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JOY: 10 Things I’ve Learned

JanJoyIt is hard to believe, but it is already January 31! We have focused all month on the word JOY and what it means for us as Christians. We have looked at how to have it and why it is important.

Did you learn anything?

I know I did. Here are some of the things that I have learned:

1. Joy is not based on outward circumstances but on my relationship with Christ.

2. Joy can only be found in a life of obedience to God and His Word.

3. Joy is evidence of our salvation.

4. Joy is only found by keeping our eyes on Jesus and off of ourselves.

5. If I search for joy in an attempt to fulfill myself, I won’t find it, but if I seek to please God with my life, it is then that I will find true joy.

6. If I am complaining, whining, and griping – whether with my words or with my thoughts – joy flees.

7. A grateful heart walks hand in hand with joy.

8. Joy and peace are like twin sisters. They really cannot be separated. (thanks to my cousin, Melissa, for this analogy that has stuck with me all month!)

9. Trials and sufferings are a good test to see if we actually have the joy that God has promised to provide or simply the temporary happiness that disappears as soon as the hard times come.

10. Joy isn’t something that I can check off my spiritual to-do list, but will be something I need to work on all of my life.

There you have it! Ten things I have learned this month. Do you have anything to add? I hope that this study has been as beneficial for you as it has been for me.

And before I close out this month, I want to thank my friend, Fran, who was really the inspiration of this series and who truly does emulate godly joy.

I wish God’s blessing on you all as you continue your journey to walk in joy–

~Leslie

 

Snapshots of Guatemala

I have a ton of thoughts going through my mind. I also have a few extra minutes to write a post. How to describe all that I have seen? So far, we have experienced church in Guatemala, visited the mountainside ghetto, and the state orphanage. Today half of our team was staining the play set at Dorie’s Promise orphanage, until we ran out of stain! The other half of the team is still at the city dump pouring a concrete floor for a family.

So here are a few {unorganized} thoughts–

–The hardest thing by far for me as been to grapple with my human sense of fairness. Why was I born in the U.S.? Why do I have enough to eat? Why do I live in luxury compared to so many in the rest of the world? And what am I supposed to do with it? These questions are always most pressing when I am among the unfortunate of the world.

–There has been frustration in not knowing the language. Oh, how I wish I remembered more than I do. But I am trying to remember my 4 years of high school Spanish, which was very long ago. I am starting to remember a few words and phrases here and there. Adrienne and I love to play with the babies, because they don’t try to tell you things you can’t understand!

–We (Adrienne and I) have renewed hearts just filled with gratefulness for all of the blessings we enjoy at home. And it’s not just the blessings of material things, but the love of family and friends, the security of not having to put bars on our windows or to live in gated communities to feel safe, the love of parents and grandparents, and the lack of worry and stress we have when it comes to the basics of living. Of course, if I am honest, I am enjoying having a maid in the guest house and wish I could bring her along home! ;) She is so sweet and is even doing some of our personal laundry!

Well, that’s enough for now. I am out of time. Thanks so much to those who are praying! Words can’t express just how much we appreciate it :)

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Wednesday Wisdom: My Testimony in a Song

If we have ever heard of Laura Story, it is most likely because of her song entitled Blessings.  This song became well-known in the CCM world and can still be heard on the radio.  It is a beautiful call to look for God’s blessings through all of our circumstances.   This thought-provoking song led me to check out this talented artist. What I found was a woman who sings beautiful songs that actually have deep meaning. I have been truly blessed by her music and thought I would share a song with you that you have probably not heard.  It is entitled Grace and the lyrics really are my own testimony.  You can listen to the song here.

GRACE

My heart is so proud. My mind is so unfocused.
I see the things You do through me as great things I have done.
And now You gently break me, then lovingly You take me
And hold me as my father and mold me as my maker.

[Chorus:]
I ask you: “How many times will you pick me up,
When I keep on letting you down?
And each time I will fall short of Your glory,
How far will forgiveness abound?”
And You answer: ” My child, I love you.
And as long as you’re seeking My face,
You’ll walk in the power of My daily sufficient grace.”

At times I may grow weak and feel a bit discouraged,
Knowing that someone, somewhere could do a better job.
For who am I to serve You? I know I don’t deserve You.
And that’s the part that burns in my heart and keeps me hanging on.

[Chorus:]
I ask you: “How many times will you pick me up,
When I keep on letting you down?
And each time I will fall short of Your glory,
How far will forgiveness abound?”
And You answer: ” My child, I love you.
And as long as you’re seeking My face,
You’ll walk in the power of My daily sufficient grace.”
You are so patient with me, Lord.

As I walk with You, I’m learning what Your grace really means.
The price that I could never pay was paid at Calvary.
So, instead of trying to repay You, I’m learning to simply obey You
By giving up my life to you For all that You’ve given to me.

[Chorus:]
I ask you: “How many times will you pick me up,
When I keep on letting you down?
And each time I will fall short of Your glory,
How far will forgiveness abound?”
And You answer: ” My child, I love you.
And as long as you’re seeking My face,
You’ll walk in the power of My daily sufficient grace.”

Why won’t this door close?

I went into the powder room and tried to shut the door behind me. It wouldn’t close. I pulled hard and then stopped, realizing that forcing it would probably break it. Instead I held onto it as tightly as possible to protect my privacy for a few moments. As I walked out, I looked around the door jam. This door had always worked properly. What was going on? I made a mental note to mention it to my husband and then forgot about it.

Several hours later, I revisited that room.The door still wouldn’t close. Thinking I should be able to figure this out, I studied the door. Suddenly, my eye landed on a small object at the base of the door. I reached down to pick up a tiny screw anchor the same color as the door. This tiny little object had kept a large door from closing properly.

It brought to mind the verses James wrote about the tongue.  Remember them? The ones about the tongue being like the tiny rudder that turns the mighty ship? (James 3:1-11). This small part of our body can (and often does) affect people’s perception of our entire being. People judge us on our speech–and so they should. Bad or crude language, disrespect, unkind words about others are all indicative of a larger heart issue. The tiny tongue shows the truth of our hearts (Luke 6:45).

Proverbs is full of wisdom about speech. Here is just one example:

Listen, for I will speak of excellent things,
And from the opening of my lips will come right things;
For my mouth will speak truth;
Wickedness is an abomination to my lips.
All the words of my mouth are with righteousness;
Nothing crooked or perverse is in them. (Prov. 8:6-9)

Our speech should be filled with excellence, truth, and righteousness. We should not be known for our wicked, crooked, or perverse (meaning cantankerous or rebellious) speech.

As I examine my own life, I can see that my tongue oftentimes does not say very good things about who I am inside.  This is one area it is easy to excuse ourselves, isn’t it? We are tired. We are hungry. We are “normal” and the other person isn’t (Still haven’t figured out why we think we have the right to determine what’s “normal”). One little lie won’t hurt. One dirty joke isn’t a big deal. I want to be popular. My kids drive me crazy. My husband/wife deserves it. I could go on and on here, but I think you get the idea.

I just saw a wonderful saying of facebook yesterday that is worth passing along: When we speak we should THINK:  T – is it true?  H – is it helpful?  I – is it inspiring? N – is it necessary?  K – is it kind?  What a great test to apply to our speech.

But we can never forget that our speech indicates our heart’s condition. Even if we can train ourselves not to speak it – are we thinking it? As we grow and mature in Christ, even our thoughts should be more holy and pure. Of course, we will never obtain perfection here on earth, but we keep working at it, with the glorious hope of victory in Christ Jesus someday!

So perhaps it is worth some consideration to examine what our tongue is telling others about our hearts today? Is there a gap showing in our walk with the Lord because of the way we use that tiny instrument?

 

 

Wednesday Wisdom #1: Do I Trust You, Lord?

Many are the times I have been inspired by the words of others.  Often it is by authors of old that are no longer “the thing” to read…authors like A.W. Tozer and John Calvin or, perhaps, it is by godly women like Elisabeth Elliot or Elizabeth George.   I have also been amazed at how the Lord will use song lyrics or podcasted sermons to speak to exactly where I am struggling.  He has frequently used the words of others to strengthen, grow, and encourage me.  On Wednesdays, I would like to introduce you to some of my favorite passages, songs, and poems.

The thing I would like to share for my first Wednesday Wisdom post is a song that God used in my life this week.  I had heard something on Saturday that really disturbed my spirit.  It had happened to someone I didn’t know, but the tragic event, the unspeakable murder, and the heartbroken family members left with a quenchless void sent me reeling headlong into anger, doubts, and fear.  I know that death is a part of life.  But such an evil, horrible death seemed beyond imagination.  Why this particular event struck me so deeply, I cannot tell, but I found myself struggling since then with the relentless question of WHY?

Why God?  Why didn’t you stop this?

And then, God started to subtly place things in my life to help me with this struggle.  I was listening to a podcasted sermon by Alistair Begg and part of the sermon was on this topic.  And then, as I was reading an old Puritan book, along came a few pages dedicated to just this subject.  I didn’t look for, nor expect, to read about this topic that was troubling me…I just “happened” upon it in my consequential reading of the text.  And then as I put my ipod on shuffle, several songs came on which spoke volumes to me.

And I realize that I am a minute speck in the timeline of the universe and He is God.  Who am I to even ask the question?  And I am filled with my smallness.  I am still sorting through it all, but I know my God is faithful.  I know that He cares.  I may not understand, but I have seen Him work in the smallest of ways in my life and in lives around me.  If we can’t trust God with our question marks, can we trust Him at all?

One song, in particular, is an old song with which I am sure many of you are not familiar.  It is called Do I Trust You? and is by an artist named Twila Paris.  God has used this song to minister to me many times through the years and He brought it back for an encore just this week.  Here are the lyrics:

DO I TRUST YOU?

Sometimes my little heart can’t understand
What’s in Your will, what’s in Your plan.
So many times I’m tempted to ask You why,
But I can never forget it for long.
Lord, what You do could not be wrong.
So I believe You, even when I must cry.

Do I trust You, Lord?

Does the river flow?
Do I trust You, Lord?
Does the north wind blow?
You can see my heart,
You can read my mind,
And You got to know
That I would rather die
Than to lose my faith
In the One I love.
Do I trust You, Lord?
Do I trust You?

I know the answers, I’ve given them all.
But suddenly now, I feel so small.
Shaken down to the cavity in my soul.
I know the doctrine and theology,
But right now they don’t mean much to me.
This time there’s only one thing I’ve got to know.

Do I trust You, Lord?
Does the robin sing?
Do I trust You, Lord?
Does it rain in spring?
You can see my heart,
You can read my mind,
And You got to know
That I would rather die
Than to lose my faith
In the One I love.
Do I trust You, Lord?
Do I trust You?

I will trust You, Lord, when I don’t know why.
I will trust You, Lord, till the day I die.
I will trust You, Lord, when I’m blind with pain!
You were God before, and You’ll never change.
I will trust You.
I will trust You.
I will trust You, Lord.
I will trust You.

NOTE: You can hear this song here.

Taking a Break

I have made the difficult decision to take a break from writing this blog temporarily.  I hope to start writing it again sometime but I am really not sure when that will be.  Thanks for your support and if you have spoken encouraging words to me, I want you to know just how much that has meant to me.

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