Our Refuge and Strength

Creating Space for Grace Devotion

 

Psalm 46

 

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its water and foam and the mountains quake with their surging. (v. 1-3)

 

My daughters were 3 and 6 when we took a trip to visit family in Spokane, Washington for Christmas. It was a great trip because we also had the opportunity to visit with other family members while we had a layover in Salt Lake City. By the time we boarded the plane for our two-hour flight to Spokane it was dark and we were told that a big snowstorm had just blown in from the north. The storm was causing some complications with our plane.

 

Now, I must tell you that I really don't care for "complications" when I fly anywhere. I just want to go where I'm going and be done with the flying part! But this time, I was particularly concerned because snowflakes as big as half-dollars were pouring from the sky, it was already very dark outside, the temperature was freezing, and airport technicians were "de-icing" our plane. De-icing our plane? I found myself wondering what would happen if our plane needed de-icing in midflight between Salt Lake City and Spokane? My imagination ran wild with that one!

 

I soon realized I needed to put my faith into action or it was going to be a very miserable flight. And I didn't want my children to experience fear or anxiety over something that was out of our control. It was then that I remembered the verse I had committed to memory in the Bible Study I attended: "God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. -Psalm 46:1" I spent the entire flight repeating that verse over and over in my head because that is the only way I could have a moment of peace.

 

Has there ever been a difficult time in your life when a Bible memory verse helped you get through it? Have you shared that story with family and friends?

 

Share your story - and create space for grace and strength... Make a difference in someone's life.

 

God and Gracious God,

We give you praise for being ever so strong! Like a rock and a fortress - our refuge! Thank you for giving us strength when we need it, and for being there even when we forget to call on you for help. And dear Lord, help us to share our stories of faith and grace with others. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

Living off the Land

Creating Space for Grace Devotion

Joel 2:21-27

You will have plenty to eat, until you are full, and you will praise the name of the LORD your God, who has worked wonders for you… (v. 26)

I spent my childhood on a farm. We grew lots of plants and animals. At different times we had fields of wheat or alfalfa or peaches; barns full of turkeys or pigs; and sheep or goats or cattle out in the pasture. My parents also had a garden full of vegetables. I guess you could say my mom and dad “lived off the land.” They depended on rain and weather patterns to nurture plants until it was time for harvest. Then they prayed the rain would stop so the hay could be cut and bailed or the peaches would not freeze. And there was always the threat of damaging hailstorms to worry about.

I honestly wonder sometimes how they did it and then I remember. My parent’s faith in God was strong. My dad read from his Holy Bible to his family every night before bedtime, and we all prayed the Lord’s Prayer together.  We attended church on Sundays. If you came to our house you went home with a bag full of vegetables or fruit. We always had enough to eat and enough to give away.

So many years ago when my dad and I were talking about church he asked me if we tithed. He said that giving a tithe was a good thing to do.  And he said he’d never been sorry because it always came back as a blessing.

Heavenly Father,

You give us so much. Some of us are blessed with time, some of us with talents, and some of us with money or produce. Help us to share our first fruits with our neighbors near and far away. We want to please you in all that we do! In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Proverbs 31

My favorite daily devotion!

Bask in God's Shining Love!

Okay, I signed up to write a devotion for Abiding Love's Lenten Devotion booklet. Choosing by the themes listed, I thought it would be pretty simple... but when I read the entire passage of 5 or 6 verses I became overwehlmed. Instead of staying up late searching my brain, I prayed about it and went to bed. Sure enough, some ideas came to my head in the shower the next morning. So here it is.

“Make Your face shine upon Your servant;
Save me for Your mercies’ sake.” (NKJV) --Psalm 31:16

In our early morning Bible study group, “Women Alive!” on Tuesday mornings, we are reading through the two-year plan of the Chronological Study Bible. We’re in the second year of reading assignments and meet weekly to discuss what we have read. It has been a long and cumbersome list of scripture passages through kings and more kings, and now the many prophets. The prophets warned the people and the kings to turn from their idols and their bad habits. God asked the kings to turn from their actions that were “evil in the sight of the Lord”, and to reach out to the one true God who loved them so much that He always wanted the best for them.

The more we read about some of the horrible things that many of the kings did, we wonder how God could ever still love them and want them back in God’s fold. We perceive some of the actions as unforgivable. Over and over again we read about God giving the people another chance to turn to back to our God of great mercy, to bask in forgiveness, and to shine with God’s love. Always and forever God had a passion for His flock. God wanted to be with the people to guide them, comfort them, and love them.

So, I wonder… How can we show God that we want to change our hearts? How can we turn our bad habits into good habits? How can we show our love for God? How can we trust God with all that He has given us? How can we share God’s love with others? How do we proclaim God’s love in the mundane daily tasks of driving to and from work, shopping groceries, washing dishes, mowing the grass, answering the phone, walking the dog, folding laundry…?

We can start by giving thanks for God’s incredible love for each one of us!
We can attend Sunday school classes.
We can be kind to everyone we encounter.
We can participate in Bible study groups.
We can pray often.
We can read our Bibles to learn more about this great God of love.
We can show respect even when our opinion is different.
We can sing praises to God.
We can write letters of encouragement.
We can help feed the hungry.
We can share what we have with those who have less than we do.
We can invite others to come to church with us.
We can ask God to show us what to do…

Great and mighty God, You are so good to us. You give us infinite second chances to turn to You for help and guidance and forgiveness. That takes a lot of love-- a lot of unconditional love. Thank you for your great mercy and love!