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The Formula for Hope

I have a little “thought for the day” calendar with scriptures, quotes, inspirational sayings, etc.  Not too long ago, the thought for the day was:  “If God’s will differs from your will, which will you choose?”  I’ve read this thought before in the calendar over the years, but it struck me profoundly that day.  It was one of those uncomfortable moments with the Lord and myself where I heard this still small voice saying, “Well…?”

Of course I know the answer that most of us would want to spout-off in a moment is, “Yes, of course Lord!  I will always choose YOUR will.”  But I know from experience, that this is not always true.  I don’t always choose His will.  None of us do.  We consistently battle our own will, our flesh, spiritual influences in the spiritual realm we know very little about… 

Lately, I’ve had to beat at and smack at the beast of Discouragement.  It’s a nasty little minion of the enemy.  And to be honest, I haven’t fought it the whole time; I’ve actually given into it several times, receiving its unwholesome words, letting them surround me and wash over me.  I know that there are legitimate concerns attached to the discouragement I feel, but I also know that discouragement is never from the Lord.

It is a pothole on the path.  A pothole filled with muddy water.  Once you fall into the hole, it can be very difficult to get out.  And for me, this has been true.  I have genuinely struggled to climb up out of it and have fought to regain footing and have many times fallen right back into the muddy mess.

Only the last few days, in a slow, slow process have I begun to rise up out of the muck.  How?  The Lord in His infinite kindness, spoke a word to me, reconfirming previous words He had already spoken over my life, and it was something I could hold onto.  Not to mention I have felt the constant prodding and reassurance of His Spirit.  And God also unexpectedly provided prayer support and gave me encouragement in different ways, but even at that…there was one missing piece.

I had to choose to come up out of that mire.  I had to choose His will over mine.  You see, it had at some point become uncomfortably comfortable to remain there in that discouragement.  I didn’t really want to live there, but the heaviness was so completely dense that it was becoming easier and easier to stay there.  I had to consciously choose to throw off its fetters and let discouragement give way to HOPE.

There seems to be a formula in Scripture for HOPE: 

Rely on God’s Word for HOPE:  “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.”  Romans 15:4

Rely on God’s Spirit for HOPE:  “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”  Romans 15:13

Obey the personal command for HOPE:  “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”  Romans 12:12

Today, if you or someone you know has been battling discouragement, there is HOPE.  Grasp onto it and do not let go.

Katie Botello
FBC Aztec Member

Refresh and Revive

It snowed the other evening.  Snow during a school year for a teacher and students means a potential “snow day” where we have the opportunity to miss school for a day because of the likely hazardous road conditions.  In truth…though the day is meant to keep everyone safe, we all look forward to the day off because it is an unscheduled reprieve from the hum-drum daily routine.

Just before the snow came, I had been watching (as I’m sure many others had been) the weather progression that night and kept looking out the window.  When the first downy flakes began to fall, I felt a surge of excitement and hope…but the longer I stood there peering out the window, the less consumed I was with the thought of the “snow day” and was instead increasingly more captivated with the soft flakes gently floating down.  It was so peaceful…so calm.  It was exquisite.

The snow fell quietly in lovely and intricate patterns, like a veil of ivory lace delicately draping from the sky.  It built pure white mounds on the bare bark of trees, rooftops, and shrubs, and softly covered the lifeless remnants of a faded out fall turned to the cold barren days of winter, and the beauty of it was…everything that had felt distinctly ordinary and unimportant or even empty and desolate became quite beautiful when covered in the life-giving snow and felt almost new, undefiled, and clean.  There was a hopefulness about it…

As I stood there, my mind went to the scripture in Isaiah:  “’Come now, let us settle the matter,’ says the Lord.  ‘Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.”  Isaiah 1:18   And it made me consider how God took that which was ordinary and unimportant in us, took that which was unclean and sinful in us, and covered it. 

Because of Jesus’ blood and atonement, the old and dead man in us has been covered and buried, and   we can walk in newness of life:  “For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.”  Colossians 1:19,20   Now we can walk in His blessings.  In fact, Psalm 32:1 says, “Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.” 

And just like the life-giving snow will melt into waters of refreshing and revive the trees, the shrubs and all of life, the same is true with the Lord.  Through Him and the watering of His Word and His Spirit, we are refreshed and revived into new life, and we will grow and blossom and produce abundant fruit.

Today, let’s rejoice in the salvation we have received from the Lord.  Let’s allow His Word and His Spirit to refresh and revive us and produce fruit in us.  Let us share with others the Good News of His forgiveness—how He will cover and forgive their sin just like He did ours and how He will also bring them into newness of life.

Katie Botello
FBC Aztec Member

Illuminate the Things that “Entangle” You

I gained a few pounds over this Christmas Break…I’m sure most of us are familiar with the overeating pattern during the holidays:  eat a little larger portion than usual at one meal, then at the next meal eat a second helping of certain things that are most delicious, and then the time after that there may be a third or fourth helping, and then slowly we make our way into the mindless all-day grazing—leftovers and holiday sweets and snacks…it’s a ritual and tradition, isn’t it?

I followed this exact pattern myself the first week of my Christmas Break.  Each part of my downward progression was generously justified with the same old, nauseatingly untrue, self-placating sentences, set on rotate in my brain:  “I’ll work out tomorrow.”  “I’ll go back to my normal eating routine in a day or two.”  “It won’t hurt that much if I go for extra helpings during this meal or if I snack while I watch this movie because I’m normally so good about watching what I eat and it’ll come back off quickly.”  “It’s okay; I’ve got this under control.”

This week, though, the whole “I’ve got it under control” nonsense was a sham.  I failed more times than I care to admit—and for the record…I did not exercise even once.  But even more frustratingly, the blasé, uncontrolled attitude toward my eating spread.  Suddenly, I was wasting time, not getting things done, and ignoring my “to-do” list.  Not only did I feel the dullness in daily practical ways, I felt it spiritually as well.

“Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay.”  I’ve heard this quote so many times over the years, but it still rings true.  You may say, “Well, you didn’t really sin by eating too much during the Christmas Break,” and I suppose that is true, but what did happen is that a weakness slowly began to lead me down a path of not being self-controlled and alert, of being instead apathetic, spiritually flat, and a bit lazy—so much so that I even felt the difference in my quiet time with the Lord, and no…that is not okay.

Here are verses most of know:  “Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”  Hebrews 12:1,2

It doesn’t really matter what the weight is or which sin it is that so easily entangles us (the Message calls these “spiritual fat” and “parasitic sins”).  According to Scripture, these things must be laid aside.  So think for a moment what yours might be:  certain habits or behaviors, emotional hang-ups, ways of thinking, relationships, etc, things that leave you feeling less sharp spiritually or even sometimes completely compromised. 

Today, let’s do some soul-searching.  Let’s allow the Spirit of God to illuminate these things that “entangle” us; let’s allow Him to bring correction and redirection.  Whatever it is that we are struggling with, let’s get rid of it and start the New Year in a new way.  Let’s instead get up, get back in the race and run with endurance, keeping our eyes on Jesus.

Katie Botello
FBC Aztec Member

With All I Am

I’ve heard so many times over the years at Christmastime the phrase in Christian circles, “Jesus is the reason for the season.”  It’s funny because the saying is true, but it seems to have become as cliché as “All’s well that ends well” or “Don’t cry over spilled milk”.  I say this to say the following…

I have recently become reacquainted with a worship song I have not heard in years and years and really like.  It’s called “With All I Am”.  I was listening to this song again today.  The first line says, “Jesus I believe in You.”  And for some reason, this time, it jolted my heart.  In an instant my heart was pierced with this simple truth…and I realized with a renewed revelation—like I’d been hit with a bolt of lightening—that YES, I really DO believe in You, Jesus.

Suddenly, tears stung my eyes.  And, as I closed my eyes, it was just me and Him there in the room.  We were alone, and the next lyric lilted, “Jesus I belong to You,” and in that moment…such a warmth came over my heart; He was as close to me as my next breath.  It was the sweetest most certain thing I have felt and experienced in a long time…I BELONG to Him.  I am HIS.

And here it is, the next lines:  “You’re the reason that I live…The reason that I sing…With all I am.”  Right there and right then, my mind went to, “Jesus is the reason for the season.”  In that moment, this phrase wasn’t cliché anymore.  It wasn’t just a catchy rhyming statement we say at Christmastime.  It wasn’t just something rattled off, it was the TRUTH. 

He IS the reason for the season.  He IS the reason we celebrate—not just at Christmas, but at every time of the year.  HE is the reason that I live, the reason that I sing, the reason that I move and breathe and have my being…it’s ALL because of HIM!!  His Word confirms it!

Jesus I believe in you:  “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”  Romans 10:9

Jesus I belong to you:  “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.  I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand.  My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand.  I and the Father are one.” John 10:27-30

You’re the reason that I live:  “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was with God in the beginning.  Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.  In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.”  John 1:1-4

The reason that I sing:  “But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation.  I will sing the Lord’s praise, for he has been good to me.”  Psalm 13:5,6

Today, as we contemplate the season, and the reason for the season, let’s not forget who we believe in, to whom we belong, who gives us life, and who is the reason that we sing…His name is JESUS!

Katie Botello
FBC Aztec Member

A Humble Heart Like David

I was reading recently in I Chronicles.  Chapter 17 captured my heart.  In this chapter, David expresses the desire to build a house for the Lord.  Nathan the prophet gives his okay, but that night God spoke to Nathan a word to share with David.  The answer to David building the temple was “no”; David was not to be the one for the task.  One of his sons would be the one to eventually build the temple.

God reminds David in the word:  “I took you from the pasture, from tending the flock, and appointed you ruler over my people Israel.  I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name like the names of the greatest men on earth.”  Wow!

And then, God says, instead of David building a house for HIM, God Himself would build a house for David!  Basically, a lineage:  “When your days are over and you go to be with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom.  He is the one who will build a house for me, and I will establish his throne forever.  I will be his father, and he will be my son. I will never take my love away from him, as I took it away from your predecessor.  I will set him over my house and my kingdom forever; his throne will be established forever.”

Not only is this speaking to what would later be revealed as Solomon’s reign, but it is also prophetic in nature about what would be Jesus’s reign—which is forever and ever. 

David’s response is what gets me.  David, overwhelmed by God’s favor and promises, provision and protection responds in this way:  “Who am I, Lord God, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far?”

Already my heart is undone.  The humility in David’s response…he understood his own unworthiness and lowliness (Psalm 8:4) and was so deeply humbled by God’s grace upon His life.  But he continues:  “And as if this were not enough in your sight, my God, you have spoken about the future of the house of your servant. You, Lord God, have looked on me as though I were the most exalted of men.  What more can David say to you for honoring your servant? For you know your servant,Lord.”

I think what captures my heart at every turn is the relationship between God and David.  God loved David so very much, and David understood this—that the God of the universe not only loved him but had chosen him and called him out from among men, and David’s heart was melted by this knowledge.  He says:

“There is no one like you, Lord, and there is no God but you…”  And, “You, my God, have revealed to your servant that you will build a house for him. So your servant has found courage to pray to you.  You, Lord, are God!”

Please, if you will, make the time to read I Chronicles 17 in its entirety this week.  It is so beautiful.  My heart’s cry in reading it this week is, “Lord, please draw me closer to You.  I want to know you more…like David knew you.  I want to have a humble and grateful heart like he did, and I desire to know you in such a deep, personal, and intimate way like he did.  Make my heart so very soft like his.”

Katie Botello
FBC Aztec Member