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Articles from July 2015

Change: Re-Focus!

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There’s an old saying, “If nothing changes, nothing changes.” As believers in Christ Jesus, we are called to change. Join me this week and consider some aspects of change in our lives as we walk with the Lord. Is there anything that you need changed?

 

Re-Focus!

The Lord is my Shepherd; I have all that I need. He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams. 

Psalm 23:1-2, NLT

Friday_Day_Five_Pic-Jesus_The_Good_ShepherdIn my introduction this week, I mentioned an old saying that, “If nothing changes, nothing changes.” But if we realign our focus, change often occurs, because change always involves a refocusing in some form or another. One of the most important and rejuvenating changes we can make is to take time to regularly focus our attention on God. I know that I’m best able to discern the changes that the Lord puts before me when I get quiet and concentrate exclusively on Him. This allows me to come before His presence and reverence Him. I remember what He’s done in my life. I consider what He continues to do and promises to do in the future, just because He loves me. I thank Him for how He’s brought me through numerous difficult, heartbreaking, and uncertain times and never once abandoned me. Can you relate?

Read today’s Dose verse. It’s just one example of the countless number of occasions that David did this very thing. Here, he focused on God as his Shepherd. Since David was himself a shepherd, he knew the importance of a shepherd’s role in providing provision and protection for his sheep. Every one of us who has placed our faith and lives in Christ Jesus is one of His dependent sheep. David reminds us that God meets all of the needs of His sheep because He knows better than we do what we need and, He wants what’s best for us.

As we seek to have our lives changed by Him, He directs us away from areas where we could be tempted to stumble; and, even when we fall, He can bring us back from our failures, hurts, and suffering. I’m constantly awed by the changes God has worked in my life and the lives of other believers. When we focus on Him and see how far we’ve come as He grows us, we find rejuvenation for our souls and motivation for our hearts to press on with Him another day.

My friend, you can be encouraged today in knowing that the Good Shepherd provides all the needs of His sheep and walks with us through every change. He does all of this because of His great love for us as well as His desire to have us become more and more like Him.

Are you focused on the Good Shepherd today, or do you need to make some changes to come into His fold?

By grace through faith,

Rita

[Read all of Psalm Chapter 23 for David’s full reflection]

Change: About Those Plans!

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There’s an old saying, “If nothing changes, nothing changes.” As believers in Christ Jesus, we are called to change. Join me this week and consider some aspects of change in our lives as we walk with the Lord. Is there anything that you need changed?

 

About Those Plans!

“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the LORD. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” 

Jeremiah 29:11, NLT

Yesterday we considered God in the ways we think; today let’s consider Him in our life plans.

Thursday_Day_Four_Pic_#2-snailOne hot day I saw a snail trying to make its way across the sidewalk. I suspected that it was planning to get to the coolness of the grass on the other side. I watched for a while and it was taking a long time because it was, well … a snail!  It was a snail moving at a snail’s pace. But, I knew that if the snail continued with its plan, to move at a snail’s pace across that big sidewalk, it was likely to get crushed. A group of children were racing up and down the sidewalk across the snail’s path, unaware that it was even there. I wanted to help the snail move out of the danger zone, so I reached down and attempted to turn it in the other direction.

Have you ever tried to move a snail along? It dug in and became rigid and hard to move. I actually had to pull it up to move it in another direction. It was like lifting a suction cup! And, it left a slimy smear on the ground as evidence of its resistance to change! Aren’t we like that with our plans sometimes? We’re doing what comes naturally to us, unaware of potential danger, and don’t know or consider that God has good planned for us. And, if we’re prompted to change our plans, we delay that altogether or move at … a snail’s pace to accomplish them!

Thursday_Day_Four_Pic_#1-Jeremiah_VerseRead today’s Dose verse. It refers to God’s plans for the Israelites; He had plans that they’d be brought back to Him and they could have hope in knowing that He has a future for them. God has plans for us too; good plans for our future, which He reveals when we adjust our life plans to be aligned with His. We can stop going our own way and turn to follow His direction. But, like the snail, we can find it very uncomfortable to realign our plans. It may initially feel as though we’re leaving parts of ourselves behind, like that slimy little smear from the snail, but we’ll be headed to a better future than we ever even dreamed of—a future which God specifically tailored for us.

Sister, be encouraged today in knowing that God has made good plans for your life. Are you willing to change your plans for His?

By grace through faith,

Rita

Change: Stinkin’ Thinkin’!

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There’s an old saying, “If nothing changes, nothing changes.” As believers in Christ Jesus, we are called to change. Join me this week and consider some aspects of change in our lives as we walk with the Lord. Is there anything that you need changed?

 

Stinkin’ Thinkin’!

Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

Romans 12:2, NLT

Wednesday_Day_Three_Pic-New_Mindset_Stickies“If only I could stop doing such and such! I really must stay away from that, or them, or whatever the temptation is. After all, shouldn’t I try really hard to behave differently from the world now that I’m a Christian?” Have you ever had ideas like these rolling around in your brain unit?

Read today’s Dose verse. It tells us to allow God to change our thinking, so that how He wants us to behave will be clear. Our behavior and habits will change when our thought patterns change. I haven’t read anywhere in the Bible that if we try really hard, we can, by our own willpower, stop copying worldly habits and behaviors. This is just stinkin’ thinkin’. But if you’re like me, you tend to hold onto that ol’ stinkin’ thinkin’ way past any point of usefulness it may have ever held for you.

Stinkin’ thinkin’ says, “I believe God saved me, but now I need to do my part and change all of my behavior.” But what do you do when that vulgar language you still use (despite your best efforts to cease) starts to sound really bad in your own ears? How about that awkward and uncomfortable feeling you get now when you participate in gossip, like you’ve done many times before, especially if you’ve at any point informed your fellow gabby-gossips of your conversion to Christianity?

Could it be that the awkwardness of these situations are all indicators that the Holy Spirit is alive and working in your heart, prompting you to change how you think? We behaved in certain ways because on some level, we could live with that behavior without feeling increasingly uncomfortable. When we follow the practices and behaviors of this world, we plunge right into selfish patterns and damaging reliance on unhealthy people and things.

As a believer, we’re now being convicted that continuing in our ungodly thoughts, habits, and behaviors is not honoring to God, our testimony, or our new lives.

God desires to change us from inside outward. As we follow the prompting of the Holy Spirit in our lives, He works changes in us, which transforms us into new people, and we accordingly demonstrate outward changes in what we say and do.

Be encouraged today in knowing that God will help us change our ungodly behaviors as we allow Him to change how we think.

Precious one, don’t you want to be changed from stinkin’ thinkin’?

By grace through faith,

Rita