2 words I thought I’d never embrace…

There are two words that don’t come natural or easy for me to live out.  Through God’s strength and grace I am constantly striving to grow in these two things that would be impossible for me to embrace without Him….What are they?

Discipline.
&
Patience.

Through the years my understanding of these has changed: when I was younger, like any other kid, I hated them… they meant I couldn’t get my way or have what I wanted.  As I grew up, by my parent’s guidance, I learned to accept them as needful but I struggled because people would say things like: “Why haven’t you done ____ yet?”  “Don’t you want _____?”  “When are you going to _____?”  It made me resent the fact that I was choosing to wait & the voice of rebellion in my heart would say: “Why don’t you just get what you want? Why wait?”

Through God’s grace I’ve learned that whatever I desire will not make me happy or give me freedom once I have it.  In contrast, by waiting for God’s perfect time, one day I will be able to fully enjoy what I am waiting on.  But I don’t have to wait until then to be satisfied or fulfilled.  There’s nothing more joyful than going to Christ for satisfaction and letting go of the fulfillment that I thought could be found in a person, experience, outcome, possession, or desire.  I have learned to say “I shall not want” because He is the One my heart was made for.

Today and I’m learning to cherish and embrace self-discipline and patience. The two go hand-in-hand: discipline requires patience & patience requires discipline.  They cannot be separated.  They are not easy, but I’ve been able to see the beautiful fruit in my heart, mind, and life when I choose to wait on God’s timing for what is best rather than pursing what I feel I need now.  I’m a work in progress; always learning. It is a life long-journey, not a destination.  But I can say that the lessons discipline and patience have taught me are priceless.

One of my favorite quotes on this subject is:

“Discipline is choosing between what you want now & what you want most.”

Self-discipline in my life looks like examining my time & thoughts and asking if I’m spending it in a way that is beneficial or destructive? Am I walking in a way that is wise, directing me towards my goals and the person God is calling me to be? A lack of self-discipline leads to self-destruction and hurting those around me.  Like the quote says, having self-disciple may mean having to say “No” to something, even if it’s good, so I can say “Yes” to what is best. Self-discipline leads me to choose what is best which ultimately leads to greater freedom.  I’m free to say “No” because my flesh no longer has power over me and through Christ’s victory I am free to say “Yes” to what He has prepared for me: a life of joy and peace, love and freedom in Himself.

Discipline and patience are painful to practice because they stretch & pull you out of your comfort zone but lead to growth and character. It’s a daily, intentional decision to choose what causes growth…You may be questioning if staying & growing in patience and discipline is worth it. I love what Hannah Brencher, an author and speaker who shares a lot on this subject, says: “We don’t just walk away and call it quits when stuff gets hard. Life is hard. Life will deal you some tough blows. The hard stuff produces character and I know I could always stand to have more character. So I stay.”

James 1:4 reads – Learn well how to wait so you will be strong, complete, and in need of nothing. If you do not have wisdom, ask God for it. He is always ready to give it to you and will never say you are wrong for asking.

My prayer is that we learn to wait well & enjoy the season we are each in with contentment and joy.  I pray God grant us the grace to stay in the hard, uncomfortable places that lead to growth.  I pray He give us the wisdom and grace to practice self-discipline and patience.  I pray we depend on Him for strength and follow His voice: calling us to wait and trust Him because He knows what is best.

A Break from the Pull

At the beginning of the New Year do you ever feel pulled a million ways? Like there are multiple directions you feel pressured to go yet not sure what "goals" you want to pursue?  And yet you feel discouraged because your past "resolutions" have failed to result in real change?

Can I encourage you to break away from the pull & be still so you can pursue God’s heart today? That is a daily pursuit: not one that only happens January 1st.  I struggle with “year resolutions”…I’d rather simply have a resolution for today: a resolution to pursue Jesus today and to be faithful in the small things He has placed in front of me. One day at a time. And as I seek to pursue Jesus and silence the distractions around me what always leaves me in awe is that He never stops pursuing me. 

At the end of one year and the beginning of the next I always find myself reflecting on what happened the last 365 days & looking expectantly towards the next.  Going into 2018 I was looking at how I have been spending my time and the places in my life and heart that I’ve neglected. I found myself asking: is there something enslaving my heart or mind? Is there something that I feel I cannot live without? Something keeping me from what is most important?

And I knew: I had been wasting the most time scrolling thru my phone.

Going into the New Year the best way for me to refocus was to delete my social media apps for 2 weeks.  As a result I learned that when you walk away from something, you realize the hold it had.  When it is no longer there for you to turn to, you feel how strong a pull it had in your life.  But then I also realized the freedom it allowed me to have in other areas in my life…liberty to pursue what I value most, places that had fallen to the wayside.

I learned that it’s not about resolutions but about realizing those things that are enslaving me and keeping me from freedom.

This verses has been resonating with me:

Galatians 5:1 –  “It is for freedom that we are set free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.”  

Is there a place in your life where you long to experience freedom but feel is not possible?  Christ died to bring freedom to our souls, to break the chains that bind us and free us from our own flesh. Before, I was a slave to follow every dictate of my heart;  now, when I begin to find myself enslaved by anything, I remind myself: Jesus died for this.  Through Jesus I have victory over this.  Jesus died for my freedom and I don’t want to settle for anything less.

What is pulling for your attention?  If you feel too weak to break away ask the Holy Spirit for strength and depend on Him.  Going into 2018 I want to stand in the liberty Christ died to secure for me. I want to be free of resolutions. I want to be free of the guilt and shame I put on myself when I fail.  I want to be free of comparison. I want to be more aware of how I spend my time and put boundaries around those things that I tend to aimlessly turn to for distraction.  Most importantly I want to be free to live intentionally & pursue Christ’s call.

 

* I read this devotional December 27th & it was a real encouragement to me, I hope it encourages you: “What is your Aim?”

Advent

What is Advent? What does it mean to me?

I had those questions after having a conversation with a friend about advent and her family traditions.  During our conversation I told her that in the past, I’ve never done anything for advent and she recommended John Piper’s daily 4 minute advent devotional podcast to me. I was excited to do this leading up Christmas; it seemed simple yet meaningful.  But before I began I wanted to learn more about it: I knew it is a preparation of sorts but I had never researched the meaning for myself or why it should be important to me.

Advent begins on the 4th Sunday before Christmas and lasts until Christmas Eve. The word advent means “the arrival of a notable person, thing, or event.” Synonyms are: an arrival, appearance, emergence, materialization, occurrence, dawn, birth, or rise…

…Jesus came in a time when the world was busy & many had moved on from hoping for a Savior. There was social injustice, tension, poverty, religious hypocrisy, and devastation.  And it was during this time He chose to be born. And He revealed Himself; while the wise men were looking at the sky and the shepherds were watching their flocks…Jesus came and revealed Himself to the those who were in their daily routine, not expecting such a glorious advent.  He revealed Himself and met them where they were and they both walked away changed: rejoicing & glorifying God — “When they [the wise men] saw the star they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.” (Matthew 2:10) & “Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen.” (Luke 2:20)

You cannot see Jesus in all the glory of His humility, kindness, and power and walk away unchanged.

Now in the last days of 2017 Jesus is speaking to my heart, now more than ever, “Wait on Me. Place your hope in Me.” It can be easy to grow weary in waiting or discouraged in hoping, but Jesus says: “those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” (Isaiah 40:31)

Jesus came and fulfilled our hope.  He came so He could be with us always: in the daily routine of life He’s revealing Himself and His glorious goodness to us.  There has been a certain longing, expectation and waiting for an advent in my heart.  Waiting for something new to be born, for Jesus to make beauty from ashes and trade the oil of mourning for the oil of joy.  And He is.

Beginning each day with a simple advent devotion awakened an anticipation & brought the child-like excitement of Christmas back into my heart.  Not for gifts, food, or occasion… but Jesus.  And *I want that anticipation and excitement to carry into every day after Christmas.*  What a beautiful time in history we get to live in: an in-between-He has come and is coming again. While we wait for Him to come again, He lives to be the fulfillment of our every longing and desire. I rejoice because He has come and lives to move in my heart and life daily and I can live in wonder and excitement waiting for Him to come again.  It’s part of the glorious mystery of the gospel: my hope has been fulfilled, is being fulfilled, and will be filled when I am in His presence. Like Paul says: “from glory to glory.”  There are glimpses of heaven here on earth that are glorious and joyful; they leave me rejoicing like the wise men and the shepherds…but today’s glimpses are dim in comparison with the glory to come.

I’d love to know if you have any advent/Christmas traditions!

 

“You’ve come to bring peace, to be love, to be nearer to us.
You’ve come to breathe life, to be light, to shine brighter in us.
Oh Emmanuel God with us.
You are here, You are holy;
We are standing in Your glory.”

– “God  With Us” by All Sons and Daughters

“…as those who have no hope.”

“But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.” 1 These 4:13

On earth, grief, sorrow, & tribulation are guaranteed and certain.  Sometimes the grief can be overwhelming and suffocating.  It can feel hopeless and endless.  In light of that, these words have been echoing in my heart…

our hope is not anchored in the absence of pain but rather
in the promise of His presence amidst the pain. 

The sorrow I have experienced is only a drop in the ocean of the suffering that is all around, but I know God is growing me for what He has prepared for my future.  This season is necessary & nothing is wasted or without purpose.  Not a single thing you or I walk through is insignificant & not a single tear is useless.

Much of the teaching we hear is rooted in the hope of our own desire being accomplished.  We hope in ourselves or in a better outcome because God is powerful enough to change our circumstance. But is that His will? Our personal success? Recognition? Deliverance? Comfort? I don’t believe so.  The end Jesus seeks is that we enter into a deeper knowledge, intimacy, and love for Him. When deliverance doesn’t come how you expected you will learn to seek Him. When I’ve been left disappointed in the past, the root cause is because my hope was in something not made to hold the weight of my expectation, something temporary, that was bound to fail, & my eyes were not on Jesus. Jesus: who doesn’t change; yesterday, today, forever.  He is the same.  Only He Himself can fulfill every hope and expectation that He made my heart for.

Do not let anyone tell you that the absence or presence of grief dictates God’s goodness. When we equate God’s goodness to receiving a desired outcome we begin to believe His goodness has stopped until we get what we expected.  No matter what is causing your heart to grieve, do not be mistaken that He is far, unattached or negligent of your suffering.  It is ok to grieve, it does not need to all make sense, your life doesn’t have to be picture perfect, and it’s ok to admit that it is HARD.  But don’t let your heart forget: we do not grieve as those who have no hope ♥️  He grieves with you and His heart breaks with yours.  He is oh so near & that is Christmas: God with us, the long expected One, Hope fulfilled, Jesus near, Him humbling Himself to step into our sorrow. He is here.

No matter what I walk through, He is my deliverance and all He does is rooted in His goodness, even if it’s not what I expect.

“Oh taste and see that the Lord is good!” -Psalm 34:8

“I want to be brave enough to hold out the hope of the gospel to a world that is hurting, alone and afraid. Not a hope rooted in the absence of pain, heartache or suffering. Not optimism that looks for the best-case scenario or happy ending. A true hope that rises from the full assurance that our Savior is here.” -Katie Davis