Small Straws In A Soft Wind

by Marsha Burns --

Keep looking up, and refuse to allow discouragement to keep you from breakthrough. There are things over which you have no control, things that are beyond your level of responsibility and authority. These are the circumstances that you need to release to Me, says the Lord. That means you must let go completely. Otherwise, your thoughts and emotions concerning these issues only hinder the work of My Spirit. Answers and breakthrough will come as You seek Me, and I will give you peace when you trust Me.

Isaiah 26:3 You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.

Waiting

"In your patience possess ye your souls." Luke 21:19

Late Saturday night we discovered a water leak in our house. We called our plumber last night to see when he could come and fix it. He told us that it was a very slim possibility that he could come today and that it would probably be Thursday. Well, this morning, just as I sat down to start the devotional my phone rang. Yes, it was my plumber-- they were on their way. (Thank You, Lord!) This means I had to put the devotional on hold for a little while this morning because the leak is in my office wall that adjoins a bathroom.

As I thought about having to put it on hold, even wondering if I should send it this late or just wait until tomorrow to send it, the Lord spoke something to my heart- actually, two things.

1) A temporary delay does not mean a permanent one. Often things in our lives are "put on hold", but just because they are doesn't mean they won't happen eventually. So don't be discouraged.

2) A temporary delay is a place of waiting. But the wait is not what matters. What matters is "how" you wait. Not everything in life, even the promises of God always come immediately. Sometimes there are delays, waiting periods, and how you wait is what's important.

Perhaps you are in one of those times now. How are you waiting? Are you anxious? Are you getting frustrated? Are you losing heart? Are you getting impatient? Is your impatience effecting your attitude- as in, are you beginning to be short, rude and unkind to others? Or are you waiting in peace? Are you trusting that God has a perfect timing for everything and He is working behind the scenes to cause all things to work together for your good? Are you resting in confidence that God is perfect and in control? Waiting is a fact of life. Delays are a fact of life. What we do in them is what counts.

Have a great day. Not everything in life comes instantly, so when it doesn't, what do you do?

For further reading:
Psalm 40:1
Philippians 4:6
Romans 8:28

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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell

In The Battles

"Though an host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear: though war should rise against me, in this will I be confident." Psalm 27:3

Ever feel like the enemy has set up camp at your house? Do you feel like every weapon he has is aimed right at you? Do you feel like all his forces have assembled together to attack you?

Sometimes the attacks of the enemy come in multiples. He doesn't just attack you in one area and work to take you down in it before he moves on to another area. It seems he is attacking you in every area of your life- in your relationships, finances, health, etc.- all at the same time.

The Psalmist was going through the same thing. His enemies were coming against him without letting up. He was going through battle after battle but he found the key to victory. He put his confidence in the Lord. His confidence was not in his own ability to handle the enemy. It was not in his own strength or know how. His confidence was not in a person. His confidence was not in his natural resources. His confidence was in the Lord.

He was confident that the Lord was with him. He was confident that the Lord was able to handle the situations. He was confident that Lord was able to keep His promises. He was confident that the Lord loved him and was on his side. He was confident that the Lord was with him and would not abandon him in his time of need.

Where and in whom does your confidence lie this morning? Can you say like the Psalmist, "My heart will not fear because of my confidence in the Lord." ? Our confidence comes in knowing that the Lord is with us even in the battles. We start getting worried and fearful during these times when we feel we are alone. You are not alone this morning, you are not by yourself. The Lord is with you, and He is with you in everyone- not just one or some.

Have a great day. Don't lose your confidence in the Lord during the battle or battles.

For further reading:
Psalm 27
Hebrews 13:5
Psalm 118:6
Psalm 124

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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell

Love Who?

"By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." John 13:35

Love is the identifying factor in a Christian's life. It is what separates us and identifies us with Christ. Love reflects God's nature and character in our lives. It is also a commandment from Him for us to live by. That being the case, who are we to love?

We are to love God. We are to love our neighbor. "And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself." (Luke 10:27)

We are to love our "brothers"- those in our natural family, and those in our "spiritual" family- the family of God. "And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also." (1 John 4:21)

We are to love our enemies. "But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you." (Matthew 5:44)

We are to love one another-- each other; whoever that may be. "This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you." (John 15:12)

So, we are to love God, love our neighbor, love our family, love the family of God, love our enemies and love each other. No one is excluded in our love. We can't pick and choose who we will and won't love.

You may be thinking about a person that you "can't" love; you might know someone who is "hard" to love; you might even feel that a certain person doesn't "deserve" love.. it doesn't matter, it doesn't exempt you from loving them. The key to loving people is to first love God. When we love Him, then His love is what flows from us- not our own- to those we deem unlovable. It has to be His love that we love them with because His love is the only one that is unconditional. If He loved us when we were His enemy, when we were unlovable, when we didn't love Him, when we didn't deserve to be loved, then we should let His love do the same thing through us that it did for us.

Have a great day. We can't pick and choose who we want to love, God's command is to love everyone!

For further reading:
1 Thessalonians 4:9
1 John 4

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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell

See You In Church On Sunday!

"Let us go into the house of the Lord." Psalm 122:1 NIV

What's your reason for not going to church? Before you answer, read Ten Reasons Why I Never Wash!

(1) I was forced to wash as a child. (2) People who wash are all hypocrites; they think they are cleaner than everyone else. (3) There are so many kinds of soap; I just can't decide which one is best for me. (4) I used to wash, but I got bored and stopped doing it. (5) I only wash on special occasions like Christmas and Easter. (6) None of my friends wash (7) I'll start washing when I get older and dirtier. (8) I don't have time to wash. (9) The bathroom is never warm enough in winter or cool enough in summer: (10) The people who make soap are only after your money! Sound familiar?

Speaking of the church, Paul writes: "There should be no division...its parts should have equal concern for each other...each one of you is a part of it" (1Co 12:25027 NIV). You are part of Christ's body, the church, so you need to be there! Watchman Nee says, "Alone I cannot serve the Lord effectively, and He will spare no pains to teach me this. He will bring things to an end, allowing doors to close and leaving me effectively knocking my head against a wall until I realize that I need the help of the body, as well as of the Lord." There are truths taught in God's house that you won't hear anywhere else. There you'll find a spiritualfamily to belong to, a faith to live by, and a focus that gets your eyes where they should be - on Christ! So, see you in church on Sunday!

Two-Fold Intimacy

"And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply." Genesis 1:28a

NOTE: (I know that these devotionals are read to younger children, so you might want to read it first incase there are some questions that may arise from the children.)

I want to talk about having intimacy with Christ this morning. One of the comparisons that the Bible uses to describe our relationship with the Lord is that of a husband and a wife. There is an aspect of that relationship that is shared only by the two of them- it's intimacy. When we think about intimacy, we usually think about one side of it. We usually think about the pleasure that it brings to us. But intimacy is not just about us receiving pleasure, it has a "practical" purpose as well-- reproduction.

When God gave Adam and Eve the command in the Garden of Eden to be "fruitful and multiply", this command would be fulfilled through their time of intimacy together. Was intimacy strictly about them? Was it given only to satisfy a desire in them? Was it given for their pleasure alone? As we can see from the command that it had a two-fold purpose- pleasure and reproduction.

Our intimacy with the Lord has a two-fold purpose as well. Intimacy is the avenue through which something is "produced". Many Christians aren't "producing" anything because they are not having intimacy with the Savior. Intimacy translated means-- time alone with Him. It's time when we shut the world out and get alone with Jesus. It's time when we sit at His feet lavishing our love on Him through worship and praise. It's time when we sit still and quiet in His presence and allow Him to share His heart with us. It's in those times where something is "received' from Him that will "produce" something in our lives.

There is no other way to become "fruitful"- it comes through intimacy. And what is produced in us is for a purpose-- so that we will have something to "bring forth" in this world. Without intimacy- time alone with Him in His presence- we have nothing to "bring forth"- no love, no joy, no revelation, no peace, and so on.

Our intimacy with Christ is not just strictly about the pleasure we receive from being in His presence. It is also so that He can place something in our hearts that will make us fruitful and cause us to multiply.

Have a great day. Intimacy- time alone in His presence- produces something in us that we can't receive anywhere else or in any other way, so that we can be fruitful and multiply.

For further reading:
Colossians 1:9-11
Matthew 10:8b; 6:6
Mark 4:34; 1:35

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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell

New Paths and Old Paths

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9

The Israelites were getting ready to go into the promised land and make it there new home. These were people who had either lived in Egypt or the wilderness their entire lives. They were getting ready to leave familiar surroundings and enter into a new place- a place they had never been before. They didn't know what to expect, they didn't know what lie ahead of them, they didn't know what might come their way, they didn't know what they might face. But before they entered the Lord gave them this word of encouragement and promise- "I will be with you wherever you go."

Life takes us down many roads, including places we have never been before as well as old familiar paths. The promise that the Lord made to the Israelites is the same promise He makes to us today- "I will be with you". Perhaps you are embarking on a new venture today, remember, the Lord is with you. Perhaps your path today is a familiar one, one you have been down many times, you aren't excluded, He is with you also.

He was with the children of Israel everyday the entire forty years they were in the wilderness. What a wonderful thought! God didn't leave them out there by themselves. He didn't abandon them. He didn't say,"You got yourselves into this mess, so I will see you in forty years". No, He was with them every minute of every day- He placed His "tent" right there in the middle of their tents.

Are you on a "new" path today? Are you going down the path of divorce or maybe you are a newly wed? Are you getting ready to have your first child and are a little nervous? Are you starting a business or moving into a new position? Are you stepping out in faith to answer the call of God? Are you relocating to another city, which means new friends, new surroundings, perhaps a new school? Be encouraged and comforted this morning, the same God who has been with you in the old familiar places promises to be with you still-- wherever you go.

Have a great day. Whether we walk down old familiar paths or brand new ones, we don't walk them alone... the Lord is with us wherever we go.

For further reading:
Joshua 1:5; 3:7
Hebrews 13:5
Numbers 2:17
Matthew 28:20

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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell