Diligent-a word study

Diligent: constant in effort to accomplish something, attentive and persistent indoing  anything; done or pursued with persevering attention, painstaking 

Synonyms: industrious, assidious, sedulous, infatigable, untiring, tireless, unremitting, earnest, studious, eager, conscientious, active, careful, constant, eager beaver,grind, laborious, oculied, pertinacious, steadfast, unflagging, persisting, hard-working

Antonyms: careless, disinterested, idle, ignorant, inactive, inattentive, indifferent, languid, lazy, lethargic, neglectful, negligent, thoughtless, tired, uncareful, unconcerned, unenthusiastic, unscrupulous, weary

I'd encourage you to look up the roots & definitions of the following words. Assidious, sedulous, pertinacious & steadfast at www.dictionary.com 

Very enlightening! Then share your thoughts below! 

What does it mean (to me) to be diligent? 

It means I am focused on the end game, the result, the finish line, the other person, the commitment I made. It means that when things are hard I persevere through it. It means I persist in what I've undertaken. I maintain a purpose in spite of difficulty or obstacles or discouragement (even broken human promises). It means I am fixed on my direction and firm in my actions. It means I am constant in my effort to accomplish what I set out to do. I am attentive, willing to work hard and hold on tenaciously to that purpose.*

**What does that look like in the context of seeking God? In my marriage? In my parenting? In my friendships?**

In the context of seeking God, it means I spend time in His Word, talking to Him, asking Him question and LISTENING to His answers, especially when they might not be what I want to hear or the answer comes in a way I didn't want. 

It means I place more value on what God says over my own desires. 

It means like a runner heading to the finish line, I stick close to Him whom I am chasing. 

It means that no matter how I may try to justify mypersonal  choices, God's Word is my guide. 

It means I don't twist His words to justify my actions. 

It means I take God's Word as a whole, knowing one verse doesn't negate another or that one verse taken from it's context (verses around it & the intended audience) can be warped. So I must do my homework. 

It means that regardless of anyone else's interpretation, I will always seek what God is saying and believe His words over those of amy man or woman. 

It means I am constant in my efforts to become more like Christ. 

And it means I will never "arrive" this side of heaven so I must hold my hands open willing to do the work God needs me to do to change me into Christlikeness. 

It means I am careful when listening to other voices (my own included). 

It means I am not swayed by what my heart wants. 

**questions I am still pondering. Would absolutely love to hear your thoughts! 

Faith....wrestling with God's Truth in a fallen world!

Ok...I have been steering pretty clear of this topic lately especially on Social media sites...but several red flags went up as I read this article tonight about Christianity & Rob Bell from Relevant Magazine.  And I just couldn't remain silent. 

First & foremost, I am thankful for my friend who posted this article. I am also thankful that awhile back when Rob Bell was running the circuit talking about the book in question, I watched the interview myself & heard some very disturbing thoughts...NOT QUESTIONS...thoughts come out of his mouth. 

So here are my 'red flag moments' from this particular article:
First of them being his close ties to Oprah. you see I grew up as a young adult watching her...watching her share her Christian faith, then ever so slowly she began to move in a different direction-accepting of any/all "religions" (and I do include Christianity in that word, eventho to me Christianity is not about rules & religion it is about a holy God desiring a relationship with us. but there really is no other word you can use to lump them all together.) As I continued to watch her (O) become more popular, her beliefs became less concrete. Sure, she does a lot of good & she speaks beautifully, but...and here comes flag #2. 

I just couldn't get past the verses that again & again warn of false teachers & watching out for them & their teaching. They will pervert the Word, twist the Word (just like Satan did to Eve in the Garden) & they will make it sound so good. 

Then there's this teaching Jesus did...you know wide vs narrow path. I just couldn't get past them. You see to me, when I look at scripture as a whole as I hear 'negative' phrases uttered (like "narrow-narrow-mind" or this one "narrowest of doctrines" in the article) I find myself wondering just how open is my mind supposed to be in light of Jesus teaching that the way is narrow & difficult, not wide & easy. Let's not forget when He says He didn't come to bring us lives of ease...in fact He flat out says: we will have troubles! But He has overcome the WORLD. And He talks about how we must be willing to leave behind those we may love the most to stand with Him. (I know...I am not quoting  exactly...paraphrasing some, which I probably shouldn't do). Those words of Jesus, they just make it hard for me to 'justify' this "love everyone" mentality, especially when the world's definition of that is to agree with all they are shouting is right, or science has proven/disproven...etc. Science proved a long time ago how the rainbow happens doesn't change the miracle of it OR the promise! (And believe you me rarely a day goes by when I don't thank God for the covenant promise the rainbow represents! But thats a different discussion!)

Back to this article & this topic....Than I read this phrase "He had a rabid army of fellow believers who hung on every word he uttered, who lapped-up every morsel he tossed them, who cheered him on like a local kid making the Bigs." about Rob Bell. I find myself questioning who those people were following all along. Were they following Jesus Christ or were they following in this case Rob Bell? Sure I liked Nooma videos (still do like how they got ya to think IN LINE with the Scriptures) & I have questioned my faith ALOT & walked through hard stuff that has tested my faith. 

I am a HUGE fan of asking questions...but I am a much bigger fan of the answers being found in God's Word-all of it, even those parts that are messy & icky & don't feel so nice by the world's definition NOT from Rob Bell or Joel Osteen or even Shelly King. So my challenge to those of you who have questions.....ask away! Just be sure the person you are asking is getting their answers from God himself in His Word and not just another man's interpretation-and yes, I do take God's Word as it's written (that's a discussion for another time too). 

When the path is narrow , is there really a whole lot of room for grey? Grace-yes...absolutely! But I'm just not quite sure as I wrestle with questions about my faith if there really is as much room for grey as the world wants us to believe. (And this is why, I have been steering clear of these conversations of late ;))

"Yaweh-Yireh" (from Genesis 22)

Today in my devotions I was challenged to 2 things: 
1. Read Psalm 91. List the promises God has for those who love Him.

2. Read the story of Abraham and Isaac in Genesis 22. What are some of the things Abraham did right that I can apply to my situation?

So, I set out to do just that...

After listing out the promises I read in Psalm 91, I read Genesis 22-a story I was very familiar with, yet I took new eyes to it today.  What did Abraham do in spite of the circumstances that I can apply today...right this moment?  Well, my answer didn't come exactly the way I expected it to...But here is where my thoughts took me today...

Genesis 22-God spoke. Abraham didn't understand. YET Abraham obeyed! He got up, gathered what he needed for the "job" ahead and walked!  And walked some more...then when he had walked for days, having been questioned by his son, he continued to walk.  Then he began to build-do the "job" he was told to do.

Still unsure, probably scratching his head, even shedding some tears I would imagine.  Totally confused by what God asked of him, what God EXPECTED of him. I can just hear his anguish filled thoughts, "GOD! This-referring to Isaac-is what YOU promised to me AND NOW YOU are going TO TAKE this from me!" Abraham's actions show that even in the confusion-he just had to be confused didn't he?-he STILL believed and trusted God. He did NOT run away OR have a back-up plan in his pocket-he moved in the direction that made NO SENSE to him whatsoever. HE TRUSTED GOD TO KEEP HIS PROMISE!

And when the time came to let go of his son, completely & utterly without understanding why God was asking this of him-God did His part-HE KEPT HIS PROMISE and provided the way out-the one needed piece that only HE could provide AND in such a way that credit could ONLY be given to "Yaweh-Yireh"-THE LORD WILL PROVIDE!

What promise has GOd given to you that circumstances are making it look impossible?

Where do you need to walk in faith when those steps make no sense?

May I encourage you to read Psalm 91 & Genesis 22...and record your thoughts in a journal.

To read more about what inspired my thoughts today check out:

Proverbs 31 Ministries  today's devotion was entitled "A Ram Is On The Way" by Glynnis Whitwer