Cultivating a Thankful Heart…Still June 8, 2009

God is doing a lot in our lives…so we’ve decided to let you in on what is happening by posting some “random thoughts” this week.  We hope our musings will encourage and remind you of His workings in your own heart and life.

Perhaps you remember my confession about ungratefulness that led to our Philippians 2:14 challenge.  By God’s grace, I’ve experienced a genuine work of the Spirit in my heart that my husband recently acknowledged as “real change.”  Amazing!  While I’m grateful (smile) for God’s work in my heart, I’ve been recently made aware of the remaining temptations to discontent.

Like last Saturday.

After a delightful vacation week at the beach with all 20 of “my people” (pictured here) I was enjoying some final moments in the ocean with Benny and our oldest grandchild, Kayla, just before we left for home.

My first thoughts were of gratefulness for God’s provision and the sweet and hilarious memories we had made:  lounging on the beach while the kids played nearby; the family football game; renting scooters to sight see in the vintage city and beaches of St. Augustine; a laughter-filled oceanside water balloon fight; building sand castles that were soon destroyed by mischievous little cousins; leisurely walks with Benny; Hillbilly Golf (better known as Ladder Ball; you gotta pick one up at Walmart!); bowling on a rainy evening; Old Maid, War and Go Fish with the grandkids; loud dinners with all of us sharing the cooking and cleaning together; and even a poker tournament (which I surprisingly won!).

However, without realizing it my thankful thoughts soon turned to complaining.  “Oh, I wish we could stay longer.  This week passed way too quickly!  I don’t want to go home yet.  It’ll be a whole year before we can do this again!”

Effortlessly, my gratitude to God turned to selfish discontent. I had just enjoyed the precious gift of 7 whole days with all my children and grandchildren under the same roof.  I even had time to read Manhunt (a superbly written book I’ve been eager to enjoy about the assassination of Abraham Lincoln and the death of his murderer) during quiet afternoons on the beach with Benny.  Throughout the week I thanked the Lord for each day and asked Him to help me savor every priceless moment with those I love the most in this world.

How, then, did my gratefulness so easily turn to complaining?  Because sin is crouching at the door of my heart.  One moment I was relishing the joy of God’s gift…and the next minute I was whining because the gift didn’t last long enough.

Those final moments enjoying the ocean waves with Kayla — while detecting the all too quick shift from gratefulness to complaining  — reminded me of Thomas Watson’s warning in his life changing book, The Divine Art of Christian Contentment:  “The seas are not so stormy as men’s spirits are temptestuous, tossed to and fro with discontents.”  The churning waters around me were just a picture of my restless heart.

Is your heart, like mine, prone to ungratefulness?  Do you often find yourself complaining rather than giving thanks?  When God gives you a gift (a vacation, an act of kindness from your husband or a friend, unexpected financial provision for a need or want, a surprising morning of unusually obedient children, a nap you didn’t plan on) do your thoughts drift toward wanting or expecting more or feeling it was not enough?  Are you frequently disappointed by perceived lack in your marriage, family, job, friendships or finances?

Thomas Watson goes on to issue this sober rebuke:  “You cannot be discontented without quarelling with God.” Dead guys really know how to call it like it is.  Ouch.

Lord, please forgive me of the sins of ingratitude and discontent.  Help me to be more aware of Your gracious gifts than my unmet desires.  By Your sanctifying power, help me to put off complaining and put on thankfulness.  Give me eyes to see the many evidences of Your kindness each and every day.  I want to have a grateful heart, Lord!  And I don’t want to quarrel with You when Your blessings aren’t “good enough” or don’t last long enough or aren’t repeated often enough.  I need Your grace to repent and change.  Thank You for the promise of help and power to think biblically and to cultivate a joyful, thankful heart.

Posted by Sheree

So That’s Why it’s Called a “Challenge” March 11, 2009

Today’s testimony is from one of the wonderful, humble single friends who frequents our blog.  Becky is a warm, caring and faithful member of our church whose infectious smile lights up every room she enters.  Becky, thank you for this helpful and convicting post!  (And now we all want to meet your sisters!)

This Philippians 2:14 Challenge came at a very opportune time for me.  For the past couple of months, I have been talking to my twin sister, Beth, about how frequently we end up spending our time on the phone complaining about people or the circumstances of our lives.   So, when Sheree gave us the challenge, I was quick to jump in with both feet.

That evening after work, I talked to my sister about it and was able to point out in that very conversation that she had digressed into complaining about something concerning her husband.   The next day, I was telling Beth about my frustration with a coworker, which is sadly a frequent topic of conversation with me.  I had been going on for quite a while about how this coworker wasn’t doing what I wanted them to do, and I felt overburdened because of it.

She said to me, “I thought you weren’t going to complain anymore?  Oh, I guess that only pertains to me.”  Ouch!!    I had to repent right there and ask for forgiveness for not only my lack of gratitude for my job, but also for my self-righteous attitude in pointing out her sin and not recognizing the plank in my own eye.  How humbling!

It is so exciting and easy to make a commitment, but there is a reason why it is called a “challenge.”   I am definitely being challenged every day in this commitment to not complaining.  However, I am finding that in spite of my circumstances, His grace is bigger.  I can take joy and delight in Jesus instead of complaining about people and circumstances around me.

Lord, thank you so much for giving me 3 beautiful, godly sisters sisters who are willing to hold me accountable to the commitments You’ve called me to keep.  Thank you for providing me with a job that pays for my needs and then some in a God-honoring environment — even in these hard economic times.  Lord, remind me of Your great love for me; and make me one who is marked by thankfulness for all You have done and are doing in me.  Please give me a heart that delights in obeying You.

Trusting God Through Weighty Difficulties March 10, 2009

Today’s guest contributor is Erin: wife to Caleb and mother of four.  We wish there was time for her to share her full testimony.  Those of us who know her have watched up close as she has persevered through numerous weighty circumstances over the past two years.  We’re grateful that you will benefit from her compelling example.

Oh, I so desire to be a woman who radiates gratefulness for all things.  A woman who is content with her boundary lines; who doesn’t  grumble and complain about annoying people, uncomfortable circumstances or unfulfilled expectations…but alas, I am not that woman and I suppose I never will be this side of Heaven.  But the Lord, in his own infinite wisdom, has had my family and me in a season where we have had plenty of opportunities to grumble and complain.  We’ve also had numerous opportunities to experience firsthand the providential ways of the Lord which have cultivated more gratefulness in my heart than I ever could have hoped to have apart from these difficult circumstances.

You see, on March 22, 2008 my husband was laid off for the second time in two years.  Weeks later we were served papers stating that we were being sued for $500,000 for a fender bender that happened in 2006.  And the next month we found out we were expecting our fourth child.  After being unable to secure a new job locally, Caleb had to leave the kids and me in September to move out of state to work temporarily with a friend in North Carolina.  Within 6 months my life changed dramatically.  Today, he is finally home, yet still without full-time employment and bleak prospects for employment.

However, in all the craziness of this past year I have found myself seeing things from a perspective that has, quite honestly, surprised me!   The Lord has been very gracious, opening my eyes to see all the things that I DO have rather than allowing me to dwell on all that I don’t have, can’t have or all that may be taken away.

I DO have a healthy family.  That is one of the things I have been most aware of as I see and read about families who are suffering with illness or have suffered great loss.  What is the loss of a job compared to the loss of a loved one?  The comparison seems foolish.  I DO have a house to call home.   Does it have to be this big, beautiful house my husband built himself… of course not.  Thank you Lord for giving our family a year of dwelling here, may there be many more to come…but if not…so be it.  I DO have food to eat!  Not one single day has gone by that I have worried that my children will go hungry.  So many people in this world would give their lives for the scraps I throw out.  I DO have clothes to wear, diapers for my kids, gas for my car.  Thank you Lord for providing these things in amazing ways.  Thank you for the friends and family you have used to help provide for us.  Thank you for this church and the many ways they have blessed us.  You have certainly shown yourself faithful…..and I trust You.

P.S. From Sheree:  Ladies, let’s pause and consider this powerful testimony.  What things in our lives — health, shelter, food, friends, family — are we tempted to take for granted?  Let’s ask the Lord to grant us the gift of conviction and grace to repent for any lack of gratitude for these gracious demonstrations of His love.  Erin, thank you for reminding us to be grateful for God’s blessing and provision in our lives!

Confession of a Chronic Complainer March 9, 2009

This week we are continuing with posts on Mark Altrogge’s message on thankfulness and our Philippians 2:14 Challenge on cultivating gratefulness rather than complaining.  Today’s testimony is from Sheree’s daughter, Jaime.  Jaime and PJ are a part of Metro Life Church and have four very adorable children 7 and under.

When I first heard about the Philippians 2:14 challenge my first reaction was…well… to complain. I didn’t want one more area of needed growth in my life to have to think about.  But since Metro Moms was issuing the challenge, I knew I had to at least consider it.  This has ended up being a real eye opening experience for me.

The Lord is revealing to me that I’m pretty much a chronic complainer. In daily life I tend to focus on what has gone wrong. This can be anything from disobedient children to a house that is not clean enough for my standards, or disappointment when plans don’t go my way.

Mom always talks about “pursuing humility” so here I go with a recent example that will let you see what my complaining looks like.

For a couple of months my husband, PJ, and I had planned on spending the day before Valentine’s Day together.  No kids, no work, just us. I made sure I snagged my sisters to help out with the kids well in advance.  I couldn’t wait to have some fun and relaxing time with PJ.

We spent most of the morning uninterrupted, but as the afternoon approached his cell phone started ringing due to some phone issues at work.  As the calls continued my irritation escalated.   Why couldn’t I have one day with my husband without interruptions?  Wasn’t there someone else at work who could take care of this situation?  We had both been so looking forward to this time together…

After he spent much of the afternoon on the phone, we went to a show later that night but then had to stop by his office for him to fix a problem. This was not in my “fun” plans for the day; in fact, it was horrible. Was it really “horrible”?  No.  But I just had to complain to someone.  You know how some businesses provide an option for customer or employee complaints?  Well, there was no “complaint department” for me to take a number and wait my turn to spew my gripes.  Since PJ was busy working — and not available for a lengthy conversation about my problems with this situation — I decided to call my sister. Yes, she would listen to my barrage of grumbling…and she probably wouldn’t try to help adjust my sinful thinking (like Mom would).

Yes; you’re reading this correctly.  I specifically called my 22-year-old sister just so that I could complain out loud.  After realizing later the phone issues weren’t fixable right then, PJ drove me home and went back to work most of the night and into the morning. Not only that, he had to go back for most of Valentine’s Day, which interrupted a special day we had planned with the kids.  Those two days really served my selfish desire to complain.

I so wish the Philippians 2:14 Challenge was around during that time!  Instead of focusing on my disappointment, I could have been reminding myself of what I am grateful for. My husband has a job with a wonderful company owned by a godly man; he works hard at his job; I live near family so they can watch my kids all day for me; and I got to spend more time than normal alone with PJ that day.

This is my goal for this challenge:  To get to the place where my heart is MORE likely to be grateful than to complain.  I want to be able to focus on God’s kindness when I am tempted to complain, and be more likely to think of how God has blessed me than whatever is disappointing, frustrating or irritating me.  I can only do this with His help.

Posted by Jaime

Keeping my Eyes Focused on Him March 6, 2009

All this focus on thankfulness has caused me to look back at different seasons of my life.  I remember many years ago when I was going through the hardest time I’ve been through.  Most people believed that I should have been sad and depressed and I can’t imagine that anyone would have thought it wrong for me to complain about the circumstances which the Lord allowed in my life.  I am not going to say that I never complained, but there was a marked point in which the Lord gave me true and unspeakable joy in the midst of my circumstances.  So much so that many people close to me could not understand my joy.

I’ve asked myself lately what contributed to that change (besides the mercy of God)?  Mark Altrogee shared that God doesn’t always change the situation, but changes us and gives us joy.   This was exactly my experience.  But how does this happen and why does it not consistently happen in my life now?  I believe at that time in my life I was able to look above my circumstances and look directly to Jesus.  My focus was on Him and not my circumstances.  My gaze at Him was directed at the Cross and not at how He could change my circumstances.  I was thankful for Jesus, the author and finisher of my faith.  Once I was able to do that, my circumstances truly did not matter and I had amazing  joy.

Now in this season of my life, so markedly different from the past, I need again to look to Him for my joy.  I need to remember, as Mark so succinctly stated, “Thank God I’m saved!”  That alone is enough for a lifetime of thankfulness.

Posted by Elyse

Gratefulness and a Crazy Morning March 5, 2009

I had quite the opportunity to be grateful “in all things” a few mornings ago…let me set the scene.  I had 3 different places to be between nine and noon, and they were on opposite sides of the city.  I started out running late as we slept through our alarm.  The first two stops went okay, but then I needed to get from point 2 to point 3.  This is where it gets interesting…I think I had to turn around about 5 times (all on major highways) and pay at least 4 additional tolls not to mention driving for miles the wrong way before I could even find a place to turn around!  Aghhh!

Once I finally got on the RIGHT road, going the RIGHT direction I finally just had to laugh.   It had been extremely frustrating (especially since I am not normally so directionally challenged!), but the Lord reminded me to be grateful in all things.  So…driving down that road (quite late for my next destination), the Lord helped me to be grateful for that experience and to thank Him for His plan (maybe all of that was to protect me in some way!)

Now, this isn’t how I would normally respond to these kinds of interruptions…often I am angry that things don’t happen according to MY PLAN – I often grumble and complain.  :-/  Sad, but true.  But in that moment, the Lord graciously reminded me of what we have been talking about.  This was a very practical way of putting that into practice!

Lord, please help me to CHOOSE to be grateful in the many interruptions each day.  By being grateful to You, I am glorifying You and expressing that Your plans are more important than my own.  Please make me a woman that has a grateful heart every day – no matter what comes my way.  I can only do this with Your help.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Posted by Stephanie

The Philippians 2:14 Challenge Starts Tomorrow! March 1, 2009

Got your wristband?  I’m improvising with a rubber band.  What for?  For our Metro Mom’s Philippians 2:14 Challenge that starts tomorrow!  If you haven’t yet heard, please refer to Friday’s post.  And don’t forget to post a comment that you are participating so we can pray for each other!  If you read this late, no worries.  You can take the challenge at any time.  After all, it’s not a race but just a creative tool to inspire prayer and dependence on God for change.

This morning at our Sunday meeting several people mentioned they were on board. Singles; teens; even entire families.  One of my children jokingly responded to Benny and I communicating our desire to join the challenge as a fam with, “So it’s ok to complain about doing this until Tuesday, right?”  (Well…at least I think it was a joke!)  As a reminder, this idea was borrowed from another organization that I read about — only they went for 21 days.  Several people in the organization took 6 months or more to complete 21 straight days with no complaing.  So we decided to set a more realistic goal.

What is complaining?  The Holy Spirit will help you define what it looks like in your life.  Griping.  Mumuring.  Whining.  Making sarastic or caustic remarks.  Discontentment. Critical comments.  Ungratefulness.

But what about those of us who don’t express our complaining and ungratefulness verbally?  One of our family members rarely expresses their grumbling verbally, so they might easily make it seven days without outward complaining.  Eye rolling, sighing, a fallen countenance or other non-verbal expressions are what we’ll be talking with this child about today.  Their non-verbal complaining is just as sinful as those of us who communicate our struggles for all to hear.

Remember, when you complain your 7 days starts over again.   But something more important must be remembered as we embark on this creative way to seek to put complaining to death in our lives.  We’re not just looking for a change of outward behavior, but a change of heart.  This can only happen by God’s empowering grace.  We can stop saying ungrateful, complaining words for week, but as soon as this exercise is over our sinful attitudes will return.

That’s why “cheating” is really foolish, especially in this situation.  Sure, we can all come back a week from tomorrow and declare we did it!  If we are after a change of heart, however,  it makes no sense to be uncooperative with the sanctifying work of the Spirit in our lives…and disguise complaining with lying to ourselves and others.  We’re not relying on this challenge to change our hearts; only God can do that.  This is just a simple way to keep Phil 2:14 in front of us as we pray for God’s help to replace grumbling with thankfulness.

Every time we look at our bracelet, or whatever we use as a reminder, let’s remember to pray for God’s help.  The gospel promises us that help!

Tomorrow we’ll return to blogging, but I’m sure we’ll be writing more about our Philippians 2:14 challenge.

Lord Jesus, help us!  We want to “do all things without grumbling and complaining” and we need the help You have promised to those who put their trust in You.

Posted by Sheree

The Philippians 2:14 Challenge February 27, 2009

I’ve been monitoring the complain meter in my life after reading an online article about an organization leader who creatively “banned” complaining.  He issued colorful bracelets to people as a reminder to not complain about anything for 21 straight days.  When they succumbed to complaining, they had to switch the bracelet to the other arm and start the 21 day process all over.  It took him 3 1/2 months of switching his own bracelet back and forth to reach the 3-week goal.

It’s 1:30 in the afternoon and I’ve already complained twice (that I can remember!).  I began the day by oversleeping, then whined to my daughter about getting to bed too late last night.  I soon scoffed at my computer when the internet connection was too slow.  3 1/2 months to go 21 days without complaining?  I’m afraid it would take me much longer than that!

Complaining in the form of sarcasm, grumbling, whining, belly-aching or criticizing is just a way of life for many of us.  Toddlers take too long to get into their carseats.  Teens leave their rooms looking like a tornado struck.  Grocery store checkers make us walk back to the aisle to prove our item really is on sale.  Bosses give promotions to co-workers.  Inconsiderate drivers pull out in front of us.  People forget to call us back or respond to an important email.  Worship leaders choose songs we don’t like.  Vacuum cleaner belts break and cars need gas when we’re in a hurry and our kids sit on the bench while others get more playing time in the game.

What comes out of our mouths at such times is what is in our hearts. When you knock over a glass, David Powlison says, what spills out is what was already in the glass.  When we get “knocked over” by people and circumstances, the words that come out are those that were already in our thoughts and hearts. The person or situation didn’t put the complaining contents into our hearts…they just revealed what was already there.

No wonder God commanded us to “do all things without grumbling and complaining” (Phil 2:14).  James shows us how to apply this in chapter 3 of his book, telling us that “no human being can tame the tongue” (verse 8).  Only God can help us!

We at Metro Moms would like to issue the Philippians 2:14 Challenge.  (Benny and I will also be doing this with our family, but each of us can certainly do this on our own.)  Would you like to join us?  Here are the rules:

• No grumbling, complaining or critical comments about anything or anyone for 7 straight days.
• The rule applies 24/7; not just when the fam is together.
• Loving accountability is welcome, but self-righteous “spying” isn’t!
• If (or most likely when) we fail, we start the one week over.
• The first person in the fam who makes it 7 days in a row is rewarded with a special gift.  If you are doing this alone, decide on a way to bless yourself or someone else when you reach your goal.
• Anyone who gives up without reaching the goal is punished in a family agreed-upon fashion.
• If there’s a legitimate discrepancy over whether something fits into the first bullet category, the fam votes and the majority wins…without complaint from the person!

The challenge begins next Tuesday, but I’m personally trying it out over the weekend to see if I can get through even a day without complaining!   If you’d like to join us, please post a comment so we can know who is on board.  Let’s remember that putting off complaining is the first step; putting on thankfulness is an important next step.

Perhaps our idea of a way to combat complaining isn’t for you.  Ask the Lord to give you a plan — and we’d love to hear about it!

P.S.  Moms of kids who talk you may want to do this with your children.  Perhaps just start with 1 day…then add more days with rewards along the way!

Lord, only You can help me not to sin.  Left to myself I will find reason to complain about things big and small.  Please change my heart, so that the words from my mouth are both pleasing to You and helpful to others.  When there is a biblical reason to draw attention to problems or things needing to be addressed, give me grace to do so without grumbling and criticizing.  Thank you for the promise of help to those who call on You.  Amen.

Posted by Sheree

Healing for the Ungrateful Heart February 26, 2009

Ok; time to be really honest.  I don’t like some of what’s happening politically in our country.  An increasingly prevalent attitude of entitlement seems to be creeping into the fabric of our culture.   “Uncle Sam” is expected to bail us out of our financial messes; pay our mortgages; clothe our children; offset our debts; make our bosses give us a raise; and provide our healthcare.

I’m not suggesting there aren’t times for people to pool resources to help those in need.  However, the expectation that someone else will take care of me even if my circumstances are due to my own selfishness, is troubling to me.

I’ve caught myself wanting to talk back to the TV when someone appealed to President Obama to buy them a home or make sure the fast food restauarnt at which they work started paying them more money.

Then the Holy Spirit began to nudge my sinful heart.  You see, I often have the same attitude of entitlement toward God to which I have self-righteously reacted. Do you ever struggle with thoughts like:

• I’ve worked hard in the training and rearing of my children.  I deserve more gratitude from them for all my sacrifices.
• I spent hours cleaning the house today.  Didn’t anyone notice?
• I’ve worked hard all week serving others.  It’s time for me to do something just for me.
• I shouldn’t have to be so conscious of my food budget.  After all, my friends don’t have to clip coupons and go to three stores a week to shop for sales.
• Why can’t I just have a little bigger home (or second car, updated furniture or nicer vacations) like my friends?
• I’ve tried to live my single years in a way that glorifies God, so why hasn’t He blessed me with a husband?

I deserve.  Didn’t anyone notice?  It’s time for me.  I shouldn’t have to.  Why can’t I?  Why hasn’t He blessed?  Such musings spring from an ungrateful heart, don’t they?

The Lord has been gently revealing to me that I too often define for Him what I need, and then become discontent with these “needs” being left unmet.  I “need” more grateful children; a break from responsibilities; less work and more relaxation; more space in our home; more discretionary income to spend as I desire.

In His kindness and love, the Holy Spirit is faithful to convict me of the unthankful complaining that is at the root of such thoughts.  The following words from my favorite Puritan writer, Thomas Watson, have been ringing in my ears of late:

“If God does not give you that which you like, He will give you that which you need.  A physician does not so much study to please the taste of the patient, as to cure his disease.  God labours rather to heal us than humour us.  God’s dealings with His children, thought they are sharp, yet they are safe, and in order to cure.”

Healing rather than humoring.  Wow.  This realization causes gratitude to swell in my heart.  I can’t imagine the kind of person I would be if my God had humored all my selfish requests and insidious feelings of being “entitled” to things that would have allowed my diseased heart to remain infected with selfishness and pride.

Thank you, Great Physician, for curing rather than pampering me.  Thank you for NOT giving me what I deserve — eternity separated from You!  Please forgive me for my grumbling and complaining, and help me to grow in gratefulness for the many undeserved blessings from Your hand.  I’m full of wonder at the cross, where You took my place.  Because of Your death, I have hope for change!  Amen.

Posted by Sheree

Obeying…Joyfully? February 24, 2009

Mark Altrogge’s message on thankfulness was called, The Kind of Sacrifice God Desires, from Psalm 50.  His prop statement was this:  “Obedient lives and thankful hearts bring glory to Christ.”

This statement alone tugged at my heart.  I get the “obedient lives” part.  As women, our lives are full of tasks and responsibilties.  Whether married or single, with children or without, our days are full of to-do’s.  Obeying the Lord by doing is something most women understand.  In fact, many of us like lists…even lists of what to do to glorify God.   As a pastor’s wife, I regularly hear things like, “Just tell me what to do about this!” Others lament that there isn’t a “10 Ways to Get it all Done and Honor God in the Process” seminar to sign up for.  We ladies are doers, even when our doing isn’t always channeled in the right direction!

The Psalmist makes the point that obedience and “doing” — though important — aren’t the full picture.  God desires His children to obey, yes…but with thankful, joyful hearts.

My oldest granddaughter, Kayla, is 7.  One of the things I most appreciate about her is her cheerfulness.  She is always smiling, and whenever I ask her to get her baby sister a diaper, help her younger sister onto the potty, or set the table she regularly responds with a joyful, “Sure, Granma!”  Whatever I give her to eat is met with, “Granma you’re the best cook!  Thank you!”  Her Mommy, however, says she doesn’t always get these perky, grateful responses.  Though Kayla is typically obedient to her mom’s requests and loves to eat Mommy’s food, it’s often without the lilt in her voice that Granma hears.

Why is this?  Partly because Mommy is around all the time.  Familiarity in any relationship can breed passivity and result in taking the person for granted.  During Mark’s message that Sunday, and after hearing it again this week, I’m wondering if a lack of joyful, grateful obedience to the Lord in my life is like a child’s apathetic response to her parents.  Have I become overly familiar with the Lord?  Do I take His amazing love, provision, mercy and grace for granted?

I’m thrilled that Kayla loves her Granma.  But the real hero in her life is her Mommy.  She’s the one whose daily sacrifices, care, service and training is making a real difference in her life.  I want all my grandchildren to respect their mommies more than any woman in their lives…and to resist the temptation to take them for granted.

Read Psalm 50 and the breathless decription of the majestic, all powerful God that made the universe and everything in it.  Then pause at verse 14.  “Everything God tells us to do,” Mark said, ” is for our joy and benefit, not His.”

• Have you become overly familiar with this almighty God?
• Are you dutifully obeying Him, but without joy and thankfulness?
• Has fulfilling your responsibilities become routine and mechanical?
• Do you find your thoughts regularly going to what is missing in your life?

These are the questions I am asking myself these days.  For those of you whose hearts the Lord is stirring similarly, please join me.

Lord, I don’t want to take my relationship with You for granted.  Please show me any ways in which I have become too familiar with You, and help me to see if  joyless obedience has led to pockets of ungratefulness and complaining in my life.  How I love the conviction of your Spirit!  Amen.

Posted by Sheree