Fasting

Recently, I participated with a group of people in a fast for 21 days. We were fasting together with the purpose of bringing God's presence into a particular neighborhood in our city. This was the longest fast I had ever done. Many of us followed the Daniel fast spoken of in Daniel 1 and Daniel 10:1. In Daniel 1, Daniel asks the official if he and his friends can be given only vegetables to eat and water to drink. The official agreed for 10 days and then checked their appearance thinking that they would look worse than the other men. When he checked them, they looked healthier and better nourished than the rest.

I am bringing this up because a strange thing kept happening as I was fasting. People kept commenting on the clearness of my eyes and the glowing nature of my skin. Many people who did not know I was fasting wanted to know why they could see a physical difference in me. It was very encouraging to know that God had given me a physical effect!

Jesus says in Matthew 6:16; "When you fast..." Notice He does not say IF you fast, but He says WHEN you fast. This shows me that fasting is not an optional thing. It is part of my existence while we are here on earth. I know we go to at least one banquet in heaven, but I am hoping heaven is full of all the food we love except without the calories or maybe the effect of calories here on earth:)

So, when is the proper time to fast? I can't answer this for you, but I can tell you what causes me to consider fasting. When I see a stronghold in my life. A stronghold means "a fortified place or a fortress." This is a really strong place that is tough to breakthrough. When I have been praying for a long time and don't see breakthrough, I fast. When my heart is very burdened with a situation, I fast. Sometimes when I feel very burdened, I start fasting without thinking about it, because I am so burdened I don't feel like eating. Othertimes, I begin a fast to bring my heart to a desperate place so I can pray in a focused and desperate way. Not eating much and especially not eating ice cream and enchiladas reminds me often during the day to focus on praying.

Some people eat to live, but I am a person who lives to eat! During this long period of fasting, I became desperate and focused in my prayer. Many breakthroughs occurred. Both personally and in the neighborhood we prayed for. God showed us He was present and did miracles in the lives of people. He transformed the neighborhood and He also transformed my heart. I can truly say, I will never be the same. So, if you have not tried fasting, start today. You can give up a meal and pray. Or maybe the radio in your car for a week. How about the computer games that eat up so much time. Pick something that is hard for you. I picked food because that is hard for me. And then ask God to show you something to pray for and watch for the miracle!!!

Strong and Courageous

My husband and I were in the car taking our grandsons out for pizza. We began to have a heated discussion when all of a sudden I heard the loud, deep, raspy voice of my three year old grandson. He said; "Grandma, I appreciate you. I love you. Grandpa, you should appreciate grandma!" Where does this boy get his vocabulary? He just turned three on April 29th. Not only did he use the word, but it was clear that he understood what he was talking about. It was precious!

Gary responded by saying; "Jayden, I appreciate grandma. I am sorry that we were arguing." By this time, I had forgoten what we were arguing about. I felt convicted because I was sure it was my grumpy mood that had caused the argument. So I wondered why Jayden had taken my side?

It seemed he just naturally came to my rescue because I am a woman. He felt the responsibility as a little man to stick up for me whom he deemed as the underdog. He is definitely the "super hero" type. He spends his time with me carrying around a sponge sword play fighting to save me from pretend "bad guys." He tells me as he is playing; "Don't worry grandma, I will save you!" He was born with this strong and courageous quality.

In the first chapter of Joshua after Moses dies when God is commissioning Joshua as the leader of Israel, He commands Joshua several times; "Be strong and courageous." Courage and strength are qualities of leadership. And leadership starts in the home and in the heart.

Since I have noticed this God given quality of leadership in my grandson, I can pray for his life more specifically. No matter what I see in the physical realm as he goes through the years, I will pray and believe God for this promise shown to me today.

At three, it is impossible for Jayden to be socialized into being someone that he is not. I have seen this truth as I have raised my daughters. When they went through their teenage years and picked up qualities that were not true to themselves, I continued to pray for the promises God had shown me in their innocent years. And I continued to pray and believe God for the people He had created them to be. I know they are healthy and truly themselves when they exhibit the gifts they could not help expressing before they learned how to filter themselves.

So now I will believe God for this little bold leader who has been given to our family. I will remind him over the years of who he is. I will encourage him to be true to who he was created to be. And I will enjoy the valiance and honor that comes so naturally to him. I will pray and believe God through the rough years until I see a healthy young man with these amazing qualities. God has given me a healthy glimpse of the Jayden he created. I will stand by and encourage him to be the amazing man he was created to be. God has given me this commission.

Oneness

This morning when I was beginning to wake up, I heard the sound of a heartbeat. As I began to gain consciousness, I realized that my ear was squished under my husband's arm. This caused a sort of "echo" sounding heartbeat. As I listened to the sound of the heartbeat, I was not sure if I was hearing Gary's or mine. This got me thinking about oneness.

In Genesis 2:24, God says; "Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh." On Monday, I will be married for 24 years. In this moment I was thinking; "Where does Gary end and where do I begin?" Our lives are so wrapped up together. We have three beautiful daughter, two amazing grandsons, and a wonderful new son-in-law. My past, present, and future are full of thoughts of us together. We know eachother so well it sometimes causes arguments?!? I have learned to love the things he loves, such as golf, and he has learned to cry with me at what he calls "girlie" movies, and so on. His dreams are my dreams and mine are his. We are ONE!!! It would be impossible to separate our lives apart from death!!

Over the years, I have found marriage to be the most amazing part of life on earth and at the same time, the hardest part. It has caused me to face my own selfishness and pride more than anything else. Closeness is beautiful, but it also very revealing. My marriage has made me better by revealing the worst in me which has caused me to cry out to Jesus to help me to change. I have become more like Christ. I have learned to love more deeply, to extend more mercy, and to show more grace. I have also experienced the greatest joy life has to offer with my husband. I am a better version of myself!!

As I reflected on these thoughts and continued to listen to the sound of the heartbeat, I began to think; "Maybe this is the the sound of OUR heartbeat together." His life wrapped up in mine, and my life wrapped up in his. I am so grateful to God for this man!!! I love this oneness God has created!! And I especially love my husband!!

I think Rod Stewart describes oneness very well in a verse from his song; "You're In My Heart." It goes like this, "You're in my heart; you're in my soul. You'll be my breath should I grow old. You are my lover; you're my best friend. You're in my soul."

Springtime

I love the springtime. We get it a bit late in Flagstaff, but today it had so clearly arrived. The birds were out singing their songs, many trees were filled with pretty pink blossoms, and the grass was that light green color of the first shoots of spring. My heart was warm all day as I felt the joy and excitement of the new life all around me.

Tonight, I was at a banquet for the New Horizons Teen Challenge Academy in Flagstaff. This Academy houses teenage young men who have addictions. One of the young men spoke at the banquet about his additions to alcohol and all kind of drugs. At one point, he shared; "I was so desperate to find joy. I was empty inside and lost. I was taking drugs because I could not find joy and satisfaction. And the drugs only worked for a little while..."

When he was speaking, I felt a distant tinge of recognition in my soul. And to my surprise, I remembered feeling this way. Worthless, meaningless, empty, lost, without hope. Why was it a surprise? Because this feeling that was at one point so familiar to me was now very unfamiliar. So, I began to ask the Lord; "What is in my soul right now?" And His answer to me was; "Springtime." Psalm 16:11 says; "You have made known to me the path of life; You will fill me with joy in your presence..." This is what is in my soul right now! The joy of having God's presence with me at all times. My path is FULL of life and joy and excitement!!

One of my favorite verses is found in Romans 6:4; "...And just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life." This young man from New Horizons went on to tell us about how God had spoken to Him eight months ago. He boasted of the love and hope that Jesus had put in his heart! He expressed the joy and satisfaction that had filled him completely. He assured us that he would never be taking drugs again because he trusted the Lord to keep him busy helping other people. He shared with us his NEW life!

I love the springtime of Jesus in my heart. The new life I experienced so many years ago is still new and fresh everyday. This is a perpetual springtime. Life filling me up to overflowing!! Joy so full and in my heart even in the hardest moments!! It is truly indescribable!! The best way to understand it is to look around and take in the creation as it springs forth with life and joy and excitement all around us!! Springtime!!

A Smile Can Change Everything!

The other day, I was coming out of my local grocery store pushing my cart filled with groceries. I was deep in thought and felt overwhelmed by the circumstances surrounding my life. I felt like no matter what effort I put in, things were just not turning out the way I had hoped for. As I took a few steps out of the door, I realized that I was parked on the downhill side of the parking lot. Usually, at this moment, I would feel the urge to give my cart a push and jump with both feet up onto the cart and take whatever wild ride it would give me. But, not on this day.

As I continued walking, I decided to take the ride even if I did not feel like it. Maybe it would lift my mood and lighten up my heart. So I proceeded and realized in the middle of the ride, I was smiling. It is funny how smiling can change everything. In Proverbs 31, it describes the characteristics of an amazing woman. Verse 25 says; "...she smiles at the future." This word smiles in Hebrew means; to laugh, to play, to rejoice, to amuse. Although my day had not started out great, this action of riding the cart changed my attitude. It caused me to gain perspective by shifting my thoughts to something I loved. I don't know why I love to ride grocery carts, but it is part of who God created me to be. I have loved these rides since childhood and the amusement has not worn off.

As my ride came to an end, I opened up my car and began to unload my groceries. A young man who was collecting the carts came up behind me and said, "Not enough people do that." As I turned every shade of red, I asked him in a quiet voice, "What did you say?" And he came a little closer and with all sincerity, he answered, "Not enough people ride the carts." I smiled at him and saw that I had also lifted his spirits and added a little joy to his day. He took my empty cart and he walked away with a skip in his step. As I reflected on this encounter, I realize he had observed my joy. He could have said, "Not enough people have joy." At this moment, my mind was flooded with all of the opportunities around me. With each step into life, I have endless opportunities to make myself smile and help those around me smile too!

What is it that you love to do? Paint a picture, play a guitar, skip, jump, dance, sing a song, swim, ride an elevator, run up the down side of an escalator? I don't know what does it for you, but I do know when we do some things, we can't help but smile! Many times in life, we cannot change the circumstances around us, but we can embrace the things God has given us. We are surrounded with opportunities to find joy. In Nehemiah 8:10, it says; "...the joy of the Lord is our strength." If you are feeling down today, as I was the other day, what can you do that will make you enjoy this day? No matter how bad things look and feel, we are always in reach of a moment of joy that could lead to a smile! And, a smile can change everything!

Heavenly Moments

Recently, I was looking over some pictures from my daughter's wedding which took place last summer. I ran across a picture of a time at the end of the wedding where everyone in the room had a smile on their face. We were preparing for the bride and groom to leave for their honeymoon. Some of the kids had handed out bubbles for everyone to blow as the bride and groom walked through a tunnel of guests to their awaiting limo. But that is not what happened.

The music was playing and the dance floor was filled with guests and everyone began to blow bubbles. The room was filled with a sort of magical feeling as everyone smiled and quietly got lost in blowing bubbles. When my daughter and her new husband came out to leave, they joined in the bubble blowing fun. It was one of those times that could not have been planned, but just spontaneously happened. It was beautiful! The room filled with floating bubbles. It felt like all thinking had stopped as we surrendered to this moment of renewed youth, love, and pure enjoyment. This moment stretched out to forever.

I believe this is how heaven will be. No deadlines. No rushing. Nothing pressing to worry about. Simple enjoyment! Appreciating the moments, loving the people, taking in our surroundings with all of our senses; just being. And all of this in the pressence of God! Amazing! It states in Revelation 21:4; "He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever." Hallelujah!!

I know it blessed God that day when we all got lost in the bubble blowing moment. We threw out the schedule and the plan. We filled the room with love and wonder. We gave in to our childlike, carefree nature. We trusted and did not think seriously about anything. We were all together BEING in the moment. I believe we worship God when we can truly surrender to BEING in the moment. He is the Creator of the time that we live in. He is the author for these heavenly moments. His presence is with us and He is enjoying our childlike freedom!

I love the story of King David coming into the city of Jerusalem with the ark of God. It was a moment that he had waited for. In David's day, the ark of God was the place where God's presence dwelled. He had tried to bring the ark into Jerusalem at another time and it had not worked out. So, when the ark came into the city, he rejoiced. It says that he was dancing and celebrating in 1 Chronicles 15:29. David's life was filled with many tough decisions. He had experienced much pain and sorrow in his lifetime and he would experiece more after this moment. But, he put all of his cares aside and he surrendered to the freedom of dancing in the streets. He gave in to the joy in his heart and let it out!

I pray as we go through life, we look for and give into these times of pure enjoyment! God gives us the privilege of calling Him; "Abba, Father." This word translated is; "Daddy." (Galatians 4:6) When I relate to God as my Daddy, I can live in a childlike place knowing that He is looking out for me and taking care of everything. This gives me the freedom to take the time to blow more bubbles and find more of these heavenly moments!

When God says "No!"

Last Monday morning, my phone began to ring off the hook. I was in the process of planning a barbeque and carnival for 500 people. Many of my volunteers, such as; the band, the train owner, the bounce house owner, etc. were calling to ask if we should cancel the event. They had watched the weather report and we had a 70% chance of snow for the day of our event. My answer to each one was; "I don't even want to talk about this until we all ask the Lord to change the weather!"

So, ask I did! I spent every moment I had asking the Lord for this miracle. Why did I ask Him? Because He can change the weather. Because He was my only hope in changing the weather. Because I wanted a sunny day! I am sure most of us are familiar with the story in Matthew 8 where Jesus calms the storm on the lake when the disciples think they are going to perish. Verse 27 says; "The men were amazed and asked, 'What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey Him!'" This is the God that I know today! He has changed the weather before in my life. In fact, there was a 70% chance of rain on my daughter's wedding day this summer and we did not see a drop!!! I have asked for practically everything from God and have seen so many amazing miracles!! So, I kept asking the One who could help me!

There is something exciting to me about waiting on God in a circumstance that is impossible without Him. This week, I often thought of the movie; "Braveheart." In one scene, the main character, William Wallace, is leading an army into battle. The opposing army is charging at their line and he is yelling; "Hold, hold, hold!!" The men are looking at him anxiously but with trust and respect waiting for his signal. This was how I felt! I was holding and waiting on my leader, Jesus, to give me my orders. When I was sure about the snow, then I would act based on the answer that God was giving me. Until then, I would believe in God's ability knowing who He is and trusting His judgement as to the outcome of the day. This is the kind of excitement I feel when I am waiting in prayer on the Lord.

On the early morning of our event, I woke up at 3:23am. I got up and looked outside and there was no snow. I thought God was going to answer my prayer for a sunny day! But, just as my hopes were high, I saw the snow begin to fall. And it was falling hard!! At this moment, I had two choices: I could act like a three year old and ask the notorious question; "WHY?" or I could trust God with His answer which I knew at this point was; "No!" I chose to trust God to make this event a success in spite of the snow.

We served over 325 people that day. We treated many kids to carnival events, such as; face painting, fishing for toys, etc. We gave away prizes! I can say for sure that we lavished the love of Jesus on all that came!! We had the best indoor carnival and barbeque possible and our cooks stood out in the snow grilling the chicken and tri-tip for 5 hours. It was not what I imagined, but it was fun!! And all of the volunteers showed up with great attitudes!! We were in it together and we had a victory!!

I don't know why the Lord did not change the weather on this day. But, I do know that He could have!! I ask God all the time for things that only He can do. I believe that it blesses Him when we have faith in who He is and we know that He can do anything we ask of Him. I also believe that it blesses Him when we can take; "No!" for an answer. How do we do this graciously? We remember that He is God and we are not. And we receive His; "No!" as the BEST answer even when we don't understand. After all, His perspective is so much greater than our own!! So, we trust Him!!

Hebrews 11:6; "And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him."