My two cyberspace worlds have finally collided! As I have entered into the world of facebook, I 'fed' my blog into the notes portion of my profile page ... well - now, the opposite is happening! After creating a post for a group called "Messy Spirituality", I am copying my post onto my blog ... what a strange world we live in! :0) Here were my thoughts (in response to a topic regarding the Exodus story: how we would prefer the "Red Sea" experience ... or easier ... than what the Israelites went through during the rest of the journey).
"The Exodus story has really been on my mind lately (approximately, the last year or so). I have felt that my family and I have been on a sort of 'Exodus' journey of our own. It is one that I am learning to put complete trust in the Lord to provide for me and my family - and to learn to be thankful for my daily blessings.
During this time in my walk, I have also found that I yearn for 'a refreshing spring of water' in the midst of the desert and am I ever thankful for the precious assurance that the Lord provides!! :0) ... I must admit, there have been more than a few times that I have blamed my hubby for taking us out into the desert in the first place (I wonder how many wives did that when the Israelites left Egypt ??? Oh .... to be a fly on the 'tent' wall back then :0)
Through it all, even though circumstances can be relationally hard, circumstantially confusing and even physically uncomfortable ... I know that I've never felt closer to the Lord than I do now! I know my need for Him, more than I ever have ... and in that, I also know His provision in a deeper way than I ever have.
Believe me - I sway way more to the hedonistic lifestyle than narcissitic behaviour ... I definately do not seek out 'hard times' to feed some need to FEEL spiritual :0) But, I am learning that hard does NOT equal bad ... it's just hard! And that at the core of my faith is the reality that circumstances do NOT equal blessing! My blessing IS my relationship with the Lord, so that is where my focus will remain (by His grace).
"But blessed is the man who TRUSTS in the Lord, whose confidence is in Him. He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never failes to bear fruit." Jeremiah 17:7-8 (NIV)"
After re-reading my entry, it brought me back to my thoughts from the other day on "weeding my Spiritual Garden". Our family is SLOWLY becoming settled into our new home and I have spent some time outside in the flower gardens yanking out pesky thorns, weeds and probably a few 'unsuspecting' flowers (oops!) ... not to get distracted, but there's a whole other topic around Matthew 13:24-30 there ... another time ... LOL ....
Anyway, on a recent occasion, I chose to take myself outside and WEED rather than get into a critical-based argument with my hubby. And as I did, I realized that there was some weeding I needed to tend to in my own heart. What a revelation!! :0)
So, as I read Jeremiah 17:7-8, I began to think about MY responsibility in this "tree" situation. A Sunday school class that Pastor Doug gave comes to mind. He said that a peach tree doesn't TRY to grow peaches. It just digs its roots down deep to receive nourishment - and God does the rest! The tree was CREATED to produce peaches ... God created it AND provides for it!
To take that a little further ... who's responsibility is it to weed my garden? to take care of my little tree? I think that as I merely open the Garden Gate of my heart to the Lord, He will reveal to me the 'weeds' in my heart that I may confess them to Him ... and as I am open to His direction, His ways, His thoughts, His love, mercy and forgiveness ... then He will 'weed' out those issues that would cause me to become thirsty or dehydrated. And the longer you keep the Garden Gate to your soul closed, the more weeding The Gardener will need to do for you :0)
In that then, I pray that my heart, and the hearts of ALL believers, would be GOOD SOIL, having strong and deep roots ... and that in the faith that God has provided, we would awaken to the presence of the Lord and swing wide the Garden Gates of our hearts as He tends to the precious garden of our souls. And, to God's glory, the fruit and flowers and beauty of our gardens would be the worship and praise we offer Him, in the Name of Jesus. Amen.
"The Exodus story has really been on my mind lately (approximately, the last year or so). I have felt that my family and I have been on a sort of 'Exodus' journey of our own. It is one that I am learning to put complete trust in the Lord to provide for me and my family - and to learn to be thankful for my daily blessings.
During this time in my walk, I have also found that I yearn for 'a refreshing spring of water' in the midst of the desert and am I ever thankful for the precious assurance that the Lord provides!! :0) ... I must admit, there have been more than a few times that I have blamed my hubby for taking us out into the desert in the first place (I wonder how many wives did that when the Israelites left Egypt ??? Oh .... to be a fly on the 'tent' wall back then :0)
Through it all, even though circumstances can be relationally hard, circumstantially confusing and even physically uncomfortable ... I know that I've never felt closer to the Lord than I do now! I know my need for Him, more than I ever have ... and in that, I also know His provision in a deeper way than I ever have.
Believe me - I sway way more to the hedonistic lifestyle than narcissitic behaviour ... I definately do not seek out 'hard times' to feed some need to FEEL spiritual :0) But, I am learning that hard does NOT equal bad ... it's just hard! And that at the core of my faith is the reality that circumstances do NOT equal blessing! My blessing IS my relationship with the Lord, so that is where my focus will remain (by His grace).
"But blessed is the man who TRUSTS in the Lord, whose confidence is in Him. He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never failes to bear fruit." Jeremiah 17:7-8 (NIV)"
After re-reading my entry, it brought me back to my thoughts from the other day on "weeding my Spiritual Garden". Our family is SLOWLY becoming settled into our new home and I have spent some time outside in the flower gardens yanking out pesky thorns, weeds and probably a few 'unsuspecting' flowers (oops!) ... not to get distracted, but there's a whole other topic around Matthew 13:24-30 there ... another time ... LOL ....
Anyway, on a recent occasion, I chose to take myself outside and WEED rather than get into a critical-based argument with my hubby. And as I did, I realized that there was some weeding I needed to tend to in my own heart. What a revelation!! :0)
So, as I read Jeremiah 17:7-8, I began to think about MY responsibility in this "tree" situation. A Sunday school class that Pastor Doug gave comes to mind. He said that a peach tree doesn't TRY to grow peaches. It just digs its roots down deep to receive nourishment - and God does the rest! The tree was CREATED to produce peaches ... God created it AND provides for it!
To take that a little further ... who's responsibility is it to weed my garden? to take care of my little tree? I think that as I merely open the Garden Gate of my heart to the Lord, He will reveal to me the 'weeds' in my heart that I may confess them to Him ... and as I am open to His direction, His ways, His thoughts, His love, mercy and forgiveness ... then He will 'weed' out those issues that would cause me to become thirsty or dehydrated. And the longer you keep the Garden Gate to your soul closed, the more weeding The Gardener will need to do for you :0)
In that then, I pray that my heart, and the hearts of ALL believers, would be GOOD SOIL, having strong and deep roots ... and that in the faith that God has provided, we would awaken to the presence of the Lord and swing wide the Garden Gates of our hearts as He tends to the precious garden of our souls. And, to God's glory, the fruit and flowers and beauty of our gardens would be the worship and praise we offer Him, in the Name of Jesus. Amen.
