Laced With Grace

As a deer pants for flowing streams,so pants my soul for you, O God.
My soul thirsts for God,for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?
My tears have been my food day and night, while they say to me all the day long, “Where is your God?”
These things I remember, as I pour out my soul: how I would go with the throng
and lead them in procession to the house of God with glad shouts and songs of praise, a multitude keeping festival.

Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me?
Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.

My soul is cast down within me; therefore I remember you from the land of Jordan and of Hermon, from Mount Mizar.
Deep calls to deep at the roar of your waterfalls;all your breakers and your waves have gone over me.
By day the Lord commands his steadfast love,and at night his song is with me, a prayer to the God of my life.
I say to God, my rock:“Why have you forgotten me? Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?”
As with a deadly wound in my bones, my adversaries taunt me, while they say to me all the day long,
“Where is your God?”

Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him,
my salvation and my God.
~ Psalm 42 (ESV)

Lord of Heaven and Earth. Today we lift up the families who have lost loved ones at Virginia Tech. Lord, may Your love and peace strengthen the families. Give peace to the family of the shooter–wrap Your loving arms around them. In the precious name of Jesus ~ Amen

Please visit the Guest Book for the Virginia Tech victims to leave encouraging words…Thank you Lori for providing the graphic. Our regular daily devotions will continue on Tuesday with Tracey.

Blessings,

<>< Iris

I’m on this health journey and am learning important lessons.

1 – What goes in is important.

I’m doing mostly “Core”, which means the variety of things I put into my mouth is limited to a smaller list (although I get a certain number of points each week that I can “spend” on anything I want to eat). The Core list is whole food (not processed) and the foods are on anybody’s “healthy list”.

2 – What goes out is important.

Ok…that didn’t sound exactly right, but I’m talking about calories. Eating healthy is important, but for real health there should be heart building and muscle building movement. You’ve got to do something. Whether it’s walking, biking, skiing, swimming, roller blading; the opportunities are endless.

You all know where I’m going…

1 – What goes in is important.

Like Core, I’m not going to say that all non-religious input is bad; there’s a place for recreational reading, listening, watching. My ipod is loaded with about a 50/50 mix of music (Derek Webb is next to Dolly Parton and a John MacArthur sermon is next to Janis Joplin). My reading list includes murder mysteries and the only thing I watch on television on a regular basis is 24. I have a “guilty pleasure” online – a political blog that uses sharp wit and language and plays right to my flesh. I’ve found that I rarely read it because of the attitudes I pick up.

The “core” of my reading focuses on God. Books, blogs, Scripture. It’s what goes in and the more “healthy stuff” I read, the better my attitude toward those around me.

It is vital to keep a handle on what goes in.

Psalm 119:11
I have stored up your word in my heart,that I might not sin against you.

2 – What goes out is important.

Like our physical health. our spiritual health depends on what we do. Like our physical bodies, the opportunities are endless. Whether it’s volunteering at a homeless shelter, VBS, a pregnancy resource center or even filing music for your church’s choir – it goes out.

You have to move in order to build strength.

James 2:18…
…Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.

I understand that there’s a season for rest, where we do little or nothing. I’ve been there and done that. But our overall life should be a life of action.

I’m finding that my journey toward better physical health has so many parallels with spiritual health, in both ways I want to be a good example for those around me and in both ways I want to glorify God.

What goes in…what goes out…

You crave what you consume the most. Doctors say you need to be drinking approximately 8 – 12 cups of water per day. I know the arguments of not being a big fan of water, but if you started forcing yourself to drink this daily amount your body begins to desire it more and more. The same goes for cutting things out of your life. I stopped a few weeks back having sodas. There is no reason except when I stopped I wanted to lose a few pounds. I was averaging 2 to 3 cans of soda a day, sometimes more if I went to a fast food place and got a large. It was just an unhealthy habit I found myself in. Since I have stopped, my body has not missed my daily intake of soda.

The study of God’s word is similar. It is hard to make the time; it is difficult to understand some of the stories in the bible, and truth be told you just may not like reading. If you begin to force yourself to make time, to place it as a priority, your soul will begin to desire it more and more. Just like the consumption of your daily intake of water.

I know in my life I had a time where going to church was enough; I was getting all the spiritual intake I needed. And I was living a “good” life. I was not fighting with anyone, I had no family crises going on, and everything was “good.” It was not until the Lord took away my “good” and shook me up a bit, that I found myself back in God’s word. I was researching all the things I knew in my head to be true, but then why does the ground beneath me seem to quake?

It was not until I dug deeper, and the Lord became more of a lifeline did I realize that there were just some unhealthy habits that were in my life. On the outside they were not hurting anyone, but on the inside they were slowly doing damage.

Is there anything in your life that you may need to purge? Get into the word, even if it is by force at first, because I promise you the more you dig into God’s word the more you desire to know.

Psm 119:16

I will delight in your statutes;
I will not forget your word.

Psm 119:67

Before I was afflicted I went astray,
but now I keep your word.

Father, thank you for the desire you have given me to know you more and more. And I know there are something that I have to pray for that desire, but that is ok. You are there to guide and help me to become more and more like you. Thank you for your grace and mercy.

Amen

Disclaimer: The example of not drinking soda is true, but this author does not say she has given it up forever. So if you see her walking down the street with a soda in her hand, I just want to be clear and honest here.