In the last 18 months, on five separate occasions, I’ve spent multiple days in the hospital sitting beside the bed of one or the other of my children. Ain’t nothing about that easy.

Today is day one of the fifth hospitalization. I’m feeling gads of emotion for which I find no tangible comfort (at least, not at this exact moment) and thinking myriad thoughts, all tumbled together, constantly agitating my soul. My soul longs for, pants after, rest and peace. It feels like none is in sight.

So as I look out of yet another hospital window, the view is a welcome distraction. What I see from this sixth floor window is people–people of all shape, size, color, and walk of life.

From below, I hear sirens and from the hallway just outside the door of my daughter’s room…well, you can probably guess how noisy that is. After all, hospitals aren’t known for being quiet, or restful for that matter.

So what’s the one thing running through my head right now? Simple: life goes on. Time waits for no one.

The hurrying, rushing to and fro never stops; the plans and appointments of man don’t skip a beat. Life simply goes on. With or without me, it keeps moving full steam ahead.

All is vanity…a chasing after the wind. There is nothing new under the sun.

Part of me wants to scream and shout and demand: “Stop! Don’t you see me? Don’t you see us? Do you get the pain that rests on these shoulders, in this body? Do you care?”

Another part of me finds a level of relative calm in all the movement and sound because it’s proof that life, indeed, does go on. We live, breathe, move and have our being no matter what circumstances or situations life brings our way. No matter what we stumble upon or into, our very being is solidly secure in the Master’s Hands.

Ah, yes. There is a Source. And therein is the place of comfort, peace, rest…and anything else my/our souls need to aid us in abiding and enduring our “whatsoever”.

He that comes to the shelter of the Most High, shall abide under the shadow of His wing. He can say of the Lord, He is our refuge and our strength in any and every situation.

The Lord our God is perfect, lacking nothing. He withholds no good thing from His children.

Dear sisters, how is your soul faring today? Are you secure in the reality and truth of His unchanging hand? Are your mind, will and emotions anchored deep in the Word of Life?

I hope so. I pray that whatever crazy or unexpected way your day may have begun, that you will pause now and behold your God, high and lifted up, mighty to save, forever faithful. Selah.

Stephanie Paul

Stephanie serves as part of the Addiction Recovery Team at America’s Keswick as Director of Women of Character. She has been married for over 30 years to Sesky Paul who is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy. They have two grown children.
Her single focus in ministry at Keswick is to image Christ in grace and truth to wounded and hurting women, encouraging them to make Jesus the truest Lover of their soul and the One in whom all hope lies.

“I waited patiently for the Lord; and He inclined to me, and heard my cry. He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my steps. He has put a new song in my mouth – Praise to our God; many will see it and fear, and will trust in the Lord.” Psalm 40:1-3

In my last devotional on women and addiction I shared the grim facts about addiction and some of the reasons why women enter into a life of bondage. Psalm 40 expresses the pain of bondage, of being stuck in a place that is anything but fulfilling and free. It talks about the fact that it takes an outside source to help us get out of that place or “miry pit”.

When it comes to addiction, there are services out there to help one out of the pit, but often while in the pit they are not seen or used. It is like there is a wall between the help and them. Women in addiction face many barriers in their life and circumstances that make getting help or receiving help difficult.

Half of all addicted women are mothers, and the lack of safe and healthy child care is difficult and they fear losing their children forever if they have to give them up for any length of time. The women tend to be poor, lack insurance, or are the only source of support in the family and walking away from a job is difficult. Many women are sitting not just in the pit of addiction, but the miry bog of mental health issues and that struggle complicates the process or the ability to get and accept help. One of the biggest reasons is, as mentioned in my previous victory call, 70 percent of the women have been abused and/or traumatized in some way, and more often than not many times over. These women find it very hard to trust anyone else to help them, they are fearful of others’ motives, and are extremely fearful of opening themselves up to men. Since many secular addictions programs are co-ed and have a significant male staff they are very hesitant to feel safe.

So, here at America’s Keswick we need to be designing our program with these thoughts in mind. It will be our goal to create a safe, affordable place for the women to come and find the One that can help her out of the “Pit”. We want to first and foremost introduce her to God and the saving work of Jesus Christ. Salvation and freedom will come from no other. Our goal is to help set the stage and atmosphere so that when she is ready and willing to break down some of the barriers and learn to trust us, we can help her trust HIM.

Will you pray for us in this endeavor? Pray for the staff that God is putting in place to come along side these ladies as they share their lives and stories. Pray for the preparation of the hearts of the women God has chosen to participate in the house, those He has chosen to find healing and freedom out of their pit. Pray as we prepare the right program and set up the house structure. I will talk more about that in the next victory call.

Lynne Jahns
Barbara’s Place Program Director

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.” (Philippians 4:6)

Anxiety is among the top debilitating problems both outside and inside the church today. We live in a world with instant connection to just about anywhere in the world. When tragedy strikes across the world, we know it within moments. Radio, television and the internet give us ready access to news as it is happening. This generation is exposed to terrorism, catastrophic accidents, crime, financial ruin, etc. There are regular opportunities to be tempted to be anxious.

Added to all that is happening in the world, what happens in our own little corner, from being overdrawn at the bank, rebellious children, problem marriages and cancer, and we have the perfect conditions for continual anxiety. How can we help but to be anxious? The Bible commands us to “Be anxious for nothing”…nothing. If God commands us to do something it must be possible.

In Philippians 4:6, Paul tells us the cure for anxiety. Typically when trouble strikes, we get around to praying eventually. Somehow though, prayer doesn’t seem to be enough to knock out that anxious feeling in the pit of our stomach. The fastest way to alleviate anxiety is the one, two combination in verse 6. The verse does not just say to pray and supplicate, the part we so often miss is “with thanksgiving”. It is our heart of thanksgiving that dispels that anxious feeling. Thanksgiving does not come naturally during times of trouble, yet that is exactly what God tells us to do. We begin giving thanks for general things like creation, salvation, sunshine and move into giving thanks for more specific things. We can thank God because He is at work in this situation, He remains sovereign, He continues to work out His purposes for His glory and our good, and He is in the process of conforming us to the image of Jesus Christ, etc. As we do this, we can expect that “the peace of God which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (Phil 4:6).

Diane Hunt

Diane Hunt is part of the Development and Addiction Recovery teams at America’s Keswick. In addition to being a Biblical Counselor, she is a Women’s speaker for retreats, conferences and events. She is a regular writer for Victory Call and one of the authors of Crossing the Jordan Bible Study. She has been married to her husband John over 28 years. She has 2 adult children, 3 grandchildren, 3 adult step-children with 7 grandchildren making 10 in all. She delights reading and teaching, but mostly laughing at the funny things her grandchildren say and do.

Originally published in Real Victory for Real Life Volume 1.

Riddle me this-
You’re working in the sandwich shop, preparing sandwiches of course, and from time to time you notice the manager let’s a few slices of moldy bread slip by. One day the owners stop by on their way to a meeting and it’s your job to prepare their sandwich order. While doing so you come across a few of those not so premium slices of bread. Do you make the sandwich or not? Maybe a better question would be, would you be worried about it if it wasn’t for the owners?

In this case, the worker, “wanting to gain advantage” and favor with the owners, made sure those sandwiches were perfect.
As for the owners, I bet if they had gotten the same sandwiches their customers were getting, (which is exactly what they should have gotten), you’d see things change pretty quickly. This guy could have wound up being the manager. Instead all he managed to do was schmooze the owners for the moment. In time they saw right through him. God sees right through us every time, right through to our heart’s intentions.

Dina Seaton

These are inveterate murmurers (grumblers) who complain [of their lot in life], going after their own desires [controlled by their passions]; their talk is boastful and arrogant, [and they claim to] admire men’s persons and pay people flattering compliments to gain advantage. Jude 1:16 (AMP)

“These things I have spoken to you that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.” (John 15:11-12)

If we were asked to identify the things that have slowly robbed us of our joy, what would they be? Would it be a single moment of crisis, or a steady accumulation of life’s daily mishaps? You know, the in-law who never has a kind word. Or the child spoiled by indulgence, who is rarely satisfied? Perhaps it’s a chronically sick parent for whom you are the primary caregiver? Maybe it’s the weight of legalism that so dictates your every step that your joy is stifled? You’ve held back for so long, there’s no memory of what joy looks, feels, smells or tastes like. Have you ever bitten into a perfect apple? As soon as you bit it you knew, “this is good”! Remember how it felt to enjoy that apple?! Yummy! At the mere memory I can taste and feel the joy.

Bottom line, our lack of joy could simply be that we have forgotten the most important commandments, “to love God with all your passion prayer, muscle and intelligence and to love your neighbor as well as you do yourself” (Luke 10:27 The Message).

Think back to the day of your salvation. Remember when you first realized that the Creator of everything that is, saw you from eternity past, sent Himself in the form of His Son and died a violent death to secure your very soul for His good pleasure? Do you recall the tangible awareness of unspeakable love?

Oh that we would pause and ponder that Love. We are so loved by God! His love is so deep, wide and broad it flows out of us, into the lives of others. When is the last time you looked in the mirror and knew the person looking back had more right to joy than a body can stand?

Lord You called, equipped and entrusted us with so marvelous a gift. May we, on purpose, choose to unwrap it and allow it to express itself as a light in our eyes, pep to our step, and warmth in our embraces, so that Jesus, the Light of the world may be seen in us.

Stephanie Paul

Stephanie serves as part of the Addiction Recovery Team at America’s Keswick as Director of Women’s Addiction Ministry. She has been married for almost 30 years to Sesky Paul who is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy. Stephanie serves alongside him as Care Group leaders in their church. They have two grown children. Her single focus in ministry at Keswick is to image Christ in grace and truth to wounded and hurting women, encouraging them to make Jesus the truest Lover of their soul and the One in whom all hope lies.

Originally published in Real Victory for Real Life Volume 1

Someone once shared with me that while visiting the French Riviera she hit the beach and noticed most of the ladies were topless. So she decided well, “When in Rome” or France in this case ‘C’est la vie’ (that’s life) and it was off with her own bathing suit top. So a follower of Christ ends up on an exciting vacation adventure and something she’d never consider doing on the Jersey Shore she’s suddenly up for when in another land. Chalk it up to a submission to cultural customs. Then there’s Leviticus 18. We can bury our heads in the sand, or in the chapter. Choose the chapter. it’s good stuff.

Lord, whether at home or far away, help us to remain the same as we would if You were right there with us, because You are.

Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘I am the LORD your God. According to the doings of the land of Egypt, where you dwelt, you shall not do; and according to the doings of the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you, you shall not do; nor shall you walk in their ordinances. You shall observe My judgments and keep My ordinances, to walk in them: I am the LORD your God. You shall therefore keep My statutes and My judgments, which if a man does, he shall live by them: I am the LORD. (Lev. 18:1-5, NKJV)

Dina Seaton

“Sanctify yourselves….and carry out the rubbish from the holy place” (2 Chronicles 29:5 NKJV).

Recently I came across a verse in the Old Testament that I had read many times before. However, this time, the verse struck me with special significance. I read it again, and then I reread it.

Although I knew the words were an admonition spoken by King Hezekiah to his people, nevertheless, I felt as though the words were directed specifically at me! There came to mind the verse in 1 Corinthians 3:16: “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?” I read again “…carry out the rubbish from the holy place” – that’s my life! “Well, what constitutes rubbish or trash in my life?” I asked myself. Before I could answer, a song came to mind:

“Search me, O God, and know my heart today;
Try me, O Savior, know my thoughts, I pray.
See if there be some wicked way in me;
Cleanse me from every sin and set me free.”

That’s what would be rubbish – sin! Any sin, big or little; any sin, apparent or not; any sin, private or public. Anything and everything in my life (“the holy place”) that would displease my Lord and damage my testimony. That’s rubbish and needs to be “carried out” – disposed of.

Do you have rubbish in your life? How do you get rid of it? Since we have established rubbish is sin, then the next step is to acknowledge that sin, confess it with a repentant heart, and ask God’s forgiveness. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Not only is He willing and gracious to forgive you and me our sins, but Micah 7:19 tells us that He then casts those sins “into the depths of the sea” – to be remembered no more.

“Sanctify yourselves…and carry out the rubbish from the holy place.” If we follow that instruction, God will be pleased, and we will be restored to sweet fellowship with Him.

Midge Ruth

Midge Ruth is a Board Member Emeritus of America’s Keswick. This devotional was originally printed in Real Victory for Real Life Volume 1.

The wisest of women builds her house, but folly with her own hands tears it down. Proverbs 14:1

What kind of folly tears down our home or family? What undoes the very things we are trying to do?
1. Harsh words
2. Criticism
3. The silent treatment
4. Mocking
5. Name calling
6. Unforgiveness
7. Bitterness
8. Gossip
9. Discouragement
10. Comparison

As you take a good look at your life, do you find yourself guilty of any of these? You can stop yourself from tearing down by the power of the Holy Spirit. Choose today to be a builder.

Blessings, Diane

Diane Hunt is part of the Development and Addiction Recovery teams at America’s Keswick. In addition to being a Biblical Counselor, she is a Women’s speaker for retreats, conferences and events. She is a regular writer for Victory Call and one of the authors of Crossing the Jordan Bible Study. She has been married to her husband John over 28 years. She has 2 adult children, 3 grandchildren, 3 adult step-children with 7 grandchildren making 10 in all. She delights reading and teaching, but mostly laughing at the funny things her grandchildren say and do.

The wisest of women builds her house, but folly with her own hands tears it down. Proverbs 14:1

Although this verse refers specifically to our homes, it is true in every situation; we can build up or tear down in our homes and families, at our jobs, in our churches, in our neighborhoods, etc.

In every interaction, in every conversation, in every action, we can build up through encouragement, praise, affirmation and support, or we can tear down through discouragement, gossip, unkindness and criticism.

Which do you choose today?

Blessings, Diane

Diane Hunt is part of the Development and Addiction Recovery teams at America’s Keswick. In addition to being a Biblical Counselor, she is a Women’s speaker for retreats, conferences and events. She is a regular writer for Victory Call and one of the authors of Crossing the Jordan Bible Study. She has been married to her husband John over 28 years. She has 2 adult children, 3 grandchildren, 3 adult step-children with 7 grandchildren making 10 in all. She delights reading and teaching, but mostly laughing at the funny things her grandchildren say and do.

I am sitting on line at the inspection station behind cars of all colors and sizes. Some are work vehicles, including one from Pisces Seafood, and suddenly I am hungry for fish and chips.

These are busy people with jobs to do but we are all required to take time out to go for inspection. Seems a bother but when you realize the accidents that are avoided because we are required to check our brakes, and the cleaner air we breathe because vehicles have their emissions tested, I am thankful.

How about me? Is it time for an inspection? At the last supper Jesus asked the disciples to examine their hearts. As we take communion it is inspection time. Is your heart right with God? (1 Corinthians 11:28.) Is there selfishness, anger, or deceit that is breaking your communion with your Heavenly Father?

You may get a red failed inspection sticker which requires you to go and make things right and then come back again to the table of communion. He is always waiting and there are no lines.

I am next in line now at the inspection station.

(And today my car passed! I am a happy camper.)

Joyce Hayes