True Rest

This is the season of vacations and as a rule we try to do something that will give us rest.  But what is rest to you?  – being in someplace new and different, being with friends and family, being alone in nature, reading a book, watching a movie, listening to your favorite music, taking time to work on a hobby, taking a drive……  The list is endless as we are all different and find rest in many ways.  However, there is one pure form of rest and that is in God.  Psalm 62 says, “My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from him.  He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken.”   Jesus said in Matthew 11:28-30, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart and you will find rest for your soul.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (NIV)
Do you know what it is to rest in God?  This morning the pastor had us sit quiet for 1 minute.  It seemed like a long time yet was so very short.  During that minute a peace and calm came to rest upon each person as the busyness and noise of life was eliminated.  Do you take time regularly to be quiet before God?  Do you seek to listen to Him and have him give you His rest and peace.   Why not try to put a little of God’s rest and quiet into your life this week- start with just a minute and see if you can increase your time of silence and listening before God by week’s end.  Resting in God takes practice and seems so foreign to us- but give it a try this week and let me know your results.
Blessings as you Rest in the Lord.
Linda

What to do about discouragement?

 I was in an auto accident about a month ago.  It has been a month of multiple doctor's appointments and therapy.  Today I was really discouraged as the pain in my hip and right leg has been constant and was really nagging me.  As I thought about my discouragement over the fact that the healing was taking longer than I wanted and I was not enjoying the discomfort, I realized that my discouragement was fear in disguise.  God addressed the fear and discouragement that the Israelites faced on many occasions.  2Chronicles 20:17 "You will not have to fight this battle.  Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the LORD will give you, O Judah and Jerusalem, Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.  Go out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you."  (NIV)  The Israelites were going out to meet an overwhelming foe and God told King Jehoshaphat to be firm and not to be discouraged.  Being discouraged is easy- doubt creeps in, overwhelming situations, long recovery, and pain rise up to meet me each day.  God wants me to be invincible and to face the difficult situation with Him by my side.

I forgot that today as I was existing in pain.  I needed to reel myself in and reexamine my problems and see them thought God's eyes.  "Nothing is impossible with God." Luke 1:27.  My pain is fleeting so I need to give the recovery - timing and process- to the Lord.  He know what is best and how much time I really need.  Allowing discouragement to take over is giving Satan the victory in this problem.

Prayer:  Lord, give me strength for each day, no worries for tomorrow and realization that You care for me.  1Peter 5:7.  Help me to place my trust and confidence in you alone.  Bind Satan and ban discouragement from my thoughts. Amen.

May you have a blessed day free from discouragement.

Linda
(This passage is addressed more fully on Day 25 of Fearless Living.)

Another Assurance About Prayer

With all of the blog entries that I have done recently on prayer, I was working on my new book the other day and came to this promise in  1John 5:13-15.  I wanted to share it, not so much as a preview of my new work, but as a continuation of thought about prayer.  You can never plumb the depths of God’s word and new thoughts and insights jump out at me as I study.  It is always and adventure.  I do hope this entry is helpful to you in your prayer life and I would love to hear back from you.  I am excited about this new work but it is far from finished.  Working on it keeps me growing and meditating on God’s word- always a good thing.
Blessings,
Linda

                                                           Jesus, Our Confidence

1John 5: 13-15
            I (John) write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life.  And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.  And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him. (ESV)

Promise:  God promises that faith in Jesus gives me eternal life and that anything I ask, according to His will, He will grant me.

          When you pray do you give God a wants or needs list?  This verse reminds us that God has a perfect plan, and that we need to seek to align ourselves with His plan.  True alignment with God’s will produces results in the form of answered prayer.  Jesus was our example as he prayed in Matthew 6:9-10 “Pray then like this: ‘Our Father in heaven hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.’ And again at Gethsemane in Matthew 26:39 “And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, ‘My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.’” (ESV) As hard as it may seem, to produce results for God we must seek His will not our own.  Then he promises great results that will be the very best for us.
Lessons and Truths:

1. Belief in Jesus gives eternal life.
2. God is accessible.
3. God has a plan for my life.
4. God is sovereign and all things are in his power.
5. God wants me to align myself with His perfect will.

Prayer:   Lord, I confess that I am willful and want my own way.  I desire things done to please me and not You.  Give me a clean heart that will seek Your will and direction in my life.  Help me to be humble and desirous of being in Your will and trusting You to work out Your will in my life.  Grant me wisdom in prayer to seek Your way and that I may adopt an attitude of thankfulness for all You have done for me though Jesus.  Amen.

What is my response to God’s promise?
What do I need to pray for God’s will, not mine, in my life right now? _____________________

How am I trusting in God’s sovereign will?___________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________

Promise Confirmation:   John 3:16, John 4:13-14, Matthew 7:7, 1John 2:15-17

(Promise Confirmation is where I have found related promises to the one in 1John 5:13-15.  They are not exact matches but show that God’s word is consistent and the theme of the promise is found elsewhere  in the Bible.  The promise is not isolated and can be found contextually elsewhere.)

Uplifted Upright Petitions

Wow! It sure seems like a long week, but I have been thinking and praying about writing this post for several days.  I have been discussing the 4 positions of prayer: face-down, kneeling, sitting and finally standing. I have two examples to share from the Bible about prayers being offered while standing. 1Kings 8:22-23  describes King Solomon as he prayed before the newly built temple in Jerusalem. “Then Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the whole assembly of Israel and spread out his hands toward heaven and said: “O LORD, God of Israel, there is no God like you, in heaven above or on earth beneath, keeping covenant and showing steadfast love to your servants who walk before you with all their heart,”.   Jesus also spoke about praying while standing up in Mark 11:24-25 “Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.  And when you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.” (ESV)
When I started blogging about prayer, I stated that most of the time I prayed while being seated as I like to keep a prayer journal.  Over the course of the last few weeks, I have been trying out praying in different positions.  When I first started standing to pray, it felt awkward, but as I have persisted it has become more natural.  What I did was to incorporate standing with walking and use my morning walk time as prayer time.  At first I was horribly distracted and had a hard time focusing my thoughts.  But as I have continued, it has become easier and I don’t seem to lose my place or thoughts as often.  It also lends itself to more of a conversational style of praying, and I seem to be able to express my feelings and concerns to God in a more in-depth way.
What ever way we pray- the important thing is to PRAY.  I still like to keep a prayer journal so I do that every few days, but it is freeing to not be locked into just one way or place to pray!  I pray that you will feel more open to changing up your prayer life and making it a time of active interaction with the Lord God Almighty.  Our instructions in 1Thessalonians 5:16-18  are “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” Where we pray is up to us- but we are to pray!
Blessings as you present your thanks and petitions to God,
Linda

Freedom

What does the 4th of July mean to you? Is it hotdogs, hamburgers, watermelon, corn on the cob and fireworks? It is all that and much more! I have fond memories of fireworks on the 4th with my family growing up and then later with my own kids. One of my favorite memories is of a 4th spent in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. There was a huge parade with local bands, clowns, floats, popcorn and plenty of fireworks after dark. Another year we were in Bay City, Michigan where they had a gigantic fireworks program that lasted at least 45 minutes!! But, the most memorable 4th was one I spent with my kids on Maui, Hawaii. We had to wait a long time for our dinner reservations and thought we'd miss the fireworks. Little did we know that the display that evening was right off the harbor adjacent to our table in the restaurant. It was spectacular. I am smiling as I write just thinking about these fun times.
But the 4th is about a lot more than fun! Men and women gave their lives for our freedom. The founding fathers were wise and turned to God for guidance as they drafted our Constitution. They knew that a nation based on faith in God and his protection is the strongest you can have. What happened to those ideals? Why have we allowed ourselves to wander so far from His foundation? I would say that the drifting is caused by people turning away from His truth and ideals. As people seek their own gain and put on hold or ignore their own spiritual growth- the person and then the nation drifts away from God.  John 8:31-32 says, "To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, 'If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.'" and 8:36 "So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed." If you seek true freedom this 4th, look to Jesus. As he frees us from the power of sin, we are able to live for Him and can boldly effect our nation.

Happy 4th May you find true freedom in Christ.
Linda

Sitting in a Seat of Power

As I have been blogging about different positions of prayer, I have found it increasingly difficult to find time to pray. Satan does not like us dialoguing about prayer or praying as he knows that from prayer we receive direct power for living and the peace of God. Paul tells us in Ephesians about the armor God has for us. He lists the armor elements-helmet of salvation, belt of truth, shield of faith, breast plate of righteousness and ready feet. (Ephesians 6:10-18)  He also lists 2 items that we have for our defense- the word of God, which is sharper than any two edged sword, and prayer.   Paul also  gives us insight into the power and effectiveness of prayer in Phillipians 4:6-7  "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (NIV)   So I should not be surpsrised by difficulties encountered in keeping a committed time of prayer.  By praying  I am being active and using the powerful weapon God gave me to fight against Satan's influence in my life.  I am also leaving the battle with God and taking away peace and a firm guard for my heart and mind.  Good news indeed for our stress filled lives!

The next position of prayer that I want to talk about  is sitting.  You do not find many references to prayer in the Bible when the  person is seated.  The Last Supper scene is described in Luke 22.   In verse 14 says Jesus and his disciples were reclined at the table.  Later in verse 17, "After taking the cup, he gave thanks" and in verse 19, "And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it."   I was reflecting on this and thought that in our daily lives we have many more activities that we do sitting besides eating.  Many people sit doing their jobs, working on their computers at home, studying God's word while seated at a desk or on a couch, watching TV, reading and driving their cars.  We have good lighting so we can read and work inside many hours of the day or night.    So how are you using your seat time?   Do you pray at mealtime?  Do you pray when you are at your computer or at your desk at work?  How about when you are driving in the car?  Prayer is available to us wherever we are and in 1Thessalonians 5:17 we are told to "pray continually". 
How will you use your seat time today?

Blessings,
Linda