Tag: present

Thankfull living

Karla Lees

Thankful.

Every Thanksgiving, we are reminded to celebrate all we have to be thankful for in our lives.

But God doesn’t want us to just be especially thankful once a year. He longs for us to be thank-full every day, in every situation, every time we can.

You recall that verse “Give thanks in all circumstances” we hear every year around Thanksgiving? There’s more to it….for it wasn’t meant to stand on its own!

Be cheerful no matter what; pray all the time; thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live. – 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Be cheerful no matter what.

Being of good cheer is part choice, and part based upon how we handle the emergencies and hard situations we face. Which links it to the next instruction in this verse:

Pray all the time.

All the time. Out loud, in your mind, or with your spirit, constantly bringing everything to Him in the moment.

And when we connect with Him as we do so?

(We can) Give thanks in all circumstances.

Only when all three occur together does the last part of this verse make complete sense:

This (cheerfully praying with thanks every step of all we encounter) is the way God wants His Beloved to live….

Choosing joy.
Connected with Him.
Celebrating with thanks.

This Thanksgiving season, take the time to look back on how God has been with you in every season, and what He walked you through.

Smile. (Laugh, twinkle your eyes or flash your dimple!) Because cheerful inside usually leads to a sign on the outside! 🙂

Pray. However you pray. Whether by speaking it. Thinking it. Writing it. Singing it. Drawing it. On your own. In two or three. At home. At work. Over coffee. While walking.

Thank-fully. We are so extra blessed when we are part of God’s family! We are loved beyond measure by our Father. We belong. We are inheritors of the Kingdom, made whole and clean in Jesus. We are free. We have access to resources surpassing our comprehension through Holy Spirit. We are never alone.

Because God is fully with us through all things, we can always, and in all ways, have a reason to be thank-full.

And then these verses, in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, become as they were intended by God in our lives: Thanks-living as we express how thank-full we are to Him!

#thankfull #hopefortheharddays

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Hello from the other side

Karla Lees

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Over the past calendar week, I have experienced more highs and lows than any other time I can recall.  Relationship tensions, tears and sudden bad news amidst a new freedom to be more the me God desires me to be.  All in one.

And not knowing how things are going to look when the blitz of the now hits with gale force power is an uncomfortable place to be, isn’t it?

Yesterday, God reminded me of a truth I had forgotten.  He is the God who was, who is and is to come.

God has always been with us even though we may not have noticed Him or know Him yet.

God is always with us, in the breath we are taking right now.

These two are not the mind blowing news I needed to hear, because I know those to be true, for they have been my constant companions since officially becoming His Beloved.

The Adele song which is all the rage right now has a line that aligned itself into perfect sync this morning  – and the flash of understanding which has followed can only be Holy Spirit highlighting His truth within me.

The future is not yet here. It’s up ahead, but just outside of our reach.  We can’t tangibly see or touch it but we all know that we know time continues to pass.

What I had forgotten was on that other side of now, God is already there…as I heard Him sing to me, “Hello from the other side!”

I can trust He will be there in the not yet future I can’t see.

I can rest in the knowledge He is already there when I get there.

He sees me as I arrive there and desires to guide me there. 

And because He already knows what is to come, He best knows how to help me get there.

God is all three, the God who was, the God who is, and the God was is to come.  All the time, beyond time!

If you need a particular glimpse of God who was, the Bible contains thousands of snapshots of how He has moved on His Beloved’ behalf, over and over.

We can hear His voice speak about how He is with us, right where we are at through His Word.

And the book of Revelation reminds us He is coming again, has a place just waiting for us, and the future is set. Good will win.

This God, who sees the other side of every situation we have ever been in, are currently facing or will ever encounter?

He is deserving  of our thanks, and more than worthy of our trust.

Thanksliving

Karla Lees

Thankful.

Every Thanksgiving, we are reminded to celebrate all we have to be thankful for in our lives.

But God doesn’t want us to just be especially thankful once a year.

He longs for us to be thank-full every day, in every situation, every time we can.

You recall that verse “Give thanks in all circumstances” we hear every year around Thanksgiving?

There’s more to it….for it wasn’t meant to stand on its own!

Be cheerful no matter what; pray all the time; thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live. – 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Be cheerful no matter what.

Being of good cheer is part choice, and part based upon how we handle the emergencies and hard situations we face. Which links it to the next instruction in this verse:

Pray all the time.

All the time. Out loud, in your mind, or with your spirit, constantly bringing everything to Him in the moment.

And when we connect with Him as we do so?

(We can) Give thanks in all circumstances.

Only when all three occur together does the last part of this verse make complete sense:

This (cheerfully praying with thanks every step of all we encounter) is the way God wants His Beloved to live….

Choosing joy.
Connected with Him.
Celebrating with thanks.

This Thanksgiving season, take the time to look back on how God has been with you in every season, and what He walked you through.

Smile. (Laugh, twinkle your eyes or flash your dimple!)

Because cheerful inside usually leads to a sign on the outside! 🙂

Pray.

However you pray. Whether by speaking it. Thinking it. Writing it. Singing it. Drawing it. On your own. In two or three. At home. At work. Over coffee. While walking.

Thank-fully.

We are so extra blessed when we are part of God’s family!

We are loved beyond measure by our Father. We belong.

We are inheritors of the Kingdom, made whole and clean in Jesus. We are free.

We have access to resources surpassing our comprehension through Holy Spirit. We are never alone.

Because God is fully with us through all things, we can always, and in all ways, have a reason to be thank-full.

And then these verses, in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, become as they were intended by God in our lives:

Thanksliving as we express how thank-full we are to Him!

the road less traveled: on the hump days

Karla Lees

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This morning, hubby was less thrilled than normal to start his day.  Work added some last minute changes to his day, which he dislikes profusely.

All that to say, I thought I had to start work at 8am today.
And my ride got me here late.
It turns out, no one is starting til 9am this morning.

Welcome to hump day.

Wednesday doesn’t have quite the same reputation as Monday, nor is it looked forward to as much as Friday.

It’s the middle of the work week,and some days, it feels like it.

For those of us on the road less traveled, God gets it.

There were years of hump days, where God went from the OT to the NT in a 400 year hump where people were doing their own thing, with precious few seeking His ways.

God gets our struggle.  How could He not when He not only designed us, hand shaped us & equipped us? Then pursues an intimate relationship with each of us?!

There are a few verses which speak to pressing in to God on a daily basis, but this one caught my eye & heart again this morning:

Do your part today. Not someone else’s or the part you need to do tomorrow. And whatever you do, do it well, because you do it unto the Lord, not men (or yourself!)

-Colossians 3:23

That includes hump days!

Every day, God encourages us to do our best.

For His sake.

Even on hump days.

But He doesn’t leave us to our own devices as we do.

He is with us, to whisper guidance, to reassure & boost our confidence, to warn us to slow down, to empower us when we get weary.

Because of Him, we don’t need to have hump days like the rest of the world.

He takes our offered hump days and makes it so we can look back on them as jump with joy days.

Because He was with us through it all.

Ever present.

Even on hump days.

What an awesome God we follow!

Sunday Psalm: within & overflowing

Karla Lees

Holy Spirit,
I am Yours & You are Mine.

When I accepted Jesus,
You moved in to this temple,
and remain with me,
always.

I have all of You
that I can ever need…
but I need more of You
to activate what You want…
for me to do,
for me to learn,
for me to speak,
for me to know,
for me to hear.

I want to be soaked
in Your Presence,
not just connected with You
but interconnected with You.

May I never unplug
but have You fill me
always to overflowing
as I obey You,
spending time in the Word,
sitting at Your feet
& praying as You lead.

Spirit use me.
Break out & fall on
those who don’t yet know You.

May they desire Your Presence
more than anything else
once they catch a glimpse of You.

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moments like this

Karla Lees

We have a desire to live our lives until the next big moment.

To win the lottery, or award, whatever the big moment may look like to you.

But waiting for your next big moment leaves you missing the hundreds of special moments in between….

Like your child saying I love you for the first time.

The meal dropped off when you were sick.

Your spouse coming home even though you had a huge fight last time you spoke.

The timely hug & words of comfort in your loss.

All of these are moments we were meant to enjoy to their fullest & live them, each and every moment.

God has blessed us way more than we remember to notice some days.

In the daily in and out moments which make up our lives,  He is with us through them all.

These past few days, I have been intentionally trying to be present in each moment…and I have learned that although I can multitask with the best of them, I need to do less.

It is in doing less, i can be fully present…because I am listening to His leading and seeing His hand move around me.

In moments like these, I stand in awe of just how blessed He has made me, and my heart overflows with thanksgiving, worship & praise for the One who walks with me in each & every moment.

So in all moments, big & seemingly small, may I remember each moment I have is a blessing, for You are found in them all.

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your true character

Karla Lees

You know that under pressure,

your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors.

Let it do its work…James 1:2-4 (MSG)

I find the character of Joseph echoes throughout this verse, not just because colors are mentioned.

When Joseph was sold by his brothers into slavery, his true character was forced out into the open, for he did not have the luxury of hiding from his owners. And God’s favor clearly rested on him as Joseph kept strong in the faith.  He was with him, despite all the ups & downs Joseph faced.

When the storms and chaos comes, the faith you have within comes to the surface.

  • Is your faith deeply rooted?
  • Easily pulled up with the first gust of wind?
  • Well soaked so it can withstand a dry season?

Our character is shown through the pressures of life.

May yours, and mine, be a reflection of the God we adore as we dig down deep for all He has for us in this life.

Like Joseph, may we depend on God alone as our foundation when our identity has been stripped away, our hearts broken, ad the road ahead unclear.

James-1-2

wading right on in

Karla Lees

That’s exactly what Jesus did. He didn’t make it easy for himself by avoiding people’s troubles, but waded right in and helped out. “I took on the troubles of the troubled,” is the way Scripture puts it. Romans 15:3 MSG

Jesus jumps right in at the sign of trouble. 

He longs to come to our defense, take on our burdens and wade on into the nitty gritty muck of our lives. 

We don’t have a Saviour who sits all handsome up on His throne, watching what is going on from a distance. 

Jesus came down among us to show us just how much He wants to be involved in our lives: all in.

I am so thankful I follow a God who wants a hands on relationship with me.

He walks with me,
holds my hand tight when I need it to be gripped,
lets me cry on His shoulder when I am sad,
gave me His Spirit to guide, teach & comfort me all ways. 

What a Saviour!

Jesus wasn’t afraid to get His hands or reputation dirty when He lived among us.

Any request from the heart was answered.

He is all in wanting a relationship with each of us.

Are you holding back, or are you ready to wade in above your head and put your all in?

He will be there to catch you.

Because He is all in, no holds barred, He is right there waiting for us!

Not only is He always with us, He is always ready to come to our defense.

Tired of holding back? Afraid of making the leap.

Sometimes we just have to do it afraid to find out just how strong and present He really is!
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PS. Part of this post was posted this morning over at Remade Ministries, where I will be a regular Friday contributor 🙂
http://remade-ministries.org/devotion/our-defense/

Sunday Psalm: Your Love, O Lord

Karla Lees

Your love oh Lord
reaches to the heavens,
Your faithfulness
to the skies.

–Third Day

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Your love God
is breathtaking.
Out of Your love
the world was created,
to serve as ground
for the love-images
You planned to live there.

With exquisite artistry
each of us was lovingly
hand crafted
in Your image,
flesh upon bone
encompassing the spirit spark
within us all.

Not content with just making us,
You desired relationship with us.
To walk with us,
commune with us,
allowing us
to glimpse Your heart
as You well knew ours
from the start.

When we turned away,
the Love You have for us
swelled to greater heights
as You tried to woo us back
with Your words,
breaking us out of the
prisons of our own makings.

When we failed to respond
to Your words of love,
You sprang into action,
revealing Your heart,
for us from the start,
and Word became flesh
as Your heart walked amongst us.

And because that amazing fact
still wasn’t enough,
You lavishly poured Your heart
and Your very life
on the cross
in one time altering moment
of history & eternity colliding
to show Your love
for us all,
for me.

Your love Lord,
reached out across
heaven & earth
and moved
right into my heart.

I will never stop singing
of this Love that came down
& rescued me.
This Love which never fails,
never gives up,
and never runs out,
ever.

#TheUltimateGiftofLove
#SundayPsalm

Sunday Psalm: Pressing In

Karla Lees

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God,
no matter where I go
I find You,
for You never leave me…
I just take my eyes of Your face.

I am tired of wandering
this desert of my own making.
When I stop seeking
the Source,
I run dry.

When I press in to
Your Presence,
You release
the torrent of love
You dammed up
waiting for my return…
and I am overwhelmed
by the depth & breadth
of Your love for me.

You,
God above all gods,
King of Heaven,
Majestic Maker of All,
love me…
my mind tells me
this is all a dream
I will wake up from one day,
but my heart & spirit
join up to cry out
“Holy Holy Holy,
worthy are You Lord.”
and my mind
falls into alignment
with the truth
You reveal.

My very breath
comes from the Word
You spoke
that caused me to be.

My life is safe
in Your hands.
My hope can
rest in Your love.
My heart can
trust in You.

Your purpose
Your plan
will prevail
as You have promised.
The enemy
cannot win
against Your desires
for Your people.
Your Presence
Your passion
Your power
are revealed
as I press in
and pray:
More of You,
less of me.
Take my life
and let it be
all for You,
always for Your glory.

And the dam burst,
the river flows
and the water becomes deep
as my prayer
opens up the heavens
and I look up
to see Your face
loving down at me again.

#pressingin
#hopeinHisPresence