Today, while Chris and I were driving to lunch, I noticed a field of barren trees.  Their leaves had all fallen and you could see the beautiful bends and curves of every branch in their barren glory.  In a breath-taking moment I saw such beauty.  I immediately thought of the winter seasons of life, and I felt God move in my heart.

You see what people are really made of during the winter season.

The times when things are barren, and life is hard, but strength is exposed.  I love that.  I love that when I have walked through winter, I have discovered reserves of strength that I didn’t even know I had.  It’s also during those winter seasons that we discover what our relationships are made of.

It’s a stripping down of all pretension and an exposing of the internal.

I love that.

I love discovering the truth about people.  The truth about myself.  The truth about those I love.  I long for honesty and truth in all my relationships.

But have you ever seen someone walking through winter, while acting as if it is summer?

Why pretend to be what you are not?  If times are hard, then they are hard.  It is much easier to walk it out when you are honest.  Honesty about disappointment and discouragement are not signs of weakness, those are signs of strength.  Those are signs that you know who you are and are comfortable with yourself.

Yes, we should praise the Lord during those times, that’s not the “dishonesty” I’m talking about.  I am referring to the “I’m fine” people, or those who try to hide the winter season they are in.  That’s revealing, a not so great quality, pride.

Pride tells us to pretend.  Pride cautions us to not expose our weakness or strain.  Pride tells us to keep a brave face.

God has only ever asked for our honesty.  He has made room for our weakness, even to the point of making Himself strong within that place.

But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.”  Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.  For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities.  For when I am weak, then I am strong.  2 Corinthians 12:9-10

 

As I ran on the treadmill, I began to stare out the window and I noticed something, one lone red leaf left on an otherwise sleeping bush.  All the other leaves have given up and fallen, but not this one.  This leaf has an unrelenting hold.  It made me think of a couple of different things.

Unrelenting….this word won’t leave me……here’s the definition.

Unrelenting: not yielding in strength, severity, or determination

God is unrelenting.  He holds firm while every other person lets go or gives up.  He alone is immovable.  He stands firm.  He is never changing.  Our God is an awesome God, but He is also unrelenting.  His love is unrelenting.

I have become more and more unrelenting.  I have a deep unrelenting drive within me.  God placed it there before I was born.  As a baby and child, the enemy did all he could to push that out of me, but all he really did was stoke a natural fire that God had placed within me.  What He placed within me, the enemy was unable to destroy.  God can turn all things to His good.  He turned all the attacks into a training ground for my heart.  As a result, I have learned to be relentlessly unrelenting.  I am unrelenting in my pursuit of God.  I am unrelenting in my love for family and friends.  I am unrelenting in my desire to have wisdom and understanding so I can love others better.  I am unrelenting in worship.

I believe that as any of us takes time to soak in the Father’s love, and to learn who He created us to be, we naturally become unrelenting.

The wishy-washy religious types are those who have not developed the root system in the secret place.  Christianity has very little to do with what others can see, it has more to do with what is inside of you.  The One Who Sees, is always searching the earth for hearts that are turned toward Him.  Those who seek Him when nobody else is looking.  The ones who serve when nobody else knows they are doing it. He is looking for those unrelenting followers who will lay down their lives and follow Him.

For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to Him.  2 Chronicles 16:9a

Then Jesus told His disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.  For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it, for what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?  Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?  Matthew 16: 24-26

And He said to all, “If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow Me.  Luke 9:23

Do you ever really need someone to believe in you?  I do.

I think about this all the time.  It seems to be a deep, deep need within me to know that someone believes in me.  I can honestly see how much my life changed when I realized that I had married a man who truly and unquestioningly believed in me.  Until then, I had never known what that felt like.

God is constantly using my husband, and now, my kids to show me His unwavering heart for me.

He believes in me, and as a result, He has put that same belief within my family.

I noticed something though, if I never step out or try new things, then my kids never have a reason, or need to believe in me.  Does that make sense?  If I stay only in the predictable and routine, what is there to notice?  Because I long for my kids to be comfortable taking risks, and stretching themselves, I must first stretch myself and take my own risks.  I do it all right in front of my family.  They see it all, and I don’t hide any of it from them.  No success or failure is hidden from my husband and kids.  I don’t hide it because there is so much to learn from watching someone walk through both success and failure, and because they are a constant chorus of “You can do anything!  We believe in you!”

I have also led my kids to be a resounding, “You can do it!” for my husband.  I openly encourage him.  I do so because I love him, but also so they can remember that, even though he’s their dad, he is also a real person and needs encouraging just like they do.

A beautiful side effect of this practice has been that as a family unit, we are extremely loyal to one another.  Our bond is strong, and we are familiar with each of our strengths and weaknesses.

Today, I wanted to say, “I believe in you”.

I pray that as you read those words, they fell over your spirit like a warm balm from heaven.

I believe in you.  God believes in you too, and there’s nothing impossible for Him to do through you.

For nothing is impossible with God.  Luke 1:37

I can do all things through Him Who gives me strength.  Philippians 4:13

Do not let your hearts be troubled.  You believe in God; believe also in Me. John 14:1 

 

 

 

As you step into this day, I want to challenge you to seek out a diamond in the rough.

“What’s that?”, you say.  Well, look around your life, examine the people you interact with daily and ask God to highlight their potential.  Ask Him to show you their value and their strengths.  Instead of taking people at face value, look at their heart.

Has God placed a challenging person in your life?  You know what I mean, the kind of person who really rubs you the wrong way.  My challenge to you today is this, instead of thinking about how irritating that person is, ask God to show you their heart.  Ask Him to highlight their strengths.  Ask Him to show you the diamond inside them.  The diamond in the rough.

People who act miserably, do so for a reason.  But we all have gold inside.  We all have potential.  None of us is beyond the reach of God.  None of us is immune to His touch.  Maybe, just maybe, you are in that person’s life to call out the good inside of them.  You may only need to pray about it with God.  But there may also be opportunities for you to affirm that person.

One of the greatest things I’ve done for my husband and kids is to call out the things God has shown me about them.  Like saying, “You are created to ________”.  Or “I love the way God made you to do ________ so well.”

I would say those things even if the person wasn’t acting on it yet.  I would see what God showed me about them and then as encouragement and affirmation, I would say, “I see this really good thing inside of you.  Do you see it too?”

That’s not lying.  That’s calling the dry bones to life!

Will you allow God to use you to call life to dry bones today?

He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed-the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being, things that were not.  Romans 4:17b

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.  Romans 3:23

Then He said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord!  This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life.  I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life.  Then you will know that I am the Lord.’”  Ezekiel 37:4-6

 

 

For many years now, Chris and I will say to each other, “I love you anyway”.  To some of you this might seem unkind, but to me it is a sign of devotion.  Let me tell you how it was born.

For years, I was insecure about Chris’ love.  I was coming from a place of abandonment and woundedness and had trouble believing that anyone could be trusted to not leave me behind.  This led to an unfair burden placed on Chris.  But over time, and with healing from God, I realized what I was doing.

After this revelation, when Chris and I would have disagreements or if I thought he was being moody, instead of feeling insecure and wondering, “Is he going to leave me?”  I would simply say to him, “I love you anyway.”

It’s my way of saying, “We may not be getting along right now, but I still love you in the middle of it.”

Now he says it all the time too.  Anytime we disagree or argue that’s how we re-confirm our unconditional bond to one another.  “I love you anyway”.

Now, instead of looking for ways to push each other away because of the fear of rejection, we are confessing with our own mouths that we are committed, even when times are hard.

I feel very strongly that someone reading this really needed to hear this seemingly silly story.  God is unconditionally loving.  And even though we are human, we can still make strides toward learning more about how to give that same kind of love.

Can’t you just see the Father standing before you now saying, “No matter what you’ve done, I love you anyway.  No matter how you’ve sinned, I love you anyway.  Even when you reject Me, I love you anyway.  Unconditionally.”

Now that’s something.  Dwell in that place of receiving.  God will not ever reject you.  Ever.

I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.  And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ.  Ephesians 3:16-18

We love because He first loved us.  1 John 4:19

 

The other day when I asked Chris to do something, I ended my text request with “buddy”.  I never ever call him that, but for some reason I felt compelled to do so then.  He responded affirmatively and signed his response “your buddy”.  It was so funny, but during that little exchange, I felt something tug my spirit.  I realized that some part of me needed to see Chris as my friend once again.  Somewhere along the way recently, I had lost sight of that aspect of our marriage.

I’ve been told, some people don’t like to call their spouse their friend.  But, I absolutely love it when Chris has called me his best friend.  Somewhere deep inside, I needed to know that I was not only loved, but also liked.  Calling me his best friend gave me a unique status.  Not the customary “ball and chain” or “old lady”.  No, I’m his best friend.  It’s not unusual for us to tell each other that now.

I’m not sure why, but it touched a different part of my heart when we called each other “buddy”.  Then I had a revelation from the Lord and it all started to make sense.  That beautiful sense that only God can make through situations that may, on the surface, seem insignificant.  I have realized nothing  is insignificant to the Lord.

As I thought on the word buddy and why it stirred me, I heard God say, “Use the buddy system and nobody gets left behind.”  Like an arrow to my heart, I saw how significant this truly was.  Chris and I need each other.  We were made to walk this life out together, and with us and God nothing, absolutely nothing is impossible.

Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves.  A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.  Ecclesiastes 4:12

I know that I must do my part to keep watch of my buddy, and likewise he has the responsibility of watching out for me.  And we both must keep our eyes on God.  It’s a beautiful relationship.

Do you have a buddy?  Even if you are unmarried, God is already your Buddy.  Never fear.  No one will be left behind.  If you are thinking, “I want a buddy”.  Then just ask.

Until now you have not asked for anything in My name.  Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.  John 16:24

None of us was meant to navigate this life without companionship.  I am praying you will all be blessed with the buddy God has chosen for you.  Someone to walk through life and encourage and help strengthen you along with the Father.  It’s so good to have a conduit of His encouragement here on this earth.  He leaves nobody behind.  He plans for none to walk alone.  Press into His heart and if you find you are flying solo, then ask Him why.  Is He working out some healing in your life?  Or maybe, just maybe, He wants to solidify your friendship with Him before expanding your world…..I went through a season like that.  That season was one of the most beneficial seasons of my life.

No matter what your season is, ask God to show you who your buddy should be 😊

Lord, breathe Your breath of life over each one of us today.  Let us rise up singing Your praises for You alone are worthy of all praise.  You alone set the earth upon its foundations.  You alone spoke everything into existence.  You alone are the breath of life.  You alone.  God, I seek to honor You today.

God grabbed me.  God’s Spirit took me up and set me down in the middle of an open plain strewn with bones.  He led me around and among them- a lot of bones!  There were bones all over the plain- dry bones, bleached by the sun.  He said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?”  I said, “Master God, only You know that.”  He said to me, “Prophesy over these bones: ‘Dry bones, listen to the Message of God!’”  God, the Master, told the dry bones, “Watch this: I’m bringing the breath of life to you and you’ll come to life.  I’ll attach sinews to you, put meat on your bones, cover you with skin, and breathe life into you.  You’ll come alive and you’ll realize that I am God!”  Ezekiel 37:1-6

God is here now to breathe life into the dry bones upon the earth.

Why did God breathe life into those bones in Ezekiel?  To create an army!

God is here today to breathe life into our dry bones because He is assembling an army.  Our time has come, the battle is here, we must receive His breath of life if we are to survive this battle.  We must receive His breath of life if we are to be made ready for war!

Our time is now.  The time has come.

Let this devotional be a clarion call to the assembling troops.

Remember we are not few, we are many.  Don’t forget all of the unseen warriors…..

And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, Lord, so that he may see.”  Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.  2 Kings 6:17

I know sometimes we see all the enemies gnashing teeth and we feel intimidated and as if we are few, but that is another trick.  It is a lie.  We are many.  We are accompanied by angel armies and we will win this war!

Do you believe it?  Are you ready?

Lord, make us ready.  Steady our hearts and make us bold and courageous.  Remove the hangnail of fear from our lives.  Lord, open our eyes to see Your army surrounding us.  Let our hearts be full of the war cry of victory, as I am certain You have already won this war!  I will stand.  And if I become weak, I know You will surround me, and I will stand still.  Lord, I am Yours, in Jesus name, Amen.

 

 

I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace given me through the working of His power.  Although I am less than the least of all the Lord’s people, this grace was given me; to preach to the Gentiles the boundless riches of Christ, and to make plain to everyone the administration of this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, Who created all things.  His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, according to His eternal purpose that He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord.  Ephesians 3:7-11

As I was having my own devotional time the other day, I came across these verses.  Now, I have read the entire Bible several times, but somehow I never really absorbed what was said here.

Re-read this portion:  His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms…..

In my brow-beaten, “I must be less” state of mind, I had probably glazed over any mention that we on earth could have any influence upon heavenly things…. What does this mean?  Through the church the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms?

I don’t pretend to know the answer, but I just felt the need to put this out there.

Is it possible that we have so downplayed our existence and purpose that we are missing something huge?!

God wants to use His church on earth as a way to showcase His manifold wisdom.  As I researched the definition of manifold, I discovered it’s like saying, His great wisdom….to put it plainly.

God knows what He is doing.  He is the One moving and shaping the church.  He is the One sculpting us in His wisdom.  His great wisdom.

Isn’t that amazing?!

Maybe, just maybe, instead of criticizing and complaining about the church and how it does or doesn’t function, we should be asking God for His wisdom and how we can each apply it to our walk with Him and as a part of His body.

I feel like that last sentence fell upon some of your hearts like a lead weight of conviction.

If so, then let it.  Let it stir you to repentance.  Let it move you to become the best representation of God’s wisdom that you can be molded into.  Clearly, we are not wise on our own merit, not a single one of us, but when partnered with the Holy Spirit, we are one with Christ, our brother and Co-heir of the Kingdom.

God let Your manifold wisdom be shown through Your church, in Jesus name, Amen.

 

I am a runner, so every day I will carve out a little time to make that happen.  It’s a real priority in my life because of all the benefits.  Imagine my surprise yesterday, when I had just enough time to squeeze in a run and a shower before dinner and the evenings activities, God instructed me not to do so.  In the past, I may or may not have allowed my ears to be tuned to hear that gentle voice of instruction, but I clearly did yesterday.  I had two children who needed to study spelling for tests the following day, and while I could’ve still made that happen in a different way, I felt God instructing me to sit down and truly focus on them instead of running, and to do so as an act of worship.

Yes, you heard me, it was to be done as an act of worship.

Jesus replied, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all you mind.  This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  Matthew 22:37-39

Because I love the Lord, I listen to Him.  Even when I can’t fully understand the “why”.  And as I loved Him yesterday by obeying His prompting, I loved my neighbor as well….(my children).

I literally said to God, “As an act of worship I am not going to run today.  Instead, I will really focus on studying with my kids.”

Then I had plenty of time to sit and study and love on two of my babies.  It was a beautiful moment.

Not to mention, because I laid down my run, I wasn’t as rushed that afternoon.  The day continued in a pleasant and relaxing tempo and we all felt loved.

Do you love the Lord with all your strength?  That’s the word used in the book of Luke….

He answered, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind”; and ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  Luke 10:27

It took all my strength to lay down what I really wanted to do, and instead do what needed to be done.  To lay down my own agenda and time table and realize that sometimes it’s better to refrain for the sake of the family.

That day, I was loving my neighbor as myself, and I was loving the Lord with all my strength.

 

One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating.  Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked Him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”  “The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.  Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all you mind and with all your strength.  The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  There is no commandment greater than these.  Mark 12:28-31

In a world that has grown self-centered and very self-indulgent, it has become increasingly challenging to discover what healthy self-reflection and self-care looks like.  But please hear my heart, even though many over use and abuse the self-centered aspects of life, it doesn’t mean that believers should become self-deprecating and totally deny something that God clearly instructed us to do.

I honestly believe that we (the church universal) would be much more suited to take our rightful place and love our “neighbors”, if we would start with ourselves.

Isn’t it interesting that many “Christian cultures” or denominations seem to circle around how awful and terrible we innately are?  While it is true that we all sin and fall short of the glory of God, it is also true that the cleansing of salvation is thorough.  I wouldn’t want to rob God of a bit of His glory by continually walking around as a brow beaten servant when I can walk as an heir to the Kingdom.

That is exactly what Jesus paid for on the cross.  He paid for all our sins.  All.  That means when I receive Him into my heart, I become clean.  The rest of my days I walk out what learning to be more like Jesus looks like.  That’s the beauty of it.

We know the enemy is only here to steal, kill and destroy, so it makes total sense that he tries to exploit and twist all the good that God had set into place, including love your neighbor as yourself.

I encourage you today to ask God what it looks like for you, as a unique individual, to love yourself.

“How can that help you love others?”, you may be asking.  Well, it all stems from value.  We only value others as much as we value ourselves.  It’s truly interesting to watch this play out in people.  As I have grown in understanding how much God values me, my natural response has been to seek to understand and value others more and more.  It’s a beautiful exchange.

There’s no reason for us to continue this vicious cycle of needing to be less.  God is more than enough, and His glory cannot be threatened by little ole me.  On the contrary, I bring glory to Him when I discover more of who I was created to be in Him, and how I was created to love others.

Our God is an awesome God.