Read. Hear. See. Feel.

Pray for Jenni

2011-11-23T22:34:00.000-08:00

If you're my Facebook friend, you've read my "Please pray for Jenni" status updates. Jenni had several strokes this month and she's been hospitalized for weeks. Tomorrow she's having surgery. Jenni has three young children. Please pray that Jenni will be get to return home soon, that she will be able to care for her children and that she will be able to continue her writing project. Pray for her husband, her kids and her relatives who are helping to care for her kids.

Let me tell you a little more about her. Here's an excerpt from Only for My King, in a chapter I wrote last spring about surrendering our resources. This segment is titled "Serving with Limited Resources."

Mark and I were married for four years before our first living child was born. During that time we had two miscarriages. I found encouragement and friendship at Hannah's Prayer Ministries (hannah.org), a Christian online support group for women facing infertility, miscarriage or infant loss. I still keep in touch with a few friends from Hannah's Prayer, including Jenni Saake, the cofounder. Jenni experienced infertility and miscarriage herself. Jenni wrote a book, Hannah's Hope: Seeking God's Heart in the Midst of Infertility, Miscarriage, & Adoption Loss, to encourage women and share the comfort she found in God's word.

Now Jenni is in a different chapter of life, mothering three children, homeschooling and blogging. She handles these duties while coping with very limited resources of strength and energy: she has an immune disease called XMRV, formerly known as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. Jenni describes this as an “ongoing daily battle.”

The MS-like issues have escalated with involuntary muscle twitching at rest, and many random nerve sensations ranging from pain to tingling to numbness. I battle vertigo frequently and when I'm especially tired I drag one foot when trying to walk. I rarely leave the house without a wheelchair and often hold my hands out for balance when walking in my own home. I completed a survey this week that helped me see that my current ability is around 35-40% of my pre-illness ability, and that's a marked improvement from those first earliest years as well as the setback that had me in bed for much of 2007. I grieve that my children are growing up without ever knowing the mom I so long to be.

Most people see the "face" of a healthy-looking me, the vast majority of the time. They cannot see that I live with a ticking time-bomb called XMRV that can land me hard down in bed with the smallest provocation, or sometimes for no apparent reason at all. They can't see that I'm one step away from walking past a balloon and landing in the hospital for a latex allergy like I did this week. They can't see that I struggle every day to get out of bed and try to lead as normal of a life as possible, despite immobilizing fatigue and ever-changing levels and kinds and cycles of pain or cognitive dysfunction and a variety of other symptoms ranging from the annoying or distracting to the downright unmanageable.

I am an author. I am living with "Chronic Fatigue Syndrome". When questioned by a doctor last year on my cognitive function, I explained, "I have written one book, but where others could have written it in several months, maybe a year or two, it took me ten." I continually turn down speaking engagements and travel requests because I do not have the stamina for public speaking, nor the strength for travel. Writing is my passion, my therapy, my outlet. But "being a writer" while fighting through this illness isn't an easy road.

I believe pain is a gift, though certainly an odd one. The thing that makes it a gift is the way it drives us to dependence on God. If I'm fixated only on my illness, or my desire to be well, I miss out on God's best for me right here, right now, right in the heart of living these trials.

Because I cannot see the big picture from God's perspective, instead I must cling to His promise that His grace is enough and accept that His power can shine most fully through me when I yield my heart to His plans. Therefore, I will boast gladly in my weakness and thank Him for the power that He gives me for every step He enables me to take, every breath He blesses me to draw. (quoted from Jenni's blog, Given Me a Thorn)

Jenni finds encouragement in these verses:

Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don't try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way. (James 1:2-4 Message)

I will give you the treasures of darkness, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, who summons you by name. (Isaiah 45:3 NIV)

The people walking in darkness have seen a great light;

on those living in the land of darkness, a light has dawned. (Isaiah 9:2)

[Because of] the Lord's faithful love, we do not perish, for His mercies never end.

They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness! (Lamentations 3:22-23)

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Surrendering my Treasures

2011-10-30T06:22:00.000-07:00

I rejoice over Your promise like one who finds vast treasure.
(Psalm 119:162)
Lord, You are my portion and my cup [of blessing];
You hold my future. (Psalm 16:5)
For our hearts rejoice in Him,
because we trust in His holy name. (Psalm 33:21)
I am at rest in God alone; my salvation comes from Him. (Psalm 62:1)
My soul, praise the Lord, and all that is within me, praise His holy name.
My soul, praise the Lord, and do not forget all His benefits.
(Psalm 103:1-2)

Lord, You are my treasure.
My confidence, my peace and my security
depend on no one and nothing except You.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Surrendering my Desires

2011-10-29T10:55:00.001-07:00

Lord, my every desire is known to You;
my sighing is not hidden from You. (Psalm 38:9)
Whom do I have in heaven but You?
And I desire nothing on earth but You. (Psalm 73:25)
As a deer longs for streams of water, so I long for You, God. (Psalm 42:1)
Happy are those who keep His decrees
and seek Him with all their heart. (Psalm 119:2)
Take delight in the Lord,
and He will give you your heart's desires. (Psalm 37:4)

Fill my heart with the desires that You desire.
Grow within me a whole-hearted love for You.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Surrendering my Mind

2011-10-28T06:17:00.000-07:00

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;
all who follow His instructions have good insight.
His praise endures forever. (Psalm 111:10)
I rejoice in the way [revealed by] Your decrees as much as in all riches.
I will meditate on Your precepts and think about Your ways.
I will delight in Your statutes;
I will not forget Your word. (Psalm 119:14-16)
I pursue the way of Your commands, for You broaden my understanding. (Psalm 119:32)

Lord, my mind is full of fear and worry.
I ask for Your wisdom and peace.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Surrendering my Resources

2011-10-27T09:16:00.000-07:00

O Lord, how many and varied are Your works!
In wisdom have You made them all...
the earth is full of Your riches and Your creatures.
These all wait and are dependent upon You... (Psalm 104:24, 27 AMP)
For the Lord God is a sun and shield. The Lord gives grace and glory;
He does not withhold the good from those who live with integrity.
Lord of Hosts, happy is the person who trusts in You! (Psalm 84:11-12)
Our help is in the name of the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth. (Psalm 124:8)

Lord, You promise to provide all the resources I need to live a godly life.
I trust You and depend on You.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Surrendering my Message

2011-10-26T06:19:00.000-07:00

He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear, and put their trust in the Lord.
(Psalm 40:1-3)
Sing to the Lord, you His faithful ones,
and praise His holy name. (Psalm 30:4)
I will speak of Your glorious splendor and Your wonderful works.
(Psalm 145:5)
And my tongue will proclaim Your righteousness,
Your praise all day long. (Psalm 35:28)

Lord, I ask for a song today—a song of praise
to my faithful Redeemer.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Surrendering my Audience

2011-10-25T16:00:00.000-07:00

Before a word is on my tongue, You know all about it, Lord.
You have encircled me; You have placed Your hand on me. (Psalm 139:4-5)
I will praise You forever for what You have done.
In the presence of Your faithful people, I will put my hope in Your name, for it is good. (Psalm 52:9)
I put my hope in You, Lord; You will answer, Lord my God. (Psalm 38:15)

As You choose my audience (my sphere of influence and ministry)
it may be smaller or larger or completely different from my expectations.
I surrender to Your choice, as I depend on You.

a Welcome to Praise Patterns

2011-10-24T15:54:00.000-07:00

The ladies at Lewis and Clark Church in Astoria, Oregon are beginning a study of Praise Patterns. Here is my welcome to them.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Surrendering my Location

2011-10-24T06:48:00.000-07:00

I call to You from the ends of the earth when my heart is without strength.
Lead me to a rock that is high above me. (Psalm 61:2)
For You are my rock and my fortress: You lead and guide me because of Your name. (Psalm 31:3)
You are near, Lord, and all Your commands are true. (Psalm 119:151)
God--His way is perfect...
God--He clothes me with strength and makes my way perfect. (Psalm 18:30,32)
This God, our God forever and ever--He will lead us eternally. (Psalm 48:14)

Lord, I know You placed me in this location for a reason.
Show me how to serve You here.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Surrendering my Talents

2011-10-23T06:12:00.000-07:00

Serve the Lord with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs.
Acknowledge that the Lord is God. He made us, and we are His —
His people, the sheep of His pasture. (Psalm 100:2-3)
But You, Lord, are a shield around me, my glory,
and the One who lifts up my head. (Psalm 3:3)
Give the Lord the glory due His name...(Psalm 29:2)
Not to us, Lord, not to us, but to Your name give glory
because of Your faithful love, because of Your truth.(Psalm 115:1)

Show me, Lord, my place in Your body,
and my unique way of expressing Your love
and giving glory to You.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Surrendering my Day

2011-10-22T06:52:00.000-07:00

Let me experience Your faithful love in the morning, for I trust in You.
Reveal to me the way I should go, because I long for You. (Psalm 143:8)
I call to You for help, Lord; in the morning my prayer meets You. (Psalm 88:13)
On the day I called, You answered me;
You increased strength within me. (Psalm 138:3)
I exalt You, my God the King, and praise Your name forever and ever.
I will praise You every day; I will honor Your name forever and ever.
(Psalm 145:1-2)

I gave You my life decades ago.
Here's my today;
I am watching expectantly for You to guide my steps.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Surrendering my Life

2011-10-21T06:51:00.000-07:00

This God, our God forever and ever—He will lead us eternally. (Psalm 48:14)
He renews my life; He leads me along the right paths for His name's sake.
(Psalm 23:3)
You reveal the path of life to me; in Your presence is abundant joy;
in Your right hand are eternal pleasures. (Psalm 16:11)
I delight to do Your will, my God; Your instruction resides within me.
(Psalm 40:8)
I will rejoice and be glad in Your faithful love
because You have seen my affliction.
You have known the troubles of my life. (Psalm 31:7)

My life is Yours. You are my roots—my anchor, my source.
You enable and direct my growth.
Show me how to live in the environment You've placed me.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Praising the Faithful God

2011-10-20T06:17:00.000-07:00

...The Lord is faithful in all His words
and gracious in all His actions. (Psalm 145:13)
...The Lord's plans stand firm forever;
His intentions can never be shaken. (Psalm 33:11)
May Your faithful love comfort me,
as You promised Your servant. (Psalm 119:76)
I rejoice over Your promise like one who finds vast treasure.
(Psalm 119:162)
I will sing about the Lord's faithful love forever;
with my mouth I will proclaim Your faithfulness
to all generations. (Psalm 89:1)
To You, my strength, I sing praises, because God is my stronghold—
my faithful God. (Psalm 59:17)

Thank You Lord, for Your faithfulness on both sunny and stormy days.
Your presence in the daylight and the darkness is my comfort and strength.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Praising God my Provider

2011-10-19T06:13:00.000-07:00

...The Lord will provide what is good. (Psalm 85:12)
The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need. (Psalm 23:1 NLT)
You satisfy me as with rich food; my mouth will praise You with joyful lips.
When on my bed I think of You,
I meditate on You during the night watches because You are my help;
I will rejoice in the shadow of Your wings. (Psalm 63:5-7)
For the Lord God is our sin and our shield. He gives us grace and glory.
The Lord will withhold no good thing from those who do what is right.
(Psalm 84:11 NLT)
I will sing to the Lord because He has dealt bountifully with me.
(Psalm 13:6 NKJV)

Lord my Provider, I choose to watch for You today,
looking up from my concerns to focus on You.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Praising the Most High

2011-10-18T06:49:00.000-07:00

For the Lord Most High is awe-inspiring,
a great King over all the earth. (Psalm 47:2)
The heavens proclaim His righteousness;
all the peoples see His glory. (Psalm 97:6)
For You, Lord are the Most High over all the earth;
You are exalted above all the gods. (Psalm 97:9)
The one who lives under the protection of the Most High
dwells in the shadow of the Almighty. (Psalm 91:1)
I call to God Most High,
to God who fulfills [His purpose] for me. (Psalm 57:2)
It is good to praise the Lord,
to sing praise to Your name, Most High. (Psalm 92:1)

Lord Most High, You are awe-inspiring and dependable.
When my life is foggy with uncertainty I depend on You.
You plan, You judge, You rule—I trust.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Praising the Father of Mercies

2011-10-17T06:46:00.000-07:00

I will sing of mercy and justice; to You, O Lord, I will sing praises.
(Psalm 101:1 NKJV)
Your mercy, O Lord, is in the heavens;
Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds. (Psalm 36:5 NKJV)
O satisfy us early with Your mercy,
that we may rejoice and be glad all our days! (Psalm 90:14 NKJV)
But I will sing of Your power;
yes, I will sing aloud of Your mercy in the morning;
For You have been my defense and refuge in the day of my trouble.
(Psalm 56:16 NKJV)
Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!
For His mercy endures forever. (Psalm 107:1 NKJV)

Father of Mercies, You are my strength and my stronghold. I trust that You will deliver, protect and provide for me today.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Praising the Holy One

2011-10-16T11:39:00.000-07:00

He looked down from His holy heights—
the Lord gazed out from heaven to earth—
to hear a prisoner's groaning, to set free those condemned to die,
so that they might declare the name of the Lord...(Psalm 102:19-21)
Sing to the Lord, you His faithful ones, and praise His holy name. (Psalm 30:4)
Honor His holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice.
(Psalm 105:3)
Worship the Lord in the splendor of [His] holiness;
tremble before Him, all the earth. (Psalm 96:9)
God, Your way is holy. What god is great like God? (Psalm 77:13)

Holy One, You are glorious and magnificent, loving and forgiving.
I draw near to You humbly yet confidently,
honoring You and rejoicing in You.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Praising the God Who Sees

2011-10-15T10:53:00.000-07:00

The Lord looks down from heaven; He observes everyone.
He gazes on all the inhabitants of the earth from His dwelling place.
(Psalm 33:13-14)
Now the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him—those who depend on His faithful love. (Psalm 33:18)
Lord, You have searched me and known me. (Psalm 139:1)
A man's steps are established by the Lord,
and He takes pleasure in his way.
Though he falls, he will not be overwhelmed,
because the Lord holds his hand. (Psalm 37:23)

How amazing Lord, that You see me and think of me! You uphold me and enable me to serve You. Thank You!

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Praising God my Savior

2011-10-14T06:44:00.000-07:00

Let Your faithful love come to me, Lord,
Your salvation, as You promised. (Psalm 119:41)
I will give thanks to You because You have answered me
and have become my salvation. (Psalm 118:21)
May the Lord be praised! Day after day He bears our burdens;
God is our salvation. Selah. (Psalm 68:19)
Lord God, my strong Savior,
You shield my head on the day of battle. (Psalm 140:7)
The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom should I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom should I be afraid? (Psalm 27:1)
I am at rest in God alone; my salvation comes from Him. (Psalm 62:1)

My Savior, You are my refuge and my light.
I trust Your promise of eternal life.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Praising God, my Exceeding Joy

2011-10-13T10:16:00.000-07:00

Why are you cast down, O my soul?
And why are you disquieted within me?
Hope in God; for I shall yet praise Him,
The help of my countenance and my God. (Psalm 43:5)
Then I will go to the altar of God, to God my exceeding joy; And on the harp I will praise You, O God, my God. (Psalm 43:4 NKJV)
Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, you righteous ones;
shout for joy, all you upright in heart. (Psalm 32:11)
Happy are the people who know the joyful shout;
Lord, they walk in the light of Your presence. (Psalm 89:15)

O Lord, You exceed--You are greater than--
my petty worries and the scary stories on the news tonight.
I praise You! I will serve You with a glad heart.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Praising the Mighty God

2011-10-12T19:04:00.000-07:00

Greater than the roar of many waters—the mighty breakers of the sea—
the Lord on high is majestic. (Psalm 93:4)
You rule the raging sea; when its waves surge, You still them.
(Psalm 89:9)
They rejoiced when the waves grew quiet.
Then He guided them to the harbor they longed for.
Let them give thanks to the Lord for His faithful love
and His wonderful works for the human race. (Psalm 107:30-31)
You who have done great things; God, who is like You? (Psalm 71:19b)
Lord God of Hosts, who is strong like You, Lord?
Your faithfulness surrounds You. (Psalm 89:8)

O Mighty One, I praise You for the storms You silence and the storms You guide me through. I rejoice in today's quietness, and I trust You for the future.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Praising Your Wonderful Lord

2011-10-11T06:52:00.000-07:00

Lord, open my lips and my mouth will declare Your praise. (Psalm 51:15)
My soul, praise the Lord! Lord my God, You are very great;
You are clothed with majesty and splendor. (Psalm 104:1)
Sing to Him, sing praise to Him;
tell about all His wonderful works!(Psalm 105:2)
I will speak of Your glorious splendor
and Your wonderful works. (Psalm 145:5)
I will praise the Lord at all times;
His praise will always be on my lips. (Psalm 34:1)

Wonderful Lord, too often I am silent or distracted or talking to someone else—open my lips to declare Your praise.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Praying for a Message

2011-10-10T06:39:00.000-07:00

Guide me in Your truth and teach me for You are the God of my salvation;
I wait for You all day long. (Psalm 25:5)
Help me understand Your instruction,
and I will obey it and follow it with all my heart. (Psalm 119:34)
How sweet Your word is to my taste—[sweeter] than honey to my mouth...
Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light on my path. (Psalm 119:103-105)
The revelation of Your words brings light
and gives understanding to the inexperienced. (Psalm 119:130)
Your decrees are my delight and my counselors. (Psalm 119:24)
You guide me with Your counsel,
and afterwards You will take me up in glory. (Psalm 73:24)

O Lord, so many voices clamor for my attention today; help me discern Your still small voice. Make your instructions clear to me and I will follow You with all my heart.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Praying for an Opportunity to Witness

2011-10-09T06:28:00.000-07:00

I will speak of Your glorious splendor and Your wonderful works. (Psalm 145:5)
Come and listen, all who fear God, and I will tell what He has done for me.
(Psalm 66:16)
My mouth will tell about Your righteousness and Your salvation all day long, though I cannot sum them up. (Psalm 71:15)
...We, Your people,the sheep of Your pasture, will thank You forever;
we will declare Your praise to generation after generation. (Psalm 79:13)
We give thanks to You, God; we give thanks to You,
for Your name is near. People tell about Your wonderful works. (Psalm 75:1)

Lord, give me a message to share, a listener in need of Your love, and the courage to speak up.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Praying with Gratitude

2011-10-08T06:20:00.000-07:00

I will praise the Lord at all times;
His praise will always be on my lips. (Psalm 34:1)
My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to You
because You have redeemed me. (Psalm 71:23)
Lord my God, You have done many things—
Your wonderful works and Your plans for us;
none can compare with You. (Psalm 40:5)
May the Lord be praised! Day after day He bears our burdens...(Psalm 68:19)
Only goodness and faith love will pursue me all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord as long as I live. (Psalm 23:6)

Thank You Lord for saving me, for planning my future, and for carrying my burdens.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Praying for Godliness

2011-10-07T06:05:00.000-07:00

Happy are those who keep His decrees
and seek Him with all their heart...
I will praise You with a sincere heart
When I learn Your righteous judgments...
I have sought You with all my heart;
don't let me wander from Your commands.
I have treasured Your word in my heart;
so that I may not sin against You...
Make my steps steady through Your promise;
don't let sin dominate me. (Psalm 119:2,7,10-11,133)

Lord, I want to seek You with all my heart, but I get distracted. Transform me from the inside out, making my attitudes and actions reflect You.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Praying for a Constant Awareness of God

2011-10-06T06:52:00.000-07:00

At daybreak Lord, You hear my voice;
at daybreak I plead my case to You and watch expectantly. (Psalm 5:3)
Be gracious to me, Lord, for I call to You all day long. (Psalm 86:3)
How I love Your teaching!
It is my meditation all day long. (Psalm 119:97)
The Lord will send His faithful love by day:
His song will be with me in the night—a prayer to the God of my life.
(Psalm 42:8)
You are aware of all my ways...
You have encircled me; You have placed Your hand on me. (Psalm 139:3,5)

Lord, You are aware of everything I do.
Lord, in everything I do, may I be aware of You.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Praying in Faith

2011-10-05T06:37:00.000-07:00

For You are great and perform wonders;
You alone are God. (Psalm 86:10)
Acknowledge that the Lord is God. He made us, and we are His—
His people, the sheep of His pasture. (Psalm 100:3)
Give the Lord the glory due His name;
worship the Lord in the splendor of [His] holiness. (Psalm 29:2)
I am at rest in God alone; my salvation comes from Him.
The Lord values those who fear Him,
those who put their hope in His faithful love. (Psalm 147:11)
You are my hope, Lord God, my confidence from my youth. (Psalm 62:7)

You are great and holy. I praise and trust You today, my hope, my confidence, my wonderful Lord.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Praying for Strength

2011-10-04T06:01:00.000-07:00

God is our refuge and strength,
a helper who is always found in times of trouble. (Psalm 46:1)
Listen closely to me: rescue me quickly.
Be a rock of refuge for me, a mountain fortress to save me.
For You are my rock and my fortress;
You lead and guide me because of Your name. (Psalm 31:2-3)
I call to You from the ends of the earth when my heart is without strength.
Lead me to a rock that is high above me. (Psalm 61:2)
For who is God besides the Lord? And who is a rock?
Only our God. (Psalm 18:31)
He alone is my rock and my salvation, my stronghold;
I will not be shaken. (Psalm 62:2)

I praise You, God, for Your limitless resources of strength. Thank You for loving me and encouraging me, my Refuge, my Helper, my Rock.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Praying for Protection

2011-10-03T07:04:00.000-07:00

You are my hiding place; You protect me from trouble.
You surround me with joyful shouts of deliverance. (Psalm 32:7)
When I am afraid, I will trust in You. (Psalm 56:3)
In God, whose word I praise, in the Lord whose word I praise,
In God I trust; I will not fear. What can man do to me? (Psalm 56:10-11)
You have been a refuge for me,
a strong tower in the face of the enemy. (Psalm 61:3)
For the Lord God is a sun and shield. The Lord gives grace and glory;
He does not withhold the good from those who live with integrity. (Psalm 84:11)

When I am afraid, Lord, help me not only to trust, but to praise!

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Praying for Light

2011-10-02T07:36:00.000-07:00

The Light of the World brings light to our hearts. This enlightenment begins when we believe in Jesus Christ as Savior. Then, for the rest of our lives, whenever we face the darkness of uncertainty or despair, Christ the Light continues to brighten our lives, illuminating and guiding us with the knowledge of His will.

Lord, You light my lamp; my God illuminates my darkness. (Psalm 18:28)
The revelation of Your words brings light and gives understanding to the inexperienced.
(Psalm 119:130)
Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light on my path. (Psalm 119:105)
You guide me with Your counsel, and afterwards You will take me up in glory.
(Psalm 73:24)
Open my eyes so that I may see wonderful things in Your law. (Psalm 119:18)

Lord, I ask You to reveal truth to me today. Fill me with the knowledge of Your will, and guide my feet on Your path.

Looking for other 31 Day series? Look here.

Keep Calm and Read Psalms: Calling on God

2011-10-01T18:30:00.000-07:00

All my blogging friends seem to have a 31 Days of Something or Other this month. I thought I'd jump into the trend. I'm calling it "Keep Calm and Read Psalms."

The book of Psalms gives us a pattern for praying honestly as well as eloquently—not because God doesn't hear simple spur-of-the-moment prayers (He does!), but because, when circumstances allow, He is worthy of thoughtful meditative prayer. Praying the Psalms also inserts a note of triumphant praise into our prayers, lifting our gaze from our needs and our requests to focus on the Lord Himself.

Sometimes I pray a Psalm exactly as it is written, whispering the words of Scripture directly to God. Other times I meditate on the words of a Psalm and respond to God with a prayer prompted by His word.

Today's Psalms share a theme of calling on God.

Call to Me in a day of trouble;
I will rescue you, and you will honor Me. (Psalm 50:15)
I call on You, God, because You will answer me;
listen closely to me;
hear what I say. (Psalm 17:6)
Know that the Lord has set apart the faithful for Himself;
the Lord will hear when I call to Him. (Psalm 4:3)
Be gracious to me, Lord,
for I call to You all day long.
Bring joy to Your servant's life,
since I set my hope on You, Lord.
For You, Lord, are kind and ready to forgive,
abundant in faithful love to all who call on You. (Psalm 86:3-5)
... I call to You for help, Lord;
in the morning my prayer meets You. (Psalm 88:13)

My valuable toe

2011-09-20T16:13:00.000-07:00

I was reading Matthew 1 a few days ago--all those names. They represent generations of the Lord's earthly family, listed one by one. Some of the names are very familiar while others are hardly mentioned in the scriptures. Yet each one of those people was valuable to God. God knew, throughout history, the role each would play in the centuries that led up to the birth of Jesus.

In a very vivid way, I realized the value of things that seem tiny. I stubbed a toe. Not the biggest toe, not the smallest toe, a toe in the middle that until I stubbed it, I wouldn't have thought of as particularly valuable.

And of course my youngest daughter stepped on my toe twice the same day I stubbed it. I felt terribly cheated that my toe didn't turn a spectacular shade of purple. I had only a small bruise but I was very aware of it every time I took a step!

It was such a tiny thing, but it really made a difference in my daily life when it was injured!

Now as we have many parts in one body, and all the parts do not have the same function, in the same way we who are many are one body in Christ and individually members of one another. According to the grace given to us, we have different gifts... (Romans 12:4-6)

Do you feel about as valuable as a tiny toe today? You are valuable to God.

I promised you a funny post

2011-09-19T14:55:00.000-07:00

So here it is, my Monday Oops on my other blog.

Monday Morning Psalms

2011-09-19T07:21:00.000-07:00

I will sing to the Lord all my life;
I will sing praise to my God while I live. (Psalm 104:33)
I delight to do Your will, my God; Your instruction resides within me.
(Psalm 40:8)
This God, our God forever and ever—He will lead us eternally. (Psalm 48:14)
I will praise You, because I have been remarkably and wonderfully made.
Your works are wonderful, and I know [this] very well. (Psalm 139:14)

Today I ask for a new song--
a song of praise no matter what the day holds--
a new delight in following Your will,
and a new contentment in being the person You made me to be.

food trucks, purple tongues, blessings and questions

2011-09-16T16:28:00.000-07:00

This might be another Kleenex-y post. This is out of character for me. I'll post something hilarious next. I promise.

During the summer we discovered food trucks. These restaurants on wheels announce their daily location and menu on Facebook or Twitter, and their food is often unique. I like supporting local artists, and who is more creative than a chef?

Today there were four food trucks in one place: the parking lot of a cancer treatment center. I knew they were planning to be there, and at lunchtime, I suddenly decided to take my children out.

We tried Hawaiian shave ice for the first time. My children thought it was fabulous, and I remembered that I don't really care for foods that are bright pink and blue. We all loved the pulled pork over french fries with barbecue sauce and melted cheese. The kids laughed at the way their tongues all turned purple from the shave ice. It was a beautiful fall day and we all delighted in the spur-of-the-moment lunch.

As we threw away our paper plates, my oldest daughter announced that she had to use the restroom. Now. We were five minutes away from home and I thought she could probably wait. I wasn't sure I wanted to take my sticky purple-faced children into the lobby of the cancer center. “We don't really need to walk in there,” I thought, “we could just drive home.” But Lydia was insistent, and I realized there was really no reason to rush home. So we walked in, through the spotless lobby, under the sparkling glass artwork hanging from the high ceiling, past a display of lovely hats and wigs, and into the bathroom.

And then it hit me. We didn't have to be there. We had come to a cancer center just to get fun food outside. We were only there for fun. We didn't have to be there.

When I was a kid, I walked through quite a few hospital lobbies and doctor's offices, not for fun, but because my mother had to be there. Mom was diagnosed with cancer when I was six months old. For a long time, I had no idea that cancer was a scary thing. It was just part of my mother: she had green eyes, thin brown hair, and cancer. We went to the doctor every month for years. Occasionally she'd get a fabulous report and she'd get three months off from the doctor visits. Most of her doctors were in Seattle, several hours away from home, and my parents would try to plan something fun into the trip too. Because my mom loved plants, this was often a walk through a plant conservatory.

My parents added fun to those trips they had to make. Today my children and I had a fun little lunch--just for fun. As I stood there in the restroom, waiting for Lydia and watching the other girls stick out their purple tongues at each other, I felt overwhelmed with blessings.

And then I thought of my friends who visit places like this because they have to be there. My mind began to ask those “Why?” questions. Why are our paths all so different? Why do some lovely people have to carry such heavy burdens?

I know I won't find answers to those questions. I've asked them often. But I know two things for sure:

None of us have to carry our burdens alone.

May the Lord be praised! Day after day He bears our burdens;
God is our salvation. (Psalm 68:19)

And though we each have our individual path to walk (or race to run), we all need the same focus.
...let us lay aside every weight and the sin that so easily ensnares us, and run with endurance the race that lies before us, keeping our eyes on Jesus, the source and perfecter of our faith... (Hebrews 12:1-2)

On the way home, I listened to this old hymn, and I thought of the Joy we all share, and the Living Bread who satisfies a deep hunger of my soul...a hunger that pulled pork will never fill.

Jesus, Thou Joy of loving hearts,
Thou Fount of life, Thou Light of men,
From the best bliss that earth imparts,
We turn unfilled to Thee again.

Thy truth unchanged hath ever stood;
Thou savest those that on Thee call;
To them that seek Thee Thou art good,
To them that find Thee all in all.

We taste Thee, O Thou living Bread,
And long to feast upon Thee still;
We drink of Thee, the Fountainhead,
And thirst our souls from Thee to fill.

Our restless spirits yearn for Thee,
Wherever our changeful lot is cast;
Glad when Thy gracious smile we see,
Blessed when our faith can hold Thee fast.

O Jesus, ever with us stay,
Make all our moments calm and bright;
Chase the dark night of sin away,
Shed over the world Thy holy light.

Three Cups and Treasure

2011-09-14T15:03:00.000-07:00

Here's an encouraging message about tea and treasure.

I shared this with my Bible study class as we began studying Only for My King. I'm going to lead an online group through this book, beginning the first week of October. To participate, join Ministry for Women and look for the Only for My King group.

I'll also link this to Some Girl's Website for Thought-Provoking Thursday.

Only for My King study

2011-09-13T15:44:00.000-07:00

Today I began facilitating a women's Bible study class, using my book Only for My King. Here are some of the thoughts I shared today.

In chapter one, we looked at the Biblical character Timothy. His life gives us a good illustration of the consecrated life. Everytime we read about Timothy in Scripture, he is obeying and serving God. When he travelled with Paul, he probably met Lydia:

...from there [we went] to Philippi, a Roman colony, which is a leading city of that district of Macedonia. We stayed in that city for a number of days. On the Sabbath day we went outside the city gate by the river, where we thought there was a place of prayer. We sat down and spoke to the women gathered there. A woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, who worshiped God, was listening. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was spoken by Paul. After she and her household were baptized, she urged us, "If you consider me a believer in the Lord, come and stay at my house." And she persuaded us. (Acts 16:12-15, emphasis added)

Lydia was a Gentile woman who lived in Philippi. I wonder if she felt like a bit of an outsider as she met with these faithful Jewish women to pray. There weren't enough Jewish men in Philippi to have a synagogue there, but a few women gathered for prayer on the Sabbath day. Lydia was a business woman, a seller of fine cloth. She heard the truth, the Lord opened her heart, and she committed her life to Him.

As you read and study today, ask the Lord to open your heart to hear His voice.

As soon as Lydia responded to the gospel, she immediately served the Lord by offering what she had: her home.

That is what the Lord asks each of us to do: serve with what we have, without comparing ourselves to the way others are equipped to serve Him.

Just offer what you have.

Serve the Lord with gladness...(Psalm 100:2)

10 Years ago -- 9/11/01

2011-09-11T12:25:00.000-07:00

My mother died in September 1999, on either September 8th or 9th.

Our first baby's due date was in September 2000, on either the 8th or 9th.

I've forgotten which date is which but I remember what an emotional week that was in 2001 as I thought about both dates.

In 2001 I was pregnant for the third time, but because the first two pregnancies had ended in miscarriage, I'd really given up hope that I would ever have a living child. I was depressed and frightened. Life was dark and gloomy. No one told me that post-natal depression can occur after a miscarriage.

The 8th and 9th of September were difficult days as I thought of my mother in heaven with my two babies. Why did she get to meet them? Why didn't I ever get to hold them? I was angry.

On the 10th my husband and I attended our first childbirth class. All the couples around us were so happy! I felt out of place. The nurse-midwife asked us to write down our biggest fear about childbirth. The woman beside me shrugged her shoulders and smiled brightly and said, "I just can't think of anything to worry about!" I wrote, "I am afraid my baby will die."

So on the night of September 10th I went to bed with a feeling of fear.

On the morning of September 11th, my in-laws were planning to fly to Scotland, so of course my husband and I were thinking about them and talking about their trip.

My car was parked behind Mark's car in the driveway, so I went outside to move my car to allow Mark to drive to work. As I walked back to the house, Mark rolled down his car window and said, "Turn on the news. The radio station is saying something about a plane flying into a building."

I said, "That's not something your parents want to hear on their flight day!" I expected to find out that a tiny private plane had crashed accidentally.

But of course that wasn't it at all. I laid on the couch and watched the news and prayed "God help us!"

My husband and I had only had a television for a few months. I hadn't watched a tragedy unfold on television before. It was intense. I remember going to the midwife the next day; she was concerned about what I was eating so she asked, "For example, what did you eat yesterday?"

"I don't know," I said. "I was lying on the couch staring at the tv."

"Yes," she sighed, "we all were."

I cried for those who lost their loved ones on that terrible day, and as I did so, I began to climb out of my dark tunnel of depression and grief. I began to realize that I wasn't the only person grieving. I meditated on the fact of loss and the comfort of God's presence.

For me, September 11 was the beginning of a new and brighter chapter in my life. It was a wake-up call to me--to get my eyes off me, to see others and to listen for God's voice.

When I hear Alan Jackson's song "Where Were You when the World Stopped Turning?" I think that yes, my world did stop turning that day. It was like my washing machine when it's out of balance and making that awful ka-thumping noise. My world stopped, some things were rearranged and refocused, and then my life began to spin a bit more smoothly. Oh there have been ka-thumps since then, but I began to look at me a little less and at Jesus a bit more.

The last ten years have brought many changes to my life--three beautiful living daughters, a move to Las Vegas and a ministry leading Bible studies.

Tonight my church has a special memorial service that includes the Lord's Supper. As we remember the tragedy, we remember our Hope.

Pow! it's the KaBam study!

2011-09-06T14:15:00.000-07:00

A few more details on Only for My King.

Video: what's that book about?

2011-09-06T14:06:00.000-07:00

Today I introduced Only for My King at church, so I thought I'd introduce it here too.

I hope I didn't say "um" quite as many times when I said all this at church!

Only for My King: Cover Art

2011-08-15T18:58:00.000-07:00

From the back cover:
Do you need a hero? I'm not talking about a flying man in a mask, but someone whose life is a pattern of service and surrender to God.

Only for My King is a book of heroes. In every chapter you will meet a Biblical example, a historical hero, a contemporary Christian and someone I know personally. They are artists, poets, missionaries and mothers. Each of them will point you to Jesus—the only perfect hero.

You will read scriptures that assure you of the Lord's care and support, hum along with hymns that put scriptures into poetry and pray through Psalms that express the desires of your heart.

This book is not a call to lengthen your To Do List, but an encouragement to surrender each area of your life to your King, trusting Him to empower you for His glory. The old hymn “Take My Life and Let It Be” serves as a framework to pray through our lives, responsibilities and talents as we surrender to Jesus Christ: the King we serve and the Friend we love.

...You serve the Lord Christ. (Colossians 3:24)

Chapter 6 Excerpt: Godly Messages

2011-08-15T18:52:00.000-07:00

When my husband attended Western Baptist College, he enjoyed acting in the college drama presentations. One semester the production was called “Bite Size Theater,” and the actors performed several short plays at the same event. One was “Spreadin' the News,” a comedy set in a small Irish town. Mark played Bartley Fallon, a garrulous Irishman prone to gossip and pessimism. The next play in the program was “Corpus Christi” which dramatized the Creation and God's interactions with Adam and Eve. Mark played the part of God. Mark said it was an interesting contrast, playing those two parts! He said it made him consider which character's lines he was speaking in his non-acting life.

The Bible is full of verses that contrast godly speech with ungodly. It also gives us practical advice about the kinds of messages we should be sharing.

A fool does not delight in understanding,
but only wants to show off his opinions. (Proverbs 18:2)
The mind of the righteous person thinks before answering,
but the mouth of the wicked blurts out evil things. (Proverbs 15:28)
The tongue of the wise makes knowledge attractive, but the mouth of fools blurts out foolishness. (Proverbs 15:2)
Do you see a man who speaks too soon? There is more hope for a fool than for him.(Proverbs 29:20)
Better to live in a wilderness than with a nagging and hot-tempered wife.
(Proverbs 21:19)
An endless dripping on a rainy day and a nagging wife are alike. (Proverbs 27:15)
Since you put away lying, speak the truth, each one to his neighbor, because we are members of one another. (Ephesians 4:25)
...Coarse and foolish talking or crude joking are not suitable, but rather giving thanks. (Ephesians 5:4)
No rotten talk should come from your mouth, but only what is good for the building up of someone in need, in order to give grace to those who hear. (Ephesians 4:29)
Do everything without grumbling and arguing. (Philippians 2:14)

This is an excerpt from Only for My King, a Bible study that will be available in just a few weeks.

Chapter 5 Excerpt: Aware and Adapting

2011-07-25T16:42:00.000-07:00

Only for My King's Chapter 5 is titled "Audience." This addresses the idea of surrendering your audience--your sphere of influence--to the Lord, who is your heavenly Audience.

Day Two of every chapter features one of my friends. In this chapter, it's Raye:

Aware and Adapting
Our women's Bible Study group takes a break during the summer months. Last year my friend Raye heard some of the moms of young children talking about the need to get together during the summer. She decided that was a need that she could fill. She scheduled several playdates, complete with swimming pool, lunch, Bible stories and crafts. She sensibly delegated a few responsibilities, and invited us all to join. It certainly was an enjoyable day, but some of the activities didn't quite fit the age of the children attending. Raye realized this, and called each of the moms the next day, asking what we thought she should adjust before the next meeting. Raye was aware of the needs of her audience and adapted her plans to fit them.

As I searched for scriptures on this topic, I found Romans 14. Many of the Apostle Paul's friends kept the Jewish dietary laws, but quite a few others ate whatever they wanted to. Some Christians were very cautious about eating meat, wanting to be sure it didn't come from sources who may have offered it to pagan idols. Others just enjoyed meat without asking questions. Some honored the Jewish Sabbath, while others didn't. The church was growing, and there were converts of many different cultures. How could they all agree? Paul gave them this advice:

Accept anyone who is weak in faith, but don't argue about doubtful issues. One person believes he may eat anything, but one who is weak eats only vegetables. One who eats must not look down on one who does not eat; and one who does not eat must not criticize one who does, because God has accepted him. Who are you to criticize another's household slave? Before his own Lord he stands or falls. And stand he will! For the Lord is able to make him stand.

One person considers one day to be above another day. Someone else considers every day to be the same. Each one must be fully convinced in his own mind. Whoever observes the day, observes it to the Lord. Whoever eats, eats to the Lord, since he gives thanks to God; and whoever does not eat, it is to the Lord that he does not eat, yet he thanks God. For none of us lives to himself, and no one dies to himself. If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. Christ died and came to life for this: that He might rule over both the dead and the living. But you, why do you criticize your brother? Or you, why do you look down on your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God. For it is written: “As I live, says the Lord, every knee will bow to Me, and every tongue will give praise to God.” So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God.

...So then, we must pursue what promotes peace and what builds up one another. (Romans 14:1-12, 19)

Paul told his readers to be sensitive to each other, and not to waste time arguing. He reminded them that they were serving the Lord, and would answer to Him.

Amy Carmichael: Designed for her Location

2011-07-19T10:37:00.000-07:00

Only for My King's Chapter Four discusses the topic of Location--surrendering your location to the Lord, trusting Him to move you to the location of His choice, or use you right where you are.

The historical hero in this chapter is Amy Carmichael.

I remember hearing about Amy Carmichael at church when I was in elementary school. I was fascinated by the story of her praying for blue eyes when she was a child, and her learning to accept God's answer of “no.” Later, her brown eyes allowed her to disguise herself as a native in India to rescue babies and young girls from pagan temples in India. I was impressed that God created her—even the detail of her eye color—to serve Him.

This year I read A Chance to Die, a biography of Amy Carmichael by Elisabeth Elliot. It was interesting to see how God guided Amy one step at a time. She didn't plan to go to India. She went to Japan first, but ill health forced her to relocate to Sri Lanka and then to India. She learned some valuable lessons in Japan though; one of those was the importance of being sensitive to the culture of her location. For example, the dresses and gloves that were required apparel in Victorian England were distracting to the Japanese women, so Amy wore kimonos. Eventually she would adopt native attire in India as well.

Another lesson came from several Old Testament stories of battles in which God promised the Israelites that He would go before them (Deuteronomy 1:30, I Chronicles 14:15). Amy took that promise very personally, believing that God would not call her without accompanying and preparing her.

Amy's passion was evangelization. Yet when she learned the plight of girls in the temples in India she could not ignore them. The girls were given to the temple, sometimes by impoverished parents, to eventually become prostitutes. As Amy and her staff began to care for more and more children, Amy could no longer travel and witness as she desired. The children needed not only food and shelter but also education and spiritual instruction, and this took time and planning and prayer. It was difficult for Amy to change her focus but she believed that God would be her comfort, her shepherd, and her reward. She surrendered to His redirection.

God redirected Amy again when she fell and broke her leg. Because she never healed properly, she spent the last twenty years of her life as an invalid, overseeing the mission work from her room. Amy had always found time to write, but now she had many more hours to do so. She wrote notes to her workers, letters to friends in England, and many books.

I was startled to learn that during Amy's lifetime, she was often criticized and many people thought she should return from the mission field. She was too unpredictable, she was too unique, and she tended to seek guidance from the Lord rather than from the mission board. Amy represents the hymn phrase: “Take my feet and let them be swift and beautiful for Thee.” Your feet—your obedient surrender to the Lord's choice of our location—are beautiful to Him. Others may not understand your choices of where and how you live or minister, but “you serve the Lord Christ.” (I Corinthians 3:24)

Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
and do not rely on your own understanding;
think about Him in all your ways,
and He will guide you on the right paths.
Don't consider yourself to be wise;
fear the Lord and turn away from evil. (Proverbs 3:5-7)
Yet I am always with You; You hold my right hand.
You guide me with Your counsel, and afterwards You will take me up in glory.
Whom do I have in heaven but You?
And I desire nothing on earth but You. (Psalm 73:23-25)

Amy knew her way of ministry was different from other ministries. She made a point of stating that hers was a different life but not a greater life. God asks each of us for our unique obedience. Your location and your situation may be quite different from what you dreamed of, what you pictured, or what everyone expected of you. Your Creator knew you would end up here. Ask Him how you can serve Him today.

For we are His creation—created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time so that we should walk in them.
(Ephesians 2:10)

Introduction: Only for My King

2011-07-18T20:18:00.000-07:00

Coming Soon: Only for My King, a Bible study of Christian living and Christian heroes.

Here's the introduction:

Do you need a hero? I'm not talking about a flying man in a mask, but someone whose life is a pattern of service and surrender to God. The news brings us reports of failures and villains every day, but patterns of goodness don't often make the headlines.

I'd like to introduce you to my heroes. I researched historical and present-day examples of faith and I noticed my friends following God in everyday choices. Neither historical nor contemporary Christians are perfect—they are ordinary people empowered by God.

In every chapter you will meet a Biblical example, a historical hero, a contemporary Christian and someone I know personally. These heroes are artists, poets, missionaries and mothers. Each of them will point you to Jesus—the only perfect hero.

You will read scriptures that assure you of the Lord's care and support, hum along with hymns that put scriptures into poetry and pray through Psalms that express the desires of your heart.

This book is not a call to lengthen your To Do List, but an encouragement to surrender each area of your life to your King, trusting Him to reshape you and empower you for His glory. I've used the old hymn “Take My Life and Let It Be” as a framework to pray through our lives, our duties and our talents as we surrender to Jesus Christ: the King we serve and the Friend we love.

...You serve the Lord Christ. (I Corinthians 3:24)

If you have Itunes, this link will take you to a playlist of the hymns used in this study. Maybe. If Itunes is being kind today.

Only for My King: Expressions

2011-07-10T22:10:00.001-07:00

Only for My King's chapter three discusses surrendering our expressions to the Lord. How do I express ME to the world? Can I use that method of expression to express God's love? This is an excerpt from Day Two, titled "Working Together."

Based on the gift they have received, everyone should use it to serve others, as good managers of the varied grace of God. (I Peter 4:10)

Last winter, I read an interesting concept for a skit at a women's retreat. I shared it with women's ministry leaders and they said, “That's a great idea! Do it!” (I think my ministry leaders are very gifted in the art of delegation.) I took the idea and wrote two skits, and I had an idea for a third: I wanted to demonstrate a devotional technique called “Praying in Color.” This can be as simple as writing a prayer list with colored pencils or coloring in a color book while meditating on scripture, but I wanted to demonstrate something a little more decorative. I can't draw, so I asked my friend Claudia to help me. She was very willing to do the drawing, but she really didn't want to do the talking. I asked another friend, Amanda, for help. We met to talk and drink tea, and Amanda took our ideas home, prayed through them and wrote a script. My husband was in charge of music at retreat; I suggested that we needed a few phrases that connected the next song to the skit. Amanda practiced, and Claudia planned a picture.

At retreat it all came together: Claudia drew a beautiful picture while Amanda read Scriptures and prayed, and Mark sang. The speaker shared a message that included some of the same verses we'd used. We all worked together, using our unique ways of expression, to create something and serve God.

Whatever your hands find to do, do with [all] your strength...(Ecclesiastes 9:10)
Just as there are many parts to our bodies, so it is with Christ's Body. We are all parts of it, and it takes every one of us to make it complete, for we each have different work to do. So we belong to each other, and each of us needs all the others. (Romans 12:4-5 LB)
[I want] their hearts to be encouraged and joined together in love, so that they may have all the riches of assured understanding, and have the knowledge of God's mystery—Christ. (Colossians 2:2)
For it is God who is working in you, [enabling you] both to will and to act for His good purpose. (Philippians 2:13)

Read the last verse again. "It is God who is working in you." Surrender is not a burden to carry--it is a realization of the Source of our talents and strength, and a choice to honor Him.

(Note: for more on Praying in Color, click here.)

Only for My King: Days

2011-07-03T09:13:00.000-07:00

The first chapter of Only for My King discusses dedicating our lives to the Lord. Chapter Two asks "What about today? Who are you serving in the little daily choices?"

...Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve...(Joshua 24:15)

When I wake up each morning, the first choice I make is whether to make coffee or tea. If I choose coffee, then I select either the French press for freshly ground coffee beans or the ibrik for Greek coffee. If I'm craving tea, I open the tea drawer to choose between British or Irish or South American while the electric kettle heats the water and I preheat the teapot. These are the first of many choices I make each day. Joshua 24:15 reminds me of a very important daily decision: who am I serving today?

This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. (Psalm 118:24)
I lie down and sleep; I wake again because the Lord sustains me. (Psalm 3:5)

The Lord is the creator of the new day, the sustainer of my life—without Him there wouldn't be a sunrise. Surrendering my day to the Lord means serving Him today and communicating with Him constantly. If I am going to live a consecrated life, it's going to happen one day at a time. To do that, I need to keep in contact with Him, walking with Him, one step at a time. The Apostle Peter's statements in Matthew 16 show us a vivid picture of walking with Jesus one moment and being completely out of step the next.

"But you," He asked them, "who do you say that I am?"
Simon Peter answered, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God!"
And Jesus responded, "Simon son of Jonah, you are blessed because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father in heaven...”
From then on Jesus began to point out to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and scribes, be killed, and be raised the third day. Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, "Oh no, Lord! This will never happen to You!"
But He turned and told Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me because you're not thinking about God's concerns, but man's."
(Matthew 16:15-17, 21-23)

Peter was, of course, a follower of Jesus, and in the first situation here, Jesus asked His followers who they thought He was. Peter knew! Peter had been walking with Jesus and listening to Him, and thereby listening to the Father too.
But in the second conversation, Peter heard what Jesus said and immediately contradicted Him. Peter thought he knew the rest of the story so he told Jesus how it should happen, in his opinion. Jesus did not take this lightly! Peter, though walking with Jesus physically, wasn't in tune with Him spiritually at that moment.
I am grateful that these situations are placed together in the book of Matthew. They remind me that I need to stay in constant contact with the Lord, because temptation comes constantly; Peter experienced it and so will I. But I know the Light of the world, who calls me and enables me to walk in the light, to walk worthy of Him, and to follow His plan for my life.

Only for my King will be available to purchase in September.

Only for My King: Chapter Titles

2011-06-30T09:39:00.000-07:00

My next book is called Only for My King: a Song of Service and Surrender. I'll be sharing this study with my Bible study group this fall. I'll have printed copies available in September. Here are the chapter titles:

Life
Days
Expressions
Location
Audience
Message
Resources
Mind
Desires
Treasure

Each chapter explores the theme of serving and surrendering to God by looking at a Biblical character, a historical Christian, a contemporary Christian, and one of my friends. We'll see how people have served God through the ages and how people are serving Him today. The themes are not a list of things to add to your crowded To Do List; it is an encouragement to surrender your life to the Lord and ask Him to direct you in each of these areas, remembering that your King is also your Friend.

There are ten chapters with four daily readings in each. Every chapter will feature a hymn, and I'll include a suggested soundtrack of those hymns, all available at Itunes.

Avocado Oatmeal Scrub

2011-06-29T10:35:00.000-07:00

Sometimes an avocado looks great on the outside but isn't so great when you slice it open. Don't throw it away! Use it for Avocado Oatmeal Scrub!

Ingredients
about one avocado, scooped out and slightly mashed
(even if it's turning brown or the texture is all wrong for eating)
1/8 cup oatmeal
1 tbsp olive oil or almond oil
5 drops skin safe essential oil (lavender is nice)
1 tsp lavender flowers (or a slightly larger amount of lavender leaves if your herbs aren't blooming yet)
a few mint leaves

Process all the ingredients with a stick blender (chopping blade), blender or food processor. Refrigerate until ready to use (I use it within 12 hours).
To use: smooth over your body and then rinse off.

I find this procedure best when using a scrub: turn the shower on for a few moments before you enter it so that the environment is warm and steamy. Turn off the shower, enter the shower, apply the scrub all over your body. Then turn on the shower and rinse off.

Optional: add a little almond meal for a scrubbier texture.

Only for My King: the hymnwriter

2011-06-22T19:15:00.000-07:00

Frances Ridley Havergal wrote “Take My Life and Let it Be” in 1874. Her life shows us her determination to put the Lord on the throne of her life. Frances was born on December 14, 1836 in Astley, England. She was a bright child, reading when she was four and writing poetry at age seven. Frances trusted the Lord when she was fourteen years old. She'd been longing to be a Christian since she was six, but it took her several years to be ready to make the commitment. “From then onward,” her friend and biographer Esther Enock wrote, “her real happiness lay in pleasing and serving Him.”

Frances used her gift of poetry to write hymns, sometimes composing music to go with her lyrics. You might recognize her hymns “Like a River Glorious” and “I Gave My Life for Thee.” She also wrote devotionals for children. She prayed as she wrote, constantly asking the Lord what she should write on the next line. Her career suffered several setbacks, including her American publisher's bankruptcy ( n exclusive contract kept her from choosing a different publisher), and the only manuscript for an entire hymnal of her work burning in a fire at her British publisher's building.

Frances wrote “Take My Life and Let It Be” while she was staying with friends for several days. She prayed that each of the ten other guests would be converted or find a new joy in the Lord before the party ended. Her prayers were answered, and on the last night of the visit, she wrote the words to the hymn. She took no credit for this success, but used the experience as an opportunity of new commitment to serving the Lord.

Though Frances never married, she certainly did not lead a solitary life. She constantly witnessed to others, whether talking to laundry maids or lecturing on Psalms at a fashionable school. She was especially concerned about those who follow rituals and rules without finding the joy of a relationship with Jesus. Frances used her music to create opportunities to witness, inviting friends over to play duets, or singing a hymn when asked to share her talent at a party. Frances willingly interrupted her writing when there was a chance to witness, seeing that as her first priority. Frances valued people. When she taught Sunday School classes, she remembered each student's birthday, and prayed for all her students for the rest of her life. Frances' readers wrote to her asking for advice on spiritual matters, and she answered them, sometimes writing over a hundred letters a month.

Frances lived a life of surrender and service, aware that she was consecrated—dedicated to the Lord and serving Him in her unique way.

For me to live is Christ [His life in me], and to die is gain [the gain of the glory of eternity]. (Philippians 1:21 Amplified)

...It is no longer I who live, but Christ (the Messiah) lives in me; and the life I now live in the body I live by faith in (by adherence to and reliance on and complete trust in) the Son of God, Who loved me and gave Himself up for me. (Galatians 2:20 Amplified)

Do not lack diligence; be fervent in spirit; serve the Lord. (Romans 12:11)
For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life—a ransom for many. (Mark 10:45)

In what area of your life do you need to ask the Lord what to write (or do) next?
Use the Psalms below to ask the Lord to reveal His plan for you.

You reveal the path of life to me; in Your presence is abundant joy;
in Your right hand are eternal pleasures. (Psalm 16:11)
He renews my life; He leads me along the right paths for His name's sake.
(Psalm 23:3)
Let me experience Your faithful love in the morning, for I trust in You. Reveal to me the way I should go, because I long for You. (Psalm 143:8)
I rejoice in the way [revealed by] Your decrees as much as in all riches.
I will meditate on Your precepts and think about Your ways. (Psalm 119:14-15)

This is an excerpt from my next book, Only for My King .This 10 Chapter Bible study will be available about September 1st.

Only for My King: the hymn

2011-06-21T10:59:00.001-07:00

I knew my next book would be a devotional about serving and surrendering to God. As I prayed about the chapter topics, I found this hymn. It's a summary of serving and surrendering! Read it slowly and ask the Lord which area of your life you need to surrender to Him today.

Take my Life and Let it Be

Take my life and let it be consecrated Lord to Thee
Take my moments and my days, let them flow in ceaseless praise
Take my hands and let them move at the impulse of Thy love
Take my feet and let them be swift and beautiful for Thee

Take my voice and let me sing always only for my King
Take my lips and let them be filled with messages from Thee
Take my silver and my gold not a mite would I withhold
Take my intellect and use every power as Thou shalt choose

Take my will and make it Thine it shall be no longer mine
Take my heart it is Thine own it shall be Thy royal throne
Take my love my Lord I pour at Thy feet its treasure store
Take myself and I will be ever only all for Thee.

--Frances Ridley Havergal

Check out the recording of this hymn by Jadon Lavik, on the album Roots Run Deep, available at Itunes.

Treasured by the King

2011-06-20T16:08:00.000-07:00

Here's a sneak peak into Only for My King, my next Bible study.

I love dishes. My kitchen cupboards hold colorful square plates and white rippled bowls we use daily. A nearby shelf displays an assortment of handmade pottery mugs for morning coffee or tea. Across the dining room the china hutch is full of special occasion dishes: a rosy pattern for afternoon tea parties, a wintry village design for Christmas feasts, and a delicate silver floral pattern for spring dinners. In July when the desert heat is unbearable, I drink my tea out of a vintage cup decorated with holly and unexplainably I feel cooler. Every piece is ideal for some specific use. Each piece gives me joy—yet much of that joy comes not from the outer beauty of the dish or cup, but from the fragrant food or drink it holds.

...We possess this precious treasure [the divine Light of the Gospel] in [frail, human] vessels of earth, that the grandeur and exceeding greatness of the power may be shown to be from God and not from ourselves.(2 Corinthians 4:7 Amplified)

Followers of Jesus, like my dishes, are unique and beautiful in His sight. We are fragile human vessels holding the grandeur of God. Our joy comes from this treasure within us. We belong to a King who treasures us and places His treasure within us.

Only for My King will be available in September. It is a ten week Bible study on the topic of serving and surrendering to God.

Fashion, Human Rights and Prayer

2011-05-31T10:06:00.001-07:00

Several weeks ago, I saw my friend Maura wearing a scarf over her hair. It looked like a fun and easy style for summer. When I saw this article in InStyle, I was determined to try it myself.

Several of us wore scarves wrapped around our heads to Bible study last week:

My friend Claudia directed me to this website, where I found directions on how to tie the scarf. I like the Dutch crown look best; it's easy to do and gives me different looks depending on the thickness of the scarf.

Today I got an invitation on Facebook to participate in a day of Fasting and Prayer for women in Saudi Arabia. The invitation says:

On June 17th Saudi Women are planning on protesting the religious ban on Women driving. These are our sisters fighting for their human rights. They need our prayers for their safety as Saudi men have been told that they are allowed to beat any woman that they see driving on that day For more info visit:
http://arabnews.com/opinion/columns/article441832.ece
I encourage you to fast at least one meal and pray for our Saudi Sisters. If you want to join me I will also be covering my head to show my support.

I've never fasted. I'm praying about that. But I am going to use my fun headwraps to remind me to pray for the women of Saudi Arabia. I would really prefer not to drive, but I can't imagine being banned from driving simply because I am a woman. This is only one detail in the many ways Saudi women are not treated fairly, but it caught my attention because it is something I do so often and without any thought of what a privilege it is. I am praying for their safety, for their political leaders, and that someone would share the good news of the gospel with them. Will you join me?

Perhaps you'd like to try the current fashion of headwraps--not just for fun, but as a reminder to pray. Or maybe when you enter your hot car this summer you will pray during those rough moments while you wait for the airconditioning to take effect.

Back to frivolous fashion for a moment: I have several "Parisian neck tissues" from a seller named Textile Monster on etsy. They are the perfect length for me. If you have a favorite seller of headwraps, please tell me in the comments.

Biscuits...

2011-05-08T10:05:00.000-07:00

I won't be blogging very frequently for the next two months. I'm working on my next book: Only for my King: a Song of Service and Surrender. This book will include, in addition to scriptures, examples of historic and contemporary people who served (or are serving) God.

One of them is Amy Carmichael. I'm saving most of my thoughts on Amy for the book, but this quote was so funny and so thought-provoking that I had to share it with you now. In this letter, Amy is writing about the new missionaries she's been meeting and what she thinks of the institutions that are training thse missionaries:

I don't pray for milk biscuits [“biscuit” is a British term for “cookie”]...all cut to a pattern and stamped with a single decorous pretty stamp. So many places, to judge by the results, seem to be great biscuit manufacturers and they turn out tidy boxes of biscuits. I pray for soldiers, not biscuits! (p. 303 A Chance to Die, a biography of Amy Carmichael by Elisabeth Elliott)

I picture the Little Scholar chocolate biscuit cookies when I read this. Look for them at Albertsons or Cost Plus World Market. They are delicious. They are beautiful. But every single one of them is identical. Amy Carmichael thought that serving God required a bit of uniqueness, and a willingness to be a risk-taking soldier.

I'll let you come up with your own soul-searching application question to this.

thoughts about the Princess

2011-04-28T12:05:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow Kate Middleton will marry Prince William and become a princess. I am going to honor the occasion by wearing a fascinator (a little bit like this one, but assembled at home at a much lower price) and drinking tea. Yesterday I showed my daughters pictures of Kate and they were fascinated. I discovered a royal hat blog and I look forward to the updates tomorrow! On a shopping trip, we were tempted by "princess" cupcakes. A sample convinced us to purchase them to enjoy with our afternoon tea.

Princesses are popular at our house. I tried to explain the details of the royal wedding but my youngest daughter got a little confused and in her bedtime prayer she thanked God that "that guy is going to marry the princess."

Kate Middleton's story is not exactly a fairytale. She and her groom have not waited til their wedding day to live together. The royal family has had its share of disfunction lately (actually if you know your history, royal families have never been known for healthy family relationships). But tomorrow, Kate will wear a gorgeous dress and she will walk down a long aisle in a historic cathedral, and I will "ooh" and "ahhh" because she is becoming a princess. She has no royal heritage herself, but she is joining a royal family because the Prince loves her.

Who loves you?

The Lord your God is among you,
a warrior who saves.
He will rejoice over you with gladness.
He will bring quietness with His love.
He will delight in you with shouts of joy." (Zephaniah 3:17)

The Lord your God--the High King of heaven--loves and delights in you.
And that's more precious than a diamond tiara.

Thought Provoking Thursday is hosted here.

I should give credit to the website from which I borrowed the photo.

Baked Sweet Potato Fries

2011-04-24T18:07:00.001-07:00

Peel 6 sweet potatoes and cut them into french fry size wedges.

Preheat a cookie sheet in a 450 oven.

Combine juice of half a lemon,
2 tbs olive oil,
1/4 cup fresh marjoram or oregano,
salt and
pepper
in a ziploc bag.

Add sweet potatoes to the bag and shake.

Place on preheated cookie sheet and bake in a 450 oven 20 minutes.

These were lovely in our Easter dinner (which included herbed ham and also asparagus in a citrus balsamic sauce), but they'd be just as nice for an everyday lunch.

Focus

2011-04-21T12:31:00.001-07:00

An unpleasant surprise when we figured out our taxes brought us to a new season of trusting God. I found encouragement in these verses. They all tell me where my focus should be.

Keeping our eyes on Jesus, the source and perfecter of our faith... (Hebrew 12:2)

We are asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding, so that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing [to Him], bearing fruit in every good work and growing in the knowledge of God. (Colossians 1:9-10)

But everything that was a gain to me, I have considered to be a loss because of Christ. More than that, I also consider everything to be a loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord...(Philippians 3:7-8)

The instruction of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul;
the testimony of the Lord is trustworthy,
making the inexperienced wise. (Psalm 19:7)

I have chosen the way of truth;
I have set Your ordinances [before me].(Psalm 119:30)

I pursue the way of Your commands,
for You broaden my understanding.
Teach me, Lord, the meaning of Your statutes,
and I will always keep them.
Help me understand Your instruction,
and I will obey it and follow it with all my heart. (Psalm 119:32-34)

This is my post for Thought Provoking Thursday, hosted here.

My Testimony: a Spiritual Scrapbook

2011-04-19T11:40:00.001-07:00

Kristi Stephens at krististephens.com asked her readers to share their testimonies today. My testimony is already here, but it's spread out into five posts. I realized that if you click on "Spiritual Scrapbook" in the links here, you'll find it in reverse order.

So here are the posts, in order. They are adapted from a talk I shared at a Women's Retreat last month.

Part 1: Why make a Spiritual Scrapbook...and what is a Spiritual Scrapbook anyway?

Part 2: Beginnings and Guidance

Part 3: Darkness and Change

Part 4: Change and Contentment

Part 5: A Biblical woman who shared her story

All and Everything

2011-04-14T08:32:00.000-07:00

Just two thought-provoking words:"all" and "everything." Look for them in the verses below.

Casting all your care upon Him, because He cares about you. (I Peter 5:7)

I don't say this out of need, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know both how to have a little, and I know how to have a lot. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret [of being content]—whether well-fed or hungry, whether in abundance or in need. (Philippians 4:11-12)

I am able to do all things through Him who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:13)

Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives to all generously and without criticizing, and it will be given to him. (James 1:5)

For His divine power has given us everything required for life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness. (2 Peter 1:3)

And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:19)

Thought Provoking Thursday is hosted here.

Breakfast on the Beach

2011-04-13T06:43:00.000-07:00

After Jesus rose from the dead, He appeared to His disciples several times. My favorite is His appearance on the beach to cook breakfast for His friends. (John 21:1-14) The disciples went fishing and Jesus met them on the shore, with bread and fish cooked over a fire.

The resurrected Son of God spent a morning enjoying His creation with His disciples; He could have brought them anything for that breakfast, but He used the fish that were available right there in the lake. He spent the morning fellowshipping with them in their everyday environment. And He wants to do that with us. That's what prayer is all about...fellowshipping with Him!

I read that story in John several years ago when we were about to make a long car trip to the Northwest for my father's memorial service. I thought about the disciples and Jesus and their special time of simple food and good fellowship, and I asked the Lord that I would find that kind of simple joy on our trip and that I would be aware of His presence.

He answered. The trip was full of joy! There were so many friends to visit, so many memories to remember and the Northwest Spring was beautiful.

As you read the Gospels, as you watch Jesus interact with His disciples, talk to the Lord about the fellowship you crave....fellowship with other Christ followers and fellowship with the Lord Himself.

Gratitude

2011-04-11T08:44:00.000-07:00

I am grateful for Jesus' humble birth. Thinking of the Holy God coming to earth in this way fills me with praise.

I am extremely grateful for Jesus' death--and the salvation He gave me.

And I am grateful for His life.

None of His earthly life was lived in splendor. His neighbors still knew him as “the carpenter's son” when He began His ministry at age thirty. He traveled around Israel, teaching and healing, and He certainly didn't have luxury accommodations.

As I read the gospel accounts of Jesus' life, I see His power and His gentleness. I see Him holding children, comforting grieving families, and reaching out to sinners. Yet when confronted with hypocrisy and pride, He didn't mince words. Far from weak, when He saw God's temple filled with people who were only there to make money, He sternly drove them out!

How wonderful to serve a Savior who lived His earthly life with kindness, perfectly balanced with power. I am grateful for that.

The last week of Jesus' ministry began in triumph, though Jesus still appeared lowly and unassuming as He approached Jerusalem:

Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, lowly and riding on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey. (Zechariah 9:9 NKJV)

But soon the crowds turned against Him and He faced an unjust trial. Still, the Son of God kept His power under control and responded in a meek manner:

He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth. Like a lamb led to the slaughter and like a sheep silent before her shearers, He did not open His mouth. (Isaiah 53:7)

On the way to the cross, the Son of God was so weak that He stumbled and fell, and the soldiers forced someone from the crowd to carry His cross. Think about that for a moment: the Son of God—a captive.

Of course, you know the rest of the story. You know that Jesus was crucified and buried but then He rose from the dead. And suddenly His power was obvious to His believers. Yet He did not appear to them in a spectacular glory, but with gentleness and approachability.

Praise Him!

Praying for Godliness

2011-04-10T09:25:00.000-07:00

I've been in the desert eight years now, and I've come to love our weather. But there's one thing I miss in the spring time: flowering bulbs...daffodils, crocus, and tulips. I've read that if you want to make bulbs grow and bloom in a warm climate, you must dig them up and store them in your refrigerator for a certain length of time. The cold is necessary for the blooms.

In our spiritual lives, growth in godliness often happens during a trial—we might call it a chilly season or a storm.

In the book of James we're told that the trying of our faith produces patience. I've heard Christians say that we should never pray for patience because God will answer us by sending trials. I can understand a bit of the logic behind this idea, but I am not sure that it takes into account the wisdom and love of God. He wants what is best for us and what will bring glory to Him. I cannot believe that He has a stockpile of troubles He's just waiting to pour on us if we pray the wrong prayer.

We know that He wants us to pray for godliness (Paul prayed that his converts would grow spiritually) and I believe that we can trust Him to follow His good plan for us. Trials will be a part of that because we live in a fallen world, but God in His grace and wisdom speaks to us through the tough times, using the chill of troubles to produce beautiful blooms of godliness.

If God has prompted you to pray for a certain character quality, a specific fruit of the Spirit, or godliness in general, rest assured that He is working within you, and He has already arranged or allowed the circumstances and now He's preparing you. He will be with you every step of the way, whispering His words of love in your ear. You can pray confidently!

I pray this: that your love will keep on growing
in knowledge and every kind of discernment,
so that you can determine what really matters
and can be pure and blameless in the day of Christ,
filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ,
to the glory and praise of God. (Philippians 1:9-10)

We are asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding, so that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him, bearing fruit. (Col. 1:10-11)

We always pray for you that our God will consider you worthy of His calling, and will, by His power, fulfill every desire for goodness and the work of faith, so that the name of our Lord Jesus will be glorified by you, and you by Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ. (2 Thessalonians 1:11-12)

Praise: Part Five

2011-04-09T07:02:00.000-07:00

Remember the word eucharisteo: giving thanks for grace...and rejoicing...Why do we rejoice? Because He is our joy...our Exceeding Joy.

Then I will go to the altar of God, to God my exceeding joy; And on the harp I will praise You, O God, my God. (Psalm 43:4 NKJV)

I appreciate the word “exceeding” which means “exceptional in amount, quality, or degree.” God gives us a joy that is unexpected, a joy that is greater than our circumstances.

In the book of Luke, we meet Anna, a joyful aged woman who saw Jesus when He was just eight days old. Mary and Joseph brought Jesus to the temple in Jerusalem; there they met Simeon, an elderly man who had been told by the Spirit that he would meet the Messiah. He recognized Jesus as the promised one, and held Him and prayed and praised God. Anna joined the group as Simeon was proclaiming that this infant would bring comfort to His people.

Then Simeon blessed them and told His mother Mary: "Indeed, this child is destined to cause the fall and rise of many in Israel and to be a sign that will be opposed—and a sword will pierce your own soul—that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed." There was also a prophetess, Anna, a daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was well along in years, having lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, and was a widow for eighty-four years. She did not leave the temple complex, serving God night and day with fastings and prayers. At that very moment, she came up and began to thank God and to speak about Him to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem. (Luke 2:25-38)

Anna was widowed at a young age and spent the rest of her life at the temple. Whatever her service involved, it is obvious that she was focused on God and His word; Anna was one of the few who recognized the Messiah and proclaimed His arrival. When Simeon foretold the sorrow of the future, Anna pointed them back to the joy of God's presence.

I think it's impossible to talk about joy without talking about troubles—they are both parts of our earthly experience. How do we find joy within troubled times? Let's go back to that scene in the temple, when Mary and Joseph and Simeon and Anna were praising God together. The Jewish nation was expecting the Messiah to come and deliver them from Roman oppression. This little group probably had this in mind as they praised. They didn't know God's great plan of redemption in detail. They just knew He had arrived, so they praised Him. I think there is a lesson here for us. On a dark night, in the midst of grief or worry or pain, God's presence is our comfort. This is why, as I posted last week, I pray for awareness of that presence. When I remember that He is with me, my dark night may not end instantly, but knowing I'm not alone—knowing I am with my Savior—puts a gleam of hope in my heart. Look at these Scriptures about joy and rejoicing:

Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Romans 15:12-14)

I love that phrase: overflow with hope—God my exceeding joy is also the God of overflowing hope.

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your graciousness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Don't worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:4-7)

Don't forget, when you read Philippians—Paul wrote this letter from prison. And he urged his readers to be joyful. Now that is exceeding joy!

Why am I so depressed? Why this turmoil within me? Put your hope in God, for I will still praise Him, my Savior and my God. (Psalm 42:5)
My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to You, because You have redeemed me. (Psalm 71:23) Happy are the people who know the joyful shout; Lord, they walk in the light of Your presence. (Psalm 89:15)
Come, let us shout joyfully to the Lord, shout triumphantly to the rock of our salvation! (Psalm 95:1)
Serve the Lord with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs. (Psalm 100:2)

Praise: Part Four

2011-04-08T07:01:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I posted a few thoughts on remembering the Savior. Today, let's praise Him.

...The Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.
(I John 4:14 KJV)

When my daughter Martina was three, she began asking questions about Jesus and heaven and the big cross outside our church. She never stayed focused on the answers for long, but she kept asking. One day at church while Mark was practicing with the band and I was watching the kids, Martina asked me to read her a book. Its topic was gratitude, and each page had a little rhyme about a girl and her thankfulness for her dog, her grandma's pie and her curly hair. At the end of the book I asked Martina what she would like to thank Jesus for today. She said, “I'd like to thank Jesus for dying on the cross to take away all my wrong choices and give me a home in heaven some day.”

I stared at her for a moment, shocked that she had put such a long and detailed sentence together. I asked her if she would like to thank Jesus right now. “No,” she answered, “I want to crawl under the bench.” Off she went, crawling across the floor in her church dress to play with a toy under the bench. Soon she reappeared, and I asked her again if she'd like to thank Jesus, and this time she said “Yes.” I felt blessed to be present at this moment, and I thought it was beautiful that her first declaration of faith was expressed as gratitude. The more I think about this, the more obvious it seems—when we realize that Jesus is our Savior, of course we respond with thanksgiving and praise!

Jesus' name proclaimed His mission on earth: “Jesus” is our English translation of the Hebrew “Yeshua,” a common Jewish name in Mary's time, meaning “Yahweh is salvation.”Yahweh was the name God used to identify Himself when He promised Abraham that his descendants would bring blessing to the whole earth. The Savior brings salvation.

Most of us probably know these verses very well, but I hope we never lose the wonder of these truths:

For God loved the world in this way: He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16)
But God proves His own love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us! (Romans 5:8)

Therefore, since we have been declared righteous by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Also through Him, we have obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. (Romans 5:1-2)

As soon as sin entered the world, God promised a Savior. The Old Testament books are full of further details on that promise. Here are three of my favorite promises:

On that day it will be said, “Look, this is our God; we have waited for Him, and He has saved us. This is the Lord; we have waited for Him. Let us rejoice and be glad in His salvation.” (Isaiah 25:9)
Surely, falsehood comes from the hills, commotion from the mountains, but the salvation of Israel is only in the Lord our God. (Jeremiah 3:23)
...I will dwell among you, and you will know that the Lord of Hosts has sent Me to you. (Zechariah 2:11)

Your Savior dwells with you. Whatever commotion is surrounding you today, rejoice and be glad in that salvation.

The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom should I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom should I be afraid? (Psalm 27:1)
The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord, their refuge in a time of distress.
(Psalm 37:39)
May the Lord be praised! Day after day He bears our burdens; God is our salvation. Selah. (Psalm 68:19)
Come, let us shout joyfully to the Lord, shout triumphantly to the rock of our salvation! (Psalm 95:1)

Praise: Part Three...the Lord's Table

2011-04-06T18:30:00.000-07:00

From our perspective, “The God Who Sees” is invisible. But He understands our need to have something we can see and touch, so before Jesus gave His life for us, He gave us two very visible symbols that we can see, taste, touch, smell...depending on how crunchy the bread is, you can even hear it. We use those symbols at the Lord's Table to remember this event and to remember His sacrifice.

And He took bread, gave thanks, broke it, gave it to them, and said, "This is My body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of Me." (Luke 22:19)

Notice this little phrase: in English, it's simply “gave thanks.” Jesus gave thanks. I looked up this phrase and I learned something fascinating. It's one word in the original Greek: eucharisteō (in Greek: Εὐχαριστέω)

It means “to give thanks.”

But when you look at this word, it contains its root word: charis, which means grace. When we give thanks, we are noticing...remembering...grace. Grace is a free and undeserved gift of God, and when we hold the juice or the bread, we have a visible touchable reminder of the sacrifice He made to give us the free gift of eternal life and a relationship with Him.

Now, if we look again at this word, charis--grace--there is a verb that came from this word, and it is chairo which means rejoicing, especially rejoicing for the redemption that God gave us through Jesus Christ.

I know that the Lord's Supper is usually a solemn time. And yes, it is a quiet moment of reflection, and it something we take very seriously. But, when you are giving Him thanks for His gift of grace...how can you not be joyful? How can you keep from bubbling over with His exceeding joy? We are celebrating!

I love the way God chose to give us edible symbols. As humans we naturally celebrate everything with food, don't we? At the Lord's Table we use food to celebrate Him. To remember...to see with our spiritual vision The God Who Sees Us.

We give thanks--eucharisteo--
for His grace--charis--
and we rejoice--chairo.

Give thanks for grace, and rejoice today!

This is my post for Thought Provoking Thursday, which is hosted here.
I learned about these words in One Thousand Gifts, and researched them in my Bible dictionary and at blueletterbible.org.
One Thousand Gifts is a thought-provoking book that I will review on my blog one of these days.

Praise: Part Two

2011-04-06T07:24:00.000-07:00

This is the second in a series of posts praising God, specifically focusing on three Names of God. Today we praise the God Who Sees.

An Old Testament woman named Hagar was the first to call God “The God Who Sees.” Hagar was a slave to Abraham's wife Sarah. Sarah ruled over her staff. She knew that God had promised Abraham that he would be the father of many nations, but they'd been married for decades and they were still childless. Sarah decided it was time for this promise to be fulfilled, so she suggested that Abraham could have a child by Hagar. This was not at all shocking in their culture, but it shows us Hagar's lowly position in the household: even her body belonged to her owner.

Sarah, struggling with the grief of infertility, didn't foresee the emotions that would consume her when her slave was carrying Abraham's child. Jealousy and anger overruled any feeling of joy, and it didn't help that Hagar developed a bit of an attitude. So Sarah irrationally sputtered at Abraham, “You are responsible for my suffering!” (Genesis 16:5), and he told her to handle the matter herself. So Sarah made Hagar's life miserable and Hagar ran away to the desert. There she met the Angel of the Lord, and He told her,

“You must go back to your mistress and submit to her mistreatment.” The Angel of the Lord also said to her, “I will greatly multiply your offspring, and they will be too many to count.” Then the Angel of the Lord said to her: “You have conceived and will have a son. You will name him Ishmael, for the Lord has heard your cry of affliction. This man will be like a wild donkey. His hand will be against everyone, and everyone's hand will be against him; he will live at odds with all his brothers.” So she named the Lord who spoke to her “The God Who Sees,” (Genesis 16:11-13)

This does not sound like a very comforting message, but Hagar seemed to focus on the one detail that was incredibly encouraging: God saw her. God knew every detail of her situation, and cared enough to speak to her.

Many Bible scholars believe that the Angel of the Lord mentioned in the Old Testament is actually Jesus. This is a mind-boggling thought! God Himself talked to a runaway slave girl, a girl of extremely small worth in her culture, a girl with no rights or privileges. God saw. God knew. God cared. And He sees you and cares about you. Praise Him!

The Lord looks down from heaven; He observes everyone. He gazes on all the inhabitants of the earth from His dwelling place. (Psalm 33:13-14)
The Lord looks down from heaven on the human race to see if there is one who is wise, one who seeks God. (Psalm 14:2)
Now the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him— those who depend on His faithful love. (Psalm 33:18)
Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God—God remains in him and he in God. And we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. (I John 4:14-15)

Tomorrow, we'll look at three Greek words that express thankfulness and praise.

Walk with Him Wednesdays focuses on spiritual practices, such as praising. This post is adapted from my book Praise Patterns, and is part of a message I shared at Shiloh Bible Camp.

Praise: Part One

2011-04-05T19:04:00.000-07:00

Lord, open my lips and my mouth will declare Your praise. (Psalm 51:15)

This week my topic is Praise, specifically using names of God while we praise Him. The Bible is full of different names for God, names that each express one aspect of His character or His relationship to us. I love to use the names of God when I pray. I like to say that using a specific name of God to open my prayer time is like finding just the right way to begin a love letter. It puts me in that worship mood instantly! But more important than my mood is the fact that praising God by name glorifies Him.

Last week I posted about praying that we will be more aware of God. I mentioned the fact that He is aware of us. That is the simple truth expressed by this name of God: “The God Who Sees.”

When I began writing my Praise Patterns book, focusing on names of God, I was teaching my Sacred Signposts book. One Tuesday morning towards the end of class, my friend Ellen burst in the door. She'd just come from her doctor. She'd just learned that she had cancer. It was a very treatable kind of cancer, but still...it was traumatic! We all gathered around her and prayed, and my friend Maura gave her some very detailed information about what to expect. Maura had faced breast cancer herself a couple years before, and she knew what Ellen's next few months would hold. As everyone was leaving, Maura turned in the doorway and said, “I have a doctor's appointment today. Just a routine checkup. I'm not worried.” Well, as Maura said later, “that was a doozy of a statement!”

The routine checkup showed that Maura's cancer was back, and her diagnosis was very serious. At first her doctors didn't expect her to live more than a year. (Now, 15 months later, Maura is still with us, still needing treatments occasionally, but still with us!) Our women's group was very shaken up by this news. Maura is not only active in our Bible study, she's very involved in a youth ministry at another church/ Maura has three young kids.

When Maura got this scary diagnosis, I kept telling God how valuable Maura was to everyone, how talented she is, how she is serving Him so whole-heartedly. I was so upset at the thought of losing Maura that I lost sight of God's sight. And then in my writing project, I reached my chapter about “The God Who Sees.” I found such comfort in this Name! I wrote this prayer:

O Lord Who Sees, it is so hard to praise You tonight! You know the news my friend got from her doctor today. You know her condition. You know her future. You know her needs right now. You see. You know. I will take comfort in knowing that You know.

When I use the expression, “Oh I see,” I mean “I understand now” or “I am aware.” God is always aware of us, and He understands us intimately. God sees each of us, in our unique situation, no matter how distant we may feel from Him.

Nevertheless, God's solid foundation stands firm, having this inscription: The Lord knows those who are His...(2 Timothy 2:19a)
Lord, You have searched me and known me. (Psalm 139:1)

This Praise series is based on my Praise Patterns book, and I shared these messages at Shiloh Bible Camp.

A Sneak Peak

2011-04-04T19:15:00.000-07:00

Next Book:

Only for My King
a song of service and surrender

and a possible soundtrack:
http://t.co/PM5iBN1
(that's a direct link to Itunes. Where did the playlist widgets go?)

If you know any wake-you-up rather than lull-you-to-sleep versions of any of those songs. do leave me a comment!

I will definitely be changing the "I Will Sing of My Redeemer" to a different version. There are some kids singing on the end and they're cute, but they kind of interrupt the playlist.

Prayer, Part Six: Praying with Faith

2011-04-04T07:22:00.000-07:00

Now to Him who is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think—according to the power that works in you—to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. (Ephesians 3:20-21)

Paul gave God the glory. When Paul prayed, he made lots of requests for himself and his friends, but he also burst into praise and declarations of faith.

My definition of faith is a simple acrostic I learned at Bible camp when I was a teenager: Focus Aimed into the Heavens. That is what I mean by praying with faith: lifting your eyes from our own circumstances and concerns to focus on our great God, declare our faith in Him and praise Him.

Christ is in control, He is trustworthy, and without Him I am powerless. He is worthy of our faith and trust because He is faithful.

God is faithful; by Him you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.(I Corinthians 1:9)

...the Lord is faithful; He will strengthen and guard you from the evil one.
(2 Thessalonians 3:3)

Let us hold on to the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. (Hebrews 10:23)

Keeping our eyes on Jesus, the source and perfecter of our faith...(Hebrews 12:2)

Lord God of Hosts, who is strong like You, Lord? Your faithfulness surrounds You. (Psalm 89:8)

Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom; Your rule is for all generations.
The Lord is faithful in all His words and gracious in all His actions. (Psalm 145:13)

Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne;
faithful love and truth go before You. (Psalm 89:14)

God, within Your temple, we contemplate Your faithful love...(Psalm 48:10)

My lips will glorify You because Your faithful love is better than life.(Psalm 64:3)

The Lord will send His faithful love by day; His song will be with me in the night—a prayer to the God of my life. (Psalm 42:8)

For You, Lord, are kind and ready to forgive, abundant in faithful love to all who call on You. (Psalm 86:5)

For the Lord is good, and His love is eternal;
His faithfulness endures through all generations. (Psalm 100:4-5)

As I meditated on Paul's prayer, I realized that “glory” is one of those words I hear at church and use when I pray, without thinking about what it means. Its English definition includes the words “fame, praise, honor, splendor, worthy of praise.”

When we pray, we give God glory—that is, praise and honor. We also recognize that He is glorious—worthy of our praise. And when we ask Him to answer our prayer “for His glory” we are saying that we are seeking not our own will, not our own fame, but His. We ask Him to answer our prayers in a way that will not bring honor to us, but to Him. We are saying “Christ over us”—expressing our desires and our wishes but also asking God to overrule them if that will bring a greater glory to Him. Praying for His glory expresses both our faith and our humility.

Prayer, Part Five: Asking the Lord for a Message

2011-04-03T18:13:00.000-07:00

This is part of a talk I gave at Mt. Charleston this weekend.

This is why we constantly thank God, because when you received the message about God that you heard from us, you welcomed it not as a human message, but as it truly is, the message of God, which also works effectively in you believers. (I Thessalonians 2:13)

Paul was thankful that his converts heard the message of God. When we pray for a message from God, who are we praying to? In John 1, Jesus is described as God's Word. Jesus is God's message to us, wearing a human body and walking among men for 33 years. When we ask for a message...we are talking to The Message.

We all receive lots of messages every day: text messages, e-mails, books we're reading, television to conversations--we are flooded with advice. Some of these messages are helpful, some are extremely unhelpful, and some are directly from God. Let me tell you about God's message to me one Christmas Eve several years ago.

My husband went to church early to practice with the band, so I got the children ready in their Christmas finery. Now, my oldest, Lydia was seven and she was very capable of sitting through a church service, but the two younger girls were four and not quite three, and they were very wiggly. We all sat down in the sanctuary, and my little Tina found that her satin dress allowed her to easily and repeatedly slide out of my lap. Soon we went up on stage to hear a special children's message. Under the bright lights, my four year old Annika decided her tights were itchy; lots of wiggling and scratching followed and her hemline didn't exactly stay at a modest level.

After the children's story we attempted to sit in the sanctuary for approximately two minutes, before we gave up and fled to the Family Worship Room. There were lots of noisy kids in that room (because that's the purpose of the room!) so we couldn't hear the sermon. I began to get a little discouraged, wondering why I had come to church at all. At least we got a photo of the girls in their Christmas dresses, I thought, but that seemed a silly reason to be at church. When the service was over, as we slowly made our way through the crowds in the sanctuary to meet my husband at the piano, many people greeted us with “Merry Christmas” or “your kids are cute,” but one man said something different. He was a stranger to me, and I saw him smiling, watching me trying to herd my children through the exiting congregation. He looked at me and said “God bless you.” Those three words were the only Christmas message I heard or needed that night. Those words adjusted my attitude and I began to count blessings rather than annoyances.

I want their hearts to be encouraged and joined together in love, so that they may have all the riches of assured understanding, and have the knowledge of God's mystery—Christ. (Colossians 2:2)

Paul wanted his converts to grow in loving relationships with each other, finding the knowledge of Christ together. That was my prayer for the women who attended retreat—that they would encourage each other and learn more about the Lord and to talk to Him.

As you read these Psalms, notice the phrase "Your word."

How sweet Your word is to my taste--[sweeter] than honey to my mouth...
Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light on my path...
I am severely afflicted: Lord, give me life through Your word...
You are my shelter and my shield; I put my hope in Your word...
The revelation of Your words brings light and gives understanding to the inexperienced. (Psalm 119:103, 105, 107, 114, 130)

If we want to receive a message from God, if we want to recognize His voice in the midst of all the other messages we receive every day, we must be familiar with His word. Messages from God will never contradict the Scriptures—and that requires that we spend time reading the Scriptures.

All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:15)

God means what He says. What He says goes. His powerful Word is sharp as a surgeon's scalpel, cutting through everything, whether doubt or defense, laying us open to listen and obey. (Hebrews 4:12, The Message)

Prayer, Part Four: Awareness

2011-04-02T08:04:00.000-07:00

Our third prayer word is Awareness. Look at these verses:

May the Lord of peace Himself give you peace always in every way. The Lord be with all of you. (2 Thessalonians 3:16)

In the morning, O Lord, You will hear my voice; In the morning I will order my prayer to You, and will eagerly watch. (Psalm 5:3)

Awareness is that eager watchfulness for the Lord—-being aware that the Lord of peace is with us. I seek the Lord very diligently when I'm having a bad day, but I've been praying that I will look for the Lord and be aware of Him even in the good times. A few weeks ago I looked up at the sky and noticed there were no clouds. I've lived in the desert for 8 years and I'm still amazed at how many cloudless days we have--even in the spring. I took a moment to thank God for cloudless skies. And I remembered that the night before had been very windy, so windy that it woke me up at one a.m. While I was awake I began to worry about the garbage in the garbage can out at the curb. Was it blowing all over the street? What was the last thing I put in the garbage can—was it heavy enough to hold the garbage down? I knew I wasn't going to sleep til I checked it out, so I pulled on some clothes and went outside. The garbage was not blowing all over the street, so I came back in and went back to bed. As I remembered that the next day, I thought of other nights when I'd been awake at 1 a.m., worried or sad or stressed. And so that morning, I thanked God for a peaceful night when my only concern was a garbage can. And I asked Him to help me be aware of Him in these peaceful times..those everyday moments under a cloudless sky or on a windy night with a garbage can.

One of the things that jogs my memory to make me aware of God is His creation—the mountains around my town, the cat purring on my bed, my small herb garden.

From the creation of the world His invisible attributes, that is His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what He has made...(Romans 1:20)

When I observe Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You set in place, what is man that You remember him, the son of man that You look after him? (Psalm 8:3-4)

Last summer I asked the Lord for a greater awareness of Him. My husband has more time at home in the summer, and I love that because he cooks, and I enjoy not having much of a routine. But without much of a routine, it can be hard to get my usual Bible reading and prayer time every day. When it's 115 outside, I need that refreshment of God's Word! In the summer we don't have women's Bible study and I miss the fellowship! Last year I prayed about how to stay in the Word, and I ended up putting Bible study books and extra copies of the Bible all over my house, so I could grab one when I had five minutes. I learned that five minutes here and there added up to an hour or so, and I felt that I was more aware of what God was teaching me because it was spread through my day and it was in my thoughts continually.

If you are in a frazzled stage of life, you may be discouraged at how to include one more thing—even if it's being aware of God—in your daily routine. Here is encouragement from David:

May my prayer be set before You as incense, the raising of my hands as the evening offering. (Psalm 141:2)

Some days we have no energy and no words, and all we can do is raise our hands to the Lord. Our prayers are fragrant to Him, even when they are so very simple. He knows us intimately and accepts whatever worship we are capable of giving Him.

I complain and groan, morning noon and night, and He hears my voice. (Psalm 55:17)

Isn't that beautiful? Even if your prayers are complaints and groans, He hears you.

The Lord will send His faithful love by day: His song will be with me in the night—a prayer to the God of my life. (Psalm 42:8)

Praying for awareness is praying that you will hear that song in the night and will respond with a prayer to the God of your life. It's a prayer that you will open your eyes to see His goodness and faithful love pursuing you, as Psalm 23:6 says:

Only goodness and faithful love will pursue me all the days of my life...(Psalm 23:6)

Prayer, Part Three: Strength

2011-04-01T06:00:00.000-07:00

Our second prayer word is Strength. You may already pray for this every day!

God is our refuge and strength, a helper who is always found in times of trouble. (Psalm 46:1)
The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer, my God, my mountain where I seek refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. (Psalm 18:2)

Who are we asking for strength?
Our rock, our fortress, our deliverer, our refuge, our stronghold.

Why do we ask God for strength? Because He is strong!

Finally, be strengthened by the Lord and by His vast strength. (Ephesians 6:10)
May you be strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for all endurance and patience, with joy. (Colossians 1:11)

God's strength is vast. His might is glorious!

Here's one of Paul's prayers for strength for his friends:

May our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father,
who has loved us and given us eternal encouragement
and good hope by grace, encourage your hearts
and strengthen you in every good work and word. (2 Thessalonians 2:16-17)

Did you notice why God strengthens us? It's not just so we can feel all warm and cozy and encouraged, but so that our words and our actions will be good and godly and glorifying to Him.

When I ask the Lord for strength, He often answers with a scripture verse that speaks to my current need. Other times He speaks through other Christians.

I prayed for strength constantly when my father's health was failing several years ago. It was so difficult to figure out how to help him when I lived a thousand miles away. Moving my dad away from his friends in the northwest wasn't an option, and my budget didn't allow me to fly up there too often. I had to have difficult conversations on the phone with my dad, and I continually felt I was in a situation that I couldn't possibly handle. God sent little bits of encouragement and strength, one day at a time. Some days I read just the right verse in my Bible. Other days I found comfort from a devotional book. Many nights my husband brought me baklava and a movie and I just sat next to him on the couch and felt encouraged. But the most encouraging strengthening thing was the realization that Jesus was my friend. This is one of those simple truths that I probably heard when I was five, but it was so meaningful to me during that year of Dad's illness.

This year I am especially praying for strength for my oldest daughter. Not because she isn't strong—if you have an oldest child, you know what I mean!—but that God will channel her strength into obedience and godly character.

Everyone on your prayer list needs strength—strength to get through the day, strength to say no to temptation, strength to know when she is too weak to take on one more thing....Look back at the verses above. Which will you use in your prayers today?

Prayer, Part Two: Light

2011-03-31T06:53:00.000-07:00

I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father,
would give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him.
I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened
so that you may know what is the hope of His calling,
what are the glorious riches of His inheritance among the saints,
and what is the immeasurable greatness of
His power. (Ephesians 1:17-18)

You could probably meditate on these verses for a week—one phrase at a time--but I chose the word “light” to summarize what Paul is praying for his friends here.

When we pray for light, who are we addressing? Who is the light of the world?
In John 8:12, Jesus said, “I am the light of the world."

The Light of the World brings light to our hearts. This enlightenment begins when we believe in Jesus Christ as Savior. For the rest of our lives, He illuminates us with “the knowledge of His will.”

What does it mean to pray for light? Look back at the verse. Notice the words wisdom, revelation, and knowledge. We all need wisdom every single day. The Greek word Paul used for revelation means “uncovering” or “revealing God”; knowledge is “discernment” or “recognition.”

Think for a moment about carrying a flashlight on a dark night: it allows you to see or discern your path. It helps you recognize the faces of your friends. It uncovers truth and increases your knowledge about your surroundings. Praying for light is praying for discernment, truth, and knowledge—knowledge about your situation and a more intimate knowledge of the Lord.

Light also changes things. Sunlight nourishes plant life and literally brightens our life. Inside our homes, lamps cheer up dim corners, and candles add a romantic glow to dinner tables. In the same way, when the Light of the world cheers us up and changes us.

My bedroom window looks out toward the rugged mountains that surround Las Vegas. The red and orange layers in the mountains seem to shift as the sun moves across the sky. Between me and the mountains stands Red Rock casino, a sleek copper building that reflects the mountains and the clouds and, best of all, the sunrise. If I wake early enough in the morning, I watch the sunrise change the skyline. The mountains, the neighborhoods, the casino, the palm trees...all are touched by the light. I love to think of my Savior as the sunrise, His rays of love bringing hope and change to our world.

Here are some of David's prayers for Light:

Lord, You light my lamp;
My God illuminates my darkness. (Psalm 18:28)
Make Your ways known to me, Lord; teach me Your paths.
Guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation;
I wait for You all day long. (Psalm 25:4-5)
Happy are the people who know the joyful shout; Lord, they walk in the light of Your presence. (Psalm 89:15)

If you've trusted the Light of the World, He is shining in your heart today. If you need discernment, joy or change, ask Him.

Prayer, Part One

2011-03-30T07:42:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I spoke at Shiloh Bible Camp. I shared my "Spiritual Scrapbook" message on Friday night (see previous blogposts) and on Saturday morning I shared a message on prayer. Here is a slightly adapted version of the first of four segments of that message.

The gazebo in this picture is in a little park in our neighborhood. When I take the kids there, they carry little plastic dolls to play with in the sandbox. Last time we went to the park I noticed that the two older girls spent a long time building sandcastles. They told me these were houses for their dolls. I asked my youngest daughter Tina why she wasn't building a sandcastle and she said, “My doll lives in the gazebo.” Tina is very practical and she was tired that day, and she realized that she could use an existing structure and jump right into her fairytale game with her doll without any preparation work.

I watched my kids play that day, and I thought about prayer. I thought about how much easier it is to jump right into prayer when I have a little structure in mind. God hears the quick spur-of-the-moment prayers I pray, but when I have time, He is worthy of thoughtful meditative prayer.

This week I'm sharing a prayer structure with you: it's just three words you can use in your prayer times...three words you can count on your fingers and pray as you're drifting off to sleep..three words you can pray while you wait for your teakettle to boil in the morning.

We're going to read some prayers from the Bible, from the book of Psalms and the Epistles of Paul.

Here's a verse from Psalms:

In the morning, O Lord, You will hear my voice;
In the morning I will order my prayer to You, and will eagerly watch.
(Psalm 5:3)

When I read David's declaration that he would “order” his prayer, I see the beauty of an appointed time to pray, and a plan for that appointment.

Here's another verse—this one's from Paul:

Devote yourselves to prayer, stay alert in it with thanksgiving.
(Colossians 4:2)

If you've read Paul's writings, you've noticed that he was definitely devoted to prayer, devoted to his friends, and devoted to the Lord. I like his phrase “stay alert” – it tells me that prayer takes a little effort, it's something I should make time for, not just do when I feel like it or when I suddenly need God's assistance. This verse also holds a reminder to give thanks – it's so easy to remember to ask the Lord for things, but He deserves my praise also.

I call on You, God, because You will answer me;
listen closely to me;
hear what I say. (Psalm 17:6)
Be gracious to me, Lord,
for I call to You all day long.
Bring joy to Your servant's life,
since I set my hope on You, Lord.
For You, Lord, are kind and ready to forgive,
abundant in faithful love to all who call on You. (Psalm 86:3-5)
... I call to You for help, Lord;
in the morning my prayer meets You. (Psalm 88:13)

Tomorrow I'll share the first prayer word with you.

Spiritual Scrapbook, part 5

2011-03-29T18:54:00.000-07:00

I want to share a Bible story with you. You know this story: Jesus was on His way to heal a dying girl when he was interrupted by a sick woman.

Just then, a man named Jairus came. He was a leader of the synagogue. He fell down at Jesus' feet and pleaded with Him to come to his house, because he had an only daughter about 12 years old, and she was at death's door.

While He was going, the crowds were nearly crushing Him. A woman suffering from bleeding for 12 years, who had spent all she had on doctors yet could not be healed by any, approached from behind and touched the tassel of His robe. Instantly her bleeding stopped.

“Who touched Me?" Jesus asked.

When they all denied it, Peter said, "Master, the crowds are hemming You in and pressing against You."

"Somebody did touch Me," said Jesus. "I know that power has gone out from Me." When the woman saw that she was discovered, she came trembling and fell down before Him. In the presence of all the people, she declared the reason she had touched Him and how she was instantly cured. (Luke 8:41-47)

Jesus could have kept this healing secret. Jesus was in a hurry, the woman was completely healed—why stop to talk about it? Well, it shows us that Jesus cares for each of us and values us individually, but I also see that it was important for this woman to share her story with the crowd. It was probably embarrassing—this sounds like one of those female problems that one doesn't usually talk about with just anyone. But Jesus had done something for her, and she was supposed to share.

As a follower of Jesus, you too have a story to share. I don't mean just an account of How You Got Saved, but your journey, your life with Jesus. He is your constant companion, leading and guiding you and encouraging you.

Remember I told you I have a lot of scrapbooking stuff and I never use it? You have the materials to make a spiritual scrapbook. It's like a very condensed journal. You need a Bible and a pen and some paper. Don't wait til you can make it look pretty with scalloped scissors and glittery stickers. That would be a fun project, but start now. Start simple.

Think about the seasons of your life. You might have recognized some of the seasons I mentioned. You might think of others: joy, productivity, weakness, repentance, waiting, rest, endurance...

Write down the verses you have held on to during those times. And when you find a verse that encourages you right now, in this season, write it down. Sometimes you can't label the season til it's over, but you'll have a verse handy.

And when you have those written down, talk to God about them. Have a little praise session, thanking Him for His presence and His guidance and His faithfulness.

You'll have those verses ready to share with others in similar seasons of life.

Finally, brothers, rejoice.
Be restored, be encouraged,
be of the same mind,
be at peace,
and the God of love and peace will be with you...

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ,
and the love of God,
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. (2 Corinthians 13:11,13)

Spiritual Scrapbook, part 4

2011-03-29T14:41:00.000-07:00

A Season of Contentment

We moved to Vegas in 2002. We settled in, making friends and finding ministries at our church—Mark plays the piano and various other instruments, and I teach women's Bible studies. We had two more children: Annika was born in 2004 and Martina in
2006.

We enjoyed living in Vegas but we always planned to move back to the Northwest, and we prayed about when that was supposed to happen. In 2007 we heard about a job opening in Warrenton, Oregon, and surprisingly my first reaction was, “No! No! I don't want to move!” But that year my dad was very ill, and we began to think that maybe we should move back to be closer to him. My dad continued to go downhill and he died in 2008. The urgency for a move was gone, but we still felt a willingness to move.

In the spring of 2009 the job opening was indeed available, and Mark applied. Mark and I both flew out when he had an interview. We found a charming house for rent in Seaside, two blocks from the beach. I felt that perhaps I could live in a small town again if it was on the beach!

Mark and I both prayed and prayed about that job. There were so many reasons we wanted to move--and so many reasons we wanted to stay. For both of us, it was really a time of submitting to God's will. God really seemed to be directing us towards a move. Everything seemed to point in that direction.

And then Mark didn't get that job. I was so relieved not to have to pack and move, not to give up my church and living in a large city—but I was also frustrated! “What was that about, Lord,” I kept asking. “Why did You take us on that journey, working in our hearts to be willing to move....what was that all about?”

But then the fall came and I knew exactly what that was all about. I began teaching at Bible Study again and the weather cooled down, and I was completely content. I'd always been wishing for just a little more in my life...first I was wanting to be married, then to have a child, then to move back to the Northwest (or Ireland)...but now I am absolutely content to be right here, right now.

God took us on that journey, not to move us, but to change our hearts and to give us a joy and contentment in our current situation. We liked Vegas, but now we love it. Now it's home. I know the season of change will come again someday, but for now God has given me contentment.

I know, Lord, that a man's way of life is not his own; no one who walks determines his own steps. (Jeremiah 10:23)

A Season of Serving

Now I'm in a season of serving God. I remember when I went to that Elizabeth George conference, I watched Elizabeth on stage and I thought, “I want to do that. Maybe I could do that at Shiloh some day!” And last weekend I did.

I write a book every year and teach it at women's Bible study at our church. You can follow the links on the side of this blog to Sacred Signposts (about prayer) and Praise Patterns (about praise.) I'm writing a book on the topic of serving God—using our talents for God and looking at Biblical and historical people who served God in different ways.

I'm also very busy caring for my children—that's serving God too. Serving God can be exhausting, but it's rewarding too. I learned that at Shiloh Bible Camp when I was a teenager and I had so much fun serving God here! There was another result of that volunteer work. I didn't realize this til Lissa pointed it out to me.

In 1994 I cut down on my volunteering, because I had to get a paying job, but that was the year my dad retired. He looked around for something to do, and began mowing the lawn at Shiloh and helping in the office a little. Eventually I moved away but my dad kept going out there. Even when my dad moved away, he kept driving back to Shiloh. And when my dad died, Dan Small (a former manager of Shiloh) spoke at the graveside service and then we had the memorial service there. (The cemetery where my family is buried is very near Shiloh.)

A few months later, my Grandma died. I wondered where her memorial service would be because my aunts and uncles don't have any church connections. My aunts, however, are very organized and competent women, and they'd been taking notes during my dad's memorial service. They contacted Dan Small about speaking at the graveside service and having a luncheon there. I flew up here for that service, and Lissa attended with me. As we walked from the cemetery back to Camp, Lissa said, “Your family is here because of you.” I was startled. “What? My family were pioneers out here.”

“You started this.” she said. “You worked here for years before your dad did. You are the connection to Shiloh.” And I realized that my unsaved relatives had heard the gospel and then had lunch in such a pleasant Christian atmosphere...because of a chain of events that started when I was thirteen and I set tables and dished up pudding.

I want to encourage you today that whatever small actions you are doing to serve God—He sees, and He will reward you.

...You serve the Lord Christ. (I Corinthians 3:24)

Spiritual Scrapbook, part 3

2011-03-29T07:18:00.000-07:00

Another season that we all experience in the Christian life is a season of darkness. You might call it grief, loneliness, discouragement, despair...but you know what I mean. When Mark and I got married, it seemed that all our friends got married within the same year, and they all had babies very soon after that. We didn't. My goals in life were simple: I wanted to be a wife and a mom, and I somehow thought that the one followed the other quite soon. I became discontent and discouraged.

In the third year of our marriage, we lost two babies. No one told me that miscarriage can lead to postpartum depression. It was a very dark year. But it was the year I started reading Psalms again. I'd discovered Psalms when I was a teenager and I was in a bit of a dark year—my best friend Lissa had moved away and I was lonely!

I also rediscovered another favorite verse: Hebrews 13:5. I knew the last part: "He Himself has said, 'I will never leave you nor forsake you,'" but I noticed a bit more of that verse: “Be satisfied with what you have.” I felt that God was asking me, “Am I enough?” and I realized that I was living as if He wasn't enough.

I finally saw the light at the end of that dark season, strangely enough, on September 11th, 2001. By that time I was pregnant with Lydia but I'd really given up hope that I'd ever have a living child—everyday I expected something to go wrong. I sat on the couch and watched the television that day and I prayed for our nation—and I realized I wasn't the only person in the whole world who was grieving.

Life was in Him, and that life was the light of men. That light shines in the darkness, yet the darkness did not overcome it. (John 1:4-5)

I love this verse. When dark seasons come, they cannot overcome the Light.

Next, I entered a Season of Change.

Lydia was born in October, 2001. We sent out baby announcements that included
Psalm 126:3: "The Lord has done great things for us and we are glad."

I loved being a mom. Lydia was so beautiful and I felt complete. When Lydia was seven months old, Mark and I celebrated our fifth anniversary, and I was so excited (I'd lost weight and I was wearing a skirt I'd bought five years before) Mark was strangely quiet. The next day he told me he'd lost his job. I told him he was not supposed to carry burdens like that overnight without telling me!

I remembered the dark season we'd just been through, and I thought, “well, we've been through worse things! We have God, we have each other, we'll survive!”

Later that day we heard about job opportunities in Las Vegas. We'd never been to Vegas. Within two weeks he had a job offer, and within two months we moved.

It was a whirlwind summer and it was exciting and the desert was very hot but I was fascinated with the palm trees...and then suddenly that fall the palm trees weren't interesting anymore and I began to wonder what in the world I was doing in the desert. I had this repeating thought: “This just isn't the way I pictured my life!” Over and over again, it echoed in my mind.

That fall, Several ladies from our church went to a women's conference where Elizabeth George was speaking. I'd never heard of Elizabeth George, but I wanted to get acquainted with women from church, so I went too. Elizabeth talked about overcoming discouragement. She talked about meditating on God's truth, the the truth of reality—not the what if's and the if only's and the thoughts of “this isn't the way I pictured it.”

When I heard that phrase that had been replaying in my head, I took notice of her next words: “No, this isn't the way you pictured it. But this is the way it is. Stop yelling. Get up. Move on.” I bought her book “Loving God with all Your Mind” and read and reread it, and I began to absorb the fact that change—when it's planned by God—is a good thing. I realized that God had removed a lot of distractions from my life—things I loved—nearby friends and family and beautiful scenery and rain—in order that I would focus on Him. When Lydia took her afternoon naps, I drank a lot of tea and read a lot of scriptures, especially the book of Philippians.

Don't worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7)

Spiritual Scrapbook, part 2

2011-03-28T14:44:00.000-07:00

This is the second in a series, sharing my spiritual journey. Earlier today, I shared why I recorded my story in a spiritual scrapbook. Now I'll share the beginning of that journey.

I grew up in a Christian home, and I spent a lot of time at church. When I was four I realized that I needed to make a personal commitment to Jesus Christ. No one was with me, but I'd heard all the instructions many times, so I asked the Lord to take away my sin and give me a home in heaven. My favorite color at the time was white, and I chose Psalm 51:7 as my favorite verse: “...Wash me and I shall be whiter than snow.” That was the beginning of my walk with Jesus.

When I talk about Beginnings, I have to mention Shiloh Bible Camp. I came to Shiloh for the first time when I was ten—and I immediately felt at home there, perhaps in part because my great-grandfather was a pioneer just down the road from the camp's location. When I was thirteen, I was asked me to come work in the kitchen. I see Shiloh as the beginning of my ministry—the first place I was aware that I was serving God. I was just the “gopher” in the kitchen—I didn't even cook! I brought ingredients to the cooks and I dished up pudding and I set the tables. I worked in the kitchen for several weeks every summer and I did some junior counseling too, until the summer I graduated from highschool. That year, there was something new at Camp, the Christians In Training program, and it was the only option for teenagers who wanted to volunteer at camp. I was very anxious to stay involved at camp, so I filled out my application as soon as I received it and mailed it the next day. I've been told I was the very first CITer. I remember one of the verses we learned in CIT:
Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. (I Corinthians 10:31)
Shiloh gave me a wonderful beginning in serving God and seeing that every job from cleaning bathrooms to mowing the lawn could be done for His glory...and it was fun when I was working with other Christians!

Of course I also began a lot of friendships at Shiloh—including my very best friend Lissa, and my husband Mark. Mark and I met in 1989, and we started dating at a Study Retreat in March 1993. For that first year, we only saw each other at Shiloh. This was a wonderful way to begin a relationship because it was all very real. There weren't any romantic candlelight dinners—we were washing pots and pans and making pizza!

The next page in my scrapbook is titled "Guidance." As I look at the four years of our dating relationship and the first few years of our marriage, I see God's guidance. I know God guided us to meet the way we did, and as He led us toward marriage, He guided me through a series of jobs. I worked in a clothing store, where I worked with a woman who knew the manager of the Washington Mutual Bank in Aberdeen. Eventually I went to work at that WaMu, and that led to a transfer to a branch in Salem, Oregon where Mark was going to college when we got married. I didn't get the first job I applied for—it seemed perfect at the time—but God was guiding me to the next job, and it was better. It was inside a Fred Meyer store, and after Mark and I were married he worked in that Fred Meyer. We had two less-than-dependable cars, so it was very helpful to work in the same building! Experiencing that season of guidance prepared me for a later season of guidance when Mark lost his teaching job in Oregon and we moved to Las Vegas.
I trust in You, Lord; I say, "You are my God." The course of my life is in Your power. (Psalm 31:14-15)

Spiritual Scrapbook, part I

2011-03-27T19:30:00.000-07:00

This is the beginning of a blogging series in which I will share the talks I gave at Shiloh Bible Camp at a Women's Retreat. On Friday night I shared my testimony. While I was making my notes I read an article about "How to Give Your Testimony." It said I should describe my life before I was saved and then tell you how my life is different now. Well...I was four when I trusted the Lord. I didn't have a lot of time to develop a long list of pre-Jesus habits. Since I can't tell that kind of a testimony, I'm sharing my spiritual scrapbook with you instead. I'm not really a scrapbooker. I have a lot of supplies but I haven't really done anything with them for years. Of course I do take pictures of my children and at Christmas time I make a calendar online and have the calendar sent to the grandparents. One of the scenes I record each year is my children jumping in a pile of leaves. We live in the desert, so we don't have a lot of autumn leaves, but there are a few, and my kids gather them up and make piles of leaves to jump in. We've done this four years in a row, and we know now that the leaves aren't there until the first week of December, and we've learned that if we see the gardener's truck parked outside we should run and take the photo before he takes away all the leaves! Because we take that picture every year, we anticipate this seasonal event and we're prepared.

Here's what happens if I'm not prepared for next season...it's the one snowy day of the year and we don't have gloves, so my oldest daughter wears a potholder while she builds a snowman.

Like the seasons outside our windows, some seasons in our souls come around again. Taking a few notes—making a spiritual scrapbook—can help us be prepared the next time.

My scrapbook is very simple: it's just verses on file cards. I'm going to share just a few pages from my spiritual scrapbook this week. Remember the physical seasons —my cold winter in Vegas might be a lot shorter than yours, but it's still winter—and in the same way, my spiritual seasons might look different from yours, but we probably have some things in common too. God's Word is full of encouragement, comfort and triumphant praise—and it can help prepare us for the coming seasons.

St. Patrick's Prayer

2011-03-17T08:17:00.000-07:00

Christ as a light, illumine and guide me
Christ as a shield, overshadow me
Christ under me
Christ over me
Christ beside me on my left and my right.
This day be within and without me
Lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Be in the hearts of each to whom I speak
In the mouths of each who speak unto me.

You can find this version at Itunes by John Michael Talbot.
A more modern (and longer) recording is "St. Patrick's Breastplate" by Stefan Van Voorst. I also like the version of "St. Patrick's Breastplate" by an artist named Mr. Jag.

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Learn a little about this hero of our faith here.

This is my post for Thought-Provoking Thursday, hosted at Some Girl's Website. I find this prayer very thought-provoking. It shows prayer as a desire for Christ to permeate my whole life.

A Little Prayer Humor

2011-03-16T18:03:00.000-07:00

Prayer is a serious thing, but some of our prayer rituals are a little funny...
I like these funny looks at serious matters; they make me stop and think.

Five on Friday

2011-03-11T06:48:00.000-08:00

This blog is quite new, but certainly looks promising. Check it out: oregonpencildust.blogspot.com

Here is a touching post on disabilities and learning difficulties.

This is a good post on Lent, from the author of 1,000 Gifts.

St. Patrick's Day is next week! You'll need a recipe for Irish brown bread.

And here's a comic for my Nascar-loving friends.

Praying with Psalm 39-41

2011-03-09T20:07:00.000-08:00

You, indeed, have made my days short in length,
and my life span as nothing in Your sight.
Yes, every mortal man is only a vapor. Selah.

I waited patiently for the Lord,
and He turned to me and heard my cry for help.
He brought me up from a desolate pit,
out of the muddy clay,
and set my feet on a rock,
making my steps secure.
He put a new song in my mouth,
a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear,
and put their trust in the Lord.

I delight to do Your will, my God;
Your instruction resides within me.

Let all who seek You rejoice and be glad in You;
let those who love Your salvation continually say,
"The Lord is great!"

May the Lord, the God of Israel, be praised
from everlasting to everlasting.
Amen and amen.

(Psa. 39:5, 40:1-3, 8,16, 41:13)

My life is so very short
compared to eternity,
and I am so very weak
compared to omnipotence --
yet You care for me
encourage me
and instruct me.

Thought-provoking Thursday is hosted at Some Girl's Website.

Avocado Bean Salad

2011-03-08T16:31:00.000-08:00

This is a simple recipe that is very yummy! All measurements are approximate and can be tweaked to your own preferences.

3 TBS olive oil
1 large sprig each: sage, tarragon, marjoram, oregano (or any combination of herbs you love)
a bunch of chives (define "bunch" to your own taste)
2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can garbanzo beans or cannellini, drained and rinsed
1 or two green onions, diced (optional)
2 avocadoes, diced
salt and pepper

Chop herbs and place them with olive oil in a bowl or pitcher. Optional: process with a stick blender (chopping blade) for a few moments.

In a large bowl place the beans, green onion, and the avocado. Pour the herbed olive oil over the vegetables. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper.

Mix vigorously. The avocado will mash up a bit, coating the beans.

The flavors are best if you prepare and chill the salad for an hour or two before serving.

For a more colorful salad, add fresh diced tomatoes.

I like to just eat this with a spoon, but it is lovely on a bed of greens, on whole wheat crackers, or on small slices of rustic bread.

Promises of Safety and Guidance

2011-03-07T08:14:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I prayed for the Lord's guidance. Today as I read my Bible and studied Catherine Martin's A Heart that Hopes in God, I read God's promises of His watchful care, His sustaining power and His direction.

...The Lord watches over the way of the righteous...(Psalm 1:6)

...You, Lord, are a shield around me, my glory and the One who lifts up my head. (Psalm 3:3)

I lie down and sleep: I wake again because the Lord sustains me. (Psalm 3:5)

The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the Lord holds them by the hand. (Psalm 37:23-24 NLT)

The Lord will protect your coming and going both now and forever. (Psalm 121:8)

Under the aegis of such a promise [the promise of Psalm 121:8] we may go on pilgrimage without trembling, and venture into battle without dread. None are so safe as those whom God keeps; none so much in danger as the self-secure. -- Charles Haddon Spurgeon in The Treasury of David, quoted in A Heart that Hopes in God

Times of refreshing come from the presence of the Lord...(Acts 3:19)

I ask, gracious Lord, that You keep me watchful and alert, so that at any moment I may discern the movement of Your hand and detect Your will and guidance in the providence of little things. -- F.B.Meyer in Daily Prayers, quoted in A Heart that Hopes in God

Lord, thank You for answering my prayer and reassuring me that You will continually guide and protect and energize me. Keep me aware of You!

This is my post for "Multitudes on Mondays" hosted at the link below.

Friday Fun: A Wall of Calm

2011-03-04T07:00:00.000-08:00

I bought these fun Keep Calm prints from various sellers at Etsy.com. I hung them all up on the stairway wall. Our livingroom has an Irish theme with photos from Ireland all over the place, and I wanted a separate place to hang this fun London sign and the London photo from Starry Blue Sky. The Keep Calm signs seemed like just the thing to fill the wall. I'm not a fan of blank walls.

And one fun link today: an easy recipe for yummy mini pizzas.

A Shield and a Secret Place

2011-03-02T19:30:00.000-08:00

Do you ever have a devotional time using several books and find that they all speak on the same topic just when you need it? Today I needed a shield.

I am praying through a prayer of St. Patrick, one phrase at a time, and today's phrase was “Christ as a shield, overshadow me.” This was just what I needed to pray today: I've been anxious and simply not peaceful for a few days.

Then I opened A Heart that Hopes in God by Catherine Martin, to a reading called "The Secret Place in the Trial." This quoted Psalm 31:8, which told me that my heavenly Father won't hand me over to the enemy but He has set my feet in a "spacious place." I meditated on that for awhile and I could see that when anxiousness is a cage, the Lord has a far more spacious refuge for me. I looked up a suggested cross-reference and found Job 36:16: "Indeed He lured you from the jaws of distress to a spacious and unconfined place." I pictured worry as a dragon with jaws open to devour me, and the Lord as my Shining Knight rescuing me.

Another verse in the reading was Psalm 46:1, which reminded me of my refuge and strength, my "helper who is always found in times of trouble" and I realized that He is always there to be found, but I only see Him when I look--when I make an effort to spend time with Him and talk with Him.

Catherine Martin quoted F.B. Meyer's description of the secret place as "the royal withdrawing room." I remember a travel program that showed the interior of a Georgian house in Dublin. The tour guide said that the term "Drawing Room" came from "Withdrawing Room," and it was the place where the family would withdraw after a meal. I thought of the spiritual nourishment the Lord gives me each day, and how He invites me to withdraw from the hustle and bustle of life to enjoy His presence.

Next I read a few pages of Ruth Myers' 31 Days of Prayer, where I found this beautiful prayer:

Strengthen and renew me through Your Word, keeping me from sin--so that time after time I may know the refreshment that comes from Your presence.>

Next my daily reading in Psalms brought me to Psalm 68. Verse 35 says

"God, You are awe-inspiring in Your sanctuaries.
The God of Israel gives power and strength to His people. May God be praised!"

In the sanctuary--the refuge, the secret place--I meet the awesome Lord, and He provides power and strength.

Lord, how I need Your shielding today--shielding from anxiousness and worry especially. Forgive me Lord for sometimes looking at myself and my troubles instead of my refuge. Lord, Your presence is my shield and my refuge today. Keep me resting in Your secret place.

Thought-Provoking Thursday is hosted by Some Girl's Website.

Everything I Know about Treating Eczema

2011-03-01T16:27:00.000-08:00

My kids all had eczema shortly after they were born. We found several things that made the eczema bearable, and one that made it go away.

When my oldest was an infant, my nurse practitioner/pediatrician suggested that I limit my intake of milk and wheat as long as I was breastfeeding. This made a very big difference, and when my daughter started eating solid foods we immediately noticed her eczema would get worse if she had milk or wheat. It was the same for all my kids, until they were about five years old. Around that age the sensitivity seemed to go away. (Yogurt and cheese did not bother them, but ice cream did.) Though we limited their intake of milk and wheat at home, it was difficult when visiting or attending any social functions, so after a snack at church or a visit to relatives, the kids will have a flare-up.

I quickly learned to avoid any soaps/shampoos/lotions/sunscreens/hand sanitizers that contain sodium laureth sulfate--but I think all public restroom soaps have this ingredient. Their eczema also flares up if they sit in the grass outside or if they visit people in different parts of town, so it seems to be connected to dust or pollen.

To treat the outbreaks, I make a bath salt treatment. It is

5 drops calendula essential oil
1 drop tea tree oil (optional)
2 tablespoons jojoba oil (or almond or olive)
1 pump natural soap (Jason's lavender satin shower is great; so is California Baby Shampoo)
1/2 cup epsom salts.

Put the oils and the soap in a small bowl and then add the epsom salts. Mix. Add to the bath after all the water is run. Soak for at least 25 minutes. Note: this is what I use in a regular bathtub. For an infant tub I would make about a third of this, and I'd skip the tea tree oil. None of the measurements need to be exact. I don't keep measuring spoons in the bathroom. :)

By the way, some doctors recommend that kids with eczema don't bathe often. I have found this advice to be completely wrong for my children--daily baths are best--long soaks in very warm water. If you can find California Baby Lavender and Tea Tree Shampoo, it makes a great body wash. Vitacost no longer carries it, but I think Whole Foods does, and I've heard it's at Target.

When the kids have an outbreak that seems to be due to playing in the grass or other outdoor allergens, a helpful over the counter oral medicine is Zyrtec, but it seems that if they take it too many days in a row they get nosebleeds. I try to limit its use to three days at a time, and only if necessary.

We have a cortizone cream with aloe in it that is helpful for really awful outbreaks, or if they just won't stop scratching long enough to heal up. The cortizone cream without aloe made my youngest daughter scream. I won't use cortizone constantly though. Melaleuca's Renew lotion is great for eczema, but my youngest daughter said it "stings" and she convinced the older children that it stings also (they'd used it every day since birth....and suddenly they wouldn't use it!).

A very helpful treatment is Aloe Life Juice. This is a liquid that they drink. The kids love it. For awhile when their eczema was really bad, they drank an ounce of Aloe Life Juice every day. I mixed it with apple juice at first, but then they decided they like it plain. I buy the cherry or papaya flavors. Look for it at Vitacost.com.

Two years ago we finally beat the eczema. My friend shared a smoothie recipe with me, and it contains omega oils. We'd tried the gummy bears with omega oils, but they were not effective. The smoothie worked. I added aloe to it most days (it's good for digestion) and I sneaked in some celery--they couldn't taste it, but it adds another vegetable to their diet. The best news is that the kids LOVE to drink this. I added protein powder, so this either accompanied their breakfast cheerios, or made a great mid-morning snack.

Omega Oil Smoothie for Kids
(serves 3)
3 TBS Flax Oil
3 TBS Orange Flavor Cod Liver Oil
6 TBS Aloe Vera Juice
4-8 ounces water (or 1 cup kefir or yogurt)
1 banana
3 TBS Rice Protein powder (watch the ingredients on protein powders. Some are soy-based, an ingredient I try to avoid.)
8 frozen strawberries (or some fresh or frozen peach slices, mangos, or blueberries)
20 drops Grapefruit Seed Extract (optional: this is not for eczema, this is an immune booster, helpful for allergies)
1 or 2 stalks celery (in chunks)

Blend in a blender...till blended. The blender can't always cope with the frozen fruit and the celery all at once, but once the fruit and everything else is blended, I add the celery. Sometimes I add a shake of cinnamon or a drizzle of honey. If your kids are used to really sweet drinks like koolaid or soda pop, you may need to add honey or agave nectar or a spoon of jam.

Serve in a glass with a straw.

After seeing such great results with the smoothie, I was impressed with these healthy oils. About a year later, I went on the Flat Belly Diet and I had such wonderful weight loss with its focus on monounsaturated fats. Because I had nuts and hummus and pesto and olives and avocado in the house for me, the kids ended up eating them often too, and suddenly their eczema was gone. Gone!

A month ago I noticed the my youngest either had a new outbreak of eczema again, or she just had really really dry skin. I made sure I included a monunsaturated fat at each of her meals, and I served a lot of popcorn with olive oil (the light-tasting kind that is lighter only in taste). I also made the bath recipe for her. It didn't take long for her skin to improve.

I wish I'd known about monounsaturated fats sooner! They've made such a difference in my children's skin. I've even put olive oil directly on my children's skin. Be careful if you're doing this with an infant...she'll get so slippery!

Note: almost all the ingredients in both recipes can be purchased at vitacost.com.

Fun on Friday

2011-02-25T07:00:00.000-08:00

My kids have had a lot of fun this week watching short videos at Jelly Telly. Here's one with a song about Second Samuel. Several of the character voices are familiar--one of the Veggie Tales guys created Jelly Telly.

Mango Lassi Recipe

2011-02-24T08:16:00.000-08:00

We ordered mangoes through bountifulbaskets.org last week. Today we made Mango Lassi, an east Indian yogurt drink. It made a very yummy breakfast accompaniment, but it would be a refreshing afternoon snack too.

Here's the recipe, slightly adapted from Emeril's There's a Chef in My World cookbook.

1 1/2 cups vanilla or plain yogurt
1 1/2 teaspoons rose water (available at international markets)
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 cup ice cubes
3/4 cup orange juice (I used the juice of three oranges)
a sprinkle of cardamom or cinnamon
2 mangoes, peeled and diced

Blend all the ingredients in a blender for 2 or 3 minutes. Serve immediately.

This made about five cups. One cup has approximately 144 calories.
You could skip the rosewater if you can't find it, but it is worth seeking out.

Emeril suggests you try this with other soft fruits like strawberries, peaches or blueberries. I think my kids would enjoy this with a banana added. My husband took his yogurt drink to go, adding a scoop of vanilla protein powder.

Lip Balm and Soul Balm

2011-02-23T18:37:00.000-08:00

Just a simple thought today, and it's a recycled post from a couple years ago. I went looking for it because I was trying to remember the name of this hymn, so I thought I'd share it again.

Out of earth's sorrows, into Thy balm,
Out of life's storms and into Thy calm,
Out of distress to jubilant psalm,
Jesus, I come to Thee.
--from a hymn: "Jesus, I Come" by William Sleeper, 1887

I don't use the word "balm" often, unless I'm talking about lip balm. Now that I think of it, that's a great illustration of God's word. My lips get dry and cracked in the desert in both winter and summer seasons unless I apply lip balm every day. Similarly, without a daily application of God's word, my soul becomes parched. Praise God for the balm of His love!

To hear more of this hymn, check out Scott Wesley Brown's version on the album Hymns, the Old Made New.

Today at Some Girl's Website, the topic is Restoration. I thought "Soul Balm" was a similar idea.

Time

2011-02-23T08:31:00.000-08:00

Ann Voscamp at A Holy Experience is doing a blogging series about The Practice of Time. So far the posts I've read have been about slowing down.

I like slowing down. I live slowly. I like to savor my morning coffee and have another cup after breakfast. I like to take my time reading Facebook and reading my favorite comics online and then I sprinkle lavender essential oil in the shower and enjoy the aroma while I wash my hair.

I'm pretty good at slowing down and savoring time.

What I need to do is to make better use of my time. To stop savoring long enough to notice the three...no four...baskets of laundry in my room. Where did these come from, anyway? Last night...surely it was last night?...there were only two baskets.

Homeschooling my children gives us a wonderful flexibility in our schedule, but I'd like to make the schedule a little firmer--to get it done a little earlier in the day so we have time to walk to the park.

I've learned that a rigid schedule is uncomfortable for me, a constant burden that leaves me feeling a failure every night because things do happen and we never meet the schedule precisely. I've heard that there is great freedom in having a scheduled-to-the-minute day, but I do not find that to be true. I find it very headache-inducing, as if I'm trying to keep up with those Type A people who crave lists and remember to look at their planners. I can't keep up. I don't have that "you must work before you play" voice that others seem to have reminding them to dust before they go for a walk in the sunshine. And honestly, I don't want that voice. It sounds like an uncomfortable way to live. Responsibility is important, but oh, the joy you miss if you always put your chores first!

I need to find a way to have a routine but hold it loosely.

How about you? How are you handling time? Do you need to slow down and savor....or speed up a little and use time more wisely?

Yesterday was a holiday...

2011-02-22T16:39:00.000-08:00

...so I missed the "Multitudes on Monday" blogging opportunity. I was busy buying a birdfeeder, drinking coffee, and working on a writing project.

And today I seem to have no original thoughts, so I will recommend

this blogpost on the "right" way to homeschool

and this post on refreshing your Praying in Color routine

this site for handy online Bible study tools,

and, on my other blog, this reposting of the songs for my Sacred Signposts study.

Five on Friday

2011-02-18T06:45:00.000-08:00

Five blessings from cyberspace

1. This blogpost about wrestling and waiting from a woman at Imago Dei church in Portland, Oregon

2. This delightful food blog: Chocolate and Zucchini

3. These fun scarves from Etsy seller Johnny Vegas

4. These cute hair accessories and earrings from Etsy seller Dandy Apple

5. and this Peanuts strip:

Giving Grace

2011-02-17T06:45:00.000-08:00

I'm studying Catherine Martin's A Woman's Walk in Grace, and participating in an online study of this book at Ministry for Women. Last week's chapter was titled "The Fine Art of Gracing Another." I am still pondering that chapter and praying about how I can give grace to others. Today I read an interview with Bono, and these words caught my eye:

I don't let my religious world get too complicated. I just kind of go: Well, I think I know what God is. God is love, and as much as I respond [sighs] in allowing myself to be transformed by that love and acting in that love, that's my religion. Where things get complicated for me, is when I try to live this love. Now that's not so easy. --Bono, in an interview quoted at The Poached Egg

I like the idea that my faith should be reflected by loving actions. He went on to talk about grace:

... along comes this idea called Grace to upend all that "as you reap, so you will sow" stuff. Grace defies reason and logic. Love interrupts, if you like, the consequences of your actions, which in my case is very good news indeed, because I've done a lot of stupid stuff.

Amen. Praise God for His grace!

So, back to the idea of gracing others: does that mean I need to give grace to those who do stupid stuff? To my daughter who lost a school book? Again? I'm not talking about not giving consequences, but acting with a graceful attitude. I am praying for a graceful tone of voice and a gentle response. Even to stupid stuff.

This is my post for Thought-Provoking Thursday, hosted at SomeGirl's Website.

(Note: For an interesting look at the faith of several members of U2, check your library for We Get to Carry Each Other: The Gospel According to U2.)

1,000 Gifts, Chapter 2 and 3

2011-02-16T08:27:00.001-08:00

I'm reading One Thousand Gifts with the Book Club at Incourage. I think I'll be re-reading this book in the summer, as I am too distracted right now to give it the attention it really deserves. I'll need this book in the summer; it's focus on gratitude will help refocus my heart when the desert heat soars. Summer in the desert is like a winter without any cozy holidays. The weather is intense, we stay indoors as much as possible, and there's a long break from women's Bible study.

Yet as I read the book now, even in my distracted state of mind--planning my participation in two women's retreats and the book I'm writing and the small group meeting in our home and the laundry that is reaching new heights in the hamper--I am being encouraged and challenged.

Let me share with you a quote from chapter 2:

As long as thanks is possible, then joy is always possible. Joy is always possible. Whenever, meaning--now; wherever, meaning--here. The holy grail of joy is not in some exotic location or some emotional mountain peak experience. The joy wonder could be here! Here in the messy, piercing ache of sorrow, joy might be--unbelievably--possible! The only place we need see before we die is this place of seeing God, here and now. (page 33)

Joy is possible. Right here, today. I am not in the place of sorrow the author wrote from, but joy is certainly possible in the bustle of my day-to-day life. Today I will choose to be joyful. I will praise God for the Greek coffee perfuming my morning, the clouds rolling in with the possibility of rain in our desert, and my daughter singing "Spoonful of Sugar" in the bathtub.

And from chapter 3:

I may have always known that change takes real intentionality, like a woman bent over her garden beds every day with a spade and the determined will to grow up something good to strengthen the heart. (p. 44)

That is the main theme of this book so far: a determined will to plant gratitude and grow a grateful attitude. The author describes gratitude as "the language I've got to learn to speak." I agree. With God's help, I will learn this language and teach it to my children. It will strengthen all our hearts.

Ann Voscamp is blogging about the practice of time. I've had such a hard time keeping track of time lately...moments are just slipping away from me. I lose the whole month of January every year, I think. It vanishes. Now here we are halfway into February, I'm enjoying several creative projects that do take a bit of time, but I'm not sure I'm capturing this time and savoring it. This week my goal is to savor time with my oldest child. My little ones tend to crawl in my lap and spend time with me, but I need to be a little more intentional in spending time with my oldest. She likes to do a bit of her schoolwork independently now, and dash off to play when it's done. We do need to do a bit more discussion of said schoolwork, so my plan is to make a pot of tea and make our schoolwork discussion a bit of a date with Mama. She's due for a spelling test too, and the reward for a spelling test is always nail polish. Twenty words on the spelling test...twenty fingers and toes to paint.

How are you savoring the moments of this week?

The Countdown is On

2011-02-15T08:12:00.000-08:00

St. Patrick's Day is a month and two days away!

Who was St. Patrick anyway? Read a short summary of his life here on my other blog, Sacredsignposts.com. I'll be posting excerpts from my Sacred Signposts book on that blog between now and St. Pat's.

Roses

2011-02-14T08:53:00.000-08:00

Today my husband gave me roses.

Not the long-stemmed variety. No matter where I put fresh flowers, the cats find them. And eat them. And leave little surprises of vomit all over the house.

No, my husband gave me tree roses. Long bare branches in black plastic bags.

And I put them in the backyard, in the sunshine, against the brick wall, where I can admire them from the kitchen window.

Yes, I am admiring the bare branches...because I know their potential! I know the Queen Elizabeth rose will be covered with pink blossoms, and the Mr. Lincoln rose will have wonderfully fragranced red blooms. I read the labels, and I know what the future holds.

Do you feel like a bare branch today? Rejoice, my friend, for God sees your potential. He knows the blooms you will someday wear. He knows just where to plant you, just how to feed you and trim you. He is faithful. The blooms He has in mind for you may be quite different than what you are picturing, but you will bloom. Trust Him.

As I count my blessings with the Multitudes on Mondays bloggers, I am grateful for

my nine year old and her artsiness,
my six year old and her take-life-as-it-comes attitude,
my five year old and her ability to make us all laugh,
my husband--everyone calls him "Amazing" and I just call him "Mine"-- (thanks, Martina McBride for that very quotable song),
my best friend and her phone calls while we clean house (note to self: find Bluetooth attachment so you don't get a sore neck next time you're cleaning and talking on the phone...),
my friends who visited last night and the fun we had discussing life as creative Christians,
my friends who wanted to come last night but were ill (note to self: more vitamins today....),
and the Light of the World who speaks to me through His Word, His sunrises, and all the people mentioned above.

Baked French Toast

2011-02-12T07:20:00.000-08:00

This is so easy!

Preheat the oven to 400

Spray a cookie sheet (the kind with a bit of a lip around the edges) with pam.

Melt half a stick of butter, and whisk with 2 Tablespoons maple syrup and the juice of one orange.

Pour into baking pan--a cookie sheet with a lip around it.

Place 10 slices of bread on top--thicker crustier bread is best. If you can't fit all 10 slices on your cookie sheet, cut 2 slices into strips and fit them in around the other slices.

Whisk 5 eggs, 1 cup milk, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon allspice or nutmeg, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and a bit of orange zest.

Pour over bread.

Bake for 20 minutes.

Turn the toast over when serving. Sprinkle with a little more cinnamon.

We like it with crunchy peanut butter.

Adapted from Debra's Natural Gourmet Cookbook