Quiet Hearts in the Chaos

Tonight as I read Genesis 24, I was moved by the faith of Abraham's servant.  Did you notice how specifically he prayed?  Did you see his trust in God?   How exciting it must have been to him to see God answer detail after detail! After reading, I gave thought to my own prayer life.  Do I have this kind of faith in God?  Do I intercede for others?  Do I detail to God my needs and hopes? Do I see God answer my prayers?  Am I excited by how He is working in me and through me?   I want to grow in my prayer life.  I desire to be a prayer warrior, a woman completely dependent on God.  I want to believe what God's Words says about prayer and let it change me. What about you?  How is your prayer life? Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.  I Thess. 5:16-18 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication wit...

Guilty.  Yes, I am definitely guilty of thinking that God can't handle the circumstances I am experiencing. "So Sarah laughed to herself..." I can see her, standing just out of sight, straining to hear what the visitors had to say.  Abraham had just run to her and asked her to quickly make cakes for the "travelers."  I am sure her curiosity was piqued.  My mind would have been racing.  Who is out this way?  What are they doing?  Where are they going?   I can envision her standing by the door, leaning in to hear.   Did that one just say that I would have a baby by next year? Her eyes crinkle. Wouldn't that be a hoot!  What a story!  Ninety-one year old woman gives birth to baby! How in the world does he expect that to happen?  Maybe he didn't get a good look at me.   She chuckles softly. Ah, that would be the day. Then, the realization that she has been found out.  Have you ever been caught eavesdropping? If ...

El Roi - The God Who Sees; The God Who Watches Over Me I love this name of God.  I love what I learn about God when I dig into chapter 16.  He is an all-seeing God.  This isn't in the context of "Hey, if you do something wrong, He's right there watching so beware!"  This is, "Hey, don't worry, don't fret, don't fear.  You are not alone.  GOD, the Creator of all; GOD, the Almighty; GOD, the I AM; GOD, the Master ---  That very GOD is watching over you .  He is caring for you .  He is there."  How comforting!  How humbling!  Who am I, that such a GOD should care for me? Hagar was in the wilderness, upset, alone, and so very needy.  I am sure she was scared and full of questions about her future.  Her mistress despised her and things were so very difficult.  How could she survive in that environment?  She had been used and cast aside.  Did anyone even care?  Oh, yes!  El Roi!  The God Wh...

How often am I guilty of it?  How permeated is my Christian walk by this sin?  How devastating are the consequences? Abram was afraid.  He thought the Egytians would kill him and take his beautiful wife.  And so.... he devised a plan.  He would pretend she was his sister.  They could pull it off.  They could handle this by themselves. Only they couldn't.  God is holy.  God is just.  God wanted better for Abram and Sarai.  He afflicted Pharaoh's house, the truth was discovered, and there were consequences. You know where I'm going with this, right?  What are you afraid of?  What situation is going on in your life right now that is causing you to devise a plan?  What situations are you trying to manipulate?  What are you planning to pull off?  What are you handling by yourself? Friend, your plan may look good.  It may seem to be working, but God has better for you.  He loves you.  He des...

Our second week is upon us, and I trust that you are enjoying your time in God's Word.  I personally have really enjoyed the schedule. In the past, I have felt rushed and pressured to read to check off a list, but because this reading schedule is lighter than I am used to, I have enjoyed digging deeper.  I feel like a student again, and I love it. Most days, you can find me with a great spread of materials in front of me as I dive in.  I am journaling and color-coding in my new ESV journaling Bible (I love having a clean slate!)  To my left is my NKJV John MacArthur study Bible, to my right are my materials and books for looking up the names of God in context, and spread out somewhere else in front of me are my computer and colored pencils.  It has just been an exciting journey for me so far.  Thank you for your part in that! How does your "space" look?  Do you have coffee in hand and your feet propped up?  Are you at a desk?  Are you cozy ...

I am color coding as I read through the Bible this year.  Orange is for underlining sin and it's consequences.  Pink is for righteous living and its blessings.  Let me tell you, I'm seeing lots of orange right now.  It's a pretty depressing picture.  Man wasted no time in completely messing up God's perfect paradise, His glorious creation,  His peace, harmony, and communion. First Eve disobeyed and then Adam.  Quickly following in their footsteps, Cain rebelled against God.  We see how his sin begat more sin, which begat even more sin, which brought grave consequences for Cain.  Lamech took two wives.  Lamech killed a man.  Then, in chapter 5, we see death: "...and he died...and he died...and he died..." Orange. Orange. Orange. Quite a bleak picture. But then --- a tiny bit of pink.  A ray of light.  ENOCH.  Chapter 5 verses 22 and 24, "Enoch walked with God."  My heart yearns for this:  in a world of or...

Elohim -- the Creator God, the plural form of El (denoting His majesty) Each time we see "God" in chapter one, we see the Majestic Creator, the Designer of life, the Supreme One.  Over and over we read that the Supreme God  saw what He had made and it was good!  I love to marvel in the majesty and grandeur of Elohim as seen in His creation:  the beauty of a sunset, the intricate details of a leaf or snowflake, the colors of the hummingbird's feathers, the way the each part of the human body works in harmony, the miracle of conception and birth.  The list goes on and on. Though I acknowledge Elohim and marvel in His awesome creation, I still sometimes question His design of me.  I have listened to the lies of the world and believed their redefinition beauty.  I am growing in this area, but still have room to trust. As I carried each of my unborn children, I struggled with worry about how Elohim would design and create them.  I was fearful inste...