Are you doubting?

Are you doubting?

Image courtesy of David Castillo Dominici at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Image courtesy of David Castillo Dominici at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

I believe that 0-5 works all the time, no matter what.  Like for instance, I know that eating 0-5 works during pregnancy, but I find myself doubting my ability to truly do that.  Why is that? Because it’s hard to SEE the evidence of it working, because well, one gains weight while pregnant.  It’s just part of the process and every body is different.  So throughout my pregnancy I’m constantly wondering, “Is this working?”  And then I’ll feel like the rubber doesn’t really meet the road until post-pregnancy.  It’s sort of silly, but that’s how it’s been for me the last 2 pregnancies.  I guess it’s that unknown.  It’s trusting the Lord even when we don’t really SEE the proof.
28 weeks + 5 days pregnant with 3rd baby

28 weeks + 5 days pregnant with 3rd baby

Throughout my pregnancy, to be honest, I’ve battled with thoughts of this working after the baby comes.  But I KNOW it does!  I’ve already done this with my second pregnancy.  He’s already been faithful to see me through and to prove to me His ability to help me release excess baby weight.  But the thoughts are there, again, this pregnancy.  “Does this work?  Will I release the weight?”  So the diet thoughts pop up.  Doubts.
“Sometimes we are like the Israelites.  Our newly aquired freedom may feel unsettling, even frightening.  At first we may not trust it.  We may be tempted to go back to the bondage, sitting around the “pots of meet”–the meal plans and calorie counting–to have something external dictate when, what, and how much we should eat” (Hunger Within, Chapter 3: Grace Not Legalism).
This morning I opened Hunger Within and the Lord showed me that I haven’t been putting my security and trust in Him in this area.  He wants me to be so confident in Him and what He’s shown me even if this feels like a weak area.  He showed me that I compare myself to others.  My mom said something to me recently pertaining to something she and I both read about someone’s weight/health testimony.  She said what works for one may not work for another.  So true.  What she said made me realize that I keep on comparing myself to others and thinking that their way should work for me too, when it clearly doesn’t. And most importantly, I need to lean upon what the LORD has shown me.  There are areas of my life that I’m confident in and I feel very strongly and passionate about because the Lord has clearly shown me something.  Like for instance, homeschooling: I know the Lord has called me to homeschool and I believe it’s for the long haul.  I have peace in that.  There are those rare times I question it, but otherwise I’m strong in my conviction of what the Lord has shown me.  But when it comes to this food thing, I don’t feel as strong.  I waver based on what is before my eyes, what I hear, etc.  And it’s interesting, because I know the Lord has clearly shown me that eating 0-5 is His way for me, but I still have moments of doubt.  I want to walk in that confidence, trusting Him and not leaning on my own understanding or what the world around me is saying.

IMG_6435

Last week, I was looking for a photo in my photos on my phone and I happened upon this photo (above) of myself from last spring (May 25, 2015).  Now, when I saw this photo, I was like, “Wow, I looked pretty good!”  But then I remembered still struggling with accepting my body.  And now I see how ridiculous it was for me to be so hard on myself.  At this time, I had recently released about 3 more pounds (I talked about this in my Counterfeit Hunger post).  I believe I was very close to my natural, God-given size.  But I still found myself doubting.  The enemy was right there saying it still wasn’t enough…that *I* wasn’t enough.  What a stinkin’ liar!  He wants us to doubt and he uses the same ole lie, “Did God really say?”  You know, the same lie he used in the Garden of Eden.  In this example, the lies would be, “Does eating 0-5 really help release weight?”  “Do you really think you look good?  Look at [name that body part].”

I’m sharing this picture not to be like, “Oh look at me!” But because I want to share how the enemy gets in there and tells us we aren’t okay when we really are.  I know why I still wasn’t satisfied with where my body was; it was because I was comparing it to the images of the “perfect body” we see splattered around.  You know, those Photoshopped, air-brushed photos.  But it wasn’t just those images, it was what I was seeing on social media.  Or it was me comparing myself to the fitness gurus I’ve seen on workout videos.  The enemy will always give us something in which to compare ourselves if we are not satisfied in our present circumstances.  I felt that my body wasn’t good enough, that I needed to try harder.  I was doubting.  I didn’t feel good enough–and that I shouldn’t be satisfied until I reached some level of fitness or “skinny”.

“Let’s face it, there always will be someone prettier, stronger, more handsome, or more successful than you, and the media images will continue to hold up standards of beauty and perfection that no one can match” (Hunger Within, Chapter 5: Worth Not Shame).

On May 27, 2015 (two days after that photo was taken) I wrote this in my journal: “I am doubting God when I am thinking about eating another way (diet).  I am saying I would rather trust the world and have no peace and have confusion than to trust God and have faith and peace.  Do NOT be conformed to this world!  The world’s way changes.”

And that’s so true.  The “image” the world accepts has changed SO much over the years, but that’s a whole other discussion.

I really want to stand securely in what the Lord has shown me.  I don’t want to waver when my eyes don’t SEE the proof.  I have to walk by faith and not by sight.  I have to believe God’s way for me is perfect.  He doesn’t want me to obsess.  He wants me to follow His peace.  He wants me to trust Him and rest in Him.  In fact, that’s His one little word He’s given me this year for 2016: REST.
Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. 
Matthew 11:28-30
My one little word(s) for 2015 was: BE FREE and SERVE.  I most definitely feel more FREE than I have in a long time.  I’m not feeling as burdened by the heaviness of food obsession or body occupation.  My journal is filled with less “woe is me I ate too much” and more of scripture prayer declaring what the Lord has done, is doing, and will do.  My relationship with Him has been strengthened. I understand His grace so much more than I have ever in my 34 years of life.  He has definitely been at work!  And now He wants me to REST in Him.
Resting means putting my confidence and security in Him.  Is He faithful to watch over His word?  Yes!  Is He faithful to fulfill His promises?  YES!!!  God is able.  So I need to stop comparing myself to others.  I need to be completely confident in what He has shown me and stop wavering based on what someone else says or does or looks like.
I spent most of 2015 off of Facebook and, at times, Instagram because it creates doubt, comparison, and obsession.  Right now, it’s not a safe or healthy place for me to be.  This is a personal issue.  I’m just not strong enough (yet) to see all of that stuff in my face (especially this time of year) and to be able to turn down the temptation to research about diets.  It’s been a stronghold that the Lord has been helping me overcome.  I share that to encourage you that if there’s something in your life that is feeding the doubt, then back away from it. Prayerfully consider eliminating it.  Doubt is like temptation to not believe what God says.  And temptation leads to sin.  The Lord showed me that the social media arena is an area of weakness for me.  I do so much better without it.  Again, that is my personal struggle with social media; it may be something completely different for the next person. 
What causes you to doubt success in your Thin Within journey?  Are you doubting that 0-5 works?  There are lots of testimonies to read if you want to see “proof”.  Build up your faith by renewing your mind in God’s word.  Ask Him to show you His truth about what He wants for you in this journey toward freedom from comparison, food indulgence, not being satisfied, etc.  He will be faithful to show you.
Peace and grace to you!
 
The Fight of Faith — Lesson 7 TW Class 2014

The Fight of Faith — Lesson 7 TW Class 2014

Image courtesy of Ambro / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Image courtesy of Ambro / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Sometimes, it becomes really really clear that this just won’t be easy. Simple, yes. Eat when you are hungry. Stop when you are not hungry. Go to God for all the other reasons that you may want to eat and let him walk with you through them. Simple. Yes. EASY? Most definitely not. What do we do when it is tough? We hang in there. We put on the full armor of God and take our stand. We fight the good fight of faith.

Video Questions:

1.) God sees what you are becoming and will yet become. List some characteristics of you that God sees based on the work He is doing in your life. It is fine for this to be hypothetical if you like or, you can refer to the Who I Am In Christ list for ideas. This is how HE sees you!

2.) In the video (0:54) I refer to God’s “Big T” truth as “trumping our little t truth.” What does this mean to you?

3.)  I use a number of bible verses in this video segment. Select two or three of these and create truth cards based on these, personalizing them so you can speak God’s Big T truth to your soul!

4.)  Several times I mention that this is not a “Battle of the Bulge.” Why is it important to understand this? (Visit 2:40 to see what I think!)

5.)  What are three lies that you tend to speak into your own life? What truths does God want you to trade the lies for?

6.)  What is an example of a specific battle that you have had where you could choose between believing a lie or believing truth? Can you foresee a possible situation in the next day or two when you might have a battle? What lies might be tempting to believe? What truth will you use to fight the lies?

7.)  What practical tools do you use to fight the fight of faith?

8.)  6:48 – I assert that we have time to invest in preparing our minds for battle. What can you do this week to invest even an additional ten minutes each day to prepare your mind for battle?

9.) 8:00 – How do you think the enemy feels when you make even a baby step of headway in God’s direction for you?

10.) Why might it be a strategy of the enemy to get us to focus on weight loss?

11.) BONUS QUESTION: 9:15 – Is my dog cute? 🙂

Renewing the Mind – Pressing On

1. If you haven’t yet created truth cards, do so today. Or truth “Post It Notes.” That works, too. Create some new cards or notes. What will your Post-It Notes or new truth cards say? How will you use them? What do you think of the idea of seeing it, saying it, and hearing it?

2.  Sometimes we get so focused on ourselves: our struggle, our fight, our eating, our mistakes. What can you do to focus on someone else or on the Lord as you fight the fight of faith this week?

Pick One (book or workbook):

Trade Book Assignment – To Be Completed by February 24th.

Here is the Thin Within Book Study Guide Week 7. Feel free to discuss it at our Facebook group.

Workbook Assignment – To Be Completed by February 24th.

1. Read, highlight, mark Lesson 7, The Fight of Faith, on pages C30 – C34 or listen to it on Sound Cloud.  Discuss it here in the comments section below this post or at our Class Facebook Group.

2. Complete the exercises for Lesson 7 on pages C36 – C-42. Don’t worry if you are behind. Just do what you can of this week’s material. Next Monday before the webinar, respond to the Review questions on page C43.

3. What have you added to your God List?

4. Use the entries for Day 43through Day 49 in the Temple Tool Kit.

5. For those who persevere :-), I will be doing a drawing on Monday, February 24, from all those who respond in the comments section here to any of the discussion questions or blog posts this week. The winner will get an I Deserve a Donut book from Barb Raveling. (Thanks, Barb, for donating a book to this!). If you already have that book, Arthur and Judy Halliday have donated a copy of Hunger Within. You can have that instead. All you need to do is post a reasonably relevant comment and include a notation “Please enter me in the drawing” or something like that.

6. Memorize Hebrews 11:6 this week. Personalize it and add it to your truth cards.

7. Join us on February 24th for our live webinar at 4:30 Pacific Time. We have special guest, Judy Halliday, who will share with us some of the challenges she has had to face over the years–especially more recently. She will share wisdom from the front lines Fighting the Fight of Faith!

How About You?

Have you given up? If so, it’s not too late to dive back in to the fray. Yes, it is tough. Yes we may get beaten up, but it is SO worth it!  Remember, those who are victorious over their struggles with overeating and overweight are those who understand that they may not “get it” perfectly. They know that this is a ride…and we may fall off the horse, but over time, we fall off the horse less frequently and stay on the ground less long before we get back on. How about if you get back on today?

The recording of our webinar wrapping up last week’s lesson, Lesson 6 on Counting the Cost, can be found here.

Here are the Lesson 7 Discussion Questions for use with the webinar.

Praying in Faith Part 2…

I was just thinking about what I posted earlier about my son while I was doing horse chores this evening. The Lord spoke to my heart about my final statements in the blog entry. That if I was going to pray that God would do a work in me, I should act like I believe he would…like Daniel did when he made the effort and moved the hay after praying for rain.

I heard the voice of the Spirit whisper to my heart: “But do you *want* to be made whole?”

This surprised me.

I was then reminded of John 5:5-7, which says:

One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years.
When Jesus saw him lying there
and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time,
he asked him, “Do you want to get well?”

This man had been disabled for THIRTY-EIGHT years! He was there waiting for a way to get well. His presence in that place, his condition…it all seemed to indicate that he, of course, wanted to get well! So, why did Jesus ask him the question?

As I was pondering the way my son had prayed in faith for rain and taken action based on that faith, I considered…he really WANTED the rain. In fact, he wanted it enough that he planned for it, to welcome it. He put effort into receiving the rain. He DID something in preparation for the rain–the answer to his prayers. He anticipated the rain. When he prayed for rain, had Jesus asked him, “Do you want it to rain?” Daniel’s prayer *and* his actions would have indicated “YES! You BET I do!”

What about me? When I pray that God would take away my desire for food beyond what I need…well, do I *want* to get well? Do I *really* **want** the answer to my prayer to be yes? Or is there some way in which I continue to cherish sin in my heart?

Psalm 66:17-19 says:

I cried out to him with my mouth;
his praise was on my tongue.
If I had cherished sin in my heart,
the Lord would not have listened;
but God has surely listened
and heard my voice in prayer.

If I am to be like Daniel when I pray, if I am to believe that God will bring it about, if I am going to act like it is going to happen…what kind of actions will that illicit in my life? Jesus asks me, “Do you want to get well? Do you really want to be free? Or are you comfortable with this ‘issue’ in your life? Does it ‘work’ for you?”

Ouch.

Am I making provision for the flesh? Or am I making provision for Him answering my prayer?

n the New American Standard Bible, Romans 13:14 says this:

But put on the Lord Jesus Christ,
and make no provision for the flesh
in regard to its lusts.

If I think about Daniel, what would it have looked like if he hadn’t believed his prayer for rain would have been answered? He would have left the hay alone, but he might have gotten on sun screen and gone to the lake to go swimming. He would have left my bible out on the back deck instead of bringing it in. He might have even turned on the air conditioning or opened the windows in the house…he would have made provision for anticipating that the Lord wasn’t going to answer his prayer for rain.

Instead, he was convinced…he believed, he asked, he wanted what he asked for enough to DO. Could this be, in part, what James means when he said:

In the same way, faith by itself,
if it is not accompanied by action,
is dead.
But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.”
Show me your faith without deeds,
and I will show you my faith by what I do.
– James 2:17-18

Daniel’s faith caused him not just to pray, but also to act, to do…a “deed” or two. Not to win God’s “yes,” but to anticipate it!

If I pray in faith for God to forever remove an unhealthy attachment to food in my life, if I anticipate that His answer will be yes, what DEEDS will I DO that show that I anticipate God acting in response to my prayer? Will I make provision for the flesh, expecting that I will never be free from an ungodly attachment…or will I expect not to feel the compulsion to eat to excess any more and choose to act, to DO something(s) that demonstrates to God and to myself that I know God is at work doing a new thing, changing my lusts, passions and desires? Am I making provision, if you will, for His affirmative answer to my prayer? Or am I making provision for my flesh, demonstrating a lack of faith *and* the answer to Jesus’ question “Do you want to be well?” that says, “No…no thanks…not really. Silly me…I didn’t MEAN to ask you to heal me…”

Hmmm….

As I sit here editing this blog entry, I am smiling. God has such a sense of humor. Can you believe it? I actually, literally hear rain outside…the windows are open (my doing…). Maybe I better shut them.

Praying in Faith

My 15 year old son is on the autism spectrum. Having made a proclamation of faith in Christ at a very young age, his walk with God is nevertheless hard for me to figure out now. I can never tell if his praying is somehow related to his obsessive-compulsive tendencies or if there is truly a tender, believing heart. All I know is that when he gets it in his mind to pray for something, it gets added to what sure sounds like a “vain and repetitious” prayer at bedtime. It might even be added to mealtime prayers, too. Then on and on, forever and ever…until the prayer is answered one way or the other…he prays it.


In fact, sometimes his prayers sound so repetitious to me from night to night (or meal to meal) that I can say them with him…I know precisely what he will say “And protect Grandma and Grandpa and heal Leslie’s cancer and may she come to know you and may Andrea come to know you, too…” I kid you not. I have heard those words every night for at least the past 2 years since his other grandma died (and the prayer was only slightly different then) and my cousin developed brain cancer.

Since we have had only two days with a bit of rain since February (we live in DRY California), Daniel has added “Please bring rain” to his nightly (and mealtime) prayers. Sometimes, I must confess…I get such an attitude about it all…I am tempted to roll my eyes and I lip sync his prayer.

Truthfully, who is the one who needs the attitude adjustment? It is obviously me! Nevertheless, I have had a real hard time swallowing the way he seems to carelessly enter God’s presence and spout off the same old requests. I wonder sometimes if his heart is engaged at ALL in what is going on. (Gosh, do you suppose that his way of praying might just give God a lot more joy than my criticizing it does? Duh!)

One night when he prayed for the rain again…I rolled my eyes and sarcastically told him now would NOT be a good time for rain as the hay delivery had left 2 bales of hay out of the shed…they would be rained on and ruined and I would prefer NOT to have the hay rained on.

The next day, without a cloud in the sky, Daniel felt *badly* that he had prayed for rain. He went out there and moved the two 118-pound bales of hay…he was so convinced that God was going to bring rain that he didn’t want to be responsible in any way for ruining the hay.

I realized that my son, who is all too eager to save energy and not flex a muscle for much of anything, felt he *had* to move that hay before it got rained on…even though there was NO cloud in the sky.

Gee… This sure seems like believing faith to me. THIS is praying in faith. To him, if he prays for it, then it really might happen. In fact, it is SUCH a possibility that he *plans* for it to happen. Go figure.

Hmmmm…seems to me that I can learn something from the “vain and repetitious” prayers of a teenage autistic boy…maybe if *I* were to believe like that, some things would be different in my life.

For instance, if I prayed that God would remove the desire from me to have more food than I need, would I perhaps live expectantly…like God was really going to answer YES to this prayer? How would this affect *my* actions like praying for rain affects Daniel’s?

If I prayed that God would help me to say NO to the cookie dough in the tub in the fridge, if I believed he would actually say YES to keeping me from *wanting* it, and then I made choices based on expecting God to act…what would that look like?

Hmmm…..I think I have decided that I want to pray like Daniel. I want faith like my son. I want to pray, believing that what I have prayed for is God’s will and that it will happen. If it will happen, I better PLAN on it happening. LIVE like it will.

Wow…I have a feeling that doing this will change my life quite a bit. In fact, maybe I will pray that I will have praying faith like my Daniel has…that I will act believing that my prayers will be answered. What will it look like right now if I pray for that and then believe that God will make it happen?

Living With Wonder!

Dilemma: How can I follow my really loooong “40 years of Wandering” posts with anything other than short, light fluff? Food pictures :-), short quotes, upbeat devotional thoughts…

At church yesterday, God gave me what I needed to inspire me to look with anticipation at what is yet ahead in 2008! I hope to share it here with you on this New Year’s Eve. Even if it isn’t short!

Pastor Dean Koontz (not the novelist with the same name, but a newly published author just the same) presented a message yesterday called “Living With Wonder.” Oooh…just the title of the message thrilled me!

My own thoughts and commentary are mixed in with paraphrased quotes from Pastor Dean. I apologize to Pastor Dean for that! If you see anything of value here, credit him. If anything that sounds off base…blame me! 🙂

From Joshua 3:1-5

1 Early in the morning Joshua and all the Israelites set out from Shittim and went to the Jordan, where they camped before crossing over.

2 After three days the officers went throughout the camp,

3 giving orders to the people: “When you see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, and the priests, who are Levites, carrying it, you are to move out from your positions and follow it.

4 Then you will know which way to go, since you have never been this way before. But keep a distance of about a thousand yards between you and the ark; do not go near it.”
5 Joshua told the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do amazing things among you.”

As you look ahead at the New Year, can you pin point any attitudes, fears, thoughts that you have? It may be possible that you have something in common with what the Israelites were feeling as they stood on the brink of the new land following their “wanderings in the wilderness.”

The Israelites may have had:
1. …an attitude of Reservation.
2. …an attitude of Preparation.
3. …an attitude of Anticipation.

An Attitude of Reservation

Looking back over their wilderness journey, the Israelites may have felt intimidated at the “impossibilities” that still lay ahead. Certainly, the taste of past failure was yet on their lips. They had, after all, been to this place before—on the edge of the new land, only to be held back by their own shortcomings, hindered by their own short-sightedness.

Have you wandered around in your own wasteland, hoping to make headway, to give this battle with food, overeating, obsession with your body to the Lord? Do you find yourself troubled by past “failures” that it causes you to be skeptical as you look ahead? Do you find yourself held back by your own shortcomings and hindered by short-sightedness? You are not alone!

But God… (I love those words…)

But God… has something in store!

Something …wondrous!

Focusing on nagging failures or besetting sins only feeds the shame that keeps us repeating the same kinds of failures and besetting sins. It doesn’t serve God’s purposes for us at all.

God’s presence in the midst of His people was represented by the Ark of the Covenant. Nevertheless, they may have been tempted to focus on the enemy…not upon the Lord. This may have intensified the Israelites’ hesitation. It may have magnified their reservation as they stood on the edge of “something new.”

Who are you focused on? Are you focusing on the Lord God, present with you? Or does the enemy have your attention? Or do you fill your own focus?

In all my struggles, I have often been so pre-occupied with…well…ME…that I couldn’t see the Lord, let alone fix my eyes on Him, the author and perfector of my faith. (Hebrews 12.)

An Attitude of Preparation

In verse 5 Joshua challenges the people to prepare themselves for what was ahead by consecrating themselves. Consecration is being set apart *from* sin and *to* God… God called His people to hate sin…not just turn from it, but to feel about it as He feels about it. Then, they were to turn to Him, to consider themselves fully given over to Him, for His purposes, His will and His way.

The Israelites were prepared and willing now, in this moment, to follow their savior, Joshua, wherever he led.

Are we willing to follow our “Yeshua” wherever He leads?

In Joshua 24:15, Joshua says: But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.

The people had a choice, as do we. Will we follow our Lord? Our Savior? Or will we bow down to another?

Sanctify yourself to God. Then set your eyes on Him and follow Him where He leads.

In Joshua 1: 7, God says, “Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you.” The attitude of preparation has at least three components to it.

1. The first aspect of an attitude of preparation is to be strong.

Because the Lord is with us, we can be strong in His strength and in the power of His might. (Joshua 1:9)

At Jericho, an unlikely victory was delivered to the unlikely winner in an unlikely manner because the Lord empowered the victory HIS way. The Israelites were strong in HIM.

How often do I attempt to pull myself up by my bootstraps and work myself into enough “will power” and “self-discipline” to accomplish that which God alone can (and will) accomplish in me? The victory that we seek is an unlikely one (for most of us) short of His power released! We must be strong in the LORD!

In fact, if you look further at what happened after Jericho, the conclusion of the second battle in Canaan didn’t go so well. Maybe it was pride at what was accomplished at Jericho..maybe they forgot that it was the presence, power, and provision of God that had delivered the victory. The battle for Ai was a miserable failure. The Israelites were defeated.

In Joshua chapter 7 we see that the Israelites arrogantly assumed the town of Ai would be easy to take so they sent fewer men to attack. They did what looked wise in their own eyes.
Following the defeat at Ai, Joshua threw himself upon the ground and poured his heart out to God about what happened (Joshua 7:6-8). God, in effect, says “There is a time for prayer and a time for repentance. Get off the ground and take care of the evil in your midst…get rid of idolatry.” We discover the truth…they hadn’t been consecrated to the Lord. There was sin in the camp.

How often do we allow the victories that the Lord brings, to cause us to tend toward pride and arrogance? Then, before we know it, we pompously march into “battle” and find ourselves flattened by what “should” have been no match for us? In our flesh, we have no strength. If there is a tiny reserved place in our home or our lives where idolatry is allowed to go unchecked, the Lord will not empower us. We will not experience His strength.
We must be rid of the idols…Return to being consecrated to the Lord.

2. Another component of an attitude of preparation is being courageous. (Joshua 1:3).

Hebrews 13 promises us that God will never leave us or forsake us and in this we can be courageous. We can face whatever foes come with the assurance that God IS present.

3. Yet another aspect of having an attitude of preparation is obedience.

Imagine the command of God to the priests who were told to take the ark and step into the Jordan—at flood stage! It wasn’t until their obedience was committed in faith that they would see the parting of the barrier that kept them from the land.

In Joshua 3:13 they were promised: And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the LORD -the Lord of all the earth—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap.

The priests had to “set foot in the Jordan” and THEN the waters would be cut off. Obedience had to come first. Obedience would release the omnipotence—the mighty, untamable power—of God Almighty on their behalf.

In a moment, they would choose to either step foot and trust—make a faith-filled choice that God would be reliable and do as he promised—or to hesitate and refuse—make a flesh-filled choice, allowing their emotions, their fear, to decide. They could, instead, take that moment captive for the Lord and obey His will, His way—as impossible as it sounds. And they did…

We see what happened because of this faith-filled choice. Joshua 3:15-16a says: Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water’s edge, the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away.

The peoples’ obedience released God’s omnipotence.

Can you choose to believe God in this moment? Even if you fear and quake at the sight of “flood waters” that seem too insurmountable to pass, can you trust to step forward in faith knowing that what God commands He also empowers? Your obedience just may well release the omnipotence of God in your life as well. Rather than be swept up in flood waters, you may be swept up in the powerful flowing current of the Holy Spirit!

An Attitude of Anticipation

Can you imagine being the Israelites? There they stood on the edge of the Jordan knowing that across the river was a new life…filled with promise, adventure and, of course, uncertainty. (Does this sound familiar to you who hope to leave behind disordered eating, obsessive dieting and unhealthy focus on your body?)

Yet God had traveled with them and was with them now, leading them across the river, promising them a future and a hope.

Imagine…stepping into the DRY river bed…what had been under raging waters just moments before! Consider the miracle of walking past the priests who remained in the middle of the river bed…and the WONDER of seeing the waters piled up, held back by an unseen divine hand! Imagine the awe, the reverence the respect emerging from deep in your heart for so powerful a God as this who could stop the flow of raging currents…

God can do the same in our lives. Let us allow Him to put in us an attitude of anticipation. As Isaiah 43:19 says: God IS DOING a new thing! Do you perceive it? Are you on the edge of your seat anticipating what it will be?

Let’s enter the new year with the full intention of possessing everything that God intends for us to possess in Christ! Let’s believe what HE says! Let’s embrace by faith what is our inheritance! Anticipate by faith the good things He has in store for those who trust in the Lord! Let’s live with WONDER!