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Articles from May 2015

Stick Your Foot In

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And when those who carried the ark came into the Jordan, and the feet of the priests carrying the ark were dipped in the edge of the water (for the Jordan overflows all its banks all the days of harvest), the waters which were flowing down from above stood and rose up in one heap….and the priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan while all Israel crossed on dry ground, until all the nation had finished crossing the Jordan. 

Joshua 3:15-17, NASB

crashing wavesThe Lord had spoken to Joshua and His command had been clear: the Ark of the Covenant was to be carried across the Jordan River. Not only was it to be carried, but the priests who carried the Ark were to stand still in the middle of the river. That’s not a big deal if we are talking about a small stream where the water is no more than a peaceful trickle, but this was no small stream. There was no trickling. In fact, the river was flooded. That changes things a bit, doesn’t it? It requires a bit more trust. OK, a lot more trust.

The Ark contained the stone tablets on which the Ten Commandments had been written. To say it was a treasured possession would be a gross understatement. Yet when the Lord told them to pack up the Ark and cross the overflowing river, they went. It wasn’t until the soles of their feet rested in the waters that the flow was cut off and dry land appeared.

I love it when God shows up and shows off, don’t you?

Imagine what would have happened if the Israelites had refused to trust God with the Ark and hadn’t crossed the river? What if they had waited for the river to stop flowing first? I guess they’d still be waiting. Thankfully, they were faithful and obedient.

We all have things we value that can prevent us from stepping out in faith and following God’s call for our lives, to bring us to the Promised Land the Lord has for us.

Maybe it’s our career or our home? The Lord has told us it’s time to move on, but there are too many unknowns. The new job pays less, comforts may be lost, and relationships left behind, so we stay where we are.

Maybe the Lord has stirred your heart toward fulfilling the Great Commission and taking the gospel to the nations? The risks are too great and the unknowns are too many to count so we push those stirrings aside.

Your heart wants to leap at the chance to serve in an area of ministry? You feel ill-equipped and afraid of failure, so you never put yourself out there.

You’ve felt compelled to share your faith with your neighbor? You don’t know enough, your life is far from perfect, and they might think you’re weird. You’ll do it when you know more and if they initiate the conversation first.

Remember friend, God didn’t dry up the water until the priests placed their foot in the flood waters. What step is God asking you to take today?

Stepping in faith,

Traci

God’s Got This

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So he answered, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” Then Elisha prayed and said, “O Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” And the Lord opened the servant’s eyes and he saw’ and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. 

2 Kings 6:16-17, NASB

horse21The king of Aram was furious with the prophet Elisha and had begun exacting his revenge. Following the orders of the king, the Aramean army circled the city of Dothan where Elisha was rumored to have been staying. Rising early one morning, Elisha’s servant went out, and upon seeing the Aramean’s horses and chariots he asked Elisha, “What shall we do?”

It’s a valid question, don’t you think? I’m thinking now would be a good time to have a strategy.

Elisha, steadfast in faith, reminded the servant not to fear. More were fighting for them than against them. And then for some added assurance for his servant, Elisha prayed that the Lord would open his servant’s eyes so that he could see for himself the army that was fighting for them. “And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha” (2 Kings 6:17).

Have you ever wished you could get a behind the scenes look when your faith is feeling a little weak in the knees? More than once I have wished to be privy to this information. Maybe I wouldn’t have problems trusting if I could just see the Lord’s army fighting on my behalf. I guess that isn’t faith though, is it? The writer of Hebrews tells us that “faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1 NASB emphasis mine).

Elisha had it right. Elisha’s servant, like me at times, had it all wrong.

When the storms of life crash head-on with our faith, it can be easy to fix our eyes on our problems. We can see them. They’re real and they can be frightening. Like the servant, we can be quick to panic or try to spring in to action like it all depends on us. The good news is that it doesn’t depend on us. God’s got this.

The Lord and His army are fighting on our behalf. We need only to trust. Like Elisha, we too can stand in confidence that those fighting for us are more than those fighting against us.

Choosing to trust,

Traci

The Still Small Voice

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So He said, “Go forth and stand on the mountain before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord was passing by! And a great and strong wind was rending the mountains and breaking in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of a gentle blowing.

1 Kings 19:11-12, NASB

“Do you want God do send you a postcard?!”

fireMy husband has asked me that more than once when I’m faced with a big decision. My answer is always the same. “Yes! Actually, that’s exactly what I want! Gideon got the fleece, Moses got the burning bush, why can’t I get a postcard?!”

It seems silly as I write it, but it’s honest. Sometimes my faith feels so small and my circumstances seem so big. I just want God to tell me what to do!

Elijah, fleeing for his life and desperate for death, was told by the Lord to go to Horeb as He would be passing by. Elijah, a prophet of God, was no stranger to the miracles of the Almighty. Elijah, having been fed by ravens and witnessing fire fall from Heaven, knew the Lord would deliver. Expecting God to show up, Elijah went as he was told. Today’s verse tells us that a strong wind, an earthquake, and a fire came, but the Lord was not in any of them. This time, the Lord showed up in what the King James Version refers to as a “still small voice” (1 Kings 19:12 KJV).

What if Elijah had only looked for God in the big and miraculous as opposed to the still and the small?

Make no mistake, God still uses miraculous ways to communicate with us, but if you and I are only looking for God in the big and the powerful, we set ourselves up to miss His divine guidance. God may not speak to us in the same manner as He did to Elijah, but He still speaks in countless ways. He speaks to us through His word, through conviction and prompting deep in our hearts, and through the words spoken by others. There are no limits to the ways He can and will show up in our lives.

It’s difficult to hear His guidance without spending time with Him through worship and the reading of His Word. It’s in our hearts—our humble and submissive hearts-—that the still small voice of God is heard.

Humble and Hearing,

Traci