BEE Fulfilled: My Heart's Desire for 2011

"No matter where you live and what your days look like, you have a choice each day to depend on yourself, to live safely, and to try to control your life. Or you can live as you were created to live--as a temple of the Holy Spirit of God, as a person dependent on Him, desperate for God the Spirit to show up and make a difference."

~Francis Chan in Forgotten God:
Reversing Our Neglect of the Holy Spirit~

Like many, I've spent the last couple of weeks contemplating what resolutions I might set for this new year. In doing this, I reflected on what I learned in 2010 and how I could carry those lessons forward to 2011. Last year was a year rich in learning--learning about God and the Bible, about my family and friends and their needs, about the craft of writing, and about myself.

As I reflected on 2010, the lessons I learned from one of the Bible studies I participated in stood out. During the last three months of 2010, I completed a study of Francis Chan's Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit with some dear friends from my running group. This study challenged me to reexamine some of my longstanding beliefs about the Holy Spirit and my motives for wanting the Spirit's presence in my life. It also challenged me to seek the Spirit and follow Him in all areas of my life, which is a day-by-day journey. I marvel at the growth, wisdom, and understanding each lady in the group gained during the study. Friendships deepened and God transformed hearts. I love how God does that!

So for 2011, instead of jotting down a long list of resolutions, I only have one desire for this year: to follow the Holy Spirit to wherever He wants me to go. That's it. No small feat, I know. But I can't think of anything else I want more in my life. I yearn to be more dependent on God and to be obedient to what He calls me to do each day.

Chris Tomlin's song "I Will Follow" encapsulates my heart's desire for 2011, which you can listen to below. May this song and desire touch your heart as it has mine. :0)

BEE Fulfilled: The Mountain Peaks Belong to Him

For the Lord is the great God,
the great King above all gods.
In his hand are the depths of the earth,
and the mountain peaks belong to him.

~Psalm 95:3-4 (NIV)~

Each autumn, my family and I set out for a day trip to view the fall colors in Colorado's Rocky Mountains. One of our favorite drives is over Fremont and Independence Passes. This last Saturday, we embarked on a 375-mile scenic drive over these two passes. We couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day for our trek as we marveled at a classic Colorado blue sky, the reddened tundra along the mountainsides, and golden aspen leaves fluttering from gentle breezes. Atop the summit of Independence Pass, I stood in awe at the magnificence and exquisiteness of God's creations. What an imagination our Heavenly Father had when he created the mountains! I'd like to share some of the photos I took on Saturday along with some psalms that sing praises to our Almighty Creator. May they be a blessing to you! :0)


Psalm 95:1-7

¹ Come, let us sing for joy to the LORD;
let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.

² Let us come before him with thanksgiving
and extol him with music and song.

³ For the LORD is the great God,
the great King above all gods.

⁴ In his hand are the depths of the earth,
and the mountain peaks belong to him.

⁵ The sea is his, for he made it,
and his hands formed the dry land.

⁶ Come, let us bow down in worship,
let us kneel before the LORD our Maker;

⁷ for he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care.

Psalm 65:5-13

⁵ You answer us with awesome deeds of righteousness,
O God our Savior,
the hope of all the ends of the earth
and of the farthest seas,

⁶ who formed the mountains by your power,
having armed yourself with strength,

⁷ who stilled the roaring of the seas,
the roaring of their waves,
and the turmoil of the nations.

⁸ Those living far away fear your wonders;
where morning dawns and evening fades
you call forth songs of joy.

⁹ You care for the land and water it;
you enrich it abundantly.
The streams of God are filled with water
to provide the people with grain,
for so you have ordained it.

¹⁰ You drench its furrows
and level its ridges;
you soften it with showers
and bless its crops.

¹¹ You crown the year with your bounty,
and your carts overflow with abundance.

¹² The grasslands of the desert overflow;
the hills are clothed with gladness.

¹³ The meadows are covered with flocks
and the valleys are mantled with grain;
they shout for joy and sing.

Psalm 36:5-7

⁵ Your love, O LORD, reaches to the heavens,

your faithfulness to the skies.

⁶ Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains,
your justice like the great deep.

O LORD, you preserve both man and beast.

⁷ How priceless is your unfailing love!

Both high and low among men
find refuge in the shadow of your wings.

Psalm 148

¹ Praise the LORD.

Praise the LORD from the heavens,
praise him in the heights above.

² Praise him, all his angels,
praise him, all his heavenly hosts.

³ Praise him, sun and moon,
praise him, all you shining stars.

⁴ Praise him, you highest heavens
and you waters above the skies.

⁵ Let them praise the name of the LORD,
for he commanded and they were created.

⁶ He set them in place for ever and ever;

he gave a decree that will never pass away.

⁷ Praise the LORD from the earth,
you great sea creatures and all ocean depths,

⁸ lightning and hail, snow and clouds,
stormy winds that do his bidding,

⁹ you mountains and all hills,
fruit trees and all cedars,

¹⁰ wild animals and all cattle,
small creatures and flying birds,

¹¹ kings of the earth and all nations,

you princes and all rulers on earth,

¹² young men and maidens,
old men and children.

¹³ Let them praise the name of the LORD,
for his name alone is exalted;
his splendor is above the earth and the heavens.

¹⁴ He has raised up for his people a horn,
the praise of all his saints,
of Israel, the people close to his heart.

Praise the LORD.

Psalm 100

¹ Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.

² Worship the LORD with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.

³ Know that the LORD is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his;

we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

⁴ Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.

⁵ For the LORD is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Psalm 8

¹ O LORD, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory
above the heavens.

² From the lips of children and infants

you have ordained praise
because of your enemies,
to silence the foe and the avenger.

³ When I consider your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which you have set in place,

⁴what is man that

you are mindful of him,

the son of man that you care for him?

⁵ You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings
and crowned him with glory and honor.

⁶ You made him ruler over the works of your hands;
you put everything under his feet:

⁷ all flocks and herds,
and the beasts of the field,

⁸ the birds of the air,
and the fish of the sea,
all that swim the paths of the seas.

⁹ O LORD, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!

BEE Fulfilled: An Unfailing Love

"Though the mountains be shaken
and the hills be removed,
yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken
nor my covenant of peace be removed,"
says the Lord, who has compassion on you.

~Isaiah 54:10 (NIV)~

The more I spend time with God in prayer and in His Word, the deeper my love grows for Him. What grips my heart and soul is God's compassion and unfailing love for us. He loves you and me more than our minds can comprehend. Think about the person you love the most. God loves you so much more than that. And that love remains the same, even in our failings. Mind boggling, isn't it?! Yet, it's so comforting and encouraging to know God's love never fades.

I'd like to share with you a prayer I wrote this morning from three Scriptures in the Bible. For the past several weeks, I've participated in a Bible study at my church using Beth Moore's Living Free book. As part of the study, Beth Moore introduces the practice of praying God's Word. She describes praying God's Word as "speaking His language. It means talking to Him using His words." My assignment for this morning's study on experiencing God's peace involved choosing from a list of Scriptures and spending time praying God's Word using those Scriptures.

May the truths in this prayer be a comfort and encouragement to you today. :-)

Heavenly Father, I call on You, for I know You will answer me. Give ear to me and hear my prayer. Show me the wonder of Your great love. You save by Your right hand those who take refuge in You from their foes. Lord, keep me in the apple of Your eye. Hide me in the shadow of Your wings. (Psalms 17: 6-8)

Father, show me Your ways and teach me Your paths. Guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are God, my Savior. My hope is in You all day long. Remember Your mercy and love, for You say in Your Word they are from of old. Remember not the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways. According to your love, remember me, for You are good, O Lord. (Psalms 25:4-7)

Lord, You say in Your Word that though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, your unfailing love for me will not be shaken nor will Your covenant of peace be removed. Thank you, Lord, for Your unfailing love and the peace You give. (Isaiah 54:10) I love you, Father! In Your glorious and precious name . . . Amen.

BEE Fulfilled: A Ladder to the Moon

My son, Hayden, began dreaming BIG when he was two-years-old. One evening last fall, my husband Ryan gathered Hayden and our dog for an evening stroll on a neighborhood trail. While on the walk, Hayden noticed a full moon rising in the east, and pointing at it, he announced, "I need to get a ladder to go to the moon." Ryan chuckled at the thought of using a ladder, of all things, to climb to the moon. Later, when he shared this story with me, I also giggled at the thought of finding a ladder and propping it up against the moon.

But then I questioned the feasibility of Hayden's imaginative mode for trekking to the moon. I thought:

• Where could we find a ladder tall and sturdy enough to reach the moon?

• How much would it cost to buy or build such a ladder?

• How could we position the ladder so that it wouldn't tumble down as we climbed each of the rungs?
  

• How long would it take to reach the moon using a ladder? (I'm a BEEsy Mama, and time is a precious commodity!)

• Why would we need a ladder to journey to the moon when we have space shuttles?

As I pondered on these questions, I observed a difference between my son and me. As a young child, Hayden is not afraid to dream BIG and wouldn't hesitate in trying to use a ladder to reach the moon, while I probably wouldn't even attempt it, rationalizing why it couldn't or shouldn't be done.

It was at that moment I realized I had forgotten what it was like to dream BIG like a child. But I once was a child, and like my son, I dreamed BIG.

I remember being ten years old and watching Mary Lou Retton in the 1984 Olympics. That summer, I was determined to be the next great gymnast. Every day, I practiced cartwheels, handsprings, and round-offs at the school playground behind my house. I'd balance myself on a narrow beam just inches from the ground, twirl a few times, and then bounce off it to dismount. With both arms extended high above my head, I'd bow to an imaginary audience cheering at my debut performance in the Olympics. Oh, the medals I was going to win!

Many other BIG dreams would follow in my childhood--to be a zoologist, a missionary, and a writer. And although many would never be realized, I found joy in dreaming them.

Then I transitioned into adulthood, and with each passing year, my BIG dreams dwindled until one day I realized I only had small ones, and sometimes, none at all. I noted many reasons for this--fears, complacency, busyness, and failure to seek God's direction on His dreams for my life.

But isn't it amazing how God can use children to show us what's missing in our lives? I'm learning so many lessons from my son, and one of the greatest is to not be afraid to dream BIG. Oh, if we could only dream like young children once again! We'd be fearless, optimistic, creative, determined, joyful, and hopeful as we reach for BIG dreams.

And I'm also learning the best dreams to pursue are those God has planned for each of us. I believe God's dreams for us are BIG . . . not dainty, oh-it-can-wait-until-later dreams. But instead, dreams that give joy, hope, and fulfillment to our lives and those around us. Dreams that require effort on our part but are well worth the extra energy we exert to accomplish them. Dreams that demand courage and commitment. Dreams that glorify God.

In Beth Moore's Breaking Free study, she wrote, "One of the things I love best about God is that He does not frown on our dreams. He simply longs to surpass them . . . God surpasses our dreams when we reach past our personal plans and agendas to grab the hand of Christ and walk the path He chose for us."

Can you imagine how God could use each of us if we allow Him to surpass our dreams?

Won't you join me in finding the unique ladders God made just for you and me? Let's grab them, prop them against the gates of Heaven, and begin climbing toward the dreams God intended for us.

BEE Fulfilled: Breaking Free

Several months ago, I spent a morning reading scripture in 1 Thessalonians. As I neared the end of this book in the Bible, I read the following three verses:

"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all
circumstances, for this is God's will
for you in Christ Jesus."

~1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NIV)~

I remember jotting down on a piece of paper the following:

Be Joyful + Be Prayerful + Be Thankful = Be Fulfilled

On the surface, these verses presented a simple equation on how were are to live our lives in Christ Jesus. But as I pondered on the three components of fulfilling God's will, I realized I often struggle to follow this calling. In fact, I was not sure I truly understood what it meant to "be joyful always." And I knew that my prayer life was sporadic and did not qualify as being continual. I expressed thanks in many situations, but I knew I could not make the claim of giving "thanks in all circumstances."

Shortly after reading these verses, I began a Beth Moore bible study called Breaking Free. I love how God places the tools we need for growth just when we need them. I stumbled across this bible study when searching for another study at my local Christian bookstore. The store employee assisting me pulled this study from the shelf and recommended it to me. Somewhat disappointed that they did not have the study I wanted, I hesitated before deciding to purchase it.

That evening, I sat cross-legged on my bed and began reading the first section of the study. Within minutes, I was fascinated as the study delved into a history lesson about the kings during the prophet Isaiah's time. At first, curiosity about the history components of the study drew me to it each day. But soon a desire to learn about the truths found in God's Word and a yearning to mature in my relationship with Him grew day by day.

During the second week of the study, I discovered one of the reasons I needed to embark on this journey at this particular time. In this study, Beth Moore provides the following definition of captivity:

"A Christian is held captive by anything that hinders

the abundant and effective Spirit-filled life God planned for her."

It did not take long for me to discover I had been living in captivity in certain areas of my life for some time. During the study, I came to understand that the only way to find freedom from this captivity is through seeking Christ's help.

Each week as I completed the daily lessons in this study, I found my relationship with Christ deepening, and I began to gain knowledge and understanding of how to break free from the strongholds in my life. I have wept more over the last two months than I have in a long time. The Lord has stirred such a yearning within me to know Him better and to be obedient to His commands and callings in my life. Every morning, I find I hunger to spend time with God in His Word and prayer, a hunger that grew from a few random rumbles and growls just a few months ago to an intense need from deep within me.

Each day, I am learning what it means to "be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances." In the weeks and months to come, I hope to further explore the meaning of these three verses in 1 Thessalonians and share the truths God is revealing to me related to them.