Long

Most of us live our life in a state of longing.
Some people long for love.
Others long for children.
Some long for company,
While others long for solitude.
Some long for work,
Others long for rest.
 
There is something in everyone's life,
That they are longing for.
 Will bring us to a status

What we long for often is seen
As a void in our life.
We believe once filled
Of contentment.
This is a lie.

We were designed to be content
In every state,
Not just when we fill completed,
We are to be longing for nothing.
When we learn this truth,
We can find joy in all circumstances.

The only thing that will fill the hole
Is Christ.
The interesting thing is,
God is longing for us too.
When we turn our longing to Him,
And it is met with His longing for us
Blessings will flow.

Isaiah 30:18 And therefore the Lord [earnestly] waits [expecting, looking, and longing] to be gracious to you; and therefore He lifts Himself up, that He may have mercy on you and show loving-kindness to you. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) are all those who [earnestly] wait for Him, who expect and look and long for Him [for His victory, His favor, His love, His peace, His joy, and His matchless, unbroken companionship]!

Look

                                       

Why do I forget
to take the time
to appreciate and be thankful for
Why do I often fail
to
Look what the Lord has done?

Look what the Lord has done
He died for me
And you
Without a guarantee that
We would accept
His sacrifice.

Look what the Lord has done
He forgave me
Wiped my sins away
Knowing I would fail
again and again
But forgiving anyway.

Look what the Lord has done
He sent the Holy Spirit
to guide me
direct me
comfort me
Even when I refuse to let him.

Look what the Lord has done
He has blessed me with
Every good and perfect thing
Even when I take it
For granted
He blesses me anyway.

Look what the Lord has done
He has given me people
To laugh, to love
To cry and mourn with
To call family and friends
And loved ones.

Look what the Lord has done
He meets those needs
Those spoken and unspoken
In his perfect timing
In his perfect way
In his perfect love.

Take time
Be intentional
Remember often
Meditate on
And speak often
Look what the Lord has done.

Fear

1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love. 

Love provides a reverential fear, a deep respect for the object of our love.  Love should not create a dread or terror in the object of our love.  Love should cast out dread and terror.

Some time ago I was in a relationship of fear.  Honestly, and sadly, my children remember it more than I do.  God's love cast that fear from me, and although I know it was there, He wiped my memories of it so that I can love with His perfect love.  My kids will do the "remember when" and in all honesty, I don't.


God did an amazing work in my life and in that of my husband.  God helped me set clear boundaries.  Even though I filed for a divorce when the hands that loved me physically hurt me; God was there to bring about the change and that divorce never happened.  When he hit me, that was different than throwing things, and threatening, that was the line I wasn't willing to have crossed.  When he wouldn't leave, I filed for a divorce which would cause him to have to leave.  We set up separate households, we told the kids.  And then, God.

My husband was not a bad guy.  I loved him.  The anger that was eating him up inside wasn't towards me, I was just the safe place he felt he could express it. This man, who I loved but now feared, reached out to the one place I held on to in safety.  Church.  I knew that it was an attempt at manipulation, and I went in with honesty.  He went to my pastor and pleaded his case.  When I was called in I remember sitting there listening, begrudgingly.  He asked what do you hope to get out of being here.  My answer was somewhere along the lines of "On w
ith my life, I don't want to be here."

Week after week we went, then the pastor started coming to the house and my husband would come.  We dated.  He pursued me like he did before we married. And then, somewhere along the way, God.

I was clear with my husband that would never happen again.  I know we are not suppose to write those kind of scripts in our marriage.  I haven't heard God tell me I have to unwrite that one.  But still, God.  God did a work in me.  He did a work in my husband.  My love for my husband is not perfect.  His love for me is not perfect.  But God's love is perfect.  we have been perfected in His love.

I don't believe that abuse is okay.  I believe that people must protect themselves and especially the children in a home where there is abuse.  Although I did, I would never advise anyone to stay.  I can't know what really goes on behind closed doors so I will always err on the side safety, because I know God can still bring reconciliation.

I also will not argue with someone who has decided to stay.  If someone has made an intentional decision to love in spite of it and stay, then I will talk with them about safety and having a plan in case.  I can't make someone leave, even if I think they should.  I will err on being prepared, but I know that God can bring change.

But what I can tell either person - the one that leaves or stays; and what I can tell the abuser, the recipient, or the observer  without doubt is that God must be the center.  Our fear must be for God, the reverential type.  God must be the one that you turn too.  God must be the one that brings peace to your decision.  God must be the one to bring about the change, it can not be manipulated.  For some change may be immediate and permanent, for others it is a process, but God can still bring reconciliation and God can still change people.  His love will cast out all fear.

   

Expect

Matthew 24:44 (NKJV)  Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.

I recently with with a group of women from my church to see the new Left Behind movie.  I was excited to see Nicolas Cage in the role, and I expected that it would be a good Christian movie. It was good, as far as acting.  But the plot line, the Christian aspect left me expecting more.  The movie depicts the rapture, that is all.  The people left behind are left questioning with no real answers.  There is some conclusions drawn and briefly shared about the Christian belief of the rapture.  As a Hollywood film, it likely did what it intended.  As a Christian film, it was left wanting.

Don't get me wrong, I laughed and I jumped (a couple times) even though I expected the next scene.  I even cried, although it was not for the movie, but the reality of what I am expecting will happen.  I cried, because I expect the event depicted to happen.  I cried because the people left on that plane, and on the earth were left behind.  That is the reality of what will happen when the Son of Man returns. My compassion for the lost brought me tears.

Christ will return at an hour we do not expect.  Am I living intentionally?  Am I reaching the lost  intentionally?  Am I planting seeds for others to water and help grow, intentionally? Am I intentional in my witness?  If I am not, I can expect others to be left behind.



 

Truth and Dare

As a child, I can remember playing truth or dare a lot at slumber and birthday parties.  You have to chose between being completely honest about something you don't yet know what you will be asked about. Questions like "Do you have a crush on..." "Have you ever...."  "Did you..." These were easy because you could just answer, yes or no.   Or you are dared to do something, usually something crazy or stupid or silly.  Dared to kiss someone there, tell someone how you felt, do something you shouldn't do. But the game ends and life goes on.

God wants to play truth and dare with us.  God wants us to be honest with Him about everything.  He  already knows what we are thinking, but He wants us to intentionally share those truths with us.  Just like we would with a person, He wants us to open our hearts up to Him.  He wants to hear the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.  He wants to hear the good, the bad, the ugly.  He wants to hear our dreams and desires.

God wants to be there for us during those times.  He wants us to stop lying to Him and to ourselves and just be honest about how we feel.  Then He can do a work in us.  He can bring healing.  He can bring comfort.  He can make something of our truths - a testimony of how He carried us through, a celebration of the good, or a path for us to walk those dreams out.

God doesn't want us to chose between the truth or dare, He wants us to do both.  He dares us to do better, walk bolder, dream bigger.  He dares us to bring everything and set it at His feet.  He dares us to trust Him completely.  He dares us to hope. 

Lamentations 3:21-22(NLT)

²¹ Yet I still dare to hope
    when I remember this:

²² The faithful love of the Lord never ends!
    His mercies never cease.

Give God the truth intentionally and dare to live intentionally.

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 This post is a part of Five minute Friday, a writing flash mob that happens every week when writers are prompted by a single word to write for 5 minutes without any major editing. Just raw thoughts and emotions. You can find out more and/or join the party here.

Taste

Psalm 34:8  Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him! 

I love that God uses all our senses.  TASTE.  I love food, probably a little too much.  I am a picky eater, and there are things I can eqt daily and never grow tired of, and things I refuse to try.  I just think that they might taste bad.  

When I was younger I used to dread reading the Bible.  I thought that it was boring.   But the more I spend with time with God, the more I know how good He is.   The more time I spend with Him, the more I long to taste more of His goodness.

If you have a hard time reading the Word.  Taste and See.  Start with a scripture or two, or even a chapter.  Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal Himself to you. Read the Word.  Meditate on what you have read.  Write down what ministers to you. It is good to keep a journal.  Then pray and ask God to do that work in you.


 

Honor

There is a great book about honor that really impacted my life, it is called Honor's Reward by John Bevere.  A few years back our church went through the series on a Wednesday night.  There are a couple things that really have stuck with me, and have become part of who I am.  Since it is Pastor Appreciation Month, I will focus on that.   We need to honor our Pastors.  In theory I am sure we all think we do this, but in reality some of our behaviors may be less than honoring:

I Timothy 5: 17-18  Let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in the word and doctrine. 

  a) Being on time - how many come in to church late, show up to other meetings late?  This is something that God has really done a work in me about because I have never had any concept of time.;  I was one of those people that the family also ways told me thirty minutes early to arrive so that I would only be five minutes late.  Although I still have no concept of time, I make sure that I am on time, and if for some reason I am not, I apologize.  It is usually dismissed, but I honor their time.

b) Be formal - Call them Pastor, Reverend, Bishop, whatever your denomination calls those that lead ministry.  My skin crawls when I hear someone reference the leader by their first name alone.  It is not an age thing, most of my pastors are younger than I am, it is a respect thing.

c) Don't disrupt - this may or may not have been in the book, but don't get up in the middle of the service. As a young person, I admit I was bored in big church.  I was the one that was always being told "shhhh" or I was getting up and down throughout the service, passing notes, etc.  This was rude behavior, and really unacceptable for a young person, and even more so for adults.  It not only can distract the preacher, but it disrupts the people around you.  I am easily distracted, and now I am more aware that my nonsense as a child, could have disrupted someone from hearing the message that would save their soul.  I look forward to being in Heaven and seeing the lives I have impacted, but oh how my heart breaks for those I might have distracted from the kingdom.

d) Don't talk bad about them or too them. So you didn't like the message, the song service, or it was too long, or too short.  Keep your mouth shut - it is not about you.  Unless you were the only person that was in the congregation that day (and  that would make you the preacher to an empty church), maybe someone else needed a Word.  Maybe someone else needed a breakthrough that would come through worship.  My momma always said "If you ain't got nothing nice to say, don't say it."  Build them up with your words, don't tear them down.

e) Pay your tithes - this goes to support the church, and yes, pay the pastors who lead the congregations.  So many people have no problem sitting in church week after week and giving nothing.  I am sure that you would want to go to work  day after day and not be paid.  Tithing is a whole blog in and of itself, but honor your pastors with tithes, offerings, and gifts.

f) Pray for your pastors.  Pastors deal with their own problems, in addition to helping people in the congregation, and those who walk in from the street.  They deal with the physical, emotional, mental and most of all spiritual needs of people.  They need to be covered in their congregations prayer, just as much as the congregation should be covered in their prayers.

Be intentional with your honor of those who lead you spiritually.  Realize they may not be perfect, but God has appointed them, and you have set yourself under them with God's direction.  Your words and actions should always honor them - intentionally.