Friday, July 26, 2013
Darlins' Daze: He knows my name
Darlins' Daze: He knows my name: As a mom I am happy to say that I know my children by their names. As they were growing up, just like any mother who could easily get frust...
He knows my name
As a mom I am happy to say that I know my children by their names. As they were growing up, just like any mother who could easily get frustrated with her children, I could easily get their names confused with each other and would even throw a couple of more in there for good measure as I looked straight at them and tried to recall which name went to that particular face.
That is not to say I didn't know who they were, it was just a momentary parental frustration that lead to brain deadness. I would eventually get to it or exclaim "You know who you are" just to prove my point.
But I do know them, better than I know myself sometimes. They are my children.
Have you ever been in a room full of mothers when a cry is heard from another room or yelling or a fight starts out? Every mother stops talking to see if it is her kid that is making the noise. We would strain our ears to hear, we would listen for little tell tell signs to pinpoint which child it was. Then one or two moms would get up and go investigate, and sure enough it was their kids that was at the crux of the matter. If any other mother had went to investigate, especially if someone was hurt or crying, that mom just would not do.
That child wants his or her own mama to kiss the boo boo, to make things right. There is a connection that can't be filled by anything or anyone else. We know our children. We know their voices. The lilt, the tilt. It is very distinctive to us. We have trained our ears from their infancy to hear them when they call. So not only do we know their name we know their voice. And they know ours.
How many moms and dads have called your childs name while they are in a group of other kids only to have someone elses kid answer you? None!!! But depending on the circumstances that kid is either going to come running at the sound of your voice or at the least call back to you to see what you need.
Do you remember how excited you got over that first boyfriend or girlfriend that wanted to "Know your name?" And they remembered it. And how tickled your ears would get when they would speak your name? How when they would call you on the phone and ask for you by name how special you felt?
There is something about someone knowing your name that makes you want to listen to them. All they have to do is say your name and you turn to see who is talking to you. If you know this person, especially if you have known them a long time, as soon as you hear their voice say your name your ears perk up and your eyes start looking for them. What a feeling it is when your eyes land on that person and you know they know you and you know them.
As exciting as it is that we can know people by their names and by the inflection and tones in their voices so as to match them up, how much more exciting is it that God almighty knows our name?
I heard a lesson about Jesus at the tomb that got me to thinking of this.
The stone had been rolled away. The tomb was empty and some of the men had raced there to confirm the reports of the women that had went early to annoint the body of Jesus. The women had reportedly gotten there early, before it was daylight, to do what they had not been able to do three days prior. When they got there the stone that had been placed in front of the tomb was moved and it was lying on the ground and the men that were to be guarding it were gone. They looked inside and found an empty tomb. They immediately ran back to find the disciples and let them know. The men had raced ahead and sure enough the women had been telling the truth.
The men left and started back to discuss the matter and presumably to tell the other disciples what they had discovered.
But Mary, Mary Magdaline, went back to the tomb. She was beside herself. Her grief was more than she could bear. Her heart was breaking. This man they called Jesus, friend. The one that had been able to look right through her was never going to be able to look at her and pour His love into her like she had never known. All she wanted to do was honor Him by annointing Him. At least when He was buried she could come and sit by His grave and at least feel solace. But now, now He was gone and no one was there to tell her where He was. She wept for her loss.
She leaned down and looked into the tomb once again, possibly to make sure her eyes had not betrayed her. Maybe He was still there and it was just a bad dream. Imagine her surprise that as she looked inside sitting where the Master had been lain were two angels. How grief stricken she must have been that the bible doesn't even say she was shocked or surprised at the sight of the angels or for that matter that they spoke to her.
"Why are you crying," they asked?
I love the fact that she has no idea who these men are but she explains the situation to them. When she is done she turns and as she does she runs right into Jesus. But because of her grief, tears and probably her hair was in her face, she did not recognize Him for who He was.
So He asks, "Woman, why are you crying? Who are you looking for?"
She proceeds to tell Him what the problem was. She presumes Him to be the gardener and begs Him to tell her where He had taken the body.
With a heart full of compassion He spoke but one word, "Mary," He said.
That one word spoke volumes. She now recognized that voice. She had heard it before. She knew this man. It was the Messiah, the King of Kings, her Lord. He knew her by name. And she knew Him. She threw her arms around Him and embraced Him. He was alive and He knew her by name!
As I heard that story today my heart thrilled inside me, swelling up as I realized He knows my name. He knows my name! Oh what a joy to know that He knows my name.
Isaiah 43 talks about how the Lord knew Israels name. Exodus 33 God told Moses He knew him by name. Psalms 139 tells of how He knew us before He placed us in our mothers womb. Isaih 43 again tells us He made us for His glory and He gave us our name.
Oh how spectacular to know that He is our Good Shepherd and that He calls us by name. John 10 tells us that His sheep know His voice. Just like when YOUR mother calls you answer to her, not when someone else calls.
Jesus knows my name and I know His voice. When He calls I will answer.
What about you? Jesus knows your name too. He calls to you from the deepest deep, to the highest heights. Have you answered? Is He your Good Shepherd? Do you know His voice?
There is nothing that compares than to know that Jesus knows your name.
One day we will all stand before Him and your name will be of utmost importance then. For if it is not found in the Lambs Book of Life, then, even if you call on His name, it will be too late.
Seek Him while He may be found people. Now is the acceptable day of salvation.
Get to know Him and listen as He speaks your name.
That is not to say I didn't know who they were, it was just a momentary parental frustration that lead to brain deadness. I would eventually get to it or exclaim "You know who you are" just to prove my point.
But I do know them, better than I know myself sometimes. They are my children.
Have you ever been in a room full of mothers when a cry is heard from another room or yelling or a fight starts out? Every mother stops talking to see if it is her kid that is making the noise. We would strain our ears to hear, we would listen for little tell tell signs to pinpoint which child it was. Then one or two moms would get up and go investigate, and sure enough it was their kids that was at the crux of the matter. If any other mother had went to investigate, especially if someone was hurt or crying, that mom just would not do.
That child wants his or her own mama to kiss the boo boo, to make things right. There is a connection that can't be filled by anything or anyone else. We know our children. We know their voices. The lilt, the tilt. It is very distinctive to us. We have trained our ears from their infancy to hear them when they call. So not only do we know their name we know their voice. And they know ours.
How many moms and dads have called your childs name while they are in a group of other kids only to have someone elses kid answer you? None!!! But depending on the circumstances that kid is either going to come running at the sound of your voice or at the least call back to you to see what you need.
Do you remember how excited you got over that first boyfriend or girlfriend that wanted to "Know your name?" And they remembered it. And how tickled your ears would get when they would speak your name? How when they would call you on the phone and ask for you by name how special you felt?
There is something about someone knowing your name that makes you want to listen to them. All they have to do is say your name and you turn to see who is talking to you. If you know this person, especially if you have known them a long time, as soon as you hear their voice say your name your ears perk up and your eyes start looking for them. What a feeling it is when your eyes land on that person and you know they know you and you know them.
As exciting as it is that we can know people by their names and by the inflection and tones in their voices so as to match them up, how much more exciting is it that God almighty knows our name?
I heard a lesson about Jesus at the tomb that got me to thinking of this.
The stone had been rolled away. The tomb was empty and some of the men had raced there to confirm the reports of the women that had went early to annoint the body of Jesus. The women had reportedly gotten there early, before it was daylight, to do what they had not been able to do three days prior. When they got there the stone that had been placed in front of the tomb was moved and it was lying on the ground and the men that were to be guarding it were gone. They looked inside and found an empty tomb. They immediately ran back to find the disciples and let them know. The men had raced ahead and sure enough the women had been telling the truth.
The men left and started back to discuss the matter and presumably to tell the other disciples what they had discovered.
But Mary, Mary Magdaline, went back to the tomb. She was beside herself. Her grief was more than she could bear. Her heart was breaking. This man they called Jesus, friend. The one that had been able to look right through her was never going to be able to look at her and pour His love into her like she had never known. All she wanted to do was honor Him by annointing Him. At least when He was buried she could come and sit by His grave and at least feel solace. But now, now He was gone and no one was there to tell her where He was. She wept for her loss.
She leaned down and looked into the tomb once again, possibly to make sure her eyes had not betrayed her. Maybe He was still there and it was just a bad dream. Imagine her surprise that as she looked inside sitting where the Master had been lain were two angels. How grief stricken she must have been that the bible doesn't even say she was shocked or surprised at the sight of the angels or for that matter that they spoke to her.
"Why are you crying," they asked?
I love the fact that she has no idea who these men are but she explains the situation to them. When she is done she turns and as she does she runs right into Jesus. But because of her grief, tears and probably her hair was in her face, she did not recognize Him for who He was.
So He asks, "Woman, why are you crying? Who are you looking for?"
She proceeds to tell Him what the problem was. She presumes Him to be the gardener and begs Him to tell her where He had taken the body.
With a heart full of compassion He spoke but one word, "Mary," He said.
That one word spoke volumes. She now recognized that voice. She had heard it before. She knew this man. It was the Messiah, the King of Kings, her Lord. He knew her by name. And she knew Him. She threw her arms around Him and embraced Him. He was alive and He knew her by name!
As I heard that story today my heart thrilled inside me, swelling up as I realized He knows my name. He knows my name! Oh what a joy to know that He knows my name.
Isaiah 43 talks about how the Lord knew Israels name. Exodus 33 God told Moses He knew him by name. Psalms 139 tells of how He knew us before He placed us in our mothers womb. Isaih 43 again tells us He made us for His glory and He gave us our name.
Oh how spectacular to know that He is our Good Shepherd and that He calls us by name. John 10 tells us that His sheep know His voice. Just like when YOUR mother calls you answer to her, not when someone else calls.
Jesus knows my name and I know His voice. When He calls I will answer.
What about you? Jesus knows your name too. He calls to you from the deepest deep, to the highest heights. Have you answered? Is He your Good Shepherd? Do you know His voice?
There is nothing that compares than to know that Jesus knows your name.
One day we will all stand before Him and your name will be of utmost importance then. For if it is not found in the Lambs Book of Life, then, even if you call on His name, it will be too late.
Seek Him while He may be found people. Now is the acceptable day of salvation.
Get to know Him and listen as He speaks your name.
Friday, April 12, 2013
April 18, 1960 -
"- ". Hmmm...now that is an interesting way to start a blog don't you think?
My birthday is coming up, and while it doesn't really matter to me it got me to thinking.
I really had no say in being born. I didn't get to choose my parents. I didn't get to choose the day or time. I won't get to choose the day I die. Those are things beyond my grasp of capabilities. Truthfully I am not responsible for those things any ways.
But I am responsible for the in between time.
The "-."
Have you ever went and looked at a graveyard? Last year my sisters and I walked through an older graveyard in Stanton Texas. It wasn't very big, but it was full. It was a very peaceful place.
We walked around and looked at the different headstones that were there. Some were decorated with pretty flowers etched into the stone. Some had babies or different items etched into them to represent the person that had been placed there so long ago. The dates were in the early 1900's and late 1800's.
I would venture to say that there is probably no one around at this time that remembers a single person that was buried there. I started to say soul that was buried there, but I would have been wrong. There are no souls there. Just worn out bones turned to dust.
We looked at the headstones like I said and they all had dates on them. A beginning date and and end date. Some were many years apart, some only days, possibly hours. But each had a beginning and an end.
But stuck between each of the dates the stone carvers had meticulously etched in a "-".
How funny that the dash, the most important thing in a persons life, would get so little recognition.
Oh sure some said "Loving wife" "Loving husband" "Sweet Baby", but really is that all the description that they will get.
They existed on this earth but for a short time. All of us are like that.
We think that because we exist now that somehow that matters. It has to count for something right? But really, it is just a dash.
James 4:14 says our lives are but a vapor. Have you ever watched vapor? It is there but for a moment and then it is gone. You never see it again. Poof and it is out of here. That is our lives.
Solomon put it in these terms, "There is a time to be born and a time to die."
But what about that dash?
Oh true, our lives mean something right now while we are living and breathing, but when we take that last breath, when our hearts beat that last thump, what will the dash be that stands in between?
Our lives on this earth are but for a moment. Fleeting moments at that. But our souls are for eternity. That is why I couldn't say that souls were buried in that little graveyard, or any graveyard for that matter. No, your body may die but your soul is eternal.
Where we spend eternity depends on that dash. It is a very important thing. So many of us think that we were put on this earth to please ourselves. That it doesn't matter what we do, or who we do it to. We think we are only answerable to ourselves. But we will be answerable, some day. Eternity waits for everyone. And then the judgement.
Someday, hopefully soon, my Lord and Savior is going to be coming back for those whose dash lived for Him. Those who knew that this vapor of a life would not matter, but that eternity would. That dash determines your destination.
Yes this life is but a vapor. It will pass. For some way too soon and for others it lingers way too long, but in the grand scheme of eternity it is but a moment.
As we looked at the headstones we could see the occupations of some of the people. Like I said earlier, Mother, Father, child, some were Sailors, Preachers Farmers, etc. You can go to any graveyard in the world and on most headstones you would be able to find a word or two, possibly a short poem that would describe the person buried beneath your feet. But as descriptive and eloquent as those words may be, it is still the "-" that will speak for us when we stand before God.
It is said of a famous actor/singer that his headstone says "I did it my way." A lot of our headstones do not have to have that etched into them, it is just a given
Mathew 7:21-23 says "Not everyone who says to me, "Lord, Lord," will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, "Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?" Then I will tell them plainly, "I never knew you. Away from me you evil doers!"
There is a poem called "Only One Life Twill Soon Be Past" by C. T. Studd. If you get a chance look it up. The two lines that always stick out to me are "Only one life twill soon be past, Only what's done for Christ will last."
So I ask you, when you stand before God on judgement day, will you be able to defend your "-" or will He look at you like He will so many others and declare "I never knew you"?
My birthday is coming up, and while it doesn't really matter to me it got me to thinking.
I really had no say in being born. I didn't get to choose my parents. I didn't get to choose the day or time. I won't get to choose the day I die. Those are things beyond my grasp of capabilities. Truthfully I am not responsible for those things any ways.
But I am responsible for the in between time.
The "-."
Have you ever went and looked at a graveyard? Last year my sisters and I walked through an older graveyard in Stanton Texas. It wasn't very big, but it was full. It was a very peaceful place.
We walked around and looked at the different headstones that were there. Some were decorated with pretty flowers etched into the stone. Some had babies or different items etched into them to represent the person that had been placed there so long ago. The dates were in the early 1900's and late 1800's.
I would venture to say that there is probably no one around at this time that remembers a single person that was buried there. I started to say soul that was buried there, but I would have been wrong. There are no souls there. Just worn out bones turned to dust.
We looked at the headstones like I said and they all had dates on them. A beginning date and and end date. Some were many years apart, some only days, possibly hours. But each had a beginning and an end.
But stuck between each of the dates the stone carvers had meticulously etched in a "-".
How funny that the dash, the most important thing in a persons life, would get so little recognition.
Oh sure some said "Loving wife" "Loving husband" "Sweet Baby", but really is that all the description that they will get.
They existed on this earth but for a short time. All of us are like that.
We think that because we exist now that somehow that matters. It has to count for something right? But really, it is just a dash.
James 4:14 says our lives are but a vapor. Have you ever watched vapor? It is there but for a moment and then it is gone. You never see it again. Poof and it is out of here. That is our lives.
Solomon put it in these terms, "There is a time to be born and a time to die."
But what about that dash?
Oh true, our lives mean something right now while we are living and breathing, but when we take that last breath, when our hearts beat that last thump, what will the dash be that stands in between?
Our lives on this earth are but for a moment. Fleeting moments at that. But our souls are for eternity. That is why I couldn't say that souls were buried in that little graveyard, or any graveyard for that matter. No, your body may die but your soul is eternal.
Where we spend eternity depends on that dash. It is a very important thing. So many of us think that we were put on this earth to please ourselves. That it doesn't matter what we do, or who we do it to. We think we are only answerable to ourselves. But we will be answerable, some day. Eternity waits for everyone. And then the judgement.
Someday, hopefully soon, my Lord and Savior is going to be coming back for those whose dash lived for Him. Those who knew that this vapor of a life would not matter, but that eternity would. That dash determines your destination.
Yes this life is but a vapor. It will pass. For some way too soon and for others it lingers way too long, but in the grand scheme of eternity it is but a moment.
As we looked at the headstones we could see the occupations of some of the people. Like I said earlier, Mother, Father, child, some were Sailors, Preachers Farmers, etc. You can go to any graveyard in the world and on most headstones you would be able to find a word or two, possibly a short poem that would describe the person buried beneath your feet. But as descriptive and eloquent as those words may be, it is still the "-" that will speak for us when we stand before God.
It is said of a famous actor/singer that his headstone says "I did it my way." A lot of our headstones do not have to have that etched into them, it is just a given
Mathew 7:21-23 says "Not everyone who says to me, "Lord, Lord," will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, "Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?" Then I will tell them plainly, "I never knew you. Away from me you evil doers!"
There is a poem called "Only One Life Twill Soon Be Past" by C. T. Studd. If you get a chance look it up. The two lines that always stick out to me are "Only one life twill soon be past, Only what's done for Christ will last."
So I ask you, when you stand before God on judgement day, will you be able to defend your "-" or will He look at you like He will so many others and declare "I never knew you"?
Sunday, March 24, 2013
You Got More On You Than In You
Many of you that read my little stories here know me. And if you know me then you know that when I eat I tend to get something on me at some point. My husband says that if I'm not wearing it then I didn't enjoy it.
I have been thinking about that lately. I have been wondering how that applies to us as Christians. We go to church on Sundays and hear the word preached and we leave and forget what we heard. We may remember something here or there and think to ourselves "I should be doing that," or "My life might be a lot better off if I did some of those things that preacher said." We might even start doing some of it.
We can quote scriptures. Repeat sermons. Pray the loudest. Give the most in the offering plate.
A lot of times we beat our chest and stand in the synagogues and when people notice us we believe that we are the fairest of them all. When in all actuality we are just modern day Pharisees.
They knew all the rules. What they should do and shouldn't do. What they should and shouldn't say. But they had not let it change who they were. They were so blinded by the rules and regulations that they set for themselves that they couldn't even recognize the Messiah when He walked among them. They had so much religiosity about them but it was only skin deep.
The word that they had read. The laws that Moses had been passed down. The truths that they had been taught had made it into their mind but not into their hearts. It showed up on the outside. When anyone or everyone was looking they knew just what to do. They had more on them than in them.
They were trying to impress anyone that would look. But the one that was paying the most attention was not impressed.
And He is not impressed with us either when we do those same things. So many times we know how to talk the talk but we don't actually walk the walk.
The word of God tells us that we are not to be a pleaser of men but of God.
In Exodus it tells us that man looks on the outside but God looks on the heart.
So I ask you, are you wearing your religion or has the word of God actually penetrated your heart and is making a difference in your life?
The word of God tells us that by this you will know that you are my friend when you keep My commandments.
If we don't allow the word of God to get inside of us and change us, then we are like a person that went to the banqueting table and wiped the food all over the outside of our clothes and walked away to show everyone what we ate and that we had been to the banqueting table. The food has done us no good. No nutritional value was added to us at all.
It is just the same as if you went to church and left and spouted everything that you heard that day to everyone that you meet but you don't start doing what you heard, living it out, letting it into your heart, letting it change you. You don't grow into the person that God wants you to be. You have more on you than in you.
Are you wearing your religion or are you growing in the fullness of the Lord?
Jesus prepared the fish for His disciples while they were out fishing, when He called to them He didn't say come and spread this food I have prepared for you all over yourselves so that you can say "Look, Jesus made breakfast for us." No! Jesus clearly told them "Come and EAT!"
Jesus, when preaching to a bunch of people asked the question, "What good does it do a man to gain the whole world but lose his soul?" I am asking you what good is it for you to go to church and not let the things that you are learning change you?
The bible tells us our good deeds are as filthy rags. I wonder, if we are filthy, is it from all the spiritual food we are wearing?
I pray that you would start to feast on the word of God and allow it's goodness to fill you. I pray that you would have a hunger and a thirst for righteousness. I pray that you would be full to overflowing.
I pray that you would start to get more in you than on you.
That you would desire the word of God like a newborn desires mothers milk, like a working man desires an evening meal, like a birthday boy desires cake and ice cream. That you would yearn for more of the word in your life so much so that you could not get enough.
I know so many of us are on a diet. We are trying to lose a few pounds. But this is one area of our lives that we can not afford to become anemic in.
Psalm 34:8 tells us to TASTE and see the Lord is good. So I beg you to feast at the banqueting table He prepares for you. Taste and see the Lord is good. Do not get more on you than in you.
I have been thinking about that lately. I have been wondering how that applies to us as Christians. We go to church on Sundays and hear the word preached and we leave and forget what we heard. We may remember something here or there and think to ourselves "I should be doing that," or "My life might be a lot better off if I did some of those things that preacher said." We might even start doing some of it.
We can quote scriptures. Repeat sermons. Pray the loudest. Give the most in the offering plate.
A lot of times we beat our chest and stand in the synagogues and when people notice us we believe that we are the fairest of them all. When in all actuality we are just modern day Pharisees.
They knew all the rules. What they should do and shouldn't do. What they should and shouldn't say. But they had not let it change who they were. They were so blinded by the rules and regulations that they set for themselves that they couldn't even recognize the Messiah when He walked among them. They had so much religiosity about them but it was only skin deep.
The word that they had read. The laws that Moses had been passed down. The truths that they had been taught had made it into their mind but not into their hearts. It showed up on the outside. When anyone or everyone was looking they knew just what to do. They had more on them than in them.
They were trying to impress anyone that would look. But the one that was paying the most attention was not impressed.
And He is not impressed with us either when we do those same things. So many times we know how to talk the talk but we don't actually walk the walk.
The word of God tells us that we are not to be a pleaser of men but of God.
In Exodus it tells us that man looks on the outside but God looks on the heart.
So I ask you, are you wearing your religion or has the word of God actually penetrated your heart and is making a difference in your life?
The word of God tells us that by this you will know that you are my friend when you keep My commandments.
If we don't allow the word of God to get inside of us and change us, then we are like a person that went to the banqueting table and wiped the food all over the outside of our clothes and walked away to show everyone what we ate and that we had been to the banqueting table. The food has done us no good. No nutritional value was added to us at all.
It is just the same as if you went to church and left and spouted everything that you heard that day to everyone that you meet but you don't start doing what you heard, living it out, letting it into your heart, letting it change you. You don't grow into the person that God wants you to be. You have more on you than in you.
Are you wearing your religion or are you growing in the fullness of the Lord?
Jesus prepared the fish for His disciples while they were out fishing, when He called to them He didn't say come and spread this food I have prepared for you all over yourselves so that you can say "Look, Jesus made breakfast for us." No! Jesus clearly told them "Come and EAT!"
Jesus, when preaching to a bunch of people asked the question, "What good does it do a man to gain the whole world but lose his soul?" I am asking you what good is it for you to go to church and not let the things that you are learning change you?
The bible tells us our good deeds are as filthy rags. I wonder, if we are filthy, is it from all the spiritual food we are wearing?
I pray that you would start to feast on the word of God and allow it's goodness to fill you. I pray that you would have a hunger and a thirst for righteousness. I pray that you would be full to overflowing.
I pray that you would start to get more in you than on you.
That you would desire the word of God like a newborn desires mothers milk, like a working man desires an evening meal, like a birthday boy desires cake and ice cream. That you would yearn for more of the word in your life so much so that you could not get enough.
I know so many of us are on a diet. We are trying to lose a few pounds. But this is one area of our lives that we can not afford to become anemic in.
Psalm 34:8 tells us to TASTE and see the Lord is good. So I beg you to feast at the banqueting table He prepares for you. Taste and see the Lord is good. Do not get more on you than in you.
Sunday, March 10, 2013
Whatcha Thinkin
We have all heard the expression "Whatcha thinkin" or "A penny for your thoughts." If you are like me the thoughts you sometimes have in your head are not worth a penny. A lot of the time we are pre-occupied with the mundane things in life such as "What am I going to fix for dinner" "I have to stop and get gas in my car" "How am I going to get my kids to clean their rooms for the umpteenth time". And then if you are like me it is back to "What am I going to fix for dinner." Mundane but everyday thoughts that come and go.
And we are going to have those thoughts. And pardon my pun but we really don't give "a second thought" to them. They are normal thought processes that we have throughout the day. It is called life happens.
We can't help but think of these things periodically, we really wouldn't be human otherwise, but where we fall short is when we dwell on these things.
When these things are not just passing thoughts but take up residence. They move in and take up space and we begin to dwell on it, worry about it, talk about it. Not that we are not supposed to think about things and make plans but when these thoughts are ALL that we think about then we have given up real estate in our minds.
So, whatcha thinkin? What's on your mind? We have thoughts that come in and out of our minds that we sometimes don't want there. Things we have seen, things we have heard. We let our imaginations, day dreams, night dreams, our every thought, encompass around these things. We know we should not be thinking of them, but we can't help when some fleeting thought comes through the cobwebs but what becomes the problem is when we decide to give time to those thoughts, to dwell on them. We allow them to occupy our minds.
The word of God tells us to take these thoughts captive. Not to dwell on them. Not to let them take up residence in our minds.
In 2 Corinthians we are told that not only are we in a warfare, but it is a spiritual warfare. One that starts in the mind. We are told to cast down, take captive, every imagination, every thing or any thing that would exhalt itself above God.
When we start to dwell on things that are not godly, things that would lend itself to pride, sexual sin, gossip, mean thoughts, any thing that would lead you into sin, then we are in danger of getting our eyes off of the Lord and backsliding.
We have been told the things that are acceptable to think on, "Whatsoever things are true, noble, just, pure and lovely. If it is of good report and is virtuous or if it is praiseworthy, these are the things you are to think on, meditate on." Phillipians 4:8
David, a man after God's own heart, had it right. He knew that the fight started in his mind. He knew that to overcome the things in this life that would cause us to stumble, cause us to fall, he needed to meditate on the things of the Lord, His laws, His statutes. He knew that he had need to write them on his heart, hide them there, meditate on, think on them day and night. Psalms 119:15
He knew where his strength came from. It came from the Lord. The word of the Lord was his strength. He meditated on it day and night. He called thoughts into captive.
I believe that is why we need to put on the helmet of salvation, to protect our very thoughts. To protect and keep that which is so precious, our salvation. We should take thoughts captive that would easily steal and rob us of our greatest gift.
We can't help a fleeting thought but we can help ourselves to not give it credence. We do not have to give it a place, a dwelling place if you will.
We are to occupy until He comes, until He returns. We are to occupy our minds, our thoughts, our lives with the whatsoevers listed in Philipians 4:8
So, I ask you, whatcha thinkin about? What is occupying your mind?
And we are going to have those thoughts. And pardon my pun but we really don't give "a second thought" to them. They are normal thought processes that we have throughout the day. It is called life happens.
We can't help but think of these things periodically, we really wouldn't be human otherwise, but where we fall short is when we dwell on these things.
When these things are not just passing thoughts but take up residence. They move in and take up space and we begin to dwell on it, worry about it, talk about it. Not that we are not supposed to think about things and make plans but when these thoughts are ALL that we think about then we have given up real estate in our minds.
So, whatcha thinkin? What's on your mind? We have thoughts that come in and out of our minds that we sometimes don't want there. Things we have seen, things we have heard. We let our imaginations, day dreams, night dreams, our every thought, encompass around these things. We know we should not be thinking of them, but we can't help when some fleeting thought comes through the cobwebs but what becomes the problem is when we decide to give time to those thoughts, to dwell on them. We allow them to occupy our minds.
The word of God tells us to take these thoughts captive. Not to dwell on them. Not to let them take up residence in our minds.
In 2 Corinthians we are told that not only are we in a warfare, but it is a spiritual warfare. One that starts in the mind. We are told to cast down, take captive, every imagination, every thing or any thing that would exhalt itself above God.
When we start to dwell on things that are not godly, things that would lend itself to pride, sexual sin, gossip, mean thoughts, any thing that would lead you into sin, then we are in danger of getting our eyes off of the Lord and backsliding.
We have been told the things that are acceptable to think on, "Whatsoever things are true, noble, just, pure and lovely. If it is of good report and is virtuous or if it is praiseworthy, these are the things you are to think on, meditate on." Phillipians 4:8
David, a man after God's own heart, had it right. He knew that the fight started in his mind. He knew that to overcome the things in this life that would cause us to stumble, cause us to fall, he needed to meditate on the things of the Lord, His laws, His statutes. He knew that he had need to write them on his heart, hide them there, meditate on, think on them day and night. Psalms 119:15
He knew where his strength came from. It came from the Lord. The word of the Lord was his strength. He meditated on it day and night. He called thoughts into captive.
I believe that is why we need to put on the helmet of salvation, to protect our very thoughts. To protect and keep that which is so precious, our salvation. We should take thoughts captive that would easily steal and rob us of our greatest gift.
We can't help a fleeting thought but we can help ourselves to not give it credence. We do not have to give it a place, a dwelling place if you will.
We are to occupy until He comes, until He returns. We are to occupy our minds, our thoughts, our lives with the whatsoevers listed in Philipians 4:8
So, I ask you, whatcha thinkin about? What is occupying your mind?
Sunday, March 3, 2013
Darlins' Daze: So This is Love
Darlins' Daze: So This is Love: Hmmm...so like many of you, you may have noticed that we just finished the shortest month of the year. Yet for this year for me it was pack...
So This is Love
Hmmm...so like many of you, you may have noticed that we just finished the shortest month of the year. Yet for this year for me it was packed with so much.
This is the month that we get to celebrate love. Not like we shouldn't celebrate it every month, but this month is especially set aside for it.
Now, many of you have probably heard me declare that if I had known how much I was going to love Valentines Day I would have gotten married on that day. I do love Valentines Day.
I really don't know why. I love chocolate and candy hearts and some would think that is why, but no that is not it. I love the sentimental little cards. The ones that come in boxes and have the cute little kids and sayings on them, even more so when I come across vintage ones from someones childhood, they bring a tear to my eyes, but again, that is not why I love Valentines Day.
So I asked myself, "Why?" The best answer I can come up with is because it represents and reminds us of love. Albeit it is more the physical attraction kind of love but I look at it as more of what love should be.
So I got to thinking, what is love? What does it look like? What does it sound like? I am such a blessed person, I didn't have far to look. The answers are where I always look. The Bible.
So since February is the month that represents love I looked to the chapter in the bible that represents love. We all know it, some of us could probably recite it. 1st Corinthians 13.
I had recently heard someone preach on it so I thought I would try to see if I could understand it better myself.
I wanted to measure myself against this chapter. I really did not want to use the measuring stick against myself but I want to be a person that is known to love everyone and I know that I fall short in this. Not that I don't love them but I realize that sometimes I am doing things for people because it is the right thing to do and not necessarily out of love.
So I went to the book and where I could I put my name there. This is what it looks like.
Though Darla talks as if she knows the word of God, but she doesn't have love, she is just a loud noise. And even if Darla has the gift of prophecy, she understands the mysteries of the Word of God, and has faith that is unshakable, so much so that she could pray for the sick and move mountains, if she does not have love then what's the point. And what if Darla gave all that she had to feed the poor and needy, and she gave her body to be burned, but there was no love in it, then she lost everything, it did her no good.
(Love)Darla suffers long, she puts up with a lot of people that could easily annoy her, Darla is kind to everyone, Darla is not jealous if you get something she doesn't have, in fact Darla thinks you deserve it, Darla does not have a highly inflated ego where she thinks she is the greatest thing since sliced bread, thinking herself to be something she is not. Darla does not treat people rudely, she is very accommodating, Darla does not have to have her way all the time, Darla does not loose her temper easily, Darla does not think mean thoughts towards people or situations, Darla does not think it is okay that people sin, it breaks her heart, Darla is glad when she hears a sinner has come to know God as their personal savior.
Darla holds people up and defends them, Darla believes the best about people and is saddened when proven wrong, Darla endures a lot, she keeps on keeping on even though it gets hard at times and it would be easier to just move to the wayside.
Darla never fails, messes up, gets things wrong, hurts peoples feelings. Prophecies may fail, they can be proven wrong, or God's heart can be moved to do something different, tongues can be wrong, false, twisted, wisdom and knowledge may not always be what we thought it to be, the world is no longer thought to be flat after all.
Darla knows some things, very little, and can prophecy or predict what she has understanding of, but it is limited.
But when Darla gets to heaven all will be revealed to her, she will have her eyes and her heart opened to all the wonderful things that she could not figure out here on earth. She will have a clearer picture of what God was trying to do when He took her through trials and tribulations and she did not know why.
When Darla was a young christian she spoke and acted like a young christian, she grew a little and the Word of God grew in her and she began to realize that she needed to become more of what the Word of God was and said.
Darla would read the Word and seek Godly council on it but sometimes she still couldn't fathom what God was trying to tell her, she could not wrap her brain around it. But one day she will stand before God and He will reveal His heart to her.
But for now while Darla is still on this earth she has faith, hope and love to keep her company, to walk with, but out of the three, the greatest one that she needs to practice in her life is love.
When I go back and interject my name into this chapter, this epiphany of love, I find myself lacking. Not because I want to but because I just do.
I want to walk in love. I want to talk in love. I want to act, respond and do out of love. I want God's love to flow through me onto others.
I can go through the word of God and find so many times where He tells us to love.
Be kind one to another. Ephesians 4:32
Be imitators of Christ. Walk in love as Christ also loved us. Ephesians 5:1-2
Beloved let us love one another, for love is of God and everyone that love is born of God and knows God. 1st John 4:7
Beloved if God so loved us we ought to love one another. 1st John 4:11
If someone says I love God and hates his brother he is a liar. Gods commandment is he who loves God must also love his brother. 1st John 4:20-21
Jesus said, "As the Father loved me, I have loved you. Abide, dwell, stay inside my love. If you keep my commandments you will dwell in my love, just as I have kept my Fathers commandments and dwell in His love. I tell you these things so that you will have my joy and that it would remain in you and your joy would be full. John 15:9-12
So this is love that you keep His commandments, that you show kindness to others and then you will know His joy, His peace, the perfect peace that passes all understanding.
Oh that everything I do be done in love.
I would want to walk and move and speak in His love so that when others look at me they no longer see Darla but they would be able to to say of me, "So this is love.!"
I double dog, no triple dog dare you to put your name in this chapter and let God speak to your heart and let everything that you do be done in love.
May the love of God abound in you dear friends, may the love of God abound in you.
This is the month that we get to celebrate love. Not like we shouldn't celebrate it every month, but this month is especially set aside for it.
Now, many of you have probably heard me declare that if I had known how much I was going to love Valentines Day I would have gotten married on that day. I do love Valentines Day.
I really don't know why. I love chocolate and candy hearts and some would think that is why, but no that is not it. I love the sentimental little cards. The ones that come in boxes and have the cute little kids and sayings on them, even more so when I come across vintage ones from someones childhood, they bring a tear to my eyes, but again, that is not why I love Valentines Day.
So I asked myself, "Why?" The best answer I can come up with is because it represents and reminds us of love. Albeit it is more the physical attraction kind of love but I look at it as more of what love should be.
So I got to thinking, what is love? What does it look like? What does it sound like? I am such a blessed person, I didn't have far to look. The answers are where I always look. The Bible.
So since February is the month that represents love I looked to the chapter in the bible that represents love. We all know it, some of us could probably recite it. 1st Corinthians 13.
I had recently heard someone preach on it so I thought I would try to see if I could understand it better myself.
I wanted to measure myself against this chapter. I really did not want to use the measuring stick against myself but I want to be a person that is known to love everyone and I know that I fall short in this. Not that I don't love them but I realize that sometimes I am doing things for people because it is the right thing to do and not necessarily out of love.
So I went to the book and where I could I put my name there. This is what it looks like.
Though Darla talks as if she knows the word of God, but she doesn't have love, she is just a loud noise. And even if Darla has the gift of prophecy, she understands the mysteries of the Word of God, and has faith that is unshakable, so much so that she could pray for the sick and move mountains, if she does not have love then what's the point. And what if Darla gave all that she had to feed the poor and needy, and she gave her body to be burned, but there was no love in it, then she lost everything, it did her no good.
(Love)Darla suffers long, she puts up with a lot of people that could easily annoy her, Darla is kind to everyone, Darla is not jealous if you get something she doesn't have, in fact Darla thinks you deserve it, Darla does not have a highly inflated ego where she thinks she is the greatest thing since sliced bread, thinking herself to be something she is not. Darla does not treat people rudely, she is very accommodating, Darla does not have to have her way all the time, Darla does not loose her temper easily, Darla does not think mean thoughts towards people or situations, Darla does not think it is okay that people sin, it breaks her heart, Darla is glad when she hears a sinner has come to know God as their personal savior.
Darla holds people up and defends them, Darla believes the best about people and is saddened when proven wrong, Darla endures a lot, she keeps on keeping on even though it gets hard at times and it would be easier to just move to the wayside.
Darla never fails, messes up, gets things wrong, hurts peoples feelings. Prophecies may fail, they can be proven wrong, or God's heart can be moved to do something different, tongues can be wrong, false, twisted, wisdom and knowledge may not always be what we thought it to be, the world is no longer thought to be flat after all.
Darla knows some things, very little, and can prophecy or predict what she has understanding of, but it is limited.
But when Darla gets to heaven all will be revealed to her, she will have her eyes and her heart opened to all the wonderful things that she could not figure out here on earth. She will have a clearer picture of what God was trying to do when He took her through trials and tribulations and she did not know why.
When Darla was a young christian she spoke and acted like a young christian, she grew a little and the Word of God grew in her and she began to realize that she needed to become more of what the Word of God was and said.
Darla would read the Word and seek Godly council on it but sometimes she still couldn't fathom what God was trying to tell her, she could not wrap her brain around it. But one day she will stand before God and He will reveal His heart to her.
But for now while Darla is still on this earth she has faith, hope and love to keep her company, to walk with, but out of the three, the greatest one that she needs to practice in her life is love.
When I go back and interject my name into this chapter, this epiphany of love, I find myself lacking. Not because I want to but because I just do.
I want to walk in love. I want to talk in love. I want to act, respond and do out of love. I want God's love to flow through me onto others.
I can go through the word of God and find so many times where He tells us to love.
Be kind one to another. Ephesians 4:32
Be imitators of Christ. Walk in love as Christ also loved us. Ephesians 5:1-2
Beloved let us love one another, for love is of God and everyone that love is born of God and knows God. 1st John 4:7
Beloved if God so loved us we ought to love one another. 1st John 4:11
If someone says I love God and hates his brother he is a liar. Gods commandment is he who loves God must also love his brother. 1st John 4:20-21
Jesus said, "As the Father loved me, I have loved you. Abide, dwell, stay inside my love. If you keep my commandments you will dwell in my love, just as I have kept my Fathers commandments and dwell in His love. I tell you these things so that you will have my joy and that it would remain in you and your joy would be full. John 15:9-12
So this is love that you keep His commandments, that you show kindness to others and then you will know His joy, His peace, the perfect peace that passes all understanding.
Oh that everything I do be done in love.
I would want to walk and move and speak in His love so that when others look at me they no longer see Darla but they would be able to to say of me, "So this is love.!"
I double dog, no triple dog dare you to put your name in this chapter and let God speak to your heart and let everything that you do be done in love.
May the love of God abound in you dear friends, may the love of God abound in you.
Sunday, February 3, 2013
Getting to know You, getting to know all about you
It is so good to be back at the keyboard writing from my heart. Not that I haven't wanted to be here it is just so many other things were taking priority.
I know you are wondering where I am going with this title, so I will begin.
Over a year ago I was laid off from my last job.
I have always had a love for the Lord, but when you end up not having a job after having worked for so long you get to see your "faith in action" as it were.
I mean, I knew I loved Him, I knew I trusted Him and I knew that His word was "Yes" and "Amen" but I had never really had to put it to the test.
So many times that is what happens, life comes up and bites us, death of a loved one, loss of income, major accident, and we have to decide are we who we have confessed for so long or is it a lie.
I determined in my heart that I was going to walk out all the things that I had been confessing all my life.
I believed it to be true. I confessed it to be true.
There was something in my knower, that part of me that is where peace reigns, that knew God had this. He always had and He always would.
I took time to really start reading my bible and spending time with God. I didn't make a wish list with God, but I started asking Him to reveal Himself to me. Show me where I should walk, show me what I should say, how I should behave. I wanted Him to reveal Himself to me in a deeper way.
I started seeking Him in everything. Not just in getting a job but in every aspect of my life.
I knew I had to look for a job, but above that I wanted to look for Jesus. His word tells us to seek Him while He may be found. I wanted to do that. I didn't want a surface relationship with Him. I wanted to go deeper with Him.
I wanted to pour gasoline, for lack of a better explanation, on the embers that were the still burning for my Lord. I didn't want a love that was a flame, I wanted a burning inferno. I wanted a love that was so on fire for the Lord that it singed the very hairs off of the devil any time He tried to get between me and the Lord.
I wanted to get to know Him, get to know all about Him.
I started reading my bible. Every day. It has gotten to the point where if I get up running late I still have to read at least one chapter before I feel like I can really begin my day.
Instead of TV time in the mornings I started turning off the news and turning on the Good News.
I know we have all heard "You are what you eat." And although I believe we need to be informed of what is going on in our world, we can't hide from it, we have to be equipped to deal with it.
His word is the ammunition we need to combat the fiery darts that Satan throws at us. He equips us daily as we walk in it, study it, read it, devour it. It never goes out of style. It reminds us of how we are supposed to be living.
I think of my kids and my grand kids.
We would tell our kids not to do something and for a while that would bode in there lives. But without a reminder here and there they were and are apt to fall back into old habits of not picking up there toys, fighting with there siblings, sitting too close to the TV, etc... But we remind them and with gentle persuasion from a quick swat on the behind they fall back into line.
If we are not around them to remind them as a constant, then they, being the little human beings that they are, would do as they pleased. Oh they might think about what we said but that would not always keep them on the straight and narrow, they might even feel bad for doing it, but it would not necessarily keep them from doing what felt right to them and not what you had been trying to teach them.
That is the same way with the word of God. If we don't read it and remind ourselves of the reasoning's that the Lord has laid out before us then we tend to forget to "Be kind to one another" or that gossiping and lying, even little white ones, gluttony, and even the innocent things such as seeking out your horoscope to find out what the future holds for you, are things that are a displeasure to God. We get complacent.
We sing the song "I keep falling in love with Him over and over and over and over and over again. But do we really?
Have you let the trials and tribulations of this world come between you and your first love? Are you finding that you only have a surface relationship with the one you say you love the best? Has it become a ritual and not a relationship?
If I could give any advice to young mothers would be to seek the Lord everyday. If it means getting up a half hour before anyone else and spend that alone time with God. Let Him minister to you. Seek Him and His wisdom for the day. Learn how to love your kids the way He loves you. To call their names out every morning and dedicate them every day back to the Lord. You have got to get back what the devil steals from you throughout the day. Start it with His peace and the devil gets no place in your home. Put Him first and you will find that your days get sweeter and sweeter and you will find peace that passes all understanding. Even beyond reasoning.
Oh I pray that we would find the time to spend alone with Him. That we would be still and let Him minister to us. That we would seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. That we would get up in the morning and get clothed in His righteousness. That the armor of God would begin to fit us like a glove. That we would get to know His heart and His desires for us and that we would delight in them. That He would reveal Himself to us and shine His light in our life in the crevices that we try to keep hidden.
When He starts to do these things in our life we may realize that it is not all fun.
He requires of us a deeper calling. A deeper walk.
Those of us who have known the Lord for a long time should not be the ones still sucking on the bottle. We should be ravenous for His word, for His teaching, but we can not hold on to the things of the world, to our past, to the things that we think we have hidden from those around us and have a walk that is worthy.
I want a walk that is deeper, fuller, richer. I want Him to reveal Himself to me in ways that I never even thought of.
My prayer, for myself, dear Lord, is that I get to know You, get to know all about You.
I know you are wondering where I am going with this title, so I will begin.
Over a year ago I was laid off from my last job.
I have always had a love for the Lord, but when you end up not having a job after having worked for so long you get to see your "faith in action" as it were.
I mean, I knew I loved Him, I knew I trusted Him and I knew that His word was "Yes" and "Amen" but I had never really had to put it to the test.
So many times that is what happens, life comes up and bites us, death of a loved one, loss of income, major accident, and we have to decide are we who we have confessed for so long or is it a lie.
I determined in my heart that I was going to walk out all the things that I had been confessing all my life.
I believed it to be true. I confessed it to be true.
There was something in my knower, that part of me that is where peace reigns, that knew God had this. He always had and He always would.
I took time to really start reading my bible and spending time with God. I didn't make a wish list with God, but I started asking Him to reveal Himself to me. Show me where I should walk, show me what I should say, how I should behave. I wanted Him to reveal Himself to me in a deeper way.
I started seeking Him in everything. Not just in getting a job but in every aspect of my life.
I knew I had to look for a job, but above that I wanted to look for Jesus. His word tells us to seek Him while He may be found. I wanted to do that. I didn't want a surface relationship with Him. I wanted to go deeper with Him.
I wanted to pour gasoline, for lack of a better explanation, on the embers that were the still burning for my Lord. I didn't want a love that was a flame, I wanted a burning inferno. I wanted a love that was so on fire for the Lord that it singed the very hairs off of the devil any time He tried to get between me and the Lord.
I wanted to get to know Him, get to know all about Him.
I started reading my bible. Every day. It has gotten to the point where if I get up running late I still have to read at least one chapter before I feel like I can really begin my day.
Instead of TV time in the mornings I started turning off the news and turning on the Good News.
I know we have all heard "You are what you eat." And although I believe we need to be informed of what is going on in our world, we can't hide from it, we have to be equipped to deal with it.
His word is the ammunition we need to combat the fiery darts that Satan throws at us. He equips us daily as we walk in it, study it, read it, devour it. It never goes out of style. It reminds us of how we are supposed to be living.
I think of my kids and my grand kids.
We would tell our kids not to do something and for a while that would bode in there lives. But without a reminder here and there they were and are apt to fall back into old habits of not picking up there toys, fighting with there siblings, sitting too close to the TV, etc... But we remind them and with gentle persuasion from a quick swat on the behind they fall back into line.
If we are not around them to remind them as a constant, then they, being the little human beings that they are, would do as they pleased. Oh they might think about what we said but that would not always keep them on the straight and narrow, they might even feel bad for doing it, but it would not necessarily keep them from doing what felt right to them and not what you had been trying to teach them.
That is the same way with the word of God. If we don't read it and remind ourselves of the reasoning's that the Lord has laid out before us then we tend to forget to "Be kind to one another" or that gossiping and lying, even little white ones, gluttony, and even the innocent things such as seeking out your horoscope to find out what the future holds for you, are things that are a displeasure to God. We get complacent.
We sing the song "I keep falling in love with Him over and over and over and over and over again. But do we really?
Have you let the trials and tribulations of this world come between you and your first love? Are you finding that you only have a surface relationship with the one you say you love the best? Has it become a ritual and not a relationship?
If I could give any advice to young mothers would be to seek the Lord everyday. If it means getting up a half hour before anyone else and spend that alone time with God. Let Him minister to you. Seek Him and His wisdom for the day. Learn how to love your kids the way He loves you. To call their names out every morning and dedicate them every day back to the Lord. You have got to get back what the devil steals from you throughout the day. Start it with His peace and the devil gets no place in your home. Put Him first and you will find that your days get sweeter and sweeter and you will find peace that passes all understanding. Even beyond reasoning.
Oh I pray that we would find the time to spend alone with Him. That we would be still and let Him minister to us. That we would seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. That we would get up in the morning and get clothed in His righteousness. That the armor of God would begin to fit us like a glove. That we would get to know His heart and His desires for us and that we would delight in them. That He would reveal Himself to us and shine His light in our life in the crevices that we try to keep hidden.
When He starts to do these things in our life we may realize that it is not all fun.
He requires of us a deeper calling. A deeper walk.
Those of us who have known the Lord for a long time should not be the ones still sucking on the bottle. We should be ravenous for His word, for His teaching, but we can not hold on to the things of the world, to our past, to the things that we think we have hidden from those around us and have a walk that is worthy.
I want a walk that is deeper, fuller, richer. I want Him to reveal Himself to me in ways that I never even thought of.
My prayer, for myself, dear Lord, is that I get to know You, get to know all about You.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)