Immovable Rocks - Guest Post by Meg

This post is a guest post by my sweet friend Meg. Meg is a 24 year old college graduate with a huge heart for Jesus and for people. She has been a blessing to me in the short time I have known her, and she has graciously agreed to share this post while I prepare for our next session together. 

Photo Meg took of those rocks

I went to the lake today to be alone with the Lord. After spending some time talking with Him sitting on top of a picnic table, I wanted to put my feet into the water. I walked around the edge of the lake until I found a place low enough to sit and dangle my feet.

I marveled at the Lord for awhile. I was reminded that the One who controls the waves is the One who gives me life.

The waves were pretty strong today, and I began to focus on how they hit the bank and shot up into the air before receding back into the lake. I was being soaked from my feet all the way up to my knees. Then my attention turned to some rocks on my other side, at the base of the land. The waves hit them with just as much intensity...but even the strongest waves that slammed into the rocks didn’t even cause them to budge. The rocks were immovable.

My mind immediately went to the passage in James that my bible study group has been dwelling in for the past couple of weeks.

“My bretheren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have it’s perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double minded man, unstable in all his ways.”
James 1:2-8

The waves were like the trials and temptations in life. But he who is aware that those trials produce what we need to be sharpened and asks for wisdom in the trial, in FAITH...he will not be overtaken by the waves. He will be firm. Steadfast. Immovable.

Well, then my mind began to think logically about what my eyes were seeing. Realistically, these rocks weren’t EXACTLY immovable. Over time, as the continue to press down, the rocks are slowly worn down, layer by layer. Then my mind went back to the beginning of chapter 1 of James.

“Knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have it’s perfect work that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.”

Those waves are slowly wearing down the rocks but what is being taken away is temporal. When we are in the storm, standing firm in the waves, what the waves wear off of us are the parts that are not perfect and complete...the temporal and fleshly nature. What will be left will be stronger and sanctified -- if we keep our eyes on the One who is in control of the waves. He will not allow more than we can handle with the power of His Holy Spirit! ( 1 Corinthians 10:12-13)

So buckle down and be strong. Put on the whole armor of God (Ephesians 6) so that you can be

firm in the toughest storm….and when you are in the storm, trust that God is refining you into a more sanctified and stronger follower of His. If you need wisdom, ask Him. He’ll give it to you. Memorize the promises God gave you in His Word. Then stand on them. That’s why He gave them to you...to help you be firm. He has given you everything you need to be strong. You just have to take advantage of them and put them to use.

Love and prayers, dear friends!

You can follow Meg on her blog at 

http://megmariem.wordpress.com/

and on Instagram at http://instagram.com/megmariemmm

or on Instagram at http://instagram.com/infocusphotography13

Set Free 10 - Stuck in the Mundane

When you first started a relationship with God, it was probably all you thought about, off and on throughout the day. Or, if you’ve been raised in a Christian environment, maybe it wasn’t all that new? I know we all have ups and downs, highs and lows; times of spiritual power and understanding, and times where we feel so very very human.

That’s okay.

It has taken me a long time to become okay with this. It’s just not okay to be okay with staying in a low spot.

Are you following me? It’s okay to have a spiritual low, or a rough patch, it’s just not okay to be content to stay put there. Crave the more. Crave the uphill.

Sometimes these lows can come from other events in our lives, such as illness, fatigue, a death, or some other thing that has got you physically or emotionally drained.

The good news? That being drained, that extreme low makes room for Jesus. So if you’re in a slump, exalt in the fact that you’ve got more more room for Jesus to fill you up.

More of Him. More grace.

And who doesn’t want that?

We have a few passages to look at, but the first I’d like you to read is 2 Kings 4:1-7

While many of us don’t have to go and borrow emptiness from our friends, this beautiful story shows just how ready and willing God is to just fill us up! The more emptiness the better. And did you notice the same thing I did? Look again at verse 7. There was some left over. God didn’t just look at her current need, and just exactly meet that, He reached down and in not so many words said, “Daughter, let Me be your source. Let Me be your Provider.” And so He will do with each of us. Physically, emotionally, and, yes, Spiritually.

A verse you can probably tell by now is one of my favorites, one I  cling to, especially during these dry spells, is Psalm 103:14.

Psalm 103:14 “for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust.” NIV

And from that dust, that dirt, we are made into clay vessels. Vessels to hold more of Him.

2 Corinthians 4:7 “We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.” NLT

He knows we are fragile. He knows, too, that this fragility brings Him more glory.

Our next passage is Psalm 62. Please take the time to read it now.

Look at verse 3.

Q: How does the enemy view us? (You might need to look at NLT or NIV for this one.)

The enemy views us as crumbled anyway. And he will not hesitate to kick us when we’re down. Already broken pieces are easier to break, don’t you agree? And even though the enemy is persistent, he is going to pick the easiest way to get us down. He’s going to try to get us at our most crumbled state and attack then.

Take heart, and now look at verses 5-8. I love these so much.

Psalm 62:5-8 “Let all that I am wait quietly before God,    for my hope is in him.He alone is my rock and my salvation,    my fortress where I will not be shaken.My victory and honor come from God alone.    He is my refuge, a rock where no enemy can reach me.O my people, trust in him at all times.    Pour out your heart to him,
    for God is our refuge.” NLT emphasis mine

Q: What does verse 8 say we should do with our heart?

The core of us, our center, the lifeblood of all that is us, He asks us to pour out. Pour it out to Him!

Q: What happens when something is poured out?

Please give your insight on this question in the comments section. I’d love to hear your word-pictures!

Some things I came up with were that the container became empty. The worth of that which it once held was lost. The container became vulnerable.

Q: What happens when something is filled?

Again, please share your insight on this question in the comments section!

Some of my ideas were that the container’s identity might change based on what it holds. It is more stable. It is useful.

So let’s be emptied, then. These thoughts and reminders make it actually sound desirable, instead of something to be plagued with. The mundane, empty, dry spell may not actually be that bad. It’s just part of the process.

As long as we don’t stay empty. As long as we let Him fill us.

Let Him be the power in you. 2 Cor 4:7 bears repeating, yes?

I like this from the Message translation:

2 Corinthians 4:7-12 “If you only look at us, you might well miss the brightness. We carry this precious Message around in the unadorned clay pots of our ordinary lives. That’s to prevent anyone from confusing God’s incomparable power with us. As it is, there’s not much chance of that. You know for yourselves that we’re not much to look at. We’ve been surrounded and battered by troubles, but we’re not demoralized; we’re not sure what to do, but we know that God knows what to do; we’ve been spiritually terrorized, but God hasn’t left our side; we’ve been thrown down, but we haven’t broken. What they did to Jesus, they do to us—trial and torture, mockery and murder; what Jesus did among them, he does in us—he lives! Our lives are at constant risk for Jesus’ sake, which makes Jesus’ life all the more evident in us. While we’re going through the worst, you’re getting in on the best!” MSG

Be encouraged in your emptiness. God hasn’t left your side.

Be encouraged if you don’t know what to do next. God knows what to do.

Be encouraged if you’re thrown down. You are not broken.

Be encouraged if you’re going through the worst. You’re getting in on the best.

Let’s close with verses from Psalm 62.

Psalm 62:11-12a “God has spoken plainly,    and I have heard it many times:Power, O God, belongs to you;unfailing love, O Lord, is yours.” NLT

The Painful Lesson 6 – Crumbled Clay

I found the potter working at the wheel. But the vessel he was making did not turn out as he hoped, so he crushed it into a lump of clay and started again.

Today we cover a lot of ground. Our text is from Jeremiah 18 (18:1-17 specifically), 19, 21, 22, 23, & 24

How can we get God to start over on us? Do we really truly want Him to?

It can be so painful.

We’ve talked about how God wants His Bride to be holy. Be worthy of her title. But the only way for that to be accomplished is our complete surrender.

Is it that God just lets go of the wheel and lets us crash our own cart? Maybe. Please don’t misunderstand. God is still in control! He is still here! He has never, and will lever leave. You can count on that if that’s the only thing in all the world you can count on.

Because it is.

Jeremiah must have been like me. Object lessons really hit home for him. I love how God knows each of us so intimately that He knows how to send a message that will deliver the greatest impact; tailored for each of His children.

Don’t you just love Him for that?

Read Jeremiah 18:1-17 & 19

Jeremiah 18:3 “So I did as he told me and found the potter working at his wheel. 4 But the jar he was making did not turn out as he had hoped, so he crushed it into a lump of clay again and started over. 5 Then the Lord gave me this message: 6 “O Israel, can I not do to you as this potter has done to his clay? As the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand.” NLT

I know we have all got to (some of us many times) come to a place where God is all that is left, so God is all we need. And He wants us there sooner rather than later. Some of us are content with God alone, and could take or leave everything else in life. Good for you, if that’s you. But if you’re like me, it has taken hard lesson after lost relationship after hurt heart to get me there. Are you with me?

And it is cyclical, with ups and downs, and do-overs; much like the Israelites really. But God hasn’t let go, hasn’t given up and most definitely is faithful to complete the work He started in you.

Philippians 1:6 “And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.” NLT

So maybe He lets go and lets us crash our own cart. But maybe He has more specific timing and wants it to happen a certain way “so that we know His power.”

Raising up situations. Taking away comfort-zones. God patiently prunes. Purging. God is taking your comfortable land away from you. Read Chapters 21 & 22 Especially take note of 21:14, and 22:5-6

He is taking everything you know, that place you cling to – that maybe you haven’t realized you were leaning on and trusting in more than in God? – He’s turning it to rubble.

Why? Are you still with me? Because we replaced Him. He didn’t value God in our prosperity. In our security. In our happy relationship with that person. In our comfortable job. Because we adulterated ourselves with something- anything- other than Him. Relationships took priority. Or job, or crafting, or cleaning. What about hurt, self-pity? Can you fill in the blank with me on this? Because we violated our covenant (22:9)

Romans 1:18-31

Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts… and [they] received in themselves the due penalty for their error.

See Jeremiah 22, especially 5-6, 12, 20-30

Are you feeling like your life is crumbling? Maybe God destroyed those ‘lovers’ you cheated on Him with, and now all you have is Him. He did it because He loves you, sweet sister.

Next read Jeremiah 23-24. (These are both short chapters. You will be glad you did) Especially take note of 23:23-24 & 29

Jer 23:23 ““Am I a God who is only close at hand?” says the Lord.    “No, I am far away at the same time.24 Can anyone hide from me in a secret place?    Am I not everywhere in all the heavens and earth?”    says the Lord.” NLT

He has been here the whole time. He knows it all. Where did you think you could’ve gone that He couldn’t see?

This makes me just want to curl up into a ball a little. A lot.

But then isn’t that just what He wanted in the first place? A ball. A lump of clay. That lump of clay that He will start over, rebuild and reshape until you are how He intended.

Read Jeremiah 24, looking closely at 24:4-8

Replanted, nurtured, and re-established in Him. Let him give you that heart. It is not going to “just happen”. Dear One, nothing ever “just happens”. He has a very intentional purpose for you. And He cares too much to leave you to chance. He will crumble you and rebuild you as many times as it takes to get it right. And He gives you the heart that you need. Let Him.

Jeremiah 24:7 “I will give them hearts that recognize me as the Lord. They will be my people, and I will be their God, for they will return to me wholeheartedly.” NLT

The Painful Lesson 5 - Broken to Heal

The ground is parched and cracked for lack of rain. Where is God? Don’t abandon us, God. Don’t abandon me. I am Your chosen one. I bear Your name. For Your own reputation’s sake don’t abandon me.

I know you have cried this at one time or another. Right now? No fun, is it? No, the honeymoon is over – and the bride is not ready for that.

But who ended the honeymoon in the first place? Wasn’t it she herself? In this case it was.

“I’m ready to go home. I’m bored. Can’t I go and have some fun by myself for a while? No, I want to carry my own luggage, thank you. I can do this.”

And as the faithful Groom always does, He expresses love. “As you wish.” So He lets go. No, not forever. He’s not even far away. But He lets go.

And when He does, the Bride can’t understand. – we don’t always understand, do we? – I don’t understand. I have taken your name. We have made covenant. I am your bride.

Out text today is Jeremiah 14-17. You can go ahead and read it now, or go along as we reference it.

But who left Who? (15:5-6) You are the one who left, not God. Nobody is going to feel sorry for you; you got what you demanded.

This Bride – we – demand so often the rights that come along with our title, and often try to tell God how we need Him to come through for us, because we want people to see Him in a good light. To see Him love.

We know all the right words, don’t we?

But this one’s not His fault.

We are the unfaithful ones. We are the ones who stepped out on Him.

16:11

It is not forever, though. Our Faithful God knows how long it will take for us to learn this lesson. 14:1-18, 16:15. He keeps a close eye.

See verse 14:17 “My precious people”. He still cares, Dear One!

So let’s go back to that reputation thing. We ask God to honor this Bride – this unfaithful, self-serving, ungrateful Bride – because of His Name. She has taken – we have taken – His name, and we don’t want His reputation to go down with us. We actually might care about that a little, or is it just something we were using as bait? Manipulation? But He knows. He doesn’t want His name to go down with us, either. See 16:21

Jeremiah 16:21 “The Lord says,“Now I will show them my power;    now I will show them my might.At last they will know and understand    that I am the Lord.” NLT

God is not a pushover. And while He is tender, He is not a softie. He does mean business  He does want His Bride back.

But this doesn’t apply to me.

Is that what you are thinking?

Are you sure about that? Listen, Sweet One. Do not close off your ears because it sounds ugly.

Romans 3:10 “As the Scriptures say, “No one is righteous—    not even one.” NLT 

What we are looking at is every part of the spectrum. Those willfully throwing away the covenant, or those throwing it out without realizing it. Let’s examine the latter to see if it fits: This Bride is claiming all the rights of a bride, but not wanting to hold up her side of the bargain. Not really really wanting to surrender all. All her way. Surrender what she wants to do and thinks will make her happy.

See in 17:4 “The wonderful possession I have reserved for you    will slip from your hands…” NLT

But watch her treasure slip away. Oh, the Groom has something special just for her, but, it was for His Bride, and she doesn’t want to truly commit to that role.

But I do. I am still not fitting in this picture.

Is that what I heard you say? That’s what I said. But read, now, in its context,

Jeremiah 17:9-10

“The human heart is the most deceitful of all things,

    and desperately wicked.

    Who really knows how bad it is?

10 But I, the Lord, search all hearts

    and examine secret motives.

I give all people their due rewards,

    according to what their actions deserve.” NLT

I didn’t ever know what context this was in. The heart is deceitful and wicked. God knows the heart!
Sisters, here is the point! The unfaithful bride still claims her status, still feels entitled to all the benefits of her position, but God, her Groom, sees her adultery for what it is. He knows separation is the only way for her wakeup call.

Be healed by seeing yourself broken. Be healed.

Jeremiah 17:14 “O Lord, if you heal me, I will be truly healed;    if you save me, I will be truly saved…” NLT

Jer 17:7 “But blessed are those who trust in the Lord    and have made the Lord their hope and confidence.” NLT

"But blessed..." See the beautiful contrast in those who are faithful, and those who seek elsewhere?

Trust Him when He says something to you. He’s calling you. Broken you. Lay down your pride and see your cracks. They may be hairline fractures, or there may be shattered pieces. Be healed, and trust His Word, and reach up to re-claim His hand. Be His Holy Bride.