Is it always more blessed to give than to receive?

This morning's devotions had me thinking, really considering again the old adage, 'Tis more blessed to give than to receive.'

Sarah Young here suggests that receptivity and attentiveness are two of the most important things we need to truly become closer to God. Young writes, "Receptivity is opening up your innermost being to be filled with My abundant riches. Attentiveness is directing your gaze to Me: searching for Me in all your moments." (p. 91). She further writes that "God searches for people who are able to receive in full measure." (p. 91)

Are we able to receive in full measure all that God is pouring out into our lives? Are we receptive and attentive to Him, or are we closed off and focused on so many other things?

The Bible echoes these sentiments of the importance of receiving God:

"I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it." (Mark 10:15)

and being attentive to God:

"You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you." (Isaiah 26:3)

I wonder whether another appropriate name for devotions could be 'centering'. We come to God in the morning to 'center' our minds and hearts on Him, opening ourselves up to the way He is leading us, expecting to receive in abundance and be led in His direction.

I pray that we may all openly receive and whole-heartedly seek God in this day.

Wait on the Lord: A Design or Living

Hope and wait, used interchangeably in many languages, are also used in different translations for the common phrase 'wait on the Lord' or 'hope in the Lord' that recurs throughout scripture. Of course, it does seem fitting, because waiting on the Lord may be defined as 'directing your attention to God in hopeful anticipation of what God will do.'

My devotional this morning reminds that we are to 'wait on the Lord' and "entrust Him with every fiber of our beings, instead of trying to figure things out ourselves.'

When we approach problems, dilemmas, decisions, every day life in general... it is so tempting to try it on our own, but we are not as effective nor can we possibly feel the full extent of all of God's blessings when we go it alone.

And God has promised us so much if we wait on Him:

²⁵ The LORD is good to those whose hope (wait) is in him,
to the one who seeks him;
²⁶ it is good to wait quietly
for the salvation of the LORD. (Lamentations 3:25-26)

³¹ but those who hope in the LORD
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint. (Isaiah 40:31)

Renewed strength and blessings are just a start. If we walk more closely with God, trusting in Him, we will be surrounded by the joy of His presence.

¹¹ You make known to me the path of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at your right hand. (Psalm 16:11)

With a new baby coming, Brad and I have lots of decisions to make. For instance, one we are trying to determine right now is what will happen in the Fall. Should I take a leave of absence for the Fall semester while Brad finishes his dissertation? Is this even a financial possibility? But as we go about contemplating this decision over the coming months, we can lift it up to the Lord, waiting on Him- trusting Him to lead and guide us. Instead of living in anxiety, we can choose to live in hopeful expectation of what God will do!

Thankfulness, The Path to Peace

As I continue to reflect on the importance of thanksgiving, today God is bringing me to understand how thankfulness leads to peace and greater trust in the Lord.

Just last week I made the transfer of my medical records from one health care practitioner to another, the Birth & Women's Health Center. While I was waiting for them to approve my records, I was a little nervous - pregnant and without a health care provider. But even though they had stated that it would take 3-5 days. Later that afternoon, they called back to welcome me as their patient. That was indeed an answer to prayer, because I had been praying that God keep me safe and healthy.

And just yesterday I went in for my first appointment, and it was so nice. The philosophy, the kindness, the friendly demeanor, the beautiful birthing rooms. I am so thankful to God that I have the opportunity to be a part of such a lovely practice where I know I will be well taken care of. In fact, when Brad came to pick me up at the end of the day, I said "I am just so thankful!" I had been praising and thanking God all day for the wonderful blessing... smiling and taking a few minutes to thank Him almost hourly.

How different our days would be if we did this each day- pausing each hour to thank God. It is true that yesterday I had special reason to thank Him, but we have reason to thank God every day as the little girls I taught Sunday School to in Brazil used to say, "for one more day of life". There is always a reason to give thanks.

In fact, we should even thank God for our petitions, those things that are causing us struggle, difficulty, strife- as Paul says:

"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Jesus Christ." (Phillipians 4:4-7)

It's hard to believe that I'm just 2.5 weeks away from my written Comprehensive Exams, and I'm starting to get a bit nervous. Will I pass... or fail? Have I read enough? How will I have enough energy to finish it all in a week? God welcomes me to pray for His help and guidance but also to thank Him for this opportunity to study, to read interesting articles and learn about topics that are so intriguing.

When we remember to be thankful for those little blessings surrounding our petitions, God's peace will guard our hearts.

May we take time throughout the day to thank the Lord ... even for small things. Rejoice in the Lord always!

Giving Thanks - Recognizing the Spirit

Yesterday I reflected on recognizing the spirit within us through our every 'breathe' and mindfully breathing the breathe sounds of God's name. Today my devotions brought me to another way to recognize the Spirit's constant presence in our lives and within us, through thankfulness or 'sacrifices of thanksgiving'.

In the devotional by Sarah Young written from the perspective of God, it is expressed this way:

"I shower blessing on you daily, but sometimes you don't perceive them. When your mind is stuck on a negative focus, see neither Me nor My gifts."

We all know those people, you know, the ones who are always grumbling or complaining about something. Students, exams, jobs, money, etc. And by those people- yes, I mean, myself included, sadly, at times. In fact it's ironic to complain about money, because we all are more blessed than so many I have known. I remember the huge "raise" I got when I came back from my year of BVS. I felt like I had more money than I needed. Then, gradually we get accustomed to our income, we adopt more expensive lifestyle habits, I don't know how exactly it happens... but we forget to be grateful. We forget that compared with so many others, we are so blessed.

The future is often a source of stress and anxiety for many. What will I do next? Which job should I take? Which way should I turn? Should I stay home or not? But having these choices, while sometimes confusing, is itself a blessing. There are so many in this world who do the only thing they can, who are with little options and no decisions, scraping by and wishing they had the opportunities we may have. Instead of grumbling and stressing, how different it would be to thank God for the decisions we are able to make.

Well, there's nothing more of a downer to hear people complaining about their circumstances. But there is something freeing and encouraging about hearing people thankfully recount their blessings. And we are thankful, God is actually able to work through us, perhaps even through our words of thanks to reach out to those who need to remember God's blessing in their lives.

So, let us all give thanks today, throughout the day, recognizing the Spirit that is at work within us.

Breathe - God in Us

Yesterday morning in the second hour after the church service, we watched a Nooma video which has really stuck with me.

The movie mentioned that Yahweh, the name of the Lord, was considered by some too holy to even speak. And some believe that as it is written in the original text, they are a series of 'breathing sounds', unpronounceable. The movie questioned whether it is possible that the name of the Lord is the very sound of a breath, life-giving. It asked, "Is it possible that the first thing when we do when we are born is utter the name of the Lord, in that breathe? And the last thing we do before we die?"

The name of the Lord as a breathe really does bring to mind the presence of God in and among us, a theme that is present throughout scripture, although not always so present in our mind.

"Do you know your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own..." (1 Corinthians 6:19)

"To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory." (Colossians 1:27)

If we dare to believe and understand and fully recognize God as in each of us, how would that make us different? How would we act differently if we understood God as residing in each and every breathe, the very life that keeps us living?

This morning my devotional suggested that we may "pause before responding to people or situations, giving God's spirit space to act through you. Hasty words and actions leave no room for God... who wishes to inhabit all our moments."

That seems quite fitting to me, and an appropriate and important reminder in today's quick-paced society. We often feel that we need to speak, respond, walk, move, get done that to-do list as quickly as possible. But in rushing so much, we forget the presence of the Lord within us and within our every breathe. God wishes to give us abundant, full, complete life. But we sidestep that possibility when we do not leave room for Him.

Perhaps being mindful of our breathe as the breathing sounds that embody the Lord's name... YHWH... (yah, hey, vah, hey)... may be a way to bring ourselves back to recognizing God in us, inviting Him once again to lead, to inhabit all our moments.

Content in God's Abundance

In the past month, Bryce our pastor went through a mini-series prompted by Walter Breuggeman's talk on the narrative of accumulation v. the narrative of abundance. While the world would have us anxiously seek after an accumulation of goods, things, titles, etc., God invites us to rest in His provision, focusing on the abundance of blessings He gives to us.

This morning in reading the scriptures prompted by my devotional, I was again struck by this theme. It certainly is easy to get caught up in the world's competition to do the most, be the best, have/get/buy the best or the most. In fact, it may not just come in the form of consumerism... although that is a part of it. Work-a-holism is a part of our culture which tries to convince is that the world just won't get by without us doing this or that. We convince ourselves of our importance and the need to do this work, instead of trusting that God will provide and allow us to complete our task. We convince ourselves that we need to work more, perhaps to earn more... and we convince ourselves that we need that.

In fact, a few months ago, I started getting nervous about the baby coming. All the propaganda out there does its best to convince us that we need tons of things for a baby. After watching the documentary "Babies", about 4 babies growing up in 4 parts of the world, I realized just how little we need. What babies really need, God has provided - loving parents and breastmilk. All the other extra things are so much appreciated and very nice, but no matter what we do or don't have, we can be so thankful for God's perfect provision.

On top of that, this weekend so many friends and family gathered to shower their very generous gifts on baby. We are so grateful for these many gifts that will certainly make things a lot easier and more manageable, but we first acknowledge that God is the giver and provider of the most necessary gifts.

Paul learned a similar lesson on contentedness:

"I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength." (Philippians 4:11-13).

I realized as I was reading this verse this morning how often we take the last verse out of context. It's not that I don't think we can do all things through Christ who gives us strength, but here Paul is specifically talking about how he has learned to be content. He repeats this twice in just 3 sentences in fact! First, this suggests that it is something that we can learn. So, we're not lost if we have trouble with it right now - there's hope that we can recognize God's abundance in whatever our situation. And second, this "do everything" in context seems to mean "be content in all circumstances".

Lord, today we ask that you teach us the secret of being content in Your perfect provision and abundant blessings. Open our eyes so that we may see what we truly need and all the overflowing blessings which surround us.

A Break from the World

The art of reflection, solitude, silence is not one that we practice often in today's society. In fact, the world today seems a chaos of noise and commotion and busyness. So much so that it seems it's becoming increasingly difficult to pray - to break apart from the worries of the day, the meandering thoughts, the concerns, the random lists of to-dos that enter our mind.

But this is also precisely why we need to pray. God calls us to lift these concerns to Him, to allow Him to enter our lives and give us strength for the to-dos. After all...

"He will quiet you with his love,

He will rejoice over you with singing." (Zephaniah 3:17)

I believe we all secretly long for that quiet, that peace. And we need to come to God, to seek time alone with our Father so that He may quiet us and calm our chaotic minds. God is there waiting for us every morning, hoping that we will come seek Him out, and He tells us:

"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened." (Matthew 7:7)

We are encouraged to seek God, but also to ask. I think sometimes 'good upstanding' Christians can fall into the trap of thinking that they 'ought to' pray for this or that. But we are instructed to 'ask' God... and when I think about it, there's good reason to ask. After all, in asking we acknowledge that the ultimate power comes from God... not from ourselves. Asking also invites God to work through us and in us. And asking is a step of faith, because we believe that if it is God's will... it will be given to us.

So even asking is a part of this break from the world. The world would have us believe that it is our own responsibility - that we will only get/achieve something if we work harder or longer with our own power. Asking God takes the focus off of us, and quiets our hearts.