The Right Perspective

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We have all had bad days. Some days, the mishaps are so numerous they are almost comical. Like the time I overslept. Then my pants split a seam…in a noticeable place. I wore one black shoe and one blue shoe. My gas gauge was almost on “E,” so I pull into the gas station only to discover I left my wallet at home. And, of course, there was the major lose/lose scenario of spilling my coffee on my laptop. No coffee to drink and no way to work.

We chuckle at these stories because most of us can relate to such days and because most of the circumstances we experience are harmless. But what about the true stories of bad days where the circumstances are life threatening and could even seem hopeless? That is what David of the Bible experienced. A shepherd, then mighty warrior, then great and beloved king, forced to flee into hiding by his own son, who hunted him to kill him. A king, who went from a castle to a desert cave.

These are David’s circumstances as he penned Psalm 63. Psalm 63 is the basis for our current Thistlebend study, Falling in Love Again with Your Lord. This week we studied how David turned his eyes from his horrific circumstances to His mighty God as he wrote, “So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and your glory” (Psa. 63:2). This verse is preceded by: “O God, you are my God. Earnestly I seek you. My soul thirsts for you…” How could David utter such worshipful words amidst such trials?

I have thought a lot about David’s circumstances this week, and as Laurie pointed out to us, David’s circumstances did not worry him. No…they made him long for God all the more. David chooses to place his faith and trust in what he KNOWS, not what he FEELS. He fixes his gaze upon His God, His Deliverer, His Rock, and His Shield.

How important is our correct perspective of God! It frames everything! If we know, truly know, that God is God and we are not, that His ways are higher than our ways; we can rest in the sweet knowledge that He holds everything together.

So, how David KNOW the power and glory of God? David knew God. In the first verse of Psalm 63, David says, “O God, YOU are my God” (capitalization added). And this was true for David. His kingdom was not his god. His children were not his god. His wealth or possessions or comfort – none of this was David’s god. David’s God was GOD.

David knew God so personally because David knew God’s Word. He meditated on it day and night. He hid it in his heart (Psa. 119:11). He lived by it. He thirsted for it. And as a result, he knew peace when faced with peril. His praise of God was not dependent on how happy he was or how great his life was.

Once again, I think how absolutely critical it is to have the right thinking about who God is. Laurie gave us the following list of words I plan to use to help me set my mind on the right course:

1. Behold – Know Him by immersing myself in His Word daily, seek His will, then fix my eyes upon Him every day.

2. Believe: Believe what God says.

3. Bow & Bask: Bow before God and bask in His presence.

4. Boldly Go – confidently go forward in the Lord’s strength.

5. Boast – Boast of the Lord’s faithfulness. I am weak. He is strong.

I must work out these steps to adopt the correct posture of reverence and awe before the Lord. I want the correct perspective of God! David knew His God. And it made all the difference.

Growing in Grace

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Falling in Love with God

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Going through Falling in Love Again with Your Lord, I was wracked by the idea that I am not in love with the Lord. I saw that I am in awe of Him and what He has done for us. But I can’t say I love Him with all my heart, mind, and strength. I was devastated over this. I started to FINALLY make a connection to an email we received some time ago from another woman in the ministry confessing that she has been crying over the fact that she has to live with this flesh on earth. I never understood this. I often thought of the email because I couldn’t comprehend the sadness about it.

I finally understood why she was so sad. During the lessons I began to cry out to the Lord and became so sad over the fact that I live in this sinful flesh. I felt this sadness because I knew I should absolutely want to love Him more than anything. I was brought to tears over a flesh that is self-serving, worldly, and consumed with this life.

I kept telling the Lord, “How do I know I really mean it when I say I want you to be my all in all? I don’t feel like I do; I don’t feel like I mean this.” I was so frustrated at this. Every time I would say out loud, “Let me love you above anything and everything,” I kept also saying, “Do you really mean this?” But I started to confess too, “Father, everything is pointing to me not meaning this, but give me the grace to feel your love. Abba Father, make your love more real, more tangible, more believable than anything my eyes have seen.”

I somehow kept missing the fact that I keep trying to do this all on my own. And I keep trying over and over. But then it hit me, if I could do this all on my own this would completely take away what Christ did for me. If I could do this all on my own it would take away the cross. If we were even a smidge capable of loving Him more than anything else, just in our strength then the Lord would not have sent His only Son. Jesus knew we weren’t able to do this. 

After feeling so discouraged, today I went into my alone time with Him and He showed me something so sweet. During Lesson Two, “Earnestly I Seek You,” we read: “My beloved is mine, and I am his” (Song of Sol. 2:16). Almost immediately I was reminded of the Scripture I placed on our wedding invites: “…I found him whom my soul loves” (Song of Sol. 3:4). I thought to myself about how many times I read this and thought of this Scripture about my relationship with my husband but never in the context of my relationship with my Lord. In that moment I felt my heart warm for the first time with a sense of excitement. It seemed very personal to me. I felt as though I was reading a special note He had left for me to see. It felt very real. Shortly after I went on to read in the study:

The more you draw near and get to know God the more He may surprise you. He is so much more loving than we expect. He has greater plans for you than you have for yourself, but His ways are not our ways…He is God. He is your God. He knows what is best for you. 

When reading the words above, I could feel such a sense of joy surfacing in me. I need to get out of the way, and trust Him with my heart. For me, I no longer want to just be in awe of what He has done for me, I want to be in love with who He is.

All for His Glory

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What Does It Look Like?

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Many of us are visual people. We live in an intensely visual society. I know that I am a visual person and by that, I mean, I learn most effectively when I can see what it is I am trying to learn. When my kids were young, I have fond memories (not!) of having to build their toys. I can remember vividly staring at the directions to some Lego set and literally having no idea how to begin. BUT, when I looked at the picture, coupled with the directions, I was–usually–able to complete the project.

Today, as an adult, I love to hear stories that illustrate teachers’ points. I know many other women do, too. So, I wasn’t surprised when a woman in my small group recently asked us what it looks like to live a life that is surrendered to Christ. She wanted a “picture” of what it looked like to truly thirst after the Lord (Psalm 63).

Of course, we have JESUS as our perfect example! Fully God, fully man, He lived the perfect life. His life is a life we strive to emulate, despite our human weakness and frailty. We know we are called to imitate Him, to follow Him, and as Christians, we WANT to do that. But in terms of practical HOW TO’S (because who doesn’t need a good “how to”?!), some of us may desire something a bit more detailed than just saying, “Be like Jesus.”

This week in our Falling in Love Again with Your Lord study, Laurie shared with us what the fruit of the gospel looks like in our lives – in other words, the ‘HOW TO.” If you are living for Christ, if your life is surrendered to Him, you are either DOING the following or you are WORKING, with God’s grace, to:

  1. Walk in the grace given by God and display the fruits of the Spirit. (Okay, so what are the fruits of the Spirit? See Galatians 5:22-23 for the list!)
  2. Exercise a sound mind and a disciplined life. (A sound mind comes from speaking biblical truth to oneself so that one is meditating on Scripture regularly.)
  3. Cultivate a HUMBLE, HOLY, and HEAVENLY heart.
  4. Suffer for the sake of Christ (this WILL happen).
  5. Be willing to DIE to yourself/deny yourself (put your desires behind you; you are to disown yourself, to refuse to acknowledge yourself or your “old” ways; you are called to pick up your cross and follow your Lord.

Number 5 could be hard to give an example for because what it looks like for me to die to myself might be different than what it looks like for you to die to yourself. Our circumstances are all unique, all different, and could require different sacrifices. But as Christians, we will all have to die to ourselves. EVERY ONE of us. Be ready.

So, can we “see” a woman following the Lord in these descriptions? Can we envision what that woman would look like? How she would go about her day? I know for sure she would have her eyes fixed on the Lord on a moment by moment basis. Would she be perfect? No. But, she would be in constant communication and prayer with the Lord as every minute passed. Whether it was backing out of a parking place at Kroger, or walking the dogs, or changing her baby’s diaper, or sitting in carpool, one thing would always be the same: she would be seeking the Lord.

These are not impossible directives. Our Lord requires us to surrender our will, and we can do it because we can claim the same power of the Holy Spirit that He possessed.

So, whether you are brand new to Christianity or have believed for a long time, remember, we all begin with our Lord’s directions. Start there. Build. Keep your eyes on Christ, the author of these great instructions. He will work in your life to build. And build. And build.

Growing in Grace

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