Beyond Ourselves Podcast
Here’s a Good Reason to Follow the Owner’s Manual
Have you ever wondered about the “why” behind God’s commands? If so, it helps to realize that since He created us, as Isaiah 40:28 and other passages explain, He knows what is beneficial to us and what hurts us. For instance, when the Scriptures were written, they didn’t have the research on the harmful effects of worry and stress. So, Jesus simply stated as recorded in Matthew 6:34, “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” They didn’t have the research on the destructive nature of bitterness so God simply commanded as stated in Ephesians 4:31-32 to forgive and put bitterness away from us. If we’re wise, we’ll read and follow the Owner’s manual for us.
Heavenly Father, Lord and CREATOR, forgive us for too often ignoring Your commands. Draw us to Your Holy Presence and to surrender to Your will.
“Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth does not become weary or tired. His understanding is inscrutable.” Isaiah 40:28
Is Your Life a Mess of Puzzle Pieces
Do you feel like your life is a mess of puzzle pieces and you don’t see how everything is going to come together? Do you wish there was someone you could talk to; who could advise you? If you’re in that place, Isaiah 9:6 says Jesus is your “go to” Counselor, and He’s wonderful! How does He counsel us? He counsels us in prayer. He counsels us through the promptings of our heart. He counsels us in the Bible through His teachings and by His example. For instance, in Matthew 15:32-38, there appeared to be a problem – 4,000+ people who were hungry and no food. Did Jesus wring His holy hands? No. Instead, He asked the disciples how many loaves of bread they had. They replied seven and a few small fish. Jesus “took the seven loaves and the fish; and giving thanks, He broke them and ….” You know the rest of the story. Jesus THANKED His Heavenly Father for what He had in His hands. He acted in faith with what was in His hands. Thanking God for what we have is powerful. If you’re struggling with discouragement and don’t know what is going to happen with your life, start recording your heart-felt prayers and questions in Prayers of My Heart journal. Instead of turning over the same puzzle pieces in your mind, pause in your Counselor’s presence and see what He impresses on your yearning heart. Do what He tells you. He is, after all, the Wonderful Counselor.
Jesus, thank You, wonderful COUNSELOR, for Your presence and Your wisdom.
If You’re Disappointed
Are you disappointed? If so, in what? Or, are you disappointed in a person? Or, are you disappointed in yourself? God understands disappointment. Lot’s of things can cause us to feel let down. Sometimes our disappointment is because we have unrealistic expectations about others. I write about that in The Plan A Woman in a Plan B World. Other times, our disappointments are valid. No one is perfect, including us and when valid expectations aren’t met, we can’t help but feel it. First Peter 2:6 is encouraging because God wants us to know that there’s something He’s provided that will never disappoint us: our faith in Jesus. “Behold, I lay in Zion a choice stone, a PRECIOUS CORNERSTONE, and he who believes in Him will not be disappointed.” Look around and consider what you’re building your life on. If it’s expectations of a certain financial level, a certain house, a perfect spouse, perfect children, a perfect friendship, job, or even you being perfect, then you will experience disappointment at times. But if you build your life on Jesus and His teachings, you will not be disappointed. It’s our choice. Live disappointed or build our life on Christ.
Lord Jesus, You are the PRECIOUS CORNERSTONE on whom we can build our lives and not be disappointed. Thank YOU!
What to DO when Life doesn’t go according to plan: GET YOUR COPY HERE.
One More Reason to Praise God If You’re a Believer
Hi Friend! I just got back to my hotel room and wanted to THANK YOU for your prayers. It was a wonderful time in the Word! I love keynoting on “The Plan A Woman/Christian in a Plan B World.” One man was in the audience of the women’s banquet. He came up to me afterwards, said it was applicable to him, and thanked me. God’s Word is applicable to all of us if we have a humble heart and teachable spirit. Praising HIM.
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Would you rather God contend – plead a cause – for you or against you? If the answer is you’d rather God contend “for you,” then you have reason to jump and down for joy! Isaiah 51:22 states, “Thus says your Lord, the Lord, even your God who contends for His people, ‘Behold, I have taken out of your hand the cup of reeling, the chalice of My anger; You will never drink it again.’” Yes. A hallelujah with hands raised in praise is more than appropriate!
Lord, You CONTEND for us, not against us. We praise You with arms lifted high!
Pop Test!
PRAYERS PLEASE: Tonight I’m keynoting at Calvary Baptist Lubbock, TX Women’s Spring Banquet. Lubbock is my where I was born and raised, so it will be special to be back there. It’s also the date we buried my mother, Bernice Taylor, 17 years ago. I’d appreciate your prayers for an outpouring of God’s Spirit. I so want to give back to the community that gave so much to me. Thank you. Topic: The Plan A Woman in a Plan B World.
Do you know the answer to this question? Out of all of God’s teachings, what is the greatest of His commandments? and where is it found the Bible? You get extra points for knowing the Scripture reference. According to Jesus in Matthew 2:37-38, the great and foremost commandment is, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.” Luke 10:27 includes, “And with all your strength.” As a physician, Dr. Luke would have picked up on that important aspect. We’re to love God with every fiber of our being! Jesus quickly followed in Matthew 22:39-40 with a second great command and explanation, “The second is like it. You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.” There we have it. Our Heavenly Father and Lord Jesus are the commanders of the heavenly hosts and are our Commanders in Chief. As citizens of heaven we are to love and follow no one above them. How are we doing?
Lord, You who have given us Your COMMANDS, may we not be presumptuous or live contrary to Your ways, but rather live under Your commands in praise of You!
Could you use some compassion?
Could use some compassion? Has life been brutal? Does it seem like everything is going wrong? Are you trying your best but it’s never seems to be enough? Are you on a treadmill of bad habits that you’re trying to break and can’t? Do you feel like a failure? If you’ve ever felt one of those ways then you know how our soul longs for compassion in the midst of those times. Exodus 34:6 is an incredible word from God if you could use some compassion today. It says, “Then the Lord passed by in front of him (Moses) and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord God, COMPASSIONATE and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth.” Those are refreshing words to hear any time. But, do you know when God expressed His compassion? It was on Moses’s second trek up Mount Sinai to do a “redo” of the Ten Commandments since he had angrily shattered the first tablets when he found the Israelites worshipping the golden calf. Yes, God called Moses back up the mountain and expressed His compassion. He will express His compassion to you, too, when you call on Him.
LORD, thank You for deeply loving us, forgiving us, and being COMPASSIONATE toward us.
Ready or Not, He’s Coming
Did you play Hide and Seek when you were a child? The familiar, “Ready or not, here I come” warns the person who is hiding to be ready. Revelation 1:7 is not child’s play. It’s a serious warning that Jesus is coming and we need to be ready. “Behold, HE IS COMING with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen.” “Amen” means there’s no discussing it. It’s happening. We will either be ready for Christ’s appearing because we’ve repented of our sins and been forgiven or we’ll be covered in our sin and shame. If you’re not ready for Christ, take this as Him offering you the opportunity to be forgiven. Read John 3:16, Romans 3:23, Romans 6:23, Romans 10:8-11. Confess you’re a sinner. Ask God to forgive you. Receive the gift of His Holy Spirit. This is your opportunity to get right and be prepared for Jesus. Do it today. He’s coming.
LORD JESUS, COMING KING, we can’t imagine the reality of Your coming, except we believe in faith that You came once. So, in faith, we believe You are returning to earth. Help our faith take action so that we tell others how they can get right with You.
There’s No One Like the Comforter
On a cold winter evening, nothing feels as cozy as snuggling in bed under the warmth of a soft comforter. The fact is, though, no blanket compares with who 2 Corinthians 1:3 describes as the God of all Comfort. Yes, when a person’s crisp tongue chills us to the core, or the howling wind of despair blows through our heart, it is the God of all comfort who comforts us like no one else. The Greek word for comfort means “to call to one’s side, speak to, in the way of exhortation, console, teach.” How awesome it is that God gives every believer the gift of His presence through the Holy Spirit. This Comforter is an abiding presence who will never wear out, never become threadbare, and never leave us. The more we cover our lives with His teachings, the more we’ll know the warmth of His presence.
Adapted from Pray with Purpose, Live with Passion, copyright Debbie Taylor Williams, Howard Books, Simon & Schuester, page 67.
LORD, You are the God of all COMFORT! Thank You for the blessing of Your presence!
Check Your Closet Again
Have you ever thought about God in relation to your clothing? It’s an odd question, I know. But, the Bible adds to God’s many character traits and attributes that He is a clothier. A clothier is a person who makes, sells, or deals in clothes or cloth, and God fits the description from Genesis when He clothed Adam and Eve with animal skins to cover their nakedness to Revelation where our God-given heavenly clothing is “fine linen, white and clean.” There’s an additional way and means by which our Heavenly Father is interested in clothing us. He cares about more than our external appearance. He wants to cloth us on our innermost part. Galatians 3:27 describes believers as “clothed with Christ.” Think about that! God could provide no finer clothing than for us to sport Christ’s righteousness. So, the next time you start to say, “I don’t have anything to wear,” remember…you do!
Lord God, we praise You for being our CLOTHIER, for covering us with Christ’s righteousness so that we are not ashamed before You!
If We’re Smart…
Sheep. It’s been said they’re not the smartest animal in the world. That’s why they benefit from having a shepherd; someone to watch over them and care for them. In relation to God, we’re not the smartest. That’s why we benefit from having a Shepherd of our soul; someone to watch over us and care for us. Matthew 9:36 records that our Shepherd, “Seeing the people, felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd. Mark 6:34 further explains, “..He began to teach them many things. . What is Jesus, the Chief Shepherd’s, (1 Peter 5:4 ) response to seeing us be distressed and dispirited? He teaches us what to do and how to live. Of all the voices vying for our attention, Jesus’s voice is the One we’re to follow. The Bible is His voice on paper. If we’re smart, we’ll read and follow His teachings.
Thank You, JESUS, CHIEF SHEPHERD of our souls, for seeing us and teaching us.