Letting Go and Letting God

To “let go and let God” is a phrase that you either have said, or may be likely to hear at some point in your faith walk. “Just let go and let God”. When I first heard it, I had some inkling of what it meant and on occasion I even heard myself using it. More often than not it irritated me because it always came across as sounding smug or trite to my ears. It’s been many years now and I can’t even remember the occasions I would have shared those words. But for today I have found new meaning in them.

On the way to work today I was listening to a brief radio broadcast about a particular family of birds. I was instantly struck by the imagery of my own home/nest and how similar yet different the process of nesting is.
The bird spoken of in the story built her nest once and she built it well, her goal being to provide a safe place to lay her eggs and raise her babies. Any of us who are moms can relate to that. Most of us are nesters. We’ve taken great effort to provide an environment of safety and care for our children and a place for our husbands to come home to, night after night. It’s a great feeling.
One big difference between me and the bird however, is that she didn’t continue to keep her nest a comfy, cozy, welcoming place. Nature takes its course and she follows that course as she was designed to. Her grown birds have to go. She has to allow them to get pushed out of the nest, up on to the edge, where they either fly or die. Sounds harsh, doesn’t it?
Nonetheless, from the moment she laid her eggs she was preparing them to leave it. She nestled, nourished and nurtured them to maturity. And since she hadn’t moved bigger and better, the nest was soon way too crowded. And one by one, the birdies hop up on the edge to be pushed off the edge or fly away. Well, all, that is, except one. This one decided to linger in all that extra space for a few extra days, after his siblings “flew the coup” and let his mom continue feeding him.
But instead, “Mama got disgusted with her nest-addicted child and she quit feeding him. First, there was a lot of squawking and fussing, and then even he abandoned the nest to finally touch the sky.”
What’s the point of this story? For me it was a loud and clear confirmation to “let go and let God”. There comes a time when the nest needs to not be so comfortable, that to keep it so, is to cripple the one you are trying to care for. It’s okay to let them go, to release them to the Father’s care. There is tremendous comfort in knowing that as my Father cares for the sparrows, He cares tenfold for His children and He will care for the ones He has given me. So as hard as it is, I will “let go and let God”.

My question for you today:
Is there anything you are holding on to that God is asking you to hand over to Him?

Stephanie

Making Music Again,

I was having lunch with a much loved girlfriend of mine and what a good time we had! It�s amazing to me how much two women can talk and eat at the same time! We chatted about our kids, our health, our work etc� and before your knew it lunch was over and it was time to head back home. But not before she gave me a �Victory Call�! Boy was this ever a true Victory! First let me say I was honored that she trusted me yet again with something so personal, but I�m glad she knows she can do that and I in turn feel that I can do the same with her and have, it�s a safe place to open our hearts. She said; �Hey, Guess what I got for Christmas?� I gave two smart mouth guesses and was wrong on both! What she got was a clarinet. Well, I started cracking up because I had no clue she could carry a note in a bag let alone play an instrument! She went on to explain that she had played for a very long time starting out as a child and on into young adulthood and apparently was really good at it. She tried to tell me something about first, second and third chair positions; it could be musical chairs that�s how much I know about this stuff! But never the less the girl was good! I don�t think I have seen her face light up about anything in this way before. She was truly passionate about her music. It was like an old friend that had gone away was back in her life again. She said how much she just loved to play. Sadly, she had stopped years ago and her passion to play and love for the art had been temporarily buried. There was unfortunately and awful experience for her that prevented her from continuing to play. In essence through no fault of her own she had been, to use her words; robbed. Jesus says in John 10:10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
Are you ready for the Victory! Here it is-
To her delight and amazement her memory of the skills to play had come right back! When picking up the instrument the sleeping gift was awakened again and her hands and fingers took their rightful place on the instrument and she began to make music again. She also found in storage her old music books. She hopes to look into spending some time sharpening her gift. It truly is a gift from the Lord to be able to make beautiful music. The greater gift is the joy it can fill her heart and spirit with. And although it may have had a brief intermission, she can have that joy back in her life and have it to the full. I look forward to hearing her play.

1 Samuel 2: 1b
�My heart rejoices in the LORD; in the LORD my horn is lifted high.
My mouth boasts over my enemies, for I delight in your deliverance.

Dina

As we have been gathering together the last few days of this week, I have invited you to join me in the throne room that together we may just sit and enjoy being the very presence of God. I have been challenged and hopefully have passed that challenge on to you to set my affections upon Christ.
I was recently spending my morning Bible reading time when it struck me that I needed to confess to the Lord, that far too many days that is exactly what I am doing. I am spending time reading the Bible. I have often referred to that time as my devotions. Honestly, that doesn’t really describe what I am doing. To me if I was having devotions, my time would be characterized with heart-felt devotion to Jesus Christ, with sitting and gazing into the eyes of My Lord. I have also referred to my morning time as “spending time with God”. Well, that doesn’t really describe my time either. I have to confess that far too many days; “reading my Bible” best describes my activity during that time.
I found myself praying that morning, “Lord, I really want to experience You during this time. I want to spend this time in pure, unadulterated heart-devotion to You. When I walk away from my desk, I want to know I have spent time with You. Teach me Lord. Show me Lord.”
I was touched that very week by a selection in Halliday and Travis’ devotional book, How Great Thou Art.
“Hearts that are ‘fit to break’ with love for the Godhead are those who have been in the Presence and have looked with opened eye upon the majesty of Deity…They had been in the Presence of God, and they reported what they saw there. They were prophets, not scribes, for the scribe tells us what he has read, and the prophet tells what he has seen.
The distinction is not an imaginary one. Between the scribe who has read and the prophet who has seen, there is a difference as wide as the sea. We are today overrun with orthodox scribes, but the prophets, where are they? …the church waits for the tender voice of the saint who has penetrated the veil and has gazed with inward eye upon the Wonder that is God…” A.W. Tozer
I want to be a prophet as Tozer describes here. I want to gaze upon the beauty of God and experience Him in my inner man, so that I may go and share with others what I have seen, the One True Living God.

Where are you today? Are you ‘reading your Bible” or “Spending time with God”?
Are you a scribe sharing with others what you have read or a prophet sharing what you have seen? May we all pursue the Presence of God.

Diane

Yesterday, we considered what it meant to set our affections upon Jesus Christ. I shared this recently with a woman who looked at me quizzically, “What does that mean, to set my affections upon Jesus Christ?” I tried various descriptions but none were really getting my point across. Then it occurred to me. I said, “Let’s put it in a framework that I can, and perhaps you can identify with. Food. Imagine that I invited you out for a juicy steak dinner for Friday night. My guess is you would think about that steak on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Come Thursday, you would probably think about our night out a couple of times during the day with a little excitement about that steak. By Friday, chances are you would begin to anticipate our going out to have that steak and really look forward to it.” In a sense, you have set your affections upon that meal. You look forward to it. You anticipate it. You spend time thinking about it. Forgive my somewhat primitive illustration – but you know what? She understood what I meant when I said, “we need to set our affections upon Jesus Christ.”
I was recently reading in a devotional by A.J. Russell, God Calling. Since my initial reading of this text, I have read, and reread this selection several times. It challenged my heart and hope it encourages yours. It is written as if Christ Himself is speaking to us.
“…Think of the multitudes, who thronged Me, when I was on earth, all eager for something. Eager to be healed, or taught, or fed.
Think as I supplied their many wants, and granted their manifold requests, what it meant to Me, to find amid the crowd, some one or two, who followed Me just to be near Me, just to dwell in my Presence. How some longing of the Eternal Hart was satisfied thereby.
Comfort Me, awhile by letting Me know that you would seek Me just to dwell in My presence, to be near Me, not even for teaching, not for material gain, not even for a message-but for Me. The longing of the human heart to be loved for itself is a something caught from the Great Divine Heart.” (February 6, Pg. 38-39)
Set your affections upon Jesus Christ, simply because of who He is. Come and tarry a while just to spend time in His presence. Don’t ask for anything, just sit a spell with Him and delight to be in His presence.

I was a fairly new Christian back in the late 1980’s when I was having
a conversation with my sister about what it meant to be saved or born-again.
These words were foreign to our childhood denominational background. I did
my best (meager attempts) to explain God’s plan of salvation to her. The
conversation went on for close to an hour and she stopped me dead in my
tracks when she said, “I believe all that you are telling me. I believe
that Jesus is the Son of God. I believe He died on the cross for my sins.
I believe His death paid the penalty for my sins. Etc. I believe all that
you believe. So what makes you different from me? Why are you saved and
I’m not?” In my new found faith, I knew in my head the difference but
could not sufficiently explain it to her. It was one of those rare moments
in my life that I was speechless.

At this point I have been a Christian for almost 23 years and I have
had multiple opportunities to share the gospel with individuals and groups
of people. On one hand we desire for people to “make a commitment”; “Ask
Jesus into their hearts”; “Receive Christ”; “make a decision”; or “pray the
sinner’s prayer”. We have so many ways of describing the moment of
regeneration in the heart of a sinner. On the other hand, have we not all
met people who have “made a commitment, received Christ, made a decision or
prayed the sinner’s prayer” that have absolutely no evidence in their life
that they have been changed one iota?

One day, John Piper and I were chatting. Okay, not really chatting, I
was reading his book, The Dangerous Duty of Delight. The light went on for
me when he said, “Perhaps you can see why it is astonishing to me that so
many people try to define true Christianity in terms of decision and not
affections. Not that decisions are unessential. The problem is that they
require so little transformation. Mere decisions are no sure evidence of a
true work of grace in the heart. People can make ‘decisions’ about the
truth of God while their hearts are far from Him.”

So the answer to my sister’s question and to those individual’s that
have “made professions” but have no evidence in their life of transformation
is this: A person that is truly born-again has set her affections upon
Jesus Christ. It is not a commitment of the head, but rather a commitment
of the heart.

Today’s Question: Where have you set your affections? In what ways have
you demonstrated THIS WEEK that you have set your affections upon Jesus
Christ?

Diane

Galatians 6:10 “As we Have opportunity, let us do good to all.”

In our former church, I was part of the A.W.H.O. Class = “As We Have Opportunity”.
When I first joined I was active in every opportunity to serve others. We went to prisons, nursing homes, visited the blind, and even the home for un-wed mothers. We cooked meals for the sick, baked cakes, and cleaned.

Then the roles turned, and I needed this help myself. Having developed an illness called Myasthenia Gravis when my children were 1, 3, and 5 years old, it was hard. I’ll never forget the gift of help and love each gave to us. Twice a year they cleaned my whole house! While they were cleaning, another friend had me at her home for the day (and it was great to be with her just to talk, pray – and eat lunch). Then someone else sent dinner. As a family, Jack and I sat down with our three little ones and had a great meal in a spotless house. Do you know what that did for us? Today some of these classmates are in heaven, and their gift of help has been rewarded.

That verse is special to me, even today, but God has to remind me “to do good to all” doesn’t mean I have to help everyone in need. We are to help anyone we can and whenever we have the opportunity to do so.

I become so distressed especially with the spiritual needs of a lost world. God asks us to pray, give and show love to all that we can. Think of the opportunities you have around you. You serve the Lord as you help others.

Our Daily Bread reads, “Do what you can where you are and with what you have!”
Another good thought to remember is:
“Our lives are God’s gift to us. What we do with them is our gift to God.”

Dottie

Adonai ~ The God of Relationships

Gen 15:2 “The Lord is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him.”

Adonai is written with lower case letters (Lord) to distinguish it from Jehovah (LORD). This name appears 300 times in the Old Testament and is often translated “sovereign” in the NIV Bible. It is translated “master” when referring to people. It denotes a servant and his relationship to his master.

At its first use in scripture (Gen 15:2) it refers to a relationship that requires obedience. In Genesis 15:6 we are told that Abraham “believed in the Lord” and God “credited it to him for righteousness”. So, let’s translate that… Abraham believed in God and made him Lord (Adonai) of his life – that is a relationship! Notice also that the relationship came from belief not from Abraham’s good life. Matt. 7:21-27 repeats this thought when it states that not everyone that says Lord, Lord will enter the kingdom.

So, what does that mean to you?

1. Is Jesus your Adonai? Have you made Christ the Lord of your life?
2. Like Abraham in Gen. 15:2 do you praise and exalt your Lord?
3. If He is your Lord and master, are you serving him and keeping his commands?

Will someday Jesus say to You… “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matt. 25:21)

LDJ

ONLY ONE LIFE WILL SOON BE PAST
ONLY WHAT’S DONE FOR CHRIST WILL LAST

A plaque with these words hung in my parents’ home for many years. It was on the wall at the bottom of the dining room stairs. You read it as you came down each morning and on the way up each night as you went to bed. To me, it was an adult thought. I loved my mom and dad, and I didn’t want to think of their life being over – anytime!

Both of them were Christians and took my sister and me to Sunday school and church from early childhood. They raised us to respect and honor God, and to respect them as well. Dad worked hard, long hours, while Mom was a stay-at-home mom. God used both of them as Sunday school teachers and in various adult jobs in the church.

During the war years, Dad worked at the Navy-yard, building ships. He had to work many Sundays while we attended church. I lost quality father-daughter times in those years, but I thank God there were special memories, too.

At the early age of 59, God took Mom home. As she passed that plaque on her way up to bed, she didn’t realize her life on earth would be over that night. My favorite song, “Finally Home”, was sung at her funeral. Some of its lines are, “Just think of stepping on shore and finding it heaven, of touching a hand and finding it God’s, of waking up in Glory and finding it home!” That is what God has ready for those who serve Him on earth.

Before Mom’s death, she had visited us in New York. I had the privilege of walking with her and sharing what she meant in my life. God is so good! Mom’s words were, “Take care of Dad”. She knew her life would soon be over. She also knew her girls were serving the Lord, and this brought joy. “Thank you, Lord, for my mom.”

Dad continued to live to be 81. He lived just five doors from us. God gave me memories then, with just Dad. On one occasion before a trip to visit my sister in Massachusetts, he came to my home, but he was sick. I prayed with him – which I had never done before. He was able to go on that trip for Christmas. He died there two weeks later. I’ll never forget our last talk and praying together. He, too, knew he was “going home”, for he had left some notes for us. “Thank you, God, for my dad.”
You see, when you love the Lord and serve Him, you are ready when He calls you.

That special plaque is now gone, but its words remain in my memory and my heart. Now my husband and I are in our 70’s. We, too, know that only what we do to serve and glorify the Lord will last. It’s our privilege to continue to minister and serve Him. It is what counts! You never retire in working for the Lord. Philippians 1:21 “For me to live is Christ, but to die is gain.”

God Is Enough

Thank you Father for this brand new day that You have made! In this day we will rejoice and be glad! We will enter your gates with thanksgiving in our hearts. We will be content with the food of your Word and doing that which You have called us to do. We will present the Gospel in every way you have divinely equipped us to do so. We will not boast in ourselves. Rather we will boast in You and believe that:

“You are Who You say You are
You can do what You say You can do
Your Word is alive and active in us.” (Beth Moore -Believing God)

“Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, who made us competent to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.” 2 Corinthians 3:4-6

So far we have managed to stay away from the shoulds and should-nots. And guess what, we still ain’t going there!
“…For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.”
2 Cor. 3:6a

“Jesus answered them, ‘ “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the Son remains forever. If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” John 8:34-36

Sisters, we are free! Jesus, the Son of God has made us free! We will not forever remain in this flesh where we do daily battle with sin. Day by day as we choose to believe Him and be changed by what we believe, we will soar like eagles. We will run and not grow weary. We will choose life over death. Or I’ll say it like this- our food and drink will be to do the will of the Father. Nothing else will satisfy because GOD IS ENOUGH!
Can I get an amen!?!

Stephanie

God is Enough

Yesterday our hearts hopefully united together to take a journey toward believing that God is enough. Put another way, you could say we are going to journey toward believing God.
Like me, some of you, if not, most of you would be quick to think and say, “Hey, I already believe God”.
Let’s quest together for the answer to this question, “What is believing God?”
But first let’s discern the difference between believing and believing in. Trust me, believe me, when I say to you – this is not going to be easy. I had to stop midst the writing of this devotion to think my own thoughts out loud with Diane. Thus…I believe that God wants us to do the hard word of learning and seeing the difference so that change, true change, takes place in our lives.

To ‘believe in’ is “to have a firm conviction as to the goodness of something”. In other words, we all have a firm conviction that God exists and that He offers us salvation.
To ‘believe’ is “to accept as true or real; to credit with veracity (conformity to fact or truth); to have firm faith, confidence or trust in what one has seen or heard”. Meaning, I do not simply believe in His goodness but I also take Him at His Word by believing what He has told me.
I’d be lying if I said I spent a lot of time intentionally focused on what I believe about God. I just matter-of-factly believe in Him. Yes! I believe in God, but the question to answer is, do I believe in Him enough to take him at His Word and believe Him by conforming my life to His Truth?

Therein is where our journey began yesterday with “God Is Enough”. Is He? Do I live my life as if I truly believe that? Is my life daily marked by change, fueled by the transforming power of His Word? Under my own watchful gaze I have to say, “No I do not.”

Praise God! Praise God! Praise God for the process that sanctification is! Thank God for the ever moving onward and upward direction that He draws me toward -by the power of His Spirit- as I continue my pass through this life.

“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.” 2 Corinthians 3:17-19

Stephanie