Category Archives: life lesson

Mar23

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

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

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

2 Kings 24. “ Then the king of Babylon made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin’s uncle, king in his place, and changed his name to Zedekiah” (Verse 17). This verse hit me today. Very simply God asked me, if I had allowed the world to change my name? Not in the literal sense, but in the sense where the title Christian could me everything, but what God intended it to mean: follower of Christ. The world has changed the meaning; nice, friendly. boring, goody two shoes, goodhearted and while none of these are bad they are also not what the word means. I have been reflecting lately on what I have allowed in and what I have put aside. Here is what I have concluded only God can change my name. Only God can give a different meaning to something. So today if you have allowed the world to change your name. Allow God to change it back.

Mar22

DAY 81 (2015)

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What we cultivate is what we'll give to those around us. (Picture by Lisa R.)

What we cultivate is what we’ll give to those around us.
(Picture by Lisa R.)

Mmmm… it’s be awhile with the DAY posts. I feel regretful about that. I have been caught up with many things. Things that many times have kept me from where I know I am suppose to be and from what I know I am suppose to be doing. Which is why today’s post is so fitting and so God-breathed. Today’s praise and worship was beautiful; I could feel God’s spirit literally breaking down that walls I have (over the past few months) been building. We came to a particular song, one that we have sung many times before. But today the song resonated in my heart and soul in a different way. Today the meaning of the lyrics came to life and it was as though I was understanding them for the first time. The lyrics:

It’s Your breath in our lungs so we pour out our praise

pour out our praise

It’s Your breath in our lungs so we pour out our praise

To You ONLY…

The question came while singing. Do we? Do I… Pour out praise to God only? Honest answer… no. My praise is not always for God alone. I give my praise to many things, things that are not really worthy of it. Things like: friends, family, work, and attaining more stuff. However, none of those things came to earth to stand in the gap for me. None of those things gave up their one and only beloved for me. None of those things blew their breath into my lungs. Therefore they don’t deserve my praise. It is reserved for HIM only.

It’s God’s breath in our lungs. So we should pour out our praise to Him ONLY.

“Then the LORD God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being” (Genesis 2:7).

So what am I thankful for today? God’s breath.

Mar13

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

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

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

2 Kings 23. “Then the king stood by a pillar and made a covenant before the Lord, to follow the Lord and to keep His commandments and His testimonies and His statutes, with all his heart and all his soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people took a stand for the covenant” (Verse 3). Finally a king that does everything right. A king who not only loves and serves God, but leads his people to follow God as well. Josiah did not just get of some of the idols, he literally rid Israel of all of it. He lead the people back to real worship. This chapter is a reminder to us who call ourselves Christians of what the “call” is. We are not meant to just be nice, just be good, we are meant to lead people to God. We are meant to tear down idols and show people the truth of Christ. Today I am convicted by this king’s action… I pray you are as well.

Mar10

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

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

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

2 Kings 21. “And the Lord spoke by His servants the prophets, saying, ‘Because Manasseh king of Judah has done these abominations (he has acted more wickedly than all the Amorites who were before him, and has also made Judah sin with his idols),  therefore thus says the Lord God of Israel: Behold, I am bringing such calamity upon Jerusalem and Judah, that whoever hears of it, both his ears will tingle.  And I will stretch over Jerusalem the measuring line of Samaria and the plummet of the house of Ahab; I will wipe Jerusalem as one wipes a dish, wiping it and turning it upside down.  So I will forsake the remnant of My inheritance and deliver them into the hand of their enemies; and they shall become victims of plunder to all their enemies'” (Verses 10-14). God punishes sin always, what we don’t release is that punishment can come in the most natural of ways. Boss tightens the reigns, financial situations come about. The goal of the trials is not for us to whine, but for us to cry out for forgiveness, and seek the Lord. Don’t run from the trial accept that they are there to bring change, and to draw us to God. 

Mar7

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

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

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

2 Kings 20. “And it happened, before Isaiah had gone out into the middle court, that the word of the Lord came to him, saying, Return and tell Hezekiah the leader of My people, Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; surely I will heal you. On the third day you shall go up to the house of the Lord. And I will add to your days fifteen years. I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria; and I will defend this city for My own sake, and for the sake of My servant David” (Verses 4-6). I use to read these verses and think, “Wow, Hezekiah changed God’s mind. But as I have gotten older and wiser in my faith, I have come to realize this is not the case. I realized that God answered Hezekiah’s prayers. God wanted the king to ask, wanted him to communicate, the God of heaven wanted relationship with His creation. For me that is way more awesome than being able to change God’s mind. Why? Because I can have a real relationship with Him, where I can talk to Him, and learn from Him. It doesn’t mean that when I pray the answer will always be yes, but it does mean that whenever I pray… He will ALWAYS hear. Yeah, I kinda love that.

Mar4

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

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

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

2 Kings 18. “He removed the high places and broke the sacred pillars, cut down the wooden image and broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made; for until those days the children of Israel burned incense to it, and called it Nehushtan. He trusted in the Lord God of Israel, so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor who were before him.  For he held fast to the Lord; he did not depart from following Him, but kept His commandments, which the Lord had commanded Moses.  The Lord was with him; he prospered wherever he went. And he rebelled against the king of Assyria and did not serve him.  He subdued the Philistines, as far as Gaza and its territory, from watchtower to fortified city” (Verses 4-8). This Chapter sees the return of a king that not only does right in the eyes of the Lord, but obeys Him completely. It is a reminder that we are not to just to good, but we are to obey. God blesses obedience everyday and all the time.

Feb28

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

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

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

2 Kings 17. “So they feared the Lord, and from every class they appointed for themselves priests of the high places, who sacrificed for them in the shrines of the high places. They feared the Lord, yet served their own gods—according to the rituals of the nations from among whom they were carried away” (Verses 32-33). If I could name these verses something, I would call them the ‘human condition’. Why? Because it is a picture of us, we love God and believe in Him, but give our service and devotion to others. Read the verse, “they feared the LORD, yet served other gods.” We do that everyday, and all the time. We love God, but can’t let go of a boyfriend, a job, or the money. It’s hard sometimes to let go of the tangible for the truth of a God that dwells inside our hearts. But every time we let go of Him for something else, we fall and falter and realize our choice was wrong. It’s a horrible cycle, but it has a solution: Serve God and Him only. Yup, it really is that simple.

Feb25

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

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

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

2 Kings 15. “In the twenty-seventh year of Jeroboam king of Israel, Azariah the son of Amaziah, king of Judah, became king. He was sixteen years old when he became king, and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jecholiah of Jerusalem.  And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father Amaziah had done,  except that the high places were not removed; the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places.  Then the Lord struck the king, so that he was a leper until the day of his death; so he dwelt in an isolated house. And Jotham the king’s son was over the royal house, judging the people of the land” (Verses 1-5). You can’t serve God half way. Jeroboam becomes king, he does what is right in the sight of God, except… There can be no exceptions. God is not asking for perfection, He understands our human condition, but as much as depends on us we must choose right. Jeroboam served God, but he didn’t lead his people to do the same. The goal of the king is to lead. The goal of the Christian is to draw others to Christ. We can’t do it halfway. Today let’s serve God with our WHOLE heart. 

Feb7

DAY 38 (2015)

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image

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

Remember being a kid? Life was simpler, we didn’t worry about our choices, and there was always someone older and wiser to rub our backs and calm all our fears. We called that person mom, but really deep down we thought she was a super hero. In my family moms rule. The aunts out number the uncles by a lot. The Smith women are known for their strength, their resilience, and the eyes in back of their heads (I swear it’s true). Today I made a sad trip across the border so that my mom could spend sometime with another mom. Her sister. My Aunt is sick and doesn’t not have many days left. This moment has made me think about life, and how for most of our lives we somehow manage to take this one person (our super hero) for granted. Yet she still loves us unconditionally and still gives us the best if herself. I can’t imagine the pain my cousin is feeling right now, but I can clearly see her love demonstrated. She gives this love because she received it in unlimited abundance. She loves her mom, because her mom first loved her. Life is fragile it ends as quickly as it begins. And even if we live for a hundred years it feels like such a short period of time. Love those around you with unconditional abandon. Love them so that they can love others. Love them because you don’t know how long you have them for. Love them because you don’t want to miss a minute. Today I was reminded of God’s unconditional love as I watched my cousin lovingly and selflessly take care of her mom. The lesson: in this life we need to love and we need to share that love with others.
“We love because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19).

So what am I thankful for today? Love and family.