Month: May 2019

“For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”  Romans 8:38-39 CSB

This promise is one we can never hear enough.  I don’t think any of us truly believes God loves us unconditionally.  I think we all have those little niggling thoughts at the back of our heads that try to make us doubt the truth of this statement.  I could be wrong, but I came from a family that has shown me unconditional love, and I still find it hard to believe. After all, I know all my deep, darkest secrets.  But He does. His words says He does, and we’re to believe it.

After I graduated college, I was flight attendant.  During that period of time, I made one of the most grievous mistakes of my life.  Thinking of it now makes me shudder. I will never forget how my family loved me through it, specifically my Mom and my little brother.  I called my brother first, it was a Friday night, I was living in VA Beach, he was in Williamsburg. I was in tears when I called. When he answered, I said, “I’ve done the stupidest thing.  I’m not lovable anymore.” You know what he said to me, he said, “There is nothing you could do that will make me stop loving you. Come on home, I’m here waiting.” And he was. I drove home that night and confessed my horrible sin and he never stopped loving me, he helped me through it.

A couple days later, as I was leaving my Mom’s house I told her.  She was standing at her front door, I was in the driveway. I never told her the details, I just told her I’d done something that I was ashamed to admit, I hadn’t listened to the advice she had given me.  She just looked at me with love in her eyes and said, “Did you learn from it?” I said yes, I certainly had. She said “That’s all that matters, I love you.”

I am blessed, I have experienced unconditional love in my life, more than once.  But a lot of people haven’t. They don’t know what it is like to be accepted no matter what.  That is exactly what God does for each and everyone one of us. He says, there is nothing we can do that will stop Him from loving us.  If you make a mistake, learn from it and keep going. He loves you.

I don’t know if you’ve experienced unconditional love or not.  Either way, I pray today, wherever you are, you will accept that God loves you unconditionally.  There is absolutely nothing you can do to stop Him from loving you. He always has, always will, always does.

“So if the Son sets you free, you really will be free.”  John 8:36 CSB

The movie “Shawshank Redemption” could arguably be listed as a classic.  The tale of two inmates that bond over years of imprisonment together. But there was one inmate, Brooks Hatlen that touched my heart for another reason. Incarcerated in 1905, he became the prison librarian in 1912 where he served until he was released on parole in 1955.  He was a lifer, or so he thought, until he was released. Brooks didn’t know what to do with his freedom. They put him in a halfway house, found him a job in a grocery store, all the things he would need to start a new life. But he didn’t want a new life. He didn’t want his freedom.  He wanted to go back to jail where he was comfortable. Where he knew what to expect, knew what to do, knew how to live. He didn’t know how to live free. In the saddest scene of the movie, Brooks kills himself in his lonely room of the halfway house. He didn’t know how to live life free.

It’s sad to say, but many of us suffer the same problem as the fictional character Brooks.  We don’t know how to live free. We don’t understand the freedom we have in Jesus. We don’t truly believe we’ve been forgiven all of our sins, even the ones we have yet to commit.  Just because you begin a new life with Jesus doesn’t mean you automatically stop sinning. In fact, Jesus knows we won’t. Each morning, I start fresh. Above my desk I have this prayer hanging which I borrowed from C.S. Lews:

“Imitation: Da hodie perfecte incipere– grant me to make an unflawed beginning today, for I have done nothing yet.”

I live in freedom knowing that in my weakness, God is strong (2 Corinthians 12:7-10 CSB).  I will never be perfect, Christ didn’t come because I was perfect. He came because I am a sinner who is in need of rescue (Galatians 1:4 CSB).  He did the same for you. But it can be hard to let go of the past and walk in confidence that Christ has set us free. The life we were living is known, the new life in Christ is unknown.  It’s easier to stay where we were than to take steps of faith into the new life God is leading us too. It’s heartbreaking how abused women stay in abusive relationships because they don’t know life without abuse.  It’s seems safer to them than taking steps towards a new life. It’s heartbreaking Brooks would rather die than live a life of freedom.

But that is exactly what Jesus came to do, set us free.  He has set us free from our pasts, from our sins, from hurts and hang ups.  He came to give us life and give it to us in full (John 10:10 CSB). Accept the gift of freedom He has given you.  Don’t go back to jail, step into freedom, step into life!

“But the Lord is faithful; He will strengthen and guard you from the evil one.”  2 Thessalonians 2:13 CSB

I love what the Greek word for faithful is: trustworthy, worthy of belief, trust or confidence.  Isn’t that refreshing? Someone you can count on completely. Trust is such a precious commodity.  It is something earned, not given. The best analogy I have ever heard is comparing it to a bank account.  It starts with small deposits, a dollar here a dollar there. Over time it grows and grows, but it only takes one big withdrawal to diminish it back to nothing.

That is why God calls us to store our treasures up in heaven (Matthew 6:19-20).  When we put our trust in Jesus, we are investing in Heaven. Nothing can destroy it or steal it.   But how do we trust Jesus? What does that look like?

We let people off the hook.  We stop expecting them to fulfill our needs and look to Jesus to do it.  People will always hurt you, even the ones you love the most. Even the ones who love you the most.  It’s not intentional, they don’t mean too, but they will. Because they are imperfect people who have hurts and hang-ups.  Some they don’t even know about.

I love the show Grey’s Anatomy.  Why, I’m not quite sure. I find it’s long running success fascinating.  On the most recent episode, they had a storyline where one of the main characters finally realizes he’s afraid of joy.  Through therapy, he uncovers the hurt he experienced the day his father died when he was 10. He was on his way home to share wonderful news about winning a contest, but before he shares it his Mom tells him his Dad has died.  As a result, he never wants to experience joy again because if he does, something bad will happen.

He didn’t know an incident from childhood was causing him to sabotage his relationships as an adult.  If we dig deep enough, we all have stuff in the past that is affecting us today. It will cause us to hurt others unintentionally.  It will cause us to withdraw from the accounts of trust we have built up with others or vice versa. But when we place our trust with God, and take it off of people, we won’t be disappointed.  God doesn’t have hurts from the past He’s overcoming. God just has grace and love He wants to share with you. But first we have to realize, He is trustworthy. He is faithful. He is always there.

“The Lord is near the brokenhearted; He saves those crushed in spirit.” Psalm 34:18

There is a song by Amy Grant called “Better than a Hallelujah”.  My friend Lynda introduced me to it when I was going through a difficult time.  It’s lyrics have comforted me many times in the years since:

God loves a lullaby

In a mother’s tears in the dead of night

Better than a Hallelujah sometimes.

God loves a drunkard’s cry,

The soldiers plea not to let him die

Better than a Hallelujah sometimes.

We pour out our miseries

God just hears a melody

Beautiful the mess we are

The honest cries of breaking hearts

Are better than a Hallelujah.

God does love the honest cries of breaking hearts.  He knows this life is hard. He knows our hearts will be broken by the people around us, the circumstances that happen, the events out of our control.  He knows it. And He promises to be close to us when it happens. My heart hopes and prays the heartaches you face will be minimal. I would love it if you didn’t have to face heartbreak all.  Complete honesty, I would love it if I didn’t have to face heartbreak. But the truth is, I do and so do you. But we can take heart, because God promises to be near when we do. If your spirit is crushed, He will save it.

I know this truth.  He’s done it for me many times.  It always starts when I get on my knees and through my tears, I pour my heart out to Him.  If your heart is broken today, start there, on your knees, through your tears, give it to Him.

“But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is perfected in weakness.”  2 Corinthians 12:9 CSB

Grace is hard for me. I’m a truth person.  I like black and white, not a huge fan of shades of gray.  When you’re following Christ there are a lot of shades of gray. What are examples of shades of gray?  For example, God absolutely does love everybody. He loves that person who annoys the heck out of you.  He loves the people who you perceive have wronged you in some way. He loves democrats and republicans, and whatever political party there may be.  And He expects you to love them too.

Those are shades of gray to me because I don’t understand sometimes how He can love them?  Even more, how does He expect me to love them? Especially when they have hurt me deeply. Especially if I have legitimately been wronged.  It happens to all of us. Someone, or even a group of people have hurt you deeply. They may not even know the extent to which you have been hurt.  But you do. It’s a wound that keeps festering. Everytime you forgive, something pulls the scab off again, the hurt feels just as fresh as it did the first time.  That’s when we need grace.

What is grace exactly?  In this verse it means, “Favorable influence of God; divine influence or the influence of the spirit, in renewing the heart and restraining from sin” (Webster’s 1828 Dictionary).  Here is the answer to grace, it comes from God, without Him you cannot extend grace to someone else. When you get into shades of gray, the answer is always grace, no matter what the situation.  To get it, go to the One who gave it to you first.

I’m working through a situation in my life where I’m having a hard time extending grace.  I was hurt very deeply. I’m having a hard time moving past it. I YEARN to move past it. I’m TIRED of hurting.  Yet I feel stuck. Then just yesterday, as I talked about this with a trusted friend, she said these wise words to me.  Someday, you will need the exact same grace you need to extend. If you want to receive grace, you need to extend grace now.

That was a gut punch.  But I haven’t stopped thinking and praying about her words.  Because she is right. I will need grace extended to me, probably sooner than I think.  And I want people to give me grace, so I need to give grace now. I have a new motto written on a card above my desk to help me not forget this lesson:  GRACE EXTENDED, GRACE RECEIVED.

God went first with me, I need to go first with others.  Grace extended, grace received.

“He will wipe away every tear from their eyes.  Death will be no more, grief, crying, and pain will be no more, because the previous things have passed away.”  Revelation 21:4

The book of Revelation was written by John.  He was the youngest of the 12 disciples, brother of James.  At the time of the writing of Revelation he was in exile on the island of Patmos.  He is the only one of the 12 disciples to die a natural death at an old age. He was a disciple under John the Baptist before he became a disciple of Jesus’.  I do not claim to know much about the book of Revelation. I have not studied it, I find it to be a challenge. I do know this though, this chapter is where it all comes true.  This is where the promises are fulfilled. Nothing makes me happier than the thought of God wiping away my tears.

This life is filled with pain, with grief, with death. This life is filled with tears, but God promises to wipe them away.  Not only does He wipe them away, He catches them in a bottle (Psalm 56:8). He knows all of our sorrows. There may be a hurt you haven’t shared with anyone on earth, but God knows it.  Those tears you cried, He caught them in His hand and placed them gently in a bottle. He knows your pain, He will wipe it away.

In a recent message I listened from Andy Stanley, his main point was this:

“You don’t have to understand everything to believe in something.”

I don’t have to understand everything in the Bible to believe in Jesus.  I don’t have to understand everything in the book of Revelation to believe this promise.  I am sure you have probably heard this promise before, it is so often read at funerals and in times of sorrow.  I believe it with all my heart. I’ve cried many tears in this lifetime, I’m sure I’ll cry many more for a myriad of reasons.  I know God’s got a bottle with my name on it in heaven filled with those tears. I know He will one day wipe them all away, there will be no more pain, no more sorrow, no more grief, no more death.  I believe it with all my heart even though I don’t necessarily understand everything.

He’ll do the same for you, don’t let what you don’t understand keep you from believing the promises He makes.

“The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears and rescues them from all their troubles.”  Psalm 34:17

The vision I immediately see is someone drowning in a body of water and the lifeguard throwing out the big, red ring for them to grab onto to save them.  God is our lifeguard, He’s waiting for you to cry out to Him so He can throw you a rope. He will save you from drowning, He will reel You back into dry land and set you on solid ground. He’ll put you on the Rock that cannot be moved. But you have to be righteous and you have to cry out.

What does it mean to be righteous?  Righteous, in its simplest definition means “just.”  Webster’s 1828 dictionary says “Just; accordant to the divine law. Applied to persons, it denotes one who is holy in heart, and observant of the divine commands in practice; as a righteous man.”  You become righteous through your relationship with Jesus.  Bottom line, you have been made clean through your relationship with Jesus.  He makes you just. When He died on the cross He took on your sins and you became “holy in heart” when you accepted Him into your life.

It does not mean you are perfect.  It does not mean you are better than anyone else.  It just means you have a right relationship with God because of your right relationship with Jesus. Period.  The first rope God through out to us was Jesus. Right then and there He saved us from our troubles, whether we realized it or not.  The minute you grabbed onto that lifeline, you were made new in Christ. Your old self died and you were given a new life.

There is a situation in my husband’s and I’s life right now that seems literally impossible.  Prior to writing this devotional, I started a new journal. It’s dedicated completely to this issue.  I know we’re at the beginning of a very long battle. As my husband puts it, we’re starting to navigate through an asteroid field.  We’re going to get hit with asteroids we don’t see coming, but we’re praying we can arrive safely to the other side. We were hit with an asteroid already.  We will never make it to the other side of this project if God does not steer the ship. I’m crying out to Him before we even get started. I’m counting on His rope to guide us on our journey.

He’ll do the same for you.  Cry out to Him, grab onto the rope and enjoy the ride.  (And I’d write it down too. When you land on the Rock, you don’t want to forget the journey.)

“The Lord will fight for you; you need only be still.”  Exodus 14:14 NIV

This verse is found when Moses is leading the Israelites out of Egypt.  Pharaoh has realized that by letting them go he has lost of all his servants.  He gets in his chariot, along with 600 of his best men and takes off after them.  The Israelites start freaking out, asking Moses what has he done to them by taking them out of Egypt to die.  Moses says stop panicking, God’s got this. Just be still and watch Him do His thing. His “thing” was parting the red sea:

“But the Israelites had walked through the sea on dry ground, with the waters like a wall to them on their right and their left.”  Exodus 14:29 CSB

Now that would be a sight to see!  It woke the Israelites up to God’s power as they saw the “Egyptians dead on the seashore” (Exodus 14:30 CSB).  They finally “feared the Lord and believed” (Exodus 14:31). What is it going to take for you to believe God will fight for you, just as He did the Israelites?  Do you need to see the sea parted? Do you need to stand, surrounded by walls of water to believe God has your back? God can do it, He’s done it before, He’s made a way in the wilderness for those who trust Him, for those who walk with Him.

Or do you just need to stand still, be silent and wait? Even better, draw a circle.

Mark Batterson, in his book “Circle Maker” shares the story of Honi.  Honi lived in Jerusalem during 1st century B.C. He was known as a man of prayer, the land was in a drought and the people were desperate.  Honi had a reputation for praying for rain, the people were all counting on him. He stood up, drew a circle around him with his staff and declared:

“Lord of the universe, I swear before Your great name that I will not move from this circle until You have shown mercy upon Your children.”

Guess what?  It started raining.  Ever since I read the story of Honi, and the book, I’ve started drawing circles.  I “drew” a circle around the house we live in by prayer walking around it before we purchased it, asking God to give it to us.  When my mother was ill, a friend and I “drew” a circle around her house, praying and asking God to heal her. He did, He gave us 4 & ½ more years with her.  I have circles drawn now around things I’m asking the Lord for, some were drawn years ago. I’m still waiting, still standing in the middle of them. When I have the chance, I reinforce them with another circle.  I’m trusting the Lord to fight for me. I know He will because He’s done it before.

Stand still, draw a circle and wait.  You won’t be disappointed.

“Your road led through the sea, Your pathways through the mighty waters-a pathway no one knew was there.”  Psalm 77:19 NLT

Have you noticed how often the path God creates is one that You never thought of to take?  I’m sure when the Israelites were being led out of Egypt, they never imagined God would part the sea for them (Exodus 14:21 NIV).  Abraham never imagined Sarah would become pregnant at almost a 100 years old (Genesis 21:2). Annabel Beam never thought she would be cured by falling into a tree.

“Miracles from Heaven” is the 2016 movie that tells the story of Annabel. She was diagnosed with psuedo-obstruction motility disorder.  It means her small intestine wasn’t working; she couldn’t pass food through her digestive system. The movie spans the years from 2008 to 2012 when Annabel is diagnosed and treated for this condition.  There is no cure for it. It is a death sentence. The only option is to give her nutrition through a feeding tube. It is a movie worth watching if you haven’t seen it, because God creates a path to healing for her no doctor would ever prescribe.

On Dec. 29, 2011 Annabel and her sister Abbie are climbing an old cotton tree.  They are about 30 feet up when the branch begins to break. Annabel falls into the tree, presumed dead or badly injured by the firefighters who rescue her.  But she isn’t, not only is she not injured, she is completely healed from the deadly disease she had. As she tells her mother, Jesus met her in that tree. She says her soul left her body and God told her she would be completely healed when she returned to earth.  And she was. God created a pathway no one knew was there.

Miracles do still happen today.  Often they come along paths we would never imagine.  God promises, whatever you are facing, He will lead the way.  He will guide you through the sea on dry land, just as He did the Israelites.  It just might not be the sea you thought it would be. Have faith, He’s making a way for you, no matter what you’re facing.

“Blessed be the Lord!  Day after day He bears our burdens.”  Psalm 68:19 CSB

I love what the title of this chapter is in my Bible: “God’s Majestic Power.”  God’s majestic power to carry our burdens, whatever they may be. We all have them, some obvious, some not so obvious.  No one is without though; everyone is carrying a burden. God wants you to give them to Him. He wants to carry the load for you.  I’ve used it before, I’m sure I will use it again because I believe in its truth: “Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.”  Matthew 11:28 NLT

Sometimes, what we think of as a burden is actually a blessing.

I recently watched “Bohemian Rhapsody”, the story of Queen and its lead singer Freddie Mercury.  Freddie was born with four extra back teeth which pushed his front teeth forward. It was a constant source of embarrassment for him throughout his life.  It is one of the things he is most remembered for today. His burden was noticed immediately upon meeting him.

There was a moment in the movie when he is first getting together with the other members of the band.  He’s approached them about being their lead singer; the response he immediately receives is, “Not with those teeth, mate.” Having dealt with this his entire life, he already has a response: “I was born with four additional incisors. More space in my mouth means more range.”  Then he belts out a few lines and voila, the group is born. He was worth $60 million when he died in 1991, he never had them fixed.  Even though he struggled with embarrassment from his teeth, he truly believed it gave him more range. Whether it did or not, I don’t know.  What I do know that his daily burden was also a blessing.

God will carry our burdens for us daily, but we have to give them to Him.  If we keep them all to ourselves, life will get very heavy. When I am burdened and don’t know where to turn, I turn to Him.  I get on my knees and I pour it out to Him. I have done this so many times in my life, I am very familiar with the results. It doesn’t necessarily change the situation, although often times it does.  It always changes me. I always feel lighter when I get back up, knowing I’ve given it to the One who can do something about it. I know He will, because He always does. And oftentimes, those things I thought were burdens, they were blessings in disguise.