Tired of Trying?

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How foolish can you be? After starting your Christian lives in the Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your own human effort? Galatians 3:3

Is there something in your life that you just can't seem to overcome? Something that trips you up before you are even aware it's there? Maybe it's an addiction of some sort, or issues with weight loss. Or, you might be like me and have a quick temper, especially with those little ones that live in the same house with you. I try and try to be patient and teach them what they need to draw closer to God, but oh, how often I fail. 

But, I think I may have figured this one out. I'm tired, tired of trying. Have you ever noticed that if you rearrange the letters in the word "tried" you get the word "tired"? That's what happens when we attempt to make changes in our lives without the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Then, once we've become so tired of trying, we begin to accept the lie that we just can't beat this one, that there are just some things in life that we can't overcome. That's a lie from the pit of hell, the armpit of hell, and it really stinks! As long as we are trying to overcome some sort of stronghold, God wants us to be victorious, and there is a way to overcome any stronghold that may have you in chains.

The answer is simple. "Who will free us from this life dominated by sin and death? Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord" (Rom. 7:24-25, NLT). He died on the cross to free us from the bondage of sin, so when we make mistakes, we just have to get back up again and not let Satan keep us down. There is no condemnation for those of us who belong to Christ (Rom 8:1). "And because you belong to Him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin" (Rom. 8:2, NLT). Draw upon that power by praying these and other verses that address the issue of freedom from the power of sin. It will have a profound effect on your attitude, which in turn changes your behavior, something I need help with everyday.

What Language Are You speaking?

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David Castillo Dominici

I Corinthians 14:19 But in a church meeting I would rather speak five understandable words to help others than ten thousand words in an unknown language.

Don't worry, I am not going to tackle speaking in tongues. You can take that one up with God. My thought here is that when it is in our control, we need to make things simple and understandable. Let's apply the KISS principle, Keep it Simple Stupid.

When my kids need discipline, and it seems like that's pretty often, why do I suddenly develop diarrhea of the mouth? I mean really, I go off ranting and raving until their little eyes are glazed over and nothing is getting in. Basically, I'm training them to tune me out. If I could just keep it simple and understandable, it's much more effective.

Then there's relationships. We women tend to complicate things, especially with our husbands. Sometimes it's just as simple as "it is what it is" and we need to ask God to remove the memory of the hurt or offense from our minds. The Bible tells us what to do when we've been offended. We are to make allowances for each other's faults (Col. 3:13). I know that's not easy, but it's the only way relationships will work.

You have your own examples in particular relationships. For my husband and me, it's not listening to me with his face. God created me to feel loved when I get face time, and my husband is not very good at this. But when I get offended, or hurt by it, I just need to know his heart. His intention is not to hurt my feelings, so what I need to do is give him grace.

I'm not saying that we are never to work things out with those who have offended us, sometimes there's no escaping it. But when a particular issue has us down for too long, we may just need a different focus. And there's nothing better to change our focus than spending time in God's word and offering up praises to the One who holds every tear we cry in His hands. Spend some time with Him today, you'll be glad you did.

Life is More Than a Box of Chocolates

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Gualberto 107.

Still other seeds fell on fertile soil, and they produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as had been planted! Matthew 13:8

The neighbor behind us has a large field with about 5 horses. When it rains, as it is today, water drains from her yard into ours. We have attempted to build up the back of our yard to keep this from happening, but it can only hold back so much.

Then I realized something I hadn't thought of before. That water is good for our yard, it's rich with horse poop! Now, I don't know the science of it, but I have seen this in action. Each spring my husband plants a garden, and it always produces way more food than we can eat. And his tomatoes, well, they are something to be envied. The first year he had a garden, his tomatoe plants got about 7 feet tall! Nobody could believe it. But there is a secret: it's the dirt he uses. It's composed of one third horse manure!

That's just what life is like. We know the hazards of this life, so we put up our own protective devices. Sometimes they work, and sometimes, when the rain is either too long or too hard, those protective devices are just no use. But what if we looked at the hazards as horse poop? What if those hazards are the very things that God is using to make our lives fertile ground for the truths He wants to teach us?

I know I have some horse poop in my life that I put up damns to block out. There's difficult relationships, problems with my kids, issues in marriage...  the list could go on. Sure, life would be simpler and merrier without those things, but my soil becomes infertile, and infertile soil can't produce much fruit. When we protect ourselves from the things God is using to make us more like Him, it's a stark contrast to what He wants in our lives. His purpose and joy is to make us fruitful. So, you see life is more than a box of chocolates. It's rich with horse poop!

The More I Seek You

Deuteronumy 4:29 But from there you will search again for the Lord your God. And if you search for him with all your heart and soul, you will find him.

God's word is so rich, all we have to do is come before Him with an open heart, and He is faithful to fill us up! I sit here listening to the beautiful voice of Kari Jobe singing The More I Seek You, and I am so encouraged. Her song says it so perfectly, the more I seek you, the more I find you; the more I find you, the more I love you. His love is so overwhelming, yet so addictive, that once you have experienced it, you can't help but come back for more!



My husband has started something new this year. He is reading a Bible story a week to our three boys and me, and it has sparked a new desire for God's word in my oldest son. It is so exciting to see this. We always have book time before going to sleep at night, and he has two Bibles by his bed now, one for him and one for me. It is so special to sit in his room and read the Bible together. When it was time for lights out last night, he asked me if I liked to have the Bible near me as he looked at his on the nightstand right beside him. He is experiencing this addictive love of Jesus, and at such an early age. I am so happy for him, and so thankful for a husband who brings the word of God into our home and our hearts.