Pure Joy~

Good morning:)

James 1:2-4

² Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³ because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. ⁴ Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

Yesterday's DEVO was one of those that really got a bunch of us thinking. I will confess that I don't think I have been as proactive as I should in having joy in the middle of difficulties, which is why I want us all to do something that we as a DEVO group have never done before

But first I want to clarify something: The joy we are supposed to be having is not because of the actual trial we face, but because we face the trial with Jesus on our side. We don't ever say, "Jesus, thank You that my house is being foreclosed on." Rather, we say, "Thank You that You are with me in this circumstance and because You take care of me I can be calm and happy."

There's a big difference!

Nevertheless, the perspective God wants us to have means we have to make an effort. The word "consider" is a verb. It requires action on our part. When we find ourselves feeling anything less than joy, it's time to re-direct our thinking.

On to our group assignment. Think about what trials you are facing today. If it is hurting you or bothering you or if it has you down--no matter what it is--God wants you to consider this as an opportunity to have joy. Even if you don't feel like it, take a step faith today and pray:

Dear Lord, Thank You that this trial I am in is an opportunity for me to have joy and stronger faith. I admit the concept seems foreign to me, but I take a step of faith today and thank You that I am not alone. Help me to really not only believe that joy is possible while I struggle, but that because I am praying, You will help me have it. I need it! In Jesus' name, AMEN~

Faith Under Pressure~

Faith Under Pressure

That's the title under Chapter One in the book of James, and I think we all know about pressure.

I certainly have been feeling it lately. And my hubby, God bless his honest soul, was pulling out of the driveway last night and hit my soon-to-be-son-in-law's new car. Ouch!

I always say that if material damage is the worst of it, then no harm/no foul. It's still a bother and an expense sis boom bah, but Rayray's future husband took it in stride, and I love him :)

But what about other pressures? Health, relational, emotional, financial, familial...that's where we really feel the strain sometimes.

Is it possible to have strong, unwavering faith in certain circumstances?

Yes, but before James One even addresses that, look at what it says:

Verse 2-4

² Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³ because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. ⁴ Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

Pure joy? Really? Is that even possible? Is God toying with us? I am supposed to look at the mess I am in and have joy? So what if testing produces perseverance? What if I don't want to let perseverance finish its work so that I can be mature? Maybe I like being a spiritual toddler.

First thing to consider: Like it or not, no matter what, you will face a trial. Not wanting to go through one won't help you avoid it. It's called life. So now that we have agreed that trials are an inevitable part of life, let's proceed with the attitude that if God is telling us to have joy in the middle of them, then it is possible and it will lead to good things.

PRAYER: Dear Lord, You know our hearts and You know that we don't always--okay--practically never ever--have joy as we suffer through a difficulty. But because you are encouraging us to go for it, we ask You to fill us with joy no matter what. We do not want to be lacking in anything. In Jesus' name, AMEN!

An Uneven Exchange~

Tuesday greetings~

Some of you found it a little unnerving that God is always watching you. Today I invite you to relax!

He's not keeping score of all the stuff we do wrong--all those mean thoughts and less-than brotherly actions--for the sake of keeping score. On the contrary. God gently nudges our hearts and exposes all the junk we have inside in order to cleanse us. He wants us to live light and free and happy, and trust me--if you're holding something in that shouldn't be there, it will weigh you down. It becomes impossible to enjoy life.

One of the biggest things we hold is grudges, but today I want to share with you about a precious young woman who let go of her right to be angry and decided to partner up with God to save her marriage. It was a journey filled with curves, detours, delays, distractions, and yes, even dangers. But she made it through and every day she continues to build a solid future.

From the very beginning she felt God's precious eyes on her and knew deep in her wounded soul that for her sake, the sake of her kids and family and community and nation, she must operate with a loving and forgiving heart. If ever there were someone with a right to be angry, hurt, and unforgiving, it would be this gal, but she chose forgiveness, and I want us all to celebrate and draw inspiration from her attitude.

Being able to forgive is sometimes impossible without supernatural help, but don't you know that He is a willing God? Willing to go above and beyond in helping you when you ask? And that's what she did. Day in and day out--sometimes in the face of unthinkable adversity--she kept her primary focus on prayer. She kept God as her priority by begging, screaming, pleading, asking, knocking, and seeking Him and His strength to be able to love and forgive in a manner that was more than she could do on her own.

And here are two truths she discovered: You can not stay angry at someone you pray for, and when you pray you have peace and joy--all the negative emotions leave.

In order to fully appreciate the magnitude of that statement, I would have to go into details, and I can't. But maybe you can identify in some way with that kind of burden? Maybe you've been hurt and can't see straight? And maybe you have been no where near that kind of conflict, amen!, but can treasure these truths in your heart anyway? (Please say yes).

Praying for someone releases the bad and invites the good into your life. I know! It doesn't seem like a fair exchange, but then that's how God is.

Psalm 30:11 "You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing. You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy."

PRAYER: Dear Lord, Thank You for taking away our clothes of mourning. We would much rather be clothed with joy. We would much rather dance than mourn. Burn those clothes of sorrow that we might never wear them again. In Jesus' name, AMEN~

Helicopter Parent~

Psalm 33:13-15The Lord looks down from heaven;
    He sees every human being.
From His dwelling place God observes    all who live on earth...God knows everything they do.

Happy Monday:)

This past weekend I was remembering a time when my granny said, 'Yenisita, I can't take my eyes off of you for one minute; you're always getting into trouble."

She said it in response to my changing the time on the kitchen clock a couple hours ahead.  When it hit 7 PM, which was really five, and grandpa still hadn't come home and cell phones didn't exist, my precious Mama nearly panicked.  

Why did I do it? I do not recall.  But thinking about that made me think of our sweet Lord.  For you see, He never takes His eyes off of us--not even for a second.  

Left to our own devices, who knows what kind of trouble we could get into.  And what about our kids?

Stormie Omartian, whom I love says, and I am paraphrasing here, that God's protection is like an umbrella.  It covers us when we go out in the storm.  But sometimes we purposely get out from under it.  We make unwise decisions that leave us exposed.  When our kids are tempted to do something silly or actually do something wrong, our prayers invite God to pursue them with the umbrella anyway.  Amen to that!

I have several friends whose kiddos are away at college, and sometimes thinking about the countless ways they could get into trouble can be overwhelming and worrisome.  But in reality, sometimes even those who live with us in the same house are up to mischief and we had no idea. The key is to pray.  Only God can be with any of us 24/7.  He is the ultimate helicopter parent, and we need to be grateful. 

PRAYER: Dear Lord, Thank You that even when we are not physically near our families, You are there.  You are 100% aware of what is going on, so we come to You and ask to be fully covered with Your powerful umbrella of protection.  And even if we try to scoot out from underneath it by our choices, have mercy, and keep it firmly in place.  Thank You for Your willingness to always answer us. In Jesus' name, AMEN~

There's a Verse For That~

Isaiah 55:10-11 “The rain and snow come down from the heavens and stay on the ground to water the earth. They cause the grain to grow, producing seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry. It is the same with  my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it."

Right after God tells us that His ways are better than ours, He goes on to say in these two verses that His word is (1) sent out by Him, (2) will do what He wants it to, and (3) always has a good result.

If only we could send out His word. If only we could initiate the healing, help, love, comfort, joy, peace, faith, hope, and protection that is the prosperous result of coming into contact with God's word.

Oh my goodness! Wait a second! When we pray that is exactly what we are doing. And particularly, when we pray scripture directly over our situation, we can rest assured that something good will come from it.

Just this morning I had a conversation with a buddy who is deeply concerned about the choices her child is making. This passage was fresh on my mind, so we looked up a couple of verses to pray.

Song of Solomon 8:4  "Don’t excite love, don’t stir it up, until the time is ripe—and you’re ready."

This was our prayer: We pray for ______ and ask that love is not stirred up until the right time. Keep _________ from doing anything that brings the wrong kind of excitement.

It felt so good to pray a verse that was specific to the concern.

What's on your mind today? I promise you there's a verse for that!

PRAYER: Dear Lord, Send Your word our way. We know that the things You want to accomplish are always for our good. We need and desire good fruit produced in our lives. In Jesus' name, AMEN~

He Knows Best~

Martin Luther is credited with saying, "Prayer is not overcoming God's reluctance; it is laying hold of His highest willingness," and it's one of my favorite quotes.

Yesterday's quote struck a nerve because many of us have felt that God is reluctant. The answers take forever, some might not even come, and those that do are not always what we expected.

Not only that, but sometimes we feel as though we will be crushed under the weight of all the "why?" questions that we have. 

Nonetheless, accepting these verses below as truth in our lives is a good starting point to having peace and joy:

Isaiah 55:8-9

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts,

    neither are your ways My ways,”
declares the Lord.

“As the heavens are higher than the earth,
    so are My ways higher than your ways
    and My thoughts than your thoughts."

God is telling us that His way of doing things and thinking about things is way above and beyond and superior to how we view matters.  In other words: He knows best!

I keep thinking back to what might have happened if all my foot stomping and pleading would have gotten Rachel into grad school last year.  I repeat: God really knows best, dear one.

And that's alright with me because I can barely keep up with all the stuff in my life--imagine trying to keep up with the lives of billions?

We can't, and God doesn't expect us to.  What He does expect from us is that we will seek Him and invite His awesome way of doing things into our lives.  

PRAYER: Dear Lord, Thank You that You are in control.  All glory and power belongs to You forever and ever, and we are glad that You are generous and willing to share with us.  Again today we plug into Your highest willingness and ask for blessings.   In Jesus' name, AMEN~

God is Willing~

Tuesday Greetings~

This morning I was enjoying an early-morning phone conversation with one of my children. And as soon as we hung up I started reflecting on the joy this child brings me when said child (it was Hormone) called to say he urgently needed his spare keys, and I will spare you all the details.

Suffice to say that even the most beautiful and powerful car is of no use without the keys.

Likewise, prayer is the key to making our life work. We need keys to unlock things and start things up. We also need keys to lock things and turn things off. Prayer is the key to getting your life in gear. We all have so much potential--for good and bad--and we need God's guidance and protection.

Martin Luther is credited with saying, "Prayer is not overcoming God's reluctance; it is laying hold of His highest willingness," and it's one of my favorite quotes.

God is willing to answer you. This means He wants to answer you. He has something in mind for you.

Ephesians 3:20 Now all glory to God, who is able, through His mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.

If God is able to accomplish infinitely more, which means abundantly beyond and exceedingly above what we can ask, then yes, this shows He is willing--dear one--even to over answer you.

But we must use the key. Before we pray, think of an area where you would like an over-and-beyond-your-wildest-dreams answer.

PRAYER: Dear Lord, We want our lives moving at the right pace--no detours and no dead-ends. We pray today because we want to plug into Your highest willingness. You are so willing, in fact, that we humans can't even begin to imagine how much You want to do. We invite You to over answer us today in this area ___________. Work Your awesome and mighty power into every area of our lives. In Jesus' name, AMEN~