Prepare for the expected!

The good news is:

The golden rule for understanding spiritually is not intellect, but obedience. If a man wants scientific knowledge, intellectual curiosity is his guide; but if he wants insight into what Jesus Christ teaches, he can only get it by obedience. If things are dark to me, then I may be sure there is something I will not do. Intellectual darkness comes through ignorance; spiritual darkness comes because of something I do not intend to obey. Oswald Chambers 27 July

The tough news is, receiving understanding is up to us. God’s work is done.

Yes!

Oswald Chambers zings one home again!

In Jesus Christ is the perfection of everything, and the mystery of sanctification is that all the perfections of Jesus are at my disposal, and slowly and surely I begin to live a life of ineffable order and sanity and holiness: “Kept by the power of God.”

Yes & amen.

One Call You Don’t Want to Miss

Revelation is a powerful thing. A friend whose heart is breaking emailed for prayer. As I sent one up on her behalf, and emailed a tender response, Holy Spirit turned my attention to my own affairs. I called someone else for a reality check and prayer and touching and agreeing that I am in fact not crazy, I made my way to campus feeling divinely guided all the way. As I sat at the intersection of last week’s deliverance, it was revealed to me that nothing and no one can block my blessing; that the only thing I am to hold onto is Jesus, not a situation or set of circumstances or conditions. That is the only Person I am not supposed to give up on. He will never give up on me!

Sounds simple? Though my complicated journey to this knowing was everything but, the truth itself is uncommonly simple. And, even before I asked, I’d received confirmation of this very thing. Oswald Chambers had reassured me first thing this morning as I returned to basics – Pastor’s message for me yesterday – dropped M’Dear off at camp, went to the gym, split time with a retired colleague in Cali and took a well-earned nap.

When I arrived at the office I was informed that a former student had been looking for me on this “the worst day of his life”. I thank God for His timing is perfect. And truly, ALL things work together for good to them that love Him, to those who are the called according to His purpose (Romans 8:30).

When He calls, answer. You won’t regret it.

Technically, It’s Yesterday Still in Vegas

Lime is not connecting and their technical support gets me to the third menu option and, nada. I get so far on the internet and bada-bing, nulla, pasta fazula. Yes, I’m loopy and it has little to with meds. I’m posting here because a suspicious file keeps downloading from my blog and I keep canceling the download. And I think this is what’s blocking admin access to Teaching Under the Influence. There’s much to say. This was a big day – HUGE. Found out my great grandad was a principal. Saw a family portrait with Uncle Arthur aged 5 in 1884. On the other side of the family, Uncle Arthur told me yesterday that one uncle holds an unbroken record for high school athletics and another was an Olympic coach in England who was recently named Athlete of the Year for 1920. Fancy them apples.

Note to Self

I needn’t be less of a woman in order for you to be more of a man.

Finding the Right Questions

Knowing God the way I do, I had to laugh. Here I was, sitting in a partial darkness itself bending to the contours of the light coming from the prayer closet and computer screen, wondering how I had come to this rather ungraceful spot in a second marriage and I decide to check in on Oswald Chambers for a little inspiration before going to bed. The line I get, at such a time as this, is laugh out loud funny. See if you get the joke:

“I being in the way, the Lord led me. . .” Genesis 24:27

You got it. I had quite earnestly realized that I was in fact in the way and had asked for guidance not once, but several times in recent days. Here He was laughing at me as if I’d just fallen in a puddle He’d only moments before pointed out. I kept reading. My new question is: So what exactly is to be made of the intuitive jar? Instinctively, or is that by dint of habit, I realize the next thing one does when one becomes finally aware that one has lost one’s way is sit all the way down and listen.

“…we have to stop at once and be renewed in the spirit of our mind in order to make out what God’s will is,” Oswald continues.

This is where I now find myself. So, here I am to bow down, here I am to listen. Speak, Lord, thy servant heareth.

Beware the Mountain: Character Under Construction

Oswald Chambers leaves no room for misinterpretation:

We are apt to think that everything that happens is to be turned into useful teaching, it is to be turned into something better than teaching, viz., into character. The mount is not meant to teach us anything, it is meant to make us something.

Cicero seals the deal:

Everyone has the obligation to ponder well his own specific traits of character. He must also regulate them adequately and not wonder whether someone else’s traits might suit him better. The more definitely his own a man’s character is, the better it fits him.

And Psalms 112:1-3 will emblazon both on our being, if we choose to bear the mark of the King of kings.

1 Praise ye the LORD. Blessed is the man that feareth the LORD, that delighteth greatly in his commandments. 2 His seed shall be mighty upon earth: the generation of the upright shall be blessed. 3 Wealth and riches shall be in his house: and his righteousness endureth for ever.

Multi-Tasking

So, even I consider this a bit over the top, but should I? I’ve taken on the challenge of integrating another pair of paws into our household and so took them with me to the gym – in a shoulder bag of course.

I got on the treadmill with her happily ensconced and then remembered I’d brought along the Sunday School teacher’s manual. So when I reached optimal speed and incline I folded the spine back and began reading. By the time the neighbor got off the crunch bench and I’d walked off 145 calories, we moved along to stretching and finished with 60 crunches. At some point in the workout, Holy Spirit recalled the Oswald Chambers inspiration I’d shared with a friend on Saturday before the new addition arrived. See previous post. What struck me this time was that if I pursue relationship with God the way I love my pups, steadily, thoughtfully, impartially, that may just be the way He looks after me. Well done.

I’m Letting This One Marinate

Oswald Chambers does it again.

Watch the kind of people God brings around you, and you will be humiliated to find that this is His way of revealing to you the kind of person you have been to Him. Now, He says, exhibit to that one exactly what I have shown to you.

Enough said.

To Conquer the Enemy

Make her your friend. That’s nothing along the lines of what Pastor Guillermo Jimenez of Aguilas CFC said this past Sunday evening but it is my next step in the victory over exhaustion – a weapon of the Devil.  I will choose life by being a good steward of the natural [wo]man, spiritually, physically, mentally, emotionally, socially and financially. Among other things this will mean:

1. I will make choices in each moment that lead to wellness in every area of my life.
2. I will rest, exercise, eat, laugh, fast and pray regularly.
3. I will do my best to show myself “to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.” (NIV 2 Tim 2:15)
4. I will prioritize time with family over work.
5. I will balance service for God’s kingdom with time in His Presence.

Pastor’s sage counsel was to: Be physically and emotionally fortified; Have a clear mind; and Be spiritually alert and receptive to the voice of God. We do this by accepting Our Lord’s invitation and promise:

Come unto me, all [ye] that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28

We do this so we can avoid making important decisions when we’re tired. The symptoms:

• Mountains look bigger and valleys longer. Small problems appear large and you think you’re the only one going through…
• We are more easily offended. (See Luke 7:23)
• We are less tolerant and more impatient.
• Our words become harsh.
• We begin to see short-term and stop seeing miracles.
• The spark of joy begins to fade.
• We blame ourselves instead of naming and casting out the enemy.

To replenish and restore we must reconnect with the source of our strength, Jesus. Seek and protect your time alone with Him. (See Mark 6:31) When we do this on a daily basis, there’s no room for hoping we “rise to the occasion when crisis comes” because we have been rising to greet each day as more than conquerors. And we know, as Oswald Chambers writes:

The private relationship of worshipping God is the great essential of fitness.