Recently, while having a conversation with a close friend, I felt Holy Spirit fall all over me and I had some thoughts about marriage, and some of the differences between men and women.

We often hear people referencing the Bible when speaking about women being the weaker sex, as if it’s a negative thing.  Then I thought about how a woman’s tears seem to draw men to come and protect them.  Often men have a hard time with the emotion of women, but I propose that it is because they long to come to our aid and protect us and fix whatever “ails us”……then I thought of how the Bible tells men/husbands to love their wives as Christ loves the church…..Christ had to come to the earth and die on the cross because of man’s weakness…..So maybe the very reflection of this weakness is found in the husband/wife scenario.

Often I have felt the weight of being accused in my “weakness”….Making me feel less than because I feel deeply and cry and am all things womanly.  But really, tears are such a strength.  Releasing the tears I have stored up gives me room to process and love and to feel…That IS strength….Strength in weakness.

We ALL had such weakness that Jesus had to come save us from ourselves, but as the Bible says, “In my weakness He is strong!”   So, is it possible that the thing that many use to accuse and invalidate women, is the very thing that God uses in us to make us so strong?  If women are the weaker sex, isn’t God even stronger in us?

In my weakness, I lean into the Father for His strength and protection and He becomes so strong in and around and through me!  What a beautiful exchange!!

But let’s take this a step further, what if the very weakness women have is what was meant to draw out the very strength and spirit of manhood?  What if it is the male/female interaction that draws out the strength in us all?  What if it wasn’t spoken in scripture as a negative or an accusation, but rather an insight into what makes the male/female dynamic so beautiful…and to help us further understand our relationship with Jesus.

I am NOT a feminist.  I am a daughter of the King and ALL of my value comes from Him alone.  I believe that true power and empowerment comes not from women dominating men, or men dominating women, but from us working together and complimenting each other.  My husband’s strengths cover my weaknesses and my strengths cover his, quite often.

I often wonder how long it will take for us to all decide to let each other be strong where we are strong, and then let those around us with different strengths come in and compliment us as we compliment them.

A true leader, whether male or female, knows that they don’t have to force anything.  A true leader is borne first in a person’s heart.  If a person is truly confident then they can let others shine and lead and excel.  It’s in our insecurities that we are threatened by another person’s leadership or strength.

As I watch different people groups in America fighting and protesting and basically throwing adult temper tantrums, I am burdened with all of these thoughts.  As I have been a part of church family dynamics for so long now, I am burdened with these thoughts….If the church is to truly take its right place, then we need both men and women to be leaders and voices.  What are we so afraid of?

Take a minute and ask God to show you your strengths.  Let Him shine His light throughout you.  You may discover a part of yourself that has been long hidden. How can you use this strength?  How can it compliment the strengths of those around you?  I believe each of our strengths are like building blocks for the “body”, the church body.  Like legos, we were made to snap together and work in unison to build some beautiful things.  If you are willing, give God permission to use you.  It may seem like a scary thing to say, but I assure you the fulfillment of being used by your Creator for your specific purpose is the greatest joy!

In the Lord however, woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman.  For as woman came from man, so also man is born of woman.  But everything comes from God.                         I Corinthians 11:11-12

Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of that gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers.  I Peter 3:7

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 about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.  That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in my weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties.  For when I am weak, then I am strong.  2 Corinthians 12:9-11

Some time ago, I read a book called, “The Joyful Intercessor” by Beni Johnson.  I cannot recommend this book enough!  It really resonated with me, because  when I really and truly gave my whole life over to God, He soon showed me that I was created to intercede.  I was so put off by that at first because all of the intercessors I knew up until that point, were….well….pretty miserable and down trodden people and I did NOT want to be one of those.  Over time though, I found so much joy in interceding.  And by the time I read that book, it was just a confirmation and an Amen to all God had been showing me about the true intercessors heart.

I believe that all Christians are called to a certain level of intercession.  So, my question to you is, “Do you intercede from a place of victory or defeat?”  Your answer to that question can reveal so much about how you view the Father.

Take a minute and allow yourself to be honest.  When you come before God and pray do you come as a pauper, or a King/Queen?  Do you come as a beggar, or a son/daughter?

When we accept Jesus into our hearts to be our Lord and Savior, we become co-heirs.  We become adopted into His family.  Grafted into the Family tree.

The reality of that truth should change the way you come to your Father.  As a parent, I can honestly say I really dislike it when I see one of my children is afraid to ask me a question.  I also feel so grieved if they appear afraid to ask me for something.  How much more does our Heavenly Father desire us to come boldly before Him with our questions or requests?

We are to come boldly before the throne.  He has met us on the redemptive road, with joy and celebration upon our decision to come Home.  His joy over our initial entry into His household carries on throughout eternity.  He is truly a good, good Father.

I challenge you today to come to Him.  Come boldly before the King of all kings and present your heart’s desire to Him.  You can trust Him with your dreams.  You can trust Him with your sorrow.  You can trust Him to be your All in all.  Come to Him and expect that He will provide exceedingly, abundantly more than you could ever ask or imagine.

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  Philippians 4:6

Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.  Hebrews 4:16

Now if we are His children, we are his heirs.  In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s glory.  But if we are to share His glory, we must also share His suffering.  Romans 8:17

One Sunday when our church body was preparing to receive communion, our pastor did something different.  He asked for anyone who had been saved for 50 years or longer to come up first and receive.  Then, he called for those who had been saved for 40 years or longer, and then those who had been saved for 30 years or longer, and so on.  When he called for the 30 years or more group I felt God nudge me.  I was startled when I realized that my first encounter with God’s saving grace happened when I was about 8 years old, and that was now 32 years ago.  I told God I probably shouldn’t go yet because between the age of 8 and 26 I had 2 or 3 other encounters with re-commitment, and it made me feel dishonest to claim to be so “old” in the faith, but He nudged again.  Then my husband also nudged me, and said, “You should go on up.”  So, I did.

The next time our church had communion our pastor asked anyone who had been saved for 30 years or more to stand.  Again, I felt that nudge from my Father.  Again, I felt like a fraud.  Until I looked down at my feet.  I hadn’t paid attention earlier that morning when my daughter picked a Bible to take to church, but when she left for Sunday school, she left her Bible sitting at my feet.  I leaned down and picked it up, and lo and behold it was the Bible my Grandparents had presented me on the day I first got baptized!  It said, “A day to remember”.  Yes, all of the sudden it was a day to remember.  I boldly stood up.  Then our pastor said, “What one word would all of you who have been saved for over 30 years use to describe your salvation and walk with God.”  My reply, “Process”

Over the years I have heard many believers “judging” whether someone was saved or not by what evidence they saw in their lives.  I admit that I’ve done the same thing at times.  But after my experiences during those two communions, I humbly apologize.

When I sat down to process the communion stories with God, He said, “Lisa, you have been mine since the very first time you said “Yes” to letting Jesus into your heart. I knew your process, and I patiently waited and watched over you for all the years it took for you to work through it.  Even still, I wait and watch as you mature and grow.  That will never end.  Don’t forget that man sees the outer appearance, but I see the heart.  Only I knew the wounds that even your little 8 year old heart had.  Only I know your future.”

God is all about process.  I love that.

I was reading a story about the Potter this morning and it stirred up all of the above thoughts, and then I saw this….

The first home Chris and I bought needed a lot of updating when we moved in.  We didn’t realize in advance that they had painted right on top of wallpaper in most of the rooms, and in the kitchen we discovered (the hard way) that they had layered 5 wallpapers!  What a nightmare it was to slowly peel off layer after layer and at times we wondered if we would ever get to the bare wall.

I saw that kitchen in my mind and God said, “If someone came in on the middle of that process, they would never know how much work you had done, or how much work was left to do.  The only one who really appreciated each step in the process was the one who was a part of all the work of peeling each layer.”

No truer word has ever been spoken.  The reason we are not equipped to judge a person’s salvation is because none of us has been there from the beginning of their life and all the way through.  And most assuredly, none of us knows their end.

Let that soak in for a moment.

None of this is a condemnation.  Actually, I am hoping this word will free you in your process.  I pray this revelation will give you hope for your life and walk with God and the freedom to just “be” where you are without worrying about what anyone else says or thinks about you.

You are free, my friend.  You are free to be exactly where you are in your individual process, but you also have to extend that grace to those around you.  Let others “be” as well.  Give them freedom to grow at their own pace and let Holy Spirit convict and mold them.

God, please forgive me for any time I have judged someone’s heart.  Please forgive me for feeling inferior because of my path.  Lord, I surrender to Your process in my life.  You have freedom in me.  If You ever feel me resisting You, please nudge me and remind me to let go.  I love You and long for the day that You and I will live in eternity together.  Thank You for the cross.  In Jesus name, Amen.

 

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him.  The Lord does not look at the things people look at.  People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.  I Samuel 16:7

Yet You, Lord, are our Father.  We are the clay, You are the Potter; we are all the work of Your hand.  Isaiah 64:8

John Wimber, the founder of the Vineyard church once had this vision after his first successful healing:

As he was driving home, he saw a giant honeycomb imprinted across the sky.  Honey was dripping down from Heaven and falling on people who were in a variety of postures.  Some people were on their knees, gladly receiving and sharing while others brushed the honey off in an aggravated way.  The honey symbolized God’s mercy, which includes physical healing.  God was saying to John, “My mercy is there, you need to learn how to position yourself under it.  The problem isn’t on My end.  Don’t beg me for healing again”

This vision has impacted me so much in my walk with God.  I have heard it recounted over and over again.  God has brought it to my mind repeatedly as an adult.  There have also been times that I have seen the honeycomb to symbolize Holy Spirit…..with some receiving and sharing, and others being aggravated by the idea of Holy Spirit moving today.

Several times when strangers have prayed for me, they have said they see me sticky with honey, or walking and leaving sticky honey footprints wherever I go.

Honey is a recurring theme in my walk with God.

So much of our walk with God is learning to receive.  Back on day 4, I wrote about how all we need comes from what God has already poured into us, we just need to release it…..this is similar.  Sometimes, we are so busy “doing”, that we forget how to “receive”.

This morning, I challenge you to posture yourself to receive.  God has a portion for you that is more than enough, will you receive it today?  When God comes and fills your needs for today, will you let that be enough and find rest and thankfulness, or will you then immediately focus on the needs of tomorrow and become ungrateful and impatient?  It’s a constant struggle, I know.  Walking in gratitude for the moment is a discipline.

God, I thank you for being more than enough.  Thank You for being a faithful Provider.  You never leave Your children begging for bread.  Help me to be more aware of each blessing You give me.  Open my eyes to the miracles around me every day, and help me be better about rejoicing when others receive miracles.  Let the overflow of my heart be gratitude and thankfulness.  Forgive me for the times when I have been ungrateful or unaware.  I adore You.  In Jesus name, Amen.

 

I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for Him.” Lamentations 3:24

Lord, You alone are my portion and my cup; You make my lot secure. Psalm 16:5

A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart.  For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.  Luke 6:45

The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance.     Psalm 16:6

This morning as I pressed into the Lord, I came feeling desperate to meet with Him.  Starting to walk out this year long devotional journey has been wonderful, but has also come with a cost.  He has invited me into a partnership with Him that is unlike anything I’ve done before.  I have always enjoyed the fact that so much of my walk with Abba is private.  Now, He is taking our relationship public.

I didn’t realize it until just now, but that’s part of what makes this so incredibly stretching.  I am by nature, really open and honest with people, but I hold my private things very sacred.  I find delight in having secrets that only Chris and I know.  I enjoy the intimacy I feel when he and I meet in the confines of our bedroom and we share the contact that no other person on earth gets to experience with either of us.  It may sound weird, but I really like some sacred intimate secrets.  I love that I know Chris better than any other person on this earth, and I love that he is the one that knows me best.

I am realizing that for every open part of me, there is a secret part.  I worship very publicly, but I first worship privately.  I love people very openly, but I love my family in the confines of our home first.  Most people know that I am a runner, but I enjoy it most when I do it in the confines of my home.  I love to teach and speak about God, but I first love to sit and listen and spend time in the secret place.  I now love to write and share, but I first spent years and years journaling my heart and His words.

These thoughts bring me to the conclusion that, for me to “do” life well, I must first “do” home well.

Take a moment and evaluate your life.  Are you well established in the secret place?  Have you spent time cultivating a solid “home” foundation?  It’s never too late.  If you realize that you are living outward too much, then stop and take a breath and ask God to give you the courage to evaluate your commitments and motives, and be willing to make changes.  It’s ok if others don’t like you stepping back and becoming more focused on the secret place.  You are choosing the way of “Mary”.  Sitting at Jesus’ feet is never a wrong answer.

As I walk through my days, I am constantly aware of all the “Martha’s” I see.  People who are wearing themselves out, and for what?  Who really benefits? If you are so over committed and exhausted that you cannot do any task well, then maybe you are doing too much.  We all have busy seasons, but if you are honest with yourself then you will know the difference between having a busy season and living in busyness.

One important thing I have learned is, if I continue to do something (i.e. ministry, volunteering, etc.) that I’m not called to do, then I am standing in the way of the person who should be doing it.  People won’t fill a position that is already filled.  Sometimes, we need to go through the stretching discomfort of an empty position in order for another person’s heart to see the space and be moved by God to take action.

God, I invite You to speak to my heart.  Is there anything I’m doing in vain?  Have I over committed myself?  I give You permission to weed out my schedule.  Help me to never let go of Your guiding hand.  And God, I pray you would doubly bless all of my efforts as I walk in obedience to Your voice.  I love You Abba.  I am Yours.  In Jesus name, Amen.

 

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.  Psalm 46:1

The eternal God is a dwelling place.  Deuteronomy 33:27a

The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.  Psalm 18:2

“Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one.  Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”  Luke 10:41-42

Yesterday, our family went to the mall together so Chris could get a haircut, and the rest of us could simply get out of the house.  We arrived to his appointment a little early so we walked around and found ourselves at the pet shop.  They always have dogs in the front window playing and beckoning random people passing by to come in and take them home.  Anyone who knows me well, knows I’ve never really been much of an animal person.  Living with 6 people in our family makes me feel like the last thing I want is to have someone or something else to pick up after.

But this was a different day.  I saw this precious black and brown dachshund in the window and I felt a stirring in my heart.  This was quite a stark contrast to my normal feelings toward four legged creatures.  I tried to ignore the feeling, but I suddenly felt an invitation.  This invitation is something I have grown accustomed to in my walk with Jesus.  In random places, if you listen, you will hear the Lord presenting an opportunity to stretch your love.   All at once, I knew that I could choose to open my heart up to loving that dog.  Simultaneously, I was seeing all the work involved in caring for a new animal.

I had a choice, I could focus on the work part of it all or I could focus on the opportunity to love.

I know this story could seem very simple and silly even, but I believe this is a great analogy for life.  I always seem to view life based on the practicality of things.  While this is a great perspective, it shouldn’t overshadow opportunities for real relationship and love.

Does that make sense?

We ended up getting the dog, and I immediately and purposefully let my guard down and something really wonderful happened! Not only did I fall seriously in love with the dog, but I also grew in affection for the other two animals we already have at home.

Allowing my heart to open to love, in the midst of inconvenience seems to have set me free in some ways.

I challenge you today and every day to pay attention to the little tugs.  The little promptings God gives us.  The seemingly small opportunities that can turn into even larger blessings.

I pray today, God would open your eyes and ears to see and hear Him in the everyday things.  I pray you would not overlook the small stuff because it seems insignificant.  Rather, embrace each moment and its potentially lasting impact on your life and heart.  And I bless you in the name of Jesus, Amen.

 

And we have come to know and believe the love that God has for us.  God is love; whoever abides in love abides in God, and God in him.  In this way, love has been perfected among us, so that we may have confidence on the day of judgment; for in this world we are just like Him.  There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear, because fear involves punishment.  The one who fears has not been perfected in love.  We love because He first loved us.  I John 4:16-19

Little children, let us love not in word and speech, but in action and truth.  And by this we will know that we belong to the truth, and will assure our hearts in His presence. I John 3:18-19

 

While leading worship the other day, the Lord spoke these words to me. “Rage is misdirected passion” Ever since then, I have been rolling it around in my heart.

Those words couldn’t be more true. Years ago, when I began my journey toward internal heart healing, I realized that I was full of rage. I’m not talking about normal anger, but real rage. The kind that is always present in your mind and heart. I realized that I carried rage with me like a backpack everywhere I would go and nothing much would have to happen for it to open up and explode onto whoever was around me.  It was a vile thing.

One day after receiving some internal heart healing prayer, I suddenly realized it was gone!! Vanished into thin air as my heart received healing from injustices that had been put upon me as a child. As I received healing at the origin of the pain, the spirit of rage no longer had a hold on me.

Fast forward to now, and I have a full-on passion for Jesus that I never imagined. Now I see, all these years later, that the enemy saw that passion in me way back then and sought to pervert and destroy it, but God always had a plan of redemption for it. For that I will be forever grateful.

There is hope for you too! If you know you struggle with rage, then ask God to show you the true origin of that pain and then ask Him to tell you the truth about that situation. Ask Him to show you where He was when whatever caused the pain happened to you. He is ready to redeem your passion today!

God, I pray that right now you will highlight places that need healing.  Passion is a holy thing, but when covered with pain, it can become anger and rage.  Lord, I want to have holy passion.  I want to be free from the shackles of anger, resentment and rage.  Lord, free me, in Jesus Name!!!

 

My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. James 1:19-20

 

Fools give full vent to their rage, but the wise bring calm in the end.  Proverbs 29:11

 

Do not make friends with a hot-tempered person, do not associate with one easily angered, Proverbs 22:24

In my soul I have a deep, deep well.  I’ve seen it many times.  It once was covered and impenetrable until God came and touched my heart in a way that brought the first wave of freedom to it.  The touch that gave access.  Some parts of our hearts have guardians over them….unholy guardians.  Some parts of our hearts need to hear God’s truth before the guardian can lose its foothold within us.  This was such a place for me.

When the well was finally uncovered, I saw nothing but a darkness inside.  Darkness and a lot of pain.  This was definitely not the release for which I had so desperately hoped.  Something about myself that I still don’t fully understand is, when I have been faced with very difficult situations in the past a part of me would block that memory from my mind.  For a person who has devoted herself to being healed and set free, this is very challenging.  But over time, I realized it was God’s grace over me.  His grace held a hand over places I couldn’t bear to face without Him, and then when I was ready, He would show me only what I needed to know in order to walk out healing, and then protect me from the rest.  What a loving Father.  It’s no wonder I trust Him with my heart so much!

This deep, deep well should be filled with Holy Spirit and instead had been like the water wells of old.  It hadn’t been used in such a long time that a bunch of, for lack of a better word, gunk had been dumped on top.  Life had been heaping lie after lie into the deep well of my soul, and I, unable to defend myself and decipher the truth from the lies, had been battered and war torn and left depleted and empty.  Oh how much we need Jesus.  We need to seek open ears to Him and to become well acquainted with our Fathers voice.  How can we joyfully and successfully navigate this life without constant communication and affirmation from our Daddy?

My life’s purpose during that season was to be healed and to know His voice.  To build a real relationship with the Lover of my soul.  God is so tender.  He is so patient. What is time to Him anyway? Our measure of a day and His are so strikingly different.  I once complained to God that I had prayed for something for a whole decade.  His response “Is that all its been?”  Ha!  We have no concept of eternity on this poor rock on which we live.  My God Who spent years and years gently wooing me to His heart.  He followed me to the utter depths and still just stood there letting His light show me the way out.  No condemnation came from Him, only loving affection.  Only tender kindness.  His love is something I have no doubt about.  He loves me alright, with a driving passion and fire that consumes all of my sinfulness and selfishness and leaves me with arms stretched toward Heaven and a mouth shouting out His praises.  In His presence is the only place I find fulfillment in life.  It’s my goal every day to be in His presence and praise Him with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  To be a reflection of the love of Heaven to the earth.  I want to reflect His glory on the earth.  I want to leave snail trails of Holy Spirit wherever I go.  I want my life to leave a fragrance of Heaven everywhere I go.

God make me fragrant.  Bathe me in the perfume of Heaven and let anyone who comes close to me feel Holy Spirit inside as they drink in the fragrance You have poured out on me, in Jesus Name.

 

 

“But whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.” John 4:14

 

“He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.” John 7:38

 

Then he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb, in the middle of its street On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. Revelations 22:1-2

 

Be imitators of God, therefore, as beloved children, and walk in love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant sacrificial offering to God.  Ephesians 5:1-2

 

For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. 2 Corinthians 2:15

I keep seeing the story of Jacob in my mind.  The one where he wrestles with God through the night, and won’t let go until he receives a blessing.  Have you ever really thought about this?  Put yourself there as an observer for a minute.  Jacob is there, and God comes as a man and they literally wrestle.  Wait a minute, am I to believe that God couldn’t actually escape Jacob’s grasp?  You know, the more I think about it the more I believe God was actually trying to show Jacob something.  I may be wrong, but I think He was letting Jacob see that he was stronger than he thought he was.

You know how oftentimes we don’t realize the strength and resilience we have until we need to use it?  This is one reason I don’t like to shelter my kids from having good healthy struggles in life.  On more than one occasion, things have happened at school to one of my children, and I will first think, “I could put a stop to this nonsense right now.” Only to have God instruct me to take a step back and let Him work, even in their discomfort, so they can grow closer to Him and exercise their strengths.  It is a hard, hard thing to do.  Watching a child struggle is never going to be easy, but I am determined to learn how to keep out of Holy Spirit’s way because I want my kids to, above all else, be strong in the Lord.

The story of Jacob also reminds of a situation that happened a couple of years ago.  The photo above this post is from that day.  My son, Noah, was running a cross country race and I was standing at the finish line.  As he came down the home stretch, I saw another runner closing the gap and knew if Noah didn’t push it hard, he would be passed.  I am yelling, “Go Noah! You have more in you! You have more in you!! Push, push!! I know you can do it! You have more inside!!”  It was a really intense moment.

I honestly think God is doing that with us sometimes.  When life throws challenges your way, are you willing to keep moving forward, or do you change course at the slightest resistance?  I see those times as opportunities.  Opportunities to learn how to press further into God and find strength you’ve never known before.

For women, childbirth is a great example of finding hidden strength.  The amount of pain during an unmedicated delivery is……well….immense.  But I’ve never felt stronger than I have after partnering with God to bring one of my babies into the world.  Those experiences left me feeling like there was no end to the strength buried inside of me.  Those births have changed me on the inside.  They ignited a fire in me.  They made me feel like I am more than a conqueror.  The way I learned to lean into God through each passing contraction, and the ever increasing length of my deliveries, is irreplaceable.  I wouldn’t change it for the world.

Is there an area of resistance in your life?  Is there anything standing between you and the purpose that God has called you to carry out?  If so, I encourage you to really bear down and lean into the Father and let Him teach you how to walk through discomfort instead of turning away.

God, I thank you for the struggles that lead me closer to You.  I thank you for caring for me so much that You refuse to watch me walk around like a fragile or broken person.  I thank You for training me up in the way I should go.  You are my forever Trainer.  Thank You for the relationship with You that was borne in times of walking out struggle with You hand in Hand.  You are Faithful.  You are Trustworthy.  I adore You. Wrap this day in Your Presence and let me never lose sight of You, in Jesus name, Amen.

That night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two female servants and his eleven sons and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. After he had sent them across the stream, he sent over all his possessions. So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.” But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” The man asked him, “What is your name?” “Jacob,” he answered. Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.” Jacob said, “Please tell me your name.” But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed him there. So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, “It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.” The sun rose above him as he passed Peniel, and he was limping because of his hip. Therefore to this day the Israelites do not eat the tendon attached to the socket of the hip, because the socket of Jacob’s hip was touched near the tendon.  Genesis 32:22-32

 

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.  James 1:2-4

One morning, when the sun was barely starting to wake, I laced up and went for a run…while I was running my mind began to swirl, and started asking a hundred unanswerable questions all at once and I felt God touch my shoulder and it brought an immediate calm…. and then I heard one word…”Jesus”. I started saying “Jesus, Jesus, Jesus” to the rhythm of my footsteps…and God said, “In the first moments of your day, if you will ask no questions but just seek Me, then your whole perspective will change and peace will be abundant”.

Do you have a lot going on right now?  Are you struggling with turmoil or busyness or emptiness.  I challenge you this morning to bring this day to God as an offering.  Instead of bringing Him your “laundry list” of requests and needs, first come and sit at His feet.  Just acknowledge Him for Who He is.  Our Lord and Savior.  Our Alpha and Omega.  Isn’t He capable of holding your life together without any input from you?  When I view my life from the perspective of His enormous greatness and my little bitty self, I really find a better balance.  He is the One Who can do all things.  He spoke our world into existence and not one person on this earth wasn’t created by His hands.  Why then, do we think we need to tell Him what to do?  Instead, take time this morning to listen.  One of the main reasons I’m writing this devotional is to help you to grow in confidence that you can and do hear His voice.  Our lives become much more peaceful and simple once we learn to discern His voice.  He is truly our ever present help in times of trouble.

 

Lord, speak to me this morning.  Show me your heart.  You are so great.  When I meditate on Your face I am awestruck and humbled that You actually go out of Your way to partner with me.  I know You don’t “need” me, but You enjoy relationship so much that You include me.  Thank You!  Show me how to partner with You today.  Lord, let my perspective be cloaked with a true sense of Your magnitude and greatness.  You are the Creator of ALL.  You are the One and Only True God.  You are my Salvation.  Thank You. In Jesus name, Amen.

 

Our soul waits for the Lord; He is our help and our shield.  Psalm 33:20

The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.  Psalm 18:2

The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped; Therefore my heart exults, and with my song I shall thank Him.  Psalm 28:7

In His presence the mountains quake, and the hills melt away; the earth trembles, and its people are destroyed.  Nahum 1:5