Stop Acting like the World

(disclaimer: a little harsh 🤷🏼‍♀️, but if I needed it others also might)

1 Corinthians 13:5 (love) does not act unbecomingly, it does not seek its own, it is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered

😔 I can sadly raise my hand and say I do all these “does nots”. Because I allow myself to be provoked I sometimes act unbecomingly, seek my own and unfortunately will probably replay the encounter over and over in my head when I lay down to go to sleep. Anyone else?? Just me?😳

Thanks to our fearless leader Daisy I love verse mapping, and as I was mapping through the love verses this one wrecked me. I started this particular mapping quest because I want to have good soil for the fruit of the Spirit and love seems to be the basis for all the fruit.

This verse is straightforward. There is no hidden meaning. Quit listening to and acting like the world, Tracy. BE DIFFERENT. Get back to the Philippians 4:8 filter, lean hard into James 1:19, stop acting like the darkness. Jesus doesn’t say blend in He says DENY myself, pick up my cross and follow Him. (paraphrase Matthew 16:24).

Galatians 5:16 But I say, walk by the Spirit and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.

That’s my prayer. Lord, help me today to walk by the Spirit, to not be provoked, to put others first, to check my attitude and for my desire to be to follow Your perfect example.

If any of you have these same struggles or any struggles take heart. 2 Corinthians 2:9-12 tells us that His grace is sufficient and His power is perfected in these struggles. When we are weak He is our strength.

Keep. Pressing. In.

When my beautiful friend messaged me about writing this month- she had no clue (I’m pretty sure) that the date was for what would have been my sweet mommas birthday. I was like wow – couldn’t have asked for a better time to be able to share with others like Momma did.

I began to pray and seek God for His message, and well, nothing was coming through. No confirmation, No billboard signs, nothin lol. Until – in true God fashion, just days before. He brought forth a song that I heard literally several times a day, everyday, during my Mom’s last days and hours with us. And to be honest, I couldn’t tell you the last time I heard it, until well NOW.

“The Hurt and The Healer” by Mercy Me (mannn you need to pull it up by the way).

“….when the hurt and the Healer collide”.

Guys, we are literally surrounded by suffering. Wounded, physically, emotionally, mentally, spiritually- life altering hurts, grieving loss, BROKEN… just. So. Much. And although the enemy loves to hijack our thoughts, and tries to drown out hope- we have a true LIVING HEALER, and the victory is already His!

He does not leave us to be broken and beat down- EVER.

“He heals the broken-hearted and binds up their wounds.” Psalm 147:3 – I love love when God shows me His cool ways through some scripture chasing …

“He heals” – healing : the PROCESS (a series of ACTIONS or steps taken in order to achieve a particular end!) of making or becoming sound or healthy AGAIN- (once more ♥️)

“…. Binds up their wounds “

Binds: to wrap, bandage, tighten

Wounds : an injury to living tissue, caused by a cut, BLOW, or other IMPACT….. broken.

Wow …. Think about the wounds you have sustained over time, or that you are in the middle of right now. The brokenness, sickness, heartache. Whatever it is, God’s Word tells us “He Heals”. It doesn’t say it’s fast, or without hurt, or a magic potion, or even the same “process” for everyone. But, it does say He Heals. Funny how God created our physical bodies to heal through a very similar process.

Check out the process Our Creator in all His magnificent glory created our body (made in His image) to achieve healing –

* stop the bleed

* Inflammation (gonna be a little swollen and banged up friends)

* GROWTH & REBUILDING

* STRENGTHENING (can I get a hallelujah!)

“The God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm, & steadfast.” 1 Peter 5:10

You see my friend, Healing is to come. It may not look like we expect, or when we want, and the process may be refining through the fire – but His healing is like no other. It comes with peace, and hope, and unconditional- unfailing love, from the one and only Perfect GOD.

“….. It’s the moment when humanity is overcome by majesty. When grace is ushered in for good and all our scars are understood. When mercy takes its rightful place, and all the questions fade away. When out of weakness we must bow – and hear you say it’s over now-

I’m alive . Even though a part of me has died. You take my heart and breathe it back to life, I’ll fall into your arms open wide — when the hurt and the Healer collide.” (Mercy Me)

Rather your hurt is physical, emotional, seasonal, daily, or moment to moment- trust the “process”- TRUST His process. This to shall pass. It might pass like a kidney stone 🥴, but…. It will pass. Because HE does not and will not fail you – or break His Word – ever.

I love those little detours I can take while studying God’s Word.  When I find myself back on the main highway, I often have this visual in my mind or a newfound, deeper understanding of a verse or portion of scripture. My recent travels began in Psalm 107:9 ESV “For he satisfies the longing soul, and the hungry soul he fills with good things.” 

Can anyone relate to my tendency to often make poor choices when hungry?  It’s like my brain is no longer engaged, hunger has taken the wheel.  When starving , I can easily compromise my attempts to eat healthy.  Many times it’s easier to grab something of convenience rather than food of real substance. Or what about hunger that is hard to satisfy? No matter what I eat, nothing seems to hit the spot. It’s a never ending search for the satisfaction a perfect meal brings. 

As I began digging into some of the words in this verse, I learned the Hebrew word “longing” means to run or rush about. One source compared it to a beast of prey on the hunt, greedily seeking something to fill the appetite. “Hunger” means to suffer or be famished to the point of  failing strength. Here’s the answer to why we make questionable choices when we’re in this state!

Food provides our body’s need for energy and supports its many functions. Hunger triggers our appetites which send us on the search for food.  Like us, animals search for food in order to satisfy their appetites. When conditions in their natural habitats make food hard to come by, an animal’s hunger will drive it to places and situations that typically by instinct they avoid.  The greater the hunger, the greater the risks are taken and oftentimes, they themselves become prey. 

Merging back on the main highway…

The historical background and context of Psalm 107:9 point to a time when the Israelites were exiled to Baylon due to their idolatry and disobedience. The people tried to find fulfillment in other gods or plainly, they just wanted to do things their way. During this period, the Israelites experienced captivity, displacement, and longing for their homeland. They were “hungry” because they were separated from their true source of satisfaction. This verse is part of a longer psalm that celebrates God’s faithfulness in delivering His people and satisfying them in their time of need. 

We too find ourselves spiritually longing and hungry for something greater, something beyond our earthly existence. We were made to have a relationship with our Creator, the longing and hunger is our souls seeking that connection. To hunger for God is at the core of our being. Ecclesiastes 3:11 tells us, “He has planted eternity in the human heart.”

We can’t ignore this emptiness just like we can’t ignore a growling stomach. If I’m hungry, as much as I like getting a pedicure or buying new clothes, those things will not satisfy my need for food. I can easily get into the habit of just grabbing spiritual snacks like a short prayer, a quick glance at a devotion, etc . when God is calling me to sit and dine with Him. In Him is where I will find that full, satisfying meal. 

What I heard the loudest from The Lord in my time of study is this: many times I may not know I am spiritually hungry. I’ll feel discontentment slide into my space and all of a sudden I’m not liking so many things in my life. The search begins for new “stuff” I think will help me feel more satisfied. And let me not get started on what the emptiness social media can bring to my heart. 

These longings and desires come out of my human nature.  If I’m willing, these longings can serve as an invitation from My Father. An invitation to draw near to Him and find that He satisfies my longing soul and fills my hungry soul with good things. 

.

I never truly understood what true friends were until this past year. I had always had friends that I could sit next to at a football game or eat lunch with, but I always walked away feeling that the closest friends I had were my siblings. While nothing is wrong with that, it helps to have best friends who don’t have to like you because of a blood connection. Anyways, this past year at college, I saw God answer prayers I had grown tired of praying.

At my college, we have to go to chapel three times a week and during this time, we worship and listen to a message. One of the songs that we sang a few times was a modern rendition of the hymn, “What a Friend We Have in Jesus.” As stated above, I never really had deep friendships up from K-12 grade so I would normally sing this song and move on unaffected by it. 

However, there is something so powerful about singing “what a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer” while standing in the middle of ones He’s answered.

The first day I got to Grace College, I met the people who would become my second family. I quite literally was able to stand in the middle of a group of people that didn’t know they were answered prayers. The sheer amount of times I sat in utter shock that God truly provided me with exactly what I needed is more than I can count. 

I say all of this only to ask how many times do we go to God in prayer knowing He can fix/answer it but not necessarily believing He will? 

I always knew that God could answer any prayer I had, but if I’m being truthful, I did not always believe He would. 

A head full of “God-knowledge” and a faithful heart are two entirely different things. It took me until this past year to understand that.

Philippians 4:6 says that, “by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” I love this verse because it does not have any exceptions to what to pray for/about. It simply says to pray. 

I write all of this to encourage you to believe God can and will answer prayers as He seems fit. I always knew God could bring me the friends I needed/need, but I had quietly given up on the belief that He would. He obviously proved me wrong and caused me to reset my prayer life to not only be full of the knowledge that He is able, but also with the belief that He will. 

If God can split seas and cause the rain to cease with two words, He can definitely listen to and answer prayers, so lift them up to Him. He listens and draws us closer through our prayers so use this direct line of communication to deepen your faith in Him!

I know we all have our own story, and although we may not know what others have been through, we probably all have some chapters that are not so good. Maybe even some that are just downright ugly, with tear-stained pages.

I don’t know about you, but I have quite a few – many holding guilt and shame from wrong choices that I have made. They may all be under the blood now, and sometimes I think I have moved far away from them. Unfortunately, the enemy loves to bring them up, trying his best to discourage me.

But God!

He has given us the weapons for warfare in His Word. They are mighty in Him, and we can bring all of those thoughts the enemy tries to discourage us with into captivity. (2 Cor. 10:4)

One perfect example was when Jesus was in the wilderness contending with the devil. In every temptation He used Scripture to shut him down. (Matt. 4)

We can also look at the story of the Apostle Paul and his past, which definitely had some chapters that were not so great…but he encourages us to leave our past behind and look to the future.

Phil. 3:13-14 “The one thing that I do, forgetting what was behind him, reaching forward to the things ahead, pressing toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God”

It doesn’t matter what our past looks like, God still has a plan for our future. (Jer. 29:11)

Romans 8:28 “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”

When the grace of God is released into our lives, it connects us to His provisions, so that we can experience all that He has planned for us.

I am good, just tired.

I am beyond exhausted. I am so tired today…

These seem to be the usual responses from me these days. While praying over what to write and asking God where to go with this, I kept hearing those words over and over.

I am guilty, oh so guilty, so this may be a word just for me. You see we weigh ourselves down with work, stress, worry, sports, concerts,outings and even church events.Not all of these things are bad, but if they are replacing our time with the Lord they are.

If we are too tired to spend time with the Father then we are spending too much time idolizing something else in our life. I know that seems harsh, but it is true.

Scripture says in Matthew 11:28, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest;” and in Exodus 33:14, And he said, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”

He is calling us to spend time in his presence, to find rest in him. Cast your cares on him. We claim to have faith but doubt he can handle our problems, or we don’t feel worthy enough to hand them to him so we carry it around like baggage that we were never meant to hold.

Stop dimming your light with the burdens you are carrying . Lay them at his feet, pick up your word, and spend time with the father. Nurture your relationship with him and watch exhaustion be replaced with joy. We were created for such a time as this. ❤️

Be strengthened and encouraged today as we continue this great race!

I’m a visual person.

For example, when I’m praying for people that are going through hard times I visualize God coming down and wrapping His massive arms around them in a hug. I mean, can you imagine?

That’s just what I do.

Well, our little perfect Instagram vacation that I posted all over the place wasn’t always perfect. There were several hikes that pushed me hard. Like for real, for real. I may or may not have shed a tear or two on one of them.

Thankfully, I have this person in my life that’s constantly rooting for me, constantly pushing me to do my best. So, when that darn hike got so hard that I thought I needed to quit – I visualized her cheering for me. I could hear her saying, “Keep going, Daisy. Do NOT quit. You can do this, and you will.”

That’s my big sister. She’s the most intense person that I know in the best possible way. She loves her people some kind of fierce, and she cheers for them fiercely.

She believes in me when I don’t believe in myself. And she’s been cheering me on my whole life.

If you don’t have a Tiffany in your life – well, I’m just sad for you. Her husband’s favorite verse is Proverbs 27:17 which states iron sharpens iron – that’s what she does. She makes her people better.

Tiffany, I’m thankful for you. For pushing me. For believing in me. And for seeing things in me that I don’t quite see yet. That’s love poured out from God. That’s my sister.

As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another. Proverbs 27:17

Let the Creator of This Universe Create the Desires of Your Heart.

“Delight yourself in the LORD,

and he will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalms 34:7

I can’t tell you how many times I have read this verse and had these thoughts in my mind, “If I can just do better at serving God, THEN I’ll get what I desire.” “If I can just be good enough, THEN I’ll magically start seeing every earthy desire I’ve ever dreamed of come to pass.”

I think so many times, especially here in America, we have the perception that Christianity is flowers and rainbows constantly. Being a christian is easy, right? No way!

We must be intentional in serving Yahweh! There is no amount of spiritual maturity that is going to make your life easier here on earth, but there is an amount of spiritual maturity that will make your life worth the hardship here on earth!

Let’s read the verse again,

“Delight yourself in the LORD,

and he will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalms 34:7

The word “delight” found in the verse is translated to the Hebrew word,

“ânag, aw-nag’; a primitive root; to be soft or pliable.”

We must be soft and pliable towards the things of God! The more we make this a reality in our lives, the more real He will become to us. And He will CREATE NEW DESIRES within us! Our earthly desires no longer hold a grip on us because the reality of God’s word becomes more real to us as we become soft and pliable to Him!