God and Friends

So I heard a sermon by Kris Vallatton the other day that intrigued me, and it helped me put some pieces together in my own head. He was talking about being friends with God. The part that I loved, and hadn't given a lot of thought to before now, was the stories of Abraham and Moses in conversation with God:

"Then the men turned away from there and went toward Sodom, while  Abraham was still standing before the Lord. Abraham  came near and said, 'Will You indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; will You indeed sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from You to do such a thing to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that  the righteous  and the wicked are treated alike.  Far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?' So the Lord said,  'If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare the whole place on their account.'" Genesis  18: 22-26

This conversation between The Lord and Abraham continues until Abraham has convinced God that the city should be spared if ten righteous people are found. 

Now, if we look at the story of Moses, he knows the people have sinned horribly and God is not happy. God actually said to Moses that he is ready to destroy them. So, like Abraham, Moses fell down before God and prayed: "O Lord God, do not destroy Your people, even Your inheritance, whom You have redeemed through Your greatness, whom You have brought out of Egypt with a mighty hand. Remember Your servants, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; do not look at the stubbornness of this people or at their wickedness or their sin. Otherwise the land from which You brought us may say 'Because the Lord was not able to bring them into the land which He promised them and because He hated them He has brought them out to slay them in the wilderness.' Yet they are Your people, even Your inheritance, whom You have brought out by Your great power and your outstretched arm."

 Deuteronomy 9: 26-29

The part I related to, and even chuckled over was how God, in both cases had had it! He was done with the people. Yet, it took a friend to talk Him through the situation. 

This was the sermon, and I liked it. I liked it because, there are times that I am done with people and I run to God needing Him to talk me through the situation. This helps me see how much He understands. He gets it.

Or the great value of having friends in our lives to process difficult situations with. God calls us friends, He wants to know what is going on in my life, and He wants to tell you what is happening in His life too. It's a conversation. 

What do you want to talk to God about today?

Is there something you need to say again?

I know, for me, there are many things I bring to Him, and many times I ask Him to Say That Again!

For Him, it is a delight!

www.rootedinmercy.com

Whole30

My family has been on a nutritional reset. We have doing the WHOLE30 for the month of January. In many ways it has been fun, and other ways it has been very challenging. My husband and son found it to be a challenge initially as they detoxed from carbs and sugar. I found the challenge to be more emotional and time consuming. 

I was spending a lot of time preparing food, something I do not necessarily enjoy. Then, I found it emotionally draining to hear any grumbling or complaining about it. My patience the first couple of days was thin, as it felt like a lot of work with little benefit.

We are on our 18th day, and for me it doesn't feel like as much work now. I've figured out a good routine and I'm not living my life in the kitchen anymore. Thank God! My husband has been very helpful and even though he claims he hasn't noticed a lot of benefits, I think there have been several for him. He's lost weight for one. 

My son, still is not overly excited about our adventure, but he has stopped complaining. He even helps on occasion. And, he too has lost some weight and looks great. He is not excited about making less sugar and less carbs a way of life for us. But, that is our goal.

My daughter and I have done pretty well. She is looking forward to having pancakes again, her favorite weekend breakfast. 

My favorite part of this journey is that we have worked together as a family. We have had a big breakfast everyday, and sat down together to eat it. And, the same with our dinner. We make our brown bag lunches together. It has been a family effort, which to me has been very good. This is something I want to continue in our home. 

The value of learning nutrition and teaching our children moderation is something I've always believed in. It makes a difference when the entire family is on board, working together for a common goal.

I think this is true for all things concerning the family-church, time, communication, friends, etc The family is a unit to be unified together. 

What are the things you are doing in your family that bring unity? 

Jesus was all about unity with His disciples. He was with them day in and day out. He walked with them, talked with them, and ate with them.  He worked at relationship with them. They were high on His list of priorities.

I like the way Jesus lived! It was whole! Say That Again!
To read my reviews on the WHOLE30 cookbook go to www.rootedinmercy.com

Growing Roots

So much has happened, where do I begin? 

God and I have been on a journey that has escalated the last couple of months. This has been a fascinating ride for me. 

I've known for so long that He has been creating ways for me to have deeper roots. This, is not always pleasant. He has also been repeating the words to my heart to "Rise Up" and I've been praying  about that for sometime now. 

This brings me to my devotional blog and website www.rootedinmercy.com This site has been an adventure for God and I together and a step of faith for me. It's been my "Rise Up"

As I've stepped forward I've had to fight against many of the enemies weapons. I've spent hours praying to God for courage and strength. 

Some of the weapons used against me have been:

-rejection

-fear

-failure

-isolation

This is God's promise: "No weapon forged against you will prevail" Isaiah 54:17 

With prayer, I have found that He raises me up and deeply roots me in Him. When I really begin to feel that internal battle, and I do, I ask a friend or two to pray for me, and fight with me. My courage and strength returns, in time. 

"God's Word is an indispensable weapon" Ephesians 6:17

  What are the weapons forged against you?  

We all have our battles, and our root system. Each one of us will Rise Up in some way, and the enemy is working hard to push us down.  Know the weapons used against you, and perfect the use of the weapons given you. 

Say That again!