K is for Knots

One of the most telling signs that I have been pulled away from the peace of the presence of Father God is dealing with knots. Knots in my laces, snarls in my knitting yarn, tangles in my thoughts all speak of pressure, hurry and anxiety. Often the people around me see other signs first, but my first clue is grappling with things that won't come undone, smooth out, or work right. Or I wake up in the morning with my hands in tight fists and the muscles in my arms in knots. What I didn't acknowledge while awake has made itself known in my sleep. I am struggling to "get a grip". 

I know of only one sure way to get those knots untied. I need to sit with my Father and let Him show me the root of my tangled and jangled nerves. I need to let Him begin to sort out the tangles in my thinking and unsnarl my emotions. I need to relax my grip so that He can untie my knots. Only the safety of resting in His presence allows me to do that.

I bless you to rest in Father God's embrace and allow Him to gently and compassionately untie your knots today.

A to Z Challenge: A is for Adoration

 

Adoration speaks of appreciating the beauty, the vastness, the power and the tenderness of God toward His creation. Thinking of these things, for even a few moments, is like standing before a great work of art. I begin to notice details and connections that make me appreciate the artistry and complexity of the work, things not apparent if I look only casually in passing. If I pause and spend some time savoring the wonder and the artistry of God's works and the greatness of His love, I can't help but return that love to Him in adoration.  As I do, I am drawn in closer.

God's Christmas Giftwrap

     The angel Gabriel explained it to a young woman this way: "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God." (Luke 1:35 NASB). The time had finally come when the Messiah would empty Himself of the form of God and be made in the likeness of men. (See Philippians 2:5-8 NASB)

     This young woman had been carefully selected for this day, but how?  Some reqirements had been laid out in hundreds of years of prophecy.  Messiah's earth-parents had to be descendants of King David, for instance.  But, more importantly, they had to have hearts and character that would nurture and train this Child to fulfill a destiny like no other. 

     The writer of Hebrews says, "Although He was a Son, He learned obedience from the things which He suffered." (Hebrews 5:8 NASB) Now I have suffered some things in my life, and my natural bent was to learn things besides obedience, like cynicism, distrust, resentment and self-pity to name a few. I grew up in an atmosphere that nurtured such things, and my fleshly nature went right along in that direction. But the first One to get through human life sinless needed a different upbringing.  He needed a teacher and example in His first, formative years who had a heart that trusted Father God absolutely.

     I recently heard a radio interview with a novelist who had written about Jesus' mother, Mary. He had depicted Mary in her later years as a bitter, disappoiinted woman who felt that the suffering He had endured was just "not worth it". But Father God knew her heart before Jesus was ever concieved. She knew what this pregnancy could cost her personally in her time and culture. She knew how enormous the responsibility for this baby would be.  And God had found the perfect wrapping for the gift of His Messiah.  He had found the young woman who would say, "Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word." (Luke 1:38 NASB)