An Essential Part to Being Taught

Teach me, O LORD, the way of Your statutes, and I shall observe it to the end. Give me understanding, that I may observe Your law and keep it with all my heart. Make me walk in the path of Your commandments, for I delight in it. Psalm 119:33-35 (New American Standard Bible)

David knows right where to go for the instructions of life. I love his prayer! In my own words it would read, “O Lord, teach me Your way, give me understanding, make me walk in the path you have designed for me.” It is asking God to be my Teacher, Counselor, and Guide…..the exact things He has already promised He would be. My job is to take in what He says and make it a part of my life. Daily, He gives me the tools, knowledge, and ability to walk through life. Am I taking advantage of all that He offers? This morning, I picture myself like an arrow in His quiver. Placed in His bow I am directed in a particular direction and sent forth to accomplish His aims and objectives. How well am I doing at staying the course?

In the spring of 2004, I took my first steps on a journey that has been incredible to say the least. I had a veracious appetite for taking in truth and devoured book after book that taught me aspects of the Christian life I had missed prior to that. The Bible came off the shelf to be read consistently with a hunger to learn. I sat under the teaching and advisement of those who walked in wisdom. Constantly searching. Constantly taking in message upon message. Yet while I grew in some areas I was still struggling in others. The problem? Personal application was missing. I was not allowing the truth I was taking in to become a part of me.

For instance, I could be told to look to God and yet find myself still looking to people. Hence, I felt no closer to God. My connection to Him was shaky. While my mental world was growing, my emotional, internal world was stagnating. I have learned the hard way that taking in truth is not complete until I am taken in by the truth. Until I practice what I am taught, there will be little transformation of my mind, will, and emotions.

God is not only attentive to my spiritual needs. He sees and is involved in all the dimensions of my life. He knows how to best balance my world when it comes to finances, relationships, healthy choices, and family dynamics. On a day by day basis He tells me what I should be doing and then encourages me to do it! It is a student/teacher relationship that is like no other!

Father, teach me, transform me, and renew me. Amen.

In His Time - Maranatha Singers
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gTQvpMeh1A&feature=related

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

Honesty is Still the Best Policy

The LORD is near to all who call on Him, to all who call on Him in truth. Psalm 145:18 (New International Version)

When it comes to prayer, God requires the truth, desires the truth, and can handle the truth. I recall times when I would dance all around an issue without really admitting the bottom line to God. That’s not calling on Him in truth. Being evasive will do little for my prayer life. Being honest, open, and sincere will do much! Prayer is not only a dialogue whereby I talk to God and He talks to me, but it must be a truthful dialogue. It must entail the truth about my heart, my motives, my concerns, my attitudes, and my actions. God already knows every fiber of my being and He is passionate about me seeing what He already knows.

Recently I have been struck by my need to come clean with God about what is really going on inside my heart and head. The attitudes of my heart are an open book to Him and He listens as I read the pages to Him. What is written on those pages varies. It may be jealousy, worry, frustration, wrong perceptions, insecurity, non-forgiveness, pride, or any number of things that He wants me to readily admit to Him. It will do no good to point the finger at others. When it comes to Him and me, my heart is the subject at hand. Honest confession is the starting point and forgiveness and freedom are the results.

How does this play out on a practical level? Someone may rub me the wrong way yet I must be honest about my lack of unconditional love for them. Someone’s actions may leave me feeling left out yet I must be honest about my need for attention. Someone may show favor toward another yet I must be honest about my heart of jealousy. I may be wanting to talk to people when I am struggling yet I must be honest with my tendency to look to them rather than God. Those are my starting points with Him. Not only do I experience freedom and His forgiveness as I speak the truth but I come to a fresh realization of His unchanging love for me. The truth of the matter is that He loves me at my best and He loves me at my worst. Nothing I do or don’t do will change that fact!

Call on Him? Absolutely! Keep it honest. Keep it open. Keep it sincere. When it comes to my prayer life, honesty is definitely the best policy!

Father, being honest with You and myself has revolutionized my conversations with You. Amen.

You Rescued Me - Geoff Bulluck
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FMFDU89-PA&feature=related

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


　

Is God in it or Not?

Then He said, “Go out, and stand on the mountain before the LORD.” And behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice. 1 Kings 19:11-12 (New King James Version)

Notice how many things Elijah had to see that God was not in before finally seeing what He was in. This had nothing to do with God’s presence as He is omni-present….all present and everywhere. It had more to do with God’s working, will, desire, and involvement. Henry Blackaby, in his book Experiencing God, implores the reader to see where God is at work and join Him there. We may have to get past a lot of our own preconceived ideas and hopeful expectations to find and hear God’s still small voice of truth.

How good am I at seeing when things are not of God or not His choosing for my life? In my mind, it may be a good plan but is it of Him? It may be a personal ambition, but is He in it? If something does not work out as I wish, am I willing to trust that He has other plans for me? Am I willing to let my own thoughts die so that I may embrace His calling, will, and purpose for my life? Will I dare to live my life according to His schedule, timing, and leading? These are the questions that must be asked and answered each time something does not go the way I want it to go. Each time I am not able to do what I want to do. Each time my plans fail, my projects crumble, and my way is blocked by walls, roadblocks, and detours. They may be good in and of them themselves but if they are not His choosing I must be willing to let go of them.

This morning I am pondering my desires and wishes with a willingness to see whether or not God is in them. If not, I see the necessity to forego the pursuit of them. He has made it clear that His ways and thoughts are higher than my own. Often times they are opposite of my own! When that is the case, it is impossible for me to have it both ways. I can only head in one direction at a time. It is God’s way or mine. God’s will or mine. God’s plans or mine.

I am taking comfort in the fact that if someone refuses my help, God may not be in it. If a particular opportunity never avails itself, God may not be in it. If a relationship is not working, God may not be in it. And if God is not in it, should that really be what my heart follows after? Would it not be better for me to abandon my personal ambitions in order to embrace His?

Father, close doors, hedge me around, interfere with persistence so as to guide my steps in the way You would have me to go. Bring my will and my wishes into alignment with Your own. Make us one! Amen.

Hold On - Twila Paris
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZwelxYavVY&feature=related

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

What Hinders the Delight?

Then you will take delight in the LORD, and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth; and I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken. Isaiah 58:14 (New American Standard Bible)

I know what it is to delight in someone. Delight entails a sense of joy, pleasure, happiness, joy, glee, gladness, enchantment, amusement, and satisfaction. To revel in ones presence and think dearly of them even in their absence. To want to spend time with them and take every opportunity to do so. Individuals readily come to mind in the writing of this paragraph. Today’s verse gives me a promise of all that and more being directed toward the Lord.

What is the prerequisites for taking delight in the Lord? They are listed in the previous verse (58:13). Doing that which pleases God rather than turning my own way, seeking my own pleasures, and speaking my own words. It is aligning myself with the truths of Scripture and living out of those truths. Separating from what needs to be separated from and embracing what needs to be embraced.

What are the hindrances to taking delight in the Lord? For me, it is having a divided heart. The bottom line comes down to who has my heart and attention? Who seems to be the one I cannot live without? Who stands in competition with God in my thinking? Who is prominent in my thoughts? Who is the idol I have placed on the pedestal of my internal world? As long as I feel I need another person’s attention, approval, acceptance, and affirmation it will hinder me from taking delight in the Lord.

At one time, this type of hindrance required the severing of a relationship. At present, it is not a severing that needs to take place but rather a letting go of certain aspects that represent security to me. I know the steps I must take in order to delight in God and this morning finds me pondering the steps as well as the difficulty associated with taking those steps. Past fears and failures come to mind and attempt to convince me that obedience in this area will lead to a sense of loneliness and isolation. Yet, God’s Word tells me obedience will lead to finding my delight in Him. My flesh tells me to not let go of what has felt so safe. My heart yearns for the freedom that will come in releasing my grip. My mind quickly lists the advantages to keeping things the same. My spirit tells me those advantages are really disadvantages when it comes to my walk with God.

The bottom line is will it be my way, my pleasures, and my words or God’s? I want it to be His and by His grace and continual work in me it will be.

Father, I am at a crossroads in my mind and life. May I walk by faith and not by feelings. By trust and not by emotions. By grace and not by greed. Amen.

I'm Letting Go - Francesca Battistelli
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iNEhKLrsUfo

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

Prescription for a Strengthened Heart

Wait on the LORD; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; wait, I say, on the LORD! Psalm 27:14 (New King James Version)

Lately, as I read Scripture, I am purposefully looking for God’s commands and promises to me. As I follow the commands, His promises are fulfilled. While His love is not dependent upon what I do or don’t do, His blessing, favor, prosperity, and promises are definitely connected to my obedience in words, thoughts, and actions.

If I want my heart to be strengthened, then it is imperative that I wait on God and stand in courage. Looking to God entails focus, fixation, and expectation directed toward Him and what He is able to do. Often times, though, that is not the way I am living my Christian life, or at least has not been the way I have lived it up to this point. In some areas, I have been able to do that, but in other areas I have not. I want that to change and God is faithfully showing me how to go about it.

Looking to God to meet my physical needs is not a struggle for me, but looking to Him to meet my emotional needs has been! I learned as a youth to see how quickly a person could seemingly “fill” the voids of my heart. I did not realize how emotionally empty and hungry I was until I became a part of a church family and experienced the love of Christ through them. That is a good thing in itself, but what happened with me is I began to view it as the ONLY way to get my emotional needs met. Being with certain people became my escape mechanism from the hurts and disappointments of life. Later on, during my Bible school years, I learned to share problems with others and saw how good their attention and sympathy felt. As I became an adult the search was on as well as the ever growing belief that there was a person out there…somewhere…who could do for me what God alone could do….fill the void, fix me internally, and meet the numerous heart and mind needs. No such person exists but that never stopped me from looking.

Last night was a turning point for me….one I am trusting is permanent. In the midst of wanting to let an individual know I was in turmoil and wanting to taste once again of the “drug” of acceptance, affirmation, and attention, God invited me to resist the urge to confide. Rather than pour my heart out to this person, God advised me to pour it out to Him. He knows the cycle of emotional dependency will never be broken any other way. To my amazement, when I looked to Him rather than to a person, the turmoil ceased, the sadness left, and the pull toward another’s care was gone. My heart was strengthened and a joy I have known little of met that present emotional need. I wake this morning singing a victor’s song!

Father, keep showing me the choices that will lead to freedom. I want to learn how to look to You! Amen.

Spirit Song - Maranatha Singers
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWEDBaFy0SI

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

Taking it Personal

But Zion said, "The LORD has forsaken me, And the Lord has forgotten me." "Can a woman forget her nursing child And have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, but I will not forget you. "Behold, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands; Your walls are continually before Me.” Isaiah 49:14-16 (New American Standard Bible)

Approaching Scripture as simply a book of historical facts can have little effect on my life. If I cannot see the Bible as anything but stories about people from the past and their relationship to God then I will fail to see how it applies to me. For too many years, I couldn’t read God’s Word with the ability to make what was being said personal to me. If God was speaking to Israel it seemed like the words were meant for them rather than me….unless they were words of condemnation and judgment. Words of affirmation, encouragement, and love weren’t accepted or owned by me. I would not have slipped my own name into the assurances of today‘s passage. I would not have heard God saying He had not forgotten me or that He had inscribed me on the palms of His hands. To do so would have felt wrong, like I was pretending. I had been taught to ask certain questions when reading the Bible. Who is talking? Who is being talked to? What is being said? What I failed to ask was, what is being said to me? Leaving myself out of the picture was tragic! How much I failed to see and experience because of a faulty view of God and His Word.

Once I could begin putting my name into passages of Scripture, Bible reading and study took on a whole new dimension for me. Now I cannot read passages without doing that and it all stems back to a prayer I voiced to God one morning in my kitchen. I simply asked Him to show me His heart in Scripture. I had no idea how much that would change my life. It was the start of me being able to receive God’s personal messages to me. To see that what He was saying to individuals and nations centuries ago was being said to me today. Today’s passage now touches me deeply rather than appearing foreign to me. It gives me assurance that I am loved and thought of by the One who created me. It is what I can meditate upon when I feel forgotten or forsaken by others. It is what strengthens me in my moments of weakness. It is what helps me to see God’s Word as a letter written and meant for me. Anymore, I take His words personal….very personal!

Father, showing me Your heart in Scripture opened up my heart to receive what You were saying. I can now see the treasures of truth You intended for me all along. Thank you! Amen.

Indescribable - Chris Tomlin
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NqMYHmoXMAQ&feature=related

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

A Promised Outcome

And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:7 (New King James Version)

Today’s verse is the “end of the story” if you will. It is the result of implementing the truths found before and after it. As I have read through Philippians 4 this morning I am seeing a conditional promise being made. The peace of God which keeps our heart and mind secure and safe comes as I stand fast in my relationship with Christ, walk in unity with others, rejoice in the Lord, am gentle toward everyone, pray with thankfulness rather than worry, and think (meditate) on what is true, noble, just, pure, lovely, good, virtuous, and praiseworthy. That is quite a list and that is quite a result! When any of those things are missing than I am not at peace and my heart and mind become vulnerable to the attacks of the world, the flesh, and the devil.

I have heard it said that reading a Proverb a day is beneficial and since there are 31 chapters will take you through the entire book of Proverbs in a month. It is a book filled with wise sayings and guidelines for living. The four epistles (Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, and Colossians) are calling to me to do the same. To read a chapter a day and take in practical Christianity. To take hold of the commands and promises being given. To see what will result from walking in obedience to the truths of Scripture.

I have often noted the importance of guarding my thoughts. I know all too well the result of thinking on negative things such as lies and wrong perceptions. Unguarded thoughts can bring me down quicker than anything. They are like quicksand to my soul. I believe that my antidote to that is found in Scripture and in particular these Epistles. They are practical truths for daily living and God is inviting me to read them for myself and to apply them to my life.

Here is my plan for action! Highlight or underline the commands in one color and the promises or results in another color. I look forward to seeing not only a profound pattern to follow but the intense impact it is sure to have on my life as I do it. My personality is such that when I want to change an area in my life I can look for a person to give me a list of things to do that will result in the change I am wanting to make. God is inviting me to open His Word and see the list He has designed. To get the instructions straight from Him. It won’t be limited to just these Epistles but it will certainly start there! Anyone who wishes may join me!

Father, I know an adventure when I see one and I am seeing one right now! Thank you for Your invitation of “read, see, and do!” I anticipate the change that will come of it. Amen.

I Will Rise - Chris Tomlin
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9yvfso4Q8xg

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