Focus
I read this verse last week…
Luke 21:34 “Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with dissipation, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you unexpectedly like a trap.” Jesus was talking about the end times… and His glorious return!
This verse has been nagging at me all week. I even had to look up the word dissipation – in my Bible dictionary it read that dissipation is living only for your own pleasure; wasting your life on foolish or evil pleasures. One of the definitions on an online dictionary describes it as a wasting by misuse. The other part of the verse – the anxieties of life – also caught my attention. Jesus is specifically instructing us to be careful that we don’t let ourselves be distracted from what’s important. We have a choice!!!
This time of year it is so common to slide into dissipation – a wasting of our time, money, energy – when we lose focus on the real reason for Christmas – Jesus’ birth. We get weighed down with the anxieties of life – multiple (stressful?) Christmas celebrations, going overboard with presents and shopping, wondering if we have enough money to handle the load! If we focus on those types of things, we have misused the time we have to focus on Jesus – to teach our children to focus on Jesus – or to do the countless other things God might be calling us to do to build His Kingdom this Christmas season.
This year I want to stop and focus on what is really important – Jesus. I’m not going to allow my heart to be weighed down with dissipation and the anxieties of life.
How about you?
Holding back
Even when I wrote the last entry, I had a feeling God wasn’t finished with me yet about hospitality. I had a nagging feeling I was still missing something. Now I think I know what it was. I hold back. Alot sometimes.
When we were talking about hospitality at MOPS, I was thinking and even asked others whether it was ok to have an attitude of wanting to protect my family time. My heart often wants to keep others out… to focus only on us and not worry about everyone else.
Yesterday we had a fabulous guest pastor from Colombia come and preach about the kingdom of God. He asked whether we had given EVERYTHING to God – or whether we hold some things back for ourselves.
I think I hold back. I want to keep some for myself – for my family. I want our own time, our own money, our own stuff. I want to protect it. And that attitude is not right in the eyes of God.
I know there is scripture that tells us that if someone needs something and we have it within our power to give it to them, but we don’t, we’ve sinned (I’m still looking for the verse – help me if you know it!) That is holding back – and I think I’m really good at it. And I’m also really good at justifying it! But I don’t want to sin in that way any longer. This scripture only came to my mind this morning as I was mulling all of this over – I’m sure it was the Holy Spirit working!
We need to offer all we have to God to be used however he desires. If we haven’t done that, we have a stingy heart and we most likely aren’t being hospitable to the others that God has put in our lives.
Do any of you have any thoughts / comments / ideas about this? How has God been calling you to stop holding back from Him?
A Stingy Heart
It’s amazing how God will keep putting things in front of you when He is trying to teach you something!
About this time last year I read Romans 12:13 that says “Practice Hospitality”. And I realized that this is one of God’s commands to me. So I set about to learn how and to do it!
Fast forward to this year… last week our MOPS topic was, you guessed it… hospitality. And Sunday’s sermon was…giving. They are basically one and the same! And Pastor Andy asked a question at the end – do you have a stingy heart?
I think a stingy heart is the opposite of hospitality. It’s what keeps us from being hospitable. I used to think of hospitality in terms of Martha Stewart -type hospitality. I am coming to know hospitality as the quality of making people feel welcome – anywhere (i.e., it doesn’t even have to be in your home!!)
So I thought I’d share with you what God has been teaching me about hospitality:
(1) It’s SO not about me! When we try to impress others with our housekeeping, our cooking, our baking, our decor, etc., we are trying to impress them – and trying to make them see how great we are. It’s focusing on ME. When I focus primarily on the other person and meeting their needs, then and only then am I practicing true hospitality.
(2) Plan ahead and be prepared, but don’t obsess (read the story of Mary and Martha in the Bible – and read #1 above again). Planning ahead and preparing helps people feel welcome, but it can become the focus of our efforts. And practice is the operative word for some of us! We may need to try a few times to get into a good routine!
(3) Practicing hospitality as I mentioned above is a command from God. He’s basically telling us not to have a stingy heart when it comes to sharing our lives, our time, our possessions, with others. God also tells us to be hospitable without grumbling (1 Peter 4:9)… even those of us who may not be “natural hostesses”. We should be glad to share what God has given us with others!
(4) Remember that most other people are not judging us like we judge ourselves. I know I enjoy being invited over to someone’s house for dinner simply because I enjoy their company and I don’t have to make it! I really don’t care how their house looks or how clean it is. In fact, I like to see a little bit of mess because first of all it makes me feel like they trust me with their true selves, and second because it doesn’t make me feel inferior for my house not being perfect. I need to remember this and not get stressed about things when I invite others over.
(5) Often we think about hospitality as being strictly about our homes… but it needs to be a way of life wherever we are. We can be hospitable (make people feel comfy and welcome) wherever we are. We all have something to offer others no matter where we are, what we are doing, or where we live.
OK – so now I need to go “practice”!
In what areas of hospitality do you struggle?
Perspective
This poem is dedicated to my friends out there who only have one child. Enjoy it while you can!
Having one child is so simple,
I wish I only knew
And appreciated that fact well before
God blessed me with another two!
I think as a mom it’s so important to have some other moms around you that are a few steps ahead and can give you perspective on what you’re going through.
What is your best piece of advice you’d give to a new mom?
Learning to be at ease…
Sometimes I feel like I can never enjoy where I’m at because I’m too anxious about how my kids will behave.
We have been busy the past week or so – with doctor’s appointments, visits with friends, and visits with family. With my husband out of town, it’s been just the kids and I. Let me say up front that my kids really are very well-behaved when we are out in public. Most of the time, they pay attention, listen, and obey well around other people. Usually the worst I have to deal with in public is a little bit of whining.
But often I’m a wreck. I feel anxious and stressed about “keeping them in line”.
We were at my Grandmother’s house a couple of days ago, our plans were interrupted, and we were there WAY longer than I had anticipated. The kids were behaving well… but I was too busy waiting for the end of their patience to really enjoy being there.
Since then, I’ve been thinking about this. Why do I stress myself out like this? Why don’t I just enjoy the present instead of thinking about the future (and usually focusing on a negative outcome)? What would be the worst that would happen if my kids did behave badly? What do I care what other people think? Why do I get even more stressed when my “plan” doesn’t go the way I think it should?
So I’m going to try to be a little more flexible, a little more relaxed, a little less anxious, a little less stressed, a little more at ease. I want to enjoy the present – and my kids – without stressing about the future.
Do you live fully in the present and are you able to enjoy “where you’re at”? If so, how do you do it? If not, what’s stopping you?
It’s gonna be alright…
I love listening to Sara Groves. Her lyrics are so deep – often exactly what I’m feeling – and the music is beautiful. She can say it way better than I can.
Her song “It’s Going to Be Alright” has really hit home with me lately. See all the lyrics and listen at www.saragroves.com/lyrics/addtothebeauty/itsgoingtobealright.asp
Many times I feel unequipped to help others who are going through trials. Lord, equip me.
I want to be the kind of friend that offers encouragement and hope when times are tough. Lord, give me a listening ear and your words.
I want to order my life so that I can pray faithfully for others. Lord, give me discipline and determination.
Lord, let your light shine through me.
Experiencing God’s Goodness
This morning I’ve been feeling overwhelmed with God’s goodness.
It seems like all my life I’ve looked for that something good – something successful and good and lasting. Maybe I’ve been searching for excellence. Particularly in the things I’ve been associated with. Friendships, volleyball teams, schools, colleges, companies I’ve worked for.
The only thing good is God.
I knew it, but still searched. But through God’s grace, I feel like I’m finally realizing it now.
This morning the kids and I were driving over to my Mom’s for the day. Listening to Sara Groves’ CD in the van. It is a beautiful day – bright sunshine and crisp, cool fall air. The kind of fall day where the dark blue of the sky contrasts so well with the bright colors of the trees.
God is the creator of all this. He is the good in life, in relationships, in everything, in me. When I have these times of experiencing his goodness, I am overwhelmed by it. I want to soak it in. I want to bask in it. I want to experience it more, and more often. I want to spend more time with Him. I feel like yelling from the mountaintops… Jesus, you are my reward!
Praise Him for His Goodness!!!
How are you praising Him and experiencing His goodness today??
Standing in awe…
Busy, busy, busy. Life seems to speed up as we get older, doesn’t it? With each child, each passing year, there seems to be more and more to do. Sometimes we even feel the need to do more in our service to God.
Ecclesiastes 5:7 “…Therefore stand in awe of God.”
I don’t spend much time standing. Still, I mean. I’m mostly doing. And when I’m not doing, often I’m sitting, relaxing, trying to recover.
The previous times I’ve read this verse, I’ve always read it with the perspective that we need to stand in relation to God. To stand and show respect to our Creator. You know, like when men are supposed to stand as a sign of respect when a woman enters the room.
I read this verse recently and was immediately struck by the word stand…as it relates to our movement. In other words, don’t run, walk, or do … STAND. Still. Allowing ourselves to experience God. His goodness. His faithfulness. His love. His power. His holiness.
When I’m doing, it’s hard to appreciate those things. Even when I’m doing for Him! When I stand still for a while – humbly respecting my God and setting aside my to-do list – I can appreciate Him. And appreciate what He is doing in my life, in my husband’s life, in my kids’ lives, and more.
I think God is teaching me to be more like Mary – who allowed herself to sit at Jesus’ feet and soak Him in even though there were other things to be done. For a Martha-type, this is a hard lesson!
So I’m challenging myself – and you – to spend some time standing still. Standing in awe of who God is and all He has done for us.
I’d love to hear how you make time to stand in awe of God!
