Day by Day - August 2010
I did a lot of traveling this past month. On almost every
freeway we drove, we observed someone pulled off the road, trunks open wide, changing
out a flat tire. Two families in particular caught my
eye. One worked together and got the job done. Another had pillows and blankets
piled haphazardly in the dirt and gravel.
A woman stood wringing her hands while the man, waist deep into the car,
kept pulling more items from the trunk.
I could not help but wonder about each family’s day to day lives, but
the lesson I came out with was this: I
want to be the efficient couple. This
couple not only worked hand in hand, but their trunk had no extra things within
to block them from the tools they needed. We will all have problems in our
lives. What will make these journeys
easier is if we have our lives in order before the problems occur. Each family had a huge inconvenience in
having to repair the tire, but each family was able to face this hardship so
differently. If our lives are in order and free from extra burdens, when we
keep God beside us in every trip we make, even in hard times, we will be able
to move forward and get the job done.
What’s in your trunk? – Becki
But I said,
“My toil has been futile, I have exhausted myself for nothing, to no purpose”.
Yet all the while my cause was with Yahweh and my reward with my God. – Isaiah
49:4
Who are we
to question why? We, as the children of God, know why: within the moment is God’s purpose. We may
not understand or accept. We may become discouraged, dismayed, and
overwhelmed. We may be shocked, feel cheated or unworthy; but, as
children of God, we know. Everything that crosses our paths has a
purpose, and that purpose is to teach us and grow us in the ways of God so that
we may love Him, serve Him, and be happy with Him in Heaven. Embrace your
God-planned day. Fill your breath with His Spirit, His strength. Persevere and
you will find joy in knowing that you are His.
The rich
and poor meet together; the Lord is the Maker of them all. - Proverbs 22-2
Ask God to
go along today. Walk in constant communion with Him, praising Him for each good
that blesses you, drawing on His strength at the trials. Ask Him before each choice you make what He
would have you to do, and listen to His prompting. Whether your day unfolds as you had planned or takes a detour or
two, communion with God makes for a wonderful journey. – Becki
But, now
you are set free from sin and bound to the service of God, your gain will be
sanctification and the end will be eternal life. – Romans 6:22
I love to walk with a child. In each moment, they see beauty. As one of my daughters walked with me when she was very young, she stopped at an ant mound beside the walk, stooped down and pushed the dirt back with her hands. She squatted with her arms lazily draped across her knees, a very pleased smile across her face. As she watched the ants scurrying about I asked, “Why”? “I’m letting the ants come out and play,” was her answer. No wonder Jesus wants the children by him. In the beautiful purity of love and trust, they bring joy to such simple things. – Becki
A young man’s character appears in what he does, if his behavior is pure and straight. – Proverbs 20:11
King Ahasuerus, husband to Esther, was a man of compassion and great love for his people. He earnestly and diligently did all that was necessary to ensure his people had the best of life's opportunities. He was so zealous in his passion to take care of his people he made one grave mistake. He accepted counsel without pursuing its truth and came close to wiping out the very good he was actually striving to preserve. I pray we always are open to truth, seeking the complete story, eliminating the hurts of gossip and slander, and clearly drawing the lines of right and wrong. -- Becki
Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, "This is the way; walk in it." -- Isaiah 30:21
We are not born into the world for the purpose of living a happy, care-free existence. That is saved for heaven. What our time here on earth is meant for is growth. Here is where we learn the attributes that are necessary for heaven and where we are molded to be worthy of one day standing before God. From infancy to physical death, every moment is growing us in mind, body, and spirit. Through every facet of our existence we are exposed to the necessary tools needed to persevere in the ways of God. When your days become a struggle and life seems overwhelming and confusing, remember the promise of our Lord. Be patient and choose goodness. Your rewards will be eternal. – Becki
His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant: thou hast been
faithful over a few things, I will set thee over many things; enter thou into
the joy of thy lord. – Matthew 25:21
I’ve been taught from an early age that on every day you should do one thing that you don’t want to do. I pretty much have this covered by crawling out of bed each morning. However, there is much merit to self-denial. In giving up something, even though it is okay to do, you bring strength to your spirit. Herein is where you build the tenacity and fortitude to stay strong. Then, at the hours of our greatest temptation, it becomes that much easier to say “No”. – Becki
Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature. – Romans 13:14
Help is sometimes a very difficult thing to ask for. Our pride is at stake. Perhaps others will think us incompetent, inferior or replaceable. But each person has been given different talents, a different calling. We are all placed on this earth as mentors, someone who has learned through mistakes, then helps to show the way to others that they may avoid the same uncertainty. When we come together with open hearts and helping hands, we lessen each other’s burdens, allowing all people greater success and time to rest. Sir Isaac Newton once said, "If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of Giants." In offering and receiving help; whether in ideals, physical endeavors or in spiritual plights, we build togetherness, generating a renewed strength of the entire human race. – Becki
Let us, then, have no fear in approaching the throne of grace to receive mercy and to find grace when we are in need of help. - Hebrews 4:16
There is
a saying, "Success is 1/3 preparation, 1/3 opportunity, and 1/3
luck." I pray that when God
blesses us with that incredible moment to succeed, that we are fully prepared
in mind, body, and spirit, giving our all to make the moment our best. --
Becki
If a man cleanses himself from the latter, he will be an instrument for noble purposes, made holy, useful to the Master and prepared to do any good work. -- 2 Timothy 2:21
I love
competitive games. It’s a great feeling to trump someone, to get the best of
them and show myself the victor, especially when the victory has been hard to
come by. But many times this competitive nature steps beyond the
boundaries of an innocent game. It
breeds jealousy, contempt, vindictiveness, and a lack of empathy. When
others have a meltdown, feeling the pressures of the world, we become
quick to jump right on in and let them know that we have it just as bad,
possibly worse. Grudges spark, arguments grow and soon we find ourselves
distanced and alone. Christ trumped evil. His method:
humility. The better person is not the loudest, most aggressive,
overbearing individual. The one who plays the final trump card is the
hand that holds forgiveness. And in this, we will have the greatest
victory achieved by any man. - Becki
The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but violence overwhelms the
mouth of the wicked. - Proverbs 10:11
There is often great choice in decisions. Many are of little consequences. If you sleep in, you will have to rush to keep the deadline. But so many are life effecting: should I buy a house, repair or replace the car, college or trade school, change my career or ministry, marry? God has given us many choices. These are not necessarily about good or evil, but they all seem good and all could reap benefits. However, they may turn out to be something that was not exactly the dream we had imagined. In each of these things, lift prayer. Study yourself. What gifts has God given you? What desires burn in your heart each morning when you awake? Take this conscious knowledge and with God by your side, create. Whatever you decide, do it with all your heart and with a firm commitment, devote this path to God. Because of your desire, because of your wish to walk in God’s path, He will bless the works of your hands. – Becki
…Give alms for what you have, and everything will be clean for you. – Luke 11:41
Some
things are not for our understanding. They are simply for our faith. When pain,
doubt, loneliness and hurt, enter into our days, look to Our Father. He has
been in this moment forever, waiting to hold us. Fall into His peace: the peace that passes all understanding. Let
the knowledge of Him in all His Glory suffice for each moment, and in this may
we grow in endurance and strength and patience and joyfully give thanks to Our
Father for each moment of life. – Becki
I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. – Ephesians 3:16, 17
Life is at a start today. It is new and fresh. God has set Your path. You may see it as hard, you may see it easy; but it is your life, together with God. Embrace it. Ask God to mold you and set you apart in His kingdom; that He will be forever by your side, gracing You with His strength, His mercy, His hope. Whatever lies before you, approach it with the anticipation and truth that God is in control and You are the one He loves. - Becki
For 'In him we live and move and have our being'; as even some of your poets have said, 'For we are indeed his offspring.' - Acts 17:28
How
often do we ask Jesus to go along with us in our life’s journey, ask Him to
show us the right path, the right way, just to turn around and question His
motives, not willing to change our own?
Our Lord has all answers. We
must place Him as Lord of all our being, having faith to follow in every step.
– Becki
But
the Lord said to him, “You Pharisees! You clean the outside of cup and plate,
while inside yourselves you are filled with extortion and wickedness. Fools, Did not he who made the outside make
the inside too?. – Luke 11:39-40
In stress-filled, fearful times, we have many opportunities to choose trust over fear. I wonder what our children’s impressions will be of our trust in God. – Lord, Bless My Child, p. 99
O Lord, you alone are my hope; I’ve trusted you from childhood. – Psalm 71:5
Garlic is a wonderful seasoning. It adds flavor to breads, sauces, dips, casseroles. It works as an accent flavor to perk things up. Yet try to chew on a clove separate from the dish. The pungent, sharp odor and taste is not something to savor alone. There are many things in life we believe we might want. Given in small doses they are easy to manage. They may even spice up our life a bit and make other moments easier to accept. But no one can pour their focus into just one thing of life. We have to be able to move from family to friends to spouse to child to work to play. Within each group is a subdivision of many more groups. God has created us in His own image, that of versatility and responsiveness. We must seek understanding and discipline in managing the many resources of life God places before us or we will become overwhelmed and distracted from our true purpose: to love, serve and be happy with God. Place your trust in God, study His word, seek His will, and in this You will be graced with wisdom and discernment and the choices of each moment will be a source of joy. - Becki
Just as it
is injurious to drink wine by itself, or again water alone, whereas wine mixed
with water is pleasant and produces a delightful sense of well-being, so skill
in presenting the incidents is what delights the understanding of those who
read the book. - 2 Maccabees 15:39
When fatigue and discomfort set in, our human tendency is to
resort back to our natural instincts, which can basically be summed up as
self-centeredness. In this state we are truly tested. Will we still place
the needs of others before ourselves? Do we still take the time to seek
God before we respond? Do we sincerely and earnestly seek to be our
best? When you're feeling down, low, or have a bit of a bug, take the
time to call on God, and earnestly choose to follow His lead. When the
spirit is well, the body mends quicker. - Becki
And now your turn has come, and you lose patience, at the first touch on
yourself you are overwhelmed. Does not your piety give you confidence, and your
integrity of life give you hope? - Job 4:5-6
Robert Louis Stevenson wrote, “A friend is a present you give yourself.” But tending a friendship and keeping lifelong friends takes effort. You don’t have intimate friends unless you invest something of yourself in the relationship, develop a history together, weather good times and bad times together. – Lord, Bless My Child, p. 120
A true friend is always loyal, and a brother is born to help in time of need. – Proverbs 17:17
My mother use to tell me, “Never tell your dreams before breakfast, or they will come true.” I now realize this was a great ploy. Knowing my gift of gab, the day would have been shot had I started in on my stories before the day was organized. The same thing goes for the “no shoes on the table or you’ll bring bad luck” comment. Mom was delivering a quick, easy digestible message that I was willing to go along with while sparing me a litany of shoes spreading germs, thus the flu, the misery of sickness, etc., etc. Years later, something brings these messages back to me, and in my maturity and God’s grace of wisdom I realize the full picture. And I smile. I look back at the fables of old, at the Parables of Christ, at all the stories told to get people to grasp an ever-important message. Christ told parables because we were not ready or willing or capable of handling the full impact of the reality of life as God created it. The message delivered was just enough to keep us safe and secure. In each time I read over scripture, I ‘get it’ just a little more. How awesome it will be in Heaven, listening with the knowledge of the uninhibited mind. I anticipate amazement beyond imagining. – Becki
And when Jesus rose from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the scripture and what he had said. – John 2:22
It is not so much the endeavor that matters. It is the fire that fuels the passion. – Becki
For I tell you, if your uprightness does not surpass that of the scribes and Pharisees you will never get into the kingdom of Heaven. – Matthew 5:20