So the Word became human and made His home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen His glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son.
John 1:14 (NLT)
Photo taken by Susie Stewart
God
The Truth
The tension.
It’s everywhere.
The battle is seen, and yet so unseen.
And my heart longs to really see each one.
And each one wants to be seen.
The aggressor, the victim, the marginalized, the misunderstood, the confused, the angry, the hurt,
the human.
And I seek HIM.
I seek the One who sees all the earth,
and all the people,
and how we are falling apart
and ripping apart at the seams.
How we are lashing out at one another,
and hurting one another,
and self-destructing,
and blaming Him.
And He knows each heart.
Because He is love.
And when He walked this earth,
Immanuel,
He looked out at the masses
and He had compassion, and His heart broke.
We were harassed and helpless,
like sheep without a Shepherd.
There was a battle
and He knew it.
And the battle was not with flesh and blood – with people against people –
but the real battle was spiritual.
Spiritual forces,
angelic and demonic,
Deity and satanic,
locked in combat.
Good versus evil.
And there was,
and there IS,
a battle for the human mind and heart.
Confusion,
hatred,
discord,
violence,
abuse,
isolation,
dullness,
compromise,
doubt,
fear….
Truth came in human form,
and He saw through it all.
And He had compassion,
and He condemned those that claimed to have the corner market on truth
without truth.
And He stood up to temptation
with His sights on the goal
and He reached the goal
and He was silenced……………..
And humanity went on with their day
and their next
and their next
not knowing that a precious,
and holy,
and sacred
sacrifice
had been made for each of them.
Out of love.
For He is Love.
And when my Jesus,
my Jesus,
walked out of that tomb,
He had heaven’s glow.
For the weight of the world,
the weight of sin,
the sting of death,
and condemnation for wrong-doing,
had been conquered with that act.
And He had made it so simple!
Follow Him, trust Him, believe that
He
is the only One to save.
And He invited everyone to the table.
Everyone.
And He invited everyone to drink deep of His love and wisdom.
And He invited everyone to freedom from the harassment of evil.
And He invited everyone to walk in truth.
Truth.
He validated the O.T. writings.
He fulfilled the law.
God with us.
Holiness was finally satisfied with this one act,
perfect,
necessary.
And before Jesus
ascended heavenward before their eyes,
He charged His followers with unwavering commitment.
He warned His followers that they would be treated badly,
because although He conquered death,
the battle raged on seen and unseen.
Because now it was a race against time
before the end,
and the glorious beginning.
Evil knew this.
And a small contingent of humans
started the word
about the Word,
Indwelled by Spirit,
holy and wise.
And people,
all
of the people that were born into this world,
were loved by He who formed them
and who is Love.
And the weight of sin on this world,
and the attacks unseen,
and the choices made
that don’t follow He who is Truth,
cause the mind to battle
and cause the enemy to double-up forces
and cause brother to be against brother
and looking up
is what we need.
And we stare at our feet,
stuck and mired in mud.
And we embrace life in the mess.
And we go with the crowd.
And we delight in our rebellion.
And we are unaware….
That we are meant to be kept in the dark
by those who are darkness.
And that light and Light are pursuing
and offering a way out
to freedom.
And this man, Jesus, who mingled among us,
walked humbly and boldly,
a beautiful combination.
Sinners were the ones He moved in and through life with.
But He always offered His righteous hand,
to pull them out of being stuck.
Some would grab hold,
some would refuse.
And that is still the case.
You know the truth.
Know the Truth.
Be set free.
– Susie Stewart
“…you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free….if the Son sets you free, you are truly free.”
– John 8:32, 36 (NLT)
Gentle & Humble
“Learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble of heart…” Matthew 11:29
Gentle and Humble
This is His heart.
I read it, but I can’t grasp it.
The words bring a calmness to my thoughts
bring a warmth to my spirit.
Two little words
make an impact
in a loud and quiet way.
I ponder.
But…
Is this even possible?
God is humble?
He is gentle and humble to His very depths,
in His heart?
I ask Him how this can be?
Teach me, Lord, because I can’t wrap my brain around this.
And He leads me to make a list.
WHAT HUMILITY IS NOT:
~Arrogant
~Pushy
~Obnoxious
~Controlling
Humility is the absence of those things.
You, Jesus, gave of your time to people
who were less than lovely
who had no prestige
who reeked of sickness and disease
who were unappreciative
who just didn’t get it.
You gave of Yourself until You were spent completely and humbly,
absolutely nothing more more to sacrifice…
And when I’m yoked to You in life,
attached to You intimately,
I sense that You are leading
and carrying the brunt of the weight
and that you challenge me and confront me
but it is done lovingly
not with arrogance
or obnoxiousness
But with the heart of the One
who washed dirty feet unexpected
and stood up for a prostitute’s dignity
and loved to be with children
and is a Shepherd to all of us lambs
And I know that I am in the presence of true humility and gentleness
because I don’t feel
the condemnation
the squinted eyes of judgment
the snide and sarcastic remarks
the heavy hand of false self-righteousness
the stab of hurtful words
I feel that You, Jesus,
want to lead me in paths of righteousness
by streams of cool water
to the Rock
to truth and wisdom
to be humble and gentle….
Because that is what You are.
– Susie Stewart
“Then Jesus said, ‘Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.'” Matthew 11:28-30
Grace
Your grace, Lord, it washes over everything.
Your grace
revives
and reminds
and lifts
up.
Your grace finds me
wherever I am.
Your grace takes the things unsettled
and speaks peace over them.
Your grace takes a confined space
and creates a wide open expanse.
Your grace opens squeezed tight eyes
and awakens them with renewed perspective.
Your grace blankets darkness
and brings newness and light.
Your grace takes tears
and holds them lovingly in cupped hands.
Your grace completely shatters condemnation.
Completely.
Your grace invites in
opens up
renews
energizes.
Your grace cost You so much….
and You give it freely.
Your grace means everything.
Multiply it
through me.
– Susie Stewart
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 20:24 (NLT)
Photo taken by Susie Stewart
All I Want
Psalm 23
You brought it to me afresh this morning, Lord.
Your Word is alive, and breathing, and pulsing with light and voice and power.
How many times have I read this passage since I was young?
And the more I know You, Lord, the more precious these words become.
I allow these words to sit, and take root, and fill.
I allow them in deep, and I echo them back to You.
My Shepherd, You provide everything I need. Only You. May I not want for anything outside of what You desire to give, or outside of Your wise counsel. I have contentment in You.
My Shepherd, You let me rest. This world knows little of rest. But in You I rest in green meadows, in my mind, in my heart. That is where I find you, my God of restoration.
My Shepherd, You take my hand and lead me beside the peaceful streams. The sound and motion are healing to my soul. You have taken me there because I need it.
My Shepherd, You make me strong again when I succumb to weakness. Just by You being there I feel strengthened for the next leg of the journey. Your words bring energy.
My Shepherd, You guide me along the wise path. Following Your guidance in doing the right thing brings honor to You, and that is what I want. Help me not to wander.
My Shepherd, there are some very dark times, when I am low, when I am suffering, when death shadows over me. I need not fear because You never leave my side. I am comforted and strengthened by Your presence. You breathe life and light into me.
My Shepherd, You carry a rod and a staff. Even though they are used to guide and discipline me, I am comforted because I know You will keep me safe from consequences and pain. You are seeking to protect me from having to deal with the aftermath of bad choices.
My Shepherd, You are bold and Your parental love for me does not let my enemies gloat over me. You lift my head and You feed me the best of what You have in the company of those who would harm me. I am not intimidated by them.
My Shepherd, You actually honor me with anointing oil. I am humbled as You serve me with a gentle and humble heart. You anoint, and intercede, and bless. A sacred understanding passes between us.
My Shepherd, my life and heart overflow with Your graciousness to me. You never tire of blessing me. It’s as if I’m holding a cup and You’ve forgotten to stop pouring into it, and all manner of glory flows over the sides and onto the path I am taking.
My Shepherd, I know You pursue me with Your goodness and Your love that never fails. May I always feel the warmth of Your presence behind me, because my pace allows You to catch up with me. There is not a day that goes by that You are not pursuing me.
My Shepherd, You are here with me on earth and You have prepared a place for me in Heaven. You dwell inside of me here and I will dwell with you there, beautifully for always.
And You, My Shepherd, will have lead me on the path, and by way of the meadow, and beside the stream, into eternity.
My Shepherd, You are all I want.
– Susie Stewart
____________________________________________________
Psalm 23
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.
(NLT)
You Are Here
You are HERE.
Not over there
or over there
or even over there.
You are here.
And there is purpose in that.
God is looking at His map of the world
and He sees you
and you might think
that your “You Are Here” arrow is so small
and insignificant
that God couldn’t possibly notice
that you are here
Swallowed up by 7.1. billion people…
But He does.
He not only sees you,
He designed the map
He placed you on it
He created you
for this moment, this season, this place.
God has the aerial view
God has the on-the-ground view
God has the in-your-heart view
He sees with eyes ever open.
He sees you
He sees all of us.
And He is able to love each one.
Completely.
And He knows….
the suffering
the joy
the pain
the circumstances
He was the one that placed your “You Are Here” sticker on the map.
Lovingly
Deliberately
Creatively
For such a time as this.
And He longs for you to place a “You are Here” sticker
on your heart
for Him.
Because that’s where He belongs
and that’s what gives you purpose
on this great big map
in this great big universe
when a whole lot of things don’t make sense.
You are HERE.
Make it count.
– Susie Stewart
“And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” Esther 4:14 (NIV)
“This is the plan,
planned for the whole earth,
And this is the hand that will do it,
reaching into every nation.
God-of-the-Angel-Armies has planned it.
Who could ever cancel such plans?
His is the hand that’s reached out.
Who could brush it aside?” Isaiah 14:26,27 (MSG)
A New Sunday School Structure!
In Between
This place.
In between.
It is an anxious place
or it is a peaceful place.
It feels like a loss of control
or it feels like complete surrender.
It is marked by worry
or it is marked with trust.
Waiting
waiting
waiting
In between.
When you look back on those times
you should see
growth
learning
more depth
renewal of trust
more faith
But at times
you see
distrust
staying stuck
bitterness
anxiety
anger
In between
should be a good place to be
because that’s where
you are stretched
and you depend
and you look up
and you are satisfied
Because it’s not about your circumstances,
but about your relationship
with Jesus….
Who knows what waiting feels like
and knows what dependence feels like
and knows what
surrender
…..feels like.
– Susie Stewart
Mender
Are you in a state of disappointment?
A state of hurt?
Has someone pained your heart
messed with your mind?
Is it all you can do
not to focus on imaginary conversations
you would have
if you could
speak vengeance?
If you had the courage to hurt back?
All your focus
All your focus
on that offender…
Because, after all,
the offense continues…
in your mind
or in real life.
Your heart begs to be mended.
If you could,
you would have a surgeon stitch
all the torn parts
because it hurts
and it consumes
and it is all you can think about.
We are a broken people.
We need mending.
Only the Uncreated
can truly mend
the created’s heart.
The only thing is…
You’ve got to force your focus
off the offender
and onto the Mender.
Only then can you genuinely heal.
And like the best of all surgeons
He stitches up
and binds up
and HEALS
your broken heart.
So that your focus
will stay on Him
the One who loves and cares the most.
Let Him mend.
Don’t stay broken.
Then God’s mending love
can reach out to others broken
through you.
– Susie Stewart
Heart
A stubborn heart.
A hard heart.
An unyielding heart.
I read about Pharoah
and his stone-cold heart.
And I’m incredulous.
Good grief!
How could he continue
holding the Israelites captive
plague
after plague
after plague
after plague…
God spoke!
Pharaoh feigned surrender.
He wouldn’t let go.
The consequences
the consequences
the consequences…
Destruction, pain, death.
A stubborn heart.
A hard heart.
An unyielding heart.
I can relate.
I have hardened my heart at times.
God goes to great lengths to soften it.
He works on making my heart pliable
as He unclenches my tight fists.
They go together – tight hearts and tight fists.
As I open those hands,
as I surrender all to Him,
as I trust that He knows
He knows
He knows,
my heart softens.
A stubborn heart.
A hard heart.
An unyielding heart.
It forfeits blessings.
It affects others.
It alienates.
It distances.
It creates chasms
between you and people
between you and God
between you and who you could be.
Lord, continue to make my heart pliable.
Let it bend and curve to Your beckoning.
I want
open hands of surrender
and
an open heart of trust.
– Susie Stewart
Susie Stewart 