Day 31 and A Free Printable

We have come to the end of our thirty-one day journey.  When I decided to take on this challenge at the beginning of the month, I had no idea how difficult it was going to be.  I have grown in many ways and at times was stretched to the very limits of my abilities.

God taught me many things this month.  I learned about priorities and time management.  I learned that I write much better late at night, than early in the morning and that it is near impossible to get anything done while my children are awake.

Most importantly, God taught me about Himself.  His amazing and enduring character has become new to me and my faith has grown stronger.  As I looked back through my life for stories to write about, I could see how the different attributes of God were at work at different times.  What an amazing gift that has been.

I hope you have gotten as much out of this journey as I have.  I pray that you have a better understanding of the nature of Yahweh, our Lord.  That what I have written has created a desire in you to draw closer to Elohim, Our Creator.

There is no way that we could learn everything there is to know about God in thirty-one days.  I encourage you to continue to press into Him and to study His unfathomable nature.

As a thank you for spending the month with me, I have created a free printable of the different names of God we have studied.  It should print out as an 8x10.  If you have problems with it, please let me know.  Click here to get the full sized image  Names of God Subway Art

I would love to hear from you, as well.  What has God taught you this month?  Was there one attribute that meant more to you than the rest?  Feel free to share in the comments section below.

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Day 30: Bread of Life

Well, it has happened again.  I knew it would only be a matter of time before I stumbled upon another obsession.  Something else that has the potential to become an idol in my life.

This time the culprit is bread.  Yes, that is right.  Bread.

A few weeks ago, I was at a home school event with my children.  We met a wonderful family and ended up spending the whole day together.  At lunch time, she pulled out this amazing looking loaf of bread that was obviously homemade.  The peanut butter and jelly sandwich she gave me was the best that I have ever had.  Why?  The bread.  It was amazing and I keep thinking about it.

After further inquiry, I learned that not only did she bake the bread, but she ground the flour herself, as well.  So I have been spending lots of time researching bread and wheat and flour and the nutritional benefits of grinding it yourself. 

I see a grain mill coming into this house in the very near future.  And several 50 lb bags of grain.  Can I just mention how thankful I am that my husband just kinda goes along with my endeavor of the moment?

So what does all of this have to do with God?  Well, everything.  Bread was a primary staple in the ancient world.  It was made from a variety of grains and provided the needed nourishment to sustain life in a difficult environment.

It was so important, that it also figured into various aspects of worship.  The bread of the Presence, consisting of twelve loaves of unleavened bread, symbolized the covenant between God and his people.  Displayed in the temple sanctuary, it served as a constant reminder to the priests and the people that it was God who sustained His people.

When the Israelites were wandering in the desert for forty years, God rained down manna from heaven every morning.  He provided just what they needed for that day.  No more, no less.

God provides for us much in the same way today.  He gives us what we need to get through each day, each moment.  He will be faithful to keep his promise to sustain us both physically and spiritually. 

Yeshua, or Jesus, told his disciples that He was the bread of life.  He said that he was the living bread who came down from heaven and that whoever eats from it will live forever.

"I am the bread of life.  Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert and died.  This is the bread that comes from heaven so that whoever eats it won't die.  I am the living bread that came from heaven.  Whoever eats this bread will live forever.  The bread I will give to bring life to the world is my flesh."  John 6:48-51

Several years ago I tried the popular Atkins diet.  Yes, I lost weight, but at a very high cost.  I was tired, cranky and had absolutely no energy to get through my day. 

When I look back at the times in my life where I have neglected spending time with Jesus, a sort of spiritual Atkins, the outcome was very much the same.  My soul felt empty and I lacked the motivation to fulfill the tasks that God has required of me. 

Lord, please help us remember that just as we need carbohydrates to feed our physical bodies, we also need The Bread of Life, Jesus, to nourish our spiritual bodies.

Day 29: Reflection

What an awesome day it has been.  After teaching a class this morning, my family and I drove out to Madison, VA to visit an adorable country market a friend told us about.  Right now it is cold and raining outside, but inside there is a meatloaf cooking, two loaves of bread rising and an apple pie waiting to go in the oven.  I love autumn!

Here is our reflection for today . . .

Ish, Husband


Your husband is your Maker.  His name is Yahweh Tsebaoth.  Isaiah 62:5.

Lord, you call yourself Ish, Husband to your people.  I am amazed that you use this intimate image to characterize your relationship with us.  Help us, Lord, through the power of your Spirit to be a loving and faithful wife to you.  (Ann Spangler, Names of God Study Bible)

Yahweh Shalom

With perfect peace you will protect those whose minds cannot be changed, because they trust you.  Isaiah 26:3


I know the plans I have for you, declares Yahweh.  They are plans for peace and not disaster, plans to give you a future filled with hope.  Jeremiah 29:11

Day 28: Where My Hope Comes From

Miqweh Yisrael, Hope of Israel.  This name for God is the one that moves me the most.  To me it encompasses all the other character traits into one. 

God is our hope.  Because of Him we can hope for a better future.  We can hope for healing.  We can hope that things will all work out for good, even when circumstances say that they shouldn’t. 

Because of Miqweh Yisrael, we can look forward to the light of morning, even in the darkest of nights.

And most importantly, we have the hope for a life beyond this one - one with no sin, sickness or crying.

At the beginning of this year, I found myself in a place where I was having a crisis of faith.  Doubts as to whether or not my faith was just another man made fable ran around in my head.

During that time, I experienced some of the most empty, hopeless moments of my life.

Without God, without our hope, what is the point of it all?  Without the hope of something better on the other side, why endure all the hardship and pain that comes from being alive?

Since I am a facts person, I sought answers in the book The Case for Christ.  A book written by a former atheist journalist who was looking to prove Christianity wrong.  In the process he became convinced that God was real and that Jesus was crucified and resurrected. 

I too became convinced that what I had believed all my life was more than just a fairy story, but instead cold hard fact.  And my hope returned.

I look back at that time and realize that the hopelessness that I felt is what so many people feel on a daily basis.  I cannot imagine living with that blackness in my heart everyday.

Because of that, it is my desire to share the gift of hope that I have been given with as many people as possible.

I pray that maybe something you have read here has encouraged you to do the same.

Blessed are those who trust in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. 
They shall be like a tree planted by water, sending out its roots by the stream.
It shall not fear when heat comes, and its leaves shall always stay green;
in the year of drought it is not anxious, and does not cease to bear fruit. 
O hope of Israel!  O Lord!
Jeremiah 17:7-8, 13

Day 27: Turn for the Judges

I have spent more than half of my life standing before judges.  Now, before you conjure up visions of me in a court room on the wrong side of the law, let me explain. 

I am a former “beauty queen.”  Oh, how I hate that term.  I entered my first pageant at the age of twelve and my last at the age of thirty-one. 

Standing before a panel of men and women, while they assign you an arbitrary number based on their perceived value of your worth is a harrowing experience.  One not for the faint of heart. 

I lost more pageants than I won and was told that I was not good enough, or really, that someone else was better more times than I care to admit. 

So often in the world of pageants, the audience and other contestants are completely shocked at the outcome.  When the winner is announced a low rumble goes through the crowd and you see the other girls on stage giving “golf claps” to the winner.

“What were the judges thinking?!” is a familiar refrain heard from the lobby of the auditorium after a pageant.

As humans, though, the outcome will never be perfect because we have chosen an imperfect judging panel.  The very fact that they ARE human is what makes them imperfect.

I used to say that the only perfect pageant would be one judged by God, because He is the only perfect judge.

While I have absolutely no intention of ever standing before an earthly panel of judges again, I know that one day I will stand before Shopet, our ultimate Judge.

When I do, I want to hear “well done, good and faithful servant.”  When God judges me, he is not going to be looking at how pretty my evening gown is or how well I walked during the swimsuit competition. 

No, when I stand before Shopet on the day of judgement, he is not going to see me at all.  If He did, I would be found woefully lacking.  Instead, when He looks at me, He will see me clothed in the most amazing gown of all, Christ’s robes of righteousness.

“I will rejoice greatly in the Lord, My soul will exult in my God, for He has clothed me with garments of salvation; He has wrapped me with a robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with garland and as a bride adorns herself with jewels.” Isaiah 6:10

There is not one of us who can stand before our Judge, Shopet and be found not guilty.  We have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.  Just one sin in our lives will condemn us forever.  How many have you and I already committed today?

Our only hope is to accept Christ’s free gift of salvation given at the cross.  Some may say that doing so would be too restrictive, because they see Christianity as a set of rules meant to keep them from enjoying life.

Actually, it is the most freeing thing that one can do, because it is no longer about you.  You cannot earn salvation and once you accept it there is nothing that you can do to lose it.

I absolutely love this analogy . . .

One day there was a young women, the daughter of the local judge, who was brought before the court.  Her crime was one that carried the punishment of death.  As she  stood there before her father, he declared her guilty of her crime.  The next thing that happened amazed everyone in the room.  For her father then stepped down from his seat and declared that he would take her punishment for her.  He would die in her place.

And friends, that is exactly what Christ did for us.  He stepped down from His throne and gave His life, so that we might live. 

Have you accepted the gift of eternal life?  Want to know more?  Just click the New Life link at the top of this page.

Day 26: Our Shelter and Refuge

On Sunday afternoon, while visiting North Anna Battlefield Park in nearby Hanover County, VA, Robbie Wood wandered away from his father, his younger autistic brother and his father’s girlfriend. 

Robbie is a nine year old, non-verbal autistic boy.  Hundreds of volunteers and law enforcement officials have joined in the search for Robbie.  It is now Wednesday and he still has not been found.

My heart breaks when I think of how terrified he must be.  The turmoil his family must be experiencing in not knowing Robbie’s whereabouts is just incomprehensible.

When I read today’s name of God, I immediately thought of Robbie.

Maon, Machseh, Magen, Metsuda and Migdal-Oz all speak to the God who promised to watch over us and keep us safe.  He is our Dwelling Place, Refuge, Shield, Fortress, and Strong Tower.

“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.
Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence.
He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge,
his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
You will not fear the terror of the night . . .
For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways;
they will life you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot upon a stone.”  Psalm 91:1-5, 11-12

We may not know where Robbie is right now, but God sees him and it is my prayer that He is watching over him.

Will you please join me in praying for Robbie’s safety and that he will be reunited with his family soon?

Maon, Machseh, Magen, Metsuda and Migdal-Oz, God Almighty, we come to you now and ask that you provide a dwelling place for little Robbie Wood.  Provide a shelter for him as he faces the elements on his own.  Be his strong tower and his shield.  Cover him with your wings and let him not fear the night.  Send angels to lift him up in their hands, so that he will not suffer harm or injury.

Guide the searchers to the location where Robbie is right now, Lord.  Be with his family.  Give them a peace, a shalom, that only you can give.

In your Holy Name we pray,
Amen

Click here for more information on the search for Robbie.

Day 25: Peace Admist the Chaos

As I stood in my kitchen last Friday morning and surveyed my house, I wrestled with my emotions.  All week I had had a sense of peace and calm.  I wasn’t stressed by the state of my space or all of the things that needed to get cleaned up around the house. 

I didn’t feel pressured by looming deadlines or my ever growing to-do list.  Even though I had been up the past two nights with a sick child, my soul was still quiet and content.

And that bothered me.

I am the type of person who feels like they are being lazy and unproductive if I do not have a million irons in the fire.  So, if I am not stressed out, something must be wrong, right?  I must not be doing what I am supposed to be doing.

My house did not miraculously clean itself (oh, that it would!).  My to-do list did not shrink, actually, it grew.  My children were not all of the sudden nice and congenial to each other all the time.

So what was the difference?

As I stood there praying, I felt God remind me of a conversation I had had with Him over the previous weekend -- a time when my soul was feeling particularly restless.

“Lord, please send me your peace.”

And Yahweh Shalom, the Lord of Peace, answered my prayer.

The Hebrew word shalom has such a richer and more complex meaning than our English word peace.  Our “peace” usually refers to an absence of outward conflict or a state of inner calm.

Shalom encompasses the above, but it is also “wholeness,” “completeness,” “perfection,” “safety,” and wellness.”

When you pray to Yahweh Shalom, you are praying to the source of all peace.  No wonder his Son is called the Prince of Peace.

Yahweh Shalom did not change my circumstances, He filled me with His shalom, a peace that passes all understanding.

Throughout my day, I find myself still trying to trade God’s shalom with the stress and anxiety that I have thrived on for most of my life.

But when I start to feel it creeping back in, I realize that nothing can compare with Yahweh Shalom’s perfect peace.  When I am crowding out His peace, I am actually crowding Him out of my life because He is peace itself. 

He is not “God of Peace” or “God Who Gives Peace," but rather “God is Peace”.

I pray today that Yahweh Shalom will make His presence known to each one of us and that we will be filled with His perfect peace.

With perfect peace you will protect those whose minds cannot be changed, because they trust you.  Isaiah 26:3