To Be Still and Know

" Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart." Colossians 4:2 I have had, what I considered, a fairly decent prayer life for years now.  I am almost constantly talking to God in my mind and heart throughout every day.  I take everything that worries me to the Lord.  I thank Him for my blessings.  I ask for forgiveness when needed.  I pray for other peoples requests.  I knew though that I wasn't what was considered a "prayer warrior."  It wasn't until I saw the new movie War Room that I was truly convicted (after 26 years of being a Christian) that my prayer life was seriously lacking.  I realized that with the problems and worries I face, I take them to the Lord but rarely do I leave them with Him.  I basically just talk to Him about them without truly trusting Him to take the burden of the worry off my shoulders and take care of it.  I was very convicted that I needed to choose to set aside time to write out m...

"And further, submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.  For wives, this means submit to your husbands as to the Lord."  Ephesians 5:21-22 There is that word so many women hate to hear...submit!  But for us as Christian women and wives we cannot simply choose to ignore this verse because we don't like the connotation of that word, submit. We have to choose to take all of God's Word, even the parts that aren't easy. (See previous post!)  I think people tend to picture a timid and quiet almost servant like wife when they hear this verse.  They picture the husband lording over his wife, making demands that she has no option but to follow.  They see a woman who is stripped of her identity and decisions and they reject the idea of submission.  God doesn't just call the wife to submit, He also calls the husbands to deeply sacrifically and selflessly love their wives.  "For husbands this means love your wives, just as Christ loved the church...

*I had fully intended for my next post to be on how we as wives treat our husbands but I felt God pulling me in a different direction right now and since I am writing this blog as a way to serve and glorify Him, I want to write on what I feel He's put on my heart!* "For the word of God is alive and powerful.  It is sharper than the sharpest two edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.  Nothing in all creation is hidden from God.  Everything is naked and exposed before His eyes, and He is the one to whom we are accountable."  Hebrews 4:12-13 Mercy Me- Word of God Speak As I felt the Lord calling me to write about this topic the above verse came to mind and along with it the song "Word of God Speak" by Mercy Me.  (This is a song I always like to listen to before leading a Bible study because I want to move me out of the way and let the Word of God do the talking!) The very f...

"Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed.  If one person falls, the other can reach out and help.  But someone who falls alone is in real trouble...A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can conquer.  Three are even better, for a triple braided cord is not easily broken."  Ecclesiastes 4:9,10 & 12 We were never meant to live life alone and isolated.  God created us, first to be have a relationship with Him, and second to be in fellowship with one another.  Today I want to focus on the importance of friendship in our life.  The next post will focus on our role as wife and how we treat our husbands. There are three types of friendships.  Acquaintances, people who we know and have quick hellos and pleasantries with when we see them in public.  Casual friends who we may go to church or the gym with or to work lunches, or playgroups, but that's the extent of the friendship.  And...

"Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. This is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets." Matthew 7:12 It has become a little cliche everyone just tosses around, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." but it's so much more than a little nice sounding phrase.  It's a direct command from Jesus. It's also a phrase that a lot of people live the opposite of, and instead choose to do to others as others have done to them.  Pay back.  Revenge. Grudges. Hearts that are weighed down with the heavy weight of unforgiveness and bitterness.   We have all been betrayed and let down and hurt by someone in our lives but guess what,  we have all also betrayed, let down and hurt someone in our lives.  Stop for a moment and let that sink in.  We are not innocent victims with a flawless record.  We are all sinful people living in a sinful world and we ALL let each other down and hurt one another at times. ...

"Do everything without complaining and arguing." Philippians 2:14 That verse right there pretty much says it all doesn't it?  I remember the first time I read this verse a few years ago.  I had been dealing with my children's incessant complaining about everything and when I read it I made it our household verse.  It's easy to remember and understand.  Then we made a complaint chart for all of us to see how many times in a week we complain.  Wow was that an eye opener!  I wish I could say I complained the least, but to be honest I was right there at the top and that was just the complaining I did out loud!  I definitely would have been in first place by far if I had included all the complaining I did in my head.   Complaining has become an epidemic in our society.  We all do it and we do it so often it becomes our way of life without us even realizing it.  Take a moment to think about all the many ways you have complained in the past ...

On my walk this morning I felt that there was so much more to say on the topic of suffering in a Christians life.  One question we all have is "Why?".  Why does God allow His children to go through times of suffering?  And why do some people seem to have more than their fair share of suffering?  These are very hard but very real questions we all have at some point in our lives.  I will say upfront I do not have all the answers to these questions but I will share verses from God Word on this topic to help us all hopefully better understand some reasons Christians face suffering.  The first verse is  "He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others.  When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us."  2 Corinthians 2:4.   This is one reason God allows trials to come into our lives.  We are instruments of God's love and comfort to others and we can better comfort people and help t...

"So if you are suffering in a manner that pleases God, keep on doing what is right, and trust your lives to the God who created you, for He will never fail you."  1 Peter 4:19 I was sitting in church yesterday listening to the sermon. We were in 1 Peter 4. I read past the verses my pastor was preaching on and this verse stood out to me as if it were leaping off the page at me.  I highlighted it and made a mental to note to come back to it later so as not to take my focus off the message being preached!  Now over 24 hours later I have the chance to sit down and focus, well as much as my three always energetic children will allow! As Christians we are not guaranteed a life free from problems.  It's not like the moment we accept Jesus as our Savior our life becomes trouble free and painless.  Indeed the opposite is actually true. Sometimes we hear things like that and we spiritually run in the opposite direction.  Let's break down this "suffering for doing...

"For the Lord corrects those He loves, just as a father corrects a child in whom he delights"  Proverbs 3:12 Nobody likes to be corrected.  It's human nature to feel put off by someone telling you, you are wrong about something. There is just something inside us that gets riled up when we are confronted with areas of our life we need to change.  It's hard to accept that we are indeed wrong at times and need correction.    America today has become a land of "Do whatever makes you happy".  Nowhere in God's Word does it say that we were created to do whatever makes us happy in life.  Now that doesn't mean we can't be happy in life but when that happiness is doing something that goes against God's Word  or when seeking happiness becomes our main focus (entertainment, recreation, gaining wealth, living well within our comfort zone, etc.)  then we need to be corrected.  The first thing I want you to be still and know during this post is that...