Claire's Prayer

There is an ancient plant called The Darnel that is over 5,000 years old. Discovered growing in Egypt among the wheat it was a plant that Jesus would have been very familiar with. This dangerous weed is also known as ‘Delirium Grass’ and ‘Wheat’s Evil Twin!’ When young this prolific plant looked exactly like a blade of wheat and it was only when its ears developed that you could tell the difference between that which was used to make bread and give life and that which caused headaches, vomiting and respiratory paralysis!

At the beginning of the parable about the weeds Jesus told his disciples; “𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒅𝒐𝒎 𝒐𝒇 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝒊𝒔 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒂 𝒎𝒂𝒏 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒔𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒅 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒅 𝒊𝒏 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒇𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒅. 𝑩𝒖𝒕 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒆 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒔𝒍𝒆𝒆𝒑𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒎𝒚 𝒄𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒅 𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒅𝒔 𝒂𝒎𝒐𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒕, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒘𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒂𝒘𝒂𝒚.” (Matthew 13:24-25) Jesus is the farmer, and we are the good seeds that He sowed. All those weeds are the evil people sown by the enemy. Here we are, living in His kingdom, and living side by side with weeds!

A strange subject for a parable for sure! One thing, like the disciples, we must understand is that we are citizens of His Kingdom. When you were born, you were born into America, perhaps Canada, Nigeria, Mexico, maybe even Zimbabwe or South Africa. You inherited the rights of that country; you can proudly stand up and say – “𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯!” By the same token, when you are born again you are born into God’s Kingdom, you are now a citizen and can proudly say – “𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘒𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘥𝘰𝘮 𝘰𝘧 𝘏𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯!” Wow, that certainly is something to be proud of!

We live in God’s Kingdom alongside the weeds, together with those that are evil, those that carry out the enemy’s malicious plan. Sometimes those weeds can grow quickly, crowding us out, and it can be hard to see the sun. It is easy when we see so much pain and suffering to say, “𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘓𝘖𝘙𝘋, 𝘸𝘩𝘺 𝘥𝘰 𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘭 𝘮𝘦𝘯 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘳? 𝘗𝘶𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘴!” The servants in the parable thought the same thing, “𝑫𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒖𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒈𝒐 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒑𝒖𝒍𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎 𝒖𝒑?” “’𝑵𝒐,’ 𝑯𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒔𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒅, ‘𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒑𝒖𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒅𝒔, 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒎𝒂𝒚 𝒖𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒐𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎.” (vs28-29)

The Son of God is so concerned about you and I and those that journey in His Kingdom, ‘𝗡𝗼,’ 𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗱, ‘𝗜 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗽𝘂𝗹𝗹 𝘂𝗽 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗱𝘀 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗼𝗻𝗲. 𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗱𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿𝗼𝘂𝘀.’ (my paraphrase) And so, we grow alongside Wheat’s Evil Twin, in God’s Kingdom, knowing that His care for us is so great. Knowing that He does not want to risk losing even one of us. God’s Kingdom may not be perfect yet, but when it is time for that harvest, all the weeds will be pulled out and “𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒆𝒐𝒖𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒆 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒖𝒏 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒅𝒐𝒎 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝑭𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓.” (vs 43)🌾🦋❤

It’s all very well to accept that invitation to the table but what happens after Jesus draws back your seat and tenderly places a napkin in your lap? Are you a little like me with thoughts that spin in your head at an alarming rate, distractions that seem like a thousand ping-pong balls dropped from the ceiling?

As I sat with the LORD trying to still my mind I heard him say the word “𝔽𝕠𝕔𝕦𝕤 – 𝕚𝕥 𝕚𝕤 𝕥𝕚𝕞𝕖 𝕥𝕠 𝕗𝕠𝕔𝕦𝕤. 𝕀𝕥 𝕚𝕤 𝕥𝕚𝕞𝕖 𝕥𝕠 𝕤𝕥𝕚𝕝𝕝 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕥𝕙𝕠𝕦𝕘𝕙𝕥𝕤 𝕥𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝕤𝕡𝕚𝕟 𝕚𝕟 𝕞𝕪 𝕡𝕣𝕖𝕤𝕖𝕟𝕔𝕖. 𝕋𝕚𝕞𝕖 𝕥𝕠 𝕣𝕖𝕒𝕝𝕝𝕪, ‘Be still and know that I Am God.” (Ps 46:10)

Hebrews 3:1 says this – “Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, whom we acknowledge as our apostle and high priest.” That ‘heavenly calling’ in the Greek indicates an invitation to a feast. The table He has prepared for you! ‘ Fix your thoughts on Jesus!’ Focus on the Saviour! Don’t let your eye be distracted by the battle going on before you, no matter the intensity or ferocity, the enemy is just trying to divert your attention.

Focus on His Words, His smile, His love, kindness, and faithfulness. Stay present in the moment. Allow Holy Spirit to wash over you and settle your mind. Be still. Consider Jesus.

ʜᴇ ɪꜱ ᴛʜᴇ ᴀʟᴘʜᴀ ᴀɴᴅ ᴏᴍᴇɢᴀ, ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴇɢɪɴɴɪɴɢ ᴀɴᴅ ᴇɴᴅ, ᴏᴜʀ ᴄʀᴇᴀᴛᴏʀ, ᴏᴜʀ ʀᴇᴅᴇᴇᴍᴇʀ, ᴛʜᴇ ᴏɴᴇ ᴡʜᴏ ᴄᴀᴍᴇ ᴛᴏ ᴇᴀʀᴛʜ ꜱᴏ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʏᴏᴜ ᴄᴏᴜʟᴅ ʙᴇ ᴡɪᴛʜ ʜɪᴍ ꜰᴏʀ ᴇᴛᴇʀɴɪᴛʏ. ꜱᴏ ʙʀɪɢʜᴛ ᴀɴᴅ ꜱᴏ ʜᴏʟʏ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʜᴇᴀᴠᴇɴ ʜᴀꜱ ɴᴏ ɴᴇᴇᴅ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇ ꜱᴜɴ. ʜɪꜱ ʙʀᴇᴀᴛʜ ʙʀɪɴɢꜱ ʟɪꜰᴇ, ʜɪꜱ ᴡᴏʀᴅꜱ ᴄʀᴇᴀᴛᴇ ꜱᴛᴀʀꜱ, ᴄʀᴀꜱʜɪɴɢ ᴡᴀᴠᴇꜱ, ꜱᴘᴀʀᴋʟɪɴɢ ꜱɴᴏᴡ, ʜɪꜱ ᴘᴏᴡᴇʀ ᴄᴀᴜꜱᴇꜱ ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴏᴜɴᴛᴀɪɴꜱ ᴛᴏ ᴍᴇʟᴛ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴡᴀx. ᴛʜᴀᴛ ɪꜱ ᴛʜᴇ ɢᴏᴅ ʏᴏᴜ ᴀʀᴇ ɪɴᴠɪᴛᴇᴅ ᴛᴏ ꜱɪᴛ ᴀᴛ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛᴀʙʟᴇ ᴡɪᴛʜ! ꜰɪx ʏᴏᴜʀ ᴇʏᴇꜱ ᴏɴ ʜɪᴍ, ʜᴇ ɪꜱ ᴏʜ, ꜱᴏ ᴡᴏʀᴛʜ ɪᴛ!

As I sat and pondered this scripture I realized that there is so much truth to it. Social media tells us that all our ‘friends’ live wonderful lives, but is that who they are in their hearts. What we see on the outside is not the same as that on the inside. What you think deeply inside your heart about yourself is who you are!

𝕀𝕗 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕜 𝕚𝕥 𝕚𝕤 𝕚𝕞𝕡𝕠𝕤𝕤𝕚𝕓𝕝𝕖, 𝕚𝕥 𝕨𝕚𝕝𝕝 𝕓𝕖.

𝕀𝕗 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕜 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕔𝕒𝕟’𝕥, 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕨𝕠𝕟’𝕥.

𝕀𝕗 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕜 𝕪𝕠𝕦’𝕣𝕖 𝕓𝕖𝕒𝕥𝕖𝕟, 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕒𝕣𝕖.

Recently I’ve had some problems with the food I eat, I can’t eat this or can’t drink that. As I was listening to a podcast I heard the quote, “Don’t focus on what you can’t have but on what you can. Don’t focus on what you don’t have but on what you have.”

𝕎𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝕨𝕖 𝕙𝕒𝕧𝕖 𝕚𝕤 𝕡𝕠𝕨𝕖𝕣, 𝕝𝕠𝕧𝕖, 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕒 𝕤𝕠𝕦𝕟𝕕 𝕞𝕚𝕟𝕕!

Today I pray that you will remember that you CAN, and not you can’t. I pray that you will know that everything is possible BECAUSE you have a life with Jesus Christ. Because He has given you that power. He is the key between the possible and the impossible. Between the can and can’t. He is your strength when you are weak, your shelter when the storms blow the hardest.

Remember, the present is always subject to change, base your thoughts, your decisions, your beliefs on something solid and permanent – The Word of God. 𝗜𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘁𝗵 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳!

It’s hard when your friends turn against you, harder still when it’s your family or own flesh and blood. Studies say that almost everyone will experience this kind of betrayal at some point in their life.

When we read Psalm 3 and the cry of David’s heart, we realize that even King David experienced this kind of bitter betrayal. Psalm 3 starts out by stating; “𝑨 𝒑𝒔𝒂𝒍𝒎 𝒐𝒇 𝑫𝒂𝒗𝒊𝒅. 𝑾𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒍𝒆𝒅 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝑨𝒃𝒔𝒂𝒍𝒐𝒎.” I cannot imagine the pain that was in David’s heart – his own son! The son that he had loved, cared for, nurtured, and raised, turning on him, out to kill him! Absalom had carefully and with much calculation won over the hearts of Israel. And so, King David fled, over the brook Kedron with a meagre group of faithful men to the Mount of Olives, the Garden of Gethsemane, where he wept.

(2 Samuel 15:30) You can sense the pain welling up in David as you hear the cry of his heart; “𝑳𝒐𝒓𝒅, 𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒎𝒚 𝒇𝒐𝒆𝒔! 𝑯𝒐𝒘 𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒆 𝒖𝒑 𝒂𝒈𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒕 𝒎𝒆! 𝑴𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒔𝒂𝒚𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒆, “𝑮𝒐𝒅 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒅𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒉𝒊𝒎.” 𝑩𝒖𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖, 𝑳𝒐𝒓𝒅, 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒂 𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒅 𝒂𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅 𝒎𝒆, 𝒎𝒚 𝒈𝒍𝒐𝒓𝒚, 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑶𝒏𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒕𝒔 𝒎𝒚 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒅 𝒉𝒊𝒈𝒉. 𝑰 𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑳𝒐𝒓𝒅, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒔𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒎𝒆 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒚 𝒎𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒊𝒏.” I love how David just KNEW the LORD would be a shield to him, He would be the one who lifted his head and would answer him.

Do you remember another King weeping in the garden? Our King Jesus, a far greater King than David, followed that same path King David took. Betrayed by one of His best friends, one of the 12, He crossed the brook Kedron into the Garden of Gethsemane with a feeble group of followers, where he wept, drops of anguished blood dripping from His forehead. Israel had rejected Him, the ones He loved turned from Him. 𝗕𝗨𝗧 𝗚𝗢𝗗 𝗵𝗮𝗱 𝗮 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻, a plan for our Savior and a plan for David. A much greater plan.

David was restored to rule over Israel and Jesus conquered the grave and will rule and reign forevermore! Interestingly David’s son Absalom was found hanging from a tree, just like Judas, dying the very same death. Our glorious, gracious Father has a plan for you too. A much greater plan. A plan to restore you, to lift your head, to answer your cry. When the pain of betrayal hits, remember that your King Jesus knows your sorrow, and has felt your pain, He is working behind the scenes, working on your miracle, planning all things for your good! 🦋💕

“𝑴𝒚 𝒃𝒓𝒆𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒆𝒏, 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒕 𝒊𝒕 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒋𝒐𝒚 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒇𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒗𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒐𝒖𝒔 𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒂𝒍𝒔, 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒐𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒅𝒖𝒄𝒆𝒔 𝒑𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆.” James 1:2-3

Trials and patience?! When I first read these two verses my reaction was one of dislike. I’m not sure I like these verses; how can you possibly be joyful in your trials, and I don’t like having patience or the process that produces patience!

But then I realized that we need to see our trials through God’s eyes, to have a revelation of the potential and possibility they will bring. A knowledge that this burden will take us deeper, deeper into the things of God and His will for our lives. We do not need to be happy in our pain, but we need to have joy that the hard season we are in will ultimately bring growth to our spiritual lives and draw us closer to our Savior.

It is yet another renewal of our mind, a conscious decision, a choice, definitely not an emotional one! “𝑪𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒕 𝒊𝒕 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒋𝒐𝒚!” Count meaning consider or have rule over. Taking authority over the thoughts that make the trial big in our own eyes, the ones that consider the worst that can happen in any given situation! Instead asking God for His view of our affliction, how can this bring growth and patience? Having the faith to see the potential that this particular trial may springboard you into the plans our good Father has for us! Taking those negative thoughts captive, seeing the things that are not as though they were.

How interesting it is that it is not a healing miracle or breakthrough that proves our faith but the trials we walk through! 1 Peter 5:7 puts it this way; “𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒔𝒆 𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒂𝒍𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒊𝒔 𝒈𝒆𝒏𝒖𝒊𝒏𝒆. 𝑰𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒃𝒆𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒔 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒑𝒖𝒓𝒊𝒇𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒈𝒐𝒍𝒅—𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒊𝒔 𝒇𝒂𝒓 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒊𝒐𝒖𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒈𝒐𝒍𝒅. 𝑺𝒐 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒔 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒂𝒍𝒔, 𝒊𝒕 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒎𝒖𝒄𝒉 𝒑𝒓𝒂𝒊𝒔𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒈𝒍𝒐𝒓𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒐𝒏𝒐𝒓 𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒂𝒚 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝑱𝒆𝒔𝒖𝒔 𝑪𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒓𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅.”

Your faith is worth more than gold!! Your faith brings praise and glory to the LORD. We do not sit passively in our pain but believe fervently for that miracle, for the release, for the breakthrough. We may not see the end product, the liquid gold that comes out of the refiner’s fire, no dirt left, pure, refined, filling our hearts with joy at the outcome of the test. But we have faith to know that 𝘄𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗯𝗲𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗳𝘂𝗹, 𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗴𝗹𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗦𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗼𝗿!

The sound of the early morning alarm often rings stridently in my ears, way too early for me! Sometimes I choose to turn over and press snooze, maybe more than once! First thing in the morning my beverage of choice is coffee, I’m sure that’s the same for many of you. Then begins a day of choices, decisions. What to have for breakfast, what to wear, will the office be cool? Should I take a sweater?

A study done by researchers at Cornell University concludes that we make 226 food related choices every day and other studies tell us that as adults we make up to 35,000 choices every single day! No wonder I feel so very exhausted at the end of the day! The Word of God has much to say about choices too – for instance, Joshua 24:15 says; “𝑩𝒖𝒕 𝒊𝒇 𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑳𝑶𝑹𝑫 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒎𝒔 𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒓𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖, 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒄𝒉𝒐𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒗𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒅𝒂𝒚 𝒘𝒉𝒐𝒎 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒆.”

Sometimes the choices we make are a one-time thing, but perhaps this is one of those 35,000 choices that we need to make every day. We need to wake up in the morning and say; “𝘛𝘰𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘓𝘖𝘙𝘋, 𝘐 𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶, 𝘐 𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶, 𝘐 𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦, 𝘐 𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘬 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦, 𝘐 𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘢𝘭𝘬 𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘣𝘭𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘮𝘺 𝘎𝘰𝘥.”

As Jesus sat with His disciples His words to them were, “𝑾𝒉𝒐𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒎𝒚 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒄𝒊𝒑𝒍𝒆 𝒎𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒗𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒖𝒑 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒄𝒓𝒐𝒔𝒔 𝒅𝒂𝒊𝒍𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒇𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒘 𝒎𝒆.” (Luke 9:23) The choice here is not an easy one, it is one where you deny yourself and take up your cross, choosing death daily! The disciples knew this choice their Savior was offering them was one of absolute death to self!

Of course, choices have consequences – good and bad. Choosing healthy eating impacts our health, choosing to get out of bed when that alarm clock rings and spending time with Jesus impacts our spiritual health, choosing to be kind impacts the lives of others. Choosing 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒆, 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒃𝒍𝒆, 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒔 𝒓𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕, 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒔 𝒑𝒖𝒓𝒆, 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒔 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒍𝒚, 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒔 𝒂𝒅𝒎𝒊𝒓𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 impacts not only your day but the day of those around you. I’m sure you can agree, choices matter! Let’s choose Jesus daily, to pick up our cross daily, I know it will be the most important of those 35,000 choices you make!

Goliath from Gath stood close to 9 feet tall and carried over 150 pounds of weapons and armour! For forty days, Goliath ridiculed the Israelite army and exposed them all as cowards. “𝑾𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒔𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑷𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒆, 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒎𝒂𝒚𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒈𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒍𝒚 𝒂𝒇𝒓𝒂𝒊𝒅.” (1 Sa 17:11)

This was exactly what Goliath wanted, the very reason he mocked and provoked Israel. He wanted them to be afraid! Goliath knew that if he instilled enough fear in their hearts, the battle was already won. 𝗧𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗺𝘆 𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘂𝘀𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆, 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗹𝘆𝘇𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘂𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗳𝗲𝗮𝗿. Teasing and taunting, he twists our thoughts until we too are dreadfully afraid.

After 40 days, a young shepherd boy walked into the camp of Israel, but this was no ordinary shepherd, this was David! David had done the lowliest of jobs, but the Great I Am had equipped David for this very time. He had killed lions and bears, being sure to never lose a lamb!

When David saw this Philistine mocking the armies of the Living God, he swore that he would go out and kill this enemy! I love this next part of the story! “𝑫𝒂𝒗𝒊𝒅 𝒉𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒓𝒂𝒏 𝒕𝒐𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒎𝒚 𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒆𝒆𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑷𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒆.” (1 Sa 17:48) Did you see that? D̲a̲v̲i̲d̲ ̲r̲a̲n̲ ̲t̲o̲w̲a̲r̲d̲s̲ ̲t̲h̲i̲s̲ ̲g̲i̲a̲n̲t̲, this monster that had terrorized the army of the Living God! We all know how it ended, one of those small stones embedded itself in Goliath of Gath’s forehead and he fell on his face to the earth. David took the Philistine’s sword and cut off his head! To quote William Blaikie, “𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁, “𝗚𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗼 𝗯𝗶𝗴, 𝗜 𝗰𝗮𝗻’𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗶𝗺,” 𝗗𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁, “𝗚𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗼 𝗯𝗶𝗴, 𝗜 𝗰𝗮𝗻’𝘁 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀 𝗵𝗶𝗺.”

We all have huge giants in our lives that are facing us, the enemy himself is whispering in our ear. Sometimes these giants look so big, insurmountable, overwhelming. Fear begins to set in, and we start to believe those lies. But know this, God has already equipped you for this battle, He has already set you up so that you can win! Look at your giant and know that it is so big that you cannot miss and take off running towards it with boldness, knowing that the God of Angel Armies runs right alongside you!

Running to face my giants!

𝗟𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝘆.So busy in fact that my mind races from one thing to the next and the ‘To Do’ list grows longer the more tasks I check off! Sometimes I find myself sitting down with the LORD, and my mind spins round and round in circles. It feels as though a hundred ping pong balls have been dropped from the ceiling and it’s hard to ‘𝑩𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑯𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝑮𝒐𝒅.’ (Ps 46:10)

Hebrews 12 tells us to run our race with endurance, “𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝑱𝒆𝒔𝒖𝒔, 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒔𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒇 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒉.” The key here is focus – focusing on Jesus, that’s how we finish the race! Study of the Greek will tell you that it is more than fixing our eyes on our Savior, but it is taking our gaze off everything else that would distract us and steadfastly setting our mind on Christ. The idea is to put those things aside that would prevent you from going forward.

Back in 1954 the whole world was watching the Empire Games in Vancouver, two of the world’s fastest runners were racing to run a sub-four-minute mile. It was being called the ‘Miracle Mile.’ Landy took the lead right from the start, but then he made an error which cost him the victory. At the end of the race, he took a brief second to look over his left shoulder to see where Bannister was, he took his eyes off the prize! In that second Bannister raced past him and beat Landy winning that sub-four-minute mile.

Just one second, that was all it took. That single lapse of concentration cost everything. That single moment of distraction.

Perhaps if Landy had ‘𝗳𝗶𝘅𝗲𝗱 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗲𝘆𝗲𝘀’ on that which was important he would have won that Miracle Mile! When we take our eyes off Jesus and begin to focus on the battle around us, we lose ground, we slow down, we are hindered.

My prayer for you is that you would be able to fix your eyes on Jesus, that He would fill your vision. Helen Lemmel put it best; “𝕋𝕦𝕣𝕟 𝕪𝕠𝕦𝕣 𝕖𝕪𝕖𝕤 𝕦𝕡𝕠𝕟 𝕁𝕖𝕤𝕦𝕤, 𝕃𝕠𝕠𝕜 𝕗𝕦𝕝𝕝 𝕚𝕟 ℍ𝕚𝕤 𝕨𝕠𝕟𝕕𝕖𝕣𝕗𝕦𝕝 𝕗𝕒𝕔𝕖, 𝔸𝕟𝕕 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕘𝕤 𝕠𝕗 𝕖𝕒𝕣𝕥𝕙 𝕨𝕚𝕝𝕝 𝕘𝕣𝕠𝕨 𝕤𝕥𝕣𝕒𝕟𝕘𝕖𝕝𝕪 𝕕𝕚𝕞, 𝕀𝕟 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕝𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥 𝕠𝕗 ℍ𝕚𝕤 𝕘𝕝𝕠𝕣𝕪 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕘𝕣𝕒𝕔𝕖.”

In Zimbabwe we could smell the rain before it arrived and we would say to each other, “𝘐𝘵 𝘴𝘮𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯!” Hope and excitement would arise, especially after a long, dry season. In Canada we lived near the train tracks, and we would always hear the train before it got there. As soon as the sound of that train horn was heard my little 4-year-old would run to the living room, jump on the couch, excited to catch a small glimpse of that train as it whistled by!

In Hebrews 11:1 we see a much-quoted verse, “𝑵𝒐𝒘 𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒖𝒃𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒉𝒐𝒑𝒆𝒅 𝒇𝒐𝒓, 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒏.” There is an absolute conviction that we will see the miracle we are hoping for. We may not yet see it or hear it, but we know it is coming! Why? Because our hope is in the LORD, in His Word, in the absolute reality that He keeps His promises.

Just as we could smell the rain before it came or hear that train before we saw it – so is faith the ‘𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗲’ we use that enables us to believe for the unseen, the concrete confirmation of that which we pray for. Elijah declared to Ahab when there wasn’t a cloud in the sky; “𝑮𝒐 𝒖𝒑, 𝒆𝒂𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒅𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒌; 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝒂𝒃𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒓𝒂𝒊𝒏.” 1Kings 18:41. The Great I Am had given Elijah a Word and by faith Elijah declared the end of the drought. Incredible faith! Faith allowed Elijah to see the rain long before it came.

I know that some of you have been in a long, hard season. You are believing for an end to the drought in your lives. I pray that the LORD would give you a word, that He would strengthen your faith. That you would find that word in the Bible, a promise that you can hold on to, knowing that you can trust the Promise Keeper, our glorious Savior – Jesus Christ.

I like clear directions, distinctive, and well-defined. A GPS versus a vague turn right by the blue house or go north at the end of the road. You could say I like to hear; loud and clear! There are times in the Word of God when God’s people hear that audible voice of the Great I Am, but more often it is that ‘still, small voice.” Take Elijah for example; “𝑨𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒉𝒒𝒖𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒄𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒂 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒆, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑳𝒐𝒓𝒅 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒆. 𝑨𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒆 𝒄𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒂 𝒈𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒓.” (1 Kings 19:12)

As Elijah rested in a cave at the top of Mount Horeb an incredibly powerful wind tore through the mountain, ripping apart the rocks. Then a fierce earthquake shook the mountain and finally a burning fire, but the LORD was not in any of these significant events! Finally, a small, gentle whisper breathed into the air, in Hebrew, ‘𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻 𝘀𝗶𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲!’ A quiet voice, a powerful whisper!

You see, so often a loud shout or yell can frighten us or make us nervous, but a soft, gentle whisper is the sound of soothing calm and quiet serenity. Absolutely, a loud noise can certainly get your attention, but that whisper is the sound of closeness, of intimacy. If I would like my husband’s attention in the middle of a crowd, I may raise my voice, but at night, just before the lights are turned down low, in the closeness of our bed, I whisper – “I love you.” When our loving Father takes the time to whisper in a still small voice; it means He is near.

God’s desire is to be close to you and He wants you to draw near to Him and so He whispers! He speaks to you in that still small voice. In the secret place where it is simply the two of you our LORD leans in and whispers gently! Draw close, draw near, and listen carefully, our Abba Father is in that still, small voice!