NEW STRENGTH

Posted byDianne HornePosted inUncategorized

Good morning ! My husband and I are currently in the middle of an international “move” from Canada to the U.S.A. (Arizona, specifically). My days and weeks have been rather “full.” I’m moving towards the end of wrapping up our lives in Canada, and this morning, as I was having my time with the Lord, I came across an important “reminder.” It’s in the form of a LIST.

No doubt, many of us employ lists to help us remember what “to do.” I hope you’re encouraged by this “list” as I have been. It may be awhile before I begin regular posts again, but taking the time to say hello.

Quote from Experiencing God Devotional (Henry Blackaby/Claude King) (Matthew 11:28)

“At times you may feel so worn out and stressed that you are not sure you can take another step.  You may seem to spend all your time running from crisis to crisis and to be constantly giving your time and energy to others.  Your Lord wants to renew your strength and enable you to enjoy the abundant life He intends for you.  The key is to wait upon Him to do so.

Our generation does not enjoy waiting.  We are harried by all the commitments we have made and the many responsibilities we hold.  We rush through our lives without stopping to evaluate our activities.  Sometimes in our haste to get on with our work, we race ahead of God.  Part of God’s restorative process is to slow us down and make us listen to Him.  As we wait on Him, God will remind us of our utter dependence upon His strength.  When we slow down and seek His will, He will reveal His plans.

Biblically, waiting on the Lord is never passive; it is always active.  Waiting requires us to cease our own pursuits and give God our complete attention.  We may have to give up some of the activities we have allowed to inundate our lives.  We may need to take time to sit quietly before the Lord.  If we ask Him, God will show us the resources He has provided to help with the work we have been attempting on our own.  God may address feelings of guilt that have motivated us to do things that He has not asked us to do.

Jesus carried more responsibility than you do.  More people needed Him than will ever need you.  Yet He was never overwhelmed or inadequate for the task.  Now Christ offers to guide you so that you will fulfill your heavenly Father’s will and gain the strength necessary for each day.”

After reading this devotional comment many years ago, I began a “list” that continues to free me, re-direct me and help me focus on what’s “really important.”

“NOT DO” or “STOP LIST”

*          Stop thinking I must give & try to meet all the needs that appear before me.  Check in with my current duties and responsibilities and weigh them before the Lord and my family first.  I need to make sure I’m busy doing “what God has asked & orchestrated” for me.

*          Stop hurrying to do things.  Unless it’s an “emergency,” slow your pace.  I have all the time to do what my Lord wants each day.

*          Stop talking……and listen to what the other person is saying without waiting for them to draw a breath and insert your vocabulary.   Hear the other person first, rather than anxious to talk about myself or share my opinion.

*          Be a “gift” to others!   Be fully “present.”   Be eye to eye with others and listen carefully rather than looking at my cell or glancing at others going by.  There’s nothing more irritating and rude than to act as though you can’t wait for another to stop talking so you can get on with your life.

*          Don’t allow another’s behavior and attitude to rob me of my joy or intimacy with God.

*          Don’t allow another’s behavior and attitude to alter my treating them with “grace.”

*          Stop trying to fix everything or everyone else.  Besides, that’s not my job.  Talk to God about others, before you talk to others about God.  Allow God to do the changing and influencing in another.  You are to pray for them.

*          Stop saying “yes” to every opportunity that’s asked of me.  I can’t or shouldn’t jump to everything that comes my direction.    I’m to listen to God and get my sense of purpose and direction from Him rather than succumb to being pressured by the demands of others.  There will always be needs….and I’m not designed or asked to meet all of them.

*          Stop thinking you need to meet everyone’s expectations of you.  It’s more important to please the Lord than anyone else.

*          Make sure God isn’t “squeezed” into my day; but that He’s in first place….as you appropriately meet your family’s needs.

*          There’s no need for experiencing “false guilt” or “pressure from others” as a motivation to do or be involved where God hasn’t Himself asked me.  Allow God to orchestrate the events in my life.  There’s no need for burnout.

*          Stop being too involved in doing “good things” that I neglect to be “what God wants me to be.”  In other words, don’t allow the urgent to crowd out the important.   Allow God to give me His wisdom on saying “no” to good things, so I can say a resounding “yes” to the best and wisest.

*          God is asking me to “be” the right person (in my actions, thoughts, words, motives & speech)……not try to do everything.

*          Do not “compare myself with others.”  His plan for “me” is unique to me and no other.  Besides, there’s no one more qualified to be me… than me.  Comparison in anything is a killer to my growth and intimacy with God.  If you want to compare yourself with anyone, make it be Jesus and His standards.

*          Are my plans, interests, passions and desires according to “my plans (agenda) or His plans?  It’s helpful and wise to check in “daily” and see what’s on the calendar of “His heart.”

GOD IS MORE CONCERNED ABOUT WHO I AM BECOMING….

THAN WHAT I’LL EVER DO FOR HIM

QUIETNESS is the classroom where you learn to hear God’s voice.”  (Jesus Calling, by Sarah Young)

P.S. If this post has encouraged or challenged you, I’d love to hear from you. Let’s begin a classroom of quiet learners….sound good?!

Published by Dianne Horne

I can’t think of anything I enjoy more than to see lives changed! There’s nothing more that puts “oxygen and joy” into my life than to bring the application of Scripture into the “shoe leather” of our lives and to share it with others. I feel awkward speaking about myself, but I understand it can be helpful to enable others to relate to and enjoy the work of our Lord does in other people. Another down-to-earth way of sharing who I am, is that I love to eat, laugh and to talk about the Lord. I’m not a very exciting individual, but my Savior sure is! I’ve been happily married for many years, and I now reside in Vancouver, B.C., Canada. God has transplanted my husband and I 28 times in our years together; and it is only when in His presence that you can ask the “why questions” as to the adjustments He’s brought us “to” and “through” in the numerous locations and countries we have lived. God’s care, love, forgiveness, faithfulness and moment-by-moment presence has not only carried me (when I had every reason to fall apart), but lifted me to a joy I’ve never known. There’s one thing to have joy when things are going great, and quite another dimension of joy and peace when everything in your world is crumbling and unknown. Most of our lives will appear like “ordinary oatmeal living”, but when we allow Him to “establish our steps”, He alone takes our mundane acts of kindness or aid and makes them “extraordinary” for His purpose in the lives of others. The seasons of caring for my parents and the associated grieving process has forever changed me. It was my honor, joy and privilege to participate with my Lord in what He was accomplishing in their lives, as they both gave their lives to Jesus Christ just days before they were escorted into His presence in heaven. The medical challenges and decisions that needed to be made for a number of those years thrust me into a trust and dependence upon the Lord that I had never known up to that point in my life. In my journey, I’ve come to realize that our “weakness” is our greatest “strength”, because real power, provision, and His purpose being carried out in and through our lives, depends on Him orchestrating such through His sovereignty. My “heartbeat of fulfillment” lies in sharing with women, in various settings, helping them to enjoy, study and apply the principles of God’s Word in a down-to-earth fashion. I thrive interacting with women and encouraging them to put their trust in the One Who knows them best and loves them extravagantly; and to prioritize “spending time alone with God each day” developing their relationship with Him. Our lives aren’t designed to just get answers to prayer….but to know and love a very personal Savior, and to surrender daily to “His plans, His agenda and purpose” for our lives. Several years ago I was challenged to respond to a critical question I had never considered: Why do you exist? What’s your purpose in life? I live to bring an expression of God in the ordinary events of life, seizing every opportunity of serving and delighting in others. I want my life to be an infectious expression of His love for others, and for them to know how special “they are” to Him; and thus be contagious with His grace. My life compass is: After people spend time with me, what do they think of Jesus Christ? The stories that will appear in my blog, are true events that have taken place in my journey. They’re all “very ordinary” circumstances that have occurred through sharing them with Jesus and watching Him orchestrate and demonstrate what He can do when we yield “our ordinary” to the Extraordinary One.

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