Tag: holy spirit

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Battle Strategy

krisshetter 
Praise be to the Lord my Rock, who 
trains my hands for war, my fingers 
for battle. 
Psalm 144:1

I have a very strong personality.  I’m a fixer and a doer.  I’m a creative problem solver.  So, for me to sit back and let God take control or direct me has been one of my greatest challenges.  A few years ago, I was working in a school counseling office.  There were two of us with essentially the same job.  When my co-worker left for greener pastures, we hired a new, young woman as her replacement.  She was fun and interesting.  And then she stopped showing up on time for work.  And at times not at all.  Then she started spending what time she was in the office on personal phone calls or social media.  The bulk of the work fell on me to accomplish.

I jumped into fix it mode.  Trying to help her figure out a better work style.  Talking with our supervisor about how to discipline her.  Each morning as I headed into work, I created all the conversations I wish I could actually have with her.  I became angry and bitter.  I might or might not even jokingly asked God to take her out with a bus.

Fortunately, my faith was maturing.  One morning during my commute, the Holy Spirit whispered to me: “This battle needs a different approach.  Try praying FOR her.”  And so, I did.  For one week, every morning I prayed that God would intervene in her life to help her be more successful at work.  And that whatever was happening in her home life would not deter her from doing a good job.

And after one week she stopped showing up completely.  Two weeks later it was determined she had “abandoned” her job.  Essentially, she had fired herself.  And in the next hiring process I was able to recommend someone else who was amazing!

He is my loving God and my fortress, 
my stronghold and my deliverer, my shield, 
in whom I take refuge, who subdues 
people under me. 
Psalm 144:2

You see, I was fighting the battle all wrong.  I focused on myself rather than God.  It was an in-your-face lesson delivered by the Holy Spirit.  

Since then, I have faced other battles.  I’m remembering to pray before I enter the battlefield for God to direct me and protect me.   Because I recognize that I can be a bull in a china shop with my “Miz Fixit” personality.  

“When I release my weaknesses and blind spots to God, He uses them to help me grow up spiritually.” 

Crystal McDowell

I love the visual from 1 Peter 1:13 to “gird your loins.”  The saying comes from the concept of tucking your tunic up into your belt so that it doesn’t get in the way while running.  

Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, 
be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the 
grace that is to be brought to you at the 
revelation of Jesus Christ; 
1 Peter 1:13

And in this verse, it specifically reminds us to pull our thoughts together and have a disciplined mind so we can rest our thoughts on the grace of the returning Christ. We escape from the perils of the worldly mind – trying to fix everything ourselves — with the teaching and guiding hand of God.

Before we make that difficult phone call, head into that important meeting, sit down with the wayward family member we need to “gird our loins” and seek God’s battle plan.  Stand confident in prayer and listen to what He really wants you to say or do.  For me, He reminds me I need to be silent at times and let Him do His good work.

Most of us are “can do” people.  And when it comes to conflict or issues in our lives we so often want to take back command of the battle.  But like Joshua before us we need to be fired up and bold in our faith that He will be our deliverer.

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Eat Up His Words

krisshetter 
When your words came, I ate them;
they were my joy and my heart’s delight,
for I bear your name,
Lord God Almighty.  
Jeremiah 15:16

I visited some friends recently outside Austin, Texas.  One day we were trying to decide where to eat for lunch and I mentioned seeing a place that served Louisana-style shrimp and crab.  My friend exclaimed, “Oooo those are my two favorite foods!”  And off we went!

As our food was placed before us – heaping piles of crab, shrimp, corn and potatoes — I thought I heard my friend moan.  And when she started in, slurping and sucking on her crab I actually did hear her moan!  We started laughing so hard!  That lunch is what came to mind when I read this verse from Jeremiah.  Eating joyously and to our heart’s delight.

Jeremiah was in a pretty tough spot with God and the people of Israel.  He had to tell the people of God’s coming wrath.  You see, God was done being placated by Israel’s rulers.  It was time to pay the piper for their egregious and continuing sins.  But God promised to save Jeremiah after he makes his plea of faithfulness.

Just think if we all devoured God’s word like my friend did her pile of crab and shrimp!  Or like Jeremiah in his plea for rescue!

“The stiff and wooden quality about our religious lives is a result of our lack of holy desire. Complacency is a deadly foe of all spiritual growth. Acute desire must be present or there will be no manifestation of Christ to His people.”-

A.W. Tozer

Acute desire.  To yearn to read more about God.  To seek with all our heart ways to serve God.  To sit in mediation with anxious expectation to hear from God.  That’s the kind of love God wants from us.  Like lovers that can’t get enough of each other!

My husband and I started out in a long distance relationship.  He lived and went to college in Colorado and I was in California.  We began calling each other every day.  Spending hours on the phone.  We wanted to learn everything we could about each other.  Then our phone bills started arriving!  As poor college students we couldn’t afford to call each other anymore so we took to writing.  Each day I would anxiously await the mail.  And each letter that came was pages long.   I ate up those words with joy and with a happy heart.

The Bible is like those love letters.  It tells us all we need to know about God’s character.  It regales us with stories of how He makes promises and keeps them.  He tells us about how much He sacrificed to show us love.  And He shows us the way to be united with Him again.

If what we call love doesn’t take us beyond ourselves, it is not really love. If we have the idea that love is characterized as cautious, wise, sensible, shrewd, and never taken to extremes, we have missed the true meaning.

Oswald Chambers

Loving God is not a passive pursuit.  We need to love with abandon.  We need to eat up every word from His lips!  

Then you will call on me and come 
and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 
You will seek me and find me when 
you seek me with all your heart.  
Jeremiah 29:12-13

Friends, the enemy is like that jealous school girl who wants to steal your boyfriend away.  She’d love to see you get a bit complacent with your relationship.  She’ll even find ways to distract you and put a wedge between you.  The difference is, the enemy can only work on one side of this relationship.  God is never distracted.

The presence of passion, faith, and belief in our hearts is a gift.  It’s on loan to our souls. 

Priscilla Shirer, Fervent

In other words, we don’t need to conjure up that passion or desire to eat up God’s Word.  The Holy Spirit is already there, waiting for us to access that burning faith!  We need only to call out to God and say, “I love you, Lord with all my heart!  Teach me everything about you so that I may serve you!”  And He will certainly place a feast before you.

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The Blessing of Hope

krisshetter 
And hope does not put us to shame, 
because God’s love has been poured 
out into our hearts through the Holy 
Spirit, who has been given to us. 
Romans 5:5

In February of 2020, my beloved mother in law got some disturbing news.  She possibly had uterine cancer.  We all started praying and hoping for negative tests.  But with each test, each imaging, we were disappointed.  Our hopes for it being “just a thing” were dashed.

In my prayers I lifted her up to God as one of His very faithful daughters.  And when the bad news came, I cried out to Him.  It wasn’t fair.  I couldn’t see why He would allow this to happen.

And as quickly as I cried out, He answered me.  “I have a plan.  You need to trust in me.”  So, I rested my hope in patience and faith and the knowledge that God has been there for her in the past.

Such hope as is the fruit of faith, patience, and experience, namely, the full assurance of hope;

Benson Commentary on Romans 5:5

When I read the verse from today, I wondered about the word, “shame.”  The clarification I found was that Christian hope will not disappoint or be deceptive.  God has proven Himself over and over of His faithfulness.  The apostle Paul, in his letter to the Jews and Christians in Rome, reminds us that even before we were willing to worship God fully He sent His son to die for us.  Think about that.  We didn’t have to prove ourselves to Him first.

You see, at just the right time, when 
we were still powerless, Christ died 
for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone 
die for a righteous person, though for a 
good person someone might possibly dare 
to die. But God demonstrates his own love 
for us in this: While we were still sinners, 
Christ died for us. 
Romans 5:6-8

He goes on to say if God would do this for us, how much more can we expect?  How much more hope can we put in the fact that God will take care of us?

As a maturing Christian this idea of “hope” has gone through a transition in my thinking.  And where I started mirrors what so many non-believers struggle with when looking at Jesus followers.  “If I pray and hope that someone is cured and they aren’t, doesn’t that mean God’s not listening (or doesn’t care or maybe the person doesn’t deserve it?).”  But friends, God’s plans are so beyond our own!

I truly believe that God allows us to experience trials so that we can change our perspective of what living a “good life” in the world means.  We, through our experiences, can offer hope to others that they can come out the other side with renewed faith.  And He uses people around us to show His love during difficult times.

Every single apostle, every single lover of God in the Old Testament went through extremely difficult times.  It was their hope they placed in Him that sustained them.  And it was their experiences that help us to remember He loves us.

As for my mother in law?  Praise God that through surgery and chemotherapy her cancer was eradicated.  But the message I got from God was that even if she succumbed to cancer, He still had her safely in His arms.  Because that is the greatest message of hope that Jesus gave us.  We are saved from wrath.  We are saved from the sins of this world.  And we will find a loving home for us waiting at the end.

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Hemmed In

krisshetter 
You hem me in behind and before, and 
you lay your hand upon me. 
Psalm 139:5

My BSGs were talking the other day about sensing God’s presence.  More specifically about the times we felt God was far away from us.  So often when we are experiencing difficult trials we think “where is God?”  But I’ve come to realize in my faith journey that the real question is the one God asks, “Will you come back to me and rest in my love?”

God surrounds us each and every day.  In our verse today it’s expressed as “hemming us in.”  For some that might seem restricting.  But to me it evokes the concept of wrapping a baby tightly in a swaddling cloth.  We do it so the baby feels the warmth and safety once felt while inside the womb.  And that’s what God wants for us. 

I will not leave you comfortless: I will 
come to you. 
John 14:18

Those are Jesus’ words.  He sent us the Holy Spirit to always be in us.  We don’t need to go looking for it.  We don’t need to beg for it to descend upon us.  God indwells.  So, what is truly required of us when we experience difficult times is to rest in what is already available to us.

“It may look like I’m surrounded but I’m surrounded by you!”

Upper Room, Surrounded (Fight My Battles)

When I think about the times I felt distanced from God I also think back to when the Israelites were out in the desert.  They could actually see God’s spirit hovering over their camp day and night.  And yet, they asked, “Where is God?”  I don’t have the benefit of seeing a cloud follow me around day and night.  And, I don’t have the physical Jesus to sit down with at dinner to share my problems.  So, I give myself a bit of grace when I forget He is always with me. 

When I rest and tap into the strength and love and goodness of the Holy Spirit I find that promised peace.  It most likely won’t change the circumstances of the trial I’m experiencing.  But knowing He is with me, with His hand laid upon me, gives me the strength to continue.

My friend Betsy is an avid, extreme hiker.  Last year, at 70 years old, she set off to tackle the John Muir Trail solo.  She came to a particularly difficult portion and her body starting giving her troubles.  She has dreamed of this trip for years – and attempted it a few times.  She became distraught that she couldn’t go on.  With her, in case of emergency, was her Iphone.  She made the decision to use it to listen to some Christian music in the midst of this struggle.  As she reached the crest of the difficult portion, filled with the music of the Holy Spirit, her mind was transformed.  She had plugged back in to her closeness with God.  

Betsy wasn’t able to complete her goal.  But she gained so much more.  A confirmation that God never leaves us.  We just need to rest in that “hemmed in” space He provides.

Here’s a prayer from Sparkling Gems from the Greek to pray when we feel separated from God:

Lord, I thank you that I am not a spiritual orphan in this world.  You did not abandon me or leave me to figure out everything on my own.  You sent the Holy Spirit to me to be my Teacher and Guide.  So right now, I open my heart wide to the Holy Spirit, so He can be the Helper You sent Him to be in my life.  I give You thanks for sending this divine Helper and I ask You to teach me how to lean upon Him more and more in the course of my life.  I pray this in Jesus’ name!

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Fresh Fire

krisshetter 
That ye be not slothful, but followers 
of them who through faith and patience 
inherit the promises. 
Hebrews 6:12

I don’t typically pull Bible verses from the King James version.  But in one of my devotionals this version of Hebrews 6:12 was the focus of that day’s study.  It got me thinking about my own faith and where I stand with “slothfulness.”

When you hear that word “sloth” you probably think of the lazy animal, hanging out in a tree accomplishing next to nothing all day.  Yet slothfulness is not the same as being lazy – which is how the word is translated in the New International Version.  In fact, the word “slothful” in Greek is quite different.  And in the context of the verse in Hebrews it means to not allow our faith to become monotonous or without a blazing flame.  

Slothful: nōthrós – slow, sluggish; monotonous

Strong’s Greek

For many Christians we say we are religious because we attend church regularly.  We get up Sunday morning, find our usual spot to park at church, listen to a sermon, sing a few familiar songs, and look forward to the donut or muffin on the way out.  We might chat with a few friends then head to whatever else we have on our plate for the day.  We can check off our “faith” for that week. We might even go to a Bible study during the week to put another tick mark on our “faithful” list.

And for you overachieving, super involved Christians, it’s interesting to note that the author of my devotional is an accomplished author, missionary and evangelist.  He realized he was a good “worker” for God.  But somewhere along the line it became just that – work.

But what God wants of us is deep, passionate faith. And if you already have that – awesome!  I hope you will still enjoy what is to come in my Fresh Fire posts! 

He wants us to be in love with Him.  He wants us to be eager to speak with Him and to be sad if we don’t feel His presence.  He wants us to stand for Him in the face of those who would speak against Him.  He wants us to seek the opportunities to speak about His glorious promises.  He wants us to remove all spiritual neutrality and instead burn red-hot for His message of love, forgiveness, redemption and salvation!

My son-in-law once shared with me Charles Spurgeon’s compilation of prayers called, “Spurgeon on Prayer and Spiritual Warfare.”  I soon got my own copy and was amazed with the fervor level of his sermons.  There’s nothing slothful about Mr. Spurgeon!  I wanted to share this excerpt about praying with a blazing heart:

“I would that some of you prayed more vehemently! “The kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force.” (Matt 11:12) An old Puritan said, “Prayer is a cannon set at the gate of heaven to burst open its gates.” You must take the city by storm if you would have it. You will not ride to heaven on a feather-bed, you must go on pilgrimage; there is no going to the land of glory while you are sound asleep, dreamy sluggards will have to wake up in hell. If God has made you to feel in your soul the need of salvation, cry like one who is awake and alive; be in earnest; cry aloud; spare not.

Charles Spurgeon, The Raven’s Cry

Whew!  I get exhausted each time I read that!  And yet, during the “Great Covid Pandemic” I watched friends’ faith fall by the wayside.  They were comfortable with sitting in their PJs watching a church video and nothing more.   I also watched others be lifted to higher heights.  Their Bible study life became daily and hour-long.  Their prayers became constant and vibrant!  Their work of sanctification grew by leaps and bounds!  I have written before that I believe a great sifting has occurred.  Those who choose to be “slothful” in their faith will continue to slide out of a relationship with Jesus.  But we don’t want to be lost into the world.

For five weeks, I’ll share 25 verses about strong, energetic, and passionate faith.  A few may feel familiar but my hope is that most will be something new.   Because that’s what this series is about – stripping away the “usual” and monotonous and injecting a bit of new fire.

God’s promises are so much more beautiful and glorious than anything the world can ever offer.  It’s up to us to grab hold of our faith with renewed vigor and fire.  It’s up to us to burn in passion for our Lord.  

Here’s the prayer from that day’s devotional about slothfulness.  I hope you pray it as a stepping off point for the study!

“Lord, help me understand how totally unacceptable it is for me to lose my passion, momentum and desire.  I ask you to forgive me for allowing any hint of slothfulness to operate in my life.  Today I repent and deliberately turn from slothfulness.  Holy Spirit,  I turn to you now and ask you to stir and reignite the fire in my heart.  Please help me regain the zeal, the thrust and the fire I once possessed.  Help me to keep that fire burning this time, never to lose it again.  I pray this is Jesus’ name!”

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New Emboldened Podcast

krisshetter

Hello friends! Did you happen to miss a Tiny Yet Mighty blog post because life just got too busy? Now you can follow along through the series on the new podcast, Emboldened- a bold Christian life on Spotify! Bring the messages of the tiniest books of the Bible with you while heading to work, out exercising or even just while stuck at home. Listen in today!

NOW ON SPOTIFY AT
“EMBOLDENED- A BOLD CHRISTIAN LIFE”
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A Tiny Message #10

krisshetter 
“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did 
we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger 
or needing clothes or sick or in prison, 
and did not help you?’ “He will reply, 
‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not 
do for one of the least of these, you 
did not do for me.’ 
Matthew 25:44-45

The other day during my BSGs’ study on Easter we had a discussion about humbly serving. It was interesting to hear how some of us took the line “the least of these” to solely mean people in poverty. We also tended to look at serving only as a physical or financially act.

And yet Jesus said that He brings living water to the thirsty. Who are the “thirsty” around you? You might be surprised that there are many Christians who remain hungry and thirsty for what Jesus has to offer. They have accepted Him as His savior but are not living out the fullness of life God wants for them.

When we talk about sharing the gospel with others we usually mean the message of salvation. And yes, we must make as a priority the saving of souls through the introduction of the true message of Christ. But the Good News is also about the peace and joy and love of God. It’s also about the helping hand of the Holy Spirit.

When we dismiss the work of helping all God’s people, not just the poor, we create a hierarchy of “needs” that just isn’t present in God’s Holy kingdom. He see us all. He loves us all. And if we are called to help guide and teach a group of young, new believers that is exactly where we need to be — keeping them from being pulled back into the world. Or it may mean we speak the truth plus love to a friend who has been led to false teaching.

Wherever you have been called to humbly serve and share the gospel — be it with believers or non-believers — rest assured that your work is loved by God.

Bible, bible study, Christian, Christian Church, christian encouragement, christian men, Christian women, Faith, Jesus Follower, Uncategorized

A Tiny Message #9

krisshetter 
But mark this: There will be terrible times 
in the last days. People will be lovers of 
themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, 
abusive, disobedient to their parents, 
ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, 
slanderous, without self-control, brutal, 
not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, 
conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than 
lovers of God— having a form of godliness 
but denying its power. Have nothing to do 
with such people. 
2 Timothy 3:1-5

So often when we turn to God for help we look for comforting words. I’ve heard it said many times recently that our churches have mostly eliminated the “difficult” messages in the Bible. And while Jesus’ messages to love one another are powerful tools in our battle against the devil He never asked us to turn a blind eye to sin and lies.

Satan is constantly at work trying to turn us away from the entire message of God. In fact, when I went back to edit my post titled, “Identify the Enemy,” I ran into a number of technical glitches. You see, my original post didn’t include the name Satan. After praying about what I had written I received a clear message to highlight how Satan is the Great Liar. I first couldn’t access the document. Then my computer kept saying I was off-line. Then the document wouldn’t save. I closed my eyes and said, “I know this is you at work, Satan. I’ve got all day and God on my side.” And lo and behold everything started working!

Satan is in our midst. He uses the greedy, the boastful, the abusive, the deceitful and lovers of pleasure to try and destroy our faith. And if we choose to turn a blind eye to his ways then we become his instruments. When we face the enemy head on, with our God-given armor, we step on to the battlefield. Our weapons against these “terrible times” are the truth of scripture, prayer, the presence of the Holy Spirit, and our God All Mighty.

Here’s a prayer I read that we should all speak each day:

Lord, help me stand my ground and defend what I have gained, no matter how difficult it might be to do this. I know that with Your supernatural help, I can outlive and outlast the resistance. With Your Spirit’s power working inside me, I know I can indefinitely and definitely stick it out until the enemy realizes he cannot beat me and decides to retreat! I pray this in Jesus’ name!

Bible, bible study, Christian, Christian Church, christian encouragement, christian men, Christian women, Faith, Jesus Follower, Uncategorized

A Tiny Message #8

krisshetter 
“What more can David say to you? 
For you know your servant, 
Sovereign Lord." 
2 Samuel 7:20

In one of my Bible studies last year I was asked the question, “What are you hiding from God?” During my group discussion we all, of course, laughed at the idea of hiding something from God. But in reality don’t we all do that? We think He won’t see us thinking bad thoughts about “that neighbor.” We think He won’t notice if we cut off that driver on the road — because we have someplace important to be. And He definitely won’t know that we posted that comment on Facebook.

But He does.

When I wanted to lose weight before my daughter’s wedding I decided to use a weight loss app called Noom. I had tried using other methods and just didn’t keep with the program. After a month I had already lost almost 10 pounds. After six months I had lost almost 30 pounds. I got close to my goal weight and quit using the app. And then the pandemic hit. I got bored and started snacking. I tried using other programs but wasn’t committed. And six months later I went back to Noom. This isn’t a sales pitch. It’s a realization of why I was more committed.

You see, on the Noom program you are assigned a coach. That coach can see if you are entering your daily weight, your meals, exercising and reading their articles. If you fall behind by a day or so your coach checks in and looks for ways to support you. I realized that “overwatch” aspect was keeping me on track. I knew someone was checking in on me. And that accountability was just what I needed.

But how often do we forget about our minute-by-minute accountability to God? We don’t know the day or hour Jesus will return. It could be as I write this post. How many of us see that day as “a far way off” and therefore think our daily thoughts and behavior just aren’t that big of a deal?

Jesus and the Holy Spirit are our life coaches. They check in with us through staying in His Word and close to them. What part of your life are you trying to hide from the Sovereign God today? Here’s a pro-tip, He sees it all.