It's...the Little Things...

Just now…driving in the car…I got to thinking about this verse…

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;”
Proverbs 3:5

For some reason…when I think of trusting the Lord…with anything in my life, I think of that act as a mental assent. You know…I am choosing with my thoughts and actions to trust Him. However, for some reason, the phrase “with all your heart” spoke to me. (I admit…I am a little dense.)

What I am sensing the Holy Spirit saying to me is that I am to trust…entrust…hand over…my emotions and my affections that surround the outcome, the behavior, the person, or the circumstance that I am…trusting the Lord with currently. Wow.
I know…not rocket science. Yet...this added a whole new dimension for me about…trusting Him. Actually surrendering my emotions, for…His emotions about…whatever I am facing. So…

That is a HUGE blessing. Another arena of release and…relief. Where He carries my heart…in His powerful…but gentle hands. Yes…yes, indeed…that is a relief.

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photo: Delta Breezes

A Fragrant Outpouring...

There is an event that has been talked, taught, and...sung about…

“Then Mary took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard, anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil.”
John 12:3

Can anything more be said? And yet...

We have to know…that Mary’s gift…was not only monetarily of great cost…but the oil had to have been…the treasure of her heart. We women…(guys, don’t check out, here!)…we have deep emotional attachments to…things. Right or wrong…we…do.

Possibly this was a treasured gift from Mary’s father…or mother. Maybe the aromatic oil was paid for with pennies Mary had saved since she was but a wee one…for her wedding consummation day. A treasure hidden and tucked away. Something Mary would steal glimpses at…waiting…for the special time when her heart would be released to dab a little…behind her ears. Possibly this oil…was meant to last a…lifetime.

Whatever it was to Mary…it was hidden deep in her emotions. Its outpouring, an act of greatest love…adoration…and sacrifice. Because if Mary was going to give something for the Savior’s benefit…it would be given with all that she had…in her…heart. And pour it out…she did.

And the gift back? An inescapable fragrance that filled…the room…the atmosphere…that lingered long with those it came in contact with.

That is what a surrendered life is…and does…it leaves an indelible impression on the lives it touches. I want that to be me…Lord.
2 Corinthians 2:14-15

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Let's Prepare...

If you are reading this…it is most likely a Saturday evening or a Sunday morning…

“Go through, Go through the gates!
Prepare the way for the people;
Build up, Build up the highway!
Take out the stones,
Lift up a banner for the peoples!”
Isaiah 62:10

It kinda goes with the territory that I fellowship with a local church…quite regularly. It kinda helps that I am married to a pastor. And…

Like most church gatherers (for we don’t “go” to church…we ARE the church…right?), well…those church participants of the female persuasion, I clean up: I wash my hair, put on make-up, find some clean jeans and a not too goofy t-shirt to wear.

I prepare my English muffin with almond butter and a good cup of coffee. I find my Bible, my purse, my phone. I prepare…almost everything…but do I prepare my heart?

Am I prepared to welcome a move of the Holy Spirit during worship? Am I prepared to be good soil so that His Word spoken and taught will go deep in me…and bear fruit? Am I prepared to pray for the sick, the broken, the lost? Have I invited the Lord to work through me with His gifts?

Just food for thought…let’s go…and take a few moments…to truly prepare…what’s important…

photo: Made From Scratch

Releasing the Debt

This is one of those times I am writing for someone in particular…no…I don’t know who it is, but someone needs to hear this:

It is time to take care of some unforgiveness in your life. In other words…it is time to let go and forgive…yes, truly forgive everyone that you need to. It is harming you far more than you could possibly imagine.

Right now…as you read this…some name(s) are going through your mind (and heart).

Some of these persons have done some horrendous hurts to you either mentally, emotionally, and/or physically. It seems impossible to forgive them. However, in the power of the Holy Spirit, the Lord will help you to release their “debt” to you in layers. One peel back of unforgiveness at a time. It will take time…but Jesus has all the time in the world. You have to start somewhere.

“And forgive us our debts, 
As we forgive our debtors.”
Matthew 6:12

The Lord continues His message a few verses later (vs.14-15)…saying you won’t be able to truly experience the Lord’s forgiveness for you…as long as you hold onto these hurts. Of course, there is too much to say here in this short message…however…if you have been around Jesus for a while…you know this is the heart of the gospel…forgiveness is HIS heart…always.

So…take some time…now…not later. Start laying some names before the Lord and asking for His help. He will not fail you (nor the perpetrators)…He will bring release, healing, and redemption. But it starts with you saying…a simple… “Yes, I am ready Lord.”

photo: Valitova

Lavish Love...His

How massively, lavishly, intensely, intentionally, wonderfully He loves us!

"I will betroth you to Me forever; Yes, I will betroth you to Me In righteousness and justice In lovingkindness (unfailing love) and mercy; I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness, And you shall know the LORD."
Hosea 2:19-20

I am reminded that Jesus is forever and foremost after my heart and affections. He is not that interested in what I "do" for Him or how much I accomplish for His Kingdom. Those things are of much lesser value to Him and will naturally fall into my place when I am walking with Him in "first love."

What matters most to Jesus is a heart like King David, "I will seek your beauty..." (Ps. 27), and Mary, of Mary and Martha fame, "She has desired the one thing..." as she merely sat at His feet to hear His voice.

How grateful I am for....Jesus heart towards me...His wayward beloved!

Lord, I give you my heart this moment...all of it. I love you with all that is in me. I make You alone the object of all of my affection and delight...Amen

photo: Ginger Ricks