Encouraging Word

If we want to move away from just the duty we feel to walk this Christian walk, and really enjoy our life in Christ, it takes some adjustments. If we just make a list of things we need to do and then keep on checking them off dutifully, we might miss the joy of a real living, vibrant relationship. We didn’t become Christians to join a religion. We aren’t religious people, we have a life giving relationship with Jesus. It’s a friendship, and friendships bring joy to our life. So make some adjustments:
Instead of just reading your Bible everyday, dutifully, think of it as God’s love letter to you. He wrote you words to encourage and bless your life. Get excited everyday to read and learn and grow in God. Instead of just rattling off your prayers each day, let the Spirit of God direct your prayers. What needs to be prayed at the moment? Instead of just attending church and your small group because you have to, why not come prayed up and ready to give out to those who gather together with you. You are blessed to be a blessing! You have the opportunity to look at things either way, as a drag or a blessing. Look for blessings! This life is not a duty, its a delight! Let those words recharge you inside!

Intro:
Hi, this is Dorette Schaal with your dailyeword. This week as we talk about being recharged, we will decide to immerse ourselves in a culture that is life giving. We don’t want to just go through the motions in our walk with God. We want to live in a way that there is evidence that we have an intimate, loving relationship with God, that is fresh and vibrant. Here’s a recharging word for you this week. Here is your dailyeword.

I think we have all been at the place where we are just going through the motions in life. Perhaps you might have heard this chorus from a song by Matthew West.

I don’t want to go through the motions
I don’t want to go one more day
Without your all consuming passion in side of me
I don’t want to spend my whole life asking
What if I had given everything?
Instead of going through the motions.

How easy is it to just routinely do what we thing we must, without passion or heart behind it. What can you do today to make your walk with God more fresh and vibrant? Could you set aside time to spend with God, just worshipping Him, or reading His Word, or maybe even just being quiet in His presence? So often we busy ourselves with things that don’t matter and miss taking time for what really is important. Do some self assessments today, and then make some adjustments. Live a life with no regrets!

Be honest with yourself. How good are you at being self aware? Most of us are good at giving our selves lots of grace, but flunk at giving very much grace to others. We judge ourselves by our intentions, and other by their actions. How about we change that. Look deeply into your situation right now. How can you begin to get out of the frustration, discouragement, or disappointments you might be facing right now? Could a little more time in the Word of God help? Probably. Could a little more time in fellowship with other believers help? Probably. Could spending time talking to God, instead of whining to your friends help? Probably. How about sharing your heart with your small group? Can that help you get a better perspective and maybe even help pull you out of the slump that you might be in? Probably! So take a good look, and decide. What can I do right now to let the energizing power of the Holy Spirit sweep away some of the junk that I have let build up in my life? If you start by asking that question, you are starting at a great spot. God’s got a great future ahead of you.

We have all faced disappointments. Sometimes we can even feel trapped by life circumstances. Too often people try to find a way through them and make all the wrong choices. Once we have Jesus in our life, we don’t need the crutches that the world uses to get through life. We don’t have to dull our pain through alcohol, drug use, or unhealthy relationships. Sometimes even Christians do those things, but it never makes the disappointments or the feelings of being trapped go away. The opportunity arises for all humans, and sometimes especially as believers, because we have an enemy who really does hate us, and it out to destroy us. But, because of the blood of Jesus, we can have a relationship with Jesus and become overcomers. We have overcome! You are an overcomer. Just like the wife who receives the check after her husband, the champion of the world defeats his opponent in a boxing match, we have received the same thing. Jesus fought the fight, and handed us the victory. So let some of the energizing fresh air of the Holy Spirit sweep through your life and recharge you. Good things are about to happen.

Looking for love in all the wrong places. There is a song by that title, and it not only happens in the world, people in church do the same thing. Perhaps it is you, or you know someone who keeps making wrong choices when it comes to relationships. Perhaps you’ve lowered your standards, or have decided to get ahead of God’s timing and stepped into a land mine when it comes to relationships. If that is you, there is a way out! God gives grace to those who humble themselves and ask for forgiveness. When we do things God’s way, life rises to a whole different plane. The satisfaction and fulfillment we were looking for arrives! It may come in a different package than you expected, but doing things God’s way pays off in the long run. If you thought your husband or wife would bring you the joy you’ve always searched for, they won’t. If you think the job promotion will make you happy, it won’t. Our joy comes from Jesus, living big on the inside of us, making us new, filling us with life and recharging our spirit daily. Looking for love? Love on Jesus first, and see what happens!

How well do you sleep? I read something today that really intelligent people have a harder time sleeping! That makes my husband a genius, and I must not be so smart! I really can sleep anywhere, in fact, if I sit down my body thinks its time to sleep. I am a goer! My husband on the other hand, can toss and turn for hours, all the while listening to me sleep, and getting irritated that I can sleep anywhere, anytime! When you hit the doldrums, even if you get a good nights sleep, you can still wake up feeling tired. Burdens feel heavier with lack of sleep. Circumstances seem worse, and emotionally we can snap at the ones we love the most because of not enough sleep. God wants to give you perfect rest. He says that His yoke is easy, His burden is light. He wants you to experience THE Rest of God as t says in Matt 11:30. This isn’t a fake rest, it is real; recharging, refreshing, and rejuvenating. Don’t live worn out and weary. God gives his beloved (that’s you) rest that revitalizes you spirit, soul and body. Even if you don’t sleep for 8 hours, believe that the time you do sleep will be restful. Get some good rest and experience lighter burdens, and yoke up with Jesus. He will recharge your life.

Do you workout on a treadmill? I love working out, but have never liked the treadmill even though we have one. I would rather be outside in the fresh air, walking, biking or swimming. I know a treadmill is convenient and you can have them at home, but to me, it is a visual of having lots to do and it never finishing. That sensation can make you feel overwhelmed and discouraged, and can lead eventually to feeling burned out. If you are in that place today, feeling like you are on a treadmill and can’t get off, be encouraged that life doesn’t have to continue like that. Today is not a life sentence! God has a plan to recharge your life. Very often the first step to getting out the doldrums is to tell someone that is where you are. That is where small groups can be a lifesaver. You can, in a small group setting, share your heart and have people come along side to pray for you, encourage you, and help you get back on course. James 5 tells us to pray for one another, confess our missteps and sins to each other, so that we can be healed. If you need healing (which could be getting better, physically, emotionally, spiritually, etc) prayer is the perfect place to start. Be the one who is praying, and the one who receives prayer. Both can be healed.

It’s easy to feel exhausted after a hard days work. Your muscles are tired, you might even be dirty, and you are just worn out. I’ve been there this week! It can happen doing the daily mundane tasks of life, and we put the added pressure in our life working to finish building our home. We know that true physical labor can make you tired, but life circumstances can be exhausting and can lead to the feeling of being overwhelmed and exhausted. Whatever kind of doldrums you might be facing, you can recover! God wants to put wind back in your sail. He wants to recharge your spirit. If the land you are in feels dry and thirsty, you can be well hydrated once again. I love how Ps 63:1-5 reminds us that we don’t have to stay in a dry place.
You, God, are my God
Earnestly I seek you
I thirst for you,
My whole being longs for you
In a dry and parched land
Where there is no water.
I have seen you in the sanctuary
And beheld your power and your glory
Because Your love is better than life
My lips will glorify you
I will praise you as long as I live
In your name I will lift up my hands.
Praise has a beautiful way of reenergizing our spirit. Get some fresh praise started in your life and feel your spirit being recharged.

Intro:
Hi, this is Dorette Schaal with your daily eword. I think we all have been in a dry place before, and need to be recharged and refreshed. In the coming weeks we will be talking about getting recharged as we plug into God, and this week is all about the doldrums. That word sounds like what it is! How we got to the doldrums, and how to get out. I hope these daily encouragements will help you take a deep breath and breathe in all that God has for you. Let me know if these dailyewords are helpful to you, I love getting feedback. Here is your dailyeword.

What does the word doldrums mean to you? It can mean stagnation, lethargy, boredom, despondency, the blues, gloom, misery, and even despair. You might think that someone in the “doldrums” got there because they were pessimistic and negative but not necessarily. Even great characters in the Bible show us that you can be on top of the world one day, and in the depths of despair the next. David and Elijah are perfect examples. The devil often works that way. We can have a wonderful victory, and then post victory blues set in. It even happens with moms who have a beautiful baby, and then instead of enjoying this wonderful season of new motherhood, post partum depression sets in. A wonderful blessing arrives, and the new mom is miserable, full of guilt and shame, and feels like a failure. We may not all have experienced all of those synonyms for the doldrums, but every person has had the opportunity to be ensnared by the enemy of our souls with discouragement, and the devil likes to keeps us snared as long as possible. I love Psalms 61 which says this in The Message Bible:
God, listen to me shout,
Bend an ear to my prayer
When I’m far from anywhere
Down to my last gasp,
I call out, guide me up High Rock Mountain
You’ve always given me breathing room,
A place to get away from it all
A lifelong pass to your safe house,
An open invitation as your guest
You’ve always taken me seriously, God,
Make me welcome among those who know and love you.
God is ready to recharge your spirit!

Happy Sunday! This is the day that the Lord has made, let’s rejoice, let’s be glad, and let’s go to church! My prayer every Sunday is that every seat in the sanctuary of our church would be filled with people who are hungry and thirsty for the things of God, right out of Matt 5. Guess how those people get to church? Sometimes they drive by and God draws them in, sometimes they look in the phone book, well maybe not anymore. Sometimes they go on line and find a church. Sometimes they see our church on TV or they listen to the radio station KAGF, 105.5 and hear about our services. You know how most people come to church? Somebody personally invites them. They may even drop by and pick them up. Sometimes, they keep inviting them until they come to a big event planned for outreach. Sometimes they come on their own, but you are placed in the lives of people that God wants you to reach. So invite them to church. Tell them about our terrific kidlink kids programs and the wonderful teachers that minister to lovingly to our kids. Tell them about and our amazing Commissioned Youth services, or our college outreach called Pursuit. Or just invite them to the main service, or invite them to a TeamLife group. Why not try to make it your goal to bring one person a month with you to church, and let’s see every seat full and running over, and let’s keep adding services, making more room for more people who are hungry and thirsty for God. Fill those seats in church around you with your friends!