Recently my 7 year old daughter asked me, “Why did God make people?” Which got me thinking because God doesn’t need us, so why would He make us?
Here are some things I found in scripture.
Genesis 1 tells us we were created in God’s image (which is love), we were intended to care for all his beautiful creation (He is sharing it with us!), and also to be fruitful and multiply (making disciples).
Galatians 5:13 says we were called to live freely but not to indulge in that freedom to be selfish but to use that freedom to serve others.
Deuteronomy 4:24 tells us that God is a jealous God. He wants us to want a relationship with him. The King of Kings WANTS you!
Ultimately we were made to: Love God’s creation Love others Love God
But how awesome is it to know that God didn’t make us because He needed us but because He WANTS us and wants us to experience all this love! ❤️
“And David realized that the Lord had confirmed him as king over Israel and had blessed his kingdom for the sake of his people Israel.” (2 Samuel 5:12).
Could this possibly have been an “Aha!” moment in King David’s life? Earlier in the chapter we find that David is once again anointed as king and has captured the city of Jerusalem, which as we know, becomes the political and spiritual center of Israel. David has grown in power and wealth recognized by all. According to Webster’s Dictionary, an “Aha!” moment is defined as a “moment of sudden realization, inspiration, insight, recognition, or comprehension.”
Perhaps David finds himself looking out over his kingdom and begins to reflect upon all that God has done in his lifetime. Scenes of his past replay in his mind as David examines the evidence not of his own ability, but of God’s promises, goodness, and divine purpose for his life. His revelation-it is God who has established him and has provided constant guidance and favor upon his life-all of it for the sake of His people.
If I’m being honest and completely human, I sometimes let life keep me from looking for the evidence of God’s divine operation in my life (both past and present). Life can often feel like it’s “for the sake of” many things right? There’s the never-ending to-do lists, laundry to finish, bills to pay, meals to prepare…
I cherish the moments of revelation and insight that come when I sit with My Father and His Word, allowing the Holy Spirit to help me see with spiritual eyes the evidence- “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, and who have been called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28)
My friend, may you see the evidence of God’s goodness and purposes today and always. -Lisa
All throughout my history
Your faithfulness has walked beside me
The winter storms made way for spring
In every season, from where I’m standing I see the evidence of Your goodness
Has anybody else felt it? The soft push to do something?
You know it’s there. You know it’s from God, but the doubt is creeping in and making you unsure.
For the past month God has been nudging me to go deeper down a path. All the signs are pointing towards it. I keep making excuses even though there might as well be huge light up signs saying “GO THIS WAY!”
I’ve had people reach out confirming what I know, that I need to go deeper down this path the Lord is leading me down.
But I was scared and I shrugged it off. So I asked for God to give me a sign..again. (Insert eye roll emoji)
He confirmed what I already knew—The Lord is calling me deeper still. There is no doubt in my mind now.
Sometimes we like to act like we are imagining the signs and the soft pushes that we feel. Deep down we know it’s from God, but our human nature kicks in and likes to rationalize what we felt.
Where is the Lord calling you?
What is the Lord nudging you to do?
Is He calling you DEEPER STILL?!
It’s okay to be scared… I’m scared. But would God lead us deeper down a path just to forsake us?
It is going to be uncomfortable and it’s going to be hard. Have peace knowing that if you’re being called deeper into something, it’s for a reason.
Romans 8:28 tells us “We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to His purpose.”
Where is the Lord calling you, friends? What is He asking you to do? Is He calling you deeper?
And I married the most spontaneous, adventurous man in the world. He is literally scared of nothing.
Opposites attract, right?
Last week we road ATVs through the mountains, and I literally thought I was going to meet my maker. I was for real riding in fear. While the husband and kids were having the time of their life I was praying through in the back seat.
We took the family picture though. You know the one. We are all smiling and look like we are living our best life. You can see from the picture Frank took of just me that I in fact was living my worst life.
I said all of that to say this:
Don’t let the pictures fool you. Don’t let social media talk you into a trap of self-doubt, self-loathing, and of being self-conscious. Don’t compare your real life to their Insta post.
I smiled for the picture, but I wasn’t smiling on the inside.
You don’t know the pain behind their pictures. You don’t know the struggle behind their smiles. You for real don’t know what other people are battling.
Don’t compare your life to their pictures. A picture is just a visual representation of the outside – not the inside.
After all, filters are fake.
I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. Psalm 139:14
This past year has been a bit difficult for me. I’ve had some big life impacting decisions to make. I’ve had to decide on where to go to college, what specific program will prepare me for what I want to do, and if it was truly God who was calling me away to college–specifically, to a small school in the cornfields of Indiana. To say it plainly, these types of decisions do not make a light load for a seventeen year old, especially one who struggles to decide what she’s having for lunch, much less what her career is going to be!
With all of these big life questions circling my head, I have always wondered if it’s truly God telling me to move or not. Are my own wants and desires driving me to move? Are my life long friends who live in Indiana the reason that I want to go? Is it truly God’s calling and will for me to leave the security and safety of my home?
One random afternoon when I was thinking about all of these questions, the song “Firm Foundation” by Cody Carnes came on. As I listened, I connected with the lyric, “I’ve still got joy in chaos, I’ve got peace that makes no sense.” Two weeks later at church camp, I heard that “if what we suspect to be God’s calling for our life has this supernatural peace surrounding it, it’s more often-than-not His voice.” That supernatural peace is a peace that makes no sense in the midst of the chaos. I thought about what I felt God is calling me to and I am one hundred and ten percent at peace with it. This peace is the kind I could never force myself to have or even try to make up; it is simply there.
Paul reminded the Philippians that “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Jesus Christ.” (Phil 4:7) After praying about what I thought He was calling me to do and comparing what I felt He was saying to His word, I whole-heartidly believe that this is a true calling from Him. So, in less than a month, I will be leaving to go to college in Indiana to pursue a degree in Ministry…in the middle of the cornfields.
Who knows? I could be totally wrong. I could be missing something, but I’m taking this step in faith based on the evidence and the peace that God has given me. I know that if God is not in this, that He will reveal that to me clearly once I get there. I do know this though…I’ve got a peace that makes no sense, and that doesn’t just come from just anywhere.
If God is calling you to do something, whether it’s move across the country or to simply reach out to someone you haven’t spoken to in a while, I encourage you to truly pray and meditate on it and see if it is God. If it is, He will give you that supernatural peace and a simple “Yes Sir” would probably be the best answer!
If it has”peace that makes no sense,” Go for it! The creator might be trying to call you to a part of something bigger than you know!
In the last two weeks I’ve witnessed God answer two different prayers of mine – one being a long-term prayer and one being a short-term prayer.
Testify.
Years and years of praying on that first one.
Years and years of not giving up.
And if I’m being honest – years of questioning God.
But now I stand in awe of God’s timing.
I stand in awe of a faithful God.
I stand in awe.
And friend if you were standing in front of me today – I would put my hands on your shoulders, look you straight in the eyes, and I would say – DON’T. GIVE. UP.
Don’t give up on your prayer.
Keep praying.
Keep praising.
Today whatever need you have – bring it to God. Then bring it to Him the next day. And the next. And the next.
Don’t give up on your heart’s desire.
Don’t give up on God.
This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. 1 John 5:14
This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him.” 1John 5:14-15
Choose to love.
Choose to forgive.
Choose to be faithful.
Choose to be kind.
Choose joy.
Choose to take one more step forward.
Without the work of the Holy Spirit those choices are impossible. And so many times, I ignore His voice and choose selfishness, insecurity, resentment, discouragement and discord. But the moment I look up from the middle of the mess I’ve made – the bottom of the hole I’ve dug – My good shepherd pulls me out and cleans me up again.
And I can pray with confidence that He hears me and will answer me because it is in agreement with His will.
When I choose to move forward- he sends a breeze behind me.
When I choose joy – I hear the birds singing with me.
When I choose to be kind – It multiplies.
When I choose to be faithful- I see His constant hand of provision.
When I choose to forgive- He gives me perspective and breaks my heart over my own sin.
When I choose to love – His pure deep immeasurable love consumes me.
We celebrated 20 years of marriage last week and I am so thankful that God brought us and has kept us together. It has not been easy, but it has been so good! It has been daily choosing to love and forgive each other and God faithfully blessing that choice.
Whatever choices and tasks you have to make today – give them to Jesus. Lay them at his feet. Big or small, simple or heart wrenching. He will take them. He will bring you joy in obedience and surrender.
Father, today I ask for your joy to fill me as I work. The tasks ahead of me are not things that I want to do, and I am tempted to be discouraged but you have given me this day and know all that is set before me. So, fill me with your joy and wisdom as I set to work. Let me do it for your glory! Father, it is hard for me to love today and to set aside selfishness and resentment. Forgive me and help me to love the way you love. Thank you for being faithful to forgive me. I know it is not your will for our family to live in discord. Help us to allow the Holy Spirit to work in our hearts and bind us together in your love. Thank you for the victory you have given us over the sinful desires we face daily. We are so undeserving of your grace and would be so lost without your presence. Thank you for your faithfulness!
We’ve all heard it: the only constant is change. It’s true. Life is constantly changing in big and small ways. Right now, I just happen to be in the middle of some of life’s bigger changes. I’m resigning my part time ministry position. My oldest son moved into his first college apartment. My middle son leaves for college next month. My youngest is going into 8th grade this school year. We put our house on the market and are looking for another one. Lots going on. Lots to be anxious about.
Anxiety. I write about it alot. It’s a thing for me, something I struggle with. I handle it in a variety of ways – counseling, medication, prayer and worship. I try to remember that worrying is a way of saying that we don’t trust God for the outcome. That knocks me back every time. Of course I trust God. But do my words and actions reflect that trust?
How can I know that God is trustworthy? The past. My past shows me ways that God has been trustworthy in the past. The Bible shows me how God was trustworthy over and over. That is one of the reasons I love the book of Exodus. I follow the same patterns as the Isrealites. They mess up. They cry out to God. God saves them. They obey God. Things go well. They mess up again and the cycle starts all over.
I try to stay in the obedience part of the cycle. I try to remind myself of God’s truths. Here are two that have been helpful for me lately:
He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. Colossians 1:17
Jesus knows everything, holds everything and keeps everything together. Why can’t I trust him to know me, hold me and keep me together?
The other is a song by Ellie Holcomb – Red Sea Road. Here’s the chorus:
We will sing to our souls
We won’t bury our hope
Where He leads us to go
There’s a Red Sea road
When we can’t see the way
He will part the waves
And we’ll never walk alone
Down the Red Sea road
More of Exodus to revive me and renew my trust. My God knows me, He gets me, He provides for me. I can trust him.
My father died when I was five, and our little family of four moved in with my mother’s parents. Papa was almost 80, Mama nearly 60. My two younger brothers and I were often herded to the porch when we were too noisy or too underfoot. Magical things happened on that porch when we were with Papa. We had front row seats to hummingbirds in mimosa trees and lightning bugs at night. The porch was our stage for performances of all kinds – circus acts, concerts with pinecone microphones, and so many tall tales. Papa was our patient audience of one.
The porch was the place Papa went to smoke his pipe. In my mind, I can still see him with one foot up on the rail, smoking his Sir Walter Raleigh pipe tobacco. We wanted to be just like him. He made us corncob pipes, and the four of us would “smoke” and talk on the porch. To be truthful, we did the talking, and he did the listening. A quiet man with a big heart, Papagave his life to Christ in his fifties when our momma and her sister were little girls. From that time, he was a new man. Each Sunday, he drove to a nearby town to pick up the preacher for church, to their house for lunch and a nap, back to church Sunday night, then back home again.
As I read through the numerous genealogies of 1 Chronicles, I amreminded of Jeremiah 29:11: “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” I see God’s faithfulness in providing our family a safe place to grieve and heal. Papa taught us how to whittle and how to garden. He took us to church and tolerated our shenanigans, but the most important things he gave us were security and unconditional love. He lived by a standard that guided us closer to knowing Jesus as Savior. I’ve learned that our heritage matters, but it’s not the DNA that matters the most. It is God living in us! I give thanks that we have a heavenly Father who knew us and chose us before we were born.
Romans 8:15 tells us, “For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons and daughters by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!” Daddy God! Lord, You alone are worthy of all we have to give. You are our Audience of One, the Lover of our souls. Help us to remember to “give thanks in all circumstances,” for this is Your will for us in Christ Jesus.
Rays of Sunshine inc 