Michelle Weber, She Speaks Graduate
“Fathers, do not exasperate your children, instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.” Ephesians 6:4 (NIV)
Devotion:
I get so excited when I see examples of God’s Word at work in my life, don’t you? Just the other night I experienced the wisdom of today’s verse. In this scripture, the word “bring” is so brilliantly chosen. The dictionary defines “bring” as meaning “to lead, to accompany, to convey.”
In order to “bring” my children up in the training and instruction of the Lord, I must first be within His training and instruction myself, striving to live His word out in front of them. Our children will reject lessons if we merely preach “at” them, so we must seek to set the examples through our very own actions, leading the way and then “bringing” them along with us.
Recently, as everyone was just sitting down at the dinner table, the whining began. “I really need a new cell phone”, “I hate my freckles”, “When can I redo my room?”, “Mom we really need to go to the mall”. I was not in the mood to hear “I need ...”, “I want...”, “When can I...” or “I hate...” How dare they start this sacred time of our day with these petty self-centered complaints and requests? Did I mention they were 11 and 13 year-old girls?
Rather than letting my frustration get ahead of me and begin the familiar lecture on needs vs. wants, and how we need to appreciate what we have, I quickly changed the tone of the conversation and shared what a great day I’d had. It was nothing special or out of the ordinary. In fact, it was quite ordinary. I shared how thankful I was for each of the very ordinary things or events in my day. Hoping to “bring” them along with me, I handed the proverbial ball to my daughters and asked them to tell me about some things in their day for which they were thankful.
Some thought was required at first, but soon they were on a roll. They began rattling off things such as: “I’m thankful for the rain this afternoon,” “I’m thankful mom came and jumped on the trampoline with us today,” “I’m thankful Haley came over today,” “I’m thankful for Bella and that she didn’t run through the invisible fence today,” “I’m thankful everyone worked hard at practice today,” and, “I’m thankful Emily didn’t get hurt today at practice.” Now we were getting somewhere! Through their thankful hearts, they had been “brought” into a loving relationship with God and with each other.
We each revisited our ordinary day with a new perspective. We each shared how our lives had been sprinkled with God’s protection and blessings. We all looked back at a day that could have been easily forgotten and turned it into something special. There was no lecture, no hurt feelings, no exasperated children (or parents), just a great ending to a great day for which we were sure to thank God.
Heavenly Father, I am so thankful for Your instructions on raising strong and Godly children. I am also thankful for the example Your Son is to me as I strive to emulate Him in raising children who glorify You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Related Resources:
Family Enrichment Toolkit, by Michelle Weber,
Bring the Fruit of the Spirit into your heart and home, and strengthen family relationships as you raise virtuous, confident children.
What Happens When Women Walk in Faith, by Lysa TerKeurst
Do You Know Jesus?
Application Steps:
Tonight at dinner ask your family to share even the tiniest things in their day that they’re thankful for. Continue this conversation on a regular basis. Soon, rather than just remembering when asked, they’ll recognize God’s blessings as they’re experiencing them. Now that’s living in God’s presence!
Reflections:
What attitudes and actions can I change in myself so that I can become a better example to those around me?
How can I bring my family to the dinner table more?
Do I notice God’s blessings throughout my day, starting with my children’s sweet faces as I wake them up in the morning?
Power Verses:
Galatians 5:22 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” (NIV)
Ephesians 5:1-2 “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” (NIV)
Proverbs 31 Ministries
616-G, Matthews-Mint Hill Road
Matthews, NC 28105
www.Proverbs31.org
Thursday, March 13, 2008
God Can Handle Even My Greatest Fears, Part One
God Can Handle Even My Greatest Fears, Part One
Lysa TerKeurst
“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” 2 Timothy 1:7 (KJV)
Devotion:
Last week my sister called to tell me that she’d gotten an urgent call from the school nurse. The bad news - her son had gotten choked on a piece of apple. The great news- the nurse was able to successfully do the Heimlich maneuver and he was going to be fine.
I must admit, instantly when I heard the word “choked” my heart seized and my pulse started to race. Even when I heard that my nephew was going to be fine, it still took my heart a while to calm down. You see, I know sometimes these stories don’t end with, “and he’s going to be fine.”
When I was 18 years old, my baby sister tragically died after having surgery. Before the surgery, everyone thought she would be fine. Even the doctors were shocked by what happened.
Do you ever fear something happening to one of your children? For most moms, this is their greatest fear. You see your teenage son drive away from your home and fear grabs your heart. You hear of another child getting diagnosed with cancer and you start asking the “what if” questions. You watch the news reports on a child that has been abducted and you hold yours just a little tighter that night. You know that children die every day from drowning, accidents, and choking and it can make you feel helpless and overly controlling all at the same time.
Having 5 children, I know these fears well. I know their paralyzing affects. I know how it can make you want to just tuck your kids under your wing and never let them leave your side. But I also know that this is not how God wants us to handle our fears. And I know it would not be healthy for my kids to never be able to spread their own wings and fly.
So, I pray. I read God’s truths. I verbalize my trust in Him. And I make the choice to walk in assurance.
In tomorrow’s devotion I’ll expand on each of these steps.
For now, think on that key verse from 2 Timothy 1:7. God does not want us to be held captive by a spirit of debilitating fear. We must believe that with God we have the power to deal with anything life brings our way. We must cling to the reality that God loves us and He loves those that we love. God is a merciful God who keeps our best interest in mind. We can put our runaway minds at ease when we are grounded in God’s truths. The more truth we fill our minds with, the more sound our minds become. Then we can make wise decisions where our kids are concerned not from a worrisome place of fear but rather a wise mindset of complete trust in God.
Dear Lord, help me know You are good even when circumstances are not. Help my unbelief. Help me to make the choice to live fully trusting You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Related Resources:
Visit Lysa’s Blog today for more on how to handle our fears
Order Lysa’s CD message on this topic, “Fear-LESS, Thank-FULL.”
Who Holds the Key to Your Heart by Lysa TerKeurst
Application Steps:
List your greatest fear(s).
How has fearing that affected your choices and behaviors?
Reflections:
How you would you live differently if you were able to fully release that
fear to God?
Power Verses:
1 Peter 5:7, “Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.” (NIV)
1 John 4:18, “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.” (NIV)
Proverbs 31 Ministries
616-G, Matthews-Mint Hill Road
Matthews, NC 28105
www.Proverbs31.org
Lysa TerKeurst
“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” 2 Timothy 1:7 (KJV)
Devotion:
Last week my sister called to tell me that she’d gotten an urgent call from the school nurse. The bad news - her son had gotten choked on a piece of apple. The great news- the nurse was able to successfully do the Heimlich maneuver and he was going to be fine.
I must admit, instantly when I heard the word “choked” my heart seized and my pulse started to race. Even when I heard that my nephew was going to be fine, it still took my heart a while to calm down. You see, I know sometimes these stories don’t end with, “and he’s going to be fine.”
When I was 18 years old, my baby sister tragically died after having surgery. Before the surgery, everyone thought she would be fine. Even the doctors were shocked by what happened.
Do you ever fear something happening to one of your children? For most moms, this is their greatest fear. You see your teenage son drive away from your home and fear grabs your heart. You hear of another child getting diagnosed with cancer and you start asking the “what if” questions. You watch the news reports on a child that has been abducted and you hold yours just a little tighter that night. You know that children die every day from drowning, accidents, and choking and it can make you feel helpless and overly controlling all at the same time.
Having 5 children, I know these fears well. I know their paralyzing affects. I know how it can make you want to just tuck your kids under your wing and never let them leave your side. But I also know that this is not how God wants us to handle our fears. And I know it would not be healthy for my kids to never be able to spread their own wings and fly.
So, I pray. I read God’s truths. I verbalize my trust in Him. And I make the choice to walk in assurance.
In tomorrow’s devotion I’ll expand on each of these steps.
For now, think on that key verse from 2 Timothy 1:7. God does not want us to be held captive by a spirit of debilitating fear. We must believe that with God we have the power to deal with anything life brings our way. We must cling to the reality that God loves us and He loves those that we love. God is a merciful God who keeps our best interest in mind. We can put our runaway minds at ease when we are grounded in God’s truths. The more truth we fill our minds with, the more sound our minds become. Then we can make wise decisions where our kids are concerned not from a worrisome place of fear but rather a wise mindset of complete trust in God.
Dear Lord, help me know You are good even when circumstances are not. Help my unbelief. Help me to make the choice to live fully trusting You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Related Resources:
Visit Lysa’s Blog today for more on how to handle our fears
Order Lysa’s CD message on this topic, “Fear-LESS, Thank-FULL.”
Who Holds the Key to Your Heart by Lysa TerKeurst
Application Steps:
List your greatest fear(s).
How has fearing that affected your choices and behaviors?
Reflections:
How you would you live differently if you were able to fully release that
fear to God?
Power Verses:
1 Peter 5:7, “Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.” (NIV)
1 John 4:18, “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.” (NIV)
Proverbs 31 Ministries
616-G, Matthews-Mint Hill Road
Matthews, NC 28105
www.Proverbs31.org
The Cost of Unbelief
Today God Is First Volume 2 by Os Hillman
Thursday, March 13, 2008
"And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him" (Hebrews 11:6).
How is your faith quotient? On a scale of 1 to 10 where would you rank yourself? Everyday, I marvel at the faith most of us exercise without even thinking about it.
We drive our cars 60-70 miles per hour with an oncoming car doing the same with only a white line and six to eight feet separating us. We place our faith that every car will not cross into our lane. We fly on airplanes that take us over oceans, trusting the pilots with our very lives. We ride on thrilling amusement rides that take us several stories into the air and travel fifty to seventy miles per hour down a winding slope. We trust the operators of that ride with our own mortality.
There is a great irony in the fact that we can place our faith in such things but cannot place our faith in the hands of our Creator. God got angry with one of his priests named Zechariah when he questioned his angelic messenger about his wife becoming pregnant with John the Baptist.
"Zechariah asked the angel, 'How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.' The angel answered, 'I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news. And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their proper time'" (Luke 1:18-20).
Zechariah was struck mute because of his unbelief for nine months until the birth of John the Baptist. What consequence have you suffered from a lack of faith? Jesus is always looking for faith on the earth. Is there an area in your life where you have not been able to trust God? Why not repent of your unbelief and place your faith totally in His hands today.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
"And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him" (Hebrews 11:6).
How is your faith quotient? On a scale of 1 to 10 where would you rank yourself? Everyday, I marvel at the faith most of us exercise without even thinking about it.
We drive our cars 60-70 miles per hour with an oncoming car doing the same with only a white line and six to eight feet separating us. We place our faith that every car will not cross into our lane. We fly on airplanes that take us over oceans, trusting the pilots with our very lives. We ride on thrilling amusement rides that take us several stories into the air and travel fifty to seventy miles per hour down a winding slope. We trust the operators of that ride with our own mortality.
There is a great irony in the fact that we can place our faith in such things but cannot place our faith in the hands of our Creator. God got angry with one of his priests named Zechariah when he questioned his angelic messenger about his wife becoming pregnant with John the Baptist.
"Zechariah asked the angel, 'How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.' The angel answered, 'I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news. And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their proper time'" (Luke 1:18-20).
Zechariah was struck mute because of his unbelief for nine months until the birth of John the Baptist. What consequence have you suffered from a lack of faith? Jesus is always looking for faith on the earth. Is there an area in your life where you have not been able to trust God? Why not repent of your unbelief and place your faith totally in His hands today.
The Eight Points Of Testing
2 Corinthians 2:14
"... thanks be to God who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ ..."
Some of the characteristics of faithfulness are honesty, reliability and a deep concern for truth. Another characteristic is the quality of carrying through on all God's commands to us --- keeping faith to the end.
To help us come through the times of testing everyone has to face at some time, the Holy Spirit builds into us the ability to see things through to the end. One writer has listed the eight fiercest tests a Christian faces in this world in this order:
(1) Humiliation -- a savage and plausible attack on our reputation.
(2) Suffering -- physical, mental or spiritual.
(3) Bereavement -- especially in relation to a loved one whose death was "untimely."
(4) Estrangement or treachery from one's family and friends.
(5) Doubt -- deep, dark and awful.
(6) Failure -- the breaking up of one's life work.
(7) Dereliction -- the sense of being forsaken by God.
(8) A slow, painful and unillumined death.
Not all of us have all of them to meet, but meeting any one of them can be a strong and severe test. How does a Christian triumph in the midst of such fierce testings as are listed above? Any triumph we experience at such times is the triumph of the Holy Spirit. He dwells in us, not just for the pleasure of inhabiting our beings, but to lead us to victory over all our problems. Perhaps you are being called to face one or more of these eight points of testing this very moment. Then take courage -- the Holy Spirit is with you and in you to take you through the fire and bring you out triumphant.
Prayer:
Father, I am grateful that Your Spirit dwells within me to lead me through to victory. Even in my darkest trials You are there, inspiring me and causing me to triumph in all things. Thank You, Father. Amen.
"... thanks be to God who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ ..."
Some of the characteristics of faithfulness are honesty, reliability and a deep concern for truth. Another characteristic is the quality of carrying through on all God's commands to us --- keeping faith to the end.
To help us come through the times of testing everyone has to face at some time, the Holy Spirit builds into us the ability to see things through to the end. One writer has listed the eight fiercest tests a Christian faces in this world in this order:
(1) Humiliation -- a savage and plausible attack on our reputation.
(2) Suffering -- physical, mental or spiritual.
(3) Bereavement -- especially in relation to a loved one whose death was "untimely."
(4) Estrangement or treachery from one's family and friends.
(5) Doubt -- deep, dark and awful.
(6) Failure -- the breaking up of one's life work.
(7) Dereliction -- the sense of being forsaken by God.
(8) A slow, painful and unillumined death.
Not all of us have all of them to meet, but meeting any one of them can be a strong and severe test. How does a Christian triumph in the midst of such fierce testings as are listed above? Any triumph we experience at such times is the triumph of the Holy Spirit. He dwells in us, not just for the pleasure of inhabiting our beings, but to lead us to victory over all our problems. Perhaps you are being called to face one or more of these eight points of testing this very moment. Then take courage -- the Holy Spirit is with you and in you to take you through the fire and bring you out triumphant.
Prayer:
Father, I am grateful that Your Spirit dwells within me to lead me through to victory. Even in my darkest trials You are there, inspiring me and causing me to triumph in all things. Thank You, Father. Amen.
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