Where's the Joy? • Ecclesiastes 6

 Even if someone lived a thousand years — make it two thousand! — 

but didn't enjoy anything, what's the point? 

Doesn't everyone end up in the same place? 

We work to feed our appetites; 

meanwhile our souls go hungry. 

 

Ecclesiastes 6:6-7
•

It all seemed so good —
all the things I gave myself to.

Words of praise were given —
smiles of affirmation shined.

Come, this is just right for you —
you don't want to miss out!

Use your gifts —
they bless us so!

We miss out when you
aren't giving, sharing, doing.

Frustration grows
as weariness sets in.

Have to replaces get to.
Do I have to?

Shh. Shh.

Who's voice leads me?
Who leads me to quiet waters
and green pastures?

You give joy today —
Your burden is light
the yoke you place on me is easy.

All the words fill the air like smoke.
Clear them away Lord.

Speak to me in the silence.
I have quieted my heart,
I am tuning my ears to hear Your voice.

Teach me Your ways,
lead me in Your path.

My joy comes from You alone.

Bathed in Sunlight • Isaiah 58:6-12

"This is the kind of fast day I'm after:
   to break the chains of injustice,
   get rid of exploitation in the workplace,
   free the oppressed,
   cancel debts.
What I'm interested in seeing you do is:
   sharing your food with the hungry,
   inviting the homeless poor into your homes,
   putting clothes on the shivering ill-clad,
   being available to your own families.
Do this and the lights will turn on,
   and your lives will turn around at once.
Your righteousness will pave your way.
   The God of glory will secure your passage.
Then when you pray, God will answer.
   You'll call out for help and I'll say, 'Here I am.'"

"If you get rid of unfair practices,
   quit blaming victims,
   quit gossiping about other people's sins,
If you are generous with the hungry
   and start giving yourselves to the down-and-out,
Your lives will begin to glow in the darkness,
   your shadowed lives will be bathed in sunlight.
I will always show you where to go.
   I'll give you a full life in the emptiest of places—
   firm muscles, strong bones.
You'll be like a well-watered garden,
   a gurgling spring that never runs dry.
You'll use the old rubble of past lives to build anew,
   rebuild the foundations from out of your past.
You'll be known as those who can fix anything,
   restore old ruins, rebuild and renovate,
   make the community livable again."

Isaiah 58:6-12

•

Dear Lord, thank You for showing us how

You want us to live. Please open my eyes to the 

opportunities You place in my life to be generous and giving

to those who are in need. Help me to be available to my

family not only by my presence, but by giving to them

generously, willingly and with much love. 

Help me to willingly give generously to all 

You place in my life. 

Live Free

To live creatively – fully embracing and being
all that You made me for – is to live free.

With You, Jesus, life is truly to its fullest.
You made me to run, to fly, to be free.

In You, and only You, I find who I am.
You are the Source of creativity, of life, of freedom.

The liar tells us that You restrict us –
that You keep us from all that is creative and free and complete.

But as we listen to him and get drawn from You –
our lives begin to wither, close in, deconstruct.

Apart from You we find ourselves carrying around
testaments to our neediness.
We find ourselves locked in prisons of our own making,
bent under shame, guilt and pain.

Apart from You our souls cry out, longing to run free,
longing to be who You made us to be.
Longing to live freely, creatively.

In You there is Life and Health and Peace.

We come – like the bleeding woman in the midst of the crowd –
reaching out our hand toward the hem of your robe.
And You welcome us like the Prodigal's father –
running to us, arms flung wide,
burying us in Your embrace.

As I give my entire attention to You –
finding my life embedded in You
then I truly live.

Bit by bit, You strip away
all that I had been clinging to –
all that I had been trying to find my life in.

And little by little You reveal who I am –
who You made me to be.

As I live freely, creatively in You my desire to judge others fades –
as I realize that they, too, need You.
They, too, will find their true selves in You.

In You – they, too, will
Live Free.

Truth-Teller • Galatians 4

And now have I suddenly become your enemy 

simply by telling you the truth? 

I can't believe it.

Those heretical teachers go to great lengths

to flatter you, but their motives are rotten. 

They want to shut you out of 

the free world of God's grace 

so that you will always depend on them 

for approval and direction, making them feel important. 

 

Galatians 4:16-17

•

Oh Lord!

I want to be a truth-believer and a truth-teller!

Please strip away all that is false,
all that keeps me from You.

Strip away any desire I have for my own way.

Going my own way causes so much trouble and grief.

Your way is life and peace.

My way is death.

I am Your child!

Your Spirit within me cries out,
"Daddy! Poppa!"

Why would I ever want to go back
into slavery?

Why do I look for chains to slap around
my wrists?

I am Your child!

All that is Yours is mine!

Oh Thank You, Jesus!
Thank You, Father!

I choose to walk in freedom today.

Help me to seek truth,
know truth,
believe truth and
speak truth always.

I want to be a truth-teller.

Unshakable and Assured • John 16

"This is what I want you to do:

Ask the Father for whatever is

keeping with the things I've revealed

to you. Ask in my name, according to my will,

and He'll most certainly give it to you. 

Your joy will be a river over flowing its banks!"

John 16:23-24

•

"Now we know that You know

everything – it all comes

together in You."

John 16:30

•

"I've told you all this so that trusting

me, you will be unshakable and assured,

deeply at peace. In this godless world

you will continue to experience

difficulties. But take heart!

I've conquered the world!"

John 16:33

You know me inside and out.

You have not left me to stumble around

in the dark, to find my own way.

You know everything. 

You illuminate my way with 

Your light and truth.

Deep inside the Counselor-Friend

translates Your way to my soul.

Life with You is not a guessing game.

It is not smoke and mirrors or 

pie in the sky.

 

Struggles and trials will come.

Mountains to climb and 

dark valleys to maneuver.

These are not a surprise.

You said they would be there. 

I am not alone in the midst of 

the deep water, the ground shaking,

the tempest, the fire-storm.

Trust in You 

makes me unshakable and assured.

Deep peace and joy unspeakable 

wells up as I release my grasp

on my life, this world – 

on what I see with these eyes made of dirt –

and place it all in the hands 

of the One who has overcome the world.

Simply and Honestly Myself • John 4

"It's who you are and the way you live that count before God.

Your worship must engage your spirit in the pursuit of truth.

That's the kind of people the Father is out looking for:

those who are simply and honestly themselves before Him in worship.

God is sheer being itself — Spirit.

Those who worship Him must do it out of their very being,

their spirits, their true selves, in adoration."

  John 4:23-24

"Come see a man who knew all about

the things I did, who knows me inside and out."

John 4:29
 

•

Somehow in my life I have had a misunderstanding

that the Lord has been clearing up for me in the last few years. 

I knew that He made each one of us uniquely and special

in His sight, as it says in Psalm 139, and I, of course,

grasped that each one of us is different and have different gifts.

But somehow, I did not get that it is good and right

that we discover who we are and live out who we are fully.

  I kept seeing other people's strengths and gifts

and what they enjoyed doing and thought 

that I was supposed to be those things.

As I read Jesus' words here, I am coming away with that 

we are worshipping Him when we are pursuing truth and walking in it.

As I live my life in truth - discovering how He made me

(my strengths, my weaknesses, what fills my cup)

and then walking in my strengths and letting Him work

through my weaknesses -  I find my life becoming an act of worship.

I need to be who God made me to be. 

Not someone else! 

That brings glory to Him and is worship.

We Can Have it All! • John 3

 

 

"In the same way that Moses lifted the serpent

in the desert so people could have something

to see and then believe, it is necessary for the Son of Man

to be lifted up - and everyone who looks up to Him,

trusting and expectant, will gain a real life, eternal life."

  John 3:14-15 (The Message)

•

Real life comes from Jesus!
Lord, this morning I choose to look to You in expectant trust.

You are the source of real, eternal life.

Thank You Jesus for allowing Yourself

to be lifted up on the cross

so that we could look to You and gain eternal life.

•

"This is how much God loved the world:

He gave His Son, His One and Only Son.

And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed;

by believing in Him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life.

God didn't go to all the trouble of sending His Son

merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was.

He came to help, to put the world right again.

Anyone who trusts in Him is acquitted;

anyone who refuses to trust Him has long since

been under the death sentence without knowing it.

And why? Because of that person's failure to believe

in the one-of-a-kind Son of God when introduced to Him."

  John 3:16-18

•

Thank you, Jesus for loving us so much that

You gave up Your life for us! Thank you for coming in love.

Thank you for not coming in accusation,

wanting to destroy us because of our sins.

You came to help us, because on our own,

we can do nothing to help ourselves.

Please help me to do the same for others.

Help me to be a help to others. Showing them the way to You. 

Forgive me for the many times that I have instead been accusing.

•

"This is the crisis we're in:

God-light streamed into the world,

but men and women everywhere ran for the darkness.

They went for the darkness because

they were not really interested in pleasing God.

Everyone who makes a practice of doing evil,

addicted to denial and illusion, hates God-light

and won't come near it, fearing a painful exposure.

But anyone working and living in truth and reality

welcomes God-light so the work

can be seen for the God-work it is."

  John 3:19-21

•

I want to be pleasing to you, Lord, in every area of my life.

I know that there are still areas in my life

where I am trying to hide and remain in the darkness.

Please remove any desire for denial and illusion in my life.

Please help me to work and live in truth and reality in every area of my life.

•

 

"The One that God sent speaks God's words.

And don't think He rations out the Spirit

in bits and pieces. The Father loves the Son extravagantly.

He turned everything over to Him 

so He could give it away - a lavish distribution of gifts.

That's why whoever accepts and trusts the Son

gets in on everything, life complete and forever!

And that is also why the person who avoids

and distrusts the Son is in the dark and doesn't see life.

All he experiences of God is darkness,

and an angry darkness at that."  

John 3:34-36

•

Thank You, Lord that you are so generous and giving!

You hold nothing back from those who trust You

and believe in You. Life complete and forever!

All that You have given Jesus, Your Only Son,

You give to those who accept and believe in You.

Help us to truly grasp that and live in that truth!

Life-Light • John 1

The Life-Light blazed out of the darkness; 

the darkness couldn't put it out. 

John 1:5

•

Jesus took one look up and said, "You're John's son, Simon?

From now on you name is Cephas"

(or Peter, which means "Rock"). 

John 1:42

•

Jesus, You know me - the true me - my child-of-God self. 

 •

 

But whoever did want Him,

who believed He was who He claimed

and would do what He said,

He made to be their true selves,

their child-of-God selves.

These are the God-begotten,

not blood-begotten, not flesh-begotten.  

John 1:11-13

 

You know who I am and what my true name is. 

In You I find safety and comfort and wholeness. 

Thank You, Jesus! 

You are my Life and Light. 

Though the darkness around me tries

to put out Your Light or block it out – it cannot. 

Blaze over me, in me, through me Life-Light!

Show me who You are.

•

 

No one has ever see God, not so much as a glimpse. 

This one-of-a-kind God-Expression, 

who exists at the very heart of the Father, 

has made Him plain as day.

John 1:18

•

Please show me who I am. 

Teach me to follow You and bring others to You.

Thank You for becoming flesh

and moving into the neighborhood. (John 1:14)

You are the Glory of the One and Only – 

You are the One and Only!

Overflow

"For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks."

--

Matthew 12:34b NIV

•

"You have minds like a snake pit! 

How do you suppose what you say is worth 

anything when you are so foul-minded?

It's your heart, not the dictionary, 

that gives meaning to your words.

A good person produces good deeds 

and words season after season.

An evil person is a blight on the orchard. 

Let me tell you something:

Every one of these careless words 

is going to come back to haunt you.

There will be a time of Reckoning. 

Words are powerful; take them seriously.

Words can be your salvation. 

Words can also be your damnation." 

--

Matthew 12:33-37 MSG

•

 My words prove what is in my heart.

They are powerful.

Words have the power of life and death.

There are days that I wish that I would have just kept my mouth shut.

My words were toxic.

Shriveling the little lives in my care.

Haunting my mind later I wish that I could 

shove them back down my throat.

Recycled thoughts and words that come from the old me.

They cannot give life.

They do not thrive and produce healthy, plump fruit.

Fresh and running clean, I go to the Source.

Living Water flows down, cooling and saturating.

He cried out, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.

Rivers of living water will brim and spill out

of the depths of anyone who believes in me this way,

just as the Scripture says."

--

John 7:37-38 MSG

•

"Live in me. Make your home in me just as I do in you.

In the same way that a branch can't bear grapes by itself

but only by being joined to the vine,

you can't bear fruit unless you are joined with me."

--

John 15:4 MSG

•

Separate, independent, I smother and destroy.

Attached, dependent, the sap of Your life pumps and flows.

I come. 

I drink deep.

Overflow, yes, overflow!

Shades of Grey

Today I got to thinking about what we, as Believers, are to do when we see another Believer doing something that we don't think they should be doing.

And so I spent an little time digging around in The Word to see what it had to say.

Please know that my humble blog post is simply that. My humble findings as I sought to find some answers.

Please, do not take this as all there is in Scripture on this subject.

Just know that I wanted to share what I found, because I think this is something we all may wonder about and need to know.

OK, back to the subject at hand....

Now, sometimes that "thing" is black and white sin.

And Scripture tells us what to do.

"Be alert. If you see your friend going wrong, 

correct him. If he responds, forgive him.

Even if it's personal against you

and repeated seven times through the day,

and seven times he says, 'I'm sorry,

I won't do it again,' forgive him."

--

Luke 17:3-4

•

If a fellow believer hurts you, go and tell him—

work it out between the two of you.

If he listens, you've made a friend.

If he won't listen, take one or two others along

so that the presence of witnesses will keep things honest,

and try again. If he still won't listen, tell the church.

If he won't listen to the church,

you'll have to start over from scratch,

confront him with the need for repentance,

and offer again God's forgiving love. 

--

Mathew 18:15-17

• 

Go easy on those who hesitate in the faith.

Go after those who take the wrong way.

Be tender with sinners, but not soft on sin.

The sin itself stinks to high heaven. 

--

Jude 22-23

And sometimes it's not necessarily black and white.

Sometimes it's just something that we feel is wrong for us.

And so, we start to think it is wrong for everyone else, too.

Forget about deciding what's right for each other. 

Here's what you need to be concerned about:

that you don't get in the way of someone else,

making life more difficult than it already is.

 --

Romans 14:13

•

Cultivate your own relationship with God, 

but don't impose it on others.

--

Romans 14:22

•

Don't pick on people, jump on their failures,

criticize their faults— unless, of course,

you want the same treatment.

That critical spirit has a way of boomeranging.

It's easy to see a smudge on your neighbor's face

and be oblivious to the ugly sneer on your own.

Do you have the nerve to say,

'Let me wash your face for you,'

when your own face is distorted by contempt?

It's this whole traveling road-show mentality

all over again, playing a holier-than-thou

part instead of just living your part.

Wipe that ugly sneer off your own face,

and you might be fit to offer

a washcloth to your neighbor. 

--

Matthew 7:1-5

So, do I just sit back and stew if I am concerned about my brother or sister and what they are doing?

Do I just go along and "live and let live"?

Here is a simple, rule-of-thumb guide for behavior:

Ask yourself what you want people to do for you,

then grab the initiative and do it for them.

Add up God's Law and Prophets and this is what you get. 

--

Matthew 7:12

•

Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray.

Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers,

letting God know your concerns.

Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness,

everything coming together for good,

will come and settle you down.

It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces

worry at the center of your life. 

--

Philippians 4:6

I think that first of all we should pray for them. We should lay our concern before the Lord. 

Make your worry a prayer request.

And ask the Lord for the opportunity and the words to share your concern.

Watch the way you talk... Say only what helps, each word a gift.

--

Ephesians 4:29

•

Make a clean break with all cutting, backbiting,

profane talk. Be gentle with one another, sensitive.

--

Ephesians 4:31

As I looked through The Word this afternoon, what really jumped out at me is that I need to make sure that I am living a life wholly devoted to my Lord. 

I have enough on my own plate to be worrying about what is on yours!

I want to live in a way that points others to Jesus, instead of pushing them away because of my judgmental criticisms. 

Oh Lord, help me to love You and others with all that I do and say!

Learning the Unforced Rhythms of Grace

Abruptly Jesus broke into prayer: 

"Thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth.

You've concealed your ways from sophisticates

and know-it-alls, but spelled them out clearly

to ordinary people. Yes, Father,

that's the way you like to work."

--

Matthew 11:25-26

Just ordinary people.

That's who God reveals His ways to.

He likes to work that way.

So, why do I try to be more than I am?

Why would I want to be above others, to hold myself apart and aloof?

Why would I want to pretend to have no problems, no issues, no weaknesses?

I'm just ordinary. 

And that's good enough for God.

"Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion?

Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life.

I'll show you how to take a real rest.

Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it.

Learn the unforced rhythms of grace.

I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you.

Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly."

--

Matthew 11:28-30

I want to learn the unforced rhythms of grace.

Not rigid, not forced, not contrived.

God learned, free and light.

Life giving and restful.

Keeping company with Jesus, walking and working with Him.

Show me how to live this way, Lord. 

I want to learn the unforced rhythms of grace.

He holds my life in His hands

"Don't be bluffed into silence 

by the threats of bullies. 

There's nothing they can do 

to your soul, your core being. 

Save your fear for God 

who holds your entire life —

body and soul — in His hands."

--

Matthew 10:28

Coldly it comes and grips me.

It silences me as I draw in and begin to fret.

Rehearsing all that could happen, might happen.

My bullies may not be in the form of people threatening to harm me physically.

But in my mind, as that cold fear grips me, my bullies are just as real as any with blood coursing through their veins.

In the midst of the fear I am being lied to.

Convinced that my bullies have power over me.

Power to do harm. To hurt me. To end my life.

A big fat bluff.

That's all that is.

They have no power over me.

They do not determine the length of my life or the destiny of my soul.

When I get really afraid 

I come to you in trust. 

I'm proud to praise God; 

fearless now, I trust in God. 

What can mere mortals do?

 --

Psalm 56:3-4

Pushed to the wall, I called to God;
      from the wide open spaces, he answered.
   God's now at my side and I'm not afraid;
      who would dare lay a hand on me?
   God's my strong champion;
      I flick off my enemies like flies.
   Far better to take refuge in God
      than trust in people;
   Far better to take refuge in God
      than trust in celebrities. 

I was right on the cliff-edge, ready to fall,
      when God grabbed and held me.
   God's my strength, he's also my song,
      and now he's my salvation.  

I didn't die. I lived!
      And now I'm telling the world what God did.
   God tested me, he pushed me hard,
      but he didn't hand me over to Death.

Thank you for responding to me;
      you've truly become my salvation!

 --

Verses above from Psalm 118   

My life is in God's hands.

He controls the destiny of my life and my soul.

Regardless of what happens I know that He is in control. (Lamentations 3:37)

I can rest in Him and trust Him.

"But blessed is the man who trusts me, God,
   the woman who sticks with God.
They're like trees replanted in Eden,
   putting down roots near the rivers—
Never a worry through the hottest of summers,
   never dropping a leaf,
Serene and calm through droughts,
   bearing fresh fruit every season."

 --

Jeremiah 17:7-8

Tend to Your Knitting

"As I live and breathe," God says,
      "every knee will bow before me;
   Every tongue will tell the honest truth
      that I and only I am God."
So tend to your knitting. You've got your hands full 

just taking care of your own life before God. 

Romans 14:12

I'm having one of those Quiet Times this morning.

It started out when I discovered a chapter or two in Romans that I had not yet read in The Message.

As I read Paul's words in this fresh way, I immediately saw how they related to something going on in the life of a dear friend of mine.

I quickly found myself wanting to type out several verses and zip them off to some people that I thought could learn a thing or two from the passage I was reading. 

I practically giggled with glee at the thought of proudly proclaiming these verses to those I think need them and seeing them crumble under the Truth.

Ack!

That's when I could almost feel a tap-tap-tap on my shoulder.

A feeling of unease and realization crept in to my belly. 

Once again, I saw that these verses are for me. 

I need to read them.

I need to learn from them.

I need to incorporate them into my life.

Gulp!

Here are some of the verses I was reading:

Welcome with open arms fellow believers 

who don't see things the way you do.

And don't jump all over them 

every time they do or say something 

you don't agree with—

even when it seems that they are 

strong on opinions but weak in the faith department.

Remember, they have their own history 

to deal with. Treat them gently. 

Romans 14:1

None of us are permitted to insist on our own way 

in these matters. It's God we are answerable to—

all the way from life to death 

and everything in between—not each other.

That's why Jesus lived and died and then lived again:

 so that he could be our Master across the entire range 

of life and death, and free us from the petty tyrannies of each other. 

So where does that leave you when you criticize a brother?

And where does that leave you when you condescend to a sister?

I'd say it leaves you looking pretty silly—or worse.

Eventually, we're all going to end up kneeling side by side

in the place of judgment, facing God.

Your critical and condescending ways 

aren't going to improve your position there one bit.

 Romans 14:7-12

Forget about deciding what's right for each other.

Here's what you need to be concerned about:

that you don't get in the way of someone else,

making life more difficult than it already is. 

Romans 14:13

 

So let's agree to use all our energy

in getting along with each other.

Help others with encouraging words;

don't drag them down by finding fault. 

Romans 14:19

Cultivate your own relationship with God,

but don't impose it on others.

You're fortunate if your behavior and

your belief are coherent.

Romans 14:22

Life can be pretty hard sometimes.

We are all fallible.

We are all loved by God.

And we all need Jesus.

I want to be stepping in the direction of grace.

I want to offer gentle words of encouragement, instead of harsh words of criticism.

It is so easy to see the fault of someone else. 

It is so easy to be offended.

It is so easy to cross to the other side of the road and just keep on walking.

It is so easy to read some Bible verses and think that they apply to someone else.

Oh, Father, please, help me to stop taking the easy way. 

Just as You have been so gentle and patient 

and full of grace with me, 

help me to be the same 

to those You have placed in my life.

Quotes from "Dancing With my Father" by Sally Clarkson

"The key is, when our heart is troubled we need to believe in God. Maintaining a moment by moment walk in the power of the Holy Spirit means that we continually practice trusting in God, believing in His reality, living in the confidence that He will work all things together for our good."

"Belief is the antidote for a troubled heart: believing in God, believing that He is with us, believing that He is good, believing that He can take care of our trouble, believing in His presence with us every minute, and not looking to the limitations of our circumstances!"

"Walking in joy, by the resources of the Holy Spirit who abides in me, is simply believing in Him, turning our eyes to Him, leaning on Him. Simple faith."

Woven into a Tapestry of Love

Our Father is so faithful and patient.

I am so often unfaithful and impatient.

I was well on my way into a full on temper tantrum, pity party this morning.

"Can't I just take a break from being The Mom once in awhile?"

"Why can't I just roll over and pull the covers over MY head this morning?"

"I NEVER get to sleep in...."

You get the idea...

It was not pretty.

I knew I was in a wrong place.

I knew that I needed a change of perspective and that I was being ungrateful and relying on my own strength.

I am so glad that for once I chose not to wallow too long in my self made pit.

I'm so glad that our Father listens even when I am getting it wrong, that He doesn't turn me away and tell me to "get myself straightened up".

He is so good at doing that for me...

When I let Him.

I pulled out Colossians and dove in right where I've been reading....

I want you woven into a tapestry of love, in touch with everything there is to know of God. Then you will have minds confident and at rest, focused on Christ, God's great mystery.  -- Colossians 2:2

A tapestry of love....

God is love....

He's Sovereign....

He works everything in my life for my good.... (Romans 8:28)

Nothing can happen without His permission... (Lamentations 3:37)

His tapestry of love is in the process of being put together.

It is all around me, because I am a part of it.

So, being awoken before I would choose, serving my family even when I would rather go back to bed, is part of His tapestry of love.

As I get to know God more and more I am more in touch with who He is, with how He works and what He is doing in my life.

As I get to know Him, I am more confident in His love; trusting that He knows what is best for me.

Then, my mind can be at rest.

Life and peace come when I live by the Spirit. (Romans 8:5-6)

Thank you, Father for calling my heart to Yours this morning. Thank You for the gift of life. Please help me to know You more and more so that I can be confident in Your love and have a mind at rest in You.

In Christ Alone

I was just sitting here in my chair snuggling with my warm 5 year old daughter.

As we were snuggling, I have to confess that I was also reading emails and checking my Facebook pages, but I don't think she minded. She was just enjoying some mommy time, that for her has become rather rare.

As I read what is going on in the lives of my friends and family and as I considered my own life, once again I was reminded how much we all need Jesus.

I have friends in every stage of life, one just said goodbye to her husband of 61 years for the last time, and another is beginning the journey of motherhood. I am smack dab in the middle of mothering, while my sister will soon have two kids in college and one in high school. My dad just retired, and my husband is in the midst of his career....

One thing we all have in common (besides blood running through our veins) is that we all need Jesus.

He is all we need.

We can't do this life without Him.

Oh we all try it.

I know I do.

Yesterday I was giving it another try.

All alone.

Trying to slog through it all. Carrying the weight of the world on my shoulders.

For just a minute or two that whole martyr thing is almost fun.

But then it starts getting unbearable.

And gross.

Oh the terrible thoughts I start having when I am trying to live this life in my own strength!

But He always gets my attention.

Little comments or questions start to chip away at my self imposed prison.

At first those reminders make me so mad!

There's nothing the matter!

I'm doing just fine, thank you!

HA!

Eventually I realize that I am once again playing the game. Trying to do it all alone.

Eventually I have to give up.

Because I can't do this on my own.

None of us can.

But He can.

Oh yes, He can!

It is so ridiculous how I resist coming to Him and admitting that I have to wandering around on my own again.

I can almost see Him gently smile and softly shake His head.

Oh how good it feels to crawl up into His lap and feel His arms come around me. To feel the warmth of his breath. To know that He is here.

To know that I am His.

Prayer from Colossians 1

Be assured that from the first day we heard of you, 

we haven't stopped praying for you, 

asking God to give you wise minds and spirits 

attuned to his will, and so acquire a thorough understanding 

of the ways in which God works. 

We pray that you'll live well for the Master, 

making him proud of you as you work hard 

in his orchard. As you learn more and more

how God works, you will learn how to do your work.

We pray that you'll have the strength

to stick it out over the long haul—

not the grim strength of gritting your teeth

but the glory-strength God gives.

It is strength that endures the unendurable

and spills over into joy, thanking the Father

who makes us strong enough to take part

in everything bright and beautiful that he has for us.

~ Colossians 1:9-12 ~ 

 

I haven't been super faithful about praying for my kids. But as I read this today I realized that I wanted these verses to be true for them. I want them to be true for me and my husband, and for you too!

Wise minds and spirits attuned to His will.

A thorough understanding of the ways God works.

Working hard at God's work, watching Him closely, following His example.

Full of the glory-strength that only He can give. 

Spilling over with joy and thanksgiving.

Strong enough to take part in everything bright and beautiful He has for us.

Once again I see that it is all about Him. He is our Source, He is our Example, He is the Creator and the Planner and the One who gives Purpose and Wisdom and Understanding. 

He provides the work and the strength to do it. He fills us with joy as we follow Him doing the work He has prepared for us to do. 

Oh Holy Spirit work God's love into my life, into my kids' lives, and my huband's life. Continue to draw us always back to You. Be first and foremost in our minds and our hearts. Open our eyes to see You all around us. Help us to be God revealers to all we come in contact with. Thank You for being our All-in-All.

The Greatest Job in the World

God is higher than anything and anyone,
      outshining everything you can see in the skies.
   Who can compare with God, our God,
      so majestically enthroned,
   Surveying his magnificent
      heavens and earth?
   He picks up the poor from out of the dirt,
      rescues the wretched who've been thrown out with the trash,
   Seats them among the honored guests,
      a place of honor among the brightest and best.
   He gives childless couples a family,
      gives them joy as the parents of children.
   Hallelujah! 

~ Psalm 113:4-9 ~

It all started with a simple request.

Well, it was really more like an observation that moved on to a suggestion.

It wasn't a command or an order.

Just a simple suggestion made while shaving.

In my hormone drunk brain it sounded like a judgment.

"You are not doing enough. You are a poor housekeeper, so bad that your husband has to point out things that need to be done and tell you how to make them get done."

You are failing.

Once again I dove right into that big pool of self-pity.

Of self-blame.

Of pride?

You bet.

I swam around and around in that pool even while I slept. Waking in the dark with thoughts swirling in my head.

How can I do better? How can I do more?

I know, I need to write up a schedule and make copies and hand them out to all the kids and then go over these schedules with them, giving them each special new jobs and then...

"Come to Me." (Psalm 27:8)

"Hello? Is someone talking to me?"

"Have you talked to Me about all this?"

"Ummmm, well, not for a while. Not for a long time, really."

Once again, in the quiet of the early morning living room I poured out all the poison in my head and let it flow out at the feet of my Saviour.

What a huge burden I had made out of a simple suggestion.

So much was uncovered as I laid bare my heart before my Lord.

Once again He showed me all my efforts aren't going to help. A new schedule isn't what I need. Snapping to and making the kids tow the line isn't going to bring what is needed.

God can do anything, you know—

far more than you could ever imagine or guess 

or request in your wildest dreams! 

He does it not by pushing us around 

but by working within us, 

his Spirit deeply and gently within us.

~ Ephesians 3:20 ~

What I need is Him.

I need to let Him come and work within me.

Changing the way I think. (Romans 12:2 ~ I love that verse!)

And so, I jotted down a list for the day into my prayer journal and moved forward into the morning. Waiting for His leading, but not really sure how it would come.

So, I got my breakfast going and started in a batch of buns and of course turned on the computer.

At (In)Courage, I read,

"Moms, I'm specifically talking to us today.  Do we love our job?

Gulp!

Do I love my job? I'll have to think about that one.

I like it, sometimes, but too often the "job" part is a lot of thankless, unnoticed work.

Am I supposed to love it?

Somewhere in between adding cups of flour to my bun dough I realized I was smiling.

I realized that I felt so much lighter.

And dare I say it?

I felt joy.

I want you to get out there and walk—better yet, run!

—on the road God called you to travel. 

I don't want any of you sitting around on your hands. 

I don't want anyone strolling off, down some path that goes nowhere. 

And mark that you do this with humility and discipline—

not in fits and starts, but steadily, pouring yourselves out for each other 

in acts of love, alert at noticing differences and quick at mending fences.

~ Ephesians 4: 1-3 ~

So where does all this leave me?

What do I do with what the Lord is showing me this morning?

I have a calling to the greatest job in the world.

I have been called to be a wife, a mother, a homemaker.

Lately, because I have been trying to this job in my own strength, apart from my Source, I have grown to see my calling as a chore, a burden, something that was too much and not what I wanted to do, but had to do.

Something that I was failing at in so many ways.

But this morning, He reminded me that I am not supposed to do this on my own, in my own "strength".

He equips those He calls! (Ephesians 3:8)

He gives me strength and rest. He restores my soul. (Psalm 46:1, Psalm 23)

He is my source of joy. (Psalm 43:4)

He makes me soar on wings of eagles. (Isaiah 40:31)

Apart from Him I can do nothing. (John 15)

So, why do I keep trying?

Over and over, I'm sure I will have to be retaught this lesson.

Thankfully, He is patient with me and is gently leading me.

He tends his flock like a shepherd: 

He gathers the lambs in his arms  

and carries them close to his heart; 

he gently leads those that have young.

 ~ Isaiah 40:11 ~

There is so much more.

But what it comes down to is I need Him.

And He is all you need, too.