Hope and Healing for Moms

Friday, July 28, 2017 What Meditation is Not: Meditation (Part 3) (Inspired by Celebration of Discipline, by Richard Foster) Excerpt from Celebration of Discipline (pp 20- , edited for length; additional explanations in parentheses): (Not the same as Eastern meditation): Whenever the Christian idea of meditation is taken seriously, there are those who assume it is synonymous with the concept of meditation centered in Eastern religions. In reality, the two ideas stand worlds apart. Eastern meditation is an attempt to empty the mind; Christian meditation is an attempt to fill the mind. The two ideas are quite different. Detachment is the final goal of Eastern religion. Christian meditation goes far beyond the notion of detachment. There is need for detachment, (but) detachment is not enough; we must go on to attachment. The detachment from the confusion all around us in order to have a richer attachment to God. Christian meditation leads us to the inner wholeness...

Wednesday, July 26, 2017 Space in Time to Listen and Obey: Meditation (Part 1) (Inspired by Celebration of Discipline, by Richard Foster) Scripture: Psalm 119:97, 101, 102 (KJV) Oh, how I love thy law! It is my meditation all the day….I hold my feet from every evil way, in order to keep thy word. I do not turn aside from thy ordinances, for thou hast taught me.” Psalm 63:6 (KJV) I think of thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the watches of the night. Psalm 119:148 (KJV) My eyes are awake before the watches of the night, that I may meditate upon thy promise. Psalm 1:1-2  (NASB) 1 How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers! 2  But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night. Excerpt from Celebration of Discipline (pp15-17, edited for length): The Discipline ...

Tuesday, July 25, 2017 The Narrow Path of Discipline (Inspired by Celebration of Discipline, by Richard Foster) Scripture: Matthew 7:13-14 13  “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide  is  the gate and broad  is  the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14  Because [ a ]  narrow  is  the gate and difficult  is  the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it. Proverbs 16:25 There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death. John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. Galatians 5:24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Romans 12:2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. ...

Monday, July 24, 2017 Will Worship: Willpower, the Counterfeit of Self Control (Inspired by Celebration of Discipline, by Richard Foster) Scripture: *I have included two versions for helpful language comparisons Colossians 2:20-23 (KJV) 20  Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances, 21  (Touch not; taste not; handle not; 22  Which all are to perish with the using;) after the commandments and doctrines of men? 23  Which things have indeed a shew of wisdom in will worship, and humility, and neglecting of the body: not in any honour to the satisfying of the flesh. (NASB) 20  If you have died with Christ to the elementary principles of the world, why, as if you were living in the world, do you submit yourself to decrees, such as,  21  “Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!” 22  (which all  refer ...

Friday, July 21, 2017 Intimate Fellowship: The Attitude of the Heart for the Disciple (Inspired by Celebration of Discipline, by Richard Foster) Scripture: 1 John 1:3 what we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ. Genesis 5:22-24 Then Enoch walked with God three hundred years after he became the father of Methuselah, and he had other sons and daughters. So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him. Isaiah 57:15 For thus says the high and exalted One Who lives forever, whose name is Holy, "I dwell on a high and holy place, And also with the contrite and lowly of spirit In order to revive the spirit of the lowly And to revive the heart of the contrite. Zechariah 2:10 "Sing for joy and be glad, O daughter of Zion; for behold I am coming and I wi...

Thursday, July 20, 2017 Going Deeper: Disciplines for Ordinary People From Celebration of Discipline, by Richard Foster Scripture: Psalm 42:1-2 1 As the deer pants for the water brooks, So my soul pants for You, O God. 2  My soul thirsts for God, for the living God; When shall I come and appear before God? Devotional: I think it is time, sweet friends. It is time to go deeper. As I began this interest in revisiting the Disciplines, I felt myself splashing in the shallows, but with a pull to go in and swim. Join me as I read through Celebration of Discipline, and give God time to instill these joys in our hearts. One of the most important points made by Pastor Foster is that many of us are afraid to dig into the deeper spiritual life, fearing that the Disciplines are for “spiritual giants.” However, as he so well states, God is pulling us—perfectly ordinary people with ordinary lives, and callings like parenting and marketplace vocati...

Wednesday, July 19, 2017 The Discipline of Celebration: Gratitude and Thanksgiving Scripture: Psalm 100:4 Enter His gates with thanksgiving  And  His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him, bless His name. Psalm 9:1-2 I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart; I will tell of all Your wonders. 2  I will be glad and exult in You; I will sing praise to Your name, O Most High. Psalm 69:30 I will praise the name of God with song And magnify Him with thanksgiving. Isaiah 51:3 Indeed, the Lord will comfort Zion; He will comfort all her waste places. And her wilderness He will make like Eden, And her desert like the garden of the Lord; Joy and gladness will be found in her, Thanksgiving and sound of a melody. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 18  in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. Colossians 3:17 And whatever you do...

July 18, 2017 The Disciplines of the Faith Today, I want to take some time to share with all of you a teaching that I need to revisit as a believer from time to time. As parents, we can sometimes get caught up in equating “discipline” to “punishment.” This is a cultural misnomer that can too quickly cut off what God wants to grow in us, His children: the blooming inward and outward life of the believer. The disciplining (discipling) of our children can and should be a pouring in and not only a removing. It can and should also be a lifelong pursuit for us. In this group, we do focus on the discipline of prayer. However, it is only one of the disciplines we can and need to cultivate in order to have a rich life in Christ. Richard Foster, in his excellent book Celebration of Discipline, outlines many of the disciplines of the Christian life. I’ve included some of them here, and will include a link to a document that helps to outline much of what he shares. 1. The inward disciplin...

Monday, July 17, 2017 The Heart to Serve Scripture: Matthew 20:25-28 25 But Jesus called them to Himself and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great men exercise authority over them. 26 It is not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant, 27 and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave; 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” John 13:12-14 When he had washed their feet and put on his outer garments and resumed his place, he said to them, “Do you understand what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet…” Hebrews 6:10 For God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for his name in serving the saints, as you still do. Philippians ...

Five Day Focus: Patience – Day 5: God is the Source of Patience. We Grow In Patience as the Word Grows In Us Scripture: James 1:16-18 Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. Luke 8:15 15  But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience. Romans 15:4-6 4  For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.  5  Now may the God of patience and comfort grant you to be like-minded toward one another, according to Christ Jesus,  6  that you may with one mind and o...

Five Day Focus: Patience Day 4: Patience Equips Us for the Ministry of Parenting Scripture: 2 Corinthians 6:1-10 1We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain.  2  For He says: “In an acceptable time I have heard you, And in the day of salvation I have helped you.” [ a ] Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation. 3  We give no offense in anything, that our ministry may not be blamed.  4  But in all things we commend ourselves as ministers of God: in much patience, in tribulations, in needs, in distresses,  5  in stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in sleeplessness, in fastings;  6  by purity, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Spirit, by sincere love,  7  by the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armor of righteousness on the right h...

Five Day Focus: Patience Day 3: Instead of grumbling, forgiveness. James 5:9-11 9  Do not grumble against one another, brethren, lest you be condemned.  Behold, the Judge is standing at the door!  10  My brethren, take the prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord, as an example of suffering and patience.  11  Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord—that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful. Romans 15:5-6   5  Now may the God of patience and comfort grant you to be like-minded toward one another, according to Christ Jesus,  6  that you may with one mind and one mouth glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. James 4:11 Do not speak evil against one another, brothers. The one who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks evil against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the l...

Five Day Focus: Patience Day 2: Enduring Hardship Scripture: 1 Peter 2:19-23 For this is a gracious thing, when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly. For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God. For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. James 1:2-8 2 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. 4 But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. 5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to a...

Five Day Focus: Patience Day 1: Scripture: 1 Corinthians 13:4a Love is patient… Psalm 103:8 The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. Colossians 3:12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. James 5:7-11 Be Patient and Persevering 7 Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain. 8 You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. 9 Do not grumble against one another, brethren, lest you be condemned.[c] Behold, the Judge is standing at the door! 10 My brethren, take the prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord, as an example of suffering and patience. 11 Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended b...

Sunday, July 9, 2017 God Is Our Gardener As I continue to study patience, today I finished reading the book of James for the several-eth time. What a book, what a delicious ouch! It is always hard to look deeply into the mirror of our muck. What is it that is causing my impatience? What is it that makes it so hard to pull out of the habit of losing it with my husband or children? For me, it shows up as snapping, using unkind tones. Getting frustrated and letting tension rule the atmosphere.  Feeling awful. Saying I’m sorry. Doing it again tomorrow. Going deep always pays off. Getting into the Word and letting Him open up the roots of my sin will always set me back on the path. I want a quick fix, and that is the truth—and the problem. This requires time, and I am still in the uprooting stages of the gardening process. There are some seeds from past plantings, and it also takes patience not to just uproot what is there and start over. But God wants me to let Him be the ...

Saturday, July 8, 2017 It has been a few days since I got to post in here. Our trip was amazing, and God continues to bless our family as we press in to Him. There have been so many things we have hesitated to do with our two children, but we continue to try to persevere and not crawl into a hole. Each time we venture out by faith, God is faithful, and this time was no exception. Patience is the theme that I am studying now. As always, when God leads into a subject He allows testing to come forward. I do believe that I had been struggling with patience before, but as the Word is brought before me, the Lord is allowing me to truly see the effect of my impatience on my family and those around me. Taking this opportunity to allow God to minister to me will hopefully also be a blessing to you. Our five day focus will begin on Monday, and I pray that the journey will be a seed in all of us that will grow good fruit for years to come. May the God of peace be with you today. Pray...