Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known. [Jeremiah 33:3 (ESV)]
Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. [Romans 12:12 (ESV)]
You pray in your distress and in your need: would that you might pray also in the fullness of your joy and in your days of abundance. [Kahlil Gibran]
I never thought I’d enjoy my smartphone so much, especially instant messaging. Now that I’ve gotten the hang of it, I love the way it keeps me connected with friends and family who are thousands of miles away. Between the grands’ recent report cards, Halloween costumes, trick-or-treating and the World Series, our phones have been dinging and whistling with texts and pictures for the last several days. Unfortunately, that dinging and whistling can go on much later than we old folks like! With our children living in time zones west of us, what seems like early evening to them is bedtime for us. During the Series, we’ve taken to silencing our phones before going to bed. Like our children, we want the Cubs to win; unlike them, we can wait until morning to find out if it happened!
Nevertheless, in spite of occasionally getting messages at inconvenient times, I appreciate the way we can share news and photos instantly at any time. Are we as quick to communicate with God throughout the day? When we find it worthwhile enough to text someone, isn’t it worthwhile enough to add God to the message? When we’re running errands, we can text home to check if there’s anything more we need to do. Are we as willing to ask God that same question? When our hairdresser or doctors send appointment reminders, we’re quick to text back with our confirmation. When God calls us, do we respond as quickly with a “yes” to Him? We regularly check to make sure we haven’t missed a call, text or email. Do we as eagerly check with God for His messages to us? When we lose sight of one another in a crowd, we text “Where R U?” In those moments when we feel frightened or alone, do we as readily ask God that same question?
True confession time—although I often write about making prayer an ongoing part of our daily routines, I tend to compartmentalize my own day. I allocate specific times to prayer and the rest of the day to living when, in actuality, my entire life should be a prayer. Granted, I’ve been known to offer quick thanks for God’s “Aha!” moments and “Please!” and “Help!” are often submitted to Him, but those brief messages are just the emojis of prayer. If I can send a picture or text to my kids, I can pause long enough to tell God how blessed I am by the moment or how much I love and need Him.
Although I occasionally silence or ignore my phone’s ring, God doesn’t mute our prayers or disregard our messages. With Him, there’s never an inconvenient time and we’re always in His service area. Best yet, while we should never text while driving, we don’t need Bluetooth technology to talk with God—prayer is always “hands free.” In fact, considering the way people drive nowadays, prayers should always be said when behind the wheel!
For prayer is nothing else than being on terms of friendship with God. [Saint Teresa of Avila]
Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. [1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (ESV)]
Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. [Colossians 4:2 (ESV)]
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Patience may be one of the fruits of the Spirit but there appears to be a shortage of it in my life’s orchard. Paul tells us that hardships teach us patience and patience develops strength of character but I imagine most of us are impatient to see all of that character building come to an end. Moses must have grown impatient leading the Israelites all those years, yet consider the patience God had during those same forty years as He dealt with His children’s disobedience, ingratitude and complaints. In fact, consider how patient God has been with mankind since the beginning of time. We err and stray, forget and disobey, ignore, defy and even deny Him, yet He still hasn’t given up on us. Mercifully, we have a God who loves us and, as Paul tells us, love is patient and kind. Remembering that the measure we use to give will be used to measure what we receive, we must be patient with others if we want God to be patient with us.
As the weather up north cools, our snowbird neighbors have begun returning to their southwest Florida homes. One neighbor recently arrived from Portland, Oregon, a city that ranks third in a list of cities with the most depressing winters. Their weather forecast alternates between cloudy with rain showers to partly cloudy with a 60% chance of rain and that’s not likely to improve! Their early November temperatures will range from highs in the mid-60s to lows in the mid-40s with a UV index that never gets above a 2. On the other hand, our ten-day forecast fluctuates between sunny and mostly sunny with no more than a 10% chance of rain. Temperatures will rise to the mid-80s during the day and fall to the mid-60s at night; the UV index is 6 or 7. In short, Portland is damp, gray and dreary and we’re dry, warm and sunny (and should wear sunblock). On my neighbor’s first day back in our tropical paradise, while relaxing on her lanai with a book, she happened to fall asleep. Upon waking, hearing the mockingbird’s happy song and feeling the warm gentle breeze on her face, she had a moment of confusion and forgot where she was. Feeling incredibly peaceful, relaxed and refreshed, for a moment she actually thought she’d died and gone to heaven!
Printed on the tee-shirt were Paul’s words from Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things.” While the shirt, part of a new line of Christian workout wear, would be a great conversation starter at the gym, the message is somewhat misleading. I could wear that shirt and say those words but, try as I might, I’d still be unable to bench press 450 pounds! That, however, is not why the message is misleading. It’s because the rest and most important part of Paul’s words—“through Christ who strengthens me”—are missing. Paul’s words are not words of self-sufficiency but of God’s all-sufficiency. The apostle was not boasting of himself and his strength but rather of God’s strength and power that enable us to do His work.
Many years ago, we had a teen-aged foster daughter. Along with a smoking habit, she brought along plenty of emotional baggage. Choosing our battles carefully, we decided that an outright prohibition on smoking would not top our list. Instead, we made the rule that she couldn’t smoke in our presence or in our house. One night, after walking outside for a cigarette, she immediately returned. She explained that while she knew smoking outside was allowed, she also understood it was something we didn’t want her to do. Wanting to please us, she returned to the house and decided to quit. Hallelujah! She’d seen the difference between obeying the letter of the law and living the spirit of it. She recognized that rules aren’t necessarily made to keep something from us, but are made to get something better for us. She’d come to experience the joy that comes from pleasing the ones who love her.
Real estate ads can be somewhat misleading. “Needs TLC” usually means structural damage; a “handy-man special” requires rehabbing and money; “waterfront” probably has a basement that floods; “cozy” means really small and “intimate” is even smaller than cozy. “Tear-down,” however, means just that; while the property may have value, the house isn’t worth renovating. In our southwest Florida community, it is not unusual to see advertisements for homes with an asking price in the seven digit territory (none of which need TLC, handymen, have flooded basements, are cozy or intimate.) Since it’s difficult to believe there’s anything needing improvement in such expensive houses, the shocker is that some of those homes are listed as tear-downs. That hefty asking price is for the privilege of tearing down the existing structure and spending several millions more to build another one in its place.
Devotions of the Heart 