What is your label?

“But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” John 1:12

“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. “ Ephesians 2:10

Recently I dusted off my old label maker and began making labels for drawers and cabinets I had recently cleaned out. The hope was that the family would recognize what was in each and what should be placed in it from this point forward. I love the satisfaction of organization and must admit I was having a great time on this project. One of my daughters walked up and asked what I was doing. I explained the label maker and its purpose, and she immediately asked to borrow it. I agreed and soon found labels on many things and people throughout the house. I smiled at her sense of humor and enjoyed reading and finding those that day. Some of the labels weren’t received well by her siblings. I chuckled to see the label “ favorite child” on her bedroom door and her siblings, “ least favorite child.” The label war began. They began making labels for each other and attempting to stick them on unsuspecting siblings. The funnier and sometimes meaner, the better. At one point, I found a label on the back of my shirt that said, “Mom.” While relieved that I was left out of the label war, I faced a crisis at that moment. Is that all I am? To them, I am and always will be Mom, but what am I other than that? I don’t know why such deep thoughts come to me at such random weird times, but that is a tale for another day. This led to the thought that, as believers, we each wear two labels God gave us. The first is the label that shows how He sees us, His child. The second label is what He wants the world to see us as, his workmanship. When reading these verses, I was almost teary-eyed when I discovered that workmanship could be translated as a poem. How beautiful that we are a walking poem written by God. Any other label we or anyone else attempts to put on us is pointless. God named us, and His labels are the only ones that will stick throughout eternity. One of the amazing things about these labels is they are undeserved. They are given to us out of grace. The label I deserve to wear is very different. However, when I accept Christ, the old label comes off, and the new goes on. So today, I ask, what label are you wearing?

Father, may we remove all labels from ourselves and accept what you have placed on us. May we proudly display your creation in our lives? Thank you for adopting us and making us your child. We love you.

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He knew my voice

“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.” John 10:27

Rocky

We have three wonderful but stubborn dogs that reside in our backyard fence. At night they come in and sleep in their room in their cozy kennels. They love the freedom of being outside during the day and the warmth of their safe beds at night. One dog, Rocky, is determined to explore and wander. He keeps finding unique ways of getting out of the fence. Recently he has learned to climb the wall. We have had to get very creative in preventing that. He always comes back when we call his name, but we know the dangers he faces outside the safety of the fence. We had him chipped just in case he couldn’t hear our voice or couldn’t find his way back. Recently, a dog showed up in our yard. Rocky sprung into action. He managed to find a way out and immediately began defending his territory. Hearing the commotion, I ran outside to find the two about to fight. I saw a woman running up the road yelling and realized she was yelling for her dog. I immediately began yelling Rocky’s name. He struggled to divert his attention and would look back and forth between his enemy and me. He wanted to engage in this battle and didn’t want to listen to me. The other dog was not listening to his owner at all. All that mattered at the moment to both dogs was the battle. After continuing to yell and walking toward Rocky, he reluctantly returned to my side. He was not happy but obeyed. The other dog continued to walk closer and closer to us until I grabbed Rocky and went inside the house. The dog finally lost interest and returned to its owner. This is much like what happens in our churches today. A nonbeliever or believer not yet accustomed to recognizing God’s voice and instruction begins “barking,” The pack immediately answers the call to quarrel. It takes a mature well-trained believer to walk away from the fight. God is the only one with authority to tell us what danger is and to be fought. He knows the other person’s heart and knows the outcome could lead to injury on their part and possibly even ours. At the very least, it causes uproar and commotion to the entire church and distraction from Him. I would love to say that I always respond immediately to His voice. However, sometimes the urge to defend my territory is strong. I need to become so confident in Him and attuned to His voice that I hear Him even when my emotions run high. May we all as believers better listen to Him and end so much of the hurt and injury done in today’s churches.

Father, please teach us to listen to your voice above all else. We love you

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Did God Just Speak To Me Through My Coffee Cup?

“ I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.”

Revelation 3:15-16

I started this devotion based on an experience I had one morning while having my cup of coffee. I sat on my back porch, watching the morning and absentmindedly drinking my coffee. When I first sat down, my cup was hot and steaming. It felt good to drink and warmed me as it went down my throat. I then began to get lost in my thoughts, and before I knew it, I was drinking cold coffee. It no longer warmed my insides and tasted delightful. I had let my cup grow cold without noticing, and once I realized it, I no longer wanted it. I was amazed that I could be so caught up in my thoughts that I didn’t even notice it slowly going cold. It took me by surprise. As I sat there dwelling on that thought, I was suddenly jolted by a thought interjecting itself in my mind. Jesus had talked about lukewarm Christians. He detailed lukewarm is spit out. Hot is the best, but a cold drink reminds us it isn’t hot and startles us to realization. Lukewarm has no such warning and easily lulls us to complacency. I was ashamed to think of how my lukewarm faith had crept in lately. I would get busy and justify not studying my Bible. In times of crisis, I would try to figure it out myself instead of yielding to that small voice telling me to take it to God. I was slowly becoming lukewarm. About that time, I received a call from my husband, who casually asked what I was doing. I wish I could have seen his face when I responded, “just listening to God talk to me through my coffee cup.” He speaks to us in many different ways, and I have begun to discover to look and listen to the thoughts He gives me when looking or thinking about simple everyday things. He is calling and teaching me. I need to be in a position to listen and learn.

Father, please jolt me to realize when I am slipping into lukewarm. Give me ears to hear You when You speak to me. Forgive my complacency and continue to talk and teach me. I love You!

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Because I Said So

 And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.

                                                                                  Romans 8:28

Why is one of the most used questions in my life as a mom? My kids constantly like to ask “why.”  On my good days, I patiently give them my reasoning. On my bad days, I provide the standby “because I said so.”  Every kid dreads hearing that; most parents vow they will never say it to their kids, but the cycle continues for most of us. I imagine this verse as a response from God to me asking Him why. He doesn’t just say, “because I said so, He lovingly explains that everything, every pain, joy, trial, blessing, etc., is in a believer’s life and will be used to help them. Notice it doesn’t say He causes everything, though He can and does cause some things in our life; he tells us He uses these things. Many people struggle to understand why terrible things happen and why God doesn’t stop them. To them, this proves He isn’t a loving God because He doesn’t stop them. Imagine when you were a teen, and your parent stepped in, took over, and destroyed you in the middle of conversations with your friends. Imagine your parent dragging you away, locking you in your room, and telling you that you may not leave until they know you will indeed obey everything they say to do. Now, as the teen in that room, how much love do you feel for that parent? We, as adults, know the parent was protecting the teen, but the teen does not see it that way. Once the parent allows them to leave, they don’t obey because they love the parent and want to thank them for their love. The teen follows because He knows He has no choice but to be severely punished. How does the parent know that the teen understands the consequences and will exercise good judgment without dictating when out of their home? They can only guess based on the teen’s actions. God can see our hearts and doesn’t have to guess why we do something. He knows. He wants us to love and obey Him because we choose to, not because we must. The cool part about God as our parent is that even the terrible things that happen to us or we make happen to us, He takes it and uses it to help us. As a parent of teens, I so wish I could take everything that happens to them and make it valuable and helpful to them. It isn’t possible. Our Father can and does. That is a fantastic gift we as believers often take for granted and focus only on the why.

Father, forgive my doubt in You. Remind me of Your utter goodness when I question what is going on in my life. I trust you, so I trust that You will take care of me.

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