The Greatest Designer

 

The message theme at Simonka last night was “Allowing God to Run Your Life”. I looked in my poems for a piece that would fit, and ended up doing what seems to have become the norm for me: writing a new one instead. Once again I finished it a mere half hour before sharing it with the ladies at the shelter! It is about how the Lord renovates our life, if we let Him…

“The Greatest Designer”

God won’t barge into your heart, He gently knocks,
then waits for us to answer the door of our soul,
look through the peephole and unlatch the locks,
to invite Him inside, and grant Him control.
I can tell how God works in myself and others:
Turning each shack into a cozy home,
working closely with sisters and brothers
who no longer call their lives their own.
We joyfully share about each renovation:
He brings hope to every room and closet:
Exposing our flaws with truth’s illumination,
sins He already knew, but still paid the deposit!
God redecorates lives in the brightest hues,
knowing best how our heart, Christ’s home
can function fully, as daily we choose
to let it truly become His throne.
So that’s the choice you have this day:
To back away from the threshold in pride,
or open your heart’s door and humbly pray
for the greatest Designer to step inside.
You won’t regret it, though change is pain,
great peace and love fills each space,
as He restores every tile and window pane
we’ll change the neighborhood by His grace!

5-20-18
©Ladeena Ashley

While writing that poem, in my mind was playing an older Christian song by Shaun Groves entitled “Welcome Home”. In it, he sings about opening up the door of his heart so that God, by His Spirit, can help him make changes in his life. Our bodies are but the outside packaging, but our heart and souls are where we “live” and where, from the abundance within, the mouth speaks (Matthew 12:34). We must guard our hearts (Proverbs 4:23). If we don’t have our inner lives in order, everything outside will be thrown into chaos.

Over the last few weeks since the divorce, I’ve been praying about how to move on, and what is really important enough for me to have in my life. In complete surrender to the Lord, I’ve asked for wisdom, and am trusting that He will help me make healthy changes so that how I spend my time and resources will be more honoring to Him.

When invited, the Lord helps to organize and protect the good, while giving us strength to toss things that aren’t necessary. The hard part is, He needs full access to every nook and cranny, every dark and dusty corner, in order for us to have the full measure of joy that He promises as we submit to Him (John 15:1-11). It’s not easy, but we must allow God to show us where and how to make changes, even painful ones, in order to follow Him more closely.

Of course, daily prayer and time in the Word is essential to keeping ourselves open to the Lord and His perfect designs for our life. I often pray this verse: “Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” Psalm 139:23-24

My prayer for you as well as for myself, is that we keep the doors, windows and closets of our hearts open to the moving of the Spirit and the light of the Son, so He can transform us inside and out!

The greatest Designer, the God who created the universe, loves you so much! You can trust in His design for your life, because He is good and what He has planned is infinitely more fulfilling than anything you can ever ask or imagine (Ephesians 3:20-21, 1 Corinthians 2:9). I know from experience that the more I fellowship with Him, allowing Him to “have the run of the place” in my life, the stronger, more hopeful, joyful and more at peace I am.

Is your heart’s door open?

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.” Revelation 3:20 (NKJV)

Blessings to you, this day and always!

©Ladeena Ashley
All Rights Reserved (Blog content and photos)

Word Games and Wisdom

I recently began playing a new word game on my phone. It’s like a word find and Tetris® combined. As each string of letter tiles is selected, forming one of the mystery words below, those tiles disappear and the others drop down. One level of the game was especially frustrating. I had easily found the first couple of words, and thought for sure that the last word must be “ocean”. Yet no matter how hard I tried, after selecting the other words in several different ways, I couldn’t get the remaining tiles to drop in the right places and spell that word. It drove me nuts wondering what else it could be. Finally, in desperation, I begrudgingly used a hint and discovered the first letter wasn’t even “O”! I adjusted my strategy and solved the puzzle. The word was canoe.

I’ve learned that sometimes life is like that. We get ahead of God, thinking we know what the next step is, but don’t consult Him first. Or we hastily pray, yet move forward with what we believe or what we want to be the next step. Sometimes it’s out of comfort, but often we pridefully think we know what’s right. Sooner or later, we notice that things just aren’t falling into place the way we thought they would. No matter what we do, it doesn’t quite match up. We realize we’ve missed something somewhere and only succeeded in stressing ourselves out, or worse, hurt others in the process.

Great News!
We all stray occasionally, and to one degree or another. The great news is: regardless of how long the rabbit trail goes, while we are still on this earth, it’s never too late to redirect when we’ve veered off track. God is quick to forgive and His wisdom is always available to all who ask (James 1:5).

Muscle Memory
Decisions and struggles are all opportunities to trust God and to build our relationship with the Creator of the stars and universe. We can either choose to let our experiences strengthen our faith or to break us down. Trusting God develops the muscle memory of our faith. Each time we seek His will, then see Him work in and through us, it becomes easier and more natural to trust His wisdom instead of ours the next time. And the next time. That’s one reason why God’s Word tells us to pray continually and in all circumstances (1 Thessalonians 5:17).

Many of my decisions for the past several years have actually sprung out of a survival instinct and limited thinking, not pride. However, now that things have improved on that front, it could be tempting to “rest on my laurels”, assuming that I can coast along on my own, or that “I’m good” now. Wrong! They are HIS laurels! I’ve made it this far only by holding on to Him, surrendering myself and seeking His will in all things, not just in the midst of problems. I’ve worked my faith muscles so well that I’m actually afraid of what might happen if I took matters in my own hands!

One of my favorite scripture verses sums up what our daily faith walk should look like: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths.” Proverbs 3:5-6

It’s Not About Me
Overall, personally I have to keep reminding myself that life really isn’t about me. Once I decided to follow Jesus, every aspect of my life is to be under His lordship. If I let my own selfish wants and desires take control, I’m ignoring His power in my life and won’t get the full blessings that are available. And I really want those blessings! That’s not to say we can’t enjoy good things in life, and not every decision is that crucial; it’s simply that nothing else and no one but God should have ultimate sway in our lives. It’s about the condition of our heart and our overall focus.

Here’s a poem I wrote that expresses the child-like faith and softness of heart that God delights in:

“Trust”

You fill my soul with healing,
You commence my heart to sing;
All to You I am revealing,
though You already know everything.
I give You, this day, my heart of clay
Each hour, my life to mold;
For when You have complete control
the most glorious things unfold.
So I lay down my all at Your feet,
not knowing on my own what is best;
But as I pull my hands free, I’m reassured
that with You, I’ll always be blessed.

6-10-94
©Ladeena Ashley

Let’s pursue God’s best for our lives by staying in His Word and praying before making decisions, especially important ones. Learn to recognize when we foolishly start getting ahead of His will, then get out of His way and let Him lead. Only then can the great things He has planned out for us be brought to fruition.

Extra Credit
Proverbs 16:3-9
Commit your way to the Lord, whatever you do, and your plans will succeed (v. 3).

©Ladeena Ashley
2016 All Rights Reserved (content & blog photos)