Wednesdays in the Word: Verse Z

We made it! All the way from A-Z with Bible verses. I want to start by thanking all of you for hanging in here with me for this project. You've left kind comments and emailed me your thoughts - and I am glad to know that along the way, different verses have meant something to you at your place in this life journey. Thanks for sharing this learning time with me!

I was, as you might imagine, a bit limited in verses containing "Z" words - but I think this verse is a PERFECT way to wrap up these memory verses.

Ever feel like giving up? 

When I was in college, I began each semester enthusiastically. Fresh syllabi...new books...the determination to do my best EVER work. And then...sometime around midterms {or the first day of class, at times}...I didn't just hit the wall...I slammed into it with such force, I should have sailed through the other side. I couldn't study one more hour. Write one more paper. Retain information for one more test. I wanted to QUIT. And if not quit entirely...at least quit trying SO hard.

My final semester, I was hired as an employee of the school WHILE completing my degree. While all my classmates were job hunting, I already had an office of my very own, business cards, and a real paycheck. Going to work was SO FUN. Going to class was SO NOT. I begged to quit school. I promised to be the best employee they had ever seen...if they would just PLEASE let me enter the real world right then. Naturally they denied that gracious offer. I was half a semester away from a four year degree. I could NOT quit. {And I I did not quit.}

When I walked the desert road, people told me to quit. Walk away. Be done. He's never coming back, they said. Just cut your losses and go on. But I knew God was calling me to to stay the course, despite the pain and despite the potential lack of a future. And as you all know, he did NOT come back. The relationship was over. But I was so thankful that for the first time ever - I lived out the words of this verse. I kept my spiritual fervor. I served the Lord in a hard spot and stayed faithful and obedient to what He asked of me.

And now Ryan and I wait again. We wait for houses to sell and direction on where to go next. The waiting is tiring. It's taxing. It's out of our control. And it's hard. But we've learned from our previous seasons. From the days when we wanted to quit something entirely. From the days when we wanted to at least quit trying as hard. We want, so much, for people who might be watching, to see that we are hanging onto our fervent trust in the Lord. That we are serving while we wait. That we are striving to learn the lessons He has for us in the waiting.

So as we say goodbye to this particular study, I invite you to serve with zeal. Maybe you're waiting like we are. Maybe you're fighting. Maybe you're being still. Maybe you're delighting. Maybe you're grieving. Maybe you're doing a handful of those things at once. Whatever you're doing, do it with zeal. Keep your fervor. Serve the Lord in it. Let those watching you see Jesus.

Press on, my sweet friend. Press on and press into Him.

Wednesdays in the Word: Verse Y

I've told you before that the verses I picked out for this list were ones that I hoped captured some of the main lessons I would want to impart to someone else if I were in a position to impart something. Important truths. Critical challenges.

I'm excited about this one, because it was one of the most important things I ever absorbed into my own heart...coupled with one of the things I'm still working to learn.

Ever take a look at a picture of yourself and find your eyes immediately drawn to the things you dislike the most? You know what popped into your mind when you just read that. For me it's usually my white roots {if it happens to be at the worst point between colorings}, my nose, random rolls of fat, and my feet.

I thought I would never get over the nose, in particular, until I heard Beth Moore recount the time someone told her she'd be pretty if it weren't for that nose. I happen to think Beth Moore is lovely inside and out and until that point had never even noticed her nose. Now I consider it a privilege to have a Beth Moore-esque nose and if she can be confident in who the Lord made her to be...I can do the same.

Over the years, God has worked in my heart profoundly, instilling the truth that HE made me...on purpose...when He did and where He did and how He did...for a specific reason.

When I wondered why I had to be born so late in life to my parents...He gently taught me {over the course of time} that He had a very distinct purpose in planting me in THAT family in THAT year. When I wondered why I had to be the one who stood in the appetite line twice and entirely missed the love-of-exercise line...He began to teach me that He made me the way I look on purpose and it's okay. The flaws, the imperfections, the things that jump off the picture first...are okay. He made me and I'm worth something.

When I wondered why I can't sing or draw...why all those talents my friends seemed to ooze eluded me entirely...He taught me that the gifts He gave me are the gifts I need.

It's been a series of lesson 36 years in the making and not done yet by a long shot.

And the part I'm still working to learn? To ask for wisdom and understanding. When I could be asking for doses of the talent I feel I missed...or for my nose to shrink or something else of a similar fashion, I need to be asking for wisdom. Wisdom to know who I am in Him and to love who I am in Him.

It's true for you too, you bloggy friend on the other side of this screen. Know that He made you on purpose to be YOU...and if you ask Him for wisdom to understand His commands, He will be faithful to show you each step as you need it.

Let's absorb it together...how much we're loved by the Creator who dreamed us into being!

Wednesdays in the Word: Verse X

So many of the verses I chose for this list of Scripture memory have been about learning...and facing hard times...and growth...so I'm excited for this week's verse and the celebration it encourages!!

I haven't really gone this direction when writing about the weekly verses, but today I want to tell you about a person in my life who lives this verse WELL.

Deanna and I met back in the late 90's {which makes us sound so old now...but we are NOT, thankyouverymuch} when we were both student workers in the Financial Aid Office at IWU. I was wildly insecure, floundering a bit and trying to find my way in all areas of life, it seemed. Deanna was bright, bubbly, full of love, encouragement, and {the thing that stood out to me the most} a spirit of praise.

It didn't seem to matter how tough her week might be...how unfair life seemed to be unfolding...or how overwhelmed she felt. Deanna flashed a bright smile and said "Praise the Lord anyway!"

And she meant it. On the very worst day...she praised. For real.

I was privileged to watch her get married to her college sweetheart, and they have three sons now. I keep up with Deanna through Facebook, and my heart is so happy to see that her bubbly personality and desire to praise the Lord...remain firmly intact.

Deanna is a Mary Kay consultant, and just a few weeks ago, she earned her Cadillac.

And in the way she always does, she celebrated by praising the Lord...giving Him full credit for the blessings she enjoys.

Every single time I see Deanna's name scroll through my Facebook feed, and every single time I see that beautiful smile, my instant thought is now there is a girl who praises the Lord without reservation or condition.

I confess my initial reaction isn't always to "praise the Lord anyway." But oh how I want to be more like Deanna in this way. How I want to learn her beautiful spirit of praise.

Thank you, Deanna, for your example to me. Thank you for showing me how to live a life of out-loud praise. And thanks for letting me share you with my friends so they can learn from you too!

Wednesdays in the Word: Verse W

First of all, let me say a giant THANK YOU for the kind comments yesterday. I was hoping the words of the prayer we heard would encourage YOU {and hopefully they did}....and you encouraged me with your kindness. We are holding tight and know God has a perfectly-timed plan. But goodness, the prayers are so helpful.

We've made it all the way to W in our study of verses...and this is one that falls into the category of "easier said than done."

I've been thinking about this one...because my guess is when you saw those words, you either charged yourself guilty or innocent from falling into one of two temptations: food or sex. And now, feeling either appropriately convicted or freed, you're ready to move on.

But today I'm urged to stop and think about some of those other temptations. The ones we don't really pause to think about in this context.

* The temptation to be lazy in work. {Not just AT work, but IN work.} To not give our very best. To coast along.

* The temptation to lose our tempers...with drivers on the road, with our kids, with people shopping across the aisle from us {gulp, Bekah}.

* The temptation to let something go that needs to be addressed...a hurt, maybe. A lost friendship. Something that might cause wounding if we scrape at it, but it still deserves attention.

* And speaking of that...the temptation to neglect those closest to us. To be too busy for our spouses or our kids.

* The temptation to live beyond our means, because let's face it...having stuff and going places can be so much fun.

* The temptation to skip out on tithing so we can pay some bills.

* The temptation to take credit that isn't ours, rather than pointing to the one who deserves it...because we enjoy the attention.

* The temptation to skip out on our devotions or church rather than investing in time with God.

...you get the idea.

Pray, so much, against the temptations to be less than God made you to be. To be less than a good example for Him.

...And now, I have some praying to do...

Wednesdays in the Word - Verse V

Can you believe we are almost to the end of this alphabet verse journey? Thank you so much for hanging in there with me as I have walked through this time of learning. I have so appreciated all the comments and emails and other messages you've sent...letting me know the different ways God has spoken to you through these verses. After today, we'll only have 4 verses left!

Today's bit of wisdom from the Word...

Looking back at this verse, I wondered why I picked it instead of...say...something about VICTORY.

But then I remembered.

I chose this particular set of verses to symbolize what I would say to someone just beginning life with the Lord...or life outside of a parent's care. These are verses that I hope would encompass the main points of living a life pleasing to the Lord.

I chose this one because OH how tempting...and easy...and natural...it is to continue to take charge of our own revenge. To manipulate words and situations in order to clear our own names, even if we tarnish a host of images in the process.

And while there certainly are times and places where it's appropriate to stand up for yourself and speak words of truth where lies have been spoken...there are also times and places where it's appropriate - and courageous - to allow God to be in charge of your vindication. To trust in the truth that your behavior has been blameless {this is also a great reminder to do that as well} and know that God will come to your defense in ways you can't even imagine.

It's a lesson Ryan and I are still learning in some ways...our stubborn pride gets in the way and we forget to be still...and trust in the Lord to take care of us.

I believe this is one of the important, unmentioned lessons to learn in our walk with the Lord. Jesus gave a great example in His own arrest and trial. Vindication doesn't get much sweeter than being raised from the dead!

Wednesdays in the Word: Verse U

If ever I could absolutely WRITHE over a verse that has popped up at this time...it's this verse.

God's been trying to make His way through a very thick-skulled girl with these verses...you may have taken note week after week that I seem to get hit square between the eyes...and you may have also noticed that the resounding theme is always {don't hit me}...selling a house.

There are blogs for moms and blogs for singles and blogs for homeschoolers and blogs for those battling infertility. I'm starting to feel like we're the blog for those trying to sell a stinkin' house.

So it only seems appropriate that today's verse is this one:

To set the stage for you...last night, I spent the evening at home, leading my little Bible study - learning from Beth Moore. Ryan spent the evening at the Greentown house, mowing and weeding and losing another night of his life to this house that we have labored in and over for so long. He called the realtor while he was gone and discussed the next phase of strategy, and then he came home and we suffered through heightened blood pressure together as we again expressed our frustrations THAT THIS HOUSE HAS NOT SOLD.

In a desperate effort, I snapped open my list of verses to see what I'd be writing about and read that verse.

I snapped the list shut and said, "I don't want to write the blog." Ryan asked why, and I read him the verse.

What could he do but laugh?

I confess my mind was so muddled, I had to go to the commentary on this one. I'm sure this verse can be literal, but it's more than that. Bottom line? Unless you step back and allow God to be in full control of {fill in situation here} - it does not matter for even half a second how much time and effort you put toward {said effort}. You're wasting your time, because it will fail.

For us, this really does apply to a house. Unless we say {and mean} "God, I'm letting YOU do this YOUR way" - then every calorie we set forth to burn in selling any home is a waste. And I'm not even going to lie to you...I won't speak for Ryan, but I'm really struggling in my heart to not help direct the Lord in this venture. I have so many good ideas and I'm so eager for Him to consider them.

So I come to you today not with words of wisdom, but rather as a fellow traveler who hasn't done a bang-up job of learning this lesson. I come freshly convicted. I come a bit humbled. And certainly weary.

I come as one trying to transfer head knowledge into heart faith.

Maybe you relate? 

Wednesdays in the Word: Verse T

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh how I needed this verse today. Yes. It's one of those verses.

I believe the Bekah version of this verse goes something like this: "Trust in Him when it's easy to do so, O Bekah. Pour out your heart to Him and hope He shows up."

And this is why I was not called upon to write the Bible and we can all be very thankful.

Trust in Him AT ALL TIMES.

I don't know what's part of your "all times" right now - but for us, it goes back to the broken record of selling houses. Trusting Him to bring buyers. Trusting Him to work out details of financing. Trusting Him with the timing of all sales and all future living arrangements. Trusting in Him AT ALL TIMES. Even the days when no one calls. When no one makes an offer. When nothing changes on my horizon. Still trusting.

And the part of the verse I absolutely ADORE is this: pour out your hearts to Him.

I love the invitation to gush my thoughts. To have a meltdown, if that's what I need to do. To beg for mercy, for help, for intercession, for intervention. To be gut-level-honest, even when said honesty is gut-level-ugly. To know that I'm safe in being completely vulnerable. To know that my words don't surprise Him.

He is my refuge.

Do you know what a refuge is? It's a place of safety and protection. When those days come that I feel I can't hang on one more second...He is my refuge. His protective arm circles around me and holds me close. His protective arm circles around these properties we own and holds them close as well. He's the refuge for me and all that concerns me.

So I don't know what He's teaching you through this verse today, but my target phrase today is "at all times." My assignment.

Gulp.

Gulp and lean...right into that perfectly safe refuge.

Wednesdays in the Word: Verse S

I'm terrible at memorizing Scripture. I'm sure somewhere out there is a carefully funded study that shows the average number of times a person has to see or hear something to memorize it. I like to think of myself as above average. Whatever that average is...quadruple it and that's me. On a good day.

But this verse is one I remember memorizing early on...in the oddest of places.

A novel.

I grew up reading Janette Oke novels. {I'm not old, of course, but "back then," she was about the only Christian romance author, and I devoured every book she wrote.}

It was book three in the Love Comes Softly series {vastly different than the movies based on the books} that chronicled the journey of Missie and Willie as they headed west in a covered wagon. And this verse was Missie's verse as she traveled. She quoted it all the time - and even gave their son the middle name of Isaiah based on this verse.

{I cannot remember to call for an oil change on my car, but I recalled all of that off the top of my head.}

I tell you all of that not because you care how I learned verses, but because it gave me such a unique connection to this verse. Obviously the book I read was a novel, but the point was real. The character Missie was fictional, but she represented real people who really did kiss their families goodbye - not knowing if it would be forever - and head west into the unknown. They took all their possessions in wooden boxes the size of one of our cars - sheltered only by canvas and pulled by horses. They faced injuries and disease and death and harsh weather...and had to march ahead with whatever knowledge they had.

And people like Missie really would have clung to that verse - begging God to help them avoid fear and dismay. Looking to Him for strength and help.

Today I'm a modern day Missie. I'm a girl facing an unknown of my own as I wait for God to guide the direction of our future. As I wait for a home to sell. Not knowing when or if I'll be asked to kiss my family goodbye and head into the unknown. Packing up my possessions and moving them to a new place and a new chapter of life.

And I hold to this verse for very different reasons as she did. {Or as those she represented did.}

The verse was true in Old Testament times when it was written. It was true for those headed to the promising west of America. And it is true for this day, for me and for you.

Wednesdays in the Word: R Verse

I have very active tear ducts.

You probably know this. :)

So you can understand, then, why I love THIS verse so much.

My active tear ducts mean that I've done some pretty ugly melting down in a public setting. I've been caught mid-ugly-cry by a brand new boss on his first morning of work. I may or may not have sobbed a squealy "world-peace" sort of cry while speaking in front of a couple hundred people. I also had a shining moment during my first Share when reading a note from a listener on air - and I started crying so hard I had to pass the note off for someone else to finish.

I spend a lot of moments embarrassing myself with snot and hiccups and Rudolph nose syndrome.

But it isn't always like that. Sometimes I cry out in the privacy of our room...my car...the shower...behind a closed door at work. Sometimes the reason for my tears seems so silly...but yet my heart is torn. Sometimes I cry for reasons no one else could possibly understand...but I'm crushed. Sometimes I am not even sad at all, but just so overwhelmed that I have no choice but to let my exploding heart spill out through tears.

Regardless of the reason...regardless of the reaction of others...God cares.

He pauses. He listens. He comforts.  He understands. And most wonderful of all - He records it. He doesn't forget. The scroll bearing the story of my life finds a new entry...dated and detailed...with the number of tears fallen and the reason for them. When I'm 102, God will still know why I sobbed into a pillow on my bed when I was seventeen...and seventy...and He will still think of me with love and affection.

I know that so many of you who read are struggling through hard times for various reasons. You might spend some time, publicly or privately, mopping up pools of tears.

If I could be there beside you, chances are good I'd join you. But since I'm not, please hear me...HE sees. He joins you. And He has recorded every splash onto His scroll.

Wednesdays in the Word: Verse Q

Some of you told me the FIRST WEEK that you couldn't wait for me to hit this letter because you couldn't wait to see what it would be. It may be considered cheating to not find a Q first word of the verse, but this was about the best I could do:

Know what I love about this verse? It's to the point.

I was in the first or second grade Sunday School class at church when our teacher, Barb, decided we all needed to learn how to pray.

Out loud.

Enter my first panic attacks. I had never prayed in front of anyone other than my family, and my class was comprised mostly of giggly girls who may or may not have had much Godly influence once they left the walls of the church. Praying out loud was essentially an invitation to be made fun of...to trip over words...to be thought silly for the method used.

I dreaded my week to pray and always rushed through my prayers as quickly as I could.

As I got older, I prayed out loud in front of others more often...and I became more comfortable with it, but now and then I still find myself in situations where I panic when it's time to pray. I worry that those listening {note: not God. People.} will judge me for how long I take...or don't take...and for how I word things. How eloquent I sound.

And that's why I love this verse. It's my reminder that God doesn't expect polished speeches. This prayer is short and powerful.

Come quickly to help me.

No long explanations. No four syllable words. {Or even three!} Just a heartfelt urgent request for help.

And while people may judge our praying style, Jesus does not. He loves a prayer like this one. It's sent right from our heart to His.

So grateful for the invitation to be pointed and honest in prayer. To be urgent.

And to know I'm heard.

Wednesdays in the Word: Verse P

My name is Bekah, and conflict makes me break out in a cold sweat.

Ryan says I have an awfully big bark, but very little bite. It's true. Case in point...if I'm behind the wheel, which you know I am, most of the time, I don't hesitate to loudly offer my thoughts when a driver cuts me off as I enter the interstate. But oh dear goodness, if the window were down and he or she could hear me? I'd be rendered mute. Please don't hear me. Please don't get mad at me. Please don't shoot me. {I watch a lot of Lifetime movies.}

I hate confrontation. I hate conflict. I hate for anyone to be out of sorts {at least toward me}. I hate for anyone to be upset or sad.

People. Pleaser. To. The. Max.

But I've learned that there's a difference between avoiding conflict and making peace.

I can run from potential-road-rage-shooters to avoid the conflict {and the gunshot} but it doesn't do a blessed thing to actually advocate peace.

Sowing in peace...requires action. Maybe words. Maybe a hug. Maybe a gift. {They don't call them peace offerings for nothing.} Maybe presence.

While I have never claimed to be a gardener, I remember enough of the process my parents went through when I was growing up to know that sowing a garden is an investment. It's tending. It's tilling hard ground and planting seeds and feeding them with water and weeding out what threatens to kill and covering when weather is harsh and protecting from hungry pests. It takes time. It takes perseverence. It takes patience.

Sowing peace in a conflict-saturated situation requires all those things in a different way.

But if you do...if I do...look at the reward: a harvest of righteousness. Not just an avoided conflict, but the actual productive harvest of something good in its place.

I am not even going to lie to you: I feel like the biggest hypocrite in the world right now writing this to you. I'm not good at this. I'd rather run from the garden than put in the work. I really would. This one is kicking me...but I'm offering these words as a word of conviction to myself that being a peacemaker requires the work of sowing to see the reward of a righteous harvest.

Wednesdays in the Word: Verse O

Monday, Lynne interviewed Jerushah Armfield, who is one of Billy Graham's granddaughters. She, along with her brothers, compiled a book of stories about people whose lives have been impacted by his longstanding ministry.

Jerushah was delightful, and one thing in particular she said caught my attention. She said her grandfather is 95 years old, and for as long as she can remember, he's always had Scripture verses taped to his bathroom mirror.

She said in recent years, as his health and eyesight have declined, she's noticed the font on those verses...increasing.

Then she said, "I love it that he still wants to study the Word. I think if I were a 95 year old Billy Graham, I might think...You know? I think I've got it. But he doesn't. He just asks for bigger font and keeps feeding his hunger for the Word."

That's what is on my mind today when I see this verse:

Regardless of the state of your physical eyes, what a prayer of the heart this can be!

To come before the Lord and ask for wisdom and understanding. To ask to see new things in familiar words. To be shown something you've never seen before and suddenly...be opened up to a whole new way of thinking.

He's got so much to teach, but you can only learn if you have a willing heart.

And my friend, I would venture to say if a 95 year old Billy Graham, with failing health and eyesight can ask for open eyes to see new and wonderful things...we have no excuse.

Wednesdays in the Word: Verse N

Anyone else get saved about 417 times growing up? Yeah, I was one of those kids. Every time they gave an altar call at church {do churches even do that anymore??...not gonna lie...miss that...} I'd rush to the front with the rest of the teens and get re-saved. It seemed that the hardest lesson of that season of my life was absorbing that Jesus really had saved me. I asked Him to and He did. And that was that.

I think the last time I got saved was toward the end of high school, when I was babysitting two of my regular kids, and rather than watching their standard choice of Homeward Bound, they chose Aladdin for their evening movie. Somewhere after the magic carpet ride through the cave of molten lava, I took a "bathroom break" and asked Jesus into my heart one more time...because that animated lava reminded me anew I did not want to go to hell.

That time seemed to "take" in my mind. I settled into being assured that I belonged to Jesus...heart, mind, and soul.

But just as that happened...it seemed I faltered in another area. Maybe you're with me on this one too:

The comparison games began...and oh how they intensified as I got older and began exploring life as an adult.

This friend could sing...beautifully. If I could sing beautifully, I could find so many ways to serve and minister within the church.

That one had the gift of teaching. And so did I...I was told...but oh...if only I had her poise and grace and wisdom...I could really teach. Really go places with that.

She was a mom, and a good one. {There was a season when I wanted to be a mom...and being around moms really got to me. I wanted to be able to shape a young life like my friends could do with their kids. Over the years, my desire for that changed, and it's no longer something I crave, but for many years, I felt like I fell short because I didn't fulfill that role...and at that time in my life, I couldn't.}

This one had the gift of hospitality. People gravitated to her home, and not because she threw elaborate parties or lived in a mansion, but just because it was a warm, lovely place to be, and I wanted people to feel that way about my home.

And oh...did you see her? She writes. Not just in a journal...but books. Books that people read and love.

And with each comparison, I began to convince myself that nearly every person on earth had a significant place in the body of Christ...except me. I knew I had gifts and talents, and I did use them to the best of my ability, but I felt they still paled in comparison to those around me.

For years and years and {sometimes still this very day}...the comparison game gets the best of me. It takes a conscious retraining of my mind every time it happens to remember that I am just as important in the Body of Christ as the best author, the best radio host, the best homemaker, the best wife, the best teacher, the best singer, the best mom...

...Jesus views me with as much love and tenderness as He does each of His other children. And regardless of how big or small my role ends up being in the world at large, my job is to do it well. And my offering, combined with the offerings of those who serve around me...matters.

So. Much.

It's a lesson I learn as many times as I got saved as a kid. And one day...one day...I pray it sticks forever.

Wednesdays in the Word: M Verse

I love a verse that is both comforting and challenging at the same time. Truth be told, I like the comforting part a little bit more easily than the challenging part...but just the same, I love the verse.

Such is this verse:

Let's talk about the challenge first, shall we?

I'm not a theologian, so we won't sit here and argue through the doctrinal points of sanctification and what it means, because that could take all day long. But I can tell you that it means to be set apart and kept holy...to the core. To be sanctified completelyand be kept blameless: spirit, soul and body...is pretty all-encompassing.

What does it look like? It's all spelled out in the verses leading up to this one: respecting others...living in peace...admonishing the idle...encouraging the fainthearted...helping the weak...being patient...seeking to do good rather than evil...rejoicing always...praying always...giving thanks always...testing everything....holding onto good...avoiding bad.

And what that looks like in my head is: a lot of hard work.

That's the challenge.

Here's the comfort:

God takes the lead.

I love how that verse begins: May the God of peace Himself. He's the top of the line. He is THE one who can make all that hard work possible. Sure, we have to do our part. We have to commit to carry out the character traits and disciplines. But we do it not in our own strength...but in HIS strength.

And want a sneak peek? The next verse says, "He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it."

Living a holy life is hard work. It goes against the grain of the world we live in and {at least for me} against the grain of what I feel like doing most of the time. But how I rest in the fact that GOD in me makes it possible. He comes with peace and faithfully strengthens me to do what He asks.

I have much work to do in this department. But on the days when it feels overwhelming, I'm comforted in the challenge, by knowing God Himself leads my way.

Wednesdays in the Word: Verse L

Annnnnnnnd once again, God comes through with a timely reminder for this girl. I am drinking up these words today. I have a feeling some of you might be, too.

I remember first claiming this verse as one for me back in college. I was an honor student in high school and breezed into college in full confidence that I'd do well. I'm not sure what DIDN'T go right for me in high school when it came to college prep, but I certainly found myself wildly under-prepared for college, and by the end of that first semester, I was in tears, worried about grades, uncertain of how I'd get it all done. But I did. I found this verse and told myself that if I persevered, I'd reap a good harvest with my grades at the end.

And then I repeated that scenario for seven more semesters.

The verse came to be meaningful to me more than once during my years in Financial Aid...times when I felt utterly defeated and wondered why I even bothered to try to do the right thing. Times when I felt like my students and their parents were against me and must surely think I sat at home each night plotting ways for them to financially fail.

It came to be meaningful to me in my desert - when I clung to the Lord and wondered when morning would come for my dark, dark night of the soul.

And this week I'm hanging onto it again.

One phrase in particular...

...in due time.

Ryan and I are waiting for the Lord's leading in our future. We're waiting for a house to sell. We're waiting to know where He's leading us geographically. We're waiting with two brains full of dreams, waiting to see which {if any} of them come true.

And in all these things, we have encountered the most bizarre obstacles. Seriously. If I told you what they were, you'd say, "How does that even happen?" It happens because it's the two of us, apparently. Weird, unheard of things that NEVER happen to anyone else ever in the history of time, happen to us with great regularity.

It causes us to sit back and say WHY CAN'T WE CATCH A BREAK? JUST ONE BREAK?!?!? We've tried so hard to handle all our situations with grace and integrity and it's hard when everything seems to come back against us.

And then....this verse.

Don't give up. Keep doing what you should be doing. AND IN DUE TIME...you'll receive the harvest.

Due time is apparently not today. And knowing us, it's probably not tomorrow.

But due time will come...in due time.

Clinging to that today. Cling with us!

Wednesdays in the Word: Verse K

Today's verse is a hard one. Not necessarily hard to memorize, if you're memorizing, because it's not terribly long. But the invitation it provides is a hard one.

Here's the thing about sin: it's attractive to the person participating.

It just is.

We want to think, when we study what constitutes sin, that we would run from it...screaming. We want to think we would find it so awful...so repulsive...so foul...that we would just run.

I remember back in my early, early college days, when some of my friends were playing with boundaries that many young adults play with as they experience freedom for the first time. I remember vehemently journaling that I was absolutely APPALLED that they would even consider glancing in the direction of the behavior, much less walking toward it. Did they know NOTHING???

And yet I confess that as time went along, some of those same temptations came my way, and suddenly I got it. I understood their draw to it. It had become attractive to me, too, and turning my head was so hard.

So here's the thing about this verse...I'm sure it is a sweet offering in the ears of God when He hears one of His children ask to be kept from sin. When He looks at a soul He loves and knows that soul wants to live honorably by resisting sin that seems so attractive...how much that must warm His heart!

But at the same time...to say to God, Please keep me from sin...don't let it rule me...we truly have no idea what we're asking. Inviting God to do that kind of pruning work is a hard request. Usually He doesn't just remove us entirely from the temptation...but He sustains us in it. It's a soul-workout.

It's hard. But God is bigger than a hard task. If you invite Him to work, He will equip you for the task. He will. And the reward of allowing God to have dominion in your life rather than sin...is so worth it.

Wednesdays in the Word: Verse J

The way God has ordained these verses to fall across my life has been nothing short of awe-inducing. Like I've told you before, I picked out these verses years ago, when I compiled them as a graduation gift for a friend. It's not a coincidence that as I rea d through them now...they are perfectly timed.

Here's this week's word of encouragement:

Monday night, I sat in the living room, stalking Lisa Harper's Twitter page. She was traveling home from Haiti with her newly adopted daughter, Missy. Lisa is single and has been working for two years to bring home a little girl who captured her heart.

Two. Years.

That's a lot of waiting. And a lot of paperwork.

And then suddenly...everything sped up and Lisa flew to Haiti and turned right around to fly home with little Missy. And an entire army of {very famous} friends arrived at the Nashville airport to welcome her home. {I mean really, it's not a bad day when Sheila Walsh AND Mandisa AND Todd and Angie Smith drop by to welcome you home!}

Throughout the end of that journey, Lisa would sum up every tweet and Instagram post with #onlyGod. I'm not a big fan of the hashtag, but I loved seeing those words at the end of each update. I loved being reminded that everything that seemed so impossible about this thing...was in no way impossible in the mind of God.

Lynne and I interviewed Lisa a little over two years ago, when she was in the process of adopting a baby yet to be born. She was so excited for her dream to be a mom to come true, and then the baby was born...and the birth mom changed her mind.

Lisa was crushed, yet she remained hopeful that God had a plan.

And He did. A little girl named Missy who not only needed a home...she needed Lisa's home. They even look alike. It's uncanny.

It truly is only God. And it will be amazing when Missy grows up and looks back and sees how very #onlyGod this journey to become Lisa's actually was.

I stalked the pictures Monday night and cried, not because I want a child...because that's not my deep ache. I cried because Lisa's answer to prayer boosted my own heart to remember that what looks impossible to me right now...is SO not impossible for HIM.

And what an AMAZING journey it will be when He brings about the answer in a way that ONLY He could do.

I want to leave you with 2 things:

1. Whatever your impossibility...it's not impossible to your God.

2. You'll never know when your journey becomes someone else's faith-booster. Live it well. Point to God. 

Wednesdays in the Word: Verse I

I've been having a blast the past couple of days telling you about a house...that became a home...and it's been the most beautiful unexpected joy to hear you tell me how much you're loving the story. It's dear to my heart, so I love hearing that you love it too. And never fear. It's not done. But...it's Wednesday...so we're taking a break to talk about my verse for the letter I.

Ryan and I are training for a 5K right now. It's a quick training...we don't have long before the race. Ryan probably doesn't even need to train, but I do. I could survive the thing, but I want to actually do better than my last one. {THAT shouldn't take much.} So this week we've been back in the gym and back on our outdoor path, running.


My body is not entirely amused with me. After nearly running the full 5K distance on Monday, my hips and legs said "WHY DO YOU HATE US?!!?!!?" Getting back out there and working at it again wasn't fun, but I know I have to keep pushing through if I'm going to have good results come race day.

My run last night was brief...and outside. I soaked up the sunshine, but the second half of the run was headlong into some fierce wind, and my aching legs felt a bit like jello. {Jello that failed to set.} But the advantage of running outside was that I could look up and see my ending point in the distance. So I peered through my zebra stripe sunglasses and watched as that line grew closer and closer. And even though I desperately wanted to collapse in a heap on the ground, I kept going.

As I drove to work yesterday morning, Laura Story's song Blessings played, and I sang along {loudly}...and tears came to my eyes. The words are so true. The rain and storms and hardest nights that I lived through...though I desperately wanted to just quit...were mercies in disguise. Mercies that made me stronger. Mercies that grew me into who I am today. Mercies that brought me to the finish line of a long season of singleness and the long-prayed-for gift of a husband.

Pressing on. It's not easy. It's not easy when it's physical labor. It's not easy when it's character-building labor. It's not easy when it's spiritual growth. But the reward at the end...always worth it.

I chose the picture for today because those little sprouts of tulips you see pressed on through dirt...through the weed barrier we put down, through more dirt, and through a pretty thick layer of rocks. I noticed them when I came home from my run. Another reminder...to press on.

Encouraging you today to press on. Whatever it is. Press on. Remember that in the detail of that...you're pressing on for the ultimate prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Wednesdays in the Word: H Verse

I was five when my mom taught me to tithe.

She sat down with me in our living room and handed me a set of envelopes and markers. I decorated them {the fun part} and then she handed me a dollar's worth of dimes and taught me to divide them {that would be math...NOT the fun part} into spending...savings...vacation...Christmas...and tithe.

And actually, tithe was first.

My first dime of my first dollar dropped into the bottom of a white envelope with a clumsy attempt at a marker-art Bible on the front of it.

And on Sunday, I dug it out of the envelope, took it to church, and put it in the church-shaped bank in Sunday School class.

I have always loved that about my mom and her training of me. She taught me this verse through her actions that day:

And the thing I love about what she taught me was not just that she taught me what God asks of me, but that she {unknowingly} taught me to LOVE the actual act of giving.

Years later, I learned from another friend that her practice of honoring the Lord with the firstfruits was to actually write that check first every time she paid bills...and not only write one check...but one for each Sunday. So each time she paid bills, she took her tithe and divided it over the number of Sundays in that month. Then each week at church, she was able to worship and honor the Lord by putting a check in the plate.

I heard of a couple that actually prayed each time they paid bills and wrote their tithe check - and thanked the Lord for the ways He provided for them in that month. I loved that, too.

There isn't a specific formula for honoring the Lord...but what a joy to do it. To give cheerfully and make the practice of tithe more an act of worship than a bill to be paid.

Even when times feel lean...He provides. And for that, I'm thankful.

Wednesdays in the Word: Verse G

I was reading one of Beth Moore's blog posts a few weeks ago, and she shared that she'd just finished eighteen monthsof intense writing on a new study. I was fascinated, impressed, and jealous of an 18 month writing spree...but her next statement stuck fast in my mind: "God knew what the 18 months surrounding that project would entail and He sustained my family and faithfully carried us through a very rough season."

So. True.

When you and I rush headlong into something God has called us to do, we rush with eager anticipation. It's going to be good. Great, even. A time of productivity and purpose. And it can be all those things. But oh goodness. How very easily it can also be a time of unrequested, unforeseen, and unrelenting trial and testing.

I remember back in 2010, when Isaac came to me with the news that he needed to go into a wilderness and work through some issues...and I sat and wondered what I would do with the time on my hands while he was "wildernessing." A few days later, God invited me into a desert of my own. The invitation came almost as a relief at the time...an assignment was mine, and I was eager to jump in. Eager to learn and to prove I was willing to do my part. Eager to rush through whatever healing and growth God had mapped out for me...and most of all, eager to be on the other side, in the Promised Land, with Isaac.

And the longer that journey stretched, eagerness was replaced with exhaustion. I was so weary of waiting for a sign of hope that the relationship would be restored. I was weary of no sleep...no appetite...no desire for life. And in those moments when I desperately wanted to quit the desert tour that had once felt so inviting, I would pace the floor of my house and say through a clenched jaw, "GOD!!! FIND ME FAITHFUL!"

And in the end, that was all I cared about. God slowly knocked my will away from me and taught me that the restoration of that relationship was of far less value to Him than my faithfulness in serving Him during its time of testing.

And in those times, Satan tempted...and lied...and pulled at me from every direction, urging me to fail, to give up, to turn my back on God, to walk away from the relationship...and I begged for this:

In the end, the relationship did not survive. My heart was broken, and yet at the same time, relieved. Relieved, because I knew the very death I grieved so completely also freed me to move forward into God's future for me.

I look back on that time now and see how very completely God worked in me to prepare me for Ryan, and I don't wish that time away for one moment. I'm thankful for the tenacity it taught me.

God's calling on a life brings purpose beyond the end result. The journey to get there, with all its obstacles, is as important as the thing itself.

We can't know, going into the journey, what it's going to mean for us or those we love. We get caught up in the excitement of the calling and what we believe it will mean, and we don't think much about what it might cost.

That's why I chose this verse. What a prayer to pray over your own heart. It goes straight to the core of the matter. Guard me. Deliver me. Don't let me be put to shame. You're my refuge.

I would so encourage you to pray this over yourself in whatever journey you face. He is faithful.