Choosing to Open the Gate

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Christian encouragement, christian journey, christian walk, closed off places, dark places, devotions, doors, emotional healing, gates, God's healing, healing, nourishment, opening up, secret places, spiritual healing, trust, unhealed, untouchable areas, vulnerable spots

Psalm 24:7-9 says, “Lift up your heads, O gates, and be lifted up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in! Who is the King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the LORD mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O gates, and lift them up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in! Who is this King of glory? The LORD of hosts, He is the King of glory. Selah.”

Gates and doors can be great things. They allow us to protect items we hold valuable, make us feel safe when locked at night and can create a sense of privacy, but they also can make us isolated and alone. If we never allow anyone to enter our own private sanctuaries, how can we love on people and be loved? How can we have a sense of family with friends and neighbors if our doors are always shut? Protection is one thing, but isolation is quite another. Psalm 24 encourages us to open our doors not so more people can let us down, but so our strong King of glory can come in.

I remember Anne Graham Lotz saying that our God is a gentleman and He simply won’t come where He’s not invited. So, even though I may think I want Him to burst through my walls and barriers, it’s actually up to me to open my gate and invite Him into my dark places. To me, that’s what the psalmist is talking about. I don’t think he’s writing about boundaries we have placed to keep ourselves and our families safe. He’s talking about our secret places of devastation and loss, the places we have closed off from healing. These verses encourage us to break our secret doors open and allow the true Healer to enter and fight for us.

Why were cities sieged in days of old? Why did armies sit around for weeks at a time not allowing people to enter, or exit a walled habitation? It was to starve them out. It was a horrible practice, but it worked. We need to realize that just as closed off cities created physical starvation, our hidden places create starving places in our spiritual lives. When we are not receiving nourishment from the God who created us, we are starving whether we realize it, or not. We are wandering around our walled cities grasping at anything to make us feel nourished when the only true nourishment can be found in Jesus.

So, let’s start by asking the Holy Spirit to reveal to us any gates that we have slammed shut. Let’s ask Him to help us open those gates to Him. Let’s open our dark places, our places where we have allowed none to enter, and ask the King of glory to come in. Let me assure you, He will.

You want a white knight? He’s it.

You want a Healer of all hurts? He’s your guy.

You want Living water instead of fake refreshment that leaves you thirstier than ever? That’s our God. That’s our Savior. That’s our King of glory. Let Him in today.

Seeking Hearts Ministries                   My Story

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When God says, “No.”

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In Second Samuel 7, we see that King David had it in his heart to build the Lord a temple. David was convicted that his dwelling was in a beautiful house, but His God dwelt in a tent. He got really excited and shared his vision with Nathan, the prophet, who also got excited. As we continue to read though, we see that later that night God told Nathan David wasn’t the one to build the Temple. Solomon, David’s son, would be the one to build the Lord a dwelling place. God did promise that David’s kingdom would be established for ever through the Messiah, but for now David himself was not called to finish the vision for the Temple.

The Word tells us that David went into the presence of the Lord and sat before Him. He wasn’t angry, or frustrated. He was in awe of what the Lord had promised him. He chose to focus on the promise and not the disappointment. David’s vision was so small compared to the Lord’s vision for His life. David realized that God wanted Him to do a much harder thing than build. God wanted David to extend his arm into the next generation and prepare them to build. That would require David being okay with less glory and for David to have the willingness to be humble while preparing the next generation to receive the accolades. David chose to obey. He chose not to press forward with his own vision as he allowed God to have His perfect way.

The Word tells us that even though King David knew he would not be the one to build, he still accumulated all kinds of wealth for the future building. He dedicated time and resources. He gave huge quantities of material and this inspired the people to give as well. He gave knowing he would never see the building of the Temple. He still gave with great generosity even with the knowledge that God had said, “No” to his being the one to build the Temple.

  David chose the hard thing. David chose to invest in the next generation, in the ministry to come. He chose to wait for God’s timing, God’s vision, God’s plan.

I have to ask myself, “When God says, ‘No’ to me, am I still willing to invest in the next generation?” Am I willing to be humble and let the next generation flourish without me? Am I willing to invest with great generosity knowing that the vision God has placed in my heart is not for me to build?”

As my husband and I are transitioning into a new ministry, it’s beyond hard to hear God say, “No” to what we have the vision to build here. But, I still can’t help going into His presence, sitting back on my heels before Him and praising Him for the things that He has allowed to happen in this place. I am in awe of Him and I am realizing that we needed the vision for the building of the Temple, the building of this family of believers, to be able to gather the resources for the next ministry in this place.

I am excited that we were chosen for a fraction of a moment to gather the materials needed for the next phase. I am choosing to invest every second we have left here for the building of the next generation of believers in this Body. As David said, “Who am I that God is mindful of me?”

I am also excited that God’s vision for us personally is so much bigger than what we would have chosen and even though God is saying, “No” to the further building of this ministry, He is saying, “Yes” to something greater. That’s a hard thing to accept it, but I am accepting it. In fact, I am choosing to embrace it. I am in awe of it because our God will never bring us to a place that does not bring Him more glory. Isn’t that our whole goal? To bring Him more glory?

So, what are you going to do when God says, “No” to your vision, or the timing of your vision? Will you willingly gather resources for the next generation, or will you hoard what resources you have been given because it’s not what you wanted?

I pray that we will always be willing to invest in those who come after us. I pray that we will always readily hear His voice and submit to His timing and His perfect ways. I pray that we will always seek Him before we run headlong into a vision that belongs to someone else and I pray that as we kneel together before Him we will always sit back on our heels in constant awe and wonder of who He is.

I love the vision that God has placed on our hearts for this church, but I love His vision more and I am excited to see and hear about the next phase…for all of us.

My Story             Seeking Hearts Ministries

When You Can’t Find Your Voice

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Millfield Singing Praise My Soul  (BBC.co.uk)

When you’re trying to find yourself again, it’s hard to find your voice.

As many of you have probably realized, I’ve been less active on the blog lately. I’ve been feeling guilty about it, but at the same time I just simply haven’t had much to say. As I’ve been struggling in several areas of my life, I’ve just been needing to absorb some things and I’m learning that that’s okay. I’m learning not to panic over it. I will find my voice again. Actually, I will find His voice again and this I know…He is faithful to call. He is the same God yesterday, today and forever and sometimes life needs to slow down so that I can hear Him.

I have to remember that when I really want my kids’ attention, I usually have to whisper. Yelling just doesn’t seem to get their attention like a whisper. When I yell, they continue on with whatever they’re doing because they think they can still hear me, but when I whisper, they stop, they come closer, they lean in and their attention is focused on me. That’s what God’s been doing with me. He’s whispering and as I am pressing in closer, I can hear His sweet voice once again. He has never left me. He is still speaking to me. I just needed to attune myself to His volume. I still have no idea who I am right now, who I’m going to develop into, but I have confidence in the God who does know, my God, the one Who is Faithful and True.

For example…I have no idea who I am without sugar being key in my life (or flour for that matter), but my God knows.

I have no idea who I am without two boys at home, but my God knows.

I have no idea who I am without intense exercise in my life, but my God knows.

I have no idea who I am without the concentration to have long, intense devotional times with my Savior, but my God knows.

I have no idea who I am without being involved in EVERY single activity at church, but my God knows.

I have no idea who I am without being able to sing for as long and as loud as I want, but my God knows.

My God knows who I am and who He is developing me to be and I trust Him. I. Trust. Him.

As He is teaching me who He wants me to be in this season of my life, I’m starting to hear His whisper once again. I’m finally getting close enough again to hear. I’ve been a little mad and He knows that, but I’ve missed His arms. I’ve missed His voice. I LOVE His voice and now He is telling me that it’s okay if I give 30 minutes (or less) to Him each morning instead of longer. I find myself questioning this. After all, don’t you get closer to Him, don’t you become “better” the more time you devote to Him? I’m learning though that in times of fatigue, when you are simply trusting Him for the next step (literally), He actually likes that just as well. That knowing His presence is strengthening you, the minute-by- minute trusting, He’s really into that. I’m finally starting to rest in that knowledge, that whisper.

I’m also learning that it’s okay if boxes at church for a “good” pastor’s wife go unchecked. That’s a struggle…the wanting to be “the best pastor’s wife ever”. Good grief! Can you hear the pride? I finally can.

I’m learning that it’s okay if I have to lay in bed instead of walk some hills in order to reserve my energy to make supper later that day. I love exercise, but I’m learning that my priority is my family. I need to show it, not just say it.

I’m learning that it’s okay to feel His grace cover me when my concentration simply isn’t there to focus on Bible studies as before.

And, I’m learning that it’s okay to struggle with the want of sugar (and flour), but it’s also okay to know that He is able to do exceedingly, abundantly beyond whatever I could ask or think in the area of my food choices.

I’m also learning that God places people in my path who are there to strengthen and encourage and it’s okay to be vulnerable. They aren’t the usual sources and I am continually amazed, but His kindness through others has been astounding. Most don’t understand and don’t want to know what’s happening and I’m learning that that’s okay; it just makes the ones that do reach out shine like the treasures they are.

So, as I find my voice through Him once again, I pray that you do as well. I pray that if you know exactly who you are in Him today that you will shout it to the rooftops, but I pray that if you are struggling to find yourself, you will press in closer to Him. He has not forgotten you. He has you in the palm of His hand. He is Your Resource, Your Hope, Your Future. Hear His magnificent whisper to you today.

Seeking Hearts Ministries          My Story

It Might be a Sausage!

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      For those of you who know my family well, you will not be surprised by the fact that as I was searching through my freezer last week I came across a bag of, well, let’s say, “unique, unlabeled weirdness”. My youngest son and I could not imagine what these items were, so we finally settled on the notion that they must be sausages. After all, they were gray, oblong, individually wrapped with care, no label anywhere, so (we decided) it must be my husband’s doing. If my husband cared enough to save it, that means it had to be meat. So, we deduced that these weird items must be sausages. I somehow recalled that my sweet man had come home with some kind of leftovers after a men’s meeting one night, so my son and I determined…this must be it. These sausages looked gross to us, but I knew my husband would be extremely excited. After all, how many times do you open a freezer and have sausages that you had forgotten were even there?

A few hours passed and my husband came home for lunch. I, of course, asked him about these sausages. He examined them and became quite excited (as perdicted). He couldn’t remember any sausages, but wow! He was not going to let that stop him from the enjoyment. He proceeded to take one to his office to microwave for a snack later. Let me tell you there was a bounce in his step as he went on his way!

I received a text just a few, short minutes later (his office is quite close) that read, “NOT sausages (frowny face) frozen bananas.” Yes, you read correctly, the offending “sausages” that had not been labeled were actually my cherished, frozen bananas. At one time I had big plans for these bananas, but alas… I forgot about them and now they just looked like a bunch of sausage.

My husband was sorely disappointed, but I was left laughing my head off and then, well, I was convicted. It made me think about how many times I have mislabeled things in my life. I have often looked at a gift from God and labeled it as a “sausage” when in reality it was a beautiful banana. I have often taken the talents that God has instilled in me and refused to look at them as He desires. I view them as worthless and meant for someone else when in reality it is my heart’s desire with a different look than I expected. I have often looked at my gifts as an offense when God sees the beautiful plan He has designed for just that ability.

I was also convicted because I have often caught myself looking at other people’s “bananas” with longing, but labeling my own gift as a sausage. I see their talents as beautiful, yellow, perfectly ripe bananas, but look at my own as a grayish, unappealing, unrecognizable concoction. I need to be reminded that I Corinthians 12:4 – 6 says, “Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord. And there are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons.” These verses tell me that no matter the gifts, we all have the same Lord. That’s what matters, our God. He is the One that sees us through, not our gifts.

Remembering this makes me unconcerned about someone else’s gift and not ashamed of my own because I know God is my God just as He is their God. My face is continually looking to Him and when His hand moves, or His voice speaks. I am enthralled because He is my all in all. I don’t see bananas, or sausages because my eyes are filled with Him. The psalmist says in Psalm 27:8, “When Thou didst say, ‘Seek My face,’ my heart said to Thee, ‘Thy face, O LORD, I shall seek.’” That needs to be us. That needs to be our focus…God alone; not whether or not our gifts look the same as someone else’s.

I was convicted in another way when I began to think about how often I have labeled experiences that God has given me as “sausages”. In reality, these experiences were in God’s plan to nourish me and to make me become a healthier person, spiritually speaking. Sometimes, I have taken God’s beautiful banana and frozen it with my bitterness so that it turned into something gray, gross and distorted. Instead of remembering that “His ways are not my ways and His thoughts are not my thoughts” as Isaiah 55:8 says, I deemed His ways as hurtful, unhealthy and not for my good. In reality though, He was molding me and shaping me into His beautiful likeness.

Hebrews 12:1 tells us to “…lay aside every encumbrance [think sausage] and the sin which so easily entangles us [think comparisons] and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith…” This verse tells us clearly to lay everything down, get on with our Christian race and fix our eyes on Jesus. He’s at the finish line and He’s with us every step of the way.

When are eyes are fixed on Jesus, whether He chooses our gifts to be sausages, or bananas we are thankful because we know He can be trusted. If He chooses our talents to be meaty, or a little fruity, it’s okay because we are not fixated on the gift, we are fixated on Him.

Let’s encourage each other today to re-examine the labels that we have place on things in our lives. Let’s re-examine the labels we have place on ourselves, our talents and our experiences. What you have deemed a “sausage” might be a banana after all. It might be the very thing that God has bestowed on you to reach this generation. So, fix your eyes on Jesus, unthaw your gift and finish your race.

My Story       Seeking Hearts Ministries

When God Doesn’t do what you Want

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I’ve said for some time now that there is a certain crisis of faith that comes to every human when deciding whether they believe God can do what He says He can do. Can He really save me? Can He really heal? Can He really drop manna from the sky? And then, there is the crisis of faith that comes when you know without a doubt that God can move mountains, but He’s just not doing it for you. I mean, what is more frustrating than knowing that someone, anyone, can help, they’re just choosing not to? When that happens, a whole new crisis of faith occurs. Your mountain is looming large and you know your God can move it, but He’s choosing not to and you are left floundering with questions. Is my God really good? Can my God really be trusted? Does He really have a plan for my good? Do I really matter to Him?

I’m not going to pretend to know all the answers to why God is allowing certain things in your life. I’m not even going to pretend to know why He is allowing certain things in my life. I’m not going to pretend to have the answers as to why God would allow children to have cancer, rapists to go free, or even why food can’t be put on every table this week? But, I can tell you (and me) what to focus on when God doesn’t do what we want Him to do.

Let me start by assuring you that you do indeed have a good God. You have a God who does choose to move mountains for you. You have a God who wants you to look like Him and act like Him and love Him as He loves you. You have a never failing, never ceasing, never forsaking God who has a detailed plan for you since before the first molecule was on this earth. Know that because it’s true.

Lamentations 3:17-26 says, “My soul has been deprived of peace; I have forgotten what happiness is. Then I thought: My future is lost, as well as my hope from the LORD. Remember my affliction and my homelessness, the wormwood and the poison. I continually remember them and have become depressed. Yet I call this to mind, and therefore I have hope: Because of the LORD’s faithful love we do not perish, for His mercies never end. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness! I say: The LORD is my portion, therefore I will put my hope in Him. The LORD is good to those who wait for Him, to the person who seeks Him. It is good to wait quietly for deliverance from the LORD.” Verses 31-33 go on to say, “For the Lord will not reject us forever. Even if He causes suffering, He will show compassion according to His abundant, faithful love. For He does not enjoy bringing affliction or suffering on mankind.”

This passage is so great. We get to see the struggle that Jeremiah had with what was happening all around him and to him. He couldn’t understand it and he became depressed. He even admits in this passage that he lost his hope in the Lord. Then, he decided to remember who His God is. He decided to think about God’s faithfulness, His love and His mercies. He decided that The Lord was his portion for this life and his hope. He decided to rest in God knowing that His God would come through. God’s deliverance obviously wouldn’t look like Jeremiah thought it would. It obviously wouldn’t come at the time that Jeremiah thought that it should, but Jeremiah decided to look up, remember His God and trust. That’s the kind of faith I want, don’t you?

First John 1:5 tells us, “Now this is the message we have heard from Him and declare to you: God is light, and there is absolutely no darkness in Him.” You can trust that. Our God has no ulterior motives. He has no dark side. He is good. He is holy. He is true and He. Is. In. Love. With. You.

Song of Solomon 7:10 says, “I am my beloved’s, and his desire is toward me.” God’s desire is toward you. God wants to be with you. He wants to be so melded with you that all people see is Him being uniquely displayed through your personality, your giftings and your sweet face. He has fashioned you for such a time as this and will not stop pursuing you until every fiber of your being is His. He is obsessed with you. Hebrews 13:5 says He will never leave us and Zephaniah 3:17 says He sings over us.  That is not a God who fails. That is a God who loves. Believe that today. Know it with every fiber of your being. If you have to be like the father in Mark 9:24 who said, “I do believe!” and then, quickly added, “Help my unbelief,” so be it, but keep pressing in to your God. He can be trusted. He will come through. He will strengthen you for the task and He is worthy of every fragment of faith you place in Him. He has you, precious one. He has you. Rest in that today.

Seeking Hearts Ministries          My Story

 

 

 

 

Am I Desperate Enough?

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Psalm 63:1 says, “O God, Thou art my God; I shall seek Thee earnestly; my soul thirsts for Thee, my flesh yearns for Thee, in a dry and weary land where there is no water.”

I read this verse the other day and in the margin of my Bible I found that I had written these words from a long ago message – “rising in immediate pursuit”. These words were directly across from the word earnestly. As I looked at the original language of this verse, I found that earnestly can mean not only rising in immediate pursuit, but also “early, diligently, seeking, to look early or diligently for”. Every time I came across this word, it referenced not just a diligent seeking, but an early seeking.

I thought about the children of Israel in Exodus 16:21. Every morning on their journey through the wilderness they woke up and gathered manna for the day. It says, “And they gathered it morning by morning, every man as much as he should eat; but when the sun grew hot, it would melt.” If the Israelites did not gather in the morning, the manna for that day was gone. The day simply melted it away.

This makes me wonder how often I have left my daily bread laying in my study and tried to live through my day without the nourishment that the Lord has provided? How many times have I woke up only to decide that immediate pursuit was unnecessary? How often have I assumed that the same provision would be provided later in the day? If I were truly yearning for my Lord as the psalmist describes, wouldn’t I want the provision for the day to be immediate? If I realized what a dry and weary land I was being asked to wander through, wouldn’t I want to seek His sustenance quickly? As soon as possible?

More definitions of earnestly included: “look early, diligently for, look for dawn; do something betimes, enquire early, seek betimes, seek diligently early, in the morning…” Like I said, every time I looked, earnestly was connected with early. And not just early, but a seeking for the object , or person, over and over again, not just one time.

This is a great checkpoint for me. If I really want something, I wake up thinking about it. If I need something desperately, I don’t wait until I get around to it. If at all possible, I want it now! Christmas morning is a great example of this. I don’t know about you and your family, but my family wakes up earlier than the sun to rip open those presents. No waiting for us! That’s because we wake up earnestly seeking those gifts. We are continually thinking about them. We want them as soon as possible because we are excited about what they will provide for us. When we truly want something, we want it early. When we are excited and expectant about what God has for us, we get up early to seek it.

I also found it interesting that when I looked for other passages in the Bible with this same word, earnestly, it most often appeared in Job, the Psalms and Proverbs. These books tell us of two of the most desperate men in the Bible and the wisest. We need to be wise enough to be desperate for God. When we are desperate, we seek what we need as soon as possible.

Am I saying that if we don’t wake up immediately and seek our Lord that we are in sin? No. What I’m saying is that if we aren’t waking up desperate to be in God’s presence, desperate to spend alone time with Him as soon as possible we need to ask God to get us that way. The psalmist says, “my soul thirsts for Thee.” If my soul is not thirsty for God, I need to be asking why. The psalmist says, “my flesh yearns for Thee in a dry and weary land where there is no water.” If our flesh is not yearning for our Lord, we need to ask if we have forgotten that we are living in a dry and weary land. Have we forgotten that this is not our home? Our flesh yearns for more than what this world can offer because it knows only God can satisfy.

When we try to satiate our hunger and thirst in ways other than God, that’s when the real trouble begins. But, when we earnestly seek Him, as early as possible because we know we can’t make it without Him, we are refreshed, renewed and strengthened.

Jeremiah 29:13 says, “And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.”  When we seek God, it’s never a waste of time. It’s never a waste of energy. He always comes through to sustain, nourish and guide us through our day.

Let’s earnestly seek Him today.

Seeking Hearts Ministries        My Story

 

 

 

Less Than we Deserve

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Ezra 9:13, “…seeing that thou our God hast punished us less than our iniquities deserve, and hast given us such deliverance as this.”

So many times I focus on what I don’t have instead of what I do. I focus on what is going wrong instead of what blessings I’m receiving. But, when I remember past sins, my hardness of heart, my lack of forgiveness, I realize that I am always punished less than I deserve. I realize that God delivers me over and over again and I then want to pass on that same grace to my family and those I see throughout my day.

When I am facing a situation where someone is less patient than I feel I deserve, I remember that God forgave me for my impatience the day before.

When I am not being forgiven readily, I remember all the times I have held unforgiveness close to me.

When I am facing a consequence for a sin, I remember all the consequences that have been reversed in times past.

Let’s take the time today to remember that no matter what punishment God has allowed in our paths, it is less than we deserve. He is a gracious, loving and kind God who gives us more than we can imagine and restores us in ways we never dreamed possible.

He is not a God who delights in punishment. He is not a God who has a dark side (I John 1:5). He is a God of unfailing, unchanging love.

Psalm 143:8 says, “Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee.” Let’s lift up our souls today and ask God to cause us to hear His lovingkindness, see His faithfulness and know without a doubt that He is a God who always punishes less than we deserve.

My Story       Seeking Hearts Ministries

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What if I don’t get it Right?

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                                                      *image by odysseyonline.com

I was in Bible study a few weeks ago and was asked the question, “What do you most fear in your relationship with God?” The writer gave the examples of God not loving us, or that we’re not saved, etc., but what came to my mind was I am so scared that I will not be who He wants me to be. The last thing on this earth I want to be is a disappointment to the God of the universe, the very One who designed me for such a time as this. I’ve heard all the verses about Him loving me no matter what and that He is never disappointed because He is never surprised, but I’m just telling you what I thought in the moment.

So many times in my life I will have a doubt that will pop up and I cram it down thinking that “good Christians” don’t think things like that when in reality God’s Spirit just wants me to bring it to the light and let Him deal with it. So, that’s what I’m doing today.

The next part of the study I was doing asked us to get a Scripture that combats that particular fear. I thought to myself, “If I had a Scripture, I wouldn’t be having this issue.” I didn’t even really know how to find the Scripture. I mean, what kind of word study could you do on the fear of not being who God wants you to be?

Not even an hour later, I was reading through some Psalms trying to hear what God wanted me to say for the family blog I write on Mondays when I came across this gem – “The LORD will accomplish what concerns me; Thy lovingkindness, O LORD, is everlasting; Do not forsake the works of Thy hands.” – Psalm 138:8

As I read this verse I took a deep breath and remembered once again that as long as I am saying, “yes” to Him continually, everything else takes care of itself. I don’t have to worry with whether I get it right. He gets it right. Every.Single.Time.

Why do I forget that it’s all about resting in Him? Why do I forget that when I abide in Him He takes care of the rest? He will accomplish whatever needs to be accomplished. It’s all up to Him, not me! Praise you, Lord! As I walk daily with my God, as I abide in Him, all that He wants accomplished through me will happen. He will not be disappointed in me because He will accomplish what concerns me.

Rest in that today. Remember, just keep saying, “Yes”. Keep abiding. Keep falling back into His arms. He will never leave you, or forsake you (Hebrews 13:5). His love will never fail. His Word is true. No worries on getting it right every time, just peace that passes all understanding. Breathe today. He’s got you.

My Story     Seeking Hearts Ministries

Am I Merely Walking when I can Run?

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Christian encouragement, christian journey, christian walk, commandments, devotional, devotions, encouragement, enlarging our hearts, family devotions, focus, loving God, loving others, loving our neighbor, rules, running, running Christianity, running the christian life, walking

Psalm 119:32 in Young’s Literal Translation says, “The way of Thy commands I run, For Thou dost enlarge my heart!”

So many times when I imagine my Christian life, I picture a slow plodding, a testing of each step to make sure there are no land mines and honestly, a rather slow experience overall. The psalmist in this passage though describes a Christian life that is filled with running. He is so sure of God’s commands that he is able to run forward because he is sure of the steps that God has before him.

Are we able to run as well?

We are. When we know God’s commands we are able to not just meander along, but run. We can move faster than we imagined because we can be sure of our steps. We don’t have to second guess everything because our path is clear before us.

So, what are some of our Lord’s commands?

Jesus Himself said that the greatest command is to love the Lord our God with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength (Matthew 22). So, we can run in that experience with Him. There is no need to be shy in His presence, or to avoid Him. He has called us to love Him and He has made a way in our hearts for that to happen, so we can run into His arms with complete abandon knowing that loving Him with unrestraint is His command.

Another sure command of the Lord is to love our neighbors as ourselves. In fact, Jesus calls this the second greatest commandment (Matthew 22). So, we know that this is another path in which we can run.

We can run towards telling our neighbors about Jesus, because we know that we would want to be told about Jesus. We can run towards forgiveness because we know we want to be forgiven. We can run to help someone who needs encouragement because we know we want encouragement. We can run to our knees for a request for a friend because we know we cherish the prayers of others. You see? Running is easy when we are running in His commands.

I love the second part of Psalm 119:32. It tells me that when I run in His commands, my heart enlarges. My love can’t help but grow. So, maybe I don’t feel like encouraging anyone today, but I know I need encouragement. Instead of waiting and sulking for someone to encourage me, I run in His commands by loving someone as I want to be loved (in this case, a simple word of encouragement) and He enlarges my heart. I end up feeling encouraged myself because He is always faithful to enlarge my heart when I am running in His commands.

I can’t help but think of The Grinch and how “his heart grew three sizes that day.” Maybe that’s why we all love that part of the movie so much (the 1966 version!). Our spirit knows that’s what God does for us when we run in His commands. He enlarges our hearts. He puts a goofy grin on our face and we are able to serve others in genuine love.The truth is when we are faithful to run in our Lord’s commands He fulfills His part of the bargain. He empowers us to do things we wouldn’t normally do. He lifts our spirits in ways we can’t imagine. He enlarges out hearts to love as we could never love before, even more than Mr. Grinch.

So, let’s lay down the idea of a quiet, slow Christian life and start running in His commands. Let’s stop looking for land mines and take Him at His Word that He will enlarge our hearts to love our neighbors as ourselves. Let’s stop limping around injured and afraid and run into arms wide open for discovery. Let’s pick up the pace and run!

My Story    Seeking Heart Ministries

Training with Chains

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all things for good, broken bones, broken bones rejoice, calling, chains, chains for training, christian journey, christian walk, Christianity, devotions, encouragement, faith, fetters, sovereignty, sovereignty of God, training, trust

Psalm 105:17-19 says, “He [GOD] sent a man before them, even Joseph, who was sold for a servant: Whose feet they hurt with fetters: he was laid in iron: Until the time that his word came: the word of the LORD tried him.”

Joseph really went through it, didn’t he? If you are unfamiliar with his story, or just want a refresher, his story begins in Genesis 37 and goes for several chapters, but for now we are going to focus on what David says about him in Psalm 105.

God in His sovereignty knew what it would take to get Joseph to be the man that he needed him to be. God knew it would take many years of chains and servitude, but Joseph didn’t know that. Would Joseph be able to believe God even while in chains? God needed Joseph to be the man He knew he could be. Chains is what it took. Joseph allowed the chains to do their perfect work so that when the time of his word came, he would be ready. The question is, “Will I allow the chains to do their perfect work in me?”

The Psalmist goes on to say that Joseph’s feet were hurt with fetters. I can’t help but think of Psalm 51:8. It says, “…let the bones which Thou hast broken rejoice.” Sometimes, God has to allow our feet to be hurt in order to get us to bow. Otherwise, we will stay standing forever. We convince ourselves that our hearts are humble, but God has called us to our knees. We need to be in the place where if God needs to break every bone of our body in order to get us to be the people we are designed to be, we gladly accept His decision. We need to be able to sow with a view to righteousness (Hosea 10:12) even while in chains.

Oftentimes, God allows chains to hold us back for a time because we need to mature in Him. We need to rest in Him, His timing and His sovereignty. We might feel as if a fetter is an individual, or a church, when in reality God is breaking the bone that is too rigid to bend.

Maybe you feel like God has called you to work with college kids, or the elderly, or any number of things, but nobody seems to “get it”. Instead of trying yet another church, or media blitz, or a friend you are hoping will understand this time, maybe you need to acknowledge that the time of your word has simply not arrived. Maybe this is your time to be still and know that He is God. Maybe this is the time to rest in Him and His timing and truly put to the test if you really believe He is sovereign. Maybe God knows that you needed the hope of the dream, but the journey needs walking through first. Let’s not get frustrated. Let’s get humble. Let’s be the servants we are called to be in the places we are at.

Joseph was faithful wherever he was placed and however he was placed there and God took care of the rest. God took care of his reputation, his position and the timing of it all. God even put so much life in between Joseph and his brothers that when the time came to forgive, there was not a problem, just beautiful restoration.

Don’t we want that? Don’t we want beautiful restoration and redemption to be woven through the entire fabric of our lives? Don’t we want to be remembered as a Joseph and not a Jonah?

Poor Jonah, he did a mighty work, but when I think of him I usually only remember his stubbornness and anger when God saved an entire race of people through his preaching. When I think of Jonah, I usually only remember his lack of compassion. I do not want to be remembered like that.

When I think of Joseph though, I can’t help but remember his forgiveness, his faithfulness and his restoration with a family he thought he had lost forever. When we allow our time in the chains to train us, that’s what God can do. When we allow the bones He has broken to be healed in His ministering hands, that’s what God can do. When we bow to Him when our feet are hurt in the fetters, He makes our feet like hinds’ feet and makes us to walk on our high places (Habakkuk 3:17-19). That’s what our God can do.

So, let’s thank Him for the chains. Let’s thank Him for the broken bones and let’s thank Him that His ways are not our ways and His thoughts are not our thoughts (Isaiah 55:8). Let’s remember today that our chafing in the chains always has a purpose and when God releases us it will be for His glory and for His Kingdom. Let’s rejoice in that today!

My Story       Seeking Hearts Ministries