The Middle

The Middle

by | May 10, 2016 | Romans

The Middle | One Verse

New beginnings are celebrated and endings are expectantly awaited, but what do we do with the middle? In restlessness we try to hurry up time and skip through the moments in between; we overlook the purpose in of the middle.

When the newness of a beginning wears off and the excitement of the end feels distant, we feel stuck. Trials come and distress sinks in. Unforeseen obstacles, mountains to climb and rivers to cross loom and we doubt if an end will come. When the middle seems rough, we can find hope in God’s promises.

Romans 5:3-5 says, “3 We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. 4 And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. 5 And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.”

The middle is not void of purpose. It is the time where God develops us. When all we can do is just put one foot in front of the other, he’s building endurance. With God, the middle is more than just the space that strings the beginning to the end. The middle becomes an essential time of purposeful preparation.

To experience the fullness that God intends for it, we can’t treat it like a sprint. When we relinquish control of the pace and embrace the full length of the marathon, God can fully developed our character and strengthening the hope of our salvation.

Driven by the Word and the sheer love of Jesus, we can step on the other side of the finish line. In the hidden moments, in the forgotten spaces, God develops within us what it takes to complete our race. In His hands no hour goes to waste.

As you endure the middle, consider these questions:

1. Are you rushing through your middle or are you pursuing its purpose?
2. How are you handling the length of your middle? Joy? Anger?
3. As you wade through the middle, in what way is your character being developed?

With God’s leading, we all have the ability to walk through the middle. Today, may you house the perseverance to keep walking and discover the purpose of the moments in the middle.

Seeing Clearly

Seeing Clearly

by | Apr 7, 2016 | Proverbs

“For The Lord sees clearly what a man does, examining every path he takes.” –Proverbs 5:21

With billions of people in the world, it‘s easy to feel unnoticed. Even in such the vast space of creation, The Lord sees us. He watches the paths we take. He knows the state of our hearts.

We may try to mask pieces of our lives from those around us, but The One who has created us sees beyond our disguises. He doesn’t view our lives through rose-colored glasses. He transparently sees all of our mess and He still loves us.

For us as Christ Followers, this is good news. Without His wisdom we struggle to find the correct path. Conviction from The Lord wakes us up to the reality of our desperate need of Him. Through His accountability and conviction, we will be steered to the right path.

In order to understand the path to take we must maintain a relationship with God. Often, in the hurry of life we make rash decisions and start trailblazing after a new idea without being led. We want to push forward. We want to lead. We want to innovate. But without God’s leadership, we end up just running off blindly without guidance.

Regardless of what path you’ve been on or are on currently, God extends His grace. He can redeem all paths for His glory. Find peace in knowing that your path isn’t too far off for Him to find you.

Consider your path with these questions:

    1. If you sense you are on the wrong path, what can you do to change directions?

    2. Is there someone you can talk to about helping you with the U-turn you need to make?

    3. If you are on the path God has led you on, what are some things you need to do to not make a wrong turn?

God has plans for you and desires to lead you down a path filled with hope. May you find the courage to reroute when needed and the endurance to sustain a straight path towards Him.

Seeing Clearly

Discipline of Words

by | Jan 18, 2016 | Proverbs

Proverbs 15: 4-5

4 Gentle words are a tree of life; a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit.

 

We’ve all said things we wished we hadn’t. Words needed to be breathed back in quicker than they came out of our mouth.

We didn’t mean them.

We saw the hurt.

The tears in their eyes.

We instantly regret them…

 

I’ve been on the receiving end of these words. I’ve also dropped them like bombs.

These words bring guilt, shame, and condemnation. Neither way is an opportunity to forget. We rewind the tape in our heads over what was said to us. Or, we beat ourselves up because we can’t believe we actually said…THAT.

The one thing I’ve learned about how I best deal with crucial conversations or critical conflict is to wait.

Not utter a word.

Give myself 48 hours minimum to craft words that benefit the person and the situation.

Words are meant to be builders, not destroyers. Encouraging not discouraging.

Bring restoration to the conflict and watch how those words heal.

Healing words are the tree of life. Watch and see the blooms you create when your words are soothing.

 

5 Only a fool despises a parent’s discipline: whoever learns from correction is wise.

 

Discipline is such a hard word to comprehend. But harder still, to do.

Don’t walk away from those placed in authority over you. They have wisdom beyond your understanding. There’s a reason we all have those in authority over us. We need it.

 

It is a hand’s on lesson in course correction. As we receive the discipline it causes us to learn to be wise. Patient in our thought processes. Better choices are made.

 

Yearn for this discipline. Walk in it.

 

Want to be wise.

 

 

Ask For It

by | Jan 1, 2016 | Proverbs

Proverbs 14:8-9

The prudent understand where they are going, but fools deceive themselves. Fools make fun of guilt, but the godly acknowledge it and seek reconciliation.

What does your future look like? Has a plan been made? Do you have it all mapped out to the last detail?

Wise planning.

Discipline.

Effort.

These things are needed to stay on the path God has led you to. You have to do your part. A prudent plan requires prudent daily decisions.

I don’t want to make a decision that is not well thought out. I have a circle of advisors who speak into my life regularly. They help me gain perspective from every angle. I understand the direction I’m going even if it means I don’t know the destination.

In the book of James, the brother of Jesus writes that if you lack wisdom, then you should ask for it and God will give it generously and without fault. He wants us to ask.

Always ask for it.

Foolish decisions lead you places you don’t want to go and leave you with consequences you hadn’t even dreamed of. Fools have hardened hearts and rejoice over their own sin and that of others. In reality, they need to mourn over their sin instead of laughing it away. They gloss over it with the perception of having peace. In all their joy over the wrong they’ve done, they step once more into another foolish decision.  And the cycle continues until a change of heart happens. Then, as God works in them and matures them, they recognize the foolishness of their ways and then understand there must be restoration. This in turn leads to broken hearts and lives being restored to move into complete healing.The joy on someone’s face as the transition happens is priceless.

One of the Few

by | Dec 13, 2015 | Proverbs

Proverbs 12: 27-28

 

27 Lazy people don’t even cook the game they catch, but the diligent make use of everything they find.

I love to cook. I can’t imagine going to all the trouble of going to the grocery store, buying all the ingredients for a great recipe and then not cooking them. Oh, but I’ve done it.

Lazy people waste the very thing they need to survive.

They just don’t care to take care of themselves. They refuse to lift a finger to work. Not their responsibility. It’s always someone else’s job.

It has to do with our souls as well. Are we taking care of ours or just going through the motions; pretending to do just that? We grow indifferent and complacent in taking care of our souls.

Being diligent, means we are dong everything God has asked us and not leaving anything undone. Diligence equals not giving up. Diligence requires effort and then some.

 

28 The way of the godly leads to life, that path does not lead to death.

It is a path I want to be on. It doesn’t say anything about the road being easy to walk; in fact it doesn’t specify a thing about the road except where it leads. LIFE!

This verse very clearly states whom. The godly. What is it to live a godly life? The best case I’ve got for you on a godly life is Jesus. Love. Love. Love like He did. No greater role model to follow than Him.

Follow the path He took, be diligent in leading a godly life and the experience will be better than anything you can hope for or imagine.

In Matthew 7.14 “But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

Be one of the few. It will be well worth it.