Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Archive for the ‘Encouragement’ Category

The Comparison Trap

Posted in Encouragement, Spiritual Growth, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , , , on April 28, 2014| Leave a Comment »

I have an issue. I get caught in the comparison trap much too often.  This problem isn’t “Oh I’m better than that person.” I get caught in the trap of evaluating myself to others who I think are better than me.

 

I find myself thinking; Wow, when am I going to be able to run everyday her?  Or why can’t I write like them?  Why can’t I lose the weight or eat like they do?  It’s a ferocious cycle.

 

My spiritual life is no different.  The thoughts in my head go like this, Why can’t I have faith like my husbands?  Why can’t I study the Bible like her? Or He is such prayer warrior.  My prayer life stinks.  That friend is so together and has a strong walk. I’m inconsistent, struggle and don’t seem to have a thirst for God like they do, what’s wrong with me?  I must not be good enough for God.

 

A guest speaker at the church I attend had this to say about comparison, “It will take you down one of two paths – pride or depression.”  For me, 95 percent of the time relating my life to another leads to depression and discouragement. He went on to say our standard should not be those around us, but God is to be our standard.  That makes me feel so much better. Yeah, right. How about you?

 

The truth is we are to be “perfect as our Heavenly is perfect” Matthew 4:28 (NIV 1984).  However, here are on earth it’s not possible because we are in our human, sinful bodies.  But we are to strive toward the goal, by reading the Word, prayer, and through the work of the Holy Spirit.

 

There is another thought I need to consider in reference to measuring up to others.  I am a unique person.  You just have to look at my DNA and finger prints to know that.  Therefore, it stands to reason that I will not be like another runner, writer, or home decorator.  I won’t be the same as another mother, wife, or woman.  And most importantly my spiritual walk will not mirror any other person.

 

My prayer life and quiet times will be different.  But it doesn’t mean the way I do things is wrong.  God works differently in my life because I am unique and so are the details of the situations in my life.

 

What about the other things?  My body can’t handle running everyday.  The writing I do comes from a totally different perspective then others and I’m not called to write like others either.  And the spiritual life?  I have to ask myself these questions:

 

Am I growing?

  1. Is my desire to do the things God wants?
  2. Do I read, and talk to God?
  3. Do I desire to improve?

 

The answers to these are a definitely yes.

 

How about you? Do you find that you compare yourself to others, especially in your spiritual walk?  Stop it.  Talk to the Heavenly Father; ask him to show you what pleases Him about your walk.  Pray He’ll give you the strength to change the things that need changing and to stop comparing yourself with others.

 

You are unique, loved and the apple of the Father’s eye.  Celebrate the fact that there is no one like you.

 

“Each one should test his own actions.  Then he can take pride in himself, with out comparing himself to somebody else.”

Galatians 6:4

Read Full Post »

Glorious Easter

Posted in Encouragement, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 19, 2014| Leave a Comment »

Easter is the holiday that ushers in a new season.  Spring marks the end of the bitter cold, snow, and ice. The sun replaces the dreary gray skies with the bright blue horizon. Trees are turning green, bunnies are hopping out of their burrows, ducklings waddle down to the ponds with their mothers and the sounds and smells of new life are every where.

 

However, Easter is more than nature coming out of a winter’s nap.  It’s also an amazing  celebration of the new life we are offered through Christ Jesus.  Because of His willingness and the Father’s plan, He went to the cross to pay the debt that our sin deserves; death and eternal separation from God.  Then three days later He rose from the dead.

 

I know, there are those who say there are many ways to God, like there are several paths to reach the mountain’s summit.  Some of the paths are just harder than others.  I would love for there to many ways to God. That would mean more people wouldn’t go to hell due to their sins, but Jesus Himself told us the complete opposite.

 

 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me.  If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well.”

John 14:6  (NIV 1984)

 

The key word is “the”.  He is not a way, but the way.  He is not a truth, but the truth.  He is not a life, but the life.  What a comfort this is.  There is nothing we can do for an eternal relationship with God.  Nothing.  Why?  My good may outweigh the bad but that isn’t good enough.  The requirement is perfection.  Jesus was the only one who fit that description.  In the end it doesn’t matter how we see ourselves.

 

Jesus also gave us this hope;

 

 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life.  He who believes in me will live, even though he dies (*physically); and whoever lives and believes in me will never die (*spiritually)…”

John 11:25-26a

 

Anyone who is spiritually dead due to their sin and choose to accept Christ as their Savior and Lord, will be given a new life, and a abundant life in Him.  That choice also gives us a hope for the future even when we look around and see the mess our lives and the world are in.  God sits on His throne, and a day will come when this world will become new.

 

Friend if you have all ready accepted the free gift that Jesus has extended to you, praise God and celebrate this Easter.  If not, I would encourage you to visit the tab at the top “An Invitation”, which walks you step by step in what it means to be one of His children.  The Heavenly Father desires that all come to Him and be adopted into His family.  Jesus asks one more question:

 

“Do you believe this?”

John 11:26b

 

 *emphasis added.

Read Full Post »

Desire be Gone

Posted in Encouragement, Spiritual Growth, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , on April 11, 2014| Leave a Comment »

I’ll admit it, I’m an addict.  Chocolate and sweets are one of my struggles that have plagued me over the past few years.  Many times I have asked God to take away the desire for them.  Yet here I am, still struggling with the cravings.

 

My morning quiet times have been focused on the attributes of my Heavenly Father.  The ones that have really have made an impact on me so far are, His sufficiency and sovereignty.

 

God is sufficient within Himself, so therefore He needs no one.  I am not.  God created all things which makes Him the only rightful ruler over all.  He knows me inside and out and the choices I will make, yet He does not force Himself or His ways on me.

 

It dawned on me one morning why He doesn’t magically take the desire away. The reason goes back to the attributes above.  His desire for me is to depend on Him to battle the cravings for me.

 

He also allows me to make the decision to walk away or not.  He has a will and I am created in His image therefore I have a will.    He gave me the ability to make the decisions because they are right and I because I love Him.   He did not create me like a robot to be controlled, and to program every chose I make.

 

I’ve noticed, when I am faced with a temptation there is that still small voice of the Holy Spirit that impresses on my heart to go the other direction.  Many times I give in to my wants but other times it seems easy to go the other way.

 

The times when I could be easily swayed by the fleshy desires are times that I should immediately pray, quote scripture (Christ’s example), or if I’m home, go to Word or on my knees to pray for help.

 

Of course this doesn’t just apply to my chocolate situation but all temptations, habits and hang ups in my life.  I’ve also noticed that if I start gaining ground in one area, another sneaks in to take its place.

 

I have to be vigilant in keeping my mind focused on the Word, and depending on the all sufficient and sovereign God.  If I do, I will make the right choices.

 

How about you?  Are there things in your life that have a hold on you?  Maybe for you it’s exercise,  texting, facebook, hobbie or ___________ ? You fill in the blank.  Give it over to the One who knows you best, allow Him to work in you and help you conquer whatever your blank is.

 

I would also encourage you that there are Christian counselors and groups such as Celebrate Recovery that are available for extra support.  Ask your pastor or google for local support groups.

 

 

“I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”

Philippians 4:13 (ESV)

Read Full Post »

His Strength vs. My Weakness

Posted in Encouragement, Spiritual Growth, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on March 24, 2014| 2 Comments »

“My strength is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9 NIV 1984) If you have gone to church for any length of time, you have probably heard this statement at least once, maybe more.  Recently, my understanding of this verse grew.

I had just finished a book project entitled The Father’s Study last year.  It was a set of forty parables about the relationship between the Heavenly Father and His child.   My thought was, now I can work on this other project The Rose of Calaria a Christian fantasy/suspense novel.  This was the second time I started writing this novel.

Three years prior, I had deleted the whole manuscript, based on the leading of the Holy Spirit.  Now I thought it was okay to start once again, since the Father’s Study was complete.  For seven months I worked on it and wrote about ten chapters,  However, there was a problem.   I wanted God’s blessing as I wrote it.

The more I wrote the more the Holy Spirit nudged me to stop.  I wouldn’t listen.  The prodding was so strong, but my disobedience bordered on and then turned into rebellion. My quiet times were hindered, and I would push the Bible and the study workbook away.

I argued with God about it for a few days.  “Why can’t I write this?”  The answer He impressed on my heart was that it not only interfered with our relationship but it interfered with what He had for me.  It became an idol.

When I finally gave up the story, a desire to take the The Father’s Study in a new direction welled up within me.  Immediately I responded, “I can’t do that.  I don’t have a theology degree, so who would listen?”

Then as if I the light bulb over my head turned on, this thought came to mind, “Precisely.  You can’t, but I can through you.  You can write the fantasy piece but those were your ideas, thoughts, and desires – not mine.  If I allow you to write it, you would definitely take the glory. However if you do what I ask, you can do it because I will give you the ability to do it.”

Isn’t that an awesome thought?  How many times do we not do what God asks us to, because it means getting out of our comfort zones, or beyond our talents? Or better yet doing something we have no skill in.

He wants us to rely on Him.  Take Gideon, for example.  The angel of the Lord came to him and told him he would defeat the Midian army.  He addressed Gideon as a “mighty warrior”.  Gideon was a farmer – not a soldier.  However, through him, God was glorified.

What about the novel?  I wiped it out completely – hard copies and all.  Although, taking that step was difficult, I had peace.

How about you?  Is there something God has called you to do, and you have not obeyed due to insecurity?  Oh loved one, take the risk and step out of the comfort zone you have set up.  Let God show Himself to you and work through you.  You will be amazed and even surprised at the results.

 

“And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having

 all sufficiency in all things at all times you may abound in every good work.”

2 Corinthians 9:8 (ESV)

 

Read Full Post »

A Thankful Heart

Posted in Encouragement, Spiritual Growth, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , on February 11, 2014| Leave a Comment »

There is a book that came out several years ago entitled One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp.  To be honest I couldn’t get through the entire book due to the style of writing.  However, the underlining message, so I have been told, is to be thankful for even the small things in life for they are God’s gifts to us.  Our co-teacher for  Sunday school started writing down 7 things he was thankful for every morning.  He said by doing so, he started his day in a positive way.

Lately, thankfulness has been put on the shelf.  Not that I haven’t thanked God throughout the day or week, but it hasn’t been a priority.  Sure I have been thankful as I have seen God work in the lives of my family and friends.  For myself though, thankfulness has been few and far between.

I have taken up the challenge to start writing two things every morning that I am thankful for:

Day 1

  • Friends  who love me for who I am and pray for me
  • The writer’s group I attend. Who with godly love and encouragement they critique and share the talents God has given them
  • My daughter Emily and her sweet nature
  • That my ipod didn’t lose its charge while I was doing car line duty.  The warning  “low battery”, came on at the beginning of a 45 minute job of directing cars out of the local elementary school

Day 2

  • A God who is creative
  • The wonder and uniqueness of imaginations
  • An answer to death
  • For scientists who are not afraid to say that they believe in a God who created the world and universe in which we live.
  • The student I mentor who God is now using to stretch me as a person

As you can see the list didn’t stop with just two a day.  He wants us to have a thankful heart.  The amazing part is what happens when I write down the things I’m thankful for;  the smallest item puts a smile on my face and reminds me that God is at work in all areas of my life.

I would like to challenge you to purchase a small notebook, for a month  write down at least two things you are thankful for everyday.  If it’s small enough you can take it with you  and write items down throughout your day.  Don’t disregard the “small stuff’ like my ipod situation.  When those rough days come, re-read what you have written and let your heart soar.

“Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances

For this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NIV 1984)

Read Full Post »

Why or Why Not?

Posted in Encouragement, Spiritual Growth, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , on January 19, 2014| 2 Comments »

Why or Why Not?

I am a “why” person.  I need to know the whys and wherefores, the details.   This is especially applicable in my spiritual life, and God’s answers to prayer requests.

The other month I sent a letter out to an individual to ask them to write an endorsement for a manuscript.  For two years God impressed on my heart to send it to this individual.  I have to admit, fear ruled me; however, I finally pushed through the fear and sent her a copy with peace in my heart.

A month later the manuscript was sent back to me with a letter of regret.  Disappointment was definitely my reaction but their reasons were understandable, and sound.  God’s reasons were not understandable.  To be more precise, I didn’t know what His reasons were.  By the way, this is all part of the writer’s life, so I wasn’t surprised.

With tears streaming down my face, and looking to Heaven I said, “For two years You asked me to send the manuscript to her? So I did, and “regrets” is Your answer?  This is the second time you “nagged” me to send this devotional to specific people and in return I receive a rejection or regrets. Why did You want me to do this in the first place?  I was afraid this would happen.”  Nothing. No answer came.

The doubts started to creep in,  “Maybe I wasn’t being faithful in doing what He called me to do, not writing enough, or writing the wrong thing.” or  ‘I didn’t have enough faith that God could do it.”  Even as I write this, “Maybe the reason was because I didn’t send the manuscript two years ago,” comes to mind.

Several friends who had been praying on my behalf, responded this way, “He may not tell you the reason, Christine.  Maybe this was a lesson in obedience and trust.  Don’t be hard on yourself.  Yes, be disappointed but don’t second guess yourself or let Satan in to wreak havoc.” Not what I wanted to hear.  I needed reasons.

After getting over my snit I thought about what was said.  “Trust” could be the reason.  Trusting without an explanation could be the area that needs to be grown.

The next day one of those friends sent me a devotional confirming what they had been saying.  God is good. Although, I did have one other problem, I covered my feelings of disappointment and rejection with “It wasn’t God’s will” or “God is good”.  These statements are true and I believe them, but I thought they made me sound strong and spiritual, when in fact, I was hurting and confused even angry.  Until I took my true feelings of hurt and rejection to God, the emotions controlled my life

Sometimes He gives us reasons, and other times He doesn’t and wants us to trust Him.  It could be that I wasn’t ready yet to receive another endorsement.  Maybe the lesson was pushing through fear to obey.  I don’t know.  And to be honest, this concept will be a struggle for me.  To move the idea of not receiving an answer from my head to my heart will not be easy. But what I do know is that He is good and wants the best for me like any good father.  What better reason could there be?

How about you?  Are you a “why” person like me?  Is God withholding His reasons?  Sit back knowing that He is the sovereign God and wants the best for you.  He doesn’t shrink from our true feelings but wants to love us through them.  I can attest that not knowing is not easy, but He has something better in mind.  Trust Him with whatever the situation is in your life.

“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for,

the conviction of things not seen.”

 

Hebrews 11:1 (ESV)

Read Full Post »

My Father’s Love

Posted in Encouragement, Uncategorized, tagged , , on December 12, 2013|

Over the past several days, my quiet times have been in the book Identity by Eric Geiger. As he suggests, I am going through it very slowly, so that I can meditate on the words and let them sink deep within me; which also means I look up each and every verse he lists.

 

I can’t tell you how many times in my life, I feel that God is not there with me. Oh sure my head tells me that He is there, but when difficulties, failures, or challenges come and I don’t see Him working or can’t feel His presence doubts rise. Oh and don’t get me started when I sin, there is the feeling that my Heavenly Father separates Himself from me.

 

This morning’s reading focused on God’s love as a Father. The following verse came up, which, by the way I have read many times before:

 

“For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Romans 8:38-39 (ESV)

Like I said, I have read this verse many times but something new popped out at me, “…the love of God IN Christ Jesus our Lord.” Admittedly, I sat stunned for a few moments thinking. The thought occurred to me if God would go through such lengths to adopt me as His own child, why would He separate Himself from me?

 

His plan goes back to the first Christmas. He sent His Holy Spirit to impregnate at a teenage girl, who could have been stoned to death had not Joseph obeyed the angel and accepted Mary as His wife. This baby grew to become a traveling Rabbi, sharing His Father’s message of love, hope, and redemption taking twelve men with Him. He was hassled by the religious leaders of the day, who eventually sent Him to the cross for heresy. The truth of the matter is, this was God’s plan all along. He sacrificed His Son Jesus so that we could be assured of His love as His child, and be free of the bondage to sin.

 

How dare I even entertain the thought that He isn’t there with me through everything. But even that statement will not separate me from His love. Personally, I think He feels sorry for me when those thoughts come.

 

Someone made this analogy, that His presence and love is like a father who is holding the hand of his child as they cross the street. As much as that little one wants to pull away and run, the father’s grip is stronger and constant. Wow! The best part is, He loves us more than other’s love us or the love we have for our families. That’s huge.

 

How about you? Are you feeling like God has abandoned you or He doesn’t love you? Oh beloved, of the Father, He hasn’t left or stopped loving you. Reread the Romans verse, meditate on it, and allow God to speak through it into your heart.

 

“For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Romans 8:38-39 (ESV)

Read Full Post »

Unique and Wonderful

Posted in Encouragement, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , on November 5, 2013| Leave a Comment »

I love my children and would do anything for them. As the saying goes, you mess with me that’s one thing, you mess with my children, you will have to deal with Mama Bear. With that being said, they also drive me batty. My three girls are all different and as I have watched them grow they change.

This was never more evident than at Halloween. My oldest daughter, Laurel the “cautious one”, doesn’t make decisions quickly; in fact, it can take a painfully long time. She is like her mother in this sense. She dreads making the wrong decision and for her to take risks, forget it. It took her most of her freshmen year to attend a club she waited all summer to be a part of.

However, with all the caution, she surprises us by not being afraid to be her own person. Laurel saved for an entire year to by a cosplay costume for our local Shadocon convention (This is where all the Anime Japanese art lovers go).

She decided she would dress up in the costume for school. I was anxious because the staff had set strict rules in the name of modesty, can you believe it? Yeah, for the principle! This year she would probably be in the minority and she was, green wig and all. It didn’t faze her a bit.

As I watched her go into the school, I laughed. “God” I said, “You have definitely made her, her own person. She is not afraid to take a stand for what is right at school, and not afraid of what others think of her. Thank you for her.”

I love Psalms 139. I will be totally honest; it brings me to tears often, because I’m amazed at just how special I’m to Him. I’m never out of His sight; I’m created uniquely, flaws and all.

“For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s
Womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made…”
Psalm139:13, 14  (NIV 1984)

Yes, I wish she would draw other things then Manga (God has given her talent for art and creativity). Yes, listening to songs from Japan, and Korea drive me nuts (I can’t understand the words). Yes, hard Christian rock is not my thing, but the Heavenly Father, has created her with passions, loves, talents and a personality.

That day, I also thought about her sisters. They are definitely not like Laurel. Emily loves soccer, has compassion and a sharing heart. She would rather play then work. Grace has spiritual insight that I have not seen in anyone her age. She loves My Little Pony, swimming with her daddy, snuggling with mommy, and has a hard time focusing on what she needs to do.

God created them, loves them, and gave them to me to rise up in His ways and to love them unconditionally.
I praise you Lord for they are fearfully and wonderfully made. Life would be boring if they were the same.

How about you? If you have children do you see them as a special gift from God created uniquely? Praise Him for them. Or maybe you struggle within yourself in seeing that you are the apple of your Heavenly Father’s eye. Take heart beloved of the Father, you are fearfully and wonderfully made also.

“My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth
your eyes say my unformed body.”
Psalms 139:15 (NIV 1984)

Read Full Post »

God’s Jealousy

Posted in Encouragement, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , on July 15, 2013| Leave a Comment »

1 Corinthians states, “It (love) does not envy”.  However, I like the synonym jealous better.  The word has a stronger connotation and scripture uses it when describing God, Himself.   If love is not jealous then how can scripture tell us God is?

Sure God has a right to be jealous, for He is the One and only God.  He created everything.  But there has to be more to this jealousy thing than just that.  Take a look at this verse in Exodus.

 

“for you shall worship no other god, for the LORD,

whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.”  Exodus 34:14 (ESV)

When I think of jealousy, the word “negative” comes to mind.  Someone gets jealous over another’s brand name sneakers, or career or degree.  I have a hard time believing God being jealous in this sort of way.  So if this is true, how does His jealousy and love for me fit together?

I looked at the notes for another verse Exodus 20:5 in two different versions and what I read hit hard.

“You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I am the LORD your God am a jealous God…”  Exodus 20:5a

  • The first likened His jealousy to a marriage.  A husband or wife expects that his or her spouse will be faithful, loyal, and love them. When I became one of His children I entered into a relationship with Him. Therefore, when I put others, or things before Him, I am saying in essence, You’re not important to me. God wants me to put Him first, like my husband wants me to put him first before anything else including our children.¹
  • The second stated that His jealousy can be renamed zealousness.  He has a zeal (*a strong interest, intense enthusiasm; fervor) for me and therefore wants the best for me.  When other things or people replace Him, it’s not in my best interest.²

To be honest these two ideas brought real conviction.  Both exhibit how much He loves me and His strong desire to be in relationship with me.

The sad part is I am not always faithful to put Him first.  When I come willing and confess my wrong and ask that He change my heart, He will restore the relationship.

I think that His zealousness (jealousy) for me is one of the mysteries concerning His character I will not understand fully until we are face to face with Him.

How about you? Does knowing that God is zealous for you cause you to think differently about your relationship with Him?  I challenge you to ask Him today to show you how zealous He is for you.  I would love to hear how He chooses to show you His love.

“So that Christ may dwell in your hears through faith – that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”

Ephesians 3:17-19 (ESV)

*Webster’s dictionary definition of zealousness

¹Taken from Exodus 20:5 notes NIV 1984 Study Bible

²Taken from Exodus 20:5 notes ESV Study Bile

Read Full Post »

Love is Patient

Posted in Encouragement, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , on June 15, 2013| Leave a Comment »

*Patience : to  Calmly tolerate; syn.: endurance, long suffering, forbearance

1 Corinthians 13:4 starts with, “love is patient”.  Growing up teachers taught me that the first item in a list is usually the most important.  Maybe the reason patience was listed first was because it’s the hardest virtue to exhibit. You can ask my family, patience is not a strength, but I have gotten better.

I looked up patience in a Bible Dictionary.  The entry said there are two types of patience, one for relationships and another for situations. I’m just going to deal with the relationship aspect.

While reading scripture verses, the underlining factor of God’s patience, was love and mercy.  I don’t know about you but I wonder why He puts up with me.  I make the same stupid mistakes, open mouth insert foot, doubt, become fearful and…well you get the idea.  His patience with me must wear thin sometimes.  However, the Bible states that He is the God of endurance and encouragement.

“May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus.”

Romans 15:5

Because He loves me He will not give up on me no matter what.  I want to be careful here.  It doesn’t mean He will not discipline me.  He will in order to grow me.

The question that came to my mind was, did He ever lose His patience?

In Exodus chapter thirty-two, He told Moses on the mountain “These people are so stubborn what am I going to with them. I know, wipe them out and start over with you.” (Christine’s paraphrase) But Moses who was considered God’s friend, seemed to talk Him out of it.

I decided to ask one of my pastors what he thought about this. I loved what he had to say.

 

“God is holy and just, and when His people rebelled as they did, God reacted to this.  He did not lose His patience but, reacted justly because of His holiness. Since He is sovereign and omniscient, He knew beforehand how the people would react to Moses’ absence – it did not take God by surprise.  He also knew how Moses would respond to God’s threat to destroy His people. Therefore, knowing this, we can see that God used this situation to cause Moses to intercede on behalf of the people and to impress both Moses and the people with the seriousness of rebelling against God. Due to Moses’ intercession, God “relented” (i.e., He did not change His mind but chose a course of action that was consistent with His divine will).”

When Moses went down from the mountain he told the people God’s reaction.  Most repented but 3,000 didn’t and were killed.  I believe He did this because they were unrepentant and He didn’t want them to bring down the whole nation. He loved His people enough to keep His promise but also loved them enough to hand out a punishment.

One of my daughters had sticky fingers as a child.  She wanted some books at the school book fair.  I said, no.  However, she sneeked into my purse, took a check and wrote it out for the amount due. She almost got away with it except, she wrote in pencil.

We were definitely angry. My husband decided to take drastic measures to make sure it wouldn’t happen again.  He drove her down to the local sheriffs department and talked to a deputy.  Fortunately, she got the message.  A few times after that the sticky fingers went to work again, thankfully nothing felony worthy. We handed out discipline and forgiveness and finally the behavior ended. Patience was rewarded.

Praise God, this is the same patience He has with us but on a grander scale.

How about you?  Do you fear God has lost patience with you?  Take heart, His loving patience for you means He will never give up on you.  Be honest with Him and repent of the sin and turn away from it.

If you are not part of God’s family, know He loves you, for He created you.  I would encourage you to read the  “An Invitation” and become one of His.

“But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.”

Psalm 86:15 (ESV)

 

*Webster’s student Dictionary and Thesaurus

Read Full Post »

« Newer Posts - Older Posts »

The Gospel Project

Christ-Centered Bible Studies for Kids, Students and Adults

SPC Emergency Preparedness

Be Prepared

German Eggs

marthaparish

The pages of my life

The Great Adventure

A Journal of Life and Faith in Southeast Asia

Hearts Set Free Blog

Just another WordPress.com site

Eggs In Asia

follow us as we follow Him