Splendid Gifts!

We can never replace a friend.  When a man is fortunate enough to have several, he finds they are all different.  No one has a double in friendship.  

Johann Von Schiller

Although we all have had friends for seasons, those who come and go, each are individually unique, irreplaceable for those particular times and certainly not forgotten. As new seasons arrive, God does fill that void, sometimes. I also find those few who remain true soul friends, despite time and distance, are NOT so replaceable. 

When circumstances claim those friends we cherish, for a while or until eternity, their place in the heart remains. Occasionally life returns them, in planned reunions or at unexpected intersections. In these moments, we quickly fall into conversation with comfort and ease; afterwards, we pause, reflective and grateful. Genuine friendship is a matter of the soul, a holy engraving by the Giver, each one chosen for us. What splendid friends they make! ~dho

"And these God-chosen lives all around 

- what splendid friends they make!"

Psalms 16:3 The Message

Contentment Within

“Blessed are the...” begins the familiar verses in Scripture called the Beatitudes. “Blessed” comes from the Greek word MAKARIOS, a “poetic word” meaning happy or good fortune. Blackaby describes this concept as a “result of divine favor” but goes much further by defining this kind of good favor comes in a relationship with “God who satisfies our soul and promises future reward.” Such divine favor comes through a relationship with Christ, and is not found elsewhere.

Sometimes reading different versions of the Scripture can give new insights into the meaning.  As I am reading in The Message “You’re blessed” over and over, I begin to contemplate how I am blessed. Certainly the tangible things in life immediately come to mind, like security and shelter, then health comes next, followed by loving relationships. Soon I realize the things that come to mind are all about me! In these verses, Jesus is teaching a “new awareness” or a “new consciousness” about what really brings us happiness.

Blackaby writes that to find happiness requires we “experience the Kingdom’s inner riches, in the midst of external poverty and distress.” WHAT? Reading again in The Message I begin to see phrases that reveal the truths for a disciple of Jesus such as - “less of you - more of God” and “embraced by the One most dear” and “content with who you are”. My favorite is verse 7: "You're blessed when you care. At the moment of being care-full, you find yourselves cared for.” Happiness is being in a relationship with Christ while life happens!

In the article, “An Inside Job...What Really Brings Contentment?” Martin Thielen, pastor in TN, writes, “Extensive studies have proven that external circumstances...account for only 10 percent of a person’s happiness.” He goes on to say, “contentment is an inside job.” This Jesus prescription for happiness is a “divine paradox”. The world will always be in conflict with God’s promises, and Christians must trust God to be both power and presence, even in the darkness of uncertainty. We are “blessed” especially when we find ourselves struggling and grieving, when we lay down self and disappointment, when we experience evil in the world or persecution for our beliefs. In all these times, Christ remains with us, always the comforter, always the encourager, always faithful and true. “To be happy in Jesus” brings more divine favor than I could ever need. -dho

Mystery at Work

You'll never understand the mystery at work in all that God does. 
Ecclesiastes 11:5b The Message

For the last seventeen years, I have kept a devotional-prayer journal. Scripture, prayer requests, random ideas, new words, and meanings of words often find their way to the pages. Excerpts from articles, books, or commentaries that move me are also written or attached within the pages. Prayer requests fill the far right side of each page, reminding me and giving me a place to make notes of specific needs and outcomes. 

There is one unique entry I always include: on the first page of each notebook ~ I make note of a Scripture that defines where I am spiritually when I start the book ~ my journey note. I often discover this to be way the Spirit is leading me during this phase of my journey with Him. Occasionally, I also add a quote or commentary that speaks to His Word. When the book is complete, when no more empty pages remain, I mark the front with the beginning and ending dates and begin another. Looking back I can always find a richness of God's teaching, wisdom, and leading that develops a deeper understanding of my struggles, successes, and relationship with God. Sometimes, the very circumstances that brought me the most discomfort reveal my most intimate times of spiritual growth with God. 

My current journal note (journal begun 4/13/22) is 1 Corinthians 2:10: The Spirit dives into the depths of God and brings out what God planned all along. (MSG) We desire to be in control, even if only to know what comes next. My nature is to explore and examine and reach conclusions. I like to understand how all the pieces fit together. Blackaby says:

A part from God’s Spirit, the brightest human mind will never understand the simplest spiritual truth. Truth is revealed through encounter, not through study, for Truth is a person. Jesus is Truth.

So in our daily journey, our encounter with the Father, we should be seeking His will and purpose in life, listening for His voice to lead, and knowing His compassion as peace. We must trust God with thankful hearts ~ thankful God loves unconditionally, and trusting Him to work all things into His perfect plan. Because try as I might, I will never understand the mystery at work in all that God does. ~ dho

Listening - Experience

"I'm speechless, in awe - words fail me. I've talked too much... 
I'm ready to shut up and listen." Job 40:4-5 The Message

If you have not read any of Richard Foster's writings, I encourage you to do so. He is most known for Celebration of Discipline, but I particularly like Prayer, Finding the Heart's True Home which I have read at least 6 times, each time finding new truths, and I guarantee it will greatly impact your prayer life. Foster's introduction suggests encouraging "one another to discover the footprints of God in our daily existence, and to venture out with God into areas where we have previously walked alone or not at all."

The aim is not external conformity, whether to doctrine or deed, but the reformation of the inner self - of the spiritual core, the place of thought and feeling, or will and character. Richard Foster

My heart's deep desire is to listen to God, to increase my awareness of Him in my daily life. Foster writes, "Challenge yourself to look for God in new places.” He stresses, "The Spiritual Disciplines in and of themselves have no merit whatsoever. They possess no righteousness, contain no rectitude. Their purpose - their only purpose - is to place us before God." I do pray that you will find a devotional or Bible study or some other ways to guide you in contemplating the Scriptures and God's presence in your life. We each must find time to study and listen for God’s voice, to find ourselves, like Job, speechless before God. THEN, we are to share what we learn, what we experience, and put our understanding into practical use. -dho

Holy Father, 

Open my heart, for I long to hear Your voice. I listen for Your instructions, meditate on Your wonders. I collate my random thoughts and lay them at Your altar. Through the silence, I hear Your whispers of mercy and compassion and tenderness. Inside my longing heart, prayers of praise rise to You. My soul finds satisfaction in the shadow of Your protection that exists nowhere else. Holy Spirit, bring His presence and His peace. Amen.  ~ dho

Listening - Obedience

 

“...You must all be quick to listen...  But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says...” James 1: 19-26 NLT

Listening is harder for people, usually because we often have something we want to convey or tell. Taking self out of the conversation opens the door for better listening. Henri Nouwen writes, “Listening is giving our full attention - which requires welcoming [others] into our very beings.” Laying down self is essential to being a good listener.

However, we are not only called to listen but to respond. God’s word gives us direction and discernment in all the matters of life. Sometimes, we need to sharpen our listening skills with others, but more importantly with God. Wiersbe says, “It is not reading the Bible that makes a person happy; it is obeying what it says.” In listening with intention, we develop a listening obedience. Let our heart’s desire for genuine obedience be seen in outward actions. dho

Listening - Silence

 “But oh! God is in his holy Temple!
    Quiet everyone—a holy silence. Listen!” Habakkuk 2:20

It is good to simply be quiet, sit in the quiet and listen for God. Too often we busy ourselves with living life, too busy to listen, too busy doing, even too busy talking to God. Noise and activity drown us, suffocate us. Listening must be intentional. 

Silence takes many forms. Find a place of silence that fits your life. Then recognize God, be His holy Temple, rest in the holy silence. Listen! Recently I saw this reminder, “The word listen has the same letters as the word silent.” Our souls crave silence, are starving for quiet. Spend some time today - in silence - and listen! -dho