Sometimes when traveling, my cell phone service is poor and cuts off on me. Sometimes internet service is unavailable. Sometimes I must not use the land line phone because someone is expecting a cell.
Thank you Lord, that your line is always available. You are never busy and you never sleep. I may talk to You day or night, from any location, and you are always listening. Thank you for loving me that much.
Its a miracle the ancient scriptures were preserved so well and faithfully. No other culture has such a vast collection of its ancient literature. To think that Jesus read these scriptures is amazing and even more astounding is the fact Jews everywhere read these same scriptures today, two thousand years later. Jesus gave credence to the Old Testament. He quoted from nearly every book of it. When He spoke about it, He spoke with authority. Those were His Father’s words, God’s truth. Since Jesus proved his own credibility through his miracles, his Resurrection from the dead and final ascension into the heavens, we can accept His assessment of the veracity of Old Testament scripture.
Lord, being in the mountains yesterday was a time of worship. It was so incredibly beautiful. Yet these mountains were not always as they are now. Volcanoes, earthquakes and glaciers shaped what we see. Nor will they always be as they are now. Boulders fall, dam up rivers and create lakes. Earth moves and rivers are re-routed. Climate changes. Wildlife migrates. Then there are seasons. The rushing streams of spring make way for the green of summer, the vibrant tones of autumn and finally life slumbers under a blanket of snow. You didn’t just create a masterpiece and walk away. You are directing a neverending epic of beauty. You didn’t have to be so extravagant Lord. But you are.
Once I prayed with great anguish: “Lord, I’ve prayed and prayed for You to use me, and nothing is happening.” The answer I received in my spirit was awesome. I sensed the Lord saying to me: “Child, are you willing to let me use you, even if I don’t reveal to you what I am doing? If I use you mightily, in the dark so to speak, and you become aware of it, might you not become puffed up? If you begin to think too highly of yourself, you may take over the work yourself and cease to be my servant.”
It may seem to us that nothing is happening in our lives, but that is not true, for God is never idle. When it appears quiet, He is always working behind the scenes, preparing people and circumstances for His future plans. If God has placed a dream in your heart, He will fulfill it. If He delays, something is not yet ready. It will be. Just follow Him today and do those things He has put in your path today. Perhaps you are doing a work right now of which you are not even aware. We may be so surprised in eternity to find how mightily He has used us when we didn’t even know it. It is, after all, all about Him. We are simple servants.
There is an Indian legend about a man who goes every day to a well to draw water and return home. He carries two jugs for the water. One day he drops one of the jugs and it cracks. When he fills it, it leaks. Now he feels he must hurry home with his water filled jugs, so as not to lose too much water from the cracked jug. One day while cursing his luck over the leaking jug, he looked down and was amazed to see flowers growing all along the path where his jug was leaking.
We are made of clay, according to the creation story. We are also imperfect, broken creations because of sin. We most certainly leak. Yet, what does anything leak? Whatever its full of, of course. If we are daily filled with Jesus love, we will leak it over a dry and thirsty human race, wherever we travel.
I had planned a fishing trip with my son. The fishing was secondary to much anticipated time of conversation, sharing and just being together. However, my son had other ideas. He assumed it was more important to cut my lawn, and that this would also be more pleasing to me. He spent the morning and half the afternoon working, paid me a short visit and then was off to his own plans. How sad I was for what I missed and for what he had missed too. I could have easily hired out the lawn work. He didn’t know that, of course, for he never asked me about the lawn–just assumed I’d want it done and assumed I’d be pleased.
Imagine for a moment that we do the same thing to God. We often do many works with the idea we are serving God and pleasing Him, but our prayers are cursory. God wants people who will walk with Him, talking with Him, waiting for Him, and watching for his answers. When we serve alongside Him, letting Him teach us and guide us, we are spending time together. Its the fishing trip He planned.
Its been said if I think about how humble I am its a sure sign I’m not humble. Humble people seldom think about themselves at all. so lets assume we’re proud people who desire to be humble. The following questions may help us find our way:
1. Do I count my blessings and thank God for them? If I count my misfortunes I may have an attitude of thinking I deserve better. Or I may have the attitude that I’m a victim and somehow a victim is more deserving than most people.
2. Do I trust myself only or do I trust others and God? Pride has an attitude of “only I can do things right”
3. Do I encourage people to be all they can be, or do I nag and manipulate them to be all I want them to be?
4. Do I mind interruptions? Do I value others needs or do mine always have priority? Pride considers my priorities of greater value than other people.
5. Do I forgive? Pride won’t forgive till the other person kneels before my throne.
6. Am I a positive person? Do I see good in people and situations? Pride is critical and considers self too good for whats dealt to it .
7. How do I treat the elderly, children and the disabled? Am I patient and compassionate? Do I find “they” get in my way when I have “important” missions to accomplish?
8. Do I seek to serve others or to direct them?
9. Is it all about me or all about something bigger than me?
10. A humble person can state their truth without demanding agreement. Can I?
Seeking change in my attitudes in order to be more grateful to God and more loving toward others is the first step toward becoming a humble person.
When I was a young woman I worked the night shift for a couple of years. Then I switched to the day shift, and after a couple weeks transition I was amazed one day to realize how good I felt. I had so much energy and such a sense of well-being compared to a few weeks earlier, I was finding it hard to believe I had once taken feeling bad for granted. Sometimes you feel so bad for so long you don’t realize how sick you are. Our society is like that. We are living thoroughly unhealthy lives in every area of life. Our dietary habits are unhealthy. Our sleep habits are unhealthy. Our minds are full of disturbing junk. Our relationships are unsatisfactory and sometimes on life support. We lack nourishing family and community. Our spirits are so parched we’re crying out. Yet we’ve come to accept all of this as “just the way it is.” We aren’t what we were made for nor enjoying what we were meant to be. God save us.
For the past 30 or 40 years there has nearly always been a self-help book on the bestseller list. Some of the personal stories are quite astounding and very inspirational. I’m very happy for the people who beat addiction or crime and now have a nice life. I saw a television interview with such a man. He beat crime and drugs by changing his thinking and his self talk. Now he is a best-selling author with a family and a nice life. Very inspirational, but I caught myself thinking “now what?” So many addicts were very successful people with a family and a nice life. They all said their life felt empty, meaningless and without purpose. A meaningless life is painful and drugs numb the pain. And I asked myself “Where is God in this success story?” It is from God we achieve our sense of meaning and purpose. He made us all for a purpose and He tells us what the purpose is. Without that taproot of purpose I’m like a rose I planted that blooms great for awhile and then dies for lack of a root system. Getting off drugs is wonderful. Getting off drugs without God has its limits. If my car has an empty tank and I need to make a 10 mile trip, I can push the car 10 miles and write an inspirational book about it. I may receive loads of admiration for my feat in achieving the 10 mile push through sheer will power. I can also fill my tank with what the car was made for and drive 400 miles in that time.
