Who it is We Pray to

"He is the most Holy of all kings, His throne is a great white throne--unspotted and clear as crystal.  'The stars are not pure in His sight. How much less man, that is a worm?' (Job 25:5-6).  With what lowliness should you draw near to Him.  Familiarity there may be, but let it not be unhallowed.  Boldness there should be, but let it not be impertinent . You are still on earth, and He in heaven.  Yo are still a worm of the dust, and He Everlasting.  before the mountains were brought forth, He was God, and if all created things should pass away, yet He would still be the same.  I am afraid we do not bow as we should before the Eternal Majesty.  Let us ask the Spirit of God to put us in a right frame, that every one of our prayers may be a reverential approach to the Infinite Majesty above." 

~Charles Spurgeon~

Give Me a Quiet Mind

"When winds are blowing, waves are rising, falling
And all the air is full of dust and spray;
When voices, like to sea birds’ plaintive calling,
Confuse my day;

Then, then I know Thee, Lord of highest heaven
In newborn need discover Thee, and find
Nought can discomfort him to whom is given
A quiet mind.

When hopes have failed, and heavy sadness crusheth,
And doubt and fear would weave their deadly spell,
Then thought of Thee my troubled spirit husheth;
And all is well.

In midnight hours when weariness ignoreth
Heaven’s starry host, and battle wounds are mine,
Then Thy right hand uplifteth and outpoureth
Love’s oil and wine.

O Blessed Lord, beyond the moment’s sorrow
I see above, beaneath, before, behind–
Eternal Love. Give me today, tomorrow,
A quiet mind."

~Poem by Amy Carmichael~

    I personally love the stanza that expresses the fear, doubt, and worry that may overtake us at times, but when we think upon the Lord, remembering His promises, then, 'all is well.'  

~Grow in Grace~ 

2 Peter 3:18   

Giving God the Glory

This was so good to really think about!

"We all know people, even unbelievers, who seem to be natural servants. They are always serving others one way or another. But God does not get the glory; they do. It is their reputation that is enhanced. But when we, natural servants or not, serve in dependence upon the grace of God with the strength He supplies, God is glorified."
-Jerry Bridges

Are you receiving the glory for the service you may have done or are you giving God the glory for what He is doing through you?!

Learning to Trust

Here are some very wise words from one of my favorite authors and speakers, Jerry Bridges.  Be encouraged dear friends!

~Learning to Trust~ 

"It's difficult to believe God is in control when we're in the midst of heartache or grief.  I've struggled with this many times myself.  Each time I've had to decide if I would trust Him, even when my heart ached.  I realized anew that we must learn to trust God one circumstance at a time.

It's not a matter of my feelings of my will.  I never feel like trusting God when adversity strikes, but I can choose to do so anyway.  That act of the will must be based on belief, and belief must be based on the truth that God is sovereign.  He carries out His own good purposes without ever being thwarted, and nothing is outside of his sovereign will.  We must cling to this in the face of adversity and tragedy, if we're to glorify God by trusting Him. 

I'll say this as gently and compassionately as I know how: Our first priority in adversity is to honor and glorify God by trusting Him.  Gaining relief from our feelings of heartache or disappointment or frustration is a natural desire, and God has promised to give us grace sufficient for our trials and peace for our anxieties (2 Corinthians 12:9; Philippians 4:6-7).  But just as God's will is to take precedence over our will ("Yet not as I will, but as you will"- Matthew 26:39), so God's honor is to take precedence over our feelings.  We honor God by choosing to trust Him when we don't understand what He is doing or why He has allowed some adverse circumstance to occur.  As we seek God's glory, we may be sure He has purposed our good and that He won't be frustrated in fulfilling that purpose." 

~Grow in Grace~ 

2 Peter 3:18   

Discouragement Diminished

    The way I picture discouragement is like a large, dark, cloud hanging over someone, just about to pour out all of its rainy, miserable contents.  It's easy for me to picture this because in Oregon, we experience the darkness, the cloudiness, and the extreme wetness.  So, needless to say, that is how I picture, in my mind, discouragement.

     The loss of enthusiasm, confidence, and even joy in how we feel is never a welcome string of emotions.  No one likes to feel a sense of being burdened down with anxieties and stress.   It is, as if, a gloomy, ugly cloud was just hovering over you, making no room for light at all to seep through.  What a depressing feeling, but thankfully, for the Christian, there is hope.

     We can experience discouragement in all shapes, sizes, and forms, but we all need to remember and keep our eyes on the truth that, "surely my soul remembers and is bowed down within me.  This I recall to my mind.  Therefore I have hope.  The Lord's loving kindnesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail.  They are new every morning; Great is Thy faithfulness.  'The Lord is my portion', says my soul, 'Therefore I have hope in Him.'  The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, To the person who seeks Him."  (Lamentations 3:20-25)   What an amazing passage of scripture!

    Dear friends, we do not have to settle with the thought that there is no way out from underneath the great cloud of disappointment, but we can be ever so confident in knowing that there is a way for the light to break through the great mass and shine brightly.  When we focus on the truth and constantly "preach to ourselves" it is then when we begin to have hope and peace, which is what the Lord graciously gives to those who seek Him! 

     Read the promises of scripture and focus on truth, for it has the power to break through any dark, gloomy cloud of disappointment and diminish it! 

Have a wonderful Christ-centered Friday, friends!

~Grow in Grace~

2 Peter 3:18 

Keep Your Eye on the Goal

"I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." 

(Philippians 3:14) 

     All of us face the pressure of more to do than we have time for.  so we have to set priorities.  We have to determine what's most important in our lives.  We have to ask, 'Do I really want to grow spiritually.'  

     Get your goal clearly in mind and keep focused on that.  Paul used the analogy of the competitive races of his day to challenge the Corinthians to pay the price of growth.  'Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize?  So run that you may obtain it.  Every athlete exercises self-control in all things.  They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable.  So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air' (1 Corinthians 9:24-25).  

     In our case, we have an advantage over those Grecian runners.  In a given race, only one received the prize, and it was only a wreath that would soon fade.  But we're not in competition with anyone.  We can all get the prize, and it will last forever.  

     What is your spiritual goal?  Do you really want to get the prize?  Do you want to grow to be the man or woman God wants you to be?  Do you want to pay the price of the spiritual disciplines you need to practice in order to grow?  Or will you be content to sort of muddle through your Christian life and, at the end, have to sum it all up as not more meaningful than a trip tot eh corner store for a loaf of bread?

   The choice is yours.  What will it be? 

-Devotional written by Jerry Bridges- 

He Directs Our Steps

     Over the last few days, I have really been pursuing job opportunities, after being unemployed for a while.  I have prayed to the Lord concerning where I should work, what I should do, and where I should go.  I have updated my resume, created a cover letter, done my research on different employment opportunities, and now I am just starting to go out into the "field", so to speak, and present, to possible employers, all that I have prepared for in seeking employment.   It is quite an intimidating process.  I do not know if I will be well received, rejected, or even if I will be given any feedback at all.  A verse in Proverbs continually came to my mind today as I was online doing my research for different job opportunities.  It is such a great passage of scripture.

     Proverbs 16:9 states, "A man's heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps."  I needed to really think through what this verse is saying.  I, Breana Haas, may, in my own mind, have a business I want to work for, a line of work I want to pursue, but I am still completely subject to the ultimate purpose and will of the Lord.  Meaning, that my sovereign God overrules my plans in order to fulfill His purposes.  My "Abba" Father knows what is best for me, His daughter, and He will open and shut doors in order to lead me to where He desires me, His child, to be.  It is comforting to know that He is in control, but at the same time, I know that the path may be a difficult one at times especially if I do not see the results that I want or receive any responses to my resumes.  It is then, during those times, which I know will come, that I need to pray, "Thy will be done in this Lord".   He will lead me in the way He ultimately desires for me to go.  I can make plans, but He directs my steps.  

   I read these other verses that were very encouraging.  Proverbs 16:1, "The preparations of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord."  Psalm 37:23, "The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in His way though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; For the Lord upholds him with His hand."  Proverbs 20:24, "A man's steps are of the Lord; How then can a man understand his own way?"  Proverbs 10:23, "O Lord, I know the way of man is not in himself; It is not in a man who walks to direct his own steps."  Lastly, one of my favorite passages of scripture, "Trust in the Lord with all of your heart, and lean not on your own understanding but in all your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct your paths." Proverbs 3:5-6

   I need to be in constant dependence upon the Lord and seek to obey Him.  He will lead, guide, and direct those who are His.  I am simply not to worry but to trust and obey. 

~Grow in Grace~

2 Peter 3:18