Pass the Salt Please!

'But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.'  Genesis 19:26

Bless her heart.  Don't you know Lot's poor wife never expected to be turned into a food preservative when she peeked back over her shoulder at the life she was leaving behind.  Do you wonder if you'd have looked back?  I do.  I think the temptation to take one more look may have overtaken my good sense and I could've been seasoning someones food too! 

What could've been so important that she risked her life? Comfort.  Sodom had become comfortable for her.  The city was a disgrace in the Lord's eyes and unmentionable things were going on in the midst of it, but this place had become her home.  She was happy.  She felt safe in the madness.  But God called her out of her comfort zone in order to spare her life.  She looked back because I don't think she was ready to trust God's plan for her life.

Sound familiar?  We don't want to surrender our lives to Him completely so we'll hold on to one, tiny aspect of it ourselves.  He doesn't really care how I spend my money so I'll continue to manage that part without Him.  Boom--pass me the salt please!  We have to be willing to totally surrender ALL of it to Him.  All He asked of Lot's wife was to walk, looking forward, into the new life He had prepared for her.  She didn't obey and look what happened to her. I don't think He'd really turn me into salt, but He could if He wanted to.  I, for one, am not willing to put Him to the test.

PRAISE Him

But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 1Peter 2:9

PRAISE-

P- Praise- He is my God and I will praise Him!
R- Repentance- Acknowledge my sin and thank Him that He has forgiven me for it.

A- Acknowledgement- Surrender myself and allow Christ to live in and through me.

I- Intercession- Pray for others. Ask Holy Spirit to show me who to pray for and when.

S- Supplication for self- Pray for my own needs/feelings/desires-just talk with Him!

E- Equipping- Ask Him to help me see and hear Him. Empower me and fill me with Himself.

In EVERYTHING, give Him thanks and praise...

Do You Live on Perfect Lane?

'If perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood—and indeed the law given to the people established that priesthood—why was there still need for another priest to come, one in the order of Melchizedek, not in the order of Aaron?'  Hebrews 7:11

Do you struggle with perfectionsim?  Just swing by my house and you'll see from the utter chaos that this is one thing I do not have a problem with!  What is perfectionism anyway?  My first thought is that it's the desire to have everything around you 'perfect'.  According to good ol' Webster, this is correct, but there is a second definition I found to be very intriguing:

A doctrine holding that religious, moral, social, or political perfection is attainable, esp. the theory that human moral or spiritual perfection should be or has been attained

Hmmm....sounds a little like a God-complex, huh?  I'm pretty sure the bible tells us that no man is perfect except one...and it's not you or me.  I am so glad He doesn't expect me to be perfect!  As I said earlier, I am definitely not a perfectionist, but I know of several people who are.  I think they are some of the most unhappy, tired, and grumpy folks that I know.  They are continuously striving to have every single thing (and sometimes their children too) around them in perfect order.  Everything.

If we know that reaching perfection here on this earth is impossible, then why do we try to do it?  Control issues?  Obsessive-compulsive disorders?  I really don't know.  I feel for those who have the overwhelming desire to be perfect.  They aren't gonna get there, not in the human realm.  What do you do if this person is you?  All I can say is to take it to God.  Ask Him to show you the reasons behind your desire to obtain perfection.  When He does, commit to working with Him on getting over the bondage of perfectionism.  Come on over to the other side and join the 'non-perfectionist' group...it's a perfectly un-perfect place to be!

Recipe for Fear

'Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged. For the Lord your God will be with you wherever you may go.' Joshua 1:9

My Bible study group will be starting a summer study soon on-yep, you guessed it-fear! I've been preparing my heart and mind for what God wants to show me through this study. I stumbled across something I wrote about two years ago to share at a youth retreat. Obviously, I've been dealing with fear for a long time...still am! I came up with an acronym for the word FEAR and put verses with each letter. I'd like to share them with you, also as a reminder for myself, about what our God says about this bondage called fear...

F: Faith: We must have faith in the One who is our Protector. Without faith, we have no reason to expect to be set free from our fears.

“But my righteous one will live by faith. And I take no pleasure in the one who shrinks back.” Hebrews 10:38

'Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.' Hebrews 11:1

A: Able: We also must believe that He is able to handle our fears (and that He wants to).

'Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us,' Ephesians 3:20

'Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.' Matthew 10:28

E: Expect: We must expect that He is going to answer us when we cry out to Him with our fears.

'Call to me and I will answer you; I will tell you great and mighty things which you do not know.' Jeremiah 33:3

'Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke?' Isaiah 58:6

R: Relationship: We must have a relationship with Him if we want to be free from the bondage of fear.

'My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.' John 10:27

'And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend.' James 2:23

We must have Faith that He is Able; we must Expect due to our Relationship with Him that he will help us conqeour our fears-no matter how big or how small! Believe it and live in it!

One of 'those weeks'

'Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken.  Psalm 55:22'
'Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.'  1 Peter 5:7



Have you ever just had one of 'those weeks'?  The kind where nothing seems to go right, people get on your nerves, and you can just feel Satan breathing down your neck?  Well, I've been having one (and it's only Tuesday)!  It's during times like this that I am thankful for His presence in my life.  If it weren't for Him sustaining me, I'd have probably gone insane or killed somebody by now.

I am also reminded of the fact that He commands me in two places, Old and New Testaments, to cast my cares upon Him.  It gets tiring carrying around all my stuff day after day.  I wonder when I'm going to learn to give it to Him before I even get out of the bed in the morning?  And when a new care arises to put it immediately into His loving arms.

If I could just learn to do this every time it would save me a lot of worrying and anxiety.  I am not a patient person.  I like to be in control.  Surrendering these aspects of my life seems almost impossible to do, but in order to completely be free in Him, I have to.  I'm reminded of a praise course we sing at church that goes like this:

I cast all my cares upon You.

I lay all of my burdens down at Your feet.
And anytime I don't know what to do,
I will cast all of my cares upon You.
Join with me and let this be your prayer when you are having one of 'those weeks'.

Sink or Swim

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”   Matthew 11:28-30



We just enjoyed a great weekend of fellowship with our church youth group at one of the local lakes.  The kids loved the water, even though it felt about 35 degrees, and did some rock climbing and jumping off said rocks into that frigid water!  My hubby loves to do this and is game to take anyone along who is up to the challenge with him.  I can say that would not be me.  The highest they jumped this weekend was from about 40-50 feet...too high, if you ask me.



Hubby jumping off 'the rock'

The one thing they did do that I was grateful for was wear their life jackets.  They are all good swimmers, but had sense enough to know that a jump from that high may take their breath or cause them to panic resulting in a scenario I don't even want to think about.  As I was watching them, with one eye open and one shut, I got to thinking about how Jesus is like our life jacket in life.  
We could do this thing called life on our own and probably do a fairly good job at it...until a crisis comes along that causes us to panic.  What would we do then?  We'd have nowhere to turn, but to our own devices...scary!  But if we live our life with Jesus by our side, when those times of trouble come along, we can just let go and let him keep us afloat.  We don't have to doggie paddle in the frigid lake.  We can just float along and wait on Him to work it out for us.

This summer, whenever you put on a life jacket, remember that Jesus is your flotation device!  He's one that you never want to take off.

Do Not Be a Quitter

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,  fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he 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 sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.   Hebrews 12:1-3


My seven-year-old loves to start something.  Be it baseball, karate, soccer...you name it he's all gung-ho about it, at first.  He begins strong, excited, and ready to go, but by mid-season, he's ready to be done.  He wants to quit.  The easy thing would be to let him.  I wouldn't have to listen to him whine, fake illness, or cry.  But is letting him quit the right thing?

No.  Quitting before he completes a committment doesn't teach him a thing.  It lets his teammates and coaches down.  It makes Mama and Daddy look like pushovers.  Making him finish out the task builds his character and integrity.  It also teaches him to make sure he really wants to do something before he committs himself to it.

The same goes for Mommy too.  There are times when I just want to quit.  I want to give up Kid's Church or singing on the Praise Team.  I want to quit work.  I want to cease to be Mommy on the worst days (this one doesn't usually last but for a nanosecond)!  It would be so easy just to sit down and quit.  Then I get into the Word and find the verses above in Hebrews.  This chapter follows the 'Hall of Faith' with all the great witnesses of God and what they endured.  They did not quit.  They faced alot more hardship than I could even imagine, but they persevered. 

I want the same to be said of me.  I don't want to quit my race too soon.  He has it all laid out for me.  I want to finish and cross the finish line, running into the arms of my Jesus.  I want to hear Him say, "Well done, my child, you have finished well."  I will press on, head up, feet anchored to the path before me.  I will not be a quitter.