Daily Inspiration

Sacrifice

/ Susie Stewart / 1 Comment

The son

was to be the sacrifice

and the wood was placed on his shoulders

as he trudged up the hill

 

The father

with heart torn open

was poised to let it all happen

 

And on the mountain

the son

surrendered his will

 

and the father

his will, as well

 

And it was at that dramatic moment

of obedience

that God, the Father of all,

provided the sacrifice

 

At.  Just.  The.  Right.  Moment.

 

The son

and the father

were redeemed

by the Lamb

 

– Susie Stewart

 

Some time later, God tested Abraham’s faith.

“Abraham!” God called.

“Yes,” he replied. “Here I am.”

“Take your son, your only son—yes, Isaac, whom you love so much—and go to the land of Moriah. Go and sacrifice him as a burnt offering on one of the mountains, which I will show you.”

The next morning Abraham got up early. He saddled his donkey and took two of his servants with him, along with his son, Isaac. Then he chopped wood for a fire for a burnt offering and set out for the place God had told him about. On the third day of their journey, Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. “Stay here with the donkey,” Abraham told the servants. “The boy and I will travel a little farther. We will worship there, and then we will come right back.”

So Abraham placed the wood for the burnt offering on Isaac’s shoulders, while he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them walked on together, Isaac turned to Abraham and said, “Father?”

“Yes, my son?” Abraham replied.

“We have the fire and the wood,” the boy said, “but where is the sheep for the burnt offering?”

“God will provide a sheep for the burnt offering, my son,” Abraham answered. And they both walked on together.

When they arrived at the place where God had told him to go, Abraham built an altar and arranged the wood on it. Then he tied his son, Isaac, and laid him on the altar on top of the wood. And Abraham picked up the knife to kill his son as a sacrifice. At that moment the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!”

“Yes,” Abraham replied. “Here I am!”

“Don’t lay a hand on the boy!” the angel said. “Do not hurt him in any way, for now I know that you truly fear God. You have not withheld from me even your son, your only son.”

Then Abraham looked up and saw a ram caught by its horns in a thicket. So he took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering in place of his son. Abraham named the place Yahweh-Yireh (which means “the Lord will provide”). To this day, people still use that name as a proverb: “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.”

Then the angel of the Lord called again to Abraham from heaven. “This is what the Lord says: Because you have obeyed me and have not withheld even your son, your only son, I swear by my own name that I will certainly bless you. I will multiply your descendants beyond number, like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will conquer the cities of their enemies. And through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed—all because you have obeyed me.”

– Genesis 22:1-18 (NLT)

 

When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners.

– Romans 5:6 (NLT)

 

Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

– John 1:29 (NKJV)

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

#1

/ Susie Stewart / Leave a comment

Many of us believe we have as much of God as we want right now, a reasonable portion of God among all the other things in our lives.  Most of our thoughts are centered on the money we want to make, the school we want to attend, the body we aspire to have, the spouse we want to marry, the kind of person we want to become…  But the fact is that nothing should concern us more than our relationship with God;  it’s about eternity, and nothing compares with that.  God is not someone who can be tacked on to our lives.

– Francis Chan

 

And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but are yourself lost or destroyed?

– Luke 9:25 (NLT)

 

Physical sickness we usually defy.  Soul sickness we usually resigned ourselves to.

– Mark Buchanan

 

We disgust God when we weigh and compare Him against the things of this world.  It makes Him sick when we actually decide those things are better for us than God Himself.  We believe we don’t need anything Jesus offers, but we fail to realize that slowly, almost imperceptibly, we are drifting downstream.  And in the process we are becoming blind, being stripped naked, and turning into impoverished wretches.

– Francis Chan

 

But since you are like lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth!

– Revelation 3:16 (NLT)

 

God, let me not be enticed to believe

that any thing in this life

compares with You

 

This life, my life,

is nothing

without my beautiful Creator

 

Keep me from love

of this world

to the neglect of my love

for You

 

– Susie Stewart

 

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

Sharp or Sharpening?

/ Susie Stewart / Leave a comment

Are you sharp?

Or do you sharpen?

 

Do you cut?

Or do you heal?

 

Is your intent to pierce?

Or is your intent to mend?

 

 

What are  your words used for?

 

Godly friendship builds up

and lovingly confronts

 

with goals of

Restoration

Unity

Edification

 

Our words have the power of life

or death

 

to build up

or to tear down

 

and we choose grace

or self-focus

whenever we speak

 

So, may we sharpen one another

mutually

in Jesus’ love

 

– Susie Stewart

 

As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.

– Proverbs 27:17 (NIV)

 

Knowledge promotes overconfidence and worse arrogance, but charity of the heart (love, that is) looks to build up others.

– 1 Corinthians 8:1 (VOICE)

 

In the same way that iron sharpens iron, a person sharpens the character of his friend.

– Proverbs 27:17 (VOICE)

 

Words kill, words give life; they’re either poison or fruit—you choose.

– Proverbs 18:21 (MSG)

 

Photo by Andy Stewart

In All Things

/ Susie Stewart / Leave a comment

Know

and believe

 

that in

ALL THINGS

God works

for your good

 

For YOUR good

 

For your GOOD

 

You love Him

and you have been called by Him

 

His purpose

is your goal

 

Sovereignty sees

and acts

and redeems

ALL

 

And how amazing is it?

 

That he takes our EVERYTHING

our triumphs

our failures

our pain

our sorrow

our joys

 

and works

actively

 

to make it

for our good?

 

That is love

 

Don’t just know it

for someone else

 

Know it for yourself

and believe it

 

Don’t waste your time

doubting His promises

 

– Susie Stewart

 

 

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.

Romans 8:28 (NIV)

 

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Lying Lips

/ Susie Stewart / Leave a comment

The dishonesty

the corruption

the immorality

 

the oppressiveness

of not following God

 

is overwhelming me

as I stare at the screen

 

The disrespect

the anger

the abuse

 

Our world is pregnant with these things

 

And it weighs heavy on me

 

The sin weighs heavy on me

 

And as I turn off the noise,

I pick up my Bible

and read,

“Help, LORD, for no one is faithful anymore;

those who are loyal have vanished from the human race.

Everyone lies to their neighbor;

they flatter with their lips but harbor deception in their hearts.”

 

And it feels familiar

and sad

 

The media

feels like a deep cesspool

and it threatens to pull me down

into it

 

But then I read,

“The words of the LORD are flawless,

like silver purified in a crucible,

like gold refined seven times.”

 

And I know that You, God, pull me out of that pit

 

Your purity

Your absolute faithfulness

Your never-lying, truthful, beautiful words

are nourishment to me

 

And I remember to glance

at the corruption

the lies

the failures

 

and to gaze

at You God

 

Your flawless, sinless, beautiful face

Your life-giving words

are my relief

 

– Susie Stewart

 

Help, Lord, for no one is faithful anymore;
those who are loyal have vanished from the human race.
Everyone lies to their neighbor;
they flatter with their lips
but harbor deception in their hearts.
May the Lord silence all flattering lips
and every boastful tongue—
those who say,
“By our tongues we will prevail;
our own lips will defend us—who is lord over us?”…
And the words of the Lord are flawless,
like silver purified in a crucible,
like gold refined seven times.

– Psalm 12:1-4,6 (NIV)

 

I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.

– John 16:33 (NIV)

 

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Into Focus

/ Susie Stewart / Leave a comment

Occasionally when I’ve begun to pray, my vision seems blurred. Fuzzy. As though my prayer is out of focus because I don’t know exactly what to pray for or how to pray. But like adjusting the focus on [my] binoculars while I looked through them, I’ve found that as I pray, my thoughts become clearer, my focus sharper, and my requests more specific.

Daniel seems to have experienced this while praying because he states that God gave him insight and understanding, “While I was speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people…while I was still in prayer…” (Dan. 9:20-22). It’s encouraging to me to know I don’t have to know specifically how or what to pray in order to submit to my Father’s guiding whisper. Sometimes I’m intimidated to pray beyond the limits of what I can imagine or understand. But as I am praying, God can bring to my mind the thoughts and ideas that have eluded my own understanding.

Why is it that I think after I pray it’s my responsibility to do all I can to bring about the answer? Why do I take the battle into my own hands? Like a drowning person who tries to “help” the rescuer, I wonder how many times I have actually hindered God’s answer to my prayers. I find it encouraging to be reassured that I don’t have to know everything, understand everything, analyze everything before I pray for something.

This is true for all of us. We don’t have to have a clear comprehension of what the need is or what the solution should be. We don’t have to tell God how to “fix” things or even suggest what His course of action might be. We don’t have to solve the problem for Him. What a relief it is to know all we have to do is to get down on our knees and state the problem. The burden to resolve the situation is His, not yours and mine.

– Ann Graham Lotz

 

I went on praying and confessing my sin and the sin of my people, pleading with the Lord my God for Jerusalem, His holy mountain. As I was praying, Gabriel, whom I had seen in the earlier vision, came swiftly to me at the time of the evening sacrifice. He explained to me, “Daniel, I have come here to give you insight and understanding. The moment you began praying, a command was given. And now I am here to tell you what it was, for you are very precious to God.

– Daniel 9:20-23 (NLT)

 

My purpose in writing is simply this: that you who believe in God’s Son will know beyond the shadow of a doubt that you have eternal life, the reality and not the illusion. And how bold and free we then become in his presence, freely asking according to his will, sure that he’s listening. And if we’re confident that he’s listening, we know that what we’ve asked for is as good as ours.

– 1 John 5:14,15 (MSG)

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

Light!

/ Susie Stewart / Leave a comment

Lit-heart,

what darkness will you walk into today?

 

And are you keenly aware

of the Holy Spirit fire

that resides in you?

 

Do you remember that

light overcomes darkness?

 

So why do you fear

the dark places

the dark faces?

 

The blackness slinks to the darkest corners

when light is present

 

So walk into that dark place

where you are the only light-bearer

and know that His flame

burns in you

 

And boldly speak to the ones

who does not know what Light looks like

 

yet….

 

And know without a doubt that

HE is that flame that cannot be extinguished

and you are empowered by HIM

 

– Susie Stewart

 

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.

– John 1:5 (NLT)

 

Everything was created through Him; nothing—not one thing!— came into being without Him. What came into existence was Life, and the Life was Light to live by. The Life-Light blazed out of the darkness; the darkness couldn’t put it out.

– John 1:4-6 (MSG)  

 

A light that thrives in the depths of darkness, blazes through murky bottoms. It cannot and will not be quenched.

– John 1:5 (VOICE)

 

You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.

– Matthew 5:14-16 (MSG)

 

When Jesus spoke again to the people, He said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

– John 8:12 (NIV)

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

 

Tug-O-War

/ Susie Stewart / Leave a comment

I’m in a tug-o-war,

a fierce competition

 

Only, it’s not a game,

but a battle

 

On the one side,

pulling me one direction,

is my longing for God,

my heaven-ward focus

 

And on the other,

the pull of the world

of distraction

of selfishness

 

And I feel that pull

that tug

that struggle

 

every.  single.  day

 

It’s not a horizontal battle

but a vertical tug o war

 

upward

and downward

 

and I want You, God,

yet….

 

I am pulled

by so much

 

electronics

my own thoughts

busyness

the enemy

 

the list goes on and on

 

But

in the middle

of that taut rope

is a tied piece of ribbon

 

and I see that red cloth

as

my choices

my focus

my will

 

It is me taking my thoughts captive

to make them obedient to Christ

 

or me allowing defeat thoughts

to overtake my hours

 

It is me choosing prayer

over mindless hours of screen time

 

or me letting entertainment

step on creative, full living

 

It is me deliberately serving

and honoring my King

 

or me procrastinating

what He has asked me to do

 

Choices bringing my ribbon

ever upward

or yanking me downward

 

And I see that the anchor

of the heaven-ward side

is God Himself

 

always drawing me in

and looking for my eyes to fix on Him

not on the competition

 

and I decide which side

I want to be pulling on

for my own soul

and because I am called to more

than downward

 

– Susie Stewart

 

The world is unprincipled. It’s dog-eat-dog out there! The world doesn’t fight fair. But we don’t live or fight our battles that way—never have and never will. The tools of our trade aren’t for marketing or manipulation, but they are for demolishing that entire massively corrupt culture. We use our powerful God-tools for smashing warped philosophies, tearing down barriers erected against the truth of God, fitting every loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped by Christ. Our tools are ready at hand for clearing the ground of every obstruction and building lives of obedience into maturity.

– 2 Corinthians 10:3-6 (MSG)

 

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

– Matthew 6:33 (KJV)

 

So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

– James 4:7 (NLT)

 

But you belong to God, my dear children. You have already won a victory over those people, because the Spirit who lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world.

– 1 John 4:4 (NLT)

 

We are human, but we don’t wage war as humans do. We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments. We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ.

– 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 (NLT)

 

Keep a cool head. Stay alert. The Devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping. Keep your guard up. You’re not the only ones plunged into these hard times. It’s the same with Christians all over the world. So keep a firm grip on the faith. The suffering won’t last forever. It won’t be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ—eternal and glorious plans they are!—will have you put together and on your feet for good. He gets the last word; yes, He does.

– 1 Peter 5:8-11 (MSG)

 

We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

– 2 Corinthians 10:5 (NIV)

 

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Ponder Love

/ Susie Stewart / Leave a comment

The very thought of God, to a man who truly loves Him, is ecstasy! If my eternity could be spent in a dungeon with my heart full of love to God, it could not be an unhappy experience to live so!

But, at the back of this, there comes a far greater thing. Brothers and Sisters, we know that God loves us. I never dare to try to speak about this great Truth of God—it is a thing to think over rather than to talk of. I like to get away quietly in a corner and just try to roll this sweet morsel under my tongue, to suck on it till I draw the very essence out of it—God loves me—or, as the hymn puts it—“I am so glad that Jesus loves me.”
For God to think of me is something. For Him to pity me, is more. For Him to help me practically, is still more. But for Him to love me—this is the greatest wonder of all! You know how you, being evil, love your own children, but your Heavenly Father loves you far more! You husbands know how you love your wives, yet there is One who loves His Church far more, for He gave Himself for her! God loves you, my Brother. God loves you, my Sister, if, indeed, you have been brought to believe in Jesus. And to know this great Truth of God is to have an “exceeding great reward,” because, if God loves us, everything must be right!

– Charles Spurgeon

 

So if you, who are sinful, know how to give your children good gifts, how much more so does your Father in heaven, who is perfect, know how to give great gifts to His children!

– Matthew 7:11 (VOICE)

 

And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

– Romans 8:38,29 (NLT)

 

To be loved

now

and forever

by God

is everything

– Susie Stewart

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

Mother Revolutionaries

/ Susie Stewart / Leave a comment

The world needs mothers. The world needs us to come find you in whatever your ache, and hold on to you in whatever you’re wrestling hard, and to believe in the imprint of something holy in you.

The world needs mothers to turn around and show you kids a revolutionary way.

The world needs Mother and Fathers, men and women, who live a revolutionary way to show you kids how to be an army of love warriors, who know your first tour of duty is always a tour of listening.

The only way to a sincerely God-obedient life — is to live a sincerely Listening Life.

A brave generation knows the best way to take a stand is to listen until we understand.

You need us mothers and fathers to quietly show you: There is more than doing what is good in your own eyes. There is being given eyes to see good beyond yourself so you can become more.

You need to know that when we were kids? We had tastes for deadly things; we collected our own poisonous seeds and we all drank down our own versions of poison berries. We all have a way of drinking down death, of picking up our own poisons.

But — we had kind mothers and fathers. We had mothers and fathers who sat and listened and loved us with our affinity for lesser things —- and gave us an appetite for far greater things. So we could live… so we could thrive and flourish and become the best versions we are called to be.

The world needs mothers who come for the kids being duped by drugs, the kids being hooked by hook-up culture, the kids being profaned by pornography, the kids being confused by conflicting voices.

And when you live unmasked, when you give words to whatever you’re wrestling, we will always call that what it is: Courageous. Comes from Cor. Means ‘heart’ in Latin. When you live with your heart on the outside, when you risk your whole heart — this is what makes you Courageous.

This is why every time you risk your heart — in telling your story, in sharing your struggles, in sacrificing yourself — we will always call you: Brave Heart.

Be brave and courageous and tell us your struggles. We will always listen to your courage. And we will love you through anything. Love does not always agree or affirm someone — but it is always sacrifices for someone.

This is what good mothering, what good parenting does: We don’t say, “Do whatever you want, just be you.” We say, “Become whatever is the best version of you — just be like Him.” We will lay down and sacrifice and serve you with our lives — so that you can have the best kind of life.

We will be the mothers and the fathers who are like Jesus, Jesus who reaches out to the woman caught in a mess: “I do not condemn you. Now go and sin no more.” (John 8)

We will be out on the street corners and on the corners of couches, living this for you.

This is the expansive embrace of Christianity: There is always first no condemnation — followed always by a movement into transformation.

The order of those two sentences is the essence of Christianity: No Condemnation. Come just as you are into Transformation.

Change the order of those two lines? And you lose the essence of Christianity…. you lose Christ.

We will sit with you and hold you in your courage — and we will stay with you always and we will sacrifice for you always and you must know this always, no. matter. what.

We all need mothers who love the largest and most revolutionary and say the wisest: Don’t simply follow your heart — but follow a Light so lovely that it will ignite your heart.

This will be road less travelled.

This will make all the difference.

Because you are not here to make an impression, you’re here to make a difference.

The world needs mothers who say: Press your ear up to the earth, and listen — listen to the hurting and the angry in our streets, the protesting and the broken around our corners, the different and the Other in our news stories, and let their breaking stories break you wide awake. Weep with the wounded. Carry a bottle with you and catch every tear you witness.

Bearing witness is how the world bears down and delivers change.

I don’t know, Beautiful Kid, but something tells that maybe no one knows it, or maybe they call it something else —

But I wonder if maybe everyone’s looking for a few lavishly gracious men and women to rise up and be like —- yeah, be like Jesus —- because the thing is:

Jesus’s company is always all inclusive.

The judger and the limper, the struggler and the Other, the finger-pointer and the Pharisee and the forgotten — everyone is welcome and Jesus’s expansive embrace excludes no one. No one.

And at the same time — Jesus’s kingdom is always all receptive.

The weary and the wayward and the worn out and the wounded who want to move from being only Company Keepers with Jesus to being heirs and Kingdom Dwellers in Jesus — must believe and receive.

Those who want to be Kingdom Dwellers are the ones who experience more than an embracing interaction with Jesus. They experience a liberating transaction with Jesus.

Company Keepers are satisfied simply perceiving Jesus’ love.

Kingdom Dwellers can’t resist opening their hearts and receiving His love.

And whoever receives Jesus and His finished work on the Cross, receives that Cross to do work in them.

Only those who are willing to let Jesus do battle with their old selves can enter the Kingdom of God.

So maybe that’s how all the kind revolutionaries live?

Just live out what all the courageous have discovered:

The Kingdom of God… “is more radically inclusive than any other philosophy or movement or religion or non-religion on earth. Absolutely every nation, tribe, and tongue is invited, welcomed, and will represented at the Table. And yet, no one comes to the Father except through Him.” [Scott Sauls]

That’s what Jesus — who is either a complete lunatic or completely Lord — said: “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life, no one comes to the Father, but by Me.” Either that is the God-honest, iron clad Truth and Jesus is the only Way —- or Jesus is not a man to follow but a complete liar to completely dismiss.

So maybe —

Maybe now is the time for a whole lot of mothers and father, men and women, to not be afraid of living the humble brave way that makes your life into an pointing arrow — by the way we humbly sacrifice and serve:

Because who can forget the words of one bold atheist: “I don’t respect people who don’t proselytize. I don’t respect that at all.

If you believe that there’s a heaven and hell and people could be going to hell or not getting eternal life … and you think that it’s not really worth telling them this because it would make it socially awkward…

How much do you have to hate somebody to believe that everlasting life is possible and not tell them that?” [Penn Jillette, atheist]

How much do you have to hate somebody to believe that everlasting life is possible — and not tell them that?

So the world needs the mothers and the gentle and the kind and the humble and the generously giving to get down on their knees and love enough to say exactly just that– through their words and hearts and serving, sacrificing hands.

Success is showing up and kneeling down to serve.

That’s all, kids– lean in and hear it, don’t stop listening till you hear it: You were made for the place where your deep passion meets compassion, because therein lies your deep purpose. You were made for the place where your deep passion meets compassion, because therein lies your deep purpose.

Focus more on living Truth than pointing out error,
more on celebrating the beautiful than decrying all that’s broken —
more on being a servant than on being right.

Hear us: That doesn’t mean you ignore concerns— it means your ultimate focus is on the commendable.

We all need the tender mothers and fathers who don’t just say it, but dare to compassionately live it with this generation of kids:

Don’t bother being a megaphone — the world has so many of those we’re all growing deaf.

Just…. Be a Light so lovely. Be a Light so lovely that people are drawn to the Source and warmth of it.

The most conservative in believing should be the most liberal in loving — because the conservative are called to conserve the revolutionary ways of Jesus.

If you listen closely, if you come closer and listen — you can hear it, you can hear the soundless cries of a confused and hurting world.

And you can find the mothers who come after their children and whisper revolutionary things to them and hold them close —

so they feel the sure pulse of compassion.

So they hear the steady heartbeat of God.

– Ann Voskamp

 

As a mother comforts her child,
so will I comfort you;
and you will be comforted over …

– Isaiah 66:13 (NIV)

 

A wife of noble character who can find?
She is worth far more than rubies.
Her husband has full confidence in her
and lacks nothing of value.

She speaks with wisdom,
and faithful instruction is on her tongue.

Her children arise and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praises her.

– Proverbs 31:10,11,26,28 (NIV)

 

Direct your children onto the right path,
and when they are older, they will not leave it.

– Proverbs 22:6 (NLT)

 

Photo by Arik Stewart