I Would Hate To Be Your Enemy....Tuesday

8/20/13

Placing the open book beside me, I sighed as I looked out the small window into the treetops. I was reading Johanna Spyri's story of "Heidi" for the first time. I thought to myself, if words can make you feel like you are somewhere else, such as in the Swiss Alps, then I want to write stories. I will write stories that help people to think about happy things. At age 9 my plan and purpose for my future seemed so clear and simple.

My love of words and my respect for their power to influence took a little turn off of this happy course as I entered my teens. I discovered that my accumulation of and way with words could be used to win arguments. If there wasn't a disagreement to win, not to worry, I could find one or make one.

A sense of power filled me as people would look at me in awe and say that "I should be a lawyer." But then I would be confused when, after speaking up about some injustice or defending a friend, someone would declare: "You are a great friend, but I would hate to be your enemy."

That seemed like a good thing, right? That people who would harm those whom I cared about should be concerned that I would not be silent. But I was standing on a shaky foundation, I was not sure about what was right and what was wrong. I had already asked Jesus to be my Savior, and I knew there was a verse about loving your enemies. Yet I wasn't trying to figure out if it was possible to love an enemy- I had seen first hand that if you don't fight back, the cruelty of people will become even worse.

I was 22 the first time I felt something like scales fall off of my eyes, and I began to see others, myself, and relationships from a different perspective than I had known. I started going to church regularly. Little by little, the Word of God washed away all the gunk, dirt, and trash that had blocked my vision and twisted my understanding.

I even began to learn how to love my enemies, which was a very good thing; since my worst enemy was actually myself.

You’re familiar with the old written law, ‘Love your friend,’

and its unwritten companion, ‘Hate your enemy.’

 I’m challenging that. I’m telling you to love your enemies.

 Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst.

When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer,

 for then you are working out of your true selves, your God-created selves.

 This is what God does.

 He gives his best—the sun to warm and the rain to nourish—

to everyone, regardless: the good and bad, the nice and nasty.

 If all you do is love the lovable, do you expect a bonus?

Anybody can do that.

 If you simply say hello to those who greet you, do you expect a medal?

 Any run-of-the-mill sinner does that.

 

In a word, what I’m saying is, Grow up. You’re kingdom subjects.

Now live like it. Live out your God-created identity.

Live generously and graciously toward others, the way God lives toward you.

Matthew 5: 43-48 AMP

Dear Lord, I know that it is impossible to do any of this on my own. Only if I let go of pride, fear, and perceived rejection and allow You to be my central focus, will I even begin to be ready to grow in generosity and kindness. Please help me to do what my heart desires and what my flesh resists. In Jesus name, amen.

Written by Mary M. Wilkins

Press the Ctrl key (bottom left on your keyboard) and then left click on this link to see a nice You Tube video of Tenth Avenue North's song "Losing"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5J7vis9GV8

My Frustration, My Choice...Monday

I like this prayer by author and speaker John Maxwell:

"Dear Lord,
So far today, I've done all right.
I haven't gossiped, I haven't lost my temper,
I haven't been greedy, grumpy, nasty, selfish, or over-indulgent.
I'm really glad about that.
But in a few minutes, God, I'm going to get out of bed,
and from then on, I'm probably going to need a lot more help!”

 

I have read books on anger; listened to cd’s on love; and even attended a well-known anger seminar. I had an epiphany at the seminar. As I was taking notes, I thought to myself, “Okay, exactly what makes me angry?” I wrote in the margin of my workbook these shocking words: “When I don’t get what I want.”

 

I smiled a little guilty half-smile.

It was suddenly so clear and so simple. My real problem wasn't anger, it was selfishness!! I get angry when things are not going my way. I get angry when I am doing things because of other people's expectations, especially my own! For instance, when I cook dinner at the end of a long and tiring weekend, that is my choice. When I don't disturb what my family members are doing in order to ask for help, that is my choice. When I do things I am not really interested in doing but I want to support the other person, that is my choice.

 

Doing anything when I don't want to can be a loving sacrifice. But when I allow even one jot of frustration to stay in my heart it will turn into resentment. Then bitterness will begin to grow within me.

 

"Have mercy on me, O God,

 according to your unfailing love;

 according to your great compassion

 blot out my transgressions."

 Psalm 51:1-3 NIV

Dear Lord, I thank You that You are not finished with me yet! Thank You for not leaving me in my mess, and for searching my heart and not leaving any mess in me. I know I think I have great reasons for the things I do and do not do. Thank You for showing me that I need to take my eyes off of myself and everyone else and to put my focus on You. I truly desire to love You Lord, with my whole heart, mind, and soul. Thank You for Your immense compassion, may it fill me up to overflowing and pour out of me through my words, looks, and actions. In Jesus name, amen.

Written by Mary Wilkins

 

Click this link to hear "Who You Are" by Unspoken

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_BLbj5q8_0

YOUR STORY... Sunday

Devotional for 8/18/13

Ever want to write a book about your own life?  In an autobiography we can pick and choose what we write about ourselves.  What would you choose to include?  What would you choose to ignore?  Would you embellish the good stuff and leave out things that are not so pretty?  Or would you be fairly honest about your life?  We all have things we are proud of or happy with in our lives, and other areas that we wish were different.  And each of us is unique with our own story to tell.

What would happen if someone else wrote a book about your life?  How would they write your story?  Would they say you were a good person, or would they tell all the things you had done in your life, the good, the bad and the ugly?  Would they remember to include your faith?  What kind of witness have you been to others?  Does your faith show clearly in your life?  Everyone sees things differently and has different perceptions about people. We generally want others to see us in a positive light and perhaps hope we would be remembered as good and faithful Christians that have touched other people's lives with God's love.

But our story has already been written - every day of it, before we were even born:    

"When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body.  All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be."  Psalm 139:15b-16

The beginning of that Psalm says that God knows us inside and out, every move, every thought , every word even before we speak it.  It also says He hems us in, and his Spirit is always with us, everywhere.  Wow!  On the one hand, these are comforting thoughts, knowing that God knows and loves us that much and is always with us through it all.  On another level that is frightening, knowing that there is nowhere to hide when we do wrong things - God sees it all.  However, even then He loves us and forgives us, no matter how small or how big our wrongdoings are.  So if we have not been good witnesses to others of his love, or not allowed Him to use us as His tools in other people's lives, He is still there holding us in his arms and saying to us:  "I love you and forgive you."  He knows all our troubles even before they occur, whether they are placed upon us by others or brought upon us by our own doing, and He is there to comfort us and rescue us.  He even gives us our faith in Jesus as our Saviour, and nurtures it to help it grow.  He knows every chapter in our lives, because He is the author and perfecter of our faith (Hebrews 12:2), and has written our life story... and it has a wonderful ending!  God has written your story, and He is reading it and can't put it down!

Written by Jan Andersen

“SWEET MUSIC TO HIS EARS” ...Saturday

Devotional...8/17/13

                                             

                   GOD THE FATHER:  THE COMPOSER

                         GOD THE SON:  THE DIRECTOR

                                GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT:  THE MUSICIAN

                                      CHRISTIANS:  THE INSTRUMENTS

                                            BODY OF CHRIST:  THE ORCHESTRA

                                                 UNSAVED WORLD:  THE AUDIENCE

     The goal of the director, Jesus, is to direct the music according to what the composer, the Father, had in mind and in His will when composing it.  The music is our lives.

     The first rule for members of the orchestra is to keep their eyes on the director at all times.  The result is harmony, rhythm, and glorious music.  When we don’t keep our eyes on Him, there is chaos and disharmony.  As in life, if we desire only to do the will of the Father in our lives, there will be harmony in our inner spirits and in our relationships with those we are in contact with in our daily lives.

     What happens when we are in discord with one another?  The audience, (unsaved world) cringes as the music coming from us is repulsive to their ears; pushing them away even further from God.  The only way we can be His witnesses is by serving one another.  Only then will there be harmony which will attract the audience; winning their hearts and lives to Jesus Christ.  They will want to join the orchestra.

   

  Sometimes we instruments get out of tune.  We are either too flat or too sharp.  As a violin, it hurts as my musician, the Holy Spirit, tightens or loosens my strings in order to get better music out of me.  It hurts when God allows discomforts to come into our lives in order to get purer, sweeter notes out of us.

     Depending on the piece of music being played, different instruments will be given larger or smaller parts to play.  We, as God’s instruments should always be content with the parts He has assigned to us.  The composition, made of larger and smaller parts, becomes the majestic beauty of the whole piece.  Each member of the orchestra has been given different  sheets of music, but because of the Divine Composer’s wisdom, they transform into a magnificent symphony that gives glory to Himself.

     There is however, a major difference between instruments and us.  Human beings have free wills.  We can choose to be members of the orchestra, but lock ourselves in our own instrument cases.  These hiding places are of our own making, be they selfishness, limited love, fear, bitterness or apathy.  After a while, an instrument that doesn't play its music will be discarded.

     If our desire is to be used by the Divine Musician to play beautifully for His glory and His world, then we can join St. Francis of Assisi in the prayer:

                                                 

                                         Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.                                            Where there is hatred let me sow your love.

                                                 Where there is doubt, faith,

                                                    Where there is despair, hope,

                                                      Where there is darkness, light,

                                                        Where there is sadness, joy.

O Master, grant that I many not seek to be consoled as to console, to be understood as to understand, to be loved as to love.  For it is in giving that we receive, it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life.

 Written by                                                                                                                       

 Barbara G. Drotar

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Worship Song for Saturday
This is a bit outside the box

BUT

I see it as an illustration of people

who are instruments

Serving God.

Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ynpTCyezSQ

True Worth...Friday

Devotional...8/16/13  

 THE PRODIGAL

"...Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 

 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; 

make me like one of your hired men." -

Luke 1:18b, 19

     Most people who know only a few Bible stories are familiar with the parable of the Lost Son or Prodigal Son.  It really should be called the story of the gracious, forgiving father. 

     Neither of the sons in the story got it right with the father.  The younger son asked for his inheritance before the father was dead and then went out and squandered all the money.  The older son was the self-righteous one, thinking he did everything he should so he was "owed" by his father.

     We see a person's "true worth" in the behavior of the father.  He runs to meet his son while he is still a long way off.  He not only welcomes him home but restores the relationship with him as his son.  He shows the epitome of graciousness and forgiveness and mercy.  Just as our heavenly father daily shows all of us who return to Him in repentance as we have strayed and gone our own ways.  We are not worth something in God's eyes because of what we do, but just because we are His.  He created each of us uniquely and loves us with an everlasting love -- proven to us by the death and resurrection of His own Son, Jesus, for each of us.

     When you are having one of those days of disobedience and feel you cannot come back to God since you committed that same sin so many times before and it is such a struggle for you, remember, it is not what you do or do not do that makes you worthy.  Your true worth is in the eyes of God who loves you and will love you throughout all eternity.

Written by

Carol Steficek

Welcoming Trials...Thursday

Devotional...8/15/13

"We Can Even Welcome Trials"

James 1:2-8

I use to have a very difficult time with James chapter one verses two through eight for a couple of reasons.  First how are we suppose to count trials as joy and second what did it really mean to be double minded?  

Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.                                         James 1:2-8

So I started meditating on His Word and asked him to explain it to me and this is what he had to say. When trials come our way we can consider it an opportunity for great joy.  Why you ask.

Do you know that under pressure our faith walk is forced into the open? It shows the world who we are, who we depend on.  It allows us to grow into who God created us to be.  Usually our first response is get me out of this.  What I have found by walking through trials I come out not smelling like smoke.  I come out victorious.  I come out knowing more of who I am in Christ.  I come out knowing what belongs to me as a daughter of the King.  I say let the process go on until we become mature and well developed, NOT deficient in any way - lacking nothing.

A great thing about our God is if we do not know what to do or if you do not know how to handle a particular trial all we need to do is ask our generous giving God.  He loves to help his children.  We will get his help without feeling foolish or guilty. What we must do is ask the Father boldly, believing without a second thought, that means no hesitating or doubting.  Doubting means "to be divided in one's mind" or "to debate."  The term does not describe a momentary doubt but a divided allegiance, an uncertainty  (NKJV Study Bible). Double mindedness means to have one foot in with God and one foot trusting self, you know those ABC plans or trusting the world.  We can not have it both ways.  Living in both worlds, we should not expect to receive anything from our Father God, but what we can expect is instability, uncertainty  frustration, confusion, fear, anxiety and constant conflict within.  When we are walking in both worlds, we can not hear the Father's voice clearly and sometimes not at all.  So how in the world could we expect to receive the answer.

 

One other thing I also learned during this time of meditation; God's wisdom-our answer may not always be an answer of escape but of how to walk through it to the end.

So, when we are in the mist of trials. get still before the Father. He has all the answers.

What I also have come to know is that God is NOT the one that brings the trials.  Trials come because we live in a fallen world.

Written by 

Kathryn Hanson

Song for Thursday morning...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CSVqHcdhXQ

"Ultimate Caregiver"...Wednesday

  

Devotional...8/14/13

A friend recently told me that she thanks God multiple times throughout each day for taking such good care of her and her family. Isn't that just like our God? He is our ultimate caregiver.

                            In the Bible scripture tells us... 

"Casting all your care upon Him, 

for He cares for you." 

1 Peter 5:7 

The Lord cares about every little and big detail of our life. He loves to take care of His children and make sure our every need is met. We know that first hand if you are a mother. We enjoy caring for our kids, even if they are adults. We still like to make their special foods and give them our motherly "tips of care" and love on them.

How much more so Our Heavenly Father takes care of us. Not only does He lavish His love on us and provides abundantly for us, but He also meets those extra special needs that we have as well. He continuously envelopes us with His tender loving care.

I, too, will have to totally agree with my friend that our loving Father takes amazing care of us people, because He is our amazing, ultimate caregiver!!

In His Radical Love, 

Sandy Billingham

Wednesday Morning Praise Song...
"In My Father's Hands" 

(He is the Caregiver who keeps me safe.)

http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=YouTube+Music+Lyrics+Songgospel&view=detail&mid=61CCD6485C6C7814F77C61CCD6485C6C7814F77C&first=0&FORM=NVPFVR