Has another voice crowded out the voice of God in your life today?

So many things (and people) take our attention away from God. Well, they don’t take our attention, we allow them to take our attention away from constant fellowship with our Father.

Some girlfriends and I are joining together each week for a Bible Study, and this week we have talked a lot about distractions. We have talked a lot about our spiritual need to truly walk with God in every step we take, every breath we breathe, every word we speak.

What is keeping you from spending time talking with God, listening to God and simply just being with God?

I can think of so many things that take up my time, so many things that I allow to take up my time.

Children. Husband. Work. Facebook. Amazon. Television. Email. Shopping. Friends. Family. Housework. Laziness. Silly games. School. Church.

So many of these things are things that are required of me, so how in the world do I get rid of them and replace them with quiet time for just me and my Father?

When I ask myself this question, I am reminded of an amazing lady. My best friend’s mother was and is a lady that juggles so many hats. But, her juggling is different than mine – she juggles as she walks steadily with God. She juggles as she relies on her Father. She juggles as she sings praises, recites scripture and prays from room to room. As she faces the distractions of this world, she is so in tune with God that He does not allow those roles in her life to be distracting, but yet, they are moments that allow for more conversations with God. What a cool way to walk with God!!

Now that I look back at my list of distractions, I can see clearly how I can truly BE with my Father in all situations. The voice of God can be heard in all of those moments . . . if I am listening.

Walk with the King

This week I have been reminded over and over again that we serve a King, the most powerful King, the most amazing King, yet, the most humble King.

And, we are called to walk with Him daily. We are called to be truly devoted to Him in all that we do.

Sometimes, we tend to think that this is an impossible way of life, but a man in the Bible was so devoted to God that he was spared from death.

Enoch was devoted to God.

And when the LORD looked at Enoch’s life, He decided that Enoch’s walk was so good that Enoch needed to skip the pains of death and come on up to heaven. What was his life like? We must be able to learn some things from him.

Genesis 5:21-24

New American Standard Bible (NASB)

²¹ Enoch lived sixty-five years, and became the father of Methuselah. ²² Then Enoch walked with God three hundred years after he became the father of Methuselah, and he had other sons and daughters. ²³ So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. ²⁴ Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him.

Enoch was a parent of many children, and he still managed to walk with God in such a way that God took him to Heaven early. I’m not positively certain, but I don’t think that God did that with anyone else in the Bible.

I only have 3 children, and I can’t get this whole walking with God thing mastered!

The Hebrew word translated “walk” is הָלַךְ (“halak”). What is amazing about this word is that it describes the way Enoch walked with God. It describes the way Enoch walked as a simple, steady walk with God. Enoch didn’t have lots of highs. He didn’t perform miracles. He was known throughout the land as an evangelist. He was simply a father that walked step by step devoted to his heavenly Father.

We often look for big things to do for God. We look for big moments to receive Him. Instead, let us just walk with Him, devoted to Him, step-by-step.

In the book of Hebrews, we find that God was pleased with Enoch’s simple walk.

What can we learn from Enoch? I’m learning a bit about Enoch through a bible study I’m getting to be a part of right now. This is what I have learned so far:

1. Walking with God is pleasing God. You want to please God? Walk with Him. Simple, steady, day after day, month after month, year after year. Eliminate the clamor of this world!
2. Enoch had a testimony because of his walk with God. Enoch’s walk gave him a story he could tell others. Sometimes we glamorize the extreme testimonies (for instance, when a drug addict turns to Jesus) but minimize the powerful testimony of someone who has walked with God all of their life. Let’s celebrate with all of those who are walking with Jesus!
3. It is possible to please God! Without faith it is impossible to please God, but with faith it is possible.
4. A person who walks with God will walk with Him during good days and bad days. You know God is always there. A person who walks with God craves a walk with Him, knowing that He rewards those who walk with Him with blessings that are out of this world!
5. Develop a daily routine of time alone with God. Build this into your daily schedule. It is that important. Read the Bible. Pray. Think. Reflect. Respond.
6. Walk with God all day long! Pray without ceasing.
7. Learn to apply the Word of God to your life.
8. Pray the Word of God. Read the Bible, and turn the Scriptures into a prayer to God. When you are saying God’s Word back to Him as a prayer, you know it pleases Him. And it is best for you.

What an amazing testimony to be able to say that we have had a steady, simple walk with our Father. What a testimony to leave!! I want to be devoted to God.

It’s Time to Slow Down

God has been telling me again and again through His Word that I need to slow down in order to hear His voice, the voice I talked about yesterday morning in my post. Apparently, He really wanted me to slow down today because He kept me home with a sick little girl.

It is in our unhurried moments that we can see and hear clearly. In our unhurried moments, we are able to listen to our spouse and understand him or her more clearly. In our unhurried moments, we don’t lose our temper with our children. In our unhurried moments, we do our best work.

When I think of my unhurried moments, I think of times that my home is cleaner, our dinners are more well-rounded, mornings are smoother, the kids get along better, we have a sense of peace in our family.

When I think of our hurried moments, I have flashbacks of a messy house, laundry piles, take-out food, missed quiet times, raised voices, children bickering, running late, losing my cool.

The unhurried moments bring far more joy than the hurried moments. The same goes in our relationship with God. God desires for us to slow down and spend time with Him, getting to know His Voice.

We need SOLITUDE! We need time alone with God. I find that the only way I will make this time with God is if I make it happen first thing each morning. This is my only time for complete solitude. When I rise early to spend time with God, there is a peace in our home as everyone else sleeps. I get to pray, read and listen to God’s voice all by myself without interruption.

We need this time to recharge. We need this time to read the words that God has given us. It’s only in the Bible that we get direct words from God – this is His Voice.

Group Bible Study & Phenomenal Friendships

Some of my greatest friendships have evolved through Bible Study groups. I hold particularly close to my heart a few college girlfriends that allowed me to deepen my relationship with God as they kept me accountable to serve Him. Our friendships today would not be the same without us being in a weekly Bible Study group together. I am certain of it. And, these friendships are the types of friendships that we need most in our lives.

The ladies in our Sunday School class have been talking on and off about starting a new Bible Study together, and I am reminded today that we have got to make this a priority sooner rather than later.

Why is a strong Bible Study group so important?

1. Ladies praying for one another daily.
2. Ladies loving one another as Christ first loved us.
3. A time to be real and honest surrounded with ladies that will keep all of our struggles confidential.
4. Accountability (when you want it and when you don’t)

What hurts a Bible Study?

1. Talking too much about things that don’t matter.
2. Failing to have our quiet time to prep for the study.
3. Judgmental comments and thoughts

What is essential in a Bible Study group?

1. A leader that will be praying for the ladies every day
2. Good material to study
3. Consistency
4. Prayer time
5. Time management
6. Confidentiality
7. Food & Laughing

I am praying to be revived through Bible Study soon, and I am praying the same for each reader. I promise, a great Bible Study group will be one of the biggest blessings – we must make time to share this journey with one another.

Friendships with History

Tonight, Nathan and I were able to enjoy an evening of dinner and chatting with an old friend. It reminded me that there is something to be said about friends that know your history. I am so thankful for so many of these friends in my life.

I am thankful for those friends that know where I have been, for those that have walked through the good times and bad with me, for those that have prayed for me and with me, for those with whom I can reminisce and for all that these friendships have taught me along my journey. I am certain that God orchestrated these friendships in my life to keep me grounded. Some of them keep me laughing, some of them remind me that I need to shut my mouth more and listen, and others keep me accountable in my walk with God without even knowing it.

My girlfriends and I often talk about the “opposite peer pressure” we faced within our group, and man oh man, I am very thankful for that peer pressure even to this day. I am so humbled by these special friendships. I’m not sure why God chose this path of friendship for me, perhaps because He knew that I need them in my life to keep me serving Him, but it is one of those gifts from Him that I truly treasure.

It is also one of those gifts that I pray He shares with my children as He also gives me discernment to know which friendships to support and which ones to shield them from along their journeys. I truly believe that in many situations, friendships make or break your relationship with God. For me, my friendships through my girlfriends and my youth group were friendships that kept me longing to serve my Heavenly Father. Without those relationships, I don’t know that my journey would have been about serving the Lord.

All of this rambling to say, cherish your friendships and invest in them. I read somewhere recently that a friendship will last forever if it makes it 7 years – I don’t know if that has any truth in it, but it reigns true in my life to date. While some of my friendships have far surpassed that mark, I have others in my life now that I know will go beyond that seven year mark and flourish. I always know a good friendship has evolved in my life when I can say dumb things and not have to apologize because she already knows my heart. I know a good friendship for me is not talking for 6 months and being able to pick right up where we left off. I know a good friendship for me is a friend that will set me straight and love me through my craziness. A good friend for me is one that forgives me over and over again, one that prays with me and for me, one that loves me for me.

 

Walking with God in the Midst of Busy Lives

I always admire Courtney Joseph and her willingness to be so real in her blog, so when I happened upon a post by her on another one of my favorite sites, I had to read it. I’m so glad I did.

I used to do these very things when I was in high school and college, but for some reason, I have steered away from hiding God’s Word in my heart and taking it with me throughout my days. I remember this being such an encouragement for me as a teen and young adult, so I am excited about this reminder to get back into God’s Word and take it with me all day long. I challenge you to get your index cards ready for scripture that will encourage you this week.

Click here to see the article or just read it below:

While God’s word sits on our shelves waiting for us to get a slow moment, the world bids us to keep busy. Get those kids signed up for soccer, piano, gymnastics, basketball, football, and the list keeps going. You just name it, everybody else is doing it.

The world tells us to get our calendars full and stay on the move. If you don’t, your kids might miss out, or they won’t be cool, or they won’t learn important life lessons, or they won’t be socialized, or they won’t, won’t, won’t. “Get busy and keep busy” is how the unspoken mantra goes.

The world says this chaotic running around is what the good moms do.

But the truth is that we need slow moments.

It’s in the slow moments that God speaks to us through his word and we speak to him in prayer. This is when we step away from all the busyness in order to fellowship with our heavenly Father. This is when we come to his word for the precious purpose of drinking from the living well — Jesus Christ.

Here is a simple guide for busy moms who want to build more of these slow moments into their everyday — moments to stop and drink deeply from the living well.

1. Choose one passage of Scripture for the week. My favorite passages for meditating on come from Psalms, Proverbs, the Gospels, and the Epistles.

2. Write the passage on a note card, and slip it in your pocket or beside your computer. Pull it out periodically, and read over it. Keep it in your purse all week long, and pull it out at convenient times and read through it.

3.  Read the passage first thing in the morning. Read the passage as soon as you get out of bed, so it’s the first thing on your mind that morning.

4. Open your Bible to that passage, and place it on the kitchen counter. All day long, when you walk through the kitchen, pause, read the passage, and then move on.

5. Read the passage out loud. Read it to yourself, and read it to your children during mealtime and at bedtime.

6. Reread the passage before you go to bed at night. Bookend your days with the reading of this passage of Scripture.

7. Write the passage at the top of your to-do list. This way, every time you look over your to-do list, you can review the Scripture passage.

Seeing as Christ Sees

It has been a while since my last post, but in this new year, I am vowing to get in shape both physically and spiritually in my relationship with God. And, as I commit to make the most out of 2013, in my quiet time this morning, I came across a quote from Marcel Proust, a French novelist –

The real voyage of discovery lies not in seeking new landscapes, but in seeing with new eyes.

The contentment in our journeys is truly not about seeking earthly happiness, the peace and joy of our journeys truly comes from seeing our days through new eyes, the eyes of Christ.

For some of us this may mean that today, we simply ask God to reopen our eyes to Him, to His ways. For others, this may mean that we need to take the first step into a relationship with Christ.

No matter the case, we cannot find true contentment and peace without looking with Christ-like eyes.

Today, A Special Day

I don’t normally write a post about my life in general, but today has been one of those days that I want to be sure and document as a reminder to myself of the glory of God and His amazing blessings.

Today was to be a special day in itself because today has been a celebration of our youngest child’s 2nd birthday.

 

Celebrations with him are so special because we know (unless God has other plans) that this is the last time we will reach these milestones, this is the last time we will have an innocent little two year old. Being that our kids have been so close in age, we have been so blessed to get to enjoy the “terrible twos” for the first time. Not that we didn’t enjoy them with the girls, but with Nate, we have time to really be in the moment with him since we are not tending to an infant in the same moment.

While I feel so blessed, I of course still have those moments of “mommy guilt” that cause me to feel awful for not being able to fully enjoy the girls as one and two-year-olds. But, life is getting to be so much more manageable, which is allowing us to have lots of special moments with our girls, too!

Before the big party, we spent morning worship at our home church, Woodlawn. What a special church!! I always feel the warmth when we walk in the doors. The people of Woodlawn are such a gracious family of believers ready to open their arms to God and His people no matter their circumstance. We had such an amazing time of worship! I loved how their pastor truly invited the congregation to worship in song with the soloists and worship leader. The Spirit of God was an amazing presence as we lifted our hands and hearts to God. Woodlawn memories will always be near and dear to my heart. I am who I am today because of God’s hand at work in me through the work of Woodlawn.

The service was the first worship service that the girls have been a part of since being old enough to ask questions. We are so thankful for our church’s nursery and children’s church, but it was kinda neat to have the kids with us (well, except for the loud outbursts and inability to ever concentrate fully in a prayer). I enjoyed being able to worship in song with them. I loved exposing them to the presence of God in such a mighty way today. I loved seeing Evylee pray along with us. I loved that one of the worship songs was a song we sing together in the car! I loved that the girls got to see where Mommy & Daddy were married. I loved talking to Evylee about the call to pray at the alter.

After worship, a quick trip through the McDonald’s drive-thru (Nate’s birthday pick) and naps (well, not everyone), we got to celebrate Nate’s construction themed birthday party with friends and family. I’m thinking it was the best party, yet! Low stress, low chaos, a happy little boy and great friends and family who helped cook, clean and even manage take-toys-out-of-boxes-that-require-screwdrivers-and-scissors for a precious little boy who thinks the world of Mr. Joel Zuber.

We are truly blessed. Today has been a special day, a day that will not happen again, so thank you God for creating today for us.

When did God Call You?

When did God call you into a relationship with Him? Has He called you? Is He calling you now?

I remember the moment clearly. I was 8 years old when I knelt beside my Cabbage Patch comforter covered bed to ask Jesus to come into my heart. And, I remember waking up the next morning to run and tell my parents what had happened! I also remember announcing to my church what God had done in my life.

I used to think that this “way” to be saved was odd because it was just me and Jesus, but one of my former youth leaders made me feel so at special about my salvation experience – it was just me and Jesus – nobody begging me to walk the aisle, no one sending me through confirmation, no one talking me through a prayer . . . it was just me and Jesus. And, it was real.

It brought tears to my eyes when a young boy at our church on Sunday walked the aisle to tell Bro. Rick about his same “Jesus & Me” experience.

If we have been called, we have different stories. Share your story by commenting below. Share your real story. And, if you haven’t been called, if you doubt, call out to Jesus for your own “Jesus & Me” experience.

Related post – Motivations to Call

 

Accepting God’s Path for my Child

God’s plans for our children may not always be our plans for our children.

I know parents who long for their son to be a youth pastor and because he was not called by God into this profession, they tend to not be proud of the man, husband and father he has become.

Not all of our children are going to be called into ministry as a paid profession. And, that’s okay. Our children belong to God. God needs His children in every workplace. He has made His children with varying personalities, traits, likes and dislikes for a reason. God has a calling on each of our lives.

And, dare I even say this, but God may not even have in His will for each of our children to attend college. I am hesitant to even type that sentence because in our home, Nathan & I always say that each of our children will be required to live in a dorm room, do an internship and graduate college.

But, what if our plans are not God’s plans? What if the ideal future we see for our sons and daughters is not the future that will bring them joy? Should that make us less proud? No. Does that mean they are not following God? No. Does it mean that God will use them? Yes.

Let us be proud of our kiddos in whatever path God chooses for them! Let us rejoice that He has His hand on their lives!