Tag: life

finding your sweet spot

Karla Lees

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Getting to know yourself is the key to finding out what revs your motor.

When a car is finely tuned with care by its mechanic, and is running on the right fuel, the ride is sweet.

Not taking care of your engine will cause damage to your car, not to mention the wrong fuel can cause it not to start, majorly mucking things up.

To find your sweet spot, you need to know your passions. How God has hardwired you.

Do you love to create?

Are you a teacher?

Can’t stop singing?

Love to organize?

Live to scribble?

Delight in helping?

Pray for healings?

Have a deep unshakeable faith?

Unswerving hope?

Interpret words?

Speak truth & encouragement?

These are just a few clues that can lead you to discover why you are here. God’s various gifts are handed out everywhere; but they all originate in God’s Spirit. God’s various ministries are carried out everywhere; but they all originate in God’s Spirit. God’s various expressions of power are in action everywhere; but God himself is behind it all. Each person is given something to do that shows who God is: Everyone gets in on it, everyone benefits. All kinds of things are handed out by the Spirit, and to all kinds of people! The variety is wonderful:
wise counsel
clear understanding
simple trust
healing the sick
miraculous acts
proclamation
distinguishing between spirits
tongues
interpretation of tongues.

All these gifts have a common origin, but are handed out one by one by the one Spirit of God. He decides who gets what, and when.
1 Corinthians 12:4-11

For each of us, beyond being made to worship Him, were designed to express Him through our passions. Exactly as He hardwired us to.

You are Christ’s body—that’s who you are! You must never forget this. Only as you accept your part of that body does your “part” mean anything. You’re familiar with some of the parts that God has formed in his church, which is his “body”:
apostles
prophets
teachers
miracle workers
healers
helpers
organizers
those who pray in tongues.
But it’s obvious by now, isn’t it, that Christ’s church is a complete Body and not a gigantic, unidimensional Part? It’s not all Apostle, not all Prophet, not all Miracle Worker, not all Healer, not all Prayer in Tongues, not all Interpreter of Tongues. And yet some of you keep competing for so-called “important” parts.
1 Corinthians 4: 27-31

Our purpose is to reveal Him through us.

How you do so will be very different from how I do, for no two of us are alike. We are all unique and have a unique part in the body.

When we all live in the sweet spot, where what we were meant to do lines up with who He has made us to be?

Our lives reveal Him just as they were designed.

When everything falls in to place, a sense of home wells up within.

We find our purpose.

For the sweet spot cannot be achieved on our own. It has to align with His heart & plan for us, or it is only an empty shell of the fullness He has planned.

In His hands, life is the sweetest.

With Him is the sweet spot.

If you aren’t sure of your purpose, spend some time seeking Him. Ask Him to help you discover what may be lying dormant or unknown within you. There are great resources to take stock of your spiritual giftings, which may bring to light things you are already doing in the natural!

Be the you God designed.

 

Ruth Soukup be you HJ

bloom in the chill

Karla Lees

To help fight the seasonal blahs which usually hit me in the sunless midwinter, I love to bring a bunch of fresh cut tulips home to brighten my kitchen table.  

Last week, as i bought some lovely pink tulips, the florist passed on a wise tip which has stuck with me. She suggested adding an ice cube to the water in my vase each day, to keep the tulips at their best. When I gave her the, “Really?!” look, she smiled and nodded, then mentioned how this only works for tulips.

A good florist knows the quirks of each type of flower they work with. And as God so nudgingly pointed out to me a few moments later, the same applies with people.

When we live or work with other people, we need to know enough about them to know how we can best relate or compliment each other’s skills/talents/gifts.

A good spouse, parent, child, coworker, co-minister gets to know those with whom they are spending their time, because each of us has a quirk just like the tulips do.

We are all made one of a kind, and as a result, what might work with one family member, friend or coworker won’t with another because of their differences, even if they have many commonalities.

The hardest part becomes when someone you work with or love throws an ice cube your way.

And you aren’t a tulip…

  • If that ice cube comes in a harsh word, those who feel most appreciated through kind words will curl their blooms tightly, pulling away.
  • Should the ice come in refusing to block out time together, the one who connects the most through quality time will feel unloved, and begin to wither the longer they are apart.
  • If the ice cube is the only touch felt by those who need caring touch to know they are loved, they feel that chill right down to their roots.
  • When the ice cube is the sole thing you have received from them, and gifts make you spread your bloom towards the sun, you bend over from the weight of disappointment.
  • Should that ice cube be the only gesture they have made, and loving actions is your chlorophyll, the lack of kindness will leave you dry and thirsty.

I have been learning that God is more than enough to help us cope with the icy chills which come our way whether in action or an unkind word, whether unplanned or deliberately tossed towards us.

There is nothing new under the sun, as God knows. As He knows each and every one of us intimately as our Creator, He is the best one to turn to to ask how to deal with the situation, sort our emotions out as we may need to, turn our hurts and anger over to Him, and then to respond as He leads us to.

Last week, I had a doozy of ice cubes tossed my way.  Most unintentionally, a few intentionally.  The resulting chill was intense, and painful.

Yet God knew they were coming my way, and prepared me with wise counsel ahead of time, so I could discern what was actually happening.

Because He did so, most people around me didn’t know there was a heaviness below the surface as I was inviting Him to warm up the chilly places within, and replace them with the warmth of His love.

Beloved, God has made a way for you too to bloom in the chill.

Draw close to the light of the Son. (John 8:12)

Let His Word feed you as you let Him lead you in the growth awaiting in this season. (Matthew 4)

Listen for His love song being sung over you. (Zephaniah 3:17)

Allow His love to ignite into such a fire in your heart that no matter what icy darts the enemy tries to sling your way, they will melt as you come near to Him.  (Psalm 39:3, James 4:8)PicsArt_02-23-07.43.49

what a Word

Karla Lees

Words have the power to bless, uproot, encourage, surgically impact or curse.

Sometimes all in the same day.

And when words are both your primary love language and part of your job, words can pierce far beyond the speaker’s intention.

There is One, however, who knows the power of words.

He not only inspired the writing of His written Word, He is continously speaking life, instruction and hope in the here and now.

For He is the living Word.

God also knows the power of a hurtful, deliberate word, for He spends many resources helping us to see how forgiveness can restore us from their negative impact.

There is one Psalm I turn to when I need a reminder of how much words matter to God.

Psalm 119.

The longest Psalm, it encompasses us from conception and beyond, from pain and hurt to life, from walking a wayward path to one of purpose.

Nor only is His Word is to be our guide, which the psalmist refer to,  but He Himself is to be our guide.

The Living Word as contained within the Word.

For the Word is just a bunch of words if you refuse the Living Word access to you, to change you through His words as He speaks life into you. All the weary, wounded, wary or wandering.

Without the Author pointing out the words He has for you to change your circumstances, meet you in the moment, restore your footing on the Rock…. the Word becomes just beautifully, skillfully written poetry or history.

The Word doesn’t want His Words to return without blessing.

He wants us to hear and see Him in the Word. For it is a reflection of who He is,  what he can do, where He wants to take you, what He has its store for you, and why.

The Living Word poured Himself into His Word….

●So we would know we are not alone when we feel disconnected.
●So we would see His heart when ours has been ravaged.
●So we would hear His direction when we are at a crossroads.
●So we would sense His Presence despite our loneliness.
●So we can taste His goodness when all we see appears to be dark.
●So we can experience Him more deeply as we get to know who He is.

His Word is relevant regardless of your age, stage, looks, quirks, status or race.

As He has made us all, His Word is designed for us all.

Take a hold of the gift He has given us and invite Him to make His Words come alive to you in a such a way you know you have connected with him.

If you need to chew on one or two verse, do so.  Create a graphic, doodle the words, print them out and post them to memorize them.

Allow His Words to come alive within you and bring you back to life.

The living Word is waiting for you within every page of His Word.

The situations may have a historical place in time, but the God revealed and contained within them is beyond time and place, for He is alive!

Invite Him to speak, and wait expectantly for His Words.  God has never stopped speaking His love to us since Eden, and will never stop until each of us are home with Him where we belong.

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What kind of crackpot are you?

Karla Lees

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Years ago, a well known prophetic teacher spoke a word to me which has stuck with me through the hard times.

Basically, it is sometimes hard being me because I don’t fit normal.

And for years I struggled with that very feeling.

Why am I not normal?

Why do people look at me like I am a crackpot for that suggestion?

It has taken several conversations with my Abba to comprehend the reality.

Normal is just a setting on a dryer or a number made up by skewing averages to fit your intended target.

Normal is in reality different for each and every one of us, because we are each different. On purpose.

It’s fine with God that I am nutso for words and music, sisterhood and family, creativity and sensitivity, the prophetic and healing.

Because that is my normal when I step into being who He has made me to be.

Yours may be patterns or numbers, works of your hands, the ability to strike up a conversation wherever you do, cooking like a chef, making baked goods to drool over tinkering with technology, teaching with skill, or organizing the best events…

However we best express His handiwork is to be our normal.

Without His guidance and empowering, our potential, our normal may fizzle into stagnant flatlines.

Today, come to the throne.
Press close to His Presence.
Invite His whispers of love.
Seek His wisdom and direction.
Rest in His embrace.

Then step out into the normal He has waiting for you.

When we take the leap of faith, He catches us. EVERY TIME.

Normal for us is to be the supernatural of Him with us, in us, and through us, Beloved.

It’s time to tune out the world’s loud suggestions of what normal should look like for us, and heed His Words.

Chosen.

Crated by hand.
His.
One of a kind.
Set apart for His purposes.
Empowered.
Necessary to His heart.

Be yourself, Beloved.
Normally living life in His hands 😉

at any age or stage, your life matters

Karla Lees

It’s so much not about your age, but the life you’ve lived in those years.

I have a few friends who have recently celebrated (some reluctantly) significant birthdays.

Age is not a big deal to me.

It’s more about the life we have lived in those years than the time we count.

You may be a sixty year old who has never left your hometown,  but have raised three wonderful children who love the Lord.

You could be a 22 year old God is using brilliantly for His Kingdom, but may be insecure in being single.

You may be starting over after a divorce, death or loss of job.

All the life we have lived matters to the One who gave us life.

His Presence with us matters most of all.

God is able to show us things we have lived through from His perspective.

God is able to heal us from the brokenness and hurts we’ve received in our past.

God is able to stir up our hope as He shows us the future He has for us, both now and forever more.

Nothing, not one thing, is wasted or beyond his redemption for those who put their faith and trust in God in this life.

The author of life Himself offers to walk beside us with each step we take in this life.

And experiencing life by His side can cause one blissful moment to linger for hours and one hard hour to fade into a blip of time.

Time doesn’t pass for Him the same way it does for us. We only move forwards. God is beyond time, as its designer and initiator.

I have seen Him speed the skills and development of young people as he has empowered them to step into roles generally thought of as for thr mature.

Older folk rediscover life with the wide eyed wonder traditionally reserved for youth.

Life isn’t about age as much as stage.

Every age or stage is His speciality, as the Creator of life.

Instead of becoming depressed or upset with where you are at right now, invite Him to show you the wonders He has for you.

Right here, right now.

For although God is beyond time he way we know it, He never fails to step into our lives and stay with us through it all.

Not thrilled you are X years old and you haven’t seen Y happen yet in your life, or you are tired of carrying the weight of Z about on your way shoulders?

Come to the One who gave you life, who helps you live life to its fullest, and empowers you through life’s ups and downs.

All of your life matters to Him, from your conception to whatever age and stage you are right at now:
○The good, the bad.
○The happy, the sad.
○The highs, the lows.
○The celebrations, the blows.

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community: family by choice

Karla Lees

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I am very blessed in community.

I know several people who feel like they are all alone in their circumstances or situations, and the reality is: often it’s due to your choices.

We don’t always reach out to show our need nor vulnerability when we can, so we essentially build a wall to block out connection when everything within us may be craving it.

Connection begins with a choice to be vulnerable, and let someone in.

Community happens when hearts are knit together through regular connection.

Family occurs when God blesses community with a love which can only come through weathering the storms arm in arm, knowing your family has your back and won’t leave you on your own.

Jesus modeled this well while He walked among us.

He carried an atmosphere of invitation to those who were outcast and lonely in society, and they came.

The disciples are a perfect example of choosing to connect, seeing what someone is capable of beyond their current situation, becoming community through shared living, and becoming family by choice.

God deliberately chooses to connect with each of us.  He wants us to live in close community with Him, Abba Jesus Holy Spirit.  He wants you to walk knowing you are already in His forever family, even if we aren’t physically there yet.

God didn’t choose those we would automatically assume would be on the inside.

For His community is family by His choice.

●Cain, marked with His divine protection despite his crime.

●Jacob, wrestling with God after stealing his brother’s birthright.

●Saul, more concerned with following his fears than God’s leading.

●David, lacking strong self control over his attraction to women.

●Solomon, who tried everything under the sun to come to the realization that without God, all is futile.

●Paul, murderer of the faithful.

●Moses, the stutterer.

And just so we keep it real, there were also women He chose to include in His community which make us sit up and pay attention:

○Sarai, who laughed off the Promise to come.

○Hagar, who took off when things got tough.

○Pilate’s Roman wife, who had dreams of the Jewish Messiah.

○Elizabeth, barren for so long she must have given up hope of a child, chosen to bear the forerunner to the Messiah. (And her priest husband ●Zachariah, struck dumb when he doubted the angel delivering God’s Good News, in the Holy of Holies!)

○Tamar, who tricked her father-in-law to do the right thing but broke the law to do so.

○The Samaritan woman at the well, with her colourful history, spreading the word about living water.

All of these people are and were part of His story through the family He chose to create.

And we are included.

We have the opportunity to build community and family wherever we are,  for we carry God with us.

The Father who is just waiting for us to come near and join the family.

The Son who is just waiting to connect with us and not only show us who we truly are but help us become whole.

The Holy Spirit who draws us into community, helping us to see beyond our natural sight the Kingdom He is shaping about us.

Community is family by choice.

It has always been God’s choice to choose you.

It is your choice to accept the invitation of life long family and beyond which He has always offered, or stand alone on your own two feet.

Only you can make the decision to move into connection, to stay isolated in your current situation.

Community is family by choice.

the gifts along the path

Karla Lees

I wanted the gift of the shortest and easiest path. Instead, He gave me the gift of holding me close and strengthening me for the hard path. It took me a long time to understand that both were gifts. And as I embraced the second, my need for the first lost its tormenting grip.

– Sharon Hinck, the Deliverer
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When I am fearful, worried or anxious, I have a tendency to want an instant fix to the problem facing me.

As much as God loves me, He doesn’t always answer my prayers the way I wish He would.

I can only see the wisdom in His ways with the hindsight which comes from the passing of time.

Over the past five years, our family has had more come at it than I could have imagined as a writer.

And my walk is stronger and my faith the deeper for it, which I can now see.

Because the only thing that matters on the paths He has for us?

The company we keep, and who keeps us in their company.

If all you can focus on in the swirl of emotions and stresses in the moments is the difficulties ahead, you send out the signal that you are a victim.

Which is where the enemy wants you to stay: Frozen with fear or indecision, so you don’t move anywhere.

When we forget who wants to be with us, we lock ourselves on the path we create, instead of reaching for the hand of the One who wants to guide us on His pathways through the hard times.

But when we take His hand, keeping our eyes fixed on His loving gaze, He can leads us deeper into His ways, as He embraces us with His Presence and purpose.

For even though we may be scared or unsure of what is ahead, God isn’t.

For God is the wisest of all, more loving than imaginable, and knows He plans He has for us.

And He wants to walk with you, right beside you, speaking to you through His Word and Holy Spirit, and show you the way for you to go.

If you are unsure of what may be ahead, you can rest assured:

God is for you.

There are blessings ahead beyond what you could grasp know or imagine.

God is with you.

He will never not be with you, Beloved. He is always with the ones He adores.

God is waiting for you.

In every high or low, He is waiting for your invitation, for you to ask Him in, in all His fullness.

God delights in you.

As a writer, painter, musician or artist pours his/herself into what they create, so did God when He made you in His image.

And He likes whom He made. In fact, He absolutely adores you, and has nothing but His best to offer you. He proved it on the cross.

God is the best companion you could ever have as you journey through this life. He Himself is the gift we can discover along the way!

May you remember that nothing is too big or too small to remind Him about, for He already sees it all.

He is one prayer, one conversation away.

Allow Him to light the way as you hold His hand on your path.

Intertwined

Karla Lees

I love reading the Psalms. In fact, I am about to embark on reading the whole book for the 4th time in just over two years.

As Eugene Peterson has said, the psalms encompass the whole scope of human life in one book.

And I am about to read it again for the first time!

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I have now read the Psalms through in the NIV, ESV and the MSG translations.

I am about to rack open the Passion translation, and I can hardly wait.

For me, reading a different translation helps me take in thr Psalms afresh, and invite Him to speak through them to me again, as if it’s the first time!

But even more than that becomes the way I am learning to see the Word as a whole interwoven through out the Bible, the more I study the Psalms.

When I read Psalm 1:1 and am reminded how my delight comes from Him, it reminds me how much he has shown His love to Israel, His chosen people and how He delights in us, Zephaniah 3:17. How we can please God with our worship and praise the pleasing offerings mentioned in Numbers 29:2 & 2 Corinthians 2:15.
David’s many psalms, including Psalm 62:8, remind me to be fully honest and pour my heart out like water before the Lord, again mentioned in Lamentations 2:19.

I could go on and on, and I am so glad he continues to reveal Himself to us through His Word as we invite Holy Spirit to be our guide!

For even though I am focusing on thr Psalms, the living Word is continuing to focus on me, a day reshape me as I interact with Him!

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wonder at Your ways

Karla Lees

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One of the most wonder-filled aspects to being Yours is seeing Your Promises come alive in my life.

I love digging deep into Your Word, because not only do I find You there, I discover just how much You have done for me!

This verse jumped out this morning.

And I realized it was true.

When I follow Your ways, You not only have shown me the way to go which is best for me but You shine Your delight on and in me.

There is a blessing through following You first which cannot be experienced any other way.

Not only do things turn out better for me in the long run, I discover just how much more wise, good, true and majestic You are.

I can place my trust and put my hope in You all the more when I take a step back and see how Your story has been shaping mine for the better.

A newer song by Big Daddy Weave perfectly captures my sense of wonder and delight as I see You work in my life. 

Lord, may I never cease to wonder and worship You as I follow Your ways, all my days.

MY STORY – Big Daddy Weave

If I told you my story You would hear Hope that wouldn’t let go
And if I told you my story You would hear Love that never gave up
And if I told you my story You would hear Life, but it wasn’t mine

If I should speak then let it be
Of the grace that is greater than all my sin
Of when justice was served and where mercy wins
Of the kindness of Jesus that draws me in
Oh to tell you my story is to tell of Him

If I told you my story You would hear victory over the enemy
And if I told you my story You would hear freedom that was won for me
And if I told you my story You would hear Life overcome the grave

If I should speak then let it be
Of the grace that is greater than all my sin
Of when justice was served and where mercy wins
Of the kindness of Jesus that draws me in
Oh to tell you my story is to tell of Him

This is my story, this is my song
Praising my savior all the day long
This is my story, this is my song
Praising my savior all the day long

For the grace that is greater than all my sin
Of when justice was served and where mercy wins
Of the kindness of Jesus that draws me in
Oh to tell of my story is to tell of Him!

One

Karla Lees

We are made One in Him.
He takes us from every background imaginable and make us His sons and daughters,  all of us.

We become His family.

One family.

And as family, we are meant to gather together as we pursue Him, the focus of our passion.

United.

One pursuit.
One passion.
One purpose.

To know Him more.
Become more His.
To share the good news that we are never alone.

It only took One to bring us back from the outskirts and plant us firmly in the circle of His affection.

Jesus.

One love.
Which spanned the heights of heavens and the depths of despair to free us from the enemy of the One. 

Release the snares of our wrongdoings,  and ushers us into His embrace and family.

One things alone remains forever.

His love for you and I.

Wavering because you don’t yet know what he has called you to do?

Your purpose is clear.
Pursue Him.

Our primary purpose for being on this earth is to know our Maker, and be known by Him:
To worship Him for who He is.
To wonder at what He has done.
To walk where he leads.
To welcome Home the lost.
To work for His glory….
To let His Words come to live within us.
To listen as He speaks.
To love that He loves.
To never lack in companionship.
To learn at His feet.
To laugh at the wonders He displays.

Join me as together we celebrate the One, and become the Beloved He is creating for himself.

One bride, longing for her Love.
Pursuing Him with all she is and has.

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