Welcome to 2017: My Word for the Year

Welcome to 2017. 

Several people have announced their "word for the year". I didn't know this was a "thing", so I haven't chosen a word, but if I did, it would be Jesus. 

This year, I want more Jesus. To follow more faithfully. To see Him work in more lives. To experience more grace. To love more extravagantly.

To have more Jesus, there will have to be less Leanna. Less pride. Less selfishness. Less whining. Less grumbling. 

My 2017: Less me. More Him.

It doesn't seem possible that I can make those changes, but I found a beautiful word from God in Haggai that's a game-changer. 

The number of people who'd returned from captivity to Jerusalem was pitifully low. Rebuilding the temple was too much for them, and they had given up. The temple construction project was untouched for years.

Finally, God spoke into the situation and gave them the word they most needed. It's the one we most need, too. 

"'Take courage... and work; for I am with you,' says the Lord of Hosts." 

Haggai 2:4 nasb

"I am with you." We're not alone in the work that needs to be done. The Holy Spirit, our Comforter, our Helper, is with us. 

The One who created the heavens and the earth by speaking them into existence is with us. He made rhinos and rabbits, whales and waterfalls. He can handle whatever we face in 2017.

There will be changes and challenges this year. Not everything that happens will be what we consider "good", but none of the hard times will be wasted. None of it will be faced alone, no matter how lonely we feel.

Take courage, friends. God is with us, and we are not alone.

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Do you have a "word" for 2017? Comment below.

In case you missed it, here's the link for yesterday's post: The Five Dollar Miracle

Thanks to all who participated in the 2016 blog countdown. I'm stunned by the number of people who read all seven posts! What a great finish to 2016!

#Jesus #2017

Taking the Nazirite vow and having a Nazirite heart

Several years ago, I agreed to be the "lay director" for an upcoming women's retreat. The planning process took more than a year and was an overwhelming job. I had to decide about everything  from the members of the team to the speakers to the menu. Fortunately for me, I had a terrific team and they made the work easy.

At the beginning, though, I didn't know what kind of team God would send. All I knew was that the job was too big for me. I was deeply concerned. My great desire was to do a good job and please the Lord with my sacrifice.

About that time, I read the passage in Numbers that describes the Nazirite vow. Anyone who desired to be a "sanctified servant" could take this vow. It wasn't just for men. Women could take the vow, too.

I read those words and they burned in my heart. I wanted to dedicate myself to the Lord as it described, so I decided to take a Nazirite vow. 

The one taking the vow would abstain from strong wine and strong drink and from drinking vinegar or grape juice. I didn't have to worry about the drinking part, but not eating grapes and raisins was a bit of a sacrifice. 

Avoiding raisins was not the tough part, however. The hardest part was not cutting my hair for eighteen months. It grows fast and is very thick. I shudder to remember how my hair looked at the end of time. It was long.

I freely admit that I'm a prissy Southern woman. Hair is important to women like me. Bad hair is agony. It wasn't too bad at the start, but by the end of that eighteen months, I had a bad hair day every day. 

I sacrificed my pride of appearance on the altar of my heart every day for eighteen months. 

By the end of the vow, God had changed something in me. Hair wasn't so important. Appearance wasn't so important. What God saw on the inside of my heart had become much more important than what people saw on the outside. It still is.

You may remember that Samson was a lifelong Nazirite, as was John the Baptist. What I had forgotten until this morning was that Samuel was also a Nazirite. 

When Hannah was in the house of the Lord, she was greatly distressed by her infertility and wept bitterly as she prayed. (1 Samuel 1:10) She vowed that, if God would give her a son, she would give him back to the Lord and "a razor shall never come on his head". 

Hannah made a Nazirite vow for Samuel.

God blessed her with a son, but God also blessed Samuel. He called him, He equipped him, and He sustained him. As a prophet, not one of his words failed. Everything Samuel said came to pass. 

The entire nation knew that God had confirmed Samuel as His spokesman.

The time of my Nazirite vow was one of the sweetest of my life. The intimacy with the Lord was unparalleled. The sacrifice of service was made easier because the Lord helped me in every task. 

I don't expect the body of Christ today to suddenly stop cutting their hair due to a Nazirite vow, but there would be great value in taking a Nazirite vow of the heart.

If we corporately decided to dedicate our hearts completely to the Lord, willingly allowing Him to remove the sin that so easily besets us, our churches would be different places. We would present a different face to the world. I suspect the change in our lives would make Jesus infinitely more attractive in this dark world. Our saltiness might have greater savor and greater effect.

"...When a man or woman makes a special vow, the vow of a Nazirite, to dedicate himself to the Lord... All the days of his separation he is holy to the Lord." Numbers 6:1,8 nasb

I no longer have Nazirite hair, but I hope I always have a Nazirite heart. 

What about you? Will you dedicate your heart to the Lord? Will you allow Him to separate your heart from the things of the world? 

It might not be easy, but I can say for certain that it will be worth it.
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In case you missed yesterday's post, here's the link: The Importance of Study: Bombs, Bill of Rights, and the Bible

If you're interested in participating in the new Bible study starting May 1, be sure to leave a comment or message me. I'm thrilled by the number of people who have already signed up. 

#Nazirite #ChristJesus #Word 

Finding Christmas: The Good Husband

It was more than two decades ago, but I can still see myself, standing in the hallway of the office, one hand on the phone, blinking back tears. Former State Senator Nancy Collins was working at the hospital back then. She had called to ask me to be chairperson for a fund-raiser. I don't remember the cause, but the conversation is still vivid in my mind.

I didn't feel I could tackle a big project, I told her, because I was in the midst of a divorce. It was a devastating time. Between working, dealing with my farm and livestock, and (most importantly) being a single mother, I had more than I could handle already. I was fragile. The thought of adding one more thing to my overwhelming life brought me to tears.

She understood. She'd been there before, she told me, and there were two verses that had sustained her during those difficult days.

Fear not, for you will not be put to shame;

Neither feel humiliated, for you will not be disgraced;

But you will forget the shame of your youth,

And the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more.

For your husband is your Maker,

Whose name is the Lord of hosts;

And your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel,

Who is called the God of all the earth.

                                                     Isaiah 54:4,5 nasb

I didn't realize how important those two verses, hidden away in Isaiah, would be to me over the years. The words "your husband is your Maker" rang in my heart. That evening, I wrote the verses on an index card and tucked it in my pocket. I carried it with me until I had memorized the words. They are written on my heart to this day, for they sustained me through a time when I felt shamed, humiliated, and disgraced. A time when I was heart-broken and struggling to carry on.

Nancy was right. My Maker did become my husband, and He has been the best husband imaginable, even though He is a not a "husband with skin on". He's met my needs, provided wisdom, strength, and hope. The shame I felt during that time is only a distant memory.

I've never believed in a "name it and claim it" theology, but I do believe in clinging to truth. Over the years, the truth in Scripture has spoken to me just as these two verses did. It has specifically addressed my need and given me direction, or hope, or strength. Sometimes, it's given me conviction when I was in danger of wandering.

This year, let's immerse ourselves in the Word of God, the Word that became flesh and dwelt among us, the Word we celebrate this season. Whatever need we face, the answer lies in the Word. If we need help, or hope, or strength, we can find it, not in the glitter and rush of this world, but only in God's Word.

"And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth." John 1:14 nasb
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In case you missed any of the past week's posts, here are the links: Finding Christmas: Hidden Paths, Finding Christmas: Not Forgotten, Finding Christmas: Sustenance for the Weary, Finding Christmas: Remembering the Stripes,  Finding Christmas: Look to the Rock, Finding Christmas: The Rear Guard, Finding Christmas: Prosperity and Success, and Finding Christmas: Prophecy Fulfilled. 

The most read post of the last week: Finding Christmas: Separating Truth and Fiction.

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#Advent #keepChristinChristmas #MerryChristmas #JesusChrist #disciple, #Wordof God #Wordbecameflesh, #NancyCollins

The Power of Words (Luke 3:18)

So with many other exhortations he preached the gospel to the people. (Luke 3:18 NASB)

There was a lot more of this—words that gave strength to the people, words that put heart in them. The Message! (Luke 3:18 MSG)

An exhortation is a little speech (or a few sentences) strongly urging people to do something. John didn't just tell them to repent. He gave specific examples of how repentance would look in their lives. He helped them find their way through the early days of this remarkably personal faith they had embraced. 

I love how the Message describes it. "Words that gave strength to the people, words that put heart in them". John spoke with words that they could remember, that they could hold to and use during the difficult days. Remember, they lived in an occupied nation with enemy soldiers who were often harsh and cruel, and who served under a ruler who was cruel, if not insane. A word of encouragement that strengthened their heart was exactly what they needed. 

The psalmist described the Word (God's Word) this way:  "Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path." (Psalms 119:105 NASB) That is exactly what the word of God is supposed to be for us. It's like a little palm-sized lamp that gives us just enough light to see the next step. It strengthens and encourages us if we will allow it. 

Spend some time today pondering those verses that you know as God brings them to your mind, and allow them to strengthen and direct you. Maybe you need some time in Scripture to learn new verses. Let those words from God infuse your being and allow them to make you stronger in your faith and more diligent in your obedience.

Pray too that God will bring Scripture memorized as a child to our loved ones and that He will use it to guide, direct, and draw them back to Himself.