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Remembering Jesus: Overcoming the Pressure of the Holiday Season

DevotionalsDecember 3, 2019December 3, 2019

The pressure of the holidays can be suffocating. Remembering Jesus, our Savior, and resting in His presence allows us to overcome the lies and expectations.

I can already feel the lies of the season…

Do all the things. Be all the things. Give all the things.

»Pressure«

Why in the world does this happen during the Christmas season? I know it’s all been said before, it’s all been penned, it’s all been discussed…

Busyness vs. Peace • Mantle vs. Manger • Presents vs. Presence.

Expecting Gifts

Christmas isn’t about the things… We all say this, but we fall prey to the trap every year. We allow it. It creeps in with every Christmas song, movie, and commercial. With every dollar-spot stop at Target. Every ‘SALE! SALE! SALE!’

GIVE all the things…

I’m seriously contemplating -deep breath in- little to no gifts this year. GASP! As everyone screams, ‘Look away! Look away!’ The horror. The nerve.

The freedom…

Imagine, for just a moment, if the pressure of buying the perfect gift, or anything at all, was lifted from our shoulders. Imagine if Christmas was about the conversations, the number of hearts beating in the same room, about being around, not the presents.

What if the gift of the season was about experiencing each other, hearing each other, breaking bread together, grieving together, laughing together, living life together…

Giving what we have…giving ourselves. Our Creator provided us unique gifts to pour out on those we love. Baking, making, hospitably serving, singing, reading, smiling. Giving love, listening ears, open doors… Giving Jesus. Jesus – the most perfect gift.

God has given each of you some special abilities; be sure to use them to help each other, passing on to others God’s many kinds of blessings.
1 Peter 4:10, TLB

Christmas Busy

Christmas is about spending time with loved ones…Yet we still fill our time with events, parties, and programs that take us away from intimate moments with the ones we love. ‘Tis the season to be busy. Christmas parades, Christmas programs, Christmas events…

Christmas is stamped at the beginning of these words, adding a new level of pressure to attend. We run ourselves ragged making sure to show our faces, our kids’ faces, our spouses’ faces at it all.

Please understand I’m not trying to close everyone off from societal traditions. I’m simply trying to spark inspiration in finding rest, seeking the warmth of hospitality, and taking pleasure in the calm.

For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Isaiah 9:6, NLT (ephasis added)

Yes, this verse refers to a time when governments practiced seasons of peace. However, through His sacrifice on the cross, Jesus offers peace to us all, at any moment. He offers us calm in our spirits, though there’s strife all around. He provides quietness through the hustle and bustle. Falling into Jesus brings rest, comfort, and a stillness that is unmatched in this world.

Overcoming Pressure

Christmas is about Jesus… But we fill the season with so much that Jesus isn’t. From the moment of conception to the moment of ascension, every bit of Christ’s life is what we cherish at Christmas, and all the other 364 days. Well, it should be.

For what Jesus accomplished in our place, we should be filled with overwhelming joy. He came to earth as the Son of God, died on the cross for all our sins, rose from the dead three days later, and gave us hope for eternal life with our Father. From that joy should spring forth immense generosity… supernatural generosity.

Though they have been going through much trouble and hard times, they have mixed their wonderful joy with their deep poverty, and the result has been an overflow of giving to others.
2 Corinthians 8:2, TLB

The load is lifted from my chest, and I take a huge sigh of relief. It’s beautiful. Warm. It’s Jesus. Only Jesus. Rejoicing in His gift, being in His presence, and resting in His hope is what the days ahead are all about… it’s what life is about.

Sister, I pray we can join together in overcoming these lies of the holidays. That we can shift the ‘normal’ expectations and rest in Jesus. Rest in remembering Jesus.

eberhard grossgasteiger

Wait, waiting, hold, season, purpose, fruitful, joy, Oh Lord Help Us, Christian, women, mentor, ministry

Hold: Learning to Love and Enjoy God’s Waiting Room

DevotionalsJuly 30, 2019July 30, 2019

When everything is put on hold, God is still moving. We can enjoy the waiting rooms of life because, with God, no season is in vain.

Sitting on her pillow, holding her knees in her chest, she rocked herself back and forth as tears streamed down her face. She tried to journal, tried to pray, tried to worship, but all she could do was cry. She reached for the tissue, as her nose swelled again and snot settled on her upper lip.

“Why?!?” she screamed inwardly! “God, I’m trying to trust you. I want to hear you! I want to obey, but why aren’t you speaking? Why am I still waiting?” she bawled in the dark. Then, resigned to the fact that life was still on hold, she crawled under her covers, laid her head on a tear-stained pillow and went to sleep.

Life on Hold

A hospital waiting room tends to freeze time as if our world is suddenly put on hold. We step into its space, waiting for news of a loved one.

Some of my favorite memories have happened in a waiting room. I was just four years old, sitting on vinyl chairs with my grandparents and my little sister when my dad came around the corner in full scrubs. He held my sister and me on his two sides and announced the arrival of our baby brother!

Gramma

As a college student, I remember sitting in the waiting room, with all of my extended family, while my grandfather was in surgery. My enthusiastic Gramma dazzled us all with treasured tales as we waited. Time stopped, and I watched my grandmother’s eyes glisten as she told story after story of her childhood and college years. Growing up in Louisiana in the ’40s, falling in love with my grandfather in the ’50s, the early days in her marriage, the 60’s as she raised my mom and her three sisters.

To this day, I barely remember why Granddad was having surgery, and I have no idea how long we waited. But I will never forget some of her stories, or how it felt to be all together. It was pure magic.

And, there are the countless times I have sat in a doctor’s office waiting room with my own kids, reading books together, or playing “I Spy,” and, taking time to be still and make the most of our wait.

The irony of it all has not escaped me. After all, waiting rooms are often a place of frustration or anxiety. Rarely do you see people enjoy their wait, and certainly nobody throws a party in a hospital waiting room!

God’s Waiting Room

Waiting rooms can be beautiful places, where memories are made; yet, waiting for God to move rarely feels beautiful.

I have sat in the waiting rooms of life more than a few times. Several years ago, after my husband lost his job, I kept begging God to show us what was next. I felt like everything was put on hold, and I was stuck. I was willing to do anything and go anywhere, except sit still and wait! Sound familiar?

I waited patiently and expectantly for the Lord; and He inclined to me and heard my cry.
Psalm 40:1, AMPC

As I began writing this post, I was waiting for my fourth child to make his debut. I was in pain, and emotional. I was uncomfortable. So, I strove to make something happen, but in the end, all I could do was wait.

Over and over, Jesus showed me Isaiah 55:1…

Wait and listen, everyone who is thirsty! Come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Yes, come, buy [priceless, spiritual] wine and milk without money and without price [simply for the self-surrender that accepts the blessing].
Isaiah 55:1, AMPC

And now, I am typing one-handed holding a bubbly, bright-eyed three-week-old wiggling on my lap. Like most things that require all of my patience, he is worth the wait!

Wait with Purpose

Waiting is HARD. Whether we wait with expectancy or anxiety, either way means to stretch ourselves and hope for something that we don’t fully see yet.

Wait and hope for and expect the Lord; be brave and of good courage and let your heart be stout and enduring. Yes, wait for and hope for and expect the Lord.
Psalm 27:14, AMPC

The truth is, God does not put our lives on hold, rather He holds our lives. We don’t wait for God to move. God is moving, and we wait for Him to speak. And, in the waiting, He is not silent and we are not without purpose.

God does not put our lives on hold, rather He holds our lives. We don't wait for God to move. God is moving, and we wait for Him to speak. And, in the waiting, He is not silent and we are not without purpose. Click To Tweet

Wait with Joy

Through all of my times of perceived waiting. The Lord continues to show me, now is my time and right now is my calling. This place and these people right in front of me are my purpose. Enjoy this moment.

Even when we feel like nothing is happening, God is playing the overture before the show begins. We can choose to be anxious and impatient with the process, or we can sit back and enjoy the music.

If you are in a season of waiting, this IS your moment. It IS your right now. Today IS your season. Enjoy the day.

Waiting IS hard, but it is not fruitless. With God, no season is ever in vain.

Annie Spratt

rest, season, shelter, suffering, Oh Lord Help Us, Christian, women, mentor, ministry

Resting: Experience God’s Gentle Shelter During Brutal Seasons

DevotionalsJanuary 13, 2019January 14, 2019

Some seasons of life can be extremely brutal. We can feel exposed and vulnerable. But we can draw near to God, resting in the shelter only He can offer.

My son Evan and I have spent the past 90 days in Philly after his transplant. We had finally been given the green light to return home. I had every vision of how this return home was going to go, but nothing prepared me for how hard, emotionally and physically, this would be.

The holidays were in full swing. I was surrounded by expectations. My own, my children, my own… did I say my own?! Rather than home feeling like a safe place, it felt too open, too germy, too exposed. I know I asked for prayer before we left and while we were there, but now that we are home asking for prayer seems too personal and too raw.

Elijah

My thoughts were drawn to Elijah, the prophet. I love his heart and the kind way God treats him throughout his journey. One particular event has always stood out to me…

Elijah prays for there to be no rain in the kingdom of Israel. It has not rained for 3 years. The lack of rain is in direct defiance to the king and queen ruling at that time. But the time for no rain is coming to an end. God is going to use Elijah to bring rain back to the dry ground and reveal His power to his people.

Elijah gathers 450 of Baal’s prophets. Two bulls were offered as a sacrifice. Whoever’s sacrifice that was accepted will show who the one true God is. This story is amazing all by itself. However, the story I am interested happens after this test. Elijah calls down fire from heaven. His sacrifice is burned completely, and Jezebel, the queen, calls for Elijah’s very life. It’s amazing and dramatic and all the feels. But Elijah is utter toast when this event is over.

Then he was afraid and he arose and ran for his life […] and he asked that he might die, saying ‘It is enough O Lord take away my life,’

1 Kings 19:3-4, ESV

Depleted

Go back and read that verse again. Elijah, the prophet, the one who called down fire from heaven, wants to die. He had nothing left. Depleted. Worn out. God sends an angel and what happens next gives me every confidence that God is more than I could ever imagine.

The angel gives Elijah food and drink twice and gives him rest. Not very exciting news. It can feel pretty anti-climactic. But how God treats Elijah after a hard battle, speaks volumes to me as another weary traveler. I cannot say I have fought 450 prophets, but I do know what it is like to be weary down to the end of my very soul.

Rather than eat, sleep, and recharge, I wrestle with all of those. I want action or a plan, but I do not want to rest. There are a million excuses for not resting. I say, “But if I don’t…” or “Without this, the consequences could be devastating.” Yet Elijah did exactly that. He took to resting as he prepared to meet with God.

Brutal to Resting

I am in a season that I would not wish on anyone. It has been brutal and it is far from over. We will be watching my son for signs of rejection for at least the next 6 months. We will see a doctor every 2 weeks and multiple other specialists over the next coming months. My nature is to do. And yet God, in His gentleness, calls me to be still. After one of Elijah’s greatest victories, he felt the most helpless and alone. I can relate to this.

I, even I only, am left […]

1 Kings 19:14

In the middle of all the suffering Elijah was experiencing, God shows himself in a low whisper. How do I live in the midst of my suffering? I could continue to fight and work and do. But I can also rest. I can fight to rest. Crazy thought, isn’t it? That resting would be a fight. My guess is rest doesn’t come naturally to any of us.

Come to me and I will give you rest—all of you who work so hard beneath a heavy yoke. Wear my yoke—for it fits perfectly—and let me teach you; for I am gentle and humble, and you shall find rest for your souls; for I give you only light burdens.

Matthew 11:28, TLB

What about you? I don’t know where you are or what you are dealing with. But I do know this: He is offering us rest. I will admit, I am not even sure what that looks like, but I want to know. That has to be a start.

Elijah experienced major suffering but God draws near in a low whisper. How do we live in the midst of suffering? We find rest in the gentle shelter of God. Click To Tweet

Aleksandr Eremin

hope, pain, rest, season, Oh Lord Help Us, Christian, women, mentor, ministry

Season: Learning to Rest in Times of Pain and Suffering

Devotionals, Stay SaneDecember 10, 2018January 13, 2019

There are many different times in life. During a season of suffering, it is important to remember that it is okay to not be okay, but we are called to rest in Jesus.

Through the past year, I have had some of my lowest lows and some of my highest highs. I am currently, by the grace of God, in a season where everything seems to be going well. I am feeling more confident and am having a lot of good days. Because of that sometimes I forget that I am allowed to have bad days. I focus a lot on what “should be” instead of facing what is. We all go through different seasons of life but in every season we must hold tight to our Savior.

Having it all Together

Sometimes, as Christians, we tend to think that we have to have it all together. We are constantly bombarded with phrases that lead us to believe that we are not allowed to have bad days or to feel upset for a time. When we confide in people they usually respond with “just have faith” or “you just need to pick yourself up”.

While this is all true, we also need to realize that there will be seasons of pain and times where we don’t feel okay. And the truth of the matter is that it’s okay to not be okay. The pain will fade and God will come through for us and bring relief.

After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, the one who called you into his eternal glory in Christ Jesus, will himself restore, empower, strengthen, and establish you.

1 Peter 5:10, CEB

A Season for Everything

There truly is a season for everything, and that includes seasons of not ‘okay’. Scripture clearly states that there is a time for crying and laughing and a time for mourning and dancing. Life happens in seasons. Sometimes that season is one of pain. We are allowed to feel pain and to not be “on” all of the time. At times we must rest in our suffering and our pain.

There’s a season for everything and a time for every matter under the heavens:

a time for giving birth and a time for dying, a time for planting and a time for uprooting what was planted, a time for killing and a time for healing, a time for tearing down and a time for building up, a time for crying and a time for laughing, a time for mourning and a time for dancing, a time for throwing stones and a time for gathering stones, a time for embracing and a time for avoiding embraces, a time for searching and a time for losing a time for keeping and a time for throwing away, a time for tearing and a time for repairing, a time for keeping silent and a time for speaking, a time for loving and a time for hating, a time for war and a time for peace.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, CEB

Suffering

The Bible is clear that there are times where we will not be ok. The difference comes when we learn to give it to Jesus and learn to be ok again. We are not called to live a life without suffering but to give our suffering to our great God.

We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.

Romans 5:3-5, NLT

We can rejoice when we run into problems and trials. Some other versions say that we can rejoice in suffering. When we generally think of trials or suffering the word rejoice does not come to mind. But, it is clear that we all go through suffering and that it happens for a reason…

That reason is hope. Suffering will also ultimately develop hope. A hope that will never let us down. A hope that can only come when we give everything over to Jesus. Jesus died so that we do not suffer alone.

He took the punishment for our sin. He suffered so that we can trust in Him. Jesus knows first hand what it is like to not be ok. We have a confidant, a supporter through all of life’s trials. This is the hope we need in order to see the good in our suffering. To learn to rest in it.

Suffering will ultimately develop a hope that will never let us down. A hope that can only come when we give everything over to Jesus. He died so we do not suffer alone. Click To Tweet

Suffering with Each Other

When others are suffering, we are called to stand with them. We need to help them. We need to be a safe place for people to be able to talk about what they are going through. It is important that we give people permission to not be okay. There are times when people are looking for help solving a problem and times when they just need someone to listen to them. As believers, we are called to do these things.

Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

Galatians 6:2, NIV

Carry each other’s burdens. This is what scripture implores us to do. Part of loving one another is carrying each other’s burdens. When we are in times of pain and suffering, having someone carry the burden with you can change everything.

God did not create us to go through life by ourselves. When we are in times of turmoil it is important to seek Godly counsel and support. When we are the ones giving the support, we must do so in a way that is helpful, loving, and honest.

Joy Comes in the Morning

It is truly okay to not be okay for a season. We all have days or weeks or even months of not being okay. The difference comes when we give our pain over to God and learn to rest in Him. We may have bad days, but we can have confidence that we will be okay again… the sun will rise.

For his anger lasts only a brief moment, and his good favor restores one’s life. One may experience sorrow during the night, but joy arrives in the morning.

Psalm 30:5, NET

chaos, grace, kindness, season, Oh Lord Help Us, Christian, women, mentor, ministry

Kindness: 3 Tips for Floating on the Gift of God’s Grace

Devotionals, Stay SaneDecember 5, 2018January 13, 2019

The gift of God’s grace can be hard to accept. Acceptance means we are flawed and need help. But God’s kindness sustains us in our weaknesses.

Many different seasons make up life. Some seasons are full of blessings, some full of heartache. Seasons can be filled with joy, hope, trials, grieving, and chaos. My current season holds all of the above!

For us, this season started back in August, when we found out we are pregnant with our fourth child! We are absolutely overjoyed to welcome our little boy this spring. Immediately, I felt the Lord say that the child in my womb is a symbol of a new season of grace and favor for our family.

See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.

Isaiah 43:19, NIV

Grace-Filled

As I ponder over the past four months, I have truly seen the kindness of God abound in every area of our family life. However, a grace-filled season is not necessarily easy. And, it has not been an easy season for us. Just to be real, this season has been crazy!

My husband recently accepted a job working for an incredible ministry in another city. While, this is an amazing opportunity for our family, moving (while pregnant and with three kids) comes with its own set of challenges…

I have peace with the unknown, but I have all the feels.

I feel impatient with the process, and at the same time, I want to savor each moment just a little bit longer.

I want to cry. I want to scream. I want to leap for joy.

I just want to be settled in my new house, and I never want to leave my current one.

I can’t wait for Christmas. I hope our actual day holds up to the picturesque Hallmark scene in my head.

I’m so excited for this new adventure ahead, and I’m slightly terrified I won’t be cut out for the job.

I’m looking forward to our new friends and community, but I am mourning leaving the ones I love here.

The back-and-forth is exhausting. I’m longing to just be HOME. But, I know that home is heaven, and I hope in that.

Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe,

Hebrews 12:28,NIV

Kindness

How do you feel about the move?

I hear this almost every day. “I feel everything,” is often my reply. And that is truly the best answer I give.

How can someone feel everything all at once? How can something so good also be so hard? Where is God in all of this? Why is He letting me go through this pain?

He is RIGHT. HERE. In the middle with me. He is carrying me through this season with love and kindness, and I am letting Him.

Many people have asked how I am handling or managing this crazy season. My response is always, “I’m floating on the grace of God.”

But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

2 Corinthians 12:9, ESV

Grace is more than forgiveness. It is more than salvation for our sins. It’s His kindness. Grace is power! It is the gift of God, with the power of God to carry us through every situation in life. Grace enables us to overcome victoriously…

How do we float on the grace of God?

Grace is power! It is the gift of God, alongside His power to carry us through every situation in life. Grace enables us to overcome victoriously. Click To Tweet

3 Tips for Floating

1. Recognize you need Him. We are weak, and that is okay. Actually, it is good. When we are weak, His strength and glory can be displayed all the more.

2. Let Him carry you. Go at the pace that Jesus sets. His ways are not our ways, but His ways are always right!

3. Rest in His loving arms. When we are in a season of chaos is when we need God’s grace the most. We will fail. We will disappoint others. We will not be perfect. But, we can rest in His love. His loving embrace holds us in our imperfections, sustains us in our weaknesses and empowers us to continue.

When we float on the grace of God, we live every day victorious!

The Creative Exchange