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Pause 2, Day 1 Follow The Light

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Pause 2, Day 1

We picked our way down a narrow footpath,
the golden beam of the flashlight bobbing ahead of us a few paces.
It illuminated the dirt path just enough for me to take my next few steps and catch the glint of critters’ eyes in the underbrush.

I focused my attention on the footfall of my guide and tightly clutched my yellow flashlight,
for it was my lifeline, lighting my path through the dark woods.

I stepped carefully forward on the path before me and recalled the words of the psalmist:
“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.” (Psalm 119:105)

God’s word is a lamp, just like my trusty flashlight. It lights my path enough for the next few steps.
But why?
Why would God hand me a flashlight rather than a floodlight?
It would certainly be easier for me if He emailed me a list each day, or handed me a portfolio for the year to come.

But suppose the Almighty God valued relationship 
over facts, “to do lists”, and manufactured obedience?
Suppose what He wanted most was for our hearts to trust His?

Trust is developed through relationship.
Deeper relationship is developed through deeper trust.
A floodlight would illuminate the pathway, making it simple to get from “Point A” to “Point B”.
It would be efficient, would require very little trust, and very little relationship.
A flashlight, however, requires both trust and relationship.
To stay on track, flashlight in hand, I must stay close to my guide and follow the light.  

I stay close to my guide, carefully watching His footfall, listening to His breathing and for the sound of His voice; we begin walking in rhythm without even trying.
We begin enjoying the journey together.  

Whether your journey today is dark and ominous or carefree and delightful,
God’s Word is the intended light for our path. 

As we Pause from our regular rhythm of Journey Studies at Gracefully Truthful,
we invite you pause with us.
Linger with His Word.
Readjust your eyes to His light and re-center the trajectory of your everyday life and relationships
to the gentle cadence of His whispers.  

When we bare our souls, wrestle with truth and its application to our real-life situations,
something holy and beautiful is born,
and we learn how to follow the light.  

Yes, trust, Sisters.
Even when we hear nothing but the crunch of His footfall and steady rhythm of His holy breath.
Yes, trust, Sisters.
Even when we see nothing but the golden glow of truth illuminating the path
and His silhouette proceeding, beckoning us onward.

We step forward in faith to follow the light.
As we do, we will find ourselves falling into His rhythm and gasping in awe
as we share the coolness of the night with the Ancient of Days.

Pause.
Linger.
Light is here!

Today's Challenge

1) Read Psalm 119:97-105 and Psalm 119:27-59 and answer these 3 questions in your journal:
a) What do these verses tell me about God and His character?
b) What do these verses tell me about others and the world around me?
c) What do these verses tell me about me and my heart?

2) Close your time by praying for these truths to take root in your heart and for the Holy Spirit to remind you and teach you more about these things today.

Share your thoughts from today’s Journey Study!
Can we pray for you?
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Psalm 119:97-105

How I love your instruction!
It is my meditation all day long.
98 Your commands make me wiser than my enemies,
for they are always with me.
99 I have more insight than all my teachers
because your decrees are my meditation.
100 I understand more than the elders
because I obey your precepts.
101 I have kept my feet from every evil path
to follow your word.
102 I have not turned from your judgments,
for you yourself have instructed me.
103 How sweet your word is to my taste—
sweeter than honey in my mouth.
104 I gain understanding from your precepts;
therefore I hate every false way.
105 Your word is a lamp for my feet
and a light on my path.

Psalm 119:27-59

Help me understand
the meaning of your precepts
so that I can meditate on your wonders.
28 I am weary from grief;
strengthen me through your word.
29 Keep me from the way of deceit
and graciously give me your instruction.
30 I have chosen the way of truth;
I have set your ordinances before me.
31 I cling to your decrees;
Lord, do not put me to shame.
32 I pursue the way of your commands,
for you broaden my understanding. 

33 Teach me, Lord, the meaning of your statutes,
and I will always keep them.
34 Help me understand your instruction,
and I will obey it
and follow it with all my heart.
35 Help me stay on the path of your commands,
for I take pleasure in it.
36 Turn my heart to your decrees
and not to dishonest profit.
37 Turn my eyes
from looking at what is worthless;
give me life in your ways.
38 Confirm what you said to your servant,
for it produces reverence for you.
39 Turn away the disgrace I dread;
indeed, your judgments are good.
40 How I long for your precepts!
Give me life through your righteousness. 

41 Let your faithful love come to me, Lord,
your salvation, as you promised.
42 Then I can answer the one who taunts me,
for I trust in your word.
43 Never take the word of truth from my mouth,
for I hope in your judgments.
44 I will always obey your instruction,
forever and ever.
45 I will walk freely in an open place
because I study your precepts.
46 I will speak of your decrees before kings
and not be ashamed.
47 I delight in your commands,
which I love.
48 I will lift up my hands to your commands,
which I love,
and will meditate on your statutes. 

49 Remember your word to your servant;
you have given me hope through it.
50 This is my comfort in my affliction:
Your promise has given me life.
51 The arrogant constantly ridicule me,
but I do not turn away from your instruction.
52 Lord, I remember your judgments from long ago
and find comfort.
53 Rage seizes me because of the wicked
who reject your instruction.
54 Your statutes are the theme of my song
during my earthly life.
55 Lord, I remember your name in the night,
and I obey your instruction.
56 This is my practice:
I obey your precepts. 

57 The Lord is my portion;
I have promised to keep your words.
58 I have sought your favor with all my heart;
be gracious to me according to your promise.
59 I thought about my ways
and turned my steps back to your decrees.

How Does “Pause” Work?
1. Each day, Monday through Friday, for 2 weeks, we will provide you with a simple challenge. Each challenge is designed for you to engage with the Almighty in a deeper way and perhaps in a new way than you have been recently.

2. Having a journal is a must! You’ll want to take notes as you walk this special Journey of Pause.

3. Each week focuses on one or two passage of Scripture and we walk with you as you study and flesh these out for yourself. As you write your thoughts, read His Word, and pray, questions might come up. That’s Perfect! Ask a trusted fellow believer, a pastor, or send us an email as you work through them!

4. Jumping in at the middle? No problem! Here is the entire Journey Theme.

5. Connect with others on Facebook by visiting our GT Community Group!

Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus. Tap and hold from your mobile device to download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!

Thanks for joining us today as we journeyed into Pause 2 Week One!
Don’t miss out on the discussion below – we’d love to hear your thoughts!

Looking for other journeys from this theme? Here’s a link to all past studies
in Pause 2!

Roads Day 6 Quest For Truth

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Romans 1:28-32
Matthew 17:1-13
Matthew 16:1-16 

Roads, Day 6

“I don’t really believe in any certain thing. 
But I’m a pretty good person, and that’s good enough for me.” 

If you’ve ever encountered this line of thinking, you’ve likely met a Universal Unitarian, whether they even realized it or not.  

Unitarian Universalism is a liberal religion characterized by a ‘free and responsible search for truth and meaning.’  

1) They assert no creed.
2) They hold to a 7-principle system for those in their community, but they consider it a “guide” rather than a “doctrine”.
3) Some believe in “a god”, but they are “openly revising their view on god as they learn and grow in their own lives.”
4) Their unity comes from a shared search for spiritual growth as they include congregants of various religious backgrounds including, atheists, agnostics, deists, Jews, Muslims, Daoist, Buddhists and many more others.
It’s a quest for truth, but without a measuring stick for what actually is true.  

Jesus? 
With such a strong core value of searching for truth, while, at the same time, necessitating that all views be accepted equally, the biblical view of Jesus is too intense. A universalist will gladly welcome conversation with you, but will maintain
Jesus was nothing more than a great prophet and teacher. 
He most certainly was not divine; He definitely is not the Son of God.

Many view Jesus as someone on an “All-Star” cast of teachers that has transcended through time, but acknowledging that Jesus could be the very Son of God would challenge their entire belief system. From a Universalist perspective, Jesus serves no other purpose aside from feeding the hungry and clothing the poor.

Trinity?
Unitarians entirely reject the Christian doctrine of the Trinity. Which is understandable if your foremost value of self-knowledge is jeopardized by an all-knowing, all-present, all-powerful three-in-one God who Himself contains the fullness of truth and life and has created life as an overflow of His love that they might come to know and understand the fullness of His love.  

Life After Death?
When it comes to an afterlife, Unitarian’s believe that all roads lead to heaven.
They strongly promote universal atonement, meaning that there is no “divine judgement after death”, but if you happen to believe there is judgement, they won’t reject you from their community. This theory of universal pardon maintains that God, if there is a God, will not hold unswervingly to the conditions He has (presumably) laid down for righteousness. While He has threatened eternal condemnation for all those who do not accept Him, He will in the end relent and forgive everyone.
But, if even the existence of God is hazy, there can’t really be much hope for an afterlife can there? 

A Unitarian website is quoted as saying,
“Why does life exist as we know it?” and “What happens after we die?” 
Unitarian Universalism won’t promise you ironclad answers to these questions.”
I don’t know about you, but that theology doesn’t seem nearly strong enough to support my eternity. 

Be that as it may, I can see how Unitarianism would be appealing in today’s society.
We live in a day and age where people crave control,
and want to manifest their own destiny.
Many people we come in contact with in our everyday lives have a belief system made up of personal experiences and in turn, handcraft their own religion from those experiences.
A quest for truth, waiting for something substantial, but does it even exist? 

Is being good really enough?  

Do all roads really lead to Heaven?  

Does the Trinity actually exist?
Was Jesus just part of an ‘All-Star’ cast as a glorified humanitarian? 

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” Romans 3:23
Even the best person among us falls, perpetually short of God’s holiness. 
God’s standard is absolute perfect righteousness.
No person ever has, or ever will, meet that except for one…..Jesus.  

Just one act of disobedience in an otherwise ‘good’ life, is all it takes to be found guilty and worthy of punishment in the eyes of God.
He is a holy God. Flawless. He cannot be in the presence of sin.  

But Hope!
“But God proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)
God’s forgiveness depends on faith and trust in Jesus, not on us or our works. 
Jesus alone earned it for us.  

In a previous Journey Study, I wrote:
“Jesus is both tolerant and intolerant;
utterly exclusive and wholly inclusive. 
He made it plain and simple in Scripture:
“No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
There are no other “gods” (Buddha, Gandhi, Muhammad..),
simply, only, Jesus.
Because He alone is able to save and stand in the gap and take our punishment for sin.
Jesus Christ lived the human life flawlessly in our place, being fully God, yet becoming fully human,
He alone could bear the full measure of God’s wrath upon Himself.” 

The idea that Jesus was just part of an ‘all-star’ cast couldn’t be more flawed.
You see, without Jesus, it would be impossible to have a relationship with God! 

The Trinity (God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit) has eternally existed. Complete. Fully in community with one another. One does not exist without the other.

If you’re on a quest for truth, of if you have the opportunity to connect with someone who is, Solid Truth is available.
No, we aren’t “good enough”.
But Praise God, there’s One who is, the Lord Jesus Christ!

Don’t shy away from sharing the Hope we have.
It isn’t hazy or uncertain, it’s true. 

Hungry for more on what we believe as Christ-followers and how to share it?
We spent an entire Journey Theme on Creed.  

We’d love to continue this dialog in the comments or through e-mail – reach out!   

Share your thoughts from today’s Journey Study!
Can we pray for you?
Sign up to receive every Journey Study!
Join our Facebook Community!

Join the GT Community and share your thoughts!

Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus. Tap and hold from your mobile device to download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!

Thanks for joining us today as we journeyed into Roads Week Two! Don’t miss out on the discussion below – we’d love to hear your thoughts!

Looking for other journeys from this theme?
Here’s a link to all past studies in Roads

Shepherd Day 5 Quiet Waters

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Zephaniah 3:14-20
Psalm 23:2
Colossians 3:12-17

Shepherd, Day 5

Lead
Definition of the Hebrew word: יְנַהֲלֵֽנִי׃ (pronounced naw-hal’)
to lead, give rest, lead with care, guide to a watering place or station, cause to rest,
bring to a station or place of rest, guide, refresh

Leadership is a tough road, friends. It’s scary, it’s intense, it’s pressure-filled.
It’s heavy on the side of accountability, vision, loving others, being “on”.
Leadership wearies.

And before you say, “I’m not a leader, so this doesn’t apply.”
Stop.
You are. We all have a sphere of influence that we’ve been given. We all lead.

Every single one of my seven children from 15 months to 14 years are leaders.
They all lead those around them into either greatness or into disobedience.
And let me tell you, their influence is significant; able to quickly turn the tide of their siblings, of their friends, of their parents, and even their whole family.
Whether it’s a tantrum, an encouraging word, a genuine hug, or a kick and a punch,
their influence is felt.

As Is Yours.
Student. Wife. Mama. Friend. Co-worker. Boss. Woman. Sister. Leader.
What we do with our leadership is significant.
Its influence is felt far and wide, whether we realize it or not.

Because our leadership reach is so far-reaching,
where we lead from makes all the difference.

When my daughter reaches out to hug the brother who just kicked her and, rather than run tattling, rather than kicking back, she hugs and says, “I can tell you’re having a rough morning.”
She is leading from something deeper and more solid than her own sense of self-preservation.
She’s leading from love.
Sacrificial. Humble. Love.

He leads me beside quiet waters.

When my husband gets my text message and reads between the lines to know that something deeper is happening than the words appearing on the screen, and he chooses to lay aside his work, hang up his call, and ask what’s really going on…..he’s leading from love.
Sacrificial. Humble. Love

He leads me beside quiet waters.

When we hold our tongue to listen to others.
When we choose to step into another’s shoes rather than pass judgment.
When we give generously.
When we pause to consider what it would look like to love our spouse better today.
When we seek the good of another over our own convenience.
When we lay aside the insistence that others fit into our parameters.
We are leading from love.
Sacrificial. Humble. Love.

Leading like this is hard. Leading like this doesn’t come naturally.
Leading like this, doing it well, and doing it consistently, necessitates One Thing.
Being led.
Sacrificing our own agenda to be led.
Humbly submitting ourselves to another’s leadership.
Leading from love.

He leads me beside quiet waters.

Hush. Peace. Slow. Be still.
He leads.

Hands stop moving.
Brains stop rushing ahead.
Agendas die.
Must Do lists fade.
All the voices silenced.
Closed doors.
Hush.
Peace.
Listen.
Quiet Waters.

He leads me beside quiet waters.

We cannot lead well if we refuse to be led.

יְנַהֲלֵֽנִי׃ has the connotation of being led station by station, from one, very intentional place of rest into the next in a continuous journey of quiet water to quiet water.

Wait, you might say, I don’t know about you, but my life is anything BUT quiet water.
Yes! Mine too!
But still, His invitation remains.

He leads me beside quiet waters.
Whether I’m leading my toddler in a rhythmic bedtime routine, homeschooling my children, leading at church, or choosing to love my husband better, intentional rhythms are crucial.
Leadership takes planning, forethought, a direction, and the discipline to follow through on those plans.
Being led requires the same discipline.

We will not have access to the quiet waters if we refuse to be intentional on allowing the Shepherd access to our hearts.
Quiet time.
Space for silence and solitude with the Savior.
Journaling prayers.
Allowing access. Being led. Accepting love.

He leads me beside quiet waters.

When we make space for quiet and time carved out to let the Savior love us with His own Word, we can lead from that love.
When we make meeting with Him, in submission to His leadership, the rhythm and practice of our daily lives,
He leads us solidly from quiet water to quiet water.

The world will continue to be loud.
The relationships may continue to spiral.
Others choices may continue to frustrate and be destructive,
but you will be steadfast.
Held by the hand that leads you from the quiet water of Himself, the very Living Water.

Jesus answered,
“If you knew the gift of God, and who is saying to you,
‘Give me a drink,’ you would ask Him,
and He would give you living water.” (John 4:10)

If you knew….
Oh sisters, if you knew of the sweet intimacies and depth of riches of being led from quiet water to quiet water, while being refreshed and refueled by the Living Water of Jesus Christ Himself, you would ask Him. And He would give it.

Drink deep.
Create the space.
Submit to His leadership.
And learn the rhythms of leading from His quieting love.

Ready for more? Dig Deeper!
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Don’t miss today’s Digging Deeper!     And we’d love to hear your thoughts from today’s Journey!    Comment Here!

Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus. Tap and hold from your mobile device to download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!

Thanks for joining us today as we journeyed into Shepherd Week One! Don’t miss out on the discussion below – we’d love to hear your thoughts!
Click the above image for today’s Digging Deeper!

Looking for other journeys from this theme?
Here’s a link to all past studies in Shepherd!