Return. Refocus. Reunite / Reconcile.

LET GOD BE YOUR STEERING WHEEL

A few days ago when reading and studying the Bible, including Psalm 62, I wrote,

Whatever happens
God is our refuge and strength
our place of comfort and rest.
Abide in Me, God says
Abide in Me.
The problems are still present
but by concentrating on Me,
you allow Me to take control,
to take charge of the situation
and bring it to pass.

And then anger struck

and instead of concentrating on Jesus,
I concentrated on what made me angry.

Instead of allowing Jesus to take control
and take charge, Satan took charge

The anger grew by leaps and bounds
as pain and disappointment and irritation and frustration
and miscommunication
wormed their way to the surface
of our hearts and spewed its way out of our mouths
with no evidence of kindness or gentleness
or patience or self-control.

Failed!

God tested
and what He saw brought no rejoicing,
but only deep sadness and extreme disappointment

Is it worth it!? -- to let our anger over whatever
come between our personal relationship with and love for
the Lord Jesus?

If we truly love the Lord -- but we are human -- yes, and as humans, we make mistakes
and errors and have failings, but we do not and should not succumb to being failures.

God knows we will fail, for we are not perfect. If we were, there would have been no reason for God to send His Son to us to save us from eternal destruction, death.

So He knows how we are. But He also knows who we are -- His -- personally created and designed for Him and His purpose. He knows what is uniquely us, even though we often are way off track. We travel routes that do not seek the goodness of God. We are concerned with ourselves and in our interactions with others, instead of seeking God's response, we jump in, saying whatever comes to mind. And there we fail.

Return.
Refocus.
Reunite / Reconcile.

Let God be your steering wheel -- not just for prayer time or Bible study, or any old some time, but ALL the time.

Consider your every action -- what you speak and what you do, so it will be pleasing to the one who hears and sees and most especially, so it will be pleasing and glorifying to our Heavenly Father.

It's not about me. It's about God. The sooner we see that and acknowledge it and respond accordingly, "me" time will be "God" time and we will each see the unique person we are -- the one God designed.

Love God. Love Him more. Love yourself less. It is not our personal wants and needs that will get us where we need to be. The steps to take are
Returning to God
Refocusing on God
Reuniting and Reconciling with God

"Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides me Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing." (John 15: 4-5 NKJV)

WE ARE, BUT WE ARE NOT

God tells us in 2 Corinthians 4: 8-9,

"We are hard pressed on every side,
we are perplexed,
persecuted, struck down ...

yet,

we are not crushed,
not in despair
not forsaken
not destroyed.

We act like we are what we're not. Jesus says we are not crushed, we are not in despair, we are not forsaken, we are not destroyed, yet we act like we are. We give in to the pressure around us. We believe we are failures. We fail to see God's goodness and our intense need for Him and all He is and all we can be through Him.

God sent the Holy Spirit to live in our hearts when we accepted God's Son, Jesus, as our personal Lord and Savior. The Holy Spirit was sent to teach us God's way and to enable us to remember all things Jesus has said.

ARE YOU OPEN OR CLOSED?

How can we learn if we are not willing to be taught and willing to change?

How can we remember if we are not in His word daily, reading and studying?

How can we know what to remember and what is true?

Clinging to the past, to the way you've always done it, does not bring us clsoer to God.

God's attention is on us -- where does our attention lie? Are we focused on Him or are we centered on "me"?

Fear grows
Anxiety

Where is your security?

Why do you fear what may come?

If you belong to Jesus, you have your security. Not just for eternity, but here and now. Look to Him for your answers, instead of relying on your own eyes and ears and thinking.

We do not see the whole picture. We are incomplete. We see very dimly. We look in the mirror, but that is only a reflection of ourselves.

We/you/I need Jesus TODAY, TOMORROW, THIS MINUTE, ALL THE TIME.

Live in the Light of His Word,
not in the dullness and darkness
of yourself and of the world

Come.

Return
to Jesus

Refocus
on Jesus

Reunite/Reconcile
with Jesus

and be who you are meant to be.

(c) Cathy Orrick Luders

written Dec. 28-31, 2014

Will you be the one?

Will you see the unseen
another needs, another seeks
or simply say the Bible has all the answers?

Will you be the friend
to help another see what the Bible says
or simply ignore the quest
and go on about your business?

Will you be the messenger, the mentor
discussing with others how God’s word
applies personally and in every situation
or simply say to read it and study it for yourself?

God calls us to go
and as we go, to make disciples
teaching how to live His way
and be obedient to His commands

You may have been called by God
You may have answered His call and gone forth
but are you obedient to Him?

(Jesus speaking) “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Amen.”  - Matthew 28:19-20

(c) Cathy Orrick Luders

I AM there, but ...

You cannot see Me at work in your life
but I AM there
I often do my work behind the scenes
Watching
Seeing
Waiting …
for you …
a word, an outstretched hand

You accepted Me into your life
but then you left Me … lying

Where are your praises
your thanksgiving
your prayers
your moments of study and meditation

Why My Child
do you not dwell on what is good?
Why do you not waken and shine
with the Light of My Glory within you and upon you?

Why do you live as though there is no joy?
Why do you act or react with negativity surrounding you?
Why do you not see the good I have for you each and every day ?
“This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it.”  – Psalm 118:24
Why do you see problems – real and perceived, and not see the blessings?
Why do you dwell on all you dislike, all that makes you angry and irritated?
There are things you want, you expect and you desire…. All from another, but,  what about you? What do you want of yourself, what do you expect of yourself, what do you desire of yourself? It is not about what another can do or be for you. It is about what you can do and what you can be with Me, your God, your Savior, your Lord.
“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” – Philippians 4:13 

See the good.
I AM good. All the Time, My Child.
See the good all around you. Soak it in. Connect yourself with Me and you will see the world you live in in a new and different way.
“Trust in the Lord, and do good. Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.” – Psalm 37:4

 You are responsible and held accountable for only your thoughts, only your actions, not those of any other.

 “Be of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own opinion. Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men.  If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men. Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

- Romans 12:16-19, 21

Do not fret. Do not become anxious. Do not worry. Do not be filled with jealousy. Do not be selfish. Do not be envious. Do not provoke another. Do not be conceited.  (Psalm 37, Galatians 5:20-21)

“Resist him, steadfast in the faith.” – 1 Peter 5: 9

I AM at work My child. You cannot see Me, but I can see you. You are different. You are not the person you once were. But you are not complete, you are not perfect.  Only My Son shines with the perfection you still aim for.

I offer you so much -- within the pages of My word are guidelines, instructions
for every aspect of life.

You are defeated and live as such when you dwell on what is wrong or what could go wrong each and every day.

Arise and shine
Begin each day with praise and a prayer --
“Thank you Lord for this day and guide me along the way.  Amen.”

It is short and to the point…
 thanking Me for what I give and praying to Me for guidance.

Remember the prayer throughout the day
Believe in Me
By faith you accepted Me
By faith you became a new person

You say you know I am with you always,
yet your actions do not reveal that wisdom.

When your faith is strong(er)
and your focus is less on you and more on Me
My Presence will be more known to you
and you will, without a doubt, realize
I AM really with you always.

It is a work in progress
Up and down you go
You are never too old to learn,
Never too old to grow
Never smarter or wiser than Me

For I AM
God
of the universe
and all that is,  is MINE

(c) Cathy Orrick Luders

"Count it all joy"

“My friends, consider yourselves fortunate when all kinds of trials come your way,   for you know that when your faith succeeds in facing such trials, the result is the ability to endure.   Make sure that your endurance carries you all the way without failing, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. 

  But if any of you lack wisdom, you should pray to God, who will give it to you; because God gives generously and graciously to all. But when you pray, you must believe and not doubt at all. Whoever doubts is like a wave in the sea that is driven and blown about by the wind.  If you are like that, unable to make up your mind and undecided in all you do, you must not think that you will receive anything from the Lord.” 

  -- James 1:2-7 Today’s  English Version 

Today’s devotional led me to James 1:2-8, which I read in the New King James version.  Perhaps this is where the Lord was leading me, which I didn’t see, couldn’t see, and only see now because it is there in black and white. 

The trials have certainly been there, but I did not consider it fortunate for being in the midst of them. I did not understand what it was God was showing me, what I was to learn. It was all hidden from me. 

What I see now is I need to remain faithful to the Lord and keep my focus on Him and not everything around me, whether it pertains directly or indirectly to me or to someone else. I have opinions, as does everyone, but that does not mean I need to express them every time. I’m supposed to learn patience. 

The testing produces patience. So far, the testing has produced frustration, irritation, anger. So, I’ve failed. Yet, for all my failures, I still seek guidance, and God still hands it out without complaint. 

He still wants the best for His children. 

There will be other trials, other occasions for me to persevere and endure and hopefully come out on top, with the Lord pleased and not filled with dismay.  

To be like Jesus … more and more – that is what we pursue. He who is perfect and complete, He who endured the cross and persevered with all of whom He came into contact. 

 He is patient, and I am not. 

But I can ask of God … I can ask for wisdom, for discernment, for fruitfulness. 

I can ask and believe He will give me what I seek. Without belief, there is only doubt. When doubt sets in, uncertainty grows with leaps and bounds, and we forget where our loyalties lie.  

We forget it is God who is in control. It is not me or you. No matter how much we think we can do, we can’t really do anything without Him.  And that includes the gift or fruit of patience given to His followers by the Holy Spirit.

(c) Cathy Orrick Luders