Practical ways to walk closely with our God

The Lord uncomplicates life for us through the pages of His Word, the bible. He invites us to walk with Him. Closely.

We read in His Word He walked with Abraham, the friend of God. Moses. David. Psalms 23 is one of my most favorite passages, this simple yet profound passage gives us keys, insights into walking with The Lord.

Here's a hint, it is all a gift.

What is it that He desires? A yielded, willing vessel.

The offering I bring

Sometimes the offering we have to bring is a basket full of choice flowers, fragrant and bursting with color. We bring the beauty He has grown, like little children we bring it before Him and present to Him what has always been His. He takes of what we bring.

He rejoices in the fruit we bear, and then He prunes away that we may bear more fruit.

Before I was a gardener I didn’t understand the importance of pruning. I only saw the beauty and wanted that beauty to continue all the more.

Why on earth would I want to cut back these beautiful vines? Branches? I didn’t understand that without the cutting away of what has already bloomed the many more blooms would not come, almost as if I was stunting its growth. 

In seasons of loss, hardship, trials and trouble the offering I have to bring to Father may be nothing but empty hands and shattered dreams.

Dirty hands from sitting in the mud, pulling up at the weeds in my life, wondering when it will make a difference.

I keep pulling, but they keep coming, some I can get by the root, others break off.

So it is with the difficult things we deal with, sometimes we can get to the root of an issue, and yet other times we are only pulling at the leaves, all the while the roots are getting stronger, building fortresses strengthened by lies.

Yet my longing is to bring something more, that I might be worthy of His love and life. This is where we go wrong. This is where many turn their backs from the only One who can bring us hope and healing.

From the One who can pull up the roots of the things that are hindering our growth, keeping our sights on ourselves instead of on Him.

The Lord is after our hearts. He doesn't just want the parts we deem beautiful and worthy! No, He wants it all. All the ugly broken bits, the shrapnel, the hard edges that cut others when they get too close or the anxiety that spills over when we've been pushed past our limits. He wants it all.

Yessi Argabright

Jeremy Riddle has a song that ministers to my heart so much, especially in seasons when I feel I have nothing to bring to Our Lord, and He says, "it is enough." Because He can take my nothing, my ashes, our brokenness and bring beauty out of it all.

Unlike Cains offering, Father receives our offering. Because it is a broken and contrite spirit He desires.

It is in fact our weakness He is asking for. Our inability to make ourselves better.

He can work with a broken spirit.

It is a proud and arrogant spirit He cannot stand. An attitude that says, “I did this, on my own… In my own strength and I didn’t need you to accomplish it. I can see myself through. I don't need you God…”. 

What is required?

Romans 12:2 Tells us that God desires and requires of us to present ourselves as a living sacrifice. The bible dictionary defines this as, "an act of offering something of value to God, often as a means of atonement or gratitude".

2 "Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. ² Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will."

There is much beauty in this place of brokenness before God.

In Ancient Chinese culture they take broken vessels and they put them back together with gold, filling the very places that were once broken, making them more beautiful. Taking a destroyed work and making it more magnificent than before.

Through this analogy we can see that Father will take us just as we are, but He will infill us with His Spirit. He will take our broken bits and somehow in His love, kindness and power put us back together again.

Not the same, no, more beautiful, more gentle, more loving, more trusting in His unfailing love. Yes, our broken parts still visible, but different. Somehow inviting others in, to behold with us.

The more we experience Gods healing hand, the more we want others to know of this same love.

Our God who is kind. who sits with us in the dirt. He doesn't rush the process like I desire to sometimes.

He loves to sit with us.

He clothes us in love. His tangible comfort may be found in the warmth of the fibers in a cozy sweater that holds you close and reminds us God is near.

Reminding me of one of my most favorite illustrations for God holding us together.

Walking through trials

The Bible talks about us walking through trials. Fiery trials. I want you to know that walking through grief is not the same as being tested.

Yes, ultimately God wants us to trust Him through it all, but telling someone that they must have faith and that they must not hurt when they have lost someone they love, is not only cruel, it is not of my Father.

The more that I loose in life, the more I am convinced of this.

Lean in close, lets look at the life of Jesus.

Jesus at the tomb of Lazarus.

We are told He took days to head to Bethany because He knew Fathers plan. Father would raise Lazarus, and yet, when He meets His sisters, Mary and Martha at the tomb, Our Jesus weeps.

He weeps, although He knows what He is about to do.

Why does He weep?

The Lords love for us is so great. So vast and beautiful. Our Savior King was fully God and fully man.

He felt more fully than any of us will ever be able to feel on this side of Heaven. He meets us in our deep brokenness.

Grief is not something to recoil from, but something we encounter in the wake of loss. The Lord extends His hand to us, in infinite love and compassion.

Yessi Argabright

Testing us as through Fire.

He takes our work will it stand? Or will it be burned up? Are we living our lives for ourselves? Or for Him and His Kingdom alone? Only He knows our true motives, our hearts desire. 

Only He knows the hidden things of a person, because He is within us.

This is sobering and it is also beautiful.

Let us seek to live lives that are submitted to God, to His love and His ways.

Trusting that when we start to stray like The Good Shepherd He is, He will draw us back.

We do not need to live in fear or dread of making a mistake, because the truth is we will make mistakes, but if we stay rooted and grounded in Him we can trust and rest in this truth, He will draw us back to Himself. 

When I began to see Gods hand as gentle and loving, yes strong, but also meek, even in the pruning I saw with my own two eyes how beautiful the process is.

There are seasons of barrenness and there are seasons of much.

Do not despise dry barren seasons. Please lean in, there is still beauty and rest in this dormant state.

God has not forgotten you.

You will yield a harvest.

We are told to keep doing good, to keep sowing seeds, we will reap what we have sown. Keep trusting The Lord of the harvest! 

Did you know there are some varieties of apple trees that take years to grow fruit?

That tree is not dead, but its roots are going down deep. So it is with you, my beautiful sisters.

I recently saw where a friend’s trees uprooted onto her home, these trees were massive, but their roots did not go down deep. 

Sister, we want to be trees, Oaks of Righteousness, that are planted by streams of water. Who is Our Water but Gods very Spirit.

He says, we will yield fruit in every season, so even when it seems we are dead, sitting alone in darkness, sister the fruit of a broken and a contrite spirit is all we have to give, know He will be pleased with this yield.

His word tells us it is The Lord who gives the increase. It is He who causes us to grow, we are where we are because this is where He has us.

This is both beautiful and painful to write.

Especially if you are in a season of great difficulty.

I want you to know I will not pretend to understand the intricacies of God and His plans for us as His children, but I come back to this, He loves us. He has given us His Son, Himself, He will not leave us.

He will meet us here.

He will draw us ever closer.

As we draw near to God, sister He too draws near.

He is faithful, I want you to know this, because we are not always faithful, we want to be, but we will falter and we will fail, but He will not.

His word promises that even when we are faithless Our God will remain Faithful, because it is who He is!

I want these words to envelop us like a soothing balm over our hearts.

We all need hope. Sometimes it is more evident.

If you are walking through a difficult season, please know The Lord Jesus Himself is interceding for you. I promise.

Hebrews 7:25.

He lives to make intercessions for us.

I always say the most powerful prayers are the ones He is praying, and we get invited.

Ask Him, Lord, what is King Jesus praying over me. I don't know what He will show you, but He might just show you, pray alongside Him.

Dig deeper: Psalms 23, Matthew 26:6-13, Mark 14:3-9, Luke 7:36-50, John 12:1-8, Romans 12, Colossians 1:17, Hebrews 11:1

Thank you so much for being here. For loving King Jesus alongside me. He is worthy sister.

Keep seeking Him.

Time spent with The Lord will never be wasted. I pray this weeks blog was a blessing to your heart, as it was for mine.

Please enjoy this playlist by Jeremy Riddle, He is one of my favorite worship leaders.

He loves Our God so fully. I love Father more because of the overflow of my brothers worship.

Receive Fathers hope for today. His love and His rest for us.

I would love to hear from you.

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