Greetings, Dear Friends!

Susie Larson here...

And to those visiting, I say welcome! I post every Wednesday and my sole purpose is to nourish your soul along the way. Each month I give away a $10.00 Starbucks gift card to someone who posts on my blog. So share an insight, comment, or story, bless lots of people, and just maybe you'll win a jolt of java for you and a friend! 

I decided from here on in, to announce the winner on the last Wednesday of each month (instead of on the first Wednesday of the new month). The winner for the month of September is: Kathy Schwanke! Congratulations, Kathy! And thank you for contributing so much to this blog. I really appreciate it. To claim your gift card, just email me at: info@susielarson.com and leave your mailing address. I'll get it in the mail next week. 

Now, on to my topic...

I've spent the past two weekends up at beautiful Covenant Pines Bible Camp, speaking at women's retreats. I tried something new on the women. I told them to come to Saturday night's session on, "The Fear of the Lord" in comfortable clothes and armed with their Bibles, notebooks, pillow, and blanket. My  plan was for them to 'camp' in the presence of the Lord. 

Using Hebrews chapter 12 along with a few other passages of Scripture, I taught for ten minutes, then I stepped away from the podium and put on about ten minutes of beautiful music and gave the women journal and prayer assignments (all the while, Power Point slides rotated different 'fear of the Lord Scripture' against an ocean background). After ten minutes of journal and prayer, I stepped up again and taught for ten minutes, followed by another ten minutes of music and reflection. We did this for a full hour. I talked about humility, teachability, the discipline of the Lord, what it means to honor Him, and Who it is we come to when we come to Him.

We spent an hour re-setting our spiritual lives; humbling ourselves; remembering again how mighty this God is that we serve. When I looked around the room, I saw a beautiful combination of reverence for the Lord and a comfort in His presence. Not casual in His presence. But comfortable with the idea of His love, His mercy, and His forgiveness. Not because we deserve it, but because He offers it. 

We need moments like this. Lots more of them. 

When we run to and fro in our busy lives, we so easily default to fears that are not ours to embrace. We fear other's opinions; the stock market; the unknown; the loyalty of friends; ourselves. 

One of my favorite verses is this one:

Do not fear ANYTHING except the Lord Almighty; for HE ALONE is the Holy One. If you fear Him, you need fear nothing else. He will keep you safe (Isaiah 8:13). 

When we say things we shouldn't say, and we fear getting caught more than we fear dishonoring our God, it's time to re-set, and remember to Whom we are ultimately accountable. 

When we give more weight to man's words than God's Word, it's time to re-set, and remember that no words can diminish us if God's Word is strong in us.

When we pay more attention to the economy than to how the Holy Spirit is moving around us, it's time to re-set and remember that we are not made for this place. We are just passing through. We serve a Living God and His economy is strong indeed. 

When we acquaint ourselves more with our circumstances than our identity in Christ, it's time to re-set and remember once again who we are, and whose we are. We are His. And everything He has is ours. We have more than enough to live abundantly today.

If we're bent on fear, may ours be a fear of the Lord. May we know in our core of our potential to squander time, embrace selfishness, and overlook the suffering. And in light of our earthbound ways, may we walk ever closer to Him and fully trust Him in these trying times. He is Lord. We are on the winning side.

Until next week~

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