May the Words of My Mouth

There are some Bible verses that seem to find us at just the right time.

Psalm 19:14 is one of those verses for me.

I love how this verse is both simple and deep. It is a prayer—but it's also a reminder of the kind of woman I want to be.

A Little Background

Psalm 19 was written by David, and I love the way this psalm unfolds.

In the beginning, David looks at God's creation and recognizes that the heavens declare God's glory. Then he turns his attention to God's Word, describing it as perfect, trustworthy, right, pure and more valuable than gold.

And then, toward the end of the psalm, David turns the focus toward himself.

After looking at who God is and reflecting on God's Word, David essentially says, Now, Lord, look at me.

That's where we find Psalm 19:14.

“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.”

I think there is something very intentional about David mentioning both his mouth and his heart.

The Words of My Mouth

Lord, let my words please You.

That's a pretty big prayer when you really stop and think about it.

It's easy to think about our words when we're sitting in church or talking about the Lord. But what about our words when we're frustrated? When we're tired? When someone has hurt us? When we're irritated or disappointed?

Those moments can reveal what's really going on inside us.

I've certainly had moments in my life when I've said something and later wished I could take it back. And as I've gotten older, I've become more aware of just how powerful our words can be.

Words can encourage someone.

They can make someone laugh.

They can bring comfort when someone is hurting.

But words can also wound.

Sometimes we don't even realize how deeply something we've said has affected someone else.

That's why I love that David doesn't simply say, "May the words of my mouth be good."

He says, "May they be pleasing in your sight."

It's not ultimately about whether everyone else approves of what I say.

It's about whether God is pleased with what comes out of my mouth.

And Then There Is My Heart...

This is the part that really makes me stop.

“...and the meditation of my heart...”

What we meditate on is what we think about, dwell on, ponder and allow to occupy our minds.

And God sees those things too.

Other people hear my words, but God sees my heart.

He knows the thoughts I don't say out loud.

He knows the things I worry about.

He knows the things that hurt me.

He knows the things I struggle to let go of.

He knows the thoughts that can creep into my mind when I'm frustrated, disappointed or discouraged.

And that makes this verse much more personal to me.

Because I can sometimes control what comes out of my mouth while still having thoughts in my heart that aren't pleasing to God.

I can say the right thing while thinking something completely different.

God wants more than just the right words. He wants our hearts.

As I've Gotten Older...

I think about this verse differently now than I might have years ago.

Life has a way of teaching us things.

I've experienced joy and disappointment, answered prayers and prayers that seemed to go unanswered. I've experienced loss, changes, relationships, family situations and all the things that come with simply living life.

And through it all, I've learned that I don't want to just look like a Christian.

I want my life to actually reflect Christ.

That means I want my words to reflect Him.

But I also want my thoughts, attitudes, motives and the things nobody else sees to reflect Him too.

That's harder.

Because it's easy to clean up the outside.

It's harder to let God work on the inside.

And honestly, that's where I still need Him every single day.

"My Rock and My Redeemer"

I also love how David ends this verse.

He calls God “my Rock and my Redeemer.”

My Rock.

The One who is steady when life isn't.

The One I can lean on when I don't have all the answers.

The One who doesn't change when everything around me does.

And my Redeemer.

The One who doesn't expect me to have everything figured out or to be perfect.

The One who can take my mistakes, my failures, my weaknesses and my messes and redeem them.

That gives me hope.

Because Psalm 19:14 isn't a prayer that says, "Lord, look at how well I'm doing."

It's really more like:

"Lord, I need You to help me."

Help me with my words.

Help me with my thoughts.

Help me with my attitudes.

Help me with the things in my heart that nobody else sees.

Help me become more like You.

A Prayer I Want to Pray Every Day

The older I get, the more I realize that I want to be intentional about what I allow into my heart and what I allow to come out of my mouth.

I don't always get it right.

But I want to keep growing.

I want to be the kind of person whose words encourage more than they hurt.

Whose thoughts are focused more on God's goodness than on life's disappointments.

Whose heart is quick to forgive.

Whose attitude reflects gratitude.

Whose life points people toward Jesus.

So this verse has become more than just a beautiful Scripture to me.

It's a prayer.

Lord, may the words of my mouth be pleasing to You.

May the meditation of my heart be pleasing to You.

When I'm happy, may my words honor You.

When I'm frustrated, may my words honor You.

When I'm hurt, may my words honor You.

When I'm alone with my thoughts, may my heart honor You.

And when I fail—and I will—may I turn back to You, my Rock and my Redeemer.

Because at the end of the day, that's really what I want.

Not just to say the right things, but to have a heart that is right with Him.

“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.”
— Psalm 19:14 NIV

That's my prayer today. And honestly, I think it's a pretty good prayer for every day. 

(taken from the Bible App)

The Faithful God

There are some Bible verses that seem to find you at just the right time.

Deuteronomy 7:9 is one of those verses for me.

“Know therefore that the LORD your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commandments.”
— Deuteronomy 7:9 NIV

I love those words: “He is the faithful God.”

Not He might be faithful.

Not He is faithful when everything is going well.

Not He is faithful when we understand what He is doing.

He is the faithful God.

Period.

But knowing the background of this verse makes those words even more meaningful to me.

A reminder before entering a new season

Deuteronomy contains some of Moses' final words to the Israelites before they entered the Promised Land.

They had spent 40 years wandering in the wilderness, and now a new generation was preparing to cross the Jordan and enter the land God had promised to their ancestors.

They were about to enter a completely new season.

And Moses knew they needed to remember something very important before they did:

Remember who your God is.

God had chosen Israel as His people, but it wasn't because they were the biggest, strongest or most impressive nation.

In fact, Moses told them:

“The LORD did not set his affection on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples.”
— Deuteronomy 7:7 NIV

God chose them because He loved them and because He was faithful to the covenant He had made with their ancestors.

Then Moses tells them to “Know therefore that the LORD your God is God; he is the faithful God…”

I think that's such an important reminder.

The Israelites were about to step into something they had never experienced before. They didn't know everything that was ahead of them. There would be challenges, battles and things they couldn't see coming.

But they didn't need to know everything about their future.

They needed to know who was going with them.

He is the faithful God

That phrase really speaks to me.

God wasn't promising the Israelites that everything would be easy.

He was reminding them that He would be faithful.

There's a difference.

Sometimes we think God's faithfulness means He will keep everything from going wrong. But that's not what Scripture teaches.

Faithfulness doesn't mean we won't walk through difficult seasons.

It means God will still be God in the middle of them.

He will still be with us.

He will still love us.

He will still keep His promises.

And when we look back over our lives, we can see His faithfulness much more clearly than we could while we were living through those moments.

I know I can.

There have been things in my life that I didn't understand when I was going through them. There were times I wondered what God was doing and why He allowed certain things to happen.

But looking back now, I can see things I couldn't see then.

God was there.

He was there when I was afraid.

He was there when I didn't have the answers.

He was there when I didn't know how things were going to work out.

He was there in the difficult seasons and in the beautiful ones.

And sometimes His faithfulness wasn't about changing my circumstances at all.

Sometimes His faithfulness was simply carrying me through them.

A covenant of love

I also love that Deuteronomy 7:9 describes God as “keeping his covenant of love.”

God's love isn't fickle.

It isn't dependent on whether everything in our lives is going the way we want it to.

His covenant love is steadfast, committed and faithful.

The Israelites would have plenty of moments when they failed God. Their history would include rebellion, disobedience, fear and doubt.

Yet God remained faithful.

That doesn't mean their choices didn't have consequences. They did.

But God's faithfulness wasn't based on their perfection.

It was based on His character.

And I'm so thankful for that.

Because I know I'm not perfect.

None of us are.

We have all made mistakes. We've all had moments when we've doubted, questioned, complained, worried or tried to handle things ourselves.

Yet God remains faithful.

“To a thousand generations”

When Moses says God keeps His covenant of love “to a thousand generations,” he's emphasizing just how enduring God's faithfulness is.

Generations come and go.

Life changes.

Families grow.

Children become adults.

Circumstances change.

People we love aren't always here forever.

But God remains.

He is the faithful God.

That makes me think about my own family and the generations that have come before me—and the generations that may come after me.

I don't know what the future holds for those I love.

I can't protect them from every difficult thing they'll ever face.

I can't make every decision for them.

And I certainly can't control what tomorrow will bring.

But I can pray.

I can point them toward Jesus.

I can share what God has taught me.

And I can trust the same faithful God who has carried me all these years to continue to be faithful to them.

I may not know what tomorrow holds.

That's probably one of the biggest things I've learned as I've gotten older.

I don't have to know everything that is ahead.

I don't have to understand every circumstance.

I don't have to have all the answers.

I just need to remember who God is.

He is God.

He is faithful.

He keeps His promises.

He loves His children.

And He doesn't suddenly stop being faithful because life gets hard.

So when I look at Deuteronomy 7:9, I don't just see a verse that was written thousands of years ago for the Israelites.

I see a reminder for me today.

Remember.

Remember what God has already done.

Remember the times He carried you.

Remember the prayers He answered.

Remember the doors He opened.

Remember the times you thought you couldn't make it through—and yet here you are.

And most of all, remember who He is.

Because I may not know what tomorrow brings.

I may not know what the next season of life will look like.

I may not understand everything God is doing.

But I know this:

He is the faithful God.

And after everything I've experienced in my life, that's enough for me.

I can trust Him with whatever comes next.

Happy 74th Birthday Mom!

Happy 74th Birthday Mom!

Mom was 16 when she married my father and 17 when she gave birth to me.

Today, that seems almost unheard of, but back in those days, a lot of women got married and started their families young. They stayed home, took care of the house and kids, while the dads went to work and provided for the family.

I think about how young my mom really was when she had me, and then my brothers and sister. I think about all she gave up so young in life to become a wife and a mom.

Her life has not been an easy one.

My folks struggled on a daily basis to rub two pennies together to feed and clothe us kids. We never went without the things we truly needed, and they always found a way to make do, but it wasn't easy.

Mom sacrificed so much to make sure we had what we needed.

It's what moms do.

I've done that with Tim many times through the years. We have never been in the dire straits my parents were in—praise the Lord—but I've still given up things I wanted or needed in order to give Tim what he needed as he chased after his hopes and dreams in his young life.

And because I've experienced that kind of sacrifice myself, I understand so much more now what my mom gave up while raising us.

She never really had much of a youth.

She went from being a student in school, to dropping out, to getting married, to having babies, to taking care of a home and being a wife and mother.

Now that's a mouthful.

She went from being a kid herself to suddenly being responsible for a family.

When I was younger, I didn't fully understand that. Honestly, I don't think I could have. Young people simply haven't lived enough life yet to understand some things.

But now that I'm older and have lived more life myself, I look back and I can see so much more clearly.

What sticks out to me the most is her resilience.

She kept going even when I'm sure every fiber of her being didn't want to.

She was strong because she needed to be strong for us kids. She kept going because she simply couldn't stop. There were mouths to feed, a house to take care of, children to raise and a husband to care for.

And Dad was a hard man to keep happy. She did her best, even though it didn't always work out the way she hoped.

At 74, Mom is still doing life to the best of her ability.

She's had to do it alone since Dad passed away in 2002. Of course, she's had us kids to support and help her along the way, but that's not the same as having your husband beside you.

At 74, I can see more of the wear and tear that all those hard years have left behind.

But she's still a trooper.

She's like the Energizer Bunny—she just keeps going.

And honestly, I have so much more respect for my mom today than I ever did when I was younger.

Age has a way of changing your perspective.

When you're young, you see your parents as simply Mom and Dad. You don't always stop to think about the sacrifices they made, the things they went without, the worries they carried or the times they kept going when they were probably exhausted and didn't know how they were going to make it through the next day.

Then you grow up.

You become a wife. You become a mom. You have responsibilities of your own. You make sacrifices for your own child.

And suddenly, you understand things you never understood before.

I understand my mom a whole lot more now.

I understand what it means to put someone else's needs ahead of your own. I understand what it means to worry about your child, to sacrifice for your child and to keep going because someone is counting on you.

And I understand her resilience.

I'm sure some of that resilience and determination is where her kids and grandkids get our drive from.

Mom has been through a lot of life.

She's experienced hard times, loss, struggle and more than her share of challenges. But she's still here. She's still going. She's still doing the best she can with what she has.

And today, I want her to know that I see it.

I see the sacrifices.

I see the strength.

I see the resilience.

And I appreciate her in a way I don't think I was capable of appreciating her when I was younger.

Happy 74th Birthday, Mom!

I'm praying this 74th year of your life is your best one yet. You deserve to be celebrated every day, but especially today.

I love you, Mom.

Happy Birthday🎂🎈! 

I Will Give Thanks

(taken from the Bible App)

I Will Give Thanks

The beginning of this verse in my NIV Application Bible actually says,

“I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart...” — Psalm 9:1a

Now that has a better ring to it than just saying, “I will give thanks to the Lord,” doesn't it?!

“With all my heart.”

Those four words really stand out to me.

As I've grown older and experienced a lot more of life, my appreciation for the Lord has grown immensely. Giving thanks to Him when you're my age becomes much easier than it was when you were younger and wanted to hold tightly to your own wants, your own plans and, especially, the illusion that you were in control of your own life.

When we're young, it's easy to think we know what we need. We have plans for how we think our lives should go. We want what we want, and sometimes we don't understand why God doesn't give it to us on our timetable.

But the older I get, the more I realize just how much God has already done for me.

God has been faithful to me through every season of my life.

I grew up poor. Very poor.

Our food came from that famous grocery store called the government😂.

Our clothes came from those famous clothing stores called the Salvation Army and Goodwill. And on occasion, when Mom could afford it, our clothes came from K-mart through the layaway plan.

I bought my first-ever pair of Nikes when I was a teenager. I earned the money myself by mowing lawns and delivering newspapers. Other than that, our shoes came from those same places I mentioned above.

At Christmas, our stockings were often filled with fruit and a candy canes because that's all my folks could afford.

Today's kids know very little about that sort of thing.

And I'm not sharing any of this because I'm ashamed of where I came from. I'm actually grateful for it.

Those experiences taught me things that I probably wouldn't have learned any other way.

They taught me to appreciate what I have.

They taught me that having more doesn't necessarily make you happier.

They taught me that you can live without the things you think you absolutely have to have.

And most importantly, as I've gotten older, they've given me a greater appreciation for God's provision.

Today, I'm married to an amazing man of God. I have a wonderful son. We have a home, food on our table, vehicles to drive, clothes to wear and so many things that I didn't grow up having.

We live comfortably compared to the way I was raised.

But having more today doesn't stop me from giving thanks to the Lord with all my heart.

If anything, it makes me even more grateful.

Because I know where I came from.

I know what it was like to not have much.

And I know that everything I have today isn't something I should take for granted.

God has brought me a long way.

And when I look back over my life, I can see His hand in places where I didn't necessarily recognize it at the time.

There were things I wanted that God didn't give me.

There were things I thought I needed that I eventually realized I didn't.

There were difficult seasons I didn't understand while I was walking through them.

And there were times when I probably thought I was doing a pretty good job of running my own life.

But God was there through all of it.

He was faithful when I wasn't.

He was patient when I didn't understand.

He provided when I didn't know how things would work out.

And He brought me through things that I never thought I'd have to walk through.

That's why my thankfulness to Him isn't based simply on what I have today.

I'm thankful for Who He is.

I'm thankful that He never left me.

I'm thankful that He has carried me through the good times and the hard times.

I'm thankful for His provision.

I'm thankful for His protection.

I'm thankful for His grace and mercy.

I'm thankful for the blessings I can see and the ones I probably don't even realize I've received.

And I'm especially thankful that I don't have to look at my life and believe that I somehow got here all by myself.

I didn't.

God has been with me every step of the way.

Psalm 9:1 doesn't simply say, “I will give thanks to the Lord.”

It says,

“I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart...”

That's different.

That's not half-hearted gratitude.

That's not thanking God only when things are going well.

That's not thanking Him only for the blessings that are easy to see.

That's giving Him all of me and recognizing that He deserves my gratitude in every season.

When I think about where I started and where I am today, I can honestly say that my thanks for all He's done runs very deep.

Deeper than words could ever express.

And I hope I never get so comfortable with what I have that I forget to thank the One who gave it to me.

I will give thanks to the Lord—with all my heart.

And I pray I always will.

Record Holder

(These numbers are in kg so you have to convert them to #'s)

Record Holder

Tim is officially a record holder!

Tim now holds the record in the Men’s Junior 70kg Division for the Carolina WSO (Weightlifting State Organization), which includes lifters from both North Carolina and South Carolina.

This is something I’m pretty proud of because it’s not just a record for a particular competition or gym. The Carolina WSO records include lifters across North Carolina and South Carolina, so his name is now part of the record books for his state organization.

He actually beat the requirements for the States record by a long shot when he competed at Junior Nationals this past summer.

There is a little bit of a story behind how his results ended up in the 70kg category.

When Tim competed at Junior Nationals, he was competing in the 71kg Junior division, which was the weight class at the time. Since then, USA Weightlifting has changed the weight classes, and the 71kg division no longer exists. When Tim weighed in at Nationals, he was actually under 70kg, so his results qualified to be placed in the new 70kg Junior division.

And now his name is at the top of that record.

How cool is that?

As his mom, I am incredibly proud of everything Tim has accomplished this year. He won Junior Nationals in his division, set personal records, and now has his name in the Carolina WSO record books.

But here's the part that means just as much to me...

Tim is currently out with an elbow injury.

This is the first time since he started his Olympic weightlifting journey that he has had to sit out of States. And I know that's not easy for him.

He misses lifting.

He misses training.

He misses making gains and working toward his next goal.

When you're used to walking into the gym, putting in the work, seeing your numbers go up and constantly pushing yourself to get better, being told you have to stop can be incredibly frustrating.

But even in the middle of that disappointment, Tim is keeping a positive attitude and making the best of a tough situation.

That makes me proud too.

Because being an athlete isn't just about what you can do when everything is going right. Sometimes it's about how you handle the seasons when things aren't going the way you planned.

And this is one of those seasons for Tim.

He won't be competing at States this year, but he will still be there.

He'll be there supporting his teammates, cheering them on and helping his coach wherever he can.

That's the kind of thing I love seeing in him.

He's learning that being part of a team isn't dependent on whether you're the one standing on the platform. Sometimes your role is to compete. Sometimes it's to encourage. Sometimes it's to help. And sometimes it's simply to stand beside the people you've trained with and support them.

And while I know he'd much rather be lifting, I'm proud of the way he's handling this setback.

What a year this has already been for him.

He became a Junior Nationals champion.

He hit some huge personal records.

And now he's officially a Carolina WSO record holder.

That's a pretty incredible list of accomplishments for one year.

But as I've said before, the medals, the records, the numbers and the titles are just part of the story.

What matters most to me is the young man behind all of it.

I'm proud of the lifter Tim has become, but I'm even more proud of the person he's becoming.

This injury may have temporarily taken him off the platform, but it hasn't taken away his accomplishments, his work ethic, his determination or his place on his team.

The platform will still be there when he's ready to return.

For now, we're taking this one step at a time, trusting God through the process and making the best of where he is right now.

He Goes With Us

(I snagged this off social media)

He Goes With Us

I really like the way the picture above reads, but I wanted to share what the NIV version of the Bible says as well:

“For He will command His angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.” — Psalm 91:11 (NIV)

No matter where life takes us, we are never truly alone. God is with us, and He commands His angels concerning us to guard us in all our ways.

Think about that for a moment.

We don't always know what is ahead. We don't know what tomorrow will bring. Sometimes we step into a new season excited about what is coming, and other times we step into one wondering how we're ever going to get through it.

But God already knows what's ahead.

There have been times in my life when I have looked back and realized that God was protecting me in ways I didn't even recognize at the time. There were things I didn't see coming, situations I didn't understand, and moments when I wondered why God was allowing certain things to happen. Yet looking back, I can see His hand was there all along.

Sometimes I think we have a tendency to look for God's protection only in the things we can see. We recognize it when something bad almost happened and somehow didn't. We recognize it when a door closes that we really wanted opened, only to discover later that God was protecting us from something we couldn't see. We recognize it when we look back on a difficult season and realize that somehow, through all of it, God carried us.

But what about the things we never knew about?

What if there were dangers we never saw? What if there were situations God kept us from that we will never know happened? What if there were times His protection surrounded us and we were completely unaware of it?

We may never have the answers to those questions. And that's okay. We don't have to see everything God is doing in order to trust Him.

Faith means trusting the One who sees what we cannot see.

That doesn't mean we will never face difficult things. It doesn't mean that nothing painful will ever happen to us. Scripture doesn't promise us a life without trouble.

What it does remind us is that we don't walk through those things alone.

God is with us in the good seasons, and He is with us in the hard ones. He is with us when we understand what He's doing, and He is with us when we don't have a clue what He's doing.

And there is something incredibly comforting about knowing that He commands His angels concerning us—to guard us in all our ways.

We may not always see the protection God provides. We may never know the dangers He kept us from or the things He prevented from happening. But just because we don't see it doesn't mean God isn't working.

Sometimes faith is simply trusting that God is watching over us even when we can't see what He's doing.

So wherever life takes you, don't be afraid of the road ahead.

You may not know what tomorrow holds, but God does.

And wherever you go, He goes with you.

That is such a comforting thought.

Great Is Your Faithfulness

Great Is Your Faithfulness

This was written during one of the bleakest times in Judah’s history.

The Babylonians had destroyed Jerusalem and exiled the Jews.

God’s temple was torn down, and the temple articles were stolen.

The writer of Lamentations records this tragedy and its aftermath with gut-wrenching detail—you’ll have to read it for yourself.

But in the middle of this book come these verses of remarkable assurance:

God’s love and mercy never fail.
God’s faithfulness is great.

So that tells me this: God’s love and mercy won’t fail. God will remain faithful even through—and beyond—disaster.

When life seems chaotic and unpredictable, we need to be reminded of God’s faithfulness.

Storms can come and tragedy can strike, but God will always be faithful. His faithfulness doesn’t mean He will remove us, His children, from the storms. But it does mean that whatever storm we find ourselves in, He will be there with us.

We have been promised that Christ will always be with those who follow Him (Matthew 28:20). That includes even the darkest seasons of our lives.

I know this to be true because Christ was with me, helping me through the darkest season of my life in my mid-twenties.

He opened so many doors for me so that I could get the healing I needed in order to really live—and live my life for Him.

I had some of the greatest friends during that time in my life. Friends who helped me walk through open doors that led me to the ultimate place where I would receive deep healing for all the hurts and pains I had experienced in my young life.

God made a way in my life where, at the time, there seemed to be no way.

The right help at the right time can make all the difference in a life.

I had been living such a lie up to that point in my life.

I had been raised in church because of a wonderful old lady in my neighborhood who took us kids to church.

What I experienced at home was the very opposite of all I had learned in church.

My life was torn apart and confused.

But God!

Because of His great love for me, I didn’t have to be consumed by all that I was struggling with in my life at that time.

His compassion and faithfulness toward me was everything.

I received the healing I needed in such unexpected ways because of the people God brought into my life during that season. And through those people and those circumstances, I experienced God in such a real, tangible way for the first time in my life.

I had a lot of knowledge about God. I had even said the salvation prayer during VBS when I was 12 years old, and I meant it.

But it didn’t become real for me until those years in my mid-twenties.

Looking back now, I can see that God was always there.

He was always working in my life.

I had no clue at the time, but looking back, I can see it.

I can see it in ways that really aren’t explainable with words. I can feel it in the depths of my soul with a sweetness that can’t fully be described.

And that’s what I love about these verses in Lamentations.

They were written in the middle of devastation. Not after everything had been fixed. Not after the storm had passed. In the middle of it.

Yet even there, the writer could declare:

“Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” ~Lamentations 3:22–23 (NIV)

What a reminder for us today.

Our circumstances may change. People may change. Life can change in ways we never saw coming. We may walk through seasons that leave us wondering how we will ever find our way through.

But God doesn’t change.

His love doesn’t fail.

His compassion doesn’t run out.

His faithfulness doesn’t depend on our circumstances.

And every morning, His mercies are new.

I can look back over my own life and see His fingerprints everywhere—especially in the places where, at the time, I couldn’t see Him at all.

What looked like closed doors were sometimes protection. What looked like impossible circumstances became the very places where God made a way. And the people He placed in my life at just the right time became part of the healing He was bringing into my life.

I didn’t understand it then.

But I see it now.

God was faithful then.

God is faithful now.

And I know He will be faithful tomorrow.

Great is Your faithfulness, Lord.

The Mind Governed by the Spirit

(taken from the Bible App)

The Mind Governed by the Spirit

This verse has no hidden meaning.

The lifestyle of the flesh flows from a mind that is focused on the flesh, and the lifestyle of the Spirit flows from a mind that is focused on the Spirit.

It's really that simple.

The “flesh” and “Spirit” language isn't talking about our physical bodies. It's describing what is directing our thoughts, our desires, our decisions and ultimately our lives.

What is governing your mind?

Are you allowing your flesh to call the shots, or are you allowing the Spirit of God to lead you?

God gives us free will to choose. We get to decide which direction we are going to go.

The way of the flesh or the way of the Spirit.

Those are two totally opposite directions.

Let's be honest. The way of the flesh can be very appealing.

Our flesh wants what it wants.

It wants comfort. It wants pleasure. It wants recognition. It wants revenge when we've been hurt. It wants to be right. It wants to do what feels good instead of what is right. It wants things on our timetable.

And sometimes we convince ourselves that if we can just get what we want, we'll finally be happy.

But here's the problem:

Getting what we want doesn't always give us what we need.

Something can make us happy for a moment and still leave us empty afterward.

We can buy something we've wanted for a long time and be excited about it—until the excitement wears off.

We can get the job we wanted, the recognition we wanted, the relationship we wanted, the success we wanted, and still discover that something is missing.

We can spend our lives chasing one thing after another, always thinking the next thing will finally make us content.

That's because happiness and peace aren't necessarily the same thing.

Happiness can be based on circumstances.

Peace can exist in the middle of circumstances.

And that's what catches my attention about Romans 8:6.

Paul doesn't say the mind governed by the Spirit is temporary happiness.

He says it is life and peace.

I've learned that there is a huge difference between being happy because I got what I wanted and having peace because I know I'm where God wants me to be.

Choosing a life led by the Spirit is the best decision I've ever made.

That doesn't mean I don't make mistakes.

I do.

It doesn't mean I don't take detours.

I do that, too.

It doesn't mean I always get it right.

Far from it.

I'm human.

There are times when my flesh wants to grab the steering wheel and take control. There are times when I want to do things my way because, in that moment, I think my way makes more sense.

And sometimes I have to remind myself:

Lisa, you don't have to understand everything to trust God.

That's where being Spirit-led comes in.

Following the Spirit doesn't mean that life will always be easy. It doesn't mean we won't experience disappointment, loss, heartache, uncertainty or things we don't understand.

It means we don't have to walk through those things alone.

It means we have a God who is with us.

A God who guides us.

A God who corrects us when we get off course.

A God who can take our mistakes and our detours and still lead us toward the destination He has for us.

A detour doesn't mean the journey is over.

Sometimes we simply have to turn around and get back on the right road.

And I'm thankful that God doesn't abandon us every time we make a wrong turn.

Think about a GPS.

You can completely miss your exit, make a wrong turn and get yourself headed in the wrong direction.

What does the GPS do?

It recalculates.

It doesn't say, “Well, you messed up, so I guess you're on your own now.”

It finds another way to get you where you're going.

I think sometimes we look at our mistakes that way.

We think we've messed up too badly. We've gone too far. We've made too many wrong choices.

But God is still there.

He can redirect us.

He can restore us.

He can lead us back.

That's one of the reasons I want my mind governed by His Spirit.

I don't trust myself enough to believe that every desire I have is a good one or that every direction I want to take is the right one.

I need God.

I need His wisdom.

I need His guidance.

I need His correction.

I need His peace.

And I would much rather have God directing my life than spend my life being directed by whatever my flesh happens to want at the moment.

Now, I know there are people who don't believe in God.

You might read this and think I'm wasting my life.

You might think believing in God, following Jesus and allowing the Holy Spirit to direct my life is foolish.

That's okay.

I'm not writing this to force anyone to believe what I believe.

I'm simply telling you why I've made the choice I've made.

If I live my life for God, experience His peace, have purpose, love people, serve others, and find fulfillment in Him—and when this life is over there is no God—what have I really lost?

But if I live my entire life without God, following only what my flesh wants, and there is a God, then I've risked everything.

I'd rather risk it for the biscuit, as the saying goes.

I'd rather live my life for God.

I'd rather follow the leading of His Spirit.

I'd rather put my faith in Jesus.

I'd rather spend my life pursuing the things that have eternal value than spend my life chasing temporary pleasures that will eventually disappear.

And yes, some people might call that fire-and-brimstone preaching.

Maybe it is.

But what I know is what the Bible tells me.

According to Scripture, eternity is real. There is life with God, and there is separation from God. And that's not something I'm willing to gamble with.

I don't want to live my life asking, “How much can I get away with?”

I want to live asking, “God, what do You want me to do?”

Those are two completely different ways of approaching life.

One puts me at the center.

The other puts God at the center.

One says, “My will be done.”

The other says, “Your will be done.”

And honestly, I know which one gives me more peace.

There are still days when I struggle.

There are still days when I worry.

There are still days when I question.

There are still days when I get impatient and want answers right now.

But even in those moments, I know where I want to turn.

I want to turn toward God, not away from Him.

Because Romans 8:6 gives us a choice that really isn't complicated.

The mind governed by the flesh is death.

The mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace.

There are two roads.

One is governed by what I want.

The other is governed by the Spirit of God.

I won't always walk the right road perfectly. I may stumble. I may take a detour. I may even find myself trying to grab the steering wheel and take control again.

But I know where I want my life headed.

I want the Holy Spirit leading me.

I want God directing my steps.

I want the peace that comes from knowing I'm walking with Him.

And when I have to choose between getting what my flesh wants and following where God is leading...

I'll choose life and peace.

Every time.

Just saying.

Don't Let Yesterday's Empty Nets Determine Tomorrow's Decisions

(from Rick Renner on Facebook)

Don't Let Yesterday's Empty Nets Determine Tomorrow's Decisions

This is the quote that Rick Renner put with this picture on Facebook:

“In Luke 5, after Jesus finished teaching, He looked at Simon and gave what must have seemed like a very unusual instruction: ‘Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught’ (Luke 5:4).

Peter was a professional fisherman. He knew these waters. He had spent the entire night fishing and had caught absolutely nothing. The nets had already been washed. The work was finished. Everything had been cleaned and put away.

Yet Jesus asked Peter to undo all of it.

I can almost hear Peter explaining why it wouldn't work. ‘Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing’ (Luke 5:5).

But then Peter said something that changed his life forever: ‘Nevertheless at Thy word...’ (Luke 5:5).

Peter chose to trust the Word of Jesus more than his own experience.

How often are we tempted to do just the opposite? We allow yesterday's disappointments to determine today's decisions.

My friend, never let a season of empty nets keep you from obeying the voice of Jesus. One word from Him can accomplish what an entire night of human effort never could.”

— Rick Renner

I love following Rick Renner's ministry. He's an amazing author, and I love how on point his teachings from the Bible are. Some might disagree with me on that, and that's okay. I've been studying God's Word since I was in my twenties, and the more I study and learn, the more I appreciate what Rick shares when he teaches from Scripture.

But it's the way he ended this particular thought that really grabbed me.

“Never let a season of empty nets keep you from obeying the voice of Jesus.”

Wow.

Just how often are we tempted to do the opposite?

How often do we allow yesterday's disappointments to determine today's decisions?

How many times do we think, “Well, that didn't work before, so why would I try again?”

We've all been there.

Peter certainly had reason to be discouraged. He wasn't some inexperienced fisherman who didn't know what he was doing. He was a professional. He had worked all night. He had done what he knew to do, and at the end of it all, his nets were empty.

And then Jesus told him to go back out.

I wonder how many times Peter's experience was telling him one thing while Jesus was telling him another.

His experience said, “We've already tried this.”

Jesus said, “Go back out.”

His experience said, “There's nothing out there.”

Jesus said, “Let down your nets.”

His experience said, “We've worked all night and caught nothing.”

Peter's response was, “Nevertheless at Thy word...”

That's the part that gets me.

Nevertheless.

Nevertheless means even though.

Even though I don't understand.

Even though I've tried before.

Even though I've been disappointed.

Even though the circumstances don't look promising.

Even though my experience tells me otherwise.

Nevertheless... at His word.

That's faith.

And I'll be honest—this is something we've had to remind ourselves of more than once.

For us and for our son, we've definitely been tempted to allow yesterday's disappointments to determine today's decisions.

But God.

Those two words can change everything.

We've had moments where circumstances have made us question what comes next. We've had disappointments. We've had things not go the way we hoped they would. We've watched doors close that we thought were going to stay open.

And sometimes the easiest thing to do is to let those experiences become the lens through which we look at the future.

“We tried that.”

“That didn't work.”

“We've been down that road before.”

“Maybe we shouldn't expect anything different this time.”

But God keeps reminding us that our past experiences are not His limitations.

What happened yesterday does not mean I know what God is going to do tomorrow.

And an empty net doesn't mean Jesus is finished.

Sometimes God asks us to go back out into the deep when everything inside of us is saying, “Why?”

Sometimes He asks us to try again.

Sometimes He asks us to wait.

Sometimes He changes the direction completely.

And sometimes He simply asks us to trust Him when we can't see what He's doing.

That's where we are learning to say:

“Nevertheless, at Your word.”

We know God has got Tim, Scot and me. Ultimately, He is in control.

Not us.

Not our circumstances.

Not our disappointments.

Not our plans.

Not even the things we think we understand.

God.

And if He tells us to launch out into the deep, then that's where we're going.

Even if we've been there before.

Even if we've come back with empty nets before.

Even if we're tired.

Even if we're afraid of being disappointed again.

Because the truth is, we don't need to understand the instruction to obey the One who gave it.

Peter didn't know what was waiting beneath the surface when Jesus told him to let down his nets.

He simply had to trust the One who knew.

And that's something I'm learning more and more as I get older:

Faith isn't trusting God only when the outcome makes sense to me. Faith is trusting Him when it doesn't.

I don't know what tomorrow holds for our family.

I don't know what God is going to do with every situation we're facing.

But I do know this:

He is faithful.

So I'm not going to let yesterday's empty nets convince me that there won't be a catch tomorrow.

I'm not going to let disappointment make my decisions for me.

I'm not going to let fear of what happened before keep me from what God may be asking me to do now.

Instead, I'm going to keep listening.

Keep trusting.

Keep believing.

Keep going into the deep when He says to go.

And when I don't understand?

Nevertheless, at His word.

Because one word from God can change everything❤️.

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,” declares the LORD. — Isaiah 55:8