Close the path to misery

Oh, come, O Key of David, come,
And open wide our heav’nly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to you, O Israel!

Oh, Come, Oh, Come Emmanuel
Translated: John Neal, 1818-66

There is a path to misery.

Sometimes I have been railroaded down it by circumstances mixed with the company I kept. Sometimes a bout with depression can send me on the path to misery, but it’s not a journey I wish on anyone. Sometimes, our life isn’t actually very miserable but we find ourselves feeling miserable and that is a often a choice. It would be important to get to the root of the misery.

I am not a psychologist. I know I have a positive temperament and I don’t know whether it is a nature or nurture thing. I watched my mom deal with difficult things and it was rare for her to show she was discouraged. Others I know take a tiny negative thing (yes, a very insignificant happening) and it triggers them to an outburst that makes it seem like their world is collapsing.

I do not get it.

I pray that God closes that path to misery for me. But He doesn’t promise that at all.

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, ³for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. [James 1:2-3. ESV]

Joy in the midst of devastating circumstances is not something I have perfected. God’s Word says to count it all joy but I think the best I can wrap my head around is give me peace in these circumstances. We do all have different definitions of trials but I look at the difficult things in my life and it pales in comparison to the difficulties of others.

Lead me to the path that leads on high!

Come, Lord Jesus!
Liz

Mighty power to save

Oh, come O Rod of Jesse’s stem,
From ev’ry foe deliver them
That trust your mighty pow’r to save;
Bring them in vict’ry through the grave.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to you, O Israel!

Oh, Come, Oh, Come Emmanuel
Translated: John Neal, 1818-66

Heavenly Father,

My heart is heavy knowing so many who do not trust in Your mighty power to save. I cling to the knowledge that You do care for the unbelievers — that you seek those lost sheep. I pray for hearts to be open to hearing Your call. May the barriers to faith be removed. May there be a growing self-awareness of the need for Your Son, the Savior. Thank You for providing The Way, The Truth, and The Life in Jesus!

³… he told them this parable: ⁴“What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it? ⁵And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. ⁶And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.’ ⁷Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance. [Luke 15:3-7, ESV]

Come, Lord Jesus!
Liz

In cloud and majesty and awe

Oh, come, oh, come, our Lord of might,
Who to your tribes on Sinai’s height
In ancient times gave holy law,
In cloud and majesty and awe.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to you, O Israel!

I love reading the Old Testament. God’s patience with His people is abundant. If I was in a place to see some of the kind of activity He showed in the time of Moses, I surely would have been in awe at His majesty. But I particularly intrigued by how God moved His people with the pillars of cloud.

And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night. [Exodus 13:21 ESV]

I am often in awe of the work that God does. And when I am still long enough to consider it all, His majesty comes through loud and clear. His ability to create, resurrect, release, and redeem can overwhelm me because I have seen it in my own life.

But those clouds —

I could benefit from seeing them. Sometimes seeing a very direct message or path is helpful. But, God probably knows it is better for me not to have such direct instruction. When I am seeking Him daily, my days go better. My life may not be smoother but I am more at peace. Even in the midst of some chaos, God calms my heart and gently leads me in the way I should go. With my eyes on Him, my direction is in His direction.

Come, Lord Jesus!
Liz

Oh, Come, Oh, Come Emmanuel
Translated: John Neal, 1818-66

Our Wisdom from on High

Oh, come, our Wisdom from on high,
Who ordered all things mightily;
To us the path of knowledge show,
and teach us in her ways to go.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to you, O Israel!

How often do I forget that I don’t have to know everything myself?

God is my wisdom!

Do I see His face in the decisions that are ahead of me? Do I remember that He who created the Earth and everything in it can see the way through my struggles? Can I rely on Him for provision and strength?

God always has the bigger picture in mind and He is working to prepare my heart and mind for what is to come while providing for all I need today. He is the one who knows it all — from the past to the future and intricately weaves it all together. I pray that I always seek His path of knowledge and not what the world deems “wise”.

Come, Lord Jesus!
Liz

Oh, Come, Oh, Come Emmanuel
Translated: John Neal, 1818-66

Ransom the Captives

Oh, Come, Oh, Come Emmanuel
Translated: John Neal, 1818-66

Oh, come, oh, come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to you, O Israel!

I am so thankful Jesus came to set the captives free! I love my freedom in Christ but there are times I still head towards captivity.

For the love of all things pure and beautiful, I don’t know why!

I trip up and get trapped in my own sins and selfish desires. And I often forget to extend the grace and forgiveness so freely given to me. And back to captivity I go.

Thank you, God, for providing the ransom for my life through the death and resurrection of Jesus!

Come, Lord Jesus!
Liz

The Essentials

I have been traveling quite a bit the last few years and I love exploring and learning about the world around me. But that also means I have to pack and unpack a lot. Unfortunately, sometimes I forget the “essentials”.

My essentials change from time to time. That seems weird to say but, depending on my hair situation, I either need mousse or gel. And, recently, I have taken to wearing a hat when I plan to shower a little later in the day. I guess you can say that some of my essentials are seasonal, at least for traveling.

But my core essentials — the things that make me me — continue to make their presence known. These are the elements of me that are difficult for me to suppress. Try as I might, they sort of erupt and are undeniable. It’s almost as if God said, “These are the foundational elements to Liz and watch me as I grow them and use them through the course of her life!”

Writing has always been, and continues to be, an important part of my life. While I still like the physical act of putting pen to paper, these days I do most of my writing on the computer. How I write as well as how consistently I write has changed and adapted with the tools available to me. I even utilize old envelopes and scribble all kinds of ideas on them! That will never change.

Listening to others is a part of my core. I even considered being a counselor at one point. Most often, people just need to know they have been heard. I have a lot to learn from others — and they don’t always share it verbally!

Encouraging others is also important me. I think providing consolation, comfort, and inspiration is sorely lacking in today’s world. The way people can talk to one another, especially when they are not face-to-face, astounds me. I make every effort to love people where the are, give them encouragement for forward progress if that is what they are looking for, and I pray for them. I can’t be the one to do what they need to do but I can pray for them as they take the next step.

Sharing my faith is one of those things that I cannot, nor do I want, to squelch. I certainly consider the receptivity of those around me and am open to where and how the conversation goes. I am called to share my faith. But this faith stuff is entirely God’s business. God’s work in my life is amazing. The details He has covered before I even knew they needed to be addressed, the opportunities He has created out of ugly situations, the gift of Jesus, the comfort and conviction of the Holy Spirit, and the forgiveness of my sins — my ugly and selfish sins. Sharing my faith is about what God has done for me but also what He has done for the sea of humanity. The sharing of my faith isn’t always through words.

What are your essentials — those core elements God has been developing in you over the course of your life?

Come, Lord Jesus!
Liz

Look Up

Sometimes I get so focused on a book or my computer that I don’t look up. I don’t pay attention to where I am or where I might be going. I don’t see who or what is coming towards me. I am in my own little world with thoughts that carry me away from the space I am occupying.

It isn’t necessarily a bad thing to be focused. But it isn’t necessarily a good thing either. I want my surgeon focused on my surgery. I want drivers around me to be focused on their task of driving. But if I am regularly disappearing from the goings-on of life, I need to ask myself why.

Looking up is a way of getting my bearings. When I look up to my Creator, I make a greater connection with His creation. I was created to connect, but it is hard to do it when I am not looking up and engaging in the world around me.

Come, Lord Jesus!
Liz

Making Room

There are times I need to create the space for something that I value. If I don’t reserve or set aside the time, other things take over and the urgent trumps the essential.

The days that are so full that I don’t have time to think are often days that drain me. I appreciate having the time to contemplate and react with intentionality. I also like to have room for the mistakes, the “this is taking longer than it should”, and the learning curves that come with software updates or system failures.

When I allow for space for the unknowns, I have the time to think through them. Some unknowns are good, some are bad, and some are neutral but they all take some space in my head, my day, and sometimes, even in my heart.

When I think about making more room in my life for prayer and studying Scripture, it seems odd to put limits on the amount of time I have to offer to this endeavor. Of course, I could exclusively study for the rest of my remaining days and it would never be enough. But I also know that my calling is not to devote every waking moment to studying God’s Word and His ways.

Thankfully He walks with me and guides me and leads me. As I give Him more room to move and work within my life, I know He is using His Word to mold and shape me.

Come, Lord Jesus!
Liz

Clutter

When preparing for guests, I would prefer to eliminate clutter but, I don’t always get around to it. Of course, guests are usually coming to see me and not my home. But I know I relax more when things are calm around me. But if we have a strong relationship, it truly doesn’t matter.

I know some people think they need to clean up their lives before they respond to Jesus. But He loves us before things are, in our limited perspective, neat and tidy. Jesus comes into the mess and the stress of our lives and loves anyway.

I hope we all have friends who can drop in without an announcement and be welcomed instead of being mortified and embarrassed that things aren’t up to perfection. Those who know me know they are going to get a little clutter, even if their visit is announced. Jesus knows it, too. He comes to redeem, restore, and renew. He sees through the clutter of our hearts and lives and shows us what is essential. He isn’t looking for perfection, He is perfection.

Come, Lord Jesus!
Liz

PrayerPoints are an opportunity for me to pause and consider where my heart is this holiday season. Thank you for reading along and thinking about it too!

Me first….

I usually defer to others. Not because I don’t consider myself worthy of whatever it is we are deciding or doing but because I often do not really have a preference. When I do have a preference, I share it. But there are absolutely times when I need to be first:

in Confession: While I am not required to confess to others in order to be forgiven it does go a long way in relationships. It is good for me to be first to confess my wrongs. There are plenty of them, of course. But waiting for someone else to confess when I am in a conflict with them isn’t helpful. The longer I wait, the longer I am stewing and justifying my own behavior. Instead of digging my heels in and waiting, I should take the first step.

In Forgiveness: I should never hesitate extending forgiveness. It actually benefits me more than the offender. God knows the heart. And He certainly knows mine after all these years. He knows all I have been forgiven for. And while He casts my sins as far as the East is from the West, it would be good for me to remember just as a point of reference. It is a huge shame to withhold forgiveness. But when I do, the true damage is done to me and my relationship with God.

In Giving: When it comes to sharing, I can start things off: lead by example. Others may not follow along, but it should not dissuade me. Giving often does more for the giver than the receiver and the act of giving grows my heart and my compassion.

Come, Lord Jesus!
Liz

As we prepare for Jesus in these days leading up to Christmas, PrayerPoints will be published daily. To learn more about the history of Advent and history behind the advent wreath and candles, CLICK HERE!