Day Sixty-One

Luke 13:31-33

As I read Beth’s observations from this passage, I thought of my “child” that has the determination—which some called stubbornness. Hard headedness. Strong willed. As difficult as it may have been in raising her, the streak of set-determined-will, paid off in her young adult life. When she accepted Christ as her personal Savior as a young child, she never thought of another path. It was her determined purpose to live for Him. She was never a “follower” as my older child, and while she might not necessarily “lead” others, she certainly was not put off by those whose path did not align with hers. She had her mind made up. Don’t think her perfect—she will be the first one to tell you “loudly” she is not. But her heart follows closely to Christ Jesus.

The determination which Christ spoke in verse 32 had to shake the leaves on the trees. That’s what I imagine anyway. I see His eyes flash and His cheeks flush with the determination of a made up mind. Then He lays out His path, clear and straight. Absolutely no room for changing.

What if we lived every day with such a determined purpose? How would the day flow? I think right now, it seems almost impossible for me. The weather has a lot to do with it. Weather? Yes, crazy as it sounds—it’s a fact of my life. The colder the weather, the further down I bury myself in the covers. Snuggling deeper into the thick warmth, prolonging the fact down to several minutes after the fact I should have already been up!

When it rains…same thing. Knowing full well I need to be up and going…getting myself prepared for the day ahead. The sooner I am ready and leave the house, the sooner I get an hour of solitude with Christ. But I linger. Because of the weather.

What about you? What stumbles your feet in your day? When your plans run amuck, does it throw your whole day into somersaults of confusion? Or, is your plan of heart so set that you find some way to fulfill what God is calling you to no matter what.

I want the set determination that Christ had that day. For Him, the plans were made. I often say, something is or is not “in concrete.” To me, either it’s changeable or it’s not. On the Sisters of Faith Retreat, I had prayed for weeks for the Lord to direct our steps, plans and anoint the time together. He did. Although I planned certain things for certain days, the weather hindered the schedule. Did I panic? Nope. I learned a lesson about 5 years ago—give your day to God, allow Him to do the scheduling and leading —and it can’t go wrong. Try and do it all by yourself…the ship will sink every single time. The day it rained on our retreat, we simply switched the plans from one day to the other. And God anointed our time.

He has a plan and purpose for each heart and life that seeks to follow Him. I long to fulfill His purpose. I want to be usable in His divine plan of leading souls to Him.

Father God, You see our hearts. You see the day while the stars are yet twinkling. I ask You this morning, take our days and work Your perfect plan into each of our lives. Show us ways where we can bring You ultimate delight! I give you my today, my tomorrows—thanking You for the forgiveness of my yesterdays. Go with each one this weekend and give us a word over the next few days, directing us into what You desire. We continually seek Your face—for Your will. Not ours. In Christ holy name~Amen.

I hope you all have a blessed weekend. Not many days left. I have been missing Regina and Gail. Girls, you are loved and prayed for. I hope to hear from you to know that you are all right 🙂

Denise and Denise, Bernadine, Regina, Janice and Gail (and all those who have read along–but kept silent 🙂 )–you all have no idea how much it has meant to Aimee and myself to have you join us each morning/day in this time of study. The days of study that are coming are so good. I would like you all to join with us in prayer for one another—for our study to “sink in” to our hearts. For us to be able to meditate on His word–and what He accomplished for us. I love you all!