Paths to Dwell In

By Cyndi

The other night I was helping my son study for a vocabulary test, and I have to admit, there were some words on the list that I didn’t know. But one which I did know was idiosyncrasy. What a great word. Isn’t it fun just to say it? It has a unique feel about it. I feel different just for saying it. The definition of it, according to dictionary.com, is “a characteristic, habit, mannerism, or the like, that is peculiar to an individual.” Hmm…I know a verse that mentions the word “peculiar,” 1 Peter 2:9—“But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people…”

It is so interesting to see how diversified we all are. Each one of us has certain quirks and tell-tale signs that identify us. We have different likes and dislikes. We have our own marked style of how we talk, how we walk, how we dress, and how we eat. For example, take eating Oreo cookies. You will find multiple modes of what some say are the “right” way to do this. I know within my family there are at least three “best” procedures to eat them, and they all must include milk. However, the fact is, there is no right or wrong method, just your own.

One of my idiosyncrasies is how I put my shoes and socks on always left foot first. The order has to be left sock, left shoe, right sock, right shoe. I do not know why I do this, but I do. Just like I have always put my left earring on first before my right, and wear my watch on my right wrist instead of my left. I have some peculiar habits that make me who I am and not someone else.

God delights in our individuality. He created us in His image (Gen. 1:26), yet has given each one of us our own characteristics, distinguishing us one from another. We all develop unique habits and mannerisms that pertain solely to us, making us peculiar people. We are supposed to be diverse. Revel and enjoy your idiosyncrasies. You are special.

I sit here in my living room between a brightly lit up Christmas tree and a lawn mower. Yes, there is a lawn mower in my living room, as well as a weed eater, gas cans, miscellaneous hand tools, and an empty propane container. Why, oh why, you ask, is this stuff in my living room? Well, it is like this: we are in the process of painting the house. This necessitated pressure washing, which led to the discovery of rotten wood on the porch, and then the exposure of a plethora of termites. This, in turn, caused the porch to be torn down, which led to the lawn mower and other items from the porch coming into my living room.

Isn’t it interesting that we can start out with one plan and it gets drastically changed to another in a matter of moments? Just think of Mary and Joseph. I would presume the original plan was to go Bethlehem, take the census, visit some friends and family, and then return home. Having their baby boy born in a smelly stable was probably not on that script, yet it happened. Imagine Mary’s thoughts-God had done so many supernatural things from angelicvisitations, the prophecy from Elisabeth, and supernatural conception, and yet He did not provide a room for her in Bethlehem. But she continued to trust. Things sometimes just don’t work out as we plan.

Many times we get frustrated, angry, even depressed when our plans go awry, but God knows the end of a thing before the beginning (Isa.48:5). Mary and Joseph had no idea of the unforeseen ramifications from the birth of their son, the shepherds coming, or any of the other unusual events that later took place. We too, have no idea what the future holds or the understanding of the reasons why we are forced to experience certain things in our lives.  However, Father God does, and He uses all things for our good (Rom. 8:28) to shape us into the person that can fulfill the unique calling and destiny He has for each one of us.

So “Merry Christmas to all,” I say, as I sit back and enjoy my cup of tea, relishing the smells of pine and terra firma. Whatever God has in store for you this season, it is going to be good-unexpected maybe, but good.

Just the other day I was reading in Matt. 13:1 where is says, “That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea.” The chapter goes on to say how the crowds gathered to hear Him teach, so He got in a boat and began speaking to them. I would presume Jesus got in the boat to make some sort of a “platform” to speak from to the people on the shore. It’s also a known fact that voices carry well over water. So in this manner He begins to tell the parable of the sower sowing seeds, but I got stuck on the very first verse. 

Jesus came out of the house and sat down on the seashore. Interesting—I like to go down and sit on the seashore. Hmm…Jesus likes to do some of the same things I like to do. Here’s the neat thing about the simplicity of the gospel—He is with me—Immanuel, God with us. It’s just He and I sitting on the beach. There has been many times where I have walked along the beach and could feel almost a tangible presence of the Lord. Hebrews 13:5 tells us that He will never leave us nor forsake us. This has always been one of my favorite verses ever since I was a young girl. It was very comforting to me knowing that He was with me at all times. Maybe that’s why I really liked the verse about Jesus sitting beside the sea. On the surface, it’s nothing profound, yet it speaks to me that whatever I’m doing and wherever I am, He’s there with me. I don’t have to feel alone in this world.

So on those mornings when I get up early and go watch the sunrise over the Atlantic Ocean, I know that He is watching it with me. I also have a feeling that He likes to sit in those tall lifeguard chairs too, just like me.

There is a lot of fear in the world today. What will happen to the economy? What will our futures look like? There is one thing we can focus on that will cause us to rise above all our fears. That is the kingdom of God.

2 Timothy 2:3, 4 You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier.

1 Corinthians 3:14, 15 If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.

The US is perhaps one of the more difficult places in the world to be a Christian. When times are good it is difficult not to focus on the good life, the American dream. There is so much pressure from media, peers, and even some preaching, to save for a good retirement, to take nice vacations, to live in nice homes and drive nice cars. We want the best for our kids and try to get them on the right sports teams and into the right colleges. All these things are not necessarily bad as long as they do not replace the main thing.

If I lay up treasure in heaven, no one can take that away from me. If I seek to grow in spiritual authority, the government can take my house, even throw me in jail—yet I can lead the guy in the next cell to the Lord. Perhaps some of the fear we are experiencing in this time of economic crisis is rooted in too much focus on the temporal and not enough on the eternal.

1 John 2:15-17 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world — the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life — is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.

By Cyndi

                Have you been “dissed” lately? You know-disappointed, disillusioned, discouraged, or disheartened? These days there are many reasons to be described by such large vocabulary words; but for me, on a personal level, I’ve gotten discouraged with my running.

                In March, I ran a great 15K race. I ran great, felt great, finished great, everything was great. I rested for a week, and then went back to running again. I knew better than to keep the same pace and level of running that I had been at, so I tried to ease back in slowly. But after just a few weeks, I hit this wall of pain. It seemed like my legs were sore all over. At night, they’d be hurting when I went to bed. In the morning, they were hurting when I woke up. All day, every muscle seemed to be in some sort of pain.

                I tried running through the achiness, thinking, once I got warmed up, the pain would go away. This worked for several runs, but finally the day came where I ran for only two miles and the agony was too much. My running form was suffering badly and I had to completely stop. I had been in anguish when I’d started, and I almost collapsed when I had finished. It was time to cease from running for a while and rest my body. How discouraging! I’d gotten bit by the running bug and almost felt addicted. (You runners understand, don’t you?) And now I had to stop. I was so disappointed.

                So the Lord brought me to the verses about the children of Israel going in to their promised land. When the Israelites left Egypt to go to the land God had promised them, they ran into one obstacle after another during their travels-the Red Sea, no water, multiple enemies in the land they would have to expel out, just to name a few. It was a long journey and scriptures record that “the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way” (Numbers 21:4).

                This was how I felt about running. In some ways, we all can get discouraged or dismayed by things that happen in our lives. Jesus even warned us that this was a normal part of living. “Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows,” He said (John 16:33); but later, in this same verse, He states that He has overcome the world, and all the disappointment it brings.  

                And not only has He prevailed over those “disses”, but He has made us winners and conquerors too. Paul wrote, “No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ” (Romans 8:37). Now we’re talking some encouragement here! No matter what obstacles I’m faced with-a job loss, a health problem, a financial crisis-God has promised to bring me to success. Sometimes that may mean I need to stop and rest for a while-to convalesce in His love and be strengthened-before I can “hit the pavement” again, but victory is attainable.   

                I know this is true because I started running again this week. I’m taking it slow and not very far, but at least I’m running. Over this last week I’ve gotten rested, rejuvenated, revived, and reinvigorated. It is so much better than being “dissed.”

By Cyndi           

               As I walked on the beach with my bare feet on the soft sand, enjoying the warm sunshine of spring in Florida, I could feel my body slide into a more relaxed mode and my spirit lift within me. Just the sound of waves crashing on the shore and seagulls crying made me forget, at least for a little while, about all of the challenges around me right now. The stress seemed to whiff off my shoulders with the cool gentle breeze that was blowing. My favorite places to be are always out in nature. I feel much more at peace with the world and much closer to the Lord there.

                My husband and son have dubbed me an “outside mom”, as opposed to an “inside mom”, because I prefer to be outdoors rather than indoors. Even when I have visited up north in the wintertime, I can’t help but want to take a walk in the snow, knocking down icicles off of trees and stomping on frozen places on the sidewalk. For me, when I’m outside in nature, I feel refreshed, revitalized, and rejuvenated.

                Nature has the capability to help us relax and get refreshed because it feeds our spirit, it nurtures us. Its natural state tends to bring us back to our natural state-at peace with God. In Mark 6:31, Jesus tells His disciples to “come away by yourselves to a lonely place and rest a while.” So should we, yet, in the hurried lives we live in, it’s sometimes hard to find a lonely place-a quiet, solitary place to calm our spirits and regroup.  But finding this place is the very thing that will strengthen us to continue at our daily pace. God wants us to have peace in the midst of the chaos around us (John 14:27), and hope when there seems to be no hope (Romans 15:13). Communing with God is the path that leads to peace, joy, and hope; He has those qualities to impart to us. Nature, to me, is like God’s backyard; it’s His creation. When I’m out in nature, I’m with Him. Whether it’s a waterfall, a butterfly, a rose, or the ocean, I can see His incredible design and handiwork in all of them. And as I see His handiwork, I feel His presence-His Spirit touching mine. When I take the time to find a solitary place, I get rested and de-stressed.

                The Psalms have numerous references to nature, reflecting His glory, His majesty, His presence. “As the mountains are round about Jerusalem, so the Lord is round about His people,” reads Psalm 125:2.  If things are pretty stressful around you, maybe you need some communion with God-to go away by yourself and rest a while. Go for a walk on the beach, sit on a park bench, find a quiet place outside or with whatever nature is close to you, and feed your spirit.

By Cyndi

This has been a real hectic week. It seems like I never have enough time in the day to finish all the things that need to be done. Ever been there? I just keep moving what didn’t get done one day to the next, then that day gets overloaded where things don’t get done, and so on and so on. But for some reason this week I was being overly frustrated with all my unfinished jobs; it just felt like I was living with an angry edge all the time. Traffic was always going too slow, the bank tellers were taking too long, the printer freaked out on me and I couldn’t seem to figure out how to do a stupid report on QuickBooks!

So during my quiet time one morning (that I’m trying to rush through so I can get to all the other stuff that needs to be done!), I was led to 1 Cor. 14:33-”For God is not the author of unquietness, but of peace”. Boy, is that what I’ve been living in-unquietness! Both my body and soul have been tumultuous, not sleeping well, irritable and constantly trying to play “catch-up” every day. But God is the author of peace and quietness this verse says. Well, obviously there was a different author of the “book” I was reading this week!

In meditating on this verse a little I recalled another verse. In Isaiah 30:15 it says, “In returning and rest shall you be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength“.  There’s that quietness word again. And I could sure use some strength too. So what was the Lord trying to show me? When I’m in the press, those super stressful times when all of life is rubbing me the wrong way, I need to return to Him and rest. To sit down in Father God’s lap and just lean on Him for a bit and recharge. I won’t be able to handle all the things thrown at me every day if I cannot quiet my soul. Without inner peace, I have no outer strength.  

By Cyndi

Ever have a list of projects you want to get done? You know, like cleaning out the garage, baking cookies, washing and waxing the car, remodeling your bathroom or even building a shed (if you remember from last week). This time of year it might just be getting a tree and putting up Christmas lights. I think we all have a list, written or not, of projects we would like to see done; so I, being in the midst of several projects right now, got to thinking about God’s point of view of things. I think we are His projects.

Yes, I believe we are His sons and daughters, but also His own personal projects that He loves to work on. Ephesians 2:10 says, “We are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works”. I think this is a very comforting thought. Why? Because whenever I do projects, I tend to run into little unexpected things that frustrate me and cause me to lose my patience, and many times the whole thing turns into something bigger than I was expecting (maybe more costly even), and I get overwhelmed. But I know God is not like this. He is all love and patience as well as being omniscient. If He already knows what “surprises” are coming up, then He’s not surprised or frustrated!   

Philippians 1:6 tells us that “He which has begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ”. He will finish what He started in us. No matter what things happen in our lives, God will use them to work in us to mature us and complete us. It’s kind of nice knowing that He already knows what’s ahead, that way I know He is in control so I don’t have to be. Now I think I’ll go put up some Christmas lights.

By Cyndi

Ever since I’ve taken up running this year I try to focus on my posture during the run, making sure my form is good. However, now that the temperatures are getting colder, I find myself having a bad tendency to look at the ground right in front of me instead of looking forward up ahead. The cold wind on my face makes my eyes water and it just seems warmer to look down and kind of “tuck” in. So when the Lord told me to “look up”, as I was running in this pathetic form the other day, I put my shoulders back, untucked my head, and looked up-back in my best posture.

Now does God ever speak something to you in the natural, but you know He’s really talking about the spiritual? Well, this was one of those times. Yes, I needed to correct my poor running form, but I also needed to correct my poor spiritual form. So much information about the economy and the election is filling the news and my emails, it is beginning to affect my state of mind and disrupt my peace. There are so many “what ifs?” out there it can be a bit scary. Father God was trying to get my focus back onto Him.

Psalm 121:1-3 says, “I will lift up my eyes to the hills-from whence comes my help? My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to be moved; He Who keeps you will not slumber.” The Word of God is such a comfort in challenging times like these. I need to look up, and know that the Lord will always be there to help me, no matter what happens in the election, the economy or anything else. It is a real tendency to look down and then feel down, affected by all the circumstances surrounding me and worrying about stumbling along the way, but I am choosing right now to look up and keep my eyes straight ahead focused on Him, rejoicing in knowing that He is still God and always will be.

By Cyndi

When I was a child, we did just about everything as a family. Whether it was yard work, washing cars, going to the beach, or whatever, we did it as a family. My father, being a civil engineer, had to take trips out of town sometimes to inspect projects. Most of the time, I would say ninety-eight percent, he would take all of us with him and turn it into a mini-vacation as much as possible. I think I have seen just about every part of Florida because of this, and there is always something in me ready for a “road trip”. Fond memories were made and I have tons of stories that will last me a lifetime.

Does your family spend time together doing things? We find it to be a challenge to make time for each other and our son being so busy with ministry. Our jobs and responsibilities are always crying out for more, and it is a real struggle sometimes to not feel that our worth and value comes from those things but of the Lord. We fall into the trap of measuring our success in what we do, rather than resting in knowing God loves us whether we work twenty hours a week or seventy. What has brought freedom to us is believing that Father God accepts us and receives us for who we are, not what we do.

I encourage you to do something special with your family this week.  Make some memories.  Work as unto the Lord in your profession, then relax and enjoy your family.