Give thanks in all circumstances.

1 Thessalonians 5:12-24 ESV 12 We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, 13 and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves. 14 And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. 15 See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone. 16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 19 Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not despise prophecies, 21 but test everything; hold fast what is good. 22 Abstain from every form of evil. 23 Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.

Give thanks in all circumstances.

I need to see this again and again. As large as possible. In as many places as possible. I need to practice this with every breath I take. Thank you, Lord. Thank you, God. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you for ____________________________ . [insert your troubling situation here] Heavenly Father, I trust You are working things out even though I don’t know the answers, even when I don’t understand what is happening around me, even when my heart is in pain. Please give me Your peace that passes all understanding and guide me in my next step. Thank you for this opportunity to grow in my faith. Thank you for loving me during my confusion, pain, illness, and frustration. Thank you for showing me Your grace and love and provision in this circumstance.

Be at peace among yourselves.

1 Thessalonians 5:12-24 ESV 12 We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, 13 and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves. 14 And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. 15 See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone. 16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 19 Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not despise prophecies, 21 but test everything; hold fast what is good. 22 Abstain from every form of evil. 23 Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.

Be at peace among yourselves.

There is so much conflict these days — between family members and friends, in work places and worship places, between countries and in all corners of the world. Where can we find peace? I cannot control anything or anyone except for myself and how I approach things. And, furthermore, any healthy idea I may even entertain comes from God. When I am reconciled to God — which is all His doing — my heart can rest and be at peace. It doesn’t solve all of the other problems, but it is the start. If my heart is not at peace with God, how can I even think of being at peace with others? The true beginning of being at peace among ourselves is being at peace with God.

Pray without ceasing.

Each week or so there will be a focus verse. Within that verse, there will be daily reflections so we can all sit and soak on a section of Scripture. Granted, it is a very tiny section — just 5-10 sentences, but, as you know, God can say so much in such a little space. And, it is important to sit with His Word and let it take root in our heart and mind.

1 Thessalonians 5:12-24 ESV

12 We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, 13 and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves. 14 And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. 15 See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone. 16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 19 Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not despise prophecies, 21 but test everything; hold fast what is good. 22 Abstain from every form of evil.

23 Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.

Pray without ceasing.

The time to pray is always now, no matter the circumstances surrounding us. But, these days, there are increasingly more reasons to pray. In the midst of so much going on, I actually don’t even know what to say as I pray. Sometimes, that might be preferable. I look at all that is happening and I feel pretty powerless. But prayer is absolutely powerful. Don’t let discouragement stop you from looking to God for peace, rescue, healing, forgiveness, and provision.

Even if you have nothing to say, offer yourself. Sometimes, recognizing that we have nothing to offer is the very place we need to be for God to do His work. Sometimes, just handing the topic over to God and letting Him know what is on our hearts is enough.

Pray without ceasing…

… for Ukraine

… for peace

… for those displaced

… for all countries experiencing unrest

… for those things on your heart

PrayerPoints for 2022

The Lenten season is almost upon us.

It already feels like a heavy time. Thank God for His word, which is always true and never fails.

Beginning on Wednesday, March 2nd, I will post a daily PrayerPoint. I pray these daily PrayerPoints will be a springboard for you in your daily conversation with God. Let’s be open to His Word and seek it on a daily basis!

Discernment

I often consider (rather over consider) what others think about what I am doing. This is a challenge in multiple areas of my life but definitely within the realm of PrayerPoints. You would think that after writing PrayerPoints for 12 or so years (I have totally lost count) that I would know my voice in this space. And if you have been following me for any length of time, you know that things ebb and flow — I come up with a plan to simplify things, but then I lose the spontaneity and, all the while, I am trying to be responsive to the most important voice in the matter — God’s.

But, I am this creature who responds to the rules of man, too. And the discernment of which is which is baffling me at present. PrayerPoints started out as a daily Lenten devotional and it was something I did every morning when I woke up. I would write what was on my heart — where God was working on me. And then, later, it became that thing that I was nervous about and I was thinking ,”Who am I to say anything?” and “Who am I, daring to speak something other than Scripture?” to “What if I am leading someone astray?” to knowing full well that God isn’t like that. He knows I am on this journey with Him. He knows I am growing and struggling and He loves me in and through all of it!

But then I struggled with the idea that I should be more organized and have a plan. And I have been trying spontaneously-planned Mondays — focusing on a verse for the month — being topical — writing more often — and all of the things you have noticed. But, I really think that PrayerPoints felt like the most natural communication was coming when it was a Lenten Devotional that each morning made its appearance in my heart. No planning ahead.

For now, I am going to take an intentional break from PrayerPoints outside of Lent. I am entering a crazy busy season and while I will still try to write down my thoughts on a regular basis, I won’t push the publish button unless something really feels like it should be shared.

I would totally love your feedback about all of this. And, please pray for my discernment!

I assume I will see you March 2nd, 2022 for the next PrayerPoints Lenten devotional series. That seems to be the rhythm that works. But, I am certainly open to what God has to say about that.

God’s peace to you as you navigate these days! I am thankful for God’s grace and care for me and my family. And I encourage you to look for where He is working in your life and heart!

In Him,
Liz

Waiting

We were in on a fun event over the weekend. Our youngest was coming home from Spain after being gone for 9 months and she created an elaborate scheme because wanted to surprise her sister who thought she was coming home a week later.

Things went pretty smoothly — although keeping track of all the “misleadings” was an awful lot of work. And there there were the delays: technical delays from New Jersey. The plane needed some mechanical work.

I couldn’t really argue with that, could I? I knew this plane was going to have precious cargo on it!!!

So, we readjusted our plans several times and tried to think of how we could still have a surprise. A little delay wasn’t a big problem. But the delay kept getting longer and longer. And pretty soon we were stuck spilling the beans to the sister who had no idea the real reason behind why we were visiting her.

We told the very confused and very excited state-side sister that the world traveling sister was coming home right now and we had to go get her from the airport. She was excited, of course, but trying to figure what clues she missed.

And so there would still be an element of surprise we decided it would be fun to surprise the surpriser!

We did a double reverse — when you have concocted a plan (surprise) but it flips around and you are the receiver of the surprise.

We let the state-side sister be the first one to greet the traveling sister at the airport. And, it worked!

So, our youngest is back “home” for a few months. She is hoping the babies (a niece and nephew) will remember her and she is looking forward to hanging out with the fam.

Sometimes our plans are sidetracked and delayed. It’s just how life goes. Sometimes there are important mechanical delays. Sometimes things just don’t go the way we wanted them to. And, sometimes, you get to be in on a surprise from start to finish. Knowing the big picture and having a well thought out plan does not mean things will go the way you want.

And that’s ok. And sometimes it is better. God always has a bigger picture in mind. I just have to keep trusting Him and doing the next thing!

The Spaces

Let’s pray for those spaces in our days!

First of all, it is important to set aside space to speak with God and hear His Word — even when it seems we don’t have it. Maybe even especially when we don’t think we have the space.

But you might be wondering — what are the spaces good for?

Aside from that communication with God, space in our day is good for perspective, rest, unexpected events, emergencies.

Holding space for unexpected situations is important. Recognizing that they are a possibility is wise. Of course, there may be days that are packed in with things we need to do, but that can’t be the regular course of our days.

Those few extra minutes here and there are spaces that give us time to think, connect, ponder, and be. They also give us an opportunity to notice and explore — to inquire and listen.

Spaces in our days allows some separation from the world and some processing time as we move from place to place. It gives us a pause. It gives us a moment to catch our breath.

Heavenly Father — Help me recognize the spaces in my life and what you would like to accomplish through them! Amen.

The Pace

Some days are maxed out and others are slow and steady. And, ideally, there are days where we can unplug and be truly refreshed. Whether the days are fast and furious or calm and relaxing, God’s grace can carry us through.

We all have more influence over the pace of our days than we may want to admit. We agree to things and sometimes those things have demands on our time and then the pace of our day intensifies.

It is ok to take time to consider or reconsider where we are. Is the path we are on going to take us where we want to be? Do we need to step aside or step away from something? Or is God calling to move forward, albeit imperfectly, on a path? Does He work in spite of our shortcomings?

Of course He does. Our shortcomings are nothing new to Him.

God knows we have a certain capacity for any number of things. And His power is made perfect in our weakness. We don’t (and can’t) operate at 110% all the time in every capacity. It’s not realistic. So, while we may be letting ourselves down by not “keeping the pace” that we have set for ourselves in terms of whatever goal we have set, remember that it is more important to “keep the grace” that He holds for us.

The grace that God gives is enough for us and for those around us.

We need to trust His Word.

My grace is sufficient for you. 2 Corinthians 12:9

Thank you, Steve!

The Places

Today, let’s focus on the places of your day!

Those places you actually go. It may feel pretty weird if you are getting out after being restricted for over a year… and maybe you are ready. And, maybe you aren’t quite ready.

Sometimes going anywhere is a treat!

Or, you may have restrictions on your movement due to any number of reasons, so it is definitely about where your mind goes…

Where you go and how you get there isn’t really the point. But do consider the places of your day. Sometimes we are “in a place” and we haven’t moved a muscle. Other times we dread going to a certain place or, at the very least, it brings up uncomfortable memories. Sometimes we are in a mood and I definitely consider that a place — even though it is more of a place of emotion.

Sometimes we are in a place of grief, disappointment, discouragement, disillusionment….

And, sometimes we are in a place of joy, peace, contentment, wonder…

Sometimes all of those places happen within the space of a day. Where we are makes a difference. Presenting all of the above to God is important because it is an opportunity to recognize where we are — in heart, in spirit, and in body.

Even more importantly, let’s let Him be our dwelling place — whether or not we are moving about we can always be in connection with God — being sustained by Him — and recognizing our place with Him from sunrise to the darkness of the night.

Lord, you have been our dwelling place
    throughout all generations.
Before the mountains were born
    or you brought forth the whole world,
    from everlasting to everlasting you are God. Psalm 90:1-2 NIV

Thank you, Barb, for the verse!

The People

Today, let’s pray for the people involved in your day.

There are so many people and interactions you might have in a day — from emails to phone conversations to Zoom or in person meetings to service providers to family…..

When I started really thinking about this, I was almost overwhelmed. Each and every day people (and their dispositions and approach) are in our lives. They can impact us and we can impact them! Think of how much our perspectives and attitudes are influenced just because we spent time interacting with someone.

We can’t always control who is on our path for the day. But, as we consider our day, we know we will be in communication with others. It is good to think about where we are and how we influence communication.

What are we bringing into the interactions?

Have we given our own challenges and burdens to God so that we are free to hear and notice the needs of others?

Is it time for us to “come clean” and admit we are struggling so that those who care for us can intercede for us?

In the end, the person we spend the most time with is ourselves. So, that is one thing to be thinking about. The others we interact with all have their own things going on and sometimes that comes into play — even without them realizing it. There are times when our days are filled to the brim with interactions.

It is so easy to see why Jesus went off to a quiet place to pray. Let’s guard that time with God and lay out our day. We don’t have to present every detail. We just need to ask Him to cover the day and to help us see what He wants us to see throughout the day.

Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.” Mark 6:31 NIV