What Comes DOWN Down down, must go up Up UP!

Romans 11:36 (NLT)
For everything comes from Him and exists by His power
and is intended for His glory. All glory to Him forever! Amen.

As I read this passage, it jumpstarted my heart. He read it to me piece by piece, and it was powerful.

For ___________ comes from Him—

Fill in the blank. For (blank) comes from Him.

Think of a gift, a talent, a provision, a privilege or a blessing. Put it in the blank.

and exists by His power…

Whatever you put in the blank—not only does it come from Him, it exists by His power. That means that it is still there because of His power to give, sustain and take away. Whatever you have been given and still have is nothing short of His choice for you to have it.

and is intended for His glory…

This thing, do I really use it for His glory? Am I proud of the gift itself or am I proudly proclaiming the Gift-Giver? The word intended kind of caught me off guard. He, the Maker, the Giver, and the powerful Sustainer didn’t intend for us to use our fill-in-the-blank for our own egos…but for His glory. Period.

All glory to him forever!

All that we have, all that we are, all our hopes and dreams…they are to be for His glory. The forever part makes this so.

Want a promotion in your job? Only if it is for My glory, Child.

Are you using a special talent for Him? Please care more about My fame and renown than your own, Dear One.

Have you been given wisdom and faith? Let your motive be to draw others closer to me.

May the very life we have been given be used for His glory. This is something we must ask from Him, because it will not come naturally for us. It very well may be a trait that is grown little by little in us as we submit to Him each day. Let’s pray to earnestly desire for Him to be our glory forever and ever…

Lord God, I am blown away by the power of Your Word. So impacting. The same Word that has been there from the beginning of time—in its power—in its perfect timing—has convicted me once again. May it do the same in my brothers and sisters as You choose, and may we constantly remind each other of all the glorious things You have done in our lives. I pray from the bottom of my heart that You would help me to learn how to use all my stuff for Your purposes…that I would come to You with empty hands, an undistracted mind and an open heart. Lord, for all of us, when we see each others’ gifts and talents and blessings, may we see only You—and You alone. And then give You the glory. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

“For in HIM we live and move and have our being.”
Acts 17:28a

Backward Praise, Down the Road a Bit

I was a kids' worship leader for almost 20 years--long enough that it became incredibly natural and easy for me to do. In the last five years of that ministry, God laid it on my heart to raise up youth to lead the younger kids in the same way. So I began leading from the stage less and directing from the floor more. As a result, I had to learn all the motions backwards. (Yes, I'm in a very contemporary church where we do lots of ACTIVE hand motions and choreography to our songs).

If I hadn't shown the motions backwards, the youth leading on the stage would've been all confused, hands and flip-flops flying every which direction. It took intense concentration and EXtremely intentional thinking for me to be able to do the motions both ways. It may sound easy, but...NOT!


This emulates my 'daily living' worship as well. It is so easy for me to spend time in the Word, soaking it up, applying it, teaching it, writing it. It's quite another to mirror the Word to others. It takes extreme focus on my part, as well as intentional surrender to the Holy Spirit. Sounds so simple when I'm reading it and praying it, but...NOT!

James 1:22-25 (NIV) 

Do not merely listen to the Word, and so deceive yourselves. 

Do what is says. 

Anyone who listens to the Word but does not do what it says

is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, 

after looking at himself, 

goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 

But the man who looks intently into the perfect Law 

that gives freedom, and continues to do this, 

not forgetting what he has heard but doing it-

-he will be blessed in what he does.

My friends, pause & ponder this: Are you living a life of backward praise?

Along The Sidewalk of Silence/Fiction Friday

Yea, it's time for Fiction Friday over at Patterings today. For more great fiction or to post some yourself, go knock at Patty's door.

Along The Sidewalk of Silence

It was a breezier day than usual at the park, but with the sun shining brightly above me, I felt nothing but joy. Even the dust blowing in my face would not weigh me down. I was about to belt out my favorite praise song, when I was interrupted by a young woman--maybe early twenties or so. She spread out a magazine on the bench beside me, protecting the linens of her fine ivory pants as she sat. Oddly enough, she planted herself securely in the middle of a featured title that read, “The Bottom Side of Love.”

After fumbling through her purse, she grabbed her cell phone, glanced down at the screen of it, and then shoved it into the pocket of her silky burgundy blazer. She held a steady gaze at the bubbling fountain across the sidewalk for a few minutes, let out a sigh and began to shake her head slightly and slowly, as if in total disbelief of her daydreams.

Her stare turned in my direction, but it felt like she was looking right through me. I wanted to say “hello,” but the timing wasn't right. Tears welled up in her tired hazel eyes, and she finally let her head give way to her hands, which forced her elbows to thrust into her dainty thighs.

I wondered, Should I speak to her? Comfort her somehow?

Many walked along the sidewalk, oblivious to the hurting one silently sobbing. A tall bald man stopped, looked at her and hesitated. As he stroked his chin, the cross ring he was wearing glistened in the sun. He took a step toward the woman, but then turned and shuffled away with seemed uncertainty.

Three college-aged gals bounced along directly in front of her feet. Their Bibles and bulky armloads of textbooks did not seem to affect the brisk skip that guided them along the path through the park. The one with sandy blonde hair glanced back at the crouched-over woman but quickly rejoined the topic at hand with her friends.

I waited--waited for just one person to speak up to her, comfort her, give her some hope. No one did.

That was my cue.

Without hesitation, I cried out that I couldn’t possibly know of her pain or despair, but that I did know of a Rock higher than I that could wipe her tears away. I spoke of a Love so deep and so complete that It would reach into the very depths of her heart and soul and fill any cracked or empty gap that existed.

“Jesus was battered, bruised and broken for you,” I tenderly uttered.

I cleared my tired voice and bellowed, “And when He rose from the dead three days later, why, He raised all who would believe with Him. That’s why I can’t help but praise His name to you now.”

She may have already known the Lord, I don’t know. But that day my Creator called me to speak His name no matter. If indeed she already knew of His salvation, then perhaps she needed to be reminded how it would apply to her even now in her distress.

Only He knew for sure.

Her head came up and over a bit, and she eyed me. Her pupils seemed bitter and lost, yet looking and longing.

What will her response be? I wondered.

To my surprise, she turned away, grabbed her purse and dug through the clutter. She took out a mirror, as well as a pocket-size tissue package, and began the clean-up process of the mascara damage that had been done. She sniffed, wiped her nose and took a deep breath before she stood. After one last glance at me, she went back the same way she came, leaving “The Bottom Side of Love” on the bench behind.

I prayed for her that instant and wished that I had a living, breathing soul to care for her, along with two legs to join her on her journey.

Some scurried, many meandered, and handfuls of humans engaged in conversation all around me that sunshiney afternoon. I couldn’t help but shout out to everyone about that which had been left unspoken:

“The LORD has made His salvation known...
Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth!
Let the sea resound, and everything in it,
The world, and all who live in it!”

As the day faded, I continued to praise the Lord for His salvation to all people and hoped that someone else—anyone else—would do the same. My own voice could certainly use the break.

Until then, I thought, this rock will not be silent.

“But Jesus answered, ‘I tell you, if these (His disciples) become silent, the STONES will cry out!”
Luke 19:40 (NASB), emphasis mine

***(Verses coming from the rock inside the story above from Psalm 98:2, 4a & 7--NIV)

In the Key of HE,

Dorito Brain Damage

Leaving ocean waves behind today to discuss brain waves. And yes, me wants to discuss Doritos.

Ahhhhhh, Doritos...I used to eat 'em by the handfuls after school as a kid. I would start with one, and before I knew it, half the bag was gone. It never seemed to be enough. I wasn't hungry for more, but my taste buds wanted more, ya know?

Even today, the crunch, the munch, the absolute glorious taste of a Dorito chip overwhelms me. I can't eat them often, because as a person with hypothyroid AND as a former binger set free, I can only allow myself these fattening, unhealthy pleasures sparingly.

Yesterday was that day. Oh myyyyyyy, were them goooooood. Cool Ranch too. Yummers. But ya know, with each chip, the thing I noticed was that I couldn't keep from eating one more. "Okay," I would tell myself, "just oooone more, and that's it." I started to get frustrated, because my tongue didn't feel satisfied, but my tummy did, so I kept tossin them in...even tried letting one melt in my mouth to absorb the flavor. Bleck! Not a good idea.

After I finally got sick of the goopy, powdery flavoring on the top, I stopped. I shoved the bag as far away from me as possible and walked away, as if I were putting down a gun or something: "(((EXCUSE ME, PUT-THE-WEAPON-DOWN)))" may as well of been blaring from a loud speaker in my kitchen with red lights and sirens going off.

That's when it dawned on me. I finally figured out why you can't ever eat just a few Doritos. First of all, I have brain damage from all of the Doritos I ate as a kid. More importantly, I figured out their lil secret. They taste good when they first hit your tongue, (I guess it's all the salty, goopy, powdery flavoring on the top), but there is an icky aftertaste, so it makes you want the next one to have the yummy taste again. Make sense? Pretty soon you're shoveling them in one right after the other so you don't have the aftertaste at all.

So no more. I'm reversing the brain damage caused from the Dorito maker's addiction scheme. I'm saying "no" to them.

Because I can't help but make an analogy out of almost everything, I have to say that Doritos are a lot like sin. Often it tastes good at first...but it always leaves a bad aftertaste. And if a Christian gets to the point where she is just sinning one right after the other in order to avoid the aftertaste, well, some real damage is occurring. She'll eventually have to hear, "Put the bag down and put your hands up," if you know what I mean. Each and every day, we need to examine our lives for sin. When we do so, we'll probably find some. Then we confess it, we toss it to Jesus and put our hands in the air, knowing He is the only One who can cleanse us from it. Ask Him to help you see it coming and avoid it, say "No" to it.

Unconfessed sin brings about heart damage. It puts a wedge between you and an abundant relationship with the Lord. And that's scarey, because first of all, He is the Lord, and He is holy. But second of all, He is the only One who can truly give us the kind of fruit we need to live a victorious Christian life.

The Lord is the real deal. Yes, He tastes so good, it makes us want more, but He completely satisfies our longings in the process. Don't try to substitute Him for that person, that place or that thing. Lift up your hands and praise the Lord.

Psalm 63:4-5 (NLT)
I will praise You as long as I live,
lifting up my hands to You in prayer.
You satisfy me more than the richest feast.
I will praise You with songs of joy.

In the Key of HE,

"The Message" on Worry

Philippians 4:6-7 (The Message)

"Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life."

"Let petitions and praises shape my worries into prayers"...I love this phrase. That is what I will choose to do this very moment. When I put my mind on Him and how great He is, then I don't start thinking about what might happen in the next few hours or days. My spirit is so willing, but my flesh is weak. Worry keeps trying to pull me back to itself, but I'm not letting go of Trust, who is much stronger.

Father God, You are great and mighty. You have set the world in motion, and then You chose to put little ole me in it along with gazillions of other people. I praise You for the few things I can see with my eyes, for all the beautiful sounds I can hear, and for all the everythings you have given me to touch and feel. The smells around me are a reminder of Your provision, as well as Your creativity. Truly, I stand amazed by Your wonders. Also, Lord, when I reflect on all the ick that has happened in my past and how You were not only present, but protecting and providing through it all...again I cannot hold back from singing praises to You. So, I'm never gonna stop, Lord. I'll keep praising You. Help me, Lord, when my mind wanders into Worry's forest to turn away and run immediately, straight to Your arms of safety. I'm so weak, Father, and I can't do it on my own. I know also that so many of my brothers and sisters are faced with trials, with hardships, with decisions, with uncertainty, and I pray you would give them the same peace and the same prayer.

And there are so many crying out to You, God, that don't even know You personally. Draw them to Yourself, as you already are, and lead others to them to share, to pray, and to be Your hands and feet. All of this I pray to You, the Holy One, the brilliant Maker of heaven and earth who holds all things together, Amen.

Matthew 6:34 (The Message)

"Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don't get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes."

Praise in A Minor Key

My big sister ministered to us. Knowing of difficult times we are going through, God led her to send us Psalm 34, the perfect cry of our hearts right now. Sometimes praise isn't a march or an anthem. Sometimes praise is sung in a minor key. So today, I choose to praise Him, and I will use this anointed Psalm to do so:

Psalm 34, NIV(emphasis mine)
Of David. When he pretended to be insane before Abimelech, who drove him away, and he left.

"I will extol the LORD at all times;
His praise will always be on my lips.

My soul will boast in the LORD;
let the afflicted hear and rejoice.

Glorify the LORD with me;
let us exalt His name together.

I sought the LORD, and He answered me;
He delivered me from all my fears.

Those who look to him are radiant;
their faces are never covered with shame.

This poor man called, and the LORD heard him;
He saved him out of all his troubles.

The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him,
and He delivers them.

Taste and see that the LORD is good;
blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him.

Fear the LORD, you His saints,
for those who fear Him lack nothing.

The lions may grow weak and hungry,
but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.

Come, my children, listen to me;
I will teach you the fear of the LORD.

Whoever of you loves life
and desires to see many good days,

keep your tongue from evil
and your lips from speaking lies.

Turn from evil and do good;
seek peace and pursue it.

The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous
and His ears are attentive to their cry;

the face of the LORD is against those who do evil,
to cut off the memory of them from the earth.

The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them;
He delivers them from all their troubles.

The LORD is close to the brokenhearted
and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

A righteous man may have many troubles,
but the LORD delivers him from them all;

He protects all his bones,
not one of them will be broken.

Evil will slay the wicked;
the foes of the righteous will be condemned.

The LORD redeems His servants;
no one will be condemned who takes refuge in Him."

Lord, Brian and I take refuge in You today. We will never stop praising You, trusting You, depending on You. Thank You for being close to us in our newest wave of trials. We feel it and nestle in it even now. Give us strength and courage for this day. Help us not to forget our commitment to You. It is in Your name that we live and move and have our being, Amen.

I'm seekin, I'm seekin'!!!!!!!

"My heart says of you, "Seek his face!"
Your face, LORD, I will seek."
Psalm 27:8

I've walked in the faith long enough to know that I must look to the Lord for everything, every time, every purpose. I know it, know it! All I have to do is look back and see...reflect back and remember...He has been faithful. This I know.

Yet my heart is deceitful above all things. It doesn't have a memory. It tends to follow my emotions if I'm not careful.

It's no accident that Kristen at Exemplify posted this as today's verse to ponder and discuss. As a matter of fact, hardly a day goes by when I don't need to be reminded that I not only need to seek Him with my mind and declare it with my mouth...I need it to be the overflowing attitude of my heart as well.

For me, the only time that happens is when I go before the Lord small--empty--surrendered.

As He fills me up by the power of the Holy Spirit, then my heart follows after Him. When I don't, my heart follows my emotions and compulsions instead.

So I declare with my mind and my mouth, "Your face, LORD, I will seek. Open, humble, ready, willing." And my heart will declare it too.

A Gift To Return

It's a busy week. I don't have time to post or write at all. But as I serve at Fine Arts Day Camp all week long at my church, I am reminding myself of the same message I am telling to the kids. Our gifts must not be buried. Our talents must be used. But all for His glory. All for His name. All for His purposes. It's so easy to get wrapped up in the show and the production, that we can lose our focus. I almost lost mine today. Then I was reminded of a poem I wrote almost exactly one year ago...for the same camp. I am praying this poem He wrote on my heart for me, for the other leaders, directors and teachers, and especially for the kids of Bent Tree Bible Fellowship's Fine Arts Day Camp 2008:

A Gift To Return
By LauraLee Shaw

Your life is precious to our Lord,
“It is very good,” He exclaimed.
Your talent is a gift from Him,
So use it as one unashamed!

Whatever you do with your talent~
Don’t compare, looking around,
or
You’ll find yourself on sinking ground.

Because the Fact is:

Your talent is needed in this world.
It can make a difference, you know,
For when you use it with His strength,
HE is the star of the show.

Whenever you shine with your talent~
It’s by the power of the Spirit,
and
He is the One who is able to steer it.

Because the Truth is:

“…you have received a gift in order to serve others. You should use it faithfully. Then in all things God will be praised through Jesus Christ.
Give Him the glory and the power
for ever and ever. Amen.”
1 Peter 4:9b,11b

Father God, I give You this new day of using my time, my talents and my spiritual gifts for Your glory. May I be small in my own eyes, and show You off HUGE in the eyes of others. I give You all the glory for ever and ever. Amen.

Life Lyrics

This devo is what determined the theme for my blog. It is a theme that resonates with me repeatedly, and I received more responses from my readers on this one than almost any other devotional. For those of you who don't know, I send out a devo from my lovinthearts website once every week or so (as God inspires me). If you or someone you know would benefit spiritually from receiving these, please click here and enter your email address. http://www.lovinthearts.com/SubscribeForm.html I would love to hear from you!

**********************

If I were to ask you what kind of song your life sings, what would you say? Is the melody upbeat, melancholy, traditional, or patriotic? What do the lyrics speak of? Maybe praise, lament, crisis, joy, pain, depression, truth, struggle, etc.

Just as the number of music genres is astronomical, and the combinations of the songs within those genres are endless, so it is the same with each of our life songs. And the genres and the artists morph over time, producing whole new styles and ways of people expressing themselves. It’s mind-boggling if you think about it. In the same way, we change as a result of our circumstances and our faith working in us; thus, shifting seasons leading to new tunes.

Every time I hear the song Lifesong by Casting Crowns,* it ministers to me, reminding me that all I do and say is my life’s song to the Lord. Sometimes, I mistakenly believe that if my rhythm isn’t upbeat, then it has no value. What God has shown me through the past several years of trials, though, is that it is not as much about the rhythm as it is about the lyrics.

Here’s an example. Throughout many Psalms, David’s tune is upbeat. One can almost hear the cymbals and drums as he sings out, “Praise the Lord, O my soul. All my inmost being, praise His holy name” (Psalm 103). Chapters before that, we hear from the same mouth: “Hear, O Lord, and answer me, for I am poor and needy.” (Psalm 86) Can you see anyone dancing the jig to that ditty? The cool thing is that whether David or any other Psalmist is upbeat, bitter, depressed or ecstatic, they almost always make reference to the Lord’s goodness or sovereignty.

So what about you? Think about the different lyrics your life has sung out to God and to others. Your melody may have had a recent change even as you’re reading this. This theme has been on my heart for awhile now, and it applies to me personally quite perfectly. In the last decade, I’ve walked through a season of incredible miracles, joy, prosperity, strongholds, depression, physical pain, emotional pain, loss and sacrifice. It’s been a roller coaster of emotions, and each one has made its note on the chart of my lifesong.

My prayer for you and for me is that no matter whether the verses to our lives cry or laugh, yell or whisper—that our repeating chorus would be one chiming of faith, hope, love and Truth. Beg Him to help you remember all the situations He has brought you through, all the lessons He has taught you, and all of the ways He has blessed you. In doing so, may it begin a fresh and new refrain within you.

May our life’s lyrics be pleasing to You, our Lord, our Rock and Redeemer, Sustainer and Comforter, Friend and Father—Amen.

“I waited patiently for the LORD;
He turned to me and heard my cry.
He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
out of the mud and mire;
He set my feet on a rock
and gave me a firm place to stand.
He PUT A NEW SONG IN MY MOUTH,
a hymn of praise to our God…”
Psalm 40:1-3b, NIV

*http://www.castingcrowns.com/site.php