The Ministry of Compassion

 

Most people struggle in their subconscious mind with issues beneath the surface that are not easily seen with our human consciousness (Galatians 6:2). We experience the trauma of life and bury the memory, as well as our thoughts and emotions surrounding that event, with it.

 

We never know what a person is experiencing when we see them face-to-face. We may be tempted to judge their body language, words, and attitude. However, showing them that we care may be all they need to feel better and to walk away from their negative thoughts and emotions.

 

The Lord wants to teach us the significance of compassion for our self and others. This helps us to look beyond the surface, into the other person’s eyes - the windows of our soul - to see what is going on inside of them. We show them that we genuinely care about them, and we pray for God to bless and keep them.

 

God gives us His discernment to notice the emotion which the other person is carrying, and the compassion we need in order not to judge each other, but to cry or rejoice with one another at all times (Romans 12:15-16). Compassion is empathy with a huge dose of love included. 

 

I cry often as I listen to an individual's issues because my heart is broken for them. God’s compassion in us helps others to see that we really, really care about them. We discard our hypocrisy, envy, and gossip, and help them to see the goodness of the Lord by our attitude toward them (1 Peter 2:1-25).

 

Gods strengthens us with His power, love, and self-control to overcome fear (2 Timothy 1:7). This helps us to step outside of our comfort zone and to really pay attention to people when they talk to us. He gives us His heart toward them, so we can more readily feel compassion for them.

 

Prayer:

Father God, thank You that nothing, not even life events or physical death, is able to separate us from Your love (Romans 8:35-39). We do not want Satan to use our body for sin, because Your Spirit makes His home in us (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). Sin grieves Your Spirit, and causes us to fail to receive Your blessings (Ephesians 4:30-5:17; Romans 6:13). Teach us to have Your compassion for our self and others. 

 

Unless we are Born Again by Your Spirit, we cannot see Your Kingdom (John 3:3). We thank You for freeing us from the inclination to live for our human desires, and for helping us to live in Your will for us instead (1 Peter 4:2; Romans 8:2; Luke 14:27). Thank You for giving us both a desire and Your power to work out our salvation through the guidance of Your Spirit (Philippians 2:12-13).

 

Thoughts for the Day:

God promises to walk with us through the valley of the shadow of death, so we have nothing to fear (Psalm 23:4). We even rejoice when He disciplines us as we stray from the protection of His straight and narrow road (Revelation 23:4). In His compassion, He vows to wipe away all our disappointments, the tears from our eyes, and many illnesses in our body both now and especially when we cross over from earth into Heaven (Revelation 21:4).

Mercy and Grace

 

Before my redemption in Christ, I viewed God as the fire breathing, noisy, condemning, fearful, vindictive “face” of the wizard of OZ. However, through my time of searching for a Savior, God revealed to me that He is actual as benevolent as the little man behind the curtain who was programming the pretend wizard.

 

God’s Word does show us the God of justice, and the God who cannot dwell with sin. However, it also reveals the long-suffering patience of the Lord, who desires that no one should perish in eternal damnation, but that every person ever born would enjoy eternity on the new earth and in Heaven with Him (Revelation 21:1-3; 2 Peter 3:8-10). 

 

The Bible also talks about both His mercy and grace. There is a subtle difference between these two words that is important to understand. God bestows His grace on us due to His gallant generosity. We rarely ask for it and absolutely do not deserve it, but He freely gives it to us because of the sacrifice Jesus made for us all (Romans 8:32-35; Ephesians 2:8-10; 2 Corinthians 12:8-10).

 

Grace manifests in our life through salvation, sanctification, and eventually glorification. God favors us with His grace when He saves us and gives us victory over sin, hears our prayers, daily works on our behalf, and gives us His Spirit to guide and comfort us. God’s grace is sufficient for us to overcome any setback we suffer in life (2 Corinthians 12:9).

 

God gives us His mercy through His loving kindness and compassion for us. He has the power and right to punish us for our unholy thoughts, words, and actions, but He became man through Jesus Christ to pay our sin-debt for us. 

 

When we hide or deny our sin, we do not prosper; but when we renounce and walk away from our carnal practices, God showers us with mercy (Proverbs 28:13). We admit to our need for a Savior through Jesus Christ and forsake our ways, and God freely forgives our transgressions of His laws (Isaiah 55:7; Romans 8:32).

 

Many die in our inherited sin because of the choices of the first Adam as well as our own choices (John 3:18); but due to the choices of the second Adam, Jesus Christ, those who humbly submit to Him find mercy through His death on Calvary’s cross (1 Corinthians 15:45-49; Romans 5:15). 

 

Then, we are free to enjoy the grace and love of God, as well as the fellowship of His Spirit (2 Corinthians 13:14). God’s grace is sufficient for us to overcome any setback we suffer in life. His mercy endures forever and is new for us every single morning (Lamentations 3:22-25).

 

Prayer:

Father God, we come boldly to Your throne, because we always need Your mercy and grace in our life (Hebrews 4:16). We all need You to open our eyes to see the wonderful truth of Your instructions (Psalm 119:18). The whole earth is Yours, and everything in it. The world and all its people belong to You — including the unsaved masses. May these people understand the depth of Your love for them today (Psalm 24:1).

 

The Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. And You, who knows all hearts, know what the Spirit is saying, for He pleads for Believers in harmony with Your own will (Romans 8:26-27 NLT). Gracious God, I come boldly to your throne. I need your mercy and grace in my life (Hebrews 4:16). Lord, I need you every moment of the day. Thank You for opening my eyes to see the wonderful truths in Your biblical instructions (Psalm 119:18).

 

Thoughts for the Day:

Grace and mercy are often granted to us at the same time. God could abandon us, but His gracious and merciful love is patient with us (Nehemiah 9:31). We do not earn our salvation through righteous acts, but by the washing of regeneration and our rebirth by God’s Holy Spirit (Titus 3:5). In the depths of our suffering, we cry out to Him, and He is attentive to our voice and showers us with His mercy (Psalm 130:1-2).

  

Peace and Quiet

 

The cry of my heart throughout my whole life is for peace and quiet. In this world, I never found such a place either emotionally, mentally, physically, or spiritually. Taking times of quietly waiting on the Lord, even if we must duck into the restroom for a few moments to refocus our center on the direction of God’s Spirit, is well worth the time and effort. 

 

Regularly journaling our thoughts and emotions helps us to make sense of what is going on in our soul – our thoughts, emotions, and choices - and it rids our consciousness and subconscious of unwanted chaos. Writing – or typing - down our thoughts tends to assure us that we are taking the time to care about our mental and emotional health. 

 

Some of us need constant noise in order to avoid silence. We turn on the television or radio when we get out of bed, and we keep that hum of confusion bombarding our soul until we fall exhaustedly into bed at night. If we take time in the quiet of nature to enjoy God’s creation, we are haunted by what we believe is unproductive time.

 

Too often we equate our soul with the “flesh.” We ignore our soul, and we attempt to crucify its needs. Since God gave me an understanding decades ago of the needs of our body, soul, and spirit, I write feverishly in the posts of my blog about caring for all three of these aspects of our human make-up. 

 

I like to say, “We are human BE-ings, not human DO-ings.” We too often unreasonably schedule our life and spend more time running around in our car, excessively involved in our vocation in order to “get ahead,” or filling our calendar with activities rather than focusing on the main aspect of our life: resting in the abiding presence of the Trinity of God within us.

 

Prayer:

Father God, thank You for Your constant presence in our life. Forgive us for neglecting You by our inclination to stay busy in order to feel constructive. Remind us that waiting on You renews our strength and allows us to arise with wings like eagles (Isaiah 40:31). We want to live a life that is guided by Your Spirit, relies on trusting in You alone, and results in loving You with all our heart (Psalm 62:5-8; Mark 12:30). Teach us to rest from all physical, mental, and emotional activity several times throughout the day. 

 

Remind us to pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18), and to walk in Your Spirit’s comfort and guidance (John 14:26, 16:13). Rather than sitting behind a desk all day, help us to consider ceasing from obligations for a few minutes to decompress and to clearly hear Your voice. We want to serve as a reminder to those in our sphere of influence that a personal relationship with You is vital for us to enjoy a deeply fulfilled life. We give You all the praise and glory for who we are.

 

Thoughts for the Day:

When one of our six senses experiences irritation of some sort, we are more apt to feel physically weary and emotionally drained. However, if we take time to wait on and to rest in the Lord, we find our self preferring this state of existence over what the world defines as success. This allows us to enjoy greater intimacy in our union with God, and we fall more deeply in love with Him more every day of our life.

Our Eternal Focus

 

When we let go of our carnal expectations and desires of worldly success, and instead, cling to serving King Jesus, the shackles and chains of bondage fall off our spirit, soul, and body through spiritual warfare (Ephesians 6:12). We joyfully walk in the guidance of God’s Spirit each moment of every day.

 

If we are only interested in getting on with life as is normal in this world, walking with God does not have the significance it normally would. Attaining earthly success, filling our days with irrelevant hobbies and endeavors, and focusing only on our calendar filled with material pursuits is pointless when we take our last breath of air on this earth.

 

By praying God’s Word and by obeying the Spirit’s direction in each present moment as we experience it, we deal with spiritual warfare (2 Corinthians 10:3-5; 1 Peter 5:8) and successfully navigate each trial we experience with the minimum of effort on our part (1 John 5:4-5). 

 

If we rejoice in the Lord always (Philippians 4:4-8), this helps us to keep our eyes on Jesus rather than on the troubles in our life (Hebrews 12:2). We hand all negative issues over to God instead of attempting to solve them in our own way. 

 

We place our burdens and cares and anxiety in His capable hands (1 Peter 5:7-9). We trade His yoke for our man-made yoke, because His is easy and light since He is yoked with us, helping us to carry it (Matthew 11:29-30).

 

We usually want to make our own plans and ask God to bless them, rather than to walk in His ways for us (Psalm 5:8, 119:3, 128:1). This humanitarian focus causes us to come up against satanic strongholds that harness us to this life as it causes us to live in pride and rebellion against the will of God for us (Ephesians 2:10). 

 

Prayer:

Father God, You care about the downtrodden, discouraged, weary, heartbroken person, and You call us to walk in Your principles by Your Spirit’s direction. As we seek Your face each new morning, You guide us with Your eye (Psalm 32:8; Isaiah 55:6-7; Deuteronomy 4:29; Hebrews 11:6). Our life gradually turns around, as the weeds we planted in our garden are removed one by one. Then, we have only verdant rows of crops that You planted in us instead.

 

Teach us to walk in step with Your Spirit and to keep our focus on You and Your perfect plans for us. You are our God of grace, and You call us to abide in Your eternal glory both now and for eternity. After we graduate from this school of hard knocks that we call “life,” we enter into Your presence forevermore. You restore us after each trial and make us stronger and more resilient with more peace and joy than ever before (Psalm 23:3-5).

 

Thoughts for the Day:

When we live by the Spirit of God, we are wiser, stand firmly through the gales of defeat that assail us, and remain steadfast in our faith in God’s faithfulness to us in every area of our life (1 Peter 5:10). Life is difficult and filled with tribulation, but we do not fear, because Christ, who is in us, (Colossians 1:27; Galatians 2:20) already overcame the world, death, and the grave (Revelation 1:18). ... kat

 

A Gracious Lifestyle

 

Sometimes, we have a habit of grabbing some inconsequential item from the store shelf and stuffing it in our coat pocket or purse. However, God considers this behavior as stealing. He prefers that we work to earn money to buy what we want instead (Ephesians 4:28).

 

Many times, we find it effective to use corrupt words to communicate our feelings. We see no harm in this, and we may even chuckle once the words fly from our mouth. However, God finds these words offensive. He desires that we use words as edification and to minister His grace and love to the hearer (Ephesians 4:29).

 

Obscenities, foolish talk, crude joking, and the like are out of character for a Born Again Believer. These odious words and actions, as well as other seemingly harmless activities, actually grieve the Holy Spirit, who seals us until the day of our complete redemption – salvation, sanctification, glorification (Ephesians 4:30). 

 

The words of a fool and evil people attempt to destroy us, but using wise words is gracious and acceptable to the hearer and to the Lord (Ecclesiastes 20:12; Matthew 12:34). We can find many positive words that express gratitude, a job well done, and to edify each other especially through God’s Word (Ephesians 5:4). 

 

These words lead to peace and mutual instruction. We build up one another and we bless each other for our common good (Romans 14:19, 15:2). With the help of God’s Spirit, we walk away from anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language that defile our body, soul, and spirit (Colossians 3:8). 

 

We consult the Lord on how to react in a negative experience, using gracious words “seasoned with salt” (Colossians 4:6). His Spirit fills us with every good thing that we need to accomplish God’s plans for our life in an enriching and gracious way. Our unity with the Trinity of God increases more each day.

 

Prayer:

Father God, thank You for pouring Your grace out through our lips, for allowing us to be examples of Your true disciples, and for blessing us abundantly in every area of our life (Psalm 45:2). You perfect us for the work of Your ministry to the world around us, as well as for edifying the entire Body of Christ (Ephesians 4:12-16).

 

Help Your light to shine within us before our family, friends, neighbors, community, and our influence in the world, so they will see our good works and glorify You (Matthew 5:16; 1 Peter 2:12). Teach us how to tame our tongue so it is not a fire that causes a blaze of iniquity that wounds other people and grieves Your Holy Spirit (James 3:6).

 

Thought for the Day:

When we use our tongue to flatter rather than to encourage, and our thoughts are distracted by wicked feelings and actions, there is no faithfulness in our mouth (Psalm 5:9). We use our tongue for mischief and deceit, and like a sharp razor we cut people down rather than lift them up (Psalm 52:2). Practicing using our words for righteousness, wisdom, and justice allows God to pour grace on our tongue and blessings on our life (Psalm 37:30-31).

 

 

 

A Good Marriage - Making a Choice

 

During the dating process, feelings of love are frequent and fluent. We enjoy each other’s company and cannot wait to be together again. We hang on every word, plan creative outings to share, and have unlimited patience with our differences. I used to view the clock as an enemy because my curfew ripped me away from my beloved date. 

 

After years of marriage together with the same person, the tune of the love song changes. We settle into a routine, take one another for granted, see only our mate’s weaknesses, and feel more irritation than love. Our words of encouragement turn into criticism, and disappointment clouds our expectations.

 

The good news here is that love is a choice, not just an emotion. As we mature, we realize that humans are never perfect, and we reduce our expectations to more realistic goals. One set of choices we can make undermines our marriage commitment and causes us more discontentment. 

 

Other choices equip us for the marathon course of life, and they prepare us to love until death parts us. Patience with one another pays off because we can readily proclaim that we choose our spouse with each new day. 

 

In our later years, we grow used to our mate’s penchant to certain behaviors. Though they may attempt to change to meet our needs, they quickly revert back to their normal behavior. This is frustrating and drains our emotional energy unless we change our focus and find other righteous ways to find fulfillment.

 

We have the choice to select a mate prior to marriage, but after we make our vows, God commands that we keep these pledges (Ecclesiastes 5:4-6; Numbers 30:2). We choose to love and find contentment together, rather than to entertain the idea of an easy escape from what we view as a flawed and untenable relationship.

 

Prayer:

Father God, thank You for Your unconditional love for each of Your adopted children, who join Your family through the blood and name of Jesus Christ. Teach us how to show this same love to our mate, family, church family, neighbors, strangers, and our whole world. We trust in Your grace to enable us to increase our unity with our spouse over the years. We can come to You to meet our needs that our mate is not capable of supplying, because Your presence with us and in us is more precious than life itself.

 

Help us to develop a sustained love for one another over a lifetime, rather than an adversarial relationship that robs one another of our peace and joy. We focus on Your purpose for our union, rather than on having our needs met. Remind us that compatibility comes by patiently loving our spouse just as she/he is, without expecting them to change. Help us to see that we are a team joined together for Your glory, not for our convenience.

 

Thoughts for the Day:

Life’s circumstances and disappointments should not quench our love for our mate. Focusing on our mate’s strong points rather than his/her weaknesses will allow love and affection to grow in our marriage (Song of Solomon 8:7). We make our mate’s needs our priority, and we make the effort to place their needs above our own, without neglecting our own needs. We cherish and have compassion for each other, discuss issues between us that need fine tuning, and readily forgive transgressions as our mate forgives ours.

Buzz Words in my Young Christian Life

 

The buzz words in my young years as a Believer in Jesus’ atoning death for me on Calvary’s cross were:

“Do NOT pray for patience. You will get trials.” 

 

I followed that advice for years. However, as I matured spiritually, I read a verse that drastically changed how I felt about patience (James 1:2-4).

 

I learned the truth about the role of patience in our life. Jesus’ half-brother, James, advises us to consider trials as joyful events for several reasons: 

1.  Trials test our faith in God’s faithfulness. They prove to us that we can truly trust God regardless of the devastating or simply irritating problems we face in the present moment.

2.  If we embrace the trial as coming from God while He looks out for our ultimate blessings in life, then we will see patience’s perfecting work in our life.

3.  Patience will make us perfect as our Father God is perfect, help us to feel less stress, have a reduced feeling that we need to control every problem that arises in our life, and remind us that God is always faithful, and we can always completely trust in Him.

4.  God always plants a seed for a miracle in every trial, and if we change our focus from the things which we are suffering to watch for that miracle to unfold, we enter God’s rest as we patiently wait for His perfect timing and plans to resolve the trial.

5.  We will lack for nothing, because God’s Trinity within us will supply all our needs in all the horrid events we suffer on this sin-cursed earth.

 

God’s Word reminds us that when we hope for things we do not see, we have more ability to patiently wait for God to resolve our concerns (Romans 8:25). With patience, we have better relationships because we do not get irritated with people when we have to wait on them. We embrace their foibles and idiosyncrasies with more love, compassion, and acceptance (Ephesians 4:2).

 

Prayer:

Father God, thank You for teaching us to rest in Your will for our life. This gives us more patience as we wait on You to resolve the challenges we face each day. Trusting You helps us not to be jealous of people who prosper more than we do. Remind us that some of them succeed by stepping on others or taking advantage of people in order to guarantee their triumph. Neither should we entertain evil advice or desires in our heart to achieve our own anticipated accomplishments (Psalm 27:14, 37:7-9).

 

Due to Your Spirit’s sanctifying work in our life, we no longer need to fear the future because instead we can pray about everything and thank You for considering our requests before You ever resolve the problem for us (Philippians 4:6). Your love in us inspires us to wait patiently on Your divine work in and through our life (1 Corinthians 13:4). You renew our strength, increase our faith in You, and give us rock-solid hope, as You also help us to soar like eagles, run like the wind without getting weary, and walk through life without getting discouraged (Isaiah 40:31)

 

Thoughts for the Day:

Patience is considered by psychologists as a virtue. Resent scientific studies of patient people show that “good things do come to those who joyfully wait.”

·      Increased mental health.

·      Greater satisfaction in reaching God’s goals for us.

·      Enjoying more hope for the unknown future.

·      Protection from stress’s effect on our physical health.

·      Gives us more self-control over our emotions and reactions.

·      Helps us to be more punctual for getting to work, appointments, and meetings on time.

·      More satisfaction with the eventual outcome of negative events.

·      Less depression and hopelessness.

·      More compassion for others who suffer in life.

Pray Before Speaking

 

Have you ever blurted out your thoughts without processing them through your spirit first (James 3:6)? It is easy to wound others and to grieve the Holy Spirit with our thoughts, words, and actions (Ephesians 4:17-32). God’s Word instructs us to guard our tongue (Ephesians 4:25, 5:4; Colossians 3:8). 

 

This keeps us from speaking foolish, hurtful, blasphemous, lying, deceitful, and indecent words. If we never offend others with our words, Jesus’ half-brother, James, considers us a perfect person and able to discipline our entire body from lusting after sinful behavior (James 3:2). Of course, none of us is perfect yet. 

 

Using the Lord’s name other than in prayer and praise (Hebrews 13:15) is offensive to Him, and He holds us accountable for this behavior (Exodus 20 7; Deuteronomy 5:11; Psalm 111:9). Our Father God wants us to offer the sacrifice of praise and to continually speak only good and edifying words that minister grace to those who hear them (Ephesians 4:29).

 

We are wise when we think before we speak, and check with God’s Spirit before we say anything to anyone, especially those closest to us (Psalm 141:3). If we think about something in our heart, our mouth will probably speak it (Proverbs 23:7). Keeping a watch over our thoughts will help us not to blurt out words that offend God and our friends, family, neighbors, and community (Luke 6:45). 

 

It also allows us to speak the oracles of God (1 Peter 4:11), rather than our emotionally packed words of insult and defamation. God wants us to seek Him first and to help to heal hurting hearts, misguided behavior, and the innocent and grieving soul. 

 

Prayer:

Father God, thank You for teaching us how to minister grace through our words, rather than to speak gossip and unedifying words (Ephesians 4:29). We want to encourage our family, acquaintances, and those we love, rather than to tear them down with insults, sarcasm, twisted humor, curses, slander, and gossip. We desire to speak only words of kindness, encouragement, validation, enthusiasm, and compliments.

 

Give us Your wisdom and grace in our speech and help us to faithfully edify and build up others with them (Colossians 4:6). Remind us that a soft and gracious answer deflates quarrels, but argumentative or angry words will escalate the disagreement and maybe part friends forever (Provers 15:1-2). We want You to use us to bring healing, peace, and joy to those You bring into our life in Your timing and way.

 

Thoughts for the Day:

Derogatory and hurtful words are grievous and part the best of friends; but kind words secure our bond with those God puts in our path. We cannot take back our words that we speak, so filtering our thoughts, keeping a guard on our tongue, and praying before we speak will give us a better chance of not bringing an offense or wounding those we love.

 

 

Count it All Joy

 

The apostle Paul found that his positive reactions to the distresses in his life gave other Christians the courage to fearlessly share the Gospel of Jesus with others (Philippians 1:14). God can use our misfortunes to do the same thing in the life of those around us. 

 

Negative issues are not obstacles, but they are designed by God as blessings in disguise. Jesus promised us that in this world we would definitely experience trials and tribulation, but then He said some strange words, “Be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33).

 

Jesus won the war against sin and death, so we can enjoy victory through Him. Every example of a Believer in the Bible is a living testimony for us that God is not looking for perfect people, but for humble people who will trust Him to do a work in us and through us (Psalm 34:2).

 

One man, Job, is the example for us that God blesses His children abundantly, regardless of our trials in life. The apostle Paul suffered shipwreck, jail, beatings, stoning, and being lost at sea, but He always clung to God’s promises (2 Corinthians 11:24-25; Romans 8:18). Through every episode, He sang praises to God (Philippians 1:14).

 

When Satan wanted to sift Peter like wheat (Luke 22:21-32), Jesus prayed for Him to persevere and to serve as an example to us of God’s power in spite of our circumstances. Peter ended up lying about His affiliation with Jesus, but his repentance brought Him full restitution in His fellowship with God (Matthew 26:75; Acts 2:38).

 

Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery, but God used their evil intent to provide for Joseph’s whole family during a drawn-out time of famine in the land. The Lord was with Joseph every step of the way, and He is always with us too (Genesis 39; Hebrews 13:5).

 

Prayer:

Father God, although we often experience trials that are more than we can bear in our human resources, they are not more than we can endure as we keep our focus on You and Your goodness to always make everything work out for our eventual good (Romans 8:28; 1 Corinthians 10:12-13; John 16:33). 

 

We are either in a trial, coming out of a trial, or about to enter a trial. You often remove some of our trials when we walk in Your ways by Your Spirit; however, You do test our faith with them and use them to prove Your faithfulness to us. Your grace is always sufficient to help us through any negative event in our life (2 Corinthians 12:9).

 

Thoughts for the Day:

God uses our trials to strengthen our faith, as well as our persistence in perseverance, and to increase our reliance on Him. He also uses us in trials to glorify Him because when people see our trust in Him through everything they are more likely to trust Him in the challenging events in their life too (Matthew 5:16).

God has Control

 

It saddens me to see or hear people who want to control their own life. They put so much effort into something that is harder to do than squeezing tooth paste back into a tube. I understand where they are coming from, because I was raped at age 12, and I vowed no one would ever control me again. 

 

I repressed the memory and used anger as my go-to method to protect myself, or I simply stomped my Italian foot in anger and vehemently proclaimed that I would not submit to their choice. My parents said I became a stubborn teenager, but I realized that though I could not alter another’s decisions, I could make my own decisions that I felt would keep me safe. 

 

Thankfully, I came to know Jesus as my eternal Savior at age 18, and I realized that He was now my guardian. His Spirit started the sanctifying process of exchanging my negative personality traits with His fruit (Galatians 5:22-23). Unfortunately, at that time, I still attempted to control my circumstances and the people in my life who made decisions that affected me.

 

All through those years, Daddy God tried to lead me to turn control of my life over to His providential care, but I did not trust Him. I did not trust anyone or anything to keep me safe, except myself. I suffered emotionally due to this decision because of a lack of peace and joy, and it ruined my relationships as well.

 

I did not remember this life-altering event that formulated my self-protective attitude, until I was 45 years old. God led me to a counselor where I learned to use Transformation Prayer to discover the root of my negative emotions. 

- https://www.transformationprayer.org/preparing-journey-introduction/

 

It took a divorce from my first husband to make me start learning to completely lean on God and to trust Him with my whole heart, not just part of it. At this time of divorce, I had no skills to provide for myself, and no future on the horizon. I was free-falling through time with no plan or purpose.

 

I went to my favorite place – under the shadow of God’s wings - and I started to pray about my circumstances. Thankfully, I learn to listen to and to follow the direction of God’s Spirit because I finally realized that God is always in control and has my best interests in His heart (Proverbs 19:21). 

 

Prayer:

Father God, Your plan of salvation was unfolding even before You created the earth (1 Peter 1:10; Revelations 13:8). You are always so good - even in Your justice and judgments (Psalm 18:30-36). Thank You for spoiling Your adopted children endlessly and walking in us and with us through every trial we ever face on this earth (Romans 8:15; Colossians 1:27-18). We owe You all our praise and glory.

 

Thank You for helping me to walk away from my sinful, prideful, and self-centered lifestyle, and to RUN into Your waiting arms of love, security, peace, and joy. I love to cuddle under the safety of Your wings (Psalm 91:1-16), and to put my trust wholly and completely in Your will for my life (Proverbs 3:5-6). Nothing can ever happen to me that You cannot handle. I praise You continually and seek Your face forevermore (Isaiah 55:6-13).

 

Thoughts for the Day:

It is better to trust the Lord than to put confidence in people, finances, our self, or anything else (Psalm 20:7-9). People are human just like us and can fail us without even meaning to (Psalm 118:8). God is our only salvation, and we can trust in Him without fear. He is our strength and song (Isaiah 12:2). He is our God of hope, and He fills us with His joy and peace when we believe in and trust only in the saving grace of Jesus Christ (Romans 15:13).

Stages of Love

 

There is a difference in the nuances of the stages of love. We start by caring; we transition to sympathy; as we get more involved, we evolve into empathy; we eventually develop compassion; and then we truly love one another. You may wonder, what is the difference of these phases. I am glad you asked. 

 

Caring will display kindness and concern for another individual. We show signs of warmheartedness, gentleness, concern, thoughtfulness, and fondness. We help each other when there is a need, but there is very little personal emotion involved in this phase.

 

Sympathy helps us to relay condolences, comfort, support, encouragement, consideration, and gentleness toward others. We can imagine how we would feel in a similar circumstance, and we develop a rapport with them as another human being. We convey understanding for how they feel, even if we never experienced their situation. 

 

Empathy steps up when we feel pity or sorrow for another during some misfortune that we can relate to because we already walked in their shoes in our own life. We actually feel their pain, see their perspective, and share in their emotions. We give them leniency and tolerate their despondency. There is an affinity between us that can forge a deeper bond in our relationship.

 

Compassion involves love that supersedes feelings. We suffer in our soul right along with another, even if we never experienced their situation. There is no judgment in compassion, even if we do not relate to the reason for the depth they are feeling in their soul. We have mercy for them, like God feels for us, even if they brought their suffering on their self by their own options and worldview.

 

Love is a choice. It is sacrificial and can be a deep emotion similar to what Jesus felt when He paid our sin-debt for us. We are willing to change places with someone if we could, in order to prevent them from experiencing their distress. This love is an intense expression that does not need a reason for demonstration. We can have this love for others whether we feel an emotional connection to them or not.

 

We can also feel an emotional love that involves affection for our spouse, family, and deep friendships, all the other stages of love, and a connection that supersedes what we feel for other people. It involves an attachment to that person that we do not feel for anyone else. This love is loyal, involves a lifelong commitment, and the deepest intimacy humanly possible. 

 

Prayer:

Father God, thank You for the sacrificial agape love that You exhibited toward us by sending Jesus to die on Calvary’s cross for us. You prove Your love for us by choosing to dwell in us, for adopting us into Your family, and for being our God, our Rock, our Fortress, our Deliverer, our Refuge, and our Savior (Revelation 21:3). Our love for others flows from Your love for us (1 John 4:20).

 

You give us the ability to love each other with humility, gentleness, patience, and a unity in spirit that transcends time, locations, and feelings (Ephesians 4:2-3; John 13:34-35). Teach us to lay down our life for one another, to share our blessings from You with each other when Your Spirit prompts us, and to love in actions and truth, not just in words and conversation (1 John 3:16-18).

 

Thoughts for the Day:

In order to have the emotional energy to transition from one stage of love to another, we need to start by having these same emotions for our self. We are a person too. We matter in this life. We can minister to our self with the same purpose that we exhibit toward others. Loving our self only gets out of bounds when we are immersed in our self, and we show tendencies of stinginess, self-centeredness, and an absorption in our self without regard for others.

A Good Marriage - Giving Love, Honor, and Respect

 

As a couple, unity in our marriage is enhanced when a husband lays down his life for his wife, and he can continually trust that his wife is his greatest fan and supporter (Proverbs 31:11). He depends on her respect and the honor that she gives him as co-heirs with Jesus (Romans 8:16-18). 

 

This is mutual submission rather than a domineering-subservient relationship. As we both pray together over decisions in our relationship, we jointly submit to the will of God by following His supernatural peace in our hearts (John 14:27; Proverbs 3:5-6).  

 

When our spouse is hurtful toward us, we can readily forgive, because we are both human, and both wound one another from time to time (Proverbs 19:11; 2 Corinthians 10:5). Instead, we focus on our spouse’s strong points and thank God for providing someone for us that can balance out our weaknesses (Philippians 4:8).

 

The more time we invest in our marriage, the more successful it will be, and the greater longevity we will enjoy together. It is the little things that make a huge difference. Dwelling together by understanding one another’s needs helps us to function as a united front to face the challenges of life.

 

We offer validation for our mate’s accomplishments and strengths, as well as the effort they make to bring joy into our life. Showing gratitude for their efforts is one way to do this, even when they insist on loving us in ways that are not in accord with our own love language.

 

If our mate genuinely cares about us, he/she may be willing to understand our individual needs and alter their behavior to better meld together as one (1 Peter 3:7, KJV). Living with an approachable attitude toward our mate’s needs helps him/her to feel more secure, joyful, attached to us, and relaxed in our relationship.

 

Prayer:

Father God, show us how to exhibit sympathy, empathy, patience, understanding, compassion, and love toward one another in our marriage. Help us to brainstorm to find mutually attractive activities that provide relaxation and fun for both of us. Remind us that we both still have an inner child that likes to play and help us to serve as one another’s best friend and companion.

 

Remind us that we are both human, and we cannot live up to the expectations for our life by other people. We need to be able to relax rather than to walk on eggshells in our own home without enduring disappointment or bitterness. Insurmountable expectations cause dissatisfaction with our mate. Help us to hear what our mate is asking for and not to make fun of them, but to attempt to meet their need for sharing joyful and relaxing experiences with us.

 

Thoughts for the Day:

Loving our mate in his/her own love language will meet our needs much better than grand gestures or loving them in our love language. Pressure comes from high expectations of one another. If we do not expect a particular result, we will never be disappointed; and we may even find a new way to share time together.

- https://5lovelanguages.com/quizzes/love-language

Surrendering our Life

 

Sometimes we are willing to give part of our self and our endeavors to God, but we want to maintain control of other areas. This usually ends in us failing to make wise choices in our options. The resulting effects may derail us from the track God had planned for us. (Ephesians 2:20).

 

When we follow God’s plans instead, we find success in every area of our life – our vocation, whom to marry, where to live, what ministry in which to participate, our outreach into our community, etc. Otherwise, we may fall into negative circumstances that take years to rectify.

 

When God builds our house, we do not labor in vain (Psalm 127:1). When we give Him complete control of every area of our life and heart, and we walk in His Spirit, our life clicks along like the seconds on the clock, and we find more joy, peace, and love than we ever imagined. 

 

We completely surrender to God’s pre-arranged plans for us before we were ever born (Psalm 139; Ephesians 2:10). We give Him full power to rule in the details of our life. We seek Him before we make any decisions, and we allow His peace in our spirit to guide us moment by moment (Proverbs 3:5-6; Philippians 4:7).

 

When we permit God to build our house on the Rock of Christ (Matthew 7:24), He keeps us safe from the storms of life. His Spirit leads and guides us in the way that He wants us to go. God uses us for His divine purpose in order to further His Kingdom in us and through us.

 

Prayer:

Father God, thank You for giving us Your wisdom and power to choose to totally surrender every part of our life to You. We do not want to reap negative consequences for making our own choices instead. The world, our flesh, and satanic forces constantly attempt to sidetrack us from following after You, but Your Spirit within us gives us both the desire and the power to stay on the course that You prescribe for us (Philippians 2:12-13).

 

You guide us with Your eye, so we want to look fully into Your face with complete faith in Your faithfulness, as well as trust in Your goodness. Remind us that when we walk in step with You, love You with our whole heart, and completely trust in You, we are always safe from harm and full of Your joy and peace. We are also examples to others of the multitude of benefits from serving You with our life (Psalm 103:1-5).

 

Thoughts for the Day:

We have choices in life that will either bring us life or death, setbacks or blessings; therefore, we are free to walk in God’s will with His blessings. When we surrender our life entirely to God’s plans and guidance, we rise above our human imperfections and walk in the fulfillment that God’s Spirit brings in us and to us. If we cling to Him as the focus of our life, He gives us everlasting life (Deuteronomy 30:19; John 3:16-18).

 

I Had a Dream

As I awoke this morning a very vivid dream flooded my thoughts. I had to grab my laptop and type it all down so I would not forget it, and I wanted to share it with you. The dream started by me shuffling through the shallow water of the ocean in order to refrain from stepping on one of the many stingrays that hide in the sand along that ridge awaiting their meal for the day.

 

I used this time to focus uninterruptedly on God’s will for my day. I was alone in the water, and only a few people power-walked in the damp sand that bordered the ocean. Several more scattered across the sandy landscape on blankets or lawn chairs to enjoy the vitamins and warmth from the sun.

 

A few moments later, I sensed that I was not alone. I turned slightly, and to my joyful surprise, Jesus was right there next to me. I could not speak, but I soaked up His peaceful presence with a slight query in my mind as to why He was there physically and not just settled within my spirit as usual.

 

At that second, He revealed the reason for His presence. “A tsunami is heading in this direction, and I would not leave you alone to navigate this coming trial. Do you trust me?” I responded, “Lord, You know that I trust You. It is a way of life for me.” He smiled into my eyes and nodded His head.

 

We walked together in silence as His joy and peace saturated every cell of my body. In a short while, He spoke again. “Would you rather hold my hand, or snuggle in my arms?” I had to laugh. “You know my favorite place is to hide under the shadow of Your wings.”

 

He responded, “I cannot hide You from this trial, dear one. The coming tragedy is eminent and violent.” With fear threatening to choke the words from my throat, I replied, “Then I choose to snuggle in Your everlasting arms, thank You.” He took my hand, and we strolled a bit further through the shallows.

 

That is when I heard a slight roar in the distance, and I saw a huge wall of water heading from the depths of the ocean toward the shore. I turned to look into His eyes, and He picked me up in His arms. Peace flooded my soul, and a warm, calm feeling infused every nerve in my body.

 

Even as the wall of raging water descended upon us, I had no doubt that I was safe in the arms of my Savior, Redeemer, and Lord. As I nestled my head against His chest, I murmured, “Thank You for suffering so much during Your lifetime and for forgiving my transgressions and adopting me into Your family.” 

 

As if I could hear His voice, He stated, “You know the struggle I went through in the Garden of Gethsemane, but I can honestly say, it was my privilege to offer this same free gift to every person in the whole world throughout every generation.” 

 

Puzzled, I admitted to Him, “I do not understand how anyone can reject Your irresistible grace.” He proclaimed, “It is their pride and rebellion, but I never condemn anyone. They have a free will, and it is their choice whether or not to believe in me” (John 3:18). 

 

Covered by tons of raging water all around us, He reminded me, “Fear not, for I am with You” (Isaiah 41:10-13). This treacherous event continued for what felt to me like a lifetime. However, no negative emotions trouble my soul. I drew my life and my comfort from His secure cuddle. 

 

In what was probably only a few moments, the wall of water passed us and crashed onto the beach. I prayed for those who were on the beach with me that morning and the town that was certainly under swirls of angry seawater as I prayed. 

 

Death is part of life, and I do not know why God safely carried me that day, but His abiding peace never left me for the remainder of my service to Him on this earth. This same security awaits you as well. He is only a prayer away.