by Elisabeth Elliot
Those who call Thanksgiving "Turkey Day," I suppose, take some such view as this: Unless we have Someone to thank and something to thank Him for, what's the point of using a name that calls up pictures of religious people in funny hats and Indians bringing corn and squash?
Christians, I hope, focus on something other than a roasted bird. We do have Someone to thank and a long list of things to thank Him for, but sometimes we limit our thanksgiving merely to things that look good to us. As our faith in the character of God grows deeper we see that heavenly light is shed on everything--even on suffering--so that we are enabled to thank Him for things we would never have thought of before. The apostle Paul, for example, saw even suffering itself as a happiness (Colossians 1:24, NEB).
I have been thinking of something that stifles thanksgiving. It is the spirit of greed--the greed of doing, being, and having.
When Satan came to tempt Jesus in the wilderness, his bait was intended to inspire the lust to do more than the Father meant for Him to do--to go farther, demonstrate more power, act more dramatically. So the enemy comes to us in these days of frantic doing. We are ceaselessly summoned to activities: social, political, educational, athletic, and--yes--spiritual. Our "self-image" (deplorable word!) is dependent not on the quiet and hidden "Do this for My sake," but on the list the world hands us of what is "important." It is a long list, and it is both foolish and impossible. If we fall for it, we neglect the short list.
Only a few things are really important, and for those we have the promise of divine help: sitting in silence with the Master in order to hear His word and obey it in the ordinary line of duty--for example, in being a good husband, wife, father, mother, son, daughter, or spiritual father or mother to those nearby who need protection and care--humble work which is never on the world's list because it leads to nothing impressive on one's resume. As Washington Gladden wrote in 1879, "O Master, let me walk with Thee/In lowly paths of service free...."
Temptation comes also in the form of being. The snake in the garden struck at Eve with the promise of being something which had not been given. If she would eat the fruit forbidden to her, she could "upgrade her lifestyle" and become like God. She inferred that this was her right, and that God meant to cheat her of this. The way to get her rights was to disobey Him.
No new temptation ever comes to any of us. Satan needs no new tricks. The old ones have worked well ever since the Garden of Eden, although sometimes under different guises. When there is a deep restlessness for which we find no explanation, it may be due to the greed of being--what our loving Father never meant us to be. Peace lies in the trusting acceptance of His design, His gifts, His appointment of place, position, capacity. It was thus that the Son of Man came to earth--embracing all that the Father willed Him to be, usurping nothing--no work, not even a word--that the Father had not given Him.
Then there is the greed of having. When "a mixed company of strangers" joined the Israelites, the people began to be greedy for better things (Numbers 11:4, NEB). God had given them exactly what they needed in the wilderness: manna. It was always enough, always fresh, always good (sounds good to me, anyway, "like butter-cakes"). But the people lusted for variety. These strangers put ideas into their heads. "There's more to life than this stuff. Is this all you've got? You can have more. You gotta live a little!"
So the insistence to have it all took hold on God's people and they began to wail, "all of them in their families at the opening of their tents." There is no end to the spending, getting, having. We are insatiable consumers, dead set on competing, upgrading, showing off ("If you've got it, flaunt it"). We simply cannot bear to miss something others deem necessary. So the world ruins the peace and simplicity God would give us. Contentment with what He has chosen for us dissolves, along with godliness, while, instead of giving thanks, we lust and wail, teaching our children to lust and wail too. (Children of the jungle tribe I knew years ago did not complain because they had not been taught to.)
Lord, we give You thanks for all that You in Your mercy have given us to be and to do and to have. Deliver us, Lord, from all greed to be and to do and to have anything not in accord with Your holy purposes. Teach us to rest quietly in Your promise to supply, recognizing that if we don't have it we don't need it. Teach us to desire Your will--nothing more, nothing less, and nothing else. For Jesus' sake. Amen.
Sunday, October 26, 2008
A New Thanksgiving
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Thanksgiving for What is Given
by Elisabeth Elliot
Some people are substituting "Turkey Day" for Thanksgiving. I guess it must be because they are not aware that there's anybody to thank, and they think that the most important thing about the holiday is food. Christians know there is Somebody to thank, but often when we make a list of things to thank Him for we include only things we like. A bride and groom can't get away with that. They write a note to everybody, not only the rich uncle who gave the couple matching BMWs, but the poor aunt who gave them a crocheted toilet-paper cover. In other words, they have to express thanks for whatever they've received.
Wouldn't that be a good thing for us to do with God? We are meant to give thanks "in everything" even if we're like the little girl who said she could think of a lot of things she'd rather have than eternal life. The mature Christian offers not just polite thanks but heartfelt thanks that springs from a far deeper source than his own pleasure. Thanksgiving is a spiritual exercise, necessary to the building of a healthy soul. It takes us out of the stuffiness of ourselves into the fresh breeze and sunlight of the will of God. The simple act of thanking Him is for most of us an abrupt change of activity, a break from work and worry, a move toward re-creation.
I am not suggesting the mouthing of foolish platitudes, or evasion of the truth. That is not how God is glorified, or souls fortified. I want to see clearly what I have been given and to thank Him with an honest heart. What are the "givens"?
Thankless children we all are, more or less, comprehending but dimly the truth of God's fathomless love for us. We do not know Him as a gracious Giver, we do not understand His most precious gifts, or the depth of His love, the wisdom with which He has planned our lives, the price He pays to bring us to glory and fulfillment. When some petty private concern or perhaps some bad news depresses or confuses me, I am in no position to be thankful. Far from it. That is the time, precisely then, that I must begin by deliberately putting my mind on some great Realities.
What are these "givens"? What do I most unshakably believe in? God the Father Almighty. Jesus Christ His only Son. The Holy Ghost, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, the life everlasting. Not a long list, but all we need. "The necessary supplies issued to us, the standard equipment of the Christian." We didn't ask for any of them. (Imagine having nothing more than we've asked for!) They are given.
Take the list of whatever we're not thankful for and measure it against the mighty foundation stones of our faith. The truth of our private lives can be understood only in relation to those Realities. Some of us know very little of suffering, but we know disappointments and betrayals and losses and bitterness. Are we really meant to thank God for such things? Let's be clear about one thing: God does not cause all the things we don't like. But He does permit them to happen because it is in this fallen world that we humans must learn to walk by faith. He doesn't leave us to ourselves, however. He shares every step. He walked this lonesome road first, He gave Himself for us, He died for us. "Can we not trust such a God to give us, with Him, everything else that we can need?" (Romans 8:32, PHILLIPS). Those disappointments give us the chance to learn to know Him and the meaning of His gifts, and, in the midst of darkness, to receive His light. Doesn't that transform the not thankful list into a thankful one?
Thursday, October 16, 2008
these are a few of my favorite things
I am NOT kidding, ya'll! I am IN LOVE with this TP. Ask anyone who has ever lived with me how much I rant and rave about it! It makes my hiney very happy!
It's hard to spend $24 on a conditioner but you get what you pay for. My hair THRIVES with this goodness and a little goes a long way!
Dove Deep Moisture Facial Cleansing Cloths
kids say the darndest things
4 year old Tatum: "Miss Jessica, what is that blue stuff on your eyes?"
jnt: "It's called eye shadow!"
Tatum: "Did you wear it at your wedding?"
jnt: "Well, seeing as I've never been married, no, i didn't."
Tatum: "Why aren't you married?"
jnt: "That's a GREAT question, Tatum. I ask God that very question all the time." :)
bless her heart.
Monday, October 13, 2008
Humdudgeons or Contentment
by Elisabeth Elliot
The word humdudgeon is a new one to me and I like the sound of it. It means "a loud complaint about a trifle." Heard any of those lately around your house? One mother thought of an excellent antidote: all humdudgeons must be presented not orally but in writing, "of two hundred words or more." There was a sudden marked reduction in whining and complaining.
Parents, by example, teach their children to whine. No wonder it is so difficult to teach them not to! Listen to conversations in the elevator, at the hairdresser's, at the next table in the restaurant. Everybody's whining about everything--weather, health, the president, the IRS, the insurance mess, traffic, the kids.
Human life is full of trouble, which doesn't come from the dust, said Job's friend Eliphaz, nor does it sprout from the ground. Man is born to trouble. Compare your list of troubles with one famous man's:
He had a difficult childhood
Less than one year of formal schooling
Failed in business at age 31
Defeated for legislature at 32
Failed again in business at 33
Elected to the legislature at 34
His fiancee died when he was 35
Defeated for speaker at 38
Defeated for electorate at 40
At 42 married a woman who became a burden, not a help
Only one of four sons lived past age 18
Defeated for congress at 43
Elected to congress at 46
Defeated for congress at 48
Defeated for senate at 55
Defeated for vice president at 56
Defeated for senate at 58
Finally elected president.
He was Abraham Lincoln, of course. When I look at his list of setbacks, I wonder if I've ever had a problem.
Adler said, "It is a categorical demand of the neurotic's lifespan that he should fail through the guilt of others and thus be free of responsibility." That sobered me. Is my response to failure instantly to lay the blame on somebody else? Is there always an excuse, a complaint, an inner whine!
A spirit of calm contentment always accompanies true godliness. The deep peace that comes from deep trust in God's lovingkindness is not destroyed even by the worst of circumstances, for those Everlasting Arms are still cradling us, we are always "under the Mercy." Corrie ten Boom was "born to trouble" like the rest of us, but in a German concentration camp she jumped to her feet every morning and exuberantly sang "Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus!" She thanked the Lord for the little parade of ants that marched through her cell, bringing her company. When Paul and Silas were in prison, they prayed and sang. It isn't troubles that make saints, but their response to troubles.
Even miracles can't make us holy. Paul reminded the Corinthians that the Israelites were all guided by the same cloud, all had the experience of passing through the sea, all ate the same supernatural food, and all drank the same supernatural drink. "In spite of this, most of them failed to please God and their corpses littered the desert" (1 Corinthians 10:5, JB). The reason for His displeasure came down to a single root: discontent, which included "wicked lusts for forbidden things (idols and illicit sex, for which 23,000 were killed in one day) and complaining because they wanted things perfectly legitimate in themselves which God had not given--leeks and onions and garlic and cucumbers and fish--and stood at their tent doors, parents and children together wailing "Here we are, wasting away, stripped of everything; there is nothing but manna for us to look at!" Numbers 11:6, JB). Many were struck with a plague and died.
When Paul's flesh was tormented by a sharp thorn, he naturally wanted it removed. He made this request known to God, but the answer was No. God didn't change Paul's physical condition, He changed his spiritual one. He gave him what he needed more than healing. He gave him the high ministry of heaven called grace. Paul not only accepted the answer, he learned even to be very thankful for weakness itself, for "power comes to its full strength in weakness."
Everything about which we are tempted to complain may be the very instrument whereby the Potter intends to shape His clay into the image of His Son--a headache, an insult, a long line at the check-out, someone's rudeness or failure to say thank you, misunderstanding, disappointment, interruption. As Amy Carmichael said, "See in it a chance to die," meaning a chance to leave self behind and say YES to the will of God, to be "conformable unto His death." Not a morbid martyr-complex but a peaceful and happy contentment in the assurance that goodness and mercy follow us all the days of our lives. Wouldn't our children learn godliness if they saw the example of contentment instead of complaint? acceptance instead of rebellion? peace instead of frustration?
May ours be the spirit of the seventeen-year-old Lady Jane Grey, who prayed this prayer in her prison cell before she was beheaded in 1554:
O merciful God, be Thou unto me
A strong Tower of defence,
I humbly entreat Thee.
Give me grace to await Thy leisure,
And patiently to bear
What Thou doest unto me;
Nothing doubting or mistrusting
Thy goodness towards me;
For Thou knowest what is good for me
Better than I do.
Therefore do with me in all things
What Thou wilt;
Only arm me, I beseech Thee,
With Thine armor,
That I may stand fast;
Above all things taking to me
The shield of faith;
Praying always that I may
Refer myself wholly to Thy will,
Abiding Thy pleasure, and comforting myself
In those troubles which it shall please Thee
To send me, seeing such troubles are
Profitable for me; and I am
Assuredly persuaded that all Thou doest
Cannot but be well; and unto Thee
Be all honor and glory. Amen.
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Where Will Complaining Get You?
by Elisabeth Elliot
When we were in Dallas for a visit, we were the guests of our dear friend Nina Jean Obel. As we sat one morning in her beautiful sunshiny yellow and pale-green kitchen, she reminded us of how, in the story in Deuteronomy 1, when the Israelites were within fourteen days of the Promised Land, they complained. Complaining was a habit which had angered Moses, their leader, to the point where he wished he were dead. "How can I bear unaided the heavy burden you are to me, and put up with your complaints?" he asked. They headed for Horeb, but when they reached the hill country of the Amorites they refused to believe the promises and insisted on sending spies to see what sort of a land it was. The spies came back with a glowing report, but the people didn't believe that either. Never mind the lovely fruit the land offered. There were giants in the land; they'd all be killed. There were huge fortifications towering to the sky. How would they ever conquer them?
It was the neurotic's attitude. No answer would do. No solution offered was good enough. The promises of God, the direction of Moses, the report of the spies--all unacceptable. The people had already made up their minds that they didn't like anything God was doing. They "muttered treason." They said the Lord hated them. He brought them out only to have them wiped out by the Amorites. O God, what a fate. O God, why do you treat us this way? O God, how are we going to get out of this? It's your fault. You hate us. Moses hates us. Everything and everybody's against us.
Nina Jean said she made up her mind that if complaining was the reason God's people were denied the privilege of entering Canaan, she was going to quit it. She set herself a tough task: absolutely no complaining for fourteen days. It was a revelation to her--first, of how strong a habit it had become, and second, of how different the whole world looked when she did not complain. I get the impression when I'm around Nina Jean that the fourteen-day trial was enough to kick the habit. I've never heard her complain.
It's not just the sunshine and the colors that make her kitchen a nice place to be. It's that Nina Jean is there. I'd like to create that sort of climate for the people I'm around. I've set myself the same task.
---------------------------------
i am taking this on as my newest challenge too... ABSOLUTELY NO COMPLAINING for 14 days! care to join me?
Saturday, October 11, 2008
What Do You Mean By Submission?
by Elisabeth Elliot
People are always asking me this. What is this business of "submission" you're always talking about? We're not really very comfortable with this. Seems kinds of negative. Sounds as though women are not worth as much as men. Aren't women supposed to exercise their gifts? Can't they ever open their mouths?
I wouldn't be very comfortable with that kind of submission either. As a matter of fact, I'm not particularly comfortable with any kind, but since it was God's idea and not mine, I had better come to terms with what the Bible says about it and stop rejecting the whole thing just because it is so often misunderstood and wrongly defined. I came across a lucid example of what it means in 1 Chronicles 11:10, NEB: "Of David's heroes these were the chief, men who lent their full strength to his government and, with all Israel, joined in making him king." There it is. The recognition, first of all, of God-given authority. Recognizing it, accepting it, they then lent their full strength to it, and did everything in their power to make him--not them--king.
Christians--both men and women--recognize first the authority of Christ. They pray "Thy will be done." They set about making an honest effort to cooperate with what He is doing, straightening out the kinks in their own lives according to His wishes. A Christian woman, then, in submission to God, recognizes the divinely assigned authority of her husband (he didn't earn it, remember, he received it by appointment!. She then sets about lending her full strength to helping him do what he's supposed to do, be what he's supposed to be--her head. She's not always trying to get her own way. She's trying to make it easier for him to do his job. She seeks to contribute to his purpose, not to scheme how to accomplish her own.
If this sounds suspiciously like some worn-out traditionalist view, or (worse) like a typical Elisabeth Elliot opinion, test it with the straightedge of Scripture. What does submission to Christ mean? "Wives, submit yourself to your husbands, as to the Lord." Compare and connect.
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
The 8 Day Challenge Day 8
Thought of the Day
"I am drenched with the joy of God and all is well."
Congratulations for sticking with the challenge for eight days! How did it go yesterday with building up and multiplying joy in the life of that one special person? What about the other 4 people who have participated with you? Have you checked up on their progress? Bear in mind that the 4:8 principle tends to impact your relationships more than anything else.
Your eight day experiment of deliberately searching for and cultivating the good stuff in your life officially ends after you drift to sleep this evening. Of course, I hope and certainly encourage you to continue filtering your thoughts, words, and actions through Philippians 4:8 indefinitely. For a quick reinforcement, reread this powerfully simple verse from The Message:
"Summing it all up, friends, I'd say you'll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious--the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse." Philippians 4:8 (MSG)
Recently, I was asked by a nine year-old about The 8-Day Challenge. I explained that it was a little game to see how many grown-ups could think and talk only about the good stuff in their life for eight straight days. The little boy then asked me what happened to the losers...
The single most effective method for extending the benefits of The 8-Day Challenge is developing the habit of asking, re-asking, and then answering 4:8 Questions. A 4:8 Question is a question about your life that extracts a positive response. When you change the questions you consistently ask yourself, you start thinking differently. The 4:8 Questions are a simple tool to displace negativity in the short term and help you take conscious control of your repeated thoughts over the long haul.
These questions reroute your attention to the best things in your life. Even on tax day, you'll find that 4:8 Questions immediately change what you're focusing on. Consequently, they affect how you feel, as well as your level of creativity, excitement, and joy at any given moment. When you ask better questions, you receive better answers. Do you believe God wants you to launch into each day with joy? Try these questions immediately upon waking, during your Early Morning Joy Ritual (EMJR):
What are 4 things that I'm grateful to God for this morning?
What are 4 of my strengths, and how can I use them today?
What are 4 of my recent victories, and who was blessed as a result?
What 4 relationships could I influence positively today?
What are 4 things that I'm excited about experiencing over the next twelve hours?
Each of the questions above demands a positive response, and by asking for four answers to each, I am compelling you to dwell on the positive. After all, you cannot completely control the thoughts that are triggered from your surroundings, but you can unquestionably control what you choose to dwell and fix your mind upon.
To get these questions working for you, put a copy where you can see them often, such as on a bathroom mirror, a night table, your computer screen, the refrigerator, or the steering wheel of your car. You could even make a screen saver containing your 4:8 Questions or tape them to your treadmill, Stairmaster or exercise bike. Keep them "top of mind" as much as possible throughout the day, almost like you're advertising reasons to be joyful. Remember that your potential for joy is limited only by your preparation for joy.
Question of the Day
In what ways could you better prepare yourself to live, give and love with joy, regardless of what is going on around you?
The Challenge of the Day (for extra credit...or the extra mile)
Design, in writing, your ideal Early Morning Joy Ritual (EMJR), emphasizing the First Fifteen minutes of your day. (See page 141)
1. read Scripture, listen to worship songs, pray
2. avoid TV and negative thoughts
3. prepare for my EMJR the night before by setting out a journal, a book, my Bible, going to bed early enough to give me at least 8 hours of sleep
4. the instant i wake up, tell myself "this is the day that the Lord has made; rejoice! and be glad in it! i am so incredibly blessed." thank God for another day of grace.
5. the instant i wake up, avoid telling myself "it's gonna be a long day..." or turning my thoughts to what i DON'T have
6. intensify my gratitude in the First Fifteen by journaling my answers to the 4:8 Questions and journaling 5 things each day that i am grateful for
7. use prayer and Scripture to talk and listen to God
8. carry my answers to the day's 4:8 Questions around with me all day to keep my mind on 4:8 Thoughts
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
a devotion i read today...
A few years ago, I sat with a beautiful young woman and watched the tears stream down her face. Six months before our meeting, her world was filled with so much. A loving husband, a healthy toddler, fun friends, and a new starter home that her mom helped her decorate.
Life was full.
But some part of her heart still felt restless, unsettled, a little empty. She couldn't put her finger on it. She tried talking to some of her friends but they laughed it off as something related to hormones that would pass.
Only the feeling didn't pass.
She started to feel detached from her husband and disappointed that his love didn't fulfill her. Why couldn't he make her feel loved? She'd always thought of marriage as the ultimate love. He was going to be the one to right her wrongs, fill up her insecurities and give her a lasting feeling of love, or so she thought.
Questions bombarded her constantly... What is wrong with him? Why didn't he say what he's supposed to say? Maybe it's me. Maybe I'm not pretty enough, witty enough, good enough?
Then one day she met a man that said things she'd longed to hear her husband say. He made her feel pretty and witty. Soon, she rationalized that she'd never really loved her husband in the first place. She'd made a mistake marrying so young. This new man was her true soul mate.
She fell into his arms. A web of lies was spun. The thrill of new romance clouded her every decision.
She had not wanted to come to the women's retreat. She knew it might make her feel guilty and she was past any guilty feelings. She was just waiting for the right time to leave her husband and start over with the real love of her life.
But her friends had started to grow suspicious of her pulling back from so many church activities. So, to appease them, she went.
Over the course of the weekend, the walls she'd so carefully constructed to keep everyone at a distance and her secret safe started to crumble. By Saturday night, she sat down with me and confessed her secret.
She desperately wanted to know how I felt so full of God's love. She'd never known that kind of relationship with God. She was now convinced it wasn't the love of another man her heart craved, it was the love of God.
I think this is true of many people. We spend years chasing things in this world that we think will make us feel loved. But everything this world has to offer is temporary. Everything. The kind of love our souls crave is lasting, eternal. And only God can fill up our hearts with that kind of love.
The sad thing about chasing love outside the will of God is it invites so much into our lives that is the exact opposite of love. 1 Corinthians 13: 4-8 is picture of God's perfect love. It is patient. It is kind. It does not envy... it is not self-seeking... it does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth... it always protects... it always perseveres. Love never fails.
This is not a description of what is inherently ours when we fall in love with another person. It is a description of God's love. This kind of love can be ours as we become more Christ like and decide to give this kind of love. It is never focused inwardly. It is never about what I'm going to get from another person. It is deciding this is the kind of love I will give away.
The things we chase in this world are so opposite from God's love. False attempts at love will make us impatient, unkind, envious, self-seeking, resistant to the truth, reckless and temporary.
I am challenged by this. Because our souls were designed for God's fulfilling love, if we aren't staying closely connected to Him everyday, our hearts will start to feel empty. Restless. Unfulfilled.
Let us never get to the place where we think we are strong enough to not be tempted in this way. If we are all completely honest, we are only a few bad decisions away from the same kind of mess my sweet friend is now trying to untangle herself from. While I have complete hope in God's ability to restore her, the consequences of her chase for love will be severe on many levels.
Oh sweet friends, can we make a commitment together today? Can we commit to be women who recognize how crafty Satan can be and how vulnerable we are when it comes to our need for love?
And if something or somebody in this world seems appealing enough to draw our hearts away from the truth of God, we commit to being women who will readily admit it to another godly woman and ask for help.
The kind of love our souls crave will never be found in the things of this world. The only lasting and perfectly satisfying love will only be found when we stop chasing and start living out the truths of God.
The 8 Day Challenge Day 7
Thought of the Day
"I bring out the best in the people I appreciate the most."
Good morning and welcome back!
What's going great in your world? I expect you're doing awesome and you still have two days to make even more progress.
For today, I want you to focus on building up one particular person with your prayers, thoughts, words, and actions. This is your 4:8 target for the day. Only one rule; don't let this person know that they are your "target." I don't know who this individual is, but I believe you do.
Pick one person to concentrate almost all of your 4:8 energy on... just for today. This could be your spouse, a child, sibling, friend, parent, business partner, boss, top client, or someone else that is special in your life. Maybe this individual really needs your attention because they are facing challenging circumstances or possibly you decide to focus on this person simply because they are so important to you. Before you go any further, ask God for guidance in selecting your target.
So who is it going to be? Who in your life could benefit the most right now from some 4:8 power and affection? Take a brief moment and crystallize an image of this person in your mind's eye. Picture your target with a big smile on their face, feeling terrific about themselves and their life, in part because of your 4:8 efforts on their behalf. Don't tell your target what you are doing, but ask God to use you this day as an ambassador of joy in this person's life.
There is enormous power in concentration! Often times, we spread ourselves thin diluting our potential for influence and impact with the very people we love the most. Too frequently, we unintentionally give our prime-time energy to the "Optional 80%," leaving only leftovers for the "Required 20%" whom we value the most. For this one day, make sure this does NOT happen. Go all out and make multiplying joy for this one person your absolute top priority. Remember, this is just one day, not one week... Ask God to multiply their joy through your thinking, speaking and acting today.
Looking for ideas? Here are a few that will get your brain moving in the right direction, but the rest, though, is up to you. What will you choose to do today?
Compliment and encourage your 4:8 target beyond the norm.
Leave a special handwritten note of general gratitude.
Ask your target "how they would like you to pray for them."
Plan a future tribute or surprise that is excellent and noble.
Leave a short voice mail appreciating your target in some specific way.
Pray for joy to increase in this person's life beyond all measure.
Shower your target with mini-prayers of blessing throughout the day.
Brainstorm 8 ways to "lighten the load" and reduce stress in your target's life.
Verbalize something very positive about your target to 4 other people.
Question of the Day
Are you spreading way more joy than you hope to receive?
The Challenge of the Day (for extra credit...or the extra mile)
Make a firm decision that you will treat this special person like you did today...for the next 8 days.
Monday, October 6, 2008
The 8 Day Challenge Day 6
Thought of the Day
"With God's help, I leave the junk behind."
Good morning everyone! Five days down, three to go.
For this sixth day, I want you to focus on forgiveness.
To live with maximum joy, you must forgive everyone in your life, past or present, for all the silly, spineless, nutty, nasty, gutless, cruel, spiteful, harmful, insensitive things they've ever done to you, both real and imagined. (Did I leave anything out?) As I mention in the book, life is way too short to be negative.
We're all human and stuff happens. Move on. Never let an old wound fester due to excessive attention. When you carry around bitterness, hostility, and other emotional baggage, you live in the past and cannot possibly realize your potential for joy. It is impossible to feel terrific about yourself when you are lugging around resentment toward another person. I may be wrong, but I suspect this is by divine design. You must either develop an ultra-thick skin or become a perpetual forgiveness machine--preferably both.
Forgive yourself early and often--and mean it! It is imperative to forgive yourself, without mental reservation, for your stupid choices, inappropriate thoughts, limiting words, foolish behaviors, negative beliefs, and all the other self-defeating things you've ever done. Because you are not perfect, forgiving yourself will be an ongoing process. Remarkably, you only have to do this . . . forever! That's okay; you're not alone.
Guilt isn't practical anyway. It forces you to experience the present moment while paralyzed by past mistakes. When you have setbacks or slip a bit, you aren't any less valuable. You simply have something to learn from slipping. Make sure you learn it, as learning from the past is much better than reliving it. Make forgiving yourself a mandatory element in your daily joy ritual. Forget your failures and relive your joys.
Don't expect to feel any different instantly. The emotional blessing often lags behind the actual act of forgiveness. Just accept God's grace and restoration for the incredible gift that it is. Leave the junk behind so you can make room for the joy. Practice forgiving yourself regularly--and mean it sincerely.
Question of the Day
Have you given yourself permission to live life to the fullest?
The Challenge of the Day (for extra credit...or the extra mile)
Pray the following today...
Heavenly Father,
How awesome it is that you know everything about me and love me anyway! Upgrade my opinion of myself and my vision for the future so I never feel the need to protect and preserve the past. Allow me to see myself today with as much significance as you see me. Keep my focus ahead of me rather than behind me.
Grant me the courage to push beyond previous boundaries in all areas of my life. Show me how to be a faithful steward of my one and only opportunity to magnify the greatness you have placed within me. Lead me away from complacency and any temptation to settle for less than what you know is my absolute best.
Restore me this day, and make me whole and complete.
In His name,
Amen
Sunday, October 5, 2008
The 8 Day Challenge Day 5
Thought of the Day
"I feel what I dwell upon...and I feel fantabulous."
A joyful morning to everyone and welcome back!
We're on day five and today I want to highlight the connection between Philippians 4:8 and the strength and quality of your emotional life. Positive attitudes do produce positive emotions.
To put it rather mildly, the Apostle Paul was well ahead of his time when it came to understanding the human condition and in particular the mind of man. Paul knew that the root of destructive emotions is destructive thinking. As a proactive measure, he instructed us to think on noble things so that we would experience noble emotions.
No doubt about it, our Creator wants us to experience the bliss of His love, peace and joy. If you believe that negative emotions are outside God's will for your life, it provides a wonderful incentive to get really picky about the thoughts you allow to occupy your mind. Remember that the quality of your emotional life right now reveals the quality of your most recent thinking patterns.
There are strings attached. Your emotional life can advance only after your negative thoughts retreat. You will most definitely feel what you dwell upon. This is exactly why Paul, knowing we would have a choice to do otherwise, urged us to fix our minds on what is lovely, pure, excellent and worthy of praise. And consistently thinking about the good stuff supercharges your capacity to experience the richness of life that God wants for all of us.
Your current feelings reveal what you've recently been dwelling upon. So, if your emotional life today is not where you ultimately want it to be, then your top priority should be shifting your attention to your blessings, to your strengths, and to the aspects of your life that are working.
Refuse to fuel negative emotions by constantly talking about what is wrong with your marriage, your oldest kid, your sore back, your strange neighbors, and the world in general. This is 8:4 thinking. Instead, broadcast your blessings to anyone who will listen. Verbalize your exciting vision for the future to trusted friends and allies. This is 4:8 thinking!
Question of the Day
What would have to happen for you to improve your emotional life by 30 percent?
The Challenge of the Day (for extra credit...or the extra mile)
Make a list of the eight emotions you desire to experience most often. Then, next to each, identify the sort of thoughts that would naturally precede such emotions. Give specific examples for each. Decide whether or not these emotional blessings are worth pursuing.
1. passion: thinking about my future husband!
2. joy: my nephew's smile, spending time with my family
3. confidence: trusting that I am who God says I am, words of affirmation, learning thru reading scripture or hearing sermons
4. gratitude: counting my blessings
5. peace: knowing that God is in control and I'm not
6. satisfaction: doing what i was made to do- loving on others..
7. awe: being outside in nature, worshiping
8. excitement: the little things- it could be scented candles, wine & cheese, a candlelit dinner, deck sitting, dark chocolate, fall
weather
Saturday, October 4, 2008
The 8 Day Challenge Day 4
Thought of the Day
"Thanks for everything."
Good morning 4:8 thinkers!
Welcome back! We’re on day four and today I want you to practice being exceptionally grateful for your life just as it is at this moment. Remember, this challenge is about focusing on the good stuff! Today, I want you to pray, think, speak and behave like a highly appreciative human being.
When you experience a sense of gratitude, it means that you have been harboring thoughts of appreciation for the abundance in your life. When you feel a sense of deficiency, it does not necessarily mean that you are lacking something important. What it does mean is that you have recently been dwelling upon what is missing, very likely to the exclusion of what is present.
You might have been thinking about your spouse’s annoying quirks and overlooking all the reasons you married him or her in the first place. You might have been thinking about being under financial pressure and forgetting that you have just about everything money can’t buy. Gratitude involves channeling your energy and attention toward what is present and working rather than toward what’s absent and ineffective.
Gratitude is like a mental gearshift that takes you from turbulence to peacefulness, from stagnation to creativity. Gratitude brings you back to the present moment, to all that is working well in your life right now. Gratitude is the cornerstone of an unstoppable, 4:8 attitude. And gratitude can be cultivated and then experienced at ever-deepening levels.
Gratitude is also an effective antidote to most negative emotions. For example, you cannot experience gratitude and hostility at the same time; you have to make a choice. Which one is it going to be? The more you appreciate today, the more things you will notice tomorrow to be grateful for.
On the flip side, the less appreciative you are today, the fewer blessings you will tend to acknowledge tomorrow. You are going to draw more joy out of your business, out of your marriage, out of your family life, and out of all the other aspects of your existence when you make a commitment to become a genuinely grateful person.
Question of the Day
Are you certain that the people you love the most know how grateful you are for them?
The Challenge of the Day (for extra credit…or the extra mile)
Today, make a list of four people in your life who have pushed you to become a better person and call, email, or write a personal note of appreciation to each within the next 48 hours.
Friday, October 3, 2008
The 8 Day Challenge Day 3
Thought of the Day
"A healthy mind produces joy like a healthy body produces energy."
Good morning 4:8 thinkers!
What do you think? So far, has it been easier or harder than you expected?
Regardless of how well you've done to this point, remember that living consistently with Philippians 4:8 is not just an 8-day challenge, it's a permanent pursuit, a way of life. Like the first two weeks of a famous diet, this 8-day mental fast was designed to eliminate unhealthy cravings for unhelpful thoughts.
Similar to the physical diet, you've decided in advance to reduce certain "High-Carb Thoughts" and increase other lean, healthy thoughts. Even better, this relatively short exercise allows you to make significant progress quickly so that you'll be motivated to stick with this mindset for the rest of your life and, of course, spread joy indefinitely.
If your goal is to lose weight, then you know what you have to do. You must change your diet. You have to decide in advance what kind of food and drink is consistent with your weight-loss goals and what kind is not. And for this change in diet to be effective in the long run, you'll probably need to remove the junk food and unhealthy snacks from your environment and replace them with healthy, energy-producing choices.
Likewise, if your goal is to experience maximum joy, you have to change your mental diet. If you are serious about making progress in this area, you must alter the exposures that trigger negativity in the first place. You must toss the junk thoughts that oppose God's promises, and instead, stock your surroundings with joy-producing inputs that encourage right thinking and discourage negative, lazy thinking.
Questions of the Day
How much joy do you think you can stand? How much junk are you willing to put up with? What do you really want?
The Challenge of the Day (for extra credit...or the extra mile)
To build awareness of your joy-producing inputs, make a very specific inventory in writing of the most constructive exposures in your life in a typical week. These are the influences that make it easier and more natural to live in sync with 4:8. Then do the same on negative side. For both lists, consider daily rituals, certain people, chronic conversations, TV habits, reading material, weekly traditions, news consumption, etc.
Constructive Exposures-
1. reading and meditating on Scripture and other Christian books
2. spending time in prayer and gratitude
3. spending time with people who build me up instead of bring me down
4. worshiping
5. being outside in nature, reveling in God's creation
6. listening to sermons while i work out
7. Elisabeth Elliot's daily devotionals
Thursday, October 2, 2008
SCL#413. Trying to find a cause.
I found this entry on one of my favorite blogs, Stuff Christians Like, and I just had to post it on my blog because it is SO where I'm at right now...
I have, with increasing intensity these last two weeks. I’ve been wrestling with the question, “What’s next God?” I’ve been reading books about purpose and listening to great sermons like Craig Groeschel’s “Warrior” series. I started asking God, “What do you want me to do? What would you have me do for you? What did you put me on this earth for? What is my cause?”
I wanted him to tell me to start a ministry or be a spiritual warrior in faraway lands on a faraway adventure. I wanted him to give me a big cause so that I could do big things for him in big ways. But last Monday, in the midst of working through the weight and burden of feeling like I didn’t have a cause, I felt like God reminded me that he doesn’t think like I do. Maybe, when he hears me crying out for a cause, when he hears me asking him to transform me into a spiritual warrior, he wants to cry back:
"You want to be a warrior? Be a warrior of need and surrender. Make fighting for a relationship with me your greatest cause and see what other causes come out of that. See what other causes I put in your path. I can bring you adventures, but those things are small. Those are tiny compared to the cause of surrendering your heart and soul to me. That's your cause right now. Daily, hourly surrender of your heart and soul to me. You are on an adventure, make no mistake, but the real adventure, the big one that I cheer loudest about from the bleachers of heaven is for your heart. The adventure that begins every morning. That is the adventure I care about. Don't miss that one."
And I do, I miss it all the time because I focus on "what's next" instead of "what's now." I get so lost thinking I need to “do something for him” instead of “be in a relationship with him.” Like it says in Revelation 2:4, I forsake my first love. Repentance. Forgiveness. A minute by minute, all consuming need for God.
I don't want to miss that adventure. I don't want you to miss it either. God has big, crazy things planned for all of us. But the biggest adventure, the greatest cause, the grandest purpose, is the one that starts in our heart.
The 8 Day Challenge Day 2
Thought of the Day
"I am responsible for the words I speak."
Welcome back to the challenge! How did you do with Day One?
Regardless of how well you did yesterday, congratulations on coming back for day two. Remember that today is a fresh start. You can't change yesterday any easier than you can change World War II. So make the very most of this day and push yourself a little further.
The words we use reflect our thinking. Listen more closely than ever on this second day, to the choice of words and phrases used by the people you are hanging around. Of course, I am referring to those who aren't committed to this 4:8 challenge. Don't comment on them. Just listen. The quality of the words they speak reveals the quality of the thoughts they are thinking.
You don't think excellent thoughts and then uncontrollably speak with gloom, doom, and disapproval. And you also don't think mediocre thoughts and then impulsively lift up others with positive, encouraging words. Remind yourself that the words you speak indicate the aggregate character of your thought life at the particular moment. Your words matter.
You can do it. Make the effort, just for today, to filter what you say to others and to yourself. After all, talking about what you do not want can never bring you what you do want. Instead, for today, speak about what is beautiful, valuable, praiseworthy and awesome. Search for the good stuff in every moment on this wonderful Wednesday. Your words matter.
Make it a game with yourself to find something virtuous in every experience and with every person you interact with...and then talk about it. Imagine that every word you speak today will be recorded and later expressed in your life in some way. Train your mind with your mouth. Start today. Start right now. Your words matter.
Question of the Day
In what ways have you tended to talk about your fears and worries more than your goals and dreams?
The Challenge of the Day (for extra credit...or for the extra mile)
Write a brief letter to God, thanking Him for all of your blessings of course, and then asking Him to reveal to you any areas of entrenched negativity so that you may become aware of it and begin to overrule it with joy-filled, 4:8 thinking. Date this letter for future reference.
Moonless Trust
by Elisabeth Elliot
Some of you are perhaps feeling that you are voyaging just now on a moonless sea. Uncertainty surrounds you. There seem to be no signs to follow. Perhaps you feel about to be engulfed by loneliness. There is no one to whom you can speak of your need.
Amy Carmichael wrote of such a feeling when, as a missionary of twenty-six, she had to leave Japan because of poor health, then travel to China for recuperation, but then realized God was telling her to go to Ceylon. (All this preceded her going to India, where she stayed for fifty-three years.) I have on my desk her original handwritten letter of August 25, 1894, as she was en route to Colombo. "All along, let us remember, we are not asked to understand, but simply to obey.... On July 28, Saturday, I sailed. We had to come on board on Friday night, and just as the tender (a small boat) where were the dear friends who had come to say goodbye was moving off, and the chill of loneliness shivered through me, like a warm love-clasp came the long-loved lines--'And only Heaven is better than to walk with Christ at midnight, over moonless seas.' I couldn't feel frightened then. Praise Him for the moonless seas--all the better the opportunity for proving Him to be indeed the El Shaddai, 'the God who is Enough."'
Let me add my own word of witness to hers and to that of the tens of thousands who have learned that He is indeed Enough. He is not all we would ask for (if we were honest), but it is precisely when we do not have what we would ask for, and only then, that we can clearly perceive His all-sufficiency. It is when the sea is moonless that the Lord has become my Light.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
The 8 Day Challenge Day 1
Thought of the Day
"I am free to choose from an infinite number of potential thoughts."
Welcome to the challenge!
This eight day experiment of deliberately searching for and cultivating the good stuff in your life will not only help you make this month great, it will also be a springboard for many ultra-positive years to come. Remember, this 8-Day effort is about you and your resolve to let go of thinking patterns that are no longer useful or productive.
Few people have experience with intentional, focused thinking. In fact most people hardly ever evaluate their thought life at all, at least until a crisis strikes. It's not uncommon to go through days-even weeks and months-filled with hyperactive commotion while giving very little notice to the quality and accuracy of the thoughts passing through your mind.
If left unchecked, however, more than 90% of your inner dialogue and self-talk will tend to revolve around your own dissatisfactions, insecurities, worries, and fears. The compounded effect of negative self-talk can cap your potential far beneath God's plans and intentions.
Question of the Day
Since you are free to choose what you think about, and you have billions of options, what specific thoughts should you increase in order to reach your most important goals?
The Challenge of the Day (for extra credit...if you need it, or if you just like going the extra mile)
Today, rewrite Philippians 4:8 in the Amplified version as shown below on 4 separate note cards that you can post in four high traffic areas for the duration of the eight days. (Bathroom mirror, steering wheel, gym or school locker, laptop keyboard, refrigerator, Bible)
"...whatever is true, whatever is worthy of reverence and is honorable and seemly, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely and lovable, whatever is kind and winsome and gracious, if there is any virtue and excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think on and weigh and take account of these things [fix your minds on them]." Philippians 4:8 (AMP)
I caught myself all throughout the day biting my tongue. This challenge is making me aware of how much I actually speak BEFORE I think about what I'm about to say...BAD HABIT of mine!! Lord, help me be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry.
