Lessons Remembered From the Back of the Bike…Marriage and the Journey

Posted on January 23, 2015 by Joy In My Journey

It was an excursion of many miles.

We drove through sun and storms along many terrains – some smooth and easy, some rocky, steep, and rough while others were jarring, almost treacherous.

Yes, there were far more dangerous trails, far more difficult roads; but I had to deal with my own reservations for the ones we navigated – some paved, most gravel, and many just wide enough for us. Several times I was tempted to say, “This is too hard; too scary.”

But the reality was, I didn’t want to get off. I didn’t want to miss the adventure, the majesty, the soul soaring delight even in the unknown.

To get to some of the most breathtaking views, we had to cross adrenaline pumping, heart pounding terrain. There were narrow roads and sheer cliffs, winding pathways that gave way to slippery slopes.

And there was beauty.

The joy was in the journey as well as the destination alongside the man I have loved these many years, but I had to get beyond my fears and trust him to choose well for us, to take us where he knew we could go safely.

But I also had to trust God to bring us over and through those things he might not see or know; and I called out to the Lord and sang songs of praise from the back of the bike and smiled knowing He was directing our every mile.

Such is marriage.

Every marriage goes through changes in moods and circumstances, the smooth and easy paths as well as the steep, rough roads; times of laughter inducing smiles and moments of difficult tears and gut wrenching sadness. Periods of sweet peace and unity and times when the chasm created by two sinners in need of grace feels enormous and the weight of it is jarring.

And sometimes one or the other might whisper, “This is too hard; too scary.”

But, as with our mountain adventure, we don’t want to miss either the journey or the destination.

We know that.

We just want someone to smooth the rough spots so we can get to the beauty of marriage!

We want someone who can take our moments of brokenness and create beauty out of mistakes made, words spoken too quickly or too harshly, self-focused pride.

The joy is that we have One who can and does; our hope is in God alone!

The promise is that, in Christ, we have all we need to pass through the hard; to deal with our own sin and the sin of the other, to forgive and be forgiven.

Our fears are assuaged by His mercy and His hand brings light to dark places.

It isn’t always comfortable and the heart may pound as He chips away at each one’s selfish roots; painful and glorious all at once.

His goal in growing two into one is bigger than just a beautiful marriage; that is an amazing by-product, a gift.

His greater purpose is to make us more like Himself, knowing and loving Him more deeply and humbly submitting to Him, becoming all He created us to be.

But it doesn’t come without some discomfort, some shaping that is outside our comfort zone.

From there we are able to love our spouses better, more as He intended.

As we grow in our relationship with God through Jesus Christ, He changes us and causes us to set aside our self focused agenda, to forsake all others and to love, serve, honor, and cherish the one to whom we made our vow, to the glory of the One before whom we made our vows!

“Marriage is about learning how to love selflessly by learning to know the One who loves sacrificially. Marriage is about covenantal love. It’s about a love that stems from the much greater, more intense, and immensely more pure love of God. Marriage is one way God refines us into people of holiness, and makes us aware of His unconditional grace and love. Marriage has more to do with eternity than we ever fathomed.” (FierceMarriage.com)

On the back of a motorcycle, riding the roads of Colorado, I thought often of how an adventure such as this, blended with much excitement and some risk, parallels the adventure of this “holy refining,” this mystery called love that draws two hearts to become one in marriage.

There are terribly frightening spots at times, but the revealing of the mystery is worth it.

I love spontaneity, but I also like knowing what’s ahead. Call me schizophrenic, but the two can actually co-exist!

Every morning in the mountains, as we set out on our next exploration, I wanted to know, to some degree, what I could expect. That was often something that was frustrating to my husband who would set a course and not wonder what was around the next bend until we got there.

Would there be sheer cliffs on narrow, rocky paths where I would enjoy looking up and out but not down or would we simply be traveling on wide, gravel roads with spectacular vistas that I could take in at any angle?

Sometimes things changed or, while we knew the destination, we didn’t completely know what the means to get there would entail and I had to rest. I had to learn to sit back, enjoy the journey, trust my “driver,” and relish the excitement and the grandeur while taking any fears of the unknown (or known) to the Lord.

Such is life in our place called “home.”

I have one who has chosen me for his bride; who has promised to love and protect and I willingly choose to trust that he will. But we still need to take our marriage, each other, and life in general to Jesus, moving forward but sitting back and trusting.

Too easily, we can fear the “what ifs” and miss the “what is.”

We find an unexpected opportunity and we take it or we make plans and move towards them; either way, there can be unforeseen happenings ahead, but we can look at the days without fear when we walk them together, knowing Who holds us and each one of those days.

When in the majesty of the mountains, I could have chosen to focus on the fear of some of the places or I could have complained about the places we didn’t go or the flaws of the places we did; and I would have failed to see a myriad of delights big and small!

I could have missed the simple but completely wonderful evenings of staring up at the sky where a million stars danced above us, a cool, crisp morning sipping a cup of coffee with the one I love in the shadow of a magnificent mountain, or even short little walks hand in hand across the campground late at night.

Simple moments yet some of my sweetest memories.

In our day to day, we can miss the treasure of the ordinary, the delight in the daily alongside the one to whom we said, “I do.”

We can look beyond what is right before us and miss the delight.

We can nurse our unrealistic expectations and fail to recognize the treasure in jars of clay.

We ask God to “give us this day,” but when He does, too often we are so busy looking for the “next big event,” the extraordinary that we miss what He’s given us in this moment as well as who He has given us and what He wants to do with our “ordinary,” with His gift right by our side.

We could have complained when we locked ourselves out of the trailer late at night or when various little incidents rose up to steal our joy. But, instead, we faced them together. We even laughed at some of them in the moment, all of them later.

Admittedly, a few of them caused our self focus to become pronounced and we squandered those times in frustration. But God is a God who redeems, who buys back wasted moments and uses them to strengthen us at the time and prepares us for what’s ahead.

It’s the stuff of which memories are made and stronger bonds are forged; it’s the training ground for the bigger moments, the more uncomfortable disruptions!

Back in our little corner of the world, life comes at us in various ways and again threatens to steal our joy! But when we choose to face them, putting them in the hands of our Father who knows us so well and is using “all things for the good” of we who “love Him and are called according to His purpose,” we can laugh at life’s little interruptions and hold on to Him and to one another in the big ones.

We can shake our fists at the meager attempts of satan to take our eyes off the One who is not caught unaware.

We can choose joy in spite of circumstances or emotions even if we have to choose it, even fight for it, daily or minute by minute!

“Weeping may last for the night; but joy comes in the morning!” (Psalm 30:5)

Up on Yankee Boy Basin for the second time, this time in the truck, we kept climbing higher and higher and being more amazed at the grandeur of God’s incredible creation!

We went up one way and chose to come down another, just a little off the first path. The road was impassable; damage to the undercarriage of our truck would occur if we proceeded. We couldn’t get down without “making a way.”

He got out and moved the rocks around, placing them in such a formation so that the broken places could be restored and our tires had a firm place on which we could move forward towards even more beauty!

Ultimately, we continued back down the trail again basking in the wonder of all that was around us.

God always provides a way out of the desert, of the impossible path, out of the “no way out,” out of temptation and, with that provision, a firm place to stand. He calls us to act and, thus, to help make the foundation stronger, firmer.

Sometimes we remain in the impossible for more than a season – sometimes because of our own choices and other times because we live in a fallen world. Even there He is with us making a way even if it is not the way we would have chosen.

Sometimes He simply calls us to that different way or provides a way out and tells us to step out in faith and take it. “Do the next thing,” as Elisabeth Elliot wrote.

“So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.” (I Corinthians 10:12-13)

Just as on the mountain road where we thought we had a firm place to drive but came upon a broken place in the path; in marriage, we have to keep our eyes open, aware of the potential broken places ahead that would threaten to take us off the path and derail our marriage.

We aren’t to do so fearfully; rather, we are told to ask God for wisdom, discernment, eyes to see, and feet to run when they need to run!

Then we get the freedom to run together along that steadfast path, laughing as we enjoy the view!

As we followed the roads out west on the motorcycle, I was surprised to see how many riders wore no helmet. It’s not the law there, so they chose to experience “freedom” instead of protecting themselves for what might lie ahead and, should a wreck occur, would likely cost them their life.

Helmets are a must for us, and we have also included headsets to communicate with each other along the way. Both have their place in making our journeys not only safer but also more enjoyable. A reminder of setting up safeguards and always keeping communication open.

Another thing that caught my eye on the Million Dollar Highway was the lack of guardrails as you careened up and down and around the mountain passes, twisting and turning.

A friend who grew up in the area said that, driving that stretch, she would often see cars and trucks who had plummeted over the side into the deep canyon below. They thought they could handle the pass, maneuver the turns but they either had gotten too close to the edge or, ill prepared for danger of the sudden steep grade, their brakes had failed.

.Marriage needs protection.

The culture shouts the wrong kind of “freedom” even within marriage; freedom to think more about ourselves than our spouse, freedom to make our choices completely independent of each other, freedom to fill our time with things that are contrary to strengthening a marriage and that can make us discontent, freedom to develop lives apart from each other and set us on a course for disaster, freedom to be unforgiving; freedom to dismantle the guardrails that are intended to slow us down and remind us of God’s design for this holy union, this “oneness” that must be treasured, nurtured, cherished, and shielded.

Marriage needs safeguards and shelters.

Marriage needs honest communication without deceit, without cleverly crafted “almost truths,” without guile. Trust cannot be built or rebuilt on anything less.

Praying with and for each other, protecting time each other, holding each other accountable, having other friends who are committed to God’s design for marriage with whom we can have mutual encouragement, learning to say no to self and finding ways to build the other up, each growing in the grace of God and their relationship with Him, each putting a hedge around their minds and hearts that keeps out whatever sets itself up against a strong and safe place for the two.

Grounded and established in the Truth of God’s blueprint, guardrails in marriage, as on a mountain highway, won’t keep us from falling over the edge; but, if we choose to keep our distance, as is their intention, we can avoid more than just the inevitable fall.

We can actually make the journey smoother, the ride less fearful, more delightful, and far more fulfilling for both and for those we encounter! They will be as a hedge of protection from significant spiritual and emotional injury not only to the marriage but also to each individual, even as preparing for the steep places and a helmet will protect a driver from injury or death.

In the weeks before we left, it appeared that many situations were coming together that might make us have to cancel our trip.

We were more than disappointed in the thought as we had been thinking of and planning for this anniversary celebration for so long!

We dug in and fought for that time!

Hubby spent extra hours over the weekend and at night getting things finished at work so nothing would be left undone and we could take off on our adventure!

I made arrangements that would clear the road on my end. A few things still loomed and we had to make some adjustments, but we didn’t let that keep us from making it work out!

We changed the days, but we didn’t give up on what was important to us – our long planned time together!

Marriage is like that!

It is worth fighting for, worth making adjustments for, worth the rugged climb at times.

The person to whom I said I would “love, comfort, honor, and keep in sickness, and in health, for better and for worse, forsaking all others so long as we both shall live” is worth fighting for!

Marriage to the one to whom we have devoted our lives is important enough to do whatever it takes because the “we” of marriage is worth it!

Many things, circumstances, and people and our own selfish desires will vie for our affections, our time, our attention; but by God’s grace, we will fight and stand with and for each other.

We will honor each other by continuing to develop trust; trust that is achieved through honesty, through transparency; laying our souls bare before the other because we can trust they will be nurtured and kept safe.

Truth, no matter what the cost even to our own pride, expressing itself in love. No walls, no deceptions. Completely bare no matter how vulnerable it makes us feel.

When we fail each other (and it will happen), the one who offends must be quick to, in humility, ask for forgiveness and leave the offense behind them; the one who has been in the wrong must not continue in it. Likewise, the one who has been offended must intentionally choose to forgive, the sacrifice of love, and walk with the other to wholeness.

Both will act in the power of the One who equips us to live and love by grace!

Our time in the mountains was, like marriage, a collection of moments; various experiences, people, and places. Moments that were thrilling but also those that made us step back and take a deep breath. Blended together, they created a grand design.

“Marriage is a mosaic you build with your spouse. Millions of tiny moments that create your love story!” (Jennifer Smith)

A true love story will not just be made of beautiful, carefree moments.

A true love story will often be forged over time, grounded in Christ through both the tender and tense, the ordinary and extraordinary.

A true love story will often go through the fire, the grit, the terribly uncomfortable, but, as far as it depends on us, it must not stay there.

How we respond to them will determine how beautiful or broken the mosaic will be.

I’ll be on the back of the motorcycle again, behind the one to whom I entrusted my heart so many years ago; and, as I do, I’ll stop and be thankful that I get to keep taking our life journey alongside this man, thankful that I get to show him again and again the fierce heart of a woman who loves him, trusts him, and is ready to walk every road with him; thankful for the privilege of being his bride, able to share all that we are, all we are not, and all that comes our way together as we daily recommit to and strengthen our marriage in our one sure and unfailing foundation which is Christ Jesus, regardless of the terrain!

“You cannot love a fellow creature fully until you love God!” C.S. Lewis

“I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine.” Song of Solomon 6:3

Your Kingdom Come

Posted on November 6, 2014 by Joy In My Journey

Circumstances.

They bring joy or sorrow. They are fleeting or constant. They change and can threaten to undo us emotionally, physically, financially, spiritually.

We may be laughing one minute; wringing our hands the next. We can feel peace and turmoil all within the same hour.

We are told not to worry, but how do we steady ourselves? How do we maintain our joy? I have often spent time in the Word of God, talking to Him, and asking just those questions.

For God has indeed created us to “glorify Him and enjoy Him forever,” but He also created us to be relational people living between the “now and the not yet.”

And when, in the course of being human, pain comes either from a broken relationship, a frightening medical diagnosis, a wait that takes longer than we would choose, our own choices or choices of ones we love that cause heartache, or other scenarios that lead to sorrow, we often ask how we can glorify Him and enjoy Him in the midst.

But it is in laying that hurt bare, unashamed before our God who sees, in total need of His grace, that we begin that journey to joy regardless of the circumstances.

At times, I am able to rest well in the arms of my Savior, to lay myself and the burdens and idols of my heart on the altar as a living sacrifice and say, “They are yours, Lord; I give them and my striving to ‘fix’ the situation up to You.”

But there are other times I find myself either trying to “crawl off the altar,” as Pastor Randy Pope has said, or pull back those loved ones or circumstances I have given over to the King of my heart as if I can make something good happen in fashioning them according to my design!

No, there is only One who, by His grace, can make something beautiful out of stifling situations or bone wearying loss and, it is when I find my joy in the hope of Christ in me, of Christ working “all things for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose” that I can, once again, let it go into the hands of the One who can do immeasurably more than I can think or ask – each time a little longer than the last.

And that is growing in grace; when we rest a little better, strive a little less, and trust a little more with each situation. We are growing more and more into the likeness of the Son!

God’s Word stands!

While it is good and helpful to have the Word of God set before our eyes on the wall or desk so we can commit it to our hearts, they are not simply nice little sayings to put on a Pinterest craft.

They are the very words of God “alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, penetrating even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; judging the thoughts and attitudes of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12)” and “God breathed…useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16).

When I focus on the circumstances around me instead of focusing on the joy set before me, I tremble much; fear and worry threaten to strangle my joy and hope in Christ!

God doesn’t mind our wrestling, but He longs to hear His children humbly cry out our deepest longings, fears, and pain; for He knows our hearts better than we ourselves do.

He longs to hear us say, “I believe; help my unbelief, Lord.” (Mark 9:24)

He is not surprised by our humanness and our lack of “wholeness.” But, ultimately, He desires for us to grow in that wholeness, to grow in that holiness. He desires to take us in His arms and bring comfort even when He chooses not to settle the storm that rages, when He calls us to wait and then wait a little longer, or when He allows things we don’t understand to continue or to find their conclusion in a way we would not have chosen.

God does not call us to deny that pain exists or to stuff our emotions. But that pain and those emotions are often His way of driving us to our knees, breaking through our self reliance to send us before the throne of grace, humbly but also boldly, because of the work of Christ on the cross and our relationship with Him!

“Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” (Hebrews 4:16)

Paul gives us the example of one who cared deeply, even agonized over the people he loved; and then He left them and the events swirlings around him in the hands of the One who alone can change hearts and circumstances.

“Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears. Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified.” (Acts 20:31, 32)

“For I wrote you out of great distress and anguish of heart and with many tears, not to grieve you but to let you know the depth of my love for you.” (2 Corinthians 2:4)

It’s often a matter of where I allow my heart to dwell – on my circumstances or on my Savior. If I hear the promises of God yet continue to say, “I get that, but…” I am never satisfied, which leads to a deeper heartache.

But if I keep reminding myself of the truth God has given me and made known time and again, I may not “get it,” but I can say with confidence, “I may not ‘feel’ your presence or understand your ways, but give me a heart of wisdom, a heart that trusts You more, Lord, even if I cannot ‘see’ what You are doing in the middle of it all.”

Richard Rohr says it well. “To pray and actually mean ‘thy Kingdom come,’ we must also be able to say ‘my kingdoms go.’” My hands are open, Lord. Help me let my kingdoms go so Yours can fully come. I wait in expectation!

“But courage, child: we are all between the paws of the true Aslan.”

C.S. Lewis, The Last Battle

From Wrestling to Rest

Posted on October 8, 2014 by Joy In My Journey

Our God sees.

Our God knows.

Our God reigns.

Our God never changes.

Our God is immovable.

Our God is the God of all comfort.

Our God is not surprised by our circumstances, our choices, or our wrestlings.

Our God upholds us with His powerful right hand!

Our God is a consuming fire and a quiet Peace!

Our God is our Rock and our Fortress!

Our God lifts us from the muck and mire of wounded hearts and broken spirits.

Our God devastates our little kingdoms to give us an inheritance in His greater kingdom.

Our God pursues us when we run and gently holds us until we are still, resting in His embrace.

Our God redeems.

Our God restores.

Be still.

Know.

He is God.

A Life Well Penned

Posted on September 5, 2014 by Joy In My Journey

Life.

It is a story in the making.

How and by whom our story is written makes all the difference in the world.

Often, we believe we can write our own, unhindered by the counsel of others or the wisdom of God.

That is always to our detriment.

Or, as we compose our narrative, the intersection of lives causes our own to be edited; at times for the better and for our joy, at other times, to our loss, and, sometimes, both.

But our hearts and lives are always shaped by those with whom we share the page during our lifetime.

For the follower of Christ, we know it is God who is the “Author and Perfecter of our faith,” but also the Author and Perfecter of our stories.

For some the ‘plot’ is more erratic as He seeks to woo and restore scribbles on the page. In other cases, it may be more direct with less intense editing necessary; but always, each one, in need of the Redeemer.

One thing we who are in Christ can be sure of is that, even if there are changes to our pages that come our way unexpectedly, they never take our Father by surprise. He intricately weaves the joy and the pain together, sometimes restoring what has been lost and sometimes gently prying our fingers from it, a beautiful tapestry.

It is an illustration of exquisiteness, from disorder to delight.

It is as if the scribbles of a child on a page become elaborate calligraphy – extravagant beauty and clarity to our hearts – as He causes “all things to work together for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28) regardless of the outcome.

It is the promise for those who are His own.

As God writes our stories, there are times He does so in ways we pause to wonder why the “plot” would take this turn. But, because He is our all knowing, all loving God, we know that He is working in us and preparing us for the rest of the chapters.

Some surprises are comfortable; some are not. But every “word” comes from His heart and the very fingerprint of God, that palm; that same palm that demonstrated the greatest love, sacrificial as it was. And He will weave every circumstance for His glory and for a greater joy and good in our lives than we can even anticipate!

I love lyrics to music; they often verbalize my life story or my response to it. Several songs draw me back to the reality of God’s ultimate, perfect control even when my life or the lives of those I love are seemingly not being written the way I would have authored them.

“The God of Every Story” by Laura Story is one of those. He is, indeed, the God of every one of our stories and can be trusted to complete the good work He began in each of His children (Philippians 1:6).

Ultimately, I know that whether or not I always “love” the way my narrative is being completed, I am thankful that the One who knows me best and has already seen the end of my novel is the One who is preparing my current chapters and the ones ahead of me!

He’s the God of every story; He sees each tear that falls.

We may not understand but one thing is certain.

He is faithful, He’s a faithful God.

His ways are higher than we could ever comprehend.

When our world is shaking, He holds us in the palm of His hand…

You’re the God of every story no matter what I’m going through.

I may not understand, but You are God and I am just a man…

I’m forever trusting in Your plan.

One thing is certain;

You are faithful, You’re faithful God!

(Laura Story)

When God Shouts, There Can Be Laughter and Joy!

Posted on July 25, 2014 by Joy In My Journey

Sometimes I listen well.

Sometimes God needs to get my attention.

Sometimes God shouts!

Today He shouted!

It wasn’t in anger. It wasn’t in chastisement. It was from the tender heart of my God Who sees, Who knows my weaknesses, Who knows my sometimes fearful heart but Who loves to pull me close, steady my heart, and remind me of Who He is and what is true.

In the wee hours of the morning, I woke up and couldn’t go back to sleep.

Fear.

The things that were waging war on my mind are real, but they are not outside the hand of God; they are insurmountable only as I try to, in my mind and often actions, fix them or worry them into submission.

But in the hands of my Redeemer, they are just instruments to chip away at my control and self-sufficiency and point me back to the true King, the true Salvation, the true Peace! He is doing HIS good work, not my own, in each circumstance and person.

After what seemed like hours (and may have been), I asked the Lord to help me stop “thinking,” to be my rest so I could sleep; I eventually drifted off.

The morning light came and with it evidence upon evidence that God heard my cries in the night. He listened to them, and He has been shouting all morning long, “I love you! I am not caught unaware! I am still on my throne and I am still making all things new! You may not see, but ‘Be still and know that I AM God!’”

Circumstances may not have changed in the world around me or in my world as I rose out of bed, but they are known and being sifted through the hands of our very good God.

And, even as I write this, I laugh and also cry tears of joy that my God is faithful in all things and loves to point His children to that truth again and again as a reminder…if we will just get still and ask Him for eyes to see and ears to listen.

So may I share just how He did it on this one particular day, while recognizing that He does it so often?

Sometimes I am listening but other times I miss His still small voice as well as His shouts!

In preparation for getting everyone off to their day, I headed to the kitchen. Before I had my first cup of coffee, God was already putting things in front of my eyes to strengthen my heart!

First, came a morning Twitter notification over my phone from Kevin DeYoung (While I don’t get notifications for all, I did have specific people who I know write truth and I want to see it when they do so I set it for such)!

“To start the day without prayer is to suggest the devil is feeble, God is irrelevant, and we can handle things on our own.”

After which God brought Psalm 5:3 to my mind, “In the morning, LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.”

And again, the Word hidden my heart came to my head, “I have set the LORD always before me; because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.” Psalm 16:8

That first cup in hand and waiting for my son to come down for work, another friend’s reminder…

“Say to those with fearful hearts, ‘Be strong, do not fear; your God will come … He will come to save you.’” Isaiah 35:4

I hurriedly grabbed my Bible and opened it to Isaiah 35 and read more. That was prefaced with verse 3:

“Strengthen the feeble hands, steady the knees that give way” and THEN, “Say to those with fearful hearts, ‘Be strong, do not fear; your God will come!”

Feeling a little more refreshed and with a knowing smile on my face, I saw an opened devotional. No surprise…I was beginning to expect God was having “fun” with me that morning!

“Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord.” Exodus 14:13.

I read on and couldn’t help the tears of joy that fell as I realized the Lord was holding me in His arms and saying, “Keep listening child; I’m speaking to you and always will! You just need be still!”

“These words contain God’s command to the believer when he is… brought into difficulties. He cannot retreat; he cannot go forward; he is shut up on the right hand and on the left; what is he now to do? The Master’s word to him is, ‘Stand still.’… Despair whispers, ‘Lie down and die; give it all up.’ But God would have us put on…courage, and even in our worst times, rejoice in His love and faithfulness… Precipitancy cries, ‘Do something. Stir yourself. To stand still and wait, is sheer idleness.’ (It says) we must be doing something at once—we must do it so we think—instead of looking to the Lord, who will not only do something but will do everything….But Faith (in the One true God)…hears God say, ‘Stand still,’ and immovable as a rock, it stands. ‘Stand still’;—keep the posture of an upright man, ready for action, expecting further orders, cheerfully and patiently awaiting the directing voice; and it will not be long before God will say to you, as distinctly as Moses said it to the people of Israel, ‘Go forward.’” (Charles Spurgeon)

And, as if that were not enough, as I was pulling up that devotion to share in this blog, He continued to pour on the encouragement and challenge,

“So don’t lose heart. Have the same kind of confidence as the widow (in Luke 18). Pray with the confidence, not that precisely what you’re asking will be given, but that God will give what He knows is right. Perseverance is less about getting what we want, and more about believing that God hears us and will provide what we need — which is oftentimes something we have to grow into, especially when we ask, full of good intentions…God is never bothered when we pray by faith. Never. And perseverance is trusting this truth, as we keep asking for what’s right as far as we know, until God does what is right — either by giving us our desire or correcting it.” (Keep Praying that Prayer by Jonathan Parnell, Desiring God)

Coincidence? No, you see God has said that His Word “will not return to (Him) empty, but will accomplish what (HE) desires and achieve the purpose for which (HE) sent it.” (Isaiah 55:11)

He has also said in Jeremiah 33:3, “Call to Me and I will answer you and tell you wonderful things that you did not know!”

And He has promised that when we call out to Him, He hears and responds. “I call on the Lord in my distress, and He answers me.” (Psalm 120:1)

So He sent a variety of people who had no idea how what they shared was going to be used but who were faithful to do so.

Equally true, He has used the Word stored up in my heart that He alone can bring to my mind as I need it; His words repeated back to me, to encourage, strengthen, equip, and calm His child!

I honestly laid it out to Him I wasn’t battling those fears well but that I needed to hear His voice and have my heart and mind redirected.

And as I stand in awe that the God of the universe who loved me enough to redeem me through the work of His Son, Jesus, on the cross would also choose to speak to my heart and steady my “feeble arms and weak knees,” He reminds me yet again, “Be still and know that I AM God; I will be exalted among the nations. I will be exalted in the earth.” (Psalm 46:10)

And He takes me back to another time long ago when concerns weighed on my husband and I as we talked while driving around town with our then just two small children at the time.

From the back seat came a little voice. I can still hear; our then three year old daughter singing “I cast all my cares upon You; I lay all of my burdens down at your feet. And any time I don’t know what to do, I will cast all my cares upon you.”

It was His voice through hers then and now, a child singing faithfully with steadfast, solid truth from I Peter 5:7.

My confidence is in the fact that “He who began a good work in you (and me), will be faithful to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 1:6)

He is isn’t weary of my wrestling. He isn’t shaking His head saying, “Do I have to remind you of My faithfulness again?” No, He is carrying me to completion, gathering me in His arms, and reminding me in a myriad of ways that He is faithful, that He hears when we call to Him, and that He answers even if our fainting hearts sometimes cannot or do not hear.

So I “go forward” even as I am praying that I will continue to learn to just “be still” and rest in Him rather than look at circumstances beyond my control.

The conclusions to the “details” of life that can cause my heart to tremble and grow weary may not be my timing or my ways, but my God is indeed making all things new, beautiful in His time and according to the riches of His grace.

He is amazingly writing my story, with its twists and turns, within the greater story of His redemption from creation to His return.

This Adventure Called Marriage

Posted on December 31, 2013 by Joy In My Journey

It was the best of times. It was the worst of times. And, in between, the ordinary days that make up “life.” That’s the adventure of marriage that I have shared with this man beside me.

And I am thankful!

The beauty has not been in the perfection, for it has been a blending of two sinners, saved by grace, but sinners indeed.

The beauty has been in the commitment despite the imperfections. The joy when life and relationship have been relatively easy and smooth but also the joy of reconciliation when selfishness of one or the other or both has disrupted the flow and caused the two to forget the “feeling” of love.

We live in an age where people “quit” everything when it gets hard, when it no longer satisfies them, or when the next “new thing” catches the eye and causes the heart to race in a different direction.

Sadly, marriage has been a victim of that same mentality.

Hurt feelings, “self awareness,” “outgrowing” each other, “boredom,” or just plain lust has led to the mantra, “the thrill is gone and so must I.”

My heart grieves for those who are there not of their own choice or have been the one in a marriage trying to put it back together, trying to selflessly show mercy and grace to another who has already checked out and moved on.

Yet, I have also witnessed two again made one; marriages restored and made beautiful through the fire.

And, over these years, I have been honored to walk this road with one who took his vows before God seriously, one not willing to “quit” when times were difficult or emotions were raw.

I am thankful!

Thirty years ago today, I married the man who surprised me with the offer of a first date, who chose to live and work for a summer in a city that he wouldn’t have chosen just to continue his pursuit, who laid out his heart’s desire under a starry night and asked if one day I might join him, who slipped a ring on my finger some months later and asked me to walk by his side for the rest of our lives wherever God, who brought us together, would lead us.

Thirty years ago today, we stood in the presence of the Lord and made vows that we would be joyfully bound to and which would hold us fast in the years ahead…even when joy was a choice not the emotion that was necessarily felt.

And we walked down that aisle to the adventure of commitment!

You see, he promised to love me regardless of feelings or circumstances and I entrusted my heart to this man.

We pledged to fight for our marriage instead of against the other.

We determined to never use the word “divorce” as a weapon or even in joking because we had seen and have seen that word used as a weapon becoming a spark which has ignited a massive fire of destruction.

He gave his word to protect my heart and to guard our marriage.

I am thankful!

Together we have enjoyed sweet times of refreshment in the big adventure moments and in the steady pace of daily life and learned to enjoy each other’s presence even when no words are spoken.

We have shared laughter and wiped away tears.

We have had the romantic moments, the ordinary, and the hard.

Through sickness and health, richer and poorer, we have soared on mountaintops and weathered storms.

He has stroked my head and held my hand in some fierce battles of fear when illness came and when my emotions ran deep.

He has drawn me up close and asked for forgiveness when he has wounded me with actions or words.

We have come together and been restored after other times when both of us dug in our heels stubbornly and the “feelings” of love were negligible, sometimes with tears and sometimes with laughter at each of our own childishness.

Repentance before the Lord and the one offended is the path to healing an individual and forging a deeper bond in marriage.

I am thankful!

Blessed with three children we both love fiercely, we have battled through differences of opinion in “how” we should raise them in different circumstances all the while showing a united front.

The times we have tried to each do it our own way have never proven positive and we have had to return and restore that unity, coming together before the One who is more than able! And we have come together before the throne of grace to ask God’s grace over these children, now grown, entrusted to us for a time and yet always, in a sense, part of who we are.

I am thankful!

Our hearts have been knit together over time watching God, who called us both by name and made us His, continue to complete the good work He began in us as individuals and as two made one.

And that is it – time!

It didn’t happen overnight. Both of us have had moments where faithfulness and commitment had to take the lead so feelings could follow.

Each of us has, at times, had moments of such great discouragement that the one had to hold the other up.

If we were to measure a marriage and determine its course by the emotions of a single moment, it might not appear to be healthy or even worth fighting for because in some moments, the depth of discouragement can be great. Indeed, those single moments have devoured many.

When you drop those instances in shallow bucket of a few months or years, they can seem to fill it with tears and raw emotions; but when you drop those same instances into a deep bucket of time, unless one chooses to draw them out of the depths, gaze upon them, and fondle them to stoke the fires of disappointment, hurt, and frustration, they do not stand out in bitterness but rather blend in to shape, flavor, and grow the whole with a soul satisfying thankfulness.

It is those moments, when put into the hands of our Redeemer and left at the cross, that can actually cause the foundation of a relationship to strengthen over time instead of crumbling under our feet.

I am thankful!

Our bucket is deep and I look forward, by God’s grace, to it getting deeper.

He has brought us thus far and I rejoice and am glad.

But I also rest in the surety that while we are still growing individually and as one in Christ, with teachable spirits and forgiving hearts, together we will continue to fill that bucket with increasingly grace-filled moments that nurture and strengthen not just ourselves but those that God weaves into our lives as well.

Thirty years.

Yes, I am thankful!

“It is Finished” Begins at Christmas

Posted on December 23, 2013 by Joy In My Journey

Restless…

So many things threaten to “undo” our peace.

Sometimes it is sin committed against us, sometimes our own sin unconfessed; sometimes we grieve loss of various kinds in a world turned upside down; sometimes we watch or are the prodigal sprinting to a supposed “safe place,” a place of assumed comfort, only to find it is anything but calm. And sometimes it’s obedience in a long direction. But though that “delayed obedience” may take a winding path, when it ultimately returns to the Truth, the enemy of our souls cringe. And sometimes it is loving unbelievers bent on denying the reality of Christ or believers who confess the name of Jesus but think and live like it makes no difference; yet we do not compromise our words or actions to appease and “make nice” but firmly speak truth out of a great love for them and for our Savior. And a tremble can be felt.

We are setting holiness in motion; allowing God to reign and work. The enemy can wound our spirit, make us uncomfortable, insert sadness, stoke discouragement, or prompt tears.

But He cannot destroy us.

We can have rest.

“The weary world rejoices” and so can we as we set our minds on “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy”and not let the lies penetrate our soul. Pain is real but so is the Savior who has promised peace for the brokenhearted, a way of return for the runner, rest for the weary.

Sin does not have to separate any further. No, we don’t always follow perfectly, but we are in this world to be Christ’s image bearers, light shining in this generation, and we have been given the power to overcome. When we fail (and we will), we can run to the Savior and humbly go to those we have wounded or sinned against and make it right. We can admit to those who have witnessed our failure and cynically thought, “Well, there you go – I see there’s really no difference in a follower of Christ”and we can live as one changed. For the difference is not in us; it’s in our Savior.

We have not only the obligation but the privilege of laying it down and reminding the watching ones that our hope is in Jesus and our desire is to become more like Him daily, to increasingly want His will not ours, and to understand and live out the beauty of His holiness a little more with each passing day and year. And by His grace, we have that One who forgives us, picks us up, embraces us, brushes us off, then sends us out to “go and sin no more.” We are great sinners, but we have a greater Savior! (paraphrased from John Newton)

And so, there are times we will have a settledness in our souls and times when restlessness will haunt us; but, for the follower of Jesus Christ, we are at peace with God through the finished work of His Son, who came as babe on a silent night, crashing through the barrier between those who bear His image and our three times holy God, devastating death there on the cross with “Tetelestai” – “It Is Finished!” The condemnation of our sin is paid for, defeat by discouragement has been decimated, and we, who long for the Savior’s return, keep “working out our salvation with fear and trembling” so that we are growing deeper in His truth and in His love, able to enter that respite and “shake off our fears.”

And it all began on that no so silent night!

We long for His return even when we feel too attached to this world. This is Christmas! The longing for Jesus to break through darkness and discouragement, hold us near to His heart, and equip us to rest even when circumstances cause our spirits to sometimes faint, even falter!

Christopher West says it well, reminding us of the reality of hope we find even in our weariness: “This is the Christmas story in a nutshell: The Infinite One has wed himself to our finite humanity. This is what we’re preparing ourselves for during Advent. And this is why Advent is a time of desire: The bride is longing to be filled with the eternal life of her bridegroom. And so she cries in union with the Spirit of God: “O come, O come, Emmanuel.”

And Emmanuel has come. It is finished!

Repairing Burned Bridges

Posted on November 6, 2013 by Joy In My Journey

God’s grace given and received repairs burned bridges, dismantles bitterness, and restores peace to the soul.

I love the times when God gives me the grace to step out of my comfort zone so He gets the glory.

Sometimes that involves a task for which I don’t feel equipped.

Sometimes it means reaching out to someone either I know dislikes me, for reasons real or imagined, or to someone I have hurt or who has hurt me.

Either way, it is taking God at His Word and watching Him do “super abundantly more than I can think or ask!” (*Ephesians 3:20)

DSCN1470 crop

The enemy of our souls loves to make us fearful of situations and to take wounds we have received and nurture bitterness in our hearts towards others. He loves to feed our insecurities and/or our indignation.

But God says, “If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.” (Romans 12:18)

Not peace at any cost.

Not peace at the expense of Truth.

But where we are able to take that step and allow God to repair bridges that have been burned by hurtful actions or words; where we can say “Please forgive me” or “I forgive you,” that is where the healing begins not only for the other person but for ourselves.

And that is where God is glorified.

Our God shows His power in our weakness.

He urges us, by His grace, to act and asks us to respond to His promptings.

Will we ignore and choose to feed our resentment or our apprehension?

Will we justify our response?

Or will we, in humility before the Father, act according to His Word and reap the blessing of obedience?

Sometimes that blessing will come in the form of a healed relationship and sometimes it will be realized in the peace God gives simply because we have said, “Yes, Lord” and left the ultimate outcome to Him.

Recently, fear almost got the best of me. I encountered an acquaintance who had become angry with my husband and I over a situation that we had not intended but had since taken measures to correct.

I knew I needed to speak – God made that clear and I was willing…until she got closer; then fear started to creep in and my desire to avoid the possibility of her anger again almost took over.

I began to justify my hesitance with thoughts such as “What does it matter now?” and “Why put myself out there; we are only acquaintances not friends.”

But the Holy Spirit’s nudging continued and I moved towards her. What ensued was nothing less than more of God’s superabundant mercy.

Understanding replaced anger; a common ground replaced fearfulness.

A burned bridge was rebuilt with a steadier foundation.

I could have turned the other way and continued to nurture an attitude that probably never would have hurt the other person, for truly our paths rarely cross.

But the reality is that the attitude left unchecked would have changed me. My self protection would clearly have been contrary to God’s call to “See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.” (Hebrews 12:15)

It seemed like a hard obedience, but it became a gift for us both.

Even if her response had not been positive, it would have been good because responding to what God says in His Word is always the better way.

The enemy of our souls loves to take that which we leave unfinished, the small “root of bitterness,” and from it create a chasm by way of an unloving and unforgiving spirit.

Whatever part we have in the smoldering bridge, we must bring it to the cross and let the grace of God change us rather than let it slowly burn, eventually touching even our closest relationships.

There will be times, as has been the case before for me, that apologies will not be accepted, that another will not allow a pathway to be rebuilt, that the relationship will not be restored. But that is the “as far as it depends on you” part of Romans 12:18.

As we act in obedience and ask God to bring the healing and restoration as only He can, we are also modeling the grace of God before the other.

It is not our responsibility for them to accept that outreached hand, but it is the call from our Redeemer to us to offer it.

And, if the bridge is restored, we are to be the one to take the first step across and walk towards another for God’s glory and our great joy!

“Only love for Christ has the power to incapacitate the sturdy love for self that is the bane of every sinner, and only the grace of Christ has the power to produce that love.”

Paul David Tripp

Caretaker for the King

Posted on August 2, 2013 by Joy In My Journey

Sometimes glimpses into the past give us a renewed vision for the present; sometimes they are reminders of what we know is true.

As I have been culling through a multitude of papers and journals in an attempt at reorganizing, I have read quotes from the mouths of my little ones, now grown; I have laughed and cried at the memories.

Reading old journal entries of my own, I am reminded of the joy and the struggle that came from being a new mom and from later years when it was a new phase in the role which I had grown to love and cherish and for which, it grew increasingly clear, God’s grace was much needed.

In the midst of the reorganizing, I found this piece, “Caretaker for the King,” which I wrote when we had just two…a third would come along a year and a half later. I decided to share on my blog as it is my heart’s desire to encourage parents in the trenches now and remind those of us with children now grown (and still growing), that these things remain true. Our roles may be different, but our purpose as parents is the same.

I am no one extraordinary per se. Whatever my children become, whoever they be – they are the Lord’s and I am a caretaker for the King.

That’s not to say that being a caretaker is not challenging or unimportant. On the contrary, it is probably one of the most monumental, overwhelming yet fulfilling challenges I could ever face.

But in the moments when I hold on too tightly or allow my children to become “idols,” I must stop, step back, and refocus. A caretaker needs care as well, refreshment from the King!

For when my heart and eyes are on the “chaos” that sometimes surrounds life with little ones, I grow so weary! Yet, when they are on my King, I am a more effective caretaker in all ways.

God has equipped them, provided each one with talents, gifts, and unique personalities. Our job is to nurture a love for Him and for His Word, to teach them a right fear of the Lord, and to help them develop that which He alone has instilled and is still unfolding in their lives for His glory!

We seek to direct and guide based on the infallible truth and guidance we receive in God’s Word but which will always come through fallible hands – our own.

We are to model the character of our King for our children so they will believe what they hear – in part, because of what they see in us.

Mistaken at times.

Failing too often.

Yes.

Living between the now and the not yet, the frustration of my failures is, at times, overwhelming. But God’s grace covers so much! And through our foibles we are able to point the way to a merciful, forgiving Savior – the only perfection – and His power to grow us and make us more like Him.

Our two children – and soon to be three – have been given to us but for a time which oh so rapidly speeds by. I want to redeem the moments, each small in and of themselves, but the multitude of which make up life and are immense.

Tyrannized by what “must be done” or by what the world says I “deserve” to do for myself, I often miss a teachable moment – for them or for myself (for sometimes, they are my “teachers”).

To use these moments for God’s glory and their good or against God’s will and to their detriment — that decision is important and is made daily. The task is rich and made possible only in Christ’s strength.

How will God use them – their talents, abilities, gifts, personalities, understanding?

Will they live their lives and use those abilities for His honor, for the fame of King Jesus?

However He may choose, may we be caretakers who encourage them to seek that goal, to press towards it, long for it, strive after it, and achieve all for the glory of the King and for the souls of men!

May we teach them well, taking great pleasure and joy in being caretakers of these little lives for Him who is our Redeemer!

And, when that times comes in their own lives and little ones arrive at their feet, their own “mission field,” may they be equipped and humble before the Lord, to also be caretakers for the King, for the next generation‘s children of the covenant.

Finding Freedom Together in Leaving Some Things Behind

Posted on July 17, 2013 by Joy In My Journey

IMG_0113 manual Opportunity has never been greater.

Hope and true healing, not just lip service, are needed now as much as, if not more, than ever. We are urged in I Peter 2:11, “as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul.”

The headlines speak of a world giving into and even increasingly embracing ungodliness. We have the occasion, then, to use it as a springboard for the unbeliever as well as for the believer.

For the one unredeemed by Christ but in unity with the Word of God about the issues of the day, we can point to the fact that “’There is none righteous; no not one” (Romans 3:10) and “all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). We all need the redemptive work of Christ.

Many unbelievers and believers alike justify their own sin as “not as bad as…” because so many, even in the church, are engaged in the same instead of, as Jerry Bridges says, “confronting the sins we tolerate.”

For the redeemed believer, we have the opportunity to speak the truth in love and call them to repentance, to a victory in Christ over sin that a person has long resigned themselves to as being insurmountable and unbeatable. We don’t sell just ourselves short; we sell our Savior short when we believe we either can’t be free of it or we can’t be forgiven for it.

But truly, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” (Galatians 5:1) We are not to be bound to the world’s perspective on God’s truth, to a false view of salvation, or to the sin from which we now have the power of God to say “no” for a greater “yes!”

Sometimes, we simply love sin too much; we grasp it with white knuckles because we don’t know how we ever could or we don’t want to live without it. We are afraid to be “aliens and strangers,” to be “set apart” as God calls us to be – not legalistically and in an attempt to earn salvation, but because of what Jesus has done for us and because God calls us to be in the world not of it, to be “transformed by the renewing of our mind” through the Word of God, not “conformed to the patterns of this world.”

Ultimately, we are hesitant to live out the grace we have been given as a response to that gift, that redemption! Being “odd” because of our obedience sometimes feels too great a price to pay…but is it?

God, who created us, knows us better than we know ourselves, and thus knows how life is best lived. He also knows that to live otherwise is to set ourselves up for a battle against our soul and a longing that is never satisfied.

Among some, we are glad to be courageous and to be different. On certain issues, we will boldly declare “This is what God’s Word says; live it” or “This is right and good, do it.” On matters of little significance, we will be resolute. But on some issues and among those we want to please, those whose approval and love we seek, we are often silent.

Trying to wait for the right moment and words so they don’t come across offensive, our words remain unspoken.

Where there is need for accountability and speaking the truth in love, we back down for fear of alienating or being rejected.

But that is the enemy’s lie. Yes, we need to consider our words and the timing, but more specifically we need to ask ourselves whether we are seeking God for the right time to say the hard things or whether we wait because we don’t want to face the possibility of being rebuffed.

None of us like rejection, but God’s Word tells us that when we do “speak the truth in love” (and that includes motive and literal words), “we (will) grow up in every way into Him who is the head, into Christ.” (Ephesians 4:13)

It’s not a matter of do we want to; it’s a matter of will we do what we are called to do?

Do we love someone enough to gently but firmly point them to the truth so their lives can be changed by the redemptive as well as the transforming work of grace in their life?

Do we then love enough to walk with them through their wrestling and restoring process?

Will we ask the hard questions as we humbly acknowledge our own sin and struggle, laying ourselves bare for the sake of another who has chosen to be wounded by sin, not once but on an ongoing basis?

The Bible says when we do, we will grow in Him, through Him, and by Him as individuals and together; His Spirit, not us, does the miraculous work of restoration when we are faithful.

Maybe we have rejected someone in the past because they dared to speak the truth to us, and so we fear that what we did to another will be done to us? It may be time to lay that burden before the Lord as well and seek the forgiveness of the person to whom we refused to listen.

Perhaps we will be rejected for a time. God says that may happen, but if we obediently do what we are told to do, not rashly or harshly but prayerfully and out of a deep love for the other person, how rich the reward if the other responds in repentance and, by grace, is drawn more deeply first to the Savior and then to us.

Our prayer must first be for the Holy Spirit to cover the conversation, that the other person’s heart will be soft, for our words to be full of love and acceptance yet seasoned with salt which may sting for the moment but also bring healing, and for the redemption and/or freedom of the other from a slavery to a sin held tightly for so long.

The tentacles of that sin may have become so entangling, it may be hard to break free, and it may be frightening to consider what breaking free will mean for a time; the wounds that have come from them may have left scars so deep. Yet, no entanglement and no scars are too great for the Savior to heal and we all need to hear that and be reminded of that truth!

Will we believe the promise of God’s grace for them and, perhaps, for ourselves?

For it is possible, as we face the sin of another that the enemy wants to remind us of our own failings, our own ensnaring sins either in the past or that we still battle and have yet to fully lay down. Or maybe we still allow the enemy to condemn us and we do not think we can speak to an issue where we have failed. “But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!” (I Corinthians 15:57)

What a blessing to let God redeem our past failures, not to condone another’s sin but to bring His healing for them in the present. When we are in open rebellion, choosing “what seems right to us,” and refusing to confess it and leave it at the cross, the conviction of the Holy Spirit is meant to bring us to repentance and the liberty found in that.

But when we have turned from sin and have been redeemed from it through the work of Christ on the cross, not continuing in a pattern of picking it up and playing with it, the enemy of our souls wants to rob us of the peace of Christ and remind us of our failures in an attempt to take our eyes off the finished work of Jesus and His daily transforming power in our lives.

The enemy’s goal is to make us ineffective and afraid to use that victory in Him to more and more often say “no” to sin ourselves and to lead others out of the same. “Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.” (2 Corinthians 7:10)

Oh the joy of leaving our past at the cross and our present failings at the feet of Jesus; how good and precious is it to do that with another believer rather than to bury it without true healing offered by the grace of God that forgives, frees, and transforms us and them.

“’Cause when we say ‘no’ to the things of the world, we open our hearts
to the love of the Lord and it’s hard to imagine the freedom we find from the things we leave behind.” (Michael Card)

^“For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome. For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” I John 5:3-5

“Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be the glory…” Ephesians 3:20-21

Joy in the Everyday

Posted on July 8, 2013 by Joy In My Journey

We celebrated in June…for a lot of reasons! Many birthdays and not just a few weddings! And with the celebrations have come so much joy and laughter.

With the birthdays, it wasn’t necessarily in the gifts given and received; though I loved giving and they loved receiving. Rather, it was the anticipation, the memories recalled, the new memories made of time together enjoying one another, and the recollection of God’s faithfulness in the past year and looking forward to His faithfulness, regardless of circumstances, in the year ahead.

And we celebrated many marriages with dear friends lately who were brought together with the ones they have now covenanted and pledged to live out their lives! These were times of reunion, laughter, tears, rejoicing, and, again, the focus on the faithfulness of God leading to the moment and the promise of His faithfulness in the days ahead.

Happiness, how we long for it!

Delight, how we yearn for it!

The various “delights” of life invade our many thoughts and energies and those given, ordained, and blessed by the hand of our Creator are very good.

Recent days have been some of those “big moments” of life; some might even call them defining moments, and the happiness is palpable!

But, oh the joy when we find our delight, not just in the big moments of life but in the every day, the ordinary.

How precious when we find wonder in the here and now even as we may await another big event!

How freeing to bask in the pleasure of God’s everyday graces!

Ann Kiemel’s words come to mind when I think about celebrating the ordinary days which make up life as we know it, and she has long energized me to think in the same way:

“And every day my mom would say, ‘Don’t you kids know, that life is made up of ordinary days when there is no one to pat you on the back?

When there is no one to praise you?

When there is no one to honor you?

When there is no one to see how brave and noble you are?

Almost all of life is made of these ordinary days.

And it is how you live your ordinary days that determines whether or not you have big moments.

Get out there and make something of your ordinary days.’”

I pray I never miss what God is doing and what He wants me to do with my ordinary days!

“And I know you’ve made the lame to walk
And caused the blind to see
But what You do with my everyday is amazing!”

Everyday Miracles – Sara Groves

God is More Than Able

Posted on June 27, 2013 by Joy In My Journey

“Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be the glory…” Ephesians 3:20-21

God is able. We know that. We don’t doubt it. We want our lives to reflect a deep assurance in Jesus so that others will know the God in Whom we trust. And yet, there are times we forget and allow our fears to overtake what we know and step off our firm foundation to a place of shifting sand.

It’s so easy to trust, when our eyes are fixed on Jesus and when we “feel” His presence. But when the winds shift and the waves get wild, too often we shift our gaze inward to self or outward to circumstances and we falter.

Can’t we, at times, relate to Peter, the disciple who boldly declared his allegiance to the Savior, yet later ran in fear when asked if he knew Him? It wasn’t his intention, but in the moment he hesitated. He had moments of both trust and the lack thereof throughout his life.

In Matthew 14, he boldly declared his faith by looking intently at the Savior and, thus, was able to walk out to Him on the water when Jesus said, “Come.” But when Peter began to focus on the raging storm around him, taking his eyes off Jesus and putting them on what he could see, he began to sink. It was Jesus who had to save him when all he could do was cry out; just as He is faithful to do for us when we call out in our weakness.

God lovingly commands His children to keep our eyes on Him – yes, because He is worthy and yes, because He is good! But it is also because God knows that we are only steadfast, confident, and able to stand firm when our eyes are completely fixed on Him through His Word, the Bible, and our daily, even minute to minute, communication with Him through prayer.

These aren’t legalistic rituals or “spiritual” exercises to soothe the soul on the service. Rather, it is time to climb into the lap of our Abba Father, our Savior, our Comforter and to rest instead of wrestle; to put our confidence in the hope that is grounded in a Person not a “wish upon a star” philosophy devised by man.

It might be a designated time or an impromptu moment of praise, an outpouring of our pain or doubt, or a humble moment of repentance when His Spirit convicts our hearts and we must set our sin aside so we can again firmly walk in truth. When we are in relationship with the living God through Jesus Christ, we can come at any moment – He desires it and beckons us to it.

God loves for us to bring Him praise, unburden our hearts, pour out our fears, and lay ourselves bare before the God who knows us intimately, even better than we know ourselves. When we don’t understand the circumstances around us, we have a Father who is not afraid of our questions and who even allows us to ask “why.” But then He tells us to trust in what we cannot see rather than demand that He change our situations or readjust His will and His ways to suit ours. We are called, as children, to open hands; to a humility that says, “Not my will, but Yours, Lord.”

And, we are invited to a greater hope and purpose that says, “Delight yourself in the LORD, and He will give you the desires of your heart.” (Psalm 37:4) Many cling to that verse as if it is quick fix – that if we delight ourselves in the Lord, He will do whatever we want Him to do. But it is so much richer and more redeeming than this short-sighted view.

The paradox is that if we truly grow in our delight of the LORD – if we earnestly seek Him and know Him – our desires will be transformed to reflect His desires, our wills will be changed to want His will. In so doing, we will receive the double satisfaction of having a heart after our Redeemer and He, in turn, will fulfill His renewed purposes and our redefined desires. Through it all, He gets the glory and we receive the joy!

We see the chaos; He sees where He has said, “this far and no further.” We often miss seeing the mercy and grace in situations, but make no mistake, everything that touches us is full of both, even when we don’t see or feel it.

Our covenant keeping God sees the full picture clearly from start to finish. We see only where we stand in a moment’s time and even that imperfectly. If we will trust the heart of the One who, in His great love for us sent His Son to redeem us and make us His own, we can rest, even give Him praise, in the middle of the moments that sometimes rock our world, the daily grind of the ordinary, or the difficult life situations that are part of our everyday, because we know that what He does and what He allows has a greater purpose now and in the future.

As Oswald Chambers writes, “We have the idea that God is going to do some exceptional thing, that He is preparing and fitting us for some extraordinary thing by and by, but as we go on in grace we find that God is glorifying Himself here and now, in the present minute. If we have God’s say-so behind us, the most amazing strength comes, and we learn to sing in the ordinary days and ways!”

And again, Chambers states it so clearly,“Faith for my deliverance is not faith in God. Faith means, whether I am visibly delivered or not, I will stick to my belief that God is love. There are some things only learned in a fiery furnace.” (from Love: A Holy Command)

Yes, He is preparing to do exceptional things even as He is already doing in the present. Indeed, he is doing much in and through us, though we may not yet touch that reality and though we may, at times, hold up open hands through tears! We know that because, as we look back, we can often say, “Now I see what God was doing all along and it was flawless!”

Through it all – past, present, and future – He gets the glory and that’s just how it should be because He is more than able; He is good! And that is not dependent on His answer!

“…let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus…” Hebrews 12:1-2

MAKE MY LIFE A PRAYER TO YOU by Keith Green

Make my life a prayer to You, I want to do what You want me to,
No empty words and no white lies, no token prayers, no compromise.
I want to shine the light You gave, through Your Son, You sent to save us
From ourselves and our despair, It comforts me to know You’re really there.

Oh, I want to thank You now, for being patient with me,
Oh, it’s so hard to see, when my eyes are on me,
I guess I’ll have to trust and just believe what you say,
Oh, you’re coming again, coming to take me away,

I want to die, and let you give Your life to me, so I might live
And share the hope you gave to me, the love that set me free.
I want to tell the world out there You’re not some fable or fairy tale
That I made up inside my head –
You’re God, The Son, You’ve risen from the dead.

Forgiveness is a Choice

Posted on May 31, 2013 by Joy In My Journey

“Why did it have to be a friend
Who chose to betray the Lord?
Why did he use a kiss to show them?
That’s not what a kiss is for.

Only a friend can betray a friend
A stranger has nothing to gain.
And only a friend comes close enough
To ever cause so much pain” (Michael Card)

“Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped but emptied Himself…” Philippians 2:5-7

A word is spoken, a deed is done, a spark is lit, and a fire rages.

The wounds of another, especially a friend, a trusted one, can burn deeply and leave a pit so vast that it takes our very breath away.

We weep and others weep with us.

We cry out, “why?” with few good answers; the silence is deafening.

It is at those times that we, who have been redeemed by the Savior, have to hang on to and live out the Truth on which we stand.

It is not always comfortable to position ourselves there when everything in us wants to lash out and change the circumstances, even seek revenge.

We want to establish that we are right, and we want others to come alongside and battle with us.

Yes, having others encourage us is right and good. Paul tells us in Romans 12:15 to “weep with those who weep and mourn with those who mourn” and certainly broken relationships cause us to weep for ourselves, and those who love us will share our pain.

But we must take care that it doesn’t become a rehashing of grievances that leads to bitterness infecting many. (Hebrews 12:15)

To look at a situation and see the insanity and hurtfulness of it is sometimes reality.

To lovingly confront sin in a brother or sister for the specific purpose of bringing them to repentance and restoring them is commanded.

To face that one who has injured us and ask for answers or to share the pain we have experienced at their hand, with redemption and restoration being the end goal, is part of growing relationships, and it is good.

But when the conversation does not bring answers or does not end in the way we would like, or when their response is less than agreeable, we have a choice.

We can certainly “blame” another for our hurt, our wounds, and our attitude because they have truly done something hurtful. But is that our “call?”

Will it bring peace and comfort to our souls and healing to the relationship?

Will it honor God?

To give up our pain is not to deny another’s sin or hurtful actions nor to make light of them; neither is it to absolve the other from any guilt in their decisions.

Rather, it is to go beyond what we “feel” to see and be obedient to and imitate our Savior, who humbly gave up His rights and forgave those who rejected Him, ultimately asking the Father to forgive those who crucified Him.

His Word is clear, “If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men” (Romans 12:18) and “Above all, love each other deeply because love covers a multitude of sins.” (I Peter 4:8)

The other person may need correction and, depending on the severity of the action, consequences, even punishment. But apart from that aspect of it, we must focus on our attitude towards them and our response.

We can choose, in the words of a respected mentor, “to grow bitter or better,” to be submissive to God’s command to us and ultimately “strengthen feeble arms and weak knees,” * giving up our right to hurt the one who has injured us rather than foster the pain and bitterness that will widen the rift between us, bleed out to others, and ultimately create a hardness in us and others.

When we give up our right to cause one who has hurt us harm or seek revenge, that is forgiveness; that is faithfulness over our feelings.

Hanging on to injuries of the heart is a choice to not give up “childish ways” (I Corinthians 13:11) which will wound us more deeply and for a greater length of time than the hurt caused by our brother or sister.

Additionally, it can spread like gangrene and create a bitter root that will be harder to dig out in our own lives and may defile others (again, Hebrews 12:15).

What does it mean to “defile” something?

To corrupt or ruin it.

How it must grieve our Father’s heart for brothers and sisters in Christ to have broken relationships, corrupted and sometimes ruined, because of our choice to nurture pain, even in the face of true and deep wounds.

We can say, “It’s their fault that I am hurt,”and it may well be.

But while the original issue may begin with another’s actions, we have a decision to let that grow into massive emotional destruction that has the potential to leave a barren wasteland or to put out the fire early and allow the process of healing and reconstruction to begin through the power of the Holy Spirit.

What we see and what we “feel” can often deceive.

We can hang on to wounds from people, especially those we love, and allow them to fester or see them in light of truth and give them up to God to heal and use them for His glory and our greatest good.

We are responsible for our actions and attitudes not another’s response to them; so, when we stand and act on His Word that is true and don’t waiver, we will come out with a greater view of and deeper love for our Savior, a peace that comes from obedience, and an opportunity to point others to Him even if the circumstances don’t change.

In the words of a dear friend, “When injured, don’t try to harm; instead, try to heal. Start with rejoicing…Seek reconciliation rather than revenge.”

Break the chains of unforgiveness and run in freedom for the glory of God and to silence the enemy of our souls.

“We rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.” Romans 5:3-5

“When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.” I Corinthians 13:11-12

*”Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and your weak knees. Make level paths for your feet so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed.” Hebrews 12:12-13

And When You Have Done All…Stand

Posted on April 19, 2013 by Joy In My Journey

Several years ago, in the midst of some very difficult situations facing our family at the time, I read a particularly encouraging book that reset my heart and mind on the truth that is unshakable.

In light of heartache and loss in our family once again, the tragedies so rampant in the news, and pain within many dear friends’ families, I am reminded that this world is not our home and this generation is, as generations before, in need of truth and actual hope.

That one hope that has stood and will stand is Jesus Christ and the power of His death and resurrection to free us from the penalty of our sin but also from its power, our guilt, our fear, our pain, and our limitations. It is not always a physical freedom, but it is life giving on earth and in eternity.

What has caused me to face sorrow without despair is the knowledge of and my relationship with the One who holds all circumstances in His hands both now and forever and allows nothing that will not ultimately be for His greatest glory and my good; not always “good” as we define it but as it is sifted through His strong hands that hold us and His wise fingers that sift as only He can.

For He is the only one who well knows our frame (Psalm 103:14) and the number of our days (Psalm 90:12) and He is the Lover of our souls!

His Word upholds me because it is not just “cute quotes” that can be framed and hung on a wall to make me “feel” settled for the moment; it is not a crutch that allows me to hobble along. It is rock solid truth on which I can “hang” my very life and which causes me to walk steadfast, to stand and, when I have done all else, to continue standing firm, hidden in Christ.

We take in and hide the Word of God in our hearts because it is “God-breathed” (2 Timothy 3:16) and, when our steps are trembling, our God Who is mighty makes us secure, our footsteps steady as He reminds us of His very “great and precious promises.” (2 Peter 1:4)

Even when we are “in the presence of our enemies,” “in the shadow of death,” or any situation where we experience “weeping that lasts for a night,” we can trust and hold steady.

Gracia Burnham encourages our souls, remembering and relating the following:

How do we manage when life spins out of control in a single day? What do we do when all our plans and goals are put on hold, when everything we had intended to do and see and accomplish gets swept aside, and we don’t know if we’ll ever get back to familiar ground? How do we keep our sanity? How do we avoid slipping into a personal canyon of despair?

‘I remember a particularly frightening Thursday morning in the jungle, the day of Gun Battle Number 13. We endured seventeen of these altogether, where our little group would be spotted by the Philippine military, who were trying to rescue us hostages but were ill-trained to do so. While their intentions were good, their technique was altogether dangerous, not only for the terrorists but for us as well. “On this day Martin and I had just built a small fire to heat water for a cup of tea. Our recently washed clothes were strewn out on bushes to dry in the sun. Suddenly, gunfire erupted. We had to get out of that place immediately…Normally, we tried to keep our belongings fairly well consolidated for such emergencies. But in this moment, our stuff was everywhere. We were totally unprepared. We instantly hit the ground, of course. As bullets continued to whiz past our heads, Martin gingerly reached up to pull the cord that tied one end of our hammock to a tree. He then scooted along the ground to do the same to the opposite cord. We squashed the hammock into our backpack and then dashed for cover, abandoning nearly everything else—extra clothes, cooking utensils, my hairbrush, and other necessities.

Soon we found ourselves wading through a swamp that came up to our waists. We emerged on the other side and flopped down to rest. I looked at my husband with total exhaustion.

In that desperate hour, my wonderful husband said, ‘Gracia, let’s remind ourselves of what we know is true.’

We had no Bible to consult; we could lean only on what we had stored in our memories. From that reserve, we began to recite: ‘If God be for us, who can be against us?’ (Romans 8:31).“One of us said, ‘Where does it say in Scripture, “I have loved you with an everlasting love”?’ (It’s in the Old Testament, Jeremiah 31:3.)“ ‘And then what about that part at the beginning of Ephesians: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ”?’ (Ephesians 1:3)

We went on sharing Scriptures such as these, trying to anchor ourselves in the truth we could trust, the truth that God is with us through the tunnel, through the valley, through the gun battle. He stands with us through the medical prognosis that terrorizes us, through every horrible thing that life throws our way. We don’t go through these things alone. We walk with our hands in the hand of the One who turns night into day.’

(***From “To Fly Again,” by Gracia Burnham who is also the author of “In the Presence of My Enemies,” the true story of Martin and Gracia Burnham who were kidnapped in the Philippians and held hostage in the jungle for over a year. I would highly recommend both starting with the latter.)

“From the ends of the earth I call to you, I call as my heart grows faint; lead me to the rock that is higher than I.” Psalm 61:2

Delight and Desires

Posted on April 5, 2013 by Joy In My Journey

Longings.

Sometimes the intensity of them brings tears and great anxiety. We long for their fulfillment, but most of all, we long for rest.

A hunger for relationship or the restoration of a broken one.

A desire to see physical healing.

A deep yearning to be parents or, as parents, to get past or at least hold on and thrive in the “grunge” moments; or at our deepest longing, to see our children “walking in the truth.”

Or it could be for a situation to be more comfortable, a new job, a different home, a move.

It could be for the “abnormal unknown” to return to at least the “known.”

Sometimes our longings are for things temporal and sometimes for things eternal; but each brings their own angst until we lay them down before our God Who sees. He is not unaware; He knows us and our circumstances better than we know ourselves so we can honestly pour them out before the One who so loves us and takes vast joy in fulfilling our desires according to His good will for His glory and our best!

Psalm 37:4 reminds us, “Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”

So often I have heard and myself been tempted to shape that as a “gimme” promise – that if I will delight in the Lord, follow Him well, “do” for Him, and give Him great praise then He will meet my every need according to MY wishes!

Oh, even writing that makes my heart cringe because, in that line of thinking, I am demanding that God do what I ask and fulfill every desire of my heart regardless of His will or the consequences.

I am implying, in a sense, that my wisdom exceeds His.

In essence, it is my arrogance showing out!

As I look back on my life, how thankful I am that He withheld many of the “desires of my heart” in those moments for a greater outcome I had not yet known! His protection and His greater good for and deeper knowledge of me than I have of myself has time and again proven to be my true satisfaction!

The reality is that we often miss the nugget of truth within that verse.

For, if we truly delight ourselves in the Lord, we and our desires will be changed. If we are growing in our knowledge and love for the Lord Jesus Christ, we will have His grace and peace and our greatest joy will be His desires for us.

No doubt there are times we humble ourselves before the Lord, we lay our requests before Him, and He says, “Yes, I will answer just as you ask; I will give you that desire exactly as you requested right now!”

At times, His answer may be almost identical to our longing; while, at other times, He fulfills it in a different way than we imagined and answers with a “Yes, but better!” or a “Wait, my child.”

But there is also that moment, as we grow in our enjoyment of Him, that He changes us and causes our wants to match His. Indeed, there we find that our delight and our desires are one with His and we stand amazed at how He has given us His heart and brought us to rest in that!

And, yet, there are situations that require a submitted heart in the midst of circumstances that will never make sense this side of heaven. We will have questions that are not answered and issues that may remain burdensome. It is at those times that we cry out for the Lord to give us a trusting heart in spite of what we see, feel, and experience.

Sometimes we will relax and never again strive for that which we once held so dear, but then there are other times we will have to lay it on the altar again and again, even daily, as a sacrifice of praise and allow Him to bring that peace that comes from delighting in His ways and timing for us.

If we submit, we will learn to find treasure in His answers, even if it comes through tears.

Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. (2 Peter 1:2)

The Heart Cries…and God Hears

Posted on March 6, 2013 by Joy In My Journey

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA We live and breathe in a world that is beautiful and lovely…and hard.

The rocks and the trees, the sun, moon, and stars cry out in praise to God, but at times, even His creation groans (Romans 8:22).

And many people we encounter on a daily basis weep, hurting and longing to “get beyond” the moment and find rest.

Even conversations with those who are redeemed children of God remind us that Jesus said, “in this world, you will have troubles,” but followed with the hope to “take heart; (He) has overcome the world.”

As they struggle with their own difficult situations, I hear the very real tension and have experienced it myself: they trust God for their lives but wrestle with the circumstances and emotions that come with living in this fallen world – fear, anger, hurt, illness, sadness, loss.

Choosing to subdue, even “stuff,” those emotions rather than taking them to the throne of grace or to lay bare their hearts before the God of all comforts, asking Him to remind them of His presence and letting Him bring a supernatural peace, is an intentional choice we each must make in those incredibly stifling moments or seasons.

Every one of us have been there. Our commitment to and love for Christ compels us to believe His best for us, but our emotions, often so raw, cry out with questions.

There are times we feel like saying, as the father of the young boy in Mark 9, “I believe; Lord, help my unbelief.” But sometimes the enemy of our souls wants to make us think we cannot share that with God; that we cannot let Him hear our heart’s cry. How far from the truth that is!

Our reactions are not a surprise to God. He knows our needs, our frailties, and our fears. And He longs for us to nestle in the arms of our Abba Father and be refreshed and renewed.

Because of the work of Jesus Christ on the cross, we can boldly go to Him with our pain, not in defiance, but in humility and in assurance.

Hebrews 4:16 reminds us, “Therefore, let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

When we read the Psalms, we often find that David fearlessly poured out his soul to God, and God calls him a man after His own heart. He laid bare his fears, his sin, and his anger at circumstances and injustices, crying out to the Father to be heard and longing to hear, see, and experience His presence.

David acknowledged his questions and what disturbed him; but, in the end, David gave God praise and trusted in His control.

He knew, as in Psalm 5:3, that he could approach the throne of grace with assurance that God would hear and respond, “In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation.”

In Dr. Ralph Davis’ book, “The Way of the Righteous in the Muck of Life, Psalms 1-12” (a book which spoke volumes to me and which I highly recommend), he refers often to this pattern of David’s life: to acknowledge the cries of his heart and then give God praise, resting in the truth of who God is!

In Psalm 3, David cried out “Yahweh, how many are my foes! How many are rising up against me!” But as Dr. Davis points out,

“In the middle of his mess, [David] is saying [in verse 3], ‘I know my God.’ In face of the threats and ruckus and theological opinions of his enemies, David turns his eyes to his protecting, sufficient, restoring, accessible God.

The God-centeredness of his gaze keeps him steady while his enemies try to decide what precise level of scum he is.”

Psalm 3:3 – “But You, Yahweh, are a shield around me, my glory and the One who lifts my head.”

Again, in Psalm 6, David pours out the “agony he knows.” In essence, David often says in the Psalms, either directly or indirectly, “How long, O Lord?” Dr. Davis writes,

“…the problem of time contributes to his agony. This is one of our perennial problems with God’s ways. We have our calendar. We have figured out how long we can hold out. And somehow Yahweh allows our urgent deadlines to pass. Why? David’s ‘How long?’ means: How long will you allow this to go on? Why don’t you intervene and give me relief? Why does He wait? Why does He hold off? When we say God will intervene sooner or later, why does it always seem to be later? Our troubles, it seems, are as much with God as with our circumstances.”

But then Dr. Davis reminds us that David settles his heart on the character of God.

David “is resting on Yahweh’s character, in the sort of God he has declared himself to be…[the God of covenant love, ‘hesed, the devoted love that pledges never to let go of us’]. Sometimes this is your only stay in trouble…”

And though nothing has changed, in that one moment, he presses in on truth that sustains his hope, “For Yahweh has heard the sound of my weeping! Yahweh has heard my plea for grace! Yahweh will accept my prayer!” (vv 8-9)

As we acknowledge God’s sovereignty in our lives and grow in our love and knowledge of Him through His written word, the Bible, we also mature in our understanding of His heart and the freedom we have to lay bare all that we are before Him – even our cries.

God points us to the Psalms to remind us that it is what He allows, even desires, of His children. He knows our hearts even better than we do ourselves, but He delights when we ask and expect Him to respond, to draw near to us.

He is the God of all comforts and He delights in us drawing near to Him so that as He, in turn, draws near, we are held close regardless of our circumstances and our questions.

“Lead me to the Rock that is higher than I…” (Psalm 61:3)

You are the Rock on which I stand.

“My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. ” Psalm 73:26

This song by Josh Wilson is a great reminder that when we can’t stand on the shifting sand of our circumstances, He carries us!

Carry Me by Josh Wilson

I try to catch my breath
It hasn’t happened yet
I’m wide awake in the middle of the night scared to death
So I prayed God, would You make this stop
Father please hold on to me, You’re all I’ve got

Carry me, carry me, carry me now
From my sinking sand to Your solid ground
The only way I’m ever gonna make it out
Is if You carry me, carry me, carry me now
God carry me, carry me, carry me now

Jesus calm my heart
Come near me please
Lord don’t let these worries get the best of me
Oh I believe, that You’re still here with me
Cause You meant what You said when You said You’d never leave

So carry me, carry me, carry me now
From my sinking sand to Your solid ground
The only way I’m ever gonna make it out
Is if You carry me, carry me, carry menow
God carry me, carry me, carry me now

Carry me
God carry me
Carry me
God carry me

I’m at the end of myself
I know I’ve got nothing left
Feels like I’m stuck in the valley of the shadow of death
And I’ve been down here so long
I just can’t find my way out
Oh God I don’t stand a chance
Unless You carry me now
God carry me now

Carry me now
Carry me now
Carry me now

Being an “Attractive Nuisance” – It’s All About Grace

Posted on February 23, 2013 by Joy In My Journey

When my children were small, they wanted a trampoline. My husband was in the insurance claims business and had seen numerous cases of suits against homeowners when uninvited children in the neighborhood came to play on them and were injured; they were called “attractive nuisances.” They were so appealing that children were drawn to them regardless of the boundaries of “private property.” So, a trampoline never graced the confines of our yard.

“Attractive nuisances” are, generally, things that create a desire to know more and which draw people to them because of it.

I want to be an “attractive nuisance” for Christ. I want the flavor of my life, the way I treat others, the way I respond to situations, the way I love even my enemies to make people stop and say, “I want what you have.”

Unfortunately, there are many times that none of those well reflect my Savior and many times I cringe to think how I have been a “nuisance,” but not a particularly attractive one. Yet, I pray that each of these will increasingly become more evident in my life and more and more I will have opportunity “to give reason for the hope I have” (I Peter 3:15); that being “Christ in me, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27).

Even in the midst of conversations that are difficult; in the midst of issues where I will conflict with another as I stand on the Word of God, I pray that my words, while unwavering from the life and freedom giving truth, will be seasoned with salt, with grace and with the love of Christ so others will be drawn to the Savior.

I want others, who are convinced that “doing what is right in their own eyes” is freeing, to take pause and see in me the joy that comes from true freedom; not a freedom that is contrary to a holy God, but the humble desire to grow more in love with that God and more eager to become ever more like my Savior.

Many times I hear grace and striving to be holy and wholly His in opposition to one another. The Bible does not teach that. Without a doubt I am redeemed, saved by grace through faith in the work of Christ on the cross and this not of myself so there is no opportunity for me to boast (Ephesians 2:9). But God calls me and each of us to pursue and perfect our holiness out of reverence for and a fear of God (2 Corinthians 7:1). This side of heaven we won’t be perfect, but we are to aim towards the center of the bullseye!

And, though it is His charge to me as a believer – to seek out and work out holiness in my life, to run the race to which He has called me and to pursue that holiness, that “becoming more and more into the likeness of His Son” is not of myself either.

I cannot boast about any good thing I do or even obedience to His Word; for without a doubt, it is by God’s grace that I am even able to exercise self control, that I have hunger to cultivate being more like Christ, that I have an increasing hatred of the sin in my own life as well as in the lives of others not in a legalistic manner but because of my increasingly love for God Himself! I have experienced, seen, and continue to see the defiance of God and the destructiveness and pain that follows.

But it is also by grace I am able and free to love those who are caught in its web, to pray for my enemies, to seek and pursue peace but not to, in the process, deny truth. And, at the end of the day, when I am overwhelmed by my own weaknesses, I can say “Father, forgive me” and not worry about whether or not He will, in spite of my failures and limitations, which will be mine until I am in His presence!

I am free to live, but my life is not my own; I have been bought with a price so I must glorify God with my body, my actions, my words, my thoughts. I do not feel bound or constrained by any man made rules, but I am joyfully and gratefully bound by Christ who did not abolish the Law but rather fulfilled its demands while expanding its meaning; by Christ who calls us to live in such a manner that we accomplish it more fully so that we are able to love others more deeply and more like He loves us.

And He calls us to love deeply, as we see each person that we encounter in life just what they are…those created to bear the image of God. Even those who hate us, speak wrongly of us, and do all in their power to harm us are in need of the truth, in need of the Savior who can save and transform.

There is joy in our journey and it is my prayer that, increasingly, people see and desire that joy so that I am an “attractive nuisance,” drawing people to Christ in spite of their aversion to the rules they find binding but which, in Him, are anything but!

“Grace is not simply leniency when we have sinned. Grace is the enabling gift of God not to sin. Grace is power, not just pardon.” — John Piper, The Pleasures of God

“For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age” (Titus 2:11-12).

Will We Dare to Be Like David?

Posted on February 18, 2013 by Joy In My Journey

dare to be a david

I’ve often heard the question: If David was a murderer and an adulterer, how could he be called a man after God’s own heart? And yet, according to the Bible, he was!

Yes, David acted on his sinful inclinations, and there can be no mistaking his deep guilt. In the end, however, his response to confrontation – the accountability he received from Nathan – and his subsequent humility to respond, repent, and submit to God is what leads to that designation.

He was broken, but he did not remain there.

He was guilty, but he did not defend his sin or justify it.

He confessed it to the Lord and was forgiven.

He agonized over his sin in the face of the Holy God whom he knew to be loving, yet also just.

The consequences of his choices remained – his son from that liaison died and another son sought to kill him, but before the God who knew him, he was restored and transformed.

He acknowledged his guilt, repented, and sought the heart of God.

From that day forward, David chose to follow hard after Almighty God who forgave him so much.

And, from his line came our Savior.

He asked God to CREATE in him a clean heart. To create something, it must be lacking. So he was asking God to instill in him something he knew he did not have – a clean heart.

And David asked God to RENEW a right spirit within him because he knew his spirit was beaten down, tainted by his sin, and could so easily be led astray again. He knew, as Jeremiah 17:9 says, that “the heart is deceitful and desperately wicked.” To stay steadfast, it was clear to him that he had to be hidden in God Himself, moment by moment.

At his point of surrender, he did not run and hide as Adam and Eve had done in the garden. Rather, he came clean before God, for he knew he could not cover himself.

David humbled himself before the God of Eternity, before El Elyon – the Most High God, before Yahweh His Lord!

And God restored him.

Indeed, in terms of a sinful heart, none of us are any different. Each of us have sinned against the three times Holy God in a myriad of ways, both in actions and thoughts that we have nurtured and not given up to the Lord. So, Jesus says that, in our hearts and with our hands, we have sinned against God and deserve judgement.

The praise is to God when we have, by His power and strength given, exercised self-control that is a fruit of the Spirit, a gift from Him in the first place, and not fed and/or acted on those thoughts and desires leading to sin with greater consequences.

But make no mistake, thoughts contrary to the law and truth of God that we feed and nurture rather than submit and confess, are sin. We “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God!” (Romans 3:23)

Yes, we must intentionally take every thought captive but not by focusing on any particular sin. Rather, for that thought captivity, our refocus must be on God and on His Word.

It is not for us to compare ourselves to others and think we look pretty good. Our only comparison can be against our three times Holy God, and, in that we are always found sorely lacking, every time. It’s why we each need a Savior.

The great joy is that our God has provided that Redeemer, Jesus, to pay for and satisfy the judgement of God for our rebellion against Him.

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (I John 1:9)

And that same Savior died and was raised to life to free us from the power of sin as well.

“For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness…and to live self-controlled…lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.” (Titus 2:11-14)

Just like David, we can humble ourselves before the Lord, acknowledge rather than justify our sin, turn away from it, and be restored to the heart of God where there is true freedom for us and for those we harm in our sin.

And, where there are consequences for our actions, as David had to face, God gives the strength and the courage to walk through them and even use them for our good and His glory!

When I was a child, there was a song, “Dare to Be a Daniel,” and that we are to do. In the Daniel of old’s footsteps, we are to model faith and courage in God and be people of integrity who dare to stand against the culture (and our own self-promoting, self-gratifying ways) when it is contrary to God’s heart.

But I also think we must dare to be a David; I must be.

In the footsteps of Daniel, I am to stand boldly, unashamed before a hostile culture, in God’s strength.

In the way of David, I will seek to be a woman after God’s heart; a woman willing to say, “Show me my sin, Lord, and create in me a clean heart, O God! Renew a right spirit within me!” (Psalm 51:10)

Then will I be restored and refreshed and able to bring that restoration and refreshment to others.

“Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord” Acts 3:19

It’s A New Day

Posted on February 11, 2013 by Joy In My Journey

It seems that in recent days, there have been a lot of difficult circumstances for those I love. And there have certainly been tragedies in the weather and by way of other’s actions that we hear daily.

A tornado in Hattiesburg, MS, a snow storm in the eastern part of the United States, political turmoil, a life taken in anger, an unborn life taken out of fear, bodies wearing down from disease or age, discouragement from life circumstances, lost jobs, consequences of our own choices, a broken heart from betrayal – all are evidence of a fallen world and of fallen people.

My heart has grieved with each story that has been brought to me and I have taken every one of them to the Lord. I have been tempted to say, “I wish I could do more; I wish I could fix ‘it.’” Last night was no exception.

But He gently reminds me that when I lay them before the throne of the Almighty God, it is not the “least” I can do but the very best. For as Zechariah 4:6 says, “it is not by my might or my power but by His Spirit” that healing begins, continues, and finds its fullness.

I woke this morning and God, in His goodness, put a new song in my heart (Psalm 40:3)! He pointed me back to the hope that I have in Christ! Sometimes He changes circumstances, and sometimes He chooses to allow the situations but changes us in the midst of them.

I am called to be still, to pray and, where I can, to put my hands and feet to action; but, ultimately, true healing will be found for all only in a relationship with the living God through the work of Jesus!

And, even in the midst of the “hard,” our God’s mercy is evident, His glory revealed!

The song, “It’s a New Day,” has been in my head, on my heart, and welling in my soul this morning reminding me that, regardless of the circumstances, I am alive in Him and no circumstance can change that.

It is not only a future hope but a joyful celebration of the present certainty!

It’s A New Day by Kristian Stanfill

It’s a new day!

Everything changed when Your love came into the darkness and You sent the light of the Son.
You sent the light of the Son.
Wake up, open your eyes, no longer dead, we are alive!
Rise up children of light. Open the doors. Go let it shine!
There is freedom in Your kingdom.
For You Jesus, we will be dancing, forever Your joy is our song.
Song for the broken – let it shine! Into the shadows – let it shine!
Hope for the whole world – let it shine!

One Thing Remains by Kristian Stanfill

Higher than the mountains that I face

Stronger than the power of the grave
Constant in the trial and the change
One thing remains, one thing remains.

Your love never fails. It never gives up. It never runs out on me.
Because on and on and on and on it goes.
It overwhelms and satisfies my soul.
And I never, ever, have to be afraid.
One thing remains, one thing remains.

Your love never fails. It never gives up. It never runs out on me.
In death, in life, I’m confident and covered by the power of Your great love
My debt is paid; there’s nothing that can separate my heart from Your great love.
Your love never fails. It never gives up. It never runs out on me.

Psalm 40:1-5

I waited patiently for the Lord; He turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; He set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear the Lord and put their trust in Him.

Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, who does not look to the proud, to those who turn aside to false gods.

Many, Lord my God, are the wonders You have done, the things You planned for us. None can compare with You; were I to speak and tell of Your deeds, they would be too many to declare.

Romans 8:38-39

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Cries of the Heart

Posted on February 8, 2013 by Joy In My Journey

There are times we weep!

Yes, we long for and delight in tears of joy, but what of the moaning of the heart?

Tears may be tender and quiet; at other times they come almost violently, physically draining – weeping of deep sorrow.

The grieving may come from the physical pain of illness, loss of life, the betrayal of a friend or a loved one, the death of a dream, watching a loved one wrestle and drift, the waiting that does not fit our time table, or a myriad of other reasons.

It may come from an expected distancing no one would choose!

Great joy does not always exclude sorrow. There are times my greatest joy has come from my deepest sadness and loss when it meant that God had torn away something that was not for my ultimate good.

At other times, the profound sorrow led to a deeper understanding of and dependence on my tender Savior. He has often turned my “mourning into dancing.” (Psalm 30:11)

But sometimes I have had to wait for that dance.

Seasons of life have arisen when my own compromise with that which I know God had called me to or away from initially created a more comfortable place. But no lasting comfort, satisfaction, or pleasure comes from being the prodigal – either running to the far country or just outside the walls of His protection.

Tears that flow from leaving behind something that was not His best or was totally contrary to His heart are dried in the reality of the sure hope that my God knows what is the most excellent path for me and will bring it to completion. It becomes my call to simply surrender and trust.

His course may not always be easy, but it is, ultimately, the most pleasant. It may not come with immediate relief, but He does promise the “still rest” as we remain steadfast, waiting for our faith to become sight. And, oh that amazing view when finally we see!

But, even if it never becomes sight this side of heaven, it will be worth the surrender of my will and my life.

The cries of the heart often stem from the longings with which we were created and which, when fulfilled, will be satisfied – but only partially here.

As glorious, pleasing, and satisfying as they are now and will be in this life, they are only dim reflections of things we cannot even imagine! They are gifts that delight from the hand of our good and gracious God, intended to point us to a greater love, a grander gift, a deeper joy!

“Now we see through a glass dimly…but then we will see (clearly) face to face…now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known.” (I Corinthians 13:12)

Will I allow the cries of my heart, the tears that have fallen, to be dried by the hand of my Redeemer and King as I rest in the hope of a greater promise?

“And in Your hands the pain and hurt look less like scars and more like…character.” – Sara Groves, “Scars”

Joy in My Journey

Celebrating Life Lived Along the Road

Lessons Remembered From the Back of the Bike…Marriage and the Journey

Your Kingdom Come

From Wrestling to Rest

A Life Well Penned

When God Shouts, There Can Be Laughter and Joy!

This Adventure Called Marriage

“It is Finished” Begins at Christmas

Repairing Burned Bridges

Caretaker for the King

Finding Freedom Together in Leaving Some Things Behind

Joy in the Everyday

God is More Than Able

Forgiveness is a Choice

And When You Have Done All…Stand

Delight and Desires

The Heart Cries…and God Hears

Being an “Attractive Nuisance” – It’s All About Grace

Will We Dare to Be Like David?

It’s A New Day

Cries of the Heart

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