God's Recipe for Success

We urge you, brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with everyone. Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. Do not quench the Spirit. 1 Thessalonians 5:14,16-19 (New American Standard Bible)

As the Thanksgiving season approaches, many will find themselves looking up old and new recipes. They want to give their Thanksgiving dinner a special touch. Maybe they are after recipes to help reduce calories or recipes that enhance flavor….or both if that is possible. Whatever the case may be, finding the recipes and following the recipes are necessary for success.

This morning I am seeing God’s recipe for unity in the body of Christ as well as intimate fellowship with Himself. His “ingredients” include admonishing, encouraging, being patient, rejoicing, praying, being thankful, and not grieving His Spirit. I don’t know about anyone else, but one look at THAT list makes me realize more fully my inability to do any of them without His help and enabling. My flesh pulls away from every one of them. Yet, God is inviting me to seek His help and walk in obedience with His help.

He knows that within each of these areas there is power to change me and power to change those around me. I have no trouble being patient and encouraging around people I am comfortable with and feel accepted by. I have no trouble rejoicing when things go my way. My thankful heart is most evident when I am truly thankful for the circumstances of my life. But God wants me to notice the usage of the words everyone, always, without ceasing, and everything. That realization brings me to my knees before Him and causes me to admit my weakness apart from His strength. It shows me how much I limit my actions and attitudes to what feels good and brings delight.

I have heard it said that God is not interested in my comfort but rather in my character. The development of my character happens as I begin to live beyond what is comfortable for me. It happens when I am willing to exchange my desires for His, my wishes for His, my will for His, and my ways for His. He never said it would be easy. I can attest to that! He said it would be possible as I rely upon Him and walk in obedience to Him.

He has much to do in me, but as Creator of the universe and Divider of the Red Sea, I know He is willing and able to do it all!

Father, You have my attention and I have Your instructions. Transform my heart so that changes of my actions and attitudes will follow. Amen.

In The Potters Hand - Hillsong (HQ sound)
http://youtube.com/watch?v=6beNoG0H0E0&feature=related

He is wooing you from the jaws of distress to a spacious place free from restriction, to the comfort of your table laden with choice food. Job 36:16

Pain Killers

But I am afflicted and in pain; may Your salvation, O God, set me securely on high. Psalm 69:29 (New American Standard Bible)

I have learned a lot about pain killers in the past week. I have learned how necessary and effective they are for relieving pain. In my case, their sole purpose is to make me comfortable while I wait for my fractured sternum to heal. If I give them time to wear off, I am once again made acutely aware that complete healing has not yet taken place. That is why it is necessary that I abide by the restrictions of my physician even during the times when the pain is not there. I also must keep in mind that the pain killers cannot speed up my healing or even assist in it. Their job is strictly for pain relief and meant only to be temporarily used.

It hasn’t taken long for me to begin seeing the spiritual implications through my physical situation. Just like my body can experience pain, so can my heart, mind, and emotions. Addictions of any kind are a result of seeking relief from pain. I have known people to be addicted to drugs, alcohol, work, sports, material things, entertainment, and immoral life styles. They would go to any lengths to find relief from the pain of guilt, loneliness, insignificance, regret, and shame. For me, it was the acceptance and approval of people. Being in relationship with significant people became my pain killer. But it was temporary and limited. People could ease the pain but could never supply the necessary healing. They could affect my heart but not heal it.

I know that my bones will take six to eight weeks to heal properly and I know that my mind and emotions will also take time (much time) to heal properly. During that time, God is helping me to see where I have been wounded and how much of my heart pain is built on faulty thinking and blatant lies. While He will certainly use people to relieve some of the pain, the ultimate healing and wholeness come from Him and are a result of living connected to Him on a daily basis. Learning to cry out to Him, wait on Him, hope in Him, seek Him, obey Him, talk to Him, listen to Him, and just be with Him. As I derive my sense of value, worth, and significance from who I am in Christ and what He says about me, I will look less and less to people to do that for me. I will also stop making them responsible for my well being.

Indeed, healing is coming but it is coming through God and in His time. I praise Him for the temporary pain killers He provides but I bow before Him as my True Healer.

Father, You are my Great Physician of not only my body, but also of my mind, will, and emotions. I seek Your touch. Amen.

Heal the Wound - Point of Grace
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3g_dhYDQIdg

Pain is the raw material from which can be made a soul increasingly sensitive to the existence of God's love. ~ John Woolley

The Way to Walk

Your ears will hear a word behind you, "This is the way, walk in it," whenever you turn to the right or to the left. Isaiah 30:21 (New American Standard Bible)

Throughout my Christian life I often missed the “this is the way, walk in it” moments that God was whispering to me. Time and time again I felt if given enough time I could figure things out for myself and somehow muster up the needed changes on my own. That has not gotten me very far. I cannot be my own compass on the path I walk. I cannot be my own rudder on the sea of life. I cannot be my own guide through the minefields of each day. I cannot be my own therapist, psychologist, or surgeon. God meant it when He said, “Without Me, you can do nothing.”

The most recent way I have been shown to walk is in the area of asking and depending. My mindsets and thought processes have often been my undoing because I wasn’t asking for God’s help or depending upon Him to give me the help I needed. I had no trouble looking to people and books to give me the answers. They certainly have their place in God’s kingdom work, but they cannot have a prominent place when it comes to changing the way I think, act, and feel. Many have been the times I was enslaved to false perceptions, wrong judgments, and needless skepticism. Rather than walk in joy and freedom, I was in bondage. To make matters worse, I thought it was up to me to set myself free. The truth of the matter was that I did not possess the ability, ambition, or will power to become free.

It wasn’t until I learned to ask for help (God’s help) that I began to experience victory in areas that previously saw only defeat and discouragement. Asking God to give me what I lack in place of what I possess unlocks the soul chains that formerly ensnared me. No matter what the attitude of my heart is, I can simply ask God to replace it with the opposite attitude and He does! In the past week, I have asked for replacements countless times and never once was there a delay in the answer. Not once!

What is it He has graciously given time and time again? Peace, security, sensitivity, confidence, joy, acceptance, settling, and serenity. I can bring the most despicable aspects of myself to Him and He faithfully transforms them. My asking puts me in the position to receive. I use to wonder if it would work. I wonder no longer. Now I approach Him with anticipation and expectancy. As a child, I ask. As a Father, He gives. This is His way and I choose to walk in it!

Father, last night I laughed at the way You so quickly changed my heart beat and mind set. It was a laughter that sprung from the joy of You. Amen.

When I Call on Jesus
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dwMw16eocuU

Thank you to all who prayed for me in the past week. Those prayers have been effective and outside of some tolerable discomfort in my chest, I am back!

Prayer Request

Dear Devotional Readers, I have a personal prayer request. Last night after having dinner with a friend, I rear ended a vehicle and totaled my daughter's car. The people in the other car were uninjured and their vehicle had bumper damage. After x-rays and a cat scan it was determined that I had a fractured sternum. I am taking pain medication to counter the discomfort. I will be going to work tomorrow and would appreciate your prayers for physical strength. Due to the need for more rest, it may be some time before I can begin writing and posting the devotionals. I will miss it more than I can say. I am thankful the injuries were minor. Have a blessed week and I will be back as soon as possible. God truly works all things out for good. Love in Christ,Pam Shattuck

Kept From Falling

Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, Jude 1:24 (New King James Version)

The promise of God’s faithfulness in the midst of my journey is precious. I embrace His words to me this morning and let them sink deep into my mind and spirit. I know too well the devastation of stumbling and falling. Rising out of the emotional pits only to fall back into them once again. Learning life lessons and necessary truths only to flounder a few steps down the road. Once again, God is reminding me of how He has made Himself responsible for guarding me, watching me, keeping His eye on me, protecting me, securing me, taking care of me, and helping me to stand firm in Him.

What does He use? His WORD. As I take in Scripture each day it becomes my defense against the onslaughts of the world, my flesh, and the devil. His TRUTHS. As I learn life lessons and principles, I have recourses to fall back on instead of wrong perceptions, faulty thinking, and blatant lies. His PEOPLE. How I treasure each individual God has called to walk along side me and remind me of the necessity of applying His truths to my situations and keeping my eyes on Him. In the darkest moments of my life they have been rays of light and hope to me. His SPIRIT. He gives me the ability and capability of living my Christian life differently than I have lived it in the past. He infuses me with the power, strength, and will to move forward in victory.

In the past couple of days I have experienced the power of applying learned truth to various situations. Each time I did so I was astounded at the result of not stumbling but rather of standing firm. One such example had to do with emotions. When I would feel fearful, worried, or sad, I would ask God to release me from those feelings and in their place give me courage, faith, and joy. When I began to perceive people in a wrong light, I could take that false perception to God and ask Him to give me truth to replace it. My usual response was not there to wreak havoc in relationships. It has been a daily, moment by moment experience of learning to turn things over to Him so I would be free to receive what He had for me. The power of those prayers astonishes me and the simplicity of them amazes me.

I won’t walk perfectly from this point on but I know this, I will walk with power and victory like never before. For faithful is He who has called me and is well able to do in me all that is necessary to fulfill that calling.

Father, I am in awe of the way You keep me from falling. Help me to continue allowing You to do just that! Amen.

Undo - Rush of Fools
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-oZbBS_OhM&feature=related

He is wooing you from the jaws of distress to a spacious place free from restriction, to the comfort of your table laden with choice food. Job 36:16

Where Not to Put My Confidence

For we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh. Philippians 3:3 (New American Standard Bible)

Coming to the end of ourselves and what we can do is often the beginning of allowing God to do what only He can do. He is not looking for us to pull ourselves up by our own boot straps, to fix ourselves, to change ourselves, or to mold ourselves. Our trust, reliance, and dependency upon Him delight Him because that is exactly where He wants us to be. When our confidence is in our own strength and ability it does not result in worship of Him or glory to Him. It results in a spirit of self sufficiency and pride. It also results in failure, disappointment, and emptiness.

I have come to understand that while I can change my behavior in certain areas of my life, I am helpless to change my heart. My heart is what drives my thoughts, emotions, and actions. Just as I did not give myself my own heart beat, the direction of my heart must continually be placed in God’s hands. He does the molding. He does the changing. He does the work.

I have succeeded in behavior modification before but because it was only about my behavior true and lasting change was not forthcoming. The inability to change my own heart drove me to my knees and on my face before my Creator God. He has astounded me with what He is able to accomplish.

God is using deliverance in one area of my life to confirm to me that deliverance in another area of my life will be forthcoming. While I cannot pinpoint the exact moment deliverance happened I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that it did! The struggle in this particular area is non existent and I am infused with Jesus’ words that, “My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” He is letting me know that the same will be true in the other area that is still a struggle although progress has been made. In the first area, I am living in freedom and wholeness. In the second area, I am anticipating freedom and wholeness. Hope is alive as my confidence has shifted to the only One who can bring about the necessary changes. I must cooperate with Him but He will do the transforming.

Father, the changes that are coming from You and through You are profound and I give You the praise, credit, and worship for it. Amen.

MY LIFE IS IN YOU LORD!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0M0NALW7EM&feature=related

Standing Guard Fully Armed

When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are undisturbed. Luke 11:21 (New American Standard Bible)

We stand guard over things that are valuable, necessary, and important. Awareness and alertness is key. Often though, we are more inclined to guard our possessions than we are to guard our heart, mind, motives, and emotions. This was made apparent to me last night as I spoke with a friend. We discussed areas and issues that would most likely always be part of our life. While we certainly anticipate victory in those areas, we are both keenly aware of how the enemy of our soul will always seek to use them against us. Staying aware and on guard of that truth will do much to keep us from becoming disturbed and disheartened.

Ephesians 6:14-17 gives us a picture of the armor available and necessary for our daily living victoriously. We have the ability to live equipped and enabled as we walk fully armed with truth, righteousness, peace, faith, salvation, God’s word, prayer, and the Spirit. We have the call in Philippians 4:8 to think on things that are true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, of good report, excellent, and praise worthy. We have the wisdom to discern the tactics the enemy will use against us and to stop him from being successful. We have the responsibility to call him on every lie he throws at us and to speak the truth about God, ourselves, our circumstances, and the people in our life. We have God’s invitation to abide in Him and depend upon Him for every step we take. These are how we are fully armed and able to stand guard!

Last night, in the presence of a friend, I experienced delight and joy in full measure. It touched me deeply because it hadn’t been what marked my path for the past few years. God is letting me know this morning that it can become a way of life for me if I will stand guard and apply the truths He has shown me. I don’t have to be held captive by emotions and perceptions. I don’t have to dwell in pits of darkness. I got a taste of what is possible and I am craving more of the same.

I use to think being whole emotionally and spiritually meant I would never struggle again. That nothing or no one would be able to affect me in a negative way. How far from the truth that is! I now know that wholeness is having the ability and joy of doing the right thing when the negative effects of life are felt and experienced.

Father, You took me through the darkest valley of my life to bring me to the point of seeing the light of Your truth. With You, I choose to walk in that light. Amen.

The Battle Belongs to The Lord - Spiritual Warfare
http://youtube.com/watch?v=DMZ8D6nTKhg

I welcome your questions and comments to any devotional thoughts. I am honored and delighted to share my journey with you and privileged to hear of yours.