Author: Jacquelin Stoner

Jacqui is a writer, teacher, life coach, and an encourager. She walks alongside of individuals who need help navigating to the better place God has envisioned for their lives. She has discovered that God is central to genuine lasting life change.
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GOD IS IN THE HOUSE

The sign read, “Apartment for Rent”, advertising the unit below us.  In the entire year the tenant lived under us, we never heard a peep.  He moved in as a stranger and stayed a stranger.  One day, I tried to exchange names but was met with hostility. Worse yet, what if he had been our housemate? What if he shared our apartment, our furniture, our utilities, our conversations, and our life?  Both his arrival and departure would have affected our lives.  Our time living together would have been awkward (to say the least!) Quickly, I would have removed the welcome mat.

THE NEW NEIGHBOR

John 1:1-14 describes someone whose entrance into the world rocked the existence of mankind. He is the divine Housemate. This new neighbor is called “The Word”. If the Word had to fill out an application to live with us, he would list His previous address as heaven. As for references, He would list God. According to John, this new tenant sent shockwaves across the universe. He rocked the world. Another name for the Tenant is: “Immanuel” (God with us).

VISIBLE PRESENCE OF GOD AMONG MEN

The Old Testament describes God living in the midst of His people. The Tabernacle and Solomon’s temple both contained the “Holy of Holies,” also called by Jewish rabbis the “Shekinah Glory, the visible presence of God among men”. God decided to dwell among a people who rarely loved or fully devoted themselves to Him.  In the Book of John, God again pitches His tent, but this time the Tent is in human form, Immanuel. Spurgeon warns us about our attitude toward the new Neighbor, “Do not let us live as if God were a long way off.” 

GOD’S FAVOR TOWARD THE UNWORTHY

Immanuel did not come as judge and executioner. All of us were already guilty before Him and doomed to everlasting punishment. John Piper writes: “The Word, the Son, who is God, became flesh to reveal a divine glory that is full of grace and truth. The Word of God became flesh to be gracious to us.” “Grace” is “God’s favor toward the unworthy”. In His grace, God is willing to forgive us and bless us abundantly, even though we don’t deserve to be treated well or dealt with generously. Piper continues, “The Word became flesh so that this graciousness to us would come in accord with God’s truthfulness. This is expensive grace. The price led straight to Jesus’ death on the cross. In fact, this is why he became flesh. He had to have flesh in order to die.”

GOD WANTS TO DWELL WITH YOU

God wants to permanently dwell with us through Immanuel. You don’t have to fight to make a connection with this new Neighbor; invite Him in. He will come to you, and nothing will ever remain the same. God is in the House! This Neighbor rocks my world. He lives in my apartment, my heart, my soul.  He promises to never leave me or forsake me.  I don’t ever have to go searching for someone or something else. That spiritual advertisement announcing room for rent has gone down, because God makes His home with me for eternity. Have you invited Him in?

In case you want to read further about this New Neighbor, click Revelation 19:11-16

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MY PERFECT HOME

We experienced a torrential downpour, and Bill was away from home. I definitely heard water pouring somewhere inside the house, but no faucets were turned on. Finally, I checked the basement. To my horror, the deep window well was flooded. Water surged out from the cement block wall. We had only lived in the house for a month.

The previous owner lied in his disclosure paperwork. The list of major repairs needed in our home expanded month after month. Thus began my addiction to home improvement shows in which contractors transform the fractured into beautiful dwellings. However, plumbing, electrical, wear and tear, and catastrophes are part of this broken planet. Even after the best home improvements, something eventually breaks yet again.

MY MASTER BUILDER

We need a better builder and architect. When Jesus said,  “I am going away to make ready a place for you” (John 14:2-3), He was not referring to our home in Paradise, PA. The Master Carpenter and Creator of the Universe is at work this moment. Can you imagine me having this conversation:

“How did you find your new home’s architect and builder?”

“I found His name in an ancient book. He created the earth, the stars and galaxies, and everything that breathes. No need to check His references!”

NO FIXER-UPPERS IN HEAVEN

According to Revelation 21:1-8 (NET & AMP), Jesus’ work on our eternal homes is perfect. There are no “fixer-uppers” in Heaven. Not only will all things be fresh and original in the new heaven and earth, but they will permanently stay that way. Sin’s corruption, destruction, and decay will be nonexistent. I’ve never lived in a brand new house, let alone an eternal, perfect dwelling created by my Savior.

GOD HIMSELF WILL DWELL WITH US

Read about the neighborhood for these dwellings. “Look! The residence of God is among human beings. He will live among them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them. I cannot fathom such a place. And God’s plan is for me and all His children to live with Him? There won’t even be a housing shortage. Jesus designs everything perfectly!

A PLACE OVERFLOWING WITH JOY

Can you imagine the atmosphere in this new locale? It constantly overflows with joy. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death will not exist any more—or mourning, or crying, or pain, for the former things have ceased to exist.”

God desires above all to live among His people. God dwells permanently in the neighborhood! Even on my best day, people get tired of me (and rightly so). Yet God, Almighty God, desires to live in the midst of all his redeemed children. We won’t be broken anymore! No longer will sin follow us around like a ball and chain. We will be eternally free!

NO MORTGAGES IN HEAVEN

What is the cost of this new home? It is paid in full by the blood of Christ. I inherit my home from my Heavenly Father. “The one who conquers will inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My son.  What is the alternative dwelling place for those who reject His gift? “The lake that burns with fire and sulfur.”

YOUR INVITATION

Do you long to dwell with God? Are you tired of the brokenness of this world?  Take heart, God has made His perfect plan. He has paid the price, there is no mortgage, and the invitation is open. Come to Him humbly, admit there is no way you can save yourself, and make Him your Lord and Savior. God wants you to dwell with Him where nothing ever breaks again.

Click to read more about the New Heaven and the New Earth

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WHAT IS DEAD IS DEAD

Read: Romans 6:1-11

In the movie “Weekend at Bernie’s”, Larry and Richard are overjoyed to be invited to their boss Bernie’s luxurious getaway. However, upon arrival, to their horror, they discover Bernie’s dead body. Before they can call the authorities, guests arrive for Bernie’s weekend bash. To the pair’s amazement, the guests are too busy partying to notice Bernie is dead. Large sunglasses conceal his lifeless face. Fearing being implicated in Bernie’s death and wanting to enjoy the holiday, Larry and Richard maintain the illusion that Bernie is still alive. The guests respond to Bernie as if he were alive, but in reality, he is dead.

NO LONGER ME!

Did you know we are also dead? In Christ, believers are “those who have died to sin. For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with.”  Romans teaches that we have been made dead to our previous master: sin. Yet we often still live as if sin is our overlord. Instead of running from our previous master, we invite sin in. It requires courage to live the reality of not being ruled by sin.

TYRANNY HAS BEEN BROKEN

There is the story of the early church leader Augustine being accosted by a woman who had been his mistress before his conversion. When he turned and walked away quickly, she called after him, “Augustine, it’s me! It’s me!” Quickening his pace, he called back over his shoulder, “Yes, I know, but it’s no longer me!”

Who are you in Christ? Do you daily choose to live as a child of God or do you hold tight to the old patterns of your life before Christ? The Apostle Paul wrote that he was “dead to sin and alive to God”.

William McDonald explains: “A dead man has nothing to do with immorality, lying, cheating, gossiping, or any other sin. The crucifixion of the old man at Calvary means that the body of sin has been put out of commission. The body of sin does not refer to the physical body. Rather, it means indwelling sin which is personified as a tyrant, ruling the person. This body of sin is done away with, that is, annulled or rendered inoperative as a controlling power. The last clause shows that this is the meaning: that we should no longer be slaves of sin. The tyranny of sin over us has been broken.” In Christ, for the first time in our lives, we have the choice to live totally alive to God.

AN HOURLY CHOICE

We do not have to let sin reign. This is a daily, hourly, and sometimes minute-by-minute decision for a believer. Who do I choose to make Lord over my life? It is often uncomfortable and difficult as my old master sin entices me into old patterns, old behaviors, and doing what comes naturally. “In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires.”

LIVE FOR LIFE INSTEAD OF DEATH

Romans 6 uses the word “death” thirteen times. What is dead is dead. Bernie was dead, but his acquaintances refused to accept it. They enjoyed Bernie. Are you like Bernie with sunglasses concealing your choice to habitually live in the death Christ freed you from? Augustine would say, “RUN!!!!” Run to Jesus and make Him the Lord of your life. Live for life instead of death.

Click to read more on breaking the tyranny of sin.

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JESUS, DON’T YOU CARE?

A “furious squall” overcomes the small vessel. Experienced fishermen scream in terror. The storm came out of nowhere with its sudden, violent, and intense burst of wind, accompanied by rain. The winds rapidly increase, visibility is zero, and the waves break over their craft. Will their boat soon be matchsticks? This is not a night to be caught out in the pitch-black water. No wonder they wake Jesus up and yell, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?” (Mark 4:35-40)

DON’T YOU CARE IF WE DROWN?

Last week Bill had yet more medical tests. The results gave no answers. The clock ticked slowly as we endured more time without a clear diagnosis. Doesn’t God hear? Doesn’t He care? “Jesus, “don’t you care if we drown?” The waves threaten to bury us.

More than just to my waves of fear, Jesus says to me, “Quiet! Be still!” Why am I so afraid? Does God plan to abandon us in the storm?

MY CHOICES

What are my choices? Jesus said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

THE DECISION

A friend recently reminded me that years ago, we went through a life season even more challenging than this one. God presented me with a choice. I could either roll up in a ball and give up, or I could begin declaring His Word, even if I do not feel it. Right now, I choose to trust. My emotions often do not line up, but with the Psalmist, I firmly declare: “I relied completely on the Lord, and he turned toward me and heard my cry for help. He lifted me out of the watery pit, out of the slimy mud. He placed my feet on a rock and gave me secure footing. He gave me reason to sing a new song, praising our God. May many see what God has done, so that they might swear allegiance to him and trust in the Lord” (Psalm 40:1-3).

Jesus knows the waters we pass through. He knows the waves that threaten to drown us. He cares. I choose to sing.

“He gave me reason to sing a new song, praising our God. May many see what God has done, so that they might swear allegiance to Him and trust in the Lord.”

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SETTLING FOR LESS

I wanted more from God, but I settled for less of Him. I threw myself into teaching more women, leading more choirs, organizing more musical performances, and obtaining more education. If one receives a medal for “More”, I would have won it. At the same time, I spent less time being still. There I was, running hellbent toward the cliff’s edge of busyness, regardless of the cost. My husband was a pastor. We spent every Sunday proclaiming hope while quietly wondering where ours went. If you expected us to jump higher, we did so. We thought this was what God wanted and settled for it.

I settled for less quiet, less time with our sons, and fewer dates with my spouse. Worst of all, I settled for less of God. I did, and I did, and I did for years. Looking back, I don’t know how I sustained the pace. You name it, it was probably on my resume. The price was high: damaged relationships, continual exhaustion, and stolen joy. Someone said, “If the devil can make you do bad, he will make you do busy.” I thought I was getting to know Jesus better. I was busy, but I knew Him less.

And then God gradually swept it all away beginning in 2011. The pastorate went up in smoke, my deep involvement in directing and teaching music faded away, and women’s ministry exited with the church. And there we were, the calendar empty. Our busyness turned to ashes.

What did God do? Where was He amidst this? I know what I wanted Him to do: to fill our lives with all the activities we had before. God didn’t listen to me. Instead, He pulled me further and deeper toward the solitary life. “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10) is hard for someone who is a creative workaholic. I cried. God laughed. He finally caught my attention.

God tugged and lugged me into Himself. It was not a pretty sight. I resisted and wanted my calendar full. My heart grieved with a lack of purpose. What was my identity? That’s when I began taking long walks. I printed out verses and memorized them. “I waited patiently for the Lord; He turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; He set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand” (Psalm 40:1-2). God told me to wait. He irritated and annoyed me. Slowly, He untangled my iron grip around my former life so I could grasp the fuller life. I thought that busyness was more. In God’s eyes, it was less.

On paper, my present life appears empty in comparison. Rarely am I on stage, I don’t run marathon music programs, the number of women I disciple is limited, and my voice is muted. Surprisingly, I find my new life far richer than the old. I spend time with Jesus, not because I’m preparing to teach a Bible study, but because Jesus and I are having coffee together. I talk to Him, not because it is the expected thing to do, but because He is the One Who constantly loves me. His words pull and stretch me far beyond my comfort zone; they are amazing. I write for hours, not because my audience is huge, but His voice whispers to me. I coach writers not because I’m the best teacher, but because others also need to discover their voices. The quiet of this path is right where He wants me.

All those years, I settled for less. Thank God, He robbed me of activity and gave me Himself.

Click to read more about how “being still” can impact your life.

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WHAT TO PLACE ON THE ALTAR

How do you behave in adversity? II Chronicles 20:1-30 records a dire situation. Messengers arrive and report to Judah’s King Jehoshaphat: “’A huge army is attacking you from the other side of the Dead Sea, from the direction of Edom’…Jehoshaphat was afraid, so he decided to seek the Lord’s advice. He decreed that all Judah should observe a fast. The people of Judah assembled to ask for the Lord’s help; they came from all the cities of Judah to ask for the Lord’s help.”

CONNECTION TO FASTING

The Kingdom of Judah is in danger of being annihilated and Jehoshaphat’s solution is to abstain from lunch? Avoid Chick-Fil-A? What is the practice of fasting? “Fasting is not about manipulating God. It will not cause God to do something that is outside of His will. Fasting is about changing yourself to be in agreement with God’s plan and to be prepared to carry out your role in His plan.” In my last post I wrote about placing things of God’s altar. A great way to prepare yourself is to fast. Get your mind off your everyday appetites and center on God. Fasting can do this.

LAYING FEAR ON THE ALTAR

Jehoshaphat prays an honest prayer, “We are powerless against this huge army that attacks us. We don’t know what we should do; we look to You for help.” He lays the battle before God. Then he has the faith to tell his people, “Don’t be afraid and don’t panic because of this huge army! For the battle is not yours, but God’s.…you will not fight in this battle. Take your positions, stand, and watch the Lord deliver you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Don’t be afraid and don’t panic! Tomorrow march out toward them; the Lord is with you!”

NO TYPICAL ACTION MOTIVE

This is not like any action movie I have ever seen. God is on the move and not soldiers frantically manning the guns, crossing hoping against hope for a good outcome. This is a different approach to warfare. Hearts are prepared by fasting and centered on God. They lay their fears on the altar.

RUNNING TO WORSHIP

Shouldn’t the people instead run to the armory??? No, “Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face toward the ground, and all the people of Judah and the residents of Jerusalem fell down before the Lord and worshiped him”. Notice, their fighting positions are not upright, but they are face down before the Lord. They run to worship. Hearts are placed on the altar.

THE PEOPLE SING AND GOD FIGHTS

I love the next part. Jehoshaphat “met with the people and appointed musicians to play before the Lord and praise his majestic splendor. As they marched ahead of the warriors they said: ‘Give thanks to the Lord, for his loyal love endures.’ When they began to shout and praise, the Lord suddenly attacked.” Did you notice Who attacks the enemy and wins the battle? It is God!

RETURN TO THE ALTAR

Then all the men of Judah and Jerusalem returned joyfully to Jerusalem with Jehoshaphat leading them; the Lord had given them reason to rejoice over their enemies.  They entered Jerusalem to the sound of stringed instruments and trumpets and proceeded to the temple of the Lord.   They return to where it all began. At the altar.

HE PLEADS FOR YOU AT THE ALTAR

What battles are you engaged in? Are you exhausted, alone and beyond all hope? Has Satan gotten the upper hand? Come to the altar. Place your burden down. Remember the observation of Thomas Brooks, “A humble soul is good at turning Satan over to the Lord Jesus, and this increases Satan’s hell.” Proclaim with centuries of believers: “Christ is my advocate, my strength, and my Redeemer, and He will plead for me.”

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LAY IT AT THE ALTAR

A large church in Florida impresses me every time they end a service. Intentionally, time is left after the sermon for people to come forward to kneel and pray.  Common place individuals visibly respond to the Word of God and to the Uncommon God. They lay their hearts open to the Holy Spirit, some for conversion and others hand over the direction of their lives and circumstances to God. Both hearts and wills are placed on the altar.

BUILDING AN ALTAR IN THE MIDST OF FEAR

An altar is mentioned in Ezra chapter three, the first public structure built by the Jews returning from the 70 year exile. “They established the altar on its foundations, even though they were in terror of the local peoples, and they offered burnt offerings on it to the Lord, both the morning and the evening offerings.” The destruction of Jerusalem by King Nebuchadnezzar in 586 B.C. left an indelible psychological and spiritual imprint upon the Jews. Persian King Cyrus the Great miraculously gave them permission to return to their home country to rebuild the Temple. However, deadly adversaries surrounded the returning people. The returnees had good reason to be afraid. Yet they built an altar. Shouldn’t they first build fortifications and barricades against their foes?

WHAT IS AN ALTAR?

The answer is: they did.  They laid their hearts on God’s altar. “An altar represents a person’s desire to consecrate himself fully to the Lord. Every human heart has an invisible altar where the war between the flesh and the spirit rages. When we surrender areas of our lives to the control of the Holy Spirit, we are in effect laying that area on the altar before God.” God can then build fortifications and barricades against our foes. The spiritual battle we engage in becomes God’s battle. It is no longer ours alone.

CHRIST WILL PLEAD FOR ME

Thomas Brooks wrote: “A humble soul being once in a great conflict with Satan said to Satan: ‘Satan, reason not with me—I am but weak. If you have anything to say, say it to Christ; He is my advocate, my strength, and my Redeemer, and He will plead for me.’ A humble soul is good at turning Satan over to the Lord Jesus, and this increases Satan’s hell.” Thomas Brooks (1608-1670) was a puritan who wrote one of the best works on temptations and Satan’s onslaught against the Christian soul. He knew firsthand about going to battle and laying everything on the altar before God.

COME TO THE ALTAR

Is the battle too much for you? Do you feel exhausted, alone and beyond all hope? Has Satan gotten the upper hand? Come to the altar. Place your burden down. Remember, “a humble soul is good at turning Satan over to the Lord Jesus, and this increases Satan’s hell.” Proclaim with centuries of believers: “Christ is my advocate, my strength, and my Redeemer, and He will plead for me.”

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WHILE THE CAT’S AWAY…

I remember as a student, when the teacher was out of the classroom we children often had a field day. obedience was lip service only. In Neh. 10:28-39, the people publicly commit to keep and observe all the commandments of God. A group of leaders also sign and submit a document committing themselves to obeying the Lord and keeping His laws (Neh. 9:38). The way to hell is paved with lip service and good intentions.

NEHEMIAH RETURNS AND IS HORRIFIED

In Nehemiah 13:4-31, Nehemiah is called back to Persia, for about two years. The teacher is “out of the classroom.” What a surprise awaits Nehemiah when the King allows Nehemiah to return to Jerusalem. The teacher returns and is horrified.

SOMETHING SERIOUSLY WRONG

“While the cat’s away, the mice will play.” The Jews have been busy playing away. The High Priest, Eliashib, sets up Tobiah, archenemy of both Nehemiah and God with a business office in the holy Temple. Tobiah’s designated space is the storeroom dedicated to hold the Temple articles and offerings. During Nehemiah’s absence, the people stopped bringing their tithes and offerings to the Levites. Eliashib is pragmatic and lends the space to Tobiah. Eliashib’s former declarations of reverence and obedience to God are empty words. Denied a living wage from the tithes, the Levites gradually leave their Temple duties and return home to farm. Something is seriously wrong with this picture! Sounds like both mice and rats are playing away.

Nehemiah learns about Tobiah. How could things have gone downhill so quickly? He tosses Tobiah out the Temple doors and restores the room to its designated use: storage of Temple articles and offerings. With their wages restored, the Levites can return to their dedicated service in the Temple.

GOD RELAGATED TO A STORAGE CLOSET

But there is more. Nehemiah looks out his window on the Sabbath and notices people back to their old tricks of doing business on God’s day. What busy people! Treading grapes, transporting merchandise, and buying fish. They forget God is their Provider alone and worthy of worship. Commerce comes first. They spiritually relegate God to a storage closet. Maybe they think, “We have bills to pay, and God surely isn’t going to mind if we stop giving. We must take care of ourselves first and possibly give God something if there is anything left over.” The mice play away without regard of God.

THE MICE TAKE NO NOTICE OF GOD

Nehemiah goes into action. He orders locking the city’s gates at the beginning of Sabbath and unlocking them at the end of Sabbath. Can you hear the resentment of the businessmen? How dare Nehemiah shut down their busiest day? They forget their promise of allegiance to God alone. The mice take no notice of God.

HEARTS RUNNING ASTRAY

Nehemiah also notices the voices of children in the city, but the language is not Hebrew. The language belongs to heathen women again invited into marriage with the Jews. Don’t the people remember what had happened to King Solomon’s heart when he personally entered hundreds of such marriages? His heart ran astray. Nehemiah learns that a grandson of High Priest Eliashib made such an unholy alliance. The kicker is that the wife is Sanballat’s daughter. Sanballat was an even worse enemy than Tobiah.

Repeatedly Nehemiah prays in this chapter. Listen to the anguish in his prayers. During his previous twelve years with them, the people presented a veneer of goodness and obedience. The teacher was in the room. But once the teacher exits, the students’ true nature appears.

HANDING THE REINS OVER

Sin always crouches at the door. Satan is a roaring lion, the thief and destroyer. It is easy to sign a piece of paper and say one will live for Christ. It is quite another to daily choose to take God seriously and consistently live for Him alone. Unless we hand the reins of our lives over to the Holy Spirit, things go down fast. Don’t be the mouse that plays away. Let the Holy Spirit consistently live and guide in the classroom of your heart.

Click to read more about walking with the Spirit.

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DO YOU WANT TO BE UPENDED?

“Do you want to get well?” was the question posed by the stranger in John 5:1-14. The question took the disabled man off guard. 38 years of his life spent not being able to walk. No hope of a cure. Of course he would love to be able to walk! But what if Jesus rephrased the question to “Do you want your entire life upended?” Upended means “set or turned on its end or upside down”. Did the man truly want his life turned upside down by Jesus?  

EVERYTHING CHANGED AT A PRICE

Being upended can be both painful and glorious. Jesus upended/transformed our lives beginning with Bill’s initial hospitalization November 25th, 2025. Everything changed at a price. I find being transformed by God is both simultaneously agonizing and wonderful. It depends on which day of the week you ask me on how my emotions respond. Some days I am like Job’s wife, face turned backwards to the past, yet God yanks me forward. So glad that God chooses His best not based upon my emotional state.

HEALING IS MESSY

At this point, we realize Bill’s illness is complicated. Great variables continue to play out with the specialists. Healing is messy in many ways. Jesus apparently thought there was more to the disabled man’s healing than whether the guy’s legs worked. Jesus says (and this also may sound abrupt), “Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.” The man had spiritual disabilities in need of healing.

DECREPIT AND FRAIL

All of us carry our sin sickness inside, hidden away from prying eyes. Jesus wants to open the windows and expose me. Why can’t He just close the blinds, especially on those days where I am both decrepit and frail? I ask for more than physical healing. I am upended.

HE DRAWS ME DEEPER

I might not have the strength to get the dishes done, go to the store, or stand for extensive periods of time, but God continues to draw me into greater and deeper conversations with Him. God talks slowly to me as I am both slow and dull-witted in understanding and obeying.

NO MORE TIMID PRAYERS

No more timid tiny prayers. This is the season for banging on the gates of Heaven. Claiming victories yet to unfold in living a transformed life. I want to be transformed by God. “Transformation” means “change or renewal from a life that no longer conforms to the ways of the world to one that pleases God” (Romans 12:2) I beg God to upend me.

Are you also willing to be upended by God?

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HOW TO BE UNOFFENDABLE

WEEK #2

I have an amazing gift. In the middle of the night I can wake up and fully review the latest pain of the day. I then compose an entire plan in my head how I propose to respond to what hurt me. Wait! Did I say this is a gift? No, it is a curse. I lose a lot of sleep functioning this way.

INSOMNIA

AI says this insomnia can “cause significant mental, physical, and functional impairments, ranging from short-term fatigue and irritability to chronic, serious health conditions. Key effects include accidents.”  Did I include that I am accident prone?

THE TOXIC BREW

I use the excuse “This is the way I am wired.” In Week #1 of this series I referenced the book “Unoffendable“. Brant Hansen observes, “But regardless of how we feel, we can actually have a choice on how we respond. It doesn’t mean that we ignore the situation, but we can act without contempt, anger and bitterness.” Brant also admits, “I have lost a lot of sleep with anger and bitterness. I drank that toxic brew, and it percolates within me.”

MY EXCUSE

Life seems so much easier if I allow myself the excuse: “This is just the way I am wired.” However, God tells us to put down the mug of toxic brew. It should not be percolating in the middle of the night.

There are too many good and healthy paths my Shepherd wants to travel with me. “Be still in the presence of the Lord, and wait patiently for him to act. Don’t worry about evil people who prosper or fret about their wicked schemes. Stop being angry! Turn from your rage! Do not lose your temper—it only leads to harm.” (Psalm 37:7-8)

Lord, help me to turn to Your paths…even in the middle of the night!