A dear friend of mine e-mailed me information about The Daniel Fast. Lou Engle (of The Call) is calling for a 40 day fast for our nation. I had heard of The Daniel Fast briefly on the T-Tapp forums, and was intrigued.
I went to Susan Gregory's site, and was intrigued by all I was reading--because I had felt that God was stirring my heart to fast! I haven't fasted much in the past years, usually being pregnant or nursing. And with my recent adrenal issues, I wanted to be wise in approaching a fast. When my friend e-mailed me, and I went to the website, I got really excited about this! I could do this!
Basically it is abstaining from meats, dairy and sweets (and processed foods) for a length of time. You can click on The Daniel Fast link above to learn more about it. I went ahead and bought the book and it has been soooo encouraging--even if you're not planning to fast, the spiritual content is worth it!!!
I prayed last week about whether to do a 10 day, 21 day or the 40 day fast. I wanted to be led of the Lord in this. I told the Lord, "Please make it REALLY clear!"
Well, He did!
I truly believe God has a sense of humor! I was "behind" in my Bible reading ,and was reading Mark 1-5 on Saturday, two days after praying for Him to make it clear. Remember, I am "behind" (you're never really behind--God always meets you right where you are!).
And I read this:
"And He was there in the wilderness forty days....."
He has spoken to me about what He wants me to focus on, helped me "find" a book that I thought was lost (maybe I didn't have eyes to see it until He was ready for me to? and wants me to include it now?), showed me why some things weren't working in my homeschooling, and He is helping me as this week I am weaning off dairy and sugar in preparation!!! (If you only knew how much I like my Endangered Species Dark chocolate!!)
Here are some excerpts to whet your "appetite!
"Even though you can eat during the Daniel Fast, it is no less effective than a complete fast. The power in fasting has less to do with food than with setting yourself apart for a specific period of time to focus more on the Lord, prayer, and worship. In other words, the power of fasting is found when you consecrate yourself to the Lord and discipline yourself to focus on Him."
She does point out, however, that fasting is about abstaining from food. Although curtailing tv watching, computer, and other habits may be good for us, abstain actually means "cover the mouth" in Hebrew and "abstain from food" in the Greek.
"Starting a Daniel Fast is the first step toward an experience that will bring you closer to the Father who desires a deep, abiding relationship with each of His children."
"So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no injury whatever was found on him, because he believed in his God." (Daniel 6:23)
Do you see that last phrase?--"because [Daniel] believed in his God." That's the kind of faith we can have! A faith so strong that nothing can harm us! But the question is, are we willing to do what Daniel did in order to have what Daniel had? Are we wiling to love God with our whole hearts? Are we willing to read the Scriptures and pray three times each day? Are we willing to truly make God number one in our lives? So many times we can't figure out why our prayers are not answered or why there is so much stress and unrest in our lives. Daniel never wrestled with thse issues because he was always filled up with the truth of God.
"I think it's important to note that God didn't keep Daniel from ever entering the lions' den, just like He didn't keep Daniel's companions from being thrown into the fiery furnace (see Daniel 3). But God met them in the midst of their calamities and delivered them."
"You and I have a lot in common with Daniel and the other Hebrew men. As believers, we are also in enemy territory, facing the pressures of this world. And just like Daniel, we can choose to live our lives according to God's ways--not just when it's convenient and not in a casual way . If we want what Daniel had, we must be willing to do what Daniel did. He devoted himself to God. He set his heart on the ways of the Lord and refused to be defiled by the customs and practices of the Babylonians."
"I hope you can grasp the amazing truth of what God has done for us. He loves each and very one of us so much that He gave what was most valuable to Him--His Son. And why? So we could be in seamless fellowship with Him once again, so that His original plan for all of humanity could be restored, and so we could be saved from an eternity of being separated from God--which is hell!"
(my emphasis--you know I'm all about relationship!!!)
"We have a choice about how we are going to live our day-to-day lives. We can walk in the Spirit or in the flesh. We can choose to forgive...or we can hold grudges. We can gossip about people...or we can choose to speak only good words about others. We can snap at a store clerk...or we can give grace and mercy. We can trust in God with our lives and walk in faith...or we can depend on ourselves and the world systems."
This following excerpt really spoke to me about thoughts--why it's SO important to bring EVERY thought captive to the obedience of Christ.
"...Dr. Caroline Leaf, a learning specialist who has spent more than twenty-five years studying the brain and the way we think, writes:
Thoughts are real things: they have a structure in your brain and occupy space. Thoughts are the same as memories. Thoughts and memories look like trees and are called neurons or nerve cells. You build a double memory of everything as a mirror image of each other. This means that the memory on the left side of the brain builds from the detail to the big picture; and the memory on the right side builds from the big picture to the detail. When you put these two perspectives of thought together, you get intelligent understanding taking place. As information comes in from the five senses, you process it in certain structures of your brain, then you grow branches on the "trees" to hold this information in long term memory. In fact, as you are reading this, you are growing thoughts, because, thoughts are the result of what we hear and read and see and feel and experience. This means that whatever you grow is part of you, actual branches in your brain that create your attitude and influence your decisions.
"In her book Who Switched Off My Brain? Dr. Leaf explains why good health is critical to do what the Bible says in 2 Corinthians 10:5: 'bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.' When negative thoughts are allowed to stay in our thinking, they literally grow into toxic elements that can bring us harm. Dr. Leaf also explains that there is actually a thinking mechanism in our physical hearts. As the rapid-speed thought process works, forces are going into our heart and back to our brain as part of the decision-making process."
You can see that there are rich nuggets throughout the book--that was just a little taste! (All puns intended!) I thought that last quote, from Dr. Leaf was eye-opening! If there were ever a reason to "take captive every thought", that should convince you!
But of course, we need His help!
Which is one of many reasons I am doing this fast. Of course I'll pray for my nation--she needs it! Ultimately, I pray for the many souls who don't know Him. I am also going to be praying for some friends who are going through some rough situations, as well as praying for my family and myself to continue growing in the Lord.
I am actually excited to do the Daniel Fast--me, a "recovering emotional eater"! I am excited to focus on the Lord, and instead of turning to my usual treats for comfort or out of boredom, turn to Him.
And that is what it is ultimately about--turning away from other distractions in life and turning TO Him....after all, as one of the quotes stated, that's why He came.
To restore our relationship with our loving Heavenly Father.
If God has been speaking to your heart about fasting, or if you are facing some difficult situations or decisions, maybe you could check out the Daniel Fast. You don't have to do it a certain amount of time. That is between you and the Lord.
Susan gives lots of help on her website, her blog and in her book. Her book tells who she is, how she got started in this, the example of Daniel, "Five Steps for a Successful Daniel Fast", the Daniel Fast food lists and menus, and a 21 day devotional.
One last quote, and I felt Susan really hit the nail on the head with this:
"This may come as a surprise to you, but fasting isn't for God. He's not going to think you are a better Christian or a more spiritual person because you fast. Your worth to God is totally dependent on Christ, who made you valuable and acceptable to the Most High God on the cross. So if you are fasting to prove to God how good you are, don't bother.
"Instead, dear reader, fasting is for you. It's a spiritual tool God created to help you strengthen your spirit, learn self-control of the flesh, draw closer to your Father, and focus on prayer. When you fast, you are stepping into a temporary set of actions for a spiritual purpose--like entering a bubble where everything is different for a set period of time."
It isn't to earn points with God. It is to get OUR focus onto God!
I pray you will at least get the book and read it--even if you choose not to do the Daniel Fast, I believe you will come away richer for having read it!
I would appreciate your prayers as I enter this time next Monday. I am not so naive as to think I won't have any struggles!
And if you have prayer needs you would like me to include in my times of prayer, please e-mail me (on the sidebar).
Thank you for letting me share--I know this has been a long post, but you can see that God is really moving in my life right now and I so wanted to share nuggest from The Daniel Fast book so you could get a good feel for it!
The Lord be with each of you as you seek His will daily in your lives, and may you fall more in love with Him---Your Loving Father, Beloved Bridegroom and Heavenly Lover of your soul!
Can you tell that I'm really being blessed by Frances Roberts' Dialogues with God?!
Here is a beautiful selection.
The Shepherd Speaks Gently
My little one, hast thou not heard My word, go not into the bypaths? Lo, I, thy loving Shepherd am by thy side. Why shouldst thou wander off? I have brought thee into tender, green pastures and beside a flowing stream. Let thy soul drink deeply and feed to thy hearts' content.
It is no idle pastime: I have brought thee here for My own good pleasure and for purposes only known to Me. In the days ahead thou shalt know why we came this way. Trust Me now and be unmoved by any disturbance. The distant call thou shalt ignore. Stay close to Me, and thy heart shall delight in thy God. Thy fellowship with Me shall be precious beyond anything words can tell. I love thee deeply, and when love is deep, words are little needed. Shouting is unthinkable. Devotion is silent and love silences conversation. The shepherd speaks gently, and lambs do not respond to shouts. He who yells at the sheep is behaving like a hireling rather than like a shepherd. He shall bring confusion. The inner ear of the spirit is attuned to hear the still, small voice.
Lay thine head upon My knee and let Me quiet thee. Forget all the rest. What others do need not concern thee. I have never required thee to understand the actions of others. Make it no concern of thine. Only yield. Let Me do all the rest.
Sleep is My love gift to thee. Do not despise it nor set it aside. Rest in My care, for I love to care for thee but I cannot when ye are wrongfully anxious about the behaviour of others. I will correct them and minister to them Myself, for I also love them just as I love you. But they are too occupied to come to Me now. Leave them all to Me, and come, rest in My arms.
Prayer Response
Blessed Jesus, my soul cries out to Thee in response to Thy love. I would rather come to Thee than build ten cities. No accomplishment brings the joy and deep satisfaction that comes from being near Thee and feeling my hand in Thine.
Bring Me an obedient heart, a teachable spirit, and a mind ready to learn. I shall be able then to make of thee a disciple and to bring thee at last into a position of responsibility. The cost is high, but the rewards shall be gratifying; but ye shall not be aware of either the cost nor the rewards because the joy of fellowshipping closely with Me shall so occupy thy heart.
Purify My Desires
Lord Jesus, make me a learner. All Thou hast said is true, and I long to be not a follower only, but a genuine disciple. I am reminded that the disciple must take up his cross and must do so daily. A disciple cannot turn back, nor can he be torn between conflicting loyalties. Thou hast made the requirements stringent and hast set the standard very high. I may wish to attain and yet fail.
I may desire to enter into discipleship and be rejected. Let it not be so, Lord, for lack of love for Thee. Let it not be for want of zeal or consecration. Let it not be on account of the love of the world and its pleasures.
Purify my desires until I want nothing but Thee alone and seek nothing but to bring Thee joy.
Turn my apathy to empathy, and change my longings to firm resolves.
Strengthen my hand to do right, and remove swiftly all that weakens.
O my Father, Thou hast crowned my life with blessings. The half of Thy goodness have I never told. Thou are gracious, and Thy compassion is so deep that even my worst sins have not shut me off from Thy mercy and forgiveness. How hast Thou loved, to redeem one so unworthy! Make my heart to beat with gratitude nor ever cease praising Thee. Glorious is Thy Name and Thy salvation how great! With Thee is life and through the atoneing work of Christ, Thou hast opened to me a world of bliss and a peace that passeth understanding.
Isn't that a rich treasure?! It is the cry of my heart!
Do you struggle with prayer? What to say? How to say it?
How do toddlers learn to talk?
First they babble. Then we encourage them when we hear something remotely like "Ma-ma" or "Da-da". They listen a lot. Then they imitate. After awhile, they start putting sentences together. Do we immediately correct their grammar or choice of words? Or pronunciations? No! We usually cherish the cute ways they say things, and we understand what they want even if others outside the family do not.
After awhile, the funny pronunciations and inventive grammar give way to more "eloquent" speaking, and by the time they are adults, they are able to converse without thinking anything about it!
The Lord has shown me that prayer is much the same way. At first, we feel we are babbling as we learn this new skill. Then we imitate--Him in His Word, other great Christians' works and prayers.....we might say some things in a funny way, but God is not waiting to correct our grammar or word usage! Or our pronunciation!
He is thrilled to hear His children try to speak His language every bit as much as we are thrilled to hear our own children speak ours!
After awhile, we just start expressing ourselves in our own words, sometimes still using the words of others and most importantly, using His Word.
It's a part of growth.
And even if we stay in one "phase" longer than we think we should, that's okay.
Or we might need help and go back to prayer books. Or even use them to help get our pumps primed and then take off praying in our own words.
That's okay. He knows our hearts, and would rather hear us speak to Him, however haltingly, than to not speak at all because it's not "perfect".
I encourage you to break free of the "perfection mindset" and pray to your Heavenly Father. The best "guide" we can use is His Word. Use His Word and turn the verses into prayers.
O My child, I will help thee, and that speedily. I am nearer to thee than breathing. I am more real than all they desires or thy fears. Yea, My spirit is a quickening, life-giving Spirit. The letter killeth--the law condemns, but I say unto thee, I come to forgive; I come to restore; I come to bless and to heal. I come to be thy Light.
I My presence there is no darkness. Have ye not read that in the Eternal City there is no need of candle, nor of the sun or moon, because the Lamb is the Light of it? Surely if I can brighten all of Eternity, I have ample supply to flood thy heart and mind and thy body with My mighty power, My light, and My love--My deep joy and My energizing Spirit. Have ye not read (Romans 8:11) that the self-same spirit that raised the body of Jesus up from the dead dwelleth in YOU to energize your mortal body through His indwelling Spirit? Ye need not depend upon thine own limited strength and endurance.
My arm is not shortened that it cannot save. I stand ready to support thee. Yea, to thee I say, underneath are My everlasting arms. They are not only powerful arms, but they are arms of love and tenderness.
When ye think of Me, disassociate thy thoughts from all that ye know of people, for I am Infinite, Think of it! In all My characteristics, I am not only far beyond all that ye could ever appropriate or need, but beyond all ye can even fancy.
Not in wildest imagination can ye guess the depths of My love. By no mental gymnastics can ye compute My power. Never mind! Just give Me thy hand and I will give thee Myself. Give Me every doubt, every fear, every heartache. I am here to help. I am here to carry thy load and minister to thy need. I will not fail thee nor forsake thee. I am thy God; be not afraid.
I found this treasure through Ann Voskamp, and put it on my Christmas list. Anna got it for me, and I just last night got it out to start reading some of the prayers.
I read several!!!!
They are full of life, NOT boring, NOT stuffy, and full of an ardent love for our Savior! Just beautiful!
Here is just a paragraph from the selection, "The Love of Jesus":
My heart melts at the love of Jesus,
my brother, bone of my bone, flesh of my flesh,
married to me, dead for me, risen for me;
He is mine and I am his,
given to me as well as for me;
I am never so much mine as when I am his,
or so much lost to myself until lost in him;
then I find my true manhood.
But my love is frost and cold, ice and snow;
Let his love warm me,
lighten my burden,
be my heaven;
May it be more revealed to me in all its influences
that my love to him may be more fervent and glowing;
Let the mighty tide of his everlasting love
cover the rocks of my sin and care;
Then let my spirit float above those things
which had else wrecked my life.
This one line really spoke to me last night:
....or so much lost to myself until lost in him;.....
How often do we try to "deny self" or "put self on the cross".....all focused on the negative....
A few notes first--don't forget the great bargain going on at Hands and Hearts! This is only good until Friday (through Friday, I believe) and it benefits a family to be able to support themselves and retain the flexibility the dad needs with Noah's health challenges.
And if you're playing the "Seven Sisters Trivia game", that link is HERE!
I have just recently found Frances Roberts. According to what I've read, she has written since the late 60s. I've been a Christian for 30 years and am still learning new things and new-to-me authors whose writings are incredibly rich and deep.
I had bought a devotional for a friend's daughter for Christmas. I had another one in mind, and then this one caught my eye--Come Away My Beloved. This is a devotional that has selections from several of her books. They truly are "one minute devotionals"--to read! You will chew on their truths for the rest of the day, though!
I liked what I saw so well, that I bought myself one as well! Only I bought the journal version (since I like to respond to what I read). It has been so convicting--a gentle conviction that doesn't make you feel like a total wretch, but a "How could I miss this because I love Him so? because He loves ME so?" feeling.
Today was my second day reading Dialogues with God. It is written as if God is talking directly to you. Sometimes it is a prayer from you to God. I want to quote a little to give you a taste of this rich treasure!
Psalm of Praise
O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God. How unsearchable are His mercies and His ways past finding out.
For He found me in a waste-howling wilderness;
He led me by His hand; He brought me out; yea,
He hath brought me into a large place.
He set His love upon me and
caused His face to shine upon me.
Yea, He hath come as a flood.
With torrents of blessing He caused my heart to overflow.
Surely, in the daytime
He hath been as an encompassing cloud,
and in the nighttime
His Spirit hath illuminated the darkness as a fiery pillar.
Yea, in Thy presence darkness fleeth away,
faith is swallowed up in sight,
and doubt is dispelled as hoarfrost before sunlight.
Heaven is Thy throne, and earth is Thy footstool,
yet hast Thou deigned to make Thine abode within
tabernacles of clay!
This thought is too great for me, and how can my heart receive it?
That Thou are preparing heavenly mansions for my habitation,
this my mind can understand.
But that Thou, the Almighty God
who filleth and ordereth the vast universe of earth,
and of heaven,
should stoop to fill my frail cup with Thy divine effulgence--
Oh! Yes, how incomprehensible that the Creator of the universe, the Sovereign Almighty God, should "stoop to fill my frail cup" with His divine splendor, brilliance, radiance......that He desires to make His habitation in the hearts of the vessels of clay He has made.....oh, it makes me realize the depth of His love! The greatness of His sacrifice to restore fellowship with me, with you, with all of mankind who will heed His call!
Here are a few selections from the devotional "Come Away My Beloved":
Praise Transforms
In everything give thanks. 1 Thes. 5:18
Rejoice in Me always, for as you rejoice and give thanks, you release heaven's treasures and shower upon your head the blessings of a delighted Father. Nothing so thoroughly delights the Father's heart as the praises of His children.
For praise inclines the heart toward gratitude, and gratitude nurtures contentment, and you may know for a certainty that no fruit ever appears on the tree of discontent.
So never cease in your praising, for in the midst of it I will manifest Myself. Praise will transform the humblest dwelling to a hallowed haven.
(From On the Highroad of Surrender)
The Comfort of My Presence
For thou wilt light my candle: the LORD my God will enlighten my darkness
....By my God have I leaped over a wall. Psalm 18:28-29
More than all the comforts of the world, I want you to know the comfort of My presence.
Many dangers beset your path, but I shall keep you if you trust in Me. Darkness presses you, and doubts arise, but the light of My Holy Spirit ever burns within your heart to cheer you and encourage you to go on, yes, to go on knowing surely I will bring you out.
(From On the Highroad of Surrender)
I am finding these books ministering deeply to my soul.
And if I may recommend one more..... I found A Diary of Private Prayer by John Baillie through Ann Voskamp's blog a few weeks ago and ordered it immediately---it has been well worth the money! (You won't find tons of shoes or purses or jewelry in my closet, but you WILL find MANY books, sometimes doubled up on my shelves! Ah, those are my true treasures! )
From this morning's selection:
"O thou to whom I owe the gift of this day's life, give to me also, I beseech Thee, the spirit to use it as I ought. Forbid that I should stain the brightness of the morning with any evil thought or darken the noontide with any shameful deed. Let Thy Holy Spirit breathe into my heart today all pure and heavenly desires. Let Thy truth inform my mind. Let Thy justice and righteousness make a throne within me and rule my errant will. Let Christ be formed in me, and let me learn of Him all lowliness of heart, all gentleness of bearing, all modesty of speech, all helpfulness of action, and promptness in the doing of my Father's will."
I used to shy away from "prewritten prayers". As if my spontaneous (read: sporadic!) prayers were more spiritual!
Truly we need to talk to our Father using our own words, yes, but there is nothing wrong with making the prayers of others our own. When we find words to express what our heart can't put into words, we can pray them back to Him. This is what we do when we pray Scripture. (Which I am also learning to do more and more of.)
A Christian of 30 years should be a seasoned pray-er, one would think. But alas! Our hectic and busy culture leaves little room for quietness of soul and stillness before God. We are taught doctrine, theology, Bible study, memorization.......but true prayer, birthed in humility of soul seems to be less and less emphasized in our Western churches--we act as if we could make it on our own! We pray at God, giving Him our "laundry list" of needs and wants, but rarely do we truly get His mind and heart about what we pray for, nor do we spend time just worshiping Him, basking in His presence He paid so dearly to give us.
As I've said before, we wouldn't have much of a relationship with our husbands (or anyone!) if it were reduced to a list of our needs and no time to just connect hearts. Or just be together without words.
I pray that as I share my journey to learn true prayer, you might be blessed and enriched.
These books are a glorious start!
Won't you spend some time just soaking in His presence today?
"William Law said, 'There is nothing that makes us love a man so much as praying for him.' "
"Again, there is nothing that will make us love the lost like praying for them. We can't reach out until we reach up. When Isaiah saw the Lord, he was broken and burdened. The only way we will keep a passionate heart for evangelism is if our eyes are fixed on the Lord, high and lifted up."
"I repeat again because it is so true: there is nothing that will make us love people like praying for them. Prayer is not conquering God's reluctance; it's laying hold of God's willingness."
"We will impact the world with the gospel when we quit depending on programs, methods, and promotion. The salvation of the lost is not even dependent on a well-organized missions organization. The world is looking for people with integrity in their lives and love in their hearts. They will know we are Christians (and will want to know why we are different) when we love one another."
Are you struggling with loving someone? Are you discouraged about someone who seems closed to the Gospel?
Pray for them! Pray from your heart and pray the Scriptures.
I'll be sharing more in the coming days of my journey.......
"Lowliness is a love of nothingness. When we willfully give everything to Jesus, we are left with nothing. God keeps taking away and taking away until the only thing we have left is God!"
~From "The Heart of the King" by Ron Auch
Some thoughts from "The Satisfied Heart" by Ruth Myers, from Day 9, "He Draws Me Near":
"Because you are a special treasure to God, He is working to draw you into a deeper love for Him--away from any idols in your life, away from rival interests, away from giving first place to His good gifts instead of to Him....
"Every hour since you first met Him, He has been pursuing you, seeking to draw you closer....as a bridegroom His bride. He wants you near.
"And how does He draw us?
"I believe He grants all of us certain love-gifts that help us move closer to Him and know Him better. Five of these stand out to me as foundational to our love relationships with Him.
"The first love-gift is His Word, where we find out most beautiful and comprehensive portrait of Him. As we take time to read and listen, He keeps telling us there--from cover to cover and in a multitude of ways--not only that He loves us, but also how and why and how much."
"Another of God's love-gifts--His basic provisions to help us know Him better--is His indwelling presence through the Holy Spirit. As we feed on God's Word, the Spirit empowers us to see and understand the Lord and His love. He takes the truths about Jesus and makes them real to us in the core of our being, in the holy sanctuary deep within us. As a result, our knowledge of the Lord is more intimate than our knowledge of anyone else.....The Spirit Himself fills our hearts with God's love (Romans 5:5) so that it satisfies us and flows out to others."
"The third love-gift that helps usknow God and His love better is the body of Christ---other believers He places in our lives......no one is a perfect channel of God's love. But we can also see the Lord in one another if we want to. We can choose to concentrate on Christ in them, making their strengths our major focus, rather than their flaws and failures. As we behold Christ in one another, He draws us closer to Himself."
"The fourth basic provision, or love-gift, is simply the circumstances of daily life. God wants to enrich us through knowing Him better and becoming more like Him. To this end He arranges our days with the proper mixture of joys and trials, gains and losses, pleasure and pain. He holds our lives in the hollow of His hand, and into that place of security He brings the blessings and troubles we need......"
"These love-gifts--God's Word, His Spirit, other believers, and the circumstances He allows or sends---draw us closer to Him. They help us stay on the path of obedience, which I think of as the fifth love-gift that helps us know God better. We can run through life with the Lord only when we choose His paths--the paths where He manifests His presence. He won't run with us on paths of disobedience. It's not that He'll forsake us, even as the sun does not forsake the earth when night falls or when thick clouds roll in. But if we aren't walking in His ways, God's presence won't be real to us. We won't enjoy the privilege of prayer (another love-gift) the way He desires; we won't know His warm, glad companionship."
"Running with God also includes running with perseverance the course marked out for us (Hebrews 12:1). We're running with One whose earthly race ended in a cross, and our own path includes the fellowship of His sufferings. This includes doing the difficult tasks He sends our way. I may fantasize that just around the corner life will become easy--just as soon as this or that particular commitment is over, this deadline met, this job done, and on and on. But according to Luke 9:23, will the day come when I won't have to deny myself to follow Him?
"Do I even want such a day to come? My heart has been stirred by Phillips Brooks' poem:
Be strong.
We are not here to play, to dream, to drift.
We have hard work to do, and loads to lift.
Shun not the struggle; face it. 'Tis God's gift."
~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`
I have not always been on this path, where God makes His presence known. He is always there. I am not.
It is my choice.
But only one choice leads to refreshment and enjoyment of Him.
~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`
O God, I have felt far from You--yet You are there.
It is me that has chosen not to walk the path where Your presence is manifested.
Because that path hurts, Lord. It hurts down deep.
Yet--it is the path of healing, because You are there. You are the Great Physician of my soul.
I choose....I choose Your path, Your ways.
I choose....to dwell on You, Your loveliness, Your beauty, Your Truth....so that I can know You intimately--more intimately than anyone or anything else.
(For what I meditate upon will determine how much and with what--or whom-- I will become intimate.)
Draw me....near to Your side...into a deeper, more intimate love.
My back aches. I'm so tired of this job. Hauling these buckets of slop certainly isn't "fun work"!
How did I get to this place, anyway? Why did I think this was better? Why did I leave my father's presence?
The pigs rush to the trough as I pour in their meal of "garbage soup". Shoving each other out of the way, trying to get it all for themselves......just like my life.
Seems when I thought everything was good, I was pushing and shoving others out of my way to get what I wanted.
Then it all changed.
It ALL changed.
Now *I* was the one being shoved out of the way. No one had time for me. No one wanted to help. I was used up and cast aside like a broken toy.
I'm so hungry! I haven't had money for food for nearly a week. I've squeaked by, but now......I'm so tired of the cold and the loneliness and the gnawing hunger.......
I start looking at the slop. There's some bread and gravy that doesn't look too bad. Maybe I can snatch it out before one of the pigs gets it......
WHAT AM I DOING?! I stop myself short.
Slop! Pig slop! At home my father's hired hands eat better than this! Even in a famine, Father wouldn't let them eat pig slop!
I've had enough! I throw the slop bucket down and start for home. No need to go back to my "room" and get what I have left. It isn't worth keeping.
I have a long trek home. Lots of time to think. Thinking about how these pigs shoving each other around to get some morsel of slop......and it's really garbage. That's what I've been doing. I left the best, thinking it was restricting me, thinking my father really didn't care, that he favored my older brother......so I come out here and squander my inheritance like I'm really somebody, only to find out like so many before, how easy it is to be used. Especially when you think you're so great! Seems fools like me are the biggest fish for the savvy world to catch.
And throw out the bones when they're done.
Friends! HA! Hardly......
And me, shoving others out of my life. Like my father.....my brother.......
What am I going to tell him? "I'm sorry" seems a bit trite, considering how I've treated him! All I can do is humble myself before him, beg him to take me as a hired hand since I am no longer fit to be called his son. And pray my older brother will have mercy on me. After all, when Father is gone, my brother will be the one I will depend upon for my daily sustenance.
I've worked slopping those hogs.....I'd rather do anything for my father....no matter how hard or menial or grubby the work, I'd do it for him. I know I can't earn anything from him, but just to show how wrong I was and how much I appreciate food and a place to stay....I'll do anything he asks, and I sure don't expect him to even talk to me.
Heart heavy. Feet feel heavier. I'm looking down, but even so, I can tell I'm getting closer.
There's widow Susana's home. And there's Simon bar Judah's barley field. Just a little farther.....
Past the stream where Jehoshua and I used to play. Around the next bend.....wonder if he'll be at the house or with the workers in the field?
I finally bring myself to look up.
Total shock! Could it be?!
Could it really be?!
Yes! YES! IT'S FATHER!
I run in spite of myself! It seems like he is running towards me, too!!!
But I remember where I've been, what I've done. As I get to him, I fall to my knees.
"Father! Father! I am no more fit to be called your son!!! Please take me as one of your hired men! I'll do any job, no matter how hard, no matter how menial, no---"
"SON!" Father falls to his knees beside me and hugs me.
"No, NO, Father! I'm sweaty and I smell of swine and slop and--"
He's weeping! Hugging my neck and weeping!
"My son! My son! My son who was lost is now FOUND!"
The hired workers all run to see what the commotion is about.
"Quick! Bring the robe and the ring! Kill the fattened calf and make haste! We are celebrating today! My son was lost, but now he is HOME!"
He takes the robe and puts it around my slop stained shoulders. Shouldn't I bathe first? Purify myself?
He puts the ring on my finger again......I'm not worthy! I sob!
"Son, from the day you left I never stopped believing you would come home again. I have been preparing for this day all along! I knew you would come back! Come back to our time together! You will always be my son!"
I weep upon his shoulder, trembling in his tender embrace. I can't bring back the inheritance I've squandered. I can't bring back the years I've wasted.
But I can start over this moment--this day!
He still loves me! I'm still his son!
He was there, waiting, all along.
I didn't need to get cleaned up first or prove myself. I only needed to turn....
And go Home!!!!!
But now, because of my father's love for me, I WILL get cleaned up and stay that way.
What love!
I want to bask in that love for the rest of my days. I never want to do anything that would bring him shame or break his heart again!
"Thank you, Father! Oh, thank you! It's so good to be Home!"
He puts his arm around me as we head into the house for a joyful celebration.....
....a celebration of a love that has called me Home and caused me to long for my father's relationship again.
James 4:8 "Draw nigh to God, and He will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded."
How often do we get this backwards! We think we have to "get cleaned up to take a bath"!!!
What is the first command? "Draw nigh". As we initiate that move towards (or back towards) our Abba Father, He draws near to us. Actually, He was there all the time! WE are the ones who moved away, and as we move back towards Him, we see that He is there waiting.....even running to meet us as did the Prodigal Son's father!
THEN we cleanse our hands....our works, deeds, words.......and purify our hearts.......our motives, attitudes....
But really, even that is done by Him. As we draw near, and see He is there with us, because we love Him so much, we WANT to purge away the dross. Prune away the dead and diseased branches. Cleanse our hands and hearts of all that is not pleasing to the Very One Who gave us life and sustains our life.
So again, it's not about US. It's about HIM. He loved us before the foundation of the world, had a plan, gave His only Son to fulfill that plan, redeemed us to Himself, paid the bride-price.
How can we want anything less than to please our Heavenly Father? And our Heavenly Bridegroom and Lover of our souls?!
All that I do, I do because I love Him---not to earn His love or favor!
Even when I stray.....a little..... a lot.......even when I foolishly "charge God" because my heart is hurting....or lonely......or selfish.......
He doesn't let me stay in the muck and mire.
He is patiently waiting to see just a hint......just the tiniest hint.......of turning.......
Then He's there! Ready to receive me, to hug me, to pick up our relationship.
That's what it's ALL about.
Relationship with Him.
That's why He died---to restore that Eden relationship He created mankind for.
Oh, won't you come Home?!
Sometimes we actually stray, sometimes we stray in our minds. Sometimes we check out and get out, sometimes we check out and "leave" even though we're still physically here.
Either way, the Father waits.
He longs.
He prepares.
He's there! Outstretched arms and a hug that says, "I knew you'd come back! I've missed you!
You don't have to get cleaned up.
Just go Home. Draw near and He is already near. He'll help you clean up and purify---but right now--
It's easier to talk, talk, talk to others about problems, situations, circumstances, crises, relationship issues, than it is to pray, pray, pray to the Only One Who can do anything about it all anyway.
And the more we talk, talk, talk about these things to others, the less we pray, pray, pray and the more we start thinking things depend on "us" doing this or that or saying this or that or fretting about this or that and making sure "we" do/say the right thing.....
All the while, the one thing we really could do, and it would be THE right thing.....we don't do.
Because we've expended all that energy talking.
And maybe, just maybe, we've believed a lie that praying isn't really going to solve the problem anyway.
What a tragedy--and what a lie!
It isn't wrong to talk to others or pray with others.....but first we should talk to the Lord. And realize that nothing "depends all on me". Nothing. He is in control. I am His channel, His hands, feet and mouth on this earth.
But I have to be in communion with Him to see what HE would have me do or say.
My heart should be full of Him. Then my mouth will speak sweet words that have far more effect than my fretting, anxious heart could produce. That would only produce fretting, anxious "it depends on me" words that only alienate.
Talk.
Or pray.
It's our choice.
But only one brings peace.
Only one brings true resolutions.
What a privilege to be able to talk with THE King of Kings about anything and everything.
That isn't original with me. But it really caught my eye.....and my heart. I've been reading over at Ann Voskamp's blog, A Holy Experience. The actual post where she shared this thought is "A Place for Everything".
And I found that as a link from another good post, which I highly recommend: "How to Build a House of Prayer" (today's post).
And I got the link to that (don't you love it?!) from: "Prayer: Why We Struggle (and How Not To) " Warning! It is very convicting! (But very, very needful and true!)
"Walk With Him Wednesday" is what she is calling this meme.
I'm going back to slowly soak in more. Won't you join me?
Won't you make a place for God, in your life, your home, your day.......so that your life, your family, your home-- your heart--becomes.......
"A place for God and God spilling into every place."
Our God cares about the tiniest details of our lives.
Yesterday I was due with our precious baby that I miscarried November 30. I don't sit around and dwell on dates, but obviously it's there in the back of my mind.
We went to a graduation open house for the day and had a good time.
Then God blessed me with one of those really sweet "hugs" He likes to give....when we least expect it and didn't even ask for it.
My dear friend who's birth I attended was in the area (with her family, of course!) as they are hoping to rent a house near here (well, maybe I am hoping more than they are! ) We didn't know if we'd be back from the open house in time to see them.
Well, we were.
And I got to hold that sweet little baby!
Isn't God good, to care enough to orchestrate things to where I would hold a tiny baby right on the due date of my precious baby?!
I never cease to be amazed at His goodness towards me!
I just finished reading The Beautiful Fight by Gary Thomas. (Christianbook.com says it's no longer available, but Amazon still has it--Christianbook has a look inside feature, though!)
On the heels of the Ron Auch books I have been reading, this book is a good companion! Now, Mr. Thomas may be a bit less conservative than me (I wouldn't be taking my daughter to an American Idol concert!), but that doesn't mean his thoughts on our relationship to Christ and truths about our Christian walk are off at all!
One of the biggest things I'm taking away from this book is that we focus too much on the Incarnation, and not enough on the Ascension. Yes, the Incarnation is what brought us salvation--Christ coming in the flesh and dying in our place. BUT--it was when He ascended to His Father that the Father sent the Holy Spirit to indwell us and empower us!
He didn't leave us to figure it out, to "try to be holy" in our own strength--praise God! Because we can't!!!!
I loved this quote:
The highest motivation for striving to grow in holiness is to honor the God who has saved us. p. 176
A BIG hearty AMEN!
A few more quotes:
Jesus didn't come to say, "Don't worry about being transformed; I'll love you anyway.'" That's how some mischaracterize His teaching, conveniently forgetting His words, "If you love Me, you will obey what I command" (John 14:15), and "Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect" (Matthew 5:48). Instead, Jesus came to say, "I have paid the price for your past and future disobedience, and I have released the power for you to be transformed from the inside out. What was once impossible has become possible. What was once burdensome now becomes a delight. You are no longer a slave to your sins. I have set you free, and in my freedom you are free indeed."
The reason I like the word God-empowered is that it reminds me that we need power. Christianity is not just about being forgiven; it is about being given the power to change: "The kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power" (1 Corinthians 4:20). ( pp. 229-30)
He shares the process of transformation in chapter 14 "What If It's Not Easy?" on pages 208-209. I won't quote it at length, but I will give you the first sentence or so of each "step".
The process of transformation thus begins with the fear of God, recognizing that He is Lord and that, as Lord, He has the right to do whatever He thinks is best, regardless of our opinion, comfort, or complaining.
Transformation then takes root with the virtue of humility, the constant recognition that we need to grow, that we never arrive, and that there are always further lessons to be learned.
Transformation is next strengthened with surrender, the joyful acceptance of God's providential direction.
Added to this already difficult task is the essential requirement of perseverance. Transformation is a longtime process requiring vigilance and rededication.
And then, finally, we must embrace gratitude--not just for what God has done but also for what He is doing and what He will do.
This book has been such a challenge to me to make myself pliable in the hands of my Potter, so that He can transform me into what He wills, what will best reflect His glory--"splashes of Glory", as Mr. Thomas calls it! We are here to reveal Christ, not have a good time, not have all the comforts our little hearts desire, nor to have everyone praise and lift us up.
He has some rich quotes at the beginning of each section and each chapter....here are a few:
Sin is a ceaseless, undying power in our life. A ceaseless, undying power must come against it. And there is only one such power in the universe--only one, which has a chance against sin: the power of the living Christ. ~Henry Drummond
The greatest ethical challenge is so to live that men don't glorify you for living that way, but God. ~John Piper
I hope these glimpses have encouraged you today to continue the beautiful fight, allowing Him to transform you by His power!
Have you ever read Hinds' Feet on High Places by Hannah Hurnard? It is probably one of my absolutely favorite of all Christian books!
I first read it when I was in Strasbourg, France, for a study-abroad program while in college. That was the year God totally turned my world around. I had been a Christian for 3 years, but only started growing in the year leading up to this year abroad. I didn't do as well academically, but spiritually I soared. Not without some pain, however!
God had to show me that all my grand plans for my life were not His. That I was going to change from foreign languages (and therefore not be an interpreter) to music. That I was not going to finish college (boy, did THAT raise lots of eyebrows!) And at that point, I didn't even have a boyfriend, so it wasn't like I thought I was going to get married and have 9 kids or something like that!
I am so glad I read this book early in my Christian walk. If you haven't read it, it really focuses on the relationship between a believer and her (or his!) Lord. As a young girl of 19, who had already broken off a serious relationship and was willing to let the Lord be everything to her, I was still scared. This was new territory! What if God called me to be single? What if I never had another boyfriend-- never got married? Could He really meet the deepest needs of my heart? Remember, this was back in the dinosaur ages before "courtship" materials abounded at every Christian bookstore! Homeschooling was in its gestation for the most part, and there was little out there to support a baby Christian like me in this new territory. At least as far as I knew then.
A friend on the IU Study program loaned me her copy, and I read it. And reread it. When I came home for Christmas, I bought my own copy! And marked it! (I'm trying to find my original copy, but as many things in this house, no one seems to have seen it......it's here, somewhere!) It went back to Strasbourg with me. It became my constant companion. I memorized the beautiful poetic renditions Miss Hurnard did of verses in Song of Solomon.
I have certainly fallen into my share of doing things out of duty or some sort of "religious" reason over the almost 30 years of being a Christian! But God lovingly brings me back to my "first love".....I think of my times at the ruins of Heidelberg Castle in Germany. I meditated a lot on those poems and the message of the book. In Switzerland it also accompanied me (which is neat, since Miss Hurnard originally received from the Lord much of the material for the book in Switzerland!). I didn't get to roam about much in Switzerland (ah, the life of a poor college girl!), but I still enjoyed what I did get to see and decided it must be the most beautiful place in the world to live! Since I live in a rather flat area, and hadn't even seen mountains in my own country yet, the Alps hold a special place in my heart!
It is probably the only book I own, other than the Bibles I had at the time, that travelled all over Europe with me!
In reading several books by Ron Auch, I was reminded of Hinds' Feet. Mr. Auch's books focus on...you guessed it! Our relationship with Christ! He has a ministry, Pray-Tell Ministries, but his thrust isn't to get you to pray a certain way or even pray more. He knows and teaches that we must deepen our relationship with God--we must want and desire HIM above all else--or prayer is just another religious "thing to do".
I don't want a religion--things to do.
I want a relationship--a faith--something to be!
It becomes a part of you. But only as we spend time in His presence! The marriage relationship is a beautiful picture of the relationship we are to have with our Heavenly Bridegroom. It's amazing that a few years ago, I happened to be meditating on that, and thought, "If ALL of marriage is a picture of our relationship to Christ, then what part does physical intimacy portray?" I don't think God just gave that part as a nice extra to our earthly relationship, with no spiritual correlation! Our world has so degraded the intimate part of marriage, that we almost cringe to think that way. Yet I truly believe that every part of marriage as God intended has something to show us.
God showed me it is prayer. Not the sit down and give Him my list of things to do, like a "Honey-Do" list prayer, but worship. Just adoring Him. Wanting Him. Needing Him. Loving Him.
Amazingly, Ron Auch said the same thing in his books! So, I'm not the only nutcase out there!
I have just finished reading three of his books: When He Appears, He Hears Your Prayers, and Prayer Can Change Your Marriage. I've also read parts of the book I got for Dallas, Unshakable Man. I highly recommend ALL of them! Even the one for men has things we women can learn from! Just don't highlight anything in there trying to change your husband! You'd be missing the point of the book!
One of Ron's premises is that prayer isn't to change our circumstances or those around us, as if we were using God to manipulate things to our liking. It is to change us. It is then through our changed lives, shining with His Shekinah Glory as Moses' face did, that makes others thirsty for Him.
If the salt has lost its savor......and what is happening to Christians today? We are being trampled!
That's why I wrote last week that getting involved politically, getting angry, and whatever other "action" we want to take will be in vain if we don't start at the right place--
Getting back to our trysting place with our Heavenly Bridegroom and Lover of Our Soul.
Mr. Auch pointed out that a woman draws her security from her husband's walk with the Lord. If he is not seeking God, she will become fearful and try to control things so she can have that security. (This is not what she should do, mind you!). In the same way, when the Church stops spending time in her Savior's presence, she becomes militant. Trying to change and control things her way.
Hmmmm.....
When we get back to our relationship, God can change things. He can change us. He can give us courage to face things that before would frighten us. Because as you spend time in His presence, you get to know Him. You know His character (and start changing to be more like Him), so you can trust Him.
Another profound thought Mr. Auch brought out is that we can be right in the center of God's will with our prayers, but if our motives are self-centered, God very likely will withhold the answer because our motives are not pure. He gave the example of a wife who marries a man just for the "goodies" he will provide. A man desires to be a good provider, but if he senses his wife is just "using" him to get things, he may very well withhold the very things he desires to give her because he first wants her to want him.
Prayer has taken on a whole new meaning for me! My husband and I both had been discussing how we felt more inadequate to pray than ever. As you can see from "books I'm reading" and what I've mentioned in the past, I have been reading lots of books on prayer! And they are helpful....to a degree. I knew I didn't want some "formula praying" book. I have nothing against using books that take Scriptures and create prayers from them. They can be from the heart as well as my own words. BUT--what was missing was the time spent with Him just to be with Him.
Not that I'm not going to intercede or confess or petition Him during these times together. But the bulk of my time should be in worship. Then intercession. Mr. Auch talks of how you could pray for 30 minutes for others--not so hard if you spend 5 minutes praying for 6 people you know! I love that his books give you more about the relationship and why it is so important to build that before he gets to any "how-to". In fact, he doesn't want it to be a "how-to" book. He tells you if you skipped to that chapter to go back and read the others first! Otherwise, you will turn this into a method as we are so prone to do, whether in our homeschooling, marriages, parenting, churches.....
I have said before that God has had me in the school of relationships. Back in 1995, He started showing me that I didn't have what I call "true heart submission". My motives were not always pure. I wanted my husband to change into my idea of what a spiritual leader should be! (Isn't that kind of like trying to make God be the kind of god you'd like Him to be?!) I thought I was doing pretty well, reading books like "Keep a Quiet Heart" by Elisabeth Elliot (highly recommended, by the way!). Then in 1997, at a homeschool conference, a speaker read Debi Pearl's article "Carnal Husbands, Cranky Wives, and Cantankerous Kids". Surgery time! I got a copy of that article and read it daily for months! Evaluating my "true heart submission" to my husband AND my Savior!
Again, I thought I was doing pretty well (let anyone that stands take heed......) when in 1999 I attended a Nancy Leigh DeMoss seminar, "Lies Women Believe and the Truth that Sets Them Free". OUCH! And to top it all off, I received her little booklet "A Biblical Portrait of Womanhood" and discovered that out of thet 32 statements in the second half of the booklet, I only passed FIVE!
More surgery!
In 2000 I found Laine of "Laine's Letters". Now THERE is a woman totally in love with her Lord! It's infectious! Makes you want to get up at 4 a.m., too! Well, I'm trying for 5:30 for now! Jesus working in her life changed her priorities, her marriage, her parenting, her homeschooling.....and now she is a well overflowing with the Living Water touching lives all around the world through her "letters"! They have helped me keep that fire burning in my heart.
Through the past several years, there have been books here and there, but not as life-changing as the ones I mentioned. Until now.
As I read these books (Ron Auch's), I immediately thought of Hinds' Feet on High Places! If we have no relationship in a marriage, do we really have a marriage? If we have no relationship with our Savior---do we really have salvation? Do we really understand all He died to give us? If we are only counting on Heaven and a little answered prayer here and there, we are SO missing out!
The enemy's biggest tactic that works to get Christians ineffective is to fight him vs. pursuing Christ. (from Mr. Auch). I wholeheartedly agree! I would venture to say that most if not all problems in our churches today, in our homes today, in our marriages, in our lives--boils down to not spending time with Him.
He wants to change the pray-er more than anything. Because it's as others see Jesus in us that they will become thirsty for a drink of the Living Water than only He can supply. We don't need to seek answers to our problems--
We need to seek HIM!
Here are some gems to whet your appetite for these books! (And more importantly, for a living love relationship with the Savior!)
"When the bride longs for the king, she is most beautiful. However, if a bride is in love with herself and infatuated with her own beauty, she is no longer attractive." When He Appears, p. 122
"Often the Lord refers to the fact that His hand is not short. In other words, God can reach us with all of our needs. Do not worry about His hands. Do not worry about your needs. Never let the bulk of your prayer life center around the cares of this life. The Lord's hand is not shortened. He can reach you with your needs no matter where you are. Seek His face.
"The bride was being taken through the process of giving up more and more of her life. She was being taught that seeking the face of her love would ultimately meet all the needs of her life." When He Appears, p. 72
"This is why Jesus gives all His attention to the Church: if the Church was fully developed and fully mature, then the whole world would be jealous of the relationship we have with God. When our families are fully developed in the things of God, they will become a very powerful and effective evangelistic tool because this world has sought every means to save their families. The world has tried everything from psychology to mysticism, and none of it has worked. In fact, things are only growing worse. And only the church has the answer: a relationship with Jesus Christ. The world should be literally breaking down the doors of the church saying, 'We've noticed that your families have what we seek.' If we would give ourselves to the developing of our families, it would be a tremendous force for completing the Great Commission.
"We have a responsibility to God, to our families, and to the world to reflect the glory of Jesus Christ." Prayer Can Change Your Marriage, pp. 110-111
"It is only from a lack of prayer that you see through man's eyes rather than God's. When you begin praying for someone, in this case your mate, you start seeing that person the way God does. You start to love your spouse as God does: for who that person is, rather than for what he or she does. Hope does not disappoint us because God's love is poured out in our hearts Prayer changes the pray-er. It takes the pray-er from brotherly love (called 'phileo' in Greek) to godly love (the Greek 'agape')....God wants us to love others the way He loves us. That can only happen when we develop His character in us, and that requires time in His presence.
"But you can't pray for this 'agape' love. It only comes as a result of being with God." Prayer Can Change Your Marriage, p. 105
"If I regularly spend time in God's presence, I won't be able to help loving everyone, even the most unlovely person. But if I leave God's presence for even a small march of days or weeks, I will love only conditionally. If someone meets a certain criteria, I will love that person to pieces. But if they don't measure up, I won't, all because I haven't been in God's presence.
"That's why I said earlier that God is using your present situation, no matter how bad it is, to develop His character in you, if you will just let it drive you to prayer. If it doesn't drive you to prayer, then things will probably never change for you. You will have to live with those same problems every day for the rest of your life here on earth.
"All this talk about praying for our spouses may make them seem bad, but remember that God uses what naturally interests us (like our mate, family) to get us to pray so that He can supernaturally change us. The change must happen in us first. God has to first get me to the place where I can love others the way He loves me. Then He can begin to work through my prayers for them and begin to change my spouse." Prayer Can Change Your Marriage, p. 106
"So when we face tribulation, we go to prayer. Prayer causes us to spend time in God's presence, and that causes us to become like Him in character, which in turn causes us to have great hope in even the most devastating situation." Prayer Can Change Your Marriage, p. 107
"'Test me and know my anxious thoughts.' (Ps. 139:23) The word 'thoughts' in this verse means 'desires'. The idea behind this is that anything that is really a desire of our heart, will occupy our thoughts. So David is saying in essence, 'Test me by examining what actually occupies my thoughts.'" Unshakable Man, p. 104
"Preparing your heart for prayer can be summed up in one word: surrender. Surrender your heart to Christ. Give Him your will. Give Him your plans. Give Him your talents. Give Him your heart." Unshakable Man, p. 108
"Anything we love, we long to be with." The Heart of the King, on Ps. 119:165
I think you get the picture! Oh, to love Him, spend time with Him and become like Him!!! "As for me, I will behold Thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with Thy likeness." Psalm 17:15
I have always loved hills and mountains, especially since reading Hinds' Feet. I envision being there with my Lord, receiving His love, being filled with Him, so permeated with His presence that I anoint all I touch in my day. Too often I rush off into the day without that symbolic "trysting on the mountain" first. I must be filled first to be able to love others as my Savior does.
"The High Places, " answered the Shepherd, "are the starting places for the journey down to the lowest place in the world. When you have hinds' feet and can go 'leaping on the mountains and skipping on the hills,' you will be able, as I am, to run down from the heights in gladdest self-giving and then go up to the mountains again. You will be able to mount to the High Places swifter than eagles, for it is only up on the High Places of Love that anyone can receive the power to pour themselves down in an utter abandonment of self-giving."
Jesus came to serve. To be our example. This is what we are created for--to give--to serve--to love. But we can only do it in His strength!
One of my favorite poems from Hinds' Feet is The Water Song.
Come, oh come! Let us away--
Lower, lower every day,
Oh, what joy it is to race
Down to find the lowest place.
This the dearest law we know--
"It is happy to go low."
Sweetest urge and sweetest will,
"Let us go down lower still."
Hear the summons night and day
Calling us to come away.
From the heights we leap and flow
To the valleys down below.
Always answering to the call,
To the lowest place of all.
Sweetest urge and sweetest pain,
To go low and rise again."
This was my dearest treasure from the Lord last weekend--a beautiful little waterfall that flowed across the trail. I have a picture on my phone of where it leaps from a precipice and flows into a creek. If I can figure out how to get it off my phone, I'll post it later!
It just flows out of the rock--from under the ground.
And then on down the hill....
Here I am standing right in the middle of the stream and right in the middle of the trail!
And here you can hear (and see) "The Water Song"--just a 48 second video of the little waterfall!
I pray you will fill yourself up with Him today.....and every day.
I read this yesterday, from Ron Auch's book, The Heart of the King. This is a devotional on Psalm 119, with one page per verse. This particular quote is from verse 153.
153. Look upon my suffering and deliver me, for I have not forgotten your law.
In this verse, David is seeking deliverance. He is using his remembrance (practice) of God's law as his premise for asking for deliverance. Obedience is a symbol of love. Our love for God is directly related to our obedience to Him. If a person declares his love to God but does not follow God's law, his declaration of love is considered false by God. We read of this in Ezekiel 33:31, "My people come to you, as they usually do, and sit before you to listen to your words, but they DO NOT PUT THEM INTO PRACTICE. With their mouths they express devotion, but their hearts are greedy for unjust gain." Devotion is measured by our obedience to God, not by our statement of love. It is one thing to tell God how much we love Him; it is quite another thing to live in obedience to Him. Obedience is the measure of love.
In Psalm 34:4 we read, "I sought the Lord, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears." Deliverance comes through seeking God, not necessarily from seeking deliverance. We find God in our obedience to Him. Therefore, if we are truly seeking God, we will live in obedience. David is praying, "Deliver me on the basis of my obedience, which signifies my love for You." The presence of God is our deliverance.
The New Testament puts it this way, "God is love" (I John 4:8). Later in that same chapter John says, "But perfect love drives out fear" (I John 4:18). Perfect love (God) is what delivers us. it is our love relationship with God that delivers us from fear as well as from suffering. If we live in fear, it's because our love relationsip with God is not what it should be. We are not spending adequate time in His presence.
This is quite powerful! "He that hath My commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth Me: and he that loveth Me shall be loved of My Father, and I will love him, and will manifest Myself to him." John 14:21
We need to be measuring our love by HIS standards, and not just what we say or think!
Isn't it that way with everything about our relationship with Him?
A few days ago I read verse 151--"Yet You are near, O Lord, and all Your commands are true."
Just a few thoughts from that page:
When the wicked seem to be overwhelming us, the presence of God becomes all that much more powerful......We can put our trust in God's plan.
A command is an uttered expression of God's will, which is to be obeyed. When we obey His commands, we no longer have to live any fear of the wicked. Some may ask, "Why does God demand so much obedience?" The answer is He wants to protect us from the schemes of the wicked.... Obedience to Him works to our benefit. It becomes our protection. All the promises of God are coinditionally based on our obedience to God. When we come to the full revelation that God's commands are true, we need never live in envy of the successes of the wicked.
"You are near, O Lord." David knew the true fountain of life came in the form of God's presence. The presence of God is experienced through following the commands of God. Whether or not we obey God is determined by our love of His presence. Are you content with the presence of God, or must you have more? When you MUST have more, you are in danger of falling into the schemes of the wicked.
Are you seeing a pattern here? This book was written in 1995, yet it is totally appropriate in all we are facing in our world today.
Are you fearful with all you read and hear?
"And Peter answered Him and said, Lord, if it be Thou, bid me come unto Thee on the water.
And He said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship,he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.
But when he saw the wind boisterous; he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me." Matthew 14:28-30
It is very tempting to get our eyes off Him and onto the turbulent waves and wind around us, but when we do, then, like Peter walking on the water--we'll sink!
And even when we do sink, isn't it comforting to know He still will catch us and help pull us back up?!
"And immediately Jesus stretched forth His hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?
And when they were come into the ship, the wind ceased." Matthew 14: 31-32
Have you let Jesus into your ship? Only then will the wind cease!
Are you keeping your eyes upon Him?
2 Chronicles 20:12 "O our God, wilt Thou not judge them? for we have no might against this great company that cometh against us; neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon Thee."
We MUST keep our eyes on Jesus!!!!
Only then will we be able to walk on the turbulent waves around us!
I have actually fasted from the news and radio for awhile. I will catch a bit here and there, but I decided I needed to be spending far more time in God's Word and in communion with Him than reading all that's wrong and all that we should have been doing and should do now as if it all depended on us. I am NOT saying don't call your congressmen and women or write letters or sign petitions. BUT--if your hope and trust is in all you can "do", and not in getting on your knees and becoming more like Him....if you think getting back to the Constitution will save us yet you aren't spending time in His presence...well, quite frankly, I think that is what is wrong with America today. And the world. Christians have lost their savor, and if the salt have lost its savor, by what shall it be salted? "It is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men."
To regain our savor, spend time with the Savior!
We can be fearful (which is not of God--see 1 John 4:18), or we can be faithful (which must come from God--again--spend time in His presence!)
The way we become like Him is not in our striving, but in our resting in Him--beholding His face in His presence!
Lovers spend a lot of time looking into each others' eyes.
When's the last time you just spent time gazing into His eyes? Not come with your shopping list of needs or complaints or panic-striken cries? Just to gaze upon Him Who is altogether lovely?
Here are some verses to meditate upon:
Psalm 16:11 "Thou wilt shew me the path of life, in Thy presence is fulness of joy; at Thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore."
Psalm 17:15 "As for me, I will behold Thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with Thy likeness."
1 Chronicles 22:19 "Now set your heart and your soul to seek the Lord your God; arise therefore, and build ye the sanctuary of the Lord" (in your heart!)
Song of Solomon 2:14 "O My dove, that art in the cleft of the rock, in the secret places of the stairs, let Me see thy countenance, let Me hear thy voice; for sweet is thy voice, and thy countenance is comely."
He longs to see us! To hear our voice! Just as a bridegroom rejoices to see his beautiful bride and to hear her voice!
Isaiah 62:5 "...and as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee."
Zephaniah 3:17 "The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; He will save, He will rejoice over thee with joy; He will rest in His love, He will joy over thee with singing."
Oh, do come into His presence! Spend time there, just soaking Him in! In these turbulent times, it's tempting to fear, to be angry, to feel helpless....spend some time meditating on Psalm 37. Note verses 4 and 5 are in the midst of commands such as, "fret not" and "cease from anger"! Those verses say: "Delight thyself also in the Lord; and He shall give thee the desires of thine heart." (which have become His desires because you have spent time in His presence, hearing His heartbeat!). "Commit thy way utno the Lord; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass." HE will do it. Not you. What are you to do? Rest in Him. Trust in Him. Commit to Him. Delight in Him!
When all around makes you want to despair--heed His voice! He says to "come away" with Him! Song of Solomon 2:10 "My Beloved spake, and said unto me, Rise up,My love, My fair one, and come away." and again in verse 13--"Arise, My love, My fair one, and come away."
I leave you with Hannah Hurnard's beautiful poetic rendition of Song 1:1-6.
"The Song of Songs," the loveliest song,
The song of Love the King,
No joy on earth compares with His,
But seems a broken thing.
His Name as ointment is poured forth,
And all His lovers sing.
Draw me--I will run after Thee,
Thou art my heart's one choice,
Oh, bring me to Thy royal house,
To dwell there and rejoice.
There in Thy presence, O my King,
To feast and hear Thy voice.
Look not upon me with contempt,
though soiled and marred I be,
The King found me--and outcast thing--
And set His love on me.
I shall be perfected by Love,
Made fair as day to see.
Is He your heart's one choice? Will you heed His call-- to come away with Him to a quiet place, so He can impart His loveliness to you, and His strength? So you can rest in Him and let Him do the work, while you rest content to be His handmaiden or servant?
Will you keep your eyes on HIM? For then you can walkon those waves around you!!!
May you blessed and refreshed by His presence today!
I know we all say it, "I canNOT believe it's the end of the year! Where did the year go?!" I think you, like me, probably find yourself wondering, "Did I accomplish what I planned a year ago? Did I accomplish God's will this past year?" I know I'm notorious for putting wonderful plans and schedules on paper (I'm afraid I've caused the demise of many a tree over the years!!! ), but not so famous for carrying them out!!!
There is nothing wrong with writing down plans, dreams, even maybe assigning a time frame for certain goals. I have Type A tendencies, but I don't carry them out! LOL!!! Seriously, I really do like to have a plan, and work the plan, and all that.
But I also know life doesn't always fit into nice, neat calendar or Daytimer boxes!
How do you schedule in chicken pox? Or going to TN to get your mom, then helping her sell her house, go through her stuff and move her? Or a miscarriage? A barn fire? (Um, yes, I think we'll schedule that next Friday at 4 p.m.---! )
I probably go a little to much with the flow of things, but I've learned that I need to let go my agenda if I'm going to have peace! When I'm so intense on accomplishing my goals, however wonderful and even spiritual they may be; when I rush to get back "to the plan" after a crisis, major or minor; when I focus too much on getting things done and crossed off my list and depend on that for a sense of accomplishment---I am in danger of missing the most important thing.
Life.
Have you read the book, Keep a Quiet Heart by Elisabeth Elliot? In the Introduction, she has a quote by Annie Keary that has resounded with me all these years since I read it in 1995.
"I think I find most help in trying to look on all the interruptions and hindrances to work that one has planned out for oneself as discipline, trials sent by God to help one against getting seflish over one's work. Then one can feel that perhaps one's true work--one's work for God--consists in doing some trifling haphazard thing that has been thrown into one's day. It is not a waste of time, as one is tempted to think, it is the most important part of the work of the day--the part one can best offer to God. After such a hindrance, do not rush after the planned work, trust that the time to finish it will be given sometime, and keep a quiet heart about it."
Ahhh! That is the hard part, isn't it? To not rush and get our plans back on track after an interruption, to trust, to keep a quiet heart?
It truly is offering our schedule and agenda to God. Even when we think we have gotten our plans from Him, remember, He is quite at liberty to change your course midstream! We like to have it all planned out, to know the starting point, the ending point, and all the rest stops in between. God often asks us to chuck it all and says, "Just follow Me! I will take you down paths where you will see beauty you couldn't see on the freeway. I will make sure you get to your destination just when it is right for you to be there. In the meantime, won't you enjoy My presence and My path for you? It may seem to be a detour, but you will be richer for it!"
I love the story of Much-Afraid in Hinds' Feet on High Places. Many times there are detours and even seeming reversals of her path! But through the journey, she learns to trust the Shepherd to lead her in the way He deems just right for her. I think one of my New Year's "resolutions" will be to reread that book!!!
Psalm 37:23 says, "The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and he delighteth in His way." I take that to mean that when I rest in His "ordering my steps", I will delight in His way!!! But when I'm fretting, stewing and plotting how to get my way, there is no delight!
It was nine years ago today that I found Laine of Laine's Letters. I truly felt like "cool waters for a thirsty soul"!!! She is so in love with our Savior, you can't help but catch it! I confess I don't get up at 4 a.m., but I am again convinced I need to get up earlier than I have been. I need that time alone with my Heavenly Bridegroom! Just this morning, in my quiet time, I read in 2 Chronicles 22:19, "Now set your heart and soul to seek the Lord your God; arise therefore,and build ye the sanctuary of the Lord God..." I have read how the home is to be a "little sanctuary" (miqdash me'at, from Our Father Abraham by Marvin Wilson, pg. 214) That is why I take the verse from 2 Chronicles to mean that first, I must set my heart and soul on God, to seek Him. The next part of the verse tells me to arise and build the sanctuary of the Lord God.....I believe that means to arise early (whatever "early" is--basically a little while before the rest of the family!) and arise to buildup my home.
Here is a meaningful description by Marvin Wilson how the home, as a small sanctuary, was to operate (this was in the time following the destruction of the temple that the rabbis taught this--so it is not "Biblical" in the sense of out of the Bible, but I believe there is nothing that contradicts what God wants for our homes here!)
"As a small sanctuary, the rabbis taught that the home, like the Temple, was to be set aside for special purposes. These included the worship of God (a 'house of prayer'), the learning of Torah ( a 'house of study'), and the serving of community needs (a 'house of assembly'). Just as the shekinah (the abiding presence of God) filled theTemple, and as light, a symbol of the Divine, brightened the holy place through the menorah (the seven-branched lampstand), so each home was to reflect God's glory through prayer and praise. In addition, just as the golden table for the bread of the Presence in the Tabernacle contained loaves of bread set in two rows (Ex. 25:23030; Lev. 24:5-9), so on Sabbath eve in the home two loaves of hallah are set on the table to symbolize God's sustaining presence among His people."
What a beautiful picture of what we are to build our homes to be! This "construction", if you will, is not done with boards, nails, siding, and windows, but with prayers, praises, study of God's Word and meeting the needs of others (serving first in the home, then outward to the community). Can you imagine the difference in the world if each Christian home truly became a miqdash me'at? And if every woman worked to "build her house", serving her family by "setting her heart and soul to seek the Lord her God" and then "arising to build the sanctuary of her Lord God"?
What a beautiful oasis to the weary ones around us it would be!
Oh, that is my prayer!
To confirm my readings in the Scriptures, when I finished my quiet time, I read a page in The Heart of the King by Ron Auch (remember I told you this book is worth its weight in gold!!!). I will share a few tidbits.
"Man can help you know about God, but pursuing God through prayer can help you know God. There is a world of difference between knowing about God and knowing God. Jesus said, 'You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God' (Mt. 22:29). You are in error because you do not know. Once again we are dealing with the heart knowing, rather than head knowledge. You err because you do not know the Scriptures. This does not mean you have a wrong interpretation of the Scriptures. It means you do not have a knowledge of the one who inpsired them. Subsequently, you do not know the power of God; you merely know of it.
"To have more insight than your teachers, you must understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God. That will only come through a pursuit of Him. Does your heart throb at the thought of spending time with Him? Can you identify with Isaiah when he says, 'My soul yearns for you in the night; in the morning my spirit longs for you' (Is. 26:9)?" (I like the KJV rendering of Is. 26:9, "With my soul have I desired Thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek Thee early...")
"Does your heart throb at the thought of spending time with Him?"
Oh, that is what this is---a true and holy love! He wants to spend time with us! He desires it and is anxiously awaiting our coming to the private trysting place.
Does your heart beat to love Him more? To hurry to get to that blessed spot alone with Him for a few moments to commune with Him, to look into His dear face?
Often when I struggle to get up in the earlier hours, this quote by Thomas R. Kelly from The Spirit of Loveliness (by Emilie Barnes) runs through my mind:
"Hasten to Him who calls to you in the silences of your heart."
I want to thank all of you who have been praying for me, thinking of me, and posting your words of comfort here and in e-mails!
Everything was over around 6:30 yesterday morning. This is the first miscarriage where the baby was really big enough to see, and in the midst of our sorrow, it was an incredible blessing to see this very tiny baby--and it was definitely a baby, not a blob of tissue! At only 6-7 weeks from conception we could see eyes, the nose, mouth, arms, legs, fingers forming, and we could see through the transluscent skin to the heart, brain and spinal column! Truly a marvel to behold! One thing I've read is there is a difference between seeing them alive in utero vs. out of the sac when they're gone. So it could be likely the baby's fingers were more developed than they looked to us, as the baby was out of his/her water environment.
This is very much what our precious baby looked like, only the arms and legs didn't seem to be quite as developed, but more than just buds. Again, some of that could be the difference of this picture depicting a baby in its natural water environment.
This is 6 weeks after conception, or when we say we're "8 weeks pregnant".
I share all that to show that from conception, this baby was a precious life. In fact, Baby is STILL a precious life, beholding the face of Jesus even now. I have blessed hope that I will get to see this little one again, all perfect in form!
The baby was too tiny to tell gender, but with all my miscarriages, God has given either my husband or me a sense of whether the baby was a girl or a boy. We have chosen to name them, which further makes them a person and not a number (miscarriage # ____ ) I have no doubt that He will this time, too.
I was once asked, when I shared that, what happens if I get to Heaven and find out I was wrong? What if the "boys" are really girls, or vice versa? I smiled and said, "Well, when I'm in Heaven, it won't really matter, will it!" But for now, it gives us a name to call the baby, to refer to him/her by, to grieve over. And to look forward to when we'll be together again!
The baby is encased in a very strong sac filled with water. It is protected quite well!
And right now, I am encased in a "bubble" full of grace. I am protected quite well by my Heavenly Father's love and care!
Some might describe it as "numb" or "in shock". (I was referred to being "in shock" during the induced labor of our stillborn son. The nurses apparently had never before seen someone who had a truckload of grace being poured out on them!)
I call it grace. And peace.
I felt it during Noah Ross' labor and again during his funeral. I felt it during many of my miscarriages. I especially felt it during Dallas' time in the hospital following his accident. I even told people, "I'm in my bubble right now!" God knows there will be times to "face reality" later. But for the moment, He encases us in a strong bubble filled to the max with His matchless grace and love.
Unlike the baby, though, we can choose to get out of our bubble. It's a cruel world out there. Cold. Dark. I have had times where I did this. It leads to bitterness. That is like biting the hand that feeds you and cares for you! It's lonely, dark and cold.
I choose to remain in my bubble for now. Basking in the abundant peace He bestows. Oh, there are tears! I cried so much when Baby finally arrived, telling him/her how much he/she was wanted and loved! Of course Baby was already in Heaven, but we needed that "goodbye" time.
After it was all over, and since I had been laboring most of the night, I went back to bed. I felt such incredible peace cover me! When I awoke, it was the same. Warm. Light. Comfort.
It was the reverse of the first verse of "It Is Well"--first the sorrows that like sea billows were rolling over me. Then the peace like a river. Incredible, Grace-filled peace.
Of course, it comes from THE Prince of Peace.
I am not sharing all this to make anyone think I am some superspiritual person. I still have my questioning times (God, haven't we been through enough of this?) and my sorrowful times. My times when I just don't want to think about it all and bury my thoughts in something else.
But ultimately, down deep, I know I must keep my eyes on Him. II Chronicles 20:12 says (last part) "....neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon Thee."
Psalm 141:8 "But mine eyes are unto Thee, O God the Lord: in Thee is my trust; leave not my soul destitute."
I know I posted this verse in Saturday's post, but it is so comforting to me. Psalm 147:3 "He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds (sorrows)."
But we have to let Him.
It means letting go of our pain, our hurt, our bitterness, and, in the words of Charles Spurgeon,
"God is too good to be unkind, too wise to be mistaken, when we cannot trace His hand, we can always trust His heart."
I'm sure you've heard of the poem called "The Weaver". I post it here, because truly, it is a beautiful description of our life here, and our inability to fully understand the place of pain and loss in our lives.
The Weaver
Grant Colfax Tuller
My life is but a weaving,
betwixt my God and me,
I do not choose the colors,
He worketh steadily.
Ofttimes he weaveth sorrow,
and I in foolish pride
Forget He sees the upper,
and I the underside.
Not till the loom is silent,
and the shuttles cease to fly,
Will God unroll the canvas,
and explain the reasons why.
The dark threads are as needful
in the skillful weaver's hand
As threads of gold and silver
in the pattern He has planned.
Whatever your pain today, your situation, whether it's a fresh wound or a past hurt, please give it all to Him. Yes, you will have to do it daily. Perhaps hourly. Perhaps second by second. But it will get you back into the Bubble of Grace He has for you.
A glimpse into daily life that isn't so mundane in a relaxed homeschooling family of 11 (plus the dog, the goats, the rabbits, the chickens, the cats...)
I've lost 7 sizes
I found 
), but not so famous for carrying them out!!!
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