Got a Burning in Your Heart?

There's just something about passionate people that makes us sit up and take notice. We may not even agree with or hold the same passion, but we listen. Their passion is like a burning fire and while we may or may not catch the spark and burn likewise, we're affected by their fiery heat one way or the other.

Of course the best kind of passion is the one that's planted in your heart by God. It starts small, kindled by a simple observation, a gentle tug of the heart, a word spoken in passing, something you read, or, sometimes, just out of the blue. Then it heats up as God feeds your initial interest with concern, righteous indignation, excitement, what-ifs, and enthusiasm. Before you know it the God-planted passion is burning in your soul and threatening to overflow like a mighty volcano.

That's how it was with Jeremiah, even when he'd "had it up to here" with the people he confronted with his fiery messages of God's wrath, love, and forgiveness.

Then I said, "I will not make mention of Him,

Nor speak anymore of His name."

But His word was in my heart like a burning fire

Shut up in my bones;

I was weary of holding it back,

And I could not.

(Jeremiah 20:9)

God's message for His people was burning in Jeremiah and demanding to be preached, even after he had been tortured, imprisoned, and mocked. 

What burns in your heart? 

Are  you passionate about saving the unborn from abortion? Or maybe you're on a mission to bring God's forgiveness and redemption to the mothers who have chosen abortion in the past.

Are you fervent about sharing the gospel? Are you the person who seems to find opportunity to witness of God's love and forgiveness most every day?

Maybe you're passionate about helping underprivileged children. Do you invest in the lives of those who can do nothing in return? Does your heart ache with throbbing pain when you hear of children who are neglected, abandoned, abused?

Do you love spending time with the elderly? Do you have a passion for reaching out to those who are slowing down and can't do as much for themselves as they used to? Do you visit them, call them, know their life stories, take them to doctor's appointments?

Truth is, there are hundreds if not thousands of things that God can give us a holy burning in our chests over. And isn't that a grand thing? Like little embers of God's own passionate heart, we can go out into our world and do a little good--warming it, lighting the way, providing healing, turning up the heat when necessary, and piercing the hearts of others.

But here's the catch.

Sometimes, when we are extremely passionate about something -- thanks be to God -- we can get a little bent out of shape when others don't share our passion.

Has that ever happened to you? Have you ever resented the fact that others aren't jumping on your band wagon, joining your parade to picket your cause? Have you ever wondered why everyone didn't sign up for your class, your training, your rally, your event? Or maybe you've grown frustrated when the people you just knew would contribute the most, bring the most to the table, didn't even show up much less give a dime.

It's easy and tempting to get frustrated when others don't share our passion or even understand it.

But the truth is, everyone can't burn in their hearts about the same things we're passionate over. If they did we'd all do a lot of good in one area, but we'd neglect to do any other worthwhile things. We'd all be busing kids to church, but no one would be there to teach them. We'd all be saving the unborn babies, but no one would be teaching desperate parents how to raise those children. We'd all be visiting the elderly, but no one would be rocking babies in the nursery. You get my drift, I'm sure.

So if a passion burns within your heart, and I hope it does, let it burn. Feed it. Share it's warmth and light with others. But don't grow discouraged or angry when some do not get it, others don't share it, and still others reject it. Burn baby, burn. You just let your blazing light shine and be faithful to that which God has called you. Don't grow discouraged. Be encouraged. He has given you a burning passion and a specific purpose. Burn on.

Hey, I'd love to know your God-given passion. Here's your chance to tell us all what burns in your heart. Do tell!

Have You Fallen Out of Your Nest, Too?

I'm hungry as I write this post, and there are some double-stuffed Oreos in my pantry calling my name. This is my husband's fault for bringing those blasted things into the house, and he knows better! I've been trying to make healthier choices when it comes to food and lose a little weight to boot. So far, so good. But when my stomach starts feeling a little empty, those hunger pangs are prone to drive me to places I know better than to visit..e.g. the freezer, the pantry, the fridge, Sonic.

Turns out our hungry souls have similar capacity to drive us. Today I read in Proverbs 27:7-8:

A satisfied soul loathes the honeycomb,

But to a hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet.

Like a bird that wanders from her nest,

So is a man who wanders from his home.

Bottom line? When our souls are satisfied with the goodness of God's living bread -- His Word confirmed through His Son -- we don't even desire the sweet things of this world. We may eat our share of them, especially if they're not inherently bad for us -- things like relationships, travel, food, hobbies, etc. But we don't crave them. We're not enamored with them and driven to try to gain soul satisfaction from them. On the other hand, when our souls are left hungry and wanting because we're not daily eating God's Word, then even the "bitter things" seem sweet and appealing to us -- things like gambling, charging up our credit cards, unhealthy and unwholesome relationships, smoking, drugs, etc.

God made us with hungry souls so that they would drive us to Him. Like a baby bird that depends upon its mother to bring food to the nest and feed it, we are supposed to wait expectantly upon God to feed our hungry souls. And when we allow Him to satisfy our souls completely instead of running off to other sources of satisfaction, we grow in our relationship with Him, depending on Him and loving Him more every day.

On the other hand, what if that baby bird become impatient or entranced with the possibilities beyond the safety of its nest? What if that baby bird wanders off from the nest in search of its own sustenance? What happens then? 

This past week in Bible study I read the book Are You My Mother? to my class. It perfectly illustrates the dangers we sometimes encounter when we, like the baby bird, leave our nest and go searching for satisfaction elsewhere. For heaven's sake, you could encounter a Snort!

Are You My Mother?

 I don't know about you, but sometimes I read scripture like Proverbs 27:7-8 and think they are trivial, humorous, and less important than others. But in actuality, these two little picturesque verses pack a powerful punch about human nature. They also present a fair and heed-worthy warning about the lengths to which our hungry souls will drive us if we don't satisfy them correctly.

Where has your hungry soul led you recently? What has it driven you to latch onto, abandon, compromise, miss out on, forsake, or consume? Has your hungry soul ever driven you into the arms of someone who is not good for you? Has it pushed you into a pit of addiction? Has it tipped you away from your moral compass and driven you into a strange land?

It can, you know. A hungry soul is a powerful thing.

So I encourage you to feed that hungry soul. But feed it the Bread of Life, Jesus Christ. Feed it with God's daily bread, the Word of God. Feed it regularly and with bounty. And, because you're full and satisfied with the good stuff of God, you won't be prone to wander or settle for the bitter things.

Now, I'm going to go get myself an apple so I won't be prone to reach for the blasted Oreos!

Scars and Such

This morning as I was getting dressed, I began to rehearse a familiar memory of something that caused me much pain. I do that sometimes, you know. I bet you do, too.

I remembered the hurtful words spoken, the feelings of rejection, the ugly attitudes (both mine and theirs), and the penetrating wounds I incurred. I winced at the ugly behavior...again. I wondered what I could have done differently, should have done differently. I realized that while I might could have done things differently, there is nothing to be done about it now. Even that realization stung.

Faces flashed before me. Words played like a long-play album with a scratch, repeating over and over without end, until I willfully moved the needle by refusing to listen anymore. Feelings of betrayal, loss, grief, confusion, and even anger resurfaced.

I thought I'd dealt with all that stuff.

I did deal with all that stuff.

But like the scar on my right shoulder that will forever mark the incision of a simple surgery, the scars of this and other wounds sometimes catch my attention, and I stare a little too long at them, reflecting on their sources, contemplating the events that surround them, and even feeling tinges of the original pain all over again.

I'm not someone who nurses a wound, generally. I honestly deal with my hurts and bruises with the healing balm of Truth. I've discovered that's the only way to keep from growing multiple weeds of bitterness in my heart and thus choking out the love of my God. I want to keep fertile ground in my heart, so I truly try to practice the disciplines of forgiveness, reconciliation, and repentance.

But sometimes, like this morning, the scars catch my eye in the mirror and I, human that I am, stop what I'm doing, take my eyes off Jesus, and glare at them.

This morning in Jeremiah 8:18 I read:

I would comfort myself in sorrow;

My heart is faint in me.

And that was exactly how I felt. Faint with sorrow.

Psalm 69:20 echoes these sentiments and also resonates with me today:

Reproach has broken my heart,

and I am full of heaviness;

I looked for someone to take pity,

but there was none;

and for comforters, 

but I found none.

And if those contemplations were all the Bible had to offer on the subject, we'd all be in trouble. But just as God's Word is so good to resonate with the groaning of our heart, it is also dependable to give truth that we can apply to our hurting hearts like soothing, healing ointment.

Be encouraged:

Oh, give thanks to the Lord, 

for He is good!

For His mercy endures forever.

(Psalm 118:1)

And you who seek God,

your hearts shall live.

For the Lord hears the poor,

and does not despise His prisoners.

(Psalm 69:32-33)

Praise the God and Father of 

our Lord Jesus Christ, 

the Father of mercies and 

the God of all comfort. 

He comforts us in all our affliction, 

so that we may be able to comfort those 

who are in any kind of affliction, 

through the comfort we ourselves 

receive from God.

(2 Corinthians 1:3,4)

I have a choice. I can whine and mope and rehash and whimper and wince. Or I can run to the One who knows me, loves me, and holds abounding compassion in His hand for me.

This morning I chose to run to Him. I told Him I was hurting. I told Him the wounds seemed fresh and the scars were unusually sore. I told Him the memories were unwelcomed, but they were stubbornly flooding my mind. I told Him all about it...my thoughts, my questions, my hurt feelings, my confusion...again. And He didn't interrupt me or sigh because I was repeating myself...again. He listened, He soothed, He loved on me. 

Nothing changed. No one called and apologized. I didn't wake up and realize it was all a dream. No one sent me a letter explaining their bad behavior and asking for my understanding. And no one applauded me for bearing up under it all. Nothing changed in the situation. It probably never will. I'm not saying God couldn't cause all manner of changes to occur if He wanted to. I'm just not expecting that.

Nothing changed.

But God gently and lovingly applied the ointment of truth to my tender scar. The swelling and the tenderness have subsided. And I feel loved and cared for.

I was hurting and my God alone showed me compassion. And that was all I needed. He is sufficient.