Duct tape, multivitamins and eating with your mouth open

I've shared before that I am doing my best to stick to a reading plan to read my bible through from beginning to end this year. So far so good, I have stuck to it and yet to (by the grace of God) fall behind.

I think I also shared that I really like the plan I'm using. My mom bought me the "Unlocking the Bible" series. It doesn't feel cumbersome to me, and I like the way it breaks things up. It literally includes just a verse or two from Proverbs each day, a Psalm or part of a Psalm each day, never more than a chapter of the New Testament (I read all those in the morning) and somewhere between one and three chapters of the Old Testament that I read at night. I really enjoy it, I read the Bible first thing in the morning before I even step out of bed, and it's one of the last things I do when I settle down for the night.

I've already made it through the challenging books of Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy! Those are the places in the past where I have found myself easily stumbled by the very detailed dissertation on the law. But the way it was broken up in this reading plan, I really found myself enjoying it. I tend to be looking at the clock at night anticipating when it's time to go in and read the Word.

I have always been one to remind others of their need to be in the Word, I'm happy to finally be taking my own advice. I really do love the Word, and spending this time consistently in it helps me remember that. This morning I was reminding my kids, and encouraging my younger two that they (at 9 and 10) need to start developing the habit of reading their bibles daily. The Word of God is living and active and has the power to change us and transform our lives.

One thing I am doing this year that I have never done consistently before is not just reading the Word, but reading the Word out loud. There is power in God's Word, and God's spoken Word is powerful too. When God created the heavens and the earth, He spoke them into existence. When Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, He called them forth by His voice. He healed the sick, rebuked the demons, opened the eyes of the blind, even push backed Satan Himself with the spoken Word. Why wouldn't I want to exercise the power of God's word in the same manner.

The Bible also says, So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. (Romans 10:17) and I believe that is true. And when you read it and hear it out loud at the same time, I believe it's like securing it down even further into your heart and mind. Consider it a form of spiritual duct tape, if you will. It's like bathing yourself in the Word, inside and out, and I believe it can make a powerful impact.

Speaking the Word of God builds up your faith and your spiritual fortitude. It is wise to pray it out loud and to praise it out loud. Even in just a practical sense, it strengthens the learning process, it applies both the visual (reading) and auditory (hearing) learning styles, and I believe it goes deeper into our minds and hearts.

Now I wish I could say that every time I open my bible I had some palpable, supernatural, hyper-spiritual experience, but the truth is, I don't. It's not as though I never do, but it is not the norm. But I know (and believe) the truth of the power of God's Word and the importance of taking it in. The effects are not always immediately felt and seen, but I consider it a spiritual multivitamin. Just as your body benefits from taking a vitamin everyday, your spirit is strengthened by taking in the Word daily.

So I encourage you, be building up your spirit. You wouldn't eat 2 meals a week, once on Sunday and Wednesday night, and likewise you shouldn't feed your spirit only on such rare occasions. An emaciated spirit is a bad idea. You also would never allow someone else to feed you as you grow. And likewise, we shouldn't just go in places where pastors and teachers are spoon feeding us, we have the buffet of goodness at our demand, and we ought to indulge continually. Unlike a thick waistline, a fat spirit is good for us all.

So, go, dig in, and eat with your mouth open!

Anonymous

Leaving for retreat tomorrow. I'm super excited.

I'm not going with my own church, I'm going with another church. Other than my one girlfriend who I am going with, I don't anticipate knowing anyone at all.

There is something very appealing to me about going and getting lost in a crowd. I'm excited about going and just seeking the Lord, without feeling like there are any opinions or impressions about me that I have to fight to overcome.

I'm looking forward to going without being distracted by any of my own opinions, thoughts, feelings or hurts. I'm looking forward to not having any preconceived ideas to overcome, mine about others, or theirs about me.

I'm going with a friend that I love dearly, and she loves me, and neither of us expects to really know anyone there. She might run into a casual acquaintance or two (in theory, I suppose I could too) but chances are we are both going clothed in total anonymity.

I'm excited about at least starting this excursion to seek the Lord anonymously. No judgment, no expectation, no opinions to overcome. My girlfriend and I are going, with joy and anticipation. All of my expectation is in Jesus alone.

I don't know what to expect, but I am full of hope.

I have hope for sweet fellowship with a dearest friend.

I have hope for hearing a word from the Lord.

I have hope for making new friends.

I have hope for the freedom that comes from being anonymous.

My hope is in Jesus for this weekend, and I am beliving for good things.

Lost in translation

This morning when I was flipping through statuses on Facebook, I stopped for a moment at one.

It read, "Oggi è un giorno buono."

I don't speak Italian, or read it for that matter so I didn't actually know what it said. I do speak some Spanish however, in fact once upon a time I was relatively fluent, but if you don't use it, you lose it. But there remain enough in my memory bank to recognize the connection between buono and beuno to know my friend was saying that something was "good."

I don't actually know this Facebook friend very well "IRL" (In Real Life)- truth be told I'm not even positive we've had more than a short conversation or two in person. But I have seen enough of her on Facebook and observed her and her faithful service around the church we both attend to know, somewhat confidently, that whatever it was that she was saying, I probably agreed with her. Whatever she said was good, was good. I was confident, what I knew of her and her character was enough for me to feel confident that I could take her at her word, even if what she said was hard for me to understand, lost in translation, if you will.

Immediately, the Lord spoke to my heart.

How often is He "speaking" something into our lives that we don't understand. Perhaps the "words" are tinged in heartache, or even drenched in sorrow. Perhaps our attempts to understand what is happening in our lives is confusing We find ourselves struggling to comprehend the meaning, what in the world is God trying to say?

It's in those moments in our lives that we have to take God at his "Word" not because we fully understand what is being said, but because of the history we have with Him. We have to rest back on what we do know, rather than what we don't understand. We have to choose to look to His character and know that that is enough to be confident of the truth that we don't understand.

My friend did post the translation. "Oggi è un giorno buono" means "Today is a good day."

Today is a good day when we acknowledge God's hand in it. God has given His kids so many promises, that even what we do not understand, even hard and hurting things, we know will serve purpose, because the Lord has promised they would. He has promised to be with us in the midst of even the darkest times and most difficult challenges. Dare I say perhaps we are never more aware of His presence that in those dark days? Which that alone makes them that much more valuable.

God's character is sure, and that is why whatever He "speaks" into our lives, we can trust even if we struggle to understand. Look to Him. He is trustworthy.

As for God, His way is perfect;
The word of the LORD is proven;
He is a shield to all who trust in Him.
2 Samuel 22:31

The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul;
The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple;
The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart;
The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes;
The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever;
The judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether.
Psalm 19:7-9

This is the day the LORD has made;
We will rejoice and be glad in it.
Psalm 118:24

My friend was right, ""Oggi è un giorno buono." Today is a very good day.




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Holy Conversation

LORD, I'm frightened.

I have not given you a spirit of fear,
but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
2 Timothy 1:7

But I don't know what the future holds.

Do not worry about tomorrow,
for tomorrow will worry about its own things.
Matthew 6:34

But I don't even know what You're planning or what's in Your mind.

I know the thoughts that I think toward you,
thoughts of peace and not of evil,
to give you a future and a hope.
Jeremiah 29:11

But I feel so alone.

Where can you go from My Spirit?
Or where can you flee from My presence?
If you ascend into heaven, I am there;
if you make your bed in hell, behold, I am there.
Psalm 139:7-8

I don't think I can do this.

You can do all things through Christ,
I'll strengthen you.
Philippians 4:13

I need help.

I am your refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble.
Psalm 46:1

But what if I fail, when I can't hold on to my faith?

If you are faithless, I remain faithful;
I cannot deny Myself.
2 Timothy 2:13

Do You still love me?

Neither death nor life,
nor angels nor principalities nor powers,
nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth,
nor any other created thing,
shall be able to separate us from My love
which is in Christ Jesus your Lord.
Romans 8:38-39

I don't know why these things have to happen.

I work all things for your good
because you love Me,
because I called you according to My purpose.
I foreknew you, predestined you
to be conformed to the image of My Son,
that He might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.
I'm going to make you like Jesus.
Romans 8:28-29

What do I do now?

I am your portion, hope in Me.
I am good to those who wait for Me, to the soul who seeks Me.
It is good that one should hope
and wait quietly for My Salvation.
Lamentations 3:24-26

Trust in ME, and do good; dwell with Me,
and feed on My faithfulness.
Delight yourself also in ME,
nd I shall give you the desires of your heart.
Commit your way to ME, trust also in Me,
and I shall bring it to pass.
Psalm 37:3-5

OK, Lord, I will. I love You.

I know, I love you too.
John 3:16



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Who's your Daddy?

I've started a new blog. It's specific to my battle with weight loss and I have titled it, "The Fight to Lose." Weight loss has been a long battle for me. Not a forever battle, but long enough at this point I have probably fought the issue long than I didn't. And what I have come to realize is, that for me, the battle is far more spiritual than just physical. My struggle with food comes from deep within. When I think of it, I am reminded of Paul talking about his own battles with his "flesh" in Romans 7:15 "I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. That's me and my fight with food

There all kinds of roots I recognize: bad habits, learned behaviors, emotional issues. In the end though, the root is simple. It's an issue of sin.

I started the blog for two reasons, (1) accountability, and (2) inspiration. They're actually very tied together. If I know someone else is watching me, I will think twice before I fudge because I don't want to cause anyone else to stumble. I know as a believer I'm called to live life openly before both God and man. And I always hold out hope that if by God's grace I am able to walk in some level of victory, then maybe I will help someone else hold on to Him and find the same.

In the end, anything good in my life comes down to my ability to hold on to the Lord. ."Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. James 1:17

A big part of holding on to Him for me this year is about writing in a prayer journal. As last year closed and I prayed about what my goals for the new year should be, I chose to read my bible through in a year and journal to the Lord ever day. Obviously I have a passion for writing, and I know it is a gift the Lord has given me, but even though I have continued to write for His glory, I haven't really written for Him. So every day I have been writing for Him and to Him in my prayer journal.

The other night as I wrote I talked to him about this new blog. I wanted to share a little bit of the conversation that developed there.

From my journal:

Do, do, do - What is the revelation You gave me? It isn't all about the "do." Help me, Lord.

"If you continue to obey My teaching You are truly My followers. Then you will know the truth and the truth will make you free." John 8:31-32

"So if the Son makes you free, you will be truly free." (from sin.) John 8:36

Who's your Daddy?

If you belong to the Father, you would love Jesus and accept His teaching.

If you belong to the father (Satan, the father of lies) you do what he wants, murderous and against the truth, a liar, buying into his lies.

Lies: that food is a viable alternative to God's comfort, that my body is my own, lies that what I do with food doesn't matter.

So, what is Your teaching? What specifically do I need to obey? Where have I been buying into a lie? Help me to see these things, to call out the lies and it's attached temptation and respond to it with truth. Just like Jesus did when Satan tempted him in the wilderness. To respond in truth I must know truth ad to know truth I must be in the Word and continue in it and obey it."

For me the conversation leading to the revelation was specific to my battles with food, but it is universal to the battle of temptation and sin. The bottom line is, to overcome it we must be walking in obedience to God's word, and the only way to know it is to read it regularly, and with faith.

What are you battling today? What temptation is trying overcome you? The answer to your struggle is in God's Word.

How can a young man cleanse his way?
By taking heed according to Your word.
Psalm 119:9

Disappointment - Redux

I am in a strange place, and have been having a little trouble putting "pen to paper" these past few days. So because I have an obligation to blog at least a couple times a week and it has been a full week since my last post, I have decided to re-post something from the past. This post was my first ever "recommended" post (which probably doesn't mean much since I am the one who recommended it). It was written back in August of 2008, when the blog was still very new. I hope it ministers to you today.

Blessings,
Diana

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Disappointment

The definition of the word is "the failure to fulfill the expectations or wishes of," or "the defeat of the fulfillment of" such as of wishes or hopes.

My daughter experienced a huge disappointment today. We got a letter in the mail informing us the gym where she has learned and practiced gymnastics for the last four years is closing. We started there in a "Mommy and Me" class right after the 2004 summer Olympics. When I saw the excitement it brought my , then two-year-old, daughter to watch these young women flip and fly on the TV screen, I signed her right up. Over the past four years she's grown and flourished being knocked up level to level quickly and even getting to participate these past two semesters as the youngest member of their demo team. It's sort of ironic that as we rushed home tonight to watch this year's Olympic gymnastics competition we sat down and opened the letter in the mail that bore the bad news about her gym. This year as we have been watching it's with insight and understanding as well as the same wonder of the two-year-old from four years ago.

It's not as though there are no other options for her to continue learning gymnastics, it's just that she's really grown to love the place she's been, her teachers and the friends she's made there. It's a huge disappointment, and maybe even a little more heartbreak for a little girl who is already sad about the closing of her elementary school back in June, and she's already leery of the change she's making attending a new one in the fall. Now TWO places she's loved and grown are no longer going to be a part of her life. That is disappointment.

Last night I was at a meeting at church and we were talking about the theme for our women's ministry in the fall. I edit our newsletter and we center the publication and our ministry around a general theme. We talked about the sense of hopelessness and disappointment surrounding us today. The economy is lousy, people everywhere are struggling, businesses are failing, jobs are being lost. There is a lot of disappointment to go around. In my own life I am watching people I care about struggle with personal disappointments too, marriages failing, betrayals of loved ones, people wounding people, people facing battles, even life-threatening battles, that they didn't expect to be facing. Disappointments.

I have another perspective on this word that always rings in my mind when I hear the word disappointment. It's something over the years I have shared with many people, and I'm inclined to repeat it again now. Did you know that God has NEVER been disappointed? That was a revelation that came to me when I was going through emotional and spiritual healing from an abortion I had in my late teens. I was having a very hard time believing that God would forgive me for what I had done because I was so very certain He was too disappointed in me. But I was wrong.

"What is she saying????" I know as some of you read this, that's what's going through your minds. "OF COURSE God was disappointed!"you say, but no you'd be mistaken. He was grieved, I am sure, and He may have even been angry, but He was NOT disappointed.

Let's go back to the definition. "The failure to fulfill the expectations or wishes of." God held no expectation of me, He already knew I was going to fail, and commit the sin that I did. In the very definition of disappointment is the element of surprise. God is NEVER surprised. Because He was not surprised, because He already knew, He could not be disappointed in me. He has never been disappointed in me, or in you.

As we continued to talk about the fall theme, we each shared our thoughts on it. And what I was left with was this picture of the "dis" being broken, even smashed off of "disappointment." And when that happens, what is left? "Appointment."

Let's talk about the definition of "appointment." "A meeting set for a specific time or place," or "the act of appointing, as to an office or position."

This weekend my pastor was speaking on joy, and how joy is built out, in a large part, of our perspective on life. Now here is the thought process I have been working through, my perspective. This same God who is never, NEVER disappointed in me, because He is incapable of being surprised is also not surprised by those things that disappoint me. When in my mind I saw the "dis" being smashed off of the word disappointment, across the hammer that leveled it was the word "hope." Hope is a rare commodity in the world today. But those of us who are believers in Christ have a "corner on the market" of hope, the smasher of disappointment.

Romans 5:3-5 says, "We also have joy with our troubles, because we know that these troubles produce patience. And patience produces character, and character produces hope. And this hope will never disappoint us, because God has poured out his love to fill our hearts. He gave us his love through the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to us."

We can have joy in our troubles, our hurts and even our disappointments, because we know that God is working out a greater plan and purpose, not only FOR us but also THROUGH us. Wherever these disappointments, these troubles, may lead us to, we can be sure that we were APPOINTED to be there. There is no random, accidental or coincidental event in the life of any believer. That is pretty incredible, brings me joy to think about it!

I don't know how well I will be able to soften the sadness of a 6-year-old with this truth, but I know I can try to encourage and love her through the process. And I can hope (because with Christ I can ALWAYS hope) that at some point these young life lessons will be owned by my daughter who is living them. At some point when we can look back at some relationship built, or some good deed done, or some feat that is accomplished because of the new places God has brought her when the old ones have been removed. And she can say God took my DISappointment and brought me to a place of APPOINTMENT for His good plan and purpose, for me and through me, in Jesus' name. Oh that she may some day be able to see her life with such a heavenly perspective.

May we all learn that lesson in our lives, that we may grow in faith, in hope and in love. God is faithful, and He can be trusted.