Mindset

Have you ever asked your spouse this question: "What are you thinking?" in just a curious way. I ask it all the time, because I want to know what's on Chris' heart and mind. It's a natural thing for us to discuss. I think the Lord desires this same kind of intimacy with us. In fact the Lord asks us to set our thoughts on things above rather than on the things of this earth. He desires to lead & guide our thoughts so that we are able to lead effective, fulfilling, purposeful lives that agree with the callings He has placed on us. As women, I am well aware that we think a thousand and a half things in a day's time. All sorts of things run through our minds: our to-do lists, our children's schedules, our family's needs, and the list just keeps running on. In the midst of all of this it is easy to adopt an earthly mentality...thinking only of the immediate, the temporal, rather than the eternal. When we stop thinking on eternity and on the Savior who will soon appear we often miss opportunities to share Christ with others and encourage believers on our way. Today I encourage you as I remind myself to set your mind on things above not on the things that are on the earth. For you died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life is revealed you will be revealed also with Him in glory (See Colossians 3:1-3). Don't let your mind take you away so to speak. Let your mind, your every thought be conformed to Jesus & bring Him glory and honor and praise, for that is what is due to Him!

charting a course

This past Friday was a snow day in Louisville! So, my friend and I ventured outside to take pictures. We found our way to a hill that is a popular spot for sledders. It was packed with families! Soon, we were helping people find the best course down the hill. The people who took time to look before they sled were able to coast and enjoy the scenery longer before reaching flat land.

In the first chapter in Matthew, the list of Jesus' ancestors can seem quite long. Yet, it shows how God planned from the beginning that Jesus would come to the world to save us. In life, we can see how planning with God's guidance can make such a difference.

It is important to seek understanding as we plan: "Folly delights a man who lacks judgment, but a man of understanding keeps a straight course" (Proverbs 15:21, NIV). God and others He puts in our life can help us determine what is the "straight course." We must remember to ask Him lead us as we plan, for: "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us" (1 John 5:14, NIV). Then, in the end, we can celebrate all He has done!

I admire how Jeff Johnson explains following God: "That we may be sons and daughters of vision." I pray that we will remember His holiness and divine wisdom as we plan this year.

Link to the song "God Over Us" by Jeff Johnson: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sdu1yvNzRVI

Please Turn Up The Heat!

“The Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Originator of God’s creation says: I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish that you were cold or hot. So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I am going to vomit you out of My mouth." Revelation 3:14-16 (HCSB)

We have just experienced one of the coldest weeks in decades! Temperatures have not climbed above freezing for more than a week as we have all been under "a deep freeze warning" night after night. With the deep freeze warning there comes some specific instructions to "take extra care" of the "P's" in our lives...Pets, Plants, Pipes, People...

There are times in our Christian walk that God calls us to "take extra care" so that we will continue to have "Hot Hearts" for Him! Here we are after all of the "new year commitments" have been made and we begin to live out a New Year surrendered afresh and anew to all that God has called us to...and then comes the deep freeze season of life, WINTER... the enemy can even try and use the weather or the season of life that includes more darkness (Winter) to try and cause our lives to grow "cold".

I will never forget the time that we teamed up with His servants from all over North America and ministered to an almost unreached people group in of all places...Alaska. As we prepared for this special time of going and sharing Jesus, we learned so much about how the cold dark long Winter months can affect the people of Alaska. We learned that during the cold months, Alaska leads North America in the areas of; depression, alcoholism, unemployment, and tragic family issues, just to name a few of the real struggles that the cold can bring upon lives. Many women gave their lives to Christ in Alaska that week that was so full of Jesus and His Love that Warms the coldest heart! Today it was -57 as we keep praying for Alaska as God keeps doing His Work!!

As believers, the enemy will even try and use anything, even "the cold" months of Winter, to make our hearts grow cold inside when it comes to daily growing in The Lord and daily sharing Him with others! What are some possible steps we can take to "fan the FLAME" of The Holy Spirit in our lives for Jesus?

"Having A Hot Heart for Jesus in a Cold World"- Ideas (Please Turn Up The Heat!): Ask God for A Hot Heart = Pray; Clean out the Filter of our Heart = Confession; Put in some new fresh kindling that helps build a new fire in our heart = Begin A New Prayer Plan, Bible Study Plan, Retreat; Share The Warmth from the Fire that God has Built = Reach out to others, Share Jesus, Pray with Someone, Have an Accountability Praying Friend, Realize the ways that God is at Work in and through our Lives, Encourage (Fan The Flame) Others!

We can either be a thermometer that only reflects the temperature in the room or we can ask God to make us a THERMOSTAT that sets & reflects a Hot Heart for God that can warm cold hearts around us for the cause of Christ! We would love for you to share some of your simple steps that you have taken that "Fans the FLAME" as we ask God to Please Turn Up The Heat inside of our HEARTS because like it has been said "it only takes a spark to get a fire going"!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvUNkRbi5Rc - Lord I Give You My Heart!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vnqb7Vn4AEE - Open The Eyes Of My Heart!

Lose It!

With the start of a new year, I have seen an increase in coupons, commercials and commitments specifically targeting those who want to lose weight. All of the sudden the healthy foods are featured in the supermarket flyers. Gyms are offering zero membership fees and bring a friend free days. Millions of new water bottle designs hit the shelves, each with new and improved features! It seems at this time that our culture suddenly recognizes a need to shed some extra pounds and begins to focus every area of life around this problem. How people use their time, money, food, drink and resources all comes back to this one specific goal. In the middle of all of this, I can’t help but think of Hebrews 12:1-2, where the writer pleads with believers to throw off everything that hinders us from following Jesus. “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” I wonder what it might take in my own life for me to decide to reorient my entire life because I was so concerned with putting to death the sin and extra weight that keeps me from Jesus. What would I need to change about how I use my time, money, resources? What accountability would I need for my attitude, discipline and focus? Whether or not you are in the group of people choosing to throw off a little weight this year, let us commit as followers of Jesus Christ that we will choose to throw off everything that might keep us from running after Jesus with all of our hearts! “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”

Brokenness

This world is full of brokenness. I'm sure you know that, but sometimes I think we need to be reminded of the fact. Brokenness doesn't always yell loud & get in your face. Most likely, brokenness lives down the street: the widow, the orphaned, the divorced, the abused, the forgotten. Inside my beautiful home, baking up a from scratch apple pie it's easy to forget that, not today though. I received an urgent call today from a young woman that I mentor. As I listened to her pour out her heart choking back tears, I was jolted back into the reality that many people live in brokenness. The only cure for this sickness is Jesus! That's it. Jesus' Word must be appropriately applied to the brokenness for healing to take place. As I survey news headlines, pop media, & listen to the average young woman down the street, it impresses my heart that we must be diligent in sharing the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ through the sharing of His wonderful Gospel. Each year I commit a book of Scripture to memory (you should pick a passage too). I love God's Word & storing it up in my heart that I may not sin against my Lord Jesus! When I think of brokenness this recent memory verse from 2 Timothy comes to mind...it won't be perfect but you'll get the gist of it. "...revealing Christ Jesus our Lord who abolished death and brought immortality & life to light through the Gospel." (2 Timothy 1:10, I biblegatewayed the verse number :)). I am hoping to shine the light of Gospel into this desperately broken world this year, from beginning to end. Will join me?

Obedience

"Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone." (Galatians 4:5-6)

As we are beginning this new year, I have been convicted of the need to be diligent to take advantage of every opportunity I have to share the gospel. As I also made a new commitment to take advantage of an exercise facility we have close to our house, I saw an elderly lady named Faye (age 90) at the sport's center. I have seen her several times over the past two years and even gave her a ride home on one occasion. (She usually rides the public transportation bus to get there and home.) She was leaving as I was arriving. Normally I am in a hurry to exercise and get finished, but this time I was trying to remember what was important so I stopped to talk to her. As we had the same conversation that we have every time we talk (starting with: "Now what is your name?" [she does have dementia]), I was able to steer the conversation to spiritual things. I was able to ask her about her church background and then to ask her: "If God were to ask you why He should let you into heaven what would you tell Him?" (a question form Evangelism Explosion) She was quick to respond that God wanted us to do our best and she had done her best. I was able to share with her the importance of asking Jesus to forgive us for our sins and that we can never be good enough on our own. Faye listened and was quiet a moment before she asked me what my name was again.

I don't know if she understood what I was saying or not, but I do know that I was trying to be obedient in sharing the good news of the gospel. And I know that I will continue to have that conversation when I see her the next time.

Prayer: "Lord, help me remember to keep the main thing the main thing!" (i.e. sharing the gospel)

a beautiful mystery

Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. Proverbs 3:5-6 (New Living Translation)

Click! (Pause) Click! Huff.

Click! (Pause) Click! Hmm.

The man next to me on the plane and I stared up -- the lights above us refused to work. We were both on our last leg of an eventful traveling experience. He seemed ready to sleep, and I was ready to read. As we waited to tell the flight attendant about the lights, we slowly began to talk. Within a few minutes, our conversation turned to a discussion about God.

My row-mate asked me what I believed about God's divine nature, and I explained that I think that God is three-in-one – God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. He said that is what he believed, but he recently talked with someone who believed that Jesus and God were one, but not the Holy Spirit.

His eyes got as big as the mandrill on The Lion King (Rafiki, picture link below) as he said, "He is God! We cannot always explain Him." We laughed as we talked about how we try to explain God sometimes, but our minds are not like His. He exclaimed, "We must just have faith!"

It was a relief to be reminded that God does not expect us to understand everything about Him. No matter how confusing some things are about Him – such as the idea that God can be three in one – we are free to choose to have faith in the all-powerful, all-knowing God whose love never ends.

I pray that even though we may never fully understand our Lord, we may grow in our faith in Him this year.

Isaiah 40:28-31
Picture from iGoogle's "Places to See"

Picture of Rafiki: www.normsoft.com/tim/pics/RafikiPic.jpg