Teach Me To Do Your Will

???

Teach me to do Your will, for You are my God. May Your gracious Spirit lead me on level ground.
Psalm 143:10

It’s my first post in 2023! The last months of 2022 and the first weeks of 2023 felt like a whirlwind. While I’ve been keeping up with my reading plan, I just haven’t had the time, or even really the desire to post my quiet times. Maybe it’s because I just kept falling so far behind in my posts that it seemed overwhelming to try to catch up. Whatever the reason, I’m hoping to try to become more consistent in posting my quiet time reflections.

Over the last several weeks, I’ve truly been leaning into scripture memorization and meditation to help direct my heart to God’s truth and His promises. In the past month we said goodbye to our second exchange student who had been with us since August as she returned home to Italy. We had hoped that she would stay for the spring semester, but because of her studious, goal-oriented nature, she was concerned about falling too far behind in her schooling (what does that tell you about American schools…?). During the weeks where we were awaiting her decision on staying or leaving, we were also holding back on giving our final commitment to travel to Israel this summer with a group from our church. My husband and I had signed up long before our student came to stay with us and we had initially said that we would hold the plan to go on the trip loosely until the LORD made it clear one way or another. So, as our student was wrestling with her decision, we had decided that if she stayed that we would back out of the trip due to the timing of her departure in May, but if she returned we would give our final yes. The deadline for her decision was the day before the deadline for ours, so we felt that was the perfect indicator on what God would have us choose. Yet after her decision had been made, we both felt that our decision did not feel as clean cut as we had expected it to. For whatever reason, neither of us felt full confidence on saying yes to the Israel trip, so we regretfully declined, not really knowing why. Two days later at church, one of our student’s teachers came up to us abruptly and asked if we knew of any families that might be interested in hosting a student from the high school that needed a new host family. We said we would ask around, but I think we both immediately knew that we would be that family. We had been planning and hoping for our current student to stay, and it just made sense to help another student in need if we were going to have the space. As we walked into church, tears filled my eyes and I had a lump in my throat, because I just knew this is why we didn’t have a peace about Israel, because we needed to have the availability to host another student.

***Now side note, during both our first and second exchange student experiences, we were introduced to and became very acquainted with several other exchange students who were living with less than ideal host families. Everything from really stressful, unpleasant family relationships, being neglected or taken advantage of, and unfortunately even sexual grooming – a situation where we were able to help that student be removed from. So we knew that if given the opportunity to help one of these students in a tough situation, we would say yes if were were able.

So a day and a half after our sweet second student returned home, while still grieving her absence as a family, we welcomed our third student into our home. And of course, because I was certain that all of this was fully orchestrated by God, everything has been absolutely perfect since that day!

…Only it hasn’t.

With our first two students, we were blown away by how they almost immediately felt like a part of our family and we were shocked how easily our fierce love for them grew. It has not been so quick or so easy with our third student. While I can recognize that she probably still has some walls up and is still trying to figure out whether she can truly trust us to care for her where her last host family failed, I think a lot of it is personality. She’s more stoic, less affectionate and emotional, and much less engaging than our previous students. It’s difficult to have conversations with her when most of the time her responses are short, often one-worded answers. At times I admit that I have doubted whether we should have said yes. Walking in God’s will shouldn’t feel this hard, right???

But man, have I been reminded in the past weeks that Christ does not call us to a life of ease and comfort, He bids us to come and die. I have been reminded of these words from Jesus:

“Then he said to them all, ‘If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me.'”
Luke 9:23

“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Mark 10:45

Walking in God’s will doesn’t mean that everything goes smoothly, that all my expectations are met, and that there will be no struggle. God, more often than not, calls His people to do the hard thing versus the easy thing – I’m definitely seeing that play out as I read through Jeremiah. So I have to trust that even though this situation looks and feels different than I had expected, that is not an indication that God has not called me to it. I know it is in this season that He will be refining me and sanctifying me – giving me the ability to love someone who is hard to love at times, leaning into Him and relying on Him to help me to exhibit the fruits of the Spirit toward her, having grace and understanding for someone who behaves and thinks so differently from me. In the end, I know that He is at work, accomplishing His will and His purposes. My job is to be faithful and to “not grow weary in doing good, for in due season [I] will reap a harvest if [I] do not give up.” (Galatians 6:9) What’s beautiful is that, in small ways, He is constantly reminding us that, even if the work is wearisome, He has a purpose for it!

LORD, thank You that You choose to call us to walk in Your will! Help me to do so faithfully, even when it looks different that I anticipated. Remind me that walking with You does not guarantee an easy route, but help me to trust in You even more each step of the journey. You are a GOOD Shepherd, in the valleys and the mountaintops! Refine me, make me look more like Christ, and use me for Your will and purposes! AMEN!

When The Foundations Are Destroyed

Psalm 8-12

Lord, our Lord,
how magnificent is your name throughout the earth!
You have covered the heavens with your majesty.
From the mouths of infants and nursing babies,
you have established a stronghold
on account of your adversaries
in order to silence the enemy and the avenger.

When I observe your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which you set in place,
what is a human being that you remember him,
a son of man that you look after him?
Psalm 8:1-4

But the Lord sits enthroned forever;
he has established his throne for judgment.
And he judges the world with righteousness;
he executes judgment on the nations with fairness.
The Lord is a refuge for the persecuted,
a refuge in times of trouble.
Those who know your name trust in you
because you have not abandoned
those who seek you, Lord.

Sing to the Lord, who dwells in Zion;
proclaim his deeds among the nations.
For the one who seeks an accounting
for bloodshed remembers them;
he does not forget the cry of the oppressed.
…
The nations have fallen into the pit they made;
their foot is caught in the net they have concealed.
The Lord has made himself known;
he has executed justice,
snaring the wicked
by the work of their hands. Higgaion. Selah

The wicked will return to Sheol—
all the nations that forget God.
For the needy will not always be forgotten;
the hope of the oppressed will not perish forever.

Rise up, Lord! Do not let mere humans prevail;
let the nations be judged in your presence.
Put terror in them, Lord;
let the nations know they are only humans. Selah
Psalm 9:7-12 & 15-20

Rise up, Lord God! Lift up your hand.
Do not forget the oppressed.
Why has the wicked person despised God?
He says to himself, “You will not demand an account.”
But you yourself have seen trouble and grief,
observing it in order to take the matter into your hands.
The helpless one entrusts himself to you;
you are a helper of the fatherless.
Break the arm of the wicked, evil person,
until you look for his wickedness,
but it can’t be found.

The Lord is King forever and ever;
the nations will perish from his land.
Lord, you have heard the desire of the humble;
you will strengthen their hearts.
You will listen carefully,
doing justice for the fatherless and the oppressed
so that mere humans from the earth may terrify them no more.
Psalm 10:12-18

When the foundations are destroyed,
what can the righteous do?”

The Lord is in his holy temple;
the Lord—his throne is in heaven.
His eyes watch;
his gaze examines everyone.
The Lord examines the righteous,
but he hates the wicked
and those who love violence.
Let him rain burning coals and sulfur on the wicked;
let a scorching wind be the portion in their cup.
For the Lord is righteous; he loves righteous deeds.
The upright will see his face.
Psalm 11:3-7

Help, Lord, for no faithful one remains;
the loyal have disappeared from the human race.
They lie to one another;
they speak with flattering lips and deceptive hearts.
May the Lord cut off all flattering lips
and the tongue that speaks boastfully.
They say, “Through our tongues we have power;
our lips are our own—who can be our master?”

“Because of the devastation of the needy
and the groaning of the poor,
I will now rise up,” says the Lord.
“I will provide safety for the one who longs for it.”

The words of the Lord are pure words,
like silver refined in an earthen furnace,
purified seven times.

You, Lord, will guard us;
you will protect us from this generation forever.
The wicked prowl all around,
and what is worthless is exalted by the human race.
Psalm 12:1-8

I continue to pray and process what is happening in our world, specifically in Afghanistan. I found myself longing to read some scripture about God’s justice, and these 5 chapters in Psalms were just what my heart needed.

Chapter 9 says,

“But the Lord sits enthroned forever;
he has established his throne for judgment.
And he judges the world with righteousness;
he executes judgment on the nations with fairness.
The Lord is a refuge for the persecuted,
a refuge in times of trouble.
Those who know your name trust in you
because you have not abandoned
those who seek you, Lord.

“Sing to the Lord, who dwells in Zion;
proclaim his deeds among the nations.
For the one who seeks an accounting
for bloodshed remembers them;
he does not forget the cry of the oppressed.”

God indeed is a refuge for the persecuted and the oppressed. We may not necessarily see it that way, as we watch brothers and sisters in Christ running for their lives, facing torture and execution for the sake of Christ. And yet, we know that God’s provision is not always seen this side of eternity. God sees their plight and their suffering, His throne is ripe for judgment…and yet He tarries, seemingly allowing the wicked to get away with their treacherous deeds. But God has not abandoned His own, He does not forget the cry of the oppressed. He will seek an accounting for the blood of His people that has been shed. Judgment will come, but it will come in His own time. The LORD is righteous, He will lift up the righteous in time, and they will see His face.

The second passage that really stuck out to me was in chapter 11, “When the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?” The word used for foundation in Hebrew means “the pillars of society.” I liked how the TPT phrased this verse: “What can the righteous accomplish when truth’s pillars are destroyed and law and order collapse?” Not only are we seeing this played out across the world, but right here in our own country. Truth’s pillars have been destroyed as we see relative truth and feelings over facts become more widely accepted, and law and order seem to be teetering on the verge of collapse. So what can the righteous do? Do we take action? Do we huddle up in fear? The very next verse says, “The Lord is in his holy temple; the Lord—his throne is in heaven. His eyes watch; his gaze examines everyone.” Again I loved the TPT version of this verse, “Yet Yahweh is never shaken—he is still found in his temple of holiness, reigning as King Yahweh over all.”

God is not surprised not caught off guard by the situations across our world. It may seem like darkness is winning, but God will be the ultimate victor; and every thing that is happening is being allowed to transpire to move us closer to the final fulfillment of His promises. Charles Spurgeon wrote, “…let us gather riches of comfort and arms for future warfare from this text that threatens to enthrall the minds of Christians and hold them in the chains of fear and doubt. God has laid in Zion certain spiritual foundations that can never be removed – against which the gates of hell cannot prevail, time cannot shake and eternity will only confirm. The spiritual foundations cannot be removed, but the temporal foundations can be. The foundations of civil government, the foundations of commerce, the foundations of one’s estates, the foundations of trust between man and man – these may be removed. War may arise. What can the righteous do? We can say, ‘The LORD gives and the LORD takes away. Blessed be the name of the LORD.’ If the ship is wrecked, our treasure is not aboard it. We know that if the banks should break, we will only part with some of our spending money, but our true treasure is up there – not in a chest where the burglar can break through. The righteous must not do as the believer does, who puts his hand to his fevered brow and says, ‘I am a ruined man.’ The righteous one cannot be a ruined man. We must not say, ‘I have lost everything.’ We cannot lose everything. Christ is our all, and Christ cannot be lost.

The Church across the globe is enduring persecution, and it may not be long before the Church here in America begins to join our brothers and sisters in having to make a courageous stand in our faith. But if and when these things happen, let us be bold because of the One in Whom we have put our trust. Paul wrote to Timothy in 2 Timothy 1, “So don’t be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, or of me his prisoner. Instead, share in suffering for the gospel, relying on the power of God. He has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began. This has now been made evident through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who has abolished death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. For this gospel I was appointed a herald, apostle, and teacher, and that is why I suffer these things. But I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that he is able to guard what has been entrusted to me until that day.”

Until that day, I will pray. And I will do what David tells us to do in Psalm 55, “Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken.” AMEN!

“God is our refuge and strength,
a helper who is always found
in times of trouble.
Therefore we will not be afraid,
though the earth trembles
and the mountains topple
into the depths of the seas,
though its water roars and foams
and the mountains quake with its turmoil.”
Psalm 46:1-3

Closer and Closer

So if you were raised along with the Messiah, then seek the things above, where the Messiah is sitting at the right hand of God. Focus your minds on the things above, not on things here on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with the Messiah in God. When the Messiah, who is our life, appears, then you too will appear with him in glory!

Therefore, put to death the earthly parts of your nature — sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed (which is a form of idolatry); for it is because of these things that God’s anger is coming on those who disobey him. True enough, you used to practice these things in the life you once lived; but now, put them all away — anger, exasperation, meanness, slander and obscene talk. Never lie to one another; because you have stripped away the old self, with its ways, and have put on the new self, which is continually being renewed in fuller and fuller knowledge, closer and closer to the image of its Creator. The new self allows no room for discriminating between Gentile and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, foreigner, savage, slave, free man; on the contrary, in all, the Messiah is everything.

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with feelings of compassion and with kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with one another; if anyone has a complaint against someone else, forgive him. Indeed, just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you must forgive.

Above all these, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together perfectly; and let the shalom which comes from the Messiah be your heart’s decision-maker, for this is why you were called to be part of a single Body.

And be thankful — let the Word of the Messiah, in all its richness, live in you, as you teach and counsel each other in all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude to God in your hearts. That is, everything you do or say, do in the name of the Lord Yeshua, giving thanks through him to God the Father.
Colossians 3:1-17

I took a step out of Genesis today because I felt like I just needed a different kind of encouragement this morning. I came across this passage in Colossians yesterday as I was putting together some expectations for the young married group my husband and I are about to start leading and I wanted to spend some more time meditating on it today.

I have to be honest, I have felt very discouraged the past several days leading up to the inauguration. I don’t plan to get into all of it here, but the hatred, division, the calls for persecution and “reprogramming”, and the way people have been censored and cancelled over the past couple of weeks has been truly disturbing.

And so I love Paul’s encouragement to remind ourselves where our thoughts and our hope ought to remain – on Christ. This world is not our home, and we are waiting for a kingdom whose architect is the LORD, but while we are here we need to live with that hope while remaining steadfast to the calling we have been given. While we are here, we should be faithfully putting to death the old self – the sinful nature – and put on the new self which is constantly being renewed in to fuller knowledge of God and being made closer and closer into the image of Christ.

As God’s chosen people who He dearly loves, we can’t neglect our calling! We must persevere and continue to clothe ourselves with feelings of compassion and with kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.We must bear with one another, making allowance for each other and forgive each other…and we must clothe ourselves with love – God’s love. We must continue meeting with other believers, encouraging and exhorting each other, teaching and counseling each other in all wisdom, singing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude to God in our hearts. 

Despite how scary and uncertain the coming days seem to be, I’ve never felt more eager to be on mission! I believe the Church’s greatest days are ahead of us, and it’s humbling to realize we were put here on this earth for such a time as this! I don’t want to be sitting on the sidelines or found bending with the wind of culture and progressive Christianity, but I want to be found faithful, stewarding the time God has given me to serve His Kingdom and point others to the only hope of the world – Jesus! AMEN!

2021 – Rest

“Come to me, all of you who are struggling and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
Matthew 11:28-30

Like many, for the past several years I have chosen a word of the year. Last year my word was joy, which looking back seems like an ironic word to have chosen just months before the world spiraled into chaos with the COVID-19 pandemic; yet at the same time, it was the perfect word, because joy is not dependent on our circumstances, but comes from a deep abiding with the LORD.

This year I chose the word rest – partially because it seemed to be a recurring theme as I read through Isaiah over the past year***, but also because it is something I find myself being horrible at. One of my ditches that I can fall into is self-reliance fueled by self-righteousness and pride. I will wear myself down trying to do all the things before looking outside of myself to ask for help. And as a believer, this is a posture and attitude that displeases the LORD. Ultimately, when I am putting my faith in myself rather than in Christ, I am making myself into a mini god who will never be able to achieve in myself what only God can do. It comes from a lack of faith and trust in Him as I instead try to insist that I am enough. The truth is I am not enough, I will never be enough…and that’s OKAY! In fact, I’ve been reading Allie Stuckey’s book on this very topic and it has been a tremendous help in recognizing this truth. She writes, “The first step to getting out of whatever unhealthy cycle you’re currently in is realizing just how not enough you are. That means letting go of the responsibility to be your own source of fulfillment – a responsibility that was never yours in the first place…Our desperation is exacerbated because of a reason we’ve already named: the self can’t be both our problem and our solution. If the self is the source of ur desperation or despair or insecurity or fear, it can’t also be the source of our ultimate fulfillment. That means loving ourselves more doesn’t satiate us. We need something else – something bigger. Simply, we need Jesus…The yoke of the god of self is difficult and its burden heavy, but God’s yoke is easy and his burden light.”

The rest God gives through Christ is so much better than the rest that I struggle to give myself or that I feel entitled to. He is not only the Giver of rest but the example of rest, as He Himself established rest on the seventh day of creation, when He ceased from his work. The Hebrew word for rest is nuach (נוּחַ) and it is the same word we get the name Noah from. Interestingly enough, if you reverse the order of these words, you get the word chen which means grace. In God’s grace we find rest and when we rest we experience His grace.

I love these verses from the Psalms:

Adonai, my assigned portion, my cup:
you safeguard my share.
Pleasant places were measured out for me;
I am content with my heritage.

I bless Adonai, my counselor;
at night my inmost being instructs me.
I always set Adonai before me;
with him at my right hand, I can never be moved;
so my heart is glad, my glory rejoices,
and my body too rests in safety;
for you will not abandon me to Sh’ol,
you will not let your faithful one see the Abyss.
You make me know the path of life;
in your presence is unbounded joy,
in your right hand eternal delight.
Psalm 16:5-11

I love that Adonai heard
my voice when I prayed;
because he turned his ear to me,
I will call on him as long as I live.

The cords of death were all around me,
Sh’ol’s constrictions held me fast;
I was finding only distress and anguish.
But I called on the name of Adonai:
“Please, Adonai! Save me!”

Adonai is merciful and righteous;
yes, our God is compassionate.
Adonai preserves the thoughtless;
when I was brought low, he saved me.
My soul, return to your rest!
For Adonai has been generous toward you.
Yes, you have rescued me from death,
my eyes from tears and my feet from falling.
I will go on walking in the presence of Adonai
in the lands of the living.
I will keep on trusting even when I say,
“I am utterly miserable,”
even when, in my panic, I declare,
“Everything human is deceptive.”
Psalm 116:1-11

When we set the LORD always before us, when we call out to Him, when we rejoice in His mercy and righteousness, when we keep trusting even when we are miserable, distressed, overwhelmed, and anxious, we can find the rest for our souls that Jesus promises those who come to Him. Jesus is actually quoting from Jeremiah when He says this. Jeremiah 6 says,
“This is what the Lord says:
‘Stand at the crossroads and look;
    ask for the ancient paths,
ask where the good way is, and walk in it,
    and you will find rest for your souls.
    But you said, “We will not walk in it.””

The good way is trust and dependence in the LORD and His ways over our own.

It’s funny that our church’s email devotional actually focused on rest today. The key take away was, “At its best, an unwillingness to rest is a sign that we simply don’t know or understand one of the key themes in all of Scripture. At its worst, an unwillingness to rest reflects a belief (likely unspoken) that God desires or is impressed by an unceasing drive for activity.” Wow. That second part truly hits me in the gut. I so often allow myself to believe (what I know is a lie) that I can earn God’s love, favor, blessing, or even forgiveness. The devotion writer goes on to say, “‘Rest’ is a big deal in Scripture—so it should be a big deal to us. [Let’s remember] that God is not looking for us to run ourselves into the ground. The eternal God of the universe rested after He created the heavens and the earth…We won’t get a gold star for running ourselves into the ground. God doesn’t esteem that behavior; therefore, we shouldn’t either. The Lord loves us, created us, and offers us the gift of salvation through Jesus, but not so we’ll spend our years on earth going 100 mph all day, every day. His desire is that we would grow in our love for Him, increasingly enjoy being in relationship with Him, and rest regularly in Him. Put another way, we have permission from the Lord to rest. No apology or justification needed; we can delight in and be refreshed by the God-ordained call to rest.“

LORD, help me to find my rest in YOU this year! I repent of my lack of rest and my constant striving. I want to be more at peace, to stop trying to have it “all together” (or at least to look like it do), to give over my self-reliance and pride and need for control. As I rest in You more, may more of You rest on me so that I can be a light to my family, friends, and others who You place in my path this year. AMEN!

Choose JOY

Romans 15

May God, the source of hope, fill you completely with joy and shalom as you continue trusting, so that by the power of the Ruach HaKodesh you may overflow with hope.
Romans 15:13

It’s been 4 weeks since I’ve cracked open my bible after the birth of our son. It’s hard to carve out that time in my schedule, which really isn’t much of a schedule right now as I am at the mercy of a hungry sleepy newborn who loves to be snuggled more than anything. Yet in this new season of changing diapers, nursing, spit-up, and sleepless nights, I have not felt entirely disconnected from the LORD. He has continued to sustain me and encourage me through His people, midnight devotions I find on my phone as I nurse and rock a newborn, worship songs, and through lots of prayer. And while I long to have that precious time back – and I know that might be a while – I love how the LORD has held me close in a season where it would be all too easy to drift away.

Like many people, for the last 3 years or so I have had a word for the year. Abide, Delight, and Holy have been the ones I have focused on in the past. I hadn’t really had time to put much effort or thought into that for this year until about a week or so ago when I was watching the Today Show. They had a celebrity on who was talking about her health and weightloss goals for the year. Her weight has fluctuated over the years and she said that this time she’s going to stick to her plan because she wants to have more joy in her life. As I thought about her words it made me realize how off the world’s view of joy is. To the world joy is dependent on circumstances and is something that can be attained if you just change certain things in your life. Whether it’s weight, location, possessions, job, getting married, or having children, the world tells us if you just focus on what you want and desire you will experience joy once you achieve it. Joy is an inner feeling based on outward circumstances. But God’s word would tell us the exact opposite. Joy, true lasting joy, is an inner state of being despite our outward circumstances. It is not based on how we feel, because often we will not feel like being joyful in hard times. I can’t remember where I found this quote, but I saved it on my phone: “[The Fruit] are not fading, fragile emotions produced by willpower…Fruit is the effortless, spontaneous expression of the character of the Tree.” Paul writes that joy is a Fruit of the Spirit which means it is an attribute of a person abiding in Christ. Jesus says in John 15, “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” We cannot experience real joy if we are not abiding in Christ, no matter how good or put together our lives may be; if Christ is absent, so too will be joy, along with love, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control.

So as I thought about this biblical idea of joy, I realized that is exactly what I want my focus to be this year. Because in this new season of life there are going to be a LOT of days where I am going to feel anything but joyful, and yet, God’s word tells me that His joy is my strength and that it is not dependent on my circumstances, but completely available to me when I am dependent on Him.

And that’s why today, I just wanted to focus in on one of my favorite verses about joy, Romans 15:13. It is God Who fills me with joy as I trust, as I am dependent on Him. As I read the rest of chapter 15 for context, this verse took on even greater meaning for me:

“So we who are strong have a duty to bear the weaknesses of those who are not strong, rather than please ourselves. [Who is weaker than a newborn? One of my roles as a mother is to put my child’s needs before my own] Each of us should please his neighbor and act for his good, thus building him up. [In Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan, we learn that really, everyone is our neighbor…this includes my husband, my daughter, and our newborn son. My actions and words should be for their good and for the purpose of building them up] For even the Messiah did not please himself; rather, as the Tanakh says, ‘The insults of those insulting you fell on me.’ For everything written in the past was written to teach us, so that with the encouragement of the Tanakh we might patiently hold on to our hope. [Jesus gave up all His privilege, position, comfort, and entitlement for the sake of those who could do nothing for Him. I can surely give up a little sleep, comfort, and selfish desires for the sake of my child(ren)] And may God, the source of encouragement and patience, give you the same attitude among yourselves as the Messiah Yeshua had, so that with one accord and with one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah. [Boy, do I need some encouragement and patience in this season – and it is God Who is the source. When I am dependent on Him I can imitate Christ’s attitude toward my family, which will bring glory to God – whether it’s dishes or diapers, folding laundry or snuggling a fussy baby, I can have Christ’s attitude and when I do God gets the glory – even if no one else sees it]

So welcome each other, just as the Messiah has welcomed you into God’s glory. For I say that the Messiah became a servant of the Jewish people in order to show God’s truthfulness by making good his promises to the Patriarchs, and in order to show his mercy by causing the Gentiles to glorify God [Everything Christ did was done as a servant, and in doing so He revealed the faithfulness of God and His mercy. When I serve my family I have the opportunity to be an instrument of His goodness and grace.]
…
I have always made it my ambition to proclaim the Good News where the Messiah was not yet known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation, but rather, as the Tanakh puts it,
“Those who have not been told about him will see,
and those who have not heard will understand.”
[My children are blank slates, little sinners who need the Gospel just as much as I do. I get to build on a bare foundation, teaching them truth, demonstrating God’s grace, and pointing them to His goodness and love. These are eternal souls that God has stewarded to me and my husband, and while their salvation is not dependent on us, it is not a role to take lightly.]

I don’t know when I’ll get to have consistent quiet times again, getting up early and spending a good hour or so in the Word, but I can choose JOY. I can lean into the LORD in moments where I feel anything but joyful and allow His joy to be what sustains me in hard moments, in sleepless nights, in days where I’ve barely gotten a moment to myself as I give up all my “rights” and entitlements for my child. Because that’s what Jesus did for me and so, so much more! Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, whose “heart was focused on the JOY of knowing that [we] would be his, he endured the agony of the cross and conquered its humiliation, and now sits exalted at the right hand of the throne of God!” (Hebrews 12:2 TPT) AMEN!!!