Look Up!

Look up into the heavens. Isaiah 40:26a

I was thinking about this verse and it occurred to me that when I am looking up I can see God at work. 

When I am looking down all I see is myself and the world.

I don't know about you, but looking at my own life and the rest of the world has a tendency to bring me down. 

There's a lot of dissension and turmoil on this earth. Most of the time you don't have to look very far to see it. It's in our relationships and it's plastered all over the headlines of the news and social media. 

I can recall a time in years past—before the days of social media—when I felt overwhelmed by the bad news in the world. I felt helpless to do anything about anything. My choice was to remove myself from so much of the negativity for a time.

Look up.

In the past month I kept seeing verse showing up. I took notice of it and then it took me back to a time more than eight years ago.

I was attending a retreat when the speaker felt led to change the topic on which she was planning to speak. The main thing I remembered from that retreat was the feeling that God was telling me when things get rough to look up. The speaker repeated that phrase several times. 

There was nothing in particular going on in my life at that time. Little did I know that within days that my world was going to change due to the loss of a loved one. As I walked through those dark days, those words came back to me.

Look up.

I looked up. I relied on the Lord to carry me through. It wasn't easy, but the load was lighter since I wasn't bearing it all myself. When I looked up I was also able to observe how God was working all around me. I could see the comfort he was providing in tangible ways. I could still see the beauty around me. My gaze wasn't focused downward on myself.

Fast forward to the present. When this scripture kept coming to my attention, I took notice. It reminded me that whatever was coming, look up. 

If life becomes overwhelming, look up.

If I don't know what to do, look up.

If I'm feeling sad, look up.

If I'm feeling joyful, look up.

Just look up.

Where does my help come from? It comes from the Lord. He gives power to the weak. He comforts those in trouble. He never tires or grows weary.


But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength.
    They will soar high on wings like eagles.
They will run and not grow weary.
    They will walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31

Read the entire 40th chapter of Isaiah here.

 

Absence and Disappointments

I haven't done a lot of writing lately. The last time I posted on this blog (about six weeks ago) I alluded to some things going on in my life that kept me busy, but also some things that were testing my faith.


I have written only a little in my personal journal. Friends on Facebook may have noticed that I don't write/post as often there either. The easy answer is to say that I have gotten out of the habit of writing. Truth. But I've also been struggling to put words to what's been going on inside of me lately.

Each time I think to myself that I should write, I procrastinate and avoid thinking about it. I busy myself with anything else. I suppose avoidance is the main reason I haven't been writing. 


Today I decided to go back to the beginning of this blog and read the first post. It reminded me why I started this blog. I felt as if God was leading me to share things that I was learning as I journeyed through my life. Writing was as much for my own benefit (therapy) as it was for anyone else. I had no idea whether anyone would ever read my blog anyway.

You see, when I started this blog I was recovering from a broken heart over a failed relationship. To maintain some privacy, I have never mentioned that fact before on this blog. I also didn't want my blog to be all about that. I chose to write in general enough terms so that anyone going through difficult circumstances could relate.

The broken heart from two years ago has healed--mostly. I still struggle at times. I won't go into what's happened in the past two years because you can read previous posts on this blog and figure that out. To sum it up it has been a time of waiting, of learning, of praying, of more waiting, and this cycle has continued. 

During these past two years my relationship with Jesus has grown exponentially. I once had a spiritual mentor ask me if I had known what was going to happen before I met this guy, would I still have gone through with it? The answer then was yes. The answer now is still yes. Pain and all, Jesus is still worth it and He's made use of everything I went through.

Two months ago marked the two year anniversary of when that relationship officially ended. Something else changed about that time. This guy, who I still considered a friend, completely disappeared from my life. I had limited contact with him and we did not live in the same city so we never saw each other. However, without any explanation, he suddenly cut off all contact with me. 

Why should I care? Trust me. This doesn't make any sense without all the back story. But, having that door finally and completely closed like that was like a mild earthquake in my life. Yes, earth-shattering describes it. You see, I did not get the closure that I desired, that I had sincerely hoped and prayed for.

Yes, I had fervently prayed for some closure with this man--to clear the air--and had hoped to see that come to fruition. We had been good friends and I wanted to see that friendship return. When that door closed--and God allowed it to be closed--it was upsetting. After pondering my feelings of why I was so upset, I finally came to realize that my feelings were hurt. Not just by this guy, but by God. The truth was that I was disappointed in God.

This disappointment caused me to emotionally shut down in God's presence. Oh, I still read my Bible, I continued to read devotionals and attend church. I even prayed...some. Frankly, I was demoralized. I had lost some confidence and hope in God. When I was believing in Him for something I thought was a good thing and the answer I wanted did not materialize, it shook my faith. 

When it came to praying and asking God for anything I had come to a place of thinking to myself, What's the point? Why should I pray? He'll just say no again.
It reminded me of the time I asked a simple favor of a supervisor and I fully expected a yes based on our relationship and the fact that I rarely asked for favors like this. However, this one time I got a no. It was surprising and disappointing. It made me rethink my relationship with that supervisor and fearful of asking for favors ever again.

Where this situation with God was concerned, in my head I knew that I wasn't thinking correctly. But, my heart was disappointed and confused. My relationship with Jesus had grown to a point of knowing what to expect of Him. So when I didn't get the answer I expected, it was very confusing. I began to question everything that I had been through the past two years and I questioned my intimate relationship with Jesus. It really has been a time of soul-searching.

Then one day a few weeks ago I was scrolling through Facebook and happened to see a quote from an author that I follow. It said, "…the miracles in the authentic Gospels are about love, not power...Although Jesus’ miracles were far too selective to solve every human disappointment, they served as signs of his mission, previews of what God would someday do for all creation." The quote came from a book titled Disappointment With God by Philip Yancy. 

That was it! Seeing that quote and book title helped define what I'd been feeling for several weeks. I bought the e-book and have been reading it. I have found myself nodding in agreement over some of the things I'm reading. I've also found myself very convicted as I realize that this whole life isn't all about me. This has forced me to look at this world from God's perspective and imagine His disappointment with these people He created and how we always fall short. Imagine His disappointment with me! Wow. Talk about turning the tables on the situation!

I won't pretend that everything is "all better now." I am still working through all of these issues with God. I am still healing and learning and processing. And I have to remember to keep my hope in Christ and not in the outcome of a particular request. 

Keeping it real...

Difficulty Equals Opportunity

"Every difficulty and every temptation that comes our way,

 if we receive it correctly, is God’s opportunity." 

[Quote from Streams in the Desert: 366 Daily Devotional Readings.] 

I read that quote this morning during my quiet time. Hmmm. Something to think about.

Difficulty = Opportunity. 

Oh yes, I think I'd like to get in line for some of that opportunity--two extra scoops, please! Sorry, my sarcasm is showing. Honestly, difficulty is not something anybody looks forward to.

As I sit here, I'm processing what's already been a difficult week for my family and it doesn't show signs of letting up any time soon. Thankfully, there have also been some wonderful moments this week.

The devotional went on to talk about how David's run-in with a lion was an opportunity for God to show David that God was with him and through God he could face whatever came his way. When these "lions" come into our own lives we should recognize it as an opportunity from the Lord, "no matter how fierce it may outwardly seem."

So it appears that the "lions"we face today help us to face the "Goliaths" of the future. I don't know whether these current difficulties are lions or Goliaths. I suspect they are a little of both. When I've gone through difficulties in the past they sure seemed like Goliaths in the moment they were happening. Then sometime later, when a new difficulty arose, I looked back and thought, "that was nothing compared to now."

Shortly after reading this devotional, I listened to a sermon by Charles Stanley. His message was about having courage in the midst of a difficult time. Funny how the Lord orchestrates these things! He used Paul as an example of someone who had courage to persevere despite many difficulties. One would say he had to Endure (my One Word for the year 2014). Ah-ha! Then the phrase that popped into my head during this message was...

Don't Give Up!

This was a phrase I heard many times during another difficult time. It was always a sweet reminder to have hope in God, to keep praying, to persevere, and most of all to trust God.

I'll end with the following scripture and a link to a favorite song:

We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. 

We are perplexed, but not driven to despair.  

We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. 

We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed.  

Through suffering, our bodies continue to share 

in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus 

may also be seen in our bodies.
2 Corinthians 4:8

This is my command—be strong and courageous! 

Do not be afraid or discouraged. 

For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.

Joshua 1:9

"Don't Give Up" by Calling Glory

Nuggets of Wisdom: HOPE

It's been a while since I've shared some Nuggets of Wisdom. It used to be a regular feature on this blog, but thought it would be a good time to bring it back this week. It's been somewhat of a theme week for me.

Below are a few things I've run across this week that are "little jewels" I have found inspiring and helpful. I'll share the quote and then a few of my own thoughts.


Nugget #1

"When everything seems to be going wrong, refuse to get discouraged. ...The longer you wait for your prayers to be answered, the closer you are to a breakthrough." From Jesus Today by Sarah Young

It's so easy to get discouraged when things aren't going the way we planned or hoped, isn't it? We have hopes and dreams unfulfilled, day after day, week after week, and year after year. We pray fervently for someone and still don't see a change day after day, week after week, and year after year. Little by little the time between our petitions get a bit longer and sometimes we just give up. Then the Lord reminds us to keep praying, to keep waiting on Him, to place our hope in Him. The Lord uses the testimony of someone else to remind you: He Remembers. He hasn't forgotten. Oh, how sweet that reminder is.

Nugget #2

"...there is never a time when we cannot hope in God, whatever our need or however great our difficulty may be. Even when our situation appears to be impossible, our work is to 'hope in God.' Our hope will not be in vain, and in the Lord's own timing help will come." From Streams in the Desert by L.B. Cowman.

Well, this has been a week in which I needed to hear these encouraging words of hope, of promise, or God remembering me. It hasn't been a bad week at all. Rather it's been a week of sameness. I get up in the morning, go to work, come home, and go to bed. Very routine and sometimes dull. Oh, yeah I've been doing things around the house, on Facebook, some reading, that kind of thing. But sometimes I long for other things, a slightly different life. At the same time, I'm trying to embrace these quiet days of routine as all part of God's blessing. I am continuing to put my hope in God and his timing. I am thankful for that reminder this week: None of this is in vain; nothing is wasted.



Nugget #3

"You may be sure that God will never say to us, 'Stand still,' 'Sit still,' or 'Be still,' unless He is going to do something." From Streams in the Desert by L.B. Cowman.

I am always anxious to jump in and just "gitter done,"so sitting still and waiting on God to act often feels painfully slow. But, allowing God to work in His time in His way is always the best choice. I place my hope in God. I was talking with a friend with week about this very topic of "being still" before the Lord. This has been a recurring phrase in my life for the past two years. Over and over again, scripture has reminded me that I am supposed to be still in one particular area of my life: my singleness. It's the same one I've referred to above. And that leads me to one other nugget related to all of this...



Nugget #4

"...faith requires us to do nothing at all, while our human nature screams to interfere. In these cases we believe; therefore, we do not act. Wisdom is knowing the difference between the two." From Believing God by Beth Moore.

This quote will require a little background. Faith often requires action such as when God told Abraham to pick up and move or He told Noah to build an Ark. But, sometimes faith means taking no action. A case in point is when Jesus was being arrested before the crucifixion. He could have done something about it, but Jesus chose to trust God's plan.
     When the world screams at me that I need to do something about my singleness, it's hard not to get worked up about it. I mean, I really would like to do something about it. But, I have to keep going back to God and asking Him what what He wants me to do about it. The answer always comes back to: Wait. Be still. God wants to do something in my life and frankly I think He doesn't want to share the glory with me. Ha! But, I can place my hope in God and not in my self. Self always thinks she knows what should be done, but self is often wrong.


So, let me tie all this together...

Did you see a common thread running through all of these? It's the word Hope.
     Hope is lost when we don't see a future. When we can't see what God is doing, we can't see a future, and it's dark, that's when faith has to kick in. I've used this quote before on this blog and even have it posted in my kitchen:

"The greatest lessons in faith are learned in the dark." ~ Tony Evans

When we are hopeless (or discouraged) we cannot see the future or what God is doing. The future looks dark and God keeps telling us to be still because He knows the plan. You see, God knows the plans He has for us and it's a good one (Jeremiah 29:11). God does His best work behind the scenes. We just continue to look to Him for our hope and our future.

And without faith it is impossible to please God, 

because anyone who comes to him must believe 

that he exists and that he rewards those 

who earnestly seek him. Hebrews 11:6

The Maze of My Life

This is the longest I've gone without posting something on my blog. I've taken short breaks before, but those were intentional. I've had a few blog ideas and even started one, but haven't had the time to really flesh it out. So, it just sits here. Frankly, there's probably not that many people who regularly keep up with it anyway. But, today I'll just do a little stream of consciousness writing instead. So the writing may be a little different.

Life--the maze of my life--has gotten a bit crazy lately. I won't go into the details here. Those closest to me know what some of those details are and that's enough. Suffice it to say, I've had some challenging days in the past few months.

When I first chose this blog name, I thought it was kind of a cute word play. But, life is often a series of mazes. Mazes are places that force you from one end to the other. Sometimes you find yourself crossing the same path time and time again. Other times it looks as if you've finally found the way out only to discover that you've run into a dead end. I hear people have gotten lost in corn mazes. Put a mouse in a maze and it sniffs its way to the end where there's a reward for him.

The only thing that remains constant through it all is Jesus. I may not see Him with my eyes, but He's there in the maze with me. John chapter 16 tells the account of Jesus talking to the disciples before the crucifixion. Jesus reassures them and tells them not to be afraid when He had to leave because the Holy Spirit would be here for us. The Holy Spirit is our Comforter, our "come alongside."

If we believe Jesus to be our Savior, when the road gets tough and the path is dark, we have someone alongside us to show us the way.

I'll leave with a few verses of Scripture...

Proverbs 3:6
Seek his will in all you do,
    and he will show you which path to take. (NLT)


Isaiah 45:2
I will go before you
    and will level the mountains;
I will break down gates of bronze
    and cut through bars of iron. 


Exodus 43:14
The Lord replied, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” 

Give What You Have

I was reading this VERY FAMILIAR Bible story last week. Some Bible stories are so familiar to us that we have a tendency rush through them with the "been there, done that" mentality. Really, the feeding of 5,000 is one of those Bible stories we learn as children and hear over and over and over. It's a great story of a miracle, but often the focus of the story is about the miracle of Jesus.

For your reading pleasure, here's the account of this story from the passage I was reading. Go ahead, I'll wait until you're done...

Jesus Feeds Five Thousand - Matthew 14.13-21

As soon as Jesus heard the news, he left in a boat to a remote area to be alone. 

But the crowds heard where he was headed and followed on foot 

 from many towns. Jesus saw the huge crowd as he stepped from the boat, 

and he had compassion on them and healed their sick.

That evening the disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, 

and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away so they can go 

to the villages and buy food for themselves.”

But Jesus said, “That isn’t necessary—you feed them.”

“But we have only five loaves of bread and two fish!” they answered.

“Bring them here,” he said. Then he told the people to sit down on the grass. 

Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, looked up toward heaven, 

and blessed them. Then, breaking the loaves into pieces, 

he gave the bread to the disciples, who distributed it to the people.  

They all ate as much as they wanted, and afterward, the disciples picked up

 twelve baskets of leftovers. About 5,000 men were fed that day,

 in addition to all the women and children!

So, did you see anything new in this passage? When I was reading this story last week, I suddenly noticed something I hadn't seen before. I don't know if it was the translation I was reading (NLT), if it was the Matthew passage instead of another Gospel, or maybe it was the Holy Spirit teaching me. Perhaps all three!

Here's what jumped out at me while reading it this time...

The disciples had this extremely practical idea: Let the people go home before dark to eat. I'm sure the disciples were shocked when Jesus told them, "You feed them" (verse 16). I'm imagining the disciples were a bit puzzled by that response. They already knew they did not have enough food available to feed that many people. Jesus asks them to bring what they have.

Just bring what you already have...

What you already have is enough...

Whatever God is calling me to do, I have enough. Just bring it.

You and I may not feel we are fully prepared, fully trained, or fully funded, before setting out to do something the Lord has called us to do. I know I often feel woefully inadequate, but actually that's probably a better place to be because God gets the glory in whatever happens instead of me.

There may be times when we are fully prepared. But, more often than not, we may be called to give from our weakness--inadequate as it may be.

By bringing what we have, Jesus blesses it and multiplies it--for His glory. 

Wordy Wednesday

This is my command--be strong and corageous! 

Do not be afraid or discouraged. 

For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.

This verse in the book of Joshua has become one of my favorite verses. Maybe it's because the Lord puts this verse in my path every so often--particularly when I really need the reminder.

I heard someone wise say that when God keeps telling you something over and over, it's not because He's forgotten what he's said. It's because He's trying to remind you or teach you something. So, whenever the same Bible verse keeps popping up over and over--I take note.

Is there a Bible verse that has become your favorite this way?

What Are You Trusting In?

"What are you trusting in that makes you so confident?"

Those were the words spoken by the Assyrians standing just outside the city of Judah (2 Kings 18:19-24). This may be ancient history, but there is modern day application to this story. The Assyrians had already conquered nearby Samaria. Now they were standing outside the city of Judah politely, but firmly requesting that King Hezekiah surrender.

Typically we think of conquerors as those who storm the gates. They shoot first and ask questions later. But sometimes the enemy stands outside and attempts to use reason to gain control. Why not? If bloodshed can be avoided with a little attack on the mind, give it a try.

King Hezekiah was one of those good guys. He trusted the Lord, obeyed God, and removed pagan shrines in the land. He followed in the footsteps of his ancestor, King David. Consequently, the Lord blessed him. But,the enemy still showed up. Hezekiah tried to smooth over any wrongs his people had done to the Assyrians. He offered reparations of gold and silver. It did no good. The Assyrians weren't interested.

That's when the mind games began. The enemy was standing outside their city walls asking them to surrender. When Hezekiah refused, the Assyrian representative accused them of relying on their own intellect or on another army to rescue them. After Hezekiah refused to surrender, the Assyrian man pulled out all the stops by suggesting that God wanted them to surrender. He implied that God had led them to have Judah surrender because of something they had done.

Here's where the present-day life application comes in. We're cruising along in our lives, trying to follow God's path, being obedient yet not always succeeding. The enemy sneaks up beside us to remind us of those times we've failed and entices us to surrender. He fills our heads with doubt and fear. We try to stand firm in our faith, trusting that the path we're on is the one God want us on. Inside we wonder if he's right...Maybe God did send this circumstance to get me back into His will or to punish me? 

Hezekiah stayed firm in his faith. He prayed rather than responding to those threats (2 Kings 19). The Lord responded by delivering them. In fact, more than 100,000 Assyrians died in their sleep. God stepped in and helped calm their fears and He took care of the enemy. Hezekiah did not trust in his intellect. He did not trust in the strength of his army or Egypt's army. He trusted God.

The enemy seems to be telling me to "throw in the towel," with lies such as: 

The odds of finding a mate at your age are very low. It's time to give up. 

You don't have what it takes to write. There are plenty of writers out there already.

I could go on and on with a laundry list of lies, doubts, and fears. When I hear these, I need to remember to pray and consult the Lord. I need to remember to trust in the God, His promises, and not in anything or anyone else.

What lies are you listening to? Have you consulted the Lord about it?

I'll end with these verses from Psalm 56:1-7.

O God, have mercy on me, for people are hounding me.  

My foes attack me all day long. 

I am constantly hounded by those who slander me, 

and many are boldly attacking me.  

But when I am afraid, I will put my trust in you. 

I praise God for what he has promised.  

I trust in God, so why should I be afraid?  

What can mere mortals do to me?  

They are always twisting what I say;  

they spend their days plotting to harm me. 

They come together to spy on me— 

watching my every step, eager to kill me.  

Don’t let them get away with their wickedness; 

in your anger, O God, bring them down.

Wordy Wednesday

And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. - Romans 8:28



No doubt, you are familiar with this verse. Sometimes familiar verses are easy to just gloss over because we've heard it so often. This verse is often quoted to us following a disappointment or time of testing. Internally I say to myself, Yeah, yeah, heard it before.

Take a moment to look at it with fresh eyes (and I say this to myself most of all).

We know.
All (every single thing that happens)
Works for His good (not necessarily my good)
For His purpose.

Whatever is going on right now, today, has already been filtered through God's loving hands, and He has a plan that fits His purpose. If you've royally screwed up, God will use that somehow, some way. That's a promise. You may still suffer the consequences of that major mess, but if you love God and dilligently seek Him, He will work it ALL for His good--and ultimately your (and my) good.

Nuggets of Wisdom: Hope

I started reading a new book this week. I've barely started it--only 16% of the way through it--and I've already uncovered some incredible nuggets of wisdom.
Perhaps these little nuggets mean a lot to me now because of the stage of life I'm in. I wanted to share just a few of these little jewels with you. I've pulled these quotes from a book called Hope Being Gone: Trusting God in the Tough Times by Cherie Hill.

• When life is going according to our plan, seldom do we ask God about His.
• When there are no signs of victory and your faith is failing, its your shouts of praise through the pain that will bring Light to your darkness. It's by faith that we have hope... and hope does not disappoint (Romans 5:5).
• Faith is more than just belieivng in God. It's about trusting Him, even when there is no evidence you should.

I'll leave you with some encouraging scripture from 2 Chronicles 20:15-17. It's the account of Jehoshaphat facing war with his enemies. He prayed and cried out to God for help. The Lord encouraged His people with the following words:

He said, “Listen, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Listen, King Jehoshaphat! This is what the Lord says: Do not be afraid! Don’t be discouraged by this mighty army, for the battle is not yours, but God’s. Tomorrow, march out against them. You will find them coming up through the ascent of Ziz at the end of the valley that opens into the wilderness of Jeruel. But you will not even need to fight. Take your positions; then stand still and watch the Lord’s victory. He is with you, O people of Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid or discouraged. Go out against them tomorrow, for the Lord is with you!”

The story doesn't end there. Jehoshaphat bowed before the Lord and instead of sending out his strongest warriors for battle, he sent the singers. Yes. You heard me right. He sent the singers out ahead of the army to begin praising and thanking God. The Lord gave His people victory over their enemies.

I don't know about you, but praise and thanksgiving is not the first thing that comes to mind when I'm faced with trying circumstances. Yet, over and over the Word tells us that we should be praising and thanking God--even for the difficult times. And as a singer, I don't particularly want to be on the front lines of battle with the rest of the army behind me. Once again I am reminded that praise and thanksgiving is essential. If anyone is looking for me, I'll be out front trying to be brave enough to eek out some praise songs.

Expectations

We all have expectations. Charles Dickens even wrote a novel on the subject which he titled Great Expectations. That novel was about the expectations of a young boy and his hope of achieving something greater in life.

There are ordinary expectations that we all have such as, turning on a light switch and expecting that there will be light. If someone sits in a chair, there is a expectation to believe it will hold that person up. Or you might have an expectation that someone will remember your birthday. Those are all reasonable expectations. In other words, you have every reason to believe that these things will come to pass barring any unforeseen circumstance. Light bulbs occasionally burn out, chairs sometimes break, and people may forget your birthday. But, you can be pretty optimistic that all of these expectations will be met.

Then there is something called False Expectations. I did a little Internet research on this phrase to see what would come up. I found a few random definitions:

Expecting more than you will actually get. 

Unrealistic expectations.

A few examples of unrealistic or false expectations might be expecting mustard to come out of a catsup bottle, having a toddler who will never get messy, or that the Chicago Cubs might actually win a World Series. (Okay, just injecting a little good-natured humor here.) Having these types of expectations will set someone up for disappointment.

Interestingly, when I was researching this topic, I came across a curious acronym:

False Expectations About Reality = FEAR.

I haven't had time to ponder this acronym, but I suppose false expectations could indeed produce fear in addition to disappointment.

Finally, there are Unmet Expectations. In my opinion, these fall somewhere between realistic and false expectations. They are the type of expectations that are often realistic but remain unfulfilled. Examples of this type of expectation would be the hope of landing a job after months of searching, the hope of healing after an illness, or the hope of marriage or family.

From a spiritual standpoint, these false and/or unmet expectations can produce...
     storms (inner turmoil)
          faith that wavers
               doubt
                    discouragement.

This especially happens when we put all our hopes and dreams into a particular outcome, praying over something and not seeing any results. Putting all our hopes into a particular outcome like this can cause faith to waver. When we don't see the answer we are expecting, it throws us off kilter.

I like this quote from Cheri Hill, author of Waiting On God. "Our false expectations can create a storm in and of itself. When life doesn't happen just as we think it should, the winds start roaring and the storm clouds look ferocious. Our faith can begin to fail amidst the overwhelming atmosphere of doubt and despair."

There are a few problems with this type of scenario.

1. Our hopes should never be pinned on a particular outcome. Our hope should always be directed to the Lord. That doesn't mean we can't hope for or pray for something to come to pass, but ultimately we must remember God is sovereign. This is presuming that what's being hoped for is something that is not against biblical principles.
2. We must trust God with our hopes and expectations even to the point of surrendering them. This is NOT easy to do. But this is a place where God wants us to be--a place of rest and trust in Him. It's also a place where He wants to teach us and grow our faith.

I wish I could say that I have this all figured out, but the truth is I struggle with these issues. I am in good company, though. The Apostle Paul asked the Lord to remove his thorn in the flesh many times but never had that prayer answered. He did learn to accept it. David was anointed King and then had to run for his life for more than ten years. The Psalms are full of his prayers asking for God's help. After being anointed King, one would have a realistic expectation that being hunted down was not part of that plan--right?

It all seems to serve a greater purpose than we can understand. Even in the unmet expectations, God can have a purpose that we may not understand this side of heaven. That takes us back to God's sovereignty. God's able to see the whole enchilada. Whereas we can only see situations from our little microscope. We just have to continually pray and ask God to show us if our expectations are realistic, then take a deep breath and trust God with all our expectations.

Have you struggled with this issue? What has helped you?

Three on Thursday

I want to share a few notes that I took during a sermon a few months ago. The scripture reference was Joshua chapter 5 as the Israelites prepared for battle. Even though this chapter is mostly about a particular procedure/ritual that I won't mention by name here, there is a lot of real-life application to be had in this chapter. I was quite surprised.

Our teacher said that sometimes our battle is fear and doubt rather than the seemingly looming problem in front of us. How true!

Here are three principles which will come in handy before we head into any battle:

1. Make sure you are walking in the clear, revealed will of God. Prepare yourself. If there's any known sin you haven't dealt with, make sure to confess and/or forgive.
2. Remember what God has already done for you. Remember His faithfulness and provision in the past and present. God will be there with you.
3. The presence of God will challenge us. God will give leadership, direction, and provision for the battle. Recognize His presence--even in the midst of fear and doubt! (Read Joshua 5:13-15.)

These are some really sound principles to remember whenever fear or doubt begin to knock on our heart's door.

Giving Up?

Have you ever been at that turning point? The choice is 1) either continue on the current path (usually uphill) or 2) just give up, turn around, and go back.

How does someone get to this turning point?

I'll use an example from my own life. My first job was working in a busy library where my main function was to put away books being returned by patrons. Sounds easy enough, right? For the most part, this was true. It's not that difficult to pick up a book and put it back on the shelf. Now, multiply that one book by several hundred a day. (At the time, there was a circulation of about 80,000 pieces of material!) As quickly as I could put a book back on the shelf, ten more would be waiting for me (even more after a holiday when the library was closed). Unfortunately the books didn't magically jump off the carts and find their ways back on the shelves. (That would be a Disney movie!) Keeping the shelves in order was ALWAYS a challenge and sometimes discouraging--especially in the children's wing. All those tiny little books, picked up by tiny little hands, and put back in the wrong spot. Another part of my job was to make sure these books always in Dewey decimal order so that someone searching for a particular title could locate it. What a task! Do you know how many books Dr. Seuss wrote? Many!


I share these examples as something anyone can identify with. What's your challenge or discouraging situation? Just exchange the book scenario for toys, paperwork, co-workers, a spouse, an illness. Anything has the potential to be overwhelming and discouraging.


Circumstances (or people) can be frustrating. [When will it ever end?!!!]

Circumstances (or people) can (and usually do) disappoint. [Can't they see how hard I've worked?!!]

Circumstances (and people) can cause discouragement. [What's the point? I have worked so hard and nobody appreciates it. No matter what I do it just gets messed up again. I can't take this anymore. I just want to feel sorry for myself and go home.]


Yes, I think we can all identify with those thoughts and feelings. There were days at the library when I would come in and see books stacked up higher than me and overflowing from their carts and temporary shelves. I also felt much frustration over the person who worked the shift before me and should have put a dent into that huge volume of books--but didn't. At that moment I had a choice to make:

I could become discouraged and half-heartedly do my job, 
quit, or take it out on the other employees.

OR

I could roll up my sleeves, dig into the work, 
and do the best I could in what time I had. 

I had to choose to forget the frustrations of the shirking co-worker and I had to play a little mind-game with myself, making it a challenge. (Interestingly, my attitude rubbed off on some of my other co-workers and it eventually became a fun challenge to see how many books we could put away during our shift! It's amazing how our attitude really does affect others.)

I heard Dr. Charles Stanley recently teaching a series about overcoming discouragement. He said something I found quite interesting which I will paraphrase. There is a difference between discouragement and disappointments.

Disappointments are inevitable. Discouragement is a choice. 

Hmmm. I've often thought those words were somewhat interchangeable. Discouragement may begin as disappointment and we can choose to live in discouragement.

We can trust God with our disappointments (those inevitable things that happen). So discouragement becomes our zip code. We live there and have all our mail delivered to this place. (I've known people like that and I don't really want to be  that way. Discouragement breeds all kinds of other problems.) The antidote to this place of discouragement is to stay in the Word. Daily doses of scripture (TRUTH) can counteract that disappointment and discouragement. Will there be an immediate reprieve from these feelings? Maybe. Maybe not. It all depends on how God wants to use these circumstances in our lives. Dr. Stanley said he was in a place of discouragement for quite a long time and people often asked how he managed. After he looked back, he realized it was his daily time studying the scriptures which sustained him.

"Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying,

yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. 

For momentary, light affliction is producing for us 

an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, 

while we look not at the things which are seen, 

but at the things which are not seen; 

for the things which are seen are temporal,

but the things which are not seen are eternal."
2 Corinthians 4:17-18

I have dealt with disappointments and discouragement many, many times in the past two years. There were times when I let discouragement settle into my heart and set up a pity party. Sometimes I just wanted to run away--backward (retreat), sideways (avoidance), anywhere but forward. The path forward was overwhelmingly difficult. It wasn't long before the Lord would nudge me. Truth from the Word ALWAYS brings me back to reality. Before long, each time I needed encouragement, I would to ask the Lord for help. He was faithful to supply exactly what I needed. Yes, the path forward may be extremely difficult but God will walk through it WITH US.

And take heart because one day we will be celebrating the marriage supper of the Lamb in heaven. No more tears. No more sorrow. No more pain. No more discouragement or disappointment. Hallelujah!

He will wipe every tear from their eyes, 

and there will be no more death 

or sorrow or crying or pain. 

All these things are gone forever." 

~ Revelation 21:4

Amen.

Disappointment

Disappointment comes from unmet expectations. These unmet expectations can turn into...

• Anger
• Bitterness
• Reliving the past (if only...)
• Anxiety
• Frustration
• Unforgiveness
• Jealousy
• Disillusionment

We've all experienced varying degrees of disappointment. As a child we're told NO when we really want to hear YES. As a teenager we're disappointed when that guy or girl we admire doesn't show any interest. Adults experience disappointment when the job or promotion they hope to receive doesn't come through or a spouse forgets our birthday. Many of us are experiencing disappointment right now. Fill in the blank: "I'm disappointed now because _____________."

I was talking with a friend about this topic. Something we wanted so badly didn't happen. These desires (unmet expectations) were really good things to want but they didn't work out the way we hoped it would or when we thought it would. Inevitably those unmet expectations turned into things like anger, frustration, and bitterness. In the circumstances my friend and I were discussing, our disappointments were aimed at God.

Why would God not answer this prayer? 

What is He waiting on? 

Why would God allow us to go through this? 

Answers to these questions will be different for each person and each circumstance. Only the Lord knows the answers and may choose to reveal them to us in time (or in His sovereignty God may choose to never reveal it). Some circumstances in life don't seem to make sense to us. We have limited vision but God can see the whole picture (past, present, and future) and knows perfectly well why things happen the way they do. Ultimately it's our response to these disappointments that are most important.

How should we respond to a disappointment?

We should confess the disappointment to God, pouring our hearts out to Him. He already knows what we're feeling, but talking to God about it opens our hearts up for His love and comfort in the midst of it. If we choose to remain angry at God--giving Him the silent treatment--what good does that do? It only hurts us in the long run and it doesn't get us any closer to an answer either.

Remember that God is in control and has our best interest in mind. Just as a parent will withhold a treat from a child because it might spoil her dinner, God may withhold something we want now because He's got something far better in mind. This is where trust comes in. We have to trust in God's Word and in God himself. "And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them (Romans 8:28)."


It's really easy to get stuck in the If-Onlys and the What-Ifs of the past. We should ask God if it's time to move away from that unmet expectation and ask Him to replace it with anticipation for something He desires for us to have. “But forget all that—it is nothing compared to what I am going to do. For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland (Isaiah 43:18-19)."

What about you? How have you handled disappointment? Are there any Bible verses that have helped you with these unmet expectations?

Wasting Time

Ever have a problem that just keeps you so perplexed that you spend hours trying to figure out what to do about it? I'm not talking about common issues such as:

What should I serve my guests at the next dinner party? 

or

Should I buy Aunt Mildred a gift certificate or that book she's been wanting?

I'm talking about the types of issues which don't have ready answers, especially the ones which have so many why and how questions attached to them. I usually file these under "life issues." Life suddenly turns into a 1000-piece puzzle and you have no idea what the big picture is.


I tend to be a bit of a detective. I'm also inquisitive and a "fixer." Therefore, these little traits often, okay, always cause me to look for answers to problems and why they occurred in the first place.

During the past few months I've tried to figure out the whys and hows of a particularly vexxing situation in my life. Actually, I wasted a whole lot of time. Now I realize that's exactly where our enemy, Satan, wants me to live my life. He would like for me to spend lots of time and energy fretting and fussing over something I cannot do anything about.

Don't get me wrong: It's definitely okay for me to pray about it and ask God to help or provide clear direction. But when I spend so much time trying to figure things out that it causes confusion, doubt, and other negative emotions, then I've gone too far.

For God is not the author of confusion but of peace, 

as in all the churches of the saints. ~ 1 Corinthians 14:33

It's times like this when God wants me to simply trust Him. When I cannot understand what's going on or what I should do next, it's time to trade in that detective's license for that warm shelter of trust in the shadow of His wings. 

Have you ever noticed that weeks, months, or even years down the road from a problem you can look back and see how God worked everything out (probably without your help)? In the midst of that situation it didn't appear that God was doing anything [but He was] and questions were unending!

I saw this quote recently and thought it was appropriate:

Trust always requires having some 

unanswered questions in your life. ~ Joyce Meyer

I believe that is very true. Once I began to place my trust in God to handle my problems in His way and in His time, peace moved into the place where confusion, fear, and doubt had resided. God gave those three an eviction notice! 

Did I get all the answers to my Why and How questions? Nope. But, little by little, God has given me some answers. I am still waiting on the remaining answers but at least I'm no longer fretting over them. I still sometimes get discouraged, but God knows what I need and will give me encouragement through the Word.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart 

and lean not on your own understanding;

in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight. 

~Proverbs 3:5-6

What about you? How do you handle these issues and unanswered questions? What has the Lord taught you during these times?

Hope for this Unsteady Heart

Earlier this week I wrote a post about true love and trusting Jesus.  Events drove me to my knees seeking the Lord. It was during those unsteady times that Jesus stepped in to steady my heart, to catch the tears, and He lovingly walked with me through the uncertainty. There is hope for the unsteady heart and that hope can be found through Jesus.

I'm a big fan of Kari Jobe and especially her song called Steady My Heart. I've heard it on the radio recently and identified with the lyrics. I want to share the video here for anyone else who may be experiencing the unsteadiness that life brings. I hope you will be blessed by this song as much as I have been.

Facebook Faces

I'm not picking on Facebook, but I will use it as an example. For the most part, Facebook is full of the highlights of our lives. We share all the good and fun stuff that's going on. We put our best foot (or face) forward and we entertain each other. It's a proven fact that to even get noticed on Facebook these days you have to have good images with your posts and clever things to say. I enjoy looking at photos and hearing about all the good stuff going on in people's lives. Except...

just how real is that?

In some cases, the good stuff is only half-truths. There are struggles going on in everyone's lives that are often not shared. Some are small struggles that don't seem important in the scheme of life--especially when compared to someone's public life and death struggles. But they are important to you.

Nevertheless, we put on our Facebook Faces when we go out in public--to work, to church, to the store. "How are you?" "Oh, fine." Inside you're thinking, not fine; if you only knew.

What's really bothering you...

• are the grocery and gas prices that keep going up and the economy keeps going down.
• is concern about that family member or friend who is sick or near death. 
• your adult child or grandchild who's walked away from the Lord.
• the marriage that has hit a really tough spot.
• the dreams and desires that never seem to pan out for your life.

The problem with always having our Facebook Faces on is how deceptive that is for others who see us. When life is always "rosy at our house," others see this and assume it to be true. Then they compare that with their own lives and believe there's something terribly wrong with their own lives.The following quote from A Confident Heart by Renee Swope sums up the problem:

"Comparison leaves us insecure, confused, and discontent. My friend Genia summed it up well when she told me, 'Every time I compare myself with someone else, I can never measure up because I am comparing my insides with their outsides.' ...God never intended for us to compete with each other; He wants us to complete one another, celebrating and encouraging each other’s strengths while discovering who He created us to be."

I really like that compete vs. complete comparison.

After I started writing this post I had to put it aside so I could finish later. During this time, I was reading some of my favorite blogs and found another reference to this very issue. Yesterday on Beth Moore's Living Proof Blog she touched on this very topic. Beth ran into a younger friend who was struggling under some very heavy burdens. This friend asked Beth whether she ever struggled with issues. Beth responded with an affirmative, "Yes, I've been there," and proceeded to encourage this younger believer.

Obviously, nobody wants to be around a Debbie Downer all the time. (No offense if your name is Debbie.) But, there is a time and place to be transparent with other believers, to use our own lives as examples, to encourage and say Yes, I've been there.

If you need encouragement, feel free to leave a message here or hop over to Beth's blog using the link I provided and read some of those messages others have left.