Lessons from the 5-year-old on prayer

March 18, 2015March 17, 20152 Comments

I put my hand on the back of my five-year-old to usher her into the minivan.

She does not move.

My lecture about wasting time and ‘please can you hurry because we don’t want to be late!’ catches in my throat when I glance at her.

Her head is bowed, her eyes squeezed shut. Her hands are clasped and tucked under her chin.

She is praying.

I lean down and hear the whisper:

Dear God, please help the person who is hurt and help the fire truck make them safe and all better. Amen.

Oh, now I hear them: The sirens in a distance that I’d been blocking out with busy thoughts and Mom-instructions to “get your seatbelts on quickly” and “take turns sitting in the middle seat” and “make sure you have all your stuff.”

You know. Life.

Life crowded out the need, crowded out others. It tunneled my vision so I saw only my agenda, heard only my voice, pushed and shoved and crammed right up to the Father with only my own needy self in mind.

As parents, my husband and I have had our more spiritual moments. We’ve been driving before and hushed the general din of six people (including a baby) in the minivan so we could pray about the fire truck or the ambulance passing us on the road.

My girl took this to heart. She tucked it into her soul and now she watches and listens and drops her head down the instant she senses the need to pray.

She even stopped the mad dash to the middle seat of the minivan and let her sisters rush in to claim the prime spots in order to pause and pray.

She let go of self. She focused on another.

Maybe my husband and I taught her the principle, but this kindergarten prayer powerhouse teaches me to get down on my knees and beg for God to help me see.

Because somehow there’s this automatic pull of humanity back to self. Somehow the noise within us drowns out the noise without….so we no longer hear the cries of need from a needy world.

Somehow we lose the eyes of God, the ears of God, the heart of God.

Yet, Moses teaches me to see others with God’s vision.

He stood on a holy mountain preparing to die. Moses was not to enter the Promised Land and he knew God’s intentions to take him up a mountain that he would never climb down.

But his eyes were for the people of Israel. He could have asked for a legacy. He could have begged for forgiveness and the chance to step at least one weary foot onto Canaan’s soil.

He didn’t.

Instead, he prayed:

Let the Lord, the God of the spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the congregation ¹⁷who shall go out before them and come in before them, who shall lead them out and bring them in, that the congregation of the Lord may not be as sheep that have no shepherd (Numbers 27:16-17 ESV)

Long before Jesus, Moses stood overlooking the crowd and saw them with God’s eyes as sheep that have no shepherd.

Centuries later, Jesus Himself stood and saw this same need:

When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd (Matthew 9:36 ESV).

Moses got it, really got it. Got right to the heart of the matter, right to the need in front of his face and put aside his own affairs—he was, after all, moments from death—-in order to intercede on behalf of God’s people.

His heart matched God’s own heart.

He had 20/20 vision in that moment, not cataracts of selfishness marring his perspective.

Selfishness takes up time and takes up space; it muscles out God and keeps us from loving others.

Today, let’s lay it down.

And let us pray:

Lord, give me Your heart today.
Don’t let me be blinded to need and deaf to the cries of others.
Show me how to bless another.
May I be sensitive to the needs of others so I can be generous and compassionate.
I lay aside selfishness so I can live a life motivated by kindness and ruled by love.
Less of me, Lord. More of You.
Be glorified.
Amen.

Heather King is a wife, mom, Bible Study teacher, writer and worship leader. Most importantly, she is a Christ follower with a desire to help others apply the Bible to everyday life with all its mess, noise, and busyness. Her book, Ask Me Anything, Lord: Opening Our Hearts to God’s Questions, is available now! To read more devotionals by Heather King, click here.

15 Bible Verses on Kindness

March 16, 2015March 13, 2015Leave a comment

Proverbs 3:3 NASB
Do not let kindness and truth leave you;
Bind them around your neck,
Write them on the tablet of your heart.
Proverbs 11:17 ESV
A man who is kind benefits himself,
but a cruel man hurts himself.
Proverbs 21:21 ESV
Whoever pursues righteousness and kindness
will find life, righteousness, and honor.
Proverbs 31:26 ESV
She opens her mouth with wisdom,
and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.
Micah 6:8 NASB
He has told you, O man, what is good;
And what does the Lord require of you
But to do justice, to love kindness,
And to walk humbly with your God?
Zechariah 7:9 ESV
“Thus says the Lord of hosts, Render true judgments, show kindness and mercy to one another,
Luke 6:35 NIV
But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.
Acts 28:2 NASB
The natives showed us extraordinary kindness; for because of the rain that had set in and because of the cold, they kindled a fire and received us all.
Romans 2:4 NIV
Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?
Romans 11:22 ESV
Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God’s kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off.
1 Corinthians 13:4-5 ESV
Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant⁵or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful;
Galatians 5:22-23 NIV
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
Ephesians 4:32 NASB
Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.
Colossians 3:12 NIV
Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.
Titus 3:4-5 ESV
But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared,⁵he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit,

Dancing in Worn-Out Shoes

March 13, 20151 Comment

She tells me they fit. “Ballet shoes need to be that tight,” she says.

I’m looking at the worn-out gray of the leather where she’s danced and danced on that shoe, and I’m thinking it’s been two years probably since I bought them for her.

Maybe she’s the dance expert, but this momma knows too small when I see it.

When you have to crinkle your whole foot up to cram it into the shoe and then whisk your finger back before it gets trapped behind your heel, that means it’s time to let those beloved dance shoes go, baby girl.

So, she plops down onto the bench at the studio reluctantly and I tell her to show the teacher and let the expert decide.

About two minutes later, we’re surrounded by boxes and shoes as we skip size after size to find one that finally fits correctly.

It hits my heart as I watch my girl cling to the old and the worn:

Am I cramming myself right down all squashed and painful into life that doesn’t fit anymore?

Am I stubbornly holding onto what isn’t working just because it’s here, because it’s known, because the ill-fitting discomfort of this seems better than the unknown with all its newness and risk and…dare I say it….change?

Am I saying I want to know more of God, but then clinging tight-fisted to the same-old, same-old patterns of faith and even sin?

Jesus saw this man, crippled for 38 years, lying out by the pools of Bethesda, the miracle waters they said, the place where the lame, the blind, and the paralyzed congregated in hopes of a healing.

The man didn’t cry out to Jesus to “have mercy.” He didn’t have friends carry him on a stretcher and lower him down through a roof to get to Jesus’ feet. He didn’t ask for healing at all, not like others in the Gospels who were desperate to get to Jesus.

He laid by the pool of Bethesda, just laid there because he’d lain there so long.

It was Jesus who initiated the miracle, and He began with a question, “Do you want to get well?” (John 5:6 NIV).

Did he want to get well? Wasn’t he there at the pool of Bethesda and hadn’t he been there so long? Wasn’t this what you did when you needed a miracle?

Of course, he wanted to get well!

Yet, we can say all the right things, make all the right promises, repeat all the good-Christian phrases and still miss the honest truth:

That maybe we don’t want to get well.

Not really.

Maybe we don’t want to know Him more, don’t want to be healed, to be transformed from the inside out, to obey Him, to follow Him wherever He leads.

If we did, wouldn’t we be desperate to be at His feet? Wouldn’t we be screaming loud enough to be heard over the crowd, “Have mercy, Son of David!!!?” Wouldn’t we be begging friends to bring us to Christ and crawling on our hands and knees through a crowd of people just so we could brush the corner of His robe?

Instead, too often we lie there and wait for God to come to us.

And when Jesus does come and offers us more, we can make excuses like that man waiting by miracle water.

The man said, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me” (John 5:7 NIV).

Maybe this was genuine hopelessness.

Or maybe it was justification, excuse-making, avoiding what radical obedience might cost him.

Either way, Grace invited him in. Grace held that hand right out.

Do you want to get well?

And isn’t that Grace? Never belligerent. Never forcing, demanding. Always inviting.

He offers us more.

Will we, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk?’ Or will we choose to stay right there, pinned to a mat surrounded by the lame, clinging to the past?

Today, let’s put aside the ill-fitting, worn out shoes we’ve been cramming ourselves into. Let’s stop doing what we’ve always done. Let’s stop justifying the inactivity.

And let’s run hard after Jesus. Let’s learn how to dance in new shoes.

Do you want to get well?

Want to read more about the questions God asks?

Check out my book, Ask Me Anything, Lord, available in paperback and for the Kindle and nook!

Originally published April 4, 2014

Does Prayer Have to Be Complicated?

March 11, 2015January 4, 20162 Comments

I don’t remember the first time I talked to God, but I remember the moment I decided prayer was personal.

It’s funny how you don’t recall most of life when you’re three or four years old, but you can have these few vivid memories that play back like a well-worn movie.

I don’t remember how I knew my father had left us. I don’t remember how I felt about the whole ordeal of divorce.

But I sat on a swing-set in my backyard one day when I was about four and I said this,

“God, You’ll have to be my Daddy now.”

That I remember.

And prayer has always been that for me, not some awkward attempt to wax poetic before a stern God. I’ve never felt like my prayers have to ‘measure up’ or ‘sound holy.’

Because it’s always just been me, a simple girl talking to Dad about life on a swing-set, about making tough decisions, about life as a mom, about life….

I found a prayer journal years ago with categories and lists, a calendar of prayer planning, verses and notes, bookmarks, quotes, all spiral bound for easy writing.

I’m a little surprised that it didn’t light up or play music.

But the thing about that super-duper-deluxe journal is that I never could use it. All those bells and whistles complicated prayer, made it so cumbersome and bulky.

I’d been chatting with God all day, every day for decades, and I couldn’t cram all that intimacy into a multi-step method in this how-to of prayer.

Maybe formulas and fancy systems work for you.

Or perhaps you’re like me, who simply wants prayer to be communion with God, the recognition of His presence here in this place.

Samuel Chadwick wrote:

“The one concern of the devil is to keep Christians from praying. He fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work, and prayerless religion. He laughs at our toil, mocks at our wisdom, but trembles when we pray” Samuel Chadwick

There’s such power in this prayer, and yet too often we avoid it and neglect it because we over-complicate it.

We act as if we’re not really praying unless we pray for two hours straight, on our knees, in a prayer closet, with a prayer journal, and maintain an adequate ratio of praise-to-petition.

And, since we can’t do all that, we simply don’t pray at all.

But God doesn’t regulate prayer with some hierarchical system of holiness.

That’s Satan, complicating things so that we give it all up all-together, feeding us the lies:

Prayer is too hard.
Prayer is for the holy.
I get bored.
If only I could pray like her. I guess I’m just a failure.
Surely God hears her prayers, but not mine because I don’t know how to start or what words to say and what if I get it all wrong?
I don’t have anything to say that’s important enough for God to hear.

Perhaps that’s how the disciples felt, when they overheard the Pharisees praying Shakespeare-quality performances every time they bowed their heads in the synagogue.

So, they asked Jesus, “Lord, teach us to pray….”

Maybe they expected a formula or a long lecture about the process of prayer or a complicated prayer cataloging system.

But Jesus did the opposite. The Lord’s Prayer fits into five simple verses, which Jesus prefaced with this:

And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him (Matthew 6:5-8 NIV).

Don’t pray to show off.

Don’t feel like you need to pray for a long time.

Keep it simple. Pray what’s on your heart, because God already knows what you’re thinking and feeling.

Over the years, I’ve kept prayers on Index cards, prayers in beautiful journals, prayers on my fridge, prayers in a Word Processor on my computer.

And you know what? All of them were prayer. All of them helped me rest in the presence of God, learning to trust Him with my needs and learning to listen to His voice.

In the end, what matters about prayer isn’t so much how we pray; it’s that we actually do it.

Now it’s your turn: Has prayer ever seemed complicated or difficult to you? What do you want to learn most about prayer? What’s the best advice about prayer you’ve ever been given? What have you found that works?

Originally published February 3, 2014

4 Ways to Pray for the Persecuted Church (and why you should be praying)

March 6, 2015January 16, 201610 Comments

It’s not so unusual to feel like crying a little while waiting at the car repair shop. I had my own reasons that day, like the $900+ bill we paid before picking up the keys to our minivan.

Ouch.

But this was different.

We waited and waited. I walked my son around the room, pointing to pictures of cars and trucks on the wall and steering him away from the M&M candy dispenser.

The news flashed reports up on the big screen TV on the other side of the room: Christians being captured and killed by the hundreds.

I’ve heard the reports and, honestly, avoided them at times. Thinking about those babies, those little children, and the moms watching their sons and daughters tortured and killed, well, it’s just too much to bear.

So, I pull in. I hide my eyes. I stick my fingers in my ears and hope the evil just goes away or at least doesn’t make me any more uncomfortable than I already am.

But I’m stuck that day waiting for my minivan to be fixed, so the news keeps playing and what is there to do but listen?

They show a map of how ISIS is spreading. The red territories cross the map from country to country, Syria, Iraq, Nigeria……more and more countries are covered in red.

I’m thankful for my son’s squirming, giving me something to focus on so I don’t break down and bawl right there among the sample tires and coffee bar.

Meanwhile, two other people in the room are watching those same news reports and mocking.

They laugh at the newscaster. They laugh at her guests.

I choose to block out their snide remarks, but it’s clear they think it’s all some big, fat joke.

How funny that people are dying. How funny to watch news broadcasts about death and persecution and evil while sitting in a heated waiting area with electricity, candy, coffee, television and million other amenities all designed to keep us from feeling one tiny bit uncomfortable.

What is wrong with them?

But my little temper tantrum of righteous indignation fizzles. Conviction seeps in.

What’s wrong with them?

Maybe the better question is: What’s wrong with me?

When Peter was imprisoned, the New Testament church took to their knees in a desperate prayer vigil for his release and safety.

So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him (Acts 12:5 NIV)

Why am I not earnestly praying to God on behalf of the Christians who are sitting in prisons, starving, facing torture and being killed?

Maybe because I’d rather avoid the issue.

Maybe because I don’t know how.

But today….today I recommit to pray.

I pray for their rescue. I do.

But more than that, more than just, “Lord, please don’t let them be hurt, tortured or killed,” I’ve been learning to pray that in the midst of persecution, God helps them stand and He brings them through stronger.

Will you join me in these prayers?

Lord, rescue them. Free them from prison. Defeat their captors and destroy evil’s stronghold. Deliver them from torture and death.
Lord, strengthen them. Remind them of Your presence. Help them know they are not alone. Let them feel the impact of our prayers. Plant Your Word deep inside them.
Lord, provide for them. Please give them copies of the Bible. Provide jobs for them and food for their families, shelter, education. Meet their physical needs. Give churches safe places to meet.
Lord, multiply them. Even in the wake of persecution, we pray for revival. We pray that the testimony and witness of these courageous Christians stirs hearts, opens minds, changes lives. We pray for widespread salvation, for churches to grow, and for the lost to know that Jesus Christ is Lord. Help the world see the truth of what is happening; do not let us remain blind to their plight.

Want to know more about praying for the persecuted church, modern-day martyrs and how to get involved? Here are some resources for you:

Anne Graham Lotz calls us to pray for the persecurted church. You can read her prayer here.
Check out Voice of the Martyrs here, as well as their page for updates and specific prayer requests here.
Read suggestions from Campus Crusade for Christ on praying for the persecuted church here.
Read Tom Doyle’s book, Killing Christians.
Find out more about how to participate in the (Secret Church) event happening in April.

Dear Son, Let Me Explain How Shape Sorters Work

March 4, 2015March 4, 2015Leave a comment

Dear Son,

Let me explain how shape sorters work.

The circle shape only fits in the circle hole.

You can’t cram it or squeeze it into the square. You can’t bang repeatedly, slamming that circle down until it finally fits into the triangle.

The circle block really and truly does only fit through the circle hole.

Sad, perhaps, but nonetheless true.

I know you think we’re foolish about this, that maybe we parents just don’t know all there is to know about shape sorters.

Maybe that’s why when we tried to point out to you the circle hole, you scowled and screamed.

Or when we set an example for you, modeling how easily that circle slid into the circle hole, you threw the block.

Or when we tried to gently move your hand to the correct space, you pulled your hand back, cried and cried and insisted on continuing your attack on the square hole with the circle.

Baby boy, here’s the lesson now and, oh, how much frustration and anger, disappointment and failure it will save you later if you learn this right here: Mom and Dad really know best most of the time.

Even more than that, it’s wise to seek advice and counsel. When you’re learning something new, ask the experts.

Sure you can stamp your feet in stubborn pride and insist on your own way.

But fifteen minutes and a full-blown tantrum later, you’ll still be holding a circle block in your hand that doesn’t fit through the square hole.

When you don’t know what to do or how to do it, stop plowing on ahead in bull-headed determination to do it your own way.

Ask God.

Ask Him.

James 1:5 says:

If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you (NIV).

Did you see the promise in the verse? God isn’t stingy about wisdom.

He’s generous.

You ask Him what to do and He will respond with abundance.

And, He’s not up there criticizing your request or complaining about coming to your rescue….again…..won’t this guy every learn? Sigh. Tsk….tsk….tsk…..what a disappointment.

No, God gives generously to all “without finding fault.”

Sometimes we forget to ask. We think this is a no-brainer, an easy decision and one we can surely handle on our own.

Or maybe we don’t ask because we know what He’ll say. We know the advice we’ll receive isn’t really what we want to hear.

So, we avoid asking.

We avoid wisdom.

Because then we’d have to listen and then it would come straight down to what it’s really all about anyway: Obedience. Submission. Faith.

Surrender.

Giving in and giving up and giving it all over to the only One who truly knows what’s best.

David knew better.

Max Lucado writes:

The first time he faced the Philistines in the wilderness, David ‘inquired of the Lord’ (23:2). When he felt small against his enemy, ‘David inquired of the Lord” (23:4) When attacked by the Amalekites, ‘David inquired of the Lord” (30:8). Puzzled about what to do after the death of Saul, ‘David inquired of the Lord’ (2 Samuel 2:1). When crowned as king and pursued by the Philistines, ‘David inquired of the Lord” (5:19). David defeated them, yet they mounted another attack, so ‘David inquired of the Lord” (5:23). David kept God’s number on speed dial. (Facing Your Giants)

It was David’s go-to method. Ask God. Then listen. And obey.

But there’s a moment in David’s life when he didn’t pause to call 1-800-ASK-LORD.

He was so overwhelmed by Saul’s relentless attempts to murder him, that he:

“said in his heart, ‘Now I shall perish one day by the hand of Saul. There is nothing better for me than that I should escape to the land of the Philistines. Then Saul will despair of seeking me any longer within the borders of Israel, and I shall escape out of his hand.”

He asked himself. He decided in his own heart what was best. He looked around, considered the circumstances and thought, ‘there is nothing better for me than this….”

Maybe God really had a much better plan. Maybe God could have protected and preserved David without the mess that awaited him in the land of the Philistines.

Never for a moment think you’re wise enough or strong enough to decide what’s best for your life without first asking God.

Never for a moment think that your plan and your way and your desire for your own life is better than God’s plan and His ways and His purpose for you.

Never for a moment yank your hand back from God’s guidance.

He sees the big picture. He knows: Here is the circle…..here is where it goes. Trust me.

Love,

Mom

“The One who laid earth’s foundations and settled its dimensions knows where the lines are drawn. He gives all the light we need for trust and for obedience” (Elisabeth Elliot, Through Gates of Splendor)

45 Bible Verses on Joy

March 2, 2015March 2, 20155 Comments

Picture courtesy of Steve Janacek, PicJumbo

1 Chronicles 16:27 ESV
Splendor and majesty are before him;
strength and joy are in his place.
Nehemiah 8:10 ESV
Then he said to them, “Go your way. Eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, for this day is holy to our Lord. And do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”
Psalm 4:7 ESV
You have put more joy in my heart
than they have when their grain and wine abound.
Psalm 5:11 ESV
But let all who take refuge in you rejoice;
let them ever sing for joy,
and spread your protection over them,
that those who love your name may exult in you.
Psalm 16:11 NIV
‘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 21:6-7 NIV
Surely you have granted him unending blessings
    and made him glad with the joy of your presence.
For the king trusts in the Lord;
    through the unfailing love of the Most High
    he will not be shaken.
Psalm 27:6 ESV
And now my head shall be lifted up
above my enemies all around me,
and I will offer in his tent
sacrifices with shouts of joy;
I will sing and make melody to the Lord.
Psalm 30:5 ESV
For his anger is but for a moment,
and his favor is for a lifetime.
Weeping may tarry for the night,
but joy comes with the morning.
Psalm 47:1 ESV
Clap your hands, all peoples!
Shout to God with loud songs of joy!
Psalm 51:8 ESV
Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones that you have broken rejoice.
Psalm 71:23 NIV
My lips will shout for joy
when I sing praise to you—
I whom you have delivered.
Psalm 92:4-5 NIV
For you make me glad by your deeds, Lord;
I sing for joy at what your hands have done.
⁵How great are your works, Lord,
how profound your thoughts!
Psalm 97:11 NIV
Light shines on the righteous
and joy on the upright in heart.
Psalm 100:1 ESV
Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!
Psalm 105:43 ESV
So he brought his people out with joy,
his chosen ones with singing.
Psalm 119:111 NIV
Your statutes are my heritage forever;
they are the joy of my heart.
Psalm 126:2-5 ESV

Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
    and our tongue with shouts of joy;
then they said among the nations,
    “The Lord has done great things for them.”
³The Lord has done great things for us;
    we are glad.

⁴Restore our fortunes, O Lord,
    like streams in the Negeb!
⁵Those who sow in tears
    shall reap with shouts of joy!
Psalm 126:5 ESV
Those who sow in tears
shall reap with shouts of joy!
Proverbs 10:28 ESV
The hope of the righteous brings joy,
but the expectation of the wicked will perish.
Proverbs 15:23 ESV
To make an apt answer is a joy to a man,
and a word in season, how good it is!
Proverbs 17:22 ESV
A joyful heart is good medicine,
but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.
Ecclesiastes 2:26 ESV
For to the one who pleases him God has given wisdom and knowledge and joy, but to the sinner he has given the business of gathering and collecting, only to give to one who pleases God. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.
Ecclesiastes 8:15 ESV
And I commend joy, for man has nothing better under the sun but to eat and drink and be joyful, for this will go with him in his toil through the days of his life that God has given him under the sun.
Isaiah 12:6 ESV
Shout, and sing for joy, O inhabitant of Zion,
for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.”
Isaiah 29:19 ESV
The meek shall obtain fresh joy in the Lord,
and the poor among mankind shall exult in the Holy One of Israel.
Isaiah 35:10 ESV
And the ransomed of the Lord shall return
    and come to Zion with singing;
everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;
    they shall obtain gladness and joy,
    and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.
Isaiah 55:12 ESV
“For you shall go out in joy
    and be led forth in peace;
the mountains and the hills before you
    shall break forth into singing,
    and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
Jeremiah 15:16 ESV
Your words were found, and I ate them,
    and your words became to me a joy
    and the delight of my heart,
for I am called by your name,
    O Lord, God of hosts.
Habakkuk 3:17-18 ESV
Though the fig tree should not blossom,
    nor fruit be on the vines,
the produce of the olive fail
    and the fields yield no food,
the flock be cut off from the fold
    and there be no herd in the stalls,
¹⁸yet I will rejoice in the Lord;
    I will take joy in the God of my salvation.
Matthew 13:44 NIV
“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.”
John 15:10-12 NIV
If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. ¹¹I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. ¹²My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.
John 16:22-24 ESV
So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you. ²³In that day you will ask nothing of me. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. ²⁴Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.
Acts 13:52 ESV
And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.
Romans 12:12 NIV
Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
Romans 14:17 ESV
For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13 ESV
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.
Galatians 5:22-23 NIV
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
Philippians 4:4-5 NCV
Be full of joy in the Lord always. I will say again, be full of joy. Let everyone see that you are gentle and kind. The Lord is coming soon.
Colossians 1:11 ESV
May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy,
1 Thessalonians 3:9 NIV
How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have in the presence of our God because of you?
Philemon 1:7 ESV
For I have derived much joy and comfort from your love, my brother, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you.
Hebrews 12:2 ESV
looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
James 1:2-3 ESV
Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, ³for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.
1 Peter 1:8-9 ESV
Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, ⁹obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
2 John 1:12 ESV
Though I have much to write to you, I would rather not use paper and ink. Instead I hope to come to you and talk face to face, so that our joy may be complete.
Jude 1:24-25 NIV
To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— ²⁵to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.

Recycling Crayons for Operation Christmas Child (and a lesson in restoration)

February 27, 2015February 26, 201512 Comments

^“Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved!”
(Psalm 80:3, ESV).

Broken crayons drive me crazy.

So do crayons with the paper torn off.

And, while we’re on the subject, Play-Doh with all the colors mixed together.

Every year my daughter and I choose a project to make for Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes. We like to work all year long on crafting something with our own hands and praying over the kids from all over the world who will receive our little gifts. Then, we use our items as part of our church-wide packing party to fill as many shoeboxes as possible!

This year instead of making bracelets or knitting, we decided to use a resource we have in abundance.

Broken crayons!

And, oh, it makes this momma’s heart so happy to recycle all those crayon nubs and paperless crayons into something colorful and beautiful and whole!

Here’s what we’re up to this year:

We collected the Crayola remnants and peeled off any remaining wrappers.

We filled silicone baking trays shaped in hearts and stars with the jumble of brokenness and melted the crayons in a 275° oven.

After the wax cooled completely, we popped out beautiful new rainbow crayons.

We made something fun, colorful, and unique out of the old, broken, and worn out and, as we did, I rejoiced in the way God restores us and transforms us, melts down brokenness, and makes us whole in Him.

God’s plan for restoring us in life is so often like melting down broken wax and transforming it into a uniquely colorful treasure with a beauty all its own.

We pray for restoration, hope for it, long for it with desperate hearts. We need the fixing, mending, healing power of God in our relationships, in our worship, in our churches, in our sick and hurting bodies, in our grief, in our finances, and more.

Like David, we long for God to “restore my soul” (Psalm 23:3) and “restore to me the joy of my salvation” (Psalm 51:12).

But so often we think that means full-circle restoration. We want what we once had, what Satan took from us, or what we’ve lost along our journey.

That’s what Israel prayed for when they were beseiged, starved, and taken captive:

“Restore us to yourself, O Lord, that we may be restored! Renew our days as of old” (Lamentations 5:21 ESV).

Give us back the good old days!

And it seemed like that’s exactly what God did. When Nehemiah returned to rebuild the ruins of the Jerusalem walls, he began at the Valley Gate (Nehemiah 2:13). Then, 52 days later, they celebrated with a march through those rebuilt gates, starting once again with what many scholars believe was the Valley Gate.

In Nehemiah: A Heart That Can Break, Kelly Minter writes:

“If God began Nehemiah’s journey at the broken Valley Gate and completed it at a restored one, we have reason to hope He will work with the same restorative power in our lives” (p. 151).

They had, after all, come full circle.

And yet, this wasn’t exactly the same as what they had lost; these were rebuilt walls, walls with a testimony. They showed God’s faithfulness to His people, bringing them back from captivity and helping them rebuild their land.

The rebuilt walls in our lives are also a testimony of God’s faithful loving-kindness and mercy.

We want the same as the good old days. Many times, however, He gives us more than we had before or even something better.

As Peter tells us:

“And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you” (1 Peter 5:10, ESV).

He doesn’t just give us back the pieced-together remnants of our past; He restores us in a way that makes us stronger, and He does it Himself, crafting us into wholeness with His own patient hand.

For any local friends, we’ll be working on our crayon project all the way through the summer. If you have your own broken, dull, paperless crayons that you don’t want to use any more, we’d love to have them! No need to peel the paper off or anything; we’ll take care of all of that. Thanks so much for helping us with our project!

Are You Talking to Me?

February 25, 20151 Comment

I thought the note was for some other mom.

Years ago, my daughter toted a note home from preschool. Now that they had all learned their phone numbers, they were working on their address. Could we please practice at home?

I reviewed our address with my four-year-old until she could rattle it off like a pro.

At the end of the month, we received a new note. They’ll be studying spring, plants, and working on their spring program and, by the way, some kids still didn’t know their address….could we please practice with them at home?

I asked my daughter to say her address.

She said it.

I nodded my head approvingly.

This note must be for some other mom.

In April, notes came home every few weeks…about spring break and final plans for the year and what they were learning now and preparations for Easter parties and the spring program and oh, one more thing, could the children who still didn’t know their addresses please make sure they learned them?

Tsk, tsk, tsk. Some parents! You know?

But then in May, I sat at the tiny table with my body squeezed into a preschooler-sized blue plastic chair and had a conference with my daughter’s teacher. She hands me the assessment sheet with checkmarks everywhere. Your child can do all of this….but she can’t say her address.

I’m sorry. What?

Apparently, that note had been for me all along. I called my daughter over to the table and she recited her address flawlessly in just over a second and then ran off to play.

I guess all along they’d been asking my daughter if she could say her address and she just told them, ‘no.’

So, the notes home could have had my name written all over them. They were meant for me! And I had moseyed along on my oblivious way thinking surely my child had gotten her little box checked off.

Sometimes, we need notes and faith and life to be monogrammed with our initials before we realize it’s for us.

We can look at the Bible, we can see what God did and what He’s doing and we can think He’s wonderfully compassionate, powerful and yet full of mercy, for the world and for everyone else in the world.

But then it gets personal.

The disciples tagged along after Jesus as He healed the crowds. Lepers and the lame, the demon-possessed and those wrecked with pain came to Him for rescue and He performed the miracles.

My Bible marks the book of Matthew with newspaper headlines: Jesus Heals The Sick. Jesus Heals Many. Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand.

Jesus changed lives for lots of people.

But then it got personal for the 12 rag-tag followers.

When Jesus went off to pray, He sent them on ahead to cross the lake on their own. In the middle of the night, he came out to them, walking on the water.

Peter jumped out of the boat and took steps out onto the sea….and then sank when he saw the wind and felt afraid.

But as soon as Jesus lifted Peter up and they slipped into the boat, the wind ceased. The storm calmed. The sea rested.

Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.” (Matthew 14:33).

Then…they worshiped.

Max Lucado writes:

They had never, as a group, done that before. Never…….You won’t find them worshiping when he heals the leper. Forgives the adulteress. Preaches to the masses. They were willing to follow. Willing to leave family Willing to cast out demons. Willing to be in the army. But only after the incident on the sea did they worship him. Why? Simple. This time they were the ones who were saved.” (In the Eye of the Storm)

Faith has to be personal and intimate.

Sometimes, I confess it, I slip into the humdrum and the mundane and the complacency of religion.

But then God rescues me from the storm. He comes close and draws near. He whispers my name.

This is for you.

Not just everyone else. Not just other moms, other wives, other women.

Not just for the whole world. Not just for the crowd.

This, dear one, is for you.

And the worship that I’d been offering by rote and by habit transforms into heartfelt praise and all-out abandon.

Because, after all, I am the one who is saved.

Praying What You Really Don’t Want to Pray

February 20, 2015January 4, 20161 Comment

Afraid.

Sometimes I’m afraid to pray those ‘dangerous’ prayers even when I know deep-down that’s what I should pray for.

But it’s like giving God permission to interrupt my life, letting Him move on into my heart and mind with cleaning supplies and uncover all the dirt I’ve hidden away.

So, I sat there holding the prayer card, debating whether to write the truth down.

I’ve been making these prayer cards for my family, friends and others I pray for. I have a card for my husband, for each of my children, one for the unsaved, one for church and another for Bible study, and a card for me.

The cards are growing over time. I scribble down my requests for my kids and then the next day I find the perfect verse to pray, so I jot it down on the back of this 3 x 5 white index card with a Sharpie marker.

I’m not writing the little requests that change day-to-day: a fever, a bruise, a big math test.

These are the prayers about character and life, big decisions,using their gifts for God’s glory, spiritual growth and their future.

For each child, I know what I need to pray. One needs to grow in forgiveness. Another in self-discipline and overcoming fear. Another in being teachable and accepting grace.

But I pause, my hand hovering over the card.

Do I write down’forgiveness?’ What if God allows my daughter to be hurt because of my prayer? What if He allows pain so deep that she has to fight through bitterness to choose to forgive?

What about “teachable?” Do I dare write that down? What if God humbles my daughter through excruciating failure, brokenness, and the lessons of humility?

We Christians have joked about it so often, “Don’t pray for patience!!!” That’s what we remind each other and then we laugh in agreement because, truth is, God has taught us all some of those painful lessons in patience.

And we didn’t like them.

So, we’re afraid to pray.

Yes, I am afraid to pray, too.

I know why. It’s a trust thing. I’m not believing the best about God.

The truth is that God won’t bruise or break if a gentle lesson, a sweet whisper could change our hearts.

He never answers our prayers for patience with trials just because He’s mean like that. Or He likes to hurt us. Or He can’t come up with another way to teach us.

If I pray for my daughters to grow in these areas, I can trust Him to teach them in the best way, the perfect lessons at the perfect timing, and if their hearts are yielded and moldable clay, He’ll use the gentlest touch to fix the imperfections He finds.

And the truth is that if it’s breaking we need, He’ll allow the brokenness so that He can reshape us and form us into something beautiful: into the image of His Son.

But even then, I can trust His hand. I can trust His love for us and the grace He pours out and the way He never gives up.

As I read in Genesis, I think how Jacob must have been so afraid. I recognize it now as I look at him: one fear-filled human looking into the heart of another fear-filled human.

Jacob lost his son Joseph. So, when his remaining sons trekked off to Egypt for food during an intense famine, he had one demand: They had to leave his youngest son, Benjamin, behind. He couldn’t lose another son. Not ever again.

It seemed to work at first. The boys brought home grain from Egypt and the youngest son stayed home.

But the food ran out again and Joseph had made it clear—-no younger brother in Egypt, no more food.

Jacob either needed to trust God or his whole family would starve.

And God let Jacob reach the very end of all his resources so that Jacob would finally let go of control and send all his sons back to Egypt, Benjamin included (Genesis 43).

This was God at work.

Jacob was terrified, but God was in this. He was working for the reconciliation of Jacob’s family and the preservation of the entire nation of Israel.

But as long as Jacob held on tight to control, not wanting the possibility of pain, he missed out on God’s best.

We can trust God with our hearts, with our lives, with our children, with our marriages. We can trust Him with all of it.

So, I write down those prayer requests on the prayer cards and I entrust my children to His care. I tell Him that I’m afraid. I tell Him the truth about what’s in my heart.

But I trust Him and I let go.

Want to learn how to pray with prayer cards? I first read about them in Paul Miller’s book, A Praying Life.

Heather King is a wife, mom, Bible Study teacher, writer and worship leader. Most importantly, she is a Christ follower with a desire to help others apply the Bible to everyday life with all its mess, noise, and busyness. Her upcoming book, Ask Me Anything, Lord: Opening Our Hearts to God’s Questions, is available now! To read more devotionals by Heather King, click here.

Heather C. King – Room to Breathe