Good Mood Food

By Donna McCrary –

“Now that is good mood food!”

This was the last line of my eight-year-old’s writing assignment, describing his favorite food – pizza. Either he is watching too much TV, borrowing the slogan from the most recent “Arby’s” commercial, or his spelling words for the week focused on the “oo” sound. As the parent, I prefer the spelling word explanation.

As a Christian, I prefer the good-mood-food version of the Bible. I like the scriptures that promise “the peace of God, that transcends all understanding” (Philippians 4:7), “your joy may be complete” (John 15:11), and “He will give you the desires of your heart” (Psalm 37:4). These are good-mood-food scriptures; the ones we claim and celebrate because they make us feel good. But, if scripture is food for our spiritual diet, what happens when we live on dessert alone?

Heavier, more challenging scriptures, fiber-laden-scriptures if you will, don’t qualify as good-mood-food, but they serve a far greater purpose in our spiritual diet. The verses that challenge us to renew our corrupt minds; to love the unlovable; to forgive the unforgivable; to extend grace; to take a stand against the traditions of this world; to hold each other accountable; to speak the truth in love, even when it comes at the cost of rejection; oh, these scriptural truths don’t taste good and they don’t go down easy!

Recently, when faced with a troubling situation, I searched God’s Word for guidance. What I discovered in scripture was not good-mood-food. Nothing in me wanted to love someone who had hurt the people I loved or wanted to let go and truly forgive. I struggled to even be in the same room as this person.

This is where the tough-to-swallow-scriptures spoke, “But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins” (Matthew 6:15). That is not good mood food!  But it is God’s Word! I must consume a balanced diet of all scriptures, not just the good-mood-food. This is the only way to experience a healthy spiritual life.

You can’t live on good mood food alone. You have to add some tough to swallow fiber to your spiritual diet!

PRAYER: God, thank You for your goodness and Your promises that I claim and celebrate. Help me learn to live out Your Word daily even when it is not the easy, feel good choice.

BIBLE VERSE: “Jesus himself said, ‘Man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God’” (Matthew 4:4 NIV).

 

Has God Forgotten?

By Jennifer Slattery –

About six years ago, our family went through a period of unemployment. Trying to stay out of debt, we sold our house, loaded our belongings into storage, and moved into a five-hundred-square-foot, rent-by-the-month apartment. In that moment, it would have been easy to allow our circumstances to swallow us in despair, to show the watching world our faith centered on life-events and not on an unchanging, ever-loving, sovereign God. And yet, praise God, His all-powerful Spirit penetrated past our fears, doubts, and sadness to our core, drawing us to His side. Reminding us of His bigger plan—a plan He promises to work out despite, perhaps even in the midst of, our dark hours. In fact, it can be those very events that nearly break us that ultimately prepare us for or lead us to God’s plan for our lives.

Think of Joseph and imagine what must have gone though his mind after his brothers sold him into slavery. How could they? Why him? It wasn’t fair!

Then there’s David, anointed by Samuel to be the king of Israel, later hiding out in caves in fear for his life.

Was God still in that, or had He lifted His Sovereign hand?

And what about Paul as Roman officers bound him in Acts 27? Was his ministry done? Thwarted? Delayed?

If you read these Scripture accounts carefully, you’ll realize God was in control all along, working out His divine plan, placing His children where He needed them to be, when they were ready to be there.

Let’s look at Joseph:

He was sold into slavery, falsely accused of attempted rape, and thrown into prison. Place yourself in his position. You’ve been stripped of your family, your possessions, your very dignity and quite frankly, the situation appears hopeless. There’s no constitutional right to a trial by jury, or a trial at all, for that matter. In fact, quite likely the one who threw you into prison has forgotten about you completely. Human logic tells you it’s all over. Hope is gone. You will spend the rest of your life, forgotten, in a damp prison cell.

But truth tells you a different story. God, the author of all truth says He will never leave you nor forsake you. He says even now, cowering in a damp cell with each day merging with the next, He sees you, and thinks of you. Not only does He think of you, but His thoughts toward you outnumber the very sands on the shore—which means He thinks of you constantly. He’s not leaving you to rot. Quite the opposite. He’s lovingly, carefully, attentively molding you into His masterpiece, making you into the person He already sees you to be.

What about David? Had the sinful behavior of others—those who sought his life—hindered God’s plan? Or does God’s sovereignty and very good plan continue, despite the failings of sinful man? Could each step, each hardship, each hurdle, actually be part of His very good plan—a plan that will one day place us in positions of authority (Joseph) and honor (David), speaking to powerful rulers (Paul)?

Meditate on the following verse today and hold tight to it the next time trials and temptations come your way. This is God’s promise to you.

“‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future’” (Jeremiah 29:11).

Tact or Fact?

By Hally Franz –

The pantry was bare, the freezer slim-pickin’s, and school lunches were getting really lame. I could put off grocery shopping no longer. So, without a list, my kids and I headed out for food. While taking children to the grocery store has its drawbacks, mine are now old enough to be great fetchers and cart pushers. Since provisions had gotten sparse at home, I told my shopping partners they could each pick a few “special” items for lunches.

In case you haven’t noticed, kids like food that comes in unusual forms. I think this especially applies to girls. My daughter loves fruit that comes rolled rather than in traditional piece format. She likes cheese already chunked or sticked; sliced cheese is yesterday’s dairy. While these fun, fancy food items often cost more, surviving my shopping excursion was worth it.

As expected, Rosaline came forth with a few lunch goodies. However, I was surprised when Ivan, my fourteen-year-old son, presented a giant bottle of mouthwash for my approval. He said classmates had informed him he had morning breath, so he wanted to get it. By all means, get the mouthwash!

As we continued our shopping, I noticed Ivan didn’t seem offended by this charge. Perhaps, he has grown to understand that, like him, his peers are not always highly sensitive. It seemed that he was just accepting this as an observation from his friends—one that should be considered and acted upon.

While that observation didn’t devastate Ivan, it would upset any adult. Likewise, it is absolutely not something we would share with a friend or peer. A counselor friend of mine once told me she thought validation was the most important element in effective counseling. I tended to agree with her. It is my nature to soothe, affirm and reassure those in my circle, but rarely am I moved to challenge or criticize another person.

I wonder if that is always the right approach. Kindness is important, but so is honesty. Do we have a tendency to validate erroneous thoughts and feelings when we should be calling them out? Is it kindness or fear that keeps us from correcting another person’s sinful behavior and beliefs? Maybe, it is kinder to worry less about tact and more about fact, sharing with others what is true, and giving them the opportunity to consider and act upon that.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, provide me with the words and manner to constructively challenge sinful attitudes and deeds in those I encounter, so that I may help others come to Christ.

BIBLE VERSE: “Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should” (Ephesians6:19-20 NIV).

Free

By Heather Allen –

Sometimes God’s words are a sweet, honey soothing balm. And other times, like tonight, they stick in my throat as I try to swallow them whole. I want a consecrated life but the dying process that leads me there, is truly killing me, my flesh at least.

My children have spent the day loved and are now tucked in blankets and prayer. I sit in the dim stillness of the midnight hour accompanied by a restless mind. I want to lay my head on the table and have a good cry, but the tears and the sleep are long in coming.

I have spent two weeks reading George Muller’s biography with my kids. And during these last two weeks there has been a financial decision my hubby and I have tried to make. Tried being the operative word. There seems to be an invisible fence hemming us in.  George Muller lived a fiscally amazing life, and he cared for thousands of orphans in the process. During his lifetime he had millions of dollars go through his hands. Yet he used the money for others, even when it was hard to buy food. The biography details how he read the Bible from cover to cover 300 times. And how he chose to be in need, giving away all excess, and waiting for God to fill the need. He was constant in prayer: asking, seeking and knocking.

I want to live like George Muller lived. He saw miracles every day. But tonight, with a mixture of frustration and fear I told God how hard it is to let go. The response back was “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” I grabbed my Bible and turned to this verse, not realizing it shows up in both the New and Old Testament.  And part of me, the part that is small and immature, wishes I had stuck with the Old Testament version. But I didn’t. I turned to Hebrews 13:5 also.

“Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you” (NIV).

Here’s the thing, I really just wanted a pat on the back and some sympathy tonight. Being content with what I have doesn’t sound so good, and what I envision buying sounds great. Yet even as I write this I am reminded that what is seen is temporal.

“So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:18 NIV).

Somewhere along the way I befriended a lie. I often trust in resources and choose what is seen. If I ever have the courage to live like George Muller I think it will feel like miles of rope being cut off of me: freedom.

See I know God does not withhold good things from me, but I live like He might. I know He loves me as a daughter and is actively pruning my life, yet sometime I live like an orphan.  I know that any no ultimately gives way to a greater yes, yet I long for the yes.

In the midst of all this, He is the God who actively rescues me from trying to be my own salvation. He sets me free.

The Miracle Suit

By Susan Dollyhigh –

Ever needed a miracle like… now?  My son called to say his wedding, postponed the previous summer, would take place in one month. Anticipating the first wedding date, I’d bought a dress that fit perfectly.

I hung up the phone and dropped my head into my hands.

How will I ever lose the fifteen pounds I’ve gained since summer?

I began working out and counting every calorie. Holding my stomach in, I got into the dress without bursting any seams.

Maybe another day without food and I’d look just right.

However, when time neared for the big event, a vision flashed before my eyes of the groom’s mother waddling down the aisle in a beautiful, lavender dress with bulges everywhere; around her waist, around her hips, and around her thighs.

I dashed to the mall in search of the perfect slimming garment, and spotted a sign boldly proclaiming Miracle Suits. I snatched that garment from the rack and practically danced my way into the fitting room. I pulled, tugged and stuffed myself into the suit. My now-bulging eyes told me I was enhanced, slenderized, and shaped as the label claimed.

So I bought the suit, returned home, and removed my purchase from the bag.  My family stopped what they were doing as their mouths fell open. They agreed I could not wear that suit of armor under my elegant dress. I realized the only thing slenderized was my brain.

Sanity returned to my panicked mind and I returned that miracle suit to the mall. The day of the wedding, I put on my dress and found that those huge bulges I’d imagined existed only in my panic mode.

Later I was able to laugh about the suit of armor I’d almost worn to my son’s wedding, but I also realized that many times I react the same way in a perceived crisis. I take the problem to God in prayer and then, rush out to try to fix it myself.

I’ve learned with a little discipline; physical, mental and spiritual, and putting on the armor of God daily, I don’t get myself into situations where I have to struggle with pleading to God for a miracle.

PRAYER:  Father, thank You for the privilege of being able to bring all my requests, big and small, to You. Thank You for Your Spirit that gives me power, love, and self-discipline.

BIBLE VERSE: “For the Spirit God gives us power, love and self-discipline” (II Timothy 1:7 NIV).

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