Encouraging each other through our faith.

A friend and I are studying the book of Romans together. During our time last week,  we read Romans 1 vs. 11-12. It says, " ...impart some spiritual gift to strengthen you- that is that we may be mutually encouraged by each others faith, both your and mine".  What a wonderful gift! The gift of two believers being strengthened in the sharing of their faith.

Have you ever met with somebody and walked away feeling refreshed, happy and..well...encouraged? Or have you ever chatted with someone who has been in the same valley you have or experienced the same trials and left thinking " Someone gets it! I'm not alone.". This is what I believe this verse means.  Your faith has been strengthened. You have been encouraged. This is a gift that we get to experience when we "do life" together. We aren't meant to be alone. We get to " weep with those who weep and rejoice with those who rejoice" Rm 12:14-16. I know it can be hard to reach out and ask for help. Or call someone to just talk. We think " I don't want to be a bother.". But in those times that you did reach out, didn't you feel lighter? I sure have. I've even felt hope in situations were I thought there was none. My faith had been strengthened.

Another way to strengthen your faith with someone, is sharing praises and things your thankful for. When you tell others what the Lord has done in your life, or how you see Him moving, or what you learned about Him in the Word, you are strengthening your faith. Maybe the person you were talking to has been pretty low and the Lord was using you to be a " breath of fresh air" to their poor spirit. Their faith was being strengthened!
When you share with someone the things you are thankful for, it opens your eyes to the many blessings the Lord has given to you and in turn, it breeds more and more thankfulness. Again, your faith is being strengthened.

I want to encourage you today to strengthen your faith. Take a moment to think of someone you can chat with this week. Send them a text or email or an ol' fashion phone call. :)  Give them a word of encouragement or share a Bible verse that has ministered to you. You will bring refreshment and encouragement to someone as well as yourself. May you your faith be strengthened and encouraged today!

Redeeming " those days".

"Those days". We all have them and we all dislike them. I am having one today. I have not been a very good mother. I have been too grumpy and too irritable. All I kept thinking was " Lord, can we skip to tomorrow?'.  Of course, the answer is no.  I was trying to keep it together, but Mount Mama kept erupting. I finally got everyone down for naps, I grabbed my Bible and sat down on the couch. I had no idea what to pray. I didn't even feel like praying. I was just in a bad mood. You know those moods, don't you?  Then I just started to crying out to God for forgiveness. Forgiveness for all that I did and said to the children this morning. Forgiveness for not wanting to pray to Him. Praying for Him to come and help move me out of the pit that I put myself in. I opened to Psalm 51:10 and read " create in me a clean heart O God, and renew a right spirit within me". I used that as my prayer. I really did need a heart and spirit change. I don't feel " all better", but I don't feel as bad as I did before. I know I am forgiven and I know the Lord is my "very present help in trouble" Ps. 46 :1.  Now when those little ones wake up, I need to walk in faith that He will help me love them and care for them the right way. I will take many deep breathes and remind myself that they are a gift from the Lord. They are blessings. They are precious and unique. I will touch, hug, and kiss them more.  I will also pray this verse as I go. I want to get to the end of this day with out regret. I want them to go to bed knowing they are loved. With the Lord's help, I can. On my own, I can't.

Are you having one of "those days" today. Be encouraged. We don't have to stay there. I know it feels like you can't get out of that icky pit.  On your own, in your own strength, you can't. Cry out to the Lord for His mercy. Use Psalm 51 :10 as your prayer today. Confess your sin and ask Him to forgive you. Then get up and walk in His  forgiveness and strength. You too can finish out this day well. Your not alone on this journey of motherhood.
Be blessed.

Hope in the hard times

I received an encouraging text from a friend the other day. In it she simply stated that she's glad God sees all and knows what we are going through. Life has been dealing her a pretty rough hand in the past few months, so I was encouraged to hear that she was trying to lean on God for strength.

I understand what that's like. When life has gotten so hard that you feel beaten down, flat and dry. Discouragement seeps in. Maybe your going through a time that seems dark and you are wondering: "where is God?" Does He see me? Does He even know what I'm going through? Is life so boggling that you can't make sense of it or even who God is? Has your mind gone blank on Scripture? Been there! Let me share a few thoughts and promises to cling to when the storms of life blow in.

First, it's really important to know what you believe about who God is BEFORE the trials come. Being in a hurricane is not the time to decide what you believe. You can barely keep your head above water, let alone make major decisions about your theology. It's when life seems "smooth" that you need to study the Scriptures, see what they say about God, and choose to embrace their truths and promises about our Heavenly Father.

Second, God does see. He sees everything and everybody, all the time. Darkness is light to Him - the darkness of the night and the darkness of our storms. He sees the hidden things. Nothing escapes Him. His eyes never sleep. Don't fear that He can't see you or see what your going through. He does.

Third, God knows. He knows everything your going through. He knows what your heart is feeling. He knows when you rise up and when you lie down. He knows all your ways. He knows your thoughts before you do. (Psalm 13:2-3) He sees and knows all your tears. He counts them and keeps them in a bottle (Psalm 56:8).   He knows the very hairs on your head (Matthew 10:30). You don't need to wonder if He is aware of your struggles, He knows.

You can rest assured that you are not alone. Even when you feel alone. When Satan tempts you to despair with doubts of God such as: "You are forgotten", "He doesn't see you", or " You are alone," hold on to these Truths. These are promises God made about Himself and He can not lie. If you are struggling with believing these, pray and tell Him. Tell Him that you are doubting and that you are sorry for doubting. Ask Him to help you to believe what He is saying about Himself. Then, "preach" these Truths to yourself. Whenever a doubt comes in say " No! I believe...." or" I believe the Bible says...".

Life can be hard, dark and even vicious at times. We need to be able to combat it in return. It's not easy. Paul calls it a "fight" (1 Timothy 6:12) for a reason, and fights are not easy. Sometimes it can seem like darkness is winning. Or that evil has won. It's in those times we need to remember what Jesus said " I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart, I have overcome the world" ( John 16:33). 

Take heart my dear sisters.