Worshipping God Spiritually, Not Materially

Today, my heart is filled with gratitude and humility as I think about the closeness of God.  This is always felt spiritually, never with the five material senses.  After talking with a close friend about a distraction I was having while trying to write, she just casually said rather than that being a distraction, by looking at it differently, it would become inspiration!  She was so “spot on”.  There are times, I just want to be humanly comfortable without a care in the world.  After a while that would become so boring and stale.

That is certainly not asking for “drama” in my life!  But it is wanting substance and deeper understanding which only comes from spiritual growth.  That happens when I overcome distractions.  Philippians 4:4-5 states “Rejoice in the Lord always.  I will say it again:  Rejoice!  Let your gentleness be evident to all.  The Lord is near.”  What security!

Wait Upon God

This morning as I studied, I thought how much I turn to any scripture that refers to “waiting upon God”.  I began looking upon definitions for “wait” from years ago and found everything “to lie in wait” or to stand guard while standing in place and on and on.  Then, I had a thought of “wait” as in “serve” as a waiter does.  Serving God began to resonate with me as I pondered this.  Serving God means to me trusting Him, praising Him and allowing Him to lead me.  This comes to me as I quieten the chatter and wholeheartedly turn to Him.

Psalm 130:5 reads “I wait for the Lord, my soul does wait, And in His word do I hope.”  As I wait, I will listen for directions about serving Him as well.

Proof of God!

This morning I was studying the three Hebrew boys being thrown into the furnace but coming out unscathed!  As I was reflecting upon this and realizing their love and faith of God delivered them unharmed, my husband came in from the grocery store loaded down with way too many sacks to carry.  As he went to set them on the counter he dropped several sacks breaking items.  My first thought was to remind him he had tried to carry too many at once, but immediately changed it to the love he expresses by even going grocery shopping.  That love dispelled the irritation and replaced it with love and grace.  No harm was done and my heart sang as I recognized spiritual growth.

Exodus 33:14 reads “The Lord replied, ‘My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.'”

Aloneness, A Good Thing, Not Bad

This morning as I was  pondering aloneness in my quiet time, it became apparent to me that depending on how we view it, could seem good or bad.  Humanly, so often this illusion of aloneness often leads to self-pity or depression.  But right there, is when we can also commune with God, where there is no separation ever; therefore, no aloneness is even possible.

Philippians 4:4-7 reads “Rejoice in the Lord always.  I will say it again; Rejoice!  Let your gentleness be evident to all The Lord is Near.  Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Now, more than ever, we can take advantage of this time we have with God.

Human Past, Real or Imagined

This morning I am working with Romans 8:38-39 which states ” For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”  As I pray with this scripture, I realize I have never, ever been separated from God nor will I ever be.  This being said, I could never have had a hurtful past if God was there with me.  God/Love is all there is leaving no space for accident or error.

This view puts a different slant on the past and was necessary to get me to where I am today.  This makes me more dependent on God; therefore, it strengthens me as well.  My security lies on my dependence on Him.

It’s Me, O Lord

Years ago, there was an old gospel song “It’s me, O Lord, standing in the need of prayer!” and I was reminded recently of that song.  My last blog that I wrote was about our grandson not showing gratitude for his birthday present from us.  This morning it was nagging me a little when a light came on!  Am I always grateful?  Do I always express gratitude?  If I did, I wouldn’t have time to criticize others and that was exactly what I was doing.  Being critical and being grateful cannot co-exist!

Psalm 55:22 states “Cast your cares on the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous fall.”  Every lesson becomes a blessing when understood.  Today, rather than criticizing another, I will be still and look within.

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True Substance is Invisible

Today, at my desk my eyes take in my hanging basket and all my trees out back.  The wind, which I cannot see, is evidenced by the basket blowing along with the leaves on the trees and the water in the bird bath.  Then I ponder a notice I read on a community web page where someone is giving birth to a little girl soon and her needs.  It is answered by many who have extra things or willing to purchase for her.  That is love that you cannot see, but it is felt and know it to be real and true.

This, being Good Friday, I am turning off my phones this morning and quietly praying for our universe, feeling peace and harmony in spite of what the news is reporting.  Plan on keeping my television off as well and watching my thoughts to make sure they are positive.  Psalm 32:8 states “The Lord says, ‘I will guide you along the best pathway for your life.  I will advise you and watch over you.'”

Lessons on the Subway

Read where a gentleman sat down beside a man who seemed to be studying on a subway going in to Boston.  When he asked the man what he was studying , the other  man replied that his son had failed his math test on fractions and he was trying to learn it so he could help his son.  The gentleman told him he was a retired math teacher so maybe he could help.  For the duration of the ride, he explained fractions to the man where he could understand, and pass it on to his son.    Then I found something written about gratitude by Melody Beattie which reads as follows:

“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life.  It turns what we have into enough, and more.  It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity.  It can turn  a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.  Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.”

“Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:4

 

Stay With God

This morning I had such a productive study period.  Beginning my prayers always start with our Father, One God, Omnipotent and Omnipresent Good.  Then I thought rather than start with God, just stay with God.  To me that means, holding to kindness, love and humility.  From there, I looked at forgiveness which is not always the easiest thing to do, but I know it is not a choice or a suggestion, but it is a decision.  When I find it difficult to forgive, usually I expect something from the other person.  When something goes unforgiven, it feels as if I have a weight on my shoulder but the minute I forgive, I am immediately out of bondage.   Sometimes, it is me that needs forgiveness.  That, too, can prove difficult until I know that God loves me completely!

My phone rang during this time and it was someone panicking because they were have problems with their computer and the man they depended on had just boarded an airplane to go to another state to get married.  She was deeply concerned because this is her busy time of the year, which is preparing tax returns for her clients.  It was so apparent to me that no one needed to suffer in order for someone else to have a wonderful, loving event in his life.  Also, it is God who is always there and he doesn’t need another to be an exclusive answer to a challenge.  God is in control, the only Creator and always dots every “i” and crosses every “t”.  The battle is always His and the outcome is always perfect!

Proverbs 29:25 states “Fear of man will  prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe.”

Distraction

This morning as I was studying my Bible Lesson, a distracting thought kept coming up!  Last year my husband and I had purchased a pricey travel package.  Recently, they hadn’t returned our telephone calls and we were getting a bit antsy thinking we may have made a mistake.   The more I tried to “not think about it”, the more it would impede upon my prayer work.  Then it occurred to me that I needed to prayerfully work about this.

First I thought that God is always in control and knows only Truth which means this can easily be a “win win” situation for all of us.  The more I prayed about this, the freer I became and then the telephone rang.  It was the young woman at the agency apologizing for not calling back.  We had a very productive conversation and I feel so much better about everything.  This distraction had turned into an opportunity for love to be expressed and healing to occur.

Philippians 4:4 states “Rejoice in the Lord always.  Again I will say, rejoice!”   I began rejoicing before the healing had taken place, not before!