Minus the Condemnation!

Romans 8:1 - Therefore, [there is] now no condemnation (no adjudging guilty of wrong) for those who are in Christ Jesus, who live [and] walk not after the dictates of the flesh, but after the dictates of the Spirit.

Have you ever had a day that one thing after another seemed to not go as planned? Your "To-Do List" piles up with unchecked boxes, glaring out at you the undone nature of each item! The check-list person in you begins to feel guilty about the list, replaying in your mind whether you could have done something different.

Frustration.

Guilt.

Condemnation.

Well friend… I'm hear to remind you that condemnation is from the enemy. Today is a new day! Allow the condemnation the enemy is trying to get you to accept be washed away. Remember that when you became born again, the blood of Jesus from the cross washed away that condemnation. Romans 8:1 reminds us that for those of us in Christ Jesus, those of us who are born again, there is NO CONDEMNATION!

So today, start anew! Have a fresh new start! Like a blanket of snow before it is touched, while it still sparkles and glitters in the light… allow your day to start anew. Lets wash away the undone checklist and start new today.

One thing I like to do before my day begins is ask one question. "So Father, what should I do today? What should be on my list?" Sometimes my list is short. Sometimes my list is long. But at least I know when I ask, not only have I acknowledged Him so He can direct my day but in doing this it's also a way of applying 1 Peter 5:7, casting my cares (including my schedule) on Him. He cares for me! There is NO condemnation! I refuse to allow condemnation to come down on me because I AM IN CHRIST! What a great feeling! What a great reminder! When a day does not go as planned, I can cast it on the Lord and start anew, start fresh. Cast the day, my list and plans on the Lord and start new minus the condemnation!

#153 - FREE from Condemnation!

Good morning! I pray you are well today. I am! It's going to be a great day! God is good. It should be an interesting topic today.

Romans 8:1 - ... there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus

Luke 4:18 - The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free...

Condemnation. Have you ever walked in condemnation? Guilt? Worry? Self-doubt? Sin? Un-forgiveness? Disappointment? Looking back on it, I can remember MANY times living in a period of my life in total guilt and condemnation on a daily basis. Living in sorrow..... wallowing in sorrow, depression. I remember some days just being depressed. When the alarm sounded in the morning, I just wanted to pull the covers up over my head. I did not want to face the day. Maybe it's condemnation even about "not being happy." You know you should be happy, but you're not... so each day your living in condemnation and guilt because you're not happy.... AND.... that sure hasn't helped making you feel happy. OR... maybe it's condemnation about not hitting your goals... thinking you should be further in life... you should already be in that house you've been wanting, or driving the car that you should have already been able to get but haven't gotten. Maybe you were passed up for a promotion or raise, and that has caused you to loose that hop in your step. OR... maybe it's sin, a continual sin that has popped up it's head more than once causing you to feel guilt.

Well, praise the Lord, Romans 8:1 tells us there is NO CONDEMNATION for those who are in Christ Jesus! That verse alone allows us to be free from condemnation. I know sometimes it sounds easier than it is.... but, when we are walking in guilt or condemnation, we can choose to recognize it and recognize where it is from! If condemnation is not from Christ Jesus, we can pin the blame on the destroyer... the one who comes to steal, kill and destroy, Satan!

I was reminded of the story in the Bible where the adulterous woman was taken to the edge of town to be stoned. The towns people and Jesus were standing all around her, and the towns people were in a rage at her sin, at her adultery. They were ready to stone her to death.  As they asked Jesus whether they should stone her, He simply said, "Whoever is without sin, may he throw the first stone." Gradually, all the towns people left, as they knew they had sin. Jesus was the only one who could have thrown stones at the woman, He was without sin, but even JESUS did not throw stones. He showed mercy and grace.

As I was listening to the Holy Spirit this morning, He told me this, "So many of my children are living in the place of condemnation and it is paralyzing them from being effective for Me! The bondage's, the chains of 'condemnation' ARE NOT LOCKED! My children can walk away from it ANY time they choose, and the sooner the better!"


The enemy is trying to keep us in chains! But the chains ARE NOT LOCKED! That is good news! Walk FREE today! Free from condemnation! Recognize it and refuse to allow guilt to weigh you down!

#90 - Some Truths Can Go Unsaid.

Good morning. It's raining here in Columbia. I'm still enjoying the morning though. Sometimes rain is nice. Out on my porch, it's rather comfortable. As I've been writing my book, it brings me to such different places.... the journey of going back in time and reliving some of the events. It is definitely not always fun. The heaviness of my heart this morning was then confirmed by the scriptures I read today. It's amazing how God does it. The importance of guarding our mouth, guarding our words.... that is what we are going to visit today. 

Proverbs 25:26 - Like a muddied fountain and a polluted spring is a righteous man who yields, falls down, and compromises his integrity before the wicked.

Psalm 25:7 - Remember not the sins (the lapses and frailties) of my youth or my transgressions; according to Your mercy and steadfast love remember me, for Your goodness' sake, O Lord. 

Psalm 55:14 - We had sweet fellowship together and used to walk to the house of God in company. 

Proverbs 31:26 - She opens her mouth in skillful and godly Wisdom, and on her tongue is the law of kindness [giving counsel and instruction].

Well, it is a definite "Praise the Lord" that HE forgets our sin. The moment we ask for forgiveness, our sin is washed away. Like we've talked about lately, as far as the east is from the west, our sin is forgotten. What a wonderful thing! Though that is great, in regards to our words, when sin is accompanied with our words, things we have said, to some, those words may never be forgotten. 

I'll take you back to early on in mine and Tyler's marriage. We were young, obviously still growing in our walk with the Lord, as we still are, and just excited about life. Living life to the fullest. Accomplishing goals. Accomplishing dreams. Chasing God's calling on our life. (Still things we do today!) But, in all that, the key is, we were "raw". We were un-finished, definitely un-polished, and at times our zealousness maybe came off the wrong way to people. 

My best friend while I was in college still lived back home. I was most definitely focused on specific things Tyler and I were pursuing. We had some specific goals, with a time-line and we were very focused. It had been close to two years that I had lived in the south. Living several hundred miles away from someone, being newly married and someone taking the #1 'earthly' spot in my life, and in a focused pursuit of some goals left my friend feeling very unimportant. As I have thought back on the season in my life when we were best friends, it truly was sweet fellowship. We would spend hours talking about the Lord, so green, just so excited to seek Him out and learn about Him. We would read our Bibles together, I'd go visit her and we'd stay up late into the night talking about God and the hopeful plans for our life. Most of our late night talks did revolve around the "boys" in our lives. For me, it was Tyler. I couldn't get my mind off him. I just knew that one day God would reveal to him that he was going to marry me. 


We did have a sweet friendship. But until one day, she confronted my "lack of putting enough effort" into our friendship. It seemed this was a constant guilt trip I had been feeling whenever we talked. I felt frustrated and I felt smothered. Things had definitely changed. In my "raw" way, I finally told her the things I was pursuing with Tyler, my marriage and our goals in our marriage were more important. Yikes. Our conversation quickly ended. I felt horrible, but what I said was true. I maybe didn't have the people skills to do it more tactfully, but what was done was done. 


And that was the end of that. Our friendship never recovered. She was hurt. I was hurt. What I said and the way I said it definitely did not reflect the "law of kindness" like the Proverbs 31 woman. They were things that were true, they were my feelings, but they were not said in kindness. My invitation to be a bridesmaid in her upcoming wedding had soon been recanted, and our friendship left a dark pit in my heart. 


Sure... God forgave me. Many times over through the years that I talked to God about it. Asked for forgiveness, and even asked for my friends forgiveness, but what was done could not be undone. Forgiven, yes. Forgotten, no. 


Will anything ever come of the friendship I once shared? I'm not sure. She was a very dear friend during a very pivotal time in my life. A time when I needed a Christian friend, she was there. Sure, I felt a bit smothered at times.... but she was a great friend. 


I've learned from it. I'd like to say I'm more polished now, more studied in the Word, less raw. I know now, if we ask God's direction, seek His face, He always has an answer. Like the Proverbs 31 woman, it is an answer wrapped in kindness. And.... I have definitely learned that some truths can go unsaid.


Guard your tongue today. God will forget, but sometimes people have a hard time forgetting. If in doubt, don't say it, just be quiet. Some truths can go unsaid. 

#81 - What Sin?

Good morning! Well... I thought I'd share a couple pictures of "THE BOY" in case we aren't pals on Facebook! This was the other night at dinner!! WHOA! I know! IT WAS ALL DAD!!!! I just am not a fan of the gross mess, but dad said, "Let him be! Let him do it! He can feed himself." AHHHH! So, reluctantly I held in my urge to help. I warned Tyler up front that if Tyler Jr was going to feed himself that I was not going to do the "clean-up" OR "bath time!" Sianara! No way Jose! So, Tyler Sr agreed and here is the fruit of that decision! One word: MESS!!!

For real, this is the happiest baby!! He is such a joy and blessing!
He will be a great big brother when that time comes! 

This shows a little bit of his personality! Tyler Jr is SOOO funny!
We just laugh all the time at our house!

OK... well, we have MyGym today, so let's get rolling! I'm still getting used to "remembering" that whole "MyGym" thing! You'd think it would be well implanted in my mind! Anyone that sees me Tuesday nights, feel free to REMIND ME about it!!! HA! :) 

Check the reading schedule for what we read today. And let's do this! It's some GOOD STUFF today!! I'm excited to see how the Holy Spirit brings it all together. I was just jammin out while I read! I was saying, "WOW! For real! This is all so good!!" Isn't it fun when you are in the Word and you have times like that?! When you are just like, "FOR REAL GOD!??!! This is some good stuff!" It's like, "Duh. Of course it is!" lol! Ok... I'm going to quit humoring myself and get started! Oh... one more thing.... a "PS" if you will.... a shout out to Danielle H! She is the one who said, "Amy, I like it when you put pictures up." So, the pictures are for you Danielle! :) Have a great day at work! hehe!

Psalm 6:6 - I am weary with my groaning; all night I soak my pillow with tears, I drench my couch with my weeping. 

Psalms 36:1-2 - TRANSGRESSION [like an oracle] speaks to the wicked deep in his heart. There is no fear or dread of God before his eyes. For he flatters and deceives himself in his own eyes that his iniquity will not be found out and be hated.  

Psalm 66:18 - If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me.  

Psalms 66:9-10, 12b - Who put and kept us among the living, and has not allowed our feet to slip. For You, O God, have proved us; You have tried us as silver is tried, refined, and purified.... we went through fire and through water, BUT You brought us out into a broad, moist place [to abundance and refreshment and the open air]. 

Psalm 66:16, 96:3 - Come and hear, all you who reverently and worshipfully fear God, and I will declare what He has done for me! Declare His glory among the nations, His marvelous works among all the peoples.

Psalm 126:5 - They who sow in tears shall reap in joy and singing. 

OK... WOW! This is some good stuff! Brace yourself! A quick synopsis before we start. SIN. VICTORY. ACTION. Hopefully you are reading a "color-coated" computer or SmartPhone. So we are visiting SIN, then the experience of VICTORY, and then the ACTION we are called to take here. This is good stuff. 


Psalm 6... as I read the amplified and I read that David here was weeping in his PILLOW, a soft spot touched me. Weeping in his PILLOW?! I mean... for real?! If you think about someone weeping in a pillow, who comes to mind? A big military leader? A king? Yah, I didn't think so! That didn't come to my mind either. What came to my mind was a young girl, crying over a boyfriend, or some gossip going around at school. I didn't picture this "Man after God's Own Heart", not just crying, but WEEPING into a pillow. Weeping. Remorse. Guilt. Sorrow. 


Psalm 36 carries us into our sometimes naivety in the area of sin. Our naivety when we think that our sin will not be found out! It says that this person who is holding in this sin deceives himself. To think our SIN won't be found out? To be pious enough to think that we can RUN from our sin? That we can hide? Where can we go to hide? When I think about hiding, I think about running down to the playground down the road from where we live. To hide there. Or... like a child, to hide under my covers. To do what I have often done, and pulled the covers up over my head and just stay in bed. I will hide in my sleep. If I sleep, I can hide. My sin won't be found out. But the reality of it all is, we can continue to run or we can continue to try to hide, but in God's omnipotence, he knows all along where we are. As we run, it is as if he watches his favorite child running away. He sees the back of us as we are running down the sidewalk. Our Father, stands back at our house, His face just longing for us to come back. His face, filled with sorrow, hurt and pain. He understands the guilt we are feeling, our hurt. And His greatest desire as we come running back repenting and asking for forgiveness is to tell us, "My child, what sin? My child, I love you. What sin? Your sin is as far as the east is from the west. All I see is my child, white as snow. Unblemished. Darling, what sin?"


When we hold that sin in, the longer we keep it close to our hearts, the colder we become. The more callous our heart becomes, our spirit, our outlook on life. We begin to build sin upon sin. Lie upon lie. We continue to just cover up our sin. And until we come to repentance, the Lord will not hear our cries. 


God wants us to know the outcome. "Child! Please just come to Me! My Child, come! Come! Draw near to Me! In this place, with Me is abundance Child. In this place is wholeness. In this place you don't have to run. In this place you are safe. In this place (your name), I have EVERY good gift for you! Everything that you have been praying for, it is here. Everything you have been longing for, it is here. The secret desires that you have just kept in your head, Darling, even those are here. I have those! Don't run. It just takes you humbling yourself, laying it down. Don't keep carrying that sin. Don't keep carrying that care. Lay it down here. Lay it down at my feet. Lay it down at the alter. My Child, my desire is for you to have abundance. I want to bless you. If your heart is cold and turned from me, I can't hear you. Through the tears you have cried, joy and singing will come. Morning will come. Draw near to Me."


What sin? What sin? When we humble ourself before our Almighty Father, shame, guilt, sorrow, torment..... when we take that step, often such a hard step, to repent his comment to us is, "What Sin?" As far as the east is from the west, when we repent, He has already forgotten it. Praise the Lord. We no longer have to carry around the shame or the guilt. The actions, the things that we have done that we feel shame about, dirty, disappointed, those things are literally cast into a SEA of FORGETFULNESS! They are GONE! So lay down your burdens once and for all. Lay down the sins that have been so easily entangling you. Lay them down at the feet of Jesus so they can be forgotten and you can walk into a world of freedom and abundance. Declare HIS faithfulness! Declare what He has done for you! Declare His freedom!


You can be forgiven. Nothing is to bad. And your Father will literally forgive and forget! His desire is to say, "Child, What sin?" 

#71 - Forgiving Ourselves

Good morning! :) I'm taking my DOR tomorrow if you wondered! :) Daddy & 'The Boy' are going to enjoy "MyGym" in the morning! :) We have some make-up classes for him to attend. Dad will have fun I'm sure. Last time that we went on a Saturday the place was packed! It was fun watching all the moms and dads with their little one. :) I'll tell ya... 'The Boy' is just really funny. It's fun to just sit here and turn up the baby monitor sometimes. He just is in his bed, "La la la la. La la la la. La la la la." His hands just go up in the air, and he moves them around. It's SOOOO funny! And if you could hear his voice, it is so cute! It's kind of a high pitched singing voice. He's just up there talking to himself. I think he's practicing a speech. One day, he'll be a great communicator and take after his Papa! :) 


Oh... and I'm sporting my "Montoya" jeans, as we call them. It's still a little bit warm for jeans... but Tyler and I love my 3 pairs of "Montoya" jeans! :) Ha! A cutie friend of mine gave them to me a year ago....I was about 12 weeks prego when she 'gifted' them to me..... but NOW THEY FIT! Yippee!! She's a little thing! They were too big for her! Hey, I'll be happy to sport her 6's! Locally, she participated in the "New Way, New You" program that I was a part of last year (and I now coach people through). It consists of proper eating (actually like the food pyramid! Wow!), organic supplementation, 4321 exercise program (10 minutes a day!). Yah... now she's like a 0 or 2! Go Mego! 125 is my next goal... 4 pounds to go! Yippee! By then, Trinity, or Trin Trin as we call her, should be on her way. (Our next kiddo.) OK... let me get focused here... I'm a bit off topic. 


Today's Reading Schedule: Proverbs 17, Psalms 17, 47, 77, 107, 137, Proverbs 31:10-31. 

Psalm 107: 20 - He sends forth His word and heals them and rescues them from the pit and destruction. 

Proverbs 17:9 - He who covers and forgives an offense seeks love, but he who repeats or harps on a matter separates even close friends. 

Psalm 77:13 - Your way, O God, is in the sanctuary [in holiness, away from sin and guilt]. Who is a great God like our God? 

Psalm 17:5 - My steps have held closely to Your paths [to the tracks of the One Who has gone on before]; my feet have not slipped.

Proverbs 31:17a - She girds herself with strength [spiritual & mental...] 

As many of you know, I am proactively writing a book right now. Two actually. Both to be completed by the end of this year. The one, Fairytales Do Come True, is the story of me, my life. The leading up to meeting Tyler, the meeting, engagement, and wedding. It's quite an amazing story. Especially one of grace and forgiveness. I just crested over 25,000 words, so that is exciting. :) 


As I have been writing, my mind has had to go back and re-live some of the events. Some of the ugly events before meeting Tyler... some of the hard memories, that were very painful at the time. This morning I was re-living the challenge of forgiveness, and how often, the hardest person to forgive is ourselves. We see a sin, a sin so great that though Jesus has done all He needs to do, He has gone to the cross for US, for that VERY SIN we committed, and yet we hold on to it. We hold on to its misery, allowing it to keep us in the pit of despair. We allow it's ugly grasp to keep our hearts heavy, our face downtrodden, and our countenance one of shame. We live in a place that is hard, and in a place of shame, unwilling or unable to forgive ourself. How could God want me back after I did something so horrible? How could He want me back? 


This morning as I read the chapters, and scriptures, it was so beautiful. The pictures, the story, the view. Pureness. Love. Forgiveness. Help. I read how He heals them and rescues them from the pit & destruction. How after forgiveness comes, we are able to enter into a sanctuary. The picture that comes to mind is one from the book, The Dream Giver, by Bruce Wilkinson. I picture Ordinary, there at the pool. Trees surrounding him, and a light shining through the middle. I picture Ordinary in the pool, so much light and fullness, the dirt is washed away. It truly is a sanctuary. White, filled with light, the very presence of Jesus is felt. The fullness and grace encompassing the whole area. Full. To the top. Grace. Holiness. Away from sin & guilt. The sin & guilt completely washed away. 


For me, now I am in a place where I truly do my best to hold closely to HIS path, so that my feet will not slip. That my eyes and gaze would stay forward, the I would continue to press in to HIS presence and like the Proverbs 31 woman, that I would gird myself with strength. That in HIS presence I would find strength. That HIS guidance would keep me FROM sin & guilt. That my focus would be strong enough that I'm not even drawn off the path. 


But... this morning, I remembered well the pain of sin. I remembered well the challenge of forgiveness. My shame during that time was so great, my hurt & pain was overwhelming. How could a God so good forgive me when I felt so bad? During that time, through the help of a friend who prayed for me, I was able to experience that sanctuary. I was able to enter in to a place where the guilt was washed away. Where the shame was turned to white. A place where I experienced true forgiveness. A place where I allowed AMY to forgive AMY. And then the grace of God swept into my heart and filled all the places that seemed so dark. My heart felt new. I experienced grace. I experienced love. 


Maybe you are carrying something today. Something that to you is BIG. Something that to you, seems TOO big for even God to forgive. Friend, let me tell you, that is EXACTLY why Jesus went to the cross. He went to the cross for THAT VERY SIN. If it were just you, just that sin, He would have done it just for you! You are already forgiven. Your sin has already been paid for. Today, will you allow YOU to forgive YOU? Allow yourself to enter into the sanctuary where your sin can be made white as snow. Allow yourself grace. 


Then, it's just a matter of staying on THE path. He will help your feet to not slip. Commit your feet to HIS path and allow yourself the grace of forgiveness. 

#66 - The SOLID ROCK will PULL YOU OUT!

Good morning! Wow! It's been a full morning. I have been given a daily assignment to do in the morning. It has been quite fulfilling. So great to see growth, progress, but more importantly, obedience. What a good feeling to be obedient to what the Lord has instructed me to do! What was the last thing He told you to do? Are you doing it? I've went many a times procrastinating on what He has directed, and postponing.... but now that I'm in the middle of it, nothing feels better than daily obedience! :)


Today's Reading Schedule: Proverbs 10, Psalms 10, 40, 70, 100, 130, Proverbs 31:10-31

Psalms 130:3-4 - If You, Lord, should keep account of and treat [us according to our] sins, O Lord, who could stand? ⁴But there is forgiveness with You [just what man needs], that You may be reverently feared and worshiped.  

Psalms 40:1-3a - I WAITED patiently and expectantly for the Lord; and He inclined to me and heard my cry. ²He drew me up out of a horrible pit [a pit of tumult and of destruction], out of the miry clay (froth and slime), and set my feet upon a rock, steadying my steps and establishing my goings. ³And He has put a new song in my mouth...

Proverbs 10:25 - When the whirlwind passes, the wicked are no more, but the [uncompromisingly] righteous have an everlasting foundation.

Psalms 100:5b - ...His faithfulness and truth endure to all generations. 

Proverbs 31:30 (NLT) - Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last; but a woman who fears the Lord will be greatly praised.

What was the reoccurring theme here? What's the story? Because I think it definitely tells a story. 


This is the story... a story of forgiveness and grace. A story of help. Pulling you up when you feel like you are drowning. Throwing you a life-vest when you are just about to sink. Raising you up. It is a story of love, mercy, acceptance, belonging. 


Despite where we are as a Christian, we still may have those days where we mess up. We feel like a failure and a flop. We begin beating ourselves up over messing up again! We feel ashamed and disappointed. And... sometimes our own disappointment can be the worst disappointment of all because we are not easy on ourselves. 


Maybe life is just the day to day for you. Maybe right now, everything about life seems unfulfilling. Seems like you have just failed and failed, or you've started on this path and you don't feel even close to your end destination. You feel destitute, lost, sad, disappointed. Is there any use continuing on in this direction when nothing seems to be happening? 


Friend, let me tell you, you are not alone! You have company that is just waiting to help. You have the company of ALL company who wants to see you be the greatest success ever! Company that has plans for you beyond what you could EVER think or imagine! He has plans for you that He wants to unveil and reveal, He wants you to walk down the path towards the greatness He has in store! 


In this story, what I hear is, Do NOT give up! You may be experiencing life in what has seemed like a pit, but things are changing! Here is my 'revision' for one of the verses above.... 

"Friend, you may have sinned or just began to grow weary. You may be tired, frustrated and discouraged. But, ALL you have to do is GRAB MY HAND! I am PULLING YOU OUT! You have waited. You have been expectant for my help. Emmerse yourself in MY WORD. Ground yourself in ME. Plant yourself firmly in MY PLAN, and let me tell you!!! I AM putting a new song in you! An excitement about life and your purpose that you have NEVER experienced! You will want to shout! People will ask you, 'Why do you always smile? Why are you so happy?' You will just laugh and smile and respond, 'Because My God is SOOOO good to me!' Prepare yourself! The new SONG is here! Continue to GROUND yourself in ME, and we will do great things together! SING YOUR SONG! SHOUT TO JOY! Expect your VICTORY! WE HAVE WON!"

Also, the old hymn enters my mind that just makes me feel happy, "On Christ the SOLID ROCK I stand, all other ground is sinking sand, all other ground is sinking sand!"

SIN - DEFEAT - DISCOURAGEMENT
 JESUS - FIRMLY PLANTED - SOLID ROCK

FORGIVENESS - VICTORY - HOPE - NEWNESS! 

Today... PLANT YOURSELF ON THE ROCK. Plant yourself so firmly that you WILL NOT be moved! Refuse to let Satan get you down and defeated. Refuse to give in to him. His tactics are to wear you down. To make you feel like you are a failure and a loser. But GOD'S plan is DIFFERENT! For one, YOU ARE FORGIVEN! Anything you have done in your past, even today, it's as easy as ASKING for forgiveness and it is done! Your slate is wiped clean and you are as white as Billy Graham. You are forgive. Walk in VICTORY today! Rejoice in Victory today! RECEIVE God's plan and purpose for your life! AND DAILY, get more and more firmly planted as you spend time in the Word and talking with Your Father! 

ON CHRIST THE SOLID ROCK I STAND, ALL OTHER GROUND IS SINKING SAND, ALL OTHER GROUND IS SINKING SAND!

PRAISE THE LORD! I'M STANDING ON A SOLID ROCK AND IT FEELS GOOD!!!


XOXO! Be blessed today! :)

#61 - Forgotten

Good morning! Can you share with me the excitement, the satisfaction, the pride you can have when you know you are obedient to the Lord? When you have done something that HE has instructed you to do. You have not procrastinated, you may not have gotten it down quite perfect yet, but you have completed the assignment. What a good feeling. What a good feeling to be obedient knowing that because of obedience and diligence, great rewards are on the horizon. Praise the Lord! :) Well.... let's get started.


Reading Schedule: Proverbs 31:10-31, Proverbs 2, Psalms 2, 32, 62, 92, 122

Proverbs 2:16b-17 - ...to deliver you from the alien woman...Who forsakes the husband and guide of her youth and forgets the covenant of her God. 

Psalms 32:3-5 - When I kept silence [before I confessed], my bones wasted away through my groaning all the day long. For day and night Your hand [of displeasure] was heavy upon me...I acknowledged my sin to You, and my iniquity I did not hide. I said, I will confess my transgressions to the Lord [continually unfolding the past till all is told]--then You [instantly] forgave me the guilt and iniquity of my sin...

Psalms 92:13-15 - Planted in the house of the Lord, they shall flourish in the courts of our God. [Growing in grace] they shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be full of sap [of spiritual vitality]... They are living memorials...  

Proverbs 31:11 - The heart of her husband trusts in her confidently and relies on and believes in her securely, so that he has no lack of [honest] gain or need of [dishonest] spoil. 

Wow! What fullness in the very words. What fullness in the Words we can read. It's almost as the verses above tell a story. A story of a woman who had forgotten... a woman who once knew God, who once had a relationship with Him, but allowed it to slip away. Forgot. Faded. Imagine if that same woman would have continued on.... confessing all her sins to the Lord, acknowledging it all, just spilling everything to the Lord.... all the while, He already knew all of her sins. Unfolding the past till all is told. What beauty in the very transparency of it all. The sweetness of release takes place, guilt is lifted. Guilt is taken away, and newness of life occurs. A new lease on life begins. 


If the alien woman would have continued.... continued on further in her walk with the Lord until she was living a life that was flourishing. Firmly planted in her relationship with God. Firmly planted in her devotion to a living Savior! What beauty! Continually growing in grace, greeting old age in fullness, in SPIRITUAL VITALITY! The words alone express victory. Express one who has lived a life full of victory and still charging forward with fervor. Spiritual Vitality. Living in old age, lasting, pursuing life to the fullest. A victory of being known as a living memorial! A living memorial! Typically a memorial is a tribute to someone who has done something great, but who has passed away. Imagine this alien woman, changing her course and direction, to get into her older years and be recognized by people around as a living memorial! She is CONTINUING to do great things! She has made her name great. She has served with greatness. She has pursued with passion. She has followed her one true love, her Lord and Savior, Jesus. And what is a result of it all? How does it affect her marriage? It affects her marriage in such a great way. It affects her marriage in total belief, respect and reliance from her husband. He does not rely on her in a weak sense... in a sense that he has given over leadership to her, he has not. He is 100% man. He is 100% leader of their marriage. But, he has allowed himself to be vulnerable to believing in her. Her roots are so firmly planted in the Lord, that he can trust her. He does not have to second guess her decisions. He does not have to have a hint of doubt when she does something. From the very CORE of his being, he knows that what she does, she has reason. What she does, there is purpose. What she does, even if it may seem questionable at the way it is approached, he knows in the depths of him that she most definitely has been led by the Holy Spirit, and the fullness of her actions will unfold to show the greatness of God's plan. He trusts her. 


He trusts her fully.


If only. If only the alien woman would have chose to change her course. She could have experienced this all. She could have experienced a life more fulfilling than the danger or risque life she was living. Lurking on corners. Never being fully loved by a man. Never experiencing the fullness of friends or fulfillment towards a worthy cause. If only she would have not forgotten the God of her youth. 


Today... where are you in the story? 

• Are you at the cross roads? Are you there at the point where you need to choose.... choose a life living for the world or a life living for your God?
• Are you at the place of repentance? Are you full of guilt and shame? Does it feel like it is hurting your heart, like it just wants to break from your chest? Are you at a place where you just need to spill all.... run to the Savior you know is there. Run to the Friend that you know will be there in Jesus? Are you in that place? Where you need to repent? 
• Maybe you are in the place where victory you are experiencing? You are firmly planted? You are now working towards leaving your lasting mark on this world. Leaving a mark that will carry on for generations. Maybe you are working on being that living memorial? 
• Or maybe you are there, desiring to be the spouse you know you need to be. Desiring to have such complete trust and unity with your spouse. Desiring to change the dirty. Desiring to change the hesitancy in his thoughts about your actions.... not knowing if your next actions will be for yourself or what you both know God would want. Maybe you are at the place where, like the Proverbs 31 woman, her husband trusts her completely. Has NO lack of honest gain. Has full confidence, respect and trust in her. Maybe YOU are working to grow in this area. This area where your husband does not doubt you or question you, but fully trusts all your actions. 

Wherever you are today... pray. Take the next step. Choose God. Repent. Ask for forgiveness. Continue aggressively to make a difference. Or begin to BE the trustworthy person. Begin the pursuit to be a trusted wife & living memorial, to leave a lasting impact on this world.

Today.... ask yourself.... where am I in this story? Where am I? What do I need to do next. 

Do not be the forgotten. Do not forget the God of your youth. Do not pursue life forgetting the most important Guide. Leader. Director of life. It would most certainly be a life of unfulfillment and loss to live having forgotten.

__________________________________________

Have these devotions been a blessing to you? 

Have they helped you in your walk with the Lord? 

Are you reading them but not a "follower"? If you are on your computer, to the left side you can choose to be a "Follower". Would you consider doing that today? As I pursue a writing career, with books coming out in 2010, "followers" help in the publishing world. 

Bless someone else with these devotions. 

Share on Facebook, Twitter, or email a friend. 

Thanks so much! I am equally blessed to hear what the Lord says each day. I love to hear His Voice and follow His direction. There is no better thing in life to know when you are hearing your Creator, and being obedient to His Voice. 


Thanks again for reading. I am blessed to have you as a brother or sister in Christ. Until we meet....

                            Xoxo, 

                                      Amy J.

Follow me on Twitter: @amyjmccart

#10 - BONUS SATURDAY: Red Handed

Wow...what good stuff this morning! My goal is to be predictable in my posts, so my "plan" is to post Monday-Friday and take the weekends off.... but I just can't help to not post this one.... Some really good stuff this morning. 


So being that it is the 5th, we are taking text from Proverbs 5....as I read the chapter, there are SOOO many ways to go: the loose woman, the faithful woman... and really go into depth there. But honestly, this morning after reading, I couldn't get past the first verse! 


Let's take a look:

Proverbs 5:1 - MY SON, be attentive to my Wisdom [godly Wisdom learned by actual and costly experience], and incline your ear to my understanding [of what is becoming and prudent for you]...

Wow! So, let's discover who is talking here. Like we found in earlier in Proverbs 4:3 it says, When I (Solomon) was a son with my father (David).... he taught me and said to me...
So, we can assume David continues teaching Solomon in Proverbs 5:1 as he begins with MY SON. What I really thought was interesting was this... be attentive to my Wisdom. 
What is the best way to learn? We often hear, "through other people's experience"! I can hear David saying to his son, "Son, listen to my Wisdom, it has come through actual experience! Costly Experience!" Which makes me then want to look back on the story to see what David is talking about. 
What was "costly" about David's experience? DEATH! DEATH is what was greatly costly. It cost the life of David's seven day old son. 
Let's re-cap the story. About 10 months earlier David writes Joab, a military leader, a letter saying, "Put Uriah in the front line of the heaviest fighting and withdraw from him, that he may be struck down and die." (2 Sam. 11:15) Bathsheba mourned her husband, and when she was done mourning him, David brought her in, made her his wife and she bore him a son. (2 Sam 11:27).


So... here's where it gets interesting. Over the next 9-10 months, David enjoys life with his new, beautiful wife. Her belly grows, she looks radiant and pregnant. At dinner, they likely talk about this new baby. They dream about what he or she may be, hoping it will be a boy to carry on the name. They begin to love this child before it is even born. All the while, David knowing his sin, pushes it further and further under the rug. Isn't that true though. If or when you have sinned, haven't you just had the times where you hope no one finds out. The longer it goes with no one knowing, we take on the attitude of: "What sin.... it's been so long ago, does it really even count..." or we begin to convince ourselves that it didn't even really happen because we have gotten away with it for so long. 
Well, that is when the man of God, Nathan appears. Nathan tells King David of a story of a poor and rich man. How the poor man had ONE lamb, he coddled and raised up this little lamb from infancy, he practically fed it out of his very own hand. In the meantime, a traveler is coming through, and the rich man not wanting to take from his own large flock, takes from the poor man, takes all that the poor man has. Takes the one lamb belonging to the poor man. David gets furious, says, "Surely this man should die!"
Nathan announces, "This man is you!"
Imagine the immediate sinking in the heart of David. He is caught..... red-handed. His sin has been found out. Think of how David must have felt, or how you have felt when you are caught in a sin, the shame that rises from your heart. The warm heat on your cheeks. The agony and disgust you feel in yourself. You just want to get on your knees and cry. I believe, this must have been how David felt. Pain, disgust & sorrow. 
So, his now wife is getting ready to have a baby and Nathan announces that the baby will surely die. On top of the disgust and sorrow, this child that has been growing in David's wife's stomach, this child that they have already begun to love, will die. All due to the sin that David has committed. David pleads with the Lord, weeps and cries before the Lord to spare his Son. He won't eat anything or drink anything. David cries out to the Lord... but after 7 days, the son of David & Bathsheba dies.
David was guilty, but did receive mercy on his life as Nathan told him, "The Lord has put away your sin; you shall not die." 


In Proverbs 5:1, David is speaking from actual & costly experience. We can read in Romans that sin leads to death. If we continued on the road of sin, death is the outcome, their are consequences to sin. 


I think, how many times have I sinned and felt utterly ashamed. Where I just wanted to run and hide from God and hide from my sin. Pull the covers up over my head and hide. But praise God.... though we are often found guilty, though the cost of our sin could and should be our life, he often pardons our sin and forgives. 


The following video shows is just a clip of an amazing video LUMP. It portrays the shame of sin.... the ending, not shown in this clip, shows a father... loving & hugging his boy who dripping in sweat, running from fear & shame is forgiven.