Last night my 12-year-old niece, Carli Grace went with me to Caleb’s ballgame. She is beautiful, but that has nothing to do with this story. We’d sat on the hard bleachers for a couple of quarters and suddenly she asked what I found to be a strange question. “Hopie, if I do what everyone else is doing, will it hurt?” I looked at her totally puzzled and said, “The answer is probably yes but what are you talking about?” She pointed out that several of the teenagers were pushed back with their bottoms on the floor behind their seat, leaning on the bleacher behind them, their legs dangling in front of them. I said, “You’re welcome to try it but most of the time when you do what everyone else is doing just because it looks fun, it ends up hurting.” She gave me the, “Whatever” look and pushed herself back. It wasn’t long until she said I was right and her back was hurting.

Later I shared the spiritual application to the question she had asked. She was all ears as I told her that she was only beginning to see teenagers do things that may look like fun but in the end would bring her harm. She was excited for me to use it in my devotional. Most of you that follow my writings are adults. But that does not insulate us from this same life lesson. “Everyone else is living life with no concern for others and they’re prospering”; “Everyone else is doing their own thing on Sunday and not going to church, considering they worked all week, did house and yard work on Saturday so they deserve a day to themselves”; “Everyone else works hard for their money and hordes it for later, giving no thought to how they could help others, and they continue to thrive”; “Everyone else is only concerned for their four and no more. They don’t see the need to share Jesus with anyone outside their family and they are doing just fine.” You get my point.

If I do what everyone else is doing, will it hurt? The answer is most assuredly, “Yes.” It may not hurt immediately, but eventually the pain will set in and you or your loved ones will hurt from your selfish decisions. Don’t base your life and your direction in life on what everyone else is doing. Base it on the truth of God’s word. Applying Biblical principles to your everyday life will never hurt. You will only prosper.

“It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man” (Psalm 118:8).

“I will never forget your precepts, for by them you have preserved my life” (Psalm 119:93).

“I gain understanding from your precepts; therefore I hate every wrong path” (Psalm 119:104).

Another weekend at home for me - yippee! I pray you have a blessed weekend.

Hope

When I read Jesus Calling this morning I thought of the old Donnie & Marie song, “That’s why I’m leaving it all up to you.” The devotional this morning started out with, Leave the outcome up to Me. I’ll take you in a different direction than Sarah Young.

Do we not spend our days worrying and fretting over how something will or will not turn out? I do! Caleb started his last basketball season a couple of weeks ago and not much has changed with the “dynamics” that come along with the political side of high school athletics. Those same frustrations want to work their way back in to my mind and heart. I was sharing some of those frustrations with the CPC girls yesterday and Elizabeth reminded me in her sweet, gentle tone, “God is building Caleb’s character for something much bigger when he’s grown.” I told her about the conversation I had with Caleb a few years back when his basketball “experience” first began. He was very discouraged and I told him that God was teaching him some life lessons. I’ve told him that over and over and over. Caleb’s answer after a couple of years of those same conversations was, “I’m tired of going to school over this same situation. I’m ready to play some ball!” Elizabeth smiled beautifully as I shared that story with her yesterday and then replied, “But God must not be finished with the lesson.”

I had already told Clay and the Lord that I was just leaving this whole senior season in the Lord’s hands. I can’t fret over it. In the grand scheme of things, it ain’t nothing but a thing. But in the now and now, it’s pretty important to Caleb. So I pray for his heart to be encouraged and for him to leave the outcome to the One who is in control of it all.

And that’s my advice to you today for whatever you are trying to reason or conquer or control. Leave it all up to Him, the One who controls the outcome. Rest in Him and allow Him to work it all to His good.

“in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle and set me high upon a rock. Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me” (Psalm 27: 5 & 6).

“I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD” (Psalm 27:13 & 14).

Hope

What or who are you trusting in today? What or who do you lean on for support? When I’m weary from standing I like it when I’m standing beside Clay and I can lean on him just enough to feel support. If Clay’s not around, I may lean against a wall or a table or the back of a chair. It helps to get just a bit of relief and transfer a little weight to allow something or someone else to hold me up just a tad.

That’s what Jesus wants us to do. He knows we grow weary. He knows that when we take a stand for Him we get tired. Sometimes we feel like our own strength is caving in. He tells us to cast all our cares and worries and burdens on Him, lean on Him just enough to lighten the load a bit. He doesn’t want us to lean on our own strength, on our own understanding. But rather to shift some of the weight to Him and allow Him to hold us up. When we do that, He will provide a peace that we’ll never truly comprehend or understand. Yet it’s a peace that is real.

What or who are you leaning on? If it’s not Christ, it’ll cave under the weight. Lean on Jesus. He can handle it.

“…so perishes the hope of the godless. What he trusts in is fragile; what he relies on is a spider’s web. He leans on his web, but it gives way; he clings to it, but it does not hold” (Job 8:13-13).

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5 & 6).

Hope

I read Psalm 23 this morning from The Message. You’re gonna love this. Verse 3 says…

“You find me quiet pools to drink from…” (Psalm 23:3 The Message).

We all memorized this to say, “He leads me beside still waters.” But the reality that God finds me quiet pools to drink from is beautiful! I don’t have to seek out my provision - God does that for me! In order for Him to lead us beside still waters, He has to already know where those still waters are. He knows when our souls are thirsty and we’re feeling very barren and dry. He knows when we are “spent” and feel as though we can’t take another step or else we’ll perish. And He’s already sought out pools of cool water for us to drink from. If we allow Him, He’ll take our hand and lead us to that very spot. He knows just what we need just when we need it. Those spots may be a scripture of encouragement, they may be a devotional, they may be an encouraging word from a friend, they may even be His still small voice speaking to you through the falling leaves or the gentle wind. He knows where and what those spots are and if we’ll just take His hand, He’ll lead us to those pools from which to drink.

What a beautiful picture from Psalmist David. He needed those pools many times. I’m so thankful He allowed God to lead him so that he could pin his experiences for us to read over and over and over.

Hope

I started the day off today a little slow, although I was up very very early. Actually, to say I was up early is a conservative statement. I never really slept. I feel much better with the exception of my cough and it has gotten pretty bad, especially at night. Every hour last night I had a long coughing spell so I may have had two hours sleep total?! By the time I sat down to have my quiet time I was feeling a tad overwhelmed at all that needed to be done today, considering I was running on empty. I was so glad to read Jesus Calling. I hope you don’t mind that I take a phrase from someone else and write my own personal devotionals from them. I guess the bigger question is whether Sarah Young minds if I steal a quote now and then. The very first sentence for today says…

As you look at the day before you, you see a twisted, complicated path, with branches going off in all directions.

I didn’t have to go any further. I sat back on the couch and took a long look at that mental picture. Everything on my To Do List for today was in different directions, going east and west and north and south and crossing each other, and it seemed quite complicated to me in my sleepy stupor. I thought about how I could only conquer this day one task at a time, allowing the Lord to strengthen me at every turn. That was going to be the only way to get through this day. Then I sat back up and continued to read in the book and just chuckled because that was exactly where Sarah Young was going with her thoughts. I like her! She talks about if we allow Him, God settles a peaceful fog over the twisted direction of our lives, thus allowing us to depend on Him one step at a time. She says that the fog is God’s protection, calling us back into the present moment.

That’s it, isn’t it. We get overwhelmed only if we look to the future - whether the future is four hours later, four days later, or four years later. If instead we will do “the next thing” allowing the Lord to shine His presence and His light for direction on that moment, we’ll find at the end of the day that we’ve got it all in, and what needed to get done got done. The present moment is our only concern. God will guide us to the next moment.

“Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel…” (Psalm 73:23 & 24a).

Allow God to keep you focused on this present moment.

Hope

Father, it is an absolutely gorgeous morning!  The leaves are just beautiful. The colors all around our house are gold and orange and red and rust and green! The leaves are falling in abundance - the kind of abundance You give - exceeding abundance - more than we can keep up with! Oh Father, what a week! It has been a week of abundance! How amazingly faithful You are! Bless You Lord! The heavens are declaring Your glory!

Oh Father, thank You for opportunities You have given this week to declare the reality of who You are! What an incredible blessing to be at the school on Monday - the 3 year anniversary of Hannah’s going to heaven - to share for Hope Day. I gladly acknowledged my lack and asked You to give me a scripture to share. You did! It was Psalm 25:3 “No one whose hope is in You will ever be put to shame.” What a great word, Lord! What a great word! As long as all of my hope is in You,  I can rest secure that I won’t ever be disappointed!  And Lord, all of my hope is in You!

You have filled me up with unspeakable joy over the last several weeks as You have allowed me to share from the overflow of my heart! Sharing has been so healing! It is no wonder, Father, that many seek counselors year after year. You  created us with a need to share, a need to talk, a need to praise, a need to bless Your name!  When we are speaking forth the reality of who You are in our lives, You fill us up with overflowing springs. John 4:14 “but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” The greatest blessings come from speaking forth Your name and praising Your name in the midst of our loss, our heartache and our pain. “You inhabit the praises of Your people” and through the speaking of Your name, You immediately bring peace, rest and joy.

We will always miss Hannah! There is a part of our family missing - like last night at a wedding reception when the father and daughter had the first dance. Like Monday when I drove up to the cemetery to see Mickey sitting by Hannah’s grave eating his lunch sitting in a folding chair. Like Tuesday when we listened to Steven Curtis Chapman’s new CD about his precious brown eyed baby girl who came to live with You very unexpectedly and each of us took our turn listening and shedding tears.

Steven reveals the raw, honest heart of a broken father. “Beauty Will Rise” is one of the songs and Steven’s comments are: “Beauty will Rise” is one of the “declaration” songs that I wrote on one of those days when I desperately needed to say/sing again what God has promised . . . that as our Redeemer, He will bring beauty and “good” out of what appears so terribly wrong at the moment. One thing I’ve learned on this journey through grief and loss is how comfort and strength come with proclaiming and declaring, even to my own desperate heart and ears, the eternal truths and promises in God’s word. Like many lyrics, this chorus was one that brought tears of both great sorrow and great joy as I wrote and sang it . . . In fact, this is still one that carries a lot of emotion with it because of the overwhelmingly hopeful truth it reminds me of.”

He references part of the passage in the 61st chapter of Isaiah that says You “will bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes. . .”  Beauty will Rise Father when we look upon Your face!  That is what You desire, that is who You are and through beauty rising from our ashes You bring lasting healing and joy to our hearts! I love that passage Father and that is what I am asking You to do this day in my own life. This evening You are opening a door of opportunity to share on a college campus - You remember, one of the places Hannah wanted to make a difference. Well go ahead, Father - You are the only One who can make the difference and if there is any way You can use me today - please go ahead! It would be my great blessing!

Isaiah said, “The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion - to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of His splendor.”

Would You allow me to speak the good news this evening empowered by Your Spirit? Would You allow broken hearts to be made whole? Would You allow me to share that we are living right now in the day of Your favor, of Your salvation? Would you allow me to share that the day of Your vengeance is coming and that we need to be prepared? Would You comfort those who mourn and grieve? Would You replace their ashes with beauty, their mourning with Your joy? Would You clothe them with a garment of praise instead of despair? Would You raise them up as oaks of righteousness to display Your splendor and glory?

Is that too much to ask for one day, Lord? May it be so - You bring forth Beauty from these Ashes today, Lord - go ahead! I wait with anticipation - You are an Almighty God and it is in Your name that I pray, Amen!

Okay, web friends, I’m going to share my heart with you. I don’t know how many of you out there battle your weight, but sometimes I feel very overwhelmed with mine. Either I live on a diet, meaning I can’t eat any breads, sweets, etc. on a regular basis, or I weigh what I do right now which is about 30 lbs. too much. There is nothing more frustrating to me. Clay tries really hard to understand but when you have a built-in metabolism like he does and can eat anything and as much of anything and never gain weight, it’s hard to relate. Last year at this time I was walking 3 miles 5 days a week, sticking to 1200 calories a day and I weighed less than I had weighed in a long time. Around March of this year I slacked up on the walking and now here I am 8 months later and I’ve gained back all 30 lbs. Urrrggghhh! So I sat this morning during my quiet time very discouraged and aggravated at myself. Why would I quit walking? Why would I eat anything that tastes really good? Why can’t I figure this thing out and know that with my metabolism I cannot enjoy the “finer things in life”? I opened Jesus Calling and there He was speaking words of encouragement to me. My strength to stick to a diet will never come from within, it will never be because of my will power. Working out regularly and sticking to a schedule of walking or aerobics will never happen if I depend on my own might. My strength will only come from the Lord, and the joy that I have in Him will provide all the will power that I need.

So that sums up my problem. I depend on my own strength and my own ability to “resist temptations” and it never lasts. What I must do is keep my focus on Him and allow the joy that I have in Christ to provide the strength that I need to overcome my weight issues once and for all. You know it hit me this morning that for me to lack discipline in that area is a sin - it absolutely is! It’s not that I’m obese but I know what I need to do and when I don’t do it, that makes it wrong. This has been an enlightening day for me. Does that mean that I believe the Lord expects me to go the rest of my life and never have dessert? Absolutely not. The Bible is very clear that what goes into our bodies is not the sin. There are no right or wrong foods. He created them all. It’s what we do with what goes in, hence portions. Practicing discipline with my portions will take care of my problem and nothing will be off limits. And a disciplined workout on a regular schedule will kick it up a notch. I walked a mile and a half in my neighborhood this morning up and down hills. It felt great!

Thank you for allowing me to spill my guts and bare my soul to you. Prayerfully this will encourage you in an area of your life that you may be struggling with. Allow the joy of Christ to be the source of your strength. He wants us to have victory in every area of our life. Why not start today?

“…the joy of the LORD is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:10).

“May the God of your hope so fill you with all joy and peace in believing [through the experience of your faith] that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound and be overflowing (bubbling over) with hope” (Romans 15:13 Amplified).

Have a great weekend. I’m actually going to spend the weekend at home - can’t wait!

Hope

Yum!

The proof is in the pudding…an old cliche that originated in 1615. The actual phrase is, “The proof of the pudding is the eating.” In other words, you can brag about your recipe all day long, but the proof is the final results. How does it taste?

Today I came across the following verse and thought of the pudding cliche…

“You can tell what they are by what they do” (Matthew 7:16 CEV).

I can tell you all day long that I love my neighbor as myself but how do I treat them? How often do I sacrifice time out of my busy schedule to care for someone in need? I can boldly speak of my desire to live for the Lord and grow His kingdom but what am I doing to prove that? What are the results of my big talk? The proof is in the pudding.

How about you? Are you walking what you’re talking or are you singing one song but your dance is to a different tune? We’ve always heard that no one really cares what you have to say. What they care about is how you treat them. Our actions speak much louder and bolder than our words. Jesus said it in Matthew, “You can tell what they are by what they do.” Enough said.

Hope

Today we honor the Veterans who have fought and continue to fight for our freedom. Countless have given their lives so that you and I can basically do anything we want to do! There is no limit to our freedom in America as long as it is within the law. We live in the greatest country in the world and we bask in freedom every day. That freedom comes at a high price. Many lives have been given in wars gone by and many continue to be given in the current war. Lives that stand for freedom and stand up against the enemy. I have three nephews that have served or are serving our country. I honor them today and say that I am very proud of the price they’ve paid for my freedom. A freedom that allows me to log on to the internet and post my daily thoughts without repercussion. To Jordie White who served four years in the Navy, to Brent Glover who served five years in the Marines, and to Benji White who is actively serving in the Army and is currently in Afghanistan fighting for you and for me. Freedom at a high price.

Christ paid an even greater price for our eternal freedom. He gave His life, and the blood that He shed sets us free eternally. As we honor our Veterans today, allow this to remind us of the ultimate blood that was shed for our sins. Jesus paid it all, all to Him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow. Freedom at a high price.

“Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved…those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:9 & 17).

Still fighting the crud…but feel a tad better today. Praising the Lord for that!

Hope

Caleb entertaining the family at my Mom's

While reading Jesus Calling this morning I was so comforted with the words, “My presence permeates…” It’s so good to know that we are not alone at any time in our lives. For Christ to tell us that His presence permeates is reassurance that He saturates us with His very being. He engulfs our hearts and lives and at any time, any where in any circumstance we have direct access to Him. I wish my presence could be with Caleb just half of the time. No matter how many good decisions he makes, how many good grades he makes, how many church retreats or Sunday School outings he attends, there’s always that small nagging, “What if” lingering in the back of my mind. What if he’s not really where he says he is, what if he’s involved in things he shouldn’t be and I’m being totaly naive, what if what if what if. It’s at that point that I choose to either worry myself sick or trust that Christ’s presence not only permeates through me, but through Caleb as well. He can keep Caleb in line through His Holy Spirit a whole lot better than I can. Caleb’s 18, and oh how difficult it is to cut the strings!

So not only is there peace in knowing that the Lord is with Caleb and His Holy Spirit is at work, but there is so much comfort in knowing that we’re never alone, even when it feels that all our friends and family have forsaken us. He wants us to concentrate on Him today, to recognize His presence at work in our lives and to allow Him to do His job. What freedom in knowing that we don’t have to control it all. All we need to do is be aware of His permeating presence. Talk to Him, He’s right there with you.

“Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you, who walk in the light of your presence, O LORD” (Psalm 89:15).

I’m fighting a fever, aches, chills, sore throat, earache, etc. I recognized there was a problem when I kept falling asleep at stop lights today. So I’m crashed on the couch with Theraflu, tissue, a blanky and my laptop. Praying it will be a short viral problem and not the flu!

Hope