Not Locked in Fear, Liberated by His Spirit!

It is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace . . . 

Not locked in fear, but liberated by His Spirit!  

Lots of thoughts have passed through my noggin lately. I suspect that has been true for you as well.

As I filter those thoughts through God's Word, He reaffirms again the power of prayer in the lives of Old Testament saints, like Daniel, New Testament saints, like Paul, and contemporary saints like us (those who have received Jesus as Savior and Lord)! 

This morning, He reaffirmed in my heart Paul's charge to young Timothy . . . 

"First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, in order that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony borne at the proper time" (I Timothy 2:1-6).

Notice how many times the word "all" appears in this passage. I'm especially struck with the reminder that God desires ALL men to be saved. I feel the Holy Spirit's gentle rebuke with His recurring question: "Eileen, are you more interested in praying that God would thwart evil or that He would change hearts? After all, the remedy for evil is heart transformation. Pray for those you are concerned about, that they will come to the knowledge of the truth and be saved."  

And then the even more pointed reminder . . . 

"If I can change a rebellious heart like yours, I can change the hearts of leaders and those in your sphere of influence who in your eyes seem so far beyond My reach." 

Which takes me back to Paul's reminder to pray. 

Our role is to pray (with thanksgiving, by the way), participating with our Father in gently guiding others to the truth in word and behavior, as did so many others who came before us. 

Old Testament Daniel modeled prayer and faithful service while living in a pagan culture. His faithful daily prayers paved the way for a pagan King, all wrapped up in his own glory, to come to the knowledge of the truth.

If God can reduce wicked Nebuchadnezzar to all fours so that ultimately he lifts his eyes toward heaven, not in pomp and pride but in humility, and declares that the LORD alone is the Most High God who is great and mighty, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom and whose dominion is from generation to generation (Daniel, chapter four), then God can in His sovereignty change the hearts of all for whom we pray. The change may come now, in our lifetimes; the change may not come until we gather around His throne. 

But rest assured, ALL will fall before Him and declare Him Lord (Philippians 2:9-11). We pray and we witness so that as many people as possible will declare Him Lord and serve Him as Lord on this side of heaven. 

May we not be locked in fear that erupts in our minds in multiple forms but liberated by the Holy Spirit who through God's Word grounds us, quiets our hearts, and motivates us to prayer and godly living.

May you who know the Lord be strengthened by His grace today. And those of you who need the Lord, surrender to Him in repentance and faith, receiving Him as your personal Savior from sin and self, and then serve Him as Lord. Then He will strengthen you with His grace, deliver you from all fear, and liberate your heart with His Spirit who comes to live inside of you.     

Eileen Psalm 46:10

Read the Red Words

The tall, thirty-something woman with large eyes and humble spirit chatted with me while watching her two-year-old play on the slide. She was waiting for her six-year-old to step out of Vacation Bible School at a local church as I waited with my daughters to pick up grandchildren. I steered the conversation to spiritual things. When I asked her how she came to know the Lord, she shared her story.

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She did not grow up in a Christian home--far from it. Steeped in relativism and the humanistic thinking of our times, she had no regard for God, until she met a lady who modeled her faith in ways she found captivating and inviting. While she couldn’t pinpoint a specific action, she noted the woman’s winsome ways through simple acts of kindness. Later, another woman invited her to a Bible study. While she admitted she kept going primarily to be with the other women, she identified a pivotal study that initiated a change of mind. At one point, the group showed The Truth Project series produced by Focus on the Family. So compelling was the evidence for God and His fingerprint on every area of life that she could no longer escape the fact that God existed. He was real, and He was truth.

Still, she remained frustrated. She wanted to know more of God, but she simply couldn’t put the pieces together. In her words, she “didn’t get it.” One morning, she woke up still longing to know Him. Before her feet hit the floor, in her mind she heard, “Read the red words.”

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She knew the red words referred to certain sections in a Bible she owned, but she did not know until she read them that they were the words of Jesus. She devoured His teaching and believed His message of love, grace, and forgiveness.

In the telling of her story, she wept, overcome with emotion. “How can I ever repay Him for what He has done for me? What can I do for Him?”

I thought for a moment, gazed at her little son, now moving over the mulch in our direction. “Read the red words to your children. Your kids are your number one discipleship mission. Read them the red words.”

Her eyes brightened, and her shoulders noticeably lifted.

I left that encounter reminded that it is God who sets salvation in motion; He seeks us; He places the desire within us to know Him; and He does whatever necessary to bring the light of His Word to us so that we can receive His gift of forgiveness and eternal life. He is faithful God, true to His Word.

I also left marveling at how often we get the erroneous impression that our service for Him is “out there somewhere” demonstrated in some grand display when often our greatest ministry lies right in front of us as we go about our day. 

How about you, dear reader? 

Do you know God through His Son, Jesus Christ? Do you sense that tug on your heart to know Him? Have you responded to Him? Share your story below wherever you are in your spiritual journey (a seeker or a follower).

Have you ever experienced a time when you longed to serve the Lord in some grand way only to find the “grand” way was right in front of you? Share your story in the comment section.   

   

Why Did He Die, Grandma?

Five-year-old Hannah and I colored a picture at the kitchen table. "Remind me, Grandma, why did Jesus die?"

I paused, overwhelmed for a moment by the sincerity and gravity of her question.

Through threatening tears, I managed to respond. "Because He loved us."

 

"To pay for our sin," her older sister sitting on the other side of me added. 

Seemingly satisfied by the answers, Hannah hummed as she picked up a yellow crayon. 

But Hannah's question continued to roll around in my mind. 

 

Remind me. 

We all need that reminder of why Jesus died. That God would become man in order to identify with and deliver us, to understand our hurts, our sorrows, our sickness, our sin.

The perfect God-man.

Emmanuel. God with us. Born in a lowly manger. Crucified on a cruel cross. Buried in a tomb.

 

Can you hear the musical crescendo?

 

Then with a blast of forever victory, rose from the grave!

 

A living Savior!

 

Guaranteeing eternal life to all who will believe and receive Him!

 

Remind me.  

 

Yes, Lord, remind me every day of why You came, died, and rose again for me. Help me live with gratitude for what You have done to secure my forever salvation. Help me not to hoard this amazing grace, but to share it with others!