When The Door Opens

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Published: Wednesday, 20 May 2020 11:17

Written by Bethany Elle

"Then I will set on his shoulder the key of the house of David; when he opens no one will shut, when he shuts no one will open."

Isaiah 22:22

So, I had a dream that I found intriguing. It was about Noah and the ark. I don't think about Noah very often, I do think about the promise God gave to him, the one that promises He will never flood the whole earth again, never. We have a promise to live in hope and salvation.

Back to the dream. I saw the ark on a high mountain. The door to the ark swung open and there was Noah, looking up to the blue sky. God's voice rumbled through out the entire earth, but He was directly talking to Noah. "I have opened the doors, go into the new earth and live in promise." 

Noah, on the other hand, was cautious. He had just spent many days cooped up in the ark, his family being his only company. Never in his lifetime had he seen anything like this experience; it was new, scary, envigorating, challenging....So, Noah slowly stepped out. The realization of change, new beginnings, and life overwhelmed him. But, God made it clear to him, in my dream, that He is the One that closed the door, and now He is the One opening the door. It was good to step forward.

I woke up thinking about my own experience with isolation, and the world as a whole---everyone has experienced a form of isolation due to Covid-19. All our doors closed, and we kept to ourselves in our homes. Now, doors are opening. In my community, almost all the doors are open and life "looks" pretty normal. Even with that, there is an awareness. We have all been impacted in one way or another by the closed doors. Some of us have walked out of the open door with great caution, others with joy and a new conviction. There's a lot of opinions flying around about what our next steps should be, and a lot of different realities for different groups of people. Even with all of this, the doors are open and we have to make a choice. Do we step out into the somewhat unkown, or do we stay in and close the door a little longer? There is risk either way. 

For me, I choose to walk through the door, mentally, emotionally, and sometimes physically.  There is so much I am not in control of, just like Noah with the rain. Noah was in control of his choices. He chose to obey God and build an ark, he chose to go into the ark, and then later walk out. He chose to believe God was with him the entire way. God is with me too, all the way through the door. And, whatever choice you make He is going to be there with you too. 

God has a way of opening doors with unknown information before us. The only way to thrive on the other side of the door is to have faith in His Soveriegnity. Just like Noah had faith.

"And God spoke to Noah, saying, 'Go out of the ark, you and your wife and your sons and their wives with you.'... Genesis 8:15

In God I Trust

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Published: Friday, 08 May 2020 05:01

Written by Bethany Elle

In every battle, take faith as your wrap-around shield, for it is able to extinguish the blazing arrows coming at you from the evil one!

Ephesians 6:16 (TPT)

Have you felt like life is one battle after another?  Are there times that you literally think you can feel every single arrow as if it’s blazing through your physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health? I totally have had days like this.  I’ve had days that have completely taken me down. In bed, in pain, disconnected.  

Embrace the power of salvation’s full deliverance, like a helmet to protect your thoughts from lies. And take the mighty razor-sharp Spirit-sword of the spoken Word of God.

Ephesians 6:17-18 (TPT)

It’s challenging to grasp the power of salvation’s full deliverance, when arrows are blazing through your being. How exactly does one “take faith as your wrap-around shield”? The dictionary tells me this about faith. Faith: confidence or trust in a person or thing. Belief that is not based on proof. Belief in God.

There are times that I struggle to believe. In those times I tell myself that even if I don’t believe, I will trust that God has it all figured out. When I’m hurting or feeling attacked from every angle, when I cannot see how it’s going to work out, I will choose to trust that God will come through. When He does come through, my belief will increase. 

Amazingly enough, God has come through every time, and I do believe more.  Yet, still, in tough situations I find myself questioning, and choosing to simply trust. I have to.

I will trust that I have the ability to live in strong faith and to wrap it completely around me as a shield. I will trust that even when I’m questioning whether the shield will protect me, God will come through with enough power to see me to the other side. I will trust that salvation’s full deliverance is all mine and will lead me into all truth, even on the days that the lies make more sense. I will trust that the Word of God extinguishes evil, even when it feels like I am standing in the midst of it and it’s very hard to believe. I will trust that the more I trust, the more I will believe!

God has a pretty good track record with His children. He has kindly walked along side me through numerous doubts and fears. He has gently challenged me to trust His goodness, and lovingly proven to me Who He is. He has not been exasperated, angry, impatient, unkind, or unloving towards me in my times of slow belief. He is simply there with me, growing me into an ever-present reason to believe!

What is your process in believing and trusting God?

Through the Torrent

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Published: Friday, 01 May 2020 06:33

Written by Bethany Elle

The Lord is my Shepherd [to feed, to guide, and to shield me], I shall not want. He lets me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still and quiet waters. He refreshes and restores my soul (life); He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake. 

Psalms 23:1-3

I've been thankful for opportunities to be out in nature and walk during this pandemic. In some states, the stay-at home orders are beginning to lift, and life will begin to ramp up with more busy moving about. It's been a long time for many of us to stay at home, a trying time to be without work and to have schedules so disrupted. For me, the time of reflection, hikes, and being with family has been good, and as things move toward opening I want to be able to hang on to those quiet spaces. I've been okay with the long days, the loss of time, the times reflection. 

For many it's been a fearful and frustrating time. I was thinking about the difference last evening as we walked by a very forceful river and waterfall.  It did not exude peace or safety at all, but commanded respect and distance.  Just like the pandemic. As I watched the water rush down the rocks and under the bridge I was standing on, I was very aware and thankful to not be in the water. The power of the river could take anything in its path, leaving nothing. 

How does someone feel at peace with that kind of force and danger? it's one thing to sit beside a bubbling creek, and quite another to be at a rivers edge. 

Standing on the bridge I considered both. God is both. Life is both. 

This pandemic has taken lives. It has forced its way into all our lives in one way or another. It has challenged peace, raised questions, stirred up turmoil. It has also slowed many of us down, opened new streams of communication, strengthened family ties, and challenged us to look at our priorities. It has given us time to rest. 

God absolutely does lead us beside still waters, He also allows us to experience the force of wild water. He is there in both cases offering peace. The stillness of our lives is an inner choice. A choice that is sometimes very difficult when their is an out of control force of power at the door. 

i have wondered what this pandemic is preparing us for, God promises to turn trials into triumph. The days ahead as we reopen will be challenging as well. We want to move on, and still dam up the force that threatens our borders. We  want to live in peace, and believe in safety. But, now many of us have a new awareness of unexpected waters. 

I have watched God lead my heart through many unexpected torrents, to places of celebrated calm. I have noticed that questions pop up every time, through it all, and God stills the angst I sometimes feel. I have witnessed Him calming the force of the rushing invasive power to a still calm peace within. His ability to protect the deepest needs do not waver through the unexpected torrents of turmoil.

Whatever is happening in your life today, and however you have experienced the unexpected wave of changes the last few weeks, my prayer for you is that you will know His peace through all of it.

What Does He Want?

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Published: Friday, 24 April 2020 06:05

Written by Bethany Elle

"His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature."

2 Peter 1:4

Have you ever wondered what God wants? Does He seem far away and mysterious with a big question mark between you and Him? Maybe quiet and withdrawn? I definately have had times in my life when this is my experience. It's taken several years for me to come to the belief that God wants me not what I do. He has given me His word through the Bible and through His divine nature to live out His desires for me to know Him, and to know who He created me to be.  When we know who God is, then we are able to steward the gifts He gives us. When we know who God is, then we have access to His heart, mind, and His will-His fullness.

In Philippians 2:12-13 we are told that it is God who works in us to will and to act in order to fulfill His good purpose. God longs for each of us to come into the fullness of who He created us to be and to live in the purpose of the destiny He has for us. God diligently works within us, when we allow Him to, to reach His good purpose. 

God rejoices over the restoration of our hearts, and someday He will come to restore all things. Because He lives within us, we have the ability to restore brokenness in the world around us. His Spirit lives and speaks through us and when we allow Him to touch the lives of others and give them hope in who He is, there is restoration. He wants us to live in a place of restoration. Even in times when it may feel like everything is falling apart, like many of us feel during Covid isolation. God desires us to press into Him, believe in restoration, and speak life into the world around us. When we are able to remember that He is good and He promises life over us, we are able to share with others His divine nature.

Jesus gave His life so that we would have the opportunity to partner with God. God invested in us. He wants Jesus to receive the fullness of his reward, which is a heavenly return on the investment He made in us. We are the Bride of Christ, He longs to be with us and to know our heart and be in deep relationship with us. 

What does God want? He wants you. He wants your surrendered heart. He wants you to sit in the stillness of the day and ask for His presence to resonate within your Spirit. He wants to have a converstation with you, restore you, transform you. He wants you to participate in His divine nature, and learn how precious you are. He wants you to discover that you are worth the priceless investment, and that He has always had a plan for you. He wants to consume you with love.