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Do Not Lose Heart
Andrea Lende • May 9, 2020
Luke 18:1
Do Not Lose Heart
You can also listen to the meditation and prayer at: https://anchor.fm/andrea-lende/episodes/Do-Not-Lose-Heart-edqb40
Daily Word:
Luke 18:1
“Also [Jesus] told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not to turn coward (faint, lose heart, and give up).”
This verse really pierced my heart today.
It is so easy to give up.
Especially when things get difficult.
Interesting how the Amplified Bible interprets the phrase “to turn coward”.
It defines this phrase with the words, “faint, lose heart, and give up”.
Maybe this is what we are doing when we are afraid or cowardly.
We lose heart.
We faint in our minds.
We give up.
Being afraid of danger is fairly simple to understand.
But what about being afraid of success?
What about being of afraid of winning?
Are we afraid of break throughs?
Are we so attracted to the status quo, the normal, the daily grind that we are afraid to move through into the fabulous and beautiful and miraculous?
Can we be so afraid of success that we turn coward?
I feel like I may.
I may be too comfortable to want to break through.
I may be too used to the old to want something new.
I may feel too old to do something fantastic.
So, I ask God to strengthen me.
I need Him to strengthen me to break through the normal into the miraculous.
I need Him to keep my eyes on Him and His plan so that I do not revert back to my normal which is less than ordinary.
I need Him to ready me and everyone around me for His perfect plan.
I need Him to keep me going through whatever it takes to break through.
I need Him to remind me to pray.
I need Him to remind me to praise Him for all His wonderful works.
The more I focus on Him the less I focus on me and the ordinary.
I am drawn to the extraordinary.
Today I choose to pray that the God of the Universe will strengthen me in every way to carry out His perfect plan.
May you find that as you pray through your difficulties that God will come and do the miraculous in your life.
Daily Prayer:
O Lord, my God, thank You for reminding me to pray at all times and to continue to pray. Thank You for showing me that I am not to be fearful and give up and turn away from Your perfect plan. Thank You for assuring me that I should not lose heart but know that You will make things come to pass in Your timing. You are God of the Universe and God of my heart. You will do all that I cannot. You lead and guide me through the difficulties of this life and on into the blessings You offer. Strengthen me in every way so that I can withstand all the trials and remain strong in You, Lord. Keep my eyes on You. Keep my mind on You. Keep me Yours, Lord, no matter what happens to deter me from Your presence. Please keep me Yours. May You lead and guide my every thought, deed, and desire. Make Your desires my desires, Father. Put Your Holy Spirit in me so that I can do as You ask. May Your love flood my soul so that I can love others, Lord. Help me bless someone this day. Thank You for hearing my prayer.
Answer: I AM with you to strengthen you in every way and hold you up during every trial, My child.
Response: Thank You, Almighty God and Father.
We start a New Year! How exciting! Paul had just finished telling the Ephesians to put off their old nature. They had been run around by their feelings and desires. He told them to be renewed in their spirit. The Amplified Bible defines this to be “having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude.” As we say goodbye to this year, let us put on the new and leave the old behind. We have an opportunity to reflect on what to bring forward into this New Year.
This is a great message for the New Year. We can be in control of our own words. As a mother, I used to tell my children to use their words to explain what was happening in their minds. I tried to help them find the right words. Words that would help the situation and not make it worse. I must do the same thing when talking to them. It’s important to use words that do not damage their spirits. Words that lift up instead of tear down. Even though my children have grown, I still want to be careful how I speak to them because my worlds will impact them for the rest of their lives.
As we approach the New Year, it is a perfect time to take inventory of what part of our lives, our hearts, and our souls are not bearing fruit. What can we give up as this year comes to a close? What do we need to give to the Lord for His cleansing and pruning? The answers to these questions take time. Time with the Lord. We are creatures of routines and habits which serve us well. But we can also change our routines and habits to serve us and the Lord better. So, we can ask God to show us what He wants us to give up so that He can have more of us.
I cannot think of a better verse to meditate on as we approach the New Year. Jesus said, "the kingdom of God is within you [in your hearts] and among you [surrounding you]." For so many years I believed I had to wait to go to heaven to experience the kingdom of God. I have longed to step into heaven and meet the Lord and His Son. However, as we read the Gospels and study Jesus and all that He said, we begin to understand the kingdom of God is all around us. The kingdom of God is within.
Paul wrote to the Colossians and told them he was praying for them. He prayed they would be refreshed, renewed, and invigorated. He also prayed they would be strengthened. May his prayer be heard by the Lord God Almighty on our behalf today just as it was received two thousand years ago. God is the Source of all things beautiful and wonderful. There is no shortage of renewal, refreshment, or inspiration in His kingdom. And as the Creator of this universe, He continues to pour all good things into His people. Paul wrote that refreshment and strength are needed so we may have endurance.
This verse is the perfect verse to reflect on as Christmas comes to a close. The Lord sent His Son to us. He sent Him to this world as a babe. Jesus was given the task of growing up. A difficult one for all of us. He endured the awkward stages we all go through as we grow past them. I look back at old picture and cringe, yes, I cringe. This life provides plenty of opportunities to feel awkward and just plain weird, but our Father loves us as though we are perfect every day of our lives. This is why Jesus came. He came to make us perfect in God’s sight.
God made Himself flesh so He could take away the sins of the world. The story of the very first Christmas was humble, yet the most powerful and loving birth ever recorded in history. All humanity changed in an instant. When Jesus was born, love filled the earth. Love came down and lifted us up. The angels came to tell the shepherds of this beautiful birth. The stars in the heavens also told the story. As we do all tasks that we do to ensure a beautiful Christmas day, may we remember the miracle that God sent long ago. The miracle of all miracles.
The first Christmas was going to be documented, so that it could be read many times over for all Christmas’ to come. It was also documented so the prophecy of the Messiah’s birth would be known to be fulfilled. Prophets of old foretold Jesus would come from the house of David. They also prophesied that He would be born in Bethlehem. And all this came to pass. Even though Jesus would be known as a Nazarene, His beginning began in Bethlehem. God’s divine plan was set in motion with the first census while Mary was at the end of her pregnancy.
What a wonderful passage to read during Christmas week. Our passage touched my heart as I read it through the lens of Jesus’ birth. “It was God [personally present] in Christ, reconciling and restoring the world to favor with Himself.” We have so much to be thankful for in these few short words, “restoring the world to favor with Himself.” So undeserved and yet so graciously given. We are offered favor with the Lord. Imagine having favor with the almighty God, the Creator of the universe. Jesus chose to leave heaven’s door where all was perfect. He chose to be born into this dusty messy world.
Jesus had just spoken to a fig tree and deemed it unworthy to live because it had no fruit on it. His disciples were amazed when they saw the fig tree wither and die. Then the Lord talked to them about prayer and belief. He told them that whatever they asked for, if they had the faith and belief, they would receive it. I remember the day I started hearing music and lyrics. I had just bowed my head at the piano and asked if the Lord would bless praise and worship music. As soon as I prayed that prayer, the Lord bestowed the gift of song writing upon me.