Lost in Conversation

 

For those of you that are married, do you remember the early days of getting to know each other? Do you remember the extra long conversations? The lengthy phone calls, or in my case, the pages and pages of handwritten letters about life. (To my frustration, I couldn’t have long phone calls as my dad, being a Pastor, always needed the phone). And yes, I am showing my age by referring to handwritten letters.

I can vividly remember taking days to write a letter, adding to it, a little each day, wanting to share the best and worst parts of my day with my special person, wanting them to know who I was, what I loved, what I hated, what I wanted in life. And more than anything, wanting to get to know them better.

Do you remember getting so lost in conversation because you longed more than anything to get to know this person so fully, that you lost track of time? Hours went by and yet it seemed like only minutes, and the ‘curfew’ was up, or the phone was needed by someone else (sorry, no mobile phones in those days) or maybe you had talked for so long, you needed to take a break to think up more to talk about as you had exhausted your list of discussion topics.

Okay, let me get to my point. I’m going to be blunt and upfront with you,

When was the last time you spent so much time with God that you lost track of time? Time flew by because you just wanted to talk to him. You wanted to be in his presence.

When was the last time you got lost in conversation with God?

When I was going out with my husband, the more time I spent with him, the more time I wanted to spend with him. The more I learned about him, the more I wanted to know about him. The more I heard his stories of his everyday life, the more I wanted to hear.

Do you see where I’m going with this?

The more time you spend with Jesus, the more time you will want to spend with him. The more the time flies as you sit and meditate on the Words of Scripture. The more you find yourself digging into the Bible, spending time in prayer, in worship, in study.

It wasn’t passion that led me to spend more time with my then future husband. It was the time spent with him that led to passion. The more I got to know him, the more I loved him and the more I wanted to be with him.

And I personally feel that it’s the same with God.

We often think that our passion or desire leads us to spend time with God, but it’s actually the other way around.

Passion and desire don’t lead to time with God. Time with God leads to passion. (Disclaimer: once this cycle begins, it becomes a little blurred as to what came first, but I hope you understand what I’m trying to say).

Time with God leads to loving him more. Desiring what he wants. Longing to follow his will. Wanting his best and not our own.

Now, for those of you reading this, maybe there is someone that is struggling right now with a desire to spend time with Jesus, can I speak to you for a moment?

If you are waiting around, just hoping the desire will come upon you, just waiting to feel excited before you open your Bible and pray, you could be waiting a very long time.

If you are waiting for ‘feelings’ to develop before you get serious about reading and studying God’s Word, then you’ll be sorely disappointed.

Our duty as a Christian is to strive to become more like Christ. We are to be daily following in his footsteps, watching him, imitating him. You can’t do that if you’re not in the Word, looking for instruction on how to do it.

The truth is….the passion and excitement for spending time in God’s presence will grow when we choose to lay aside how we feel about it, and just do it!

Yes, it’s a choice. We have a choice to obey. And it is a step of obedience to discipline ourselves to be in the Word daily.

But what a blessing it is and how amazing it is when the desire begins to grow as you cultivate the seed that is growing within you, watering it with God’s Word, feeding it with his teaching, pruning it with his loving rebukes.

There is so much in life that we do, even though we don’t feel like it. And yet we do it. Why is it that we don’t apply the same dogged determination when it comes to God’s Word?

Why do we think we can go a day without hearing from him? Why do we think we have to ‘feel’ something before we act?

I know from experience, that time after time, when I have made the choice to put aside something else, in order to be in his Word, despite my feelings at the time, my desire for him grows and my desire for more time with him lengthens.

I find myself lost in conversation. I bury myself in some beautiful truth and before I know it, the minutes have flown by, and I rise up to go about my day eager for my next encounter in God’s presence.

There is a beautiful verse found in Psalm 16:11 - Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.

Did you know that there is joy in God’s presence? And not just joy, but fulness of joy. Abundant joy. Satisfying joy.

King David knew something about being in God’s presence and he longed for it.

Psalm 27:4 KJV - One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in his temple.

David’s longing for close fellowship with God caused him to continually seek God’s presence. The ‘one thing’ that he desired was so important to him. He wanted to know God intimately. He longed to be in his presence continually.

Psalm 26:8 KJV - LORD, I have loved the habitation of thy house, and the place where thine honour dwelleth.

Morning by morning, day after day, David desired to experience God’s goodness and God’s presence. He wanted to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord. He desired to worship him. He adored God not for what he could get from him, not for God’s hand, but for his face. His presence.

Pursuing God’s face is about developing an intimate relationship with him. But you can’t have this without putting in some effort. For any relationship to work, both parties have to be intentional about communication.

God has already done his part. He gave us his Word. He gave us his Holy Spirit that dwells inside of us.

It is our job to do our part. We have to come into his presence and seek his face. We have to communicate with him. We have to read his Words of life. We have to meditate on them. We have to come to him in prayer and humility.

Just as Mary chose the ‘one thing’ (Luke 10:42) that was needed, sitting at Jesus feet, listening to his teaching and spending time in his presence, so too do we need this ‘one thing’.

The apostle Paul pursued the ‘one thing’ in life as well. He longed to know Christ for who he was, so he could worship him and serve him better. (Philippians 3:10-14)

Do you have a desire for the ‘one thing’? Is the greatest longing of your heart to seek God’s presence?

If your soul is running low on joy today, maybe it’s time you spent some time with Jesus, getting lost in conversation as you get to know him better. Allow him to bring renewal. Allow him to refresh you as you gaze on his beauty and his holiness.

Sometimes we read our Bibles simply to answer our questions or highlight Bible verses, or to find thoughts to jot down, but how about getting lost in conversation with God? How about spending some time in admiration of him. Talking to him about his goodness to us.

Take time today to come into God’s presence and sit with him. Commune with him. Listen as he speaks. Learn from him. Worship him.

Get lost in conversation and watch the desire grow.

 

 

Are you being led or driven? 

Do you know his voice? 

 

I learnt something interesting this week regarding shepherds.

“On one of my trips to Israel I once saw a man behind a flock of sheep, driving them down the road by holding out two long sticks, one on either side, in an attempt to force them to stay together in front of him. Puzzled that I had never seen a shepherd lead his sheep like that, I asked my guide, Zvi, “Why is that shepherd driving his sheep that way? I’ve never seen that before.” “Oh,” he answered. “That’s not a shepherd. That’s a butcher. He has bought those sheep and now he has to drive them to the slaughterhouse. They won’t follow him, because they don’t know him. He can’t lead them, so he has to drive them.”

Shepherds lead from the front. Butchers drive from behind.

It makes me think of a passage of Scripture found in the book of John.

John 10:3-5 KJV - To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.

What a beautiful word picture we have here in John’s gospel. I had never really thought about the position of the shepherd in relation to a herd of sheep. I mean, I know some of the basics of ancient shepherding techniques but never before had I seen it put so clearly in illustrating so well the importance of the shepherd.

Look at some of the phrases found in these verses.

“the sheep hear his voice”, “leadeth them out”, “the sheep follow him”, “they know his voice” and finally and so importantly, “they know NOT the voice of strangers”.

There are many references to sheep in the Bible. 187 of them as a matter of fact and 43 references to shepherds. And there are many more verses that refer to a lamb or THE lamb as well. Needless to say, sheep and shepherds were very relatable to people in Bible times and the stories told only helped to make clear the message God was trying to get across.

When we look at verse 4, we see that the shepherd ‘goes before’ his sheep. In Bible times, the shepherds would gather their sheep into a communal pen at night for protection. When dawn came and the sun began to peek over the horizon, each shepherd would call his sheep, and no matter how many sheep there were, each shepherd’s particular sheep would follow the sound of his voice.

The beautiful imagery we find here in this passage not only highlights the personal relationship between the shepherd and his sheep, but it also symbolizes Jesus’ relationship with His children.

Each shepherd knew his own sheep. Individually. Personally. And it is the same with Jesus. It reflects the knowledge and care Jesus has for His followers.

John 10:14 KJV - I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.

We have only to look at Psalm 23 to read about the Lord Jesus’ care for us.

In thinking of this example of the shepherd in Israel and the man driving the sheep from behind, I was so intrigued that the shepherd leads and the one who does not have ownership or relationship with the sheep, drives them. One leads. One drives.

The leading of the shepherd demonstrates guidance and protection. As the shepherd lead his sheep, he would not only be looking for the green pastures and good feeding grounds, but he was also on high alert for predators or anything that may cause harm to his sheep.

As the shepherd leads the way, we see that the sheep follow him. Why? Why do the sheep follow their shepherd? Because they know his voice.

It was essential for the sheep to know and recognize their own shepherd’s voice. There had to be an unmistakable familiarity between the sheep and the shepherd for the sheep to feel safe enough to follow the shepherd and to know which voice to follow.

John 10:27 KJV - My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:

Did you notice whose voice they don’t know and won’t follow? Have a look at verse 5.

John 10:5 KJV - And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.

They don’t know the stranger’s voice. Sheep will not follow a stranger because they don’t recognize his voice. There is no relationship there. There is no familiarity. No trust.

The reason that the butcher had to drive the sheep is because they didn’t know his voice. He couldn’t lead them. So, he had to drive them.

Isn’t it amazing that as God’s children, we know, or we should know, his voice. We should be so much in tune with God through our personal relationship with him, through our daily communing with him, that we instantly recognize his voice.

And because we know him, we can trust him.

This leads me to a point I want to make. When we find ourselves weighed down with worries and burdened with anxious thoughts, we have only to look to the shepherd. We have only to listen for his voice as he leads us.

When sheep trust their shepherd and know his voice from constant interaction with him, they can be content in letting him lead the way, knowing that he will take them on the path they need to go, resting along the way, offering nourishment and avoiding the things that would harm them.

And so it is with us. As we walk with Jesus, day after day, connecting with him through prayer and reading of His word, listening to His still, small voice, we develop a life of trust, recognizing his voice and allowing our anxieties to be cast on him, letting him lead the way.

When we add tomorrow’s burden to today’s, the weight is often more than we can bear. As Corrie Ten Boom so aptly put it, “Worry (and anxiety) does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows, it empties today of its strength”

If we find ourselves in this overwhelmed, overloaded state, remember, it’s not God’s doing, it’s ours!

F.B.Meyer put it plainly when he said, “This is the blessed life-not anxious to see far in front, nor eager to choose the path, but quietly following behind the shepherd, one step at a time. The shepherd was always out in front of the sheep. He was down in front. Any attack upon them had to take him into account. Now God is down in front. He is in the tomorrows. It is tomorrow that fills men with dread. God is there already. All the tomorrows of our life have to pass Him before they can get to us.”

Did you see that? God is already in my tomorrows, in your tomorrows. And that is why we can trust him. That is why we can cast our anxieties on him. In humbleness, we throw our cares upon him (1 Peter 5:6-7) and he bears our burdens on his shoulders.

And you know what is so wonderful? If we can stop worrying about tomorrow, we can work on trusting God today, and living out his purpose and plan fully and wholeheartedly today, knowing that he knows the path that lies ahead, and he will lead as we listen for his voice and follow it.

It is not the strangers voice we should follow. The stranger that masquerades as the Devil, but disguises himself as many other things. It’s not the lies he feeds us that we should follow.

If we know the Lord Jesus’ voice, that is the voice we should be following. He is not driving us from behind. He is leading from ahead.

Everything he is going to take us through has to pass through him to get to us. He decides what we go through. We decide the attitude we have as we walk through it.

Is our attitude one of worry and anxiousness? Is it full of fretting and trembling in fear?

We have a good shepherd. A shepherd that knows us fully and yet loves us unconditionally.

He speaks and we need to be listening.

As we read the Word of God, we hear him. We hear his voice. We begin to understand more of his character. We allow ourselves to trust. We grow in our faith. And we obey his leading.

The more in tune we are with the Lord, the more we will recognize his voice and the less likely we will be to follow the voice of a stranger (or false teacher, or misguided friend, or deceitful liar, or sincere believer that is sincerely wrong with their advice).

It pays to walk close to the Lord through daily communication with him through prayer and study.

Not only will be more readily recognize his voice, but we will be less likely to develop an anxious spirit and a discontented heart.

We can walk in full assurance that God is in control of each and every situation. We can follow his leading, trusting him in the light and in the dark as we listen for his voice.

Don’t let the butcher drive you, let the shepherd lead you!

Psalm 23:4 KJV - Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

 

 

Which Waves are you Surfing?

 

“Thoughts are kind of like waves in the ocean. You can’t stop the waves from coming, but you can choose which ones you want to surf.”

I came across this profound statement a while back and it often comes to mind when I begin to think about thinking.

You know we need to think about thinking, don’t you? It really is important to give some thought to our thoughts.

The Bible is very clear on this point. Do you know that we become what we think?

Proverbs 23:7a KJV - For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he:

I have done a LOT of reading on the subject of our thought life and the fascinating science behind how our brains work and the amazing fact that we can rewire our brains, creating new neural pathways.

God didn’t need neurologists and scientists to figure this out. He had laid it out in his Word, long before man ever thought to study it.

It really is true that our brains were designed by God to have renewable characteristics. It is possible to be transformed, changed, made new, by renewing your mind.

Romans 12:2 KJV - And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

What we think about becomes a physical reality in our brain and body and affects our mental, spiritual, emotional and physical health.

There is so much more on this subject that I would love to share, but for now, I’ll try and be brief.

So, back to the quote.

“Thoughts are kind of like waves in the ocean. You can’t stop the waves from coming, but you can choose which ones you want to surf.”

There is no denying that you can’t stop thoughts from popping into your mind. But what you can do is choose which ones you focus on.

The waves will come, and you can’t stop them, but you can choose which ones you surf.

You can choose which ones you dwell on.  Ultimately, what you focus on is what you’ll feel and what you feel is what you’ll do and what you’ll do is who you’ll become.

Thoughts determine actions and actions determine character.

If we really realized and believed how powerful our thoughts are, we would strive to get rid of the toxic thoughts before ever they had a chance to settle inside our minds!

Let me direct your attention to a very powerful passage of Scripture found in 2 Corinthians.

2 Corinthians 10:3-5 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

This passage reminds us that we, as Christians, are fighting a spiritual battle. I don’t want to alarm you, but you have to remember that the Devil is out to destroy you.

1 Peter 5:8 KJV - Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

Now, I don’t pretend to understand this passage in 2 Corinthians 10 completely but let me see if I can explain it a little.

In verse 5 we are encouraged to bring every thought into captivity. We are to take every thought captive and make it subject to Christ.

Notice it doesn’t say ignore the thoughts you don’t like. It doesn’t say to simply neglect the thoughts that are negative. It says take EVERY thought captive and make it submit to the word of God. Paul is using language of warfare here. You have an enemy.

We all have thoughts that set themselves up in opposition to God. We believe the lies that the Devil feeds us. What do we do with these lies? What do we do with the anxious thoughts, the thoughts that don’t line up with the Word of God?

You take them prisoner! You bring them into captivity.  When you find yourself harboring a thought that doesn’t belong in your mind, don’t let it stay there!

You question it. You interrogate it. You ask it, “Where did you come from? Who sent you? What door of insecurity did you walk through? What lie did you believe to get here?”

When you answer these questions, by lining them up with the truth of God’s Word, you can then reject them, bring them into captivity and replace them with truth. And that’s how you win the battle of the mind!

Taking every thought captive and making it subject to Christ is vital for our spiritual growth. The Bible teaches us that our thoughts shape our actions and character, and when left unchecked thoughts can lead to sin and disconnect from God.

Your body is not in control of your mind – your mind is in control of your body. But guess what? Your mind is stronger than your body! Your brain doesn’t control you. You control your brain through your own thoughts and the choices you make in regard to what thinking you allow to live rent free in your head.

By submitting every thought to Christ’s authority, we align ourselves with His truth and righteousness, rejecting the lies and temptations of the world and the Devil. Becoming consciously aware of this disciplined practice renews our minds, as described in Romans 12:2, allowing the Holy Spirit to transform us and our thinking from within.

Going back to 2 Corinthians 10:5, when you observe your own thinking with the intention of capturing those rogue, unwanted, unhelpful, harmful thoughts, you direct your attention to stop the negative impact they have on you, and you choose to rewire healthy new circuits in the brain.

The brain will do what the mind tells it to do.

I know firsthand the power of creating new neural pathways in the brain through replacing negative thoughts with the truth of God’s Word and developing a heart of gratitude.

We don’t have to live defeated lives. We don’t have to let our thoughts control us. We have the power, with God’s enabling, to renew our minds, to bring our thoughts into captivity, to rid ourselves of the spirit of fear, and replace it with the sound mind that God wants us to have. (2 Timothy 1:7)

As the Israelites prepared to enter the promised land, after 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, God instructed Moses to remind the people of the authority of God and of the importance of obeying his commands. And he left them with an interesting instruction.

CHOOSE LIFE!

Deuteronomy 30:15, 19-20 KJV - See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil;

- I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:

- That thou mayest love the LORD thy God, and that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he is thy life, and the length of thy days: that thou mayest dwell in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.

God built choice into every detail of our being. We do have a choice as to what we think about. Our genetic makeup is changed by what we choose to think about. We can choose life!

Follow the formula found in Philippians chapter 4, do your part and God will do his.

Philippians 4:6-8 KJV - Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

 (If you would like to read more on how gratitude affects the brain, please read this post -

https://learnliveloveshare.blogspot.com/2023/11/supercharge-your-gratitude-flip-switch.html

God bless xx