From the Vault: The Lord is Here

I pray you will be blessed by this devotion that first posted in February of 2011.

In Genesis 28 Jacob realizes that even in his darkest hour, sleeping on the ground with a rock for a pillow, that God is there. After studying this passage in December as part of our Advent readings, the children and I each wrote the words The Lord is here on small scraps of paper and tucked them in our pockets. Whenever we touched our papers we would remember that, even in that moment, we were not alone.* This morning I found one of those folded up papers and it prompted me to write the words on my kitchen chalkboard.

And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever - the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. John 14:16-17

It is amazing to me how quickly I forget that the Holy Spirit is with me 24/7. It is as though I have given Him a time card and expect Him to clock out for a certain amount of time each day. My human mind can not comprehend that He would choose to be with me while I change a blow-out diaper. Or yell at my husband. Or deal with a child's bad attitude. After all, I certainly do not want to be there in those moments. Yet He has promised that He will be, no matter what and no matter when. The God of all comfort is with me all day and all night. No matter the circumstance.

(fast forward six days.....)

The day after I wrote the words above, four of my children became ill. For the first time in 17 years of parenting I had more than one child with the stomach flu at the same time.  I do not do the flu. But - the Lord does and He was here with us through the entire week.  Everytime I passed my chalkboard on the way to get more cleaning supplies, I was reminded that...  

The Lord is here. 

Prayer:

Lord God, I am so amazed at Your gift of Your Holy Spirit - ever present, ever helping, ever giving wisdom.  May I be mindful of Your constant presence with me in every part of my day.  I want to walk in Your wisdom and with Your heart towards those around me.  Amen.

Challenge:

Sketch your own little Jacob's ladder (Genesis 28) and write the words The Lord is here on a scrap of paper.  Tuck it in your pocket; each time you touch it remember the incredible truth that the God of the universe is there with you!  Get the strength, patience, wisdom and love you need for the moment from Him.

Good reads: I highly recommend the book Forgotten God by Francis Chan. 

*(Credit: Jesse Tree Advent Devotional from A Holy Experience.)

Jen G. 2011

Fleas

Flea-less Mazie

A couple of years ago I was doing the obligatory flea check on our poodle.  This is the dog that barely walks outside if she can help it, so I was not even remotely concerned. (I have caught Mazie doing her business in the garage under the truck to avoid getting her feet wet on a rainy day.)  Imagine my shock, horror, and overreaction when I saw one. 

A flea. 

On my dog... in my house.

I called the vet in a panic.  Seriously, I was so over the top I am sure the vet tech was scared.  I was willing to do whatever I needed to Mazie to get rid of this flea;  I was sure it was covering for a thousand more hiding in her doggy pits.  Everything slightly short of Mazie's death was an option.  The vet tech suggested a $40 medication that would kill all fleas, but not the poodle, within one hour of a single pill being ingested. This magic internal flea bomb would also kill any unborn fleas or new riders that hopped on and bit.  Sold!

I get a type of flea sometimes.  Lie fleas.  These little bugs jump into my thoughts and heart and take bites that create a small itch at first, but become more intense as I scratch.  Here are some common examples of lie flea bites:

1.  Someone thinks you are trying to get attention, so you back out of anything that puts you in front of others.  God gifted you in areas that require you be in front of others?  Oh well!

2. Your child is struggling in reading, math, science… or everything.  Obviously, you are a lousy homeschooling teacher and should send all your kids to a brick and mortar school tomorrow morning.  God called you to teach your kids at home?  Oh well!

3. Your friend and her husband just bought a new car and are taking their whole family on a trip to Disney World for two weeks.  If your husband took on another job, then you could do stuff like that.  God hasn’t directed your husband to get a second job and His Word says you should not nag him about it?  Oh well!

In each of the above scenarios, the Truth is being ignored. 

1. If God has called you or me to teach or sing or lead a Bible study and we decide to let someone else’s opinion of us direct our ministry, or lack thereof, then we are placing man’s opinion above God’s calling in our lives.  

The fear of man brings a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord shall be safe. Proverbs 29:25

2. If our child is struggling in a certain area academically and we feel God’s call to homeschool, then we are to push through.  Each child is unique with strengths and weakness that we as their parents are to help them grow and overcome as needed.  If you feel inadequate, call out to the Lord who promises to guide and give wisdom to those who ask in faith.   

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.  But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. James 1:5, 6  

I called on the Lord in distress; The Lord answered me and set me in a broad place. The Lord is on my side; I will not fear. What can man [or my kid’s math lesson] do to me? Psalm 118: 5, 6 

If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, [or the depths of Apologia Biology] even there Your hand shall lead me, and Your right hand shall hold me. Psalm 139:9-11

3. Jealousy is a nasty thing.  It will eat away at our thoughts, affecting our words and interactions with others.  

Wrath is cruel and anger a torrent, but who is able to stand before jealousy? Proverbs 27:4  

We can become dissatisfied and bitter over the short stick we think we are getting.  In turn, we might pressure our husband to possibly step outside of God’s calling and direction for our family and end up playing Junior Holy Spirit in his decisions.  

A foolish son is the ruin of his father, and the contentions of a wife are a continual dripping. Proverbs 19:13 

The truth in Proverbs 3:5-6 tells us to trust in the Lord with all our heart and lean not on our own understanding.  In all our ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct our paths – to Disney World or otherwise.

Just like that $40 internal flea bomb I fed to my poodle in a hunk of hot dog, we need to give ourselves a truth bomb when the lies of the enemy bite at us.  Don’t live with the itching, nip it in the bud!

Prayer:

Father, thank You for Truth.  Nothing else matters.  Amen.

Challenge:

Determine to speak truth to your self at every turn.  The minute you feel the itch to believe a lie of the enemy, combat it with Scripture that is applicable to the situation.  Jesus’ time in the wilderness is an awesome example of using truth bombs liberally.  Identify the most common areas in which the enemy lies to you.  Arm your self ahead of time with Scriptures addressing those areas.  Have the Scriptures on index cards, ready to read the truth into any circumstance.

Jen G. 2012

This Land is Your Land

Dwell: To abide as a permanent resident, or to inhabit for a time; to live in a place; to have a habitation for some time or permanence.  Webster’s 1828 Dictionary

When you move into a home, you would never consider only taking some of your furnishings inside and leaving the others outdoors.  If you did, dinner time might move you to the garage to eat at the table and bedtime might take you to the front yard.  When you move in to a new house, you move all the way in.  You make that house your home.  You invest in it and care for it; you dwell in that home.

“Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.” Psalm 37:3

The Lord has placed each one of us in a ‘land’.  That land is not just the country in which we are residing, it is the home in which we are living and the job where we might be working.  He tells us in Psalm 37:3 to trust Him and do good, dwell in the land and feed on His faithfulness.  We are not to halfheartedly, sort-of live there.  We are to jump in, do good, and enjoy the Lord’s provision and constant faithfulness regardless of the circumstances around us.

 “Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:4

I would venture to say that if I am unsatisfied in the land I have been placed, it is because I am not delighting in the Lord.  He promises that He will give me the desires of my heart if I delight in Him.  Therefore, if I am not satisfied it is because I am not delighting. 

If I am delighting in the Lord my home is large enough, my children are worth giving of my time and energy to homeschool, honoring my husband is a pleasure, and my days have purpose even if it means serving fries at McDonald’s or changing diapers over and over again.  And why is that? Because HE is my desire, and HE is completely satisfying. 

Dwelling in the land and doing good brings immense and true satisfaction when we are doing it for the glory of God.  The days might be hard and long, the people we have to be with might be highly irritating, and the paycheck might be small or even non existent, but His faithfulness abounds. When we desire Him, the desire is always met with more of Him.

Fully dwell in your land and be fully satisfied in the Lord.

Prayer:

Father, it can be so difficult at times to dwell in my land.  I want to pack up and go live at the coffee shop, surrounded by adults who all want to talk about stuff I am interested in and who clean up all the mess after I leave to go shopping for clothes that are not on sale.  Please focus my heart daily on the privilege of serving You where You have placed me.  You have a greater purpose in everything I do.  Let me delight in You!  Please give me more of You!  Amen.

Challenge:

Guard your thoughts and your words about the place the Lord has placed you.  It is incredibly difficult to delight in Him when you are crabbing about His plans for your life.  Search for Scriptures that draw your mind to His goodness and faithfulness.  Psalm 37:5 is a good one to keep in mind: Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass.  What is the ‘it’?  I think it is the desires of your heart mentioned in the previous verses – Himself. 

Jen G. 2012

But God

A week ago this morning, the sounds of sirens and helicopters filled my neighborhood.  A young man opened fire at the high school one street over from our home, killing three boys and injuring two other children. In one single moment, the lives of the families of the murdered and injured, as well as the students and teachers in the school building, were changed forever. 

I ask that you continue to pray for Chardon, even as state and national attention refocuses on other tragedies and news. The world goes on, even when it seems as if it should stop.  For many in my beautiful town, their world has stopped for now.  Pray also for the ones who will continue to minister to these hurting people. 

And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others. BUT GOD, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ…

The words that most stand out to me in this passage are BUT GOD.  I was dead in trespasses and sins, I walked according to the course of this world, I lived for myself, I was like the world.  BUT GOD, who is rich in mercy, because of HIS great love…made me alive in Christ.  These beautiful words made me think of other times I can say, “BUT GOD!”

“I do not WANT to be kind to that person!  I can not BE kind to them!!”

I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. Galatians 5:16

“I am beaten down by the words of others.  My heart hurts and I feel so unprotected and vulnerable.”

But You, O Lord, are a shield for me, my glory and the One who lifts up my head. I cried to the Lord with my voice, and He heard me from His holy hill. Psalm 3:3, 4

“I CAN NOT homeschool anymore!  I want naps, lunch with friends, spending money and a clean house!”

Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content:  I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.  I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Philippians 4:11-13

“I am terrified that something will happen to my children, husband, parents...”

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and love and of a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:7

“I am alone.  My husband has left my family.  How will we survive?  Who will provide for us?”

But You have seen, for You observe trouble and grief, to repay it by Your hand. The helpless commits himself to You; You are the helper of the fatherless. Psalm 10:14

“My sinuses feel like someone is jabbing hot pokers up my nose and my children are sharing pink eye with one another repeatedly.” (Real life for me right now!)

And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 2 Corinthians 12:9

“All the horrible things that are happening in the world makes me wonder if God even cares?  Is He really good?”

This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. 1 John 1:5

Man creates evil, not God.  If not for Jesus Christ, we would all remain dead in our sins, waiting to leave a sinful world for an eternal hell of death and suffering.  BUT GOD, who is rich in mercy gave us a way to Him.  Jesus took our sin upon Himself. He willingly came to earth, wrapping all of His glorious Deity in a frail, homely, human skin, and suffered lies and hurt and betrayal at the hands of the ones He loved.  He did all this to repair the damage done by Adam and Eve when they chose to reject the perfect goodness of God for a sweet lie presented by Satan. If the Lord cared enough to send His only Son to restore us to Himself, He surely cares about all the things that occur in our daily lives.

In what situations do you need to shout “BUT GOD!”?  The One who is rich in mercy has words for every circumstance and feeling.  Search them out in Scripture and use them daily.  Do not allow anything to rise above the awesome power and goodness of our God.

Prayer: 

Father, I need Your help.  I rely on my own strength to be good, to handle pain and fear, to provide.  Please remind me in every circumstance that in my own strength I am weak, but in You I have been given everything that pertains to life and godliness.  Amen.

Challenge:

Find the BUT GOD verses that relate to what you are facing in life right now.  Post them around your house, keep a spiral index card book in your purse to read over verses while waiting in line or at a doctor’s office.  Keep the truth of God before you at all times.  Great peace have those who love Your law, and nothing causes them to stumble. Psalm 119:165

Jen G. 2012