Gentle Whispers

Hearing God

Yesterday this beach loving girl was heading to the mountains for the day. My three kiddies were in the back seat watching a movie, and I had some quiet time while I was driving.  I put in one headphone to some worship music while I prayed.

I kept thinking about the BASKING scripture from the day before:

“And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire.  And after the fire there was the sound a a GENTLE WHISPER.” 1 Kings 19:12

Elijah was desperate to hear the voice of God.  Things were not going the way he had planned, after he had poured his life and his heart into building God’s kingdom.  He traveled for forty days and nights to the one place he knew he would hear the Lord’s voice: THE MOUNTAIN OF GOD.

Where is your “mountain of God?”  If you need to hear God’s voice, where do you go?  There may be more than one place.  For me, there are a few places.  I go out in nature, or I go in my closet first thing in the morning.

It’s all about getting quiet before the Lord.  I always think about this passage in 1 Kings 19. Once Elijah was on the mountain, there was a mighty windstorm, an earthquake, then  a fire!  But the Lord was not in any of those loud, powerful acts.  His voice was heard next, in a gentle whisper.  It was then that God gave Elijah directions on what to do next.

So how do we BECOME QUIET before the LORD so we can hear his GENTLE WHISPERS?  

Sometimes, audible quietness seems like an impossibility, especially for a mom of 3 youngsters.  I was thinking about this on the way home from the mountains yesterday when all three of them were passed out from a day of fun.  That is when the Lord reminded me that  throughout the loud and fun chaos, we can still hear him when we have a quiet heart.  A heart that is resting in his goodness and drinking him, drowning out the things that are threatening to make our hearts anxious and unthankful.

For me lately, drowning out the world has meant staying away from social media.  I just can’t express in words what this is doing for my heart, my relationship with the Lord, and my family.  Living in the moment with Jesus is so sweet when you are living fully right where your feet are planted.

What did you HEAR God whispering to you this week?

 As I sought him, he relentlessly spoke this passage to me:

“This is the day that the LORD has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it.”  Psalm 118:24

So that’s exactly what I have been doing.  And I can report his goodness is so real, you can TASTE it!  (As we will be focusing on tasting the goodness of God and his word next week!)

Download the free BASKING devotional here: >>>Basking<<<

 

How Social Media is Affecting Your Relationship With God

Social Media

She woke, rolled over and grabbed her iPhone. After she checked the time and rubbed her eyes, she let out a big sigh and thought about the busy day ahead.  Then, she clicked on the blue square with a lower case f.  She saw how many likes she had from what she had shared the night before.  She scrolled through mindlessly for a minute.  Then her feet hit the floor with an empty feeling in her soul.

“Why did I just start my day like that?!” She thought.

She went to the coffee pot, then grabbed her bible and notebook for what she knew would make her empty soul feel good and satisfied instead- her Jesus.

Friends, the story above, has been my story some mornings.  Thankfully, I decided to do something about it.  I decided I had to live out my life verse:

“But seek FIRST his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Matthew 6:33

I just won’t open any kind of social media until I’ve had time with God first.  Time to seek him first.  Time for him to remind me who he is, and who he says I am. Time for me to ask him for the blessings only he can give. Time for me to hear him remind me of the good work he has for me to do in the day ahead.  And I usually (actually never) hear him include:

“Spend time scrolling through your social media mindlessly.”

Trust me friends, I know we need mindless, chill time.  I don’t think anyone can run long and far for God without sitting back and relaxing.  Us mamas know at the end of the day, we have hardly any brain functioning left.  We need an escape.  We need to connect with the outside world, to get good ideas for recipes and outfits.  To see the cute babies our friends from college have had.  Yes, yes, yes.  Social media is not ALL bad.

But we need to check our social media surfing and ask ourselves some questions about how it is affecting our most important relationship, our relationship with our Heavenly Father.

How is social media affecting my relationship with God?  

  1. Am I SEEKING GOD FIRST with my heart, my days, my time and energy while still being connected to social media?
  2. Am I finding my IDENTITY and VALIDATION in who I am in Christ or in my popularity on social media?
  3. Am I ABIDING in Christ and BEING PRESENT with him and with the people he has placed in my life or am I letting social media steal my attention from him and them?

We’ve already hit on the number one, so let’s start with number two.  And let’s just be real.  You have looked at your post to see how many likes it has.  You have looked at your profile to see how many followers you have.  You have even gone to another person’s profile to see how many followers she has compared to you.  Sometimes this makes you feel good. (Which is silly and prideful). And sometimes this makes you feel small, and not important. (Which is a lie).  This has to stop.

As children of God, we CANNOT find ANY IDENTITY in our popularity online. 

This is grieving the heart of God.  He is watching us thinking, my child, I created you fearfully and wonderfully, I sent my son to die for you, I have adopted you as my own through him, and given you every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realm, and yet you look on social media to see what people who don’t even really know you think about what you have posted?  Ouch.  That thought hurts, but in a good way, right?  Isn’t it fantastic that who were are in Christ is what really matters?

Let’s not let this cycle steal our blood bought identity and worth any longer.

“Daughter.  Put the phone down, and listen.  I’ve given you all you need right here.”

 ~Hear him, and step away.  

~Sign off and look up.  

Which bring us to our next topic: Abiding (being present) with God and the people around you; instead of being on social media.  God has promised he will never leave us.  He has sent his Holy Spirit to dwell in the hearts of those who have trusted in his Son.  How can we converse with God, and the people around us if our eyes are on our phones and devices?  The answer is we can’t!  Someone is getting ignored.  Please, let’s make it stop.  (Preaching to myself here, too).

So how can we stay on social media and keep walking closer to God?

1)Be disciplined about it.  

 

“So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified.” 1 Corinthians 9:26-27

We need guidelines and limitations. Here are some ideas:

Time restrictions:  Only get on certain times of the day, like after you spend time with God, or just at night to check one time a day to stay connected but not obsessed.  Also, you may want to set a time limit for when you do get on, so you don’t look up and realize you’ve wasted an hour while your dishes are still piled up in the sink waiting for you.

Reasons to get on: Checking to see how popular your posts are should not be one of them! That is self-centered and makes us have that false sense of worth we talked about earlier as children of God.  But there are good reasons to get on.  You know what they are for you, so just ask yourself, “What’s my good purpose to get on social media right now?”  Don’t let it be a rote, routine habit to click on the app because you have a free second.

Log out or take apps off your phone: Train your fingers not to click where they’re used to clicking.  Either delete it off your phone, or sign out of your apps until the time you have decided you will get on daily.  Then log back out.

2)Run

 If you need a detox from social media, step away for a while.

“Run from anything that stimulates youthful lusts. Instead, pursue righteous living, faithfulness, love, and peace. Enjoy the companionship of those who call on the Lord with pure hearts.” 2Timothy 2:22

3)Accountability

Tell someone how you are trying to change your online habits.  Choose someone with the same heart for the Lord that you have, and explain to them how you are doing this for a closer walk with God and to grow in who you are in him.

Finally, we all know to change behavior, a new behavior has to replace it and take it’s place.  Use the time and energy you used to spend on your devices on social media to seek God instead; to grow in the truth about who He really is and who you really are as his child.  Get the bible app on your phone and find a great devotional to click on when you have free seconds.

Be present in the moment that you are in, with God and with those around you.  Live life to the fullest, like he intended you to, right where your feet are planted; instead of where your fingers are scrolling.

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” John 10:10 ~Jesus

Here’s a free tool below to help you refocus this summer.  There is a commitment at the beginning of this devotional to change your social media habits.

Download Here>>>Basking<<<

Unplug and plug in to Him!

~Amy~

Living in the Moment with Jesus

Jesus, Marriage

 “Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift of God, which is why we call it the present.” -Author Unknown

I saw this quote on a plaque in a medical office when I was a teenager, and I have never forgotten it.  I am a word person, so this play on the “present” meant a lot to me.  Can’t you just picture it?  Every morning, God has a gift of another day on earth for you that he has put much loving consideration into. Every detail of it has been throughly thought through and organized.  Even the mundane, even the less than pleasant, and even the sorrowful within the day ahead has been carefully selected before the foundation of the earth.  He has added in room for your own free will so you can play a part in your own story, yet he promises he will work your decisions together for good, as long as you have made the most important one (trusting in Jesus).

The best part about God’s gift of the present is that He is in it.  He is here.  He IS the gift.  

 

 

The greatest tragedy would be missing out on the best part of the present.  It’s like when you are opening a gift bag with lots of tissue paper.  There are several exciting things in there, and the gift giver says, there’s one more thing in the bag, keep looking!  (I love it when that happens!) So you dig a little deeper, and see some tissue wrapped up tight.  You take it out, search for the edge of the paper and open it up. IT IS THE BEST THING IN THE BAG!   This is how it is with experiencing God in the everyday gift of the present.  All the other parts of the gift of the day are easy to see.  But you have to look with purpose to see the best, hidden part of the present: the presence and goodness of GOD.  You have to believe it’s there.

Have you ever looked at the person giving you the gift when they said, “dig deeper, there’s more,” and stopped looking?  NO!  We want the best part of the present!  We have to BELIEVE this is true.  To train our eyes we look to his Word and think on it  all day, (meditate on it).

“Yet I am confident I will SEE the LORD’s goodness
while I am here in the land of the living.”  Psalm 27:13


Seeing Jesus reflected in the beauty all around us will make us look at our days and our lives differently.  

I’ve stared intently at so many things this week as I have been living this out.

I’ve looked deeply into my little girl’s blue eyes wrapped up in freckles as she has talked and talked relentlessly about everything on her mind.  And seriously, can this mama just say, He outdid himself when he planned that beautiful creation!

I’ve stopped to look at wildflowers and butterflies on every run this week.

I’ve gazed up at the clouds rolling by in the sky and remembered how big he is in comparison to how small everything else is.

This awareness has led to worshipping him more.  More glory to Jesus.  This is what life is all about.  This is what we were created to do, worship him in spirit and in truth.  When we live a life aware of his presence, in awe of who he is, everything else falls into place.  A heart positioned  in worship will see him, hear him, and obey him.

If you embark on this next 5 week journey of BASKING in his goodness and presence, you will greater understand what if means to ABIDE in him.

One definition of abide is “to continue to be present.”

Be present in Him this week as you look with your eyes for him!

This Beautiful World

By Sam Terry, 8 years old

My eyes, my eyes

they’re blind because

I keep complaining

then I miss this beautiful flowers

in the prettiest fields.

I miss the beautiful birds because

I’m too busy thinking about the negative.

I miss this beautiful world that God gives.

Don’t miss out on his beauty!  Join us for this 5 week study, starting here on this Monday, May 30th.  Follow me on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter to see posts Monday-Friday, and I’ll blog here about it at least once a week (I’ve got to leave time free for BASKING!)

Download the free devotional here:>>>>> Basking<<<<<

Basking Devotional

Social Media

Are you yearning for an unplugged summer?  Do you miss the days when you didn’t scroll through a screen when you had a few free seconds?

Maybe you haven’t fallen into the trap of “default scrolling.” Good job! I bet you are super annoyed when people around you have their eyes glued to their phones, half paying attention to the conversation.

My daughter recently told me I ignore her. Ouch.  Me, ignoring you?!? I thought, “I homeschool you girlfriend, I am with you all the time.  And sweetie, you talk a lot! I am doing the best I can, but sometimes I get fried mommy brain.”  But I’m not doing the best I can.  I can do better.

I can’t help but wonder how God is thinking the same thing as we ignore his presence.  He’s always here with us.  But we are distracted.  We are half in conversation with Him, if in any conversation at all.  His glory is all around us, reminding us of his existence and his power.   He gave us amazing bodies with senses to experience him and his creation.  But are we looking for him? Are we listening to his voice?

In my post last week,  (below) I described my “basking” moment last summer when I was overcome with his presence.  Reflecting on this experience stirred a desire to pursue a greater awareness of God this summer, everyday.  And so I give you, below, a 5 week devotional to join me in this commitment to sign off and look up.

As you will see in the devotional, there are different options for signing off.  You may choose to stay connected for good reason, with time limits, etc.  This is what I will be doing to post about the study.  But default scrolling–>see ya later!

I’ll be posting on Instagram Facebook, and Twitter Monday-Friday and blogging here at least once a week.

Help me spread the word this week!  Next Sunday right here, I will post about SEEING the goodness of God as the start the study MONDAY MAY 30th!

Click below to download FREE summer devotional >>>

Download Basking Devotional <<<

Basking in His Presence

God's Presence, Social Media

When was the last time you got goose bumps from the realization of the steadfast presence of God in your midst? Was it lately? Or so long ago, you had to stop and think?

Summer is my FAVORITE season.  June is my FAVORITE month.  I have so many amazing God moments that happened in the summers of my life.  Before I had kids, I was an elementary school special ed teacher.  And all summer long, I sat out by the pool in my backyard and BASKED in the sun.  (Don’t get too jealous, I don’t have a pool anymore.)  But I do plan on basking beside one most of the summer!

Are you a summer girl too?  I just cannot get enough of it.  Popsicles, back porch dinners, sundresses, flip flops…I could go on and on.

Last summer I had a “basking” in Jesus’s presence moment on a sunny beach in North Carolina. I had been seeking God about a decision I needed to make very soon but I had not received a clear answer. I had called all my closest family and friends and sought their advice, but I was still feeling conflicted.

I laid on the beach, quiet and still. I heard the God-made rhythm of the waves roll in and out. I felt the warmth of the sun on my skin, the gentle, steady breeze, the gritty sand beneath my toes. I smelt and tasted the salt and sweat. I was fully aware of the setting around me. But yet, as I became so very still, I was fully aware of the presence of Jesus. So very aware, that I felt as though he was sitting right beside me.

We know from his word that this is always the case. He has promised many places in scripture that he would always be with us.

“And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:20

But are we really walking around daily being sure of his presence? I know I haven’t been. But I know I am ready to. I’m ready to put down my phone and be fully engaged in my surroundings, seeing the evidence of God all around me.  God talked about this in his word:

“For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities–his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.” Romans 1:20

His handiwork and his wonder are all around us. His love can be seen, heard, tasted, smelt, and felt at any given moment.

The problem is, we are distracted. Distracted by the flood of information on our phones, our minds racing to the future, and just a plain numbness that robs us of worshipping the one true God who is all around us.

I’m ready to not just have “quiet times” in the mornings, but to form a practice of being still during my days. I want to soak him in and document where I’ve noticed his glory, which is all around us.  I’m ready to BASK in the presence of God.

To Bask: revel in and make the most of (something pleasing).

I would love for you to join us here at Refocused Bible Study this summer as we BASK in God’s presence, reveling (taking intense pleasure and satisfaction)  in Him where He has planted our feet for this summer season!!!

Free downloadable devotional journal will be here next week! Don’t miss it!

The journal starts the first official day of summer, Memorial, May 30th!

Spread the Word! Grab some friends. This one is not life season specific, right for everyone. Even the littles! 🙂