Monday, March 30, 2009
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Prayer Dings
I remember when I first started my job, I had come to make it a habit to pray over each family as I received their charts. I long ago fell out of this habit, but this devotional reminded me! So, maybe I can make that part of my routine once again.
What sort of reminders do you have for prayer? Pray for the thirsty in Nigeria when you get a drink of water! Pray for the sad when you see the color blue! Pray for scared and lonely when you turn out a light! :)
What sort of reminders do you have for prayer? Pray for the thirsty in Nigeria when you get a drink of water! Pray for the sad when you see the color blue! Pray for scared and lonely when you turn out a light! :)
Monday, March 23, 2009
Friday, March 20, 2009
Paradigm Shift
I know this was started for Amy's devotionals, but, well, sometimes I am lead elsewhere! (Like yesterday's post!) And last night, I was trying to wrap my mind around some other things I was reading in 1 Corinthians, so I wanted to do some free-flow thinking here!
There are certain things you pick up on in life, without specific foundation. One thing I have seen more and more is that, some people just don't reason with logic. When you ask for why they think something, or what makes it true, they give you no more than the proverbial "because I said so" answer. And you stand there, slack-jawwed, wondering how they can continue to proclaim that information, while you on the other hand can point out logical arguments, show facts and numbers. In my own mind, after so many conversations of such, I begin to wonder "am I the one who's blind to truth?"
This applies to many things, but last night it applied to faith.
1 Cor 1:18 "For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God"
1 Cor 1:22-24 "For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. "
I fall into both the Jewish camp and the Greek camp! (Greecian?) ;-) I want signs! I want feelings! I want wisdon and knowing! Perhaps these desires are not wrong, in and of themselves, but they are not the way to God. You may be sitting there shaking your head going "Finally, girl! You're getting it." Zerberts to you! Raised by a family of intellects, in a society that rewards scientific "fact" and knowledge, it is still difficult to shake this paradigm that "if I find God, it will be by my own learning," and to sometimes not feel like the perishing fool when things don't make sense.
Now, I appologize for this potentially unrelated tangent. But free flow thoughts at work here!
Maybe I don't fully understand John 6:44 "No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him." Though I don't want to get into the big predetermination debate, it does make me pause. Are there people God will not draw to Him? Or maybe, just not draw them YET? Rather than letting Pharoh fear Moses' God, which could potentially lead to worship, He intentionally hardens Pharoh's heart in order to make a bigger point! No, I am not saying that "well God just isn't drawing me to Him yet." Just some free-flow typing, and for some reason, while typing the first part of this post, that verse jumped to mind.
There are certain things you pick up on in life, without specific foundation. One thing I have seen more and more is that, some people just don't reason with logic. When you ask for why they think something, or what makes it true, they give you no more than the proverbial "because I said so" answer. And you stand there, slack-jawwed, wondering how they can continue to proclaim that information, while you on the other hand can point out logical arguments, show facts and numbers. In my own mind, after so many conversations of such, I begin to wonder "am I the one who's blind to truth?"
This applies to many things, but last night it applied to faith.
1 Cor 1:18 "For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God"
1 Cor 1:22-24 "For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. "
I fall into both the Jewish camp and the Greek camp! (Greecian?) ;-) I want signs! I want feelings! I want wisdon and knowing! Perhaps these desires are not wrong, in and of themselves, but they are not the way to God. You may be sitting there shaking your head going "Finally, girl! You're getting it." Zerberts to you! Raised by a family of intellects, in a society that rewards scientific "fact" and knowledge, it is still difficult to shake this paradigm that "if I find God, it will be by my own learning," and to sometimes not feel like the perishing fool when things don't make sense.
Now, I appologize for this potentially unrelated tangent. But free flow thoughts at work here!
Maybe I don't fully understand John 6:44 "No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him." Though I don't want to get into the big predetermination debate, it does make me pause. Are there people God will not draw to Him? Or maybe, just not draw them YET? Rather than letting Pharoh fear Moses' God, which could potentially lead to worship, He intentionally hardens Pharoh's heart in order to make a bigger point! No, I am not saying that "well God just isn't drawing me to Him yet." Just some free-flow typing, and for some reason, while typing the first part of this post, that verse jumped to mind.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Request
I have joined this wonderful women's study, and we're going through a series dealing with getting to know the holy spirit better. The leader of the group is hoping that for session 7, we actually go out and attempt some ministering/evangelizing to people. I am uber uncomfortable with this - and she is of course not forcing anything. But I don't WANT to be uncomfortable with it! So, I am requesting some prayer for the next month, until session 7, that I will grow in my walk to the point where I feel at least mildly comfortable; that God will set us in the right place with the right people who need to hear; that the hearts of people we will meet that day will be prepared for the word over the next month, and that it will grow and cultivate like the good seed in Jesus' parable! I like Paul's prayer to the Ephesians: He prayed "that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power" (Ephesians 1:17-19, NKJV) So that will be my prayer for the next month!
I have pretty much been in the camp of "ya can't give away what ya ain't got" regarding a relationship with Christ. So, Tuesday night after being told about session 7, I did what any normal person would do - block it from my mind and forget all about it!
...Like God would let me do that! He had other plans...
Last night I went out to dinner with a friend who claims an Orthodox church upbringing, but not much of a relationship with God. More a "well, I'm a pretty good person, so I will wind up in heaven I guess." Conversation spanned many topics, and some how wound up on Dave's old project of an angel with a sword, to which she said "oh! Angels with swords are so cool!" And out of my mouth popped "have you ever read Frank Peretti's Piercing the Darkness?" (She is one of my bookworm buddies, and we like to swap favorite titles, though don't always share common ground.) She had never heard of him. I told her the premise, and did tell her upfront that it was all about spiritual warfare from a Christian point of view (as she had expressed irritation in people too upfront about their beliefs) but she still seemed interested.
It didn't dawn on me until later that night - oh my goodness! What have I done?! She's going to think I'm some crack-pot Bible-thumping brain-washed goon!! She's going to read that book and think I'm INSANE for recommending it!! Akk!!
Well, maybe so. So be it.
Who knows what is going on, but if a love of books that do move something spiritual in me is a way for me to try and draw people to God, then maybe God is planting seeds with her right now! So, more prayers as well for that, that if His hand is in it, it will resonate within my friend and draw her closer to Him! I know, normally that book would not be the one I'd recommend to someone as a way of getting to know God, but just maybe it's the one that'll reach her in some way :)
I have pretty much been in the camp of "ya can't give away what ya ain't got" regarding a relationship with Christ. So, Tuesday night after being told about session 7, I did what any normal person would do - block it from my mind and forget all about it!
...Like God would let me do that! He had other plans...
Last night I went out to dinner with a friend who claims an Orthodox church upbringing, but not much of a relationship with God. More a "well, I'm a pretty good person, so I will wind up in heaven I guess." Conversation spanned many topics, and some how wound up on Dave's old project of an angel with a sword, to which she said "oh! Angels with swords are so cool!" And out of my mouth popped "have you ever read Frank Peretti's Piercing the Darkness?" (She is one of my bookworm buddies, and we like to swap favorite titles, though don't always share common ground.) She had never heard of him. I told her the premise, and did tell her upfront that it was all about spiritual warfare from a Christian point of view (as she had expressed irritation in people too upfront about their beliefs) but she still seemed interested.
It didn't dawn on me until later that night - oh my goodness! What have I done?! She's going to think I'm some crack-pot Bible-thumping brain-washed goon!! She's going to read that book and think I'm INSANE for recommending it!! Akk!!
Well, maybe so. So be it.
Who knows what is going on, but if a love of books that do move something spiritual in me is a way for me to try and draw people to God, then maybe God is planting seeds with her right now! So, more prayers as well for that, that if His hand is in it, it will resonate within my friend and draw her closer to Him! I know, normally that book would not be the one I'd recommend to someone as a way of getting to know God, but just maybe it's the one that'll reach her in some way :)
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Thursday, March 12, 2009
God Puts Up With You
I loved this line. I am sure there is much more love behind God's statement of this, but the way it is so often used today, the curtness of it just made me laugh - and yet also seems to hit home better than the flowery language of old does much of time.
And yes, I of course, could learn a lot from this about looking for the good in those who frustrate me.
And yes, I of course, could learn a lot from this about looking for the good in those who frustrate me.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Friday, March 6, 2009
Prepare for Worship!
I know so often when I go to church or a Bible study, it's easy to just think of it as yet another thing to check off of a never-ending "To Do" list. You run around before, "Just one more load of laundry! Just 5 more minutes of dishes! I need to run through McD's and grab some food - I'm running late!" and you don't get into the worship mindest for your study! Believe me, I am the QUEEN of this! Even during the study, I can find my mind wandering "ok, it's 7pm, as soon as I get home, I'll throw the leftovers in the oven, change, and take out the trash!" Bad me!
"Be still, and know that I am God."
Before, during, and after.
Here are the verses Amy mentions in this devotional:
1John 1:7 "But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin."
Do you walk in the Light, or let the hecticness of life cause you to try to outrun it?
John 13:5 "After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded."
Do you make sure you're putting others' needs first, before your own "To Do's", no matter how servile the act may feel?
Later in John 13, Jesus goes on to tell John "If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me." Will you give the time to let God wash over you and be a part of you?
"Be still, and know that I am God."
Before, during, and after.
Here are the verses Amy mentions in this devotional:
1John 1:7 "But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin."
Do you walk in the Light, or let the hecticness of life cause you to try to outrun it?
John 13:5 "After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded."
Do you make sure you're putting others' needs first, before your own "To Do's", no matter how servile the act may feel?
Later in John 13, Jesus goes on to tell John "If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me." Will you give the time to let God wash over you and be a part of you?
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Holding Place
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Lonely Sparrows
Well, my little birdies, I have returned! After a much needed visit to my women's bible group, I again found motivation to visit Whispers and other writings. So, here is a posting place for today! Thoughts?
I know that life often leaves me feeling alone, even when surrounded by loved ones. I always blame "the lonely hole" at my core being on the lack of God in my life, and a distance from His presence. It is an often present, often aching truth that I have learned to ignore. But perhaps it is a good time to examine it some more, again!
I know that life often leaves me feeling alone, even when surrounded by loved ones. I always blame "the lonely hole" at my core being on the lack of God in my life, and a distance from His presence. It is an often present, often aching truth that I have learned to ignore. But perhaps it is a good time to examine it some more, again!
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