To Be Still and Know

"Commit everything you do to the Lord.  Trust Him, and He will help you."   Proverbs 37:5 It's that time of year again when people start thinking about all the things they want to do differently and see happen in the new year that's about to begin.  There is something about the beginning of a new year that inspires people to begin anew, start over, change things up, and wipe the slate clean.  It's sad though that people only really think about this at this time of year and most "new years resolutions" fizzle out all to quickly, and are forgotten about until the end of the year rolls around and people are faced with another new year.  So how do we go about making changes or resolutions that take root in our hearts and bring forth permanent life changes and what do those types of resolutions look like according to Gods Word?   "Commit your actions to the Lord and your plans will succeed."  Proverbs 16:3 That verse is so easily misunderstoo

"You can't get rid of Christmas!"  my 8 year old daughter quietly proclaimed after I had announced, not so quietly, I would do if the behaviors and actions of she and her older brother didn't change immediately.  It stopped me in my tracks because the way she said it made me realize she wasn't trying to back talk me but rather had a greater meaning of those words in her heart.  I asked her what she meant and she replied "Even if you get rid of the presents and the decorations you can't stop Jesus birthday."  WOW!  An arrow right to this mommas heart.  I was so caught up in the frustration of my children's incessant fighting and arguing that I had forgotten the true meaning of Christmas.  I mean I never forget it is Jesus birthday and that is why we celebrate this holiday but I had declared I would get rid of Christmas and I never thought about it being His birth we were celebrating when I made that declaration.  I was thinking of the decorations,

"For God chose to save us through our Lord Jesus Christ, not to pour out his anger on us."  1 Thessalonians 5:9 I read something this week that didn't set well with me.  I have pondered it and prayed about it throughout the week.  It was an article suggesting that Christians should not participate in any form of yoga because it's roots are Hindu and doing the various stretches are ways of worshiping the Hindu gods.  The comments that followed this article varied greatly but the ones that made me start thinking and praying were the ones regarding God's wrath.  Many people quoted Old Testament Scriptures about God's wrath being poured out on people who worshiped idols and compared that to Christians who do yoga.  The first thought that came to my mind was "the hearts intents and motives".  Any and everything we do in life comes back to what our motive and intent is behind the action. "People may be pure in their own eyes, but the Lord examines t

"Now I am glad I sent it, not because it hurt you, but because the pain caused you to repent and change your ways.  It was the kind of sorrow God wants his people to have, so you were not harmed by us in any way.   For the kind of sorrow God wants us to experience leads us away from sin and results in salvation.  There's no regret for that kind of sorrow.   But worldly sorrow, which lacks repentance, results in spiritual death."  2 Corinthians 7:9-10 There is a lie this world is pushing on everyone and because it sounds good many people are not only believing it but embracing it and living it like it is truth.  That lie is that we are supposed to always be happy and that anything and anyone that doesn't make us happy or "serve us in a positive manner" needs to be removed from our lives.  The goal for most people has become achieving and then maintaining happiness all the time.  If it's hard they quit it.  If it causes them discomfort they try to get r

"I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God's power for us who believe him .  This is the same power mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God's right hand in the heavenly realms.  Now He is far above any ruler, or authority or power or leader or anything else - not only in this world but also in the world to come."  Ephesians 1:19-21 Last night my oldest child asked me what the term "faith that can move a mountain" meant. He was having fun ideas of being able to fly and literally pick up mountains and while I truly do believe that if there was a purpose for us to do those things, God could certainly make it happen, I explained to my son about metaphorical mountains that faith in God is able to move.  You know what I am talking about. Those mountains of human impossibility that stand in our way.  These mountains come in many shapes and sizes and kinds.  They can come in the form of f

"Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes.  Put on your new nature, created to be like God-truly righteous and holy."  Ephesians 4:23-24 After Bible study this week I was inspired to write about the topic of finding your identity in Christ alone.  I have come to realize over the past few years that I have found my identity in being "the favorite" for way too long.  Let me explain...  See I was an only child growing up and therefore obviously my parents favorite!  I also got along really well with all my teachers and authority figures and while I may not have been the favorite, I felt very much liked by them.  School came easy to me.  I got straight A's and was valedictorian of my graduating class (albeit that was a teeny tiny class of 9 kids haha!).  The time I spent in college, I also got straight A's and was on the deans list.  At my jobs I always seemed to be very well liked and trusted by my bosses.  (And that one time, at that one job

"Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus."  1 Thessalonians 5:18 "Make thankfulness your sacrifice to God, and keep the vows you have made to the Most High."  Psalm 50:14 Here we are in the month of November, a time of year when everyone suddenly remembers there are things for which they are thankful!  I am glad that there is at least one month a year where thankfulness is on the hearts and minds of a lot of people but there are 11 other months of the year when it seems thankfulness is forgotten and replaced with a lot of complaining.  Complaining is a nasty little spiritual sickness that we ALL seem to stay sick with more often than not!  "Do everything without complaining and arguing."  Philippians 2:14.   It is easy to complain. It is natural in our human sinful flesh to let complaining be our first response to uncomfortable, inconvenient, and negative situations.  I think it stems from ou

"Like newborn babies, you must crave pure spiritual milk so that you will grow into a full experience of salvation.  Cry out for this nourishment."  1 Peter 2:4 I could sum up this entire post with that one verse!  The part of the verse that is underlined is why we need to grow spiritually.  When we accept Jesus as our Savior we are like newborn babies spiritually.  We know very little about the Lord and His Word when we first accept Him and we are babies spiritually.  Just like with a baby has to learn everything over time we have to do the same thing in our walk with the Lord.  If a baby doesn't learn how to walk or talk or eat solid food, then doctors get involved and try to figure out what the problem is, because a healthy baby without any issues does these things naturally over time...with growth.  Our growth, or lack thereof, in our walk with the Lord is a direct indicator of how healthy we are spiritually. If it's been some time since you accepted Christ

This post won't be quite like my others but I believe it's a very important topic we as Christians need to be thinking about and in prayer over.  Our nation is getting further and further away from the Lord and the principles of the Bible.  Our nation is not what I would consider a truly Christian nation anymore.  (Many people claiming to be "Christian" are not.   "Not everyone who calls out to me, 'Lord! Lord! will enter the Kingdom of Heaven.  Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter."  Matthew 7:21 but that is not what this blog post is about so I digress.)  Just in the past decade I have seen the world reject Jesus and the Word of God more and more.  It's even infiltrating the churches today, where church leaders are turning away from teaching God's Word in order to "get with the times".  This makes me extra thankful for the church we attend.  The Word of God is thoroughly taught verse by verse week afte

"It's not what goes into your mouth that defiles you; you are defiled by the words that come out of your mouth."  Matthew 15:11 As I sat down today to write this blog post I searched for verses on the "mouth", "talk" and "speech".  Wow! There are so many!  God definitely cares about the things we say, and sadly we are very careless with our words.  It is wise to think before we speak but usually we find ourselves speaking first and thinking later.  How many hurt feelings, offended hearts and broken relationships could be avoided if we would simply think before we speak.  We must  first bring our thought life to the Lord and ask Him to help us not let it run wild.  To be able to think before we speak we must first know how we should be thinking!  We need to practice making our thought life one that is peaceful and loving and righteous before the Lord.  Our minds need to be a place where we would welcome Jesus and not be ashamed to have hi

"Charm is deceptive and beauty does not last; but a woman who fears the Lord will be greatly praised. " Proverbs 31:30 Today I want us to take time to be still and understand God's standard of beauty.  To not just read the words of the verses but let them sink in and apply them to ourselves that we might see ourselves through God's eyes and not the eyes of society.  Society tells us we have to be a certain size and look a certain way outwardly to be beautiful.  The billions of dollars that have been made in the diet supplement/diet program/fashion industries is really quite shameful when you think about it.  All that money we spend on vanity, on an outward beauty that will not last and does nothing for the inward qualities of our lives, that could have been spent on things much more valuable...feeding the hungry, helping the homeless, overseas missions, etc.  It is one thing to live a healthy life by eating a balanced diet and getting exercise, which we all should b

"Oh that my actions would consistently reflect your decrees!  Then I will not be ashamed when I compare my life with your commands."  Psalm 119:5-6 There are times when I meet someone for the first time and almost immediately I know they have Christ living in them and we are siblings in the Lord!  There is just something about a person who has not only accepted Christ as their Savior but has also given over the controls of their lives to Him that shines through in their personality.  They don't even have to say anything about the Lord for me to feel this connection but most times after conversing with a person like this it doesn't take too long before the topic of the Lord comes up because He is just so much apart of their daily lives it has become fluid and natural for them to discuss Him in conversations.   "He died for everyone so that those who receive his new life will no longer live for themselves.  Instead, they will live for Christ who died and was ra

"Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don't think you are better than you really are.  Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us.  Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ's body.  We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other.  In His grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well.  So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you.  If your gift is serving others, serve them well.  If you are a teacher, teach well.  If you gift is to encourage others, be encouraging.  If it is giving, give generously.  If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously.  And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.  Don't just pretend to love others.  Really love them.  Hate what is wrong.  Ho