God Guarantees

Are there any guarantees today? When we feel like the world is full of "robbers" (for Brandy-inside joke) and we feel like we are falling just shy of the prize we may scoff at guarantees or promises - even from God. Need some help?

God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?
Numbers 23:19 NIV

The LORD of hosts hath sworn, saying, Surely as I have thought, so shall it come to pass; and as I have purposed, so shall it stand:
Isaiah 14:24KJV

No, I will not break my covenant; I will not take back a single word I said.
Psalm 89:34 NLT

"and therefore whatever is gone out of his lips will never be altered, but will be most certainly fulfilled..." - from Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible (re: Numbers 23:19)

So what has He said?
If you are struggling today - over disappointments, over expectations that are unrequited as of yet, over not making ends meet, or over "hope deferred"- surrender all that to God and confess "Well that did not go like I hoped."

If you heard Him wrong or believed what you wanted to believe and that dream never came true - there are other dreams. If your way of getting what you wanted seemed right but "lead to destruction" dust yourself off- if you are able to read this you are able to do something differently this time. There are real promises and trustworthy marching orders - get some.

Here is a real promise from Matthew 6:30-33

The Message (MSG)

30-33"If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don't you think he'll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I'm trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God's giving. People who don't know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don't worry about missing out. You'll find all your everyday human concerns will be met."

Get the point? Me too!

Enjoy your day!

Courtney

Tastes like feet

I find myself frequently thinking about things I say.

Yesterday I said something and then thought "Man, I really stuck my foot in my mouth."

One reference says "What the term basically means is when someone (foolishly) says something that might offend someone else without realizing it." and another said that "The idea behind putting your foot in your mouth is that you just said something really outwardly noticeable (thus symbolizing the act of putting a foot in your mouth, which everyone would notice and think was weird)." forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=8436

But doesn't it take a lot of effort to do that? Have you tried sticking your foot in your mouth lately? It's not that easy especially if you don't do yoga!

Babies even have a hard time to some degree. Picture one sitting in their bouncy chair and trying to coordinate reaching for that foot. Pulling it to their mouth and aiming it just right, even wrestling with it, chasing it down so they can grip it there in place, hold it steady and commence to suck! And then they are satisfied. That shows effort and it is very deliberate. Not some knee jerk opps I can't believe I have my foot in my mouth now kind of deal.

So the more I compared what I thought, I stuck my foot in my mouth, to what I said my new found use for this statement became more relevant. I thought about what I said before I said it. I wanted to say it and if I wanted to stop myself I could have. I was deliberate. And I was satisfied at least for a while.

It was not some slip of the tongue, Freudian slip or whatever. It only took a matter of seconds to process but I knew it was bad to say. I liked that it was bad to say and knowing that there could be consequences I said it anyway.

MMM tastes like foot! Not a baby's foot but a big person's foot. Which, in my opinion, a big person should not be putting their own foot in their own mouth (no comments please). You get the picture. Or if not don't imagine a newly pedicured foot but one that had on flip flops all day and has been to the Walmart on Wendover...in the rain...ew!

I agree with the reference on embarrassment. Maybe conviction is a better word. Here is what I remembered...

In Proverbs 18:21 The God's Word Translation says this: The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love to talk will have to eat their own words.

Have you developed a palate for foot? Or the things that taste good when you think about saying them and once they roll off your tongue eventually leave a bad after taste...

Practice letting this verse block your foot or change your taste:
Take control of what I say, O Lord,and guard my lips. Don’t let me drift toward evil or take part in acts of wickedness. Don’t let me share in the delicacies of those who do wrong. (Psalm 141:3-4).

Wear that verse as a face mask and a reminder in your heart to think further than the quick satisfaction of the words you want to say when they are better left unsaid!

Enjoy your day!
Hungry Disciple
copyright 2011 Hungry Church

Dang Dog!

Proverbs 18:9 The Message says: Slack habits and sloppy work are as bad as vandalism.

Ever had a dog get in your trash can?

This is part of the reason some people in my neighborhood do not put their cans on the curb until the morning of trash pick up...to avoid having to clean up the mess a stray dog can cause. I know better than to do this, but I am learning a lesson about leaving mine exposed during the week.

So this morning when I went out to my van, voila! There they were. Two cans laying on the ground and the evidence that something ate well from my family's discards.

I have no excuse. I have a fence I could put my cans inside of. Not everybody does. And when the cans are inside the fence dogs do not get to them. Proven fact. Nonetheless sometimes I put my cans inside my fence sometimes I don't.

You would think I like cleaning up their messes or I like feeding them otherwise I would just put the cans in the fence. Problem solved. Right?

I just prefer my cans being in the convenient spot right next to my house, but unfortunately it is not fenced in.

Sometimes it becomes a power struggle between me and the unseen dog/menace (I say this with love. I know he/she just wants a meal).
These are my trash cans, my yard, and I pay for this house. I will leave my cans where I please and you better not touch them!

Sometimes it is false security.
I haven't seen any strays in a while. I feel safe. Nothing has happened to my neighbor's trash in a while. Maybe the dog got picked up. The cans should be safe if I leave them here.

Sometimes it is plain laziness.
I know the best thing to do (put 'em in the fence).
I have the ability to do the best thing (drag them 12 more feet to the fence).
And I chose to do something different (park 'em next to the house).

Today think about it. Is there something you are being stubborn, lazy or even forgetful about that is making your life more complicated? Is the convenience worth the mess that awaits? Would things be better if you just used the resources that are available to you? If you just made it a priority to resolve it? If you just put the cans in the fence?

No more Dang Dog! or shifting blame. CAN IT! -pun intended...

Slack habits and sloppy work are as bad as vandalism.

Enjoy your day!
Hungry Disciple
copyright Hungry Church 2011