Claire's Prayer

The parable of the Seed and the Sower – one of my very favorite parables and a much loved one about which many messages have been preached.  If you haven’t read it yet, take a moment to familiarize yourself with the passage in Matthew 13:1-23.

In verse 3 we hear that, “𝑨 𝒇𝒂𝒓𝒎𝒆𝒓 𝒘𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒐𝒘 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒅.” Jesus is that good farmer and, in this instance, you are that field, the one our Savior sews all that seed into.  Some of that seed fell on the path, some in rocky places, some among thorns, and some on good soil.  In each circumstance, but the last one, the seed was lost, either eaten, scorched, or choked.  Only that which fell on the good soil produced an abundant crop, way more than was sown!  My first thought when reading this was, ‘𝗢 𝗟𝗢𝗥𝗗, 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝘀𝗼𝗶𝗹, 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝗮𝗯𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲, 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗱𝗼 𝗜 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘀𝗼𝗶𝗹?’

Of course, we need to know what good seed is, vs 19 tells us; “𝑾𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒚𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒅𝒐𝒎 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒅𝒐𝒆𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒕, 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒍 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒘𝒂𝒚 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒔𝒐𝒘𝒏 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕.”  That seed is the message of The Kingdom, and the knowledge of The Kingdom is in the Word of God.  In many ways we can be like each of the four places where the seed is sown, David Guzik puts it like this.

• Like the wayside, sometimes we allow the Word no room at all in our lives. 
• Like the stony places, we sometimes have flashes of enthusiasm in receiving the Word that quickly burns out.
• Like the soil among thorns, the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches are constantly threatening to choke out God’s Word and our faithfulness.
• Like the good ground, the Word bears fruit in our lives.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐢𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐝, 𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐢𝐥.  𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐨𝐢𝐥 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮? 

I absolutely love to garden, every year I get the soil ready, I use my garden fork to soften the ground, breaking up the clods, I add fertilizer, I pull out every weed no matter how small!  It’s a lot of work.  Then I put in my flowers, my seeds, and wait expectantly. Before long, tiny plants will poke their sweet heads above the soil and before long I have a glorious array of blossoms that feed many butterflies and bees!  But when the winter comes, I pull up the flowers and don’t touch the soil.  In no time at all, all kinds of weeds are growing, the soil becomes hard as a rock.  Why?  Because that soil is getting no attention at all.  𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗲𝗳𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱.

Will you take the time to consider the condition of your soil?  Will you attend to your soil regularly, reading the Word of God, allowing it to take root in your life?  Will you constantly turn your cares over to Jesus, thus ensuring that God’s Word is not choked out?  Will you do the work?  𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝗲𝗻𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝗯𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗰𝗿𝗼𝗽 𝘂𝗽 𝘁𝗼 𝗮 𝗵𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘀𝗼𝘄𝗻.

Sometimes when I set aside time to pray, I don’t want to do it wrong, I want to do it right. I don’t want to be the one Solomon spoke about in Ecclesiastes 5:2; “𝑫𝒐 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒃𝒆 𝒒𝒖𝒊𝒄𝒌 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒎𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒉, 𝒅𝒐 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒃𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒚 𝒊𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒖𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒃𝒆𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝑮𝒐𝒅. 𝑮𝒐𝒅 𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒐𝒏 𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒉, 𝒔𝒐 𝒍𝒆𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒔 𝒃𝒆 𝒇𝒆𝒘.”

When I was in my teens, we were taught to pray the ‘ACTS’ way. Adoration – Confession – Thanksgiving – Supplication. Should I stick to this methodology? Is this the ‘right’ way? Before I know it 30 minutes has passed as I worry about getting it right!

I know that we are told to come ‘boldly’ into the presence of God. “𝑳𝒆𝒕 𝒖𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒃𝒐𝒍𝒅𝒍𝒚 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒆, 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒚 𝒐𝒃𝒕𝒂𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒓𝒄𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒅 𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒉𝒆𝒍𝒑 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒏𝒆𝒆𝒅.” Hebrews 4:16. But what does ‘boldy’ look like? It’s certainly not brash or with a sense of entitlement!

𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 is what my Strong’s Concordance tells me. With confidence and free from any kind of fear, the ability to pour out your heart before the King. Before a throne of grace, unmerited favor, and merciful kindness!

Spurgeon puts it way better than I ever could; “𝘞𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘢 𝘍𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘵, 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘉𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘮 𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘦. 𝘏𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘶𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘸𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴. 𝘊𝘰𝘮𝘦, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯, 𝘸𝘩𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘸𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘦, 𝘸𝘩𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘸𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘺 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘰 𝘏𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘺?”

At the end of the day, I think I make things too complicated. Our Bridegroom is approachable. There is no perfect way or ‘right way’ to talk to our Father. He longs for us to come to Him in confidence, with honesty, and openness in our hearts.

Today I pray that you wouldn’t delay, that you would know the freedom you have to approach your Savior, He welcomes you into His presence with open arms! Pour out your heart to Him knowing that He listens with avid attention and responds to the cry of your heart.

For years, when my little girl was small (not so little, 24, but still my little girl!) we had a tradition at bedtime. She tells me she loves me, and I tell her I love her more. It can then go on to I love you more than more or even I love you more than more than more! At the end of it all we both know that we love each other!

Today as I sat with the LORD praying for my children, I thought about my son and how much I love him and the LORD said, “ɪ ʟᴏᴠᴇ ʜɪᴍ ᴍᴏʀᴇ! ɪɴ ꜰᴀᴄᴛ, ɪ ʟᴏᴠᴇ ʜɪᴍ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴛʜᴀɴ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴛʜᴀɴ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴛʜᴀɴ ᴍᴏʀᴇ. ɪ ʟᴏᴠᴇ ʜɪᴍ ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴏꜱᴛ!” I let his love wash over me bringing me peace, knowing that the Savior, Redeemer, Protector, Jesus Christ loved my children more than more than more.

I sat in the glow of His love knowing that He loves me more than more than more. He loves me the most. No matter how much I think I love Him, He loves me more! Not matter how many times I think about Him during the day, He thinks about me more.

Romans 8:38-39 says; “𝑭𝒐𝒓 𝑰 𝒂𝒎 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒏𝒆𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒅𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒉 𝒏𝒐𝒓 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆, 𝒏𝒆𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒍𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒓 𝒅𝒆𝒎𝒐𝒏𝒔, 𝒏𝒆𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒏𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒖𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆, 𝒏𝒐𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒑𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒔, 𝒏𝒆𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒏𝒐𝒓 𝒅𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒉, 𝒏𝒐𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒆𝒍𝒔𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏, 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒆𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒖𝒔 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝑮𝒐𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝑪𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒕 𝑱𝒆𝒔𝒖𝒔 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝑳𝒐𝒓𝒅.”

𝗡𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝘀𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗚𝗼𝗱’𝘀 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗛𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲. Not death, not the enemy, not principalities, because He loves you more. Nothing in your present-day situation or things that will come can separate you from His love, because He loves you more. His love covers a multitude of sins; it’s the kind of love that makes us children of God (1 Jn 3:1). It’s a love that will bring you joy when you abide in it (Jn 15), a love that lays down His life for you (Jn 15). A jealous love, a love as strong as death, a love that cannot be quenched (SOS 8:6-7). A love that prepares a table for you in the presence of your enemies and anoints your head with oil (Ps23:5) Jesus’ love is steadfast, everlasting, a covenant of love (Deut 7:1).

𝗦𝘂𝗿𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝗚𝗼𝗱 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝘂𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁!

Many years ago, my daughter and I babysat the sweetest little toddler every Monday and Tuesday. We would take so much delight in him making all kinds of silly noises to make him giggle and sometimes he would copy what we were doing, in turn making us laugh. If we clicked our tongues, he would click his. If we pretended to cough, he would cough and if we clapped our hands, he would clap his. 𝗛𝗲 𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗶𝗺𝗶𝗰𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲.

Eph 5:1a tells us; “𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆, 𝒃𝒆 𝒊𝒎𝒊𝒕𝒂𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝑮𝒐𝒅 𝒂𝒔 𝒅𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒏.” We need to watch and observe our Heavenly Father, how does He behave, what would His response be in this situation? The ‘therefore’ tells us that the verses before Ephesians 5 are speaking on the same subject. “𝑮𝒆𝒕 𝒓𝒊𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔, 𝒓𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓, 𝒃𝒓𝒂𝒘𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓, 𝒂𝒍𝒐𝒏𝒈 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒎 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒄𝒆. 𝑩𝒆 𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒂𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓, 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒉 𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓, 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒂𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝑪𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒕 𝑮𝒐𝒅 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒈𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖.” (Eph 4:31-32)

We need to be kind and tenderhearted, quick to forgive, just like our Father. We need to walk in love, just like our Father. If we study the bible, we will find a God who is good, kind, patient, faithful, humble, loving, forgiving, joyful, peaceful, tenderhearted, oh, did I say patient?! Thank you, LORD, that you are patient with me. This one who is so slow to learn!

I could go on and on and fill this page with all the beautiful character traits that make up this incredible, Almighty God of ours. Traits that we are called to imitate. Just as that little toddler made us smile when he clapped his sweet hands so will the Father smile as we imitate him and move in kindness, or perhaps finally forgive. 𝗖𝗮𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗷𝗼𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝗛𝗶𝘀 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁, 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗱 𝗛𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂, 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗿𝗲, 𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗹𝗹, 𝗛𝗶𝘀 𝗱𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗿𝗲𝗻!

𝗜𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗱𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗚𝗼𝗱. Knowing the character of God. Knowing that He is a God who gives liberally, openly, and with sincerity. A God who never for a moment thinks to remind you of how unworthy you are. The Father weaves wisdom into your life until it is just an unexplainable part of who you are. He braids in the knowledge of both things human and supernatural, gives the gift of interpreting dreams and always having a word in season. The Great I AM pours out intelligence upon you and teaches you how to impart truth, He lavishes you with the knowledge of how to live a Godly life.

This is wisdom, given liberally! “𝑰𝒇 𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒐𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒌𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒔𝒅𝒐𝒎, 𝒍𝒆𝒕 𝒉𝒊𝒎 𝒂𝒔𝒌 𝒐𝒇 𝑮𝒐𝒅, 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒍𝒊𝒃𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒂𝒄𝒉, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒕 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒉𝒊𝒎.” (James 1:5.) Not simply a ‘help me make the right choice,’ but so much more! The ability to walk in what can only be the supernatural, for who, by themselves and in their own strength can interpret dreams like Joseph? Can have the sagest of advice to encourage and strengthen that believer who is struggling? Have the right words to pierce the heart of the one who doesn’t know Jesus? For this, we need the wisdom of God.

𝗪𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝘀𝗸 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘀𝗱𝗼𝗺, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝘀𝗸 𝗶𝗻 𝗳𝗮𝗶𝘁𝗵! Not wavering between the hope that He will give it and the fear that He won’t! We need faith, simple faith in The One who gave us life, salvation, redemption. Faith that Jesus Christ is who He says He is and that we can trust Him. Faith that God will do what He says He will do. Faith in the character of God, in His goodness, in His kindness, in His love for us.

We don’t need mountains of faith, just faith in God. I was once told, “It is not the quantity of your faith that matters, only the object of your faith.” Who is the object of your faith? Who do you put your faith in? Let’s trust, believe, and rest in who God is. Let’s not be like the double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. 𝗟𝗲𝘁’𝘀 𝗮𝘀𝗸 𝗚𝗼𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘄𝗶𝘀𝗱𝗼𝗺, 𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗱𝗼𝘂𝗯𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗚𝗼𝗱’𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗼𝗿 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁!

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!

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!

Martin Luther once said; “𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘵𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘭 𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘪𝘯 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘴, [𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘩] 𝘢𝘴 𝘮𝘦, 𝘮𝘺, 𝘵𝘩𝘺 – ‘𝘞𝘩𝘰 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘮𝘦, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘨𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘏𝘪𝘮𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘦’, ‘𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵 𝘑𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘴 𝘮𝘺 𝘓𝘰𝘳𝘥,’ ‘𝘚𝘰𝘯, 𝘣𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘦𝘳, 𝘵𝘩𝘺 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘦.’” It is the difference between a Savior and MY Savior, the distinction between the LORD is a deliverer and the LORD is MY deliverer!

𝗜𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘆 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗖𝗵𝗿𝗶𝘀𝘁 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗲! My LORD, my Rock, and my Redeemer. It is the difference between saying “Look at that beautiful house, and that is MY house!” Suddenly the relationship is personal and individual, you are taken from knowledge to knowing. Knowing that the God of the Universe is your personal God.

Psalm 91 is certainly the Psalm of pronouns; verse 2 says this; “𝑰 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒔𝒂𝒚 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑳𝑶𝑹𝑫, “𝑯𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒎𝒚 𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒖𝒈𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒎𝒚 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔, 𝒎𝒚 𝑮𝒐𝒅, 𝒊𝒏 𝒘𝒉𝒐𝒎 𝑰 𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒔𝒕.”

In these uncertain times and stormy days, we really do need to know that we have a God who is our refuge. One in whom we can trust with our lives, one that delivers us, rescues us, and takes all fear from us.

But how do we go from knowledge to knowing, learning to understanding? I believe that secret sits rights at the very beginning of Psalm 91; “𝑾𝒉𝒐𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒅𝒘𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒉𝒆𝒍𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑴𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝑯𝒊𝒈𝒉 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒅𝒐𝒘 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑨𝒍𝒎𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒚.” He who sits and remains in the presence of the LORD, will experience protection, refuge, God’s faithfulness, God’s power. When you call on Him – He will answer you, and He will be with you in trouble, and will deliver you! When you take the time to sit with your Savior you will get to know Him, you will experience His goodness, His kindness, His constant faithfulness, and He will become Your God, Your Savior, and Your King.

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!