Midweek Motivation
Start Your Day out Right
Scripture and Short Devotion
As for me, I shall call upon God, And the Lord will save me. Evening and morning and at noon, I will complain and murmur, And He will hear my voice. He will redeem my soul in peace from the battle which is against me, For they are many who strive with me. God will hear and answer them–Even the one who sits enthroned from of old– Selah. With whom there is no change, And who do not fear God. Psalm 55:16-19
My dear friend expressed the psalmist’s selah this way: “It means, think about it.” I look at these verses and it’s almost irritating, how that selah is stuck right in the middle of a sentence.“Um, Lord, what’s with the bad grammar? Why’d You do that?”
Think about it. I come from an anti-biblical background. I have no doubt that God saved me from my sins, and that He continues to sanctify me, setting me apart from life’s struggles. And I also have no doubt that I have at least twenty-four hours’ worth of complaining in me each and every day. So it’s easy to stop and stare in awe when He says He’ll hear my whiny voice.But that’s not where God says, “Stop.”
Many things strive to take a piece of my life today for good or for bad. I desperately wish that I could have a little reprieve from the constant battle. It’s not victory or even defeat that wears me down. I know how to handle both of those by the Cross of Christ. No, I get tired of vigilance. Yet, Christ will redeem my soul in peace? “Okay, Lord, anytime now would be good!”
The Bible says how He’ll do it: God will hear and answer them. This means that God hears me, and He hears those voices and influences that strive against me. He even hears the devil. So, maybe it’s time I quit trying to find the right response to those things and let God answer them.
Think about it: Is Your House in Order? Cleaning, parenting, marriage, organization tips, and etctera. This trick I learned from my highly intrepid sister-in-law, and I use it to manage all kinds of child-disguised-as-wild-animal problems:
The scenario 1) Chaos reigns. Everybody talks at once, trying to get your attention; some are running, some are screaming. 2) Your fist goes as high in the air as it can. 3) You begin counting and raising a finger for each number, as loudly as necessary. 4) The munchkins (or church board members if that applies to your unique situation) all freeze, unsure of what you’re doing. 5) By the time you get to four or five – sometimes even three – there should be a soothing aura of astonished silence in the room. You smile at everyone and say, “You were quiet before I got to five! You beat me!” 6) You proceed to direct the conversational traffic, lathering, rinsing, and repeating as needed.
Afternoon Pick Me Up Writing inspiration
While I feel obligated to understand a wide variety of style points, I also want to develop my authentic personal voice. For perspective, I encourage you to look not so much at where you’re going, but where you’ve been.
Get a pen and paper, and then make a list of what you know about different areas of writing. You may know about writing technical papers, structuring how-to books (I’m a disaster at those two, so don’t call yourself boring for it), romance or devotionals. List whatever you’ve learned along the way, across whatever range of genres and styles. Now, take a moment to enjoy that list. It doesn’t have to be a long list; the point is that there was a time when you didn’t know it from Joe Schmoe, right? Life is progress, not perfection.
Now, think about what it feels like to be afraid of your own voice – or to not even know it, yet. It’s normal for a writer to try different things before settling into a comfy pattern, by the way. We start out hiding behind our words during the scary phase of self-expression. Then we become addicts. The writing starts to validate itself and we forget to fear that sense of exposure.
Think about what you long to say and promise to tell only yourself and God, for now. Plan how you want to say it, and make secrets about it with the Lord. I believe this delights Him. When He whispers His Word into our hearts, He’s giving us His secret thoughts that exclude the world. Then give Him back some secrets. You don’t have to tell everyone everything, right now – unfold the secret that is part of your hidden, intimate walk with God. He’ll show you when it’s time to share it. Let it be His for now.
What’s For Dinner?
Quick dinners, crock pots, etcetera. Okay, so it’s panic time, again, and the sharks – er, children – are circling. This is super-fast and it doesn’t matter if you’re single or feeding a whole pack of hyenas, like me. Adjust to suit. The keyword in this recipe is whatever.
Ingredients: a jar of spaghetti sauce; buns – either white or brown; salami or pepperoni of whatever variety you prefer; cheese (processed slices or brick). Quick like a bunny! Okay, so now I’ve got half a menagerie in this recipe. Cut the buns in half and arrange them on a cookie sheet. Slap some sauce, meat and cheese on each. Put in the oven under the broiler to melt the cheese and lightly toast the buns. Have at ‘er – sharks, hyenas, bunnies and all. The credit goes to my mom-in-law for her family-famous Pizza Buns.
A Restful Night’s Sleep
Scripture for a restful sleep. Thou hast placed our iniquities before Thee, Our secret sins in the light of Thy presence. Psalm 90:8
This may not be reassuring until you realize that you have a secret, and you’re stuck with it. It may be something you can’t talk about, something you don’t understand yourself, and that makes it difficult to explain to others. Or it may be that, like me, you don’t like opening up even to those you consider the closest and most trusted.
I have a past, and I’m at peace with much of my past. Some of it, I’m not – yet. At times, it seems that just when I think I’ve shaken off an old issue, it grabs me from another angle, like some kind of monster-wrestler. It’s unnerving to say the least. But, I know I am safe forever with God; and I know what the light of His presence feels like.
Although Moses lamented God’s wrath toward Israel’s disobedience in the Psalm, I find it very comforting. I know that my deepest problems – the ones even I can’t deal with – are there in His presence. Just as He addresses every outside evil that battles with me, God will also address the battles within me, too. Even when I can’t get free from my own sins, I will be okay: God does not sleep tonight.
