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.

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.

Don’t Look Back

” But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.”  Genesis 19:26

If you ever feel like this world is getting more depraved, more unrighteous, and more evil every day, then you know how Lot felt when he was living in Sodom.  So how did Lot get to Sodom in the first place?  Well, he did what many of us do – he looked at the economic opportunities that he believed were available to him and his herdsmen, and decided that moving to Sodom would be both a good business decision and a good personal decision.  Ok, I can understand that.  But what do you do when you realize that the place that you thought had so much hope turns out to be driven by and filled with bad and evil things?

When God gives you the opportunity to leave, you leave.  And you don’t look back.

Lot’s wife drove that point home.  Don’t look back.  You know – that whole pillar of salt thing.  It’s easy to look back at the things we left behind, and be completely unable to move forward in life because of those longings for the good old, bad old days.  And don’t think that Lot’s wife was the only one who did that, either.  What do you think was at the heart of that never-ending trip that the Israelites took – wandering through the desert for 40 years.  Rather than keeping their eyes on the Promised Land ahead of them, they kept whining about everything they left back in Egypt.  Nevermind the fact that they were slaves there.  When I think about all of those desert years I just want to yell at the Israelites through the pages – wake up!  look forward!  DON’T LOOK BACK!

Am I being too critical of these folks?  No.  No, because I’ve learned that I’ve been guilty of exactly the same thing!  What about you?

So why do we even look back?  Because sometimes we don’t know – and I mean really “know” – in our hearts that God has something better for in store for us.  Our fear of the future gives us pause, and we look back – hoping we made the right decision, wishing we had some of the security that we’ve left behind, missing the “freedom” to behave any way we want…you get the picture.

But the bottom line is that if we put our fears away, and put our faith in God, and his amazing goodness and love for us, we can move forward in life with our heads held high, and our eyes set on the future.  God wants us to trust Him, and yes, that can be scary, but when we hold His hand and walk with Him in faith, we never know what wonderful things are waiting for us in our own Promised Land.

Lord, thank you for giving us such hard-hitting examples of what happens when we fail to trust in your goodness.  Forgive me for my own lack of faith.  Lord, help me to keep my eye on the promised land that you have for me, and help me to not be distracted by the things I’ve left behind.  Help me to remember that the things that are behind me are behind me for a reason.  Grant me the wisdom to look forward, and look up, and know in my heart that you are still God, and that you work everything together for my good and your gl0ry.  Thank you for loving me, even when I’m undeserving of that love.  I praise you, Lord, and pray to you in Jesus name.  Amen.

Copyright ConnieD. 2012.  All rights reserved.

Contented cows

“Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”  Hebrews 13:5

Have you ever watched dairy cows grazing in a field?  Just picture it – a sunny day, buttercups dotting the green fields, a blue sky with just a few white clouds….ah….yes…how serene.  And the cows, well, they mosey around, eating whatever they’d like – not a care in the world.  In that moment, wouldn’t you just love to know what it’s like to live in a world that is just like that field?  Oh, I would.  To be content, just appreciating the blessings right in front of me.  Enjoying the provisions of today, and not giving even the slightest thought of what tomorrow may or may not bring.

If I truly listen to God’s word, and put it into practice, I can indeed experience that kind of contentment.  It’s true.

But for you and me, contentment sometimes takes work.

What?!

Yes, work.

Look out your window, and try to clear you mind of all the angst you’ve got floating around in that noggin.  Not that easy, huh.  I regularly walk around, and even lay in bed at night, with steam coming out of my ears from all of the worries I have buzzing around in there.  When you look out that window, what do you see?  Do you see a bird?  You know – like the sparrow that Jesus told us about, and how much more we are loved than even that sparrow.  Do you see flowers?  Like the lilies that Jesus said don’t labor or spin to get their beautiful “clothes”.  Is it raining?  Like the rain that produces crops, like God’s word tells us.  Can you recognize the things in God’s creation that are evidence of his love for us?  Can you enjoy those things, even if only for a moment?  And when you allow yourself to actually breathe, and take in that beauty, sit back and try to truly appreciate those things.  Be content in those things.  Tell God about it.  Ask Him to let you see other things in your world through those same appreciative, contented eyes.  Ask Him to let you learn to see His handiwork in even your greatest challenges.  You’ll be amazed at what a little contentment can do.

Lord, forgive me for taking so many things in your creation and in my own little world for granted.  Thank you for blessing me with things I’ve never even appreciated.  Thank you for telling me over and over that you’ll never leave me or forsake me…because I need you always, and especially now.  Bless me with your peace, so that I can cast all worry about of my mind, and so that I can learn to be content, and in the moment.  I ask for your blessings in my life and the lives of those who love you – grant them, and me, the desires of our hearts.  In Jesus’ name I pray.  Amen.

Copyright ConnieD. 2012.  All rights reserved.

Lift up your head

” But you are a shield around me, O LORD; you bestow glory on me and lift up my head. ”  Psalm 3:3

David wrote these words when his own son, Absalom, was going after him.  Can you imagine that?  A son, a family member, someone closer than anyone – going after you.  Hating you.  Putting you in fear for your life.  And Absalom wasn’t doing this by himself, mind you – which would be bad enough – but he rounded up “thousands” to help him.  That is hate.  It would have been bad enough if it was a stranger, or a known enemy.  But this was David’s own son.  David’s experience is proof positive that some of our greatest hurts, our biggest disappointments, and our strongest fears, can often be inflicted by those closest to us – our spouses, our family members, or employees, our bosses, or others that we love, trust or rely upon.

But David didn’t shrivel up, as much as he may have wanted to.  He didn’t abandon his faith, as hard as it may have been to find.  He didn’t let fear determine what he would do, as easy as that would have been.  David praised God, as hard as that was to do, when his back was up against the wall.  He spoke, out loud, that God was “his shield” around him. And not just that.  David said that not only was God his protector, but that God was bestowing glory on him.  Yes, you heard that right – David saw that in the middle of the horrible times he was going through that God was, nonetheless, giving him glory.  To be able to recognize God’s grace and glory in your life, during the worst times, is so hard sometimes.  How on earth did David do it?  In short, David recognized that every day, every moment, that God enabled him to live and to fight on, was a new opportunity, and demonstration of God’s faithfulness and sustenance.

Wow.  I need to get my head going in that direction.  Oh, and what direction is that?  UP!  When we acknowledge God’s grace, protection and grace, in our worst circumstances we have no choice but to lift our head to the heavens, and praise Him who sustains us.

Lord, thank you for letting us know that we are not alone in our struggles.  Thank you for being faithful when it seems that this world is against us.  Thank you for sustaining us when others fail us.  Thank you for being our provider.  Thank you for giving us hope and glory, in the middle of our trials.  Thank you for lifting up my head when I am low.  Bless me Lord, even when I know I don’t deserve it, because Christ died for my sins and my failings.  I pray that you deliver me from my trials, and let me know joy again.  I pray that you show your love to those who put their trust in you.  In Jesus’ name I pray.  Amen.

Copyright ConnieD. 2012.  All rights reserved.

 

For the birds

” Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?”  Matthew 6:26

One of the things that brings me a little bit of stress relief, and peace, is looking out of my dining room window and watching all of the birds that call our back yard “home”.  We have a number of feeders for them, and houses, and apparently the word got out among them and their friends, and now we have a growing bird sanctuary back there.  I love watching them show up though – and I marvel at their amazing colors, differences and beauty.  And I love watching them eat.  I mean – I looooove watching them eat.  I don’t even know what it is about them eating that I find so fascinating, but I do love knowing that the different kinds of foods that we put out for them are enjoyable to them.  I can only imagine how God loves seeing us take delight when we eat of His bounty, and drink of His living water.

I have noticed a few very special things about those birds though.  I’ve noticed that none of them have been flying around to each feeder, checking and double-checking the level of bird food left in each.  I’ve noticed that none of them look terribly concerned, whether its about the fact that there might only be a few little seeds left in any one of those feeders, or in all of the feeders for that matter.  They don’t give much thought to what gets spilled on the ground, and I’ve never seen even one break a sweat because a grabby little squirrel shows up.   I’ve noticed that none of those birds look worried in any way.  I haven’t seen any nervously nibbling away at their toenails (is that what you call them?), or sitting on a branch with their little heads buried in worry in their little wings.  It’s like they know something that I don’t know.  And what they know is at the heart level, and their little minds follow.  They have no apparent cares, no concerns.  They appreciate the little morsels that are set out before them.  They live in the moment, and they exude a joy that I’ve never known.

My heart is another story.  I worry – all the time.  I check my resources over and over, whether it’s a bank account, my client list, my pantry or any number of things, and I worry about what isn’t there, or how long what is there will last.  I sit with my head in my well-wrung hands, and sink into the mire of my own bad thoughts.  I do a terrible job at appreciating the here and now.  Oh, and did I mention I’m a multi-tasker?  Yes, I can be working on one problem, and worrying about another – all without missing  a beat.  How lame is that?

The birds sing each morning – happy for a new day.  They take delight in the abundance before them when it’s sunny or cloudy.  And when the rain comes they patiently wait for the skies to clear, because they know something wonderful is waiting for them.  The birds are such wonderful examples of how each of us should live each day, thankful and joyful.  They are masterpieces in God’s creation, and their wings can raise us up to the heavens.

Lord, thank you so very much for the beautiful examples of your love that you’ve placed in your creation.  And thank you for your promise to love us, and to provide for us, in even greater ways than you provide for the birds.  Thank you for knowing our needs, and knowing our concerns.  Thank you for the blessings you give us each day, whether we realize it or not.  Thank you for understanding our shortcomings, and loving us when we behave so very ungratefully.  God, help me to remember your love and provision every morning, and help me to find your peace in my heart every day.  God, bless me with every blessing, out of your amazing abundance.  In Jesus’ name I pray.  Amen.

Copyright ConnieD 2012.  All rights reserved.