The Irony

There is no denying that warmer temperatures have danced in and out lately. And, no denying that I've had to switch the air from heat to cold. As I look around I see and smell the trees blooming and flowers opening. I would love to see it all with more enthusiasm, but it only reminds me of the hot summer that lays ahead. We are known here in Texas for our blistery summer days with triple digit temperatures! I know some of you out there love that. I despise it to the utmost!

But, today is the 1st day of spring and I awakened to seven inches of snow. What a contrast to see winter's snow masquerade spring's beginning off-shoots. What a sight! I don't know which one shone more brightly--the white covering on the ground or the huge smile across my face. I told my husband that it is obvious God has a great sense of humor to shower us with so much snow on this 1st celebrated day of spring! And I thanked the Lord wholeheartedly. I told Him I knew He had not sent it just for me but I was certainly thanking Him as if He had! I ADORE the snow!! I was born for the upper states. I know it! I was not born to live out the heat in a Texas town. The heat can dampen my spirit quicker than almost anything!

But this is not about me or the snow or the heat. It is about something entirely different, but something that I was reminded of while relishing the beauty.

God has the final say, doesn't He? No matter what others may say, or what society may dictate, or what the rules declare, God is God. He is in control! He can do whatever He will. He can make it snow when Nature has already opened her arms to receive the spring. And this thought, snow out of season, brings me hope.

No matter what, it is not over until God says so. He has a way of making each day new. Each day can be a fresh start. Just as the snow blankets everything giving it a clean, glimmering look, God comes into our lives daily with new mercy and new blessings.

Even when everything in your life dictates to you that you should give up, or that it is over, or that there is no more need to try in your situation. Even then, God in His perfect timing, shows up with Mercy and Hope--dusting over all the failures, questions, & pain, making the slate new and clean again beckoning us to believe once more. To try anew and not give up! He declares to us that there is hope and new possibility each and every day.

I love the first glimpse of the morning snow before anyone has walked through and disturbed it. With my 1st glimpse today, I just stood there in amazed appreciation, and then I thought about how much this is just like God. Each morning we wake up to a clean slate and only when we begin to drag our baggage of yesterday's failures and disappointments through it do we begin to see the freshness and newness sullied by our past. If only we could savor such newborn moments. Keep them fresh in undisturbed beauty. If only... Yet, we must decide what we will do with the new day of fresh snow. Will we make snow angels and snowmen to enhance the beauty that much the more? Will we rejoice in the new day upon us? Or will we clutter it with yesterday's shortcomings and the cruel dictates of Life that tell us we are finished?

Each day that we take a breath is a day to celebrate. We never know what it holds for us. Yet we know that God is there with us. Guiding us. Today may just hold the breakthrough you've been waiting for! Don't pick up yesterday's leftovers and drag them into today. Determine the path that you will make. Decide carefully where you will step. Lean into the Lord and follow where He leads.

This is the day that the Lord has made; I will rejoice and be glad in it!

Mindsets

Many have situations or things about themselves they would like to change. I mean, do we ever not have something? I have my doubts. But, how do we go about changing? Where do we start? We can find the answer to this in Ephesians--take special notice of vs. 23.

Eph 4:22-24

22 Strip yourselves of your former nature [put off and discard your old unrenewed self] which characterized your previous manner of life and becomes corrupt through lusts and desires that spring from delusion;

23 And be constantly renewed in the spirit of your mind [having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude],

24 And put on the new nature (the regenerate self) created in God's image, [Godlike] in true righteousness and holiness.

AMP


To change our behavior we must first change our mindset!

We must change the way we think about whatever it is we want changed. We must daily renew our minds! It’s a simple mathematical equation really: wrong thoughts lead to wrong actions and right thoughts lead to right actions! Sounds pretty simple when put that way.

So, what area in your life are you struggling with today? Take inventory of the thoughts and attitudes you hold toward that ’thing’ you are wanting changed. What do you see? You might be surprised. What we think is a powerful thing. Our thoughts, held long enough, become the truth that we respond to--even if our thoughts are far from truthful. Even when they are askew, we will embrace that which we think on long enough as our own truth. To break the cycle, we must take an honest look at ourselves.

A word of caution: It is easy during self-reflection to begin to compare ourselves to others and create for ourselves an atmosphere of defeat. Or, to use others to help us feel justified in our wrong thinking and acting. When we begin to lay out the pieces of ourselves, we must be careful to lay them before the Lord and to compare ourselves only to His Word. It is in this process of being open in fellowship with Him that true renewing of our minds occurs.

Our minds are renewed when we begin to see through eyes of faith. When we begin to see things as God sees them. Daily we must seek after God and be renewed. We need a fresh vision to take residence in our minds! We need God’s vision!


I applied this principle recently to a problem area in my life. When dealing with my own personal struggle to lose weight, I had to capture a new mindset for myself. I had to change some warped thinking. I had to quit telling myself I couldn’t do the work to lose weight because of the one hundred plus excuses I came up with. And--I had to quit waiting for someone to come along and do it for me.

I had to go before the Lord and ask for help. I desperately needed to be delivered from some very self-destructive habits!

And, I discovered a very powerful thought that frequently sabotaged my efforts. I noticed that I used excuses for overeating. Birthdays. A friend’s visit. Movie night. The weekend. Lots of little ‘celebrations‘. And each time, I would tell myself to go ahead and blow it off and start new tomorrow. Pretty soon I saw that each tomorrow seemed to hold its own celebration or excuse as to why I should, once again, put off eating right and exercising, until the next tomorrow. This was a very unhealthy pattern. One that left me needing to lose over 100 pounds!

One day as I was reading about the Proverbs 31 woman, I came across the scripture in verse 17 which states:


She girds herself with strength (spiritual, mental, and physical fitness for her God-given task) and makes her arms strong and firm.

That was a light bulb moment for me. It was as if the Lord jumped right off of that page and spoke those words directly to me. I realized that I was not trapped in an overweight body without the power to change. I realized that I was not on this journey alone. God wanted me to be physically fit! He would not call me to do something that He would not empower me to do. I was not alone! He was my strength. He was not asking me to do it on my own, but asking me to surrender to Him to do it in His strength.

That moment I caught a glimpse of a much more fit me through the eyes of a loving Father. I saw that He wanted that for me. He desired that too! It was an empowering revelation. And, it was the start to my own renewed mindset concerning my body and my health.

I have cast off the old way of thinking and shredded the old habit that wanted me to ‘wait until tomorrow’ to get it together. We don’t have the promise of tomorrow. And Jesus prayed that God would give us our daily bread. Not weekly. Not monthly. Daily! He has given me wisdom concerning which new steps to take along my weight loss journey. And He has provided me the strength for each one. I even feel enthusiasm--born from the hope He placed in me that came from glimpsing how He saw me.

So--how about it? What are you waiting for? What lie(s) have you believed? What habit has kept you prisoner to a bad situation? Ask God to renew your mind. To give you a fresh vision. To help you see yourself through His eyes. Ask God to lead you and to allow you to make the necessary changes through His strength.

Feel Him beside you. You are not alone!

　

Sweet heavenly Father,

As we daily lay before you--sweep over us. Wash through us--scraping away the deposits of doubt and despair that have attached themselves. Swallow up the lies that the enemy has planted. Renew us in You and in Your purpose. Sweep our minds clean of anything other than what reflects You. Give us new vision to see ourselves and our circumstances as You do…with hope…with endless possibilities. Allow us the privilege of feeling Your presence and remind us throughout our day that we are not alone. That You are our strength. Go before us and be light to our pathway. Oh, Lord--heal us (of wrong thinking & doing) and we will be healed. Save us (from the results of skewed thinking) and we will be saved! (adapted from Jer. 17:14)

In Jesus Name,

Amen

　

　

Feasting

You know how you are reading along in the Word of God and something just jumps out at you? Well, I’ve learned such places are the ones that I especially need to stop and give attention to. So, I spent an hour walking this morning and talking to the Lord about the following scripture:

Prov 15:15

15 All the days of the desponding and afflicted are made evil [by anxious thoughts and forebodings], but he who has a glad heart has a continual feast [regardless of circumstances].

I looked up the word ‘despond’ and it means those depressed by lack of hope.

Depression. Loss of Hope. Anxiety. Worries. Forebodings. Words I am familiar with and feel certain you are too. It is impossible to sail through the sea of Life without meeting these at some point.

A glad heart and a continual feast. I like that part! But, I really like the part that says we can have a glad heart and continual feast regardless of circumstances. Does something in you shout out, as it does in me—is that even possible??

I admit that I struggled with this verse. I kept asking myself, what is it really saying? And finally I realized that it really comes down to one word: CHOICE!

I see two tables prepared. Two very different and opposing feasts. One is prepared by our enemy and filled with anxiety, hopelessness, worries, and despair. Feasting at such a table leaves you with more than just a severe case of reflux! It takes away your vision. It strongly encourages you to look through the eyes of flesh and thus allow circumstances to dictate your outcome. It woos you to embrace hopelessness. It whispers that you should just give up. It is a defeatist chair that pulls up to that spread!

And then a different table--a table set with laughter and joy. With lightness of heart. One which encourages the shedding of burdens and not of hope. That dishes up possibilities on plates of Faith. No anxiety, worry, foreboding, or depression on this table. Those have been pealed and scraped away and tossed into the garbage bowl. Only nourishment of the purist kind is presented here.

And I continued to think about those two tables. Most of us can say that we have been a guest at both tables. I know I can.

I’m reminded of a lesson from Psychology class. Studies have shown that the mere act of smiling (even when not feeling anything to smile about) actually has a chemical effect on the body that creates the good feelings that the smile normally reflects. Smiling like you are happy actually produces feelings of happiness. Try it and see. Smiling is a powerful thing!

What is my point? My point is that we must chose where we will feast. And yes--we can! Paul said that he had learned to be content in whatever state he found himself (Phil 4:11). And he found himself in some pretty bad situations. He sang from jail. Standing in feces, amidst the stench in his cell, he sang! How could he? He learned to feast at the Master’s table. He learned to use the second set of eyes—faith eyes that see things that are not as if they already were.

And we can learn it too!

Regardless of our circumstances, we can maintain hope—because our Hope is in Jesus! And our joy comes not from some mustering of our own as much as it comes from the Lord. As Nehemiah said, “the joy of the Lord is your strength” (Neh 8:10 KJV).

The only reason we can feast continually, regardless of circumstances, is because we have feasted on God and His Word and choose to see things through the eyes of faith. Again, it comes down to choice.

It is an easy thing of which to write. Much harder to live out. Sometimes Life does seem impossible. It is a constant struggle. But, when I find myself struggling rather than feasting on the joy of the Lord, I realize that I am relying too much on myself, my strength, what I can and cannot control, etc., inviting cares and anxieties to overcome me and lure me to the table of my enemy. I am reminded again that I must follow the instruction of 1 Peter 5:7 which states:

7 Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully. (AMP)

Do you know what robs you of your continual feasting at the Master’s table? Worry and anxiety. Cares!

I know there is a time and season for everything including mourning and weeping (Eccl 3:1, 4), but through it all we can be refreshed and refueled by the Master’s feast which he prepares for us—even in the presence of our enemy (Ps 23:5). Perhaps your enemy is worry. Or a debt that can’t be paid. Or sickness. Or the loss of a loved one. Whatever your enemy is, God still offers you a chance to feast on His joy and His strength. He gives us eyes to see and ears to hear. Eyes and ears that are attuned to His and thus see and hear what God sees and hears--eyes of Faith. There we find hope!

Where have you been feasting lately? It will be clear by the examination of your thoughts—where have your thoughts been lately? Are you trusting or doubting? Believing or desponding?

I encourage you to feast on the Lord! Taste and see that He is good! Drink in His joy. Savor the possibilities he offers. The cost is minimal: He merely asks for you to bring him your worries, your cares, your sorrows—those weights that so easily beset you. He takes those, unburdening you so that you may freely feast. And the desert is an overflowing dish of contentment!

You and I can’t do this alone. We can’t overflow with joy in the midst of trials on our own strength. We must lean into Him. We must empty out our worries and that which weighs us down so that we can be filled with Him. Filled to the point of overflowing. That is the secret. He gives us joy unspeakable!

I don’t know about you, but I’m going to pull my chair up to the Father’s table today and just see what good eatin’ He has prepared!