Category: Christian

We throw away what’s broken, spoiled, or what we consider to be no longer of any good or value. Sometimes what we throw away may be junk to one, but to another, it’s a complete treasure. What we deem worthy of a trashcan can sometimes be agreed upon across the board, and other times it’s subjective. What should be kept or thrown away all depends on the eye of the beholder, but even the eye of the beholder can have a change of heart in this matter. There are many things that I have thrown out over the years and I was glad that I did, but there have been other times that I look back with regret over what I quickly disregarded. Sometimes the heat of a moment clouds our judgement and we throw away something that we should have kept and treasured.
How many times have you thrown out your hope and confidence in what God’s doing in your life in the heat of a moment? Those momentary sufferings, defeats, struggles, and hardships have a way of distorting the beauty that accompanies the hope and confidence that God desires to be alive in the heart of every believer. Godly confidence is a true anchor for the soul and is something that should be kept and treasured in the middle of the storm. Not cut loose because there is a storm. When life hits the fan, we are sometimes tempted to abandon our hope and confidence in God, but yet those are the very things we need to cling to and keep as a treasure.

When you think you are at a point of throwing away your hope and confidence, work to keep the memory alive of what God has already done in your life. God works faithfully and mightily in our lives and it’s not just a “one and done” kind of thing. His works are continuous and they live on! He calls us to remember what He has already done so that it will continue to fuel our hope and confidence in Him for the future. In the tough seasons, don’t forget what God has already done, and don’t throw away your confidence! Keep your confidence as a treasure buried deep within your heart!

Hebrews 10:32-36
“Remember those earlier days after you had received the light, when you endured in a great conflict full of suffering. Sometimes you were publicly exposed to insult and persecution; at other times you stood side by side with those who were so treated. You suffered along with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions. So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.”

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Trusting when God says, “I will be with you!”

It was floor day… and so I began the process of deep cleaning my floors. I swept, I mopped, I buffed with a cloth, and then I swept again. I felt pretty good about the results of my “clean” floor… until I made my final sweep. After all my hard work, the last thing that I wanted to see were the little sprigs of grass and specs of dirt that were still lingering on the floor. This discovery left me pretty aggravated… I had expected perfection! I knew the standard of perfect was unattainable, but still, I had it. As I began sweeping up the pile into the dust pan, the thought occurred to me, “What if letting go of “perfect” leads to a more authentic life?”
“Fake it ‘til you make it” is a pretty popular saying, but what if we stop faking it? What if we allow our imperfections to show and we allow Jesus to shine through them? Some of the most powerful moments that God has used in our home is when I admitted my imperfections to my children. As much as I would love to be a perfect Mom, I am far from it and never will I achieve that title. My children see it all! They see my love and my efforts to care for them, but they also see my shortcomings. In the mix of them seeing the good, the bad and the ugly, I want to be sure that they see my constant need for God’s continuous work in my life. On the good and bad days, I want them to see why Jesus died for me. I want them to see that we not only are saved by grace, but we must live by grace in each and everyday!
In our greatest struggles, when we are faced with how imperfect we are, may we remember what God told Paul in regards to his own shortcomings, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
Let go of perfect and live in His grace!

Before we leave to go anywhere, it’s seems like my final command to my children is, “Go put your shoes on!” They can be fully clothed, but they aren’t ready to go until they have their shoes on. The shoes seem to be the finishing touch, and the final, necessary item of our wardrobe that states, “I’m ready to go!” If I call my kids to load up to go and I look down and still see bare feet, I immediately send them away again telling them, “You are not ready to go because you do not have your shoes on! Go put your shoes on so we can go!” All in all, I’m looking for them to be completely ready…
As God looks at us, His children, He’s seeing if we, too, are ready. His final check will be to see if we put our shoes on as well. We can put on all of the armor that He provides us with to wear and still not be ready to answer His call if our feet are not prepared to go. We can have our head protected with the helmet, our hearts guarded with the breastplate, we can have our shield of protection, but our shoes, now that’s the finishing touch that shows that we are ready to stand up and walk forward with God! Wearing our shoes declares to the Lord that, yes, we are ready! It shows that we are ready to put our faith into action and that wherever He leads we will follow!
When God calls your name and you come running to answer, will He see that you are completely ready to go? Or will He have to send you away with bare feet saying, “You are not ready yet! Go put your shoes on!”

As God calls us to be ready, He wants us fully clothed, having both of our shoes on, so that we can stand ready to answer His call and then walk firmly in our faith! Be sure that you find that your feet are “fitted with readiness!” Go put those shoes on and be found ready!

Ephesians 6:14-15
“Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.”

Where do you find your thoughts settling today? Are you replaying a troubling scene over and over again in your mind? Are your thoughts trapped in a whirlwind of “what-if’s”? Are you seeking to figure out ways to control something that is really beyond your grasp? After your mind seems to be filled with all these questions, which often leads to more questions, do you suddenly stop and wonder where has your peace gone? My mind tends to ramble on at times, and then I suddenly have to slam on the brakes, putting a quick end to these thoughts that are only serving to rob me of peace and derail my vision.

The minute I allow my mind to be filled with questions fueled by doubt, I am not only robbed of peace, but I am exhausted! All that mental work with nothing to show for it! Our minds weren’t built to try to figure out  all the unknowns and fix all of our problems. God knows though!  After all, He is our creator! Is there anything beyond His knowledge? Is there anything too hard for Him to accomplish? If you answered no, which is the right answer, then rest in knowing that whatever it is that is fueling your questions, God knows about and it is not too hard for Him! When it comes to our minds and what we allow to take up space there, God has the perfect answer!

Instead of our minds being filled with daunting questions, He tells us to keep our minds filled with Him. Jesus tells us very plainly that He is the way, the truth, and the life! That’s really what we long for, right? Directions, answers, and life! Jesus is the answer to all of those things and He tells us to fill our minds with Him! What we don’t know, what is burdensome, and what is beyond our control, God tells us to pray over it and give it over to Him!

Let your minds be at rest today. Gain a perfect peace by keeping your mind fixed on Jesus. Jesus is the way for you, the truth for you, and the life for you! Fill your mind with more of Jesus!

Isaiah 26: 3, 4 “You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because He trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting Rock.”

This time more than seven years ago, I realized that my life wasn’t going to be the same. I wanted to be back to ‘normal.’ I wanted to smile again without it feeling painful. I wanted to take my kids to the playground without feeling exhausted from the effort of getting out the door. I wanted to laugh with my husband like we used to. I desperately wanted to be to back to my old self, but it seemed impossible. It seemed that there was no way back, and truth be told, there wasn’t. That door was closed!

But seven years later, I stand here today smiling again without the pain, getting ready without the exhaustion, I run my kids here and there without wanting to collapse, and I am laughing with my husband once again.  All these things have come back to me, BUT it’s not because I went back to being my old self again. God’s plans for bringing me through the storm were too great to let me go back to who I once was. No, He brought me through the storm, leading me every step of the way, and He brought me through it CHANGED!

That’s what God does isn’t it?! I didn’t think I could look back on a difficult season of life and smile. When I look back I smile because, although I remember the pain, I also remember God’s overwhelming presence and deliverance.

Sometimes we look back on storms and think about what we may have lost, but when I look back, I see all that I gained. I gained a greater understanding of my Father, a greater awareness of His presence, and I gained a new song in my heart!

If you find yourself in a storm today, know that God WILL walk with you until you get to the other side! And once you get there, His presence will remain, and you will find yourself changed with a new song in your heart! When that song appears in your heart, know that it’s not there just for you. Sing that song loud for others to hear! Someone is going to need to hear this new song God’s placed in your heart!

I really do love having a tidy home. Nothing beats the feeling of coming into the house after grocery shopping, or just being gone all day, and everything being in its place. There is something peaceful about it. As much as I love things to be tidy, it doesn’t always stay that way. Having two young children can make that unattainable at times, but as much as I love a tidy home, I also enjoy a clean home, and just because I strive to keep my home tidy, doesn’t make it clean. I have come to realize my love for tidiness, at times, hinders me from cleaning like I should. I want everything looking orderly and when I clean, it often looks like a bomb went off in the house. Chairs are moved to another side of the room, rugs are pulled up, and decorations have to be moved so that various surfaces can be dusted, etc…

Tidiness is certainly pleasing to the eye, and if we are not careful, we can be fooled by it. Chairs can be perfectly arranged around a table, but still be surrounded by crumbs. Rugs can be perfectly positioned on the floor, and dirt still be trapped underneath. Items may be perfectly arranged for display on the furniture, but still be surrounded by dust.

Tidiness is good, but cleanliness is what really matters. What good is it anyway if all is tidy amongst filth? In the life of the believer, tidiness may look like a high commitment to church attendance, daily bible reading, surrounding yourself with Christian friends, giving of your time and resources to further the gospel, and the list could continue. All of these things are great, but in our striving to serve and have God honoring aspects in our lives and keeping things “tidy,” if we are not careful, we can begin to overlook the constant cleaning that is still required within our hearts. If you look past the appearance of these things, you will still find crumbs that need to be swept, dust that has accumulated and needs to be wiped away, or cob webs in the corners that need to be knocked down. We all have these areas in our lives. Whatever it may be that God is showing you that needs to be clean, praise God that He has given you the eyes to see these things, and once you see it, make the effort to do what you can to clean it up. It’s not enough for us to just be tidy Christians, God desires to make us clean!
“Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.” Psalm 51:7

There are times when God allows us to walk through ‘sun-scorched’ lands, to go through things we can’t handle, only to show us that He most certainly can!

It is in these times, in these very places, that we are called to a more authentic faith and a greater trust in the very One who formed you in your mother’s womb, in the One who knows your coming and going.

It’s in these times, in these very places, that a greater praise and love flows from the heart of the believer who trusts God in the middle of these ‘sun-scorched’ lands.

It’s in these times, in these very places, that we see and experience God’s comfort, joy, and peace that only He can give, and watch Him provide when logic and circumstances say that you should be without.

It’s in these times, in these places, that God moves us from being self-sufficient to becoming God dependent!

He is more than enough for you today! Keep trusting, keep praying, and keep KNOWING that the Lord will guide you always!

“The Lord will guide you always; He will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.” Isaiah 58: 11

We highlight or underline in books what we have found to be profound and worth remembering. We highlight or underline so that as we flip back through the pages, those statements will grab our attention in order that our minds may dwell upon its’ riches once again.

Highlighting Hope was inspired by Hebrews 10:23 which says, “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful.” In the midst of a difficulty, I read this verse and it gripped my heart. Although this storm was big in appearance, it was miniscule in the presence of my Savior. I prayed for months on end for God to remove this thorn in the flesh, and when it remained present, I knew that God was calling me to trust Him and to hold unswervingly to this hope that can only be found in Him.

Proverbs 13:12 tells us that “hope deferred makes the heart sick.” Our need for hope is great and yet that is exactly what Jesus offers, and He longs to meet this need in our lives! He is our living hope and the beauty here is that this is just the beginning! Colossians 1:5 tells us that faith and love springs up from this hope that Jesus offers!

As I have sought hope and have watched God “highlight” all around me this hope that I have in Him, I have come to realize that hope is just the starting point. As we read about, see, and experience His hope, it is a means in which He produces a greater faith and love in our lives! Praise God for His exponential work continuously being played out in us!