Category: Sister Judy (Page 133 of 277)

Dear Ones,

Hope you had a fun weekend and time to get refreshed. This morning i made egg dishes and veggie stir fry etc. and went to my exercise class with my friend just two doors down. It seems like it is trying to snow out today…burr!
Devotions from Judy’s heart

Are we copycats? Do we see what others are doing and then try to mimic the same or do we rather seek to find what is individually best for our own lives? Teens especially want to know what is “in” and then dress like others, even if the style is not favorable for them. Pastors can hear what program was successful in another church and decide to do the same, even though it may not be what is best for their congregation. We can hear of some method of spending time with the Lord but then discover that it is not what works for us to draw closer to Him.

We are individually made and unique so we don’t need to copy someone else to find out know how to live our lives. We can observe and learn from them, but we have to discover what is right for us. God has put the exact gifts, the perfect personality, and everything needed to carry out what He has planned for our lives.

I was reading from Psalm 119 today and in verse 33 (The Message) the Psalmist says, “God, teach me lessons for living so I can stay the course. Give me insight so I can do what you tell me—my whole life one long, obedient response.” Then in verse 73 he says, “With your very own hands you formed me; now breathe your wisdom over me so I can understand you.”  The Psalmist wants to be taught God’s way for his life and goes on to say that God’s Word is a lamp for him and will light his path.

This morning I asked Al how he spends his time with the Lord after we have had prayer together. Since he is in his study and I am at my desk in our bedroom, I don’t know what His time with the Lord looks like. But we did discover that ours are different for I am more methodical and he is more spontaneous. But we don’t have to approach our devotional life the same but what is meaningful in our walk with the Lord. God wants to individually lead us and we don’t have to copy anyone else!

Challenge for today: Don’t be a copycat but ask the Holy Spirit to be your guide in your daily walk.

Dear Ones,

Hope you are enjoying your weekend as the sun is shining and leaves still beautiful. This morning I did food prep, studied and cleaned the apartment. 
Devotions from Judy’s heart

Our work in life matters and is important not only to us but to God. Sadly today, there are many who do not wish to work and our society is experiencing the ramifications of that. There are signs on restaurants and other establishments asking for patience from the customers, as they don’t have enough help and the wait may be long. In contrast we can probably look back to our own fathers and grandfathers who took pride in hard work and were dependable, doing their jobs well. But today that seems to be lacking and we have forgotten how good it feels to hear the words, “Well done!”

Mark Roberts from Fuller Seminary writes about why we should work and quotes Eph. 4:28 (ESV), “Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.” Yes, we need to earn a living but we should do it in such a way that it adds goodness to the world. We are all called to do good work and in Greek the last part of verse 28 reads,” Working with their own hands that which is good.” 

It doesn’t matter if we are a homemaker or a CEO of a company, if our job is more hidden or seen in neon lights, we are to do it for the glory of God. It should be honest and one that makes a contribution to the needs in the world.

I remember as a child going to a party for the janitor of our church who was being honored for his hard work. They had a “This is Your Life”, bringing together people from his past whose lives he had touched. I was impressed for when we saw him working around the church, we visualized he was doing it for the Lord.

Robert brings out in his writing how the majority of Jesus time as an adult was working as a craftsman in a small village. He probably built tables and chairs and was faithful to honor His Father by doing good work. I had never thought before of how he did physical work for years in obscurity before his 3 years of public ministry. Likewise, our work matters to our Heavenly Father and also affects others, whether it is seen by the world or only a few. But let us offer our work as an act of worship to the Lord.

Challenge for today: Stop for a moment in your work and tell the Lord you are working for His pleasure!

 

Devotions from Judy’s heart

We miss so much in life when we are full of words and race against the clock with activities. We rush from one thing to another and don’t leave spaces in our day to dial down and be quiet. I was reading what Paul Tournier, a Christian Doctor and counselor, had to say about the importance of silence and meditation. Silence is very important but not an end in itself. It is only a means to come closer to the Lord. In quietness we put ourselves in position to hear God speak but then we wait. Tournier often listened for a whole hour and practiced this spiritual discipline faithfully; there were times he found it difficult and felt he heard nothing. When he was interviewed, he shared how he waits in silence for God to stimulate his thoughts and to renew him. He often asked God to see people and their problems from God’s point of view, not his. During this time of silence, his mind was often flooded with things that needed to be done. But if he hung in there, thoughts might come of something God was asking him to do or to discover his underlying motive.

He said that intellectualism can be a hindrance and we must become like little children and to listen to God’s thoughts. He also cautioned others about imposing their thoughts on others and telling them what God’s will is for them. We cannot know what God’s will is for someone else! They must make their own discoveries. I get uncomfortable when I hear someone say, “Thus says the Lord, you are to quit your job and do such and such etc…” It is important that we hear for ourselves.

Once Tournier was contemplating giving up medicine and to become an evangelist but his wife was not in agreement. He spent months praying about it and listening and it resulted in him not doing either/or but a third way of integrating the psychological with the spiritual. He had patiently waited for God to guide him. God’s way is not always the same as our way, but better than ours.

So let us wait in silence on the Lord daily as it says in Psalm 40, “I waited patiently for the Lord; He inclined to me and heard my cry…and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God.”

Let us not rush but quietly and patiently wait in silence to hear Him.

Challenge for today: Spend some time during your day to just quietly listen to the Lord.

Dear Ones,

Hope you had a great weekend. Al has a cough and cold so we had church at home yesterday; he is feeling some better now and we are thankful. Such times helps us remember to be grateful for our health and to pray for those who are suffering and live in chronic pain. Today I made egg dishes and food prep. studied, and went to my exercise class. 

Devotions from Judy’s heart

How well do we know ourselves and how willing are we to learn more about what lies buried within our hearts?  It would be great if we were always flowing in the transformation process, and becoming more of who God created us to be. But we must admit we are not totally aware of how we need to change and are often blind to our faults. When we ask the Lord to remake us more like Him, we may be surprised at the people He uses to help us see what things need to change in our lives. We then have to be honest with ourselves to know if we are really open to change. 

 I read of how Francis Fenelon was a mentor and guide to a person asking for spiritual direction. He told him that God often uses someone who confronts us with the wrong they see in our lives and how we respond shows if we are serious about letting Him work in our lives. If we are deeply offended, then we know God has touched a sore spot and we need humility to admit that we are not all put together and need His help to fix what is wrong. It shows we are not dead in that area of our life. We don’t need to resist and protest that the person was harsh and insensitive, but rather thankfulness for what has been exposed.  We need to admit our failures and trust that He will cut out of our life what we have been hanging onto. Perhaps someone has spread rumors about us, and utter lies and we have no way of correcting what has been said. We can get upset and angry or we can realize that what God is after is for us to surrender our reputation. If we hang on to it, we will become bitter at the words spoken against us. But if we lay our reputation before him, He will cut away that which has become an idle, and we don’t have to be busy protecting it any longer. We won’t feel pain if we are dead to self in that area. When we get all ruffled, we know we are not completely dead. 

The battle goes on throughout our life between our flesh and the spirit. As Paul said in Gal. 5:16-17a (The Message).” My counsel is this: Live freely, animated and motivated by God’s Spirit. Then you won’t feel the compulsions of selfishness. For there is a root of sinful self-interest in us that is at odds with a free spirit, just as the free spirit is incompatible with selfishness.” He exhorts them to be led by the Spirit and not to be dominated by our flesh nature.  God will give us grace to surrender our flesh and to live in freedom of the Spirit.

Challenge for today: The next time you feel offended, seek to know what isn’t dead within and surrender it.