Walk in Freedom Today!

Hey Friends!

As I mentioned in my post yesterday, I've decided to start blogging again. :) Each day (Lord willing) I'll post my 'Start a Day Blessing' from my Facebook page, along with some additional thoughts related to that day's blessing. 

Here's today's blessing: 

Start a Day Blessing: May God help you identify the idols in your life - those things that hold you captive, have too much power over you, and keep you from soul freedom. May you give God the glory He deserves. May you ascribe to Him the power you once gave to others. May you thank Him for the future the enemy has threatened to steal from you. May you walk forward with abundant grace, divine peace, and overwhelming joy because you're profoundly rich in Christ. Shake the shackles off your feet and praise Him! He's set you free! Have a great day today!

In John 10:10 Jesus reminds us that our enemy's whole purpose is to steal from us, and Jesus' whole purpose is to make us whole, lacking nothing, filled to overflowing with more of Him (my paraphrase). He invites us into a divine and intimate fellowship with Him so we'll begin to see things from a heavenly perspective. We get to feast at His table, to be nourished in His presence, and to learn things we'd otherwise never understand apart from Him. In fact, He actually confides in--tells secrets to--those who love and fear Him. He's our Source of life and no one and nothing can compare to Him. 

So why do we allow so many things in this life to compete with Him? And what does it say about God when He describes Himself as a 'jealous God'? Does that make Him small and petty? Absolutely not. Read what Kyle Idleman writes in his fantastic book, 'gods at war':

"God is jealous for your heart, not because he is petty or insecure, but because He loves you. the reason why God has such a huge problem with idolatry is that His love for you is all-consuming. He loves you too much to share you...In the Bible, the words 'jealous' and 'zealous' are interchangeable; we think of zeal as intense enthusiasm. That idea captures why God is so possessive about us: He is, as He says, a consuming fire of passion for us." (pp.44, 45).

If there's something in your life that causes you great angst, something that disrupts your peace, stop in your tracks and do a little soul searching. Underneath your frustration you may find an idol; something that holds more power over you than it should. What's so beautiful about this process is that with repentance comes times of refreshing. 

God wants you free. So be free! Walk in freedom. Do the happy dance. And refuse to let anything have power over you, because Christ's power IN YOU sets you free to live life healed and whole.

Have a great day today! 

Walk Joyfully Today!

Hey Friends!

I've decided to try something new. If you follow my blog at all, you know that I stopped blogging some time ago (smile.sigh). With two live radio shows a day, I just couldn't keep up with a lengthy weekly devotional blog. Sooo, I've decided to try something new that may be more doable for me and hopefully nourishing for you!

About five days a week I post a morning and evening blessing on my Facebook page. Those blessings are viewed by about twenty thousand people each day. In fact, those blessings resulted in the first of hopefully several beautiful, hardcover blessings book. The first of which released just a couple of weeks ago. Check out: Blessings for the Evening: Finding Peace in God's Presence.

So here's my idea. Each time I post a blessing on Facebook, I'll also post it here, along with a few extra thoughts that tie into that day's blessing. I would love to read your thoughts and insights as well.

Here's today's blessing:

May you suddenly grow in your capacity to understand God's love. May the reality of His feelings toward you put your heart at ease and fill your soul with gladness. May the rush and worry culture have no impact on you. May The Lord Himself set your pace and establish you in your purpose. His yoke is precious, beautiful, divine, and doable. Walk joyfully today! 

Something supernatural happens in our lives when we begin to understand who we are in Christ and what we posses in Him. Read this powerful passage from Ephesians 1:15-19 ~ I pray for you constantly, asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you wisdom to see clearly and really understand who Christ is and all that He has done for you. I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can see something of hte future He has called you to share. I want you to realize that God has been made rich because we who are Christ's have been given to Him! I pray that you will be begin to understand how incredibly great His power is to help those who believe Him...

So how do we grow in our capacity to understand His love and His divine imprint on our lives? We start by simply taking Him at His word. Believing what He says about us is true, even when it doesn't feel true. We wrap our arms around His love and let it sink deep into our souls, where most lies go to hide. We lift our chin and refuse to look at our circumstances apart from Him. You and I are blessed beyond comprehension and we posses an increased understanding of who we are and what we possess by knowing Jesus deeply, following Him closely, and trusting Him consistently.

Blessings on you this day, my friend! 

Faith & Fitness Challenge - Week 6 (Be Nourished)

Blessings to you, friends!

This begins our final week of the faith and fitness challenge.  What a journey it’s been! Thanks to so many of you for letting me know how this 6-week challenge has energized you.

As you know, each week I give away 2 copies of my book, Balance That Works When Life Doesn't to someone who posts on this blog.

Congratulations to last week’s winners, Raushanah Butler & Tracy Rud – you each win a copy of Balance That Works When Life Doesn’t! (*Email me at Susie@MyFaithRadio.com with your mailing address and we’ll get the book out to you this week).

So, we’ve implemented the following disciplines in the past 5 weeks:

Physical Disciplines:

• ·      Drink 8-10 glasses of water a day (or better yet, half of your body weight in ounces)
• ·      Stretch in the morning and evening
• ·      Set aside 7-9 hours for nighttime rest/sleep
• ·      Work your heart
• ·      Practice good posture (stand up straight)

Spiritual Disciplines:

• ·      Read the Word of God every day
• ·      Stretch your faith every day
• ·      Rest in the Lord
• ·      Guard your heart
• ·      Humble yourself before the Lord (bow low)

If you’re just joining us and would like more information, check out the posts from the past several weeks.

Here is your final discipline this week. It applies to you both physically and spiritually: Be Nourished.

Physical Discipline:

Be Nourished: When was the last time you slowed down long enough to really taste the food in your mouth? How often do you eat on the run?  This week’s discipline is all about presence, moderation, and variety. Here are a few tips to help you with physical nourishment:

• ·      Stay away from fad diets: Think of healthy eating more as a lifestyle. If you view your current endeavor as a ‘diet’ you’ll eventually fall off your diet and may end up dealing with the self-condemnation that so often follows. One day at a time, sweet Jesus! Eat smaller portions and enjoy every bite.
• ·      Be present with God, with others, and with your food when you eat. Take the time to thank God for the nourishment He provides. Slow down long enough to taste your food. Thank Him for friends and family and the freedom to enjoy them. Slow down and be present in the moment. Food, friends, and family are gifts from God.
• ·      Add color. If you already enjoy plenty of fruits and vegetables, you’re good to go. But if not, start here: add a piece of fruit and a side salad to your daily routine. Just that first step will strengthen your health and will retrain your palette.
• ·      Wait for hunger pains – listen to your body. Dr. Rita Hancock suggests that unless we actually feel hunger pains at least twice a day, we’re most likely overeating. Don’t force your body to abide by an imposed schedule. Follow its rhythm and you’ll feel much better. Do what you can do accommodate your hunger in a healthy way and any excess weight will most likely melt away!
• ·      Budge treats. Have your treats, but plan for them! If you eat a chocolate bar while hiding in the closet, it’s still fattening. So eat a few bites out in the open, and save the rest for later!
• ·      Practice partial fasts. Every day, a couple times a day, say no to yourself and make yourself deal with it. Don’t give in to every hunger whim you experience. It’s good for your body and good for your soul when you exercise some kind of self-restraint on a regular basis.

Spiritual Discipline:

Be Nourished:  Just as we acquire a taste for healthy nourishment, we also acquire a taste for spiritual nourishment. The more we feed on the Word of God, the greater capacity we have to be nourished by it.

• ·      Keep it colorful. With the exception of scripture, don’t overload on only once choice of nourishment (one musician, one preacher, one author, etc.). Jesus has equipped a multitude of His children to build up His Kingdom. When you feast on the fruit of only one of His servants, you run the risk of becoming narrow in your thinking and acceptance of how things should be communicated. Scripture says there’s wisdom in many counselors.
• ·      Take responsibility for your spiritual health. It’s not your pastor’s job, or your husband’s job, or your friend’s job to keep you on track. Love your life and your calling enough to dig into the Word and to listen for God’s voice, no matter what. Be so rooted in Jesus that if the whole world around you shakes, you’ll still be standing when it’s all said and done.
• ·      Be present with God. Scripture says that it’s in His presence the fullness of joy is found (Psalm 16:11). When you sit down for soul nourishment, pause and think about who it is you’re connect to. You’re connected to the Living God! The One who put the mountains in place knows your name and loves you deeply. Read the Word and pray as someone who is deeply loved, profoundly called, and wonderfully equipped.

[[*These tips taken from my book, ‘Balance That Works When Life Doesn’t’]]

Be nourished physically and spiritually this week. Pay attention to how you nourish your body and your spirit. Thank God for the blessings you enjoy; and walk strongly with God. 

And remember, each week I’ll give away 2 copies of my book, Balance That Works When Life Doesn’t: Simple Steps to a Woman’s Physical & Spiritual Health’ to someone who posts on this blog. 

Let’s do this!

May you flourish in health, both physically and spiritually!

Blessings to you this week~

Faith & Fitness Challenge - Week 5 (Stand Up Straight, Bow Low)

Blessings to you, friends!

This begins week 5 of our 6-week faith and fitness challenge. We’ve got over 400 of you on board and what a journey it’s been!

Each week during the 6-week challenge, I’ll give away 2 copies of my book, Balance That Works When Life Doesn't to someone who posts on this blog.

Congratulations to last week’s winners, Angie Ryg & Anne Olson – you each win a copy of Balance That Works When Life Doesn’t! (*Email me at Susie@MyFaithRadio.com with your mailing address and we’ll get the book out to you this week).

So, we’ve implemented the following disciplines in the past 4 weeks:

Physical Disciplines:

• ·      Drink 8-10 glasses of water a day (or better yet, half of your body weight in ounces)
• ·      Stretch in the morning and evening
• ·      Set aside 7-9 hours for nighttime rest/sleep
• ·      Work your heart

Spiritual Disciplines:

• ·      Read the Word of God every day
• ·      Stretch your faith every day
• ·      Rest in the Lord
• ·      Guard your heart

If you’re just joining us and would like more information, check out the posts from the past few weeks.

Here are your two disciplines for this week:

Physical Discipline:

Stand Up Straight (practice good posture): This week’s discipline is easy to do and doesn’t take a lot of effort, but it’s even easier to forget about and neglect. How do you practice good posture? It’s not hard at all. Right now sit up straight; pull your shoulders back, stretch your neck upright (like you’re trying to add a couple inches to your height), pull in your abs (imagine pulling your navel all the way in until it touches your spine). When you stand, think, ‘shoulders back and down, abs in, chest high, neck long – no slouching).

Benefits of Good Posture:

• ·      Better for your frame (things are aligned; lessened stress on joints & muscles)
• ·      Easier to breathe
• ·      Makes you look 5-10 pounds lighter
• ·      Reminds you to carry yourself with holy confidence

Spiritual Discipline:

Bow Low (humble yourself): 1 Peter 5:6-7 says this: So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.

More important than standing up straight, is knowing when it’s time to bow low. All too often we get it backwards. We cower, buckle, and cover our heads when the enemy presses in hard to harass us. And when God moves in to correct or redirect, we tend to go rigid and tend to be un-teachable.

When the enemy presses in hard though our instinct is to cower, our call is to stand fast, raise our shield, point our sword, and trust the Lord.

And, when we approach the throne of Almighty God, our call is to come humbly, reverently, and thankfully, because He is the star-breathing God who gladly welcomes us into His presence. To me, nothing stirs up my faith like pausing before I pray and remembering once again who God is, and marveling that invites me to enjoy intimate fellowship with Him. I love to marvel, to stand in awe, and then to humbly bow, knowing that my life, my dreams, and my worries are all in in His hands. He is God Most High and I need Him every hour.

I encourage you to approach God with a new sense of reverence this week. I dare you to kneel or go face down on the floor, not in dread or fear or with a worm-like mentality, but with a humble regard for His love and greatness. Scripture says that God considers the humble, contrite heart a lofty place to inhabit. Think about that for a moment: our high and holy God considers our humble heart an honorable place to reside. We are blessed beyond measure, no?

The high and lofty one who lives in eternity, the Holy One, says this:
“I live in the high and holy place
with those whose spirits are contrite and humble.
I restore the crushed spirit of the humble
and revive the courage of those with repentant hearts (Isaiah 57:15).  

Stand up straight with holy confidence, and humbly bow with holy reverence – these are your two disciplines this week. I’ll be praying for you as you add these two important disciplines to your life: Stand Up Straight in Life & Bow Low Before God.

And remember, each week I’ll give away 2 copies of my book, Balance That Works When Life Doesn’t: Simple Steps to a Woman’s Physical & Spiritual Health’ to someone who posts on this blog. 

Let’s do this!

May you flourish in health, both physically and spiritually!

Blessings to you this week~

Faith & Fitness Challenge - Week 4 (Work Your Heart, Guard Your Heart)

Blessings to you, friends!

This begins week 4 of our 6-week faith and fitness challenge. We’ve got over 400 of you on board and what a journey it’s been!

Each week during the 6-week challenge, I’ll give away 2 copies of my book, Balance That Works When Life Doesn't to someone who posts on this blog.

Congratulations to last week’s winners, Joan Hagedorn and Kathy Anderson – you each win a copy of Balance That Works When Life Doesn’t! (*Email me at Susie@MyFaithRadio.com with your mailing address and we’ll get the book out to you this week).

So, we’ve implemented the following disciplines in the past 3 weeks:

Physical Disciplines:

• ·      Drink 8-10 glasses of water a day (or better yet, half of your body weight in ounces)
• ·      Stretch in the morning and evening
• ·      Set aside 7-9 hours for nighttime rest/sleep

Spiritual Disciplines:

• ·      Read the Word of God every day
• ·      Stretch your faith every day
• ·      Rest in the Lord

If you’re just joining us and would like more information, check out the posts from the past few weeks.

Here are your two disciplines for this week:

Physical Discipline:

Work Your Heart: Here’s a discipline that will change your life if you’ll make time for it! Give yourself permission to take doable steps. If you currently do no cardio exercise, pick two days this week to get out for a walk (or if it’s too hot out for you, go to the mall). Plan it on your calendar the way you schedule lunch with a friend. Make a date and keep it! Be sure to wear good tennis shoes that have great arch support (no flats, flip flops, etc.).

Start out slow and gradually pick up your pace until you feel challenged but can still carry on a conversation. That will put you in the aerobic zone (where you’ll more easily burn fat, and more easily recover). Try to sustain this pace for 30-45 minutes. Think about it: giving yourself two hours this week to get your heart rate up and force your blood to circulate will do wonders for you. I’m telling you, eventually you won’t want to give it up (you may even get cranky if you miss your cardio workout). J

Ideally, if you can do a good cardio workout 2-4 times a week, you’ll experience great health benefits. In the interest of full disclosure, I’m in a busy season of transition and I’m only able to do an intense cardio workout about twice a week. I love my time and I’m working hard to squeeze in 1-2 more workouts each week. As I said, give yourself permission to start small, but do start! That 2-4 hour investment will pay you back in huge dividends.

Benefits of Cardio:

• ·      Strengthens Heart Muscle
• ·      Burns Calories
• ·      Relieves Stress
• ·      Improved Circulation
• ·      Renews Perspective
• ·      Health Maintenance

Spiritual Discipline:

Guard Your Heart: Proverbs 4:23 says this: Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.

As important as it is to work your heart doing cardio exercise, it’s even more important that you guard your heart from influences that could derail your faith or diminish your impact. Picture a father on high alert who grabs a weapon to protect his home and family. He’ll keep danger away from his family even if it costs him his own life. Now this may sound dramatic but that’s how this verse translates.

God wants us to cherish our heart and the course of our lives with such care that we protect ourselves from toxic attitudes, unhealthy associations, and besetting sins. We need to treasure our life, our purpose, and our influence enough to carefully discern what strengthens us and what weakens us.

Spend some time this week searching your heart and dare to ask yourself the following questions:

• ·      Am I holding on to grudges and judgments against others?
• ·      Do I willingly expose myself to influences that I know are bad for me?
• ·      Have I allowed jealousy, selfish ambition, or envy to cloud my view?
• ·      Have I stopped being thankful?

If you can say yes to any of these questions, first of all, know that you are not alone! We all deal with these things and will continue to (in increasing measure) unless we guard our hearts. Spend some time with the Lord, and be specific in your prayers. Name the people you’ve judged and refused to forgive. Offer them up to the Lord. Ask His forgiveness for your un-forgiveness. Ask Him to help you release the offense and embrace His promises instead. One by one, walk through these questions and answer them honestly before the Lord. Let Him take you by the hand and lead you to a place of refreshment and renewal. I promise you, He will.

“Now it’s time to change your ways! Turn to face God so he can wipe away your sins, pour out showers of blessing to refresh you, and send you the Messiah he prepared for you, namely, Jesus (Acts 3:19 MSG).

I’ll be praying for you as you add these two important disciplines to your life: Working Your Heart & Guarding Your Heart.

And remember, each week I’ll give away 2 copies of my book, Balance That Works When Life Doesn’t: Simple Steps to a Woman’s Physical & Spiritual Health’ to someone who posts on this blog. 

Let’s do this!

May you flourish in health, both physically and spiritually!

Blessings to you this week~