The Ones He Sent My Way

The angel answered and said to him, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news.“ Luke 1:19(New American Standard Bible)

God has often brought to my mind a list of significant women He has profoundly used in my life. Some were my age but most were older. From the time I was fourteen through to the present God has lovingly allowed our paths to cross.

Some came specifically to show me the love of Christ in a human form. They were the “skin” God chose to wrap around the concepts of His Word. I am a visual person. I understand things much clearer when I can see a picture of it. They gave me a visual picture in themselves of what tenderness, concern, loyalty, compassion, love, forgiveness, and nurturing looked like. Every time I couldn’t seem to grasp a concept for myself, God would place one of these individuals in front of me, turn my face toward them, and say, “See?! THAT is what I mean.” They lived the very things I needed to learn. I praise Him for their living examples to me.

Others came to speak to me and help me understand truths about God that I desperately needed. It was through their words to me that I could begin to take in the truth that God’s love is not dependent on what I do, that God’s view of me is richer and fuller than I ever dreamed, that God longs for a personal relationship with me, that He loves me, delights in me, and cherishes me.

The first few times I heard these things they were merely seeds being planted in my mind and heart. But with time and much repetition they have begun to take root and grow. They are continually “watered” with prayer, Scripture, books, music, speakers, and friends. I now have the joy of planting seeds in other women as I share with them the very things others have shared with me.

In Bible times, God sent angels and prophets to deliver messages to His people. Today we have His Word and yet He still sends individuals our way to teach, encourage, and mentor us. It is my desire to drink that in and disperse it to others for the rest of my life!

Father, I thank You for the women who have made such a profound impact on my life. May I faithfully and joyfully give to others what I have been abundantly blessed to receive from their hands and Yours. Amen.

For Good
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzrGFQysfYU

Getting into God's Word and letting God's Word get into me one truth at a time.

Receiving What is Given

Jehoash did what was right in the sight of the LORD all the days in which Jehoiada the priest instructed him. 2 Kings 12:2 (New King James Version)

I love this verse! It not only shows God’s redeeming work but also reveals valuable tools for living a godly life. Jehoash came from a line of kings who knew nothing of right living in the sight of ANY one. They lived and reigned in evil ways. Even his grandmother had her own grandchildren killed so that she could reign as queen. But Jehoash was hidden in the house of God from infancy until the age of seven. When he became king, he displayed the wisdom of having a tender and teachable spirit. As a result, the instruction he was given by the priest, Jehoiada, was received and applied to his life.

Jehoash, whose name meant “given by the Lord” was instructed and mentored by Jehoiada, whose name meant, “Jehovah knows.” Truly God had given Jehoash much! His life, his kingship, his instructor, and his heart to do right in the sight of the Lord. What Jehoiada taught him came from the One who knows all. What a combination! Jehoiada was used of God to guide this young king just as an archer would shoot an arrow straight at a target. What he said did not fall on deaf ears, but rather poured into one who was completely receptive. Jehoiada invested much into the life of Jehoash and the result was a godly king.

I want to be like Jehoash….receptive to the direction, teaching, and instruction of the Jehoiadas God brings into my life. He has done it many times and is still doing it. I appreciate each person who has lovingly invested their life into mine. It doesn’t take me long to see when God has crossed my path with one who is sent by Him and I marvel at what comes of the relationship. May I be willing to be a Jehoiada to others as well. What I have been taught by others is meant to be poured into the lives of those God sends to me as learners.

At the same time, I am realizing that my ultimate instructor and mentor is Jesus. Listening to and following His instructions will not only send me in the right direction but it will mold me into the person God created me to be. I want my attention to be on Him and my ears to be open to Him in ways that far surpass how I interact with the best of human instructors. This One who gave His life for me also intercedes for me and has His hands on every aspect of my life. May it be said of me that I did right in the sight of the LORD all my days in which Jesus my High Priest instructed me.

Father, Your instruction comes to me in many different ways and through many different individuals. Keep me tender and teachable to You. Amen.

Redirecting My Questions

For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord. Ephesians 5:8-10 (New International Version)

I have often looked to others to define me and tell me what God is thinking. Much like the children of Israel who told Moses to speak to them rather go one on one with God, I was more comfortable and more apt to run my questions, concerns, and ideas past people rather than to my heavenly Father. What patience He has to wait on me!

This morning I am being reminded that I am light in the Lord, I am a child of light, and I am called to find out what pleases God. Who better to tell me what pleases God than God Himself? In my head I know that His Word is meant to light my path and guide my feet. As His child I have access to Him at any time. So what stops me from looking to Him as my primary source of encouragement, guidance, wisdom, advice, and counsel? Why am I so prone to send an email or make a phone call? For each of us, those questions would be answered differently.

Modern technology has made it that much easier to solicit the help and advice of others. It is possible to live ones Christian life without ever running thoughts, agendas, plans, and desires past God or seldom doing so. People are just too accessible and my heart is often drawn toward that accessibility. There are many reasons I would seek out the help of an individual rather than God and I am not prepared to list those reasons. But I know this, I want it to change. For my intimacy with God is hindered with the more “mediators” that stand between God and me.

This morning He is asking me to consider the fact that I would seek advice from someone who has limited knowledge of me as opposed to the One who knows me thoroughly. No one but God knows my entire past, my present internal world, and my future. No one but God has as much love for me, interest invested in me, and watch care over me. I know the Bible speaks of the wisdom found in a multitude of counselors and that God sends individuals into my life to be those counselors. But I also know the balance of seeking God’s counsel and seeking their counsel is in need of alteration. For now, the pendulum must swing in His direction. With a mix of apprehension and anticipation I prepare to do just that!

Father, I turn my face toward You this morning. I open my heart to the very thing You have been desiring to do and that I have been fighting against. Help me to seek You as never before. Amen.

An Extension Of Himself

Where there is no counsel, the people fall; but in the multitude of counselors there is safety. Proverbs 11:14 (New King James Version)

If I fail to search Scripture and implement it into my daily life, I can so easily take the wrong approach to situations. When life gets messy and failure marks my path, the enemy of my soul is all too anxious to take me to extremes. In order to avoid making the same mistakes, I will build up walls of defense and mistakenly assume I am walking in safety. God has recently revealed to me an area in my life where this was happening and is showing me how to redirect my thinking and my journey.

For a couple years, I sat under a mentor who gave me much wisdom and insight into the Christian life. I feasted off the question and answer times with her. But the day came when it was necessary for this mentor to step away and for me to live independent of her influence. THAT was painful and led to God walking me through a difficult transition time. As I began to see what He was doing in all of it, I came to a wrong conclusion. I felt that in order to avoid future dependency issues and hence more pain, it was time I “made it on my own.” That meant (in my thinking) that all future concerns, questions, and difficulties had to go to God and only God. What I had to come to realize was within God’s system of operation He is the One who has established the vehicle of human agencies. While He is to always be my main Counselor and Guide, He also encourages me to seek the advice, help, and direction of the godly people He has graciously brought into my life. I have a handful of people whom I readily turn to at certain times and I am the richer for it. The people vary according to the situation.

When I have made an important decision, I have a couple women who serve as my witnesses to the vows I am making. Telling them my plan of action solidifies the area of surrender and helps me to stay the course. When I am confronted with areas of turmoil and uncertainty, I have people who will listen and give me the perspectives I need but have been missing. When I am headed in the wrong direction but am not quite sure how to get turned around, I have people who will lovingly but firmly tell me the truth and encourage me to walk in it. And when a time of deep prayer is needed I have several people I can call and one who even affords me the opportunity to come to her home and avail myself of her kneeling bench. The only prerequisite to all of these encounters is that I have first taken the issues to God and sought His heart. Once that has taken place, He is then the One who brings the right people to mind. Within that context, I am safe to seek out counselors for their wisdom, discernment, and instruction. God bless each one!

Father, You have enriched my life with a multitude of counselors. They have listened and then wisely advised. You have gifted me with them as an extension of Yourself. I embrace this aspect of the journey! Praise You! Amen.

Seeing Them No More

And he saw him no more. 2 Kings 2:12 (Amplified Bible)

I often wonder what it was like for Elisha when Elijah was taken from him. What was it like for Joshua when he knew he would no longer be able to see and speak with Moses? What was it like for Timothy to go on without Paul? What was it like for David when Samuel was no longer a part of his life? Was there hesitation, fear, apprehension, dread, or sadness? Did they have moments of longing to relive the companionship and fellowship? Did they miss them? Or did they live so connected to God that they knew this was a transition God had brought about? Did they see that the preparatory work had been done in them and it was now time for them to walk out their own life of faith? Did their loss seem like a funeral or a graduation? Each had been the recipients of another person’s counsel, encouragement, leadership, and guidance. But it was not God’s intent for them to remain in another person’s classroom for the rest of their life.

God has spent the last number of months helping me to see His intentions for me as I have experienced the loss of my own “Elijah.” I cannot come up with a word to describe my first response to the change. Panic comes close. It entailed grief, depression, loneliness, and confusion. But through numerous resources I began to see the importance of focus and submission. If I focused on the problem and the person I was in trouble. If I focused on what it was God was doing in me I experienced growth. It is a daily walk that slowly develops the spiritual muscles I need to move forward.

Oswald Chambers’ classic, My Utmost for His Highest, confirmed this truth for me. He said, “It is not wrong to depend upon Elijah as long as God gives him to you, but remember the time will come when he will have to go; when he stands no more to you as your guide and leader, because God does not intend he should. You say, ‘I cannot go on without Elijah.’ God says you must.” I take his words and let them sink deep into my heart. These are the days when I am to take all that I have learned from my former guide and implement them into my own journey. The lessons did not fall on deaf ears or a closed heart. Her investment into my life was not in vane. God gifted me with rich instruction and now invites me to show the fruit of His and her labor. Sometimes with tears and sometimes with joy I move on.

I will one day have the joy of sitting down face to face with my ‘Elijah’ and reviewing all that God did during and since her involvement in my Christian life. That visit may not happen until Heaven but when it does the rejoicing will abound!

Father, You lovingly gave and lovingly took away. I am the richer for both! Amen.

The Gift of Mentors

So he began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Aquila and Priscilla heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately. Acts 18:26 NKJV

You will not see the word “mentor” in the Bible but you will see many examples of mentoring relationships. Today’s verse shows one such relationship between Aquila, Priscilla, and a Jew named Apollos. Previous verses reveal that he was an eloquent man, mighty in the Scriptures, instructed in the way of the Lord, fervent in spirit, one who taught diligently the things of the Lord, and a bold witness in the synagogue. Yet Aquila and Priscilla saw a need to further instruct him in some things he was lacking. God used them in his life to help him more fully understand His way.

Today is my 34th spiritual birthday. It was on July 13, 1973, that I was born into the family of God through faith in Christ. I look back over those three-plus decades and I can recount numerous individuals who stepped into my life for the purpose of mentoring me. Through their words as well as their life I learned the “way of God more accurately.” Some have gone on to Heaven, some I am in occasional contact with, and some are no longer a part of my life. I thank God for each of them. I would not be the person I am today without their influence. Occasionally I will revisit conversations I had with them and delight in the fact that they have left a precious mark on my spirit. I treasure the advice they gave, still practice principles they instilled, and carry on the rich heritage they left. They were my Aquila and Priscilla!

While God still crosses my path with individuals who encourage me in the faith, I am finding myself in a time of transition. Personal mentors are now coming through the pages of books that I read more than individuals I meet face to face. I metaphorically sit at their feet and drink in the lessons they teach. Even more so, God has become my prominent and predominant Mentor. He encourages me to bring the questions to Him and allow Him to give me the answers and direction I need. He is now the one I from whom I seek wisdom, comfort, and instruction. Will He still use people? Absolutely. But the dependency is finally switching over to Him and in that I have found a new freedom!

I now take the challenge to be available to Him when He calls upon me to mentor someone else. I want to be to others what so many have been to me. It is an ongoing process of passing on what I have received. May the chains of influence continue to grow!

Father, many faces are coming to mind as I recall the mentors in my life. Their investment in my life was not in vain. I treasure the memories and accept Your call to reach out to others. Amen.

When Seasons Have Ended

Now when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, so that the eunuch saw him no more; and he went on his way rejoicing. Acts 8:39 NKJV

Philip was involved in this eunuch’s life long enough to introduce him to the truths of Jesus Christ. They spent part of a day together as Philip explained a passage of scripture to him. Their meeting ended with this individual being baptized and then Philip was suddenly taken away. The eunuch saw him no more after that point. It was a brief encounter that changed his life! Here is the part of the story that grabs my attention: the man went on his way rejoicing!

I know what it is like to have an individual come into my life and teach me life changing truths about God. It has happened several times over the course of nearly 34 years. Each time I was affected greatly and the direction of my life was forever changed. There always seemed to be a certain pattern followed. God would prepare my heart for what I was about to learn, bring a person along to reveal truth, and I would take in the truth with a deep thirst! To this day, I love when that happens!

Here is the difficulty. Due to issues in my own life, it was often too easy to become enamored with the person God was using. I somehow would see them as necessary to my continued progress and growth. Unaware that their time in my life would be for a season, I would be crushed when it was time for me to move on without them. I wish I could say I readily released myself from them but that would be so far from the truth. It has often been a prying away of my fingers and a relearning of the necessity of it all.

God is gracious and very patient! I see Him awakening in me the realization to trust Him with this process. Under His care I am safe to experience relationships with the people He leads to me. There will be growth and at the right time (when He knows it is time) He will initiate the separation. He knows I’ll cry. He knows I will need to work through some issues. But ultimately He knows that I will resume a walk with Him that will have deepened. I thank Him for the ones He brings and I trust Him when their season in my life is over. When that happens, may I become like this eunuch who went on his way rejoicing!

Father, You know that I love the introductions and cringe at the goodbyes. You know when my heart is engaged and when it is broken. Through it all may I hold Your hand all the tighter. Amen.

Harmful Or Helpful Mentoring

And Joash did that which was right in the sight of the LORD all the days of Jehoiada the priest. 2 Chronicles 24:2 KJV

How influential are the people in your life? How much do you depend upon them to keep you aligned with the things of God? Read through the book of Proverbs and you will find verse upon verse that warns of wrong companionships and the wisdom that marks the life of one who is connected with godly people. And yet people can only influence us to a certain point. At some stage in our life, our walk must become so connected to and dependent upon God that we continue in His ways long after the most influential person is gone.

Joash is a reminder to me of the necessity of seeking out an individual relationship with God and allowing Him to carve out my belief system and my life. For if I do not transfer the connection from a person to my Creator I open myself up to a fall. For forty years Joash had an incredible record of right living. He was used of God to repair the house of the Lord. He turned a nation from idolatry back to true worship. His personal mentor was Jehoiada the priest and under his influence he flourished. But when Jehoiada died, Joash listened to the wrong people and spiraled down until his own life was eventually taken. 2 Chronicles 23 and 24 show the amazing rise and tragic defeat of a king who never learned to allow God to be his main influence. While Jehoiada was certainly meant to be a godly influence on Joash, something was amiss.

As one who has had the opportunity to be mentored in my Christian life I know two things. The temptation to cling to the human source and the growth that comes when I finally take hold of God with all my heart, soul, and mind. Until that happens, I am not standing on my own spiritual legs and living dependent upon God. Mentors are meant to point us to God not to replace Him. My mentor knew that and I painfully learned it. It has taken over a year to wade through the issues and learn to take hold of God’s hand. There are still days I want to be under the nurturing care of a mentor. But I know God’s intent is to complete the transfer. My growth depends on it, my relationship with Him depends on it, and my involvement in His kingdom work depends on it. Today is another day of taking the steps that lead to that end.

It is in the experience of isolation that the Lord develops an independence of life and of faith so that the soul no longer depends on the continual help, prayers, faith, and care of others. Then we realize that He has done a new work within us and that the wings of our soul have learned to soar in loftier air. ~ Streams In The Desert

Father, may the only hand I grab hold of with permanence be Yours. Amen.

Tracing My Roots

You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of knowing from whom you have learned them. 2 Timothy 3:14

Paul knew that the roots of Timothy’s faith could be traced back to his mother and grandmother. What a godly heritage this young man had! Have you ever taken the time to review your own history of faith? If you did, from where would your roots extend?

I was not brought up in a Christian home. My early religious training of any kind came from my mother who was a Jehovah’s Witness for the first ten years of my life…..not counting my infant baptism in a Methodist church. It was from her I learned that God created the world and Adam and Eve were the first two people He created. That was the extent of my Bible knowledge but I am thankful today for those tiny seeds.

At the age of fourteen, I came to know Christ as my personal savior and God began to bring into my life a long line of individuals who had a tremendous influence on me and helped me to develop a walk with God that continues into my late 40’s. I can never review this precious list of individuals without seeing the faces of Bob and Martha Robinson…my first pastor and wife as well as youth directors. God allowed me to sit under their ministry for 9 months until He called them to the mission field of Guatemala. They not only taught me the beginning building blocks of my faith, they lived out the Christian life in front of me and served as an example I desired to follow. They were the first of many to take me under their wings and nurture my young faith.

Over the course of the next 30 some years the list grew to include Sharon, Barb, Mary Lou, Nancy, Velda, and Christine. God’s intent was that I not only learn from them but that I would one day enjoy a rich life with Him as my Mentor and Guide. Having made that transition, He is now calling and equipping me to invest myself in the lives of others. What I have been taught and what I am learning is meant to be passed on to others. What a joy and delight! Whether it is through email devotionals or one on one ministry, I take my role seriously and always under the watchful eye of my Father.

Father, You had this planned all along. Although I do not know the full extent of Your call I revel in what You are doing so far. Amen.

A Change of Teachers

A pupil is not above his teacher; but everyone, after he has been fully trained, will be like his teacher. Luke 6:40

In the spring of 2004 I came across a person who possessed everything I lacked in my own Christian life. She was secure in who she was in Christ, she knew God loved her in an incredible way, she was free to be who God called her to be, and she lived connected to the heart of God. It took all of 5 minutes for me to say, “I want what she has!” It became my passion to learn everything I could from her. The questions I had for her were endless. The answers and suggestions she had for me were endless as well.

A student/teacher relationship has the most powerful results when the desire to learn and the passion to teach are both present. The thing I wanted to learn the most from my “teacher” was how to have a walk with God like hers. I wanted to know how to go to God with my needs. I wanted to allow God to give me my identity. I wanted to know what it was like to talk to God and hear Him speak to me as well. I wanted God’s Word to come alive to me. I wanted God to be everything to me! And these were the very things she was willing to teach me.

For two years she mentored me and it was intense. Many emails, phone calls, and discussions later I had taken in more information than I knew what to do with. She had poured life lessons into me and I walked equipped for a journey I had no idea I was about to enter. There came a time though when she stepped back as my mentor and placed me in God’s classroom. My first reaction was terror because of how dependent I had become on her. But with time I saw the necessity of her decision. For in order to have what I first saw in her I had to learn to look to God as my Teacher. Ultimately for me, walking with God was only possible when there was no longer another source to whom I could look.

Jesus’ words of being like my teacher are an encouragement to me when I see God as my Teacher. No amount of rubbing shoulders with others will give me what God desires to give me on His own….one on one!

Father, the most painful time in my life has led me into a relationship with You that I never dreamed was possible. Thank you for the wisdom of a mentor who knew when to step back and place me under Your instruction. Teach me! Amen.

Asking To Be Taught

It happened that while Jesus was praying in a certain place, after He had finished, one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray just as John also taught his disciples.” Luke 11:1

Have you ever seen something in someone’s life and desired to see it evidenced in your own life? One of Jesus’ disciples wanted to be taught to pray. Who better to go to for that lesson than Christ Himself? What would happen if we learned to take our requests before God in the same way this disciple took his request to Jesus?

Can you think of someone who is loving? Imagine praying something like this: Jesus, teach me to be loving like __________. Jesus, teach me to be a good steward of my money like _______________. Jesus, teach me to be a diligent worker like _______________. Jesus, teach me to be forgiving like _______________. Jesus, teach me to be a bold witness like_____________. Oh, the things we could pray for based on the example of individuals in our life! What better way to express what it is we want Him to do in our life, than to find people who exude those qualities and use their life as a basis for what we ask God to give us.

There must have been something in the way John’s disciples prayed that captured this disciple’s attention. What is it that is capturing your attention in another person’s life? It could very well be that God is urging you to bring that particular area to Him so that He can begin to do a similar work in you. You might even start by asking God to open your eyes to the qualities in other people that He wants to instill in you as well. He can do that without taking away your uniqueness.

Understand of course, that sometimes in order for God to teach you something, the learning process may not always be comfortable. I remember asking God to give me an intimate walk with Himself that I noticed in another individual. He is in the process of answering that prayer but the pain involved is great at times. There are things and people I have to let go of in order to be more dependent on Him. He knows this is hard for me but He has assured me there is no other way to get what I asked for. I believe Him and I trust Him.

Father, I see examples all around me of what I desire to learn myself. You are an exquisite teacher and I desire nothing more than to be taught by You. Amen.