Encourage Yourself in the Lord by Paula Friedrichsen

We all need encouragement from time to time when the journey of life seems just too trying. Sometimes we will find the hope we need when the Lord sends another along our path to speak words of life to us. But many times God is waiting to see if we will take advantage of all that he has given us, to encourage ourselves!

Some days I get up excited about the day before me. I’m feeling happy, inspired and full of the life of God. But what about those other days….

As you step out of bed in the morning you can feel the coat of depression being slipped on. It’s a perfect fit and you’ll wear it all day - maybe even the next if you don’t resist it! As you make the family oatmeal you spill the oats all over your kitchen (that actually happened to me this morning). Your kids seem loud and needy. Depressing feelings and thoughts swirl around you like a mini tornado.

We all have times in our life when things we were planning on didn’t work out, and we’re faced with the feelings of disappointment, failure, or stupidity. And it’s at that point that we can choose to have a pity party, or begin to encourage ourselves in the Lord. In Psalm 42:5 we see a perfect example of what it looks like to “encourage yourself in the Lord.”

“Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.” (Psalm 42:5)

The Psalmist doesn’t say that someone else came along and told him to be of good cheer and put his hope in God – he told himself to put his hope in God. After acknowledging the fact that he is indeed depressed, he then commands his soul to line up with Gods word, telling himself to cheer up because there is hope in God!

While it’s true that there will be times in life where we are genuinely downcast and disturbed, there may not always be someone around to speak life-giving words to us and encourage us. At that point it’s up to us to speak to our own souls (our mind, will and emotions). Our words are more important then we realize. The Bible says that life and death are in the power of the tongue (Proverbs 18:21). So when we are dealing with a spirit of heaviness or we feel like a black cloud is over our heads, we need to encourage ourselves with the Word of God. As we find verses in the Bible that really speak to us we can pray those scriptures out loud and we’ll be speaking the truth over our lives. We can cry out to God in prayer and stir up our faith, thereby remembering who we are in Christ and that he lives on the inside of us!

Happy Valentines Day by Paula Friedrichsen

Ah Valentines Day… the day of romance, love, and appreciation, right?

Well… it should be. But in all reality Valentines Day has become just another commercialized bonanza of buying. The media fosters unrealistic expectations when it comes to the way men and women express their love on Valentines Day. Watch a few dozen Zales commercials and you’ll likely be anticipating a candlelit dinner where hubby drops a diamond solitaire into your champagne glass… Or, check out enough FTD ads and you may find yourself waiting breathlessly by the front door to see if a lavish floral arrangement will soon be delivered.

Those things are nice, but romance doesn’t flourish because you max out your credit card. Romance flourishes when you open your eyes to the greatness of your mate…just as they are today. For example, men on commercials do things like light candles and fill bubble baths for their wives, while regular guys show they care by paying the medical insurance on time or checking the oil in the car before a big trip. Not necessarily romantic—but lovable all the same.

Women on television are portrayed as desperately sexy housewives, or scantily-clad stick figures with high powered careers. But the truth is most women can be found doing things like nursing the baby in two-day old clothing that smells of “spit up,” raising a gaggle of kids while fighting to lose those last thirty pounds, and working 9 to 5 jobs. Not perfect, but perfectly wonderful.

Adjusting your expectations to line up with reality will foster a happy union and help you enjoy your mate. This Valentines Day commit that you’re going to love and appreciate your mate just as they are today…..even if they’re completely different than you. We’ve all heard the saying “opposites attract,” but I’ve found sometimes that “opposites attack.” The personality traits and adorable quirks that initially attracted you to your spouse can be the very qualities that are now driving you crazy.

Around our house we refer to my husband Jeff as “Felix Unger” (the neat one from that old show The Odd Couple). Sometimes as I do the dishes I can feel his eyes on my back…watching me. He watches me load the dishwasher and wants to give me a little instruction. He watches me wipe off the counters and would like to give me efficiency tips. He watches me put food scraps down the garbage disposal and can hardly refrain from offering suggestions.

And although his perfectionist personality has at times driven me crazy and caused occasional conflict around our house, I’ve learned to laugh at his quirks and to appreciate the fact Jeff likes to keep things neat.

Think of appreciation as “warmth to roses.” When roses are exposed to a little natural sunlight and warmth, they begin to open with glory. Appreciation is the warmth that will cause your spouses personality and true self to bloom. When was the last time you noticed out loud something your mate did right?

It’s true that relationships can be challenging at times—but they can also be fulfilling, comforting, and joyous. If we want to enjoy our marriages it’s important to keep our sense of humor intact and our minds focused on our mate’s good qualities. Overlooking another’s faults means to literally “look over the top” of the faults to see the person you love standing on the other side. You love your spouse. You don’t love their faults—but you do love them. Remind yourself of all their wonderful qualities and get busy having a wonderful Valentines Day!

Paula Friedrichsen is a member of Church on the Mountain, a vibrant community of believers in Crowley Lake. We meet at 9:30 Sunday mornings. Call for more information: 935-4272 or www.ChurchOnTheMountain.org

Breakthrough! By Tom Hovsepian

Do you know anyone who isn’t going through a difficult time right now financially? I sure don’t! But there is something interesting I’m seeing in the midst of all these hard times; there are a remarkable number of people I know who are actually saying that they are grateful to the Lord for their present struggles. They recognize that God is working deeply in their lives and bringing about significant change…. the kind of change that will ultimately result in breakthrough.

David experienced a few “breakthroughs” during a significant period of his life: In 1Chronicles 13 we read how David had just become King of Israel. One of his first steps as king was to bring the Ark of God to the city of Jerusalem. After conferring with his officials and commanders he began what he felt were the needed steps to make this happen.

Soon the joyous procession begins: “They moved the ark of God from Abinadab’s house on a new cart, with Uzzah and Ahio guiding it. David and all the Israelites were celebrating with all their might before God, with songs and with harps, lyres, timbrels, cymbals and trumpets.” (1 Chr 13:7)

Unfortunately there’s an “oops” along the way: “When they came to the threshing floor of Kidon, Uzzah reached out his hand to steady the ark, because the oxen stumbled. The LORD’s anger burned against Uzzah, and he struck him down because he had put his hand on the ark. So he died there before God. Then David was angry because the LORD’s wrath had broken out against Uzzah….David was afraid of God that day and asked, ‘How can I ever bring the ark of God to me?’” (1 Chr 13: 9-12)

Oh, how I can understand David’s progression of emotions toward the Lord. He must have thought, “I’m trying to do all of this for You God, now look what you did!” Then he lapses into, “I guess I don’t know you as well as I thought, in fact you’re kind of scary.”

What happens next is fascinating: “Now Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, along with cedar logs, stonemasons and carpenters to build a palace for him. And David knew that the LORD had established him as king over Israel and that his kingdom had been highly exalted for the sake of his people Israel.” (1 Chr 14:1-2)

It was this graciousness that seems to cause David, even in the midst of the Ark debacle, to realize that the Lord had established him as King for the sake of His people. The Lord was expressing His approval of David even after a terrible mistake.

Now, here comes David’s breakthrough; The Philistines hear David has been crowned King and immediately attack Israel. David’s response is classic; this time he doesn’t counsel with his officials and commanders, but instead he “inquires of the Lord.” God shows him specifically what to do, and sure enough God was right—the Philistines are soundly defeated! Later, they attack again and David won’t dare lean to his own understanding but seeks the Lord a second time. Now God’s response is classic. He tells David something bizarre; He says David is not to take his army the way he did before but to circle around behind them and wait in the balsam trees until the wind starts to rustle the leaves. It is then that he is to attack because the Lord will have gone out before him to strike the enemy down. Wow! How strange is that? But David has learned his lesson the hard way and obeys God’s voice. As a result, David is victorious and calls the place Baal Perazim, “God is the Master of breakthrough.”

Next in the sequence of events we see David once again purposing to bring the Ark of God back to Jerusalem. Since he’s learned the lesson well, this time he consults the Lord to find out His specific will concerning the return of the Ark. Because of that David was successful and the presence of God returns to Israel!

I love these stories because they illustrate that although David deeply desires to do what is right—until he learns to consult the Lord before each decision or action, his great intentions may result in disaster. We also can see that God doesn’t condemn David, but affirms him through Hiram’s gracious gift. David learns the life lesson that God is approachable despite his mistakes—and in each crisis he is to seek God’s counsel first. This is breakthrough!

How important to specifically know what God is saying to us in these stormy times. He is gracious and eager to speak, leading us into victory and our own breakthrough.

Tom Hovsepian is a former pastor of Church on the Mountain, a vibrant community of believers in Crowley Lake. We meet at 9:30 Sunday mornings. Call for more information: 935-4272 or www.ChurchOnTheMountain.org