Summer Reading: Devotional Classics

As I've said in the past, "Being a teacher has its perks." One of them being the summer in which school's out and we're free to lounge poolside sipping on virgin piña coladas. Oh, the picture of an almost perfect day. And by almost perfect, I simply mean that it would be perfect if I had my husband by my side and of course, a good book.

You will know this if you are a teacher, but just because we're on vacation doesn't mean we no longer have responsibilities. Even while on summer vacation the drudgery that comes along with making the bed, doing laundry and washing dishes follows. Thankfully though, there is just a little more time to do everything.

And with that excess time comes a great danger. The temptation to dwindle away the days in those things that may very well be fun but perhaps offer little sustenance in the long haul. For that reason, I have asked the Lord to help me use my time wisely this summer. At the end of August I want to be able to look back and see exactly where I invested my time and not regret wasting a single second.

With that prayer, came the opportunity for growth. Just yesterday I picked up another one of my hubby's books. This one he purchased at the suggestion of one of his professors. It is titled, Devotional Classics and is edited by Richard J. Foster whose book, Celebration of Discipline, I credit to helping change my life. I thought it particularly fascinating that even seminary students are encouraged to read a devotional. I don't know if I'm the only one, but having 66 books in the bible to choose from can represent a challenge for me on more than one occasion. "Where should I start today? How many verses or chapters should I read? What book has to do with what I am feeling right now? Which character in the bible could I best relate to at this very moment in my life?" Those are just a few of the questions I ask myself when grabbing my hardcover NLT Women's Devotional Bible in my hand. However, after Day 2, I am convinced that picking up my hubby's seminary devotional is almost as if I had discovered gold during the California Gold Rush. I'm relishing in the words of these great men of the faith and waiting expectantly on what the Lord will do in me.

"Nondiscipleship costs abiding peace, a life penetrated throughout by love, faith that sees everything in the light of God's overriding goveranance for good, hopefulness that stands firm in the most discouraging of circumstances, power to do what is right and withstand the forces of evil. In short, it costs exactly that abundance of life Jesus said he came to bring." - Dallas Willard

Awkward Silence

I like to take a break from my activities mid-week and seek God's face. This past week was no different. However, I decided to include an element which had not been present before. I decided to listen to God. No bible, no writing, just me and my eyes shut waiting for Him to speak into my heart.

It's actually not a very foreign concept; it is one of the Spiritual Disciplines I read about in Richard J. Foster's great Christian classic, Celebration of Discipline. Yet I dare say that this is one of the most misunderstood and neglected spiritual disciplines. We are so accustomed to living in a world with noise around us. When we wake up in the morning, we are awoken by the sound of the alarm, the water running as we brush our teeth, the coffee machine screeching as it begins to brews. What I've described are probably only the first five ten minutes of the average person's day. The truth is that noise is all around us and it is almost impossible to shut it out. Unless of course, you are intentional about it. Yet even once the noise on the outside is shut out, the one on the inside remains. It is the busyness in our heads that reminds us, "Did you reply to that email?," "Have you made that follow-up appointment to go over the results of the lab work with your doctor?," and so forth. On and on our list of seemingly endless "Things to Do" goes on and along with it goes our sense of inner tranquility as it is dragged into a world of chaos and turmoil. Yet we've become so accustomed to it that we are no longer aware of it.

Yesterday as I sat in my classroom during my break, I set a timer for five minutes, tucked my head into my arms, closed my eyes and attempted to sit in silence. My goal was to clear my thoughts completely and allow the Lord to speak to me. Needless to say, I failed miserably. There was no way I could successfully shut out the world's demands to tune into God.

When my five minutes were up, I realized just how much I needed to continue pursuing this spiritual discipline. God didn't answer my prayers but he did reveal to me how much I have overlooked the spiritual discipline of silence.

There may be not much said about it today. However, if we are study Jesus' life we find that the art of listening was one he not only practiced but mastered. In Matthew 14:23 we read, "After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone." Again in Mark 1:35, "Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed." In Luke 5:16 we read, "But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed." There are no shortage of examples on how Jesus sought the Father through prayer and intentionally practiced silence and solitude. He valued his time alone with the Father and knew it was the source of his strength. He knew that without it he would not be as effective in ministering to others and he certainly made it a point to nurture this discipline.

I, too, will press on. I will continue to seek His face. I will allow Him to refresh my soul through the silence. The words spoken by Samuel in 1 Samuel 3:10b have become my own, "Speak, for your servant is listening."

An Invitation for the Ladies

Yesterday in my Good News Monday post, I made mention to my life verse. Can you guess what it is? Well, it is found in 2 Corinthians 1:3-4. and it says Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. We have all had our fair share of loss, disappointment and failures in life. Some of us more than others. Yet God's plan with our pain is the same for us all. His number one goal is to drive us into a relationship with Him, if we don't already have one and to strengthen our faith if we do. Then, he desires to heal us so that we would be able to use that pain for someone else's gain. Sounds simple, doesn't it?

With that said, I would like to let you know that I have been praying for you and would like to invite you to our first Women's Ministry Picnic at Doral Baptist Church. Ladies, this invitation is for you only. Come as you are and allow the Lord to begin the healing process in your life. Don't forget to bring your picnic blanket and bible (if you own one). Complimentary lunch will be served. Hope to see you there!

"If It's Free, it's for Me"

Today I went to pick up a package in the mail from my childhood bestfriend and although I knew the contents of said package it was still exciting to open the box and see what was actually inside.

With that said, it's time for another give-away.

Recently, I wrote about "busyness" and made reference to a great read, Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World by Joanna Weaver. That's the book I'd like to give away.

Here's your chance to win. All YOU gotta do is leave a comment on my blog (Come on Facebookers make your way over to the original post here) with your name, email and one sentence or less telling us why you should have this book.

I'm going to have another random drawing but I'd like to know that this book is not going to sit on someone's bookshelf and collect dust but that it is being read and that the applications inside are being put to good use.

The winner will be announced on Friday, January 22nd. Have fun ladies!