Allegiance to God

I am currently doing a study on prayer, the Lord’s Prayer to be exact.

Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us,
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.

The second sentence: “Thy kingdom come” has never made much sense to me. I just assumed that it went along with the next sentence: “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

However, I am learning that “Your kingdom come” really is a confirmation in prayer of our allegiance to the sovereign rule of the kingdom of God above all else – of our desire for God’s visible rule upon the earth.

Kay Arthur, the author of Lord Teach me to Pray, goes on to point out that “Instead of living in total obedience, unwavering allegiance to His kingdom and His reign as King in our lives, we are double minded, desiring the best of both worlds, forgetting that “our citizenship is in heaven, from which we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ” (Phil. 3:20).

How convicted I am!

Again and again I find that my allegiance is to the furtherance of my ambitions, my welfare, my comforts, my likes and dislikes…

It is easy for me to find time to do the things I want to do, things that I like to do. Yet, I forget to read the Word and spend time with God. Worse yet, I decide that I am going to do the things I want to do first and if there is enough time, I will read a little bit of the Bible. Making the decision to read the Bible later has caused me to be behind on my prayer study (3 days behind).

I think it is time to change the routine and create a priority list.

Knowing God by Name

The bible mentions God by many different names, depending on the specific aspects of His character.

Since I was very young, I enjoyed learning the different names of God - but I didn't really know what they meant.

While doing the study Lord Teach Me to Pray by Kay Arthur I found a list of the names of God and I have gone back to that list many times since I first read this book a year ago.

Check this out!

• Elohim Genesis 1:1 Creator
• El Elyon Genesis 14:18-20 The Most High (Sovereign)
• Jehovah-Tsidkenu Jeremiah 23:6 The Lord our Righteousness
• Jehovah-Jirah Genesis 22:14 The Lord with provide
• Jehovah-Roi Psalm 23:1 The Lord is my Shepherd
• Jehovah-Shalom Judges 6:24 The Lord is peace
• Jehovah-Nissi Exodus 17:15 The Lord is my Banner
• Jehovah-Rophe Exodus 15:26 The Lord who heals
• Jehovah-Shammah Ezekiel 48:35 The Lord is there
• Jehovah-Sabaoth I Samuel 1:3-11 The Lord of hosts
  

The Bible tells us "The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous runs into it and is safe." Proverbs 18:10

Which name from the chart deals with where you are today?

For me, the Lord is my peace (Jehovah-Shalom).

Family Time

This weekend I got to take pictures of a beautiful family - I think I could have photographed them all day. However, the little man did not share these same feelings.

Taking pictures of babies is quite different in the sense that they are not going to smile because you asked them to, they don't really care if you get a good photo and they are more worried about their nap time than anything else. This was my first experience taking family photos and I can't wait to do it again!

I learned a lot about having to take as many pictures as possible, as fast as possible. But I am quite excited about some photos and I can't wait to see this family change over the years.

Hungry All the Time

John and I have been working on our eating habits.

It is not that we eat too much fast food or anything like that. In fact, we rarely eat out. I cook all our meals and John is a great helper in the kitchen. Cooking together is something we do to reconnect after a day away from each other.

However, since we have not been disciplined about exercising, we decided to start eating smaller portions. I am also making lighter meals so we cut back on carbohydrates.

As a result, I am hungry all the time.

Yesterday we had a bowl of delicious butternut squash soup. Two hours later I felt just as hungry as I was before eating the soup.

We headed out to Home Group (a church bible study) and ate some yummy cold pasta - a treat from one of the Home Group's members. The problem was that one little bowl of pasta didn't seem enough. While John went back for seconds, I tried to resist the temptation and stop myself. But in reality, I didn't want to stop myself and seeing John eat the delicious pasta made me frustrated because I wanted some too, but I didn't want to break the plan.

This situation lead to a good conversation on our way home. I was still hungry and annoyed that I was hungry. John was hungry too - but at least he had enjoyed more pasta than me. In the middle of this frustration I shared with him that I need support in order to stick to the plan. I can't count on myself to be self controlled all the time - at least not in these beginning stages of change. We agreed that we would both work harder to encourage each other and lead by example. I am so glad we can work on this together!

We got home, worked a little bit and got ready to go to sleep. As we laid in bed we both commented that we were hungry. Eventually we fell asleep.

I woke up this morning and the firs thing I heard was my stomach. Seriously!

This goal of eating less is going to be interesting...but at least it is a challenge we get to face as a team.

Already Behind

I am trying to get back into the routine of reading the Bible daily. I recently posted about how I want to do this and I definitely need it.

Well, I am going to be honest with you and confess that it is week one and I am already behind.

I don't want to be behind and I think about it ALL the time. Literally.

But I already have some catching up to do. However, I do not want to get discouraged about my lack of discipline.

I am sure it is going to be work, but it is worth it!

Communion with God

My last post was all about how I am not very disciplined.

Well, I am taking some steps to work on that area of my life - and I am starting with prayer.

I decided last week that I should reread the book "Lord Teach me to Pray" by Kay Arthur. I read this book last year and I was fascinated by the things I was learning. However, I am still not disciplined to pray continuously and be in communion with God. So, it is time to read it again.

The author writes this in the introduction:

"In any given day you can find yourself concerned about any or all of the following: yourself, your husband (having one, not having one), children (wishing, wanting, having, wishing you didn't), your friends, your finances, the future, the past, the present.

What are you going to do?
How are you going to make it?
Where are you going to turn?

Your answer is found in the Word of God and in prayer, in casting all your cares on Him because He cares for you. That is what this study is all about, beloved: learning to pray God's way, according to His word. It is about learning how to talk to God about anything and everything."

This is something I need.
This is something I want.

I will keep you posted on the new things that I learn, but before I go, here are a couple of tips on prayer from James McDonald.

" If you've ever struggled to know what to pray for or how to pray, this list, based on Psalm 25:16-21 will help you focus on some of the most important aspects of prayer:

Honesty — Reread Psalm 25:16: "Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted." Who says in our world, "I'm lonely"? No one wants to admit they're lonely! But you can tell God. You can open your heart. You can share with Him your deepest secrets.

Petition — Verse 17 reads, "The troubles of my heart are enlarged; bring me out of my distresses." Tell God exactly what you want. Does God always do what I ask Him to do? No. But I don't need to hold back in prayer, fearful that I'll ask the wrong things. My kids never held back when petitioning me: "Can I have this? Can I have that?" My response was often "No," but they kept asking. Just tell God what you want because sometimes He will say, "Yes. Tomorrow. Soon."

Confession — As you petition God, you will often begin to think, "Boy, I really don't deserve to ask for anything." Correct! So you might want to deal with your sin. Confession is a huge part of prayer. Verse 18 says, "Consider my affliction and my trouble, and forgive all my sins."

Circumstances — Tell God what's happening. You're thinking, "He already knows." I know. But if you tell Him, then you'll know that He knows. When David said, "Consider how many are my foes" (v.19), he was actually asking God to count his enemies. Prayer is an awesome outlet. No one listens more attentively than God. No one is more worthy to unburden your heart to.

Faith — "Let me not be put to shame, for I take refuge in You," reads verse 20. That's faith. "You're going to do it, God. You're going to work this out." Express your faith to God and feel it grow.

Dedication — Before you end your prayer, commit yourself to God. "May integrity and uprightness preserve me, for I wait for you" (v.21). David is not saying where he is spiritually, but where he longs to be. He's recommitting himself: "God, my dedication to doing what pleases You is going to have to sustain me here while I'm waiting for You to do the things that I'm trusting You to do."

I hope this is helpful and encouraging!

Discipline is Tough Work

Having the discipline to spend daily time in the Word has always been challenging for me, especially when I am not following a planned out curriculum of some kind. When left to plan my own reading, I end up reading a chapter or two, here and there – without digging in and reflecting on what I am reading.

The book The Pursuit of Holiness is challenging me once again to take my commitment to God to a deeper level.

In I Corinthians, Paul says that we are to train or discipline ourselves to be godly.

“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.” I Corinthians 9:24-27

I don’t know about you, but when I read these verses I do not feel like my daily actions have been full of strict training. Instead of running the race to win the prize, I see myself taking a stroll while enjoying the view.

I am not saying this because I think God is not pleased when we are enjoying life. His desire is for us to enjoy what he has given us. However, often I forget that I am running a race. I lose sight of the prize and I get lost and start walking around in circles (so to speak).

To keep my eyes on the prize, I need to create a habit of consuming a healthy diet of the Word of God. I need a planned time each day for reading and studying the bible.

Often I get up in the morning with the intention to read and study but soon enough I get distracted by the things that ‘need’ to be done and before I realize it, I am going to bed.
I want to change this bad habit and I want to become more disciplined in spending time with God.

My plan is to start doing a bible study that is broken down into the different days of the week. I need to go back to that planned out curriculum so I can get in the habit of reading, studying, memorizing and meditating on the Word of God. It is time to start that strict training!

Feel free to ask me how I am coming along with my goal.