Writing

Reminder

/ Susie Stewart / 3 Comments

I’m thinking you might need a reminder today

 

A reminder of who you are

 

Because we all tend to believe lies sometimes,

spoken to us

or whispered in our heads

 

Truth is a good reminder,

so soak it in

 

YOU ARE

Loved more than you can even imagine

Redeemed from the worst

Royal, grafted into the family tree

Accepted right now

Child of Almighty God

Saved from eternal death

Friend of Jesus

Heir of treasures and life unimaginable

United with your Creator

Temple to the Holy Spirit

Member of the Body of Christ

Forgiven for everything

Free to walk in freedom

A new creation

Chosen by God

Wise by His guidance

Complete

 

Let truth remind you

and don’t listen to those lies

 

Live a life worthy of your calling

 

And if you went over that list quickly

as you are running through life

stop

and read it again

 

slowly

 

Believe His promises to you

 

– Susie Stewart

 

Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God.

– Ephesians4:1 (NLT)

 

How blessed is God! And what a blessing He is! He’s the Father of our Master, Jesus Christ, and takes us to the high places of blessing in Him. Long before He laid down earth’s foundations, He had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of His love, to be made whole and holy by His love. Long, long ago He decided to adopt us into His family through Jesus Christ. (What pleasure He took in planning this!) He wanted us to enter into the celebration of His lavish gift-giving by the hand of His beloved Son.

– Ephesians 1:3-6 (MSG)

 

But to all who believed Him and accepted Him, He gave the right to become children of God.

– John 1:12 (NLT)

 

And since we are His children, we are His heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s glory.

– Romans 8:17 (NLT)

 

All of you together are Christ’s body, and each of you is a part of it.

– 1 Corinthians 12:27 (NLT)

 

For the Lord your God is living among you.
He is a mighty savior.
He will take delight in you with gladness.
With His love, He will calm all your fears.
He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.

– Zephaniah 3:17 (NLT)

 

Photo by Andy Stewart

 

Full

/ Susie Stewart / 2 Comments

Water

Bread

Light

 

You are all those things, Jesus

 

You are everything we need

 

And you fill us to overflowing

with You

 

We are satisfied

And we are saved

And we see clearly

 

Our hunger

and our thirst are satisfied

in You

 

Your Light

fills every dark corner

 

We are sustained

by the fullness of You

 

– Susie Stewart

 

You have the fountain of life that quenches our thirst. Your light has opened our eyes and awakened our souls.

– Psalm 36:9 (VOICE)

 

How exquisite your love, O God! How eager we are to run under your wings, To eat our fill at the banquet you spread as you fill our tankards with Eden spring water. You’re a fountain of cascading light, and you open our eyes to light.

– Psalm 36:7-9 (MSG)

 

Anyone who believes in Me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, ‘Rivers of living water will flow from His heart.’” 

– Psalm 7:38 (NLT)

 

Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, Moses didn’t give you bread from heaven. My Father did. And now He offers you the true bread from heaven. The true bread of God is the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”

“Sir,” they said, “give us that bread every day.”

Jesus replied, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to Me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in Me will never be thirsty.

– John 6:32-35 (NLT)

 

“Are you not thirsty?” said the Lion.
“I am dying of thirst,” said Jill.
“Then drink,” said the Lion.
“May I—could I—would you mind going away while I do?” said Jill.
The Lion answered this only by a look and a very low growl …
The delicious rippling noise of the stream was driving her nearly frantic.
“Will you promise not to—do anything to me, if I do come?” said Jill.
“I make no promise,” said the Lion …
“Do you eat girls?” she said.
“I have swallowed up girls and boys, women and men, kings and emperors, cities and realms,” said the Lion. It didn’t say this as if it were boasting, nor as if it were sorry, nor as if it were angry. It just said it.
“I daren’t come and drink,” said Jill.
“Then you will die of thirst,” said the Lion.
“Oh dear!” said Jill, coming another step nearer. “I suppose I must go and look for another stream then.”
“There is no other stream,” said the Lion.
— C.S. Lewis, The Silver Chair

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

 

Grieving Him

/ Susie Stewart / Leave a comment

My closest Companion,

I would never want to hurt You

 

My beautiful Encourager,

I don’t want to grieve Your heart

 

And it hurts to think that I could do that

 

And yet I do

 

With my words

 

My words to people

or about people

Unneeded words

Gossip

Slander

Harsh words

Complaining

 

Quick to speak

slow to listen

 

They are all the opposite

of worshipful

 

They do not bring You honor

or glory

or joy

 

Their root is self

and sin

 

And so, my closest Companion,

my precious Holy Spirit,

I seek to worship You

with my words

 

I choose to bless

and not curse

those who have been made in Your image

 

I choose to say no

to gossip

and slander

 

I choose to express gratefulness

and not complaints

 

I choose to say what is helpful

for building others up

 

I choose

to choose

my words carefully

 

For You, Holy Spirit,

dwell in me

 

And the last thing I want to do

is grieve my God,

my Gift

 

– Susie Stewart

 

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

– Ephesians 4:29, 30 (NIV)

 

Watch the way you talk. Let nothing foul or dirty come out of your mouth. Say only what helps, each word a gift.

Don’t grieve God. Don’t break His heart. His Holy Spirit, moving and breathing in you, is the most intimate part of your life, making you fit for Himself. Don’t take such a gift for granted.

– Ephesians 4:29,30 (MSG)

 

With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.

– James 3:9, 10 (NIV)  

 

With the gift of words, we bless God and then turn around and curse husbands, children, and others created in God’s image.  This is serious – because when we curse others, we are in effect cursing God and obliterating the previous act of blessing…..When James used the word curse, it meant much more than cursing and swearing.  Unkind words about a neighbor, child, husband, or anyone who is made in the image of God count as curses.

– Linda Dillow

 

So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing.

– 1 Thessalonians 5:11 (NLT)

 

Photo by Andy Stewart

 

I See You

/ Susie Stewart / Leave a comment

“I see you,”

I say lovingly to him

as he works away at his computer

 

And he stops everything

looking me in the eye

with intentionality

 

“I see you” he says back

 

And we both know

what this means

 

It speaks love on purpose

in the midst of busy life

 

It means that we see each other

all the way through

to what’s behind the eyes

 

The deep part

 

And I’m grateful for a man

who knows how important

connection is

 

But even more grateful for my attentive God

 

He sees all

He knows all

 

And He pays attention to every detail

on purpose

 

He cares about every move I make

about every thought

 

About my heart

 

And when I might be tempted to think

no one is noticing my life

 

He reassures me by His Spirit

and through His Word

 

“I see you,” He says

and I believe Him

 

And no one could mean it more

 

So I look up from my computer

as I type this blog

and I say,

 

“I see You God”

 

– Susie Stewart

 

 

The Eternal can see all things; His gaze is fixed on both the evil and the good.

– Proverbs 15:3 (VOICE)

 

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.

– Psalm 32:8 (NIV)

 

For the Lord watches over the righteous, and His ears are attuned to their prayers. But His face is set against His enemies; He will punish evildoers.

– 1 Peter 3:12 (VOICE)

 

Photo by Arik Stewart

All In

/ Susie Stewart / Leave a comment

 

All is His

and yet we grasp at it

 

He rules all

and yet we try to control

 

And when we don’t surrender

that which is already His

 

it only creates fear

and anger,

angst and worry

 

And it means that we aren’t all in

with Him

 

And once it is laid down

in love and obedience

 

He takes it and He blesses the sacrifice

done in worship

 

And there is peace in the soul of the one

who laid down the control

that was never his to begin with

 

– Susie Stewart

 

And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all He has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind He will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship Him.

– Romans 12:1 (NLT)

 

If only you would prepare your heart
and lift up your hands to Him in prayer!

– Job 11:13 (NLT)

 

That means you must not give sin a vote in the way you conduct your lives. Don’t give it the time of day. Don’t even run little errands that are connected with that old way of life. Throw yourselves wholeheartedly and full-time—remember, you’ve been raised from the dead!—into God’s way of doing things. Sin can’t tell you how to live. After all, you’re not living under that old tyranny any longer. You’re living in the freedom of God.

– Romans 6:12-14 (MSG)

 

If Jesus Christ be God and died for me, then no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for Him.

– C.T. Studd

 

Then Peter began to speak up. “We’ve given up everything to follow You,” he said.

– Mark 10:28 (NLT)

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

Enough

/ Susie Stewart / 2 Comments

If the people in your life

don’t seem to be Enough

 

Do enough

Give enough

Understand enough

Be enough

 

It’s because they aren’t

 

Love them anyway

 

Only God can be your ENOUGH

 

– Susie Stewart

 

And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from His glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.

– Philippians 4:19 (NLT)

 
I could lose everything in life. There’s not anything I have here on earth that is guaranteed. If I lost it all though, I’d be okay because no one can take away my identity in Christ. Whether I live in a mansion on a hill or a shack in the 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 there I find my Jesus. His Word is planted deep in my heart and I believe it all.
– Melissa Taylor

 

His divine power has given us everything we need to experience life and to reflect God’s true nature through the knowledge of the One who called us by His glory and virtue.

– 2 Peter 1:3 (VOICE)

 

For us, there is one God, the Father who is the ultimate source of all things and the goal of our lives. And there is one Lord—Jesus the Anointed, the Liberating King; through Him all things were created, and by Him we are redeemed.

– 1 Corinthians 8:6 (VOICE)

A Good Shepherd

/ Susie Stewart / 1 Comment

A good shepherd

leads his sheep

 

He protects

guides

and sometimes carries those in his care

 

A good shepherd

corrects

wayward sheep

 

He uses his rod

and his staff

to discipline and guide

 

He knows what’s best

for those less knowing

 

Beautifully, that rod and that staff

comfort confused sheep

bringing security

 

A good shepherd

brings his sheep to places of rest

and nourishment

 

A good shepherd

protects his sheep from dangers

and predators

 

Even going to extremes for the sheep

possibly

 

dying

 

to protect

his flock

 

A good shepherd

knows his sheep

and his sheep know him

 

He stays so close

and is so familiar to them

that he can’t be mistaken

 

A Shepherd

is what we aimless ones need

 

Jesus, You are the only

True

Loving

Strong

Good

Shepherd

 

– Susie Stewart

 

I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.

– John 10:11 (NIV)

 

I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd puts the sheep before himself, sacrifices himself if necessary. A hired man is not a real shepherd. The sheep mean nothing to him. He sees a wolf come and runs for it, leaving the sheep to be ravaged and scattered by the wolf. He’s only in it for the money. The sheep don’t matter to him.

– John 10:10-13 (MSG)

 

I am the Good Shepherd; I know my own sheep, and they know me,

– John 10:14 (NLT)

 

And when the Chief Shepherd (Christ) appears, you will receive the [conqueror’s] unfading crown of glory.

– 1 Peter 5:4 (AMP)

 

For there was a time when you were like sheep that wandered from the fold, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your lives.

– 1 Peter 2:25 (VOICE)

 

Then Jesus made a circuit of all the towns and villages. He taught in their meeting places, reported kingdom news, and healed their diseased bodies, healed their bruised and hurt lives. When he looked out over the crowds, His heart broke. So confused and aimless they were, like sheep with no shepherd. “What a huge harvest!” He said to His disciples. “How few workers! On your knees and pray for harvest hands!”

– Matthew 9:35-37 (MSG)

 

The Lord is my shepherd;
I have all that I need.
He lets me rest in green meadows;
He leads me beside peaceful streams.
He renews my strength.
He guides me along right paths,
bringing honor to His name.
Even when I walk
through the darkest valley,
I will not be afraid,
for You are close beside me.
Your rod and your staff
protect and comfort me.
You prepare a feast for me
in the presence of my enemies.
You honor me by anointing my head with oil.
My cup overflows with blessings.
Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me
all the days of my life,
and I will live in the house of the Lord
forever.

– Psalm 23:1-6 (NLT)

 

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Online Photos

Worship with Abandon

/ Susie Stewart / 6 Comments

Shout!

If you feel like it

 

Sing

If you feel like it

 

Whisper

If you feel like it

 

Bow

If you feel like it

 

Stand

If you feel like it

 

Dance!

If you feel like it…

 

Self,

Worship God with abandon!

 

Don’t just reserve your strong emotion

for things of this world

 

Nothing here should thrill you

like God!

 

May ALL that is within me

praise the Lord!

 

– Susie Stewart

 

O my soul, come, praise the Eternal
with all that is in me—body, emotions, mind, and will—every part of who I am—
praise His holy name.

– Psalm 103:1 (VOICE)

 

Bless the Lord, O my soul;
And all that is within me, bless His holy name!

– Psalm 103:1 (NKJV)

 

Praise the Lord!
Let all that I am praise the Lord.
I will praise the Lord as long as I live.
I will sing praises to my God with my dying breath.

– Psalm 146:1,2 (NLT)

 

I was privileged to hear Joni Eareckson Tada speak Saturday night at the Desiring God Conference.  Most of you know Joni, a quadriplegic, was paralyzed 38 years ago in a diving accident.  She gave a great and convicting message but as the time of worship began, I saw something that was more impressive than anything I heard.  I saw Joni dance.

Joni handles her wheelchair as deftly as any Nascar driver on a racetrack.  No sooner had the music begun than Joni began to “dance”.  As much as a quadriplegic can dance, she danced.  Joni has just enough movement and strength in her hands and shoulders to grip the controls on her chair and maneuver herself without the aid of others.  Suddenly the chair began to move with the music.  She thrust forward, then backward, then forward, then backward.  Smoothly, and yet with obvious passion, she turned to the right, then the left, then the right again.

Suddenly, the forward and backward and side to side movements gave way to spinning.  Well, as much as a paralyzed person can spin.  Joni began to turn her chair in circles, first clockwise, then back again.  If she ceased her movements, if was only so that she could lift her contorted hands as high as her paralysis would allow.  It wasn’t very high, but who’s measuring!

I had to ask myself why I often stand like a vertical cadaver.  I have the glorious gift and privilege of being able to celebrate God and honor Him with my body.  I can kneel, lift my hands to heaven, fall prostrate, clap, and yes, move to the right and left and dance.

I went home thinking about Joni and thinking about her God.  What kind of God is this who can inspire such freedom and joy in one who, from a human point of view, would appear to have very reason to hate Him?  What kind of God is this who has the qualities and characteristics and attributes and beauty and glory that He can be found worthy of the praise and gratitude and “dancing” of a woman who’s spent the last 38 years in a wheelchair?  Wow!  Now that’s some God!

– Dr. Sam Storms

 

I was dancing before the Lord, who chose me above your father and all his family! He appointed me as the leader of Israel, the people of the Lord, so I celebrate before the Lord. Yes, and I am willing to look even more foolish than this, even to be humiliated in my own eyes!…

– 2 Samuel 6:21,22 (NLT)

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

Unnecessary Performance

/ Susie Stewart / 2 Comments

Don’t you know?

Don’t you remember?

 

You are someone’s child

 

You are God’s child

 

And He created you

to be in relationship with Him

 

But you think you need

to perform for Him

 

To get it right

to impress

 

To stop

messing up

 

But His love is not conditional

on your performance

 

Nestle into that love

and stay there

 

Performance is for an entertainer

not a beloved child

 

I was inspired to write this piece after listening to a interview my cousin, Kathy Gray, did on her new book “Light in Our Darkness”.  In the interview Kathy said, “We were never created to perform.  We were created for relationship.”  Amen.  Thank you, Kathy

 

– Susie Stewart

 

Don’t be mistaken; in and of ourselves we know we have little to offer, but any competence or value we have comes from God. Now God has equipped us to be capable servants of the new covenant, not by authority of the written law which only brings death, but by the Spirit who brings life.

– 2 Corinthians 3:5,6 (VOICE)

 

But to all who believed Him and accepted Him, He gave the right to become children of God. They are reborn—not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan, but a birth that comes from God.

– John 1:12,13 (NLT)

 

So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith…

– Galatians 3:26 (NIV)

 

See how very much our Father loves us, for He calls us His children, and that is what we are! But the people who belong to this world don’t recognize that we are God’s children because they don’t know Him. Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but He has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like Him, for we will see Him as He really is.

– 1 John 3:1,2 (NLT)

 

And since we are His children, we are His heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s glory.

– Romans 8:17 (NLT)

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

 

Courage

/ Susie Stewart / 2 Comments

Courage or Cowering?

That’s the choice

 

In the face of evil

in the day of danger

in the heat of challenge

 

the ones who trust

an all-powerful God

should take courage!

 

After all,

we are victors in battle

with a

Wall-Tumbling

Giant-Destroying

Red Sea-Parting

Tomb-Conquering

King!

 

No cowering necessary

 

Stand strong

in Divine power and strength

 

– Susie Stewart

 

Be strong and courageous, and do the work. Don’t be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you.

– 1 Chronicles 28:20 (NLT)

 

Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you.

– 1 Corinthians 15:58 (NIV)

 

For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.

– 2 Timothy 1:7 (NIV)

 

Photo by Susie Stewart