The Heart of the Matter

Over the last two weeks I’ve shared the importance of having a quiet time. My fear is that we haven’t covered the heart of this discipline and see it more as a duty, so I want to make that clear today.

Not having a quiet time each day isn’t a sin. You haven’t broken a law or anything like that. Above all else, do not let this become something legalistic in your life. And I say that as someone who could fall into legalism and must guard against it.

At the very least, see having a quiet time with God as an opportunity to grow closer to Him and understand His love for you. And to the extreme, see it as a life preserver to your spirit in a drowning world ruled by an enemy who loves nothing more than to keep us from experiencing an effective life in Christ. Our time with God and reading His Word every day is the only way to arm ourselves against our common enemy.

So do it. Find what works for you and do it. Make this the most important part of your day. After all, Jesus thinks you’re that important—important enough to die for.

Even during times when you feel distant from God, keep this appointment and work through whatever it is He might be trying to teach you. Sit quietly before God and seek Him. My mentor told me that too.

And I’m so glad she did because there was a time that I felt that no matter how hard I sought God, I could not find Him—couldn’t sense Him near me. I persisted. I pursued God. I cried out to Him to answer me. Finally, He did. He rewarded me with His presence and showed me that He wanted me to understand the emptiness without Him.

I’ve never stopped seeking Him since. I hope I never wind up in a desert that dry again. God knows what we need now and what we will need in the future. I dare to say that had God not taught me that early on, I may not be walking as closely with Him now.

From a Biblical example, look at David. He sought God his entire life through the good and the bad. And God saw him as a man after His own heart. David wasn’t perfect. He messed up pretty bad at times and still suffered the consequences of his poor choices. But he never stopped pursuing God and God rewarded him for that.

Hear David’s passion in Psalm 27:8:

My heart says of you, “Seek his face!” Your face, LORD, I will seek.

David knew the source of his strength and hope was God. That no matter what, no matter how inconsistent the world and people around him were, God was constant. Always there. Always helping. Always loving.

And hear what God tells us He will do when we seek Him:

But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you seek him with all your heart and with all your soul. — Deuteronomy 4:29

You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. — Jeremiah 29:13

Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. — Matthew 7:7

God’s Word is clear. When we seek Him with all our hearts, we will find Him—our great Lord, our King, our Savior Jesus. We will find God.

So seek and pursue God in those quiet moments so you can hear Him through His Word, through your prayers, and through those God strategically places around you.

And through that small voice that speaks to a willing heart.

Praying and believing,
Dineen

Unequally Yoked and Ashamed at Church

There is a lot of shame that accompanies the unsavory title of unequally yoked.

In fact, now that our book has released I am discovering there are many more women and men living in a marriage where they and their spouse are on significantly different planes in their faith walk, than I suspected.

Read the rest of this article today at the Internet Cafe Devotions: Unequally Yoked and Ashamed at Church.

Freedom

 

O beautiful for spacious skies,
For amber waves of grain, 
For purple mountain majesties 
Above the fruited plain! 

America! America! 

God shed his grace on thee 

And crown thy good with brotherhood 

From sea to shining sea! 

Dineen and I (Lynn) humbly salute and honor all those who serve and who have served. We know many military and military wives are readers here. We are praying for your families and thank you seems inadequate..... but, thank you.

Pant, Pant, Breathe

 Mark 13:5 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines and calamities. This is but the beginning of the intolerable anguish and suffering (only the first of the birth pangs). AMPLIFIED

September 11, 2001 ~ a series of coordinated suicide attacks by al-Qaeda upon the United States.

Pant....... 

Pant.......

Breathe.......

Katrina, Middle East Conflicts, Iraq, Afghanistan, deadly snow storms, earth quakes, famine....

September 2008 ~ Global Financial Crisis, liquidity shortfall in the US banking system and has resulted in the collapse of large financial institutions, the bailout of banks by national governments, and downturns in stock markets around the world.

Pant

Pant

Breathe

April 2, 2011 ~ Tohoku Earthquake, Tsunami and Nuclear Disaster. One of the five most powerful earthquakes in the world overall since modern record-keeping began in 1900.

Pant
Pant

Breathe 

April 20, 2010 ~ Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill. The largest accidental marine oil spill in the history of the petroleum industry.

Pant
Pant
Breathe

April 25-28, 2011 ~ An extremely large and violent tornado outbreak, the largest in US history.

Pant, Pant, Breathe

May 2011 ~ The Mississippi River flood in May 2011 were among the largest and most damaging along the US waterway in the past century.

PANT, PANT, BREATHE

May 21, 2011 ~ Iceland volcano erupts spewing ash 18,000 feet into the Stratosphere.

Pant, pant, breathe,.... Pant, pant, breathe....

May 22, 2011 ~ Joplin, MO Tornado. A mile-wide funnel touched down at 5:41 p.m. CT Sunday and blasted a six mile wide path. The deadliest single tornado in nearly 60 years, according to federal records.

PANT.... PANT.... BREATHE....

______

I'm fascinated with the increasing speed and the ferocity. Are you? Lynn

Creating a Quiet Time

Last week we talked about keeping a divine appointment with God on a daily basis. Again, I know this isn’t easy to do, especially if you have small kids, but I promise you it will be the most important and beneficial decision you will ever make in your life.

Do you want a transformed life? A life of victory? Then this is where it starts. So, what does a quiet time look like? There’s many ways people choose to carve out a time to spend with God so this isn’t a right or wrong question. Suzanna Wesley threw her apron over her head, signaling to her children that she was praying and spending time with God. I’ve heard many women say they use their time in the shower to pray and often find they “hear” God better there. I’ve experienced that myself but it’s not always convenient. (grin) Some find they have more time in the evening.

As I’ve shared before it took me a year of my mentor’s sweet nudgings to finally heed her words and practice this discipline. And just let me be clear that this isn’t something that we need to feel guilty about if we miss a day here and there. God isn’t keeping count. Over time you will find this time to be something you look forward to as you sit at the feet of Jesus and know Him as the Lord of your life.

So, I’d like to share some of what helped me create and keep a quiet time:

• Time. Start out small, say 15 minutes. Get up a little earlier, before the kids, or wait until they go off to school. Take part of your lunch break or the time the little ones are down for a nap. Just make it the same time every day. You may have trouble sitting still at first, especially if you’re used to always being on the go, but stick with it.
  
  When I first started doing all this, I really struggled with my mind wandering. What worked for me was picturing myself sitting with Jesus with this bubble-like dome covering us. This was my way of telling my mind to push the concerns of the day aside because they weren’t allowed to invade my space with Jesus. Over time you will be surprised how easy it becomes and how you wind up extending your time without even realizing it.


• Place. Pick a comfy spot in your home that’s conducive to sitting quietly or is private. I have a comfy chair by a window. I’ve always needed to see outside or even sit outside during my quiet time. God’s creation helps me relax and focus. And as with the time of day, make this the same spot you go to as much as possible. Our brains make associations so by creating this habit of the same time and place everyday, you will train your brain to focus and relax. You’ll notice it will get easier over time too.


• Materials. I love using daily devotionals. Over the years I’ve used devotional magazines like The Daily Bread (RBC Ministried), Our Journey (Walk in the Word by James MacDonald), and books such as Oswald Chambers’ My Utmost for His Highest and Experiencing God Day By Day (Blackaby). I use these in conjunction with a daily plan to read my Bible in year. Most devotional magazines have a daily plan to read your Bible in a year. There are also Bibles designed to do this as well.
  
  With the advances in technology, I’ve found great benefit in using my iPad. There are many great Bible apps in several translations available (I use Olive Tree), which include study notes and reading plans. They also give you the ability to highlight passages and takes notes as well. And now that so many books are available in digital format, I have many of my favorite devotional and prayer books on my iPad as well. This makes keeping my quiet time when I travel much easier since I don’t have to bring so many books. It’s all in one portable place.


• Prayer. My mentor helped me a great deal in this area too. One of the things she said and I’ll never forget is to “clear the air.” Each morning as I sit down with God, I pray for my sins to be forgiven. I don’t want anything clogging the pipeline of communication with God. 1John 1:9 is the Scripture I refer to.
  
  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
  
  Then I ask the Holy Spirit to open my eyes and heart to hear what He wants me to understand through His Word and prayer. This is how I start my quiet time, then from there I do my reading and journal what God has shown me that day (journaling doesn’t happen every day), then I pray for those needing prayer and intercession. Even writing out your prayers can be invaluable. The benefit of journaling is being able to go back and remember what God showed you.


• Expectations. Do expect interruptions and challenges when you first start. The enemy will most likely try to discourage you from this because if he does, he knows you’ll miss out on some amazing times that will grow you closer to God. But also expect to be hugely blessed by this time and see a change in yourself, how you handle your days, your life, your family and your marriage. This is valuable time God will use to equip you for whatever’s coming your way.

Make your quiet time uniquely yours. Don’t be afraid to explore and change things up from time to time. Sometimes I play worship music. Sometimes I’ll sit outside. If you find yourself doing it more out of duty, ask God to help you change that and do something a little different.

The one thing I know that changed the most for me is feeling like my faith was a rollercoaster ride that went from strong to weak to strong to weak on the tides of my life. Over time, my faith was strengthened in so many ways to where I could ride those waves but still feel centered in my faith and knowledge of who God is and trusting Him to be in control of my life.

Once you start, I promise you won’t want to stop. And you will miss it dearly on days (hopefully rare) that you miss meeting with your Creator. If you want God to transform your life, this is where it starts—by spending time regularly with Him.

Praying and believing,
Dineen

(Here's another article about building a quiet time.)

The Schwarzenegger Rant

(Photo: Reuters / Tomas Bravo)
Okay, I’m not really sure where this post is going today but I think I’m about to go on a rant.

I am utterly and wholly disappointed and sad over the impending divorce of Arnold and Maria Schwarzenegger. I am outright devastated for the children, and the son of the household employee. I’m devastated for all of them.

It’s a tragedy that continues to play out in an ever growing and ugly fashion. I live in Southern California and it’s the talk everywhere. Are you hearing about it all where you live?

I guess my heart breaks for marriage in general. It grieves me that after 25 years…. NOW it’s a failure. I think I felt this way when Al and Tipper Gore separated after 40 years. But if I have learned anything in these years of marriage ministry, I have learned that the marriage behind closed doors is the real marriage. Often when we observe married couples, we are only viewing their public face, much like watching celebrities. What their real relationship is all about is rarely glimpsed in the public. Would you agree?

What can we learn from this strange turn of events? Can we see that marriage is a union of two people that are not always mature, or wise? They are often selfish and insecure. Can we take notice that a good marriage takes work, trust, and more than anything, constant prayer?

Let this misfortune remind us that we can never stop working on our marriage relationship. We must be intentional to spend time together. To be spontaneous. To love and to honor and to respect our mate.

Okay, your thoughts? Rants? Prayers?

Be blessed, Lynn

Lavish Love

When they had all had enough to eat, he said to his disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.” So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten. — John 6:12-13

I read this piece of Scripture last week and was struck by the thought that Jesus could have "made" the fish and bread to be just enough for these 5,000 hungry mouths and not have a crumb left.

But he didn't stop there. He created a bounty. Leftovers, sustenance for another day perhaps...

This touched my heart because the story seemed to say to me that Jesus loves us lavishly. He wants to give us what we need and MORE! But how often do we settle for just enough?

Look at the hand of our Savior and see what He's holding. You'll see His heart—all for us.

Praying and believing,
Dineen

Light Vs. Darkness: Living in the Natural World

Article II: Our Soul and the Natural World

A few weeks back, I began a series on the natural world and how we can let nature, the world God created, bring healing, and joy to our soul. We started with light. If you missed that post, you can read it here.

Today I want to post another article in this series. I’m completely convinced the world God created is purposed for our health; physically, emotionally and spiritually. The environments where we spend time affect our lives. I want to take one more look at light before we move on to sound, sight, exercise and perhaps a few others.

Light vs. Darkness: This scripture just grabs me: Luke 22:53 NIV Jesus said: Every day I was with you in the temple courts, and you did not lay a hand on me. But this is your hour—when darkness reigns.

This encounter occurs in the Garden of Gethsemane where Jesus was betrayed into the hands of those who were determined to see Him dead.

Now read between the lines. Darkness reigns. Sin, satan, evil reigns in the darkness. Why do you suppose Jesus said this? Look at the ESV rendering:

Luke 22:53 ESV When I was with you day after day in the temple, you did not lay hands on me. But this is your hour, and the power of darkness."

I get the cold shivers when I read this passage. It’s obvious that the powers of evil live in darkness.

So what does this mean for our lives as believers. Stay out of the dark. Literally and figuratively. Now think about this with me. Isn’t it interesting that we as humans desire to sleep at night? We remain unaware and inactive during the night. Now, some of you skeptics out there may disagree but walking with Jesus all these years, I yearn to live in the light. I don’t even like it when it’s foggy here in May and June. Bring on the sunshine. I go to bed early and wake up with the dawn. It’s awesome.

We can’t ignore the fact that great evil takes place in darkness (and the light as well.) However, it seems to me Jesus was warning us that evil thrives in the dark. Secrets we keep in the dark, untold and unconfessed hold us captive. I think television programing in the late evening hours attest to the enemy’s power. Have you watch any of it lately? Sheesh.

I once heard an interview with a young man who was a Christian and once was possessed by a demon. He tells of his life during that time that he hated to go outside in the light that the spirit in him wouldn’t allow it. Fascinating. I also wonder if you are like me. There are times I can look at a stranger and I can feel the dark. I look in their eyes and I see they are dark.

It is healthier for us physically and spiritually to live in light. Open the shades, open God’s Word. Clean out the dark places in your heart and thrive. Avoid the darkness for that is where satan will use his power. Why give the enemy more advantage? Spiritual warfare is fought with the light. In the spiritual realm and in the physical. Thrive in the light and start fighting.

Okay, I’m really interested in your thoughts on this post. Be blessed, Lynn

Next post: In a bad mood? I bet I have something to help you out. 

A Divine Appointment

I’ve been on a quest.

What kind of quest, do you ask? A quest to understand how to listen to God better. To hear Him more clearly. I don’t want to miss a thing He has to tell me.

Hearing God is not something that comes easily. (And please understand I'm using the word "hear" figuratively. God communicates through His Word and gives us impressions through the Holy Spirit.) We have to work at it just like we do in our earthly relationships. In order to hear what another person has to say, we have to spend time with them—be in their presence. I can’t expect to know what my husband is about and who he is if I don't spend time with him. Nor will I be able to hear him if I’m not in the same room with him.

Same thing goes for God. We can’t know who He is and what His will is for our lives if we don’t spend time with Him. I know we’ve touched on that here in the past but I think it’s something we need to talk about again.

Are you spending time with God everyday? Just 10 or 15 minutes even? A time that you can simply sit, be still and KNOW that He is the God of your life?

This isn’t just something that’s good to do. It’s necessary in order for us to truly know our Creator, because you know what? He is pretty cool and has a lot to tell us. His Word is full of stuff that He intentionally put there because He wanted us to know it. That’s right. The Bible isn’t just a mish mash of stuff some guys threw together. Every word in that book is there because God wants us to know it. And not reading it is as if your spouse wrote this amazing love letter to you—a long one full of the most important things he will ever say to you—and you left it unopened and sealed in the envelope.

There’s another important aspect I want to bring out here as well. We have often said here at S.U.M. that the changes we often desire in our lives and marriages have to start with us. If we’re not spending that time with God, how are those changes going to happen?

If you want to see God work in your marriage and in your life in ways you can’t even imagine, make a commitment now to spend time with Him every morning. If you have to get up 15 minutes earlier, do it. If you have to give up a TV show, do it. What God has for you is more entertaining and valuable anyway.

And please don’t think I don’t understand how difficult this can be at first. I truly do. I had to learn to do this when my girls were little. The only way I could get a quiet time was to get up before my family. Often before the sun had even begun to peak open its own eyes. But I will tell you that I wouldn’t be where I am today if I had not made that commitment and kept that appointment with God almost everyday for the last 15 years. Even on Sundays before church!

Nor have I regretted a minute of it. My time spent with God keeps me centered and helps me manage the rest of my day. Things still get done. In fact, they get done better.

So, are you struggling in your life? Are you finding things just aren’t working? Are you tired and want to get off the merry-go-round? Start tomorrow. Set that alarm a little earlier. Ask God to help you find a time that will work if you have to. I know He will because He’s done that for me too. Then keep that appointment everyday. Protect that time as if it is the most important appointment you will ever have in your life.

Because you know what? The Creator of the universe is waiting to meet with you. He loves you desperately and wants you to know that. Don’t stand Him up.

Praying and believing,
Dineen

A Tale Worth Telling

Indulge me today.

Let me introduce the cast:

One- small furry, cute (deceptive) cat
One- small dog named Peanut
One – teenaged girl 16 going on 27.
One – believing mom and keeper of the home.

It started several months back. The rainy season. It’s cold, wet, and dark. One early evening during a light downpour as we sat in the family room watching TV. From the hallway we hear a tiny, “Meow.”

To read the entire story, join me today at Laced With Grace.