Carry Me

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Do you remember the last time you were carried? I mean physically picked up and carried. If you’re a woman and married, it may have been when your husband picked you up and carried you over the threshold of your first house. Or perhaps the last time you were carried was as a little child either too tired to walk up to bed so dad picked you up and carried you. Or perhaps you were sick and too weak to make it back to your bedroom so someone had to carry you.

I remember what it felt like at first. I was frightened I would be dropped! For heaven’s sake I’m a little over 20 pounds (said tongue in cheek) and I’m definitely too heavy. Additionally, it was more than a little unsettling as I had NO control over how I was being carried or where I was being carried. Completely without control and vulnerable.

However, once I realized the person carrying me was strong enough not to drop me, and was comfortable I was being taken to a good/safe place, I rested my head on his shoulders and totally and completely relaxed.

I was reminded recently about being carried.

I had a surgery last week and I think had the appropriate level of freak out of “going under.”  I had family and friends come that day and pray for me while I was in surgery and even the days after in recovery. Funny thing is, I never prayed! I thought for sure I would have an awesome God moment before I went it and when I woke up, but nothing. I didn’t even reach out to Him. It’s hard to admit that as I’d like to think I have a good relationship with Him.

However, God showed me I was carried. He took me up in His arms, gathered the right people around me, and carried me through. I didn’t do anything. I completely let go. I didn’t even pray and ask Him to! He just did.

I think there are moments when you don’t have to work. Work at relationships. Work at saying the right things. Work at being the right person. Work at having a good testimony. Work at being a good patient and not complain too much. Work at being a good daughter and giving honor to parents. Work at getting everything done so that you can have fun. Work on making sure everyone is cared for.  These are the times to jump in His strong arms and be carried through.  Completely and totally released.

“The Lord your God who goes before you will himself fight for you, just as he did for you in Egypt before your eyes, and in the wilderness, where you have seen how the Lord your God carried you, as a man carries his son, all the way that you went until you came to this place.” (Deuteronomy 1:30-31)

Unfortunately, I don’t let myself be carried too often, but that will be changing!  It is an awesome feeling to completely let go and let someone else take over, especially God.  Oh what peace and rest!

Let’s ask our Heavenly Daddy to carry us today!

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Filed Under: #GodsLove, Love, Peace

I Surrender!

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Uneasiness. Anxiety. Unrest. Discord. Angst. Uncertainty. Discontent. These are feeling I had for several weeks. I had no idea why. There was nothing majorly wrong in my life. Hubby and I getting along, holidays coming up, have income, etc. But my insides were just…just…not settled.  Like an upset stomach, but it was my emotions that were queasy.  Have you been there?

I was still getting up before anyone else and spending time with the Father, reading His word, praying, and seeking His face. But it all just seemed stagnant. Unmoving. Bland. I felt like I was struggling to hear God speak to me. I was trying really hard.  Like I was going through an obstacle course, running, jumping, crouching, maneuvering, sweating, straining, pressing to hear anything to settle my emotional stomach.

What’s up with that?!? In my head, I knew it wasn’t right to have to try so hard.  Something was amiss.  But what?  And how can I change it?  Then the answer came.

TRUST.

I thought back to when the discontent all started, and I came to the conclusion that it was when I thought I heard God – but I was wrong. What do you do with that? Believing, trusting, hearing from God to lead me and then I got it wrong! Oh lordie! I bet you have also lived with the emotions that came as a result of being wrong – especially in hearing God.  There really is no end to the depth of ickiness that results.

My trust in myself and God was broken.  I couldn’t trust that I could hear Him anymore.  I couldn’t trust that He actually spoke to me.  I couldn’t trust any outcomes anymore – or His promises to me.

Funny how the enemy uses our mistakes to play havoc on our beliefs!

One thing I know for sure, God’s Word is true. If there’s any belief the enemy can’t steal, it’s that. Okay, so to His Word I went.

“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.” (John 10:27 NKJV)  I need to trust His Word that says I CAN hear Him!  This verse also points out that He is speaking – if He wasn’t, what would we be hearing?

“It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes(ess).” (Psalms 118:9 NKJV) Yes, I’m a princess because I am child of God. But this verse tells me not to put confidence in myself (or others). But to trust God and Him only.  I can’t have confidence in myself that I’ll never make a mistake in hearing Him. I’m fallible (and hate to admit it!). But He is not! God is trustworthy! God does not lie!

My only conclusion is to surrender. Surrender what I thought I knew. Surrender that I am not God, nor infallible. Surrender all of it to Him.  And trust Him only.

“All to Jesus I surrender;
All to Him I freely give;
I will ever love and trust Him,
In His presence daily live.

I surrender all,
I surrender all;
All to Thee, my blessed Savior,
I surrender all.

All to Jesus I surrender;
Humbly at His feet I bow,
Worldly pleasures all forsaken;
Take me, Jesus, take me now.

All to Jesus I surrender;
Make me, Savior, wholly Thine;
Let me feel the Holy Spirit,
Truly know that Thou art mine.

All to Jesus I surrender;
Lord, I give myself to Thee;
Fill me with Thy love and power;
Let Thy blessing fall on me.

All to Jesus I surrender;
Now I feel the sacred flame.
Oh, the joy of full salvation!
Glory, glory, to His Name!” (Hymn by  Judson W. Van DeVenter)

I am learning to trust Him again and His word that I do indeed hear His voice.  To quote another song:

“Jesus take the wheel
Take it from my hands
Cause I can’t do this on my own
I’m letting go…
Oh, Jesus take the wheel” (Song by Brett James, Hillary Lindsey, and Gordie Sampson)

Jesus, I put you back in charge of my life and I trust You!

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Filed Under: Becoming, Believe, Peace, Trust

Survivor

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I’m not an avid reality television watcher.  I don’t really watch reality t.v. at all.  However, whether you liked the t.v. show “Survivor” or not, I was thinking about it recently.  I wasn’t thinking about the game, or the personalities, or even the pristine locations.  I was thinking about what the survivors focused on when they first arrived on the remote island.

Do you know what it was?  Was it food?  Was it strategy on how to win the game?  Was it making friends?  Nope, nope, and nope!  It was shelter.  They all banded together to build a shelter for the night/duration.  It was first priority.

It reminds me of the story that made its rounds several years ago about an art contest.  The participants were tasked with painting “peace.”  Their finished pieces included lots of pastels, grassy fields, misty images to try to capture the feeling of peace.  However, one of the paintings stood apart as it was completely different.  It was a picture of a dark stormy night by the ocean.  The waves were huge, scary, and turbulent crashing against a cliff.  The sky was dark blue and grey with swirling rain and lightning.  In the corner of the picture was a little cave near the top of the cliff where an eagle and her eaglet were cuddled together.  They were completely sheltered from the storm in their cave.  And of course, the story goes that painting won the contest for capturing the essence of “peace.”

In this day and age, I think we can take shelter for granted.  We have homes and cars that keep us warm during snow, rain, or wind storms.  But there are all sorts of storms that have nothing to do with the weather.  As an example, my family is going through some health complications that seem to be swirling around us and getting us caught in the turbulence.  Or there are financial storms that seem to steal every ounce of joy.  Or relationship storms that leave us feeling sea sick and ready to abandon ship.  (Relation-ship, get it?  I just had to throw that one in there.)

So what do we do in the midst of these storms?  I would suggest, do what the Survivors did!  Focus first on the shelter.

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, even though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; though its waters roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with its swelling.” (Psalm 46:1-3 NKJV)  Do you see the storm in these verses?  The earth is shaking, the mountains are crumbling, and the waters are violently tossing.  But we will not fear because God is our refuge / shelter!  We can hide in Him!

The same chapter (Psalms 46) goes on to say, “God shall help her, just at the break of dawn. The nations raged, the kingdoms were moved; He uttered His voice, the earth melted.”  At just the sound of His voice, everything melts.  “The Lord of hosts (angels) is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge (shelter)…Come, behold the works of the Lord…He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; Be still, and know that I am God.”

I’ve heard that last portion of the verse many times before.  “Be still, and know that I am God.”  (Psalms 46:10a NKJV)  But in context of the verses preceding (a storm), it makes the verse even more amazing to me!  In the middle of all the raging craziness around me, I am to be still.  Still, like the eagle in the painting, safe from the storm.  But not just to be still.  I am to KNOW that He is God.  What does that mean?  Yeah, yeah, I know He is God.  Whatever.  (You or I may say flippantly).

But it challenges me to know who is God (to me)?  Is He truly all powerful?  Is He truly the One to whom the earth melts just at the sound of His voice?  It that the God I believe in?  Can He really help me?  Can I really have Peace in Him even in the midst of the crap?

It is so easy to get caught up in the storm, start trying to figure it all out, or take control of the situation, or just run away.  For instance, I may think I can budget (or make an investment) to get myself out of this financial crises; or I can make sure I go to the right doctor or take more vitamins to be healthy; or I can give up on this relationship for their must be a better one out there.

I do think some of these are the right answers, at the right times!  But when I’m in a situation I really have NO control over, or when I am completely emotionally undone, I just need to be still and KNOW that He is God.  He is in control.  He is all powerful to shelter me from the storm raging around me.  I can trust Him through it.  He might bring me out of it completely, or He might give me the strength and peace to endure it.  Either way, He is God, and I am not.  I need Him every day, whether I realize it that day or not.

In the midst of my storm now, all I can do is run into Him and ask Him to be my strength, refuge, shelter, fortress, comfort, peace, and joy.  Because I can’t do it.

I know, He is God.  And I can trust Him fully, completely, in the midst of it all.  God is good!

What’s the first thing you do when all hell is raging?

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Filed Under: Believe, Peace, Refuge

Peace

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What words would you use to describe this picture?  War? Anger? Fight? Peace?

What?!?  Peace?  Yep!  I’ve heard it said (“they say”) you can never fully understand peace until you’ve experienced war.  I’ve never been in a physical war myself, but I’m sure I would understand peace to a different level if I was!  And cry out for it every minute!

I took this picture a few years ago in Israel on the top of Mount Carmel.  It is a statue representing Elijah after his victory over the prophets on the same mountain.  The war started with:  “And Elijah came to all the people, and said, ‘How long will you falter between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.'” (1 Kings 18:21 NKJV)  If you don’t know the full story, it is way cool and worth reading! 1 Kings 18:20-40.

The awesome part of this story, is that God showed up and put an end to any misunderstanding of who God really is!

Even though I haven’t been in a physical war, I have been in arguments, disagreements, fights, and simply unrest.  It is no fun.  No fun at all!   I believe there can be two enemies in these wars:

1) (Yourself) Selfishness and/or Sin:   “But I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me.” (Romans 7:23 NIV)  Or “What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you?” (James 4:1 NIV)

2) The Enemy:  “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood (people), but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.”  (Ephesians 6:12 NKJV)

I really hate to be at war (in disagreements)!  It just sucks!  I definitely like peace better!  Don’t you?  I don’t know if you’ve been in any arguments lately, but if you have, I’m right there with ya.

However (yes! there’s good news after all this!), “I have told you these things, so that in me (Jesus speaking) you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33 NIV)  I think the goal is to get back “in Him.”  How do we do that?

1) Repent and Forgive.  Both sides.  Both yourself, and the other person.  (More on this in a later post.)

2) Believe.  God is For YOU, not against you.  And if you have the King of all kings, the conqueror of the enemy (even the grave) on your side, then for heaven’s sake take courage!  Please take the time to look up and read these verses:  Deuteronomy 1:30; 20:4; Joshua 23:10; and (Deuteronomy 3:22 NIV) “Do not be afraid of them; the Lord your God himself will fight for you.”  If I were on a playground being bullied, I would imagine myself saying something like, “you better watch out, my daddy is coming!”

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33 NIV)

“For He Himself is our peace…” (Ephesians 2:14a NKJV)

With God in the mix, true peace abounds!  Give it to HIM!

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Filed Under: Peace