Surrender to His Peace

“Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in” (Revelation 3:20, NLT).

He stands and knocks at the door to your heart. He invites you to a life which you can’t comprehend with the human mind. It is a life of peace and trust in His abundant faithfulness—a life of spiritual joy. His invitation promises to carry you beyond your constant need to analyze to a place of rest where no matter what happens in this life all is well. This invitation offers respite from the hectic pace of this world. “Be still and know that I am God” takes on a whole new meaning. When you get to the place that you don’t struggle anymore, you have peace just knowing He is God, and He is in control. "Come to me,” He whispers in your tempest, “and I will give you rest."

Do you long to relinquish your terrible struggle—your pain, but you resist that which promises release? You try to keep things in control, but discover you can't. Letting go of your struggle to control what only God is meant to control, opens your heart to His promise of peace. Letting go admits you don't have the answer. Letting go means you put your trust in His faithfulness. Even when you shut the door of your heart to His knock, He never stops knocking.  Even when you turn from His promise of peace, He never turns away. Even when He finds your heart all closed and barred behind your fortress of pain, He continues on in His constant offer of peace. “Let go, and let me,” He whispers.

Do you hear Him? The harder you struggle the stronger His constant knock. The harder you resist the greater your pain. Suddenly the exhaustion of your battle is too much. Suddenly you can no longer bar that door. Suddenly surrender is your only hope. You must let go and believe. When you let go of all you have tried to handle and open the door, the peace which has evaded you is yours. No more war inside your heart. No more need to have answers. You are free in Him, and free of fear from what life has brought. There will always be issues, but you will be free from their ability to control your life. Fear which has defined your life has ended. You realize that God has not given you a spirit of fear, but of power, and love, and a sound mind. Letting go and surrendering everything has brought the peace your heart has struggled so hard to find.  You have opened the door and now you know. That peace was never yours to find. It was always His to give.

© 2017 Lynn Lacher

   

Living Water

Whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.

—John 4:14 NIV

Are you unfulfilled? Do you long to know that your life has a purpose? Have you an emptiness that no activity or possession can satisfy? For a while, an activity or a possession might offer happiness, but that fun activity or shiny possession can’t bring fulfillment to a hunger that is meant to be filled with God alone. A possession doesn’t last forever, and its newness dulls. When you allow the things of the world to become more important than God, your interest in His purpose also dulls. Everything becomes lifeless and dull.  At the moment when nothing else brings satisfaction, Jesus Christ speaks to your thirsty soul that He has something that will give your life joy and purpose. He has something that will bring fulfillment to your life of constantly searching and never finding. He offers living water.

“If you drink of the water that I provide,” He speaks to your emptiness, “you will never be thirsty again. My water not only soothes your shattered spirit, but it heals you completely because it is living water.” He promises that if you take Him into your heart that you will never feel empty or thirsty again. You will have a purpose that is always fulfilled. You will have joy that shall never dulls. You will have a meaning to your life that nothing in this world can match. You will know Him, and He will be enough. "Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness," He whispers, "they shall be filled" (Matthew 5:6). Your hunger and thirst will be filled, if you thirst for Him instead of things that can never bring fulfillment.

Is this where you are? Do you thirst enough?  Do you cry, "Oh Lord, just as a deer pants for streams of water, my soul pants for you—my soul thirsts only for you” (Psalm 42:1)?  When you thirst only for Him, He comes and satisfies your emptiness. Your life has purpose and meaning. Your life has joy and passion that are new and fresh each morning. Your thirst is quenched with His living water. And this is a thirst that shall always be filled. It shall always be satisfied. You will never want to let go of Christ who rescues you from your own pursuits which have no meaning. He brings fulfilling passion to your life, and His promise of never-ending unconditional love—His joy that the world can't give—His peace that is more than what the world can manufacture—His patience that is longer than any you can offer. He brings the promises of kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. If you daily live in Him, He lives in you. When you are completed in Him, you thirst no more for things that destroy the joy with which He has gifted your life. You thirst only for Him.

© 2017 Lynn Lacher

Living in Me

My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

—Galatians 2:20 NLT     

Sometimes I feel that there is just not enough of me to go around, Lord. The needs of those I love are so great, and I feel they are often beyond my abilities. I am stretched each day to be less of myself so you can be more. Letting go of what I plan each day—of longings and desires—of selfishness that can stir resentment—I find your strength and purpose in my surrender. I find your peace because I have nothing to struggle with. There is nothing I have to prove when your purpose is greater than mine. My utmost joy is found when I die to what I feel is my right to own.

Just as you have given your life for my sake, now I offer mine for yours. Without you, my life is limited. It is flawed—broken and ineffective. With you, everything changes. All things are possible. The potential is limitless. When I am surrendered, there are no barriers or walls to overcome. I find that my offering has been nothing compared to the majesty of yours living in me.  When I trust you—the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me—I have surrendered my control. Lord, I trust your heart, because you created mine. I lack nothing. And I find there is enough of me to go around. 

Copyright © 2017 Lynn Lacher

Your Choice

The evil that men do lives after them; the good is oft interred with their bones.

—William Shakespeare

What is bad in this life seems to be remembered so easily. The mind often dwells on what discourages instead of what edifies. And what is good is soon forgotten. “Fix your thoughts on what is true,” Paul writes, “and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you” (Philippians 4:8-9 NIV).

Do you allow your mind to run rampant with thoughts which hinder instead of thoughts which inspire hope? You have no peace when you choose to dwell on negative things instead of things that are honorable, pure, and admirable. “Practice His presence” Paul encourages. “Add this in your life, choose this attitude, allow Him to capture your thoughts, put on the mind of Christ,” Paul insists throughout his letters. If you will fix your thoughts on God’s goodness and faithfulness instead of things which bring discouragement, fear, hurt, anger, and bitterness, you will encourage yourself in your dry valley. When you think of what is forgiving, hopeful and uplifting, you speak life to the darkness which so often consumes the mind.

Choose to think as God has instructed in His Word. Choose to believe the promise He has imparted. Choose to remain faithful in thought and action. Continually choose to put on His mind—to seek His wisdom and understanding—until His thoughts are yours and are unconsciously rendered—until His truth becomes your life instead of the enemy’s lies. And you will be transformed in the way that you think. The Spirit which guards your mind will be His. His joy will be your banner, and His peace will protect your mind. The evil will be forgotten, and His goodness will reign in your heart.

© 2017 Lynn Lacher

Deeply Rooted

Consider a seed. It sends a shoot down into the earth in order to be grounded and draw nourishment. At the same time another tender shoot grows upward into the world. Without a strong root system the plant that the world sees would not withstand the storms of life. That plant may appear beautiful or ugly in the eyes of the world, but to God His creation is a thing of infinite beauty. 

So are our lives in Christ. Without a deep, abiding, and grounded faith our lives wither and fade. Our attempts at living for Him are wiped away by the harsh circumstances of life. The life that appears beautiful or ugly to the world might not be that way at all. God does not judge the outer man the world sees. He looks upon the inner. He looks upon the heart. He looks upon the root to see if our faith is grounded in Him. He knows that is where our true beauty lies.   

“He grew up before him like a tender shoot,” Isaiah wrote of the coming Christ, “and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him” (Isaiah 53:2 NIV). Jesus came into the world as a child and grew as a tender shoot—like a root out of dry ground. He grew in His Father’s care. No matter how dry His circumstance or how lonely His walk, He drew sustenance from His Father. That tender shoot matured and became strong. He flourished in His desert. His root was grounded deeply. He had no beauty to attract others to Him, yet He drew many because God made Him beautiful in sacrificial depths that the world could not see. And God knows whether we have that deep inner beauty of abiding faith or not.

Let your roots grow deep in Him. Be nourished by His word, and pray for His guidance. If you want to grow strong with His purpose, your roots of faith must extend deep enough to withstand the winds of circumstance that will disrupt your life. When you are grounded in Him and His will, no weapon formed against you will succeed. When He is your life, your heart, and your purpose, your roots hold strongly. Be planted deeply, and your life will grow strong, secure, and beautiful in Him.

© 2017 Lynn Lacher

I Cry Out

The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are attentive to their cry. The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles—Psalm 34:15, 17 NIV

As I try to live a life that is worthy of Christ's love, I sometimes fail. It is in my failure that I realize how little I am without Him. Immediately I run to Him, and know His forgiveness the moment I ask. I know His redeeming love the moment I cry out.

No one is perfect. But I am called to live a righteous life. It is forever a journey and a commitment. It is forever a sacrifice of my personal feelings to the Savior who sacrificed His life for me. I am called to live in obedience to His purpose, just as He was called to obedience at Calvary. Is it possible to live a completely righteous life?  He sees me through the eyes of grace that withheld nothing. He knows I am righteous because of His sacrifice. He calls me to realize it. Surrender is my only option to understand. Whatever lies before me, I surrender all that I can never be in my own eyes for all He knows is true in my life.

He attentively waits for my prayer. He watches closely to see my need, and hears my cry for help. He rescues me from my trouble in the way He has chosen to deliver me—not the way that I decide I need to be delivered. Sometimes I don't understand His choice, but I know it is for my best. When I cry out He either rescues me from my trouble or gives me the strength to overcome what I face. Although it might not seem true at the time, His powerful strength to overcome what I face is also a great deliverance—and molder of my character.

“But he knows where I am going,” Job declared, “and when he tests me, I will come out as pure as gold” (Job 23:10, NLT). God knows my path. He listens and watches, but He more than listens and watches. He is involved in every aspect of my life molding me, testing me, growing me. He refines me as gold. The Lord changes me until righteousness is my life's anchor, and His constant reward. I am delivered from all that comes against me, because He is greater in me than anything that might try to destroy me. What I lay each day upon His altar, will remain.

Copyright © 2017 Lynn Lacher

Here

In my grief you are—

In my heartbreak, you are—

In my turmoil, you are—

In my terror, you are—

In my distress, you are—

In my hardship, you are—

In my tears, you are—

In my failure, you are—

In my pardon, you are—

In my joy, you are—

In this moment, you are—

Here.

© 2017 Lynn Lacher

Enough

Often, I am a child again, Daddy, because in your mind I am. In long ago memories, we work—we play—we live in the past. This is so often my time with you. In your world, there are problems to be solved, and I am now your hands and feet to solve them. You look at me with those incredible blue eyes, and wait for my answer to your problem. And as always, I say, I have taken care of that, Daddy. You have always been a solver of mysteries, and now that is my job—my joy. You trust that I take care of the chickens you are raising, and speeding tickets you get when driving without a license. You trust me without hesitation.

You have entered this age with grace. A very private person, now your life is open and exposed. You need help to move from your wheelchair to your recliner. You need help to find your food on your plate. You need help for every activity of daily living. But through it all, you still smile. You still have a peace that guards your heart, and still guards your mind from fear that so many with your illness experience. Even if for a season, I treasure what is offered now.

“Timothy has brought good news about your faith and love,” Paul wrote. “He has told us that you always have pleasant memories of us and that you long to see us, just as we also long to see you” (1 Thessalonians 3:8b). I am so thankful, Daddy, for your memories of good times in the past. You so easily could be consumed with those that once brought pain, but for now you are not. I know you still long to see me—just as I long to see you and hold your hand—hug you and try to do for you what brings tears to my eyes, but joy to your heart.

Lord God, I never want to fail my father, but I must remember that the love you give will always be enough for his needs. No matter what happens in his world that makes no sense, I can never meet the needs of his mind, because those needs change. What is true for him in one moment is no longer true in the next. I learn to live your peace in the grace you daily extend for this hard path. Just as with Mama’s journey, there is a beauty that reaches beyond the pain of loss, and recharges my heart. I hold on to my good memories with a joy that fires faith for the road ahead.

Copyright 2017 Lynn Lacher

Give with Integrity

I know, my God, that you test the heart and are pleased with integrity. All these things I have given willingly and with honest intent.

—1 Chronicles 29:17a, NIV

Do I ever look at the gifts of my heart, and ask if they are given with integrity?  Whatever I give—love, friendship, compassion, time, a listening ear, advice—must be given willingly. They must be given with honest intent. There is no hidden agenda. There is no subterfuge. There is no mask. They are given because of His love and His work in my own heart. What I give away should not be given to make me feel better about myself. Anything I give should come from His love which recognizes the need in someone else is greater than my own. I give because of His love in me.

This life in Jesus is not about me. Whatever I give or do in His name should come from what He creates within my life, and never any fabrication. He will constantly test my heart to see if it is filled with integrity and honesty. If I draw close to Him, He will draw close to me, and will reveal the intentions of my heart. I will be stripped before Him. Nothing will be hidden. In that moment, I will know if He is pleased with me or not.

I know, my God, that you always test my heart. I know that you always yearn for what I do or give in your name to be born of honesty and integrity. Lord God, I want what I give to come from a heart that has been purified by you. Forgive me for anything I have ever given that has come from other motives than what you desire. Always create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew your steadfast spirit within me. Then I will be refined by your love. I will be made new, and what I give away will come from a heart that honest and upright.

Copyright © 2017 Lynn Lacher

Handle WIth Care

You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love.

—Galatians 5:13 NIV

Dear Lord Jesus,

How can we praise you enough for your blessings?  Most of the time we focus on our needs or what we haven’t seen accomplished.  We pray our vision becomes one which recognizes every perfect work you do each day.  We pray for you to open our eyes so that we recognize your precious work not only in our hearts, but also in others. We pray not only for our needs. We all have loved ones who don’t know you—illnesses which hang on—physical pain that weakens—emotional pain that wounds—despair that can lead to depression. Lord, we seek you to change us. We yearn for more of you—to surrender our rights—to be your temple—to become the potential that you see. All of these and more, we lay at your blessed feet.  Broken and spilled out, we come, Lord. You were broken and spilled out for us. Now healed by your love at Calvary, we lay these needs upon your strong shoulders, and rise to peace and victory in your presence.  Fill us with your power, Holy Spirit, and with humility to handle each spiritual gift you impart with great wisdom. Guided by you with care and discernment, your gifts can heal a breaking heart—encourage a struggling soul—raise a life to walk in newness of life. The potential is limitless.

Keep us humble in your power, Lord Jesus. We have the capacity to speak hope and life. We also have the capacity to speak discouragement and death. Our actions and reactions can either encourage life or offer death. We are either a blessing or a curse to someone else. It is our choice to live a surrendered life—to honor another person’s heart more than our own. When we choose you, Lord, your Spirit is ours. You impart your life to us without reservation. But with the power you impart, comes the responsibility to handle your spiritual gifts with respect and caring—with grace and compassion.  When living the freedom of your power, it can be so easy to indulge the flesh—suddenly to find that we are not surrendered to you but to our own desires. Make us broken so we can be healed, filled, empowered, but always broken in your humility. Continually make our surrender your power. Never let us make it greater or less than your purpose. But always as you wish. 

Copyright © 2017 Lynn Lacher