Word of the Week: Understanding

As I was out for my walk this morning I meditated on the word ‘Courage”.

As I got close to a house that is under construction I could see that I would have to walk between two cars and several groups of men.

I thought, "now is the time to practice being courageous!"

A narrow path in the middle of the road was all that was left between the two parked cars.

Taking a deep cleansing breath I braced myself for whatever comments these men might make and determined in my mind to ignore whatever they said to me.

After successfully passing through that gauntlet of men suddenly, 8 highly agitated workers were running toward me, alternating between covering their heads and waving their arms, and screaming, “Abejas! Abejas!”

I know a bit of Spanish but not enough to know what they were shouting about. I slowed down somewhat but kept advancing forward in my effort to get home in time to shower and get to bible study.

In the distance I can see a neighbor heading home with six dogs on leashes. I thought maybe the men were afraid of dogs. His dogs have never bothered me so I continue walking, ignoring the men’s frantic cries.

One of them comes closer waving his arms yelling, “Señora, abejas!” Three of them are now in front of me yelling, “Abejas” and I yell back, “I don’t understand! No entiendo!”  

My lack of understanding collides with the fervency of their efforts and slowly increases my annoyance as I fight to remain calm.

One man turns the direction I’m headed and pointed at a tree up the road. I still don’t know what I’m supposed to be seeing and I’m in a hurry so again I let them know that I don’t understand.

One of the workers held out his hand motioning me to stop,  looking exasperated and desperate to get his message across, he took his phone from his pocket as the English word finally came to him, and he shouted, “BEES!”

Now I get why they were frantically running, why they didn’t want me to walk any further, and why they were passionately trying to get me to understand.

The man with the phone makes a call and asks me to wait “for safety”.

A few minutes later a truck pulls up driven by a man dressed in protective clothing. I get into the vehicle and he drives me past the tree to the corner and I’m able to finish my walk from there.

My head and heart had prepared not to trust these men. I’ve become so accustomed to taunting whistles, crude comments, and uncomfortable stares from construction workers that initially I didn’t respect their genuine concern for my welfare. And I was so determined to practice being courageous that I was willing to ignore whatever they were saying and just keep on walking.

Psalm 119:34 says,

Give me understanding and I will obey your instructions;

I will put them into practice with all my heart.

I have lost count of the number of times I’ve ignored God’s warnings because I cannot see any danger ahead and I don’t understand what He is trying to tell me.

I’m grateful for the lessons that God brings into my life, the spiritual and the practical. This morning He mercifully showed His willingness to protect me by any means possible and as a bonus He taught me the Spanish word for bees!

Word of the Week: Truth

I've been preparing my notes to speak at Legacy this weekend and the word that I have had on my mind is Truth. So I decided to give you a sample of one of the devotionals from my ebook!

Truth

“And you will know the truth,

and the truth will set you free.”

John 8:32 NLT

Knowing the truth brings freedom from bondage, freedom from life altering lies, and freedom from despair.

Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. He’s the freedom that we need to know. He’s the Truth that we must embrace.

He’s the Truth that will erase the lies we’ve carried in our heads. No falsehood or distortion can successfully stand in the light of Him.

His name is Truth, His character is truth, His word is truth. Truth bathed in the grace of God that has the power to transform us from the inside out.

Walking in truth places us on the path of righteous living. Washing our minds with the truth places us in the center of His will.

Waiting on truth to be revealed in our situation places us in the palm of His hand. His loving words are a balm for every battle-scarred soul. Cling to the God of all truth!

Prayer:

Precious Truth, our Savior, our Lord, guide us in the way of truth. Help us to listen for Your trustworthy voice and lay aside any whispers of darkness. Keep us steadfast and strong in the light. We praise You, we thank You, we love You. In the mighty name of Jesus, Amen.

To get your copy of my devotional ebook click on the title below:

Exalt His Name

Word of the Week: Storytime

“Once upon a time; when time was time”

A familiar phrase to many Belizeans but I read those words for the first time yesterday in a new book entitled “Belizean Storytime” by Sherlet Neal Lopez.

We’ve lived in Belize for 7 years yet there are many cultural sayings and nuances in language that we have yet to learn.

Written in Kriol and English this book is aimed at restoring the art of storytelling in Belize. As a lover of words and stories this book satisfies my heart and brings joy to my soul.

I’d heard about the character Anansi but I actually met him yesterday in Miss Sherlet’s book. His great great grandfather's words are still ringing in my ears, “What you do today, you will pay for tomorrow!”

Mercy, how true is that word of wisdom? It applies itself in so many real life situations. What I eat today shows in my health tomorrow. How I treat someone today shows up in my reputation tomorrow. How I study today shows up in my knowledge of the material tomorrow.

Woven throughout the book are life lessons, some practical, some spiritual, some moral.

As I went to bed last night the last thing on my mind was the story about Anansi going to church just to get free food.

How often do we go to church to ‘get’ and not to ‘give’? He went through the motions just because he was hungry.

We go to a church service or a prayer meeting to get a breakthrough, or maybe because we seek relief from physical or emotional pain, or need help with our financial difficulties.

But when was the last time we went just to give God praise? To serve in a way that points others toward Him? Or to be a blessing to someone else in need?

Isn’t it amazing when a powerful spiritual insight smacks you on the head in the form of a short story?!

I read an article the other day that said the average person spends 19 minutes a day reading. I was shocked!

It seems like half of my childhood summers were spent in the top of a tree reading Little House on the Prairie.

Thirty years ago on bedrest with my oldest child I read and re-read the Chronicles of Narnia.

And now each night the last thing I do before going to sleep is to read a chapter or two of the latest book I’ve downloaded onto my Kindle.

We need writers that will provoke us to read again.

Belize is fortunate to have an author who has risen to the challenge to put pen to paper in order to provide stories able to inspire a nation to read. I’m so grateful to have been present at Sherlet’s book launch today. And I hope you’ll be on the lookout for your copy of Belizean Storytime!

Wednesday's Word: Unnoticed

Unnoticed. Have you ever wanted to go unnoticed. I certainly have!

Life in a small town doesn’t allow for anonymity. When I step out of my home there will be at least one person who hails me by name.

At the post office I hear, “Mawnin, Mrs Sharp!” At the market someone yells, “Hi, Miss Alida!” Even those who cannot remember my name want to make a connection. “Aren’t you Tom’s wife?” “You’re the lady who works with Miss Diana.” “You’re the one on TV with Ms Andrea!”

I simply cannot go unnoticed.

The bible passage that’s been on my heart is from Luke.

It’s the story of a woman who tried to go unnoticed.

Luke 8:43-48 says,

And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years, but no one could heal her.

She came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak, and immediately her bleeding stopped.

“Who touched me?” Jesus asked. When they all denied it, Peter said, “Master, the people are crowding and pressing against you.”

But Jesus said, “Someone touched me; I know that power has gone out from me.”

Then the woman, seeing that she could not go unnoticed, came trembling and fell at his feet. In the presence of all the people, she told why she had touched him and how she had been instantly healed.

Then he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace.”

Desperate for healing, yet avoiding a face to face encounter with Christ, she stealthily maneuvered through the horde of people to sneak up behind Jesus. Reaching out her hand with the only asset she had left, faith, she touched the edge of His clothing. Instantaneously healing came.

One touch ended 12 years of suffering, 12 years of spending all that she had, 12 years of not being clean in the eyes of her culture.

From bankrupt to blessed in a solitary moment!

It’s interesting to me that she tried to hide from Jesus. Even more interesting is that He called her out.

Who touched me? No one came forward.

Peter points out to Jesus that there is a large crowd. But that didn’t matter. He knew that someone had touched Him. And He knew that person was trying to hide.

Sometimes we just want relief from our pain. Sometimes we just want results.

But Christ wants relationship.

We are made whole through relationship. She had to come forward. She had to get right with Him.

Trembling with fear she came out of her hiding place within the crowd. Flinging herself at the feet of Jesus she confessed what she had done.

After she acknowledged what had taken place God lovingly and compassionately restored her dignity by commending her faith and releasing her from the presence of the onlookers to “Go in peace”.

As a result of her choice to get right with God, not only was she blessed with healing, she was also blessed with peace.

Right standing with God brings us a peace that passes understanding.

To have peace is have tranquility. Wholeness.

When we willingly surrender, confess, and testify at the feet of Christ He completes our healing with wholeness.

I confess that I am like this woman. I just want God to answer my prayer so I can go on my way.

I confess that I have valued results over relationship.

I confess that there have been times when I didn’t want to testify publicly about what God taught me through my brokenness, healing, and restoration. I didn’t want to acknowledge my imperfections so I kept quiet. And then felt remorse on the drive home.

God, sometimes gently, sometimes loudly, sometimes in front of a crowd, calls us into relationship with Him in order for us to experience the abundant life He came to give us.

He sees you.

He is calling out to you.

He is waiting for you to come into a face to face relationship with him.

He wants to bless you with peace.

He wants to make you whole.

Are you hiding from God? Has He called you out?

You, my friend, cannot go unnoticed!

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