Devotionals for the Heart: A life lesson learned from growing a houseplant

Be a Houseplant
A devotional by Glynis Becker

“The LORD will guide you continually, giving you water when you are dry and restoring your strength. You will be like a well-watered garden, like an ever-flowing spring.” 

– Isaiah 58:11 (NLT)

I’m not a great gardener. I love the idea of planting seeds in the spring, watering them throughout the summer as the shoots grow into stalks, and enjoying bursts of colored flowers or delicious vegetables as they mature. But when it comes right down to it, I don’t enjoy the work it takes to get that end result.

I hate being outside in the heat of summer. I certainly don’t enjoy weeding. (Does anyone?) We don’t get a lot of rain where we live, so watering is a constant necessity which I sometimes (okay, a lot of the time) forget.

I do like houseplants, though, and I’m pretty good at keeping them alive, so this year when I saw an indoor cherry tomato plant kit, I thought it might be fun to try. In April I planted a few little seeds in a Mason jar and for months I’ve watered it, watching, fertilizing, and waiting.

One of my favorite parts of growing plants is watching how they move. During those early weeks when the stems were thin, the tiny shoots would bend almost in half trying their hardest to catch the sunlight. Every day I would rotate the pot a little bit, so they would learn to grow upright.

I love that plants have an instinct to turn their faces to the sun. They know what they need to grow and their instinct is to take as much of it as they need. They will send out roots as far as they need to go to get as much water and nutrients as they can because whether they know it or not, they have one purpose: to grow and produce fruit.

I am so much more stubborn than those plants! God loves me enough to let me make choices about how much I turn my face to Him, how much I want to grow, and how much fruit I want to produce. And I am so often too comfortable, too lazy, or too busy to make good choices. But what joy there is for both of us when I do!

Jesus wants us to choose Him—not because we have to, like that tomato plant—but because we want to. He wants us to choose today to turn our faces in expectation that He can take the tiny shoots of faith in our lives and make us powerful, fruitful witnesses to His love and care in this world.

So in case you’re wondering, it’s now August and my plant has three tiny green-olive-like tomatoes that haven’t grown bigger in weeks. I’m pretty sure my experiment in indoor gardening was a bust. But I am so thankful for a God who is a much, much better gardener than I am!

Let’s Pray: Creator God, fill me with Your Holy Spirit today as I go about my work. Be the gardener in my life, turning me to You. Prune away all of the things in my life I have no need for, and keep me close as I look to You to give me everything I need for this life and the next. In Jesus’s Name I pray. Amen.

~*~
Author Bio:

Glynis Becker writes devotions and inspirational fiction, hoping someday to have a published novel on her resume. 

She has co-written several screenplays, including the film Sinking Sand, available on DVD and digital streaming. 

Glynis, whose childhood was spent all over the country as an Air Force brat, has called South Dakota home for many years, along with her husband and two college-age children.

When she’s not writing or reading, she is watching more television than she should and crocheting.

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Connect with Glynis:
Website: www.glynisbecker.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beckerglynis/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/GlynisBecker7

Devotionals for the Heart: How to love someone who suffers from anxiety

Five Ways to Love Someone with Anxiety
A devotional by Jessica Brodie

"Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing."

– 1 Thessalonians 5:11 (ESV)

Do you love someone with anxiety? Or do you have anxiety and sometimes find it hard to connect with loved ones in a meaningful way that feeds your soul or theirs?

Last month, I shared four ways to love someone with depression (click here if you missed it).

This month, I offer five ways to love someone with anxiety.

Just like I have a number of family members with depression, I have others who struggle with anxiety and panic attacks, including one of my children. It’s not easy for them, and before I got more educated, it was hard for me to understand how to love them well in the midst of their road to mental health and recovery.

Many of these tips are rooted in scripture, for God created us, and God knows all about what it means to face our fears and strive to live well in the midst of our roiling, tumultuous emotions, thoughts, and responses. 

Here are some things I’ve learned (five ways to love someone with anxiety):

Way #1:  Get educated

First, get educated about anxiety. It’s important to know all we can about this disease and understand it isn’t something “invented” just because it can be invisible. Like cancer or diabetes, sometimes there is no physical evidence of anxiety, but it is very real. Knowing its effects, its triggers, and how to aid someone when they are having an anxiety episode can be both helpful and empowering. It can also be liberating and comforting for your loved one—they don’t have to explain or teach as much but can simply just be.

God gives us the Bible as a teaching tool. It contains much wisdom for how to love well and live in alignment with Him. We should read the Bible as a way to understand God and His people better. The Bible gives us so many reasons to “get educated” about God by reading His Word.

In 2 Timothy 3:16-17, we’re reminded, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.”

Joshua 1:8 tells us the Book of the Law “shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.”

Similarly, while anxiety education is not the same as knowing and “meditating on” God’s Word, it can be very helpful. It can equip us and help us live a more successful life.

Way #2: Accept them

Anxiety isn’t something that can go away on its own. It isn’t something you can “wish away” or “rise above.” It’s very real to the people that experience it, and those who have anxiety didn’t get it as punishment, nor are they not “good enough” or “Christian enough” because they have it. It’s a disorder.

Therefore, accepting them as they are can be a wonderful way to love them. Some people have anxiety all their lives, and others struggle with anxiety episodes that ebb and flow in different seasons or times of stress. It’s not your job to fix them or offer solutions.

In 1 Peter 4:8, we’re told, “Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.”

Love them as they are. It’s enough!

Way #3: Get physical

Sometimes we underestimate the effects of physical behavior when it comes to anxiety. Many people with anxiety feel like they’re trapped between fight or flight, yet the impending doom they sense creeps ever closer. They are frozen.

Helping your loved one “take flight” can help if that’s what they wish—offer to walk with them, or do some exercise. Distract them with physical activity like a chore or house project, or even just dance.

Or you can help your loved one “fight” by choosing to settle into the moment, to breathe, to sit there in their own space until the anxiety event passes.

Way #4: Establish yourself as a safe person

Anxiety can feel very chaotic and slippery. It can help people with anxiety to know there are certain constants in their life they can count on. That’s why things like square breathing, guided breaths, or meditation can help. So can other faith-oriented practices like prayer walks.

Also, having a number of trusted, supportive people in their life, who they can go to and talk or simply be, is helpful. You can establish yourself as a “safe person” by being authentic and stable, and truly keeping their best interest at heart. Don’t take it personally if they lash out, say “no” when you offer something, or cancel plans—understand that could be the anxiety. It doesn’t mean you need to accept abusive behavior, but it does mean you should let reason and love rule your relationship, not fluctuating feelings.

Security and boundaries can be very helpful when it comes to anxiety. Being a safe, secure person whose boundaries they can identify and respect helps because they know how to act with you. They know they can talk to you.

James 1:17 tells us God is the “father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.”

And Hebrews 13:8 tells us “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”

Point your loved one to the unchanging, ever-constant Person of God, who loves them now and forever. And try your best to be like the unchanging Jesus, who loves always and is our forever “safe person” even when everything else in life seems like it’s falling apart.

Way #5: Be affirming

Don’t forget the power of an authentic, encouraging affirmation. If your loved one does something nice, thoughtful, or courageous, don’t be shy about letting them know you noticed and appreciate it.

In 1 Thessalonians 5:11, we’re told to “encourage one another and build one another up.”

People with anxiety sometimes feel like they’re floundering in a sea of doubt and negativity. Fears pile up, and they get overwhelmed. A positive affirmation or other appreciative message can counteract that spirit of negativity. 

~*~

These are just five things I’ve learned in my own experiences. What can you add to this? How are you loving the people with anxiety in your life, or if you have anxiety, how do you wish your people showed love to you?

Let’s Pray: Dear Father God, help me to understand anxiety, like any other illness, does not define a person but is an obstacle they encounter in life. Help me see it is valid and can be devastating in spite of the fact that it can be invisible. Help me love well and true, and remember to point to you as the ultimate model for how to love: with compassion, mercy, sacrifice, and grace. In your holy name I pray, Amen.

~*~
Author Bio:

Jessica Brodie is an award-winning Christian novelist, journalist, editor, blogger, and writing coach, and the recipient of the 2018 American Christian Fiction Writers Genesis Award for her novel, The Memory Garden.

She is also the editor of the South Carolina United Methodist Advocate, the oldest newspaper in Methodism, and a member of the Wholly Loved Ministries team.

Learn more about her fiction and read her faith blog at http://jessicabrodie.com.

Devotionals for the Heart: You are NOT alone because God is with you!

I Am Not Alone
A devotional by Ginger Solomon

“And he who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone,

 for I always do the things that are pleasing to him.”~John 8:29 (ESV)

I wish I could say I always do things that are pleasing to God. However, even when I make mistakes or willfully sin, He is faithful to forgive me when I ask. He is always near when I call on Him.

I remember when my children were little. All they had to do was whimper and I would hear them if I was anywhere close. I could tell who it was, generally, and if it was an "I’m frustrated" cry or an "I’m hurt" cry. As they grew, especially the boys, it became harder to discern who was who, but if I listened carefully, I could tell. They each had their own voice.

I imagine that God can discern our voices as well. In addition, He can tell if our hearts are sincere or if we’re only saying the words. I’ve done it. I’m sure you have as well. Sung a song or prayed a prayer by rote because it’s expected. God loves a cheerful giver (2 Corinthians 9:7), but I imagine He also loves a cheerful, or at least sincere, worshipper and pray-er.

And yet, many times I’m not sincere. I struggle with selfishness or pain or . . .

Life is not always easy. It doesn’t always feel good. It doesn’t always turn out the way we expect and yet, God is there. He is always near when I call. He hears me. He hears my anguish, my selfishness, my pain, and He doesn’t turn away. He can take my frustration and anger. He can handle my questions. That doesn’t mean He’ll answer them the way I want.

How many places in the Bible book of Psalms do we see David cry out to God in anger and ask why? And then a split second later, he’s praising God and telling himself to, basically, get over his selfishness and trust God.

In Psalm 42:9, we see one example. “I say to God, my rock: ‘Why have you forgotten me? Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?’” A few verses later, he asks himself, “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me?” And then he admonishes himself. “Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God." (Psalm 42:11)

God doesn’t mind our questions. He doesn’t mind our frustrations or our anger. But, once we’re done, He expects us to remind ourselves of His faithfulness, righteousness, and holiness, and then make a decision. To trust Him. To place our hope in Him. To praise Him. To desire to please Him. Again and again and again.

Have you experienced a time when you expressed your anger toward God, and then, repentant, cried out to Him to help you understand, to comfort you in your distress, or to bring you peace? I know I have. I also know He has always been there.

*All Scripture in this devotional is from the English Standard Version (ESV) of The Holy Bible.

~*~
Author Bio:

Ginger Solomon is a Christian, a wife, a mother to seven, and a writer—in that order (mostly).

She writes or reads inspirational romance of any genre, and if she’s busy homeschooling, doing laundry, or fixing dinner, books are on her mind.

She’s a member of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW), president of her local writing group, and blogs regularly for InspyRomance.com and at gingersolomon.com.

A Message for MOMs: