devotion Archives - Page 3 of 11

Rumble Strips – Yay or Nay?

Posted on November 15, 2017November 29, 2017 by Susan Panzica

BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRM……

The rubber of my tire grazed the center yellow line, and the sound and vibration rocked me in my seat. Instantly we were back in the proper lane. Rumble strips have been appearing on roadways all over my county. These deep indentations in the yellow divider lines effectually warn drivers that they are veering into oncoming traffic.

“That’s a good warning for drivers who are texting or drowsy!” My husband and I agreed.

When we mentioned rumble strips to my sister-in-law, she said, “I HATE those things!!” To turn onto her street, it’s necessary for the car to run over the strip. Every time.

But when we explained how useful they can be for driving safety, she softened. She still would like the one by her street to be shortened, but she could see how helpful they could be in preventing accidents.

God has rumble strips too!

It’s called the Word of God. In it, He is clear on attitudes and activities that would lead us into harm’s way. When we stray over the line of His protection, we are vulnerable to injury or destruction.

God’s rumble strips include:

Discipline – When we have attitudes or behaviors that displease the Lord, it is because of His kindness and great love for us that He lets us reap the consequences of what we’ve sown and hopefully we’ll learn from the experience.

“God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” Heb. 12: 10-11

Boundaries – We want what we want when we want it, don’t we? But what we want isn’t always good for us. So God places boundaries protecting us from ourselves. We may balk at these boundaries, but try to remember that they are for our protection. Boundaries serve to help us develop self-control and responsibility for our own lives. Adam and Eve had everything with one exception, and it was that one boundary that the enemy used to tempt them.

God’s grace “teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age,” Titus 2:12

Christlikeness – Jesus set an example for us to follow when He allowed Himself to be subject to limitations. He was God incarnate, yet He “did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage… he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross!”(Phil 2:6-8) When we surrender our need to control to His will for our lives, we develop into His image. Our thoughts begin to conform to His and we become transformed by the renewing of our minds (Rom. 12:2).

“In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome,” 1 John 5:3

We may hate rumble strips, both physical and spiritual, but when we embrace their purpose, we partner with God and set a course for a safe and fruitful journey!

www.susanpanzica.com

The 6 Most Valuable Words

Posted on August 2, 2017August 2, 2017 by Susan Panzica

For years, I longed to ride a motorcycle. Finally last autumn, I signed up for the Motorcycle Riding Academy.

The first part of the first day was spent in the classroom with video and personal instruction. The rest of the time we put that instruction into practice out on “the range.” Our teachers shared many important pieces of advice, but perhaps the most essential six words of advice were: “Look where you want to go.”

There is a unique connection between vehicle and driver. You can experience this connection to a much lesser degree when driving a car. But on two motorized wheels, there is no margin for error. This skill honestly can be a factor of life and death. You will drive exactly where you are looking. If you look at a tree hoping to miss it, you will inadvertently drive right toward it.

Now at every corner, I force myself to look past the curve down the road to where I want to be. If I stare at the road ahead of my front tire, it is exponentially more difficult to make the turn correctly and end up in the proper place in the lane. I know – I’ve ended up making turns much more dangerous than they needed to be just because I wasn’t looking ahead to where I wanted to go.

This advice, so critical for motorcycle safety, is also crucial for life. Where and what we focus on determines where we are going. <<click to tweet>>

When we’ve been let down in life, we can focus on the disappointments as if they’d change by our replaying them in our minds. We can look at the inequities we or others face in life and grow bitter that there appears to be no justice. We can concentrate on the irregular people in our lives and wish them harm or at least what we think they deserve.

But is that where we want to go? Do we want to become like those who have hurt us? Do we want to develop resentment or bitterness?

Or do we want to develop Christ-likeness? Do we want to respond as Jesus would? Do we want to be free from the burden of worldly attitudes which drag us down?

Life will hand you curves in the road. That’s guaranteed. Jesus said,

“I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” John 16:33

His promise of tribulation is sandwiched between His offer of peace and His assurance of overcoming the world. When we focus on the tribulation, we miss His peace and are overcome BY the world.

The key is those six words: Look where you want to be. Stop focusing on what is right in front of you; enlarge your perspective to the bigger eternal picture; and focus on what Jesus is doing in you through these difficult situations.

“… the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” James 1:3-4

Are you struggling with circumstances that test your faith? Know that these trials can be tools God uses to bring you to completeness and maturity when you keep your focus on Him. And keep looking at your goal – where and who you want to be.

Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed—that exhilarating finish in and with God—he could put up with anything along the way: Cross, shame, whatever. And now he’s there, in the place of honor, right alongside God. When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility he plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your souls! Heb. 12:2 MSG

I’ll close with a quote from an article from Revzilla, a motorcycle accessory shop:

“Look where you want to go” means keeping your gaze on the real prize, the big goals you want to achieve during your finite time on this sphere. Staring at the spot just ahead of your front tire, either literally or metaphorically, ensures you won’t be ready for the next curve life throws at you.

What happens when you assume?

Posted on July 5, 2017July 10, 2017 by Susan Panzica

All my life, I have always been the shyest person in the room. So when my mom convinced me to attend a 2 week sleep-away Girl Scout camp, it was a true miracle. Two girls from my troop went with me so that gave me a tiny bit of comfort, but when we arrived at the camp, I was assigned to be in a different campsite group. I now know that their campsite was right down the dirt path, but at the time, it seemed like a million miles away. I felt totally alone and completely miserable.

Our campsite had five tents with five girls in each. In my tent, there were two pairs of friends. And me.

As things went from bad to worse, in my loneliness, I was absolutely certain that no one liked me.

I cried myself to sleep every night and wrote letters every day detailing how much I hated it there, begging my parents to please take me home.

After a week of despair, my counselors allowed me to transfer to my friends’ campsite. It only took one minute there to realize I had made a big mistake. The disgusting smell that greeted me at the entrance was the first of several huge disappointments. In less than an hour, I asked to go back.

Never had I been so bold.

Fortunately, the powers-that-be let me return to my prior campsite and tent. My counselor sat me down for a long stern talk by the river.

Later, my 10 year old tent mate, one half of one of the pairs of little friends, assured me that she was happy I was back, and she said something that I remember to this day:

“How do you think it makes us feel when you say we don’t like you?”

Her words cut me to the core. In a good way. I hadn’t given their feelings any thought. I was too preoccupied with my own. I had made assumptions about these sweet pairs of friends that were completely untrue based on my own insecurities.

The second week at camp was completely different. I had such a good time, I cried buckets of tears when it was time to go home.

It’s been forty years, and how often since then have I made assumptions about people that turned out to be completely unfounded. I projected my own insecurities onto someone else, viewing their actions through my muddled lens.

I think we all remember Felix Unger’s famous lesson about assuming:

All kidding aside, false assumptions can create serious consequences, resulting in critically damaged relationships. In his book Emotionally Healthy Spirituality, Pete Scazzaro says:

“Every time I make an assumption about someone who has hurt or disappointed me without confirming it, I believe a lie about this person in my head. This assumption is a misrepresentation of reality. Because I have not checked it out with the other person, it is very possible I am believing something untrue.”

As a believer in Christ, I want to live in truth. Holding onto assumptions creates storylines in my head that cause me to live in a false reality. Since God is Truth, by filling my head with false assumptions, I’m essentially not making room for Him in the limited space in my brain.

Of course, sometimes my assumptions are correct. But for the sake of healthy relationships, it’s necessary to check with the person about whom I’m assuming to verify the truth.

In Acts 17, the Bereans listened to Paul and Silas, and rather than assume their message was true or false, they did their “fact-checking.”

Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. Acts 17:11

How often do we make assumptions about others? About our circumstances? About ourselves? About God?

How much healthier would our relationships be if we took the time to fact-check and to clarify assumptions?

For more about assumptions and expectations, check out the Emotionally Healthy Spirituality materials at http://www.emotionallyhealthy.org/.

And/or a quick take on my previous blogposts:

http://susanpanzica.com/not-so-great-expectations/

http://susanpanzica.com/great-expectations-not/

The Multiplication Factor

Posted on May 17, 2017May 17, 2017 by Susan Panzica

At this point in my empty-nester life, I thought I’d be winding down from work and from ministry, but I find myself busier than ever. What began as a passing interest has multiplied into a ministry that has had a global reach.

I’m not quite sure how it happened or exactly when it started. More like snippets of awareness than a thunderbolt awakening. Three years ago, human trafficking wasn’t a household word. As I came across more and more articles about the issue, my heart broke for those caught in modern day slavery. I started a Word document where I copied and pasted the links to various anti-human trafficking organizations — faith-based, secular, government. I had no idea why I was doing this or what I would do with the document or if it would ever be finished. The list just kept growing.

Then one day, in response to a friend’s facebook post on the slavery issue, I reached out. It was a small act that would quickly reap big consequences. Over the past three years, we’ve grown in numbers and partnered with many other groups, making an impact far beyond anything I could have imagined. Our little band of abolitionists, Justice Network is still going strong.

I discovered that one little step in faith is the beginning of a journey where God provides the increase.

2000 years ago, when a huge, hungry crowd waited to hear Jesus speak, He fed them all by sharing a young boy’s lunch, giving thanks, and multiplying two fish and five loaves. I find it interesting that after everyone ate as much as they wanted, the disciples picked up twelve baskets of broken leftovers, one basket for each disciple to hold in his hands – a physical manifestation of the great miracle of multiplication.

Just as a young boy offered his fish and loaves, God will multiply that which we freely surrender for the benefit of others.

I believe that God allowed our ministry to multiply as it did as a testimony of what He can do with what is surrendered to Him. And remembering what He has done encourages me to keep on stepping forward in faith.

This truth is not limited to ministries. Whenever we step out in faith, when we surrender to God and relinquish our fears and need for control, we will see God work in ways beyond what our own limited abilities can do. He may be just waiting for us to step out of His way!

Of course, our motives must be pure and not for personal gain. Surrender means we trust God to work without interference from our own agendas or desire to manipulate a situation. It means that we really trust that God is bigger than whatever circumstance is before us.

Dear sister, hold out your hands – palms up. Open your fingers, and close your eyes. What are you carrying? Is it a burden? Release it, trusting that He is more than able to carry it, and you too. Trust that He can not only carry it; He can multiply it to overflowing.

“Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens.” Ps. 68:19

Can you really have “perfect peace?”

Posted on May 3, 2017 by Susan Panzica

A few years ago, Hurricane Irene came to our NJ town. And afterwards so did the President and Governor. The aftermath of flooding left our neighborhoods destroyed, people displaced, businesses ruined. But the destruction was selective. While some areas were devastated, others were spared.

Among the many affected were two churches. In both cases, they had never experienced flooding, and so expected none this time. In both cases, they were wrong.

The Butler Community Church was undergoing a facelift. The downstairs, used for concerts and coffeehouses, was ready to have the floor painted. During the week, the congregation had raised furniture and valuable musical equipment two feet off the floor to prepare it for washing before painting. Along came Irene and the deluge of water that covered the floor. The next day, the fire department pumped all the water out leaving it sparkling clean, ready for painting!

Down the road, Beth Israel Church had nearly finished their massive 4 year renovation project turning an abandoned furniture store into a breathtaking sanctuary and ministry center. It was almost ready for dedication. The brand new carpet had just been laid when Irene came to town leaving the building with 4 feet of smelly, murky, oily water. Everything from floor to ceiling was in ruins. After the initial shock, the congregation’s first response was to see how they might serve their neighbors, providing meals to those who lost everything.

Did God show favor to one over the other?

Did God answer the prayers of one and not the other?

Or did He choose each for different purposes –

One to proclaim His deliverance.

One to reveal His grace.

We might not have an abundance of water to contend with, but what about other calamities, maybe a frightful diagnosis? Some who pray are miraculously delivered to share amazing testimonies about the power of the Almighty.

Yet there are others who pray with as much fervor and faith, yet still experience the tribulations of all manner of physical disease, mental illness, or addiction.

Thirty years ago, a friend was diagnosed with MS. She was a dancer and one morning woke up unable to move a single muscle. Miraculously, she has been symptom-free since then. Twenty years ago, another friend was diagnosed with MS. He prayed for healing. Yet the ravages of his disease have affected his speech, motion, and emotions. Today, he thanks God and credits Him with transformation in the best sense of the word. He’ll tell you he used to be “cocky,” a head-turning, stellar athlete filled with an over-abundance of self-confidence. He now barely walks with a steel walker, but it is God who he leans on.

We can and should pray for our circumstances as our heavenly Father wants us to bring all our concerns to Him. But we must realize that these circumstances do not define us or God. They are tools in His hands used to refine us. He may allow the flood, the disease, the broken relationships, the financial woes. Or He may deliver us from them entirely. He is sovereign. We are not – but when we know the One who is, when we trust His character, when we converse with Him in prayer, when we experience His presence through the Spirit, and when we know that He CAN deliver us, but chooses not to, then we can experience His perfect peace despite our circumstances. And that is a powerful testimony that will speak loudly to the lives of others still struggling in their own circumstances.

“Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. Luke 22:42-43

May He strengthen you too, dear one.

People with their minds set on you,
    you keep completely whole,
Steady on their feet,
    because they keep at it and don’t quit.
Depend on God and keep at it
    because in the Lord God you have a sure thing. Is. 26:3 MSG

Dive Deep!

Posted on April 28, 2017 by Susan Panzica

While on retreat a while back, our rooms had a beautiful view overlooking the bay. As we watched the activity among the geese swimming and frolicking in the water, my friend shared with me her wise observation about the geese.

Noticing the many geese diving down into the water despite the ample food along the shoreline, she said that it must be that the food in the water is the good stuff. And so rather than settle for the easy way, the geese made the effort to dive down deep to get the better morsels. Just like we should dive down deep for the good stuff in God’s Word. .

Oswald Chambers said, “Good is the enemy of best.” If we settle for what’s good, we miss out on what’s best.

When it comes time for reading the Bible, sometimes we skim the surface rather than dive in to find deeper meaning. But the good stuff is down deep!

When we learn that it was in prison that Paul said, “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances” it means more than if he was writing these words from the comfort of his home.
When we learn the meaning of the words in their original language, they take on new meaning. For example, the parts of the armor of God in Ephesians 6 include the “sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God.” All the other parts of the armor are defensive (helmet, shield, etc.) The sword (God’s Word) is our only offense. But the word for sword does not mean a large saber-type sword. No, it is a small sword, like a scalpel, to be used an instrument of healing removing that which is detrimental to our health, not as a machete to hurt someone.
Down deep, we find the history of the times in which the words were recorded. And the geneologies that we so often skip over contain nuggets of insight, like the fact that there is a harlot (Rahab) in the line of David and Jesus.

It’s worthwhile to dive down deep to be fed spiritually on the Word. The Bible refers to itself as our spiritual food. Babies eat milk because they can’t digest meat. But as they mature, they move on to meatier, more complex things. And so should we.

Along that same line, we should not be discouraged if we don’t understand some of what we read in the Bible. We just haven’t grown to that point yet, but it’s something to look forward to. What we don’t want is to settle for less than best.

So friends, let’s go! Won’t you dive in deep with me and discover the amazing truths found in His Word?

Future Perfect

Posted on March 15, 2017March 15, 2017 by Susan Panzica

The words streamed out of my car radio and embedded themselves deep in my soul as David Crowder shared about his new album, American Prodigal.

“God doesn’t love our future self more than He loves us right now.”

My present self often dwells on my mistakes, things I’ve said or things I wished I said, actions I’ve taken or those I wish I had. I berate myself for not being the person that I think I should be. And although I know the forgiveness of God, I also carry a hope that someday when I get it all right, I’ll make God smile more than I do right now.

And that is doing God a great disservice.

We perceive love within our limits of time and space. But God IS love. And He IS eternal. So His love is the same past, present, and future – a future He already knows, by the way.

Our natural love is mercurial, changing with emotions and circumstances. It grows and diminishes. And it’s conditional. But His love is based on the fact that He created us. It’s unconditional. Nothing we do or don’t do changes His love for us.

So to think that God will love us more in the future when we finally get our act together is to misunderstand the limitless, timeless, unrestricted, complete love that God has for you and for me.

God loves us when we don’t deserve it. He loves us the same when we are behaving and thinking as we should. Because we are performance oriented, we experience approval and rejection based on our standards or someone else’s.

But God’s standard is His Word. We will never meet His standards. And knowing that, He loved us so much that He gave His Son that whosoever believes in Him will have eternal life with Him.

Can you right now close your eyes, breathe in deep, sense His abiding adoring presence, and thank Him for His eternal boundless love?

Give thanks to the God of heaven!
His love is eternal. Ps. 136:26

Break My Heart

Posted on March 1, 2017March 1, 2017 by Susan Panzica

I caught myself humming and accidentally meditating on some lyrics from a favorite worship song – Hillsong’s Hosanna :

Heal my heart and make it clean
Open up my eyes to the things unseen
Show me how to love like you have loved me
Break my heart for what breaks yours
Everything I am for your kingdoms cause
As I go from nothing to
Eternity

60 years ago a man named Bob Pierce prayed these words in a prayer: “Let my heart be broken by the things that break the heart of God.” Dr. Bob Pierce founded World Vision after traveling to China in 1947. On that trip, his heart was broken with the need of one little girl. In the decades since, World Vision met the needs of millions of people in the US and all over the globe.

After my children went on mission trips, their hearts were broken for people in Uganda, India, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Bahamas, and the US. They followed up their trips with actions to help meet the needs they encountered and inspired me to do the same.

Yet I think there are other things, personal things, that break the heart of God. As I continued to mediate about this lyric, God whispered: You can love people around the world, but can you love the person sitting next to you?

Ouch! The sting of conviction penetrated deep in my soul.

What breaks God’s heart? Not just children dying in poverty. It breaks God’s heart when my attitudes and actions represent the enemy more than they represent Him. I believe God is not as grieved by sinners who act like sinners as He is by Christians who act like sinners.

Can we love those who are lovely?

Of course, that’s easy.

Love the poor?

Sure, most of us can do that. In fact, there are many non-Christians who care for the poor, who sacrifice life and limb to live in impoverished nations, who are in the Peace Corps, the military, the inner cities, Indian reservations, homeless shelters, safe houses for abused. There are non-Christians who are doing what more Christians ought to be doing.

How about loving those who annoy you? What about loving those who hurt you? What about loving someone who hurt your child?

Apart from the grace of God, it’s next to impossible. Yet that is exactly what God calls us to do:

“You’re familiar with the old written law, ‘Love your friend,’ and its unwritten companion, ‘Hate your enemy.’ I’m challenging that. I’m telling you to love your enemies. Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst. When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer, for then you are working out of your true selves, your God-created selves. This is what God does. If all you do is love the lovable, do you expect a bonus? Anybody can do that. If you simply say hello to those who greet you, do you expect a medal? Any run-of-the-mill sinner does that.

“In a word, what I’m saying is, Grow up. You’re kingdom subjects. Now live like it. Live out your God-created identity. Live generously and graciously toward others, the way God lives toward you.” Matt. 5:43-47 MSG

Our “enemies” give us an opportunity to develop Christ-likeness. When we can forgive as He forgave and love as He loved, we become more like Him ~ and we stop grieving Him.

We must stop “acting” like a Christian and start “being” one from the inside out:

“If we are to be imitators of Christ, we need to stop trying to act like Christians (external actions) and instead focus on BEING a Christian from our core (internal transformation). When this becomes our focus, we will discover that it’s not difficult to act like a Christian, because we simply ARE one. Period.” ~ Christine Caine

May our hearts break for that which breaks God’s heart.

And help us Lord to not break Yours.

How Can This Be?

Posted on December 16, 2016 by Susan Panzica

Has a phone call or conversation ever delivered incomprehensible news and you wondered, “How can this be?”

You’re not alone…

http://www.freebibleimages.org/photos/zechariah-john/ — image courtesy: The Lumo Project

A devout priest, Zechariah was a descendent of Aaron. When his priestly division was on duty at the Temple in Jerusalem, he was chosen to enter the Holy Place. A religious man, schooled in the Scriptures, he was in a religious place where one would expect to encounter God.

Yet, when the angel appeared to him, standing beside the altar of incense, Zechariah trembled, gripped in fear. Gabriel comforted Zechariah, telling him not to be afraid and providing the reason for his visit. He was delivering good news. Zechariah’s elderly wife, Elizabeth, would bear them a son. Not just any son, but a son to be named John, who would be filled with the Holy Spirit and would prepare the people for the Messiah who was also coming to the world.

When Zechariah heard Gabriel’s words, he questioned him. “How can this be?” as he and his wife were well along in years and therefore could not bear a child. Gabriel discerned that Zechariah didn’t believe, and condemned him to silence until at the baby’s birth Zechariah demonstrated obedience by naming him John.

Mary also had a visit from the angel Gabriel. She wasn’t near the temple, but in a lowly village in Galilee, called Nazareth. She wasn’t schooled in the Scriptures. She was a simple devout young woman engaged to be married.

Gabriel greeted her, stating that she was highly favored and the Lord was with her. Troubled at his words (but not at the sight of him), he told her not to be afraid of what would happen to her, that she would miraculously bear a child. Hearing his words, Mary asked, “How can this be?” as a virgin cannot bear a child. Gabriel, discerning that she didn’t understand, explained to her about the Holy Spirit coming upon her, affirming that “nothing is impossible with God.” Mary responded in faith, “I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said.”

Two appearances of the angel Gabriel
– One is the place of highest esteem, the Temple’s Holy Place
– One in the lowest of villages (Can anything good come out of Nazareth? John 1:46)

Two expressing the same question, “How can this be?”
– One an unbelieving, though devout, old man
– One a believing, devout young woman

Two different responses by the angel to that same question
– One was rendered speechless for at least 9 months
– One was provided an answer to her question

So what can we glean from this?

Just because we are in a religious place doesn’t make us holy. You may have heard the saying, “Just because you are in a garage doesn’t make you a car.” Despite Zechariah’s expectation of meeting with God in the Holy Place, he was shocked and terrified at seeing the angel. Mary, however, fully experienced the presence of God in the humblest of locations. Unlike real estate, when it comes to experiencing God, physical location seems to be of little consequence.

What is of great consequence is the state of our heart. We can live a life as “devout and blameless” as Zechariah and still miss God. While it is fitting to “study to show ourselves approved,” it must not be just head-knowledge. Let the simple faith of a young virgin inspire our desire to know Him, and to be willing to serve Him in whatever way He leads.

Fortunately, Zechariah’s song (Luke 1:67-79) makes it clear that he now possessed great understanding and belief in how his child would fulfill the Messianic prophesies. This encourages me to realize that even when I stumble, there always remains hope in the future to make it right.

In her song (Luke 1:46-55), Mary doesn’t appear to have the depth of comprehension that Zechariah had regarding the coming of the Messiah. What she does have is the simple understanding that she is blessed because He was “mindful of her, His servant.”

“Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!” Luke 1:45

Do you believe that He will accomplish what He said? Then you are blessed! When we ask the Lord, “How can this be?” let us be sure to ask with the heart of Mary, believing and trusting.

To watch my interview on FoxNews.com with Lauren Green, please click here.

To order Mary had a little Lamb, please click here or on the box below.

Are you expecting?

Posted on December 6, 2016 by Susan Panzica

Are you expecting?

Those words could be a thrill – or – they could strike fear in your heart.

It all depends upon what you are expecting.

2000 years ago, there was an expectation in the land of Israel that the Messiah would be coming (Luke 3:15). For 400 years (twice as long as the United States has existed!), there had been no spoken or written word from God. The prophecies pointed to this time in history as the time when their fulfillment would occur. The anticipation was palpable. How would the Messiah come? Who would He be? Would He meet their expectations?

Flash forward 2000 years. The church calendar recognizes the season before Christmas as Advent (from the Latin word, adventus, meaning “coming”). Traditionally, Advent commences on the fourth Sunday before Christmas Day. It is a season of expectant waiting and preparation for the celebration of the Nativity of Jesus.

This Advent season, what are you expecting?

If you were you expecting a season of stress, perhaps this will be the year that those expectations will not be met!

Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. Colossians 3:2

As a photographer adjusts the lens of her camera, adjust the lens of your expectations. When the circumstances of your life, the things that are so close – the earthly things – are in crisp focus, everything else is out of focus. But by adjusting our lens, we can bring into crisp focus the things of God – the things above. Then the things of earth are not so defined. We can still see them; we know they are there, but they no longer are our focus.

When we seek Him, we will find Him. We can find Him in the midst of our circumstances. We can find Him outside of our circumstances. He is never hard to find. If we are looking in the right places. Tweet this!

In the morning, O LORD, you hear my voice;

in the morning I lay my requests before You

and wait in expectation. Psalm 5:3

Lord, we are expecting…. We are expecting to sense Your presence over these December days. We expect to see You exalted among Your people. We expect to be at peace as we keep our focus on You. Thank you, Jesus!