Let's Get Real

“The heart is hopelessly dark and deceitful,
    a puzzle that no one can figure out.
But I, God, search the heart
    and examine the mind.
I get to the heart of the human.
    I get to the root of things.
I treat them as they really are,
    not as they pretend to be.”

~ Jeremiah 17:9-10 MSG

The key to managing your emotions is to acknowledge your real emotions ~ Julia Mateer, Life-Giving Leadership, A Toolbox for Leading Women

I like this quote by Julia Mateer, because we sometimes get so caught up in what we should or shouldn’t be doing or feeling regarding others that we never deal with our real emotions. A couple of months ago I was sharing some frustrations with a friend and mentor and said, “I’m trying to give grace and not make waves…” And that’s where she stopped me and said, “But it bothers you a lot when it happens.” When I said yes, she said, “Then say that. Say, ‘It bothers me’ or ‘My feelings are hurt when…’” She said if I never confessed and dealt with my real feelings, I wasn’t doing myself or the other person any favors.

God’s been dealing with me a lot this year, beginning very boldly on January 1, by telling me this would be a year of digging out any impurities in my heart. He went on to say that in order for me to receive the blessings and favor He would rain down, my heart had to be ready. What I’ve learned is that things that I thought were OK, even synonymous with being a redhead, are not any part of God’s design for me. Even though it’s been hard to hear at times, the one thing I can depend upon with God is that He’ll be “real” with me. And He wants me to be “real” with Him.

If you’ve been hurt by someone, you aren’t offering grace by side-stepping the issue.  Grace isn’t ignoring what happened; it’s not burying it under the rug or stuffing hurt feelings. Grace, mercy, love, and forgiveness enable you to say, “Those actions hurt me. But just as God has forgiven me, I choose to forgive you, relinquishing my right to punish you.” The pain might not go away overnight, and that’s ok. The first step toward freedom is acknowledging your real emotions and asking God to guide you the rest of the way.

©Heather Potts 2016

If I'm Not Well

For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. ~ Ephesians 5:31 NKJV

Jimmy Evans’ series, Every Great Marriage, discusses the attributes and roles of the husband and wife. The husband is the prophet, priest, and king of the home. As priest, he’s an intercessor, connecting God and man. He is also sacrificially sensitive to his wife’s needs; if she’s not well, then he’s not well and everything matters. Because they are one flesh, what affects her affects him and vice versa.

If the husband’s right arm began to hurt, he would cover, secure and protect it from further injury while it healed. If it didn’t get better, he would seek medical help. If he tried to ignore his arm, the pain would eventually demand his attention and cause him to take action. But even with all the things he could do, one thing he wouldn’t do is cut off his arm and walk around as if everything was better because he’d removed “the problem.” 

If we wouldn’t do that to our own arm, why do we treat our spouse—our own flesh—as something easily ignored or removed?  We might not like or agree with the choices our spouse is making, but just as we would seek God, stand on His promises, and get medical help as needed for a bodily injury, we need to do the same for our treasured husband and our beloved wife.

Father, forgive us for the ways we’ve treated our spouse with contempt, as if they were a pair of smelly socks instead of an incredible gift from You. Help us to always see our spouse as we did on our wedding day: the one we love and want always by our side. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

©Heather Potts 2016

I Failed

How often have you felt that you failed within the past month, week, day, hour?

There was one day a few months ago that I felt like a failure. I was so low that I was buying into all the lies and condemnation the enemy threw my way.  But the next day, Holy Spirit said to me, “Put off this mistaken identity of shame. It is not yours!”

If you’ve failed, it’s ok. God’s grace is bigger than our mistakes—even the ones we deem as failures.  It’s ok to fail.  Failing is not the same as being a failure.  You are not a failure, because you refuse to quit.

Now stand up, dust yourself off, and declare this over yourself:

I refuse to quit or get discouraged (Galatians 6:9)!  I will continue to persevere and receive what God has promised me (Hebrews 10:36). I will run with perseverance, throwing off everything that tries to stop me (Hebrews 12:1)!  I refuse to take on a spirit of despair or self-pity.  I refuse to be discouraged!  I refuse to be condemned!  There is now no condemnation for me (Romans 8:1)!  Today will be a great day and Holy Spirit will remind me to choose right thoughts.  I am regaining territory the enemy has stolen from me.  I am a warrior princess! I will be patient with myself and remember that it is God who is doing a good work in me and HE will bring it to full completion (Philippians 2:13, 1:6).

In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen!

©Heather Potts 2016

Embraced

Awake, awake, arm of the Lord, clothe yourself with strength! ~ Isaiah 51:9 NIV

The other morning, I was snuggling with my Elizabeth.  She’d thrown up and wanted to be held, comforted by my embrace. When we’re feeling out of sorts, don’t we just want to be comforted by Him who loves us?  But how does Father God hold us?

His Arms provide strength, might, power, help and aid. The islands look to me and wait in hope for my arm, (Isaiah 51:5 NIV).

His Hands provide power, means, and direction. You shall also be a crown of glory in the hand of the LORD, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God, (Isaiah 62:3 NKJV).

In His Palm is power and a place one submits himself to seek security and safety. See, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands; Your walls are continually before Me, (Isaiah 49:16 NKJV).

His Bosom is a place of embrace and of acceptance. He will feed His flock like a shepherd; He will gather the lambs with His arm, and carry them in His bosom, (Isaiah 40:11 NKJV).

With His Face, He turns toward us, regarding us, both hearing and answering. And I will never again turn my face from them, for I will pour out my Spirit upon the people of Israel. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken! (Ezekiel 39:29 NLT)

Just as parents hold their babies, our Father holds us. Held in His lap, we are accepted just as we are. We are loved and embraced by our Father who will never drop, leave, or forsake us.  He will give us strength and help us; He will hold us steady and keep a firm grip on us, (Isaiah 41:9-10). We are God’s sons and daughters, held in His embrace, carried close to His heart, (Isaiah 40:11). When Father looks at us, He smiles. And sometimes He tickles us, just to enjoy the sound of our laughter. We are safe, secure, and forever held in our Father’s loving embrace.

©Heather Potts 2016

Changing Your Mind

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. ~ Philippians 4:13 NKJV

Newton’s First Law of Motion states that an object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion…unless acted upon by an unbalanced force.  The mind can either be at rest or it can be busy at all times.

My mind was in perpetual motion, constantly worried about something. Although things were being taken care of, I was never able to rest. But a wise friend suggested a semester of rest—to stop working and just rest in my Father’s love for me.  That was hard to do.  I was a “doer” and in the midst of the chaos, my identity got caught up in “doing” instead of being…

When I was first told to run as a way to alleviate stress, I really disliked it, but I quickly discovered that running was the unbalanced force my mind needed to shift from doing to resting.  But the enemy was aware of this and began to flood my mind with constant lies, “You’ll never be able to do this.  You’re too tired. You can’t do this.”  Over and over I heard in my head, “I can’t! I can’t! I can’t!”  But then something amazing happened: I opened my mouth and said, “I can! I can! I can!”  Throughout that whole day, and every time after when I felt something come against me, I would open my mouth and say, “I can!”

What has the enemy been saying you can’t do? Refute his lies by saying out loud, “I can!”

©Heather Potts 2016

Run w Perseverance

You shall be called by a new name, which the mouth of the LORD will name. ~ Isaiah 62:2 NKJV

I’ve always hated running.

Last September, however, a friend suggested running as a great way to improve my overall mental, emotional, and physical health.  Though I protested, she told me to do it anyway.  A few days later, after running 2 blocks, I felt like I was going to die! 

On October 10, while attending the Daughters of the King conference, Jennifer Nock, referencing Isaiah 62:2, shared how God changed Sarai and Abram to Sarah and Abraham in order to replace the works of their hands with His power to fulfill His promised purpose. That night, God promised to call me by my new name.

By late October, I was running ¾ mile and got talked into running in the Jingle 5K, beginning my official training on October 24.  But on the 26^th, everything was working against me: both girls were throwing tantrums, I couldn’t find clean running clothes, and I felt like I had a UTI.  Finally, I said, “I’m going anyway!” I found clothes that would do, put the girls in the double stroller, drank plenty of water and away I went.  Near the end of my run, I heard Holy Spirit say I am “one who perseveres.”  He called me by my new name! He called me by His promised purpose for me!  But I wanted to know more, so I asked Him to reveal scripture that went with my new name. He led me to Hebrews 12:1-2, “Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus.”

God has a promised purpose for each of us. In this new year, let's be determined to never stop running after God and He’ll never stop amazing us!

©Heather Potts 2016

Leaning Trees

…lean not on your own understanding ~ Proverbs 3:5 NIV

We received this amazing gift for Christmas: a Christmas tree.  Maybe it seems silly to you, but two years ago, when Savannah was 5 months old, our Christmas tree died.  Well, we assumed we’d just buy a new one the following Christmas.  But Brad had just barely started working that following Christmas, so we couldn’t afford one.  We did our best to decorate using our other decorations, but it just seemed empty without the tree.  This year, we really wanted a tree, but they were out of our budget.  At my Mom’s group, our leader asked if everyone was ready for Christmas and I just started to cry.  I told the other moms that we couldn’t afford a tree and I knew it was just material and no, that’s not what Christmas was all about, but it just didn’t feel like Christmas.  So my leader looked at me and said, “Then we’ll pray and ask God to send you a tree.”  I told her it was silly, but she insisted that we pray for God to send me a tree.  Later that day, my leader called me and said someone was getting rid of a Christmas tree & would I still like it.  I said yes and the next day she delivered a 7.5’ beautiful Christmas tree.  The tree is perfect, even as it leans. 

To some, my leaning tree may seem like an annoying defect, but I view it as beautiful.  Our pastor said something the other day that reminded me of my leaning tree.  He said that no one ever came to Christ by attending church, but by leaning in to God and the Holy Spirit, by leaning in as they saw others doing.  The NIV version of Proverbs 3:5 says we should not lean on what we know, perceive, or understand.  The AMP version tells us what we should lean on:  “Lean on, trust in, and be confident in the Lord with all your heart and mind…”  Just like my Christmas tree leans in order to stand, we need to be leaning trees: leaning on the insight of the Holy Spirit so that we will be able to stand.

Father, thank you for Christmas trees, for beautiful decorations that remind us of Your light and beauty.  Lord, I pray that we would be leaning trees, leaning in to Your Spirit to hear all that You have to say to us.  In Jesus’ Name we pray, Amen.

©Heather Potts 2014

A New Song for Christmas

Have you ever heard a song before, but heard it for the first time as a message straight from God?  We were in church this morning, at our Christmas Eve service, and the band was singing “Little Drummer Boy”.  Having grown up in a Christian home, I’ve heard that song and even sung it year after year at Christmas time.  But this year, today, it was different.  Today it was as if I’d heard the lyrics for the first time.  The lyrics are, “I played my drum for Him, pa rum pum pum pum / I played my best for Him, pa rum pum pum pum /… / Then He smiled at me, pa rum pum pum pum / Me and my drum.”  It was my own private, intimate message from my Father.  He said to me, “You don’t have to bring much.  Just bring yourself and bring your best.  When you do that, it makes me smile.”

Perhaps you’ve been feeling a little blue this Christmas season.  Maybe you’ve been looking around at all that you don’t have and can’t do for people due to a lack of funds.  But just like baby Jesus didn’t want from the little drummer boy things he didn’t have, Jesus doesn’t want that from us, either.  What He wants is for us to joyfully bring to Him what we do have.

I pray that today and in the days to come, you’ll remember that Christmas is not about presents, not about a tree, not about things you don’t have, but about what you do have.  And what we have is the love of a Savior and a chance to celebrate the victory that He has done in our lives.

Merry Christmas!

Need You

And my God will supply all of your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. ~ Philippians 4:19

Last night when we were changing Savannah and comforting her, the thought of thank you popped into my head.  It wasn’t sarcastic, though it was the middle of the night.  It was a thank you to the Father for these precious times of being able to completely comfort my daughter.  She’s at an age and stage where she’s on the move constantly, so I really and truly cherish those snuggle moments when I get them.  As I continued to rock her, the song I Need You, by Sonicflood, began to play in my head.  The lyrics are: You can tell when I need love / You know I’m in need / Love, I need love / You are love / I need You.

The above scripture says that my God will supply all of your need.  Sometimes all we need is the comfort of our Father.  Sometimes, it’s just a chance to stop the activity of the world and climb on up into His lap and be completely comforted.  During the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, amongst the shopping, decorating, partying, and Christmas light hunting, don’t forget the One who should be the center of attention during this time: Jesus.

If your life seems a little chaotic and out of sorts, or if you are fighting with your spouse about colored vs. white lights, perhaps it’s time for a break.  Perhaps it’s you need some downtime, some snuggle time with the Father.  He wants to bring you complete comfort.  Take some time and crawl up into His lap; He’s always available to you.

Father, thank you for special moments with our family, the kind you can’t capture with a camera.  But even more than that, Father, thank you for special moments with You.  Father, thank you for the intimacy and closeness we are able to have with you.  I pray that during this season, we would remember you and look to you for our comfort and a breath of fresh air.  Thank you for being with us today and always.  In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen.

Daily Bears Our Burdens

“It wasn’t your burden to bear.”  “But I did bear it.” ~ Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End

Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens. ~ Psalm 68:19

Isn’t it interesting, when we are in close relationship with someone, they know when we are having a good day and when we are not.  Sometimes, through the prompting of the Holy Spirit, we even know when a friend or relative is in need, even if they are far away from us.  No matter how close we feel in our relationship to God, He’s ever present in our lives.  When we weep, He weeps; when we rejoice, He rejoices; when we dances, He dances with us; when we feel as though we just can’t go on, He picks us up and carries us. 

Psalm 68:19 says that He daily carries our burdens.  He does this for two reasons.  1) Because He’s already in relationship with us. God knew us before we were woven together in our mothers’ wombs.  He knows when we need Him and He is always there for us. 2) Because He wants us to be free to enjoy intimacy with Him.  If we are always bogged down by all that live throws at us, we will never be free to enjoy a relationship with Him and never really realize all that He has for us.

Cast your cares on the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous fall. ~ Psalm 55:22

No Fear in Love

There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear *involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love.  ~ 1 John 4:18

We know that fear is nothing more than False Evidence Appearing Real, but I’ll take it one step further and say that fear is a lack of trust.  As God’s Word says, “the one who fears is not perfected in love.”  God is that love and those of us who live in or with fear have not yet been perfected or encompassed by it.

This fear can be broken down into many different categories.  There’s the fear of abandonment, which keeps you from speaking up for yourself in a healthy and respectful manner.  There’s the fear of rejection that keeps you from standing up for what is right and true.  The fear of rejection can also be coupled with the fear of failure and/or the fear of success, all of which can keep you from fulfilling your dreams and God’s purposes for your life.

Fear is a great immobilizer.  God put warning signals in our brains to send out as messages to our bodies to keep us from harm.  Satan, however, twisted it to keep us from the things God intended for us.  One thing, above all others, that fear keeps us from is understanding and living in a perfect relationship with God our Father.  Because the enemy has used our earthly relationships with other the men in our lives—our fathers, uncles, brothers, husbands, boyfriends, etc.—to cause us fear in some way, we reflect that back onto Father God and we are kept from having the perfect relationship with Him—the One who is able to cast out all our fears and protect us.

If there is only one scripture you study and get to know better, make it this one.  Allow Father’s perfect love to displace your fears.  Allow His tenderness to sink into your bones and seep into your heart.  Allow His peace to overcome your thoughts.  Allow His joy to replace your fretting and grief.  Allow His promises to replace your worries.  Trust in His love enough to allow it to replace your fears.