A Gathering of Flowers

I will be found by you, says the LORD, and I will bring you back from your captivity; I will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you, says the LORD, and I will bring you to the place from which I cause you to be carried away captive. ~ Jeremiah 29:14 NKJV

I love playing outside with my girls because they are always bringing me gifts: an assortment of leaves (yanked from a bush) and wildflowers (plucked from a ditch). They grab the things which catch their eye, rarely keeping these beauties for themselves. Instead, they grab as many as their hands will hold and bring them to me. They are so proud of their findings, thinking they have found the best the world has to offer.

That’s how God sees us—as His treasures, His flowers. He is gathering His flowers together, His sons, His daughters. He doesn’t gather as a florist would—picking only the pristine and those that would gain a sale, discarding the dried up and wilting flowers. No, Father God reaches—just as a child—and selects the wild flowers from the ditches, the clovers from the fields, the leaves on the ground, and even the roses on the bush. He gathers them all together, arranging them to bring about the sweetest, harmonizing fragrance. Deeply He breathes in the rich aroma. He exhales and says, “Perfect.”

If you’ve been feeling worn out, dried up, wilted, or useless, then come to the feet of Jesus. Let Him gather you to Himself, showering you in His love, reviving and refreshing you. Only when you are revived and refreshed in God’s presence will you release that sweet aroma, which is pleasing to Him.

©Heather Potts 2016

The Warrior’s Heart

Thus says the Lord, “Cursed is the man who trusts in mankind and makes flesh his strength, and whose heart turns away from the Lord…Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord and whose trust in is in the Lord.” ~ Jeremiah 17:5, 7 NASB

Have you ever considered how our viewpoint changes the way we act or react in situations?  In studying Jeremiah 17, I found that the word “man” means “strong man, warrior (emphasizing strength or ability to fight).”  In realizing that “man” means “warrior” I read these verses in a completely different light:

 “Cursed is the warrior who makes mankind or flesh the source of his security and strength, whose mind, will, and heart turn away or depart from the Lord…Blessed is the warrior who makes the Lord the source of his security and strength, whose refuge, object of confidence, and security are in the Lord.”

If you think of yourself as a warrior, where do you get your strength?  Is it from money, power, eating a good breakfast, or having your ego stroked by others?  Sure, those things may help, but in the long run, those things will fail and fold and you’ll be left with nothing.  But when we make the Lord the source of our strength and security, as well as the place of our refuge and object of our confidence, how can we lose?

What things are you facing today?  What issues or worries do you have?  Are you facing them as a mere man whose strength wanes with the wind or are you standing as a confident warrior with the Lord as your strength and your shield?  If it’s the former, it doesn’t have to stay that way.  The Lord is always available to us and refreshes and strengthens us when we turn to Him and make Him our source of security and strength.

Lord, I pray that regardless of the issues facing us, that we would remember that we can rely upon You and run to You as our refuge and our source of strength.  Lord, I pray that we would remember that You have called us warriors and You desire to equip us in Your strength and Your power to achieve Your victory for Your glory.  Father, please forgive us for turning to other things, even people, to build us up.  Help us to remember that You are the source of everything we need.  In Jesus’ Name we pray, Amen.

©Heather Potts 2014