twelve

Isaiah 54: 12

" For you shall go out with joy, And be led out with peace; the mountains and the hills shall break forth into singing before you, And all the trees of the field shall clap their hands."

Tonight in the silence as I write this it is New Years Eve, 2009. In about an hour, if not already, many people will gather with friends and family, and enjoy big nights, quiet nights, or being in bed by eleven o'clock. Some people are celebrating one of the most awesome dream filled years of their lives, and others are celebrating one of the roughest years being finally, finally over. Some are devastated, still unable to grasp the fact they lost a loved one this year, and others are relishing another year being able to enjoy the loves of their lives. Being a human with other humans is so strange sometimes. However and whatever you are celebrating this New Years Eve, this scripture offers all of us humans a beautiful hope filled promise of a crazy, extravagant amount of joy as we close the door on one year, and open the door to another.

You will constantly be opening and closing doors over your life time. As you do always be reminded that our sweet saviour and friend, Jesus, will send you through new doors with somewhat of a party. Here He promises you will "go out" with joy, happiness, laughter and all the other good things that come from Him. It is so extravagant and ridiculous He even paints this awesome, and somewhat funny, picture of nature herself being so overwhelmed with joy for the new season ahead for you that the mountains, the hills and the trees are partying too! Unable to contain their excitement for you as you "go out," they are singing and dancing and clapping as you make your way out the door, and down your red carpet to your destiny.

Your new season of joy and peace, laughter and dancing has come. Go out, celebrate... live.

eleven

Psalm 34:1

"I will bless the Lord at all times, His praise shall continually be in my mouth."

This is quite a specific and intentional action coming from writer of this psalm. I love it. It is very simple, yet life changing when taken literally. The sentence could be read in a few different ways, depending on what you think the tone of the writer's voice is. It could be "I will bless the Lord at all times, His praise shall continually be in my mouth." Putting emphasis on the word "His" stresses the need to have no one above Him as the one you adore, the true love of your life. There are so many distractions in my own life on a day- to- day basis that I know, on some days, it takes a real determination to keep Him and His praises as the top priority. Speaking of determination, I have always read this scripture as: "I will bless the Lord at all times, His praise shall continually be in my mouth." I hear the fierce determination of a person very persuaded that no matter what happens in life, she will choose to Praise Him. Even if it kills me, and even if I am not the biggest fan of my dear God at that specific moment, and even if it takes every ounce of my broken, scared and angry heart to praise Him, I will. I must speak out His praises...even as a whisper.

So everyday day- in the fireworks, the mundane, the good, the bad and the ugly, my mouth will always be speaking the beautiful praises of a God who is so worthy and perfect and darling, and so very close to me, always.

ten

Psalm 119:165

"Great peace have those who love Your law, And nothing causes them to stumble."

Great peace. What a promise, what a hope. In an unstable world the surest thing for someone is to fall in love and find a passion, an obsession, even, for the Word of God. A love and adoration for the Word of God will be the rock on which you can build your peace. Great peace. In this mess of a world everyone is looking for peace. Every human being is searching for peace. It's an age old search and here, if we believe the Bible, is the answer. Obsess yourself with the Words on the pages. Find His heart from His Words, between the Words. Find Jesus.

It takes time to fall in love. But I'm convinced as you give it your all, day and night read it and think about, you will have great amounts of peace. It's a time of crazy turmoil and fear with humans inventing new ways to kill and hurt other humans, families staying broken, people still getting sick, and people searching for true love. Amidst all of this, there is great peace for those who truly love the Word of our sweet Jesus.

Nothing will cause you to stumble and be afraid. Imagine a life without fear. A life not being afraid of ANYTHING. Imagine utter peace. It's yours.

nine

Deuteronomy 7:11-12
"Beware that you do not forget the Lord your God by not keeping His commandments, His judgements...lest-when you have eaten and are full, and have built beautiful houses and dwell in them..."

Whenever it is you arrive to wherever it is you are going, don't forget the sweet One who brought you there. You may be having a rough time right now. Or, you may be living the best years of your life: dreams coming true, relationships blossoming, work is fruitful- life is awesome. If you are in this place, and it is all working out beautifully, then now, even more than in the hard times, be on your knees crying out to your King who brought you to the beautiful land you're in. Sometimes, in the ease of the good days, when we are reaping from all the hard sowing, we (even just a little) forget Jesus. We forget the constant friend and guide and saviour He was for our broken hearts through the rough times. Regardless of where you're at, know that He is kind and faithful always. He wants you to need Him and love on Him in the good times, too.

eight

Matthew 11:28

"Come to Me all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest...you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and My burden is light."

I don't know what it is. Maybe it's the end of the year, a hectic Christmas time, a rough financial year for everyone, or the usual family dramas that everyone goes through; but I get a general sense that there are some tired humans walking the planet. I'm not just saying a lack of sleep tired. I feel like there are hearts and souls and minds exhausted and ready to fall over from the heaviness of waking up everyday and tackling life. I know in some areas of my own life I am so exhausted and worn out I want to cry. It may not be all you're thinking about, but there could be some very tired areas in your heart. Even just looking around at those I love I can see it's a tired world.

So when I hear what Jesus says about coming to Him and in return He will give me rest in my soul, I've got to say, it's a relief. I know I must daily walk up to Jesus in anyway I can, give Him my tired heaviness, and take all the rest and peace He has for my shoulders. Today, ask God to reveal the tiredness of your insides, take a simple scripture like "the joy of the Lord is my strength," get quiet with it, and ask Him to give you joy and rest.

Life is a beautiful, peaceful gift meant to be enjoyed. And there is no true peace like the rest and care that comes from the only One who can truly calm and quiet your soul.

seven

Esther 4:14

“Who knows if you’ve been brought into the Kingdom for such a time as this.”

Queen Esther was placed on the throne to save her people from a holocaust. The story goes that she went before her husband and King without being summoned and risked her life to save her people. She could have died doing what she did, but as we read the story of a young orphan girl named Esther we see the detailed mind and precise hand of a God with the big picture in mind.
I love God with all of my heart. I must say, though, I feel a little forgotten right now. My life has been somewhat halted and I don’t understand how it’s all working together for good.
Then I read the pages of Esther and remember the perfect mind and heart of my God. I realize that everything I have gone through has brought me to this place, however insignificant I feel right now. Esther’s God is my God and He has placed me here for this time. He will find me. I won’t get this time back and I must take it for all that it is. My God and I talk everyday and although I’m a little baffled at why He has seemingly forgotten about me, I know that He sits next to me as I talk to my co-worker about Jesus. I know He is pleased when I make someone who looks sad purchasing an expensive pair of jeans smile and feel worthwhile. “Who knows...?” Maybe I was born for this time in that person’s life? Maybe they need to meet someone who knows Jesus today.
Esther was an orphan. Both parents gone. What could be worse or who (in the world's eyes) could seem more insignificant than a little Jewish orphan girl hiding in a Persian empire? Yet God found her and she became the queen. God uses the girl to save an entire people.

If you feel insignificant for a time, if you feel you’re not fulfilling your purpose, if you feel you’re not accomplishing what you know you’re put on earth to do, it’s okay—God sees. He will find you. It’s okay.

six

Romans 8:28
“And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”


We all come to places in our lives where we either believe this promise, or we don’t. Sometimes things happen and they just don’t make any sense. There are no answers and it’s just not fair. Maybe someone leaves us, or we lose a job, a loved one dies or maybe we pick up the phone one day to hear we simply aren’t wanted any more. Your heart is broken.
I guess I have to come to that place in myself and in my love for God, where I believe that whatever is going on in or around my life will be woven together for something good and beautiful. I have to believe this. I have to believe this or I have no hope on this messed up earth. I know that sometimes things seem hopeless and there is no rhyme or reason to what is going on in the details of our lives. Sometimes the details of everyday life are all too much to take in. The good news is He is interested in every detail of your life. All of it. He is watching it all. He is in love with you.

If you feel like you can muster up the faith for this, tell God that you trust Him to work it all together for good. He really will. If you let Him, He will take the pieces of your life and make it something magnificent. It may take days, months or even years to see it all worked out for good, but it will. We either believe the Bible or we don’t. The Message puts it beautifully: “That's why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.”

Even when you feel forgotten and alone, keep loving and trusting the detailed hand of a loving God who works all the details of your life together for something good.

five

Luke 2: 14
"Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!"

A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices. It's been a hard year for so many people, but as it comes to an end, and tonight we wait for the new morning of hope I am reminded that everything I am waiting for, all the dreams in my heart and the things I want to see while I'm on this earth... has happened. In that humble and messy stable—a bit like my life—Jesus was born. And in that moment Hope entered the world and we were saved from ourselves, from evil, and finally, finally, we were not alone anymore. All of our dreams had come true.

You, me and the world wants peace, and peace has come.

four

Revelation 3:20

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me...”

My husband and I just spent a week with our best friends. As the years pass by and the closer we all get, the less frills and stuff and excitement we really need. The four of us could be in the middle of the Bahamas or the middle of small town USA but give us four chairs and some food and we are the most content four people on the face of the earth. It just gets easier and easier. Eating with someone you love or a bunch of loved ones is the most surest thing in a life full of disappointments, mistakes and pain. It’s the easiest thing in the world.

God wants that with you. He wants to dine with you and to spend normal time with you. Love on you. Eat with you! What an awesome and beautiful picture. Dining with God. Dining with the King of the world. It could be fancy and it could be plain. He just waits to sit with you. Not long ago I was making my bed. I walked around the foot of the bed and got a startling image of Jesus moving out of the way to allow me to walk past. He had been waiting for me for a few days and I had been really busy and hyperactive and hadn’t sat with Him—just Him and me—for a while. I missed Him and He missed me.

Sit with him today. He is knocking and waiting. Take some time and “dine” with Him. Like you would an old friend. Like you would a new friend. He will tell you things you need to know (Jer 33:3 "Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know..." ) He will take away the guilt and help you with the dramas of the day, (Isaiah 1:18 "Come now, let us reason together…says the LORD.") He will love you and listen to you (Psalm 116:1 "I love God because He listened to me..." The Message).

Make your day-to-day walk with Him something real and genuine. I think it will last longer and be more exciting for you. Sit and be with Him. He is the best company.

three

Psalm 37:3-4
“Trust in the Lord, and do good; Dwell in the land and feed on His faithfulness, Delight yourself also in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.”


Trust in Jesus. He will give you the desires of your heart. There are desires in your heart that no one knows about. Not even you. Some days we think we know what we want. We argue and fight with God that things aren’t happening quick enough or slow enough as if we know our hearts better than He knows our hearts. Don’t forget that God in His infinite love and wisdom and knowledge knows the stuff in your heart that you don’t even know you desire. I’m talking about the deep deep down dreams and desires and ideas that you don’t even know you have or want yet. You haven’t even thought of them! How absolutely fab!! He knows what you truly want in the parts of your heart you don’t even know exist.

So in the meantime, do what He says: TRUST in the Lord: don’t look to the circumstances or the reality, but rather His promises to take care of you and be with you always. DO GOOD things: make the world around you and beyond you a better place. DWELL in the land: live here on this messed up earth, take care of it, but always “feed” (draw all you need) from His faithfulness rather than relying on the earth you live in. DELIGHT yourself in Him: make Him the highest level of joy in your day. Love on Him, laugh with Him, enjoy His company and Word and presence… then He promises to give you what you want. What a sweet and kind God we have.

two

psalm 91 verse one.

“He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
Shall abide under the shadow of the almighty.”

The secret place is that place with God where you can go and be alone with Him. When everyday you sit with Him—your sweet friend, saviour, companion, king and Dad—your day-to-day life will not be the same (in a good way). Matthew 6:6 says “when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.”

Whether you want to take this literally or not, obviously Jesus wants us to go to a place where there is no one else but His sweet Holy Spirit and you. A place where there are no distractions, no frills and no showiness—just you and Him. He not only waits for your attention, your time and even your smile all day, but He goes a step further and promises that He will reward your time with Him when everyone is watching! He will show you off!

Back to Psalm 91. I promise you, when you do this— make this secret place the part of your day where you come ‘home’ to be with Him—to truly dwell (like in a home) with Him, then as you walk out of your house and do life, you will ‘abide’ 24 hours- a- day under His strong, protective and peaceful covering. He will go before you, love on you, and prepare goodness and treats for you all day long. You will be safe and covered even in the most dangerous moments of your day. Go sit with Him today. He is such good company.

day one

Psalm 62
vs. 1 &2: “Truly my soul silently waits for God; From Him comes my salvation.
He only is my rock and my salvation; He is my defense: I shall not be greatly moved…”
vs. 5 & 6: “My soul, wait silently for God alone, For my expectation is from Him.
He only is my rock and my salvation; He is my defense; I shall not be moved…”

No one but God will give you what you need and want in this life. Face it. The psalmist certainly understands that on this earth there is absolutely nothing to hold onto— no person, place, status or amount of money that will keep you going everyday and fill the deepest cries of your heart and soul in this broken and very lost world. This was true back when this awesome psalm was penned, and even truer today. We are a broken, messed up humanity. We walk around expecting things from people or stuff or even an amount of money that he, she or it simply cannot fill. We are waiting for things to happen, expecting something from a person who isn’t capable of fulfilling it no matter how perfect and wonderful they are. But here’s the good news: that’s a good thing! It’s not meant to be like that!

Take a sec and kneel down. Go ahead to it. Do it when you are all alone and feel lost in this big crowded lonely world, and even do it when you are feeling great and everything is just working out to perfection. Kneel down and repeat these words. “I wait for you alone, God. YOU are the only one I can and will expect anything from. You alone. I love and adore you…” say something like that. Stop waiting for something to happen. Just wait for the only one you can depend on to show up. He will come. And He will meet every dream, desire and expectation you have ever had. He never disappoints. Take your peace today.