Category: journey

Paths of Discovery

When you find yourself chopping at obstacles in your path, frustrated, tired and discouraged – stop!

Meditation Thought: “See, I am doing a new thing!… I am making a way in the wilderness.” (Isaiah 43:19)

“Give me your attention… we are starting on an adventure together. Enjoy the thrill, the excitement, the anticipation of discovery. The way will be cleared before you, for I prepare it before asking you to go that way. You must look for the path I have cleared for you – otherwise you will have to fight the wilderness by yourself – finding it very difficult to penetrate. When you find yourself chopping at obstacles in your path, frustrated, tired and discouraged – stop! Look at where you are, and look at where I am – are you following me? Are you taking the path which I have cleared for you? The jungle of circumstances holds no peril for you, no difficulty, if you put your efforts into finding my path instead of into hacking a path for yourself. Direct your efforts where the results will be fruitful and satisfying, not frustrating.”

Woodworking

Our lives are like that wood: It’s the “flaws” that give them character, and once the whole is polished by God’s light, the lives are beautiful flaws and all.

It is the contrast in wood that makes it interesting – the knot holes and variations are what make it intriguing, and the polishing, or sheen over all adds to its beauty. Our lives are like that wood: It’s the “flaws” that give them character, and once the whole is polished by God’s light shining over all, the lives are beautiful, flaws and all. As long as we are active, we will have some flaws in our lives, but as we trust God, they will blend in to become beautiful instead of ruining our lives. (see Romans 8:28)

Spiraling

But if we keep moving, we will come to the center – to the Beginning and the End, and the Meaning.

Our lives are like a spiral leading to God in the center. We go along the path, moving constantly, sometimes wondering if the path really does lead anywhere. But if we keep moving, we will come to the center – to the Beginning and the End, and the Meaning. If we stop in the path because of the difficulties we encounter, then we do not find the Treasure which is at the end of the path.

Avalanche!

What a different attitude we have as we travel along if we know that every time we come to a mountain, we can turn to God.

Meditation Thought: “Have faith in God. Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him.” (Mark 11:22-23)

Have faith in God. It is God’s power that moves mountains – not our faith. We must look to God in faith, but not concentrate on our faith, but on God. “I can’t do it – but my Father can” – confidence in Him, giving it to Him so that He can work without our interference. Let Him initiate the movement – we do only as He asks us. God may ask us to roll a stone to start the avalanche to move the mountain – in fact, perhaps it is our faith turning to God that is the stone that starts the avalanche – but it is God’s power that is released in the tumbling of tons of stone being moved, clearing a way where the obstacle was. What a change in perspective, to go from looking at a mountain blocking our way, to seeing it disappear before our very eyes as God moves it into the sea – now our way is easy, our view is clear. What a different attitude we have as we travel along if we know that every time we come to a mountain, we can turn to God and say: “This mountain is in the way Lord – would You please move it?”

New Healthy Growth

There are 2 wings to enable us to fly above our burdens – ‘surrender’ and ‘trust’.

Meditation Thought: “…every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” (John 15:2)

The problems and burdens are the painful cut associated with the pruning process. They are unpleasant, but as we learn to release them to God, He seals over the cut made by the problems and burdens, relieving the painful exposure. And then, with the old branches which were not healthy removed, new healthy growth is produced by the strength which had before gone to the unhealthy branches now shunted over toward new healthy growth.

(Accompanying thoughts that appear to be based on the book ‘The Christian’s Secret to a Happy Life’: There are 2 wings to enable us to fly above our burdens – ‘surrender’ and ‘trust’. The burdens become the chariots of God, sent to take the soul to its high places of triumph.)

Jesus Cares for Me

I have been transported from a world to a Kingdom, never moving, but the scene changes because the knowledge comes:
Jesus cares.

Do I feel lonely – deserted?
Jesus cares.
Do I need help?
Jesus cares.
Do I need love?
Jesus cares.
Do I need strength?
Jesus cares.
Do I need guidance?
Jesus cares.
I wander lost and lonely in a void –
Jesus cares…
And the void blossoms into a garden of beauty, pleasing all my sensed, taking me from delight to delight – I have been transported from a world to a Kingdom, never moving, but the scene changes because the knowledge comes:
Jesus cares.

That’s a Win!

When you see the enemy’s strength, quickly turn your eyes from him to your Leader.

Meditation Thought: “But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 15:57)

“I have sent a Hero to lead you to conquer your foes: Will you recognize Him, follow Him? If not, defeat will come. But the more you believe in Him, trust Him, obey Him, the more glorious the victories, the more enthusiastic you will be in the battles. Let Him use you – He knows your strongest assets and will use them well. Read your ‘marching orders’ every day, so you will be taking the right path to vanquish the enemy. When you see the enemy’s strength, quickly turn your eyes from him to your Leader – you know He has already been given the victory, and if you are right with Him, – both in the sense of obeying Him, and in the sense of being close to Him, the victory is yours also.”

P.E.A.C.E.

We can rest assured that we no longer need to fear the dark.

Meditation Thought: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” (John 14:27)

“You light up my life” – a few words from an old song, but what meaning! In the dark, we are afraid, uncertain of what surrounds us, where to go; we are apprehensive, nervous. A sudden illumination of light – and instant change: our fears vanish, we are assured, we are at peace.

With the Light inside of us illuminating everything with which we come in contact, we can rest assured that we no longer need to fear the dark – for there will be no dark for us. There will be all kinds of circumstances, situations, places – but always clearly seen, as our Guide is with us to deal with them.

P – Pray
E – Everything
A – Anytime
C – Circumstances
E – Everywhere

Psalm 23: A Psalm of David.
23 The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
3 He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.

4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord
Forever.

Building a Tower of Strength

Your perception of reality will become as different as when you look at a beam of light when it is up at the little hole in the projection booth, and when you look at that same light as it hits the movie screen.

Meditation Thought: “Take delight in the Lord,
    and he will give you the desires of your heart.” (Psalm 37:4)

‘Delight in the Lord’ – and His delights shall be our delights – and His delights will be manifested in the world, or at least the Kingdom of His believers. Therefore if our delights are identical with His delights, it follows that we shall receive whatever delights us. The key is to be so ‘in love’ with the Lord that His desires become our desires also.

“Take heart – you will come to Me in fullness; first comes the acquaintance, then the friendship, then the tentative love, then the complete love. Be happy in each stage; none can be skipped, for one builds upon the other. Concentrate on the strength of what you are building, that the next stage will have the base in needs to become a ‘tower of strength’.

Your perception of reality will become as different as when you look at a beam of light when it is up at the little hole in the projection booth, and when you look at that same light as it hits the movie screen. There is nothing untrue about it up at the little hole – but what is revealed by it as it illuminates the screen is not comparable to what is revealed by it as it is barely out of the projector. So shall your perception be changed in what it illuminates of the Kingdom, as the area of focusing changes, broadens.”

Two Gears

Only when we can say “I’m yours. Take me as I am, imperfect, inadequate, but completely yielded does the gear slip smoothly into place.

Meditation Thought: “Anything is possible if you have faith.” (Mark 9:23)

Anything is possible if you have faith, because God is taking the action, not human beings. Faith is the lever that changes our gear from ‘our action’ to ‘God’s action’.

Maybe the gears are marked:
– ‘doubt’ and ‘trust’ or
-‘my will’ and ‘God’s will’ or
-‘my strength’ and ‘God’s strength’ or even
-‘my good works’ and ‘God’s grace’.

Whatever the labels, there is no doubt that the pace and the results are different in the two gears. We can be helped by suggestions on how to change gears, but only by our own act can we actually change them. We may have to pull and tug and experiment, but we must keep trying until we succeed in getting the gears changed.

The changing actually takes place when we relax and gently slip our heart and our will into God’s hands, but we may be unable to do this without some pulling and tugging – then giving up our struggle as inadequate, surrendering ourselves as having tried every way we knew and failing. Only when we can say “I’m yours. Take me as I am, imperfect, inadequate, but completely yielded does the gear slip smoothly into place.