Faith Filled Fridays From Croley’s Corner of Chicklit Power

Coffee Hour @ Chicklit Power...

Thank you for joining me today for Faith Filled Fridays. Grab your favorite beverage, a pen and journal and let’s get started.
Recently I’ve had many ask me what I thought about waiting! For many of us, we’ve at some time or another gone through a time of waiting … waiting for answers to our prayers. And for some of us, we wonder why we have to wait so long for things to happen and other times, well, don’t we get tired of waiting and resign ourselves to the fact that maybe He’s not listening since His answer isn’t coming fast enough?
We certainly are a society that does not like to wait…period! And why should we? We can Google questions rather than wait for an answer; we can order clothes on line rather than suffer waiting in a weekend line at a retail store. Think about it for a minute and ask yourself, do you like to wait? The answer for most of us is a definite NO!!! We don’t like waiting at the doctor’s office… at the bank, and especially waiting in line at the drive-thru. Speaking of getting through a drive-thru …
Awhile back I had a couple of my grandchildren with me, they informed me that they were getting hungry so I suggested going to our favorite eating place. When we turned the corner, to our surprise, a line filled with cars was wrapped around the building and all I could hear was a huge gasping sigh followed by:”We’ll never get to eat now!” I quickly replied, “Don’t get frustrated. We can drive to another location that maybe isn’t so busy” … I paused and added a however; “we’re not guaranteed it won’t be just as busy.” I’m not sure if it was impatience or hunger, but they thought for a brief moment and asked, “Can we go inside?” My response was, “Sure.”
As we entered, we saw immediately that the inside was as busy as the outside! again they looked up at me with a look of urgency…they were hungry! I explained to them this shouldn’t take long… really, and if they waited patiently without complaining they could enjoy an ice cream for dessert.
They were happy with the thought of a sweet reward, so they suffered through the wait.
Bringing this into a spiritual perspective, we too can find ourselves in a position where we’ve asked for something from God and as we begin to turn the corner in our journey as believers, we suddenly see ahead that things are just not moving as fast as we were hoping and we have to wait. And sometimes in our waiting we become exasperated…impatient...always asking...”What’s up with the wait?” Waiting can certainly feel like we can’t see the end from the beginning.
We are a people of hurry up and getter done, not thinking about the consequences of our impatient- ness. God doesn’t operate any faster in this century than He did in the first. And so while we rush ourselves, we can’t rush God. In fact, much of life is spent waiting. When it seems nothing is happening, we need to trust that is when everything is happening … behind the scenes. We just can’t see it….at least not yet!
In the waiting we forget that we’re not the only ones that God is dealing with. We must remember that He may be dealing with other people, situations and/or circumstances. And to be impatient and demanding can sometimes cause us to act out of and therefore change the outcome of God’s will for our lives and maybe the lives of others, as well.
While our natural nature is to hate waiting, this period of uncertainty can be a time of great personal growth. We must recognize that God is in control, even when it seems He has forgotten us.
Had my grandchildren demanded to go somewhere else, well, the reward would not have been half as sweet! They endured in the wait, even in the simplest way! Our lives may not be as simple as choosing a place to eat; however, it’s just as important to know that waiting on Him brings blessings and rewards to us all!
Don’t grow restless in the waiting. God brought favor to Hannah after years of praying for a son...in her waiting… Moses spent forty years tending sheep before God called him as a deliverer of His people; God had to deal with Pharaoh’s hard heart...in the waiting. Remember He may be working with the will of others….in your waiting!
What are you doing while you are waiting? Are you doubting or worshipping? Are you complaining or praying?
Keep your heart full of hope...in the waiting!
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” Proverbs 3:5-6
Thanks for stopping by Faith Filled Friday’s and remember to keep Him close to your heart...while in the waiting.
Love,

Deb

Faith Filled Fridays From Croley’s Corner of Chicklit Power

Coffee Hour @ Chicklit Power...

It’s Faith filled Friday! No matter what time of day you may be joining me, it’s always good to be together. Grab your journal, coffee and let’s get started.
The last several weeks have been founded on the necessary part of tending a garden -- water, weeding and fertilizing -- in order for our harvest to be healthy. The anticipation of the first sprouts to pop up through the ground is so fulfilling, yet we know that even in our lives as believers, the work is never done or complete! It is a continual, perpetual place of growing.
I recall my grandparents’ farm. It was quite large and I remember watching them both labor; he would build a fence, a stronghold that would surround his precious fields preventing intruders to invade and destroy his work. He invested long hours in the field to give way to a fruitful harvest. They never gave up, never grew weary or discouraged.   As a child I recalled asking him when we would see the fruits and vegetables pop out, and grandma’s reply was, “It’s not time yet. We just have to continue to wait.” They knew the process of waiting, trusting in the seed that was planted.
In the waiting; it truly can be the hardest time for most. It can be discouraging and it can definitely be unfruitful.
Waiting on God is not easy and is a crucial step in our lives in which our dependence upon God grows.
Our hearts often cry out in distress. Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord! Psalm 27:14
We can easily feel worried and second-guess our motives. We yearn for freedom and provision, yet waiting upon the Lord for needed supplies is one common area in which He trains us. The garden is always in need of continual care, even when we don’t see any productivity. Our soul gardens are in continual need of Him and His care for our lives. Yet it’s in those times when we are needy that we are forced to look to the Lord for help.
The other day someone said to me, "But I don't like what the Lord is bringing me through." Yes, how true this is, yet we must have the confidence in God in order for us not to squirm, squiggle and squeak!
He knows what He is doing! The survival of the seed in the ground must squirm, squiggle and squeak, so to speak, in order to produce efficiently.
Therefore when someone comes to the Lord, through salvation, remember it is a gradual process of a walk by faith. Their beginnings may seem small but as they grow in the grace of God, their faith too will increase. The parable of the mustard seed says: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.” Matthew 13:31-32
If we live by confidence in our own means and abilities, will we not become certain of God’s power working in us? What glory does that bring to God? But through this process, God enables us to depend upon Him so that we know it is only He who does wonderful things in our lives.
Ultimately then, waiting upon God protects us, deepens our trust in Him, forces us to seek His ways and brings Him the most glory.
Next week I’m hoping to conclude “A call to Sow”. We’re going to find an example in God’s Word of a couple who experienced seasons of waiting. And through their waiting, and might I add a time of even questioning God, a seed produced, a seed called Isaac, the Son of promise.
Have a wonderful weekend and remember….keep Him close to your heart!
Love, Debbie



P.S. Now that we've had our coffee with Debbie, would you join me in
offering up a prayer of health and blessing to the most amazing woman,
my self-adopted mom who is celebrating her 87th birthday today! Mom, I
thank God for the day He put you in my life, to walk alongside me,
whisper wisdom and love into my soul, to be the first person to show
me that unconditional love.... I love you with all that I am and know
that I am who I am because He's used you to help me become all that He
requires me to become!

The Waiting Room … In the Hospital of Life March's WOW

Coffee Hour @ Chicklit Power...

“Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.: Phil. 1:6
Hello! How are you? I’m excited you joined me for more of our WOW and our Coffee Hour. Grab your coffee and your red Strand of Faith and let’s get back to the Waiting Room … in the Hospital of Life!
So were you able to realize what it is you are waiting for? I was reminded of another example of waiting, and I can’t leave this out. How many of us are waiting for that prodigal child to come home, to leave their addiction, to make better choices, to surrender? Oh, but that’s a painful waiting time, one that can only be endured through prayer and often requires fasting as well. These are spiritual battles we fight in the waiting room of life and spiritual battles require spiritual weapons. Whenever we try to stay in the battle with our flesh, we make the waiting time worse.
Well, now I hear someone calling us. It’s time to go into the exam room.
Just hearing that word “exam,” don’t you sort of cringe? When I go to the doctor’s office and I am in the exam room, it’s usually for something that I just can’t beat, something that is pesky and won’t go away, and it usually is something that is trying to take me down. I need to share all my symptoms with my doctor. I have been guilty of saying, “I don’t have time for this; I don’t have time to be sick,” and what I don’t say, but think to myself, is “so hurry up and figure out the problem so I can get on with my life!
Now let’s look at this from a spiritual perspective. What would our lives look like if we went into the exam room each morning, and shared our struggles, symptoms from the day before with Him? What if we were to look at the “exam room” of life as a safe place to spend sweet time with the One who will never leave us or forsake us, the one Who goes before us, defends us and validates us, the Divine Physician?
I can tell you that spending time in the exam room daily has prevented many symptoms that could lead to some horrible life-altering infections! He longs for us to stay spiritually healthy so that when the threats and attacks of physical and emotional circumstances come our way, and they will, we remain spiritually strong.
But, let’s be honest. Oftentimes, we don’t come into the “exam room” of life until there is something happening that is causing pain and/or a physical or emotional infection of sorts. By then, the symptoms of anxiety, worry, nervousness, which manifest themselves in and through the body creating uncomfortable physical problems, and before you know it, we are a hot mess, just waiting for the Doctor to show Himself, to speak, to do something so we know He’s there.
Maybe it’s time we visited the “exam room” in The Hospital of Life daily as a form of spiritual preventative medicine, to be still and know that He is God.
What’s that I hear?
Oh, it’s Him: But you, Coffee Hour Friend, it’s time to come to the secret place and shut the door and when the door closes, pray to your Father who is in this exam room, and I who see you there will reward you. (Matthew 6:6)
Oh, He has one more verse for us to encourage us to visit the exam room daily because He longs to talk with us: “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.”
When we visit the exam room of life daily, we are better able to appreciate the fact that He who begun His work in us will be faithful to complete it until the time we see Him face to face.
Join me tomorrow for Faith Filled Fridays at Croley’s Corner of Chicklit Power!
Love to you …

Evinda

The Waiting Room … In the Hospital of Life March's WOW

Coffee Hour @ Chicklit Power...

“Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.: Phil. 1:6
Wow, do I ever need a break right now! Grab your coffee and your Strand of Faith and let’s get back to the hospital that we may encourage one another in The Waiting Room … of the Hospital of Life!
So what if we were to look at life the way we know it and live it as a hospital? Before being admitted to the hospital, often an exam is required, and often there is a waiting time so the first room we must visit is the waiting room.
What do we do in the waiting room? How do we behave? Are we frustrated, anxious, irritable, especially when we are not feeling well? I know whenever I don’t feel well, I certainly don’t feel like engaging with others, so whenever I am literally in a waiting room to see my doctor, I either read a book – especially now that I’m back in school -- or play a game of Solitaire on my “smart” phone … funny thing is that phone’s pretty smart because I don’t always win my games! But I sure do enjoy having something to take my mind off of the waiting! Having something to do while waiting keeps my thoughts away from jumping off the cliff into a pool of frustration.
Now let’s bring that waiting room analogy into our personal circumstances.
I mentioned that my husband is not working, right? He’s been out of work for more than four weeks now … and the cry of his heart is not to find a job – that’s right. Every time someone asks him what type of job he’s looking for, he quite confidently corrects them: “I’m not looking for a job; I’m looking for a business opportunity.”
People’s responses vary, and I just love watching the eyebrows go up, but many get it … and I do too. But how long must we wait? Will it be until the savings is drained? Will it be until tomorrow? Next week? Next month? Will we have to lose it all to gain that one thing?
What about those of us who are waiting for Him to perform a medical miracle in the lives of those whose life is leaving them? Many of us wonder why suffering has to go on for so long, why pain has to be their constant companion, why waiting is necessary, even when the end of a physical life is hovering over a loved one.
How is it that we wait?
And there’s another circumstance that requires waiting … not writing off; that of a broken relationship. With each day that goes by, do we allow ourselves to erase a little bit more of the love we once felt? Do we stay stuck in the words that seemed to have severed that once important relationship? Do we hit replay over and over again on the hurt that was inflicted upon us?
Oh, how true it is that waiting is so much part of the process of His work that He has begun in each one of us, “but those who wait upon the Lord the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:31 NKJV)
Waiting on Him and abiding in Him,

Evinda