You've Got This

Psalm 94:19  When doubts filled my mind, Your comfort gave me renewed hope and cheer. 

This verse was part of my reading this morning.  After Tuesday's post, I continued in prayer for changing my "go tos."  It is definitely a work in progress.  One of the things I notice is that when I do have "upsetted" moments, they don't last as long as they used to.  That is progress!  LOL  Yesterday I kind of started getting miffed at some inconsequential inconveniences that occurred as I left the house to go to work....mainly I was dropping or spilling everything I held, including forgetting that my coffee was not secured when I pulled out of my driveway....blessedly the cover was securely closed  and there was no major spillage (thank You Lord!).  I like that phrase, "inconsequential inconveniences."   It really puts into perspective most of the stuff that bothers me. 

So I drive down my block and put on the radio as is my habit, and two things happened.  One, the Lord sent the perfect song to remind me of the power living inside of me, the strength I have because His Holy Spirit lives in and is at work in my heart. 

The second, and this will take a little explaining is the name of a game they play on KLOVE radio station.   The way it works is the dj's makes a statement and a call in listener has to correctly identify that statement's reference.   The segment is called "You've Got This."  And that was the some of the first words I heard after the above mentioned song stopped playing.  And of course, they kept saying it repeatedly.  LOL  I really felt like Jesus was telling me, "You've got this."  It was so cool. 

Wow, is God amazing or what!?!  And then the perfect verse from the Bible this morning for me to acknowledge His visit yesterday afternoon!  I love the Lord....He is so wonderful and caring towards His children. 

I love the way You work in our lives Lord.  I know I often forget, and act like a brat.  Forgive me.  Thank You for never leaving nor forsaking, thank You for keeping on with me even when I know I don't deserve Your mercy, compassion, patience and love.  I am truly so grateful.  Lord, I know all of us have weak spots, sins that we can't seem to get ahead of, please continue to work in all of us to make us more and more like Your Son Jesus.  And thank You for never giving up on us!  It's in His Name that I pray. Amen. 

Ephesians 1:19-20  I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms.

What's Your Go To?

I think God is trying to get some deep changes going in my life and along with the "do you want to get well" question He's been showing me that I have some "go to" reactions and behaviors that need to change. 

So,  I already know that coffee and junk food are "go tos" for me.  Stress, tiredness, a bad or busy day....I feel the need for or sometimes a sense of I'm entitled to one or the other.  They comfort me. Sometimes I'm just bored or in need of a little pick me up. 

But I've been convicted of another "go to" the last couple of weeks.  As a matter of fact I fell again in this area last night.  Anger.  When things don't go my way, when I see things happening that I don't agree with, or when I feel myself or someone I care about is being treated unfairly, my default setting seems to be an angry response.  Wow.  I didn't realize I had that much of a problem.  I mean I knew of course I needed an occasional attitude adjustment, but I never noticed that when I felt upset with a situation, my outward response was more often than not, one of anger instead of calmly thinking about it and dealing with it in a kind way, or better yet, sometimes letting it go all together. 

I love when God deals with the deep stuff.  Now, I don't mean that I love how it feels, but I love that He loves me enough to want more for me than attitudes and sins that make me unhappy, and keep me from shining for Him.  And He is so good, because not only is He sending correction via the Holy Spirit's conviction, He has sent me some new coworkers that are Christians and on the same journey as I am to be all that we can be for Him.  What a blessing!

Ephesians 4:23  Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes.  

Ephesians 4:26  And don't sin by letting anger control you.   Don't let the sun go down while you are still angry, for anger gives a foothold to the devil.  

Ephesians 6:7  Work with enthusiasm, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.  

Philippians 2:3  Don't be selfish; don't try to impress others.  Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. 

How do I change these habitual behaviors?  That's the hard part.  Especially since they seem so ingrained.  But I know if the Lord has brought them to my attention then He will help me rid myself of anything that hinders my walk with Him.   Through prayer, repentance, time in the Scripture and practice, I will leave these sins behind.   Philippians 1:6  And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.  I know He is working and I know He is faithful and I know I am His masterpiece.  And so are you!

Lord, thank You for Your correction.  You lovingly correct those who are You children.  You know our hearts, and how we are made.  I also know You realize we want to be like Jesus.  Lord, help!  Sometimes the process seems so slow.  But You are faithful.  You are at work even when we can't see the changes we would like,  Keep us going forward.  Change our "go to" behaviors and make us into Your lights, shining Your love to a dark and dying world.  Thank You!  I submit my heart to You.  I just want to praise You this day for the loving Father that You are.  We are so blessed to be called Your children.  Amazing grace!  What a wonderful God we serve! 

Ask God to point out any "go to" habits He wants to work on. 

I Don't Like This Question, or My Answer

Questions.  You know God always throws these questions out at me.  I "hear" them in my head and I know that they are not from me because they are too deep, cut too close to the bone and go right to the heart of whatever area the Lord wants to get me thinking about. 

Rewind to a couple days ago.  I get up, take care of my cats, pour my coffee and settle into my "God time."  After that I do some chores around the house, and finally leave to run to the grocery store to pick up some items that I had forgotten on my last trip there, (isn't there always something we forget, even with the list!).   All of this took place withing a few hours.  And then it starts.  The craving.  The "I want another cup of coffee.  I want Starbucks!"    My grocery store has a Starbucks in it and it's a little bit too convenient for someone with a coffee addiction and low self control, lol!

But I don't need another coffee right then.  I don't need it health wise nor do I need to spend extra money on a cup of coffee.  But the craving persisted, calling out to me.  Ugh.  Lord help!

And then came the question.  "Do you want to get well?"  Now, 24 years ago the Lord broke the chains of drug and alcohol addiction in my life, a year later I was set free from cigarettes.  I am grateful everyday for this deliverance and the freedom that I have only through Jesus Christ.  Addiction is still a battle for me in the areas of coffee and junk food.  I have successes, and I am thrilled for them, but I still fail more often than I would like,  Perhaps many of you reading this can relate.  So I pose to you the same question the Lord posed to me, "Do you want to get well?"  This question came from Jesus when He healed the man at the pool of Bethesda.   The man had be afflicted for many years, but never quite made it to wellness. 

I think the problem lay more in my answer than in the Lord's question.  I finally dug a little deeper when I answered this.  The answer was a little hard to look at.  My answer, "Yes, but I don't want to give up my stuff."  I want to be healed but not at whatever cost it takes to receive that healing.  I want to be un-addicted but not by laying my addictions on the altar and leaving them there.  I want health and wholeness but I still want to hang onto my coffee and junk food.  Literally, I want my cake and to eat it too and yes, I'll take coffee with that cake! 

This can be applied to many areas of our lives and later that night Jesus asked the question a second time as I struggled at work with my attitude.  I cry out for change.  I want to be Christ-like.  Loving, peaceful, kind.  I want to be a good witness, to glorify God.  I want others to see Christ in me and want Him in their lives.  But.....do I want to lay down my pride?  Do I want to lay down having things my way?  Ugh.  We really have to bring a lot of stuff, a lot of our baggage, a lot of our "self" to the altar to get this healing thing down. 

Basically, I've discovered, I want healing and wholeness and growth in my life, but I want it easily, I want it with no sacrifice on my part...I want God to be like a fairy godfather and just "poof" it on me!  I don't want it to hurt or to have work for it. Like the man at the pool of Bethesda, I have work today in order to be healed.  This is not the answer I was hoping to see when I "heard" this question that day.  But I'm pretty sure it's the answer I needed to know about.  When God shows us the junk in our hearts it's never pretty, but He does so with love and with the plan for healing.  So, I guess I have some praying and some letting go to do!

Lord, thank You for the hard revelations, And thank You that You always bring truth to light with love and with the intention of bringing us to a place of wholeness.  Lord, give each of us the strength to overcome any areas in our lives that are not in line with Your desire for us.  Thank You for the Holy Spirit's within us who convicts, encourages and enables.  You are an awesome God and I love you! 

Answer the question for yourself. 

John 5:1-8  Some time later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish festivals.  Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades.  Here a great number of disabled people used to lie—the blind, the lame, the paralyzed.   One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years.  When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to get well?”   “Sir,” the invalid replied, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.”   Then Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.”

Turn of the Phrase

Every just hear a phrase or expression that sets off a spark in your mind?  Just a little ah-ha moment where something clicks and in this little phrase you see a huge idea.  And this idea spurs the need for action. 

Our pastor said something during Sunday's sermon that just lit up my mind..."meet Jesus in the world."  Our teaching was on the Ten Bridesmaids parable that Jesus told in Matthew 25.  Being alert and being prepared for His return is every Christian's responsibility.  We need to be cultivating our relationship with Him and doing His work in the world around us.

"Meet Jesus in the world."   That phrase settled into my heart.   Where does Jesus want us to go?  Who does He want us to reach out to?  This phrase painted a picture in my mind of Jesus standing next to a someone I encounter during my day...I can see Him pointing to this person and saying, "Here, this one.  This one needs my love right now.  This one is ready to hear the Gospel now.  This one needs help, a smile, a hug, a kind word, to hear how I love them, to know they can be forgiven...."  Throughout the day we pass by need after need after need?  Maybe Jesus is waving His arms at us shouting, "Over here!  Over here!"  Family, friends, strangers, our ministry fields are ripe.  Matthew 9:36-38 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 He said to his disciples, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. 38 So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields.”  

No one of us can meet every need we encounter.  But by looking for Jesus in the world and meeting Him in our appointed area we will be His hands and heart to the right person at the right time.  We all need to be workers about our Father's business. 

Matthew 25:23 “The master said, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’

Lord, forgive me for being so caught up in my own stuff that I forget to look for Your work around me.  Open my eyes today and let me hear You when You call to me.  Give us all sensitive spirits that we may be about Your business, open to reaching out in whatever way You desire to those around us.  Help us all to be prepared for Your return, we want to be found faithful.  I know all of us want to hear Your praise and celebrate together with You when we stand before You.  Slow us down, turn our eyes to You and let's meet needs today!  In Jesus' tenderhearted Name, Amen.

Matthew 9:41   If anyone gives you even a cup of water because you belong to the Messiah, I tell you the truth, that person will surely be rewarded.  What can you give or do to follow Jesus's lead  today? 

Praise, From Mom, Part 4

The last of the praise entries in Mom's journal involves Scriptures.  I don't usually do lists of Scriptures, but sometimes it's good to look through God's Word on a specific subject and pick one or two to memorize, to write down, to make our own.  So I leave you with this list to do just that.  Perhaps just sitting in prayer with these words from the Lord will spark that new, creative way to charge up a sometimes lackluster praise routine for us.  I know I could use that!

1 Chronicles 23:30  And each morning and evening they stood before the Lord to sing songs of thanks and praise to Him.

Psalm 63:1-5  O God, You are my God; I earnestly search for You.  My soul thirsts for You; my whole body longs for You in this parched and weary land where there is no water.  I have seen You in Your sanctuary and gazed upon Your power and glory.  You unfailing love is better than life itself; how I praise You!  I will praise You as long as I live, lifting up my hands to You in prayer.  You satisfy me more than the richest feast.  I will praise You with songs of joy. 

Psalm 71:14  But I will keep on hoping for Your help; I will praise You more and more.

Psalm 92:1-2  It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to the Most High.  It is good to proclaim Your unfailing love in the morning, Your faithfulness in the evening.

Psalm 100:4  Enter His gates with thanksgiving; go into His courts with praise.  Give thanks to Him and praise His Name. 

Psalm 118:24  This is the day the Lord has made.  We will rejoice and be glad in it.

Psalm 145:1-4  I will exalt You, my God and King, and praise Your Name forever and ever.  I will praise You ever day; yes I will praise You forever.  Great is the Lord!  He is most worthy of praise!  No one can measure His greatness.  Let each generation tell its children of Your mighty acts; let them proclaim Your power.

Psalm 150:1-6  Praise the Lord!  Praise God in His sanctuary; praise Him in His mighty heaven!  Praise Him for His mighty works; praise His unequaled greatness!  Praise Him with a blast of the ram's horn; praise Him with the lyre and harp!  Praise Him with the tambourine and dancing; praise Him with strings and flutes!  Praise Him with a clash of cymbals; praise Him with loud clanging cymbals!  Let everything that breathes sing praises to the Lord! 

Isaiah 61:3  To all who mourn in Israel, He will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning, festive praise instead of despair.  In their righteousness, they will be like great oaks that the Lord has planted for His own glory.

Matthew 25:21  The master was full of praise.  'Well done, my good and faithful servant.  You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities.  Let's celebrate together!

1 Corinthians 4:5  So don't make judgments about anyone ahead of time--before the Lord returns.  For He will bring our darkest secrets to light and will reveal our private motives.  Then God will give to each one whatever praise is due.  

Ephesians 1:3-14  All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ.  Even before He made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in His eyes.  God decided in advance to adopt us into His own family by bringing us to Himself through Jesus Christ.  That is what He wanted to do, and it gave Him great pleasure.  So we praise God for the glorious grace He has poured out on us who belong to His dear Son.  He is so rich in kindness and grace that He purchased our freedom with the blood of His son and forgave our sins.  He has showered His kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.  God has now revealed to us His mysterious plan regarding Christ, a plan to fulfill His own good pleasure.  And this is the plan:  At the right time He will bring everything together under the authority of Christ--everything in heaven and on earth.  Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received and inheritance from God, for He chose us in advance and He makes everything work according to His plan.  God's purpose was that we Jews who were the first to trust in Christ would bring praise and glory to God.  And now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you.  And when you believed in Christ, He identified you as His own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom He promised long ago.  The Spirit is God's guarantee that He will give us the inheritance He promised and that He has purchased us to be His own people.  He did this so we would praise and glorify Him.  

From me.

As I typed that last passage of Scripture I thought to myself, whatever we are going through at that moment, whatever difficulty some seasons of life may bring---this passage gives us reason for praise.  It encompasses our past, present and future in Jesus.  Maybe it's a good Scripture to read and meditate on when we are going through the hard stuff that life often sends our way. 

I'm praying that you will find Scriptures here, or even on your own to radically energize your praise life.  Imagine being on fire for God, just being thankful and aware of His glory each and every day.  Imagine looking for more and more reasons to praise Him...coming to a new level of awareness of how very deserving He is.  I want to go there!  I want to be lifted out of the ordinary, out of the miry despair of being bogged down by the mundane concerns and annoyances of this world to a place where my heart sees God's love and touch on every string of my life tapestry.   I want to come to the place that even if my heart is broken by living in a broken world, I will still see my Savior's heart and be able to praise through my tears, not for the circumstances but for the knowledge that He is going to turn disaster into blessing, and that His love will never fail me even in the darkest of days.  I think learning to praise consistently, often, always will bring us to that place. 

Oh Lord, teach us this!  Make it happen in our lives!  No matter what happens here on this earth, the words from Ephesians are true and steadfast....our lives, our eternity is secure.  You are faithful God!  Your are worthy of all our praise and thanksgiving.  You never change!  Lord, forgive my complaining, forgive my mistrust....turn my ingratitude and bratty-ness into praise, thanksgiving and worship.  You love is higher than the mountains and Your faithfulness reaches to the sky....remind us often to trust Your heart---it never has bad in mind.  Lord, You are good and do only good and think only good for us.  Lord, I need to remember this.  Fill our mouths with Your praise, our hearts with faith and our minds with determination.  In Jesus' worthy Name.  Amen

Spend time today with these Scriptures.  Pray over them, speak them out loud.  Keep the one from Ephesians handy for those times when all seems wrong to remind yourself of all that is right. 

Praise, From Mom, Part 3

Time to get back to "real" life.  Vacations are fun.  And it was nice to be with loved ones, relax, see different sights.  No cleaning, no work, no schedules!   I love it.  But I also love coming home to my own space, my much missed animals, eating healthy (one cannot live on desserts I guess!), and just being home in general.  This week I will finish up Mom's entry on praise.  I have so much to praise the Lord for this week.  Seeing the beauty of His creation always leads to praise for me.  Sometimes it's hard to notice in an area that is so developed as mine is, so much seems man made that I take for granted the beauty around me.  Being out where God's creation shines so brightly brings me to awe of His creativeness, knowledge and amazing power. 

Lord, teach me to praise. 

Psalm 71:14  But I will keep on hoping for Your help; I will praise You more and more.   

"more and more."  Find fresh and new ways to praise God.  The old ways don't need to be abandoned, but become creative in our praises to God as God is creative in meeting our needs.  Thus we will not fall prey to careless praise, which becomes dull and boring and ends in merely mouthing praises. 

Psalm 100:1-5  Shout with joy to the Lord, all the earth! Worship the Lord with gladness.  Come before Him, singing with joy.  Acknowledge that the Lord is God!  He made us and we are His.  We are His people, the sheep of His pasture.  Enter His gates with thanksgiving; go into His courts with praise.  Give thanks to Him and praise His name.  For the Lord is good.  His unfailing love continues forever, and His faithfulness continues to each generation.  

1 Peter 2:9  But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people.  You are royal priests, a holy nation, God's very own possession.  As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for He called you out of the darkness into His wonderful light.  

We exist to praise God.  He wants us to come to Him with a worshipful heart.  Praising God shifts our focus to God.  Psalm 100:1 tells us to praise God with joy.

Psalm 113:3  From the rising of the sun to its going down, the Lord’s name is to be praised.  All day long, we say praise, and how we act says praise.

Psalm 108:3  I will thank You, Lord, among all the people.  I will sing Your praises among the nations.  Praise in the presence of others. 

Through praise we can profit more from our own trials.  Praise and give thanks in the midst of trials. 
Why?  Romans 8:28  and we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them.  Philippians 4:13  For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.  

Be obedient to God's command.  James 1:2-4  Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.  For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a change to grown.  So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing. 

Praise God more.  Psalm 71:14  But I will keep on hoping for Your help; I will praise You more and more.  

Look for those fresh and new ways to praise God more and more.

Psalm 118:24  This is the day the Lord has made.  We will rejoice and be glad in it.  

From me.

Praise needs to be a lifestyle.  Our words, our actions, when we are alone, when we are with others, when we come into the presence of the Lord in our prayer time, our need time....always, all day, everyday, in all things.  Praise.  I think the Scripture that jumped out at me today, that convicted me today was James 1:2-4.  I spend more time complaining about trials than growing from them through praise.  There is nothing that we go through, nothing that comes our way, nothing that happens that praising God is not an appropriate response.  Because if we truly believe Romans 8:28, then even though the circumstance and heartbreak may be unfathomable, unbearable, we know that God is with us, and will bring us through with purpose and with love.  Difficulties do not mean we abandon our praise walk.  That is a habit I'd like to pick up! 

Lord, help us to praise more, praise always.  You are worthy.  I forget that so often when I don't get my way, when things don't go smoothly or as I like.  In big troubles, in little troubles, in good and in bad, let our habit be to enter Your gates with thanksgiving; go into Your courts with praise.  Forgive me, I fail in this so often.  But I know You see our frailties and love us anyway.  Just another reason You are always worthy of our praise.  Teach us to praise You more and more.  In Jesus' most worthy Name, Amen

Take these Scriptures to heart....pray over them, think on them, make them part of you.