Tag: God with us

Thankfull living

Karla Lees

Thankful.

Every Thanksgiving, we are reminded to celebrate all we have to be thankful for in our lives.

But God doesn’t want us to just be especially thankful once a year. He longs for us to be thank-full every day, in every situation, every time we can.

You recall that verse “Give thanks in all circumstances” we hear every year around Thanksgiving? There’s more to it….for it wasn’t meant to stand on its own!

Be cheerful no matter what; pray all the time; thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live. – 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Be cheerful no matter what.

Being of good cheer is part choice, and part based upon how we handle the emergencies and hard situations we face. Which links it to the next instruction in this verse:

Pray all the time.

All the time. Out loud, in your mind, or with your spirit, constantly bringing everything to Him in the moment.

And when we connect with Him as we do so?

(We can) Give thanks in all circumstances.

Only when all three occur together does the last part of this verse make complete sense:

This (cheerfully praying with thanks every step of all we encounter) is the way God wants His Beloved to live….

Choosing joy.
Connected with Him.
Celebrating with thanks.

This Thanksgiving season, take the time to look back on how God has been with you in every season, and what He walked you through.

Smile. (Laugh, twinkle your eyes or flash your dimple!) Because cheerful inside usually leads to a sign on the outside! 🙂

Pray. However you pray. Whether by speaking it. Thinking it. Writing it. Singing it. Drawing it. On your own. In two or three. At home. At work. Over coffee. While walking.

Thank-fully. We are so extra blessed when we are part of God’s family! We are loved beyond measure by our Father. We belong. We are inheritors of the Kingdom, made whole and clean in Jesus. We are free. We have access to resources surpassing our comprehension through Holy Spirit. We are never alone.

Because God is fully with us through all things, we can always, and in all ways, have a reason to be thank-full.

And then these verses, in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, become as they were intended by God in our lives: Thanks-living as we express how thank-full we are to Him!

#thankfull #hopefortheharddays

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Hello from the other side

Karla Lees

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Over the past calendar week, I have experienced more highs and lows than any other time I can recall.  Relationship tensions, tears and sudden bad news amidst a new freedom to be more the me God desires me to be.  All in one.

And not knowing how things are going to look when the blitz of the now hits with gale force power is an uncomfortable place to be, isn’t it?

Yesterday, God reminded me of a truth I had forgotten.  He is the God who was, who is and is to come.

God has always been with us even though we may not have noticed Him or know Him yet.

God is always with us, in the breath we are taking right now.

These two are not the mind blowing news I needed to hear, because I know those to be true, for they have been my constant companions since officially becoming His Beloved.

The Adele song which is all the rage right now has a line that aligned itself into perfect sync this morning  – and the flash of understanding which has followed can only be Holy Spirit highlighting His truth within me.

The future is not yet here. It’s up ahead, but just outside of our reach.  We can’t tangibly see or touch it but we all know that we know time continues to pass.

What I had forgotten was on that other side of now, God is already there…as I heard Him sing to me, “Hello from the other side!”

I can trust He will be there in the not yet future I can’t see.

I can rest in the knowledge He is already there when I get there.

He sees me as I arrive there and desires to guide me there. 

And because He already knows what is to come, He best knows how to help me get there.

God is all three, the God who was, the God who is, and the God was is to come.  All the time, beyond time!

If you need a particular glimpse of God who was, the Bible contains thousands of snapshots of how He has moved on His Beloved’ behalf, over and over.

We can hear His voice speak about how He is with us, right where we are at through His Word.

And the book of Revelation reminds us He is coming again, has a place just waiting for us, and the future is set. Good will win.

This God, who sees the other side of every situation we have ever been in, are currently facing or will ever encounter?

He is deserving  of our thanks, and more than worthy of our trust.

Take me away…

Karla Lees

Take me away, a secret place
A sweet escape, take me away
Take me away to better days
Take me away, a hiding place

– Natasha Bedingfield, Pocket Full Of Sunshine

My heart started crying out this song to my Abba these past few days.

When life gets tough, my first reaction is instinctively to ask to be rescued, for a quick escape so I don’t have to deal with whatever is currently facing me.

Afterwards, it used to be I would escape into a bag of sour cream potato chips or a sitcom, licking my wounds and berating myself for rolling over and taking a beating yet again. 

We never learn to be proactive and change our ways by just thinking about it. We need to do it.

Instead of being passive and keeping my hurts buried in the hidden spaces within, I am learning to run to the secret place.

His embrace.

I am invited there 24/7.
365 days a year.
And on into eternity!

I stopped short quite some time ago as I was headed down the wrong path of response when it hit me.

Why wait for eternity to fix everything? Why not now?

If we are called to supernaturally live in, through and with Him…then here on earth is where we need to do so.

Just as Jesus did.

Jesus took Himself away at times. Not to kick his wounds or hide away, but to reconnect. Becoming rejuvenated and reinvigorated for the plans He was to walk out with His Father. (Luke 16:16, Mark 1:35)

Jesus never backed down from doing His Father’s business where He saw His Father inviting Him into a situation.

I need to do the same.

Instead of allowing fear and survival instincts to drive me, I need to choose faith and supernatural instincts to guide me.

He promises to always be with us, and show us how to live free.

Our part is to choose to stay in His embrace through our days, and refuse to allow the lure of other pleasures to steal us from where our souls and spirits know is where we belong.

With Him.

He may take you away from a situation by prompting you to remove yourself from it.

He may guide you as to what to pray to shift the atmosphere.

He may tell you what to say to diffuse discord and bring peace.

The whole time, He will be with you.

I would rather be in His embrace in a hurricane than left alone to my own devices.

Lead me away from what doesn’t work, Abba, and keep me headed on the path You have for me. May I run to You first, and You alone, when the storms begin to circle.

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at any age or stage, your life matters

Karla Lees

It’s so much not about your age, but the life you’ve lived in those years.

I have a few friends who have recently celebrated (some reluctantly) significant birthdays.

Age is not a big deal to me.

It’s more about the life we have lived in those years than the time we count.

You may be a sixty year old who has never left your hometown,  but have raised three wonderful children who love the Lord.

You could be a 22 year old God is using brilliantly for His Kingdom, but may be insecure in being single.

You may be starting over after a divorce, death or loss of job.

All the life we have lived matters to the One who gave us life.

His Presence with us matters most of all.

God is able to show us things we have lived through from His perspective.

God is able to heal us from the brokenness and hurts we’ve received in our past.

God is able to stir up our hope as He shows us the future He has for us, both now and forever more.

Nothing, not one thing, is wasted or beyond his redemption for those who put their faith and trust in God in this life.

The author of life Himself offers to walk beside us with each step we take in this life.

And experiencing life by His side can cause one blissful moment to linger for hours and one hard hour to fade into a blip of time.

Time doesn’t pass for Him the same way it does for us. We only move forwards. God is beyond time, as its designer and initiator.

I have seen Him speed the skills and development of young people as he has empowered them to step into roles generally thought of as for thr mature.

Older folk rediscover life with the wide eyed wonder traditionally reserved for youth.

Life isn’t about age as much as stage.

Every age or stage is His speciality, as the Creator of life.

Instead of becoming depressed or upset with where you are at right now, invite Him to show you the wonders He has for you.

Right here, right now.

For although God is beyond time he way we know it, He never fails to step into our lives and stay with us through it all.

Not thrilled you are X years old and you haven’t seen Y happen yet in your life, or you are tired of carrying the weight of Z about on your way shoulders?

Come to the One who gave you life, who helps you live life to its fullest, and empowers you through life’s ups and downs.

All of your life matters to Him, from your conception to whatever age and stage you are right at now:
â—‹The good, the bad.
â—‹The happy, the sad.
â—‹The highs, the lows.
â—‹The celebrations, the blows.

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timeless living

Karla Lees

Aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one. 

1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 (ESV)

Stand in line at the checkout, and the intimate details of people’s lives are exposed for all to see. In this know-all world, it is refreshing to read today’s verse where God is calling us to live the opposite of what we see about us.

When I first read this scripture, I thought it was referring that we should keep to ourselves, like a hermit or a lone wolf. Upon rereading it, I spotted through His eyes that it is a reminder on how we are to be of the world and yet not in it.  

We are to be His hands and feet to those in need, yet we don’t need to know all about one another, like the tabloid at the checkout stand would suggest.  

We are to instead follow His lead to live quietly but with purpose.

We are to be dependent upon Him alone as His children, not the world and its systems.

We are to use our hands to further His call in our lives, to bless one another as we depend upon Him for everything. This dependence will attract those who don’t yet know Him, who are seeking their true Home, and looking for rest. His ways have stood the test of time and will continue to do so forever!

Pause and Apply: Evaluate where we are getting our directions. Are we first sitting at His feet and listening for His voice? He has wisdom for your life and direction for your decisions.

Prayer: Help me quiet myself to hear You over those clamouring for my attention. I desire to see Your timeless plans instead of the world’s limiting standards.

This post first appeared yesterday over at remadecommunity.org 🙂

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Intertwined

Karla Lees

I love reading the Psalms. In fact, I am about to embark on reading the whole book for the 4th time in just over two years.

As Eugene Peterson has said, the psalms encompass the whole scope of human life in one book.

And I am about to read it again for the first time!

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I have now read the Psalms through in the NIV, ESV and the MSG translations.

I am about to rack open the Passion translation, and I can hardly wait.

For me, reading a different translation helps me take in thr Psalms afresh, and invite Him to speak through them to me again, as if it’s the first time!

But even more than that becomes the way I am learning to see the Word as a whole interwoven through out the Bible, the more I study the Psalms.

When I read Psalm 1:1 and am reminded how my delight comes from Him, it reminds me how much he has shown His love to Israel, His chosen people and how He delights in us, Zephaniah 3:17. How we can please God with our worship and praise the pleasing offerings mentioned in Numbers 29:2 & 2 Corinthians 2:15.
David’s many psalms, including Psalm 62:8, remind me to be fully honest and pour my heart out like water before the Lord, again mentioned in Lamentations 2:19.

I could go on and on, and I am so glad he continues to reveal Himself to us through His Word as we invite Holy Spirit to be our guide!

For even though I am focusing on thr Psalms, the living Word is continuing to focus on me, a day reshape me as I interact with Him!

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meet with Me

Karla Lees

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Come,
the invitation reads.
Meet with Me,
the Spirit whispers.

Today is unmarked
brand new, teeming with possibility
like the freshly fallen snow
and I want to guide you through it
Not from afar
but closely beside You

I love to listen to the sound of your voice
the rhythm of your heartbeat
as you begin to slow down
and align with my heartbeat
as you draw near

Meet with Me
has been my invitation
since the Garden
I have made it over
and over ever since
through the Word
through My prophets
through My priests
through My followers
through My Son
through My Spirit

Come to Me

I invited you
face to face
when I walked among you

Come as you are

It doesn’t matter to Mewhere you’ve been
My arms are always open wide
My love ready to pour over all your wounds
My touch ready to soothe all your hurts
My blood ready to cover all your sin

My Presence is always ready to walk with you
through all your wins and losses
hurts and healings
storms and deserts
sorrows and joys

I wait here
to meet with You

Won’t you come
and meet with Me?

#crytotheBeloved

When the day goes awry

Karla Lees

Today has not turned out to be the day I thought it would.

Some of my work didn’t get posted as usual, helping meditate between a child and their emotions, and the unwelcome addition of fleas moving in on my cat has jumped my stress level beyond its usual for a Monday.

There was one blip of a moment where I was about to let all of the above bring me a bit down.

But I was ready.

For I woke up this morning, immediately put on worship music, and read some verses in the Word which stirred my soul, reigniting my hope.

He reminded me before I needed it of His wonder, so i I wouldn’t  wonder at where He might be this morning.

For He is, was and always will be with me.

The wonder of Christmas isn’t meant to ebb when the holidays are over, the parties die down and the new year begins to unravel.

Christmas is only one part of His story to remind us He is with us.

As we journey into 2016, with all the highs and lows to come, may we never lose that wonder of her first time we grasped God was with us.

For the promise of God to come has arrived, and lives within us, every day.

Even the days with piled up laundry, emails left unanswered and a sad looking cat post bath!

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O Little Town of Bethlehem

Karla Lees

O little town of Bethlehem
How still we see thee lie
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep
The silent stars go by
Yet in thy dark streets shineth
The everlasting Light
The hopes and fears of all the years
Are met in thee tonight

For Christ is born of Mary
And gathered all above
While mortals sleep, the angels keep
Their watch of wondering love
O morning stars together
Proclaim the holy birth
And praises sing to God the King
And Peace to men on earth

Bethlehem wasn’t where Mary and Joseph though they would give birth when they first got married.  Most of us don’t travel 30 days or so to go sign in live as proof we exist. Nowadays most of us have access to a hospital or midwife in our immediate area.

But God knew.

God wanted there to be no question that Jesus came from David’s line, just as He has promised, so led Caesar to request a census of His people so history would record Joseph as one of David’s descendants.

So Bethlehem entered the stage as the setting for the miracle, get also not quite as one would expect.

We are used to online or phone reservations when we travel from home, so we know where we will end up to rest our heads at night.

Not so in biblical times.

Unless you had direct family in those days, it was first come, first serve.

Traveling with a very pregnant Mary would likely have slowed Joseph down, and resulted in no room anywhere in town.

Except a stable.

Not even a stable/barn by today’s standards, but likely a hole in the side of a hill, or a low built clay enclosure to keep a roof over the owner’s animals.

Not an ideal birthing setting.  Hygiene alone, it must have been very off putting to think of delivering the Messiah into the world as its King in a stable.

There is also no record of a midwife, so both Mary and Joseph might likely have been very panicked, nervous and crying out to God as she began to give birth.

I can relate.  And so could God.

Which is why Christ’s entry was designed so that the every day person would know God had been hearing each and every cry for help.

The Presence came as the very present we needed at Christmas:

Perfectly wrapped for the average Joe.

Perfectly planned as the Promise to come heralded through the Word and by the angels.

The Perfection of God now present in the work of His hands.

Emmanuel.

God with us.

Born in Bethlehem, announced by angels, snug in his earthly parents arms in a stable.

The Hope for all arrived with less fanfare than we would expect, yet surpassin every expectation we could have for this fulfillment of prophecy and promise.

While Bethlehem slumbered, its Messiah slipped into a stable and began to transform the world!

What a reason to offer Him fresh praise again this season.

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Historical Background:

In 1868, Pastor Phillips Brooks wrote the words to “O Little Town of Bethlehem” after seeing Israel first hand.  His church organist Lewis Redner put the words to music.

Sunday Psalm: Prince of Peace

Karla Lees

Into the storms of my life
You enter
with a mighty roar
You announce to the heavenlys
the Prince of Peace
has arrived
yet in all Your might
You speak
with such love
and care
right when i need You
the most

The wonder of it all
lies not in Your might
but in Your heart
for even though
humanity bungled the path
You made a way
through time and space
to bring us back to You
the Prince of Peace
comes not only to save
but to restore
and make us whole again.

The Gift of Christmas
set on display
the heart of God
the Prince of Peace
the wonder of God with us
for all the world to see
forevermore!

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If you too need a reminder of what the Prince of Peace came to do for you, visit the gospel of Matthew, and watch the video by Hillsong United here.