Category Archives: Addiction

Nov8

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on November 8, 2014 by lsgrlr

I have hidden Thy word in my heart.
(Picture by Lisa R)

1 Samuel 23. “When David knew that Saul plotted evil against him, he said to Abiathar the priest, ‘Bring the ephod here.’ Then David said, ‘O Lord God of Israel, Your servant has certainly heard that Saul seeks to come to Keilah to destroy the city for my sake. Will the men of Keilah deliver me into his hand? Will Saul come down, as Your servant has heard? O Lord God of Israel, I pray, tell Your servant.”And the Lord said, ‘He will come down.’ Then David said, ‘Will the men of Keilah deliver me and my men into the hand of Saul?’ And the Lord said, ‘They will deliver you'” (Verses 9-12). Wow, talk about biting the hand that feeds you, David had just saved the people of Keilah from certain death, and how would they have repaid his kindness? By handing him over to Saul who wanted to kill him. After reading this chapter I got that little check in my heart, that feeling you get when kindness is not reciprocated. It’s that feeling of disappointment mixed with betrayal that we sometimes feel when we go out of our way for others, who are willing to have us go out of our way for them, but are never willing to do the same for us. I wonder if David had known what would happen after the fact, would he have still been willing to go up and save them? My answer… YES. David didn’t go because the people needed help (read the chapter), he went because God said, “save them”. Even as his men reminded him that these people were not their friends, David still went, because it was God’s will. Hard to swallow isn’t it? Doing what God says even when it goes against every fiber of human logic. Here’s a truth David became king, and not just any king, but the king that would spawn the KING of Kings. Because he was faithful, his heritage will go on forever… literally. Go. Do. Even when it makes no sense to us, trust that God has a purpose.

Nov4

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on November 4, 2014 by lsgrlr

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I have hidden Thy word in my heart.
(Picture by Lisa R)

1 Samuel 20. “As soon as the lad had gone, David arose from a place toward the south, fell on his face to the ground, and bowed down three times. And they kissed one another; and they wept together, but David more so. Then Jonathan said to David, ‘Go in peace, since we have both sworn in the name of the Lord, saying, May the Lord be between you and me, and between your descendants and my descendants, forever.’ So he arose and departed, and Jonathan went into the city” (Verses 40-42). I feel for David here, the bible said he wept more. His heart hurt more. Why? He was being betrayed by someone he loved and for no reason other than jealousy. The ironic thing is that Saul hated David, because he thrived, but David thrived only because he wanted to be pleasing to Saul. So Saul hated David’s sincerity toward him (that is the very definition of irony). Life can be like that. You do your best to be pleasing and people can and will dislike you for it. Why? The world has been jaded and sincerity is not something people understand anymore, so when presented with it many times they will act adversely. Here’s the kicker: Be sincere anyway. Despite the amount of times David had a javelin thrown at him, despite his many near misses with death at the hands of Saul. David was always sincere, always respectful, always treated Saul as king. Our reaction should NEVER be dependent on the action of another, none of that, “I did it because he/she did that”. If you know what is right, DO IT. It doesn’t matter what the other person did. He who knows what is good and doesn’t do it, to him it is sin (James 4:17). Always choose to do what is right.

Oct24

DAY 296 (2014)

Posted on October 24, 2014 by lsgrlr

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A change in perspective, a change of view.
(Picture by Lisa R.)

Been thinking a lot today about how I believe life should be, verses the reality of how life is. I have realized something. We (okay me) tend to live in “the how we think things should be”. The problem…There is rarely a time where fantasy and reality are the same. Moving here in many was has been the best thing that has happened in a while, but in some ways it has been the most difficult too. Why? Because the picture in my head does not match the reality of what I am facing. Today as I drove through my picturesque city talking (okay technically complaining) to God, He impressed this on my heart… TRUST His reality. Trust the things I know to be true about God. I have been so busy thinking about how I thought things should be I had forsaken the most important thing. What God brought me here for. Today He reminded me that the ultimate problem is, where we put our focus. If we focus on the problem then all we see is the problem, oddly if we focus on our fantasy then once again all we see is the problem. But if we focus on God’s purpose, then we are privy to the big picture. Life doesn’t always fit our fantasy. Heck 99% of the time it doesn’t. That’s because the goal isn’t to live out our fantasy, but to find our true purpose, to unfold into what God created us to be. To be our “real” self. Today His still small voice told me my focus was on the wrong picture. Change your perspective, change view. Stop looking at the fantasy, look at the God who wants to lead us to the best versions of ourselves.

“We don’t yet see things clearly. We’re squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won’t be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright! We’ll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing Him directly just as He knows us!” (1 Corinthian 13:12, The Message Bible).

The Lesson: Don’t focus on the situation focus on God who can fix the situation.

Oct19

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on October 19, 2014 by lsgrlr

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I have hidden Thy word in my heart.
(Picture by Lisa R)

1 Samuel 7. “And Samuel said, ‘Gather all Israel to Mizpah, and I will pray to the Lord for you.’ So they gathered together at Mizpah, drew water, and poured it out before the Lord. And they fasted that day, and said there, ‘We have sinned against the Lord.’ And Samuel judged the children of Israel at Mizpah. Now when the Philistines heard that the children of Israel had gathered together at Mizpah, the lords of the Philistines went up against Israel. And when the children of Israel heard of it, they were afraid of the Philistines. So the children of Israel said to Samuel, ‘Do not cease to cry out to the Lord our God for us, that He may save us from the hand of the Philistines'” (Verses 5-8). These verses are filled with lessons. The children of Israel realize that they have broken God’s heart. They put away false idols and gather at Mizpah to ask God to forgive them. They pray the fast, they listen as Samuel judges their sins. They confess and leave their hearts contrite before God. The Philistines (whom we know are NOT very bright), decide that this would be a good time to attack Israel (yes, let’s attack while they are spending time with God, you know, the One who all about destroyed us). Really guys? Have your learned nothing from you short stint with the Ark? Israel is nervous, but instead of giving in to their fears, they pray, they ask Samuel to pray. They take their requests to GOD. This week I have been worried about much, but these verses remind us, worry won’t help. Fear can’t solve problems, only God can. Take our requests, our problems, our fears to the only One that can fix what’s wrong. GOD.

Aug29

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on August 29, 2014 by lsgrlr

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I have hidden Thy word in my heart.
(Picture by Lisa R)

Joshua 9. “The Israelites sampled their provisions but did not inquire of the Lord. Then Joshua made a treaty of peace with them to let them live, and the leaders of the assembly ratified it by oath” (Verses 14-15). They didn’t seek God and thus made a promise based on a lie. Today my morning journey with God did not start in Joshua 9. God and I traveled to many different places but it all came down to one lesson: “Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed” (Proverbs 16:3). Joshua should have know better, the elders and leaders should have know better. God had orchestrated and directed every single part of their journey thus far, so why did they not bring this one thing to Him? My belief, SELF PRIDE. We all have it, that part of us that says, “No worries God, You just sit back. I got this.” The problem…uhmmm, we DON’T have it. God wanted Israel to take over the promise land with none of the remnants of the ungodly nations remaining. This way there wouldn’t be the temptation to compromise. He was giving them the chance to live again as a nation under Him, but making this deal with the Gibeonites meant that there would be a remnant of ungodly people left, there would be a tiny door left open for compromise to enter in. Compromise is like potato chips you can’t have only one. If we want to be blessed. If we want our plans to succeed. The answer is God. He needs to be the one we commit our plans to, and no matter how easy the decision may seem, still TAKE IT TO HIM FIRST. Leave no room for compromise.

Jan15

DAY 15 (2014)

Posted on January 15, 2014 by lsgrlr

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Nuff said…

There is really only one TV show I watch (maybe two…Elementary) . It’s called Person Of Interest, it’s little humorous why I started watching the show, (because it stars Jim Caviezel, who played Jesus in the Passion of the Christ…yeah, I know). After watching it the first time I was hooked. The show is a word picture of what happens when people play God. What happens you ask? We can’t control our creation and in the end it ends up controlling us. Why? We’re not God. I have been thinking lately about how so much of life is out of control. So much of humanity is controlled and lead by addictive appetites, by things we (as a people) have created that now lead us. The irony is we create them to fill a void, only to find them empty, shallow, and not satisfying in the end. Yet we can’t stop. My heart is feeling a little heavy today as I learned about another person (this one close to home) that has fallen because of a god of his own making. My post today, a warning: Beware there is a very real and present danger one that seeks to destroy us from the inside out. Arm yourself with the REAL God, because the ones of our creation will eventually destroy us.

“Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8).

So what’s my plan of attack? Trust in the REAL God.

Dec20

DAY 354

Posted on December 20, 2013 by lsgrlr

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Addictions no matter are acceptable are bad. Because the take you away from the necessary.

Addictions no matter how acceptable are bad. Because they take us away from the necessary.

I am addicted to a game on my phone, Tetris. I have been playing it nonstop for the last 3 days. I am sure you all know the premise of the game, create lines to clear the board, the more lines you create the more points you get. My Tetris is an upgrade to the original it has BOMBS! Yup. The game is fun to play, but I have been realizing that it is taking up my time and causing me to make unwise decisions with my time. Addictions are like that, they start subtly and before you even realize it, it is all you think about, all you care about. My major has allowed me the opportunity to work and interact with people who have addictions. What I have learned is this, everyone is addicted to something. Some addictions are destructive and therefore easily seen. Others are acceptable to society and therefore treated as something other than what they are. The second thing I have learned all addictions can be bad (even the acceptable ones). Why? It takes our focus off of what’s really important. Today I literally had to make myself put down the game and sit at my computer to write this post (I think I may need a Tetris holiday). Addictions come in softly, slowly, and almost unnoticed. Don’t be blinded. Take stock of your life, is there something taking you away from what is necessary? Be aware it’s the subtle sins that can lead us farthest away from where we are meant to be.

“A little sleep, a little slumber, A little folding of the hands to rest, Then your poverty will come as a robber And your want like an armed man” (Proverbs 24:33-34).

So what am I thankful for today? Tetris holiday 😉 .