Wonderful Wednesday Wisdom-Do you gloat?

"Do not gloat when your enemy falls, when he stumbles, do not let your heart rejoice" (Proverbs 24:17)

It never fails to amaze me when I watch a movie with an obvious "villian", that my heart begins to do a "you deserved that" dance when the good guy prevails and the villian gets his due. We are continuously told in society that "justice will prevail".

What I have discovered is that, while it is ok for justice to prevail (the robber getting caught and going to jail for stealing a car), it is not ok for people to mock and call out not so nice names to the person who did the wrong.

The word gloat means "to gaze or think with malicious pleasure" (Webster's New World Dictionary, 4th ed.). Wow. Malicious pleasure sounds so mean and evil.

When someone at work gets caught doing something unethical, do I automatically think-well, they deserve whatever punishment they get OR do I wonder, what made them make that choice? Do I pray for them and ask God to reveal Himself to them? Is my reaction simply an inward reaction or also an outward reaction so my peers also know how I feel about the situation?

How you and I respond to situations when other stumble often reveals alot about our character also. Do you show compassion, kindness, forgiveness, or gentleness toward those who have been not so kind to you?

Sometimes the best way to win someone to Christ is to show them character qualities of Christ (pray for the fruit of the spirit). Only through prayer and humility (quiet and gentle strength-->not doormat status for those who might be confused about what that word means) can any of us respond in a Godly way.

My prayer for you (and myself) is that God will help me to not gloat when an enemy stumbles or falls but to see them through the eyes of Christ. May He give each of us His perspective. What situation (work, family, or community related) do you need to lift up to Him in prayer?

In His Service and with much love,

Wonderful Wednesday Wisdom

"Go, walk through the length and breadth of the land, for I am giving it to you." (Genesis 13:17)

The first thing I remember doing after we bought our first home was walk into each and every room of the house. I wanted to really get to know each room. I studied the closets, the windows, and doors,... I wanted to know every square inch of it.

I did something similar when each of my three children were born. I must have studied their faces, their hands, their breathing noises, and little sounds they made for hours upon hours. I wanted to get to know them deeply for they were mine (or at least they were on loan to me from God).

In Genesis 13, when God told Abraham that He was giving him all he could see to the north, south, east, and west, Abraham knew it to be true. God told him to walk the land's length and breadth. God wanted Abraham to get to know this land He was giving him. I think that is when the idea of "prayer walking" got it's start.

I cannot imagine walking every piece of that land and not doing anything but daydreaming. Abraham had to be singing the praises of God, thanking Him for all that He had just given him.

As I thought about that, I wondered, have I walked every area of the property God has given to my family? No. I have not. Have I praised Him for all He has given me? I earnestly try to do so. Have I praised Him for my husband and my kids? You bet!!!

Well, I have a new idea of were to go hiking now. We have several acres and a few barns on our property. When the weather allows and there is a bit of free time, I will be hiking the length and breadth of what the Lord has given me and my family.

Consider your property (whether rented or purchased). Do you know it well? Have you praised God for it? If not, don't delay. Getting to know your property (land, house, car,and family) and praising God for it and praying over it is a great way to connect with God.

Wonderful Wednesday Wisdom-sorry it is on Friday

My goal is to begin posting a new devo every Wednesday entitled "Wonderful Wednesday Wisdom". This week got away from me, however. Just pretend that it is sunny, the week is going great and it is Wednesday. For those of you who live for the weekend, just know for today it really is Friday.

Girlfriends are essential in the life of almost every female I know. Even with family responsibilities that keep us occupied throughout the week, having even a few minutes of girlfriend time to talk personally, over the phone, or even email, FB, or text each other just helps our week go smoother.

Our lives as women set such an example for our daughters and our nieces. What positive communication skills am I modeling for my daughter and her friends? I can ask a similar question about any negative communication skills that I may be modeling. Am I know as a woman of integrity? Do others hear words of affirmation, encouragement, appropriate (not seedy) humor, and general concern and compassion coming from my mouth?

Our children (no matter their age or ours) learn more from what is caught than what is taught. Am I (and are you) truly modeling positive communication skills in what I do? Doing this helps to build a sense of honesty, of trust, of respect, and of integrity in my life and yours. These positive aspects of our life help to give us a "good name". I desire for others to see Christ in me. When I interact with others and they know I love Christ, they associate everything I do with my faith.

"A good name is more desirable that great riches; to be esteemed is better than silver or gold." (Proverbs 22:1)

I desire to have a "good name" for Christ's sake. I desire to role model this for my daughter, her friends, and any others who I am around. Do I always do this at home--not all the time. However, when God shows me my negative communication skills, He has also given me the wisdom and humility to go back to my daughter (my 2 sons and my husband) and ask for forgiveness.

How are your communications skills? What type of role model are you for the children and young adults God has put into your life?

Thoughts-Pray through Proverbs 22:1-Ask God to give you a "good name", that you would desire it more than great riches, more than silver or gold. Ask Him to only allow positive, life-giving talk to come out of your mouth. He is faithful!!! Thanks for being here!!!
In His Service,

Love Your Neighbor

"The second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself" (Mark 12:31a)

LEGOS!!! A source of fun, creativity, wonder, and excitement. Each time you play with them, you can create oodles of designs. I have spent countless hours creating the design they were intended for (according to the directions) and many more hours coming up with my own creation based on suggestions from my children. (Children really do have creative imaginations.)

After spending what seems like hours building ships, castles, skyscrapers, cruisers, and an army of various lego people to be integrated into each new scene, my kids would sometimes spend only 10-15 minutes playing before my lego building skills would once again needed to repair a broken ship or put back together a crashed cruiser.

Confused by the quick destruction and rapid rebuilding process that was needed, I decided to watch my youngest play with his legos once I was out of sight. Lego warriors scaled the tall building, rescued other lego buddies from a burning ship, and crashed their modes of transportation into other legos. There also were swords flying and Tae Kwon Do matches going on among the lego people. Very fascinating!

I bet you are wondering how this all relates to "Love you neighbor". As a Christian, we are asked to rescue (help) those around us who are in need of assistance. That could be by holding the door open for them when their hands are full. It may mean taking an extra 5-10 minutes to call a friend who is struggling with something. But, we are not to have our swords flying at one another. That means, watch what you say to others. Our words can be so sharp and hurtful that we actually injury someone emotionally with them. Gossip is another way that we can harm another. Loving your neighbor means to be considerate of them. No verbal or emotional Tae Kwon Do matches!!!

Who is God asking you to be kind to? Be aware that sometimes, it may mean going out of our way to help them or show compassion to them. Listen for God's direction and ask Him everyday, how you can show kindness and love to someone else.

In His Service,

A Solid Foundation

"By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established" (Proverbs 24:3)

Building a house takes a lot of planning, work, and money. It must begin with a solid foundation. If this foundation is weak, the house may be blown away when the storms of life come.

Our own personal faith can be considered to be like a house. We must build our faith on a solid foundation (Christ alone is that solid foundation). As we study God's Truth in the Bible, we are to pray for God's wisdom and insight so that we can understand the words written in scripture. As God opens His truth to us, we begin the develop a deeper understanding of Him. This deeper understanding helps to develop strong "beams" and brick walls to make our house stronger.

It does take planning on our part to set aside time on a regular basis to spend with God, it takes work (discipline) to not let the distractions of this world draw us away from studying or away for believing that God is the answer! It also takes a money (an investment maybe money or maybe an investment of time). God's Word tells us that were our treasure is, there our heart will be also.

When the storms of life come, they may rattle our windows but when our foundation is built on Christ and His Word serves as the beams and walls of our house, our house is not shaken off its foundation.

As you look at your own life, are you investing your time to build a solid foundation (one built on Christ)? Do you set aside time regularly during the week to pray and seek God's direction and wisdom? How do you spend your money? Do you give back of your time and money to serve others (participate in canned food drives, volunteer at a homeless shelter, donate to the Cancer Society or other worthy causes) and are you teaching this to your children, nieces, nephews, or grandchildren?

I challenge you to be sure you have build a solid foundation on Christ. Be ready for those storms. It is not if they come, it is for when they come. Blessings,

Listen to Your Father

"Listen to your father, who gave you life..." Proverbs 23:22a (NIV)

Listening is almost a lost art. We live in a society of fast communicators. We communicate with cryptic text messages, short voices messages, IM short-hand, quick facebook one to two liners, ... We have a drive-through line mentality in so much of our interactions today. Listening you say, that takes too long. I can't afford the time.

This verse in Proverbs, however, encourages the idea of listening but not just to anybody out there. We are to listen to our father (both earthly and heavenly-I would challenge you). Sometimes our earthly fathers have served as wonderful examples of what a father should be like, however, at other times, we may struggle with any type of "feelings" of kindness, compassion, or care toward our earthly father. The important fact is that whatever kind of earthly father you had, it is because of them that you are here. You are worth it!!! The fact that they had a part in your creation is enough to be thankful to them for.

The other part of your creation came for your Heavenly Father. He not only helped in giving you physical life, He offers spiritual life to all who call on His name and believe in His Son, Jesus Christ. That Eternal Life He offers is life everlasting. That is truly something to celebrate.

I struggle at times to set aside time in my daily schedule to spend time reading my Bible, praying, and then being silent with God. It is in the times of silence that God can speak to us. Just as in any great friend/mentor relationship. We speak a little and then let our friend speak to us while we listen. Are you spending time "listening" to God everyday? I encourage you to take time to listen to Him. If you can, write down your thoughts during those times of listening. Remember, God's will for you will never contradict what scripture says.

The Bible tells us to "be still and know that I am God". Won't you be still before Him today?

Going from Ordinary to Extraordinary

Have you ever had a mountain top experience spiritually, emotionally, or professionally? Have you ever been at a loss to truly describe something you experienced? Well, that is exactly were I am right now. I will try to put words to my feelings of joy, anticipation, and excitement.

This past weekend, I attend my 3rd "She Speaks" Conference offered by Proverbs 31 Ministries (www.proverbs31.org). I knew the Lord had something special but I was unsure what that was. I always come to this conference expecting one thing and going away with more than I even imagined. I learned long ago to not put God in a box (try to limit what He is able to do based on my own human ideas).

The Friday evening session of the conference, presented by Lysa Terkeurst (www.lysaterkeurst.blogspot.com) was the beginning of my wonderful weekend journey. The verse that stood out to me the most was Acts 4:13-"When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus." (NIV)

Wow. Christ spent time with ordinary men. The rulers, elders, and teachers in Jerusalem could see this very clearly. Yep, these were just ordinary men. But, the fact that they had been around Jesus, in His presence, spending time listening to His teachings--this changed them. They showed courage. They astonished people with their teachings.

Could it be that because I too spend time with Jesus, studying His Word, praying, meditating on scripture,...could this change me from ordinary to extraordinary? Well, scripture suggests that "being with Jesus" does change people. I am not an extraordinary person. However, when I spend time in the scriptures, when I pray, when I wait on God's truth to teach me, I am changed from ordinary to extraordinary. It is only by the grace of God that this happens.

What about you? Do you regularly spend time studying God's Word? Do you take time daily to pray-to praise God, thank Him for the blessings He has given you, confess your sins to Him and receive His cleansing, and present your prayer requests to Him believing that He is able to answer them in His perfect time? I encourage you to develop a daily habit of Bible study. This time with the Savior will take you from ordinary to extraordinary.

In His Service,