Not Getting Ahead of God

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                From where you are standing, there is much ahead. It might be a ton of busy, crazy, chaotic, and rewarding. Maybe the future is daunting. On the other hand, when you look ahead, you might see a whole bunch of nothing or vast space that could be filled with –who knows?

                God does.

                You want to be where He wants you to be. If you’re anything like me -and most everyone I know- getting where you should be is a priority.

                It’s not always about “getting ahead” or “getting more,” but simply growing or following well. You know God has plans for you and sometimes it seems like a lot to keep up with. You don’t want to avoid the step He asks for next, so you prepare yourself as best you can for it.

                The decisions you make at work are made with intentions for the future in mind. You choose to take classes, read books, and meet people now so that later you will be equipped for what you think (or dream) will happen. We want to be where God wants us to be, when He calls, without hesitation. It gets stressful, doesn’t it?

Worry is all about tomorrow.  Fear is most powerful in the future tense. God is in the present. And when the present turns into the future, He’ll be there too.

God is not 3 steps ahead of you, waiting for you to catch up. He is with you now.

Though it is wise to open your eyes to bigger picture or your life and to prepare yourself appropriately, the decisions you make now –including those about your future- should be made as He asks.

That future that you think you know too little about or too much about cannot separate you from the love of Christ. Neither can the present (Romans 8:38.) When the Psalmist said that “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble,” He did mean that God is even present in our present life, concerns, and matters (Psalm 46:1.)

                Paul testified to this truth in Acts 26:22, saying “To this day I have had the help that comes from God, and so I stand here testifying both to small and great.” Imagine speaking those words when you question what your future holds –or when others ask and you don’t know.

                Speak this truth to yourself and to others as worry and planning and looking forward keep your eyes off of Him who is all the way up there –and also right here with you.  

This post is being shared on: #TestimonyTuesday, #RaRaLinkup, Intentionally Pursuing,Titus2sday, and Thought-Provoking Thursday.

Recognizing the Voice of Truth

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You wake up and hear your spouse’s voice. Then your pets. Probably your kids. As you head out the door, you hear people in the neighborhood. People on the radio talk and sing. Your co-workers and boss speak, play music, and send you signals of the verbal and nonverbal variety. Friends text you. You read announcements, billboards, and emails. The phone rings.

By the end of the day, you’ve heard the voices of a hundred or so people, programs, papers, and media outlets. That’s a lot to sift through.

Even if you try to listen to Christian music, watch decent television, and keep solid company close by, you’re bound to absorb information that distracts from the one thing you need to hear: the voice of truth.

John 10:4-5 tells us that “he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice.”

That’s a lot of running away, isn’t it?

So much of what we hear does not possess the voice of the Lord. Unfortunately, to sort out the good from the bad, we rarely listen to the voice speaking in order to make a decision. Rather, we decide based on the content.

Often the words and messages that bombard us are full of worldly content and urge us, ultimately, to focus more on ourselves. We take to heart messages with content that is practical or that gets our emotions surging. Words that comment on the things dear to us are used to steer us.

But that’s not what Scripture says.

To discern the voice of truth, we must listen to know who is speaking.

Consider how firmly and clearly Jesus rebuked Peter when he spoke, not of the Spirit, but as one approaching from the concerns of the world (Matthew 16:23.) His words were “get behind me, Satan!” In another example, we see how Bartimaeus chose not to listen to the crowds telling him to hush because he knew that the voice he needed to hear was Christ’s, regardless of what might be said (Mark 10.)

Here’s what we know about the one who speaks:

·         His voice is one of stillness (see Job or Elijah)

·         His tone bears the fruit of the Spirit, like gentleness and kindness

·         His words are clear because He is not an author of confusion

·         All that is wrong trembles at the sound

·         He speaks through unifying voices, like loved ones who agree

·         His perspective does not change and does not conflict with the Bible

·         He calls us by name

·         His purpose is life-giving

Listen for that voice –His voice- among all the others. It’s simpler than we tend to let it be. We don’t need to weigh the words to decide which way to go.  Like sheep, we should simply listen for the one we know and follow, ever listening to the sweet sound of the one who knows THE WAY. 

This post is being shared on: #TestimonyTuesday, #RaRaLinkup, Intentionally Pursuing,Titus2sday, and Thought-Provoking Thursday.

Giving Thanks Instead of Getting It

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The words are familiar:

“And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus”

These awesome, inspiring words impact how we live our everyday lives. As a result of these words, as ask ourselves what Jesus would do. We stop before making decisions and consider first if it is right or wrong in the sight of God.

And we try to live in a way that pleases God.

What comes next, though?

The rest of the verse reads:

“giving thanks to God the Father through him.”

That’s not what we generally expect when we’ve done something well. After living in the image of Christ, sharing the gifts He’s given us, and even in the small things always choosing righteously, we would expect to receive thanks.

However, Scriptures tells us that as we do everything (Everything!) in the name of the Lord, we’re to give Him thanks. In our upside-down world, that sounds backwards:

-Thanks, Jesus, that I’m doing all this work and denying myself sinful desires to please you?

-Thank you Jesus that I’ve made my whole life about you and serving you?

-Thanks Jesus for encouraging me to sacrifice everything and give a ton up so that you can be glorified?

Indeed, these seemingly backwards “thanks” are correct. It seems crazy to give thanks for something that you do and that is a cost to you at times. However, giving thanks to God is actually what’s best for us. Praising Him is what we are made for. 

Our joy is so closely connected to our gratitude because the two work together to bring life into perspective. Like the lens in our eyes, we use gratitude to bring all that we see into focus. For example, if we do all to the glory of God but do so with giving thanks to Him for that blessed opportunity, we see our glory-giving as way of building up our worth or of improving our own fortunes.

To do all to the glory of God and give thanks at the same time, we recognize that it is only by the grace of God that we get to do what we were designed to in the first place: glorify Him.   

Too often we twist our glorifying God into a way of receiving glory for ourselves. Remember that the words we long to hear in eternity from the Lord (with our sinful right to self cast aside) are not "thanks for that" but "In you I am well-pleased." 

This post is being shared on: #TestimonyTuesday, #RaRaLinkup, Intentionally Pursuing,Titus2sday, and Thought-Provoking Thursday.

Not Me!

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Just a few short weeks ago, I taught my first VBS class. 18 third and fourth graders arrived for 5 full mornings or fun and learning about Christ. What surprised me most was discovering that at the tender age of 8 and 9, people can already be hostile towards the Gospel.

One little boy quickly became known for the phrase “not me!”

When we spoke about Jesus healing people and asked if anyone could think of a time they were hurt or sick and wished to feel better, he’d pipe up “not me!” He explained that he believed the concept of sin is mean. Through explanations about grace, and sin’s effect on the whole world, and even God’s love for us, he remained steadfast in his proclamations “not me. Not me, I don’t want that.”

At the end of the week, my husband took a turn sharing the Gospel. He had heard how much these kids loved sports and competition, so He began to explain how, to play a sport, there had to be rules. To win the sport, you had to follow the rules well. That meant knowing the rules, which meant learning from someone who taught them and enforced them. He highlighted how God wasn’t “mean” for enforcing the rules because if he didn’t, no one could win.

The little guy was listening intently. He tried to say not me and explain all of the reasons he didn’t need rules and rules ruined everything. But when my husband said “and I know I never wanted rules. I wanted to play my own way. Lots of us just want to do we want…” Mr. Not Me shouted out “THAT’s ME!”

And the lesson just went on…

“If we never learn the game or the rules, we’re never really playing with anybody else…we never have a chance to do well because no one can say if we’re doing well. We also never really get to win…”

That got his attention. And mine, too.

We do live in a world that is all about “me.” Every day we’ve got the option to say “not me” and live our own way. That way might require denial, rebellion, isolation, determination, and much more to make it work.

But we don’t see it that. Rarely do we realize how often we say “not me” to the Lord.

When his standards seem too hard, we say “not me, I’ve got grace” instead of trying to meet those difficult expectations. Like Mr. Not Me, we’d often rather live with all sorts of brokenness pretending it doesn’t exist than say “Lord, I’m not sufficient but you are.”

We’re especially quick to find excuses, too. “Not me, I don’t gossip. I just have to talk about this person because otherwise (insert excuse).”

Familiar?

Here’s what we miss:

• ·         Opportunities for the Lord to heal what is broken
• ·         Growth through challenges instead of simply surviving them
• ·         Chances to discover that when we try –and fail- grace is sufficient after all
• ·         Room to see how God can overcome even the “me” parts we despise
• ·         A salvation free from guilt, fear, and an obsession over “earning our own way” because it has nothing to do with "me" and everything to do with Him. 
• 
  

Our Lord isn’t a Lord who worries about “me” or “not me” –He can use us either way. His concern isn’t with our lacks or our strengths, but His glory. We don’t need to feel shame or overcompensate for it with excuses and self-enforced failures and suffering.

“He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” (Colossians 1:17)

Remember who came first, who created you, and who knows: God.

The one who not only set the rules and picked you to play and coach, but who set you up as you are, too. There’s no room, and no need, for “not me” with the one who made “me.”

The victory is His, and it's won already. Rejoice that you are on His team and trust in his gameplay. Because "not me, I can't, and I won't, lose this race."

This post is being shared on: #TestimonyTuesday, #RaRaLinkup, Intentionally Pursuing,Titus2sday, and Thought-Provoking Thursday.

Convicted…By Pride

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“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?”

-Jeremiah 17:9

It must be right. It meets all of the usual moral obligations. It:

• ·         Doesn’t Go Against the Bible
• ·         Could be Considered Ministry
• ·         Makes People Feel Good
• ·         Is Related to God
• ·         Is Supported by Many

We check our version of this list when we begin to feel convicted about doing something. When decisions arrive or plans must be made, we act on our convictions concerning these things.

But we often forget at the same time to ask what we are convicted by.

You and I can be convicted as much by pride as we can be by righteous obedience to our Lord.

The sense of self-preservation and self-regard is strong in our sinful nature. In fact, it’s so integral to our lives that we often act for self-gain without even realizing it. In our everyday conversations, basic choices, and even our simplest preferences we show concern for ourselves before anything else.

Even in our relationships, our decisions and feelings are often based on what we want, what we think best, and what we find most suitable for ourselves. From the way we plan our schedules to our responses to those we love, it’s more often than not that our intentions are ultimately about our own gain.

From this place of “me first” we’re easily convicted by pride instead of by the Lord. Utterly convinced that our way is the right way or that we couldn’t have been wrong, we can easily be propelled far from God’s plan without ever realizing it.

It’s a harsh reality, but no less the truth.

Don’t allow your heart to deceive you. As you make decisions, big and small, ask yourself: am I fervently obeying my desires or the Lord? (CLICK TO TWEET)


This post is being shared on: #TestimonyTuesday, #RaRaLinkup, Intentionally Pursuing,Titus2sday, and Thought-Provoking Thursday.

What Do You Think About?

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Try this little experiment with me. Set a timer to go off in 2 minutes, and then just sit and think. After 2 minutes, think about what you thought about.

Did you think about…

·         What you have to do today

·         Worries you have

·         Your plans this week

·         How someone else is doing

·         The show you watched last night

·         How you wish your blog were doing better

·         How your house got so messy….

We think all the time. Often our thoughts are numb, though. Frequently, our thoughts are all about the practical, about our feelings, and, well….me and mine.

God’s thoughts on our thoughts?

• ·         Take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ (2 Cor 10:5)
• ·         Think on: “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy…” (Phil 4:8)
• ·         Meditate on His precepts and promises (Joshua 1:8, for one…)
• ·         Bind His Words on our hearts and minds (Deut 6:8)
• ·         Grow in knowledge of Christ (2 Peter 3:18)

For you and I to obey these teachings, we have to start by getting our brains off of auto-pilot. Our thoughts have to become….thoughtful. Purposeful. Turned toward the Lord. Willing to learn and listen. Reflective. Focused less on earthly things and more on things above (Col 3:2.)

Unfortunately, just as our hearts don’t change because we tell them to our minds don’t either. To have thoughts that glorify, grow us, and put us in the presence of the Lord, we have to humbly ask. We have to see our error as our minds wander and switch into prayer.

That’s where praying without ceasing, setting our minds on things above, and thinking on “these things” all merge together and align.

We can begin by paying more attention to our thoughts. Pushed and pulled by the things we face and encounter moment by moment, our thoughts are often aimless and chaotic, lacking in direction and ultimate purpose.

Rather than “correcting our thinking” though, we can give the Lord our attention.

Remember in the moment that He is with you, hears you, and involved. The conversation can be constant, and as a result of being near to God, your thoughts will change. It’s inevitable.

Time your 2 minutes of thought again, but give your thoughts direction: turn them toward the Lord. 

This post is being shared on: #TestimonyTuesday, #RaRaLinkup, Intentionally Pursuing,Titus2sday, Woman to Woman Wednesday, Women with Intention, andTellHisStory.

Breaking Down the Door

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“Above all else, guard your heart,

 for everything you do flows from it.” 

–Proverbs 4:23

                I think most of us learn to live this way for a young age. A harsh teacher called life gives most of us lessons on disappointment, hurt, and betrayal from the time we’re little. Once adults, there are even labels for those who don’t learn to guard themselves well. We call these vulnerable people “gullible” and “naïve.”

                To keep our hearts safe, we put up walls. There’s a door you can enter with permission –that’s where loved ones get in to hear secrets and become knit together with us.

                Unfortunately, God often doesn’t get permission to pass through that door.

                Of all beings who can disappoint us, hurt us, and betray us, God –being all powerful as He is- is at the top of the list. Being a black and white ruler, an eternal judge, and the one who condemns, God is one to be weary of.

                From our place of fear, disappointment, resentment, bitterness, and more in the fortress of our hearts, we think it’s better to keep that kind of God distant.

                There are more reasons for guarding our hearts against God.

                On the days we feel guilty, unworthy, flawed, and insufficient, we believe it’s better for God to be on the outside. Keep that grace and love and mercy that we feel we don’t deserve far away, and guard the mess that’s in our hearts. It’s easier than the chaos and hurt that comes when our hearts get cleaned up.

                Praise the Lord that He breaks down the door.

                Praise the Lord that the prayer we’re taught in Psalm 51:10 reads:

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.”

                The prayer isn’t “thank you God that I’ve got a clean heart.” These aren’t words we say when all is well and our hearts are tidy and safe.

                This is an invitation for God to open the door to the heart –pushing past all that mess and all our fortifications- to get to work. And it isn’t easy work.

                To get clean, things have to get taken out of place and put back in right order. Some things have to get thrown out completely, others thoroughly scrubbed. Secret piles have to be exposed.

In all this, notice that “O God” is the one cleaning: you and I have to trust that He knows how best to arrange our hearts, can get the ugly spots refreshed without rubbing us raw, and that He won’t walk in and out disgusted with what He found inside.

Here’s the catch: He already knows what’s inside. Long before He breaks down the door. Even before we issue the invitation. While we’re still fortifying the stronghold. Before we’ve turned from sin and invited the Lord to be our Savior, He knows what’s in those guarded hearts.

“Nothing is hidden from God’s sight.” –Hebrews 4:13

So the question –when we can’t bring ourselves to open the door, when we can’t even find it in our hearts or in the hearts of those we love- is less “God, break in” and more “when He comes, will I go before Him in confidence?”

Because He will break in. Unlikely the thief who sneaks in or tricks us into welcoming him, our Lord enters through the door, or the gate. “Anyone who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep” (John 10:1-2.)

Like the sheep, we are to know our Shepherd. We are to know that when He enters, we follow Him and trust in Him. “We can now come boldly and confidently into God's presence,” even as He enters our hearts, “because of Christ and our faith in him” (Ephesians 3:12.)

Jesus isn’t just the one who breaks down our door and enters through the gate –He is the gate. He is the protector of our hearts, regardless of the fortifications we create. He is the way by which God’s reaches into us and the way by which we access Him.

Praise the Lord that our hearts are ultimately His. 

Linking up with Thought-Provoking Thursday and #DancewithJesus

Grace Isn’t Just for Mistakes

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When I clean out the pantry, or the closet, or the basement, it’s a mess. Everything has to come out, in total chaos, to be sorted through and then put back in order. 

It feels like the Lord has been doing that in my life lately.

He’s been taking out all the tidied up stuff and making a mess –so that He can put it back in right order. This has been chaotic, but a blessing.

In the meantime- here’s my brain:

www.claimcare.net

That’s not how it usually looks. I’m a neat-freak with my thoughts too. But that’s how I keep things in order. 

And I love order.

So the whole God-making-a-mess-to-clean-it-up-better thing has been….troubling.

I can’t remember which day that major event happened on. I can’t recall if I paid her back. She told me about a difficulty that I did pray for then, but today I can’t remember what all that was about to ask how it’s going.

No one is dying because I can’t remember these things. I’ve found ways to figure out the answers. But the disorder makes me feel like I’m failing. So I find myself praying for grace.

And that’s weird.

I’m praying for grace in stuff that I’m not making mistakes in. That aren’t sin. Because it isn’t sin to have something slip the mind or to have to look something up. Yet grace is needed, and not just for me.

Grace is needed in many situations, not just after you’ve messed up.

We need grace because of how we’re made: imperfect. Flawed. Limited. Insufficient.

You and I know this. We sense it because when we feel that our circumstances are plaguing us or our efforts aren’t enough, we call for grace. We ask God to be gracious with us because we aren’t worthy and we aren’t able. Yet God’s grace was sufficient for Paul in His weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9). 

What about in yours?

Romans 11:6 also hints alludes to the nature of grace: “But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works, otherwise grace is no longer grace.”

Isn’t that wonderful?

We get to: “Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need” (Hebrews 4:16). Not just when we mess up or make mistakes. The Lord knows we need His grace all throughout times of need –and success, joy, change, challenge….

Think on this: “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect” (1 Corinthians 15:10). That’s why grave is about more than covering up sin: it’s about His transforming us and being in relationship to our limited, flawed persons.

The famous verse “draw near to God and He will draw near to you” (James 4:8)? That comes right after we’re told that God opposes the proud and favors the humble. Those words come after these: God “gives us more grace.”

Grace. Grace. Grace.

Allowing room for imperfection, humbly recognizing weakness, accepting who we are and submitting to His will that we might transform in His power….all a part of living in His grace.

Come to think of it...when I clean out a closet and have to make a mess in the process, there is a grace period. A full 30 minutes or so in which the chaos is perfectly acceptable because it's necessary and helpful. 

Are you dwelling in grace amidst your own disorder and chaos today?

This post is being shared on: #TestimonyTuesday, #RaRaLinkup, Intentionally Pursuing,Titus2sday, Woman to Woman Wednesday, Women with Intention, andTellHisStory.

Asking “Why?”

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Your grandfather dies and you cry out to God “why now?”  The circumstances you find yourself in seem unnecessarily tough. Meeting the right guy or girl never seems to happen though you feel so ready. This week was one disaster after another. Someone who’s been through so much gets even yet more bad news.

Why?

Do you ever feel guilty for asking God “why?” Don’t. You aren’t the first –and you may not be sinning.

It isn’t disobedience to say, as the desperate father found in Mark 9:24 did: “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!” In John 11, we read about Lazarus’ death, Jesus’ weeping, and Mary’s words: “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

Think of the faithful examples in the Old Testament as well. Didn’t Job ask God why? And David? Consider his cry in Psalm 10:1 for example:

“Why, Lord, do you stand far off?

Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?”

Can you imagine Joseph, a young man sold into slavery, not at times asking the Lord why He allowed these things to happen? In fact, Joseph referred to have sought a reason for why God allowed so much to happen to him, saying in Genesis 45:7 to his brothers: “But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.”

Esther 4:14 also contains this powerful example of looking at the “why” of God’s work: “And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?"

The prophets give us example after example as well. Just imagine Ezekiel’s question of “why” as God explained to Ezekiel that he was to be a watchman to a people who were hard, rebellious, and unlikely to listen to him. He asked Ezekiel to perform strange rituals as warnings –acts that often caused Ezekiel to live despised. What a futile task, it would seem!

But in all of these examples, in all of the implied and more direct “why” moments, God never rebukes His people. Our Lord never condemns any of us for asking “why.”

To ask God “why” often isn’t wrong at all. The confusion about this comes, however, when “why” involves:

• A test of His character
• A rejection of His will
• An act of disobedience

To disobey God, your intentions or actions contradict His Word, work, or person. You can ask why humbly, faithfully, and as a plea toward the perfect Lord. You can also ask Him why with the implication that He has done wrong –which is blasphemy.

Likewise, you can have doubt, you can struggle with unbelief, without sinning. Watch, however, that you do not act on doubt. To say, “because I don’t understand it, I won’t do it, Lord” negates faith. “Because I can’t grasp how you can be good and do this, I won’t go along with it” is rebellion and requires the pride of assuming you know better than He does.

Sin is sneaky like that. Satan clouds and distorts the truth to trick us –that’s more effective in many cases than outright lying. The “bent” truth here?

That asking “why” is sin. It’s not. Avoid assuming that your “why, Lord” trumps your ability to say “yes, Lord.”

…And ask away. Cry out like David. Consider His answer like Esther. Testify to His revealing of the “why” as Joseph did. Pray for Him to help your unbelief. The Lord does not condemn us for acting like His children.

This post is being shared on: #TestimonyTuesday, #RaRaLinkup, Intentionally Pursuing,Titus2sday, Woman to Woman Wednesday, Women with Intention, andTellHisStory.

Thinkers versus Feelers

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Heart and mind: the two go together, don’t they?

We read about what we are to do with the heart and the mind in Proverbs 3:5: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.” Of course, we also read about the nature of that heart that we’re supposed to trust with, “The heart is deceitful above all things” (Jeremiah 17:9.)

I’ve noticed that outside the lines of introvert and extrovert, there also thinkers and feelers. We all think and feel -but most of us tend to be governed more by either our thought or our emotions.

That means something for each of us as followers of Christ.

Characteristics of a Thinker:

The easiest way to spot a thinker is to listen to their reactions and opinions. Thinkers will say “I think” often when expressing themselves –even about emotional subjects. Other characteristics of thinkers include:

• ·         Requiring time after something new has been encountered to develop an opinion
• ·         Seeming stoic or disinterested when discussing personal issues
• ·         Overthinking (enough said?)
• ·         Being able to work through a problem in the mind without waiting on circumstances or others people
• ·         Having the ability to set issues aside for a time, sleep, move on, etc., and then return to it
• ·         Finding that emotions come up as surprises long after events cause or contribute to them

Characteristics of a Feeler:

On the flip side, feelers tend to have their perception of a day, event, person, or experience governed by their emotions immediately. The body language of a feeler tends to be more expressive. Feelers also tend to:

• ·      Find themselves unable to move past something, sleep, or otherwise perform daily functions regularly when they are troubled by something unresolved
• ·       Easily find themselves in situations or relationships without feeling as if they chose to be there
• ·       Feel as if their lives are out of control if their emotions are not in control
• ·       Have immediate responses to everything AND can change responses to the same thing over time
• ·       Look back instead of forward to create expectations and plans

Loving one Another

I happen to be a thinker. If I’m having a terrible day, I can go to sleep at night. I can figure out a plan and choose a perspective based on my thoughts. But I can also go awhile without recognizing how I feel about a matter…and I can come across as if I don’t care when I’m still processing something.

Fortunately(?) for us, my husband is also a thinker. But some of our loved ones aren’t.

Some of our loved ones can’t sleep until a problem is resolved –even if it’s completely out of their control. We have been baffled before by this notion, along with our loved “feelers” making decisions and then changing them based off of what they feel –over and over again.

But those same “feelers” have been able to change their wrong opinions much more easily than we tend to. They have had fewer miscommunications about what their preferences are and…well, our beloved feeler-friends don’t tend to get to the end of the day just to realize that although their “to-do” is complete, they’re feeling empty. We thinkers do that because we get caught up in sticking with our brains than going with our hearts.

Both feelers and thinkers need to be guarded by the peace of Christ, as Philippians 4:7 suggests: “the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

But that looks different for feelers and thinkers. To find the sort of peace that guards heart and mind, we have to understand where our defenses are lacking, and where we’ve been gifted naturally:

Weaknesses of a Thinker:

• ·         Relying more on our thoughts than on God’s wisdom (Proverbs 3:5)
• ·         Growing double-minded due to internal doubts (James 1:8)
• ·         Being led astray by so-called knowledge instead of cling to the truth (1 Timothy 6:20)

Strengths of a Thinker:

• ·         More naturally setting thoughts on heaven despite sinful desires of the heart (Colossians 3:2)
• ·         Taking captive thoughts that might lead us astray for the sake of true knowledge (2 Cor 10:5)
• ·         Thoughts ground us in wisdom and understanding, giving discernment despite mixed feelings (1 Cor 2:11)

Weaknesses of a Feeler:

• ·         Trusting in limited experiences more than God’s truth (Jeremiah 17:9)
• ·         Acting in ways that look right with bad intentions as the heart rules (1 Samuel 16:7)
• ·         Easily feeling discouraged and having days and seasons ruined by emotions (Luke 21:34)
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Strengths of a Feeler:

• ·         Embracing emotions healthily and benefitting from them (Proverbs 17:22)
• ·         Love and an array of fruits issue from the heart (1 Timothy 1:5)
• ·         Having firm emotions in regard to God roots feelers in hope when logically there is none (Psalm 112:7)

Though our minds can be darkened and our hearts hardened –and we each tend a certain way- there is hope (Romans 1:21.) There is a defense to rely on in Christ.

We have the option to surrender both feelings and thoughts to the Lord, loving with our hearts, souls, and minds (Matthew 22:37.) Then we can pray earnestly and confidently: “Test me, O LORD, and try me, examine my heart and my mind!” (Psalm 26:2)

This post is being shared on: #TestimonyTuesday, #RaRaLinkup, Intentionally Pursuing,Titus2sday, Woman to Woman Wednesday, Women with Intention, and TellHisStory.