Hmm...

Well, as you may have noticed, October seems to be "Grace" month...

I don't know exactly why... it just seemed to happen that way- along with my devotional being on the topic of grace for one week, and the other things just finding their way along as well...

Now, this next bit of time, you might see either:

1. Thoughts coming from the themes in my devotional book, Devotions for Dating Couples which is currently focusing on prayer- but was on grace last week... :)

2. Thoughts from my biblestudy book-- "Don't Waste Your Life" by John Piper... a book that I really LOVE... because John Piper is really good at expressing things in words I wouldn't think of... and expressing truth that I may "know" in a way that makes it come to light more vibrantly, more lifechangingly... If you want to see some discussion about this book, go to my biblestudy's blog- Phrisbee Phellowship

3. Something entirely random, and apart from these two topics... something that just sticks out at me.

:) well, signing off for now... I've got a chapter of each book to read...

~Danette

Daily Grace...

Republished from my Korismos blog- 9/5/06


You know that song "Day by day"... Part of the lyrics go, "Day by day, and with each passing moment, strength I find, to meet my trials here" Well... that's what's been happening for me lately... If it wasn't for that grace and strength, all of life would seem so overwhelmingly busy and frustrating and difficult... But..."....His promises, they fail not.....no cause for worry or for fear" When I can put my worries in God's hands, he who promised never to leave me or forsake me, and he who cares more than anyone else about all of my silly little problems and struggles... and the God, who gives us abundantly more than we ask, can help me to overcome my struggles and problems, relax in the safety of his care, and bask in the sunshine of his love. It doesn't matter now, if I have to wait for something I've been looking forward to... God is in control, and knows what's best for me. It doesn't have to bother me that I don't know what's happening for sure beyond today, or that I don't have an idea of what's happening beyond Christmas break... Whatever happens, will be in God's perfect timing.
I should mention that I am writing this as much to tell about what I have, as to remind myself of it... I try to plan things too far ahead, and think too far in advance about what is to come, and get overly concerned about it when I don't need to be. But I'm working on it. And He's working on me. :-)

Let's talk about Grace...

Yes, I know my last post was on God's grace as well... but it's what I've been studying in devotions, and it's just amazed me today.

Verses to think about:
2 Corinthians 4:7-9, 13-18; 5:4-9, 11, 13-21, 6:1

How often do you think about what Christ has done for you? If you're anything like me, the answer is- "Not often enough!"
2 Corinthians 5:11,14a:
"Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade men... For Christ's love compels us..."
Are you compelled by love? Or do you live compelled by your own flesh, seeking after your own desires, and doing things for praise of yourself, so that people look upon you favorably, so that you get what you want in life?
What does Christ's love compel us to do? Why does this love compel us?

2 Cor. 5:14-15
"For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again."

Christ's love should compel us, drive us, motivate us- to live for Him, rather than ourselves- to share our Christ with those around us because he is the First and Best of beings, the focus of the chief end of man- (to glorify God and enjoy Him forever), our Savior, our Foundation... We should be motivated to tell others about him, try to persuade them, and appeal them to be reconciled to God, because He is worthy of worship and praise, and because he is the One we were made to worship and enjoy. We should be motivated by our God- who is the embodiment of pure, perfect Love, to live each day to His glory and honor- not to satisfy our flesh and live selfishly, but to live for One other than ourselves- One who is called Christ, who has redeemed us and saved us and paid our debts of sin.

Think about it:
What place have you been giving Christ in YOUR life? Has it been a place of prominence, of honor and importance- as the place of command, the throne of your life? Or has it been kind of "fitting God in where there's room"? Are you willing to put Christ first in your life, and LIVE like you believe in Him?

When we accept the name of Christ; when we call ourselves Christians- we have a command from Paul in 2 Cor. 6:1 "As God's fellow workers we urge you not to receive God's grace in vain."

If you say "yes" to your heavenly Father's plea to be reconciled with him... live like it! Live like you've been forgiven an insurmountable debt, like your life has been redeemed from the pit... because it has. And you can do nothing to repay the One who took charge of your debt... all that you can do is live your life to please Him who redeemed you.

Grace...

"God's love was expensive. God's grace is free, but it's not cheap"*

Imagine someone knocking at your door... you answer it. "Hello. You've been given a free gift of a cruise ticket. I have plenty more where this came from, so if you tell other people about this, I can give one to them too. Would you like to accept this cruise ticket?"
"Of course", you say. What would you do with this opportunity now? Would you tell your friends about this cruise ticket offer? Or would you hoard it to yourself and not share the source of your gift? "Of course I would tell people," you say. "Why would I keep secret the source of an unlimited number of gifts?" It would be selfish, and mean to keep others from knowing that they could receive this same thing you had bestowed upon yourself. However, we do this every day. The gift is not a cruise ticket, but eternal life. We regularly keep secret our gift and its Source, and neglect to tell others about how they can receive the same thing. We hide our "ticket" in the closet, and live as if we care nothing for the One that gave it to us, showing no regard to His desires and plans for our lives.
We take Grace as something that is cheap and easy, something that we don't value, or care for. Dragging Grace through the mud, we say "If God forgives me, then I can keep doing this."
Or, just as bad, we ignore that God's grace entirely, saying "I have to make it on my own," "I'm not good enough to recieve God's grace", or "God doesn't care about me... I'm too bad."

No matter whether you trivialize God's Grace by pretending/insisting it doesn't extend to you, or by taking advantage of the fire-policy you percieve it to provide... you're still ignoring something. God's grace isn't something cheap and to be wasted... it's a precious gift from the Father of Lights, the God in Heaven who created all things, and after letting us choose our own path, watching us choose the sinful one, and seeing us in need of redemption, gave up his own son to die on the cross, that our debt might be paid, so that we can be restored to fellowship with Him.

Stars...

Philippians 2:14-16a

"Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, cchildren of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life....."

How do stars shine? Unyieldingly, brightly, steadfastly, beautifully... without being influenced by anything going on around them- it doesn't matter if there's a lunar eclipse occuring... the stars just keep shining, fixed in their part of space.

We are called to shine like stars. But how often do we begin shining as stars, only to bend under the pressure of society around us, and begin to "blend in"? Stars cannot blend into the darkness. They are fundamentally opposite of cold dark nothingness- they are bright, warm, (well, hot, actually) and something. Neither can we, as Christians, really blend into the lost world around us, because like the stars, we are different from the world around us. God created us to be different, and saved us into being different, and it is our task now to show the world just how different we are in Christ... and how good that difference is, and to show them the way to become different as well.

1 Corinthians 13

Today, as I was reading my Bible for my devotions, I decided to turn to 1 Corinthians 13. Yes... the "love" chapter. I memorized this chapter as a child, and as such, most of the time that I read it, much like other passages that I have committed to memory, the majority of the meaning just slides over me, because I "know" it. But today, it didn't.
As I read through 1 Corinthians 13, several verses, but one in particular, popped out at me:

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails..."
This verse... "It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres"... Wow. Think about that. Think about what kind of love this is, just with that bit of definition...

It's a little bit surprising, and overwhelming, and awesome. Do you exhibit this kind of love to others? Have you ever experienced it?

Welcome...

I am starting this blog to provide a place for me to try my hand at inspirational/devotional stuff... So... enjoy?
~Danette

Apples

There is an apple tree in my yard... It is very old, weathered,with gnarled branches, but full of fruit. It has had a very long, somewhat eventful life... Branches have died, a storm ripped off a whole half of the tree, part of the trunk rotted, birds have attacked its apples... and every year, we go and pull the apples it has worked so hard to grow off the tree for harvest. Its roots are deep, its fruit beautiful, and the tree is quite hardy.

In our lives, we come across so many things that are difficult, or hurtful, or unpleasant... but through these, God can take us, and grow us, and teach us things. When the apple tree was small, it had weak roots, could not bear much fruit, and could not survive very much in the way of harsh elements. As it grew, it became stronger, the roots dug deeper and were anchored more sturdily, and its fruit became more abundant. One day, the tree was lush and beautiful, bearing much fruit... and then the storm came. Half the tree was destroyed. Some of its branches died. Birds pecked holes in its beautiful apples... and yet, the tree continued to grow. It stood resolutely in the yard. The master gardener many times, considered uprooting it and throwing it into the bonfire... but each time, the tree would produce more fruit than the master gardener expected, and the tree would be spared. After all of the damage that the tree sustained, it only produced more fruit. It became stronger through the trials and tests, and more productive. You see, it was pruned. We had not pruned it in our entire lives, but God pruned the apple tree, when he sent that storm through... It was a rather drastic job of pruning, but it was necessary, and improved the tree.
When we have hard things happen to us, when we have our "branches", our hopes and dreams and plans crumble, what does it do for us? When a major disaster comes through our lives, and we cannot understand why, how do we react to it? The apple tree reacted to the storm with growth and strength... Are you willing to let God grow and strengthen you, amidst disaster?

Fire...

I was sitting in front of the campfire tonight, watching the embers ripple and glow in the flames. The fire danced in the firepit, and Brita and Hanne giggled as they rolled in the grass tickling each other. The crickets chirped in the night, but the bugs generally stayed away from the heat of the fire. The radiant heat felt good on my face, and I almost wished that there was another fire behind me, so that all of me could be bathed in the toasty warmth that emanated from the pit. It was so beautiful. So deadly and dangerous fire is... and yet it is delicate looking, and gorgeous.
It makes me think about how similarities may be drawn from that, to relationships. A fire is good for warmth, but if it gets out of hand, it can burn down forests. What was so trusted inside a campfire ring is deadly, dangerous, and destructive if it gets out of control. Our passions have been likened to a flame, and I see that is a very accurate depiction. If we do not take measures to contain our passions properly, they can be as destructive as the flame that spread into a wildfire and destroyed forests. Without restraint, we can be easily tempted to go too far in our physical and emotional relationships, and without guards set beforehand, these passions can take control and things can happen that we really come to regret.

Sunshine

I last posted a list of lessons from fog... now I thought I'd look at sunshine... or rather, sunshine and storms.
It can be sunny even when there's a thunderstorm minutes away... much in the same way that your day can go splendidly until moments before a disaster. During the sunny times of life, we often let our guard down, and forget that we are in a spiritual war against a very real enemy. We may stumble over something that would have been easy to avoid, were we on our guard. The storms of life can strengthen us and make us realize that we must rely on God... a lesson sometimes forgotten with the hard times passing.
Sunshine reminds me of God... all radiant and bright and warm. Very enthusiastic, and impossible to miss. It shines on everything, and even when we don't see it, it's still there. It's hot and pure and clean, with nothing impure in the sunshine. It's very powerful, able to power cities, burn things, light the darkness, and reveal secrets. It in its entirety is too much for us to handle.

Lessons from Fog

It is foggy outside... it seems as though we are living in a cloud, where it seems that we have an island amidst white nothingness. Alone amongst the trees and fog, it seems so calm and peaceful.. but what can it teach us?

Sadly, the concept of fog seems to carry over to how many of us live our lives each day- in a fog, oblivious to those around us, their needs and hurts, and what we could do to make the light of Christ a little brighter for them.
We tend to see only the immediate, with those things a little farther into the future a little foggy in our view. What? Think about what's going on in our lives that will affect the future? Why? Now is what's going on, we tell ourselves, ignoring the glaring truth that what we do today will affect what happens tomorrow, and the day after that, and the day after that....
The illusion that we are islands by ourselves and independent of anyone else, can lead us to do foolish things, and ignore the consequences it may have on someone else. Not asking for help when we really need it, for instance. Letting ourselves become convinced that we are the only person in the entire world that has ever dealt with "this"...
Not seeing the people living around us can cause us to completely miss the ministry opportunity we could have to show Christ to those who need him, and show his Love to those who are hurting. It can cause us to fail to see the blessings God is holding out for us, if only we would take them.

More lessons to follow... :-)
hmm.. what next... Lessons from sunshine?