Just a thought for the day...

What separates a fan

From a follower?

COMMITMENT!

Roots

Roots

My husband and I enjoy riding our tandem or finding nature trails to hike through and take pictures.  Our preference is a quiet trail where we can possibly see nature at its best, but this particular Saturday we had to compete with dogs, joggers, cyclists and ROOTS! 

After my third stumble and near fall, I started thinking about the path I was on and all the roots that had overgrown the path…thus I thought about my life and all the stumbles and falls and then I thought about the importance of those roots. 

Let me explain.

As I attempted to walk the path I had to focus on the ground rather than look around, so that I wouldn’t fall.  I became a bit annoyed at the roots that seemed to catch my foot as I walked and the distraction that they caused.  I was on this trail to enjoy the sights and sounds of nature and possibly see a critter or two, but I was forced to keep my head down to keep myself from falling.  

My life has had its share of stumbles and falls, some of which I have fully recovered and others will impact my life forever, but I have moved on from there and believe many lessons were learned.  I found a quote that helped me during those stumbles and it said this:

“Don’t let your past determine your future”

I’ve been determined to follow that and not focus on past mistakes.  However; that day I had to focus on the roots!  At times, something would catch my eye and I would look away and once again become entangled.  This new obstacle, the roots made me realize the importance of staying focused and knowing what lies ahead. 

Life can be hectic and things will come our way, but the Bible tell us in Proverbs 4:12

When you walk, your steps will not be hampered;
    when you run, you will not stumble.

Proverbs 4:12

It’s wonderful to know we have a Heavenly Father who’s there to help us along the path of life.  This scripture confirms to us as believers that he will order our steps and if we cling to him, we will not stumble.  Well, you might be thinking, Shelly, you stumbled. 

Where was God?  He was there!

I believe God allows things to happen as well as allowing man to have a free will, so I’ve stumbled, you’ve stumbled…I don’t know of anyone who could honestly say, they had not stumbled.  But, let’s not focus on the stumble or the root that took us down, but look to the Lord who will cause our steps not be hampered.

The further we walked the more aware I became of the importance of those roots to the trees that grew up alongside the path.  This was their life’s blood, their nourishment came from these roots that have grown and sprawled across the path to dig deeper into the ground to find their source. 

I then began to see things a little differently.  These roots that had tripped me up were providing life to those trees and those trees were providing shade to the path.  These trees were tall and their roots had dug deep. 

Again, my mind went to scripture and I thought of the verse in Colossians 2:7

Rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.

Those trees were big because of their roots!  I heard an illustration many years ago that told the story of a tree that had been planted and uprooted and replanted and after the third time, it died!  Being rooted means, deep rooted, or embedded. 

If we allow ourselves to be rooted in Christ Jesus, we will be built up and strengthened in our faith walk which will lead to an overflowing of thankfulness! 

As we ended our hike I thought to myself, I want to be deep rooted, built up and strong like those sprawling trees.  I want my roots to go deep where nothing will hinder me. 

It’s the tree with deep roots that can stand up against the storms of life, because the root system is deep and has embedded itself in the ground. 

I learned without roots we won’t last long and without being rooted in Christ Jesus, we have no hope!

Learning to Love God

Matthew 22:34-40

The Greatest Commandment

 ³⁴ Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. ³⁵ One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: ³⁶ “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

 ³⁷ Jesus replied: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’^{[a] 38} This is the first and greatest commandment. ³⁹ And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’^{[b] 40} All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

Because loving God is the first and greatest commandment, you would think loving God would be a priority.  So, let me ask you, what does it actually mean to love God?

When I first met Christ at age 9 and starting growing in my understanding of what following him looked like, I honestly don’t remember loving God the way I loved other things in my life.  For example, I remember loving my parents and my brother.  I loved my dog, cats and horse, Midnight and I had friends that I loved, but I did not understand loving God with my heart, soul and mind.  I knew it was something I was supposed to do and I wanted to do it, I just didn’t know how! 

“Love the Lord your (he’s my God) God with all your (my) heart”

As I’ve grown older and experienced love, I’ve gained a better understanding of loving God.  The first thing I learned was to make my relationship personal.  It’s when you really get to know someone that you fall in love.  Loving God with my all my heart has to do with my affection for him, feelings, emotions….

 “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul”

…and loving God with all my soul has to do with devotion.  The soul literally is the part of me  (us) that defines who I am and who you are. The essence of the biblical definition for soul means life, personality, the inner self and our identity. It’s where we make our decisions and choices that ultimately decide our lifestyle and behavior. Think of the soul as the “core you”.To love the Lord with all my (your) soul means to love Him in the way I (we) live, in the choices I (we) make and in the behavior and lifestyle I (we) adopt.

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind”

 My mind is my intellect—the place where I analyze, figure-out and plan things; the place where knowledge and understanding are analyzed and manipulated to bring about a conclusion or decision.  I believe loving God with all my mind means knowing fully who God is by taking the time to fill my mind with God’s Word and being in agreement with him.  Understanding what he did for me on the cross and being certain of what I believe and living it out demonstrates that I love him with all my mind.

How about you?  Are you loving him with your heart, soul and mind?  I hope today you’ll begin to do so.

 

I Will Walk By Faith

Walking By Faith was inspired by the Jeremy Camp Song entitled, "Walk By Faith".   The words of this  song express my desire to walk by faith even when I cannot see.

Would I believe you when you would say
Your hand will guide my every way
Will I receive the words You say
Every moment of every day

[chorus]
Well I will walk by faith
Even when I cannot see
Well because this broken road
Prepares Your will for me

Help me to win my endless fears
You've been so faithful for all my years
With one breath You make me new
Your grace covers all I do

yeah, yeah , yeah, yeah, yeah, ya

[chorus]

Well I'm broken- but I still see Your face
Well You've spoken- pouring Your words of grace

[chorus x2]

Well hallelujah, hallelu
(I will walk by faith)
Well hallelujah, hallelu
(I will walk by faith)

I will walk, I will walk, I will walk by faith
I will, I will, I will walk by faith

New Yield Resolution

It’s almost the middle of January and I’m wondering how many of you 

have already given up on that New Year’s Resolution?  

I’m not really one to make resolutions, but decided this year to do something different.  

I’m calling my goal for 2012 a New Yield Resolution, and to take that a 

step further I want to talk to you about 

Gaining by Giving up.  

The idea is, rather than go after the things you want for the New Year, 

to challenge you to yield things to God in this New Year.

Today, I have a sign with me, this particular sign means, slow down, 

and be cautious unless you’re a man and then it means accelerate! 

The dictionary gives us some better definitions and they are:

  to give up, as to a superior power or authority: to give up or surrender (oneself): 

to give up or over; relinquish or resign.

 Now let’s say you are sick and tired of being told what to do, you snap and all of a sudden 

you decide that rules do not apply to you, not even road signs.  

Well, after they release you from the hospital, or after you get that ticket

 or worse yet after they pull your body from the car, 

you might have a different perspective about choices and rules, even road signs.  

Safety in a car comes from yielding to all the signs on the road, not just the yield signs.

As followers of Christ, our lives draw similar parallels.  

We choose to become a Christian, but still want to do what we want to do, 

no rules, just forgiveness from sin.  

Jesus said we must be willing to pick up our cross and yield 

our lives to him to get what we truly need.  

It’s not about what we can get out of life; 

it’s about what we gain when we give up our lives. 

In order to follow him, we have to deny ourselves, take up his cross and follow him.  

I like what Luke 9:23 says, and take up his cross daily…not just whenever, but daily.  

That’s truly yielding your life to Christ, to choose daily to deny yourself and follow him.  

How many times have you promised yourself you were going to really live for Christ, 

trust God and NOT get in his way.  

We all do it, the problem is we lack patience; 

we want what we want NOW instead of

waiting for God to bring it about in his timing.  

We have to remember there is so much to gain, when we give up 

or yield and let God handle everything.  

I’m sure most of us could share a time when we got ahead of God?

Gaining by giving up is a difficult concept, but when we yield to the things of God 

and yield or give up things to God,  God promises to take care of us.  

We live in a world of entitlements, a world in which people expect to get, get, get, 

so to be deprived is unthinkable. 

You are probably thinking why would anyone want to give up their rights 

and place themselves under someone else’s control?

  

But think of it this way: 

When we decide to yield to someone we are putting our lives in 

that persons hands, so why not that person be God?

God is asking us to yield all areas of our lives to him.  

Put our hurts, pains, frustrations, dreams, in his hands.  

I know I’m carrying some burdens that are just too heavy, and today I need to practice 

what I preach and yield those things to him.  

Possibly you find yourself overwhelmed with a situation, yield it to God today.

   

My challenge to you is list out the areas in which you need to 

yield to God and write it on your yield sign and carry it with you in your 

Bible, or notebook or place it near your mirror,

 so you can see it every morning and be reminded that 

God is calling you to yield and listen quietly to his voice and

 be willing to give up in order to get what 

GOD has in mind for you.