Lessons From Laura

MARCH DEVOTIONAL

DEPRESSION

Psalm 40:1-4

I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God.

Psalm 40:11-13

Do not withhold your mercy from me, O Lord; may your love and your truth always protect me. For troubles without number surround me; my sins have overtaken me and I cannot see. They are more than the hairs of my head, and my heart fails within me. Be pleased, O Lord, to save me; O Lord, come quickly to help me.

It is not always easy to stay positive. Some may struggle with this more than others, but there are things you can do to help. There are many things that affect us, our attitudes and our minds which bring us into a dark pit of depression and negative thought process. Sometimes it may happen quickly before we know what hits us and other times it may be very subtle. Here are some examples that can cause depression and create a negative thought process.

The first area I would like to talk about is spiritual: a spiritual attack. We know there is an enemy working overtime, and his ultimate goal is to separate us from God. One thing the enemy uses is depression. It can cause us to become so introverted we desire to only sit and be alone; ineffective in anyone else’s life, causing a blanket of depression, feeding us with negative thoughts about ourselves, our lives and even a distrust in our God. How do you fight? Pray against that spirit. Tell it to leave you at once. Quote the truth, God’s word, and call someone else to pray on your behalf, breaking the bondage of solitude.

Relationships can also cause depression. Sometimes we get depressed in our relationships with others, because we put too much stock in them for our own happiness rather than looking to God to fill our emptiness or our happy tank. This is not to say we can’t enjoy being with others and have fun, but don’t expect them to create your joy for you. Sometimes we experience depression in our relationships because of problems we are going through with another person. The only way out of problems with our relationships is to go through it. Avoiding it won’t make you feel better and can cause more depression later on. Go to God and ask Him to show you the best way through it, then set your feet to moving and never stop praying. It may take a counselor to help come to a common ground in our relationship so we begin to build a better relationship with that person and move forward.

Thirdly, circumstances can cause depression. The circumstances we go through either caused by our own sin or dealing with the events of life can weigh on us. Sometimes we go through things at no fault of our own. Sometimes no matter how hard we try we cannot seem to change our circumstances. This can cause us to become depressed in our situation. But only God can really bring change even to our circumstances. We need to ask God if there is something He is trying to teach us or show us in what we are going through. Then ask Him to bring the changes necessary and move on our behalf. But just as with anything else, avoidance does not help us deal with our circumstances. We have to pray, and continually carry hope for Gods break through.

The fourth reason we may experience depression and a negative thought process are from things that happen with our physical bodies. The things we eat and drink. If you eat a lot of junk food, it can bring you up quick and cause a down and sluggish feeling after it has been in your system. Alcohol is a depressant and can cause you to feel sleepy and sluggish. I am not saying you have to completely stay away from anything with sugar or alcohol. We do need to remember small amounts are not only healthier for us, but will not cause our bodies to go through that down state.

One more aspect in the physical realm that can cause us to become depressed is if we are going through something with our health. If you have been fighting an illness for a long period of time, a crippling of some sort, or some other element that causes you pain and inability to function to your full capacity, this can cause a depressive state. These things can cause us to think negative and even have a loss of hope for the way things might have been or hope of ever being able to live normal again. I believe this also can cross over not just in the ways we feel physically, but how we think.

Finally, all of these examples can affect our mental state. I believe this is one of the hardest areas to fight. When depression sets into our minds, we have crossed over from believing that what God has for us or wants for us as absolute, to a point of believing not in God, but in ourselves, others, or the circumstances. If I can, I would like to challenge you at this point, to believe God is bigger than your own mind. He is bigger than what you could think on and capable of doing more than you could ever imagine. If we try to figure God out with our minds, then often times we put him in a box.

Any of the above situations could lead us into a mental state of depression if we let it go that far. So how do we fight now when all hope seems at a loss, when you don’t care enough to even fight or find your way out, when you want to look to things like drugs, alcohol or maybe even death just so you don’t have to feel or think? Please, please know that you are so precious and your life is worth so much more than this. There is a God in Heaven that cares and wants so much to pull you out of that pit you are in. Can I tell you, if you are at that point of depression, please find a counselor you can talk to who may be skilled in finding the source of where that depression is coming from and can lead you to healing in those inner places of your heart?

Some ways to fight mental depression are being careful of what you allow yourselves to watch on TV, hear, or even read. If you are watching, listening to, or reading things that are not positive and life-giving, that stuff is going in your mind. You may not think that it affects you, but it’s negative and it sits there in your mind and enough of that can begin to weigh on you. These are the subtle things that, after awhile, can really start to bring you down, and you may not even know why you are feeling the way you are. Try to select positive places to be, things to watch, read and listen to.

Another way to fight (I know in every devotional I stress this…but I just can’t do it enough) is read the word of God. God is the author of life. He can bring life to your mind, body, and soul, and only He can. Nothing in this world can bring you life. No one in this world can do what God can do.

The other thing I can’t stress enough is the importance of prayer. Take a look at Luke 22:42&44. We start with Jesus praying “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” Being in anguish, He prayed more earnestly, and His sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. Jesus, being in anguish, prayed. Prayer is so important. I don’t know if his sweat was like drops of blood because of the anguish He felt or because of how hard He was praying or maybe both. But, the fact is, Jesus was in such anguish at that time, He responded with prayer. Jesus has been there. You think no one understands, but Jesus does. So, pray, and if you don’t have the strength to do that, then call someone to pray on your behalf. But don’t expect them to save you, only God can. So after you call on a brother or sister to pray for you, don’t forget you yourself have to call on the Father for His help. God wants us to come to Him, not others. God brings our healing and salvation. God can use us to help each other and pray for each other, but only God has the power to bring you healing and set you free from bondage and oppression.

At this point I want to take a closer look at the verses above. David, I believe from his prayer, was at a point of desperation. Trouble surrounded him so great that he couldn’t count all his troubles. He felt his sin had overtaken him, and he states his heart was growing weak. I believe David’s prayer was a prayer done out of desperation. If his heart was growing weak then, he was probably starting to become depressed in the situation he was in and feeling that all was at a loss.

We need to look closely at what David did during this time. David started his prayer with remembering what God had done for him in the past. He may not have felt much hope for his situation at the time, but he could look back and remember God’s goodness towards him before. After stating God’s goodness and what the Lord had done for him, he then pleads for God to show His goodness to him again and, not only help him, but save him. When we are in a spot of depression and let it seep over us, we need to cry out to God for his help. We need to remember how He has helped us in the past. Tell God, as David did, about the times you remember Him working in your life or helping you with a situation and call on Him for help again. Trust that God can do it and wants you to be free.

I want to make an extra comment. I am not referring to clinical depression (a chemical imbalance) in the above devotional. I do realize that sometimes medicine is used to help those with clinical depression so that they can function in life easier. If that is you, then you should not feel shameful of having that help. But that help should not stop with medicine. There should be a counselor involved to help you deal with, and find those issues that may cause you to go into a deeper state of depression, or just to help talk through the events of life that may trouble you. So you can function even better. I also want to add that I do believe we serve a God who is big enough to heal those who have clinical depression also.

Monthly Challenge

Don’t put God in a box. Believe that He can do more than you could ever imagine. Be careful of what you eat and filter what you let in your mind. Take note of the places you visit often and ask yourself if that is a positive environment for you. Then consider visiting that place less. When you feel that depression starting to hit, pray against it, and call on God for help. Then read your Bible. Find something positive to think on, listen to, or do.

Additional reading

“Get Out of That Pit”

By Beth Moore

JANUARY DEVOTIONAL

ARE YOU WAITING AT BETHESDA?

John 5:2-9

“Now there is in Jerusalem, near the sheep gate, a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades. Here a great number of disabled people use to lay: the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, He asked him, “Do you want to get well?” “Sir,” the invalid replied, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.” Then Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.” At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked.”

Some background:

At this pool an angel of the Lord would come down and stir up the waters, and the first one into the pool would be healed of whatever disease he had. I am sure this pool was well known and probably very crowded; an “every man for himself” type of place. This man at the pool says that every time he tries to get in the pool someone else gets in before him, and I’m sure there are new numbers added daily to the side of the pool waiting for miracles to be done in their lives.

I’m sure some of us can relate to this man’s agony of waiting for a miracle to be done, a miracle that will bring healing in our lives. Can you imagine if there was a pool known for this type of event around here? People would come from all over and wait years to get a chance to get into a pool where they could be healed. It would probably be so crowded that they would have to walk for a couple miles just to get there. Roads would be blocked because cars couldn’t go any farther. It would be worse than the lines at the stores the day after Thanksgiving, worse than the lines at Disney that you wait an hour or two just to ride a ride.

Now, I don’t know how often the angel of the Lord would come down and stir the waters. The Scripture just says “from time to time”, so we know it probably wasn’t a daily event. Maybe it was only every three months. Each time there was only a chance that you would beat several others to the pool. This man stated he had no one to help him get in the pool. Maybe there were others who had friends or family that cared and loved them so much that they took them to this pool and helped them get in for healing. Maybe you have a friend or family member that you would like to see God perform a miracle and bring healing to their life.

One thing I noticed was the question Jesus asked this man, “Do you want to get well?” Jesus did not just walk into the pool area and start saying, “Be healed in my name.” Why do you think Jesus asked the man first if he wanted to be healed? I’m sure Jesus knew that’s why the man was waiting at the pool. As I ponder this thought a couple things come to my mind. The first is that Jesus is not trying to make a big public spectacle. This man could not even get into the pool, so I’m sure he could not get to Jesus. Jesus came up to him. I wonder if Jesus bent down on one knee and just softly spoke to the man in a voice that could only be heard if you were eavesdropping into another’s conversation. The second thing I thought of was this man’s faith. We know this man had some kind of faith, because he believed if he could get into the pool the angel of the Lord came and stirred up, he could be healed. If he didn’t believe it, he wouldn’t be there waiting for that opportunity. Did Jesus purposely seek him out because of his faith? Notice Jesus found him.

It’s interesting this man’s first response to Jesus is that he doesn’t call Him Lord. He calls him “Sir”. It wasn’t until later in the temple when Jesus met the man again that he knew who Jesus was. But I have to wonder if there was something in that man that may have known who he was. Why would he believe that someone other than God could heal him? Had he heard about a man out there who was performing miracles and had faith enough to believe this was the man? Maybe he could feel a change in his body that made him realize he had been healed. Whatever it was, this man had faith that he could be healed some how.

As I was doing my study, this is what God was showing me. He cares about our healing. God healed people physically, emotionally, and spiritually. God did not stop this when Jesus ascended into heaven. He instructed His disciples to go and do the same. (Matthew 10:5-10, Mark 6:12, 13, Luke 9:1, 2.) Healing was not just for the time that went between the pages of our Bibles. God still cares about our physical, emotional, and spiritual state. If we are followers of God as the disciples were, then these instructions are also for us to go and teach, heal, and drive out demons. That power and authority was given to us and to all followers of Jesus.

An interesting word I learned while doing my study was “psychosomatic”. I have heard this word before but really never paid much attention to its meaning until now. This word means “soul and body”. As I looked it up in my Holman Bible dictionary this is what it said, “Soul and body referring to the close relationship of body and spirit.” It went on to explain how the health of the soul or your spirit can affect your body and how that may be an indication of the health of your body. I believe that is why God is concerned with our emotional state as well and our physical and spiritual. If we have been hurt emotionally and have some deep wounds that need to be healed, I believe that can affect our bodies and then we not only need healing emotionally, but physically as well. If we only try to heal the physical, we may feel relief for awhile, but it will only be temporary until we can receive emotional healing. If our spiritual condition is lost, it will affect us emotionally and physically also. Healing is really a 3-package deal and Jesus knew this.

When He met the man He had healed earlier at the pool in the Temple, Jesus instructed him to stop sinning or something worse may happen to him. Jesus was not only concerned with this man’s physical state but his spiritual too. I don’t know how this man got into the state he was in, whether it was from sin in his life, an event that caused his inability to walk, or if he was born with the inability to walk. Whatever it was, Jesus knew that sin could lead to a worse condition. That is not to say that whoever needs healing is because they have sinned. Some may need healing because of pain they experienced from another’s choice to sin. Some may need healing from living in sin, and they need spiritual healing. Some may need healing because we live in a land where sin and diseases are prevalent. There are many, many different reasons why people need healing. But the truth is, there is a Savior who cares.

Notice that the man received healing to his physical body before Jesus instructed him spiritually. Was this to increase this man’s faith or reward him for his faith? I am not completely sure. I feel maybe it was both: Jesus was healing his body to make His later instructions of “sinning no more” an important part of that man’s life. Jesus is not about condemning. He could have walked up to the guy and said, “Look you are living in sin. I will heal you but don’t sin again”. Jesus did not do that. Jesus took care of the guy’s needs. He then showed him part of a need he may not have realized he had. He actually was in need of spiritual cleansing: a life without sin. Jesus became real to that man.

Jesus used many means to heal in the Bible. We see some of those examples as He healed through the faith of those who believed they could be healed. He healed through the faith of others who brought their loved ones to Him to be healed. Jesus healed by touching them. Jesus healed by commands, prayer, and forgiveness of sins. (Mark 5:34, Matthew 9:29, Matthew 8:5-7, Matthew 8:5-13, Mark 9:29.)

Please don’t misunderstand. I am not saying to never go to the doctor. I know that wisdom and knowledge come from God, and God can heal by using doctors. I am saying it may not be just a physical condition, and the doctors cannot heal what they cannot see. If there is an emotional pain that you have never worked through, Jesus wants to heal you there too. You may be fearful of what you have to feel again to deal with that pain that you have suppressed for so long, but if you ask Him, Jesus will take you through it one step at a time. Know that He cares and will be gentle with you. He does not wish to make a public spectacle of you. He desires for those who are being held captive to be free so they can walk with Him, be used to go and be disciples, following in His ways and His commands, teaching, healing, and driving out demons.

If you have been to a doctor and have heard, “I’m sorry there is nothing we can do, you just have to deal with this pain”. Get a second opinion. Seek out someone who may be a specialist. Ask yourself if there is something rooted deeper where you may need emotional healing that may be causing your body extra stress and pain it is going through. You will know if you have pain you are suppressing, because there will be certain events that bring that pain up again or that you will be over-sensitive about. Go to God and ask Him for healing. Do as it says in James 5:14-16 and go to the elders of the church have them pray for you. Some churches have healing services where you can go that night and have the elders pray for you.

Don’t give up. The man at the pool could have given up but his faith kept him believing that he could be healed. The woman who was hemorrhaging (bleeding) believed if she could just touch Jesus’ clothes, even she could be healed. Maybe you are saying that’s great for her but Jesus walked the earth in those days. Let me encourage you, He is not unreachable for you even now. Will you be healed because of your faith, because you just can’t believe that you won’t be healed, that some how there has to be a way?

I saw a very important person in my life healed. The doctors said he wouldn’t make it. There was nothing else they could do for him. The pastor of the hospital was even at our side trying to give comfort to those who were about to lose a loved one. But I could not accept it. I knew this person was once a believer but had lost sight of God and needed to recommit his life to Christ. I spoke that out to anyone who would listen that God would bring him out of it, because he needed to recommit his life to the Lord. I sat at this person’s bed and said, “God, I believe you can heal this man if you choose to, but to be honest, I wonder if you will. Doubts are starting to fill my mind, and my hope is faltering, but I know you can do it. I know you are big enough to”.

I got real with God that night. I let Him know that even though I knew He could perform this miracle, I was beginning to wonder if He would. He had been in the hospital for over a month. Can I tell you that God performed a miracle? That man recommitted his life to the Lord. Two years later he went to be with the Lord and I know that at that point, that was God’s will. But he didn’t lose his life to what he was fighting in that hospital. It was something else that took him. I don’t know if that man was healed because of my faith and the faith of others, but God healed him. The people in that hospital that knew the man’s family and took care of him, saw God work. I believe even that old pastor who dealt with families on a regular basis that lost loved ones, saw God at work.

Only you can keep your faith in God and for the things of God. Others may have faith on your behalf, but it’s you that needs to walk in faith. I believe in God’s healing. I believe that healing is available today just as it was for the man at the pool and the women who reached out to God. Is God asking you, “Do you want to get well”? God won’t force his healing on you. Are you going to reach for him? Is your faith going to keep carrying you on believing for healing as long as it takes? God wants to be real in our lives. He wants to work things out for our good. He wants us to reach for Him.

Monthly challenge:Get real with God, just believe.

Additional reading:

John 20:29

1 Peter 1:6-9

Psalm 103:2-3 “Praise the Lord who heals all your diseases.”

DECEMBER DEVOTIONAL

Strength

2 Samuel 22:33

It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect.

2 Chronicles 16:9

For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.

Psalm 84:5

Blessed are those whose strength is in you,

&nbso;

Philippians 4:13

I can do everything through him who gives me strength.

1 Chronicles 16:11

Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always.

Ok, before I even begin, if you are going to believe that God is your strength and that His strength is available to you, you will need to trust that God is not going to lie to you and that what He says in His word is true. If you don’t believe then you will not be able to fully dig into God’s power and strength as He intends.

Take a moment before we go any further and read this prayer as I am typing and praying it, not only on my behalf but on behalf of all who may read this devotional:

"Lord, open our hearts and minds so that we can trust you and believe that what you say is true. You will not lead us astray. If you say you are our strength then we are not without strength. It is only by your strength and power, which you choose to give us that we can accomplish the task for each day. We believe in you and in your word. We believe you give us enough strength for each day Amen."

We all have struggled through life at one time or another with something. We have become tired, fatigued, felt all is lost and didn’t think we could make it one more day. In those moments how do we press on? How do we tap into the strength of God?

God’s word says ask and we shall receive. Instead of waiting for those moments to come when we are exhausted by our own efforts and then cry out to God for strength, we should be asking for that strength before we start our day or the task that needs to be dealt with. Ask God when you wake up to give you the strength you need for each task of that day. Remember, you can’t do it alone and when you try to go about the day with your own efforts and strength you will weaken quickly.

Also remember, God wants us to worry about one day at a time. He wants us to accomplish what we need to accomplish for today, and accomplish what we need to accomplish for tomorrow, when tomorrow comes. The strength God provides is for that day you can not carry it into the rest of the week. You will need to re-strengthen yourself in God each day. Every day God’s strength will be different according to the task of that day, but know that it will be fresh and ready for you again in the morning. This is not to say that you can’t plan for the next day or the future, but don’t set it in stone because God’s plan may alter your plans.

Another way to tap into God’s strength is get into the Bible. Psalm 119:28 tells us we are strengthened by God’s word. God’s word not only brings us hope, peace, but it helps us to stay positive and it brings strength to places in you that you may not even know need strength. Two of those places are our heart and spirit. Your heart is the center of you; what’s important and where you carry your emotions. Your spirit is who you are; the body we see is just a nice covering to look at. If your heart falters then your mind believes you can’t go on. If your spirit is weak your body will show it. How do we keep our spirit and heart strong? Only by keeping God at the center of our heart and His spirit feeding into ours can we continue to feel strengthened.

One way that can be done is by spending time in God’s word. Another good way to feed our spirit and keep our heart from faltering is praise and worship. You don’t have to just be at church for this and church should not be the primary place to worship and praise God. We should be doing that in the car, at home and throughout our day. Grab a Christian worship CD and worship with it.

Finally, when the task or day seems at a loss, trust God with it. Trust that He is sufficient for that day or task, and rest in Him. If you try and try and nothing is going the way it should, give it to God. Then seek Him and ask Him if there is something He is trying to show you regarding that task or your day. There might be a better way or maybe that task is better done tomorrow. God has his own time frame and plans that we should be trying to follow and wait on rather than trying to get Him to help us in our time frame and with our plans. Everything is according to God’s will and all to be done for the glory of Him.

Monthly Challenge

Make a point to start your day with a prayer. Ask God for not only His strength for each task but to be a part of your day. Make sure you spend time in His word and at the end of the day thank Him for being with you and for each task that He helped you accomplish even the little ones.

Additional Reading

Psalm 119:28

Psalm 46:1

Psalm 29:11

Isaiah 40:30

Isaiah 41:10

1 Chronicles 1:25

Colossians 1:11

1 Peter 4:11

Heart: the fount of man’s emotions and deepest feelings

Spirit: the intelligent or immaterial part of man as distinguished from the body; the animating or vital principle in living things.

FALL DEVOTIONAL

Us

1 Corinthians 13:7

It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Work, relationship, ugh, love, arguments, compromise, friendship, unity, selfless, partner, bad, good, time, struggles, hard, intimacy, happiness, completeness.

These words and probably more can be used to describe marriage at one time or another. Let’s face it, we all think it’s a fairy tale, happy ever after until we dive in. There are very good times and sometimes very bad times. It’s work, but its work worth doing. A marriage is not something that just happens. Both involved have to work together. It seems at times it is perfect and then in minutes it can go real bad. Why? Because God created man and He created women and although we both contain the make and character of God, we at the same time are very different and we live in a fallen world.

My husband and I have those moments when we are out and just having a good time with each other and either I will say something or he will say something and it doesn’t set well with the other. Sometimes we come back very quickly after apologies and explanation of what we meant. Other times, because, well mostly, I am stubborn or because he doesn’t know what to say next and has to think through it, it takes awhile for us to work through the conversation or event. In those moments we are not getting along, it is an awful feeling of not being connected. After we come to grips with things and have worked through it, there are feelings of relief, sometimes silly laughter, peace and a relaxed atmosphere.

It really is about the choices we make and realizing those choices affects one another. If my husband and I are not in agreement on something, we are learning that we don’t go through with that decision no matter how much one of us wants it. If we do, it will be a point of contention between us for as long as we are dealing with that event. If we can’t agree on it from the beginning we most likely won’t. Now for little things, like the dessert you want to share, you can just drop it, but for things like buying a boat, house, car, going on a trip or raising children, it is important to be in agreement and that also takes prayer. My husband and I make the best decisions when we tell the other about it and then pray about it and talk more about it.

Marriage is a definite 3, God, you and your spouse. I remember one of the big decisions my husband and I had to come to agreement on. I went to God and asked Him to either make a change in my heart on the matter or change my husband’s heart on the matter so we could walk together down the path God had for us in regards to this decision. I found Him softening my heart to change and at the same time I believe he was doing this in my husband because my husband and I came together with a decision that neither of us thought it would be. In those moments of praying over a decision we don’t try to persuade each other our own way or leave little messages to try to get the person to come to our way of thinking. We simply pray and not talk about it. This is difficult for me at times, I have to admit. Sometimes we even set a time to pray over it. At times it can be a week and other times it is only a day. We are going to take a look at marriage and how we can apply some of 1 Corinthians 13 to our love for our spouse.

There are four words out of 1 Chorinthians 13:7 from three different versions of the Bible that I would like to apply to marriage. I know we have already done a devotional on love, but God has taken me further with it, so I am going to follow His leading. I feel that these are things that should be applied not only to marriage but relationships in general. Some of the words will be exactly the same and some will be worded different but have the same meaning and may give us a little more light to what it means.

First word: Protects (NIV) bears all things (NASB) Puts up with anything (Message)

I think we can get a couple things out of this 1st word and its different interpretations. Do you put up with and bear the differences in your spouse such as personality traits, the way they do things differently, their likes and dislikes? Just because your married does not mean you will like all the same things and it doesn’t mean you have to. Your spouse may clean fish different from you but as long as they’re clean, does it really matter? Your spouse may take care of the children different but as long as the children are getting good care does it matter if one lets them play outside longer or reads a story before bed and the other doesn’t? I do believe you work together in raising the children and I am not talking about going against the other parent in decisions you make for the children. Sometimes doing something with your spouse may mean going shopping or fishing. We may not enjoy it as much as our spouse but we go along and enjoy the time spent with them knowing they enjoy doing these things. Do you protect them and the way they may be different? This could mean not talking negatively to others about what you don’t like about your spouse or the things they do. It could mean confronting others who may try to talk bad about your spouse to you or to others.

Second word: Believes (NIV) Trust (NASB) Trust (Message)

Do you believe the best in your spouse? This may mean encouraging your spouse in new things they would like to try. Maybe your spouse would like to learn to work on cars or decorate cakes. Rather than try to discourage your spouse, let them try. It might also mean that you believe they will handle sticky situations in a Godly, moral way, like telling someone who is hitting on them that they are married.

This leads to our next question. Do you trust your spouse? Not only in these situations but others such as, paying the bills or carrying the credit card. This may be something that you need to work on together. For some of you it may mean making a decision to try and trust them again. This also will involve God’s help. I find a lot of us, when it comes right down to it, have a hard time trusting anyone including our spouse because we have been hurt in the past. Maybe even because you have been hurt by something your spouse has done or said. Maybe it is just because you feel you can handle things better and need to control the situation.

One way to begin to trust is first to make a choice to trust God with yourself and your spouse. This means letting go of control, not easy for a lot of us. Another important area of trusting again is to forgive. It is important to be able to trust your spouse and be trusted by your spouse. Trusting each other means you have an open and honest relationship so that if one of you is struggling with something you can go to your spouse right away before it grows into something bigger. If you find this is something you absolutely can not do for one reason or another, I would suggest talking to a counselor and dealing with this together.

Third Word: Hopes(NIV) Hopes (NASB) Always looks for the best (Message)

Do you have hope? Hope gives life. Hope is a very positive word and action. If you can’t hope for the best you may also have a faith issue. Hope is also confidence. I have hope in Jesus. I have hope, confidence and faith that Jesus will come again. Without my hope for eternity with Jesus that there is something better than this world, I would be lost.

The Message Bible says, “Always looks for the best.” These are also very positive actions and words. Let me ask you, do you have hope for your spouse? Do you always look for the best in them and for them? Maybe if you are at a blank you should sit down and make a list of all the good qualities God has given your spouse. Maybe even let your spouse know what you really appreciate about them. If you are having some marriage struggles, you may not be able to come up with something because usually in those times we are very negative about our spouse. You may need to pray and ask God for some help bringing things to your mind that you can appreciate about your spouse. Here are some examples: hard worker, good cook, can grow a garden well, knows how to fix things, does all the grocery shopping, takes care of the dog, snow blows the driveway or eats healthy.

There is always something we can find to appreciate about our spouse. Instead of being negative when your spouse really irritates you, because those times will happen, try to focus on the positive things. Look for the best in him/her and bring hope and life to your marriage.

Fourth Word: Perseveres (NIV) Endures (NASB) keeps going to the end (message)

Does your love persevere and endure? Do you keep loving? Are you moving ahead with your marriage or looking back to days you thought were better? Are you ready to give up or carry on through the end? Marriage is going to have some element of pain either from words we have used that have hurt the other person or actions that have brought pain to our marriage. Marriage is going to have some element of struggle. None of us are perfect, we won’t always agree and sometimes we just wake up cranky and difficult. I know there are times that I do. We need to let our love overcome times of struggle, attitudes and each others differences. If we choose to work through struggles and difficult times because it is a choice, we can bring our marriage to deeper levels of relationship with each other. It will become more beautiful than what it was.

When you go though life and love like Christ loves, you will develop a love that will endure through time. Loving someone with all there faults, just how they are, and loving through struggles, you can develop a more open and transparent relationship with each other.

With any relationship, both parties have to be willing to repent, forgive, work together, allow God to make changes in them (not their spouse pointing out changes they feel the other needs to make) and seek help if they need it. It is also important to pray for your spouse, pray that God will bless their day, that God would cause their heart to be open for changes He wants to do in them, and that they may grow in their relationship with the Father. When we grow in our relationships with God, our relationships with each other will grow also.

Monthly Challenge

Make a list of things or qualities you appreciate or love about your spouse and either leave them a note or tell them once a week for a month.

Additional Reading

Galatians 5:14

I Corinthians 13

Romans 5:4-6

Romans 12:9-11

Romans 13:10

Ephesians 5:22-33

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One further note: If you or your children are in a sexually or physically abusive situation, you need to seek help right away. There should be information on Vision of Hope Ministries website with a number for you to either contact someone at Vision of Hope who can assist you in finding help or information on someone you can call to assist you with this situation.

SUMMER DEVOTIONAL

A Desire For the Lord

Isaiah 26:9

"My soul yearns for you in the night; in the morning my spirit longs for you."

Do you long to spend time with the Lord? Do you yearn to be with him? Is your desire for the Lord?

I encourage you not to answer these questions too quickly but to really search your heart. Ask yourself if you long to spend time with the Lord, or is it something you do out of habit. Maybe you feel its just what youre supposed to do. I am not trying to make judgments or cause feelings of whether you are spending time with the Lord in the right way. I know for myself that would be a question I may have to ask myself daily.

So often I have that specific time before bed when everything is quite that I get into the Bible. Sometimes its because I need to do it rather than put on a movie and just check out for the day. In those moments I would not say that I spend that time out of yearning for the Father, but that does not make that time uneventful or mean that God does not touch me with His Spirit in those moments.

Then there are times where I cant wait to have that quiet time with God, and Im excited to see what He is going to reveal to me. There are times when I cant get enough, and I have to dig deeper and say show me more Lord. Those are times of yearning.

I have a friend that went on a camping trip and forgot to take a Bible along. This friend had gone 8 days without being able to spend time in The Word. I am sure they still had prayer time, but I didnt ask. We didnt get too deep into the conversation. When my friend returned from camping, my friend said I missed my Bible. I believe that friend was yearning to spend time with the Lord.

Whether you spend time in The Word because you know its something you need to do or because you long to be with the Lord, it is important to do this daily. Ten minutes or an hour, it is vital to your spirit and who you are in Christ. So how does that yearning come about?

Spend time with the Lord. The more time you spend with your Creator and Friend, the more you are going to desire and long to be with Him. In those moments you are with the Lord, ask Him to make your heart's desire to be for Him. There are many things in our day that can take away our time with the Lord. You have to protect that time with Him. Be watchful of events or things that may come before Him so that your desire remains first for the Lord.

Monthly Challenge

For one month pick a time each day that you dedicate just for spending time with the Lord for praying, reading The Word and listening for the Father to speak to you. Guard that time you set aside for the Lord. Dont let anything take its place. Ask the Lord to bring that yearning in you for Him.

Additional Reading

Psalm 42:1

Psalm 63:1

Psalm 84:2

Psalm 143:6

JUNE DEVOTIONAL

Dont Give the Opponent Glory

1 John 4:4

James 2:19

I pray that the Lord will help me get whats on my heart out in the right way. This could be a sensitive area. I feel that sometimes we give the devil too much attention. Sometimes we focus too much on what the devil is up to rather than what God is doing in our lives.

We need to know our opponents tactics so we dont get tripped up. We also need to be alert because our enemy is looking to cause destruction and separation from God. Sometimes, however, we can get ourselves so worked up that we watch for the devil or we give him attention for everything that is wrong in our lives. This not only takes our focus off of God, but we look more at negative things than positive, and forget what God has brought us out of. Sometimes, it may not even be the devil. It may be our own doing. For example, I like Oreos way too much. If I buy them I usually get a glass of milk and 6 cookies, yes 6, should be 2 or 3 but stay with me here. After having 6 cookies I know thats enough, but yet there are times I go and get 4 more. Now I could say, Oh the devil is just tempting me and I fell into temptation. The fact is, it had nothing to do with the devil. I just like those crazy cookies and did not practice self control.

Maybe its an argument with someone else and neither person is willing to reconcile. It might be that each person is just holding on to their pride and does not want to make the situation right. Whether they are right or wrong doesnt really matter. Im not so lame that I dont realize the devil tempts us but sometimes its our own choices that cause trouble for us because its something we desire or we are just being a stinker about.

I feel that so much focus goes into the evil thats going on or what the devil is doing that it causes a lot of people to fear him and of course he wants that. But the devil is nothing for us to fear. When we make the devil seem bigger or stronger or focus on the pain or suffering we have gone through, we become fearful maybe of it happening again or what we might go through next. That fear can paralyze us and cause us to become unable to fight spiritually. We have to remember who is in control. The devil is not, even though he may try to make it seem that way. God is the one in control even over that meathead.

The devil also answers to God. If you read Job, you see that each time the devil wanted to test Job he had to go to God first. Also in Luke 22:31 Jesus tells Peter (Simon) that Satan has asked to test him. God has to allow it. Satan does nothing that God does not see or allow. Do not be afraid, he does not have free reign over you. God tells us in His Word greater is He (the Spirit of God) that is in us than he (Satan) that is in the world. James tells us even the demons shudder in fear of God. God is more powerful and we have access to that power through Jesus, so that we can stand against the devil and have victory in the name of Jesus.

I realize it is hard to get past pain that has felt as though it was crippling and struggles that never seem to have an end. Rather than looking for the devil and trying to figure out when he will attack next or what the attack might be, dig your heels into the Word of God and trust that He is in control. If we are spending time with God regularly, we will be prepared to stand against the devil. The Word simply says resist the devil and he will flee. We dont have to get so worked up that we fear we wont be victorious. We can follow Jesus example when Satan tempted him in the Garden. Jesus quoted scripture.

So in those times you feel paralyzed and unable to fight or you are flooded with negative thoughts:

1. Call on the name of Jesus. Just simply speak his name if that is all you can do. There is power in the name of Jesus.

2. Ask the Holy Spirit to lead you and guide you in how to pray against what you are dealing with or struggling through.

3. Quote Gods word even if you have to get a Bible and just read scripture aloud.

4. Tell the devil or any spirit of fear or negative-ness to go in the name of Jesus and send them back to the pit where he will be for eternity.

5. Begin to give praise to God thanking him for events where you saw him working in the past.

6. Worship Sing out to God about his greatness, bring Him worship.

Lets begin to focus on what God is doing in us, around us and through us, giving Him glory and all our attention. Not to be ignorant of the evil that is in this world, but to make the choice not to let that evil spill over in your life causing you to fear and dwell on negative things.

Monthly Challenge

At the end of each day give thanks to God for at least one thing that either he has provided, done, revealed to you, helped you with or blessed you with.

Additional Reading