Promise for Today Favorite - Get a Grip

NOTE: It's been a hectic few days - no A/C, no electric, staying at a hotel. Not been real fun. I'm back home now, but have decided to take a little break from being actively involved on Facebook and this blog. I love staying in touch with Family and dear friends spread far and wide across the globe and I truly LOVE keeping up with everybody but the truth is, I'm old... and I can't keep up with everybody. For the next couple of weeks, I will post "reruns" of some of my favorites for the Promise for Today, but that's pretty much it. I'll be back and hope you'll still be around. 💕

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But God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in his holiness.
Hebrews 12:10b NLT

According to the dictionary, 'discipline' is both a noun and a verb, defined as: 'the practice of training people or to train someone to obey rules or a code of behavior' and 'the controlled behavior resulting from such training.'

Discipline is tiresome. It's difficult to endure. It is not fun. Discipline can wear you out - literally. (Actually, that is a common colloquialism in the southern US. If a mother promises to "wear you out," someone's going to get a spanking.) The Word of God confirms that as we read on in verse 11, "No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way."

When I read vvs. 12 & 13, I just keep thinking, 'Get a grip...' "So take a new grip with your tired hands and strengthen your weak knees. Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong." In other words, embrace the training, endure the discipline, the end result will be worth it.

Prayer:

Father,
           Thank You for loving us enough to correct us so that we might share in Your holiness. Help us to endure the discipline and learn from it. We are looking forward to the 'peaceful harvest of right living'. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Disciplinary Action

God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.
Hebrews 12:10b-11 NIV

It was only yesterday... just yesterday, after hearing Pastor Alan's sermon, that I earnestly prayed, "Father, I do NOT want to be critical, judgmental or prideful. I want to walk humbly with You, according to Your Word. Holy Spirit, please guide me, teach me. In Jesus' Name, I pray..." 

Oh, that all opportunities for answers to prayer would manifest so quickly!

An adverse situation came up at my day job that ultimately falls in my wheelhouse. I could have been angry that it happened. I could have come up with a half-dozen excuses... but before I got too far in the list of  'could haves', I heard the echo of yesterday's prayer in my heart. Father... I prayed again, thanking God for a change of heart, for the opportunity to walk in humility. It was not fun. It was hard. It was God's idea.

Micah 6:8 declares, He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God? 

Humbling oneself isn't easy but it is right. It is righteous before the Lord. Within minutes of doing just that, the stress of it was gone from my spirit, and in its place was peace. Several times, the enemy attempted to bring up a "Yeah, but..." and by God's grace, I was able to thank God for answering my prayer and praise Him for teaching me... Thank You for loving us enough to restore a right Spirit within us. 

Prayer:

Father,

           According to Your Word, there is reward for walking in humility and holy fear of You. Thank You for Your Grace and mercy. Thank You for Your peace and for getting us through this day heart-whole. We are certain that You, who began this, will continue Your work in us until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. And it's in His Name we pray. Amen

Discipline is Not a Bad Word

My child, don’t reject the Lord’s discipline, and don’t be upset when he corrects you. For the Lord corrects those he loves, just as a father corrects a child in whom he delights.
Proverbs 3:11-12 NLT

God disciplines because He IS love and wants the very best for us. His desire is for us to fulfill our God-given purpose. Discipline is necessary. Proverbs 13:24 tells us, Those who spare the rod of discipline hate their children. Those who love their children care enough to discipline them.  God's plan is that parents discipline with love, but sadly, not everyone's parents are/were like that. 

My sister and I talked about it a little bit today - the discipline we received as children would be a chargeable offense today. My siblings and I choose to make humor a way of dealing with hurt. My way to define it is simply to say, "I'm not fat. I'm permanently swollen from being beaten as a child." Through God's forgiveness, I can laugh about it now. I can't change what happened. I can only change how I feel about it. Choosing forgiveness allows us to laugh about it, releases hurt and bitterness, and allows us to get on with this beautiful gift known as life. 

The Truth is that discipline is not fun either way. Hebrews 12:11 NLT tells us, No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way. Selah...

Prayer:

Father,

           Thank You for loving us and caring enough about our lives to discipline us, as needed. We are thankful for Your love to keep guiding us in the right way to grow and live. We want to be God-pleasers, doing Your will from our hearts, in service to You. Help us, Father, to fulfill Your will and purpose for our lives. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Through the Bible in a Year
Reading for January 13th
Genesis 28:1-29:35

Matthew 9:18-38

Psalm 11:1-7

Proverbs 3:11-12

Training is not Punishment

Not one of these people, even though their lives of faith were exemplary, got their hands on what was promised. God had a better plan for us: that their faith and our faith would come together to make one completed whole, their lives of faith not complete apart from ours.
Hebrews 11:39-40 The Message

Do you see what this means—all these pioneers who blazed the way, all these veterans cheering us on? It means we’d better get on with it. Strip down, start running—and never quit! No extra spiritual fat, no parasitic sins. Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed—that exhilarating finish in and with God—he could put up with anything along the way: Cross, shame, whatever. And now he’s there, in the place of honor, right alongside God. 

When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility he plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your souls!

In this all-out match against sin, others have suffered far worse than you, to say nothing of what Jesus went through—all that bloodshed! So don’t feel sorry for yourselves. Or have you forgotten how good parents treat children, and that God regards you as his children?

My dear child, don’t shrug off God’s discipline,
but don’t be crushed by it either.
It’s the child he loves that he disciplines;
the child he embraces, he also corrects.

God is educating you; that’s why you must never drop out. He’s treating you as dear children. This trouble you’re in isn’t punishment; it’s training, the normal experience of children. Only irresponsible parents leave children to fend for themselves. Would you prefer an irresponsible God? We respect our own parents for training and not spoiling us, so why not embrace God’s training so we can truly live?

Hebrews 12:1-9 The Message

Prayer:

Father,

          Open our eyes to see Your Truth. Give us hearts that run to obedience and minds that understand training and discipline are great acts of love and not punishment. Help us, O God, guide and direct us. Lead us in Your ways of understanding. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Endure the Discipline

 But God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in his holiness.

Hebrews 12:10b NLT

Discipline is tiresome. It's difficult to endure. It is not fun. Discipline can wear you out - literally. The Word of God confirms that as we read on in verse 11, No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.

When I read vvs. 12 & 13, I just keep thinking, "Get a grip..." So take a new grip with your tired hands and strengthen your weak knees. Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong. In other words, embrace the training, endure the discipline, the end result will be worth it.

Prayer:

Father,

           Thank You for loving us enough to correct us so that we might share in Your holiness. Help us to endure the discipline and learn from it. We are looking forward to the peaceful harvest of right living. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Promise for Today - Choosing Holy

But God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in his holiness. No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way. So take a new grip with your tired hands and strengthen your weak knees. Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong. Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord.
Hebrews 12:10b-14 NLT

I met a friend for supper recently. Great girl - a LOT of fun. A Christian. She is working her way through some tough times, and doing a good job, too. She vented just a little about what she'd LIKE to do in a certain situation (and justifiably so in the flesh) but almost before she finished her own sentence, she half-grinned and said, "I know it's not the Christian thing to do." And as I laughed, she remarked, "But it sure would feel good." 

For the last 60 years, we've grown up in an era of "If it feels good, do it!" And we have heartily embraced it. No boundaries - nothing to fence us in. So much so that if something doesn't feel good, we just don't want to do it. We don't think we have to do it, and generally, there's a good chance that we're not going to do it. 

When my alarm went off this morning, I did not want to get up to go do what I had to do. I did not feel like it. I wanted to stay in bed... but I got up and made myself go take care of business. My flesh had already kicked in with hours I've worked vs. PTO hours, but I also knew I had a full workload waiting for me and...well, you know how it goes, so I disciplined myself to get ready and report for duty. Did I want to? No. I love my job, and the people I work with, but I wanted to crawl back into bed. THAT's what would have felt good... but it would NOT have been the right thing to do.

Every day, we're faced with decisions that have the same kind of outcome - doing what feels good or doing what is right and it all boils down to discipline. Back to the holy thing... we have to work at it. It would be easier on my flesh to do whatever I want to do rather than expend myself for something or someone else, but we're to "work at living a holy life."

We can't lead someone down a path that we've never walked. What good is knowledge or even wisdom if we haven't the discipline to walk it out? Does it feel good? Not always. But there is a Christ part of us on the inside that rejoices in doing something simply because it is right! That's what Jesus did. And we're to be like Him. 

No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.

So take a new grip with your tired hands and strengthen your weak knees. Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong.

Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord... [emphasis mine]

So, even when we don't feel like it. Even when we don't want to...

Prayer:

Father,
           We want to see You, Lord. We want to be with You. We want to do the right thing. Help us to not forget that without You, nothing is good OR right. Give us clean hands and pure hearts, Father. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Bearing Hardship

All these people didn't receive what was promised, though they were given approval for their faith. God provided something better for us so they wouldn't be made perfect without us.

So then let’s also run the race that is laid out in front of us, since we have such a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us. Let’s throw off any extra baggage, get rid of the sin that trips us up, and fix our eyes on Jesus, faith’s pioneer and perfecter. He endured the cross, ignoring the shame, for the sake of the joy that was laid out in front of him, and sat down at the right side of God’s throne.

Think about the one who endured such opposition from sinners so that you won’t be discouraged and you won’t give up. In your struggle against sin, you haven’t resisted yet to the point of shedding blood, and you have forgotten the encouragement that addresses you as sons and daughters:

My child, don’t make light of the Lord’s discipline
or give up when you are corrected by him,
because the Lord disciplines whomever he loves,
and he punishes every son or daughter whom he accepts.

Bear hardship for the sake of discipline. God is treating you like sons and daughters! What child isn't disciplined by his or her father? But if you don’t experience discipline, which happens to all children, then you are illegitimate and not real sons and daughters... Our human parents disciplined us for a little while, as it seemed best to them, but God does it for our benefit so that we can share his holiness.

No discipline is fun while it lasts, but it seems painful at the time. Later, however, it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness for those who have been trained by it.

So strengthen your drooping hands and weak knees! Make straight paths for your feet so that if any part is lame, it will be healed rather than injured more seriously.
Hebrews 11:29 thru 12:13 Common English Bible

Prayer:

Father,
          Let us grasp and hold the Truth of Your Words here tonight. Lord, we desire the peaceful fruit of righteousness. Help us to apply ourselves to training for it. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

By Request - Living in 3-D

 At the time, discipline isn’t much fun. It always feels like it’s going against the grain. Later, of course, it pays off handsomely, for it’s the well-trained who find themselves mature in their relationship with God.

Hebrews 12:11 The Message Bible

Ever feel like you're living in a two-dimensional world? Your life has or appears to have length and breadth, but there's absolutely no depth to it? Talk about leaving you flat... pun intended.

What comes to your mind when you think of discipline? I used to always think of it in a negative manner, but somewhere along the way, God's Truth of it was revealed.

Think about it. The discipline of going to the gym and/or not eating fried anything is difficult but what it produces is SO worth it. You don't go into it lightly. It's hard work. It takes determination to maintain the discipline. 

Even more so, living for Christ. The Christian disciplines are hard to maintain, but God has given us His grace. I firmly believe that sometimes the trials that come along in life are put there by a loving God - to develop and establish the disciplines in our lives that He desires to see in us, so that we may become who He designed us to be.

God disciplines those He loves; that's what His Word tells us. And we are to be disciplined in the lives we live before Him. Brian Adleman nailed it with this phrase: Discipline + Determination = Destiny. Living in 3-D.

Prayer:

Father,
          Open our ears to hear our own whining so that we might then determine to discipline ourselves, and in doing that, arrive at the destiny You have ordained for us. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Anything and Everything

God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in his holiness. No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.
Hebrews 12:10b-11 NLT

Why is this happening? I have no idea. I’m not God, but here’s what you and I both know. ALL things work together for our good... the good and bad. Some of the best things we've learned in life are the result of some of the worst times.

Scripture tells us to work out our own salvation, and I believe that means God will work on us as individuals regarding the things that He wants OUT of our lives and what He wants IN our lives and what He wants done in our relationship with Him…because He loves us. And He will use anything and everything to make it happen.

Be encouraged today. He will see you through - no matter WHAT it is you're going through or trying to go through. That’s what we have to recognize. ALL that He does, ALL that He speaks to our hearts, ALL... Everything is because He loves us.

Prayer:

Father,
            Thank You for loving us so much that You sent Your only Son, Jesus, to die on the Cross to save us from our sins, and to redeem us back to You. I don't know how You could love us so much after all we've sinned, but You do. Your mercy and grace overflow and overwhelm us. Your peace truly surpasses our understanding. Help us, O Lord, to walk faithfully in what You have provided for us. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Readers' Favorites - How Many Times

Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it.
Proverbs 22:6 NKJV

I was thinking about this Scripture today because of the stories I hear from friends and family alike.

She did what?!? She must have learned that from one of the other kids at school – she never heard that at home!

Why would he do that at school?!? And in front of the principal?!? I taught him better than that!! 

When will he learn? How many times do I have to tell him?

There is so much material for a comedy routine at a school! When I worked at the elementary school, we used to say we could have our own hit sitcom if we just had a video camera running during the day.

However, on the not-so-funny side of it, I know so many Christian parents who are standing on this promised proverb that is our text for today. Let me encourage them somewhat. I think there are those children who take a little longer to “get old.” And so we wait with patience… sometimes it’s the oxymoronic frustrated patience…

Remember the Scripture in Hebrews 4 that tells how Jesus was tempted in all points just like us, but sinned not? Well, there’s one in Hebrews 5 where the writer sure sounds to me as though he’s exasperated - I have a lot more to say about this, but it is hard to get it across to you since you've picked up this bad habit of not listening. By this time you ought to be teachers yourselves, yet here I find you need someone to sit down with you and go over the basics on God again…

Always, it’s a matter of training and sometimes re-training. It’s finding the right combination of words and practice to get the point across. We don’t all learn the same things at the same pace or in the same way - whether we’re children - or children of God. Thank God His mercies are new every morning. Thank God His lovingkindnesses are better than life. Thank God for His Word in John 1:12 that declares, But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. King James calls it the power to become His children.

We have this blessed assurance. He doesn’t give up on us. Philippians 1:6 NLT promises, And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. Oh…THAT’S when we’ll learn! So don’t give up. Keep trying - no matter how many times it takes…

Prayer:

Father,
           Let us not be weary in well-doing. Strengthen us by Your example, Lord. Let us love as You love and be merciful one to another, so that we may learn. In Jesus’ Name we pray. Amen

Get a Grip

But God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in his holiness.
Hebrews 12:10b NLT

According to the dictionary, discipline is both a noun and a verb, defined as: 'the practice of training people or to train someone to obey rules or a code of behavior' and 'the controlled behavior resulting from such training.'

I know there are those who are very passionate about what forms of discipline are or are not acceptable. My intent is not to upset anyone. I think, though, we can all agree that if training of any kind is to occur, be it athletic or raising children, it requires some sort of self-control and discipline. 

Discipline is tiresome. It's difficult to endure. It is not fun. Discipline can wear you out - literally. (Actually, that is a common colloquialism in the southern US. If a mother promises to "wear you out," someone's going to get a spanking.) The Word of God confirms that as we read on in verse 11, No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.

When I read vvs. 12 & 13, I just keep thinking, "Get a grip..." So take a new grip with your tired hands and strengthen your weak knees. Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong. In other words, embrace the training, endure the discipline, the end result will be worth it.

Prayer:

Father,

           Thank You for loving us enough to correct us so that we might share in Your holiness. Help us to endure the discipline and learn from it. We are looking forward to the peaceful harvest of right living. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

* All Natural

I need to emphasize, friends, that our natural, earthy lives don’t in themselves lead us by their very nature into the kingdom of God. Their very “nature” is to die, so how could they “naturally” end up in the Life kingdom?
1st Corinthians 15:50 The Message

Organic. All-natural. These are the leading buzz words in the retail world today. Previously, they were used to define food. Now we have organic shampoos and all-natural soaps. Go figure.

For the last 40-plus years, we have been encouraged to live free, to 'do it if it feels good' because we were 'born to be wild.' When the consequences of those actions started to catch up with us, then it was changed to the all-natural, organic theme. What I'm about to say may be a little "too Texan" for some of you - Not everything that is all natural and organic is a good choice. I remind you that dung is all natural and definitely organic...

As far as born to be wild? Left to grow wild, kudzu vines would swallow Mississippi, Arkansas, Missouri, and their neighboring states. Left to their own devices to do whatever feels good, children would never bathe or sleep or eat nutritionally healthful food. You get it. The point I'm trying to make is that without disciplines in our lives, none of us would accomplish anything worthwhile.

Athletes train. They discipline themselves. It's hard. They might grumble about the schedule, or missing out on some other things, but they like to win. Would they win without the training? Without the discipline? No, they wouldn't. Do they always like the rigor of discipline? No, they do not.

No one does. Hebrews 12:10b-11 tells us, But God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in his holiness. No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way. Discipline and training bring peace...while au naturale can equal chaos.

But, dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold. They said to you, "In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires." These are the men who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit. (Jude 1:17-19 NIV). Look around... This Scripture alone should convince us of the time we live in.

Galatians 5 clearly defines the differences between living our own lives and being disciplined by the Holy Spirit. So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants... When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.  So much for 'if it feels good, do it...'

It goes on to say, But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

2nd Corinthians 3:17 declares, For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. Let us be disciplined, trained, led by the Holy Spirit so we may truly live free.

Prayer:

Father,
           Help us to see the Truth of Your Word, Your Will and Your Way. Help us to align our hearts and our lives with Your discipline. Teach us, Father, to be truly free by embracing Your disciplines. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

* Living in 3-D

At the time, discipline isn’t much fun. It always feels like it’s going against the grain. Later, of course, it pays off handsomely, for it’s the well-trained who find themselves mature in their relationship with God.
Hebrews 12:11 The Message Bible

Ever feel like you're living in a two-dimensional world? Your life has or appears to have length and breadth, but there's absolutely no depth to it? Talk about leaving you flat... pun intended.

What comes to your mind when you think of discipline? I used to always think of it in a negative manner, but somewhere along the way, God's Truth of it was revealed.

Think about it. The discipline of going to the gym and/or not eating fried anything is difficult but what it produces is SO worth it. You don't go into it lightly. It's hard work. It takes determination to maintain the discipline. 

Even more so, living for Christ. The Christian disciplines are hard to maintain, but God has given us His grace. I firmly believe that sometimes the trials that come along in life are put there by a loving God - to develop and establish the disciplines in our lives that He desires to see in us, so that we may become who He designed us to be.

God disciplines those He loves; that's what His Word tells us. And we are to be disciplined in the lives we live before Him. Brian Adleman nailed it with this phrase: Discipline + Determination = Destiny. Living in 3-D.

Prayer:

Father,
          Open our ears to hear our own whining so that we might then determine to discipline ourselves, and in doing that, arrive at the destiny You have ordained for us. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen