May 9th 2018 - When My Spirit Fails

May 9th, 2018 - Thoughts for your Week

 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

John 16:33

When My Spirit Fails

God’s word promises us that we are loved, we are saved and that He has us. I keep reminding myself of these truths but, lately, I’ve felt a bit lost. Time is moving so fast and I’m trying to keep up. Situations around me have been unraveling and answers don’t seem to be right around the corner. There have been tears and fretful moments, but also prayers because I know He hears me, I know He sees me. I have to keep trusting because I know there is no other way through it all.

Maybe you’re feeling the same? Maybe your life is moving at a quick pace and you’ve been overwhelmed with what needs to get done. Maybe you’re struggling with grief and you want to slow down but you’re feeling pressure to keep up. Maybe you’ve been battling illness and you’re tired and run down. Day in and day out, the world around us pushes us to move at a fast pace. Society dictates that we do and, if we don’t keep up, we are failing at life. “There’s no time to slow down.” But our God says the complete opposite. He says; “Slow down. Seek my face. Sit with me awhile. I can make time stand still as time is in my hands. This world belongs to me and I control everything.” The world offers us no reason to be at peace in all circumstances, but our God does. Philippians 4:7 says; “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding (all things, all circumstances), will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

In Psalm 90:12, Moses prayed for God to “teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” He understood the need to slow down and make God the number one priority in our lives in ALL things. We need to take time throughout our day to connect with Him and rest. We need to remember it’s not about keeping up with the world, but about keeping Him in the center of every moment. We need to constantly remind ourselves that even when situations are crumbling around us, we can be in perfect peace when we keep our mind on Him.

If you’re feeling frenzied or overwhelmed these days, it’s time to stop and rest; to slow down and refocus. Maybe the answer to your situation isn’t clear or isn’t coming to you as fast as you’d like – that doesn’t mean it won’t ever come. It just means you need to keep your eyes on Him. Take some time now to ask the Holy Spirit to show you areas in your life that you need to slow down or refocus your attention.

“Answer me quickly, Lord; my spirit fails. Do not hide your face from me or I will be like those who go down to the pit. Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life. Rescue me from my enemies, Lord, for I hide myself in you.”

-       Psalm 143:7-9

“The will of God will not take us where the grace of God cannot sustain us.”

-       Billy Graham

“The Lord is my strength and shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to Him in song.”

-       Psalm 28:7

Sometimes God doesn’t change your situation because He’s trying to change your heart.

-       Unknown

April 25th 2018 - Disciplining our Hearts

April 25th, 2018 - Thoughts for your Week

“Discipleship, we might say, is a way to curate your heart, to be attentive to and

intentional about what you love.”

James K. A. Smith

Disciplining our Hearts

What do you want?  Do you know what you want? Out of life? Out of yourself? From God? Can you be honest enough to ask that question of yourself? Can you be honest in your answer? What do you desire? What do you long for?

This was the question that Jesus asked most; “what do you want?” It’s a hard question to ask ourselves but the answer, if we’re truthful, is the greatest indicator to the deep desires and longings of our heart. And from those longings and desires come our actions and our habits. It says in Proverbs 4:23; “above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” What we store up in our heart dictates what we do with our lives.

Philippians 1:9-11 says; “And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.”

Jesus wants to align His desires and longings with ours. He wants to ‘sync up’ with us so that we live with His eyes and His ears to do His work. It’s not about us. It’s about Him. He’s given each of us special talents and skills to be used within His will for us. When we connect with Him throughout our days, we are giving Him the ability to move within us and awaken those talents and skills to be used the way He wants them used. When we don’t start our day with Him, we miss out on preparing ourselves for what He wants to do. Our desires and longings stay just that; ours. I challenge you to take some time to ask yourself; what do you want? Don’t rush this process. Invite the Holy Spirit into this questioning and trust that He will answer, that He will bring you wisdom and understanding of your true self. Ask Him to show you what you need to do. Do you need to break some unhealthy habits and create new ones? Do you need to change a thought process that you have over something in particular? Trust that He will lead you in this and be prepared to be obedient in it.

“The God who is love reorders our loves, bending our deepest desires back toward Himself, so that we might readily love our neighbours for His name’s sake.”

-       James K.A. Smith

“Our goal is not productivity, but holiness. Not speed, but obedience. Not success, but surrender.”

-       John Piper

“Until you can identify your idols you cannot understand yourself. Until you turn from them you can’t know and walk with God.”

-       Tim Keller

For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

-       Hebrews 4:12

“I am the LORD your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go.”

- Isaiah 48:17b

April 11th, 2018 - Light in the Darkness

April 11th, 2018 - Thoughts for your Week

Scripture: 2 Samuel 22:29-30

“You are my lamp, O LORD; the LORD turns my darkness into light.

With your help I can advance against a troop; with my God I can scale the wall."

Light in the Darkness

This season has been tough for me. I have struggled often and with so many different things these past few months. God has stirred me up to reveal sin that I didn’t know existed in me. He’s been breaking up my foundation and re-seeding it with His truth. It is good but hard work. But I know where my help comes from, and so, I keep returning to Him who is able.

God sets us in seasons. Some are good and easy, and others are hard and heavy. He uses these seasons to transform us. Only He knows the full capabilities He has set in us, and He is always working to make us all He created us to be.

But it’s a battle, isn’t it? Our human nature, our flesh, wants things our way in our time. Not His. And so, we wrestle. We are faced with choices all day long and if we don’t invite Him into these choices, whether they are big or small, we risk walking off the path He has set before us.

I’ve been reminded that He is constant. He never changes. It says in 1 Samuel 15:29; “He who is the glory of Israel does not lie or change His mind; for He is not a human being, that He should change his mind.” If anyone changes, it’s us, never Him. What a blessed truth for us to cling to!

If you are feeling distant from God in this season you are in, it’s you that’s moved away from Him. Draw close to Him. Change your thinking from “you” to “you and Him”. Invite Him into every aspect of your life. Talk to Him, just as you would a friend, throughout your day. Ask questions and expect an answer.

And never forget that you are chosen by God. He has summoned you and redeemed you because He loves you.

“Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.”

Isaiah 43:1-3

“Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on; you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently He starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make any sense. What on earth is He up to? The explanation is that He is building quite a different house from the one you thought of – throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were being made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace. He intends to come and live in it Himself.”
― C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

“Though I sit in darkness, the Lord will be my light.”

- Micah 7:8