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

Perfect Timing

I know what I’m doing. I have it all planned out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for. ~ Jeremiah 29:11

I was thinking about this scripture and what it has meant to and for our family.  What does a statement like that mean to others?  Isn’t a lot of what we think about God how we interpret Him and His Word.  Think about Jesus’ disciples; when they found out that He was the Christ, weren’t they convinced that He’d come to overthrow Rome the way that they had envisioned it?  But that’s not what Jesus came to do.  Their version was not God’s version.  And that’s what Brad & I learned in our own lives: that God’s plan and timing don’t necessarily match ours.

That truth left a very bitter taste in our mouths and we struggled to not blame God, each other, or others in our disappointment.  I can say honestly, that God never abandoned us and always took care of us, but in our struggles, where was the future that we’d hoped for?  It was exactly as He said: His planning, His timing. 

Have you ever done that?  Have you assumed that God lied to you or let you down because circumstances didn’t go according to your plan?  I confess that I have.  So how do we move forward?  We trust: God’s Word promises that He knows what He’s doing and He’s got it all planned out.

Father God, I pray that You would encourage us today.  I pray that even if circumstances aren’t going according to our plans, that we would continue to look to and trust You, that You have our very best at heart.  Lord, I pray that You would lead and guide us into all things & all truth.  Be with us today and always.  In Jesus’ Name we pray, Amen.

©Heather Potts 2014

God of the Impossible

Even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept hoping… ~ Romans 4:18

When do we need hope?  We need it when the fulfilment of a promise isn’t done instantaneously.  We live in a world where meals are cooked within minutes and whole conversations happen within the exchange of just a few text messages.  When we are told to believe, to have faith, to wait and hope for the answer, that doesn’t seem to compute with us.  But waiting is a good discipline to have. 

I remember when Brad and I were learning about the value of budgeting our money and understanding the difference between “needs” and “wants.”  One couple sat us down and said that they needed new sod for their lawn.  They explained that until they could afford to pay cash—they didn’t use credit cards to purchase anything—they were just going to save up for it.  At the time, they tried to convey that we’d appreciate our purchase more when we’d denied ourselves the instant buy and saved up the money to make the purchase.  Honestly, we didn’t believe them until we tried it.  Over time, we began to see not only  how satisfying it was to actually be able to “afford” to pay our bills through proper budgeting/spending habits, but we were able to pay off our debts as well.

Abraham’s promise, however, took several decades to come to pass.  And that’s why this scripture says that even when there was no reason to hope, he kept hoping.  We are hoping for God to do many things in our lives.  But without God, it is impossible for anyone of them to come to pass in our lives.  What are you hoping will come true?  What things has God promised you that are impossible without hope in the One who made the promise?  Spend some time with God today and tell Him how much you need Him and that you trust Him to fulfill His promises, even if they don’t come as instantly as your Happy Meal.

Father God, thank you that all things are possible with you.  Lord, I pray that we would look to you for our answers, our needs, and our desires.  Lord, there are things that we know You have promised to us, and in our waiting, the enemy fights hard to get us to doubt and quit.  I pray that we would be bold and remember that You are the same God who raised Christ from the dead and called things that are not as though they were (Romans 4:17)!  Thank you, Father, for being as bold in our lives and calling out promises to be fulfilled from merely dreams and desires.  Father, give us that same bold attitude today and always.  In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen.

Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” ~ Matthew 19:26

Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. ~ Hebrews 10:23

He Will Teach You

“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.” ~ John 14:26

I must confess that I’ve been feeling really distracted lately and have been struggling to stay focused, especially at work.  It could be anxiety over the coming baby, perhaps it’s the mundane tasks I’ve been doing.  Regardless of the reasons, I’ve been finding it a real struggle to stay focused.  What about you?  Are you struggling to stay focused or to put forth your best effort into something?  Maybe it’s not your job, maybe it’s your marriage or engaging with your kids or in their activities.  Maybe you’re struggling to make time to spend with God.  Regardless of what we are struggling with, when we take the time to ask God for help, the Holy Spirit is faithful to bring to our remembrance God’s Word and His promises to us.  Consider these:

We say: I can’t stay focused or think straight.

GOD says: But we have the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16).

We say: I feel alone and nobody loves me.

GOD says: I will never leave you nor forsake you. I have loved you with an everlasting love (Joshua 1:5; Jeremiah 31:3).

We say: I’ve sinned so much.  God could never use me and I will never mount up to anything.

GOD says: If you repent, I will restore you that you may serve me; if you utter worthy, not worthless, words, you will be my spokesman (Jeremiah 15:19).

Whatever you need from God, whenever you can’t seem to find your way, God promises that He is with us and His Spirit will guide and direct us when we turn to Him and listen.  If you need something today, if you feel that you just can’t handle it on your own, the Father says, “Don’t.”  That’s why He sent His Helper so that we wouldn’t have to go it alone.

Father, thank you for your promises to your children.  Thank you for loving us so much that we will never have to walk or be alone.  Lord I pray that when we have need or lack, that we would remember to listen for the voice of the Helper, because You sent Him just for us.  It’s in Jesus’ Name we pray, Amen.

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.

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.