This morning I was strolling through Genesis as SLOWLY as I know how (see last blog if you are confused) when I came to Genesis 6. Genesis 6 is the account of Noah and the flood of 8 million trillion BC (totally arbitrary number)!
Now while I have nicknamed my Wednesday night professor "Noah" because he literally looks like he walked off the ark with the long hair and beard, along with the fact that we sit two by two in class, that is not why God highlighted this story to me today. :)
Genesis 6 starts out with God saying that the thoughts of the heart of man were only evil all the time (vs. 5). He goes on to say that He regrets even making man because they have caused his heart pain (vs.6).
While I tried to figure out what events had taken place to make God regret making man, as scripture doesn't say much about what has transpired, I see now that it was the heart issue that God was upset about. With the sin choice of Adam and Eve, our hearts became evil, more specifically, the thoughts of the heart. Proverbs 23:7 backs this issue up, "For as he thinks in his heart, so is he." (NKJV) Man thought evil in his heart and he became evil. Just like us.
Since God is holy and unable to be in the presence of evil, he decides to wipe mankind from the earth and he begins to get things in motion to do that (vs.7). But then we come upon verse 8.
Genesis 6:8 says, "But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord." (NIV) The Message bible says it this way, "But Noah was different. God liked what he saw in Noah."
Ok, hold up! If the thoughts of the heart of men were evil, what made Noah able to find favor in the eyes of the Lord? What made Noah different? What made God like Noah??
We find our answer in verse 9, "Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked with God." Righteous. Blameless. Walked with God.
Now, I can't fully wrap my head around how Noah was able to find favor with God apart from Jesus because Jesus is the only way I know. But here is the revelation I came to this morning.
1. Jesus made me righteous.
Romans 5: 19 "For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous."
2. Jesus will keep me blameless.
1 Corinthians 1:8 "He will also keep you firm to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ."
3. I walk with God! :)
I am a Noah kind of different! I have found favor with the Lord! And God likes what He sees in me! That is a HUGE revelation, that God likes what He sees in me...in Christ of course!
Lord, I am so grateful for who you have made me in you! I am blessed to know that I have found favor in your sight and that I am made righteous and blameless because of Jesus! I am privilieged to be able to walk with you! I am proud to be a Noah kind of different!
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Obedience vs Sacrifice!
Yesterday morning and this morning, God directed me to re-read in Genesis SLOWLY! Like many people, I know most of the stories in that book but I often overlook the truths that God wants to reveal.
With that said, my attention has been on the story of Cain and Abel. I never really understood why God liked Abel's offering better than Cain's. So, I have been studying it. Here's the scripture from Genesis 4:
When they grew up, Abel became a shepherd, while Cain cultivated the ground. 3 When it was time for the harvest, Cain presented some of his crops as a gift to the LORD. 4 Abel also brought a gift—the best of the firstborn lambs from his flock. The LORD accepted Abel and his gift, 5 but he did not accept Cain and his gift. This made Cain very angry, and he looked dejected.
Now, I read in several commentaries and it is generally believed that no one really knows why Abel's sacrifice was better than Cain's. From the scripture we can guess that maybe Cain was just going through the motions of offering time as he presented "some of his crops" as opposed to the best of his crops whereas Abel is noted to bring "the best of the firstborn lambs from his flock". Ultimately though, the Lord sees the heart and after all, that is really what he is after, our hearts.
1 Samuel 15:22 says: But Samuel replied, "What is more pleasing to the LORD: your burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to his voice? Listen! Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission is better than offering the fat of rams.
My guess is, then, that Cain was not acting in obedience to whatever God called him to do. And when God asks him about his anger problem in the next verse and encourages him to turn away from sin, we see in the following verses that he doesn't heed the Lord then, either. So, ultimately then, it wasn't really about Cain's offering vs. Abel's offering but rather their OBEDIENCE and SUBMISSION!
As the Lord admonishes Cain he says this,
Genesis 4:6 “Why do you look so dejected? 7 You will be accepted if you do what is right. But if you refuse to do what is right, then watch out!
IF YOU DO WHAT IS RIGHT = OBEDIENCE
The last thing I noticed is in verse 7:
Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master.”
For so many years of my life, I lived with sin controlling me and my every move. Yes, often I was unaware, but sin was my master. I would do the things I didn't want to do but I felt I had no control over how to make it stop. Yes, sin is eager to control us but God gives us the key...YOU and I must subdue it and be its master!
James 4:7 says: Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.
Most, if not all, of us "resisting the devil", is done in THE BATTLEFIELD OF OUR MINDS! I used to think any old thing that came in my head. I would ponder the thoughts and the next thing I knew, I was in the middle of sin!
2 Corinthians 10:5 tells us to "take EVERY thought CAPTIVE and make it OBEDIENT to Christ!" Every means EVERY..it also means EACH EXCLUDING NONE!!!!
Breaking all of that down, submitting ourselves to God equals walking in obedience. Resisting the devil means taking every thought captive and making it obedient to Christ. And he will flee from you means exactly that! The enemy will flee! Praise the Lord!
God, I thank you for this greater revelation of the story of Cain and Abel! I thank you for leading and guiding me and my friends into ALL truth! I pray that you would enable us to walk in obedience and submission to you! I pray that you, Holy Spirit, would help us to recognize our thoughts and would help us to take EVERY thought captive and make it obedient to Christ! And I thank you Lord for the promise that when we submit to you and when we resist the devil, he will flee!
With that said, my attention has been on the story of Cain and Abel. I never really understood why God liked Abel's offering better than Cain's. So, I have been studying it. Here's the scripture from Genesis 4:
When they grew up, Abel became a shepherd, while Cain cultivated the ground. 3 When it was time for the harvest, Cain presented some of his crops as a gift to the LORD. 4 Abel also brought a gift—the best of the firstborn lambs from his flock. The LORD accepted Abel and his gift, 5 but he did not accept Cain and his gift. This made Cain very angry, and he looked dejected.
Now, I read in several commentaries and it is generally believed that no one really knows why Abel's sacrifice was better than Cain's. From the scripture we can guess that maybe Cain was just going through the motions of offering time as he presented "some of his crops" as opposed to the best of his crops whereas Abel is noted to bring "the best of the firstborn lambs from his flock". Ultimately though, the Lord sees the heart and after all, that is really what he is after, our hearts.
1 Samuel 15:22 says: But Samuel replied, "What is more pleasing to the LORD: your burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to his voice? Listen! Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission is better than offering the fat of rams.
My guess is, then, that Cain was not acting in obedience to whatever God called him to do. And when God asks him about his anger problem in the next verse and encourages him to turn away from sin, we see in the following verses that he doesn't heed the Lord then, either. So, ultimately then, it wasn't really about Cain's offering vs. Abel's offering but rather their OBEDIENCE and SUBMISSION!
As the Lord admonishes Cain he says this,
Genesis 4:6 “Why do you look so dejected? 7 You will be accepted if you do what is right. But if you refuse to do what is right, then watch out!
IF YOU DO WHAT IS RIGHT = OBEDIENCE
The last thing I noticed is in verse 7:
Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master.”
For so many years of my life, I lived with sin controlling me and my every move. Yes, often I was unaware, but sin was my master. I would do the things I didn't want to do but I felt I had no control over how to make it stop. Yes, sin is eager to control us but God gives us the key...YOU and I must subdue it and be its master!
James 4:7 says: Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.
Most, if not all, of us "resisting the devil", is done in THE BATTLEFIELD OF OUR MINDS! I used to think any old thing that came in my head. I would ponder the thoughts and the next thing I knew, I was in the middle of sin!
2 Corinthians 10:5 tells us to "take EVERY thought CAPTIVE and make it OBEDIENT to Christ!" Every means EVERY..it also means EACH EXCLUDING NONE!!!!
Breaking all of that down, submitting ourselves to God equals walking in obedience. Resisting the devil means taking every thought captive and making it obedient to Christ. And he will flee from you means exactly that! The enemy will flee! Praise the Lord!
God, I thank you for this greater revelation of the story of Cain and Abel! I thank you for leading and guiding me and my friends into ALL truth! I pray that you would enable us to walk in obedience and submission to you! I pray that you, Holy Spirit, would help us to recognize our thoughts and would help us to take EVERY thought captive and make it obedient to Christ! And I thank you Lord for the promise that when we submit to you and when we resist the devil, he will flee!
Monday, February 20, 2012
God of the Underdog!
As I was reading in my time with the Lord this morning about the life of David, God began to speak.
My mind went to the fact that it seems like God is always on the side of the "underdog". An "underdog" is "one that is expected to lose a contest or struggle; one that is at a disadvantage." (American Heritage Dictionary).
One of the things I could never understand about my earthly father was that when he was watching a sporting event, unless it was his favorite team The Dodgers (who were "underdogs" in their own regard), he always pulled for the losing team. That didn't make much sense to me. Why would you pull for the losing team to win? Doesn't it make more sense to pull for the winning team because, after all, they are already winning? The losing team didn't appear to have much hope of winning. Albeit, where there is hope, there is always the possibility of victory!
I really believe that my dad was on to something with his cheers going up for the "underdog". I believe my dad had God's heart in this area! When I look at the life of David, I can't help but realize that he was the "underdog." The youngest of a line of brothers and the "black sheperd" (lol) of the family, he wasn't even called in from the pasture to be considered as the prophet Samuel visited the family YET he is anointed that day! A sheperd verses a lion. A sheperd verses a bear. A twirp verses a giant. A boy verses a king. UNDERDOG!
And we see time after time throughout Scripture how God is always rooting for the "underdog" or those who appear to be at a disadvantage. His word says that when we are weak, then HE is strong! (2 Corinthians 12:10) AND, that He uses the weak things of the world to shame the strong! (1 Corinthians 1:27)
Today, we may "feel" like "underdogs" but the amazing thing is that the God who formed us and created us, is rooting for us! He's cheering us on to make the right choices and to take the right paths! He's encouraging us to keep fighting the good fight of faith! He's the coach that says at a halftime, things may look rough right now, but we'll get 'em in the 4th quarter! The reality is, while we may be the "underdog" today, we will come out as victors soon!
Lord, I am so thankful that you cheer for me, the underdog! I am thankful for the hope that you keep alive in me to know that in the end, I will have complete victory! I pray for my friends, Lord, whose hope may be waning and I pray that you would infuse them with hope again! You are our Hope, Lord! You are the lifter of Our heads! And I pray that all of us "underdogs" would get our rally caps on and keep fighting the good fight of faith as we hear you cheering us on!
My mind went to the fact that it seems like God is always on the side of the "underdog". An "underdog" is "one that is expected to lose a contest or struggle; one that is at a disadvantage." (American Heritage Dictionary).
One of the things I could never understand about my earthly father was that when he was watching a sporting event, unless it was his favorite team The Dodgers (who were "underdogs" in their own regard), he always pulled for the losing team. That didn't make much sense to me. Why would you pull for the losing team to win? Doesn't it make more sense to pull for the winning team because, after all, they are already winning? The losing team didn't appear to have much hope of winning. Albeit, where there is hope, there is always the possibility of victory!
I really believe that my dad was on to something with his cheers going up for the "underdog". I believe my dad had God's heart in this area! When I look at the life of David, I can't help but realize that he was the "underdog." The youngest of a line of brothers and the "black sheperd" (lol) of the family, he wasn't even called in from the pasture to be considered as the prophet Samuel visited the family YET he is anointed that day! A sheperd verses a lion. A sheperd verses a bear. A twirp verses a giant. A boy verses a king. UNDERDOG!
And we see time after time throughout Scripture how God is always rooting for the "underdog" or those who appear to be at a disadvantage. His word says that when we are weak, then HE is strong! (2 Corinthians 12:10) AND, that He uses the weak things of the world to shame the strong! (1 Corinthians 1:27)
Today, we may "feel" like "underdogs" but the amazing thing is that the God who formed us and created us, is rooting for us! He's cheering us on to make the right choices and to take the right paths! He's encouraging us to keep fighting the good fight of faith! He's the coach that says at a halftime, things may look rough right now, but we'll get 'em in the 4th quarter! The reality is, while we may be the "underdog" today, we will come out as victors soon!
Lord, I am so thankful that you cheer for me, the underdog! I am thankful for the hope that you keep alive in me to know that in the end, I will have complete victory! I pray for my friends, Lord, whose hope may be waning and I pray that you would infuse them with hope again! You are our Hope, Lord! You are the lifter of Our heads! And I pray that all of us "underdogs" would get our rally caps on and keep fighting the good fight of faith as we hear you cheering us on!
Saturday, February 18, 2012
Fearfully and Wonderfully
Fearfully and Wonderfully
With every breath
You breathe in My love for you
But you hurry along
You dilly
You dally
And you miss My everyday reminders
Of how I feel about you.
I’ve said you are fearfully and wonderfully made
But what does that mean to you?
You focus on the fearfully
And hide behind insecurities
That keep you FULL or FEAR.
But the reality is that the way I designed you and knit you
Is in such a way that YOUR beauty
Incites fear in the enemy’s camp.
He knows My skills and how intricately and wonderfully I have made you.
When I formed you I breathed My life into you,
Not just any old life but abundant life, new life.
So with every breath you breathe in that fearfully and wonderfully made body of yours
That I custom designed
KNOW that YOU are a reflection of
My glory
My abundant life
And My Love!
With every breath
You breathe in My love for you
But you hurry along
You dilly
You dally
And you miss My everyday reminders
Of how I feel about you.
I’ve said you are fearfully and wonderfully made
But what does that mean to you?
You focus on the fearfully
And hide behind insecurities
That keep you FULL or FEAR.
But the reality is that the way I designed you and knit you
Is in such a way that YOUR beauty
Incites fear in the enemy’s camp.
He knows My skills and how intricately and wonderfully I have made you.
When I formed you I breathed My life into you,
Not just any old life but abundant life, new life.
So with every breath you breathe in that fearfully and wonderfully made body of yours
That I custom designed
KNOW that YOU are a reflection of
My glory
My abundant life
And My Love!
(A poem God gave me on 1/18/12)
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
I Choose...
I was recently chatting with one of my favorite people and we were discussing the issue of CHOICES. And the reality is that we are bombarded with choices every day of our lives. What to eat for breakfast? What shirt should I wear? Where should I get gas? Should I get a new hair cut? Should I accept this promotion? Who should I be accountable to? When can I get that much needed pedicure since my feet are starting to get crusty?! (I think you get the picture!)
Last night, as I was going to bed, the following Scripture came to mind:
Joshua 24:15 But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then CHOOSE FOR YOURSELVES THIS DAY WHOM YOU WILL SERVE...But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.
This Scripture adorns many homes and makes for great artwork. But as I was pondering this verse with my eyes beginning to close, I received revelation on this verse. For the longest, I thought this verse referred only to salvation and choosing the Lord. However, the fact the verse says "this day" and depending on which day you read it, any day could be "this day" it only makes sense to me that this is THE BIGGEST CHOICE I MUST MAKE EACH DAY.
THIS DAY, I must decide whether to serve the Lord or myself. I must choose whether to serve my emotions or Emmanuel. I must choose whether to serve my flesh or the Faithful One. I must choose whether to serve Satan or my Savior. I must choose whether to trust the Lord in my circumstances or be overwhelmed by them. I must decide whether to walk in the new life God has given me or to return to my old ways and patterns of life.
As I was looking up the above Scripture reference, I also spotted this verse:
Deuteronomy 30:19-20: This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now CHOOSE LIFE, so that your children may live and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice and hold fast to him.
I can almost hear the God of the universe pleading with me, pleading with you, CHOOSE LIFE!! The cool thing is that Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life, so choosing Jesus means choosing life! :) I find it interesting in the above scripture that the prerequisite in this verse for loving the Lord your God, listening to his voice and holding fast to him is to CHOOSE LIFE!
Now, I don't know what choices you and I will be bombarded with today but I can guarantee you we'll be faced with two:
1. Will we choose to serve the Lord today and not ourselves?
2. Will we choose life?
Lord, help me to choose well today! Help me to choose You and Your ways and not mine. Help me to choose life, to speak life, to be a life that shines so brightly for you! Help me to recognize the choices throughout my day and to choose life! This is the day Lord, that you have made! I choose to rejoice and be glad in it!
Last night, as I was going to bed, the following Scripture came to mind:
Joshua 24:15 But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then CHOOSE FOR YOURSELVES THIS DAY WHOM YOU WILL SERVE...But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.
This Scripture adorns many homes and makes for great artwork. But as I was pondering this verse with my eyes beginning to close, I received revelation on this verse. For the longest, I thought this verse referred only to salvation and choosing the Lord. However, the fact the verse says "this day" and depending on which day you read it, any day could be "this day" it only makes sense to me that this is THE BIGGEST CHOICE I MUST MAKE EACH DAY.
THIS DAY, I must decide whether to serve the Lord or myself. I must choose whether to serve my emotions or Emmanuel. I must choose whether to serve my flesh or the Faithful One. I must choose whether to serve Satan or my Savior. I must choose whether to trust the Lord in my circumstances or be overwhelmed by them. I must decide whether to walk in the new life God has given me or to return to my old ways and patterns of life.
As I was looking up the above Scripture reference, I also spotted this verse:
Deuteronomy 30:19-20: This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now CHOOSE LIFE, so that your children may live and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice and hold fast to him.
I can almost hear the God of the universe pleading with me, pleading with you, CHOOSE LIFE!! The cool thing is that Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life, so choosing Jesus means choosing life! :) I find it interesting in the above scripture that the prerequisite in this verse for loving the Lord your God, listening to his voice and holding fast to him is to CHOOSE LIFE!
Now, I don't know what choices you and I will be bombarded with today but I can guarantee you we'll be faced with two:
1. Will we choose to serve the Lord today and not ourselves?
2. Will we choose life?
Lord, help me to choose well today! Help me to choose You and Your ways and not mine. Help me to choose life, to speak life, to be a life that shines so brightly for you! Help me to recognize the choices throughout my day and to choose life! This is the day Lord, that you have made! I choose to rejoice and be glad in it!
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Who, Do, What?!
Day 2 of 2012 I decided to spend with the Lord so I went to our frequent hangout spot, the river. But en route, God had me stop and pick up a loaf of bread and some grape juice as I felt like He wanted us to have communion. When I got to the river, I had communion with the Lord and just soaked in His presence. If we stop long enough in His presence, He will speak. And the beginning part of what He began to speak to me was this:
It's not about your "do", it's about your "who". Your "do" flows out of your "who". Let me continue to transform your "who" and your "do" will follow.
While the above is not funny by any stretch, I find myself continually talking about God's sense of humor! In the days since January 2, literally EVERY DAY, the Lord has been reminding me of this who vs. do conundrum!! In the days following He has given me phrases such as "being vs. doing" and "person hood vs. performance" and then literally devotion after devotion have reiterated God's point. Some of those devos have included the following:
It's not about your "do", it's about your "who". Your "do" flows out of your "who". Let me continue to transform your "who" and your "do" will follow.
While the above is not funny by any stretch, I find myself continually talking about God's sense of humor! In the days since January 2, literally EVERY DAY, the Lord has been reminding me of this who vs. do conundrum!! In the days following He has given me phrases such as "being vs. doing" and "person hood vs. performance" and then literally devotion after devotion have reiterated God's point. Some of those devos have included the following:
Sunday, January 8, 2012
The Power of Laying Down!
I like naps. I like sleep. In actuality, I just like to lay down. Period. And while it is very easy for me to lay my physical body down, it has been a horse of a different color to lay other things down. The Cheez-its. The chocolate chip cookies. My friendships and relationships. My desire to strive and be perfect. My EXPECTATIONS!
In reality, it all boils down to my EXPECTATIONS! In times past, I expected the Cheez-its and the cookies to fill the hunger that lingered in my soul. I expected my friendships and relationships to numb the fear of abandonment. And I expected my "perfect" performance, in all areas of my life, to finally get that seemingly un-obtainable goal of acceptance. And despite my expectations, I was ALWAYS let down! You see, I expected things and people to meet the needs in my life that only God can fill.
A few months ago, in some face time with the Lord, I heard Him call me "Gomer". I thought I knew who Gomer was but just to make sure, I looked her up in Scripture (yes, Gomer is a she!). And there she was, in the small book of Hosea. Hosea was a prophet that God called to marry. Not just to marry anyone but specifically, a prostitute (as a physical representation of God and the Israelites). And guess what the name of the prostitue was.....yep, Gomer! While, I wanted to be offended at the Lord for calling me Gomer, especially when my occupation has never been that of a prostitue, the Lord began to bring clarity. As I re-read the story of Hosea and Gomer, God brought to light that it wasn't so much the fact that Gomer was a prostitute but that she kept chasing after other lovers or other things that she thought and expected would bring her the satisfaction that she needed and desperately wanted. She was in pursuit of, chasing and serving idols. OUCH! (God, can I get my name changed back to Natalie?!)
Now, in 2012, we wouldn't say that we serve "idols" as that was so Old Testament! But let me give you this definition of idols that I read in a book called "The Peacemaker": An idol is anything apart from God that we depend on to be happy, fulfilled or secure; something other than God that we set our heart on, that motivates us, that masters and rules us or that we trust, fear or serve; something we love and pursue more than God. Does this definition help? :) You see, I depended on and EXPECTED food, and people and striving to be happy, fulfilled and secure. I set my heart on my EXPECTATIONS of those things and I literally trusted, feared and served them!
There is a book that I have yet to read but the title is "When I Lay My Isaac Down" by Carol Kent. But I want to use her title to bring all of this together. For years, I tried to "lay down" the food, "lay down" my relationships, "lay down" my striving but to no avail. But through the graciousness and mercy of the Lord, He has revealed that the "thing(s)" that I needed to lay down, were my EXPECTATIONS! And friend, there is power in laying them down!
I no longer expect food or people to meet the needs in my life that only God can fill. I go to God and He affirms, comforts, loves and accepts me! Of course, I still have to eat and I still have relationships, but the main thing that has happened is the laying down of those expectations. I would love to say it is a one time deal and that once you lay the expectations down then you are set. But the reality is that every day, God shows me those EXPECTATIONS that I didn't even know were there! Like, on Friday, when I expected my day to go one way and it took a total detour. Or on Saturday and in the days prior as God had me dying to and laying down my birthday expectations.
The really cool thing is that once we lay down our expectations and look to the Lord alone for fulfillment, it gives Him the room to do exceedingly, abundantly more than we can think, ask or imagine (and I would add, expect!)! While it is a process, and a journey we will be on for the remainder of our days here on earth, there is power in laying down!
In reality, it all boils down to my EXPECTATIONS! In times past, I expected the Cheez-its and the cookies to fill the hunger that lingered in my soul. I expected my friendships and relationships to numb the fear of abandonment. And I expected my "perfect" performance, in all areas of my life, to finally get that seemingly un-obtainable goal of acceptance. And despite my expectations, I was ALWAYS let down! You see, I expected things and people to meet the needs in my life that only God can fill.
A few months ago, in some face time with the Lord, I heard Him call me "Gomer". I thought I knew who Gomer was but just to make sure, I looked her up in Scripture (yes, Gomer is a she!). And there she was, in the small book of Hosea. Hosea was a prophet that God called to marry. Not just to marry anyone but specifically, a prostitute (as a physical representation of God and the Israelites). And guess what the name of the prostitue was.....yep, Gomer! While, I wanted to be offended at the Lord for calling me Gomer, especially when my occupation has never been that of a prostitue, the Lord began to bring clarity. As I re-read the story of Hosea and Gomer, God brought to light that it wasn't so much the fact that Gomer was a prostitute but that she kept chasing after other lovers or other things that she thought and expected would bring her the satisfaction that she needed and desperately wanted. She was in pursuit of, chasing and serving idols. OUCH! (God, can I get my name changed back to Natalie?!)
Now, in 2012, we wouldn't say that we serve "idols" as that was so Old Testament! But let me give you this definition of idols that I read in a book called "The Peacemaker": An idol is anything apart from God that we depend on to be happy, fulfilled or secure; something other than God that we set our heart on, that motivates us, that masters and rules us or that we trust, fear or serve; something we love and pursue more than God. Does this definition help? :) You see, I depended on and EXPECTED food, and people and striving to be happy, fulfilled and secure. I set my heart on my EXPECTATIONS of those things and I literally trusted, feared and served them!
There is a book that I have yet to read but the title is "When I Lay My Isaac Down" by Carol Kent. But I want to use her title to bring all of this together. For years, I tried to "lay down" the food, "lay down" my relationships, "lay down" my striving but to no avail. But through the graciousness and mercy of the Lord, He has revealed that the "thing(s)" that I needed to lay down, were my EXPECTATIONS! And friend, there is power in laying them down!
I no longer expect food or people to meet the needs in my life that only God can fill. I go to God and He affirms, comforts, loves and accepts me! Of course, I still have to eat and I still have relationships, but the main thing that has happened is the laying down of those expectations. I would love to say it is a one time deal and that once you lay the expectations down then you are set. But the reality is that every day, God shows me those EXPECTATIONS that I didn't even know were there! Like, on Friday, when I expected my day to go one way and it took a total detour. Or on Saturday and in the days prior as God had me dying to and laying down my birthday expectations.
The really cool thing is that once we lay down our expectations and look to the Lord alone for fulfillment, it gives Him the room to do exceedingly, abundantly more than we can think, ask or imagine (and I would add, expect!)! While it is a process, and a journey we will be on for the remainder of our days here on earth, there is power in laying down!
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