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“Push, Push, Push, Keep Going!”

 

How many of you have started an exercise program knowing you really need it?  You know it needs to be something that really gets your whole body in shape.  

 

I just recently started a 90-day challenge to get into shape.  I am really finding out what muscles I haven’t been strengthening.  The older we get the more necessary this becomes.  The muscles are a part of what holds our body together and when we are not keeping them in shape things can start falling apart.  As we work those muscles it is a painful experience but as we keep going the benefits are immeasurable. 

 

I have found this very challenging because of the damage that I have received from having Lyme disease but I am determined to keep going despite the difficulties.  

 

When it comes to exercising all our muscles it takes making a decision.  Do I really want a healthy body?  Do I want to have more energy and stamina?  

 

My boys love to hike.  I’m not talking about a nice leisurely walk.  I am talking about, “Let’s climb this mountain”.  Because of my health condition it has been more difficult.  But I have determination to become more fit.  I do it with them now with difficulty.  But I want to get to the point that I can do it with them and keep up with them.

 

As I am strengthening my muscles and stamina I am accomplishing a desire in my heart to be more fit and to spend time with the people I love doing what they love to do.

 

This made me think about other muscles that I want to strengthen.  I want to strengthen my spiritual muscles.  If we don’t strengthen them they will get weaker and weaker.  And as we get older if we have not strengthened our spiritual muscles our lives will fall apart just like our bodies do without physical exercise.

 

Due to the fact that we all have the sin disease it makes it more difficult to strengthen our spiritual muscles.  It takes determination.  And believe me it will be painful.  But what we have to think about is what are we accomplishing and why are we doing this.

 

Just like I want to strengthen my physical body so that I can have the ability to feel younger and do the things that my young people do, there is good reasons to strengthen the spiritual muscles.  

 

Our goal is heaven, the most glorious place.  The place where we can be reunited with those that have fought the good fight, finished the course, and have kept the faith.  And the most glorious of all is to meet the One Who has done great things for us.  The One who has made it possible to be in Heaven, Jesus.  I am looking forward to that day.

 

Dear Father,

 

Thank You for Your love.  Give us strength as we continue to draw closer to You.  As we continue to strengthen our spiritual muscles, we need You.  We cannot do this alone.  Draw near to us.

 

In Jesus Name,

 

Amen

 

Make sure to strengthen your spiritual muscles each day with spending time with God in the study of His Word and prayer.

 

Love you all.

 

What is your favorite part of the Bible to read?  What other books have you read that have been a spiritual blessing to you?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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“Are You Going To Help Me??!!”

Have you ever felt like you really needed help but no matter how desperate you were no one would step forward and help you?  The One you know that can really help you seems to be silent about the whole matter.  You’re praying and praying but it seems your prayers are not going anywhere.  Then, if your like me the “why” question starts to occur.

It is funny how that is.  You know how children are; they are constantly asking the question “why”.  I remember how annoyed I would get at times with the whys.  I tried not to show it to my children but nonetheless I still would get to the point where I was struggling with always answering those questions.  I have discovered I am just like a child with God.  He knows way better than any earthly parent and I still ask why.

I was so grateful to the Lord when He provided a job that I so desperately needed.  They hired me on a temporary bases.  They liked my work.  They told me that they would call me in every time they had extra work and needed help.  I told the Lord I would take this job and rely on Him to provide the work I needed.  It was busy for a while and then things dried up.

At first when I was out of work for just a few days it was no big deal, I trusted the Lord.  But as a few days went into more days I was frustrated.  Then came the question why.

If we could only know the end from the beginning as God does.  But the reality is human nature is never satisfied.  All God wants from us is our whole heart.  He wants us to put full trust in Him that He is working out all things for our good.  He wants to create in us, patience. We live in a society that says give me what I want and give it to me now.  I don’t think we consciously think about it but we want God to be like a fast food restaurant.  I want to ask for my order and drive to the window and get the answer and it better be what I ordered not what God thinks I should have.

As I was struggling with the “why” I started thinking of things I wanted to do.  But if they called me in to work I would not be able to do them.  So at that point I even had the feeling that maybe I didn’t want to even keep praying for work to come in.  At that point I just let go of it and thought if I am supposed to do some of these things that I want to do no work will come but if not work will come.  I finally let go.

A couple of days later I went in to pick up my check and my boss offered me a part-time position.  Wow!  From coming in when needed to actually being hired to work part-time.  I realized the Lord knew what He was doing all along.  He gave me the time I needed to get familiar with the line of work, in coming in when needed, to prepare me for the part-time work.

I shake my head at myself.  Why do I keep doing this?  How many times does the Lord need to keep sending me through these things before I get it?

Dear Father,

Thank You for Your patience and for Your willingness to not give up on me.  Forgive me for my lack of faith in what You are trying to accomplish in my life.  Thank You for Your unfailing love.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Keep trusting Jesus with your life and if you do fail to trust, don’t give up and keep going.

Do you have an experience that you can share about trusting God?  Please share I would love to hear your experiences.

 

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“I’m Too Late!!”

Have you ever had something you really wanted to do or a place you really wanted to go and you were too late?  This may have been when you were a kid.  Maybe your parents told you to be home by a certain time but because you were having so much fun with your friends you didn’t make it back in time.  And when you got back they were gone and you had missed out on what you were so looking forward to.  Or maybe there was something you wanted really bad and you were hoping your parents would get it for you.  But then you decided to disobey the boundaries your parents had set for you.  When the time came for you to get what you were hoping for your parents would not get it because you had disobeyed the boundaries that they had set for you.

I was reading the other day about when Jesus healed Peter’s mother-in-law.  Everywhere Jesus went as soon as people knew He was there they would bring their sick to Him for healing.  I can imagine their anxiousness.

Just imagine what it would have been like.  You’re preparing to take your loved one, that has been ill for many years, in hopes that He would still be there when you arrived.  Or you may have been the one that needed healing and you wanted to be able to make it there.  You would slowly go hoping above hope, that even though you were slow in your weakness, you would make it there in time.  Can you imagine what it would have been like if you didn’t make it?  You arrived and He had already left.  The sadness and the realization that comes over you is major devastation.  You have lost your chance for healing or healing of your loved one.

As I was thinking about what it would have been like it made me think about life today.  How about our lives today?  We have a short time to meet Jesus for healing.  How anxious are we? There is a short time.  The only difference between now and then is Jesus was there in person and we could have come to Him physically.  Now we need to come to Him in prayer.  We need to be asking Him to come into our lives and clean us up.  Because soon He will be returning and we want to be ready for His return.  Spiritual healing is more important than a physical healing.  In the time that Jesus was on earth if they did not make it for healing physically they still could be ready spiritually.  But today, If we have not had spiritual healing, we will not be ready when He comes, and then it will be too late forever.  The feeling that will come to us if we are not ready when Jesus comes will be devastating, the most devastating thing that can ever come to us.

So what can we do to be sure that we are ready?

  • Surrender every area of your life to Him. Think of yourself as being a house.  Give every single room of your house to God.
  1. Surrender the Library. What kinds of things do you have in the library of your mind?
  2. Surrender the Dining room. What kinds of things are you feeding upon?
  3. Surrender the Living Room. Are you spending time in fellowship with Jesus in study and prayer?
  4. Surrender the Workroom. What kinds of things do you spend your time working on?
  5. Surrender the Rec Room. What kinds of things do you do in your spare time?
  6. Surrender the Bedroom. How are your relationships?  Is everything in your life morally where it should be?
  7. Surrender the Hall Closet. What are the things that are in the secrets of the closet that you don’t want anyone to see?
  8. Transferring the Title. This is the real key.

I have given you just a brief overview.  I recommend that you go to the link “My Heart-Christ’s Home” By Robert Boyd Munger PDF.  I have read this just recently and I am very impressed with it.  It is simple but profound.  If you want to read in a booklet form you can go here for it.

Dear Father,

I pray for each one of us.  Send Your Spirit to convict our hearts.  Thank You for Your love and the help that You give us.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Surrender all to Him today.

Love you all.

What has helped you in the surrendering process?  Please share your ideas here.

 

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“Is There A Mouse In Your Heart?”

I don’t know about you but it seems the mice have been terrible this year.  A mamma had babies in our van somewhere and they fell out on the ground in two different locations.  My son had one inside his car running all over including the glove box.  And they keep coming in the house.  I don’t like it at all.

My cousin is also experiencing this in her home as well and here is what she shared.

“Have you ever had a mouse in your house?  We usually don’t have too much trouble with mice.  Occasionally one would get into the house and we’d set our traps and catch it.  This last week, we’ve had more trouble with mice than ever.”  

“This situation reminded me of a devotional we read recently.  It quoted a verse from Song of Solomon about little foxes and was saying how important little things are.  A lot of little things can lead to big things.  Even one little thing can lead to big things.  One “little” sin can cause a lot of damage.”

“We caught two mice live in traps.  The trap only caught them by the leg, so my husband had to take them out and destroy them.  At first, he was reluctant.  Mice can be cute, and it is hard to take the life of a creature; but mice bring disease and destruction.  So with sin.  It can appear “cute” and harmless to begin with, but it too brings disease and destruction.  If we are reluctant to deal with it, it can get out of hand.”

“We trapped about 8 mice last week.  We have never had mice this bad before.  Now, I am in the process of going through all the boxes of things stored in the loft to see if there is a nest some place so I can get rid of it and clean things up.  In this clean-up process, I am having to let go of some things that got ruined by the mice.  Some of it is hard to let go of.  Some I am hoping to clean up and salvage.  The Lord is teaching me that I need to let go of earthly treasures and place my heart and mind on heavenly treasures.  “Set your heart on things above, not on things of the world.”  Colossians 3:2 (my paraphrase)”

“As I am going through this process, I wonder, Is there any sin that has “nested” in my heart?  Has sin destroyed something valuable in my life?  It’s time to clean up and let go.  It is time to allow God to cleanse me and repair the damage.  “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.”  Psalm 51:10”  -Lori

Dear Father,

Search me and show me where the “mice” are hidden in my heart.  I want to surrender my whole life to You.  And with Your help clean out the bad things that are nesting in my heart.  Thank You for Your love and helping me.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Surrender all to Him today.  And remember, you do not have to do this alone, God will help you.

Love you all.

I want to thank Lori for sharing.  It was a great inspiration. Do you have an experience you have had that you can draw a spiritual application to?  Whether it is to do with physical, emotional, financial, or spiritual health, write it down and submit it to me and I may include it in my next blog.

Submit your writings to, revittalizen.your.health@gmail.com.

 

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“I’m What?!!”

Have you ever had someone give you a compliment about yourself?  It really doesn’t matter what the compliment may be.  But do you have the tendency to think to yourself,  “If the person only really knew me and how much of a struggle it is to do that.  I am really a failure.”

There are really two types of people, those who are narcissistic and when complimented they just gloat over it and they are constantly saying how great they are.  Or there are those that are constantly putting themselves down for their mistakes and can’t see beyond who they are, they are negative about almost everything.

Neither one of these types of people are in a good place.  A narcissist is so selfish he can’t see beyond the end of his nose.  God is not pleased with this kind of behavior.  The good news is that He is willing to forgive and help us be an unselfish person.

On the other hand the person who is always being negative about everything is also in a bad place.  God has given you talents that He wants you to increase and to use in blessing others.  He created you.  He made you with what is necessary to become what He wants you to be.  And when we put down ourselves we are saying to God that we don’t like the way He made us.

When we talk negative we become what we talk and think.  And we can cause others to become what we say.  I think of those we are closest to, like our spouse and children, if we talk worthless words that is what they will become.

My daughter has to do some school through the summer because she was not as diligent as she should have been.  I was getting her started the other day and before I even started to explain stuff she started saying,  “I can’t do it.”  Negative!  I told her that she needed to change her mindset.  She needed to be saying what she wanted the outcome of her thoughts to be, “I am able to do this work.”

Here are some things that I would encourage you to think about and put into practice.

  1. Rephrase your negative words to positive words. Every time negative thoughts or words come to your mind rephrase them into a positive sentence.  And then think or say them.  For example when your child seems to always try to take charge of everything instead of saying negatively, “Quit, you are always trying to take charge of everything, now just go.”  Say, “You have the qualities of a becoming a great leader.”  And then of course with a Christ like spirit you can direct your child.
  2. Be grateful. When we start our day with a negative attitude everything goes wrong.  Start the day with writing down things to be grateful for.  It might be hard to find things within your family but I would work on this.  When we see everything through negativity it is hard to break.
  3. It is okay to have good things about yourself. Some of us can tend to think it is wrong to have good things about ourselves.  And definitely this can become a pride issue.  That is why we always need to recognize Who has given us these abilities.  When we talk negative about ourselves we are putting down our creator.
  4. Say what you want to become not what you think you are. A lot of us as Christians stumble in our walk with the Lord and we then make negative comments like, “I will never make it.”  What I would encourage you to do in any situation is say what you want to become.  “I am forgiven.”  “I am an overcomer.”  “I am Christ like.”  And this can be in every area of your life.  What ever you want to become speak it as if you are what you’re wanting to become, as you work toward becoming what ever it is.  For me I have started to write.  I am not considered a writing but as I work toward becoming better at it I can still say, “I am a writer.”  Or “I am a blogger.”

Believe me this is an area that I struggle in.  So you are not alone.

Dear Father,

You have made each of us unique.  You have given every one of us abilities way beyond what we develop.  Help us to be more positive with our thoughts and words.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Start today to speak and think positive thoughts.  And remember, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” Philippians 4:13

Love you all.

What do you do to help keep your thoughts and words in a more positive line?

 

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“I Am Struggling With Trusting You!”

As a Christian have you ever asked the question why?  You’re trying to make it in life.  You’re trying to have a successful marriage.  And you are trying to raise Godly children.  Maybe you are single and you are trying to find a truly godly husband or wife but it seems they are far and few between.  What is God doing?  Why are things in my life not going the way it should be for me being a Christian?

I have had these questions come up throughout my life.  There are so many times that I have felt like, “Is God really there?”  “Is He really working in my life?”  “Does He really care?”  I have struggle with looking at other “Christians” that seem to be on fire for the Lord and their lives are so put together.  My question is to God, “Why do they have it easier than I do?  What is going on, Lord?”

The number one wisest advice I can give you is do not look at people.  People are not who we are trying to please and they should not be our example.  God is our only true guide and example.  Get into His Word.

But that still does not deal with the questions that nag our hearts, “Why me?”  Here are a few ideas that I came to realize why some of the people I know have it “easier” than I do.

  1. They are relying on God. There are people who are so reliant on God that we do not see or know the struggles that they may be going through.  They take their troubles to God and they surrender themselves to God and leave their problems with Him to solve. I tend to keep taking them back rather than leaving it with God.  Somehow we think He can’t take care of things.  What we do is give it to God and give Him a deadline to take care of it.  God is not a puppet.  I do want to add in here that there are people who follow the leading of the Holy Spirit and they aren’t even considered a “Christian” but God honors them.  They don’t even know that the are following God but when they are listening to that still small voice, that they don’t even know where it is coming from, they are following God’s leading.
  2. They are two-faced. I have found that there are people who appear to be a wonderful Christian.  They pray beautiful prayers, do wonderful things, and seem to so love.  They don’t seem to be having the attacks that I am getting as a Christian.  But as I have gotten more involved with them I realize that they are really of the world.  They haven’t given up anything for Christ.  They are still doing all the worldly things that Christ has told us to shun.  The devil is giving them a life of ease.  He is making them feel comfortable.  They are feeling just fine with their life.  Remember there are only two powers.  We cannot serve two masters.
  3. Those that are not following God. The third group is those that are not following God.  There are only two powers.  So if a person is not following God they are automatically in the camp of the devil.  Why would the devil have to give any trials or discouragements to them?  He already has them.  He may even prosper them so that they are more attractive to us.  It is not that they don’t have struggles but in appearance they seem to be being blessed.  A lot of these people are really unhappy because only God can bring true happiness.  How many of us have heard about people who seem to have everything, fame and fortune, but they end up committing suicide because they are not happy?

Where I really want to be is in the first group, relying on God.  Our human nature just wants to get involved with God’s plan for our lives.  I struggle with this quite regularly.

We have recently had financial difficulty.  I have had to get a job outside the home.  I already have been working in our home business but now I needed to add more.  The Lord did provide me a job where they call me in when they have extra work and need my help.  I told the Lord, “You provide the work I need through this company.”  For the first several weeks I was really busy.  They were saying how they were so busy compared to what they had been.  Then things kind of dried up.  They really wanted me there but the work just was not coming in.  Of course my human nature took over and was asking God “why”.  He knew we needed the money.  I kept taking it and then giving it back to Him again.  When I would give it back to Him they would call me in for a day or two to work.  But then when they were caught up there was not work and I would say, “Lord, Why?”  Then finally I gave it back to Him.

Then one day the boss asked me if I would be interested in a part-time job that would be more regular.  One of the other employees needed to cut back to part-time.  Now I can see God’s plan but I could not before.  Now I am being trained in to an actual position in the company.  Why does it take me so long to learn?

After that happened the Lord brought something to my attention.  I read a quote that was referring to what patience means.  “Accepting a difficult situation from God without giving Him a deadline to remove it.”  When I read this I was like, “Lord, You’re being loud and clear.”

 

The devil wants to try to discourage us by the things he brings into our lives but we need to allow God to use those things to refine our character.  I believe that nothing comes into our lives unless it passes through the hands of God.  God has to give permission and He only gives permission to those things that He knows will help us make the decisions we should and refine our character.  Unfortunately we can’t see the things that the Lord does not allow through.  If we could see all the things that the Lord protects us from we would be amazed.

So what is the conclusion to all of this?  There are three things that I would recommend doing.

  1. Don’t look at people. We cannot read the heart of any person.  We can’t know the situation of any person.  But God sees it all.  Leave other people with Him and don’t use them for your example in life.  People will always disappoint us.
  2. Focus on God. Keep your focus on God alone.
  3. Give everything to God and let Him work out the details. We need to cooperate with God but let Him take control of all things.  Just like when I applied for the job that was, “We will call in when needed”, I had to rely on the Lord.  But I also couldn’t sit back and wait for someone to knock on my door and say we have a job for you.  That is not how God works.  We step forward and do, and then He does the rest.  But we have to leave the outcome in His hands after we have stepped forward.

Human nature wants to be in control so it is hard to fully hand it to God and let Him take care of it.  You all have probably heard the saying that goes something like this,  “God is never too late but rarely early but always on time.”

It is a hard thing to trust God but I have found that as I have the outcome is so much better.  The more we trust the more we can see the hand of God in our lives and then it makes it easier to trust.  Having a journal can be a good way to remember what God has done for us later on when things seem tough.  You can go back and read what the Lord has done.

Dear Father,

Thank You for Your love and patience.  Thank You that You love us so much You do not give up on us.  Continue to guide us.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Give everything to God today.  You can trust Him.

What have you found to be the most helpful way to learn to trust God?

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“Fathers!”

One thing that we all have in common is we all have a father.  Now what we think of our father can all be different.  Some of you may be very close to your father and others may not.  No matter what your experience has been with your father in a couple of days it will be the day to celebrate fathers.

As a kid I don’t remember what we specifically did on Father’s Day.  Looking back at my younger years, until I was around 11 years old my dad had his own business.  One thing I remember very well, he would come home from work on a Thursday night or late morning on a Friday and say,  “Let’s go camping.”  We would be so excited and immediately prepare for going.  We never knew when it was going to happen but it was wonderful when it did.

As I got older there were circumstances that changed in our lives and that closeness I had with my Father when I was younger was not the same.  Because of those circumstances and the breakdown in communication I did not always listen to my Father’s advice.  Because of that I made some decisions that weren’t what they should haven been.  And some of those decisions have affected and will affect me for the rest of my life.

One thing I have learned now that I am older, I wish I would have known in my younger years, was to listen to my Father even if I did not agree with him.

I think it should go without saying, but I want to emphasize here, that as I share here I am talking about a father that is safe.  If you live in an abusive situation or have lived in an abusive situation you need to get away from it and don’t put yourself in a vulnerable position with him again.  Although we need to have a forgiving spirit we do not need to live or be around someone who is abusive.  Forgiving does not mean we don’t set boundaries.

If we have a Christian father or even if he is not Christian we need to honor and obey him as long as it is not contrary to God’s Word.  If I had done this I would have saved myself so much grief.  But as a young person we somehow think we know so much more than our parents and how can they possibly understand.

I want to speak to fathers.  There are so many things that you do for your family that is mechanical.  They are definitely things that need to be accomplished.  Your family could not survive without the things that you do.  But there are other things that should not be left out or you will lose your children.  I want to share some steps with you that can help towards a better relationship with your children.

  1. Love them. This should really go without saying but I do understand that a lot of fathers do not even know how to love.  They think that love is all about the mechanical things that they do, like providing food.  The kind of love I am talking about is unconditional love just as Christ has loved you.  In the next steps love will be more defined in actions you can take to show love.
  2. Keep an open communication. A lot of times the only communication is mechanical and disconnected with your children.  How you communicate may differ between children for sure.  Because boys tend to be more mechanical, just like their fathers, do something with them and while doing it ask them about their day, listen to their heart.  With girls definitely take the time to listen.  Sit with her or take a short walk with her.  Find out what would be the best thing to do.  Ask your wife she can probably help you in this area. Show your children that you have the time for them and allow them to share what is on their hearts without condemnation.
  3. Spending time. By having the time for them they know that they are important to you.  Too many times fathers are too busy to spend time.  And I am not talking about spending time in front of the television.  It needs to be relational time.  When watching something everyone zones out, that is not relational.  Spend time doing something they would like to do.
  4. Speak kind words. A lot of times fathers tend to be harsh.  Yelling, “I am the one in charge you better obey me.”  Although fathers need to be an authority figure they can do it in love.  How would Jesus treat the young person that you are addressing no matter what they have done?  How has Jesus treated you when you have made mistakes, small or major?  Natural consequences may come but love them through it.
  5. Encourage them. You might say that is the same as “speak kind words”.  I want to make a distinction.  I would say the majority of fathers notice and pounce on all the bad that their children do but hardly say a word or maybe don’t say anything about the good they do.  You need to reverse this.  You need to encourage them in the good things they are involved in as well as the good actions they may have.  When they do something bad be matter of fact with the consequences, in love, and let it go.  Don’t rant and rave about it.  And when they do or say something good make a big deal, within reason.  You will find that this can make an amazing difference.
  6. Speak words of blessing. I was introduced to the book “Power of a Spoken Blessing”.  This is a good book for any relationship.  But I found this to be such a blessing for the relationship with my children.  I am definitely not perfect at it but I see the concept as such a blessing.  Our words have the power to crush a person or to heal.  It is really impossible to explain the whole concept here but I want to give one example.  It all depends on age but here is a blessing that was given to a seven-year-old that was struggling with sulkiness and gloom that worsened over a period of months.  All the attempts that were made to correct the problem failed until the parents learned about using words to bless.  Here is what they said, “Lord bless Samuel with a radiant countenance, joy in his heart, and a beautiful smile that ministers into the life of others.”  It made a difference in the life of their child.  Fathers can be speaking such negative words toward their children that it discourages them.  But changing that to positive words, speaking words of what you want them to become, will make an amazing change.
  7. Ask forgiveness. I cannot emphasize this enough.  You are not going to be a perfect father.  When you make a mistake, go to your child and confess your wrong and ask forgiveness.  And please, please, please don’t make excuses, just accept responsibility.  If you have gotten angry with your child don’t go and say, “I am really sorry I got angry at you, but if you had not done ______ I wouldn’t have.  Can you forgive me?” You have lost your Childs heart right there.  Instead say something like this.  “Johnny, I got angry with you and that was wrong for me to do, can you please forgive me?”  Then you can let them know you love them and walk away.
  8. Love their mother. There are a lot of children that are coming up in divided homes.  But if you are still together with your wife loving her and showing that love is a security for the children no matter what the age.  If you are no longer with your wife still show a loving spirit toward her and not a critical one.  It makes children bitter to hear negative critical talk.

Dear Father,

Being a father, especially to children that show rebellion is so difficult.  But You know and can understand because You deal with rebellion all the time and You still show us love.  Thank You for being such a loving compassionate God.  Help each father, on this special weekend for “Father’s Day”, feel Your presence and forgiveness.  And help them in going forward into this next year to become more like You.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Even though I know what I have shared here is not exhaustive it will be a starting point.  Commit today to be a father that is fully surrendered to God in every area of your life and see the transformation that can come to your family.

To those of us with fathers, listen to them and obey their counsel if it is not contrary to God’s Word.  Show them honor and respect.

What ways have you found that have helped in molding your children’s characters to be like Christ that have been a blessing?

Do you have a story about your father and what a blessing he has been to you?

 

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“He’s Getting Married!”

It seems that hardly a week goes by and I hear about someone getting married.  I am sure as you read this you probably have more than one person come to mind that is either getting married very soon, has recently gotten engaged, or has recently married.

A few days ago somebody I know got married.  Although I was unable to attend the wedding it makes me think of weddings that I have attended.

I love the beauty of a wedding and to see all the diversity of wedding ideas that come out of different personalities, cultures and backgrounds.

I can picture the happiness of the bride preparing herself for her soon to be husband.  I love it when the groom does not see his bride until she is fully prepared.  The brides beautiful white dress, representing purity and her hair beautifully done.  She has prepared herself in the most beautiful way.  She is radiant with love for her husband to be.

The groom is anticipating his pride walking down the aisle toward him.  He will have the privilege of her being with him forever, “until death do us part”.  He is full of excitement and a desire to take care of the one that he loves and has longed to be with him.

We live in such a sad society now.  Relationships are such a walk in, walk out mentality.  There is no commitment.  There is no ideal.  There are many selfish people who just want what they want.  As soon as they get tired of it they want to throw it away.  There is not commitment in marriage like there once was.  Unfortunately this also applies to Christians as well.

How can this be?  The devil knows that if he can get the marriage and family he can take down the church.  He knows that the marriage is what God has given us to represent our relationship with Him.  So if Satan can corrupt our thoughts of marriage and how it is supposed to be, he can corrupt the thinking of people about how our relationship needs to be with Him.

Here are some steps you can take toward a good marriage to your spouse as well as a good marriage between the church or Christian and Christ.

  1. “Husbands, love your wives even as Christ also loved the church andgave Himself for it.” Ephesians 5:25.  This is a very tall command.  This is a command for Christian men.  Just like Christ continues to love us no matter what we do, husbands should do the same for their wives.

This will be a very hard thing to do at times.  Husbands can only do this with a full surrender to God and being totally dead to self.  This is a commitment that God expects of Christian men.

In 1 Peter 3:7-12 it reads,  “Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them (wives)according to knowledge (understanding), giving honor unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered.” It is frightening to think that, as men, your prayers are hindered if you do not live with your wife in an understanding way.  It may be a time of reflection and surrendering to God’s plan for marriage.

This can be so challenging.  Dying to self is such a key.  There are wives that are very challenging.  And it will take a lot of love and patience.  And only God can help you love as He loves.

When you are struggling with doing these things think about what Christ has paid for you.  Have you been that perfect “bride”?  Does Christ love you even though you have spat in His face, even though you have argued with His ways?

  1. “Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the

Lord.”  Ephesians 5:23.  When a husband truly loves his wife as Christ loves the church this becomes way more possible.  If a wife feels loved and understood it is easier for them to feel safe in the decisions of their husbands and to submit to those.

As a wife you may be asking, “I do not understand, my husband is asking or

telling me to do things that are contrary to the Word of God and/or he is beating me physically or emotionally and you’re telling me I need to submit.” Let me make this clear, there are criteria for submission.

In Colossians 3:18 it reads, “Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is fit in the Lord.”  The bottom line, what they are doing or asking you to do needs to be in accordance with God’s Word.  If it is not and it is against God’s ways, “We ought to obey God rather than man.” Acts 5:29b.

God does not want wives to be doormats that are walked all over and beaten either physically or emotional that is not His plan.

We as wives need to be submissive to God first and then to our husbands. We need to die to self and be willing to listen to our husbands as to God if they are not asking us or doing things contrary to God’s Word.

All of us as Christians need to be submissive to God in this way.

There are many other things that can be said on how to have a good marriage but I am only touching on these today.  I will touch on more in the future.

Just like we prepare for a marriage here on earth there is a marriage feast that we are to be preparing for as Christians.

Christ loves us just as a husband is to love a wife.  He loves us unconditionally.  Just as a husband is supposed to sanctify, and cleanse his wife with the washing of water by the Word so that he might present her not having a spot or wrinkle, that she is holy and without blemish (Ephesians 5:26-27), so Christ does for us.  And just like a wife needs to be in submission to her husband for this to take place, we need to be submissive to God for Him to be able to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

The only way a husband can do this for his wife, with love, is if he is in full submission to God.  And the only reason Jesus can do this for each one of us is because He was and is in full submission to His Father.

Is this an easy path? No, dying to self is a battle.  But God is able to provide the strength if we submit our lives fully to Him.

Dear Father,

We have great need of you.  We cannot do any of these things without You.  Come and heal our marriages and our families.  As we have the marriage that you would have us have and a family that is well-ordered, we can be a true light to the world for You.

Thank You for Your unconditional love.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

I don’t remember exactly how the saying goes but it goes something like this, “Couples that pray together, stay together.”  In this world of no real commitment let’s commit to God’s ways in our marriages.

What things have you done to keep your marriage alive?

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“He’s Bleeding From The Mouth!”

Have you ever felt helpless?  I am sure that we have all had a time in our lives where we have felt helpless.  You just wish you could change the clock back a few minutes, or maybe if you could have just been a little more aware of your surroundings, or if you could just make the bad go away.

I remember one day several years ago when my oldest son and I were headed out to town together.  I don’t remember what we were going to go do but we were taking two vehicles.

I knew that He would drive faster than me on our country road so I wanted him to head out first.  I had back up our van and was sitting there waiting.  It was taking him so long to back up that I finally gave up and headed out ahead of him.  I regretted that decision in a very short time.  It was one of those times that you wish you could go back in time and make a different choice.

I was driving down our dirt road expecting at any minute for him to come up behind me.  I had made it down the road quite a ways and was wondering why he had not showed up.  I was thinking, “I wonder where he is?” when my cell phone rang.  It was my younger son saying, “_______ ran over Rascal.”(Our golden retriever)  “He is bleeding from his mouth.”

Needless to say I was in shock.  I immediately turned around and headed back home.  I was thinking, “How could this happen?”  “I don’t remember seeing the dog even in the driveway when I was sitting there waiting for my son to back up.  I was in full view of his car, how did I miss seeing him?”  He had been sleeping in the driveway and I did not see him.

When I arrived back at the house my dad and son had already jacked up the car off the dog.  No tire had gone over him, he had gone in the middle and the car was not high enough to go over the dog so he was trapped between the car and the ground.

I got down there to assess the situation.  I could see right off that he was not internally bleeding from the mouth.  His face had been pushed into the gravel and rocks had cut him.

We tried to get him to come out from under the car but he would not.  We were trying everything we could, even treats, (recommended by the vet).  The Lord impressed me to get his leash.  He loved to go on walks and would often go get his leash and bring it to us, even though we never used it for him.

As soon as I hooked him to the leash he dragged himself out from under the car.  We were able to get him into the vehicle and head off to the vet.  There were many things that happened that would take to long to share here.  There were many weeks of pain and care.  After about two weeks it was realized that he needed surgery.  It had crushed him and broke his spine, which could not be seen at first.

It was a miracle that after they put rods in his back that he fully recovered and is able to walk and hike with our children.

I think what amazes me the most about this story is the fact that Rascal never showed any anger, bitterness, or unforgiving spirit toward our son that backed over him.  He knew what car backed over him.  Dogs are smart.  And he knew who did it.  But he loves our son just the same as he always did.

It makes me think of Jesus.  We all have sinned.  We have often ran right over Him to do whatever we want to do.  We have crushed Him.  He knows we have crushed Him and all He does is love us.  Every time we sin we crucify Him afresh and put Him to shame. (See Hebrews 6:6).

The amazing part is that He holds no anger, bitterness or an unforgiving spirit toward us.  He still wants to walk with us, to spend time with us and to fellowship with us.  What makes things even worse is that we do it over and over again.

It brings me to tears as I write this.  As I think about how I bring pain to Him over and over again.  And then the amazing love and forgiveness He has for me.  I am realizing more and more how important it is to spend time each day thinking about the life of Christ, especially the last scenes.  I need His sacrifice for me to effect my heart in such a way that I will never want to do anything intentionally that will hurt Him.

Dear Father,

I thank You for giving Your Son?  How can I begin to thank You for Your love and Your forgiveness?  I know the answer to this but it seems so hard at times.  I know the best way to show my love to You is to keep Your Word.  Continue to prompt my heart with Your unfailing love, showing me the path of life.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

God has done so much for you in giving His Son.  Reach out to Him today and surrender all to Him.  Read the story of the life of Christ in the Bible and think on His life especially the last scenes.   I would love to give you a free copy of my favorite commentary on the life of Christ.  Go here and scroll to the bottom of the page to “My Favorite Commentary on the Life of Christ” and click “I want a free copy” and I will get one out to you.

What experience have you had that lead you to realize your need of God?  What things do you do that help draw you closer to Him?

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“Aqua Please!”

It is a really nice day so you decide this would be a great day for a hike.  You head out to a mountainous area where you know there is a great trail.  It is 6 miles into a beautiful lake.  You decide you want to travel light so you don’t take anything with you.  You reason with yourself, “I won’t go all the way just a mile or two down the trail.  But as you go, the beauty is just breath-taking.  You don’t pay any attention to how far you might have gone.  The day starts to get hotter.  Then you realize what a mistake you have made by not bringing water.  But now you realize that you are probably about 4 miles in.  You feel like your dying and you can’t go another second without water.

I am sure we have all been at this point one time or another in our lives.  As you read you probably can really feel what the frustration would be like.  You’re probably even getting thirsty just thinking about it.

Today I am going to be covering Aqua in the “BALANCED” life.  What I described above is what we do more often than we realize to our bodies.  We get busy with life and the day goes by and we have hardly drunk any water.  You may say, “I have drunk down several sodas and a few cups of coffee doesn’t that count?”  Or some of you may say,  “I drink juice, I am not a real water fan.  The question is would you wash your dishes with coffee, soda, juice, or any other substance that is not water?

Here are some facts that are important to know.

  1. The human body is 70-75% water
  2. The brain is 85% water and needs water to perform its tasks.
  3. The blood is 83% water; lack of water makes the blood sluggish.

There are a lot of things water does for the body.

  1. Water is cleansing. Water is the best way to cleanse our bodies.  Just like we wouldn’t wash our dishes with other substances other than water, we should cleanse our bodies with clean clear water.
  2. Water helps cognitive thinking. Because our brain is made up of so much water, if we lack water it becomes harder for our brains to function.  So it should go without saying water is important.  It seems that a lot of times employers even supply water.  Why is that?  They know that it will help the brain function of their employees.
  3. Water helps our joints. Our body is made up of almost 75% water.  We have fluid around all of our joints and if we are not supplying our body with the fluid it needs we are going to start having trouble with our joints.  They need the water.  Our bodies are constantly rejuvenating and replenishing and if we are not giving it what it needs we are going to start having trouble.
  4. Water keeps you regular. By my own experience I know that if I don’t drink the water I need I become constipated.  Our body needs water so desperately that it takes it from where ever it can absorb it from.  Thus constipation.
  5. Water keeps you healthy. Drinking water helps keep us healthy because we are cleansing the toxins out of our body as I mentioned above.  As we are flushing our bodies each day, it gives our bodies less to have to deal with.
  6. Water gives strength. I have always seemed to do well at reading my body and realizing I have to make a change.  I can tell you if I don’t drink enough water in the day I lose my strength.  I start feeling weak.  I also start feeling cold.  I realize everyone is different but I am very affected if I do not drink enough water.
  7. Water can relieve headaches. This is another area that I can be affected when I don’t get enough water.  I may feel a slight headache coming on and if I realize I haven’t been drinking enough water, I get some water and it makes a difference.  I may need to drink more than one glass but my headache is relieved.

One thing that is really important about water, if you feel thirsty you are already dehydrated.  So we can’t go by how we feel because at that point our body is already starving for water.

“So how do I know how much water to drink?”  A good rule of thumb is half your body weight in ounces.  So if you weigh 160 pounds you would need to at least drink 80 ounces per day.  Of course everyone is different.  I can’t get by with half my body weight in ounces.  Read your body and decide what is best for you.  But at least drink half your body weight in ounces.

Dear Father,

You have made our bodies so amazingly unique.  We get so caught up in life that we often forget to really take care of our bodies.  Prompt us each day.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Remember to keep hydrated.  Go ahead I know that you are having a craving for water since you have been reading about it, so go right now and get you a nice big glass of refreshing water.

What has water done for you?  Share some benefits that you have had from drinking water.