Time

I can't tell you how many times in my life when God has a message for me that I hear it from multiple sources.

Here are three sources just this week.

1) I just started a study by Dave and Rennie Garda (of Cadre Ministries) called Getaway Like Jesus. Chapter One is Daily Rhythms For Connecting with God and is filled with verses of Jesus' example to us to spend Time alone with God. 

2) On Air 1 (the Christian radio station I listen to) Jason Anderson in today's Taking A Minute - Get It Right said "He [Jesus] says in John 14:25 "The Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things, and will remind you of everything I have said to you." God does not want to be misunderstood. Two things are important then here. First, ask God to help you understand the word of God. Next, you must be hearing and reading the word of God. Remember that Jesus said “the Holy Spirit will remind you everything I have said to you.” Get more bible in you so the Holy Spirit has something to remind you of."

3) This morning I opened an e-mail from Simply Youth Ministry entitled Devotional for Your Next Day Off in which they shared Exodus 16 and talked about the Sabbath- a day of rest.

These may seem slightly disconnected, but for me, a common thread sticks out. Time. 1) Time spent alone personally with God. 2) Time in His Word so that He can speak to us through the Holy Spirit. 3) Time off from everything else in our lives to spend Time with God.

Time is a driving force in a relationship. A relationship grows and deepens over Time, but only if Time is invested into the relationship. 

Jesus knew so well the importance of Time in His relationship with the Father. 

Luke 5:15-16 "Yet the news about him spread all the more, so that crowds of people came to hear him and to be healed of their sicknesses. But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed." 

Matthew 14:22-23 "Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone," 

Mark 1:35 "Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed."
Jesus often withdrew by himself to a secluded place to spend Time with God.

When I think of the Time I invest in my relationship with God (which should be more significant than any other relationship in my life) in the same context as the importance of the Time I invest in family and friends, I'm convicted by the need to spend more of my Time with God.

I'm seeing three ways I can spend time with God.

1) Points of connection through out the day with God.

For example, one thing I've gotten into the habit of is leaving earlier than I need to for work. Once I arrive at work I have 10-15 minutes in my car to read my Bible and pray before my work day begins. I also keep a Bible in my car so that I can read it on my lunch breaks or when I find myself somewhere with a little extra time. I don't consider this my daily devotional time with God, but rather important points of connection through out my day.

I'm sure you've also heard from 1 Thessalonians 5:17 to "pray without ceasing" and from Ephesians 6:18 to "pray in the Spirit on all occasions." Something we can also do to stay connected with God is to talk to Him though out the day.

2) Daily time spent alone in His Word and in prayer.

Find a time of day that works for you, but be sure to find a consistent time of day, every day that is your time to spend with God. Find a place were you won't be interrupted or distracted. I think Jesus knew how easy it is to be distracted because, as you will notice in the above verses, when he spent his daily time with God he withdrew to lonely places, sent the crowds away, was alone, went off to a solitary place... He safeguarded His time with God giving it first priority in His life.

3) Dates with God.

Now here is where I really struggle. Filling the Daddy Talk. What do I mean by that? It's really important to spend extended time with God. We do it in our relationships all the time. One of my best friend's is coming to visit me this weekend. I'm incredibly excited. I can't wait to spend Time with her. She isn't even here yet and I already feel like I'm not going to have enough Time with her! I've known her for over ten years now and one of the greatest gifts we can give each other is our time. It's important that we do this in our relationship with God too. We give our friends a whole day. God deserves that too. Are you willing to set aside time on your Calendar, spend a whole day (dare I suggest a whole weekend?) with Him. Are you also willing to turn down other plans to keep to this committed time with God? That's a Daddy Talk day.

What are some ways you can invest Time in your relationship with God?

Be Blessed,

Naomi

Vision

Have you ever lost your vision? I don't mean eyesight. If you had lost that you probably wouldn't be reading this. (That joke is a true :) and LOL joke, right?) I'm serious though. Have you ever gone through a moment or many moments of time in your life where you have lost sight of what God had called you to do? I have. I am just coming out of one right now.

Here's how the story goes. I spent much time in prayer and seeking wise counsel over a decision that had to be made a while ago and when I made the decision in the way that God wanted me to, with a vision for what He wanted me to do and accomplish, I was raring to go and ready to accomplish His will. As time went by though I got sidetracked by circumstances that I really had no control over, but wanted to control, and I lost sight of what it was that God had originally intended for me to do. I became burdened by things that I was not called to be burdened by and I was ready to be done with what God had called me to. Have you ever been there? Have you ever had a goal, had a vision for something that was supposed to be accomplished in your life? Maybe it wasn't necessarily a "God-given" vision, but have you ever desired to see something done? Maybe it was to lose weight, read a good book, sing a song in public, or something else like that. Did you find that as you went on you lost sight of the vision you had sometime along the way; so you quit before you made it to the end goal. That's kind of what I am describing here.

I started off and went strong for about 1 1/2 months and then some things began to happen and I was ready to give up on my vision. Why? Because I couldn't see it any longer. I could no longer see and had no desire to see what it was that God had called me to do. This became a huge spiritual battle in my life and it was only with the counsel of those around me that I was able to once again gain my vision and see what it was that God had originally called me to do.

Here's my advice. When hard times come and your vision is challeneged, and it will be, stay the course. Don't quit. If God has given you a vision for something that He wants you to do, do it, and if you need to, get some wise counsel to help you stay the course. In the end God wants His vision to be accomplished and He wants to accomplish it through you.

Proverbs 29:18 (TNIV)
"Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint; but blessed are those who heed wisdom’s instruction."

Show Me!

Towards the end of the musical My Fair Lady, Eliza's anger erupts at lovesick Freddy. The poor man fell in love with Eliza the moment he met her and wrote her two to three letters a day trying to prove that love. Eliza exclaims to Freddy:

"Words! Words! I'm so sick of words! I get words all day through . . .Don't talk of stars burning above; if you're in love, show me! Tell me no dreams filled with desire; if you're on fire, show me! Here we are together in the middle of the night! Don't talk of spring! Just hold me tight! Anyone who's ever been in love'll tell you this is no time for a chat!"

Do you ever think the Lord gets sick of our words? Our words declaring our love for Him and the spoken promise to do whatever He calls us to do? Do you think He'd rather simply seeing us actually do what He has called us to do?

"'Is this not the fast which I choose, to loosen the bonds of wickedness, to undo the bands of the yoke, and to let the oppressed go free and break every yoke? Is it not to divide your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into the house; when you see the naked, to cover him; and not to hide yourself from your own flesh?'" - Isaiah 58:6-7 

"'I hate, I reject your festivals, nor do I delight in your solemn assemblies. Even though you offer up to Me burnt offerings and your grain offerings, I will not accept them; and I will not even look at the peace offerings of your fatlings. Take away from Me the noise of your songs; I will not even listen to the sound of your harps. But let justice roll down like the waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.'" - Amos 5:21-24

And what about those He has called to us to care for and to show His love? Do mere words help them at all?

"But whoever has the world's goods and sees his brother in need and closes his heart to him, how does the love of God abide in him? Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth." - 1 John 3:17-18

It's one of my favorite times of year: Operation Christmas Child season. What an incredible way to share the love of Jesus Christ. By filling a shoe box with school supplies, coloring books and crayons, hygiene items, toys, stuffed animals and other goodies, a child not only receives a wonderful material gift. They receive the message of Jesus' immeasurable love for them. This past week, I received a newsletter from Samaritan's Purse, the parent organization of Operation Christmas Child. I was once again profoundly blessed as I read about the impact the shoe boxes and the Gospel has had on children's lives around the world. Check out these numbers dealing with the country of Haiti:

• Last year, 286,000 shoe boxes were given to children in Haiti. Praise God!
• Last year was the first year Samaritan's Purse offered The Greatest Journey (a 12-week Bible study; upon completion, children receive their very own copy of the New Testament) in Haiti. So far, 60,000 boys and girls have completed the lessons and received a New Testament in Creole. Of those, 27,000 have made first-time commitments to Jesus Christ! Praise God!!!
• One of Samaritan's Purses' church partners in Haiti began handing out shoe box gifts in the mountains, in a town where there was no evangelical church. Now, there is! There is a growing congregation with 250 children enrolled in The Greatest Journey. Praise God! 

You still have time to pack a shoe box and share the love of Jesus with children around the globe. November 14-21 is the National Collection Week for Operation Christmas Child. For more information, go to: http://www.samaritanspurse.org/index.php/OCC/Pack_A_Shoe_Box/. What an incredible opportunity we as believers have to not just say that we love Jesus or love others -- but to show them!