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Knowing Where You’re Going

August 21, 2012

If you don’t know where your life is going, any route will get you there. One job that pays the bills will appear as good as another (even better, if the remuneration is higher). One spouse or church or house or career will seem as acceptable as another if you have no sense of where your life is headed and what help you need to arrive at your destination. But when your life is guided by a sense of purpose and direction, you recognize how profoundly every decision you make either draws you closer to or moves you away from where your life is meant to be.

When the Old Testament prophet Jeremiah was still a teenager, God assured him, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you [ … ]

Experiencing God’s Pursuit

August 20, 2012

In God’s all-out pursuit of my heart, of your heart, He sings through a child’s voice, speaks through a bird’s call, shouts through the claps of thunder, and calls out through the rising sun. What is the key to experiencing God’s passionate pursuit? It’s simple really. We must recognize and acknowledge His presence as we live and move and have our being in Him. Acts 17:28 must be more than a nice Bible verse; it must become a way of life. When it does, sudden glory moments will fill our lives and take our breath away. It is a divine romance of the purest kind.

Excerpted from A Sudden Glory by Sharon Jaynes

Daily Reflection:
How can you make Acts 17:28 a part of your everyday life?

Ready to Act

August 17, 2012

If you’re going to have the audacity to ask God for something, you’d better be ready to act. Audacious prayer must be tethered to practical obedience. Or else it’s not faith. It’s just wishful thinking and positive mental energy. No wonder so many of our prayers aren’t answered. We pray for a miracle, but we fail to make a move.

And most of the time, if you don’t move, God won’t move. That’s just the way he designed faith to work.

Excerpted from Sun Stand Still by Steven Furtick

Daily Reflection:
Which personal prayer do you need to be ready to act on? How can you prepare yourself to do that?

God’s Hand

August 16, 2012

Have you ever shown up somewhere at “just the right time”? When you think back on your life, can you remember a person who briefly entered your life, saying something or doing something that impacted your life out of proportion to what they actually said or did? What were the circumstances that brought you together with your spouse or the detailed circumstances of other such notable events in your life? Have you ever been randomly thinking of someone who then unexpectedly shows up or contacts you? Has something ever happened that left you thinking “That’s weird”? Consider whether these are sets of “coincidences” or whether they might be orchestrated events; evidence of God’s hand in our lives.

Excerpted from To Heaven and Back by Mary C. Neal, MD

Daily Reflection:
When have you been most aware of God’s [ … ]

Choosing an Outlook

August 15, 2012

One night, when tempted to wallow in my misery, I wrote these words in a sporadic diary:

Lately God seems to be filling my pool an inch deeper than I am tall. But I’ve made a startling discovery while treading water: This storm raging across my bow has the power to push me out of the pool and into uncharted territory. It can strip away my comfort, ground my best-laid plans, and capsize my flimsy little boat. But it does not have the power to capsize me. The Rock I am clinging to does not shift when the winds blow. And, thank God, I’m still able to choose my outlook. My outlook can determine whether this experience is painful or profitable. My attitude can help me see that my problem isn’t really the problem. It’s the way I look at [ … ]

Being Passed Over

August 14, 2012

No one likes to be passed over. Something within each of us cries out to be noticed. Someone has suggested that most Americans suffer from a severe case of attention deprivation; we don’t know if anybody really cares about us. Some of the Bible’s saddest words are found in one of the Old Testament psalms when David cries out in a moment of extreme loneliness, “No one cares for my soul” (Psalm 142:4).

In a cold world that refuses to recognize a loving God, words such as the psalmist’s might be expected. But why do we hear these cries so often among believers? Is it possible that we have so focused our attention on those outside the church that we have neglected our responsibility to each other? God has given to us, His children, the solution to the lonely, hopeless [ … ]

Walking a New Path

August 13, 2012

Where he was, who he was with, and the circumstances of the request all combined to help determine the path Jesus would take. Do we expect any less of Christ today? How open are you to surprises? Are you willing to take paths that Jesus is blazing and follow him as he hacks a way in the wilderness?

The Spirit of Christ walked a new path with Paul and brought the Gentiles into the body of Christ.

The Spirit of Christ walked a new path with Saint Francis and brought all of creation into the body of Christ.

The Spirit of Christ walked a new path with Martin Luther and turned the altar toward the people, who are the body of Christ.

The Spirit of Christ walked a new path with John Wesley and strolled out into the streets and [ … ]

Deeds vs. Relationship

August 10, 2012

Many believers push hard to accomplish good things for Christ. They could rightfully claim hard work and perseverance as their strengths. They could get credit for refusing to tolerate evil. They could receive commendation for enduring hardships without quitting or even growing weary.

If that describes you, you are to be applauded. Jesus is pleased with you.

I can say that on the authority of God’s Word, for the Lord Jesus, through his Spirit, commended the church at Ephesus for these very things (Revelation 2:1–3).

But you know where I’m going with this discussion because you know what Jesus added to his words of approval: “Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first” (Revelation 2:4–5).

He says (if I [ … ]

Self-imposed Guilt

August 9, 2012

Some of us have an internal “guilt table” to determine how badly we should feel:

Falling asleep during the 6:00 P.M. news. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Sending store-bought cookies to school . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Forgetting to pick up child (first time). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Forgetting to pick up child (second time) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 342

If too many tasks and not enough time sounds like life at your house, the solution is as close as Sesame Street. Just practice [ … ]

God’s Arms

August 8, 2012

When we ignore our Father’s warnings, we forfeit the safety of His shore and plunge into the ocean of harm’s way: the undertow of over-commitment, the current of wrong choices, and the rising tide of moral danger. Perhaps that’s where you are right now. If so, there is hope. You only have to call out to God for help and He will pull you safely to shore. David cried out, “Turn your ear to me, come quickly to my rescue; be my rock of refuge, a strong fortress to save me” (Psalm 31:2) and “Reach down your hand from on high; deliver me and rescue me from the mighty waters” (Psalm 144:7).

“But, Sharon,” you might say, “you don’t know how far I’ve fallen. You don’t know what a mess I’ve made of my life.”

You are right. I don’t [ … ]