40 Day Fast

I’ve been thinking a lot about friends lately and the riches that lie in good friends that stand with us in every situation. They are the people that hold us up when we’re too tired to go a step further. They are the people who sit with us through the darkness and the night. They are the ones who call out our names when we are groping in a haze of confusion, who remind us of who we are at our essence and at our core. They are the ones that laugh with us, celebrate with us, and count our blessings with us. Thank God for friends. They are part of who we are.

Here’s what Proverbs says about friends like these.

Proverbs 17:17 (The Message)
 Friends love through all kinds of weather,
   and families stick together in all kinds of trouble.

Proverbs 18:24 (The Message)
 Friends come and friends go,
   but a true friend sticks by you like family.

Proverbs 27:6 (New International Version)
 Wounds from a friend can be trusted,
     but an enemy multiplies kisses.

Proverbs 27:9 (New International Version)
 Perfume and incense bring joy to the heart,
       and the pleasantness of one's friend springs from his earnest counsel.

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A friend passed this on to me today. Words of wisdom, something for every and any day, written by Regina Brett.

To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me.
It is the most-requested column I've ever written. My odometer rolls over to 50 this week, so here's an update:

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.
12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don't compare your life to others'. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.
16. Life is too short for long pity parties. Get busy living, or get busy dying.
17. You can get through anything if you stay put in today.
18. A writer writes. If you want to be a writer, write.
19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22. Overprepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.
24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: "In five years, will this matter?"
27. Always choose life.
28. Forgive everyone everything.
29. What other people think of you is none of your business.
30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.
31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
32. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.
33. Believe in miracles.
34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.
35. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
36. Growing old beats the alternative - dying young.
37. Your children get only one childhood. Make it memorable.
38. Read the Psalms. They cover every human emotion.
39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.
41. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
42. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
43. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
44. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
45. The best is yet to come.
46. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
47. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
48. If you don't ask, you don't get.
49. Yield.
50. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift.
    

Originally published in The Plain Dealer on Sunday, May 28, 2006
Learn more about Regina at http://www.reginabrett.com/

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“I came to realize that really I can’t change anybody. I could counsel with them, I could coach them, I could lead them, I could hold up the mirror for them and everything. But ultimately change has to come from them. It dawned on me that if they didn’t change themselves, if they didn’t have the desire and the will to change I couldn’t change them.”

Don Soderquist quoted in George Barna’s newest book, Master Leaders, Barna © 2009, p 2

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Thinking on this quote from Philip Yancey:

If we insist on visible proofs from God we may well prepare the way for a permanent state of disappointment. True faith does not so much attempt to manipulate God to do our will as it does to position us to do God’s will.

From Disappointment with God, p 242

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A few random thoughts on how to receive blessings from God.

• Make sure that our cup is not already full – not overflowing with things that we have added to our lives.
• If we find that our lives are too crowded, make room for God – off load some of the stuff.
• The best place to insert God’s blessing is in our hearts.
• Sometimes blessing comes in through our ears
• Recognize our needs and admit that we are not sufficient for meeting all of them by ourselves.
• Forgive someone; that’s also a good way to offload stuff and create more space in our lives.
• Be willing to experiment. Risk a little something for God, then risk a little something more.
• Have a sense of humor. Lighten up. God’s blessing may not originally look how you expect it to look.
• Practice gratitude. Every time, every thing we are thankful for becomes a blessing if we stop to see the value.
• Don’t keep an eye on other people’s blessing. That’s for them and not for you.
• Rejoice in your relationships.
• Celebrate everything you see that is good.
• Relax.
• Don’t design your own blessings. God is not a Build-a-Blessing Workshop.
• Try it on for size.
• Smile. Laugh.
• Cry and let God wipe your tears.
• Share your life with others.
• Dream. Imagine. Consider the miraculous.
• Open up your hands, unclench your fists.
• Be generous.
• Rest in Him.

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The best plots contain the element of surprise. Whether it be a mystery novel, an animated cartoon, a poem, a movie, sonnet, or a personal relationship – those that have an unexpected turn for the better or for the worst, always keep us glued to our seats.

And so it is true for the Gospels, indeed for the whole Bible. It is also true for our lives. God is a god of surprises, who takes the impossible and makes it a moment in time that can stretch across generations. God knows that had we no surprises we would have no joy – and joy is at the heart or blessings.

Have you ever experienced blessings that were expected. Or, let me put it this way if you thought a blessing was coming, once it did come as a blessing, was it just the way you had played it out in your mind…or was it even better?!

Here’s a what Jesus said about those who would be blessed:

Matthew 5:1-12 (The Beatitudes)

1Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2and he began to teach them saying:
 3"Blessed are the poor in spirit,
      for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
 4Blessed are those who mourn,
      for they will be comforted.
 5Blessed are the meek,
      for they will inherit the earth.
 6Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
      for they will be filled.
 7Blessed are the merciful,
      for they will be shown mercy.
 8Blessed are the pure in heart,
      for they will see God.
 9Blessed are the peacemakers,
      for they will be called sons of God.
10Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
      for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11"Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

These are the people whom we would least expected to receiving blessing – for the very reason that they are blessed: they are poor, they mourn, they are hungry and thirsty, they are persecuted. God somehow turns the tables. It’s not because we don’t deserve blessing; God’s blessing is totally “his” and the blessing is not based on expectations. Blessings are not something we can earn or strive for, only something conferred upon us in surprising unanticipated volume, form, timing, qualitiy and extraordinariness.

How has God surprised you today? If it’s come from his hand, it is a blessing.

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Who am I, that the Lord of all the earth
Would care to know my name
Would care to feel my hurt
Who am I, that the Bright and Morning Star
Would choose to light the way
For my ever wandering heart

Not because of who I am
But because of what You've done
Not because of what I've done
But because of who You are

I am a flower quickly fading
Here today and gone tomorrow
A wave tossed in the ocean
Vapor in the wind
Still You hear me when I'm calling
Lord, You catch me when I'm falling
And You've told me who I am
I am Yours, I am Yours

Who am I, that the eyes that see my sin
Would look on me with love and watch me rise again
Who am I, that the voice that calmed the sea
Would call out through the rain
And calm the storm in me

Not because of who I am
But because of what You've done
Not because of what I've done
But because of who You are

I am a flower quickly fading
Here today and gone tomorrow
A wave tossed in the ocean
Vapor in the wind
Still You hear me when I'm calling
Lord, You catch me when I'm falling
And You've told me who I am
I am Yours

Not because of who I am
But because of what You've done
Not because of what I've done
But because of who You are

I am a flower quickly fading
Here today and gone tomorrow
A wave tossed in the ocean
Vapor in the wind
Still You hear me when I'm calling
Lord, You catch me when I'm falling
And You've told me who I am
I am Yours

I am Yours
Whom shall I fear
Whom shall I fear
'Cause I am Yours
I am Yours

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In the Bible, in chapter 4 of the Book of  Acts, we read of one of those literally earth-shaking events experienced by the early Church:

[31] After they [the apostles Peter and John] prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly. [32] All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. [33] With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God's grace was so powerfully at work in them all [34] that there were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales [35] and put it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need.

Most people in the church today are familiar with this passage as a model for living in community as followers of Jesus Christ: being one in heart and mind, sharing possessions, meeting each others’ needs. Isn’t that our ideal and goal to live in such harmony and with mutual love for one another? It certainly is mine. The world would be such a better place if we did.

However, it was not until rereading this passage today that I realized I had missed the first point, the first goal the preempts and predicates the goal of living in community. It is this in verse 33: And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all.

God’s Grace. That is the key, the engine, the nuclear power that drives blessing – and not our good intentions or understanding, compassion, mercy, kindness, or love. Blessing does not start with us. Blessing starts with God and His grace working powerfully in us. It is His grace that turns our world upside down. His grace that moves us to do the unheard of. Grace that draws us together, makes us of one heart and mind, looses selfishness from our clenched fists. It God’s grace that gives us a testimony of any kind. It is the God’s grace that we have a redeemed, resurrected and changed life. And it is because of God’s tremendous, unmerited grace toward us that we can bless anyone.

It’s all because of God. And that, friends, is earth-shaking.

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All that I need is to be with You and in the quiet hear Your voice.

Word of God Speak
I'm finding myself at a loss for words
And the funny thing is it's okay
The last thing I need is to be heard
But to hear what You would say

[CHORUS]
Word of God speak
Would You pour down like rain
Washing my eyes to see
Your majesty
To be still and know
That You're in this place
Please let me stay and rest
In Your holiness
Word of God speak

I'm finding myself in the midst of You
Beyond the music, beyond the noise
All that I need is to be with You
And in the quiet hear Your voice

[sung by Big Daddy Weave]

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On Day 9 of our annual 40-day church fast, a brief list of some of the things I’ve learned about blessing lately.

1. I’m blessed when I slow down to hear Jesus and appreciate other.
2. Blessing doesn’t depend upon quantity or siz.
3. Blessing sometimes requires cracking open a hard, protective shell: Mine!
4. I can bless even when I’m grouchy; it just doesn’t look as pretty.
5. Being able to forgive is a huge blessing.
6. Asking for forgiveness blesses me even more than the person I’m asking forgiveness of.
7. An authentic affirmation is the blessing that can make another person’s day.
8. Blessing that involves creativity makes the reward all the sweeter for me.
9. Sometimes the best blessing I can give someone is to not say anything at all.
10. Blessedness lies in being connected to God through the Holy Spirit.
11. Blessing someone else is an act I do in conjunction with God and never apart from Him.
12. I feel blessed by even the smallest thank you.
13. If I dig down with God, beneath the pain there’s always blessing just waiting to escape.
14. The well of blessing Jesus draws from can never be emptied, never runs dry.
15. God loves to bless his children. If we’re receiving little, perhaps we are simply acting like adults.

Pamela A. Chun
©October 25, 2009
Please reprint only with permission.

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