Uganda

Place With Purpose

/ Susie Stewart / Leave a comment

Notice God’s unutterable waste of saints, according to the judgment of the world.  God plants His saints in the most useless places.  We say – God intends me to be here because I am so useful.  Jesus never estimated His life along the line of the greatest use.  God puts His saints where they will glorify Him, and we are no judges at all of where that is.

– Oswald Chambers

 

Anna, a prophet, was also there in the Temple. She was the daughter of Phanuel from the tribe of Asher, and she was very old. Her husband died when they had been married only seven years. Then she lived as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the Temple but stayed there day and night, worshiping God with fasting and prayer.

– Luke 2:36-38 (NLT)

 

And now I am bound by the Spirit to go to Jerusalem. I don’t know what awaits me, except that the Holy Spirit tells me in city after city that jail and suffering lie ahead. But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God.

– Acts 20:22-24 (NLT)

 

There was a believer in Joppa named Tabitha (which in Greek is Dorcas). She was always doing kind things for others and helping the poor. About this time she became ill and died. Her body was washed for burial and laid in an upstairs room. But the believers had heard that Peter was nearby at Lydda, so they sent two men to beg him, “Please come as soon as possible!”

So Peter returned with them; and as soon as he arrived, they took him to the upstairs room. The room was filled with widows who were weeping and showing him the coats and other clothes Dorcas had made for them. But Peter asked them all to leave the room; then he knelt and prayed. Turning to the body he said, “Get up, Tabitha.” And she opened her eyes! When she saw Peter, she sat up! He gave her his hand and helped her up. Then he called in the widows and all the believers, and he presented her to them alive.

– Acts 9:36-41 (NLT)

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

 

 

Serve & Savor

/ Susie Stewart / 1 Comment

Trying to work for God without worshipping God results in joyless legalism. Work minus worship magnifies your will power not God’s worth. If you try to do things for God without delighting in God you bring dishonor upon God. Serving God without savoring God is lifeless and unreal.

– John Piper

 

We don’t serve God to gain His acceptance; we are accepted so we serve God. We don’t follow Him in order to be loved; we are loved so we follow Him.

– Neil T. Anderson

 

Make this your one purpose: to revere Him and serve Him faithfully with complete devotion because He has done great things for you.

– 1 Samuel 12:24 (VOICE)

 

To serve God, to love God, to enjoy God, is the sweetest freedom in the world.

– Thomas Watson

 

And Solomon, my son, learn to know the God of your ancestors intimately. Worship and serve him with your whole heart and a willing mind. For the Lord sees every heart and knows every plan and thought. If you seek him, you will find him. But if you forsake him, he will reject you forever.

– 1 Chronicles 28:9 (NLT)

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

 

 

 

Enough

/ Susie Stewart / Leave a comment

Through promises fulfilled and promises given in Scripture, I discovered the answer was always the same when I asked: “God, are You enough?”
Yes, He is.
Nothing here on earth is guaranteed, except for one thing: Jesus is with us always. And when we understand who He is, our doubts begin to disappear.
The Bible tells us Jesus is sufficient; He’s enough. Philippians 4:19 says, “And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus” (NIV 1984). I discovered this to be true. Every need, every doubt, every inadequacy, every fear was met, answered and removed by Jesus.
If I lost everything, I’d be okay because no one can take away my Jesus. Whether I live in a mansion on a hill or in a tent on the side of a swamp, I have my Jesus. Whether the world is for me or against me, I have my Jesus. When I am knocked down, I get on my knees and find my Jesus.
When life becomes more than you think you can handle, don’t quit. And certainly don’t believe the lie God is not enough. Instead, ask yourself, “God, are You enough for me?” Then plant His Word deep in your heart so you’ll always have the ready answer, that yes He is. He is enough for me, for you.

– Melissa Taylor

 

Know this: my God will also fill every need you have according to His glorious riches in Jesus the Anointed, our Liberating King.

– Philippians 4:19 (VOICE)

 

For His divine power has bestowed on us [absolutely] everything necessary for [a dynamic spiritual] life and godliness, through true and personal knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.

– 2 Peter 1:3 (AMP)

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

 

Let Go of Control

/ Susie Stewart / Leave a comment

 

 

A curious and continuous pursuit of our good God opens doors for us to experience all possibility beyond what we could imagine for ourselves.

I don’t know about you, but if I’m picking what is good for my life, then it’s probably going to feel good, look good, taste good, smell good, and be visibly good to anyone who sees it.

But the truth is, even some of the things that have looked “bad” from the outside have turned out to be good for me.

Because, while the currency of God’s goodness looks different from my own, it is infinitely more valuable.

Hard things make us dig deep within ourselves to find strength we didn’t know we had.

Loss teaches us to appreciate blessings that surround us.

And while I don’t want to minimize the depth of any pain and the years it can take to overcome the brokenness we experience in this life, there is good to be found, even in the hard and even through the bad.

As we embrace a curious faith, we exchange the currency of our control for the wealth of God’s possibility.

Maybe sometimes we do think we can control the way things go. To some extent we have the capacity to define our own paths and make decisions that shape the way we live.

We can direct behaviors and events, but when we allow that thinking to rule the way we live, we also lose the capacity to be curious about things unknown and outside of our own plans, outside of our limited view.

Control robs us of curiosity and puts a ceiling on our allowance of God’s possibility in our lives. Because after all, you can’t be curious about something you control.

I’ve heard it said, “Blessed are the curious … for they shall have adventures.” And, friend, when we try to control our lives, we miss out on the adventure of faith.

 

Release control…

be curious, and rediscover hope in the God of possibility.

– Logan Wolfram

 

Anxiety is a funny thing. We hoard up worries the way we hoard money and material goods. In some eras and cultures, people live hand-to-mouth and rely on each growing season to make it another year. I’m grateful not to live in a culture like that, yet I realize we’ve lost a certain perspective it fosters: our eyes no longer look to God to provide for daily needs. Instead, we take bread for granted and borrow trouble ahead of schedule, focusing on the adequacies and inadequacies of our insurance policies and savings accounts. We have so much less to worry about but worry about so much more! We get distracted by the constant barrage of media headlines about random violence, obscure medical anomalies, aberrant weather patterns, and the economic downturn. Suddenly, we’re a mess, worrying about our health and safety and families and careers and possessions. How can we possibly feel secure?

The answer is simple and yet such a hard thing to do: give up control and trust in the Lord with all my heart. God says over and over again to trust Him with fears and anxieties.

– Sharri Bockheim Steen

 

Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.

– 1 Peter 5:7 (NIV)

 

Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.

– Philippians 4:5-7 (MSG)

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

Saved From Empty

/ Susie Stewart / 2 Comments

To this world:

I’ve been looking at you all wrong.

You stepped up to me when I was young and flung open your coat so I could see what you carried.

You cooed, “I’ve got it all. Anything you want.”

You seemed nice enough. So I took a hit.

First it was popularity, which has taken approximately my whole life to come down from.

Then you let me sample pride, possessions, power. It was all so strong. It was all so intoxicating. You spun me around until I was too dizzy to look straight and you sent me on my way, “I’m all yours, baby. Live it up.”

I guess it could have worked but in my reeling stupor the Savior of this world grabbed me by the shoulders, He called my name. And I was, with great resolve, wholly His. The aroma of His love exposed the aroma of you, which smells mostly like rot.

He set me straight and showed me how truly upside down you are.

You put the best looking first and the least of these last. You pour accolades on the rich and devastate the poor. You invite the popular first. You hide the unwanted in the shadows.

But can I blame it all on you? You convinced me that it’s my life I need to save – and for a time I agreed.

But His call was so inside out. It was so fantastically right. It went something like this, “Let’s lose your life and go save so many others.”

….We must act.

We must allow Him to use our life for something greater than this world has to offer.

– Brianne McKoy

 

If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for My sake, you will save it.

– Matthew 16:25 (NLT)

 

We know what real love is because Jesus gave up His life for us. So we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters.

– 1 John 3:16 (NLT)

 

For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give His life as a ransom for many.

– Mark 10:45 (NLT)

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

Forgive

/ Susie Stewart / 2 Comments

God pardons like a mother, who kisses the offense into everlasting forgiveness.

– Henry Ward Beecher

 

Most laws condemn the soul and pronounce sentence. The result of the law of my God is perfect. It condemns but forgives. It restores – more than abundantly – what it takes away.

– Jim Elliot

 

Forgiveness is the economy of the heart. Forgiveness saves the expense of anger, the cost of hatred, the waste of spirits.

– Hannah More

 

We win by tenderness. We conquer by forgiveness.

– Frederick W. Robinson

 

If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you.  But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.

– Matthew 6:14,15 (NLT)

 

But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.

– 1 John 1:9 (NLT)

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

No Other Truth

/ Susie Stewart / 2 Comments

The truth of the Gospel works on so many levels.  Though some will argue that God does not exist and that man is the highest form in the universe, they will still strive for a moral code.  Challenge them to find a better moral code than that which is outlined in the New Testament.  Ask them to compare it to the other systems of morals in the world:  those of atheists, other religions, or political systems.  You will have to know it well to spell it out, but have them compare the law of love to all other philosophical systems and challenge them to show you a better one.  Ask them to come up with a better moral low than the Golden Rule of “Treat others the same way you would want them to treat you.”  Ask them to show you a country where innovative breakthroughs emerge where Christians are not in the majority.  Discuss the list of great scientists and achievers of all time and see how many of them were Christians or Jews or at least believe in God’s existence.  Do the study yourself.  Look at the top ten people of the last millennium and look at their beliefs and accomplishments.  Newton, Gutenberg, Michelangelo, Luther, Washington, Martin Luther King Jr., Mother Teresa, and others you will find on any list of important people of the last one thousand years.  They all had tremendous faith in God.  Look at nations that have tried to exist without God:  the Soviet Union, China, Albania, Vietnam – which of these has been as successful as those that built their foundations on the laws of the Bible?

But then you will have to add that even though this is a great philosophy, it cannot work without its power source.  Man has no motive to be “good” without gratitude to a Savior who granted they should not have to suffer of their own sins.  Without the love of God in their hearts to motivate them to put the needs of others before themselves they will ultimately act selfishly despite what philosophies they hold on to.  The views of Marx and Lenin sound like they are a solid formulation for heaven and earth, but their applications have brought more hell than any other.  What brought this about?  When those in power saw that they could do whatever they liked and tried to force others into a mold of service to the state, selfishness took over and whenever convenient they began to reword their philosophies to justify their own selfish desires.  To free ourselves from cultural restraints to rise to a higher and better system seems a great idea, but such cultural revolutions in the Orient have done little but bathe their countries in blood.

– DC Talk & Rick Killian

 

For not only does sound reason direct us to refuse the guidance of those who do or teach anything wrong, but it is by all means vital for the lover of truth, regardless of the threat of death, to choose to do and say what is right even before saving his own life.

– Justin Martyr

 

For by whom has truth ever been discovered without God?  By whom has God ever been found without christ?  by whom has Christ ever been explored without the Holy Spirit?  By whom has the Holy Spirit ever been attained without the mysterious gift of faith?

– Tertullian

 

I am the way, and the truth, and the life.  the only way to the Father is through Me.

– John 14:6 (NCV)

 

He must increase, but I must decrease.

– John 3:30 (ESV)

 

The Lord is compassionate and merciful,
slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.

– Psalm 103:8 (NLT)

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

 

 

His Words, My Delight

/ Susie Stewart / Leave a comment

Does the Bible, this ancient document, thrill you?

Do you know that it is timeless?

 

Do you understand the treasures

that await your heart

if you will only commit to pick it up

and read it?

 

Do you know that true peace is possible

found in His Words?

 

What a loving, amazing God we have

that He would share His heart

and His truth

with us, His beloved.

 

Do you want to be firm and grounded

with your roots deep

in the soil of truth?

 

Do you want to be well-watered, growing, thriving

and not hopelessly withering?

 

Open this ancient,

timeless,

God-inspired book.

 

Find Eternal God in the pages.

Find salvation for your hurting soul.

Find hope forever.

 

– Susie Stewart

 

* There are many translations of the Bible.  I grew up using both the KJV (King James Version) and NIV (New International Version) of the Bible.  I tend mostly toward the NIV and NLT (New Living Translation) these days, although I look into many different translations online at Biblegateway.com.  The MSG (Message) version is a modern paraphrase that can word God’s truth in a way that is closest to how I talk.  I take it as a paraphrase and not a literal translation, much like a pastor would paraphrase a portion of Scripture he reads.  Whatever your translation, make sure that it is accurate and not a skewed version (i.e. – Mormon version of the Bible).  Online Bible tools are very helpful.  Websites like Biblegateway.com and YouVersion.com give you access to so many tools and searches. I utilize them a lot when writing my blogs.

Regardless of how you get into the Word, get into it!  And stay in it!  The Lord blesses those who delight in His Word.

Find your salvation in Jesus, trusting Him to save you from your sins, paying for all of them on the cross, conquering sin and death.  You can have new life in Him!  Ask for His forgiveness of your sins and accept His free gift of eternal life.  The Scriptures will open up to you in a new and powerful way.  A.W. Tozer says, “The Bible is a supernatural book and can be understood only by supernatural aid.”  God’s Spirit must help you understand and soak up Scripture.

Let me know if you have any questions.  I’d be glad to communicate with you about salvation, God, the Bible…

Read and mediate on the Bible’s life-giving words!    ~Susie

 

Oh, the joys of those who do not
follow the advice of the wicked,
or stand around with sinners,
or join in with mockers.
But they delight in the law of the Lord,
meditating on it day and night.
They are like trees planted along the riverbank,
bearing fruit each season.
Their leaves never wither,
and they prosper in all they do.
But not the wicked!
They are like worthless chaff, scattered by the wind.
They will be condemned at the time of judgment.
Sinners will have no place among the godly.
For the Lord watches over the path of the godly,
but the path of the wicked leads to destruction.

– Psalm 1:1-6 (NLT)

 

Instead you thrill to God’s Word,
you chew on Scripture day and night.
You’re a tree replanted in Eden,
bearing fresh fruit every month,
Never dropping a leaf,
always in blossom.

– Psalm 1:2,3 (MSG)

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

Foundation

/ Susie Stewart / Leave a comment

What is your foundation, friend?

 

At the bottom of everything in your life

what is your security

your strength

your purpose

your reason to live?

 

Maybe all you know

is to believe in your self.

 

And what happens when you fail?

Every self does.

 

Is your foundation crumbling?

Or is your foundation secure?

 

Because the only foundation

that will not crumble in the end

is Rock

 

My Rock is Jesus

 

He will not fail

He will not crumble

 

And because I am secure in Him

in His Truth

in His Word

in His Love

 

when I fail

I know He won’t

 

And we all need a foundation

 

for the walls we build

the walls of knowledge

of good works

of family

of purpose

 

will fall

without The Foundation

 

What a gift,

my Foundation

in Him

– Susie Stewart

 

Those people who are listening to Me, those people who hear what I say and live according to My teachings—you are like a wise man who built his house on a rock, on a firm foundation.  When storms hit, rain pounded down and waters rose, levies broke and winds beat all the walls of that house. But the house did not fall because it was built upon rock.  Those of you who are listening and do not hear—you are like a fool who builds a house on sand.  When a storm comes to his house, what will happen? The rain will fall, the waters will rise, the wind will blow, and his house will collapse with a great crash.

– Matthew 7:24-27 (VOICE)

 

Therefore the Lord God says this, “Listen carefully, I am laying in Zion a Stone, a tested Stone, A precious Cornerstone for the [secure] foundation, firmly placed. He who believes [who trusts in, relies on, and adheres to that Stone] will not be disturbed or give way [in sudden panic].

– Isaiah 28:16 (AMP)

 

Come to Him [the risen Lord] as to a living Stone which men rejected and threw away, but which is choice and precious in the sight of God.  You [believers], like living stones, are being built up into a spiritual house for a holy and dedicated priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices [that are] acceptable and pleasing to God through Jesus Christ.

– 1 Peter 2:4-6 (AMP)

 

Jesus Christ is the Stone on which other stones for the building must be laid. It can be only Christ.

– 1 Corinthians 3:11 (NLV

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

Character

/ Susie Stewart / Leave a comment

God’s character is our standard

 

perfect and true

holy and good

 

unmovable

 

It has stayed the same

and will stay the same

throughout eternity

 

We, His created,

have inner character

that is either growing

or declining

 

May it grow

and struggle

through the dirt of adversity

and testings

and trials

 

with a heart surrendered

to the process

and to the Living Water

 

to bloom hope

 

 

 

– Susie Stewart

 

A good name [earned by honorable behavior, godly wisdom, moral courage, and personal integrity] is more desirable than great riches; And favor is better than silver and gold.

– Proverbs 22:1 (AMP)

 

If a man does not exercise his arm he develops no biceps muscle; and if a man does not exercise his soul, he acquires no muscle in his soul, no strength of character, no vigour of moral fibre, nor beauty of Spiritual growth.

– Henry Drummond

 

Because of this, make every effort to add integrity to your faith; and to integrity add knowledge;  to knowledge add self-control; to self-control add endurance; to endurance add godliness;  to godliness add Christian affection; and to Christian affection add love.  If you have these qualities and they are increasing, it demonstrates that your knowledge about our Lord Jesus Christ is living and productive.

– 2 Peter 1:5-8 (GW)

 

No character is ultimately tested until it has suffered.

– Harry Emerson Fosdick

 

When you go through deep waters,
I will be with you.
When you go through rivers of difficulty,
you will not drown.
When you walk through the fire of oppression,
you will not be burned up;
the flames will not consume you.

– Isaiah 43:2 (NLT)

 

Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved.

– Helen Keller

 

So, friends, take a firm stand, feet on the ground and head high. Keep a tight grip on what you were taught, whether in personal conversation or by our letter. May Jesus himself and God our Father, who reached out in love and surprised you with gifts of unending help and confidence, put a fresh heart in you, invigorate your work, enliven your speech.

– 2 Thessalonians 2:4-8 (MSG)

 

Make Christ your most constant companion. Be more under His influence than under any other influence. Ten minutes spent in His society every day, ay, two minutes if it be face to face, and heart to heart, will make the whole day different. Every character has an inward spring, let Christ be it. Every action has a key-note, let Christ set it.

– Henry Drummond

 

 

We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance.  And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation.  And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because He has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with His love.

– Romans 5:3-5 (NLT)

 

The character of God is today, and always will be, exactly what it was in Bible times. God is forever what at that moment, three thousand years ago, He told Moses that He was.

– J.I. Packer

 

Photo by Susie Stewart