Verse of the Week: Philippians 2:5

Posted on July 23, 2012 by Christie Love

 

About a decade ago, a craze of WWJD bracelets swept the world.  Everyone wearing these bracelets was supposed to see them and be reminded to ask themselves, “What Would Jesus Do?”  in each situation that they faced.

I loved the concept behind this bracelet and wore one for awhile before it became a victim of my bad memory or frequent purse changes.  Though the bracelet itself disappeared… the reminder has always stuck with me.

Recently, our family has been dealing with some serious struggles in our life.  The kind of struggles that the enemy can use to zap your joy and rob you of your peace if you allow him to.  I have had to focus each day on not just asking myself “What would Jesus Do?” but also, “How Would Jesus React?”

I came across this passage in Philippians Chapter 2 recently and realized that this was my answer to that second question of how Jesus would react:

5 You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.

6 Though he was God,
he did not think of equality with God
as something to cling to.
7 Instead, he gave up his divine privileges;
he took the humble position of a slave
and was born as a human being.
When he appeared in human form,
8     he humbled himself in obedience to God
and died a criminal’s death on a cross.

9 Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor
and gave him the name above all other names,
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.

Did Jesus always like the things that he had to do or endure?  I am sure he did not… yet he was willing to be submissive to his Father and complete the challenging tasks that he was sent for.  He did not do this so that he could be glorified… but so that he could bring glory to his Father in Heaven.

Jesus’s attitude was one of submission, service, and trust.

As I read and re-read this passage I began to ask myself:  Does my attitude always reflect one of submission, service, and trust? 

I knew the answer before I even finished asking the question… no.  There are too many times that I allow fears to creep in or let doubts color my attitude when I react to our struggles.

I am seeing that God does not only use challenging times to deepen our faith in him and his timing… but also reprogram our reactions and attitudes in response to them.

This week the verse that I have chosen to meditate on and memorize is Philippians 2:5:

“You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.”

This week and beyond, instead of asking myself, “What would Jesus Do?”  I will focus on:

I know that if I can get my attitude to match Jesus’s — then my actions will follow his example each time as well. 

I invite you to focus on this same question in your life… together let’s cultivate a culture that is focused on developing the attitudes and actions of Jesus!  Imagine how that new focus in your life would impact the world and the people around you!

Categories: Verse of the Week | 2 Comments

Big “But”s

Posted on July 18, 2012 by Christie Love
I was reading an article the other day that was talking about women and self image.  The article was listing the most common areas that women tend to be frustrated about their bodies and desire to change the most.  I was not shocked to see that the number one thing on the list was their butt.
I hear it from women all the time…
  • Do these jeans make my butt look too big?
  • I need to get my big butt to the gym.
  • I can’t eat that cookie- or else I will be sitting on it for the next three years.

As I finished that article I thought about what would happen if we asked God to make a top ten list of things he was frustrated by and wanted to see changed the most about us.  I have a feeling that it would not be our BUTTS but our “BUT”S would probably be near the top of that list.

In fact I would be so bold as to say that: God gave us one butt— and he did not intend that we sit on it while we give him a list of our “but”s. 

But I don’t want to go tell that person about Jesus in the middle of the mall- people might stare.

But I like my job God, I don’t want to quit it to go into ministry full time.

But I am uncomfortable doing that God.  Couldn’t you send someone else to do that task?
But I don’t have the time to take anything else on God- I am so busy doing what I want to do right now.

This is not a new problem, many of our favorite bible characters had trouble with Big “But”s too:

Moses: 
But Moses pleaded with the LORD, “O Lord, I’m not very good with words. I never have been, and I’m not now, even though you have spoken to me. I get tongue-tied, and my words get tangled.”  Exodus 4:11 NLT

Gideon
“But Lord,” Gideon replied, “how can I rescue Israel? My clan is the weakest in the whole tribe of Manasseh, and I am the least in my entire family!”  Judges 6: 15 NLT

Elijah
Elijah replied, “I have zealously served the LORD God Almighty. But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars, and killed every one of your prophets. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me, too.”  1 Kings 19:10 NLT

Jeremiah
But I said, “Hold it, Master God! Look at me. I don’t know anything. I’m only a boy!” Jeremiah 1:6 MSG

Yes, the issues of Big “But”s is nothing new…
God has been listening to them for generations.  In fact, I think it is safe to say that Big “But”s are a family trait that we have all inherited from the fall of Adam and Eve.  Trying to justify our actions… or lack of actions with a “but” statement that we want God to accept in place of the action he has called us to.

Here is the truth though… No matter how big your “BUT” is God is bigger still!  Look at each of these characters in the bible God was able to overcome their “but” to still use them in GREAT and MIGHTY ways.  He will do the same in your life.  You may feel like your “but” is big enough to make God change his mind… it is not.  You may stall, delay, and even run from his call on your life… BUT God is patient and present in every place you try to hide.

I have found that the best way to get rid of the big “but”s in our lives is to commit to walking with God daily.  Feed your mind the goodness of his truth.  Exercise your willingness to go where he calls you to each day.  Practice the tasks that he calls you to each day.

You will be amazed at the makeover your relationship with God will have when you exchange your big “but” for a big “yes” to God’s invitations and requests in your life!


Categories: Inspirational | 1 Comment

Verse of the Week: Colossians 3:1-2

Posted on July 16, 2012 by Christie Love

This morning I got up early to spend some quiet time with God before the busyness of the day begins.

It was amazing to me how in just the short walk from my bedroom to our dinning room table how many distractions I allowed to detour me from my destination with God.  The things left on the table the night before, the coffee maker that needed to be started, the dishwasher that needed to be emptied, the dog that needed to be fed.  As I finally settled back down with my bible and my coffee I thought about how quickly we as people get distracted and detoured daily.

As God’s people we are called to be his hands and feet to a hurting world.  We are tasked with reaching out to others in need but so often we are blinded by our own needs, worries, fears, concerns, hurts, hangup, and to do lists that we fail to even see the needs of others around us.  This constant pattern of distraction in our lives is one of Satan’s greatest tools to keep us from being effective… if he can keep us focused on ourselves instead of others then God’s calls to reach out to those in need of HIS touch go unanswered.

I was reading in Colossians today and came across this verse in the NIV version:

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.

After reading it I made this list as a reminder to myself:

If I am being honest- my heart’s desire is to focus on the things above; however, my heart and mind are often distracted by the earthly things that are in my path each day.  If that makes my heart sad… I have to wonder how it makes God’s heart feel?

When I looked that same verse in Colossians up in the Message Translation I knew that I had found my verse to memorize this week:

So if you’re serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. Don’t shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ – that’s where the action is. See things from his perspective.

I am working hard to trade my perspective for His daily and this verse will be a great reminder to me when I start to take a detour or give in to a distraction in my actions, thoughts, or heart.  I am fixing my thoughts on things above and I invite you to do the same this week.  Start by memorizing this verse with me and pondering it’s meaning and application to your own life and walk with God.

Categories: Verse of the Week | 3 Comments

Willing to Wait

Posted on July 11, 2012 by Christie Love

Today I had one of those amazing ah-ha moments in my bible study that shook me to the foundation of my faith.  This was such a powerful light bulb moment for me that I wanted to share it with you in hopes that you can see things in your life differently in the light of this perspective.

I was doing a word study on our verse of the week, Isaiah 30:18.  I had written down the verse on a sheet of paper and circled the words and phrases that added extra meaning to the meaning.  As I looked up the meanings, roots, and translations of the various words I began to see a powerful picture coming together through this verse!

In the New Living Translation of this verse the first part of the verse reads:

So the LORD must wait for you to come to him
so he can show you his love and compassion.

Must wait?  Why must the God of heaven and earth wait for anyone… let alone me?  Why MUST the God who created me wait for for me before he can show his love and compassion to me?

I looked up the Webster’s Dictonary defination of “wait” and found this “to wait for another person to catch up to you.”  All of the sudden I had this beautiful picture in my mind of my Heavenly Father waiting for me to catch up to him so that I was close enough for him to show me his love and compassion.  He must wait because he needs me close to him to best show his love and compassion to me.

Tears filled my eyes as I saw something powerful… God is WILLING to wait on me so that I can walk with him! 

It is not his desire that I be on my own path so he willingly waits for me to join him on his.  He does not want me stuck in the mistakes of the past so he willingly waits for me to join him in the present.  He does not desire for me to race ahead of him trying to do things my own way so he willingly waits for me to come back to him for direction and guidance so we can walk together into His future for my life.

The end of the verse says:

For the LORD is a faithful God.
Blessed are those who wait for his help.

As I studied this verse closely I believe that there are two separate kinds of waiting being talked about.  The faithful waiting that God does on us to return to him and then the waiting that we must do once we come to him.

Often when we finally turn to God we expect that he is going to act immediately!  We are impatient with Him because we feel that he should move as soon as we are ready.  A second definition that Webster’s gave for “wait” was this:  “Stay in a place of expectation.”  Often God does not move the moment we turn to him… rather he keeps us in a place of expectation to teach us about his timing and the importance of trusting him.

So what do we do while we wait on him?  We wait on him… the third definition that I found for “Wait” means:  To Serve.  In other words,  While we wait on him to move us in His time to where we need go… we wait on him by serving him where we are.

So here is the perspective that I have been pondering today: God is so willing to wait FOR us to come to him yet when we finally come to him we are often too impatient to wait ON Him. 

It is no wonder this verse says, “Blessed are all who wait on the Lord.” it is often a small and sincere group who are willing to overcome our impatience long enough to truly be willing to wait while we wait.

Categories: Inspirational | 1 Comment

Verse of the Week: Isaiah 30:18

Posted on July 8, 2012 by Christie Love

In the 30th chapter of Isaiah the prophet is rebuking God’s holy people for placing their trust in their neighbors, the Egyptians, to save them from the attack that the Assyrian army was waging against Israel at the time.  Instead of looking to God to be their salvation and security they were trusting in foreign governments and garrisons to do that.

I often read the Old Testament stories of the Israelites consistently turning to false Gods and foreign armies to protect them and shake my head.  I wonder how they could continue to overlook the Living God who had promised to sustain them.

Yet, so often in our own lives we are no different.  When hard times come our way we often make God our last resort instead of our first reaction.  We try to fix it ourselves before we come to him for help.  We may shake our heads as we read the Old Testament stories but, that same tendency towards pride and stubbornness flows through our veins as strongly as it did the Israelites.

I am so thankful for God’s patience and mercy that despite the desire his people have to try to do it our way and in our time… he waits for us to come to him.  The verse that I have chosen this week is Isaiah 30:18… it is a reminder of this aspect of God’s character in the midst of the rebuke that Isaiah was giving.   This verse reads very differently in several translations.  I will share my favorites with you and what I like about each one:

The New Living Translation

So the LORD must wait for you to come to him
so he can show you his love and compassion.
For the LORD is a faithful God.
Blessed are those who wait for his help.

I love the picture that the first sentence of this translation paints in my mind.  I see my Heavenly Father waiting with an abundance of love and compassion to pour out on me… but he cannot do so until I come to him. 

The Message Translation

But God’s not finished. He’s waiting around to be gracious to you. He’s gathering strength to show mercy to you. God takes the time to do everything right—everything. Those who wait around for him are the lucky ones.

We may feel like the situation is hopeless and hard… but God is not finished.  He makes no mistakes and all that he does is right.  When we return to him and his ways he will be gracious to us and show his mercy and his mission for our lives. 

NIV Translation

Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you;

therefore he will rise up to show you compassion.
For the Lord is a God of justice.
Blessed are all who wait for him!

If you look up the word “longs” in the dictionary you will find that one of the synonyms for it is the word crave.  The Lord CRAVES the ability to be gracious to you.  There is nothing that he wants more than for you and I to come to him and seek Him.  When we do so he will rise up (take a position of action) and show us compassion. 

I selected this verse this week because it is a beautiful picture of God’s faithfulness to those who come to him, seek him, and trust in his timing.  Memorizing this verse and the context it behind it will give me a reminder that I can share not only with myself but also with others that need to be reminded how much God loves them and wants to work in their lives… if they will put aside their own ways and instead follow His.

I am going to be memorizing the NIV version of this verse this week… which version will you work on committing to memory this week? I would love to hear your thoughts and perspectives on this verse and what it means to you this week, feel free to share in the comments below or on my Facebook Page.

Categories: Verse of the Week | 1 Comment

Coming Soon: Verse of the Week

Posted on July 6, 2012 by Christie Love


I have a confession to make…. I struggle with memorizing scripture.

Whew. Glad I got that off of my chest…

Seriously, I have the ability to recall crazy obscure facts, dates, and names with no problem… but matching God’s word to a chapter and verse… and I struggle. This has frustrated me for years and years… it has been one of the lies that Satan has used over and over to tell me that I am unworthy or unqualified to teach God’s word to women… “How do you think you can make them understand? You can’t even memorize it!”

Recently, I had enough of Satan whispering this lie into my ear and began to pray specifically for insight on this struggle. It was only then that God gave me a brilliant breakthrough!

He has shown me that this ironic inability to recall the verses that I spend so much time reading day after day as not some crazy undiagnoised memory problem but rather a DIRECT and DIRTY attack by an enemy who does not want me to be able to be able to easily recall God’s word.

The moment that my light bulb went on about this struggle I knew what I had to do… Work harder to overcome this attack. The bible is clear to us that the best weapon we have to fight off attacks like this one is God’s truth.

So I have made an exciting commitment to myself and have decided to extend an invitation to each of you as well. I am going to be working on memorizing one new verse a week and starting this Sunday, each week I will share the verse and some of my thoughts on it in a post here on my blog. I will also be talking about it on Facebook throughout the week as well!

I am dedicated to overcoming this struggle and being able to not only hide God’s word in my heart daily… but also be able to recall it when needed as well!

I hope you will consider joining me!

Categories: Verse of the Week | 3 Comments

If you give a Woman an hour

Posted on June 22, 2012 by Christie Love

When I was a child I loved the book If you Give a Mouse a Cookie… as I have grown older- I came up with my own version of this childhood favorite that I could relate to.  How about you, can you relate?

If you give a woman an Hour

If you give a woman an hour, she’s going to want to take a warm bath.

When she goes in the bathroom to run the water,she will see that the sink needs to be cleaned.

When she finishes cleaning the sink she will notice that she needs a new towel for her bath.

When she goes to the laundry room to get a towel she will see the loads need to be changed.

When she finishes changing the loads she folds the load of jeans from the dryer.

When the jeans are folded she will walk to her closet to put them away.

As she walks into the closet she will notice that she has shoes laying on the floor.

She starts to pick them up and remembers that she was going to donate that pair because they hurt her feet when she walks.

She will go to the garage to get a box.

While she is in the garage she will notice that the trash needs to be taken out.

After she takes the trash out to the curb she will come inside and look for an empty box.

While looking for the box she will discover a box of pictures that she has not seen in years.

She will sit and look through the pictures and start to cry.

When she starts to cry she will need a tissue.

As she goes to find the box of tissues it reminds her that she needed to find an empty box in the garage.

She returns to the garage and locates a box to take to her closet.

She will start by packing the shoes but then begin going through her drawers, shelves, and hanging clothes too.

When the box is full she will carry it to the car.

As she puts it in the car she will notice that the car needs to be cleaned

She will grab her keys.

After she drops off the box of clothes and finishes cleaning the car at the car wash she will remember that they are out of milk for dinner.

While at the grocery store grabbing milk she will decide that brownies sound good for dessert.

She will shop for the ingredients needed before checking out.

At the checkout she will run into a friend who asks her to go walking later that night.

She agrees to meet her after dinner.

She will get home to make dinner and brownies.

After eating dinner with her family and cleaning up the kitchen, she heads out to meet her friend to walk.

As they walk they talk about how tired and stressed out they both are.

When she is finished walking she realizes that she needs a shower.

Chances are if she needs a shower… she will wish she had an hour to take a bath and relax.

Can you relate???  Statistics show us that the average woman wastes AT LEAST one hour a day with distractions and disorganization… so the question is: What would you do if someone gave you an hour?

Categories: Time Management | 2 Comments

Motherhood Mission Statement

Posted on May 11, 2012 by Christie Love

One day, several years ago, my children and I were driving in the car when my oldest son who was six at the time asked me a question. “Mama… what will you do when I am all grown up?”  His simple question caught me off guard and I faltered in my response.  I thought for a moment before finally saying, “I am sure I will stay busy with work and writing, visiting each of you all the time, and taking care of Daddy.”

My son thought about my response for a moment before responding, “I am glad you have a plan because I am growing up very fast and that time will be here before you know it.”

He was right… he was and is growing up very fast and time always seems be passing us by too quickly. In fact, if I close my eyes… I can recall that conversation as if it happened yesterday and not four short years ago.

It was in that moment that I felt as though fifty things flashed before my eyes at once… all things that I wanted to do with my children before they were too old or too cool to be seen in public with their mother. I felt a flash of panic rise up in my throat as I thought about all the time that I had already wasted on lazy weekends and days when I was too tired to play outside with them as they begged me.  I made a mental note then and there to be a more intentional mother.  I started to view each moment with them as a gift and an opportunity instead of simply a responsibility.

I sat down shortly after that conversation with my son and wrote out what I call my MotherHood Mission Statement.

My mission as a mom is: to leave a legacy of love in the lives of each of my children.  I commit to plant this legacy with seeds of time I will spend with them so they will know they are valued and treasured.  I will water the seeds of time with wise teachings based on God’s truth not the world’s opinions.  I will diligently work to protect the seeds from any weeds that seek to hurt or harm my children or our family’s foundation. I will be careful with the words that I use, knowing that they have the power to build or destroy the hearts of the children God has trusted me with.  I will strive each day to live my life in a way that shows them not only my love for them but more importantly… God’s love for them.  

 I keep a copy of this statement in my bible so that I can be reminded often of the type of mom I want to be, the kind of legacy that I want to leave, and the choices I need to make daily to help those become a reality.

The powerful truth that God has shown me through motherhood- that I hope all moms can embrace today is:  Your legacy is what is left behind you tomorrow; however, it is built from the choices you make today. 

So the question I am posing for moms to ponder this Mother’s Day weekend is a loaded one…  What do you want your legacy to be as a mom?  I challenge you to spend some time praying about it, writing it down, and committing to make choices daily to help it become a reality as your legacy of love.

Categories: Inspirational, Parenting | 2 Comments

Lessons from The Waiting Room

Posted on April 29, 2012 by Christie Love

Last week I shared that two of my kids were having their tonsils taken out.  A simple, routine surgery I know; however, I have found that when it comes to your children there is NOTHING that feels simple and routine.

Those short procedures felt like they took forever.  It is amazing the way that time often seems to stretch out for an exaggerated period when we have no control over or knowledge of what is going on.  The waiting room is definitely one of those places where time feels like it slows down.  I sat anxiously drumming my fingers as I waited on them to make it to the recovery room where I could see for myself that they were okay.

Yes, I was anxious for them to be out of surgery and back in my care; however, never once did I wish that the surgeon would rush through their procedures quickly just so that I could relieved of my uncomfortable feeling.  No, I wanted the surgeon to take his time and make sure that everything was done correctly and carefully.

After reflecting on this attitude I had in the waiting room this week, I suddenly saw a contraindication in my life.  The trust that I felt in the surgeon and his timing was not the same attitude I had towards God and his timing.

Recently, I have felt like I was stranded in “God’s Waiting Room”.  One of those seasons when it feels like I have been waiting on God to do something on our behalf while you struggle to understand his timing and his ways.  In these times we often feel disconnected from God especially since we  are unable to see the work that he is doing on our behalf.  Often our response to being in this place with God is to pace the floor and nervously wring our hands as we pray for understanding.  We suggest our plans to him, thinking that they will help us move on with our lives faster.  We beg him over and over for an update or a sign to encourage and sustain us through the times of uncertainty.

I thought about how crazy it would have been for me to call into the operating room every few minutes and ask the surgeon for an update on my child or say to him, “Aren’t you almost done yet!”  It would be unheard of for me to have sent him suggestions on how he could possibly do this procedure a different way in the case of my child.

In most situations we never question the wisdom and training of a surgeon that we trust our bodies to… yet we question God’s who we  trust our lives to.  Hebrews 4:12 in the MSG tells us that, God’s powerful Word is sharp as a surgeon’s scalpel, cutting through everything, whether doubt or defense, laying us open to listen and obey.  I suddenly found myself wondering… if I would not want to rush a surgeon’s steady hand as it worked on the body of my child… why am I so quick to prompt God’s hand to move faster as it orchestrates the circumstances of my life? 

Transforming our waiting time into trusting time is hard because we constantly have to fight the urge to fix everything ourselves. The lesson of the Waiting Room is:  We must learn to surrender our stubborn, controlling ways and replace them with a trust in God’s perfect timing and activities.  We do not have to see his actions first hand to know that he as at work on our behalf… we just trust and wait for him to open the door to invite us in when he is ready.

This is what I have been thinking about this week… I hope you will think about it too.  I invite you to share your thoughts about this topic in a comment below.

Categories: Inspirational, Parenting | 2 Comments

A Basket Full of Trust

Posted on April 24, 2012 by Christie Love

Tomorrow two of my sweet children are having their tonsils removed.  As I have recently been getting ready for this event I was reminded of a devotional that I wrote for the LeadHer Challenge devotional book that I would like to share with you today:

A Basket Full of Trust


But when she could hide him no longer, she got a papyrus basket for him and coated it with tar and pitch. Then she placed the child in it and put it among the reeds along the bank of the Nile.   Exodus 2:3

All three of my children have had some type of surgery. Each time the doctors have looked at me and said, “Trust me; it’s going to be okay.” But I was never able to fully relax until I could see for myself that they were okay in the recovery room. It was hard to entrust my children into someone else’s hands, no matter how skilled they were.

Jochebed, the mother of Moses, did a much better job entrusting her child into the hands of someone else. She knew that her son would be killed if the Egyptian soldiers found him alive, so she set him in a basket in the reeds of the Nile River. Her son was discovered by Pharaoh’s daughter, and Jochebed’s trust was rewarded when her son was returned to her so she could nurse him. Soon there came a time when she had to release him back to the princess to be raised as a member of Pharaoh’s family – an act that required tremendous trust in God to protect him.

Jochebed knew that God’s way was best. Her willingness to trust her son to God’s plan led to the deliverance of her people from Egyptian slavery. With whom do you identify more – the worried mother who paced the floor of the waiting room or the one kneeling in the reeds releasing her son and trusting God for the outcome?

 

Taken from: The LeadHer Challenge, Author House Publishing 2011 All Rights Reserved.  

Categories: Inspirational, Parenting | 1 Comment

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