Comfy?

Deut 4:29, the Amplified version, says “But if, from there, you will seek (inquire for and require as necessity) the Lord your God, you will find Him if you truly seek Him with all your heart and mind and soul and life.” 

I love that. There is something so beautiful about the resolution of total surrender, complete trust, and fervent expectation. Those traits are portrayed here as steps that take us down the path to finding God.

If we are saved and born again, God has already been ‘found’ by each and every one of us. There is no need to go trying to find Him again, in this regard. But there are levels of knowing Him, each one deeper, that He desires to share with us, just as we desire to share the deeper parts of ourselves with those we love most. We are those that God loves most, and He desires those deeper places to be found by you — and they can only be found by seeking Him in the way this verse describes.

In our culture, so very many things come so very easy. I am amazed when I think of things like Skype and Bluetooth technology, for example. The convenience of our world is astounding. And then you have things like Frozen dinners and Snuggies, that show our obsession with being comfortable. Comfort is catered to, even courted. It is a defining mark of many of the technological advances of our age. We are always pursuing ways to make easy things even easier.

This all has its place, and I will be the first one to say how thankful I am for convenience and technological advances; but I do feel that the comfort of our culture has created ease not only in the “things” in our lives, but also in our souls. We don’t need to seek convenience in our spiritual life the way we do our natural one.We must learn to separate the two. Separate the circumstances of life with the attitudes of the heart.

Many times, the disruption of comfort in the circumstances of our lives brings us to a place where we seek God out of a fervent need for Him; like in problems with family, finances, or health, for example. God is a very present help in times of trouble, and we can always know that He is the first place we can run when things go wrong. But He can also be the first place we go all the time, even when things go right.

It is good that we would be closely familiar with God in our daily lives, but we should also always keep a reverent fear and awe of Him in our hearts (Ps 5:7). Don’t let comfort in any area of your life cause you to lose zeal in your spiritual life. Revelation says that God does not prefer you in a lukewarm state.

“I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. You say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing.’ You do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked…As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent.” (Revelation 3:15-17, 19 NKJV)

You may not feel like you are the person who has need of nothing, but let’s relate to this soul in the attitude of our hearts. Do we find any common ground? No matter where you were yesterday, let us be passionate today. To do so, you will have to fight against the urge to draw back, because it is not always convenient to be on fire for God.

Be full of zeal, so that when the world turns on Christians like the leaders did in Daniel’s day, or in Esther’s — we will be strong enough and passionate enough to stand firmly. (See Daniel 6:7-10, Esther 3:12-14, 4:14-16). “The people who know their God will be strong, and will stand firm, and do exploits for God” (Daniel 11:32).

Live with a unsatisfied satisfaction, being content and thankful with life, yet considering it as nothing in contrast to knowing Him. Paul did in Phil 3:8:

 “I count everything as loss compared to the possession of the priceless privilege (the overwhelming preciousness, the surpassing worth, and supreme advantage) of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord and of progressively becoming more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him [of perceiving and recognizing and understanding Him more fully and clearly.]” (Amplifed version)

May we know God in that light today — with that intensity of purpose and devotion. With no reason, or no other agenda today, seek Him. ‘Require Him’ as a vital part of your day. How do you do that? Read the Bible. Talk to God, just like you would talk to someone you trust. Think about Him. Desire Him.

There are great rewards when you find Him. He brings sweetness, joy, and peace into every area of your life. There is a reason He is worth pursing with all your heart and mind and soul and life. Let’s find out what it is.

My “Mom” Bible

I bought my Mom bible the other day. {Mom Bible?} Yes, you heard me! Mom Bible!

I have a “main” Bible — a big, solid Bible with a beautiful case that I keep at home and take to church. It has all my main and favorite scriptures underlined and highlighted in it, and is very special to me. But I have also always carried a more compact Bible — one that I can take on the go, that is portable and versatile.

When I was in college, I had a small Bible that fit in my highly oversized backpack and tramped around with me everywhere, from the cafeteria to the science building. During the day, when I would have a few moments to myself between classes, I would sit in a quiet area of the campus and let myself be encouraged by the precious words on its pages. That was my college Bible. I pick it up now, and am reminded of many different moments in my life just by looking at the things that are highlighted, the notes beside different verses…The scriptures about a husband are highlighted, underlined, and the pages worn a little thinner, because in those days, of course, he was just a dream — a constant hope, and point of faith and trust in God. When I look at my college Bible, I see the journey of how God has brought me into exactly those things that I longed so deeply for then. I see also the things for which I am yet still believing. Mostly, when I look at my college Bible, I see a journey. One well-trekked, and well trod. I am proud of that journey.

Lately, I have begun a new journey of the heart, as my hopes and dreams shift to a new phase of life — that of being a spiritual wife, and one day, a mom. I have begun to look up new verses and build up my faith in these areas. The focus of my heart is the family Rob and I are building. As I started to look up scriptures on the subject of marriage, kids and motherhood, it suddenly seemed out of place for me to be marking those scriptures in a place that symbolized so much of what God has already completed.

Last week I received a coupon in the mail for 50% off Bibles at my local Family Christian Store, and I took that as my clue. I haven’t bought a new Bible in a long time. The guy in the store was laughing at me because it was taking me so long to pick one out. I had to feel it, touch it, compare the versions…This is a big deal!

I picked out my Mom Bible. I have fresh pages upon which to start this fresh new chapter in my life. I picked out a Bible that can fit just about anywhere. I can take it to soccer fields and dance recitals; I already am picturing it with the wear and tear that comes with sharing space in a diaper bag.

A little premature? Nah. I am not yet a mommy, but before I ever become one in reality, I want to first be one in my heart. I want to have my faith built up, ready to stand for my family, my marriage, and my kids. I know the ‘planting of those roots’ begins in the Word, and I’ve started with a slew of awesome family verses to which I look forward to turning every day.

I look forward to this Bible accompanying me in this exciting chapter of life. I retire the old one with great thankfulness and remembrance of all God has done for me in the last (almost) 10 years since starting college. When looking back, and especially looking at my college Bible, it is so crystal clear to see the path God led me on was one of His faithfulness and love. He can be trusted. And I trust Him now with the future as well. Such an exciting life, the one lived with God.

I’m ready to let the Word help me dream God’s dreams for my future family, and for the one I already have with my dear husband. I’m so thankful that the Bible lets me invest in them even before one of them ever came to be.

What are you believing for? A mate? For your job or career? For your house or home? In whatever phase of life you may find yourself, find the scriptures that will help lay the road for where you want to go next. Don’t just think about where you are — think about where you want to be! Let scriptures from the Word guide you to the dreams you dream in your spirit.

I’ll have to do a post another day sharing all the awesome scriptures I’ve found so far. I’ve found so many that have blessed me — what are some scriptures that have blessed you? For all the Mom’s out there, got any good scriptures for me to start highlighting in my newest addition?

Happy highlighting!! 🙂

Don’t Leap Over This!

The Ephesians Prayers

Leap Year! February 29th may leap over the next four years — not occurring again until 2016 — but there is something in your life you shouldn’t wait that long to experience…the power of The Ephesian’s Prayers!

The Ephesian’s Prayers are a selection of prayers the Apostle Paul prayed over the members of the church at Ephesus. There are also two other prayers in Philippians and Colossians that are very easily grouped together with these. Together, the prayers Paul prayed in Ephesians 1:17-23, 3:16-21, Philippians 1:9-11, and Colossians 1:9-14 are arguably some of the most important prayers he penned in the New Testament. They are certainly some of my favorites.

These prayers are lovely to read, as we may think about how they apply to the various recipients, and members of the early church; but the wonderful thing about the Bible is that the Word of God is a living word (Heb 4:12). Paul was writing, through the Spirit, to all believers, throughout the ages. We can hear what Paul is saying to the Ephesians and apply them to ourselves here and now, in our modern day life. If we pray these prayers over ourselves and others, they will yield the same results now as they did for the early church then.

Kenneth E. Hagin — my father in the faith, and pioneer of the modern ‘Word of Faith’ movement — brought attention to these prayers as he gave testimony of their results in his life. He expressed that when he started to pray these prayers every day over himself, sometimes multiple times a day, over a long period of time, he saw glorious things happen in his own life.

He challenged believers to pray these prayers over their lives every single day for at least 6 months, and see what great things would take place. ‘Don’t miss a day,’ he would say, ‘or you’re not really serious about it.’ He would also say, ‘Don’t just recite them! Pray them like you mean it, if you want them to work!’

His admonishment has stuck with me ever since I heard it, and I have taken the “6 month challenge” many times. At a young age, I printed out these prayers and took them with me everywhere — to school, on trips, and everything in between. Before stage performances and competitions, these prayers were on my lips. Sometimes, I would switch it up, and pray two of the scriptures in the morning, and the other two at night. It doesn’t really matter, as long as you pray them in faith, and you pray like you mean it. Great things have happened in my life through the results of these prayers. I may not have been able to see it at the time, but I can surely now look back over these years of my life and see all the Lord did for me. I will continue to pray them for as long as I live.

Whether I am in the midst of the ‘6 months’ or not, these prayers are now embedded deeply onto my heart — I am convinced they are etched there forever. The nights of praying them as I fell to sleep; the early mornings when I would say them with a groggy voice…they all have made these the prayers that, when I go to pray, are the first thing on my lips. I don’t even have to think about it anymore…they are just there, on the edge of my tongue and heart, waiting to be spoken.

So I encourage you today, don’t wait 4 years to pray these prayers and be serious about them. “Leap” into a 6 month challenge of your own today, and see what results await you at the end. Copy and paste them as I have typed them below, and print them out on cards that you can take with you throughout your day — put them in your car, at your desk, make them into a bookmark that goes where you go — whatever you have to do to keep them before your eyes, and make them real to your spirit. Do what works for you!

I have put these verses into first person; you can personalize it even more by putting your own name in the blanks of the first person pronouns. I encourage you also to pray these prayers for your family and friends — your husband, your marriage, your children, your neighbors. Put their names in these blanks. As they are effective for you, so they are for whomever you pray them over. Is there someone on your heart? Someone for whom you have been praying and believing the Lord? Someone who needs salvation? Pray the word over them, and you will see results. I have prayed these prayers over countless family members and friends. Some, I prayed for many years ago, and have seen the fruit in their lives just this past year. I have seen this work! These prayers are powerful and effective (James 5:16).

Praying these prayers is so easy, and only takes a few minutes. I have written them in the versions I like — but find them in the versions and translations that you like! Pray with a heart of faith, and don’t miss a day! Believe that He hears you, and that He will do these things in your life (1 Jn 5:15) or the lives of those for whom you are praying. Praying God’s word over lives and situations is the most powerful way to pray for anything, and He loves to hear His word being brought back to Him. God will honor the Word that you pray.

The prayers below are referenced from both the King James and the Amplified Bibles. They are paraphrased, and put into first person.

Ephesians 1:17-23

“Father, I pray that You would give unto   me   a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of You. I pray that the eyes of   my    understanding would be enlightened, and that the eyes of   my   heart would be flooded with light. I pray that   I   would know and understand what is the hope of Your calling, and what is the riches of the glory of Your inheritance in the saints. I pray that   I    would know what is the immeasurable, unlimited, and exceeding greatness of Your power in and for   me  , who believes, according to the working of Your mighty power, which You exerted in Christ when You raised Him from the dead and set Him at Your own right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality, power, might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in the world which is to come. You have put all things under His feet, and so under   my    feet, and gave Him to be the head over all things to the church, which is His body. And   I    am in that body; I pray that   I    would be living in the fullness of Him who fills all in all and makes   me    complete.”

Ephesians 3:16-21

“Father, I pray that You would grant unto   me   , according to the riches of Your glory, to be strengthened with might by Your Spirit in   my    inner man. I pray that Christ would dwell in   my    heart by faith, and that   I    would be rooted and grounded in love, able to comprehend with all the saints what is its breadth, and length, and depth, and height. I pray that   I    would know the love of Christ which passes knowledge, and be filled throughout   my    whole being with the fulness of You — that   I    would be a body wholly filled and flooded with God Himself. Unto You who is able to do exceedingly, superabundantly, far over and above all that   I    dare ask or think — infinitely beyond    my    highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes, or dreams — to You be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end.”

Philippians 1:9-11

“I pray that   my   love would abound yet more and more and extend to its fullest development in knowledge and all keen insight — that   my   love would display itself in greater depth of acquaintance and more comprehensive discernment. I pray that    I     would surely learn to sense what is vital, and approve and prize what is excellent and of real value — recognizing the highest and the best, and distinguishing the moral differences. I pray that   I   would be untainted and pure, unerring and blameless, and that with a sincere, certain, and unsullied heart,   I   would approach the day of Christ not stumbling or causing anyone else to stumble. I pray that   I   would abound in and be filled with the fruits of righteousness through Christ, to Your honor and praise, that Your glory would be both manifested and recognized.”

Colossians 1:9-14

“Father, I pray and desire that   I   might be filled with a full, deep, and clear knowledge of Your will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, and in discernment of spiritual things. I pray that   I   would walk, live and conduct myself in a manner worthy of You, Lord, fully pleasing You in all things, bearing fruit in every good work, and steadily growing and increasing in the knowledge of You, with fuller, deeper and clearer insight, acquaintance and recognition. I pray that   I   would be invigorated and strengthened with all power, according to the might of Your glory, to exercise every kind of endurance and patience, perseverance and forbearance with joy. Giving thanks to You, who has qualified and made   me   able to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light. You have delivered   me   from the power of darkness and translated   me   into the kingdom of Your dear Son, in Whom   I   have redemption through His blood, and the forgiveness of sins.”