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

Hindmilk

I’m thanking you, God…The deeper your love, the higher it goes… ~ Psalm 57:9-10

When your baby is first born and they talk to you about nursing, they talk about the hindmilk and the foremilk.  The foremilk is what the babies receive first; it’s more of a thirst-quencher, as it’s more watery but has less fat.  The hindmilk is stored at the back of the breast and has the higher-fat content, which is needed for growth.  They recommend leaving baby at the breast long enough so that baby is able to draw out the higher-fat hindmilk.

I was half-whining and half-praying yesterday when Savannah was having a really rough day.  For the most part, we’ve had good days with rough patches, but yesterday seemed more draining on me.  And I really felt it was because I don’t have anything left to draw on, myself.  With Elizabeth still working out her sleep pattern, I haven’t been able to get up in the mornings to have my much-needed God-time, the time when I go deeper to draw out what I need for the day.  I find that when I’m able to have that time, I’m better equipped to handle those rough patches.  Just like my Elizabeth needs to spend more time at the breast (her source) in order to receive what she needs for growth, I need to spend more time with God (my Source) in order to receive what I need for growth.

What about you?  Do you find that you’re spending quick snippets with God?  Are you drawing out just enough to quench your thirst, but not going deep enough to promote your growth?  James 4 tells us to submit ourselves to God—and to His teachings—and when we draw closer to God, He will draw closer to us.  For when we go deeper with God, that’s when He will lift us up (vv. 7-10).

Father God, thank you that You long for us to go deeper with You, that we may know more of You and may know You better.  Father, I pray that You would help us to carve out time in our day—each day—to go deeper with You.  Help us to gain wisdom in the areas where we need growth and help us to store up a good supply to draw on when the days and the rough patches draw on us.  Be with us today and always.  In Jesus’ Name we pray, Amen.

©Heather Potts 2014

Are You Tired?

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” ~ Matthew 11:28 MSG

I heard a couple of my co-workers talking yesterday about how they hate Christians, because they are so fake and, “Have you been to their churches?  It’s so dull and boring and they look miserable.”  I was going to turn around and say something, but then they parted ways and I didn’t get a chance to speak up, but thought about their comments a long time. 

Today’s scripture reminded me of their conversation.  As a church, what are we saying to a hurting and worn out world when we, too, are hurting and worn out all the time?  How do we get refreshed?  From what Jesus is saying, it’s by keeping company with Him and through those times, we’ll learn how to live freely and lightly and well-rested.

Maybe the holidays, with all the hustle and bustle, have left you feeling worn out and tired.  How do you reenergize?  Where do you get the motivation to keep going?  Some will exercise and other will drink coffee or one of those energy drinks.  God wants us to turn to Him as our source of refreshing.  When we walk closely with Him, His energy seems to flow off of Him and cover over us.  If you are tired and weary today, I encourage you to spend intimate time with the Father and let His Words encourage and refresh you.

Father, thank you that you are always available to us when we need you.  Thank you that you don’t get burned out and you’ve never turned us away.  I pray that we would remember to stay close to your side, always abiding in the shelter of your wings, drawing from Your strength to carry us through.  Be with us today and always.  In Jesus Name I pray, Amen.

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.

Jubmle-Scmrable

Words, words, words.

                Letters, letters.

All made up of letters.

Like pieces from a thousand-piece puzzle,

All in a jubmle-scmrable.

I look at it.

I sweep them up.

I pick them up.

I put them in a box.

“Daddy,” I say, carrying my box to where He’s sitting.

“I just can’t make it work. Can You help me?”

ALL SMILES!

My Daddy is ALL SMILES!

He smiles because I trust Him.

He smiles because I ask Him.

He smiles because I hand it over.

He smiles because it’s me.

Taking the box of mixed-up, messed-up pieces, He says, “Yes, My child, I’ll take it.  I’ll help you make it beautiful.”

He reaches behind His chair and grabs the box-top with a picture on it.

We sit down on the floor together.

He dumps all the pieces onto the floor.

Now it’s an even greater farrago!

He lays the box-top in front of me,

So that I can begin to visualize what the end result will be.

He works swiftly.

He works calmly.

He smiles quietly.

And before I know it, He’s done.

He gently slides a piece of sturdy cardboard underneath the piece of art before me.

He paints special glue over the top, to hold the pieces in place.

He covers it with a simple, but beautiful frame—just the perfect touch to complement the piece.

Still smiling, He says, “Here, My child.  Here is the work, all finished for you.  Please share it with those you know—and those you don’t.  Tell them it’s a gift of LOVE from Me to them.”

He rises to a kneel and pulls me to my feet.

We are eye-to-eye, He and I.

With nothing but pure adoration in His eyes, He says softly, “Child of Mine, thank you.  Thank you for loving Me back.  Thank you for trusting Me to help you with this.  I hope you know that you can always come to Me and I will always help you.  And more than that, I hope you know how very much I love you.”

He kisses me sweetly on the cheek and sends me off to play.

I will always remember today…

                And the words My Father had to say…

I will always remember His speed in turning my jubmle-scmrable into a beautiful piece of art.

                                But it’s His Words that touched me the most…

He said, “Thank you for loving Me back.”

Father, thank you for this message.  Thank you for the beautiful picture it painted.  Thank you that You do turn all of our messes—when we hand them over to You—into beautiful works of art.  But Lord, more than that, I thank You for Your desire to be in relationship with us.  I thank you that You created the way, so that we could have that relationship with You.  I thank you that You loved us first and because of our relationship, You are able to say—both softly and sweetly, with adoration in Your eyes—“Thank you, My child, for loving Me back.”

In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen.

All Is Yours

My child, you have always been with me, and all that is mine is yours. ~ Luke 15:31

It’s difficult to understand the depth of this scripture if you don’t understand the depth of the One who said it.  In a world that believes that “change” is the only constant, words like “always” and “never” get cast aside because they can’t be true if change is continuous.

But again, to understand this scripture, we must first understand the One who said it.  It was Father, our heavenly Father and He is:

Elohim-power & might; Jehovah-Nissi-The Lord our banner (who goes before us and lifts us up); Jehovah-Rohi-The Lord is my Shepherd (guide & protector); Jehovah-Rapha-The Lord is my healer; Jehovah-Jireh-The Lord will provide; Jehovah-Shalom-The Lord is peace;  El-Roi-the strong one who sees (who opens our eyes); and more.

When God, our Abba Father (the one who tenderly loves us as His own sons and daughters), tells us that all—everything—that is His is ours it includes all of His love, all of His strength, all of His wisdom, all of His provision, and so on.  I know you ask, “How can this be, when I’ve lost my job, my hope, my income, my car, my friends, my parents, my childhood, my health…?”  The answer lies in Jesus Christ.  Romans 13:14 tells us we are to “put on the Lord Jesus Christ.”  That phrase “put on” means to “clothe” or “sink into” (as you would your favorite sweatshirt or jeans).  When we “put on” our Lord, we put on His character and everything that was available to Him and that is how everything (all) that is God’s is ours.