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The pattern of provision by God’s hand in Scripture reveals to us that God provides at the moment it is needed and in response to our faith to ask for that provision.

James chapter four teaches us that “we have not because we ask not”, and then continues with admonishing us to ask God with the right motives.

“You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives…”
James 4:2b-3a, NIV

Throughout the lives of both Elijah and Elisha, we see God’s miraculous provision in the midst of a drought, a famine, and a widow needing to pay off her debt. And each time God shows up to provide for those that Elijah and Elisha are interceding for, the faith of the recipient is tested and stretched.

We need to have faith when asking God for provision.

And we need to learn what we can actually ask God for.

He desires to provide us strength to endure and become resilient. Grace and mercy are offered to us as well. It is helpful to ask for wisdom and understanding in our situations and to ask Him to intervene when no one else can. His provision goes beyond what our physical needs are. He brings us joy and enables us to choose contentment.

Reading the Bible opens us up to the things that we can seek the Lord for. He loves to provide for us.

I remember when I was a teenager and our family was struggling without a vehicle, how the Lord pressed it on my heart to ask Him to provide one for us. So there I was lying on our trampoline, looking up into the big blue sky, and asking God to give us a car.

It was no more than two days later that the head of our household drove home with a car! Our drought of not being able to get around ended quickly. God had heard and provided.

God’s provision for our family in that way and in response to my faith-filled prayer only increased my faith and trust that He would provide again.

I have asked God for some pretty big things. The greater the need, the greater our desperation for Him to help us becomes. And when He answers, the higher our hearts soar in gratitude and praise.

I have yet to go through a season in my life where my faith is not being pulled on to ask God for something only He can provide.

This reliance on Him to be our Provider is a good thing. It pleases the Lord when we look to Him for what we need.

 

Ask for wisdom and then keep searching it out.

I have a part time role with a sending organization being a part of their Care Team. And at different times with this role, especially in these first months with it, I have felt a little overwhelmed. Mostly feeling a lack of knowing how to best serve those I am ministering to and having the confidence needed as well, even though I also know that I am fully capable for this role.

It was perfect timing, then, to find myself reading about the newly crowned King over Israel, Solomon, asking God for wisdom.

“Now, O LORD my God, You have made Your servant king in place of my father David, yet I am but a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in. Your servant is in the midst of Your people which You have chosen, a great people who are too many to be numbered or counted. So give Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people to discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this great people of Yours?”

1 Kings 3:7-9, NASB

When we feel inadequate for a task, or maybe even feeling the dreaded “imposter syndrome”, then the opportunity to rely on God is offered for us. And I mean to fully rely on God.

Solomon knew his need for wisdom, humbled himself to ask for it and God was pleased by this. God recognized that Solomon chose to ask Him for wisdom above asking for wealth or long life or the end of his enemies.

This reveals Solomon’s heart and his priorities. Solomon cared for the people that he reigned over. He wanted to be able to judge righteously and discern among them good and evil. Because of his heart to ask for wisdom, God chose to bless Solomon with the things he did not ask for: wealth and honor.

It was pleasing in the sight of the Lord that Solomon had asked this thing. God said to him, “Because you have asked this thing and have not asked for yourself long life, nor have asked riches for yourself, nor have you asked for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself discernment to understand justice, behold, I have done according to your words. Behold, I have given you a wise and discerning heart, so that there has been no one like you before you, nor shall one like you arise after you. I have also given you what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that there will not be any among the kings like you all your days.”

1 Kings 3:10-13, NASB

We place ourselves at risk when we think we don’t need God in our situations; having a mindset that we can handle things on our own. Or we grow too comfortable and forget our need for God and His wisdom.

But we are instructed by God through the words of Solomon to get wisdom.

The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding.

Proverbs 4:7, NIV

God wants us to search for wisdom and understanding. This search comes in asking Him for these things, and in finding ourselves fully relying on Him to do our tasks well.

Like Solomon, it is choosing to care for those we are serving that motivates our search for wisdom and discernment.

He will also provide understanding in surprising ways as well. Others with the experience we have not yet gained can be that provision. Or coming across something in a good book we are reading or in our research on the internet.

How understanding falls into our laps, I believe, is God’s provision for us. And through our relationship with the Lord, He provides the discernment we need to help us know when something we learn is to be taken up and applied or when it is not.

And consistently pouring over Scripture will provide us godly wisdom. Wisdom that comes from the Lord is to be treasured beyond anything we learn here on earth. It comes ahead of what we read in a book or learn in a classroom. It comes by the Spirit and in relationship with God.

So when we find ourselves needing to dip into our resources of godly wisdom, having already searched and asked God for it consistently, we have something to pull from within us that comes by His Spirit. This is why Jesus encouraged the disciples to trust that the Spirit would put words in their mouths to speak at the time it is needed. (Luke 12:11-12)

Ask God for wisdom and then continue daily in your search for it.

 

Remaining in the same lane as the last message I shared a couple weeks ago, this encouraging word is for those finding themselves unable to move along and distance themselves from toxic or abusive relationships or situations.

We will look at the dynamic between David and Saul from 1 Samuel and touch on trauma bonding.

It’s always a hard pill to swallow when you hear the Lord tell you to, “Step Aside” and allow Him to do what He plans to do.

May this message bring with it a peace from the Lord for your heart if this is what you are having to do in your life.

It’s never easy to trust the Lord with a complex situation, let alone leaving it behind altogether so He can do His work in it. There is a grieving process, a realization to some hidden truths and, hopefully, an acknowledgment that God is looking out for us and will heal our hearts.

The Lord is encouraging many of us to step into fully letting go…

letting go of the past, letting go of that relationship that’s been long gone, letting go of a situation we still don’t understand and letting go of these things in our minds and hearts.

God is saying that it is time to move on. Before we can appreciate what we have presently, and for some of us where He is leading us next, we have to release to Him what He is inviting our hearts to release.

When God delivered His people out of Egypt, even though they physically left, their hearts and minds remained. This was a huge problem for them. Let us not do the same. Let us move on.

Moses being used by God to deliver His people, who had been crying out to Him for deliverance for years, out of Egypt and slavery will be the focus of this message.

There are some of us who are at the edge of the Red Sea, others of us watching God’s hand coming against the enemy who refuses to let us go with plagues and still those of us right smack in the middle of crossing that divinely split Red Sea.. but deliverance is coming for us.

Jesus gained victory over everything that continues to entangle us and keeps us from walking in our freedom. Deliverance is a process involving gaining understanding, wisdom and growth in the Lord before we find our freedom.

It is also a hard struggle for many of us having to end unhealthy patterns we were born into, keeping them from continuing in our lives and overflowing into the next generation.

And although the enemy fights hard to keep us bound and believing his lies, God never gives up on us and He fights for us in these spiritual battles. The fight can be intense and real for a lot of us, but once God does deliver us it is not surprising that He also calls us to help others find their freedom as well.

Hope this blesses and encourages you today!

I am not one to share my response on what is being revealed and exposed within the church at large, and believe me it is growing exhausting with each of these exposures, but this one grieved me deeply.

Mike Winger has been uncovering so much within the charismatic movement and many victims are telling their story to him. Why to him? Because he has chosen to minister to those that have been overlooked, shunned and gaslighted for crying out to those who should have cared for them.

I have some experience with the charismatic movement, not a lot, but I walked away disappointed with some of what I saw. And at the same time, I also came away with the most loving and God fearing friends who do not deserve to be treated like this.

Having recovered from certain abuses in my own life, I can see the vulnerable and hurting looking to trusted leaders to lead them well and become frustrated and hurt when the leaders chose to protect their name and ministry over the wounded. This happens more than just in the charismatic circles too. It’s a real problem that needs to be dealt with head on.

I champion the role Mike is playing in all of this. And I believe God is using him to help uproot and cut off the branches that are not bearing true fruit. And I have also been praying for him and the victims that are opening up to him for protection.

To think that God is okay with sweeping under the rug such behaviors by leaders is ridiculous. It is not in His nature to do that, but rather to bring sin into the light so that lives and souls will have opportunity to repent and change. And to offer protection more for a predator and abuser over their victims is completely backwards. May God continue to heal the hearts of the victims and restore back to them what has been taken away from them for years.

I have so much I can share on this.. but I’ll leave it for now and for you to be hopefully encouraged by this video.

 

If you go to a leader, whether it be someone in the workplace or your church or even within a family dynamic, to inform them of how you, or someone else you know about, has been mistreated in their sphere of influence and they choose to disregard what you have shared, then let me share a few pointers with you with what is going on.

Disregarding the pain and harmful experience you shared is not right.

And if that leader has somehow made you feel guilt or shame for exposing wrong behavior, then know that that leader is in error. They are ignorant of how to lead well, or they do not want to admit if they have done something they should not have and correct their own wrong, or they do not want to take the responsibility that is theirs to bring correction, or worse, they put that responsibility to correct the offender on your shoulders alone.

Leaders carry a burden to right the wrongs and to confront what needs to be confronted.

Being dismissed or treated poorly after clearly pointing out what needs to be dealt with should not bring doubt in your mind that you did something wrong. When a leader makes you believe that the wrong you see is not something to be burdened about, then it is highly possible that that leader is gaslighting you. Seek outside wisdom to help you recognize this behavior.

It is easier to ignore and sweep under the rug problems that arise, than to deal with them head on. And a leader that gaslights or makes the victim feel unheard and not validated is a leader that cares about their own time and energy, rather than caring for those they lead. And they will make it clear that they do not like those that rock the boat.

Like all of us, I have experienced really good leadership and very poor leadership. I have had opportunity to be a leader as well, and had plenty of room to grow in my leading skills.

Good leadership brings with it a feeling of being safe, of being heard and an understanding made clear by them of the expectations and guidelines for those they lead.

Poor leadership feels unsafe. You will second guess yourself often, feel insecure in the relationship and be made to believe that you are the problem if you do bring up an issue. The negative feelings you carry are meant for you to carry as the leader uses these to put those they lead in line. If you are kept in the unsure box, they feel in control.

A leader that needs to feel in control of those they lead are not leading well at all.

Jesus showed us true leadership. It is sacrificial, it is giving, it is showing love and kindness while also being vulnerable. And it is servanthood. A true leader serves those they lead, not control or harm them.

There will be unintentional hurt received, because we are all still learning and growing, but look for the patterns of what I shared above. If their leadership shows patterns of gaslighting, being passive aggressive, refusal to take responsibility or be held accountable or hold anyone else accountable for their wrong behaviors, then you have found yourself under a very unhealthy and poor leader.

Ask the Lord to show you what to do if this is a leadership you find yourself under. He will lead your steps and give you grace and strength to walk them out.

It grieves my heart when people find themselves under a very poor leader and feel responsible to remain loyal to that leader. Oftentimes loyalty to poor leadership reveals what is in our hearts as well. Wounds that are seeking healing in something that is comfortable, or rather poor treatment they are used to from previous harmful relationships, will keep people tethered to bad leaders. Healing of those wounds will uncover what we are blind to see.

May God place you under the right leadership where you feel peace and safe, and you find you are growing in a healthy way under them.

You might know that rest is what you need. Giving yourself a full day to be still, to put your feet up and to have time to process life seems what your soul is thirsting for.

Yet, although you have looked forward to escaping from the busyness of the week, you find yourself struggling on that day which is lacking the normal week-day structure.

Why has your day of rest now become an unexpected emotional ride?

You might feel that depression you’ve been able to distract yourself from all week poke its head around. Or it might be loneliness with no co-workers or students to keep you company. And still the dread of uncertainty about the future suddenly decides to show up and rob you of the peace you crave and need.

Rest days can be hard. Without all of the distractions of a normal routine filled week, assignment deadlines to meet and emails to respond to, a day to chill can just make room for other heart issues to surface.

If this is your struggle, I would encourage you to practice rest and being still despite the inner conflict. Begin with sitting alone just for a couple of hours per week and allow yourself to sit with those hard issues.

In that time work through whatever it is that comes to mind. Your heart and soul need you to work through those hard issues. Journal, go for a walk, talk with a trusted friend. But do not ignore what needs to be processed and what needs your attention for healing.

If guilt is the culprit that steals the joy found in rest, work against that lie that you have to be productive at all times. Your value and worth are not defined by what you do, but simply by who you are and whom you belong to; the Lord.

Embracing a full day of rest with a heart at ease and peace takes time for some of us. We have trained ourselves to be on the go, to be busy and to find solace in things not truly restful for us (ie. scrolling through social media, bingeing on tv shows).

If lack of structure is throwing you off, put in some structure to your rest day to help you in it. Plan what you want to do in the afternoon time, what you want for your meals and how you will make an effort to go slower in the mornings. And make time to be with your thoughts and to hear the voice of the Lord.

Rest can have some activity. Activities that fill your soul and don’t drain you. Activities that are slower and allow your mind to be calm (ie gardening, working on a puzzle, going for a long walk).

Over time, as you practice your day of rest and as you learn to process those built up emotions from the week and even wounds from your past, the day of rest becomes principle to your weekly routine. You will begin to crave that time to be alone with your thoughts and emotions instead of distracting yourself. You will start to plan those slower activities that give you time to dream about future things. And you learn to find companionship with God, not feeling alone and isolated.

We were made to serve the Lord, to walk with Him and to rest in Him. Not enough emphasis on our need to rest is made. Because those that don’t push for rest struggle to rest themselves for the same reasons you do.

Be the person that lives out of true rest in the Lord, not burning candles at both ends and not running from your pain and issues. God will give you help to learn how to rest. The first hand-full of real rest days will feel strange, but then soon it will be life giving.

Take care of yourself in this way.