A New Thing

"Behold, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs forth; do you not perceive and know it and will you not give heed to it?" Isaiah 43:19

Do I ever get really tired of doing the same old thing all the time? I want to do something different but I either don't know what to do, or I am afraid to do the new thing I am thinking about doing.

I often get into ruts. I do the same thing all the time even though I am bored with it because I am afraid to step out and do something different. I would rather be safe and bored than excited and living on the edge. There is a certain amount of comfort in sameness-I may not like it, but I am familiar with it.

God has created me to need and crave diversity and variety. I require freshness and newness in my life. As this year and this day come to an end, I will make a quality decision to step out into the new thing God has for me...and I will not forget to enjoy myself while I do it!

Trust's Many Treasures

"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit."

Romans 15:13

God of hope, Your promises are many and good. When I let go and trust You with my problems, You send me the solace of peace. When I go about my daily life, enveloped in Your peace, I feel a quiet joy.

When I let go, I am finally able to look up and enjoy the good things You've placed around me. By Your Holy Spirit, I feel hope and renewed strength. God of hope, I pray I am quicker to trust next time.

How Good You Are

"Then the Lord God provided a vine and made it grow up over Jonah to give shade for his head to ease his discomfort, and Jonah was very happy about the vine." Johan 4:6

You have blessed me in mighty ways, Lord. While I sweat and toil and whine and cry and rebel against possible discomfort, You are shaping something new and wonderful in my life. It will grow out of this situation, and it will gain strength from my weakness. This new creation will wind its way around the framework of days and blossom with fragrant fruit.

I stand beneath this vine of goodness and abundance, and my eyes are shaded from the sweltering sun. I can now see the horizon ahead of me.

Scanning the Horizon

"But now the Lord my God has given me rest on every side, and there is no adversary or disaster." 1 Kings 5:4

I'm still looking for what might happen next. What trouble awaits me around this corner or behind this decision? Who is preparing to bring me bad news this very moment? Lord, I am struggling to take a breath even when You give me room to breathe. My doubts fill every crevice of this life. I want to purge them from this time. I want to believe.

Thank You for this time of solace and silence. Give me the courage to rest in it as a believer. May this be a time for me to restore my hope in You.

Where Can I Sit?

"My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from Him."

Psalm 62:

It's as if I have been playing musical chairs for a year. But my reflexes are slow any my instincts wrong. I never get a chair. I stand! I wait for the music to begin again. My feet are tired, my head hurts, my heart aches, and all I want is to sit for a few moments and regain my bearings.

You saw me standing in the center of the circle looking dazed. Lord, You offered me Your chair, a place by Your side, and a chance to recover. I shed tears when You bent down to wash my feet. I could not stop crying because of the love and relief. This is what resting in You feels like.

Leaning on You

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding."

Proverbs 3:5

I have tried to stand tall with my feet planted in certainty...but my will is fading, Lord. I look to You and see the pillar of strength and comfort. Your grace rises above my circumstances, and yet You understand my very human worries and anxious moments.

You gather me and my concerns into Your arms. My body melts into the eternal grip of Your loving embrace. I don't pretend to be brave or all-knowing. My resistance and pride give way to understanding all I need to know...that You are here for me.

Waiting for the Light

"For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Matthew 11:30

Okay, Lord, I'm ready to share this with You. I know I have said it before, but this time I mean it. Last time I held on to a little bit here and a little bit there. You showed me that my faith was halfhearted. The child in me wanted to cling to what I knew best, but I was only making it harder on myself.

Lord, this time the situation is Yours to mold, shape, pare down, and whatever else needs doing. I give You my heart and, in return, You give me a life that is eased by love and grace. You lighten my load so that I can follow You with sure steps. Thank You!

In Your Strength

"It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect." Psalm 18:32

I don't feel up to the battle of pushing through this trial. I stand outside walls dividing me from the other side of my struggle. They seem huge, thick, and cold. I like the idea that You, Lord, arm me with strength, but it must be strength I am not aware of yet.

I will give myself and my situation to You, so that You can dress me in the armor of Your strength. Though it is my hope that Your perfect way for me will involve a door with a simple latch and a sign reading "For You." I realize it might not be that easy. Prepare me for all that is to come.

Guard My Worries

"Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Matthew 6:34

Each morning my problems are opened up slowly and deliberately. One by one I life the difficulties up to the light, examine them, and decide what to do. But there are more problems than time. It seems I have tomorrow's troubles in with today's batch.

Lord, I'm getting it. I'm grasping Your provisions and the lessons I am to learn. I will unwrap only those decisions, choices, and hurdles for today. The others that remain in my mind and on my heart will be wrapped tightly and handed back to You for safekeeping. Hold them please. I will not give them a moment's worry today.

I Speak Your Name

"For the sake of your name, O Lord, forgive my iniquity, though it is great." Psalm 25:11

You speak my name. I have heard it on the wind, beneath my own voice, and in my ear when I needed encouragement. Your forgiveness covers me, lifts me up, and pulls me forward. I am so grateful. Your grace is mighty, Lord, and it is given to me with love.

I speak Your name, Lord, because this is a time pf praise. Thank You for spreading Your arms wide and accepting all of me - including the hurts, the complaints, the tender places of pride, the sins, and the flaws.

I Wouldn't Dream of It

"Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth."

Proverbs 27:1

I have given up guessing what is in store for me. Lord, I used to think I had life all figured out. I thought Iunderstood Your ways completely. But that was ignorance on my part. Forgive me for the times I bragged about what my path would become.

Lord, I no longer believe I won today or tomorrow. They are Yours alone to shape and to give. I wouldn't dream of filling my days predicting what will happen next. And You don't ask me to. You only ask that I trust You with every breath, every today, and every tomorrow.

True Dependence

You can achieve the victorious life through living in dependence on God. People usually associate victory with success: not falling or stumbling, not making mistakes. But those who are successful in their own strength tend to go their own way, forgetting about Jesus. It is through problems and failure, weakness and neediness tat you learn to rely on Him.

True dependence is not simply asking Him to bless what you have decided to do. It is coming to Him with an open mind an heart, inviting Jesus to plant His desires within you. He may infuse within you a dream that seems far beyond your reach. You know that in yourself you cannot achieve such a goal. Thus begins your journey of profound reliance on Him. It is a faith-walk, taken one step at a time, leaning on Jesus as much as you need. This is not a path of continual success but of multiple failures. However, each failure is followed by a growth spurt, nourished by increased reliance on Your Saviour. Enjoy the blessedness of a victorious life, through deepening your dependence on God.

A message from God

Softly I announce My Presence.

Shimmering hues of radiance tap gently at your consciousness, seeking entrance. Though I have all Power in heaven and on earth, I am infinitely tender with you. The weaker you are, the more gently I approach you. Let you weakness be a door to My Presence. Whenever you feel inadequate, remember that I am your ever present Help.

Hop in Me, and you will be protected from depression and self-pity. Hope is like a golden cord connecting you to heaven. The more you cling to this cord, the more I bear the weight of your burdens; thus, you are lightened. Heaviness is not of My kingdom. Cling to hope, and My rays of Light will reach you through the darkness.

What Does Healing Look Like?

"I will bring health and healing to it; I will heal my people and will let them enjoy abundant peace and security." Jeremiah 33:6

I want to be whole, Lord. Instead, I feel broken in places. My heart is shattered and slowly, slowly mending. Some mornings I barely have energy to get up. All along I have had this picture of absolute healing and health. It is a perfect picture filled with a flawless, energized version of myself.

But, God, I was forgetting the healing I experienced to get to this place. I had forgotten to look behind me and notice how far I have come. More and more I experience moments of peace and trust in Your ways. These snapshots of time make up the picture of healing. They shape the image of hope in my heart.

Laundry Day

"I said, O Lord, have mercy on me; heal me, for I have sinned against you." Psalm 41:4

Don't we all have dirty laundry that we hang out for other people to see? Some days I walk around littering every place I go with my spiritual dirty laundry. Is it that I do not care what people think? Or that I do not care about my spirit enough to carry my sin to You as You call me to do?

Lord, receive me and my dirty laundry today. I know it is quite a pile. I was chatting away about grace to everyone instead of actually coming to You to receive that grace. I was talking up salvation to my unsaved neighbors, while privately ignoring the urge to praise You and ask for forgiveness. And as they say, all these dirty items in my life are starting to smell to high heaven. It is definitely time for a laundry day.

Save My Heart

"Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted. The troubles of my heart have multiplied; free me from my anguish." Psalm 25:16-17

Look at me, God. I am sad...lonely even. It takes so much for my heart to feel alive these days. I am so distant from those things that used to bring me joy. Look at me, Lord. This is not who I want to be. This is not who You want Your child to be.

Turn to me, Lord. Heal my brokenness so that I can hold my faith in the warmth of the sun and carry it with me throughout the day. I do not know when I changed so drastically. But I do know that You have not changed. You are the Healer of wounds inside and out. You are the One who sees me and sees my trouble without turning away. Turn to me. Let me feel the sun. Turn to me and save my heart!

Always True

"But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen and protect you from the evil one."

2 Thessalonians 3:3

When the lies of deception envelop me, I doubt all that I have, all that I am, and worst of all...all that You are. When my loss or hurt seems insurmountable, I wonder who I am and who cares for me. As sorrow covers me, I lose sight of the colors You have painted across the sky and the land.

God, You are faithful. I say this not to make it true, but to bring truth back to my perspective. I know that this is always fact. When I am weak, You are strong.

Lifeline

In my need, I have reached for many lifelines. I am embarrassed to confess, Lord, that I sought out help that was not of Your strength. What was I thinking? How weak is my resolve to be solid in my faith and my commitment to You!

I was forgetting how committed You are to me. I don't deserve this grace, this mercy from You. Nevertheless, You give it to me with love and guidance. You don't shame me for trying to be strong on my own. But I sense that You smile like a knowing parent when I return, once again, to take hold of Your wisdom and call it the only true lifeline!

Through Your Grace

"All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth." Colossians 1:6

What is the meaning behind this sorrow, Lord? I'm not asking "Why me?" but I do wish I could see beyond my immediate pain to the plan You are shaping. What good will come of this burden? I must have faith in the faith that brought me here. Truly, when I first discovered Your love, I didn't need to see the whole picture. Standing in Your presence and receiving Your grace was enough.

Let it be enough for me now. The message of Your love and mercy spreads broad and deep-not because I believer, but because You are in charge. Through Your grace I will find peace in the not knowing.

On Your Watch

"But Christ is faithful as a son over God's house. And we are his house, if we hold on to our courage and the hope of which we boast." Hebrews 3:6

Lord, You are the faithful one who oversees Your father's house. On Your watch there will not be loneliness, pity, hurts, regrets, or endless suffering. You open the windows to this house, to this life, and let the hope pour into every room.

You give me courage to rest in this place. There is peace where I would have expected turmoil. Protection where I had feared harm. May this hope be glorified in my life, and may it be what I hold on to all of my days.

Turn

"Then we will not turn away from you; revive us, and we will call on your name. Restore us, O Lord God Almighty; make your face shine upon us, that we may be saved." Psalm 80:18-19

Keep my feet grounded right here. I want to stand in front of You forever. When I am tempted to turn away, guide my steps back to this place. My healing will not occur elsewhere. Inspiration and faith will not follow if I wander away.

As Your face shines upon me, I am hopeful. I understand that I am Yours, and You call me to Your presence. I love You, God. You never turn from me, Your child.

No Foe Too Strong

Lord, I often feel out manned. Life's complications, wounds, and battles are daunting as armed foes. They are too strong for me. But they are not too strong for You.

I know You are there for me on my own disastrous days - frequent as they are. Thank You, Lord, that You are not just a rescuer, riding off after the victory is won. You are a constant support all the days of my life.

Waiting

I keep waiting for my old life and my old self to return. Even though You have brought me through so much. I wake up in the morning and think, "Maybe today everything will be as it was." God, I don't know what restoration will look like. It could lead to a life that is very different from before and from now. Will I ever feel complete healing?

Lord, help me trust You. I doubt my return to wholeness will see "normal." Give me a new heart to suit the new version of my life. May I fall in love with the gifts You provide.