Finding Wisdom

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding."~ Proverbs 9:10

Where do you find wisdom?  We often overlook wisdom in biblical terms because we are a culture that believes in figuring out everything on our own.  Independent instead of Dependent.  The problem is that we were created to be dependent on each other and to work together; we were never created to be alone, or to go through life without helping to carry each other's burdens.  It's no wonder that when we seek wisdom our own way, most of the time we run into dire disaster.  If we had only slowed down to seek counsel, we may have seen the chaotic outcome of our quick choices.  However, when we stop, pray and meditate on what God would want us to do, He usually has an incredible way of humbling our hasty spirits so we can fully listen to Him.  Sometimes this can result in a lengthy, exhausting and frustrating waiting game, I know, but things always seem to work out for the better when I stop and breath long enough to listen.  It may be a day, a week, a month, even years, but to seek His wisdom first gives me much peace instead of worry.  My mind cannot comprehend how each of my circumstances, struggles, joys, sorrows, situations, or times of peace fit into the jigsaw puzzle of my life, but my God knows.  I need to see his wisdom whether it's daily diving into his Word, praying, talking with my Pastor, talking with an elder of my church who can give me great nuggets from their experiences, or just patiently waiting for outside confirmation to something God has spoken to me about (this has happened numerous times to Cody and I).  Sometimes I feel like I know where this "piece" of my life should fit, so I chew on it just enough to make it fit into place, try to jam it over and over again into the space I believe to be the correct spot, only to make the rest of my picture look quite not right.  I know that if I patiently wait His direction through prayer and the reading of His word, I will have the peace and understanding that can only come from Him, it's definitely not of this world.  Only with His wisdom, not the world's, can I unravel the mystery of what lies ahead of me regardless of the broken path, or the crystal clear trail.  I wish I could tell you that I have this down "pat", but I am not even close.  None of us do.  This is a journey.  But I do know that when I seek His ways, I leave a lot of foolishness behind. ~

Busy Work

Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always. ~ 1 Chronicles 16:33

We have all had those days, months and sometimes even years when we are completely and utterly deplete of any significant energy.  Where do you go when that happens?  After a hard day of wrestling with finances, shuffling kids here and there, dealing with difficult people and just constantly giving and rarely receiving, I often find myself sighing with relief when I finally plop into bed.  We have times in our busy lives when we just wish we could BE.  Just to close the rest of the crazy world out and plug ourselves into an imaginary battery pack to recharge, renew, and vitalize.  Sometimes I get so tired of doing the good, gracious and right "Christian" thing that I get burned out and if I am not careful, can throw myself a perfect self-pity party.  I believe will all my heart, that one of Satan's favorite ways to make Christ's children fall is to keep them so busy doing "church work" , or the "right thing" that we forget how to say "NO" sometimes and then can't hear God's voice anymore.  The result is that the relationships, the people, and the things in our lives that really matter most get just a sliver of our daily 24 hour time allowance so that those important things start to crumble.  The foundation has been compromised, the cracks start to show and the devil gets the foothold he needed to create a crater of resentment, anger, and guilt - all in the name of Jesus.  We must be on our guard!  Continuously!  We must find our strength in Christ and keep our eyes focused on him!  We must let His word be our imaginary battery pack to recharge us before it's to late!  When you feel yourself slipping, especially due to exhaustion, you better take a look at your priorities and weed out the areas the He may not have told you to be a part of and learn to say NO for you and your family.  Dare I say for your spiritual life and relationship with your Heavenly Father as well.  Seek His face and find your quiet strength in Christ and whatever He would have you do, not the world and surly, not the busy work.  Just because everyone else is running around crazed, does not mean I have too.  I long for the simple, purposeful and God breathed "busy". ~ 

Majestic Holiness

Who among the gods is like you, O Lord?  Who is like you - majestic in holiness, awesome in glory, working wonders? ~ Exodus 15:11

With all the unique artists, musicians, writers and dancers in our popular culture, there are many who can claim to have beauty and majesty like anything we have ever seen.  How can you not see the glory, majesty and holiness in an Almighty God when you look at the beauty of creation, or when you see the many talents and abilities of great performers?  When you realize that God created, orchestrated and set into motion this massive universe, the word "majesty", or "majestic" has a whole new meaning magnified by the awesomeness of who He is.  God supersedes anything our human minds could possibly conjure up about Him and yet He embodies all our characteristics, feelings and emotions; there truly is no other God like Him.  God can give us hope when our life is in dire need; He loves though anger and bitterness, and He forgives all wrong.  God can capture my attention for hours and fill me with instant peace while I gaze at a sunset, or at perfectly painted clouds that sometimes, I feel, are there just for me because He knows my heart and soul respond to His creation of nature.  I am humbled to think that He created me.  I am humbled to think that he saved me from an eternal death void of his glory and majesty.  I have experienced how awesome in "working wonders" He is and I treasure these things in my heart.  Through his majestic holiness, He saved me even though He didn't have a guarantee I would choose Him.  He is much bigger than all of us.  There is no other God. ~

Cast Off

Do not cast me away when I am old; do not forsake me when my strength is gone. ~ Psalm 71:9

Who do you go to when your strength is gone?  What do you, or who do you, run too?  When we age, our strength my diminish faster, or our health my fail us until we feel like we have little to give.  Sometimes our hope my even fade as our joints weaken; our hair becomes gray, or even falls out; our age glides past the AARP enrollment stage, or maybe we just don't seem to enjoy the hobbies we used to keep anymore.....hope may seem to fade through all of it.  Forty becomes fifty, fifty becomes sixty, sixty becomes seventy and soon we may wish we could turn back the tired hand of time, but we just can't.  We must learn how to age the way God intended - hold our heads up high and gracefully offer the wisdom the younger generations need; not to just hide tucked away like I see so many of our elderly.  They have wisdom!  That gray headed young man/woman knows a lot more about life than I do and our world is to eager to cast them aside.  We should be listening!  We should be looking to them for wisdom and in the same way, when we reach the "golden years", we need to rely on Him to give us the endurance, strength and agility to offer our wisdom.  God does not turn His back on his children ever - He will give us the strength we need until our last breath is breathed.  When my time is up, I know I will be ushered into heaven by his open arms and generous grace.  Psalm 92:16 says, "With long life will I satisfy him and show him my salvation."  Not only will he not cast you away in your old age, or forget you, but He also promises to satisfy us (even in our old age), show us a long life and give us the salvation and heavenly home we have been longing for our whole earthly life. ~

My Job

Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, O God till I declare your power to the next generation, your might to all who are to come. ~ Psalm 71:18

Does your whole family believe in God?  Have they all had the opportunity to hear of Him?  You know that's your job, don't you....to make sure they have heard it.  Maybe they have heard and yet chose to turn a deaf ear; at least you told them.  One of my many daily prayers is that my children will come to love God and His ways.  We have made sure that our children are constantly aware of God and have left no doubt in their adolescent minds as to where we stand on the subject of religion and who we serve and revere.  They will never be able to say that they didn't know, or have not heard of Him.  After all, that IS my job....to make sure they have heard of Him through me and not just the world, and whatever my child ultimately decides to do with God is up to him, but I have done my part in making sure he HAS heard.  My job IS to make sure my loved ones have heard the message of Jesus Christ!  It is my responsibility to make sure that as many generations can hear from ME that Jesus is alive, well and wants to bring EVERYONE everlasting love, life and tremendous peace through a personal relationship with Him.  No matter how old I get, this is my job!  My hope is that my kids will know, my kids' spouse will know, my grandchildren will know, my great-grandchildren will know and everyone I come in contact will know His power and might because I have not been afraid to preach the good news and they will have seen peace and miracles with their own worldly eyes in my life.  Then, I will know it's time to go on home; when my loved ones have heard. No one will wonder what this mom, wife, aunt, niece, cousin, grandma, or in-law believed, or where my faith laid for I pray it will be heard and lived right in front of their eyes.  The rest is up to God. ~

Cried Out

I took my troubles to the Lord; I cried out to him, and he answered my prayer. ~ Psalm 120:1

Do you ever feel like you have more unanswered prayers than answered ones?  The thought that I can bring my big and piddly problems to the Creator of everything is mind boggling.  Nothing can touch me that God hasn't allowed.  Nothing.  Sometimes the answer to our prayer is "no", but it's still an answer whether we like it, or not.  My daddy once told me, "God answers every one of your prayers.  It'll either be yes, not right now, or no, but even if it's not the answer you want, it's still an answer."  That has stuck with me.  I ask God daily for little things, and sometimes I shout hoping He'll get the message (by the way, he can handle your yelling) and hear my plea on the larger things.  I often come with a thankful, hopeful, blessed and encouraged heart, but sometimes I come so broken that I feel like I wither, wrestle and struggle for words when praying.  Each and every time I wait patiently and listen for the answer, even if it takes days, weeks, months and maybe even years, and sometimes it's not what I wanted to hear.  Each and every time, whether it has been a "yes", "not right now", or a down right "no", things have worked out proving once again, that I am not in charge, or control of my life.  But I know who is and I can count on Him to answer me always.  I just have to be obedient, quiet, and open up my heart to listen. ~

Godly Fear

Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. ~ Psalm 34:11

What do you want most for you children?  Abundant wealth, success, happiness, a job they love, a spouse, a forever family?  My prayer for my children daily is that they would learn and love to follow the Lord's ways above any of the world's ways; that they would chase after Him always.  Even when things aren't going their way; I dare say especially when things aren't going their way, that God would forever be on their lips going through trials and that even if they decide to travel down a destructive path for a bit, that God would always lead them back.  If we profess to be Christ followers as parents, than it is our daily duty to make sure we are instilling the Lord through thick and thin into our children's minds and hearts.  Pray with them, read the Bible together, help someone in need, fellowship with other believers and find a church home where you and your family can get filled up. Contrary to today's beliefs, church is part of the fellowship that God requested we be a part of, your attendance isn't required, but it pleases Him and blesses you whether you feel it, or not.  To fear the Lord is to be in total awe of Him, to realize that He can do the impossible in our favor, but also that He can and will discipline us in awesome ways if need be; He is awesome in the here and now, for the good and sometimes for the bad should He decide to allow trying times and direct discipline to be our path for a time.  Lovingly He calls to us to love on us, forgive us, and to teach us His much higher ways; as parents we are called to do the same with our children, His children.  In everyday choices and daily tasks there are many ways to show our children how to live for the Lord.  Look for them; be diligent in teaching the Lord's ways and watch Him bless them and you for your faithful and obedient efforts. ~

Wise Compassion

When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd.  So he began teaching them many things. ~ Mark 6:34


Jesus never shied away from an opportunity to teach, whether in large crowds, or small intimate settings.  While you may feel very lost at times, Jesus will guide you and lead you in his tender teachings no matter where you are, or who you may be with.  It's called compassion, and it's a deep rooted emotion that makes people feel and move on behalf of others.  It is a great longing to help those in need, in need of anything and everything that we can help them out with.  It is a strong Christ-like characteristic that I long for and ask God to give me as often as it comes to mind as I know compassion and empathy is a weakness of mine personally.  In this self absorbed culture, it can sometimes be hard to put on the attitude of compassion, but as followers, we must!  We have all heard it said, "Be Kind.  For everyone has a battle they are dealing with."  My boss told me once, "Whenever on of our staff members, a student, or a parent is having a hard, grumpy, or difficult day and is taking it out on me, I try to remind myself that they may be dealing with something I know nothing about.  No, it doesn't always make it easier to deal with them, but it helps to keep things in perspective."  Jesus was constantly busy, but he found time for compassion.  Can't we?  Can I?  While I may not have all the answers to life's hard questions, I can be an ear.  While I may not understand why someone is so hard to deal with, I can pray with them; and while I may not understand why I may be persecuted unjustly sometimes, I can still turn the other cheek.  Compassion.  For everyone. ~

No Other

I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.  You shall have no other gods before me. ~ Exodus 20:2-3


Who, or better yet, what is your god?  Do you ever feel like you are enslaved to something?  This verse is lined with one of the ten commandments, but I believe it requires us all to take a good long look at ourselves in response to our obedience to Him and also our life choices.  Israel was told to obey, worship and call Christ her only god; Christians are called to do the same, but I bet you can think of all kinds of worldly things that grab our attention and enslave us over and above Jesus Christ and His ways.  When we believe we can do something on our own and then exalt ourselves - God does not become first.  When we worry and fret over our dwindling finances instead of seeking Christ for his provisions and peace - God does not become first.  When we fall into an unhealthy habit, addiction, or sin over and over again without listening to sound godly wisdom - God does not become first.  There are many ways the devil would like to keep us bound in his slavery to this world and the strongholds that go with that, but Christ so desperately wants to free us, untie and unbind what is holding us from Him so that He can deliver us to a safe and secure place of freedom and rest in Him. We only have to choose him first.  The world is full of idols and promises that may sound flawless and full of hope, but don't be deceived into thinking that what this fallen world has to offer is better than what Christ wants to give you.  God's will is always better - seek and worship him first. ~

Being Disobedient

From inside the fish Jonah prayed...."In my distress I called to the Lord and he answered me.  From the depths of the grave I called for help and you listened to my cry." ~ Jonah 2:1-2

Jonah had been disobedient and God had returned with consequences.  Has that ever happened to you?  O course it has!  Anytime we run from God, there are usually consequences.  Anytime we do the opposite of what God commands us, there are consequences.  Anytime we try to drag others down with us, there are usually consequences.  We don't like consequences, no one does, but they are a necessary part of life if we want to be turned around and set back on the right path.  God is always willing to forgive and receive us back when we call on the Lord with a repent-ful heart.  If you fill like you can never be redeemed, think again.  God is waiting!  Things are never as bad as they seem, for we can call on our God and He can restore our hope and help us put our lives back on the right track.  Jonah's prayer was a cry for redemption, restoration and thanksgiving.  He was, after all, still alive after being swallowed by a great fish and left there for three days!  I believe God desperately wanted for Jonah to learn from his consequences so He could show himself more than merciful.  Holy and righteous is our God and quick to forgive and shower us with grace so that we can escape the grip of sin.  Never give up!  Never give up trying to do what is right, but no that God is always waiting, even after he has dealt the consequences.  Cry out to God for his mercy and put your life in His hands. ~

Passing Through

They left that place and passed through Galilee.  Jesus did not want anyone to know where they were, because he was teaching his disciples.  He said to them, "The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men.  They will kill him, and after three days, he will rise."  ~ Mark 9:30-31

Have you ever felt like you have betrayed Jesus for the ways of the world?  I have.  Sometimes I am saddened by my selfishness, pride, impatience and narcissism.  Then I remember that He is quick to forgive if I will just come to Him with a repentant heart; after all, He already knows what I am thinking and feeling even when I think I have no one to turn too.  We ofter forget the greatness of Christ's empty grave.  Jesus wasn't just a great conqueror back then, but He can be today in your very life with whatever you may be facing.  But we need to remember to come draw close to Him and seek His refuge.  He will not come where he is not welcome and he will not force us to have a relationship with Him, so it's up to you to make the first step.  What we may feel we can't share with anyone, we need to share with Him for He knows our thoughts, attitudes and our hearts' desire already.  So many times Jesus spent time alone with his disciples for rest, to see how they were doing, to teach to them, or just to "be" with them and He wants the same with us.  Sometimes Jesus needs to lead us through, or to another place in our lives for maturity.  We have to trust that even when life doesn't make any sense to us, it maybe because God is leading us to a place only He knows about, or has prepared for us; we may be purposefully left blind to wander for a while as to not have the ability to mess with His plans.  Jesus conquered the grave; He can conquer your uncertainty in life. ~

Rendered Heart

Rend your heart and not your garments.  Return to the Lord your God, for He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and He relents from sending calamity. ~ Joel 2:13

One of the many characteristics of God that is truly mind boggling to me is His ability to lather immediate compassion on us that He graciously gives when we come home to Him with a genuine and repentful heart - no matter the sin.  This is so contrary to our human reasoning as we like to label one sin more sinful and worse than another so that we can sometimes makes people feel unworthy of forgiveness.  Dare I say that sometimes we use that logic to become self-righteous for our own justification of what we may be doing in our own lives.  However, this is not our God!  Sin is sin in his eyes no matter if it's forgiving the pride in your heart, the anger in your spouse, the little white lie you told, or the domestic violence going on three doors down; it's all sin, it's NOT ranked or leveled by God and it ALL can only be forgiven with a genuine repentful heart.  His compassion does not change no matter the sin.  In His Word there are promises after promises of His blessing if we would just turn our hearts; not our physical appearance, not our traditions, not even our good deeds, but our hearts to Him.  His will is for brokenness to be healed, for complete restoration to Him and in your relationships and for peace that passes all understanding.  The Creator of this universe holds nothing more precious than to have a relationship with you.  YOU!  Repentance equals a fully restored relationship littered with blessings and promises.  Why wait?  Come home!  Your Father's arms are wide and ready to lavish mercy and love all over you! ~