Archives for January 2012

Finding Renewed Treasure

January 11, 2012 by 10 Comments

I made Christmas shopping easy for my husband this past Christmas season. Since my Bible of fifteen years was sporting loose pages in the front and back, I knew it was time to part with it and break in a new one before I started leaving the Word of God as a trail behind me—though that’s not such a bad idea, is it?!

I searched the internet, found the exact Bible I wanted, ordered it, and then informed him that it was his Christmas gift to me. We both win, right? :) But when we get right down to it, I’m the bigger winner. His satisfaction in getting out of Christmas shopping lasted only a short time. The satisfaction I’m finding in the gift—the Word of God—blooms each day.

I don’t know about you, but I’m an underliner. You can just imagine what my old Bible looked like after fifteen years. Getting a new one with no markings felt a little scary. I thought for sure I would miss my notes and underlines and feel rather lost without them.

On the contrary, something entirely different has happened. I feel excited as I read. Each passage seems fresh, almost new. Verses well-known to me and loved dearly have taken on an aura of renewed treasure as I read them as if for the first time—words untouched by my handy pen, words I consider once more as I underline again.

I pray I will continue to look at the Word of God with fresh eyes, even long after I get my new Bible broken-in. I pray that I will come to it excited about what I may discover, expectant over what the Lord might reveal to me. I pray that the satisfaction I’m finding in the gift—the Word of God—will continue to bloom within me each day.

Is it time for you to take a fresh look at some familiar passages? I guarantee you will find renewed treasure. Definitely a winning proposition!

“When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s delight, for I bear your name, LORD God Almighty.” Jeremiah 15:16

*Flickr photo by Savio Sebastian, Creative Commons License

*The next issue of Life Notes, my quarterly inspirational newsletter, will come out the first week in February. Sign-up is free and to the right!

Filed Under: Gift, new thing, refresh, Word of God Tagged With: , , ,

Focus: Theme Word for 2012

January 8, 2012 by 14 Comments

For the past two or three weeks I’ve been hearing talk in various places about choosing a word for the new year—a theme word that sums up a quality, an attitude, or action we feel led to concentrate on in 2012. I may be a week late joining the conversation, but it’s never too late to share a good idea, right?

The word that popped into my mind when I first heard mention of selecting a word for 2012 was focus. As a writer, I need focus in order to complete projects and also to grow and move forward. I need focus to use my time wisely, in the way the Lord is leading.

Focus has been on my mind for awhile. In fact, early last fall I memorized 2 Timothy 1:14 with this very thing in mind. It says, “Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you—guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us.”

The NIV text note says the good deposit Paul is referencing to Timothy is the gospel, but there are other good deposits we can apply to this verse as well. Personally, I’m thinking of the writing gift God has given me and how I need to guard it by not going in so many directions that I don’t devote enough time to it. In addition to that, I’m sure the need for focus will pop up in other areas as well.

How about you? Has the Lord given you a word to focus (yes, focus!) on this year? If not, ask Him to show you if there is a quality, an attitude, or action that can help guide you through the coming year—and then tell us about it. I love how sharing thoughts and ideas can spur us on to action and change in our lives. Remember, it’s never too late to share a good idea!

“Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly . . .” 1 Corinthians 9:24a

*Flickr photo by recursion_see_recursion, Creative Commons License

Filed Under: challenge, focus, goal, new thing, word, writing Tagged With: , , , , , ,

The Blessing Is on the Way

January 4, 2012 by 13 Comments

As we begin this new year, are any of you still waiting for a blessing you hoped would come in 2011—or even earlier? Are you waiting for an answer to prayer you felt certain would have unfolded by now? If so, don’t feel alone. I’m waiting, too.

It’s hard when God’s answers to our desires and dreams are “no” or “wait”. As we wait for the blessing to come, questions can niggle at our minds. Does God hear my prayers? Why doesn’t He answer? Doesn’t He even care about me? Is He punishing me for something? We may even feel like He’s forgotten us.

I won’t presume to explain why God’s answers are what they are in your life or mine, but we’re all acquainted with the growth that can take place in our characters as we learn to wait on Him and trust Him in every circumstance.

However, knowing growth will come doesn’t necessarily make the wait any easier, does it? Maybe an example from scripture about a delayed answer could provide some encouragement or fresh insight as to why we may have to wait at times.

In the tenth chapter of Daniel, we read that God had given Daniel a revelation, but Daniel didn’t understand it. He prayed and mourned for three weeks, asking God to give him understanding of the vision. At the end of the three weeks, Daniel had another vision of a man, a messenger from God (an angel or possibly even Jesus), who came to give him God’s answer.

The man told Daniel, “Since the first day . . . your words were heard, and I have come in response to them.” (10:12) He went on to tell him that a demon had resisted him for twenty-one days. One of the chief angels came to help him, though, and the man was now there to give Daniel the understanding he sought from God.

From this passage we see that sometimes delays to our prayers happen because of struggles and battles going on in the spiritual realm. This may not be the reason for your current season of waiting on God, but it could be a possibility.

Whatever the reason you find yourself in God’s waiting room, take heart. He hasn’t forgotten you. He hears you. And the answer—the blessing—is on the way.

“‘As soon as you began to pray, an answer was given . . .’” Daniel 9:23a

*Flickr photo by the hills are alive, Creative Commons License

Filed Under: blessing, hope, perseverance, prayer, trust, vision Tagged With: , , ,

Blessing One Another in the New Year

January 1, 2012 by 12 Comments

Happy New Year, everyone!! I hope you soaked up every last ounce of Christmas joy over the past couple of weeks and are ready to start the adventure of a new year.

If you’re like me, you probably feel the need to take a deep breath after the holidays and regroup a day or two before heading full-steam into the opportunities and challenges that a new year holds. So to that end, I thought we might dedicate this post to blessing one another as we turn the corner into 2012.

My hope is that when you visit my blog you’ll be blessed every single time. Genesis 18:5 sums up my desire very well: “Let me get you something to eat, so you can be refreshed and then go on your way—now that you have come to your servant.” My prayer is “O Lord, ‘Let my teaching fall like rain and my words descend like dew, like showers on new grass, like abundant rain on tender plants.’” (Deuteronomy 32:2)

Do you have a scripture, a prayer, a quote, or maybe a word of encouragement to offer the rest of us? Has God used something to encourage, strengthen, or inspire you at some point and now you’d like to pass it along to others? Please share it in the comments and let’s bless one another as we walk into 2012!

“Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” 1 Thessalonians 5:11

*Photo by Lina Trochez on Unsplash

Filed Under: blessing, fellowship, refresh, strength Tagged With: , , , , , , ,
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