Category Archives: desert

Sep19

DAY 261 (2014)

Posted on September 19, 2014 by lsgrlr

Sometimes the path is right, but the direction is wrong. Plug into the navigator.
(Picture by Lisa R.)

Today I woke up feeling great, but that mood changed almost instantly after seeing my email. It was from United Healthcare, I recently applied for a job and was called for a phone interview last Friday. I was told I would receive a response in a week about whether or not they’d proceed to the next step with me, a face to face (they were true to their word). It turns out they don’t want to see my face (as adorable as it is… 😉 ). I wish I could say I was the pillar of faith, that I dropped to my knees and thanked God for not opening the door, because clearly He knew it would be bad for me. No, my response was more like, “I don’t understand Lord I am qualified for this job. How come no one wants to give me an opportunity?” Followed by a run down of what will happen if I don’t find a job soon (as if God was unaware). Yup I am a solid rock of faith… not. I got out of bed feeling dejected and wondering, what God’s ultimate plan for me was (I honestly can say I understand now why the Children of Israel whined and complained, but I also understand why because of their whining God made them wander in the desert for forty years). Here’s what I know God brought me out of my bondage. I know this because while I may be a little worried at times, the freedom I feel in my heart and in my mind is secondly only to how close my relationship with God has grown over this time. I determined in my heart at the beginning of this journey that if I was going to trust, I would trust even when I didn’t understand. After my mini meltdown, I had my devotion. God led me to Judges 6 (see Random Thought for today), the story of Gideon. Through this story God reminded me that He doesn’t always make the obvious choice. He sees what we miss and if we are going to let Him lead us, we have to trust that He didn’t make a mistake even when it feels to us like He did. After my devotion I decided to go park close to my house. To clear my mind, to change my scenery, and to talk to God. On the way to the park I got lost. Here’s the interesting part: I was on the right path, I was at the right crossroads, however, I going in the wrong direction. I found this out once I plugged in my navigator. The message was clear, I am in the right spot, but going in the wrong direction. I need to plug in to my navigator. God is my navigator, He will turn me in the direction that I need to go. I will not whine (although my human nature wants to), I will not see this door as a rejection, but as God’s way of saying, “You are in the right place, but walking in the wrong direction.”

“A person’s steps are directed by the LORD. How then can anyone understand their own way?” (Proverbs 20:24).

Lesson: Sometimes we can be on the right path, but going in the wrong direction. Plug in the navigator.

Jul12

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on July 12, 2014 by lsgrlr

Standard

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

Deuteronomy 2. “And I sent messengers from the Wilderness of Kedemoth to Sihon king of Heshbon, with words of peace, saying, ‘Let me pass through your land; I will keep strictly to the road, and I will turn neither to the right nor to the left. You shall sell me food for money, that I may eat, and give me water for money, that I may drink; only let me pass through on foot, just as the descendants of Esau who dwell in Seir and the Moabites who dwell in Ar did for me, until I cross the Jordan to the land which the Lord our God is giving us.’ But Sihon king of Heshbon would not let us pass through, for the Lord your God hardened his spirit and made his heart obstinate, that He might deliver him into your hand, as it is this day. And the Lord said to me, ‘See, I have begun to give Sihon and his land over to you. Begin to possess it, that you may inherit his land.’ Then Sihon and all his people came out against us to fight at Jahaz. And the Lord our God delivered him over to us; so we defeated him, his sons, and all his people. We took all his cities at that time, and we utterly destroyed the men, women, and little ones of every city; we left none remaining. We took only the livestock as plunder for ourselves, with the spoil of the cities which we took. From Aroer, which is on the bank of the River Arnon, and from the city that is in the ravine, as far as Gilead, there was not one city too strong for us; the Lord our God delivered all to us. Only you did not go near the land of the people of Ammon—anywhere along the River Jabbok, or to the cities of the mountains, or wherever the Lord our God had forbidden us” (Verses 26-37). God is very timely, lately as I do my devotions and spend time with Him, I am realizing that everything I read and learn is vital to the journey I am currently on. In the above verses God went before His people preparing the way. They were places they needed to fight to get through, and He fought for them. They were places they needed to journey through without looking to the right or left, because those places were an inheritance to those already there. He kept His promise to Lot and to Esau. As I read these verses my heart is comforted, for I know that although I am comfortable where I am, God is actually moving me out of my bondage, out of my Egypt. He is moving me into His promise for me (and my family). We have wandered long enough and all the fears that held us back have died in this time of wilderness, now is the time to take hold of the promise.

Jun29

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on June 29, 2014 by lsgrlr

Standard

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

Numbers 27. “Moses said to the Lord, ‘May the Lord, the God who gives breath to all living things, appoint someone over this community to go out and come in before them, one who will lead them out and bring them in, so the Lord’s people will not be like sheep without a shepherd’” (Verses 15-17). In the proceeding verses God tells Moses that because of his disobedience in the Desert of Zin, he would not be allowed to enter the promise land (God told him to speak to the rock, but instead he stroke the rock). However, God was gracious enough to let Moses gaze upon the promise land before he died. But what I really wanted to draw our attention to is Moses’ response. He doesn’t complain. He doesn’t say, “but Lord…” He accepts and then makes this request, “Lord provide them a leader.” Wow! I am blown away. Moses went from being the hotheaded kid who killed an Egyptian, to being a man after God’s heart. A true shepherd that puts his sheep first. I am blessed by his transformation, because it means that as I continue my walk with God, I too, shall have a heart that matches His. Uhmmm, the same is true for you too, 😀 .

Jun15

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on June 15, 2014 by lsgrlr

Standard

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

Numbers 14. “The Lord said to Moses and Aaron: ‘How long will this wicked community grumble against Me? I have heard the complaints of these grumbling Israelites. So tell them, As surely as I live, declares the Lord, I will do to you the very thing I heard you say: In this wilderness your bodies will fall—every one of you twenty years old or more who was counted in the census and who has grumbled against Me. Not one of you will enter the land I swore with uplifted hand to make your home, except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun. As for your children that you said would be taken as plunder, I will bring them in to enjoy the land you have rejected. But as for you, your bodies will fall in this wilderness. Your children will be shepherds here for forty years, suffering for your unfaithfulness, until the last of your bodies lies in the wilderness. For forty years—one year for each of the forty days you explored the land—you will suffer for your sins and know what it is like to have Me against you. I, the Lord, have spoken, and I will surely do these things to this whole wicked community, which has banded together against Me. They will meet their end in this wilderness; here they will die'” (Verses 26-35). God is angry and rightfully so. How could they, who had seen some much, been the recipients of so many blessings, how could they so easily forget? How could they so easily not trust the One that saved them from bondage and sure death? But what I find more appalling is that after He had pronounced this verdict, “the you shall die here I have declared it, it will happen” verdict. They still presumed to do what they wanted checkout verses 39-44: “When Moses reported this to all the Israelites, they mourned bitterly. Early the next morning they set out for the highest point in the hill country, saying, ‘Now we are ready to go up to the land the Lord promised. Surely we have sinned!’ But Moses said, ‘Why are you disobeying the Lord’s command? This will not succeed! Do not go up, because the Lord is not with you. You will be defeated by your enemies, for the Amalekites and the Canaanites will face you there. Because you have turned away from the Lord, He will not be with you and you will fall by the sword.’ Nevertheless, in their presumption they went up toward the highest point in the hill country, though neither Moses nor the ark of the Lord’s covenant moved from the camp. Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who lived in that hill country came down and attacked them and beat them down all the way to Hormah.” God said, ONLY Joshua and Caleb would see the land, but they decided, once again, that they knew better than God. They thought they could defeat the giants that they were so afraid of in Chapter 13, with OUT God? Now that’s just silly. But we are human and subject to silliness on a daily basis. We watch God do miracle after miracle saving us from certain death and bondage, yet when He says. “GO!” We say, “NO! The giants are too big!” The by-product we die in our wilderness.

Apr15

DAY 105 (2014)

Posted on April 15, 2014 by lsgrlr

Standard

Yes the desert is HOT and DRY, but it is where God does His best work in us. Don’t be afraid of the heat.

I have been whining at God for the past few weeks. I am going through a desert time, and feel as though I am going to die in the heat (yes, I am dramatic 🙂 ). This morning I woke to find yet another thing had not gone as planned, and at that moment I understood how a person’s emotion could completely get the better of them, if they choose to give into to it. My first thought was, “If it is going to continue being like this, why am I trying so hard?” Then I whined at God and basically threatened Him. Hahaha (yup I am sure God’s super scared now). As I drove to work Andy Mineo’s, You Will cycled on my iPod. The chorus goes like this: “I know You will. I know You will. Even when they say You won’t I know You will. I know You will. I know You will. Even when they say You can’t. I know You will. God there’s nothing You can’t do. Nothing in this world too big for You. Even when they say You can’t, I know You will.” The song made me realize that while I may KNOW God will, right at this moment my actions do not reflect my knowledge. I am living in fear, and being afraid has been keeping me from living out what I know. My heart knows that God will take care of what’s going, but I am too scared to let go and let Him handle the situation. Which is stupid since I am powerless to fix it without help. Today was a wake up call, to just DO. I have a to-do list of things, things that need to be accomplished so I can move forward. But I have been allowing the situations to dictate my foot steps. God reminded me He WILL, and from this point on I need to let my steps dictate my circumstance (not the other way around). It won’t be easy, but me and my fears are going to take a journey with God and only one of us will make it to the finish line.

“Give all your worries and cares to God, for He cares about you” (1 Peter 5:7).

So what’s my plan of attack? Let God remove my fear and doubt as I journey with Him.

Apr12

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on April 12, 2014 by lsgrlr

Standard

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

Exodus 23. “I will send My terror ahead of you and throw into confusion every nation you encounter. I will make all your enemies turn their backs and run. I will send the hornet ahead of you to drive the Hivites, Canaanites and Hittites out of your way. But I will not drive them out in a single year, because the land would become desolate and the wild animals too numerous for you. Little by little I will drive them out before you, until you have increased enough to take possession of the land” (Verses 27-30). Little by little God will remove the bad, not because He couldn’t do it all at once, but because we wouldn’t be able to handle it. This morning these verses felt like a conversation between me and my Heavenly Father, and not like words I was reading from my bible. Why? Because it gives me hope. Hope that God is little by little removing the obstacles out of my life. Does this mean that everything will be smooth? No. As God was clearing a path for His people to the promise land, they still had trials. They still struggled and made mistakes. So what’s the lesson? As God little by little removes that which keeps us from moving forward, we have a personal responsibility to MOVE forward. Each clearing is just what we need, enough to help us be victorious over what’s left. Don’t fret or fear your journey take it one step at a time with God. Little by little He will help you overcome your obstacles.

Apr6

DAY 96 (2014)

Posted on April 6, 2014 by lsgrlr

Standard

Forgiveness is like the sun reflecting on the water. It makes everything it touches sparkle.
(Picture by Lisa R. Everglades National Park)

I am going to take you on a journey of my day. It will seem at times as though I don’t have a point and the moments don’t go together. However, I would like you to continue with me to the end, I promise there is a reason, a lesson, a moment where God brings it all together. I have, as recent posts would suggest been going through a time of trial. A time in the desert if you will. The walk is harder because the reflection I have been seeing in the mirror of my desert time, has left me feeling as though I have been taking God and His love for me for granted. This morning I woke up determined to hear from God, determined not to let my failures and short comings be the guide of my day, but to let God be the light on my path. On the drive to church a BMW cut me off my reply was, “Thank you for your obedience Mr. BMW, God just used you to teach me patience.” My mom laughed and then said this, “He certainly did. He used a BMW to remind you to Be My Witness.” Mmmm…lesson one. At church Pastor Chet’s message was on the Power of Love, but not the I love ice cream kind of love. Rather his message was on the I will lay down my life kind of love. He talked about how important it is to know our position in Christ. He pointed out that Jesus willingly laid down His life, knowing His Father would be able to raise Him up again. He understood His position with God. Then he said this, “When you know your position with God nothing moves you”. Nothing. Moves. You. Lesson two. Later in the day we had a church meeting, where we got some pretty devastating news (I won’t be sharing as it is not the point of what God taught me). Here’s what I discovered. God is God. PERIOD. When I have bad days, when I go through rough trials, and even when I make stupid, illogical, and sinful decisions. God is still God. Period. His godhood is not dictated by me or my actions, my desire in life is to be a good witness of who He is. But even if I fail miserably…He. Is. Still. GOD. PERIOD. Lesson Three.

“I am the LORD, and I do not change” (Malachi 3:6).

So what’s my plan of attack? Be His Witness. Know my position. Remember He does not change.

Apr4

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on April 4, 2014 by lsgrlr

Standard

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

Exodus 16. “The whole Israelite community set out from Elim and came to the Desert of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had come out of Egypt. In the desert the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. The Israelites said to them, ‘If only we had died by the Lord’s hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death'” (Verses 1-3). Note where they have landed, in the Desert of Sin. Sadly it is apropos. For this is where God would do His winnowing. This is a picture of life as we live it. Often times it is in the desert of our sin that God shows us our hearts. It is there we see our weaknesses and our failures, it is there that the mirror reflects the brightest. God didn’t bring them there to kill them, He brought them there to cleanse them and to give them the opportunity to choose Him over sin. The same opportunity is given to us in our time of desert travel. God doesn’t bring us to the desert to kill us, no, it’s to cleanse us and give us a chance to start afresh. So in the desert don’t whine. Praise. Praise God for the opportunity to change.

Mar31

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on March 31, 2014 by lsgrlr

Standard

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

Exodus 13. “When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, ‘If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.’ So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea. The Israelites went up out of Egypt ready for battle” (Verses 17-18). God had just taken them out of slavery and brought them to freedom. Yet their hearts would have been so easily swayed? So much so that God took the long cut?! The parallel between the human heart then and now is not that different at all. We want God to save us, but we want no pain and no sacrifice with it. We would that He would simply life us out of our bad circumstance and put us in a good one, with now work, no effort on our part. The problem with that is this: If we don’t learn from the trial we will be bound to repeat the mistakes that got us there. The journey although longer (for Israel) was necessary. For it is in the desert that God would separate the wheat from the chaff. It is in the desert that they would finally understand that He is God. The same is true for us, it is in our desert times that we realize that God is GOD.

Oct9

DAY 282

Posted on October 9, 2013 by lsgrlr

Standard

The conversation went something like this: Me: Do you see anything wrong here? Singh: "Do cakes have balls in the desert?" Desert Vs. Dessert one letter makes a BIG difference.

The conversation went something like this:
Me: “Do you see anything wrong with this?”
Singh: “Do cakes have balls in the desert?”
Desert Vs. Dessert one letter makes a BIG difference.

Just…deserts? Pictured is a part of menu that was (almost) used at our lunch sale today. The first time I read the menu I burst out laughing, I have an odd sense of humor, and the original menu (for more than just the incorrect spelling of dessert), had me hysterically giggling. While making the necessary corrections I thought about deserts vs. desserts. The difference between these two words is one letter, but that one letter makes a big difference. We view one has a “good” and pleasant thing and the other as a “bad” and unpleasant thing. The truth however is that many times the thing we see as pleasing is often the one that is the most dangerous for us. I LOVE sweet things (especially chocolate), but it is not the best thing for me. While chocolate does aid in my growing out, it is not so helpful in my growing up. Nothing stretches us, or shows us our strengths and weaknesses like time in the DESERT. The pleasures of desserts are often temporal, but the negative effects can last a life time. Where as the negative effects of the desert are temporal, but the positive effects WILL last a life time. The old adage is true: “You can’t judge a book by it’s cover”, the desert may look dry, hot, and tumultuous, but if we walk through it to the other side, we will flourish, grow, and blossom. Desserts look decadent and moist, but leaves us feeling, guilty, empty, and dry. So…desert, anyone?

“They did not thirst when He led them through the deserts. He made the water flow out of the rock for them; He split the rock and the water gushed forth” (Isaiah 48:21).

So what am I thankful for today? Learning to appreciate “deserts” over “desserts”. 😉