"I lie down and sleep"

“But You are a shield around me, O LORD; You bestow glory on me and lift up my head. To the LORD I cry aloud, and He answers me from His holy hill. I lie down and sleep; I wake again, because the LORD sustains me. I will not fear the tens of thousands drawn up against me on every side.” (Psalm 3:3-6)
When fear invades our hearts and minds, many times it is hard to get restful sleep- or even sleep at all. Our minds spin out of control thinking about what happened, what could happen, what the worst case scenario would be, how we would fix the worst case scenario if in case it did happen, and so forth. Yikes! Out of control! When our minds go down that pathway, sleep is hard to come by. Rest is absent from our physical bodies, as well as our spiritual bodies. God calls us to rest…to rest in HIM…to trust Him…to have God-size faith. David had this kind of trust in the Lord. In Psalm 3, when he was fleeing for his very life from Absalom (his son), he rested. “I lie down and sleep…” (vs. 5a). How could he do this with his own life on the line? Because he had faith that God was a shield around him, that God bestowed glory on him and lifted up his head, and that the Lord heard and answered his cry. David knew that the Lord sustained him…he knew that in the Lord was deliverance and blessing. When we have real faith like that, we can rest peacefully…knowing that God is a shield around us.
Lord, may we rest in You.

Steadfast Faith

Bible Trivia:
His name is found in the book of Genesis.
His name is also found in Hebrews & Jude.
He was commended by God.
He lived 365 years of life on this earth.
He never experienced death because God took him away.
His name starts with the letter "E".

Nope, not Elijah. Not Elisha. And not Elimelech.

ENOCH.

In Hebrews 11, the great faith chapter, Enoch was mentioned in verse 5. Only one verse, but what important facts were said in that one passage. In verse 5, it said that Enoch...
-was taken from this life by God
-did not experience death
-was commended as one who pleased God
Wow! What a testimony! When I am gone, I want to be found as one who pleased God. That seems like a broad statement...what does that look like everyday? Check out Genesis 5:22 & 24. They both state that "Enoch walked with God." I believe that's how he pleased his Heavenly Father. It was an everyday thing- walking daily with his Leader...following Him...loving Him...worshipping Him...revering Him, through all that life brought him in his MANY years of living...through all the different seasons of life, through the valleys and the mountain top experiences....Enoch walked steadfast with God.
No "parting-of-the-Red-Sea" type of miracles were reported in Enoch's testimony. No book of the Bible was solely written about him. Not everyone even knows how to pronounce his name correctly. No more than 8 verses in the entire Bible were written about him. But, he didn't need all of that. He had a relationship with Almighty God that was real. Not many verses had to be written about Enoch for us to get a true picture of who he was and how he lived. Actually, those four words sum up his faithful testimony and life: "...Enoch walked with God...".

And, he walked right into eternity with his Father, Leader, and Friend.

Simple, yet Saturated

This morning, in our family devotions, we memorized 1 Thessalonians 5:21-22, which was in Pastor's sermon on Sunday. "Test everything. Hold on to what is good. Avoid every kind of evil." Those imperative commands seem rather simple when stated...straight forward- to the point. But, even though it is a simple passage to memorize- it is saturated with truth! We ran out of time discussing the implications behind each of these commands (and my husband even started pulling out the Greek!) One of the parts in our discussion that intrigued me the most was when my husband mentioned what the Greek New Testament said about verse 22. In the Greek it reads, "From the appearance of every kind of evil avoid/abstain." Did you catch that?! Avoid even the APPEARANCE of evil...Paul is warning us to not even play with fire- don't even go near it! It reminded me of the verse, Ephesians 5:3, "But among you there must not be even a HINT of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God's holy people." Not even a HINT! Through Paul, God is warning us to steer clear of anything that is not good...anything that doesn't fall under the Philippians 4:8 list- true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, or praiseworthy. Good passage to chew and digest, huh?! Lord, we pray- help us to test everything. Hold on to what is good. And, to avoid every kind and every appearance of evil. In the powerful Name of Jesus, Amen.

Humbled by Steadfast Love

Have you ever been humbled? I'm not necessarily talking about the kind of humility that comes after a spell of selfish pride. But, the kind of humility that is a result of grasping how much God loves you. Recently, my family and I went back to my hometown of 20 years to visit relatives and dear friends at my home church. We had a fabulous time of food, fellowship, food, fun, food, and (did I mention there was food?). It was wonderful to see folks come out to celebrate my new marriage and show their overwhelming support. That was just it...it was overwhelming...in such an amazing, God-kind of way. There were people from my home church, who were well into their nineties that made a point to come and see my family and I. I grew up in this church for 20 years, from the nursery to the college and career class. And every passing year of my childhood, I would smile and hug the adults of my church...yet, I oftentimes (to my disadvantage) failed to truly get to know them...to hear their stories...to learn from their wisdom. During this last trip, however, I had the chance to talk with two amazing women from my church...two women that I saw every single Sunday since I was 3 years old...two women that faithfully served in our church...two women who have prayed for me since I was a little girl...two women that appeared to be "behind the scenes" in my life, but were actually apart of the "great cloud of witnesses" in my personal walk with the Lord. God humbled me as I heard some of their life stories for the very first time- their stories of faith, their pursuit of God, their perseverance through hardship, and their genuine love for Jesus. To think that all of those years had past and I had never took the time to really KNOW them. And, to think that these women had been faithfully praying for me, caring for me, and loving me. I was truly humbled by God's amazing grace...channeled through these precious saints and daughters of the King.
Lord, may I have such an impact on the next generation...continue to humble me with Your love.

Stayed Upon Jehovah...

This morning, I was studying about true peace...that comes from the Holy Spirit. Beth Moore, the writer of a book I am going through right now, wrote the lyrics to an old hymn. A hymn that I sang countless times growing up in my home church. I have the melodies, notes, and rhythms down to a tee, but the words...well, that is a different story. I never really took the time to meditate on those words penned by Frances R. Havergal in 1874. Wow! What a picture of true peace! Listen to these words:

Like a river glorious is God's perfect peace
Over all victorious in its bright increase
Perfect, yet if floweth fuller every day,
Perfect, yet it groweth deeper all the way.

Hidden in the hollow of His blessed Hand,
Never foe can follow, Never traitor stand
Not a surge of worry, not a shade of care,
Not a blast of hurry, touch the Spirit there.

Every joy or trial falleth from above,
Traced upon our dial by the Son of Love;
We may trust Him fully all for us to do;
They who trust Him wholly find Him wholly true.

CHORUS:
Stayed upon Jehovah, Hearts are fully blest;
Finding as He promised, Perfect peace and rest.

Freedom with commands

The other day, my fiance was reading a familiar Psalm to me...Psalm 119. (Yes, and if you know your Bible trivia, it is the longest chapter in the Bible!) I've read all of those words before, but as I listened one struck me in particular. "I run in the path of Your commands, for You have set my heart free" (32). Usually, commands and freedom don't get grouped together as synonymous. In today's culture, freedom means that you are free from structure, rules, commands, etc. But, in God's Word, this type of "freedom" is really bondage that leads to destruction. If we follow God's commands, which are set before us in His Word, we do not have to fear punishment, bad consequences, and wrath. We can run freely, within the path that God has set before us...one of love, joy, and peace. Live in righteousness...Obey His Word...Enjoy freedom.

the crucified life (galatians 2:20)

I just started doing Beth Moore's Bible study, Living Beyond Yourself. The past couple of days, I've been digging deep into Galatians 2:20- "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, Who loved me and gave Himself for me." Beth gave us 10 characteristics of a crucified life. I have been pouring over these recently, and I would like to share them with you.
1. Few will understand
2. Must abandon your own will and agenda
3. Your intimate spiritual companions will be few
4. Intense times of aloneness with God is required
5. You will be constantly on the witness stand
6. You must go "outside the camp"
7. There will be times that your dignity is "forfeited"
8. You must forego your rights
9. You must accept that death is painful
10. Because He was forsaken, you will never be
Lord, I want to know You and the power of Your resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in Your sufferings, becoming like You in Your death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead (Philippians 3:10-11)!

when ministry happens

Luke 5:15-16 “But now even more the report about him went abroad, and great crowds gathered to hear him and to be healed of their infirmities. But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray.”
Jesus was at the start of His ministry…momentum was picking up…people were hearing about Him, seeking Him, and were amazed by Him. Don’t stop now! Keep going! Full speed ahead! Right?!?
Have you ever been in that situation? …when the ministry you are involved with is taking off and great things are happening! You are starting to see fruit, and you are reaping a harvest from where you have sown seed. As a result, you wake hours before the rooster, and you burn the midnight oil at night. You are busy perfecting your ministry and doing your ministry! Hmmmm… this sounds well and good, but it is not YOUR ministry…it is GOD’S ministry! Because of that, we need to quiet ourselves before Him and seek His direction. Even when we see that things are going well, we CANNOT neglect our time with the Originator of the ministry and the Lord of all. It is through time with Him that we are refueled, redirected, and refreshed.
We must follow the example of Jesus… “He would withdraw to desolate places and pray” (vs. 16). Even when His ministry was booming, He stopped and spent time with His Father. THAT is when true ministry happens- GOD’S ministry!

some good sayings...

"Just Do It." "Where's the Beef?" "Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there." "Taste the rainbow." Yes...we've all heard these before- slogans, advertisements, sayings. There are also some good sayings that I have found to be encouraging in my Christian walk. I thought I would mention them today- kind of a simple blog, but one that, hopefully, will stick with you. Here are some of the sayings that have been on my mind lately:
"Forget yourself for others, and others will not forget you."
"Trade the TRIVIAL for the ETERNAL."
"Go to the THRONE before you go to the PHONE."
hmmm...good thoughts...

victory through stillness

So...picture the scene...the Israelites have just left Egyptian bondage, they are standing at the edge of the Red Sea, and Pharaoh's army is rushing towards them in an angry rage. They come with chariots, weapons, and vengeance...the Israelites stand with cattle, children, and unleavened bread. Surrender? Panic? Or pass out? One might think those were the Israelites' only options. But...through their 80 year old leader, the Lord tells them something different. "Moses answered the people, 'Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.'" (Exodus 14:13-14) Be still. I am reminded of the verse in Isaiah which says, "...in quietness and trust is your strength..." (Is. 30:15). We trust in THE omnipotent God...the One with all power, might, and victory. We can truly be still and know that HE is GOD. (Psalm 46:10) When the world calls for panic, the Lord calls for peace...for with Him, the victory is sure.

testimony in forgiveness

"...For to see your face is like seeing the face of God, now that you have received me favorably..." (Genesis 33:10)
We all know those famous words spoken from the lips of our mothers, "Wait until your father gets home..." Oh no. That's it. You're in trouble now! After that comment was made, you had to wait in quiet torture until Dad walked in the front door. You know what you did was wrong, but now you have to face the reality of consequences. In Genesis 32 & 33, Jacob had this feeling of "quiet torture" as he prepared to meet his brother, Esau. Much time had passed since Jacob deceived their father and had stolen from Esau what was rightfully his- his birthright. Esau had every right to be upset, bitter, and vengeful. Who knows what would happen? So, Jacob tried his best to make this a pleasurable meeting...highly doubting that it would go over well. But, listen to their initial encounter in Genesis 33:4, "But Esau ran to meet Jacob and embraced him; he threw his arms around his neck and kissed him. And they wept." WOW! Can't you picture Jacob? His eyes were probably bugging out, his jaw dropped wide from shock, and he was silent in amazement. His brother, Esau, had welcomed him with open arms, brotherly love, and true forgiveness. It was almost too much to accept. Jacob replied to Esau in verse 10, "For to see your face is like seeing the face of God, now that you have received me favorably." Because of Esau's true forgiveness, Jacob witnessed God's love in a real way...he saw the Lord shining through Esau. When we forgive, it is a beautiful picture of God's forgiveness for us...not in its entirety, by any means, but it gives people a glimpse of God's unconditional love. I would love to have someone say of me, "...to see your face is like seeing the face of God..." Wow! By showing God's love in forgiveness, we have the perfect opportunity to shine for Him!

You've already begun...

1 Thessalonians 4:13- "Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep..." (NIV).
Death is a strong word- it almost sounds like THE END…the grand finale…that's all folks. But, it's not. Paul refers to physical death as "falling asleep". Why would he use those words? Maybe to prove a point…that the physical death does not mean a person's life is over. Yes, for their physical body, but NOT for their spiritual body- their soul. One's soul does not die; it continues on at an eternal location, either heaven or hell. This life here on temporary earth is the deciding factor of where your soul will go…FOREVER. Hmmm…so, do you think we have a purpose? Yes. We are not called to cruise through this life on earth with no thought of eternity. Because in reality, we are in eternity right now…this is just the first part. How am I living my life right now in preparation for an eternal destination? What you do here on earth has a direct effect on how the rest of your eternal journey will go. Knowing all of this, why do we spend so much time at the mall buying our 34th pair of shoes? Why do we devote our evenings watching a box with fictional characters on its screen? Why are we obsessive with exercise to make our bodies fit into a smaller size? This is the start of eternity…you have already begun. Think about today…have you stored up treasures on earth or in heaven? Which ones will last longer? "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." Matt. 6:19-21. Live fully…live with purpose…live in preparation…live strong…live for eternity.