Streams in the Desert.....

 Streams in the Desert

Ye shall not go out with haste (Isaiah 52:12).

I do not believe that we have begun to understand the marvelous power there is in stillness. We are in such a hurry--we must be doing--so that we are in danger of not giving God a chance to work. You may depend upon it, God never says to us, "Stand still," or "Sit still," or "Be still," unless He is going to do something. This is our trouble in regard to our Christian life; we want to do something to be Christians when we need to let Him work in us.

Do you know how still you have to be when your likeness is being taken? Now God has one eternal purpose concerning us, and that is that we should be like His Son; and in order that this may be so, we must be passive. We hear so much about activity, may be we need to know what it is to be quiet.
--Crumbs

Sit still, my daughter! Just sit calmly still!
Nor deem these days--these waiting days--as ill!
The One who loves thee best, who plans thy way,
Hath not forgotten thy great need today!
And, if He waits, 'tis sure He waits to prove
To thee, His tender child, His heart's deep love.
Sit still, my daughter! Just sit calmly still!
Thou longest much to know thy dear Lord's will!
While anxious thoughts would almost steal their way
Corrodingly within, because of His delay
Persuade thyself in simple faith to rest
That He, who knows and loves, will do the best.
Sit still, my daughter! Just sit calmly still!
Nor move one step, not even one, until
His way hath opened. Then, ah then, how sweet!
How glad thy heart, and then how swift thy feet
Thy inner being then, ah then, how strong!
And waiting days not counted then too long.
Sit still, my daughter! Just sit calmly still!
What higher service could'st thou for Him fill?
'Tis hard! ah yes! But choicest things must cost!
For lack of losing all how much is lost!
'Tis hard, 'tis true! But then--He giveth grace
To count the hardest spot the sweetest place.
--J. D. Smith

Grounded in Truth..... Dr. Charles Stanley

 Grounded in Truth

Dr. Charles Stanley

Psalms 25:4-10

If we'll let the truths of Scripture fill our minds, guard our emotions, and influence our conduct, God will richly reward us. I'm talking about spiritual blessings here (though He at times chooses to bless materially as well). By reading and meditating on His Word, you'll learn to understand His ways. This isn't something we can figure out on our own, because His ways are unlike ours—they are higher, bigger, and eternal.

Also, your relationship with the Lord will grow increasingly more intimate because He chooses to reveal Himself to those who seek Him and obey His instructions. When you see that God always keeps His promises, your confidence in His faithfulness will soar. No matter what the situation, you'll know you can trust Him. Then He'll transform your worries into joyful anticipation about what He's going to do next in your life. Even if hard times await, you'll be convinced that the Lord will work them out for good.

A life grounded in truth is powerful. Those who live by the Word develop spiritual discernment, which guides their choices and guards against deception. Because they demonstrate wisdom and godliness, the Lord enables them to impact others greatly. Since He knows they can be trusted, He also gives them greater responsibilities and opportunities for service in His kingdom.

With all this available to us, wouldn't it be wise to invest our time and energy in building the truth of God's Word into our lives? The other activities which clamor for our attention seem so important or pleasurable, but none of them can offer us the spiritual riches of a life grounded in truth.

How to Create a Legacy of Loving Listening..... AMY CARROLL

 How to Create a Legacy of Loving Listening

AMY CARROLL

“Now think it over and see what you can do, because disaster is hanging over our master and his whole household. He is such a wicked man that no one can talk to him.” 1 Samuel 25:17 (NIV)

Floundering during a project, I knew I needed some feedback. My husband, Barry, is always a willing helper, so I ran my questions by him. And then I pretended to listen.

“I need your communicator’s brain. Which of these sentences do you think works better?” I queried. “Are there any words you have trouble with? If there are, what would you substitute?”

Barry generously put his task aside and began to share his ideas with me. The only kink in this scenario was that instead of handing my original idea the gold star I was secretly seeking, he came up with other thoughts. Although they were better ideas, I stubbornly clung to my own.

One by one, as he offered the suggestions I had asked for, I shot them down, revealing I wasn't really listening at all. I was critiquing.

“I don't think women will identify with that.”

“Hmmm … I think that word's overused.”

“That won’t work.”

Suddenly, Barry grew silent, and I looked up into his handsome face. At the beginning of this little exercise, he looked thoughtful and anticipatory. Now he looked discouraged and totally over it.

I quickly apologized, asked for his forgiveness and told him I’d stop criticizing and truly listen if he’d keep suggesting.

It’s easy to arrange our faces as if we’re listening — while really, we’re just composing responses in our heads — but it’s daunting to truly listen. Yet, Scripture holds a story which shows us that listening leaves a legacy.

First Samuel 25 contains a better-than-Hollywood narrative in which Abigail, described as both intelligent and beautiful, is the lone soul standing between a furious future king and the annihilation of her community.

At the beginning of the true tale, her “surly and mean” husband, Nabal, starts the fight when he treats David, the soon-to-be-sovereign, with contempt. An eavesdropping servant, who recognizes the danger of the situation, rushes to Abigail and describes the life-threatening crisis. The servant ends by saying, “Now think it over and see what you can do, because disaster is hanging over our master and his whole household. He is such a wicked man that no one can talk to him” (1 Samuel 25:17).

Let’s pause and think about the legacy revealed in the servant’s words about each of the people in this story. The servant says Nabal is so wicked “that no one can talk to him.”

Nabal’s legacy is that he doesn’t listen.

But the servant bolted to Abigail’s side to both spill the story and trust her to intervene.

Abigail is known for listening.

The next line in the story says, “Abigail acted quickly” (1 Samuel 25:18a, NIV). Because she is a good listener, people like the servant tell her things, and they trust that her listening skills will lead her to wise action. Abigail listened for understanding and with discernment, both traits of a great listener.

Abigail displays her character in this passage with what she doesn’t say rather than with what she does. Instead of:

a pithy response …

a story about herself that shows she can relate …

a change in subject since this one was too intense …

a criticism of the servant’s assessment (ahem, note to self) …

Abigail absorbs the servant’s information in respectful silence and then acts. She proves she’s a good listener with an appropriate response. Although Abigail’s example shows me I still have a lot to learn, she inspires me to grow.

In our interactions with others, we have to resist the urge to zone out, dismiss or otherwise become known as someone who doesn’t listen. The words of others deserve our attention and respect. With a heart to change, we can learn to be more like Abigail, leaving a legacy of being a loving listener.

Lord, teach me to listen for understanding and with discernment, both to others and to You. I want to leave a legacy of being a loving listener. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

TRUTH FOR TODAY:
James 1:19, “My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.” (NIV)

Aligning Our Hearts with God’s Heart (Psalm 139:19-24)..... By: Cara Meredith

Aligning Our Hearts with God’s Heart (Psalm 139:19-24)
By: Cara Meredith

Today's Bible Verse: If only you, God, would slay the wicked! Away from me, you who are bloodthirsty! They speak of you with evil intent; your adversaries misuse your name. Do I not hate those who hate you, Lord, and abhor those who are in rebellion against you? I have nothing but hatred for them; I count them my enemies. Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. - Psalm 139:19-24

Sometimes, I have a tendency to pick and choose pieces of scripture that made me feel good. Psalm 139 is no exception. What I want to do is camp out in the first two-thirds of the psalm, seeking guidance and basking in the reminder that God created me in my inmost being, knitting me together in my mother’s womb (13). I want for that feel-good smile to come to my lips, as I remember the words spoken from David to God and lean into the heart-knowledge that I am fearfully and wonderfully made, that “your works are wonderful, I know that full well” (14).

But if I keep reading past verse 18, I start to feel uncomfortable, and my friends, discomfort isn’t always something I want to feel. I’m prone to skip over the rest of the psalm, especially those four verses that don’t seem to sing a song of consoling guidance. If I’m honest, I want to even try and understand a set of verses that feel saturated with more hate than love.

When I start to dig into the text, I learn that the concept of “hate” was not actually about emotion, but “mostly an expression of preference and support.” According to one commentary, it speaks to bigger ideas and cultural patterns of preference and loyalty.[1] Additionally, it is not the kind of hatred our 21st-century minds often think it is, after all, another writer says that is not “followed by malignity or ill will.” Instead, like Jesus modeled for us, it is “accompanied with grief, pain of heart, pity and sorrow.”[2]

Does this not change the way you interact with these four verses?

For me, when I think about all of this, I can’t help but think of David’s humanity – a humanity that was nestled in a deep and intense love for God. Perhaps like the rest of us, David wants nothing more than to honor, revere and love the one who created the deepest parts of his identity. It’s not so hard to then imagine that part of this honoring meant a soul so deeply intertwined with God’s that it resulted in real emotions, not of hate, but of grief and pain and sorrow.

After all, these emotions of the pain God not only felt then, but continues to feel now – even for those who choose to hate and rebel against God’s love – changes the way I interact, not only with this song, but also with the world around me.

I suppose the invitation is then simple: if our hearts are aligned with God, then our hearts will break for the things that break God’s heart. We will seek justice, just as God seeks justice for every beloved child, and we will desire wholeness and flourishing for all – even for those we are tempted to call our enemies and for those who continue to rise up against God.

I trust it just might be the same for you.

Speak Well of Others..... by Debbie Holloway

 Speak Well of Others

by Debbie Holloway

"The heart of the righteous weighs its answers, but the mouth of the wicked gushes evil" (Proverbs 15:28).

In this age of Internet and social media, gone are the days of the off-switch for dialogue. Time was, conversations ended. Then, with the birth of online discussion forums, they could continue indefinitely (with every word preserved for all to see). Now that we are chained to mobile devices, the debates and exchanges never even have to pause. We may start them at our computers, but we continue them in the elevator…in the car…during dinner. Even during real-life banter with friends and family, fingers fly over smartphones to contribute thoughts to the discourse of the Internet world.

It's hard to step back once you get used to it. I find it to be a very love-hate thing; bittersweet for several reasons. On the one hand, I am completely amazed and delighted by the ability to connect, share, grow, and learn that modern technology provides. On the other hand, the ability to tear apart an opponent with the stroke of a key makes certain biblical mandates that much harder to follow.

“Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger” (James 1:9).

“Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person”(Colossians 4:6).

I believe that graciousness of speech, speaking well of others (even my enemy or opponent) is something God requires of me. As someone who rarely shies away from conversation or confrontation, every day is a battle for me in this regard. I find myself asking,

Is this a hill to die on?

Is this going to change anyone’s mind, anyway?

Is it even my job to change this person’s mind?

Is this loving? Worth the fuss? Compassionate?

More times than not, recently, I’ve begun to type up a Facebook comment only to delete it before pressing “post.” Not because I changed my stance or re-thought my opinion. Rather, because words don’t die on the World Wide Web – and I have no second chance at a first impression. Perhaps the fewer cold, impersonal words I type into Facebook in the midst of an argument, the fewer tempers will be lost, fewer hearts will hurt, and fewer friends will feel annoyed, alone, or attacked. Perhaps the more I distance myself from the social media circus, the more I can pay attention to the flesh-and-blood conversations that might arise over the dinner table or on the train. Perhaps the less I scroll through Facebook, the more chances I’ll have to look into people’s faces and eyes.

“You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body. "In your anger do not sin": Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold” (Ephesians 4:22-27).

Intersecting Faith and Life: Before you post anything today on Twitter, Facebook, or Google +, weigh your words carefully. Do they provoke edifying discussion, or simply anger? Do your words match up with the fruits of the spirit (Galatians 5:22-23)?

Further Reading

Ephesians 4:17-32
Psalm 141

A Prayer for Finding Balance..... By: Kristine Brown

 A Prayer for Finding Balance

By: Kristine Brown

“Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul.” 3 John 1:2

Looking at my calendar for the week, a familiar heaviness settles into my stomach. I’ve done it again. Not intentionally, but when those last few requests came in for one more phone call, one more meeting, one more event, I said yes. Now, I’m regretting it with everything in my being.

The only way out is also a familiar tune I sing to myself every time overwhelm takes over. “I need a break. I need to rest.” The pressure of doing it all is followed by the desire to step away from it all. Give in to the exhaustion.

And just like that, I’ve fallen into the same trap of “all or nothing” that I promised myself I’d avoid.

Life feels a lot like a roller coaster ride these days. As a kid, I anticipated the adrenaline rush of going faster and faster, followed by the need for a reprieve. Pretty soon that desire for more rush took over and I was back in line again. Fun for a visit to the theme park, not so much when it’s real life. If only I could learn to move with steady assurance instead of full-speed ahead. If only I could find balance in life.

“Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul.” 3 John 1:2

In this opening to his friend Gaius, John makes a statement about the connection between our physical health and spiritual health. We can work diligently for the Lord, our families, and our jobs with the best intentions. But every go-getter knows when we don’t stay centered on God, we will find ourselves overloaded. Left unchecked, we will keep going until we crash. Physically depleted. Then we fall behind on our tasks, and the cycle repeats.

But it doesn’t have to be that way. We can keep our minds, hearts, and bodies in perfect balance when we refocus through prayer. Notice in John’s letter how he commits to praying for his friend. When we pray for God to keep us in good balance, He will help us. Let’s begin with this prayer for finding balance in our lives.

Dear Heavenly Father,

I like being busy, and I believe you created me to be productive. But time and time again I get into a pattern of saying yes and adding one more thing to my already full calendar. Pretty soon I end up physically exhausted and wanting a break from everything. Forgive me Lord for relying on my own strength instead of calling out to You for help. You are my hope and the answer for this struggle.

Your Word says in Romans 8:28 ESV, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” You’ve called me. Therefore I don’t have to prove myself with good works. You love me and want me to live in good health. You want me to prosper in soul and body. When I start running full-speed ahead, help me remember to let You guide the way. Help me stay centered on Your son Jesus.

I give you praise today for giving second chances. You never give up on me, and You provide the answers I need for the off-balance life I’ve been living. Thank you for grace, mercy, and for leading me into the balanced life You offer through the Holy Spirit.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.