Rough Mornings

Good Morning My Faithful Readers!

I hope your morning has been better than mine so far. As you know, I'm normally up very early, have my coffee, read my Bible, pray and then post whatever God has laid on my heart. Well, yesterday was a very trying day at work and as a result I was still stewing about this morning.

Normally, after some reflection and good night's sleep I am able to let whatever is bothering me go.

But not so this time.

I TRIED to follow my normal routine. I settled in with my coffee and Bible but instead of absorbing what I was reading I kept ruminating about yesterday's issues. So, I ended up talking about my troubles with my sweet, wonderful husband, Buddy.

He listened patiently as he always does and offered me sound advice.

I was thankful for his attention and compassionate understanding but regretted that I had talked away my prayer and devotion time.

I'm sure God understood my need to lean on human shoulders but He'd probably preferred that I'd been able to vent all of my frustrations to Him alone.

 I do try to do this, but it is a challenge sometimes.

So that's all I have to offer to you today, my precious readers.

This is a day where the 'encourager' could use some encouragement of her own. I could have just left the previous post up and 'hidden' the fact that I'm not feeling that upbeat.

But  it's important that you know that living every day with Jesus doesn't mean there won't be down days. But it does mean you always have hope, even on the worst of mornings.

Blessings to all of you!

Debbie

Rats in the Cellar

C.S. Lewis (one of my all time favorite authors) talks about having rats in the cellar of our inner self. This concept of digging deep into ones heart and mind has been weighing heavily on me lately. Who am I really? What kind of Christian woman would I be if my cognitive skills were diminished and I was no longer able to filter my reactions through common sense and the Holy word?

My impassioned goal is to be so full of Jesus Christ and His holy word that even if I didn't know my own name, I would be a sincere and loving Godly woman. I have dreams of being so saturated with scripture that if you were to just touch me, like one would touch a sponge, all that would come out with be Bible verses. Oh God, make it so in me one day!

Time is running out for me this morning, so I will leave you with this excerpt from C. S. Lewis' book, Mere Christianity:

" We begin to notic, besides our particular sinful acts, our sinfulness; begin to be alarmed not only about what we do, but about what we are. This may sound rather difficult, so I will try to make it clear from my own case. When I come to my evening prayers and try to reckon up the sins of the day, nine times out of ten the most obvious one is some sin against charity; I have sulked or snapped or sneered or snubbed or stormed. And the excuse that immediately springs to my mind is that I was caught off guard, I had not time to collect myself...
On the other hand, surely what a man does when he is taken off guard is the best evidence for what sort of man he is. Surely, what pops out before the man has time to put on a disguise is the truth? If there are rats in a cellar you are most likely to see them if you go in very suddenly. But the suddenness does not create the rats; it only prevents them from hiding. In the same way the suddenness of the provocation does not make me an ill-tempered man; it only shows me what an ill tempered man I am. The rats are always there in the cellar, but if you go in shouting and noisily they will have taken cover before you switch on the light."

MONDAY MUSINGS: Servanthood

Again and again my spirit is pressed upon to become a better servant.

I have to tell you it is not an easy undertaking because in order to be a true servant, all self-will must be squashed.

 Obliterated.

 Completly gone.

A servant has no rights but to meet the needs of their master.

To be honest the whole concept of servanthood grates against the very fiber of my being.

My intellect and strong-willed nature respond with a desperate cry of MUTINY.

Yet, I know it is God's way.

Because somewhere hidden in the torterous dying to self, is an immense blessing.

 One that can only be viewed after all residue of self has disappeared.

Am I there yet?

 NO.

But I know that I must keep trying.

And God, in his loving way keeps presenting me with opportunities to surrender and serve.

Most of the time, I do not like the situations that God orchastrates that challenge me to humble myself and serve. But then again, if it was easy, it wouldn't be a real death of self would it?

Like today, I have to meet with someone who rubs me the wrong way.

 But in God's eyes, this is a great opportunity for me to be CHRIST-LIKE.

 I don't necessarily feel like being Christ like today.

But because I love Jesus, I will do my best.

The Holy Bible says:

"And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me." (Matthew 18:3-5)

"For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God. I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain." (Galatians 2:19-21)

Have you had servant challenges recently?

Who's Side Are You On?

"And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must of necessity suffer many things and be tested and disapproved and rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and be put to death, and after three days rise again [[a]from death]...

And He said this freely (frankly, plainly, and explicitly, making it unmistakable). And Peter took Him [b]by the hand and led Him aside and then [facing Him] began to rebuke Him...

But turning around [His back to Peter] and seeing His disciples, He rebuked Peter, saying, Get behind Me, Satan! For you do not have a mind [c]intent on promoting what God wills, but what pleases men [you are not on God's side, but that of men]...

And Jesus called [to Him] the throng with His disciples and said to them, If anyone intends to come after Me, let him deny himself [forget, ignore, disown, and [d]lose sight of himself and his own interests] and take up his cross, and [[e]joining Me as a disciple and siding with My party] follow [f]with Me [continually, cleaving steadfastly to Me]...

For whoever wants to save his [[g]higher, spiritual, eternal] life, will lose it [the [h]lower, natural, temporal life [i]which is lived only on earth]; and whoever gives up his life [which is lived only on earth] for My sake and the Gospel's will save it [his [j]higher, spiritual life [k]in the eternal kingdom of God]. (Mark 8:30-35 in the Amplified Bible)

This passage of scripture hit me hard this morning as I read it. Especially the part about not having a mind to promote God's will, but mans.
 
Can you imagine how Peter must have felt that day being called 'Satan' by Jesus? This is the man who later would recieve the keys to the kingdom and who would be the first one to bring the message of salvation after the outpouring of the Holy Ghost in Acts chapter 2. Yet, at that particular moment, Peter did not have his mind completely sold out to the kingdom.
 
He thought he did, as no doubt many of us think we do. But when the unthinkable happens, or the cross we've been asked to bear gets heavy, or when there seems to be outright injustice occuring in our lives, do we, like Peter try to thwart the very thing that will bring about God's purpose?
 
I've done it. Have you?
 
Time doesn't permit me to share examples of how I have, in the name of God stopped the speeding train so to speak, but if you will share with me your experiences, I promise to do the same in another post.
 
This too, is part of living every day with Jesus.

Jesus and the Job Search

I'm off work today (yea!) so I didn't have to get up at my usual 4:45am (double yea!) which is why I'm posting  later than normal. (My apologies to my readers who are used to reading my posts before work.)

Today, I wanted to tell you about my friend Mallory*.  She is a single mom in her mid 50's who has been out of work for  a year.

Mallory is  smart, attractive, well dressed, personable, a quick study, and has a degree perfectly suited to her career.

Yet, despite her best job search efforts, she's only  been invited to interview a handful of times in the last 12 months.

But last week, Mallory told me she had an interview for this coming Monday morning. She was happy, but also wary. Afterall, she'd gotten excited before only to be told she didn't get the job.

 Dealing with rejection is a tough aspect of trying to find a job in today's market.

I was thinking about Mallory the next day as I prepared for my morning prayer.  I told the Lord Jesus all about Mallory's need. I didn't ask Him to do anything specific, except to help her, and be with her as she went on the interview.

Then I paused for several moments waiting  to see if Jesus wanted to give me any additional guidance concerning my friendship with Mallory.

And He did.  I felt impressed me to anoint a handkerchief for Mallory like they did in Acts 19 and pray for her to have renewed confidence and favor with whomever she meets.

 The next day,  I gave Mallory the anointed handkerchief, and explained to her that in Acts 19 pieces of cloth were given to the sick as an act of faith for healing. I told her that the handkerchief itself didn't have any special powers but that we were  demonstrating our faith  to God and asking Him to respond.

Although, Mallory is not a believer , but she embraced this concept readily, and allowed me to pray for her. I prayed a  simple prayer with her and then we hugged and each went our seperate ways.

The following Monday, the day of the interview, I called Mallory to wish her well. She excitably told me she now had two interviews and that the handkerchief  hadn't left her side. God had honored our simple act of faith, and what's more Mallory's faith was growing!

You see, Mallory is not a believer. But when my friend Jesus told me to offer her the handkerchief, and to pray for her I did. And Jesus did the rest.

I'm not sure what the outcomes of Mallory's interviews will be,  but  I do it's sparked in her a faith in Jesus Christ. Something she'd departed from a long, long time ago.

And that my friends, it just a glimpse of what life is like when you live every day with Jesus.

*NOT HER REAL NAME

MORE LOVE - Less Condemnation

Last week,  I saw a man walking around the mall in a skirt. It turned out he worked at a place at the mall called Massage Envy. I figured this out because he was wearing a t-shirt with the Massage Envy logo. His features were very masculine looking: he had short dark hair, bushy eyebrows, a 5 o-clock shadow and was very muscular looking. But he also had breasts - and of course the seemingly out of place skirt.

Then today, I saw another man standing at a bus stop wearing black short-shorts and a lace camisole.

My first thought was that maybe they were going to some kind of party or something. But after observing them for a minutes it became obvious they were dressed in what was comfortable for them, just as you or I would.

'They are just so confused and they need God' was the thought that kept going over in my mind. Oh God, I prayed, keep reaching for them, keep showing them your way and your love. Give them the power to overcome what has bound them.

Now some who read what I just wrote will be outraged at my suggestion of homosexuality being a bondage. And I don't want to  argue with anyone. But  the Bible does take a very clear stance on homosexuality . (Leviticus 18:22, Leviticus 20:13, I Corinthians 6:9, I Timothy 1:10)

And yet,  I have  friends who have life partners of the same sex. They know how I feel about it, but then my friends who drink know how I feel about that too.

Surprised? You shouldn't be.

My job is to love whoever the Lord Jesus puts in my path. To be a friend,  and to share Christ as it seems appropiate to do so. Is that not what Jesus meant when he said "And they will know you are my disciples by the love you have one for another."

Loving someone undconditionally does not mean that you agree with all their choices. If we only love when we agree all of someone's lifestyle choices we are loving with conditions - and this is not the kind of love that Christ spoke of at all.

So I challenge you. Look at the people around you and listen to your heart for prejudices and condemnations that need to be surrendered to God. Then put on Christ (Galatians 3:27) and go out into the world and show the true agape love that Jesus intended us to offer.

MONDAY MUSINGS: No Striving

"Do not strive in your own strength; cast yourself at the feet of the Lord Jesus, and wait upon Him in the sure confidence that He is with you, and works win you. Strive in prayer; let faith fill your heart - so will you be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might." - Andrew Murray.

The above quote was part of my morning devotional reading. So again my heart and mind is focused on NOT STRIVING, not seeking my own, not trying to get ahead of others, and not even trying to make my mark on the world.

It's our human nature to push to the head of the line though isn't it? I've been guilty of this myself . Why is it that to be first, to be the best, to win top honors holds such appeal?

I think because it feeds our hungry sin nature.

Yet, Christ tells us of a very different way. He speaks of being lowly, being humble, preferring others, crucifying this fleshly nature and that he who is the least - the lowest - the most disregarded will be the greatest in heaven. (Mark 10:31)

Philippians 2:3 says, "Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind, let each esteem others better than themselves."

I plan to take this scripture to work with me today and meditate on it. If you've been reading my posts you know that I need this timely reminder. God is definately working something out in me and in my character.

May the Lord Jesus make us all better servants and teach us to strive less and surrender more.

I pray that your work week is easy and your burdens like. And I further pray that you listen with your heart to all  God is trying to speak to you.

Kindest Regards,


Debbie