TIME FLIES

To God a thousand years is like a day. And a day is like a thousand years (2 Peter 3:8; Psalm 90:4)

Time flies when you’re having fun. That saying makes me wonder: 

Does that mean that when God’s will is being done more often than not; when we’re drawing near to Him instead of trying to do life on our own—that time is flying for God? At those times, to God is a thousand years like a single day?

What about those other times? Those times when I forget to pray. Or when I decide to pray later. And don’t. Those times when I see a need and look away, intending to extend the effort the next time—when it’s more convenient.

During those times, is God thinking that a day feels like a thousand years?

Fortunately, God is also patient and “slow to anger.”

If a day feels like a thousand years to God because we’re slow in getting around to doing things His way, how much better to turn it around so that God can think of us and smile, knowing that time flies when He’s having fun. And how much more fun for God when we hear Him calling for us to spend time with him; see His hand in our daily lives; listen to His Word and make it part of our heart for Him.

And for us…spending time with God means our time here on earth will fly until the day when we no longer care about the concept of time at all. When we have eternity to spend in His presence.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank you for your patience. Ignite our hearts for you and your plan today. Show us that spending time with you is good. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? What was the longest day in your life? Or the shortest?

G.O.D. IN THREE PERSONS

Don’t you think it’s great how the word God is made up of three letters? There’s one letter for each of the three persons in the Trinity. Was it a coincidence? Or is the word God a divine acronym?

G can refer to the GIVER OF SALVATION. That’s Jesus. I can pray to Jesus in gratitude for his sacrifice of becoming human for my sake; for living a life that is an example for me; for dying a horrible death in order to save my soul. Thank you, Jesus.

O can refer to the OVERSEER OF ALL THINGS. That’s the Father. He keeps the earth spinning. He keeps the stars from falling out of the heavens. He makes sure the plants grow, the tides go in and out, the rain falls. Thank you, Father.

D can refer to the DOER. That’s the Holy Spirit. As a Christian, the Spirit lives in me. And one way God works is through me. I am His hands and feet in this world as long as the Spirit guides and directs me. And as long as I attune my thoughts and actions to His. Thank you, Holy Spirit.

If I pray to God, I can remember to pray to G.O.D. 

PRAYER: Thank you, God for who you are and all you are doing in me and through me in this world. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? Do you pray more generally to one person of the Trinity? Why do you think that is?

A PROCESS IN COURAGE

As you know, my one word focus for 2013 is courage. I’ve been thinking about it a lot. I’ve been reading about it in scripture. I’ve been meditating on it. I’ve been listening to others. I’ve been writing about it and I’ve asked my writing colleagues in The Network to write about it when it’s their turn to post here at From Carol’s Quill. It’s in my heart and my mind.

Recently, God has led me to see a process in courage and beyond:

• God places in our hearts a desire: to do, to experience, to love
• He helps us dream about giving life to that desire and often gives us gifts or places people or circumstances in our path to accomplish those dreams.
• Insecurity steps in: I’m not enough, I can’t, I’m too little, it’s too hard
• That results in a sense of vulnerability: I may fail, be rejected, ignored, hurt
• This is the pivotal point in our journey. Sometimes we turn away. Give up. Abandon our dream. Ignore God’s leading. Be disobedient.
• And sometimes we decide to be obedient anyway. Even though we are insecure. Even though we are vulnerable. Even though.
• At that point God shows us that the attempt is worthy. Regardless of the outcome, the itself path provides experience. The process brings knowledge, wisdom, growth, empathy, strength. Courage.

God created me to desire and dream. He gifted me with talent or the ability to learn. When I proceed with courage in the process, I also leave the results to Him.

Insecurity and vulnerability become nearly irrelevant. Despite insecurity, I try and I do my best. I learn from my mistakes and get better each time I try. If I fail, I learn why and try again.

I may feel vulnerable, but even if I am rejected by people or ignored or hurt. I am never rejected by the God of the universe who stands at my side, pushing me forward, lifting me up, cheering me on.

In the end as well as through the process, God loves me. He is pleased at the trying. Results are important—even sometimes to Him—but the process is what causes learning and growth and it is the process that shines the light of obedience that makes God smile.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank you for giving us minds that dream big dreams. Please show us how to make those dreams a reality. Show us how to be obedient to you in the process. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU?  What desire has God placed on your heart that you are just now beginning to dream about?

OZ AND I: BEING DISOBEDIENT

“We don’t consciously and deliberately disobey God.”

Let me check the cover of the devotional I’m reading. Yes, it really is Oswald Chambers’ My Utmost for His Highest.

Is Oz cutting us some slack today?

I think. “I’m not disobeying God—on purpose. I can’t help it. I’m weak. It’s not my fault.”

We may hear other people speak God’s truth and conclude that they’re probably right, continues Oz, but it is easy to ignore people. So we do.

But by ignoring God’s truth spoken by others, we are ignoring God himself. When we recognize how we have ignored God, “we will be filled with shame and humiliation.”

Ouch. There’s the Oz we’ve come to expect.

How often have I ignored God by belittling His truth merely because it was spoken by people? Are believers of this age any different from the people 4,000 years ago who spoke God’s truth, inspired by Him and preserved in scripture?

It’s time again to hang my head, admitting that I deserve Oz’s head whacking, and asking God’s forgiveness when I’ve ignored His truth, spoken loud and clear by people He has placed in my life.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, we do love you and we don’t want to ignore your truth. Please open our ears and help us get out of your way when you use others to speak your truth to us. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? Have you experienced a time when you clearly knew that others were speaking God’s truth to you?

NOTE: This post was based on the devotional dated February 12.

FINDING COURAGE IN TRYING TIMES

This is a guest post by Joseph Lalonde. He is a youth leader at Oak Crest Church of God and leadership blogger at JMLalonde.com. Joseph shares leadership tools and encourages you to become a better leader. Connect with him on Twitter or at his blog.

Courage is an amazing tool. It allows us to move forward even when we're fearful of what's ahead. It allows us to overcome the obstacles that we set up for ourselves.

I want you to think about the last time you had to use your courage. Can you think back to a time when you had to do this?

Put yourself into that position again and examine what you had to do to build up the courage to take the action and defeat the fear.

Relive the moment. Let the situation sink in. I bet you'll discover you had to find the courage deep within yourself. 

Why Courage is Important

Courage is important for many reasons. When we have courage you're able to face difficult situations. We're also able to move ahead when we are unsure of what is ahead.

Without courage we might never take the actions to move forward in life. We'd also never take the steps God wants us to take.

His ways are beyond our understanding. You'll find yourself wondering what you should be doing next.

But when we have courage, we can move forward with the confidence that we can overcome the dangers ahead.

Finding Courage

Not everyone has an easy time finding courage to move ahead in life. I'm one of those people at times.

I look at situations around me and feel like there's no hope. No chance of coming out on top.

The times are trying and I'm not sure what to do.

This is what happens when I lack the courage and cannot find it. I'm brought down and become discouraged.

Yet when I find courage my outlook changes. I feel confident. I feel energized. I see excitement and adventure ahead.

I believe there's a way to find courage when we need it in trying times. I know I have and know you can as well.

There's two things that bring us courage:

Experience: There's nothing like having experience in a situation. When you've experienced an issue before and overcome it, you can see that there is hope for the future.

The hope then brings courage to face trying times. You can recall the moments of success and use those as stepping stones to take the next steps you need to take.

God: The other thing that can bring courage is God. We know He's going to call us to do BIG things. He does that to people. Sometimes I think it's to test us. Other times it's to show the world that God uses the least of these and the unqualified.

How can this give us courage when I just said He calls the unqualified? It's easy when we begin to look through the Bible and see what God has done.

He's called men like Moses. What movies like the 10 Commandments and the cute Bible stories overlook is the fact that Moses was a stutterer and had to rely on Aaron to relay God's message to Pharaoh.

Or take a look at Joseph. His brothers beat him up, threw him in a pit, had a woman accuse him of assault, and more. Joseph could easily have given up and lost courage. Instead he kept going because he knew God had a plan. He was able to stay courageous.

Focus on God's goodness and the fact that He wants you to be courageous.

Question: How have you been courageous in the past? Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.

DAILY MIRACLES

God hasn’t spoken from a burning bush lately. Or parted the Red Sea. And at the last wedding I attended, the water didn’t turn into wine.

But God is definitely still in the business of performing miracles. Maybe we just don’t notice. Worse, maybe we take them for granted.

Who keeps the stars up in the heavens? Who keeps the Earth spinning? Who makes sure the sun stays lit? God does. And he never stops making sure the universe is running perfectly. That’s a miracle.

He stretches out the north over the void and hangs the earth on nothing. (Job 26:7 ESV)

Who keeps the oceans within the shores? Who makes the rivers run through the countryside? Who showers the earth with rain? God does. And he never stops making sure that water and with it—heat—are transferred across continents. That’s a miracle.

But what about friends and family who are ill, who have a crisis of health? Can we trust that God will provide a miracle?

Yes, even if it’s not necessarily the miracle we want.

1. When God designed our bodies, He designed a miracle, set it in place and started it working. You have heard that our bodies are entirely remade—cell-by-cell—every seven years? Science refutes part of that, saying that our brains and hearts don’t regenerate—they continue to grow. But science agrees that essentially our cells die and our bodies then create new cells. And these new cells have the miraculous possibility of health and vitality. That’s a miracle.

2. And the part where science says our brains and hearts continue to grow? That’s a miracle too, because it’s our brains and our hearts that we need most in order to seek God and love Him more.

3. Our physical lives themselves are a miracle. A baby—a whole, complete and perfect human being where none existed before. It’s a miracle.

Psalm 139:14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.

After God set all the miracles in place—the universe, the Earth and our bodies, God then performed another miracle, bigger than all the rest combined. He temporarily set aside his divinity and his presence in heaven to become human for our sake. He took on the miracle of a human body, lived a miraculous life without sin, performed physical miracles for us to perceive and be able to realize his divinity. Then at death he was resurrected to give us the miracle of spiritual life in heaven with him. That’s a whole lot of miracles, all in the one life of Jesus.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16)

We’re not divine. We’re not able to touch the blind and give them sight or feed 1000 people with a whole-wheat muffin and some fish sticks. But our lives are miracles, nonetheless. And Jesus can use our lives to show his love to others so that they too can be children of the living God. That’s a miracle.

We praise God for the miracles He has done in the past, the ongoing miracles He set in motion, the miracles we are not even aware of and the miracles yet to come.

Want to be used by God? Want to let God perform miracles through you? It can happen, if only we believe and see the miracles happening all around and through us, every moment of every day.

10 + 1 Building Blocks Of Relationships: Security

So many times in relationships we get stuck in a rut. We keep making the same mistakes over and over and over again. This has a lot to do with personality, but also with our sense of security. Having a sense of security is the most important factor in taking a ho hum life filled with every day ok relationships to one overflowing with extraordinary vitality. Understanding security and where to correctly focus its sense of fulfillment that will take your personal growth and development to a higher level.

Generally, when we think of security in a relationship it can be represent by one of two factors, emotional or financial security. While we find both of these as factors in any successful relationship, their relevance is accentuated in our closest relationships. We find both of these in our closest relationship, the one we share with God. Unfortunately, when we look to other people to satisfy a need that can only be achieved by having a close, personal relationship with God we set ourselves and our relationships up for difficulty and even failure.

There is one key assumption to extraordinary relationships: Our strong, close and healthy personal interactions are at their best when we are compatible with the other people that we surround ourselves with.

If we are compatible with the other people in our close circles, and our lives are centered on the Lord, won't have to look too far to identify the key issues with security. At that point, it would boil down to our own insecurities, the topic of a complex psychological discussion that might be based on a number of factors including personality and events of our past. These insecurities can cause us to latch on to the wrong people for the wrong reasons, and away from extraordinary relationships.

How do I know if I have extraordinary relationships? Here's some insight:

According to clinical psychologist Craig Malkin, Ph.D., "people who feel more securely attached (comfortable being close to and depending on someone) aren’t just happier, but more likely to seek thrills like rock-climbing and parachute jumping and throw themselves into new situations and challenges, like meeting strangers and traveling overseas. And now, new research suggests that their sense of adventure may stem from a lust for life that security, itself, imparts."

I thought that was pretty revealing and refreshing.

Feeling safe and secure in our relationships is a key factor to leading a fulfilling life. (Click To Tweet)

A while back I wrote about some rules of the road for interaction in relationships that we shared at church. These are ideas that would help guard your marriage. While I continue to believe these are good, I also believe that in our closest relationship, in marriage or a committed relationship, if you are truly compatible with your significant other you don't need a bunch of rules to live by... other than maybe this list:

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7

There is an excellent book that we're reading together right now called The Love Dare. I would highly recommend it to any married couple or those in a long-term committed relationship. You will find out a lot about your significant other, and this book will help you build a rock solid relationship based on Biblical foundation.

Here are three factors that help provide a sense of security in a relationship:

- Time. It takes lots of time to really get to know someone well. Be patient and enjoy the adventure of exploration.

- Trust. I'm a firm believer that the only way to find out if you can trust someone is by trusting them. Maybe think of this as taking baby steps in learning to walk... slowly... steadily... listening and learning along the way.

- Authentic Communication. Eventually the real me is going to show up. We can avoid a whole lot of drama if we're just being down to earth... unless we're really just looking for something other than extraordinary relationships. Then, by all means, Bon Appetit!!

Where do you find security in your close, personal relationships?

BEST LAID PLANS

 

As many of you know, reading Oswald Chambers’ daily devotional generally doesn’t lull a person into a happy, peaceful mode of solemnity. Rather, his words charge forth within your brain, moving at locomotive speed into your heart and causing painful bouts of "OK, I’ll work on that. . . . Help!"

But this morning's devotional hit a happy chord in me because it resonated with a refrigerator prayer I had up all last year. A refrigerator prayer? You know. The ones that are so weighty they are set in place of utmost importance in our home—the door of our fridge.

I had taken down that prayer at the first of the year—thinking perhaps I knew it well enough no longer to need its reminder.

But several blog posts and scriptures and now Oswald have brought it back to mind. My refrigerator prayer was this:

God, please fill me with excited expectation for what you have planned. Amen.

Today, Oswald reminded us to "live in expectancy that God will show up" but not necessarily as you would assume He would.

Recently a Yiddish axiom on Facebook got me thinking: If you want to make God laugh, just tell Him your plans.

Too often we make plans and ask God to bless them. Sometimes He does because—coincidentally—our plans also happen to be His plans. But often, we make plans and struggle when obstacles thwart them. 

Our plan may be good. Our plan may be well designed. We may work hard to achieve it. Our plan may even be godly and intended to glorify God.

But it just may not be His plan.

Much better to let God do the planning and then jump on His train as He chug-a-chugs forward to successful completion.

And while we’re on the train, we need to expect God to show up. He may not be the engineer. He may not be the conductor. He might be the little old lady sitting in seat 12 B of car 15.

Or the guy swinging the lantern in the caboose.

Or the man on the platform selling snacks as we wait for the rest of the passengers to board.

"Live in expectancy that God will show up."

I think I’ll stick my prayer back up on the fridge.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, please fill me with excited expectation at what you have planned. Amen.  

WHAT ABOUT YOU? Do you recall a time when your best plans—plans you created to glorify God—turned out not to be God’s plan after all?

MORE PRAYING NAMES

Each month I create prayers for people we love based on the meaning of their names. These names are then added to the ongoing list at the tab to the right titled, "PRAYING NAMES."

If you don’t find the name of your loved one listed, please leave a comment below. I’ll research it and create a prayer for a future month.

Dennis: god of wine; mountain of Zeus

Heavenly Father, I pray that Dennis will live the meaning of his name. I pray he will remember the true God and that you live—not on a mountain—but are everywhere in this amazing universe. I pray that Dennis will be reminded of the many miracles that you performed on earth, Jesus, beginning with the very first miracle in Canaan—turning water into wine. Amen.

Edward: protector; guardian

Heavenly Father, I pray that Edward will live the meaning of his name. I pray that he will live his life as a protector and guardian of his strong faith in you and that he will seek to aid people who need protection from evil in this world. Amen.

Martha: lady

I pray that Martha will live the meaning of her name. I pray that she will live with graciousness and kindness to all, reflecting the graciousness and kindness that comes from you. Amen.

Roxanne: star, bright, dawn

I pray that Roxanne will live the meaning of her name. I pray that she will illuminate the world around her and that her light will be a reflection of God’s love to mankind. Amen.

STEWARDSHIP OF GOD'S WORD

An heirloom is generally a possession that has intrinsic and/or sentimental value and is handed down from generation to generation. Sometimes an heirloom is a piece of furniture, jewelry, china, books, photographs or papers. Usually there is a story behind the item or at least a name of the original owner and who they were in the family tree.

I have become the protector of many of our family heirlooms, but it is my husband who has taken responsibility of the one of the most precious heirlooms of all time: God’s Word.

Our very most precious heirloom of course is Jesus. As believers, we have been adopted into God’s family. We have inherited salvation through our belief that Christ died for us. And by godly teaching and example of right living, by explaining our faith and testifying to it, we can pass that faith from generation to generation.

That heirloom is true and beyond value and although it can be felt and understood, it cannot be touched or held.

But God’s Word can be—in the form of the Bible.

That is where hubby comes in. In our safe, we have several versions of God’s Word. Some of the Bibles were printed before 1800; some after. Many have been enhanced with glorious illuminated script; others with minutely detailed black and white etchings.

Whenever hubby removes a Bible from the safe and shares it with a friend, he does so with reverence and care because, as he says, he does not own the Bible. The Bible belongs to God. He is merely its steward.

And so, the small collection of Bibles in our safe will probably be handed down from generation to generation within the Peterson family. But while we will maintain stewardship of them, they will always and forever belong to God.

As do we.

Praise God that our faith, our lives and everything we are belong to God. We are a living heirloom because we are part of His family.

PRAYER: Thank you Heavenly Father for everything in this world. Thank you for adopting us into your family and giving us salvation as our eternal heirloom. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? Is faith an heirloom that has been passed down through your family?

+  +  +

 

Today's post is part of the Christian Writer's Blog Chain. Our theme for November is "heirloom." Please click on the links to the right to see what my friends have to say about this theme.

THE "TO BE" ATTITUDES: THE PURE IN HEART

This is the sixth Beatitude:


Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God. (Matthew 5:8)




  



 
That which proceeds out of the man, that is what defiles the man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed the evil thoughts, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, deeds of coveting and wickedness, as well as deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride and foolishness. All these evil things proceed from within the man, and they defile the man. (Mark 7:20-23)


The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked. (Jeremiah 17:9)

How can we be pure in our hearts when they are filled with filth and sin? How can we be pure in our imaginations, in our thoughts, in our words, in our decision making, and in our desires? How can we think what God thinks, will what God wills, desire what God desires, hate what God hates, and love what God loves?

We know that God looks at the heart rather than at our appearance, behavior or achievements. We do not need education, business success, social position to please God. How then can our hearts be pure?

We can't do any of these things on our own. We can't clean ourselves through self-denial or self help. The path to a pure heart begins with the understanding that our hearts are evil.


God must clean us. The pure in heart are free from evil desires and evil purposes. God has a plan to save us and make us holy in thought, word and deed. That plan is stated in Romans 8:29, that we are "to conform us to the image and likeness of His Son."

God's plan is to make us like his own Son, like Jesus Christ. His purpose is nothing less than that we be pure in heart just like Jesus Christ is.

How does God clean us? When we surrender ourselves to Jesus and put our trust in him, God will then give us a new nature and we become a new creation.

Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit within you. (Ezekiel 36:26-27)

As a new person, we can walk arm and arm with Jesus Christ on a road toward spiritual purity because:

 

It is no longer I that live, but it is Christ that is living in union with me. (Galatians 2:20)

This Beatitude tells us if we are pure in heart then we will see God. Not only will we see God as we pass into heaven, but we will see God right now spiritually. The pure in heart will see God’s glory in everything.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank you for cleaning us up and giving us a pure heart. Please Holy Spirit, guide our lives and keep our hearts sparkling clean and pure like Jesus’. Please help us see your glory, Father, in all things. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? Do you have a technique or reminder to keep your focus continually on Jesus?

DISCOVERING WHAT'S IN YOUR GOD BOX

CW Today’s post is part of the Christian Writer’s Blog Chain. The theme for October is "discover." Please click on the links to the right to read what my friends have to say about discover.

　

…then I saw all that God has done. No one can comprehend what goes on under the sun. Despite all their efforts to search it out, no one can discover its meaning. Even if the wise claim they know, they cannot really comprehend it. (Ecclesiastes 8:17)

As much as we cannot comprehend what goes on "under the sun," we have a harder time trying to comprehend what goes on "above the sun." In heaven.

Oh, to know God completely! Wouldn’t that be amazing?

Of course, we can’t define God. We can’t completely know Him. We can’t explain His plan or see it from our human frame of reference. Even if God allowed us to know Him completely, our feeble human minds would probably explode with the glory of it all.

Still, it would be nice to be able to define God. To write out a thorough and complete description. To put that description in a box; label it "God" and set it on our shelf. What a reassurance. What a thrill in the knowing. What a divine blessing.

"Do you want to know God?" We’d show our friends our God box and lift the lid. "Look, this is who God is."

They’d see and believe. Souls saved. Heaven enriched for eternity.

But would we get it right? Could we ever understand, much less describe God in words? Doubtful.

But does He mind us trying? Probably not. He gave us those imaginations, after all. And surely He loves that we try.

So we’ll keep trying. We’ll keep reading scripture and praying and seeking God. Even when we arrive in heaven and see Him face to face, He’ll still be completely unknowable. But imagine…what an enormous box the saints must have sitting on heaven’s shelf!

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, we seek to know you. Please understand that we only try to define you because our hearts long to know you more. Please show us as much of your character and your glory as we are able to understand in this life. But please keep our hearts yearning after yours. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU?  Do you have a God box?

GRAMMAR 101: TO BE

God knows grammar. And uses it correctly.

"I Am," God says.

It’s about verb use and infinitives. The infinitive "to be."

I AM
You ARE
He, She, it IS
We ARE
You ARE
They ARE


In God’s grammar lesson, He is the I Am, but He wants us "to be." To be like Jesus.

• We are to have that attitude.
• We are to live that attitude.
• We are to BE that attitude.

You've read the Beatitudes. Some of you can even recite the "Blesseds" in order. But I never quite "got" their depth. Never fully understood why being poor, meek, and persecuted would be a blessing.

For the next eight Fridays then, let’s look at each of the Beatitudes. What do they mean? What could they mean to us? How can they help us BE the person Jesus wants us to be?

How can we make the Beatitudes our TO BE ATTITUDES?

It’s just Grammar 101. But perhaps they will take—at least this gal’s attitude—closer TO BE what Jesus desires. TO BE more like Jesus; so that while He is the great I AM, I can be the little I am.

Class starts next Friday. Come early. Get a front row seat—on the floor. I’ll be there with you.

At the feet of Jesus.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, you have so much you want to teach us. We have so much we need to learn—about your character, your desires for our lives, how you want to change our attitudes. Please prepare our hearts each day for what you want us to learn from this one earthly life you have blessed us with. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? How about sitting down this week and reading through the Beatitudes? They’re over at Matthew 5:3-10.

COLLECTING CHANGE

A Widow's Mite

This post is part of the Christian Writers blog chain. Our theme for September is "change."

Please follow the links to the right to see what my friends have to say this month.





Ever watch the movie Sahara? Dirk Pitt (Matthew McConaughey) is off searching for Civil War gold in the desert of Africa. At one point, his friend Al Giordino (Steve Zahn) points to the gold coin in Dirk’s hand and says,

"Hey, you know my dad collected ancient coins, from Rome, China, Siam, Persia… somehow they all ended up in a shoe box in New Jersey."

Ancient coins are valuable to us today. A single worn bronze circlet—pocket change 4,000 years ago—might fetch a thousand dollars from a collector of antiquities. No matter that it was of little value back then.

I like to imagine God as an eternal collector of antiquities, gazing down at us from heaven. He’d point to us with love, saying, "This one is old and worn; but it is precious to me."

And one by one, He’d gather up all of our old and worn out souls—not to be kept in a shoe box in New Jersey; but to sit at his feet in glory. Bright and shining in His presence. Beyond value. Of incomparable worth.

I’m old and worn. A bit ragged around the edges. Not worth much in today’s standards. But praise God! I’m precious to Him and He was willing to pay the ultimate price to add me to His eternal collection.

Remember on those days when you feel like a widow’s mite and thinking of those treasures in heaven: You’re one of them.

Thank you, Jesus.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank you for looking at us as worthy of the ultimate price Jesus paid for our salvation. Thank you for gathering us unto you and securing a place for us in your heavenly treasury. Thank you that even if we are old and worn, we still shine brightly in your eyes. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? Do you collect coins?

VERY COOL!

August 31. Yay!

As much as I dislike the fact that my life seems to slipping down the water slide at turbo speed, the end of August couldn’t come soon enough for me.

Sure we still have some 90-degree days in store, perhaps through October. But psychologically, August ends the summer heat and ushers in the coolness of Autumn.

There are those of you out there—you know who you are—that enjoy the heat. But really, what are you thinking? In fact, how can you think when your brain is sizzling?

In truth, I praise God for His plan for our world; for creating weather patterns that transfer heat, cool temperatures and water from one place on this great planet to another.

I praise God for creating variety—the changing seasons; the coolness of early morning and late night with the warmth of daytime in between.

I praise God for giving weather that soothes each of us in whatever way He created us to enjoy it.

And as we end August and look to cooler temperatures, I praise God that now, He’ll start making the weather just for me!

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank you for variety in all things—especially in people. Remind us that variety is good. Remind us that your plan is good even if we don’t understand it, because you are good. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? Are you a crazy person who likes heat? It’s OK, God loves you anyway…[smile]

THUMBS UP!

image: plantswap.net

Do you have a green thumb?

I used to think I did; but lately I seem to be buying more replacements for my window garden than usual. And I’m wondering if there’s something I should be doing differently for my poor little green babies.



I set them in the sunshine; angling the blinds just so—filtered light; but not too much to burn their tender leaves.

I water them each week, letting the water run through the pot but not letting the poor plant roots sit in the drainings.

And since my garden sits behind the kitchen sink, there’s plenty of humidity from the dishwashing and cooking pots nearby.

I also have a handy pack of Miracle Gro. The stuff that makes things bloom and grow.

God also has a bag of Miracle Gro; an enormous bag. Sometimes He sprinkles it tenderly from heaven. Other times I think He dumps it all over us. Whatever His technique though, it encourages us to bloom and grow in Him so that when ultimately we leave this life, we become part of His eternal harvest.

We may not be able to see the face of God, but one thing for sure: we know His hands. They’re the muscled hands of a carpenter, pierced for our sake and with brilliant green thumbs, growing us into His likeness.

PRAYER: Thank you Jesus that you were born a carpenter but became our eternal harvester. Thank you for never giving up on growing us into your likeness. Thank you for your harvest. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? Do you have a green thumb?

RSVP

When I sat down to write an article on this month's Christian Writer's theme "celebrate," procrastination took over. So I did some laundry, had lunch and flipped through the latest catalogue from Oriental Trading Company. There you can find everything you ever need (and more) to make your party the perfect celebration.

I mean, really, what's not to love about plastic coconut bras to wear at your luau and a blow-up giraffe print cooler for your safari sodas?

I'm serious. What's not to love?

If I'm having a party, I need a theme; a focus; something to hang my menu and decorations on. As my book club ladies know, that's the first thing we settle on after we select a book. What sort of foods and decorations go with the book selection?

'cuz it's just more fun that way.

When it comes to eternal festivities, God is the super party planner. His theme in a word? Opulence. Look how He handled the heavenly décor—golden streets, pearl gates, white robes all around. Man, that'll be something to behold!

And that’s just the decorations. There’ll be piles of food—fruit from the tree of life, unlimited bread and fish and of course, barrels of water-turned-to wine. Or maybe—since it’s heaven—it’ll be champagne.

There’ll be live music (castanets, harps, lyres, timbrels, sistrums and cymbals), dancing (David will lead) and golden bowls filled with incense.

Just about everyone will be there. Will you?

RSVP as early as possible.

R repent
S be saved
V voice your praise
P pray

Then…party on!

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank you that we have so much reason to celebrate. Thank you for the true reason to celebrate—your gift of grace and mercy through Jesus. Thank you for the invitation to the greatest celebration in eternal history. We send our RSVP “yes!” today. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? How do you plan your earthly celebrations?

Please click on the links in the right hand column to see what my friends have to say about our theme, “celebrate.”

GOD'S LIBRARY

And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. (Matthew 24:14)

It doesn’t matter how many times characters in a book mess up; how many people disappoint them; how many of their dreams crash and burn. If there’s a happy ending to the story, it’s a good book.

God’s library has many books. They all fit inside one binding we call the Bible.

It is filled with characters who mess up; people whose loved ones disappointed them; whose dreams crashed and burned. They were all people who loved God and were loved by Him. People just like us.

It’s comforting to know that the people God chose to imortalize in His books are mess ups; with disappointments and dreams gone bad. It’s comforting to know God loved them anyway and never gave up on bringing their hearts back to Him. It’s comforting to know that He included them in His happy ending. 

And that He then included us.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, please remind me that I’m just like the characters in the Bible. Just like them, I’m imperfect and I mess up. Remind me though that you love me enough to have written me into your Book of Life and have included me in your happily ever after. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? Who’s your favorite biblical mess-up? What lesson have you learned from him?

PURSUIT OF THE HEART

The theme for the ChristianWriters.com blog chain this month is “pursuit.” Please click on the links in the right hand column to see what my friends have to say about our theme.

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We know God wants us to have a love relationship with Him. But I used to think of God as a gentleman, who “stands at the door and knocks;” not as Lord of Heaven and Earth who takes the time to actively pursue me.  

I hung my thinking on the verse: Draw close to God and He will draw close to you. In other words, I had to do the first drawing. 

And I still believe that when you take a step toward God, He takes a step toward you—a giant step even though mine are tippy toes. 

One of my friends taught me to readjust my thinking. She regularly requests prayer that God pursue the hearts of her loved ones.  

When I first started praying that, it felt unnatural. Our loved ones, I thought, had to take the first step. 

But I’ve come to realize that God, as in all things, is proactive. Yes, He stands at the door of our hearts and knocks. But He doesn’t just knock once and leave. He stays there and taps lightly and whispers. Sometimes He pounds and shouts. Other times he rings the doorbell. 

Because the Lord of Heaven and Earth pursues our hearts in every way He can. 

So now I too pray for my loved ones who do not know Jesus; for people I know casually; and for myself as well—that God will pursue our hearts. 

As much as I already know and love Jesus, I want to know and love him more. I want Him to pursue me in ways He never has before.  

God, please pursue my heart and the hearts of us all. 

God, please open my ears to hear your knocking. 

God, please strengthen my hands to open the door and let you in to the deepest parts of me.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, we want to know and love you more. We know also that you want us to know and love you more. Please pursue our hearts every day for eternity. Amen. 

WHAT ABOUT YOU? How have you felt God pursuing your heart?

THE 10 + 1 BUILDING BLOCKS OF RELATIONSHIPS: ACCEPTANCE

Welcome again to my guest Chris Vonada. Chris begins the meat of his series on the building blocks of relationships. Go to his blog www.chrisvonada.com and become a regular reader. 

The 10 building blocks are delivered in alphabetical order (with the exception of "+1", it is last for a reason, more on that later...)...  however, there is no coincidence that Acceptance is up first.

Acceptance, to me, is the most fundamental building block of any relationship.

There are different levels of acceptance, or favorable reception, for sure, depending on the relationship that we're talking about. Certainly we would maybe feel the need to unconditionally accept one of our children more than a co-worker. And, depending on their behavior, we may find certain actions of other people more or less acceptable, depending on how close we are to a specific individual. But is that really right? Certainly I can and should choose who to let into my life, in close proximity. That would be a very wise thing to do. But I do believe one of the two greatest commandments is to "love your neighbor as yourself", right? And yes, that would be unconditional love... and acceptance, for sure. That's acceptance on a pure level, not judging or saying what's right or wrong, but just that it is. Accepting the God-given beauty in another individual is a blessing that you can give them. That's seeing everyone exactly as Jesus would.

In a closer, more intimate relationship, for two people to accept one another something else has to happen even before acceptance...

We have to be real... we have to be ourselves. We have to be comfortable in our own skin.

If I don't really get to see who you are how can I accept you? That works both ways :-)

Here's the kicker... the buy-in, if you will...

If we're going to open up to someone we have to have trust... but how do I know if I can trust you?

"The best way to find out if you can trust somebody is to trust them." - Hemingway

Basically this is it: You have a choice to make... and then you have to take a chance.

For the sake of this post, I would like to use the example of building a close, intimate relationship with someone... remember, baby steps are fine when it comes to building a relationship.

And if we're going to be real we may have to review or think about the concept of self-acceptance as well, another pretty deep thought... the jist of this one... I have to be real with me in order to be real with you.

Acceptance, in a close relationship... here's the bottom line: I HAVE TO BE ABLE TO ACCEPT YOU EXACTLY AS YOU ARE. There is no point in me trying to change you for my sake. That's just silly. If you want to make positive changes yourself, that's excellent! You can count on me for encouragement and support (like how I threw these 2 other building blocks in here... hee hee!).

Once we get real... and we see the real person on the other side of the candlelit table... or the conference room table, if we're talking about a co-worker here... we have to be willing and able to accept the other person.

We can look to God's word to find wisdom here...

In Hebrews Chapter 6, verses 13 through 20, God is showing himself to Abraham... that His very nature is the truth and the promise of unconditional acceptance, or approval, of us... exactly as we are. If He is OK with me just being me... the one who knows everything about me... how many hairs I have on my head... down to my every thought and what is really in the depths of my heart and soul... yep, if God is OK with accepting me just as I am, knowing everything about me... why wouldn't I want to be real... open, honest and sincere... and just be myself so you can really see who I am... and then make your own decision about accepting me?

"Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, He confirmed it with an oath. God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us may be greatly encouraged. We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure." Hebrews 6: 17-19.

God's promise gives us truth and acceptance. We don't have to worry that they may one day be a change in plans. It's not going to happen. Acceptance really gets down to the core... the truth... building a significant bond... in the most significant way... when we're real.

So if I'm on board with this relationship... and you're being yourself... you don't have to worry... you are accepted. It's a done deal... just that simple!

How do you express acceptance to someone close to you in your daily life?




(Read more of Chris' posts at ChrisVonada.com )