Luther and I...

  I was thinking this morning about Martin Luther and how he was set free from all his self-imposed penance by Scripture.  How could anyone keep himself under such physical and spiritual bondage voluntarily?  How in the world did he think he could accomplish anything thru all his self-punishment and self-torture? How did that ingratiate him to God in any way?  What a waste!!...right?...

  So, I put my shoes on and go for a walk.  The minute I step out the door and begin walking, I totally overlook the obvious...a beautiful morning complete with birds singing and breeze blowing.  Never mind that! I'm too busy "bringing my petitions" to God, making sure all my prayer requests are prayed for, confessing, etc...  Isn't that what I'm supposed to do?

  Once again, my faithful Heavenly Father brings me out of my foolishness to His all-encompassing wisdom.  Am I really that different from Luther before Scripture set him free?  Am I enjoying  or enduring the journey?  I have decided this day to give myself permission to enjoy this journey called life.  To look at it with renewed eyes of joy and wonder.  I don't have to stay home with the kids...I GET TO spend time with them and get to know them better.  I don't have to go for a walk for my heart rate and excess pounds...I GET TO enjoy nature and talk to my Savior!  I don't have to approach my circumstances today as helpless happenings, I GET TO see what situations my Heavenly Father has arranged for me today so that I can know Him better.

   What a wonderful thing a change of perspective is!  It's like getting new contacts, or cleaning your smudgy glasses, or getting into your comfy clothes when you get home.  Luther was not the only one in bondage and self-inflicted joylessness.  Oh LORD, help me to experience joy in the journey.  Keep me from the subtle trap of purposeful discontent and lead me into the full joy of experiencing your presence every moment of the day.

"There is a joy in the journey,

there's a Light we can love on the way;

There is a wonder, and while there is life,

a freedom for those who obey."

 Michael Card  (Joy in the Journey)

We...the scaredy-cats!!

Reading thru Jeremiah...what a book!!  God commands Jeremiah to stay unmarried and (obviously) without children in order to confirm, in his own private life, God's prediction of impending destruction for Jerusalem (16:2).  Later on (32:6-15) God commands Jeremiah to buy a piece of land in the besieged, soon-to-fall Jerusalem as a confirmation, in Jeremiah's own life, that God's prediction of restoration of Israel to its land would indeed happen.

What a lesson to us fickle, scaredy-cats who refuse to "put the money where our mouths are"!  We talk so convincingly about our beliefs in a Sovereign God who rules all and has everything in His hand...do we back it up with our lives?  Do we live like we really and truly believe God?  even when it might mean loss of finances or dreams, as it did in Jeremiah's case?

Lord, please deliver me from the hypocrisy of saying and not living!  Give me the boldness to look like a "fool for Christ" whenever Your Word demands obedience.

Confession Time!!

Two things you should know before you read this:  I've been praying that the LORD will allow us to meet neighbors and share the good news of the Gospel with them.  Also,  I love my morning walks!  I get to talk to the LORD without interruptions and enjoy nature...my two favs. 

However, last week...they both happened AT THE SAME TIME!!! Okay, here's confession time.  I was actually perturbed that one of my neighbors decided to walk her dog WITH me!!! Nothing shows my selfishness as when my "comfort" zone is invaded!  After all, this is MY time with the LORD!  Ouch!!! How the LORD chastised me for this.  

How fickle I am!!  I pray that the LORD will keep whittling down all my little "comfort zones" until He alone is left.  After all, He alone is the God of all comfort!

 "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God."  2 Cor. 1:3-4

Why a "side-show"

According to the dictionary, a side-show is:  A subordinate incident of little importance relative to the main event: or A minor show that is part of a larger one (as at the circus).  That sounds soooo much like my life.

The longer we live with Christ the more we begin to shed the selfishness of our ways and begin to see the Big Picture!  It is that AHA!!! moment when you realize that His Glory is my good!! Oh what a wonderful journey it then turns out to be!!

Notice I didn't say "easy", but it truly is wonderful.  My prayer is that I will continue to look at my life as a "subordinate incident of little importance relative to the" glory of God. 

Are y'all not just amazed that He uses us to bring Him glory??????!!!!

My first attempt at Blogging!!

Well...after months of contemplation I finally crossed my Rubicon and started a blog!  So, the purpose of it?  To share my thoughts, ideas and discoveries with those whom the LORD brings along, and to learn from others through comments and responses.

I am cautiously excited about this venture and pray that the LORD will use it for His glory...after all...what else is there?!