I Wonder

/ Susie Stewart / 4 Comments

I wonder….

 

If people really believed

to their very core

 

that our struggle is not

with flesh and blood

 

but with dark forces

unseen

 

Would they run

to make amends

with people they once loved?

 

And I wonder….

 

If people realized

that they are being played

like puppets

 

by the one who wants to destroy

relationship

 

Would they do everything possible

to bring back unity

and peace?

 

For if we are divided

as Believers,

it ought not be so

 

For God is a God

of unity

 

And our enemy,

well,

he is the opposite

 

And I long

for people to know this

 

and to think about WHY

there is division

 

And run back

to love

 

– Susie Stewart

 

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

– Ephesians 6:12 (NIV)

 

The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance [to the full, till it overflows].

– John 10:10 (AMP)

 

You were all called to travel on the same road and in the same direction, so stay together, both outwardly and inwardly. You have one Master, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who rules over all, works through all, and is present in all. Everything you are and think and do is permeated with Oneness.

– Ephesians 4:4-6 (MSG)

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

 

Dark House

/ Susie Stewart / 4 Comments

Worry

Anxiety

Angst

Fear

 

Words that grip

and grasp

and strangle

 

And we, the Free,

choose not to dwell

 

in that dark house

 

We breathe in

and breathe out

 

Light

 

The Light of the World

 

And the reason we don’t live

in that dark house

 

is because we dwell

and we abide

and we exist

 

with God

 

He calms

and strengthens

and shows us

 

that we don’t have to be chained

by fear

worry

angst

anxiety

 

He sets the prisoner free

 

Minds gripped by their circumstances

are bound by this world

 

Walk in your freedom

walk in your Light

 

You may have once been a prisoner

but Jesus set you free

 

Be fearless

because you are held in His arms

 

– Susie Stewart

 

 

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 4:6,7 (MSG)

 

Later, Jesus spoke to the people again and said, “I am the light of the world. The man who follows me will never walk in the dark but will live his life in the light.”

– John 8:12 (PHILLIPS)

 

But when the Father sends the Advocate as My representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—He will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you.

I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.

– John 14:26-28 (NLT)

 

…The Lord sets prisoners free.

– Psalm 146:7 (NIV)

 

Once you lived in the dark, but now the Lord has filled you with light. Live as children who have light.

– Ephesians 5:8 (GW)

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

 

Yourself

/ Susie Stewart / Leave a comment

I have told you, my children,

since you were young

 

that you are responsible

for yourself

 

Many people will do what is wrong

in the sight of God

 

But you remain true to Him

no matter what

 

And don’t get caught up

and offended

and angry

at whatever they do

 

You be responsible for yourself

 

It is your own life

that God will hold you accountable for

 

You will not change others

Change yourself when God reveals truth to you

 

Just go about your Father’s business

and leave Him to handle others

 

And if God opens a door

for you to speak truth into another

 

invited

 

Do so humbly and boldly

 

You, my dear children,

are responsible for you

 

before man

and before God

 

– Susie Stewart

 

…choose today whom you will serve…But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord.

– Joshua 24:15 (NLT)

 

The eyes of the Lord search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to Him.

– 2 Chronicles 16:9 (NLT)

 

Here is a simple rule of thumb for behavior: Ask yourself what you want people to do for you; then grab the initiative and do it for them!

– Luke 6:31 (MSG)

 

Jesus didn’t try to change the minds of those who firmly believed they were right.  His entire focus was to go about the Father’s business.

– Suzanne Eller

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

Harsh

/ Susie Stewart / 2 Comments

The words are meant to cut

this morning

 

The harsh is meant to hurt

this morning

 

And as I quiet myself

before You, King Jesus,

 

all of that disappears

and I hear grace

 

with my spirit

 

Grace sounds so sweet

and gentle wins my day

 

I prefer to stay here

with You

 

But I’m called out

and in

 

I know that Your gentle

and Your grace

and Your love

still lingers on me

 

May I be the fragrance of You

on this angry words day

 

Whispering

gentleness

 

In a shouting world

 

Don’t you know, friends,

that the Lamb conquers?

 

– Susie Stewart

 

 

A gentle answer turns away wrath,
but a harsh word stirs up anger.

-Proverbs 15:1 (NIV)

 

The tongue of the wise adorns knowledge,
but the mouth of the fool gushes folly.

– Proverbs 15:2 (NIV)

 

The soothing tongue is a tree of life,
but a perverse tongue crushes the spirit.

– Proverbs 15:4 (NIV)

 

The lips of the wise spread knowledge,
but the hearts of fools are not upright.

– Proverbs 15:7 (NIV)

 

The discerning heart seeks knowledge,
but the mouth of a fool feeds on folly.

– Proverbs 15:14 (NIV)

 

Watch your words and hold your tongue; you’ll save yourself a lot of grief.

– Proverbs 21:23 (MSG)

 

Do not let unwholesome [foul, profane, worthless, vulgar] words ever come out of your mouth, but only such speech as is good for building up others, according to the need and the occasion, so that it will be a blessing to those who hear [you speak].

– Ephesians 4:29 (AMP)

Listen

/ Susie Stewart / Leave a comment

Learning to listen

well

is important

 

To be heard is precious

and affirming

to the sharing soul

 

And those who hear

with their hearts

and with wisdom

 

glorify God

and build people up

 

Listening to ourselves speak

may bring satisfaction

 

but may not bring about

the righteousness of God

 

when done out of selfishness

and talking just to talk

 

Hearing should be more paramount

than being heard

 

And there should be no one

we listen to more

than God

 

Hearing Him more than we talk

 

Humility listens much

 

– Susie Stewart

 

Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry.

– James 1:19 (NLT)

 

Understand this, my beloved brothers and sisters. Let everyone be quick to hear [be a careful, thoughtful listener], slow to speak [a speaker of carefully chosen words and], slow to anger [patient, reflective, forgiving];

– James 1:19 (AMP)

 

Listen, open your ears, harness your desire to speak, and don’t get worked up into a rage so easily, my brothers and sisters.

– James 1:19 (VOICE)

 

A [closed-minded] fool does not delight in understanding, But only in revealing his personal opinions [unwittingly displaying his self-indulgence and his stupidity].

– Provers 18:2 (AMPT)

 

Being listened to is so close to being loved that most people cannot tell the difference.

– David Augsberger

 

The ear is the road to the heart.

– Voltaire

 

The first duty of love is to listen.

– Paul Tillich

 

He was interesting because he was interested.

– Gore Vidal

 

Seek first to understand, then to be understood.

– Stephen Covey

 

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.

– James 1:22 (NIV)

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

 

Clothed with Light

/ Susie Stewart / 7 Comments

You have His spirit inside,

but is He on the outside of you?

 

Can people tell by your

words

your actions

your attitudes

that Christ dwells within?

 

Scripture says to

CLOTHE yourself with Jesus

 

And we know that abiding in Christ

naturally causes us to show Him more

 

but are you intentionally

putting the old man to death

by putting on Christ?

 

Are you keeping your flesh in check?

 

Clothe yourself with God,

He is your robe of righteousness

 

Imagine the light

of the Light

as a holy garb

 

The taking off

and

the putting on

are all a gift from God

 

Is your Jesus showing?

 

– Susie Stewart

 

Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ…

– Romans 13:14 (NIV)

 

So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith,  for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.

– Galatians 3:26,27 (NIV)

 

Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from Him, throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy.

– Ephesians 4:21-24 (NLT)

 

Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him…

– Colossians 3:9, 10 (NKJV)

 

Every believer has put on Christ by virtue of trusting in who Jesus is and what He has done for us. Yet we are also called to put on the character qualities and virtues that reflect our identity as children of God. We pursue this lofty goal in anticipation of the day when we will take off our mortal bodies and put on resurrected bodies that fully reflect Christ’s own resurrection body.

– Matthew Harmon

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

 

Worthy

/ Susie Stewart / 2 Comments

You have a calling,

a purpose

 

And is the way you are living your life,

worthy of that calling?

 

The choices you make,

the way you spend your time

 

Is it worthy?

Or is it a waste?

 

What is your purpose?

What is your calling?

 

What has eternal value here,

and what does not?

 

Our lives should reflect the Gospel

 

The Gospel of life

and unity

and grace

and peace

and giving

 

If we spend our lives

serving the unworthy

while keeping our eyes on the only One

who is

 

There we will be living

a Gospel life

 

If we realize that we are not entitled,

but are unworthy

 

Then He can use us

to point people to Jesus,

to He who is worthy

 

– Susie Stewart

 

As a prisoner of the Lord, I urge you: Live a life that is worthy of the calling He has graciously extended to you.

– Ephesians 4:1 (VOICE)

 

You see, they go on and on telling us the story of how you welcomed us when we were introduced to you; how you turned toward God and realigned your life to serve the one true living God—leaving your idols to crumble in the dust—

– 1 Thessalonians 1:9 (VOICE)

 

Above all, you must live as citizens of heaven, conducting yourselves in a manner worthy of the Good News about Christ. Then, whether I come and see you again or only hear about you, I will know that you are standing together with one spirit and one purpose, fighting together for the faith, which is the Good News.

– Philippians 1:27 (NLT)

 

…and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry
and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,
then your light will rise in the darkness,
and your night will become like the noonday.
The Lord will guide you always;
He will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land
and will strengthen your frame.
You will be like a well-watered garden,
like a spring whose waters never fail.

– Isaiah 58:10, 11 (NIV)

 

Then in my vision I heard the voices of many angels encircling the throne, the living creatures and the elders. There were myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, crying in a great voice, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom, and strength and honour and glory and blessing!”

– Revelation 5:11-13 (PHILLIPS)

 

Photo by Andy Stewart

 

 

Confident

/ Susie Stewart / Leave a comment

Do you feel timid when you pray?

 

Do your sins glare before you

and get in the way of your relationship with God?

 

Do you skip it altogether

because you are altogether imperfect

 

to come before a perfect God?

 

Well, I can relate

 

But God has shown me

that something amazing happened

 

when Jesus became my Savior

 

He became my bridge

to God

 

His perfection

sacrificed for me

 

and His righteousness

imparted to me

 

and His white robe of sinlessness

put on me

 

Caused me to be able to approach

that great throne

 

with confidence

and freedom

and boldness

 

And it’s not because I had a sinless day

but because my sins have been washed away

 

And I look my Abba in the eyes

and I talk to Him

 

We are close

and I don’t need to be timid

 

because of Jesus

 

I confess to Him

what is not right

 

But I don’t feel the weight

of condemnation

 

Because I’m not condemned

 

I am free

 

– Susie Stewart

 

In Him and through faith in Him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.

– Ephesians 3:12 (NIV)

 

Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

– Hebrews 4:16 (NIV)

 

It is also very comforting to us to observe that the God who hears prayer is enthroned and glorified. The God of grace sits upon the throne of grace and so grace reigns supreme at the place where God meets with us in prayer! The hands of grace are full of blessings through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ—and those hands are happily employed in dispensing royal largess among the poverty stricken sons and daughters of men! Come here, then, all you who feel your need of grace! Be not afraid to approach the throne of grace. Since Jesus Christ has taken upon Himself our nature and suffered in our place, the throne to which the sinner is bid to draw near is a throne of superlative, unlimited, reigning grace—grace that pardons; grace that regenerates; grace that adopts; grace that preserves; grace that sanctifies; grace that perfects and makes meet for glory!

– C.H. Spurgeon

 

…or He delivered us and saved us and called us with a holy calling [a calling that leads to a consecrated life—a life set apart—a life of purpose], not because of our works [or because of any personal merit—we could do nothing to earn this], but because of His own purpose and grace [His amazing, undeserved favor] which was granted to us in Christ Jesus before the world began [eternal ages ago]…

– 2 Timothy 1:9 (AMP)

 

With the arrival of Jesus, the Messiah, that fateful dilemma is resolved. Those who enter into Christ’s being-here-for-us no longer have to live under a continuous, low-lying black cloud. A new power is in operation. The Spirit of life in Christ, like a strong wind, has magnificently cleared the air, freeing you from a fated lifetime of brutal tyranny at the hands of sin and death.

– Romans 8:1,2 (MSG)

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

Does He KNOW You?

/ Susie Stewart / 3 Comments

You know that you are going to stand before Him,

right?

 

You will stand before the God of the Universe,

alone

 

And the eyes you look into

will either hold joy

or sorrow

 

And the just Judge

will know

if you’ve known Him

 

He will know if you chose Him

and His grace

 

Or if you chose the world

and your sin

 

And I can’t emphasize enough

the importance of knowing Him NOW

 

For when you stand before Him,

and you will,

He will either welcome you into His Kingdom of Life

 

or He won’t

 

And when you realize that all you had to do

here on earth

was accept grace and love

 

You will forever be in regret

 

that you didn’t know Him

 

– Susie Stewart

 

Not everyone who calls out to Me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of My Father in heaven will enter. On judgment day many will say to Me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in Your name and cast out demons in Your name and performed many miracles in Your name.’ But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’

– Matthew 7:21-23 (NLT)

 

Knowing the correct password—saying ‘Master, Master,’ for instance—isn’t going to get you anywhere with Me. What is required is serious obedience—doing what My Father wills. I can see it now—at the Final Judgment thousands strutting up to me and saying, ‘Master, we preached the Message, we bashed the demons, our God-sponsored projects had everyone talking.’ And do you know what I am going to say? ‘You missed the boat. All you did was use Me to make yourselves important. You don’t impress Me one bit. You’re out of here.

– Matthew 7:21-23 (MSG)

 

So, friends, confirm God’s invitation to you, His choice of you. Don’t put it off; do it now. Do this, and you’ll have your life on a firm footing, the streets paved and the way wide open into the eternal kingdom of our Master and Savior, Jesus Christ.

– 2 Peter 1:10,11 (MSG)

 

This is how much God loved the world: He gave His Son, His one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in Him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending His Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. Anyone who trusts in Him is acquitted; anyone who refuses to trust Him has long since been under the death sentence without knowing it. And why? Because of that person’s failure to believe in the one-of-a-kind Son of God when introduced to him.

– John 3:16-18 (MSG)

 

Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Enter, you who are blessed by My Father! Take what’s coming to you in this kingdom. It’s been ready for you since the world’s foundation. And here’s why: I was hungry and you fed Me, I was thirsty and you gave Me a drink, I was homeless and you gave Me a room, I was shivering and you gave Me clothes, I was sick and you stopped to visit, I was in prison and you came to Me.’

– Matthew 25:35-36 (MSG)

 

Photo by Susie Stewart

Pain & Joy

/ Susie Stewart / Leave a comment

Isn’t it interesting

that in going through a deep valley

 

where all is stripped away

 

we can learn what true joy is?

 

In the hurt

and the less

and the want

 

we learn to look up

 

and we find that the joy

is not really in the circumstances

 

but in the Savior

 

It’s not in the stuff

but in the Divine relationship

 

always being strengthened

by the reliance on who is in control

 

Isn’t it interesting

how pain and joy can co-exist?

 

That joy doesn’t always look

like happiness?

 

But it does look

content

 

Because of who we lean into

 

– Susie Stewart

 

And my God will liberally supply (fill until full) your every need according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

– Philippians 4:19 (AMP)

 

But godliness actually is a source of great gain when accompanied by contentment [that contentment which comes from a sense of inner confidence based on the sufficiency of God].

– 1 Timothy 6:6 (AMP)

 

So I am well pleased with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, and with difficulties, for the sake of Christ; for when I am weak [in human strength], then I am strong [truly able, truly powerful, truly drawing from God’s strength].

– 2 Corinthians 12:10 (AMP)

 

…constantly rejoicing in hope [because of our confidence in Christ], steadfast and patient in distress, devoted to prayer [continually seeking wisdom, guidance, and strength],

– Romans 12:12 (AMP)

 

Photo by Susie Stewart