Sharing My Thoughts

It has been so very long since I’ve shared anything on my blog.  I want to thank everyone who has ever read the thoughts I’ve shared here, and I do hope that you’ll continue to visit.  I am hopeful that new posts are just around the corner.

In the mean time, I wanted to share with you some wonderful news.  I’ve just assembled a new book from my prior posts, and published it as an ebook on Amazon!  The book is called Nitty Gritty God Talks, and I do hope that you’ll check it out.  If you would like to see any particular topic or issue addressed in future posts, or a future book, please do let me know.  Each and every one of you has been such a blessing to me, and I certainly pray that I can return the favor, and be a blessing to each of you in some small way.

I thank God every day for giving me the opportunity to share my thoughts and His Word with you.  May He bless you always!

AWSMGOD

“How awesome is the LORD Most High, the great King over all the earth!”  Psalm 47:2

Not all that long ago I was working my way home through rush hour traffic, and got to a point where traffic is always particularly bad.  Well, that day the traffic was even worse than usual, and I sat on the ramp just to get into the main lines of traffic for what seemed like forever.  I listened to the radio and all I could hear was how bad the traffic was everywhere, and what a mess the world was in.

Really?  I needed the radio to tell me that?  Tell me something good, for Pete’s sake!  After all, I needed to hear something good after a long day that seemed only to be getting longer by the minute.

Traffic inched along, and finally I was nearing the actual entrance point to the highway.  At a near stand-still, I was preparing myself mentally for the fight to squeeze in somewhere.  A woman in an SUV  was in the main lane along side of me, and there was a gap in front of her car.  I looked at her and smiled, hoping she wouldn’t mind if I tried to get into the lane at that point.

Apparently, I was wrong.

I looked carefully around and just as I started to make my way into the spot, she gunned her SUV and closed the spot.  Are you kidding?  What was that all about?  I wasn’t trying to push her over, just trying to get into the lane at a point where there was enough room for my car.  I wasn’t happy at all, but I refrained from offering up any gestures.

Thankfully, the truck behind her must have seen what just happened, and the gentleman driving kindly let me in.  Now I was behind the woman who was just so rude to me.  I unclenched my teeth, and when the oxygen made its way back to my head I noticed her license plate: AWSMGOD

Oh, please… this woman really had the nerve to put that on her license plate?  HAH!  Apparently either her name was God and she loved herself, or she forgot that a license plate like that might just hold you to a little higher standard.  Either way, I was compelled to laugh at the whole thing.  The truck driving who let me in probably got a good laugh, too.

After I stopped laughing, I started to think about the fact that the reason I’ve never put a Christian decal or anything on my car is because I know I behave badly when I’m behind the wheel.  Seriously.  I’m not going to lie and tell you that I think all of these perfect, Christiany thoughts when I’m driving.  On the contrary.  I’m a nasty sinner behind the wheel.  I tend to be a lead-foot, always on the lookout for … “the man”, my hands are clearly not in God’s will when someone cuts me off, I yell (as if the other guy can hear me), and yes, a few not so nice words come out of my mouth from time to time, too.  Consequently, I never thought that a Christian bumper sticker would do me, or God, any good.  That got me to thinking.

If I love God, why do I behave so badly?  After all, isn’t He exactly what David described in his Psalm?  Isn’t He awesome, most high, and King over everything?  He is indeed!  And I do want to be more worthy of Him.  I know it isn’t easy to behave well all the time.  And God knows that too.  After all, didn’t he also tell us to be angry but sin not?  Paul struggled with it.  Remember when he said that the things I don’t want to do are the exact things I do?  Well, me too.  I don’t get in my car hoping to throw a fit.  I don’t drive along looking for people to annoy with my own bad behavior.

When we tell the world we are Christians, like it or not we are held to the standard set by Christ.  No one expects us to be as perfect as Christ, but they do expect us to behave a bit better than those who don’t know Him.  The more we know, in our hearts, just how truly awesome God is, and how amazing it is that He sent Christ to die for us, then we want to behave better, in a way more fitting of being His child.

Next time I get on the highway, I have to remind myself of how blessed I am to be a child of an awesome God, and that makes me a child of the Most High.  And hopefully, if you accidentally cut me off, I’ll remember that you’re His child too.

Lord, thank you for reminding us every day of your awesomeness and perfect holiness.  I praise you, and thank you for being so loving toward me… toward us.  Thank you for forgiving me when I completely screw up, and for being able to turn every moment of my life, especially the bad moments, into times that I can learn to be more like Christ.  I ask for your wisdom and love, and thank you for every blessing that you’ve given me.  I thank you for the unending abundance that you’ve graced me with, through Jesus your Son.  In His name I pray.  Amen.

Copyright ConnieD. 2013.  All rights reserved.

 

Oh, Brother!

“Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.”  Matthew 5:23-24

I had the most bizarre, strange, unexpected, but yes, wonderful experience last week.  My brother-in-law showed up at my front door.  Now, you’re probably wondering why this is so strange.  Well, for starters, I live on the east coast, and my brother-in-law lives on the west coast.

Was he in my neighborhood on business?  Nope.  Was he visiting another friend or relative?  Nope.

Had my husband spoken with him recently?  Nope…..nope.

Could that have been why?

Yup!

To make a long story short, my husband and his brother hadn’t spoken at all in over a year.  The family grew apart when my father-in-law needed to be in assisted living, and right or wrong, my husband felt as though he was being shut out any discussions about his father’s care.  What started off as frequent phone calls and a lot of sharing of ideas had dwindled down to an occasional email or text message, and maybe a card around the holidays.  I can’t tell you if it was outright anger, or just feelings on all sides of being slighted or ignored, but a once-close family grew very far apart over time.  And no one seemed to be budging on any side.

So one day last week the doorbell rang, and my husband went to answer it.  I was pecking away on some work, so I stayed in my office, and didn’t pay much attention.  I heard my husband talking to someone, and the talking continued for quite a while.  After a few hours, I thought “who on earth could he be talking to?”  so I walked out to see what was going on.  My husband invited me into the room, and there, around the corner, was my brother-in-law!  You could have knocked me over!  Really?!

Yes!

The very first thing that popped into my head were these words that Jesus told us: “go and be reconciled to your brother”.  I think my smile went from ear to ear, and I hugged him.  I can’t tell you how thankful I was to see my brother-in-law standing in my house, wanting to reconcile with his brother.  I can imagine that God was thankful, too.  And I can understand why that is so very important to God.  We are told to love one another.  That doesn’t mean that we have to love everything that someone does.  It doesn’t mean that we have to be supportive of someone else’s bad or immoral behavior.  And it doesn’t mean that we have to be very best friends, either.  But it does mean that we should want in our hearts to be at peace with others.  And when we open ourselves to that peace with others, God’s peace with us can flow more freely.

Are you at peace with your brother, or sister….or friend…or co-worker?  If not, leave your gift in front of the altar, and go and be reconciled!

Lord, you are so loving to tell us how to be at be at peace with you and those around us.  Thank you for showing us the path to your heart.  Thank you for the opportunity to reconcile with our “brothers”.  And thank you for the brothers that show up on our doorsteps to be reconciled to us.  Lord, open our hearts so that we can see our own arrogance, and help us to be open to being reconciled with those who’ve hurt us, or offended us, or who we have allowed to grow away from us.  Lord, teach us how to remain at peace with others, and to avoid those things that hinder our relationships with others, and with you.  Thank you for hearing our prayer, Lord.  In Jesus’ name.  Amen.

Copyright ConnieD.  2013.  All rights reserved.

Tunnel vision

“So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’  For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.  Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”    Matthew 6:31-34

If I brought you to a big department store and told you to buy a particular item, but also told you that I didn’t want you to buy anything that was red in color, I am pretty sure of one thing – you would suddenly see a world filled with red items!  You would have the color red on the brain!  And don’t we do that in other areas of our lives?  I sure do – I probably wouldn’t care 2 cents about a doughnut unless I’m on a no-doughnut diet, then all I can think about it doughnuts.  So when we have a huge need in our lives – whether its about a job and money, or a spouse, or a health problem, or just about anything, it’s hard to think about anything else, even with a huge world around us.

Now, all this being said, I’ll be the first to tell you that I’m probably one of the most guilty people in this regard, always hyper-focusing on my needs, no matter how small, and missing the multitude of blessings that I’ve had in my life.  And I tend to quickly forget about the miracles that God has blessed me with, pinging about today, and forgetting about how gracious God has been to me in the past.  In the past few years I have desperately searched for a job, and every day I wake up with unemployment on my mind, go through my day thinking about it and worrying about how long the money will last, and lay in bed at night with my closet of anxieties wide open and spilling out all over me.  Talk about tunnel vision!

A few days ago I heard someone talking about their own experience with unemployment, and they said that Matthew’s words really hit them hard, and they finally realized that they needed to start “seeking first his kingdom”.  And when they did just that, God showed his faithfulness in amazing ways.  They took their eyes off of their problems, and focused on God, and it was only then that God was able to open doors for them “no man can shut”.  WOW!  That hit me hard too!  I have been here, struggling to get through every day, in my own effort, and completely forgetting about the fact that God has a plan for my life, and that it is in HIS time, and HIS way that matters, not mine.  I realized that part of my seeking His kingdom, and His righteousness, means that I have to take my eyes off of the walls of the tunnel around me, and look forward to the beautiful blessings that God has both given me, and has in store for me.  God did NOT bring me out into the desert to die!

There is most definitely a light at the end of this tunnel – it is God’s light, and a world of his blessing and love for me, and for you.  Seek that first!

Heavenly Father, you are so amazing!  You have given us your word and your promises, wrapped in your grace.  Thank you for the blessings that you’ve given us, and help us to remember those blessings when we feel like that tunnel may never end.  Help us to see your light.  We ask for your strength and grace, and the peace that only comes from you, and to help us keep our eyes on YOU, not our problems.  Lord, help us to seek you first, always – and to hold on to you in every circumstance.  Thank you for the people that you place in our lives who remind us that you are a faithful God, and who remind us to never forget that.  Forgive us when we get wrapped up in our selves, and deliver us from our self-pity and self-centered ways.  Lord, we pray all of these things in Jesus’ name.  Amen.

Copyright ConnieD. 2013.  All rights reserved.

Crippled no more

“One day Peter and John were going up to the temple at the time of prayer–at three in the afternoon.  Now a man crippled from birth as being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those going into the temple courts.  When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money.  Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, “Look at us!”  So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them.   Then Peter said, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.”  Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man’s feet and ankles became strong.   He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God.   When all the people saw him walking and praising God,  they recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.”   Acts 3:1-10

I have a physical defect in my arm that I was apparently born with – a few bones were fused together that shouldn’t have been, and because of that I can’t turn arm over so that the palm of my hand faces up.  It’s weird, and my arm doesn’t look like anything is wrong with it, and it doesn’t really bother me.  I’ve had to make some adaptations in my life because of it, but it never really stopped me from doing much.

I wish I could tell you that my little defect was the only thing I had to deal with, but in reality, I have a bigger defect.

I am a spiritual cripple.  In the worst way.  I was born that way.  And what makes it worse is that, unlike in the case of my arm, I have allowed my condition to define and dictate my life.  I AM that crippled man at the gate called Beautiful.  Like him, I’ve spent many times in my life hanging around places where other, “well” people circulate – you know – more important people, more successful people, richer people, beautiful people, happier people, you name it…hoping that I might get a few of the crumbs they leave behind.  I’ve waited for others to be my providers of the things that I thought might help me, change me, make me special…whatever.  I believed, from as early as I can remember, that those things – the wonderful, joyful, successful, happy things – belonged to other people, but not to me.  Like the crippled man, I’ve watched others pass me by, never believing that I could have what they have.

Well, I was wrong.  So very wrong.  I have an unopened gift that needs to be opened.  A gift that is, by its nature, the thing I need the most.  I have the gift of Jesus, who died to set me free from my afflictions, defects, sins, mental blocks, hangups, screw-ups, my past, my negative thoughts – the shackles I have forged for myself in this life.  In HIS name I must get up from my spot as a crippled beggar, and WALK!  I am capable, blessed, loved, and I matter, because JESUS said that I am all of those things THROUGH and IN HIM!  I need to ACT LIKE IT!  And I am compelled to tell you about it!  Why?  Because Jesus died to set you free too!  In Christ’s equation, we need only accept His gift to be set free from our defects, and IN HIM we can do all things.  ALL things!

Today is a new day!

Heavenly Father, thank you for this amazing message from your word.  Thank you for telling each one of us that we don’t have to be a crippled beggar, but that we are worthy to walk in you, and in your light, and enter through the gate called Beautiful.  Thank you for the blessings that you give us, and the mercies you give us every day.  Thank you for giving us a hope in you.  Lord, we ask for the wisdom to remember these things every day.  Bless us with renewed hope every day.  Remind us, every day, that you have given us a future, even when circumstances look dark.  Hold us up and strengthen us as we walk in your way.  Forgive us for our doubt, bad attitudes, and bad behaviors.  Always bring us back to your word, and restore us.  Thank you for all that you do for us, and are to us.  In Jesus’ name.  Amen.

Copyright ConnieD. 2012.  All rights reserved.

Nothing to do with it

“But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days.  People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God– having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.  They are the kind who worm their way into homes and gain control over weak-willed women, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires,  always learning but never able to acknowledge the truth.”  2 Timothy 3:1-7

This was a bad week for our nation, and a foreshadowing of times to come.  Sadly, it confirmed what “terrible times” we are indeed in.  We saw a nation of people blindly following a conceited, narcissistic, slanderous, Godless  leader, and an evil ideology.  What is even sadder, is that WE have allowed this tragedy to happen.  WE have allowed God’s word to be perverted, without resistance.  WE have allowed our  homes and churches to be places of ungodly “tolerance”, rather than beacons of light in a dark world.  WE have vilified God himself, and rejected HIS word by our complacency.

Let’s be clear – socialism is NOT a Christian value – the redistribution of wealth is the embodiment of covetousness – wanting…stealing… the fruit of the labor of others IS SIN.

And what of “social issues”?  I’m not about to pussy-foot around on this one.  Abortion IS murder.  Period.  A child is not a “choice” once he or she is conceived.  Abortion is about a life, not a social issue.

And as for me paying for your birth control, well – if you sold your vote for a few bucks worth of pills or prophylactics, then you sold your integrity and virtue.  Ladies, if that is something that you opted for, then you are one of the “weak-willed women” that the Bible talks about – loaded with sin, and swayed by your evil desires.  I say that with a sincere hope that you will re-examine yourselves and return to God and his truth.  The Bible tells us that the wounds from a friend can be trusted (Proverbs 27:6), so please take my words as just that – the wounds from a friend.

And gay marriage?  God calls homosexuality “detestable”.  (Leviticus 18:22)  It is a sin, NOT to be celebrated.  Are there other sins that we all experience?  Of course!  But we in no way celebrate those sins!  Marriage is between one MAN and one WOMAN.  Period.  And a relationship outside of marriage is adultery.  A government that spits in the face of God and codifies, celebrates and protects sin is actively rejecting God and his protections.  We are not better off when we celebrate sin.  Our “tolerance” opens the door to God’s judgment even further.

These are just a few examples of what we are to reject as Christians, and we are told, in no uncertain terms, that we are to “Have nothing to do with them.”  We must be willing to stand up for the truth – in our homes, in our communities, in our nation, and in our churches.

The question for you today is whether you are FOR GOD or against him.  God has put before you life and death.  CHOOSE LIFE!

Heavenly Father, we thank you for your protection in our lives, and your provision in our lives.  We thank you for giving us your word to guide us in our lives.  We ask you for strength to hold fast to your word, and the strength to stand by your word and in your word when those around us choose the darkness of sin.  Give us wisdom and strength to proclaim your word in a world that is filled with evil, treachery, godlessness, sin and darkness.  Lord, let us be light to those who are in that darkness.  Help us to live lives that are pleasing to you.  Thank you for the hope of salvation, and guide us to bring others into that hope.  Lord, give us inspiration today, especially when we are hurting.  Inspire us to hold on to you when our own faith is weak.  Bless us, Lord, even in these terrible times.  In Jesus’ name I pray.  Amen.

Copyright ConnieD. 2012.  All rights reserved.

 

 

Do you love me?

“When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”  Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me?” He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”  The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.”   John 21:15-17

Peter wasn’t your average kind of guy… or was he?  Let’s see…he had plenty of doubts – about everything.  He had run-ins with his co-workers and got rather annoyed when his boss tried to tell him how to do his job.  He didn’t meet the performance goals he set, over-promising and under-delivering.  He flew off the handle, had a brush with the law, and nearly got arrested for assault.  He was moody and fickle, and had a hard time saying “I’m sorry.”  And after his feelings were hurt, he had a hard time saying “I love you.”

Gee, Peter sounds a bit like someone I know.  Someone like…..me.

And what is more astonishing, is that despite all of those bad attitudes and poor choices, Jesus still loved Peter, and wanted Peter to love him back.

Words, the “I love you” words, are sometimes very hard to speak.  When you were a kid, did you ever get a talking-to by a parent, and then they dared to ask if you still loved them?  If you were like me, maybe you looked away, or down at your feet while your toe traced a line in the nap of the carpet.  Maybe your first response to them “yeah…whatever….” or something like that.  But when you were finally worn down, and admitted to loving them back, everything changed.  Didn’t it?  And so it was with Peter.

To refresh your memory, Peter denied Jesus three times when Jesus was crucified.  Peter messed up, and in a big way, but Jesus knew that would happen.  So after Jesus rose from the dead, He went back to be with his disciples, and there was Peter.  Peter’s encounter with Jesus was transforming in so many ways.  Not only did Jesus specifically want to address their relationship, in a general way, but Jesus wanted to know that Peter’s heart was genuinely changed, and that Peter was in a position to carry on with Jesus’ work on earth by feeding “his sheep”.  Jesus asked Peter….”Do you truly love me?”  That meant with everything you have and all of your being, not just in a friendly way.  And Peter’s response was a sort of “yeah…you know…” kind of moment.  I can almost picture Peter looking down at his feet, and drawing that line on the floor with his toe.  So Jesus asked him again, and got the same kind of answer.  But that third time…the press that Jesus applied to Peter’s heart, finally got a heart response.  Jesus asked Peter, basically, that if you don’t “truly” love me, do you at least love me like a friend?  Peter was annoyed with Jesus when he pressed for a better answer.  But it was that hard, persistent pressing that got Peter to give Jesus a real, honest response.  Peter finally admitted that he knew in his heart that Jesus knows all things, and that Jesus knew that Peter loved him.  And that’s exactly what Jesus wanted to hear – an acknowledgement that Peter totally messed up, but that despite those mess-ups that Jesus KNEW that Peter still loved him.

When Jesus heard that honest, brash response, Jesus knew that Peter was really ready to love him back.  Peter was also ready to have his ministry restored.  Peter was a changed man, and Jesus knew it.

Are you a changed person?  Are you ready for restoration?  Can you say those words when Jesus calls?  Do you love him?

Lord, thank you for being so willing to press us.  Thank you for loving us when we don’t even know how to love you back.  Thank you for your willingness to restore our lives, even if we don’t deserve it.  We need you, and know in our hearts that we need you.  Lord, we ask for your love and presence when we search our hearts, and bring us to want to come clean with you.  Bless us, even when we don’t deserve it, and let us know that you love us as we walk through life and the challenges we face.  As Peter said, we know that you know all things, including our hearts.  We ask you to hold us up, and keep us strong, when the world is hard and we are pressed by it.  But we want YOUR pressing and deliverance.  Thank you for giving so much for us.  In Jesus’ name we pray.  Amen.

Copyright ConnieD. 2012.  All rights reserved.

Safe and Protected

“”Because of the oppression of the weak and the groaning of the needy, I will now arise,” says the LORD. “I will protect them from those who malign them.”  And the words of the LORD are flawless, like silver refined in a furnace of clay, purified seven times.  O LORD, you will keep us safe and protect us from such people forever.  The wicked freely strut about when what is vile is honored among men.”  Psalm 12:5-5

It is so easy to feel like God just doesn’t hear our prayers – that he’s forgotten who we are when we need him the most.  And let’s face it, trying times are getting much more common for so many of us.  Who of us hasn’t felt the pinch of a bad economy, even if we have a job?  Who doesn’t cringe when you watch the news and hear so many horrible things going on in the world – and not just in faraway places, but even in our own neighborhoods?  Who doesn’t feel alone when a spouse turns a cold shoulder to them, or distance grows between you and a child that you love with all of your heart?  Who doesn’t worry when that job you’d hoped for doesn’t happen, or when the job that you do have consumes you with dread?  Where is God when all of these things are swirling around you and you feel like you’re about to be sucked into the eddy of hopelessness at any moment?

Huh?  Where?

Believe it or not, our plight is a very familiar one.  And where was God when people thousands of years ago, and in the years since, have been needy, weak, oppressed and under the thumb of the wicked?  Unbeknownst to them, and us sometimes, God was right there all along.  Through his word, God tells us that he sees and understands exactly what we go through.  He knows our pain.  God never said that we would live lives free from all of these things.  But He is indeed there for us, despite our hardships.  David told us that over and over again – and he was a king!  Even a king understood what we go through.  David saw the evil in this world.  David had a heart for the oppressed and the needy.  And David knew that God saw these very same things, and completely understood that God’s heart be touched by these things as well.

So when does God get around to all of this help He promised?  In short, his help comes at the perfect time.  I think that’s the hardest thing for us to understand and appreciate.  I’m terrible at it.  I’m willing to admit that I’m a spiritual brat – I want what I want, when I want it.  But God doesn’t see things that way.  He gives us exactly what we need, exactly when HE decides when we need it.  And yes, there are times when His timing still leaves us in tears.  And yes, there are times when His timing leaves us asking “why?”.  The hardest part is to take God at his word, because the people in this world fail us so often.  We have to get beyond the earthly expectation of being disappointed by others, and put our faith in God’s word, especially when thing seem impossible.  We have to know that the things that bring us to our breaking point, are the things that God can use to bring about his greatest glory.

Lord, we thank you for your promise of love, and your promises of safety and protection.  Not necessarily the earthly kind, but the kind that will keep us safe and secure in your love for all of eternity.  Lord, we ask for reminders of that love, so that we don’t lose heart when life is hard, and the world is difficult to understand and handle.  Thank you for blessing us with so many things, and for giving us the kind of hope that only comes from you.  Lord, bless all of those who may be hurting today – fill their hearts with hope, make them strong, and fill their needs, whatever those may be.  Lord, I ask you to ease the burdens of those whose trust is in you – give them peace of mind, mend their families and marriages, provide for their financial and physical needs in amazing ways, and show them the evidence of your love that they so desperately need.  Keep them safe and protected in you.  Thank you for all of these things, Lord.  In Jesus’ name I pray.  Amen.

Copyright ConnieD 2012.  All rights reserved.

Rejected again

“But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger.”  Romans 2:8

I don’t have children but I think I’ve experienced them enough to know at least a few tidbits about their behavior.  I have a niece, and I remember so vividly when she was little, and just starting to assert herself as a person.  My sister heard a lot of “no!” and “I don’t want that!”, on top of a lot of head-shaking and lower lip action.  Most of the time I sat in the corner, quietly, when I witnessed this kind of behavior (and yes, rolling my eyes).  But the day I heard that little girl tell my sister “I hate you!” was the day that my little niece got a dose of …. the Wrath of Connie.  Yes, I’ll admit that before I even knew what was going on in my own head I had already stood up, got my index finger in pointing position, and marched over to that little girl with a look that she probably thought was going to kill her.  I asked her if she would like it if I told her that I “hated” her.  Her eyes immediately shot down to the ground.  I then told her that what she said was very mean and hurtful to her mom.  I told her it also hurt me, because I loved her mom – after all, we’re sisters.  I saw that lower lip begin to quiver, and her eyes and nose got all drippy at once.  Eeww.

I wish I could tell you that was the last time I ever heard those things come out of my niece’s mouth, but I will tell you that when I heard it, she got an earful from me.  Thankfully, we’re beyond that now.

Have you ever heard or seen an adult behave that way?  You know you have – be honest.  I’ve heard that from the person in the mirror once or twice, but always with the inevitable regret.  I’ve seen horrible, self-seeking behavior from bosses, and subordinates alike.  I’ve seen colleagues throw tantrums toward each other when they don’t get their way.  I’ve heard and seen total strangers spew hate against God, Christians, and everything decent.  These people reject the truth of God’s word, and honestly believe that they will somehow be exempt from experiencing God’s wrath and anger.  I find it most sad and unfortunate when entire groups of people behave that way, corporately, as we’ve seen so frequently of late.  These are people whose lives are focused on their need to satisfy their own perverse view of the world – who see murder as an exercise of “freedom”, who reject decency and integrity in favor of lives that are purposefully determined to satisfy sinful impulses.  We’ve seen it in our political system, when entire groups of people openly and defiantly reject God, his word, and his people, including his chosen people, Israel.

These are the things that sadden my heart, and make my soul cry out to God so very loudly.  I can only imagine that our heavenly Father hears the table-pounding “I hate you’s” of those who utterly reject him, and He is no doubt deeply saddened by that kind of rejection.  He is saddened because Christ’s sacrifice was the full and complete atonement for the sins of each and every one of us, for now and always.  He is saddened because the gift of salvation was given to all of us, not just a select few.  He is saddened because the gift He gives us is free, and that it only requires the acceptance of that gift, and nothing more.  And He is saddened because He knows that the rejection of Him, and His gift, means an eternity of wrath and anger for those who reject Him.

Every day we have the opportunity to know God’s love and acceptance.  Every day we have the opportunity to turn one person’s rejection of God into a new beginning for that person.  We are called to stand firm in our faith, and share our faith.  When we do, God will know for certain that He has one more person who will not reject him again.

Heavenly Father, thank you for showing us so clearly in your Word the blessings we will know for believing in You, and the redemptive power of the Cross.  Thank you for reminding us that there is a world that still needs to be shown the way to you.  Thank you for showing us just what rejecting you will bring, and for the grace and mercy that allows us to avoid such a fate.  Lord, we ask you to help us stand strong against evil, and against the ones who promote the evil things of this world.  Use our lives to change the hearts of those who continue to openly reject you, and those who are deceived, who continue to support the evil things of this world yet claim to know you.  We ask for your blessings, Lord, because this world can be a hard place to be when those who follow evil control it.  Thank you for hearing our prayers, Lord.  In Jesus’ name we pray.  Amen.

Copyright ConnieD. 2012.  All rights reserved.

Inspired

“I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them, and I will inspire them to fear me, so that they will never turn away from me.”  Jeremiah 32:40

There are going to be times in our lives when God gives us great challenges so that we can accomplish greater things for his glory.  Are those kinds of challenges fun?  joyful?  inspiring?  In short, no.  Will we be better for having gone through them?  Will God use those low times to refine us?  Will He do a kind of work in us that changes us at our core?  Absolutely.  And when the clouds begin to part after a prolonged storm, we will appreciate the sun, or should I say the Son, like we never have before!

God told Jeremiah that He would inspire Israel to fear Him.

I’m sorry…did I hear that right?  To “fear” Him?  Yes, to fear Him. Why fear?  Because God doesn’t mean “fear” in a way that makes you want to run and hide under the bed.  “Fear”, from God’s perspective, means that we will want to please Him above everyone and everything else.  It means that we’ll want to love Him so much, and please Him so much, that we no longer fear the things of this world.  Can you imagine that?

So how would that be done?  God said that inspiration like that will be done by Him doing continual good for them, and us – but only after we go through a life-transforming period of knowing brokenness.  It means that we have to finally get to a point where we truly understand, in our heart of hearts, that only God can give us what we truly need.  It means that we also recognize that the parting of the clouds is because HE made it happen, not ourselves.  Only at that point can we truly be inspired.  Inspired to love God more.  Inspired to see His hand in all of the pieces of our lives.  Inspired to see the good that He is working.  Inspired to never turn away from Him, and His love.

Is brokenness ever easy?  Can’t I just ask God for whatever I want, and promise to do better?  Nope.  It just doesn’t work that way, even when we wish it did.  And why not?  Because being broken means giving up the sense that we can fix anything on our own.  Being broken means that we know in the deepest part of our being that God is so much bigger than ourselves, and bigger than our challenges.  But the good news is that our infinite God wants to give us so much more than the here and now.  He wants for us to truly be inspired by His love for us, and by His promises.  And our problems are so very here and now.  We view our lives in terms of our very limited view of the universe.  We ask for His help to get through the next test, the next argument, the next doctor’s report, the next bill, the next whatever.  What God really wants to give us is eternal – that never expires, that never runs out, that never leaves us wanting for more.

Can you get inspired for that kind of love?  I know that I want, and need, that kind of inspiration!

Heavenly Father, thank you for promising to love us, and inspire us, by making us keep our eyes on You.  Thank you for the blessings that you give us when we do, and for the blessings that you promise to give us when we keep doing that.  Thank you for getting us through today, by your grace and mercy.  Thank you for letting us breath in your love, even when it’s hard to catch our breath in the middle of life’s challenges.  Bless all of those people who need to be inspired today, including myself, and I ask you to make your promises so very real to each one of us.  Keep us inspired through whatever the future holds.  Hold us up when the world gets the best of us, and remind us always that you are there, and that you are so very real.  Thank you, Lord, and I pray this in Jesus’ name.  Amen.

Copyright ConnieD. 2012.  All rights reserved.