pursue – Oh Lord Help Us

Loyal: Pursuing Steadfastness in Our Relationships

Devotionals, Stay SaneJanuary 2, 2019January 13, 2019

In times of stress, we tend to isolate ourselves from everyone and everything. But we need to be loyal to our relationships, our word, and our lives, portraying the steadfastness of Jesus.

The little break between Christmas and New Years can be disorienting. What day is this? When did I shower last? I know I bought batteries…where are they? But tucked in the midst of confusion are nuggets of reflection. As I was mustering the strength to pack for another trip to Indiana, I found myself reflecting over this past year and the years before.

There were several major differences from previous years, but one stood out the most: friendship. I have never been the one to juggle many different relationships and friendships, but here I am. I owe a lot of this to Oh Lord Help Us and a bit to volunteering at church. No matter who I owe, one thing is for certain: I am rich in relationships.

Introvert

I know just as well as anyone that moving to a new place can be daunting. Making new friends is even harder. Especially for those of us who identify as introverts. There are different levels of introvert, but all the same, it’s difficult and paralyzing.

It’s been four years since we moved to North Carolina and I just now feel like I’ve found some of my people. It took me stepping out, being uncomfortable, fighting against my nature. It’s more than just fighting against myself, it’s following through. Showing I’m reliable, accountable, trustworthy. Showing how much I care…

Wholehearted

I never regret the moments I push past myself to be uncomfortable. Sadly, I used to be extremely fickle… cancel outings, not answer calls or texts. It took me a long time to realize how surface my life was without quality relationships. I can name a few dear souls that never quit.

Praise Jesus for those people who wait patiently for you to get your act together. The loyal, wholehearted ones who know there’s a special friend somewhere inside. They wait… and they wait. Those are the ones who you should hold on to. The ones you thank over and over for not giving up on you. For pursuing you through prayer, texts, invites, etc. I strive every day to live the gracious example of these special friends.

Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake you; bind them around your neck; write them on the tablet of your heart.

Proverbs 3:3, ESV

We need each other… through hardships, pain, seasons of grief. Because this life is ever changing with swells of inconsistency and unknown, we need to be found loving and faithful through it all.

We need each other... through hardships, pain, seasons of grief. This life is ever changing with swells of inconsistency, we need to be found loving and faithful through it all. Click To Tweet

Richness of Relationship

Financially, this has been one of the toughest years to date. But what I lack in monetary wealth, I make up for with rich, rich relationships. In previous years of financial strain, I would isolate myself; cut myself off from the support and love of a friend or even family members. I allowed the overwhelm and embarrassment to overthrow my faithfulness.

Not only was my dedication to those I loved strained, but my loyalty to the Lord suffered. My bank account was poor and so was my spirit. I became sporadic in going to church and was even more disloyal in my Bible reading. Hitting my knees? Yeah, non-existent.

Praise God He stays true…

This is a trustworthy saying: If we die with him, we will also live with him. If we endure hardship, we will reign with him. If we deny him, he will deny us. If we are unfaithful, he remains faithful, for he cannot deny who he is.

2 Timothy 2:11-13, NLT

His loyalty to my heart didn’t bail me out of financial hardship, but it did draw me closer to Himself. In doing so, it showed me the value of relationship over wealth. Of loyalty over inconsistency. In this season, I’m thankful for that lesson. It’s kept my head above a tsunami of stress and encouraged me to draw close to those who love me.

Loyal Example

The Bible’s layout of loyalty is strictly relational. This is no coincidence. We follow Jesus’ example of loyalty straight to the cross. The cross is a symbol of loyalty to God’s divine plan and a devotion to all of us sinners. Not only did Jesus’ faithfulness make it possible for us to have a relationship with God, but also allows a devotion to one another.

“The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”

Mark 12:29-31, NIV

We need to strive each day to portray our steadfast devotion to Jesus, and in turn to one another. Love God, love each other. Loyal servants, loyal friends.

Jan Romero

uncomfortable, suffering, pursuing, pursued

Uncomfortable: Intimately Knowing God Through Suffering

Devotionals, Stay SaneDecember 21, 2017September 8, 2019

Christianity is hard and uncomfortable. Pursuing God through our suffering results in blessings and knowing Him more intimately.

I laid awake last night pondering the brokenness and sorrow surrounding us. The desperation is palpable. As I prayed, a verse nestled deep in my soul sprung to mind and repeated until I fell asleep.

I would have despaired unless I had believed I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.

Psalm 27:13, NASB

When I got up this morning I went to the book shelf and retrieved the New American Standard Bible my parents gifted to me on Christmas day, 1990. Most other versions don’t include the part about despairing. NKJV says, “I would have lost heart,” but ESV, NIV, HCSB and NLT skip straight to being confident about seeing God’s goodness while here on earth.

Most days I feel that unwavering assurance, but what about the days when that conviction wavers? When the days turn into weeks or months? When you yell at the sky WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?!

Uncomfortable: Pursuing God In Spite of Suffering

Some of the people I love are hard pressed on every side. I wish I could swoop in and take on their struggle. But who am I to say I could weather a storm better if God has given a season of testing to someone else; to my friend…to my child? Stepping back, I am humbly reminded I am not their savior. I have no idea how God is working sadness or brokenness or devastation for His glory. He has used painfully uncomfortable times in my life to produce a courageous heart. Can He not do that for them?

C.S. Lewis said, “If you want a religion to make you feel really comfortable, I certainly don’t recommend Christianity.”

Why Christianity then?

Pursuing the God of the bible has not saved me from heartache in this world; instead it seems to draw it like a magnet! But I have experienced God’s goodness. I have been wrapped in His peace that surpasses understanding. There was a time when I felt Christianity was only the best option and no other religion or belief was worth pursuing. In essence, if this world was all there was, I would still have lived a good life. I had no clue how thinking in those terms revealed the depth of my distrust. Only through the foundation of the scripture was I able to stop doubting and believe (John 20:27, NIV) when I encountered heartbreak, fear, and loss.

Uncomfortable: Blessing from Suffering

It’s not all bad either. There is much good. In just my small sphere of life, I have witnessed God restore broken friendships and shattered marriages. God literally raised my son from the dead when his heart had not beat for nearly 10 minutes. I swore off volunteering in children’s ministry at church, yet through the power of the Holy Spirit, God softened my heart and is not only using me to guide young minds toward the gospel, but He is blessing me in the process!

I am sincerely grateful for the glimmer of hope that has carried me for so long; yesterday’s belief has sustained me. Now I want the raging wildfire that doesn’t cower at challenge or shrivel up when tragedy strikes. On good days, I have prayed “Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts!” (Psalm 139:23, ESV). May I not recoil and complain when He does just that. Suffering is a necessity to achieve gratitude and grasp the fullness of life that is found in Jesus Christ.

I love Brennen Manning’s eloquent thoughts on the matter. “It is hard to be a Christian, but it is too dull to be anything else. When Jesus comes into our lives with his scandalous cross in the form of mental anguish, physical suffering, and wounds of the spirit that will not close, we pray for the courage to ‘stand fast a little’ against the insidious realism of the world, the flesh, and the devil.”

Uncomfortable: Intimately Knowing God

My son asked me this morning, “How can I make daddy laugh?” I laughed. “It’s taken me 20 years to learn that art; it’s not exactly something I can explain. You have to know him,” I said. “I do know him!” he argued. I said, “It’s the same with God. In order to know what pleases someone, what they enjoy, what makes them happy, sad, excited – what makes them tick – you have to spend time with them. As you get to know them more intimately, you learn how to say something at just the right moment to bring a smile to their face.”

To be loved and pursued is at the core of every human being. It is a longing placed there by God. He fulfills that daily through His word and any other means He chooses to use to make us aware that He is the God who sees. He is here. There is no one like Him.

If you have found this inspiring, share the encouragement…

Pursuing God has not saved me from heartache... instead it seems to draw it like a magnet! Click To Tweet

Glenna Hopper

but God…pursued

Because the Lord loves you fiercely, you are pursued fiercely. When circumstances arise that feel like attacks against you, know that God is using them to bring you into a deeper relationship with Him.

A Beautiful Romance

Love, Stay SaneMarch 27, 2016

By the time I graduated from college, the phrase, “I love you” no longer meant anything. The words became cheap, and that made me sad. I made a vow to myself that the next time I would say those words, it would be to the man I was going to marry.

Thus began a great romance. Not between myself and yet another guy, but between myself and the Lord. I began to “date” Jesus. Does that sound strange? It shouldn’t. The bible calls the church (that would you and me) his “bride.” And what is more romantic than being at a wedding and watching the groom’s face when his bride enters and begins to walk toward her love? Picture it!! There is Jesus, his face beaming, full of admiration as you are approaching him. The thought gets me all teary eyed and so excited that I want to jump up and down and run to him and be embraced in his arms.

During this romance I would imagine the qualities that I desired in my future husband: Bold, strong, confident, kind, gentle. Jesus is all of these things. And I would think about things I would want my spouse to do for me. I wanted him to sing me songs. And I would notice as I was walking into a building a bird chirping in the tree, and I thought, “Wow, Jesus just sang me a song!” And I wanted him to bring me flowers. And I began noticing the most beautiful wild flowers, and I thought, “Thank you Jesus for bringing me flowers!” And I wanted him to listen to me, to hear all my hopes and dreams and not judge me for them. And I began to share my deepest thoughts with Jesus and I felt total acceptance.

I truly fell in love with Jesus. When I think back to that time, it was full of sweetness and tenderness. Before that time, I had settled. I had believed the lie that I was not good enough to be with a good man. But then…Then I chose to believe the truth. And the truth was, if Jesus (the truly perfect man) wanted me and was willing to die for me, then I am good enough to be treated well and loved by a good man on earth.

A godly man will be bold in his pursuit of a godly lady. He will stand up for her. He will respect her. He will desire to protect her heart before having her body. And this godly lady did get pursued by a godly man. And he did sing her songs and bring her flowers. And he did listen to her deepest hopes and fears and loved her for them. And even though this life has had it’s shares of trials and difficult times, there is no one I would rather do life with.

The truth is: I was worth pursuing. And here is the truth that remains to stand strong: I am still worth pursuing. Jesus still pursues me. I am still desirable. I am still beautiful. I continue to share my heart with Him. I continue to lean on Him. Goodness knows, I wouldn’t be able to stand sometimes if I didn’t. And I’m still worth being pursued by my husband. The romance continues regardless of jobs, children, mortgages, or illness.

Dear momma, you are worth pursuing, you are desirable, you are beautiful. And if you find yourself in a loveless marriage, please know that Jesus will always find you to be lovely. It’s never too late to begin your own beautiful romance.

xoxo

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