Posts made in November, 2010

Is God Too Small?

Posted by Marsha on Nov 30, 2010 in Christmas, Devotion | 6 comments

“Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth does not become weary or tired. His understanding is inscrutable. He gives strength to the weary, and to him who lacks might He increases power. “ Isaiah 40:28,29

Is God too small? Is He still there as a baby lying in a manger, or do you see know Him as the Everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the universe? They are one and the same you know.

But we tend to romanticize the whole Christmas story, after all, who doesn’t love a little baby and pulling for “the underdog,” the lowly and downtrodden? Isn’t that how we sometimes look at Jesus this time of year? We view Him as the sweet little baby Jesus who was born to a poor, common woman. He had to sleep in a feeding trough. They had to flee for their lives.

How limited our view of God can sometimes be. Do we truly grasp God’s greatness, love, justice, mercy, strength, or even His forgiveness?

In the verse above, Isaiah characterizes God as the Everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator. He’s inscrutable. He gives strength to the weary and gives us what we need to go on. He’s the Judge, He’s the Comforter. He’s the Redeemer.

These truths are proclaimed throughout the Old Testament to His chosen people as a reminder to them, because they kept forgetting and would take their eyes off of Him, they failed to follow Him and sometimes they even hardened their hearts towards Him.

Are we guilty of doing the same thing? Do we fail to know who He is and His unchanging character? Is our God too small?

“To whom then will you liken Me that I should be his equal? says the Holy One. Lift up your eyes on high and see who has created these stars, the One who leads forth their host by number, He calls them all by name; because of the greatness of His power and the strength of His power not one of them is missing.” Isaiah 40:25,26

He sees you. He’s holding on to you and won’t let go. No matter what you are going through today, He is not surprised by it and He will not loosen His grip on You.

Be of good cheer dear ones, Our God is a BIG God. Our Lord God is with us!

PRAYER:

Lord, You are awesome in power and majesty. You do not grow weary, even when we do. You are the sustainer and lifter of our heads when we think we can’t put one foot in front of the other or even take the next breath.

Lord God, You are big and great and wonderful. And I am small and weak of heart. Thank You for sustaining me yet another day.

In the strong name of Jesus, Amen.

The Obstacle of Distraction

Posted by Joan on Nov 29, 2010 in Devotion | 3 comments

Recently I was asked if I ever ran into obstacles when it came to memorizing scripture. I smiled to myself and answered that the word “obstacle” is an extremely familiar word to me! It seems that whenever I set out to deepen my relationship with the Lord, whether it is through scripture memorization, reading His Word, or even praying, something tries to hinder my growth. The obstacle that seems to get in my way the most is the obstacle of “distraction”.

I am one of those people who need to have it quiet when I read or study. I know others can have the TV or music on and it actually helps them to concentrate, but I need quiet to truly let my mind stay on task. So, I’ve made it a practice to get up early, before the rest of the household is awake, and have my coffee and quiet time with the Lord. It is during that time which is mostly free from distractions I am better able to focus on the Lord and His word for me. But, this wasn’t always an easy thing for me to do.

It was difficult to condition myself to get up early every morning, especially when the bed is warm and comfortable. When my eyes first open, it would be so easy to close them again and let myself slip back into the restful stillness of sleep. However, since I have learned to fight against my natural urge to stay in bed I have found that a wonderful time awaits me during those early morning hours spent with the Lord. But how do we accomplish this?

Many of you may remember the movie “The Outlaw Josey Wales”. In it, one of the most memorable characters, Lone Waite, is speaking to Josey about the challenges facing the Native Americans during the difficult era following the Civil War. He quotes a headline in the newspaper and ponders its meaning, “Endeavor to Persevere”. I love that phrase, but how do we put it into practice?

Paul tells us in Hebrews 12:1b-2: “Let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith…” We need to be determined to keep going. God will give us the strength and help us to avoid distractions if we keep our eyes on Jesus. By endeavoring to persevere, we will live out the verse, “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14). And our prize is our relationship with Christ.

In order to avoid the obstacle of distraction which attempts to interfere with my desire to develop my relationship with Christ, I have chosen to get up early and “run the race with endurance.” Though it is still difficult at times, it is getting easier and easier to get up before my tired body wants to crawl out of bed. But I know that like any relationship, my relationship Christ blossoms under the proper attention. So, by overcoming the distractions in my life and staying focused, I find that my relationship with the Lord is deepening with every moment I spend alone with Him.

I am endeavoring to persevere.

In His grip, Joan

If you would like to read more of Joan’s devotionals you may visit her blog by clicking on the logo to the left. May the Lord bless you today in all you do.

Laying My Requests Before God

Posted by Tiffany on Nov 26, 2010 in Devotion | 4 comments

About a month ago, I heard an online sermon that spoke to my heart. The pastor ended his talk with a practical example of laying our requests out before the Lord. He mentioned praying over those we love by using their photos. I loved the idea so much that I spent hours the next day doing just that. But without the photos. Instead I used a pen and paper, my journal, and my Bible.

I wrote my requests out one by one on torn pieces of paper.

My kids.

My marriage.

Blogging.

Friends.

Ministry.

Church.

And numerous other requests.

Then I sat before the Lord and asked Him what He wanted to say about each request. God was faithful. He led me to certain verses and I jotted them down. I journaled my thoughts and questions. I thanked Him for His presence. This intentional time paid off. I felt God’s peace. I was ready to face the day.

So why do I naturally go back to praying my requests without waiting and listening for God’s answer?

Probably because it’s easier.

I’m used to praying and praying and praying. But I’m not used to waiting and listening one request at a time.

The truth is I need God to lead me. Every. Single. Day. With every single prayer request and relationship I have. Not just once a month when I am intentional.

As I write this God reminded me of His Word, “Be still, and know that I am God” Psalm 46:10 (NIV). And this verse, “My sheep listen to my voice ; I know them, and they follow me.” John 10:27 (NIV).

Father God, thank You for listening and answering my rambling prayers. Teach me to listen intentionally as I lay my requests before You. May I be like Samuel and say, “Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.”(1 Sam. 3:9) I love You, Jesus. Amen

Tiffany @ Tea with Tiffany

Counting My Blessings

Posted by Michele on Nov 25, 2010 in Devotion, Faith | 3 comments

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.” Ephesians 3:1

Living with chronic illness has taught me that well intended plans can change overnight. You would think that since I have been living with chronic illness for 25 years I would be accustomed to my plans changing and accept the changes with grace and dignity. Apparently this year I have failed big time!

In the early part of October I had suggested to my Aunt that we combine our Thanksgiving celebrations. She was ecstatic and offered her home. I was truly looking forward to celebrating the holiday with extended family for the first time in decades. A couple weeks after our conversation I became ill with viral bronchitis which in turn caused my chronic illnesses to “flare-up”. My muscles, tendons, and joints etc. throughout my body are in great pain, even more so in my left leg that I can no longer walk due to the severity of knee pain of which I may not know fully why and what can be done for several more weeks. On top of all this my doctor has given me orders not to put any weight on that knee and to basically “stay put” until further notice in evidently meaning a change of plans for Thanksgiving.

Instead of accepting this set back with a positive attitude of a possible lesson to learn, I threw myself a “pity” party instead. I began to dwell upon all the things I cannot do, wish I could do, and even started thinking about all the things others could and should do for me or have not done to my satisfaction. As I continued to dwell upon these things I began “inviting” others to my “party”. If I was going to be miserable I wanted to make sure others were miserable too! Let’s face it, misery loves company – right?

Well the past few days the Lord has brought simple reminders my way to open my eyes and heart reminding me once again just how blessed I truly am. As I was preparing for today’s Thanksgiving devotion I came across previous posts I had written in past years regarding being Thankful. One post in particular I had mentioned keeping a Blessings Journal. Then on Monday as I was listening to my sister’s Blog Talk Radio program, Grace Café, she mentioned a box she found that had Blessings written on it. She gave the box to one of her daughter’s who said she will use the box for her family providing them pieces of paper to write ways they have been blessed throughout the year and place them in the box; when any of them needs a reminder of just how blessed they are they will go through the blessings box and read each blessing out loud. On Tuesday morning I visited a blog where the post title was of all things, “Count Your Blessings”. At the end of their post they had the words to the hymn, Count Your Blessings; I immediately said, “Alright Lord, I know, it’s time to end my pity party and begin Counting My Blessings.”

How about you, has life’s trials been so overwhelming lately that you too need a reminder to Count Your Blessings?

Blessings
If you woke up this morning with more health than illness, you are more blessed than the million who won’t survive the week.
If you have never experienced the danger of battle, the loneliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture, or the pangs of starvation, you are ahead of 20 million people around the world.
If you attend a church meeting without fear of harassment, arrest, torture, or death, you are more blessed than almost three billion people in the world.
If you have food in your refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof over your head and a place to sleep, you are richer than 75% of this world.
If you have money in the bank, in your wallet, and spare change in a dish someplace, you are among the top 8% of the world’s wealthy.
If you hold up your head with a smile on your face and are truly thankful, you are blessed because the majority can, but most do not.
If you can read this message, you are more blessed than over two billion people in the world that cannot read anything at all.
You are so blessed in ways you may never even know.
by Stephen Eardley
“Reconnections & New Directions” 2003 Conference
Lester B. Pearson College

There is not enough paper in this world that can contain how blessed I really am! Thank you Lord for reminding me this week of all the blessings you have bestowed upon me. Yes, Lord, I am truly blessed!

Commitment

Posted by Heather C on Nov 24, 2010 in Devotion | 4 comments

2 Chronicles 16:9

“For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to Him…”

So frequently, I sit around with Jesus, trying to split hairs about what things are HIS job and what things are MY responsibility. For example, if I haven’t seen victory over a certain sin in my life, it is really my fault for not completely surrendering that area of my life to God, or is it because God hasn’t chosen to work miracles in my life at this point? Am I supposed to just “Let Go and Let God” or am I just sitting around waiting for God to work while He’s waiting for me to step out in faith? I’m not sure that I really have the answer, but I think the word “commit” has a lot to do with it.

For some reason, that word has been floating around in my mind a lot lately, but its meaning eluded me. I know that if I’m committed to something, then I’m devoted, I’m all in. Commitment means I plan to put forth 100% of my effort and I won’t turn my back on it. Being committed in marriage means sticking with my husband through good times and bad, for the long haul. Commitment to Jesus means I’m not just along for the ride, but I’m giving Him my very best.

How many times have I started a Bible reading plan, full of enthusiasm, only to let my commitment fall by the wayside a month later? Or start a new ministry, but realize it wasn’t really God’s calling after it’s really too late? This is what it looks like for me to be led by emotions and not really by sincere commitment.

On the other hand, to commit means that I entrust my life to God’s hands. It isn’t just about what I can remain committed to that really matters. The fact is, I can be a very committed person, with goals and rigorous daily activities to keep me following a certain path, but if I’m not committed to the One True God, I accomplish nothing. When I commit myself to Him, I’m entrusting everything into His hands and resting, certain that He is at work.

So, I’m re-committing myself today. Committing my life into His hands, trusting Him to be in control and resting in His sovereignty and leadership in my life. At the same time (in a strange kind of balance), I’m committing myself to following hard after God, listening to His voice and obeying Him when He calls. I don’t want to be dabbling in Christianity, picking out what feels good and just doing a little of this or a little of that. I want to be committed, sold out, all HIS.

How about you? Are you committed?

Heather Cox