Category: Faith

Grace Goals for October

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My anxiety doesn’t come from thinking about the future but from wanting to control it.

Hugh Prather

The topic of anxiety has been in my thoughts this October. I have been reading about how chronic anxiety is affecting our lives in unhealthy ways. Many are seeking sedatives to help them cope with stress. Many are experiencing emotional, spiritual, and sometimes physical paralysis due to excessive anxiousness. A few signs of a nervous mindset:

  • Restlessness
  • Insomnia
  • Difficulty going to sleep and staying asleep
  • Difficulty concentrating
  • Muscle tension
  • Excessive worrying
  • Fatigue
  • Irritability
  • Easily startled
  • Overeating or Undereating
  • Chest pains

Sadly, I can put a ‘checkmark’ next to most of these in doing a ‘personal checkup’ on how I am doing in this area. It is quite disheartening!

Along with thoughts on anxiety, I was reminded of Philippians 4:6-7, “Be careful for nothing: but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

Anxiousness can be all about control and perfectionism. I worry that things won’t turn out ‘just right’ or how I imagined they should. I get concerned about what the future holds. Being too careful about issues holds stress in and blocks grace out. I am guided to let it go. But not just that. I am instructed to replace that anxiety, the negative energy, the unproductive worry with something productive. And right there is the key: anxiety is never productive when it breaks down mental and spiritual stability. I am given an active step to take. I am to transport from myself all the worry, all the stress, all the questions …every thing to God with a thankful heart. I want to ask, “Is that it? That is all there is to it?” It sounds too simple to just stop worrying and to start praying. I wonder if this is not about worrying versus praying, but more about where I place my trust – in myself or in the One who gave His life for me. Another way to look at “be careful for nothing” is “be distressed for no reason”. Through the action of making my requests known to God, I acknowledge my humanness and His sovereignty. In doing this thankfully, I recognize that I do not have to carry any burden and that He will bear it for me. Only then will I have the promised peace, the stability of heart and mind, which cuts through my human understanding.

Being thankful, contented with what I already have and in what God can do, comes through a willful shift of the mind and heart, the purposeful handing over the heavy cloak of control.  I am not only given an active step to take in place of worrying. I am not only promised peace by letting go of control, but I am also given something else to think about in place of doubts and fears.

Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Philippians 4:8

My self-inflicted wounds caused by anxiety have never been found worthy of any good. Christ’s wounds, however, were for my benefit and for God’s glory. If I can trust Christ for salvation, for eternal security in Heaven, surely I can trust Him for earthly security on earth, for the day to day, for every little thing. Daily, I have a choice as to where I will put my trust. Daily, I can opt to live in a prison of anxiety – robbed of peace, sleep, and focus – or I can embrace the peace of God and trust that He knows my needs and cares and has a plan unfolding right now ready to be revealed in His timing.

The presence of anxiety is unavoidable, but the prison of anxiety is optional.

Max Lucado

God’s Purposes

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God’s purposes are not for me to understand His plan: His plan is for me to understand who He is.

Fixed on Faith 14

Advocate. Bread of Life.

Chief Shepherd. Comforter.

Deliverer.

Emmanuel (“God with us”). Everlasting Father.

Foundation. Friend of Sinners.

Guide.

I Am. Life. Light. Love. Master. Mediator.

Messiah. Mighty God. Physician. Prince of Peace.

Purifier.

Ransom. Redeemer. Refuge.

Savior. Teacher. Truth. The Way.

Wonderful Counselor. The Word.

The True Vine who nourishes and sustains, giving me energy and life so that I may live for Him effectively.

Faith Is Confidence

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Faith must be tested because it can be turned into a personal possession only through conflict…the final thing is confidence in Jesus. Believe steadfastly on Him and all you come up against will develop your faith…Faith is unutterable trust in God, trust which never dreams that He will not stand by us.

Oswald Chambers

We can face Monday and any other day in faith with confidence. When approached by two blind men crying for mercy, Jesus asked, “Believe ye that I am able to do this?” and they answered, “Yea, Lord.” He then touched their eyes and told them that they would be healed according to their faith (Matthew 9:28). Pretty strong stuff.

According to my faith, how much can God do in my life?

According to my confidence in His power to heal, to change, to move mountains, how much can He do?

When my husband was trying to communicate to his VA doctor that his hip pain was more than arthritis, that the severe degeneration in his hips was causing great pain and discomfort affecting his ability to move and work, we did not know how long it would take for something to be done. God’s time frame and our time frame are often in different time zones. All the frustration we felt melted when we saw God’s hand in it all – the timing, the surgeon, the hospital, and even the physical therapy. How much time did I spend fretting and worrying instead of choosing to be confident that God knew everything and that He had a plan for surgery, for an amazing surgeon, and for a very helpful in-home physical therapist? Fretting and worrying are never a wise use of my time or energy.

While my husband cannot work at present, we are dependent on his VA disability medical benefits. Due to a complete hip replacement, the benefits should temporarily increase. We worried whether or not the increase in means would come in. It did. Not when we expected it to, but it came through. God came through.

He only asks for ‘faith as a grain of mustard seed’ (Matt 17:20). That does not sound too complicated, right? And yet, most times, I fret and worry, and I feel anxious. Does God fret? Does He worry? Is He feeling anxious?

Isn’t He all-wise, all-knowing, all-present, all-powerful? He is everything good and right and holy in times when I trust, and even when I choose not to.

Faith is stretching out my hand in confidence: ”Lord, I believe; help thou my unbelief”. (Mark 9:24)


Faith is Conviction

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You never can measure what God will do through you if you are rightly related to Jesus Christ. Keep your relationship right with Him, then whatever circumstances you are in, and whoever you meet day by day, He is pouring rivers of living water through you, and it is of His mercy that He does not let you know it…It is the work that God does through us that counts, not what we do for Him.

Oswald Chambers

We can face Monday and any day with conviction.

  • The conviction that it is not up to us to change another person’s life. It is not our work, but the work of God.
  • The conviction that we do not live merely for ourselves, but that God is using us in whatever circumstances to pour living waters into someone else who is in need of mercy. We may not know how God is using us, but we can know His glory can shine in ways we may not expect.
  • The conviction that our life is not measured in terms of ‘usefulness’ by man’s standards, but by how much worth we put in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ and what He has done and can do through us.
  • The conviction that we are frail and that nothing done in our own power will amount to much. Our emphasis should be on faith in God Himself and in the power He is willing to give if we only seek Him first.

LORD, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is, that I may know how frail I am.

Psalm 39:4

Faith Is Courageous

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Last week, the city of El Paso was greatly shaken by the shooting which took place in a local WalMart. While the city is moving about more, there is still fear and uncertainty surrounding this horrific event. We have a choice as to how to move forward. We can let evil create panic, dismay, and even division or we can look for God’s light to filter through to show us a better way. As Christians, our faith is courageous when we choose to believe that God is not merely a light at the end of the tunnel, but that He is the Light guiding us through it. Courageous faith is believing in Him, that He is faithful during the easy days as well as the oh-so-hard-ones.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

Psalm 23:4

Grace Goals for August

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When you find yourself facing an issue in your life, the purpose or reason or good thing that might come out of it being completely hidden from you–what do you do? Do you worry or fret, become preoccupied with the problem? Do you ignore it or avoid it? Do you complain about it, do you want to run away from it? Or do you see it as a situation in which you might be able to experience the power and grace of God at work? Do you watch for the work of God that is to be done in this situation?

from Patches of Godlight, by Jan Karon

In any situation, do I watch for the work of God or do I panic, doubt, and fear first? This month’s grace goals focus will be about faith and about being on the lookout for the power and grace of God. As for stray gifts, I thought I would wait to be surprised instead of having a specific theme.

Happy August and happy hunting for stray gifts in your life.

What Faith Carries

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July’s blog theme has been about seeking what is necessary for this phase in life’s journey. I have written about letting go of items and emotions that no longer are of benefit in order to move forward effectively in life. To be mindful of the treasures I have and to manage them well has been a continuing work-in-progress.

We are but strangers and pilgrims on this earth and it would be wise to remember this in life. My journey is different than yours, but what we need for each journey is the same. Doubt? Fear? Despair? They have no place in the Christian’s heart. In letting go of excess effects and emotions, I am more able to carry steadfastly confidence, courage, and hope.

“We are not citizens of this world trying to make our way to heaven; we are citizens of heaven trying to make our way into this world. That radical Christian insight can be life-changing. We are not to live so as to earn God’s love, inherit heaven, and purchase our salvation. All those are given to us as gifts; gifts bought by Jesus on the cross and handed over to us. We are to live as God’s redeemed, as heirs of heaven, and as citizens of another land; the Kingdom of God…We live as those who are on a journey home; a home we know will have the lights on and the door open and our Father waiting for us when we arrive. That means in all adversity, our worship of God is joyful, our life is hopeful, our future is secure. There is nothing we can lose on earth that can rob us of the treasures God has given us and will give us.”

Borrowed from Patches of Godlight by Jan Karon

July’s Stray Gifts: Red, White, Blue, The Number Four

The two photos of red flowers are of our crepe myrtle tree and of oleanders. This crepe myrtle has been stepped on quite a few times by our dog running over it to catch a ball and by us when we were planting our Lady Banks rose bush nearby. I thought for sure we had killed it by now, but it’s still alive. I saw the oleanders on UTEP’s campus one day when I took Jonathan to class. Gorgeous! White and blue morning glories are gracing our yard now in various places. And there are four bunches of yellow bells on the bush. We planted them last year and they have come back in full force.

Stable and Satisfied

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Faith does not eliminate questions. But faith knows where to take them.

Elisabeth Elliot

In my last blog entry, The Journey to Less Stuff, I shared about working to live with less. I have been reading a lot of blog posts and articles about simple living and about living satisfied with simple pleasures. Sometimes a lack of contentment in God’s provisions stems from a lack of confidence. I tend to compare my ‘stuff’, status in life, and self to others. What holds me back from fully trusting is not what I have, but what I think I don’t have. I believe, though, that when I am a good steward with what I am graced with and I live well with His graces, contentment follows. And when “Thy will be done” becomes the heart’s desire, it is then that my mind is stable and satisfied with God in the lead.

I may not understand where God has me right now. I may not know why God created me a certain way. But when I take my eyes off Him and look on the lives of others or to self for answers, I lack wisdom.

“If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.”

James 1:5-7

God gives wisdom generously and without scolding when I ask for it in full faith. But when I go back and forth between trusting and uncertainty, He knows that I am like a sea’s wave moved by winds of doubt. And God does not reward a double minded mindset.

Faith in God still has questions. Lots of them. But stability and satisfaction comes from looking to the right Source for the answers and being wise enough to know that God has His own timing in everything to reveal a matter- even if it means something to know only when I get to Heaven. True faith is confident to take those questions to the throne of Grace and leave them there.

Comfort Medicine

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“Now the Lord of peace himself give you peace always by all means. The Lord be with you all.”

2 Thessalonians 3:16

The other day, I went with my dad to his doctor’s appointment at the Veterans Administration. Through different things we were talking about, the doctor mentioned that when he came to work there, medicine regulations were not what they should have been. The VA was prescribing pain medication left and right and just kept renewing the prescriptions. “We’ve created addicts”, he said. They used to prescribe pain medication for six months after a surgery. Since around 2015, they have tried to correct this. Now they only give 2 weeks worth. This doctor is originally from India. He said that we are the only country who prescribes “comfort medicine”. Some medication is necessary, yes, but we have it for just about any ailment, and so easily available. And now that the VA is scaling back on re-prescribing certain medications, there are a lot of upset veterans trying to cope with the change.

But medicine is not the only way in which to seek comfort. We look for it in food, in television, in work, in social media, in the approval of strangers and acquaintances, in unhealthy ways, and in our personal relationships. The world is full of distractions and “remedies” to ease the pain of loneliness, boredom, rejection, discontentment, emotional stress, and more. And we have become addicted to our own ‘comfort medicine’ of choice that is within reach twenty-four hours a day. But the only place to find everlasting peace, the kind that goes way down deep, is through “the Lord of peace himself.”

Today, no matter what we are going through, may we look to the Source of Peace while we wait for medical results and upcoming doctor appointments. May we seek Him while we pray for our children who are struggling to find their footing–the younger and the older alike. May we know His peace when responsibilities weigh heavy. May we pursue the true Peace Maker in difficult relationships, in trying times, and remember Him always by all means. May the Lord be with you all.

The Mark of Mercy

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My favorite time of year is when my roses start blooming and the sweet scent of honeysuckle fills the backyard. Right now the weather is pretty pleasant, but I know it will not last long as triple digit temperatures arrive in May. Even though I have not written much this month, I still am reading about and thinking over my study topic for April, “Seasonal Joys”. With the celebration of Easter this weekend come advertisements for seasonal Easter decorations, clothing, and events. It is a season I look forward to because it is a time of year of growth and vibrancy. Everything seems fresh and new. Seasonal things such as vacations in the summer, pumpkin flavors in the fall, and Christmas music in the winter all have their rewards. There are seasonal jobs and produce as well which rotate in and out.

One thing to keep constant no matter the season is the joy of our faith. Every day we live, we should be celebrating Christ’s death and resurrection in our hearts. He is the heart and soul, the reason for our faith. He calls us to Him daily, loving us, guiding us, and caring that we know Him. If we only celebrate and remember His sacrifice and gift one day out of the year, then we have missed the mark of mercy. Christ’s life, death, and resurrection came to set us free from sin, from guilt, from eternal separation from Him and to lose that focus in every day life surely makes life much more difficult.

Happy Easter. May we celebrate life in Christ with sincerity today, tomorrow, and in our hearts always.