Contractors

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. Ephesians 3:20‭-‬21 NIV

If you're like me you tend to focus on the first part of this verse. We all love that part about how God can do way more than we ask or even imagine because we can imagine quite a bit. But we forgo reading the next part: according to His power at work in us. Woah. Stop the presses.

If what God does is dependent on his work in us then we must open our hearts and let him do his work.  What happens of we are ineffective, unwilling to yield? His power, although not diminished, would not be at work in us. I can hire the best contractor in the world to remodel my house, but he's not going to be able to complete the work if I don't do my part and let him in, give him the keys and allow him to work in my home. That's how God works...in us and through us. When we open our hearts and let him in, the sky is the limit with what he can do in our lives.

He doesn't need our home cleaned before he comes in. He just needs us to open the door. He'll do the rest. To him be the power and glory forever. Amen.

Dial Up Internet

The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9 NIV

We often confuse patience with slowness. We assume that someone who is patient is always calm therefore is never in a hurry. In a world of instant soup, instant grits, instant buying and instant communication, it's no wonder the concept of patience has been lost and filed away like dial up internet.

And I bet you can think of at least one time in the last year where you thought God was going too slow. You either wanted him to hurry up or you gave up waiting and took things into your own hands.

But did you finish reading the verse? God is patient, putting things on his timetable for why? For all to come to salvation. That's what this whole world is about. God making a companion for himself, that companion committing sin making himself unable to commune with God, and God sending salvation to reclaim his companions...us. God places us where he needs us in that time to make an impact in someone's life to bring them to salvation. Once that is done, we move on.

When we move on without him it causes a shift. God then has to move us back or over to finish his plan. That can be painful. Even though God may put us there he will have a way out. And we will be stronger for it.

So be patient. Sometimes that means being dial up internet. And sometimes it means moving quickly. We must be plugged into God daily so we will hear his directions.

Word

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. John 1:1 NIV

God is in every word in the Bible. Each word is from the breath of God and ordained to be right where it is and for the purpose given. I just read an article about young mothers trying to find time to read in the middle of life's messes. Yep, that's me, not the young part but in the middle of life's messes part. No matter what stage of life we are in life is busy and messy and utterly impossible some days. I barely have time to sleep and shower much less anything else.

Which is why I'm grateful God takes me as I am. He loves me. He's right here in the middle of it all. And he imparted to me this blog idea to take one verse a day and make it mine, as his way of connecting to me on a busy day. And I love that he loves me enough to meet me where I'm at.

His words mean everything to me. His love and grace resonates with each verse. The reminders of his salvation. The reach of his grace. The gentle nudges away from sin.

Even if it's only one verse, let it sink in. Let it be the word you listen to each day.

Testing

Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. Psalm 139:23‭-‬24 NIV

God isn't impressed with what we say or even what we think we understand. We may think our hearts are in the right place but what do we know? Who knows us better than God?

As a martial arts student I'm fairly confident in my abilities. I also understand what I don't know and what I can or cannot do. It's my job as a student to continue bettering myself. But if I only train with lower ranks, I'll never get better. The way I get better is by testing my skills against those of higher rank or those who have better athletic skills than myself. That's how I get better. It hurts sometimes and my pride is usually injured worse than anything. Our head instructor's job is to test us, push us, help us rid ourselves of bad habits and instill good habits.

And even though it's not always fun, and it hurts sometimes, we should want God to test us, get rid of the bad, get rid of the fear. Let him replace it with light and love and peace.

So let this prayer be yours. God please test our hearts and see to it that there is no wrong way in us. Amen.

Have Courage and be Kind

For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Galatians 5:14 NIV

That's a lot of pressure to put on one commandment. It's also a lot of pressure for a human. In a culture of self loathing, where everyone wants to improve themselves and the focus is all on self, there's not much left for others. But this is so important that this one act is the fulfillment of the law...the entire law! That's a pretty hefty price-tag.

I started a new job today. It's one that other more qualified people applied for. So how come I got the job? I was told it was partly because of my interview. I was confident, assured of myself and what I could bring to the job. The rest? How I had treated people in the past. You see, housing and community services people run in small circles. We all know each other and come back around to working with or for someone from a time back. When my potential employers called for references,  they called mutual people that I had worked with. They all spoke fondly of me, going so far as to say I was quietly competent.

My dad's favorite book other than the Bible was Dale Carnegie's "How to Win Friends and Influence People". He quoted it often. But it's a biblical principle that in practice looks a lot like just good old every day kindness.

So you see? It's not that tall an order after all. We all learned it in kindergarten...be nice but be genuine. Have courage and be kind. Treat others as you would yourself. I'm glad my daddy pounded that lesson in. I never want to knowingly hurt someone. I strive to treat others better than I expect. It's repaid in droves each and every day.

Learn it. Live it. Love it. Love others. Love yourself. Because you are loved.

Brain Power

However, as it is written: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived” — the things God has prepared for those who love him— 1 Corinthians 2:9 NIV

I love this confirmation of God's omnipotence. Humans use only a fraction of their available brain power. Imagine what we are capable if understanding if given even a piece of understanding of what God knows. We probably couldn't handle it.

When we were little our parents would tell us things in small bits, using simple words or examples we could understand depending on our age. As we grew we could understand more, piecing together what our parents said with what we have learned since. It's our process of filling fleshing out a subject. And for some things it's good we didn't know everything about it when we were little.

That's how God works. He knows what we can handle. Those with the gift of discernment might get a preview of sorts but it's still only bits and pieces. God has the full story. We'll find out later.

I for one am glad that God knows, that God's in control. I'm ok with that.

Give to Receive

Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it. Malachi 3:10 NIV

This physical example of God's promise to his people teaches a very simple lesson: give and you shall receive. We've heard it our whole lives yet I'm lretty sure we don't really grasp the concept. Except when it happens. But we have to see it and understand it for what it is.

You see I've had the unique privilege of working with the most amazing group of people ever. Hands down...ever. I hand picked all of them in my first job as a supervisor. I was the boss. I had not a clue what I was doing. But as God was preparing me for that job he gave me a word that I wrote down and have kept with me since the start: never expect more from your team than you are willing to give. I had to give in order to receive.  I had to shown was willing to do the work to lead by example. Today as we were celebrating last day before going in to my next adventure, I received much more than I ever gave. Not just the gifts but the love, friendship and mutual respect. I take that all with me as I love forward.

And I hope I have stayed true to that word and have left a little bit of a legacy. I also hope to make my mark at my next job never forgetting what I've learned. I must first give to receive.