relationship

Everywhere: There is Nowhere We Can Go, Where He is Not

DevotionalsAugust 12, 2019August 12, 2019

We can become comfortable on the plateau of faith, content in our relationship with Jesus. We must push through the up and down; run to Him everywhere, in everything, EVERY season!

Camp; A Wake-up Call

So, I just got back from a week at Young Life camp on Saranac Lake in New York. May I just say… Wow. Other than that, I have no idea where to begin unpacking the last 6 days. Every day consisted of crazy activities, great meals, laughs, singing until you lost your voice, and dancing until you couldn’t stand.

On the flyer, it says camp will be the best week of your life and that it’s worth every penny. But, there were definitely parts for me, as someone who is not a new believer, that just didn’t sit right or felt very elementary.

I think my main focus for writing this devotional, is going to be exploring why this week was so difficult for me despite all the amazing things happening around me. Where was God this past week? How can I discipline myself to go to God instead of myself? God is everywhere. How do I open my eyes?

Out of the Depths

This morning was my first time at church in a while and we studied Psalm 130. Out of the depths, I cry to you, O Lord! Monday and Tuesday were the hardest days I think and I’m not really sure why. I had a mild panic attack on each of those days and overall I was quite frustrated with myself.

Why can’t I just enjoy myself? Why must my anxiety follow me everywhere? Something really cool happened in all those instances though. I was able to reach out to God within moments of feeling anxious or unsafe. As I spoke with my leader during our one on one, the only thing I really had to say was how grateful I am that God has opened my eyes to how much I’ve grown in Him; how far out of the depths I’ve come, but also how much farther I still have to go.

He is Everywhere

I believe that everyone grows in one way or another at a camp like Young Life. Relationships are built, beliefs are challenged, and our foundations are shaken by the hard truths of why we’re really there.

This past week I believe that my growth was in my friendship with Jesus. I’ve said yes to a life with Him and I’ve been saved in so many ways, but growth within that relationship has plateaued recently. I’ve come out of the valley, but I’ve been walking straight ever since. No ups, maybe some downs, but overall just a great sense of stagnation.

Open your mouth and taste, open your eyes and see—how good God is. Blessed are you who run to him.
Psalm 34:8, MSG

It’s as if I’ve said that now that I’m getting better, now that I am no longer in the depths, I have no need for Christ. So I’ve tried to set Him on a shelf until I need Him again. Thank God for His constant reminders of how helpless we really are and desperate we really should be. We cannot contain Christ. He is everywhere.

Final Thoughts

I’ve been in a season lately where I just feel off. Now I feel that season is coming to an end and now I am in a time of transition and growth. There is a lot coming up in my life and I think instead of running to God with my fear of the changes, I’ve turned to any and everything else.

But this past week has opened my eyes to the fact that God will be with me through the change and it really is as simple as that. Christ is in everything. He is everywhere. We cannot outrun Him. My prayer for all of you is that you can find rest in whatever it is that challenges you because God is in your midst. There is nothing you’re going through that He isn’t a part of.

Where can I go to escape your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?
Psalm 139:7, CSB

Christ is in everything. He is everywhere. We cannot outrun Him. May we find rest in whatever challenges, because God is in our midst. He's a part of it all! Click To Tweet

Miryam León

alone, loneliness, friendship, relationship, Oh Lord Help Us, Christian, women, mentor, ministry

Alone: Learning How to Combat Loneliness in a Godly Way

DevotionalsJune 11, 2019June 11, 2019

We can go through seasons of loneliness. It is important to surround ourselves with trusted people when we feel alone and remember God is always with us.

Loneliness is something that many of us deal with at one point or another. I know I have. Being single often leaves me feeling alone. While others my age are getting married or having children, I can feel at times like maybe I am doing something wrong. This leaves me to feel incredibly alone.

There are many reasons we may feel alone, for me it comes out in my singleness but for others it could be lack of friendships, living away from family, or not having a good support system. Through all of these situations, there is one thing that remains true…We are never truly alone. We are constantly in the presence of our truest friend and savior, Jesus.

Living Life Alone

Two are better than one because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up! Again, if two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone? And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him—a threefold cord is not quickly broken.
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12, ESV

We are not meant to do life alone. A lot of times loneliness can be felt because we don’t have people doing life with us. We don’t have a “tribe”, as many like to call it. While it is true that we always have Jesus, we still need other brothers and sisters around us.

It can be incredibly difficult to put yourself out there and find your people. Trust me, I know. I have just recently found people outside my family that feel safe and that I can genuinely do life with. Let me tell you, the awkwardness is worth it.

God created us as social beings and as such it is important we find people to go through the ups and downs of life with. When you have people to do life with, the feeling of loneliness happens less and less.

Never Separated

No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 8:39, NLT

There have been many times throughout my life that I have felt separated from the Lord. This left me feeling completely and utterly alone.

Whether it is a difficult season of life, a sin struggle, or just a normal day, there are many ways we can feel separated from God and lonely. The truth is in the above verse. There is absolutely nothing we can do to separate ourselves from God. Nothing. And if we are not separated from God that means we are never alone. Sometimes we may feel distant or disconnected, but we are never separate.

Even in times of distance, He is there. Even when we can not feel Him, He is there. I am learning, daily, how true this is. He is constant. Look at the trees, the sky, birds, He is there. His creation is proof that He exists and insurance that He is here for us in all circumstances.

Even in times of distance, God is there. Even when we can not feel Him, He is there. His creation is proof that He exists and insurance that He is here for us in all circumstances! Click To Tweet

Dominik Scythe

darkness, deeper, God’s Word, relationship, understanding, salvation, Oh Lord Help Us, Christian, women, mentor, ministry

Deeper: Diving Deep Into God’s Word Instead Of Treading On Its Surface

DevotionalsJune 2, 2019June 2, 2019

We have been given the best treasure for finding and knowing God. The only true way to truly know Him is by diving deeper into the Bible.

Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness covered the surface of the watery depths, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.
Genesis 1:2, CSB

What Treasures Lie Below The Surface?

Have you ever noticed the deeper you dive into scripture, the more you seem to find? Hidden treasures lie deep below the surface of the Word. We are not meant to tread on its surface because it will only give us a small glimpse of who God is and what He has for us.

When we tread on the surface of the Word, we also find ourselves face to face with the darkness that covers it. This darkness is where we find ourselves lost, tempted, and treading in the territory of the enemy.

Instead of living our lives on the surface, we should dive down deep to see what hidden treasures we will find in the waters below. Doing this, we will gain a deeper realization of who our Creator is, a deeper relationship with His Son, and a deeper reason for diving further into the scriptures.

Dive deep with me today, Dear Reader, as we explore together these hidden treasures.

My son, if you accept my words and store up my commands within you, listening closely to wisdom and directing your heart to understanding; furthermore, if you call out to insight and lift your voice to understanding, if you seek it like silver and search for it like hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and discover the knowledge of God.
Proverbs 2:2-5, CSB

Deeper Realization of Who God Is

God wants us to know who He is. He created us in His image. If we desire to know how we are supposed to live or be, then we would be wise to know who God is first.

Knowing the attributes of God will help us better understand ourselves. Before I knew Jesus as my Savior, I read the Bible. I knew how to read each and every word. Yet, I had no clue what it was saying. I was only reading on the surface.

It wasn’t until I was saved that the Word of God became easier to understand. Even then, I remained on the surface when I read. I would read a random place in the Bible, mostly the New Testament, and then try to apply what I read to my life.

The scriptures helped me, but they didn’t give me fully what God had originally designed. He wanted me to dive deeper. He wanted me to come to a deep realization of Him. I couldn’t do that by reading the Bible the way I was; which was for mostly selfish reasons.

God’s word is full of encouragement and good stuff, but it’s much more than a ‘pick you up when you feel down‘ book. When we dive deep in the scriptures and ask ourselves, how does this scripture characterize God? first, then we understand the direction clearly on how to apply His Word in our lives.

I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, would give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him.
Ephesians 1:17, CSB

Deeper Relationship With His Son

Understanding who God is will inevitably lead to a closer and deeper relationship with His son, Jesus Christ. If we only allow ourselves 5 minutes a day in our Bibles, how deep can we expect our relationship with Christ truly to be?

I’m not saying that we should all spend our days with our noses shoved in our Bibles doing nothing else. Although, if given this option, I’d happily welcome it. All I am saying is the amount of time we invest in the relationship, is what we will naturally expect to get out of it.

When I find myself reading my Bible with intention, I tend to be led to discover sweet treasures of God and His relationship with His son, Jesus. This prompts me to feel a love so high and so deep between the two of them that it moves me to tears. I need to be truly invested in what I’m reading in order to get that kind of emotion and reaction.

For example, my younger sister LOVES to read! I’ve always admired this about her. She will sit and read an entire book as big as Harry Potter in one sitting if allowed the time. She always tries to explain the story to me when she is done reading, but I never seem to have the same reaction she had.

This is because she was invested in the story and the characters of that story, while I was not. She got to know their character well; So when those characters experienced something very tragic or very exciting, she experienced it too. Her ability to understand them as the role they were created to be in that story, is what drove her into an intimate and deep connection with them.

This is the same way God designed us to read His Word. When we allow ourselves to understand the main characters of the story, which is not us, then we will reap a more meaningful relationship with them. You can not know the Father without knowing His son. And you can not know His son without knowing the Father. When we know the main characters, we then deeply come to know ourselves.

They saw the Lord’s works, his wondrous works in the deep.
Psalms 107:24, CSB

Deeper Reason For The Dive

Upon looking at the scripture in Genesis 1:2, I found a startling discovery. The scripture says that darkness covered the surface of the watery depths. When you think of darkness, what comes to mind?

For me, these words are triggered: isolation, depression, lost, blind, fear, cold, temptation, and evil. We all have been there. We all know it well. It isn’t a place we enjoy living in. God understood this fact which is why, if you dive into His word, you’ll find His sweet warning from the very foundations of the earth.

The fact that God reveals to us from the beginning that darkness covers THE SURFACE of the waters, is not accidental. He intentionally put that there for our own benefit and knowledge as a warning not to tread there. Knowing this will help us stay away from the surface and dive down deep for all things good. There is a reason for God’s placement of scriptures. He wants us to unlock these mysteries and find as many hidden treasures as we can.

Today, Beloved, I urge you to do this very thing. Read your Bible to know who God is. Read your Bible to grow in a deeper relationship with His son, Jesus Christ. And understand, Sister, there is a deep reason for EVERY. SINGLE. WORD!

The words of a person’s mouth are deep waters,
a flowing river, a fountain of wisdom.
Proverbs 18:4, CSB

Read your Bible to know who God is and grow your relationship with His son, Jesus Christ. Understand, Sister, there is a deep reason for EVERY. SINGLE. WORD! Click To Tweet

Jason Leung

search, seek, find, Oh Lord Help Us, Christian mentoring, spiritual growth, women of faith, scripture

Search: Intentionally Looking and Finding God in the Everyday

Devotionals, Stay SaneJuly 26, 2018June 28, 2019

God is all around us, every second of every day. Search for Him. Being intentional in this effort will help us build a deeper relationship.

This week I was totally rejuvenated. We went to the beach with my parents for the week and had an amazing time. The Outer Banks is my favorite place on earth. It is the spot that makes me slow down, listen, and feel. I love the sun on my face, the sand under my feet and the sound of the waves as they roll up to shore. It centers me and reminds me that our Creator is always present.

Searching for Him

Have you ever looked for God? I never looked for God until a few years ago. I read a devotional that talked about seeing God in the everyday. I’m sorry to say that I don’t remember more than that, but it did catch my attention. The idea of looking for God.

Some mornings I wake up and it is so easy to see and hear. My little boy’s laughter, my husband’s smiling face, my daughter’s big life plans, warm sun, blooming flowers, a big ripe strawberry bursting with flavor. It’s so easy to see God in these things.

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

James 1:17, NIV

Finding Him

I have a prayer journal that I write in most days. It is a collection of letters I write to God about my hopes, fears, short comings, and my love for Him. When I look back over them I often see how he has moved through my life, even when I didn’t know He was there. (Yes, He is always there but sometimes in the middle of a storm you forget you aren’t in it alone.) I also make a list of all the people, situations, and circumstances I want to pray about. I circle the big ones that seem most pressing at the moment. It’s been a good reflective tool. And it helps keep my mind centered and less likely to wander off as I’m speaking to God.

I think I’m going to try to start adding a section to my journal weekly where I list all the places I have seen God. This week alone I know I have seen Him in my family, laughing together I feel the love He brings. I have felt His power in the sun, wind, waves and sifting sand. I know there is science behind all that, but if you really want to blow someone’s mind, ask them how it all started. The Big Bang? How did that happen? Random? But what is the science behind the beginning of everything? I can answer in three little letters G-O-D!

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

Genesis 1: 1, NIV

Deepening Our Relationship

We went to see the “Lost Colony” and the sunset over the water as we watched was magical. The colors of the sky spoke to me. It was so beautiful. My son watched the play on the edge of his seat. He was so caught up in the story of starting a new life in a foreign place where nothing was the same as home. His face full of awe and wonder was definitely my favorite part of the evening. God is so present in those moments.

I know God calls us to look for Him. Jesus was clear about this when He included it in two of the Beatitudes:

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

Matthew 5:6, 8, NIV

Friends, go and search for Our Father daily. He is there, and finding Him is joy!

Dear God,

Thank You for Your presence. I am so proud and honored and humbled that You surround me in all that I do. Please keep my eyes clear and my heart open so that I can see all of You in my daily walk. Bless all those who are searching for You that Your light may blind them with it’s beauty and save them for eternity.

love,

Relationship: From a Love Affair to an Intimate Closeness with The Father

Devotionals, Stay SaneApril 22, 2018June 27, 2019

Love affairs are intense, exciting, and fleeting. Our feelings of love will fizzle over time, which is why we must be continually falling in love with our Lord. This maturing of our love leads to a deep, intimate relationship.

Every now and then I realize a need in my psyche to listen to chick music. I’ve told my husband that this is necessary for healthy, female existence…at least for me. It consists of different artists for each of us, but I imagine you know what I mean. Your gal may growl out her salty words or she may purr velvet blues, but depending on the day and my mood, I can bounce from Sara Bareilles wanting to see me be brave to Adele sending her love to his new lover. Probably like you, I can swing from Julia Fischers’ fingers dancing over her violin strings to Taylor Swift singing “Getaway Car.”

And that, dear sister, is where I landed the other day while upstairs doing particular household chores which I least enjoy. It was a Taylor day. Her song, “Sad, Beautiful, Tragic,” tugged at my heart in an unusually strong way. I replayed it several times, listening intently to the words as I questioned internally why this and one other song (“Begin Again”), on the album was arresting my attention. Most chick music falls in this category: girl meets boy; boy breaks girl’s heart; girl is shattered, can never trust again OR she’s tough, moving on, getting revenge, etc.

It occurred to me that too often over the years my relationship with God has been more like a love affair than an intimate, covenant relationship; maybe yours, too.

A Love Affair…

Love affairs are initially characterized by warmth, infatuation and hormones raging. Dr. Richard Schwartz, associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and a consultant at McLean Massachusetts General Hospital said that in the early stages of love our levels of cortisol, a stress hormone, rises in our system. In addition, love turns on the neurotransmitter dopamine, which stimulates the brain’s pleasure centers, and drops the levels of serotonin, which “adds a dash of obsession.” When this formula is added together, the equation always equals the exciting, crazy, dare-I-say silly feeling of an early infatuation/love. As the love-year progresses, chemicals gradually return to a normal balance and, if both hang around, a mature type of love follows. The hormone and neurotransmitter oxytocin increases to produce calm and helps to cement the bond that is being created between the two people involved. Other brain specialists concur.

Pretty amazing how the Lord-of-all worked those little details out, huh?

The problem is, we humans like that crazy, exciting, OMG! first-love feeling all the time…in every relationship.

It might explain our divorce rate…might help us understand why so many singles hit the dating web sites night after night…

Might even explain our prayerlessness.

Falling in Love…

While some of us still possess the buzz of the first blush of being a new Christian, many do not. So, as John Wimber, (one of the founding leaders of Vineyard USA), said to his first pastor after a few months of sitting in a pew, “You mean I gave up drugs for this?” Wimber wanted to do what he saw Jesus doing in the gospels, but didn’t see it happening in his church. Unlike many of us, however, he didn’t settle for a cooling agnosticism to replace the fire of his first love. Wimber studied the scriptures faithfully and passionately; he learned that if our love affair wasn’t with Jesus, it would be with something else. “Show me where you spend your time, money, and energy, and I’ll tell you what you worship.” he often said. Further, Wimber later claimed,

It seems the more I think about not sinning, the more I sin, but the more I think about just loving Jesus, the less I seem to sin. Falling in love seems to be the key.

John Wimber, Power Evangelism

There it is, again – falling in love. But this love is ongoing, maturing. It’s the kind of love that is patient, kind, and not envious, boastful, or rude. This love doesn’t always have to have its’ own way, and isn’t irritable or resentful. It doesn’t do a happy dance at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love in its’ truest sense bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things. In fact, it never, ever ends (I Corinthians 13:4-8).

Impossible, right? Why yes, it is!! Apart from the power of Christ within me, I am the antithesis of all of those attributes listed! I can be impatient, envious and rude -all in one breath! I can be irritable and demand my own way when my coffee isn’t prepared the way I like – all before 8 a.m.!

But God…

…has rescued me from the power of darkness and transferred me into the kingdom of His dear Son…

Colossians 1:13, NLT

It seems the more I think about not sinning, the more I sin, but the more I think about just loving Jesus, the less I seem to sin. Falling in love seems to be the key. ~John Wimber, Power Evangelism Click To Tweet

Intimate Love…

Why, WHY does the Father continue to rescue, forgive, and empower me?

Because He loves me…and you…with a deep, everlasting, intimate love that surpasses human understanding. When we became His children, God made a covenant with us through the work of Jesus Christ (Hebrews 6:13-20). It is a covenant of grace, filled with mercy, authored by Love.

It seems like drinking from a cracked cistern, really, when we, you and I, continually search for a new ‘first love’ feeling or sense of fulfillment by sipping in new relationships or attractions, whatever those may be, when Love Himself, the fountain of living waters- who has loved us like no other – is available to us at all times. He is waiting to give you, and me, a fresh drink.

For My people have committed two evils:
They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters,
And hewn themselves cisterns—broken cisterns that can hold no water.

Jeremiah 2:13, NKJV

Sharon McCutcheon

You are fiercely loved…

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redeemed, broken, christian, women, encouragement

Masterpiece: Five Possible Responses to Brokenness

Devotionals, Stay SaneMarch 18, 2018July 30, 2019

There are different ways to respond to the brokenness we have experienced. One way brings glory to the Creator. God wants to use the brokenness to create a masterpiece.

Last fall, I was at a holiday vendor event and had a divine connection. There I met a lady who I knew I would be connecting with again! Kim is a wife, mother, and physical therapist. Her passion is to share God’s love with others by sharing her life experiences. Today she is sharing a valuable lesson she has only been able to learn from walking through difficult seasons. Here Kim writes…

“It was someone else’s fault.” “Don’t worry about it, no one can be perfect.” “You can pick yourself back up and do what you need to pick yourself back up.” “I can’t believe you let yourself do that.” These are all responses that we may hear from our families and friends and when we make mistakes and become broken.

Response

As Christians, what is our initial response to our own brokenness – shame, guilt, anger, coverup? I have found that responses to brokenness fall into these scenarios…

1. Do what we can to cover our brokenness so hopefully, no one finds out or notices it.

2. Isolate ourselves, pull away from others, and sink into self-pity because of feelings of shame and guilt.

3. Hide our brokenness, secretly deal with our brokenness; to the outside we have it all together but on the inside we are broken.

4. Let our brokenness be known and seen but we either don’t want to change or we don’t know how to change so we remain broken and our brokenness just becomes part of us.

5. We allow ourselves to be made into a new creation using our broken pieces to make the new masterpiece through vulnerability, repentance, love and accountability of others, and reconciliation to Christ.

The Correct Response

As I have worked through my extreme brokenness over the past several years, I am convinced that God desires the latter response even though that is probably the most difficult and most vulnerable response. It is also a response that I believe God calls us to encourage with others as His disciples. Our response to our brokenness, and to the brokenness of those in our midst, reflects our true beliefs of who God is and the characteristics of God.

Our response to our brokenness, and to the brokenness of those in our midst, reflects our true beliefs of who God is and the characteristics of God. Click To Tweet

I have walked down the path of all of these responses in relation to my brokenness. Prior to being a Christian, I would tend to accept my brokenness, not try to change it. I didn’t worry who saw my brokenness. I would say the other 4 responses are all responses that followers of Christ may give. As a Christian we have admitted that we are broken and need Christ’s forgiveness; but I know I stopped at this knowledge and initial confession. From that point of initial salvation, we have a choice of what we do with our continued brokenness. Within so many Christian communities, we feel we need to hide and coverup our brokenness because we are to be all put together since we have Christ! That is how I lived my life for years.

My view of brokenness also affected my friendships and marriage. I formed some close relationships, but not vulnerable or transparent relationships. That reflected my relationship with God. I wanted to know a lot about God, but I was scared to become vulnerable and transparent with Him. I didn’t accept His unconditional love. As I continued with this superficial, knowledge-based relationship with Christ, I did not surrender to my brokenness to allow for healing and strength to overcome temptation in that same area of brokenness. As a result, I fell into temptation again resulting in extreme brokenness.

Redeemed, Not Perfect

Over the past couple of years as I walked through extreme brokenness God has taught me several things about brokenness. The first lesson was to really believe that just because we are saved doesn’t mean we are perfect, un-tempted, or sinless. In fact, once we begin to really follow Christ as Lord and Savior, Satan will wage war within us. How much we believe that affects our response with our continued brokenness.

After my salvation, Satan attacked my view of myself which produced shame and guilt and a desire to just cover up that part of my life. I wanted God to take that from me. I didn’t want to deal with all of my brokenness that was a result of my view. So for years, I kept that part of me secret and didn’t do my part to surrender that part of me to God.

For the first time, I surrendered my whole self to Christ, broken pieces and all. I became transparent about my brokenness to those around me. I believed Christ’s promise to make me into a new creation as I walked through my brokenness beside Him. That walk included pain, consequences, hard conversations, and life change. But I didn’t do it alone nor in my own power. Through Christ’s redemption and Power, I love who I was created to be, am thankful for my brokenness, and am in intimate relationships with others and God for the first time.

His Glory

God wants to use your brokenness to create His masterpiece in you. He wants your vulnerability, your transparency, and your brokenness so He can display His love, His power, His redemption, and His glory; creatively using your broken pieces to reflect Him in you. You are His masterpiece, brokenness and all!

Thank you, Kim!!

If you have found this inspiring, share the encouragement…

Annie Spratt