinking, but you get the point. It’s expected of me to have a solution, so I panic a little and decide I must figure things out! I have to be someone’s strength. Just like Egypt in the book of Isaiah, instead of turning them to God, I get caught up in trying to fix things for them. I decide that I need to figure out how to protect them instead of leading them to their only true Protector.

I not only do this with people who solicit my advice, but also with my children and husband as well. People who would never ask for my opinion! Can you relate?

Isaiah 30:1-2 says, “Woe to the rebellious children, saith the LORD, that take counsel, but not of me; and that cover with a covering, but not of my spirit, that they may add sin to sin: That walk to go down into Egypt, and have not asked at my mouth; to strengthen themselves in the strength of Pharaoh, and to trust in the shadow of Egypt!”

I am discovering that I have allowed people to trust in my own shadow and not the shadow of the Lord. Psalm 17:8 says, “…hide me under the shadow of thy wings.” That’s what God wants for us and those around us. He wants us to be under His shadow, His protection.

Psalm 18:1-2 says, “I will love thee, O LORD, my strength. The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.” That’s what God wants for us. He wants His strength to be permeating every detail of our lives… not us trying to be each other’s strength and salvation. He is the Rock. We are not.

Psalm 57 is another great Psalm that teaches us to cling to our God. That’s the kind of stuff we need to be sharing with people, not earthly wisdom that according to Isaiah 30:7 will have no purpose and no lasting value. In other words, we are wasting everybody’s time (ours included) if we aren’t leading them to Jesus.

Psalm 61:2 says, “From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.”  That’s our job. Not to be the rock, but to lead people to it.

Instead of frantically trying to fix things for everybody, let’s choose to sit still before our God. Isaiah 30:15 tells us that our strength comes when we are quietly confident in the Lord. If we are running on fumes, maybe it’s because we are trying to be Egypt for someone. Maybe we are trying to be someone’s strength when all we are called to do is sit still in His presence and bring others to that same place.

When people come to us, let’s help them, but let’s help them by showing them, teaching them and leading them to rest before the Lord in order to seek Him, hear Him and know Him.

Let’s stop trying to be Egypt.

My Story

Seeking Hearts Ministries

Am I Worth Singing Over?

Tags

Christian encouragement, christian journey, encouragement, falling in love with Jesus, fulfilliment in God, fulfillment, God sings over us, God's love, hope, loneliness, lonely, love, peace, singing, true hope, true peace, ultimate fulfillment, Valentine's Day

As we come to Valentine’s Day this weekend, I can’t help but think of many of my friends who do not have a “traditional” relationship that would entail the whole Valentine’s Day phenomenon. They won’t be getting a card, or flowers, or an amazing box of chocolates and I also have several friends who are in relationships, but the whole Valentine’s Day thing is really bad timing this year.They have shared that everything will feel fake because they simply are not in a very good place. So, in honor of them and many others who just need the reminder, I decided to re-blog this post from last year. Even though Valentine’s is not mentioned directly, it’s a gentle reminder that God is our ultimate Valentine. That may sound cliché, but it’s true. He loves us more than any human could. He fulfills us in ways only He can think of. He designed us to crave Him and those cravings are only wholly satisfied in Him. Rest in the fact that Valentine’s Days come and go, but your God is the same yesterday, today and for ever.

    Sweet Lullabies

Have you ever thought about why we sing lullabies over our children? How did we think to do that? Who was the first human to hum a little tune over their newborn? It seems so natural, but someone had to have thought of it first. Was it Eve? Since she was the mother of all living at the time, did she naturally croon a lullaby over her newborns? Had she sung with God Himself while walking through the Garden?

Or, was Noah the first? As he was cradling his boys in his arms, with destruction and sin all around him, did he look in those innocent newborn eyes and well up in praise to His Father?

Was it Sarah, Abraham’s wife, who first sang to her child? Did her age cause her to hold Isaac a little longer than most first time mothers and she naturally began to sing over him?

Who was that the first lullaby singer? What did they sing? Why did they sing it? Did they feel silly? Did it seem natural? No one knows.

I’m going to tell you a not too well-kept secret – Zephaniah 3:17 says that God Himself sings over us. How beautiful is that? It says, “The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.” This verse assures us that the God of the universe, the God who holds the world in place with a word He spoke centuries ago, sings over us. How precious a Savior we have!

This verse became very real to me some time ago. For several days in a row, I woke up with a beautiful song rolling around in my head. Most days it was a Christian tune, but one day I remember so specifically was a secular song. When I woke up that morning the song was playing in super stereo in my mind. It was loud! I laid in bed just listening to the words being sung in my head. It was that song by Christina Perri called, “A Thousand Years”. Tears came to my eyes at the beauty of it and I laid there having a full realization of Zephaniah 3:17. I knew that God had sung that song over me all night. I loved that song, but I had never considered relating it to God until that very moment. I knew that God was telling me He has loved me for a thousand years and He would love me for a thousand more. It was a truly impactful moment that I will carry with me for a long time. I knew that the God of the universe had sung a precious love song over me all night and He wanted me to know it!

I think that’s where we get our need to sing lullabies over our children. I think our sweet Lord gave us the desire to sing to our children because He sings over us. He wants us to know the pleasure that it brings Him to sing over us as we sing over our precious ones. God Himself sings over us from the moment of our birth, so why wouldn’t we do the same over our children? In fact, we might even be singing a duet with God. How sweet is that?

So, listen closely.

Pause a moment.

Do you hear Him singing over you?

What song do you need to hear? He’s already singing it.

Do you need peace? Your song today just might be that beautiful old hymn, “He Whispers Sweet Peace to Me”. Do you need love? Your song might be “How He Loves” by David Crowder. Do you need to know that you are not forgotten? Your song today night be “Not Forgotten” by Twila Paris. Whatever you need, your faithful Father knows and He is singing over you this very minute.

So, whether it’s Valentine’s Day, or every day, know that your God loves you. In fact, He cherishes you and He is singing over you.

Lonely?

Seeking Hearts Ministries

When You Kill Your Neighbor’s Cat

Tags

burdens, Christian encouragement, christian journey, christian walk, Christianity, comfort, devotional, encouragment, God's faithfulness, God's grace, God's love, Jesus, killing cats, new mercies, shame, shock, shocking grace, shocking news, sticky situations, stunned disbelief, stunning grace, stunning news

Last week I was on the phone with my mom looking out the front door (I get better reception there because I live in the boonies). My dog was outside and I noticed that something caught his attention. He was on high alert because on the other side of the road, on the church steps, a cat was limping. It had obviously been hurt and needed help, but I wondered if my little terrier mix named “Brutus” would decide he needed to give “aid” to the cat. While trying to politely get off the phone with my mom, I was frantically gesturing to Gabe (my youngest son) about taking care of the cat. I was worried Brutus would decide the pain from the underground fence would be worth the price to get to that cat. Can you imagine the melee that would ensue? When I realized I had probably sent my son to the injury of his life, I hurriedly got off the phone just in time to warn Gabe about touching the cat too quickly. I finally remembered that injured animals were sometimes the most vicious because of their pain level.

Gabe must be the “cat whisperer” because that cat not only let him touch it, but Gabe ended up cradling it like a baby as he started towards the neighbor’s house to help it back home. I grabbed my shoes and hurriedly ran down the hill to cross the road that leads to the neighbor’s house to help Gabe tell the neighbors what was going on. We all arrived at the stop sign at the bottom of the hill simultaneously and that cat must have smelled home. Its claws came out, jumped out of Gabe’s arms and ran across the road…just as a massive truck was coming around the corner. Yep, that cat was executed right before our eyes. In stunned disbelief we walked back to our house. All I could think was, “How could our good intentions have gone so drastically wrong?” I just kept saying, “I’m sorry, Gabe. I’m so sorry”. Not even really knowing why I was apologizing. Finally, Gabe said, “Why do you keep apologizing?” I told him that I just hated that he had to go through it. I hated that I had asked him to help. I told him I had no idea why I kept apologizing. It was all I could do, I guess. I was simply stunned (as was he). I could barely look at him for the rest of the day because I was afraid I would just start apologizing again and bring the whole horrible ordeal up again.

After the initial shock and once the neighbors came home, we explained what happened and they were very gracious, but still to this day I am a little shocked over it all. How in the world did a well-intentioned action evolve into such a horrible disaster?

As crazy as it may seem, I think that cat helped me realize how the disciples must have felt once Jesus was taken to be crucified. They must have sat in stunned disbelief having no idea how things had gone so wrong. They had just had an amazing time together, had heard some incredible teaching and then…

Was Andrew not able to look at Peter? Was Philip apologizing over and over to Nathanael? After all, the book of John tells us that they were the ones responsible for bringing them to Jesus. Were they all barely looking at each other as I could barely look at Gabe? Were they in stunned disbelief not really understanding how in the world their well-intentioned actions led to such a disaster? And James? The older brother of John? He couldn’t even find his brother to apologize.

Stunned disbelief. It gets the best of all of us.  

Before last week, I’ve had other times of stunned disbelief. I would sit thinking about how in the world something went wrong and was flabbergasted by how quickly it got there. I’ve not killed anymore cats that I know of, but I have let a well-intentioned conversation get out of hand. I’ve also allowed myself to start watching something, or reading something that a few days later had me sitting in stunned disbelief that it had gone that far and I allowed myself to finish watching, or reading it. I’ve even been well-intentioned in witnessing to my neighbor and then, somehow chickened out. I sat in stunned disbelief later knowing that my apathy and fear had controlled me instead of the Holy Spirit inside of me. Stunned disbelief.

Ever started talking to that guy, or girl at work with the best of intentions, knowing they just needed a sounding board, but now you sit in stunned disbelief that the relationship went where it did?

Ever decided to eat that one serving of cake only to discover the next day that every bit of it was gone?

Ever think your family will understand the long hours you have to put in at work only to discover all their bags packed and you are now living what’s left of your life alone?

Stunned disbelief.

I want you to see something amazing though. Right in the middle of the disciples’ stunned disbelief, Jesus appeared. John 20:19-20 says, “Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. And when he had so said, he shewed unto them his hands and his side. Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord.”

 Right in the middle of their trauma, their stunned disbelief, their heartache, Jesus came and He wants to do the same for you.

Are you in the middle of an affair you can’t believe happened in the first place? First John 1:9 tells us that Jesus is the Great Forgiver and He is with you right now in the middle of your place of stunned disbelief.

Are you in stunned disbelief over the diagnosis that you just received from your doctor? Psalm 103 tells us that Jesus can heal all our diseases.

Are you in stunned disbelief that a loved one has just passed away? Psalm 23 tells us that our Great Shepherd is with us even in the valley of the shadow of death.

Are you sitting in stunned disbelief over last night’s events? Can you not believe that you took that drink, smoked that joint, watched that porn, did that deed that you swore would never happen again? Lamentations 3:22-23 tells us that God’s mercies are new every morning.

He stays faithful even when we are sitting in stunned disbelief. He’s not shocked like you are over it. He knew it would happen and He still loves you. In fact, according to Zephaniah 3:17 He is still singing over you right this moment. Come out of your stunned disbelief and enter into His stunning grace. You never have a need to be ashamed again. His banner over you is love (Song of Solomon 2:4).

These are His words to you today and every day: “Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away. For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone; the flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come… (Song of Sol. 2:10-12). Live in that today!

My Story

Seeking Hearts Ministries