Have you ever been in a situation where you asked for someone’s help, let’s say your car broke down and you need someone to pick you up on the side of the road, and when your ‘friend’ responds, it’s with a drawn out sigh, “ugh, yeah, I guess I can get you. I was in the middle of something, but if you need me, I will basically drag myself there.” *Emphasis and dramatization is mine. Well, you’ve received help, but it only makes you feel more hopeless because they clearly don’t want to come to your rescue, but you’re desperate. So, what do you do? Similarly, God knows us from the inside out, and He knows if our ‘yes’ is a ‘no’ in our hearts. He wants us to delight in His requests, not despise His voice. He doesn’t need our assistance, but He chooses to work with His creation to accomplish great things (Acts 17:24-28). Ecclesiastes 5:5 says, “It is better not to make a vow, than to make one and not fulfill it,” NIV. We need to be careful what we agree to because every word and action will one day be judged. The Power of A Willing…

“Mama, play with me?” This is a daily request from my 3-year-old daughter. She is incredibly imaginative and can play independently for a very long time. I love to stand in the doorway and listen to the scenes she expresses out loud; it’s so sweet and special. Sometimes, she sees me walk by the room, or sometimes she comes to find me in the house, but she always grabs my attention throughout the day with, “Mama, play with me.” I make a point to have focused play with her every day; sometimes it’s 10 min, and other days it’s much longer. But, I know it means so much to her to have my undivided attention, without my phone, computer, and daily chores splintering my attention. As soon as I hear, “Mama,” my ears are keen to hear to what she has to say. Listen! The LORD’s arm is not too weak to save you, nor is his ear too deaf to hear you call, Isaiah 59:1, NIV. One of the Lord’s most beautiful characteristics is that even though He knows what we are about to say, He listens anyway. The quality time I spend with my children can be paralleled with…

Then the man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.” And the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” (Genesis 3:12-13, NKJV) I am always amazed at the number of special days that are commemorated in any given month. This month we can celebrate World Teachers Day, National Mule Day, and Treat Yo’ Self Day—just to name a few of the multitude of special days. If you aren’t all celebrated out by the end of the month, in November you can observe National Deep Fried Clams Day, World Jellyfish Day, and Use Your Common Sense Day. (I like that last one!) However, the one thing we probably all observe, even without realizing it, comes on June 13. It is called Blame Someone Else Day. Human nature being what it is, we learn at a very early age to declare, “Not me. I didn’t do it.” We inherited this trait from many generations back. In the Garden of Eden Adam excused himself to God by saying, “Not me! It’s this woman you gave me. She gave me the fruit…

So he departed from there and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen in front of him, and he was with the twelfth. Elijah passed by him and cast his cloak upon him. And he returned from following him and took the yoke of oxen and sacrificed them and boiled their flesh with the yokes of the oxen and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he arose and went after Elijah and assisted him. (I Kings 19:19, 21, ESV) A plow, twelve pairs of oxen, and a cloak. These very different items are all part of the story of two men, Elijah and Elisha. It’s the story of a hated prophet and a farmer. It’s a story about making choices. Elijah was a prophet of the Lord and a man of miracles. He boldly declared to King Ahab  that a drought would come to the land. Later, we see him in a showdown with the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel. Yet when wicked Queen Jezebel threatened to kill him, he fearfully ran for his life. (Read I Kings 18 and 19.) God instructed Elijah to find Elisha and anoint…