Standing at the Foot of the Mountain

Am I the only one who thinks 2016 is flying by? Seems like we just celebrated New Year’s, and now we’re headed into summer.

At the beginning of each new year, many folks pick a “word” to motivate them or define what they believe the year will be about. Or perhaps it’s a word they believe God gave them as a promise for their future.

This year a phrase came to me that seemed to fit my vision of the future.

Hope Restored. 

As the concept behind those two little words sunk in, I realized it wasn’t just for me. God wanted me to share it with those visiting this blog. After all, you’re here because you want encouragement. Some of you are walking through a valley. And perhaps, some of you have even lost hope or had your faith shaken by a trial—maybe even recently.  

I’ve not blogged much over the last year and a half. To be honest, I’ve been overwhelmed by the number of commitments and stressors in my life and something had to give. After prayer and consideration, the blog was one of those areas.

To be even more transparent with you, my faithful readers, I spent much of this time in a valley. I’ll spare you the details, but family issues dragged me through some tough patches. At times, I felt like I merely treaded water. I'm amazed when I look back that I managed to write anything. By the grace of God, I released two books on Amazon (one of which I'd already written), and then write proposals for two other manuscripts now under consideration at publishers.

If you’ve followed my blog and writing for any length of time, you know my mantra has always been hope, not despair. In fact, that’s the theme of my devotional, While I'm Waiting: Going from despair to hope while praising God and choosing contentment during trials.  And perhaps that philosophy is why the enemy attacked me as he did.

God’s strength is the stalwart I’ve always leaned upon. This past year even more so. In addition, He provided friends who raised my arms on tough days, much like Aaron and Hur did for Moses when he grew weary (Exodus 17:12). And when the temptation to despair crept in, I remembered God’s faithfulness in my life—and in the lives of the ancient saints.

For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock…I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord. Psalm 27:5, 13-14 

We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed… Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. 2 Corinthians 4:8-9, 16-18 

Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:22-23  

Though I never lost hope in the One True God, my human fortitude waned at times. I’m so thankful for the strength He gave me when mine faltered.

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. Romans 5:1-5

What a beautiful assurance of resting in the peace and hope of God through Jesus! God’s hope alone saw me through some days.

Though some of my personal situation has improved, other aspects became even more challenging. Yet, I’m emerging from the valley and standing at the foot of the mountain again. As I stand here and survey the landscape, I see the sun shining through, and I’m reminded that only God can truly restore hope and give us the promise of a future when all else looks hopeless (Jeremiah 29:11-13). Most of the time that means coming to the end of ourselves and totally trusting Him for everything.

Hope has been the basis for my life, and that never changed. Part of my hope now is to return to blogging regularly and the excitement of being able to interact with you, my faithful readers. Not only do I want to give you encouragement, but when you leave here, I want you to feel your hope has been restored. I feel so strongly about this, I’ve added it to my blog title for now.

I’d love to hear how you’d been doing since we interacted last. How has your year been so far?

If you have a prayer request, I’d love to pray for you. Please leave a comment or email me confidential requests.

May God richly bless you,

Laura

© Laura Hodges Poole

“Canyon Of The Colca River In Southern Peru” image courtesy of xura/FreeDigitalPhotos.net.

 “Hope Despair Post-it Papers” image courtesy of Stuart Miles/FreeDigitalPhotos.net.

 “Faith and Believe” image courtesy of thepathtraveler/FreeDigitalPhotos.net.

“Sunset On The Mighty Chimborazo Volcano” image courtesy of xura/FreeDigitalPhotos.net.

Live from The Cove (Billy Graham Training Center)

I don’t know if you’ve noticed lately, but my posts have been few and far between. Whether you call it a rut or just plain exhausted and stretched too thin—my ability to write dissipated. Not completely, but I’d sit at the computer, start a devotion, article, or even a blog post and after a paragraph or two say, “That’s junk,” and walk away. I’m sure those of you who artists and writers can relate.

This weekend, I’m attending a writers’ conference at The Cove in Asheville, NC.  Arriving on “the mountain,” each year is like stepping into the presence of God. Don’t get me wrong. Every day I live in His presence. He’s in everything I see and experience. But here…words don’t exist in the English language to describe the tranquility and holiness of this place.

I first stopped at the chapel, slipped inside, and sat on the back row while the guide talked to a couple near the front. When the guide finished, I moseyed up as she took their picture and then offered to take mine as they left.

She asked if I played the piano, which I do. She insisted I play the grand piano at the front of the chapel—the one played by George Beverly Shea. If you know me, performing in public scares me. Actually, performing in front of anyone makes me anxious. I made some lame excuse about not being able to play without music, and she pointed me to a stack of hymn books. To my surprise (and relief) I was totally at peace as I picked up the hymnal and flipped through, settling on the great Billy Graham crusade invitation hymn, “Just As I Am.” The music reverberated through the chapel, a beautiful tone like no other piano I’ve ever played.

When I finished, I strolled through the chapel by myself, spent some time in prayer, and then took a few photographs. You’ll notice from the photos there are no stained glass windows. The Grahams wanted God’s nature to show through the windows instead. Wise choice.

My desire and zeal for writing has been rekindled. I'm excited about writing and feel so blessed that God has gifted me to share His message through the written word. 

As I sit here at my laptop overlooking the beautiful landscape, a few snow flurries flutter by my window, I wonder—is this what Moses felt when he went onto the mountain to meet God (Exodus 24, 33-34)? Based on the radiance of his face when he came down off the mountain, certainly his spirit was renewed each time he fellowshipped with God in that special place and time.

The peace and tranquility I’m experiencing for this finite time is only a slice of what heaven will be like and what Moses experienced, but I’ll soak up as much as I can and return home with a renewed spirit to do the work God has equipped me to do.

Thanks for joining me on my journey.

God bless,

Laura

©Laura Hodges Poole

Guest Post - Author Joyce Glass

We have so many expectations in life, but do any of them pertain to our relationship with God? Christian Author Joyce Glass shares a devotion today on that topic. Welcome, Joyce! 

Come Expecting

Do you get excited going to see a new movie? Why? What are you expecting? I love to go see new movies, and love when they are really good!

As Moses was leading the Israelites through the wilderness, he was in constant communication with God. He is one of the few people in the Bible to meet with God face to glory. Moses was not allowed to see His face, but He experienced His glory and heard His voice.

Take Two

In Exodus 34 Moses is returning to Mount Sinai for God to write out the Ten Commandments again. Remember Moses broke them when he came down the first time, because the people had created an idol to worship while he was gone. In his anger he threw down the original tablets of stone.

“So Moses chiseled out two tablets of stone like the first ones. Early in the morning he climbed Mount Sinai as the LORD had commanded him, and he carried the two stone tablets in his hands.” ~ Exodus 34:4 NLT ~

Moses came expecting. He brought the tablets as the Lord had commanded him. He came early in the morning. We can learn so much from this little verse.

God desires us to come expecting to hear from Him, to listen to His word and obey Him. When you spend time with Him, and seek him daily through His word and in time of prayer He will reveal His plans for you. He will comfort and guide your steps each day. Be prepared with an open heart and mind.

Be Prepared

Come expecting, because God has so much to share with us each day! Moses came prepared to hear from God. God did not just hand him the stones with the commandments.

Do you want to know what is on God’s heart for you and your family? Come expecting!

What has God shared with you

when you came expecting to hear from Him?

Please share in the comments below.

Come Expecting in your time with God. iNeed God ~ daily downloads for your heart Bible Study by Joyce Glass now available on Amazon. This 90-Day study offers you fresh ways to spend time with God while you grow more intimate in your relationship with Him.

Learn more about the study at www.iNeedGodBook.com.

Meet Joyce Glass:

Joyce Glass is a writer, speaker, and lover of God's word even more than chocolate! Her desire is to encourage you to walk closer to God. Dig deeper in your faith. Pray in earnest daily for God to teach you His ways, and serve Him right where you live and work now. You can connect with Joyce online.

Connect with Joyce:

Blog: www.TheDailyGPS.com

Book: www.iNeedGodBook.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gps.jglass

Twitter: @joyce_glass

Google +: Joyce Glass, Writer & Speaker

Do You Trust God?

The Lord said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey.” Exodus 3:7-8a NIV

When you cry out to God in the midst of suffering, do you ever wish He’d come down and give you a definitive game plan like He gave Moses? It’s easy to say, “If God actually stood in front of me and explained how the solution to my problem would work out, I wouldn’t react like Moses. I would do exactly what I was told.” Hmmmm. Maybe.

Because God doesn’t appear to us out of a burning bush, we sometimes lack faith that He is attentive to see, hear, be concerned, and rescue us. Aside from the fact Christians have life experiences showing He’s done just that, if we believe God is who He claims to be, then—given all the examples of His perfect will and timing in the Bible—why do we refuse to put total trust in His plans—no matter how slow or fast they unfold for us?

An obvious reason is few of us can claim an audience with God like Moses had. Not a physical audience. I mean Moses’ willingness to be completely “there” in God’s presence, contrasted with our busy lifestyles where we sometimes squeeze prayer in between other activities. This doesn’t allow silent meditation for God to speak to us so we can feel firmly rooted in His guidance. 

Moses:

• listened
• asked questions
• asked for provision

But we also don’t believe we can experience God on the level Moses did. The biggest reason is self-doubt. Like Moses. Instead of trusting God to bring us up out of our problems His way and in His perfect time, we get distracted by our reasons it might not happen.

I began re-reading the Bible at the beginning of the year. Exodus 3-4 really spoke to me about how my attitude and life often mirrors Moses.

 

But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” Exodus 3:11

What if I can't?

Wow! How many times have I uttered something similar when God opens a door or smoothes a path for me?

What if I can’t do that? What if I don’t succeed? What if I’ve misunderstood His direction?

God’s patience must surely be tried when He sees my self-doubt instead of reliance on Him. But He always gives me the same assurance He gave Moses:

And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.” Exodus 3:12

So, that’s enough, right? End of story. Moses obeyed. We obey. Hmmmm. Not so fast.

Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?”

God said to Moses, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.’” God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.’ Exodus 3:13-15a

It’s mind boggling after God spoke those powerful words, Moses still had self-doubts!

Moses answered, “What if they do not believe me or listen to me and say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you’?” Exodus 4:1

Then God showed Moses the miracle of the staff and leprous hand to use as signs.

The next passage is where I share a major similarity with Moses. Regardless of my level of faith in God—my focus on my shortcomings impedes what He seeks to accomplish through and for me.

Moses said to the Lord, “Pardon your servant, Lord. I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.” Exodus 4:10

I love God’s answer. J

The Lord said to him, “Who gave human beings their mouths? Who makes them deaf or mute? Who gives them sight or makes them blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.” Exodus 4:11-12

After all this reassurance, Moses still doesn’t get it. So he did what many of us would—he tried to squirm out of God’s assignment. Up to this point, God has been patient. However, Moses doesn’t have the insight he does later when he comes off the mountain and finds the Israelites in all forms of debauchery, and God opens the earth to swallow them. That might have given Moses a different perspective in challenging God’s instructions. Instead, Moses blunders ahead.

 But Moses said, “Pardon your servant, Lord. Please send someone else.” Exodus 4:13

Now God has heard enough. His patience has ended. He doesn’t let Moses off the hook for being the one He called to lead the Israelites, but He offers a solution that best matches Moses’ nature and spiritual maturity at that point in time.

Then the Lord’s anger burned against Moses and he said, “What about your brother, Aaron the Levite? I know he can speak well. He is already on his way to meet you, and he will be glad to see you. You shall speak to him and put words in his mouth; I will help both of you speak and will teach you what to do. He will speak to the people for you, and it will be as if he were your mouth and as if you were God to him. But take this staff in your hand so you can perform the signs with it.” Exodus 4:14-17

Even in God’s anger toward Moses’ inward focus on his shortcomings, He still provided a path for Moses to serve and obey Him. As Moses’ life unfolded, he gained spiritual maturity and became the leader God envisioned when He first called Moses to the task. To be effective in our Christian walk and serving our risen Savior, we must have faith that He is attentive to see, hear, be concerned, and rescue us in His perfect time and His way. This may not match what we expect, but we can trust Him to get it right.

What are you trusting God for today that you’re having trouble seeing His hand in? I’d love to hear from you. If you would like prayer, please leave a comment or e-mail me confidential requests. A prayer list at the top of the blog has info on people we are praying for.

Praise Report:
Courtney, a young mother who’s battled a cancerous brain tumor (Glioblastoma) for the past couple of years, went for her two-month checkup. She’s had several clean MRIs. Here’s her latest update:

"Praise to the good Lord upstairs, my scan came back clear!!!! In another 8 weeks, I will get another MRI and a PET scan. If everything still looks good like today, I will be taken off my chemo!!!! [The doctor] said this upcoming appointment will be the "big one" and to be safe, they will do another MRI 6 weeks after. Thank you so much for the prayers. They were certainly answered! God is so good!"

I agree wholeheartedly with Courtney. God is so good! He’s been merciful in answering prayers for her healing.

On Friday, I’m traveling to Asheville, NC, to attend a weekend writer’s conference at the Billy Graham Training Center at The Cove. I’d appreciate prayers for my safe travel and for spiritual guidance in my writing career this year. I look forward to sharing my experience with you next week. J

God bless,

Laura ✞

©Laura Hodges Poole

Images courtesy of thepathtraveler/FreeDigitalPhotos.net (1)

Michael Marcel/FreeDigitalPhotos.net (2)

Stuart Miles/FreeDigitalPhotos.net (3)

Residing Outside The Palace

Palace Living

Remember the old TV show “I Dream of Jeanie?” Suppose you were Larry Hagman’s character, Major Anthony Nelson. You’ve found the magic lamp and the genie has given you three choices of where you can live:

• A palace
• The desert
• The wilderness

Which did you choose?

Don’t get too comfortable. J

Now the genie reveals you must leave your first choice and pick from the other two. This is actually where you’ll live.

Not fair?

“One day, after Moses had grown up, he went out to where his own people were and watched them at their hard labor…Moses fled from Pharaoh and went to live in Midian.” Exodus 2:11, 15b.

Moses spent four decades in Pharaoh’s palace, enjoying Egypt’s finest things. He was educated by top scholars, outfitted in royal clothes, and ate delicacies enjoyed by the elite.

What happened to change this?

Between the time Moses stepped out to watch his people and the time he fled, he killed an Egyptian. He alone created a situation in which he had no choice but to flee. However, based on the anger that flared inside of him and prompted the killing, he’d already chosen sides.

Leaving the palace was inevitable.

We don’t know what inspired Moses to step outside the palace and watch the Hebrew slaves work. Perhaps it was something he did routinely. Maybe God had been dealing with Moses’ heart about his destiny. Or he was simply restless. He was forty years old at the time. Whatever Moses’ personal reasons for jeopardizing his elite position, God had prepared him for leadership by allowing him to grow up under Pharaoh.

After forty years in the Midian desert, Moses returned to lead the Israelites out of captivity. God’s perfect will included Moses leading his people from Egypt to the Promised Land. God’s permissive will allowed Moses and everyone else involved to make choices that ultimately led to their demise.

Despite the Israelites’ disobedience, God’s objective was met—and never doubt this will happen—it always happens regardless of our disobedience. But those involved didn’t reap the harvest because they didn’t obey God with their whole heart.

Although Moses was barred from entering the earthly Promised Land, we see in Matthew 17:3, he did indeed make it to the eternal one. While our sin does not always directly connect to our hardships and trials, the original sin in the Garden of Eden does. God is a patient God, not wanting anyone to perish (2 Peter 3:9). Therefore, we must tolerate this fallen world until He deems it time to bring believers into the new heaven and new earth.

Most of us have never lived in a palace. But if we were to reflect on our life, especially in this country, we can see the times we resided metaphorically in each of these three places.

Sometimes we’re forced from the palace by life events. God calls some of us to leave our comfort zones to go into the wilderness.

Jesus spent time in the wilderness, most notably after a joyous event—his baptism. John the Baptist made his home in the wilderness.

However we manage to arrive in the desert or wilderness, if we spend our time searching for the path to the earthly palace, we fail to learn the lesson derived from dwelling in the desert or wilderness. Because God's intention is to grow and strengthen us for His work. 

Next week, we’ll talk about how God meets us in the tough places. Meanwhile, never forget—

God dwells with us in all circumstances!

What is your wilderness? If you’d like prayer, please email me or leave a comment. I’d love to hear from you. Your experience could be an inspiration to others struggling, as well, so please share, if you feel led.

Please remember our permanent prayer list, as well as Sgt. Jesse’s McCart’s updates above. We have several folks battling cancer. Would you take a moment to lift them up in prayer?

This is what it is to be loved and to know

That the promise was when everything fell

We’d be held

Praise God for always holding us in His hands!

God bless,

Laura

 © Laura Hodges Poole