WAIT FOR IT TIL IT COMES

The Bible says in Exodus 2:12, that before Moses killed the Egyptian that was beating the Hebrew, he looked "this way and that way," and then killed the Egyptian. While we may think that Moses' heart was in the right place in his defense of the Hebrew, his actions were foolish, and clearly, not been told by the Lord to do it. Instead of looking around to insure no one was looking, Moses should have been looking up. Moses acted out of impulse and being impulsive, can have its drawbacks, as did Moses' impulsiveness, as it brought some devastating results to him. While Moses might have been a leader in training, he wasn't ready at that point. He had some serious schooling ahead of him, if he were to be used of God. For what looked like the end, was actually the beginning, of a plan that God had for Moses’ life and the people that he would lead under God’s authority and leadership. There are many ways in which God’s reasoning and actions make no sense to us. Often times we will ask God for help and our enemies show up at our doorsteps. We trust in Him to provide and it appears as though He withholds. We plead for a day without pain, and yet another rolls around to bring us agony. One thing for sure is that God is never inconsistent, but simply running according to another time schedule and another set of plans and priorities.

 While Moses questioned God concerning God’s choosing him, the prophet Habakkuk questioned God’s plan to use a pagan people to discipline the Hebrew children. It made no sense to either of these men. Yet they both learned through the many years of God’s teaching and training them, through mistakes and heartbreaks that no matter what may have come their way, they would stay the course and serve God no matter what. When Moses approached the Red Sea, he acted in frustration and not faith when he hit a rock that God told him to merely speak to, a breach in faith that cost Moses getting into the Promised Land. As great a man as Moses was, God held His ground on the repercussions of consequence. While He forgave Moses, He did not allow Moses to enter the promise land that he would lead God’s people up to, but not enter in himself. Moses was only allowed to look upon the Promise Land, but not enter it. However, Moses remained faithful to God even in this. For he knew that it was his actions that brought him that consequence, not Gods choice.

 Hab 2:1 says of Habakkuk, “Like a guard who waits through his watch with eyes peeled for a sign of movement, Habakkuk waited for God. Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord! Ps. 27:14…and so we must, no matter what our eyes see, our ears hear, or the condemnation that our hearts want to pass on to us, we must stay the course. For God is greater than our hearts…I John 3:19-20 tells us that are in Christ, “This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence: If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and He knows everything".

 He may not appear to be there as of yet sweet friend; but hold on, wait for Him, He is nearer than you may think!

Loving on you!

Bren

 

RESOLVE IN 2014

It’s that time again, when we resolve to accomplish a list of goals in the coming year.  The verb tense of the word resolve means to settle or find a solution to a matter. To change or overcome it. Which reminds me of a verse in Romans 12:2, “Don not conform any longer to the patter of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind”.  For many of us, our focus on the coming new year will be to simply resolve in our hearts to do better than we did last year in certain areas of our lives, as we should. While, some of us will continue working on the same resolutions that we made last year but failed to complete, be it unhealthy habits, managing our time better, or simply resolving to overcome things that we know we need to overcome, in order to wipe the slate clean, others will make brand new ones.

With the lifestyle that most of us live today, resolving to do fewer things it pretty much at the top of most of our list. I have found that being too busy can and will lead to many of the other things that are on my list as well.  Often times getting busier can lead to neglecting or giving our best in some goals or even ignoring those goals that were once as important as all the others and we end up with cluttered lives filled with wrong things, and in the end  we are left with a vicious cycle of falling further and further behind. Amid all our disorders, a lot of bad decisions get made and the best means of escape from this cycle may very well require us to rethink our goals and narrow down our list. Sometimes having or doing a little less, can mean having much more!

If you are like me, I often feel my most productive when my work has piled up and I have deadlines to meet, so I busy myself to get them done. But that is only a feeling that I have and the reality is that something will have to be sacrificed as I am rushing to accomplish my demands. By adding something new to my list always means removing something that’s already been placed on it. Struggling over how we can rearrange our priorities can take our time and energy and can often times lead to more stress and sleepless nights. Not getting our rest from our pondering over them all night may very well be the cause for some of our bad decision that are made and in turn, will only make the problem worse. Spending too much time on things that we worry over is what causes us to stress over them. It is never that they are not important or real, but too much time worrying over them and accomplishing nothing is a problem. Fix what you can and move on. Make a plan to cut back on what you can and follow through. The smaller your list, the less you have to focus on in making changes. Once you accomplish them, then add another to your list. Don’t make decision making any harder than it has to be, even if your goals are limited to one thing that you will work on in the upcoming new year!

Happy New Year and May God Bless It!

Loving on you today,
Bren

WHAT ARE YOU ALLOWING TO FUEL YOUR FAITH?

What are you allowing to fuel your faith in God today? Obedience, trust, hope, joy or is it, past rebellion, hurtful disappointments, doubt, worry, bitterness, hard feelings, ingratitude? Maybe you are going through a tough time right now and have no idea how things will turn out. May I encourage you today sweet friend, don’t allow your current circumstances to dictate your future, unless they are bringing you to a place of trusting God in them. Those things are only meant to try and discourage and destroy you. God’s understanding in them is that everything works for the good, of those who love Him according to Romans 8:28, and that what Satan intends for harm in our lives, God intends for good, according to Genesis 50:20. His plans are for good; to prosper us and not to harm us as told to us in Jeremiah 29:11.

 

All throughout the scriptures God tells us that He works for our good and on our behalf. Sometimes, we cannot fathom how a bad thing can turn out to be a good thing, at the time. However, God knows that our suffering produces character in us, endurance, and perseverance for our future situations, and that is the only reason that He allows them to come near us. God’s loving and tender hand can smooth the turbulence that threatens our peace if we will see them from His perspective and the scars that are created by those turbulent times are only road maps of where we have been; and the cross roads that we have chosen to take, as reminders of the right and wrong choices we made.

 

While our understanding of our situations may be limited and small and mostly focused on the moment, remember that God is focused on our eternity. In realizing that, you may very well encounter the mighty hand of God and understand His purpose better. You may not can change your situation, but you can absolutely change your spiritual environment while going through them. Be sure this coming year, to choose wisely the directions that you will take in how you look at everything that touches your life. Don’t lose heart, work to see them as God sees them and fuel your faith with hope and only then will peace slip into those bear and lonely places to provide you peace as you walk through them!  

Loving on you today,

Bren

CHRISTMAS PEACE - PART 1 & 2

Christmas Peace Part 1

God used the star in the sky to lead the Magi or Wise men to where Christ was. Today, God uses His word to lead those that pursue Him for salvation, answer questions, provide a peace that passes all understanding or to meet their needs. One need that I always have during the Christmas Holidays, is the need to stay focused on what Christmas represents in my heart. And because of that need, I am constantly being drawn to the Word of God to help keep my priorities in the right order. When I do this, my Holidays are less stressful and much more meaningful. While Christmas is for us, it is never about us. If we are not careful, we can allow this wonderful Holiday to draw us away from God rather than closer to Him by the stresses and business that the holidays may require of us. The expense of buying gifts, the pressure of last minute shopping and the heightened expectations of family gatherings, cooking, cleaning, decorating, can all combine together to undermine our best intentions and sidetrack us from our original purpose. Today, there is hardly room for the baby in the manger as people look forward to the stories of The Grinch, Miracle on 34^th Street, Rudolph, Frosty and the chubby man in the red suit. Many will end up disappointed and sad, because they are trying to be happy and find satisfaction in gifts, parties, employee bonuses and other things, only to find in the end that those things did not provide the joy and peace that they were hoping for. The personal turmoil that every human being experiences is a sign of their need for and their separation from God and where He wants them to be; at peace. For those that find the true peace that comes through the Christ child, the apostle Paul tells us this,  “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” Romans 5:1. Even Jesus Himself told us in John 14:27, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world gives, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” The peace that Jesus offers only comes through a heart change. The world has it all backwards. To those that think that Jesus came to bring peace on earth, Jesus said, "Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword…Matthew 10:34.  The Bible is full of verses that refer to the peace of God. It is a great mistake, to regard this type of peace with a feeling. For our feelings change from moment to moment and from experience to experience. For those that have found it, those feelings do not overwhelm their sense of inner peace that only God can give them. The peace of mind and heart that God offers and virtually everyone wants, is not a feeling at all, but a state of wellbeing. It is a belief that everything is under the sovereign control of the only true God who loves us and has our best interest in mind and we can trust Him in that. Paul also encourages those that put their trust in Christ  with the promise of God’s presence and help during difficult times. He said, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (continued next week)

Merry Christmas!

Bren
 

Christmas Peace Part 2

As I mentioned in last week’s devotion, one need that I always have during the Christmas Holidays, is the need to stay focused on what Christmas represents in my heart. And because of that need, I am constantly being drawn to the Word of God to help keep my priorities in the right order. When I do this, my Holidays are less stressful and much more meaningful. While Christmas is for us, it is never about us. If we are not careful, we can allow this wonderful Holiday to draw us away from God rather than closer to Him by the stresses and business that the holidays may require of us. Philippians 4:6-7. Inner peace can only come when we are in a right relation to God through our faith in Jesus Christ, His Son. You want find Him in gifts or at parties at the inn, or even in the Christmas rituals that you may be used to being a part of. He is in the stable, where you least expect Him. He had to experience Isaiah 53:3 “He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from Him; He was despised, and we esteemed Him not.” And now intercedes for us, because He personally understands everything that we go through and that touches our lives. The first time Jesus came to the world, He came to a manger in a lowly stable. He grew up and was despised and even rejected by many. He stood before royalty and was judged by Pilate. But when He comes again, Kings alike, Pilate included, will stand before Him. When He came the first time, He came as a baby. When He comes again, He will come as a conquering King. When He came the first time, He was rejected but when He comes again Romans 14:11 says, “As I live saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to Me and every tongue shall confess to God.”  “He came unto His own, and His own received Him not. But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God” John 1:11-13.  Gifts are fun, both to give and receive, but they are only symbolic of a much greater gift as found in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life”. It’s easy to become overwhelmed by the busyness of Christmas. That doesn’t mean we have to lose track of the significance of this time of year, or miss out on the opportunities it can present. Gift giving is a wonderful way to show love to one another, as God gave us the example by giving His Son. They seem particularly true when we are giving out of our time and gifts to those in need. Don’t just go through the motions this Christmas. Put forth the effort to find the true meaning of Christmas. He is not so far that He cannot be found. Jesus is the reason for the season, seek Him while He may be found!

Merry Christmas!

Bren

 

KEEPING YOUR FAMILY FOCUSED ON CHRIST AT CHRISTMAS

Families all over the world have had their Christmas traditions since the very beginning of the celebration. Have you established your own Christmas traditions yet? If not here are some ideas that will help you along the way in making the most of the Holiday season, with purpose and long lasting memories that you and your children’s children will remember and enjoy. Remember to add things that will bring Christ into your Holidays, for that is the purpose of this wonderful Holiday. Gifts, trees, parties should revolve around Jesus, not just when we can fit Him into our festivities. Below are some ideas that I have shared with my own children as they were growing up and would like to pass them on to you.

·         Have a Nativity somewhere in your home or in your yard to remind yourself, your friends, family and passer byers, what the true meaning of Christmas is in your home.

·         Find ways to remind one another in love and kindness of the true meaning of Christmas. For it becomes so easy to veer off and forget.

·         Have your family members dress in biblical-type clothing or matching clothes and take photos to use for your Christmas card. Maybe use a nativity as a backdrop.

·         Start an Advent calendar with your family from Thanksgiving Day through the first week of the New Year. Decorate it with Christmas stickers or your own illustrations. Hang it in a high-traffic area. List all invitations, announcements, concerts, and other events you will attend as a family.

·         Reach out and give at Christmas. As a family, choose some charitable activities you can do together, such as volunteering at a homeless shelter or helping with a toy drive. Note the dates on the family Christmas season calendar and designate them as "everybody must show" dates. Identify an elderly or low-income person or couple who might not have family support during the Christmas season. Invite them to one of your family gathering, offer to take them Christmas shopping, or invite them to attend a Christmas church service with your family. You might also take them food gifts over the course of the festive season. As you by yourself a gift, remember someone else.

·         Plan times to cook and bake Christmas goodies for special family dinners, parties, and gifts. Look for cookie cutters that are Nativity related, such as stars, angels, camels, sheep, and Nativity silhouettes.

·         Make the purchase of the Christmas tree and Christmas wreaths a family event. Be sure to add Nativity scenes around them. Afterward, go out for hot chocolate together. Make family craft keepsakes and heirloom ornaments imprinted with the year they were made and the name of the maker. (Many craft stores sell simple ornament kits). Consider adding a Christ-centered phrase, such as "Christ, Our King” or "Jesus - the Heart of Christmas." Over the years you will build a family keepsake collection to treasure.

·         Set up a separate tree and decorate it with angles, nativity related ornaments. Wrap empty boxes illustrating gifts that you give Jesus and place words on them like; joy, peace, kindness, love, offering, sacrifice and so forth.

·         Discuss Christmases long ago during  the colonial times, the Victorian era, various wartimes in America or just in your own family.

·         Plan some Family Christmas movie nights. But remember to view the story of the Nativity as well.

·         Keep a family Christmas journal expressing your thoughts about what happens throughout the season with your family and friends. Include your reactions to the news, sermons, Christmas programs, parties, and gifts, as well as your meditations about Jesus. Let each family member join in and write down their thoughts and ideas.

·         Invite folks into your home sharing the love of Christ with them.

 ·         Take your family and invite some friends and go carol singing. Prepare copies of favorite carols, and set a loose schedule so that you have time to sing all the songs distributed. As an alternative, consider caroling at a hospital, nursing home, or around the neighborhood. Then return to your home for dessert and hot chocolate.

·         Do your family Christmas shopping at your favorite Christian bookstore.

·         Attend your church's Christmas Eve or Christmas Day service as a family to seal the reverence of the celebration of Christ's birth as a valued family tradition.

 ·         Before Christmas breakfast of opening presents on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, read Scripture aloud together. Dedicate the occasion to Jesus.

 ·         After the New Year, officially close the Christmas season by having the whole family dismantle your decorations. Give thanks, as individuals and as a family, for the gift of Christ and your time together as a family. This tradition will teach your children to treasure carefully preserved family Christmas decorations.

Love and A Very Merry Christmas to You and Your Family,

Bren