There is no Such Thing as Idle Words

I sat with some truly wise women of God on a panel discussion yesterday 💞Even though I sat as a speaker, I wished I’d brought a pen on stage to take notes because the words they shared in our brief time together were transformational! 

This morning as I read Proverbs 14:1, each of their faces surfaced. It reminds us that a wise woman builds her home, but a foolish woman tears it down with her own hands😬

I think many of us agree that we wouldn’t   intentionally demolish our home with our own hands, but if we’re honest, we can do just as much damage (if not more) with our words or lack thereof.

I have written it before but I’ll say it again that I believe there’s no such thing as idle words. Our words carry power that either create life or promote death.

In the beginning was The Word & He created, formed & filled everything on earth. That very same Word, Jesus, LIVES in us!! Do we let His Words flow through us to bless & build our families or do we speak words led by our mind, will & emotions?

If the words we speak took form & stood before us at the end of the day, what would we see?

On the flip, what might we create if we asked Holy Spirit to become our filter, letting Him sift our words?

Here are a few tidbits I think He might whisper…

BE WARY OF LABELS-When my son was little, I mistakenly called him “stubborn” rather than speaking life & saying I see stubborn BEHAVIOR. OF COURSE I had a child marked by stubbornness at the end of the day because I spoke it over him!😳

BE WARY OF PRONOUNS-You don’t want to own or assign anything that’s not of God. Ex: Anxiety isn’t something you want to own so why call it MY anxiety?

BE GENEROUS WITH BLESSINGS-My husband &  I just started laying hands on each other’s chests & speaking daily blessing. Speaking life WITH physical touch carries great power!

Consider starting the day with, “I bless your spirit to operate in leadership position over your mind, will, emotions & body today. May your spirit come under the authority of the HOLY Spirit so you may produce His fruit.”

Holy Spirit, sift our words so we only speak life. May  Your will be done through our words, even if it means ours be undone.

#OneYearBible

April 24th One Year Bible Readings JUDGES 2:10-3:31 LUKE 22:14-34 PSALM 92:1-93:5 PROVERBS 14:1-2

Habits & Boundaries Do Not Restrict Freedom. They Promote It!

Did you know that we purportedly make over 35,000 decisions a day? That’s 2,000 per hour or one decision every two seconds.😳

Unlike a computer that’s programmed with a gazillion if-then scenarios, we have the added fun of emotional, physical, relational & financial factors that cloud our decisions.

I once read that habits & boundaries do not restrict freedom, but actually promote it! When we have a habit in place, like working out on certain days, or deciding to drink a gulp of water every time we’re about to eat, it saves the mental energy of deciding WHEN to do those things or determining HOW to fit them into our schedule.

It’s almost like the habit or boundary makes a decision non-negotiable, serving as a habitual fence to make responses automatic!

In Luke 22, Jesus tells Peter & John to prepare the Passover meal. When they ask where, He gives them very specific details as if He’d called ahead. The men do not question their Lord, but walk on & find everything, ‘just as Jesus had said.’

They don't question. There is no hesitation. They take the Lord at His Word, trusting that they’d find everything, “just as Jesus said.”

How might our daily decisions change or even lessen if we approached our risen Savior with the same childlike faith?

How might our heart remain steady when “bad” news is delivered to our doorstep? Will we quake or remain confident, knowing things will end up just like Jesus said?

Psalm 90 is FULL of future promises we can proclaim with “just like Jesus said” confidence!

The Lord promises that He will:

•Rescue us if we love Him

•Protect us when we trust Him

•Answer us when we call on Him

•Be with us, rescue & even honor us when we’re in trouble!

The next time we’re facing unexpected decisions, may we approach them with a “just like Jesus said” confidence & pray,

“As I love You & trust You, Jesus, I thank You for the rescue & protection You promise! As I call on You, I await with confident expectation of Your answer! You are Emmanuel, God with me! Lead my thoughts to remain fixed on things just like Jesus said rather than the contrary things I often say to myself. I choose today, to habitually take You, The Word, at Your Word!”

#OneYearBible #habits #boundaries

April 23rd One Year Bible Readings

JUDGES 1:1-2:9

LUKE 21:29-22:13

PSALM 90:1-91:16

PROVERBS 13:24-25

Living The Sifted Life Requires a Shifted Life

I’m so excited to speak at our women’s conference tomorrow about living, “The Sifted Life.” The title might seem unappealing until you learn the definition of the word, “intention”. It literally means to sift.

The idea of being placed in a colander & sloshed around doesn’t sound too fun until you understand the why behind a strainer👉🏽To remove unhealthy unessentials so that the essentials might remain.

Sifting requires separation, & you cannot live a sifted life without a shifted life. Living a life of intention requires a shifted perspective on what we allow into our lives - our homes, bodies, eyes, ears, schedules…do we let the clutter of things, flurry of activities or poor decisions regarding health or relationships sneak into the inner recesses of our lives? The more we do, the more our lives begin to lack intention.

When Joshua was 110 years old, he had a “come to Jesus” conversation with the people of Israel about living the sifted life.

I wonder if he knew that his time was short because he speaks with such vehemence & conviction? At one point, he peppers them with imperatives:

•So fear the Lord

•Serve Him wholeheartedly

•Put away forever the idols of your ancestors

•Serve the Lord alone

•Choose today whom you will serve

It’s easy to think about idols as trinkets they worshiped, but an idol is anyTHING or anyONE you trust to give you what only God can give!

If Joshua were peppering us with imperatives today, do any idols come to mind? Do we need a sifting so we may serve God with single-minded pursuit?

Maybe it’s money, social position, possessions, food, comfort, self-driven security…the list is endless but the bottom line is that taking stock of the perspective of our hearts is not a one & done task. If we seek to live a sifted life, we’ve got to inspect the things we allow entrance into our lives!

Oh Father, it’s so easy to let the woos of this world creep onto the throne in my heart that’s meant only for You! Holy Spirit, we need Your counsel & fruit of self control to live a life of intention. Help us put away the idols of our ancestors so we can proclaim like Joshua did in his last days, “As for me and my family, we will serve the Lord!” 

#OneYearBible

April 22nd One Year Bible Readings

JOSHUA 24:1-33

LUKE 21:1-28

PSALM 89:38-52

PROVERBS 13:20-23