Is Your Life Precious?

Yesterday, I spent the day by the bedside of my dear sweet grandmother as her life is drawing to a close. My grandmother led a life that followed the two greatest commandments, to love God and others with your whole heart. She loved out loud and lavishly. Come and take a glimpse inside this room with me. As we look around we can see family and friends holding hands in prayer. We see songs like "How Great Thou Art", "Amazing Grace", and "What A Day That Will Be" being sung as we all await her home going. We are blessed to be here. We hear stories of the night before of her singing with lifted hands and saying she just wants to be with her Jesus. If we step back a little father we can see the most awesome thing of all, look around, there is a room, a hallway, a cafe, and living area (about 40 in all) full of family and close friends who dropped everything in their lives to be here for as much time as possible. She is genuinely loved because she loved genuinely. The stories have poured forth of her love and care for others even from her hospital bed. One of her last hopes and concerns is that all of her family and friends be saved so we can all be together again in heaven. Looking at this scene, I realized, as I hope you do too, that this is love in action. This is what being Jesus to others is. It is a simple card or phone call when there is a need. It is inviting those who have no place to go, to share in your families holiday celebrations. It is caring about others when they talk and being able to share wisdom with kindness. It is following the Holy Spirit's leading when He tells you to do something no matter how small you think it is. A scripture comes to me today, Psalm 116:15 says "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints." Precious meaning valuable, honorable, rare or prized. All good words to describe my grandmother's life. I want this is to be said of me. Can this be said of you? Do something small for someone today, you never know what a BIG difference it can make.
Proverbs 31:25,26,28,30 "Strength and honor are her clothing and she shall rejoice in time to come. She opened her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness. Her children arise and call her blessed. A woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised."

Being Delightful

To know my six-year old daughter is to love her. She is such a delight to be around. She is always happy, giggly, and dances to anything that has a beat. Lately, she has been learning Bible verses to recite in her Awana club at Church. A couple of weeks ago she was able to recite seven verses to her leader for a contest they were doing. She walks around saying her verses to anyone that will listen.
As a Mom, who is committed to Christ, it does my heart good when she desires to know God through His Word. I am so proud of her. God says in His Word that we are to delight in His Word. Delight means to take pleasure in and enjoyment from. To rejoice, to love, to consider His Word a luxury, something valuable.
We should long after Him as a deer desires water. Sometimes we see serving God as a chore, but this only occurs when we have gone a few days, months, years without communicating with Him through prayer and Bible study. When a close friend asks me to do something, it is not something I have to do but something I want to do. It is a different story when someone asks me to do something who often does not even act like I exist.
I long to hear from God through His Word. The more I am seeking this the more joy I get from it. Do you desire God's Word? Do you long for Him to speak to you? Get in the Word. He delights in us when we choose to be in a relationship with Him. Just as I delight in my daughter as a Mom, God delights in us. Daughter of the the Most High God, spend some time with your Father and be delightful today.

Psalm 1:2- "But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night."
Psalm 119:24- "Thy testimonies also are my delight and my counsellors."
Psalm 37:4- "Delight thyself also in the Lord; and He shall give thee the desires of thine heart."

Having it my way...

"Have it your way!" This is a great slogan for hamburgers, but not so much a motto to be adopted for a way of life. Some of us learn this concept the hard way. Ever lived with or been around someone with this slogan? It can be hard to be thankful in this situation. With three kids, my daily life is a struggle of the wills, everyone
trying to get their own way, including my own. Sometimes the unhappiness is verbal and sometimes it is displayed through actions. To have a happy, Godly home no one can truly have their own way all the time, that is why we must all seek God's direction individually. Satan has deceived our generation into becoming self-centered with materialism and greed. Even when we get our own way, it contains only temporary satisfaction. It is not long before we find something else to strive for. It reminds me of King Solomon in the book of Ecclesiastes. Solomon says he had gained every material possession available. He had houses, vineyards, trees, gardens, orchards, pools, servants, silver and gold. He says in chapter two "Whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them, I did not withhold my heart from any pleasure." Having all this, He came to the conclusion that it was all empty. In chapter four, he is so unhappy he wishes he was dead. When you look at yourself only, you miss so much and it is never truly satisfying. We can have our own way, but only God knows how much hurt to others we leave in our wake. True joy and happiness comes from a life surrendered to Jesus. What are you striving for? Money, possessions, approval of others, having your own way, or are you aiming to have complete joy and contentment in Christ. Take it from King Solomon, selfish desires are empty and lead us no where. Focus on Christ, He is the source of joy, happiness and contentment.

Can you think of any other advertising slogans that promote a selfish way of thinking? Post them here or on Facebook at the Reflections of His Heart women's ministry group page. Happy Thanksgiving to you all!

I Samuel 12:20-21- "Then Samuel said to the people, 'Do not fear. You have done all this wickedness; yet do not turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart. And do not turn aside; for then you would go after empty things which cannot profit or deliver, for they are nothing.'"
Ecclesiastes 2:11- "Then I looked on all the works that my hands had done and on the labor in which I had toiled, and indeed all was vanity and grasping for the wind. There was no profit under the sun."

God's Presence

My soon to be four year old son is all boy. He runs from place to place usually away from me. He runs round and round the table, the car, or anything else he can get between us. I do not desire to chase him around in circles and, believe me he gets his fair punishment when I finally catch him, but it is of great frustration to me in the moment when I can not relay the seriousness of disobedience. Usually, the easiest way for me to end this cat and mouse game is for me to simply walk away and say "Okay, I am leaving you" and start to go forward, get in the car or go in the house, leaving him behind. He immediately stops his running, looks around to see if I am serious, then runs after me saying, "No, wait Mom don't leave me." He is genuinely scared that I just may do that one day.
The first part of Exodus 33 describes this vary situation. The prior chapter ends with God sending a plague to the Israelites as punishment for the sin of making and worshipping the golden calf. God is still angry with them for their disobedience. He tells Moses I will still give them the land I have promised them but you go on without me. He feared in his righteous anger He just may consume them all together. He was saying I am tired of chasing you. You go in the way of your choice, but I am not going with you. The Israelites, faced with the knowledge of God leaving them behind immediately began to mourn and repent. Moses pleaded with God that His presence not leave them and God granted Moses' request. Is God getting tired of chasing you? Are you tired of running? He wants a personal relationship with you. One based on love. He will not force it on us. He wants willing hearts to follow Him. I pray His presence never leaves me because of my disobedience. I can't imagine my life without Him. How about you?
Exodus 33:3-4- "Go up to a land flowing with milk and honey; for I will not go up in your midst, lest I consume you on the way, for you are a stiff-necked people. And when the people heard this bad news, they mourned....."
Exodus 33:15- "Then he said to Him, "If your presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here."

Grumbling and Complaining

A couple of years ago, my two-year old son was in the kitchen with me while I was cutting an apple into smaller pieces for him to eat. He was standing there saying, "Apple, Apple, Apple" so I finally got a piece cut and gave it to him. He replied, "Thank you" and starts eating it, but it's not long before he is begging for another piece. I proceed to cut up half of the apple into small pieces, gave it to him and set the other half aside so I can take a couple of bites of cereal for myself. My son then begins to kick his feet and throw his hands in true two-year-old fashion yelling, "Mine, Mine" as he points to the half of apple that I put to the side. I then tell him to eat the pieces he already has and assure him that when he is finished with that, I will give him more. This reminded me of a group of people in the Old Testament that could never be happy or thankful for a long period of time. I often wonder how the Israelites could doubt God when they saw so many miracles like the parting of the red sea, water from a rock, among others under Moses' hands. Then I move just a chapter or two forward and you find them grumbling and complaining all over again about God's lack of provisions. We as Christians tend to act like that with God. We beg and beg or pray and pray for something and God chooses to give us a little of His great wealth of blessings. Instead of taking what He gives, which is always sufficient for what we need, we complain because He is still holding the other half of the apple. What do you have to be thankful about? What has God given you? Enjoy today by just being thankful for the provisions He has poured out and the miracles He has already done. I am pretty sure He has another piece of apple to give you as soon as you have enjoyed the ones you already have.

Hebrews 13:5 -"Let your conversation be without covetousness and be content with such things as ye have, for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee."
Psalm 84:11 -"For the Lord God is a sun and shield, the Lord will give grace and glory, no good thing will be withhold from them that walk uprightly."
I Thessalonians 5:16-18 -"Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
See also; Philipians 2: 13-15 and 4:6.

Learning to Love

Sometimes I just hate when a song gets stuck in my head, especially if it is a song I did not care for in the first place, but lately, the words to the song "Follow You" by the Christian band Leeland keep going through my head. "I'll follow you into the homes that are broken, Follow you into the world." As I continue to ponder on the words, I began to turn them into a cry to God. My hearts desire is for God to use me to minister to others leading me into places where I can see his power transform broken lives.
God has also brought me to think on the verse in I Timothy, "Give me charity out of a pure heart". I struggle, as I am sure you do as well, with loving others without wrong motives. I prejudge others as worthy or unworthy without even totally knowing what I am doing. Why can't I love others like my three year old does? When he sees someone he does not know, he instantly says "Hey", a greeting filled with acceptance. I long to have this pure attitude towards others but at the end of the day, I feel more like Paul when he says the things I want to do, I don't and the things I don't want to do, I do.
It is when these two thoughts collided that God said to me, How can you go into the homes of the broken to minister change if your heart is not full of pure love and acceptance? Jesus is our example, he did not condemn the women at the well or the women that was about to be stoned for her sexual sins. He looked on them with love and acceptance, knowing fully all of their sins. O Father, fill me with your spirit's power to love as you love, to see others as you see, to approach people with acceptance like a child. Help me see others' pain. Help me have courage to grab a hold of them and lead them to you. I challenge you this Sunday look around you and find someone who is hurting and lead them to the alter to pray with a spirit of love and acceptance.
I Peter 1:22 -"Seeing you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned (genuine) love of the brethren, see that you love one another with a pure heart fervently."
I Timothy 1:5 -"Now the end (goal) of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned."
See also John 4 and John 8.

Holding Everything

As my son grows up, he insists on doing more and more things himself. When I try to help, he looks up at me with pleading in his eyes and says "But Mom I am a big boy now." At times his stubborn independence emerges to my parental frustration. He does not understand that there are some things little boys three years of age are not allowed to do. He just can not handle the responsibility, but I can if he would just let me help. I must admit there are some days(who am I kidding?) most days that being a Mother, wife, daughter, sister, church member turns me into a juggling clown at the circus, just trying to catch and release in time to get to the next thing. All of this running, trying to be everything to everybody, must frustrate my heavenly Father. He is aware of my needs. He cares. He wants to help guide me when I make choices of what to fill my day with. I must keep my priorities in line, and say no to some of the rest. I must seek him and let him carry me when necessary. What is on your to do list today? Are the tasks overwhelming? Are you emotionally drained? Spend time with your Father, He can carry it. He can hold it all together. With Him in control, how can we go wrong? He wants to lighten your load. Will you let Him?

Psalm 55:22 - "Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee:"
Matthew 11:28-29 - "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.