Sanctuary (Big Words)

"The circumstances of my life can be so troubling.  

The outward look is not always promising.

What counts is the inward reality, 

the inner focus and perspective and gaze.

It will not happen if I do not purposefully cultivate it --

tend to it, water it, nurture it.

Here the joy, pleasure and delight are revealed.

Here is the sanctuary.

This is not necessarily a place, 

but a space I carve out 

for myself to be in God's presence.

It's a space in my heart and in my time ~ ~ 

a pause, an embrace, a calm rest.

I can carry it with me back into the fray.

Sanctuary is awareness of God's presence...

   sacred
    set apart
      serene
        sacramental
          simple
            shalom
              shield
                salvation
                  safety.

One of my daughters gave me this Psalms journal for my birthday two years ago.  It has short passages from Psalms with room on the facing page to write my own reflections.  I started using it during a particularly frazzled season of life.  Then I stopped.  I picked it up the other day and was struck by a verse with the word sanctuary in the day's passages:  

"Lift up your hands 

in the sanctuary 

and bless the Lord." 

Psalm 134:2

Sanctuary is what I wrote about, and that's what you see in this blog post.   It's another frazzled season of life with the kids starting school and me starting a new teaching job, and lots of other stuff going on, not all of it pleasant.  (Like grieving the loss of my mother.) I need sanctuary.  And that means investing the time that I don't think I have, with the God who turns a meager pile loaves and fishes into an abundant feast.  I come weary and leave refreshed. I think I'll go back and read something I wrote a while back:  Busy, Dizzy and In a Tizzy: Christian Contemplation for Moms and Other Frazzled Folks. 

You may also like the more recent entries in my Strength in Hymn series:

• His Eye is on the Sparrow
• Let There Be Peace on Earth
• Be Thou My Vision
• Sweet Hour of Prayer
• For All the Faithful Women
• Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah
• Love Divine, All Loves Excelling

This is the first post in my new Big Words series!  More on that later...

Grace and peace,
Virginia Knowles
www.ComeWearyMoms.blogspot.com
 

All Saint's Day and Quotes on Prayer

My Little Explorer
(Will she be a jungle missionary someday?)

Happy All Saints Day, my friends!

I ate leftovers for breakfast -- leftover Reese's peanut butter cups, M & M's, Kit-Kats, Snickers...  Yes, we are recovering from a Halloween-induced sugar rush at our house this morning.   I took my three middle school / high school kids to a youth group party at the church office last night, and after trick-or-treating in that neighborhood, I sat at the door with my little explorer, who gleefully handed out candy to folks coming by the office.  (It's in a planned community with live-work units, so the place was packed!)

And now it's All Saints Day, that oft forgotten holiday.  I'm no Catholic, but I still like to pause and reflect about the saints -- believers in Jesus -- who have gone before me. This morning, I thought a fitting tribute might be a collection of quotes on prayer and compassion by many wise and good saints from yesteryear.  This is good for me, because prayer hasn't exactly been  my strong suit lately and I'm trying to get back into it.  I especially need to pray for my own children!  Maybe it would help to read "Teaching Our Children to Walk With God" by Shiela Catanzarite.

Grace and peace,
Virginia Knowles
www.ComeWearyMoms.blogspot.com


Some people think God does not like to be troubled with our constant coming and asking. The way to trouble God is not to come at all. - D. L. Moody

Prayer is weakness leaning on omnipotence. - W. S. Bowden

He who has no vision of ETERNITY will never get a true hold of TIME. - T. Carlyle

Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire? - Corrie ten Boom

Do not have your concert first, and then tune your instrument afterwards. Begin the day with the Word of God and prayer, and get first of all into harmony with Him. –James Hudson Taylor

You must GO forward on your knees. - James Hudson Taylor
Compassion costs. It is easy enough to argue, criticize and condemn, but redemption is costly, and comfort draws from the deep. Brains can argue, but it takes heart to comfort. –Samuel Chadwick 

There is nothing that makes us love a man so much as praying for him. - William Law

If sinners be damned, at least let them leap to Hell over our bodies. If they will perish, let them perish with our arms about their knees. Let no one GO there UNWARNED and UNPRAYED for. - Charles Spurgeon

It is not the bee's touching on the flowers that gathers the honey, but her abiding for a time upon them, and drawing out the sweet. It is not he that reads most, but he that meditates most on divine truth, that will prove the choicest, strongest Christian. - Joseph Hall 

The Christian on his knees sees more than the philosopher on tiptoe. - D. L. Moody

Talking to men for God is a great thing, but talking to God for men is greater still. - E. M. Bounds

The one concern of the devil is to keep Christians from praying. He fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work, and prayerless religion. He laughs at our toil, mocks at our wisdom, but trembles when we pray. - Samuel Chadwick

And we ourselves are 'saved to save' - we are made to give - to let everything go if only we may have more to give. The pebble takes in all the rays of light that fall on it, but the diamond flashes them out again; every little facet is a means, not simply of drinking more in, but of giving more out. - Lillias Trotter

It is wonderful what God can do with a broken heart, if He gets all the pieces. –Samuel Chadwick

You shall find this to be God’s usual course: not to give his children the taste of his delights till they begin to sweat in seeking after them. - Richard Baxter

Lord grant that the FIRE of my heart may melt the lead in my feet. - Unknown

Work as if everything depended upon your work, and pray as if everything depended upon your prayer. - William Booth

When we get a glimpse of the worth of a soul, and begin to realize that we stand between lost men and Heaven or Hell, then we shall have real concern and the Lord will hear our prayers of intercession. - J. W. Mahood

How long will it take us to learn that our shortest route to the man next door is by way of God's throne? – A. T. Pierson

Oh! men and brethren, what would this heart feel if I could but believe that there were some among you who would go home and pray for a revival – men whose faith is large enough, and their love fiery enough to lead them from this moment to exercise unceasing intercessions that God would appear among us and do wondrous things here, as in the times of former generations. - C. H. Spurgeon

Some people become tired at the end of ten minutes or half an hour of prayer. What will they do when they have to spend Eternity in the presence of God? We must begin the habit here and become used to being with God. - Sadhu Sundar Singh

Prayer - secret, fervent, believing prayer - lies at the root of all personal godliness. -William Carey

The Church has not yet touched the fringe of the possibilities of intercessory prayer. Her largest victories will be witnessed when individual Christians everywhere come to recognize their priesthood unto God and day by day give themselves unto prayer. – John R. Mott

Prayer is not monologue, but dialogue. God’s voice in response to mine is its most essential part. - Andrew Murray

Satan trembles when he sees the weakest saint upon his knees. - William Cowper

Pray not for crutches but for wings. - Phillips Brooks

God never ceases to speak to us, but the noise of the world without and the tumult of our passions within bewilder us and prevent us from listening to him. - Fenelon

God will do nothing but in answer to prayer. - John Wesley

I have found that there are three stages in every great work of God: first, it is impossible, then it is difficult, then it is done. - Hudson Taylor

God never intended His Church to be a refrigerator in which to preserve perishable piety. He intended it to be an incubator in which to hatch out converts. - F. Lincicome

When we go to God by prayer, the devil knows we go to fetch strength against him, and therefore he opposeth us all he can. - Richard Sibbes

Pray often; for prayer is a shield to the soul, a sacrifice to God, and a scourge for Satan. - John Bunyan

Prayer will make a man cease from sin, or sin will entice a man to cease from prayer. - John Bunyan

Prayer is the midwife of mercy, that helps to bring it forth. - Matthew Henry

The angel fetched Peter out of prison, but it was prayer that fetched the angel.-Thomas Watson

Bear up the hands that hang down, by faith and prayer; support the tottering knees. Have you any days of fasting and prayer? Storm the throne of grace and persevere therein, and mercy will come down. - John Wesley

Are you living for the things you are praying for? - Austin Phelps

A Spiritual Warfare Prayer

Dear friends,

Someone I love very much sent me this prayer, which she is using to intercede for a family member who is does not yet have a living relationship with God.  She asked me to pray along with her each day.  I thought this prayer might be useful to some of you, too.  As you pray, just fill in the blanks with the name of your loved one.

“Lord, I pray…”

That You would lift the veil over _______

That Your Holy Spirit would hover over, protect and fill _______

That godly people would be in their pathway each day

That You would cast down anything that would exalt itself against the knowledge of God, specifically pride and rebellion

That You would take down all strongholds, such as thought patterns, opinions on religion, materialism, fear, etc.

That You would bind Satan from taking _______ captive; bind all wicked thoughts Satan has placed in his mind

That the armor of God would be placed on _______ and he would become an effective doer of Your will

~*~*~

Here are three other posts about intercessory prayer that you might find encouraging...

• What Are You Looking For? includes a story about Hudson Taylor and his parents' prayers for him, especially when he was spiritually wandering as a teenager 
• Praying for Your Children includes Amy Carmichael's "A Parent's Prayer", as well as Scriptures to use while praying, and other ways can intercede for our children and for ourselves as parents. 
• Got Prayer? includes prayers from some of the great Christian saints throughout history.  Here are two of them...

The Church has not yet touched the fringe of the possibilities of intercessory prayer. Her largest victories will be witnessed when individual Christians everywhere come to recognize their priesthood unto God and day by day give themselves unto prayer. – John R. Mott

The one concern of the devil is to keep Christians from praying. He fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work, and prayerless religion. He laughs at our toil, mocks at our wisdom, but trembles when we pray. - Samuel Chadwick

Bear up the hands that hang down, by faith and prayer; support the tottering knees. Have you any days of fasting and prayer? Storm the throne of grace and persevere therein, and mercy will come down. - John Wesley

While we are on the topic of prayer, I would like to ask you to pray for me and my family as God leads you.  I would be delighted to return the favor, so if you have a prayer request, you can write to me at virginiaknowles@gmail.com.

Blessings,

Virginia Knowles

www.comewearymoms.blogspot.com

Soul Food and Friday Favorites

"O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water. I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory. Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands. My soul will be satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise you." Psalm 63:1-5


Dear friends,


Psalm 63 really resonated with me this morning, not because I am always passionate about seeking God, but because I am often not.  What is it that keeps us from the banquet table that awaits those who will just come hungry to the only one who can fill our souls with the right kind of food?  Is it that we can't quite believe the words?  I'd love to hear from you! What do you think?


Now to the Friday Favorites:  Last week I inaugurated a new "meme" -- which I'm guessing is a blogging term for a weekly themed series, especially a theme that you share with other bloggers. The official definition of a meme is "an idea or element of social behavior passed on through generations in a culture, especially by imitation." Whatever.  I did get the idea from other people, and you can take it from me if you want!  My "meme" is Friday Favorites, a short weekly-ish compilation of my favorite links to other blogs.


Here goes:


A Wrestling Prayer by Sarah Clarkson goes right along with my thoughts above. A quote:"Something I have recognized keenly this year, is that struggle can be offered as prayer. The fight to keep faith in God actually being good, when loneliness or dreams deferred, illness or pain accuse him of everything bad, is an act of faith every bit as vital as the usual rounds of study and prayer. A cleansing is what a wrestling prayer offers,  for it chases demons into the light."

Are You a Dreamer or a Keeper? by Sally and Sarah Clarkson pegged me as a dreamer for sure.  I need to work on the keeper side of life, though!  "Different writers tell different stories. Some find glory in the adventure of life, the great journey required of every soul born. Some find glory in the quiet, daily growth of home life, the small, rich details that come from life carefully tended and lived. Both speak truth, both offer us beauty. Both offer a glimpse into the richness of God’s mind."

Simple Pleasures is the result of Julie Druck imitating another blogger in noticing and appreciating what is around her.  "I see . . . A golden orb of moon behind the black-silhouetted woods; pussywillows on my desk from a friend..."

Calvin on Teachers Who, in Their Attempt to be Novel, Do More Harm than Good, by my friend and favorite author Gary Thomas, is very pertinent at the moment, because related to that, from my own Virginia's Life, Such As It Is blog...

Why is Rob Bell So Alarming? Can we handle the Bible message straight up, or does someone somehow need to make it more palatable for our modern ears?  

As you visit these other blogs, I encourage you to poke around and see what else the authors have to say.  Leave a comment if something stirs you.  I love to see comments on this blog, too, so drop me a line!

Blessings,

Virginia Knowles

www.comewearymoms.blogspot.com


P.S. One of my favorite memes of another blogger is Ann Kroeker's weekly feature, Food on Fridays.  Take a peek and add your own food link!

"Covering Your Coquina" -- How to Withstand an Enemy Attack

My daughter Julia and her boyfriend Alex drove up to St. Augustine yesterday for a daytrip.  I haven't talked to her about how their trip went, but I was talking to them at Sunday dinner and told them something I had learned on a visit many years ago to the fort there. 

One thing that interested me about the Castillo de San Marcos was when the guide related that during a bombardment, the British attackers, situated on an island across the river, had to aim their cannons continuously at the same spot to have any hope of breaking through the tough plaster-covered coquina. Once they broke through the white plaster, the darker bare spot became their visible target. Fortunately for the Spanish, the British would cease firing at night so they could rest. Then the Spanish, under cover of darkness, would scale their own fort’s walls and apply new plaster, making the weak spot disappear. The British eventually gave up! It struck me (pardon the pun) that we all have weak spots spiritually. Those who have received forgiveness from God, through trusting in the death and resurrection of Jesus, are covered with his righteousness. But sometimes it seems that a hypocritical hole is blown right through our faith. Rather than wallow in guilt and let Satan keep taking fire at our vulnerable areas, we need to daily be re-covered and hidden in Christ’s protecting grace.

Blessings,
Virginia Knowles
http://www.comewearymoms.blogspot.com/

Praying for Your Children

"A Parent’s Prayer"

by Amy Carmichael
(Missionary to India)

Make them good soldiers of Jesus Christ;
  let them never turn back in the day of battle.
Let them be winners and helpers of souls.
Let them live not to be ministered to, but to minister.
Make them loyal; let them set loyalty high above all things.
Make them doers, not mere talkers.
Let them enjoy hard work and choose hard things rather than easy.
Make them trustworthy.
Make them wise, for it is written, He hath no pleasure in fools.
Let them pass from dependence on us to dependence on Thee.
Let them never come under the dominion of earthly things;
   keep them free.
Let them grow up healthy, happy, friendly,
   and keen to make others happy.
Give them eyes to see the beauty of the world
   and hearts to worship its Creator.
Let them be gentle to beast and bird;
   let cruelty be hateful to them.
May they walk, O Lord, in the light of Thy countenance.
And for ourselves we ask that we might never weaken.
   "God is my strong salvation…"
We ask that we might train them to say that word and live that life,
   and pour themselves out for others unhindered by self.

Amen 

~~ 

That's a good prayer not just for our children's lives, but our own as well.  Here are some more things to think about...

What to Pray for Your Children

• A heart which personally and fully understands, embraces, and shares the gospel
• Reverence for God, and a passion to please and serve him
• Continual filling, anointing, and equipping of the Holy Spirit
• God-honoring family relationships filled with respect, affection, compassion and cooperation
• Protection and strength to face moral temptation and cultural pressure
• Repentance and humble acceptance of correction
• Guidance for decisions about education options, as well as future college and career
• Maturity to make the right decisions for the right reasons
• Wise priorities for using time
• Preparation for marriage and parenting – pray for their future spouses, too!
• Ask your children how you can pray for them!

What to Pray for Yourselves as Parents

• Unity in and commitment to your marriage – or if you are a single parent, basic harmony with the other parent (and any step-parent) in raising your children
•  A warm and trusting relationship with your children, characterized by healthy and open communication
• Forgiveness and release from bitterness, whether conscious or subconscious
• Confidence and boldness to lead, even when a child attempts to manipulate or rebel
• Wisdom to know which battles are worth fighting, and when to let your child make decisions (and face the consequences)
• That you will be an example of godliness, wisdom, grace, and good humor

Praying the Scriptures

“And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.” Philippians 1:9-11

“…We have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.” Colossians 1:9-12

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” Galatians 5:22-23

“Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things… When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways.” 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, 11

(See also Ephesians 1:17-21 & 3:14-21 / Romans 15:5-6, 13 / 1 Thessalonians 3:12-13 & 5:23-24 / 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17 & 3:1-5 / 2 Peter 1:2-11) 

Blessings,
Virginia Knowles
www.comewearymoms.blogspot.com

More about praying and helping our children grow in faith:

• A Spiritual Warfare Prayer
• Teaching Our Children to Walk With God (by Shiela Catanzarite)
• The Thessalonians Prescription
• Bella Sophia (Lady Wisdom Sets Her Table)
•  What Are You Looking For?

The Password of Praise

Dear friends,

I can't resist sharing another Melody story that Joanna told me.

Mischieveous big sister Lydia, 15, was teasing little Melody by blocking a doorway and telling her she couldn't pass.

Melody confidently looked up at her and defiantly retorted: "M. E. L. O. D. Y!"

Lydia let her go by, of course.  Pluck like that deserves its reward.  Joanna was laughing because Melody thinks she is the center of the universe and that her name itself wields power.

But there is a sense in which MELODY is the password.  It's the password of praise, the exit from the prison of despair.  It worked for Paul and Silas in Acts 16:25-26 -- an earthquake shattered their prison cell when they were singing hymns at midnight!

Matilda Nordtvedt, a missionary and pastor's wife, struggled with depression for years and then fell into six months of deep, completely debilitating depression.  Then one evening, she happened to pick up a copy of Hannah Whitall Smith's classic book The Christian's Secret of a Happy Life.  Three weeks later she was out of the dark tunnel.  She wrote in Living Beyond Depression:

"During my time of acute depression I greeted each dawn with dread.  Worries flooded my mind as soon as I awakened.  How could I make it through another weary day?  What awful thing might happen to me or to the ones I loved in the unknown day that lay before me?  I felt anxious and afraid.

I did not recognize the enemy's voice.  I did not realize that I could put him to flight if I greeted the dawn with a song of trust and praise instead of doubt and worry.  The psalmist says, "Let us greet the dawn with song" (Ps. 57:8, Living Bible).

After I learned this secret, how different my waking moments became!  Before Satan had a chance to plant negative, destructive thoughts in my mind, I began to thank God.  The devil can plant his seed of discouragement anywhere except in a thankful heart.  As my heart sang a song of praise to Him, doubts and fears crept away ato be replaced by faith and joy.  I knew it would be a good day no matter what happened.

Throughout the years, men and women of God have put into words and music the songs of the heart.  What a blessing these hymns and songs of praise have become.  Isaac Watts is called "the father of English hymnody" because he was the first Englishman to introduce hymns of human composure into the church.  Many of our best known hymns are from his pen.  During a crucial battle of the Revolutionary War, a regiment of American soldiers ran out of wadding for their guns.  Rev. James Caldwell, an American preacher, rushed into his church, brought out all the hymnbooks and distributed them among the soldiers.  Tearing out the pages, the desperate men used them as wadding for their guns while the preacher encouraged them by shouting, "Give 'em Watts, boys!  Give 'e Watts!"

Have you ever tried giving your enemy "Watts" or some other hymn of praise?  We may not always sing our song audibly, but if it's there in our hearts, our enemy seeks entrance in vain.  Praise routs him every time!"

~*~*~

Come, weary moms...

Do you feel trapped by discouragement or depression?  Sing a song.  Keep on singing.  Get help from others for your problems if you need it, but try a song.

MELODY opens the way.

Peace and joy to you,
Virginia Knowles

A Mother's Seeds

A Mother’s Seeds
by Virginia Knowles

A mother sows seeds
Sows in hearts softened by sweet nurture
Seeds of myriad sizes, shapes, and sorts:
Truth, mercy, faith, repentance, salvation
Wisdom, praise, discipline, responsibility
Love, joy, peace
Here a seed, there a seed, everywhere a soul seed

No mother is purely saint, saintly pure
So subtle weed seeds slip from her packet too:
Bitterness, pride, impatience, sloth, doubt, scorn, fear
She may wisely snatch them up again right away
Before harm takes root in tender spirits
But some sink in and grow in spite
Later to be plucked out, or not

Yet she seeks to sow good seed in good soil
Not for the pleasure of plowing, digging. straining
Staining hands and knees with clay
Casting bloodied thorns and stubborn stones aside
Not for these trials she toils, bowed low
But for the hope, for the promise of the soul seed’s sole purpose:
Oh, for the fruit!

Working, watering, worrying, weeping, watching, waiting. wondering:
Will these tiny seeds fulfill destiny
First with green stem and fragrant blossom, and then fruit at last?
Or will they lie lifeless underground or shriveled on dry crust of earth?
Oh, did one, even just one, take root deeper and deeper in the divine deep?
Anchored by a sturdy, centering, downward shaft
With fragile spreading threads tangled outward, seeking sustenance?

Oh, for the fruit of those roots unseen!
So: more seeds! Sow more seeds! Sow and sow again!
Lord, make them grow!
For a mother must be faithful but He alone can bring forth fruit!
(Soli Deo Gloria! Gloria in Excelsis Deo!)
His fruit is sweet and succulent, swelling with more seeds
Later to be scattered far beyond her own field, season after season

Nations and generations shall witness her seeds and His fruit
Fruit from seed, and seed from fruit
From her home to His uttermost gardens
From her time to His eternity
For a mother’s heart sows well beyond her own wee plot
She mothers young and old, neighbor and sojourner
Her reach is far and deep, patient and persistent

Any seeking soul becomes her soil
She meets needs with diligent deeds
Bathes each one in warming rays of kindness and prayer
A mother’s heart sows these seeds then
Waters, works, watches, waits, wonders again and again
By faith, hope, and love, she reaps abundant harvests
When goodly, godly fruit is ripe at last!

~*~*~

This poem was first posted on my main blog, http://www.virginiaknowles.blogspot.com/.

Many blessings,
Virginia Knowles

Busy, Dizzy, and in a Tizzy?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Busy, Dizzy & In a Tizzy?

(Christian Contemplation for Busy Moms -- and Anyone Else! )

By Virginia Knowles
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

OK, I know what you are saying: “I don’t have time to sit around and think deep thoughts about God! I’ve got homework to check, diapers to change, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to make, bathrooms to clean…” I hear you. I have ten kids, nine still at home. Granted that some of them are now very helpful teenagers and adults, but I still remember having five little girls ages seven and under, with a husband working long hours. And we can find time for what is really important. It just takes some juggling and adjusting. You probably know by now that I’m on a lifelong quest to find the balance between being and doing. Remembering the story of devoted Mary and busy Martha in Luke 11, I want to “choose the good portion” while not neglecting my family.

As you read, keep in mind that the point is not to do something for the sake of saying we did it but to make a deeper connection with the God who made and redeemed us. The goal of this time is to come out more filled with the Spirit, to see more love, peace and joy in our daily lives as a result. Do you have more passion for the Kingdom of God? Are your delights and desires more in tune with his? If not, are you holding back anything in your heart from unreserved worship? O come, let us adore him! Here are more than a dozen ways I’ve found to make time for soul nourishment through the spiritual disciplines.

Remind yourself daily of the Good News of the cross. We always need to start with this foundation. If you don’t have a living relationship with Jesus Christ (which is not just about church attendance or mental assent), none of the rest of this will make any sense at all. I would be delighted to talk with you about this if you have any questions. We don’t deserve any of the blessings we have, least of all the immense treasure of fellowship with God. But because of his mercy, we can ask him to forgive our sins! “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:8-9). The Bible promises that those who have trusted in Christ's sacrifice for their salvation can confidently enter the Lord's Throne Room to find grace and mercy. If you would like to see a painting I did about this, along with more inspirational thoughts, click here: The Throne of Grace

Designate a quiet comfortable spot in your house as a “personal chapel” where you can go sit every few hours to regroup and refuel spiritually. Mine is an easy chair in my bedroom next to a fully stocked bookcase and CD player. I slip in there several times a day for at least a few minutes and up to a half hour or so, often while I am putting our preschooler, Melody, down for a nap. It’s not completely quiet – I often have Melody perched on my lap and other children wander in and out. And this is also not the only place I can have “devotional time” – I think about God throughout the day, whatever I am doing, whether it is washing dishes or stuffing laundry in the dryer. Taping up little cards with Scripture verses around the house can be a great inspiration, too.

Be ready to focus quickly on the things of God during what little time you might have. Learn to lay aside “the cares of this world” and concentrate on what the Lord has for you. Yes, there will be a time to bring before him in prayer the issues that concern you, but your focus should be on his sufficiency, not on your troubles. He is so much bigger than our circumstances! We bring our problems, our confusion, and our weakness into the Throne Room of God. As we draw near to him, we will bring out his strength and wise answers so we will be equipped to deal with them.

Keep a Bible handy at your “personal chapel” spot. Use book marks to keep the places you are currently studying so you can easily sit down and read a bit without fumbling around. Make a plan for what you are going to read so you don’t just flip open and see where you land. For example, if you read a chapter of the New Testament every morning, you’ll have read the whole thing within several months. You can also finish the Old Testament at the rate of two or three chapters a day, perhaps in the evening. Make a little chart to mark off your progress as you go. You can also go to http://www.esv.org/ to read a daily portion of the English Standard Version Bible or even hear it in audio as you are washing the dishes or folding laundry. This web site also has a really good search function for doing topical studies.

Rather than just quickly reading the verses, take the time to meditate on them. What do they mean? How can you apply them at your house? It is good to sit quietly and think, but you can also meditate on Scripture as you go about the rest of your day, pondering these things in your heart. I read from Luke 16-17 this morning, and jotted down several application phrases onto a card to put in the pocket of my capris: "Faithful in little, faithful in much. Serve one Master: God! God knows what’s inside your heart. Forgive others repeatedly. Don’t expect praise for doing your job. Thank God for what he has done in your life. Lose your life to keep it." Just feeling the crinkle of the card in my pocket as I’m sitting or walking reminds me of what I have read, and I do take it out once in a while to remember them. Occasionally, I will even write a poem based on what I have been meditating on in my times with the Lord. You can see some of these at: Poems by Virginia Knowles

Try to read regularly from good solid Christian books to help you walk out your faith. Several trustworthy authors are Andrew Murray, Gary Thomas, Elisabeth Elliot, Corrie ten Boom, and Amy Carmichael. Donald Whitney’s book Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life has come highly recommended by our pastors as a way to dig in to Scripture study, prayer, meditation, fasting, and other heart-nurturing practices. A good devotional book with short selections can be just right for a busy mom. My daughter Joanna found Charles Spurgeon’s Morning by Morning, Oswald Chambers’ My Utmost for His Highest and Thomas a Kempis’ The Imitation of Christ for me at our library’s used bookstore – nicely bound hardbacks for $1.50 a piece! You can find some of these resources listed on my CBD affiliate page or read (for free) countless Christian classics on-line at the Christian Classics Ethereal Library.

Take time to pray, to ask God to lead you in your own life, and to intercede for others. It may be helpful to write out a prayer list of various requests for family members, your pastors, friends, missionaries, current events, etc. I keep my list in the back of my journal so it is handy. Prayers don’t have to be clever or even original. Christians throughout history have prayed The Jesus Prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” This does not have to be a rote formula, as some have made it, but a way to acknowledge our humble dependence on him throughout the day. I often shorten it to “Sweet Jesus, have mercy!” I also use the Valley of Vision Puritan prayer book at times, as well as prayers from Scripture, such as Colossians 1:9-14. This helps me keep the focus on praying according to God’s will, rather than my petty desires. Sometimes I pray just sitting there quietly, other times while I am on my knees, and other times as I’m working around the house. “Pray continually…” He is always listening! Or, as Alfred Lord Tennyson notes, “More things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of.” Oh, please remember that prayer is not just talking – it is listening for God’s still small voice speaking into your heart.

Start a journal and use it! I write my own observations and questions about life, some of my prayers, and plenty of Scripture verses and quotes from whatever books I am reading. This has been such a lifeline to me in the past few years as I’ve been so acutely aware of my need for God’s mercy. I think of so many Christians through the ages who whose lives have been enriched by journaling. This may be a short paragraph, but I don’t want to underestimate the importance of this vital spiritual discipline.

Be appropriately aware of your emotions, especially as they can indicate your spiritual health. We are not robots! God made our emotions to help us respond to him and to life around us. You don’t have to be ruled by your feelings, but if you are anxious or irritable or depressed, find the spiritual remedy for that, rather than ignoring or suppressing these sensations. Ask God for wisdom in dealing with your emotions. It’s not a one shot deal, but continually offering up to him what is roiling around in our hearts. “Lord, I’m feeling so overwhelmed… Help me to see you as my strong tower, and please show me why this situation bothering me so much and what I can practically do about it.” God is not afraid of our emotions. With him at our side, we don’t need to be afraid either.

Play and sing worship music throughout the day. If you move from room to room a lot or spend a lot of time away from your house, buy a little MP3 player and load it with your favorite songs or other audio downloads, such as your pastor’s Sunday sermon if your church posts those on-line. Listening while you do other things is a great way to redeem the time. I listen to worship CDs on a Walkman with headphones while I work out on the treadmill at the YMCA. Even if you don’t have music playing, you can always sing in your heart. I've put some of my soothing and inspiring favorites on this blog, so turn your speakers on!

Establish a regular devotional time with your children. Read the Bible, sing, and pray with them sometime during the day, which is a fantastic extension of your own time with God. This will not just be an academic exercise, but an opportunity for you connect again with your Heavenly Father as you bring your children to him for a blessing. (See Mark 10:13-16.)

Use your daily duties as object lessons of God’s truth and grace. When you are making dinner, think of the feast he is preparing for us in heaven. When you are washing dishes, be thankful for the abundant food you ate off of them, and pray for those who are less fortunate. When you are cleaning up your kids’ muddy toes, think of how Jesus washed the feet of his disciples. A yucky toilet, stubborn laundry stain, or dirty diaper can remind us of how he washes our foulest sins away: “white as snow.” This attitude not only inspires our souls with the holy character of God, but makes our work meaningful and less irksome. I find that, like Brother Lawrence, I can “practice the presence of God” no matter what I am doing, even if I am not kneeling in prayer or reading my Bible.

Think about God “in the watches of the night.” I am a chronic insomniac, usually waking for an hour or more in the middle of the night. During these times, I remind myself of the mercies of the Lord, pray for others, and think of Bible verses I have memorized. I also do this as I am falling asleep at night, and sometimes as I lie in bed trying to wake up in the morning. This is also a good practice for mommies who are night nursing their babies, as I did off and on for nearly two decades. “My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food, and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips, when I remember you upon my bed, and meditate on you in the watches of the night; for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.” Psalm 63:5-7

Enjoy your Sabbath! This is a time when I don’t have to feel guilty about laying aside many of my regular daily duties. I like to use Sunday afternoon as a time for leisurely reading and contemplation, as well as rest. What a precious gift from God!

I hope these simple suggestions have been helpful to you. I don’t present them as a formula, but as a means to help our hearts be captivated by our Awesome God.