Counsel Means Peace...

When I was younger I struggled with the idea of the will of God. I think I was concerned that His plans might cancel some of my plans. Beyond that I didn't like the idea of someone other than me being in control of me. It is funny how things change. Over time I simply became warn out by the results of my planning. It wasn't always that my plans were bad or sinful, but they simply wore me out for reasons I couldn't even explain. Simply put, exhaustion is the point when many people are ready to learn about the wonderful connection between God's plans and our rest. Well at least that was true of me. Look at this verse...

"The wise counsel God gives when I'm awake is confirmed by my sleeping heart." ~Psalms 16:7

When we know that God is speaking to us as we walk through our day, and we are paying close attention to Him...there is rest for us that night. This is true with amazing consistency. Even if things in our life are upside down, the restful result awaits. And that is good to know because all of us will have plenty of upside down seasons! During these challenging chapters we usually find good sleep hard to come by, UNLESS the words of God are flowing freely into us and over our situation. Thats a game changer. Now there is restfulness when there shouldn't be. I love the words and the plans and the will of God because COUNSEL MEANS PEACE! ~verlon

Make Sense Of It...

It’s hard to know what lens we are viewing our life through. Most people seldom consider that they have a perspective that has been shaped by their history and that perspective sits on their faces like a pair of glasses. Everyone views the world and their life’s events through a very particular set of glasses. The question then, “is that perspective accurate”? David, the great kind of Israel, realized that his perspective was incapable of rightly interpreting the events occurring around him. Here is one of his famous prayers to God…
“Without you, nothing makes sense.” ~Psalms 16:2
The wise person admits that they have a certain pair of glasses on their eyes by which they view everything around them. And the doubly wise person admits that their glasses don’t explain everything accurately. So, the ‘doubly wise’ invite God’s perspective to trump their own on a regular basis. The technical word for this is ‘epistemology’, and it means how we derive knowledge. People who don’t keep an ear toward heaven only have two sources of knowledge, 1)their experiences and 2)others experiences. But for those who have turned an ear toward heaven, they have a third source of epistemology, the insight of God Himself. This is called wisdom, discernment, and the ‘hearing prayer’. There are many things that will occur in our lives this month in which only by hearing from heaven can we MAKE SENSE OF IT! ~verlon

Now...

It is easy to get into a rhythm of life and start to assume that tomorrow will be much the same as today. Often this is true. But sometimes there comes a change moment. A moment when God shifts the gears and speeds our life off in a different direction…
“Don’t eat yeast bread…for seven day seat it with unraised bread, hard-times bread, because you left Egypt in a hurry – that bread will keep the memory fresh of how you left Egypt.” ~Deut. 16:3
The nation of Israel served as slaves for over 400 years. Each day they got up and did the same thing as they had done the day before. Then Moses was sent to them and things changed. In fact, after a few weeks of him being there an announcement rang out that the whole nation was to get ready because they would be moving out very quickly and with a very short notice. They were told that when the call to pick up and move out would be so sudden they wouldn’t even have time for their bread to rise before they baked it. That is exactly what happened. When God was ready to move them out, it was so sudden that they only had time to cook bread for themselves that could be done quickly. Yeast-less bread became a sign for them that is celebrated annually even to this day. It serves as a reminder that when God is ready to make changes in our lives, it can happen quickly. I wonder how good we are at hearing God say ‘NOW’? ~verlon

Another Blessing...

God promises blessings for us every day. He is generous beyond comprehension, to be sure. However, scripture speaks of other kinds of blessings that He dispenses in response to things we do. Here’s an example…
“When you happen on someone who’s in trouble, don’t look the other way. Don’t keep a tight grip on your purse. No. Look at him, open your purse. Don’t listen to that selfish voice. The way you handle matters like this triggers God’s blessing in everything you do, all your work and ventures.” ~Deut. 15:7,8,10
The poor and needy will always be among us. The Old Testament predicted this and Jesus restated it. This then becomes a place where our Lord pays special attention, not only because of His love for them but also to see how His children will respond. Will we respond in a self-protecting way or will we respond in the likeness of our Father? Somehow that is an important divine question that is being monitored about each of us. I notice the words above to not look away, but rather to look at them in their need. Most poor people feel dehumanized because others look away. When we look at them, talk to them, get their name, and hear their need, they are validated and welcomed back into the brotherhood of man again. That by itself is very healing. Beyond that, if we have can help, even a little, it speaks to their worth. When we respond to the poor in the likeness of the God-family, ANOTHER BLESSING AWAITS. ~verlon

Heal The Ache...

Walking with God takes us many places. In fact, if we are committed to keeping up with Him, we will walk where He wants to walk. Look at this place in society where the timeless God has always shown up…
“Into the hovels of the poor, into the dark streets where the homeless groan, God speaks: ‘I’ve had enough, I’m on my way to heal the ache in the heart of the wretched’.” ~Psalms 12:5
God has a special eye for those who are at the bottom. Further He has poured His healing into that corner of society. Healing happens most where the need is greatest. Jesus modeled the same thing and spent a great deal of his time healing and breathing life into the poor. When the Pharisee’s questioned him about eating with the slaves; He simply responded that it was the sick who need a doctor, not the healthy. In other words, He was again representing His Father by showing up with the poor with healing in His hands. Here’s my point: if we want to walk closely with God we will at times go places and be with people who are at the bottom. And when we get there we will see the healing flow of Christ like we’ve probably never seen before. It will actually flow right out of our own hands. Our merciful God has always had an eye for the poor. And He has always hoped that His sons and daughters would go with Him to help HEAL THE ACHE. ~verlon

Right By Us...

Many people fear letting God have full control of their lives. Some fear because they think they won’t get to do what they want if God is calling the shots. Others fear because God might ask them to sacrifice too much. These fears and others are put to rest once we truly know what God is all about.
“God’s business is putting things right”. ~Psalms 11:7
I heard it said that the very best outcome in any given situation is to act on God’s will. God is great at bringing about the best outcomes because He is in the business of doing right things for us and everyone around us. God is in the ‘right’ business. Once we understand that, following His cues and acting on His directions gets easier. While we might not always understand it at first, God will always do RIGHT BY US! ~Verlon

Deep Reverence...

It’s easy to over time start taking people for granted. We get used to them being there and used to their loyalty and appreciation starts to dull. When this happens our heart must be refocused on how valuable they are to us. This same tendency exists in our relationship with Christ. When the drift starts, we need to take some steps to re-value our salvation…
“Make an offering of 10%, a tithe, of all the produce which grows in your fields year after year. In this way you will learn to live in deep reverence before God.” ~Deut. 14:22, 23
Did you know that the original purpose of the tithe was to maintain appreciation for God in a consistent way? Our money actually establishes what we value. If we spend a lot of money on a car we will be quite upset if someone takes a baseball bat to it. On the other hand if we buy a rusted out junker, we might take a baseball bat to it ourselves just for fun. Our money actually establishes what we value and are willing to get emotional over. Our heart follows our money! This is true of every relationship too. If we are taking our spouse for granted, it’s probably time to spend some serious coin on them. They are worth it and our heart needs to be reminded of that. When we give offerings to the work of Christ, suddenly our respect for Him and His mission soars. Simply stated, our heart will never maintain a profound sense of worship for Christ if we aren’t digging deep from time to time. DEEP REVERENCE is a result of giving! ~Verlon

Welcome To The Family Sutter...

This last Thursday evening, our daughter Courtnay, gave birth to an 8lb. boy. His name is Sutter West Phillips. This makes Melodee and me grandparents for the 2nd time. We’re getting old! Momma and baby are home and doing great, and dad is already making plans to get that kid on a tractor. In fact, Tyler already bought him a John Deere hat. Pretty cool stuff. We couldn’t be happier that God has entrusted another one to our tribe. I speak blessing and favor and goodness into this young life. And I am so glad we can expect the attentiveness of the Lord upon him. ~Verlon